an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants in sermon preach'd before the king and queen at hampton-court, may . / by william wake ... publish'd by his majesties special command. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants in sermon preach'd before the king and queen at hampton-court, may . / by william wake ... publish'd by his majesties special command. wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for ric. chiswell ... and w. rogers ..., london : . reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng protestants. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - mona logarbo sampled and proofread - mona logarbo text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants . in a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at hampton-covrt , may . . by william wake , chaplain in ordinary to their majesties , and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . publish'd by his majesties special command . london : printed for ric. chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard : and w. rogers , at the sun over-against st. dunstan's church in fleetstreet . . rom . xv. , , . now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus : that ye may with one mind , and one mouth , glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us , to the glory of god. the words are part of that affectionate application , which the apostle here makes of his excellent discourse concerning the exercise of christian charity , in that great instance of condescention to the infirmities of our weaker brethren , in the foregoing chapter . the occasion of it was this : there were in those first times , many among the jews , who tho they were converted to the christian faith , yet still continued zealous for the law ; and not only carefully observed themselves all the rites and ceremonies of it , but would also by any means impose upon all others also , the observance of them . and how earnest they were upon this account , and how much they hated the gentile converts , upon whom the apostles did not think fit to lay any such burden , many passages both in the acts , and in st. paul's epistles , do sufficiently declare . but as in all other differences it seldom happens that the whole heat of the controversie rests only on one side ; so here , tho the jewish converts were both the first beginners of this dispute , and the more zealous pursuers of it , yet neither were the gentile christians utterly without fault in it ; but so far stood fast in that liberty , wherewith christ had made them free , as not only to despise the weakness and ignorance of the others , but to be ready almost , even to cut them off from their communion . i need not say how dangerous such a controversie as this might have proved , nor what a stop it might have put to the progress of christianity , in those first beginnings of the gospel . great were the difficulties which the apostles underwent on this occasion , whilst they endeavoured so to menage themselves between these two parties , as not only not to offend either , but , if it were possible , to bring them both to such a temper with one another , that neither the gentile convert might despise the weakness of his judaizing brother ; nor the jewish votary judge too severely of the liberty of the gentile christian. and this was the design of st. paul in the chapter before my text. where addressing himself , as indeed he seems to have done this whole epistle , to the gentile christians ; and whom , as having the truer notion of their christian liberty as to this matter , he therefore calls the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the strong in the faith : v. . he exhorts them in a most admirable discourse on this subject throughout that whole chapter , to bear the infirmities of the weak ; i. e. not to grieve nor despise them for their mistaken zeal , but by complying a little , and condescending to their infirmities , to endeavour , if it should please god , to draw them out of their error . let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification . and then concludes all in the words of the text , wherein we have , first , a hearty prayer to god almighty , that he would inspire them so effectually with a spirit of unity and charity , that notwithstanding all their differences , they might join unanimously , both jews and gentiles , not only in the same common worship of god , but with the same hearty affection to one another : now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus ; that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. and secondly , an exhortation , as the final result of his whole discourse , that they should with all charitable condescention and kindness receive , and love , and assist one another , and not despise , and censure , and deprive one another , either of their charity , or their communion ; wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us , to the glory of god. in which words , as they thus lie before us in the occasion and design of them , there are two things that will offer themselves to our consideration . first , an exhortation to these dissenting christians , and in them to all of us , not to break either charity or communion with one another , upon the account of such things wherein we may securely differ ; but mutually to bear with one another in our differences . secondly , an enforcement of this exhortation , from two of the greatest considerations that can possibly engage any christian to an observance of it ; viz. first , from the example of christ towards us . secondly , from the greater glory that will hereby redound to god. wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us , to the glory of god. i shall make it my endeavour with all the plainess that i can , to pursue both the exhortation and the enforcement in the three following propositions . i. that there may be differences in matters of lesser moment , between very good and zealous christians , without any just reflection either upon the men , or upon their religion . ii. that these differences ought not to hinder such persons from agreeing together , not only in a common charity , but , if it be possible , in a common worship of god too . iii. that to this end it is the duty of all christians , but especially of those who are the strong in faith , not only to pray for such a union , but , as they have opportunity , heartily to labour themselves , and earnestly to stir up all others , to endeavour after it . and first ; that there may be differences in matters of lesser moment between very good and zealous christians , without any just reflection upon the men , or upon their religion . for proof of which , i think i need go no farther than the very history of my text. i have already said how great a division there was between the jewish and the gentile converts , about the ritual observances of the law of moses , and with what a zeal the dissenting parties managed the dispute , till they had almost lost their charity , and made a deplorable schism in the church of christ. and yet i am confident no man will say that this was at all derogatory either to the truth of their common christianity , or to the infallible authority with which the apostles had deliver'd it unto them . and for the parties themselves that thus differ'd with one another , that they had a true zeal on both sides for the glory of god , and thought it matter of conscience , the one to observe these ceremonial institutions as what god still required of them ; the other to refuse any such imposition , as not only a needless burden , but even repugnant to the grace of christ declared to them in his gospel ; st. paul , in the prosecution of this very argument , does clearly bear witness to them , ch. xiv . . where he makes use of this very thing as one reason why they should mutually tolerate one another in their dissentions ; viz. that however they differ'd in their notions as to these particulars , yet they were both perfectly agreed in the same common zeal for the glory of god , and the discharge of their duty . he that regardeth the day , regardeth it unto the lord ; and he that regardeth not the day , to the lord he doth not regard it . he that eateth , eateth to the lord , for he giveth god thanks ; and he that eateth not , to the lord he eateth not , and giveth god thanks . and indeed , either we must say , that all , even the least points , relating to our religion , are so clearly and plainly revealed , that no honest man can possibly be mistaken if he will but impartially enquire into them ; which from the diffe●●nces of whole parties concerning these things , 't is plain they are not : or else mens different capacities , and opportunities , and tempers , and education consider'd , 't is in vain to expect that all good men should agree in all their notions of religion , any more than we see they do in any other concerns whatsoever . and who am i that i should dare to pronounce a sentence of reprobation against any one , in whom there appear all the other characters of an humble , upright , sincere christian , only because he has not perhaps met with the same instruction , or read the same books , or do's not argue the same way ; in a word , because he is not so wise , or it may be , is wiser than i am , and sees farther than i do , and therefore is not exactly of my opinion in every thing ? now if this be so , as both the principles of reason conclude it very well may be , and the common experience of mankind , not only in the particular concern of religion , but in most other things assures us that it is : that mens understandings are different , and they will argue different ways , and entertain different opinions from one another , about the same things , and yet may nevertheless deserve on all sides , to be esteemed very good and wise men for all that : how vain then must that argument be , which a late author of the church of rome , has with so much pomp revived against us , from our differences in a few lesser points of our religion , to conclude us to be erroneous in the greater ; and that because we are not exactly of the same opinion in every thing , that therefore we ought to be credited in nothing ; that is to say , that because protestants when they differ , are mistaken on one side , therefore when they agree , they are mistaken on both ? st . it is certain that amidst all our other divisions , we are yet on all sides agreed in whatsoever is fundamental in the faith , or necessary to be believed and professed by us in order to our salvation . there is no good protestant , but what does firmly believe all the articles of the apostles creed ; and embraces the holy scriptures as the word of god , and rule of his faith , and readily acknowledges whatsoever is plainly revealed therein , and is at all times disposed to submit to any thing that can by any necessary and certain consequence be proved to him thereby . in short , our differences , whatsoever they are , i will be bold to say they do no more , nor even so much concern the foundations of christianity , as those of the judaizing christians here did . if their differing therefore with one another , was no prejudice to the truth of their common christianity then , i would fain know for what reason our differences , which are lesser , shall become so much a greater argument against our common christianity now . but , dly , if our differing from one another in some points , be an argument that we are not certain in any ; how shall we be sure that those of the church of rome are not altogether as uncertain as we are ; seeing we are sure that they do no less differ among themselves , and that in points too , much more considerable than we do ? for to take only one instance instead of many , and that so considerable , that card. bellarmin once thought the sum of christianity , he meant the sum of popery , to consist in it , viz. the prerogatives of the bishop of rome , both in and over the church of christ. some there are who hold the pope to be head of the church , by divine right : others the contrary . * some , that he is infallible : others , that he is not . * some , that the pope alone , without a council , may determine all controversies : others , that he cannot . now if in these , and many other points of no less importance , they themselves are as far from agreeing with one another , as they can possibly pretend us to be ; what shall hinder us , but that we return their own inference upon them , that seeing they differ among themselves in such things as these , they are so far from that absolute infallibility they set up for , that in truth they have not so much as any certainty among them , even in those points wherein they do agree . is it that in their church , tho there be indeed as many differences as in ours , yet this makes not against them , seeing they have a certain rule , whenever they please , for the composing of them , viz. the definition of the pope , and of the church ? this , indeed , i find is commonly said by them : but then certainly , if they have such a ready means , as they say , of agreement among them , 't is the more shame for them , that they do not agree ; he being much more inexcusably guilty in the omission of any duty , who having a ready means to fulfil it , neglects so to do , than he who has none , or ( which is the same thing ) does not know that he has any . but indeed they have no means of ending their differences , any more than we have ; the holy scriptures we both of us acknowledg to be the word of god , and an infallible rule of faith ; but for any other direction , they are not yet agreed where to seek it : and sure that can be no very good means of ending all their other differences , which is its self one of their chiefest controversies . or is it , that they agree in matters of faith , and differ only in those things that do not belong to it ? because if they differ about any point , they for that very reason , conclude it to be no matter of faith. but besides the impertinence of this answer , which amounts to no more than this , that they do agree in what they do agree , and differ only in those things in which they differ : this is what we say for our selves concerning our differences ; we agree in all those things that are necessary to a sound and saving faith ; and if we differ in matters of lesser moment , 't is no more than what all other christians have ever done , and what those of the church of rome its self at this day do . so that still it must remain , either that those differences which were among the christians of old , and which are among us now , are no prejudice at all to the common truth which we profess ; or if they be , the consequence will fall upon those of the church of rome no less , that i do not say , and more severely , than upon us , and be of the same force against their religion , that it can be against ours . but i must carry this reflection a great deal farther ; for , dly . if once this principle be allowed , that because men differ in some things , they ought not to be credited in any , what then will become , not only of the protestant religion , as it now stands in opposition to popery , but even of christianity its self ? for might not a turk or a jew , if he were minded to give himself so much trouble to so little purpose as this late author has done , draw out a large history of the variations of christians among themselves , from the controversie of the text , unto this day ; and then by the very same principle conclude against us all , that we have none of us any certain grounds for our religion , because the differences that are among us , plainly shew , that some of us must be deceived ? and to go yet one step farther ; might not a sceptick by the same rule , argue against all religion , and even against all reason too ; that the disagreement of mankind in these and many other points of the greatest importance , plainly shews there is no certainty in any thing ; and therefore that we ought not to rely either upon the one , or upon the other ? it remains therefore , that unless we will overthrow all the measures of christian charity towards our neighbour , and the common truth , i do not say both of their faith and of our own , but even of christianity its self , nay and of all religion and reason in general ; we must conclude , that good christians may differ from one another in matters of lesser moment , without any just reflection either upon themselves or their religion . but here therefore i must desire not to be misunderstood . for when i say , that christians may , without any danger to themselves , or disparagement to the truth of their religion , differ with one another ; i mean only ( as the terms of my proposition expresly shew ) in lesser matters ; such as do not concern the fundamentals of faith , nor destroy the worship of god ; nor are otherwise so clearly revealed , but that wise and good men , after all their enquiries , may still continue to differ in their opinions concerning them . for otherwise , if interest and prejudice blind mens eyes , and they err because they resolve they will not be convinced ; and so by their own fault continue in mistakes contrary to the foundation of faith , and destructive of piety : if , for instance , men will profess to believe but in one god , and yet worship thousands ; if they will read ov●r the second commandment , and nevertheless both make and bow down before graven images in despite of it ; if , whilst ▪ they acknowledge christ to have instituted the blessed eucharist in both kinds , they command it to be administred but in one ; and pray in an unknown tongue , tho st paul has spent almost a whole chapter to shew the folly and unreasonableness of it : these are errors in which i am not concerned ; and tho i should be unwilling , even here , at all adventures to pronounce any sentence against the men ; yet i must needs say , that religion cannot be very sound , which stands corrupted with so many , and such fundamental abuses . and this makes the difference between those errors for which we separate from the church of rome , and those controversies which sometimes arise among protestants themselves . the former are in matters of the greatest consequence , such as tend directly to destroy the integrity of faith , and the purity of our worship ; and therefore such as are in their own nature destructive of the very essentials of christianity . whereas our differences do not at all concern the foundations either of faith or worship ; and are therefore such in which good men , if they be otherwise diligent and sincere in their enquiry , may differ , without any prejudice to themselves , or any just reflection upon the truth of their common profession . which being thus clear'd , in answer to the little endeavours of one of the latest of our adversaries against us upon this account ; i go on , secondly , to shew , ii. that such differences as these , ought not to hinder such persons from agreeing together , not only in a common charity , but , if it be possible , in a common worship of god too . this is what st. paul here expresly exhorts these dissenting christians to , and earnestly prays to god that he might see accomplished in them . that when they came together to the publick offices of the church , to offer up their common prayers and thanksgivings to him , they might do it , not only in the same form of words , but with the same affection of mind too , both towards god , and towards one another : now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus ; that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. such was their duty to one another then ; and we ought certainly no less to esteem the same to be our duty towards one another now : and first , as to the business of charity ; god forbid that any differences in religion whatsoever , much less such little ones as those we are now speaking of , should ever make us deny that to our fellow christians . 't is true indeed , our saviour christ once foretold to his disciples , that there should rise up men from among their brethren , who should upon this account not only put them out of their synagogues , but even think that it was a matter of religion to kill them . but they were jews , not christians , who were to do this ; and he expresly adds , that 't was their ignorance of him and his religion that should carry them on to so furious and intemperate a zeal ; for these things , says he , shall they do unto you , because they have not known the father nor me. and we must confess it , to the scandal of our holy religion , that there are a sort of men who call themselves christians now , that still continue to fulfil this prophecy in the very letter of it ; who not only cast us out of their synagogues , that we should not much complain of ; and , as far as in them lies , cut us off from all the hopes of salvation too ; but , to compleat the parallel , openly arm the whole world against us , and teach men to believe , that 't is a work of piety to root us out of it ; and therefore , that whosoever killeth us , does do god service . but in this , as well as in the rest of their errors , they give us but the more effectually to understand how little they have in them of the true spirit of christianity ; for sure such things as these they could never do , but only that , as our saviour in that other case before said , they have not known the father nor him. and i hope i shall need no argument to perswade you not to be misled by that which we all of us so justly lament , as one of the most deplorable corruptions even of popery it self . christianity commands us to love our enemies ; and sure then we cannot but think it very highly reasonable not to hate our brethren ; but especially on such an account , as , if it be once admitted , will in this divided state of the church , utterly drive the very name of brotherly love and charity out of it : seeing by whatever arguments we shall go about to justifie our uncharitableness to any others , they will all equally warrant them to with hold in like manner their charity from us . there is no honest , sincere christian , how erroneous soever he may be , but what at least is perswaded that he is in the right ; and looks upon us to be as far from the truth by differing from him , as we esteem him for not agreeing with us . now if upon the sole account of such differences it be lawful for us to hate another ; we must for the very same reason allow it to be as lawful for him also to hate us. thus shall we at once invert the characteristick of our religion ; by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples , if ye have love one to another ; and turn it into the quite contrary note ; whilst we make our hatred to our brother the great mark of our zeal for our religion ; and conclude him to love christ the most , who the least loves his fellow christian. how much rather ought we to consider , with our apostle , the love of our dear master to us , even whilst we were yet his enemies , and love those whom we ought to hope , notwithstanding all their errors , are yet still his friends ; and not think those unworthy of our charity , whom we piously presume god will not think unworthy of his favour ? we suppose them to be mistaken in those things wherein they differ from us , and perhaps they are so ; but yet we must consider , that we our selves also are but men , and therefore may err ; and they as verily think us in the wrong , as we do them : and , for ought i know , we must leave it to the day of judgment to decide the controversie , which of us is in the right . in the mean time , if they are mistaken , i am sure our uncharitableness is not the way to convince them of their error : but may rather indispose them to consider the weight of our arguments as they ought , whilst they see so little regard in our affections towards them . in short , if we are indeed , what we esteem our selves to be , the strong in the faith , let us then remember , that tho charity be their duty too as well as ours , yet 't is to such as we are , especially , that st. paul addresses the exhortation of the text , to bear the infirmities of the weak ; and to receive one another , as christ also hath received us , to the glory of god. but , . such differences as these , ought not only not to lessen our charity , but , if it be possible , not to hinder us from joining together in the same common worship of god with one another . this was what these dissenting christians , notwithstanding all their heats and contentions , nevertheless still continued to do . they did with one mouth glorifie god , even when their differences would not suffer them to do it with one heart . they united together in a common worship of god , tho they could not unite either in opinion or affection with one another . indeed where mens errors are such as utterly do subvert the very essentials of our religious worship , it is then in vain to hope for any communion in the publick service of god with them . we must not destroy the principles of christianity , out of a zeal to enlarge the communion of christians . he would be a very condescending votary indeed , who for the sake of praying to god with the papist , would pray to the blessed virgin and saints too with him : who rather than be excluded their churches , would bow down before their images ; and not only worship their host , but even give up his right to the cup in the eucharist , only that he might receive that holy sacrament in their company . it is , no doubt , a very desirable thing to lessen the differences of christians , and enlarge their communion , as far as ever we can : and it has never gone well with the church of christ , since men have been so narrow spirited as to mix the controversies of faith , with their publick forms of worship ; and have made their liturgies , instead of being offices of devotion to god , become tests and censures of the opinions of their brethren . but yet when all is done , the truths of christianity must not be sacrificed to the peace of christians ; nor the honour of god be given up , to keep up a unity and communion with one another . but where mens differences are in points that do not at all affect their religious service ; or not so much , but that god may be very well worshipp'd , and yet communion with our fellow christians preserved too ; in such cases as this , our dissentions ought not only not to lessen our charity , but not to break our unity neither : we may continue to differ , as the christians in my text did ; and yet with one mind , and one mouth , glorifie god , as st. paul exhorted them to do . and this brings me to the third and last point . iii. that to this end , it is the duty of all of us , but especially of the stronger christians , not only to pray for such a union , but also , as they have opportunity , heartily to labour themselves , and earnestly to stir up all others to endeavour after it . i do not believe there is any good christian so little affected with those unhappy divisions under which the church at this day labours , as not both heartily to deplore them , and to think that nothing could be too much , that might innocently be done on all hands , for the redressing of them . but then i am sure the natural consequence of this must be , what both my text , and this discourse are designed to exhort you to ; viz. that we ought every one of us , not only heartily to pray for such a union , but also , as we have opportunity , earnestly to labour for the attainment of it . indeed for what concerns the whole body of the catholick church on earth , so many are the disputes that have arisen among the several parties and communions of it , and some of them in points so near to the foundations of christianity , that whilst men resolve to keep fast to their conclusions , and will not suffer the plainest arguments to convince them of their errors , 't is in vain to hope ever to see things brought to such a temper , as we could wish in that . but especially whilst that part which is the most corrupt , is so far from being willing to concur to any such union , that on the contrary , she has cut off all possibility of attaining it . and by arrogating an unwarrantable infallibility to her self , and authority over all others , will neither reform her own abuses , nor admit any into her communion , that will not profess the same errors , in which she her self stands involved . so that here , all we can even wish for , is , that men would at last be so wise , as tho they differ in opinion , yet to love as brethren , and agree together in a common charity , till we shall be so happy as to unite in a common faith and worship of god. but for us whom it has pleased god , by delivering us from the errors and superstitions of the church of rome , to unite together in the common name of protestant , reformed christians , would we but as heartily labour after peace , as we are all of us very highly exhorted to it ; i cannot see why we who are so happily join'd together in a common profession of the same faith , at least , i am sure in all the necessary points of it ; and i hope amidst all our lesser differences , in a common love and charity to one another , should not also be united in the same common worship of god too . i will not now enter into any dispute , to shew how little reason there is for any one to separate from the offices of the church of england , upon the account of those few exceptions that have sometimes been offer'd to justifie the doing of it . this is a work both too large for such a discourse ; and besides the design of my present undertaking . and that one concession of many of our brethren themselves , who tho they continue ordinarily to separate from us , yet nevertheless freely allow of what they call occasional communion with us , i think sufficiently shews how little real ground there is for those scruples , that have so long detain'd them in an unjust aversion to our worship . blessed be god , who has abundantly justified both the purity of our doctrine , and the innocency of our worship , not only by the general approbation of the reform'd churches abroad , who both freely communicate with us in our religious offices , and have often given testimony in favour of them ; but in the happy conviction of many at home , who were once enemies to our constitution , but who now go with us into the same house of god as friends . and indeed the things for which some forsake us now , are no other than what they were in the beginning of the reformation ; when yet there was no such thing as separation from our communion : but on the contrary , the old non-conformists themselves , tho they disliked some things in our worship , yet freely declared they thought it a crime to divide the church upon the account of them . and they who at this day separate from us , for the sake of those few constitutions that have been made for the order and decency of our publick worship , must for the same reason have separated from all the churches of the christian world , for above years ; in none of which they might not have found as great , that i do not say , and much greater , occasion of offence , than they can in ours . but yet , since mens scruples are unaccountable , and after all that can be said , they will still differ even about indifferent things , and be afraid many times , where no fear is ; and a too long experience has already shewn us , that if ever we mean to accomplish that union so much recommended to us by our apostle , so advantageous to the church at all times , but especially at this time so necessary to our peace and our establishment , that it seems to be the only way that yet remains to settle and to secure us ; and upon all these accounts so much to be desired by all good men , we must seek it by that rule which st. paul here proposed to the dissenting christians of my text , we then that are strong in the faith , ought to bear the infirmities of the weak , and not to please our selves . i cannot but think it a reflection becoming every good christian among us , but in a more especial manner , worthy the consideration of such an auditory as this , whether somewhat may not yet be done for the sake of peace , and to bring things to such a * temper , that both order and decency may still be preserved , and yet our unity no longer broken . and for exhortations to so good and christian a work , shall i set before you the example of our blessed saviour recommended to us in the text , with what a mighty condescention he has treated us ; how he came down from heaven , and took upon him the form of a servant , and being made in the likeness of a sinful man , humbled himself even to the death upon the cross for us ; how he still bears not only with our infirmities , but with our sins too ; and by all these wonderful instances of his love to us , teaches us , says st. john , how we ought also to love one another ? or rather , shall i shew you , how far such a blessed union as this , would conduce to the glory of god , to the security of our religion , and to the promotion of peace , and charity , and piety among us ? i need not say what a dishonour our divisions have already brought to the reformation , nor what a stop they have put to the progress of it . great , to be sure , is the advantage which our enemies either have , or at least hoped to have made , by those contests which they have taken so much pains both to bring in , and to keep up among us : and methinks there should need no other argument to stir up every true friend to the name of protestant , to endeavour all he can to compose our differences , than this one thing , that we are sufficiently convinced who they are that we please , and whose interests we serve , by the continuance of them . let us add to this , what great obligations our holy religion lays upon us , to follow after those things that make for peace , and whereby we may edifie one another : how our saviour has set it down as the very badge of our discipleship ; by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples , if ye have love one to another : what exhortations his apostles have given us ; if it be possible , as much as in us lies , to live peaceably with all men . but especially with reference to the differences about religion , to mark them which cause divisions and offences , contrary to the doctrine which we have learnt , and avoid them . with what a scrupulous care did st. paul manage himself between the dissenting parties in my text ? what admirable rules did he lay down for them to walk by ? and with what an affectionate earnestness did he enforce them ? if there be any consolation in christ , if any comfort of love , if any fellowship of the spirit , if any bowels and mercies , fulfil ye my joy , that ye be like-minded , having the same love , being of one accord , of one mind . and may i not beg leave , tho not with the authority , yet with the charity of st. paul , to apply all this to those unhappy divisions that at this day rend in pieces the church of christ among us ; and beseech you , by all these endearing considerations , to pursue those things which may make for our peace ; and for the closing of those breaches , which the malice of our enemies too successfully begun , and our own weaknesse has too fatally kept up among us . never , certainly , was there a time , since our divisions first began , in which we had greater reason to consider of such a union , or , i hope , a fairer opportunity to promise our selves an accomplishment of it . only let us all be as careful to improve it , as i am perswaded we have all of us not only seem'd to desire , but have indeed earnestly long'd for it . let us shew the sense we have of that wonderful deliverance god has given us out of the hand of our enemies , by uniting our selves in the strictest league of friendship with one another . hitherto we have defended our church by our arguments ; let us now by our charity settle and establish it , against the like dangers for the time to come . this will indeed render both our selves and our religion glorious to the world ; and may be a happy augury that the blessed time so long wrapped up in sacred prophecy , is indeed now ready to be revealed : when the church of christ being purged from those corruptions that have so long defaced its beauty , shall again appear in its primitive purity . when all heresie and schism being every where abolished , and the mystery of iniquity laid fully open , and the man of sin destroy'd ; true religion and sincere piety shall again reign throughout the world ; god himself shall pitch his tabernacle among us , and dwell with us , and we shall be his people , and he shall be our god. o blessed state of the church militant here on earth ! the glorious antipast of that peace and piety which god has prepared for his church triumphant in heaven ! who would not wish to see those days , when a general reformation , and a true zeal , and a perfect charity , passing through the world , we should all be united in the same faith , the same worship , the same communion and fellowship one with another ? when all pride and prejudice , all interests and designs being submitted to the honour of god , and the discharge of our duty , the holy scriptures shall again triumph over the vain traditions of men ; and religion no longer take its denomination from little sects and factions , but we shall all be content with the same common primitive names of christians and brethren , and live together as becomes our character , in brotherly love and christian charity with one another ? and who can tell but such a change as this , and which we have otherwise some reason to believe is nigh at hand , may even now break forth from the midst of us , would we but all seriously labour to perfect the great work which the providence of god has so gloriously begun amongst us , and establish that love and unity among our selves , which may afterwards diffuse it self from us into all the other parts of the christian world besides ? but however , whether we shall ever see , i do not say , such a blessed effect as this , but even any good effect at all of our endeavours here on earth , or no ; yet this we are sure , we shall not lose our reward in heaven . when to have contributed , tho in the least degree , to the healing of those divisions we so unhappily labour under , shall be esteemed a greater honour , than to have silenced all the cavils of our enemies ; and even to have pray'd , and wish'd for it , and , where we could not any otherwise have contributed our selves , but to have exhorted others to it , shall be rewarded with blessings , more than all the stars in the firmament ; for number . now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus : that ye may with one mind , and one mouth , glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. to him be honour and praise for ever and ever . amen . finis . books published by the reverend mr. wa●● . printed for richard chiswell . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . ] o. a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of mons. de meaux , late b of condom , and his vindicator . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the first part : in which the account that has been given of the bishop of meaux's exposition , is fully vindicated , the distinction of old and new popery , historically asserted , and the doctrine of the church of rome , in point of image worship , more particularly considered . second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against monsieur de meaux and his vindicator , the second part . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host : in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford , on this subject . to which is prefixed a large historical p●eface , relating to the same argument . two discourses of purgatory and prayers for the dead . o. a continuation of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome , being a full account of the books that have been of late written on both sides . an historical treatise of transubstantiation written by an author of the communion of the church of rome ; rendred into english. with a preface preparation for death ; being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a distemper of which she died . printed for william rogers . a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry ; in which a late author ( viz the bp. of oxford's ) true and only notion of idolatry , is considered and confuted . o. the sum of a conference between dr. clagett and f. p. gooden , ab●ut transubstantiation . publish'd by this author . and to be added to dr. clagett's sermons now in the press , which will be publish'd this term. printed for richard chiswell , and william r●gers . an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants . in a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at hampton court , may . in the press , a sermon preach'd before the honou●ab●e house of commons , at st. margaret's westminster , june . . being the fa●t day appointed by the king and queens proclamation , to implore the blessing of almighty god upon their m●jesties forces by sea and land , and success in the war now declared against the french king. other tracts by the same avthor . a sermon preached at paris , on the th of january , s. v. / . the present state of the controversie . sure and honest means for conversion of all hereticks ; and wholsom advice and expedients for the reformation of the church . translated , and published with a preface . a letter from several french ministers fled into germany , upon the account of the persecution in france , to such of their brethren in england , as approved the king's declaration touching liberty of conscience . translated from the original french. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e see ch . xiv . . acts xv . . — xxi . . acts xv . , — . gal. v. . &c. gal. v. . rom. xi . , &c. rom. xv . . ibid. verse . see theoderet , chrysost. theophylact , &c. in loc . prop. . acts xv . . gal. v. . rom. xiv . . h●st●ire des variations des eglises protestantes : par mr. l' evesque de meaux . the design of which , may be seen in the summary of his preface — les variations dans la foy preuve certaine de fausset é. — charactere des heresies d'estre variables . — ce charactere reconnu dans tous les ages de l' eglise . — charactere d'immutabilitè dans lay foy de l' eglise catholique . — que les variations de l' un des partis ( de protestans ) est une preuve contre l' autre , &c. praef. ad lib. de summ. p. t. . p. . ingoldstad . a. . bellarm to . . p. . de not. eccl. a. see mr. chillingworth , p. , . bellarm. ib. p. . b. prop. . john c. xvi . . — verse . joh. . . verse . — . prop. . rom. xv . . * see the petition of the archbishop and bishops to king james , for which they were committed to the tower. phil. ii . , . joh. iv . . rom. xiv . . joh. xiii . . rom. xii . . rom. xvi . . phil. ii . — . — . rev. xxi . . a letter of several french ministers fled into germany upon the account of the persecution in france to such of their brethren in england as approved the kings declaration touching liberty of conscience : translated from the original in french. jurieu, pierre, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a letter of several french ministers fled into germany upon the account of the persecution in france to such of their brethren in england as approved the kings declaration touching liberty of conscience : translated from the original in french. jurieu, pierre, - . wake, william, - . p. s.n., [london : ] reproduction of original in union theological seminary library, new york. attributed to pierre jurieu. cf. nuc pre- . translation of work by william wake. cf. nuc pre- . caption title. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng dissenters, religious -- france. protestants -- france. freedom of religion -- france -- early works to . - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - andrew kuster sampled and proofread - andrew kuster text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a letter of several french ministers fled into germany upon the account of the persecution in france , to such of their brethren in england as approved the kings declaration touching liberty of conscience . translated from the original in french. altho in our present dispersion , most dear and honoured brethren , it has pleased the providence of god to conduct us into places very distant from one another . yet that union which ought always to continue betwixt us , obliges us to declare our sense to one another with a christian and brotherly freedom upon all occasions , that may present themselves to us so to do . 't is this makes us hope that you will not take it amiss of us , if at this time we deliver our opinion to you touching the affairs of england in matters of religion , and with reference to that conduct which you have observed therein . we ought not to conceal it from you , that the greatest part of the protestants of europe have been extremely scandalized to understand , that certain among you , after the example of many of the dissenters , have addressed to the king of england , upon the account of his declaration , by which he has granted liberty of conscience to the non-conformists : and that some others who had already ranked themselves under the episcopal communion , nevertheless published the said declaration in their churches ; and this at a time when almost all the bishops themselves with so much firmness and courage refused to do it . if we may be permitted to tell you freely what our opinion is concerning the conduct of the bishops and of the dissenters in this conjuncture , we shall make no difficulty to pronounce in favour of the former . we look upon it that they have exceedingly well answered the duty of their charge , whilst despising their own private interest , they have so worthily supported that of the protestant religion : whereas the others , for want of considering these things as they ought to have done , have given up the interest of their religion to their own particular advantages . it is not out of any complement to the bishops , much less out of any enmity to the dissenters , that we make such different judgments concerning them . we know well enough how to commend or blame , what seems to us to deserve our praise or our censure both in the one and in the other . we do not at all approve the conduct of the bishops towards the dissenters under the last reign . and altho we do not any more approve that of the dissenters in separating from their communion , yet we do confess they had some reason in the bottom for it ; and that the ceremonies which they have refused to submit to are the remains of popery , which we could rather wish might have been entirely abolished . in this unhappy schism which has so long time rent the church of england ; we look upon it , that both parties have been equally defective in their charity . on the one side , the dissenters ought by no means to have separated themselves for the form of ecclesiastical government , nor for ceremonies which do not at all concern the fundamentals of religion . on the other side , the bishops should have had a greater condescension to the weakness of their brethren : and without doubt they would have acted in a manner more agreeable to the spirit of the gospel , if instead of treating them with so much rigor as they did , they had left them the liberty of serving god according to their conscience , till it should have pleased him to re-unite all under the same discipline . however the conformity of opinion between the dissenters and us , ought to have prejudiced us in their favour , had we been capable of partiality on this occasion . there is also another thing which might have disposed us to judge less favourably of the bishops than of them , and that is the yoke which they have imposed upon the french ministers , by obliging them to receive a second ordination before they could be permitted to exercise their ministry in the church of england , as if the ordination they had received in france had not been sufficient . but we must do justice to all the world , and bear witness to the truth . we have already said , and we must again repeat it , it seems to us that on this last occasion the bishops have discharged their duty , and are most worthy of praise , whereas the dissenters on the contrary are extreamly to be ●●●●ned . and we will presently offer our reasons wherefore we judge so of the one , and of the other . in the mean time , most dear brethren , give us leave freely to tell you , that if our brethren the dissenters of england , who have addressed to the king , are to be blamed , ( as we verily believe they are ) you certainly are much more to be condemned . the hardships under which they had lived for many years without churches , without pastors , without assemblies , made them think the liberty of conscience which was offered to them , a great ease . their spirits , soured and prejudiced by the ill treatments they had received from the church of england , had not freedom enough to let them see that the present which was made them was empoison'd . and therefore upon the sudden they received it with joy , and thought themselves obliged to testifie their acknowledgment of it . but for you who never had any part in the divisions of the church of england , and who by consequence were in a state to judge more soundly of things , how is it that you should not have perceived the poison that was hid under the liberty of conscience offered to them ? or if you did not perceive it of your selves , how is it that the generous refusal of the bishops , tho' at the peril of their liberty and estates , to publish the declaration in their diocesses , should not at least have open'd your eyes ? how have those venerable prelates now highly justified themselves from the reproach that was laid upon them of being popishly affected , and of persecuting the dissenters only , but of a secret hatred to the reformation ? how well have they made it appear that these were only calumnies invented by their enemies to render them odious to the protestants , and that their hearts were truly fix'd to the reformed religion , and animated with a zeal worthy primitive bishops ? could you see those faithful servants of god , disobey the order of their soveraign , expose themselves thereby to his disgrace , suffer imprisonment , and prepare themselves to suffer any thing , rather then betray their consciences and their religion , without admiring their constancy , and being touched with their examples ? but above all , could you resolve by your conduct to condemn that of those generous confessors ? is this the acknowledgment which you ought to have made to them for that charity , with which they had received and comforted you in your exile ? is this to answer the glorious quality of confessors , of which you so much vaunt your selves ? is this the act of faithful ministers of christ ? give us leave to tell you , most dear brethren , your proceedings in this affair appear so very strange to us , that we cannot imagine how you were capable of so doing . it seems to us to have even effaced all the glory you had attained by your sufferings , to reproach your ministry and to be unworthy of true and reformed christians . this is no rash judgment which we pass ; and to convince you that it is not , we beseech you only to examine these things with us without prejudice and interest . the declaration of which we speak is designed for two purposes : the one , the re-establishment of popery . the other , the extinction of the reformed religion in england . the former of these designs appears openly in it . the second is more concealed ; 't is a mystery of iniquity , covered over with a specious appearance ; and of which the trace must be concealed till the time of manifestation comes . we will say nothing of a third design , which is , of the oppression of the liberties of england for the establishment of an absolute authority , but shall leave it to the polititians to make their reflexions upon it . as for us , if we sometimes touch upon it , it shall be only with reference to religion : we will apply our selves chiefly to the two other designs which they proposed to themselves who made that declaration . it cannot be deny'd but that by this declaration , there is liberty of conscience granted indifferently to the papists and to the dissenters . it comprehends both the one and the other under the name of nonconformists . and we may with confidence affirm , that they were the papists especially whom the king had in his eye when he gave this declaration . and howsoever he may pretend to have been touched with the oppressions which the dissenters had suffered ; yet that his principal design was to re-establish popery . behold here already a very great evil , and such as all true protestants are obliged with their utmost power to oppose . what , shall we see popery , that abominable religion , that prodigious heap of filthiness and impurity , re-establish it self , with all its honours , in kingdoms from which the reformation had happily banished it ? and shall there be found in those kingdoms protestants who not only stand still without making any opposition to it , but e'en favour its re-establishment , and openly give it their approbation ? who could have thought that the dissenters of england , men who have always testified so great an aversion to the roman religion ; and who have no other pretence to separate from the bishops , than that they have in part retained in their government and ceremonies the exteriors of that religion , should now themselves joyn to bring it intirely in ? but above all , who could have believed that the french ministers , who after having experimented all the fury of popery in france , were at last banished , rather than that they would subscribe to its errors and abuses : and for this very cause fled into england , that they might there more freely profess the protestant religion , should now contribute to re-establish popery in their new country , where they had been received by their brethren with so singular a charity ? would you indeed , gentlemen , see england once more submitted to the tyranny of the pope , whose yoke it so happily threw off in the last age ? would you there see all those monstrous doctrins , all those superstitions , and that horrible idolatry which reigned there before the reformation , domineer once more in it ? would you that the people should again hear the pulpits and the churches sounding out the doctrins of purgatory , of indulgences , of the sacrifice of the mass , &c. and see the images and reliques of the saints carried solemnly in procession , with a god formed by the hand of men ? and that in fine , they should again publickly adore those vain idols ? we are confident there is not a good protestant in the world that would not startle but at the thought of it . but this is not yet all . the declaration of which we speak does not only re-establish popery with all its abominations , but does moreover tend to the ruine of the reformation in england . a man need not to have any great sagacity to be convinced of this . and that as much as it seems to establish for ever the protestant religion in that kingdom , it does on the contrary destroy the very foundations of it . the ground upon which the reformation is founded in england , are the laws which have been made at several times for the settlement of it , and to abolish either the tyranny of the pope , or the popish religion altogether . and as these laws have been made by the king and parliament together , so that the king has not the power to repeal them without a parliament , they secure the protestant religion against the enterprises of such kings as should ever think to destroy it . but now if this declaration be executed , we are no more to make any account of those solemn laws which have been passed in favour of the reformation , they become of no value , and the protestant religion is intirely left to the king's pleasure . this is what will clearly appear from what we are about to say . the king not having been able to obtain of the last parliament to consent to a repeal of the laws which had been made against the nonconformists , dissolved the parliament it self . not long after , without attending a new one , he did that alone by his declaration which the parliament would not do conjunctly with him . he granted a full liberty of conscience to the nonconformists ; he freed them from the penalties which had been appointed against them , and dispensed with the oaths to which the laws obliged all those who were admitted to any charges , whether in the soldiery , or in administration of justice , or of the government . in pursuance of these declarations he threw the protestants out of all places of any great importance to clap in papists in their room , and goes on without ceasing to the intire establishment of popery . who does not see , that if the protestants approve these declarations , and themselves authorise such enterprises , the king will not stop here , but that this will be only one step to carry him much further ? what can be said when he shall do the same thing with reference to those laws which exclude the papists out of the parliament , that he has done to those which shut them out of all charges and imploys , and forbad them the exercise of their religion ? does not the approbation of such declarations , as it overthrows these last , carry with it before hand the approbation of those which shall one day overthrow the former ? and if the king shall once give himself the authority to bring papists into the parliament , who shall hinder him from using solicitations , promises , threatnings , and a thousand other the like means to make up a popish parliament ? and who shall hinder him with the concurrence of that parliament to repeal all the antient laws that had been passed against popery , and make new ones against the protestants ? these are without doubt the natural consequences of what the king at this time aims at . these are the fruits which one ought to expect from it , if instead of approving as some have done his enterprises against the laws , they do not on the contrary with all imaginable vigor oppose them . reflect a little on what we have here said , and you will consess that we have reason to commend the conduct of the bishops who refused to publish the declaration ; and to condemn those dissenters who have made their addresses of thanks for it . it is true that the dissenters are to be pitied , and that they have been treated hardly enough , and we do not think it at all strange , that they so earnestly sigh after liberty of conscience . it is natural for men under oppression to seek for relief : and liberty of conscience considered only in it self , is it may be the thing of all the world the most precious and most desirable . would to god we were able to procure it for them by any lawful means , and without such ill consequences , tho' it were at the peril of our lives ! but we conjure them to consider how pernicious that liberty of conscience is which is offer'd to them , as we have just now shewn . on the one side , it is inseparably linked with the establishment of popery ; and on the other , it cannot be accepted without approving a terrible breach which his majesty thereby makes upon the laws , and which would be the ruine of the reformation in his kingdoms , were not some remedy brought to it . and where is the protestant who would buy liberty of conscience at so dear a rate , and not rather choose to continue deprived of it all his life ? should the private interest of our brethren the dissenters blind them in such a manner , that they have no regard to the general interest of the church ? should they for enjoying a liberty of conscience so ill assured , shut their eyes to all other considerations ? how much better would it be for them to re-unite themselves to the bishops , with whom they differ only in some points of discipline ; but especially at this time , when their conduct ought to have entirely defaced those unjust suspicions which they had conceived against them ? but if they could not so readily dispose themselves to such a re-union , would it not be better for them to resolve still to continue without liberty of conscience , and expect some more favourable time when they may by lawful means attain it , than to open themselves a gate to popery , and to concur with it to the ruine of the protestant religion ? you will , it may be , tell us , that it looks ill in us , who so much complain , that we have been deprived of liberty of conscience in france , to find fault with the king of england for granting it to his subjects : and that it is the least that can be allowed to a sovereign , to allow him the right to permit the exercise of his own religion in his own kingdoms , and to make use of the service of such of his subjects as himself shall think fit , by putting them into charges and employs . you will add , that his majesty does not go about neither to abrogate the antient laws , nor to make new ones . all he does being only to dispense with the observation of certain laws in such of his subjects as he thinks fit , and for as long time as he pleases ; and that the right of dispensing with , and suspending of laws , is a right inseparably ty'd to his person : that for the rest , the protestant religion does not run the least risque . there are laws to shut the papists out of parliament , and these laws can neither be dispensed with , nor suspended : so that the parliament partaking with the king in the legislative power , and continuing still protestant , there is no cause to fear , that any thing should be done contrary to the protestant religion . besides , what probability is there , that a king , who appears so great an enemy to oppression in matters of conscience and religion , should ever have a thought , tho he had the power himself , to oppress in this very matter the greatest part of his subjects , and take from them that liberty of conscience which he now grants to them , and which he promises so inviolably to observe for the time to come ? these are all the objections that can with any appearance of reason be made against what we have before said . they may all be reduced to five , which we shall examine in their order . and we doubt not but we shall easily make it appear , that they are all but meer illusions . . we do justly complain , that they have taken from us our liberty of conscience in france , because it was done contrary to the laws . and one may as justly complain , that the k of england does labour to re-establish popery in his country , because he cannot do it but contrary to the laws . our liberties in france were founded upon solemn laws , upon perpetual , irrevocable , and sacred edicts ; and which could not be recalled , without violating at once the public faith , the royal word , and the sacredness of an oath . and popery has been banished out of england by laws made by king and parliament , and which cannot be repealed but by the authority of king and parliament together ; so that therefore there is just cause to complain , that the king should go about to overthrow them himself alone by his declaration . . it is not true that a sovereign has always the right to permit the exercise of his own religion in his dominions , and to make use of the service of such of his subjects as he himself shall think fit , that is to say , by putting of them into charges and employs : and in particular , he has not this right , when the laws of his country are contrary thereunto , as they are in the case before us . every king is obliged to observe the fundamental laws of his kingdom . and the king of england , as well as his subjects , ought to observe the laws which have been established by king and parliament together . . for the third , the distinction between the abrogation of a law , and the dispensing with and suspending of it cannot here be of any use ; whether the king abrogates the laws which have been made against popery , or whether without saying expresly that he does abrogate them ; he overthrows them by his declarations , under pretence of dispensing with , or suspending of them ; it is still in effect the same thing . and to what purpose is it that the laws are not abrogated , if in the mean time all sorts of charges are given to papists , and popery it self be re-established contrary to the tenor of the laws ? the truth is , if the king has such a power as this , if this be a right necessarily tied to his person , 't is in vain that the parliament does partake with him in the legislature . this authority of the parliament is but a meer name , a shadow , a phantome , a chimera , and no more . the king is still the absolute master , because he can alone , and without his parliament , render useless by his declarations the laws which the parliament shall have the most solemnly established together with him . we confess the king has right of dispensing in certain cases , as if the concern be what belongs to his private interest , he may without doubt whenever he pleases depart from his own rights ; 't is a liberty which no body will pretend to contest with him . but he has not the power to dispense to the prejudice of the rights of the people , nor by consequence put the property , the liberty , and the lives of his protestant subjects into the hands of papists . . what we have now said in answer to the third objection , will be more clear from the answer we are to give to the fourth . they would perswade the protestants that their religion is in safety , because on the one side the king cannot make laws without the parliament ; and that on the other , there being laws which exclude papists out of the two houses , it must necessarily follow , that the parliament shall continue to be protestant . but if the king has the power to break throught the laws , under the pretence of dispensing with and suspending of them , what security shall the protestants have that he will not dispense with the papists , the observation of those laws which do exclude them out of the parliament , as well as he has dispensed with those that should have kept them out of charges and imployments ? what security shall they have that he will not at any time hereafter suspend the execution of the former , as he has already suspended the execution of the latter ? which being so , what should hinder us from seeing in a little time a popish parliament , who together with the king shall pass laws contrary to the protestant religion ? what difference can be shewn between the one and the other of these laws , that the one should be liable to be dispensed with and suspended , and the other not ? were they not both established by the king and parliament ? were not both the one and the other made for the security of the protestant religion , and of those who profess it ? are not the rights of the people concerned in the one , as well as in the other ? and whosoever suffers and approves the king in the violation of these rights in some things , does he not thereby authorise him to violate them in all ? if the king has power to put the liberty and property and lives of his protestant subjects at the mercy of the papists , by placing them in charges contrary to the law , why should he not have the power to raise the same papists to the authority of legislators by declaring them capable of sitting in parliament , seeing that is but contrary to law ? do not deceive your selves , the laws are the barrier which bound the authority of the king , and if his barrier be once broken , he will extend his authority as far as he pleases . and it will be impossible for you after that to set any bounds to it . . in fine , he must be very little acquainted with the spirit of popery , who imagines that it will be content to re-establish it self in england , without aiming to destroy the protestant religion . give it but time and opportunity to fortifie it self , and you may then expect to see what it is . in all places where it has got the power in its hands , it will not only rule , but rule alone , and not suffer any other religion besides it self ; and imploys the sword and fire to extirpate that which it calls heresie . were not this a truth confirmed by infinite examples both ancient and modern , which every one knows who has read any thing of history , it would be too much evidenced by the cruelties which it has so lately exercised against the churches of hungary , of france , and of the valleys of piemont . and men ought not to be lulled asleep by the pretence of an inclination which the king of england would be thought to have for liberty of conscience ; nor by the promises which he makes to preserve it to all his subjects without distinction . every one knows that perfidiousness and breach of faith are characters of popery no less essential to it than cruelty . can you doubt of this , gentlemen ? you who so lately came from making a sad experiment of it ? how often did our king promise us to preserve us in our priviledges ? how many declarations , how many edicts did he set out to that purpose ? how many oaths were taken to confirm those edicts ? did not this very king lewis xiv . himself solemnly promise by several edicts and declarations to maintain us in all the liberties which were granted to us by the edict of nantes ? and yet after all , what scruple was there made to violate so many laws , so many promises , and so many oaths ? the protestants of england have themselves also sometimes likewise experimented the same infidelity : and not to alledge here any other example , let us desire them to remember only the reign of queen mary , what promises she made at her coming to the crown , not to make any change of religion ; and yet what bloody laws she afterwards passed to extinguish the reformation as soon as she saw her self fast in the throne ? and with what inhumanity she spilt the blood of her most faithful subjects to accomplish that design ? after such an instance as this , a man must be very credulous indeed , and willing to deceive himself , that will put too much confidence in the promises of the king that now reigns . do we not know , that there are neither promises nor oaths which the pope does not pretend to have power to dispense with in those whom he employs for the extirpation of heresie ? and do we not also know , that it is one of the great maxims of popery , a maxim authorized both by the doctrin and practice of the council of constance , that they are not obliged to keep any faith with hereticks . we ought not to believe that king james ii. a prince who has so much zeal for popery , should be govern'd by any other maxims than those of his religion . and whosoever will take the pains to examine his conduct both before and since his coming to the crown , will find that he has more than once put 'em in practice . and this , gentlemen , we suppose may be sufficient to convince all reasonable persons , that there is nothing more pernicious than that declaration which you have approved ; whether by publishing it , as some of you have done , or by addressing to the king to thank him for it . when you shall have reflected upon these things , you will without doubt your selves confess , that you have suffered your selves to be amused with some imaginary advantages which you hope to make by this declaration . in the mean time , most dear brethren , you will pardon us , if we have chanced to have let any thing slip that is not agreeable to you . we had no design to give the least offence either to you , or to our brethren the dissenters of england . if we have spoken our thoughts freely of your conduct and of theirs , we have at least spoken with no less liberty of that of the bishops . and god is our witness , that we have said nothing of the one or the other , but in the sincerity of our heart , and out of a desire to contribute somewhat to his glory , and the good of his church . we are , most honoured brethren , your most humble , most obedient , and most affectionate brethren in jesus christ , n.n. a practical discourse concerning swearing especially in the two great points of perjury and common-swearing / by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a practical discourse concerning swearing especially in the two great points of perjury and common-swearing / by william wake ... wake, william, - . [ ], xxix [i.e. xlv], [ ], p. printed for richard sare ..., london : . reproduction of original in the cambridge university library. includes bibliographical references. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng oaths. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - rachel losh sampled and proofread - rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a practical discourse concerning swearing : especially in the two great points of perjury and common-swearing . by william wake , d. d. and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty . london : printed for richard sare , at gray's - inn-gate next holborn , . the preface . tho' the prevalence of those vices , which the following treatise is design'd to correct , might be more than enough to justifie the publication of it ; and the seasonableness of the attempt , be a sufficient apology for the meanness of the performance : yet having been induced to write upon this subject by such a consideration , as , i think , cannot justly be excepted against ; it may not be amiss , before i proceed to what i chiefly aim at in this preface , to give some short account , how i came to be engaged in it . it has been the great , and almost singular , care of our english government , to provide , by its municipal laws , not only against false-swearing ; ( a vice in which the interests of publick society are so apparently concern'd , that scarce any state has suffered it to go unpunish'd ; ) but even against common and vain-swearing too : and which , because it does not so immediately affect mens civil interests , i cannot tell whether any laws , besides our own , have thought it their business to meddle with it . how prudent such a provision , as this , is , even with respect to the publick welfare , can be doubted by none , who either believe it to be the concern of states and kingdoms to maintain a general sense of religion in the minds of men ; or have considered what a mighty influence an oath , in particular , has upon the affairs of government ; and of what importance it must therefore be to it , that men should be kept under a very serious and reverend esteem of it . there being nothing more certain , than that if once men be allow'd to profane an oath by common and vain swearing ; they will from thence be apt to go on , in a little while , to a farther contempt of it : and so , by degrees , arrive to an unconcernedness even for perjury its self ; as often as it shall be for their interest to forswear themselves ; and they may hope to do it without the danger of a present punishment for their impiety . it must therefore be acknowledged to have been not only a pious , but politick design too , of those great men , whosoever they were , who by putting a restraint upon common-swearing , first endeavour'd to raise an oath to a just respect amongst us : and concluded , with our saviour , that the best way to cut off the very ground of false-swearing , would be to make it penal for men to swear at all ; unless it were upon some great occasion , and when it was either absolutely necessary , or ( at least ) very fitting for them so to do . and as i think it is for the honour , as well as benefit , of our country ; that our civil-laws have taken such care in a matter which has been generally neglected by most others : so i cannot but observe it to the praise both of our religion , and of the present government ; that of the two attempts that have been made , of this kind , among our selves ; the * first was since the time of the reformation ; as we know the latter , and more perfect , is owing to the wisdom and piety of the present establishment . but because the best laws signifie but very little , unless they be , withal , both generally made known , and duly observed : it has , therefore , been the care of our law-givers to shew their prudence no less in their provision for the publishing of this law , than in the substance of the law its self . and as in the case of perjury , ( in which the civil courts are principally concern'd ; ) it has been order'd that the * statutes , relating to that sin , should be solemnly declared at every assize : so for this , ( which-seems to be more properly religious ) they have appointed the publication of it to be made in the * house of god , and at the time that men are assembled for his service in it . i shall need say very little to shew either how * ancient a custom this has been in all christian countries ; or with what good reason our own law-givers have herein follow'd the examples of their fore-fathers , upon the like occasions . for sure if ever men will be disposed seriously to consider their duty , we may justly hope they will then , especially , be so , when they come together for divine-worship . and when it shall there be shewn them , that both their present , and their future welfare are concern'd in this observance ; that what the law enjoyns under a civil penalty , is no more than what the gospel had before required upon pain of eternal damnation : either men must be utterly lost to all rational conviction , or they will be prevail'd with , by these motives , to forsake a vice ; in which there is so great a danger , so little pleasure , and no advantage . it was upon the first solemn publication , at which i was present , of this law in that church , in which it has pleased god to call me to minister , that i composed the following discourses ; and embraced that advantage , which the publick authority had so happily put into my hands , to lay open the hainousness of a vice , which had not some such care been taken to correct ; it would , i fear , have been very difficult for us , by all our other endeavours , ever to have put a stop to . but tho' the occasion which i took to write upon this subject led me no farther than to treat of common and vain-swearing ; yet having resolved to write upon it , i was willing to make a farther progress in it : and to pursue it in all the several parts of it , that our * saviour's method , ( the ground i chose to go upon ) should direct to me to do . and , first ; as he laid the foundation of his discourse , upon the state of this matter under the law ; so have i here , ( but in short , ) endeavour'd to shew , how the case of swearing stood , under that dispensation . and if in my account thereof i have adventured to give a more general interpretation of the third commandment , than some others , of much greater knowledge in these particulars , have done : i shall only say , that , i think , i have done it for such reasons , as will abundantly suffice to justifie me in it ; and that in forsaking them , i do but close in with many more , neither less learned , nor less approved of , than they . having thus laid the foundation for a right understanding of our saviour's discourse upon this subject ; i go on , with him , to the consideration of that which is , on all hands , allow'd to have been expresly forbidden to the jews under the law , viz. the sin of perjury : and have endeavour'd to furnish my reader with such principles , as may serve to direct him both how to avoid it ; and how to discover , whether he has at any time , or upon any occasion , unhappily fallen under the guilt of it ? and having thus laid open the nature of this sin ; i proceed , in the next place , to shew the malignity of it : and how desperate an offence is thereby committed , not only against god ; but against the common peace and welfare of mankind . the truth is , perjury , as it is a sin of the most hainous nature , whether we consider the honour of god ; or the interests of men : so has it always been pursued not only with the severest denuntiations of vengeance in the other world ; but , for the most part , with very shameful and bitter punishments in this . indeed , among the * ancient romans , tho' the censors enquired very scrupulously into it ; yet , for a long time , the penalty of it , was only a † publick infamy . and so happy were those times , that that alone was thought to have been punishment enough for it . but as the manners of men grew worse , so both they were forced to * encrease the rigour of their laws as to this matter : and most ‖ other nations proceeded against it with the utmost severity ; and thought the guilt of it could be expiated with nothing less than the life of him who fell under it . and tho' contrary to what i have now observed of the roman law ; our own * statutes have , of latter times , been more favourable to such offenders : yet by our ‖ old-common-law they were treated with such a rigour , as tho' it did not extend to death ; yet seems to have been more bitter , than even death its self would have been . from this sin of perjury , by all confess'd to have been no less forbidden under the law , than under the gospel ; i go on , to that in which some have thought the perfection of the gospel above the law to have consisted , as to this matter ; namely , to enquire , whether it be lawful for us christians to swear at all ? that it were very much to be wish'd , that men would live so well , and deal so faithfully with one another , as not to need ever to make use of an oath for the confirmation of what they say , is not to be questioned . nor do i doubt but that they might live so , as to avoid it in many cases , in which they too easily indulge themselves in the use of it . but yet still , the present state of the world consider'd , i do not see how it is possible , for the best christian , altogether to decline it : nor is there any reason why any one should make it a matter of conscience wholly to avoid it . we are told , indeed , of * gregory nazianzen , that upon his conversion to the christian faith , he resolved , once for all , never to swear while he lived ; and that he did manage himself in such wise as to keep to his resolution ; and did not swear to the day of his death . and several of the * ancient fathers there are , who have spoken , in such terms , of this matter ; as if such a resolution had not been so much the particular praise of that great man , as the common duty of all christians . but yet , when all is done , either the methods of government must be wholly changed , and some new models be set up , that were never yet practised in the world : or were those fathers now living , they must set some bounds to their expressions ; and plainly restrain them to that , which i do indeed look upon to have been their true meaning ; viz. not to forbid all swearing whatsoever , but only * all voluntary , and vain swearing ; and in which they were most certainly in the right . it was a remarkable deference that was paid to the honesty of one heretofore among the athenians , * that being call'd , upon a certain occasion , to swear to the truth of what he said ; and being come to the altar ( as the manner there was ) in order thereunto ; the judges would by no means allow of it , but thought it a shame that a person , of such known integrity , should not be credited without an oath . and in some of the * ancient canons , confirm'd ( as to this matter ) by the civil laws ; there was that respect paid to the priestly function , that he who was admitted into holy orders , was from thenceforth free from all obligation to swear , even in those cases , in which all others were expresly required to do it . only , if need were , they might be obliged to give some other caution of their fidelity , that did not seem so much to reflect upon the sacredness of their character . but still , to swear upon a just occasion , was in the general allow'd to be not only lawful , but necessary : and those very exemptions that freed some certain persons from it , did but the more confirm the churches approbation of it in others . to enter upon a particular examination of the several passages of the primitive fathers which seem to speak against all swearing whatsoever ; is an undertaking neither proper for this place , nor otherwise necessary for the vindication of what i have asserted in the following discourses . but that the most severe among them did allow of swearing , when duly required , and reverently perform'd , is evident from hence ; that we find the most religious emperours , and over whom those fathers , which seem to speak with the greatest warmth against it , had a very powerful influence ; nevertheless both to have solemnly * sworn themselves , and to have continued the ‖ necessity of others doing likewise . and yet , it does not appear , that ever they were censured by any of those fathers upon this account . but this is not all : they did not only consent to the necessity of mens swearing , as imposed by the imperial laws ; but they themselves pursued the same method ; and by their own constitutions required it likewise . it was a very solemn , and ( which ought yet more to be remark'd ) a voluntary oath too , that * athanasius made , in his apology to constantius ; to free himself from a certain suspicion which that emperour had , it seems , ( without any just grounds ) taken up against him . st. * austin freely tells us what his own practice , in this particular , was : that he neither chose to swear , when he could avoid it ; nor refused to swear , when he was lawfully required so to do . even * st. basil himself , than whom none has written more expresly against all swearing ; yet , in his canonical epistles , not only imposes no punishment on those who swore as they ought to do ; but by assigning a suitable ‖ pennance to those who sware amiss , did , in effect , acknowledge the lawfulness of swearing , when piously and carefully perform'd . and a more ancient father than he , st. cyprian , complaining of the decay of discipline in the church ; and that so far as to ascribe the decian persecution to the declension of it ; inveighs indeed bitterly against the iniquity of those times , * for swearing falsly , and without a due regard to what they swore ; but says not a word against the thing its self : which yet , had he thought all swearing whatsoever to have been unlawful , he would hardly have let pass , without declaring , upon that occasion , his resentments against it . it was much about the same time , that we find * another of those holy men reflecting , with some warmth , upon novatian , for obliging those , to whom he gave the communion , to swear to him , that they would never fall off from his party . this he represents to us as a most wicked attempt ; but without the least reflection upon the act of swearing , as if there would have been any thing blame-worthy in that , had the substance of their oath been lawful , and the nature of it allowable . nor can it , indeed , be thought that novatian himself , who set up for a more exact observance of the discipline of the church than any other of his time ; and pretended , for that very reason , to separate from the communion of the catholick bishops , that they did not keep so strictly , as they ought , to it ; would not only have obliged others to swear to him , but would have * solemnly sworn himself ; ( and that whilst he was yet in the heighth of his reputation ) had there been any thing in the act of swearing contrary to the opinion of the most precise men in those days . and if we look yet lower , we shall meet with whole councils which have not only consented to the same practice , but have been the authors of forcing men to submit to it : as the ‖ council of ephesus , in the case of nestorius , is particularly observed to have done . and from all which it plainly follows , that the ancient fathers were not against all swearing whatsoever : nor intended any more by their expressions to this purpose , than what several of the heathen moralists themselves did , when they advised their disciples to abstain , in like manner , from swearing altogether ; but yet expounded themselves so , as to shew , that by swearing , they meant only voluntary swearing ; and that they should forbear even that too , only where there was no need of it , nor any sufficient engagement laid upon them to oblige them to it . i shall conclude these remarks with that notable account which josephus has given us of the essenes ; one of the strictest sects among the jews , and so conformable in their manners to the rules of the gospel , that some have mistaken them for christians . now one of the maxims by which , ( if we may credit that historian ) they govern'd themselves , was this of our saviour , * not to swear at all. and yet to this very rule ( among others ) they bound themselves with an ‖ oath ; the better to secure their observance of it . and the only account that we can give of which seeming contradiction , between their principle and practice , is this ; that in matters of this nature , tho' the expressions be general , yet they must still be moderated with such limitations as both the nature of the thing its self requires , and the general consent of mankind agrees , ought to be put upon them . but especially , when , by so doing , there is nothing allow'd of , but what is both innocent and reasonable : and the denial whereof would unavoidably run mankind into endless mischiefs and inconveniencies . and now , having said thus much in answer to the two great prejudices which seem'd to lye against the account which i have given of our saviour's prohibition , swear not at all : the one taken from the universality of the words themselves ; the other , from the opinion , which the most primitive fathers , have been thought to have entertain'd of this matter ; and shewn that some temperament must be allow'd of in the exposition of it : i shall say no more in behalf of that interpretation which i have given of it , than this ; that if the principles which i build upon be allow'd ; ( as , i think , i have * shewn they cannot reasonably be deny'd ) then must my explication be confess'd to be both very natural in its self , and very agreeable to that which was evidently our saviour's design in that place ; viz. to rescue the authority of the third commandment , from those abuses which the jews had made of it . and tho' by this means it will follow , against the errour of some , that all swearing , is not forbidden ; yet will it also follow , against the licentiousness of others , that all vain and needless swearing , but especially that of mens common discourse , is utterly wicked and unjustifiable . but our saviour was not content to restrain men from the practice of customary-swearing only ; but , if i am not very much mistaken , did also farther aim at another corruption , very frequent among the jews ; and improved by them to very bad purposes ; and that was , of swearing after some other manner , than by the name of god only . this was indeed a very prevailing practice not only among the jews , but among most * other nations , in those days . and that which render'd it the more dangerous , was , that they accounted it a matter of piety , to swear after this manner : ‖ and thought that they hereby shew'd a great respect to their gods , in that they did not make use of their names , upon every ordinary occasion . and the consequence of it was with them , as we are told it was with the jews ; that they fell , by this means , into a customary practice of vain-swearing ; and often times accounted it no great crime , even to forswear themselves . it is i know very confidently affirm'd by some , that it was no part of our saviour's design to abolish such swearing ; which they are still willing to favour , as innocent and allowable . but if this swearing were not only justly to be * reproved in the jews , but was made use of by them to very ill purposes too ; and if the * design of our saviour was to correct those abuses which that people had introduced into this practice , and to prevent our falling into the like hereafter : then , since this could no way so effectually be done , as by forbidding this kind of swearing altogether , and that his words do naturally invite us to such a construction ; i cannot imagine why we should not rather extend them to such a sense , than put some kind of violences upon them for the sake of a practice , if not plainly ‡ evil , yet to be sure not good ; nor that can naturally lead to any wise or good end. but i shall insist no longer upon a point , which , however it be determined will , either way , meet with a sufficient resolution , as to what concerns our practice ; and then 't is no great matter what becomes of our speculations concerning it . and it is time for me to go on from the consideration of what our saviour has forbidden us ; to inquire , how he has directed us to behave our selves , in our communication with one another . in the prosecution of which enquiry , i must here once for all freely confess , that i have not kept so closely , to the words of our saviour , as in the other particulars i took care to do. the reason of which was , that i was willing , upon this occasion , to consider all the several sorts of confirmation that are commonly made use of in mens conversation with one another , under the degree of an oath : and which being the only thing our saviour was here concern'd to forbid , i thought that whatsoever was short of that , might , at least , be fairly reduced to the design of this place . i have , indeed , endeavoured in my reflections upon this occasion , to shew , that not only the design of our saviour did extend to all these ; but that his very expressions themselves might be so interpeted , as to comprehend the most of them. and some very learned men there are , who have accordingly given us such an account of them. but as i will not make my self a party in this debate ; so having fairly represented the grounds upon which they go , and given them all the strength that , i conceive , they are capable of ; i shall leave it to every one to judge as he sees cause to do. only as to the rules of practice which i have drawn from my remarks upon this point ; those , i think , are plain and secure : and may , as such , be follow'd without any danger , or scruple , by us. from the direction of our saviour , how we ought to behave our selves in our conversation with one another ; i pass on to the reason given by him , why we ought not to proceed any farther ? namely , that whatsoever is more than these , cometh of evil. and of this i offer two interpretations , both good , and both indifferently agreeing with his words , as they stand in the original . and i thought it better for me to take both , than to prefer that which our own interpreters seem rather to have approved of : that so i might the more clearly shew upon what just grounds this assertion of our saviour is founded ; and what good reason he had to require us , to manage our conversation , according to those measures he had before prescribed to us. having thus gone thro' the discourse of our blessed lord upon this subject ; i conclude all with two farther considerations , the better to improve what i had before offer'd , and to reduce the whole to practice . in the former of which , i enquire into the causes of that great encrease which has , in these latter times , been made of both the sins forbidden by our saviour on this occasion ; viz. both of false , and of vain-swearing : and having done this , i , in the next place , take occasion from thence to lay down such general directions , as seem to be the most proper , under our present circumstances , to draw men off from the practice of them both. and tho' here , ( as indeed throughout this whole treatise ) i have endeavour'd to bring my reflections into as narrow a compass as it was possible , without either falling into obscurity on the one hand ; or omitting what was fit to be taken notice of on the other : yet , i hope , i have laid down such general rules , as being carefully applied , may suffice to serve the necessities of the most of those , who shall need either direction , or satisfaction as to these matters . as for the composure of the following discourses , it is as plain as i was able to make it ; and as the first design i had in composing of them , required it to be . but because it may now be expected that i should answer for the grounds of my assertions ; and give some account upon what reasons i built them : i have therefore taken care for the satisfaction of those who are more learned , to add all along such observations , as shall , i trust , he sufficient to vindicate me from having , either in my interpretation of holy scripture , or in my deductions from it , advanced any thing without some tolerable reason ; and seldom without some good authority also , for my doing of it . if , after all , it shall be ask'd how i come to publish my reflections upon this subject , i shall only add thus much to what i have already said ; that as i first composed these discourses out of a just respect to the publick authority , and for the benefit of those whom god has committed to my charge ; so being perswaded that what was , i hope , not un - usefully heard once , may be more profitably read , and consider'd again ; and reach many from the press , whom it is not possible for me to instruct from the pulpit : and having never met with any original treatise in our own language , that had so particularly handled this whole argument ; i was willing to contribute my part , towards the reforming of a vice , which our laws had taken so worthy a care to suppress . this was the motive that first led me to the publishing of these plain discourses ; and i hope , through god's blessing , they may not be altogether unprofitable to this end. thus much i dare say , in behalf of them ; that to the pious and unprejudiced , they will offer reasons enough to convince them of their duty as to these matters : and for those who are not so ; it is in vain to hope by any arguments whatsoever to reclaim them. the genuine epistles of st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp . the shepherd of hermas , and the martyrdoms of st. ignatius and st. polycarp . translated and published with a large preliminary discourse , by w. wake , d. d. o. sold by r. sare at grays-inn-gate in holbron . the contents . chap. i. in which it is briefly shewn , how the case of swearing stood with the jews , under the law. page . the meaning of that expression , it hath been said by them of old times , briefly hinted at : and an enquiry made into the prohibition of our saviour ; thou shalt not forswear thy self , &c. § . , , . the state of this matter under the law , deliver'd in four particulars . p. . . that the jews , were ( in general ) allow'd to swear . § . , . but yet , . that they were to swear only by god's name . § . . &c. . nor by god's name on every light , or frivolous occasion ; nor , particularly , in their common conversation with one anothor , § . , &c. . much less falsely , which was the main thing they were required to have a care of , § . . chap. ii. wherein is consider'd , what perjury is ; and how many ways it may be committed ? and some reflections are offer'd to shew the particular heinousness and malignity of it . p. . oaths are of two kinds ; assertory and promissory : and perjury may be divers ways committed in each of them. § . . i. in an assertory oath . by swearing to the truth of any thing , which at the same time we either certainly know to be false , or do not know to be true. § . . by prevaricating in any considerable circumstance of what we swear to : of which several instances are offered . § . . ii. in a promissory oath . p. . he forswears himself , who promises to do that which at the same time he does not intend to perform . § . . or to do that which he knows he cannot perform . § . . or which he knows he ought not to do. § . . or to act contrary to what he had before sworn to do . § . . he forswears himself , who having sworn to do any thing , afterwards neglects to make good his promise . § . . what things are required , in all kinds of oaths , to prevent our being perjured , in taking of them ? § . . he who causes another to forswear himself , is as guilty of sin , as if he had done it himself . § . . nor is he clear , who requires another to swear to that , which he has reason to believe , will make him guilty of perjury . § . . of the peculiar malignity of this sin. p. . st . with respect to god. § . . dly . to our selves . § . . dly . to other men. § . . chap. iii. wherein is shewn , that all swearing whatsoever , is not forbidden under the gospel : and an enquiry is made ; what that swearing is which our saviour has prohibited , as absolutely evil , and unlawful ? p. . our saviour's words seem to prohibit all swearing ; and have been so understood by some . § . . the meaning of them shewn in the three following conclusions . . that it was not the intention of our saviour to forbid all swearing whatsoever ; as simply , and absolutely unlawful , under the gospel . § . . there was no reason , why he should do it . § . . &c. it is certain he did not intend to do it . § . . &c. . that we are not to extend the meaning of such expressions , to the utmost sense that the words are capable of ; when it otherwise appears that we ought not so to do . § . . . that to know what the true meaning of our saviour here was , we must consider , what was amiss in the common practice of the jews , as to this matter ; and what our lord design'd to correct in it . § . . the practice of the jews enquired into . § . . our saviour's prohibition from thence explain'd . § . . and shewn to forbid , . common-swearing . § . . . swearing otherwise than by god only . § . . practical observations on each of these : and , . as to common-swearing . to swear in our common discourse with one another , is absolutely evil and unlawful . § . . no man should ever choose to swear in any case , where he can fairly avoid the doing of it . § . . but especially , we should have a care of entring into promissory oaths , as the most dangerous of any to be taken by us. § . . . as to swearing otherwise than by god only . it is certainly safest never to use any oath , but by the name of god only . § . . it is unlawful to swear after any other manner , for those evil ends that the jews had , and that others commonly have , in the doing of it . § . . chap. iv. of the several ways of confirming what is spoken or promised , under the degree of an oath : how far they may be made use of in men's private conversation ? and for what reason it was not sitting that men should have been allow'd to go any farther ? p. . the meaning of that passage , let your communication be yea , yea ; nay , nay ; inquired into ; and the account given by some of it rejected . § . . that we may repeat what we affirm or deny ; the better to give credit to the truth of what we say . § . . that we may confirm what we say , by adding an asseveration to it . § . . and in some cases , may go yet higher : and do more to confirm the truth of what we speak . § . . whether it be lawful to use imprecations for this end. § . . an enquiry made , into the reason offer'd by our saviour , why we must not go beyond those bounds : viz. that whatsoever is more than these , cometh of evil. p. . and the truth of it shewn at large , from several considerations . § . . &c. chap. v. wherein an enquiry is made into the causes both of that common and false-swearing which so much abounds in the world : and some directions are offer'd for the better prevention of both of them. p. . st . of the causes of common , and false-swearing . how men come to swear so frequently in their ordinary conversation . § . . whence it is that they are so ready to do it , on every little occasion ? § . . four accounts offered of it : to § . . how men are brought so easily to forswear themselves ? § . . dly . some directions offer'd for the correction of both these evils . of perjury . § . . of common swearing . § . . &c. the whole concluded . § . . &c. st. mat. v. . * ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time ; * thou shalt not forswear thy self , but shalt perform unto the lord thine oaths . . * but i say unto you swear not at all : neither by heaven for it is god's throne ; nor by the earth for it is his footstool ; neither by jerusalem , for it is the city of the great king. neither shalt thou swear by thy head , because thou canst not make one hair white or black. . * but let your communication be yea , yea ; nay , nay : * for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. a practical discourse concerning swearing . chap. i. in which it is briefly shewn , how the case of swearing stood with the jews , under the law. whatsoever be the meaning of that expression so often repeated in this chapter , and made use of by our saviour as an introduction to the duty he was here about to propose to us ; ye have heard , that it hath been said by , or rather † to , them of old times : ( whether in those words he designed to referr to the law , as delivered by moses to the jews ; or as expounded , and corrupted , by the glosses of those who follow'd after : ) yet this i take to be without all doubt ; that in the command , or rather prohibition , before us , there is nothing proposed to us but what may , if not in express terms be found in the law of moses , yet by plain and undoubted consequence be drawn from the words of it . . it has been thought by ‖ some , that what the evangelist here renders , thou shalt not forswear thy self , was originally delivered by our blessed lord , in the very words of the third commandment ; thou shalt not take the name of the lord thy god in vain : * and that what follows in the latter part of this verse , but shalt perform unto the lord thine oaths , was added by him from numb . xxx . . as an exegetical explication of that precept ; and to shew , that what he was about to deliver concerning it , was principally to be understood of promissory oaths ; and to which he supposes that commandment was always intended , more especially , to referr . . whether this conjecture be good or no , yet this , at least , we may be confident of ; that we cannot take a better course to understand what our saviour meant to prescribe to us christians , as to this point of swearing ; than to consider how the case of an oath stood heretofore under the law , and what god proposed to the jews concerning it . . and here , ( st ) it is certain , that it was , in the general , permitted to them to swear ; provided that they did it with that due care , and after such a manner , as i shall presently shew god required them to do it . . this , in many cases , the † law of moses expresly obliged them to : * and their most holy men not only did it upon other occasions ; ‖ but when they did it , look'd upon it as an honour paid to god , and as a service which should not fail to be both accepted and rewarded by him. and to take away all scruple , as to this particular ; god himself not only , upon several occasions , sware to them ; but declared by his holy prophets , that † every tongue should swear by him ; * and that they who did so should be commended . . it is certain , therefore , that it was allow'd to the jews to swear , whenever a just occasion required their doing of it . but then ( dly ) they were to swear only by god's name , and not by the name of any other . . this was implied in the third commandment ; but was expresly declared to them in several other parts of their law. so in the vi th of deut. vers . . thou shalt fear the lord thy god , and serve him , and swear by his name . and again , chap. x. . thou shalt fear the lord thy god ; him shalt thou serve ; and to him shalt thou cleave , and swear by his name . and in the l th of isaiah , god again repeats this command , and that with a more than ordinary vehemence , verse : i have sworn by my self , the word is gone out of my mouth in righteousness , and shall not return ; that unto me every knee shall bow , every tongue shall swear . and from all which it is evident , not only , that god reserved this to himself as his own peculiar prerogative ; but , withal , for what reason he did so ; namely , because this is a part of that religious service which is due to him only , and which cannot , without impiety , be applied to any other . . hence we find , that when joshua , in his last exhortation to that people , thought in necessary , above all things , to warn them against apostatizing from the worship of their own god , to the gods of the canaanites , among whom they dwelt ; he thought himself particularly concern'd to mention this to them , among the other instances of that service which they were to pay to god only : josh. xxiii . . come not , says he , among these nations that remain among you , neither make mention of the name of their gods ; nor cause to swear by them , neither serve them. — but cleave unto the lord your god. . and when in process of time they began to break in upon this caution , and to swear by some other names ; we may observe how grievously god resented this , almost beyond any other of their sins ; amos viii . . they that swear by the sin of samaria , and say , thy god , o dan ! liveth ; and the manner of beer-shebah liveth ; even they shall fall , and never rise up again . . but this was not yet all : god required the jews not only , when they did swear , to swear by his name ; but moreover , ( dly ) to take care not to swear by his name upon every ordinary occasion , nor without a due regard to what they did swear by it . so the express letter of the commandment assures us ; exod. xx . . thou shalt not take the name of the lord thy god in vain : and in which , tho' the original word be dubious , and may indifferently signifie either what is vain , or what is false : yet , i think , we ought not so to set up one of its senses , as to exclude the other ; but should rather suppose , that god therefore pitch'd upon a term which comprehended both , that so we might , from the ambiguity of it , inferr , that both those kinds of swearing were vnlawful . ▪ now in this opinion i am the rather confirm'd in that i find the * chaldee paraphrast , the most authentick , as well as most antient interpreter of the old testament , of the same mind : and for that reason rendring it in one part of the command by a word which properly signifies in vain ; in the other part by an expression , which originally denotes falsly . and since it cannot be doubted but that light and vain swearing is in its own nature sinful , and what must , by consequence , have always been forbidden by god as such : i cannot but wonder what should move those , who freely allow this , and acknowledge the words of the third commandment to referr indifferently to both the significations here proposed ; yet , after all , to doubt , * whether god design'd to prohibit any thing more than perjury by it . . but ( thly ) and to conclude these reflections : tho' for the reasons now mentioned , i am perswaded , that all vain and common swearing does not only fall within the design of the third commandment , as now expounded to us , but was originally forbidden in the very letter of it : yet as perjury , or false-swearing , is by far the greater sin , and more dishonourable to god ; so i do not at all question , but that it was more especially therein prohibited by him. . and so much the words of our saviour , matth. v. . do undoubtedly imply : who for this reason deliver'd this not only as a good sense of the command , but as the allow'd interpretation of it among the jews ; thou shalt not forswear they self , but shalt perform unto the lord thine oaths . nor indeed could they possibly have made any doubt of this , after that express prohibition which god had given them to the same purpose , lev. xix . . ye shall not swear by my name falsly ; neither shalt thou profane the name of thy god : i am the lord . . such was the case of swearing under the law : and i need not say , that christ , ( who came not to destroy the law , but to fulfil it , and who in the very instance before us has effectually done so ; ) still requires at least the same care , as to this matter , of vs now , that god did of the jews heretofore . but because this last point is not only of much the greatest moment of any in this case , but taken for granted by our saviour , as a thing of which no one could make any doubt : i shall therefore begin my reflections with a particular consideration of it ; and shew , st , what it is for a man to forswear himself ? and how many ways he may be capable of so doing ? and then , dly , wherein the peculiar malignity of this sin does consist ? and having so done , i shall need say nothing more to perswade any serious , considering christian from the practice of a sin , both so hainous in it self ; and so ruinous , not only to our future happiness in the other world ; but even to our present peace and security in this. chap. ii. wherein is consider'd , what perjury is ; and how many ways it may be committed ? and some reflections offer'd to shew the particular hainousness and malignity of it . . to proceed the more clearly on this great point , i must first of all observe , that to swear , is properly nothing else but to call god to witness ; to appeal to god for the truth of what we speak ; as the highest confirmation we are capable of giving to it . . now the truth which we may be required , by this means , to confirm ; may relate either to what is past , or present ; ( as when we affirm a thing to be , or not to be ; to have been done , or not done ; in such a manner , and with such circumstances ; or otherwise : ) or it may relate to somewhat yet to come ; ( as when we oblige our selves to do such a thing , or not to do it ; and that under such certain conditions , or without them ; as the nature of our engagement shall chance to be . ) the former of these is usually called , an assertory ; the latter , a promissory oath . and because a man may divers ways forswear himself in each of these , if he has not a due care to prevent it ; it will be necessary for me distinctly to consider , what are the general ways by which we may be most likely to contract such a guilt in either of them. . first then , in the case of an assertory oath ; he forswears himself , who swears to the truth of any fact , which at the same time he either certainly knows to be false , or does not know to be true. as for example ; that such or such a thing was done , by such or such a person ; which , at the same time , he either knows that person did not do , or has no sufficient evidence to move him to believe that he did do. for this being a down-right lie in the assertion , must needs become a perjury by the addition of an oath to it . . and here it matters not whether a man certainly knows what he swears to be false : it is enough that he does not know it to be true. nay , or should it happen to be true ; yet if he thought it to have been otherwise , and yet swore to the truth of it ; he forswore himself : nor will his mistake at all contribute to the excusing of his perjury before god. . again : a man may forswear himself , not only by swearing that which is altogether vntrue ; but by prevaricating in any the least circumstance of what he delivers , and confirms with an oath . as for instance ; * if he swears to a matter as certain , of which he has only a probable assurance : * if he affirm that upon his own knowledge , which he has received only upon the credit of some other . * if he adds any thing to what he relates ; or willingly conceals any thing that may give light , or weight to ; or , in any other circumstance , notably affect the point to which he swears . in all these , and the like cases ; he who knowingly and designedly prevaricates , or otherwise departs , but in the least tittle , from the truth of what he delivers , forswears himself ; tho' what he says should , in the main , be never so true. . in short ; he who will swear with a good conscience , in any oath of this kind , must first duly consider what he is about to say ; and then must proceed according to the strictest measures of truth and fidelity in it . he must neither add to , nor diminish from , what he knows to be the truth . must deliver what is certain , as certain ; what is doubtful , as doubtful : what he knows himself , as upon his own knowledge ; what he has received from others , as received from them : and in so doing he may be sure that he shall not forswear himself . . as for the other kind of oaths , secondly ; those which relate to somewhat yet to come ; he is to be accounted , in the first place , to forswear himself , who promises upon his oath to do that , which , at the same time , he resolves not to perform : as for example , that he will meet a man in a certain place , where yet he intends not to meet him ; or that he will do him such a kindness , which he resolves , all the while , not to do for him . . and , because no one can be supposed really to intend to do that , which he knows , before-hand , he cannot do : therefore , secondly ; he who swears to do any thing which is apparently beyond his ability , and which he cannot but be sensible is so , must be reckon'd to fall under the same guilt ; and to forswear himself , as effectually , as if he had directly intended not to perform what he obliged himself to do . . thus if a trader who is not worth a hundred pounds in the world , nor knows which way to find credit to raise such a sum ; shall yet , to over-reach another , who is a stranger to his concerns , and to gain some present advantage to himself by it , swear , upon a certain day , to pay him five hundred ; and fail of fulfilling it : he must be look'd upon to have been forsworn , not only after such his failure , but from the very first minute that he swore to do that , which he knew it was not in his power to perform . nay , tho' by some lucky accident , which he did not fore-see , he should be enabled to make good his promise , and accordingly fulfil it ; yet would not this clear him of having sworn falsly , at the time that he made his oath : because , at that time , he had no prospect that he should be able ; nor could by consequence really intend , to be as good as his word . . and for the same reason it will follow farther , thirdly ; that if a man swear to do any thing which he knows it is not lawful for him to do ; he forswears himself , tho' , at that time , he should intend to fulfil it . because by so doing , he obliges himself to do that which he knows he ought not to do ; nor , if he means to behave himself like a good man , must presume to perform . . indeed , as to these two last instances ; if the promise so sworn to , as i have supposed , had neither any known impossibility in it , nor was vnlawful to be fulfill'd , at the time when the oath was made ; but by some following accident became either impossible or vnlawful , before the time in which it ought to have been accomplish'd : in this case , the person who swore , will have done nothing amiss ; nor be otherwise obliged by his oath , for the present , than to perform what he promised , as far as he is yet able , and it may be lawful for him to do it . but if , in process of time , these impediments should be removed , and the obligation of his oath still continue in force : then he will , from thenceforth , become engaged to a compleat performance of his promise ; and forswear himself , if he shall neglect , or refuse the fulfilling of it . . by consequence , fourthly ; he who swears to do any thing contrary to what he had before sworn to do ; ( his former oath still continuing to oblige ) must swear falsly ; and put himself under an absolute necessity of being forsworn . because , in this case , either he must keep his latter oath ; and then he will be guilty of perjury by the breach of his former obligation : or he must stand to his first engagement ; and , by so doing , act contrary to his second oath . . and this i say , supposing the former oath still to continue to oblige . for , otherwise ; if the oath first made , were either in it self unlawful ; and , as such , from the beginning of no force : or if the obligation of it were founded upon such circumstances , as render'd it valid only for a certain time , and under some certain conditions ; and either that time is pass'd , or those circumstances are altered ; and so the reason , and foundation of the oath ceasing , the obligation of it ceases together with them : in all these cases , the latter oath will be never the less lawful to be taken , for its being contrary to the tenour of a former , which either never did oblige at all ; or the obligation of which was evidently expired , before the taking of the other . . but , fifthly : tho' a man should promise nothing , but what he is both able to perform , and may lawfully fulfil ; and should truly intend , when he swears to it , to act according to his oath : yet , if he shall afterwards change his mind ; or , by any culpable neglect , omit to make good his promise , or render himself uncapable of doing it ; in all these cases , he will become perjured by such his omission : not indeed from the time that he took the oath ; but from the time that he should , and , but for his own fault , might have perform'd it . . and this i say , supposing , that the oath was neither obtain'd by any such force or fraud , as render'd it void from the beginning ; and that the person to whom it was made , and who was alone concern'd in the advantage of it , does expect , and insist upon , the performance of it . for otherwise , if either the oath were void from the beginning , and did never oblige at all ; or if he to whom it was made , and for whose security it was taken , shall think fit to release it : in this case the person who took the oath will become clear of all obligation by it ; and not be forsworn , tho' he should neglect to fulfil , what he had promised to do . . it will , i presume , be needless for me to add , sixthly ; that he who will keep himself from swearing falsly , must deal clearly , and openly , in all that he swears unto . * must intend to be understood , according to the common and natural import of the words in which he swears . * must use no equivocation , no mental-reservation , whereby to impose upon those to whom he swears . but must account himself obliged to do , according as his words and actions declare : and not think to escape with his * pretence , who swore with his tongue , but kept his mind free from being obliged by it . because all these are , in truth , such manifest prevarications , so opposite to the fairness and ingenuity of an honest man ; that a man must be desperately deluded indeed , before he can think that he may escape the guilt of perjury , by such means . . i will rather observe this one thing farther , and which indifferently respects both the kinds of oaths i have now mentioned : that as , in all these cases , he who neglects to acquit himself according to the true meaning of what he swears , forswears himself ; so if he shall by any means knowingly , and purposely , seduce , perswade , affright , or otherwise tamper , with any other person , to forswear himself ; he will , by his so doing , become partaker in the perjury ; and render himself even more guilty , than he who by his encouragement , or instigation forswears himself . . nay farther : * he who exacts an oath of another , whereby he either certainly knows , or may reasonably suppose , that the person of whom he requires it will forswear himself ; does by that means , if not involve himself in an equal guilt , yet render himself not much less criminal , than he who commits the perjury : and must expect to render an account , not only for the dishonour which , thereby , is done to god ; but also for his vncharitableness towards his neighbour's soul. . from what has been said , it may appear , what it is for a man to forswear himself ? and how many ways he may be liable so to do ? i proceed , ( dly ) to offer some reflections to shew , wherein the peculiar malignity of this sin does consist ? . now that will appear from this one plain observation ; and which no one , who understands what an oath is , can make any doubt of : namely , that he who forswears himself , does thereby not only in a most desperate manner * affront the majesty of god , and * wound his own soul ; but does , moreover , * render himself criminal towards his neigbour also ; and , as much as in him lies , * declare himself a common enemy to mankind . . for st : as to what concerns the majesty of god ; what can strike more directly at that , than this sin of perjury ? when a man shall not only presume to lie , and cheat , and abuse his neighbour ; but , the better to accomplish all this wickedness , shall dare even to appeal to god for his integrity : and , by so doing , endeavour to intitule him , who is truth its self , to a part in his sin ; as if he would approve of his villany ; and become , in some measure , confederate with him in his impiety . . this is the true meaning of every wilful perjury : and then i need not say , what a complication of guilt and impudence , there must needs be in it . . if we consider the nature of this sin , with respect to men , the least that can be said of it is this ; that it is a wilful , deliberate , imposition upon the candor and sincerity of him to whom we swear : which sure must be one of the basest , and most dis-ingenuous practices in the world. . and as for the design of it ; that is , usually , not at all less sinful , than the means that are made use of for the accomplishment of it . whilst the person to whom we swear , is not only to be deceived , but , by vertue of that deceit , is to be injured in his estate ; his reputation ; nay or , it may be , to the loss of his very life it self . . and this , god knows , were bad enough , were the sin to end here . but that it does not ; it proceeds still farther : whilst for the accomplishment of this vile purpose , the false swearer does not only not tremble at the thought of the divine justice ; but flies in the very face of it ; and recurrs to god both for the countenance of his treachery , and for the confirmation of the lie , by which it is to be brought about . . now he who can be so hardy as to do this ; must either not believe that there is any god at all ; or he must disclaim his knowledge of , and concern for , what is done here below : or , if he confesses both these ; he must then be concluded to defie his vengeance . for i cannot suppose any one to be capable of so far mistaking the divine nature , as to think , that a god of truth , will either endure to be made a party to what is false ; or not avenge himself on that man , who shall presume so to do . . such therefore is the malignity of this sin , as it relates to god : nor is it , dly , any less as it respects our selves . . for proof whereof i must observe , that in every oath god is appeal'd unto , not only as a witness of the truth of what we say ; but as a most just and powerful judge too , to punish us for our falshood , if it be not . . this is so essential to the nature of an oath , that , without it , all the security of such an appeal would be quite lost ; and the design of swearing , overthrown . for what reason would any one have to believe another upon his oath , more than upon his bare word ; but that both he who swears , and he to whom the oath is made , do believe , that god is thereby made the surety of what is spoken : and will avenge both himself first , and then the person whose trust is , by this means , deceived ; upon that man , who shall be so presumptuous , as by swearing falsly , to abuse both ? . now this being granted ; and which , without destroying all the benefit and intention of an oath , cannot be deny'd ; it must follow , that there is hardly any sin by which a man does so directly wound his own soul , and cut himself off from all the hopes of salvation , as by this . because in this sin , a man gives up all claim to god's mercy ; nay more , desires god so to deal with him as what he says is true ; that is , in other words , to damn him , if it be not . and what can he who has done this pretend to , or even hope for , at god's hands ? who has already given verdict against himself ; and with his own mouth pronounced , or rather chosen , his own doom ? . and this i take to have been the ground of that terrible clause in the sanction of the third commandment ; the like whereof we do not meet with in any other , nor can we suppose that it was added to this , without some peculiar design in the doing of it : thou shalt not take the name of the lord thy god in vain ; for the lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain . he will not hold him guiltless , that is , he will not forgive him : will not treat him with that favour he will do other sinners : but will look upon him as a guilty , condemn'd malefactor ; one whom his own mouth hath convicted , and will punish him accordingly . . such is the danger to which every perjury a man commits , exposes his immortal soul. and if we may estimate the hainousness of any sin , by the hatred which god bears to it ; we must then conclude this to be one of the most grievous of any ; as we are sure it is of all others , in a singular manner , odious to god , and destructive of our salvation . . i add , dly : that it is , above any other sin , the most injurious to mankind ; as being , in its own nature , directly opposite to the peace and security of the world. . i have already observed , that the general cause which moves any one to forswear himself , is either to gratifie his own lusts , or to promote his interest ; tho' at the cost of his neighbours welfare . and , i believe , whosoever shall consider the main instances wherein this sin is usually committed , will find that i was not mistaken in my judgment of it . . but the evil does not stop here ; but often times affects the publick , as well as violates mens private rights . such are all those perjuries which are committed in the publick administration of justice ; and by means of which , either honest men are condemned ; or evil-doers are acquitted ; and the ministers of justice are made the instruments of vnrighteousness ; and all the ends of their institution are rendred not only vseless , but even hurtful to the common-wealth . . and thus far , every single act of perjury is an offence against man , as well as a sin against god. but now , if we shall consider the nature and tendency of such a practice in the general ; and reason upon the proper and natural effects of it ; we shall find it to be a common abuse of mankind : destructive of the very foundation of humane society ; and which being allow'd of , must tend to the overthrow of all peace , and right , and property , in the world. . and that i thus prove : the foundation of all society , and without which no affairs of life can be transacted , is that common trust and confidence , which men naturally have in one another . without this , no state , no community , tho' never so small ; not a private family can subsist . there can be no dealing with , nor dependance upon , one another . every man must become afraid of his neighbour ; and not account his goods , or even his life it self , any longer his own , than he can guard them against the cunning or force of the next man he meets , and who ( for ought he knows ) may design to rob him of both . . which being so , it must follow , that whatsoever does in its own nature tend to overthrow this trust between man and man , must be look'd upon as a crime against humane society ; because it naturally leads to the destruction of it . . now that perjury , in the most outrageous manner , does : inasmuch as it violates the strongest security , that one man is capable of giving to another , of his truth and sincerity . and therefore the false swearer is so far from deserving any favour of men , that were he dealt with , as he ought to be , he should be accounted to have forfeited all right to the benefits of society : should be treated as a kind of out-law in the common-wealth ; an enemy to truth and justice , to peace and property ; and no longer under the protection of those laws , by which others are preserved in their rights and liberties . . and now , when such is the apparent malignity of this sin , that it renders men not only obnoxious to god's vengeance , but even vncapable of his mercy ; and , as if that were not enough , exposes them to the resentments of mankind too : one would think nothing more could be desired to draw men off from the practice of such a vice , as at once bespeaks them unworthy to live upon the earth ; and , without a very extraordinary repentance , will be sure to shut them out of the kingdom of heaven . . it is indeed a matter of very sad consideration , to think , that under so pure and holy , so just and sincere an institution , as that of the gospel ; there should be any need either of laying down any rules for the prevention of such a sin , or of vsing any arguments , to draw men off from the commission of it . but alas ! experience shews , that there is , at this day , but too much need of both. and that after all which either the commands of god , or the laws of men , have been able to do for the suppression of it ; yet by reason of false-swearing , not only mens souls suffer , but our very land its self mourneth . . i shall conclude these reflections with the same exhortation that the prophet zachary heretofore made to the jews ; under much the same circumstances with ours at this day , as to what concerns this great evil : zech. viii . . these are the things that ye shall do : speak ye every man the truth to his neighbour ; execute the judgment of truth and peace in your gates . and let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour ; and love no false-oath : for all these are things that i hate , saith the lord . chap. iii. wherein is shewn , that all swearing whatsoever , is not forbidden under the gospel : and an enquiry is made , what that swearing is , which our saviour has prohibited , as absolutely evil and unlawful . . it has been the mistake of * some who have attended more to the words of our saviour , in that passage of st. mat. ch . v. . i say unto you , swear not at all ; than either to the occasion , or design of them ; to conclude , that all manner of swearing whatsoever is utterly forbidden to christians under the gospel . and indeed not only the prohibition of our blessed lord in that place ; but that express confirmation which we meet with of it , in the v th of st. james , ver . . does seem , at the first sight , to give but too much countenance to such a conclusion . . to clear this difficulty , and to shew how far it may still be lawful for a christian to take an oath ; but yet withal , with how great care and circumspection he ought to do it ; i shall now enter upon a particular enquiry into this whole matter : and endeavour with all possible exactness to discover , what the design of our saviour was , in that passage upon which this difficulty is founded , and by which it must be determined . . in pursuance of which enquiry , i shall not doubt in the ( st ) place to affirm ; that how much soever the words under debate , if strictly taken , may seem to favour such an opinion ; yet it was never the intention of our lord utterly to forbid all swearing whatsoever , as simply and absolutely vnlawful , under the gospel . and that i affirm , upon these two accounts : st . that there was no reason why he should do so ; but rather a great deal of reason to the contrary . and , dly . that it is certain he did not do it : and therefore that we must put some restriction , upon that seemingly general prohibition before mentioned , swear not at all. . and st . that there was no reason why our saviour should have forbidden all swearing whatsoever , is evident from hence ; that an oath being in its own nature nothing else but an appeal to god for the truth of what we say , must be acknowleged , when duly and reverently taken , to have nothing evil , or otherwise irregular in it : but on the contrary , to be an act of religious worship ; and by which the honour and authority of god , are eminently advanced . forasmuch as by calling of god to witness in all places , and upon all suitable occasions , we confess him to be every where present ; to know and observe all the affairs of men ; to be the searcher of the heart : in a word , to be most true and faithful himself ; and a most just and powerful avenger of all falshood and treachery in others . and by all this , we do evidently declare and magnifie his divine perfections ; and shew to all the world what a sense we have of his goodness and greatness . . hence it is that god evermore reserved this as a proper part of that worship which was due to himself only ; and might not , without impiety , be given to any other . he commanded the jews not more to * serve him , than to swear by his name : and when , in process of time , they began to swear by some other gods ; i have shewn you both how grievously he † resented the affront , and how severely he was pleased to punish them for it . . now this being the case of an oath , that , when duly and reverently taken , it is so far from having any thing amiss in it , that it is rather and act of religious worship ; and , as such , honourable to god , as well as vseful to mankind : what reason can there be given , why our saviour should aim at the vtter abolishing of it ? or what is there to be assign'd in it , unworthy of that religion , which he came to establish in the world ? . but if there be therefore no reason to be given , why our saviour should have forbidden all manner of swearing ; sure i am there are reasons enough to be offer'd , why he should not : and those such as will render the opinion of those who pretend he has done it , very improbable ; which is all i am yet concern'd to do. . for , indeed , what practice is there upon which the peace , and welfare , and security of mankind , does more depend , than upon the serious , and sacred vse of an oath ? it is this unites men into society with each other : secures to the magistrate , the obedience , and help of the people ; and to the people the careful , and regular government of the magistrate . it is upon this assurance that the greatest affairs of life are transacted ; mens fortunes , determined ; and justice its self upheld and maintain'd . by this , evil-doers are convicted ; injuries are redress'd ; and right is administred . thro' this , men are enabled to treat with those whom they never saw before : of whose integrity they can have no other security ; nor , having this , do they desire any better . in short ; how great a confusion , how insuperable a mischief , the utter abolishing of all swearing , must bring to the affairs of mankind , this one consideration may suffice to shew ; that , ( the treachery and distrust of humane nature considered ) it would almost utterly destroy all confidence in one another ; would dissolve society , and lay the ground of an eternal fearfulness and suspicion between every man and his neighbour : and so bring in , in good earnest , that state of war , which some have fancied men naturally are born in ; and which , 't is certain , nothing but mutual trust and compacts , can keep them from . . and , if this be so , can it reasonably be imagined that our saviour christ , who was so great a lover of men , and who so well knew of what use , or rather of what necessity , the religious practice of swearing was to the world ; would , without any just ground for his so doing , have utterly forbidden the continuance of it ? . but especially , when it shall farther be consider'd , that god , under the law , did not barely tolerate this practice in the jews , as a necessary condescension to their infirmities : but upon every fitting occasion , himself ‖ sware to them ; and in many cases , † required them to do likewise ; as has been before observed . . now this , as it * plainly shews , that there can be nothing sinful in the practice of swearing , in the general ; so does it render it still more improbable , that our saviour should not only , without need , have deprived mankind of so useful an institution ; but by doing of it , should also have cast some sort of reflection upon the law of god its self , which not only allow'd , but required the vsing of it : and that too with relation to that part of it , of which he tells us , nevertheless , in this very chapter ; that he came not to destroy the law , but to fulfil it . and which we ought not therefore to doubt was what he intended , in the third ; as we confess it was what he did , in the other commandments . . i conclude , therefore , that upon all these accounts it is , at least , very improbable , that our blessed saviour should have designed vtterly to forbid all manner of swearing as sinful and vnlawful . i add , dly , that whatever that passage , we are here enquiring into , may seem to offer to the contrary , it is certain he did not do it ; as i shall now make appear . . that st. paul has solemnly sworn in almost every one of his epistles , is a * truth so evident , that it must be impossible for any one who knows what an oath is , to be able seriously to doubt of it . god is my witness , says he , rom. i. . i call god for a record upon my soul , cor. i. . the god and father of our lord jesus christ , who is blessed for evermore , knoweth that i lie not , cor. xi . . behold , before god , i lie not , gal. i. . and several other expressions he elsewhere has of the like nature . . now in all these , either this great apostle was guilty of sinning , or he was not . that he committed any sin in thus writing ; but especially a wilful , known , and deliberate sin ; is very hard to suppose : i am sure must never be allowed by those who believe him to have been acted , by the immediate inspiration of the holy ghost , in what he wrote . and yet supposing our saviour to have utterly forbidden the use of swearing , to all christians , and upon any occasion ; how shall we ever be able to excuse him , from a gross , presumptuous contempt of his commandment ? . that st. paul should have continued all his life ignorant of such a prohibition , is very strange : nor has it , that i know of , been pretended by any . . that he had any particular allowance made to him , to exempt him from the obligation of it , and to authorize him to act directly contrary to the command of christ , and to the common duty of all other christians , does not appear ; nor ought , without some very good grounds to be supposed by us . i conclude , therefore , * that had the use of swearing been utterly taken away under the gospel ; neither would st. paul have laid so great a stumbling-block in our way , as he could not but think his example might be likely to prove to the church of christ : nor would the holy ghost have given so much countenance to a practice , neither very commendable in its self ; nor , upon any account , to be imitated by those , for whose benefit and instruction , those very epistles were inspired by him . . but we have not only the example of st. paul , tho' that were enough , to direct us in this matter . our blessed saviour himself has done likewise ; and * that by the confession of those , who yet will by no means allow of his apostles swearing . it has been thought by † some , that that form of speech so often used by our lord in confirmation of what he delivered , verily , verily , i say unto you ; was not meerly a vehement asseveration , but rather a direct and forman oath . tho' in this , i confess , i am not so well satisfied , as to be willing to lay any great stress upon it ; yet that he did , truly * swear , at his arraignment before the high-priest , is hardly to be doubted . when being adjured by him , ( after the manner used among the jews ) to tell him whether he were the christ , or no : he readily complied with the obligation that was laid upon him ; and answer'd plainly , that he was . and in the x th of the revelations , st. john puts it beyond all dispute , that the angel , with whom he discoursed , did do likewise , and that with great solemnity too ; for he lifted up his hand , and sware , by him that liveth for ever and ever : ver. , . . i conclude therefore , that what god both * prescribed , and * practiced under the law ; * what not only st. paul , but our saviour christ himself , and an angel from heaven , continued to vse under the gospel : * what , being duly perform'd , is for the honour of god , and the benefit of mankind ; but , being * vtterly forbidden , must turn very much to the detriment of the world : as it cannot be in its self evil , so neither was it ever intended to have been abolish'd by our blessed lord as such . . but what then shall we say to this passage of st. matthew ? swear not at all. can any thing be more express ? or could our saviour have spoken more plainly , had he design'd to have done , what some pretend he has done ? . to this i answer , and it is the next consideration i have to offer for the clearing of this difficulty , ( dly ) that it is not enough that the words of any prohibition are general , to oblige us to understand it in the utmost extent that the expressions are capable of : but we must withal consider , what it is reasonable to suppose was designed to have been forbidden by them . . for proof of which remark , let us look back only to the st verse of this chapter ; where we meet with a case not very different from that before us . ye have heard , says our saviour , that it has been said by them of old times , thou shalt not kill . and in the xx th of exodus , the command is absolute and express , thou shalt not kill . and some , we know , have been so very tender as to imagine , that it is no less unlawful in any case , or upon any pretence , to put a man to death , than others have thought it to be to take an oath . and yet at the same time that that prohibition was delivered to the jews , god himself establish'd the power of life and death , in the civil magistrate ; and in one of the first laws that was given to mankind , declared , that whoso shed man's blood , by man should his blood be shed . . to know therefore how far we are to extend the force of any prohibition ; we must consider , not only how general the letter of the law is , but what were the occasion and design of making of it . now the end of the sixth commandment was to restrain private violence ; and to tie up mens hands from rashly assaulting , and hurting of one another . and therefore to private persons , and in all the common circumstances of life , the command is absolute , and admits of no restriction ; thou shalt not kill . but in the publick administration of justice ; in defence of a man 's own life ; in a lawful war , where the welfare and security of our country are at stake ; in these cases , as the design of the law is not concern'd , so neither must the meaning of it be extended to them . . and so it is in the point before us : swear not at all , says our blessed saviour . but in what cases ? and after what manner ? why not on every slight occasion ; nay not on any occasion , where , without violating the bonds of justice and charity , you can avoid the doing of it . and even there where you cannot , yet swear not after the manner that the jews were wont to do ; for whose correction our saviour , as i shall presently shew , deliver'd the prohibition , of which we are now speaking . . and this brings me to the ( d ) and last thing i have to observe , for the clear understanding of the words before us : and that is this ; that if we will come to a right apprehension of our saviour's intention in them , we must examine what there was amiss in the common practice of the jews , as to this matter ; and by that we shall be able the more easily to judge , what is forbidden to us in it . . now the faults of the jews , as to this point of swearing , were these : st . * that they allow'd themselves to swear , almost upon any occasion , tho' never so vain and impertinent ; provided only that they did not swear by the sacred name of god ; and which indeed , they agreed , was not to be taken into their mouths but upon some great occasion , and with a due regard had to the honour of it . but that which was yet worse , was , ly : † ▪ that they supposed that by many of those lesser oaths , they were not so strictly obliged to speak , and act , according to the intention of them ; but that they might , without being forsworn , either dissemble their knowledge , or neglect their promises , which they confirm'd only by such oaths as these . . that these were the measures by which the jews govern'd themselves , as to this matter , both their own ancient writers tell us ; and our * saviour himself , in part , declares to us . and i need not say any thing to shew , that the design of all this was to avoid the obligation of the third commandment ; to the due observance whereof , our saviour therefore , in this place , intended to reduce his disciples . . and to that end , st : that he might the better keep up the reverence of an oath , he expresly forbids that customary and familiar vse , which the jews had been wont to make of it . i say unto you , swear not at all ; neither by heaven , for it is god's throne ; nor by the earth , for it is his footstool ; nor by jerusalem , for it is the city of the great king. that is , swear not at all after * that way that the jews were wont so readily to do ; nor in † such cases , in which they therefore made use of these lesser forms of swearing , because they thought it neither decent , nor lawful , to swear by the name of god. . now that which yet more confirms to us the reasonableness of this interpretation , is , that our saviour himself , in the prosecution of this very subject , plainly restrains his discourse to the same cases , in which the jews were wont to use those forms of swearing , which he here mentions . but let your communication , says he , be , yea , yea ; nay , nay . that is , in your private discourse and affairs with one another ; let it suffice you , instead of swearing after the manner of the jews here reproved , barely to affirm or deny what you have to say : or at the most to add some innocent asseveration to it , for the farther satisfaction of him to whom you speak ; for whatsoever is more than this , cometh of evil . . and thus far it was undoubtedly the design of our saviour , to forbid the practice of swearing altogether ; and to declare it , in such cases , to be vtterly evil and vnlawful . and therefore , as to what concerns this kind of swearing ; ( and to which both the practice of the jews here intended to be corrected ; and the instances given of the oaths which they made vse of ; and the direction of our saviour how to behave our selves on such occasions , do all evidently refer ; ) the prohibition is vniversal , and admits of no exception ; i say unto you , swear not at all : no not tho' what you swear be never so true , or you should be never so much provoked to swear to it . . but indeed , i am apt to believe that our saviour intended somewhat more than this , in his prohibition as to this matter : and that , because the abuses which the jews are charged with in this particular , required somewhat more to be done for the security of that commandment , which he was here concern'd to restore to its full force . and that is this : that because such is the nature of mankind , that we are but too apt to trifle with the most sacred things ; as we see the jews , in the case before us , most notoriously did ; who for that reason set up the lesser kind of swearing here mentioned , that so they might both the more freely use it , and the more easily break thro' the obligation of it : therefore our saviour resolved , at once , to prevent all future corruption of this kind , by utterly * forbidding men to swear any otherwise , than by the name of god only . . and if this be allow'd , then here we shall again have another good account of the vniversality of our saviour's prohibition as to this matter . i say unto you , swear not at all ; that is , not at all by heaven , or by the earth , or by any other the like forms : but when you shall find it needful to swear , swear directly by the name of god ; and then you will both the more rarely do it , and when you shall do it , will be the more likely to swear truly , and to perform to the lord your oaths . . from what has been said , we may now see what that swearing is , which our blessed lord has forbidden , as vnlawful to us christians : namely , first , to swear at all in our common and private affairs , with one another ; when there is neither any suitable occasion for it ; nor any necessity laid upon us so to do . and , secondly , to use those little , affected modes of swearing , which custom and design brought in among the jews , and which are still but too much allow'd of among us at this day . and by both which , the majesty of god is profaned ; perjury is encreased ; faith and confidence are lessen'd among men ; and their immortal souls are continually exposed to ruine and destruction . i shall therefore make a few practical reflections , upon each of these kinds of swearing ; and so conclude this chapter . . and , first : as to the case of light and customary swearing , it is certain , that for a man to swear in his common , ordinary conversation ; where there is either no need at all of an oath , or none that is proportionable to that reverence which ought to be paid to it ; is absolutely evil , and vnlawful . it is indeed to profane the sacredness , and to prostitute the design of an oath : and puts such an † affront upon god , as we would be ashamed to put upon one of our fellow-creatures . . and yet , alas ! how ordinary a practice is this among us ? and how often do we see men call god to witness , not only without need , but with such little regard too ; that i am afraid many times they do not know themselves when they do so . . nay and well were it for them , if they did this only upon too light occasions : but very frequently they do it upon such , as are extremely indecent , if not sinful . to bear witness to their lewdness , their profaness , and their debauchery . to bind their obligations of iniquity upon their souls : and to confirm their envious , their malicious , and covetous purposes , against their neighbour . . these are , god knows , very terrible considerations : they make me even tremble at the remembrance of them . and yet thus is god's name profaned without horrour ; and we suffer it without concern . . but i must go yet farther : for tho' this be that swearing which our saviour seems chiefly to have spoken against in this place ; yet i doubt not but that much more is required of us . and therefore i add , dly : that as a man ought never to swear , but up on some great , and solemn occasion ; so neither should he swear , of choice , even then ; nor till he ha● first indeavour'd , as far as is fitting● to avoid it . . it was the opinion of ● heathen moralist , that a good man ought never to swear , but upon on● of these two accounts ; either t● serve his friend , or to vindica● himself from some foul and scan●dalous aspersion . . tho' in this , i think , he was too severe ; yet as , i presume , there are not many cases in which a man ought voluntarily to swear ; so , i believe , this one general rule may comprehend the most of them : namely , that we should never do it , but when it is necessary , either for god's glory ; our own justification ; or our neighbours good. but as for any other considerations , i am perswaded , that it were better a man should sit down under any tolerable inconvenience , than flee to an oath for the prevention of it . . and this i say as to the case of voluntary oaths : as for those which are imposed by publick authority , the subjects rule must be to yield to them in all honest and lawful matters ; and to take such , as he can , with a good conscience , take . as for the reasonableness of requiring them , that is their business to consider who oblige us to the taking of them : and who ought to remember , that they shall assuredly answer to god for it , if by imposing them too often , and upon too slight occasions ; where neither the necessity of government , nor the publick peace require the doing of it ; they shall cause god's name to be profaned ; shall burden their neighbours conscience ; and , by degrees , take off very much from the religion and reverence of swearing . . but , dly : and to conclude these first sort of remarks . as the commandment here referr'd to by our saviour , thou shalt not forswear thy self ; and expounded by that additional paraphrase , but shalt perform to the lord thine oaths ; has ever been look'd upon to relate * more especially to promissory oaths ; in which the danger of perjury is much the greatest , and there will therefore need the greatest care and circumspection to be used , in order to the prevention of it : so am i apt to think , upon all these accounts , that we ought to look upon our selves as yet more concern'd to avoid such kind of oaths , as far as it may be in our power so to do , rather than any others . . a wise man will oblige himself , as seldom as he can , by a bare promise : because he cannot tell what may happen , nor to what inconveniencies he may expose himself , by the making of it . and surely much less ought a good man to bind a promise upon himself by an oath ; unless it be upon some urgent occasion , and in which he shall account it to be his duty so to do . . and this may suffice to have been observed , with relation to the first thing here forbidden ; viz. the frequent , and vnnecessary , and vnworthy vsage of an oath . as for the other case proposed ; i mean the abstaining from those lesser modes of swearing here referr'd to ; and , i believe , forbidden too by our saviour : it may be consider'd ; . st : that tho' it should be doubtful whether it be simply , and absolutely vnlawful , to make use of them ; yet it cannot be questioned but that it must be much safer , not to do so : nor can there be any reason given , why a wise and good man , should ever venture upon the use of them . . that it must be much safer to abstain altogether from them , is manifest from hence , that it is ( at least ) probable that our blessed lord did intend , in this place , to restrain the use of them : i am sure no one can ever shew , upon any good grounds , and such as may justifie a man's conscience in the allowance of them , that he did not . . and then , for the other part of my assertion ; that there can be no reason for a good man to venture upon the use of them , it is evident ; because , those things which , in such a case , a man swears by , must be consider'd either as relating to god , and terminating the oath in him ; and * then , to swear by them , is the same thing as to swear by god himself ; and to prostitute such oaths to a common vsage , is as criminal as to profane the very name of god : or if they are uncapable of being thus referr'd to god , and for that reason may be thought not to oblige ; then is the use of them vain and delusory ; and so either no end at all ; or , to be sure , no good one can be design'd by them . . but , dly : whatever becomes of this reflection , thus much is certain ; that to use any of these oaths with the intention of the jews , here condemn'd by our saviour ; that is to say , for the promotion either of common and vain swearing , on the one hand ; or of fraudulent and deceitful swearing , on the other ; or to recurr to such kind of oaths in any case , in which we should not think it decent , or lawful , to swear by god himself , is absolutely vnlawful ; and undoubtedly prohibited by christ , as such . . but here then i must not be mis●understood : for tho' i say that a good christian ought not to swear by any , but god only ; yet i do not pretend that we must always do it with a direct mention of his name ; and in those express terms , * which some have vainly thought alone properly to constitute an oath . many are the forms into which the substance of an oath may be cast , and in several of them the name of god not at all express'd ; and yet the oath be made by him only . . thus st paul , tho' he generally mentioned the very name of god , yet sometimes he put his oath into another form ; and * protested by the rejoycing which he had in christ jesus our lord , cor. xv . and when often times we our selves lay our hand on the holy scriptures , and having first conceived the substance of the oath , conclude with this form , so help me god , and the contents of this book : we as really swear by god alone , as if we had altogether stopp'd in the former part of our appeal ; or only said with the apostle , god is my witness . . in all these cases , it is enough that we make it plain that we refer to god , and to him only , for the truth of what we speak : and then howsoever our words may run , the oath will still be understood to terminate in him alone . . i say to god only : because otherwise tho' we should swear expresly by god , yet if we shall joyn any other together with him , as the jews did sometimes heretofore , and as those of the church of rome do notoriously at this day : in such a case , our oath will again be faulty ; and we shall , in the very manner of our swearing , be guilty of a sin , but little less criminal , than that of perjury its self . . and thus have i offer'd to you such considerations , as seem'd necessary to shew , what that swearing is which our saviour has truly forbidden under the gospel . i shall conclude this point , with those words of the son of sirach . ecclus. xxiii . . accustome not thy mouth to swearing , neither vse thy self to the naming of the holy one. for as a servant that is continually beaten , shall not be without a blew-mark ; so he that sweareth , and nameth god , continually , shall not be faultless . he that useth much swearing , shall be filled with iniquity , and the plague shall never depart from his house . chap. iv. of the several ways of confirming what is spoken , or promised , under the degree of an oath ; how far they may be made use of in mens private conversation ? and for what reason it was not fitting that men should have been allow'd to go any farther ? . having now shewn , from the words of our blessed saviour , how careful a good christian ought to be not only not to forswear himself ; but , as far as he is able , not to swear at all : it remains , for the final clearing of this subject , that we go on , upon the same principles , to enquire , how we are to behave our selves , in our common discourse , with one another ? and here the rule proposed to us is this ; let your communication be yea , yea ; nay , nay : and this reason given , why we ought to confine our selves within the bounds of it ; for , says our saviour , whatsoever is more than this , cometh of evil. i shall distinctly consider each part of it ; and endeavour , first , to shew you , what our duty , with relation to this matter , is : and then , secondly , to convince you , of the reasonableness of that motive , which our blessed saviour has here made use of , to oblige us to walk according thereunto . . and , first : for what concerns the rule here laid down ; it was the opinion of a very learned man in his remarks upon this passage ; that these words of our saviour , let your communication be , yea , yea ; nay , nay ; are to be expounded by those of st. james , to the same purpose , jam. v. . let your yea , be yea ; and your nay , nay : and the account he gives of both of them is this ; that our actions should be agreeable to our expressions ; and that whensoever we promise any thing , we should be sure to take especial care that our performance be accordingly . . tho' this be , no doubt , the duty , and should be the care of every good christian ; yet can i , by no means , think it a proper account of our saviour's meaning in the words before us : in which it was certainly his intention to direct us , how to manage our selves in our * discourse , or as we render it , our communication with one another ; and not how to conform our performances to our promises . . that st. james had a regard to this passage of our saviour , in that exhortation which he gave to the same purpose , i make no doubt : nor shall i deny , but that they may possibly have both of them meant the same thing . but that either the one , or the other , intended to restrain the doctrine here delivered concerning swearing , to promissory oaths only ; or indeed aim'd at any thing more than to shew us , how we should behave our selves in our conversation with one another , does not appear from either of their expressions ; nor ought , without reason , to be supposed by us . . and therefore , dly , and to come more closely to the explication of the words before us : as it is plain from the whole tenour of our saviour's discourse in this place , that a good christian may , without all scruple , affirm what is true , or deny what is false ; so the least we can inferr from the repetition here made of the yea and nay , is this ; † that if one assertion or denial of either should not be sufficient to satisfie the person with whom we converse , of the truth of what we speak , we may renew our discourse , and confirm it again and again to him : and by that means move him the rather to believe us , when he shall find us constantly to persevere in our assertion or denial of it . . nor , indeed , can any question be reasonably made of the lawfulness of our doing thus much , to satisfie the jealousie of our neighbour , and to justifie our own fidelity . for if we may innocently declare what we know once , what harm can there be in doing it a second time ? and if it be requisite that we should do so , to gain the better credit with our brother ; and to convince him the more undoubtedly of the truth of what we say : seeing both the end for which we do it is innocent , and there is nothing vnlawful in the act its self ; where can the harm of such a repetition be ? . this therefore is the least we can suppose our saviour hereby intended to allow us to do , for the better confirmation of what we promise , or assert . and i cannot tell but that his words may fairly be extended a great deal farther ; and be understood , dly ; to allow us , if need be , not only to re-iterate what we say , and thereby to fix the belief of it the more firmly in the mind of him with whom we converse ; but that with some kind of * earnestness too in the repetition : with some such vehemence of expression as may serve to add a new force to our words ; and effectually shew that we have both duly consider'd , and are very well assured of the truth of what we report ; or of our resolution to fulfil what we promise , in them . . this was the method which our blessed saviour himself commonly follow'd in his own conversation : and frequent instances we meet with of it , in all the parts of his gospel . so in this very chapter , verse . * verily i say unto you : and again , verse . verily i say unto thee . and that this may reasonably be presumed , to have been allow'd us in the present passage , we may conclude from hence ; not only that this is the least degree of assurance we can give to the truth of what we say , above that of a simple delivery of it ; and neither cometh of evil , nor tendeth to it : but that the very expressions themselves which we render yea , and nay , do import , not a bare affirmation , or denial ; but that with some such vehemence as this . insomuch that in the holy scriptures themselves , we find the word which we render * yea , made use of instead of an asseveration ; and by our own interpreters translated accordingly . † and even where it is not so , yet the discourse its self shews , that there is somewhat more than a meer affirmation designed by it ; as might easily be made appear , in several examples , were it needful to insist upon it . . let us add to this , that in the stile of the sacred pen-men , the repetition of any word , generally denotes somewhat of a * vehemence designed by it . hence it is that our saviour does not only commonly make use of the asseveration before mention'd ; but when he would imprint what he said , in a more particular manner , upon mens minds , and engage them to a more serious consideration of it ; doubles it too ; verily , verily , i say unto you . and from all which put together , we may , i think , very safely conclude , that we also , after the example of our blessed master , may not only with great plainness and earnestness affirm the truth of what we speak ; but may , if need be , add some such asseveration to it , as he was wont to do ; and even fairly interpret the very words before us , to allow of it . . from what has been said , it appears ; either that such asseverations as those i have now been speaking of , do expresly fall within the design of the present text , ( and that some have thought to be the more probable ; ) or most certainly , * are not repugnant to it . but now , thly : and to advance yet one step higher : what shall we say to another sort of confirmation , frequently made use of heretofore , and not uncommon with us at this day ; whereby to convince men of the truth of what we say ; and that is , by pledging ( as it were ) somewhat which is very valuable to us , for the certainty of it . . this is that kind of confirmation , which , as distinguished from the fore-going , is usually called * obtestation : and it differs from an oath in this ; that an oath has always a respect to god , and either expresly , or by construction , denotes an appeal to him for the ●ruth of what we utter : whereas , in the way i am now speaking of , we only interpose the authority of somewhat , which is either evidently certain , or apparently dear to us ; to bespeak our sincerity in what we deliver under the caution of it . . such a ratification as this is that which we meet with so commonly in the old testament , * as thy soul liveth . and it has been thought by some , that joseph really did no more than this , when he seem'd to † swear to his brethren , by the life of pharaoh , gen. xlii . . and as for the new testament ; ‖ what if that form of speech made use of by st. paul , cor. xv . . and which some , as we have seen , will have to be an oath , was indeed no more than an obtestation : i protest by your rejoicing which i have in christ jesus our lord . at least i cannot but think , that those | primitive christians , of whom tertullian speaks , meant no more ; who refused to swear by the fortune , or genius , of their emperours ; lest they should seem to appeal to the deities of the heathen : but yet freely gave assurance of their fidelity to them , by their health and safety , which ( as he expresses it ) was very dear to them ; and equal , in their account , with the greatest oath . . that such kind of confirmations as these , of the truth of what we speak , may ( upon occasion ) not only innocently , but commendably , be made use of ; for the better prevention of down-right swearing , is , i think , not to be doubted : but yet i cannot tell , whether they may be reckon'd to fall within the direct allowance of the present text , tho' they are certainly * consistent with the design of it . and therefore , i do suppose that next to formal-swearing , these kind of obtestations ought the most rarely , and with the greatest caution , to be made use of by us . . but if the matter be weighty ; and if it be needful to do somewhat more than ordinary to convince the person with whom we discourse , of the truth of what we speak : and if such a lesser ratification of it , will prevent our recurring to the last and highest , i mean , that of an oath : i cannot see why we should not rather chuse to pledge our own honesty or truth ; or to corroborate what we say , by comparing the certainty of it , with somewhat of which there can be no doubt ; such as our own , or his life with whom we converse ; rather than accustom our selves to call god to witness in any case , in which it may lie in our power to avoid it . . and thus have i done with the several kinds of confirmation of what we affirm , below the degree of an oath . i cannot tell whether it may be needful for me to take notice of yet another method , which has but too much obtain'd in the world , to the same purpose : and that is , thly , when to assert the truth of what they speak , men flee to some curse or imprecation upon themselves , if they prevaricate in it . but as every oath does in its nature imply an appeal to the justice of god , as well as to his knowledge ; and , by consequence , does inferr a * tacit imprecation of his vengeance upon us , if we deal falsly with our neighbour : so thus much we may be sure of , that were such imprecations , otherwise , never so lawful , in order to this end ; yet they ought not to be used at any time , or upon any occasion , in which we may not lawfully take an oath . and therefore that both out of charity to our selves , and out of reverence to god's judgments ; we ought to lay aside the practice of such curses altogether : seeing they can neither be ever made without horrour ; nor may be made in any case , wherein we may not give our oath , not only with an equal satisfaction to our neighbour , but with greater decency and conformity to the principles of christianity . . and now , to lay together , in short , the several rules , by which we are to govern our selves in our communication with one another ; according as i have hitherto been more largely stating of them to you . . if what we say be a matter of meer indifference ; so that it is of no great consequence , either to our selves , or any other , whether we are believed or no : in that case it may suffice * barely to relate what we know of it ; without troubling our selves , by any of the ways i have now been speaking of , to give any farther confirmation to it . . if our discourse be of such a nature , that it may concern our neighbour to give credit to it ; or it may , perhaps , upon our own account , be convenient that he should do so : we may then confirm ▪ the truth of what we assert , either by a * repeated assurance of it ; or , if that will not suffice , by adding such an * asseveration as may shew that we speak very seriously , and with a well-grounded confidence of what we say : such as verily , or indeed , or in-truth you may believe me ; or by some other expressions of the like nature . . if this does not yet satisfie the mind of our neighbour , and the subject of our discourse be so important as to demand a still higher conviction of the truth of it ; then , thirdly , i conceive we may proceed to a yet higher and more forcible confirmation of what we say , by that more weighty kind of assurance , which , if not comprehended under the expressions of the present passage , is yet certainly within the reason , and may be built upon the grounds of it . such are those * obtestations so usual among our selves , vpon my word ; if i am alive ; as i am an honest man , and the like . and such was that of st. paul heretofore , cor. xi . . as the truth of christ is in me. only as these are still greater corroborations of the truth of what we speak than the other ; so ought they to be used more seldom , and with greater care , and upon more weighty occasions ; when 't is very highly expedient that we should be believed in what we say . . and here we must stop in our communication with one another . for the next degree of assurance , above this , is an oath : and that i have already shewn you , must very rarely be made use of ; indeed never but when we either cannot , by any means , avoid it , or the matter is such that we ought not to decline it . . which being thus resolved , in answer to the first thing i proposed to consider ; let us go on , in the next place , to see , what the import of that motive is which our saviour here proposes to us , to engage us to keep within these bounds , in our common affairs with one another ; and that is , that whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. . it has been doubted by some whether what we render cometh of evil , might not more properly have been translated , ‖ cometh of the evil-one . but as the original is certainly capable of either of these senses ; so the assertion of our saviour will hold good in both of them : the custom of vain-swearing being altogether wicked and unreasonable ; and not only proceeding from an evil principle , but in its nature , tending to an evil end too ; and upon all these accounts coming from the evil one . . and first ; whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. and that whether we respect * ou● selves , or * others ; * the custom o● making , or the * cause of requiring an oath , for the confirmation of what we say . . if we consider the grounds of common-swearing with respect to * our-selves : it must proceed either from an * evil-custom , or from an * evil-principle ; and upon both those accounts , be utterly wicked and vnjustifiable . . for ( st : ) as to the * custom of such swearing ; we know that every sin is by so much the more hainous in its self , and more dangerous to our souls ; by how much the habit of it is the more deeply rooted in us . insomuch that it is from this that a man takes his denomination ; and is look'd upon to be either a good , or a bad man , according as the common practice of his life bespeaks him to be . . the best christian may be tempted , and fall into sin ; and sometimes do that which he ought not to do . but yet whilst this is not his custom ; whilst the general bent not only of his desires , and endeavours , but of his actions , and conversation too , lie towards his duty ; neither will god exact every such sin of him , nor ought men to censure him too severely for them . for this is the misfortune of our present state , and while we are in this world , will always be so ; that in many things we shall offend all. . but when once any sin becomes habitual , and men make a common , or rather a constant , practice of it : the very custom of it renders such a sin both unpardonable by god , and justly censurable by all good men. . so that supposing then that common and vain-swearing are sinful ; as both our saviour here warrants us , and i have before shewn , we ought to account it : the custom of such swearing must be yet more evil ; and the sin not the less , but the greater for proceeding from it . . but indeed before men can arrive to such a custom , there must be in them some evil principle or other to give birth to it : and such swearing must , upon this account also , come of evil , that it must be derived from some source that most certainly is so . . for since such swearing is not only plainly forbidden in the gospel , but is withal , in its own nature , so indecent , and vnfitting ; that 't is impossible for any man who has either any true value for god , or has ever seriously consider'd the meaning of an oath , to approve of it : certain it is , that that man must be either very negligent of himself , and very unsensible of his duty ; or he must be become altogether wicked and profane , who allows himself in the customary practice of it . and from which soever of all these principles his swearing does proceed , what our saviour here tells us of it will still remain true , that it cometh of evil. . nor will this usage be found to fall any less under the same character , if we shall consider it with respect to those who require such oaths of others , and prompt men on to the practice of them . . * for since to encourage another to sin , but much more to require what is evil of him , must be highly criminal ; as being not only contrary to the duty which we owe to god , but also to that charity which we ought to have for our neighbour's soul : certain it is , that no one who looks upon it to be unlawful to swear vainly can , without sin , allow , much les● encourage and oblige another so to do . and therefore it must remain that upon this account also , as well as upon those i have already mentioned , this practice must be confessed to come of evil. . but , indeed , were it not for the evil , that is to say , the wickedness of men ; there would be neither any need of swearing at all , nor any temptation to it . and this will yet more verifie our saviour's assertion ; and shew that the very ground and foundation not only of false and vain-swearing , but of all swearing whatsoever , cometh of evil. . now that i thus make out . the only solid reason that can be given why men should ever swear at all , is upon the account of its usefulness , or rather necessity , for the confirmation of what they say . but now were it not for the corruption of our nature , and that falseness and insincerity , which so much abounds in the world ; and for those jealousies and suspicions , which men have entertain'd of one another upon the account of it ; where would be the need of any such confirmation ? were there no such thing as malice , or envy ; interest , or design ; covetousness , or injustice ; lying , or dissimulation , known among us . but , on the contrary , every one was honest and ingenuous ; and might securely be trusted by his neighbour , as such . in short , were our condition so happy , that men reckon'd their word , as sacred as their oath ; and would be as careful of what they said , as of what they swore ? . but because , god knows , the case is much otherwise with us ; and men are so full of tricks and cheats , are so subtle and deceitful , so vain and vnconstant , that we know not where to have them , or when to rely upon them ; and it is hard to find out any bond that is sufficient to assure us that they act sincerely ; therefore it has been found necessary to recur to this obligation : that if there be any fear of god , or any sense of goodness remaining to them , they may by this means , at least , be engaged to deal uprightly ; and not presume to call god to witness , but when they are resolved to speak and act , as they ought to do . . and now when such is the ground of our appealing to god at all ; when 't is the wickedness and falseness of mankind that has given occasion to the vse of an oath ; and without which there would never have been any need of it : well may our saviour give this for his reason why all honest and good men should decline swearing , as much as they can , that it cometh of evil ; that is , was found out as a remedy to the evil of our natures , and to secure the truth of false and insincere men. * for sure a better , or more sensible motive cannot be offer'd to engage such persons to abstain from it , than this ; that 't is an affront to their honesty , a scandal upon their integrity : at least that it is a tie which was never intended for men of their character ; nor can be allow'd by them , without seeming to own , that they are not so faithful and ingenuous as they would be thought to be . . but , secondly : as the practice of swearing , especially in our common dealing , and conversation with one another , howsoever it be consider'd , cometh of evil ; so , to complete the iniquity of it , will it be found to tend also unto evil : and upon that account , as well as upon those already mention'd , to come from the evil one. and that especially in these ( . ) respects : as it is apt , ( . ) to give an evil example to others . ( . ) to take off from the reverence of an oath ; and from that due regard which ought to be had to it . and , ( . ) in the consequence thereof , to lead men into a general profaness ; into an vnconcernedness for , if not into a contempt of , whatsoever is sacred . . and ( st . ) the common practice of swearing , tendeth to evil ; inasmuch as it is apt to give an ill example to others . for tho' this be a sin which has neither any pleasure , nor profit , to recommend it ; nor should men therefore , one would think , be apt to be tempted to it : yet alas ! experience shews us , that even custom its self is alone sufficient to propagate an evil practice ; and to prompt men to do that themselves , which they see others do before them . . this is so just a reflection , that it is , perhaps , the only account that can be given , how men come to swear so ordinarily , and upon such little occasions , as they do : in such cases , where there is neither any manner of need of an oath for the confirmation of what they speak ; nor have they , often times , any such design in it . but 't is a fashionable way of adorning , or rather of profaning their discourse ; the practice of it is become almost epidemical : and they have , insensibly , accustomed their tongues to it , till at last they neither know how to avoid it , nor are themselves sensible when they do it . . so easily are men brought to profane the name of god! and such a mischievous influence has the practice of common-swearing , begun at first by a few profligate men , had , to spread a general contempt of the divine majesty over the face of the earth ; and to weaken one of the most sacred bonds of truth and fidelity , that was ever given to mankind . . and this brings me to the next ill-effect , which this customary swearing has had , in consequence of the foregoing : and that is , ( dly . ) to take off from the reverence of an oath , and from that due regard which ought to be had to it . . that perjury is a sin both too lightly consider'd , and too commonly practis'd among us ; is too plainly seen , and has , i believe , been too sensibly felt likewise , by many of us , to suffer us to make any doubt of it . and how far the prevalence of common , and vain-swearing , may have contributed to this evil , i shall leave it to every serious christian to consider . . in the mean time , thus much is evident ; that an oath , from being one of the most sacred and sure bands of faith between man and man , is now become of very little benefit or security to us . men take them without fear , and too often without considering what they do : and when they have taken them , they many times shew as little regard to them in their practice , as they at first did reverence in approaching to them. . and , indeed , how should we expect that he who puts no value upon an oath in his common talk , should be much more concern'd for it , only by the addition of a little more solemnity to it ? or be afraid to break his promise , or to dissemble the truth , which he ratifies by an appeal to god , when imposed upon him ; who has no regard to either , tho' he swears to them an hundred times of his own accord . alas ! an oath is only terrible to a young beginner : to him who considers what it is ; and who has the fear of god's knowledge and justice , still vigorous upon his mind . but to him who swears every hour that he lives ; who trafficks with it , and could not tell how to carry on his business without it : who swears with as little concern as he talks ; and values an oath , no more than he does a common lie : what can we expect but that as such a one's regard to this sacred tie is very small ; so his care to answer the end of it should be proportionably small too . . to such a terrible height of wickedness is common-swearing apt to bring men at the last . nor does the evil of it stop here ; but , ( dly ) and lastly ; from the particular contempt of an oath , carries men on , by degrees , to a general profaneness ; to an vnconcernedness for , if not a neglect of , whatsoever is sacred . . and this is still but the natural progression of this sin ; and the next step to that i before mentioned . for since the honour of god , and his power and justice , are all despised , and that in a most outragious manner , by the sin of perjury ; so that a man must have laid aside all regard to these , before he can harden himself to the practice of that : what should hinder him who is become so great a proficient in wickedness as to be able to trample under foot the honour , the power , the justice , and even the vengeance of god too , in one great instance ; from proceeding , if need be , to do it as readily in any other ? . that to swear is not only truly an act of religion , but one of the most solemn acts of it ; and most apt to stir up in our minds a fear of god , and reverence of his name , is not to be deny'd ; . that to do this lightly , and vnadvisedly ; but especially to do it falsly ; only to carry on our own designs , or to promote our own interests , at the expence of god's glory : must be not only horridly to profane the sacredness of an oath , but to flee directly in the face of god , and to bid defiance to damnation ; the necessary importance of an oath , will not suffer us to doubt . . now when once men are become so deeply rooted in impiety as to be able to do this , what is there left to restrain them from a general state of profaneness and irreligion ? it is but proceeding upon the same principles , and doing that in the other instances of religion , which they do in this : and why they should not do so , if ever their passions or their interests should prompt them to it , i cannot see ; and we need not question but that they will go on accordingly . . if therefore we have any regard to god's glory ; if any concern for our own souls ; let both these perswade us not to allow our selves in a practice so offensive to the one , so dangerous to the other . . let those despise the sanctity of an oath , and prostitute it to a common and profane vsage ; who know not how sacred a thing it is , and how dangerous to indulge the customary practice of it . but let it suffice us to take that liberty which our blessed lord has left to us , not only as the most safe ; but as ( in the general affairs of life , ) sufficient too . and let us so much the rather content our selves with it , by how much the more plainly it appears from all those considerations i have now been offering to you , that whatsoever is more than that , cometh of evil. chap. v. wherein an enquiry is made into the causes both of that common , and false-swearing , which so much abounds in the world : and some directions are offer'd for the better prevention of both of them. . i have now done with our saviour's discourse , relating to the point of swearing ; and might with that , have reasonably enough concluded my reflections upon this subject . but because there are some things which i could not so well refer to any of those heads i have before treated of ; which yet , i conceive , may usefully be observed by us upon this occasion : i shall chuse rather to put them together , a little out of place , than wholly to pass them by . . now the summ of what i would farther propose , for finishing of this whole subject , may be reduced to these two general heads : i st . i will consider , how it comes to pass , that men are so forward to swear , almost upon every occasion ; and too often venture , even to forswear themselves . and having given such an account as may be necessary of this matter , i will go on , ii dly , to offer some particular directions , for the better correction and prevention of both those evils . . and , st . let us consider , how it comes to pass , that after all our saviour has said to the contrary ; yet we see men , nevertheless , not only so forward to swear , almost upon every occasion ; but too often venturing even to forswear themselves . . in the prosecution of which enquiry , it is not my intention to make any laborious search into the causes of that common-swearing which has so vniversally , almost , obtain'd in the world ; and makes up a great part of mens ordinary discourse with one another . for tho' that be , without controversie , a very grievous sin , yet is it withal a very vnaccountable one too . a sin which men commit to serve no end ; to gratifie no lust ; to carry on no business by . without profit ; without pleasure ; i had almost said , and without temptation too . in short ; a sin by which they dishonour god , and ruine their own souls , to no purpose : but do the work of the devil , without that common-encouragement which , in most other cases , he allows wicked men , to reward their doing of it . so that for ought i know , the best account that can be given , why men ever fall into this sin at all , is ; that they have slipp'd into the habit of it , they know not how : and custom has made it a fashionable vice. they look upon it as a modish way of discourse ; and think it would bring an imputation upon their breeding , if they should altogether forbear it : and render their conversation flat , and insipid ; for want of that profaneness , which indeed is , many times , the only thing that is remarkable in it . . but this is not that swearing i am now concern'd for : nor do we find that our saviour has had any regard for such sinners as these . if men will run into evil habits without need , it is but fitting they should perish without pity : and not expect to be argued out of a vice , which is so far from having any shew of reason to justifie it ; that it has not so much as any temptation , that may serve to make an excuse for it . the swearing , i am now speaking of , is of another nature , and practised by a better sort of men. by such as acknowledge the obligation , tho' they do not sufficiently consider the sacredness of an oath : and for that reason allow themselves , on every little occasion , to flee to the use of it ; as long as they do but take care not to confirm any thing , but what is true , by it . and whence it comes to pass , that so many , even among the higher rank of christians , are yet thus forward to swear ; is the first thing i proposed to enquire . . and here ( st . ) it may be consider'd , that every one , who has any sense of probity remaining in him , desires to be believed ; especially in what he seriously affirms or denies : and cannot but think it very hard to be suspected of any falseness and vntruth in his discourse . besides that , often times , it may be of concern to him that he should be believed : and to leave his veracity in doubt , may prove not only to his disgrace , but to his damage also . . now interest and reputation , are two of the dearest things in the world to most men ; and the love of which they can the most hardly overcome . and therefore when these shall prompt a man rather to confirm the truth of what he speaks with an oath , than to run the hazard of suffering in one , or , it may be , in both of them ; there had need be a deep sense of religion , and a very awful dread of an oath indeed , rooted in a man's heart , to keep him from so doing . . let us add to this , ( dly ) that unreasonable jealousie which abounds in mankind towards each other ; and moves them upon the least appearance of reason ; nay , and often-times without any ; to suspect one another . hence it is that if a matter be but of never so little importance ; if it be for a man's advantage , or disadvantage ; for his pleasure , or trouble , to be thoroughly convinced of it : it is seldom known that they will be satisfied with the bare word of him who reports it unto them ; or with any thing less , than his swearing to the truth of what he says . and if , out of conscience to his duty , and being unwilling to break in upon the sacredness of an oath , he should chance to refuse so to do ; it is great odds but he shall be urged and provoked to it : and hardly avoid the censure of speaking falsly from those , who having no respect for an oath themselves , will not easily be perswaded that another should have any higher regard to it ; or refuse to swear upon any other account than this , that he is conscious to himself that what he says is false ; and therefore he dares not swear to the truth of it . and many there are , even among the better sort of men , who by this means are betray'd into an undue usage of an oath : and chuse rather to swear , when otherwise they would not do it , than to bear the reproaches of those to whom they speak , by a peremptory refusal of it . . again ( dly ) to men who have either no true sense at all of religion upon their minds ; or have not sufficiently consider'd the nature of an oath , and convinced themselves thereby how much the honour of god is concern'd in our using of it ; and how cautious we , therefore , ought to be , upon what occasions we do swear : the customary forwardness which we complain of in most men to recur to this way of confirming what they say , may be , and ( i believe ) has been , a great inducement , to the over-easie practice of it . . there are few christians so ignorant as not to know , that perjury is a very hainous sin , and such as may not be committed , without the peril of salvation . but yet there may be many who are still to learn , that to swear upon a small occasion , tho' a man swears nothing but the truth , is of its self criminal ; and , as such , forbidden in the gospel . now such persons as these , being sensible how usual it is for men to do this , look no farther ; but follow on as they see others go before them ; nor feel any remorse of conscience for doing that , which they never understood had any great harm in it . . and that which may possibly have contributed to confirm them in this practice is ; that they see themselves call'd upon to swear , so very often , not only in their own private concerns , but even by publick authority . for since charity , as well as duty , obliges us to think that nothing is done by that but upon the most mature deliberation ; and we know how great a number of wise and good men must concur to the making of a law with us ; whose wisdom we cannot , and whose piety we ought not to doubt of : it is but reasonable to conclude , that they had certainly a due regard to the honour of god in all their constitutions ; and would never require us to swear on any occasion , in which they esteem'd it either unlawful , or unseemly for us to do it . . how far such reasoning as this may have disposed some unwary persons to swear more frequently , and upon lesser occasions than they ought to do , i cannot tell : but i think it may deserve to be consider'd , whether the multitude of cases wherein not our laws only , but those of all other countries , do oblige , or , at least , allow men to swear ; may not have somewhat contributed to that forwardness of doing it , which we see and complain of in them , upon other occasions : and have disposed them to be more ready , than they ought to be , to recur to an oath in such cases , wherein there is neither any command of man , nor any excuse before god , for their doing of it . . i shall offer but one account more of this unwarrantable readiness of men to swear ; and that is ( thly ) from the refusal which some , of late , have made of all swearing whatsoever : and in opposition to whose errour , some may possibly have been so unwary as to run into the contrary extreme ; and to have concluded , that so far is it from being unlawful to swear in any case , that , rather , there is none so small in which they may not freely do it . . it is the infirmity of many , of more warmth than judgment , that they are always in extremes : and think the only way to secure themselves from error , is to fly as far from it as they can . not considering that there may be as little reason in one extreme , as in another ; and that , according to the old remark , truth , as well as vertue , is seldom found in either . . thus some out of an over-eager opposition to popery , have cast off episcopacy ; and for fear of superstition , would have all decency thrown out of the church . and i verily believe we had not seen at this day so much profaneness and irreligion among us , had not the detestation of some mens hypocritical pretences to godliness , first prompted on others to fly out into a loosness of living , and from thence into a neglect of every thing that is sacred . and how far this vice of common-swearing may have gotten grounds by the same means , and have been improved too among the rest ; i shall leave it to those who have consider'd , from what time it has begun more especially to prevail among us , to determine . . such therefore may , i suppose , have been the causes of that readiness which we find in men to swear , even upon the most common , and unjustifiable occasions . but now , as for the other sin proposed , that of perjury ; i can scarcely tell to what cause to ascribe the little concern which many shew of falling into that ; because , indeed , i can scarcely tell what cause should be sufficient to harden their consciences against it . . that the frequency of swearing , and the little occasions on which men sometimes allow themselves in the practice of it , may have very much taken off from their reverence of an oath , i can easily believe ; and by that means have disposed them to swear more carelesly , and with lesser consideration than they ought to do . . that by their often and careless swearing , they may probably sometimes have incurr'd the guilt of perjury , unawares ; and by that means have been unhappily made acquainted with it ; i do not doubt . . but yet still , to swear falsly , where a man knows what he does ; and deliberately designs so to do ; this adds so much not only to common-swearing , but even to an vnwilling perjury also ; that a man ought to become a great proficient in wickedness , before he can bring his mind to it . . this therefore is a sin which i can ascribe to no other cause than that of a profane heart , and a hardned conscience . whether it be that a man falls into it through an absolute infidelity ; or that by a long , habitual continuance in sin , he is at last become deprived of god's grace , and is given up to be led captive by satan at his will. for otherwise , perjury is a crime of so detestable a nature , and which has so much of the falseness of the devil in it ; that were there but any spark of piety remaining in the soul , it were impossible a man should ever be perswaded to commit it : or having once committed it , should be able to endure his own torments ; much less should ever return to the commission of it again . . i shall therefore seek no farther for the cause of this sin ; but shall confidently conclude , that the habit of it can proceed from nothing less than an vtter dereliction of god , and an extinction of all sense of good and evil in the soul. . which being thus resolved ; let us now go on , ii dly , to consider , what directions may be offer'd for the correction of these great evils . . and , st : for what concerns the point of perjury ; as i have now shewn , that a man must be arrived to an extraordinary pitch of wickedness , before he can allow himself in the commission of it ; so i know no way there is to draw men off from that , but only to awaken their consciences , if it may be , to a serious consideration of their sins ; and by that means to bring them to a sincere conversion from them . . indeed could even charity its self warrant us to think , that it were possible for men to be so far deluded , as not to know false-swearing , i do not say to be a sin , but to be a most hainous and damnable offence ; such a sin for which god has no pity ; and it may almost be question'd whether he will afford men his grace for repentance of it ; there might then be also some hope , that by a better information of their judgments , as to this matter , they might perhaps be reclaimed from it . . but when such is the notoriousness of this crime , that 't is impossible any one should fall into it without knowing that he does at the same time defie god , and make a mock of damnation ; we must conclude that 't is in vain to hope by any particular applications to correct this evil : and that we must resolve either to reduce such a person to a general sense of piety and vertue ; or to leave him in the guilt of this , as well as under the power of his other sins . . and this , i say , as to what concerns the point of moral conviction and perswasion . for , otherwise , one method there is , and 't is the only one i can imagine , by which a stop may be put to the practice of this , without medling with a man 's other sins ; and that is , by a strict execution of humane justice upon him : and which out of charity to our neighbour's soul , as well as out of duty to god , and with regard to the publick welfare ; it is great pity but all magistrates should , with all possible vigour and severity , do . . how much the welfare of mankind is concern'd in the suppression of false-swearing , i need not say : and what provision our own * laws have made for the better effecting of it , cannot be unknown to those who are intrusted with the administration of them , and who are especially concern'd to take notice of it . let me only beg leave earnestly to recommend it to all such , so far to consider the great trust which is reposed in them ; and what an interest every honest member of the common-wealth has to demand their care in this , more than in any other sin committed to their censure ; as not to admit of any excuses , nor to shew any favour , to such malefactors : who if , by this means , they shall be brought to a true sense of their sin , and to repentance for it ; will then think themselves gainers by their prosecution : and if they shall not , i am sure cannot , by our laws , be too severely punish'd for it . . but , dly : as for the other sort of swearing forbidden by our saviour , yet too easily indulged by many christians : whether it be that of their common discourse , where there is no need at all of it ; or in the prosecution of their ordinary affairs , in which there is no sufficient occasion for it : many are the directions that may be offer'd for the prevention of such a practice , proportionable to the several principles upon which men may be prompted to allow themselves in the vse of it . . for ( st . ) should they chance to go on in such swearing , for want of being convinced of the danger and vnreasonableness of it ; the surest way , in this case , to draw them off from their practice of it , will be to shew them how expresly it has been forbidden by our saviour ? what an affront it puts upon the majesty of god ? and how indecent a thing it is , ( were there nothing else to be said against it ) to call the great lord of heaven and earth to witness , on such silly and trivial occasions , as such persons cannot but acknowledge , they very often do . . but ( dly . ) tho' possibly men may know , in the general , that thus to swear is not convenient ; yet still they may neglect to take all that care and pains with themselves , that is necessary for the intire avoiding of it , because they are not sufficiently perswaded , how great the sinfulness of it is . this is , i believe , the real case with very many : and if so , then 't is plain that here again the best way to draw them off from this evil custom , will be to convince them of the mighty danger and malignity of it . to shew them , that thus to swear , is not , as they may imagine , some light and ordinary offence ; nor will be pass'd over by god , as such . that to swear , is to appeal to god ▪ and if that be done without great care , and a suitable occasion for it , we shall put such an affront upon him , as we would be ashamed to put upon one of our fellow creatures , and would not endure that any should put upon our selves . . these and the like considerations , if plainly urged , and seriously laid to heart ; can hardly fail of convincing any rational person of the sinfulness of this practice . and having done that , they must , in the consequence of it , oblige him to correct it too ; if he be truly such an one as we now suppose him to be , viz. an honest and upright christian. . but ( dly . ) should not this be the case ; but the person who is engaged in this evil habit should be one who pursues this swearing not so much out of any particular ignorance of , or unconcernedness for , the sacredness of an oath ; as out of a general levity of mind and insensibility of his duty : then it will not be sufficient to argue with him , concerning the nature and importance of an oath , and with what care and circumspection we ought to approach to the taking of it : but we must proceed with such a one in a more general way ; and bring him to reverence an oath , by teaching him to be more considerate ; and to have a greater value for all the other acts of religion . . such a person as this , as he does not prophane god's name out of any particular dis-regard which he has for an oath , more than for any other thing of the like nature , so neither must he be brought off from the doing of it , by any particular considerations relating to the sacredness of an oath ; but must be perswaded , in the general , to become serious and devout ; to honour god , and to pay a due respect to every thing that relates to him : and this will compose his thoughts , and influence his affections in all the offices of religion ; and in this particular among the rest . . but now ( thly . ) and to go yet higher : what if the person who thus swears , should not only be more careless and inconsiderate , than he ought to be , in the business of religion ; but should , by principle , be become a despiser of it ? what if he be one who believes not in any god at all ; but laughs at all our talk either of a providence here , or of a judgment hereafter ? . tho' in this case , as in the foregoing , the best way to reclaim such a one's common swearing would be to convince him of his errors ; and , by so doing , to cut off the first cause of this irregularity : yet till that shall be done , somewhat , i think , may fairly be offer'd , upon his own principles , to restrain this vice , without medling with any of his others . . for , indeed , how foolish and ridiculous a thing must it be for such a one , ( if he be in good earnest , ) by swearing , to appeal to god , who professes to believe none ; or at least none that has any concern for , or knowledge of , what we do here below ? how absurd , for him to refer himself to the censure of a future judgment , who would be thought not to own any state at all after this in which we now live ; nor , by consequence , to revere any such final inquest . . or if in all this he only acts a part ; how base and dis-ingenuous must he then shew himself to be ; to offer an oath for the confirmation of what he promises or asserts ; who neither believes any obligation to be thereby laid upon him to deal ever the more sincerely for it ; nor can have any design in swearing , but only to impose upon the credulity , and to ridicule the religion of his neighbour ? . whether therefore men acknowledge the principles of religion or no , yet certainly common justice and honesty ; nay , or even honour its self , ( which with some men is of greater authority than both ; ) should make them ashamed to swear , in any matter , for the confirmation of the truth of what they speak : because they know , in their own hearts , that they do but impose thereby upon those with whom they deal by the shew of an obligation ; which , how great-soever it may be to others , yet to them is of no force ; nor lays any restraint at all upon them . and , as for their ordinary-conversation ; since to swear in that , is to prophane the name of a god , whom other men do believe in , tho' they themselves do not ; and which they cannot therefore but think must be very ungrateful and offensive to them : methinks even civility and good-manners should teach them to forbear such oaths , if not for the perpetual contradiction which they thereby run into , as to their own principles , yet at least for that affront which they know they put upon other mens . . these then are the ways by which men are to be drawn off from their customary and profane-swearing , upon the principles of reason and religion . there is yet ( thly . ) another method , which the care and piety of our laws has set before us , and which it is to be hoped shall now , at length , be made use of in order to this end ; and that is , by a strict exaction of that penalty , which they have order'd to be inflicted upon such offenders , for the restraining of their profaness : and which how small soever it may seem to be , and in truth is , in comparison of the sin of taking god's name in vain ; yet , being duly required , might go very far towards the prevention of it . . it is true there was somewhat of this kind * long before attempted ; and which one would have hoped should have kept this sin from becoming so common , or rather so vniversal , as it is , among us . but alas ! what can the best laws do , if they are never put in execution ? and how little that law has , of late years , been either publish'd , or executed , as it ought to have been ; is a reflection that may deserve the consideration of many among us . . in the mean time we all now know how that ancient , and almost antiquated law , is not only revived , but improved too , in order to this end : and such care taken , that if we would but heartily set our selves to it , i cannot but think we should soon put an end to a great part of that prophane swearing that has of late so scandalously prevailed among us . . and to engage us so to do , give me leave to say but this one thing ; that for any of us to neglect our duty in this particular ; is , in effect , to consent to every such act , as we refuse to bring to light . it is to abet the taking of god's name in vain : and then let us fear lest we share in the punishment , as we do partake in the guilt of it . . but ( thly . ) and to conclude these reflections : as it is certain that nothing has more contributed to the practice both of false-swearing , and of common-swearing , among us , than the want of that due reverence men ought to have of an oath ; so i know no way more likely to reclaim men from the practice of both , than to endeavour , as far as may be , to restore the use of an oath to its just veneration ; and to bring men , if it be possible , to a more sacred esteem of it . and in order thereunto , as it is certainly the duty of private persons , never to swear at all , but when some more than ordinary occasion shall require their doing of it ; so were it much to be wish'd , that the necessities of government would permit , that an oath should never be imposed upon , nor required of any , but upon some greater exigence ; to be sure , more seldom than now it is . and that when it is required , such care should be taken in administring of it , as to raise in mens minds a serious consideration of what they are about : at least that it should be so done , as not to prompt them to a dis-esteem of it ; through an over-hasty , and irreverent dispensing of this great obligation . . and thus have i shewn , by what means , if by any , not only perjury , but common and profane-swearing , may be most like to be corrected and suppress'd . and for engagements to move every one of us to use our best endeavour in the accomplishment of so good and profitable a design ; i shall only add thus much , to what i have already offer'd , in the prosecution of this subject ; that if we have any regard to god's honour ; if any concern for our own souls ; if any zeal for the publick good ; all these call upon us to do , what in us lies , to reform both our selves , and others , as to this matter . . that by common and customary , but especially by false-swearing ; god's majesty is abused , and his wrath and vengeance very eminently provoked ; the necessary relation which every oath has to him , sufficiently speaks . . that therefore by such practices , mens souls must be greatly endanger'd ; both the * denuntiations of god against such offenders , and the quality of the sins themselves , effectually assure us . but especially by the sin of perjury ; which , it may be , is of all others a sin the most hard to be forgiven , because it is the most hard for any one , according to the principles of christianity , sufficiently to repent of it . . indeed were a bare conversion towards god , enough to wash away the guilt of it ; a man might , by god's grace , be brought to such a deep sense of his sin , and to so hearty a contrition for it , as to deliver himself from the danger of it . but if by our perjury we should chance not only to have abused the majesty of god , but to have ruined our neighbour too : should we have robb'd him of his estate , his reputation , or even of his very life its self ; and in none of all which we can make him any tolerable compensation : how can we ever hope that god will be reconciled to us ; whilst we lie under such an utter incapacity of ever making an amends to our neighbour ? . and then , lastly ; for the interest which the publick has in the suppression of such swearing ; i have already shewn that truth and fidelity , are the great bases on which all society is founded ; and without which there could be no peace , no security , no right or property in the world. and therefore , whatsoever is in any wise apt to undermine these ; ( as perjury directly does , and as common-swearing naturally tends to do ; ) ought to be avoided , and discouraged by all who either love their own welfare , or have any regard to the publick good. i shall conclude this whole discourse with that exhortation of st. james , which i have so often referr'd to in it ; james , v. . above all things , my brethren , swear not : neither by heaven , neither by the earth ; neither by any other oath : but let your yea , be yea , and your nay , nay ; lest ye fall into condemnation . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e * viz. in jac. i. * see e. ●iz . c. . * jac. . c. . and so in this last act of k. william to the same purpose . * in the theodosian code we find an ecclesiastical law of valentinian , directed to pope damasus , and read in the churches of rome , anno . god. th. lib. xvi . leg . . but sulpicius severus carries us yet higher ; and mentions the reading of the emperour's letter there , anno . and gothofred , in his comments upon that law , adds several other instances of the like nature . such were the law of theodosius the younger against nestorius ; and especially , the letter of constantine the great , in favour of athanasius ; which he order'd to be publish'd in the churches of alexandria . and that this custom held still on , the other instances of that learned man plainly shew . to which add the tome of union set forth by constantinus porphyrogenitus ; and publish'd every year in the churches , in the month of july : vid. matth. blastar , lit. t. cap. . and it appears from the novels , that the imperial laws were not only publish'd in the churches , but were laid up in their archives ; and fix'd upon tables in the porches and avenues of them ; and directed to the bishops for that end : novell . viii . c. . * mat. v. , &c. chap. i. chap. ii. * cicer. de offic. lib. iii. † vid. commentarium gothofredi , in lib. ii . cod. theodos. tit. ix . leg. . * vid. leg. citat . arcad. & honor. contra perjuros . tho' perjury in judiciary causes , was before punish'd with a civil penalty . vid. gothofred . ibid. ‖ diodor. sicul. lib. . pag. . * see h. . & . h. . . eliz. . ‖ see assize . ass. . ass. . ass. . glanvil , lib. ii . cap. . bracton , lib. iv . tract . . cap. . fortescue , cap. . and the summ of all is this ; that he who violated his oath in a judicial process , should lose the benefit of the law ; his wife and children should be turn'd out of doors ; his fields should be ploughed up ; his gardens and orchards be spoil'd ; his goods and chattels should be forfeited to the kings ; and himself be condemn'd to perpetual imprisonment . this was the law in the case of a petty jury , attained for a false verdict : see coke instit. lib. iii. cap. . §. . and it seems to have been taken from the laws of king alfred , upon the like occasion : vid. leg . alfred , §. . but for other perjury it has been question'd whether there was any provision made by the common law before the d of hen. vii . see dyer & eliz. fol. . b. and crook , p. , . tho' yet the mirrour seems to speak in general of perjury , and the punishment of it : ch. iv . §. . and the law of king alfred , before mentioned , extends even to promissory oaths . vid. l. c. cap. de jure-jurando . chap. iii. * vid. greg. presb. in vit. greg. naz. et greg. naz. carm . de vit. suâ . to. ii . p. . a. * basil , in psal. xiv· chrys. hom. xvii . in matth. theodoret , epit . div. decret . c. xvi . epiphan . haer. lix . athanas . serm. de passion . & crucef . dom ▪ tom. i. p. . * that this was the sense of greg. naz. ( one of the most eminent opposers of swearing in those days ) is evident from that excellent discourse of his , which still remains to us , against those who swear much . where first he advises , if it may be , as most safe , not to swear at all : but if that cannot be obtain'd ; then in the next place to swear only in such cases as deserve to be confirm'd by an oath ; as to free a man's self from danger ; to vindicate his reputation , and the like . see this subject at large pursued by him , to. ii . iambic : xx . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , p. . * vid. ciceron . orat. pro l. com. balb. init . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , says photius , nomoc. tit. ix . cap. . pag. . see also cod. theodos. lib. . tit. iii. const. . and the same is affirmed by matt. blastares ; viz. that the civil-laws themselves excused clergy-men from swearing . syntagm . alphab . lit. e. cap. . and theodorus balsamon is of the same opinion ; at least from the time that the basilicon was composed : in phot. nomocan , tit. ix . cap. . in the laws of lombardy , and in the capitularies of louis the emperour , the same exemption was continued . vid. not fabrotii ad balsam : collect. è lib. cod. tit. iii. c. . and even in our own country , the council of berghamstead , can. . confirm'd this to the bishops : and in the excerpta of egbert arch-bishop of york , not long after , we find the same priviledge extended to all priests : vid. in concil . spelmann . to. . * see an instance of this in constantine the great : cod. theodos . lib. ix . tit. . leg . . add. comment . gothofred . ib. p. . b. ‖ cod. l. ii . tit. . novell . viii . c. , . & ib. xlviii . c. . add. phot. nomocan . tit. xiii . c. . * apol. ad const. to. . p. . d. who yet elsewhere speaks as if all swearing were unlawful . loc. supr . citat . * de verb. apostol . serm. xxviii . cap. . * see balsam . comment . in can. xxix . s. basilii : nay he took those into orders who had rashly sworn not to accept of them ; ib. can. x. and continued others in their ministry , ib. et apud io. antioch . collect. can. tit. . ‖ see can. s. basil , ib. lxiv , lxxxii . — add. can. apost . , &c. * non jurare tantum temerè , sed adhuc etiam pejerare : de laps . p. . edit . oxon. * vid. euseb. hist. eccles. lib. vi . cap. . p. . d. dionysius , bishop of alexandria , at the same time , both allow'd of and practised swearing . ib. cap. . p. . c. and if we would go yet higher ; st. basil will furnish us with the example of st. clement , the companion of st. paul : lib. de sp. s. cap. . to say nothing of that representation which lucian makes of the common practice of the christians , as to this matter , in his philopat . pag. . * euseb. hist. eccl. lib. vi . cap. . pag. . b. ‖ vid. g●r . vossii hist. pelag. lib. v. p. . pag. . vid. grot. annot. in mat. v. . where there are several instances of each of these . * de bello judaico ▪ lib. ii . c. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ‖ ib. p. . edit . gl. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * chap. iii. sect. , &c. * homer . il. a. v. . conf. virg. aen. xii . v. . aristoph . neo. act. l. scen. . & scholiast . ib. virg. aen vi . v. , . aen. vii . . ammian . marcel . lib. xxiv . cap. . procop. de bell. persic . lib. l. c. . ‖ vid. suid. in socrat. p . servius in virg. aen. lib. ix . v. . * see below , chap. iii. §. . * see below , chap. iii. §. . ‡ that to swear after the manner of the gentiles is evil , cannot be doubted . hence it was that the ancient canons of the church expresly forbade it : see concil . trull . can . . conf. can. basil. . and the civil law made such oaths void . basil. lib. xxii . tit. . but the canon law is more general : and forbids swearing by any creature : . q. . cap. , , , . yet still they allow'd to swear otherwise than by god only . v. g. p●r salutem imp. basil. ib. by the eucharist . euseb. hist. eccl. l. vi . cap. . not to mention any more particulars . vid. august . serm de verb. apost . xxviii . greg. naz. carm. lamb . xx . tom. ii . pag. . chap. iv . chap. v. notes for div a -e [ ye have heard , that it hath been said by them of old times . ] † so the syriac version renders it , and st. chryst. heretofore understood it : hom. xvi . in mat. compare theophyl . on the place . and so indeed the opposition between this and the following verse , requires us to expound it : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ‖ so grotius in his annotations on this place ; and in his explication of the decalogue , command . d. * grot. ib. in mat. v. . † exod. xxii . . deutron . vi . . — x. . numb . v. , . * josh. ii . , , &c. — ix . , . sam. xx . . kings i. . ezra x. . ‖ nehem. v. , . — x. . † isai. xlv . . * psal. lxiii . . compare zeph. i. . jer. v. . * the words of the chaldee paraphrast both in exodus and deuteronomy are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the former of which , not only in the chaldee , but syriac and arabic , denotes what is to no purpose , for no gain , or advantage : the latter , sometimes in vain , but more properly falsly . nor can it be supposed , that the paraphrast design'd by his latter expression to explain his former ( for if so , what need had he to make use of it ? ) but being willing to reach the full meaning of the original , and knowing the hebrew word to be capable of both those senses , he thought good rather to mention both , than to prefer either . but others were not so cautious : the jerusalem targum , and that of jonathan , both render it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , in vain : the lxx 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : aquila , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : and the latin versions are unanimous in the same sense , and that no● only since st. hierom's time , but from the beginning ; as is plain from st. cyprian , testimon . lib. iii. num . ● . * this opinion was very ancient : theodoret mentions it , quaest. in exod. qu. . but opposes it , as not coming up sufficiently to the design of the command , and to the proper signification of the words of it . see grot. in loc. dr. hammond , pract. catech. sect. of swearing . mat. v. . [ thou shalt not forswear thy self ; but shalt perform unto the lord thine oaths . ] * apud ciceron . de offic. lib. iii. * so st. augustine expresly determins : serm. de verb. apost . . cap. . et ipse qui exigit jurationem , multum interest , si nescit illum falsum juraturum , an scit . si enim nescit , & ideò dicit , jura mihi ut fides ei fiat ; non audeo dicere non esse peccatum ; tamen humana tentatio est . si autem scit eum fecisse , novit fecisse , vidit fecisse , & cogit jurare , homicida est . ille enim suo perjurio se perimit : sed iste manum interficientis & expressit & pressit . [ but i say unto you , swear not at all , &c. ] * several passages to this purpose , we find in some of the fathers themselves : but the pelagians held it as their opinion : see hilar. epist. ad august . t. . ep. . pelag. epist. ad demetriad . apud hieron . t. . caelestius : apud eund . t. . de scientia div. leg. so did the waldenses after them : not to mention those fanaticks of our own times , who do likewise . * deutr. vi . . — x. . exod. xxiii . . josh. xxiii . , . † jer. v. . hos. iv . . amos viii . . zeph. i. . see above , chap. i. ‖ above instances of this may be taken out of the old testament . † exod. xxii . . numb . v. . . — xxx . — deut. xxix . . chron. vi . . — * august . de verb. apost . serm. . si peccatum esset juratio , nec in veteri lege diceretur , non perjurabis , reddes autem domino jus-jurandum tuum . non enim peccatum praeciperetur nobis . mat. v. . * it is true st. augustine tells us , that the pelagians deny'd these to be oaths : and held nothing to be swearing , unless it were put into that express form ; by god. but he tells us withal , that their only reason for denying this was to avoid the example of st. paul , and the force of our argument taken from it : and justly charges them thereupon with an utter ignorance of what it was to swear . see to. . epist. . ad hilar. and yet st. basil was once almost of the same mind : but it was the same reason that seems to have led him to it . see his exposit. in psal. xiv . * so st. august . l. de mendacio ad consentium , to. iv . juravit ipse apostolus in epistolis suis , & sic ostendit , quomodo accipiendum esset quod dictum est ; dico vobis , non jurate omnino . — and a little after : quia praecepti violati reum paulum , praesertim in epistolis conscriptis atque editis ad spiritualem vitam , salutemque populorum , nefa● est dicere ; intelligendum est illud quod positum est , omnino , ad hoc positum , ut quantum in te est non affectes , non ames , non quasi pro bono , cum aliqua delectatione , appetas jus-jurandum . — * vid. coelest . epist. de scienti● divinae legis : apud hieron . t. iv. p. . — † so origen in mat. tract . . p. . l. chrys. in heb. hom. . august . in jo. tract . hieron . in ezek. c.xvi . in vet. testamento dei juramentum est , vivo ego , dicit dominus : in novo autem , amen , amen , dico vobis . greg. nyssen . de scop. christian. to. iii. p. . * see dr. hammond , on mat. xxvi . lett. i. grot. in mat. xxvi . . — gen. ix . ▪ * vid. philon. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : p. , . — see dr. lightfoot's exercit . on st. matth. in loc. p. , , fol. insomuch that aben ▪ ezra accounted this to have been one of those sins , for which god delay'd the coming of the messiah . vid. in decalog . † so st. august . de serm. dom. in mont . l. . c. . lightfoot , loc. cit . p. . and on mat. . . muscul in loc. voss. hist. pelag . p. . nay in the talmud its self , tit. shebuoth , there is this express assertion . qui jurat per coelum & terram , liber est ; sed qui jurat per dei nomina , tenetur . hornb . contr . jud. cap. de juram : — and indeed what strange ways they have at this very day of avoiding the obligation of an oath , is notorious : see to this purpose fagius on exod. xxiii . buxtorf , lex . rabb . in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : pug. fid . pag. . from their own authors . in short , it was upon both these accounts that martial fell so severely upon them in that epigram , l. ix . and which sufficiently shews , both how ready they were to swear , by those lesser forms here mention'd ; and how little they thought themselves obliged by them . * see mat. v. , . — xxiii . . &c. see the foregoing notes . * see heinsius : in loc. calvin . harm . evang. in loc. † i. e. voluntary oaths : for in all such as were imposed by authority , they were not permitted to swear otherwise than by the name of god. * so hierome , in loc. epiphan . haer. xix . thus speaks of this passage : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . but above any , st. cyril admirably explains and confirms this , lib. vi . de ador. in sp. & ver. p. . and affirms it to have been a great part of our saviour's design in this very passage . for having shewn , that we should avoid all swearing , as much as may be ; he adds , that if we must needs swear , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and then he goes on to shew how contrary to this the practice of the jews was ; and how our saviour labour'd to correct this error , p. ▪ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and having farther shewn the grounds of this restraint , he thus concludes , p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . † see this argument managed by st athanasius , with great elegance , lib. de passion . cruce dom. to. i. p. . isocrat . ad demonicum . * see grot. in loc. & explic. decal . exod. xx . . * so our saviour determines it , mat. xxiii . , &c. * augustin , t. . epist. . ad hilar. illi ( sc. pelagiani ) quantum aliquos eorum audivi , quid sit juramentum prors●s ignorant . putant enim se non jurare quando in ore habent scit deus , &c. quia non dicitur per deum . et de verb. apost . serm. xxviii . cap. vi . to. x. * that this was properly an oath , st. augustine stifly contends , serm. de verb. apost . xxviii . c. . and refers to the propriety of the original greek for proof of it . but the syriac version is more express ; and puts in , by way of explication , the very word , i swear . and yet others doubt of it , and think it to have only the form of an oath , without being really so . see basil , in psal. xiv . to. i. p. . e. [ but let your communication be yea , yea ; nay , nay . ] grot. com. in loc. * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . sermo vester . † so dr. hammond pract. catech . §. of swearing : and in his paraphrase on the place . * so nich. fuller , miscell . sacr. l. . c. . * and which tho' the learned n. fuller seems reasonably enough to deny to be a formal oath ; yet he plainly proves it to be a vehement asseveration : especially when doubled , as we often find it , in our saviour's discourses to have been . see his miscell . sacr. lib. i. cap . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and amen , are in scripture indifferently put for each other . so what in mat. xxiii . . is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : in luke xi . . is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . in rev. xxii . . they are joyn'd together to the same purpose : and so they are again , cor. i. . and in the lxx . what the hebrew calls 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , in truth , or verily , they render 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 : insomuch that theophylact , on mat. v. . verily i say unto you , explains it by , yea : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and vatabl. here renders it , certè , certè . † see mat. xi . . luke xii . . rev. i. . xvi . . * a plain instance of which we have in kings x. . where when jehu ask'd jehonadab whether his heart were truly with him ; he answer'd , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , it is , and it is . and to this both the chaldee and syriac versions hold ; expressing the repetition ; tho' we , with the greek and latin , neglect it . and the design of this take from two persons , very well versed in those languages ; duplicatur est , says munster , ad majorem rei affirmationem . geminatione verbi vehementius affirmat , says vatablus ; q. d. proculdubio diligo te ex animo . * see clem. alex. strom. lib. vij . where shewing that his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or perfect christian , ought not to swear , he thus shews ( from the present text ) how he should behave himself : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . pag. . b. * see saunders , de juram . oblig . prael . v. §. . * sam. i. . — xvii . . † vid. saunders : de jur. oblig . prael . v. §. . of which opinion also was st. basil , in psal. . ‖ see below . | vid. tertul. apolog . cap. . 't is true he there says expresly , juramus — per salutem ; but then he afterwards speaks more precisely ▪ pro magno juramento id habemus . and athanasius , mentioning the oath of syrianus to constantius the emperor , says not that he swore , but confirm'd his promise to the alexandrians , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , apol. ad constant. to. l. p. . but st. basil is express to this purpose , in psal. xiv . to. i. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. p. . * so st. basil , loc . cit . who therefore excuses st. paul , as not contradicting our saviour christ. * plutarch , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . vol. i. p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . [ for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil . ] ‖ so castalio : episcopius , &c. jam. iii. . * see chap. ii. §. . add. isidor . pelusiot . epist . . lib. i. * see this consideration urged by phot. epist. i. p. . and st. basil thus uses the same argument : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . in psal. xiv . to. i. p. . d. * see the stat. v. eliz . ch . . * see the stat. of jac. i. ch . . * mal. iii. . zech. v. , . a sermon preach'd before the honourable house of commons, at st. margaret's westminster june th. being the fast day appointed by the king and queen's proclamation, to implore the blessing of almighty god upon their majesties forces by sea and land, and success in the war, now declared, against the french king / by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a sermon preach'd before the honourable house of commons, at st. margaret's westminster june th. being the fast day appointed by the king and queen's proclamation, to implore the blessing of almighty god upon their majesties forces by sea and land, and success in the war, now declared, against the french king / by william wake ... wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for ric. chiswell ... and william rogers ..., london : . reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng fast-day sermons. sermons, english -- th century. great britain -- history -- - . - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - john latta sampled and proofread - john latta text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion mr. wake 's sermon before the house of commons . june th , . jovis o die junii resolved , that the thanks of this house be given to mr. wake for the sermon he preached before them yesterday ; and that he be desired to print the same . ordered , that mr. grey do give him the thanks , and acquaint him with the desires of this house accordingly . paul jodrell , cl. dom. com. a sermon preach'd before the honourable house of commons , at st. margaret's westminster june th . . being the fast day appointed by the king and queen's proclamation , to implore the blessing of almighty god upon their majesties forces by sea and land , and success in the war , now declared , against the french king . by william wake , chaplain in ordinary to their majesties , and preacher to the honourable society of gray's-inn . london : printed for ric. chiswell at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard , and william rogers at the sun over against st. dunstan's church in fleet street . . joel , ii. , . therefore also now saith the lord , turn ye even to me with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . and rent your heart and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god , for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil. though the time of this prophecy be uncertain , so that neither the jewish rabbins , nor christian antiquaries are able to give us any tolerable account of it , yet is the design plain , and the words of my text a most proper and pathetick enforcement of the great duty of this day , to turn unto the lord our god with all our heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning , — for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil. if we look into the foregoing chapter , we shall there find an astonishing account of the great evils that were just ready to befall the jewes for their sins . but that which is yet more surprizing , is , that though all this was about to come upon them , yet were they nevertheless insensible of their danger , nor took any the least care to prevent their utter desolation . to awaken a stupid and inconsiderate people , a nation dead in sin and security , in the beginning of this chapter he prepares a lofty and magnificent scene . he sets before them a prophecy of yet greater dangers than any they had hitherto experimented , and that in a manner so unusual , with such a pomp of words , and in such triumphant expressions , as carry a terror even in the repetition of them . blow ye the trumpet in zion , sound an alarm in my holy mountain ; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble , for the day of the lord cometh ; for it is nigh at hand : a day of darkness and of gloominess ; a day of clouds and of thick darkness ; as the morning spread upon the mountains ; a great people and a strong , there hath not been ever the like , neither shall be any more after it . a fire devours before them , and behind them a flame burneth : the land is as the garden of eden before them , and behind them a desolate wilderness . the earth shall quake before them ; the heavens shall tremble ; the sun and the moon shall be dark ; and the stars shall withdraw their shining . whatever be the import of these phrases ; whether by the mighty and terrible host here spoken of , we are only to understand that swarm of a locusts , and other insects , that we are b before told were utterly to devour all the fruits of the land : or whether under the character of these , we shall c with most interpreters , comprehend the numerous and mighty armies of the chaldaeans and babylonians , which at divers times brought such desolations , as we read of , upon the jews : this is plain , that we have here the denunciation of some judgment worthy of god , and great as the sins and incorrigibleness that occasion'd it . and now , who would not here expect the final desolation of such a people as this ? but behold , god even yet in his anger remembers mercy ; and tho they had hitherto neglected all the calls and invitations of his holy prophets to repentance , yet he resolves once more to try , whether they would now at least in their dangers hearken to his admonitions : he raises up joel at once both to set before them his judgments , if they continu'd still impenitent ; and to encourage them , by repenting , not only to prevent their ruine , but to assure themselves of his favour . that though they had so long neglected him , yet if they would c now , even now at the last , return with a true zeal , and a sincere affection to their duty , they should not fail to meet with a favourable acceptance from him : therefore also now saith the lord , turn ye even to me , with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning : and rent your heart , and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god : for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . it is not my intention to seek a parallel of all this , either in the sins , or in the danger of our own countrey . i would willingly hope , that neither our guilt , nor our incorrigibleness have been so heinous as theirs , nor shall any such deplorable judgment as this , ever , i trust , be made the punishment of what our iniquities have indeed but too justly deserved . no , blessed be god , who by a wonderful concurrence of great and singular mercies , seems rather to call upon us to celebrate his goodness , than to deprecate his judgments ; to praise his name in hymns of triumph and eucharist , than to weep between the porch and the altar , in melancholly litanies to avert his anger , and implore his mercy . but yet since the goodness , as well as judgments of the lord , are designed to bring us to repentance , and that whether we look back into our own particular actions , or consider those publick and national transgressions , whereby we have so long and loudly call'd to heaven for vengeance ; we must with shame and indignation confess our selves some of the greatest of sinners ; i cannot but think , both the solemn occasion of this day , and the design of my text , to be a most proper and seasonable admonition to us , to turn unto the lord our god , and to implore his blessing upon our present enterprises , that those vile insects , the locusts and caterpillars , that have so barbarously consumed our neighbours round about us ; our worse than assyrian or babylonian enemies , may not be able to prevail against us . and indeed , however it has pleased god , as at this time , to give us some encouragement to trust in his mercy ; yet we cannot so soon forget , that we have also born the punishment of our sins . for not to repass upon the things that are at a greater distance from us ; let the instances still fresh in all our memories , speak to us : what just apprehensions did we but very lately lie under of our lives , and of what is yet dearer to us than our lives , our liberty , and our religion ? how did our enemies not only project our ruin , but as , if it were already accomplished , begin to say in their hearts , nay , they began freely to speak it out to us ; aha! so would we have it : persecute them , and take them ; for there is none to deliver them . and if now we are no longer exposed to those dangers that so lately threatned us ; if god has begun , upon our late more serious concern for religion , and more general return to him , to give us some testimony of his gracious designations towards us ; this certainly ought to be so far from lessening our solemn humiliation at this time , that it should rather engage us to be the more forward in perfecting our repentance , the greater encouragement we have to hope , that it shall be accepted at our hands . and i must now beg leave , with so much the more earnestness , to enforce the duty of my text : therefore also now , saith the lord , turn ye even to me with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning : and rent your hearts , and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god. by how much i hope i may with the greater assurance propose to you the promise of it for your encouragement : for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . i have already pointed out to you the two great parts of my text ; and which must therefore be the subject of my discourse upon it ; viz. i. the address of the holy prophet to his country , and in that the exhortation ; which i am earnestly in the name of god to recommend unto you this day ; to turn unto the lord your god with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . ii. the great encouragement which he offer'd to induce them , and which ought to be of no less a force to stir up all of us to a serious and diligent performance of it . for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . i begin with the former of these , the exhortation of my text : i. to turn unto the lord your god with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mouring . and here i presume i shall not need to tell you , that all this is but a larger paraphrase of what i may in other words call a general and national repentance , of those publick and national sins which had provoked god almighty to send down so many judgments upon them , and to threaten them with yet greater , if they continu'd still in their impenitence . and indeed , what could be more reasonable , than by such a solemn and universal acknowledgment both of the evils they had committed , and of the judgments which they deserved , and of the sorrow they were now touch'd with for their offences , to appease god's anger for that general incorrigibleness , by which they had so long exposed both his goodness and his justice to contempt , among the heathen round about him ? for however it be very certain , that all the outward pomp and solemnity of repentance , the fasting , and the weeping , and the mourning , are at best but a form of godliness , empty and unprofitable , unless there be also added to these that true and inward change of mind , in which alone consists the power of it ; yet there may be such circumstances and cases put , wherein this duty must pass beyond the heart and the closet , and the humiliation will be imperfect , if it be not as publickly set forth to the eyes of men , as it is sincerely perform'd in the sight of god. and such especially must be the repentance for national sins . where mens transgressions have been open and notorious , there their return also must be no less solemn and evident ; that so the honour as well as justice of god may be vindicated in their forgiveness ; and some sort of reparation made not only for the guilt which they have contracted , but also for the scandal which they have given to his honour and religion in the world. now 't is this which at once both declares the piety , and commands the publick humiliation of this day . c and for the due discharge whereof , i must intreat you to go along with me in these following reflections . st . that though , as i have just now shewn , there must be the publick marks of sorrow and humiliation in our publick repentance , yet we must by no means stop in these ; nor think that this is all that god requires of us in order to our forgiveness . this was indeed the vanity of the jews heretofore , and is too much the folly of some misguided christians now . their indignation against their sins , and against themselves for having committed them , was spent especially in the outward appearance of sorrow . they rent their cloaths ; and put on sackcloath ; they wept , and fasted and went softly ; and then they supposed they had done their business ; though it may be their souls were not yet humbled ; nor their hearts at all broken with any true contrition for their sins . and so among those of the church of rome at this day . if we may believe some of their greatest casuists , an external worship is sufficient to carry a man to heaven , without the trouble of the true inward devotion of the soul : he may repent without contrition ; may fast with a full meal : nay , and if the pope pleases , d may obtain a plenary remission of his sins , se ancho non fosse confesso ne contrito ; though he has neither confess'd them to any priest , nor finds in his own heart any manner of contrition for them . i shall not need to say how many new ways of salvation of this kind they have found out ; by wearing a leathern girdle about their loins , or scapularies over their shoulders ; by listing themselves into such or such certain fraternities ; by dressing of altars , and going on pilgrimages ; by holy water , and agnus deis : and all which , and infinite more of the like kind , if , as our late masters tell us , they are not authorized by their church , yet i am sure are publickly recommended by their greatest men , and generally practised too , without any censure or contradiction among them . this is certain , that all these , and whatever artifices of the like kind , men may please either to flatter themselves , or to delude others withal , without a true contrition , and a serious reformation they are all but vanity ; they make a shew of piety in the eyes of men , but they avail nothing to our forgiveness with god. i will not dispute of what use some of these external performances may be to assist our repentance , and render our sorrow for sin the more solemn , and so in some cases , as i have before observed , the more pleasing to god. i know well enough that st. paul has told us , that bodily exercise , where 't is discreetly order'd , does profit a little , though it be not like godliness , profitable for all things . but then as 't is plain , that the greatest part of those follies so much magnified and recommended in the church of rome , are but vain and ridiculous impositions to cheat the silly and superstitious multitude ; so 't is certain that the best of these things are neither in themselves meritorious , much less satisfactory for sins , as they pretend them to be , nor otherwise of any value at all with god , than as they are attended with that true repentance , which alone can either incline his mercy or obtain our forgiveness . if we will therefore make our solemn e humiliation this day acceptable to god , and available to our selves , our country , and our religion , we must take the method of the prophet in our text : we must turn unto the lord our god with all our heart , and then our fasting , and our weeping , and our mourning shall indeed be pleasing unto him . we must rent our hearts and not , i. e. rather than our garments ; must humble our souls first , and then the violence we do our bodies will be consider'd by him . when jonah denounced gods judgments against niniveh , we read in his d. chapter , that the people of niniveh believed , and proclaimed a fast , and put on sackcloath , from the greatest of them even unto the least . f but was this therefore that repentance for which he spared them ? no , it is not so much as once mentioned among the reasons of it . it was the reformation of their lives that tied up his hand , and sheathed his sword , ver . . and god saw their works , that they turn'd from their evil way ; and god repented of the evil that he said he would do unto them , and he did it not . . and this brings me to a second remark for the farther clearing of this great duty ; viz. that not only these outward marks of penitence are not sufficient to the discharge of it , but though we should to these add a true and real sorrow of heart for the sins we have committed , even this would not be sufficient to purchase our forgiveness . now by true sorrow , i do not mean that little imperfect sorrow , which looks rather to the danger of our condition , than to the heinousness of our offences ; and bewails our transgressions more out of an apprehension of those judgments that may be the consequence of them , than out of any real regret that we have sinned against a most gracious and merciful god. for however those of the other communion , out of their great tenderness to sinners , have declared such a sorrow as this , if accompanied with confession , to be sufficient for mens salvation ; and therefore have resolved , that true contrition or a sorrow for sin comitted , with a purpose of sinning no more , is not necessary to the sacrament of pennance , after the commission of mortal sin , but that attrition is sufficient , though a man knows it to be no more ; yet i suppose it needless in this place to obviate any such gross error , however otherwise of very great danger , in the practice of this duty . be the sorrow for sin never so sincere ; and our resolutions thereupon no more to return to the commission of it never so firm and well grounded , yet if instead of making good these resolutions we shall stop here , we are but half penitents ; we yet want that change of life , which alone is able to compleat the nature , and render the practice of our repentance acceptable unto god , and available to our forgiveness . . in short , thirdly , if we will truly discharge that repentance , to which we are here called , we must do it not by being sorry for our sins , or by resolving against them , but by an effectual forsaking of them ; i. e. as our text speaks , by turning unto the lord our god. this is that which alone can implore his favour , and commend us to his mercy . and this was what i before observed in the case of niniveh : when god saw their works that they turned from their evil way , then he repented him of the evil that he had said he would do unto them , and he did it not . nay , but it is not any turning unto god that will suffice neither : we must turn * even unto him , and with all our † heart : words very emphatical , and which offer to us two great conditions , which are absolutely necessary to render our conversion every way such as it ought to be . first , that it must be hearty and sincere : there must be nothing of the hypocrite mix'd with it ; our souls must go along with our outward performances ; and these penitential appearances be the true declarations of that real inward sorrow which we feel in our hearts for our offences . for god is not a man that he should be mocked . he sees into our very souls , and knows the secrets of all the children of men. and secondly , that it must be intire and without reserve : as we must be sorry for every sin we have already committed , so we must resolve against ever committing any for the time to come ; for god is of purer eyes than to behold the least iniquity ; and if our repentance be sincere , so shall we be too . the same piety which moves us to hate any evil , will equally fill us with an aversion against all . and if we desire to continue but in one offence , it is because that we do truly repent of none . so that now then if we will answer the design of this day : if we will render our fast such as the lord has chosen , and has promised to reward with the blessings both of this life , and of that which is to come ; we must not think it enough that we comply with the outward ceremonies and shew of repentance , but we must indeed resolve to bring forth the fruits of it . whilst we address our selves to god for pardon , we must take heed to dispose our souls in such a manner , that we may be fit to receive it . and if we thus improve the great solemnity of this day , we shall not fail to meet with a favourable acceptance at the throne of grace . god will be jealous for his land , and pity his people : he will perfect the great deliverance he has begun for us , and once more render us the fear and the terror of all our enemies round about us . our faith which has so often triumph'd over all the arguments of its adversaries , shall now no less triumph over all their black designs to root it out and to destroy it ; and shew to all the world , that though for our tryal god may sometimes permit the winds to blow , and the flouds to rise , and the storms to beat against our church , yet has he founded it on that rock that shall never fail ; nor shall the gates of hell , either the power of france or the cunning of the jesuit , or the malice of both , ever be able to prevail against it . and this brings me to the other thing i am to speak to : our encouragement to this duty . ii. for god is grciouas and merciful , slow to anger and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil. it is not at all needful for me to enter on any particular explication of all these gracious attributes , and shew what arguments every one of them affords to engage us to repentance . two things in general there are , which will at first sight arise from them to excite us to it , viz. st the goodness and mercy of god to the greatest sinners upon their repentance . god is gracious and merciful , and of great kindness . dly his unwillingness to pronounce any judgments at all against them , and his readiness to recal them , if they repent . he is slow to anger , and repenteth him of the evil. and st of the goodness and mercy of god to the greatest of sinners upon their repentance . he is gracious and merciful and of great kindness . when god proclaimed his own name in the midst of the people of israel , we read in the xxxiv . of exodus , that he chose to do it not so much in the terrible attributes of his majesty and power , as in the soft idea's of his mercy and goodness , the lord , the lord god , merciful and gracious , long-suffering and abundant in goodness and truth ; keeping mercy for thousands , forgiving iniquity , and transgression , and sin . and if we look into all the following representations which he makes of himself , whether by his holy prophets under the legal , but especially by our blessed saviour and his apostles under the christian dispensation , we shall find there is no character he so much delights in as this of being good and gracious , not willing that any should perish , but that all should come to repentance . peter iii. . and now what more forcible encouragement can any one desire to bring him to repentance , than to be thus assured of the goodness and mercy of god to the greatest of sinners , if they repent ? that he will not only forgive him upon his return , but will even assist him with grace and strength in the doing of it . that he desires not the death of the most profligate offender , but rather that he should turn from his wickedness and live . in a word , that he has promised forgiveness , without exception , to the most wicked men upon their repentance ; so that if they will but yet break off their evil course , and keep his statutes , and do that which is lawful and right , they shall surely live , they shall not dye . ezek. xviii . . many are the ways , and excellent the methods that god has taken to convince us of his mercy , and the time would fail me to enter on a particular consideration of them . sometimes he declares not only that he is ready to pardon us if we repent , but that he even desires we should repent that he may forgive us . and least his word should not be sufficient , he confirms that desire with an oath , ezek. xxxiii . . as i live , saith the lord god , i have no pleasure in the death of the wicked , but that the wicked turn from his way and live : turn ye , turn ye from your evil ways , for why will ye die o house of israel ? sometimes he expostulates with us in the way of reasoning , to see if by that means he may be able to bring us to consider his love and affection to us . isai. i. . wash ye , make ye clean , put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes ; cease to do evil , learn to do well . — come now and let us reason together , saith the lord : tho your sins be as scarlet , they shall be white as snow ; though they be red like crimson , they shall be as wooll . if he exhorts us to repentance , he always does it upon this promise , that he will pardon us if we repent . if we turn from our sins , iniquity shall not be our ruine . if he threatens judgments , yet still he keeps a reserve for mercy to triumph over judgment ; and will rather be thought inconstant in his most peremptory decrees , than inexorable to repenting sinners . thus he commanded jonah to go to niniveh , and to pronounce an utter destruction against it . he fix'd the very time too , yet fourty days and niniveh shall be overthrown . but what now was the issue of all this ? why , the city believed , and feared god , and turn'd from their evil way : and god repented of the evil that he said he would do unto them , and he did it not , jonah . . and what must the consequence of all these reflections be , but to engage us not to dispise the goodness of god , whereby he thus graciously invites us to repentance ; but to conclude with holy david , psal. cxxx . . if thou lord shouldst be extream to mark what is done amiss , o god who may abide it ? but there is mercy with thee , therefore shalt thou be feared . and what i have now said of gods mercy in general , will yet more hold in the other part of this character , wherein is set out to us in particular . secondly , his great unwillingness to pronounce any judgments at all against sinners , and his readiness to recal them upon their repentance . he is slow to anger , and repenteth him of the evil. and because i would now , were i able , speak not so much to your reason , as to your sense and experience , to your consciences and affections ; i will for the proof of this no more lead you back to the israelites in this prophecy ; to past-times , and unknown countries ; but will rather desire you to consider your own times , your own country , and if you will allow me freely to add it , your own souls . which of all these will not afford me an evident demonstration of the patience and long-suffering of god ? and speak him in the words of the text , to be a god slow to anger , and that repenteth him of the evil ? that after so many sins , as we have every one , the very best of us committed , we are yet alive this day , whereas god might , if he had pleased , long since have cut us off in the midst of our sins : that after so many calls and invitations as he has sent to bring us to repentance , he is still pleased to call and to invite us to it : that notwithstanding we have so far abused his goodness and long-suffering , as to improve that which above all things should have the most engaged us to our duty , into an encouragement to go on the rather in our sins ; he nevertheless still continues to us the offers of pardon and peace , if we will even now in this our day consider the things that make for our peace : what is all this but a most demonstrative , as well as a most affectionate proof , that god is indeed slow to anger , not willing that any should perish , but that all should come to repentance ? that he has deliver'd us out of so many dangers , in which , but for his providence over us we must long since have perish'd : that he has smitten us in mercy , not in judgment ; to correct and admonish , not to ruine and destroy us : that upon our deprecating his anger , he has at any time heard our prayers , and answer'd our desires : what is this but a plain evidence that he smites not willingly , nor loves to afflict the children of men : and so is a god repenting him of the evil that he is at any time forced either to threaten us with , or to bring upon us . and if we look into his dispensations towards us in the common concern of our country and our religion ; how slow must that god have been to anger , who after so many years attendance , nevertheless still calls upon us , as at this day , to turn from our evil way , and from the violence that is in our hands , that our iniquity may not be our ruine ? and for his repenting him of the evil , which we have sometimes forced him by our continual provocations to send upon us : let the instances which we our selves have known suffice to tell us , how unwilling he has shewn himself to bring us to an utter desolation . when it pleased god for our iniquities , to despise , in his indignation , both the king and the priest ; and by the deplorable judgment of civil confusions , had proved and exercised us about twenty years ; with what a miracle of mercy did he turn again the captivity of sion , and restore to us both our government and religion , as before ? when this would not do , but our sins and our prosperity return'd together ; so that we were again in a very few years become ripe for judgment ; he called forth a destroying angel ; he put a new sword into his hand , and commanded him to slay his thousands and ten thousands in our streets . the plague consum'd our strength , and hardly was that pass'd , when another vengeance , a devouring fire , such as scarce any age or country has ever heard of , burnt down our dwellings . and had not the hand of god wonderfully interposed , we must have been as sodom , and we should have been like unto gomorrah . and yet how did he then cover us with his hand in that day of his displeasure ? he neither suffer'd our enemies to invade us from abroad , nor any domestick quarrels to embroil us at home . he preserved us in peace ; he sent again the blessings of plenty and prosperity among us , and our city is risen more great and glorious out of its ashes . what shall i say to the fears and jealousies we have labour'd under since , from a restless party , enemies to the name of protestant , and by principle conjured , if they can , to root it out of the world ? in how many dangers has god delivered us ? and how many designs , for ought we know , may he have prevented , which have not yet been brought to light ? and when at last , either to awaken us the more effectually to a repentance of our sins , or it may be to accomplish the number of their iniquities , he deliver'd us over for a little while into the hands of our enemies ; and to convince the most incredulous among us , what the true spirit of prevailing popery is , suffer'd them with such an inconsiderate fury to pursue our ruine , that no ties , either of god or man , were sufficient to restrain them ; but all obligations , whether of justice or conscience , were equally trampled under their feet : how did it then please our almighty defender to assert his character of being a god repenting him of the evil that he had brought upon us , in a manner that is the wonder and astonishment of the present , and , that i am perswaded , shall be the praise and triumph of his church in all succeeding generations ? he raised us up a deliverer out of the house of his servant david . he touch'd his princely heart with a generous sense both of the evils which we had suffer'd , and of the greater that we apprehended . his honour and his zeal enflamed him to do somewhat worthy himself ; and that might answer the mighty hopes god had prepared us to conceive of him. he meditated the great work of delivering our countrey from oppression , and our religion from destruction . and by the blessing of god , he accomplish'd it , in a manner , so extraordinary in all its circumstances , as , i think , should not suffer us to doubt from whose providence it was , that this redemption was sent to us . this was the lord's doing , and , whatever it is , i am sure ought to be , marvellous in our eyes : and may , i think , be a final , i hope it shall be an effectual confirmation to us of this great engagement of our text , to turn to him with all our hearts ; viz. that he is a god repenting him of the evil ; and therefore whose mercy , if we now truly do so , we may securely depend upon both for the forgiveness of our sins , and for our deliverance from those dangers which our sins have so justly exposed us to . and now what remains , but that having all these great encouragements , such promises , or rather , such an earnest of god's favour to us , we resolve , every one of us , seriously to comply with the great design both of this day and of this discourse ; and by our sincere repentance for our past offences , obtain that blessing we so much desire both for our countrey , and for our religion . never was there a time wherein we had greater reason to hope for god's acceptance than at this day ; and such an occasion as this , to implore his favour , there may not perhaps again occur in the course of many ages . for indeed what is it that we are now assembled to recommend to his mercy , but in effect the preservation of our selves , our laws , our liberties , and our religion , against the violence of those who have long conspired both their and our destruction . that he would preside in our councils , and go forth with our armies ; and so direct the one , and prosper the other , that we may again enjoy the blessings of peace and security ; that there may be no decay , no leading into captivity , and no just complaining in our streets . and this he will do , if we be not our selves wanting to our own preservation . only let us act as becomes good christians , and true englishmen ; let us do all things for the glory of god , and for the safety , honour , and welfare of our country : in the words of joab to his brother alishai , upon an occasion not much different from our own at this time ; let us be strong , and of good courage , and let us play the men for our people , and for the cities of our god ; and then he will not fail us , nor forsake us . but if instead of pursuing the things that make for our peace , we shall still go on to precipitate our own destruction : if when we are call'd this day to turn unto the lord our god with all our hearts , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning ; we shall instead thereof fast only for strife and for debate : if when we should be here prostrating our selves before the lord , to implore the completion of that great deliverance he has begun to work for us ; we shall , on the contrary , continue ungratefully to murmur against his providence , and be ready almost to implead his justice for what he has already done ; and with those repining israelites of old , be looking back again to our egyptian bondage , when we are brought even within prospect of the promised land : in a word , if when we should be uniting our selves against the common enemy of our country and christendom , we shall suffer a spirit of faction and sedition , of mutiny and discontent ; of private interests , and unseasonable resentments , to distract our councils , and divide us against one another ; what can we then expect , but that god should at last give us over into the hands of our enemies , and make those that hate us to rule over us . wherefore now , arise o ye worthies , ye chosen , and counsellours of our israel ; consult , consider , and resolve : and may the god of heaven ; the god before whom we are here assembled this day ; he who has , and does , and we trust will still deliver us ; our rock , and our defence against the face of our enemies , so direct and prosper all your consultations , that the children which are yet unborn , may rise up in their generations , and call you blessed , when they shall enjoy the benefits of that peace , that security , which we trust shall descend to them , through your wise and vigorous resolutions . behold this day the eyes not of your own nation only , but of all the nations round about us , fix'd upon you : the fortunes , i do not say , of every single person among you , though that were somewhat ; nor of your own country and religion only , which ought to be much more valued ; but what is yet more considerable , the fortunes of all the reformed churches , and distressed countries of europe , depending on the success of our present enterprizes . this is the fatal crisis , that must secure or ruine both them and us for ever . may the consideration of all these things , inspire every one of you with a spirit suitable to that great trust that is here committed to you : a spirit of wisdom and understanding ; a spirit of prudence and discretion ; a spirit of charity and moderation ; but above all with a spirit of piety and unity ; that being endu'd with all these excellent qualities , ye may become the repairers of our breaches ; the restorers of our almost lost and trampled liberties ; the defenders of our faith ; the support of your country ; the avengers of your barbarously abus'd allies ; the scourge and terror of the universal enemy of truth , peace , religion , nature : in short , of all the common laws and rights of god and of all mankind . may your councils be govern'd with such a calmness and temper , as may settle and compose all the unquiet and dissatisfied spirits ( if there be any ) yet remaining among us ; and suffer none to regret our wonderful preservation , but those only whose fury had once prompted them to attempt , and whose principles still carry them on , to desire our destruction . may your resolutions be as speedy , as the publick necessities are pressing ; and their execution be accompanied with a fidelity and success that may equal not only our expectation , but even our very hopes and our desires . and for the accomplishment of all these blessings , and whatever else may serve to make these kingdoms happy . may we all this day , fast the fast which the lord has chosen ; to loose the bands of wickedness , to undo the heavy-burdens , and to let the oppressed go free . let us confess our wickedness , and be sorry for our sins . let us turn to the lord our god with all our heart ; and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . let us deal our bread to the hungry , and bring the poor to our houses . then shall we call , and the lord shall answer ; we shall cry , and he shall say here i am . our light shall break forth as the morning , and our righteousness as the noon-day . god shall come , and shall not keep silence : he shall save us from our enemies , and put them to shame that hate us . he shall arise , and all our adversaries shall be scatter'd ; they also that hate us shall flee before us ; like as the smoke vanisheth , so shall we drive them away ; terror and dread shall fall upon them . so shall all our mourning be turned into laughter , and our heaviness into joy ; and we shall yet sing the song of moses and of the lamb , when he shall have given us rest from all our enemies round about us ; salvation and glory , and power , and praise , and thanksgiving , be to him that sitteth upon the throne , and to the lamb for ever and ever . amen . finis . books published by the reverend mr. wake . printed for richard chiswell . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . ] o. a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of mons. de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the first part : in which the account that has been given of the bishop of meaux's exposition , is fully vindicated , the distinction of old and new popery , historically asserted , and the doctrine of the church of rome , in point of image worship , more particularly consider'd . second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against monsieur de meaux and his vindicator , the second part . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host : in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford , on this subject . to which is prefixed a large historical preface , relating to the same argument . two discourses of purgatory and prayers for the dead . o. a continuation of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome , being a full account of the books that have been of late written on both sides . an historical treatise of transubstantion . written by an author of the communion of the church of rome ; rendred into english. with a preface . preparation for death ; being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a distemper of which she died . printed for william rogers . a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry ; in which a late author ( viz. ) the bp. of oxford's true and only notion of idolatry , is considered and confuted o. the sum of a conference between dr. clagett and f. p. gooden , about transubstantiation . publish'd by this author . and to be added to dr. clagett's sermons now in the press , which will be publish'd this term. printed for richard chiswell , and william rogers . an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants . in a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at hampton-court , may . . a sermon preach'd before the honourable house of commons , at st. margaret's westminster , june . . being the fast-day appointed by the king and queen's proclamation , to implore the blessing of almighty god upon their majesties forces by sea and land , and success in the war now declared against the french king. other tracts by the same author . a sermon preached at paris , on the th of january , s. v. / . the present state of the controversie . sure and honest means for conversion of all hereticks ; and wholsom advice and expedients for the reformation of the church . translated , and published with a preface . a letter from several french ministers fled into germany , upon the account of the persecution in france , to such of their brethren in england , as approved the king's declaration touching liberty of conscience . translated from the original french. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e joel ii. . — . — . — . a judaei putant in diebus joel tam innumerabilem locustarum super judaeam venisse multitudinem , ut cuncta complerent , & non dicam fruges , sed ne vinearum quidem & arborum cortices , ramosque dimitterent , ita ut omni virore consumpto arentes arborumrami , & sicca vinearum flagella remanerent . hieron . in joel i. v. . b ch. i. . c see among the ancients , st. hierome . loc . cit . drusius in joel i. . grotius in joel i. . theodoret in cap. . . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . v. pl. c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ver . . psal. lxxi . . c 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . chrys. hom. ad pop . aniooch . . sam. iii. . king. xxi . . d this passage is so very extraordinary , that i ought to give some account of it . pope boniface ix . having granted a large indulgence at rome , whether the lombards , by reason of the wars they then had , could not go to gain it , at the prayer of john galeas , visconte of milan he grants the same indulgence to milan he had done at rome , viz. that all the subjects of the said galeas , though they had neither confess'd their sins , nor were contrite for them , should yet be absolved of all their sins ; only for visiting a few churches , and paying the sum of money prefix'd by the said bull : — cioè ( says their own historion ) che ciasciascuno nel dominio del visconte , se ancho non fosse contrito , ne corfesso , fosse assoluto di ogni peccato . bern. corio nella sua hist. di milan . terza part . pag. . ed. venet. . see dr. brevints saul and samuel at endor . crasset devotion veritable envers la st c. vierge . part . ult . tim. . . e 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . chrys. hom. ad antioch . . f 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. chrys. ad antioch . hom. . conc. tr. sess. xiv . cap. . * veraciter integraliter . lyr. mercer . † revera , ex animo , non simulatè . drus. seriò ac bonâ fide . grot. psal. xliv . . chron. xxviii . . rom. viii . . habac. i. . joel . ii . . deut. ii . . matt. xvi . . exod. xxxiv . , . isaiah . — . — . — . ezek. xviii . . jonah . iii. . — . lam. iii. . ezek. xviii . . lam. ii . . psal. cxxvi . . isaiah i. . psal. cxliv. . sam. x. . isa. lviii . . isa. lviii . . psal. xxxviii . . joel . ii . . isa. lviii . . ● — . — . psal. l. . psal. xliv . . psal. lxviii . . — . exod. xv . . the authority of christian princes over their ecclesiastical synods asserted with particular respect to the convocations of the clergy of the realm and church of england : occasion'd by a late pamphlet intituled, a letter to a convocation man &c. / by william wake. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) the authority of christian princes over their ecclesiastical synods asserted with particular respect to the convocations of the clergy of the realm and church of england : occasion'd by a late pamphlet intituled, a letter to a convocation man &c. / by william wake. wake, william, - . [ ], xxiii, , [ ] p. printed for r. sare, london : . "appendix containing some publick acts and other collections, referred to in the forgoing discourse": p. - . reproduction of original in the union theological seminary library, new york. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng atterbury, francis, - . -- letter to a convocation-man. church and state -- church of england. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - rachel losh sampled and proofread - rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the authority of christian princes over their ecclesiastical synods asserted : with particular respect to the convocations of the clergy of the realm and church of england . occasion'd by a late pamphlet , intituled , a letter to a convocation man , &c. by william wake , d. d. and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty . london : printed for r. sare at grays-inn-gate in holborn , . to the most reverend father in god thomas , by divine providence , lord archbishop of canterbury ; primate of all england , and metropolitan , &c. my lord : that i presume to prefix your graces name , to so rude , and hasty a production ; it is not because i think the following treatise deserves your acceptance , but because i fear , it may need your patronage . to appear against an author , who pretends to be the champion of the church of england , and to stand up in defence of the long neglected rights , and priviledges of its clergy ; has something in it so improper in any , but especially so unbecoming a minister , of that church ; that i thought it would be requisite for me , to take all the care i could , to remove those prejudices , which this might be apt to raise , in some , against the very design of my discourse . and i knew no way more effectually to do this , than by begging leave to inscribe what i had done to your grace ; who , as by providence , you are placed in the first , and highest station , in our church ; so have you , upon all occasions , no less eminently signalized your self , in the defence of it . it would , my lord , look too much like vanity in me , to say , that i here publish nothing , but what has , in some measure , been before approved of by your grace . it shall suffice me , if i may be allow'd to declare thus much ; that the principles , upon which i go , are such , as in your graces judgment , have nothing in them that is either contrary to the doctrine of the church of england ; or otherwise injurious to the rights , and liberties of it . who the person , against whom i write , is ; i neither do know , nor am at all sollicitous to discover . but as his principles seem but too much to look towards a party , against which the church of england ever has ; and , i am perswaded will always be ready vigorously to oppose her self : so the disaffection which appears , in the whole process of his discourse , to the present establishment , sufficiently shews ; that he had some farther design in the publishing of it , than barely to assert the rights of the clergy , and convocation . but of this let every one judge , as he sees cause : my business is with his book , not with his person , or design . in my reply to which , as i have endeavour'd , according to my ability , to defend the cause both of the king , and church ; so , for the arguments sake , if for nothing else , i thought i might presume to commend the protection of it to your grace , who have so great a zeal for both ; and will therefore , i hope , be the rather disposed , to favour this honest , though but imperfect , performance , of him , who with all possible duty , and respect shall ever remain , my lord , your graces most humble and obedient servant , william wake . errata . preface , page iii. line . read of divine , p. vi . l. . r. fell . book , p. . l. ● . r. yet , p. . marg . l. . r. masticon , p. . l. . r. ariminum , p. . l. . r. how far , p. . l. . r. of their , p. . marg . l. , r. place●it , ibid. l. . r. defined , p. . l. . r. countries , p. . l. . r. convocation , p. . l. . add consent , p. . l. . r. canons , p. . l. . r. gervilio , p. . marg . l. . r. , l. . r. , p. . l. ult . r. two , p. . l. . r. than , p. . l. . to , r. for , p. . l. . r. these , p. . l. . r. annihilate . the preface . i am so well assured that i have asserted nothing , in the following discourse , but what is agreeable to the principles of the church of england , that i shall not make the least apology for declaring my self against an author , whose notions neither our own , nor any other reformed church , that i know of , has ever approved ; nor is there any reason to expect that any christian prince should be content to allow of them . how this gentleman came to be engaged to write in defence of the supposed rights of our convocations , i cannot tell : but sure i am he has done it in such a manner as is not much for the benefit of the church ; nor will , i suppose , at all encourage any one to stand up in defence of him. that his main assertion is new and paradoxical ; contrary to the sense of all the learned in the law , and repugnant to the constant practice of our convocations , ever since the time of henry viii , is certain ; nor does he himself deny it . one would therefore have hoped , that his arguments should have born some proportion to his allegations ; and that there should have been , at least , as much weight in the one , as there was assurance in the other . but when i came to examine them , i found there was nothing formidable in this author , but his confidence : and that , like some empty spectre , his power was only to fright such , as had not the resolution to speak to him . if any one shall ask , how i came to oppose so large an answer to a letter so little in bulk , and so much yet less in weight and substance ; he may please to know , that the much greatest , as well as most useful , part of the following book , has no concern at all with it , but was only written upon occasion of it . i was willing to lay hold on the opportunity which this author had given me , to search , as far as my leisure would permit , into this subject ; and having so done , i was no less willing to communicate what i had met with to the world ; not knowing but that some others might receive as much satisfaction from these researches , as , i was sensible , i my self had done . it has been complain'd of by this gentleman , as no small neglect in those of our profession , that they are , for the most part , but little acquainted with the rights and power of an english convocation : and indeed a subject it is , that has but very little been searcht out by them , or examined by any others of our antiquaries , for them. i may presume to say i have here published more , than i have ever yet met with , in any one piece , upon this argument : but yet , when that is said , i am not so carried away with an undue opinion of my own performance , as not to know , that what is here publish'd , is , at most , but an imperfect essay ; and , like the first lines of a draught , shews rather what i design'd , than what i have been able , in any tolerable manner , to finish . i cannot deny but that , next to the knowledge in divine things , there is nothing i should rather desire to understand , than the laws and antiquities of the country in which i live ; but especially of the church in which i minister . and i am not a little pleas'd to see , that there are , at this time , so many persons , of excellent parts , no less addicted to these researches , and much better able to pursue them , than i am . it may possibly be some provocation to one , or other of these , to give us a more perfect account of the present subject , to see how little is here done in it . the argument certainly deserves consideration ; and i heartily wish it a better hand , and a better head too than any that has yet appear'd upon it . in the following treatise , having first stated the subject i was to go upon , and settled the method i thought most proper to be observed in the prosecution of it ; i , in the next place , go on to lay the foundation of what i had to say with reference to our own laws and constitutions , upon the practice and opinions of the antient church ; and of all the christian countries round about us , for above years after christ. i consider'd that the church of england , beyond most churches in the world , has a peculiar veneration for the discipline , as well as doctrine of the primitive church . and i thought it would be no small evidence of my good intentions towards it , upon this occasion , to shew , that i pretended to nothing in behalf of our own kings , but what the bishops and clergy , from the fourth century downwards , had readily allow'd to their emperours ; and what all other christian princes continued to enjoy , till the papal authority prevail'd over them , and deprived them of that supremacy in ecclesiastical matters , which they originally had ; and to which the reformation has again so justly restored them . and now , having laid so good a foundation ; i thought i might proceed the more freely to enquire into the case of our own country ; and see what authority the king of england has over his convocations ; and by what law or custom he enjoys that authority ? in this , i was forc'd to confine myself within the time of the reformation ; because it was about the beginning of that , that our kings were restored to their supremacy in this , as well as in other matters ; or at least had their authority more solemnly recognized by the clergy , and established by the parliament , than ever it had been before . but lest such a supremacy as this , should seem to depend rather upon the authority of an act of parliament , than to be derived from that original power , in ecclesiastical causes , which belongs to all christian princes , and to ours as well as to any ; and which was exercised by them many ages , before any statute was made to intitle them thereunto ; having shewn what the law , as to these matters , now is ; i thought it might not be amiss to enlarge my enquiry , and to see how the case has stood , in this particular , from the first conversion of the saxons , to the time wherein i began my former disquisition . and upon search i found , and , i think , have plainly made it appear , that the authority i here assert to the king , is no other than what our most antient princes , till about years after christ , continued to exercise ; and even then claim'd a right too , when they were not any longer permitted to excercise it . if in pursuing of this enquiry through so many past ages , i have sometimes taken the liberty to fill up those vacancies , which , ( through the want of materials proper for such an undertaking , ) often fall in my way ; with reflections a little foreign to my proper business , i hope it will not be taken for any great offence , in a work of this nature : especially considering that my very digressions are rather not directly to the purpose of my present subject , than altogether distant from it . as for the remainder of my discourse , which is spent in answering the letter to a convocation-man ; i shall only say thus much , that i have not designedly either over-look'd any of its arguments , or made an imperfect , much less a false representation of them . i have examined every thing that seem'd considerable enough to be taken notice of , and i hope , have fully answered what i have examined . i am not aware that , in doing of this , i have given my adversary any hard treatment , tho' i cannot but say , he has taken care oftentimes to deserve it . but i thought it unreasonable to be guilty of that my self , which i look'd upon to have been a fault in him. 't is true , i have all along spoken my mind with great freedom ; and where i sound any thing amiss have not stuck to own it , tho'it seemed to reflect upon those of my own order . till clergy-men cease to be men , they will be guilty not only of follies and imprudencies , but of sins too , as well as others : and to what purpose should i dissemble that , which , whether it be confess'd or not , all the world knows to be but too true. were our faults so private , that to allow of them were to publish them ; i am sure no one should be more careful to hide them than i would be : but i cannot conceive it to be either for the credit or interest of the church , to dissemble those vices , which those who commit them take no care to conceal . if any one should be so unreasonable , as to take occasion from hence to think hardly of our profession , or to be scandalized at our religion , for the ▪ faults of those who minister in it ; i would only desire them to consider that we live in an unhappy age , and make up a large number of men ; and it can hardly be thought , but that where so many thousands wait at the altar , some there should be , who are much fitter to be cast out of the church , than to officiate in it . in the mean time , god be thanked , many there are who are as eminent for their piety , as some others are notorious for their irregularities : and this advantage they ought to have , to recommend our religion , beyond what the others should have to defame it ; that these live agreeably to the rules of their holy profession , whereas the others must be confess'd to have scandalously departed from them . to conclude ; the following treatise , as it was truly intended for the service of the church of england , so i hope it may be of some use to many in it . at least it will satisfie those who have taken offence at the letter here examined , that it speaks not the sense of all , if of any , of our clergy : and shew , that many there be who no less disapprove the assertions of this author , than they are justly offended at his bold and scandalous reflections . the contents . chapter i. the design of the following treatise : with a short account of the method that is proposed to be observed in the prosecution of it . the order of the questions proposed in the letter to a convocation man , changed ; and an enquiry design'd to be first made , whether the convocation has a right to meet , and act , as often as the parliament does ? § . the method which this author has taken , to vindicate this supposed right of the convocation , censured . § . the design of the following treatise laid out . § . chap. ii. the first general point proposed , and the method laid down for the handling of it . in pursuance whereof , a general enquiry is first made , what power christian princes have always been allowed to exercise over their ecclesiastical synods , or convocations ; with respect both to the sitting of them , to the managing of them when sat , and to the confirming or annulling of their acts , after . the first general question proposed , and the method laid down for a full resolution of it . § . that christian princes have authority , over ecclesiastical persons , and in ecclesiastical causes . § . and that , particularly , with reference to their synods and convocations . § . which , i. cannot meet without their permission , or against their consent . § . that the eight first general councils were all call'd by the emperors authority . § . so were all the lesser synods held under the roman emperors . § . the gothish princes , in the empire , kept their synods to the same rule . § . so did the princes of the several kingdoms which rose up out of the ruins of it : of spain . § . portugal . § . burgundy . § . germany . § . france . § . the bishops and clergy never opposed this , or made any complaints against it . § . ( ) christian princes have often call'd such councils by their own authority , without the advice of their clergy ; and refus'd to do it when the bishops have desir'd it . § . . who , ( ) being so refused , have never pretended to meet in council against their will ; or asserted any right so to do . § . ( ) no not in provincial councils , for which they seem'd to have some right on their side . § . ( ) that the prince has a right to determine the time and place of their meeting . § . ( ) and may direct what persons shall be allow'd to come to them . § . the first point summ'd up . § . ii. of the princes authority over ecclesiastical synods , when they are met . § . . he has a right to prescribe to them what they shall debate about . § . — the ground of this . ibid. — the several methods that have been taken by them to do this . § . — the practice of the church in confirmation hereof : — in the roman empire . § . — in other places . § . . to determine , in what manner and order they shall proceed in their debates . § . — the practice of the roman emperors , in confirmation hereof . § . . to sit with them , and to preside over them . — so the emperors did . § . — and so did the princes who succeeded them in their several states . § , &c. how far the prince , thus presiding , may act synodically with his clergy ? § . iii. of the authority of the prince over these conventions , after they have ended what was to be done by them . § . the clergy cannot , regularly , break up their synod without his leave . § . their acts are of no authority till confirm'd by him . § . how far the prince is at liberty to examine their determinations ; to confirm , annul , or amend them ? § . — what power he has over their judgments ? § . — what over their constitutions ? § . the wh●l● applied to our own case . § . chap. iii. of the authority which our own kings have over their convocations , with respect both to their meeting and acting first ; and to the confirming or annulling their acts after . that our princes ought , of right , to have the same authority over their convocations , as any other princes have before been shewn to have . § . i. that the convocation cannot meet without the king 's writ to empower them so to do . § . — the judges opinion to this purpose . ibid. — the parliaments , and convocations . § . the king has a right to name the time and place of their meeting . § . as also to appoint what persons shall come to it . § . being summon'd , it lies in his breast whether they shall sit , or no. § . ii. that being met , they have no power to act , but by the king's permission . § . — this also confirm'd by the opinion of the judges ; agreeably to the act of the hen. . — and farther proved from the tenour of the convocation-writ . § . — the form of which is the same now , that antiently it was wont to be . § . — as also from the commissions wont to be sent to them for that purpose . § . several instances of which are offer'd . § . — from the judgment of the convocation in the . edw. vi. § . of the power of our kings to sit with , or to send commissioners to their convocations . § . whether the convocation , as a court , may proceed to judge any cause without the king's licence ? § . — the convocation did , antiently , judge of heresie . § . — how it judged ? § . — it is most probable , that it cannot judg any person without the king's leave . § . — it is certain the king may , in a particular case , prohibit them so to do . § . — and suspend or annul their sentence . ib. iii. of the authority which our kings have over their convocations , after they have done what they were called for , they cannot break up without the king's licence . § . his authority requisite to confirm their acts. § . — how far , and in what cases , he is empower'd to confirm them . ibid. the king has power not only to review their acts himself , but to submit them to the judgment of his council . § . — the practice of this proved . to § . whether he may alter and correct their definitions ? ibid. from the whole , an answer is distinctly given , to the first question proposed . § . chap. iv. in which the state of the convocation is historically deduced , from the first conversion of the saxons to our own times . the occasion of this enquiry , and the method proposed to be observed in it . § . . period . how the affairs of the church were transacted , from the first conversion of the saxons , to the time of the norman conquest . the clergy summoned to convocation after two very different manners . — by the parliament writ . § . — by the provincial writ . § . the foundation of this laid in these first times ; wherein the clergy were members of the civil councils , as well as of ecclesiastical synods . § . of the nature of our great councils , in these times , and how ecclesiastical affairs were transacted in them ? § . — shewn from the like councils in france , under pepin . § . under charles the emperor . § . — their manner of debating . § . — their politie clear'd . § . the nature of our own great councils stated upon this foundation . § , , of the ecclesiastical synods of these times ; of what persons they consisted ? by what authority they were held ? § . — a particular view taken of the principal synods of this kind , during this period . § . &c. of the ecclesiastical matters of most note , that were transacted in the great councils of the same period . § . &c. ii. period . from the coming in of k. william i. to the d . of k. edward i. the papal power began , about this time , to prevail over the princes authority . § . — by what degrees it did so ? § , &c. william the conqueror stood out against its incroachments , and continued the affairs of the church in the same state they were in before . § . so did his sons after him . § . — what that state was ? ibid. an historical account of the chief ecclesiastical synods under , king willam i. § , . king william ii. § . king henry i. § . how the pope now began to send his legats hither ; and by that means encroach'd upon the king's prerogative in the business before us ? § . how the arch-bishop of canterbury gave the next shock to it ? § . of the affairs of the church , under k. stephen . § . k. henry ii. § . k. richard i. § . k. john § . k. henry iii. § . k. edward i. § . how far our kings , during this period , continued to transact the affairs of the church , in their great councils ? § iii. period . from the d . of king edward i , to the th . of king henry viii . of the nature of the civil government about the beginning of this period ; particularly of the great council of the nation . § . — of the change , which some suppose , was , about this time , made in it . § , — that the same change was made in the ecclesiastical , which seems to have been made , in the civil part of it . § . — what place , from thenceforth , the inferiour clergy had in it ? shewn , from the parliament writ . § . from the parliament rolls . § . — how our great councils met , and acted , at the beginning of this establishment ? § . of the state of the convocation , as it is a provincial synod , about this time : shewn , — from the difference between the parliament , and convocation writ . § , . how the convocation came to bè summon'd at , or about , the same time , with the parliament ? § . — whether one may not be held without the other ? § . by whom the convocation , in these times , was wont to be called ? § . of the chief convocations held under k. edw. i. § . k. edw. ii. § . k. edw. iii. § . of the opposition which began , about this time , to be made to the pope's usurpations . ibid. of the convocations under our following kings , to the time of king henry viii . § , ad . period iv. from the th of k. henry viii . to our own times . an historical account of the statute . hen. viii . cap. . § , , . of the dependance which the convocation has upon the parliament . § . whether the convocation , as it now stands , be any part of the parliament ? § . of select committees , and the great use that has been made of them , under this period . § . the several ways of transacting ecclesiastical affairs at this day , consider'd ; in five particulars . § . it is at the prince's choice , by which of these he will , from time to time , transact them . § , . chap. v. the opinion advanced , in the late letter to a convocation man , stated : and the arguments examined , by which the author of it pretends to shew : . that the convocation has a right to meet , whenever the parliament does . and . that being met , it has also a right to act , without any licence from the king , to empower it so to do . the subject of this chapter proposed . § . and the questions in debate stated , from the words of the letter , here to be examined . § . whether the church has any original , inherent right , of its own , to assemble synods ? § . the first question brought to its true state ? § . the second question , in like manner , reduced to its true bounds . § . i. question . § . that the convocation has a right to sit , as often as the parliament meets : does not follow ; . from any supposed parallel , between them . § . — which is examined and answer'd . ib. — that there is more need of frequent parliaments , than of frequent convocations . § . . nor from the th . hen. vi. § . . nor from its power to judge in matters of heresie . § . . nor from the bishops parliament writ . § . the objection of the archbishop's being prohibited by the king's justice , to hold a synod , by his own authority ; neither well related , nor to the purpose . § . . nor from the descriptions of a convocation in the law dictionaries . § ii. question . § . that the convocation being met , may proceed to act without the king's licence ; not proved , . from any thing unreasonable , that would follow , if it might not . § . . nor from any supposed right , which they have , to the king's licence , if it be needful . § . . nor from the parallel , again urged , between the convocation and the parliament . § . . nor from the prohibitions , antiently sent by the king to it . § . . the stature . hen. viii . vindicated , from the new interpretation given of it by this author . § , . the king 's right to send commissioners to sit in convocation , nothing to his advantage § . of the authority of the convocation in point of judicature . § . the case between dr. standish , and the convocation , related , as it stands in our antient law books . § . chap. vi. some rules laid down , by which to judge , for what causes , and at what times , synods ought , or ought not , to be assembled : and the allegations brought to prove a convocation to be , at this time , necessary to be held , examined by them. it is confess'd that the king ought to suffer the convocation to sit , when the necessities of the church do really require it . § the author's position laid down , and the method proposed for the examining of it . § . i. that synods are oftentimes useless , and even hurtful to the church . § . the ends , for which synods ought to be call'd , best shew when it is fitting to call them . § . the general measures , from whence to judg of this , from thence stated . § . from those general measures , the following particular rules , deduced . . synods ought not to be called , to determine plain and clear matters . § . . nor for such , as have by an equal , or perhaps greater authority , been already determined . § . . nor to do that , which may be done by more easie , and ordinary methods . § . . nor when there is no probable expectation of any good to come from their meeting . § . . nor in unquiet , and unsettled times . § . ii. what the author of the letter , &c. has offered to prove that it is necessary a convocation should now meet ? § . it is confess'd that we stand in great need of a reformation ; but it does not thence follow that we need a convocation . § . . a convocation not necessary , to condemn scepticks , or deists . § . . nor to censure socinians . § . . nor against those who plead for a general toleration . § . . nor to call some particular persons to account . § . . nor to prevent these things from corrupting the manners of men. § . the farther pretences , of this author , to the same purpose , consider'd , and answered . viz. . that the bishops cannot reform those abuses . § . the authority of christian princes asserted , &c. chap. i. the design of the following discourse ; with a short account of the method that is proposed to be observed in the prosecution of it . tho it be not very material in what order we examine the questions here proposed ; nor shall i therefore pass any ( ensure upon the method , which our author has taken , in handling of them : yet because i think the matter of right , in this case , is of much greater concern , in it self , than that of expedience ; and the proof of which , if it stand good , will supersede the necessity of looking any farther : i shall take the liberty to begin with that point , which , howsoever it be resolved , will go a great way towards a determination of this whole controversie . for if the convocation has a legal right to sit and act , independent upon the will and pleasure of the prince ; and if to deny them so to do , as often as the parliament is assembled , is to violate that right which , by vertue of our constitution , they ought to enjoy ; ( as this author doubts not to affirm : ) then whether there be any such present occasion for their sitting , as he pretends , or no ; it must be confess'd that the clergy have had wrong enough already done them ; and ought not to be encroach'd upon by any farther adjournments . on the contrary , if the meeting and acting of the convocation , does depend upon the grace and pleasure of the prince ; so that they can neither assemble nor consult , without his permiss 〈…〉 nor is he any farther obliged to 〈◊〉 of either , than he is persuaded 〈◊〉 meeting and acting will be for the 〈◊〉 benefit of the church and kingdom : then it must follow , that in pretending to judg of these matters , our convocation-man and his friend have meddled with that which does not belong to them : and that in vain do they insist upon what seems agreeable to their apprehensions ; whilst they cannot tell but that his majesty may have as good , or better , reasons against their sitting , under the present circumstances of affairs ; as they can imagine they have offer'd for it . indeed , if our author be at this time a member of the house of commons , as in one passage of his book he seems to intimate that he is : and if his concern for the honour of religion , and the good of the church , be so great , as he would have us think it to be ; i cannot but wonder why he has so long suffered that honourable house to neglect this matter so far , as never once to enter upon the consideration of it . he knows the commons have a standing committee for religion ; and he seems to lay it to their charge , that notwithstanding this , nothing has 〈◊〉 been done by 'em , since the revolution , in favour of it . but why then did not our zealous advocate chuse rather to represent the injury that is done our church , and the invasion that has been made upon the very fundamental frame of our constitution , to those worthy gentlemen ; and at such a committee , where he had a right to speak , and where this point would have been properly debated ; than to creep out into the world under the disguise of a nameless author ; and expose both himself and his cause , to those censures , which , by this means , are so justly pass'd upon both. we cannot suppose that he declined this out of any distrust of the arguments he had to allege , to make good his pretensions , in favour of the convocation . no , we find he is so consident of their clearness , that he asserts it again and again , with much assurance , that to sit and act , is their right ; and that the king cannot hinder them from doing both , without violating our constitution , as well as injuring the convocation . and for his opinion of the readiness of the house of commons to do us justice , as to this matter , i shall need only to repeat his own words to shew , that he had no reason to except against that . for the same reason ( says he ) that they are concern'd to maintain the rights and privileges of their own body , they would be careful not to invade those of another . they are wise enough to know that the preserving the constitution , as it is , is the best way to preserve their true and real interests : and that the constitution can no otherwise be upheld , than by the several parts of it being preserved in their just rights and powers ; allow'd to act in their proper spheres , and circumscribed within them . this i say they are wise enough to know ; and withal just enough to own , that a convocation is as much a part of the constitution , as a parliament it self . but our author has taken his own way , and i must either follow him in it , or must leave one great part of his letter unanswered : and it is not unlikely but that in doing this , some may be so far byass'd in his favour , as to believe that it was unanswerable . and tho' i am sensible that in pursuing of these considerations i shall meddle with such matters as do not at all belong to a private debate ; yet since others have had the boldness to arraign the government , for not suffering the convocation to meet ; and to tell the world , that both the honour of religion , and the good of the church , are concern'd in it , and cannot be preserved without it : i hope i may take the liberty to examine what ground there is for so invidious a suggestion ; and have as much right to transgress in behalf of authority , as this gentleman has taken to offend against it . and the method that i shall choose , for the clearing of this subject , shall be this : first , i will enquire ( as to the matter of right ) whether there be any law , that commands , or permits , the sitting and acting of the convocation ; besides the absolute , free pleasure of the prince ? and , if there be , what that law is ? and how far the prince is obliged by it . which being settled , i will , secondly , consider , what occasion there is at present for a convocation ? and whether the necessity of its meeting and acting be so great ; and the delay of it so dangerous , as our author pretends it to be . as for his third question , which respects the validity of the acts of a convocation , any farther than they are confirm'd , and approved of , by parliament ; that is not much insisted upon by our author : and what is needful to be said to it , will incidentally fall in , in the prosecution of the other two. but tho' this therefore be the general method which i shall observe ; yet i am sensible , that in order to the better clearing of the former of these questions , i must take a much larger compass than our author's design led him to do . and to the end i may not barely answer his allegations , but may also give some tolerable account of the true nature and rights of our convocation ; ( which , for all this gentleman has yet done , may still continue to be as little understood as those of a jewish sanhedrim : ) i shall endeavour to examine this matter to the bottom , as far as my skill will enable , and my leisure permit me to do it . for as our author has rightly observed , that an exact , and full account of this matter , cannot be given but by one who has great skill in our english laws and antiquities ; ( i may add , and in the laws and antiquities of the church too ; which dyet must be competently understood , o● this subject can never be throughly handled : ) so must i freely profess , that neither will my other affairs allow me to be very exact ; nor does my profession , as a divine , intitle me to so much skill , as i am sensible is requisite , to the perfecting of such an undertaking . but however , i will candidly offer what i have met with ; and where i chance to be mistaken , ( especially in matters of law , which lie out of my way , ) i hope those who are more learned will make a reasonable allowance for my errors . chap. ii. the first general point proposed ; and the method laid down for the handling of it . in pursuance whereof , a general enquiry is first made , into that power which christian princes have always been allow'd to exercise over their ecclesiastical synods , or convocations , with respect both to the calling of them ; to the managing of them when sitting ; and to the confirming , or annulling their acts , after wards . to come then , without any more ado , to the business in hand ; the first and main thing to be consider'd is this : whether there is any law that commands or permits the sitting and acting of the convocation ; besides the absolute , free pleasure of the prince ? and , if there be , what that law is ? and , how far the prince is obliged by it ? this i take to be the true state of the question , and i shall treat of it in this following method . i. i will enquire , what power , christian princes , in general , have claim'd over such convocations ; with respect both to their assembling and acting , and to the giving force and authority to what is done by them ? ii. i will consider , whether our kings have not the same authority over our convocation , that all other christian princes have claim'd over their synods ? and iii. upon this foundation , i will examine what this author has alledged to the contrary ; and offer what , i conceive , may fairly be replied to it . and i. let us enquire , what power , christian princes , in general , have claim'd , over their synods ; with respect both to their meeting and acting first ; and to the giving force , and authority , to what is done by them ? that christian princes have a right , not only to exercise authority over ecclesiastical persons , but to interpose in the ordering of ecclesiastical affairs too ; neither our own articles and canons , nor the consent of the universal church , ever since the empire became christian , will suffer us to doubt . there is no one so great a stranger to the history of the holy scriptures , as not to know what authority the jewish princes , under the law , pretended to , as to this matter . and how far the first christian emperors follow'd their examples , were other authors silent , yet that one assertion of socrates would not suffer us to be ignorant ; where he affirms , that ever since they became christians , the affairs of the church have depended upon them : and the greatest synods been assembled by their order , and still ( says he ) continue to be assembled . it was a famous saying of constantine , the first christian emperor , to his bishops ; that they indeed were bishops in things within the church , but that he was appointed , by god , to be bishop , as to those without . and how far the succeeding emperors continued to look upon the well ordering , and governing of the church , to be one great part of that duty which god expected from them ; the epistle of theodosius and valentinian to to st. cyril , and the rest of the metropolitans , whom they summoned to meet in the general council of ephesus , abundantly shews . let us look into the several collections of the roman laws : * the code of theodosius : † the code and * novels of justinian : the yet later | collection of basilius , leo , and constantine , that followed after : how many constitutions shall we find in every one of these relating to ecclesiastical affairs ; to the order and government of the church ; to the election , and consecration of bishops and priests ; to the lives , offices , and privileges of the clergy ; to the erection and liberties of churches ; to the service of them ; nay , and even to the very faith which was to be taught and profess'd in them ? and when the empire began to be parcell'd out into several lesser states and kingdoms , we find their several princes still maintaining the same authority , as to all these things , that the emperors had done before : as from the capitularies of the french and german princes ; the collections of the spanish councils ; our own * antient laws , and the histories which remain of the several other countries , does evidently appear . but of the authority of princes in ecclesiastical matters , and over ecclesiastical persons , in general , there is no doubt . nor should there , one would think , be any more ; whether one great part of their authority as to these matters , has not always been accounted to consist , in the power to conven● synods , and to order whatsoever relates both to the assembling , and acting of them . and for the better proof of which , i shall now distinctly consider what their power is , with respect ( ) to the calling of such synods or convocations . ( ) to the directing of their proceedings , when they are assembled . and , ( ) to the approving and confirming their constitutions afterwards . and ( ) let us consider , what the power of the civil magistrate is , as to the convening of ecclesiastical synods , and convocations . it has ever been look'd upon as one great part of the prince's prerogative , that no societies should be incorporated , nor any companies be allow'd to meet together , without his knowledge and permission . the roman law was , especially , very severe , as to this particular : and tho' after the conversion of the emperors to the faith of christ , a provision was made for the publick assemblies of the church for divine service : yet before that , tertullian , who understood these matters as well as any one of his time ; tho' he excused their meetings upon all other accounts , could not deny but that they fell under the censure of this law : and that having not the prince's leave to meet together , they were , in the construction of the law , guilty of meeting against it . now a synod being no ordinary , or sia●ed convention ; but which was assembled only upon extraordinary occasions , when the necessities of the church required the meeting of it : as there was no general provision , at the beginning , made by the laws for them ; so it was therefore necessary that , in order to their meeting lawfully , the express command or allowance of the emperor , should be had for their so doing . and if we look up to the history of the first and most famous councils of the church , we shall accordingly find , that they were all convened by the imperial authority . thus constantine the great , not only summon'd , but sat himself in that of nice . * theodosius the great both assembled the second general council of constantinople ; and , at the desire of the fathers , confirmed the acts of it . the council of ephesus , the next general council , was not only * called by the emperors theodosiu● the younger , and valentinian ; but that all things might be done decently and orderly in it ; they sent * candidian , as their commissioner , to preside over the bishops , and to direct their proceedings , according to the instructions which they had given him for that purpose . and when the heresy of eutyches gave a new occasion ●o the same emperors to assemble another synod ; * they , in like manner , appointed it to meet at the same place : and commanded dioscorus , patriarch of alexandria , to preside in it . it was the same authority , that had caused this synod to meet at ephesus , that , after the death of theodosius , appointed a review to be made of it , in another † council , which was summon'd first to nice , and from thence was removed to chalcedon . and this the emperors did not only upon their own authority ; but tho' ‖ pope leo had desired , with all imaginable earnestness , that it might have been held somewhere in italy ; to which they refused to consent . such was the authority , by which the four first general councils of the church , were assembled ; nor were the next four call'd by any other . it was by the express command of the * elder justinian , that the second general council of constantinople met : as it was by the like summons of † constantinus pogonatus , that the third in the same city was convened . and because in these two , no canons were made for the discipline of the church , * justinian the younger , call'd another council to supply that defect ; and confirm'd the canons that were made by it . the second council of nice , thô scarce right in any thing else , yet in this was orthodox , that it was assembled by the authority of † irenè the empress , and her son constantine . and lastly , the fourth of constantinople , the last of the eight general councils , was in like manner held by the consent of ‖ basilius the emperour , and approved by him. this then was the power , which the christian emperours claim'd over the greatest councils ; and which those councils always acknowledged to be due to them. if from these we pass on to the lesser synods that were assembled in those days , we shall find the authority of the civil magistrate to be still the same : and that these also were either expresly convened by them , or were summon'd by some authority that was , derived from them. when the donatists , being angry that they could not gain their ends upon caecilian , desired that an examination might be made of their case , by some foreign bishops ; constantine the emperour granted their request : and in order thereunto appointed a meeting to be held at rome , upon that affair ; and that three french bishops , should be joyn'd to fifteen out of italy , for the hearing of it . and these , together with the bishop of rome , by the * emperours command , judged of this matter . and when those turbulent men were not yet satisfied ; to put a final end to their contentions , he caused a greater number of bishops to meet in a synod at † arles , and there review the same cause , and pass a final judgment in it . to enumerate all the several instances that remain to us , of councils call'd , in like manner , by the imperial authority ; would be as infinite , as it is needless . it may suffice to say , that what constantine , thus began , the succeeding emperours constantly held to ; and suffer'd not any assemblies of the clergy to be made , but by their leave , and according to their direction . 't is true there was a general order made by the fathers of the council of nice , that for the better regulation of the churches affairs , the bishops of every province should meet together , in a provincial synod , under their metropolitan , twice every year . and this council being not only confirm'd by constantine , who call'd it , but by almost all the emperors that follow'd after ; and particularly , the constitution now mention'd , being provided for , and adjusted by the civil laws themselves ; such councils , from thenceforth , became legal assemblies ; and were , of course , allow'd of , tho' not expresly consented to by the emperors . and yet when theodoret began to be too busie in calling the bishops together , theodosius not only laid a prohibition upon him ; but confined him to cyrus , his own little see , as a punishment for what he had before done . so little was it then thought a matter of right , for the clergy to meet , as often as they thought good , in synods : or that any injury was done them by their princes , when they refused to suffer them so to do . but it may be these emperors had some eminent authority in them which ceased together with the empire ; and which other princes , tho' of sovereign authority within their several kingdoms , yet ought not to pretend to . that this is not so in civil matters , i shall leave it to the writers of politicks to argue ; and to the municipal laws of their several kingdoms to shew . as for what concerns their ecclesiastical authority ; it is evident that in this , as in all other respects , whatsoever power the emperors heretofore laid claim to in the whole , the same these princes have continued to assert , within their own particular states and dominions . when the vandals had over-run the greatest part of africa ; and by their authority set up the arrian heresie , in opposition to the catholick faith , which before prevail'd in those parts : hunericus their king , at the desire of his arrian bishops , summon'd a general convention of all the catholick bishops to meet at carthage ; and there confer about the point in difference between them . and accordingly , upon his summons , they all came thither ; and refusing to renounce the terms of the council of nice , were deprived of their bishopricks , and sent into banishment by him . but better was the success of the orthodox bishops , in their next conference , held by the like authority , under gundebald at rome ; an. : who at the request of the catholick clergy consented to their meeting , and was greatly satisfied at their behaviour in it . it was not long after this that , as baronius himself confesses , theodorick summon'd another synod at rome to judge of the crimes alledged against symmachus bishop of that see ; and submitted the determination of that affair to their resolution and when caesarius , bishop of arles , desired to convene a provincial synod in france ; according to the direction of the antient canons , and the allowance of the laws to that purpose : yet he did not think it sitting so to do , till he had obtained the consent of alaric the goth for it ; and it is expresly noted , that it was held by his allowance . what caesarius here did with respect to alaric , an arrian prince ; the same did avitus , bishop of vienne , with regard to sigismond , the son of gundebald , king of the burgundians ; whom he had not long before converted to the catholick faith. he call'd even his provincial synod , with the king's consent : and tho' himself metropolitan of that district , yet presided in it by the prince's order . such was the authority by which these lesser synods were wont to be held , immediately upon the breaking of the empire . and that thus it continued , till the prevalence of the papal power began to overthrow the prince's right , will appear from a short view of this matter , in some of the principal states which arose out of the ruins of it . and , . that this was so , in the kingdom of spain , the councils of toledo , the most eminent of any in that country , both for number and authority ; sufficiently demonstrate . that the second of these was call'd by the permission of amalaric , the synod it self owns . but the third , and i think the most considerable of them all , is yet more full to our present purpose . it was a general council of that whole nation : in it the goths adjured their heresie , and embraced the catholick faith. this faith was first establish'd in spain , by the authority of this council ; and several very useful canons were framed by it , for the government of the church for the time to come . and all this was done by the command of reccaredus their king : who with badda , his queen , subscribed to the orthodox faith in it ; and made not only his bishops , but the chief of his nobility , and others , subscribe to it . it would be needless for me , after so clear an evidence , as this synod has given us , of the authority by which councils were antiently convened in spain ; to spend any long time , in the particular examination of the several councils that follow'd after . it shall therefore suffice barely to say thus much ; that the fourth of toledo ( another national council , and of great authority in those parts ) met by the order of sisenandus , as the third had done by that of reccaredus . the fifth by the command of cinthila , who also confirm'd the acts of it . the sixth of cinthilan : the seventh of chindaswind : the eighth of recceswinthus : the rest by the order of the several princes which follow'd after : as from the acts of the fifteenth and sixteenth , the last of these synods , it does evidently appear . as for their provincial synods , they were not indeed always summon'd by the express , particular order , of those princes . but yet even these were held by vertue of that authority , which the third great council of toledo , under reccaredus , before mention'd , had given to them . it was by vertue of this allowance that the synods of narbonne , and saragosa , were assembled ; and in both which , for that reason , it is said , that they met according to the order of that prince , and to the appointment of that council . . and the same authority which these kings used in spain , did their next neighbours , the su●vian princes , exercise in galaecia , during the time of their empire there . the second council of braga , the metropolis of that country , is expresly declared to have met at the command of ariamirus , or as some have rather thought , of theodimirus , their king. it was by the same authority that the synod of lugo , not long after , was assembled ; to divide the country into several provinces , and to erect a greater number of bishopricks in it . and when by vertue of this division , the clergy of that country were come together in two provincial synods , under their respective metropolitans , according to the ancient canons in that behalf ; miro , his successor , order'd them to meet both together in a general council at braga ; and there agree upon such constitutions , as they should find the necessities of the church to require . . if from hence we cross over to the kingdom of burgundy ; we shall find those princes in possession of the same rights over their synods , that the other kings have been shewn to have exercised . the inscription of the second council of lyons , assembled about the year , shews that it was call'd by the command of guntramn their king : who also not long after assembled another synod at challon , as gregory of tours informs us . it was by the order of the same guntramn that the great council of mascon was held : and when that had not sufficiently restored the discipline of the church , he not only assembled another at * lyons , but more in several other places ; † at valence , poitiers , mascon , &c. all whose acts expresly avow the authority by which they met . . in germany . carloman first and then charles the emperor , as they were the great restorers of religion , and assertors of the discipline of the church ; so will they afford us a sufficient proof of the prince's authority , in this particular . it was the former of these who , with the advice of his clergy and nobles , called the council of ratisbon , which is accounted among the first of germany , an. . and how the other continued , by the same authority , to summon the like assemblies , the several synods of wormes ; valenciennes ; aix la chappelle ; but especially the two great councils of * mentz and † frankford ; ( in the latter of which not only the bishops of germany , but of france , and aquitain , were assembled together , and over all whom charles the emperor presided ; ) abundantly shew . no sooner was this great prince dead , but ludovicus pius , his successor , after his example , call'd together his clergy to aix-la-chappelle ; for the correction of the negligence and ignorance of the bishops , and for the better regulating of the lives of the clergy . and having fully determined whatsoever was thought expedient in order thereunto ; he commanded a strict obedience to be paid to the constitutions which had been made by them . and when this did not yet sufficiently correct the abuses of those times ; he not only summon'd a second council to meet at the same place , but being met , he proposed to them such heads as he conceived to be farther necessary , with respect both to the lives , and doctrine , of the bishops and clergy ; and order'd the synod to frame their debates upon them . when this emperor was dead , and the difference between his sons appeased ; lewis ( to whom the government of germany fell ) after his father's example , call'd the great council of mayence ; to regulate those disorders which the late distractions had brought into the church . and because many things remain'd which could not then be sufficiently provided for ; he , the next year after , assembled another synod for the determination of them . it was about twenty years after this , that the same lewis convened a general council at wormes ; and there , in like manner , order'd many things relating both to the faith , and discipline , of the church . it was not long after , that arnulph , his nephew , having obtain'd the empire , call'd together ( in like manner ) his bishops to a great council at trebur ; presided , and assisted in it : and caused what was done not only to be subscribed by the bishops whom he had assembled , but to be confirm'd by a great number both of the inferior clergy , and of the laity of the empire . and , lastly , not to metion any more ; henry the first , after the example of his predecessors , by his princely command , assembled the great synod at erpsford ; with the advice of his great men , and particularly of archbishop hildibert , who was chiefly consider'd by him . . and now having thus fully shewn what was the practice of these princes in germany , i might spare my self , and reader , the trouble , of enquiring into the methods used in france ; which was generally either in the same hands , or govern'd by those of the same family , that the empire , in those days , was . yet because i think the ecclesiastical discipline , was no where better kept up , or more exactly follow'd , than in that country ; and that i conceive our own synods were very much framed by the pattern of theirs ; i will take a short view of their conventions also , and so conclude these first general remarks . to begin then with the first of their christian kings , clouis the great : and here we find that he not only called the first council of orleans ( and which has ever been look'd upon as the model and pattern to all their succeeding synods ; ) but moreover prescribed to it the points on which it was to debate : and all this at the desire , and with the advice , of st. remigius ; as hincmarus , in the history of his life , informs us. it was by the like command of childebert , and his brethren , that the second council of the same place was held . the synod of clermont , the next , of any consequence , that met in france ; assembled with the consent of king theodebert : and so did that of tours afterwards , with the like consent , and allowance , of charibert . the fifth council of paris , not only declares that it was assembled by the authority of clotharius ; but tells us that their assembling by his authority , was ( as indeed it was ) agreeable to the constitutions of the antient fathers , who had gone before them. and the synod of chalons owns , in like manner , that it met together in obedience to the call and command , of clouis the second , their king. it was by the royal authority of pepin , that a general council was held in his palace at vernis , anno . of charles the great , that the second council of * rhemes , and the third of tours , ●ere convened . of louis the emperor , and his son lotharius , that the † sixth council of paris was called . and lastly , not to instance in any more , of charles the bald , that the ‖ synod of quierzy was assembled ; for reforming mens manners , and to put a stop to that corruption in point of faith too , which was , about that time , supposed to be breaking out in those parts . wha● the practice of our own country has been as to this matter , i shall particularly consider , when i come to enquire into the rights of our own kings , in this respect . in the mean time , from the account which has hitherto been given of that authority , by which the bishops and clergy have been wont to be called together into synods , it appears ; that as , in fact , no councils have met without the permission of the civil magistrate , ever since the empire became christian ; so neither does it appear , that the clergy have ever made any complaints against them , as usurping herein upon the rights of the church ; or pleaded any privilege , as of divine authority , for their meeting , and acting against their consent . but to the end it may the more evidently appear how far the power of christian princes has been accounted to extend , as to this particular ; i shall to that general deduction , i have now made , of the authority by which the church has been accustomed , from the beginning , to meet together in councils ; subjoin a few more particular remarks , for the better clearing of this whole matter . and ( st . ) it may be observed , that tho' the civil magistrate has generally advised with his bishops , and clergy , upon these occasions ; and ask'd their opinion , whether it were fitting , or not , to call a synod , before he has given orders for the meeting of it : yet was this never look'd upon as any matter of right ; but , on the contrary , princes have oftentimes assembled such councils , without ever consulting them at all ; and , at others , when their bishops , have not only advised , but desired them so to do , have yet , upon their own judgment , or by the advice of their council , utterly refused to comply with their requests . if we look into the acts of the several synods i have before mention'd ; we shall find indeed , sometimes , that the advice of the bishops was taken for their meeting ; but we shall oftner find them call'd by the prince , with the advice of his great men ; and yet oftner , no notice at all taken of the advice of either . how often did liberius , and the catholick bishops , in vain , petition constantius , that a free , and orthodox council might be call'd to judge in the case of athanasius ; but could never obtain it . and tho' the method taken by that emperor , to manage that affair in favour of the arians ; and the refusal of such a council , as was desired , was the effect of that enmity he had conceived against them , and their doctrine ; yet we do not find the catholick bishops any where complain , that , in this , the emperor did any more than what he had authority to do ; or pretend to any original , ecclesiastical power , left them by christ , to call such a synod whether he would or no. but , on the contrary , notwithstanding the urgency of that affair , and the eager desire they had to end it ; neither liberius , nor any others , attempted to meet against the emperor's command ; but quietly submitted to the prohibition he had laid upon them , not to do so . so little did the greatest bishops of the church , in those days , think it lawful , to hold a council against the prince's will ; that being forbidden by an heretical emperor , and that against all right and justice , on purpose that he might oppress them , so to do ; they yet submitted to his commands , and chose rather to suffer by their obedience , than to usurp an authority , which they were sensible did not belong to them. but lest this should be thought to have been only the perverseness of an heretical prince ; we shall find the same power , both claim'd , and exercised , by the most orthodox emperors ; and such as were , in all respects , the most zealous for the churches interest . when eutyches began to corrupt the christian faith , and it was thought necessary , that a general council should be call'd , to put a stop to his errors ; leo , bishop of rome , petitioned theodosius , with all imaginable earnestness , that he would consent to let a synod be assembled in italy for the judging of it . this the emperor utterly refused to do , and order'd the council to be held at ephesus ; and the good bishop was so far from complaining of it , that he submitted to his summons , and thank'd him that he would , at least , vouchsafe to have it there . and when , by the practices of dioscorus , that council answer'd not what was expected from it ; the same leo , not only supplicated the emperor again , with tears and groans , in the name of all the bishops of the west , that he would command another council to be held somewhere in the west , to determine that affair ; but moreover engaged valentinian , and eudoxia his wife , with many others of the greatest note , to join in the same request with him . but theodosius not only now refused him as to the place , but deny'd him as to the calling of any other synod ; nor would he be persuaded to suffer any other to meet as long as he lived . and this brings me to a ( d . ) observation , which ought to be taken notice of , upon this occasion ; viz. that whenever the civil magistrate has refused to call a synod ; tho' the affairs of the church have never so much seem'd to stand in need of one , and the bishops have never so earnestly desired one ; yet have they quietly submitted to the refusal ; and not presumed , on any pretence of right which they had in themselves , to meet together , without his leave , or against his consent . so liberius , and the catholick bishops , did to constantius first ; and leo , and the western bishops , to theodosius afterwards : and i believe it would be difficult in those best , and most early times of the church , to find out any instance , wherein the orthodox bishops have ever departed from this rule : or ( which is much the same thing ) have ever been justified by the church , in those cases , in which they have departed from it . nay but ( dly . ) tho' the council of nice first , and , after that , several other synods , provided for the constant meeting of provincial councils , at a certain season every year ; and these being allow'd of by the emperors , and other princes , who confirm'd those canons , and approved of what they had defined ; may seem to have put these kind of synods , at least , out of their power : yet , even in these , we find them still continuing to exercise their authority ; and not suffering even such councils to be held , without their leave , or against their consent . i have before observed how theodosius the emperor restrained theodoret , when he thought him too buisy in calling together the bishops to these lesser synods . and when , in after times , wolfolendus bishop of bourges , summon'd a provincial council , according to these canons , to meet at the beginning of september ; yet having neglected to consult the king's pleasure in it , we find sigebert , for that reason alone , sent a prohibition to his bishops to go to it . and it is worthy our notice , for what reason he put a stop to its assembling . he professes he was well content that they should meet some other time ; always provided that they first made him acquainted with it ; that so he might consider whether he should allow of it , as proper either for the state of the church , or for the benefit of the kingdom ; or otherwise fit to be consented to . and therefore when the fifth council of paris had resolv'd , that it was expedient that provincial synods should be held every year , according to the orders of the church , and the canonical custom establish'd in it ; they made it their request to louis the emperour , and lotharius his son , that they would consent , that at a fit season every year , they might be assembled . this request was again renew'd , some years after , in another synod : and yet , notwithstanding these general permissions , before they did come together , they were to have a particular warrant for their so doing ; as is evident from the acts of the synod of soissons , which was held about the same time that those very orders , i have now mention'd , were made . so intirely has the assembling of synods , been look'd upon to depend upon the will and authority of the christian prince . but this is not all : for , ( thly ) when it was resolv'd that a synod should be held , the prince evermore either determin'd , or allow'd , both the time , and place , of their meeting . this is evident from the very acts of all those synods of which any perfect accout remains to us ; and is most apparently confirm'd , by the history of the most antient councils of the church . i have before observ'd how theodosius not only appointed the council , which he had order'd to meet about the affair of eutyches , to assemble at ephesus ; but utterly refus'd the request of leo , and his bishops , who earnestly desired it might have been held in italy . but marcian the emperor went farther : he not only summon'd the fourth general council to nice first , and then to chalcedon ; ( tho' requested in like manner , as theodosius had been , by the bishop of rome , and his suffragans , that it might meet in italy ; ) but when , being press'd in time , leo petition'd the emperor that he would defer it but a little while , for his greater convenience , marcian refus'd him that also ; and the good man contentedly yielded to him in both . such power did the antient emperors assume to themselves , over their bishops , as to these circumstances : nor did the following princes claim any less . when pepin resolv'd that two synods should be held in france every year ; he not only specify'd the time for both , viz. the first of march , and of october ; but reserv'd the nomination of the place where the former should meet to his own appointment ; and for that of the latter , determin'd that it should either be at soissons , or at such other place , as the bishops , should agree upon in their first assembly . and ludovicus pius having thought fit , for the better settling of the ecclesiastical discipline , to have four synods meet at once ; that so they might separately consider of the state of the church , and then their opinions be altogether laid before him , in one common view ; not only order'd this distribution of them , but determin'd withal both the time , and places of their meeting , and after what manner they should proceed , being met. but ( thly ) and to conclude all : that nothing may be wanting to shew , what an entire dependance the synods of the christian church have ever had upon their respective princes ; i add ; that not only the convening of them , and the time , and place , of their meeting , depend upon their pleasure ; but that they have , morever , authority to appoint what persons shall come to them , and to direct the choice that is to be made of them . thus constantine the great did , when he call'd the synods of arles and tyre ; and thus his successors continued to do , in the most general councils that were held by them . when theodosius had agreed to call the general council of ephesus , he directed his precept to the several metropolitans , and commanded them to choose such , and so many , of their suffragans , as they thought convenient to draw out of their provinces , and to bring them with them to the council . and the same method was observ'd in the next synod that met there . the emperror commanded dioscorus to summon ten metropolitans of his district , with such other bishops as he thought convenient ; and that none else should presume to come to it . and in another letter , upon the same occasion ; the same theodosius appointed barsumas the priest , to come to the same council , and appear in it as representative of all the archimandrites of the east . it was after the same manner , that marcian the emperour , assembled the fourth general council at chalcedon . he wrote to the metropolitans to come to it , and left it to them to bring such of their suffragan bishops , as they thought fit , along with them . and when the princes , who follow'd after , summon'd their national synods ; they , in like manner , directed the choice of those who were to come to them ; as we see in the synods of vernis , and aix la chappelle ; assembled by ring pepin , and charles the emperor , an. . . 't is true the metropolitans , in these cases , did oftentimes call a provincial synod ; and therein agree , who among them should attend upon their primate to the general council . but neither did they always take this course ; nor , when they did , had they any direction from the emperors so to do . they only sent their orders to the metropolitans ; and commonly left the rest to them , to chuse such bishops , out of their provinces , as they thought fit . as for the lesser synods , tho' the princes did not often interpose in them , yet neither was there any choice left to the inferiour clergy , to nominate the members of them. to the provincial synods , all the bishops of the province were obliged , if able , to come . and they brought with them , for their companions , such of their own priests and deacons as they thought fit . at the diocesan synod , every beneficed priest of the diocese , was required to appear : and they had not so much a right , as an obligation , lying upon them , to be present at them . and thus have i shewn what the authority of the supreme civil magistrate is , as to the business of assembling ecclesiastical synods , or convocations . and the sum of what i have proved , is , in short , this : * that it is the right of christian princes to call such assemblies ; and that they cannot lawfully meet , but as they are either commanded , or allow'd of by them. * that they , and not the clergy , are judges when it is proper to convene them : * and ought not to be censured for not assembling of them , when they are perswaded it is needless , or would be inexpedient for them so to do . * that even the ordinary synods , required by the canons , and allow'd of by themselves , may yet upon just grounds be stop'd by them : ( and when there is a just reason for them so to do , they are to judge : ) and being so prohibited , cannot be lawfully assembled . in short : * that when-ever they do meet , the prince is not only to appoint , or at least to approve , of the time , and place , of their meeting ; but may give direction for the choice of the persons that are to compose them : that so he may be satisfied that they are such , whose piety and temper , have fitted them to serve the church ; and in whose prudence , and conduct , himself may safely confide . it were an easie matter to argue the reasonableness of every one of these conclusions , from the ends of civil-government ; and the power that is necessary to be placed in the hands of the supreme magistrate , in order to those ends. and i need not say that christianity came not to usurp upon the civil power , but rather to engage men to be the more ready to render that duty , which they owe , to it . 't is true , by these means , the busie tempers of some forward men may be restrain'd ; and to such these limitations may seem very odious , and unreasonable . but they are such men , and such tempers , that make these restrictions necessary : and their unwillingness to submit to them , shews but the more clearly , how fitting it is that princes should have all that power i have now mentioned ; to prevent them from doing both themselves and the church a mischief . that princes may abuse this power to the detriment of the church , is no more an argument that they ought not to enjoy it ; than it would be , that they ought not to be entrusted with a civil power , because they may abuse that too , to the ruine of the state. but i am apt to believe , that were the dangers to be weigh'd , it would be much more fatal both to the church and state , to have some men intrusted with an immoderate liberty ; than others with a soveraign power to restrain them . and 't is enough to answer all pretences of this nature , to say , that whenever the civil magistrate shall so far abuse his authority , as to render it necessary for the clergy , by some extraordinary methods , to provide for the churches welfare ; that necessity will warrant their taking of them . in the mean time , such an authority as i have now shewn , the prince has in these matters ; and till things come to such an extremity , we must leave him , as of right he ought , to enjoy it . and this may suffice for the first thing proposed in this enquiry ; viz. to shew , what power the christian prince has , in the calling of ecclesiastical synods or convocations . i go on ( dly ) to consider , what authority he has over them , when they are assembled ? now that may , i conceive , be reduced to these ( ) particulars : [ st ] of his authority to direct , and govern them , in their proceedings . and , [ dly ] to sit with , and to preside over them , in order thereunto . [ st ] then , i affirm , that the civil magistrate has a right to direct and govern them in their proceedings . and that with respect both to the matters on which they are to debate ; and to the method which they areto take , in debating upon them. st . the civil magistrate has a right , to prescribe to them , the matters , on which they are to debate . it is one great end which the prince proposes to himself in calling of such assemblies , to take their advice in things pertaining to the church . for the prince being the guardian of that , as well as of the state , and concern'd to provide for the welfare of the one , no less than of the other ; ought accordingly to have his council , with which to consult of the things pertaining to both. now as in civil matters he has his ministers of state , and the council of his great men , or people , to advise him how to manage his secular concerns : so in those things which are of a pure ecclesiastical nature , it has generally been the method of christian princes , to take the opinion of their bishops and clergy ; either single , or convened together ; as the importance , or difficulty of affairs , and the circumstances of times , have prompted them to do . but then , if this be the main end for which synods are call'd , it will follow , that the prince must have a right , not only by vertue of his supreme authority , but from the very nature of the thing it self , to propose to them the subject on which they are to proceed . it being absurd to imagine , that either a particular person should be sent for , or a body of men be convened , on purpose to give the prince their advice ; and the prince not be left to propose his doubts to them , and shew them wherein it is that he needs , or desires , their opinion . now the direction of the prince , as to the subject of the synods debates , may be either general , or particular ; or it may be partly one , and partly the other . sometimes the prince has only declared to his clergy , that he call'd them to deliberate , at large , either upon matters of faith , or matters of discipline ; for the better demonstrating the churches doctrine , and consent , in the one ; or for the better establishing the exercise of the other . sometimes the occasion of their meeting , has been to examine some particular controversie , that has risen up , to corrupt the faith , or to divide the unity of the church : as was especially seen in the cases of arius , and the other hereticks , on whose account the first general councils of the church were called . and in both these , sometimes the prince has limited their business to the particular consideration of that matter alone , for which they were assembled ; at other times , he has added to it such other incidental affairs , as he has thought fit to propose to them ; or , it may be , has given them a general liberty , after having done their main business , to deliberate on any thing else , that they should judge necessary , for the glory of god , and the good of the church . and as there is such a variety in the ends , for which christian princes have been moved to call such synods ; so may there be no less a difference observed , in the ways which they have taken , to communicate their wills to them . sometimes both the design , and subject of their meeting , have been fully set down in the precepts , which have been sent to the bishops , to require their coming together . sometimes only a glance has , in general , been given , in those , at their business ; and the rest been reserved to be more fully open'd to them at their convention . and that also has been done , sometimes by a synodical epistle , or commission sent to them ; sometimes by word of mouth : and that again , either by the prince himself , if he has thought fit ( as oftentimes princes have ) to sit with them ; or by some other person , whom he has deputed to declare his will to them . but how great a variety soever there has been , in the methods that have been taken to lay open their business to them ; this is certain , that as the calling of such assemblies , has always depended upon the consent , and authority of the prince ; so , when they were assembled , the subject of their debates has been prescribed them by the same power ; and they have deliberated on nothing , but what they have been directed , or allow'd by the prince to do . when constantine , the first christian emperor , being desirous to restore that peace to the church , which the heresie of arius , and the difference between the eastern and western churches , about the time of keeping easter , had so dangerously broken , assembled the first general council of nice ; eusebius tells us that , at the opening of it , he earnestly exhorted the bishops , by their wise resolutions , to settle all things in quiet and unity . and accordingly the subject of their debates turn'd upon those two points ; and constantine himself both assisted at them , and consented to what was resolved concerning them. when this did not prevail , but that the arian faction was resolved , at any rate , to ruine athanasius ; and since they could not corrupt the catholick faith , were determined , at least , to overwhelm him who had been the main supporter of it ; and in order thereunto another synod was obtain'd of the emperor to meet at tyre : the same constantine not only prescribed them their business ; viz. to examine into the dissensions of the churches of aegypt ; but sent dionysius , in his own stead , to be present at their assemblies , and to take care that his orders were in all things observed by them . and the same was the method which constantius , his son , observed , as to these matters : as is evident from his management of the great synod of arminum , in which above bishops were , by his order , assembled . he commanded them , in the first place , to debate the matter of faith ; then to judge the causes of those bishops , who complain'd that they had been unjustly either deposed , or banished : after that to examine the crimes laid to the charge of certain others : and , lastly , having done what he had commanded them to do , to send a certain number of their body to him , to account to him what had been resolved by them. but above all most plain was that authority which the emperors theodosius and valentinian shew'd in this particular , at the general council of ephesus . they not only declared , at large , to the fathers the cause of their meeting , in the letters of summons which they sent to the several metropolitans : but when they were met together , they sent a synodical epistle to them , by candidian , and appointed him to preside over them in their stead ; both to preserve a due freedom of voting , and debating among them , and also not to suffer them to enter upon any other matter , till they had first come to a resolution in that , for which they were called together . and when candidian reported to the emperors , that the bishops had not stuck so closely , as they ought , to their prescription ; the emperors not only severely reproved them for their presumption ; but annull'd their acts , and commanded them to have a better regard , both to the business , and method , which they had laid before them. it was the same theodosius , who , both by the precepts by which he assembled the second council of ephesus , in the cause of eutyches ; and in his letters to the fathers , when met ; restrain'd the deliberations of it , to that particular busisiness , and appointed elpidius and eulogius , his commissioners , to see his orders observed . and when valentinian and marcian assembled the next synod , which was afterwards removed to chalcedon ; they , in like manner , determined both what they met for , and how they were to proceed in it . 't is true , when those fathers had finish'd the business for which they met ; they enter'd upon several particular debates , which were not at first laid before them. but then this does but the more evidently argue the truth of what i am now observing : for as much as we find every new matter prefac'd with this declaration , that they had obtained leave of the emperors for the fathers to consider of it ; and their orders were delivered to their commissioners , to authorize the bishops to enter upon it . but to put this point out of all reasonable doubt , i shall need only , to the instances already alleged , to add that of the council of constantinople , held under mena , against anthimus and severus , anno . in which when anthimus was deposed , by the general consent of the synod ; and the bishops of the patriarchate of antioch , with the monks and clergy , desired that severus and some others might be condemned ; they were told by mena , that nothing of that kind could be attempted , without the emperor's consent first had for the doing of it . wherefore , says he , for the present , we desire that we may acquaint him with what has been demanded by you . upon this they drew up their petitions to the emperor , that he would authorize mena , and the council , to proceed against them as hereticks . to this justinian consented , and sent directions accordingly to them : and then the council forthwith proceeded to take cognizance of that affair . it would be endless for me to instance in all the other examples that occur , to shew , that it has been the general method of christian princes , to prescribe to their synods what they were to debate upon , and not to allow them to meddle with any thing , but what they either called them for , or afterwards consented they should take cognizance of . how clearly does the same emperor , in his epistle sent by the same theodorus , to the second general council of constantinople , prescribe the particulars on which they were to consult ? that they should judge of the doctrine of the three persons mention'd in his letter , viz. theodorus , theodoret , and ibas : and discuss that question which some , it seems , had started in favour of the first of them ; namely , whether an heretick might be anathematized after he was dead ? and if , from the roman empire , we pass on to other particular kingdoms , we shall find the case to be still the same ; and that their princes have taken the same course with their synods , that the emperors before them did with those of the empire . in france there is hardly any synod more worthy our regard , whether we consider the dignity , or the antiquity of it , than the first council of orleans . it was that which set a pattern to all the following synods of that country : and in that the fathers expres●ly tell the king , that they had sent him what seem'd to them most meet to be determined , concerning those points which he had order'd them to debate upon . upon this foundation , ludovicus pius , having resolved , for the better restoring of the ecclesiastical discipline in france , to have four synods held at once in it ; prescribed as well what they should deliberate about , as at what time , and places they should meet . and charles the bald , having assembled the synod of soissons , proposed not only the subject about which they should consult ; but deliver'd them a draught of what he thought fit they should determine , and the synod only approved of it . 't is true there were several other matters transacted in that synod ; but they also were done at the command of the king , as well as with the consent of the bishops , who fat , and acted from the beginning in it . that the same must have been the method in germany ; the constant union , and intercourse , which it had with france , in these times , will not suffer us to doubt . when carloman assembled the synod at liptines , about the year ; he tells us the end of his doing it was , that they might advise him how the law of god , and the religion of the church , which had been suffer'd to fall into such decay in the days of his predecessors , might be restored . and the same was the design of the emperor arnulph , in convening the synod of trebur : who being sent to by the fathers , from their assembly , to know what directions he would please to give them ; return'd his commissioners , with those of the synod , to tell them , that they should consider what they thought was needful to be done , for the reformation of mens manners , for the security of the faith , and for the preservation of the unity of the church . as for the kingdom of spain , the councils of toledo , as they are the most eminent of that countrey , so do they sufficiently shew the same course to have obtained there , that we see did prevail in all other parts . in the sixth , we find the very constitutions themselves , in some measure , drawn up by the order of cinthilus their king , and only confirmed by the synod . in the rest , the subject on which their debates were to proceed , is set out to them , and they accordingly regulated their acts by it . thus it was in the fourth , assembled by sisinandus , and the most regarded of any synod in that country . and in the thirteenth , egica deliver'd his orders in writing to the bishops ; and the † bishops accordingly framed their constitutions , upon the model that had been laid before them by that prince . and the same method he again took with the sixteenth synod , assembled in the same city . he deliver'd a commission to the clergy , containing a summary of what they were to deliberate upon ; and agreeably thereunto they framed their canons and constitutions . i shall conclude these remarks with the words of receswinthus , to the eighth council of toledo ; when he deliver'd the like commission to the fathers , there assembled , that his predecessors were wont to do : these things , says he , i might have spoken to you , but i have chosen rather to comprehend them in writing ; earnestly requesting this of you , that what you shall find therein contain'd , you ●ould carefully attend to , and examine with the utmost diligence ; and whatsoever you shall think to be most pleasing to god , with relation to these matters , you would report it to us with your own mouths . but , dly . the civil magistrate , has not only a right to prescribe to his synods the matters , on which they are to deliberate ; but is moreover at liberty to determine both the manner , and the method , of their proceedings in them. now this , as far as concerns the peace and order , both of the members of every such assembly , and of those who meet together upon the occasion , or account , of it ; is not to be doubted . it being a part of the prince's right , as he is a civil governour , to keep all his subjects , clergy as well as laity , under a due restraint ; and not permit any tumults , or disorders , to be raised by them . but the prince has an authority , as to these matters , beyond this : viz. to prescribe not only the subject , upon which synods are to debate ; but withal , after what manner , and in what order , they shall proceed to debate upon it. and to this end it was , ( as well as for peace , and quietness sake , ) that when they were not present themselves , they commonly deputed some commissioners in their stead , to hold the fathers to the rules by which they were order'd to proceed : and not suffer them to meddle with any other matters , than those which belong'd to them ; or with those , in any other manner , than the prince had appointed them to do , it was for this reason , that constantine , who himself had moderated in the great council of nice , sent dionysius to preside in that of tyre ; that he might overlook their actions , and especially take care , that a due order was kept amongst them. but most evident is the account which we have of this part of the prince's prerogative , in the acts of the famous conference between the catholicks , and donatists , at carthage , anno . for the regulating of which , as honorius and theodofius , the emperors , appointed marcellinus to be their commissioner ; so the orders which he thereupon publish'd to be observed in it , abundantly shew , how far their authority , as to these matters , extended . for first , he declared to the bishops of both parts , that but seven of a side should speak : yet so , that seven more should be present , with whom those who spake might , at any time , go aside , and confer in private , about any thing that should arise to be debated at that meeting . next , he appointed the time , and place of the conference ; and forbad any consluence , either of the bishops and clergy , or of the laity of either part , to come to it . and , lastly , to the end that this conference might finally conclude these kind of disputes ; he oblig'd all the bishops of each side to promise , under their hands , that they would abide by whatever their delegates did . and that no exceptions might be taken at the report of the conference , he order'd them to chuse four notaries , out of their clergy , to transcribe what was spoken ; and that four bishops of a side should be nominated , to overlook those notaries ; and see what was transcribed , and digested , by them . and that whatsoever any one said , should immediatly be signed , first by marcellinus himself , and then by him who spake it : that so there might be no contradiction made to the sincerity of that account which should afterwards be given of it . these were the rules , which marcellinus , by the emperor's authority , prescribed for the proceeding in that conference ; and according to these measures , both parties were obliged to proceed in it . it would betray a desire to cavil , rather than assord any solid exception to this instance , to dispute , whether this meeting might properly be called a synod , seeing it is plain it was a meeting of ecclesiastical persons , upon an ecclesiastical affair : and there can no reason be given , why , if the emperor has so much authority over such an assembly , he should not have as great a power , over any other of the like kind . but yet that all possible exception may be removed , as to this particular ; i will further shew , from the instances of several undoubted , and even general synods , that he has the same right to direct their proceedings , as those of any other convention . when theodosius appointed candidian , to take care of the acts of the fathers , in the general council of ephesus : his commission was limited , and he was order'd only to see that the monks , and laity , raised no disturbances in the city ; that the bishops did not fall into any quarrels among themselves ; and that every one had his liberty to vote freely in it . but much larger was the commission which the same emperor gave to elpidius , in the next synod , which met at that place . he appointed him not only to look to the peace of the synod ; but if he should perceive any one go about to raise any tumults , or disorders , to the prejudice of our holy faith , he should commit him to safe custody , and send an account of it to the emperor . he further commanded him to take care , that the fathers proceeded in order , upon the matters that came before them : that he should be present when they judged of them , and use his utmost endeavours , to bring the holy synod to a speedy , and circumspect examination , of the business which they met about . this is a commission that comes fully up to our present purpose : and how exact elpidius , and his companion eulogius were , in holding the fathers to the rules deliver'd to them ; the acts of this synod , when remov'd to chalcedon , do abundantly shew . but i shall content my self , in so clear a point , to represent this in the practise of the first council of ephesus , before mention'd , and so conclude this consideration . theodosius having summon'd a general council to meet at ephesus , and ( as was before observ'd ) appointed candidian to be his commissioner at it ; the greatest part of the bishops who were order'd to come to it , accordingly arriv'd at ephesus , at the time appointed them by the emperor . but it happen'd that john , the patriarch of antioeh , being hinder'd fifteen days in coming to ephesus ; wrote to cyril , patriarch of alexandria , and president of the council , not to tarry any longer for him , but to proceed in his business without him . the synod thereupon summon nestorius to appear before them . this nestorius refuses ; and , in his excuse , pleads that the patriarch of antioch , with his metropolitans , was not yet arriv'd . the father 's not accepting this excuse , after several summons sent to him , proceed to examine his doctrine , and unanimously agree to his deposition . it was but a very little while after this , that john , the patriarch of antioch , arriv'd at ephesus : and being angry that the council had ended this matter without him , form'd another synod , consisting of about thirty metropolitans that came with him ; and depos'd cyril , president of the council , and memnon bishop of ephesus , for what they had done : in requital whereof cyril , and the council , suspend both john , and his synod , for proceeding by themselves ; in so un-canonical , and unjustifiable a manner . candidian , who in all this had favoured the patriarch of antioch , reports what had been done , on both sides , to theodosius : and theodosius immediately rescinds all that had pass'd , upon this account , that they had not proceeded according to the method he had prescribed to them ; and commands them not to proceed to any farther censures , until they had settled the doctrine of faith , and receiv'd some new directions from himself ; which he promis'd to send by another commissioner , whom he design'd to depute together with candidian , to look after them . the answer of the council to this order of the emperor is very remarkable , and clearly settles the princes right as to this particular . they pretend not that he had no power , thus to limit their proceedings ; or to annul their acts , upon this pretence , that they had not proceeded according to his directions . no , but they beg leave to inform him , that candidian had not made a fair report of their actions to him : and therefore intreat the emperor that he would order candidian , with five of the fathers , to come to him ; who should satisfie him that all things had been done canonically by the council . the emperor , hereupon , sends another commissioner to them : who having examined both parties , and discover'd the design of the patriarch of antioch ; gave leave to seven bishops , of each side , to go to theodosius , and inform him of their proceedings . this they did , and the emperor was satisfied that the council had proceeded regularly against nestorius : in testimony whereof , he approved of what they had done ; allow'd of their acts , and confirm'd them with his own edict . such authority has the christian prince to direct the acts of the most general councils ; and to require an observance of their directions . i proceed , [ dly ] to shew , that for the better exercise of this authority , he has also a right , if he pleases , to sit in them , and to preside over them . so constantine , the first christian emperor , did , in the first general council of nice : he not only sate with the fathers , but moderated in their disputes ; and at last concurr'd with them in their desinition . and though , after his example in the synod of tyre , the following emperors chose rather to preside by their commissioners , than to come themselves in person , and sit among them : yet oftentimes , we know they did vouchsafe their presence to them ; and it was their civil affairs that prevented them , when they did not . thus marcian not only removed the fourth general council to chalcedon , on purpose that he might have it nearer to him ; but was himself present in the sixth action of it , both to confirm what the fathers had determined , and to settle by their judgment the faith of the church to after ages . and when , by order of the council , their determination was read to him , he not only approved of it , but added this farther sanction to it ; that if any private person , military officer , or clergy-man , should , under pretence of any farther dispute concerning those matters , cause any disturbance ; if he were only a private laick , he should be banish'd ; if a military officer , or clergy man , he should be degraded from his employ ; and be liable to such farther punishments , as in such case should be thought requisite . and having done this , he deliver'd to the fathers three ecclesiastical constitutions , ready drawn up , to be approved of by them ; and they all gave their unanimous assent to them . but more frequent was the custom of those kings , who govern'd in those states which arose out of the dissolution of the roman empire , to sit , and act , with their synods . if we look to the kingdom of spain , i have already observed , how great a veneration that country has always paid to the third council of toledo . there were present at it five metropolitans , and seventy-eight bishops subscribed to it . now at this meeting reccaredus was not only himself present , but caused his subjects , who were before arians , to subscribe to the catholick faith in it . and having done this , he went on with the fathers , to settle the discipline of the church ; and acted rather like a patriarch , than a prince , among them . for to instance only in a canon or two of that council : in the second they tell us , that the bishops order'd so and so , by the advice of their most glorious king reccaredus : in the eighth ; by his command and consent . in the ninth ; by his assent . and lastly , when all was done , he thus subscribed the acts of the council , together with the bishops : i flavius reccaredus , king ; confirming this deliberation which i have defined , with the holy synod , have subscribed to it . it is impossible to imagine any thing more full to this purpose , than what these acts have afforded us . as for the german emperors , they also sate in like manner with their bishops . in the famous synod of frankford , ( one of the most eminent that was ever held , after the first antient , and general councils ; ) we read that it was assembled , praecipiente , & praesidente carolo rege . and whereas there were three great points debated in it , namely , first , whether they should confirm the sentence of condemnation , which had before been pass'd upon elipandus bishop of toledo ; who held , that our saviour christ was the son of god only by adoption , and according to the flesh ; not as if he were of the same nature with god : secondly , what they should resolve concerning the second council of nice , as to the business of image-worship : and , thirdly , how to end some secular affairs : it may be observed , that in the two first of these , which related to matters of doctrine , we find nothing of the emperor's defining with the bishops ; as neither of the bishops concurring with him , in the third : but in all the other canons , which concern the discipline of the church , the king , and the synod , join together ; and the phrase runs in these terms , statutum est , definitum est , à domino rege , & à sanctâ synodo . i might to this add many other instances of the like nature , but i shall take notice only of one ; and that of a synod held under another emperor , lest any one should think that charles the great , had taken more upon him , than did of right belong to him : and it shall be of the synod of trebur , called by arnulf the emperor about the year . at the head of the subscriptions made to which there is this remarkable passage : in this holy council , the most glorious king arnulf , our pious prince presiding , and assisting ; sate the holy fathers which came together , with the venerable pastors of the church : and what they establish'd , agreeably to the catholick faith , they , by a like profession , confirm'd , and with one accord subscribed to . in short , that the princes of whom i have now been speaking did no more , than all the other emperors have been confest to have a right to do , is manifest from the constitution made to this purpose , in a full synod , an. . where after a long debate of the prince , with his bishops and priests , how the law of god , and the discipline of the church , might best be restored ; it was , in the very first place resolved , that a synod should be held every year ; and that the emperor being present , the decrees of the canons , and the rights of the church should be renew'd . and the christian religion be amended . and how far the design of this canon was to extend , may at large be seen in the injunction made thereupon by the emperour ; which we find in the collection of the same capitularies , according to the edition of benedictus levita , pag. . num. ii . ibid. and now , if from germany we pass into france , we shall there also meet with the like practice . it was the constant method of charles the great , in that kingdom , as well as in the empire ; to preside over his clergy . thus we see he did in most of those synods , whose acts remain to us : and in an antient ms. of st. germains , wherein the canons of the bishop of langres are transcribed , the first chapter carries this inscription ; out of the council of bishops , where charles the emperor presided . and charles the bald not only sate in the second council of soissons , anno : but proposed to the fathers what he desired they should debate about ; and oftentimes prescribed to their very resolutions also . from what has been said , i may now , i conceive , take it for granted , that the prince has a right either to preside over his synods in person ; or ( if he rather thinks fit , ) to appoint his commissioner to do it in his stead . the only difficulty will be to determine how far he may be accounted a part of the synod ; and be allow'd not only to preside over it , but also to sit , and vote in it . and , st . as i have observed , that one great end of his sitting there is , to keep the publick peace , and to see that all things be regularly , and quietly , transacted , by the bishops and clergy in them ; so it must also be allow'd , that he has all that power over them , that is necessary for the obtaining of this end. he may therefore , without controversie , commend the modest and ingenuous ; reprove the factious ; may keep all to their proper business ; and not suffer them to wander into other matters , or pursue any other method , than what he has prescribed to them. and , if any shall become so disorderly as to need it , he may , as the antient emperors did , not only commit such turbulent , seditious persons , to safe custody , and punish them according to the nature of their offence ; but , if need be , may annul the acts that were so tumultuously and irregularly done by them. dly . in the debates of every such synod , of whatever kind they be , the prince may freely join with the synod ; and offer any objections , or propose any difficulties , he shall think fit ; in order to his being better convinced of the truth of what is to be believed ; or of the expediency of what is determined by it . for princes are men of reason and capacity , as well as bishops and priests ; and , when a matter is debated , may be as capable of making a sound judgment , as any one that is there assembled . it has , i know , been speciously objected against this , that princes have commonly other things to do than to study divinity ; to read commentators , fathers , councils , and the like books ; which are the proper subjects of the clergies meditations . this indeed is true , nor shall i go about to deny it : but are they sure it is necessary that the prince should have study'd all these books , to be able to make a sound judgment of what may be alleged out of them ? may not a point be proposed , and scripture be quoted , and antiquity alleged ; and learned men canvas these matters so long , till a stander by , who is endued with a good natural judgment , shall be able very evidently to discern , on which side the truth and authority lies ? if not , i am sure the generality of christians will be left under very hard circumstances ; who must , at last , believe as the church believes ; and pin their faith upon the authority of their clergy ; and neither be alow'd to judge of the grounds of it , nor , if once in an error , be capable of ever being convinced of it . but if therefore it must be confess'd , that an argument may be managed by learned men , in such wise , as to convince those that are not learned , on which side the truth lies ; then certainly the prince may also be capable of discerning whether his synod has reason for their definitions , or not ; tho' he has not perhaps himself read so much divinity , as to be able to enter into the learned part of the debate with the fathers of it . whether therefore it be a matter of faith , or a matter of discipline ; i see no reason why the prince , if he think fit , may not only be present when the synod debates about it ; but may not also enter into the merits of the cause with them : and propose his doubts , and manage his arguments , and do whatsoever is requisite to his full information , and satisfaction concerning it . and having done this , i add dly . that as charles the emperor did in the great synod of frankford , so may every other christian prince , if he please , do still ; i mean , may vote with them in such things as concern the discipline of the church : because in these both the rights of the people , and the power of the prince , are , for the most part , very nearly concerned . whether the prince may judicially concur with the clergy , in their decisions in matters of faith , i do not think it worth the while to dispute . thus much i dare confidently affirm , that if he may not judge with them ; he not only may , but must , judge after them . for as much as he is not only concern'd in common , with his subjects , to believe aright ; but , as a christian prince , ought to assert the right faith too : and do what in him lies , to promote the belief , and profession of it in his dominions . for , give me leave thus far to anticipate , what i shall presently have occasion more particularly to consider : when the synod has settled the doctrine of faith , and framed , as they conceive , a just and orthodox confession of it ; is it the duty of the prince to receive and give countenance to their definition , or is it not ? to say that it is not , is to sink the credit of such meetings very low indeed , and to make their assembling of very little consequence ; if , when they have done all they can to fix the doctrine of the church , neither the prince has any obligation to support their definition , nor the people to receive it . but if , when the synod has done , and their sentence is pass'd , and perhaps their anathema's too have been thunder'd out against all that shall presume to call their decisions in question : the prince is obliged to add his sanction to their definition : then , i hope , they will think it to be their duty , in order to his confirming their decrees with a good conscience , to convince him of the truth of them ; and not expect that he should not only believe himself , but should oblige others to believe , what neither he , nor they , see any reason to receive . for whatever , in some mens opinion , a general council may be ; yet i hope no one will pretend that we must believe every particular convocation , to be infallible , in its definitions . let this then be the result of our second enquiry ; viz. * that the christian prince has a right to prescribe to his synods the work they are to go upon ; and to restrain them from meddling with such things as do not belong to them. * that he may direct , not only the subject , but the order , and method , of their debates . * that he may , if he please , sit , and deliberate , with his clergy in them : and interpose his judgment , not only in matters of discipline , but in matters of faith too . * that it is not only his right , but his duty to examine what they have concluded upon : and either to confirm , or rescind their decisions , according as he shall remain satisfied , or not ; of the truth , the justice , and the expediency of them. and this brings me to the third , and last question proposed to be consider'd , viz. [ dly . ] what the authority of the prince is , with relation to these conventions , after they have ended what was to be done by them. now that may be consider'd in a double respect : st . with reference to their persons . and , dly . to their acts. st . with reference to their persons . i have before shewn , that no synod can regularly be assembled , without the consent of the civil magistrate . i now add ; that neither , being assembled , can they dissolve themselves , and depart from any such council , till licensed by him so to do . this is a right that has ever been acknowledged by the clergy , to belong to the christian prince ; and therefore i shall need to insist the less upon the proof of it . when the fathers , who were call'd by constantius to ariminum , had done the business for which they were convened ; and sent their delegates to attend the emperor , with an account of their proceedings ; they finally besought him that he would give them leave to return to their churches ; lest they should seem , by their longer stay , to have been forsaken by their bishops . 't is true we are told , by sozomen , that the emperor , being displeased at their firm adherence to the catholick faith , refused to give any answer to them : whereupon , growing weary of staying any longer , at a place where they had nothing to do , they return'd , of their own accord , to their several churches . but then he tells us withal , that this the emperor resented as a very great affront which they put upon him ; and when he had an opportunity , he express'd his resentments accordingly against them. but theodosius and valentinian took more care of the general council assembled by them at ephesus . for having appointed candidian to look after it ; one part of that instruction which they gave to him was this , that he should by all means take care that none of the bishops left the city , till all things were finish'd for which they came together : and particularly , till they had , with all exactness , settled the catholick faith , in opposition to the heretical doctrine of nestorius ; upon whose account that synod was assembled . such was the right which the emperors claim'd over their bishops in this particular : and for the exercise of it , we shall need look no farther than to the next general council . where when marcian the emperor came into the synod , and approv'd what the fathers had done ; after their other acclamations , they all unanimously requested , we beseech thee dismiss , or dissolve us . to this the emperor return'd , that they should tarry yet three or four days ; and move whatever they would , and they should receive all due encouragement from him . and then concluded the session with these words , see that none of you depart from the holy synod , before all things be fully completed . it is therefore the duty of all synods , as they are conven'd by the princes authority , so to tarry till they have the same authority for their dissolution . as for the last particular , wherein we are to consider the power of the christian magistrate , viz. dly . with relation to the acts of their synods : it is , i conceive , allow'd on all hands , that their definitions are no farther obligatory , than as they are ratified , and confirm'd by the civil authority . for though the faith of christ neither depends upon the authority of man , nor is subject to the power either of synods , or princes , as to what concerns the truth of it : yet what that faith is which shall be allow'd to be profess'd , in every community , by the laws of it ; and receive not only protection , but encouragement , from the civil power , must be left to the prince to determine : and the definitions of synods in favour of it , will signifie very little , till what they have determin'd to be the right faith , be also allow'd by the civil magistrate , to be publickly profess'd and taught ; and be receiv'd into his favour , and under his patronage , as such . but much more reasonable as well as necessary , is the confirmation of the prince , to give authority to those canons which regard the discipline , and politie , of the church . because in these the interest of the state is concern'd : and an authority usurp'd ; and mens civil interests either directly , or by consequence , affected : and to all which as the consent of the prince is requir'd , so the nature and ends of government will not permit , that any thing of this kind should be done , within the state , without his consent first obtain'd for the doing of it . hence it is that , from the beginning , christian princes have not only taken upon them to confirm the acts of their synods , if they have thought fit ; but have been petition'd to by their synods , that they would do so . thus constantine the great was desired , by the first general council , to ratifie , by his authority , what the fathers had determin'd . ‖ the same was demanded of theodosius , by the second general council of constantinople . * in the third general council of ephesus , the fathers in like manner address'd to the younger theodosius and valentinian , for the ratification of what had been done by them : and so did those of the council of chalcedon , to marcian the emperor , for the same purpose . and all these emperors answer'd their desires ; and confirm'd their acts accordingly . it were an easie matter to shew , that the same method still continued in all other countries , and kingdoms after ; so that no princes ever suffer'd any canons to be put in execution , till they had first been view'd , and approv'd of by them , as no way prejudicial to their royal power and dignity . but because this is a point , that is not , i conceive , at all deny'd among us ; and that i look upon the power of the christian prince to extend much farther , than to the bare confirmation of what the synod has determined ; i will proceed more particularly to shew , what his authority in this respect , is ; and how the final determinations of such assemblies , fall at last under the power of the prince's judgment . and st ; as it would be absurd to suppose that he should , so it is certain that the prince is not obliged , at all adventures , to confirm whatsoever the clergy shall think ●it to determine . this were not only to give an immoderate power to the one , but unreasonably to confine and limit the other . it were in truth to hood-wink the prince , and not allow him the common privilege of a rational creature ; to know and examine his actions , and proceed with reason and discretion in them. and it were as well plainly to say that synods have a supreme authority ; and are no way accountable to any civil power in what they do : as to pretend that the prince shall be obliged , at all adventures , to ratifie , and the people ( by consequence ) to submit to , whatsoever it shall please them to determine . it were indeed to be wish'd , that such venerable assemblies might always be composed of men so wise , and prudent ; and that they would proceed in all things so calmly and impartially ; that the prince might evermore find it to be both just , and honourable , for him , to take upon him the protection and guardian-ship of their definitions . but because such is the condition of humane nature , that passion and prejudice , ignorance and interest , noise and clamour , oftentimes break in , and confound the proceedings of these , as well as of all other assemblies ; and many things are debated hastily , carried on with faction , and concluded unreasonably ; 't is very fit and just , that the prince should give direction to have their actions carefully review'd , and consider'd , before he assents to them : that so he may not be imposed upon , nor do either the church , or himself a prejudice , by a blind complyance with the dictates of his clergy . and for the same reason that he ought to have a power of examining the councils acts ; it follows , dly . that he must also be allow'd to have a power of annulling , and rejecting what they have done , if it shall appear to be hurtful , or unjust ; as well as a power to ratifie and confirm it ; if they shall be found to have proceeded canonically , and to have acted for the good , and benefit , of the church . it being in vain to allow the prince a liberty of examination , if there be not left him a liberty of choice and resolution : and an authority indifferently either to confirm , or reject their definitions ; according to the judgment which he shall finally pass upon them. but because , where many things are done , and several constitutions made ; it is possible a different judgment may finally remain in the mind of the prince concerning them ; so that he may approve of some part of what the synod has determined , and dislike the rest : it will from hence farther follow , dly . that he ought to have a power not only to confirm , or reject , the whole of what the synod has done ; but to confirm that part of their acts which he is perswaded will be for the churches benefit ; and to annul that , which he thinks would be otherwise . whether it will be thought to be as reasonable , thly , that the prince should be allow'd a farther power to alter , or improve , what the synod has defined ; to add to , or to take from it ; so as to render it , in his opinion , more useful to the end for which it was design'd , i cannot tell . but sure i am that this princes have done ; and so , i think , they have authority to do . for since the legis-lative power is lodged in their hands , so that they may make what laws , or constitutions , they think fit , for the church , as well as for the state : since a synod , in matters relating to discipline , is but a kind of council to them , in ecclesiastical affairs ; whose advice having taken , they may still act as they think fit : seeing , lastly , a canon , drawn up by a synod , is but as it were matter prepared for the royal stamp ; the last forming of which , as well enforcing whereof , must be left to the prince's judgment : i cannot see why the supreme magistrate , who confessedly has a power to confirm , or reject , their decrees , may not also make such other use of them as he pleases ; and correct , improve , or otherwise alter their resolutions , according to his own liking , before he gives authority to them . 't is true , in this case , the prince will not so much confirm what the synod has done , as take occasion from that which the synod has done , to make another ecclesiastical law of his own. but still this power the supreme civil magistrate has : and if this be all the use he shall think fit to make of his synod , viz. to suggest to him fit matter for the making of some seasonable and good laws ; i do not see wherein he can be accounted to abuse his authority : and sure i am , 't is no small service done the church , to suggest such thoughts to the prince , as otherwise perhaps might never have entred into his mind . and as the prince has this authority over the canonical resolutions of his synods , so has he no less , over their judicial determinations : which , thly . he may either confirm , suspend , or totally annul ; as he thinks they have proceeded either fairly , and impartially , and with good judgment ; or else hastily , and partially , and with prejudice in them . for the prince , as he is the supreme fountain of justice in the state , so does it appertain to him to rectify the undue proceedings of inferiour judges : and to his conscience there will always lie an appeal , let the synod determine how it will. these are the rights of christian princes , with respect to the actions of synods , after they have done their business ; and that these have all been confirm'd and allow'd of to them by such assemblies , i shall now proceed , from a brief history of this matter , to shew . when nestorius had infected the church with his heresie , he was by two of the greatest patriarchs of the world , celestine bishop of rome , and cyril bishop of alexandria , in their several provincial synods , justly condemn'd ; unless he should repent of his error within ten days . being inform'd of these sentences , thus pass'd against him , he applied himself to theodosius the emperor ; complain'd of their proceedings , and desired that a general council might be call'd , to judge of this matter . theodosius , who at the same time was moved by others to the same purpose ; resolves upon a general council to meet at ephesus ; and in the mean time , suspends the decrees of the two provincial synods , and orders that nothing should be innovated till that council should meet . and when the council was met , the fathers were so far from complaining of this suspension , as a hard thing ; that they appointed the emperor's order to be inserted into their acts , and thereby gave a kind of conciliary authority to it . or if this be not yet plain enough , let it farther be observed , that the council hereupon treated nestorius , both in words and actions , as a catholick bishop ; and invited him to come , and sit among them as such . which evidently shews , that the council made no doubt , but that the emperor had sufficient authority to suspend those synods decrees ; and that by his suspension , their sentence had not yet taken place against him . and the same was done in the case of eutyches , the next great heretick that infested the church . who being condemn'd by flavian , patriarch of constantinople , and his council ; obtain'd of theodosius another general council to meet at ephesus , under the presidence of dioscorus patriarch of alexandria . in this council , by the power and fury of dioscorus , all was tumultuously transacted ; and flavian was condemn'd , as having deposed eutyches contrary to the canons . against this sentence , flavian appeals ; and pope leo being applied to , calls a synod at rome , and therein rejects the acts of the ephesine council ; in which all things had been carried in a very disorderly , and ●ncanonical manner . for the better repealing of which , leo applies to theodosius for help : he intreats him , that he would by his authority res●ind all that had been done , either by flavian against eutyches , or by dioscorus against flavian ; or at least would suspend it , till a general and free council should determine the matter . 't is true , this theodosius would not consent to ; tho' leo had interested no less persons than valentinian , and his empress , in the cause with him . but yet leo's request shews that he thought the emperor had power to res●ind the acts of both those councils : and his refusal convinces us , that he himself thought he was no way concluded by what leo , and his synod , had resolved : in opposition to the council of ephesus . however , what theodosius refused , marcian assented to . he caused a general council to be held at calcedon ; and when he found flavian to be justified by it , he revoked both the definition of the former synod , and the constitution of theodosius against him . such an authority were the emperors wont to exercise over the acts of the most general councils , in confirming , suspending , or annulling their sentences ! and so undoubtedly did the bishops in those times believe that they ought of right to be allow'd such an authority . nor has the prince any less power to judge of their constitutions , than to enquire into their sentences ; and either to confirm , or reject them , as he approves , or not , of their decisions . when reccaredus confirm'd the canons of the third national council of toledo ; he gave this reason why he did it , that they were composed with great maturity of sense and understanding ; that they were agreeable to his judgment , and conformable to the discipline of the church . it was the same perswasion that moved ervigius to confirm the acts of the thirteenth synod , held in the same city . he specially recited , and approved of their decrees ; and by his royal authority form'd their canons , into an ecclesiastical law , for all his people to observe . the same did egica , in the seventeenth council : he recited the several heads of what the fathers had done ; and upon a mature consideration , a full knowledge , and approbation of their acts , he gave force to them . the truth is , it seems to have been the usual method of the princes about this time ; not so much to confirm the very acts of their synods , as to form the substance of their definitions into a law ; and to take occasion from their decrees , to determine such things as concern'd the church . thus the spanish kings , now mention'd , did : and so clotharius the third , did , with respect to the fifth council of paris , an. . he publish'd his edict in the close of it ; and therein expresly establish'd what the fathers , in the synod , had agreed to . it was after the same manner , that a great part of the capitulars of the french kings were composed . they took the substance of what their synods had agreed to ; and having examined , and form'd it , according to their own liking , they publish'd it for a law to their subjects . insomuch that sometimes they have even referr'd to the canons of their synods , for the more clear understanding of what the law had only briefly , and , in general , deliver'd . such , in particular , was the use which both carloman , and charles the emperor , made of his synods . they call'd them , as their council , to advise them in ecclesiastical matters ; and their synods look'd upon themselves no otherwise . they submitted their decrees to their examination ; and pretended not to expect that they should confirm them , any farther than they appear'd to them to deserve it . thus the fathers , in the third council of tours , declare , that they met to assist the emperor by their remarks of what they judged to need some amendment . and having drawn up their opinions in fifty one canons , they thus finally conclude all : these things we have thus debated in our convention : but how it will please our most pious prince hereafter to act , with relation there unto ; we , his faithful servants , are ready , with a willing mind to submit to his pleasure . and the same was the deference which the council of arles , which met the same year , paid to his authority . these things , say the fathers , which we found to need amendment , we have in a few words , after the shortest manner , observed , and decreed to present to our lord the emperor : beseeching his clemency , that if any thing be found wanting , it may be supplied by his prudence ; if any thing be designed otherwise than in reason it ought to have been , by his judgment it may be amended ; if any thing be well and rationally decreed , it may thro' his help , by the blessing of god , be brought to perfection . such a submission did these synods pay to their emperor : and this makes good what eginhart , a contemporary author , of the life of charles the great has observed , as to this matter : that councils , by his command , were held throughout all france , for correcting the state of the church ; and the constitutions which were made in each of them , were all together compared , and examined by him , in the convention of aix la chappelle , anno . i might farther confirm this , from the instances of many other synods , which have in like manner , own'd the same authority : but i shall conclude all with the words of that council , which gave pattern to all the rest of that country ; i mean the first council of orleans , under king clouis , anno : whose epistle to the king runs in these terms : to their lord , the son of the catholick church ; the most glorious king clouis , all the priests whom you have commanded to come to the council . for as much as so great a care of our glorious faith stirs you up , to the honour of the catholick religion , that with the affection of a priestly mind , you have commanded your priests to be gathered together into one place , to treat of such things as are necessary ; we have , according to the purpose of your will , and the heads which you gave to us , answer'd in our definition , as to us seem'd good : so that if those things which we have established , are also approved of , as right , by your judgment ; the consent of so great a king , and lord , may confirm the sentence of the priests , to be observed with the greater authority . and thus have i done with the first thing which i proposed to consider . i have shewn what authority the christian prince has always been accounted to have over ecclesiastical synods ; with respect to the assembling of them ; to their proceedings whilst they are sitting ; and to the confirming , or annulling , their decrees afterwards . i shall make only an observation or two upon the whole , with respect to our present purpose ; and so conclude this chapter . and , st . i must take notice , that whatever privileges i have here shewn to belong to the christian magistrate ; they belong to him as such : they are not derived from any positive laws and constitutions ; but result from that power which every such prince has originally in himself ; and are to be look'd upon as part of those rights , which naturally belong to sovereign authority . hence we find , that all princes , in all wountries , how different soever they have been in other respects , have yet evermore claim'd an equal authority in these matters . and the little kings of suevia , and burgundy , accounted themselves to have as good a title to them , as the roman emperors , in their most flourishing estate , had . which being so , it will follow dly : that every sovereign prince , has a right to exercise this authority , within his dominions : and that to prove this right , it is sufficient to shew , that he is a sovereign prince ; and therefore ought not to be deny'd any of those prerogatives , which belong to such a prince ; among which this authority is one. 't is true , such princes may , by their own acts , limit themselves , as they think fitting . and these limitations may give such assemblies a privilege in one country , beyond what they have in another . but then these limitations must be plainly proved to have been made in their favour : and till they are so , the prince must be accounted to have a right to that power , which , as a prince , belongs him ; and is not yet proved to have been given away by him. and therefore dly : whereas it is now to be enquired , what the authority of our kings is , over our convocations ; we have thus far proceded towards the discovery of it , that we have shewn what power they had originally over them , and , as christian princes , ought still to enjoy . and those who will restrain them with narrower bounds , must first shew , how they came to lose that power , which they would take from them ; and which , till this shall be cleared , they must be presumed still to have a right to . chap. iii. of the authority which our own kings have over their convocations ; with respect both to their meeting , and acting first ; and to the confirming , or annulling of their acts after . we have now seen what authority all other christian princes have claim'd and exercised over their clergy , from the first conversion of the empire to christianity ; till the prevalence of the papal power , began to deprive them of that supremacy , which , of right , belong'd to them. let us go on , upon this foundation , to enquire . ii. whether our own kings , have not as great an authority over their convocations ; as any other princes have ever pretended to , over their councils ? that this , of right , they ought to have , i have before observed : the only question is , whether our own particular constitution has interposed , to deprive them of that authority , which , we have already shewn , did originally belong to them. and here i might justly leave it to those who advance such pretences , to produce their proofs , and shew us upon what grounds they do it : and account the right of our kings to this authority , to have been sufficiently established , in that common claim , which i have already proved all christian princes , as such , have ever made to the exercise of of it . but that nothing may be wanting to the clearing of this matter , beyond all reasonable exception ; i shall , to the general argument i have before made use of , add those particular confirmations , which our own laws and customs afford us , of this truth : and shew , that , by our own constitution , the king of england has all that power , at this day , over our convocation ; that ever any christian prince had , over his synods . ( st . ) then , if we consider his authority , as to the first thing before-mention'd , viz. of calling together of the clergy , in convocation . we are told by one of the most eminent professors of our laws , that it was , among other points , resolved by the two chief justices , and other judges , at a committee of lords in parliament ; trin. . jac. . that a convocation cannot assemble , at their onvocation , without the assent of the king. and one would think such persons should not only be very well qualified to know what our law is ; but should also be very careful , ( especially at such a time , and in such a place , ) not to deliver any thing for law , which they were not very well assured was so . but because some have excepted against the authority of this report ; as a piece that was published after the death of the author , and in suspected times ; ( tho' i cannot see what interest any one should have , to falsifie his relation in the instance before us ; ) we will take his opinion from a book which we are sure is authentick , and lies open to no exceptions . . instit. pag. . where treating expresly about the court of convocation , he affirms , that the clergy were never assembled , or call'd together , at a convocation , but by the king 's writ . and in which , tho' i am sensible he has spoken a little too generally , as to matter of fact ; yet in point of law , ( and in which only i make use of his authority , ) i cannot but look upon him to have been absolutely in the right : it being certain that the clergy not only now cannot , but never could be , lawfully , call'd together in convocation , but by the king 's ●rit , or with his consent . and in assirming this i say no more , than what was the joint opinion of the whole representative body of the nation ; as well of the clergy in their convocation , as of the rest of the realm , in parliament ; hen. . and from whence , if from any authority , we may certainly the best take our measure to judge , whether a thing does , of right , belong to the king , and is a part of his royal prerogative , or no. for , st . as for the clergy ; we are told in the preamble to the act of the hen. . chap. . that the clergy of this realm of england , had acknowleged , that the convocation of the same clergy is , always hath been , and ought to be , assembled , only by the king 's writ . and , dly . as for the laity , the parliament in the same act not only concurs in the same opinion with them , in the preamble before-mention'd ; that this their acknowledgment was according to the truth : but in the body of the act it self , have provided thereupon , that from thenceforth they never should meet in convocation , without the king's leave , to empower them so to do : be it enacted ( say they ) by the authority of this present parliament , according to the said submission , and petition of the said clergy ; that they , ne any of them , from henceforth , shall presume to attempt , &c. nor shall enact , &c — in their convocations , in time coming ; which always shall be assembled by authority of the king 's writ . and from all which it is evident , that in the opinion both of that parliament , and of that convocation ; the king not only ought to have , and by law , now has , the sole authority of calling the clergy together in convocation ; but that this is such a power as did always of right belong to him ; and that no convocation ever could be lawfully assembled , without his permission , or against his . hence it is that not only our present convocations are all summoned by the king 's writ , directed to the archbishop of each province , for that purpose ; but if we look back to the times preceeding this statute , we shall find the same to have been the antient manner of summoning of them. and tho' , in a matter of this nature , it is not to be expected we should be able to produce the very copies of the writs , by which our convocations were called , from the beginning ; yet i shall hereafter plainly prove , that , from the beginning , they did meet by the king's command : and we have the very writs of summons as far back as the edw. ; that is to say , for above years , before this acknowledgment of the clergy , and act of parliament , were made . such right have our kings to call their convocations : nor is their authority any less , in all those circumstances which i have shewed , were wont to accompany their calling them. if we consider the time , and place of their meeting , they are expresly limited in the writ , by which they are summon'd . and tho' custom has , of late , so far prevail'd , that the convocation has generally met at the same time that the parliament has done ; and at st. paul's church , or chapter house in london ; yet have not our kings ever been so far confined in either of these particulars , as not to have it still in their power , to call the convocation at any other time , or to any other place , which they shall think sit . in that antient summons i before mention'd ; ( perhaps the most antient of any we have now remaining ; ) of the th . of edw. ii. the convocation was call'd to meet febr. . but the parliament sate october . foregoing . and in the writs of these latter times , though the convocation be call'd , and its session confin'd to that of the parliament ; yet still , if the king pleases , he may continue the sitting of the one , after the other is prorogued , or even dissolv'd : and for the place , it is sometimes determin'd to be st. paul's , london ; but for the most part is left , with a greater latitude , to be held at any other place , which the archbishop shall judge to be more convenient for it . and the same is the case as to the persons , who are to come to the convocation ; and the choice of whom as it is still determin'd by the king 's writ , so must it be allow'd to have originally depended upon it . for having first declared , in general , the reason , wherefore he had resolv'd to call his clergy together ; he next goes on to specifie , in particular , whom he required the archbishop to summon to the convocation : that he should order first the bishops of his province , with the deans , and archdeacons , to come in * person ; and , secondly , the chapters , and archdeaconries , to send their several proxies , to represent them ; the chapters , one of their body ; and every archdeaconry two , to be chosen by them for that purpose . i shall not need to enquire , how this came to be the settled number that was to make up our provincial synods , or convocations . whether this manner of choice was deriv'd from the antient manner of holding convocations , into the parliamentary writs ; or from the parliamentary writs of king edward i. into the summons of convocations , which from thenceforth usually met together with the parliament . howsoever this were , thus much is evident ; that since the power of assembling the clergy in such convocations is seated originally in the king ; so that they have no authority to come together . but what he gives them . it must follow , that neither can any other persons have a just right to come to these assemblies . than such only as are commissioned by him ; or are chosen by such rules as he has preserib'd , for the choise of those whom he allows to be sent to them . it remains then , that not only the caling of our convocations , but the determination of the time , and place of their sitting ; of the persons who are themselves to come to them , and of the manner of choosing representatives for those who are not ; all depend upon the authority of the prince , and were originally deriv'd from thence . and so , lastly , does their very sitting too . for however custom , ( which in time becomes a kind of law ) has in this , as well as in some of the foregoing circumstances , so far prevail'd , that when soever a parliament is held , a convocation is call'd together with it ; yet is this rather a matter of form , than any effectual summons : and the king still keeps his antient power , to all intents and purposes , in his own hands ; and suffers them not either to sit , or act , but when , and as often , as he thinks fit so to do . nor is this to be look'd upon as any encroachment upon the liberties of the clergy , but as the assertion of a power , which always did ; and , of right , ought to belong to the prince . for though it has now , for some ages , been the custom to convene the clergy , as often as the parliament meets ; yet , as it is manifest that when this custom first began , they met not so much as an ecclesiastical synod , as a part of the parliament of the realm : so all the use that was generally made of them , was to concur with the other estates in granting of money to the king ; which having done , they were commonly dismiss'd , without entring upon any other business . the convocation then , tho' it consisted of ecclesiastical persons , was yet assembled for a civil end , and seems rather to have been a state convention , than a church synod . and however the king usually added a conciliary summons , to his parliamentary writ , and thereby not only assembled the proctors of the clergy , under another character ; but with them many others of the regular clergy , who had no place in the parliament writ : yet still the design was , in both , the same ; viz. that they might thereby more effectually confirm what had , in parliament , been granted to the king ; and the monks and friers , become engaged , by their own consent , not to oppose the levying of it . now this being the true ground of the convocation's being call'd together with the parliament ; custom , and , if you will , the constitution of our government founded thereupon ; does indeed give them a right to be summon'd , when the parliament is ; and accordingly they are still summon'd together with it : but as they have no custom to warrant them to deliberate , or enter upon business , unless the king pleases to allow them so to do ; so neither have they any right in that particular ; but the king is still as much at liberty , in that respect , as if there had never been any such custom established for the calling of them . in short ; were it still the method , as formerly it was , for the clergy to assess themselves ; but much more , were the case so now , as antiently it seems to have been , that they were a part of the great council of the nation , and whose consent was requisite to the passing of parliamentary acts ; it would then be very evident wherefore they were called , and what they had to do . but this being altered , and yet the antient summons still continued ; it makes some men think it an odd thing , that the convocation should be called to no purpose : not considering , that but for those ends , which are now ceased , they never had been wont either to be summon'd to parliament , or at the same time with it ; and that those being determined , they have a right to nothing but a summons , and it were no great matter , whether they had a right to that , or no. and this may suffice to shew what authority our king has , by the particular laws of our own constitution , to assemble the convocation : and that without his writ , they neither now can , nor ever could , regularly , come together , by any other way . i proceed ( dly ) to enquire , what power he has to direct their debates , when they are assembled ? and here we are again told by the same person , whose authority i before alleged ; that the second point agreed upon by the chief justices , and judges , at the committee of the lords , was ; that the convocation , after their assembly , cannot confer , to constitute any canons , without license de l'roy . nor is this any more than what the statute of the hen. . has directly establish'd : when having recited the promise which the clergy had , in their petition , made to the king ; that they would never , from thenceforth , presume to attempt , allege , claim , or put in ure ; enact , promulge , or execute , any new canon , constitution , ordinance provinc●●● , or other ; or by whatsoever name they shall be called , in convocation ; unless the king 's most royal assent , and licence , may by them be had , to make , promulge , and execute the same , and that his majesty do give his most royal assent and authority in that behalf : they thereupon enact , that ne they , nor any of them , frow henceforth , shall presume , to attempt , alledge , claim , or put in ure , any constitutions , or orders provincial , or synodal ; or any other canons : nor shall enact , promulge , or execute , any such canons , constitutions , or ordinances provincial , by whatsoever name , or names , they may be called , in their convocation in time coming ; — unless the same clergy may have the king 's most royal assent , and licence , to make , promulge , and execute , such conons , constitutions , and ordinances , provincial , or synodal . i have transcribed this paragraph of that act at large , to the end it may the more evidently appear , that the intention of it was , as well to restrain the clergy from making , as from promulging , and executing any canons ; without the assent , and licence of the king , first had , for their so doing . and which is indeed so plain , that had not the constant practice of all following convocations , and the opinions of the most learned in our laws , so expounded the sense of it , yet we could not have been easily mistaken in it . for besides that it was apparently the design of this act , to restr●ain the clergy from doing somewhat which they had been wont to do in their convocation : the statute it self interprets its own expressions ; and tells us that by presuming to attempt , &c. was meant as well presuming to make , as to promulge , and execute , any canons , or constitutions ; without the assent , and licence of the king , first had by them , so to do . whether the convocation may not , without the king 's writ , deliberate of such things , as may be fit to be done by them , for the service of the church , i shall not undertake to say . certain it is , that they may not so deliberate , as to come to any authoritative resolution upon any particular point ; or to frame any order , or constitution , of what kind soever it be , without the king 's leave ; which is in effect to say , that they may not debate , synodically , at all , without it . to deliberate of what might usefully be consider'd by them , and to petition the king thereupon , for leave so to do ; this , as it is no attempting to make a canon , &c. so does it not , i conceive , come within the design of that prohibition , which this act has laid upon them . and if the king allows the convocation to sit , i do not see wherein they would transgress , in framing such an address ; supposing that his commission had not before prevented all occasion for such an application . but then still this is but asking leave to act as a synod ; and it will , after all , remain in the king's breast what answer to make to such a request ; and whether he will grant them that leave which they desire , or no ? as therefore the convocation cannot meet but by the king 's writ ; so neither , being met , can they proceed to any canonical debates , or resolutions , without it . for by vertue of this act , they are forbid , not only to make , but to attempt ; that is , as i understand it , to do any thing that tends towards the making of any canons , without his warrant for their doing of it . and therefore , when the king sends out his writs for the convocation to meet ; he therein reserves to himself the privilege of naming the subject , which they are to deliberate , and resolve upon . for having mention'd , by way of form , in the beginning of the writ ; that for certain urgent affairs , of great concern both to the church and kingdom , he had commanded the arch-bishop to summon the clergy to come together , to such a certain place , and at such a certain time : he thus declares what they were to do , when they met ; ad tractand . &c. namely , that they were to treat , consent , and conclude upon the premises ; and such other matters , as should more clearly be declared to them , when they came together , in the kings behalf . the affairs then which the convocation is , in general , to debate about , and consent to , are the urgent affairs which concern the king , the church , and the realm . and these therefore are the constant introduction of every convocation writ . but what those affairs are , with reference to any , or all of these , which every particular convocation is call'd to consider ; that the king reserves to himself to declare to them ; and they are , when met , to expect his special direction , and not to ramble , after their own fancies , on any matter , within this general compass , without his warrant . it has indeed been questioned by a late author , whether this clause was antiently inserted into these writs ; and he would fain have it thought , that herein also the clergy have , of late , been encroach'd upon . but the forms of publick instruments are not so easily altered : if they were , we might rather have expected , that some other expressions , which relate to those privileges which the clergy formerly enjoy'd , but which have now , for a long time , been utterly laid aside ; should have been omitted , or changed ; than this , which is perfectly agreeable both to the laws of the realm , and to his majesty's royal prerogative , in these matters . but , indeed , this clause , if not as antient as the writ it self , is yet of very great antiquity : and we have at this day writs as far back as king henry the sixth's time , in which this clause is found in the very same words that it is continued in at this day . but were there any doubt to be made concerning the authority of this clause ; yet that method that has always been taken by the king to set the convocation on work , would be more than enough to shew how intirely their deliberations depend upon his direction . when the last convocation , under his present majesty , was met ; the king , by his principal secretary of state , sent his commission to them : in which having taken notice of the statute of henry the eighth before mentioned , and the obligation which was , thereby , laid upon them , not to proceed to any business , without his licence first had , so to do ; he does therefore , in order to their proceeding with safety to themselves , and pursuant to the true purpose , and intent of that law ; particularly declare upon what points he allow'd them to consult , and under what conditions he gave them authority so to do . that they should consider of any alterations which they thought proper to be made , in the form , rites , or ceremonies , of our divine service : that they should review the book of canons : should consider , what defects , or abuses , might be found in the ecclesiastical courts : how the manners , both of the ministers and people , might more effectually be reform'd ; and such provision be made , that none should hereafter be admitted into holy orders , but such as were duly qualified both in their lives , and learning , to be received into the same . these are the heads , on which the clergy of that convocation were directed to debate : and even upon these they were to deliberate , under these following restrictions . st . that the president , and greater number of the bishops , were to be always present . and dly . that even upon these general heads , they should consider only such particular points , matters , causes , or things , as his majesty should propose , or cause to be proposed , by the president of the convocation to them. such was the commission by which the last convocation was set on work : and to prepare the particular matters which the king reserved to himself to propose to them ; and upon which alone they were allow'd to debate ; his majesty , some time before the convocation was to meet , appointed a select committee of the bishops and clergy , to consult about the same matters ; and to draw up such resolutions , as they should think most fitting for him to lay before the convocation , when it should be assembled . nor was this any new invention ; any unusual restraint laid upon the clergy , in these days of doubt and distrust : but the constant method which had before been pursued , ever since the hen. . it cannot be deny'd but that whatever his present majesty may , in some mens opinions , be said to be ; yet , without all question , king charles the first was a true friend to the episcopal clergy . nor can it any more be doubted , whether archbishop laud had not both care enough to examine into the rights of the convocation ; and interest enough with that prince to assert the privileges of it . let us therefore , to avoid all exceptions in this case , enquire how things pass'd in that famous convocation of ; wherein much was done , and great offence given to those who resolved not to be pleased with any thing that either that king , or that archbishop did ; but nothing that can justly be found fault with by such , as we are now especially concerned , if it may be , to convince . now that convocation being met , by vertue of the same writ that is still made use of in these cases ; the king sent his special commission to them , to impower them to act ; bearing date april . . in this commission , he first at large recites the statute of the hen. . as from the time that it was made , it had always been the custom , in the like commissions , to do : to shew the need they had of his royal licence , and assent , to enable them to go on with safety in their debates , and resolutions . having done this , he ( in the next place ) prefaces the permission he was about to grant to them with these very words , which ought not to be omitted : know ye therefore , that we , for divers urgent and weighty causes and considerations us thereunto moving , of our especial grace , certain knowledge , and meer motion , have by vertue of our prerogative royal , and supreme authority in causes ecclesiastical , given and granted , and by these presents do give and grant , full , free , and lawful liberty , licence , power , and authority , to the most reverend father in god , &c. i shall not need to make any remarks upon this preamble , which fully answers all the pretences of those , who fancy not only the sitting , but the acting too , of the convocation , to be a matter of right , naturally belinging to them ; and that either no commission at all is needful to authorize them so to do ; or , that if there be , the king is , of course , obliged to grant it to them . for , first , that without the king's commission they cannot proceed to any business of themselves , ( without violating an act of parliament , and encroaching upon the king's prerogative . royol , and supreme authority in cases ecclesiastical , ) is here directly asserted . and that such a commission , the king may lawfully grant , or refuse , as he thinks convenient , not only the constant custom of our princes , in adjourning their convocations , ( excepting only at such times as they had something for them to do , ) assures us ; but the very words of the present commission , directly imply . for how came the king to grant this allowance to them ? was it because they had a right to demand it ; or , that he had no right to refuse it ? was it because it had always been customary for them to sit , when the parliament met ; and to have such a commission sent to them , as often as they sat ? nothing of all this : but for divers urgent and weighty causes , and considerations , him thereunto especially moving : out of his especial grace , and meer motion : that he granted it by virtue of his royal prerogative ; and of that supreme authority in causes ecclesiastical , which gave him the same power over his clergy , that all other christian princes were wont to exercise over theirs : and which how great it was , as to these matters , i have before particularly shewn . but to go on with this commission : the king having thus asserted his authority ; now by virtue thereof gives leave to that convocation ( always provided that the president , and greater number of the bishops were present ; ) during the session of the parliament then assembled ; to propose , confer , treat , debate , consider , consult , or agree , upon the exposition , or alteration of any canon , or canons , then in force ; and of , and upon any such other new canons , orders , ordinances , and constitutions , as they should think necessary , fit , and convenient , for the honour and service of almighty god ; the good and quiet of the church , and the better government thereof ; to be from time to time observed , fulfill'd , and kept , &c. — and further to confer , debate , treat , consider , consult , and agree , of and upon such other points , matters , causes and things , as himself from time to time should deliver or cause to be deliver'd unto the said lord bishop of canterbury , president of the said convocation , under his sign manual , or privy signet , to be debated , consider'd , consulted , and concluded upon . this was the business for which that convocation sat , and which they were , accordingly , licensed to enter upon . but the restrictions under which they were allowed to act , are yet more narrow than those which his present majesty laid upon our late convocation . for all this they were required to do , not only under the same conditions that i have beforeshewn were laid upon the other ; but with these further limitations : namely , that the said canons , orders , ordinances , constitutions , matters and things , or any of them , so to be consider'd , consulted and agreed upon , as aforesaid , should not be contrary , or repugnant to the liturgy established ; or to the rubricks in it ; or to the articles ; or to any doctrine , orders and ceremonies of the church of england , already established . thus did this prince give such orders for the proceedings of this convocation , as he thought expedient to be observed by them. and when , for the more effectual suppressing , and preventing of the growth of popery , he resolved an oath should be framed for the clergy to take , of their firm adherence to the doctrine and discipline of the church of england ; and that a canon should be drawn , to enforce the taking of it : he sent a new order to them , may , to empower them to enter on that debate ; and to require them to prepare , and present such an oath and canon , to him. but other princes have gone yet farther than this : they have not only prescribed to their convocations what they should go about , but have actually drawn up beforehand , what they thought convenient to have establish'd ; and have required them to approve of it . in the convocation which met may , jac. : the king sent his letters with the articles of , to them , to be approved , and allowed of by them. and to another convocation , about four years after , the same prince signified to both houses his pleasure , for singing and organ service to be settled in cathedral churches , without ever submitting it to their judgment , whether they approved of it , or no. i shall conclude these remarks , with the opinion which the lower house of convocation had , of the necessity of the king's authority , to empower them to enter with security on their debates about matters of religion , in the first year of king edward the sixth : at the first meeting of which , we find this order , among some others , made by them ; that certain be appointed to know , whether the arch-bishop has obtain'd indemnity , for the house to intreat of matters of religion , in cases forbidden by the statutes of this realm to treat in . but there is another particular , in which i have before shewn , that christian princes had , upon occasion , exercised an eminent authority over their synods ; whilst , for the better observance of the orders which they gave to them. they asserted a right either in person , or by their commissioner , to sit with , and to preside over them. that our kings heretofore , did meet , and sit together with their clergy , is not to be deny'd . and our great oracle of the law has told us , that they did oftentimes appoint commissioners , by writ , to sit with them at the convocation , and to have conusance of such things as they meant to establish , that nothing might be done in prejudice of their authority . 't is true , since the restriction laid upon the clergy by the statute of k. henry ; the king is now become so secure of them , that he has no great need to send any such commissioner to them , to regulate their proceedings . for being neither at liberty to enter upon any synodical act , but what he gives them leave to go upon ; nor , when they have concluded upon any point , being allow'd to promulge or put it in execution ; unless it shall be approved of , and confirmed by him : he has nothing left to apprehend from them ; but is , by his commission , as effectually president over their debates , as if he were present in person , among them . and yet tho' this act has , therefore render'd the exercise of such an authority less necessary than it was before ; it has not depriv'd the king of it . for even after the passing of this statute , k. henry , by his vicar general , not only presided , together with the archbishop , over the convocation ; but deliberated , voted , and , to all intents and purposes , acted , together with his clergy , in it . this is manifest from the acts of the convocation of the year ; and of which it may not be amiss to give a short account , upon this occasion . upon the th day of june . mr. william peter came into the convocation and alleged , that for as much as this synod was called by the authority of the most illustrious prince , k. henry ; and that the said prince ought to have the first place in the said convocation ; and in his absence , the honourable master thomas cromwel , his vicegerent , being vicar general in ecclesiastical causes , ought to possess his place : therefore he desired , that the said place might be assigned to him. and at the same time presented his said master's letters , sealed with the seal of his office , as vicar general : which being read , the most reverend the archbishop , assign'd him a place besides himself . on the th of july , in the same convocation , the bp of hereford produced a certain book , containing the articles of faith , and ceremonies of the church . which being read by the said bishop , the said honourable thomas cromwel , the archbishop , and other prelates , with the prolocutor , and clergy of the lower house , by their subscriptions approved of the said book . on the th of july , it was agreed by the lord cromwel , the archbishop , and convocation , as to certain ordinances , &c. and lastly , on the th of july , the bishop of hereford produced a certain book , containing the causes why the king ought not to appear at the general council , then to be held . which book the aforesaid honourable lord thomas cromwel , the archbishop , and the rest of the convocation , by their subscriptions approved of . thus did the king's commissioner not only sit , but act with the bishops in their convocation . and i am not aware of any law that has debar'd the king , if need were , to do that again now , which king henry . heretofore did . and this may suffice to shew , what authority the king has over our convocation , both by the statute , and common law ; by his own prerogative , as a christian prince , and by the particular concessions of our own parliaments , and convocations . but we are told , that the convocation must be consider'd by us , not only as an ecclesiastical synod , but as an ecclesiastical court too ; and which , as such , has jurisdiction to deal with heresies , schisms , and other meer spiritual and ecclesiastical causes , juxta legem divinam , & canones s. ecclesiae . and herein their power is not at all restrain'd by any particular statute , but still remains whole , and entire to them. in this respect therefore the convocation may , at least , act , without the king's licence , and , as of right ; against any bishop , priest , or deacon , for such offences . this is the doctrine of our late author ; but is not so clear to me , as he would make it . that provincial synods , heretofore , did look upon themselves as endued with a sufficient authority to proceed against any of their own body , who , by any of the crimes before mentioned , had deserved their censure , is not to be deny'd . the provincial councils of old did so ; but especially in the case of heresie , wherein the church has ever accounted it self to be particularly concern'd . but then it must be remember'd too , that when they had so proceeded against any one , the prince still judged whether they had acted canonically , or no : and if he found a just reason to move him so to do , he did , oftentimes , suspend their sentence , and order a new enquiry , in some other synod , to be made of such a matter ; and after all , determined it , at last , as he saw cause . thus theodosius did in the case of nest orius , after he had been condemn'd in two several provincial councils : and thus constantius before him , had done , in the case of photinus , a worser heretick . he received his appeal from the council of sirmium ; and order'd a new examination to be made of his case : and then confirm'd the sentence of the synod , and concurr'd in the deposition of him . and when flavian patriarch of constantinople , had in like manner condemned eutyches for his heresie , the emperor not only referr'd the matter to the council of ephesus , to be re-heard by it ; but when , by the indirect management of dioscorus , that synod , instead of confirming his sentence against eutyches , condemn'd flavian himself , tho' orthodox and innocent ; theodosius not only refused to suspend the sentences of both , till another free council might be call'd to judge of the matter ; but left the sentence of this last council to remain in force , and would not suffer any other synod to be called , about this affair , as long as he lived . as for our own convocation , it is not deny'd but that antiently they were wont to judge of heresy in it . the first instance that occurs of this , and that ( the case of pelagianism excepted ) as antient as the first coming of heresie into our country ; is that of the council of oxford , held about ; and the occasion of which was this . it had happen'd some time before , that about persons came over hither out of germany , and held secret meetings ; differing from the common opinion of the church in several particulars , but chiefly as to the points of baptism , and the holy eucharist . to prevent the spreading of their errors , the king commanded that council to meet at oxford , and there to judge of them . being convened before this synod , and convicted of their errors ; and , refusing to abjure them , they were pronounced hereticks by it , and deliver'd back to the king , to be punished by the civil power . it is in a provincial council held by steph. langton , that we meet with the next instance we have , of the like proceedings . in this we are told of two impostors , upon one of whom were found the five wounds of the crucifixion , convicted and condemn'd by the judgments of the church . but bracton adds to these another , and a more notable instance . he tells us of a certain deacon , who , out of love to a jewish woman , apostatiz'd from the faith of christ ; and was thereupon sentenc'd and degraded by the synod , and deliver'd over to the secular power , to be burnt for it . and the same was the manner by which sautre was condemn'd ; as appears not only by the writ , still extant , for his execution ; but from the rolls of the parliament hen. . in which the order was given for issuing out the writ , to the sheriffs , of london for it , feb. . he was first examined and condemned by the clergy in convocation , and by them deliver'd up to the civil magistrate to be burned . and tho' the lord cobham was not finally sentenced in convocation , but by the archshop of canterbury , assisted by the bishops of london , and winchester , after it was risen ; yet was this cause first brought on there , and he was therein both adjudged an heretick , and excommunicated , as such . the truth is , so great is the scandal , and so severe , in those days , was the punishment too of heresy ; that it has moved some very learned men to think , that before the hen. . no one could be otherwise convicted of it , than in a provincial synod , or convocation . and tho' my lord coke maintains this to be a mistake , and affirms that the bishop always had , as he still has , power to convict of heresy , and to proceed , by the censures of the church , against such as are guilty of it ; yet this is no argument why the convocation should not still retain its antient authority , and have the power of doing that , which any single bishop alone may do . but here then a question may arise that will deserve to be consider'd on this occasion ; and that is , when any one is to be convicted of heresie , or of any other the like ecclesiastical crime , in convocation ; who it is that judges him ? whether he is to be judged by the votes of the two houses ? or , whehe is to be judged by the upper house alone , and the lower to stand in the nature of prosecutors against him ? or lastly , whether the archbishop alone does properly judge ; and the rest concurr , as assistants , to him , and assent to what he does ? in answer to which enquiry , if i may be allow'd to offer my own conjecture ; i do conceive , that in such cases as these , it is not so much the convocation that judges , as the archbishop in convocation . for besides that , it was never known that the inferiour clergy were allow'd a jurisdiction in such cases ; nor is there any reason why they should have it here : first , the very words of the writ upon which sautrey was burnt , seem to speak in such a manner of his conviction in convocation , as shew the power of judicature to have been eminently in the archbishop , and that the rest were only of council to him , and consented to what he did . cum venerabilis pater thomas archiepiscopus cant. totius angliae primas , & apostolicae sedis legatus , de consensu & assensu , ac consilio episcoporum , & confratrum suffraganeorum suorum , necnon totius cleri provinciae suae , in concilio suo provinciali congregati — per suam sententiam definitivam haereticum manifestum pronunciavit & declaravit , & c. nor can this be sufficiently accounted for by looking upon the archbishop as president of the convocation , and so acting as speaker in it . when the lord keeper in the house of lords , or the lord high steward in the commission for tryal of a peer , determine , or give sentence , in any civil or criminal cause ; we do not find it said , that they , with the counsel and assent of the lords , pronounce , or award , so or so ; but they deliver the sentence of the lords , and declare that this or that is their judgment . and the same ought to have been the case here , supposing that the convocation , or even the upper house , had equally judged with the archbishop . the writ must have run in the name of the whole body ; whereas the archbishop and bishops , with the rest of the clergy of the province of canterbury , in convocation assembled , have by their definitive sentence pronounced , &c. nor can any good reason , i believe , be given , why the writ did not run in this manner , but because the archbishop , even in convocation , still retain'd the power of judicature , which i shall presently shew was peculiar to him ; and by vertue thereof , judged of him . and this will yet more clearly appear , secondly , from the acts of the convocation under k. henry the fifth , anno : and the process made against the lord cobham therein . for first , upon several provocations given , and affronts put upon the clergy by the lollards , and that at the very time that the convocation was sitting ; the archbishop was required , in behalf of the whole clergy , that he would vouchsafe to proceed against the lord cobham , upon , and concerning the premises . in pursuance of this request , the archbishop , with a great part of the convocation , apply to the king , for leave to proceed against him ; both because he was a person in great credit with his majesty ; and to be consider'd upon the account of his own honour and quality . having obtain'd leave of the king to proceed against him ; it is said all along , that my lord of canterbury summon'd him to appear before him in convocation . that when the summons could no otherwise be executed upon him , he order●d it to be fix'd upon the doors of the church of rochester . that upon the eleventh of september , ( the day appointed for his appearance , ) the archbishop excommunicated him ; and after a farther process , at last came to a final sentence against him . 't is true , tho' this process began in convocation , yet it was carry'd on , and ended out of it : but withal , it is plain , that tho' the convocation was risen , yet still the archbishop continued the same process , that began in it . he sate in the chapter house of st. paul's ; he took the bishops of london and winchester first , and then to them added the bishop of bangor for his assistants . besides these , a great number of the inferiour clergy was present : and when at last , the lord cobham was brought before him ; the archbishop took notice to him , how he had been discover'd , and accused in convocation ; i. e. had been accused to himself in convocation , when they first desired him to proceed against him . to all which , let me add the preamble to the sentence , which the archbishop at last pass'd upon him , and which shews , that both in and out of convocation , the judgment of this matter lay before him : we , thomas by divine permission , &c. in a certain cause or matter of heretical pravity , of and concerning divers articles , upon which , sir john oldcastle knight , lord cobham , was accused before us in the last convocation of the clergy of our province of cant. & c. nor let any one think , that in asserting such an authority to the archbishop in these matters , any injury is done to his suffragan bishops : but rather , were it otherwise , the convocation must apparently have encroach'd upon that eminent power of judging , which the archbishop heretofore had . for tho' since the statute of the of henry the eighth , the power of the archbishop is very much restrain'd ; and he cannot now call whatever causes he pleases to his own judgment ; but only under the limitations provided in that act ; and therefore since that time , the right of judging in this case would , in the first instance , have belonged to the bishop of rochester ; and to the archbishop , no otherwise , than either by way of appeal , or upon some negligence , or defect in the diocesan to judge of it : yet before that statute , the archbishop had a power to call any cause immediately before himself ; and when therefore , in his syned , he did do so , we ought not to question but that it was he , who , properly speaking , did judge ; and that the rest of the bishops were only his assistants in it . i conclude then , that tho' the person , in such a case were try'd in convocation ; yet , precisely speaking , it was the part of the lower house to discover and accuse ; of the bishops to counsel and assist ; but of the archbishop to hear and judge . but still the main question remains to be consider'd , namely , whether the convocation , ( howsoever it be that it judges ) may proceed in these cases without the king's leave ; or whether his commission be necessary to justifie them in it ? that they are not restrained by vertue of that statute , which has so much retrench'd their power in other respects , is confidently affirm'd : nor shall i deny , but that the intention of that act seems rather to restrain them from making any new canons or constitutions ; than from judging , in causes ecclesiastical , according to the canons already made . that they had heretofore a power to judge in such cases , my lord coke delivers as certain in point of law ; and from thence calls it the court of convocation . nor can i see what injury it would be to the crown , to allow the same power to the convocation still , that by law may be exercised in any other ecclesiastical court ; and which must needs be inseriour in dignity to this . but still the question is , whether , of right , the convocation ever had a power to judge , any more than to make canons , without the king's assent ? and by consequence , whether though the statute of henry the eighth should not have deprived them of that power , yet the king's prerogative be not against it ? for should this be so , then whatever laws have restored the king to his supreme authority in ecclesiastical matters , will lie against this presumed right of the convocation too : and so , though that law should not , yet some others may have limited their power in this respect also . and here i shall not presume to determine any thing ; but only offer these following observations : first , that in several of the convocations , in which the persons before-mention'd were judged ; the process was made either by the express command , or leave of the king : and in all of them for ought we know , it may have been so . and , secondly , that in the commissions , by which our convocations are now enabled to act ; the king gives them leave to conferr , debate , treat , consider , consult and agree , of matters and causes , as well as of canons , orders and constitutions : and which seems to imply , that they need the king's license , as much to judge of the one , as to deliberate about the other . but be this as it will ; thus much i take to be out of all doubt , that as by our ancient customs , recognized by the lords spiritual , as well as temporal , in the great council at clarendon , anno ; it was among other things resolved , that none of the servants of the king , or of such as held of him in capite , might be excommunicated without his leave : and again , that in case of appeals , any person , who thought himself injured , might appeal , from the arch deacon to the bishop ; from the bishop to the archbishop ; and from him to the king ; by whose order the affair was finally to be determined in the court of arches , and not be suffer'd to proceed any farther without leave of the king : so , in conformity both to these principles , and to that power which i have before shewn , has ever been claimed and exercised by christian princes in this respect , i do presume , that the king may not only lay a prohibition upon the convocation , not to proceed in judgment against any person whom he shall think fit to take into his special protection ; but after they have judged any one , may receive an appeal from them ; and order an enquiry to be made , whether they proceeded fairly and canonically with him ; and either confirm , suspend , or annul their sentence , as he shall find it reasonable for him to do . this i am sure the ancient emperors did ; and the bishops and councils not only submitted to it , but allowed of it . and if this our kings may not do ; i shall be glad to be inform'd by what particular law or custom , this power has been taken from them . and this brings me to the last point now to be consider'd : ( dly . ) what authority our kings have over their convocations ; after they have done what they were called for ? that the convocation cannot meet without the king 's writ , i have before shewn from the express authority of an act of parliament : and that the same authority is required to the dismission , as to the calling of it , has been the declared opinion of our greatest lawyers in this case . when a question was raised by some few in the lower house of convocation , anno . whether they might lawfully continue to sit , after the parliament was dissolved : the arch-bishop besought his majesty that , for their better assurance , his learned council , and some other persons of honour , well acquainted with the laws of the realm , might deliver their judgment upon it . this his majesty graciously approved , and the question was accordingly put to them. they answer'd , as followeth , under their hands : the convocation being called by the king 's writ , under the great seal , doth continue , untill it be dissolved by writ , or commission under the great seal . and accordingly we know , that not only , upon their dissolution , but for every prorogation that is made of it , there is a writ sent by the king to the arch-bishop ; and they cannot break up when they please ; but must continue to sit , as long as the king shall think fit to require them so to do . such authority has his majesty over their assemblies : nor has he any less over their acts. it is , i think , agreed on all hands , that no acts of convocation are of any force , untill they are confirm'd by the royal authority . and that is all i am now concern'd to determine . how far , or , what persons , they will oblige , when confirm'd by the king , without the concurrence of the parliament , is another question ; in which i am not , at present , concern'd to engage . but tho' of this therefore , in general , there be no doubt ; yet i cannot tell whether some men may be willing to allow the king all that authority , which , i have before shew'd , other princes have claim'd , and which i see no reason why our own kings should not enjoy . it is expressly provided by the th . of hen. th , that the convocation shall not only not presume to make any canons , without the king's permission ; but that having made them , they shall not presume to promulge or execute any such canons , constitutions , or ordinances , provincial , or synodal , unless the same clergy may have the king 's most royal assent and licence , to promuige and execute the same . and even then it is farther provided by the same act , that no canons , constitutions , or ordinances , shall be made , or put in execution , within this realm , by authority of the convocation of the clergy , which shall be contrariant , or repugnant , to the king 's prerogative-royal ; or to the customs , laws , or statutes of this realm . and from whence , as they are naturally deduced , so were these ( two ) points deliver'd by the judges before the committee of the lords , as the law , with reference to this matter ; . that when , upon conference , the convocation has concluded any canons , yet they cannot execute any of their canons , without the royal assent . and , . that they cannot execute any , after royal assent , but with these four limitations . st . that they be not against the prerogative of the king. dly . nor against the common-law . dly . nor against any statute-law . thly . nor against any custom of the realm . and this the learned reporter tells us was but an affirmance of what was the law , before the said statutes ; as appears by the ed. . title , quare non ad 〈…〉 isit , . where it is held , that if a canon-law be against the law of the land , the bishop ought to obey the commandment of the king , according to the law of the land. now these two things being supposed , and in which the law , at the present , cannot be doubted to be very clear ; that no acts of convocation can be put in execution , or be promulged , in order to a publick observance , without the king's licence : and that the king's licence cannot give the convocation any authority , to promulge or execute any canons , but what are agreeable to the laws , and customs , of the realm ; it must of necessity follow ; [ st . ] that the king has not only a right to review the acts of every such convocation ; but ought moreover to submit them to the examination of his learned council in the law ; that so he may the more securely be able to judge , whether they be consistent , with the laws of his realm , and ( by consequence ) capable of receiving any enforcement from him : forasmuch as it would be , not only too rash , and unseemly , but even a vain thing , for the king to expose his prerogative ; by undertaking to give authority to that , which , by being contrary to the laws already establish'd , has such a natural defect in its original constitution , as will not suffer it to be capable of any . [ dly . ] that notwithstanding the resolution of the clergy in their convocation , yet still the king is to remain the last judge , not only of the lawfulness , but of the expediency too , of their constitutions : and has authority either to ratifie , or reject them , as he , with the advice of his council , shall think them either usefull , or otherwise , to the church . when his majesty gave liberty to our last convocation , to consider of the several points which , in his commission , he proposed to them ; and permitted them to draw into forms , rules , orders , ordinances , constitutions , and canons , such matters as to them should seem necessary , and expedient , for the purposes which he had before proposed to them ; and the same being set down in writing , from time to time to exhibit and deliver , or to cause to be exhibited , and delivered , to him : he thus goes on to declare what was to be done , after such their resolutions should be delivered in by them ; — to the end that we , as occasion shall require , may thereupon have the advice of our parliament ; and that such , and so many , of the said canons , orders , ordinances and constitutions , matters , causes and things , as shall be thought requisite and convenient , by our said parliament , may be presented to us in due form , for our royal assent , if upon mature consideration thereof we shall think sit to enact the same . and from whence it appears to have been his majesty's intention , had that convocation proceeded to any resolutions , to have submitted the examination of their acts not only to his parliament ; but , that being done , to have reserved the final judgment of them to his own consideration : and we cannot doubt but that it was upon the best advice of his learned council in the law , that he so intended . but more full and express to this purpose is the commission of king charles the first to the convocation of , before mentioned . wherein having granted the same liberty , we here meet with , to his clergy ; to set down in writing , and to exhibit , or cause to be exhibited to him , all and every the said canons , orders , ordinances , and constitutions , matters , causes , and things , to be by them from time to time , conferr'd , treated , debated , consider'd , consulted and agreed upon : he adds ; to the end that we , upon mature consideration by us to be taken thereupon , may allow , approve , confirm , and ratifie ; or otherwise disallow , annihilate , and make void , such , and so many of the said canons , orders , ordinances , and constitutions , matters , causes , and things , or any of them ; so to be by force of these presents consider'd , consulted , and agreed upon , as we shall think fit , requisite , and convenient . but this is not yet all ; in the close of his commission he again reserves to himself the same power ; in these remarkable words : provided always , and our express will , pleasure , and commandment is , that the said canons , orders , ordinances , and constitutions , matters , causes , and things , or any of them , so to be , by force of these presents , consider'd , consulted , or agreed upon , shall not be of any force , effect , or validity in the law , but only such , and so many of them , and after such time , as we by our letters patent under our great seal of england shall allow , approve , and confirm the same . these are the limitations under which that convocation acted ; and from which these ( three ) conclusions will unavoidably follow . st . that the king , by granting the convocation license to consider , and draw up any canons , orders , or constitutions ; or to determine any matters or causes ; do's not give them any final , decisive power , of concluding those affairs : but empowers them only to deliver their judgment to him , which he may either approve , or reject , as he shall afterwards see cause to do . dly . that in determining concerning their resolutions , he is not obliged either to approve , and confirm ; or else to reject , and annihilate all that they have done ; but may judge distinctly of every particular point , or matter , debated by them ; and severally pass his judgment upon them : may give force and authority , to some things , and at the same time make void , and disallow of others . and this , dly . not only upon his own private judgment , or upon the advice of any select persons of his clergy , ( tho' it be a matter ecclesiastical : ) but with the advice of his council , who , by his command , are also empowred to judge of what the convocation has done , and whose opinion , if he approves of it , he may preferr to that of his clergy . but we will go on with the history of this convocation ; and see how these several conclusions may be yet farther clear'd and confirm'd by it . when , by vertue of this commission , the convocation had drawn up such canons , and agreed upon such orders , as to them seem'd most proper , to answer the ends proposed by the king to them ; we are told by his majesty , in his declaration of june th . following , that , according to his direction , they had offered , and presented the same to him , desiring him to give his royal assent to what they had done . now as hereby they plainly acknowledged his majesty to have all that authority , as to this matter , which , in his commission , he had pretended to ; so we find the king still proceeded , according to the same measures he had first laid down , to the ratification of what they presented to him. for thus the declaration goes on : we , having diligently , with great content and comfort , read and consider'd , all the said orders , ordinances , and constitutions , agreed upon , as is before express'd : and finding the same such , as we are persuaded will be very profitable , not only to our clergy , but to the whole church of this our kingdom ; and to all the true members of it ( if they be well observed : ) have therefore for us , our heirs , and lawfull successors , of our special grace , certain knowledge , and meer motion , given , and by these presents do give our royal assent , according to the form of the said statute , or act of parliament aforesaid ; to all and every of the said canons , &c. but because in the beginning of this declaration , the king alledges the example of his royal father for what he did , whose pattern he proposed to follow in this particular ; i cannot but observe that he did stick so closely to it , as to use the very same form ; ( almost the very same words ; ) in confirming these canons of ; that the other had done , in ratifying of those of . and from whence we may the more undoubtedly conclude , that as the consequences before drawn from the tenour of these publick instruments , are , in point of reason , plain and unavoidable ; so is their authority , in point of law , certain , and indisputable : and that our kings do not only in fact , claim , and exercise such a power , as we have now seen , over their convocations ; but have also an apparent right to the exercise of it . whether our kings may not only confirm , such , and so many , of the canons , &c. of their convocations , as they shall judge expedient ; and refuse , and reject the rest ; but may also , by their supreme authority in ecclesiastical matters , correct , and amend those which they do allow of , i shall not undertake to say . but so we are told king henry the eighth did , and that in a case of the strictest nature ; in framing the very articles of religion , which were afterwards publish'd by his authority , anno . thus much i believe , may warrantably be asserted ; that as the king has power , without a convocation , to make , and publish such injunctions as he shall think the necessities of the church to require , and to command the observance of them ; so may he , with the advice and consent of his parliament , much more , not only make what ecclesiastical laws he shall think sitting , for the discipline of the church ; but make such use of the convocation , and the resolutions agreed to in it , in order thereunto , as he shall think fit : and ( as i have shewn the french king's heretofore to have done ; ) may not only confirm , or disallow ; but may sometimes even alter , and correct , what is done by them , according to his own liking . and now that i have mention'd this convocation of king henry the eighth ; i will make a reflection or two upon that king 's dealing with that assembly ; and so conclude these remarks . it would be needless for me to observe , after the account i have already given of the act which was pass'd but a few years before , by the same king , to that purpose ; that this convocation was call'd by his writ . i will rather take notice , that the articles of religion set forth by them , were not only corrected by that prince , after they had been framed by the convocation ; but were drawn up by them , according to the method , and directions which he gave to them for that purpose . so his declaration , to all his loving subjects , in confirmation of these articles , informs us. and for because we would the said articles , and every of them , should be taken , and understanden of you , after such sort , order , and degree , as appertaineth accordingly ; we have caused , by the assent , and agreement of our bishops , and other learned men , the said articles to be divided into two sorts ; whereof the one part containeth such things as be commanded expressly by god , and be necessary to salvation ; and the other containeth such things , as have been of a long continuance , for a decent order , &c. — tho' they be not expressly commanded of god , nor necessary to our salvation . but that which i would principally observe in this declaration , is , upon what grounds , and with what examination , the king gave his assent to those articles . i have before said , and , from the words now quoted , it sufficiently appears ; that the articles here referr'd to did , at least in one great part of them , relate to doctrines of faith ; and that in the most necessary points of it . and yet see what liberty that king took , in judging , as well as correcting , of what they had done . he was speaking of the design he had in calling of that convocation ; and from thence proceeds , in these words , to declare his sense of what the clergy had done in it . where after long and mature deliberation , had of and upon the premises , finally they have concluded , and agreed upon , the most special points and articles ; as well such as be commanded of god , and are necessary to our salvation ; as also divers other matters touching the honest ceremonies , and good , and politick orders , as is aforesaid . — which their determination , debatement , and agreement , forsomuch as we think to have proceeded of a good , right , and true judgment , and to be agreeable to the laws , and ordinances of god ; and much profitable for the stablishment of that charitable concord , and unity , in our church of england , which we most desire ; we have caused the same to be publish'd ; willing , requiring , and commanding you to accept , repute , and take them accordingly . such a judgment did this prince assume to himself , over those acts of his clergy , which the most properly fall under an ecclesiastical determination ! and so little have our princes thought themselves obliged either to receive themselves , or to impose upon others , any of their orders , or decisions ; but as they were finally persuaded that what they had done proceeded from a sound judgment , and would be for the benefit of their church and kingdom to be observed . and now from what i have before asserted , and i hope sufficiently proved , to be the rights of all christian princes in general ; and to be not only not contradicted , but rather to be expressly declared by our own laws and customs , to be the prerogative of our own kings in this particular ; it will be no hard matter to give a clear and positive answer to the first general question proposed to be resolved , in all the parts of it . for , first : whereas it is demanded , whether there be any law , that commands , or permits , the sitting , and acting of the convocation , besides the absolute , free pleasure of the prince ? i reply , that if by sitting be meant their being summon'd at such times as the parliament is assembled , there is a continued , immemorial custom , which do's determine the prince to summon a convocation at such seasons , and leaves it not any longer to his free , and absolute will , whether he will summon it , or no ? when this custom first began , or how long it has become the setled , and constant method with us , to have a convocation call'd at the same time that the parliament meets , it matters not to our present purpose to enquire . sure we are , that this has been the custom ever since the th . of henry the eighth : and that is enough to shew that it ought not easily to be neglected . and therefore , tho i know no positive law that do's determine the king 's absolute and free will , as to this matter ; yet i humbly conceive that so ancient , and setled a custom ought to be held to ; and our princes accordingly still order the one to be summon'd , as often as the other is called . but now , secondly , if by sitting be meant ( as in the present question i suppose it is ) their meeting to do business ; and being allow'd to come together for that purpose : then i reply , that for such their sitting , i know no law besides the absolute and free power of the prince . custom , we are sure is as much against this , as it has been for the other ; and any statute or positive law for it , has not , that i know of , been pretended to . indeed whilst the clergy were wont to assess themselves , and their sitting , upon that account , was necessary for the support of the government ; they were not only summon'd to meet , but were wont actually to assemble , and sit , so long as it was requisite for them to do for this purpose . but that being done , they were for the most part forthwith adjourned , and met no more , till the king had some new occasion for their assistance . and that i may not be thought to speak this at all adventures , i will offer an instance or two of it . the convocation which met the first of king james the first : was by prorogations continued from time to time , for seven years together . yet , except it were in his first year , we do not hear of any great business that was done by them , more than that of granting subsidies , which i have mention'd . in king charles the first 's time , there were but few parliaments , and therefore we are not to look for convocations in that . when his son , king charles the second return'd ; the famous convocation of met , to remedy those disorders which the civil wars had occasion'd . in order whereunto it was necessary for them at the first to sit , and settle the affairs of the church : but that being done , they were by the king 's writ prorogued eighteen several times successively ; and it does not appear by the journal of it , which i have seen , that any thing material was afterwards done by it . and as their sitting , so thirdly , i affirm that their acting too does depend upon the will of the prince . they cannot enter upon any business without his special commission for it : and whether he will grant them such a commission or no , depends entirely upon his own will. but when i say , that the sitting and acting of the convocation , does depend upon the absolute and free will of the prince ; ( and which terms i make use of , only because they are prescribed to me by one , whom at present i am obliged to follow . ) i must observe , that by his absolute and free will , i understand a will not determined by any humane law , to act otherwise than according to the dictates of a man 's own reason , and upon the last result of his own judgment , he would do . for otherwise there are laws , which in this , as in all other cases of the like nature , determine the most absolute sovereigns in the world : and we do not deny our king , as well as all other princes , to be subject to them . the law of reason , is a law by which every wise man does , and every man , as such , is obliged to act . the positive law of god , and the common principles of right and 〈◊〉 , are another law , by which all christians ( of what bank or authority 〈◊〉 ) both out of duty to god , and with regard to their own consciences , are required to attend . and lastly , the publick good and welfare of the community , is another law , to which all princes , even those who , in other respects , are the most absolute ; are oblig'd to look : and with the observance of which they cannot dispence , tho' no human constraint lies upon them , to force them thereunto , or to punish them if they do not . by all these laws , princes are obliged : and the will of the prince regulated by these laws , but not under the direction of any more particular obligations ; is that will on which i affirm the sitting and acting of the convocation to depend . the government has intrusted him with the power of giving them leave to sit and act when he pleases , and when he pleases , he may deny them to do either . but still it was supposed , when that trust was committed to him , that he should use it with prudence and moderation ; and as he should from time to time be perswaded , would be most for the publick good , both of the church and state. and therefore , fourthly , notwithstanding any thing that has hitherto been said , i shall not doubt to affirm ; that whenever the king is in his own conscience convinced , that for the convocation to sit and act , would be for the glory of god , the benefit of the church , or otherwise for the publick good and welfare of his realm ; he is obliged both by the law of reason , as a man ; by his duty to god , as a christian ; and by his duty to his people , as a ruler set over them for their good ; to permit , or rather to command his clergy to meet in convocation , and transact what is sit , for any or all these ends , to be done by them . as on the other hand , whensoever he is clearly and evidently convinced , that for them thus to come together , would be needless , or hurtfull , to these ends ; it is then his duty to restrain them from sitting ; and that tho' he should be never so importunately desired by some , that they may sit ; or rail'd at by others , for not allowing them so to do . these i take to be the plain consequences of the foregoing discourse : and by them , i suppose , a clear and full resolution is given , to the first general question , viz. whether there be any law that commands or permits , the sitting and acting of the convocation , besides the absolute and free pleasure of the prince ? and if there be , what that law is ? and how far the prince is obliged by it ? i might now proceed upon this foundation , without any more ado , to examine what has been offer'd by our late author to the contrary , and so pass on to the other part of my discourse . but because it may be a matter of some satisfaction , as well as use , to those whose enquiries have not lain this way , to know what has been the state of our convocations , ever since we have any accounts , that we can rely upon , concerning them : i will therefore take leave to digress so far from my present business , as may suffice to shew this , in a short history of our convocations , from the first conversion of the saxons to christianity , down to our present times . chap. iv. in which the state of the convocation is historically deduced , from the first conversion of the saxons , to our own days . so great is the uncertainty to which all humane constitutions are exposed , that tho' i have before sufficiently shewn what the nature of our convocation at present is , and what authority our kings have over it ; yet we can by no means from thence conclude , that this was always the case of it ; or that the act of the th of king henry the viii . did only restore our kings to their ancient rights over their clergy ; and not rather give them a greater power than ever they before had ; or than the parliament ought to have put into their hands . to clear this matter , and withal to shew how ecclesiastical affairs have heretofore been transacted in this realm ; i shall here take a short view of the state of our convocation in times past , and of the method that was wont to be observed in making of canonical orders and constitutions ; from the conversion of the saxons , to the settlement of it in that form under which it continues to this very day . and the method i shall take for the better clearing of this matter , shall be this : i. i will consider , how the affairs of the church were managed , from the first conversion of the saxons , to the time of the norman conquest . ii. from the coming in of k. william the conquerour , to the d . of edward the first : about which time both the parliament , and the convocation , seem to have been fully setled upon the same foot , on which they have both continued to stand ever since . iii. from the d . of edward the first , to the th . of henry the eighth : when the parliament and clergy , restored the crown to those rights , which the usurpations of the court of rome had before , in great measure , deprived it of . and , iv. from the th . of henry the eighth , to our own times . i period . and first : let us enquire , how the affairs of the church were transacted , from the first conversion of the saxons , to the time of the norman conquest . it is evident to any one who has ever consider'd , by what authority , and after what manner , our clergy are called together in convocation ; that when those writs were framed which we still continue to make use of , they referr'd to a double end , and it was intended the clergy should meet together under a double capacity , by vertue of them . when the king issues out his parliamentary writs , and summons the bishops to come to that great council ; every bishop is thereby , distinctly , required , to give notice to the dean and chapter of his cathedral church , and to the arch-deacons , and clergy , of his diocess , of the king's pleasure ; to the end that they the said dean and arch-deacon , in their proper persons ; their chapter by one ; and the clergy of every arch-deaconry , by two proctors , lawfully chosen , and empowered , may , together with the bishop , attend upon the king in parliament ; and there consent to such things as shall be agreed upon , for the good of the church or state. now this clause , as it equally requires the inferiour clergy , as the rest of the writ does the bishop himself to come to parliament ; so has the necessity of it been accounted so great , that some have thought this to be the reason , why if the see be vacant , the writ shall , in such a case , bedirected to the guardians of the spiritualties , viz. that by this means the proxies of the clergy may , by them , be proemonished , to come to the parliament , according to their duty , and as of ancient custom they have been required to do . it must therefore be allow'd , and accordingly it is indeed confessed by those , who have been the best acquainted with the nature of our constitution , that the clergy were anciently a part of the parliament , and that the dignitaries , and proxies of the lower order , did , together with the spiritual lords , make up the third estate in it . but now together with this parliamentary writ , sent out to every bishop in particular : there is another general order directed only to the archbishop of each province , to call together the whole clergy of their several provinces , to another place , and ( usually ) upon another day . the copy of this writ the archbishop of canterbury sends to the bishop of london , as dean of the episcopal college ; and requires him to summon the clergy of his province , and to attend himself , with the clergy of his own diocess , according to the king's command . and this is more properly a provincial synod ; tho' , at present , it consists of the same persons ; and was oftentimes , heretofore , employed to the same ends , that the clergy who came to the parliament were : and consulted at once both of the state of the church , and how to supply the prince's wants . and as this is the case of the clergy at the present ; so if we look back to those first times , we are now particularly to consider , we shall find the foundation of this difference laid in them ; and clearly see how it came to be derived down from thence to the times that follow'd after . it has ever been the wisdom , as well as piety of christian princes , to pay a just deference both to the judgment and integrity of their church-men : and to think none more proper to advise with , even in their civil concerns ; and ostentimes , to intrust too with the management of them ; than those whose profession at once disposes them both to a greater extent of knowledge , and to a quicker sense of their duty , than is ordinarily to be met with in other men. and i believe there is no nation , where the gospel of christ has prevailed , in which ecclesiastical persons have not been , by a kind of general consent , admitted to the management of civil affairs ; and been advised with as well in matters relating to the state , as in those which concern the church . now as this first brought them into the great councils of princes , so was it the same opinion , of their ability and integrity , which first gave original to that part they now have , and ever did enjoy , in the parliaments of this nation . for as our princes , from the beginning , were wont to do all things of greater moment with the advice of their great councils : so , in all those councils , the clergy still had the chiefest place , as in the progress of these remarks i shall have occasion very plainly to shew . nor were the laity any losers at all by this : for the bishops and great clergy-men , being , by these means , present at their councils ; and the king by his very office , having an original right to deliberate concerning the affairs of the church , as well as of the state ; it came to pass , that these great councils , by degrees , transacted both : they deliberated as well of ecclesiastical , as of civil affairs ; and the causes that concerned the church were no less determined by the judgment and authority of the laity ; than the civil ones were , by the advice of the clergy . but because it may be of some advantage , to the right understanding of this whole subject , to have a clear knowledge of the method in which ecclesiastical affairs were wont to be transacted , in these most remote times , upon which i am now entring ; and that the understanding of these , will very much depend upon a right apprehension of the nature of those great councils , i shall have so much occasion to insist upon , in this period : i will endeavour , in the first place , to give the most distinct account i can of them ; and that from foreign historians , as well as from those of our own country . and here were the manner of holding parliaments as truly ancient , as its preface pretends , and as some affirm that it is ; we should be able to go on the more easily in our account of these councils . but because there are many things which make me justly suspect the antiquity of that piece ; i must be forced to look out for some other guides , of a better note ; and of whose sincerity there can be no doubt . that there was all along , in these days , a very near affinity , between the polity of france , and that of our own country , in its ecclesiastical , as well as in its civil establishment ; might from many instances evidently be made appear . those northern nations , who about years after christ , began to over-run the greater part of europe , were very much alike in their manners and constitutions : and the government , which , at the beginning , they setled in those countries in which they six'd , tho' in some circumstances it might vary , yet in the main was the same too . now the parliaments of france ( for so in aftertimes the great councils of the nation were call'd by them , as well as with us ) were first brought into a setled order and method , by pepin , brother to carloman , about the year : in the very times we are no● discoursing about . and the manner in which he did it was this . he call'd together his bishops and great lords , to a council at soissons : and there with the advice of both , commanded the ancient canons to be observed , and set out several new constitutions , for the government of the clergy , as well as of the laity . and to the end that the state of both might be kept in better order , they farther decreed , that from thenceforth such a synod should be held , for the same purpose , once every year . and thus this affair stood for some time ; till about eleven years after , being a little at leisure from those wars which had almost continually exercised him , he began to put his kingdom into a better posture . to which end , having again call'd together almost all the bishops of france , he resolved to have two meetings held every year ; the first upon the kalends of march , in the presence of the king , and at such place as he should appoint : the other upon the kalends of october , at soissons , or at such other place , as the bishops , at the former meeting , should agree . and here began a manifest difference to appear between the civil and ecclesiastical synods . for at the former of these , there met not only the bishops , but the chief of the lay lords of the realm . in that were laws made both for the civil and ecclesiastical state ; and being framed by the council , were examined , and confirmed by the king. whereas at the latter there appear'd only the bishops and clergy ; and these made no new constitutions ; but only consulted together about the state of the church ; and , if need were , prepared matter for the next state meeting ; or else took care to order the reformation of mens manners , according to the laws already made . such was the polity which that king establish'd for the ordering both of civil and ecclesiastical affairs . but now this settlement , begun by pepin , was very much improved by charles the great . and because of this , we have a very exact account given us by hincmarus , out of the writings of adalardus , abbot of corbey , and a near relation of charles himself ; it may not be amiss to take a short view of it . in the first place then he appointed two assemblies to be held every year ; the one a general council , of all the bishops , abbots , and lords , of the realm : the other more select , consisting only of a certain number of the more aged , and honourable of all these ; such as the prince should think sit to chuse ; together with his principal ministers of state , whom he also call'd to it . in the general council , all the publick affairs , for the following year , were setled : in the other , were handled such incidental matters , as not being foreseen , could not , by consequence , be provided for , in that great assembly ; and yet were of such a nature , that they ought not to be deferr'd , till that council should meet again . in both these councils , ( tho' chiefly in the general one ) laws were made both for the church , and realm . the king proposed to them what he would have them debate upon ; and having for three days consulted together , they laid the result of their debates before him ; and his choice , and approbation , determined the matter . but that which i would chiefly observe in these councils , is this ; that as the causes which sell in to be handled by them were of a different kind , so were they dispatch'd by them after a different manner . if the matter to be deliberated upon were purely spiritual ; in that case , the bishops , and abbots , went apart by themselves , and debated upon it . if it were wholly civil , or military , the lords alone consulted about it . if it were of a mix'd nature , as relating to the government or discipline of the church ; then they both together treated of it . but which soever it were , still the king consider'd of their resolutions ; and determined all , as he saw fit . from this difference both of the matters debated in these assemblies , and of the manner of deliberating upon them , the same assembly is oftentimes called both a royal , and synodical council . thus sigebert styles the council of trebur under the emperour conrade , anno . and thus may many of our ancient councils be distinguish'd . i shall mention only one , in which a learned antiquary of our own country has made the same remark , the famous synod of aenham : at which not only the bishops , and abbots ; but the lay nobility were present . but yet the most part of what was done in it , related to the church ; and was concluded by the clergy alone , who went apart from the other lords , for that purpose . it were an easie matter to shew that the same method of deliberation continued to be observed , not only in our more ancient general councils of this period ; but even after the reduction of our parliament to the form in which it now is . but this would lead me too far away from those times i am now upon ; and i shall have a more proper occasion hereafter to take notice of it . in the mean time , from what has been said , it appears , that the method of transacting publick affairs in france , in those days of which i am at present to discourse , was briefly this : . they had , every year , a general council of the kingdom , made up of the chief men both in honour , and employ , whether civil , or ecclesiastical : and therein laws were made , with the assent of the prince , both for the church and state. in matters , purely spiritual , such as the articles of christian faith ; the clergy advised alone : and what was , upon their advice , determined by the prince , became a law as to those matters . in matters of a mix'd nature , as in regulating the discipline of the church ; the great lords deliberated together with the bishops ; and the prince confirm'd , what by the common advice , and consent of both , was recommended to him. but because it might so fall out , that some affairs might arise , which neither could be foreseen at those general meetings , nor might be deferr'd till their next assembling ; therefore , . to prevent any inconvenience that might happen by this means , there was another great council held every year , made up of a select number of those who came to the general assembly : and by them were such matters determined after the same manner , and with the concurrence of the same authority , by which the other proceeded . such was the method of proceeding in these publick affairs abroad ; and the same was , in effect , the polity of our own country , under the government of our saxon princes . they had their general councils , first , in which they deliberated of all publick matters : and these councils consisted of the archbishops , bishops , and abbots , of the clergy ; and of the wise-men , great-men , alder-men , counts ; that is to say , of the chief of the laity , indifferently call'd in those times , by any , or all these names . in these councils they debated , both of civil , and ecclesiastical affairs ; and made laws , with the prince's consent , and concurrence , for the ordering of both. and this they did , as far as i can judge , after the like manner that , we have seen , the french were wont to do : the bishops and clergy advised apart , in matters purely spiritual ; but the great-men debated together with them in civil , and mix'd affairs ; and in which the interest of the state was concern'd , as well as that of the church . thus athelstan , when he publish'd his ecclesiastical laws , tells us , that he did it with the counsel of his bishops : but when he came to his other constitutions , we find , from their subscription , that his nobles , as well as bishops , were present ; and that both assisted at the making of them. whether , besides these general councils , there were not , in those times , some more particular ones with us , as there were in france , i shall not undertake to say . that in process of time there were , we are very sure ; and to which such only of the bishops and great-men were call'd , as the prince thought sit to advise with . indeed , as to any setled times of these councils meeting , it do's not appear , that as yet there were any fix'd : tho' afterwards a custom began to be introduced , of holding these great councils once every year . but yet , within this period , our princes began very solemnly to keep the three great festivals of the year , with their bishops , and lords ; and by that means , in some sort , held a council , three times every year , with them. it is true , our ancient laws make mention of a solemn assembly that was convened every year upon the first of may ; in which the chief both of the clergy and laity , met together . and this differ'd but little , from such a council as we are now speaking of . but yet , it do's not appear , that in these meetings any great affairs of state were transacted , much less any laws made : but rather the main business that was done in them , was solemnly to renew their oath of fidelity to the king ; and for the maintenance of the laws already made . but tho' the greatest part of what concern'd the church , was therefore transacted with us , as it was abroad , in these state councils ; yet it cannot be doubted but that , within this period , there were held several ecclesiastical convocations , or synods , properly so called . to these not only the archbishops , and bishops , were admitted ; but the abbots , and other clergy , were called : insomuch that in some of them we find priests , deacons , and monks ; and even abbesses also , mention'd . and besides these , not only the prince was , for the most part , present ; but often-times his nobility together with him. in these synods , sometimes the canonical discipline was inforced , and matters of faith establish'd . but generally they met for other purposes ; and did little more than either confirm the estates , or privileges , of some religious houses ; or transact the like particular affairs : and still the general concerns of religion were setled , either by the bishops and abbots apart ; or else , by them , together with the great men , in the common-council , or parliament of the realm . and now having said thus much to clear the way for a right understanding of the method in which ecclesiastical affairs were wont to be transacted , in those times , in which christianity first began to be setled among us , by our saxon ancestors ; i shall go on to take a short view of the most considerable assemblies , whether synods , or councils , that were held in this country , before the time of the norman conquest . it was about the year of christ , that austin the monk having determined to undertake the conversion of the saxons in these parts , with the leave of pope gregory , arrived here : and having with good success persuaded ethelbert , king of kent , to become his proselyte , he from thenceforth began to have a very great authority with him. we are told , by a monkish historian , that about the year of our lord , that king , being now fully confirm'd in the christian faith , did with bertha his queen , and eadbald his son , and with austin his bishop , and the great lords of his land , solemnly keep his christmas at canterbury . and there , in a common council , both of his clergy , and people , he endow'd the monastery , which austin had founded in that city ; and granted several large privileges and immunities to it . i have before observed , that it was an ancient custom of our kings , to keep the three great festivals of the year , with an extraordinary state and solemnity . their bishops and great men attended upon them ; and they appear'd in the highest pomp of majesty , they could put on , among them : and took those occasions to transact such affairs , as they thought expedient for the publick welfare . if there be any credit to be given to this relation , ( for which i dare not answer ; ) then we must look upon this to have been such a civil council : sure we are , that in after-times many were held of the like kind . but tho' in these days the affairs of the church were , for the most part , determined in such meetings ; yet i have before said , that some synods they had which were properly ecclesiastical ; and those i shall therefore think my self concern'd , in the first place , to consider . now among these , ( not to mention the two conferences of austin , with the british bishops ; ) i know of none more ancient than that which was held before king oswi and his son , at streanshealch , in the monastery of hilda ; concerning the time of easter , the form of tonsure ; and ( as florence of worcester adds ) some other ecclesiastical matters . whether king oswi , by his authority , called this synod , it do's not appear : this we know , that he not only consented to the meeting of it , but also sate , with his son , in it , and managed the debates of it . he proposed the business for which they met ; and , at last , finally resolved , what was to be held to , with reference to the points that had been debated . and tho' the argument that determined him to embrace st. peter's tradition , rather than st. john's , ( viz. that he kept the door in heaven , and therefore he durst not contradict him , lest when he came thither the apostle should resuse him entrance ; ) was but very mean , and suitable to the rudeness and ignorance of those times ; yet we see what authority our princes , from the beginning , had , as to these matters ; and how considerable a part they were allow'd in their synods . but more eminent , as well as more exact , were the synods held by theodore , archbishop of canterbury : in the first of which , at herudford , as the bishops of several provinces were assembled , so did they agree with theodore , upon many usefull constitutions , for the government of the church . and as this synod first setled the discipline of the church , in these parts ; so did that of heathfield , which met about seven years after , establish the faith of it . it admitted of the decisions of the five first general councils ; and setled the catholick doctrine of the church against the several heresies which had been condemn'd in those councils . in both these synods it is expressly said that theodore presided ; and so he did , in the next i am to take notice of , which was held at atwyford anno . in which , among other things , st. cuthbert was chosen bishop of lindisfarn ; and , upon easter-day , was consecrated by seven bishops , who attended upon the king at that solemn season . by whose authority these councils were call'd , it do's not sufficiently appear to us : ‖ but that in this last , king egfride was present , we are expressly inform'd . * and the constant custom of the princes in those days , will not suffer us to doubt , but that it was by their direction that their bishops both met , and acted in them. at the council of cloveshoe , anno , not only aethelbald , k. of the mercians , presided , but his princes and officers were present too . yet this was properly an ecclesiastical synod , and the matters transacted in it , all related to the church . nor is this so much to be wonder'd at , seeing in the legatine synods , held by gregory and theophylact , sent hither by pope adrian the first , for that purpose ; our kings not only directed the assembling of them , but , together with their nobles , sate in them : and to testify their consent to what was done , together with their lords , as well as bishops , subscribed to the acts of them. and these are the chief of those ecclesiastical synods , which were held in these times . as for the many others , whose acts remain to us , they are manifestly civil conventions , and most of them such assemblies of the states , as were afterwards call'd by the name of parliaments . among these , as none ought more to be consider'd , so were none more plainly such , than those in which our ancient saxon laws were either drawn up , or publish'd : and a very considerable part of which relate , to the order and discipline , of the church . thus ina made his laws with the consent of his bishops , and all his aldermen : k. alfred collected his , with the advice of all his wise-men . k. edward the elder and guthrun , review'd and enlarged them , as assisted by their wise-men . and tho' , in the preamble to the laws of k. aethelstan , we find mention only made of his archbishop and bishops ; because they indeed only drew up those laws , which were more properly ecclesiastical : yet , in the close of them , we are told , that all these constitutions were publish'd in one of those synods , at which not only wulfhelm , the archbishop , but all his great and wise-men were present ; that is , were publish'd in one of his great councils , by him . k. edmund compiled his laws , in the assembly of his wise-men , as well ecclesiasticks , as lay-men . so did edgar , and ethelred afterwards . and , lastly , canutus , in the preface to his laws , not only tells us that they were made , with the advice of his wise-men , to the glory of god-almighty , the ornament of his kingly majesty , and the good of the common-wealth : but precisely notes the time when he compiled them ; namely , that they were made at christmas in the city of winchester ; where he then kept that feast , and his nobles , according to the ancient custom , attended upon him , and sate in council with him . to run thro' all the other councils of the like nature , in which constitutions have been made , and debates held , concerning things relating to the church ; would engage me in a needless , as well as tedious research . i shall only mention a few of those of chiefest note ; which , together with those before spoken of , may suffice to give us a right understanding , of the nature and quality of them . at becanceld , about the year , withred , king of kent , held a general council ; and if the relation be true , it was indeed of an extraordinary composition . there were present at it , not only the archbishop of canterbury , and bishop of rochester , with the lords and others of the laity ; but the abbots , abbesses , priests and deacons , of the clergy . it was called by archbishop brithwald at the kings command : and not only the king and bishops , but all others of the clerical order subscribed to it . at berghamsted , the same king , about three years after , held another council with his bishops and military men : and by their common consent , made several constitutions , to be added to the laws and customs of kent . but more remarkable is the council at which wulfred presided , under kenulph king of the mercians , anno . at which , as at that of becanceld before , not only a great number of bishops were present ; but , together with the king , came also his princes , dukes and lords : and all these were surrounded with the rest of the holy orders ; abbots , priests and deacons ; treating , with one accord , of what was usefull , or necessary , for the church . i insist not upon the synods of cloveshoe , assembled by beornulfe king of the mercians ; anno , : and both which were evidently great councils of that nation . as were also the council of london , an. : of kingstone , an. : of kingsbury , an. : of winchester , an. : of london , under edred , an. : of brandenford , an. : of london under edgar , an. : of winchester and calne under dunstan archbishop of cant. of aenham , an. : and of westminster , an. . it is sufficiently evident from the instances i have already given , that whatsoever the synod , or council were , in which the affairs of the church were transacted , they depended intirely upon the princes authority : who , for the most part , determined what was needfull concerning them , in the great councils of their realms ; and when they did not , ●et still kept the management , even of their ecclesiastical convocations , in their own hands ; and suffer'd them not either to meet , act , or establish any thing , but according to their good pleasure . ii period . from the coming in of william the first , to the d . of edward the first . hitherto our princes maintain'd their rights , and asserted that authority , which their royal sovereignty gave them , over their clergy . but now the papal power began to shew its self , and to usurp upon their prerogatives : and among other instances in which it did so , this before us was not the least ; till at last it grew up to that monstrous pitch in which we shall find it , about the latter end of this period : when the king was become of little value to his synods ; which were wholly subject to the popes direction ; and depended upon the will either of his extraordinary legats , or of the archbishop of canterbury , to whose see a kind of perpetual legantine power , and authority , was in the end annex'd by him . i should depart too much from my present subject , should i look abroad , and consider by what steps these encroachments were carried on , to the prejudice of the civil power ; and against which , no princes either asserted their authority with greater vigour , or took more care to recover it , when lost by them , than ours did . it shall suffice , as a preparatory to what we shall hereafter meet with , barely to point out to you the artifices that were made use of in order to this end ; and to shew by what secret , and almost indiscernible , workings , they first began to restrain , and at last utterly destroy'd the rights of princes , in the point before us . and first , having either sent their legat into a kingdom , or else constituted some of the chief bishops to bear that character ; the prince , indeed , commanded the clergy to assemble , but the other , as the pope's commissioner , advised the doing of it . thus boniface began the usurpation in the time of carloman , anno . he assisted , as pope zachary's legat , in the third council of germany , in which gervitio , bishop of mentz , was deposed , and the said boniface put in his place . and this council , as the acts of it speak , was held carlomanno jubente , & bonifacio consulente . the prince commanded , the legat advised it to be held . but much greater was the advance which pope john the viii . made in the time of charles the bald , anno . for now the pope call'd the synod , and all the emperour had to do , was to require the pope's summons to be obey'd . so the acts of the synod of pontigon shew ; where we read , that the holy synod was gathered together in the name of the lord , by the calling of john the most blessed , and universal pope ; and at the command of charles the emperour . and in the acts of it , among other things that were determined by it , we find this canon to our present purpose ; that , as the pope had , with the connivance , consent , and joynt-determination of the emperour , resolved to establish ansegisus , archbishop of sens , to be his legat ; and had bestow'd upon him the primacy of france and germany , in calling of synods , and canonically defining such things as were necessary ; so did the fathers of the synod agree to it , and in like manner determine and establish . i might take notice of many things determined in this decree , in manifest derogation of the emperour's authority . but i shall content my self to observe , how by this time the pope , in those parts , had got the power of calling synods wholly into his hands ; and either himself expresly did it , or else gave commission to some other , to do it in his name , and by vertue of his authority . 't is true , the emperour consented to what was done in the present case ; but that was only to allow that particular person , ( one of his own subjects ) to take upon him the character of the pope's legat ; not to enable the pope to grant such a power , which he now assumed to himself a right to do . and accordingly in the second synod of troyes , held but two years after , the same pope coming into france to remedy the disorders of the church , and free it from some oppressions which it lay under ; call'd that synod by his own authority : made what canons he thought needful for those times , and publish'd them in the council ; and the council had the honour to approve , and receive them from him . but as encroachments of this nature being once begun , run still on to a greater excess ; so pope formosus soon carried the usurpation yet farther . he assembled , by his legat , the council of vien , the metropolis of france ; and the bishops met at his command . and from henceforth it became a setled custom , for the pope , by his legats , to call such synods ; and to sit with the bishops in those parts . nor did the pope only , by his legats , call such synods and assist at them ; but even when the king himself was present , the legat now began to preside over them : and to draw even matters of a civil nature before him , and judge of them . so the synod of engelsheim under agapetus the second , and otho the emperour , did : it judged of the wrong that had been done to lewis the th king of france ; and excommunicated the person by whom it was done . to such a slavery had the pope brought the christian world , about the beginning of the period i am now entring upon . he call'd synods ; he presided over them ; he sent what canons he pleas'd to be confirm'd by them , and required their consent to them : and lastly , he drew not only ecclesiastical affairs under their cognizance ; but judg'd of the affairs of princes in them , and the differences that arose among them , concerning their civil authority and jurisdiction . but to none of these invasions would the conquerour ever submit ; but , on the contrary , he held his bishops to the same subjection , which they paid to their saxon princes : and tho' upon occasion , he made use of the pope's authority to serve his own turn , against stigand archbishop of canterbury ; yet that being done , he quickly put a stop to his jurisdiction ; and suffer'd him not to meddle in any matters , but where it was for his interest to allow of it . we are told by one , than whom no one better understood the state of these matters ; that this prince would not suffer any of his subjects to acknowledge any pope , but such as was agreeable to his will and pleasure : and particularly , that he would not endure any synod to be held , by the bishops of england ; or any thing to be determined in any ecclesiastical causes , without leave and authority first had from him , to empower them so to do . and the same was the resolution of his sons after him : and tho' being necessitated for the sake of their civil interests , to yield a little , some of our following princes did submit to the papal usurpations ; yet no sooner was their government grown strong , and their peace setled , but both our kings and our great men , presently began to assert their freedom ; and to cast off those chains , which the pope had watch'd his opportunity to put upon them . so that now then , to give a short account of the method of managing the affairs of the church in this period ; it was briefly this . in the great council of the realm ; ( and which tho' alter'd , in some circumstances , by the conquerour from what it was before , yet still continu'd , in the main , the same : ) as the bishops , and most considerable of the abbots , had a place ; so now , as heretofore , ecclesiastical , as well as civil causes , were handled by them ; and laws pass'd for the government of the church , no less than of the state. in the other , and more select councils of our kings , which in this period were held , sometimes at the great feasts , and sometimes at such other seasons , as our princes thought sit ; ( and to which they took such of their great men only , both ecclesiastical and secular , as themselves thought sit ) many affairs of the church were also debated ; tho' not with such authority , as in the other , more general councils . besides these assemblies , as from the beginning of this period , ecclesiastical synods did often meet ; so in them were the rest of those matters transacted , which appertain'd to the church . but then these , as they met not without the king's licence , so neither did they determine any thing but by his consent ; nor were their acts of any authority until they were confirm'd by him . this was the state of the church , in the beginning of this period ; whilst it , as yet , stood free , from the usurpations of the bishop of rome . how it came to be enslaved afterwards , will better appear , from that particular view , we are now to take , of those councils , in which any thing , of greater moment , relating to the church , has been concluded . i have before observed , how our princes very early began , with great solemnity , to keep the three chief festivals of the year , and to be attended by their bishops and lords at them . at one of these seasons , presently after he was setled in the government , the conquerour commanded a synod to be held ; and made use of the pope's au 〈…〉 rity , and the presence of his legats , to strengthen what he had to do in it . having thus assembled the bishops apart , into an ecclesiastical council , he proceeded not only to deprive stigand , archbishop of canterbury , ( who in some measure deserved it , ) but several others of the clergy ; for no other real reason , but only that he did not love them , or else wanted to have his normans in their places . and having thus proceeded , as far as he thought good , in this council ; he stopt still the next solemn festival : and then in another synod of the same kind , and assembled by the same authority , he went on to farther deprivations ; after the like manner as he had done before . it was at a like meeting of his bishops and lords , about two years after ; that resolving the great council into an ecclesiastical synod , he determined the primacy of the archbishop of canterbury , over the archbishop of york ; and subscribed his name to the acts of it . what that synod was which lanfrank , sometime after , held at westminster , we are not told . this we are inform'd , that it was call'd by the king's command ; and that he was present at this , as he had been at the other two . whether this were the same council which we find recorded by malmsbury , in the life of lanfranc ; or whether there was another assembled the same year , i cannot tell . but that a synod was held about this time at london , we are well assured . in this many ancient canons were revived , and the foundation laid for renewing the ecclesiastical discipline of the church . and because this had not sufficiently determined what was necessary to be done ; the next year after , he held another at winchester , in which several usefull constitutions were establish'd ; the heads of which still remain to us . these are the chief of those ecclesiastical synods , that , we are told , were assembled under k. william the conquerour . and the last of which , however said to have been call'd by lanfranc , who also presided in them ; yet still we must remember what we have before , in general , observed of this king , that the archbishop call'd them by his command : who also approved their acts , before he suffer'd them to have any authority in this realm . for the farther confirmation of which remark , let us only cast our eye upon the conduct of this prince , as to these matters , in his own dutchy of normandy ; and from thence we shall be able the more certainly to judge , what power he claim'd over his clergy , in his new dominions . and here we find that at whitsontide , anno he assembled his parliament at roan . the members who composed it were the same that , in those days , made up ours : there were present , the archbishop , bishops , and abbots of his territories ; and with them the great lords of the laity . being met , they made several laws for the government both of the church and state ; and he was both present at their debates , and by his authority confirm'd what had been agreed on by them . and when some time before , the archbishop of roan held a provincial synod , with his bishops and clergy , purely to consult of the affairs of the church ; and several canons were compiled by them : the acts of it observe that the conquerour was himself , both present at the making of them ; and that he afterwards confirm'd them by his command . such was the authority which this prince exercised over his synods : as for his successor , king william the second , he was not at all less , but rather was more stiff in asserting his rights , as to these matters , than ever his father had been . insomuch that being on a time desired by anselm , archbishop of canterbury , to employ his authority to the restoring of christianity , almost utterly defaced in his realm : he ask'd him , what he would have him do ? command , says anselm , councils to be renew'd , according to ancient custom . there let it be enquired what has been done a miss ; and let a seasonable provision be made for the remedying of it . there has not been held a general council of bishops , since you came to the crown ; nor for some time before . through this defect many enormities have broke out ; and there being none to suppress them , they have , by an evil custom , grown to too great a height . to which the king answer'd , of this i will determine when i see fit ; and that at my own pleasure , not at yours . and he kept his word with him : for during his whole reign , there was no ecclesiastical synod held in england . but what this king deny'd , the next readily complied with : for in the second year of his reign , he consented to the desire of anselm to call a synod , and accordingly at michaelmas , anno , a convocation met , in st. peter's church , near london . at this synod , not only the king , but all his nobles were present : the archbishop desiring they might be fully satisfied in the orders which should be made ; to the end they might the more readily afterwards concurr , with the bishops , in the enforcement of them . for so the iniquity of those times required ; in which for want of synods , vice was grown to an extraordinary heigth , and the fervour of christianity was much abated . it was a long time after this , before any other ecclesiastical synod was held in this country ; but then there met one of an extraordinary nature , and which i must take particular notice of ; because that in it was made , the first considerable invasion , upon the princes authority , as to this matter , in these parts . pope honorius having appointed jo. de crema to go , as his legat , into england ; he met the king in normandy ; and after having been stop'd for some time by him , managed his business so well , as to obtain the king's permission to come over hither . being arrived here , he assembled a national council by his legatine authority , anno . and the method he took of doing of it , is worth our notice : it being the first instance we have , of any thing of this nature that was attempted here . the legate , assuming to himself the king's prerogative , commands the archbishop of canterbury , to issue out his writ for the calling of it . this the archbishop was forced to submit to ; yet being desirous to maintain his own authority , as well as he could , he drew up the writ in these words . william , &c. archbishop of cant. to urban , bishop of landaff , health . i signifie to you by this letter , that john , cardinal priest , and legat of the roman church , has , by our order and connivance , design'd to hold a council at london , the day of the blessed virgin 's nativity . wherefore i command you , that at the time , and place , prefix'd , you fail not to meet us , with the arch-deacons , abbots , and priors of your diocess ; to determine concerning certain ecclesiastical affairs , and to reform or correct , what the sentence of our said convocation shall agree , is to be reformed or corrected . the council being thus assembled , the legate presided in it : he sate not only above the archbishop and bishops , but above all the nobility of england , who came thither . by this pride of his , he raised the indignation of the whole realm against him : and being caught in bed with a whore at night , after having bitterly inveighed against the marriage of the clergy the day before ; he was forced to leave the kingdom , in a very dishonourable manner . but tho' the archbishop therefore did what he could to assert his authority ; yet he was not without a very tender sense of the assront that had been put upon him. to prevent the like for the future , instead of maintaining the rights of his see , and the privileges of his country , ( and , in both which , our nobility would certainly have stood by him , ) he applied to rome for a legatine power to be granted to him ; and so unhappily brought both the kingdom , and his own dignity , under a greater servitude . being return'd from rome with his new character , anno . he , the same year , held a council , not as archbishop , but as the pope's legate ; the first of the kind that ever any archbishop held in england : to this was gather'd , besides the bishops , a great croud , both of the clergy , and of the laity . but these were spectators only ; the bishops alone voted in it : and all the power the king was now allow●● , was , after having heard what was defined by them , to consent to it ; and to give leave to them to put in execution , what had been , as we see , determined by them. but tho' the clergy , by this means , began to get ground upon this prince ; yet it was not very long before he found out a way to be even with them : and that such a one as was very gratefull , to his close , and thrifty , disposition . for about three years after , having observed how little the decrees of the late councils had prevailed , to oblige the clergy to abandon their wives ; in another council held at london , august the st . . he persuaded the bishops to leave the ordering of that matter to himself . which being done , he exacted vast summs of money from the married priests ; and instead of forcing them to leave their wives , gave license to such as would pay for it , to live on freely with them. king henry being dead , it cannot be wondred if the invasions , begun to be made upon the prince's rights towards the latter end of his reign , were not only continued , but encreased , under k. stephen . he , who sounded one part of his title to the crown , upon the papal authority ; could hardly be supposed capable of denying the pope the same power , which his predecessors had allow'd to him : and for the opposing whereof , he had himself so weak a foundation . three synods we meet with , during the reign of this king , and every one held by the legatine power . the first was in the year : it was call'd by albericus bishop of ostia ; and all the favour which was allow'd the king , was , that he was present at it , and help'd to make theobaldus , archbishop of canterbury , in it . but much less was his interest in the next of these synods , which met at winchester , about four years after : and which was not only call'd , without his leave , by the legatine authority of his brother , the bishop of that see ; but was assembled on purpose to animate the clergy against him , and to prepare the way for maude the empress to overthrow him. but the fortune of the king prevail'd : and about the end of the same year , in another synod , of the like kind at westminster , the legate return'd to the king his brother's party ; and recommended it to the people to pay that obedience they owed to him. thus pass'd these affairs in this troublesome reign ; and in which the authority , first usurp'd by the pope , in the time of king henry the first , got new strength ; and began now to plead prescription in its favour . but now the civil state being a little more quiet , the king was thereby in a better condition to assert his ancient rights . and accordingly being inform'd that some foreign hereticks were privily got into england ; he commanded a council of bishops to meet at oxford , and to call them before them : and being accordingly convicted by them , they were publickly punish'd by the civil power . by whose authority the next convention of the clergy was assembled , the year following , it do's not appear . certain it is , that in the election of the archbishop of canterbury , for which they met , all was managed to the king 's content ; and the person chose , whom he recommended to them . after the death of becket , richard archbishop of canterbury , held a provincial council . at this the two kings , both father and son , were present ; and all things were done , not only under their inspection , but the very council was held with their consent and good will ; and the king , with his lords , confirm'd the decrees of it . how these matters flood in the next reign , it will not be very easie to say : in which the king was , for the most part , absent upon his expedition to the holy land ; and by the means whereof , the affairs of the kingdom suffered not a little at home . yet baldwyn the archbishop , designing to accompany the king ; before he set out , assembled a provincial synod , to settle the state of the church ; and to take such care , as he thought needfull , to secure the liberties of his see. it was not long after , that william bishop of eli , held another synod at westminster . but he being endued with the double character both of lord justice of the kingdom , in richard's absence , and of the pope's legate ; as we cannot tell by which authority he called it , so neither can it be doubted but that between both , he had a sufficient authority so to do . and the same was the case of hubert after : who being empower'd both by the king and pope , assembled a synod at york ; presided in it ; and made many useful constitutions for the government of the church . thus stood the affairs of our convocations in these two reigns : we must now go on to another prospect ; to a reign in which , thro' the ill circumstances of the government , and the troubles that fell out by the means of it , the pope ( according to his custom ) made farther invasions upon the prince's right ; and , at last , rais'd up his authority to the highest pitch , that ever it arrived at in this kingdom . the king being absent upon his affairs in france , and hubert still enjoying his legatine power ; by vertue thereof , call'd a synod to westminster , anno : and tho' forbidden by geoffry earl of essex , whom the king had left as lord justice of england , during his absence , yet nevertheless went on with it , and made several constitutions in it . it was about six years after , that jo. ferentinus being sent , as legate , into england , and having got together a vast quantity of money , held a synod at redding , and so took his leave of the realm . from henceforth all things began to run into confusion : the king obstinately opposing the admission of stephen langton to the see of canterbury ; and the pope , thereupon , putting the kingdom under an interdict , and at last excommunicating the king himself . but it was not long , before the pope , and the king , came to an agreement ; dishonourable to himself , and derogatory to the rights both of the crown and kingdom : insomuch that stephen himself opposed it , and joyn'd himself to the barons , against both pope and king , in defence of his countries liberties . it was upon this new agreement between the king and pope , that john doing what he would with the preferments of the church , the archbishop held a council at dunstable , anno : and deputed two of their number to go to the legate , whom the pope on that occasion had sent hither , to stop both his , and the king's proceedings ; by putting in an appeal against them both , to the court of rome . and , the same year , the said legate having received full satisfaction from the king ; and being therefore to relax the sentence which had pass'd both upon him , and the kingdom ; that he might do it with the more pomp , caused a solemn council to be held at st. paul's , london , and there released the realm from its interdict , and restored the king to his royal authority . and here we must put an end to these enquiries , during this troublesome reign . for from henceforth the kingdom was in a continual disorder ; in the midst of which the king , at last , died . but tho' by the wise management of the earl of pembrook his governour , king kenry the d. soon brought things into a better posture in the state ; yet still the usurpations were maintain'd in the church ; and the archbishop , as legate , continued to summon the clergy to his synod . so did stephen langton , anno : in which he held his famous synod at oxford , and publish'd those constitutions which still pass under his name . about four years after , otto the legate coming hither , to enlarge the pope's revenues , before too great in this kingdom ; held a council at westminster the day after hilary , and proposed to the clergy the project upon which he came . to avoid the design he had upon them , the bishops made answer , that the king ( being indisposed ) was absent ; and several of their brethren were not come to the synod , and so they could resolve upon nothing for want of them. the legate , who understood the meaning of this ; proposed to them , that they should , at least , agree to another meeting about mid-lent , and he would undertake that the king should come to it . but the bishops replied , that without the consent of the king , and their brethren , who were absent , they could not agree to any such proposal : and the king himself forbad all who held any baronies of him , to do any thing in prejudice of his rights . so zealous were these men for the king's prerogative ; when they needed it to guard them against the encroachments of the pope ! and so little do men value how differently they behave themselves , when their interests lead them to shift their party , and their opinions ! but tho' the king now joyn'd with his clergy against the pope , yet it was not very long before he himself invited the same otho , to come again , as legate , into england . who being accordingly come hither , held a legantine council at st. paul's , london , in the octaves of st. martins ; to reform the abuses of pluralities , and some other enormities that were crept into the church : and there proposed his constitutions to the clergy , that so by their suffrage and consent , they might be establish'd , for the reformation of the state of the church of england . i insist not upon the two fresh attempts , that were made by this legate upon the clergy , for money ; and in both which he was constantly refused by them : as was also rustandus , who succeeded him ; and , by the like authority , call'd another synod , to fleece the clergy for the pope's advantage . about three years after , boniface archbishop , and legate , held a synod at merton , upon st. barnabas's day . the pope had , the year before , granted to the king the tenths of the clergy , for three years . but the clergy , tho' they honour'd the pope much , yet resolved not to part with their money : and the archbishop held this synod , on purpose to oppose the payment of what he had granted . upon another legate's being sent hither , anno : several councils were this year call'd , and held , in our country . the two archbishops , assembled their respective clergy at london , and beverley : and boniface held another , distinct council at lambeth , and publish'd many excellent constitutions in it . but most famous in these times , as of chiefest authority afterwards , was the council assembled by ottobon another legate , about the year . he had two years before , at the parliament at northampton , assembled the clergy who met there ; and with them excommunicated all such as should adhere to simon montfort , and his party . and now he held this other at london , with the clergy of the whole kingdom ; and therein publish'd those notable constitutions , we still have under his name . it was now become a matter of custom , and accounted a matter of right ; for the legates extraordinary ; and the archbishop of canterbury , as legate of course , to summon the clergy to convocations : insomuch that we do not find this great king , who otherwise was sensible enough of the encroachments that had been made , and were daily making upon the royal authority ; to have been at all offended at it . hence peckham , the archbishop , being return'd from rome , anno , the same year , held a council at redding ; and therein commanded the constitutions of the general council of lyons to be observed . and the next year he assembled another at lambeth ; in which the orders , and constitutions , establish'd by otho , and ottobon , were confirm'd ; and some others added , for the better government of the church . about ten years after , the same peckham again held another synod , at redding : in which , when the king heard that they were attempting some orders in derogation to his authority ; he sent to the archbishop , and bishops , to desist : and upon his threatnings they put a stop to their proceedings , and brake up the council . and thus have we seen what encroachments were made , towards the end of this period , upon the prince's authority , in the subject before us. there were , within this period , ( as all along after , ) besides these national and provincial councils ; several episcopal , or diocesan synods assembled , for the affairs of that particular diocess in which they were held : and some rules were made by them , to be observed by the clergy of that district only . such were the constitutions of alexander , bishop of coventry , anno : of walter , bishop of worcester , made in his synod at worcester , anno : of walter , bishop of norwich , made in his synod at norwich , munday after michaelmas , anno : of giles , bishop of salisbury , anno : and of which , it is not necessary that i should take any particular notice , on this occasion . but tho' the affairs of the church were in great measure handled in these several kinds of ecclesiastical synods ; yet this did not hinder , but that still our kings , with their great councils , did from time to time interpose in these matters ; and order many things relating to ecclesiastical persons , and causes . when wulstan , bishop of worcester , challenged some lands as belonging to his see , which were with-held from it by the archbishop of tork ; the cause between them was judged by william the conquerour , in his parliament at pendrede , the archbishop , bishops , lords , and great men being present . this was manifestly a state assembly ; and by these was the right between the two bishops examined , and determined . but more properly ecclesiastical was the cause which william the second examined in his parliament at rockingham ; upon anselm's resolving to go to rome , and to receive his pall from thence . this the king vehemently opposed ; and declared that the archbishop could not both preserve his fidelity to him , and pay obedience to the pope . and it is observable , that the referring of this cause to the judgment of the parliament , was at anselm's own desire ; who cannot be suspected of doing any thing that he thought , in the least , inconsistent with the liberties of the church . the next great controversie that arose of this kind , was in the second year of king henry the first , about the right of investitures . this was a point much debated in those times , not only here , * but in most of the countries of europe . † to this the king laid a claim , and accounted himself to have as good a title to it , as his father , and brother before him had . upon this occasion the quarrel grew so high between the king and anselm , that the latter was , once more , sorced to leave the kingdom . but the cause was at last brought before the parliament ; and there it was , by mutual consent , resolved , that from thenceforth no one should be invested by the king , or any other lay hand , to a bishoprick or abbey , by the delivery of the pastoral staff or ring ; but yet , upon such a promotion , they should do homage to the king for it ; which was the other thing that pope urban had before insisted upon , as much as upon the point of investitute its self . this matter was scarce ended , when another arose about the marriage of the clergy . and this was , in like manner , ended in parliament , by the authority as well of the king and his lords , as of the archbishops and bishops : and an order made to prohibit all such as were in any clerical order , to cohabit with their wives . there was yet a third great controversie remaining concerning the primacy of the archbishop of canterbury ; and the subjection that was due , from the archbishop of york , to him . this also was brought before the king at whitsontide , and determined by him , with his bishops and lords ; and the authority of the see of canterbury asserted by them . and when , some time after this , thurstine , archbishop of york , refused to be concluded by this decree ; he was in full parliament obliged either to renounce his bishoprick , or to pay obedience to the see of canterbury . no sooner was this king dead , and stephen placed in his throne ; but , in full parliament , he confirm'd the liberties of the church , and made very ample concessions to it . in his parliament at northampton , two years after , he disposed of several ecclesiastical preferments : and that this was the customary manner of those times , may be gathered from the last parliament of this king ; which was call'd by him , as well for the affairs of the kingdom , as to make provision for the church of york , then vacant by the death of st. william , the late bishop of it . how far the parliament still continued to meddle with ecclesiastical affairs , under the next king's reign ; the controversie of that prince with becket his archbishop , may alone suffice to shew . when being angry with the archbishop for excommunicating one who held of him , and did him service , without first obtaining his leave so to do ; he , in his parliment at westminster , proposed to the bishops , that they should promise to observe the ancient laws of the realm . this they refused to do , but with a proviso put in to secure their own liberties . the king resenting this , the archbishop and bishops , in a great council at oxford , promised , that they would submit to what he required of them . but when he thereupon , held his parliament at clarendon , and the particular points which they were to yield to , were proposed to them ; becket , tho' he had at first sworn to observe them , yet afterwards flew off from it ; and never left , till he at last lost his life , in an obstinate opposition of the king's prerogative . from this time the power both of the pope and clergy began very much to prevail . for the king being upon this occasion , forced to a dishonourable submission ; and the following princes , especially king john , sinking their authority still lower ; the efforts which were made by the laity against it , were , for some time , but very seeble : nor could the parliament sufficiently vindicate its power , against the encroachments that were daily made upon the civil jurisdiction . but however , both our kings , and our parliaments , began by degrees to recover their authority , and to return to their former strength ; tho' indeed it was not till about the end of this period , that they did so . and how far they then extended their power both over ecclesiastical persons , and in regulating of ecclesiastical matters ; their acts still remaining , and many of them still in force too , sufficiently shew : and all which are so well known , that i shall not need to insist more particularly upon them . iii period . from the d . of king edward the first , to the th . of king henry the eighth . in the last period , we met with a considerable change , by the usurpation of the pope , and weakness of our princes , made in the exercise of the ecclesiastical supremacy . we are now to account for no less a change in the civil state : if the opinion of those may be admitted , who here fix the first settlement of our parliament , upon that lasting and excellent foundation , upon which it has ever since stood ; and upon which , it is to be hoped , it shall ever continue to stand . that our kings , from the beginning , had their great councils , and which , tho' not yet call'd by that name , were nevertheless instead of a parliament to them ; has before been observed , and cannot be deny'd , or doubted of by any . to these the most eminent persons of the kingdom , as well clergy , as laity , were wont to be called ; before the time of the norman conquest . and when , by occasion thereof , the conquerour made a change in the tenures of lands in this country ; from thenceforth all the great men , and clergy , who held of him by baronies , and ow'd him service thereby , were summon'd by him to his great councils : and with these , all such others as held of him in capite , were obliged to attend at them , whensoever their presence should be required ; and that was , for the most part , as often as the prince wanted money , and expected a supply from them . thus much the charter of king john implies ; and this seems to have been the true constitution of our parliament , till about the latter end of king henry the third's time . how a change was then made , and what occasion was taken for the making of it ; it is not needfull for me , in this place , to enquire : but that in the th . year of that king the commons were summon'd by writ to come to parliament , is confess'd by those who deny that they ever had any place in it before . whether they , from thenceforth , continued to be constantly called to these councils ; or whether there was an interruption in this new establishment , from that time , till about the th . of king edward the first ; as it is hard to determine , so is it not very material to my present business to enquire . that which we are sure of is , that in the th . of king edward the first ; they were again summon'd ; and so have continued ever since to be . but tho' it be therefore confess'd that the commons were constantly call'd to the parliament , from the th . of edward the first : yet it does not appear that the method , now observed , of chusing of them , was so soon brought in . the most ancient authorities that are alledged for this , are the writs of the d . of the same king ; and from which time , accordingly , some have dated the full settlement , of our present most wise , and admirable constitution . and as this is the change which seems to have been made , about this time , in the secular part of our parliament , so have we reason to believe , that at the same time , there was no less a change made in the ecclesiastical part of it . for whereas before , only the bishops and abbots , who held of the king by their baronies , were wont to be summon'd thither ; in the th . of henry . when the commons began to be call'd , several of the inferiour clergy were also call'd together with them ; and that , for ought appears , in a larger proportion than the laity themselves were . and when , in the d . of edward st . the constitution of the parliament came to be setled , as now it is ; the inferiour clergy were put upon the very same foot , that the commons were , in it . and as with respect to the one , a writ was issued out to the sheriff of each county , to return such a certain number of knights , citizens , and burgesses ; so with relation to the other , a clause was inserted into the writ of the bishop of every diocese ; to send the dean of his cathedral , and his archdeacons in person ; and out of the chapter , and archdeaconries , to chuse such a number of proctors , as was thought sufficient to represent the clergy , of each diocess , in it . 't is true , we are told , that in some few writs , at the beginning , this clause was sometimes omitted . by what means , or upon what account , they cannot tell . but then , as we find , that when this general clause was omitted , particular writs were sent to several of the inferiour clergy to come to parliament ; so the same learned person , who furnishes us with this remark , does ingenuously confess ; that after a diligent search of our records , it did appear to him , that these defects were soon over ; and that from the th . of edw. . the clergy have continued to be as duly , and constantly summon'd to parliament , as the commons themselves have been . indeed , so evident is the truth of this , that our greatest lawyers , and antiquaries , do not deny the inferiour clergy to have been once a member of the parliament . my lord coke has told us , that many times they have appear'd there , as spiritual assistants , to consider , consult , and consent : only he affirms , that they never had voices there , because they were no lords of parliament ; the force of which argument i shall leave to the house of commons to answer . in the mean time , i must observe , that in the case of bird and smith , trin. . jac. . upon a deprivation made of smith , by the high commissioners , for not conforming to the canons of the church ; the lord chancellour having call'd popham , lord chief justice of the king's bench ; coke , of the common pleas ; and fleming , lord chief baron , to his assistance ; it was agreed to by all the three , without any exception ; that the canons of the church made by the convocation , and king , without the parliament , shall bind in matters ecclesiastical , as well as an act of parliament : because the convocation of the clergy was once a member of the parliament , but afterwards , for convenience , separated ; and therefore does carry its peculiar jurisdiction along with it , in the convocation house . for which reason also , a clergy-man cannot be chosen a member of the house of commons , nor a lay-man of the convocation ; as coke then declared had been resolved , in a conference of the two houses , hen. . and as concerning the other part of my lord coke's assertion , that the proctors of the clergy never had voices in parliament ; because , in the writ of summons , it is said that they were call'd , ad consentiendum his , quae tunc ibidem , de communi consilio dicti regni nostri contigerit ordinari ; it may suffice to observe ; that tho' this be indeed the present form , yet when both the clergy and commons were first called to this great council , they were both summon'd to another purpose , and in words that did expresly intitle them to act in it . in the d . edw. . the first summons ( for ought appears ) that was ever regularly issued out for them ; they were called , ad tractand . ordinand . & faciend . nobiscum , & cum caeteris praelatis & proceribus , & aliis incolis regni nostri . in the th . edw. . ad faciend . & consentiend . and this continued to be the usual form afterwards . and these are the very words that were used in the commons writs in the same parliament , edward : and which , tho' alter'd about the th . of that king , into others of greater force , ad tractand . consulend . & faciend . yet that form lasted not very long ; but in the of the same king , it again was worded , ad faciend . & consulend . and so has continued to this day . and a more ancient authority than this , in my lord coke's account , has told us , that the clergy were call'd , ad tractand . & deliberand : that their names were call'd over the beginning of every parliament ; that they had a voice in it , and made a part of the commons there . but because this is a point that will best be clear'd by matter of fact ; we will enquire a little what the clergy were wont , heretofore , to do there . for as for the forms of summons , tho' i conceive at first , they were very properly drawn ; and do mark out to us the undoubted rights of those to whom they were sent , as they were allow'd of in those ancient times ; yet how little they may signifie now , the form of our parliamentary writs , in the praemonentes to the bishop , does alone too evidently shew . in the edw. . after the archbishop of cant. and bishop of london had declared , how that the french king designing an expedition to the holy land , had desired our king to go along with him ; and that this was the cause of calling that parliament : sir jeffery le scroop added , by the king's commandment , that the same was called , as well to redress the breach of the laws , and peace ; as for the king 's going to the holy land. the bishops answer'd , that it did not properly appertain to them to counsel in matters of peace , and to prescribe for the punishment of evils : and so together , with the proctors of the clergy , they went apart , to consult about the matters proposed to them . in the th . of the same king , the king appointing commissioners in his stead to begin , and continue the parliament , we find the dean of york , as treasurer , standing next to the archbishop in the commission . and in the parliament , which met the michaelmas before , it being resolved to hold another upon the octaves of hilary ; the archbishops were order'd to summon their respective convocations , to be ready to meet with it . in the th . of the same edw. . at the opening of the parliament , complaint was made , that sundry of all estates were absent ; whereat the king did no less muse , than he was thereat offended . wherefore he charged the archbishop , for his part , to punish the defaults of the clergy , and he would do the like , touching the parliament . and in the same session , the resolution being taken that the king should end the war he was engaged in , either by battle , or an honourable peace ; the king agreed : and in order thereunto , the clergy of cant. granted him a triennial disme ; and the commons two fifteens of counties , and two dismes of cities and towns. it was the usual custom of the commons , in those days , to begin such bills as they thought necessary to have pass'd , by petition to the king in parliament . thus they did in this parliament , edw. . which being ended , the bishops and clergy exhibited their petitions also , being in number seven ; whereto the king answer'd , and the same comprized , in the statute for the clergy , still extant . in the preamble of which , the king takes notice of the triennial disme granted to him by the prelates , and procurators of the clergy , of both provinces . in the rich. . we again find the clergy petitioning in like manner : and in the st . of the same king , the commons , by sir john bussey their speaker , pray the king , that forasmuch as divers judgments were heretofore undone , for that the clergy were not present , therefore they pray'd the king , that the clergy should appoint some to be their common proctor , with sufficient authority thereunto . and the bishops thereupon appointed sir thomas piercie their proctor , to assent in the name of the clergy . and by vertue whereof , when the parliament took a new oath to the king , the bishops and abbots themselves took it , and sir thomas piercie , as proctor for the clergy , was sworn to the same . and when , in the same parliament , sir john bussey offer'd the king a subsidy from the commons , and thereupon desired his general pardon ; the clergy gave the like power to sir william ●e scroop of wilts , to answer for them , that they late did to sir thomas piercie . and when finally , upon the advice of sir john bussey , the lords were required again to swear not to alter any thing of what was done in this parliament ; not only the bishops , and temporal lords did so ; but sundry of the proctors of the clergy , and most of the commons , by holding up their hands , affirm'd that they would do the same . now the main thing done in this parliament , and for the effectual performance whereof , they were so solicitous to have such an authority concurr , as might admit of no exception ; was to annul the proceedings of the duke of gloucester and his adherents , in the th . and th . years of this king , and to prevent the like violence for the time to come . and in the statutes made to this purpose , there is express mention therefore made , of the proctors of the clergy consenting thereunto ; as in the second , and twelfth chapters , of the acts of that parliament , may mor● fully be seen . and tho' in other places they are not particularly mention'd ; yet since those who allow the least to them , do confess , that their assent was taken to what was done ; we must conclude , that they are comprehended under the general name of the commons , even when they are not expresly distinguish'd from them . from what has been said , it appears , that the inferiour clergy were not only heretofore a part of the parliament , but did meet , and act in it . but now after what manner they did so , does not so plainly appear . it has been the opinion of some , who have been very well vers'd in the antiquities of our country , that , at first , the two houses not only met in the painted chamber , at the opening of the parliament ; and at such other times as the king came to it ; but ordinarily sat , and voted , together . but as those who assert this , are forced to confess , that it was , even then , the custom of the several estates to retire , and consult by themselves , of any difficult matters that came before them ; and so return again , and joyntly deliver their opinions : so we are assured , that they had , very early , their several places to meet in , and their several speakers too , to manage their debates . in the th . edw. . the parliament met about the affairs of scotland . the bishops and clergy went apart by themselves ; the dukes and barons by themselves ; and afterwards they deliver'd their joynt answer to the king. and so they did in the th . year of that king : when the pope having sent hither to demand tribute and homage , to be paid to him , we are told , that the bishops went apart by themselves ; the other lords by themselves ; and the commons by themselves . and being returned from their several places , and met together ; they all declar'd their unanimous resolution to oppose the pope's demands . in the th . of the same edward , we find mention made of the place where the commons sat , viz. the chapter-house of the abbot of westminster . and three years before this , upon a demand of money made by the king , to carry on his wars ; the commons sent to the lord's house to desire a conference with them ; and they presently agreed to the proposition , and went into the chamberlain's chamber to treat with them . it is in the st . year of this king that we find the first , express mention , made of the speaker of the house of commons ; tho' there want not very probable conjectures to prove that they had one long before . that upon such times as the whole parliament met , and as long as they continued to sit together ; the proctors of the clergy met together with them , is not to be doubted . their writs summon'd them to the same place , and upon the same business ; and we cannot doubt , but that they met accordingly , at the opening of every parliament together . whether upon the division of the two houses , as the bishops continued to sit with the one , so the proctors of the clergy did also sit , at first , with the other , i am not able to say . but from the time that they had a distinct prolocutor of their own , we must conclude , that they met distinctly : and upon all the divisions we meet with , in the most ancient rolls of parliament , the method still was for each estate to consult together ; the lords temporal by themselves ; the commons by themselves ; and the bishops and clergy by themselves . and when we consider the method that has been taken , from the beginning , of summoning each of these to parliament ; how the temporal lords have their writs particularly directed to them ; the commons theirs , directed to the sheriff of each county , and the bishops and clergy theirs joyn'd together : it may seem not improbable , that as they were summon'd after a distinct manner to the parliament , so they sate too ; and that the bishops , and proctors of the clergy , not only occasionally consulted together , but ordinarily acted as one of the three estates of the realm there . in what place the clergy used to meet , i have not found : but as their other convocations were usually held at st. paul's , so it is not improbable but that , upon these occasions , they may have sate there also . it was the custom of the parliament , in the time of henry the th . that the lords did not sit upon convocation-days ; because then the bishops were absent , and sat with the rest of the clergy . this was in use in the st . year of that king : and afterwards we find , that certain days were appointed , every week , for the convocation to sit ; and on those , the lords only met and adjourned , but entred not upon any publick business . were we well assured of the antiquity of this custom , it would go a great way towards the confirming of what i before proposed : and being joyn'd with those two things of which we are certain ; namely , first , that upon all greater debates , it was the manner of the bishops and clergy to go aside , and consult with one another ; and then , by the archbishop , or some other of the bishops , report their opinion to the other estates : and , secondly , that they separately gave subsidies to the king ; ( as also the lords and commons seem to have anciently done : ) would prompt us to conclude the constitution of our parliament to have been , originally , this ; that when the three estates met together , ( as at the opening of every session , they are still wont to do ; and are by some supposed to have always done at the first ; ) the proxies of the clergy , as well as the commons , either came up to the house of lords , or they all attended the king in the painted chamber . afterwards , when they sate separately , each state met , and consulted , by its self : only the bishops , and parliamentary-abbots , as they appear'd there under a double capacity , so they sate , and voted accordingly : with the clergy in convocation , as members of that estate , on convocation-days ; at other times , with the lords in the upper house ; as members of the baronage of england , by vertue of their baronies . and thus have i accounted for the first original of the convocation , as it was anciently a member of the parliament of this realm ; and is still summon'd by the same writ , by which the bishops are called to parliament , at this day . but there is another respect , under which the clergy , in convocation , may be consider'd ; and of which it will , therefore , be necessary for me to give also some account ; before i go on to take any particular view , of what was done by them under this capacity . i have before said , that when the king orders his writs to be issued out for calling a parliament , he do's , at the same time , direct two others to be sent to the two archbishops , to summon the clergy of their respective provinces , to meet together about the same time . and it will be necessary for me , in the first place , to take notice of the difference there is between these two kinds of summons ; because that , by that , we shall be able the better to judge , what is intended by each of them. first , then ; the parliamentary-writ is sent distinctly to every bishop , ●mmediately from the king ; and the bishop is thereby required to summon the clergy of his diocess , to go along with him to parliament . whereas the convocation-writ is sent only to the archbishop , and he , by the bishop of london , sends to the other bishops of his province ; to meet him with their clergy , in convocation ; according to the king's command . and sometimes , the archbishop heretofore , summon'd them , only by his own authority . . by the parliamentary-writ , the bishop and clergy of each diocess , are to come to the place where the parliament is intended to be opened ; and upon the day appointed for the assembling of it . by the convocation-writ , they are call'd to the chapter-house at pauls , or to such other place as the archbishop appoints ; and that oftentimes heretofore on some other day than that on which the parliament began . . the parliamentary-writ summons them to come to parliament , there to treat , &c. with the king , the rest of the prelates and lords ; and other inhabitants of the realm , concerning the urgent affairs that are there to be deliberated of ; with respect to the king , the realm , and the state of the church of england . the convocation-writ calls them to consult only among themselves ; and that as they shall be directed by the king , when they come together . . by the parliamentary-writ , only the deans , arch-deacons , and proctors of the clergy are summon'd : but the convocation-writ , with these , call'd the regular dignitaries too ; omnes abbates , priores , &c. tam exemptos quàm non exemptos ; and so gave many a place in convocation , that had nothing to do in the parliament . . lastly ; by the parliamentary-writ , they were ever to meet at the very precise time the parliament did : by the other , they not only did not meet always , at the same precise time , but very often at such time as no parliament was sitting . which was the case of the most ancient convocation-writ , i have 〈◊〉 met with , of the edw. ii. and according to which the convocation sate . febr. : whereas the parliament met the october before . it is therefore as plain , as any thing can well be , that the convocation of the clergy , consider'd as call'd by the parliamentary-writs , and sitting by vertue of them ; and the convocation consider'd , as summon'd by the convocation-writ , and the orders of the archbishop , consequent thereupon ; are , in their nature and constitution , two different assemblies ; and which , by no means , ought to be confounded together . the great question is , what the nature of this convocation , as distinguish'd from the parliamentary-convention , is ; and what the design of their meeting originally was ? had these convocations been always assembled by the authority of the archbishop , without any writ from the king ; as oftentimes heretofore they were : and had they meddled only with ecclesiastical matters , when they met ; it would have been no hard matter to give a plain , and certain answer to this enquiry . because , in that case , it would have been evident , that these convocations were no other than provincial synods ; which the archbishop took occasion to assemble ; for the ease of the clergy , and the benefit of the church ; at the same time that they were otherwise required to come together , for the business of the state. and this use our kings were wont sometimes to make of them. they referr'd ecclesiastical matters to them ; and advised with them in things pertaining to religion . but as the form of their summons entitles them to meet upon some urgent affairs , which concern not only the security and defence of the church of england , but of the king too ; and the peace and tranquility , the publick good , and defence of the kingdom : so the main design our princes seem to have had in assembling these convocations , either at the same time they did their parliament , or not long after , was to get money from them : that so , in a much fuller body of the clergy , than what usually came to the state-council ; and consisting of such members particularly , as were most ha●d to be dealt with ; the abbots and 〈◊〉 ; they might either obtain a supply from the clergy there , when they had 〈◊〉 in parliament ; or have that supply confirm'd by them in convocation , which had before been granted to them in parliament . nor is this any vain conjecture , but founded upon a general observation of what was done by the convocation when it met ; and which , for the most part , was nothing else but to confirm , or make an order for money : and even upon the very summons themselves , which were anciently sent to them ; and in which the cause of their meeting was , oftentimes , more particularly express'd , than afterwards it was wont to be . i shall offer an instance of this , in that ancient summons before mention'd , edw. ii. in which it is declared ; that those bishops , and others of the clergy , who were summon'd to parliament , had , as far as they were concern'd , unanimously yielded to a subsidy ; but so , that others of the clergy , who were not summon'd to parliament , should meet in convocation , and consent thereto . and that for this cause the king had sent his writ to the archbishop , to summon all prelates , whether religious , or others , and others of the clergy of his province , to meet at london , post pasch. to treat , and consent of the matter aforesaid . this therefore was the great use which our kings were wont , all along , to make of their convocations ; and from this it came to be the custom to summon them , for the most part , as often as the parliament met ; and , generally , at the same time that it did so . but tho' our convocations therefore , even as ecclesiastical synods , have , by this means , come to be , for a long time summon'd , at the same time that the parliament was to meet ; yet i do not see any reason there is to consine them so closely to such a season , as to make it absolutely necessary , for the king , to call the one , whenever he do's the other . indeed custom , which , in such cases , ought to be allow'd its just force , has prevailed so far , that it may be question'd whether the clergy thereby have not a right to be summon'd to the convocation , as often as the other estates are to the parliament . but as our kings have often been wont to hold convocaons , when there were no parliaments sitting ; so in this very age , we know , the convocation was continued , after the parliament was dissolved ; and our most eminent in the law declared that it might lawfully be so . how long our archbishops went on , by their own authority , to call these convocations , i am not able precisely to determine . but as it is observed by one , who has been very curious in these remarks , of simon langham first , that he summon'd such synods , partly at the desire and command of the king ; and partly without the king's letters , at his own pleasure : and of thomas arundell after , that the convocation of , as almost all the others of his time , were called by the sole letters and command of the archbishop ; tho' , nevertheless , he sometimes held them at the desire of the king , and by vertue of his letters , for the publick affairs of the realm : so it is plain , that , not only in these times , the king did often send his orders to the archbishop for this purpose ; but that from the very time of edward the first , he had been constantly used so to do . and it is no improbable con 〈…〉 ure of our church-historian , that about the end of arundell's time , the king began wholly to assume this power ; and that from thenceforth no convocations were call'd , but at his command . that this was the case in henry the eighth's time , the act of his th . year , chapt. . tells us : and whosoever shall weigh the introduction of that statute , will see cause to conclude , from the wording of it , that so it had been for some considerable time before . and now , having thus prepared the way for a right understanding of the nature of the convocation , as it was first setled in the beginning of this period ; and has , from thence , been derived down to us : let us go on to take a brief view of the chiefest of those meetings , of which any account remains to us ; and from thence we shall be able more clearly to discover the nature of them , and what dependence , of right , they ought to have upon the royal authority . no sooner was winchelsea made archbishop of canterbury , but he presently turn'd his mind to the reformation of his court of arches ; and for the better accomplishing thereof , call'd a provincial synod , in which he publish'd those orders for the regulation of it , which still remain to us under his name . the next year after , the same archbishop held another synod ; and therein agreed , that a sentence of excommunication should be publish'd against all such as should infringe the liberties , granted by the king , in his great charter , and charter of the forest ; and that the copies of them , ( order'd by the king and parliament , to be sent to every cathedral church , ) should , according to their command , be publickly read to the people assembled there . there were some other things done in this convocation , for the better securing of the privileges of the church ; and an order publish'd by the archbishop , throughout his province , to make known to the clergy what had been resolved by them. what was design'd to have been done in the convocation again , called the year following , is not known . all that we are told of it , is , that two fryars appear'd there , in behalf of the king , to shew , that notwithstanding the pope's prohibition , the clergy might lawfully grant a subsidy to the king , to help him in his wars : which being done , they laid a command upon the clergy , under pain of imprisonment , not to publish any sentence of excommunication , either against the king , or against any that put themselves under his protection : and thereupon the synod immediately broke up . for the better understanding of which , we must know , that the archbishop had procured a bull from rome , to forbid the clergy to grant the king any farther assistance , without his leave first had for the doing of it . the king hereupon put the clergy out of his protection : and then the clergy granted him a fifth part of their goods ; only the archbishop himself stood out , and had his goods confiscated . but , so ill were the circumstances of the king at that time , that he thought it not safe to contest it with him ; but , in a little time , return'd again to peace with the archbishop , and restored his goods to him. but this reconciliation lasted not long ; the king seeming rather to have waited for an opportunity of doing him a mischief , without hurting himself , than to have truly forgiven him . and therefore being now in better circumstances with the pope , he accused the archbishop of having been the chief fomenter of all the late troubles he had met with , from his barons ; and forced him to go to rome to answer for it . and when , in the last year of his reign , he held his parliament at carlisle , an. : he caused an inhibition to be put upon william de testa , a new legate , sent to get up more money here ; and a restraint to be laid upon such monks as had lands in england ; but whose capital houses were in other kingdoms . so earnestly did this king labour to recover his authority , from those intollerable usur pations that had been made upon it . no sooner was king edward the second , his son , crown'd ; but he gave the archbishop , now return'd from rome , to understand , that he would not suffer his realm to be obliged , either by the decrees of the general council of lyons abroad ; or by the constitutions of otho and ottobon at home , against his consent : and therefore , that he should not deprive any of his chaplains of their benefices , on any pretence of pluralities , or non-residence . but still the pope's authority both in assembling , and managing of our convocations , nevertheless prevailed . an eminent instance of which we have , in the convocation held the year after , and from whence we may collect , how they were order'd about this time . the pope having resolved to suppress the order of the knights-templers , summons a general council to m●et at vienne . to this he invites , or rather commands , our archbishops and bishops to come . and that they might be the better prepared for what they were to do there , he requires the archbishop of canterbury to assemble a provincial synod , and therein to deliberate about the affairs of the knights-templers ; and to dispose the way , for their more essectual condemnation at the general council . the archbishop having received this order from the pope , immediately sends his writ to the bishop of london , requiring him to call the bishops and clergy to a convocation . the bishop of london sends abroad his summons accordingly : and when they met , the usual preliminaries being over , the pope's bulls were , in the first place , read ; next the bishop of london's certificate , to shew what he had done , in obedience both to the pope's , and archbishop's , command : and so they proceeded to the business for which they were called . and here then we have a full representation , of the state of our convocation , and how it was managed in these times . great was the usurpation which the pope , in all this , made upon the king's authority : and it ought the rather to be taken notice of , because this archbishop was otherwise , a hearty friend to the liberties of his country , and had a true respect and value for the king ; whose follies and excesses wrought so far upon him , that they are at last thought to have broke his heart . the next archbishop that succeeded him , as he came in by the pope's authority ; so , to maintain his power the better , he took care by such means , as seldom fail in the roman court , to gain mighty privileges from that see. being supported with these , he proceeds to make a provincial visitation ; holds several synods at oxford , lambeth , and in other places . and in one at westminster , publishes his provincial constitutions . and all that the king was able to do , was to send a prohibition to him not to attempt , or do any thing to his prejudice ; or to the prejudice of the state , his crown , or kingdom . as for simon mepham , who succeeded this archbishop , he held some few synods , and made some provincial constitutions ; in neither of which , there is any thing extraordinary to be observed . and the same must be said of the convocations held by archbishop stratford , who follow'd after : in all which , there is little to be taken notice of , more than this , that what constitutions were made by them , he ordered to be observed by his own authority , and to be publish'd by the clergy throughout his province . but here , tho' it be not necessary to our present purpose , yet it may not be amiss to observe , how our kings began , by degrees to assert their authority , and to put a stop , if not an end , to the usurpations of the court of rome . it was about the year , that the pope desiring to encrease his revenue here , sent a message to the clergy to perswade them , out of the two provinces of canterbury and york , to maintain too cardinals at rome . this being brought before the parliament , it was resolved , by the common consent of that great council , to let the pope freely know , that they were grown weary of his impositions , and neither could , nor would bear , any longer , those burdens , which he was continually laying upon the kingdom . for which end , it was also resolved , that whosoever procur'd any benefice in this realm , by vertue of the pope's provision , should be obliged to come and live upon it , and not be suffer'd to draw the wealth of the nation into other countries : and least this should not do , it was also farther establish'd , that no one should be admitted to any benefice , upon the authority of any bull from rome , without the king 's special license and consent . and all the lords and nobles declared , that if the pope went on , by his provisions , to dispose of benefices , whether to foreigners , or others ; which their ancestors had given , by way of charity , to religious persons to pray for them ; they would forthwith seize them into their own hands , and dispose of them as they thought good . this was a brisk stand , and some restraint it did put to the pope's exorbitancies . and yet it was but a year after , that he sent two bishops to the king to prevail with him to revoke these orders : but our historians tell us , that they received a short answer , and presently return'd home again . and the next year following , the king put a fine upon all foreign clergy-men ; and took of every one according as they were able to give . it would be too long for me to say , how far this great king , following herein the steps of his royal grandfather , king edward i. proceeded to maintain his own authority , and the liberties of his country , against the papal encroachments . i shall only add , that notwithstanding all the endeavours of the court of rome to the contrary , he constantly adhered to the laws made against provisors , &c. and when the pope publish'd his indulgence at rome , anno : he not only expresly forbad any of his subjects to go thither , but recall'd those who were already there . but to return to our convocations , and the method observed in holding of them . when the archbishop complain'd in the parliament , of the violation that was made of the privileges of the church , in that clergy-men known to be such , were oftentimes forced to appear before the king's judges ; it was freely told him , that in this , nothing was done but what was absolutely necessary to the peace of the realm : for that the ordinary was so negligent in punishing of them , that there would be no bounds set to their excesses , unless the civil magistrate took some care to restrain them . the archbishop was sensible that this was but too true : and thereupon he went apart with his parliamentary clergy , and by their common advice and consent , set forth an order , for the more severe confining and punishing of such offenders . as for the other synods , held by this archbishop , there being little remarkable in them , i shall not need to insist upon them . it was about the year , that the famous statute of proemunire was pass'd , and by which it was hoped , that an effectual stop would have been put to the usurpations of the see of rome . and indeed it has been said by some , that from this time forward , our archbishops did leave off to summon convocations by their own authority , and call'd them only at the king's command . but tho' i am not altogether satisfied in this particular , yet that they now began to be more moderate in the exercise of their power , i do easily believe : and certain it is , that not only after this act , but all along before , when things ran at the highest against the royal prerogative ; yet still our kings often interposed their authority , and summon'd convocations by their own writs , directed to the archbishop , as they still continue to be at this day . and now the preaching of wickliffe , and the opinions by him brought in , began to be taken notice of : insomuch , that courtney , being archbishop , thought it needfull to hold a synod at london , on purpose to pass a sentence of condemnation upon them . whether he did this at the king's command , or by vertue of his own legatine authority , i shall not enquire : but this we are assured , that the king thereupon issued out his orders for the arresting of all such as held any heretical tenets ; and particularly that opposed the doctrine of the church agreed upon in that convocation and the same was the business of the councils held by arundel , his successor , first at oxford , anno ; then at london , anno . and lest the orders of such synods should not be sufficient to put a stop to the growth of these opinions , the civil power was not only allow'd , but desir'd , to interpose with them ; and an act made for the prosecution of hereticks , anno , hen. . but tho' by this means therefore a new subject was started , to exercise the debates of our convocations ; yet still the pope ceased not to attempt upon the crown with his wonted usurpations . to oppose which , richard the d . call'd his clergy together , anno : and demanded of them , whether the pope had power to translate bishops , and dispose of preferments , as he had again that year notoriously done . instead of giving any direct answer whereunto , they cautiously reply'd ; that it was their opinion the king should write to the pope to desist from such practices for the time to come . at which the king being justly offended , told them , that had they boldly asserted his right , he would have firmly stood by them ; and have protected them against the power of the court of rome . king richard being deposed , and king henry being willing to ingratiate himself with the clergy , scarce a year pass'd without a convocation : the main business of which still was to suppress the new opinions , and to prosecute the maintainers of them. but except this , there is little , from this time forth , to be observed , to our present purpose , in them. but tho' i shall not therefore need to insist any farther , upon the particular view of the convocations of these times ; yet a law there is , which must not be pass'd by . it was made in favour of the clergy , by king henry the sixth , anno . and the substance of it is , that the clergy in convocation , should be allow'd for themselves , and their servants , all the same protections and privileges , which had been granted to members of parliament ; and , which by vertue thereof , they still continue to enjoy . i shall close up these remarks , with the account of one other convocation , and that such as is not to be parallell'd , in all its circumstances , in any part of our history . king henry the eighth , having call'd a parliament to westminster , anno ; commanded warham , archbishop of canterbury , to summon a convocation of the clergy to meet , about the same time , in st. paul's church , london . cardinal woolsey , who , as archbishop of york , had no place in the convocation , and was desirous to bring every thing within his own management ; by his legatine power dissolves the convocation held , at the king's command , by warham ; and orders the same synod to appear before himself , as the pope's legate , the next day , at westminster . where having got a sufficient subsidy granted by them to the king , he soon dismiss'd the assembly . and thus have i given a brief account , of the most considerable assemblies of the clergy in convocation , during this third period . many there are , which i have pass'd by , without making any mention at all of them. and it may be sufficient here , in the close of all , to say this one thing concerning them ; that , for the most part , the great end our kings had in summoning of them , was to get money from them ; as , the main thing they did , when they met , was to consider what measures to take , and what excuses to urge , to avoid the giving of it . iv period . from the th . of king henry the eighth , to our present times . we are now come to the last part of these reflections ; to the time in which our convocation was finally setled , by parliamentary authority , in the state in which it now stands ; and under which condition i have , in the foregoing chapter , consider'd the rights of it . i shall here only give a short account , how it came to be thus setled ; and what methods our princes have , from thenceforth , taken , for the management of their ecclesiastical affairs , and the exercise of their ecclesiastical supremacy . king henry the eighth , having been a long time trifled with , by the court of rome , in the business of his divorce ; and being not of a humour to bear such an opposition , as was thereby made to his desires ; resolved , at last , to break off all communication with it : and , in pursuance thereof , pass'd an act against appeals to rome , and for ending ecclesiastical suits within his own realm ; anno . it was not long after this , that warham dying , and cranmer being made archbishop of canterbury ; the business of the divorce , which had so long been depending , was finally determined by him. the news of which being got to rome , the pope not only annull'd the archbishop's proceeding , but commanded the king to do it likewise : and , upon his refusal to hearken to him , publish'd against him a sentence of excommunication , as he had before threatned to do . to prevent that breach , which this must otherwise have necessarily made between them , the french king interposed so effectually with the pope , ( who , about this time , came as far as marseilles to treat with him ) that he offer'd new terms of accommodation to king henry ; and the archbishop of paris , thereupon , undertook to make up the difference betwixt them. and now all things seem'd to tend to peace : the king was willing to accept of the pope's offers ; and the pope no less desirous to gain the king. the misfortune was , that the pope confined him to so short a time , that his messenger could not get to rome so soon as had been required : and the imperial faction wrought so powerfully upon the pope , that he refused to enlarge it but for six days ; till he might see what the king would do , before he proceeded to a final sentence against him. the quarrel therefore now being come to a heighth , and the king resolved to maintain his authority ; many laws were pass'd , the next year , for the better establishment of it . and because he was sufficiently aware , that his chiefest opposition might be likely to arise from the clergy ; he resolved to take an effectual course with them : and of which , it will be requisite , to give some short account . i have before observed , what severe laws were made by edward the third , in his th , th , and th years , against the usurpations of the bishop of rome . these were confirm'd by king richard the second , in his th , and th years . and , because the pope still went on , nevertheless , in his practises ; in his th year , the famous act of praemunire was pass'd , against all bulls , &c. from the court of rome , under pain of perpetual banishment , with the forfeiture of the lands , tenements , goods and chattels of those who should either procure , or make use of them. but , notwithstanding these laws , the pope still proceeded in his own way , and the clergy were always ready to assist him in it : and by these means there were but very few , of any note , among them ; who had not , upon some account or other , incurr'd the penalty before mention'd . upon this ground , therefore , the king resolved to attacque them : and they being well aware of the danger of it , determined by any means to avoid it . in order whereunto , they first agree to offer the king a summ of money ; and , in the next place , by an act of convocation , to submit themselves to him , and recognize his royal authority over them. this was that submission , upon which the act for regulating the convocation , was drawn : and in which , among other things , these ( two ) points became setled , both by parliament , and convocation : first ; that the clergy have no right to meet in any synod , without the king's license , testified by his writ to the archbishop . and , secondly ; that being met , they cannot proceed to act , but according to his direction . thus was the crown , after a long invasion upon it , restored to those rights it anciently enjoy'd ; and which our kings , as we have seen , continued to assert , till the papal power , or interest , became too strong for them. and accordingly , ever since , the convocation has continued to assemble , and act , according to these measures ; so that i shall not need to take any more particular view of its proceedings . it is , i conceive , without all doubt , that since the passing of this act , the convocation has still been summon'd , as often as a parliament has been held . and as long as the clergy , therein , continued to assist the government , by granting of subsidies ; it has generally been allow'd to sit too , as often as it was necessary for that purpose ; tho' it has seldom done any thing besides . but altho' it has t 〈…〉 efore been the general custom , for the convocation to meet , whensoever the parliament do's ; yet neither since the passing of this act , nor before , have these two been accounted to have so inseparable a relation to one another , but that ( if the king pleased ) the convocation might be held , when the parliament was not : and the parliament sit , and act , and yet the convocation do neither . an instance of the former of these , we have within , about four years after the passing of the convocation-act . the archbishop , by order of the vicar-general , call'd a convocation anno . and the clergy accordingly , both met , and did business , tho' no parliament was held that year . as for the latter , it is a matter of daily practise , and has been so ever since the reformation . it is certain then that the convocation , as we now understand it ; that is to say , as it is an assembly of the clergy , call'd by the king 's writ , directed to the archbishops , and , by their order , grounded thereupon ; is an assembly altogether different from the parliament of this realm ; and evidently no member of it . the only question is , what we are to think of it , when it meets together with the parliament ; and has a pretension to its assembling , as well by the bishop's parliamentary summons , as by the archbishops orders . when mr. philpot was examined before the lords of the council , novemb. the th . anno : concerning the heresie of which he was accused ; one part of his plea , for himself , was , that they took advantage of certain things that had been spoken by him in convocation ; and that for this he ought not to be call'd to account ; because that house being a member of the parliament , ought to be a place of free speech for all men of the house , by the ancient and laudable custom of this realm . and indeed , so firmly was this notion setled in the minds of the clergy , in those days , that in the convocation held the first year of edw. the sixth , a motion was made ; that it should be desired , in the name of the lower house of convocation , that their house might be united to the house of commons . but the lords , rich and windsor , told mr. philpot , that the convocation was no part of the parliament , tho' by an old custom , it was call'd together by one writ of summons , with the parliament . to their opinion , mr. philpot submitmitted ; nor shall i pretend to enter any plea against it . thus much is plain , that the convocation was once accounted , in this respect , a member of the parliament : and the reason why it was accounted so , was ; because , by this writ of summons , the lower clergy were called , no less than the bishops themselves , to it . now thus they continue to be summon'd still . the writ is the same it ever was : is as constantly issued out , and as expressly worded ; as when they were , from thence , confess'd to be a part of the parliament . and therefore the reason of the thing being the same , one would think it should still inferr the same conclusion . but logick is one thing ; and law is another : and all this notwithstanding , the clergy is now , no member of the parliament . nor is there any reason why it should be : for now , there being so many learned bishops there ( i suppose heretofore there were no bishops there ) their presence , is no longer holden necessary . so my lord coke has learnedly determined this matter . which makes me the more wonder , that the presence of the inferiour clergy being no longer holden necessary , it should nevertheless be holden necessary to continue their summons ; and not rather be thought adviseable to reduce the bishop's writ to its first form , when the proctors of the clergy not coming , neither were they summon'd to parliament . such then is the case of our present convocation : but now , besides these provincial synods , there is another sort of more select conventions , if not first introduced , yet more especially made use of , in this last period : and they consist of such certain bishops , and clergy-men , as the king thinks sit to choose , and by his commission to authorize , to meet together , at such time , and in such place as he therein prescribes to them . to these he proposes , whatsoever it be , that he would have them to consult about ; and having so done , they are to lay the result of their opinions , according to his direction , before him. that by such synods as these , the reformation was especially carried on , is not to be deny'd . they have often determined the greatest matters : and , upon their advice , the government has accordingly proceeded , without ever consulting any larger convocation concerning them . but this was in some measure owing to the necessities of those times , in which a great part of the clergy were yet engaged in the romish errors ; enemies to the reformation , and therefore not qualified to promote so good a work. at present their business is chiefly this ; either to advise the king in such matters , as he do's not think it necessary to trouble the convocation to meet about : or else , in matters of a greater moment , to prepare what may be sit for the king to lay before the convocation ; that since they must not debate on any thing without his leave , he may thereby be the better enabled to propose what is expedient to them. so that now then , if we would know , after what manner ecclesiastical affairs have been transacted , since the time of the reformation ; we shall find it to have been , by some or other , of these five following ways . . sometimes the king has , by his own authority , set forth such orders , as he has thought fit should be observed by the clergy of the realm ; and directed them to his archbishops , and bishops , for that end. such was the letter of his present majesty to the bishop of london , ( as to matters of practise ) of febr. . / : to be communicated to the two provinces of canterbury and york . and such were his injunctions ( with respect to matters of faith ) by which he lately determined , with what sobriety they should write , and preach , concerning the doctrine of the trinity : to reduce some of our late controvertists , to the ancient modes of speaking ; and not suffer them to affect new terms , to the hazard of the ancient faith ; and to the scandal of many of the same profession with themselves . . another method of determining ecclesiastical matters , has been , by the authority of the king and parliament , without the help of any other ecclesiastical deliberation , than what the archbishops , and bishops , in the upper house , have given to them . many are the acts of this nature which have pass'd , i do not say since the reformation , but even within our own memories . such were , ( for example ) the acts against conventicles , in the th , and d of king charles the second . the two test-acts ; in his th and th years : in a word ; the act of toleration , in the first of his present majesty ; not to mention any others of an elder date . dly . a third way , now made use of , in transacting ecclesiastical matters , is , to do it by such select committees , as those i before mentioned . when the king , having first appointed a certain number of bishops and clergy-men , to consider what may be fit to be order'd in such cases , as he thinks fit to referr to them ; afterwards sets forth , by his royal authority , what has , by their advice , been recommended to him. after this manner was the reformation , in great measure , carried on ; and the most important affairs of the church dispatch'd : as by the short collection , here referr'd to , may more fully be discerned . thly . a fourth way there is , which our princes have often taken , in these cases ; and that is , to referr not to a particular committee , but to their two convocations , what they would have done : and having seen , and approved their conclusions , to give their royal assent , and authority , thereunto . upon this foundation stand our book of canons , drawn up by the convocation of , and ratified , and confirm'd , by king james the first : and after the same manner were those drawn up , which gave so much offence in our late times ; and were authorized by king charles the first : anno . but , above all ; as the most solemn , so the most undoubtedly authoritative way , of transacting such matters as these , is , thly . when the king designing any constitution of a more than ordinary concern to the church , or realm ; do's , for the more prudent establishment of it , first , by a select committee , prepare what he thinks needfull to propose to the convocation concerning it ; then has it examined , and concluded there : and having re-view'd it with his privy council , and his learned council in the law ; finally referrs it to his two houses of parliament : where being also consented to , and approved of , he finally himself subscribes to it , and makes it a part of the statute-law of the realm . thus has our common-prayer , from time to time , been setled : our episcopal government , and ordinals , been confirm'd ; and , finally , our nine and thirty articles been establish'd . but as the choice of these several methods of carrying on such affairs , requires much prudence in the determination ; so has our law intirely submitted it to the prince's authority . and we ought not to doubt , but that he will act in these matters , with all that care , and advice , which both the nature of the things themselves requires , and the influence which they commonly have on civil affairs , oblige him to do . 't is true , the affection which some men have for their own ways , may prompt them to think that worthy the meeting of a convocation , which the king may be perswaded his own injunctions , are abundantly sufficient to provide for . but as all men must allow , that it would not only be grievous , but foolish , to assemble a synod , for the doing of that , which may as effectually be done without it ; so all reasonable men must think it very just , and equitable , that his majesty should be left to that liberty , which both the law has intrusted him with , and his own reason ( were there nothing else ) vindicates to him ; i mean , of considering what he thinks , in such cases , to be most sitting to be done , and to act accordingly . if by this means he should chance to be mistaken in his choice , 't is a humane infirmity ; and what good men will easily make an allowance for , in a station where so much is to be done , and it is so difficult , oftentimes , to judge what is best . and let the positive , censorious part of the world , if for nothing else , yet , at least , for their own sakes , consider this ; that a kingdom is a large place ; and that 't is not impossible , but that among such numbers of men , as there are in it , some may be as firmly persuaded the prince is in the right , as they can presume that he is in the wrong . chap. v. the opinion advanced in the late letter to a convocation-man , stated : and the arguments examined , by which the author of it pretends to prove , . that the convocation has a right to meet , whenever the parliament do's : and , . that being met , it has also a right to act , without any licence from the king , to empower it so to do . having now very fully , and , i think , very clearly establish'd , the undoubted right of our kings , in the matter before us ; i proceed , according to my method , at first , laid down ; iii dly . to examine , what the author of the late letter to a convocation-man , has offer'd , to overthrow the conclusions , before establish'd ; and to consider , what may fairly be replied to his pretences . in pursuance whereof , that i may be sure not to fix any opinions upon him , which he has not really advanced ; i will , in the first place , draw up the points in controversie between us , in his own words ; and so go on to consider , what arguments he has brought to make good his assertions , and to justifie that unusual confidence , with which he has deliver'd them . our author then , having first briefly insinuated , against all such as pretend to any religion among us ; that they ought to allow the church an inherent , unalterable right , to the exercise of its ecclesiastical power ; that is to say , to apply the law of god to particular cases ; to explain the doubts that may arise concerning it ; and to deduce consequences from it , in things not explicitely determined already by that law ; and this , not by way of doctrine , or exhortation , but in a judicial , authoritative manner ; by making of canons , and articles ; and by enforcing submission , and obedience to its determinations : proceeds , in the next place , for their sakes , who have no religion at the bottom , nor any notion of a church , however for their worldly interest , they may pretend to this , or that party , by joyning themselves to its communion ; to shew , what the law of their country says in this case ; that so they may be for ever silenced in this question ; and not dare to mutter any more , after what this new pythagoras shall have declared to them. and having thus engaged our attention , he proceeds oraculously to pronounce : know therefore , says he , that a convocation is an ecclesiastical court , or assembly , essential to our constitution ; and establish'd by the law of it . it is the highest of all our ecclesiastical courts , or assemblies : is called , and convened , in parliament - time , by the king 's writ , directed to the archbishops . it consists of all the clergy of both provinces , either personally , or representatively present . in the upper house , are the archbishops , and bishops : in the lower house , or house of commons spiritual , are the deans , arch-deacons , one proctor for every chapter , and two for the clergy of each diocess . this is the court. the frequent sitting of this court , is one of the chief rights of the church of england . — the church of england is a national church ; and to such it is certainly incident to have national synods , or convocations . and in like manner to those synods , to have freedom of speech , or debate , about matters proper for their cognizance ; relating to the being , or well-being of their body , as a church . — and if the church of england have any rights , or privileges ; this of assembling , debating , and conferring , is certainly one , and the chief of them. 't is true , a convocation cannot assemble without the assent of the king. his writ is necessary in order to it . — and his prerogative do's empower him , to prohibit the clergy assembling in synod , without his summons . — but then it is as true too , that the assembling of them is not entirely dependant on his will ; — nor lodged purely in the breast of the sovereign . but it is with the convocation , as it is with the parliament ; the king is intrusted with the formal part of summoning and convening it ; but so , that by the very essence and constitution of our church , a convocation ought , at certain times , to meet , sit , and act ; and the fundamentals of our government shew him , when , and how his power ( in this respect ) is to be exercised ; and that it ought not to be at his free will and pleasure . to grant therefore , that the king's writ is necessary to the assembling of the convocation : the question is , whether that writ ought not to issue , whensoever a summons goes out for a parliament ? and to this we say , that the law of the realm hath directed the king , or at least his chancellour , keeper , or other minister , having the custody of the great seal ; to issue forth such writs ; and they can no more be omitted , than any single peer's summons to parliament . thus far our way is plain , and clear : but supposing all this , the question still is , whether or no the convocation may conferr , after their summons , and meeting , without the king ' s special license and assent ▪ in answer to which , i must acknowledge , that the common , received opinion , is in the negative : however if what has been offer'd already , with regard to their convening , have any weight in it ; it must hold also , in some degree , with respect to their conferring , and treating , when met , about matters proper to their cognizance . if they are a court , and have their jurisdiction ; and are a legislature , and have the power of making ecclesiastical laws ( both which they certainly are , and have ; ) then the liberty of conferring , and discussing , is necessary to their very existence , &c. this is the summ of what this author has asserted , as to the point in question ; and , for the most part , is express'd in his own words . let us now see , wherein we differ from one another ; and reduce the matter in debate between us , to as narrow a compass , as we can . and , st . tho' i will not enter upon a new subject , yet i must needs say , i am by no means satisfied , that the church has either command , or authority from god , to assemble synods ; or , by consequence , any inherent , and unalterable right , to make any such authoritative definitions , as he supposes , in them. i am not aware , that either in the old , or new testament , there is so much as one single direction given for its so doing . and , excepting the singular instance which we have acts xvth , i know of no example , that can , with any shew of reason , be offer'd , of such a meeting : and whether that were such a synod , as we are now speaking of , may very justly be doubted . the foundation of synods , in the church , is ( in my apprehension ) the same , as of councils in the state. the necessities of the church , when it began to be enlarged , first brought in the one ; as those of the common-wealth , did the other . and therefore , when men are incorporated into societies , as well for the service of god , and the salvation of their souls , as for their civil peace , and security ; these assemblies are to be as much subject to the laws of the society , and to be regulated by them , as any other publick assemblies , of what kind soever , are . nor has the church any inherent , divine right , to set it at liberty , from being concluded by such rules , as the governing part of every society shall prescribe to it , as to this matter . this is my notion of these things ; and thus , i conceive , synods are to be managed in christian states . as for those realms in which the civil power is of another persuasion ; natural reason will prompt the members of every church , to consult together , the best they can , how to manage the affairs of it ; and to agree upon such rules , and methods , as shall seem most proper , to preserve the peace and unity of the church ; and to give the least offence , that may be , to the government under which they live . and what rules are by the common-consent of every such church agreed to ; ought to be the measure for the assembling , and acting of synods , in such a country . whether this notion will please this author , or no , i cannot tell : if it do's not , i hope he will shew me wherein my error lies , and how i may correct it . in the mean time , this security i have , that , if i am mistaken , i err with men of as great a judgment , and as comprehensive a knowledge in these matters , as any can be who differ from me. but to come to that which i am now more properly to examine : that the two convocations , consider'd as a national synod , are the highest ecclesiastical assembly of this kingdom , i readily agree : nor shall i deny , but that a convocation may be said to be essential to our constitution . but that the frequent sitting of convocations , as understood by this author , and meant of their sitting as often as the parliament meets ; is therefore one of the chief rights of the church , or , indeed , any of its rights at all , unless by accident , i utterly deny . when the exigencies of the church call for a convocation , and there is a manifest need of its assembling ; then , i do confess , the church has a right to its sitting . and if its circumstances be such , as to require their frequent sitting ; during those circumstances , it has a right to their frequent meeting , and sitting . and , if the prince be sensible of this , and yet will not suffer his clergy to come together ; in that case , i do acknowledge , that he would abuse the trust that is lodg'd in him ; and deny the church a benefit , which , of right , it ought to enjoy . but as , in a well-establish'd church , it can hardly be supposed that there should be such a frequent need of convocations ; so to oblige the clergy frequently to come together , when there is no manner of reason for their so doing ; would be , in truth , to injure the church , and oppress its ministers : in-as much as it would require them to leave their cures , and be at the trouble , and charge , of attending the convocation , without doing any manner of good , either to the church , or realm , by such their meeting . and therefore , to settle this first point ; the summ of it is this : that the church has a right to have its convocation call'd , as often as the parliament is assembled , i agree : that the convocation , thus called , has a right to sit , and act ; whenever the circumstances of the church , require it so to do , i allow also . but that the convocation ought of right , not only to be summon'd , but to meet , and do business , as often as the parliament sits ; whether there be any need for such its meeting , or no , this i utterly deny : and i am persuaded it would be a burden to the clergy , rather than a privilege , to oblige them to such an attendance . this , then , is the first thing wherein we differ ; viz. that he affirms , that the convocation ought , of right , not only to be summon'd , whenever the parliament meets , but regularly , and of course , to sit , and act too ; tho' there should not be any the least occasion for its so doing . the next question is , whether , being met , they may proceed to any synodical acts , without the king 's special license , first had , to authorize them so to do ? and here our author tells us , that if the convocation be a court , and have a certain jurisdiction belonging to it : or if it be a legislature , and have the power of making ecclesiastical laws , as it certainly both is , and has ; then the liberty of conferring , and discussing , is necessary to its very existence . which last expression , tho' it be hard to make any good sense of ; yet i readily agree to what i take to be his meaning in it . for certainly justice will be but lamely executed , and laws be very unaccountably made ; if those who are to judge , and determine , have not the liberty of conferring , and discussing matters , in order thereunto . but tho' , when the convocation therefore is to judge , or make laws , they must , undoubtedly , be allow'd to conferr , and discuss ; yet may not the clergy be restrain'd , by certain limitations , from either judging , or making laws , except when the government shall think fit to permit them so to do ? and if former abuses have made it necessary for the government , to put them under such a restriction ; and the clergy have , themselves , consented to it ; and thought that , ( all things consider'd , ) it would be safer for them to act by the king's direction , that at the motion of every warm , unthinking member of their own body ; who should throw a snare in their way , and run them into such inconveniences , as they should not be able easily to get out of ; as , in such a case , they would have no liberty to judge , or make laws , without license ; so , neither would they have any need to conferr , or discuss , where they had no power to conclude any thing . now this i affirm to be our case ; and , i must freely own , i take it to be our happiness that it is so . it being more than probable , that had not the prince had this tie upon us ; we should , before this time , have run our selves into yet worser divisions than we now labour under ; and , in all appearance , have exposed both our selves , and the church , for a prey , to the common enemy of both. so that now then , to state this other point aright , the question between us , is this : whether the laws , and customs , of this realm , have not restrain'd the clergy from entring on any synodical debates , in order to the making of any canons , or constitutions , without the special license of the king , first had , to warrant them so to do ? that the king ought never to require the convocation to meet , ( more than out of form , in parliament-time ; ) but when he has some business for it to do , is on all hands agreed . that when they do meet , they ought to have : commission sent to them , to empower them to go to work , and not sit idly gazing at one another , is also allow'd . that , lastly , upon those points , which they are empowred to handle , they ought to have a full liberty of conferring , discussing , and arguing ; that they ought to be left to speak with all reasonable freedom , and not be either check'd in the house , or call'd to any account out of it , for any thing that was said in pursuance of these ends ; is readily granted . the only difficulty is , whether the convocation being met , the clergy ought not to confine their debates to the subject which the king proposes to them ; and not wander upon any other matters , which shall chance to be started , by any of their own members , and proceed to determine synodically concerning them ? having thus reduced the subject , in debate , to its proper bounds ; i shall now proceed , with all due exactness , to put together the arguments which he has brought , in proof of those points , wherein we differ ; and to consider what may be reasonably replied to them. and , st . that the convocation has a right , not only to be formally summon'd , but to sit , and act too , as often as the parliament meets ; he endeavours to prove by these following arguments . ( st . ) from the parallel , which there seems to be , between the parliament , and the convocation . each consists of two houses , and these have ( or should have ) their several prolocutors . the one of these courts is of the same power , and use , with regard to the church , that the other is in respect of the state. nay , tho' they have different names , and the word parliament be appropriated to signifie a temporal legislature ; yet anciently the same appellation belong'd to them both . a witena-gemote , signified what we call a parliament ; and , a church gemote , what we call a convocation . and therefore , one would think , that whenever the convocation is called , they should not only meet formally , but sit , and act , as the parliament do ; that there should be a session of convocation , as well as a session of parliament . — now not to be too curious in examining the parallel , here offered , betwixt these two ; and which were it as exact , as , i am confident , it is not ; would yet no more prove their privileges to be equal , than the likeness of two corporations , in having a mayor , aldermen , and common-council , would prove , that therefore , in despight of their several charters , they must have all the same privileges also . st . i am not satisfied , that the convocation is of the same power , with regard to the church ; that the parliament is , in respect of the state : because i am told , by very good lawyers , that the convocation , in making ecclesiastical constitutions , must proceed by certain rules ; and cannot , even with the king's consent , conclude any thing contrary to the laws , or statutes , or customs of the realm . but now the parliament is not subject to any such limitations : its power is arbitrary , and uncontroulable . and , being joyn'd with the royal authority , can enact what it will , for the publick good ; any law , statute , or custom , to the contrary , in any wise notwithstanding . . as for the word parliament , i shall not much contend with him about it . it is well known , that it was a name brought in by the normans , and but late received among us , to denote those meetings of state , which were anciently called mycel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; colloquium , concilium , synodus , and the like . it is more extraordinary , which he tells us , that as wittena-gemote was wont to signifie what we call a parliament ; so church-gemote denoted what we call a convocation : and for which , i am confident , he will be hard put to it , to bring us any author elder than sir edw. coke ; from whom , as poor godolphin first , so has he now taken it , at all adventures . tho' , were this true , the observation would amount , in plain english , to no more than this ; that as a parliament was anciently call'd an assembly of the wise-men , so was a convocation call'd an assembly of church-men : and of which , if he can make any use , i shall not envy him the honour of so weighty , and critical , a remark . were it needfull , in return to these little remarks , to mention the several differences that might be assigned between these two assemblies ; i might easily enlarge them into many more particulars , and of much greater importance , than those which he has alledged . to say nothing of the convocations , being multiplied according to the number of the provinces into which the church is divided ; and representing the clergy , not of the whole church , but only of one part of it ; whereas the parliament is an assembly for the whole realm : the manner of consulting , resolving , and acting , is very different , in the one , and in the other . the authority of the archbishop , is much other in the convocation , than the lord-keepers is in the parliament . but especially , the power of the parliament in making laws , free and unbounded ; whereas the convocation is , by authority of parliament , determined both in its principle , and power , of acting : and can neither debate effectually , nor resolve , to any purpose , of any thing , but what is agreeable to the laws of the realm ; and , is no wise prejudicial to the civil interests of any . but , to allow of the supposed parallel , between the parliament , and convocation ; what will this gentleman inferr from it ? not , i hope , that the one should therefore ●it , and act , whenever the other do's . a father , for example , has two sons : they are both his children ; both of the same sex ; both equally related to him ; perhaps , and both equally beloved by him. but will this author from thence conclude , that they have an equal right to his estate , and ought equally to succeed in it ? this would be a very agreeable conclusion , to many , i make no doubt ; but , i am afraid , will hardly be allow'd , by the elder brothers , to be a just one. 't is true , a father , in this case , may possibly have left them portions alike ; and have made them as equal in their fortunes , as they were in their relation to him . and so , perhaps , our constitution may have made the parliament , and the convocation . but whether the father has done this , must be proved from the settlement of his estate ; and not from any supposed equality of right in his sons to his affection . and whether our constitution has given these assemblies an equal right , to meet , ●it , and act ; must be determined by the laws , and customs of the realm , and not be collected from imaginary parallels , and wild inferences ; which have neither any law , and but very little sense in them. . as for those state maxims , which he has finally added to support this argument ; it will then be proper to give a reply to them , when this author shall have shewn us that there is any thing in them to be replied to . in the mean time i must observe , that whether we consider the nature , or end , of the parliament ; the necessities of the civil affairs ; or the interest which both the prince , and people , may have , in the assembling of it ; there must , in all probability , be always a much greater need of frequent parliaments , for the benefit of the state ; than of frequent convocations , for the welfare of the church . when a national church is once thoroughly establish'd , and neither needs any farther laws to be made for the enforcing of its discipline ; or any new confessions to be framed , for the security of its doctrine : when its liturgy , and other offices , are fix'd , and stated ; and there is so far from being any need of altering , or improving any of these , that it is thought a crime but even to suppose that it is possible to improve them ; or to make any alterations , but for the worse , in them : i cannot imagine , untill something arises to unsettle such a constitution , what a convocation could have to meet about . but this is not the case of the civil state ; which is , god knows , subject to many more changes than the ecclesiastical ; and will oftner want to have publick remedies applied , for the redress , or prevention , of its publick evils . perhaps a prince arises who affects an arbitrary sway ; and his ministers joyn in the same designs with him ; and nothing less than the authority of a parliament , can put a stop to their attempts . this therefore may make it necessary , in times of peace , and quietness , for the parliament to meet at certain times , to prevent such attempts ; and to keep every member , of the constitution , within its due bounds : and such was the case of the last reign . it may be the common-wealth is assaulted by its enemies from abroad ; and those enemies are countenanced by a factious , discontented party at home ; and it is necessary for the parliament to meet , and to raise supplies , for the defence of the realm , against the one ; and to make some new laws for the suppression , or discovery , of the others : and this has been the case of the present government . but now what effect have all these civil exigencies had upon the affairs of the church : unless it be , that an act of toleration has been made , which our author professes he envies not to the dissenters ; or , if he did , i hope he would not have the convocation pretend to repeal it . in short , all he can alledge are certain disorders , which either there is a sufficient provision already made against ; or , if there be not , i doubt the convocation will hardly be able to do any thing farther , for the more effectual redress of them. but however , this i shall have occasion more particularly to consider , when i come to examine , what he has said , to prove the necessity , which he pretends , there is , for the sitting of a convocation . and i must not anticipate here , what will more properly , as well as more fully , be handled there . so little is there , in his first argument , which he has brought to prove , that the convocation has a right to sit , as often as the parliament meets ; and has been unwarrantably deny'd , by the government , so to do . let us see , whether his next proof be any better . now that ( dly ) is no less than an act of parliament , hen. vi. ch . . the substance of which statute is this : that the clergy , who are called , by the king 's writ , to convocation , shall fully use , and enjoy , such liberty , and defence , in coming , tarrying , and returning , as the great men , and commonalty of england , called , or to be called , to the kings parliament , do enjoy , and were wont to enjoy , or in time to come , ought to enjoy . well , be this so : but is there any thing in this statute which says , that the clergy shall come to the convocation , when ever the great men , and commonalty of england , do to the parliament ? that is not pretended . but what is there then in this act , to the purpose of our present enquiry ? why , in the preamble to it , 't is said , that the clergy coming to convocation , were often-times , and commonly , molested : from whence our author , admirably concludes , that , therefore , they did oftentimes , and commonly , in those days , meet in convocations . that this can reasonably be inferr'd from those words , i am , by no means , satisfied ; which only signifie , that when the clergy went to convocation , they were very often molested , by arrests , &c. but do's not at all imply , that the convocation used often to meet . however , let this be granted : in henry the sixth's time the convocation often met , therefore it met whenever the parliament sate . how do's that appear ? nay , but we must go farther ; therefore , of right , it ought to meet now , whenever the parliament do's ? nay , but this will not yet do : therefore , it ought not only formally to meet , but to sit , and act too , as often as the parliament assembles . this , our author must mean , or he alledges this act to no purpose : and he who can draw this consequence , from that act , must be a mighty man of reason indeed ; and too unequal a match , for men of ordinary skill in logick to deal with . and yet , after all , this i confess is true : the convocation , in those days , did sit , and act too , for the most part , as often as the parliament met . for the clergy , in those days , assessed themselves ; and without their sitting , either as a member of the parliament , ( which heretofore they were ; ) or in a provincial synod , which commonly met with the parliament ; the king could have no supply from the church . but as for ecclesiastical business , for ought i can find , they did as little with their often-meeting then , as they do with their seldom-meeting now . and were this the case of the convocation still ; were the business of its assembling , principally , if not only , to give money to the government ; i believe , instead of this vindication of its right to ●it , we should rather have seen a complaint against the charge and trouble of it : at least , i am pretty confident , neither this gentleman , nor his convocation-friend , would have been much concern'd for their meeting ; or have been at all scandalized at those unwarrantable adjournmen's , they have now so tender a sense of . but ( dly ) the convecation , says this author , is an ecclesiastical court. to it belongs the punishment of heresies : and , in ancient times , it was frequently , and of necessity , used for that end ; for without it there could be no punishment of heresie . since the th of hen viii . this is , in good measure , again the case : and , it cannot reasonably be supposed to be in the king 's absolute will , whether it shall exercise this jurisdiction , or not . this is his next argument ; and should we intirely allow of it , it would only prove that the king ought to permit them to meet , and act , whenever any hereticks were to be convicted by them : but would by no means shew , either that they have a right , even in such a case , to meet , without the king's leave ; or that the king ought , of right , to let them sit , when there is no such need of it . but indeed , if my lord coke be in the right , there is a manifest mistake in the very foundation of this argument . for the bishop of the diocess had always power to convict of heresie ; and to proceed , by ecclesiastical censures , against hereticks . all that he was defective in , was , that he had no power to imprison ; and , for want of that , could not proceed , often-times , to any purpose against them . this power , therefore , was given to the bishop by the d of hen. iv. and tho' now the civil penalty , that was wont to be inflicted upon hereticks , be taken away ; yet has it been resolved , that the bishop may still proceed by ecclesiastical censures against them. whether this be so or not , i shall leave it to this gentleman to enquire ; who , possibly , may be better acquainted with such matters than i am : but , if it be , then 't is manifest there can be no need of the convocations meeting to do that , which may be as well done by the bishops without it . and these are only some lesser arguments with which our author design'd to skirmish , before we came to his main battle . but now we are to begin to look to our selves : for ( thly ) his next proof is taken from no less a topick than the parliamentary-writ ; and , in his own opinion , ●s an argument of invincible strength , to establish the necessity of convocations meeting , as often as parliaments . in answer whereunto , i do readily agree , that when the proemonition to the bishop , to summon his clergy to parliament , was first put into that writ ; the clergy thereby summon'd , had as much right to meet , by vertue of it , as the bishop himself had . and it is accordingly , by our best antiquaries , acknowledged ; that , in ancient times , the inferior clergy , were a member of the great council of the nation , as well as the bishops and abbots . but then this is a convocation that , for many years past , has had no existence . and the convocation , of which we are now disputing , is quite another thing : is summon'd by another kind of writ ; and consisted of another sort of persons ; as by comparing the ancient writs of both , may evidently be discern'd . so that this invincible argument , has one terrible defect in it ; that , whether it could otherwise be answer'd or not , yet 't is evidently nothing at all to the purpose . but here , our author objects against himself : that , once upon a time , the archbishop call'd a synod by his own authority , without the king's license ; and was thereupon prohibited by fitz-herbert , lord chief justice ; but the archbishop regarded not his prohibition . what this is to his purpose , i cannot tell ; nor do i see wherefore he brought it in , unless it were to blame rolls for quoting speed for it . and therefore , in behalf of both , i shall take the liberty to say thus much , that i know not what harm it is for a man in his own private collections , ( for such rolls's abridgment was , tho' afterwards thought worthy of a publick view : ) to note a memorable passage of history , and make a remark of his own upon it ; out of one of the most faithfull , and judicious , of all our modern historians . i have before taken notice of this passage , and that not from speed , but from roger hoveden , from whom , i suppose , speed may also have taken the relation . i shall therefore only beg leave to set this gentleman ( to whom all our historians are , i doubt , equally unknown ) right , in two particulars ; by telling him , that neither was fitz-herbert the man who prohibited the archbishop , nor was he chief justice , when he did it . his name was geoffrey fitz-peter : he was earl of essex , and a very eminent man in those days : and his place was much greater than this author represents it ; even lord justice of england ; which he was first made by king richard , anno . and held , in the king's absence , to his death , anno : in which year k. john , going over into france , constituted peter , bishop of winchester , lord justice in his place . and now we are come to a low ebb indeed ; the description of the convocation , as it stands in our law-dictionaries ; and that too , like all the rest , nothing to the purpose . the convocation is , by them , described to be a meeting of the clergy in parliament-time : and some there were in the long parliament of , who thought it could not lawfully be held , but while the parliament sate . well , what follows ? why , therefore the convocation has a right to sit , and act , as often as the parliament meets . for a close reasoner , let this author alone . in the mean time , i have before shewn , that tho' the convocation be summon'd together with the parliament , yet it may sit , when the parliament do's not : and we are like to have a hopefull time of it , to answer such proofs ; where there is neither law in the antecedent , nor reason in the consequence . these then are the arguments which this author has offer'd to establish his first assertion ; namely , that the convocation has a right to sit , and act ; not only upon all such occasions , as the necessities of the church , or realm , require it should ; but generally , and without regard to any thing there is for them to do , as often as the parliament is assembled . i proceed , ii dly . to consider , what he has alledged for his other position ; viz. that , being met , they have no need of any license from the king to empower them to act : but may conferr , debate , and make canons , and do any other synodical business , which they think fit , by their own authority : and that either no commission at all is needfull , to enable them to do this ; or that if there be , it ought of course , to be granted to them. in order whereunto , i must , in the first place , observe , that those who affirm that the king's license is necessary to warrant the convocation to act , do not sound their opinion either upon the power he has to assemble it ; or upon the form of the writ , by which he summons them : tho' that do's plainly seem to imply , that some such commission is to be expected from him . but either , first , in general ; upon that supreme authority , which every christian prince , as such , has , in ecclesiastical matters ; and by vertue whereof , whenever they have admitted their clergy to meet in synods , they have still prescribed to them the rules , by which they were to proceed in them : or else , dly , in particular ; upon the statute of the hen. viii . which has expressly declared this power to belong to the king ; and forbidden the clergy to presume to act , otherwise , than in subordination thereunto . but against this our author excepts : for ( first ) is the case be so ; then is the convocation an assembly to little or no purpose whatsoever . — if their tongues be entirely at the king's will , 't is improper to give their resolutions any title , but the king's rules , and ordinances . they are to all intents and purposes his , upon whose will not only their meeting , but their very debating depends . in answer whereunto , i reply , first : that either there is really no inconvenience in all this ; or if there be , it follows not from what i am now asserting . for certain it is , that this was the case of the most general , and famous councils , that were ever held in the church : and which were not only call'd by the emperour's authority ; but , being met , acted intirely according to their prescription . but indeed , i cannot perceive , that any of those hard things , this author so much complains of , do at all follow from this supposition . for what tho' the king do's propose to them the subject of their debates ; what they are to consult about ; and draw up their resolutions upon ? are they not still free to deliberate , conferr , resolve , for all that ? will not their resolutions be their own , because the king declared to them the general matter upon which they were to consult ? is a counsellor at law of no use ; or has he no freedom of opinion , because his client puts his case to him ? or , do's our law unsitly call the answer of a petit-jury , its verdict , because the judge summ'd up the evidence to them , and directed them not only upon what points , but from what proof , they were to raise it ? what strange notions of things must a man have , who argues at such a rate as this : and might , upon as good grounds , affirm the parliament its self not to be free , as he has deny'd the convocation to be so ; because that , in the main parts of their debates , that also is as much , tho' not so necessarily , directed by the king , in what he would have them consult about . i have insisted the more upon this particular , because it is one of the most popular arguments he has offer'd in defence of his opinion ; tho' , alas ! 't is at best but miserable harangue , to oppose against the express authority of the law , and the common prerogative which all christian princes have , from the beginning , laid claim to , as to this matter . but he urges farther , ( dly . ) that supposing a license were necessary , yet for that very reason it ought to be granted : and it matters not much whether we say that a license ought , ex debito justitiae , to be granted to empower them to deliberate ; or whether they have , of themselves , a power of deliberation , without such license expressly given . that whenever the king requires the convocation to sit , he ought to send them a license to act , is out of doubt : because otherwise , he would either oblige them to meet to no purpose ; or would lay a snare in their way , by bringing them together , and putting them upon acting without a license ; which , by law , they ought not to do . but that this is granted ex debito justitiae , i utterly deny ; because in all the commissions i have ever seen , 't is particularly said to be granted by the king , of his special grace , and meer motion ; which cannot with any propriety of speech be said , of what in justice belongs to them . the truth of the case is this : the of hen. th has restored the crown to its royal authority , as to this matter . it has put the power of directing the convocation , ( as of right it ought to be ) into the king's hands . they cannot act without his licence ; and he is not obliged , by any law , to grant it to them : but may allow , or not allow them to do business , as he thinks it will be most expedient for the churches welfare . that therefore the king do's , at any time , grant them such a licence , is of his own good pleasure ; nor can it any otherwise be accounted a debt of justice , than as he is obliged in justice to his people , to do whatsoever he thinks to be for the publick good. but yet , in point of reason , it must be confess'd , that the king either ought not to require his clergy to meet together , more than for form sake ; or that if he do's , he ought to commission them to act too : that so they may neither meet to no purpose ; or which is worse , do it to their own detriment , by acting otherwise than the law allows them to do and therefore , i do agree , that , in a very large , improper sense of the words , it may be said that when they do sit , a licence ought , ex debito justitiae , to be granted to them . because they ought not to sit , but when their sitting will be for the good of the church ; and when that is so , the king is obliged in justice to the church , to give them licence to act. but , in this gentleman's sense , i utterly deny , either that the convocation has any right to meet whenever the parliament do's : or that upon every such formal assembling , they ought to have a commission sent to them , to empower them to act ; tho' i still affirm that they are not at liberty to act without it . as for what is here again urged ( ly ) from the rights of the parliament ; it may suffice to say , that neither do's the parliament lie under the same restrictions that the convocation do's , nor can it , with any consistency to our constitution , be supposed that it should do so . the parliament , acting in concurrence with the king , have the legislative power in their hands . they neither are restrain'd by any laws ; nor is it possible they should be . but the convocation is truly , no more than an ecclesiastical council . it s business is to advise , and assist the king in things pertaining to the church . and tho' i know it will displease this author to be told so , yet i must again put him in mind , that the clergy have no power to make laws . they may draw up canons , and constitutions , within the limits which the parliament has set to them ; and the king may confirm them ; and that being done , they will have a due force : but still laws they are not , unless in a very imperfect sense ; the same in which the convocation is a legislature , and the master of a family a monarch within his own house . but tho' i cannot therefore joyn with this author in his argument ; yet i heartily concurr with him in his conclusion of it : that an english , christian king , is as much obliged by the laws and usages , had and accustomed in this kingdom , in regard to the church ; as the sovereign of england is , with relation to the state. this , i say , is unquestionably true ; and brings us to the true way of deciding the point before us . if by the laws , and usages , of this kingdom , the convocation has a right , to sit , and act , as this gentleman affirms ; let those laws be produced , and those usages made out , and i submit . but if according both to the laws and usages of the realm , the convocation be wholly in the king's hands ; ( as i think i have abundantly shew'd that it is ) then let our author be concluded by his own rule ; and render unto caesar the things that are caesar's ; to god , the things that are god's . but our author here again objects to himself ; what , if he had not , i dare say no man living would ever have objected to him ; that the convocation has oftentimes been prohibited by the king , to deal with any thing that concern'd his crown , and dignity , &c. and he thus makes his advantage of it ; that since those prohibitions were only to keep the convocation from excess , and within their just bounds , it is evidnetly supposed , that they may intermeddle with any other matter , without express licence . whether that be supposed , or no , i cannot tell ; this i am sure is , that the clergy , in those days , were but too apt to meddle with matters , in their convocation , that did not at all belong to them . and i doubt , were some mens notions allow'd of , we should find but too much need of having these kind of prohibitions brought again into practice . but , the truth is , when those prohibitions were wont to be sent to the convocation ; the clergy , oftentimes , did not only meet , but act too , without the king's licence : and by both usurp'd upon the royal authority . and to suppress these abuses , and to vindicate the king's supremacy , it was , that the statute of the h. . c. . was pass'd . since which time we meet with none of these prohibitions ; and i hope the crown will never fall any more into such hard circumstances , as to stand , again , in need of them . as for what this author , in the next place , excepts against the authority of cokes xiith . report ; i am but little concern'd in it . the fortunes of the crown depend not upon the credit of it . let those who build their opinion , as to these matters , upon the resolution of the judges , there related , ( if any such there be ) undertake the defence of it . we are now come to the main point ; and which our author , therefore , labours , all he can , to get over : and that is , how we are to understand the statute of the . h. . whether as prohibiting the clergy only to promulge and execute any canons , &c. but what are confirm'd by the king ? or , whether we are to look upon it to have forbidden them , to debate , and conclude upon any ; without his licence , first had , so to do ? and here , i shall neither enter into any controversy with this new critick , about the propriety of expression , in which our acts are too often defective ; nor complain of his very partial , and imperfect recital of it : tho' in this , he will find it hard to justifie himself to those , who will take the pains to compare the words of the statute , with that account which he has given , in his letter , of it . but supposing the act to have been so obscurely , or doubtfully drawn up , as to be really capable of either of the senses here contended for ; ( which yet truly i think it is not : ) will only consider whether there be not much more reason to preferr oars , than to allow of his. for which end , st , i would ask this author : whether , supposing one of these senses can evidently be made appear to have been always , and universally received , as the meaning of this act , ever since it was made ; and the other be confessedly a new , and singular , ( for i must not now say a forced ) interpretation of it ; that ought not in all reason to be stuck to , which has prevail'd from the beginning , rather than that which was never allow'd of ; nor , for ought i know , so much as heard of , till this gentleman first enlightned the world with it ? again : dly : let me demand farther ; whether this will not be still more reasonable , if it can be shewn , that that sense of this statute , which we affirm has hitherto universally obtain'd , has also been confirm'd by the constant practice of those who were most concern'd to enquire into the meaning of it ; and had , withall , the best opportunities of knowing what was indeed intended by the legislators in making of it ? dly , and lastly : let me ask ; whether we ought not , yet more undoubtedly to acquiesce in this sense ; if it has been generally , and constantly admitted , not only by such as were the most concern'd , and best qualified , to judge of it ; but whose interest it was , withall , to have declared against this sense , and to have asserted that other , which this author has here advanced ; supposing there had been any rational ground for them so to do ? these , i conceive , are very plain questions ; and either this gentleman must recede from the most commonly , received rules of interpreting laws ; or he must consent to the reasonableness of them , and be concluded by them. to apply then these general rules to the case in hand : i believe no reasonable man will doubt but that the kings of england have had as good opportunities of understanding the sense of their own laws , as any other person whatsoever can pretend to . they have had their judges ; their council learned in the law ; their own great counsellours , at all times , to advise with : and these have not only authority to make an authentick declaration of the sense of any statute ; but have been actually consulted by them , concerning the meaning of this very act. unless we should be so unreasonable as to suppose , that our princes have from time to time sent commissions to their convocations , to empower them to act ; and that with peculiar relation to this law ; and yet never consulted with their judges , &c. in drawing of them ; or were ever better inform'd by them , when they saw how grosly they had mistaken the sense of it . but it may be our kings were parties in this case , and had an interest to prefer this interpretation of that statute before the other ; that so they might the better exalt their own power by it . let this also be supposed : but still i hope the convocation its self had no interest to joyn with them in this design ; and to help , by a wrong interpretation of this act , to bring themselves into bondage . that , next to the king , the convocation may be accounted as well qualified to understand the true sense of a statute , which it so nearly concern'd them to look into , as any private critick , i believe no modest man will deny . our author , i am sure , has too great a veneration for that learned body , to doubt of their ability ; i had almost said authority , to expound an act of parliament . let him therefore tell us ; what convocation has there been , ever since this act was made , that has ever refused the king's licence , sent to them in pursuance of it ? or has protested against it ? or has ventured to proceed to conferr , deliberate , and make canons , without the king's licence first obtain'd , to warrant them so to do ? that our kings have constantly sent their commissions to them , to keep them from falling under the censure of this statute , we are very sure . that our convocations have evermore thankfully received these commissions ; and proceeded to act under the authority of them , cannot be deny'd . that they have refused to act till they received the king's licence ; and when they have suspected that the date of it was determined , have insisted upon having a new one sent to them , we can prove , beyond any reasonable exception . but that ever any convocation rejected such a licence ; or presumed to act without it ; from the time that this law was made , i have never heard , nor can this gentleman , i believe , give me an instance of either . i conclude therefore , that supposing there were indeed a just ground to doubt of the meaning of this statute ; ( which yet i must again prosess , to my apprehension , there is not ) yet still , that sense of it which has obtain'd ever since it was made ; according to which our kings have for above years proceeded to give such licences , as we now contend for , to their convocations ; and their convocations have continued to accept of , and to act by them : which our greatest lawyers have declared themselves in favour of ; and which no man , that , i know of , besides this one author , has ever pretended to call in question : i say that sense , which has all these advantages ; and is , in its self , most agreeable to the words of the act , and the occasion that was given to the making of it ; ought , in all reason , to be preferr'd to any new construction that can be set up against it ; tho' such construction might , in some measure , be made of the words of the law , and afford some shew of reason , to enable a witty man to talk very plausibly in favour of it . whether these considerations will seem sufficient to this author , to justifie the old , received sense of this statute , i cannot tell : nor do's the king's authority depend so much upon it , that i should need to say any more to it . that without his writ , the convocation cannot meet , this gentleman himself acknowledges . and i am sure whenever the king shall think fit to let them meet , he will send them his licence to act too . if they accept his licence , and proceed to act by vertue of it , this will afford us a new argument to prove , that we are not mistaken in the sense we give of this statute . if not , we shall then , in all probability , be set right in it ; and upon a judicial determination ( which this author tells us was wanting in cokes report ) be satisfied , what skill this positive man has in interpreting of acts of parliament : and whether tho' there be no sense , yet there may not be good law , on the side of the king's prerogative . and now , i may venture to say , we have seen the utmost of what this author can do . as for what he next catches at , that my lord coke affirms that the king had heretofore a right to send commissioners to sit with the clergy in convocation ( tho' quo jure , he says , it do's not appear : ) and therefore it must be supposed that the clergy had a right to debate of what they pleased ; because else it would have been needless to send a commissioner to watch them : i must needs say , i do not see by what rules of reason any such consequence , will follow from it ; unless we should suppose that because men are limited to act by certain rules , therefore there is no danger of their transgressing of them. the ancient emperours , we are well assured , tied up their councils to very strict rules : yet so dull were they , that , for that very reason , they sent commissioners to sit with their bishops ; that so they might take care to keep them within bounds , and see that they acted according to the rules they had prescribed to them. 't is true , the clergy , in those days , did take the liberty to transact many things , in their convocations , without any particular licence , from the king , to warrant them so to do . and this rendred the presence of such commissioners more necessary heretofore , than it is now. but that they did take upon them to do this , is no proof that they had a right to do it : any more than their attempts , in many other instances , prove that they ought to have enjoy'd all those priviledges , by which it is , on all hands , allow'd , that they did oftentimes notoriously usurp upon the royal authority . there is yet a little spiteful suggestion , for i cannot call it an argument , drawn from magna charta , and the king's coronation-oath : but these things will then be fit to be consider'd , when he shall first have proved the church to have such a right as he supposes , but has not yet offer'd one tolerable proof of ; unless we should take a confident assertion , for proof , in which , it must be confess'd , he has not been wanting . in the mean time , whilst the church is deprived of no liberty , that either the laws have given it , or it ought , of right , to enjoy ; the king may keep his coronation-oath , and magna charta be as sacredly observed , as any one could wish it should be ; tho' the clergy be not allow'd all that unreasonable liberty , which some men plead for , on their behalf ; but which neither the clergy , nor convocation , have themselves ever pretended to . but whatever restraints may be pretended to be laid upon the convocation by this act with regard to the making of laws , and constitutions ( for laws this author will have the convocation to make , as well as the parliament : ) yet the exercise of their jurisdiction , as they are a court , properly so called , is certainly left free , and intire to them . this he takes for granted , and never so much as attempts a proof of it . and therefore there is no more for me here to do , after what i have already said as to this matter . if the case be so , as it is here supposed ; if neither the king's supremacy in ecclesiastical causes ; nor the laws of the realm ; nor the custom of convocations ; which ( like that of the parliament ) is , i conceive , the law of convotion ; have restrained the clergy , as to these matters ; i am sure i shall be far from desiring to lay any restraint upon them . i shall conclude this whole chapter with a relation which i meet with in one of our ancient reports ; and which being added to what i have before observed , may contribute a little , to the better understanding of the power of the convocation , in the particular we are now upon . in the . h. . an act of parliament was made , to deny the benefit of the clergy , to certain malefa●●ors therein mentioned . the clergy being angry at this , as intrenching too much on the rights of the church ; ( for the church in those days was always wont to be very tender of her rights , whether they were for the publick good , or no ; ) about three years after , the parliament then sitting , the abbot of winchomb in a publick sermon , at pauls cross , not only preach'd against the said act , and all those who had consented to the passing of it ; but farther affirm'd , that all clerks , who have once been admitted into any holy orders , whether greater or lesser , were from thenceforth exempt from all temporal punishment , before any temporal judge , for any criminal cause whatsoever . the lords temporal , and commons , being alarum'd at this , petition the king that he would order this point to be publickly argued , by divines and canonists on both sides : and thereupon , a certain day was appointed by the king for that purpose , at the black-fryars , london . among the council for the king was doctor henry standish , a learned man , and guardian of the mendicant fryars , in london . the cause was handled , and many members of both houses were present : and , in the opinion of all who heard it , dr. standish had so much the better of the council that argued for the clergy ; that it was moved to the bishops , that they should oblige the abbot publickly to recant his assertions . at michaelmas following , the clergy sitting in convocation , cited dr. standish to appear before them , to answer to such articles as should there be exhibited against him. he appeared , as he was order'd ; and four articles were first proposed by the archbishop to him : and being afterwards encreased to six , were deliver'd to him in writing ; ( all tending to the purport of what he had before asserted , in defence of the king's authority ; ) and he was required , upon a certain day , to answer to them. it seems , to assert the king's authority over the clergy , was accounted in those days to be no less than heresie ; and perhaps may still be thought , by some men , to come near to it . doctor standish easily perceived what the convocation drove at : and being sensible that he should not be able to withstand their malice , and authority ; put himself under the king's protection , and referr'd his cause to him. the clergy being a little surprised at this , protest to the king that their process against him was not for any thing he either did , or said , when he was of council for his majesty ; but for other tenets , elsewhere , and at other times advanced by him : and therefore pray his assistance ; according to his coronation oath ; and as he desired to avoid the censures of the church , the clergy thus proceeding , the lords , and judges of the realm , at the instance of the house of commons , address also to the king ; and desire him , by vertue of his coronation oath , that he would assert his temporal jurisdiction ; and protect standish ; ( in the great peril in which he was , ) against the malice of the clergy : who evidently objected to him the same tenets which he had defended , in right of the king's authority . being thus applied to , on both sides ; the king first consults with dr. veysey , dean of his chapel ; and ( having had his opinion ) orders the justices of his courts , and his own council , both spiritual and temporal , with several members of the parliament , to meet at the black-fryars ; and there to take cognizance of the cause between standish , and the convocation ; and to hear what standish had to say for himself , in answer to the points objected to him. the cause is heard ; and in conclusion , standish is acquitted , and the whole convocation judged to have incurred a praemunire , by their citation , and prosecution of him. upon this the king comes himself to baynards castle ; all the bishops , and a great part of the parliament , with the judges , attending upon him. being sate ; woolsey , as cardinal , and in high favour with the king , first applies to him in behalf of the convocation ; and prays , that the cause might be referr'd to the judgment of the court of rome . this was seconded by warham , archbishop of canterbury in the name of all the clergy ; and much was argued for , and against this. at length the king deliver'd himself , to this effect , to them : that by the order and sufferance of god , he was king of england ; and , as such , would maintain the rights of his crown , and his royal jurisdiction , in as ample a manner , as any of his progenitors had done before him. then he commanded the convocation to dismiss standish ; which accordingly they did : and were content , for that time , to let the royal supremacy , get the better of the spiritual jurisdiction . chap. vi. some rules laid down by which to judge , for what causes , and at what times , synods ought , or ought not to be assembled : and the reasons suggested by the author of the letter , &c. to prove a convocation to be , at this time , necessary to be held ; examined , and answer'd . hitherto we have been stating the matter of right between the king , and the convocation : and if i do not very much deceive my self , i have plainly made it appear against the author of the late letter to a convocation-man ; that that venerable body have neither any right to meet , nor power to act , but as the king shall graciously allow them to do . but now , having asserted this , in vindication of the prince's prerogative ; i must not forget what i have before confess'd as to this matter , and see no cause yet to retract ; viz. that his majesty , both as a christian , and a king , is obliged to permit his clergy to sit , and act , whensoever he is perswaded that the necessities of the church require it ; and it would be for the publick good of his people , that they should do so . and tho' , 't is true , the law has intrusted him with the last judgment of this ; and , without which , it would be impossible for him to maintain his supremacy in this respect ; yet certainly he ought to be by so much the more careful to consider the interest of the publick , by how much the greater the trust is , which the publick , in confidence of such his care , has reposed in him. it must be confess'd , indeed , that our present author , has neither taken a very proper method of communicating his advice to the king ; nor done it in such a manner , as if he design'd to perswade either the king , or his ministers , to pay any great deference to his judgment . on the contrary it appears , that in all that he has said , he intended rather to reflect upon the administration of affairs , and to raise discontents in mens minds against the government , than to do any service either to religion , or the church . but however i will consider , nevertheless , what he has alledged , to shew , that our present times call for a convocation ; and that the king ought not any longer to prevent their sitting . the question , to be examin'd , is thus proposed by him : what occasion there is , at present for a convocation ? and his answer to it , is short , and vehement ; full of warmth , as being , i suppose , design'd to enflame : that if ever there were need of 〈◊〉 convocation , since christianity was establish'd in this kingdom , there is need of one now. to clear this point , and see how well this author makes good so bold an assertion ; i shall take this method . st . i will lay down some general rules , by which we may the better judge , at what times , and in what cases , it may be either necessary , or expedient for a prince to call a convocation : and then proceed . dly . to consider , what this gentleman has offer'd to prove the necessity of a convocation , under our present circumstances , to be so exceeding great , and urgent , as he pretends it is ? i. that synods may , in some cases , be as useless to the church , as in others they are expedient ; every man 's own reason will tell him : and that such times may happen in which they may be apt to prove not only useless , but hurtful , we have not only the experience , but the complaints , of the best men , to convince us . it was a severe judgment which gregory nazianzen pass'd upon the synods of his time ; and is the more to be regarded , because it was the result of a frequent tryal , and a sad observation ; that he fled all such assemblies , as having never seen any one of them come to a happy conclusion ; or that did not cause more mischief , than it remedied . their contention , and ambition ( says he ) is not to be express'd : and a man may much easier fall into sin himself , by judging of other men ; than he shall be able to reform their crimes . there is scarce any thing in antiquity , that either more exposed our christian profession heretofore , or may more deserve our serious consideration at this day ; than the violence , the passion , the malice , the falseness , and the oppression , which reigned in most of those synods that were held by constantine first , and , after , him by the following emperours , upon the occasion of the arian controversy . bitter are the complaints , which , we are told , that great emperour made of them. the barbarians , says he , in his letter to one of them ; for fear of us , worship god : but we mind nothing but what tends to hatred , to dissention ; in one word , to the destruction of mankind . and what little success other synods have oftentimes had , might easily be made appear ; were it needful to enlarge upon so known , and melancholy a subject . now this as it has obliged not only the best men , but the wisest emperours , to be very careful , how they either called , or encouraged such assemblies , unless they had some reason to hope for a good effect of them ; so may it suffice to convince us still , that neither are all times , nor all causes , either proper for , or worthy of , such meetings : and that the expediency of them ought to be very clearly made out , before it can , with any reason , be expected , that the prince should consent to their assembling . it has , i think been generally agreed , that the main end for which synods are necessary to be assembled , is either to establish the faith , and to declare the unity , of the church , in matters of doctrine : or to advise , and assist the civil magistrate , in things pertaining to the discipline of it . as for the exercise of ecclesiastical jurisdiction , that , in every well settled church , is commonly provided for by some more ordinary means : so that , except in a few cases of an extraordinary nature , there is seldom any occasion for a synod to meet , upon any such account . now as these are the ends for which synods ought to be assembled ; so , i believe , it will be allow'd , by all considering persons , that the prince ought never to call them , when either , st . it is needless ; or , dly , it would be hurtful so to do . when there is no appearance of any good to come from their meeting ; but rather it may justly be fear'd , that their meeting will turn to the prejudice of the church . in short ; that the prince ought never to call his clergy together , but for some rational , and good end : when there is something proper for such an assembly to do ; and they may be likely to do it so , as to advance the welfare of the church by it . this , i conceive , must be allow'd , in point of prudence , to be the general measure , by which the prince ought , upon all occasions , to judge , whether it be necessary , or even expedient for him , to suffer a convocation to meet , or no. and from these general measures , we will proceed to draw some farther , and more particular directions , for our better judging in the point before us. and ( st . ) because in clear , and evident cases , where both the truth is manifest ; and the consent of the church , constant and out of doubt ; there is no need of any definitions , either to declare its sense , or to testifie its agreement : therefore neither can there be any need to assemble a convocation , to judge or determine , in such cases . if , in a christian country , where the gospel is profess'd , and its truth establish'd ; and men have , for many ages , been bred up to the knowledge , and belief of it ; a sort of libertines should arise , to deny not only the truth of christianity , but the very being of a god ; the certainty of revelation ; the authority of the holy scriptures ; and the like common , and avow'd principles of religion : it would be not only needless , but absurd , for a synod to be call'd to debate over again the fundamentals of piety ; and solemnly to define against these sceptical , profane disputers , that there is a god ; that he has revealed his will to mankind ; and that the scriptures were written by divine inspiration . and all that they would gain by doing of it , would be only this , that they would see their authority , and their definitions , despised by them : and might probably give offence to good men ; as if they had so much reason on their side , or there were so much difficulty in this case ; as to need the solemnity of a convocation to interpose in it . in such cases as this , the christian magistrate ought to take upon him the protection of religion ; of the faith which he professes , and of that saviour by whom he hopes to be saved : and so to order matters ; that such persons shall either cease to blaspheme ; or they shall find out some other place than a christian country to do it in . civil authority may restrain such bold men ; but 't is ridiculous to think that all the synods in the world , should ever be able to perswade them. again ( dly . ) upon the same grounds i affirm , that neither is there any need of a new synod , to declare the doctrine , and consent of the church , in such points , in which it has , by as great , or even greater authority , been before declared . thus supposing any church should not only have solemnly received the four first general councils ; but in farther testimony of its agreement in faith with them , should have given their creeds a place in its publick liturgy : and to strengthen all this , should have drawn up a clear , and full confession of its own , upon the principles by them defined ; and have required that confession to be received , and subscribed to , by all who are admitted , to any spiritual office , or function in it : how ridiculous would it be , for such a church , to assemble a convocation , to declare to all the world that it believes our saviour's divinity ; and holds a trinity of persons , in the unity of the god-head ? what tho' there be some , in such a church , who deny this ; and take advantage of the liberty , or rather licentiousness , of evil times , to dare even to write , and argue against it ? the doctrine and faith of the church are still the same : and it may as well be said that in our protestant , reform'd church , it is needful to call a convocation , to protest again against the errors and superstitions of the church of rome ; because some not only write in defence of them , but are buisie also to make converts to them ; as for such a church to call a synod , to declare , that it has no part with those who write , and argue , against its own avow'd sense , in the points of the holy trinity , and of the divinity of the son of god. a convocation may sit , and draw up what creeds , and confessions it will. but if they expect that those who despise the authority of the ancient , general councils of the church , should be concluded by their definitions ; it will , i doubt , appear that they have but flatter'd themselves with vain hopes : and they will find , too late , that those who are not to be restrain'd by what has been already determin'd , will much less regard any new decisions that can be made against them. in this case , again , 't is the civil power , or nothing , that must restrain their presumption . a good law may oblige them to be silent ; but i doubt neither that , nor any thing else , will be able to cure them of their infidelity . but. ( dly . ) if a convocation ought not to be called without need , then neither can it be necessary , or even sitting , to assemble it for such matters , as not only may be equally provided for , by ordinary means ; but which fall , more properly , under the cognizance of some other authority . such are , first , all private cases , which are determinable in other courts , and before some other judges , which the law has provided for them : and the king might as well assemble his parliament , to try a thief , or a felon ; as his convocation to convict a man of heresie , or schism there are civil courts appointed for the one ; and ecclesiastical courts provided for the other . and if these neglect , or refuse to do their duty , there are shorter ways of applying a remedy to it , than by calling either a parliament , or convocation , for such a purpose . and such are , secondly , such disorders , as either the bishop in his diocess ; the arch-bishop in his province ; or the king in the whole church , have sufficient power , by their own immediate orders , or injunctions , to redress : whether they be occasion'd by mens departing from the rules , and measures already prescribed to them ; or for want of a vigorous execution of those laws , by which they ought to be punish'd for their so doing . indeed , where the discipline , and authority of the church its self is defective ; and irregularities both in the clergy , and laity abound , for want of a power sufficient to suppress them ; a convocation may be needful , to consider , how a remedy may be provided for this defect ; and the church be enabled , more successfully , both to guard the faith , and to reform the manners , of its members . and i heartily wish our circumstances were such , that a convocation might meet , for this purpose . but i am afraid our distemper is become too great to be healed : and that we are uncapable of such a discipline , as , above all things , we the most want. and therefore ( thly . ) and to go on with these remarks : as in such cases , as i have hitherto mentioned , it is needless to call a convocation ; so would it be in vain to assemble it for such purposes , in which there were no probable expectation of success ; or hope , that any good should be done by it . this , as for ought i know , it may be one great reason why a convocation is not called , to review some of our publick offices ; to improve our discipline ; and to reform many disorders in the exercise of the ecclesiastical jurisdiction ; so am i the rather confirm'd in my opinion , of the little probability there is , of any good to be yet done , by a convocation , in this respect ; that amidst all the reasons offer'd by this author , to prove the necessity of holding a convocation , he has never once given any intimation of these matters : tho he could not but know that they were look'd upon by the government , as the principal things for which a convocation might be wanting . but ( thly . ) and to have done : as there are many cases for which it would be improper to call a convocation ; so may there be some times too , in which it ●ould be altogether unadvisable to assemble it . when mens passions are let loose , and their minds disorder'd : when their interests , and designs ; their friends and their parties ; nay , their very judgments , and principles , lead them different ways ; and they agree in nothing so much , as in being very peevish , and angry , with one another : when their very reason is depraved ; and they judge not according to truth , or evidence , but with respect of persons ; and every one opposes , what another of a different perswasion either moves , or approves of : what good can the prince propose to himself , or any wise man hope for , from any assembly that can be brought together , under the unhappy influence of these , and the like prepossessions ? it was the sense of this , made a wise man , in the last age , tell charles the vth ; that it appear'd by experience , and might from reason be demonstrated ; that those affairs seldom succeeded well , which were to be done by many . and if such be the inconvenience to which , number alone , exposes such meetings , in the best times ; sure i am , both reason and experience will much more convince us , that in times of doubt and discontent , this will be more likely to be the case ; and that under such circumstances , there is little good to be expected from them . and this may suffice , in general , to shew what those cases , and those times are , in which the prince may have reason to think , that it is either needless , or improper , for him to suffer his clergy , to meet , and act in convocation . i go on , ii. secondly ; upon these principles , to examine , what this author has offer'd to prove the necessity , or even expediency , of their present assembling . now this he pretends to make out by these [ ] ways . [ st . ] by proving that there is , upon many accounts , an absolute necessity , that something should be done for the defence of religion , and the church . and [ dly . ] by shewing , that what is thus necessary to be done , can be done no other way , but by a convocation . [ st . ] that something is necessary to be done ; he proves , from the open looseness of mens principles , and practises : and that setled contempt of religion , and the priesthood , which ( he says ) has prevail'd every where . and upon this general ground , he go's on to dilate , in several particulars ; which must therefore he consider'd by us. but before i proceed any farther in this debate , i must here , once for all , profess , that i should be far from opposing any thing that could reasonably be proposed to be done , in order to so good an end , as the reforming the open loosness of mens principles , and practises , would certainly be . i am by no means unsensible that a great part of what this author here complains , is but too true : tho' whether the loosness of mens principles , has corrupted their manners ; or the depravity of their manners , may not rather have been , at the bottom , one great cause of the corruption of their principles , i am not able to determine . and were a convocation necessary to vindicate the church from being , in any degree , accessary to these crimes ; or had it authority sufficient to reform this licentiousness ; i would much rather joyn with this author in petitioning for their sitting , than contend with him about the expediency of it . but being fully satisfied that the convocation has neither strength sufficient to grapple with these enormities ; nor is in any respect necessary , to assert the churches innocence ; but especially , being perswaded , that should it meet , for any such purpose , under our present circumstances , it would only expose its own authority , and our religion , to the greater contempt of profane , and wicked men : i shall proceed with all freedom to examine the reasons here alledged ; and to vindicate not only the king's honour , but the churches too ; and shew , that if the other ways , which this author here rejects , be not sufficient to reclaim mens vices , neither can it be hoped that the convocation should be able , by any orders it can make , to reclaim them. first then : let us suppose that ( as he alledges ) scepticism , deism , and even atheism its self , is pouring in upon us , would this gentleman have a convocation called to declare , that the church of england not only believes in god , but in jesus christ , and his gospel too ? has christ been thus long preach'd among us , to leave it still in doubt , whether , after all , our church , be a christian church , or no ? if neither our constant confession of our faith in christ , nor our publick worship of him , and of the father by him ; if neither our publick preaching , nor our publick writing , in vindication of this faith ; neither what our convocations have formerly declared , and we all continue to support , and defend ; be sufficient to satisfie mankind , that the church of england condemns all atheism , and deism ; and that however such persons may live among us , yet they are by no means countenanced or approved by her ; i cannot imagine , what this author thinks a new convocation could do more , to assert her innocence . and the same , i must answer , secondly , to the plea next offer'd , from the open appearance of socinianism among us , and the opposition that is made , by some men , to the mysteries of the gospel . for let it be confess'd to be some scandal to our country , as indeed it seems to be ; that such profaneness should be suffer'd to go on , without controul , in a christian kingdom : where the gospel is , perhaps , the best understood , and the church the most carefully reform'd , of any in the world. yet what has our church to answer for in this case ? complain she may , that she is suffered to be thus torn in pieces , between presumptuous hereticks on the one hand , and profane scoffers on the other . but sure this ought not to be added to the rest of her sorrows , to have her own faith , and integrity , call'd in question . nay , the very socinians themselves , whilst they abuse her in other respects , by their so doing , justifie her in this. they know , and confess her faith , to be against them : and for this cause it is that they rail so despightfully at her . and sure we ought not , our selves , to lay that to her charge , from which her greatest enemies acquit her . in short ; our articles , our creeds , our liturgy , our homilies ; all bear witness to the catholick faith , in opposition to these hereticks . our sermons , and our writings , declare against them. and what can any , abroad , or at home , desire , either the church , or her ministers should do more ? or what more could a convocation , were it to meet tomorrow , do ? as for the next particular , which he insists upon , thirdly ; concerning the power of the magistrate , and of the church , which ( he tells us ) is struck at ; and that indifference of all religions , which ( he says ) is endeavour'd to be establish'd , by pleas for the justice , and necessity , of an universal , unlimited toleration ; even against the sense of the whole legislature ; i shall say but very little . if such a toleration be so dangerous , as this author apprehends , and as , for ought i know , it may be ; and the magistrate has the same opinion of it ; it is to be hoped the government will take care to secure its self , by a constant denyal of it . and establish'd i am sure it cannot be , against the consent of the whole legislature ; nor indeed without the concurrence of every part of it . but however , what can a convocation do in this case ? whether the civil power shall think fit to grant , or refuse , such a toleration ; is a political , as well as an ecclesiastical question : and the government will act , as it thinks fit , in it ; and a convocation can neither help , nor hinder their proceedings . what the opinion of our clergy is , as to this matter , is well known : and i conceive there is no need of a synod to meet , to shew that their sense is the same in convocation , that it is out of it . and those very pleas , which he refers to , have had their answers ; which if they do nothing else , yet certainly thus much must be allow'd to them , that they shew the opinion of the churches friends , to be the same , that it ever was , in this particular . hitherto therefore i do not see what need there is of a convocation , or what it could do to make things better than they are . but now we come to the killing consideration ; and by which , we are to be for ever silenced : for , fourthly , all these things have been countenanced by members of our own church ; nay by some of the clearical order . and this has given great scandal to the churches abroad ; and to remove this scandal , and to animadvert upon these men , a convocation ought to be suffer'd to meet , and act. the truth is , it is a tragical account which our author gives us of this matter ; and of which i shall only say , that i hope it is not true . i will set it down in his own words . indeed , to be plain , there seems to be an universal conspiracy amongst a sort of men , under the stile of deists , socinians , latitudinarians , denyers of mysteries , and pretending explainers of them ; to undermine , and overthrow the catholick faith. there seems too much reason to fear , there is no order , degree , nor place among us , wholly free from the infection . and a convocation , regularly meeting , and acting freely , ( that is , according to this gentleman's notion , meeting with every session of parliament , and left to its liberty to do whatever it pleases without check , or controul ) is the greatest fence against these mischiefs , and the most proper instrument to apply a remedy . whether a convocation be the most proper instrument to apply a remedy to these mischiefs , we shall enquire by and by : but i must needs say , that should a convocation be allow'd to meet so regularly , and to act so ' freely , as some men desire ; i fear it would soon appear , that the remedy was worse than the disease . but what proof do's he bring of this odious conspiracy , as far as the church is concern'd in it ? for as for deists , atheists , and socinians , openly acting , and professing themselves such ; i hope he would not have the church to answer for their profaneness . why first , he tells us , there is one ingenious author , who has cunningly undermined , and exposed , under pretence of explaining , the mosaic history . there is another , in great dignity , and preferment , in the church ; who has sophistically opposed the unity of the godhead , under pretence of writing in vindication of the holy , and ever-blessed trinity . and a third , has set out a discourse , concerning the divinity , and death of christ , which he is not satisfied with . two tracts more there are , which , to encrease the churches guilt , he brings into this number ; the one concerning the reasonableness of christianity ; the other against the mysteries of it . i wonder he did not add , the notes upon athanasius ; and the three collections of socinian tracts ; and for all which , he might as well have call'd the church to answer , as for these . and is this , at last , all the ground he has , upon which so tragically to lay about him ; as if the greater part of our bishops , and clergy , were become downright atheists , deists , socinians , and i know not what monsters of scepticism and infidelity ? will such a scanty induction suffice , to vindicate him either to god , or the world , for those barbarous suggestions , by which he has appeal'd to both , against us ? what he has to object against the last of those books , we are conce●n'd with , i cannot tell ; and therefore must be excused , if i make no apology for it . as for the second , the vindication of the blessed trinity , let us suppose that the learned author of it , has advanced such an explication of that great mystery , as being critically examined , may fall under the inconveniencies so warmly alledged against it : nay from whence tritheism not only may possibly be inferr'd , but necessarily must follow . and that is as much as his most eager adversary can desire . is dr. sherlock convinced that this can justly be inferr'd ; much more , do's he believe , that this must necessarily be the consequence of his hypothesis ? this gentleman , in his own conscience , knows the contrary : and that that learned man as much abhors the doctrine of tritheism , as the animadverter himself can do ; and would as heartily joyn in an anathema against those who assert it . but what is there then , in this case , for a convocation to do ? why , i suppose , he would have that learned body joyn hands with the animadverter ; and pronounce his explication of the holy trinity to be heretical . and then , either dr. sherlock must recant it ; or he may be try'd by them for heresie . i find 't is very happy for the dean , that the old writ , de ●eretico comburendo , is determined : or else , for ought i know , his next motion might be , from his own chapter-house , into smithfield . well , but what if in the convocation some such dull men should be found ; as 't is plain there still are out of it ; who after all that either the animadverter has written , or the university decreed ; do not believe the doctrine of tritheism to be so necessarily consequent upon his hypothesis , as to warrant them to judge it to be heretical ? what if there should be some others , who tho' no friends to the hypothesis , should yet have so much charity for the dean ; as to be unwilling to fall so severely upon him , as some warm men would have them do ? in short ; what if a yet greater number of others should appear , who tho' they neither favour the dean , nor are friends to his hypothesis , may yet look upon him to have meant well : and to deserve some consideration for his former services : who may think it unsafe for the church to declare it self in favour of one man's hypothesis , or against anothers : who may cry out as loudly against some , for being sabellians , as an opposite sort have done against others , as tritheists ? or lastly ; who may conceive the best way to be , to take the king's example ; and to be content to reduce all parties to the old , received terms : and thereby , at once , both secure the church against any farther mischief ; and softly censure those who have departed from them ? in all these cases , it is evident that the convocation may be very likely to fly into heats , and parties ; and after much contention , nothing to be done : and then the enemies without will smile , and tell the world , that when it came to the tryal , the convocation it self could not agree about this matter ; and from thence draw an untoward consequence , against the very doctrine it self . for my own part , i am neither engaged by my opinion to support dr. sherlock's explication ; nor will i ever become an advocate for any man , to the publick detriment of the church , or its doctrine . but as i am perswaded he had no heretical design , nor is , knowingly , involved in any tritheistical opinion ; so i cannot but think it very hard that he should be forced to believe a plurality of gods , whether he do's believe any such doctrine , or no. and if to err in such a matter as this , or not to see all the possible consequences of an hypothesis , in so abstruse a speculation , be a crime ; i am afraid it will be hard for any of us , to be altogether innocent . as for the other , remaining author , i shall say but very little : let his crime be what it will , yet it must be allow'd , that there are other ways of calling him to an account for it , than by a convocation ; and therefore that this can be no ground to prove the necessity of their meeting . there is yet one thing more advanced by this author ; not indeed as a work which he thinks necessary for a convocation directly to meet about , but as a motive to shew , how requisite it is that somewhat should be done by them , in the matters already mentioned ; and that is , fifthly , upon the account of those mischievous effects , which these various opinions , and heresies , have produced amongst the laity . they are such , that , if we may credit him , a convocation seems necessary , not only for the sake of the faith , and doctrine of the english church , but even to preserve the belief of any revelation . — i am loath , says he , to be more particular ; but the cause , and the effect , are both plain . this is the last effort ; and 't is push'd home by him. and here , i will not deny , but that the disputes , which have arisen among us in matters of religion , and the diversity of opinions advanced thereupon , may have done their part to corrupt the minds , and manners of many . when men of parts , and passion , fall foul upon one another , ; and religion is the subject ; and each accounts it a proof of his zeal for god , to maintain his point , and his honour , together : whatever party prevails , religion is sure to suffer ; and 't is great odds , but both the litigants are the worse men for it , as long as they live . i need not say , what an indecent heat has appear'd in several of our late controversies ; and what a vein of levity , and ra 〈…〉 ry , has run through some others . and what a tincture all these are apt to leave upon the minds of those , who interest themselves in these kind of quarrels ; and what a diversion they afford to men , of more wit than judgment ; of more ill-nature , than piety ; we have too much experimented . but can this author yet find out no other cause , that may have contributed its part , to these unhappy effects , no less , if not more , than all these disputes ? i would to god there were no other . but what then shall we say of our factions , and our divisions ; our resentments and animosities ; our interests , and our designs ? what shall we say of those new schisms which these have produced ? such as , i believe , were never heard of before in the church of christ ; and for the ●ensuring , or suppressing of which ▪ if ●or any thing , a convocation seems to be truly the most wanted . in particular ; what shall we say , of the conversation , and examples of some of those ▪ who wait at the altar ; and by their office and profession seem engaged , beyond all others , if not to help to reform the world , yet certainly to take care that they do not help to make it worse . whilst pride , and p●●vishn●ss ; hatred and evil-will ; divisions and discontents , prevail among those who should teach , and correct others ; and instead of improving a true spirit of piety and purity ; of love and char 〈…〉 ; of peaceableness and humility ; we mind little else but our several interests , and quarrels , and contentions with one another : what wonder if we see but little success of our ministry , and are but little regarded upon the account of it ? we must reverence our office our selves , if ever we mean that others should reverence us , upon the accou 〈…〉 of it . a teacher who is an h●retick , i● any point of doctrine , may do somewhat to corrupt the faith : but 't is the minister , who shews himself an infidel in his practise , that roots up the very foundations of religion ; and prompts men to cast off , at once , all belief of it . and thus have i consider'd those evils , from whence this author has endeavour'd to shew , that it is absolutely necessary , a convocation should be call'd for the redress of them . i go on [ dly . ] to examine , what he has offer'd to prove , that nothing but a convocation can do it . and : st . the bishops , he says , cannot safely proceed in matters of heresie , because of the danger they may incurr thereby . but this is an argument , that either really proves nothing ; or , if it do's , will prove more than he desires it should : it being certain , that the convocation can no more declare heresie , or proceed any farther in the punishment of it , than any single bishop , by law , may do . what is , by our law , to be accounted heresie , the stat. of eliz. c. . has declared . and tho' that statute particularly referrs to the high commissioners ; yet is it , by construction , a safe rule for all others to proceed by . as for the punishment of it , i do not find it , in the least , doubted , but that a bishop may proceed by ecclesiastical censures , against hereticks : and certain it is , that now they can go no farther . so that here then there is no such mighty danger ; unless for those who would make more to be heresie , than the law has declared so to be . and if that be the danger this author speaks of , i believe all wise , and charitable men , will desire , that they may be always lyable to it . however , as i before observed ; be the hazzard what it will , the convocation is subject to the same limitations , that every single bishop lies under : and the one , if they are too busie , may as easily run into a praemunire , as the other . . as for the authority of the universities , i confess it extends only to their own members . but yet so great a number of those , who make the chiefest figure among us , when they are men , have commonly their education there , in those years , in which they ought to be well settled in their principles of religion , as ●ell as in their other notions ; that i cannot but account it a kind of p●●lick b 〈…〉 sit , to the church and kingdom , not only that those great bodies hold so sound , and intire ; but that they are endued with a sufficient power , to hinder any contagious principles to spread within them , and to infect their members . his majesty's authority is next excepted agai●st ; as extending no farther than to inforce the exercise of those powers , which ( says he ) i have already shewn , and experience proves , to be too short ; or clogg'd with too much difficulty and discouragement , to attain the end , we all so much want , and contend for . 't is true , his majesty does not pretend to enlarge his supremacy , beyond those bounds which the laws of the realm have set to it : nor has he any need so to do . the authority of the king , in all these matters , is , by law , very great , and extensive : and i believe few evils can happen to the church , which may not , in good measure , be provided for by it . but here our author opens himself , and gives us a broad hint , what it is he wants . he would have the bishops , or rather , the convocation , empower'd to determine what they please , to be heretical : and when they have done so , to proceed against their own members , it not against others , accordingly . by vertue of this power , whatsoever books were publish'd by men , whom they did not like , should be censured ; and executed as heretical ; and the authors be obliged to a retractation of them. and i am sometimes afraid , this gentleman do's really fancy the convocation to have a certain original , inherent right , in it , so to do . should this be so , and should there chance to be any considerable number of his convocation friends of the same opinion ; i shall onl● say , 't is happy for them that they are not permitted to come together : for certainly they would quickly undo themselves , if they were . it can hardly be doubted , but that , upon this supposition , one of the first things these members would do , would be to fall soul upon dr. sherlock as an heretick . now let us only suppose the dean to have as much kindness for himself , and regard to his own reputation , as we see the men of the last age had : and that he should thereupon take the same course , to defend himself , that dr. standish before did . who can tell what the opinion of the temporal judges in such a case might be ? or what they might make of their proceeding ? and tho' king henry the th let the matter fall , and took no farther notice of it , yet should they now be deem'd to have fallen under a praemunire , by such an attempt ; who will ensure them that another prince shall not take the advantage of it ? but , indeed , tho' when men are resolved to maintain an hypothesis , 't is no great matter what they affirm ; and , in such a case , his majesty's authority may seem nothing to them : yet i cannot imagine , what a convocation can do , that the king may not as well , and much more safely , do , in these matters . he can forbid some men to affect new terms ; can discourage others , who advance new theories , to the detriment of the authority of the holy scriptures . he can publish rules for the preaching of some ; and orders to reform the vices of others . but , indeed , he cannot by all this , or by any thing else that he can do , oblige some men : and therefore ought the less to be blamed , if he do's not trouble himself to go out of his way , to gratifie their peevish , and unreasonable desires . . and now we are come to the last authority ; i mean that of the king and parliament : and if this also be thought unable to do our business , we may , i think , venture to conclude , that the immoderate passion , which this gentleman has for the sitting of a convocation , do's so byass him , that he can approve of nothing else . but why may not the parliament be as well qualified to put a stop to the loosness , or rather the licentiousness , of our present times , as the convocation ? that hitherto they have not done it , is no argument that they are either unfit for , or uncapable of doing it . that they are not skill'd in divinity , may be a good argument to prove , that they are not so well provided to dispute with hereticks , as a convocation may be ; but do's by no means hinder , but that they may be able to take a much more effectaul way of dealing with them. and i have before shewn , that to enable them to know what is heretical , it is by no means necessary , that they should be nicely skill'd in the languages of the bible ; much less that they should be masters of all the learned fathers , or of the history of the primitive church . let them stick to the rule already establish'd by authority of parliament ; eliz. c. . and provide only , that nothing be innovated , or attempted , contrary thereunto ; and i believe it will puzzle the convocation , to shew , what could more effectually be done to support the catholick faith , or to suppress those heresies , which , now especially , set themselves up in opposition thereunto . as for the papists objection against our religion , as meerly parliamentary , it has been often answer'd ; and would receive no great strength , by the adding of one new law in defence of the catholick faith. we cannot but remember , what endeavours the papists themselves once made , to get a parliament for their purpose . could they have attain'd their ends , and have got their religion restored again , by a legal authority ; i believe they would hardly have thought the worse of it , for being parliamentary ; or have refused to let it be introduced , by the will of the prince , and the authority of the peers and commons . and whatsoever this gentleman may fancy , i dare say , the parliament will always think , that it lies in the breast of the king , and of that high court , to determine , what shall be the national religion ; and have the advantage of a legal establishment to support it . and i would desire this author to tell us , if he can ; supposing an act were drawn up upon his own terms , to prohibit all persons to write or dispute in favour of atheism , deism , socinianism , &c. or any books , relating to religion , to be printed , or sold , that were not licenced by the archbishop of the province , and approved by the bishop of the diocess , in which the author lived , ( whose name should evermore be set to them : ) and were this law enforced with suitable penalities , and care taken , that those penalties should be put in due execution ; i say , supposing such an act were pass'd , let this author judge , whether it would not be much more likely to put a stop to the presumption of such persons , than ten thousand canons made by the convocation ; tho' an anathema were added to every one of them . and now our author has but one thing more to do , and then he thinks he has clear'd his point beyond all exception ; and that is , to obviate an objection , which i perceive gives him some little disturbance : and that is , supposing , when the convocation meets , somebody should have the boldness to attempt to raise a ferment in it , in defence of doctrines or persons too justly liable to censure . now in this case , he tells us , it 's not to be doubted , but that the piety , and moderation , and christian courage of the rest , would be soon able to suppress it , and to advance the good ends for which they are call'd . i am willing to indulge any good opinion of a convocation , that any one can reasonably desire ; and therefore shall not oppose our author in this . only i must observe , that all this is but a conjecture , and must be left to time to discover , when this great assembly shall be met , and these persons be call'd to an account by them . the proceedings of large bodies are very uncertain ; and 't is as hard to calculate before-hand how they will act , when they come together , as to compute at christmas , which way the wind will sit in march. a very little matter throws them into disorder ; and when men think they have made their party so strong , that nothing can oppose them , yet we know how mistaken they have oftentimes been ; and have seen all their projects , by some indiscernible accident , or omission , brought to nothing . to conclude then ; it is confess'd that the evils which this gentleman here complains of , are certainly very great ; and it were much to be wish'd , that some remedy might be thought of , that would effectually deliver us from them . but as there is no need to assemble a convocation to assert the honour , and innocency of our church , and to shew that she is no way consenting to them ; so if what former synods have done to correct them , be not sufficient ; ( as a sad experience shews that it is not ) i do not see what a new convocation could pretend to do more , for the suppression of them . were a better discipline setled in the church ; and a vigorous law made in defence of our faith , and to restrain those scandalous attempts that are made against it ; this might possibly reduce our disorders within some tolerable bounds ; but any thing short of this , would , i fear , signifie very little . and when our other circumstances shall be so favourable , as to encourage the government to think of this ; i shall then readily close in with this gentleman , and confess , that it will not only be very sitting , but a matter of duty , in the prince , to call a convocation ; and to require them to consider , how to restore the honour of religion , and to suggest to his parliament such heads , as may be proper for them to pass into an act , for the better preservation of it in times to come . conclusion . and thus have i done with the reasoning of this author ; and , i hope , given a sufficient answer , to every thing that can pretend to such a character in his letter . it may possibly be expected , that i should now take some notice of those reflections which he has made , with a more than ordinary freedom , upon all sorts of persons ; and upon none more than upon those , who might have expected to have the least fallen under the levities , and scurrilities of such a piece . but this is a work of too ungrateful a nature to be particularly pursu'd : and i am sensible , that in doing of it , i must either say very much less , than he has taken care to deserve ; or very much more , than i am willing to allow my self to do . it is , indeed , very sad to consider , what an immoderate liberty some men indulge themselves , on these occasions . with what readiness , nay with what satisfaction , they catch at any thing that is scandalous ; and may help to blacken those , whom they do not love. and if they can but give it a witty turn ; or pass it off with a little grace , as if they were sorry to speak it ; or unwilling to believe it ; ( tho' all the while it is apparent , that , by that very insinuation , they hope to make it stick the more ) they think they have done their business : they have guarded themselves against being called to account for it by men ; and , i am afraid , they never once think , what account they must give for it to god. it is , by this little artifice , that this bold writer , has presumed to vent such calumnies against the greatest , and best men ; as had they really been true , could hardly have been reported without a crime . has traduced the king , as a man of no religion ; but particularly , as no friend to the church of england . the arch-bishop , as either ignorant of the churches interests ; or too much a courtier to trouble the king about them . the bishops , as men that value not what becomes of the church , so long as they can but keep their honour , and their dignity in the state. the inferiour clergy as full of discontents and dissatisfaction ; as persons who have been ill used , and resent it accordingly . and , lastly , even the parliament its self , as a body , that has never yet done any thing in favour of religion , nor that seems at all disposed to do any thing for the advantage of it . and when such is the case of all these , what wonder if he freely declares his apprehension , of a general conspiracy of all sorts of men among us , to undermine the catholick faith ; so that it is much to be feared no order , no degree , or place among us , is wholly free from the infection . it would be endless for me to insist upon these and the like reflections , which he seems industriously to have catcht at , in every part of his letter . i shall instead of all , examine the story with which he concludes it , and so take my leave of him. there was , says he , a time , when the clergy was deem'd publick enemies , and us'd as such ; ( viz. in the reign of edw. . ) but it was upon a very honourable account ; because they asserted the laws of the realm . the king , at that time , did by commission , against the ancient laws and customs of the kingdom , pretend to collect money , without the assent of parliament ; not from the clergy only , but from the earls , barons and commonalty of the realm . the latter did , too many of them , submit ; the clergy stoutly resisted it : so that sir robert brabazon , the king ' s chief justice , pronounced openly in the king ' s bench , ( in terrorem ) that from thenceforth no justice should be done at their suit ; and that justice should be done against them in the king's courts , at any man's suit. this passage i mark'd , when i first read the institutes , as a very extraordinary one : ( 't is pag. . inst ) i suppose you will think it so too , and that england was then bless'd with a righteous chief justice . this is the fable ; and the moral of it is not difficult . king william , is the edward here meant : the present clergy , are , like those here mention'd , deem'd publick enemies ; but upon a very honourable account , because they assert the laws of the realm ; that is , stand up for another interest , and are enemies to the present government . for this , they are not only deem'd publick enemies , but are used as such . some of them have been turn'd out of their preferments ; others have been discountenanced , and not preferr'd , according to their deserts : because they also have honourably stood up for the laws of the realm , that is , for another interest ; tho' they have again and again sworn obedience to the present government ; and some of them ( tho' sore against their wills ) even subscribed the association , in defence of it : to say nothing of others , who were the most forward and busie , of any in the kingdom , to help on the revolution : and to establish that government they now dislike . and this they have done at the same time that the laity have , too many of them , submitted : and will , i hope , shew that they are able to defend the government which they have established , against all the enemies of it ; tho' they are never so much censured and reviled , by these new patriots , for their so doing : having thus accounted for this story , as related by this gentleman , and that too , imperfectly , from sir edw. cook ; ( whose authority in point of history , he is willing to allow of , tho' he cannot away with it , in a point of law : ) i shall in justice to the memory of that great prince , and most worthy judge , give a true account of this whole matter ; and let this author , if he pleases , make as pertinent an application of it for me , as ( if i am not mistaken ) i have done for him. king edward the st , having exhausted his stores in the war of scotland , and that with great honour to himself , and advantage to the nation ; call'd his parliament at st. edmundsbury , the day after all souls , and accounted his circumstances to them. the laity readily granted him a subsidy , as desired ; but the clergy , pretending their fear of the pope's bull , deny'd , in any wise , to assist him. pope boniface the viiith . being desirous to advance the liberties of the church ; had , the year before , publish'd a constitution , by which he sorbad the clergy to pay any taxes to their prince , without the pope's consent ; and excommunicated as well the receivers , as payers , of such taxes . this was the bull which these good men stood upon ; and this that pope publishd , at the particular desire of robert winchelsea , arch-bishop of canterbury , and of the rest of the clergy of england . the king , tho' he were sufficiently sensible of their jugling , and displeased at it ; nevertheless gave them time , till the next parliament , to consider what they had to do ; and how to make some better , and more satisfactory answer to him. but , in the mean time , he caused all their stores to be sealed up : and the arch-bishop , to be even with him , at the same time , order'd this bull of the pope , to be publish'd in all the churches of his province . the next parliament being met at london , the day after hilary ; the king again demands a supply of them . they persist in their denyal ; and the king thereupon puts them out of his protection : and holding his parliament , with his barons , without them ; an act is pass'd , by which all their goods are confiscated to the king's use. in this state the clergy were , when the lord chief justice ( as my lord coke says , sir robert brabazon , who was then chief justice , not of the king's bench , but of the common-pleas : ) declared to the attorneys of the bishops and clergy , what the king , and parliament , had done . he bade them acquaint their masters , that from thenceforth no justice could be done for them in the king's court , tho' they should be never so much injured ; but that justice might be had against them , by any who had need , and would move it to the court. now this was no more than declaring to them how the law then stood , and still is , in the like cases : and in which it is agreed , that men attaint , or outlaw'd , shall be put to answer in any action against them ; because it is to their prejudice : but in an action brought by them , they shall not be answered ; because it is to their benefit so that if the chief justice committed any fault , it must be either in obeying the law , or in declaring to their council what incapacities the clergy lay under : that is , for acting uprightly in his place , and judging according to the laws of the realm ; which is not wont to be accounted a crime in such persons . the truth is , there is hardly a man of those times , upon whom this author could more unluckily have reflected , than this sir robert brabazon . he was made second justice of the common-pleas , by king edward st . about the th year of his reign . seven years he served his prince in that station , and was then , for his merits , created lord chief justice of that court : anno . edw. . in the first year of his son king edw. . he was sworn anew into his place : and about seven years after , had the care of the treasury committed to him , till a lord treasurer should be chosen , which was done about a year after . and being thus grown old in the service of his two masters , and disabled to attend any longer at his court ; that he might sit down with honour , he was , in consideration of his great fidelity , chosen into the king's council , and in that quality , ended his life . this is the man , whom this discreet author has endeavour'd to bespatter ; and this was the crime , for which he so tragically exclaims against him. and now , upon the whole matter , let this gentleman freely say , what he has to except against , in the conduct of this great prince ? or whether , upon a true state of this matter , he will espouse the cause of the archbishop and clergy ? here is a brave , and war-like prince , engaged in a war of the utmost consequence , to his country and people . he carrys it on , himself , with vigor , and ends it with glory . he forces his enemy , not only to yield to him ; but to own his authority , and do him homage . being return'd with victory , he calls his parliament ; and is readily assisted by his lay subjects to pay his debts , and prepare himself against his other enemies . only his clergy , not only refuse to contribute to the defence of their country , but put an indignity , of the basest nature , upon their king. like the pharisees , with their vow of corban ; they first procure the pope to pass an order against their assisting of him , and then , ( with a jewish hypocrisie ) look demure , and pretend : that truly they would assist him , with all their hearts , but the pope has forbidden it , and they dare not do it . in return to this usage , the king determines no longer to afford his protection to those , who had deliver'd themselves up to another interest ; and thereupon refused to contribute any thing to the support of the government , by which they were secured in the peaceable enjoyment of their own rights , and estates . and the parliament thought his resolution so just , that they closed in with it ; and readily confirm'd it with their authority . this was the case of the whole clergy then ; and it is but too like the case of some of them now. and the effect was , that being , by this means , brought to a sense of their duty ; the greatest part of them presently submitted to the king ; and all , the next year , granted a supply to him : and have thereby left us this observation , that the only way to deal with some persons , is to treat them as they deserve : and to let them know , that those are unworthy of the protection of the government , who are embark'd in an interest different from it ; and refuse to contribute to the necessities of it . appendix : containing some publick acts ; and other collections , referr'd to in the foregoing discourse . appendix . i. the ancient form of summoning an abbot to parliament . ex reyner : apost . benedict . p. . append. part. iii. num . lxix . henricus , dei gratia rex angliae , &c. n. abbati s. albani . quia de av●samento consilii nostri , pro quibusdam arduis & urgentibus negotiis nos , & statum , & defensionem regul nostri angliae , & ecclesiae anglicanae contingentibus , quoddam parleamentum apud ( westminster , tali die ) teneri ordinavimus , & ibidem uobiscum , & cum ceteris prelatis , magnatibus , & proceribus dicti regni nostti , colloquium habere & tractatum : uobis in ●ide , & dilectione , quibus nobis tenemini firmiter injungendo mandamus , quod consideratis dictorum negotiorum arduitate , & periculis imminentibus , personaliter intersitis ; nobiscum , ac cum prelatis , magnatibus , & proceribus predictis , super predictis negotiis tra●taturi , uestrumque consilium impensuri ; & hoc sicut nos , & honorem nostrum ac salvationem , & defensionem regni & ecclesie predicte , expeditionemque dictorum negotiorum diligitis , nullatenus omittatis : teste meipso . the parliament abbots thus summon'd . ex eod. . abbas glastoniae . . abbas s. augustini cant ' . . abbas s. petri westmonaster ' . . abbas s. albani . . abbas s. edmundi de bury . . abbas s. petri de burgo . . abbas s. johannis colcestriae . . abbas eveshamiae . . abbas winchelcumbiae . . abbas croylandiae . . abbas de bello . . abbas redingiae . . abbas abendoniae . . abbas salopiae . . abbas s. petri gloucestriae . . abbas bardeneyae . . abbas s. benedicti de hulmo . . abbas thorneiae . . abbas ramseiae . . abbas hydae . . abbas maimesbiriae . . abbas s. mariae eborac ' . . abbas selbeyae . . abbas tavestoke . . prior conventriae . ii. the ancient writs of summons , of a bishop to parliament . cl. . h. . m. . dors. in schedula . henricus , dei gratia rex angliae , dominus hiberniae , & dux aquitaniae , venerabili in christo patri r. eadem gratia episcopo dunelm . salutem . cum post gravia turbationum diserimina dudum habita in regno , charissimus filius edwardus , primogenitus noster , pr● pace in regno nostro assensuranda , & firmanda , obses traditus extitisset ; & jam sedata ( benedictus deus ) turbatione predicta , super deliberatione ejusdem salubriter providenda , & plena securitate , & tranquilitate pacis , ad honorem dei , & utilitatem totius regni nostri , firmanda , & totaliter complenda , ut super quibusdam al 〈…〉 is regni nostri negotus , que sine consilio vestro & aliorum prelatorum , & magnatum nostrorum nolumus expediri , cum iisdem tractatum habere nos oportet : uobis mandamus , rogantes in fide & dilectione quibus nobis tenemini , quod omni occasione post-posita , & negotiis al 〈…〉 s pretermissis , sitis ad nos london . in octabis s. hilarii proxim . futur . nobiscum , & cum predictis prelatis & magnatib●s nostris , quos ibid. vocari fecimus , super premissis tractatur . & concilium impensur . et hoc sicut nos , & honorem nostrum & vestrum , nec non & communem regni nostri tranquilitatem diligitis , nullatenus omittatis . teste meipso , xiiii . decemb. anno regni nostri . §. . cl. . ed. . m. . dors. rex , venerabili in christo r. eadem gratia cantuariensi arcihepiscopo , totius angliae primati , salutem . sicut lex justissima provida circumspectione sacrorum principum stabilita , hortatur & statuit , ut quod omnes tangit , ab omnibus approbetur ; sic & innuit evidenter , ut communibus periculis , per remedia provisa communiter obvietur . sane satis nostis , & jam est , ut credimus , per universa mund ▪ climata divulgatum , qualiter rex franciae de terra nostra vasconiae nos fraudulenter , & cautelose decepit , eam nobis nequiter detinendo : ●unc vero predictis fraude & nequitia non contentus , ad expugnationem regni nostri classe maxima & bellatorum copiosa multitudine congregatis , cum quibus regnum nostrum , & regni ejusdem incolas , hostiliter jam invasit , linguam a●glicam , si concepte iniquitatis proposita detestabili potestas correspondeat , quod deus avertat , omnino de terra delere proponit . quia igitur previsa jacula minus ledunt , & res vestra maxime , sicut ceterorum regni ejusdem concivium , agitur , in hac parte uobis mandamus in fide & dilectione quibus nobis tenemini firmiter injungentes , quod die dominica proxima post festum s. martini in hyeme proximo futurum , apud westminster personaliter intersitis . praemunientes priorem & capitulum ecclesie vestre , archidiaconum , totumque clerum vestre dioecesis , facientes , quod iidem prior & archidiaconus in propriis personis suis , & dictum capitulum per unum , idemqon clerus per duos procuratores idoneos , plenam & sufficientem potestatem ab ipsis capitulo & clero habentes , una uobiscum intersint , modis omnibus , tunc ibidem , ad tractandum , ordinandum , & faciendum , nobiscum , & cum ceteris prelatis & proceribus & aliis incolis regni nostri , qualiter sit hujusmodi periculis & excogitatis maliciis obviandum . teste rege apud wengeham : xxx . die septembris . §. . the last clause of this writ , as it was settled ed. . compared with the same as it is now . ed. . praemunientes priorem & capellanum ecclesie vestre cant. archidiacon . totumque clerum vestre dioces● quod iidem prior & archidiacon . in propriis personis suis , & dictum capellanum per unum , idemque clerus , per duos procuratores idoneos , plenam & sufficientem potestatem ab ipsis capellano & clero habentes , una uobiscum intersint , modis omnibus tunc & ibidem ; ad faciendum & consentiendum hiis que tunc & ibidem de communi consilio ( favente deo ) ordinari contigerit , super negotiis antedictis . et hoc nullatenus omittatis . teste meipso . elizab. praemonentes decanum & capitulum ecclesie uestre cant. ac archidiacon . totumque clerum vestre dioeces . quod iidem decanus & archidiacon . in propriis personis suis , ac dictum capitulum per unum , idemque clerus per duos procuratores idoneos , plenam & sufficientem potestatem ab ipsis capitulo & clero divisim habentes , predictis die & loco personaliter intersint , ad consentiendum his que tunc ibidem , de communi consilio dicti regni nostri , divina favente clementia , contigerint ordinari . teste meipsa . iii. the forms of the convocationwrits , before and since the reformation . rex , &c. reverendissimo in christo patri a. cantuariensi archiepiscopo , totius angliae primati , & apostolicae sedis legato ; salutem . quibusdam arduis & urgentibus negotiis defensionem & securitatem ecclesie anglicanae , ac pacem , tranquillitatem , & bonum publicum , & defensionem regni nostri , & subditorum nostrorum ejusdem concernentibus ; uobis in fide & dilectione , quibus nobis tenemini , rogando mandamus , quatenus premissis debito intuitu attentis & ponderatis , universos & singulos episcopos vestre provinciae , ac decanos , & praecentores , ecclesiarum cathedralium ; abbates , priores , & alios electivos , exemptos & non exemptos ; nec non archidiaconos , conventus , capitula & collegia , totumque clerum , cujuslibet dioeceseos ejusdem provinciae , ad conveniendum coram uobis in ecclesia s. pauli london . vel alibi , prout melius expedire videritis , cum omni celeritate accommoda , modo debito convocari faciatis : ad tractandum , consentiendum , & concludendum super premissis , & aliis que sibi clarius proponentur , tunc & ibidem , ex parte nostra . et hoc sicut nos , & statum regni nostri , & houorem & utilitatem ecclesie predicte diligitis , nullatenus omittatis . teste meipso . §. . elizabetha dei gratia , &c. reverendissimo , &c. salutem . quibus dam arduis & urgentibus negotiis , nos , securitatem & defensionem ecclesiae anglicanae , ac pacem & tranquillitatem , bonum publicum , & defensionem regni nostri , & subditorum nostrorum ejusdem concernentibus ; uobis in fide & dilectione , quibus nobis tenemini rogando mandamus , quatenus premissis debito intuitu attentis & ponderatis , universos & singulos episcopos vestre provinciae , ac decanos ecclesiarum cathedralium , nec non archidiaconos , capitula , & collegia , totumque clerum cujustibet dioecesis ejusdem provinciae , ad comparendum coram uobis in ecclesia cathedrali s. pauli london , tertio die aprilis proxime futuri , vel alibi , prout melius expedire videritis , cum omni celeritate accommoda , modo debito convocari faciatis . ad tractandum , consentiendum , & concludendum , super prem●ssis , & aliis que sibi clarius exponentur tunc ibidem ex parte nostra : et hoc , sicut nos , & statum regni nostri , ac honorem & utilitatem ecclesie predicte diligitis , nullatenus omittatis . teste meipsa apud westm. xvi . die februarii , anuo regni nostri tertio ▪ decimo . iv. an act concerning the submission of the clergy to the king's majesty . h. . c. . where the king 's most humble and obedient subjects , the clergy of this realm of england , have not only knowledged according to the truth , that the convocations of the same clergy , are always , have been , and ought to be assembled , by the king 's writ ; but also submitting themselves to the king's majesty have promised ( in verbo sacerdotii ) that they will never from henceforth presume to attempt , alledge , claim , or put in ure , or enact , promulge , or execute , any new canons , constitutions , ordinance , provincial or other , or by whatsoever name they shall be called in the convocation , unless the king 's most royal assent and licence may to them be had , to make , promulge , and execute the same , and his majesty do give his most royal assent and authority in that behalf . — be it therefore now enacted , by authority of this present parliament , according to the said submission and petition of the said clergy , that they , ne any of them from henceforth shall presume to attempt , alledge , claim , or put in ure , any constitutions or ordinances , provincial , or synodals , or any other canons : nor shall enact , promulge , or execute any such canons , constitutions or ordinance provincial , by whatsoever name , or names , they may be called in their convocations in time coming , which alway shall be assembled by authority of the king 's writ , unless the same clergy may have the king 's most royal assent and licence , to make , promulge , and execute , such canons , constitutions , and ordinances provincial or synodal ; upon pain of every one of the said clergy , doing contrary to this , and being thereof convict , to suffer imprisonment , and to make fine at the king 's will. — provided alway that no canons , constitutions , or ordinances shall be made , or put in execution within this realm , by authority of the convocations of the clergy , which shall be contrariant or repugnant to the king's prerogative royal , or the customs , laws , or statutes of this realm ; any thing contained in this act to the contrary hereof notwithstanding . v. the commission , sent by king charles ist. to the convocation of . . charles by the grace of god , &c. to all whom these presents shall come , greeting . whereas in and by one act of parliament made at westminster in the th . year of the reign of king henry viiith , reciting that whereas the king 's humble and obedient subjects , the clergy , &c. [ reciting all verbatim , as in the extract , numb . iv . ] and lastly it is provided by the said act , that such canons , constitutions , ordinances and synodals provincial , which then were already made , and which then were not contrariant or repugnant to the laws , statutes , and customs of this realm , nor to the damage or hurt of the king 's prerogative-royal , should then still be used and executed as they were before the making of the said act , until such time as they should be view'd , search'd , or otherwise order'd and determin'd by the persons mention'd in the said act , or the more part of them , according to the tenour , form , and effect of the said act ; as by the said act ( amongst divers other things ) more fully , and at large , it doth , and may appear . . know ye that we , for divers urgent and weighty causes and considerations us thereunto especially moving , of our especial grace , certain knowledge , and meer motion , have by vertue of our prerogative royal , and supreme authority in causes ecclesiastical given and granted , and by these presents do give and grant full , free , and lawful liberty , licence , power and authority unto the most reverend father in god william lord bishop of canterbury , primate of all england , and metropolitan , president of this present convocation for the province of canterbury , during this present parliament , now assembled , and to the rest of the bishops of the same province , and all deans of cathedral churches , arch-deacons , chapters , and colleges , and the whole clergy of every several diocess within the said province ; that they the said lord archbishop of canterbury , president of the said convocation , and the rest of the bishops , and other the said clergy of this present convocation , within the said province of canterbury , or the greater number of them , ( whereof the said president of the said convocation to be always one : ) shall , and may , from time to time , during the present parliament , propose , conferr , treat , debate , consider , consult , and agree , upon the exposition , or alteration , of any canon or canons now in force ; and of , and upon , any such other new canons , orders , ordinances and constitutions , as they the said lord bishop , president of the said convocation , and the rest of the said bishops , and other the clergy of the same province , or the greater number of them ( whereof of the said lord bishop of canterbury , president of the said convocation to be one ) shall think necessary , fit , and convenient , for the honour and service of almighty god , the good and quiet of the church , and the better government thereof , to be from time to time observ'd , perform'd , fulfill'd , and kept , as well by the said lord bishop of canterbury , the bishops , and their successors , and the rest of the whole clergy of the said province of canterbury , in their several callings , offices , functions , ministries , degrees , and administrations ; as also by all and every dean of the arches , and other judges of the said bishops courts , guardians of spiritualties , chancellors , deans and chapters , archdeacons , commissaries , officials , registers , and all and every other ecclesiastical officers , and their inferiour ministers , whatsoever , of the same province of canterbury in their , and every of their distinct courts , and in the order and manner of their , and every of their proceedings , and by all other persons within this realm , as far as lawfully , being members of the church , it may concern them : and further , to conferr , debate , treat , consider , consult and agree , of and upon such other points , matters , causes and things , as we from time to time shall deliver , or cause to be deliver'd , unto the said lord bishop of canterbury , president of the said convocation , under our sign-manual , or privy-signet , to be debated , consider'd , consulted , and concluded upon ; the said statute , or any other statutes , act of parliament , proclamation , provision , or restraint , heretofore had , made , provided , or set forth ; or any other cause , matter , or thing whatsoever , to the contrary notwithstanding . . and we do also , by these presents , give and grant unto the said lord bishop of canterbury , president of the said convocation , and to the rest of the bishops of the said province of canterbury , and unto all deans of cathedral churches , arch-deacons , chapters , and colleges , and the whole clergy of every several diocess within the said province , full , free , and lawful liberty , licence , power and authority , that they the said lord bishop of canterbury , president of the said convocation , and the rest of the said bishops , and other the clergy of the same province , or the greater number of them , ( whereof the said president of the said convocation to be one ) all and every the said canons , orders , ordinances , constitutions , matters , causes and things , so by them from time to time conferr'd , treated , debated consider'd , consulted , and agreed upon , shall and may set down in writing in such form as heretofore hath been accustom'd ; and the same , so set down in writing , to exhibit and deliver , or cause to be exhibited and delivered unto us , to the end that we , upon mature consideration by us to be taken thereupon , may allow , approve , confirm , and ratifie ; or otherwise , disallow , anhillate , and make void , such and so many of the said canons , orders , ordinances and constitutions , matters , causes and things , or any of them so to be by force of these presents consider'd , consulted , and agreed upon , as we shall think fit , requisite , and convenient . . provided always , that the said canons , orders , ordinances , constitutions , matters , and things , or any of them , so to be consider'd , consulted , and agreed upon , as aforesaid , be not contrary , or repugnant to the liturgy establish'd , or the rubricks in it ; or the xxxix articles ; or any doctrine , orders , and ceremonies of the church of england , already establish'd . . provided also , and our express will , pleasure , and commandment is , that the said canons , orders , ordinances , and constitutions , matters , causes and things , or any of them , so to be by force of these presents consider'd , consulted , or agreed upon ; shall not be of any force , effect , or validity in the law , but only such , and so many of them , and after such time , as we by our letters patents under our great seal of england , shall allow , approve , and confirm the same ; any thing before in these presents contain'd to the contrary thereof notwithstanding . in witness whereof we have caused these our letters to be made patent ; witness our self at westminster the th . day of april , in the xvith . year of our reign . per ipsum regem . willis . the canons , and the king's declaration in confirmation of them , made hereupon , are already extant in sparrow's collection . pag. . vi. a specimen of convocations , anciently held without parliaments ; or at different times from them ; till the latter end of king henry viiith's . reign . anno . the convocation sate march : but the king was then absent upon his expedition in scotland , and held not his parliament till the end of the summer , first at berwick ; and after that at st. edmunds-bury , november . wals. p. . anno . . ed. . the writ of summons to the convocations bears date febr. . to meet post xv pasch. the parliament was summon'd the octob. before to meet in quinden . s. hilarii . anno . the convocation was held at london , the fryday after the purification : the parliament was held at winchester , the first week in lent after . wals. p. . anno . the convocation met oct. . but i do not find that any parliament sate that year . anno . a convocation , and parliament : the dates i have not : but the former met at oxford , the latter at gloucester . anno . the convocation met on trinity sunday : the parliament sate may the th ; being the third week in easter foregoing . anno . the convocation met november . the parliament sate not till november th . anno . the convocation met november . i find not any parliament that year . anno . the parliament sate april the th : the convocation met not till july . anno . the convocation sate april . i find no parliament this year . anno . the convocation met february : the parliament sate november . foregoing . anno . a convocation : no parliament . thus stood this matter , till about the end of king henry viiith's . reign . since which ( excepting in the case of the convocation of ) it has , i think , been the usual custom , for the convocation to sit , only in time of parliament . vii . an abstract of several things , relating to the church , which have been done since the h. . by private commissions , or otherwise , out of convocation . h. . thirty two persons appointed to review , &c. the canons of the church , and to gather together out of them such as should , from thenceforth , alone be of force in it . see the act. c. . . injunctions by the king. bishop burnet hist. ref. pag. . — order for the translation of the bible . ibid. pag. , , . . new injunctions . ibid. . — explication of the chief points of religion : publish'd at the close of the convocation , but not by it . ibid. p. . . a committee of bishops appointed by the lords , at the king's command , to draw up articles of religion . ibid. p. . — the vi . articles , on which the act passed , brought in by the duke of norfolk , and wholly carried on by the parliament . ibid. p. , &c. . a committee of divines employed to draw up the necessary erudition of a christian man. ibid. p. . — another commission appointed to examine the rites and ceremonies of the church . ibid. p. . . the examining of the english translation of the bible , being begun by the convocation , is taken by the king out of their hands , and committed to the two universities . ibid. p. . . the king orders the prayers for processions , and litanies , to be put into english ; and sends them to the archbishop with an order for the publick use of them. ibid. p. . king edward vi. . the king orders a visitation over his whole kingdom , and thereupon suspends all episcopal jurisdiction while it lasted . bishop burnet . hist. ref. vol. ii. p. . — the homilies composed . ibid. p. . — articles , and injunctions , set forth . p. . . new injunctions : ibid. append. p. . — an order of council for removing images . ibid. p. . — directions , by the council , to the king's preachers . ibid. p. . — a committee of select bishops and divines , appointed to examine and reform the offices of the church . ibid. hist. p. , . — a new office of communion set forth by them . ibid. p. . — this made way for the act of . p. . and . ibid. p. . . an order of council forbidding private masses . ibid. p. , . — the forms of ordination , appointed by act of parliament order'd to be drawn up by a special committee , of six bishops , and six divines ; to be named by the king : ibid. p. , . . the observation of holydays order'd by act of parliament . ibid. p. . . a new catechism , by the king's order , required to be taught by schoolmasters . ibid. p. . queen elizabeth . . the queen's injunctions : q. v. ibid. p. ● . king james i. . the conference at hampton-court . fuller ch. hist. p. . . an order for a new translation of the bible ; the king directs the whole process of it . ibid. p. . &c. . a proclamation by the king , concerning sports , and recreations , to be allow'd of on the lords-day . ibid. p. . king charles i. — directions concerning preaching , with respect to the arminian points . i have set down these remarks , in this , and the foregoing number ; for the most part , as they lay in my collections ; and , i hope , they are exact : tho' , at present , i have not either time , or opportunity , to make so careful an examination , as i ought to do , of several of them. finis . books printed for richard sare at grays-inn-gate in holborne . the genuine epistles of st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp , the shepherd of hermas , &c. translated and published in english. ● . a practical discourse concerning swe●ring . o. a sermon on the publick thanksgiving for preservation of his majestie 's person . these three by the reverend dr. vvake . also several sermons upon several occasions . by dr. vvake . fables of aesop and other eminent mythologists , with morals and reflections . folio . erasinus colloquies in english. o. the visions of dom. froncisco de quevedo . o. the three last by sir roger l'estrange . epi●●e●u's morals with simplici●●'s comment , translated by mr. stanhope . o. compleat sets , consisting of volumes of letters writ by a turkish spy who lived years undiscovered at paris . o humane prudence , or the art by which a man may raise himself and fortune to grandeur . o. moral maxims and reflections , written in french by the duke of rochfoucault , now made english. o. of the art both of writing and judging of history , with reflections upon ancient as well as modern historiant . by father le moyne . o. an essay upon reason , by sir george mackenzie . o. a divine antidote , or an answer to an heretical pamphlet , entituled an end to the socinian controversy . by dr. francis gregory . o. the doctrin of a god and providence vindicated and asserted . o. discourses on several divine subjects . o. both by thomas gregory late of wadham college oxford , and now lecturer of ●ulham near london . death made comfortable , or the way to dye well . by john kettlewel , a presbyter of the church of england . o. the parson's counsellor , or the law of tyths . by sir simon degg . ● . the unlawfulness of bonds of resignation . o. price d. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e let. p. let. p. notes for div a -e § . § . let. p ib. p. . 〈◊〉 . p. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 p § . letter . p. . . ib p. . . letter , p. . lett. p. . 〈◊〉 . § . artic xxvii . can. , . h●st eccl. praef . l. v p. c. euseb. de vit. const. lib . cap. . vid act. conc. ephes . i. part. cap. . adde epist. ad synod . ibid. cap. . * de feriis : de nup●●is : de fide cath. de h●reticis : de episc. & cleric . &c. † lib. i. tit. , , , , . * novell . v● . cxxxvii , cxxxi , &c. | basil. f●b●ot . lib. t , , , . * ●eg . ed. conf. cap. . leg. can●● . ca. . 〈◊〉 . praefat. cap. . leg. edw. & guthr . cap. . alfred . cap. &c. § . § . pand●ct . lib. tit . l. . tertull. de je●un . cap. . ib. pand. ●eg . . 〈◊〉 . euseb. de vit. const. lib. . cap. , . * socrat. hist. eccles. lib. . cap. . sozom. lib. . cap. . theodoret. lib. . cap. , . * vid. act. concil . eph. par . 〈◊〉 . cap. , , &c. * vid. act. c 〈…〉 〈…〉 d. 〈◊〉 † ibid. ‖ vid ep. leonis ad theodos. imp. ep. . &c ed. ques●●ll . * vid. ep. imp. con 〈…〉 c●●st . ii . collat. 〈◊〉 . p. , ● , , † vid. act. concil . const. iii. act. pag . tom. . * concil . trull . apud bevereg . pandect . tom. p. . e. f. † vid. act. conc. nic●en . ii . act. . pag. . tom. lab. . ‖ act. con. . const. act. . tom. . pag. . c. § . * conc●● . rom. ●ub constant. to. . lab. p. . . † vid. act. conc. arelat . ib. pag. ● . et euseb. hist eccl. lib. x. c. . vid. c 〈…〉 . n 〈…〉 . en . . can. v. 〈◊〉 . bal●●● in can. vid. epist. theodoret. , , . 〈◊〉 . concil . labb . to. iv . p. . ad an . vid. collat . s. avit . cum ar●ian . ib. p. . ad ann. ● . concil . agath . an. . praef. cum in nomine domini , ex permissu domini nostri gloriosissimi , magnificentissi●ique regis , in civitate agathensi , sancta synodus concenisset . vid act. conc. epaonens . an. . prooem . § . vid. capit. conc. tolet . ii . in sin . vid. act. conc. tol. iii. an. act conc. praef. et in conclusante subscript . vid. act. hor. concil . apud labb to. v. p. . . . . . & to. vi . . ● . vid. can. . conc. iii. tolet. concil . narbon . an. ● . in pras. et caesar augustan . ii . an. . § . concil . b●acar . ii . an. . praef. concil . a 〈…〉 pud lucum . an. . v●d act. conc. bracar . iii. in praefat. § . hist. lib. v. cap. . vid. concil . ma 〈…〉 scon . . in praef. an. . * greg. turon . hist. franc. lib. vi . cap. . † vid concil . labb . to. v. pag. . . . &c. § . concil . germ. i. apud lab. to. vi praef lab. conc. ib p. , . . to. vii . p. . . * an. ●● . vid. act. concil . in praefat. † vid. ep. syned●c . ad praesul . hisp num . iii. & in canon i. concil . aquisgran . praef. an. . vid. epist. ludov. imp. ad s●char . arch. b●r●●gal . ibid. vid. act conc. aquisgr . ii . an. . vid. conc. magunt . i. in praef. vid. act. conc. wormat . an. . vid. conc. trebur . apud lab. to. ix . p. . . ibid p. . § . vid. act. conc. aurelian . i. praef. a●no . 〈◊〉 . au 〈…〉 . an. . praef. con● . a●vern . an. . praef. 〈◊〉 . tur. 〈◊〉 . a 〈…〉 . praef. conc. pa● . v. praefat. cum in dei nomir● , secundum ss . patrum constitut onem . ex evocatione 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 & 〈◊〉 cor 〈…〉 o synod●li convenissemus , &c. conc. cabilon . an. . e● evocatione vel ordinatione gloriosissimi domini clodovei regis . vid. conc. vernens . in praef. concil . * rh●m . ii . anno praef. con. tur. iii. i●id . praefat. † conc. pa●is v● . an. . praef. ap . labb . tom vii . p. . . ‖ an. , 〈◊〉 . § . § . vid. frag. hilarii p. , , &c. 〈…〉 . 〈…〉 . 〈…〉 . § . § . epist. ad desiderium : capit . baluz . tom. . p. . act c●●c . 〈◊〉 . lib. cap. . ibid. l. . cap. . conc. apud sapo● par . cap. . capit. sir. ti● . . episcopis 〈◊〉 instituta can●●um sy ●●dum 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 volentibus ▪ 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 r●x caro●us , e●sque apud urbem sucssionum — convenire p 〈…〉 pit . §. . vid. leon. epist . ad ma●● . caes. p . vi● 〈◊〉 . reg 〈◊〉 . b 〈…〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ● . 〈◊〉 . iv cap. ann. ● . tom. . baluz . p. . §. . euseb. hist●r . eccl. lib. . cap . . vid. act. eph. con● p. c. vid. act. con. chalded . act. . pag. . ed. labb . ibid. pag . ● . acta concil . chalc●l . chalced . ib. par . . num . . capit. synod . vernent . n. iv . p. . to. . baluz . capit. aquisgram . ann. . prosog . imp. ibid. pag. . § . § . 〈◊〉 . § . § . euseb. de vit. const. lib : . cap. . ibid. cap. 〈◊〉 ibid. lib. . cap. , . sozom. hist. eccl. lib. . cap. . vid. act. conc. eph. ap . labb . to. iii. p. . 〈…〉 d. par . cap. ● . p. . et ●●fr . conc. eph pag. ● . 〈◊〉 . chalced. act. . p. 〈◊〉 , , , . ibid. et . vid. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 . act. , , , , &c. 〈◊〉 . concil . const. sub mena act. edit . ●abb p. . ibid. act. . p. , . vid. epist justin. collat. . pag. , , . ed labb . § . secundum voluntatis vestrae consultationem & titulo● quos dedistis , ea quae nobis vis●m est , definitione respondimus . con● . aurel. . praefat . ad clodovaeum reg. capit. an. . to. 〈◊〉 . baluz . p. . c 〈…〉 . sues . 〈◊〉 . act. 〈◊〉 . la●b . to. 〈◊〉 . p. ● . 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 p 〈…〉 . act. c●nc . ●r●bur . apud labb . tom. . p. . act. conc. tolet. iv . an. . act. conc. tolet. xiii . an. . ep. regis ad concil . † ibid. unde & has in commune sententias , quas principis hortatu construendas accepimus , communi voto edidimus . labb . tom. . p. . e. an. conc. tolet. xvi . an. . ep. regis ad synod . conc. tol. . an. id magno precatu deliberationis exhortans , ut quae●unque illic detinentur ascripta , valido attendatis intuitu , sagaci perscrutemini studio ; ac de his quae●unque extiterint placita deo , vestri oris , ad nos , sacro referantur oraculo . labb . pag. . § . e● seb . de vit const. lib. . cap. . p. . collat. carth. . cum opt. ●ilevit . num . x. p. . act. conc. eph p. . cap. . vid. act. . concil . chal sacr. com. elp. pag. . ed. labb . vid. act. conc. eph. adv . c●r●l . ed labb . p. &c. § . euseb. de vit. const. l. iii. c. . . . socrat. l. i. c. . act conc. chalced. par . i. ep. , . ibid. act. vi . p. . edit . lab. § . vid. act. concil . tolet . iil . an. . ibid. can. i● . consult● p●●ssimi & gloriosissimi domini nostri , reccareds regis . — jubente atque consentiente : can. viii . — annuente : can. x. — flavius reccaredus rex , hanc deliberationem , quam cum s. desinivimus synedo , confirmans subscripsi . ibid. § . act. conc , francof . an. . ap . labb . to. vii . p. . vid. can. i , ii . ibid. can. iii , iv . vid. act. conc. trebur . apud labb . to. ix . capit. dat. an. christi . in plenâ synodo . n. . statuimus per annos singulos synodum congregari , ut nobis praesentibus canonum decreta , & ecclesiae jura restaurentur , & religio christiana emendetur . capit. to. . pag. . § . vid. not. baluz . in capit. aquisgran . to. . pag. . ap. labb . to pag. . § . § . § . athan. de synod . sozom. hist. eccl. lib. cap. p. . act. conc. eph. p. . cap. epist . imp. per candid ad synod . vid. part . . cap. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . act . con cal●ed . in ●●n . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . socr. hist. eccl. l. . c. . theodoret . l. . cap. . ‖ vid. ep. concil . ad theod im. * act. con. eph. act. . p. . &c. item part . . c. . . vid. act. concil . chalced. par . . cap. . § . § . § . edict . reg. de confirm . conc●●ii tol. iii. cum enim sensus maturitate , & intelligentiae gravitate , constant esse digesta , nostra proinde authoritas jubet , &c. — capitula enim quae nostris sensibus placita , & disciplinae congrua , à praesenti conscripta sunt synodo ; in omni auctoritate — observentur , & maneant . vid. leg . in consir concil . editam . vid. leg . in confir . istius concil . edit . capit. . an. sive capitula xxviii . de confirmatione constitutionum quas episcopi in synodis , auctoritate regiâ nuper habitis , constituerant . — et capit . an. . cap. xiii . has omnes constitutiones ecclesiasticas , quas summatim , breviterque perstrinximus , sicut plenius in canone continentur , manere p●renni stabilitate sancimus . col. tom. . baluz . vid. praef. synod . ●iptinens . an. . praef. concii . turon . to. vil . p. . haec nos in conventu nostro ita ventila●imus : sed quo modo deinceps pi●ssimo principi nostro de his agendum placebii , nos sideles ejus samuli , libenti animo , ad nutum , & voluntatem ejus parati sumus . ib. p. . conc. arelat . vi . post can. . haec igitur sub brevitate , quae emendatione digna perspeximus , quàm brevissimè annotavimus , & domino imperator● presentanda decrevimus ; ut siquid hic minus est , ejus prudentia suppleatur : siquid secus quàm se ratio habet , ejus judicio emendetur : siquid rationabilier taxatum est , ejus ad●utorio , divina opi●ulan●e clementia , perficiatur . eginhart . de vit carol . magn. quia tanta ad religionis catholicae cultum gloriosae fidei : cura vos excitat , ut sacerdotalis mentis affectu sacerdotes de rebus necessariis tractaturo● . tractaturos in unum colligi justeritis ; secundum — voluntatis vestrae consultationem , & titulos quos dedistis , ea quae nobis visum est definitione respondimus : ita utisi ea quae nostatuimus . etiam vestro recta esse judicio comprobantur , tanti consensus regis ac domini , majori auctoritate servandam tantorum fi●met sententiam sacerdotum . inter act. concil . aurelian . . anno . § . § . § . see the hist. of a b. land pag. . see the writs of summons , append. § . * before the dissolution of our monasteries , the abbots and priors were to meet 〈◊〉 person likewise : see the old summon● . append . § . § . § . letter to a convoc . man. p. . vid. conv. wri●s , hen. vi. and fd. iv. § . § . see it in the app●n . §. . § . inst. p. . hen. . cap. . § . instit. p. . let. p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ii § 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 . epiphan . haer. lxxi . n . § . neubrigens . l●b . . cap. . mat. west . ad an. . bract. l. . de coron . c. n. . conf. wals. hyp. neustr. ad an. . p. . fitzherb . nat brev. p. . wals. hyp. neustr. ad an. . . instit. chap. . §. . see wals. hypod. neustr. pag. . . ii. . c. . §. . letter . p. . see ch. ii. sect. . . see loc . supr . cit . §. . ch. ii. sect. see the prohibition of edw. i. 〈◊〉 this purpose , spelm. concil . tom. ii. p. . §. . hist. of a. b la●d , pag. . §. . report . trin. . jac. . pag. . §. . §. . h. . §. . §. . hp. burnet : hist. ref. p. . 〈◊〉 ● . see fuller's ch. hist. pag. . an. . ●●ller , ib. §. . letter . p. . §. . §. . see the writ it self in the appendix . elsyng . meth. of parliaments , p. . custodi spiritualitatis , ed. . §. . see the form of the convocation writ in the appendix . §. . §. . coke instit p. . capitul . tom. i. p. , . anno in . synod . vernens . vid. capit . tom. i. p. , . §. . vid. concil . compend . an. . marca de concord . par . . lib. . cap. . hincmar . rhem. epist . . cap. , &c. §. . capit. to. . pag. , . to. ij . pag. . §. . spelman , concil . to. i. pag. , . §. . §. . see his pref. to them : lamb. p. . cum bed. ib pag. . §. . §. . vid. leg . edv. confess . cap. xxxv . vid. spelm. glossar . voc. gemotum . §. . §. . so the saxon chron. concil . labb to. v. pag. . §. . ann ● . pag. . §. . bed hist. eccl. lib. iv. cap. . ‖ bed hist eccl lib iv. c. . monast. angl. to. i. pag . . * vid. annot wheeloc . in bed. l. c. chron sax. o. ad ann. . p . §. . spelm. concil . to. i. p. , &c. script . x. p. . chron. saxon. ad ann. spelm. concil . to. . p. . §. . see lambard's leges saxon. cum bed● fol. ib. pag. . pag. . pag. . pag. . pag. . pag , . §. . spelm. concil p. , ● . conf . p. . spelm. ib. p. . spelm. ib. p. . §. . spelm. ib. p. , . ib. p. , , &c. §. . §. . concil . labb . to. vi pa . concil . to. ix . p. , vid cap baluz to. ii. p. . n . §. . concil . tricassin . anno . ib. p. , . ib. p. . vid. concil . mosomens . pag. . rhemens . pag. . ib p , . §. . eadmer . hist. p. . harpsfield hist. eccles . sec. . cap. . p. . §. . 〈…〉 yng . method of parliaments , p . §. . king william the conquerour , florent . wigorn. an. . vita lanfranci c. . hoved. sol . , . brompt . col. . . malmsb. de gest . pontif. lib. . c. . vit . lanfranc . antiq. b●it edit lond. p. , . rad. de dicet . col . . ailred riev . col . . mat. par. ad an . . p. . malmsb. de gest . pont. fol. . spelman concil . p. , , antiq. brit. p. . spelm. p. , &c. eadmer . hist. nov . p. . §. . orderic . vit . anno . p. . concil . to. x. p. , . §. . king william ii. eadmer . hist. lib. . p. . knyghton de event . col . . §. . king henry i. eadmer . hist p. , &c. matt. pat. p. . anselm . epist. ad reg . angl. concil . to. x. p. . §. . spelm. anno . vol. ii. pag. . concil . spelm. to ii. anno . p. . §. . gervas : dorob . col. . vid. conti● . floren● wigo 〈…〉 〈◊〉 . ● . pag. , mat. par. ann . . huntingd. fol. 〈◊〉 . hoved. fol. br●mp● col. 〈◊〉 . knyght . col. . §. . k. stephen . malmsb. sol . . ric. hagust . scr. x col. , . gervas . chron. col. . henr. huntingd. fol. . malms . hist. novell . lib. ii. spelm. concil . to. ii. p. . anno . spelm. ib. p. . §. . k. henry ii. ann. . vid. neubrig . lib. ii. cap. . mat. westmin . ann. . ser. causae , &c. script . x. col. . antiq britan . p . mat. par. ann. . brompt . col. . spelm. concil . p. . harpsfield . hist. 〈…〉 cles . pag. . §. . k. 〈◊〉 . i antiqu. brit. pag. . radulf de dicet col. . mat par. pag. . hoveden . ann. fol. . harpsfield saec. xii cap. §. . k. 〈◊〉 . hoveden . fol. . b. mat. paris , mat. westmin . ann. . mat. paris ad ann. . ib. §. . k hen iii. mat paris . mat. westmin . anno . walsyngh . hyp. neustr . p. . mat paris . mat. westmin . ad ann . . mat. westmin . ann . . m. paris ad ann . . mat. paris ad ann. . pag. . spelm. concil . ad ann. . pag. . mat. westmin . ad ann. p. . concil . to xi . pag. ● . knyghton col. mat westmin . anno . wals. hyp. neustr. pag. . spelm. concil . ad ann . . §. . k. edw. i. walsyngham hist. pag. . wals. ib. concil . to. x 〈◊〉 ● . antiquit. brit. pag. . apud spelm. concil . to. ii. p. , , . ib. . §. . k will i sim. dunelm . col. . §. . k. will. ii. eadmer . p. . antiq. brit vit. anselm . §. . 〈…〉 ng hen 〈…〉 i. * eadmer . p. . petr. bles. p. . malms . fol. . hoveden . fol. . knyghton col . . mat. paris . pag. . mat. west . anno . † vid. mat. paris . p. , , , , . mat. west . an. , . malms . fol. . 〈◊〉 . eadmer . hist. lib. . p. . eadmer . ib. p. . eadmer ib. p. . hoved. fol. , &c. mat. west . an rad de dicet . col . , . brompton col . . an. . §. . king stephen . ri● . hagustald . col . . florent . wigo● . an. . jo. brompton col . . §. . king henry ii. §. . see the acts of provisors , praemunire , mortmain , &c. §. . see pryn's animadv . on the instit p. . §. . elsyng . meth. of parliaments , p. . brady's introd . p. . brady , ib. p. , , . § . brady , ib. p. . §. . brady's introd . p. , . elsyng . meth. p. . brady's introd . p. . see the append . below . §. . elsyng . ib. p. , . . instit. p. . moor. rep. p. , . instit p . elsyng . m●th . p. , . instit. p. . modus tenendi par● . hakewell , p. , , , &c. §. . cotton's ahridg . of the records , p. . b. p. . ib. p. . ibid. see the stat. . edw. . rastall . ib. p. . ib. p. . §. . cotton ' s abridg. ib. p , . elsyng . p. , . cotton ' s abridg. p. . ib. p. . ib. p. . ib. p. . elsyng . meth. ch. . elsyng . method of parl. p. . §. . §. . 〈◊〉 's meth. of p 〈…〉 . p. . grand quest. p. ● . §. . s●● 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 num. vi. a 〈◊〉 l 〈…〉 and troubl . 〈◊〉 . ● . p. ● . §. . harpsfield hist. fe●l●s . s 〈…〉 . xiv . cap. . ibid. s 〈…〉 . xv. cap. . 〈…〉 §. . k. edw. i. ann spelm. concil . to. ii. p. ● . spelm. ib. ad ann. . pag. . mat. westmin . ann. . mat. westmin . , walsyngham . ann . . pag. . knyghton col. . knyght . ib. col. . , &c. antiqu. brit. pag. . mat westmin . ann. 〈◊〉 . walsyngham , p . ann ● . walsyngham , ann ● . ibid. §. . k faw . ii. antiquit. brit. pag. 〈…〉 , . spelm. concil . to. ii. ad an. . p. ● . const. walter reynold apud lynwood . concil . labb . to xii . pag. . spelm concil . p. . spelm. concil . to. ii. ad an. , . p. . §. . king ●dward iii. knyghton col. . knyghton col. , . ibid. col an. regni . , , , , &c. knyghton col. ●● § ● . spelm. concil . to. ii. an. . p. . §. . king richard ii. see before sect . spelm. concil . to. ii. ad an. . p. . &c. walsyngham ad an . spelm. concil . p. , . walsyngham hyp. neustr. p. . §. . k. hen. iv. §. . k. hen. vi. see the statute h. . c. . §. . k. henry viii . ●ntiquit . brit. pag. . §. . §. . §. . §. . aurnet's hist. ref. vol. i. pag. ● . §. . fox : martyrol . vol. iii. in his vith . examinat . iv institute : p. . see the appendix . §. . see the appendix . §. . see the appendix : num. vii . §. . §. . §. . §. . letter : pag. . letter : p. . letter : 〈◊〉 ib. p. 〈◊〉 . letter : p. . ib. p. . letter : p. . ib. p. . ib. p. . letter : p. . ib. p. . ib. pag. , . letter : p. , . letter : p. . ib. p. , . letter : p. . §. . §. . §. . letter : p. . §. . §. . letter : p. . ib. p. . h. . c. . instit. iv. pag. . godolph . abr. chap xli . § §. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 §. . 〈…〉 . §. . letter : p. . instit. . chap. v. pag. . coke , ib. §. . letter . p. . append. numb . ii , iii. §. . letter : p. . lett. ib. see sir m. hale's pres. hoved. lo● . b. mat. paris . pag. . ib. p. . pat. . joh. m. , . §. . letter : p. . appendix , numb . vi. §. . letter : p. , . see the commission of king charles i. append. numb . v. §. . letter : p. . ib. p. . see before ch . ii. §. , . §. . letter : p. . see that of king ch i. append. numb . v. §. . letter . p. . letter . p. , . §. . letter . p. . letter . p. , . §. . see the appendix . §. . see that of k. ch. i. append. n. v. 〈◊〉 p. . §. . letter . p. . see above , ch ii . § . ch . iii. § . §. . letter , p. , . §. . letter . pag. . c● . ii . §. . iii. §. , &c. §. . keilway's rep. sol . , &c. §. . §. . letter p. . ibid. p. . §. . greg. naz. to. . epist. ● . p. . sozom. lib. ii . cap. . §. . §. . §. . §. . §. . §. . see the king's commission to the last convocation . §. . §. . §. . latter . p. . §. . §. . §. . letter . p. . §. . letter p. . letter , p. ▪ §. . letter p. . §. . letter p. . §. . letter pag. . §. . 〈◊〉 . p. . §. . letter p. , . ibid. p. . ibid. p. letter p. . letter p. . ibid. §. . letter p. . §. . §. . §. . letter p. , . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. , . ibid. p. , . letter p. , . §. . letter p. , §. . §. . walsingh . p. . wals. ibid. p. . mat w●ster . ann. . w. thorne ad ann. . . col. henr. knyght . col. . novs rep. hastings and blakes case . notes for div a -e sub henr. iii. before the reformation . since the reformation . a sermon preach'd before the queen at white-hall, may the xth. m.dc.xc.i by william wake ... 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- n.t. -- hebrews iv, -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - judith siefring sampled and proofread - judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a sermon preach'd before the queen at whitehall : may x th . m. dc . xc . i. by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties , and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . published by her maiesties special command . london , printed for richard. sare , at grays-inn-gate , next holbourn , . hebr. iv . . let us therefore fear , lest a promise being left us of entring into his rest , any of you should seem to come short of it . these words are the application of the apostle's discourse in the foregoing chapter . he had there entred on a parallel betwixt moses and christ ; between the promises which the one made of a temporal inheritance to the jews heretofore , and the assurance which the other has given of an eternall reward to us now . but as they notwithstanding those promises , yet by their sins and their infidelity came short of them and perished in the wilderness , so may this be our case too . god has indeed called us to a glorious hope of everlasting happiness . he has given us all the security we can desire that we shall . one day be made partakers of it . but yet there are conditions required on our parts too , both to qualifie us for this happiness , and to intitle us unto it : and if we neglect to fulfil them , we shall as certainly fail of ours , as ever they did of their expectations . let us therefore fear , lest a promise being left us of entring into his rest , any of you should seem to come short of it . for the inforcing of which exhortation , i shall observe this method . i st . i will shew , that god has left us a promise of entring into his rest ; a promise enough to satisfie all our desires , and to engage our heartiest endeavours after it . ii dly . that nevertheless we may by our own fault come short of this promise . iii dly . that therefore we ought to be very fearful and sollicitous lest we should do so . iv thly . that the best way to secure this promise to our selves , is to take the advice of the text , and live in a continual fear of coming short of it . and i st , that god has left us a promise of entring into his rest ; a promise enough to satisfie all our desires , and to engage our heartiest endeavours after it . this is that great fundamental principle upon which not only the present exhortation , but in effect the whole gospel of christ is built . whatsoever our blessed saviour either did or suffered whilst he was on earth himself , or commanded us to do or suffer after his example ; all the precepts , all the revelations of the gospel , are but one continued argument to convince us of this truth . insomuch that what st. paul once said to the corinthians concerning that other great article of our creed , the beginning of our hope , and preparatory to our glory , the resurrection of the body ; i may no less apply here to this other of the life everlasting consequent upon it : if there be no such thing as another life after this , wherein we shall either receive the everlasting reward of our piety , or suffer the eternal punishment of our sins ; then is our preaching vain , and your faith also is vain . the whole business of religion is a meer cheat and illusion ; let us eat and drink , for to morrow we die. but blessed be god who has not left us the least room to doubt , in a matter of such importance as this is to us : but has given us such noble descriptions , such repeated assurances of our future happiness , as may abundantly suffice both to satisfie all our scruples concerning it , and to ravish our souls into the most earnest longings and desires after it . and tho' neither the weakness of our capacities , nor the method of the present discourse will permit me to speak either very much , or very clearly concerning it : yet i shall endeavour at lest to give such an account of the rest here spoken of as may serve to answer the design of the argument . i have undertaken ; and shew with what good reason the apostle here exhorts us to fear lest such a promise as this being set before us , we should any of us be so unhappy as to come short of it . now two things there are that will be necessary to be consider'd by us in order to this end : ( st . ) the greatness , and ( dly . ) the certainty of our future reward . that the promise which god has left us of entring into his rest is as excellent in it self , as it shall be most surely made good to us , if we live so as to render our selves worthy of it : and therefore ought , upon both these accounts , to engage us to use our utmost diligence not to come short of it . ( st . ) for the former of these , the greatness of that reward which god has promised to us in the gospel : it is a subject worthy indeed of all our consideration , but impossible ever to be fully comprehended by us , till we our selves shall come to the enjoyment of it . even st. paul himself , though admitted to the nearest contemplation of it that ever any man was , yet could not find out any expressions that would serve him to communicate his idea's of it to us . he tells us that being caught up into paradise , he heard words unspeakable , and which it is not possible for a man to utter cor. xii . . and all he could do was but to declare with isaiah on the like occasion , cor. ii . . that neither eye has seen , nor ear heard , neither have entred into the heart of man the things which god hath prepared for them that love him . and indeed it is , i think , none of the least commendations of the glories of the other world , that they are not possibly to be comprehended by us in this . that their excellency so far transcends all the notions of happiness we have ever been acquainted with here , that we cannot from thence take any measure whereby to judge of our eternal reward . but that after all our most enlarged thoughts , when we shall have given the utmost scope to our imaginations ; have ranged through all the highest instances of innocent and un-mix'd felicity that we have ever heard of in this life : nay , when we shall have done yet more , shall have indulged our very fancies and desires to invent some new happiness beyond whatever any one could possibly have enjoyed in this imperfect state of mortality ; we may even then venture to say , that what god has prepared for them that fear him is somewhat exceedingly beyond all this : tho' what it is we are no more able particularly to declare , than we are to measure omnipotence ; or to define what an infinitely good and great god is able to do for them that love him , and whom therefore he both loves , and will bless and glorifie together with himself to all eternity . but then as in speaking of god himself , tho we cannot comprehend his nature , yet by putting together the highest idea's that we have of infinite perfection , we do endeavour to raise up our souls into some suitable apprehensions of it : so here , it has pleased god to give such general descriptions to us of the glories of the other world , as may suffice to let us into some imperfect knowledge of it ; and be more than enough both to raise our desires , and to quicken our endeavours after it . for st . we are told that heaven is a place free from all trouble and misery ; from all those hopes and fears , those dangers and disappointments , in a word , from all those evils and calamities that continually disturb us here , and render our highest enjoyments very flat and insipid to us . this is what our apostle insinuates , when he calls it by the name of a rest : let us fear , says he , lest a promise being left us of entring into his rest , any of you should seem to come short of it . and again , verse . there remaineth therefore a rest for the people of god. but st. john more expresly , revel . xxi . . where speaking of the new jerusalem , our city which is above , he tells us that there god shall wipe away all tears from our eyes , and there shall be no more any death , neither sorrow nor crying , neither shall there be any more pain , for the former things are passed away . here we live in a vale of misery , exposed to tryals , and encompassed with troubles on every side . he who is the most fortunate among us , is yet forced to measure his happiness rather by the frequent intervals he enjoys of comfort and satisfaction , than by any absolute freedom from all evil and misery . we come into the world with a cry , and go out of it with a groan , and the time we pass from the one of these periods to the other , is for the most part fill'd up with little else than a melancholy series of sighs and tears , of doubts and uncertainties ; of uneasiness at what is present , and fearful apprehensions of what is to come . so that were we to look no farther than the present condition of mankind , one might almost be tempted to ask with job , ch. iii. . wherefore is light given to him that is in masery , and life to the bitter in soul ? which look for death and it cometh not , and dig for it more than for hid treasures ? who rejoyce exceedingly , and long when they can see the grave ? there the wicked cease from troubling , and there the weary be at rest . there the prisoners rest together , they hear not the voice of the oppressor . but when we come to heaven , there we shall find a perfect deliverance out of all our troubles . no pains or diseases , no weakness or infirmity shall disturb our bodies ; no lusts or passions , no irregular appetites or desires shall discompose our souls , there shall be nothing to interrupt or lessen our enjoyments . heaviness may endure for the night of this world , but when the blessed morning of eternity shall spring forth , then pure joy , and an un-mix'd felicity shall spring up with it ; and nothing remain but the memory of our former troubles , the more to increase our comfort and satisfaction in that absolute deliverance we shall then have obtain'd from them . this is the first part of that character which the holy scriptures have given us of our future state , it is a state free from all evil and misery : and how considerable a blessing this is , if the sense of our present evils be not sufficient to inform us , i shall leave it to the authority of st. john to tell you , revel . xiv . . where he makes use of this as an argument to strengthen the christians of those times in the enduring of any tryals that could fall upon them for their religion , that they should in a little time be perfectly deliver'd from all their miseries ; i heard a voice from heaven , saying unto me , write , from henceforth blessed are the dead which die in the lord ; yea , saith the spirit , for they rest from their labours , and their works do follow them . but this is not yet all , for dly ; when we come to heaven we shall not only be set free from all other evils , but from that which is the great source and foundation of all our miseries , from sin too : and from all those consequences of it which now fill our souls with so many sad reflections , and make all our present enjoyments a meer dream and a vision , the appearances of happiness , rather than any real and solid satisfaction , viz. the fear of death , and the apprehension of damnation . here we live in a continual state of war and danger : difficulties and temptations encompass us on every side ; and when we think we stand the most securely , yet even then we cannot tell how soon , or how dangerously we may fall . the flesh and the spirit , those contrary principles of which we are composed , still dividing us between our desires and our duty ; and forcing us often times when we the most stedfastly resolve , and the most earnestly endeavour to live well , yet to encounter no small difficulties in the doing of it : and in the sense thereof to cry out with st. paul , rom. vii . . o wretched men that we are , who shall deliver us from the body of this death ! but heaven is a place innocent as it is glorious : there all these conflicts shall have an end. no lusts or passions , no dangers or temptations , shall either draw us from our piety , or put us to the least pain for the fulfilling of it . but it shall be our meat and drink , the desire and bent of our affections to live innocently : and what david once said of himself , be much more perfectly accomplish'd in all of us , psal. xl . . our delight is to do thy will o god! yea , thy law is within our hearts . it is one great part of that account which st. john every where gives us of the blessed in heaven , that they spend their whole time in little else than a continued exercise of piety and devotion . in praising god , and admiring his perfections , and celebrating his goodness . but especially , in the most elevated returns of love and gratitude , of joy and thanksgiving to him for the great work of our redemption ; and for all those miracles of mercy by which they have been delivered from sin and hell , and translated to such a blessed state of happiness and glory . and indeed what wonder if this shall be the great business of our lives there , when as the same st. john tells us we our selves shall be made like unto him . pure and holy , enemies to sin , and to all those temptations that have heretofore been wont to lead us into sin. and being thus made like unto god in holiness , we shall become like him in happiness too . for then death and hell shall be destroy'd ; they shall be cast into the lake of fire , revel . xx . . and we shall sing for ever that triumphant song of st. paul , cor. xv . . o death , where is thy sting ? o grave , where is thy victory ? — thanks be to god who hath given us the victory through our lord jesus christ. but dly , and to go yet farther ; we shall not only then be set free from all our troubles and miseries , from whatsoever is any way grievous or afflicting to us in this world : but we shall in stead thereof be blessed in a full enjoyment of the most perfect happiness that our condition shall then be capable of , and that is a great deal more than we are now able to conceive . for , st . our bodies , which here are the weight and burden of our souls , neither to be supported without care , nor kept under without trouble , and which when we have done all that we can , will yet many times afflict us with pains and diseases , weaknesses and infirmities : sometimes expose us to grievous temptations , and too often betray us into the greatest sins ; to be fure always so clog and depress us , that we shall at best be able to rise up but to very imperfect discharges of our duty , shall then be glorified , and rendred a habitation fit for so divine a spirit to dwell in . so our apostle tells us , cor. xv . . this corruptible , says he , shall put on incorruption , this mortal , immortality . we shall not only receive our bodies again out of the dust , but we shall receive them in greater beauty and perfection , than ever they were before . they shall rise out of their graves , as the sun arises from beyond the mountains of the east ; bright and shining : or rather as the body of our blessed saviour when he appeared to st. paul on his way to damascus , acts ix . and in comparison whereof the very sun it self seem'd to be but dim and obscure . and as , our bodies shall be thus glorified , so our souls , and all the powers and faculties of them , shall be no less enlarged . now we know in part , and see as through a glass darkly : he that is the wisest amongst us , and has made the best progress in learning , is yet ignorant of a great deal more than he knows , and in what he thinks he understands the best , is often times mistaken . but then we shall see face to face , and know even as also we are known . all the mysteries of our faith , and the secrets of our redemption shall be laid open to us : and those disputes which now so unhappily divide the church , and disquiet the minds of the best christians , be for ever determined ; not by force , but conviction , not by canons and definitions , but by an evident light , and a clear and distinct perception . this shall be the state of our understandings in the other world , nor shall our wills be any less perfected . there shall be no repugnancy to the service of god ; no passions or appetites to cross or encounter in the fulfilling of it . we shall be all flame , and love , and devotion : shall flee to our duty with the ardors of seraphim , and shall feel such new and unspeakable joys arising in our souls from the performance of it , as now we are not able to conceive . only perhaps some pious votary may now and then have felt some antepasts of them ; when having either overcome some great and violent temptation , or else fulfilled some noble instance of duty , he finds in himself such a serenity of mind , such sweetness and satisfaction of spirit proceeding from the consideration of it , as exceeds all the sensual pleasures of the most exquisite voluptuary : but which alas ! are as far short of that perpetual joy and comfort we shall then live in , as the best of our performances here , are exceedingly inferiour to what the constant discharges of our piety shall be there . and being thus prepared for a full draught of happiness , we shall not fail to enjoy the largest portion that we can even wish for of it . what the particular ingredients of our future felicity shall be , i am not able to say . but this we know , that we shall live in the presence of god , in whose presence there is fulness of joy , and at whose right hand there are pleasures for evermore . we shall converse with angels , and be translated to the general assembly and church of the first born , and to the spirits of just men made perfect . there we shall meet with all those great and wise , those holy and excellent persons who in their several ages have made up the glory and ornament of the church militant on earth , and now shine as stars in the church triumphant in heaven . whose vertuous lives and patient sufferings , we have either read or heard of with so much wonder and satisfaction . by whose learning we have profited ; whose disciples we have professed our selves ; and whose examples we have look'd up unto , both for our imitation and our encouragement . there we shall again be restored to our friends and our relations , whom we have here left with so much sorrow and bitterness . there we shall behold the blessed apostles of our lord and saviour , and all the rest of that noble army of martyrs and confessors by whose constant labours , and patient sufferings , the gospel first became publish'd to the world ; and to whom therefore as fellow-workers with christ , we our selves have in part been indebted for our own salvation . and lastly , to compleat all ; there we shall meet with the blessed jesus himself , the great shepherd of the sheep , the author and finisher of our faith , by whose bloud we were redeemed , by whose grace we have been sanctify'd , and by whose merits and intercession we shall have then attain'd to all this glory . this is that company to which we shall be translated , when we come to die . and then , think if you can what an unspeakable happiness it must needs be to us to pass from the vain conversation of a peevish , and wicked world , to such an admirable society as this : from the follies and disorders of sinful and frail men , to the wise and innocent and endearing conversation of saints and angels . i shall not for the farther improving of these reflections trouble you with any uncertain conjectures , of the rare discourses , the glorious entertainments , the sincere friendships , we may there expect to meet with . what new transports of joy shall fill our souls , when we shall begin to consider the temptations we have overcome , the dangers we have escaped , and the various troubles we have pass'd through in our pilgrimage here on earth ; and compare all these with that peace and glory we shall then enjoy in the kingdom of heaven . but one thing there is that must not be pass'd by , and that is , that being now instated in all this great felicity , we shall at the same time become secure of an everlasting enjoyment of it : that our glory shall be eternal , and our reward no man shall take from us. for tho' this be but a circumstance , and so do's not enter into the nature of our happiness , yet it is such a circumstance , that heaven it self would hardly be compleat without it . but the greater our enjoyments were , the more it would trouble us to think that the time was coming when all this mighty treasure should be exhausted ; and we should either altogether cease to be , or which is worse , should be divested of our present happiness , and become again as poor , and sinful , and destitute , and miserable , as once we were , or rather to speak more sensibly , as we now are . whereas now , we may without all anxiety freely rejoyce in the blessings we shall enjoy , and take no thought for the future : being assured that our felicity is founded upon the rock of ages ; permanent as eternity ; firm and stable as that god from whom it flows ; in whom there is no variableness , neither shadow of turning , and with whom we also shall continue for ever and ever . this is that rest of which our text speaks : and of this ( dly . ) we shall most certainly be made partakers , if we live so as we ought to do . for god being not only most true and faithful in all his promises , and therefore uncapable of deceiving us , but most powerful too , and therefore able to do whatever he pleases for us ; it cannot be doubted but that what he has promised , shall most assuredly be made good to us : and therefore that if such a rest as this be indeed set before us by him , we may and ought to depend upon it as a faithful saying , and worthy of all men to be received . now that the holy scriptures have encouraged us to expect such a rest is so very plain , that i do not see how any one can have the confidence to doubt of it . they have not only assured us that there shall be a final judgment , and an irrevocable sentence of happiness or misery pass'd upon all mankind , according to what they shall have done , whether good or evil : but they have moreover declared to us , that it was for this very purpose that our blessed saviour came into the world , that he died and was buried , and rose again from the dead , that he might both purchase this great reward for us , and receive full power and authority to confer it upon us . either therefore we must say that all this is meer fable and romance ; that the whole business of christianity is but an idle story , that has nothing of truth or reality in it : or if we think the gospel to deserve any credit , we must conclude that this promise shall stand firm and immutable as that god who made it , that if we live according to the rules of our religion , we shall receive the reward of it ; that eternal rest of which our text here speaks , and which i have now been endeavouring to describe to you . it remains then that there is without all doubt a blessed expectation reserved for us in another . life : but then , ii dly . it is as certain , that we may by our own fault come short of it . for the promise of this rest is not absolute , but conditional . it depends upon a covenant in which there are duties to be fulfill'd on our part , as well as a reward to be made good , on god's : and if we fail in the one , there is no reason to expect that he should perform the other . when our saviour sent forth his disciples to preach these glad tidings of salvation to the world , we read in st. mark that their commission ran in these terms , mark xvi . . go ye into all the world , and preach the gospel to every creature : he that believeth and is baptized shall be saved , but he that believeth not , shall be damn'd . and what it is we are there to understand by believing , we may see in the parallel place of st. matthew , ch. xxviii . . go ye and teach all nations , baptizing them in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost ; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever i have commanded you . and from both which the conclusion is very plain , that if we mean to be saved , we must not only enter our selves into the church of christ by baptism ; but being so admitted , must believe and do whatsoever he hath required of us : and without which we shall be so far from having any right to these promises , that we shall incur the greater damnation for our sins . but this is not yet all ; for if the case be so as i have now shewn it to be , if the promise of this rest be conditional , and we are no otherwise intituled to the blessings than as we are careful to fulfil the duties of the gospel : then i must add , that we may not only by our own fault come short of it , but that without a great deal of care we most certainly shall do so ; and therefore ought the more to fear lest we should fall from such divine and glorious expectations . the righteousness of the gospel , and that universal obedience which it requires of us in order to our salvation , is not a work of common and ordinary attainment . it calls us to a great deal more than many of us , i fear , are aware of , i am sure than most of us practise . to a piety that has startled the consciences of the most perfect votaries ; and once made even the apostles themselves cry out , who then can be saved ? those severe duties of mortification and self-denyal , of taking up the cross , and following christ , were never designed for meer pomp and shew ; only to exalt the credit of the gospel , and make it the more admired in the world : but as helps and assistances , to conquer our passions , to confirm us against all the temptations of a wicked world , and to raise us up to the utmost degree of piety , that our condition would admit of in it ; for the tryals of our faith , and the exercise of our patience , and in short , to fit us for heaven , before they carried us to it . men may live as they please , and content themselves with a formal and superficial piety ; and think it very well that they stand in the same rank with the generality of the world , and have as good pretences to heaven as their neighbours . but the commands of god are not to be evacuated by the wickedness of men. god has plainly set before us the terms of our salvation ; what we are to believe , and what to do , if ever we mean to attain unto it . and if notwithstanding this , men will be careless and negligent in their duty ; scepticks in their faith , and atheists in their practice : if they will scoff at the revelations , and despise the morals of christianity ; laugh at the divinity of our saviour christ and the holy ghost , and live so as if they did not believe there was any god at all : let them applaud themselves , if they please , in their profane drollery , and strengthen one another in wickedness ; but let them know assuredly that there is a time coming when neither their number shall defend , nor their sophistry excuse them ; but for all these things god will bring them to judgment . seeing then we not only may , but without great care we most certainly shall come short of that rest which god has prepared for us , it will i think very much behove us all iii dly . to take the advice of the text , and fear lest we should chance so to do . this is the apostle's own inference in the words before us , and such as i think naturally arises from the foregoing considerations . for since it has pleased god to call us to such a great and precious promise , as i have before shew'd the rest here spoken of to imply ; to a perfection of glory and happiness which neither any tongue can utter , nor any thought conceive : what can be more reasonable than that we should make it our utmost endeavour , the great business and concern of our lives earnestly to aspire after it , and by all means to qualifie our selves for the obtaining of it ? the truth is , were we to discourse of this matter only upon the principles of right reason , and according to the common bent and inclination of our natures , without any regard to the practice of mankind ; one might justly think that instead of arguing with men upon this subject , we ought rather to apologize for the absurdity of making that an exhortation , which every man must do whether he will or no. happiness is that which all men desire , and therefore must needs endeavour to attain unto . and to exhort men to be happy , to pursue that which is to raise them to the highest pitch of felicity that their condition is capable of : what is this , but as if one should go about to argue with a covetous wretch not to neglect a fair opportunity of growing rich , or with a loose voluptuary , to eat and drink , and fill his soul with sensual satisfactions ; that is , to endeavour by reason to incline them to that , which their own appetites , beyond all the reason in the world , hurry them on to . and yet tho' all this be most certainly true , that we do all of us naturally desire that which will make us happy ; and it cannot be doubted but that 't is this rest , this eternal reward , in which above any thing the felicity of man does consist : i know not how , there is scarce any thing which men generally so much neglect , or so little seem to trouble themselves about as this. as if the whole business of religion were indeed no more , than what some profane men have call'd it , a piece of state-contrivance , a device to keep fearful and superstitious people in awe : and the gospel-promise of a future-state , a refinement only upon the old poetick hypotheses of elysian fields , and i know not what other dreams of happiness , no where to be found but in their numbers . tell a man how to establish his present fortunes , shew him the way how he may accomplish his ends in what he aims at in this world ; and tho' perhaps the utmost of his ambition be but to gain some little estate , or honour , or advancement , which can neither reward his pains , nor satisfie his desires ; yet you shall not fail to meet with a very ready attention from him. he will receive your instructions with greediness , and if they carry but never so little a probability with them , you shall need no perswasives to put him upon the practice of them . but now speak to the same person of the vast concerns of heaven and eternity ; exhort him to consider how short and uncertain his life here is , how fast it runs away , and in how little a time the whole stock of it will be exhausted ; and that then he must appear before the judgment-seat of christ , to receive the things done in the body according to what he shall have done whether good or evil : and tho' by an affectionate application you may chance to warm him for the present , or even force him , with felix , to tremble at the thoughts of a judgment to come ; tho' your arguments be strong , and his own conscience concurs vvith you to satisfie him that these things are so as you represent them to him ; yet all the effect shall be but this , that he vvill grow vveary of the admonition , and be uneasie till he can get away from you ; and no sooner is he at liberty , but he begins presently to think how he may shake off those dull and melancholy apprehensions your discourse has raised in his mind ; and then he becomes the very same man that he was before , goes on again in his sins and debauches , and never considers that the end will be that he shall perish for ever . now this being the general neglect and security in which men live , it cannot certainly but be very proper , not only to exhort them sometimes to a greater care ; but if it be possible , to convince them too of the grounds they have to fear , whither such an incogitancy as this will carry them ? and i st . if their indifference in this matter proceeds from a real belief that there is no such thing as another life after this , nor any account to be given to god of all our actions ; that there is neither any such eternal portion of happiness to be enjoy'd , or of punishment to be undergone , as we have been told there is : this i confess will make their neglect the more rational ; and we ought not to wonder , if they are not afraid of coming short of a reward , which they do not believe was ever to be attain'd by them . but then at least they ought to be very sure that their belief , or rather infidelity , as to this point is well-grounded , before they venture the everlasting welfare of their souls upon it . for not to say any thing of those assurances which the gospel has given us of our future state , and the authority whereof is founded upon such strong and convincing arguments , that we see the greatest part of the wisest men in all ages have thought there was no reasonable exception to be made against it . do they believe that there is a god ? that this world was not made without some cause to produce it , nor is now govern'd and preserved without some superiour power to overlook and order the affairs of it ? this i am sure the gentiles themselves have generally acknowledged , and i much question whether there was ever any man so void of all reason , as to be able seriously to make a doubt of it . but if there be a god , and if his providence does overlook the affairs of men , there must needs be a future judgment , some day of account in vvhich he will render to every man according to his works ; and those vertues shall be rewarded , and those vices punish'd in some other life , which we see oftentimes but little regarded in this . do they believe that they are themselves endued with rational souls ; that they are not meer machines , a little mass of clay , stamp'd with the figure of a man , but by some purer principle , raised above the condition of the other creatures that are below them ? but then let them consider what these souls are , and whether they may not possibly be of a spiritual substance , capable of existing by themselves , when the body falls into the dust : and if they may , then let them think a little farther , whither they are to go , and what is to be done with them ? in short ; do they believe their own sense and experience ? let them then tell us why it is their consciences so often check them for the sins they commit , and force them many times to start and tremble at the thoughts of them : and especially then when they are nearest their end , and past all danger of punishment in this world , unless it be , that their own hearts then begin to misgive them , and force them at least to fear the judgment of the other . but dly ; it may be , tho' they are not absolutely certain , that there is no such thing as a future state , yet neither are they sufficiently satisfied that there is , and this makes them the less sollicitous about it . now if this be the case , then i must confess that here again there may be some reason why they should not be so vigorously concern'd for the business of religion , as those who without all doubt expect a glorious reward of their labours . but yet still , seeing they are not sure , but that there may be another life after this , and an eternal state of happiness or misery , as we say there is ; it must certainly be the wisest way not to be too secure , nor expose themselves to so great a hazard , as either to come shert of this rest , if there should be such a thing , or to be lost and damn'd for ever , as they must be , should god chance to call them to an account for their sins . and if such persons as these , notwithstanding all their scepticism as to this matter , ought nevertheless to consider and fear , and do no more wickedly ; much more , dly , should we who have no doubt at all of this reward , be very careful not to come short of it , nor suffer any present interests or temptations , to deprive us of our eternal glory . it is the great disadvantage of the point before us , that in discoursing of the happiness or misery of the other world , we talk to men of somewhat at a great distance from them ; of blessings not to be enjoyed till after they are dead , and that they hope shall not be yet a while . now this makes them for the most part so very careless in their provisions for it , and so little apt to be troubled with any fears about it . but yet , since we are sure we must die , and we cannot tell either how soon , or in what manner we may be cut off , and that should vve chance to be surprized , and taken away out of our present state , before we have made any due provision for the future , it will be impossible for us ever to retrieve our neglect : certainly all these considerations ought to engage us not to let any time pass in securing of so great a stake ; nor give any rest to our souls , whilst we have any just doubts remaining what shall be our final portion for ever . such reason therefore have vve all to be very fearful and sollicitous about our future happiness : and the more to excite us thereunto , let us consider , iv : that the best way to secure to our selves the promise of this rest , is to take advice of the text , and live in a continual fear of coming short of it . and that upon these two accounts : because ( st ) this will be the most likely to engage our own care : and ( dly ) to entitle us to god's favour . ( st ) this will be the most likely to engage our own care. for fear where it is not a slavish terror arising in the mind from an apprehension of punishment for sin committed , but a concern for the discharge of our duty , lest otherwise we should offend god , and deprive our selves of that reward he has call'd us to ; naturally puts men upon the strictest guard over themselves , and care of their duty . and therefore solomon who very well understood the advantage of it , sets it forth to us as the first step to a religious life , prov. ix . . the fear of the lord , says he , is the beginning of wisdom : as on the other side , david , when he would describe to us a sinner of whom there was no hopes , could not find out any better character for him than this , that he had no fear of god before his eyes , psal. xxxvi . . and the reason of this is plain ; because where-ever there is such a fear , it shews the person who has it , to be endued with a just sense both of his duty and of his danger , of the necessity there lies upon him to live well , and of the great hazard he shall run if he neglects to do so . nay it shews yet more , that such an one is not only sensible of all this , but does moreover in the consequence of it resolve to be very careful and diligent in the offices of religion ; to serve god , and discharge his duty towards him , that so he may obtain the reward of it . and where there is such a disposition as this , it is hardly possible that a man should fail of accomplishing his desires . for if we look more narrowly into this matter , and consider what it is that keeps so many christians in such a strange security with relation to their future state ; we shall find it to proceed from one of these two causes : either they are not sufficiently sensible of their obligations to piety , and of the necessity there lies upon them to live well ; or else they flatter themselves in their own righteousness , they think they are in a very safe way already , and need not aim at any higher attainments . but now he who has this fear continually upon his mind , will not easily be deluded with either of these : but as he will be truly concern'd for his salvation , so he will be always afraid that he is not so secure as he ought to be of it . and this will naturally put him upon yet farther endeavours to get some new and greater victories over himself ; to grow in grace , and come up nearer to perfection , that so he may encrease in hope too , and have still more full and more comfortable assurances of god's mercy to him through christ jesus . ( dly ) as such a fear will be sure to engage our own care , so will it be the best means to entitle us to god's favour . for st : this will above any thing qualifie us for the gracious assistance of his holy spirit , to strengthen us in our endeavours , and to enable us to discharge that duty which is required of us. for god resisteth the proud , but giveth grace to the humble . to the humble , that is , to those who are fearful and jealous of themselves ; conscious of their own weakness and infirmity , and supported only with the hope of god's grace , to help them in time of need . and therefore st. paul upon this very ground exhorts the philippians to work out their own salvation with fear and trembling ; because if they did so , then god would not fail to bless them in it , and to work in them both to will and to do of his good pleasure . dly : such a fear , as it will the best dispose us for the grace of the holy spirit to help us in our duty , and to fortifie us against those temptations that may chance to arise to draw us away from it ; so will it the best dispose us for the pardon of those sins , which when we have done all that we can , we shall still continue more or less to commit . because he who thus fears , will either never willingly fall into any sins , and then there can be no doubt but that he shall find a very ready pardon of his involuntary offences : or if he should be at any time so unhappy as to be led away by the deceitfulness of sin , yet this fear will soon awaken him , and bring him both to a true sense , and a deep abhorrence of it . here therefore , if ever , will be an object fit for god's mercy . an humble , contrite , penitent christian : a man who in his heart truly loves god , and above all things both the most desires , and the most endeavours to please him : and is never so sensibly concern'd , as when he does any thing that he thinks was contrary to his duty to him. and having thus put a man into a state of grace , this fear , dly , to complete all , will be the surest means to enable him to persevere in it unto the end. whilst keeping him still under the same concern for his salvation , and in the same apprehensions of coming short of it ; it will by consequence keep him also in the same pious care to live so that he may not miscarry at the last , and lose all the benefit of his former piety , for want of going on and continuing in it . and now when so many considerations engage us to the practice of this duty ; when the reward proposed to us is so great , and the danger of missing it so fatal , and one of the best ways in the world to secure it to us , is to live always in a warm concern for it , and under a due apprehension of coming short of it : methinks i could almost flatter my self that all this shall be sufficient to prevail with you thus to fear , lest any of you should be so unhappy as to fail of it . nor let any one think this an improper exhortation for this place . fear is , i confess , in general but a slavish passion , and such as i can easily believe the greatest part of this assembly to be but little acquainted with . but yet there are some things which the philosophers themselves could tell us the bravest men both might and ought to be afraid of : and sure , if any thing , the wrath of god , and eternal damnation , may well be allow'd to fall under such a character . never was there a prince endued with a truer personal courage than king david i need not tell you through how many dangers he passed , with how many difficulties he encountred , and how great and intrepid he appeared in all his tryals . and yet notwithstanding all his bravery , this great king thought it no reproach to him to own such a fear as this which i am now recommending to you , psal. cxix . . my flesh , says he , o god , trembleth for fear of thee , and i am afraid of thy judgments . where was there ever a race of men that despised , i do not say death , but what is worse than death , disgrace , reproaches , torments , more than the primitive martyrs and confessors of the christian church did ? so terrible were their conflicts , that it almost chills our blood to read the accounts of those cruelties which they with an admirable patience and constancy underwent . the relations of their sufferings look more like romance than history : they seem to describe not so much what any men ever really underwent , as what the writers of their lives thought sit to invent , to magnifie their courage , and honour their religion . and yet now these are the men who in their very sufferings shew'd what a fear they had of offending god , and losing their own souls . it was their apprehension of this that inspired them with that bravery we now so much admire ; and made them dare to suffer any evils in this world , rather than run the hazard of perishing for ever in the other . in short , our religion which exhorts so much to fear in this one case , yet by this very fear inspires us with the highest gallantry and resolution in all others : whilst setting before us the hopes of a better state , it teaches us not to value any dangers or difficulties in this. it shews us how to be valiant upon a wise and rational foundation : and whosoever follows the dictates of it , he may indeed be more temperate in the use of his courage , and place it upon better objects , and reserve it for more worthy and more justifiable occasions than men are now a days wont to do ; but he need never fear he should ever become the less a brave man , for being a fearful and obedient christian. i shall conclude all with that great precept of christian magnanimity , luke xii . . and which as it is a short summary of all i have now been speaking , so may it , i think , be enough not only to direct , but to try the courage of the stoutest among us : fear not them that kill the body , and after that have no more that they can do . but i will forewarn you whom you shall fear ; fear him which after he hath killed , hath power to cast into hell : yea , i say unto you , fear him. finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e cor. xv . . — . jo. iii. . see acts xxvi . . cor. xiii . . psal. xvi . . heb xii . . james i. . thess. iv . . tim i. . mat. xix . . eccles. xi . . cor. v. . rom. ii . . pet. v. . phil. ii . . — . aristot. eth. nicom . lib. iii. c. . an historical treatise, written by an author of the communion of the church of rome, touching transubstantiation wherein is made appear, that according to the principles of that church, this doctrine cannot be an article of faith. traitté d'un autheur de la communion romaine touchant la transsubstantiation. english dufour de longuerue, louis, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing d estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) an historical treatise, written by an author of the communion of the church of rome, touching transubstantiation wherein is made appear, that according to the principles of that church, this doctrine cannot be an article of faith. traitté d'un autheur de la communion romaine touchant la transsubstantiation. english dufour de longuerue, louis, - . wake, william, - . the second edition. [ ], p. printed for richard chiswell ..., london : . translation of traitté d'un autheur de la communion romaine touchant la transsubstantiation. running title: an historical treatise of transubstantiation. addenda: p. . includes bibliographical references. translated by william wake. first edition of same year has title: a treatise ... reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng transubstantiation. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - olivia bottum sampled and proofread - olivia bottum text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion an historical treatise written by an author of the communion of the church of rome . touching transubstantiation . wherein is made appear , that according to the principles of that church , this doctrine cannot be an article of faith . the second edition . london , printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown in s. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxvii . the preface . it is well known that there are in the communion of the church of rome , a great many learned persons , that do not approve of all which it teacheth , and that do earnestly long for a reformation , although they remain within its bosome . but it is no less true that there 's but very few , that have the courage to make their thoughts known , and 't is no hard matter to guess at the reasons of it . in the last age , one picherel , and some others of great note , wrote solid treatises on certain matters of controversie , and explain'd themselves just as protestants do now . and in the present , monsieur de marca did the same , on the doctine of the eucharist , and barnes , an eminent benedictine , on most of the principal questions wherein protestants differ from the church of rome . but as if every one feared such usage as father paolo , and poor barnes found , for the liberty they had taken , the works of these sincere and learned men , have almost always been supprest during their life-time , and not suffer'd to come abroad till after their decease . it is therefore something more than ordinary , to behold the work of a person now living , and of the communion of the church of rome , that dares shew the like affection for the reformation of his church in the doctrine of the eucharist , and that heartily wishes , the bishops and clergy of france , would take it into their serious consideration . this person is considerable for his quality , but much more for his great learning . he was an intimate friend of the late monsieur de launoy's , a noted divine of the faculty of paris , who mightily desired to see a free council , wherein men might speak their thoughts touching the reforming of the romish church ; and it plainly appears he was of the same judgment with this eminent person , touching the doctrine of transubstantiation . the reader may rest assured that the author's manuscript copy has been exactly follow'd in the edition of this work ; which not only his letters , now in our hands , will justifie , but also the original of these papers , which he sent to a friend to be printed . it is to be hoped the world will not take it ill , if the author of this work be not more particularly described , which could not be done without exposing him to the malice of those who use all manner of ways to destroy such of their party , as do own the truth . it nearly behoves the bishops and clergy of france , to make some serious reflections upon what the author thought fit to represent to them concerning transubstantiation . the same might have been said to the other articles of the romish belief , which are rejected by protestants , as so many additions to the ancient faith of the primitive christians ; which are impos'd upon mens consciences by the clergy , by such unheard-of ways , and that are so contrary to the nature of religion . if such remonstrances as these , are not of sufficient force to make them change their proceedings against protestants ; they will at least serve to shew their injustice before men , and will one day aggravate their condemnation before the tribunal of god. the contents . introduction . the method proposed by the assembly of the clergy of france to judge of articles of faith. pag. this method admitted by protestants . transubstantiation to be examined by it . ib. part i. that several of the doctors of the church of rome have confess'd that transubstantiation is no ancient doctrine . so suarez . scotus . ib. d'alliaeo . ib. card. cusa . ib. erasmus . ib. alphonsus à castro . tonstal , bishop of durham . ib. cassander . ib. ch. du . moulin . ib. j. yribarne . ib. mons. de marca . ib. part ii. that the ancients did not believe transubstantiation . proved : in general . first , the papists themselves confess , that transubstantiation is not expresly mentioned not taught in scripture . so , scotus . ib. ockham . ib. alphonsus de castro . ib. gabriel biel. ib. card. cajetane . ib. secondly , that transubstantiation comprehending infinite difficulties , we do not yet find that either the jews or gentiles have objected any thing to the christians in their disputes against it . ib. not trypho . ib. not celsus . ib. not julian . ib. who yet have traduced most of the mysteries of our religion . which plainly shews that transubstantiation was not then known . ib. in particular . transubstantiation was not believed by any of the fathers of the church . this shewn in those of the several ages . cent . ii. justine martyr . irenaeus . clemens alexandr . theodotus . ib. cent iii. tertullian . origen . cyprian . cent . iv. eustathius . eusebius caesariensis . ib. cyrillus hierosol . macharius . ib. s. basil. ephrem edessenus . ib. epiphanius . gregorius naz. ib. gregorius nyssen . s. ambrose . gaudentius . s. chrysostom . ib. cent . v. s. jerome . s. austine . theodoret. arnobius jun. prosper . ib. hesychius . procopius gazeus . ib. p. gelasius . cent . vi. fulgentius . ephrem antioch . ib. facundus . ib. primasius . cent . vii , viii . isidorus hispalensis . beda . sedulius . ib. jo. damascenus . ib. concil . constantinop . alcuinus . carolus m. officium ambrosianum . ib. ordo romanus . ib. cent . ix . theodorus studita . ahyto . ib. theodulphus . rabanus . amalarius . walafridus strabo . herribald . ib. trudegard . ratramne . ib. jo. erigena . prudentius . christian drutmar . ib. florus diacon . cent . x. alferic , a. b. cant. wolphinus . ib. saxon homil. ib. fulcuinus . herriger . ib. monast. cluny . ib. ratherius . cent . xi . auth. life of s. genulphe . leuthericus . ib. fulbertus . ib. berno . bruno . gregory vii . p. ib. theophylact. nicetas pectoratus . ib. chronicon malleac . ib. cent . xii . honorius . rupertus . zonaras . ib. amalaricus . ib. cent . xiii . &c. of the council of lateran . that several after it did not believe transubstantiation . guido le gros. reginald peacock . guido cluv. jo. of paris . ib. albert. m. . durand . ib. cornelius bp. of bitonte . ib. dominicus bannes . ib. conclus . to the clergy of france , that they ought not to press upon the protestants the belief of transubstantiation . an historical treatise of transubstantiation . written by one of the church of rome . the bishops of france in their last assembly held at paris in the year . compos'd a pastoral letter addressed to the protestants , to invite them to return to the communion of the church of rome . and because in order to put an end to their differences in matters of religion , some rule must be agreed on to be received by the different parties ; they laid down several principles which they called methods , as fit to be made use of , whereby to judge what should be received as an article of faith. in the fourth method they laid down as a maxim , that the true means to discern what relates to matter of faith , or not ; is to see if the article which is to be admitted , was always believed as matter of faith ; that is to say , that the french bishops admitted in their pastoral letter , the maxim which vincentius lyrinensis left us above . years ago ; that great care must be taken to retain in the catholick church , what hath been believed every where , by all , and at all times , as being the true means whereby to discern what is matter of faith , and what is not . this same is the rule given by pope pius the fourth , who obliges them to swear in the profession of faith , added to the council of trent , that the holy scriptures should not be interpreted , † but by the unanimous consent of the ancient fathers . the protestants have thought this maxim so reasonable , that monsieur larroque a french minister , saith in his preface to the history of the eucharist , that he believes there is no man of sense , but ought to admit of it . and it was received as a rule of faith by the reform'd church of england , by philip melancthon , by peter martyr , gallasius , scultetus , casaubon , grotius , vessius , beza , and by gesselius , ( who recites their authorities , ) in the preface of his history of memorable things from the creation of the world , to the year of christ , . seeing therefore that the bishops of france have propos'd to us so just a method , let us examine if the doctrine of transubstantiation be a doctrine of faith ; and prove it , not because the council of trent has defin'd it so ; or that the council of lateran in the year . suppos'd it to be so , non quia ipsam quam tenemus fidem commendaverit milevitanus optatus , vel mediolanensis ambrosius , aut quia collegarum nostrorum conciliis ipsa praedicta est , saith s. austin against the donatists , de unit . eccles. cap. . but because 't is contain'd in the holy scriptures , and understood in that sense by the unanimous consent of the doctors and councils that have gone before us . this is what we now undertake to perform by the assistance of god's holy spirit , and with a disposition of mind free from all malice and prejudice , according to what caesar saith in salust , in the beginning of the book of cataline , omnes homines qui de rebus dubiis consultant , ab ira & odio vacuos esse debere , & haud facile animum pervidere verum , ubi illa officiunt . and st. austin upon the book against the letter of the manichean , by them called the letter of foundation ; ut autem facilius mitescatis , &c. nemo nostrum se jam quaeramus quasi ab utrisque nesciatur , ita enim diligenter & concorditer quaeri poterit , si nulla temeraria prasumptions inventa & cognita esse credatur . but not to over-burthen this small treatise with too great a number of arguments or citations , we will chiefly examine two things ; first , who those catholick doctors are , that believed the doctrine of transubstantiation not to be ancient . secondly , if what those doctors have writ be true : and whether we can indeed produce sufficient authorities to believe that the ancient church did not hold nor believe it . part i. in the first place , that there have been catholick doctors which have taught , that transubstantiation is no ancient doctrine , * suarez formally asserteth it , although indeed he saith , their opinion ought to be corrected . the truth , is , peter lombard master of the sentences , saith expresly , si quaeras qualis sit illa conversio , an formalis , an substantialis , an alterius generis , definire non audeo . secondly , † scotus saith , that there were formerly three opinions touching the changing the bread into the body of christ , the first of which held that the bread remain'd in the eucharist , in the paragraph , quantum ergo ad istum articulum , &c. he saith , that at present the church of rome holds transubstantiation . nunc ⸫ autem ipsa tenet ( sancta rom. ecclesia ) panem transubstantiari . and a little under , he saith , ad tertium ubi stat vis , dicendum quod ecclesia declaravit istum intellectum esse de veritate fidei , in illo symbolo edito sub innocentio tertio in concilio lateraenensi . and since this declaration made by this council held in the year . it . is an article of faith. tenendum est esse de substantia fidei , & hoc post istam declarationem solemnem . * bellarmine doth own that scotus did believe transubstantiation was no article of faith before the council of lateram under innocent the third ; but he adds , that 't was because scotus did not know of the council held under gregory the seventh , and that he had not read the authorities of the fathers which saith bellarmine , i have now recited . thirdly , † peter dayly , cardinal and bishop of cambray saith , it doth not clearly follow from the determination of the church , that the substance of bread ceaseth , therefore he doth not believe this to be the ancient doctrine . fourthly , * cardinal cusa , excit . l. . serm. . super una oblatione , consummavit , &c. saith , that there were some ancient divines which did not believe transubstantiation . fifthly , † erasmus in his notes on the first to the corinthians , saith , that it was late ere the church established transubstantiation . * sixthly , alphonsus à castro , saith , that the ancient writers very seldom spake of transubstantiation . seventhly , † tonstall bishop of durham about the middle of the last century , speaking of the breads being changed into the body of christ , saith , it were much better to leave it to the liberty of christians to believe as they pleas'd , of the manner in which this change is made , as it was practis'd in the church , before the council of lateran . eighthly , cassander in his consultation with the emperour maximilian the second , touching the differences of religion , confesseth that transubstantiation is a novelty , and that 't were much better to keep to the terms of the ancients ; that the abuses therein , approach near to idolatry . ninthly , charles du moulin , the oracle of the french civilians , upon the edicts and ordinances of france , against the injuries of popes , num. . speaks in these terms ; innocent the third , forged , or at least established it as a general article of faith , and as necessary to be believed by all , as that of the holy trinity , the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the true body and true blood of jesus christ. tenthly , john yribarne a spanish divine , in the th . sent. dist. . q. . disp. . s. . saith , that in the primitive church is was matter of faith , that the body of jesus christ was contain'd under the species of bread and wine , but that 't was not any matter of faith to hold that the substance of bread was changed into the flesh of jesus christ , and that it subsisted no longer after consecration . eleventhly , monsieur de marca , archbishop of paris in his posthumous dissertations , saith , in his french treatise of the sacrament of the eucharist , that until s. chrysostom's time , it was believed the bread was the body of jesus christ by a marvelous change that comes on the bread ; but that it becomes united to the incarnate word and to his natural body , the bread not changing its nature , and yet not going into the draught ; which is a kind of pious consideration which he added against origen . part ii. as for the second point , which is to see if there is effectively to be found in the writings of the ancients , sufficient authorities to believe that the ancients did not believe transubstantiation . before i alledge their authorities , two reflections may be made . first , that our own authors do observe , that transubstantiation is not expresly mention'd nor taught in the scriptures . * scotus cited by bellarmine , of the eucharist , lib. . cap. . saith , it doth not plainly follow from the words of jesus christ , this is my body , that the bread is transubstantiated . † ockam saith of transubstantiation , that it cannot be proved by natural reason , nor by authority of the bible , but only by the authority of the ancients . * alfonsus de castro disapproves what ockham says , that it can be proved by the authority of the ancients , for he saith , that it was not to be found , no more than indulgences were , in the writings of the ancients . gabriel † biel speaking of transubstantiation , saith , that it is not expresly taught in the holy scriptures . cardinal * cajetan does not find the words of jesus christ this is my body , clear , neither for the real presence , nor for transubstantiation , without the determination of the church be joyned to them . the second reflection , is that transubstantiation comprehending a great many difficulties quite contrary to natural reason , none of the jews nor pagan philosophers , disputing against the ancient christians , ever dream'd of making any objections against it in their disputations . trypho the jew charges us with things monstrous , incredible , and strangely invented ; as what we teach of jesus christ's being before aaron , and abraham , that he took on him our nature , that he was horn of a virgin , that god should be born , be made man ; that we should adore a man , that we should put our trust in him , and that we should invoke another god besides the creator , all this appears in s. justin martyr , in his dialogue against trypho . the pagans reproach us for saying god has a son , that this son should appear in humane shape , and they stile it the follies of the christian discipline ; that god should be born , and that he should be born of a virgin , and be a god of flesh , crucised and buried ; the last judgment , the pains of eternal fire , the joys of heaven , the resurrection of the dead . all this appears by clement of alexandria stromat . l. . by tertullian his apologet. ch . . . in his treatise of the flesh of christ , ch . . and . and in his treatise of the testimony of the soul , ch . . by s. justin in his second apology , and arnobius in his second book . celsus , in * origen , scoffs at the incarnation , as of a thing unworthy of god. in the sixth book , he laughs that we should believe god should be born of a virgin. in the third and eighth book , he saith of christians , that they honour with a religious worship even above all religion , a man that was a prisoner and that suffered death . he even thereby pleads for the plurality of his gods : as if christians were not satisfi'd in worshipping one god , under colour that they adored jesus christ ; if christians , saith he in the eighth book , worshipped but one god , they might have some colour to despise others . but they pay infinite honours to him that has but very lately appear'd , and yet they don't think they displease god when they serve and honour his minister . julian the apostate oppos'd the mystery of the incarnation , the divinity of jesus christ , the salvation he purchas'd for us by the price of his blood ; he reproaches us with the glorious title of mother of god , which we give to the blessed virgin ; he contests the mystery of the trinity of persons and unity of essence , accusing us of contradicting moses , who said , there is but one god. he reproaches us for baptism ; see , saith he , what paul saith to them , that they are sanctified and cleansed by water , as if water could penetrate to the soul , to wash and purifie it ; baptism can't so much as cleanse a leper , nor a scurf , it cannot heal a cancer nor the gout . he aggravates what we read , that god visits the iniquity of the fathers upon the children , thereby to endeavour to attack the doctrine of original sin. he boldly questions what god saith in the book of numbers touching phineas , that thrust his javelin through the body of an israelite that committed folly with a midianitish woman , which turn'd away god's anger from the children of israel , and hinder'd him from consuming them . let us suppose , saith he , that there had been to the number of one thousand that had attempted to have transgressed the law of god , ought six hundred thousand to have been destroy'd for the sake of one thousand ; it seems to me to have been much juster to have saved one ill man with so many good ones , than to involve so much good men in the ruine of one bad one . there 's scarce any of our mysteries that have not been censur'd by the jews or pagans ; yet 't is very strange that not one should accuse us of admitting in the eucharist , accidents without substance , whiteness without any thing that 's white , roundness without any thing round ; weight without any thing that 's weighty ; a corruption whereunto the species are subject , without any thing that 's capable of being corrupted ; a nourishment in the symbols , without any thing that can nourish ; a power in the wine to be smelt without any thing that may be smelled . no body ever reproach'd us with so strange a thing , that a man with one word should destroy a substance which he holdeth in his hands , and that nevertheless against the testimony of all the senses , i see that which is no more ; i feel that which i do not feel , i taste that which i do not taste , i understand that which i do not understand ; i touch that which i do not touch , that i should be nourished with nothing ; that my taste should be delighted with nothing ; that my eyes and ears should de struck with nothing . the three reflections we have hitherto made , that many of the antient catholick doctors have not believed transubstantiation to be antient ; that they have judged it could not evidently be deduced from the holy scriptures ; and , that the antient pagan philosophers have not reproached us with it , are three very strong suppositions to make us mightily doubt the antiquity of this doctrine . but to shew evidently that 't was but in the last ages that this opinion was made an article of faith , we need only consult the doctors of the primitive church , and see if they have effectively explain'd the eucharist by the systeme of transubstantiation . that the fathers of the second century did not believe transubstantiation . s. iustin martyr saith , that after the common prayers were ended , there was presented to the chief of the brethren , which was god's minister , the bread and the wine , mixt with water , which he receiv'd into his hands , and giving thanks and glory to the father of heaven and earth , through iesus christ his son , and the holy ghost , &c. and the said president or minister having ended his thanksgiving , the people having all said amen , those whom we call deacons and ministers , attending on this holy service , give to every one present at the holy communion , part of this holy bread , so blessed and glorify'd ; and also of the holy liquor mixt of wine and water , upon which prayers had been made . and a little lower , behold , lord , we do not receive this bread nor this wine as common bread and wine , but as iesus christ is become flesh and blood by the word , so also the nourishment which by the word is become a sacrament , and of which by conversion and change , our flesh and blood are nourish'd , is as we have learned , the flesh and blood of iesus christ incarnate . if st. iustin had believed that the substance of the bread , wine , and water had been changed after consecration , so that they had been destroy'd , how could he have said , that after consecration the deacons did distribute to the people the bread , the wine , and the water ? secondly , when he saith , we do not take this bread and wine as common bread and wine : this language amongst the antient doctors intimates , that both the one and the other do still subsist , but that by consecration , they have acquir'd a new use and quality . as when cyril of ierusalem catech. . ad illum . saith , approach not to baptism as to common water . or as gregory nyssen saith of baptism , do not despise the holy font , and look not upon it as common water . to conclude , this blessed martyr saith , our body and blood are nourish'd by the change of the eucharistical food , which converts and turns it self into our flesh and blood. these words plainly shew , that 't is the bread and wine which are turn'd into our substance , into our flesh , and into our blood , seeing that 't is certain , that the real flesh and blood of jesus christ , is not converted into our flesh and blood. so when iustin saith , that the sacramental food is the body and blood of jesus christ , that imports , that 't is not common bread and wine , but a bread and wine which is to be consider'd as the flesh and blood of the word incarnate . s. irenaeus proves against valentine and his followers , that our bodies shall not be destroy'd , and by consequence that they shall be raised incorruptible by receiving the sacrament , as the bread of the eucharist becomes supernatural by the invocation of the holy ghost . we establish in the eucharist , saith s. irenaeus , the communion and unity of the flesh and of the spirit ; for as the bread which is of the earth , receiving the invocation of god , is no longer common bread , but is the sacrament compos'd of two things , one terrestrial , and the other celestial : so also our bodies which receive the eucharist , are no longer corruptible , but have the hope of a future resurrection . this passage doth suppose , that the bread remains in the eucharist ; in the first place , because if consecration did destroy the substance of the bread and wine , it must be confess'd the holy doctor had taken wrong measures , to shew that the flesh is not destroy'd by the grace of the holy spirit , by the bread of the eucharist , which it self should be destroy'd by the grace of the spirit which comes upon it . secondly , because a little before , irenaeus saith , how is it they say , the flesh shall be destroy'd and turn to corruption , seeing it is nourish'd with the body and blood of christ ? now the flesh is fed by the conversion of nourishment into the body , which not being to be said of iesus christ , is only to be apply'd to the bread. moreover these words , that the eucharist is compos'd of two things , sufficiently shew , that the bread remains ; for to say irenaeus means by a terrestrial thing , the accidents of bread & wine , besides that s. austin saith in the second book of soliloquies , chap. . that 't is a thing monstrous to say that accidents subfist without a subject ; irenaeus also himself saith , book . cap. . that water cannot be without moisture , fire without heat , a stone without hardness . for these things are so united , that the one cannot be separated from the other , but the one must subsist in the other . so in like manner , by this terrestrial thing must be understood the bread , as s. gregory naz. saith in his fourth oration according to bilius his version , baptism also is compos'd of two things , water and the spirit ; the one is visible and is meant in a corporal manner , but the other is invisible and operates after a spiritual manner ; the one is typical , the other cleanseth that which is inward , and most hidden . clement of alexandria saith the same in different terms . the blood of christ is twofold , the one is carnal , whereby we are deliver'd from corruption , the other is spiritual , whereby we are anointed , and that is to drink the blood of iesus christ , to be partakers of the incorruption of the lord. now the virtue of the word is the holy spirit , as the blood is the vertue of the flesh. by analogy then , the wine , mixt with water , as the spirit with man ; and this mixture makes the wine the pleasanter to drink , but the spirit leadeth to incorruption . now this mixture of the one with the other , to wit , of the wine and the word , is called eucharist , which is highly esteem'd , whereby those who worthily partake of it by faith , are sanctify'd both in their body and soul. when clement of alexandria said that the eucharist is a mixture of wine and the word , it is a composition , a mixture , which could not be , if there was but the word only in the eucharist . for a mixture is at least of two things . so the fathers have called jesus christ , a mixture of god and man. the body of man , saith s. austin , is a mixture of body and soul ; the person of christ is a mixture of god and man. the epitome of theodotus saith , the bread and oyl are sanctified by the virtue of the name , and they remain not what they were before , though to look on them they seem to be the same , but by virtue , they are are changed into a spiritual force . so water sanctified is become baptism , it not only retains what 's less , but also acquires a sanctification . the author saith , the bread is changed , but when he adds that 't is into a spiritual virtue , he quite excludes the change of its substance ; for by virtue , and spiritual , cannot be understood any other change but that of virtue and quality , seeing this author speaks of this change , as being common to the water of baptism , to the oyl of unction , and to the bread of the eucharist . that the fathers of the third century did not believe transubstantiation . tertullian in his first book against marcion , shewing that jesus christ is not contrary to the creator , as this heretick affirm'd , saith in his th . chap. hitherto jesus christ has not condemn'd the water wherewith he cleanseth his children , nor the oyl wherewith he anoints them , nor the hony nor the milk whereby he makes them his children , nor the bread by which he represents his body . by this passage , the bread represents the body of jesus christ , therefore the bread remains in the sacrament , and this bread is not really jesus christ , because what doth represent , is another thing than what is represented . two things have been said on this place of tertullian ; first , that the bread signifies the accidents of bread ; the second that the word represent , does signify in this place , to make present : as when in a court of justice a prisoner is made appear as often as he is demanded . against the former , there 's no reason to believe that tertullian speaking of water , of oyl , of hony , and milk , should intend to speak of their accidents , but of their very substance , and that speaking of bread , he should speak only of its accidents . against the second it 's most certain that in matter of sacraments , the term to signify is taken literally , to signify . s. austin saith , ep. . the signs , when applyed to holy things , are called sacraments . tertullian explains himself clearly lib. . against marcion , so that there 's no cause of doubting , when he saith , that jesus christ has given to the bread the priviledge of being the figure of his body . the same tertullian lib. . contra marcion . cap. . doth prove that jesus christ had a real body , and not one in shew only , as marcion dream'd , and he proves it by this argument : that which hath a figure ought to be real and true ; now jesus christ hath in the eucharist a figure of his body , therefore the body of jesus christ is real and true , and not a phantome . jesus christ , saith tertullian , having taken the bread which he distributed amongst his disciples , he made it his body , saying , this is the figure of my body : now it had been no figure , if jesus christ had not had a real and true body ; for an empty thing as a phantasm is , is not capable of having any figure . from hence 't is concluded , that the bread being the figure of the body of jesus christ , and that which is a figure , being distinguished from the thing signified , the bread of the eucharist is not properly and truely the body of jesus christ , and so the bread is not destroy'd , but remains to be the figure of the body of jesus christ. if it be said , the bread is destroy'd , and that the accidents of bread are the figure of the body of jesus christ , this gives up the victory to marcion , to prove , that jesus christ had a true body , and not one in shew only , because jesus christ hath in the eucharist the figure of bread , which is bread only in appearance . marcion might have retorted the argument and said , according to you , tertullian , the sacrament is the figure of the body of jesus christ ; now as this figure is bread in appearance , and is called bread only because of the outward accidents and qualities which it retains , so also the body of jesus christ was only a body in appearance , and was called a body because it had the outward accidents and qualities . again , as tertullian saith , that jesus christ distributed to his disciples the bread which he had taken to make it the figure of his body ; it is most certain he took true bread , and by consequence , that he distributed true bread. the same tertullian in his treatise of the soul , disputing against the accademitians that questioned the truth of the testimony of the senses , saith to them , that we must not at all doubt of the testimony of the senses , lest occasion might farther be taken to doubt the actions of the humanity of jesus christ , that it might not be said , that it was untrue that he saw satan fall from heaven ; that it was not true , that he heard the father's voice from heaven bearing witness to his son ; that he was deceived when he touched peter's wifes mother ; that he was deceived when he smelt the sweet odour which he was pleas'd to accept for the preparation to his death ; or , that he tasted the wine that he consecrated in remembrance of his blood. it is evident that to consecrate wine in remembrance of blood , cannot be understood of a substance which is destroy'd all saving the accidents ; this manner of expression in the language of the ancients signifying no more , but that a substance remains always in its first state , only attains to a higher degree , which is , to be the sacrament of a heavenly and supernatural thing . to conclude , if tertullian had believed that the wine had been destroy'd , and that nothing but the appearance was left , against the testimony of all the senses , had it not been an unpardonable fault in tertullian , to prove that the senses could not be deceived by the example of the eucharist , where the senses are quite deceived ? origen did not believe transubstantiation when he said in his commentary on the th . chap. of s. matth. expounding these words of the gospel , what enters into the mouth defiles not the man &c. as there 's nothing that 's impure of it self to him that 's polluted and incredulous , but a thing is impure , by reason of his impurity and incredulity ; so also , that which is sanctifyed by the word of god and prayer , doth not sanctify by its proper nature , him that uses it : if it were so , it would also sanctify him that cats unworthily of the lord , and none should have been weak , nor sick , nor should have fallen asleep , by reason of so eating — . if all that enters into the mouth goes into the belly , and there is cast out into the draught , this food which is sanctifyed by the word of god , and by prayer , goes also into the belly and is cast out into the draught , according to its material substance ; but according to the prayer which has been thereunto added , it becomes profitable according to the measure of faith , by causing the mind to become inlightned , having regard to what is profitable ; and 't is not the matter of bread , but the words which have been pronounc'd upon it , that avails him which eateth in such a manner as is not unworthy of the lord , and this may be said of the body typical , or symbolical ; many things might be said also of the word made flesh , and true nourishment , the which whosoever eats shall never dye , and which no wicked person can eat ; for could it be that he which continues wicked should eat of the word incarnate , seeing he is the word and bread of life , it would not have been written , whosoever eateth this bread shall live eternally . when he saith of the bread of the eucharist , that it sanctifieth not of it self , it cannot he understood of the true body of jesus christ , but of the bread which remains . when he saith , this bread sanctified by the invocation of god , and by prayer , remains in its material being , it means plainly , that it remains in its former substance . when he saith , that this bread as to the matter of it goes down into the belly , and is cast into the draught as the other meats : this not being to be understood of jesus christ without blaspheming , is necessarily to be understood of the bread. when he calls this bread the typical body , it shews plainly , that this not being the true body , it is not transubstantiated . when having spoken of the typical body , he after speaks of the word made flesh , which cannot but give life to those which eat and receive him ; he sufficiently distinguisheth the bread of the eucharist from jesus christ ; the former of which may be mortal , but the latter can never be so to those who receive and eat him . this passage is so clear and evident , that sixtus senensis in his bibl. l. . annot . . found no better expedient than to say , that 't was probable , this passage had been corrupted by the hereticks . gennebrard and du perron suspected erasmus to have ill translated it : but the learned monsieur huet , nominated to be bishop of soissons , saith , it evidently appears by the original greek , that this passage is no way changed . the same origen saith , in tom. . of his commentary on s. john , that the morsel of bread christ gave to judas and those he gave the apostles , saying , take , eat , were of the same sort . now if the morsel given to judas was true bread , as it is granted , and if the bread given the other apostles was not true bread , then the one and the other were not of the same kind . the same origen in the seventh homily on leviticus , saith , that jesus christ before his passion , drank wine , but being ready to suffer , he refused to drink it ; ubi vero tempus advenit crucis suae , accipiens , inquit , galicem benedixit , & dedit discipulis suis , dicens , accipite & bibite ex hoc . vos , inquit , bibite quia non accessuri estis and altare , ipse autem tanquam accessurus ad altare dicit , amen , dico vobis quia non bibam de generatione vitis hujus , usque quò bibam illud novum vobiscum in regno patris mei . origen affirms , that our saviour in celebrating the eucharist , did not drink wine , because he was ready to approach the altar ( of his passion ) and that the apostles did drink wine , because they were not yet ready to approach to the altar of martyrdom . and that in this sense , the figure of the old testament was accomplished , where 't was forbidden to aaron and his priests to drink wine when they were about to approach to the altar . all this discourse is false , if jesus christ spake not these words of true wine , i will not drink , &c. and if what the apostles drank was not true wine . let us see now what st. cyprian saith , the sacrifice of the lord recommends to us unity : for when jesus christ called his body , the bread which is made of several grains , he recommended the unity of christian people ; and when he called his blood , the wine , made of several grains and grapes , he represented one flock united by the band of charity . now these words , where jesus christ called the bread his body , and the wine his blood , is as if he had said of the bread , this is my body , and of the wine , this is my blood. and if hereunto we add the words of the jesuite salmeron , who said , if jesus christ had said , this bread is my body , and this wine is my blood , it would have obliged us to have understood these words in a figurative sense , because the bread cannot be a humane body , nor the wine blood , but in a figurative sense . bellarmine saith the same ; if jesus christ had said , this bread is my body , this proposuion must be understood in a figurative sense ; otherwise the expression would be absurd and impossible . now as we see s. cyprian saith , that jesus christ said of the body , that 't is his body , and of the wine , that 't was his blood , it must be concluded therefore that jesus christ said of the bread and wine , that they were his body and blood , that is to say , that the bread and wine were his body and blood in figure , both the one and the other being represented and signified by the bread and wine . and therefore in his epistle to cecilius , where at large he proves the wine must be mingled with water , he saith , if there be no wine in the cup , the blood of jesus christ cannot be represented to us , because 't is the wine that represents to us the blood of jesus christ. and again , vini ubique mentio est , & ideo ponitur ut i omini sanguis vino intelligatur . he saith of the water , that , sola christi sanguinem non potest exprimere . in aqua vidimus populum intelligi , in vino ostendi sanguinem christi . so that seeing st. cyprian saith , that the wine representeth , expresseth , sheweth , and makes us see the blood of jesus christ , as the water representeth , expresseth , and shews us the christian people , it cannot be imagin'd that st. cyprian believed the wine was destroy'd , but on the contrary , he believed that after consecration , the wine remained , and that 't was true wine that he called his blood , according to what he saith in the same letter , quia in parte invenimus calicem mixtum fuisse quem dominus obtulit , & vinum fuisse quod sanguinem suum dixit . that the fathers of the fourth century did not believe transubstantiation . eustathius , patriarch of antioch , upon these words of solomon in the proverbs , eat my bread , and drink the wine which i have prepar'd ; saith , that the wise man by the bread and wine did foreshew the antitypes of the body of jesus christ : now that which is a type , is an image ; what is an image cannot be the thing but in figure : so that the bread is not destroy'd , because it is the type and the image . eusebius of caesarea , interpreting these words of genesis , chap. . vers. . his eyes shall be red with wine , and his teeth white with milk , saith , that the first words signifie the joy that the mystical wine doth cause in the disciples of jesus christ when he saith to them , take , drink ye all of this , &c. and these words , the teeth white with milk , do signifie the purity and cleanness of the mystical food , which are the symbols which jesus christ left to his disciples , commanding them to celebrate the image of his proper body ; not requiring any more bloody sacrifices , and commanded to make use of bread for the symbol of his body . seeing then that according to this ancient doctor , the wine is the symbol of the blood of christ , and the bread the figure of his body , and both the one and the other an image of the body and blood , the image is not that of which 't is an image ; and by consequence , in the eucharist , besides the body of jesus christ , there is also bread and wine , which do represent and shew him ; it being evident by the text of this author , that he understood the words of jesus christ , this is my body , in this sense , this is the symbol of my body . cyril of jerusalem saith , quemadmodum panis eucharisticus post spiritûs sancti invocationem , non amplius est panis communis , sed est corpus christi , sic & sanctum hoc unguentum non amplius est unguentum illud . macharius , a noted hermite in egypt , who wrote his homilies about the year . saith in the th homily , that before the birth of jesus christ , the wise men , holy men , kings and prophets , knew that jesus christ was to come to be a redeemer , but they knew not that he was to suffer death , that he was to be crucify'd , and that he should shed his blood on the cross , and that they had not attain'd so far as to know there should be a baptism of fire and of the holy ghost , and that in the church should be offered bread and wine , antitypes of the body and blood of jesus christ , and that those which eat of this visible bread , should spiritually eat the flesh of the lord. this father saying that the antitype of the flesh and blood of jesus christ is bread and wine , doth suppose the bread remains , as not being the real body of jesus christ , but a type of it : now the type is not the verity , sed umbra veritatis , saith st. ambrose , de side l. . c. . and by consequence , there is in the eucharist something else besides the body it self of jesus christ. and when he saith , that those which take the visible bread , do spiritually eat the flesh of christ , he gives us sufficiently to understand , that in this august sacrament , there is besides the flesh of jesus christ a visible bread , and that the visible bread is eaten corporally , and the flesh of jesus christ spiritually . st. basil , bishop of caesaria , in his epistle to caesarea , saith , that at alexandria , and in aegypt , each lay-person for the most part , kept the eucharist by them , and communicated themselves when they pleased ; and if they receive from the priest a morsel of the consecrated bread , they may receive the holy sacrament daily if they list , taking some of it to day , and the rest to morrow . for , saith he , the priest in the church gives a good piece or morsel of the eucharist , and he that takes it , doth communicate himself at his pleasure . now , saith he , as to the validity and vertue of the sacrament , it is one and the same , whether one receives one morsel , or two , of the priest. in what sense can it be understood that one receives several parts or parcels in the eucharist ? it cannot be meant of jesus christ , whose body cannot be divided into morsels ; it must therefore be understood , that st. basil believed that the bread remained in the eucharist as a typical and symbolical body of jesus christ. ephrem deacon of the church of edessa , contemporary with st. basil , and whose writings st. jerom reports in his catalogue , were read in the church after the holy scriptures ; he saith , in the treatise he wrote , that men should not search too curiously into the nature of god ; consider diligently ( saith this holy deacon ) how jesus christ taking the bread into his hands , blessed and broke it as a figure of his immaculate body ; and taking the cup , he blessed it as a type of his blessed blood , and gave it to his disciples . it is evident that ephrem believed the bread is the figure of the body , and the wine the type of the blood of christ ; figura autem non est veritas , sed imitatio verit atis , saith s. gaudentius upon exodus , tract . . the body of jesus christ is the verity , there must then be in the sacrament , besides the real body , a material and typical body , which may be the figure of the true body of jesus christ. s. epiphanius having said , that jesus christ descended into the waters to be baptiz'd , not to receive any virtue from the waters , but to confer it upon them , he adds , that 't is in jesus christ the prophecy of esay is accomplished , who in the third chap. speaks of the vertue of bread and water , he gave strength to the waters , illuminans eas , & roboran● in typo earum que in ipso erant perficienda ; and as for the bread , cibus quidem panis est , sed virtus in eo est ad vivisicationem . s. epiphanius speaks here of the eucharist as he doth of baptism , he saith , that both one and the other receive their virtue from jesus christ , who communicates to them spiritual strength , sufficient to sanctify ; now as the water of baptism is changed only by a change of virtue , and quality , it is apparent s. epiphanius did not mean that the bread of the eucharist should be destroy'd , no more than the water was in baptism ; else he would not have said , that the consecrated bread was a food , for accidents cannot nourish , nothing can be fed by that which is not a body ; nourishment proceeds from a substance or matter , saith aristotle , and boëtius . in praedic . saith , that 't is impossible an accident should pass into the nature of a substance , ut accidens in substantis naturam transeat fieri nullo modo potest . gregory nazianzen , speaking of the miraculous recovery of his sister gorgonia , speaks in these terms , pouring forth a flood of tears after the example of her that washed christ's feet with her tears , she said , she would not depart thence till she had recover'd her health , her tears were the perfume which she spread over all his body , she mingled them with the antitypes , or the symbols of the mody and blood of jesus christ , as much at least as she could hold in her hands , and immediately , o the miracle , she found her self healed . and in his seventeenth oration , this godly prelate interceding to the emperor 's prefect , that he would extend his favour , and not deliver up the city to be plundred , i set before your eyes the table where we joyntly receive the sacrament , and the figure of my salvation , which i consecrate with the same mouth wherewith i make my request to you ; this sacrament , i say , which lifts us up to heaven . it appears by these words , that s. gregory lookt upon the consecrated bread and wine as figures of the body and blood of jesus christ : now if they are figures , then they are not that whereof they be figures , and by consequence , there is in the sacrament something else besides the very body of jesus christ , to wit , the bread and wine , which are the types and figures of it . for to say that s. gregory means only that the accidents of bread and wine are the types and figures , when he saith , his sister mingled her tears with the antitypes of the body and blood of jesus christ , as many as she could keep in her hands , si quid antityporum pretiosi corporis aut sanguinis manus thesaurisasset , these words , as many as she could gather in her hands , signify , as many portions and parts of the eucharist as she could gather up , paululum eucharistiae , as eusebius speaks in the sixth book of his hist. chap. . as having gather'd together a little of the sacrament , and having separated it from a greater mass , or from a greater quantity of liquor . now all antiquity agree , that the lines , the superficies , the qualities , are inseparable from their subject , so that this little parcel of antitypes , this parcel of the figures , cannot be a part of accidents , and of appearances . gregory nyssen going to prove that the water of baptism , for being water , ought not to be despised , but that after consecration it hath a marvellous virtue , he proves it by the example of the eucharist , and extream unction . the bread , saith he , before consecration is but common bread , but after consecration it is called , and is the body of christ ; so also the mystical oyl , and wine , before benediction , are common things , and of no virtue , but after benediction , both of them have a great virtue . now these words shew , that the bread and wine remain after consecration ; for it appears that st. gregory's design is to prove , that common and ordinary things have a marvellous force after consecration , and if the bread and wine were destroy'd after consecration , what did operate would not be a vile and mean thing , because it would be the very body of jesus christ , and st. gregory would not well have proved that vile things have any marvellous virtue in them after consecration ; for instance , bread and wine , which not subsisting after consecration , could not have the virtue to sanctify . s. ambrose in his epistle to justus , explaining what gomer is , saith , it is a measure , and that this measure signifies the quantity of wine which rejoyces the heart of man ; and having explain'd the wine , of the drinking wisdom , sobriety , and temperance , he saith , that it is to be understood more fully of the blood of jesus christ , which neither admits increase , nor decrease , as to grace ; but of which if one receive more or less , the measure however of redemption is equal to all . plenius de sanguine intelligitur cujus ad gratiam nihil minuitur , nihil adaugetur , & si parum sumas , & si plurimum haurias , eadem perfecta est omnibus mensura redemptionis . this manner of speaking of taking more or less of the blood of jesus christ , is not to be understood of the proper body of jesus christ , which is indivisible ; there must be therefore in the eucharist , besides the proper blood of jesus christ , a typical and symbolical blood , which is the wine , which is so called , and of which we may say , we receive more or less . the same father saith elsewhere , that as often as we receive the sacraments , which by the virtue of holy prayer are transfigur'd into the flesh and blood of jesus christ , we shew forth the death of christ. it is certain that by these words , s. ambrose lookt upon the bread and wine as figures of the flesh and blood ; now the figure being a thing distinct from what it represents , as being two correlatives , the one of which is not the other , it must be concluded , that s. ambrose believed that there is bread and wine in the eucharist , which are the figures of the bread and heavenly power . the same father speaking of the blessing of aser , explaining these words , ashur his bread is fat , he shall feed princes ; saith , jesus christ who is ashur , that is rich , has nourish'd princes . when he multiply'd the five and seven loaves , and gave them to his apostles to distribute to the multitude , he every day gives us this bread , saith he , when the priest doth consecrate : we may also by this bread understand the lord himself ( continues s. ambrose ) who has given us his flesh to eat . by these words it appears s. ambrose distinguishes three sorts of bread which jesus christ gave to these princes ; the first is that which he gave in multiplying the five and seven loaves , john . and matth. . the second is the bread which the priest consecrates at mass ; the third is that of which it is said , i am the bread of life , which is jesus christ himself . as then the second is not the first , so neither is the second the third : the consecrated bread is another thing than jesus christ , the bread of life ; and by consequence , there is in the sacrament a bread distinct from jesus christ , the heavenly bread. gaudentius upon exodus saith , with great reason we receive with the bread the figure of the body of christ , because as the bread is compos'd of many grains , which being ground into flower is kneaded with water , and baked by fire , so also the body of christ is made and collected of the whole race of mankind , and is perfected by the fire of the holy ghost . now as this author places the figure of the body of jesus christ in that the bread is made up of sundry grains , reduced into meal , kneaded with water , and baked with fire : it follows , that he believed the bread remained in the sacrament , and so much the rather because this bishop saith elsewhere , figura non est veritas sed imitatio veritatis . s. chrysostom expounding these words , i will no more drink of this fruit of the vine , until i drink it new in the kingdom of my father , saith , because jesus christ had spoke to his disciples of his passion and of his death , now he speaks to them of his resurrection , making mention of his kingdom , calling his resurrection by this name ; now wherefore did jesus christ drink after his resurrection , fearing lest ignorant persons should think his resurrection was only imaginary , because many took the act of drinking as a true sign of the resurrection ; therefore the apostles going to prove his resurrection , say , we that have eat and drank with him , jesus christ. therefore assuring them that they should see him after his resurrection , and that he would stay with them , and that they might bear witness of his resurrection , might see and behold him , tells them , i will no more drink the fruit of the vine , until i drink it with you in a new manner , whereof you shall bear testimony , for you shall see me after my resurrection ; but wherefore , continues s. chrysostom , did he drink wine after his resurrection and not water ? it is because he would thereby destroy a pernicious heresy . for because there would be hereticks that would only make use of water in the mysteries , be would represent the mysteries ; he gave wine , and when , after the resurrection , he eat his common repast , he drank wine , the fruit of the vine ; now the vine doth produce wine and not water . this passage marketh in the first place , that jesus christ drinking the fruit of the vine after his resurrection , and not water , he accomplish'd what he said in celebrating the eucharist , i will no more drink of this fruit of the vine , until i drink it new in my fathers kingdom . this shews that jesus christ drank true wine in the institution of the eucharist , for what is to be done again , must needs be done before . secondly , st. chrysostom doth not only say that jesus christ drank wine , but he saith further , that he distributed wine amongst his disciples , and the fruit of the vine , which doth not produce water but wine . so that these words of st. chrysostom import clearly , that the wine remains in the eucharist . the same father on these words of the first to the corinthians , the bread which we break is it not the communion of the body of christ ? ( speaks thus ) what is the bread ? it is the body of jesus christ. what becomes of them which receive it ? they become the body of jesus christ. now this proposition , the bread is the body of jesus christ , cannot be in a literal sense , for saith vasquez , the bread without a figure , cannot be called the body of jesus christ , nor the body of jesus christ be called bread. the same father in his commentary upon the epistle to the galatians , chap. . explaining these words of the apostle , the flesh lusteth against the spirit , and the spirit against the flesh ; the manicheans understood by the flesh , the substance of the body , and by the spirit they understood the soul ; and they said , that the apostle cut man into two , and intimated , that man was compos'd of two contrary substances , one bad , which was the flesh ; and the other good , which was the spirit , which proceeded from the good god , and the body from the bad god — s. chrysostom answers , that the apostle in this place doth not call the flesh the body , apostolum non hic carnem appellare corpus , as the manicheans supposed , and saith , that the apostle do's not always mean by the flesh , the nature of the body , naturam corporis , but that very often by the flesh , he means something else , as evil desires ; and having proved this by sundry passages of the apostle , and other holy writers , he proves it at last by the example of the iucharist , and of the church , which , he saith , is called body in the holy scriptures ; he saith farther , that the scripture is wont to call by the name of flesh , as well the church , as the mysteries , saving , it is his body , rursum carnis vocabulo scriptura solet appellare tum mysteria , tum totam ecclesiam , dicens eam christi corpus esse . it appears by these words of st. chrysostom's , that he did not believe that the consecrated bread and wine were the same with the body of christ , seeing he proves by the eucharist , that the consecraeted bread and wine are called flesh ; and that the word flesh in this place , is taken for something else besides body , and that he puts the term flesh , given to the consecrated bread and wine , which are the mysteries , in the rank of other terms of flesh given to evil desires , and to the church , which are mystical and figurative terms . so st. chrysostom believed the bread and wine remained , and are so called the body of jesus christ mystically , as the church is called the body of jesus christ. the same st. chrysostom wrote a letter to caesarius , which indeed is not inserted in his works , but is sound in manuscript in the library at florence , and it was also found in england in archbishop cranmer's library , it is mention'd in the bibliotheca patrum , printed at collen , . in this bibliotheque , tom. . there is found the collections of an ancient nameless author , who wrote against the severian , and acephalian hereticks , wherein is recited a passage taken out of this letter . so also monsieur de marca arch-bishop of paris , acknowledges the truth of this letter in his posthume and french treatise of the eucharist , witness the abbot fagget in his letter to monsieur de marca , president of the parliament at pan , who saith also this letter was found by monsieur bigot in a library at florence . st. chrysostom in this letter writeth against apollinarius , and saith , jesus christ is both god and man , god because of his impassibility , man by his passion , one son , one lord , both natures united making but one , the same power , the same dominion ; although they be two different natures , each conserves its own nature , because they are two , and yet without confusion ; for as the bread before it is sanctified , is called bread , when by the intercession of the priest , divine grace has sanctified it , it loses the name of bread , and becomes worthy to be called the body of jesus christ , although the nature of bread abides in it , so that they are not two bodies , but one sole body of the son ; so the divine nature being united to the humane nature of jesus christ , it did not make two persons , but one only person and one son. st. chrysostom saith plainly , that the nature of bread abideth after consecration ; and this father's argument would be of no validity , if this nature of the bread was nothing but in shew , for apollinarius might have made another opposite argument , and say , that indeed it might be said there were two natures in jesus christ , but that the humane nature was only in appearance , as the bread in the eucharist is but in shew , and hath only outward and visible qualities remaining in it , whereby it is term'd to be bread. the author of the imperfect work upon st. matthew written in the time of the emperour theodosius , did not believe transubstantiation , when he spake in these terms in homily eleventh , if it be dangerous to employ the holy vessels about common uses , wherein the true body of jesus christ is not contain'd , but the mysteries of his body ; how much rather the vessels of our bodies , which god has prepared to dwell in . that the fathers of the fifth century did not believe transubstantiation . s. jerom in his epistle to eustochium speaking of virgins , saith , that when they were reproved for drunkenness , they excus'd themselves by adding sacriledge to drunkenness , saying , god forbid that i should abstain from the blood of the lord. in the second book against jovinian it is said , the lord in the type of his blood , did not offer water , but wine . these words are indeed jovinian's , but st. jerom sinds no fault with them . for he himself saith the same , upon the chapter of jeremy , vers. . on these words , they run after god's creatures , the wheat , the wine , and the oyl , the bread , and the wine , saith he , whereof is made the bread of the lord , and wherein is accomplished the type of his blood. now saith st. ambrose * , the type is not the truth , but it is the shadow of the truth . there must then be in the eucharist , bread , and wine , distinct from the body and blood of jesus christ , to be the types and figures of it . the same father in his letter to hedibia , let us hear , that the bread which the lord broke and gave his disciples was the lord's own body , saying , take , eat , this is my body ; and a little after he saith , if the bread that came down from heaven is the body of the lord , and the wine which he distributed among his disciples his blood , &c. st. jerom saith , that jesus christ brake and distributed bread to his disciples , that he gave them bread , and that the bread and wine were his flesh and blood. it cannot then be said , that what jesus christ gave in communicating his disciples was not bread and wine ; and when he saith , both the one and the other was his body and blood , it cannot be understood but only figuratively ; for we see above in st. cyprian , that the jesuites salmeron and bellarmine , do confess , that if jesus christ said of the bread , this is my body , it must be meant , this bread is the figure of my body , the one not being capable of being the other but figuratively : and the reason is given by vasquez , when he saith , if the pronoun , this , in the words of consecration be understood of the bread , undoubtedly by virtue of it , there can be wrought no transubstantiation , because of necessity the bread must needs remain ; si pronomen hoc in illis verbis demonstraret panem , fatemur fore ut nulla conversio virtute illorum fieri posset , quia panis de quo enunciatur manere debeat . the same s. jerom in his commentary upon the chapter of st. matthew , saith , jesus christ having eaten the paschal lamb , took bread which strengthens the heart of man , and proceeded to the accomplishment of the sacrament of the true passover , that as melchisedeck had offered bread and wine in figure , he also himself would represent the truth of his body . according to this father , the bread and wine , represent the body and blood of jesus christ , and therefore are not properly and truly the flesh and blood of jesus christ , but are something else besides them , and by consequence remain in the sacrament . for to say , as the author of the second book of the perpetuity of the faith of the eucharist doth against monsieur claude , that st. jerom means by representing , to make a thing be present , we before refuted this fancy , in tertullian , who speaks just as st. jerom : and the terms sufficiently declare , that st. jerom's meaning is , that jesus christ made use of bread and wine , to signifie and shew forth his body and blood , as melchisedeck had done , that is to say , as he had represented both the one and the other by the oblation of bread and wine . st. austin in his sermon to the newly baptized , which it's true is not found in his other works , but was preserv'd and is cited by st. fulgentius de baptismo aethiop . cap. . what you see , saith he , upon the altar of god , you saw also the last night , but you were not yet aware of how great a thing it is a sacrament ; that which you see is bread , and a cup of wine , and it is also what your eyes declare unto you ; but what your faith should instruct you in , is , that the bread is the body of jesus christ , and the cup his blood. if you tell me , jesus christ is born , he was crucified , he was buried , he rose again , and is ascended into heaven , whither he has carry'd his body , and is at present on the right hand of god , from whence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead , how then can the bread be his body , and the cup his blood ? these things , my brethren , are called sacraments , because one thing is seen in them , and another thing is understood by them ? what is seen hath a corporeal substance ; what is understood hath a spiritual fruit. if then you desire to understand what the body of jesus christ is , hearken to the apostle which saith , you are the body of christ and his members : if then you are the body of jesus christ and his members , it is the mystery of what you are , which is upon the holy table , it is the mystery of the lord , which you receive ; in saying amen , you answer and subscribe to what you are . all you that are united in charity , you make but one body of jesus christ , of which you are the members , which is what is signified by the bread compos'd of several grains , and by the wine which is made of sundry grapes . for as bread to be made a visible species of bread , is made of sundry grains collected together in one , and the wine , &c. st. austin saith , that the bread is the body of christ , which cannot be but improperly and figuratively , as hath been shewed above ; for by confession of roman catholick doctors , every proposition that saith of the bread , that it is the body , must needs be typical and figurative . he saith what is seen is bread , as our eyes declare to us ; now what our eyes report to us is true bread , as when one says , what you see is true gold , and silver , or marble , and 't is what your eyes testifie , that is to say , that one sees true gold , and true marble , and that one makes use of their eyes to confirm it . in the same sense he saith ; that jesus christ although in heaven , yet the bread is the body , and the wine the blood , because they are the sacraments of it . he saith , what one sees hath a bodily species ; now in this passage , by bodily species , he means the very substance , and not the accidents . for he saith afterwards , speaking of bread in general , as bread to be a visible species of bread , must be made of several grains reduced into one lump ; now by the species of bread , it is plain , st. austin there means true bread , and a true substance . he saith , what you see , is bread , and a cup ; now by cup , he doth not mean the appearance of a cup , he means a true cup. he saith this bread is the mystery of the lord. which is nothing else , but that 't is the figure of the lord , as when he saith , this bread is the mystery of believers . mysterium vestrum in mensa domini accipitis . that is to say , that the bread and wine are the figure of jesus christ , as they are the mystical body of jesus christ. to conclude , st. austin saith , the faith of the new-baptized was to be strengthened ; it was therefore here the proper place for him to have said , that the bread was no more bread , that the wine was no longer wine , but that there remained only the accidents of the one and the other . the same holy father answering bishop boniface , who desired to know how it might be said of an infant newly baptis'd , he hath faith , he believes , who is incapable of believing , and of whom no assurance can be given what he will be afterwards ; he saith , that as every sunday , and easter day , is called easter , and the resurrection , although the lords easter , and resurrection , are things happened several ages past ; so it may be said , an infant hath faith , because he hath the sacrament of faith. for , saith he , if the sacraments had not some resemblance with the things whereof they are sacraments , they would be no sacraments ; as therefore in some sort the sacrament of the body of jesus christ is the body of jesus christ , and the sacrament of his blood , is the blood of christ , so also the sacrament of faith , is faith ; now to believe , is nothing else but to have faith. he saith , the eucharist is called flesh and blood , because it is both the one and the other in some sort : now according to st. gregory nyssen , what is not truly that by the name by which it is called , is but figuratively or improperly that by the name whereof it is called . now that the bread and wine which are the sacraments of the body and blood of jesus christ , are his body and blood in some sort , secundum quendam modum , it follows , the bread and wine are not properly the flesh and blood , and by consequence , are not transubstantiated . moreover st. austin doth explain the manner according to which the eucharist is the body and blood of christ , and he shews it , by reason that generally the signs are called by the name of the things they signifie , not that they are the things they signifie , but because they are the signs , and that they have some resemblance to them . the same father upon the third psalm , admires the patience of jesus christ that bore the treachery of judas to the end , although he was not ignorant of his thoughts , and admitted him to the banquet , at which , saith st. austin , jesus christ recommended and gave to his disciples , the figure or type of his flesh and blood , cum adhibuit ad convivium , in quo corporis & sanguinis sui figuram discipulis commendavit & tradidit . now the figure is not the truth , but the imitation of the verity , saith gaudentius in exod. tractatu . moreover , st. austin cannot find in the scriptures , that jesus christ in instituting the sacrament , gave to his disciples the figure of his body and blood , but in these words , take , eat , this is my body , this is my blood , he must then understand these words of the institution , in a figurative sense . and according to the same doctor , a * sign is that which shews it self to the senses , and besides that shews something else to the mind ; it must then follow , that the sign is a thing which remains , to shew it self . the same father disputing against adimantus the manichean , chap. . and against the adversary of the law and the prophets , in the second book , cap. . who said , the blood is the soul , as is said , deuteronom . . and by consequence , that men killed the soul when they shed blood. s. austin replies , that this precept in deuteronomy , that blood must not be eat , because 't is the soul , is a precept that must he understood as many other things contained in the scriptures , which are to be taken in types , and figures , illud praeceptum posicum esse dicimus sicut alia multa & pene omnia scripturarum illarum sacramenta signis & figuris plena sunt . and concludes towards the end of that chapter , that the blood is the soul , as the rock was christ , sanguis est anima quomodo petra erat christus . and upon leviticus , quest. . the thing which signisies , is wont to be called by the name of the thing signified , as 't is written , the rock was christ : for 't is not said , the rock signifi'd christ , but as if it were that which indeed it was not in substance , but only in signification . and as in the beginning of the chapter he saith , that it must be understood in the sign , jesus christ making no difficulty to say , this is my body , when he gave the sign of his body . sanguis est anima , praeceptum illud est in signo positum , non enim dominus dubitavit dicere , hoc est corpus meum , cum daret signum corporis sui . seeing then st. austin doth say , that the blood is the soul , as the rock was christ ; and as the eucharist is the sign of jesus christ , he must of necessity have understood the words of institution of the sacrament , in a figurative sense ; and that so much the rather , because this manner of speech , jesus christ made no difficulty , plainly shews , that jesus christ did not speak in a proper but in a figurative sense , as fulgentius saith , although the apostle saith , that jesus christ is the head of the body of the church , nevertheless he makes no scruple to call jesus christ the church , which is his body . this manner of speech is never used in proper expressions : no body will say , jesus christ made no difficulty to give gold , or water , if it were true gold or water which he gave . the same holy doctor saith in several places after the apostle , that the bread in the sacrament after consecration , is broken , and distributed ; and he doth very well recommend this breaking the bread , as being a great mystery . in his epistle to paulinus , he saith , in that jesus christ was known by the two disciples in breaking the bread , no body ought to question but this breaking was the sacrament whereby jesus christ brings us all to the knowledge of his person . a little before he saith ; by the prayers , we mean those which are said before one begins to bless what is upon the lords table . the prayers are said when that which is on the lords table is blessed , sanctifyed , and distributed . in his epistle to casulanus he saith of s. paul , that in the night time he went to break bread , as it is broken in the sacrament of his body . in his commentary upon the first epistle of s. john , it was very reasonable that jesus christ recommending his flesh , broke bread , and it was very just that the disciples knew him in breaking of bread. in the . sermon de temp . and in the hom. of the consent of evangelists , lib. . c. . and de diversis , serm. . he saith , where would jesus christ be known ? in the breaking of bread. we are then secure ; we break bread , and we know the lord. if then after consecration we break bread to distribute , then of necessity the bread must remain : for to say that 't is the accidents which are broken , and distributed , s. austin doth say the contrary , when he affirms , that one breaks and distributes what is on the table , being blessed and sanctify'd . now to bless and sanctify , one shall never find to have signifi'd to destroy , and change the substance . the same doctor in several places does always call the eucharist , the sacrament of bread and wine , he saith , s. paul doth teach the unity of the church in the sacrament of bread , when he saith , we are all one bread , and one body . in the questions upon the evangelists , he saith , jesus christ by the sacrament of wine , recommends his blood. in his books against faustus , we are very far from doing what the heathens did for their gods , ceres and bacchus , although we have a ceremony of celebrating the sacrament of bread and wine . now to what end were it to call the eucharist a sacrament of bread and wine , if there did not remain bread and wine after consecration ? for what means this manner of speech , the sacrament of bread and wine , but the bread and wine which is the sacrament ? as when the apostle saith , rom. . v. . the sign of circumcision . what else doth this import , but the circumcision which is the sign ? when tertullian de baptismo , calls baptism sacramentum aquae nostrae : what else can that mean , but our water which is a sacrament ? when s. austin upon s. john tract . . saith , the figure of the sea , figura maris ; what more can this signify , but the sea which is the figure ? when it is frequently said , the sacrament of the eucharist , what else can that import , but the eucharist which is a sacrament ? the same father in his sermon , de verbis domini , saith , almost all do call the sacrament the body of jesus christ. now if the bread were the real body of jesus christ , wherefore should s. anstin observe that all called it the body of jesus christ ? for one cannot make such a remark , but when one saith of a thing , that 't is that which properly it is not . it would be ridiculous to say , almost all call lewis king ; & the reason is , because 't is not strange that persons should be called by their names : but on the contrary , it is very strange , to call one by a name that doth not at all belong to him . the same father in his . treatise upon s. john , going to shew upon these words of the apostle , they did all eat the same spiritual meat , and drink the same spiritual drink : the relation and difference there is betwixt the sacraments of the old and new testament , saith , the fathers did eat the same spiritual food as we do , not the same corporal food as we do ; because they did eat manna , and as for us , we eat something else ; they drank the same spiritual drink we do , the same as to the signification , but different as to visible and outward kind . and upon s. john , treatise . if you consider the visible species , it was another drink , if you consider what was signify'd by their drink , and ours , it was one and the same thing . si speciem visibilem intendas aliud est , si intelligibilem significationem , cundem potum spiritualem biberunt . and upon the . psalm , their food was the very same with ours , the same as to what it signify'd , but different in kind . idem in mysterio cibus illorum qui noster ; sed significatione idem , non specie . this reasoning does intimate , that the fathers under the old testament did , and we now do eat a corporal food , and that we drink a corporal liquor . now by this corporal meat and drink , we must understand either the accidents of bread and wine , or the body and blood of jesus christ , or the bread and wine it self . it cannot be spoken of the first , because the accidents of bread and wine are only qualities , or dimensions ; now qualities and dimensions are not corporal . the quality is something which is incorporeal , saith nemesius , of the soul ; as concerning dimensions , s. austin de genesi ad literam , saith , we call that a body which taketh up some space by its length , by its breadth , and by its depth . nemesius gives the reason of it , because , saith he , nothing that is immaterial is a body , for all bodies are material . there being nothing material then in the eucharist , as is suppos'd , there being nothing that takes up place , that is large or long , or deep ; there is nothing corporeal in the sacrament , and by consequence , nothing that can be termed corporal meat or drink . moreover , when jesus christ speaks of corporal nourishment and drink in the eucharist , as the fathers under the old testament had done , he speaks of bodily meat and drink , s. austin did not understand the corporal meat and drink spoke of by the fathers of the old testament , to be only the accidents of one and the other , so that s. austin speaking in the same terms of bodily meat and drink , in relation to that of the antients , he did not mean meer accidents or qualities . the body of jesus christ nor his hood , cannot be this corporal nourishment which s. austin compares to that of the fathers under the law : for by bodily meat and drink which he saith we receive in the eucharist , he means a visible subject , aliud illi , aliud nos , sed specie visibili , si speciem visibilem intendas , aliud est . it remains then that in s. austin's sense , we understand by the corporal nature of the eucharist the visible bread , the visible wine , and not their qualities and accidents . the same father in the third book of the trin. cap. . speaking of things that are taken to signify , saith , a thing is taken to signify , either after such a manner , as that the thing should subsist and remain some time , as did the brazen serpent , lift up in the wilderness , or as do the letters of the alphabet , or in such a manner as the thing taken to signify is not to subsist any long time , but is to pass away and be destroy'd when the thing 't is to represent is passed away ; as the bread of the sacrament , which being taken to signify passeth away and is consumed in receiving the sacrament . s. austin there saith , that the bread of the sacrament which is taken to signify , passeth and is consumed in receiving the sacrament ; now if the bread be destroyed and transubstantiated by these words , this is my body , then it passeth not away , and is not consumed in the act of receiving . the same doctor in the seventeenth of the city of god saith , to eat bread , is in the new testament the sacrifice of christians ; and against the enemy of the law. l. . c. . those , saith he , which read know what melchisedeck offered where he blessed abraham , and those which are partakers , see that the like sacrifice is now offer'd through all the world. how is it that the sacrifice of christians , is to eat bread , if the bread do not remain ? how is it that communicating , one is partaker of what melchisedeck offer'd , if in communicating , one do not receive neither bread , nor wine ? the same father in the third book against parmenian , reproving the donatists for forsaking the church , tells them , s. cyprian , and the other bishops , did not separate themselves because they would not communicate with covetous persons , and usurers ; but that on the contrary , they did eat with them the bread of the lord , and drank his cup. this passage sheweth , that when s. austin said to the new baptised , as hath been shewn , that the bread is the body of jesus christ , it could not be understood but figuratively : for here the bread is said to be of the lord ; now saith s. athanasius , that which is another's is not that other himself , to whom it belongs . id quod alicujus est , non idipsum est cujus est . and s. austin elsewhere distinguisheth betwixt the bread which belongs to the lord , and the bread which is the lord. speaking of judas and the other apostles , he saith of the apostles , they are the bread which was the lord ; and of judas , he did eat the bread of the lord against the lord ; they ate life , he death ; for 't is said by s. paul , that he which eateth unworthily , eateth his own judgment and condemnation . seeing then that the eucharist is distinguish'd from the lord , it necessarily follows , that bread remains in the sacrament after consecration . the same father in his sermon of the words of our lord , saith , the lord gave to his disciples the blessed sacrament with his own hands , but we were not at the banquet ; nevertheless by faith we daily eat the same supper ; and do not think that it had been any great advantage to have been present at that supper that he gave with his own hands to his disciples , without faith ; faith afterwards was of greater advantage than treachery was then ; st. paul who believed , was not there present , and judas who betray'd his master , was present . how many be there now that come to the communion , that altho they did not see that table , and tho they never saw with their eyes , nor tasted with their palate , the bread which the lord held in his hands , nevertheless , because the same supper is still prepared , do there eat and drink their own damnation ? it plainly appears , that the bread which st. austin saith our saviour had in his hands during the sacrament , was true bread , because st. austin saith , that those who at present participate of the sacrament , do not tast , nor eat the bread which our saviour held in his hands , and which he distributed , and of which the disciples did formerly eat . the same father teaching that the good might participate of the divine sacraments with the wicked , saith , judas and peter had each of them a part of the same bread , which they received at the same hand of the lord ; and nevertheless what society or likeness was there betwixt peter and judas ? in the th chap. the wicked and the good hear the same word of god , do partake of the same sacraments , and eat the same holy nourishment . now what is this holy food ? what is this bread , whereof one receives one portion , and another , another part ? are they accidents ? but accidents are neither bread nor food . it is not the real body of jesus christ , for it cannot be received by parcels ; it must then be true bread which remains after consecration , and which is , as is said before , blessed , sanctified , and broke in pieces on the holy table to be distributed . benedicitur & sanctificatur , & ad distribuendum comminuitur . the same doctor in ep. . speaking of the rich in opposition to the poor , of whom it is said , that they shall eat and be satisfied . these rich persons , saith st. austin , have been brought to the lords table , and receive from his hand his body and blood , but they only adore , and are not satisfied . for just as st. ambrose distinguisheth betwixt drinking the wine , vinum bibere ; and drinking of the wine , de vino bibere ; that is to say , to tast of a little wine , de ejus portione libare : so also st. austin his disciple , distinguisheth betwixt receiving the body and blood of the lord , accipere corpus & sanguinum domini , and to receive of the body and blood of the lord , accipere de corpore & sanguine christi . st. austin explains himself more fully , when he saith in his th epist. that one receives in the eucharist a portion of the body of the immaculate lamb , de agni immaculati corpore partem sumere : and in the th sermon on the words of our lord , he saith , in receiving the sacrament , we know what we should think of , we receive a little , and we are satned in the heart , modulum accipimus & in corde saginamur . now that cannot be understood of the proper body of jesus christ , which cannot be received by parcels ; therefore it must be meant of bread , which is the figure of his body , or the sacrament of it . it is what st. austin intends , when he saith , nec quando manducamus ( when we eat jesus christ ) de illo partes facimus ; equidem in sacramento sic fit . we do not make morsels , but it is done in sacrament , that is to say , that we break and divide the sign and the bread , which is the sacrament . the same father saying that the accidents cannot in any wise subsist without their subject , saith in his d book of soliloquies , chap. . what can reconcile what you demand ? or who can think it possible to be done , that that which is in a subject should remain , the subject it self ceasing to be ? for 't is a thing monstrous , and very far from the truth , that that which doth not subsist , if it be not in a subject , can be , the subject it self not remaining . also in the th chap. th book , and in the book of the immortality of the soul , chap. . the subject being changed , of necessity all that was in the subject must be changed . in the th chap. what is not of it self , if it be abandoned by that by which it is , must undoubtedly cease to be . also in the th chap. and in the book of categories , speaking of accidents , a colour cannot be without a subject . and in the epistle to dardanus , take away the bodies from the qualities of bodies , they will have no place to remain in , and by consequence it is necessary that they cannot be . and against julian , chap. . it 's true , saith st. austin , that the things that are in a subject as the qualities are , cannot be without the subject wherein they are , as the colour or form , &c. it 's impossible , had st. austin believed that the bread did not remain in the eucharist after consecration , that he should have esteemed that absurd and ridiculous which happened every day . it also seems that st. austin had been too wide , when he doubts in the th ep. to consentius ; whether jesus christ has blood , when he saith on the th psalm , you shall not eat this body which you see , nor shall drink this blood , which those that shall crucify me shall shed , i have given you a sacrament , &c. and in the th book against faustus , the flesh and blood of this sacrifice was promised by sacrifices of resemblance before the coming of jesus christ ; it was given by the verity in the passion of jesus christ ; after the ascension of jesus christ , it is celebrated by the sacrament of commemoration . to conclude , st. austin in his d sermon on the words of our lord , having said , as hath been seen before , that of things which are put to signify , there are some that are to remain , others to be destroy'd , when the ministry of their signification is accomplish'd ; as the bread of the sacrament ; he adds , but because these things are obvious to men , as being practic'd by men , they may deserve our veneration , as being holy and religious things ; but they cannot cause any wonder in us , as if they were miraculous . certainly if st. austin had held transubstantiation , as it comprehends many things repugnant to natural reason , which are so many astonishing miracles , st. austin could not have said , that the sacraments , wherein he includes that of the eucharist , have something in them that deserves our respect and veneration ; but have nothing that deserves our astonishment and admiration . these are some of the reasons which made monsieur de marca , archbishop of paris , predecessor to him that with so much reputation now fills the chiefest . see of france , say , that the catholick doctors are to blame , when they pretend that st. austin expounded the text of the institution of the eucharist , as it is done in the schools . and a little before ; that in st. austin's divinity , this is my body , should be expounded in this manner , this bread is the sign and sacrament of my body : for according to st. austin , saith monsieur de marca , the bread , to speak properly , is but the sign and sacrament of the body , to which jesus christ made no scruple to give the name of the thing signified . it is also the judgment of tertullian , when he saith , when jesus christ said , this is my body , that is to say , this is the figure of my body ; and saith monsieur de marca , the reasons that are given to the contrary , are not satisfactory . bullenger writing against casaubon , recites this passage of theodoret , who was a priest at antioch , in the year . as the king , saith he , and his image are not two kings ; so also the personal body of jesus christ , which body is in the heavens , and the bread which is his antitype , and is distributed to believers by the priest , are not two bodies . it appears by this comparison , that theodoret did believe the bread of the eucharist is something else besides the body of christ ; and by consequence , he believed that there remained true bread in the sacrament , and not bread in shew and appearance only . theodoret , who in the year was bishop of cyrus , doth so fully explain himself hereupon , that there is no doubt to be made of his opinion , he was pleas'd , saith he , that those who participated of the divine mysteries , should not have any regard to the nature of the things that are seen ; but that they should believe by the change of names , the change that is made by grace : for having called his body , wheat and bread , and having called himself a vine , he honours the visible symbols with the name of his body and blood , not in changing their nature , but in adding grace to their nature . he could not more fully express that he did not hold transubstantiation . arnobius the younger , who wrote in the year . upon the th psalm saith , speaking of the sacrament , we have received wheat in the body , wine in the blood , and oyl in the chrism . on the d psalm , and on the st and th psalms : let us see what the church keepeth ; she hath a table , from which she gives bread to believers ; she hath oyl , wherewith she refresheth the head , in libertatem conscientiae praesumenti , &c. on psalm . we receive bread because it strengthens the body ; we receive wine , because it rejoyces the heart ; and having received double comfort in the heart , our faces are made shine by the oyl of chrism . to conclude , on psalm . he saith these words , speaking of the lord , that the lord in the eucharist gives us the species of bread and wine , as he doth the species of oyl in baptism ; which cannot be understood of appearances and accidents , as the terms of species of oyl cannot be taken for the accidents and appearances of oyl . moreover , he observes we receive in the eucharist bread and wine , as we receive oyl in the holy chrism ; now in the holy chrism , it is true oyl that we receive ; arnobius then could not reason so , if he believed transubstantiation . the author of the books of the promises and predictions of god , attributed to st. prosper by cassiodorus , and which were written about the year , under the empire of valentinian the d , relates a history of a young unchast girl that was possessed with the devil , who in communicating , had received a little morsel of the lord's body , which the priest had moistned ; it was half an hour before she could swallow it down , till such time as the priest touched her throat with the chalice ; then she cried out instantly that she was healed . after which , prayers being made for her , she received a portion of the sacrifice , and was restor'd to her former health . these terms of some portion of the sacrifice , and of a little part of the moistned body of the lord by the priest , cannot be understood of the true body of jesus christ ; of necessity then the bread by this author must be called by the name of the body of jesus christ ; and by consequence he believed it remained in the sacrament after consecration . hesychius , one of the priests of the church of jerusalem , in the year , saith in the second book on leviticus , ch . . this mystery ( speaking of the eucharist ) is at once bread and flesh , illud mysterium simul panis & caro . in this same place he saith , it was the custom of the church of jerusalem in his time , to burn what remained after the communion . procopius of gaza , who in all likelihood wrote in the end of the fifth century , expounding these words of genesis , where jacob saith to juda , his eyes be red with wine , and his teeth white with milk , &c. applying them to our blessed saviour in the mystery of the sacrament , saith , that 't is a metaphor taken from those that having drank , are the merrier for it , &c. and saith that the holy scritures would denote the gladness which the lord left to his disciples in giving them the mystical wine by the words of institution , take , drink ye all of this : these words , saith he , do shew that jesus christ doth with mercy look on all those that believe in him , because 't is the nature of wine to make every one merry . and upon these words , his teeth are white as milk ; milk , saith he , doth denote to us the whiteness and purity of the mystical nourishment ; for jesus christ gave to his disciples the image of his true body ; not desiring any of the bloody sacrifices of the law , he would by the white teeth , signifie to us the purity of the food wherewith we are nourished ; for according to holy david , sacrifice and burnt-offerings thou wouldest not , but a body hast thou prepared me . when procopius speaketh of the mystical wine that rejoyced the disciples , it being the nature of wine to make merry ; this mystical wine is not the blood of jesus christ , for 't is not the nature of blood to rejoyce . it must therefore be meant , that procopius said , by the wine which jesus christ distributed to his disciples , was to be understood true wine : and by the whitness of the mystical food , he meant the whiteness of the bread which is both food and image , which cannot be understood of the true body of jesus christ , which is neither the image of himself , nor bodily food ; nor of the accidents , which cannot nourish the body , because nourishment proceedeth from matter . the same procopius in his commentary on esay , expounding these words of the prophet , chap. . the lord of hosts will take away from judah and jerusalem the staff of bread and water ; saith , that in the first place these words of the prophet may be understood of jesus christ , and of his flesh and blood. the bread being to be understood of him of whom david saith , he gave them bread from heaven ; and the waters , of those of which jesus christ said to the samaritan , whosoever drinketh of this water , it shall be a fountain flowing unto everlasting life . then he adds , there is another bread which giveth life to the world , which was taken from the jews ; and another water , which is that of baptism . now by this other bread which was taken from the jews , he means that of the eucharist ; and whereas he distinguishes it from the bread , which is the lord , as he distinguisheth the water of baptism from that which was given to the samaritan ; it follows , that the bread of the eucharist is something that is distinguisht from jesus christ himself , the bread of heaven . gelasius bishop of rome , in the year , wrote a treatise of the two natures against nestorius and eutyches , and he excludes transubstantiation , when he saith , that the substance or nature of bread and vvine doth still remain . this work is assuredly of pope gelasius . as is confessed by cardinal du perron , because first fulgentius cites four passages of this treatise as being writ by pope gelasius . and pope john the second in epist. ad amaenum , also cites some passages of this work , as being writ by gelasius ; and though he doth not give him the title of pope , 't is because his name was well enough known at rome when john the second lived . that the fathers of the sixth century did not believe transubstantiation . saint fulgentius saith , the catholick church doth continually offer to god , the father , son , and holy ghost , a sacrifice of bread and wine throughtout all the world. for in the fleshly sacrifices of the old testament , there is a type of the flesh of jesus christ , which he was to offer without spot for our sins ; but in this sacrifice , there is a thanksgiving and commemoration of the same flesh , which he offer'd for us , and of the blood which he shed for us . he saith , that this sacrifice consists in offering bread and wine ; there must then be true bread and wine in this sacrifice to be offer'd . ephraem first a lieutenant of the eastern part of the empire , then made bishop of antioch , in the year . wrote books , which he intituled sacred laws , in the first of which disputing against the eutychians , he saith , when our fathers said , that jesus christ is compos'd of two natures , they meant two substances , as by two substances two natures . no body of any sense , but may say , that the nature of that which is to be felt , and not felt in jesus christ , is the same nature . thus it is , that the body of jesus christ , which is received by believers , doth not quit its sensible nature , and remains without being separated from the intelligible grace . the which he confirms by the example of water , which doth not lose its nature by consecration . this argument is of the same kind of that we see of theodoret , and of gelasius , whereby these three others prove , that in the incarnation , the presence of the word did not destroy the human nature in jesus christ , as the presence of the holy ghost doth not destroy the substance of bread and wine in the eucharist . we may say of this triple and same argument , funiculus triplex difficile rumpitur . mons. de marca , saith in reference to this passage , and of those we have instanced , of theodoret , and st. chrysostom , that these three authors have owned a real change of the bread , which nevertheless leaves the species in their natural substance . facundus bishop of hermiana in africa , in the year . whose books , which he wrote in defence of the three chapters of the council of chalcedon , are justly praised by victor of tunes in his chronology , and by st. isidore of sevil , and which father sirmond the jesuit got out of the vatican library ; going about to excuse theodore de mopsuest , who taught that jesus christ had taken the adoption of the children of god ; from whence it might have been concluded , that he believed that jesus christ is only an adoptive son , saith , baptism , which is the sacrament of adoption , may be call'd adoption , as we call the sacrament of his body and blood , which is in the consecrated bread and wine , his body and blood ; not that the bread is properly his body , and the cup his blood ; but , because they contain in them the mystery of his body and blood. therefore , as the faithful servants of jesus christ , receiving the sacrament of his body and blood , are very rightly said to receive his body and blood ; so also jesus christ having received the sacrament of the adoption of children , might very well be said to have received the adoption of children . certainly , if the sacrament of bread and wine is not properly the body of jesus christ , as facundus saith , but barely body and blood , as baptism is adoption ; the bread and wine are not transubstantiated into the eucharist , and are but simple signs , and something that is distinguished from the body and blood of jesus christ. primasius bishop of adruemetum in africa , in his commentary upon the th chapter of the st to the corinth . saith , as the bread which we break , is the participation of the body of christ , so also the bread of idols , is the participation of devils . now as the participation of the bread of idols , is no transubstantiation , or real change into devils : so also the participation of the bread of the lord , is not a real and substantial change of bread into the body of the lord. the same doctor , on the words of the th chap. of the same epistle , where 't is said , that the lord took bread the night in which he was betrayed , relates . that jesus christ thereby gave to us the commemoration of his body . and on the following words , the lord , saith he , hath given us an example , to the end that as often as we do this , we should think in our minds , that christ died for us . it is for this end , that 't is said to us , the body of christ , that so thinking of it , we should not be ungrateful and unthankful for his grace . as if any one at his death , should leave to his friend a pledg of his love , could he , when he saw it , refrain from tears , if he really loved his friend ? there must therefore needs be in the sacrament bread and wine to be pledges of jesus christ , for he cannot be a pledg of himself . that the fathers of the seventh and eighth century 's did not believe transubstantiation . isidore bishop of sevil , anno . saith , that by the command of jesus christ himself , we do call body and blood , that which being the fruits of the earth , is sanctified and made a sacrament by the invisible operation of the holy ghost . in the st book of ecclesiastical offices , he saith , that the bread is called the body of jesus christ , because it strengthens the body , and that the wine is called his blood , because it increaseth blood in the body ; and that the bread and wine are two visible things , which being sanctified by the holy ghost , do go on to be the sacrament of the divine body . now a sacrament signifies a holy sign . it would therefore be a strange kind of way of isidore , if he had believ'd the bread and wine were transubstantiated , to say , the bread and wine are two things visible , which being sanctified by the holy ghost , do become the sacraments of the divine body . by this language it might as well be said , that the fathers believed that the water of baptism was transubstantiated after their consecration . the same bishop saith , melchisedeck , that offer'd of the fruits of the earth a sacrifice to god , thereby represented the priesthood or reign of jesus christ , which is the true king of peace , of whose body and blood , that is to say , the oblation of bread and wine , is offer'd throughout the vvorld . and in the treatise de vocat . gentium , cap. . these are not any longer jewish sacrifices , such as were offer'd by aaron the priest , which are now offer'd by believers , but they are such sacrifices as were presented by melchisedeck king of salem , that is to say , it is bread and wine , the true sacrament of the body and blood of jesus christ. he saith , the sacrament of the body and blood of jesus christ is bread and wine , that both the one and the other are such sacrifices as those offer'd by melchisedeck ; there is therefore no question , but st. isidore did not believe that the bread was destroy'd in the sacrament , because he establishes the sacrament in the bread and wine , such as melchisedeck had offer'd . beda , an english priest , saith , that jesus christ having ended the ceremony of the ancient passover , which was celebrated in commemoration of the bondage in egypt , out of which the jews had been deliver'd , proceeded to the new passover , which the church celebrates in remembrance of his redemption , the figure of his body ; to the end , that instead of the flesh and blood of the lamb , substituting the sacrament of his flesh and blood in the figure of bread and wine , he might shew that it was him to whom god had sworn , and repented not , saying , thou art a priest for ever after the order of melchisedeck . now , continues beda , jesus christ broke the bread which he distributed to his disciples , to shew , that the breaking of his body did not come to pass without his good will. it appears from these words , ( substituting the sacrament of his flesh and blood in the figure of bread and wine ) that the bread and wine remain after consecration , to be the figure of the body and blood of christ. as when the apostle saith , the sign of circumcision , signum circumcisionis ; that is to say , circumcision which is a sign and a figure . so beda maketh the sacrament consist in the bread and wine . therefore in the homily , de sanct is in epiphania , he saith , that jesus christ the heavenly lamb , having been offer'd up , transfer'd into the creatures of bread and wine , the mystery of his passion , and thereby became a priest for ever after the order of melchisedeck . and elsewhere he saith , melchisedeck priest of the most high god , did long before the time of the legal priesthood , offer up bread and wine . therefore our saviour is called priest after the order of melchisedeck , because he abrogated the sacrifices of the law , and instituted a sacrifice of the same kind to be under the new testament , the mystery of his body and blood. certainly , as our mystery is no mystery till after consecration ; and that 't is of the same nature as was that of melchisedeck , it must be concluded , that the bread and wine do remain in the sacrament of the eucharist . sedulius a scotchman , author of the commentaries upon st. paul , and who flourished about the year . in his commentary upon the first to the corinthians , chap. . saith , jesus christ in the eucharist , hath left us the remembrance of himself , as if one going a far journey should leave with his friend the pledg of his love , to remember their ancient amity . there must then needs be something that is not jesus christ himself , for no one is a pledg of himself . damascen a fryer , who lived about the year , saith in his fourth book of orthodox law , chap. . the shew-bread did typifie this bread , and 't is this pure and unbloody sacrifice which our saviour foretold by the prophet , should be offered to him from the rising of the sun to the setting of the same , to wit , the body and blood of jesus christ , which passeth into the substance of our body and soul , without being consumed , without being corrupted , without going into the draft , god forbid , but passing into our substance for our preservation . now every body agrees this cannot be said of the proper body of jesus christ. it must then be concluded , damascen supposed that the bread remained . in the same place he adds , that as in baptism , because men are wont to wash with water , and anoint them with oyl , god has added to the water and oyl , the grace of his holy spirit , and has made it the washing of regeneration ; so also , they being accustom'd to eat bread , and to drink wine and water , he has joined them to his divinity , and has made them his body and blood. in the same place , the prophet esay saw a light coal ; now the coal is not of meer wood , but it is joined to fire ; so also the bread of the eucharist is not common bread , but it is united to the divinity , and the body which is united to the divinity , is not one and the same nature , but the nature of the body is one , and that of the divinity which is united to it , is another . in the same place , how is it that the bread is made the body of jesus christ , and the wine and water his blood ? he answers , the holy ghost comes and disposes these things after such a manner as surpasseth our thoughts and expressions . the bread and wine are taken , panis & vinum assumuntur , in greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a word used by st. athanasius to express the hypostatical union . now these kinds of expressions of damascen do imply , that the bread and wine do remain in the sacrament . the council of constantinople composed of bishops , held in the viiith century , for regulating the business of image-worship , having condemn'd their use , they would by the way explain the doctrine of the church touching the eucharist , and to draw a proof against those very images , they call it the true image of jesus christ ; they say he gave it to his disciples to be a type of the evident commemoration of his death ; they say that jesus christ chose no other species under heaven , nor no other type that should express his incarnation . behold then , say they , the image of his quickned body , which was made after a precious and honourable manner . they affirm , that as the word did not take a person , that so the addition of a person might not be made to the divinity : so also he appointed , that an image should be offered , which is a chosen matter , to wit , the substance of bread , that has not the figure of man , to avoid giving occasion of idolatry : as then , say they , the body of jesus christ which is according to nature , is holy , as having been deified ; so also 't is apparent , that that body also that is by institution , is holy , and it's image is holy , as having been deified by grace , by a kind of sanctification . they maintain , that as the human nature was deified by its union with the word , so also the bread of the sacrament , as the true image of the natural flesh of jesus christ , is sanctified by the coming of the holy ghost , and becomes the body of jesus christ , because the priest transfers the oblation from the state of a common thing , to something that is holy. to conclude , they clearly distinguish the natural flesh of jesus christ , which is living and intelligent , from his image , which is the heavenly bread , filled with the holy spirit . all these continued expressions are so far from any idea of transubstantiation , that one must needs see , that the destruction of the bread and wine in the sacrament , was not believed by the fathers of the council , nor by the church in their time . alcuin speaking of the consecrating of bread and wine to be the body and blood of christ , saith , that the sanctification of this mystery doth foreshew to us the effect of our salvation : that by the water is signified the christian people ; by the grains of the wheat ground into meal to make bread , is meant the union of the universal church which is made one body by the fire of the holy ghost , which unites the members to the head ; and that by the wine is shewed the blood of the passion of the lord. doubtless alcuin did not believe transubstantiation , seeing he places in the bread and wine , the signification of the body and blood of jesus christ ; and that he saith by the wine is shewed the blood of jesus christ ; for that which is a figure , and that which is figured ; that which sheweth , and that which is shewed , are two different things , the one of which is not the other . therefore the same alcuin doth formally distinguish the eucharist from the body and blood of jesus christ , when he saith after st. austin , whosoever abideth not in jesus christ , and he in whom christ abideth not , doubtless doth not spiritually eat his flesh , altho he visibly and carnally eats with his teeth the sacrament of the body and blood of jesus christ. charles the great , his disciple , writing to the same alcuin , calls the eucharist , the figure of the body and blood of the lord. the lord , saith he , being at supper with his disciples , broke bread , and gave likewise the cup , in figure of his body and blood ; and by this means offered us a very profitable sacrament : now whatever he said of the figure it contain'd , or that it contain'd not the truth , the figure was never the same as the thing is that 's figured . in the ambrosian office which was abolish'd in the year , there was this clause , which is still to be seen in the fourth book of st. ambrose his sacraments , nobis hanc oblationem adscriptam rationabilem , acceptabilem , quod est figura corporis & sanguinis domini nostri jesu christi . the ancient roman order doth frequently call the bread and vvine , the body and blood of the lord ; but it sufficiently shews by these manner of expressions , that it doth not mean that the bread and vvine are the same thing with the body and blood of jesus christ ; for in the first place it saith , that the sub deacons when they see the chalice wherein is the blood of the lord cover'd with a cloth , and when the priest hath said these words at the end of the lords prayer , libera nos a malo , they should go from the altar , and prepare chalices and clean cloths to receive the body of the lord , fearing lest it should fall to the ground , and crumble to dust . now who doth not see that this cannot be spoken but of the bread , figuratively and improperly called the body of jesus christ ? ly , it saith , that the bishop breaketh the oblation on the right side , and that he leaveth the part which he brake , on the altar : now who can say that the body of jesus christ can be broke into parts ? dly , the fraction being made , the deacon receives from the sub-deacon the cup , and carries it to the chair , that the bishop might communicate , who having communicated , puts part of the holy oblation of which he bit a morsel , into the arch-deacons hands . can it be said that one doth bite the true body of jesus christ , and that one breaks off part of it ? thly , it adds , he is to take great heed that no part of the body and blood of the lord doth remain in the chalice , or on the plate . by these words , the roman order gives us to understand , that it speaks of such a body and blood that a part of it may be separated from the whole : now this is what can only be said of the bread and vvine , improperly called the body and blood of jesus christ. the now roman order at present used in the church of rome , doth also furnish us with the like reflections . it expresly marketh , that jesus christ gave in the oblation , bread and wine , to celebrate the mysteries of his body and blood. therein is desired , that this blessed oblation may be accepted of god in such a manner , as that it might be made to us the body and blood of jesus christ ; after all which , is recited the history of the institution , and the sacramental words . the eucharist is called , the sacred bread of eternal life ; and the cup , the cup of everlasting salvation . to conclude , they pray god to behold those gifts , and that he will accept them as he did the offering of abel , and the sacrifice of melchisedeck , which it's very well known , was bread and wine . all which doth plainly shew , that the roman order at this time observed , cannot reasonably be interpreted , but in supposing that the bread and wine remain in the eucharist after consecration . that the fathers of the ninth century did not believe transubstantiation . theodorus studita , as is related by michael studita in baronius , in the year . n. . seeing himself reduced to the extremity of being starv'd , said to his disciple , if men are so cruel as to make me perish with hunger , the participation of the body and blood of the lord , which is the ordinary food of my body and soul , shall be my only nourishment : now the real body of jesus christ cannot be the nourishment of the body ; therefore of necessity this author must be understood to speak of bread , which is his body figuratively and improperly . it is what is also confirm'd by this michael studita , who saith in the same place , that theodore had always about him , some parcels of the quickning body of the lord ; which cannot be meant of the true body of jesus christ , which is not now subject to be broken , nor divided . ahyto bishop of basil , sent ambassador by charlemaine in the year , to constantinople , to treat a peace with the emperor of the east , as is declared by the annals of france , by eginhart author of the life of charlemaine , the annals of fulda , herman contract , and others . this ahyto died in the year , and left a capitulary for instruction of the priests of his diocess , publisht by dom luke d'achery in the sixth tome of his spicilegium , pag. . now amongst many other instructions he gives his priests in his capitularies , this is one : in the fifth place , the priest should know what the sacrament of baptism and confirmation is , and also what the mystery of the body and blood of our lord doth mean. how a visible creature is seen in the same mysteries , and is nevertheless the invisible . salvation is communicated for the souls eternal happiness , which is contained in faith only . by visible creature , he can only mean a creature , not in appearance , but effective ; for otherwise , according to this author , it must be said that in baptism , and confirmation , there should be only an apparent creature , and not the substance of water and chrism . besides , ahyto attributed the same effect to these three sacraments , to wit , the communication of eternal and invisible salvation to them that with faith do receive these holy sacraments . theodulphus in the year , bishop of orleans , saith in his treatise of the order of baptism , there is one saving sacrifice which melchisedeck also offer'd under the old testament , in type of the body and blood of our saviour , the which the mediator of god and man accomplished under the new , before he was crucify'd , when taking the bread and wine he blessed and gave them to his disciples , commanding them to do those things in remembrance of him . it is this mystery which the church doth celebrate , having put an end to the ancient sacrifices , offering bread , because of the bread which came down from heaven ; and wine , because of him which said , i am the true vine ; to the end that by the visible oblation of priests , and by the invisible consecration of the holy ghost , the bread and wine should have the dignity of the body and blood of our lord , with which blood there is mingled some water , either because there came out of the side of our saviour water with the blood ; or because according to the interpretation of our ancestors , as jesus christ is signify'd by the wine , so also the people is signify'd by the water . now this bishop , saying that jesus christ gave bread to his disciples in commemoration that this mystery is an oblation of visible bread which is consecrated by the holy spirit , and which receiveth the dignity of the body ; that he indifferently calls the blood , wine , and the wine , blood ; that with the blood , water is mingled , and that jesus christ is signify'd by the wine ; that 't is said the wine signifies jesus christ , as the water doth the people ; these words cannot suppose any transubstantiation . the opposers of paschasius radbertus frier of the monastry of corby , who wrote a book of the body and blood of jesus christ , did not believe transubstantiation . that the said paschasius had several adversaries , appears by his own writings , for towards the end of his commentary upon st. matthew , he saith himself , i have inlarged upon the lords supper a little more than the brevity of a commentary would permit , because there be several others that are of a different judgment touching these holy mysteries , and that several are blind , and do not perceive that this bread and cup is nothing else but what is seen with the eyes , and tasted with the palate . and in his epistle to frudegard , as well as in his commentary on st. matthew , ch . . it appears he had opposers , because in his epist. to frudegard , he saith , you advise with me touching a thing that many do make doubt of . and in his commentary , i am told that many , saith he , do censure me , as if i had attributed to the words of our lord , either more , or something quite contrary to what the genuine sense permits . so that paschasius had adversaries , and they did not believe transubstantiation , because they held that in the eucharist , there was only the virtue of the flesh , and not the very flesh ; the virtue of the blood , and not the very blood of christ. that the eucharist was figure , and not verity ; shadow of the body , and not the body it self . they would , saith paschasius , extenuate the word , body , and perswade , quod non sit vera caro christi , sed quaedam virtus & figura corporis christi . now paschasius rathbertus was the first author that wrote fully and seriously of the truth of the body and blood of jesus christ in the eucharist , as bellarmin saith , de scriptoribus ecclesiasticis in paschasio ratberto . and father sirmond saith , he is the first that hath explain'd the sense of the church touching this mystery ; so that , saith he , he hath opened the way to others , in vitae ratberti praefixa ejus operibus . therefore it is nothing strange that paschasius had enemies , and that he was accused for departing from the common faith , and to have spread abroad visions of a young man. for he saith to frudegard , you have , saith he , at the end of this work , the authorities of catholick fathers succinctly marked , by which you may perceive , that 't was not through rashness , that formerly when i was young i believed these things , but by divine authority . he also endeavours to clear himself from this charge in alledging passages , as of saint austins , the which nevertheless are not to be found in him ; as these words , receive in the bread what hung on the cross , receive in the cup what issued out of the side of jesus christ. which is not to be found in st. austin . rabanus archbishop of mayance in the year , stiled by baronius in the year . n. . the bright star of germany , fulgens germaniae sidus ; saith in his institution of clerks lib. . cap. . our saviour liked better that believers should receive with their mouth the sacarments of his body and blood , and that they should be turned into their nourishment , to the end that by the visible work the invisible effect should be shewn . for as the material food , doth materially nourish the body and support it , so also the word of god doth nourish the soul inwardly , and doth strengthen it . and in the same place , the sacrament is one thing , and the virtue of the sacrament is another . the sacrament is turned into the nourishment of the body , but by the virtue of the sacrament one acquires everlasting life . as the sacrament therefore is turn'd into our selves , when we do eat and drink it , so also we are converted into the body of jesus christ , when we live with piety and obedience . the same doctor on st. matthew , chap. . saith with venerable beda , that jesus christ hath substituted instead of the flesh and blood of the paschal lamb , the sacrament of his body and blood. that the creator of the world , and the redeemer of mankind , making of the very fruits of the earth , that is to say , of bread and wine , a fit mystery , turn'd it into the sacrament of his body and blood , that unleavened bread and wine mixt with water , must be sanctified to be the sacrament of the body and blood of jesus christ. afterwards he gives the reason wherefore our saviour chose bread and wine to make them sacraments of his flesh and blood , and saith , that 't is because melchisedeck offer'd bread and wine , and that jesus christ being a priest after the order of melchisedeck , he was to imitate his oblation . and shewing the reason why the sacrament takes the name of the body and blood of the lord , he saith with isidore archbishop of sevil , 't is because bread strengthens the body , it is conveniently called the body of jesus christ ; and because wine augments blood in the flesh and veins , for this reason it is compar'd to the blood. now both these things are visible , nevertheless being sanctifi'd by the holy ghost , they pass into the sacrament of the divine body . a sacrament which in the . chap. he calls the mystical body of jesus christ , in opposition to his natural body , from which he distinguishes it , and draws a resemblance from the mystical body , to the proper body of jesus christ. the holy vessels , saith he , are set on the altar , viz. the cup and patten , which in some sort are the figure of the grave of jesus christ ; for as at that time the body of jesus christ was laid in the sepulcher , having been embalm'd by godly people ; so also at present , the mystical body of jesus christ , as it were imbalm'd with holy prayers , is kept in the holy vessels to be administred to believers by the hands of the ministers . the same doctor in his penitential , or letter to herribald bishop of auxerre , which monsieur baluze got printed at the end of his regino at paris in , saith , chap. . as to what you demand of me , whether the sacrament after it is eat and consum'd , and cast into the draft after the manner of all other meats , does return to the former nature it had before 't was consecrated at the altar : to such a needless question may be reply'd , the lord himself said in the gospel , that what enters into the body goes into the belly , and is cast into the draft . as for the sacrament of the body and blood , it is made of corporeal and visible things , but it produceth an invisible sanctification , as well to the body as to the soul. what reason is there , that that which is digested in the stomack , and is cast out into the draft , should return to its former state , there being never any that affirmed that such a thing was done ? for of late some persons not having a right judgment of the sacrament of the body and blood of christ , have said , that the same body , and the same blood of the lord which was born of the virgin mary , and in which the lord suffered on the cross , and rose again from the dead , is the same which is taken at the altar ; against which error we have as much as was necessary written to the abbot egilon , explaining what ought truly to be believed of the body of christ in the eucharist . amalarius , esteemed a very learned man , in the manuscripts cited by dom luke d'achery a learned benedictin , in his preface to the seventh tome of his spicilegium , was sent by the emperor charles le debonnair to pope gregory to find out antiphonaries , ( amalar. in prolog . antiphon . ) and who by express command of the same emperor , was chosen in a council held at aix la chappel , auno . to make rules for prebends , as is testified by ademar a monk of angoulism , in his chronicle on the year , saith in his treatise of church-offices , lib. . cap. . that the sacrament is to us instead of jesus christ. the priest , saith he , bows and recommends to god the father , that which was offered in the room of jesus christ. in the th chap. he saith , the oblation and the cup , do signifie the body of the lord , when jesus christ said , this is the cup of my blood , he sanctified his blood , which blood was in the body , as the wine is in the chalice . in the third book , chap. . he calls the eucharist , the sacrament of bread and wine : and saith , that jesus christ hath in this bread recommended his body , and in the cup , his blood. the same amalarius having been consulted by rangart bishop of noyon , how he understood those words of institution of the eucharist , this is the cup in my blood of the new and eternal testament , with this addition which is in the canon of the mass , the mystery of faith ; answers him by a letter , wherein after having spoken of the cup of the passover , he proceeds to that of the eucharist ; and having alledged what is mention'd by st. luke , he adds , the cup is in type of my body , wherein is the blood that shall run out of my side , to accomplish the ancient law ; and after it is shed , it shall be the new testament . and a little lower he saith , the mystery is faith , as st. austin saith in his letter to the bishop boniface , as the sacrament of the body of jesus christ is in some manner the body of jesus christ , and the sacrament of his blood , his blood ; so the sacrament of faith , is faith. so also we may say , this is the cup of my blood of the new and eternal testament . as if he should say , this is my blood which is given for you . the same doctor in a letter which he wrote to one gontard , whom he calls his son , saith , that it is our saviours good pleasure to shed his blood by the members and veins , for our eternal salvation . that 't is a body of jesus christ that may be cast out in spitting after having receiv'd it , and of which , a part may be flung out of the mouth . to all which he adds , having so received the body of the lord with a good intention ; i don't pretend to dispute , whether he be invisibly lifted up to heaven , or whether he remains in our body , till the day of our death , or whether he evaporates into the air , or whether he issues out of the body with the blood , or whether he goes out at the pores ; our saviour saying , all that enters in at the mouth , goes down into the belly , and from thence into the draft , &c. now when this great man saith , that the sacrament is to us in the stead of jesus christ ; that what is offered in the eucharist is sacrific'd instead of jesus christ ; that the cup is in type of the body ; that the blood is in the body , as the wine is in the cup ; that jesus christ represents his body by the bread , and his blood in the wine ; that the sacrament of the body is in some sort his body , and that 't is so that the cup of the blood is his blood , that the body is poured forth upon our members for our salvation ; that there is a body of jesus christ that may be cast out by spitting , and whereof some part may be flung out of the mouth ; that he will not dispute whether this body evaporates in the air , or whether it departs out of the body with the blood , or whether it goes out at the pores , or into the draft , all this doth sufficiently shew , that this doctor distinguished the bread and wine , as a typical body , from the real body of jesus christ ; and that by consequence , he believed the bread and wine remained after consecration , to be called the body and blood of jesus christ , but improperly . valafridus strabo , abbas augiensis , stiled a very learned man , by herman contracted , in the year . jesus christ , said he , gave to his disciples the sacrament of his body and blood in the substance of bread and wine , teaching them to celebrate it in remembrance of his most holy passion , because there could nothing be found fitter than these things to signifie the unity of the head and members ; for as bread is made of sundry grains , and brought into one body by means of water ; and as the wine is squeez'd from several grapes , so also the body of jesus christ is made of the union of a multitude of saints . and a little after , he declares , that jesus christ hath chose for us a very fit sacrifice , for the mystery of his body and blood , in that melchisedeck having offer'd bread and wine , he gave to his children the same kinds of sacraments . and afterwards , cap. . that for that great number of legal ordinances , jesus christ gave us the word of his gospel ; so also instead of the great diversity of sacrifices , believers are to rest satisfied with the sole oblation of bread and wine . it is evident strabo makes the holy sacrament to consist in the substance of bread and wine , which according to him , is differenced from the body , because it is but the memorial of it : that 't is the figure , that it consists in being made of sundry grains , and the wine of sundry grapes . that the sacrifice of the new testament , is of the same kind as that of melchisedeck , and that the eucharist is an oblation of bread and wine . all these things intimate , that the bread and wine remain in the eucharist after consecration . herribald was bishop of auxerre , in the time that vallafridus strabo wrote . now he was of the same opinion with rabanus . thomas waldensis assures us so . herribald of auxerre , saith he , and rabanus of mayence say , that the sacrament of the eucharist goes into the draft . the anonimous author , contemporary with herribald , which was published by father cellot the jesuit , saith also the same . nevertheless lupus abbot of ferriers , ep. . speaking of him , calls him a most excellent prelate , excellentissimum praesulum . in the th ep. he stiles him a man of a lofty and divine understanding , altissimi & divini ingenii . and hincmarus archbishop of reims , calls him the bishop of venerable qualities . so that the very chronicle of auxerre intimates , that there was ingrav'd on his monument this inscription , here lies the body of st. herribald . therefore the author of the st treatise of the perpetuity of the eucharist , saith in pag. , that herribald and rhabanus , were adversaries to paschasius : tho in the d treatise of the perpetuity , in pag . he saith , speaking of the minister claude , who told him , that amalarius and herribald were in any wise adversaries to paschas ? it appears by the letter paschasius wrote to frudegard , that he was not of the same judgment paschasius was of , seeing he opposes to him st. austin's d letter to boniface , sic widefort contra wickliff , ad art. . * ratramne , priest and frier of corby , experienc'd in the scriptures , equally esteem'd for his learning and manners , whom † hincmar , ‖ lupus abbot of ferriers , his contemporaries ; ⸫ sigebert who liv'd in the xi . century , and father ‡ cellot the jesuits anonimus , do all make mention of , under his true name of ratramne ; wrote a book under the reign of charles the bald , as is reported by the same trythemius , which he intitul'd , of the body and blood of the lord : from a monk of corby , he was made abbot of ovias . the president : ⸫ mauguin speaking of him , saith , he was a learned doctor of the church , eminent in probity , and in doctrine , an undaunted defender and protector of the catholick truth , against innovators . he dedicated his book to the emperor charles the bald. now this author did not believe transubstantiation , because he saith , for as to the substance of those creatures , they are after consecration what they were before ; they were before bread and wine , and it is plainly seen , that after consecration these created substances do remain in the very same species . and a little after he saith , this spiritual flesh which spiritually feeds believers , is made of grains of wheat , by the hands of the baker , such as it appears to our sight ; but it hath neither bones nor sinews , nor no distinction of parts , nor is it enliven'd with a soul , or reasonable substance . to conclude , it is unable to move of it self , and if it gives life , it is the effect of a spiritual virtue , of an invisible , and a divine virtue and efficacy . a little after he saith again , as the water represents the people in the sacrament , if it were true , that the bread consecrated by ministers was corporally changed into the body of jesus christ , it must also necessarily follow , that the water which is mingled with it were changed into the blood of the faithful people ; for where there is but one sanctification , there ought to be but one operation ; and the mystery should be equal where the reason of the mystery is the same . it is evident there is no corporal change in the water , and by consequence , there is no corporal change to be expected in the wine . all that is said of the body of the people represented by water , is understood spiritually ; it is then a necessary consequence , that what is said of the blood of jesus christ represented by the wine , must be understood spiritually . again , the things which differ amongst themselves , are not one and the same thing . the body of jesus christ which was dead and rose again , and become immortal , doth dye no more , death has no more dominion over it , it is eternal , and can no more suffer ; but that which is celebrated in the church is temporal and not eternal , and it is corruptible and not incorruptible . and again ; it must then be said , that the body of jesus christ , such as it is made in the church , was incorruptible and eternal . nevertheless it cannot be denied that what is so cut into morsels to be eat , changed and corrupted , and that being eat with the teeth , it goes into the body . again , now 't is true that the figure and the reallity are things distinct , therefore the body and blood which are celebrated in the church , are different from the flesh and blood of the body of jesus christ , which it is well known , is glorious since his resurrection , therefore the body that we celebrate is a pledg and figure . these words of ratramne or bertram , are so clear , that it is wonder'd the author of the perpetuity should say in the first treatise , p. . that bertram is an obscure author , and not evidently favourable to calvinists , but that the catholicks may explain him in a good sense . i cannot tell what to call this confidence . john erigen , a scotch man , whom the emperor charles the bald commanded to write touching the body and blood of the lord , as he had done also to ratramne , which appears by borrenger's letter to richard , publish'd by dom luke d' achery in the d tome of his spicileg , was of an opinion contrary to paschasius , as is acknowledged by * lanfrank ; and berenger in his epistle to the same lanfrank ; and hincmar saith of john erigen , that he taught , ‖ that the sacrament of the altar was not the real body and blood of jesus christ , but only the remembrance both of the one and the other : and berenger writing to lanfrank , saith to him , if you hold john for a heretick , whose judgment we have been inform'd of touching the sacrament , you must also hold for hereticks , ambrose , chrysostom , austin , not to mention many more . nevertheless * william of malmsbury , ‖ roger de hoveden , and ‡ matthew of westminster , speak of john scot , as of the greatest man of his time ; and molanus professor in divinity at the university of lovain , in his appendix to the martyrology of ussuart , at the letter j has left these words engraven , john scot , martyr , translated dionysius ' s ecclesiastical hierarchy , after which by authority of the popes , he was put into the number of the martyrs of jesus christ. to conclude , the roman martyrology , which we have in our library , printed at antwerp , anno . by order of gregory the th , as is said in the title of the book , martyrologium romanum jussii gregorii , editum , at the of the ides of november , makes mention of john scot : it 's true , the author of the st dissertation upon john scot , which the author of the perpetuity chose , having placed the said dissertation at the end of his d treatise , to which he often refers his readers , has made in the same dissertation , a chapter which bears the title , that john scot was not put into the catalogue of martyrs by the sacred authority of popes , and that his name is not to be sound in any edition of the roman martyrology . but it is also certain , that the same author , who hath also publish'd the belief of the greek church touching transubstantiation , has inserted in the end of his book , a treatise entituled , a refutation of the answer of a minister of charenton , to the dissertation which is in the end of monsieur arnauds book , concerning the employments , the martyrdom , and the writings of john scot , or erigen ; and the last chapter of this refutation hath this title , a sincere declaration of the author touching some things he had said in his dissertation , the which he since confesses were not true . and in numb . . of this chapter , the author saith in these terms , in art. . p. . ( he speaks of the th art. of the first dissertation upon john scot , which is at the end of mr. arnauds perpetuity ; ) it is said that 't is false that there was a martyrology printed at antwerp by command of gregory the th in the year . dly , that there is not to be found in any roman martyrology , printed at antwerp or any where else , the commemoration of john scot on the th of the ides of november . it would be superfluous here to relate the reasons that they have had , so positively to deny these matters of fact. it is sufficient to observe , first , that there is a roman martyrology set forth by order of gregory the th , and printed by platin at antwerp in the year . dly , that there is seen in this martyrology , the commemoration of john scot on the th of the ides of november in these words , eodem die sancti joannis scoti qui grafiis puerorum confessus , martyrii coronam adeptus est . this author is of good reputation , and doubtless was not ignorant of what st. austin saith in some of his works , that to lye in a matter of religion , is meer blasphemy . nevertheless we may observe , before proceeding any farther , that if scot had advanced any new doctrine , he would certainly have been reproved for it by the church of lyons , by prudentius , by florus , by the councils of valence and langres , which condemn'd and censur'd his opinions on the doctrine of predestination . st. prudentius bishop of troys in champaign , who assisted at the councils of paris in the year , of tours in , at soissons in the year . to whom leo the th wrote an honourable letter , which is to be seen in the th tome of the councils , of the which the bishop of toul in the french martyrology on the th of april , having said , that at troys his anniversary is solemnized , as of a holy bishop and confessor ; he also makes a magnificent elegy of him . this holy bishop , i say , was of the same judgment with john scot in the subject of the eucharist , for hincmar arch-bishop of rhemes , numbers him with john scot , against whom he observes nevertheless , that he wrote touching predestination , and saith , that they both held , that the sacraments of the altar are not the true body and blood of our lord , but only the commemoration of his body and blood. christianus drutmar priest and frier of corby , famous for his learned works , saith sigebert of illustrious men , as also the abbot trythemius ; wrote a commentary upon st. matthew , about the year . it is in the bibliotheca patrum , tom. . pag. . jesus christ , saith drutmar , took bread , because bread strengthens the heart of man , and doth better fortifie our body than any other food . he therein establishes the sacrament of his love ; but this propriety ought much rather to be attributed to the spiritual bread which perfectly strengthens all men , and all creatures , because 't is by him we live , move , and have our being . he blessed it : he blessed it first , because as in his person he blessed all mankind , then afterwards he shewed that the blessing and power of the divine and immortal nature was truly in that nature which he had taken from the virgin mary . he broke it : he broke the bread which was himself , because exprsing himself willingly to death , he broke and shattered the habitation of his soul , to the end that he might satisfie us , according to what himself saith , i have power to lay down my life , or to save it . and he gave it to his disciples , saying to them , take and eat , this is my body . he gave to his disciples the sacrament of his body for the remission of sins , and for the keeping of charity , to the end that not forgetting this action , they should always perform this in figure , and that they should not be unmindful of what he was about to do for them . this is my body , that is to say , sacramentally ; and having taken the cup , he blessed it , and gave it to his disciples . as amongst all things which are necessary to preserve life , bread and wine are those that do most of all repair and strengthen the weakness of nature : it is with great reason that our saviour was pleas'd in these two things to establish the mystery of his sacrament ; for wine rejoyces the heart , and increases blood , therefore it is very fit to represent the blood of jesus christ , because whatsoever comes from him , rejoyces with true joy , and encreaseth whatsoever there is of good in us . to conclude , as a person that is going a long journey , leaves to those u hom be loves , some particular pledg of his kindness , on condition that they should look daily upon it , to the end that they may retain him always in remembrance ; so in like manner , god by spiritually changing the bread into his body , and the wine into his blood , has commanded us to celebrate this mystery , that these two things should make us never forget what he hath done for us with his body and blood , and keep us from being unthankful and ungrateful for his so tender love. now because water is wont to be mingled with the sacrament of his blood , this water represents the people for whom jesus christ was pleas'd to suffer , and the water is not without the wine , nor the wine without the water , because as he died for us , so also we should be ready to die for him , and for our brethren , that is to say , for the church , therefore there came out of his side water and blood. this passage is taken out of the commentary , where the author expounds these words of the institution , this is my body , by these other words , that is to say , in sacrament , which are words quite contray to those of paschasius ; for paschasius said in his letter to frudegard , fearing it should be thought that jesus spake in sacrament , he said demonstratively , this is my body . ne putares quia in sacramento loquebatur ( deminus ) &c. demonstrative dixit , hoc est corpus meum . so drutman makes a difference 'twixt the body and the sacrament which he establishes in the bread and wine , which he blessed , brake and gave to his disciples ; he ascribes to the wine , only the dignity of representing the blood of christ ; and that , to conclude , the bread and wine are pledges of his love. therefore the same author , chap. . on these words , i will drink no more of this fruit of the vine , until i drink it new with you in my father's kingdom ; from that very hour of supper , saith he , he drank no wine , until he became immortal and incorruptible after his resurrection . the deacon florus wrote about the same time , an exposition of the mass , which is mention'd in the bibliotheca patrum , tom. . pag. . he there saith , this body and this blood is not gather'd in ears of corn , or in clusters of grapes ; nature doth not give it us , but it is consecration that makes it mystical to us : jesus christ is eaten when the creatures of bread and wine do pass to the sacrament of the body and blood , by the ineffable sanctification of the holy ghost . he is eaten by parcels in the sacrament , and remains whole and intire in heaven , and whole and intire in our hearts . again , all that is done in this oblation of the body and blood of our saviour , is a mystery , we there see one thing , and we understand another ; what we see , hath a corporal substance ; what we understand , hath a spiritual fruit. he saith , jesus christ saith to them , take , eat ye all of this ; and speaking of the cup , the wine , saith he , was the mystery of our redemption , and he proves it by these words , i will drink no more of the fruit of the vine . to conclude , explaining these last words of the canon , by which , o lord , thou daily makest these good things for us , which contain a kind of thanksgiving , which in the latin liturgy does follow the consecration ; he sufficiently intimates to us , that he did not believe the bread and wine were changed into the substance of the body and blood of jesus christ , seeing he speaks of them , as things god had created from the beginning of the world , which he creates every year by propagation and reparation , which he sanctifies , which he sills with grace and heavenly benediction , the which himself expounds to be bread and wine . see here nine or ten authors , contemporaries with paschasius , which are formally contrary to his doctrine , besides those which paschasius himself speaks of in general , in his own writings . to conclude the ninth century , there might be added the manner that charles the bald , and the count of barcelona signed the peace , which was done with the blood of the eucharist , as is reported by monsieur baluze in his notes on agabard , out of odo aribert , in the year . it was in the same manner that pope theodore in the seventh century signed the condemnation of pirrbus the monotholite , as appears by baronius on the year . § . that the fathers of the tenth century did not believe transubstantiation . alferick archbishop of canterbury , about the year . in one of his sermons to be seen in the fourth book of bedes ecclesiastical history , cap. . which we have copied in the library of st. victor , saith , the eucharist is not the body of jesus christ corporally , but spiritually ; not the body in which he suffered , but the body of which he spake , when consecrating the bread and wine he said , this is my body , this is my blood ; he adds , the bread is his body , just as the manna ; and the wine his blood , as the water in the desart was . there is another sermon cited by some under the name of wolfin bishop of salisbury , others say 't is of alfric , wherein the author uses near the same language . this sacrifice , saith he , is not the body of jesus christ wherein he suffered for us , nor his blood which he shed , but it is spiritually made his body and blood , as the manna that fell from heaven , and the water that sprang out of the rock besides these two testimonies , which shew what was believed of the sacrament in england , there is a sermon seen , which was read every year to the people at easter , to keep in their minds the idea of the ancient faith ; it is almost wholly taken out of ratramne ; there is great difference , saith this homily , betwixt the body wherein jesus christ suffered , and the body which is consecrated for the eucharist ; for the body wherein jesus christ suffered , was born of the virgin mary , and was provided with blood , bones , nerves and skin , with bodily members , and a reasonable soul ; but his spiritual body , which we call eucharist , is compos'd of several grains of wheat , without blood , without bones , nerves , and without a soul. the body of christ which suffer'd death , and rose again , shall never dye more , it is eternal and immortal ; but the eucharist is temporal and not eternal , it is corruptible and divided into sundry parcels , ground by the teeth , and goes along with the other excrements . this sacrament is a pledg and figure ; the body of jesus christ is the truth it self ; we have this pledg sacramentally until we attain to the truth , and then the pledg shall be fulfill'd . and a little lower , if we consider the eucharist after a corporal manner , we see 't is a changeable and corruptible creature ; but if we consider the spiritual virtue that is in it , we easily see that life abides in it , and that it gives immortality to those that receive it with faith. there is great difference betwixt the invisible virtue of this holy sacrament , and the visible form of its proper nature . by nature it is corruptible bread , and corruptible wine , but by the virtue of the word of god , it is truly his body and blood , yet not corporally but spiritually . a little below , he explains this change , in saying , jesus christ by an invisible virtue did change the bread and wine into his body and blood ; but 't was after the same manner as he heretofore changed manna , and the water that came out of the rock , into the same body and blood. fulcuin abbot of the monastry of lobes , in the county of liege , who departed this life in the year . speaking of the eucharistical table , saith , that 't is the table on which is consumed the sacred body of our lord , which not being to be said of the proper body , cannot be understood but of the bread which is called body , an expression which in all likelihood this abbot had learn'd of st. austin , who faith , the bread made for that use , is consumed in receiving the sacrament . that which is set on the table is consum'd , the holy celebration being ended . herriger , successor to fulcuin , and whom he that continued the history of the abbots of lobes , mentions as a man whose virtue and knowledg was known even to strangers , he collected , saith this author , several passages of catholick fathers against paschasius ratbertus , touching the body and blood of our lord. the ancient customs of the monastry of cluny , reprinted by the care of dom luke d' achery , l. . ch . . say , the outside of the challice is carefully rub'd , lest there should the least drop of the wine and water remain ; and being consecrated , it should fall to the ground , and perish ; by which it appears they believed the wine and water still remain'd after consecration , for the true body of jesus christ cannot perish . again , the priest divides the host , and puts part of it into the blood ; of one moiety he communicates himself , and with the other , he communicates the deacon . it cannot be so spoke of the body of jesus christ ; then after the priest has broke the host , he puts part of it into the cup , after the usual manner , two parts on the patten , and covers both the one and the other with a clean cloath ; but first of all , he very carefully rubs the challice , and shakes it with the same hand with which he touched it , fearing , lest that breaking the bread , there should rest some part of the body of our lord ( which cannot be said of the true body of jesus christ ; ) and elsewhere is prescrib'd what should be done , if there chance to remain ever so little of the body of our saviour , which is expounded to be a very little crum , as 't were indivisible , and like an atome . to conclude , treating of the communion of sick folks , it is observ'd that the body of our lord is brought from the church , that it is broke , and that the priest holds on the challice the part that he is to bring . it must needs be , that by the sence of these customs , there must be bread and wine in the sacrament , that it may be broken , and improperly called body . ratherius bishop of verona saith , as to the corporal substance which the communicant doth receive , seeing that 't is i that do now ask the question , i must also answer my self , and i thereto yield ; for seeing that to him that receives worthily , it is the true body , altho one sees that the bread is the same it was before ; and true blood , altho the wine is seen to be the same it was : i confess i cannot say nor think , what it is to him that doth receive unworthily , that is to say , that doth not abide in god. now the communicant , can he receive a corporal substance ? can one say , that one sees that the bread is what 't was before , if the communicant receives no substance ? it is known on the contrary , that what is seen , is not bread nor wine . moreover , ratherius condemning drunkenness and excess in some of his priests , saith , that some of them spew'd before the altar of our lord upon the body and blood of the lamb ; this can be understood only of the sacrament , which borrows the name of the thing signified , the abuse whereof reflects on him that instituted it . that the authers of the eleventh century did not believe transubstantiation . the author of the life of st. genulphius , who in all probability lived in the beginning of the eleventh century , and was published by john a bosco a celestin frier , relates of this saint , that from the very day of his ordination , he spent the rest of his life without tasting any wine , except it was that he receiv'd in the celebration of the holy sacrament . one would not speak in this manner , and believe that there was not wine remaining in the cup after consecration . leutherick arch-bishop of sens , who died in the year of our lord . did not believe transubstantiation , because we read of him in the life of pope john the xvii . or according to others the eleventh , that in this popes life , leutherick arch-bishop of sens , laid the foundation and elements of the heresy of berenger . whence it is , that helgald wrote in the life of king robert , that his doctrine grew and increased in the world ; cresebat , saith he , in saeculo , notwithstanding the threatnings which this prince made to depose him from his dignity , if he continued to teach it . fulbert , anno dom. . bishop of chartres , and ordain'd by leutherick , did not believe transubstantiation , when he said in his st epistle to adeodatus , that jesus christ intending to take up his body to heaven , left us the sacrament for to be a pledg of his body and blood. that under the visible form of the creature , there is a secret virtue that operates in the holy solemnities . that the divine majesty is diffus'd and spread abroad in that , which before was but a common thing , but being sanctifi'd by the heavenly word , it inwardly becomes the body of jesus christ. that this is effected by the holy spirit that joyns , unites and binds the sacrament to the body of jesus christ , ( compaginante spiritu sancto ) that the terrestrial matter surpassing the merits of its nature and kind , is changed into the substance of the body of jesus christ ; that this change is not impossible , no more than that is , which arrives to us by baptism , being changed into the body of the church ; not by any priviledge of nature , but by the purchase of faith ; non naturae privilegio , sed fidei precio , being the same outwardly , and changed inwardly : of servants being become children , being vile and abject , and all of a sudden acquiring a new dignity . what wonder is it , that he that produced these natures out of nothing , should convert them into the dignity of a more excellent nature , and make them pass into the substance of his body ? now the terms of pledges of the body and blood of the lord , do sufficiently shew that he made a difference betwixt the sacrament and his body ; therefore we see before , that ratramne drew the same consequence in saying , that which is a pledg and image , is distinct from that whereof it is an image and pledg . these terms of a secret virtue by which it operates , of the sacred majesty which it spreads abroad , of the holy spirit that joins and unites , of the matter which is advanced to a greater dignity ; and in that he confirms the change of the bread , by that which happens to believers in baptism ; and by that which besel the manna in the wilderness ; as also what he farther says to frudegard in his d epistle of the communion , as of a thing whereof the priest newly ordained , during days , received a little portion , parvam particulam , which might be taken by morsels , or by bits , minutatim sumere , in that he calls the sanctified bread , eucharist , and that he saith , that the sanctified bread is called the true body of jesus christ ; in that he saith elsewhere with st. austin , that he that abides not in jesus christ , and in whom jesus christ abideth not , doth not eat his flesh , nor drink his blood , though he eats and drinks to his condemnation , the sacrament of so great a thing . all this sheweth , that berenger had all reason to alledg in his defence the authority of fulbert , as appears by berenger's letter to richard , which letter is printed by dom luke d' achery in the d tome of his spicileg . if things be so , saith berenger to richard , how is it that this doctrine of the eucharist , contained in the writings of bishop fulbert of glorious memory , should come to my knowledg , which some indeed imagine to be of this bishop , but was indeed taught by st. austin ? bernon abbot of auge , who about the year . wrote a treatise of things concerning the mass , saith in the st chapter , that pope sergius commanded to sing the agnus dei at the breaking of the body of the lord ; now this being not to be understood of the proper body of jesus christ , it must be understood of the sacrament , which is the figure of his body : they do not speak so now , they say the sign is broken , but they do not say the body of jesus christ is broken : and in the th chapter he saith , that we are refreshed with the wine which is in the cup , in type of the blood of jesus christ. bruno bishop of argers , was of berengers opinion , as appears by the d tome of the bibliotheca patrum , p. , in a letter the bishop of liege writ to k. henry against bruno and berenger , his arch-deacon . sigebert in his chronicle of miroeus his edition at antwerp , , saith , that many did dispute for and against berenger , by word of mouth , and by writing . the manuscript of this chronicle , which is seen in monsieur d'thous's library saith the same : as also conrart de brunwill , apud surium vita wolphelmi ad ap . matthew of westminster on the year , saith , that berenger had almost corrupted all france , italy , and england , with his doctrine . matthew paris , and william of malmsbury do affirm , that all france was full of his doctrine . thomas waldensis relates the acts of the council held under gregory the th , wherein there was a more moderate confession of faith touching the sacrament prepared , than that under alexander the d , predecessor to gregory ; berenger was forced to sign it , after which greg. th . gave him letters of recommendation , which dom luke d' achery , has caused to be printed in one of the tomes of his collection . nevertheless it appears by the acts , and by hugh de flavigny , in the chronicle of verdun in the st tome of father l' abbes bibliotheque , in an. , that there were several in that assembly that maintained berengers doctrine against paschasius , that this arch-deacons adversaries knew not how to answer his reasons , as the chronicle of mount cassin test sies , l. . c. . and sigonius de regno itali , relates lib. . on the year . that they were forc'd to send to the monastry of mount cassin , for a learned frier called albert , whom pope stephen , saith sigonius , made cardinal deacon , who being come , and not able to answer berengers arguments , desired a weeks time to consider of them ; neither was pope gregory the th himself well satisfied with what was urged against berenger , seeing that cardinal bernon , in the life of hildebrand , and the abbot of ursberg in the year , do write , that gregory the th , wavering in the faith , caus'd a fast to be kept by his cardinals , that it might be discover'd whether the church of rome , or berenger were in the best opinion touching the bidy of jesus christ in the sacrament . one argument that gregory the th , was not very contrary to berenger , is , that the abbot of ursberg , and aventin , that has it from otto fraxinensis , relate on the year , that thirty bishops and lords being assembled apud brixiam nomicam , did depose gregory the th , amongst other things , for being a disciple of berengers . before i end my discourse of berenger , it is necessary to observe , that the confession that was extorted from him , is not maintainable , seeing that , as is related by lanfranc and alger , it is therein said , that jesus christ not only in sacrament , but also in reality , is touched and broken by the teeth . theophylact arch-bishop of bulgary said in his time , that god , condescending to our infirmity , doth preserve the species of bread and wine , and changes them into the virtue of the body and blood of christ. also in his time the greeks did not believe transubstantiation . in all probability nicetas pectoratus did not believe it , seeing cardinal humbert whom pope leo the th sent to them , upbraids him , perfidious stercoranist , says he to him , you think that the participation of the body and blood of our lord breaks the fasts of lent , and other holy fasts , believing that the heavenly , as well as the terrestrial food , is cast out into the draft , by the sordid and stinking way of the belly . alger de sacram. l. . c. . tom. . of the fathers , lib. and the jesuit cellot , in append. miscel. opusc. . p. . do frequently impute this error to the greeks . the author of the chronicle malleacensis , on the year , observes in the monastry ( cormoriacensi ) , that there was a fryar called literius , of such great abstinence , that for ten years time , he drank neither wine nor water , but what he received in the sacrament ; of necessity then , what one drinks in the eucharist , must be true wine , and true water . that the authors of the twelfth century did not believe transubstantiation . honorius priest and theologal of the church of rutan , did not believe transubstantiation , seeing thomas waldensis , tom. . c. . saith , that this theologal was of the sect of the bread-eaters of rabanus , de secta panitarum rabani ; and honorius saith with raban , that the sacrament which is received with the mouth , is converted into bodily food , but the virtue of the sacrament is that whereby the inward man is fed and satisfied . he saith also , that the host is broken , because the bread of angels was broken for us upon the cross ‡ . * that the bishop bites one piece , that he divides it in parts , that it is not received whole , but broke in three parts , ‖ that when 't is put in the wine , it is shewed that the soul of our lord return'd to his body , and he calls that which is broke , the body of the lord ; then he observes , that the sub-deacon receives from the deacon the body of our saviour , and that he carries it to the priests to divide it to the people ; all this can only be understood of the bread , which is improperly called the body . rupert abbot of duits , near cologne , upon exodus , l. . c. . saith , that the holy ghost doth not destroy the substance of bread , as he did not destroy the human nature , when he joined it to the word ; and in his th book on st. john , of the paris edition , in the year , he saith , that as the word was made flesh , not being changed into flesh , but in assuming flesh , so also the word made flesh , is made visible bread , not being changed into bread , but taking and transferring the bread into the unity of his person . we will say no more of this author , because bellarmin and several others , do freely confess that rupert did not believe transubstantiation ; also honorius of auter gives him extraordinary commendations , saying , that rupert illuminated with a vision of the holy ghost , explained almost all the holy scriptures in an admirable stile . zonaras in the east did not believe transubstantiation , seeing he saith of the eucharist , that it is a shew-bread which is subject to corruption , and which is eat and ground with the teeth . panis propositionis corruptioni est obnoxius , ut pote caro existens vere christi , & secatur dentibus nostris , & molitur . so that he was of the opinion of damascen and rupert . the abbot francus , in all likelihood , abbot of lobes , did not approve the opinion of transubstantiation , seeing the centuriators of magdebourgh observe , that he had no right judgment of the lords supper , asserting that the true body of christ was not in the holy sacrament . amalaricus bishop of chartres in they ear . a man of great reputation for his knowledg and wisdom , saith gaugwi● in his th book of the history of france , in the reign of philip the august , amongst other things , denied transubstantiation . bernard of luxemburg , prateolus and alphonsus alastro , report the same of amaury , as also genebrard in his chronicle , lib. . anno . opinions of authors of the thirteenth century , and afterwards , touching transubstantiation . it 's true , pope innocent the d , did condemn this amaury at the council of lateran , after his death , in the year . but 't is not said wherefore ; and what was transacted in this council , deserves not to be much regarded , if it be consider'd after what manner things were there transacted . the pope , who then presided , was a man full of vain glory and ambition ; mathew paris and mathew of westminster intimate so much of him , and that the liberty of voting and speaking was denied to the prelates of the assembly , for they were not seen to propose , nor deliberate , nor advise , nor prepare any of the constitutions which were there in great numbers ; but they were presented to the council ready drawn up , it not appearing that the advice of the assembly was taken on each of them , as is usually practis'd in all free and lawful councils . mathew paris , on the year . speaks in these terms , every one being assembled in the place abovesaid , and each having according to the custom of the general councils , taken their place , the pope having first made an exhortatory sermon , there was read in full council sixty articles ; which were liked by some , and disliked by others . godfry a fryer of st. pantalion at cologne , saith , there was nothing worth the remembrance done at this council , only that the eastern church submitted to the western , which before was never known . naucerlus and platina , in the life of innocent the d. affirm the same , for they mark , that several things were there propos'd , but that nothing was clearly determin'd . and kings and princes have no reason to allow of this council , because in the d chap. of the said council , power is given to the pope to deprive princes and lords of their lands , and to give them to others . guy legros archbishop of narbonne , in the year . did not believe transubstantiation ; for being at rome , and discovering his mind to a certain doctor , being return'd to narbonne , pope clement the iv. wrote him a letter , telling him that a certain doctor inform'd him , that discoursing with him , he held that the body of christ was not essentially in the sacrament , and no otherwise than as the thing signified is in the sign ; and that he said also this opinion was common at paris . this appears by the register'd manuscript of the letters of clement the iv. and to shew that the arch bishop of narbonne said this doctrine was very frequent at paris ; we find that two years after , that is to say , in the year . which was in the year st. lewis died ; stephen bishop of paris , by advice of some doctors in divinity , condemned those which held , that god cannot make an accident to be without a subject , because it is of its essence to be actually in its subject . ly , that the accident without a subject , is not evident , unless it be equivocal . ly , that to make the accident subsist without its subject , as we think it does in the eucharist , is a thing impossible , and implies a contradiction . ly , that god cannot make the accident be without its subject , neither that it should have several dimensions . which maxims being inconsistent with transubstantiation , doth plainly shew , that even at that time , men were divided on the subject of transubstantiation . one william , saith the fryer walsingham , in the life of richard the d , king of england , on the year . preached at leicester on palm-sunday , that the sacrament of the altar is real bread after consecration ; and that the bishop of lincoln going to punish him for it , the people appearing concern'd for him , made the bishop not dare do any thing against him , which doth plainly shew , that in that time the doctrine of transubstantiation had not taken any deep root in the minds of the people . reginal peacock bishop of chichester in england , in the year , did not hold transubstantiation , seeing baleus reports on the credit of thomas gasconius and leland , that he had no sound thoughts touching the eucharist , and that he asserted the doctrine of wickliff . now the doctrine of wickliff , as is related by this frier walsingham and thomas waldensis , was , that after consecration by the priest in the mass , there remains true bread and wine , such as they were before ; nevertheless , saith walsingham , the lords and nobles of the land favour'd wickliff ; which shews plainly , that the belief of transubstantiation was not generally received . guy of cluvigny , doctor in divinity , of the order of carmelites , and reader of the sacred palace , did not hold transubstantiation , but held the opinion of rupert de duits , to wit , the impanation ; and said , that this opinion was so agreeable to him , that if he were pope , he would establish it . thomas waldensis reports the same thing , having receiv'd it from john of paris . it 's certain that john of paris teacheth so in his manuscript treatise in the library of st. victor , having for its title , determinatio fratris joannis de parisiis praedicatoris de modo existendi corpus christi in sacramento altaris alio quam sit ille quem tenet ecclesia . the same john de paris wrote the treatise above mention'd , about the year . he was a jacobin , and doctor of the sorbon ; he held that the eucharist is the body of christ , as rupert de duits , and guy of cluvigny did , to wit , by assumption , jesus christ having taken the bread into the unity of his suppositum , as he took the human nature into the unity of his person . and towards the end of the manuscript it is said , that the faculty thought fit , that the manner of explaining the eucharist , by assumption of the bread , or by conversion , was a probable opinion ; but that neither the one nor the other was decided as a matter of faith ; and that whoever said otherwise , did not say well , and run the risque of excommunication . in praesentia collegii magistrorum in theologia dictum est ; ( says the end of the manuscript ) utrumque modum ponendi corpus christi esse in altare tenet pro opinioni probabili , & approbat utrumque per. — et per dicta sanctorum . dicit tamen quod nullus est determinatus per ecclesiam , & idcirco nullus cadit sub fide , & si aliter dixisset , minus bene dixisset , & qui aliter dicunt minus bene dicunt , & qui determinate assereret alterum praecise cadere sub fide incurreret sententiam , canonis vel anathematis . thomas waldensis attributes this opinion to john de paris . there is commonly found in the library of the franciscan friers , a book called the poor's reckoning , writ by one , called de goris , a doctor of tholouse , and native of arragon ; he dedicated his book to alphonsus of arragon arch-bishop of sarragossa . he chargeth john de paris with the opinion of the impanation , and doth not condemn it . it is on the th book of sentences , dist. . q. . the continuator of william de nangis , his manuscript chronicle in the library of st. german de pres , that john de paris is stiled , doctor of great knowledg and learning . * trythemius and auctuar . ‡ le mire , give him also the same epithets . i observe , that in this manuscript , john de paris to confirm his opinion , makes use of the authority of the master of the sentences , in th sent. dist. . ( i take it to be dist. . ) as if the master of the sentences should there say , that the impanation is a probable opinion . he also cites to the same purpose , dominus hostiensem , &c. super corpus juris extra de summa trinit . & fide cathol . c. firmiter oredimus , & de celebratione missarum , cap. cum marta . albertus magnus expounds the eucharist by transubstantiation , but he saith , salvo meliori judicio , which shews that he did not believe it as of faith. durandus of st. porcien taught , that the substance of bread remain'd , but that the form was chang'd . durand in the . sent. dist . . q. . saith , that in his time there were catholick doctors which taught , the bread remain'd in the eucharist , and did prove it by the confession which berenger was forc'd to make , affirming this opinion was not condemn'd . cornelius bishop of bitonte , declared against transubstantiation in the council of trent ; canus locor . theol. l. . c. . dominicus bannes taught , that the existence of bread doth remain , that so the accidents of bread and vvine may remain by this existence . at least suarez and mairat attribute this opinion to him . to all which , if we add the doctors that we have mention'd in our first part , that could not speak of transubstantiation but as of a new doctrine , and which could not be proved by the scriptures , without intimating that they were not all satisfied with it ; we shall see it plainly appears , that we cannot apply to the doctrine of transubstantiation , the rule of vinc●●tius lirrinensis , which is offer'd to us by the bishops of france . the conclusion . wherefore the bishops are humbly desired , that they would not continue to exercise so much rigor and severity against the protestants of france , who having yielded farther than they well could with a safe conscience , to obey the kings orders , yet cannot in any wise resolve to make any profession of the doctrine of transubstantiation , it appearing that they oppose it only for conscience sake , and as being contrary to the very rule offered to them by the bishops themselves . if st. austin could say , that those ought not to be esteemed hereticks that with an honest mind maintained the errors of their ancestors , and are ready to relinquish them when they are better inform'd of the truth ; how much greater reason is there to bear with people who do shew by the very confession of romish catholick doctors , that the doctrine of transubstantiation is a new invention , and by consequence , that it ought not to be imposed as an article of faith , by the very rule laid down by the bishops of france . no reasonable person can find any question in matter of religion whereto this rule of st. austin's can be more justly applied . for if it be not observ'd in this controversie of transubstantiation , there will never be any thing found that it may be used in . if then such persons are not hereticks for seeking the truth , and that they think 't is their duty to seek it ; that they are of the judgment of catholick doctors , and that they observe the rule prescribed by the bishops ; it is no way safe to persecute them to that degree of violence , to make them believe that which is contrary to the rule which is laid down ; and therefore , what is said by st. austin on psalm . should seriously be consider'd , plerumque cum tibi videris odisse inimicum , fratrum odisti , & nescis . finis . addenda . these words in their place , are also to be added . the heavenly sacrament which truly represents the flesh of jesus christ , is called the body of christ , but improperly ; and nevertheless it is so called after its manner , not according to the truth of the thing , but by a significant mystery ; so that the meaning is , 't is called the body of jesus christ , that is to say that the body is thereby signified . and also the text of the canon taken out of st. austin ; sicut coelestis panis qui christi caro est , suo m●do vocatur corpus christi , cum re vera sit sacramentum corporis christ illius videlicet quod visibile , palpabile , mortale , &c. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e the clergy of france's method to judge of articles of faith. † secundum unanimem consensum patrum . admitted by the protestants . transubstantiation to be examined by it . several doctors of the church of rome have believed the doctrine of transubstantiation not to be very ancient . * suarez in . tom. ● euch. disp. . sect. . † scotus in . d. . q. . § haec duo videnda . ⸫ lombard l. . d. . * lib. . de euch. cap. . † p. dayly on th sent. q. . art. . * card. cusa . † frasmus . * alphonsus à castro lib. . contr . haeres . † tonstal lib. . of the sacrament . cassander . du moulin . jo. yribarne . de marca . that the ancients indeed did not believe transubstantiation . obs. . the papists confess that it is not expresly in scripture . so * scotus . † ockham . lib. q. . * alfonsus de castro . vacabulo indulgentiae . † biel. lect. . in can. mis. * cajetan in . p. . th. . . art. . obs. . none of the pagans objected to the ancient christans the difficulties of it . not trypho . * l. . & . contr . cels. nor celsus . nor julian . hence it follows , that transubstantiation was not antient . iust. martyr . iustin martyr . irenaeus adversus heres . l. . c. . irenaeus clem. alexand. p. edag . l. . graece 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signifies mixture . s. austin f. p. . ad volusen . theodotus . tertullian . tertullian . tertullian . origen . du perron saith on this passage , christians , stop your ears . origen . origeniana l. . q. . pag. . edit . huet . g. l. origen . cyprian . tom. . tract . . & tract . . de euch. l. . c. . eustathius . nicen. syn. . act. . eusebius lib. . de dem. evang. eusebius . cyrillus hierosol . catech. myst. . macharius . macharius . st. basil. ep. . ephrem . epiphanius . s. ep. in compond . de side eccles. deus ad aquas descendit . incorporea re nihil augetur . arist. de generat . & corruptione . alimentum vel materiam partim . ibid. l. . greg. naz. orat. . gregory nazianz. greg. nyss. in his oration of the baptis . of j. c. s. ambrose . l. . ep. . id. tom. . de side l. . c. . idem tom. . of the blessing of the patriarchs , c. . ambrose . gaudentius . gaud. bishop of bress , tract . . chrysostom . s. chrys. hom. . on s. matth. chrysost●● . idem in hom. . chrysostom . chrysostom . this author goes under s. chrysostom's name . s. jerom. it appears by these words , that they imply the common belief , that there was true wine in the eucharist ; because they say , that should they abstain from wine , they must abstain also from the blood of the lord. * de fide l. . c. . st. jerom. st. austin . st. austin . st. austin st. austin . ep. . ad bonif. de opif. l. . c. . quod non per omnia est id quod esse dicitur , illud abusive appellationem illam habet . st. austin . * de princip . dialect . l. . signum est quod seipsum sensibus , & praeter si aliquid animo ost endit . st. austin . ad monym . l. . c. . . cum electionis vas dicat quia christus caput est corporis ecclesiae , ipsum tamen corpus christi non dubitat christus veraciter appellare . ad paulin. ep. . ep. . tract . . de consensu evangelist . l. . c. . st. austin . l. . q. . l. . c. . penè quidem sacramentum omnes corpus ejus dicunt . st. austin . st. austin . in joan. tract . . st. augustin . lib. con. donat . c. . de ipso quippe pane , de ipsa dominica manu , &c. ep. . et ipsi quidem adducti sunt ad mensam christi , &c. de noe & arca . c. . s. augustine . s. augustine . french posthum . treatise of the euch. theodoret. theodoret. dial. . arnobius junior . accipimusfrumentum , &c. quod nunc habeat intra se ecclesia videamus , &c. accipimus panem quod confirmat , &c. exurgens a mortuis , &c. prosper . prosper . hesychius . procopius gazeus . procopius . p. gelasius . resp. . ad . interrog . ferr. fulgentius . de fide ad pet. diac. c. . ephraem . apud pho. bibl. cod . . ecclesiast . . v. . facundus . lib. . de viris illustribus , c. . facundus . lib. . primasius . isidorus hispalensis . orig. l. . c . in alleg. veter . test. beda . in lucae . & in marc. . & in hom. quadrages . feria a palmarum . rom. . . hom. aest . & c. . in virg. st. joan. bapt. sedulius . j. damascen . damascen . concil . constant . act. . conc. const. alcuinus . ep. . in joan. c. . v. . carol. m. de offic. septuag . ad alquin . ambrosian office. ordo roman . ordo romanus . theodorus studita . ahyto . ahyto . theodulphus . opposers of paschasius radbertus . rabanus . rabanus . amalarius . amalarius . amal. ad rangart , tom. . spicilegii , pag. . amalarius . valafridus strabo lib. de reb. eccles. c. . bill . p. . to. . herribald . tom. . ch . . , and . herribald . de praed ch . . frudegardus . * trithem . de script . eccles. † de praedest . ratramnus . ‖ ep. . ⸫ de script . eccles. ‡ de euchr. ch . . ⸫ maug . disser . hist. & chron. c. . tom . . pag. . & . ratramnus in the apology of the fathers , is stiled a learned benedictin defender of grace , a man of great wisdom and reputation ; and in the first treatise of the perpetuity , p. . c. . he is stiled an obscure kind of a person ; that evaporated himself in obscure reasonings , which he added to those of the church , and explained as he pleased himself , as some are pleased to say . ratramnus . joan. erigena . * de euchar. ‖ de praedest . chap. . jo erigena . * de gest. reg. angl. l. . c. . ‖ annal , per pred . ad . ‡ ad. an. . j. erigena . prudentius . hincmar de praedest . c. . christianus drutmarus . christianus drutmanes . christianus drutmanes . florus diaconus . alferic a. b. cant. the expurgat . index orders these words to be blotted out wolphinus . apud usserium de christianae ecclesi success . & stat. c. . p. . saxon homily . saxon homily . fulcuinus . tom. . spicil . de gestis abb. lob. p. . herriger . idem tom . . p. . monastry of cluny . tom. . in spec. p. . customs of the monastry of cluny . lib. . ch. . p. . ratherius . de contempt . canon . port . spicileg . tom. . the author of the life of st. genulphius . lib. . ch. . leuthericus . in epistola roberti regis . fulbertus . bib. pat . tom . fulbertus . bernon . bible of the fath. tom. . bruno . in willel . . in willel . l. . . tom. . spicileg . p. . p gregory . bruno . . . c. . theophylact. in marcum . c. . nicetas pectoratus . humber . tom. . bibl. of the patr. edit . ult . . honorius . an. . in gemma anim. l. . c. . ‡ ib. c. . honorius . * ib. c. . ‖ ibid. c. . rupertus . a. . de scriptor . eccles. l. . c. . & . de script . eccles . zonaras . tom. . cyr. alex. in notis vulcani ad lib. advers . anthropom . zonar . ep. . francus . amalaricus . in catal. in almar . contra haeres . verb. euch. . ad ann. . in richard. . anno . tom. . ch. . tho. waldens . in epist. ad mart. . in rich. . tom. . ch . * de scrip. ecclesiast . ‡ auctuar . in . dist . . q. . disp. . sect. . disp. . sect. . epist. . notes for div a -e the gloss on the canon hoc est , in the . dist . of the consecrat . de consec . . c. . sermons and discourses on several occasions by william wake ... sermons. selections wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) sermons and discourses on several occasions by william wake ... sermons. selections wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for ric. chiswell ... and w. rogers ..., london : . reproduction of original in huntington library. table of contents: p. [ ]-[ ] errata: p. 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng church of england -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - emma (leeson) huber sampled and proofread - emma (leeson) huber text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion imprimatur , carolus alston , r. p. d. hen. episc. lond. à sacris . septemb. . . sermons and discourses on several occasions . by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties ; and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . london : printed for ric. chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard . and w. rogers , at the sun over-against st. dunstan's church in fleetstreet . mdcxc . to the right honourable sir will. rawlinson , kt. one of the lords commissioners of the great seal of england . sir john holt , kt. lord chief justice of england . to the honourable sir will. gregory , kt. one of the justices of their majesties court of kings-bench . sir john powell , kt. sir tho. rookesby , kt. justices of their majesties court of common-pleas . sir edward nevill , kt. sir john turton , kt. barons of their majesties court of exchequer . to the worshipful , the masters of the bench . and to the rest of the members of the honourable society of grays-inn . having a long time designed to make some publick acknowledgment of my great obligations to you , i could not tell in what way more properly to do it , than by presenting to you a small collection of some of those discourses , which i have lately had the honour to preach before you . 't is upon this acount that i now crave leave to prefix your names to these sermons : both as a testimony of that particular respect i owe to you ; and to let the world see , what persons they are by whom i have the happiness to be countenanced and encouraged in my ministry : such whose integrity and abilities , have rendred them at once both the support and ornament of our courts of justice : whose firmness to the true interest of our church and government , in the worst of times , have set them above the power of malice to calumniate : who by suffering heretofore , rather than they would betray either the liberties of their countrey , or their own consciences , have effectually convinced all impartial men , that as it cannot be ignorance of our laws and constitution , so neither is it interest , or any other unworthy design , but the clear evidence of right , that engages them to that submission they now pay to the present government : and who that they may long possess those places they so worthily fill , and be the honour of the bench , as the rest of the society are of the profession , is the hearty prayer of him who with all possible respect will always remain , your most obliged humble servant , william wake . the contents . sermon i. of the qualifications required to a profitable hearing of god's word . luke viii . . he that hath ears to hear , let him hear . sermon ii. of the benefit and practice of consideration . deuter. xxxii . . o! that they were wise , that they understood this , that they would consider their latter end ! sermon iii. of the devices of satan . cor. ii . . — for we are not ignorant of his devices . sermon iv. of stedfastness in religion . pet. iii. , . ye therefore , beloved , seeing ye know these things before , beware lest ye also being led away with the error of the wicked , fall from your own stedfastness . but grow in grace , and in the knowledg of our lord and saviour jesus christ : to him be glory both now and for ever , amen . sermon v. of the reasonableness and terrors of the future judgment . acts xxiv . . and as he reason'd of righteousness , temperance , and judgment to come , felix trembled , and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . sermon vi. of the causes of mens delaying their repentance . acts xxiv . . — felix trembled ; and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season i will call for thee . sermon vii . of the danger of mens delaying their repentance . acts xxiv . . — felix trembled ; and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . sermon viii . an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants . rom. xv . , , . now the god of patience and consolation grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus : that ye may with one mind and one mouth , glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us to the glory of god. sermon ix . of the nature and benefit of a publick humiliation . joel ii . , . therefore also now saith the lord , turn ye even to me with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning : and rent your heart and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god ; for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . sermon x. of contending earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints . jude . beloved , when i gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation , it was needful for me to write unto you and exhort you , that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints . discourse i. of the nature , and end , of the holy sacrament of the lords supper . cor. xi . . this do , in remembrance of me. discoure ii. of the honour due to the blessed virgin. luke i. , . for behold , from henceforth , all generations shall call me blessed : for he that is mighty hath done for me great things , and holy is his name . errata . serm . . p. . l. . r. christ's . ib. l. . r. an indisposition . serm. . p. . l. . r. may we . serm. . p. . l. . r. he so much . ib. l. . r. interests . p. . l. . personally r. presently . serm. . p. . l. . dele been . p. . l. . r. than as they . serm. . p. . l. . r. in the faith. serm. . p. . l. . marg . r. illustre . serm. . p. . l. . r. do not esteem . l. . dele not . p. . l. . these r. those . p. . l. . r. ordinarily . of the qualifications required to a profitable hearing of god's word . a sermon preach'd on the gospel for sexagesima-sunday , at grays-inn , . luke viii . . he that hath ears to hear , let him hear . the words are a kind of proverbial expression , with which our blessed saviour very * frequently concludes his discourses to his disciples , the more to engage them to a just attention to , and consideration of that holy gospel which he delivered unto them : and the import whereof we cannot better learn , than from that excellent parable to which they are here subjoin'd . a sower went out to sow his seed : and as he sowed , some fell by the way-side , and it was trodden down , and the fowls of the air devoured it : and some fell upon a rock , and as soon as it was sprung up , it withered away , because it lacked moisture : and some fell among thorns , and the thorns sprang up with it , and choaked it : and other fell on good ground , and sprang up , and bare fruit an hundred-fold : and when he had said these things , he cried , he that hath ears to hear , let him hear . in which parable our blessed saviour sets forth to us the different success which his gospel then did , and would ever after be likely to meet with , according to the different dispositions of those to whom it was preach'd . it is indeed an uncomfortable reflection , and , i think i may say one of the greatest discouragements we labour under , in the discharge of our ministry , to consider how very little benefit , for the most part , all our endeavours have upon the minds of those to whom we declare the gospel of christ. that after all we can do , either by the goodness or terrors of the lord to perswade men , yet scarce a fourth part brings any fruit at all to perfection , and even those too in a very small measure . some few perhaps there are , who produce a little increase ; they hear the word , and consider their duty , and return it thirty-fold in piety and good works : but for the sixty , and the hundred-fold , scarce any there are , that ever arrive at this pitch , or but give us any great cause to hope , that ever they will come up to it . instead of fruitless complaints in a matter of so great consequence both to our ministry , and to your salvation , i shall make it my endeavour on this occasion , both for the happier prosecution of my own duty , and , if it may please god , for the greater benefit of your souls , plainly to lay before you the cause of this : by resolving it , as both the authority of our saviour , and the natural reason of the thing its self require i should , into the general indisposition of men to receive the gospel . we now , as the sower in the parable , scatter the same seed on all the parts of the field indifferently : we desire that every one should yield a suitable increase . what can possibly be the cause of that strange variety we find in the product , that one part should bring forth a plentiful crop of faith and good works ; another either none at all , or but a very small one in comparison , but only this , that the ground is in some better prepared to receive the seed than it is in others , and therefore brings forth the fruit accordingly . this is the plain design both of the parable before mentioned , and of that exhortation with which our saviour here concludes it in the words of the text , he that hath ears to hear , let him hear . in my discourse upon which words , that i may pursue the same method which our blessed lord did in his parable , i will i. show you what sort of hearers they are , to whom the word is in vain spoken ; who are not likely to benefit themselves by our preaching . and ii. will offer some rules for the disposing of your souls in such a manner , that by the grace of god you may be fit to receive benefit by it . i. i am to show what kind of hearers they are , to whom the word is in vain spoken , who are not likely to benefit themselves by our preaching . in pursuance of which point , i should be infinite should i insist particularly on all those indispositions that are apt to render a man an unprofitable hearer of divine truth . i will reduce this first sort of auditors to as few generals as i can , and that with all the freedom and plainness , that both the nature and end of such an undertaking require . . and the first that i shall mention , is , the careless hearer . it is the misfortune of too many , in the church of christ , that in st. paul's character , they have a form of godliness , but are little acquainted with the power of it . they come to our assemblies , and hear our discourses , and for the time are very much affected with them : but they go away , and presently they forget what they heard ; their holy affections are scattered as a morning cloud , they grow cold and indifferent as they were before ; nor much concern themselves with any farther thoughts of religion , till the next sunday comes , and another sermon again puts them in mind of it . as if the end of all our preaching were only to make the service a little the more solemn ; to entertain them an hour extraordinary in the church ; and if they did but sit out that , with any tolerable attention , they had then discharged their duty , they had done all that was required of them . to such auditors as these , i would only beg leave to remonstrate how unreasonable such a negligence as this is ; and of what a dangerous consequence it will most certainly prove to them in the end . our discourses in these places , all of them i am sure should be , and i believe for the most part are , either explications of that duty which god requires of us , or exhortations to fulfil it ; or else to shew the danger and baseness of those temptati●ns , that most usually draw men aside from it . now all these naturally imply an obligation on the part of those that hear us , to do somewhat in pursuance of these instructions : either to fulfil this duty , or to fly those sins that are contrary to it ; or to watch and arm themselves against those temptations which they are forewarn'd will otherwise be apt to seduce them from it . and if they neglect to do this , they will be much more inexcusable , than if they had never been instructed by us : what our saviour once said of the jews with reference to his preaching , will be found as true now , with respect to ours : if i had not come and spoken unto them , they had not had sin ; but now they have no cloak for their sin . it is not in discourses of this kind as in other ordinary addresses that are sometimes made to us : which if they do but afford us some agreeable entertainment for the present , we have our desire ; and though we afterwards never trouble our selves with any farther thoughts of them , yet we run no great hazard , nor it may be sustain any loss by our neglect of them . but when we tell you your duty , and lay before you the doctrine by which you are to be saved , the case is much otherwise . we speak as the commissioners of god ; and as the ambassadors of christ we beseech you to be reconciled unto him. the words which we deliver unto you , they are not our own , but his that sent us : they are the rules and measures by which you ought to live , and by your neglect or observance whereof , you must preserve or lose your souls to all eternity . the light esteem of what we say , do not mistake , it reflects not upon us , but on him whose ministers we are ; whose gospel we preach , and whose goodness we set forth , and who therefore will one day call you to a severe account for that little regard you now shew of what we deliver unto you . but dly . a second sort of hearers , who reap but little benefit by all our discourses are , the curious hearers . for such there still are in our days , as well as we read there were heretofore in the apostles ; who hold mens persons in admiration , and esteem the gospel of christ more according to the preachers eloquence , than its own authority . one is of paul , another of apollos , and a third of cephas ; as if the business of our preaching were to please their fancies , not to instruct their minds and to reform their manners ; and that simplicity which was once the glory of the gospel , were now to be esteem'd the scandal of its ministers . hence it is that so many of our auditors , instead of coming to our discourses as they ought , to hear their duty , and confirm their faith , and encrease their piety , come rather to observe , and censure ; the application they make , is not to enter into their closets , and meditate upon what they have heard , and consider how they may benefit their souls by it ; and then to beg the assistance of god's grace to enable them so to do ; but to applaud or despise the preacher , according as he has had the fortune to be liked or disliked by them . there is hardly any defect in the preacher so small , that is not enough to distast them against the very doctrine that is delivered : and be the duty never so clearly and solidly established , yet if the method be not exact , the style correct , the subject such as they approve ; the voice , the action , nay and sometimes the very look of him that speaks to them , agreeable to their fancies , all is spoiled , and they are not edified . but alas ! who is paul , or who is apollos , or who is cephas ? are we not all the ministers of christ , and your servants for jesus sake ? do we not all preach to you the same common salvation ? is it not the same gospel that is delivered by every one of us ? what if we have not all of us the same accidental advantages ? if another speak to you with more ornament and eloquence ? must therefore my weakness , render the gospel of christ contemptible ? i would to god , for your sakes , we were all such as you desire . that we could every one of us not only instruct , but please you too to edification ; that so by any means , if it were possible , we might gain some of you . but yet , in the words of st. paul , give me leave freely to say of this curiosity , that verily there is a fault among you . and what wonder if you do not reap that real advantage we could wish from our instructions , when alas ! it is not that you look after : you come with curiosity to gratify an itching ear , not with true humility , to increase your knowledge , and improve your piety . but , dly , a third sort of hearers to be considered in this place are , the carnal and sensual hearers : men , who in their wills and desires are utter enemies to the practice of christianity , however they sometimes comes to be hearers of it . but as the great philosopher heretofore when he opened his school of morality , and began his lectures with the same reflections i am now making , excluded all vicious and even young men from his auditory ; esteeming it in vain for him to spend his time in instructing those who were either already engaged in a course of sin , or otherwise by the bent and heat of their age strongly inclined and tempted to it : so may i certainly , with much greater reason , say with reference to our gospel , that to such as these , all our addresses will signify but very little . nor can we reasonably expect men should become such proficients as we desire , by our exhortations to piety , till they will begin seriously to dispose their minds to the practice of it . to preach to a soft voluptuary , the severe doctrines of mortification , and self-denyal ; to an angry and impatient spirit , to bear injuries , not to recompence to any evil for evil ; to forgive , nay , to love his enemies : to the covetous miser , to give alms of such things as he has ; and make himself friends in heaven , by the wise distribution of his unrighteous mammon upon earth ; what is this but to plow the sand : to sow your seed upon the water ? they look upon the doctrine to be senseless and unreasonable , and the gospel of christ foolishness indeed , if it expects they should obey such kind of precepts as these . what therefore our blessed saviour once said with reference to his own preaching , i must here beg leave to apply to ours : if any man will do his will , he shall know of the doctrine whether it be of god , or whether i speak of my self . if any man will do god's will ; if he will sincerely resolve to apply himself to the practice of religion , then he shall know of the doctrine , whether it be of god , or whether we speak of our selves : he shall be fit and prepared to judge of what we speak , whether they are our own words , or the gospel of christ , and the words of eternal salvation , that we deliver unto you . but till these thorns are first rooted out ; ( i. e. ) according to the explication which our saviour gives us in this very parable ; till men have overcome their affections to the cares , the pleasures , the riches of this world , 't is in vain to expect that any thing we can say should be able to prevail with them to bring forth fruit unto perfection , and such as may carry them to everlasting happiness in the next . but , thly , and to close this first point ; a fourth sort of hearers there are , who profit nothing by our preaching , and those yet worse than any i have hitherto mention'd , viz. the malicious hearers . a sort of men , who come to our churches now , as the scribes and pharisees were wont sometimes to do to our saviour's discourses , not to improve themselves , but , if they can , to intangle us in our talk. i shall not need to say , that such auditors as these are not likely to be much benefited by what they hear . this is not what themselves aim at : their business is only to find faults , to lie in wait for any thing that they may but be able to make an ill use of , and like to some venemous creatures , to suck poison out of the most wholsome flowers . if a word , or an expression chance to fall from the preacher which they think for their purpose , that is sure to be turn'd and scann'd to the uttermost : and though the meaning was never so innocent , yet 't is great odds but by a false conjunction of things with one another , by a convenient alteration , and an uncharitable representation , it shall be set forth to the world as some heinous crime . and were they always our open enemies that did this , we should have the less reason to complain of them . we know their principles , and what a liberty it is their religion gives them , by any means to defame and abuse those whom their church thinks fit to put the greatest abuse of all upon , in calling them hereticks . but for men pretending to be our friends , and our brethren , to do the same thing ; to bow the knee , and cry , hail master , and betray us , this is a piece of treachery that we cannot chuse but lament , and heartily beseech god may never be laid to their charge . i shall not much labour to correct such auditors , by shewing how mean and scandalous such a practice is : how contrary not only to all the rules of religion , but even of common honesty and humanity . no , rather let them come and search us with all their industry ; what is their sin , will be our justification . nor could we desire any thing better , were it not in charity to their souls , than by defying even malice it self to find any just cause of exception against us , to manifest the more clearly to the world the innocency and excellency of our holy religion . there is nothing here done or said , but what we could be glad all the world were conscious of . we have no mystery of iniquity to palliate , or to conceal . our religion and our selves are every-where the same . what we preach to you in the pulpit , we speak to you in private ; and , if occasion be , we publish it to all the world. our sermons , our writings , our conversation , are all of a piece . we have not one doctrine to whisper to those that are initiated , and another to seduce those that are not . it is not therefore for our own sakes , that we complain of this fault in any of our auditors . were that the motive , could we be so wicked as to deliver any thing to you in god's name , and as his gospel , that we fear'd all the world should become privy to , yet were it sufficient to know what kind of hearers we sometimes have , to make us at least wise as serpents , if not harmless as doves . but though we are therefore sufficiently secure as to our own innocence , yet we cannot but be concern'd for our brethrens sin . and beseech them , that they will at last be so kind to their own souls as to consider how great the danger and sinfulness of such hearing is ; what a dishonour it brings to our holy religion , what a stop it puts to their edification now , and how fatally ruinous it will finally prove to their everlasting salvation hereafter . but it is time for me to go on to the other part of this discourse ; that so having hitherto discover'd what the general faults of our hearers are , that so much indispose them to receive that benefit they ought by our preaching , i may now shew ii dly , what qualifications are required in such a one as will profit himself by these kind of instructions . many are the qualifications of this kind that might be offer'd ; but i think the principal of them may be very well reduced to these four , and which i shall therefore particularly consider : viz. that he who will dispose himself to become a profitable hearer of these holy instructions , must st , be pious . dly , docile . dly , diligent . and thly , earnest in his prayers to god almighty , to bless his word to him , and to teach him to profit by it . st , he must be pious . this , i have before observed , the very philosophers required in the auditors of their morality : and sure it will be then so much the more necessary in our hearers , by how much the rules and precepts of the christian religion are higher , and more repugnant to the sinful lusts and interests of men , than what they taught . hence we find our saviour christ himself to have resolved the cause of the infidelity of the jews into the indisposition of their hearts , for want of probity and goodness to receive his gospel . they were engaged in a course of pride and vain glory ; they courted the praise and applauses of the people , and they could not endure to hearken to a religion that would not support their vanity , nor preserve to them the respect and honour of the world , which they valued more than the praise and glory of god. how can ye believe ( says he ) that receive honour one of another , and seek not the honour that cometh from god only ? john v. . and again , ch . xii th . the holy apostle tells us , that among the chief rulers also many believed on christ , but because of the pharisees they did not confess him , lest they should be put out of the synagogue . for they loved the praise of men , more than the praise of god. and in general , our saviour christ says , ch . viii . he that is of god , heareth god's words ; ye therefore hear them not , because ye are not of god. where we find not only the true character of him who will be a profitable hearer of god's word , viz. that he must be of god , as that phrase is opposed to what our saviour had just before said of those men , ver . . that they were of their father the devil , and followed the lusts of him ; i. e. he must be an honest and upright man , endued with such a probity and sincerity as becomes a child of god ; but also the reason why others are not qualified to receive the gospel , viz. that they are of a temper of mind averse from holy things , and therefore not fit to profit themselves by the hearing of them : ye therefore hear them not , because ye are not of god. and st. john himself in his st epistle , iv . . gives the same for the reason why their preaching , as well as christ's , had so little effect upon some men ; we are of god : he that knoweth god , heareth us ; he that is not of god , heareth not us . and indeed , how can it possibly be , that a man who is not inclined to piety himself , should be a fit auditor of a gospel , whose great end it is to promote it ? st . he is averse to it ; he has no relish of what is spoken , nor can endure to hear his lusts and affections , his beloved vices , and darling sins set forth as things that must either be abandoned here , or they will render him for ever miserable . and therefore our saviour in the same st. john , tells us , that this shall be one part of the worlds condemnation , that light is come into the world , and men loved darkness rather than light , because their deeds were evil . for every one that doth evil , hateth the light , neither cometh to the light , lest his deeds should be reproved . dly . all the arguments that can be offered for such a one's conviction , stick not at all upon him ; they are as unsuitable to his apprehension , as if you would feed a lion with hay , or entertain an ass with a theorem . he has no sense of their force , nor is therefore at all like to be perswaded by them . to talk to a viciously inclined man , of the baseness and odiousness of his sins , what is this , but in his opinion to argue against his sense and experience ? to represent to him the reasonableness , the pleasure , and comfort of living well , what is it else , but to maintain a paradox , and shew a great deal of skill , only to demonstrate how much may be said for the most incredible things ? heaven is a place which cannot raise his desires , who has not thoughts purified enough to be in love with innocent and spiritual delights . the pleasures of those happy regions are not suited to the sensual apprehensions of such men , as know no attractives , but those of a mahumetan paradise : and hell it self , tho the most formidable consideration of any , yet such as for that very reason , he will be sure to put as far from him as he can ; and either fancy that perhaps there is no such place , or if there be , yet ho●e it will be time enough hereafter to p●ovide for the escaping of it . . and then lastly , for that which is the great end of all religious instructions , the practice of piety , and without which , all our knowledg in the mystery of godliness will be in vain ; this is what such a one is yet more indisposed to , than all the rest . there are many in the world , who can be content to applaud the reasonableness of piety and virtue , and will allow of all that we can say in praise of it , that yet when it comes to the trial , cannot endure to put it in practice . like the ground over-run with thorns in the parable , they receive the word with gladness , but the cares of the world , and the pleasures of life , choak the seed , so that they seldom bring forth any fruit unto perfection . it is therefore absolutely necessary , that he who will be a fit disciple for the school of christ , should first dispose himself by a probity and integrity of mind , to be willing to follow his instructions . that he labour sincerely to have a conscience void of offence , both towards god , and towards man. that he come to our religious exercises with a pious mind , not to please his fancy , or gratifie his curiosity , but to learn true wisdom , and that in order to practice . instead of considering how the discourse is managed , whether the preacher performs his part as he expected he should , he must employ his thoughts on more substantial meditations : in what particular especially the disc●urse came up to his own condition , and how he may best apply it thereunto . if any vice were reproved , whether his own sin be not concerned in it . if any duty explain'd or encouraged , whether that were not directed by god , to inform his knowledg , or to reprove his remissness . if it set forth any of the great mysteries of our redemption , or the glories of heaven , and what we must do to attain to them ; to remember that in all these things , god calls upon us to acknowledg his power , and to celebrate his goodness , who has sent so wonderful and gracious a salvation to us . this is the true way whereby the pious christian may profit himself , even by the meanest of our discourses ; but without such a disposition to receive instruction , the best seed will in vain be cast away upon us . dly . the next qualification required in a christian auditor , as well as in all others , is , that he be docile . by which i do not mean , endued with quick parts and abilities to learn ; that is the gift of god , and which sometimes may do more harm than good ; but i mean , that he be desirous of instruction , and to that end prepared with such a temper and disposition of mind , as to be willing and ready to pursue the means of it . and to this end more particularly , st . that he be humble , i. e. neither vainly conceited of himself , as if he had no need of instruction ; nor esteeming himself to be too great to receive it , even from the meanest preacher . there is nothing in the world so great an enemy to our proficiency in any thing , as pride : when men look upon themselves as too great to learn , and as such , neglect and despise the means of instruction . indeed i am not so vain , as to think that we are not many times called to speak to those who are much fitter to become our teachers . but yet neither can i so far undervalue the gospel of christ , which we deliver unto you , as to believe there is ordinarily any sermon so mean and despicable , but that an humble mind might have profited by it , and have found somewhat at least to exercise his charity and his patience , if not to excite his zeal , and improve his knowledg . . a second thing required to this docility , is , that a man be free from passion ▪ this disturbs the mind , and blinds the reason , and hinders many times the best doctrine from producing any suitable effects upon us . those who are subject to the command of their own affections , judg more according to the inclinations of them , than to the dictates of right reason . he that espouses a party or interest ▪ that loves an opinion , and desires it should be true , easily approves of whatsoever does but seem to make for it ; and rejects , almost at all adventures , whatsoever appears against it . how does the hope and desire of honour , or favour , or fortune in the world , carry men away to the vilest things for the prosecution of it ? and so all the other passions of the mind ; whether it be fear or pleasure , or whatever else be the affection that rules us , they hinder the reason from judging aright , and weighing impartially what is delivered to us ; and 't is great odds , but such an auditor receives or condemns the doctrine of christ , not according as the authority of holy sripture , and the evidence of right reason require he should , but as his own passions and inclinations prompt him to do . . a third thing required to docility is ; that a man be free from prejudice . he that will advance any thing in the finding out of truth , must bring to it that travellers indifference which the heathen so long since recommended to the world ▪ he must not desire it should lie on the one side rather than the other , lest his desire that it should , prompt him without just reason to believe that it does . and so in religion too : he that will make a right judgment , what to believe , or what to practice , must first throw off all prejudice in favour of his own opinion , or against any others : and resolve never to be so tied up to any point or party , as not to be at all times ready impartially to examine whatsoever can reasonably be objected against either . how far the want of this does at this day divide the church of christ , i would to god , we had not too great reason on all sides to complain . there are many among us so strangely engaged by false principles to an ill cause , that 't is in vain to offer them the clearest arguments to convince them . if you bring them scripture , 't is true that must be heard , but then be it never so plain they are not competent judges of the meaning of it : and they durst not trust their own interpretation to tell them that abraham begat isaac , if the church should think fit to expound it otherwise . for such and so plain are many of those passages that we alledg against them , to shew their corruptions in a great part of those things wherein they differ from us . if you offer them reason , as clear as the plainest demonstration ; why , that were well : but still private reason may err , and the church cannot . convince them by their senses , which one would think should convince any body ; desire them to consult the verdict of their own eyes , and mouths , and noses , and feeling : 't is no purpose , the senses may deceive them , but the church cannot . thus have they suffer'd themselves to be conjured into a circle out of which 't is impossible ever to retreive them . sense , reason , scripture , all are of no force against this one prejudice of their churches authority ; though at the same time they know not either what the church is to whom christ promises are made , nor where to find it , nor what it has decided , nor wherefore they at all adventures attribute to their own the title of the only true church . such hearers as these , are unteachable , and unprofitable : and we ought certainly by their example to beware of such an indisposition as is able to lead men into so strange a slavery ; and make them believe they are never more in the right , than when they have put themselves out of a capacity of ever being so upon any certain grounds , and otherwise than by meer chance . . a fourth and last thing required to docility , is a freedom from obstinacy . this is a disposition for the most part consequent upon that i the last mentioned , and such as wherever it is found , renders a man utterly incompetent to receive any benefit by the best instruction , it is called by st. paul 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a reprobate mind , rom. i. . a mind void of judgment . when men resolve they will not be instructed , but affect ignorance ; and either to keep up a faction , or to serve their present interests , or to indulge themselves the more freely in their sins , flee both the means and the desire of knowledge . and this , or somewhat like it , is again the case of those of the other communion . who not content with the prejudices i before mention'd in favour of themselves and their own opinions : do moreover engage their proselites by a most solemn oath , never upon any account , or by any argument whatsoever , to be drawn out of those errors in which they have engaged them . such then is the nature , and these the vices that are to be avoided by us , in order to the second qualification required in a christian auditor , viz. docility . . the next i mention'd was , that he must be diligent . by which i mean , not only a carefulness to attend upon all the publick means of instruction which god is pleased to afford us ; but yet much more , to apply those means to a right and due end. to be sedulous and diligent in embracing the opportunities of hearing , is indeed very commendable , and the duty of every christian ; but yet if his diligence stop here , he may for all that reap but little benefit by all his care. he that will be truly sedulous , as he ought to be , let him , st . when he comes to these holy exercises , be very careful that he attend with all his soul to what is deliver'd ; but especially if any thing chance to be spoken in which his conscience tells him that he was either altogether ignorant before , or not sufficiently instructed in it . dly , when he has done this , let him be careful to take the first opportunity to retire within himself , and call to remembrance the things that he has heard : and either by writing , or some other way let him provide for the future preservation of it . but especially , dly , let him employ his utmost diligence in the practice of what he hears : let him consider that this is the great end to which all his knowledge in the mystery of godliness is to be referr'd : and that without this , he shall become but the more inexcusable for all the rest ; for he who knows his master's will , and does it not , shall be beaten with many stripes . it was for this that god sent his son to preach his gospel to the world ; and 't is for this that we still are commission'd by him to declare to you your duty , and press you with the strongest arguments , the hopes and terrors of eternity , to be careful and sedulous in the performance of it . the end of christianity was not to puff us up , but to edifie us : to make us better rather than more knowing , and more knowing only that we may be better . they are not the hearers of the word that shall be justified before god , but the doers of it . it is but a half diligence that carries men to learn their duty ; he is the truly sedulous christian indeed who both seeks with all earnestness to know what god requires of him , and then as carefully endeavours to put it in practice . now to this end , and to conclude all , thly , he that will hear as he ought to do , must to all these other qualifications add his fervent prayers to god for his assistance . it is not an easie matter to become a perfect christian : so high and excellent are the precepts of the gospel , and in many things so contrary to the interests and inclinations of sensual men ; that without some extraordinary assistance of the grace of god , we are not able so much as to comprehend any thing of these kind of instructions as we ought to do . but to bring a willing and ready disposition of mind to receive the word ; to become such an auditor , as not only speculatively to learn the great truths of christianity , but to resolve effectually to put them in practice too ; this must certainly be the work of god upon our hearts , and 't is his grace alone that can both enlighten our vnderstandings , and incline our wills. and here therefore we may see at once , both the necessity of this last disposition , our prayer to god for his grace ; and in that , the true cause why so many make no better an advantage by their hearing . they come to the church as if they were going into a theatre , where they had nothing to do but to attend to what is spoken , to render them every way competent auditors of it . but alas ! the divine truths that are here deliver'd , are above the discernment of the carnal mind : spiritual things must be spiritually understood : such auditors as these , like the scribes and pharisees among the jews , may hear our words as they did our blessed saviour's ; but they will not be at all the better for them . god must open their hearts , as he did that of lydia ; and then our addresses will find a suitable admittance , and not pass without a due and careful consideration . and our prayers to god must obtain this , who will not fail to give his holy spirit to them that ask him . and now , how shall we wonder , if the seed , though never so carefully sown , produce yet but a very mean increase , when god knows for the most part the ground is so utterly unprepared to receive it ? this certainly is a consideration that ought to engage every good christian seriously to search and examine himself , how he is disposed to become a fitting hearer of the gospel of christ. if you have therefore hitherto come to our assemblies , without such a due preparation as you see is thus necessary to qualifie your minds to receive that benefit you ought from these instructions , let me now earnestly beseech you no longer to deceive your own souls , but to prepare them in such a manner that our preaching may not be in vain to you . let not any little , unworthy designs accompany you to these holy exercises ; but come as befits christians , with charity , with humility , with an honest and vpright heart ; sincerely desirous of understanding your duty , how mean soever the person be that is to deliver it unto you . but above all come with a firm resolution of practising what you hear . remember that 't is this christianity designs in all its instructions ; and however our zeal in these latter days seems unhappily engaged , more in the pursuit of divine truth , than in what i could rather wish we did chiefly aim at , the practice of a divine life ; yet let us be careful so to maintain the one , as not to prejudice or overthrow the other . and if we thus sincerely direct all our hearing to the glory of god , and our own everlasting salvation , we shall not fail to hear as we ought to do . god will open our ears , and illuminate our vnderstandings , and dispose our wills. the seed that is sown upon such ground , shall not fail to spring up into a blessed increase ; and produce those fruits of holiness in this life , which shall finally bring us to the everlasting joys and glories of the next . which god of his infinite mercy vouchsafe unto us , through the merits of his son jesus christ our lord. to whom . &c. of the benefit and practise of consideration . a sermon preach'd at white-hall , before the princess of denmark , febr. . / . deut. xxxii . . o that they were wise , that they understood this , that they would consider their latter end ! the words are part of that great song which moses spake unto all the congregation of israel immediately before his death , and by god's express command left with them as his last and best legacy to them and their posterity for ever . a song both in its self so considerable , and so highly esteem'd by them , that they thought no words could be sufficient to set forth its excellency : insomuch , that we find it at this day characterised by the jews of our own times , as the foundation and summary of the whole law. in the verses before the text , we have a sad and terrible declaration of those judgments that should hereafter befal them for their impenitence . and it is not to be question'd , but that this great prophet , from whom god never concealed any thing that concern'd that people ; had here by so much a more particular prospect of those evils , that were afterwards to come upon them , as he was now the nearer to be taken from them . and that 't is from these therefore , that we must derive at once both the occasion and importance of that passionate wish into which the holy man here breaks out , in consideration both of their danger and of their insensibility of it , o that they were wise , that they understood this , that they would consider their latter end ! whether by their latter end we are to understand that great and terrible destruction which finally befel both themselves and their country , in the loss of jerusalem : or , whether with some , we shall interpret it of god's rejecting of them from his covenant , from being what they were once , his own peculiar inheritance : or , whether lastly , the more to heighten the idea , we shall join them both together in the prophecy , as they were by god united in the execution ; certain it is , that a greater and more amazing instance of the divine vengeance upon a particular nation , has hardly been known from the beginning of the world , than that of their destruction ; nor shall there i suppose be any parallel , to the very end of it . but it is not my design to enter on any reflection of their punishment , but to enquire rather what it was , that moses here so much wishes they would have done , in order to the preventing of it ; what that great defect was , which was the cause of all their evils . now that in one word was inconsideration : a fault certainly very great in that people , than which none had ever received more clear and sensible proofs of the divine power and goodness . they had seen the miracles by which god had brought them up out of the land of egypt ; and continued to conduct them now almost forty years through the wilderness . they had beheld his majesty , when himself in that terrible manner that we read in the xix th and xx th chapters of exodus , vouchsafed to give them his own law from mount sinai . nay , that nothing might be wanting to awaken a stupid and insensible people , they had known his judgments too in the punishment of their sins . they had seen the destruction which their fathers had suffer'd , and they were here expresly foretold what evils themselves and their posterity should hereafter undergo for their impiety . yet was not all this sufficient to awaken their consideration to a sense of their danger , and a care to prevent it . and now i would to god these jews were the only men we could justly charge with this neglect ; and that our own indifferency in the concern of our duty , did not equally tax us with the same inconsideration . but alas ! i fear , were we here to enter on a review , we should find but too just a parallel , both in our danger , and in our incogitancy : and that a very little reasoning upon the methods of god's providence , without the help of a prophetick spirit , might be more than enough , to make any sober , considering man tremble to think what shall be the consequence of such a general insensibility as we have these many years shown , notwithstanding all his mercies and his judgments in vain made use of to reclaim us . at least , i hope it will be abundantly sufficient to apologize for me , if i beg leave , especially at such a season as this , freely to expostulate with you in the words of moses in the text : o that ye were wise , that ye understood this , that you would consider your latter end ! in speaking upon a subject , both in its self so important , and to us so necessary ; that i may , if possible , not omit any thing that may serve either to excite or to direct the practice of it , i shall endeavour with all the plainness i can , to discourse to you of these four things . i st . of the danger and mischief of inconsideration . ii dly , i will enquire into the causes of it . iii dly , i will offer some general rules for the practice of consideration . and iv thly and lastly , will close all with some motives that may serve to stir you up to the discharge of your duty , in so great and important an instance of it . i begin with the first of these . i. of the danger and mischief of inconsideration . it has been the usual method of most casuists , in enquiring into the causes of sin , to expose the mischief , and aggravate the danger of those particular temptations that are the immediate occasions of it . hence there is hardly a man so little in●●ructed in morality , that has not learnt to run into an invective against the interests and pleasures , the honours and riches of this world ; that the good christian must resolve either to abandon them as much as is possible , or at least , to quit all undue esteem , and inordinate desire of them . but the great and catholic cause of all our evils , inconsideration ; this is either not at all , or but very lightly touch'd upon by them . so far are men from exposing the danger of it , that i believe there are few who have yet learnt to place it in the number of their temptations , or that think themselves at all concern'd to provide against it . very necessary therefore it is , before i proceed to those particular proposals i am hereafter to make for the removal of this evil , that i should first convince you of the necessity there is of setting about it ; to show you , that of all the artifices of the devil , this has been the most successful ; that whatsoever strength any other temptations may seem to have , 't is all derived from the influence of this . in a word , that riches , and honour , and pleasure , and interest , seduce some particulars only ; triumph over the weakness of some certain dispositions that are more peculiarly apt to be moved by them . but that inconsideration is a general snare , stops not at particulars , but carries all before it : the one , last , vniversal cause of all our sins being no other than this , that we do not consider as we ought , what our duty is , and what our obligations are to the practice of it . and st . it cannot be denied , but that this inconsideration exposes us to every temptation which the devil shall think fit to lay in our way ; is very often the cause that we are tempted at all , but always the reason that we are overcome by the temptation . i shall not need to say how many sins men fall into , for want of considering , and knowing that they were so . i would to god the frequent excuses that are drawn from this topick , did not too fully shew , how great a cause this is of our offending . there is hardly a more general plea in the mouth of every sinner , than that he meant no harm in what he did , but either he did not know , or he did not think that it was unlawful . but then i am sure we must resolve to lay aside this excuse altogether , and confess it to be as false , as indeed it is for the most part frivolous ; or we must be allowed to conclude from it , that this want of consideration , exposes men to infinite temptations , by keeping them in an unwarrantable ignorance of what they might have known , and ought to have consider'd . but they are not only the ignorant that are concern'd in this danger . he who knows his duty the best , is yet oftentimes no less surprized by his incogitancy , than he who is the most ignorant of it . the devil who knows our weakest times , and constantly watches his advantage , never fails then especially to assault us , when he sees we are least upon our guard , and by consequence least in a condition to resist him . and if by a diligent care of our selves and attention to our duty , we are not as ready and prepared to resist those temptations which may be apt to sollicite us from it , as we are otherwise well instructed in the duty its self , 't is evident , that our enemy will have a very great advantage against us ; and 't is odds if for want of being prepared to fight , we are not for the most part overcome by him . for dly , and which may be alone sufficient to confirm my assertion , that 't is our inconsideration that is the real , ultimate cause of all our sin ; be it observed , secondly ; that there are in our religion , such motives , such engagements to obedience , that were they but duly weighed , it would be impossible for a man ever to live wickedly . and indeed he must be a very great instance of this defect i am now speaking of , and never have considered any thing at all of his religion as he ought to do , that can reasonably doubt of what i now say . is there any among us that has but once seriously reflected on the nature of god almighty : how excellent his goodness is , how terrible his justice ? with what an irreconcilable hatred he prosecutes sin and sinners for its sake ? that he is omnipotent , and cannot be resisted : omniscient and cannot be deceived : nay that he is present with us , sees our most retired actions , and will one day bring them all to light in presence of the whole world , in the day when he shall judge the world in righteousness . is there any one here , that has but seriously consider'd all this ? let him then say whether it were possible for the devil to have been able to draw him into sin , whilst he had such thoughts as these present to his mind to oppose to his temptations ? but christianity carries us yet farther . it shews us a god incarnate , a god made man on purpose for our salvation ; he gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity , and purchase to himself a peculiar people zealous of good works . it represents to us a covenant of grace , sealed with his own most precious blood , and into which we have every one of us been solemnly initiated , that is , solemnly sworn at our baptism ; and the condition wherof on our part we know was this , that we should forsake the devil and all his works , the pomps and vanities of this wicked world , and all the sinful lusts of the flesh ; and instead of serving these , should obediently keep god's holy will and commandments , and walk in the same all the days of our lives . i shall not now enquire , how often we have , i believe , the most of us renew'd this covenant , whether in the church at the holy table , or on other occasions that have called us to put up our vows to heaven . nor need i add , that 't is to such a practice alone as that requires , that god has promised the blessings of eternal glory . but sure i am whosoever will but duly consider the weight and moment of this one engagement , will find in it an impregnable fortress against sin , and such as all the temptations in the world should not be able to overcome . for to reflect on it only in a word or two . what is there in all our sins , or in all those temptations that lead us to them , whose force and power would not be utterly overcome by this one serious consideration ? where is the lust that can offer any sufficient , shall i say , or rather any tollerable inducement to comply with it , that may be worthy to compare with our obligations to love and obey so great , and so excellent a redeemer ? is there a passion so darling , or an interest so valuable , that the most desperate sinner would in his cool thoughts be willing to exchange heaven for it ? or rather , for indeed that is the true case , would be content for the prosecution of it to go down , it may be the next moment , into hell , and there dwell with everlasting burnings ? no , no : sin may deceive us by our own carelessness , but it cannot stand before consideration . it may surprize our passions , but it can never reconcile its self to our reason . nor are our natures yet become so degenerate , but that a due reflection on our engagements to obedience would by the grace of god soon resolve into a performance of it : and the hopes of heaven , and the terrors of hell ; the vanity of this world , and the eternity of the next , once throughly consider'd as they ought to be , so stop our ears , that all the arts of the charmer , charm he never so wisely , should not be able to open them to his insinuations . and for a farther proof of this , and which may be yet another argument to confirm my position , that 't is the want of considering that is really the great and last cause of all our sin : let me dly , appeal to the common practice , and experience of mankind : no sooner does any one begin seriously to consider these things , but he presently becomes a good christian. what is it else but this , that makes the very worst of sinners if they come but into any danger or calamity ; if any sickness or affliction befals them ; any thing that but stops them in their wild career so long as to give them only time to cool , and to consider their duty , and their great and dangerous deviations from it ; what is it i say , but this , that makes these persons presently disclaim their extravagancies : to confess that they were mistaken in their notions of vertue and vice , and had therefore preferr'd the interests of the one because they had either never known , or never sufficiently consider'd the excellency of the other . and if perhaps these pious reflections have not been able afterwards to secure their obedience , but they have again return'd to the follies they so lately renounced ; it is not that they are ever the more convinced that they were over-reach'd in the argument : that piety and religion , have not that reason on their side which we pretend , and which ought to engage them to the troublesome task of denying themselves , and forsaking all their sensual pleasures , and worldly interests for its sake : no , but only that their danger being removed , they have also lost their consideration with it ; and their incogitancy now again exposes them to those sins , which no sooner shall some new occasion call them again to reflect on , but they will be no less ready again to condemn them , than they were before . and now though i suppose it may by this time be sufficiently evident how great the mischief of inconsideration is ; yet for a final demonstration of its danger , i will offer one reflection more ▪ and it is , . that whatever particular temptations we may at any time chance to be exposed to , they would all of them have no force at all , but for this one general defect . for let us not deceive our selves ; pleasure and riches , and honour , and interest , and if there be any other vanity besides that is yet more powerful than all these , they are not such omnipotent temptations as our corrupt affections would represent them to us ; on the contrary , 't is certain that they have no force at all but by our own incogitancy ; to consider them only , were to overcome them . st . for pleasure : is it imaginable that the base voluptuary would pursue that , as he does , did he really reflect what shall in a little time be the end of his debauches ? that yet a few years , at the most , it may be a few months , or days , and all his enjoyments shall cease ; and his pleasures be exchanged for pain and sickness , impotence and infirmity , and the rest of those torments in this life , that are usually the sad forerunners of his eternal punishment in the other ? dly , for riches ; the next instance : were it possible men should take so much care and labour to get them , and when they have got them , neither be satisfied with them themselves , nor do good to others , had they ever been acquainted with that treasure in heaven which the gospel speaks of , so infinitely surpassing all the highest acquisitions here ; so much surer to be obtain'd , and for the most part so much easier too ; and when it is got , for ever to be enjoy'd ? dly , for honour , the next temptation : if there can be such a thing as honour without virtue , and that high places , and great titles , and the rest of those trifles that have so long usurped the name , may indeed be allow'd the character of it : what other judgment can any considering man pass upon such honour but this ; that even christianity apart , it must certainly be a very vain thing to build a man's hopes , and expend himself and his life , upon that , which when all is done , depends upon other mens opinions of , and value for us ; who too often give this honour to the most undeserving persons , and with whom the truly brave and worthy man sometimes finds the least share of it . and then thly , for the interests of this world ; good god! what can they appear to any serious , considering man , but meer vanity , who has learnt of his saviour to ask his conscience that great and wise question : what is a man profited if he should gain the whole world , and lose his own soul ? or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul ? is it not evident , that in all these , and whatever instances besides can be offered of the greatest temptations , 't is only for want of considering that they prevail upon us ; and so , that not they , but our own incogitancy ought to be charged by us as our greatest danger and mischief , the one , last , universal cause of all our sins . and now if this be so , then it cannot certainly but be very well worth our while to search a little , ii dly , into the causes of this inconsideration , the next thing i proposed to speak to . and the first , and perhaps the most fatal of all others , and which may serve to remove a very dangerous mistake we are apt to make in this affair is , that men are wont to think they do very well consider these things , when in truth they do not consider them to any purpose at all . for indeed , what is that which men now a days to call considering ? if they are sometimes a little serious , if they reflect now and then upon the business of religion : if they go to church on sundays , and are not scandalously wicked the week after ; if they receive the holy sacrament in its seasons , and when they do so , sit down a while and reflect a little , a day or two , it may be the week before , upon their sins and their vanities , and then sigh , and are sorry , and resolve to sin no more , this they call considering ; and this , i fear , is what makes up the religion of a very great number amongst us . but alas ! this is as far distant from that true consideration , i would now recommend to you , as the little imperfect effects of it , are for the most part inferior to that excellent piety that would be the certain consequence of the other . 't is not every light reflection upon the business of religion , that is worthy the name of a true consideration . he that will do this as he ought to do , must resolve to do it throughly : he must search to the very bottome of his soul ; not a sin so secret , not a lust or interest so dear or profitable to us , but what , to the best of our power , must be enquired into . now all the danger of sin in general , all the black circumstances , and heightning aggravations of our own sins in particular , must seriously be consider'd : the hopes and terrors of eternity be throughly weigh'd ; what the goodness of god is , if we will yet repent ; what his judgments will be , if we shall continue to despise the riches of his mercy , and treasure up to our selves wrath against the day of wrath. in a word , whatever may serve either to convince us of our sins and of our danger , or to engage us to forsake the one , that so we may escape the other , must all be laid before us ; till finally , by god's grace , we are brought in the bitterness of our souls , to such a sense of our condition , as shall engage us to a sincere repentance of our sins , and obedience to god's commands . and so work in us that change of life , which alone is able to save our souls for ever . he that gives off before he has done this , he may have thought of his duty , if you will , but he has not yet consider'd as he ought to do : he may have prepared the way , but he is yet to run . in short , he may have consider'd of religion as many now a days do , who read the holy scriptures , run through all the various sects and parties of christians , who suffer not the least controversie to escape them , nor a dispute to arise in which they do not interest themselves ; and yet when all is done , have not one jot of real piety in their souls : but after a great deal of pains get only that knowledg which puffeth up , and are yet to learn that charity which edifieth . this is the first , and perhaps one of the most fatal cheats men commonly put upon their souls : they flatter themselves that they do very well consider these things , when indeed they do not consider them to any purpose , nor as they ought to do it . . a second cause of mens inconsideration , and but little inferior to the foregoing , either in the danger or the univer●ality of it , is , that our consideration is for the most part totally turned another way . it is a long time since the generality of mankind seem to have fallen under a very dangerous mistake , that religion ought not to be looked upon as their business , but only as a thing by the by : somewhat to entertain their thoughts with upon solemn times , and in their melancholly hours , but which 't were unreasonable to expect amidst so great a plenty of other affairs , as the world now abounds with , should ordinarily be made the subject of their thought , and their consideration . thus have we utterly reversed the maxim of our saviour , and made not our salvation , but the business of this world , our imployments and our interests , nay , good god! our very vices and our sins the vnum necessarium , the great thing to be taken care of by us : and we are so wholly taken up and engaged with these , that we have no leisure to think at all , to be sure not to any purpose , and as we ought to do of that . and now , what wonder if when this is the case , we see such very sad , 't is true , but yet such very natural effects of it ? whilst men reckon the concerns of this present life to be the main of their business , we ought not to be surprised if they consider no more of what may make for a better . till this mistake be rectified , we may be troubled indeed to see men so inconsiderate , but sure we ought not to admire it . we may with moses wish , o that they were wise , that they would understand this ! but till that be done , we cannot expect they should very much consider their latter end. but dly , another cause , and which i believe has kept very many from considering as they ought to do , is , that 't is vneasie to them ; and therefore they do not care to enter upon it . it is a great disadvantage to religion , that tho there be really nothing in the world more pleasing or more agreeable to our rational natures , than the practice of it ; yet has it something that is rough and uneasie in the first setting out , and which the habitual sinner cannot without pains and difficulty get over . he that thrives by sin , that grows rich , or great , or honourable in the world , by injury and oppression , by fraud and flattery , will no doubt be very uneasie to embrace a religion , that requires a justice and integrity in all our actions , that forbids all violence and rapine , all artifice and dissimulation ; i. e. all those methods by which he has been wont to encrease and flourish heretofore . again : if a man has been used freely to indulge himself in all that his heart desired ; to gratifie his passions in their wildest irregularities ; he will no doubt find it a matter of no small difficulty to deny himself , and resist and do violence to those appetites , which he has been so accustomed to comply with heretofore . so that in effect , whether out of a prevailing interest , or a real fear ; whether out of an unwillingness to forsake sin , or a mistaken apprehension of the impossibility of overcoming it , many , i believe , content themselves to go on without ever considering at all ; and hate to reflect on what they are resolved never to reform . or , if perhaps this does not carry them so far , as to make them totally lay aside the thoughts of religion , yet at least , it renders them unwilling to set about it , and so produces a th ; and which is the last cause i shall now mention , of that incogitancy i am here complaining of ; viz. that men are apt to procrastinate this great affair ; they resolve they will one time or other consider , but never heartily and effectually do so . this is certainly a very great , and yet i fear a very general fault ; and such as perhaps has ruined more souls than any one thing again in the whole world . it is a hard matter totally to silence conscience , and stifle all the thoughts of piety and religion . but our unhappiness is , that when we are thus put in mind of our duty , we either content our selves with some very slight and superficial consideration of it ; or else we put off our consciences , as felix did st. paul , to a more convenient season . thus some refer these kind of thoughts to old age , and never come to it , but go down into the grave , before they have made any just provision for it . others , it may be , set it a shorter date , but then still some business or hindrance interposes , and then another time is fix'd , and that too is disappointed ; and thus our lives run on , but the great work of considering is still to come . it may be at length god's grace is withdrawn , and conscience grows weary of being any longer importunate , when it has been so often denied . and thus when we thought to have consider'd , we find neither will , nor strength , nor opportunity so to do . how much the more earnestly may i beg leave to exhort you this day , no longer to defer so great , and to be sure so necessary a work as this ; and to that end , that you will pass on with me to the third point i proposed to speak to . iii. of the practice of consideration . the sum whereof in general will appear from the resolution which i shall give to these two enquiries . st . how , or after what manner : dly . when , or at what times , this is to be done by us . st . for the former of these ; how we are to practice this consideration ? i reply , that we must do it by a serious and impartial enquiry both into our selves , and into our religion ; by a diligent and strict examination , what our duty towards god is , and what our own performances have been , and ought to be of it . . as to the former part of this consideration , our duty towards god : i shall not need say any thing to shew how necessary this is to be well understood by us . i am persuaded there is no one , how negligent soever he may have been in his performance of it , but what is sufficiently convinced of his obligations to it . i will rather complain , that in a matter so necessary , that our eternal salvation depends upon it , and god be thanked so easie too , to the very meanest capacity , there should nevertheless so many continue in as utter an ignorance of it , as if we too were some of those who encourage a blind obedience ; and esteem an ungrounded assent , to be the best faith , and ignorance indeed the mother of devotion . it has been the fault of many in the practice of this kind of consideration , to fix their thoughts wholly upon some parts of their religion , but to take little or no notice at all of the rest . thus many run away with the promises of the gospel , but never consider what they have to entitle them to those promises . others , on the contrary , look wholly on the difficulty of its commands : and as if that had given them a final release from all endeavours to fulfil them , they conclude that 't is impossible for them ever to be able to live as they ought to do , and that therefore 't is in vain to try whether they can or no. some when they read the great , and no doubt very just elogies of faith in st. paul , stop there , and never trouble themselves either to consider what that faith is , which s. paul speaks of , much less to go on to st. james , and there see the necessity of good works too . they sit down contented that they have a right faith : they are members of a pure , reform'd church on the one hand ; or else of an unerrable , infallible , catholick church on the other , and so all is secure : as if the espousing such or such an interest or party , were an unquestionable mark of election , and all that god requires in order to our salvation . many are the mistakes of this kind , which men are apt to fall into , in the consideration of their duty , and to all which i will only offer this one plain rule for their direction : that whosoever will consider it as he ought , must do it universally , he must leave no part of his religion unexamined ; being assured of this , that whatsoever consideration does any way contribute to lessen practice , nay rather , does not very much serve to help and promote it , is false and imperfect ; and if he stops there , will certainly deceive and ruin him in the end . . for the other part of our consideration , our selves ; two things there are , on which the practice of it must chiefly terminate ; viz. . what our state is , with reference to what is past ? . how to govern our selves for the time to come ? it would require some longer time than i may presume to allow to this discourse , but barely to enumerate the several rules and cautions to be observed in the doing of this . with what care and diligence , with what exactness and particularity ; in a word , with what piety and sincerity we must proceed in all this ; and search into the real grounds we have , either to hope or fear , and accordingly give god the glory , whether by a patient continuance in that piety which we have hitherto practised , or by our repentance for those sins we have unhappily committed . this is a work which i have always thought the proper business of a casuist , or if you will , of a confessor , rather than a preacher . general rules seldom come up to particular mens conditions . nor is it possible for the most exact discourse , to give any satisfaction comparable to those directions which our church therefore exhorts us to seek by a free opening of our condition to some of those who are appointed by god to be our guides in these matters . and to them therefore let me beseech all those who are sensible of any want of farther instruction in this matter , to address themselves for such advice , as neither the nature nor limits of this discourse , permit me to offer to them . as for the other thing proposed in order to the practice of this duty , dly , when , or at what times this is to be done by us ? if the question be concerning the last sort of consideration i just now mentioned , that of our actions ; 't is evident that this must be perpetual ; because it has so necessary an influence upon all moral actions . the same prudence which directs every wise man before he acts , to sit down and consider what he is going about , whether it be fit to be done by him , ought certainly yet much more to carry every good christian to this farther necessary reflection , whether it may be done by him ? and whosoever ventures upon any action without this , he may by accident not do ill ; but 't is his good fortune , not his praise , that he does not . and were it never so good , yet for want of doing it with that design , and knowing it to be such , he must not expect that god should ever impute that to him for righteousness , which he himself did not design or perform with that intent . as to the other sort of consideration , that of our state , and of our duty : what god requires of us , and how we have lived according thereunto ? certain it is , that 't is absolutely necessary that we should some time or other enter upon it ; and then , i suppose , i need not say how very prudent it will be for us not to defer it . for since our life is but a puff of breath , every day in our nostrils , and which we can at no time say shall be our own the next moment : surely it will very much concern us not to defer considering how we are provided for another world , seeing we have so very little hopes or security in this . repentance is not a duty that can be discharged in a moment , and i fear the best among us upon the enquiry will find that we stand in need of a very great one . now there is no time , no place for repentance , but only in this present life : and should we suffer our incogitancy so far to prevail upon us , as to neglect it here , we shall in vain lament our sin and our folly to all eternity hereafter . if there be therefore any one among us , that has hitherto omitted so great and necessary a consideration , what shall i say to him ? let him no longer defer it : nay , but rather in the words of holy david , let him not go back unto his house , nor climb up into his bed ; let him not suffer his eyes to sleep , nor his eye-lids to slumber , till he has begun to set about it . it were , no doubt , very much to be wish'd , that men would not suffer any day to slip , without this consideration . there is , i believe , but seldom a day passes , in which we are not guilty of something that may justly call for a particular repentance , to obtain our forgiveness . and who can tell , if he lies down to sleep e're he has done this , whether he shall ever rise up to perform it afterwards ? but alas ! this is the greatest instance of all of our inconsideration . and instead of repassing in this manner every day upon our actions , i fear there are many who go on whole weeks , and months , and years , without ever thinking at all of it ; as if it were enough to practice this duty by the same proportions which some of our modern casuists have prescribed for that other of the love of god ; some of which have thought it necessary to be done only upon sundays and holy-days ; others not above once a year ; some once in five years ; others at any one time in our whole lives ; and lastly , others never at all , either living or dying . but thô there be then no time so proper as the present , for the doing of that which cannot without the greatest danger be deferr'd the least moment ; yet some seasons there are , which seem more especially to invite us to it . thus st . if old age be crept upon us , or any sickness or danger threaten us with a speedy appearance before god's tribunal ; this ought certainly at the same time that it admonishes us of the shortness of our present life , to call us to an immediate providing for the next . . thô the hand of god be not just upon us , yet if we see his arm lifted up to strike ; if we have some just cause to apprehend any evils or afflictions likely to come upon us : much more if our country and our church be in danger for the iniquity of her children and people within her ; this also may be another time that seems on purpose mark'd out to call us to consideration ; to think upon our ways , and how to prevent both our own , and the publick desolation . but now , dly . if these evils are not merely apprehended , but are actually upon us ; so that we already have begun to bear the punishment of our sins , and may have just cause to apprehend yet more dreadful effects of them ; this certainly ought yet more strongly to engage us to such a consideration . in such circumstances as these , the worst of men naturally become religious . god himself could say of the rebellious israelites , that in their afflictions they would seek him early . and the prophet observed of all men in general , that when god's judgment are in the earth , then the inhabitants of the world will learn righteousness . i will only add , thly , and with reference to the approaching season ; that as the time of lent has in all ages of the church been look'd upon as a season proper for the business of repentance ; so certainly we cannot better prepare for it , than by the practice of this great preliminary duty of consideration , without which it will be impossible for us ever to discharge it as we ought to do . and however the godly primitive discipline of publick confession and penance , has for the hardness of our hearts , been of late laid aside among us ; yet ought we not therefore to be ever the less , nay rather we should be the more careful to examine our own souls , and call our ways to remembrance ; and by our private diligence make some supply of what seems to be acknowledged by our church , as wanting to our publick discipline . and to the end i may the better enforce this practice , which upon all these accounts seems so very proper for us , i will now finally close all , iv thly , with some motives that may serve to stir us up to the fulfilling of our duty , in so great and necessary a part of it . i have already observed in the beginning of this discourse , that 't is the want of consideration that is really the last , universal cause of all our sins . and i have just now shewn , that till it be removed , it will be impossible for us to repent of them . and sure then one would think that nothing more need be said , to engage any sober man to the practice of it . but i must now go yet farther : for to compleat our obligation to so necessary a practice , inconsideration is not only to be charged as the cause of all our evils , but the corrupter of our good too : it spoils our very vertues ; insomueh , that were it possible for the unthinking man to fulfil every command , and not deviate in the least degree from the rules of his duty , all would be in vain ; his inconsideration alone would ruin him , and his virtues themselves lose by it not only their praise , but their very nature too : would become at most , but mere indifferent actions , neither worthy in themselves , nor deserving of any reward for the fulfilling of them . god almighty , who has given us our understandings and our wills on purpose for his service , requires the concurrence of them in all our actions that are intended for that purpose . his service must be reasonable , or it will not be accepted . he is not to be pleased with what we do by chance ; where his glory is not designed , he looks upon it , that neither is it advanced . and that good which is done without considering , is but a mere natural action , deserves as little praise as a plant for growing , or a stone for falling down to its center ; and we may as reasonably expect to see one of these promoted to heaven for so doing , as the unthinking man be judged worthy of it , for any thing he can do . but , dly . this incogitancy does not only render us thus obnoxious to god , but it exposes us to the censures of men too : it does not only deprive us of all our pretences to piety , but even to common wisdom and discretion . he that never considers in any thing , all the world will say is a fool ; and sure i may well add , that he who considers only in little things , and never thinks in those that are of the highest importance , is not so wise as he should be . but to pretend to be christians , and to desire salvation , and yet never reflect what it is to be the one , or how we are to live that we may attain the other ; this is certainly such a combination of folly and impiety , that were not sin as great an enemy to reason , as it is to religion , 't were impossible that any man should ever be guilty of it . and now when so many engagements concur to recommend this duty , that 't is impossible for us to approve our selves either to god or man without it , what shall i say more to stir you up to the practice of it ? i am , methinks , unwilling so far to comply with the melancholly apprehensions of very many , and those not altogether without just grounds too , as to desire you to think whether our circumstances at this time , be not such as may well engage us in the literal import of our text , to be wise , and consider our latter end , for ought i know , the final end of our selves and our religion , if we do not by a speedy repentance reverse that judgment which god seems ready to pronounce against us for our incogitancy . i will rather close all with a more excellent engagement . blessed be god , who has made this a duty as pleasing as it is necessary ; as apt to incite our practice , as 't is fit to be practised by us . for certainly to consider these things , after all the frightful idea's men are apt to entertain of it , is not only one of the most useful , but one of the most pleasing things in the whole world . let me appeal to the experience of those pious souls , who by a due performance of this exercise , have their conversation already in heaven ; are elevated above the little passions and interests that engage the busie part of mankind in so much labour and vanity . who live in this world as if they were not of it ; free and quiet in the midst of its disturbances ; still the same in every estate ; who love nothing but god and their duty , fear nothing but to sin against him , nor desire any thing but to be dissolved , and to be with him . whose well-grounded hopes already secure them of their future reward ; and a good conscience so fully justifies them , that neither death , nor hell its self , not any evils of this life , or any terrors of the other , are able to disturb the peace and calm that is within them . o happy state ! the blessed effect of a serious and frequent consideration ! where is the sinner that can pretend to say , he has ever found in any of his ways of wickedness , a pleasure comparable to that peace and joy , which such a christian meets with even in the present course of his life ? let the miser boast his riches ; the ambitious man his honours ; let the voluptuary wallow in his sensual and beastly satisfactions : but ô lord ! what vanity are all these when compared with the solid comfort and satisfaction of a good conscience : that can reflect freely upon its actions ; can search into the most secret parts of its life with joy and assurance ; and delight to compare its duty and its practice , and see how gloriously the one illustrates and sets forth the other . who would not pursue the happiness of such a state , tho' there were no such thing as heaven and eternity to follow after ? certainly if pleasure be that which is to govern our pursuits , 't is the good christian that , when all is done , is the only wise man ; and to consider , the most delightful practice of any in the world. only let us consider seriously , and as we ought to do : let us once in our lives be persuaded heartily to experiment a duty , which we have been so often told should be the great business of them . let us be willing to be convinced ; and do our religion and our souls so much justice , as to give these things a fair and an equal hearing . so shall all those blessings i have now been speaking of , descend upon us . we shall exchange only , not lose or lessen our enjoyments . whatsoever pleasure or satisfaction we have heretofore met with in the ways of sin , we shall find them all infinitely surmounted in the practice of religion . till finally being fit for heaven , ripe for immortality , we shall be translated from these excellent , but yet still imperfect joys here , to those absolute and eternal blessings , which neither eye has seen , nor ear heard , nor does it enter into the heart of man to conceive . to which god of his infinite mercy vouchsafe we may all arrive , through jesus christ our lord. of the devices of satan . a sermon preach'd at white-hall , april . . . cor. ii. . for we are not ignorant of his devices . among all the parts of a christian institution , which either the gospel of christ directs , or we as the ministers of christ , and your servants for jesus sake , exhort you to ; there is none after the knowledg of our duty towards god , and what he requires of us in order to our eternal salvation , either more necessary to be well understood , or , would men seriously apply themselves to it , more easie to be attain'd by us , than how to arm and fortifie our selves against those devices of satan , whereby he continually endeavours to seduce us . there are few so ignorant in this matter , but are able at least to trace out his most ordinary temptations , and to discover what it is that the most usually exposes them to sin. and though he has his crooked and by-paths too , devices both more subtily laid , and more difficult to be discern'd ; yet a little more vigilancy and care would serve to discover even these also , and to bring to light the most hidden mysteries of iniquity . but though there be then nothing more obvious to a sincere and inquisitive mind , than to find out these artifices of the devil ; yet alas ! a sad experience shews us , that there is scarce any thing in the world in which men for the most part seem more to betray either their ignorance or their inadvertency ; whilst they suffer every the most ordinary temptation to overcome them , and scarce an assault so weak can be made upon them , but what is sure to have its effect , and find them altogether unprepared to resist it . to correct , if it may be , this careless and supine temper , so dishonourable to god , and so dangerous to our own souls ; i shall endeavour at this time to lay before you some of those methods whereby the devil is most wont to lead men into sin ; that so knowing our danger , we may be the better able to arm our souls against it , lest satan should get an advantage of us ; for we are not ignorant of his devices . the occasion of which words was this . st. paul having in his former epistle to the corinthians , commanded them to pronounce a sentence of excommunication upon a certain incestuous man amongst them , who had married his fathers wife ; had since received an account of a very good effect that this infliction had wrought upon the offending person ; so as to bring him to a great sense both of the sin he had committed , and of the scandal which thereby he had given to the church . upon this the apostle in this his second epistle , commands them to take off the censure under which he lay ; and to receive him again into communion with them , lest being swallow'd up of overmuch sorrow , he should be driven to despair , and so the devil get an advantage against them ; and that not only in the ruine of a single brother , but yet much more by turning that discipline which was designed for the edification of the church , into the destruction of it ; for , says he , we are not ignorant of his devices . were i not resolved against entring on any point of controversie in this place , i should not here want a very fair occasion to do it . it has been the great endeavour of those of the other communion , to establish on this procedure of st. paul with this corinthian , their new and dangerous doctrine of humane satisfactions to be made for sin , and of the power of the church to grant indulgences for the remission of them . but i desire now to have no other enemy but that of my text to encounter : and the half of whose devices will be more than enough for our present consideration , without exposing the artifices of any others , how busie soever they too may be to get an advantage of us . and therefore it shall suffice to remark with reference to the subject before us ; that all which can reasonably be concluded from st. paul's process with this corinthian , is no more than what we readily allow of ; viz. the exercise of publick discipline for the correction of open and scandalous offenders ; and whom the church has certainly power both for their sins to separate from her society , as the apostle did this incestuous man ; and upon a sincere repentance to release the censure , and receive them again into communion , as in this chapter he ordered them to do this penitent corinthian . but now this is neither the doctrine nor practice of those who pretend to argue from this place . their satisfactions and indulgences are of another kind than what canonical penances and the relaxation of them will amount to . they suppose that after mens sins by the sacrament of penance are forgiven to them , so that there is now no more guilt remaining , nor by consequence any more obligation to an eternal punishment due to it ; there continues nevertheless an obligation to temporal punishment , to be undergone as a true and proper satisfaction for sin , either here , or in purgatory : and that this the pope has power to dispence with , by applying to them the satisfactions not only of christ , but of all his saints ; who having lived severe lives , and suffered a greater temporal punishment than was requisite to satisfie for their own sins , have left a stock in bank to the treasure of the church , for the advantage of others ; and the remission of these temporal pains , by such an application , this is that which they properly call an indulgence . and now then we may beg leave to ask , in what part of this history do they find any grounds for all this ? did st. paul in his former epistle command the church of corinth to impose a penance on this incestuous man to satisfie for his sin ? no ; but he commanded them to excommunicate him for his offence , to cut him off from the body of the faithful , to whom he had given so great a scandal by his uncleanness . or here in this chapter , does he send him any kind bull with a plenary indulgence for what he had done , to set him free of what temporal pain might yet be due for his offence ; and to acquit him of any further trouble now , and of the danger of purgatory hereafter ? not so neither : but he orders the governors of the church to take off the censure under which he lay ; and to receive him again into communion with them ; and to confirm their love towards him ; lest he should be swallow'd up of over much grief , and so satan get an advantage against him. in short , that there is here a plain account of the exercise of publick discipline both in the excommunicating of this incestuous corinthian , and in the receiving of him again into communion , this we readily confess . but for the new-inventions of humane satisfactions to be made for sin , and of the power of the pope to apply one man's merits to the forgiveness of another man's offences ; and all this after such a manner , and upon such terms as is now practised in the church of rome , of all this there is not one word either in this , or any other passage of holy scripture , but much to the contrary , as might easily be made appear , were i minded to enter on such a debate . but it shall suffice me to have remarked thus much , for the clearing of the present place from these abuses . as for those devices which i am now to consider ; viz. by what means and motives it is that the devil after all our cautions and engagements to the contrary , nevertheless still continues to draw us into sin ; many there are , and i cannot pretend in this discourse to comprehend more than a very small proportion of them . i will take up those that seem most useful to be remark'd under these two considerations : i st . of those devices whereby he makes it his business to hinder us in the discharge of our duty . ii dly . of those devices whereby he leads us into the commission of sin. i begin with the former of these , the consideration , i st . of those devices whereby the devil is wont to hinder us in the discharge of our duty . and here , i shall not insist on those common and obvious methods which every one knows , tho' few are so careful as they ought to be to prevent them ; such as carelesness and indifference in the concern of our salvation ; the love of this world ; and of the honours , and pleasures , and interests of it : and which upon this account , st. paul calls the root of all evil : tim. vi . . and st. james plainly tells us is enmity with god. james iv . . the devices i shall now consider , are such as have more of subtilty and contrivance in them ; and which by a shew of somewhat that seems to be good , seduce men many times into a neglect of that duty , which alone really and truly is so . now four things especially there are by which the devil is wont to discourage , and hinder weaker minds in the discharge of their duty : viz , st , by throwing prejudices in their way against it . dly , by instilling into their minds false principles , whereby to corrupt the practise of it . dly , by filling them with doubts and scruples to discourage them in their piety . thly , by engaging their zeal in vain and fruitless strifes and disputes about religion , which ought to be imployed on the practice of it . st . it is none of the least of the devices of the devil , to hinder mens piety , by throwing of false prejudices in their way against the practice of it . i need not say what a frightful thing many look upon a christian course of life to be , and how difficult , and sometimes even impossible they think it , to fulfil that duty which god requires of us . they regard him as a hard and severe task-master that lays intollerable burdens upon his servants , and has prepared eternal punishments for the least defailure under them . all their thoughts are taken up with those strict commands of mortification and self-denyal , of taking up the cross , of forgiving and loving enemies ; of despising any losses , shame or other difficulties they may at any time be exposed to for the sake of christ and the preservation of a good conscience . thus they look upon christianity to be a religion made up of nothing but melancholy fears , and amazing dangers ; that allows of no pleasure , suffers not the least appetite to be gratified ; but denies even the most innocent and reasonable enjoyments ; nor promises any happiness in another world , but upon the severe condition of being despised and miserable in this . and now when such are mens apprehensions of christianity , what wonder if we see so few care to enter on the practice of it ? but blessed be god , who has not thus dealt with us . straight indeed is the gate , and narrow the way that leads to heaven , but by the grace of god it is not impassable . from the very first entring , it dilates its self , and in a little while becomes no less pleasant , but much more secure , than that high road which so many prefer before it . to be plain , i dare affirm , that a state of religion is so far from being that four disagreeable state men commonly apprehend it to be ; that on the contrary 't is the only state that is attended with a real pleasure and satisfaction . godliness is its own reward , even in the present practice of it : it has the promise of the life that now is , as well as of that which is to come . and whosoever will but seriously apply himself to the discharge of it , will soon be convinced upon how good grounds the wise man once pronounced concerning it ; that her ways are ways of pleasantness , and all her paths peace . as for that frightful idea which so many entertain of religion , it is wholly founded on their own mistakes of the true nature and design of it . for , st . it is utterly false that christianity denies us any of those enjoyments , which a wise man would even desire to indulge . it allows whatever is truly fitting for us , and restrains only those brutish excesses , which even natural reason and the principles of common morality forbid us to pursue . nor dly , do men any more truly represent god , than they do his religion . they look upon him as one who requires great things of us ; but they forget that he who requires these things , does also promise that if we are not wanting in our own endeavours , he will give us grace , and strength , and ability to fulfil them . they consider him as a most severe , and just judge : but they do not consider , that his mercy is as infinite as his justice ; and that he is as ready to make allowances for our infirmities , and pardon those sins we unwillingly commit , as to punish those offences which our malice and our negligence expose us to . that for this he has sent his own son into the world , to be himself the propitiation for our sins ; and to open the way to heaven by a gospel of repentance , seeing we could not attain to it by any way of a perfect and unsinning obedience . so that now then , let a christian be but upright and sincere , let him but love god , and delight in his service , and strive and labour as far as he is able to fulfil it ; if he sins , let him repent of it , let him confess his wickedness , and be sorry for his sins , and humbly implore god's mercy to forgive him ; and then how weak and impotent soever he be , he shall certainly find not only pardon , but acceptance too with his blessed saviour for ever . and then , dly , for what concerns those severe duties of christianity , and upon which the strongest prejudices are commonly raised against it : besides that they are things infinitely excellent in themselves , and by a divine assistance far from being burdensome to us ; nay , when put in the balance with the reward of eternal glory , not worthy to be compared with it ; 't is evident that these duties are not required either of all christians , or at all times . how few are there , for instance , now a days , that have any occasion to put in practice that severest precept of all which our religion requires of us ; viz , to deny our selves , and take up our cross , and follow christ ? these are the tryals only of some singular persons , and at some certain seasons . and whenever god sees fit to call any good men to them , he never fails upon their earnest prayers to him , to furnish them with strength and grace proportionable to bear them . so that upon the whole , it appears , that all these prejudices are only the devices of the devil to discourage men from their duty ; and by the false apprehension of i know not what imaginary difficulties in the practice of religion now , to precipitate them into real and eternal miseries hereafter . but dly . a second way whereby he hinders men's progress in piety is , by instilling such principles into them , as are apt to corrupt the practice of it . and here had i the time to insist upon them , i would not doubt to rank in the very first front , those atheistical conclusions which the brisk disputers of our age so much abound with ; who not content with the psalmist's fool , to say in their heart , there is no god , dare openly dispute against his being , and with their mouths deny that god whom yet in their hearts they acknowledg , nay whom their fears and terrors into which every the least accident throws them , even testifie to the world , that for all their gallantry they cannot disbelieve . or , because this is the presumption only of a few desperate men , i would beg leave rather to argue a little with some of our more refined sceptics , the great assertors of human reason , in opposition to the sacred authority of divine revelation . who allowing of a god , nevertheless strengthen themselves in wickedness , by their ungrounded notions of his goodness and justice : whilst they conclude it to be inconsistent with either of those attributes , for him to punish a temporal and transient sin , with everlasting torments ; tho committed against an infinite god , and against the plain terms of a covenant of eternal happiness if we do well , and of everlasting punishment if we do ill , entred into by us at our baptism , and at confirmation made our own act , by our own express consent to it . or , lastly , because such too there are amongst us , i would reason with those who argue against the malignity even of sin it● self , and would by their disputes turn the greatest vices into innocent and indifferent actions : whilst from the strong inclinations which they find in themselves to evil , they conclude , that certainly it ought not to be esteemed so very great a fault to pursue the dictates of that nature which god himself has implanted in us : and that doubtless our passions were never designed to be merely a snare and a torment to us , as yet they conclude they must be , unless we will allow it to be lawful for them as freely to indulge them , as they unreasonably contend they ought to do . but all these , and a few others of the like kind , how destructive soever they may be of true piety , are the principles of men not yet beginning to be religious ; and by consequence , such as i ought to suppose are needless to be obviated in this assembly . those i would now remark , are of another nature , principles upon which even good christians do sometimes flatter themselves in wickedness , or at least neglect to live up to that exactness of christian practice , as they ought to do . now such i esteem first of all , that popular mistake by which many persons too easily delude themselves , of a good mind ; a desire and an intention to live well , and which they hope shall attone for all their miscarriages , which notwithstanding their good intention , they still continue to commit . this is a principle which i fear deceives very many in the world . they cannot deny but that they are indeed very great sinners ; but yet they are sorry for it , and they desire to live better . but alas ! what shall they do ? they are weak and impotent as others are ; exposed to a thousand temptations every day , and who is there that either does or can withstand them all ? and indeed , where the intention is so good , as to make men careful and diligent in their duty ; if they sin only by surprize or incogitancy , and when they do so , repent them truly , and watch themselves more diligently for the time to come ; i will not deny , but that here their good intention may find acceptance with god almighty . but otherwise , to think that a weak desire , and a vain resolution , and a transient sorrow , the usual piety of those who rely upon this excuse , shall find favour at the great day of accounts : this is that device which the devil , i fear , deceives many withal , but for which there is not the least ground or colour in the holy scripture . . and from this proceeds another mistake , and that not at all less dangerous than the foregoing ; which is , to reckon all those sins which after such a good intention they commit , to be sins of infirmity , and which they perswade themselves may be consistent with a state of grace now , and with the hopes of glory hereafter . thus if when they commit a sin , their conscience checks them , and they parly with the temptation , and strive a little , and then yield , and then they are sorry and make some transient , ineffectual resolutions of doing better for the time to come , but which all vanish at the very next trial ; this they call infirmity , and so god knows it is , but such an infirmity as will by no means excuse the sins which they commit upon the account of it . sins of infirmity are of another kind ; they are weak and imperfect sins , when we are either surprized into the commission of them , or otherwise hurried on by some sudden fear , or other the like powerful passion or overbearing temptation , before we have time to consider what we do , or to arm our selves with firmness and resolution against it . but otherwise , where the sin is known , and the will free , and there was time for deliberation , and yet we agreed to it , this can by no means be called a sin of infirmity : and here the frequency of the commission , or the easiness of falling , may serve to aggravate indeed , but sure will by no means extenuate , and much less excuse the guilt of it . i might to these add , dly , those principles of the church of rome , which i am persuaded , have not a little contributed to mens neglect of true piety , viz. of being saved by others performances ; of purgatory and indulgences , masses and prayers for the dead ; of the power of the priest to absolve sins ; and of an imperfect , ineffectual sorrow for sin , sufficient to dispose a man to receive the grace of absolution ; of the efficacy of the sacraments to obtain their ends , tho the person be not otherwise in a condition to obtain the grace of god without them ; and in which some of them have gone so far , as to declare contrition to be rather a hindrance than a benefit to the sacrament of penance ; and one adds plainly , that the excellence of the sacraments of the gospel in general , above those of the law , consists in this , that they have freed us from the intolerable yoke of loving god , and being truly sorry for our sins . i need not after this say any thing of the extravagance of their late private casuists , remark'd and censured by many of their own communion , and not long since by the pope himself , yet still continuing , notwithstanding both , to be but too much applauded by very great numbers amongst them . but these being principles against which i hope i need not prepare any one of our communion ; i will instead of all these , mention only one principle more , thly , by which men often hinder their progress in piety , and that is a principle of compliment and good breeding . when they neglect their duty , it may be do that which they know to be contrary to it , but yet rather than be thought rude and precise , rather than they will disturb company , or be markt out as singular , they will do as others do , and so disobey god , for fear of disobliging men . that this is a case which very often occurs in the method of our present conversation in the world , is not to be denied . now then consider , i beseech you , what the contest here is , and what the issue most certainly will be . god and man are the parties concerned , and the question is , whether your duty towards him , or your civility towards the other , ought to preponderate ? whether you should go to heaven with a few , singular , out-of-fashion christians , or for company sake take the broad road , tho you know that it leads to eternal damnation ? and now when the choice is so plain , methinks it should be no hard matter to persuade men to despise such a principle as this . to convince them that their salvation is a concern of too great importance to be submitted to these formalities , and that 't is to push the compliment a great deal too far , to be damned rather than be thought ill bred . but dly . a third device whereby the devil oftentimes endeavours to hinder mens progress in religion , is , by filling their minds with groundless fears and scruples as to their eternal salvation . it is a matter of sad consideration to think what discouragements many christians labour under , in the discharge of their duty ; who either wanting a capacity to receive a satisfaction , or indulging a close and melancholly disposition so long , till they are at last incapable of any , live in doubts and fears , and perplexities of mind , and it may be by degrees , wholly cast off all thoughts of religion , since they cannot find any peace or satisfaction in it . now tho such troubles as these may much more easily be prevented before they arrive , than removed after ; yet there are ways to encounter even this device too of our enemy , and to render it of no force to hinder our piety . to which end , st . if any fears or scruples of this kind arise in your minds , examine your selves , and see whether there be any real grounds or foundation for them . whether your lives have been such as may give you just cause to apprehend your selves in danger of losing your souls ? if there be nothing of this kind which you can discover to support such fears , then consider with your selves , that the tenor of god's threats and promises is very plain , and easie to be understood . that he will never condemn any man in another world , but for living in a disobedience to his commands in this. that our duty is clear and express ; and that conscience , when sincerely examined , will not fail to tell us whether we do truly fulfil it or no. and therefore that , as st. john says , beloved , if our heart condemn us not , then have we confidence towards god. but should the case be otherwise ; should you find your selves in never so dangerous a course of sin , yet still 't is in your power , by god's assistance , to deliver your selves out of it . and then , there is mercy with god , that he may be feared . so that be your state at the present never so dangerous , yet if you will even now lay hold upon his mercy , if ye will yet repent and return unto the lord your god , and confess your sins , he is faithful and just to forgive you your sins , and the blood of christ shall cleanse you from all unrighteousness . but now dly , if your case be dubious , and neither these nor any other reflections are able to give you that satisfaction you desire , yet should not this move you to give way to the tempter ; but rather should engage you to set your selves the more diligently to this work ; to call in some spiritual guide to your assistance ; and if upon a sincere opening of your state to him , neither can he find out any grounds for your fears and scruples , your doubts and your apprehensions ; you ought then to labour by all means to possess your souls in peace ; and to conclude , that these terrors are only the devices of the devil to discourage you in your duty , not any real causes for doubt or despair . and yet dly , thô neither by these nor any other means you should ever be able totally to overcome these difficulties ; yet ought not this to make you ever the less careful of going on still in a serious discharge of your duty . nay , on the contrary , it ought to make you the more zealous and diligent in the performance of it . a man that lives here all his life in such perplexities , if yet he fulfils that obedience , and practices that repentance which god requires , may nevertheless be saved at the last . but he that upon any of these grounds neglects this , tho he goes on never so securely and comfortably in his evil way , shall certainly fall into ruin and destruction in the end . and since such fears as these , arise from an apprehension that we do not live so well , nor serve god so sincerely as we ought to do ; the best means , when all is done , to remove them is , if it be possible , to out-live even our own apprehensions , and to serve god so truly and heartily , as not to be able to doubt , but that we shall find a reward for it at his hands . i shall add but one thing more in this case , ( thly , ) and it is this . be not discouraged , nor think your faith imperfect , or your religion vain , because you find your selves still attended with some fears and anxieties about your future state . st. paul not only allows this , but exhorts us , with his philipians , to work out our own salvation with fear and trembling . to be without all concern in a matter of such moment , were to be stupid and insensible , rather than religious . and when we come to appear before christ in judgment , we shall be sentenced , not according to our own opinions or apprehensions of our selves , whether good or evil , but according to the sincerity of our lives , to the extent of our charity , and to the truth of our repentance . and all these supported and made perfect by the merits and satisfaction of a most gracious and merciful redeemer , who will pity and pardon beyond what we are able to express or to conceive . but , thly , and to conclude this point , the last device by which the devil , in these days especially , has endeavoured to hinder our piety , is , by turning that zeal into strifes and disputes about religion , which ought to have been employed on the practice of it . for indeed , were we now to enquire what the great demonstration of all our zeal is , both in the priests and the people , what other account should we be able to bring back than this , that they are all hot and furious for their several particular opinions ; as if the whole gospel of christ , and all the hopes of eternity , depended on them ; but for the practice of a gospel-life , for that devotion , that charity , that humility , and integrity which were once the great care and ornament of the christian church , these , god knows , are but little regarded by the most of us . if , st . we consider the publick effects of these controversies to a decay of piety : what a desolation shall we find too often occasion'd by them ? i need not tell you how many countries have been ruined ; what kings and princes have been murthered , and banished , and deposed by their own people ; what blood has been spilt ; what numbers of honest and innocent people , men , women , and children , have been lost and undone by them . and by a strange metamorphosis , cruelty and oppression , falseness and dissimulation , deceit and perjury , all the vilest and most scandalous sins , by the sacred power of the churches interest , consecrated into christian and heroical virtues . and to compleat the astonishment , the holy martyrs and confessors have been damned to hell , whilst their persecutors have been sainted , and placed in heaven . if dly , we look upon these disputes in themselves only , without regarding any such desperate effects of them : i wish i had no occasion to say how prejudicial they have even thus been , and without god's infinite mercy , might have been much more to our common christianity : whilst by the means of these , not only schisms and heresies ( and even those too , st. paul reckons among the works of the flesh , gal. v. . which whoso are guilty of , cannot inherit the kingdom of god ) have crept into the church ; but , some from these contests have concluded all our religion to be uncertain ; and esteem'd it the wisest way not to join with any of us , till we can somewhat better agree to which of us they ought to go . others , considering the manner how these controversies have , of late especially , been managed and carried on , have with some colour of reason , been tempted to believe all our pretences to be only deceit and vision ; for that surely did those who stand up in the defence of religion , believe it themselves , they would never defend their faith in such a manner , as utterly contradicts all the morality of it . which of the great articles of christianity have not our modern disputes call'd in question ? it is but a very little while since the mystery of the sacred trinity , and the glorious incarnation of the son of god , have again been struck at , by those who plainly shew they care not what becomes of christianity , if they cannot make their popish heresie prevail with it . and that if not in so plain and direct a manner as the arians and socinians of our days do ; yet in another no less repugnant to the belief of them . for if the contradictions , as they say , be indeed as great in these , as 't is plain they are in that other mystery , or rather as one of their own great defenders of it truly called it , that monster of transubstantiation , to which they are compared ; i doubt all considering persons will resolve from the self-evident falseness of the one , to conclude against the others ; rather than from their belief of those , to give up their assent to this . if we look to the morality of the gospel ; let the heat and the passion , the bitterness , and the evil-speaking ; shall i add , and even the fraud and dissimulation which have appear'd in these debates , be a sad evidence how destructive such disputes are of true piety and religion . whilst to lessen an adversary , or to be thought to get the better in an argument , men value not how or what they write ; but seem resolved at any rate to maintain their point , thô for the doing of it they are forced to such shifts , as without god's infinite mercy , must lose them their own souls . what shall i say to that epidemical vncharitableness that is from hence diffused into the several parties of christians ? whil'st every one seems to reckon his enemy no better then a heathen and a publican ; and having by their uncharitable censures cut him off from the hopes of god's mercy hereafter , think themselves afterwards disengaged from all obligations even of common humanity towards him now . i speak not this , as if i meant to accuse those of our church who have so generously stood in the gap , and sacrificed their peace , their quiet , and their interests to the defence of an excellent cause , and a truly orthodox , catholic , and apostolic church : and much less would i be thought hereby to discourage you from being as zealous for the faith , and as constant in its defence , as both your duty requires , and as , i bless god , you all of you are this day , and i hope , and am persuaded , will ever be so . but i speak this to deplore the sad state of christianity , and to bewail ●●●se divisions , than which nothing ha● 〈◊〉 ●ore destructive to the practice of religion . i speak it , earnestly to beseech and exhort you , even by the bowels and mercy of christ jesus , that you will be careful to add to your faith works : to adorn your holy profession , by a suitable conversation : to live to the honour of your church , as well as to dispute for it : and seeing ye know what danger these controversies are apt to bring to the decay of piety , that you would be careful to prevent them , and not suffer your zeal for your faith , ever to carry you to any unchristian or unwarrantable measures in the defence of it . and thus have i set before you some of those devices whereby the devil is wont to hinder our piety ; i have but just time to mention a very few of the other kind , viz. ii dly , those by which he is wont to draw us into the commission of sin. it has been an ancient remark , and the reason whereof is so deeply rooted in our very natures , as may justly make it a first principle in this enquiry ; that evil , as such , is not desirable . no man ever commits a sin for sinning sake , but upon the account of some good or other which he either really does , or at least thinks shall accrue to him thereby . now 't is upon this , the devil founds all his devices to deceive us . he observes our interests , our tempers , and inclinations ; what it is that either our condition , or circumstances , or designs in the world render us the most apt to be caught with , and accordingly offers his temptations to us in such a manner as may be most like to prevail with us . so that then to arm our selves against those artifices by which he is wont to draw us into sin , we shall need no long search , no laborious enquiry into his particular temptations . only let us turn our eyes into our own souls ; there let us consider what sins they are we are the most apt to fall into , what passions the most command us , to what irregularities our tempers , or our circumstances lay us the most open , and this will presently both shew us our danger , and how we ought to fortify our selves against it . but thô to enter therefore upon all the particular devices of satan whereby he leads men into sin , be a work as needless as it would be infinite ; yet some general remarks there are , which we may do well to make in order to our security . and st . it is commonly the first step which the devil takes towards the leading men into sin , to perswade them to a carelesness and indifference in their duty . whil'st men are warm and vigorous in the practice of piety , zealous of god's honour , and sincere in the pursuance of what makes for it ; 't is plain the enemy can get but very little advantage of us . but if instead of this , we live only in a form of godliness , and regard not the power of it : if we are negligent and unconcern'd for religion , and take but little notice of what it requires of us ; we are then ready for the tempter to make his assault upon us : and 't will be no hard matter to deceive that man into the commission of sin , who is already but very little affected with the sense of his duty , nor takes any great care for the fulfilling of it . dly , another device whereby the devil often gets an advantage of us , not only to hinder our piety , but even to lead us into the greatest violations of it , is by the customs and opinion of the world. i have before observed what slaves we are , the very best of us , to these things . they corrupt our practice , and debauch our very reason and vnderstanding . and we may at this day find many things in the practice of mankind , become the praise and accomplishment of a gentleman , which , were we to examine them by the rules of the gospel , would be seen to have no part in the character of a christian . and then i need not say how fatally dangerous that must be to lead us into sin , which is able so far to deceive our very consciences , as not to be thought to carry any guilt or shame in the commission of it . and these are such devices whereby the devil oftentimes draws men into sin ; i will add only two more , whereby , when once men are engaged in a course of sin , he is wont to strengthen and confirm them in it : viz. st . an unreasonable hope of god's mercy ; and dly . a vain dependance on their own future repentance : that is to say , they sin on now , in prospect of amendment hereafter ; and then they make no doubt but that they shall find favour and mercy with god , as well as other sinners in the like circumstances have done before them . but , o god! what a desperate reliance is this , whereon to venture all the hopes and glories of eternity ! for tell me , o sinner ! whoever thou art that thus projectest a future amendment , after thou hast taken thy fill of pleasure , and art no longer able to pursue thy sins and thy debaucheries : what security hast thou , that that god whom thou so despisest shall continue thy life to thee , and give thee any such time and opportunity to repent ? canst thou command the sun that it should stand still , and put a stop to thy days , that thou may'st the more freely follow thy revels and thy delights ? or canst thou hope , when thou lyest down on thy last bed , with hezekiah , to add a new series of years to thy expiring breath , by then lifting up thy profane heart , and thy deceitful voice , to that god whom thou hast so long continued to offend ? nay , but couldst thou do this , and so arrive to the time thou hast assign'd for this work ; art thou sure thou shalt then be in a capacity of fulfilling it ? there is a time when there shall be no more any opportunity for repentance , tho' we should have otherwise leisure enough for the accomplishing of it . and sure , if any such is , the most likely to be that season , which wicked men have lay'd out for their return to their duty , in order to their going on for the present in their evil doings . nor is there any reason why that man should expect grace to repent at the last , who all his life long has neglected and despised the offers of it . i will not now say how unfit a time that of old age and sickness is for so great an undertaking : when the soul as well as body is feeble and impotent ; when the memory is decay'd , the reason fails , and our affections are dull , our zeal is cold , and all our thoughts taken up with the horrors of hell , and the sense of those infirmities under which the body labours . but sure i am , all these things ought to convince men of the desperate folly , and even madness of such a procrastination ; and to engage them , whil'st they have yet the time , to lay hold upon that mercy , which it may be they shall hereafter neither have grace nor opportunity to implore . but i must not pursue these things any further ; nor shall i make any application of what i have already offer'd : but , without more enlargement , will conclude all with the words of the church . o god , who knowest us to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers , that by reason of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright : grant to us such strength and protection , as may support us in all dangers , and carry us through all temptations ; through jesus christ our lord. to whom , &c. of stedfastness in religion . a sermon preached before the prince and princess of denmark . august th . . pet. iii. , . ye therefore , beloved , seeing ye know these things before , beware lest ye also being led away with the error of the wicked , fall from your own stedfastness . but grow in grace , and in the knowledge of our lord and saviour jesus christ : to him be glory both now and for ever . amen . these words are not only the close of this epistle , but also the application of all that the apostle before had written in it . and for the understanding of them , we must observe , that the design of st. peter in this address to the christians dispersed abroad among the jews , and now under great temptations either to corrupt or to abandon that faith that had once been delivered to them , was to exhort and stir them up to a constant continuance in their profession , and not to suffer themselves , whether by the cunning artifice of some , or by the open violence of others , to be either totally frightned out of their religion , or to be misled into any false doctrines , contrary to the truth and purity which they had been taught . in the beginning of the second chapter , he speaks of certain false teachers that were crept in amongst them , and made it their great endeavour by any means to bring in damnable heresies . and he foresaw that their wicked industry would be likely to prove but too fatally succesful ; for , many ( says he ) shall follow their pernicious ways , by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of . and in the next chapter , he goes on to foretel the near approach of those judgments which our saviour christ had so often denounced against the jews , and in which those complying christians were in like manner to be involved . and by both these considerations , he finally , in the close of all , stirs them up , both to a care of themselves , and to a constancy in their profession ; ye therefore , beloved , seeing ye know these things before , beware lest ye also being led away with the error of the wicked , fall from your own stedfastness . but grow in grace , and in the knowledge of our lord and saviour jesus christ : to him be glory both now and for ever , amen . such was the occasion of these words ; and the prosecution of them at this time will engage me to explain the nature , and to exhort you to the practice of two duties , than which i know none more proper for our serious consideration ; growth in grace , and stedfastness in religion ; and from both which there are but too many seducers on every hand to turn us aside . i shall pursue both in this following order . i. i will shew you , what the true nature of that stedfastness in religion is , to which our text here exhorts us . ii. by what motives especially it was , that the apostle stirr'd up the christians to whom he wrote , and that i would now crave leave to exhort you , to such a stedfastness . iii. how highly both necessary in its self it is ▪ but especially how advantageous to this great end , that we should all of us endeavour what in us lies , to grow in grace , and in the knowledge of our lord and saviour jesus christ. and first , i. what the true nature of that stedfastness in religion is , to which our text exhorts us , and which i am from thence to recommend to you . for 't is not every firmness that deserves the name of a true and rational stedfastness : and a man may as well exceed , by a perverse , unwarrantable resolution not to hearken to any motives , tho' never so reasonable , to change his opinion ; as by an unfix'd and irresolute temper abandon himself to every wind of doctrine that shall come to turn him aside from it . constancy in religion is a vertue that , like all others , must be regulated by prudence . it must be firm , but it must be well-grounded too . and he who would go about at all adventures to recommend a perseverance in that faith , whatever it be , in which a man has been born and bred , without allowing a just enquiry to be made into the grounds of it , and even a liberty to forsake it too , should they prove less solid than they ought to be ; he may indeed provide for their security who chance to be already in the right way , but shall render it utterly impossible for those that are not , ever to come to the knowledge of it . it is not therefore such a blind stedfastness as this , a constancy in our religion whether it be good or bad , that either the apostle here means , or that i would now recommend to you . this would be to make a plea for obstinacy rather than constancy ; whil'st by such a rule it would be the duty of a jew to remain a jew , a heathen a heathen ; for a papist or socinian to continue all their lives papist or socinian , no less than for one of the church of england to be firm and stedfast to the faith and communion of it . that which i understand by a true stedfastness , is this : when a man is upon rational and good grounds evidently perswaded of the truth and purity of his religion , then to resolve to stick close to it , and not suffer any base , unworthy motives , to draw him aside from it . our religion must first be well grounded , and then it will be true stedfastness to adhere to it . and therefore to give such necessary directions as may suffice for the practice of this duty , i must distinctly consider it in both its respects , and as it stands in the middle between the two extremes of a blind obstinacy on the one hand , and of a weak instability on the other ; and by either of which , the true nature of it will become equally destroy'd . first then : he that will be truly stedfast in his religion , must take heed that he does not mistake obstinacy for stedfastness . this is an error so much the rather to be remarked on this occasion , in that a daily experience sadly shows us at once , both the danger and easiness of such a mistake . it is a strange perverseness in some men , that they make it no less than a mortal sin to have any doubts , though never so reasonable , of any the least doctrine they have once been taught to profess . and there is hardly an immorality so heinous and provoking , so contrary to the honour of god , and so destructive of salvation , which their spiritual guides will not sooner overpass , than such a scruple . insomuch , that by the express order of the church which i am now speaking of , 't is made a part of mens solemn reception into their communion , the very condition of being admitted into a state of proselytism with them , not only to abjure for the present , all those tenets which they are pleased to call heretical , but also to imprecate upon their heads all the miseries of eternal torments , if ever they suffer themselves by any occasion or arguments whatsoever , to be hereafter better instructed . this is , in good truth , to make a faction of religion ; 't is a combination rather than a constancy : and what wretched effects it has upon the minds of those unfortunate , deluded men , that have once suffered themselves to be thus engaged , appears in this ; that no rational motives , no arguments , though never so clear , are almost able to work upon them . the sad vow they have made , recurs continually upon their minds : they have sworn to continue where they are gone , at all adventures ; and therefore they now as obstinately resolve never to return to the truth , as they once weakly suffered themselves to be seduced from it . to avoid such an unhappy obstinacy as this , and be constant in our religion upon such rational grounds as may justifie us before god and man , from the charge of a pertinacious firmness , we may please to observe these following directions . st . let our religion be founded in knowledg ; i. e. let us be clearly and evidently convinced of the truth of that to which we do adhere , and then we may be sure we cannot be justly charged with obstinacy for our adhering to it . he who takes up his religion upon trust , that receives all the articles of his creed by wholesale ; believes as his church believes , but it may be knows not either what that is , or wherefore he does so ; 't is evident that such a credulous disciple as this , may be blindly obstinate , but he cannot be wisely stedfast in the faith. a good christian must be able to give some more reasonable account of his faith than this , if ever he means to be securely firm in the profession of it . his creed must be founded on some better authority than a bare credulity . and 't will be a very useless plea at the last day , that a man believed as his church believed , when he might have had the opportunity of a better information , should he chance by so doing , to live and dye in a damnable heresie ; unless he can render some tolerable account either wherefore his church believed so , or at least , wherefore it was that he submitted himself so servilely to her authority . but he that believes with knowledg , because he is clearly and evidently perswaded that it is the truth , need never fear either the danger or imputation of such an obstinacy , for his firmness in adhering to his faith. if , for instance , a member of the church of england reads in his bible those express words of the second commandment , thou shalt not make to thy self any graven image , nor the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above , &c. thou shalt not bow down to it , nor worship it ; if he looks forward to the history of the new testament , and there in the institution of the blessed eucharist sees those words , drink ye all of this , in as plain and legible characters , as those others , take and eat ; and thereupon resolves never to be prevailed upon , either to bow down himself before an image , or to give up his right to the cup as well as to the bread in that holy sacrament , whatever glosses may be made , or pretences be used to induce him to either ; 't is evident that such a firmness as this , cannot be called obstinacy , unless these scriptures be no longer the word of god , or that no longer a principle of scripture , that in matters of plain and undoubted command , we are to obey god rather than man. and in these and the like instances , where the matter is clear even to demonstration , there is no doubt to be made , but that such knowledg will certainly secure us against the charge and danger of obstinacy . but because all points in debate are not thus evident , but on the contrary many are not a little obscure ; therefore for the securing our selves from danger in our adherence to these too , we must to our knowledg add , dly , a sincere zeal to discover the truth , with an affectionate charity to those that differ from us . in such cases as this , thô we must believe and profess according to what appears to us at present to be the truth ; yet since the evidence is not such as to exclude all possibility of our being mistaken , our adherence to it must be qualified with this reserve , neither rashly to censure those who are otherwise minded , nor obstinately to resolve never to change our opinion , if we should perhaps be hereafter convinced that we ought to do so . now in order hereunto , it is not necessary that a man should either fluctuate in his present faith , or not be firmly persuaded that he shall never see any reason to forsake it . it is sufficient to take off the imputation of obstinacy , that our stedfastness be such as not to exclude either a readiness of being better informed , if that be possible ; or of making , upon all occasions , a strict and impartial enquiry into the grounds and reason of our faith ; or even of hearing freely whatever objections can fairly be brought against it . and all this with a sincere desire , and stedfast resolution to discover and embrace the truth , wheresoever it lies ; whether it be that which we now suppose to be so , or whether it shall be found to be on the contrary side . he who is thus disposed in his mind at all times to receive instruction , and never presumes rashly to condemn any one that is thus in like manner disposed , however otherwise disagreeing in opinion from him ; need never fear that his firmness is any other than that wise and christian stedfastness which our text requires , not such an obstinacy as both that and we most justly detest and condemn . but here then we must look to the other extreme , and take heed , lest for fear of being perversly constant to our faith , we fall into a weak and criminal instability . to prevent this , these three things may be consider'd : st . that we carefully avoid all vnworthy motives of changing our religion . dly , that we be not too apt to entertain an ill opinion of it . dly , that if any arguments shall at any time be brought against it that may deserve our considering ; we then be sure to give them that due and diligent examination , that we ought to do . i st , he that will be stedfast in the faith , must above all things take heed to arm himself against all unworthy motives of changing his religion . it is very sad to consider what unchristian means are made use of by some persons to propagate their religion : and a man need almost no other assurance that it cannot be from god , than to see the professors of it pursue such methods for the promoting of its interest , as most certainly never came down from above . thus , if a man's fortunes be mean , or his ambition great ; if religion has not taken so deep root in his soul as to enable him to overcome the flatteries and temptations of a present interest and advantage ; then there shall not be wanting a seducer presently to shew him , that he must needs be out of the right way , because it is not that which leads to preferment . and 't is great odds but a good place , or an honourable title , will quickly appear a more infallible mark of the true church , than any that scripture or antiquity can furnish to the contrary . if this will not do , and interest cannot prevail , then the other governing passion of our minds , mens fears , are tried . instead of these allurements , the false teacher now thunders out hell and damnation against us . nothing but curses and anathema's to be expected by us if we continue firm in our faith. and it shall be none of the prophets nor his churches fault , if all the horrors and miseries of this present life be not employ'd against us , in charity , to prevent our falling into the everlasting punishments of the next . the truth is , i am ashamed to recount what unworthy means some have not been ashamed to make use of to promote their religion , and draw us away from our stedfastness . france and savoy , hungary and germany ; the old world and the new , have all , and that but very lately been witnesses what ways it is that popery has , and does , and if ever it means effectually to prevail , must take to propagate its interest : — animus meminisse horret , luctúque refugit . now he that shall be so unhappy as to suffer himself by any of these motives , which a constant man might and ought to have overcome , to be seduced from the right faith ; he may deserve indeed to be pitied now , but i fear he will hardly be hereafter excused . but it is not sufficient to secure our selves against this danger . he that will be constant in his religion , as he ought to be , must see , dly , that he be not too apt to entertain an ill opinion of it . for if it be obstinacy on the one hand , not to admit of any conviction thò never so clear and reasonable ; it is certainly a great weakness on the other , to be affrighted at every shadow of an argument , and to put it in the power of every little disputer to prejudice us against our religion , because one who is its professed enemy , rails against it , and pretends it is a very ill one. he would , i believe , be thought a very credulous person indeed , who should begin to stagger and fall into a trembling , thô he saw himself upon plain and even ground , because a bold and fanciful man is very positive that 't is a precipice . and doubtless that man is no less to be pitied , that is frighted for fear he should be in the wrong , thô he has the undoubted authority of scripture and antiquity , nay , and even of sense and reason too on his side , as often as every common-place trifler shall think fit to run over his division upon the church , the antiquity , succession , infallibility of it ; and , without either modesty or proof , call us hereticks . if men have reason on their side , if they have scripture for what they say , let them on god's name produce it : we are always ready to consider and to submit to such convictions . but otherwise to think to perswade us that we are in utter darkness when we see the sun shining in our faces ; that we must be damned for not believing that what we see , and tast , and know , to be but a bit of bread , is not the body of a man ; that they are not infallible , who are actually involved in the grossest errors ; in a word , that our church had no being before luther , every article of whose faith is founded upon the authority of the holy scriptures , and has been professed in all ages of the church from the apostles to this day ; this is certainly one of the most unreasonable things in the whole world , and what ought not by any means to stagger our stedfastness . and now having secured our selves on both these sides , it only remains to preserve our constancy ; dly , that if at any time any arguments should be offer'd to us that may deserve our regard , we then be sure to give them that due and wise examination that we ought to do . it is a very great weakness , and indeed a very great fault in many persons , that if at any time they begin to doubt in their belief of any part of their faith which they have been taught to profess , they presently abandon their own guides , and run for satisfaction to those who are the professed enemies of their religion . from henceforth they hear nothing but what is ill of their church ; they are taught more and more to suspect the way that they are in ; and then 't is odds but a very little examination suffices to make them leave it . this is certainly a very great fault , and will one day prove of very dangerous consequence . what such persons may think of changing their religion , i cannot tell ; but sure i am , our greatest charity will hardly enable us to entertain any very comfortable opinion of them . nor are they such as those that we either say , or believe may be saved , notwithstanding the errors and corruptions of that church with which they communicate . he that will make a safe change from one religion to another , must not think it enough to enquire into one or two points , and having received a satisfaction in them , embrace all the rest at a venture for their sakes ; but he must pass distinctly through every article in debate . he must enquire , not only whether the church of which he is at present a member , be not mistaken in some points , it may be there is no church in the world that is absolutely free from all kind of error ; but whether those mistakes be of such a consequence , that he cannot communicate any longer with it on the account of them . when this is done , the greatest difficulty will still remain , to examine with the same diligence every article of that other church to which he is tempted : for else , thô he should have reason to forsake his own church , he will yet be but little advantaged if he goes to another that is as bad , or , it may be , worse than that . if there he should find the most part well , yet so that there are but any one or two things so erroneous as to oblige him to profess what he thinks to be false , or to practice what is unlawful , even this will be sufficient to hinder him from reconciling himself to it . and in all this , there must be a serious , and diligent , and impartial search . there must be no prejudice in favour of the one , or against the other ; no desire that the truth should be on this side , rather than on that : in short , nothing must be omitted , whereby he might reasonably have got a better information . and to all this care , there must be added fervent prayer to god for his assistance . he who falls away from his first faith on any lesser convicton than this , can never excuse himself from a criminal lightness in a matter of such concern . and for him that sincerely does this , i shall , for my part , be content that he should leave the church of england , whenever he can be thus convinced that any other , but especially that the church of rome is a safer way to salvation . and this may suffice to have been said to the first particular ; what that stedfastness in religion is , to which our text exhorts us . i go on dly to shew , ii. upon what motives it was that the apostle here stirred up the christians to whom he wrote , and that i am now in like manner to exhort you , to such a stedfastness . now these our text reduces to this one general consideration ; that they both understood their danger , and were expresly forewarn'd by his epistle how careful it would behove them to be , to arm themselves against it : ye therefore , beloved , seeing ye know these things before , beware . and doubtless it is not only a great security , but ought to be also a great engagement to such a vigilance , to be thus expresly forewarned of our danger . and he who either neglecting or despising the admonition , suffers himself to be seduced from his own stedfastness , must certainly be utterly inexcusable both in the sight of god and man for his inconstancy . but that which will aggravate this neglect yet much more , is the consideration of those motives by which the apostle here cautions them to beware , and which therefore i must lay a little more distinctly before you . now such were especially these two . st . the dangerousness of those seducers that were crept in amongst them : and this not so much in respect of their cunning and diligence , thô that too were considerable ; as of the motives they used to draw them from their stedfastness . there are , it may be , scarce any two things in the world , the weakness and corruption of man's nature consider'd , more apt to seduce , than an easie practice , supported with high pretences ; when both the way that is offer'd is extremely agreeable to our loose inclinations , and the proponent wonderfully confident in the tender of it ; and both these st. peter here tells us , were to be found in the hereticks against whom he forewarns them : and indeed 't was upon this account especially , that he seemed to be so apprehensive of their prevailing . for when ( says he ) they speak great swelling words of vanity , they allure through the lusts of the flesh , through much wantonness . and therefore , as he said before , ver . . many shall follow their pernicious , or rather , as both the original greek , and our own marginal note read it , their loose , their lascivious ways . but , dly . another danger there was , and that no less to be considered than the foregoing . the christians to whom he wrote , were under some trial and persecution for the faith of christ , and these hereticks who chiefly provided for the ease and quiet of this present life , had found out a remedy against that danger too . they taught , that it was lawful on these occasions to dissemble , or even to deny their faith , and not to run any such hazards for it . now this to weak minds could not but be a strong temptation to comply with them . men , for the most part , are very easie in believing that , which they very much desire should be true . and therefore no wonder if our apostle thought himself highly concern'd amidst all these dangers , to exhort them to beware , lest being led away with the error of the wicked , they should fall from their own stedfastness . such was the state of these christians ; and i shall not need to make any application . but now , if as we have seen their dangers , so we shall also consider the arguments which the apostle here urges to confirm their constancy , we shall be forced to acknowledge them to be such , as ought in all reason to have prevailed with them . for , st . as to the temptations before mentioned , they are indeed but too apt to seduce , because we are few of us so wise or so good as we ought to be : but to an upright and sincere christian , they will appear exceeding inconsiderable , and even detestable . confidence and assurance stagger weak minds : but if destitute of solid reason , they only argue to wise men the vanity of the undertaker , and render the man and his cause the more ridiculous . and for the other dangers , the fear of persecution , and the looseness of their morals ; he must be a strange sort of christian indeed , whom such considerations can prevail with to fall from his stedfastness , and hardly worth the while for any church to get or to preserve . and tho' i should be glad by any honest and christian means to promote the interests , and enlarge the borders of the church of england , yet i must confess , that i am so little concern'd for such members as these , that on the contrary i could almost wish that all those who will not be perswaded to live christianly in our communion , would be so kind to us as to live vnchristianly out of it , rather than in it , the loss of ten thousand such proselytes would only lessen our number , but neither our honour nor our interest ; nay , perhaps , would rather help to promote both : for i should then begin to hope , that god had indeed a blessing in store for us , could i once see these jonas's cast out , for whose sake , perhaps , it is that the present storm is fallen upon us ; and whose departure from us , may therefore , for ought i know , be the likeliest means to restore to us the blessing of peace and security again . but if there be then nothing in these temptations that should draw us aside from our stedfastness , i am sure , dly . there is more than enough in what st. peter here offers , to engage us to continue firm to it . and because i may not now enlarge my self , i will rather point it out to you , than insist upon it . for , st . it is with us now , as it was with the christians in st. peter's time : those who would draw us away from our stedfastness to the true catholic faith , would bring in dangerous , i am unwilling with the apostle to say damnable heresies , in the stead of it . we do indeed charitably hope , that they who by the providence of god have been born in a different communion from us , and bred up all their lives not only in an utter ignorance of the right faith , but in an irreconcilable hatred to it ; who have been taught to damn us as heretics and schismatics , and to value themselves upon the score of their own pretended catholicism , if they are otherwise sincere in that faith which they profess , and repent them truly of their sins , but especially of their uncharitableness to those that differ from them , may , through the extraordinary mercy of god , be saved , notwithstanding such their errors . but for us , who know their delusions ; that whil'st they damn all others as hereticks , they are indeed themselves the most perverse and obstinate that ever were ; should we forsake our truth , and go over to them , that little argument so often used on these occasions , that we confess men may be saved in their church , but that they utterly deny they can be so in ours , and therefore that it is better to be on theirs , i. e. the safer side , would stand us in small stead ; and for all this sophistry , we should certainly run a very great hazard of being damn'd for falling away from our own stedfastness . but , dly . a second motive which our apostle here offers to engage us to such a constancy , will arise from the consideration of the exceeding great punishment that shall be the consequence of such an apostacy . now that in this case was so much the more to be consider'd , in that the punishment which st. peter here speaks of , was to fall upon them even in this present world . the prophecies of christ for the destruction of the jews being now just ready to be accomplish'd , and in which the apostatizing christians were also to be involved . but however , i neither have , nor would desire to have any such prospect with reference to the seducers and their proselytes in our days , whose conversion , tho' i heartily wish , yet , i thank god , i never did , i hope i never shall desire their destruction : yet certainly the argument ought never the less to be consider'd , because it respects only the miseries of another life . there is more than enough in the consideration of eternal torments , to move the most indifferent person both to consider , and , if it may be , to prevent the enduring of them . and however men may please to put the evil day far from them , and hope that it shall not , because it is their interest that it should not , too soon overtake them : yet neither can any of us say how soon it may come upon us ; and were it at never so great a distance , yet let us but remember that when it does come , it brings an eternity along with it , and we shall be forced to confess , that no present considerations , how great soever they may seem to be , are yet fit to stand in competition with it . he must be a very foolish , or a very necessitous man indeed , that would part with the certain reversion of a thousand pounds a year , for the obtaining a present peny . and yet such , or rather god knows infinitely greater , is the folly of that man , who for any secular advantages whatsoever , sells his soul ; and thereby not only loses his title to all the joys and glories of heaven , but exchanges them for a dreadful portion of fire and brimstone for ever . blessed saviour ! what is there in all those little enjoyments men here pursue with so much greediness , that for the sake of them we should deny thee , and that faith which must save us when we appear before thee in judgment ! behold ! yet a little while , and there we must stand to render a strict account of all our actions , and receive according to what we have done in the body , whether it be good or evil . and what then will all these interests and advantages avail us ? what profit shall we then have , tho' we could have gain'd the whole world , when we shall have lost our own souls for the doing of it ? how will it then please us , that we have renounc'd our faith to preserve those little enjoyments that are now no more ; but the sad punishment of the soul apostacy to which they have tempted us , will continue for ever ? certainly , were the complying hypocrite but capable of reflecting what shall be the end of his apostacy ; could he but once think with the prophet , who can dwell with everlasting burnings ? he would need no other motive to convince him of the folly of such courtly compliance , and to keep him from falling away from his own stedfastness . dly . but the apostle adds yet another motive , and which having mention'd , i shall conclude . we have seen the sad , the unspeakable , and what is yet more , the eternal misery of him that falls from his stedfastness . could i now represent to you the as infinite reward of the constant christian ; could i delineate to you but a small part of those joys which are prepared for such an one ; what an illustrious crown of glory shall adorn his triumphant head to all eternity : i might then hope to have fully accomplish'd the design of this exhortation , and to have effectually secured you against falling away from your stedfastness . but this is an argument above my capacity to illustrate . eye hath not seen , nor ear heard , nor does it enter into the heart of man to conceive , what god has prepared for them that love him . we have neither thoughts to imagine any thing comparable to its greatness , much less words to express it . and methinks even this should be enough to recommend it to us , that we are not able to express it . that its excellency so far surpasses whatever experience we can pretend to of any felicity in this life , that we cannot so much as found upon it any tolerable apprehensions of the joys and glories of the other . at least , this i am sure , that it ought to be more than enough to convince you , how incomparably more worthy our desires and pursuits such a reward of our firmness is , than whatsoever can be offered to draw us aside from it . and now having shown you both what it is to be truly stedfast in our faith , and how great an obligation there lies upon us so to be ; what remains , but that i briefly close all with the last particular i proposed to speak to , iii. how highly necessary in its self , but especially how advantageous to this great end it is , that we should all of us endeavour what in us lies , to grow in grace , and in the knowledg of our lord and saviour jesus christ ? i could wish i had some longer time to improve , as i ought , this great and useful exhortation . but i have insisted too long already , and therefore may not enlarge upon it . the duty , in short , recommended to us is this ; that we should seriously endeavour according to our several opportunities , to encrease every day in our knowledg and vnderstanding of the gospel of christ , and in a suitable practice and performance of it . and he who truly makes it his business to do this , need never fear falling away from his stedfastness . his knowledg will teach him what is the right way , and the grace of god rooted in his heart , will establish him , that no unworthy considerations shall ever be able to draw him aside from it . . for what concerns the former of these , knowledg , he must understand but very little of the true spirit of christianity , that is not able at the first sight to discover the illusion of those false teachers , that are at present the most busie amongst us . * christianity is a gospel of peace and charity : it commands us to love and to do good to all men even our very enemies . to bless them that curse us , to do good to them that hate us , and to pray for those that despitefully use us and persecute us . and can those be its disciples , who scatter nothing but hatred and malice , confusion and disorder , whereever they come ; and make it a matter of conscience to root out and destroy from off the earth , all those that differ from them ? the very foundation of whose religion consists in a maxim of the most detestable uncharitableness , that all must be damned that are not of their persuasion ? * christianity is a wise and reasonable religion ; a religion becoming a most wise god to plant , and rational creatures to embrace . but our new teachers are for a blind and unreasonable piety : they are for a faith and a worship full of the greatest contradictions : and esteem the true character of a thorough-pac'd believer to be , to believe not only without any just grounds , but even contrary to the common sense and reason of mankind . * christianity is an honest , an upright , a sincere religion ; a religion that requires the greatest plainness and simplicity in all our words and actions . and can those be christians who are wholly made up of fraud and dissimulation ; who palliate the very doctrine they profess ; deny the very articles of their faith , when it is requisite thereby to seduce men to their party ; and plainly show that they value not what they do or say , as often as the mother-interest of their church requires them to deceive . * christianity teahces us to worship but one god ▪ and one only mediator between god and man , christ jesus . but our new-masters are not thus content : they set up , if not more gods , yet i am sure more objects of their religious worship , more mediators than one ; and teach men to address their prayers more frequently through the merits and intercession of their new advocates , to whose patronage they have committed themselves , than through his who is the true christians only advocate , christ blessed for ever . * christianity forbids us to make any graven images , the likeness of any thing in heaven above , to bow down before it , and worship it . these false prophets set up their images in every church , and bow down to the work of their hands . for this end they consecrate them with many abominations . and however some think fit to dissemble it , yet others speak it boldly out , as the doctrine of their church , that the very same religious worship is to be given to the cross of christ , that is paid to him that suffered upon it . * christianity commands us to pray in a tongue which the church understands , that so the unlearned may be able to say amen at our giving of thanks . our new guides direct men to pray in a tongue which to be sure the people do not , and which sometimes even the priest too that officiates , understands as little as they . * christianity is a religion that teaches men to be meek and humble , not to think of themselves above what they ought to think ; but when they have done all , to say , they are unprofitable servants . but our new teachers have not so learnt of christ. they know a little better how to value their own performances . instead of saying they are unprofitable servants , they teach men to value themselves on the account of their merits ; to look upon heaven to be but an equal recompence of their piety ; nay , yet more , that they may live so as to make god a debtor to them beyond all the glories of eternity , and to merit a crown both for themselves and others . * in short , for there is indeed no end of the contradiction ; christianity commands us to take bread , to bless it , and break it ; to take wine , bless it and pour it out ; and eat and drink at the holy table in remembrance of that death and passion , which our blessed saviour once for all underwent upon the cross for us . but what now do our new instructors ? they tell us here is neither bread nor wine to be eaten or drunk ; that they are , i know not how , converted into the very natural substance of christ's body and blood. that he was not offered up once for all , but is here again as truly offered as ever he was upon the cross : that thereby a new expiation is made for the sins both of the dead and the living ; and thô our saviour has as expresly commanded both kinds as either , yet they declare that one is sufficient for the people to partake of , and accordingly they give no more to them . thus you see how very little a knowlege of our lord and his religion will suffice to show that there cannot be any just cause for any one to forsake the communion of our church , to plunge himself into such an abyss of error and superstition as this . and then if he be but equally advanced , dly , in grace too ; this will certainly secure him , that no base motive , no danger or interest shall be able to prevail with him so to do . let the seducer display all the seeming advantages of such a change . let him with his master the devil set us up upon the high mountain of our own vain imaginations . there let him shew us all the kingdoms of the earth , and the glories of them ; and to compleat the parallel , let him , if he can , add too ; all these things are mine , and to whomsoever i will , i can give them ; if thou wilt therefore renounce thy faith , and fall down and worship me , all shall be thine . by grace we shall learn to despise them all : this will convince us , that there can be no true honour in dissembling a mans conscience , and prostituting his soul , his religion , and his god , to a little present advantage . that the riches of this world are but vanity ; that the true treasure is in heaven . in a word , that the favour of the greatest monarch is not worth the purchasing , if to obtain that , we must lose the favour of god for ever . let him shift the scene ; instead of all these advantages , let him set forth all the dangers that either the devil can suggest , or his own more furious zeal invent ; by grace we shall be able to despise even those too . this will teach us , that there is a god in heaven , who shall laugh them to scorn ; and whose counsel it is , that when all is done , shall stand . that if he pleases to protect us , 't is not all their malice that can do us the least injury . but that should he either for our punishment , or our trial , expose us to their rage , yet still we ought with moses , to esteem the reproach of christ beyond all the treasures of egypt ; and chuse rather to suffer affliction with the people of god , than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season . this was the brave resolution of the saints of old ; they were tortured , not accepting deliverance , that they might obtain a better resurrection . when nebuchadnezzar commanded the three children in daniel , to worship the golden image which he had set up ; they regarded neither the majesty of the king , nor the threats of his fiery furnace : they told him plainly , that they were not careful to please him in that matter ; that their god , if he pleased , both could and would deliver them out of his hand : but if not , yet be it known to thee , o king , that we will not serve thy gods , nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up . and the same has been the spirit of our forerunners in the faith ; they have overcome all the fiery darts of the devil , whilst that blessed saviour who first gave the command , has ever since inspired his followers with strength and resolution to fulfil it ; fear not them who can kill the body , and after that , have no more that they can do ; but fear him who can cast both soul and body into hell-fire ; yea , i say unto you , fear him . here then let us exercise our selves . let us be stedfast to our faith ; and that we may be so , let us grow in grace , and in the knowledg of our lord and saviour jesus christ. the seducers amongst us are many ; they are diligent and watchful by any means to draw us into their nets ; and god knows both their religion and their arguments are but too much adapted to our passions and our interests , and may therefore be but too likely to prevail upon us . but , ye therefore , beloved , seeing ye know these things before , beware . behold , i have fre●●● set before you this day , life and death , your duty and your danger ; and i am very confident the choice is not difficult . i shall finish all with those words of our blessed master , matt. x. . and which indeed is the sum of all i am now exhorting you to . whosoever shall confess me before men , him will i also confess before my father which is in heaven . but whosoever shall deny me before men , him will i also deny before my father which is in heaven . of the reasonableness and terrors of the future judgment . a sermon preach'd at white-hall before the princess of denmark , may . . acts xxiv . . and as he reasoned of righteousness , temperance , and judgment to come , felix trembled ; and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . as the context at first sight tells us , that the person here spoken of , was st. paul ; so if we look into the foregoing chapter , we shall find that he had been not long before sent down from jerusalem to caesarea , by the chief captain , claudius lysias , upon a discovery that had been made to him of certain jews who had bound themselves under a great curse , not to eat nor drink till they had slain him. it was none of the least instances of the blind and furious zeal of those men for their religion , that as they thought themselves disengaged even from all the common offices of humanity to those that were not of the same country and opinion with themselves ; so here they look'd upon it to be a piece of merit , a doing of god service , by any the most base and treacherous means that could be imagined , to persecute and destroy this holy man , meerly for having apostatized from it . they saw the mischief that he did them , and they knew not how , otherwise than by his death , to prevent it . his quality , his education at the feet of one of their most learned rabbins ; the zeal he once had for the jewish worship in opposition to that to which he was now converted ; his indefatigable industry in every where drawing others out of those errors and prejudices in which himself had been engaged ; in a word , that astonishing miracle , by which our saviour christ himself from heaven wrought his conversion ; all these , as they rendred him a most useful and blessed instrument of propagating the gospel , so did they in proportion mark him out as a peculiar object of their rage . and accordingly we find that they left no method , whether of open violence , or private treachery ; either by false accusation , or secret assassination , unattempted to destroy him. but the providence of god was not to be overcome by the malice and wickedness of men. and our blessed lord , who so wonderfully called him to his work , did not cease as wonderfully to protect and defend him in it : so that after all their endeavours to entrap him , we find him here more safe than ever from their violence : in the hands of a centurion , to secure him from their malice , but not to forbid any of his acquaintance to come or minister unto him . in this state was our apostle when felix sent for him to hear what he could say concerning the faith or gospel of christ. what the particulars of that sermon were which upon this occasion he made to him , we are not certainly informed . but the sum of it is recorded in the words of my text , viz. that it was of righteousness , temperance , and the judgment to come : and those proposed to him in so plain and powerful a manner , that he was not able to dissemble the impression it made upon him , for , as he reason'd of righteousness , temperance and judgment to come , felix trembled , and answer'd , go thy way for this time ; when i have a convenient season i will call for thee . to discourse upon which words in that proper manner that i ought to do , i must desire these two things may be observed . st . that the person to whom st. paul here address'd himself , was not only a very wicked man , and guilty in a more particular manner , as i shall presently shew , of those very crimes against which the apostle here particularly inveighs ; but a heathen too : a man utterly unacquainted not only with the doctrine of christ , verse . but also with the profession of the jews , vers . . dly , that to this man st. paul proposes the doctrine of a future judgment , and that dreadful punishment which by consequence should hereafter be pronounced against sinners , not by way of authority , or as a revelation which the gospel had made to the world ; but as a point which his own reason would tell him was most just , and fit to be bebelieved . he reason'd , says my text , before him , of the great obligations that lye upon men to live justly and soberly , and of the severe enquiry that shall one day pass upon all of us , whether we have lived or no as we ought to do . and then taking of our text under these considerations , i suppose i shall pursue the most proper design of it , in discoursing to you on these four points : i st . that the doctrine of a judgement to come , is so highly reasonable , that the greatest infidel must be forced to confess the probability of it . ii dly , that if there be a judgment to come , and a future state of rewards and punishments , it cannot be doubted but that those who live wickedly now , shall then be in a most wretched and deplorable condition . iii dly , that however sinners may pretend to dissemble their belief of this , and live as if indeed they did believe nothing at all of it ; yet the greatest of them cannot chuse but tremble sometimes at the apprehension of it . thô now , iv thly and lastly , it too often happens to such persons , as we see it did to this unfortunate man here ; that the effect of these terrors is not to bring them to repentance of their sins ; but to engage them by any means to put off the thoughts of their future state , which are so troulesome and amazing to them . but before i enter upon these particulars , there is one thing which i cannot but observe with reference to those other points mention'd in the text , as part of st. paul's discourse before felix , righteousness and temperance : and the application whereof may serve to reproach the complaisance of too many of his successors among us in the gospel ; whose tenderness in reproving the vices of great men , and sometimes even their connivance at them , do's but very illy agree either with that great obligation which our holy profession lays upon us , or with that admirable example which the apostle has here set us for our imitation . it is the character which historians have given us of this felix , that he was a man , who , in his government , managed his power with all the violence and injustice that can possibly be imagined ; and breaking through all the ties of justice and continence , had , by the help of one simon a magician , gain'd the affections of drusilla , the wife of azis , king of the emisseni and lived in a state of adultery with her . now this being the case of felix , 't is plain , that the subject of st. paul's discourse was to remonstrate to him his injustice , and intemperance ; and let him freely know , that however he might carry it out by his power and authority now , yet there was a time coming , a future day of judgment , when he should be called to a severe account for all his wickedness . this was indeed an address becoming the zeal of an apostle , and the spirit of st. paul. and too plainly shews , how little we have left in us of that primitive warmth which inflamed this holy man , by our different management on the like occasions . there can hardly be imagined any greater discouragement to such a freedom , than what our apostle here labour'd under . to touch an vnjust governor in the point of his violence and injustice ; a lustful adulterer in the business of his incontinence , this one would think should have been a pretty bold undertaking for any one. but for saint paul , a prisoner , one that was to appear as a criminal before him ; for him , instead of flattering this great man ▪ as his adversary tertullus had done : verse . instead of applauding the great quietness which the people enjoy'd under his government , and the very worthy deeds that had been done by his providence , to call him to repent of his rapine and cruelty ; of his intemperance and adultery : and this too in the presence of that very woman whom he much loved , and for whose sake he had done so many vile things ; this was an honest freedom and plainness , becoming an apostolical age ; but which , i fear , in these days of ours , would be censur'd as rudeness , and indiscretion ; any thing rather than a commendable zeal for the glory of god , and the salvation of souls . but alas ! st. paul had not learnt that tender application that is now a-days made to great persons . he had no interest of his own to pursue ; and therefore did not address himself after the manner of those who are more afraid of offending men , than of displeasing god , and of disparaging their character . he knew the doctrine to be seasonable to felix ; and that if he pleased to make a good use of it , it might be profitable too : and he never stood to consider , whether felix would like it , or no ; or whether it might not perhaps provoke him to run to any extremities against him for his freedom . in short , he had an vnjust , adulterous man to preach to ; and he knew nothing so fit to reason of before him , as of righteousness , temperance , and the judgment to come . and had we but the same honest courage and indifference that he had , we should speak , not only with the same freedom that he did ; but , by the grace of god , with the same efficacy too : and poor and despicable as we are thought by many , yet in the power of that divine truth which we are sent to preach to the world , make the greatest sinners tremble to think , that for all these things god will bring them to judgment . and that this is the case , is the first thing i am to shew : i st , that the doctrine of a judgment to come , is so highly reasonable , that the greatest infidel cannot but acknowledge the probability of it . in pursuance of which point , it is not my design to shew what grounds the holy scriptures give us for the belief of a future judgment , which we all of us every day profess as an article of our faith , and therefore cannot be supposed any of us to doubt of it . what else do we meet with almost throughout the new testament , but exhortations to live well upon this ground , that god has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness : acts xvii . . that we must all stand before the judgment-seat of christ , rom. xiv . . that we must all appear before the judgment-seat of christ ; every one to receive the things done in his body , according to what he hath done , whether it be good or evil : cor. v. . what revelation has there ever been more clearly made , i do not say than this , that there shall be a final judgment , but of the manner and circumstances of it ? how the trumpets shall sound , and the dead arise , and those that are alive be changed . how the just shall be caught up into the air , and the sinners lie groveling below , in vain crying out to the mountains to fall upon them , and to the hills to cover them : how the judgment shall be set , and the books open'd , and every man judged out of the things contained in those books , according to his works . then shall the son of man come in his glory , and sit down upon the throne of his glory : and before him shall be gathered all nations , and he shall separate them the one from the other , as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats : and he shall set his sheep on his right hand , and the goats on his left : and he shall say to them on his right hand , come ye blessed of my father , inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. but to those on the left , depart from me ye cursed into everlasting fire , prepared for the devil and his angels . and these shall go away into everlasting punishment ; but the righteous into life eternal . in a word ; so particular is the account which we here find of all the circumstances of this great audit , that i scarce know any thing left unrevealed to us , but only the day and hour when this judgment shall be : and which indeed god has in mercy kept up from us , that so we might always live in apprehension of that , which we can never tell how soon it may arrive . but this is not that which my text leads me to consider : and indeed , however it may be useful enough to call upon the most faithful christians to think sometimes on this future judgment ; yet it would certainly be a very needless undertaking to reason with such persons concerning it , and use any long arguments to convince them of the futurity of it . that which i have now to do , is of a quite different nature ; 't is to offer such reasons for the belief of a judgment to come , as may convince the greatest infidel of the probability of it : and shew them that , whether they will believe us in other things , or no , yet here at least they cannot with any reason doubt of the truth of our doctrine ; but must resolve to become good men , if they will not be persuaded to become faithful christians . and indeed in this sceptical age , in which we now live , it may not , for ought i know , be altogether unseasonable , to argue sometimes with men upon their own principles . to shew them , that religion is not a contrivance of state policy , nor the effect of priest-craft . that when we discourse of another world after this , and a final inquest to pass upon all our actions ; and a vast eternity of rewards and punishments , according to what they now do , whether good or evil ; we do not alarm mens minds with false fears , and ungrounded terros , but speak to them a truth which the very gentiles themselves have universally acknowledged ; nay , which their own consciences will not suffer them to disbelieve , however they may sometimes endeavour to stifle their convictions , and have the impudence to deny , what at the same time , with felix , they tremble to think of . in short ; that whether we look into the frame and constitution of our own souls within us , or contemplate the dispensations of god's providence in the affairs of the world without , they both speak to us this great truth , that god will bring us to judgment . . if first we look back into the principles of the heathen theology , what point shall we find more universally acknowledged by them , than this of a judgment to come ? this we may see illustrated not only in the flights of their poets , in the harangues of their orators , in the dictates of their philosophers ; and all which have been particularly collected by the holy fathers of the church in their writings against them , and may be seen at large in the works yet extant of justin martyr , eusebius , theodoret and others : but as tertullian well observes , even in their common conversation , in which men usually the most speak according to their natural impressions , they still testified the same belief : and by calling god to witness and judge of their actions ; by commending themselves and their cause to god , when they could find no remedy or relief from men , they plainly shew'd it to be a principle rooted in their very natures , that there is a god who sees and observes what passes here below ; and will one day set to rights all the present seeming irregular dispensations of his providence in the government of the world , and render to every man according to his works . i shall not in this place enter so far into this argument , as to shew you in the particular expressions of the ancient heathens themselves , how clearly and peremptorily they have deliver'd themselves as to this point of a judgment to come . but thus much i suppose i may take the liberty to conclude from what i have already in general observed ; that it cannot be deni'd , but that , christianity set apart , the belief of a future judgment must be allow'd , even upon the meer principles of nature , to be very highly probable , which the gentiles themselves , without the help of any divine revelation , have so firmly and universally received . and indeed so clear are the evidences of it , that wheresoever we turn our eyes , whether into the nature and constitution of the little world within , or into the government and administration of the greater without us , we cannot but acknowledg the reasonableness of this belief . for , dly , if we consider the nature of our own souls within us , we shall find a conscience , even in the most wicked men , that will plainly bear witness to this great truth . there is a certain principle implanted in every one of us , that not only directs and informs us what we ought to do , and what to avoid ; but does moreover check , or encourage us , according as what we have done is either good or evil. now upon this sentence which our consciences here pass upon all our actions , we find either a pleasure , and confidence , and satisfaction if we have done well ; or else a fear , and terrour , and distrust , if we have done ill : and this not with reference to any reward we are like to receive , or any punishment we may be in danger of suffering in this present world : the greatest monarchs being no less sensible of these motions within , when their consciences do either approve or condemn them , than the meanest of their subjects ; and both the one and the other , tho' the action were never so secret , no less than if it had been done in the presence of the whole world. and what is all this but a plain evidence planted in our very nature , to keep us in a continual expectation of some account to be given of our actions in another world , beyond what is done in this . when the long series of our present lives shall be reviewed , and our consciences , now our judges , then become witnesses , and give testimony for or against us , according as we have done either good or evil. but that which will be a yet farther confirmation of this argument is , that the nearer we approach to our latter end , still the more powerful and vigorous are these impressions of our own consciences upon our souls . how does the sinner then begin with horror to reflect upon his life past ; and to hate and fear the consequence of his evil doings , when he is just ready to die , and by consequence is passed all apprehension of any farther inquest in this life , more than he did at the time of his commission of them ? whilst the good and vertuous man embraces death with such a quiet and composure , and oftentimes with such a sensible joy and satisfaction , as if he were about to receive some great good by it , to be sure did not fear any evil from it . this certainly can be nothing else but a still more sensible evidence of the belief of a judgment to come , rooted in our very natures , and that there is to be a restitution of rewards and punishments in another life , besides what is made to our actions in this ▪ . to all which if we add , dly , the farther strength that will be given to this principle , from the consideration of the present irregular dispensations of god's providence , as they seem to us , in this world , to oblige us to expect some judgment in the other ; i do not see what the greatest sceptick can have to oppose against so firm and clear a demonstration of it . it is , i presume , agreed among all sorts of persons that admit the being of a god , that as he is the author of all perfections in all other things , so he can have nothing defective , or imperfect in himself . that as this world was not at first made by chance and fortune , but by a most wise , and good , and powerful god ; so neither is it now govern'd by chance , but by the providence of the same god who first made it . now if god be infinitely perfect , then he must be perfectly wise , and just , and good ; and we may as well suppose him not to be god , as not allow him to be all this . but if he be so , and if this world be indeed subject to the guidance of his providence , then we must of necessity acknowledg a judgment to come . it being plain , that as the affairs of men are order'd in this present world , they shew but very little sign of an exact justice and goodness in the administration of them . the best men now being oftentimes the most unfortunate ; and the most profligate miscreants , the most happy , in the enjoyments of the good things of this life . either therefore we must deny that there is a god , altogether ; or that the world is govern'd by him : or we must say , that he is not just and good , and therefore minds not what becomes of those that are so , which is in effect to say he is not god : or else that he is impotent and ignorant ; either does not know how things pass here below , or tho' he does know , yet is not able to redress them ; and this again destroys the very notion of a god , which includes an infinite perfection in power and knowledge , no less than in goodness and justice : or lastly , if there be a god , and that god does take care of the affairs of men ; and is good and just ; and has such a knowledge and power as we say he has ; then it must remain , that there shall be a future judgment , in which all these uncertain , irregular dispensations of his providence , as they appear to us , shall be cleared and set right , and the good and bad receive the just recompence of what their actions here have deserved . seeing then we cannot with any reason doubt either that there is a god , or that this god is just , or that his providence does indeed superintend over the affairs of the world ; and yet 't is plain that things now are not order'd with so exact a justice as a divine providence does require : it must remain , that neither can we with any reason doubt , but that there is to be a judgment to come , in which god will make a perfect demonstration of his goodness and justice to every man according to what he has done in the body , and of which our consciences , as we have before shown , shall then render a most exact account . which being so ; i shall not need say much to shew , ii dly . that then it cannot be doubted , but those who live wickedly now , must expect to be hereafter in a most wretched and deplorable condition . this is the plain , indeed the necessary consequence of the foregoing reflections . for if the very end of this judgment be , as we have said , to make a great and eternal demonstration of god's justice in his dispensations towards the children of men , then in the words of st. paul , rom. ii . . he must render to every man according to his works . to them who by patient continuance in will doing , seek for glory , and honour , and immortality , eternal life : tribulation and anguish upon every soul of man that does evil , of the jew first , and also of the gentile : for there is no respect of persons with god. if the present administration of affairs in this life , be not exactly according to the strict rules of equity and justice ; god permitting the righteous man to struggle under the pressures of an adverse fortune , and the wicked and vngodly to prosper in their wickedness ; yet may this be very well reconcilable with his justice , both because he may have other excellent ends , to serve by such an irregularity , and for that he has yet an opportunity remaining in his hands , abundantly to recompence all the sufferings of the one , and to punish all the wickedness of the other . and instead of concluding from these promiscuous events now , that god is not just , or does not regard the affairs of this world ; that he knows not , neither understands how things pass here below , nor has power sufficient to govern them as in justice he ought to do ; i have already shown that we ought rather to infer , that this life is only a state of tryal , that the great time of retribution remains in another world , when all these irregularities shall be set right , and the goodness , the justice , the power of god be made known in a most severe and exact sentence which shall then pass upon every man , in the day when he shall judge the world in righteousness . but if god not only suffers the wicked to flourish now , but shall hereafter also let them go vnpunish'd ; if he permits them to enjoy the fruits of their sins in this present world ; and will take no care to avenge himself upon them in the next ; how then shall the judge of all the earth do right ? or what is there more remaining whereby to justify god in his doings , who thus apparently connives at sinners ; and neither asserts his cause in their ruine here , nor will call them to any account for all their wickedness hereafter ? it remains therefore , that as certainly as that god is just , and therefore must some time or other render to every man according to his works , the sinner shall one day receive a dreadful sentence of horror and misery from that god , neither whose knowledge he can escape , nor whose power he is able to withstand : who sees all his most secret villanies now , and will hereafter bring him to judgment for them . but now what or how great that punishment is which remains for sinners in the other world , this is what we cannot pretend by any natural way of reasoning precisely to define . and yet thus much i think even our own reason may suggest to us . i st . that it must be some very great punishment which a long life of sin and impiety , and that too heightned with all the aggravating circumstances of being committed against knowledge , against the checks of our consciences to the contrary , it may be against vows and resolutions of doing better ; nay possibly , against many special means and methods of god's providence to bring us to repentance , must deserve , and therefore in all probability shall receive . dly . that as there are different kinds and degrees of sinners now ; all men do not rise up to an equal pitch of wickedness , nor begin so soon , nor continue so long in their evil doings ; nor it may be have it in their power to do so much mischief as other sinners do ; so in all reason we may believe that there shall also be different degrees of punishment suitable to all these , and some be condemned to a much more severe and intollerable infliction than others . to both which remarks i cannot tell , whether i may not add , dly . that seeing the soul is a spirit in its own nature capable of immortality ; having neither any dependance on the body , nor being exposed to any of those casualties that are the causes of the corruption of all other things which we see decay and perish here ; and there being no declaration any where made to us , that it is the will of god ever to extinguish them after they are gone out of the body ; we may , i think , have some cause to fear , whether our souls being capable of an eternal existence , the puishment also which in that last judgment they shall be doom'd to , may not be for all eternity . and all this the principles of natural reason , and the dictates of our consciences direct us to , and the greatest infidel must be forced at least to confess the probability of it . and indeed , however wicked men may endeavour to dissemble their belief of these things , and live so as if they truly did not give the least credit to them , yet are their fears many times too strong for them , and discover their apprehensions , whether they will or no. this is the next point i proposed , iii dly . that however sinners may live as if they believed nothing ●f all this , yet the greatest of them cannot chuse but tremble sometimes at the appprehension of it . so felix did , and so we have been told of many others that have done likewise . men may pretend to out-brave hell and eternity at a distance , may laugh at our discourses concerning another world , and the judgment that is to pass on all our actions in it ; and make it a piece of wit and gallantry not to believe any thing of them ; but i have seldome heard of that man that could look damnation in the face when he came within prospect of it . there is a certain time when all men begin to acknowledge the power of religion ; and if not to believe a heaven , yet at least to fear a hell. atheism and profaneness are things that pass well enough while there is no great cause to reflect on the danger of them : whilst mens pulse beats strong , their years run briskly on ; their condition is easie and prosperous ; they go on in their sins without controul , and therefore without considering either what they do , or whether they are running . but no sooner does any trouble and adversity come upon them : if their prosperity fails them , and the iniquity of their ways begins to encompass them round about ; if age and infirmities call upon them to think what they have done , or where 't is they must next go ; but presently all their schemes and hypotheses vanish : they awake as men out of a deep sleep , and too late begin , if not to convince themselves that there is a judgment to come , yet to tremble with horror , lest perhaps there should be one. but alas ! what is for the most part the consequence of these terrors ? is it even now at least to fit and prepare themselves for it ? no , they are afraid of a future judgment , and cannot endure the thoughts of it ; yet still they neglect to provide against it . this was the last point i proposed to consider , and is evidently the sad condition of many of these men : viz. iv thly , that the use they make of these reasonings concerning a judgment to come , is not to bring themselves thereby to a repentance of their evil-doings ; but rather to endeavour by any means to put off these thoughts of their future state , that are so troublesome and uneasy to them . there is not perhaps any one thing in the world that ruins more souls , than this unhappy method so common with most sinners , of still putting off the business of religion to a more convenient season . they cannot endure the thoughts of another world , and that judgment which we must every one of us undergo in it ; they tremble at the reflection of it , and delude themselves with a future prospect of resolving in good earnest to prepare themselves for it ; but like felix in the text , they put off this work to another time , without ever fixing when that time is to come ; and it happens to them , as it did to him , that for the most part it never comes at all . i believe there are but few in the world so wicked as never to have had their lucid intervals of piety and religion ; nor occasions both to consider of a judgment to come , and how much it would import them to provide for it . on the contrary , i am apt to think the greatest part of sinners go on in their sins now , with a confidence and resolution of repenting some time or other : but still some thing or other interposes to prevent their doing of it ; and death overtakes them before they are aware ; and they go out of this world or ever they have made the least provision for another . i shall not need to say how unreasonable such a procrastination is , even upon those principles of natural reason on which i have hitherto proceeded in the managing of this great argument . for if we have so much reason as we have seen , to believe that there is to be a judgment to come , in which we must render a strict account of all our actions ; and every days experience convinces us of the shortness and uncertainty of our present life , and the little depend●nce we can make upon it for the time to come : if in that judgment the state and condition of sinners shall , without controversy , be very grievous ; and there be no way to promise our selves either any peace of conscience now , or any hopes of happiness hereafter , but only by acting in such a manner , and putting our selves in such a state , that we need not be either ashamed to live , or afraid to die : it must then certainly be most fit and reasonable for all of us to begin personally to consider and do like men , and no longer continue in those sins which are our torment now , and which , should we chance to die ere we have repented of them , will prove our ruin for ever . and all this the very light of reason , and the dictates of natural conscience speak to us to call us to repentance , and to convince us of the danger and vnreasonableness of the least delaying of it . and if there should chance to be any here present , whose wickedness and infidelity render this discourse as seasonable to them now , as st. paul's once was to felix ; i cannot but hope they may meet with somewhat in this reasoning that may have the same effect upon them , but with a better consequence than the apostles had upon that wretched man : may serve not only to awaken their fears of a judgment to come , but to stir them up to an immediate provision for it . but it is time now to remember , that i am speaking all this while to a christian assembly ; and therefore to such , as will admit of yet more lively persuasives of a future judgment ; and of the great and eternal torments that await the wicked after it . and i shall not need to say how much our religion has discovered to us , to make the sinner tremble at the apprehension of that dreadful inquest , which the best christian cannot think of without amazement . for indeed , where is the soul so well established , so secure of its own sincerity , as to be able to endure the horrors of that day , when the end of all things being come , the world its self shall begin to tremble and fall into its ancient chaos . when the sun , and moon , and stars shall be darkened : the mountains shall quake , and the powers of heaven be shaken . when the earth shall be set on fire ; the heavens shall be shrivell'd up as a scroll , the elements also shall melt with fervent heat . when the trumpet shall sound , and the graves be opened , and the dead arise ; and our consciences begin to fly in our faces , and represent to us the sins we have committed ; the means and opportunities of repentance which we have neglected ; and the everlasting punishment to which we are now just ready to be condemn'd . o! the terrors of that time , when being distracted with all these amazements , we shall begin in vain to cry out to the mountains to fall upon us , and to the hills to cover us ! when we shall be able no where to see any hope or comfort remaining to us . if we look up to heaven , that place which we shall now never be able to approach ; behold there our judge with all his holy angels about him , pronouncing a bitter sentence of indignation and wrath , and eternal misery against us . if we cast down our eyes below ; nothing is there to be seen , but the wretched companions of our misery ; weeping and wailing , and gnashing of teeth . the fire already bursting out , in which we are to perish , and yet to be preserved alive for ever ; and the devils ready to drag as into that place of torments . how shall we then curse our sins , that have brought us into this desperate , lost estate ? and too late begin to consider the wisdom of those happy men , who have been persuaded timely to think of , and to provide for eternity . we fools counted their lives madness , and their latter end to be without honour . we once laugh'd at their folly , and smiled to see them pine away themselves in penitential exercises , whilst we freely indulged our ease and our debauches . but now they are numbred among the children of god , and their lot is among the saints . and now when all these , and infinitely more terrors than i am able to express , are included in that one thought of the judgment to come ; tell me o wretched sinner ! canst thou hear me reasoning this day before thee of these things , and not tremble at the apprehension of them ? and if the very thoughts of a judgment to come , be thus dreadful to thee now , canst thou yet think thy self unconcern'd to provide against that time , when thou and i , and all who are here present , must prepare to appear before it ? rather , let this reflection engage every one of us to examine our selves , how we shall then be able to give up our accounts : and let us so judge our selves , that we may not be condemn'd for ever . let us , whilst we have yet the time , confess our wickedness , and be sorry for our sins . let us turn from our evil way , and from the violence that is in our hands , that our iniquity may not be our ruine . let us fly to our judge , whil'st we are yet in the way , before we go down into the grave where there is no repentance . and if we thus improve the terrors of the lord now , we shall hereafter with great confidence expect them : and that great day , so dreadful to the unprepared sinner , shall be to us a day of joy and triumph with all saints , which god of his mercy grant it may be to every one of us , for his dear son jesus christ his sake : to whom be ascribed , as is most due , salvation , and glory , and power , and praise , and dominion , for ever and ever , amen . of the causes of mens delaying their repentance . a sermon preached before the queen at white-hall , febr. . . being the third wednesday in lent. acts xxiv . . — felix trembled ; and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . in which words we have the result of st. paul's discourse before felix , concerning the future judgment , and the punishments that should one day be pronounced against sinners in it . he had sent for our apostle , who was then a prisoner at caesarea , to hear what he had to say concerning the faith or gospel of christ. and as he reason'd of righteousness , temperance , and judgment to come , felix trembled , and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season i will call for thee . it was the usual method of st. paul in preaching the gospel of christ , in the first place to awaken mens fears , by declaring to them the terrors of a future state , and the strict account that we must one day render to god of all our actions ; that so being full of horror at the apprehension of their danger , they might become the better disposed to hearken to those means he was afterwards to propose to them , whereby to secure them against it . and in his second epistle to the corinthians , v th . . he gives us an account how effectual a preparation it commonly made for him to prevail ; knowing therefore the terror of the lord ; i. e. as appears by the foregoing verse , this revelation of the future judgment , we persuade men . he had here in this felix , a most profligate sinner to deal with . a man in his ‡ government violent and unjust : in his own manners lewd and debauch'd : he had ravish'd another mans * wife out of his bosom , and lived in an open state of adultery with her . and now what so proper to awaken his conscience , and make him indeed begin to repent him of his sins , as to reason before him of a judgment to come ? what application so pertinent , as to show him the particular danger of unjust and intemperate men , that is , such as himself should be exposed to in it . this was certainly the most proper address to such a one ; and such was this of st. paul to felix : he reason'd before him of righteousness , temperance , and the judgment to come . and behold in my text , the result of his discourse , such as in all reason we might expect it should have been , felix trembled . and now who would not hope for some good effect from so fair and promising a beginning ? and that the next thing we should have heard of , should have been some such question to st. paul , as the jews once made on the like occasion to st. peter and the other apostles , acts ii . . men and brethren , what shall we do ? this one might reasonably have been expected should have been the result of his terror . but alas ! we find a much different effect of it . he was indeed amazed to hear of a judgment to come ; but he could not for all that , resolve so soon to begin to provide for it . he trembled to think what his condition there should be , and very probably he might intend that he would sometime or other very seriously consider how he was prepared against it . but he could not presently determine to part with his sins ; and therefore he defers the time ; he puts off the apostle to some more convenient season ; but we never read that ever that season came , or that he had ever any admonition given him afterward , to repent him of his evil doings . felix trembled , and answer'd , go thy way for this time : when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . such was the effect of st. paul's reasoning at this time before felix ; and i would to god we had no cause to complain , that such is too often the consequence of our preaching to you . that the knowledg which we have , and the belief which we profess of a judgment to come , were so efficacious to our amendment , that we none of us needed to be called upon , no longer to defer it , but to begin in good earnest to consider how to make our peace with god , and to provide for eternity . but alas ! i fear i have here pitch'd upon a subject never like to be out-dated . and tho it be certainly one of the greatest contradictions in the world , not only to scripture and reason , but to our own interests too , and to which we are not apt to be so blind , to pretend to believe a judgment to come , and yet nevertheless to neglect to provide for it ; yet i know not how , such is the power of our lusts , that they stop our ears against all arguments , though never so clear and forcible , that would induce us to forsake them ; we tremble to think what shall be the consequence of our sins , yet still we go on in the commission of them . and now what argument can i take up more seasonable to the present time , or indeed more fit at all times for our consideration , than to reason a while of this great and dangerous neglect ? to enquire into the causes which move so many thus to delay their repentance , and to offer some effectual arguments that may convince you of the unreasonableness of it . in a word , to stir up such an auditory as this , both from the example of this wretched man in the text , and from the just cause we may have to fear , lest if we continue with him to put off still the time of our repentance , we finally perish with him in his impenitence ; to hasten with all the speed we can , to return to our duty , that our iniquity may not be our ruin . and this is the design of my present discourse , wherein i shall first , enquire into the causes that move so many to delay their repentance , and be still putting off their provision for another world , to some more convenient season . and secondly , shall shew the danger of so doing : and by both endeavour , what i can , to engage every one that now hears me , to a timely , a speedy , or rather to speak more properly , to a present repentance . and i st . of the causes that move so many to delay their repentance ; and be still putting off their provision for another world to some more convenient season . now those , i presume , may well be reduced to these four general considerations . either st . they do not think at all , or not to any purpose , of their future state , and therefore neglect to provide for it . or , dly , they do not believe there is so great a necessity of repenting , in order thereunto , as we say there is . or , dly , they suppose they may do this hereafter as well as now . or , thly , tho' they are convinced both of the necessity of their repenting , and of the reasonableness of setting presently about it , yet for all that , they cannot so soon resolve to part with their sins , and enter on a course of piety and religion . these are some of the principal causes that , i presume , may be likely to prompt men to put off their concern for another world ; and i shall make it my endeavour with all the plainness that i can , to shew the folly and unreasonableness of every one of them . and , st . there are many in the world , who do not think at all , or not to any purpose , of their future state , and therefore neglect to provide for it . it is a matter of sad consideration , to see how very careless and secure most men seem to be as to the business of another world. they live , if not as those who believe nothing at all of it , yet in such a manner as if they were not in the least danger of miscarrying in their way to it . they think and contrive how to manage their affairs in this present life : to establish their health , and to improve their fortunes , and add still new degrees to their honours and dignities . only the happiness of the other world , that they seem to look upon as hardly worth their care ▪ they leave it as a thing , that it will be time enough to provide for when they begin to come nearer to it ; and 't is no longer worth their while to trouble themselves about the good things of this . and now what can be more unreasonable than such an incogitancy ? to spend all our thoughts and our endeavours , upon a few temporal pursuits , that have neither worth nor duration to recommend them to our desires ; and in the mean time never to think at all , or at least not to any purpose , of those joys and glories that shall continue to all eternity . indeed , had we either never heard of any such thing as a judgment to come ; or did we not believe that there is such a state as our religion has revealed to us ; a state of everlasting happiness if we do well , but of eternal punishment if we continue to do ill , there might then be some excuse for such a neglect . and yet , even in this case too , we ought to be very sure there was no such thing as another world , before we could reasonably give over the thoughts of it . he that lives well , and denies himself some part of that liberty , he would otherwise indulge himself now , out of the fear and apprehension of another life that is to come , does at the most run but the little hazard of living a more reserved and innocent sort of life than he needed to have done , if it shall hereafter appear that he was mistaken . whereas he that confidently presumes there is no such thing as a future state , and so neglects to provide for it , should it chance to be otherwise , must be for ever miserable , without all possible means to reform his error . but for men to know and believe , that god will bring them to judgment , and they cannot tell how soon he may do it : that if they chance to be caught away in the midst of their sins , as they see thousands are every day before their eyes , they shall then be doom'd to the wretched sentence of everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels ; and yet still to continue careless and unconcern'd ; and not so much as spend a thought how they are prepared to stand before the great tribunal ; this is , doubtless , such a piece of indiscretion , as may well deserve our pity and our wonder , but certainly will not need that i should say any thing to expose the desperate folly and unreasonableness of it . dly . another cause of mens delaying their repentance , is , that they do not believe there is so great a necessity of repenting , as we say there is . this is a cause which men do not indeed care so openly to profess ; but yet such a one as their actions oftentimes do but too plainly point out to us . and i wish that even this were all ; and that there were not some in the world , whose very principles seem to lead them into such an opinion , so contrary to the very nature of christianity , and so fatally ruinous to their own eternal salvation . for st . not to say any thing now to those wise men of the world , who laugh at all our discourse of another life after this , and of an account to be given of all our actions before a divine tribunal ; but to leave them to the convictions of their own consciences , which speak loudly to them this great truth , and make them with felix , still fear what they pretend not to believe : what shall we say to a more refined sort of disputants ; who acknowledging a future judgment , and an eternal reward for those that do well , yet extinguish in great measure all the flames of hell-fire , and allow of little or no danger for those that do ill . they suppose that the worst that can happen to them , if they should chance to be overtaken in their sins , is but to lose their portion in the joys of heaven , and be for ever annihilated ; the only danger that , if you will believe them , attends the greatest sinners in the other world. but yet still , methinks , since they confess that there is such a place as heaven , and that there shall be an enjoyment of honour and glory there to all eternity , for those who at that day shall be found worthy of it ; even this should be enough to make them think it worth their while to endeavour to procure themselves a share in so much happiness . and however they suppose that the everlasting punishment which the holy scriptures threaten sinners with , shall be only an eternal annihilation ; yet since 't is plain that the same scriptures speak very dreadful things of it ; and it cannot be denied , but that the greatest part of christians have and do believe that the wicked shall not cease to be , but on the contrary , for ever continue in a state of misery , which neither any tongue can express , nor any thought conceive ; and 't is certain there are many passages in the sacred writ , that seem very much to favour this apprehension , indeed that cannot without violence be detorted to any other signification ; it must certainly be the wisest course , not to be too secure in their own sense , but whether they believe the torments of the damn'd to be eternal or no , yet certainly to live so as if they made not the least doubt of it . . but secondly : another sort of men there are , who by their mistaken notions of christianity , have very much contributed to lessen their opinion concerning the necessity of repentance , that i do not say have utterly corrupted the very nature and practice of it , i mean the casuists and confessors of the church of rome . it is a point commonly disputed among these men , what the precise time is , in which men are bound by the law of god to repent ? there have been some of them indeed so severe , as to think that a man ought to repent on all the greater ‖ festivals of the church . others ‖ think that 't is enough if a man do it against easter : but the common opinion is , that this is only to be understood of the external and ritual repentance of the church , which consists in confessing and receiving the holy sacrament ; but that for the true , inward repentance , † the precise time in which the sinner is bound by the commandment of god to be contrite for his sins , is the imminent article of a natural or violent death . insomuch , that some of them doubt not to say , that even for a man to resolve to defer his repentance , and refuse to repent for a certain time , is but a * venial sin ; nay , and others think , ⸫ no sin at all . and these men , to be sure , in express terms take away the necessity of present repentance : but this is not yet all ; for when they do come to the time that they think it necessary to put it in practice , even then they find out so many other artifices to elude the sincere performance of it , that they who do all which they require of them , yet do not in effect truly repent . what else can we make of the allow'd practise of that church , upon confession of sins , and an imperfect contrition for them , to admit them to absolution ; and so in effect make the whole of this duty to amount to no more than a little sorrow for sin , and a resolution to forsake it ; though at the same time they are so far from doing it , that it may be they do not themselves believe that ever they shall make good such their resolution ? and that too , though they have neither any love of god in their hearts , nor otherwise hate their sins , than they are afraid of being damn'd for them . i need not say how many other devices these men have found out , to free themselves from the trouble of a true repentance . by pardons and indulgences ; by masses and prayers for the dead ; by consecrated garments , and priviledg'd fraternities : and the end of all which , is what i am now complaing of , to make men careless and negligent in the discharge of that piety that god requires of them ; and of that repentance which alone can obtain an effectual forgiveness of their sins . but these are not yet all , who by their mistaken notions of some of the doctrines of christianity , have been but too much encouraged to neglect the practise of a christian life : others there are , dly , and those of a more near concern to us than either of the foregoing , whose principles seem , without great care , but too naturally to tend to the same neglect . such are , the great assertors of salvation by faith alone without works ; of god's eternal predestination , and in consequence thereof mens absolute election or reprobation ; of the slavery of the will , and its incapacity to do any thing as to the business of our future state without that special grace of god , which if men have , then they must needs do well ; and without it , cannot but do ill ; and which god does not afford indifferently to all those to whom the gospel is preach'd , but to such only as he intends thereby to bring to faith and repentance first , and then to salvation . now not to dispute with any one the truth of all these points , when wisely and soberly stated according to the authority of the holy scripture ; that which i say , is this , that all these , and the like principles , are apt to mislead ignorant and wicked men , who are not very well instructed in the true notion and understanding of them , to a neglect of their duty ; as if the whole work of their justification were either so secure and setled on the one hand , or else so desperate and impossible on the other , that there was no need of their own care or concern about it ; nor any reason for them to trouble themselves about that , which if they shall ever attain , no negligence of their own can do them any hurt ; if they must not , no care or endeavour can do them good . . i shall add but yet one thing more , which , i fear , has led many into a neglect of repentance ; and that is , an unwarrantable presumption upon god's mercy ; either that he will afford them time to repent at the last , though they go on for the present in their sins ; or , if he does not , will at least make a very favourable allowance for their impenitence . this is an opinion which wicked men do as greedily catch at , as their deplorable state renders them greatly in need of it . and indeed far be it from me to lessen any reasonable hopes of god's favour to sinners , who my self stand so much in need of it . no doubt , there is mercy with god that he may be feared . many are the ways , and gracious and excellent the methods whereby he calls and invites us to repentance . and if we accept the invitation , we need not question but that we shall most certainly receive the pardon of our sins through the blood of christ. but then this is not the question , whether god will not make very great allowances for our infirmities , and forgive us , though we have never so long and grievously sinn'd against him , if we repent at the last . but whether , if we neglect the opportunities which he affords us of repenting ; if with felix in the text , we still put off our consciences to a more convenient season , and at last die in our sins without ever repenting of them , god will not then turn his mercy into judgment ; and whether we ought not therefore to make all the haste we can to repent , lest perhaps he should do so . but , dly , a third cause of mens delaying their repentance is ; that though they do believe it necessary for them to repent some time or other , yet they think this may be done hereafter as well as now . and this is what most of us are but too apt to flatter our selves withall . repentance is , god knows , a melancholly duty : it calls us to another kind of life than that we have been used to , or indeed for the most part do at all desire to be acquainted with . he that will put it in practise , must expect to meet with no small difficulties in the setting out ; and few there are who have constancy enough to go through them all ; and therefore no wonder if we find the generality of men so little care to set about a work that is so hard and discouraging to the most resolute undertakers of it . now 't is this makes them willing to meet these troubles as late as ever they can : when their years run deep , and their lusts fail them , and they can no longer pursue the pleasures of this world , then they suppose it will be time enough to think of the other . and they see no reason , why they may not hope as well to be accepted then , as others who in like manner have come in at the eleventh hour , and yet received as great a reward , as those that had born the heat and burthen of the day . but this is indeed as unreasonable a ground for any one to delay his repentance , as either of the foregoing . for , st , they cannot endure to set about their duty immediately , because of the trouble and difficulty which they apprehend in it . i will not now enquire how they are sure it is so troublesome and difficult a thing to fulfil their duty , as they suppose it to be , seeing they have never yet tried it , to be convinced by their own experience that it is so . this only i would know ; will it become ever the more easie for their deferring of it ? nay , but on the contrary , i shall hereafter shew , that the longer it is deferr'd , the harder it will prove to us . and were it not so , yet since 't is necessary some time or other to repent , and so dangerous to die ere we have done it ; certainly the more difficult a thing it is , the sooner we ought to set about it , whilst we may have yet the time , by the grace of god , to accomplish it . and then , dly , for that poor presumption , that others have done this , and yet were saved at the last , and why therefore may not we be so too ? though i will not say that none who have put off the business of their repentance to the last , have ever gone to heaven ; yet i must needs say , i fear that but few have done so . i do not remember in all the holy scripture more than one instance of the salvation of a dying penitent , and that so extraordinary in all its circumstances , that it cannot with any reason be made a precedent by us for the likes hopes ; i mean that of the thief upon the cross ; and even of him too it does not appear that ever he deferr'd his repentance , or put it off purposely to that , as the most convenient season . and for those who came in at the eleventh hour , and yet were received ; i shall only say thus much , that they came in as soon as they were called , and did not refuse to go into the vineyard at the third hour , because they thought it was too soon , and their laziness prompted them to decline their work , till the heat and burden of the day was past . in short , he that delays his repentance upon this prospect , that he may do it hereafter as well as now , ought first to have very well consider'd these two things . st , is he sure that he shall live to that time which he so warily allots to this great work ? for if he be not , then i am sure he lives in danger of eternal damnation all the while he neglects to enter on a state of piety and religion : and chuses rather to hazard his everlasting happiness , than to put himself upon a work that yet must be done , or he shall remain for ever miserable . dly , is he certain , that though he should live to that time , yet that then god will give him grace to repent ? that his aversion to his duty shall not be greater then , than it is now ; and his unwillingness encrease the more , the older he grows in his sins and impenitence ? what the satisfaction of mens lusts may be , i cannot tell : but certainly , if they have any thoughts at all of their future state , and do indeed believe a judgment to come , such dangers as these cannot chuse but amaze them ; and their disquiets at the apprehension , that by thus deferring their repentance they may possibly lose their souls for ever , infinitely outweigh whatever pleasures they can in the mean time propose to themselves , by going on a little longer in their wickedness . but i must not insist upon these things ; and therefore thly , and to conclude this point : the last cause that moves many to delay their repentance , is , that thô they are convinced both of the necessity of repenting some time or other , and that it is highly reasonable for them to set presently about it , yet when all is done , their lusts are too strong for them , and they cannot so soon resolve to part with their sins , and enter on a course of piety and religion . there is something in the nature of sin so fatally bewitching to us , that if once we suffer our selves to be overcome with the habit of it , 't is after that , one of the hardest things in the world to recover our liberty , and prevent our selves from being altogether hardned by the deceitfulness of it . he that committeth sin , says our saviour christ , is the servant of sin . whether it be that the force and power of an evil course gains insensibly upon us , till at last we have no more strength remaining to overcome it ; or , whether it be that the longer we continue in sin , the more god's grace is withdrawn , and the less assistance we have of the holy spirit to extricate our selves out of it . but this is plain , that even the best men find it a hard matter , with all their industry , to keep themselves from its dominion ; and to fulfil their resolutions , though never so soon taken up , of discharging their duty , and living as becomes the disciples of christ. i do not in the least question , but that we are all of us sufficiently convinced of the reasonableness of what i have now been inforcing , of setting immediately about our duty : and , i believe , there are but few , if any among us , who , if they do not at this time , yet have at least some time or other resolved to do so . but i fear it would be a melancholly reflection to most of us , to think how little we have fulfilled these resolutions hitherto , and may give us some cause to fear whether we may not be but too likely still to continue in the same careless and impenitent state for the time to come . the truth is , in such a degenerate age as this , wherein vice is become almost reputable ; and to be religious , esteem'd pedantry and preciseness : when the evil customs of men have prevailed so far above the commandments of god , that a man must yield to be a little wicked , unless he will run counter to the general practice of the world ; and not a little negligent of his duty , to maintain the company and conversation of the times ; 't is not an easie thing for a man to break through all these difficulties , and resolve to save his soul whatever censures or troubles he encounters for the so doing . and therefore , though we all of us know well enough what we ought to do , and cannot but be sometimes apprehensive of the dangers we run by our not doing of it , yet alas ! we still go on in the neglect of our duty : ever thinking and resolving to amend , but never able effectually to set about it . and thus have i given you such a general prospect as the time would permit , of those causes that so much indispose men to a present repentance : i go on to the other thing i proposed in order to the cure of it . ii dly , to shew the danger of deferring the performance of it . for , if such a delay as this , be not only very unreasonable in it self , but shall be also very fatal in its consequence ; if there be really nothing in all those pretences that usually keep men from a present discharge of their duty , and an infinite hazard to be run by it ; sure then we ought to begin immediately to do that which can neither be too soon begun , nor at all delay'd without a very great danger : which we must some time or other do , and which will still grow more difficult and uneasie to us , the longer it is that we put off the doing of it . and , st , let me ask him that thus neglects his repentance , and thinks it will be time enough to set about it hereafter , when the heat of his youth is past , and he begins to come to a greater strength of reason and discretion , to govern himself , and to bring his passions into subjection ; it may be gives it yet a longer delay , and reserves the business of religion for the close of his life , and an immediate preparatory to the hour of his death : is he sure that he shall ever arrive to that time which he thus warily sets out for this great work ? i need not tell you how uncertain our lives are ; what diseases , what accidents lay siege against us every moment ? and if notwithstanding all this , some do live to a good old age ; yet how many thousands there are that fall in the strength and vigor of their years ? and we cannot say but that this may be our condition , as we are sure it has been the condition of many others , who , it may be , as much flatter'd themselves with these projects , as we do now , and are therefore in vain lamenting their mad security in the concern of their salvation . but this i must needs say , a greater provocation there cannot be given to god almighty to cut us off in the midst of our years , and deprive us of that opportunity we so presumptuously set out for to repent in , after a long life spent in sin and impenitence , than thus to go on in our wickedness , and designedly to live in a disobedience to his commands , till we are no longer like to continue in this world. . but however , dly , let us allow of this , that we had by some means or other an assurance of our lives , and could be certain we should arrive to that time we thus lay out for the business of religion . yet how are we sure that we shall not then be altogether as unwilling , and much more unable to repent , than we are now ? st , if we consider our selves only upon the common principles of nature , without reflecting upon the grace of god , without which yet we can do nothing as to the business of our duty ; even these will tell us , that the more inveterate any habit is , the more difficult it is to leave it , and the greater pains it will cost a man to overcome it . and he who finds it so hard a matter to conquer his lusts now , what will he do hereafter , when the indulgence of many years more shall have rooted them in his very soul , and made his sins become even natural to him ? dly , but then , secondly : if we examine this matter according to the principles of christianity , these will shew a yet greater improbability of our repenting hereafter , than at the present . it being not to be doubted , but that as upon the use of god's grace , he bestows a more liberal portion of it ; so by refusing and resisting the motions of the holy spirit , god withdraws his hand , and lessens his grace , and it may be at last totally deprives men of it . the truth is , i cannot but think that such persons as these , who not only continue in the commissions of sin , but project and contrive for the continuing in it ; and therefore put off the time of their repentance as a work that may be well enough done hereafter , do in effect despise the holy spirit of god , and trample under foot that grace which should have led them to repentance . and it must certainly be a most daring presumption in any sinner , to think , that notwithstanding such a provocation , god will yet attend his leisure , and continue to afford him the assistance of his grace for his salvation at the last , though he has so often , wilfully , and designedly rejected all the offers of it . i am sufficiently persuaded , that there is none of us , whom god does not call most truly and sincerely to salvation ; and by consequence , that there is none of us , to whom he has not offer'd such a measure of his grace , as might enable him to fulfil his duty , in order thereunto , and perfect his repentance . but i must confess , i cannot without some concern think , what an unworthy use we have the most of us made of it , and how justly we have deserved , that god should at last leave us to our selves , and no longer in vain attend our amendment . and o! that we would therefore be persuaded seriously to reflect upon all these things , and no longer go on to expose our immortal souls to such desperate hazards , as 't is plain from all these considerations we do , every day that we neglect to provide for eternity ! be it enough that we are not already made the fatal monuments of abused mercy : that we are yet on this side hell , and may if we please , by our speedy repentance , still prevent those judgments which our former impenitence has but too justly deserved . let us begin in this our day , to see and to pursue the things that make for our peace , b●fore they be hid from our eyes . let us exhort one another daily , while it is called to day , lest any of us be hardned through the deceitfulness of sin . let us fear , lest a promise being left us of entring into his rest , any of us should seem to come short of it . let us give glory to god , before darkness come , and our feet stumble upon the dark mountains . i conclude all with the words of the prophet isaiah , chap. lv. vers. , . seek the lord while he may be found , call upon him while he is near . let the wicked forsake his way , and the unrighteous man his thoughts ; and let him return unto the lord , and he will have mercy upon him , and unto our god , for he will abundantly pardon . of the danger of mens delaying their repentance . a sermon preached before the queen at white-hall . acts xxiv . . — felix trembled ; and answer'd , go thy way for this time , when i have a convenient season , i will call for thee . among all the aggravations of sin , there is none greater , than to continue it not only against the checks of conscience , and the motions of god's holy spirit to the contrary , but after many admonitions in vain sent us by his merciful providence to bring us to repentance . there are , i believe , but few , if any , in the world , so lost to all the hopes of heaven and eternity , who have not some time or other , been put in mind of their duty , and invited by god's grace , to pardon and salvation . and if notwithstanding all this , men will nevertheless continue still incorrigible , and harden themselves against all the means that can be made use of to reclaim them , we ought not to wonder , if they are at last given up to the dominion of sin , and reserved as monuments of the just judgment of god , at the day of his glorious appearing . i will not now enter on any enquiry what the cause should be , why we who are all of us sufficiently convinced of the necessity of repenting , and the deplorable state in which we must expect to be , if we do not some time or other effectually set about it ; should yet still for the most part be so very unwilling to repent . but because , this is one of the most fatal delusions men are apt to cheat themselves withall , that with felix here in my text , they put off this business to a more convenient season , and by their unseasonable procrastinations in an affair that of all others ought the least to be defer'd , too often die without ever performing it at all ; i will make it my endeavour so to lay before you the danger of such a delay , as if it shall please god to convince you not so much of the necessity of repenting some time or other , which i take it for granted without my speaking you are all of you already resolved to do , as of the great concern we have immediately to set about it ; and do that presently which we must some time or other do , and can never do so well as now . and this i shall make appear from these two considerations ; i st , of the great danger we run by delaying our repentance . ii dly , of the comfort and satisfaction that will arise to us , from the conscience of having duly perform'd it as we ought to do . i begin with the former of these considerations , i st , of the great danger we run by delaying our repentance . now that in one word is this ; that whilst we go on continually to put off our duty and the business of repentance to a more convenient season ; and like felix in the text think it still too soon to set presently about it ; we run the hazard of never doing it at all , and like felix , too often die in our sins and our impenitence . so that whatsoever danger there is of dying without ever repenting , the same is the danger which we run by delaying our repentance . and this i shall make appear , st , from the great shortness and vncertainty of our present state. dly , from the nature and difficulty of repentance . and , dly , from the method of god's proceeding in the dispensation of his grace , as set forth to us in the holy scripture . and st , that the shortness and vncertainty of our present state , ought to convince us how great a danger we run by delaying our repentance . for proof whereof i shall not think it necessary to entertain you with any common-place-argument of the infirmities of our nature , and the many casualties to which our lives here are perpetually exposed , and against which we can never say we are secure for the next moment . how many persons have been struck with sudden death ? what accidents have befallen others to render them wholly unfit for their duty ; so that though they have had a longer warning of their approaching end , yet either by the intollerable sharpness of their pain , or its influence upon their understanding faculties , so as many times to deprive them of all the use of their reason , and render them utterly uncapable , either to reflect upon their lives , or to repent them of their sins , have been so far indisposed to all the offices of religion , that their longer respite has proved of no more advantage to them , than if they had not had the least notice of their approaching end. these are things which every discourse of mortality for the most part abounds with ; and a daily experience renders any long insisting upon them , needless to us . we live in the midst of the monuments of death . thousands fall every day besides us , and ten thousands at our right hand : and it is only of the mercy of god that we are yet alive , to consider these things , and to prepare to die . and sure then it cannot but be a very great danger , as it is certainly a very great presumption in any man to neglect this , and defer his repentance to such a time as he can never be sure he shall live to see . and this is an argument which every man 's own reason will at the first view offer to him to convince him of the danger of procrastinating his repentance : and such as ought never the less to be consider'd , because it lies so obvious to our understandings , as to be the common topick of every one in the managing of this exhortation . but yet , since such is the infirmities of our nature , that we are apt to overlook many times what is the nearest to us ; and common arguments , like other ordinary things , are not usually so much regarded , as otherwise the true weight and value of them would deserve they should be : i will endeavour to improve this useful reflection , by desiring these two things may be farther considered in it , and which perhaps are not so commonly attended to . st , whether he who delays his repentance now , out of a prospect that he shall hereafter have time enough to enter upon the practise of it ; does not , besides the danger which arises from the common uncertainty of life , and the miseries and casualties that ordinarily accompany it , to prevent his repenting at all , expose himself moreover by this very thing to the particular hazard of the judgment of god , to cut him off in the midst of his sins . what such persons as these may think of their putting off their repentance to some future season , i cannot tell ; but i must confess , when i consider the full import of it , i cannot but look upon this as one of the most provoking crimes in the world ; nor do i think it possible for any man to add a higher aggravation to his sins , than being admonish'd of his danger , and so far convinced of the necessity of repenting , as to resolve some time or other to enter upon it ; nevertheless still to go on in his evil way , and desperately resolve not to begin to be religious , till things are come to the very last extremity , and it is absolutely necessary for the saving of his soul. for , st , he who neglects to repent at the present , out of a presumption that he shall hereafter have time enough to do it , when age and infirmities are crept upon him , and he is no longer in a condition to pursue the pleasures of his sins ; what does he but in effect declare , that the best of his time is fit to be consecrated to the service of his sins , and the refuse only to be reserved for god , which he knows not well otherwise how to dispose of ? i need not say how reproachful a thing this must be to religion , to esteem it a work fit only for that part of our lives in which we are not good for any thing besides . but sure i am , that man must have a very mean notion of god almighty , who can think him of so easie a temper , and so indulgent to sinners , as to be willing to receive them at any rate ; and after all the indignity and scorn with which they have treated him all their life-long , to be glad to take them upon their own terms , and rather than go without them , to accept even of this slight and seeming submission from them . it must be confess'd indeed , that great is the mercy and long-suffering of god , beyond any thing we are able to express or to conceive . but then there is mercy with him , that he may be served and feared , not affronted and abused by us . his goodness leads to repentance , but gives no encouragement to our impenitence . and he who thinks that god will accept the refuse of his time , after a long life spent in the service of sin ; and the business of religion put off on purpose to this last period , as supposing it would then be soon enough to provide for eternity ; will , i fear , instead of an acceptance , meet with the same reproof those of old in the like case did , who kept the best of their flocks , and of their herds for themselves , and offered to him the blind , and the lame , and the sick for sacrifice ; mal. i. . . i have no pleasure in you , saith the lord of hosts , neither will i accept an offering at your hands . cursed be the deceiver that hath in his flock a male , and voweth and sacrificeth unto the lord a corrupt thing : for i am a great king , saith the lord of hosts , and my name is dreadful among the heathen . but dly . he who thus delays his repentance , does not only provoke god by continuing at the present in sin , and that too out of an unwarrantable presumption that he shall be accepted at the last , though in the mean time he continues impenitent ; but 't is plain , has no true honour for god at all ; nor thinks of repenting even then , because he loves god , and desires to please him , but merely because he is afraid he shall otherwise be damn'd , and lose his soul to all eternity . for else , had such a one any real sense of religion , or did he even then intend in good earnest to set about the practice of it , it is not to be imagined wherefore it is that he at present neglects the performance of it . nor can any other account be given why he does not begin the next moment to be religious , but only this , that he does not truly love god , nor desire to serve him , nor by his good will would ever think of doing of it . now this will yet more aggravate the heinousness of such a delay , and betray a desperate contempt of the divine goodness and wisdom : as if god either were not able to discover our hypocrisie , and distinguish between a real penitent , and a pretending votary ; or would otherwise so far connive at it , as to accept of a shadow of repentance , a form of godliness reserved on purpose for the last business of our lives , and then too put on only because it could no longer be deferr'd , not out of any love to god or religion , but merely for fear of his eternal vengeance . and when such is the desperate provocation which every sinner by delaying his repentance , adds to all the rest of his impieties ; i cannot but think , we ought seriously to consider , before we venture upon such a procrastination ; or rather , to speak more properly , to keep our selves from deferring our repentance at all ; not only how very little security we have of our lives , upon the account of the general uncertainty of our condition in this world ; but whether this very thing of putting off the business of religion to such a season , may not be a particular means to call down some speedy judgment upon us , so that we shall never come to that time we designed for this work . but. dly . should nothing of this happen unto us , yet still it cannot but be very dangerous to defer our repenting , though never so little , seeing such is the difficulty of performing it , that he who has the longest life , will find it scarce enough to discharge it as he ought to do . and he that puts it off as a work that may be done well enough hereafter , in his declining years , perhaps in his last sickness ; may possibly do somewhat which he may call repenting , but which 't is very great odds shall have little in it , more than the name and appearance of it . and this brings me to the second general argument i proposed , to shew the danger of deferring our duty . viz. ii dly , from the nature and difficulty of repentance . this is an argument which i the rather chuse to insist upon on this occasion , because i am apt to believe 't is the mistake of the true nature of repentance that chiefly encourages so many to a delay of it . for sure were men heartily persuaded , that 't is so great a thing to repent as indeed it is ; that it requires so much labour and pains to accomplish it , and cannot presently be known even by our own selves whether it be perform'd as it ought or no ; insomuch that should we allow him who has put off his duty for the present , to discharge it truly at the last , yet 't will be impossible for him till he comes to the judgment-seat of christ , to be sure that he has done so ; they would never venture to defer it to such a time , in which 't is next to a miracle for a man not to miscarry in it . now repentance , if taken in that proper notion which the holy scriptures give us of it , is a change of mind , in the words of st. peter , an eschewing of evil , and a doing good. it consists not in a bare sorrow for sin , or a desire and resolution to live better for the time to come , but in a real conversion . by consequence , to fulfil it as we ought to do , we must not only be sorry for our sins , and desire and resolve to amend , but we must truly and heartily endeavour so to do . 't is a change of life , in which the true performance of this duty consists ; and whatsoever comes short of this , when we have opportunity so to do , is not a sincere repentance , nor will ever be accepted of by god as such . and when such is the nature of this duty , i shall not need to say , either how difficult it is to discharge it , or how much time as well as labour it will cost us to accomplish it . it is not a little while that will suffice to overcome those vicious habits , which a long practice has rendred almost natural to us ; to conquer our passions , and bring our most extravagant lusts into subjection to the rules of religion . and we may have just reason to fear by the difficulty we find but of beginning this work , how much more pains and trouble it will cost us to bring it to perfection . let us add to this , that every habit , and that of sin above all others , the longer it is continued in , the more it roots it self in our very natures , and the greater time and pains it will require to remove it . so that then our task will increase every day upon our hands ; and the longer we neglect our duty , we shall not only have the less time remaining to fulfil it in , but we shall still have the more to do to discharge it as we ought to do . if therefore we can with any reason suppose , that we shall be able to do all this at the last : if we can indeed securely presume that such a change as this is a work fit for our declining years : that when our memory is decay'd , and our thoughts move slow ; when our reason begins to fail us , and the infirmities of our age , and our sins to surround us ; we shall then be in a condition to look back into all the remote passages of our lives pass'd , and to call our selves to an account for all our sins , and raise up our resentments to a true and real contrition for them ; and so to change our very natures , as from old , habitual sinners , to become upon the sudden , new creatures ; from the servants of sin , the children of god ; let us then , if we please , put off our repentance to the last act ; and resolve that it will be time enough for us then to begin to live , when we are just now about to die . but if we cannot , without the utmost unreasonableness , imagine that we shall then be able to do all this : if such a change as i have now mention'd , and as the true nature of repentance does imply , be a work that will require our best strength and labour to accomplish it , and without some extraordinary measure of the divine assistance , be too much even for that : it must then remain , that tho' we were the masters of our own time , yet we could not , without a very great danger , put our salvation upon such a hazard as this , in which if we should allow it possible for a man to attain unto it , yet to be sure that is all , and 't is a thousand to one but he comes short of it . there is yet a third consideration which i proposed , and which will still more shew the danger of delaying our repentance , viz. iii dly , from the method by which god usually proceeds in the dispensation of his grace , as it is set out to us in the holy scriptures . i have already observed , from the very nature of all habits in general , that the longer any one goes on in an evil course , the more unwilling he will be , and the greater difficulty he will find it to get out of it . but in the habit of sin , especially every little delay , adds a new strength to our passions ; and those lusts which at first might more easily have been overcome , being suffer'd by a longer continuance to insinuate themselves into our very natures , get the mastery of us , so that we have neither desire nor ability to rid our selves of them . no one becomes extremely wicked upon a sudden . when first men begin to enter upon an evil course , they find many difficulties arise on every side to reclaim them from it . conscience is vigilant , and for the most part very troublesome too . it remonstrates to them the baseness and unreasonableness of a vicious course of life , and it is not without some violence that they break through the restraints of shame and modesty to pursue it . sometimes it sets before them the obligations which their duty lays upon them to fulfil it : how worthy and honourable a thing it is to live virtuously ; what a credit and respect it gains a man here , and what a glorious reward shall be the consequence of it hereafter ? sometimes it calls to mind the terrors of the lord ; and forces them whether they will or no to think of that time , when for all these things god will bring them to judgment : and how they shall then be able to endure an eternity of torments in that wretched place , where the worm dieth not , and where the fire never shall be quenched . now all these , and many other hindrances of the like kind , which the sinner meets with in the first beginnings of his evil course , are not only so many barriers which it has pleased god to set in our way to keep us from ruine , but so many helps too to assist us , if we should at any time be enticed to do wickedly , to recover our selves again out of it . but by a longer continuance in sin , all these are overcome ; and we are not only thereby more deeply engaged in the ways of wickedness ; but having lost all these assistances , our retreat is also rendred infinitely more difficult , than whilst we lay under the restraints of shame , and fear , and conscience , to reclaim us . but this is not yet all : for by continuing in sin , and putting off the time of our repentance , we do not only diminish our own natural strength , and thereby render our selves still less able to encounter with it ; but what is yet more to be consider'd , we deprive our selves of the assistance of god's grace too , without which it will be impossible for us ever to overcome it . it is laid down by isaiah as the reason why god forsook his ancient people the jews , chap. lxiii . vers . . that they rebelled , and vexed his holy spirit , therefore was he turn'd to be their enemy , and he fought against them . and our blessed saviour in his gospel every-where proceeds upon this measure in the dispensations of his grace ; that * to him who has , i. e. who makes use of , and improves what god has already bestow'd upon him , shall be given , and he shall have more abundantly : but from him that has not , i. e. that does not make use of , and improve what he has , even that which he once had , shall be taken away . and however it may sometimes please god in an extraordinary manner to raise up sinners at the last , and though they continue long in their wickedness , yet nevertheless still continue his divine assistance to them , to bring them to repentance : yet cannot this be any ground for any one to rely upon in this matter , seeing it is plain both from the authority of holy scripture , and the common experience of mankind , that in the ordinary methods of god's providence , his grace is withdrawn in proportion to men's neglect of it , till at last they are utterly deprived of it , and given up to be led captive by the devil at his will. hence it is that we sometimes read in holy scripture of persons deliver'd up to a hardness and impenitence of heart . not that i think god ordains any man to destruction , or denies him such a measure of his grace as may be sufficient to preserve him from it ; but when men neglect his offer , and despise and grieve his holy spirit ; and go on in their sins , notwithstanding all the methods of his providence to bring them to repentance ; when the measure of their iniquities is now fill'd up , and they are become ripe for vengeance ; then god is pleased sometimes to withdraw his grace from them , and seal them up unto destruction : and tho he may sometimes permit them , for other ends of his providence , to continue still in this world , yet he no longer continues the power and assistance of his holy spirit to them , to bring them to repentance . this i take to have been the case of pharaoh after the sixth judgment . till then , the scripture tells us , that he hardned his heard , or that his heart was hardned : but when his own magicians confess'd that the finger of god plainly shew'd it self in the miracles of moses , and yet he still continued obstinate ; then god declares that he hardned him : exod. ix . . and caused him to stand , i. e. kept him alive when he had deserved to be punish'd with a quick destruction ; for this very end , that he might shew in him his power ; exod. ix . . many are the declarations of the holy scripture that confirm this to us . if we look into the state of the old world before the flood ; god himself declares , gen. vi . . that his spirit should not always strive with man : yet a hundred and twenty years , and if they repented not in that time , then he would bring an utter destruction upon them . and in the same manner we find holy david speaking in the person of god concerning the rebellious israelites : and which i the rather remark , because saint paul applies it , hebr. iii. . to the very purpose of what i am now speaking : that because they hardned their hearts , and tempted and grieved god forty years , therefore he at last sware to them in his wrath , that they should not enter into his rest . and the application which the apostle makes , is this plain conclusion ; take heed , brethren , lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief , in departing from the living god : but exhort one another daily , while it is called to day , lest any of you be hardned through the deceitfulness of sin. and lastly , to mention no more , the same is the declaration which solomon makes in the name of god , concerning the destruction of hardned and impenitent sinners , prov. i. where having first set forth the grace of god ready to assist them , if they would repent : verses , . how long , ye simple ones , will ye love simplicity ? and ye scorners delight in their scorning , and fools hate knowledge ? turn you at my reproof : behold , i will pour out my spirit upon you , i will make known my words unto you : he afterwards declares the just indignation of god against them , if they should still continue obstinate and impenitent ; verses , , . because i have called , and ye refused ; i have stretched out my hand , and no man regarded ; but ye have set at nought all my counsel , and would have none of my reproof : i also will laugh at your calamity , and mock when your fear cometh . and again , verses , , . then shall they call upon me , but i will not answer ; they shall seek me early , but they shall not find me : for they hated knowledge , and did not chuse the fear of the lord : they would none of my counsel ; they despised all my reproof : therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own way , and be filled with their own devices . it were an easie matter to multiply passages to the same purpose out of every part of the holy scripture . but i have said enough already to shew the danger of delaying our repentance , from the apprehension of over-passing the time of it ; and to warrant that great conclusion , which i think is generally received by most christians ; viz. that there is to every wicked man , a certain time , when the measure of his iniquities being accomplish'd , there shall be no more any space for repentance , nor any farther assistance given them by god , to bring them to it . now if this be so , then would i only desire , that these three things might seriously be consider'd by every one of us . st , whether he , who being invited by the grace of god , and the motions of his holy spirit ; by the cheeks of conscience within , and the importunate calls of the ministers of the gospel without , to repentance , nevertheless neglects all these admonitions , and with felix still puts off the practice of this duty to some more convenient season ; does not thereby grieve the holy spirit of god , and despise his grace , and affront his goodness , who thus graciously offers and continues to him the means and opportunities of salvation ? dly , whether by so doing , he does not provoke god in as high a manner as can well be imagined , no longer to continue his grace to him , nor to expose his mercy to contempt , by suffering his holy spirit still to strive with such obstinate offenders ? and then by consequence , dly , and lastly ; whether every such person may not have just cause to apprehend , that by delaying his repentance , and putting off the business of religion to a still future opportunity , he shall at last provoke god to withdraw his grace from him ? and seeing when he had the opportunity given him , and was invited to repent , he despised the offer , and neglected so to do , god may not hereafter deliver him up to a hardned and impenitent heart ; and take away that grace from him , which he has so unworthily abused , and thereby deserved to have no longer continu'd to him . to conclude : if in that famous parable of the talents , there be any application yet remaining to be made of that part of it , in which we find the talent taken from the unprofitable servant , and a terrible sentence of everlasting misery pronounced against him for his neglect : or , in that other of the fig-tree , which was to be pruned and digg'd , and then try'd another year ; and if still it continued to bring forth no fruit , then to be cut down , and cast out of the vineyard : the meaning of both can be no other than this ; that he who despising the grace of god , and the opportunity of salvation , continues still in his sins , and improves not those abilities god has given him to the great ends for which they were bestowed upon him , shall at last by a severe , but most just judgment of god , be deprived of them ; and have his neglect punish'd with the loss of god's grace here , and in the consequence of it , with an eternal damnation hereafter . and this then may suffice to shew , how dangerous it is for a man to put off the business of repentance at the present , out of an unwarrantable presumption that it will be time enough to perform it hereafter . but now if the question be , what a man who has unhappily done this , should do ? i reply , st , let him by all means hasten his repentance all he can ; and the longer he has deferr'd it already , the more careful and resolute let him be not to put it off one moment longer . dly , let him be so much the more zealous and diligent in his religious performances ; let his sorrow be the more pungent , his confessions the more humble , his prayers the more fervent ; but especially his resolutions and his endeavours the more hearty and sincere to break off the course of his sins , the longer he has continued in them : that so by the extraordinary vigor of his present endeavours , he may make some kind of reparation for the slowness he has been hitherto guilty of in setting about his duty . but this is not all : it will , perhaps , be farther enquired ; whether upon the principle i have now laid down , of the withdrawing god's grace from such as refuse and reject the offers of it , it will not follow , that such persons as these are to be look'd upon as in a desperate estate ; and therefore that it is in vain for them now to think of repenting at all ? but this is a question which every man will best be able to satisfy himself about . that he who puts off his repentance now , upon a presumption that it will be time enough to fulfil it hereafter , may justly fear the withdrawing of god's grace from him , i have fully shewn : but that god does absolutely withdraw his grace from every such person , i do not say ; and whether or no he has withdrawn it from any particular person , he will presently be able to discern by the state in which he finds his soul as to the business of religion . if his lusts and his passions lead him captive at their pleasure ; if he has no affections or desires remaining after piety in his soul ; if he cares not for god nor his duty , nor can yet persuade himself either to think of another world , or to provide for it ; these indeed are , though i will not say certain signs of a desperate condition , yet such as may give us just cause to fear whether he be not come into that state , from which there is no redemption , and in which god will no longer give him any assistance , to return into the way of righteousness . but if , on the contrary , he even now begins to come again to himself , and wishes and desires , if it be possible , to be reconciled unto god : if being touch'd with a lively sence of his sins and his obstinacy , he is at last willing to amend , and return unto god with all his heart : then 't is plain , that though his condition may be bad , yet it is not desperate . god has not yet given him up a slave to the devil , but still continues to him the benefit of repentance ; so that if he be not again wanting to himself , he may yet hope for a sufficient measure of divine grace to bring him by repentance to salvation . but here still there will one difficulty more arise , and it is this . how such a person shall satisfie himself that he is truly penitent ; and by consequence that he may depend upon the mercy of god for pardon , notwithstanding his former impenitence ? to this i answer , st . if the person who thus repents at the last , be in a condition of continuing yet longer in this world , he may then be sure of the sincerity of his repentance , and of the consequent security of his condition , by the same experience that all others are , viz. by the fruits of it in a constant performance of piety and good-works . but now dly . if the question be of a dying penitent , then indeed it will be a matter of more difficulty to answer it . for if on the one hand i may not be so uncharitable as to conclude at all adventures the utter invalidity of such a repentance , because for ought i know , 't is possible for a man in the very last act of his life , to be struck with such a true contrition for his sins , as might , if he had lived , have produced a real amendment , and then god who is able to discern this , will consider him accordingly : yet neither on the other , can we ever be sure that such a repentance is sincere , nor by consequence may we at all adventures supppose in favour of it . the truth is , a death-bed repentance is , in the best prospect we can take of it , exceeding dangerous , and in the case before us , i am afraid desperate . nor have we in all the holy scripture , so much as one example of any one that purposely put off his repentance to this time , and yet was saved upon it ; and the instance of felix in my text , is a terrible one to the contrary . he was touch'd with st. paul's preaching , and feared the judgment of which he spake . but he put off the apostle to a more convenient season ; and we do not find that ever that more convenient season came , or that he had ever any future call to repentance . it is not to be question'd , but that if a man be come to this sad pass , he ought by all means to be exhorted to repent , because otherwise to be sure , he must perish , and 't is possible this may save him . but what that repentance is , which a wicked man then exercises , we cannot tell , and the effect of it must be left to god's judgment to declare ; and it will be our parts instead of being over-inquisitive into these secrets , to be careful not to expose our selves to a condition so full of danger ; in which there is much to be feared , but little hope , and no security . and now , what more remains to engage us to a speedy , or rather to a present repentance , but that having thus largely shewn the danger of deferring our duty , i very briefly close all with a more excellent prospect , ii dly , of the comfort and satisfaction that will arrive to us from the consideration of having perfected this great and necessary work. this is a point on which it were as easie to speak great things , as i think 't is needless so to do . if to live in a state of friendship with god , and to be able to look forward into eternity with comfort ; if to be freed from the stings of conscience , and the terrors of everlasting punishment , and instead thereof to be full of a well-grounded confidence that heaven and all its glories shall be one day ours ; in short , if there be any such thing as a felicity to be attain'd either in this world or in the next , such a christian as this possesses it all ; for he enjoys the love , the favour of that god , who is the great dispenser of all good both in heaven and earth . o the peace and the tranquility ! the pleasure , and the satisfaction of that man , who lives in such a state as this ! whose conscience acquits him ; whose innocence supports him in the midst of dangers ; whose piety and virtue chear his soul , and fill it with the most excellent comforts ; whose present condition is full of hope , and whose future prospect is to be for ever happy . how will such a christian as this triumph over all the miseries , and despise the blandishments of a vain , uncertain , sinful world ? even death its self the last , and greatest of terrors , will not be able to amaze him : but rather he will welcome it with a chearful mind , and with st. paul desire to depart , and to be with christ ; whilst able with him to cry out ; i have fought a good fight , i have finish'd my course , i have kept the faith ; henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness , which god the righteous judge shall give me at that day . but o wretched sinner ! who by thy unreasonable delays in a matter of such vast concernment both to thy present and eternal happiness , not only exposest thy self to the danger of damnation in the other world , but deprivest thy self of the only true and real felicity of this ! men indeed may flatter themselves in their evil doings , and find a great deal of seeming satisfaction in their ways of wickedness . but when all is done , the remembrance of this one thing , that in a little time they must die , and come to judgment , will ever and anon come in and embitter all their enjoyments ; and convince them that 't is the way of piety that alone is the way of pleasantness , and her paths the paths of peace . but i must not pursue these reflections any farther ; i will therefore conclude this whole argument , with those excellent words of the son of sirach , ecclus. v. xviii . make no long tarrying to turn unto the lord , and put not off from day to day . before judgment , examine thy self , and in the day of visitation thou shalt find mercy . humble thy self before thou be sick , and in the time of sins show repentance . let nothing hinder thee to pay thy vows in due time , and defer not until death , to be justified . an exhortation to mutual charity and union among protestants . in a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at hampton-court , may . . rom . xv. , , . now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus : that ye may with one mind , and one mouth , glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us , to the glory of god. the words are part of that affectionate application , which the apostle here makes of his excellent discourse concerning the exercise of christian charity , in that great instance of condescension to the infirmities of our weaker brethren , in the foregoing chapter . the occasion of it was this : there were in those first times , many among the jews , who tho' they were converted to the christian faith , yet still continued zealous for the law ; and not only carefully observed themselves all the rites and ceremonies of it , but would also by any means impose upon all others also , the observance of them . and how earnest they were upon this account , and how much they hated the gentile converts , upon whom the apostles did not think fit to lay any such burden , many passages both in the acts and in st. paul's epistles , do sufficiently declare . but as in all other differences it seldom happens that the whole heat of the controversie rests only on one side ; so here , tho' the jewish converts were both the first beginners of this dispute , and the more zealous pursuers of it , yet neither were the gentile christians utterly without fault in it ; but so far stood fast in that liberty wherewith christ had made them free , as not only to despise the weakness and ignorance of the others , but to be ready almost even to cut them off from their communion . i need not say how dangerous such a controversie as this might have proved , nor what a stop it might have put to the progress of christianity , in those first beginnings of the gospel . great were the difficulties which the apostles underwent on this occasion ; whilst they endeavoured so to menage themselves between these two parties , as not only not to offend either , but , if it were possible , to bring them both to such a temper with one another , that neither the gentile convert might despise the weakness of his judaizing brother ; nor the jewish votary judge too severely of the liberty of the gentile christian. and this was the design of st. paul in the chapter before my text. where addressing himself , as indeed he seems to have done this whole epistle , to the gentile christians ; and whom , as having the truer notion of their christian liberty as to this matter , he therefore calls the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the strong in the faith : v. . he exhorts them in a most admirable discourse on this subject throughout the whole chapter , to bear the infirmities of the weak ; i. e. not to grieve nor despise them for their mistaken zeal , but by complying a little , and condescending to their infirmities , to endeavour , if it should please god , to draw them out of their error . let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification . and then concludes all in the words of the text , wherein we have , first , a hearty prayer to god almighty , that he would inspire them so effectually with a spirit of vnity and charity , that notwithstanding all their differences , they might joyn unanimously , both jews and gentiles , not only in the same common worship of god , but with the same hearty affection to one another : now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus ; that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. and , secondly , an exhortation , as the final result of his whole discourse , that they should with all charitable condescension and kindness receive , and love , and assist one another , and not despise , and censure , and deprive one another , either of their charity , or their communion ; wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us , to the glory of god. in which words , as they thus lye before us in the occasion and design of them , there are two things that will offer themselves to our consideration . first , an exhortation to these dissenting christians , and in them to all of us , not to break either charity or communion with one another , upon the account of such things wherein we may securely differ ; but mutually to bear with one another in our differences . secondly , an enforcement of this exhortation , from two of the greatest considerations that can possibly engage any christian to an observance of it ; viz. first , from the example of christ towards us . secondly , from the greater glory that will hereby redound to god. wherefore receive ye one another , as christ also received us , to the glory of god. i shall make it my endeavour , with all the plainness that i can , to pursue both the exhortation and the enforcement in the three following propositions . i. that there may be differences in matters of lesser moment , between very good and zealous christians , without any just reflection either upon the men , or upon their religion . ii. that these differences ought not to hinder such persons from agreeing together not only in a common charity , but if it be possible , in a common worship of god too . iii. that to this end it is the duty of all christians , but especially of those who are the strong in faith , not only to pray for such a vnion , but , as they have opportunity , heartily to labour themselves , and earnestly to stir up all others , to endeavour after it . and , first ; that there may be differences in matters of lesser moment between very good and zealous christians , without any just reflection upon the men , or upon their religion . for proof of which , i think i need go no farther than the very history of my text. i have already said how great a division there was between the jewish and the gentile converts , about the ritual observances of the law of moses , and with what a zeal the dissenting parties managed the dispute , till they had almost lost their charity , and made a deplorable schism in the church of christ. and yet i am confident no man will say that this was at all derogatory either to the truth of their common christianity , or to the infallible authority with which the apostles had deliver'd it unto them . and for the parties themselves that thus differ'd with one another , that they had a true zeal on both sides for the glory of god , and thought it matter of conscience , the one to observe these ceremonial institutions as what god still required of them ; the other to refuse any such imposition , as not only a needless burden , but even repugnant to the grace of christ declared to them in his gospel ; s. paul , in the prosecution of this very argument , does clearly bear witness to them , ch. xiv . . where he makes use of this very thing as one reason why they should mutually tolerate one another in their dissensions ; viz. that however they differ'd in their notions as to these particulars , yet they were both perfectly agreed in the same common zeal for the glory of god , and the discharge of their duty . he that regardeth the day , regardeth it unto the lord ; and he that regardeth not the day , to the lord he doth not regard it . he that eateth , eateth to the lord , for he giveth god thanks ; and he that eateth not , to the lord he eateth not , and giveth god thanks . and indeed , either we must say , that all , even the least points , relating to our religion , are so clearly and plainly revealed , that no honest man can possibly be mistaken , if he will but impartially enquire into them ; which from the differences of whole parties concerning these things , 't is plain they are not : or else men's different capacities , and opportunities , and tempers , and education consider'd , 't is in vain to expect that all good men should agree in all their notions of religion , any more than we see they do in any other concerns whatsoever . and who am i , that i should dare to pronounce a sentence of reprobation against any one , in whom there appear all the other characters of an humble , upright , sincere christian , only because he has not perhaps met with the same instruction , or read the same books , or do's not argue the same way ; in a word , because he is not so wise , or it may be , is wiser than i am , and sees farther than i do , and therefore is not exactly of my opinion in every thing . now if this be so , as both the principles of reason conclude it very well may be , and the common experience of mankind , not only in the particular concern of religion , but in most other things assures us that it is : that men's understandings are different , and they will argue different waies , and entertain different opinions from one another , about the same things , and yet may nevertheless deserve on all sides , to be esteemed very good and wise men for all that : how vain then must that argument be , which a late author of the church of rome , has with so much pomp revived against us , from our differences in a few lesser points of our religion , to conclude us to be erroneous in the greater ; and that because we are not exactly of the same opinion in every thing , that therefore we ought to be credited in nothing ; that is to say , that because protestants when they differ , are mistaken on one side , therefore when they agree , they are mistaken on both ? st . it is certain that amidst all our other divisions , we are yet on all sides agreed in whatsoever is fundamental in the faith , or necessary to be believed and professed by us in order to our salvation . there is no good protestant , but what does firmly believe all the articles of the apostles creed ; and embraces the holy scriptures as the word of god , and rule of his faith , and readily acknowledges whatsoever is plainly revealed therein , and is at all times disposed to submit to any thing that can by any necessary and certain consequence be proved to him thereby . in short , our differences , whatsoever they are , i will be bold to say , they do no more , nor even so much concern the foundations of christianity , as those of the judaizing christians here did . if their differing therefore with one another , was no prejudice to the truth of their common christianity then , i would fain know for what reason our differences , which are lesser , shall become so much a greater argument against our common christianity now . but , secondly , if our differing from one another in some points , be an argument that we are not certain in any ; how , shall we be sure that those of the church of rome are not altogether as uncertain as we are ; seeing we are sure that they do no less differ among themselves , and that in points too , much more considerable than we do ? for to take only one instance instead of many , and that so considerable , that card. bellarmin once thought the sum of christianity , he meant the sum of popery , to consist in it , viz. the prerogatives of the bishop of rome , both in and over the church of christ. * some there are who hold the pope to be head of the church , by divine right : others the contrary . * some , that he is infallible : others , that he is not . * some , that the pope alone , without a council , may determine all controversies : others , that he cannot . now if in these , and many other points of no less importance , they themselves are as far from agreeing with one another , as they can possibly pretend us to be ; what shall hinder us , but that we return their own inference upon them , that seeing they differ among themselves in such things as these , they are so far from that absolute infallibility they set up for , that in truth they have not so much as any certainty among them , even in those points wherein they do agree . is it that in their church , tho , there be indeed as many differences as in ours , yet this makes not against them , seeing they have a certain rule , whenever they please , for the composing of them , viz. the definition of the pope , and of the church ? this indeed , i find is commonly said by them : but then certainly , if they have such a ready means , as they say , of agreement among them , 't is the more shame for them , that they do not agree ; he being much more inexcusably guilty in the omission of any duty , who having a ready means to fulfil it , neglects so to do ; than he who has none ; or , which is the same thing , does not know that he has any . but indeed they have no means of ending their differences , any more than we have ; the holy scriptures we both of us acknowledg to be the word of god , and an infallible rule of faith ; but for any other direction , they are not yet agreed where to seek it : and sure that can be no very good means of ending all their other differences , which is it self one of their chiefest controversies . or is it , that they agree in matters of faith , and differ only in those things that do not belong to it ? because if they differ about any point , they for that very reason , conclude it to be no matter of faith. but besides the impenitence of this answer , which amounts to no more than this , that they do agree in what they do agree , and differ only in those things in which they differ : this is what we say for our selves concerning our differences ; we agree in all those things that are necessary to a sound and saving faith ; and if we differ in matters of lesser moment , 't is no more than what all other christians have ever done , and what those of the church of rome it self at this day do . so that still it must remain , either that those differences which were among the christians of old , and which are among us now , are no prejudice at all to the common truth which we profess ; or if they be , the consequence will fall upon those of the church of rome no less , that i do not say , and more severely , than upon us , and be of the same force against their religion , that it can be against ours . but i must carry this reflection a great deal farther ; for , thirdly , if once this principle be allowed , that because men differ in some things , they ought not to be credited in any , what then will become , not only of the protestant religion , as it now stands in opposition to popery , but even of christianity it self ? for might not a turk or a jew , if he were minded to give himself so much trouble to so little purpose as this late author has done , draw out a large history of the variations of christians among themselves , from the controversie of the text , unto this day ; and then by the very same principle conclude against us all , that we have none of us any certain grounds for our religion , because the differences that are among us , plainly shew , that some of us must be deceived ? and to go yet one step farther ; might not a sceptick by the same rule , argue against all religion , and even against all reason too ; that the disagreement of mankind in these and many other points of the greatest importance , clearly proves that there is no certainty in any thing ; and therefore that we ought not to rely either upon the one , or upon the other ? it remains therefore , that unless we will overthrow all the measures of christian charity towards our neighbour , and the common truth , i do not say both of their faith and of our own , but even of christianity it self , nay and of all religion and reason in general ; we must conclude , that good christians may differ from one another in matters of lesser moment , without any just reflection either upon themselves or their religion . but here therefore i must desire not to be misunderstood . for when i say , that christians may , without any danger to themselves , or disparagement to the truth of their religion , differ with one another ; i mean only , as the terms of my proposition expresly shew , in lesser matters ; such as do not concern the fundamentals of faith , nor destroy the worship of god ; nor are otherwise so clearly revealed , but that wise and good men , after all their enquiries , may still continue to differ in their opinions concerning them . for otherwise , if interest and prejudice blind men's eyes , and they err because they resolve they will not be convinced ; and so by their own fault continue in mistakes contrary to the foundation of faith , and destructive of piety : if , for instance , men will profess to believe but in one god , and yet worship thousands ; if they will read over the second commandment , and nevertheless both make and bow down before graven images in despite of it ; if , whilst they acknowledge christ to have instituted the blessed eucharist in both kinds , they command it to be administred but in one ; and pray in an unknown tongue , tho' s. paul has spent almost a whole chapter to shew the folly and unreasonableness of it : these are errors in which i am not concerned ; and tho i should be unwilling , even here , at all adventures to pronounce any sentence against the men ; yet i must needs say , that religion cannot be very sound , which stands corrupted with so many , and such fundamental abuses . and this makes the difference between those errors for which we separate from the church of rome , and those controversies which sometimes arise among protestants themselves . the former are in matters of the greatest consequence , such as tend directly to overthrow the integrity of faith , and the purity of our worship ; and therefore such as are in their own nature destructive of the very essentials of christianity . whereas our differences do not at all concern the foundations either of faith or worship ; and are therefore such in which good men , if they be otherwise diligent and sincere in their enquiry , may differ , without any prejudice to themselves , or any just reflection upon the truth of their common profession . which being thus cleared , in answer to the little endeavours of one of the latest of our adversaries against us upon this account ; i go on , secondly , to shew , secondly , that such differences as these , ought not to hinder such persons from agreeing together , not only in a common charity ; but , if it be possible , in a common worship of god too . this is what s. paul here expresly exhorts these dissenting christians to , and earnestly praies to god that he might see accomplished in them . that when they came together to the publick offices of the church , to offer up their common prayers and thanksgivings to him , they might do it , not only in the same form of words , but with the same affection of mind too , both towards god , and towards one another : now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus ; that ye may with one mind and one mouth glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. such was their duty to one another then ; and we ought certainly no less to esteem the same to be our duty towards one another now : and . as to the business of charity ; god forbid that any differences in religion whatsoever , much less such little ones as those we are now speaking of , should ever make us deny that to our fellow christians . 't is true indeed , our saviour christ once foretold to his disciples , that there should rise up men from among their brethren , who should upon this account not only put them out of their synagogues , but even think that it was a matter of religion to kill them . but they were jews , not christians , who were to do this ; and he expresly adds , that 't was their ignorance of him and his religion that should carry them on to so furious and intemperate a zeal ; for these things , saies he , shall they do unto you , because they have not known the father nor me. and we must confess it , to the scandal of our holy religion , that there are a sort of men who call themselves christians now , that still continue to fulfil this prophecy in the very letter of it ; who not only cast us out of their synagogues , that we should not much complain of ; and , as far as in them lies , cut us off from all the hopes of salvation too ; but , to compleat the parallel , openly arm the whole world against us , and teach men to believe , that 't is a work of piety to root us out of it ; and therefore , that whosoever killeth us , does do god service . but in this , as well as in the rest of their errors , they give us but the more effectually to understand how little they have in them of the true spirit of christianity ; for sure such things as these they could never do , but only that , as our saviour in that other case before said , they have not known the father nor him. and i hope i shall need no argument to perswade you not to be mis-led by that , which we all of us so justly lament , as one of the most deplorable corruptions even of popery it self . christianity commands us to love our enemies , and sure then we cannot but think it very highly reasonable not to hate our brethren ; but especially on such an account , as , if it be once admitted , will in this divided state of the church , utterly drive the very name of brotherly love and charity out of it : seeing by whatsoever arguments we shall go about to justifie our uncharitableness to any others , they will all equally warrant them to with-hold in like manner their charity from us . there is no honest , sincere christian , how erroneous soever he may be , but what at least is perswaded that he is in the right ; and looks upon us to be as far from the truth by differing from him , as we esteem him for not agreeing with us . now if upon the sole account of such differences it be lawful for us to hate another ; we must for the very same reason allow it to be as lawful for him also to hate us. thus shall we at once invert the characteristick of our religion ; by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples , if ye have love one to another ; and turn it into the quite contrary note : whilst we make our hatred to our brother the great mark of our zeal for our religion ; and conclude him to love christ the most , who the least loves his fellow christian. how much rather ought we to consider , with our apostle , the love of our dear master to us , even whilst we were yet his enemies , and love those whom we ought to hope , notwithstanding all their errors , are yet still his friends ; and not think those unworthy of our charity , whom we piously presume god will not think unworthy of his favour ? we suppose them to be mistaken in those things wherein they differ from us , and perhaps they are so ; but yet we must consider , that we our selves also are but men , and therefore may err ; and they as verily think us in the wrong , as we do them : and , for ought i know , we must leave it to the day of judgment to decide the controversie , which of us is in the right . in the mean time , if they are mistaken , i am sure our uncharitableness is not the way to convince them of their error : but may rather indispose them to consider the weight of our arguments as they ought , whilst they see so little regard in our affections towards them . in short , if we are indeed , what we esteem our selves to be , the strong in the faith , let us then remember , that tho' charity be their duty too as well as ours , yet 't is to such as we are , especially , that st. paul addresses the exhortation of the text , to bear the infirmities of the weak ; and to receive one another , as christ also hath recived us , to the glory of god. but , . such differences as these , ought not only not to lessen our charity , but , if it be possible , not to hinder us from joyning together in the same common worship of god with one another . this was what these dissenting christians , notwithstanding all their heats and contentions , nevertheless still continued to do . they did with one mouth glorifie god , even when their differences would not suffer them to do it with one heart . they united together in a common worship of god , tho' they could not unite either in opinion or affection with one another . indeed where mens errors are such as do utterly subvert the very essentials of our religious worship , it is there in vain to hope for any communion in the publick service of god with them . we must not destroy the principles of christianity , out of a zeal to enlarge the communion of christians . he would be a very condescending votary indeed , who for the sake of praying to god with the papist , would pray to the blessed virgin and saints too with him : who rather than be excluded their churches , would bow down before their images ; and not only worship their host , but even give up his right to the cup in the eucharist , only that he might receive that holy sacrament in their company . it is , no doubt , a very desirable thing to lessen the differences of christians , and enlarge their communion , as far as ever we can : and it has never gone well with the church of christ , since men have been so narrow-spirited as to mix the controversies of faith , with their publick forms of worship ; and have made their liturgies , instead of being offices of devotion to god , become tests and censures of the opinions of their brethren . but yet when all is done , the truths of christianity must not be sacrificed to the peace of christians ; nor the honour of god be given up , to keep up a vnity and communion with one another . but where mens differences are in points that do not at all affect their religious service ; or not so much , but that god may be very well worshipp'd , and yet communion with our fellow christians preserved too ; in such cases as this , our dissentions ought not only not to lessen our charity , but not to break our vnity neither : we may continue to differ , as the christians in my text did ; and yet with one mind , and one mouth , glorifie god , as st. paul exhorted them to do . and this brings me to the third and last point . thirdly , that to this end , it is the duty of all of us , but especially of the stronger christians , not only to pray for such a union , but also , as they have opportunity , heartily to labour themselves , and earnestly to stir up all others to endeavour after it . i do not believe there is any good christian so little affected with those unhappy divisions under which the church at this day labours , as not both heartily to deplore them , and to think that nothing could be too much , that might innocently be done on all hands , for the redressing of them . but then i am sure the natural consequence of this must be , what both my text , and this discourse are designed to exhort you to ; viz. that we ought every one of us , not only heartily to pray for such a vnion ; but also , as we have opportunity , earnestly to labour for the attainment of it . indeed for what concerns the whole body of the catholick church on earth , so many are the disputes that have arisen among the several parties and communions of it , and some of them in points so near to the foundations of christianity , that whilst men resolve to keep fast to their conclusions , and will not suffer the plainest arguments to convince them of their errors , 't is in vain to hope ever to see things brought to such a temper , as we could wish in that . but especially whilst that part which is the most corrupt , is so far from being willing to concur to any such vnion , that on the contrary , she has cut off all possibility of attaining it : and by arrogating an unwarrantable infallibility to her self , and authority over all others , will neither reform her own abuses , nor admit any into her communion , that will not profess the same errors , in which she her self stands involved . so that here , all we can even wish for , is , that men would at last be so wise , as tho' they differ in opinion , yet to love as brethren , and agree together in a common charity , till we shall be so happy as to unite in a common faith and worship of god. but for us whom it has pleased god , by delivering us from the errors and superstitions of the church of rome , to unite together in the common name of protestant , reformed christians , would we but as heartily labour after peace , as we are all of us very highly exhorted to it ; i cannot see why we who are so happily joyn'd together in a common profession of the same faith , at least , i am sure in all the necessary points of it ; and i hope amidst all our lesser differences , in a common love and charity to one another , should not also be united in the same common worship of god too . i will not now enter into any dispute , to shew how little reason there is for any one to separate from the offices of the church of england , upon the account of those few exceptions that have sometimes been offer'd to justifie the doing of it . this is a work both too large for such a discourse ; and besides the design of my present undertaking . and that one concession of many of our brethren themselves , who tho' they continue ordinarily to separate from us , yet nevertheless freely allow of what they call occasional communion with us , i think sufficiently shews how little real ground there is for those scruples , that have so long detain'd them in an unjust aversion to our worship . blessed be god , who has abundantly justified both the purity of our doctrin , and the innocency of our worship , not only by the general approbation of the reformed churches abroad , who both freely communicate with us in our religious offices , and have often given testimony in favour of them ; but in the happy conviction of many at home , who were once enemies to our constitution , but who now go with us into the same house of god as friends . and indeed the things for which some forsake us now , are no other than what they were in the beginning of the reformation ; when yet there was no such thing as separation from our communion : but on the contrary , the old non-conformists themselves , tho' they disliked some things in our worship , yet freely declared they thought it a crime to divide the church on the account of them . and they who at this day separate from us , for the sake of those few constitutions that have been made for the order and decency of our publick worship , must for the same reason have separated from all the churches of the christian world , for above years ; in none of which they might not have found as great , that i do not say , and much greater , occasion of offence , than they can in ours . but yet , since mens scruples are unaccountable , and after all that can be said , they will still differ even about indifferent things , and be afraid many times , where no fear is ; and a too long experience has already shewn us , that if ever we mean to accomplish that union so much recommended to us by our apostle , so advantagious to the church at all times , but especially at this time so necessary to our peace and our establishment , that it seems to be the only way that yet remains to settle and to secure us ; and upon all these accounts , so much to be desired by all good men , we must seek it by that rule which st. paul here proposed to the dissenting christians of my text , we then that are strong in the faith , ought to bear the infirmities of the weak , and not to please our selves . i cannot but think it a reflection becoming every good christian among us , but in a more especial manner , worthy the consideration of such an auditory as this , whether somewhat may not yet be done for the sake of peace , and to bring things to such a * temper , that both order and decency may still be preserved , and yet our vnity no longer broken . and for exhortations to so good and christian a work , shall i set before you the example of our blessed saviour recommended to us in the text , with what a mighty condescension he has treated us ; how he came down from heaven , and took upon him the form of a servant , and being made in the likeness of a sinful man , humbled himself even to the death upon the cross for us ? how he still bears not only with our infirmities , but with our sins too ; and by all these wonderful instances of his love to us , teacheth us , says st. john , how we ought also to love one another ? or rather , shall i shew you , how far such a blessed vnion as this , would conduce to the glory of god , to the security of our religion , and to the promotion of peace and charity , and piety among us ? i need not say what a dishonour our divisions have already brought to the reformation , nor what a stop they have put to the progress of it great , to be sure , is the advantage which our enemies either have , or at least hoped to have made , by those contests which they have taken so much pains both to bring in , and to keep up among us : and methinks there should need no other argument to stir up every true friend to the name of protestant , to endeavour all he can to compose our differences , than this one thing , that we are sufficiently convinced who they are that we please , and whose interests we serve , by the continuance of them . let us add to this , what great obligations our holy religion lays upon us , to follow after those things that make for peace , and whereby we may edifie one another : how our saviour has set it down as the very badge of our discipleship ; by this shall all men know that ye are my disciples , if ye have love one to another : what exhortations his apostles have given us ; if it be possible , as much as in us lies , to live peaceably with all men . but especially with reference to the differences about religion , to mark them which cause divisions and offences , contrary to the doctrine which we have learnt , and avoid them . with what a scrupulous care did st. paul manage himself between the dissenting parties in my text ? what admirable rules did he lay down for them to walk by ? and with what an affectionate earnestness did he enforce them ? if there be any consolation in christ , if any comfort of love , if any fellowship of the spirit , if any bowels and mercies , fulfil ye my joy , that ye be like-minded , having the same love , being of one accord , of one mind . and may i not beg leave , tho' not with the authority , yet with the charity of st. paul , to apply all this to those unhappy divisions that at this day rend in pieces the church of christ among us ; and beseech you , by all these endearing considerations , to pursue those things which may make for our peace ; and for the closing of those breaches , which the malice of our enemies too successfully begun , and our own weakness has too fatally kept up among us . never , certainly , was there a time , since the name of separation was first heard of among us , in which we had greater reason to consider of such a vnion ; or , i hope , a fairer opportunity to promise our selves an accomplishment of it . only let us be on all hands as careful to improve it , as i am persuaded we have all of us not only seem'd to desire , but have indeed earnestly long'd for it . let us shew the sense we have of that wonderful deliverance god has given us out of the hand of our enemies , by uniting our selves in the strictest league of friendship with one another . hitherto we have defended our church by our arguments ; let us now by our charity settle and establish it , against the like dangers for the time to come . this will indeed render both our selves and our religion glorious to the world ; and may be a happy augury that the blessed time so long wrapped up in sacred prophecy , is indeed now ready to be revealed : when the church of christ being purged from those corruptions that have so long defaced its beauty , shall again appear in its primitive purity . when all heresie and schism being every where abolished , and the mystery of iniquity laid fully open , and the man of sin destroyed ; true religion and sincere piety shall again reign throughout the world ; god himself shall pitch his tabernacle among us , and dwell with us , and we shall be his people , and he shall be our god. o blessed state of the church militant here on earth ! the glorious antepast of that peace and piety which god has prepared for his church triumphant in heaven ! who would not wish to see those days , when a general reformation , and a true zeal , and a perfect charity , passing through the world , we should all be united in the same faith , the same worship , the same communion and fellowship one with another ? when all pride and prejudice , all interests and designs being submitted to the honour of god , and the discharge of our duty , the holy scriptures shall again triumph over the vain traditions of men ; and religion no longer take its denomination from little sects and factions , but we shall all be content with the same common primitive names of christians and brethren , and live together as becomes our character , in brotherly love and christian charity with one another ? and who can tell but such a change as this , and which we have otherwise some reason to believe is nigh at hand , may even now break forth from the midst of us , would we but all seriously labour to perfect the great work which the providence of god has so gloriously begun among us , and establish that love and vnity among our selves , which may afterwards diffuse it self from us into all the other parts of the christian world besides ? but however , whether we shall ever see , i do not say , such a blessed effect as this , but even any good effect at all of our endeavours here on earth , or no ; yet this we are sure , we shall not lose our reward in heaven . when to have contributed , tho' in the least degree , to the healing of those divisions we so unhappily labour under , shall be esteemed a greater honour , than to have silenced all the cavils of our enemies ; and even to have pray'd , and wish'd for it , and , where we could not any otherwise have contributed our selves , but to have exhorted others to it , shall be rewarded with blessings , more than all the stars in the firmament for number . now the god of patience and consolation , grant you to be like-minded one towards another , according to christ jesus : that ye may with one mind , and one mouth , glorifie god , even the father of our lord jesus christ : to him be honour and praise for ever and ever . amen . a sermon preach'd before the honourable house of commons , at st. margaret's westminster , june th . . being the fast-day appointed by the king and queen's proclamation , to implore the blessing of almighty god upon their majesties forces by sea and land , and success in the war , now declared , against the french king . jovis o die junii , . resolved , that the thanks of this house be given to mr. wake for the sermon he preached before them yesterday ; and that he be desired to print the same . ordered , that mr. grey do give him the thanks , and acquaint him with the desires of this house accordingly . paul jodrell , cl. dom. com. of the nature and benefit of a publick humiliation . joel ii . , . therefore also now saith the lord , turn ye even to me with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . and rent your heart , and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god , for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil. though the time of this prophecy be uncertain , so that neither the jewish rabbins , nor christian antiquaries are able to give us any tolerable account of it , yet is the design plain , and the words of my text a most proper and pathetick enforcement of the great duty of this day , to turn unto the lord our god with all our heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning , — for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil. if we look into the foregoing chapter , we shall there find an astonishing account of the great evils that were just ready to befall the jews for their sins . but that which is yet more surprising , is , that though all this was about to come upon them , yet were they nevertheless insensible of their danger , nor took any the least care to prevent their utter desolation . to awaken a stupid and inconsiderate people , a nation dead in sin and security , in the beginning of this chapter he prepares a lofty and magnificent scene . he sets before them a prophecy of yet greater dangers than any they had hitherto experimented , and that in a manner so unusual , with such a pomp of words , and in such triumphant expressions , as carry a terror even in the repetition of them : blow ye the trumpet in zion , sound an allarm in my holy mountain ; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble , for the day of the lord cometh ; for it is nigh at hand : a day of darkness and of gloo●iness ; a day of clouds and of thick darkness ; as the morning spread upon the mountains ; a great people and a strong , there hath not been ever the like , neither shall be any more after it . a fire devours before them , and behind them a flame burneth : the land is as the garden of eden before them , and behind them a desolate wilderness . the earth shall quake before them ; the heavens shall tremble ; the sun and the moon shall be dark ; and the stars shall withdraw their shining . whatever be the import of these phrases ; whether by the mighty and terrible host here spoken of , we are only to understand that swarm of (a) locusts , and other insects , that , we are (b) before told , were utterly to devour all the fruits of the land : or whether under the character of these , we shall (c) with most interpreters , comprehend the numerous and mighty armies of the chaldeans and babylonians , which at divers times brought such desolations , as we read of , upon the jews : this is plain , that we have here the denunciation of some judgment worthy of god , and great as the sins and incorrigibleness that occasion'd it . and now , who would not here expect the final desolation of such a people as this ? but behold , god even yet in his anger remembers mercy ; and tho' they had hitherto neglected all the calls and invitations of his holy prophets to repentance , yet he resolves once more to try , whether they would now , at least in their dangers , hearken to his admonitions : he raises up joel at once both to set before them his judgments , if they continu'd still impenitent ; and to encourage them , by repenting , not only to prevent their ruine , but to assure themselves of his favour . that though they had so long neglected him , yet if they would (c) now even now at the last , return with a true zeal , and a sincere affection to their duty , they should not fail to meet with a favourable acceptance from him : therefore also now saith the lord , turn ye even to me , with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning : and rent your heart , and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god : for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . it is not my intention to seek a a parallel of all this , either in the sins , or in the danger of our own country . i would willingly hope , that neither our guilt , nor our incorrigibleness have been so heinous as theirs , nor shall any such deplorable judgment as this , ever , i trust , be made the punishment of what our iniquities have indeed but too justly deserved . no , blessed be god , who by a wonderful concurrence of great and singular mercies , seems rather to call upon us to celebrate his goodness , than to deprecate his judgments ; to praise his name in hymns of triumph and eucharist , than to weep between the porch and the altar , in melancholy litanies to avert his anger , and implore his mercy . but yet since the goodness , as well as judgments of the lord , are designed to bring us to repentance , and that whether we look back into our own particular actions , or consider those publick and national transgressions , whereby we have so long and loudly call'd to heaven for vengeance ; we must with shame and indignation confess our selves some of the greatest of sinners ; i cannot but think , both the solemn occasion of this day , and the design of my text , to be a most proper and seasonable admonition to us , to turn unto the lord our god , and to implore his blessing upon our present enterprises , that those vile insects , the locusts and caterpillars , that have so barbarously consumed our neighbours round about us ; our worse than assyrian or babylonian enemies , may not be able to prevail against us . and indeed , however it has pleased god , as at this time , to give us some encouragement to trust in his mercy ; yet we cannot so soon forget , that we have also born the punishment of our sins . for not to repass upon the things that are at a greater distance from us ; let the instances still fresh in all our memories , speak to us : what just apprehensions did we but very lately lye under of our lives , and of what is yet dearer to us than our lives , our liberty , and our religion ? how did our enemies not only project our ruin , but as if it were already accomplished , begin to say in their hearts , nay , they began freely to speak it out to us ; aha! so would we have it : persecute them , and take them ; for there is none to deliver them . and if now we are no longer exposed to those dangers that so lately threatned us ; if god has begun , upon our late more serious concern for religion , and more general return to him , to give us some testimony of his gracious designations towards us ; this certainly ought to be so far from lessening our solemn humiliation at this time , that it should rather engage us to be the more forward in perfecting our repentance , the greater encouragement we have to hope , that it shall be accepted at our hands . and i must now beg leave , with so much the more earnestness to enforce the duty of my text ; therefore also now , saith the lord , turn ye even to me with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning : and rent your hearts , and not your garments , and turn unto the lord your god. by how much i hope i may with the greater assurance propose to you the promise of it for your encouragement : for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . i have already pointed out to you the two great parts of my text ; and which must therefore be the subject of my discourse upon it ; viz. i. the address of the holy prophet to his countrey , and in that the exhortation , which i am earnestly in the name of god to recommend unto you this day ; to turn unto the lord your god with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . ii. the great encouragement which he offer'd to induce them , and which ought to be of no less a force to stir up all of us to a serious and diligent performance of it : for he is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil . i begin with the former of these , the exhortation of my text : i. to turn unto the lord your god with all your heart , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . and here i presume i shall not need to tell you , that all this is but a larger paraphrase of what i may in other words call a general and national repentance , of those publick and national sins which had provoked god almighty to send down so many judgments upon them , and to threaten them with yet greater , if they continued still in their impenitence . and indeed , what could be more reasonable , than by such a solemn and universal acknowledgment both of the evils they had committed , and of the judgments which they deserved , and of the sorrow they were now touch'd with for their offences ; to appease god's anger for that general incorrigibleness , by which they had so long exposed both his goodness and his justice to contempt , among the heathen round about him ? for however it be very certain , that all the outward pomp and solemnity of repentance , the fasting , and the weeping , and the mourning , are at best but a form of godliness , empty and unprofitable , unless there be also added to these that true inward change of mind , in which alone consists the power of it ; yet there may be such circumstances and cases put , wherein this duty must pass beyond the heart and the closet : and the humiliation will be imperfect , if it be not as publickly set forth to the eyes of men , as it is sincerely perform'd in the sight of god. and such especially must be the repentance for national sins . where mens transgressions have been open and notorious , there their return also must be no less solemn and evident ; that so the honour as well as justice of god may be vindicated in their forgiveness ; and some sort of reparation made not only for the guilt which they have contracted , but also for the scandal which they have given to his honour and religion in the world. now 't is this which at once both declares the piety , and commands the publick humiliation of this day . and for the due discharge whereof , i must intreat you to go along with me in these following reflections . first , that though , as i have just now shewn , there must be the publick marks of sorrow and humiliation in our publick repentance , yet we must by no means stop in these ; nor thinks that this is all that god requires of us in order to our forgiveness . this was indeed the vanity of the jews heretofore , and is too much the folly of some misguided christians now . their indignation against their sins , and against themselves for having committed them , was spent especially in the outward appearance of sorrow : they rent their cloaths , and put on sackcloth ; they wept , and fasted , and went softly ; and then they supposed they had done their business ; though it may be their souls were not yet humbled ; nor their hearts at all broken with any true contrition for their sins . and so among those of the church of rome at this day . if we may believe some of their greatest casuists , an external worship is sufficient to carry a man to heaven , without the trouble of the true inward devotion of the soul : he may repent without contrition ; may fast with a full meal : nay , and if the pope pleases , (c) may obtain a plenary remission of his sins , se ancho non fosse confesso ne contrito ; though he has neither confess'd them to any priest , nor finds in his own heart any manner of contrition for them . i shall not need to say how many (d) new ways of salvation of this kind they have found out ; by wearing leathern girdles about their loins , or scapularies over their shoulders ; by listing themselves into such or such certain fraternities ; by dressing of altars , and going on pilgrimages ; by holy water , and agnus dei's : and all which , and infinite more of the like kind , if , as our late masters tell us , they are not authorized by their church , yet i am sure are publickly recommended by their greatest men , and generally practised too , without any censure or contradiction among them . this is certain , that all these , and whatever artifices of the like kind , men may please either to flatter themselves , or to delude others withal , without a true contrition , and a serious reformation , they are all but vanity ; they make a shew of piety in the eyes of men , but they avail nothing to our forgiveness with god. i will not now dispute of what use some of these external performances may be to assist our repentance , and render our sorrow for sin the more solemn , and so in some cases , as i have before observed , the more pleasing to god. i know well enough that st. paul has told us , that bodily exercise , where 't is discreetly order'd , does profit a little , though it be not like godliness , profitable for all things . but then as 't is plain , that the greatest part of those follies so much magnified and recommended in the church of rome , are but vain and ridiculous impositions to cheat the silly and superstitious multitude ; so 't is certain , that the best of these things are neither in themselves meritorious , much less satisfactory for sins , as they pretend them to be ; nor otherwise of any value at all with god , than as they are attended with that true repentance , which alone can either incline his mercy , or obtain our forgiveness . if we will therefore make our solemn (e) humiliation this day acceptable to god , and available to our selves , our country , and our religion , we must take the method of the prophet in our text : we must turn unto the lord our god with all our heart , and then our fasting , and our weeping , and our mourning shall indeed be pleasing unto him . we must rent our hearts , and not , i. e. rather than our garments ; must humble our souls first , and then the violence we do our bodies will be consider●d by him . when jonah denounced god's judgments against niniveh , we read in his d. chapter ▪ that the people of niniveh believed , and proclaimed a fast , and put on sackcloth , from the greatest of them , even unto the least . (f) but was this therefore that repentance for which he spared them ? no , it is not so much as once mentioned among the reasons of it . it was the reformation of their lives that tied up his hand . and sheathed his sword , ver . . and god saw their works , that they turn'd from their evil way ; and god repented of the evil that he said he would do unto them , and he did it not . . and this brings me to a second remark for the farther clearing of this great duty , viz. that not only these outward marks of penitence are not sufficient to the discharge of it , but though we should to these add a true and real sorrow of heart for the sins we have committed , even this would not be sufficient to purchase our forgiveness . now by true sorrow , i do not mean that little imperfect sorrow , which looks rather to the danger of our condition , than to the heinousness of our offences ; and bewails our transgressions more out of an apprehension of those judgments that may be the consequence of them , than out of any real regret that we have sinned against a most gracious and merciful god. for however those of the other communion , out of their great tenderness to sinners , have declared such a sorrow as this , if accompanied with confession , to be sufficient * to dispose men to obtain the grace of god by the sacrament of penance : and therefore have resolved , that true † contrition , or a sorrow for sin committed , with a purpose of sinning no more , is not necessary to the sacrament of penance , after the commission of mortal sin , but that attrition is sufficient , though a man knows it to be no more : yet i suppose it needless in this place to obviate any such gross error , however otherwise of very great danger , in the practice of this duty . be the sorrow for sin never so sincere ; and our resolutions thereupon no more to return to the commission of it never so firm and well grounded , yet if instead of making good these resolutions we shall stop here , we are but half penitents ; seeing we yet want that change of life , which alone is able to compleat the nature , and render the practice of our repentance acceptable unto god , and available to our forgiveness . . in short , thirdly , if we will truly discharge that repentance , to which we are here called , we must do it not by being sorry for our sins , or by resolving against them , but by an effectual forsaking of them ; i. e. as our text speaks , by turning unto the lord our god. this is that which alone can implore his favour , and commend us to his mercy . and this was what i before observed in the case of niniveh : when god saw their works , that they turned from their evil way , then he repented him of the evil that he had said he would do unto them , and he did it not . nay , but it is not any turning unto god , that will suffice neither : we must turn * even unto him , and with all our † heart : words very emphatical , and which offer to us two great conditions , which are absolutely necessary to render our conversion every way such as it ought to be . first , that it must be hearty and sincere : there must be nothing of the hypocrite mix'd with it ; our souls must go along with our outward performances ; and these penitential appearances be the true declariations of that real , inward sorrow , which we feel in our hearts for our offences . for god is not a man , that he should be mocked . he sees into our very souls , and knows the secrets of all the children of men. and secondly , that it must be intire , and without reserve : as we must be sorry for every sin we have already committed , so we must resolve against ever committing any for the time to come ; for god is of purer eyes than to behold the least iniquity ; and if our repentance be sincere , so shall we be too . the same piety which moves us to hate any evil , will equally fill us with an aversion against all . and if we desire to continue but in one offence , it is because that we do truly repent of none . so that now then if we will answer the design of this day ; if we will render our fast such as the lord has chosen , and has promised to reward with the blessings both of this life , and of that which is to come , we must not think it enough that we comply with the outward ceremonies and shew of repentance , but we must indeed resolve to bring forth the fruits of it . whilst we address our selves to god for pardon , we must take heed to dispose our souls in such a manner , that we may be fit to receive it . and if we thus improve the great solemnity of this day , we shall not fail to meet with a favourable acceptance at the throne of grace . god will be jealous for his land , and pity his people : he will perfect the great deliverance he has begun for us , and once more render us the fear and the terror of all our enemies round about us . our faith , which has so often triumph'd over all the arguments of its adversaries , shall now no less triumph over all their black designs to root it out , and to destroy it ; and shew to all the world , that though for our tryal god may sometimes permit the winds to blow , and the floods to rise , and the storms to beat against our church , yet has he founded it on that rock that shall never fail ; nor shall the gates of hell , either the power of france , or the cunning of the jesuit , or the malice of both , ever be able to prevail against it . and this brings me to the other thing i am to speak to : our encouragement to this duty . ii. for god is gracious and merciful , slow to anger , and of great kindness , and repenteth him of the evil. it is not at all needful for me to enter on any particular explication of all these attributes , and shew what arguments every one of them affords to engage us to repentance . two things in general there are , which will at first sight arise from them to excite us to it ; viz. first , the goodness and mercy of god to the greatest sinners upon their repentance : god is gracious and merciful , and of great kindness . secondly , his unwillingness to pronounce any judgments at all against them , and his readiness to recal them , if they repent : he is slow to anger , and repenteth him of the evil. and first , of the goodness and mercy of god to the greatest of sinners upon their repentance : he is gracious and merciful , and of great kindness . when god proclaimed his own name in the midst of the people of israel , we read exod. xxxiv . that he chose to do it , not so much in the terrible attributes of his majesty and power , as in the soft ideas of his mercy and goodness : the lord , the lord god , merciful and gracious , long-suffering , and abundant in goodness and truth ; keeping mercy for thousands , forgiving iniquity , and transgression , and sin . and if we look into all the following representations which he makes of himself , whether by his holy prophets under the legal , but especially by our blessed saviour and his apostles under the christian dispensation , we shall find there is no character he so much delights in , as this of being good and gracious , not willing that any should perish , but that all should come to repentance , pet. iii. . and now what more forcible encouragement can any one desire to bring him to repentance , than to be thus assured of the goodness and mercy of god to the greatest of sinners , if they repent ? that he will not only forgive him upon his return , but will even assist him with grace and strength in the doing of it . that he desires not the death of the most profligate offender , but rather that he should turn from his wickedness and live . in a word , that he has promised forgiveness , without exception , to the most wicked men upon their repentance ; so that if they will but yet break off their evil course , and keep his statutes , and do that which is lawful and right , they shall surely live , they shall not die , ezek. xviii . . many are the ways , and excellent the methods that god has taken to convince us of his mercy , and the time would fail me to enter on a particular consideration of them . sometimes he declares not only that he is ready to pardon us if we repent , but that he even desires we should repent , that he may forgive us . and lest his word should not be sufficient , he confirms that desire with an oath , ezek xxxiii . . as i live , saith the lord god , i have no pleasure in the death of the wicked , but that the wicked turn from his way and live : turn ye , turn ye from your evil ways , for why will ye die , o house of israel ? sometimes he expostulates with us in the way of reasoning , to see if by that means he may be able to bring us to consider his love and affection to us , isai. i. . wash ye , make ye clean , put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes ; cease to do evil , learn to do well . come now , and let us reason together , saith the lord : though your sins be as scarlet , they shall be white as snow ; though they be red like crimson , they shall be as wool. if he exhorts us to repentance , he always does it upon this promise , that he will pardon us , if we repent . if we turn from our sins , iniquity shall not be our ruine . if he threatens judgments , yet still he keeps a reserve for mercy to triumph over judgment ; and will rather be thought inconstant in his most peremptory decrees , than inexorable to repenting sinners . thus he commanded jonah to go to niniveh , and to pronounce an utter destruction against it . he fix'd the very time too , yet forty days , and niniveh shall be overthrown . but what now was the issue of all this ? were they utterly destroy'd , according to this prophecy ? nay , but on the contrary , god was yet intreated for them , and spar'd them . so we read , ver . . the city believed , and feared god , and turn'd from their evil way : and god repented of the evil that he said he would do unto them , and he did it not , jonah . and what must the consequence of all these reflections be , but to engage us not to despise the goodness of god , whereby he thus graciously invites us to repentance ; but to conclude with holy david , psal. cxxx . . if thou , lord , shouldst be extream to mark what is done amiss ; o god , who may abide it ? but there is mercy with thee , therefore shalt thou be feared . and what i have now said of gods's mercy in general , will yet more hold in the other part of this character , wherein is set out to us in particular , secondly , his great unwillingness to pronounce any judgments at all against sinners , and his readiness to recall them upon their repentance : he is slow to anger , and repenteth him of the evil. and because i would now , were i able , speak not so much to your reason , as to your sense and experience , to your consciences and affections ; i will for the proof of this , no more lead you back to the israelites in this prophecy ; to past-times , and unknown countries ; but will rather desire you to consider your own times , your own country , and , if you will allow me freely to add it , your own souls . which of all these will not afford me an evident demonstration of the patience and long-suffering of god ? and speak him in the words of the text , to be a god slow to anger , and that repenteth him of the evil ? that after so many sins , as we have every one , the very best of us , committed , we are yet alive this day ; whereas god might , if he had pleased , long since have cut us off in the midst of our sins : that after so many calls and invitations as he has sent to bring us to repentance , he is still pleased to call and to invite us to it : that notwithstanding we have so far abused his goodness and long-suffering , as to improve that which above all things should have the most engaged us to our duty , into an encouragement to go on the rather in our sins ; he nevertheless still continues to us the offers of pardon and peace , if we will even now in this our day consider the things that make for our peace : what is all this but a most demonstrative , as well as a most affectionate proof , that god is indeed slow to anger , not willing that any should perish , but that all should come to repentance ? that he has deliver'd us out of so many dangers , in which , but for his providence over us , we must long since have perish'd : that he has smitten us in mercy , and not in judgment ; to correct and admonish , not to ruine and destroy us : that upon our deprecating his anger , he has at any time heard our prayers , and answer'd our desires : what is this but a plain evidence , that he smites not willingly , nor loves to afflict the children of men : and so is a god repenting him of the evil that he is at any time forced either to threaten us with , or to bring upon us . and if we look into his dispensations towards us in the common concern of our country , and our religion ; how slow must that god have been to anger , who after so many years attendance , nevertheless still calls upon us , as at this day , to turn from our evil way , and from the violence that is in our hands , that our iniquity may not be our ruine ? and for his repenting him of the evil , which we have sometimes forced him by our continual provocations to send upon us : let the instances which we our selves have known , suffice to tell us , how unwilling he has shewn himself to bring us to an utter desolation . when it pleased god for our iniquities , to despise , in his indignation , both the king and the priest ; and by the deplorable judgment of civil confusions , had proved and exercised us about twenty years ; with what a miracle of mercy did he turn again the captivity of our sion , and restore to us both our government and religion , as before ? when this would not do , but our sins and our prosperity return'd together ; so that we were again in a very few years become ripe for judgment ; he called forth a destroying angel ; he put a new sword into his hand , and commanded him to slay his thousands , and ten thousands in our streets . the plague consum'd our strength ; and hardly was that pass'd , when another vengeance , a devouring fire , such as scarce any age or country has ever heard of , burnt down our dwellings . and had not the hand of god wonderfully interposed , we must have been as sodom , and we should have been like unto gomorrha . and yet how did he then cover us with his hand in that day of his displeasure ? he neither suffer'd our enemies to invade us from abroad , nor any domestick quarrels to embroil us at home . he preserved us in peace ; he sent again the blessings of plenty and prosperity among us , and our city is risen more great and glorious out of its ashes . what shall i say to the fears and jealousies we have labour'd under since , from a restless party , enemies to the name of protestant , and by principle conjured , if they can , to root it out of the world ? in how many dangers has god delivered us ? and how many designs , for ought we know , may he have prevented , which have not yet been brought to light ? and when at last , either to awaken us the more effectually to a repentance of our sins , or it may be to accomplish the number of their iniquities , he deliver'd us over for a little while into the hands of our enemies ; and to convince the most incredulous among us , what the true spirit of prevailing popery is , suffer'd them with such an inconsiderate fury to pursue our ruine , that no ties , either of god or man , were sufficient to restrain them ; but all obligations , whether of justice or conscience , were equally trampled under their feet : how did it then please our almighty defender to assert his character of being a god repenting him of the evil that he had brought upon us , in a manner that is the wonder and astonishment of the present ; and , that i am perswaded , shall be the praise and triumph of his church in all succeeding generations ? he raised us up a deliverer out of the house of his servant david . he touch'd his princely heart with a generous sense both of the evils which we had suffer'd , and of the greater that we apprehended . his honour and his zeal enflamed him to do somewhat worthy himself ; and that might answer the mighty hopes god had prepared us to conceive of him. he meditated the great work of delivering our country from oppression , and our religion from destruction . and by the blessing of god , he accomplish'd it , in a manner so extraordinary in all its circumstances , as , i think , should not suffer us to doubt from whose providence it was , that this redemption was sent to us . this was the lord's doing , and , whatever it is , i am sure ought to be , marvellous in our eyes : and may , i think , be a final , i hope it shall be an effectual confirmation to us of this great engagement of our text , to turn to him with all our hearts ; viz. that he is a god repenting him of the evil ; and therefore whose mercy , if we now truly do so , we may securely depend upon both for the forgiveness of our sins , and for our deliverance from those dangers which our sins have so justly exposed us to . and now what remains , but that having all these great encouragements , such promises , or rather , such an earnest of god's favour to us , we resolve , every of one of us , seriously to comply with the great design both of this day , and of this discourse ; and by our sincere repentance for our past offences , obtain that blessing we so much desire both for our country , and for our religion . never was there a time wherein we had greater reason to hope for god's acceptance than at this day ; and such an occasion as this , to implore his favour , there may not perhaps again occur in the course of many ages . for indeed , what is it that we are now assembled to recommend to his mercy , but in effect the preservation of our selves , our laws , our liberties , and our religion , against the violence of those who have long conspired both their and our destruction . that be would preside in our councils , and go forth with our armies ; and so direct the one , and prosper the other , that we may again enjoy the blessings of peace and security ; that there may be no decay , no leading into captivity , and no just complaining in our streets . and this he will do , if we be not our selves wanting to our own preservation . only let us act as becomes good christians , and true englishmen ; let us do all things for the glory of god , and for the safety , honour and welfare of our country : in the words of joab to his brother abishai , upon an occasion not much different from our own at this time ; let us be strong , and of good courage , and let us play the men for our people , and for the cities of our god ; and then he will not fail us , nor forsake us . but if instead of pursuing the things that make for our peace , we shall still go on to precipitate our own destruction : if when we are call'd this day to turn unto the lord our god with all our hearts , and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning ; we shall instead thereof fast only for strife and for debate : if when we should be here prostrating our selves before the lord , to implore the completion of that great deliverance he has begun to work for us ; we shall , on the contrary , continue ungratefully to murmur against his providence , and be ready almost to implead his justice for what he has already done ; and with those repining israelites of old , be looking back again to our egyptian bondage , when we are brought even within prospect of the promised land : in a word , if when we should be uniting our selves against the common enemy of our country and christendom , we shall suffer a spirit of fa●tion and sedition , of mutiny and discontent ; of private interests , and unseasonable resentments , to distract our councils , and divide us against one another ; what can we then expect , but that god should at last give us over into the hands of our enemies , and make those that hate us , to rule over us . wherefore now , arise o ye worthies , ye chosen , and counsellors of our israel ; consult , consider , and resolve : and may the god of heaven ; the god before whom we are here assembled this day ; he who has , and does , and we trust will still deliver us ; our rock , and our defence against the face of our enemies , so direct and prosper all your consultations , that the children which are yet unborn , may rise up in their generations , and call you blessed ; when they shall enjoy the benefits of that peace , and security , which we trust shall descend to them , through your wise and vigorous resolutions . behold this day the eyes not of your own nation only , but of all the nations round about us , fix'd upon you : the fortunes , i do not say , of every single person among you , tho' that were somewhat ; nor yet of your own country and religion only , which ought to be much more valued ; but what is still more considerable than all this , the fortunes of all the reformed churches , and distressed countries of europe , depending on the success of our present enterprizes . this is the fatal crisis , that must secure or ruine both them and us for ever . may the consideration of all these things , inspire every one of you with a spirit suitable both to our present needs , and to that great trust that is here committed to you : a spirit of wisdom and vnderstanding ; a spirit of prudence and discretion ; a spirit of charity and moderation ; but above all , with a spirit of piety and vnity ; that being endu'd with all these excellent qualities , ye may become the repairers of our breaches ; the restorers of our almost lost and trampled liberties ; the defenders of our faith ; the support of your country ; the avengers of your barbarously abus'd allies ; the scourge and terror of the vniversal enemy of truth ▪ peace , religion , nature : in short , of all the common laws and rights both of god , and of all mankind . may your councils be govern'd with such a calmness and temper , as may settle and compose all the unquiet and dissatisfied spirits ( if there be any ) yet remaining among us ; and suffer none to regret our wonderful preservation , but those only whose fury had once prompted them to attempt , and whose principles still carry them on , to desire , even when they are not able to accomplish , our destruction . may your resolutions be as speedy , as the publick necessities are pressing ; and their execution be accompanied with a fidelity and success that may equal not only our expectation , but even our very hopes and our desires . and for the obtaining of all these blessings , and whatever else may serve to make these kingdoms happy : may we all this day , fast the fast which the lord has chosen ; to loose the bands of wickedness , to undo the heavy burdens , and to let the oppressed go free . let us confess our wickedness , and be sorry for our sins . let us turn to the lord our god with all our heart ; and with fasting , and with weeping , and with mourning . let us deal our bread to the hungry , and bring the poor to our houses . so shall we call , and the lord shall answer ; we shall cry , and he shall say , here i am . our light shall break forth as the morning , and our righteousness as the noon-day . god shall come , and shall not keep silence : he shall save us from our enemies , and put them to shame that hate us . he shall arise , and all our adversaries shall be scatter'd ; they also that hate us , shall flee before us ; like as the smoak vanisheth , so shall we drive them away ; terror and dread shall fall upon them . thus shall all our mourning be turned into laughter , and our heaviness into joy ; and we shall yet sing the song of moses , and of the lamb , when he shall have given us rest from all our enemies round about us ; salvation and glory , and power , and praise , and thanksgiving , be to him that sitteth upon the throne , and to the lamb for ever and ever , amen . of contending earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints . a sermon preached at mercers-chapel , january . / . jude iii. beloved , when i gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation , it was needful for me to write unto you , and exhort you , that you should earnestly contend for the faith which was once deliver'd to the saints . it is generally agreed by learned men , that this epistle was written by st. jude upon the same occasion , and to the same persons to whom st. peter had not long before address'd his second ; whose thoughts he pursues , and whose very words he seems in some places to have transcribed . and the subject and design of both we have here express'd to us in the words of my text ; viz. to exhort the christians dispersed abroad among the jews , neither to sink under those persecutions that were brought upon them for their faith ; nor to suffer that holy doctrine which had been so fully and purely deliver'd to them by the apostles , to be corrupted by the errors of those pernicious hereticks , who even already began to creep in among them . great was the danger of these christians , and great the concern of our apostle for them . to persevere constantly in the faith , at a time when the severest tryals were made use of to affright them from it ; and to preserve it in its purity , when so many subtile hereticks made it their whole business , by any means , to corrupt the truth of it . and no wonder if st. jude thought it not only becoming that character our blessed lord had honour'd him with in his church , to write unto them , but even necessary for him so to do ; and to exhort them , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , to strive with all their might , and , as our translation has very well rendred it , to contend earnestly for the faith which was once deliver'd to the saints . for the due prosecution of which words , as they lye before us in the context , i shall consider these four things . i. what that faith is , which the apostle exhorted them to contend for ? ii. how they were to contend for it ? iii. the great reason they had at that time more especially so to do . iv. by what means he advised them to contend for it ; that so they might secure their faith in those dangerous times . i. what that faith is which the apostle here exhorted them to contend for ? now this the character here given of it in our text , will clearly shew . 't is the faith which was once deliver'd to the saints . that faith which the holy apostles had once for all instructed them in , and which therefore both they and all succeeding ages in the church were both faithfully to retain , and earnestly to contend for for ever . so that here then we have a plain account , what the true christian faith we are to profess , is , and where we are to seek it ? 't is not the faith of this or that church or party ; 't is not the faith of this or that country or century . let men and times make what changes and alterations they please in it : the faith that was once delivered to the saints , is what we are to contend for , not for any inventions or additions of men that have since been brought into it . i shall not need to tell you whither you are to go for this faith : the spirit of god , by providing us a rule of it ; and assisting and directing those holy men who first preach'd the gospel to the saints that then lived , to send it down in writing to all the other disciples that were to follow after to the end of the world ; has sufficiently directed us both whither we are to go for it , and indeed where it is that we can alone be sure to find it . and however interest has made some of late the better to defend their errors , and to maintain an usurped authority over mens consciences to pretend to some other directions : yet since it is confess'd , that the holy scriptures were written for that very purpose , that they might be the rule of our faith ; and st. paul has expresly told us , that they are able to make the man of god wise unto salvation , and throughly furnished to every good work ; we shall have little reason to seek to any other rule , till some good account can be given why this is not sufficient ; or by what authority it is that they pretend to impose any other of their own inventing upon us ; and who gave them this authority ? but however , be the rule of this faith what it will , that is not my business at present to dispute . let it only be resolved , that the faith it self must be no other than what was once delivered to the saints , and then i am sure it will be our duty not only readily to receive it , but earnestly to contend for it , be the means of its conveyance what they will. this is the next thing to be considered by us ; ii. how we are to contend for this faith ? and here if the question be concerning the manner of the contention , i have already observed , that the original expression is very emphatical ; and implies a great vigour and earnestness in the doing of it . to teach us with what zeal we ought to adhere to the truth , and defend it against all such as would endeavour either to affright , or to seduce us from it . indeed , whosoever shall consider the great value of that faith which was once delivered to the saints ; and what our concern is in the preserving of it ; will be forced to confess , that we can never be too earnest in our contending for it . truth is in all things so worthy and desirable , that a generous spirit will think he can never prize it enough . we see the greatest men have made it the whole business of their lives to pursue it even in the smallest instances ; and have thought their labours worthily rewarded , if with the greatest application , and it may be with some danger and loss too , they have but been able to find it out at the last . much more certainly ought that truth , which the son of god himself came down from heaven to discover ; and which , had he not revealed it to us , it would have been impossible for us ever to have come to the knowledge of it , to be most dear to us , and not upon any account to be forsaken by us . but when to this we shall add , that these truths are not matters of meer speculation , only to employ the mind , and exercise the soul in the contemplation of them : that the concern here is not a useless theoreme ; which whether we believe or not , we are neither at all the worse now , nor shall be ever the less happy hereafter ; but such by our keeping or betraying whereof , we shall finally be happy or miserable for ever : that therefore to give up these truths , is to become the vilest traditors , the betrayers not only of our religion , but of our souls too , and that to all eternity ; we cannot certainly but think it to be very much our concern to take the advice of the apostle , and earnestly contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints . such is the necessity of this contention : and two things there were wherein st. jude here exhorted them to the practice of it , proportionable to the two great dangers to which i have before said these christians were then exposed . for , first ; the christians to whom he wrote , were at this time actually under a persecution for their faith , and by consequence under great temptations to apostatize from it . and this danger was by so much the more to be apprehended , for that a sort of hereticks were crept in among them , who the better to preserve themselves from those evils which christianity then brought upon all the faithful professors of it , had among their other errors , set up this for one , that it was lawful in such tryals to dissemble their faith , and to escape persecution for it . now in opposition to this base cowardise of these men , we must first interpret the contention here spoken of to imply a firmness and resolution of mind to undergo any evils , rather than to deny their religion : that they should not , like those vile hereticks , seek by unworthy compliances to preserve themselves from danger , and ruine their souls in the other world , to save their lives , and to preserve the little interests of this . and the same should be the resolution of every good christian now . persecution ought to be so far from affrighting him from his faith , that he ought then most firmly to adhere to it , when he sees others the most violent in opposing it . what tho' he should be called to suffer for it ? death ought never to amaze that man , who is able to look forward into heaven beyond it ; and there see that crown of glory which these light afflictions that are but for a moment shall place upon his head for all eternity . a true christian is never greater , than when he is under the cross : nor can any thing be more glorious to the faithful disciple , than to follow his dear master , not only in well-doing , but , if the will of god be so , in patient suffering too . what shall separate us from the love of christ ? shall tribulation , or distress , or persecution , or famine , or nakedness , or peril , or sword ? ( as it is written , for thy sake we are killed all the day long , we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter : ) nay , in all these things we are more than conquerors , through him that loved us . but , secondly ; this was not the only danger they were then likely to run , nor it may be the greatest . and the hazard of corrupting their religion , by the artifices of those hereticks who were unawares crept in among them , was yet more to be apprehended than their total apostatizing from it . and therefore st. jude here exhorts them , to contend earnestly for the faith that was once delivered to the saints ; i. e. to be very wary and circumspect to maintain it in that purity in which they had received it , and not suffer any little sophistry or insinuations of their enemies , to lead them into any errors contrary to the truth of it . and indeed , whosoever shall look into the annals of the church , will find this to have ever been the more fatal danger of the two : and that the devil has in all ages gain'd more by the secret cunning of his false teachers , than by the open violence of his persecutors . there 's many a christian who has carriage enough to die for his faith , that yet has not skill enough to defend it . and those whose business it is to deceive , never fail to set most upon such as they think are the least able to do so . and therefore it cannot certainly but be very advisable in us all , and especially for those who are the most ignorant , to be very careful of themselves as to this matter : not to hearken to every little pretender that will but undertake to lead them ; but if any such offers himself to them , to draw them away from the right faith , either absolutely to reject him , or rather to bring him forth unto the light ; to refer him to their teachers , who instruct them in the truth , and who are therefore the fittest to defend the interests of it . and so maintain that wise indifference which ought to be the resolution of every good man in the search of all , but especially of divine truth ; neither obstinately to refuse a better instruction whenever it shall indeed be offered to him , much less to be cheated out of his religion by noise and confidence , by high pretences , and no arguments ; and so by his easiness , betray that faith which our apostle here calls us so earnestly to contend for . and this is a caution that cannot be unseasonable at any time . but yet some times there are wherein 't is more especially to be recommended to christians . and such was that wherein st. jude wrote this epistle : which therefore brings me to my next point , iii. of the reason which the christians at that time had more especially thus to contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints . i shall not now say any thing of that general obligation which lyes upon all christians thus to contend for the faith , viz. the eternal salvation of their souls , according as they are careful or not in so doing , though this ought certainly to have always its weight too with us , both because i have already said somewhat to this before , and because i am now only to consider the particular reasons which those to whom st. jude here wrote , had at that time so to do . and those , whethersoever of the two things we consider , which i have before shewn they were herein exhorted to , are such as ought very much to have engaged their care in this contention . for , first , as to the renouncing of their faith. they were actually under a persecution for it . their interests , their ease , their inclinations , all sollicited them so to do . and as if all this were not enough , some who called themselves christians among them , not only encouraged them by their example , but even maintain●d it as an opinion , that to avoid persecution , they might lawfully and warrantably dissemble their belief . and sure then it was high time for the apostle to interpose his exhortation , to stir them up to contend for that faith which both their enemies persecuted , and their pretended catholick brethren so readily renounced . to press them with such arguments , as both their present circumstances , and past prophecies offer'd to him to confirm them in it ; and which ought to have been of much greater weight with them to keep them in the right way , than the scandalous examples and doctrine of their adversaries to draw them out of it . now two considerations there were , which some suppose the apostle to have here offer'd to them for this purpose . . the nearness of their deliverance ; which according to our saviour's promises , must now be , as indeed it afterwards proved , very nigh at hand . this is what the learned dr. hammond understood to have been signified by that phrase of the text ; where the apostle says , he thought it necessary to write unto them , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , of the common salvation ; i. e. ( says * he ) of that special promise of christ to preserve and deliver those who should firmly adhere to him , from that vniversal destruction , which was in a little time to befall the jews . many were the denuntiations of our blessed lord against the jews in his gospel . the calamities he foretold were great , and the time of their accomplishment nigh at hand . that generation , which then lived , was not to pass away till all should be fulfilled . but for those among them who should embrace and keep firm to his religion , they were to be secured in the midst of this desolation . so mat. x. . where speaking of those very persecutions which st. jude here refers to , he tells them , but he that endures to the end , * shall be saved . shall be saved , not only in another world , though that be certain too ; but by a remarkable deliverance even in this . and accordingly st. peter , who wrote much about the same time that st. jude did , and concerning the very same things , exemplifies this deliverance in that remarkable preservation of noah and his family , when the whole world besides perished in the deluge , pet. ii . . of righteous lot and his children , who were brought by an angel out of sodom , when the wicked sodomites were destroyed , ver . , . and then makes this remarkable application , ver . . the lord , says he , knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations . now if this be allowed of as the true meaning of this phrase , then certainly it could not but be a great engagement to them to continue constant in their profession : to consider , that they had but a little while remaining , and their deliverance should be accomplish'd : that , as st. paul phrases it , their salvation was now nearer than when they believed . the night was far spent , the day was at hand : and therefore how unworthy , indeed how weak a thing would it be for them , after all they had hitherto suffered for the faith , now finally to apostatize from it , when they were just ready to be delivered out of all their dangers . but this is not all the force of this argument , st. jude presses it yet farther ; for that , . such an apostasie would not only not secure them , but would most certainly involve them in that very destruction which they sought to escape by it . and of this the examples which our apostle subjoins , are an evident proof ; and that destruction which accordingly did involve the complying hereticks with the unbelieving jews , became a terrible application . our blessed lord , who provided for the security of the constant christians , leaving the rest , as he had declared he would , to lose their souls , or lives , that were so politick for the saving or preserving of them ; and to be a standing caution to all succeeding ages , how unworthy , indeed how dangerous a thing it is for men to purchase their lives at the price of their consciences ; and to betray their souls to eternl damnation in another world , to secure the little interests and advantages of this . such reason therefore had these christians upon all these accounts , to contend earnestly for the faith ; i. e. not to renounce it , but to continue firm and constant in the profession of it . nor were their engagement , secondly , any less , secondly , to contend for it ; as it implies a zeal for the preserving the primitive purity of it . and indeed 't is this seems to have been the more especial design of st. jude in this caution . for having in our text exhorted them earnestly to contend for the faith which was once delivered to the saints ; he immediately subjoyns this reason , ver . . that there were certain men crept in among them , ungodly men , who turn'd the grace of god into lasciviousness , and would otherwise be likely enough to pervert them from it . now this could not but be a very great obligation upon them to look to themselves , and stand fast in the truth which they had received , to be thus expresly forewarn'd of their danger ; and admonish'd by the apostle what men there were crept in among them , that would make it their whole endeavour to corrupt their purity . but especially if we consider the character which the holy apostles every where given of them ; and which will yet more evidently shew how likely they would be , without very great care , to deceive them . for , st . as our apostle tells us , ver . . they were great pretenders ; they spoke mighty things in their own commendation , as if they alone had not only all truth , but all knowledge too on their sides ; and the rest of mankind were but as beasts in comparison of them . now this oftentime makes a huge impression upon weak minds , who do not sufficiently consider how suspitious a thing it is for men to be too forward in their own commendation ; and that the best and wisest men are commonly those , who make the least noise of their goodness , and their knowledge . dly . they were very subtile and diligent in propagating their heresie . they durst not attack those whom they knew to be very firm , or well instructed in the faith. but they crept slily and secretly into mens houses , and , as the devil their master before them , they set commonly upon the weaker sex ; leading captive silly women , says st. paul , and those too , for the most part , laden with divers lusts . such for whom christianity was too severe and rigid an institution , they could not find any great hopes of living up to , or consequently of being saved by the rules of that ; and they were therefore glad to hear of some more easie , and more agreeable way to happiness . dly , and such , thirdly , these hereticks fail'd not to propose to them . their religion consisted chiefly in a sett of incomprehensible phrases and notions ; and if they were but admirers of simon and his helena , it was for the rest no great matter how little morality they observed . if it were dangerous to profess christianity , they might freely deny it ; and judaïze , rather than suffer persecution . if their lusts disturb'd them , it was natural , and therefore lawful to gratifie them : and it was a great mistake to think that they ought not to do so . the truth is , i am ashamed to repeat in this place , what ecclesiastical writers have delivered down to us concerning them : and i shall content my self to refer you only to this short epistle , for the character both of them and their religion . for i am much mistaken if this alone will not suffice to shew what just cause our apostle had to fear their prevailing : and that such an easie practice , supported by such high pretences , might be but too apt to gain over proselytes to its party . let us see therefore in the last place , thly , by what means it was that st. jude here exhorted the yet orthodox christians to contend for their faith , and secure themselves in those dangerous times . and those are principally these five : . by a close adherence to that doctrine which had been delivered to them . . by taking heed of those that would seduce them from it . . by building themselves on their holy faith ; i. e. by adding innocency of life to the purity of their faith. . by fervent prayer to god for his assistance . and , . by a serious consideration of their future state . these are the means which st. jude here exhorts them to make use of to secure their faith ; and they are indeed such as if duly observed , will not fail to have a prosperous effect to the end for which they are proposed . st . the first way to contend earnestly for the faith , is , to keep close to that holy doctrine which we have received . this was what the apostle in our text advised them to do ; or rather , not barely to keep close to it , but , as the phrase here is , to contend earnestly for it . and that was then a most undoubted security , when the apostles themselves taught them their religion ; and so their faith came to them without all dispute , pure and uncorrupted . and however we do not now pretend that men should give up themselves so intirely to our conduct , as to stop their ears to whatever can be said against us : yet since we profess no other faith than that which was once delivered unto the saints ; since the rule by which we go , cannot be denied to contain that faith , and we desire not to be believed by you , any farther than what we teach is found to be agreeable to that rule : i think we may very reasonably thus far at least make the application even now , that you ought not lightly to forsake a faith which is built upon such a foundation , i am sure not for such a one as is built upon any other . and though we are so far from encouraging a blind obstinacy in any one , that , on the contrary , we had rather all men would search and see , whether what we profess , be not indeed that faith which was once delivered to the saints : yet this deference we think every one ought to pay to that church which first made him christian , and to those guides whom god's providence has set over him to build him up in the faith ; as not lightly to forsake either them or their doctrine , but to presume for the truth of what they already profess , till they can be very clearly and evidently convinced of the contrary . but , dly , the next means proposed , whereby they were to contend for the faith , was , by taking heed of those who would have seduced them from it . this is the general design of this whole epistle , and i have before shewn what great need there was of such a caution . now by taking heed of seducers , i do not mean to imply , that men should be so obstinately wary , as not to hearken to any thing that one of a contrary persuasion is able to say either for his own opinions , or against ours : for that were to lead men by faction , not reason . but i mean these two things : first , that we should not have our ears so open , as to hearken to every thing that any one shall think fit to offer to disquiet our minds , and disturb our consciences , without any just occasion for it : nay , it may be , upon the account of such things , wherein we are certainly and evidently convinced , that we are in the right . much less , that we should seek occasion of disputes , and love to be perpetually raising difficulties against our religion , lest we should at last provoke god to give us over to delusion , and punish our needless exposing our selves to temptation , by suffering us to be overcome by it . nor , secondly , so far comply with such persons , as to give our selves up to their seduction , and become easie and willing to be deceived by them . it is certainly a great weakness in any man to go to his enemy for the character of his religion . to enquire concerning the truth , of those who are the profess'd opposers of it . if men have doubts , or if their curiosity must be gratified in starting of needless scruples , and one part only be consulted , both charity and duty , and i had almost said even common civility too , might satisfie them , that they ought to be their instructors , whom god has set over them to be their guides in holy things , rather than any others . but if this be thought too great a partiality , to hear one side only , and not enquire at all of the other ; yet , at least if our enemies may be admitted , our own guides sure ought not to be excluded , but to be allowed at least to be as worthy our regard , as their adversaries . nor can i think any otherwise , than that he is minded to be seduced , who instead of taking heed of hereticks , seeks only to them ; instead of avoiding them , avoids those from whom , if not alone , yet i am sure principally , he ought to fortifie himself against them . dly , the next means proposed for their contending for the faith , was , by innocence and holiness of life . this st. jude calls , a building up our selves upon our most holy faith , ver . . and again , a keeping of our selves in the love of god , ver . . and an excellent means no doubt it is , to preserve the purity of our faith , and to keep our selves from being seduced from it . i shall not need to tell you how powerful a motive the want of piety has been to most of those errors that have infested the church whilst men , to gratifie their passions , have corrupted their faith ; and pride and discontent , interest and ambition , looseness and indulgence , more than want of knowledge , have made men hereticks . and were we now to enquire , what the true cause is that keeps up these divisions in the church at this day ; why men should be so obstinate in errors so plainly contrary to the very nature of christianity , and , i had almost said , to the common sense and reason of mankind , that it even poses our charity to think they do not themselves know them to be so : i fear the best account we should be able to give of this matter , would be , that interest and prejudice blind their eyes ; and that their errors are as useful and beneficial , as they are otherwise gross and unreasonable . but would men indeed lay aside all humane considerations , as in things wherein eternity is at stake , they ought to do : would they with charity and humility seek the truth , and be as willing to discover their own , as they are but too forward to censure other mens faults : in plain terms , would they be christians indeed , seek nothing but the glory of god , the peace and unity of his church , and the salvation of their own souls ; i cannot but think that most of our controversies would presently vanish , and we should yet recover that truth which , i fear , some men have too long detain'd in unrighteousness , and been deprived of by their own fault . but especially would they to this honesty and integrity , add , thly , the apostle's next direction , of fervent prayer to god for his assistance . for certainly the truth and purity of religion , is so great a good , and so pleasing and acceptable to god almighty to be implored of him , that a pious and upright man , earnestly praying , and heartily seeking after it , shall hardly be deny'd the happiness of being constant to the faith , if he be already in the right way ; or of being brought to it , if he is not . he who has promised the true votary , not to refuse him in any thing that is necessary or but expedient for him , if he asks as he ought to do ; will never fail to answer him in a matter of such moment . and if he does not neglect himself while he prays to god , but uses such care and caution as st. jude here directs us to do for our security , he need not be afraid , though he were encompassed with seducers on every side ; but be confident , that he shall either still go on in the right way , or obtain god's pardon , if after all this he should chance to be mistaken in it . there is yet one means more whereby st. jude exhorts the christians , earnestly to contend for their faith. and that is , thly , by a serious consideration of their future state . keep your selves ( says he ) in the love of god , looking for the mercy of our lord jesus christ , unto eternal life , ver . . and indeed it cannot be doubted but that this great consideration , which so highly influences all the other parts of a christian life , must here also prove of a singular advantage to keep us firm and stedfast in our faith. this will make us diligent in all the rest ; will awaken our care , will perfect our piety , and enflame our devotion . by this we shall be secure , that no worldly considerations shall be able to prevail upon us , to forsake our religion . we shall neither be moved for any terrors to renounce it , nor be cajolled by any interests or persuasions to give it up . but we shall resolve , as we ought , to enquire diligently into the grounds of our profession , to judge impartially , and stedfastly follow what we are persuaded to be the right faith ; that so we may be able to give a comfortable account of our selves to god , when we shall appear at his tribunal . no matter how severely we may be censured by men for our so doing . we know that truth very often meets with , and makes enemies to the best men. christianity it self was once every where spoken against , and st. paul arraign'd as a heretick . but whilst with that apostle we know wherefore we believe , we shall be so far from being afraid of their censures , or ashamed of our profession , that should we for the sake of christ , as he was , be brought even before the tribunals of our enemies , we shall be able with assurance to answer for our selves as he did ; that after the way which they call heresie , so worship we the god of our fathers , believing all things that are written in the law and the prophets . such a power will this great consideration of eternal life have over us , to secure us in our religion , that it will actuate all the other means that have before been offer'd to establish our faith , and it self become a new defence , and such as all the sophistry and malice of our enemies shall not be able ever to overcome . and thus have i given you as full an account as the time would permit of the several things i proposed to consider : and however i have not so closely confined my reflections to the particular concern of those christians to whom st. jude wrote , as not to have observed somewhat in general the use that all others ought to make of this caution ; yet i will now in the close crave leave to offer two or three reflections more , which may serve to shew our own more immediate concern in it . and , first ; let us from hence learn with what zeal and constancy we ought to contend for our religion ; which i will be bold to say , does , if any in the whole world , the best deserve the character of the text , of being the faith that was once delivered to the saints , and that without mixture of any thing corruptive of , or contrary thereunto . we pretend not to impose any thing either upon your belief or practice , but what the rule of this faith , the holy scriptures themselves prescribe , or at least allow us to do . we give no other interpretation of scripture , than what is either so apparently the meaning of it , that no impartial person can doubt of it ; or else has been so universally received by the best and purest antiquity , and is otherwise so agreeable with the rest of our faith , that there can be no just cause to suspect it . the articles of our creed , are the same now , which the church has received and profess'd from the beginning ; and so evidently founded on the authority of god's word , that they neither can nor do admit of any dispute among christians . those who the most pretend us to be defective in our faith , yet dare not say we are erroneous in what we do profess : they acknowledge that what we believe is right , only they think we do not believe all that we ought , because not all that they would have us , to do . and certainly then such a faith as this cannot but deserve to be earnestly contended for , as being without all controversie , truly that faith which was once delivered to the saints . and that so much the rather , secondly , at this time , when so many seducers , for i shall spare the rest of st. jude's character , ver . . are crept in among us ; and make it their great endeavour , by any means , to draw us away from it . i shall not repeat either the manner how i have shewn we ought to contend for our faith against them , or the directions which from the apostle i have before offered for the doing of it . let us only resolve on that one most just and reasonable method , never to leave our own faith , till we can be clearly and evidently convinced , that we have a better offer'd to us in the stead of it ; and then we shall either free our selves altogether from the attacks of our adversaries , who seldom care to meddle with honest and understanding men ; or i am sure we shall not run any great hazzard by their attempts . but above all , thirdly ; whilst we thus contend for the faith that was once delivered to the saints , let us be followers of their lives , as well as of their doctrine . this is that which must save us , when all our disputes will otherwise stand us in no stead . to believe aright , will do us but small service , if we do not live so too . and i am persuaded , would we but be prevailed with to do this as we ought , it would not only most effectually secure us in the truth , but be the most likely means in the world to draw over others to it . and indeed what pity is it , that a chureh , which has in all other respects so many admirable advantages above its adversaries , that it is defective in no other mark of being truly primitive , and even in this is less defective than others , should not be blessed with this too ? consider , i beseech you , that we rely upon none of those broken reeds which others lay so much stress upon , to make you happy in another life , though you are not upright and holy in this . if there be then any concern for your own or your church's honour ; if any value for your immortal souls ; if you desire the blessing of god now , and the benefit of his promises in the world to come ; if these motives , which one would think should be of all others the most considerable , may be allowed to have any influence at all upon you ; think then upon these things , and fulfil ye our joy in the practice of that piety whereunto ye are called . be as good , as ye are orthodox ; as free from all corruption in your manners , as god be thanked you are from error in your belief : accomplish that great work , which heaven seems at last to have begun among us ; and as we are now apparently more concern'd for our religion , than we have perhaps any of us heretofore been ; so let us go on in well-doing more and more . let us grow in grace , and then we shall also grow in the knowledge of our lord and saviour jesus christ , till finally we all come in the vnity of the faith , and of the knowledge of the son of god , to a perfect man , to the measure of the stature of the fulness of christ. of the nature and end of the holy sacrament of the lord's supper , a sermon preach'd at st. pavl's covent-garden , decemb. . . cor. xi . . this do in remembrance of me. these words are part of that solemn form in which our blessed saviour first celebrated the holy sacrament of his body and blood ; an● establish'd it as a sacred institution , to be continued for ever in his church , in remembrance of that death and passion which he was just then about to undergo for it . whether our apostle recounted the history of this great institution , according to what some of those who were present at the first celebration of it , had delivered it unto him ; or whether , as seems most probable , he had received the manner of it by some extraordinary revelation from our saviour christ himself : this is plain , that what he here reports to them of this matter , was no idle story , no vain account of his own invention , but a true and exact relation of what the blessed jesus then did , when in the same night in which he was betray'd , he took bread , and when he had given thanks , brake it , and gave it to his disciples , saying , take , eat , this is my body which is broken for you , this do in remembrance of me. so that our text then you see contains a positive command of our saviour christ himself , of something which he ordered his apostles to do with reference to this holy sacrament : and my business at this time shall be to consider what that was , and how far we at this day are to look upon our selves to be concerned in it . i shall reduce what i have to offer upon this occasion , to these two general considerations : i. of the false construction and application which those of the church of rome make of these words . which having done , so far as may be necessary to the following discourse , i will then , ii. shew what indeed it was that our blessed saviour here commanded his apostles , and in them , all of us to do , in remembrance of him. and by that time i have clearly examin'd these two points , i presume i shall in some measure have laid open the whole nature and design of this holy sacrament ; and in that have answer'd the end of these solemn and extraordinary assemblies . and first i am to consider , i. that false construction and application which those of the church of rome make of these words . it is the opinion of those of the other communion , that our saviour christ here spoke to his apostles , not as the representatives of the whole body of the church , but as those whom he was now about to consecrate to the peculiar office of the ministry in it : and therefore that commanding these , to do this , he did at once both command them to continue this holy sacrament for ever in his church , and also at the same time invest them with a power , to consecrate , and take , and distribute it to others , as he had done to them . to which if we did add their other notion of this sacrament , viz. that in the celebration of it , there is (c) a true and proper offering made for the sins and satisfactions both of the dead and the living , we shall then find the full import of our text , according to their sense , to be this ; do this , that is , receive the power which i hereby give you of consecrating , i. e. (d) of converting these elements of bread and wine , into the true and proper substance of my body and blood ; and having so done , (e) offer them up to my father as a true and real propitiatory sacrifice , (f) for the sins and satisfactions , for the punishments and all other the necessities of all my faithful disciples , whether they be alive or dead ; whether they be yet on earth , or gone to purgatory . such is the account which those of the church of rome give us of these words : and in this they are so very confident , that they not only (g) anathematize all those who shall say either that christ in this command did not institute his apostles , priests ; or that he did not command , that they , and other priests , should in like manner offer up his body and blood ; but have also made it the very form of ordaining priests at this day in their church , having delivered the patin and chalice into their hands , to bid them , (h) receive power to offer sacrifice to god , and to celebrate mass for the living and for the dead . i shall need say very little to shew the falseness of this interpretation , which many of their own doctors , notwithstanding all their definitions concerning it , yet are not themselves very well satisfied withal : they freely allow , that this command of our saviour , when he bids them do this , cannot be so restrain'd to his own act of consecrating the holy eucharist , as not to have an equal respect to the peoples act of receiving it : and by consequence , that all that can hence be gathered , is , that our saviour has hereby obliged his church to the continuance of this great memorial of his death , both by the consecrating and distributing of the priests ; and by the receiving , and eating , and drinking of the people ; and which is no other account than we our selves give of the words before us . 't is from hence that (i) aquinas concludes , that all christians are obliged , as far as they have opportunity , to communicate in this holy sacrament , not only in obedience to the commands of the church , but as a thing which our saviour christ himself required , when he said in our text , this do in remembrance of me. but estius is more express : he tells us , that by do this , our saviour plainly intended the whole action both of his consecrating and distributing , and of their receiving these sacred elements . as if he had said , (k) what you have seen now done by me and you , that do you and your successors henceforth in remembrance of me. and that this is clearly the meaning , he shews from the context of st. paul in the following verses , where repeating the very same command , after the distribution of the cup , that he had mentioned in my text upon the delivery of the bread , he expresses himself in this plain manner , this do ye ( says he ) as oft , not as ye shall consecrate or offer , but as ye shall drink it in remembrance of me. and then immediately subjoins a reason , which clearly refers to the peoples eating and drinking , and not to the priest's offering any pretended sacrifice in this celebration : for as often as ye eat this bread , and drink this cup , ye do shew the lord's death till he come ; that is , ye do , by this action of yours , fulfil the command before us , ye set forth the memory of christ's death and passion , and do this in remembrance of him. and even (l) bellarmin himself , tho' he supposes these words to have been spoke in a peculiar manner to the apostles , as those who were hereby to be consecrated to the priestly office ; yet cannot but own , that they must refer as well to the action of their (m) eating , as to those of our saviour's blessing and distributing the holy elements ; (n) nay , he says yet more , that it is most agreeable both to the context of st. paul , and to his design of repeating the history of this institution , to apply them rather to the disciples action of eating and drinking , than to our saviour's of consecrating and offering ; the error of the corinthians , which he design'd to correct , consisting not in their consecrating , but in their receiving of the holy eucharist , in that they did not do it with that due reverence which they ought to do . tho' how to reconcile this not only with the opinion of his church before mention'd , but even with his own interpretation of aquinas's argument from this place , to prove the necessity of all mens receiving this holy sacrament where it may conveniently be had ; viz. that (o) st. thomas did did not intend to collect this immediately from this command , as if it had been given to all ; but only by consequence , as our lord must be understood to have commanded the people to receive , what he commanded the priests to consecrate and distribute , i cannot easily understand . the truth is , both the opinion of our saviour's making his apostles priests by these words , and the paraphrase which they now give of them in order thereunto , are a meer invention of these later ages , sought out to support that other great corruption of this holy institution , the communicating of the laity only in one kind . when being pressed both with the example of our blessed lord in his institution of this holy sacrament , who gave the cup as well as bread to his disciples ; and with his positive command , to do that to others which himself had done to them. the nice masters of the schools , men who never wanted a subtilty to elude what they could not otherwise fairly answer , first found out this admirable secret , unknown to the church for above a thousand years before ; viz. that our saviour here consecrating the holy eucharist , and giving a command to his apostles to do likewise , did invest them thereby in their priestly office , and so intitule them to a right of receiving the cup from him , which neither they therefore had any right to before , nor have the people by consequence any more right to at this very day . but however , such an evasion as this might well enough become the school-errantry , and serve to amuze a barbarous age wherein it was first invented ; yet was it certainly too great a presumption in the council of trent , in such inquisitive times as these , to impose it upon mens consciences as an article of faith ; and to think , by the vain terror of an ungrounded anathema , to secure it against all opposition . for not to insist , first , on the many gross absurdities , and even blasphemous consequences of the very doctrine of the mass it self , that there should be a true and proper sacrifice , and yet nothing truly and properly sacrificed : a propitiatory offering , and yet no propitiation made by it : that christ was but once offered for our sins , and yet that he should be offered again ten thousand times every day : that by that one offering of himself , he should have perfected for ever them that are sanctified ; and yet that those that are sanctified should not be perfected without many of these new-mass-offerings made for them . to say nothing , secondly , of the inconsistency there is in the very supposition , that our saviour christ should ordain priests of the new-covenant in his church , before he had yet so much as sealed that covenant by his death , or establish'd his church . to pass by , thirdly , that we have another plain and evident account , both when , and after what manner , and with what words our blessed saviour did ordain his apostles to the ministry of his church , namely , in the twentieth chapter of st. john ; where we are told how , after his resurrection , he thus gave them their mission , ver . , , . peace be unto you ; as my father hath sent me , even so send i you : and then he breathed upon them , and said , receive ye the holy ghost ; whose soever sins ye remit , they are remitted ; and whose soever sins ye retain , they are retained : and which are at this day own'd by the * church of rome , as well as by us , for one essential part of the priestly mission , and accordingly made use of by them in their ordination : so that either this sacrament may be reiterated , or the character divided , and one part conferr'd at one time , the other at another ; all which is contrary to their own principles ; or else the apostles were not ordain'd priests when they received the holy eucharist , but when our saviour here breathed upon them , and both by his action and his words plainly expressed his mission of them . i say , not to insist on any of these things , either we must look upon these words to relate to the whole church , to the people as well as to the priests ; and then to be sure they cannot have either the effect or signification that they herein attribute unto them ; or else it will remain , that there is no divine command at all entituling the people to any right to this holy sacrament : for if our saviour spoke to his apostles as priests , if he not only took the bread and the cup and consecrated them as a priest himself , but also distributed them to the apostles as priests , and bad them , take , eat and drink as priests ; then are not the people , no not by cardinal bellarmin's consequence , at all concerned in any part of this institution , which the priests only , by virtue of this command , are obliged to continue , and consecrate , offer , give , receive , all by themselves , and to one another , as christ and his apostles here are supposed , without the rest of the disciples , and as priests , to have done . to pass by therefore this interpretation , both so lately invented , and so weakly established ; set up to support that bold attempt of depriving the people of one half of the communion , and that upon such principles as in the natural consequence of them rob them of both ; i go on to the other point i have proposed , and shall now take leave somewhat more largely to insist upon ; viz. ii. to shew , what indeed it was that our saviour here commanded his apostles , and in them all of us , to do in remembrance of him. and to this end it will be necessary that we distinctly to consider these two things : first , what we are to understand by the phrase , do this ? secondly , what it is to do this in remembrance of christ ? first , what we are to understand by the phrase , do this ? i answer ; that if we take these words as they lye before us in the first and most obvious form of a command , they will then imply a commission hereby given to the apostles , and in them to the whole church , to continue this holy sacrament by an ordinance for ever , as a solemn memorial of that death and passion which he was now about to undergo for us . when god was pleased , by a wonderful deliverance , to bring up the children of israel out of the land of egypt , we read in the twelfth chapter of exodus , that the same night in which he did it , he commanded them to kill a lamb , and eat it after a solemn manner , with bitter herbs , and unleavened-bread ; and to continue every year , by a constant repetition of that sacred ceremony , the memory of that deliverance which he had wrought for them . in like manner our saviour christ , being now to fulfil that redemption , w●ereof the other was but a type and representation , takes care for a solemn memorial to be continued of it in all ages of his church to the end of the world. he institutes another and better supper ; and the observation whereof should not only be the commemoration of his delivering us , but to the worthy partaker of it , the application also of all the benefits of it . he takes bread , blesses it , and breaks it ; he takes the cup , and blesses it , and distributes both to his disciples ; and then in the words of the text , bids them also do the same in remembrance of him : that as the jewish church had by their paschal feast hitherto kept up the memory of god's once delivering their fathers from the destroying angel in the land of egypt ; so should we from henceforth by this feast of eucharist continue the remembrance of that infinitely greater and better redemption which he was just now about to purchase by his own death upon the cross for us . and this is no doubt the first and most proper design of these words . but now , secondly , if we consider them not only as a command , but as they are , a direction , to inform his apostles first , and then us , how we should celebrate this holy sacrament ; they will then add thus much to our former account , namely , that we have here not only in general a command to continue the memory of the death of christ in this holy sacrament , but moreover an instruction also , after what manner we are to do it . that as our saviour christ here took the bread , blessed it , and brake it , and gave it to his disciples , saying , take , eat , this is my body which was given for you : as he took the cup , blessed it , and gave it to them , saying , drink ye all of this ; so should those who now minister in holy things , when they stand at the altar , and set forth the death of christ in this sacred memorial of it , after his example , and in obedience to his command , in like manner take , and bless , and distribute these sacred elements to all those who partake with them in this sacrament . * as the apostles received first the bread , then the cup too at his hands ; so should all they who supply the place of the apostles at our tables , receive both the one and the other of these after their example . * and whosoever he be that celebrates this holy feast in any other manner than the blessed jesus did , and has given us a command to do it , he therein both departs from the example of our saviour , and violates the design of his precept , who not only in that particular manner , as so many of the holy pen-men have set forth to us , establish'd this sacrament himself , but in the words of my text , has expresly commanded us to continue it for ever in the same manner in which he established it , do this in remembrance of me. but here therefore let me not be mis-understood : for when i say that our saviour christ in my text commanding his apostles to do this in remembrance of him , did not only in general command them to perpetuate the memory of his death by this holy ordinance for ever , but did moreover direct them after what manner they should do it : i do not mean to signifie thereby , that we ought to look upon our selves to be so tied up to the example of christ , as not to be at liberty to depart in any the least circumstances from that first celebration of it : for then we must never administer nor receive this holy sacrament but after supper , in a private chamber , or upper room , to men only , and not to women , and those just twelve , neither more nor less , and lying along with our heads in one anothers bosoms , as the apostles now did , and which i suppose no christian , of whatsoever church or persuasion he be , does at all think himself obliged to do . but my meaning herein is this ; that in those things wherein the nature of this holy sacrament consists , and which the holy scriptures have recounted to us on purpose to direct us in the celebration of it ; in those we are not to depart from our saviour's institution , nor to presume to set up our own innovations , as the council of constance has most presumptuously done in opposition to , and even in defiance of our blessed lord's appointment . to receive the holy sacrament , in this or that posture , with such or such particular ceremonies , these are things wholly foreign to the nature and design of this blessed sacrament , and therefore such as may in different places and ages be different . and every christian ought to comply with what is used and prescribed in that church with which he communicates . but for those things in which the very nature of this holy sacrament is concern'd ; for such parts as constitute the integrity of it , and serve the more lively to set it off as a memorial of the death and passion of christ , and which therefore we must look upon our lord and saviour to have sealed with his express command , do this ; in these , i say , we are to keep close both to the example of our saviour , and to the command of the text ; and when he has distinctly instituted this holy supper in two kinds , not dare to command men , under the pain of an anathema , to believe that one alone is sufficient . and this may suffice for the explication of the former part of my text , what it is we are to understand by that phrase of my text , do this . i go on , secondly , to enquire , secondly , what it is to do this in remembrance of christ. it is , i think , agreed on all hands , that the design of our saviour in this command , was to set forth the great end of his instituting this holy sacrament ; viz. that it was to keep up in our own minds , and set forth to others , a solemn and lively remembrance of his dying for us , and of the great benefits and advantages that accrue to us thereby . and however it be pretty hard to reconcile this plain design of this institution , with what those of the other communion now make to be the main business of it ; namely , to be a true and proper propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of the living , and of the dead ; in nothing differing from that upon the cross , but only in the manner of the oblation : a remembrance being ever of things absent from , not present with us ; and the same sacrifice very improperly said to be a type or memorial of it self ; yet so clearly is this design of this holy sacrament here declared to be for the remembrance of christ's death and passion , that they have chosen rather to encounter all these absurdities , than to adventure to deny what our savior has so very plainly delivered as the end of this institution . but though it is not therefore to be doubted , but that the intention of our blessed lord in this command , was to oblige us , by such a solemn ceremony as this , to continue the memory of his death ; yet we are not therefore to think , that all we have to do when we come to the holy table , and attend on this great memorial , is simply to remember or call to mind the sufferings of our saviour . no , this is not sufficient to answer either the meaning of this command , or the design of this institution . the word in the original , which we here render remembrance , is very emphatical , and imports not a bare calling to mind , but a renew'd commemoration . it regards the affections of the heart , as well as the action of the mind . in a word , it denotes not so much a private remembrance , as a publick and solemn commemoration ; when in our apostle's phrase , ver . . we do 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , annunciate and shew forth to others , at the same time , that we thus call to mind our selves , the lord's death ; and that with all those pious motions and resentments that befit so excellent and so advantageous a remembrance . to know therefore what it is that our saviour here requires of us , when he bids us to do this in remembrance of him , two things will be necessary to be considered by us : first , what it is that we are to remember or shew forth , when we come to this holy sacrament ? secondly , in what manner , and with what motions and affections we are to do it ? and , first , let us examine , what it is that we are to remember or shew forth , when we come to this holy sacrament ? now this in general st. paul here tells us is his death , ver . . that is , that bitter death and passion which he was just then about to undergo for our sakes , when he established this solemn memorial of it . for ( says he ) as often as ye eat this bread , and drink this cup , ye do shew forth the lord 's death till his coming . but because a bare remembrance of the death of christ , without any farther consideration either of the cause and manner of it , or of those infinite advantages which accrue to us thereby , will afford but a very imperfest memorial to us . we must therefore , for a full discharge of this duty , and to raise up in our souls those suitable resentments we ought to bring to this holy administration , take a farther and more particular prospect of it : and consider , first , what our state and condition was that obliged our blessed saviour thus to die for us ? secondly , what that death & passion was which he underwent for our sakes , and has therefore commanded us to remember in this holy sacrament ? thirdly , what the benefits are that accrue to us thereby ? and , first , to do this in remembrance of christ , will engage us to call to mind , what our state and condition was , that obliged our blessed saviour thus to die for us . for however we were by baptism wash'd from all the guilt , and delivered from the punishment of our original pollution , and admitted into the covenant of grace , and made heirs of the promise of eternal glory ; yet we are not therefore to think our selves ever the less concerned when we come to this holy sacrament , and shew forth that death of the lord , by which our very baptism it self was consecrated into a laver of regeneration , there to call to mind that wretched state in which we once were , and must for ever have lain , had not the blessed jesus given himself up unto death for us . i should indulge too much your curiosity in an argument of this moment , should i enter on that vain speculation which the school-men first started , and has since been made the sport and diversion of our modern scepticks in religion ; whether god could not otherwise have provided for the pardon and salvation of mankind , than by the death of his son ? for since it was the pleasure of god to pitch upon this way of doing it , to what purpose is it for us vainly to enquire whether he might not have made use of some other ? this we ought at least to believe , that god had his reasons for preferring this ; and that however we ought not so far to tye up the power and liberty of our creator , as to presume to say he could not otherwise have redeem'd us , than by the death of christ ; yet thus much we may , and 't is our duty to conclude , that none could have better , or so well have answer'd the great ends both of his justice and of his mercy ; or more illustriously have set forth the riches of his love and favour to mankind ; or more powerfully have engaged us to a suitable return of love to him ; or more clearly have convinced us of the hatred of god to sin ; or more effectually have stir'd us up to our utmost endeavours to live as we ought to do , and as becomes those who had been so wonderfully redeem'd by the precious blood of the son of god himself . but though this then be a question otherwise of more curiosity than vse ; and raised for the most part rather to cavil at religion , than to magnifie the power of it ; yet may it here perhaps be of some benefit to us , to fill our souls with the highest resentments of love and gratitude to our great redeemer , to consider not only from what miseries he has delivered us , but with what a freedom and readiness , and good-will to us he did it . no , god was not constrain'd , nor any necessity put upon our saviour christ , as if either the one must have died , or that the other could not by any other means have reconciled mankind unto himself . it was the free choice of both , by this means , the better to magnifie their love to us , and to secure our love and duty to them again ; that so , as st. john says , ep. iv . . we may love god , because he first loved us . hence it is that the holy scriptures every where set out to us the whole business of our salvation , as the effect of the free choice and pleasure of god. so says st. john , cap. iii. . god so loved the world , that he gave his only begotten son , that whosoever believeth in him should not perish , but have everlasting life . so says st. paul , tim. i. . where he makes the business of our redemption to have been the eternal purpose of god , before adam had yet sinned , or by consequence before there could be any necessity of christ's dying for us ; who hath saved us , says he , and called us with an holy calling , not according to our works , but according to his own purpose , and grace which was given us in christ jesus before the world began . and of our blessed saviour , the same apostle tells us , not only that he gave himself for us , tit. ii . . but that he did it with all imaginable readiness , and with the same good-will with which god designed it , lo i come ( says he ) to fulfil thy will , o god , heb. x. , . and again in st. john , speaking of laying down his life for us , he declares , ver . . no man taketh it from me , but i lay it down of my self ; i have power to lay it down , and i have power to take it again . such therefore was the love of our blessed saviour to us , in freely giving up himself to the death for us . and for the reason that induced him to it , and the benefits which thereby accrue to us , i shall not need to say either what or how great they were . indeed , the time would fail me , should i go about particularly to lay them all before you . miserable was the state , and deplorable the condition of mankind , beyond any thing that we are able almost to conceive . we were all dead in trespasses and sins , and must for ever have lain both under the guilt and punishment of our transgressions , had not the blessed jesus opened to us the gates of heaven , and sealed a gospel of repentance with his own blood , for the remission of our sins . our nature was decayed , and that he has restored ; so that whereas before we had no sufficiency of our selves , we have now a sufficiency of god , and can do all things through christ that strengthens us . our sins had got the dominion over us ; and these he has not only very much prevented by his grace , but will also utterly wipe away by his death and satisfaction for us . we were under a miserable sentence of death and judgment : but christ has now took away the sting of the one , and the danger of the other ; so that our temporal death is no longer a punishment , but rather a blessing to us ; and the eternal judgment of god , shall , instead of being our condemnation , prove to us perfect absolution , and a glorious reward . this is the blessed change which has been made in our condition , and which certainly ought to render the remembrance of our text most dear and precious to us . but i must not insist any longer upon this point ; i am persuaded there is no one that now hears me , so ignorant in the great mystery of godliness , as not to be fully acquainted with this first and chiefest foundation of all our faith. nor have i mentioned that little which i have now remark'd of it , so much to instruct you in what you ought to make a great part of your memorial when you come to this holy sacrament ; as rather if it shall please god to stir up some affections both in my self and you , that may be suitable to a serious reflection on all these things : there being nothing , it may be , in the world , more apt to fill our souls with that due resentment we then especially ought to have of the death of christ when we come to this sacred memorial of it , than to consider the wretched condition from which we were delivered by it ; nor more apt to engage us to live as becomes those who have been freed from such unspeakable miseries , and are now put into a capacity of everlasting glory ; and without which our remembrance of him in this sacrament , will be a reproach , and a scandal , not an honour and a service to him ; we shall forfeit all the benefits of that death we are call'd to commemorate ; and as our apostle phrases it , ver . . of this chapter , eat and drink our own damnation , not discerning the lord's body . this is the first thing we are to do in pursuance of the command of the text , this do in remembrance of me. secondly , this remembring of christ in this holy sacrament , will oblige us to consider what that death and passion was which he underwent for our sakes , and commanded us in this place to continue the memory of in this institution . and this to be sure must be the proper business of every one when he comes to this holy table . but now , what , or how great those sufferings were which the blessed jesus underwent for us , it is not for me to pretend to declare unto you . great and terrible are the accounts which the scriptures every where give us of them . how doth isaiah set forth to us in his prophecy , the type and shadow of them ? he tells us , that he should be a man of sorrow , and acquainted with grief ; without form , or comeliness , or beauty , that we should desire him . he represents him as labouring under all the miseries and afflictions that were due to the sins of a wicked and incorrigible world . surely ( says he ) he hath born our griefs , and carried our sorrows : we esteemed him stricken , smitten of god , and afflicted ; but he was wounded for our transgressions , he was bruised for our iniquities ; the chastisement of our peace was upon him , and by his stripes we are healed . all we like sheep have gone astray , and the lord hath laid on him the iniquities of us all . thus did isaiah speak of the sufferings of christ , when he foresaw his death , and prophesied of his passion : and if we look into the accounts which the holy evangelists give us of the accomplishment of it , we shall find those exceeding whatever we are able to comprehend of it . . if we consider the circumstances of his suffering , it was accompanied with all the bitter aggravations of misery that can well be imagined . for indeed , what else can we say of the mockeries and the insults , of the scorns and reproaches that appeared in all the parts of his passion ? of the baseness and treachery of his disciples , and of the barbarous malice and cruelty of his enemies ? how was he betray'd by one of his own apostles , deny'd by another , forsaken by all , condemn'd at one of those feasts that brought together all the nation of the jews to jerusalem ? and that for two of the most grievous crimes that could be laid to the charge of an innocent soul ; blasphemy against god , and sedition among the people ; set at nought by the soldiers ; execrated and abjured by his own countrymen ; adorn'd as a mock king , that he might be the more derided by them ; and then finally , to compleat the tragedy , executed by a death not only the most scandalous , but the most painful of any in the world. . which therefore brings us to a second consideration of his passion ; namely , of the pains and torments of it . and here i shall not enter upon any long account of the cruelty of that death , which has been thought sufficient by those whose kind of punishment it was to give a general name to the greatest torments , by derivation from this one , as the highest and chiefest of all . the wounds of the hands and feet , which the nails made when he was fastned to the cross ; the agonies and convulsions of his whole body , when he hung upon it ; the slowness of dying , not to say any thing of those furrows , which , in the psalmist's speech , they had before made with their scourges upon his back . all these sufficiently declare to us an extraordinary suffering , and may warrant us to cry out with the prophet , in the reflection on it , is it nothing to you , all ye that pass by , behold and see if there be any sorrow like unto this sorrow wherewith the lord afflicted his own son in that day of his fierce anger . . and yet still all this was but the least part of his passion ; and the anguish of his soul , those unknown sufferings he underwent within , far exceed whatever torments his enemies were able to put him to . they were these that made him sweat great drops of blood in the garden , before ever the officers had seiz'd him , or begun to inflict the least punishment upon him . they were these that made him not only declare to his disciples , that his soul was exceeding sorrowful , even unto death ; but carried him farther , in the bitterness of his grief , to pray three several times to his father with the greatest importunity ; that if it were possible this cup might pass from him . and when at last it could not be , but that he must drink off the very dregs of it , forced that vehement expostulation from him , my god , my god , why hast thou forsaken me ? it has been the rashness of some , from all these expressions of his grief , but especially from the last , to conclude , that our saviour in his passion underwent all the punishment that all the elect of god should have suffered for all their sins ; and , in short , that he bore in his mind the very pains and torments of the damn'd . but it is not necessary , nor indeed agreeable to a right belief , to run to any such extremity . his sufferings were indeed great , but they were not such as either excluded him from the love and favour of god in the midst of them ; nor accompanied with any despair , which is always one , and that not the least part of the sinner's torment in another world. he died , and went down into the grave ; but his soul was not left in the regions of the dead , nor did his flesh see corruption . his punishment was short in the duration , and the intenseness of it , though very grievous , yet no more than was agreeable to the nature of a man to bear : and we must not so speak of the sufferings of christ , as to forget , that though he was god when he underwent them , yet that he died , and suffered as he was man. thus therefore must we call to mind the passion of our blessed lord : we must go through all the stages of it with care and exactness ; and neither diminish the horrour of what he endured by an imperfect memorial of it , nor do violence at once both to the nature and innocence of christ , by straining it up to a greater heighth than either the authority of holy scripture , or the honour of our saviour , or his humane nature in which he suffered , will permit us to do . this is the second thing we are to remember when we come to the holy table . the third and last thing here required of us , is , having called to mind the sufferings of christ , and the evils from whence we are delivered by them , to consider finally , what the benefits are that accrue to us thereby . it is not to be doubted , but that there must be somewhat very extraordinary for which the son of god should himself come down from heaven , and not only humble himself so far as to take upon him the form of a servant , but being made in the similitude of a man , expose himself to all those vile and cruel sufferings i but just now recounted . and indeed the benefits which he purchased for us by his death , were not at all inferior to the punishment he underwent for the obtaining of them : and to speak them all in one general conclusion , he purchased the redemption of a lost , miserable , sinful world ; we were all before dead in trespasses and sins ; we are now raised to the hopes and assurance of everlasting glory . but here therefore i will be a little more particular . and , first , by these sufferings our saviour christ delivered us from the curse which descended to us by our first parents transgression , and from that eternal punishment which must otherwise have been the consequence of it . for not to enter now into any scrupulous enquiry concerning the nature of original sin , or the grounds upon which god is supposed to impute it to us : or how far we should have been either condemn'd or not for the actual sin of adam in eating of the forbidden fruit : this at least cannot be doubted of by any , that our nature is now much degenerated from that primitive purity in which man was at first created ; that we have all , the very best of us , a strange propensity to evil , and are born with an impotency , if not adverseness to that virtue and piety , which the principles of natural religion , as well as of revealed require of us . so that if we should allow the contentious disputers of our days , that god will not impute adam's transgression to us for sin , nor condemn us for a defect which we are not our selves consenting to , but bring into the world with us ; yet would this have stood us but in very little stead : whilst we should every one of us have been guilty of so many actual sins , as had not christ purchased a redemption for us , must for ever have sunk us down into ruine and destruction . and certainly we ought then to esteem it no small benefit of our saviour's passion , that he has now delivered us from this danger ; and removed the fatal necessity we must otherwise have lain under , of being for ever miserable , without all possibility of preventing of it . but this is only one part , and that the first and least of those blessings which his death and passion has obtained for us . for , secondly , our saviour christ has not only delivered us from those dangers to which we were before exposed ; but he has put us in a new and better way of attaining to that , nay perhaps to a greater happiness than what we should have had , if adam had never sinned , nor by consequence our saviour christ ever given himself an offering for our sins . this is indeed the great commendation of our saviour's love to us , that not content to deliver us from those dangers that before threatned us , he saves to the uttermost , those that come to him . and here to unfold the greatness of this benefit , as i ought to do , i must run through all the excellent advantages of that new-covenant god entred into with us by the blood of his son. but this would carry me into an argument , great indeed , and worthy your attention , but beyond the bounds of my present discourse . in general , * if to have a systeme of the noblest and most admirable rules of living that were ever communicated to the world ; such , as by their own excellence , no less than by god's command , recommend themselves not only to our practice , but to our love too . * if to be endued with a supernatural , divine assistance , to enable us to fulfil them , and overcome all those temptations that may at any time seek to draw us from them . * if to be assured , that upon our hearty endeavours and earnest prayers to god , this grace of his shall still increase in us , according as we sincerely apply our selves to make use of it , or as other circumstances shall happen to put us in need of it . * if besides this help to keep us from sinning , to live under a gracious promise of pardon for those sins , which many times we shall commit , notwithstanding all our labour to the contrary , upon our humble confession and hearty repentance of them . * if to know that for all these ends , we have a redeemer in heaven , who stands continually in the presence of god to make intercession for us , and represent to his father that death and passion which he underwent on purpose , that he might obtain this forgiveness for us ; in a word , * if to be undoubtedly secured , that whatever becomes of us now , yet let us but sincerely labour , what in us lies , to fulfil our duty , and we shall be in a little time eternally happy in the consummation of all these blessings in the kingdom of our saviour ; that yet a few years and our high-priest shall again return in glory , and pronounce the great and final blessing upon us , which shall instate us in joys never to be forfeited : if i say , to live under the conduct of such a saviour and such a religion ; to have the comfort of so great promises now , and the blessed assurance of such glory hereafter , may be esteemed a blessing , as indeed what can we think of it , but to be the greatest blessing that a merciful god could bestow upon his creatures , or a divine saviour purchase for his servants : all this , and many other benefits , which i cannot now so much as mention to you , christ purchased for us by his sufferings , and calls upon us in this holy sacrament to remember with the highest joy and the most grateful acknowledgments . which brings me to the other thing proposed , for the full explication of the duty here required of us : viz. secondly , * after what manner , and * with what affections it is , that we are to do this in remembrance of him. for the former of these , i. the manner , how we are here to remember him ; i have already observed , that the original word , which we here render remembrance , is very emphatical , and implies not any calling to mind all these things , but a frequent renewed commemoration of them : and that especially such , by which we may not only remember our selves , but also set forth to others the memorial of them . so s. paul interprets it , v. . as often as ye eat this bread and drink this cup , [ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ] annunciate , shew forth , make a solemn declaration of the lord's death until his coming . and so indeed the very design of this institution will oblige us to understand it . when our saviour first celebrated this holy sacrament , and commanded his disciples , by the like sacred ceremony , to continue the memory of his death , until the end of the world : we are told by the evangelists , that he had just finished the feast of the passover ; into the place whereof he substituted this christian feast , and as all the circumstances of it plainly shew , designed this to have the same place in the christian , that the other had till then had in the jewish church . now concerning that solemn feast , we read in the book of exodus , cap. xii . . that god appointed it [ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ] for a memorial , that is , for a solemn recognition which the people was thereby to make every year , of that great deliverance by which they were brought up out of the land of egypt . and in the thirteenth chapter they are commanded to remember the day in which they came out of egypt , and to keep the feast of unleavened bread seven daies : and then and there solemnly to declare to their children the cause of it : namely , that they did this because of that which the lord their god had done for them when they came forth out of egypt . to which end it was the custome of the jews at this solemnity , to have their children propose to them the question , what the meaning of this solemnity was ? and thereupon the master of the house gave a full account to them of the history of their deliverance ; and which from thence they called the haggadah , the annunciation or remembrance : because of their using it at this time to commemorate or shew forth that wonderful deliverance , which god had wrought for them . such was the nature of that remembrance which god commanded the jews to continue in their paschal supper of his bringing them out of egypt : and the same is the remembrance which our saviour here commands us by this new feast , to continue in his church , of his dying for us : we are to celebrate it , as a solemn and publick memorial of that great deliverance which our blessed lord has wrought for us ; and to declare to all the world thereby what a sense we have of his infinite love and mercy to us . nay , but this is not yet all we are to do , if we will answer the full extent of the duty here required of us . we must not only make , in this holy sacrament , our publick and solemn recognition of christ's death and passion ; but we must do it with that affection , that joy , those resentments that become so great and excellent a memorial . so these kind of expressions in holy scripture are for the most part to be understood ; and so it is plain we must take the word in this place . and this is the other thing remaining to be considered for the full understanding of the text. viz. ii. with what affections we ought to come to this holy table , and do this in remembrance of him. it were too much for me here , in the close of my discourse , to resume the whole consideration of this great sacrament , and enter again upon a particular view of it , and shew what kind of affections we ought to raise in our souls , proportionable to the several parts and respects of it . if we are indeed so sensible as we ought to be of our saviour's love to us , in thus giving himself to the death for us : if we have so seriously weighed , as becomes those who are called to this feast , the mighty benefits and advantages which are derived to us thereby ; what miseries we have escaped , to what blessings we are entituled by his sufferings ; the sense of all this will soon teach us what motions and affections ought to fill our souls , that may be suitable to so great and blessed a memorial . for indeed , who can be so ignorant as not to know , without my remark , when he comes to the holy table , and there beholds the minister of god setting forth , as s. paul speaks , evidently before his eyes christ crucified for him ; when both his words and his actions call upon him to consider , how the son of god humbled himself even to the death for our redemption ; and submitted his body to be broken , his blood to be spilt , as he there sees the bread broken , the wine poured out in this celebration ; that here certainly he ought with the greatest ecstasie of love to contemplate this love of his saviour to him ; and break forth into the highest expressions of a grateful thanksgiving , for this mighty demonstration of his favour and affection to him. when from this he begins to reflect , on that wretched condition in which we all of us must have been , had not the blessed jesus thus graciously undertook the great work of our redemption ; and by dying for us , delivered us from that death , to which we were condemned , and raised us up to the hopes of eternal glory : where is the soul , so dull , so un-affected with the contemplation of such a glorious change , as to be able to keep in his joyful resentments of so wonderful a deliverance ; and not rather burst forth into new songs of praise and gladness for all the benefits which god and his redeemer have been so wonderfully pleased to do unto him. but above all , who can think on that value which the blessed jesus has put upon our souls ; that he thought the salvation of them to be a price worthy his own death and sufferings to redeem them ; and then consider , that even these very souls for which christ died , will yet be exposed to the hazard of a greater and worser damnation than that from which they have been delivered , if we shall still go on impenitent in our sins : and not presently resolve here to sacrifice all his passions at this altar ; to lay down all his lusts at the pedestal of the cross , and vow himself entirely to the obedience of that saviour ; who , as s. paul tells us , for this very end gave himself for us , that he might redeem us from all iniquity , and purchase to himself a peculiar people , zealous of good works . such resentments as these will naturally arise in every pious soul , when he comes to this sacred feast , and therefore i shall not need to give any particular directions concerning them . only i would take occasion from this last import of the remembrance to which our text calls us , to exhort you when you come to this holy institution , that you would take care to raise up all these affections and resentments to as great a heighth as you are able ; and having done this , that you would then cherish and improve them , that being not only warm and vigorous upon your souls at the present , but also rooted and engrafted into them , they may not easily cool again , but become operative upon your lives , may encrease your love and confirm your faith , and enflame your devotion , and keep you firm and steady to your duty , till some new occasion shall again call you to a new exciting of them . this will be indeed to render your remembrance such as your saviour here requires of you : and the frequent returns which by the blessing of god you here enjoy of this memorial beyond most christians in the world ; shall not only put you in a capacity of coming still with better and more affectionate resentments to this holy sacrament , but shall , by the blessing of god , prove a most useful and excellent assistance , to the promoting of all the other parts of your duty ; you shall live as becomes those who know what mighty engagements their saviour has laid upon them ; to what hopes they are called , and by what means their redemption was purchased for them . and as this exercise will be the best means to prepare you to come worthily to this remembrance , so will it be also the most powerful motive to engage you to come frequently too . when you shall begin effectually to perceive the benefit of your communicating , in the still new encrease of piety and holiness in all your actions : when being full with a constant sense of the love of the blessed jesus , here set forth to us , you shall find it to be the desire and longing of your souls , to come often to this grateful and pleasing declaration of it . when , in a word , being accustomed to consider the blessings and advantages of that new covenant our blessed master has sealed to us in his blood , and here offers to renew with us in this sacrament , you shall wish , if it might be , every day to repeat it , and think you can never enough declare your desires of being admitted into the conditions and advantages of it . and thus have i offered to you what i suppose may suffice for the full explication of the words before us . and from the account , of which we may now easily see , what is the true nature and design of this holy sacrament ? namely , that it was instituted by our saviour to be a sacred and solemn memorial of that death and passion which he underwent for us , and of the great benefits and advantages which accrue to us thereby . that as by the paschal feast among the jews , god perpetuated the remembrance of his preserving them from the destroying angel first , and then delivering them from their egyptian bondage ; and engaged them to a constant , annual return of joy and thanksgiving to him for so great a blessing : so by this better passover , should we in like manner keep up for ever in the church a lively and affectionate commemoration of that better and more glorious preservation which our paschal lamb , the lord jesus , has by his own blood obtained for us ; and set forth to the whole world that grateful and vigorous sense which we have of so wonderful and blessed a deliverance . now this being the true meaning and design of this holy sacrament , we may from hence see , how great and dangerous the mistakes are which some have run into concerning it , with reference both to faith and practice ? for , . if this sacrament , as we have before shewn , was instituted as a memorial of the death and passion of our saviour christ ; it is then plain , that it is not our very saviour christ himself , neither in the state of his death , nor in any other , that is here presented to us . there have been in the church , since the time of paschasius radbertus , one of the first considerable innovators that we meet with in the doctrine of this holy eucharist , among others two different opinions concerning the real or corporal presence of christ in this sacrament , and both maintained with no small contention at this day . one , that the bread and wine are converted into the very natural body and blood of christ , so that nothing of the bread and wine themselves at all remain , but only in shew and appearance ; which is what they called transubstantiation ; the other , that the true substances of the outward elements , the bread and the wine do indeed remain ; but that the very body and blood of our saviour christ are in an extraordinary and supernatural manner joyned to them ; so that in the communion of them , we do together with the bread and wine , receive the true body and blood of christ into our mouths , truly and really present , which they call consubstantiation . now however the latter of these be much the more pardonable error of the two ; as neither doing any violence to our senses , which evidently tell us , that what we see and receive in this sacrament , is certainly bread and wine ; nor contradicting the many passages of scripture , which declare to us the same thing ; yet are they both very great mistakes . the natural body of christ being not capable of existing in more places than one at the same time ; nor to be divested of the inseparable properties of a body ; such as extension of parts , space , figure , and the like , in which the very nature of a body , as it is distinguished from a spirit does consist . but these opinions do not only involve a plain impossibility in the very nature of the thing it self ; but moreover do carry a manifest incongruity to the nature and design of this institution . for if the end of this holy sacrament were , as our text shews , to be a remembrance of christ ; a sign and figure of his body broken , and of his blood shed for us ; then certainly , as in all other cases , the sign must be different from the thing signified : so here , the sacrament of christ's body , is not his body , but the memorial of it ; the sacrament of his blood is not his very blood , but the figure and representation of it . and thus these latter words , do this in remembrance of me , become the best and clearest interpretation of the former , this is my body which is given for you ; and shew that we are to interpret it after the same manner , as when we read in the like kind of speaking , in the old testament , this is the lord 's passover ; i. e. the memorial of that action , when the angel passed over the houses of the children of israel , and destroyed them not , when at the same time he slew the egyptians . but here it may be asked ; do we then exclude christ altogether from this holy sacrament , and leave only an empty sign , a meer ceremonial remembrance of him and no more ? god forbid ! nay , but i dare say , we esteem christ to be no less present , tho' in another manner than they : inasmuch as in this sacred ordinance , he communicates himself in the benefits of his passion in a more especial manner to every faithful receiver of this blessed sacrament ; and makes the bread which he eats , and the wine which he drinks become , not indeed by any such needless and absurd change , as we before mentioned , but by grace and blessing ; by his divine power , and spiritual communication , his body broken and his blood shed for us , to all the effects of piety and justification . the elements are not altered , they continue not only after the consecration , but in the very receiving of them , the same they were before ; bread and wine , without any bodily substance besides either veiled under those appearances , or received together with them . but by faith , at the same time that we take these into our mouths , we take him also , whom they represent , into our souls : not as bringing christ from heaven , but raising up our minds and our hearts to that holy place where he is , we unite our selves to him ; and have all the benefits of his death and passion communicated to us for the forgiveness of our sins , for the increase of his grace and favour to us here , and to be at once both the surest earnest and the most effectual means to bring us to everlasting happiness hereafter . this is that real but divine and spiritual presence of our saviour in this sacrament , which we firmly believe , and which secures to us all the blessings and advantages which the others can hope for , from their ungrounded and unwarrantable opinion of a natural and corporal participation of him. . from this account of the design and end of this institution it follows in the next place ; what an abuse they have made of it , who from a remembrance of a sacrifice turn it into a sacrifice it self ; and instead of esteeming this sacrament a memorial of that offering christ once for all made for us , suppose him to be again as truly and properly offered in it as ever he was , tho' not in the same manner that he was once upon the cross. i shall not now insist so long upon this point , as to shew not only how contrary such an opinion is to the express authority of holy scripture , which declares , that christ was to be offered once for all ; that by his once offering himself for us , he has perfected for ever them that are sanctified ; and much more to the same purpose , in the ixth and xth chapters to the hebrews ; but how derogatory to the honour of our saviour , whether we consider his former sufferings or his present glory . this is plain , that if the design of this blessed sacrament were as our text declares it , to be a remembrance of our saviour's dying for us , then it is not a new offering of him ; there being nothing more absurd than to say of the same thing , that it is both the memorial of what was done many ages ago , and the very same thing again done in memorial of its self . . from the same principles it will follow , that if this holy sacrament be no more than a remembrance of our saviour christ , that then certainly those must have very desperately abused it , who pay to it that honour and worship that they would do , to our saviour himself , were his true and natural body there present . i need not say any thing to prove what the superstition of the church of rome is as to this matter : they here freely own it themselves , and censure us for not joyning with them in the same service . they elevate their host in the mass , for the people to adore it : they have instituted a solemn feast , every year , to be observed in honour of it : they dedicate religious societies thereunto ; they set it forth upon their altars to bless the people there assembled to its worship : if they carry it abroad , whether to the sick , or upon the occasion of any solemn processions , they put it under a canopy , born all the while over it ; candles and tapers are carried before it ; and a bell is rung all the way that it passes , to admonish all that are in sight of it to fall down and adore it : and by all these and many other of their actions , they oblige all persons to pay the supreme honour that they give to god , to this holy sacrament . it were easie to shew how dangerous this adoration is , even upon their own principles ; whether we consider the impossibility of their being ever sure that their host is indeed consecrated as it ought to be ; or that if it were , yet at least the accidents of the bread and wine , which are creatures , and yet make up a part of the sacrament , are by consequence joynt partakers of all their worship . but alas ! what i have now been speaking shews a great deal more : not only that the accidents of the bread and wine have their part in being objects of this worship ; but that our saviour christ indeed is not at all concerned in it . they pay their adoration to the inanimate creatures of bread and wine , and commit an idolatry not much less gross , in the opinion of some of their own writers , if we are indeed in the right , than those who fall down before a piece of red cloth , and pay their adoration to a tile or a potsherd . but , . if our saviour christ in our text plainly commanded his apostles , and in them all of us , to do that in remembrance of him , which he had there done before their eyes : if what he required in order to this commemoration , was , that we should take bread and wine , and bless , and give , and receive these , in memory of his body which was given , and of his blood which was shed for us ; it will then follow in the fourth place , that those who do not do this , have plainly departed from our saviour's institution , and do not remember him as they are commanded to do . and this alone is sufficient to confute that great corruption of the same church , in communicating the people only in one kind . and whatever pretences they may offer for their so doing , had they as just reason otherwise for altering the order of this sacrament , as god knows 't is plain they have not any at all ; yet this would still remain a perpetual exception against it , that our saviour here expresly commands them to do this , i. e. that which himself then did in remembrance of him ; who gave the wine as well as bread to his apostles , and repeated the command after the one , as well as the other ; and not what they should at any time after think fitting to do . and these are such consequences as concern others rather than our selves ; who , god be thanked , are again delivered from all these corruptions , and have no otherwise any cause to remember them , than as they serve to confirm us in our pure and holy doctrine and practice in this matter , and ought to raise up our souls to a grateful acknowledgment of god's mercy to us , who has freed us from such great and dangerous errors , and in which he still permits so many others to continue . but there are yet some other conclusions to be drawn from the foregoing reflections , and in which we may perhaps find somewhat that will be of a more near and direct concern to us . for , . if our saviour christ has here commanded us , to do this in remembrance of him ; that is , to come to the holy table , and receive this blessed sacrament , and make our publick and solemn acknowledgments to him for his great mercy in dying for us ; what then shall we say of those who despising this sacred ordinance , do either totally absent themselves from this memorial , or come but very seldom and negligently to it . this certainly must needs be a great fault , as it is evidently contrary to the express command of our saviour in the text before us . and if we may make any judgment of christ's resentment of it , either from the nature of the thing it self , or from the severe punishment god threatned unto those in the old testament , who should neglect the like memorial of the paschal feast , one of the greatest provocations any christian can almost be guilty of . if we consider the thing it self , what does he who despises this holy sacrament , and neglects to partake of it , but in effect despise christ himself , and tread under foot the blood of the covenant by which we must be saved ? and how can that soul expect any benefit of his death and sufferings , for his forgiveness hereafter , who now will not vouchsafe so much as to make that common acknowledgment which every christian ought of his remembrance of it , or shew any sense of his obligation , though we have here so plain and peremptory a com●●●d to do it ? and if we look to the denuntiations of the old testament , against those who should thus neglect to joyn in the jewish passover , and shew forth this remembrance of the deliverance which that feast referr'd to , we may , i think , have some cause to fear , how much greater shall be our punishment , whose neglect is certainly , upon many accounts , much more inexcusable than theirs . if any man ( says moses ) deut. xii . . shall eat leavened-bread in that time , that soul shall be cut off from israel : but more expresly , numb . ix . . he that is clean , and is not on a journey , and forbeareth to keep the passover , even the same soul shall be cut off from his people . whatever the meaning of that excision be which god here threatned that people with ; whether it be , that such a one should have no part in the world to come , as some interpret it ; or , that god would cut him off by an untimely temporal death , as others : or lastly , which was esteemed by them no small curse , that he should die childless , and have his name put out in israel . this is certain that the denuntiation is very severe ; and , if the remark of a very learned * rabbin be true , almost particular to the thing in hand ; there being but two of all the affirmative precepts to which god made this denuntiation , viz. to him that neglected the first sacrament , of circumcision ; and this second , of the passover . but perhaps it will here be said , that this commination was to those that were clean , and near at hand , and yet neglected this holy institution : and therefore ought not to be applied to them , with reference to the blessed sacrament which we are speaking of , who would gladly receive it , and have a very honourable remembrance in their hearts of the death of christ ; but alas ! either they are not clean , or are in a journey ; either they are not prepared , or have not the leisure to come to this table . 't is true indeed , god did here restrain the judgment i have mention'd , to such as were clean , and at or near to jerusalem ; but the rest were not therefore by any means excused , and permitted to neglect the partaking of it . they had time given them till the next month , to cleanse themselves , and to come up to jerusalem ; and if they neglected in the second month to keep the feast , after having omitted it in the first , there was then no farther provision for them , but they fell under the curse of those who neglected altogether to eat of it . and this therefore may serve for a useful admonition , as well as full answer to the excuses of those , who are still pretending they are not worthy to come to this sacrament , or else have not time and leisure to prepare themselves for it . if indeed this should chance by any accident to hinder them at this time , or on this occasion , from receiving of it ; they ought not therefore to disquiet themselves , but to believe , that in such a case our saviour christ will make the same allowance for this feast , that god did for that other ; and permit them yet another month to remove the obstacle , and prepare themselves to come to his table . but if instead of doing this , they shall still go on to insist upon these vain pretences , and live so as not to be worthy to receive the holy sacrament , and continue to live so still , without taking any care to put themselves into a better state ; this will prove an aggravation of their sin , not a lessening of it ; and their neglect will be but the more inexcusable , for being grounded on a reason so contrary not only to the design of this holy sacrament , but of the whole christian religion . but , sixthly , and to close all : the command of our saviour in these words we have been so long considering , will not only oblige us in the general , sometimes to remember his death , by receiving this holy sacrament , but frequently and oftentimes so to do . i have before observed , that the word which we here render remembrance , does not imply a bare memorial , but a renew'd commemoration ; to teach us , that we are often to refresh the memory of christ's death in our minds by this sacred solemnity , and to repeat again and again the remembrance of it . and though it be pretty hard to say , how often a man ought to receive the sacrament ; yet 't is plain , he is not so zealous a christian as he should be , that very seldom or never does it . we know that in the first ages of christianity , when devotion was quick and vigorous , and men had the most sensible impressions upon their minds of the love of our saviour , in giving himself to die for us , that then they received it ordinarily every day : insomuch that some of those fathers who then lived , have interpreted this eucharistical bread , to be that daily bread which our lord has taught us to pray for . afterwards , as mens zeal cool'd , so did their frequent communicating decay in proportion with it . at first it fell in some churches to four , in others to three times in the week ; and in a little while it came to be the distinctive devotion of the lord's days : and at last , the necessary , least proportion established was , the three great feasts of the year , in which our church still obliges all her members to partake of it . but as he who is in a pure and holy state , can never receive it too often ; so certainly it is a thing than which none would more advance our piety , to labour as frequently as we can , to fit our selves for it . and since it has pleased god , to revive something of the primitive zeal among us as to this particular , in bringing our solemn communions to a monthly course , besides other extraordinary occasions of it ; i do not see what better exhortation i can leave with you as to this matter , than seriously to advise , and earnestly beseech every one of you , to examine and prepare your selves , then at least , to joyn with your brethren in these holy returns ; and not deprive your souls of the benefits which are thus graciously offered to you in this great and most useful remembrance . this will indeed both best answer the design of our blessed lord in the text , and be the best application , i could even wish you would make of my discourse upon it . but then i must observe , that i speak now by way of exhortation , not as necessarily requiring this in obedience to the command before us , but as the improvement i desire , if it were possible , you might all make of those opportunities god is pleased here to reach out to you in order to this end ; and which i do not see how any good christian can with a good conscience so frequently neglect . in the mean time , this is the summ of all ; he that despises this institution , does not only shew a light esteem of the death of christ , and do violence to the command of his saviour ; but does moreover deprive his soul of the most excellent assistance god has given us in this world , in order to our salvation in the next : whereas he who comes frequently , and with that due preparation he ought to it , will not only put himself out of all danger from the precept before us , but will in a little while secure himself of such a measure of the grace and favour of his redeemer , whose memory he here honours , as shall carry him through all the temptations , the sorrows , the afflictions of this life , to an eternal enjoyment of glory , honour , and immortality in the next : and to which god of his infinite mercy vouchsafe to bring us all , for the same his son jesus christ's sake , our lord , amen . of the honour due to the blessed uirgin : a sermon preached on lady day , march xxv . . luke i. , . for behold from henceforth all generations shall call me blessed : for he that is mighty hath done to me great things , and holy is his name . these words are part of that magnificat or song of thanksgiving which the blessed virgin made to god , in return of that wonderful favour he had vouchsafed unto her , in esteeming her worthy to become the mother of our lord. and they contain in them a kind of prophecy of that honour which the christian church should in all ages to come pay to her memory upon the account of it . it is the observation of our english rhemists in their annotations upon this place ; that this prophecy is fulfilled in their keeping her festival days , and saying the ave marie , and other holy anthems of our lady . and that the calvinists therefore ( so they are pleased to stile us ) for not doing of this , are not among these generations which call our lady blessed . and in their marginal note on the same passage , they very briskly ask this question ; have the protestants had always generations to fulfil this prophecy ? or do they call her blessed that derogate what they can from her graces , blessing , and all her honour ? in answer to so ignorant or so malicious a calumny , and to shew that we , tho' we neither say any ave-maries to her honour , nor are engaged in any other part of that unwarrantable superstition whereby they have so long dishonoured god , abused the blessed virgin , and scandalized the church of christ , have yet as just an esteem for the holy mother of our lord , and proclaim her blessedness as much as either this prophecy requires , or any sober orthodox christian may be allowed to do it ; i shall crave leave to make use of that occasion , the solemnity of this day offers to me , to enter on the comparison between our selves and them . and could i be assured , that the blest above have this honour from god , to be made acquainted with these solemn exercises of their brethren here below ; i would not doubt to appeal to the holy virgin her self to judge betwixt us ; who they are that do the most truly honour her , we who freely pay her all that love , that respect , that glory , that any creature in her circumstances can possibly be thought capable of : or they who by giving her more , raise her up to a state above the condition of her nature ; and so instead of honouring her , dishonour that son whom she was so happy as to bring into the world ; and that god , who thought her worthy of so great an exaltation . now in order to this end , i shall observe this following method : i. i will shew what that honour is which the blessed virgin is now capable of receiving , and which accordingly we our selves this day pay to her memory ? ii. i will lay before you some instances of that additional worship , which those of the other church pretend is due to her . iii. i will offer some of those reasons for which we think such a worship to be unlawful , and therefore refuse to give it to her . i. i begin with the first of these , i. what that honour is which the blessed virgin is now capable of receiving , and which accordingly we our selves pay to her memory ? for answer to which enquiry , i shall lay down this plain , and i suppose , undeniable foundation ; viz. that however some have been pleased to exalt the glories and prerogatives of the holy mary to a very great , indeed to an extravagant degree , so as hardly to leave any comparison between her and any other creature , whether in heaven or earth ; yet since they still confess her to be but a meer creature , the measure we must take whereby to judge , what honour may warrantably be paid to her , must be , to consider , what honour any meer creature , in her circumstances , is capable of receiving : and then , i presume it cannot be justly said , that we are not of the number of those who call the holy virgin blessed ; who upon this foundation do freely profess , that providing only for that just distance that ought to be observed between the adoration that we owe to god , and that honour which we may be allowed to give to a creature ; there is no respect that we think too great to be given to her : nor will we scruple to pay her any honour that does not entrench upon our piety , and confound the service of god and his creatures together . were the blessed virgin yet present upon earth with us , we would soon convince those our accusers that we thought no respect too much for her , which either they or we are wont to give to the greatest saints yet on earth . now that she is departed from us , all we can do is to follow her with our esteem , our praise , and our imitation : that is , to give her all that honour which any creature in the same circumstances is fit to receive , or which it may be either lawful or reasonable for us to offer to such a one . * we pray not indeed to her now , nor would we do it if she were still on earth , and we were sure she could hear and know our requests : because prayer we look upon to be an act of religious worship , and therefore such as is proper to god only . but we bless god for the honour he vouchsafed unto her , when he made her the mother of our lord ; with the angel , we pronounce her blessed among women ; and that in that very form which she her self set us for our pattern ; and so every day fulfil her prophecy , whilst we cry out with her to god almighty , my soul doth magnifie the lord , and my spirit rejoyceth in god my saviour , in that he regarded the lowliness of his handmaiden . we intreat her not to pray for us , because we cannot tell how to convey our requests to her : and tho' for ought we know god might reveal them unto her ; yet since he has no where promised that he will do this , nor encouraged us to call upon her to this end ; we think we cannot in this manner pray to her without either great folly , or great impiety : without great folly ; if not believing that she do's certainly some way or other understand our requests , we yet neverless address to her : without great impiety ; if in confidence that she has such an ability , we ascribe the most peculiar prerogatives of god to her , viz. immensity , omniscience , omnipresence ; and so make her every way equal with god but were she now upon earth , where we could either speak to her our selves , or otherwise entertain any certain correspondence with her ; we should be far from discouraging any to beg the benefit of her prayers , or thinking them worthy of censure for so doing . when we stand at our altars and celebrate the blessed sacrament of the body and blood of christ , and set forth the lord's death until his coming : we cannot indeed allow our selves to do this to the honour and veneration of any other , than of him only whose death and passion we commemorate . but even here also we do the utmost that we can to honour her . we name her at the holy table , we recite there the history of god's favour to her , and magnifie him with her upon the account of it . in a word ; when we confess our sins and absolve our penitents ; if we commend either our selves or others to god's mercy : in these and the like cases , we think it an impiety to joyn the daughter of anna , with the great god , the lord of heaven and earth . if we give thanks for any blessings we have receved ; we chuse rather to follow her example , and cry out with her , my soul doth magnifie the lord , and my spirit rejoyceth in god my saviour ; than with others to divide the glory between god and her , and say , glory be to jesvs and mary . if we vow a vow unto the lord , or swear by his name ; we neither think it fitting nor lawful to joyn god and the blessed virgin together ; lest we should thereby seem to make her the searcher of hearts as well as him ; and a powerful avenger of such secret sins . if we speak of her ; we readily give her any attribute that either the holy scripture warrants , or her nature allows of . but to call her a goddess , and our selves her suppliants ; to style her queen of heaven , and mother of divine grace ; the refuge of sinners , and the ark of the covenant ; the sovereign lady of angels , archangels , patriarchs , prophets , apostles , martyrs , confessors and all saints ; and , as such , beseech her , that she and her son would bless us ; this we think is to carry the complement too far ; and a strain much fitter for some poetical heathen goddess , than for a christian saint . but let these and the like superstitions be laid aside , and which a virgin so humble on earth , cannot sure be supposed to be so much altered for the worse , as to aspire after in heaven ; let religion and the worship of that be exempted , as the peculiar due of that god who made both her and us , and whom alone both she and all of us therefore ought to adore , and then what farther remains to proclaim her blessed , shall as freely be allowed and paid her by us , as it can be justly claimed of us . now the sum of all such honour may be referred by us to these two general considerations . . of that just esteem and value and opinion we have of her : and , . of actions suitable to such opinions . as for the former of these , . that esteem and value , and opinion we have of her ; it is certainly as great as any sober christian can desire it should be . we believe her to have been a most pure , and holy , and vertuous creature : that her virgin mind was clean and spotless , as her body chast and immaculate ; and that she was upon the account of both the most fit of any of all her race or sex for the holy ghost to overshadow , and for the son of the most highest to inhabit . when we consider the firmness of her faith ; the fervour of her devotion ; the excellency of her humility ; we cannot but acknowledge a grace extraordinary in her , working all those eminent and divine qualities . and tho' we are not so curious as to enter on those nicer speculations in which so many have in vain exercised themselves , whether she was conceived in sin ? and if she was , how far it was restrained in her at first ; and at what instant totally extinct in her afterwards ? whether she was sanctified in the womb of her mother ? and to what degree ? and at what time ? whether before she was animated , or after ; and , whether this sanctification was such as to keep her from ever committing any , so much as venial sin ? yet as the common condition of mankind does not permit us without all warrant from holy scripture , which they confess is here wanting to them , to exempt her from all sin ; so neither do we pretend to accuse her of any . and for her present state , we do not at all question , but that god who shewed her such favour on earth , hath also very highly exalted her in heaven : so that among all the race of adam , next unto him who was god as well as man , we think it very probable that she has obtain'd the chiefest place in god's kingdom , who brought forth the son of god into the world. and here then let these our accusers , who say that we are not of the number of those of whom the blessed virgin in my text prophesied , that , behold , from thenceforth all generations should call her blessed , tell us , if they can : wherein is it that we are defective in our opinion concerning the mother of our lord ? is it that we deny her immaculate conception , and suppose her to have in this been submitted to the common condition of all others since the fall of our first parents , christ only excepted ? but then they must not forget , that this is no more than what their own brethren of their own infallible church deny as stifly as we do . and if there have been saints , and popes , and visions , and miracles for it ; yet we know there have been also saints , and popes , and visions , and miracles against it too : and at this day there is order against order , school against school , about it : and as if the spirit of infallibility had in this matter forsaken their church , it could never yet be finally determined either by council or pope , which side is in the right . is it that we suspend our selves as to the point of her actual sins ? and see no cause to conclude , why the blessed virgin , though a most pure and holy creature , yet should not have been as capable of committing sins , as well as all others , christ only excepted here also , we think must be allowed to be ? but yet in this we do but follow some of the greatest lights in the primitive church ; and reason according to the common condition of mankind , and from which they themselves cannot produce us any authority of holy scripture to exempt her . and if some among us have , with (a) st. chrysostom , freely supposed , that in some cases she did 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , yet in the very instances to which they refer , they have , at least probable , grounds for what they say : and for the most part we are contented with (b) st. austin , to suspend our selves ; and for the honour of our saviour , not to enter into any question at all concerning her as to this matter , whether she ever did actually sin or no ? or now , that god has taken her up into glory : have we not all that high and worthy opinion of her exaltation that we ought to have , because indeed we freely profess we cannot believe such extravagant romances as all sober men , even of their own church , are ashamed of ? we doubt not but she is at this time in heaven ; do we ever the more debase her , because we will not entertain a shameless legend of her assumption thither ? we are persuaded , that she is adorn'd with one of the brightest aureola's in god's kingdom ; that her crown is more illustrious , than any among the daughters of eve. is not this sufficient , unless we will undertake to tell you what her crown was made of , how many stars went into her atchievement , what badges her servants wore , and what speeches and complements were made to her upon the occasion ; and to compleat all , set forth in perspective all the holy trinity concurring in this ceremony ; and all the powers of heaven and earth singing praises to her , and adoring of her. we make no question , but that as she was very highly favour'd by god on earth , so is she now no less beloved by him in heaven . but should we therefore set her up as another mediatrix , that as both sexes concurr'd to our ruin , so might both concur to our reparation ; and so tye up the hands of god , as not to allow any to be saved , but according to her will. nay , make her so far the queen of heaven and earth , as to give her a power of all the grace that is to be bestowed on mankind : of saving her votaries , if they do but sufficiently love and worship her , whatever their affections or their service be to god almighty : of fetching souls not only out of purgatory , but even from hell it self , by her authority : of ordering all the events of the fortunes of men and kingdoms , insomuch that not a battel can be fought , or a victory obtain'd , but by the favour of this pallas , to whom the success is due , and to whom the praise and honour therefore ought to be return'd . these indeed are the extravagancies of some of our adversaries , but god forbid they should ever be the practice or opinions of any among us . to conclude ; it is impossible for any to entertain more honourable sentiments of the blessed virgin than we do , who will not run out into blasphemy and fanaticism , and believe such things as neither scripture nor antiquity have deliver'd , nor will either piety or common sense suffer us to receive . let us see , secondly , whether our actions be not every way suitable to our opinions ? now for this i must observe , according to my foundation before laid down , that the holy virgin , however highly exalted by god , being yet still but a meer creature , our actions towards her must be no other than what a creature that is at such a vast distance from us , and out of all compass of civil communication , is capable of receiving . and so the summ of what may warrantably be paid to her , will fall under these three generals : first , to celebrate the memory of those blessings and favours which it has pleased god to bestow upon her . secondly , to return praises to god on the account of them . and , thirdly , to endeavour what in us lies to imitate her excellencies . this is all the honour she is capable of receiving from us ; and it cannot be doubted , but that we are as careful as any to fulfil the prophecy of our text in every one of these particulars . first , we celebrate the memory of those blessings and favours which it has pleased god to bestow upon her . let this day , and the other solemn festivals we observe to the same end , be our witness , how careful we are as to this particular . we mark it out in our rituals , as a day holy unto the lord : we assemble in our sacred places , solemnly to recount what the holy scriptures have recorded of god's mercies to her : and annually , as at this time , we encourage one another to bless and praise him upon the account of them . but here the objection made in the beginning , will rise against us . 't is true indeed , we do observe some of her festivals ; but yet we pass by the greater part of them : and for the main thing of all , we quite omit it , in that we say not ave maria so often , and so impertinently as they do ; nor other anthems of our lady , as they call her by a new and phantastical title , never given her either in scripture , or by any of the ancient fathers . this we confess is in some measure true : we say no ave marie's , i. e. after the manner that they do ; nor can we imagin what honour is done to the blessed virgin , by the nauseous tautologie of a salutation , pertinent in its season , when the angel spoke to her upon her conception ; but now as unseasonable in the application , as it is vain and absurd in the repetition . but yet when we recite the history , and celebrate the memory of that surprising salutation , then we read it in our assemblies ; that is , we do say ave maria , as often as 't is either pious or to the purpose to do it . and if for not doing it as they do , we are to be excluded out of the number of those of whom our text speaks ; yet god be thanked we shall run but the same fortune that the apostles and the primitive ages of the church did , before it was first , as they tell us , revealed to st. dominick , and by him to the church , how they were to recite the rosary . but now for the other instances objected against us , viz. the feasts , and anthems of our lady ; in these we may venture to justifie our selves : we celebrate the memory of all the great particulars that we know of her life : and if upon the meer authority of fables , confess'd to be uncertain , and disputed by many among themselves , as not fit to be credited , we cannot be induced to observe more ; yet in this we hope all sober christians will acquit us , and esteem us to be very excusable in what we do : it being certainly to mock , not honour , both god and her , solemnly to commemorate , and seriously to thank god for such blessings as at the same time we are sure he never bestowed upon her , nor she ever receiv'd from him. as to the last instance , our not reciting the anthems of our lady , i shall only say thus much , that we know but of one anthem that ever she made ; viz. that from whence our text is taken ; and that we are so far from not reciting , that we make it a solemn hymn in our daily service . let them who recite more , tell us , if they can , whence they had them , and by what authority they make use of anthems in many places hardly to be heard without horror ; and such as , to say no worse of them , do by no means befit either the humility of mary , to receive ; or the piety of a good christian , to offer to her . and this may suffice to shew that we are not wanting in the first point of our honour , to celebrate the memory of god's mercies to her . the next proposed , was , secondly , to return praises to god upon the account of them . and here i am sure no one can say that we are defective : the foundation of all god's particular favours to her being this , that our blessed lord was to be born of her. and this is the subject of all our praises to him : every thanksgiving we put up to heaven , is begun , carried on , and ended with it : so that in effect , all that part of our religious service which consists in giving thanks to god for the redemption of mankind , is but a continued acknowledgment of the honour and favour done to the holy mary : and if this be not enough , i must then again remember what i just now observed , not only that we are very careful to praise god for his mercies to the blessed virgin , and to our selves by her ; but every day make use of her own words to express our grateful acknowledgment of them , by establishing her song of eucharist to be the form wherein we our selves should give thanks to god in our assemblies . and then , thirdly , for what is the last instance of all , of that honour we owe to her , the imitation of her vertues . we may presume to say , that in this we do not come behind her highest votaries . not an act of piety recorded in her life , but our church exhorts us to transcribe it into ours . we may , and god knows we do , come very much short of her in our practice : but 't is our own infirmity , not any defect in our churches doctrine and directions that we do so . such then is the honour which we now suppose due to the blessed virgin , and which accordingly we pay to her. let us go on , and see in the next place , ii. secondly , what that additional worship is , which those of the other church pretend is due to her. and because i would state the difference as clearly as i could , i will consider this point in the same two parts i did the foregoing : i. of their farther esteem in their opinions of her. ii. of their practices in conformity to their opinions . for the former of these : first , their opinions of the blessed virgin. it is hardly to be imagined , to what prodigious excesses some mens superstition hath carried them as to this particular . i have before mentioned some of the glorious titles by which they call her , in their very publick addresses to her : should i to these add the sentiments of some particular men in these later ages , famous in their generation , and for nothing more famous , than for their extraordinary devotion to the holy mary , i should soon run beyond the bounds of such a discourse as this . i will rather chuse here to confine my self to a very few , and those only general remarks . and , first , it is the very foundation of all that superstitious service which is now-a-days paid to her in the church of rome , to suppose the excellency of the blessed virgin to be incomparably above that of any other saint whatsoever : so that whereas all other saints are to be worshipped only with that inferior religious worship which they call dulia ; the blessed virgin alone is to be served with a hyperdulia , or a super-eminent sort of religious service . and that upon these three accounts , which therefore one of their own authors has set down for us : ( . ) in that when god dignified her with the excellency of being the mother of jesus , he therewith created her the queen of angels , patroness of the church , and advocate of sinners ; and that therefore as such she ought to be honoured above them . ( . ) because the veneration we give to mary , redounds to jesus ; all honour given to the mother , tending to the glory of the son. and , ( . ) for that holy mary , as the mother of god , is accomplished with all natural , moral , and supernatural perfections , which are and possibly may be dispersed among all pure creatures , men and angels ; and therefore as she is more holy and perfect than all , so is she acceptable to god above all ; and therefore ought she to be reverenced by us above them all. from hence it is , secondly , that they look upon her as a person most worthy to be called upon in all their devotions : insomuch that the author i but now mentioned , recommending to his votary the practice of piety towards her , lays down , among others , these two rules : ( . ) that he should have a private oratory dedicated to the veneration of holy mary : and ( . ) that he should not enter on any business , of what ever nature , without first consulting mary by humble prayer ; recommending its whole progress to her protection , and assuming her as a guide in the pursuance thereof . and indeed tho' they do as they have occasion , pray to other saints too as well as to the blessed virgin , yet such a peculiar confidence have they in her , that in all their publick and private addresses , the beginning and ending , and in a word , the whole performance , for the most part , is divided betwixt god and her . thus in the canon of the mass ; in all their liturgies , in the most solemn exercises of confession , absolution , thanksgiving ; in their litanies and salves , still holy mary is set up as no small part of their worship : and the reason whereof their council of basil tells us is , for that she , as she is the most exalted , so she is the most ready to regard us too : and suarez stating this very point , whether we ought to pray to the blessed virgin ? tells us it is a matter of faith that we ought so to do ; that the church is sensible how much the intercession of the blessed virgin above any others is the most useful to us ; and therefore that she , above all others , ought to be invoked by us . now this being without controversie , both the constant opinion and practice of the church of rome , that the blessed virgin is to be called upon in all places , and upon all occasions , and by all persons ; they must by consequence suppose , . that by whatsoever means it is , some way or other she do's know , and can attend to all the prayers that are every where made to her ; and is capable of affording them such assistance as they encourage their votaries to ask of her : and by consequence , that she do's partake of the immensity of god ; and is omniscient , omnipresent and omnipotent as well as he . for else , if either she cannot distinctly attend to all the requests that are every where made to her , or be not capable of knowing them ; or tho' she do's understand what is demanded of her , yet should chance not to have it in her power to grant it to them : it must follow , that they pray at all adventures ; and to no more purpose than if one of us here , should ask a favour of , or make a request to one of our friends and acquaintance in the indies . and whatsoever piety there might be in so doing , yet i am perswaded the number of her votaries would soon decrease , did they not hope for such an effect of their addresses to her , as must imply her to be all that which i before inferred , as the consequence of their calling upon her . . but this is not yet all : for in calling thus upon her , they do not only suppose her to be a fit object of their adoration , but by committing themselves to her intercession for them , they do particularly set her up as an advocate or mediatrix in heaven , and accordingly have recourse to her as such . 't is true this is no more than what they do to the other saints as well as the blessed virgin : they pray to god through their merits and intercession , and by their mediation , as well as that of our saviour christ , both desire and hope the better to implore his mercy . but then , as i before observed , that in the business of their prayers they look upon the holy mary to have a particular right to them above any other saints whatsoever ; so much more in this case , they esteem her not only to be a more effectual mediatrix than any of the rest of the saints , but to have a more peculiar right to that title and dignity : and which from one of their own approved authors , i will therefore here crave leave to explain to you . to be a mediator , says he , and to discharge the office of such a one , it is requisite that he who asks any thing in that respect , should have * merited that which he desires to obtain ; that he should have * offered his merits to that end , and that god should have * accepted of them . it is this which renders jesus christ , our only and true mediator . but the saints have not * merited any good for us during this life , they have not * offered to god their merits in favour of us , nor has god * accepted them to any such end. 't is the blessed virgin alone that has any part in this glory with her son : * for she obtains nothing for us but what she merited during her life : — * she has also offered all her actions and sufferings joyntly with those of jesus christ for the salvation of all men ; * and god has accepted this offering , as s. bonaventure and other divines teach . and again — she is therefore our mediatrix , inasmuch as she offered her son freely and voluntarily to the death , for the salvation of mankind . such is the title which they suppose the holy mary has to be our advocate , not only above all other saints , but in the same manner that our saviour christ himself is : and the consequence of it appears in these two advantages which they imagine to be in her mediation above that of any other saint : viz. first , " that it is more extensive : the merits of the saints are limited to certain graces , to certain countries , and to certain persons . but the blessed virgin is a universal cause , the virtue of which extends over all places , in all times , to all sorts of goods or evils , and to all sorts of persons . her charity is in some sort infinite , and has neither bounds nor measure . secondly , that it is more efficacious . the saints are not always heard , nor do they always obtain what they desire . but the blessed virgin obtains whatsoever she demands . and her quality of mother gives her a power in some manner , to alter the decrees of providence it self . insomuch that suarez doubted not to say , that should all the saints of paradise ask one thing of god , and the virgin mary alone oppose it ; or should she demand any favour , and all the saints be set against it , her interest alone would carry it against them all , upon the account of that prerogative which is due to her dignity as mother , to the excellence of her grace , and to the perfection of her charity . and thus one would think they had given her a sufficient authority in the court of heaven ; and yet we must go one step farther : for , . if we may conclude any thing either from the tenour of those addresses that even by publick authority are made to her in that church ; or from the open declarations of some of the chiefest persons that have been in the roman communion , she has even her self power to remit sins , and to confer grace , and to save those who call upon her , and trust to her for their salvation . for the former of these their publick addresses to her : what else can we make of them , but that they are plain suppositions of such an authority in her , as i have now observed . if they confess their sins ; they do it not only to god , but to the blessed virgin too : if they absolve their penitents , the merits of the mother are joyned to the passion of the son for their forgiveness . if they pray , it is that mary and her son would bless them : if they salute her , the complement is , hail queen , mother of mercy , our life , our sweetness , and our hope , all hail . we miserable children of eve , send forth our cries to you ; to you we sigh , weeping and groaning in this valley of misery : go to therefore o our advocate , and turn those merciful eyes of yours towards us , and make us after this our exile to see jesus the blessed fruit of your womb. amen . in short , such is their extravagance as to this matter , that i scarce know any one part of their religious service , the sacrifice of the mass only excepted , and even that too they offer to her honour , and in her veneration , in which they do esteem her worthy an equal share not with our saviour christ himself , and therefore in reason ought to suppose the same power in her , as they do in him , seeing they worship them both alike . and for the opinions of their learned men , in conformity to this superstition , i should be infinite should i repeat the one half of their excesses . i will offer to you a short specimen of the questions only which a late author among them has stated with great approbation , and from thence leave you to judg of the rest . * whether to be devoted to the blessed virgin be not a mark of a man's predestination ? and tho' without a particular revelation no one can , according to their doctrine , be sure that he is of the number of the predestinate ; yet as they allow that there are certain marks whereon to found a probable conjecture : so among those , which is as much as can be said in this case , he doubts not to place this in the first rank , to be devoted to the virgin mary . secondly , * whether a christian that is devoted to the blessed virgin can be damned ? to which he answers roundly , that he cannot . thirdly , * whether god refuses any thing to the blessed virgin ? and indeed we need not wonder that they are peremptory in this , that he do's not , when their church it self calls upon her to shew her self to be a mother ; and once at least did pray to her , that by the right which she had over her son , she would command him ? fourthly , * whether the blessed virgin loves sinners ? i. e. so as to save them . and of this the blessed virgin her self has given us an assurance : in this famous revelation to one of the saints of that church : i am , says she , the queen of heaven , i am the mother of mercy , the joy of the just , and the gate by which sinners must go to god. and there is no sinner so far from god , but what shall return to him and obtain mercy , provided only that he call upon me , and put his trust in me . but i shall pursue these extravagancies no farther ; from what i have said we may see what their opinions are of the holy mary in that wherein they differ from us ; viz. that she is to be honoured with a religious worship above any other saint : that she is to be prayed to as an advocate and mediatrix in heaven ; that she has authority to do what ever she pleases there , and in effect do's partake of the most proper and peculiar attributes and prerogatives of the divinity . let us enquire in the next place , . what their practices are towards her , in conformity to these opinions ? i shall need say the less as to this point , having already in great measure exhausted it in the account i have given of the foregoing . there is so near a connexion between the opinions of the church of rome and their practices , founded upon them , with reference to the blessed virgin , that 't is impossible to mention the one without inferring the other as consequent upon it . he that saies that the blessed virgin ought to be prayed to , do's imply , that if he believes himself in what he affirms , he must then pray to her : and so of all the other instances i before mentioned . but yet because this will still the more clearly shew the true state of the difference between us , i will make a few reflections upon the practice of piety which is found in the other church towards the holy mary , in two considerations ; . of the publick worship that is offered to her . . of the private devotion which is usually practised and recommended by them towards the blessed virgin . for the former of these , . the publick worship that is given to her in the church of rome . it runs through all the parts of their offices ; and scarce any holy exercise performed among them that is not infected with this superstition . if we consider the publick prayers of the church ; sometimes we find the mass it self said to her honour ; and in the very canon of it , god is constantly desired , that for her merits he would grant them the help of his protection . in all their hours they close with a particular salutation and address to her ; and once every week , if no more , a particular office is publickly said to her . if we look into their other solemn acts of devotion ; i have already observed what a share she has in their confessions and absolutions : three times every day , at the sound of a bell , all her votaries are taught to fall down and worship her . what the allowance and encouragements have been to the practice of her rosary , and what a mighty place this devotion has among them i need not say . in their solemn sermons to the people , the preacher never fails first to invoke the assistance of the virgin mary , in the angelical salutation : and lest men should not by all this be sufficiently encouraged to a publick . devotion to her ; there have been particular ways found out to carry them the more readily thereunto . 't was for this that the order of the scapulary was set up about years ago ; and to which men are encouraged by no less a promise than that of a deliverance from damnation by the blessed virgin ; and from purgatory , by the promises of five or six of their popes . to the same purpose , in the last century , pope gregory the xiii th first , and sixtus the v th afterwards , set up another kind of order , the congregations of the annunciation to the same end : and the solemn admission into which is made by the dedication of him that enters to the service of the blessed virgin , whom he there chuses to be his lady , patroness , and advocate , and vows to honour , serve and love unto his life's end . i might to this add that other long catalogue of superstition ; the building of churches , and setting up altars and images to her honour . their pilgrimages that are made to them ; their litanies and processions , in which she bears no small part of the service : the dedicating whole countries and kingdoms to her , as her own proper inheritance : the glorious titles and attributes which they give her in all their prayers ; and many other instances no less superstitious than these . and by all which it plainly appears , that they have too much divided their love , service and obedience ; nay their very faith and hope between god and her ; as if the end of christianity had been no less to teach us how to magnifie the mother , than how to serve and honour and believe in the son ; and the duty of a christian were as much to set forth her praise , as our saviour's glory . but i shall stop here , and add only a word or two . . of that private devotion which is usually practised by , and recommended to her votaries . many are the instances that i might offer of this , but i shall take a few only , as they lie together in the late directions that have been given by one of their own authors to this purpose . . to have a high value for her sublime dignity ; to congratulate her in the full possession of it , to make a publick profession of this our high esteem of her incomparable perfections ; and to invite others to the like valuation of them . . to express these inward affections , by external acts of the worship of eminent servitude towards her : by frequent visiting holy places dedicated to her honour : by a special reverence towards images , representing her person : by performing some daily devotions containing her praises , congratulating her excellencies , or imploring her mediation : and by often calling upon the sacred name of holy mary . . by having a firm and unshaken confidence in her patronage , amidst the greatest of our inward conflicts with sensuality , and outward tribulations from the adverse casualties of this life . . by inducing enormous sinners to this firm confidence in the eminent power of the mother of jesus , to redress the greatest of their evils and miseries by their being under her protection . . by referring all the wonderful effects of our predestination to glory , election by grace , and redemption from sin through the blood of jesus , to the excellent perfections of mary as a most effectual means of all . . by accustoming our selves to some set form of devotion daily to be practised in honour of the mother of jesus : and , lastly , by entring a solemn covenant with holy mary to be for ever her servant , client and devote , under some special rule , society or form of life ; and thereby dedicating our persons , concerns , actions , and all the moments and events of our life to jesus under the protection of his divine mother , chusing her to be our adoptive mother , patroness and advocate : and entrusting her with whatever we are , have or do , or hope in life , death and through all eternity . such is the publick and private devotion taught by them to the blessed virgin . i might very much have encreased the number of these reflections , should i have pursued all these extravagancies that they have been guilty of in this kind . for indeed , who can repeat all the legends of her miracles , the excesses of her votaries , the numerous , and too often scandalous stories of her actions and apparitions to them ? what kindness she has shewn to her servants , and what civilities she has permitted them to shew to her ? i might to these have added the flights of their poetry , and sometimes of their most solemn devotions to her ; nay , and have shewn you the psalms of david ; and all the high and noble strains of devotion to god expressed in them by a strange impiety , turned all to the honour of the virgin mary : nay the very creeds of the church burlesqued to her service . but these are things that can neither be spoken or heard by any christian , without sorrow and indignation , at such wild and endless freaks of superstition , great is the corruption certainly of that church , which not only suffers these abuses , but avows and encourages them : and as we have seen at the beginning of this discourse , reviles us for not believing and practising such abominations . but upon what just grounds it is that we herein depart from them , if the very mention only of these impieties be not sufficient to convince you ; i shall not doubt but most plainly to shew , in my third and last point now to be consider'd : wherein i am iii. thirdly , to offer some of those reasons for which we think such a worship as this to be unlawful , and therefore refuse to give it to her . and this i shall do according to the order i have hitherto observed , . with reference to their opinions concerning the blessed virgin . . to their practices , consequent to these opinions . i begin with the former of these considerations . i. whether the opinions before mentioned , wherein those of the church of rome differ from us , as to the point of honour to the blessed virgin , be such as we may warrantably entertain of any meer creature ? and because i would now reduce my discourse within as narrow bounds as the nature of the argument will allow of , i shall examine this matter in three instances only , and to which the most considerable differences between us may be referred ; viz. . of her capacity to understand all the prayers that are every where made to her . . of her right and title to intercede for us : and . of the reasons and grounds upon which they give her those titles , and ascribe to her that authority , which in their publick addresses they allow to her . and first let us enquire , . whether we may warrantably ascribe to the blessed virgin , a capacity to understand all the prayers that are every where made to her . it is a subject that has long entertained the minds and exercised the pens of the votaries of the virgin mary and the saints , how or by what means it is that they understand all the prayers that are any where made to them by any of their suppliants on earth . and i do not find that either they yet are , or seem at all likely ever to be agreed on this point . but thus far they appear to be all of them well assured , that by whatever means it is , their prayers are some way or other most certainly conveyed to them , because that otherwise it would be a most senseless and absurd practice to call upon them . i shall not here dispute the power of god , what he can do as to this matter , or what , for ought i know , he may do at some times , and on some certain occasions ; in extraordinarily revealing many of those things to the saints above , which are done by us here below . it is plain this can be no sufficient foundation of constant prayer to them in all places and on all occasions , that god may possibly sometimes communicate some things to them : unless we could be sure what things , and at what time , and to what saints he did this . god may , if he please communicate what i speak here , to my friend abroad in another part of the world. but he would hardly be thought very well in his wits ▪ who should on this possibility every day in a very solemn manner intreat his prayers , or ask some courtesie of him . to render all the prayers , of all men , at any time , or in any place , a wise and rational service , 't is plain they must suppose that the saints above , and in particular that the blessed virgin has a certain and distinct knowledge of all the actions , words , and even of the most secret thoughts ( forasmuch as they allow of mental , as well as vocal prayer to her ) of all men here upon earth . but to ascribe such a power to her , is to raise her above the state of a meer creature , to invest her with some of the most proper and incommunicable attributes of god , and in effect to make , what some of them stick not freely to style her , a goddess of her ; which certainly cannot be done without a very great impiety . it is one of the great reasons why god requires the service of prayer from us , because the very exercise of it keeps up in our minds the most lively idea's of his infinite nature , his unbounded providence , and his incomprehensible perfections . whilst by calling every where upon him , we do in effect acknowledge the immensity of the godhead , which is every where present : by lifting up the aspirations of our hearts towards him , we profess the belief of his omniscience , that he searcheth the heart , and knoweth the secrets of all the children of men : by asking all sorts of blessings of him , whether to deliver us from any evil , or to grant us any good , we confess the sovereign authority of his providence over us , and declare his omnipotence who can do whatever he pleases , and manifest our trust and dependance upon him . in a word , by all creatures doing this , in all places , and at the same time ; we set forth the vast capacity of his immense nature , that is able to attend , without distraction , at once , to all the affairs of the world ; and can , without confusion , both hear and answer whatever requests are made to him . but now to suppose that any meer creature can do this , what is it but to confound that infinite distance that above all things ought the most carefully to be kept up in the minds of men , between god and us : and leave no perfection in the one so proper to him , as not to be communicable to the other ? and yet however they may think fit to palliate this matter , 't is plain , he that will pray with any tolerable reason or confidence to the blessed virgin , must suppose all this : he must in effect esteem her , what the very act of his calling upon her supposes her to be , omniscient , immense , omnipresent , and even omnipotent too . it being otherwise a most stupid thing for millions of men every hour to pray to one who has no power to hear their prayers ; to offer up the motions of their souls to one that cannot search or know their hearts ; and ask all manner of blessings of her , who has neither ability nor authority to confer any upon them . now 't is upon this ground then , that , without considering of what kind the requests are that are made to the blessed virgin , we look upon the very act it self of invocation , to be an act , indeed one of the most proper acts , of religious worship , and by consequence such as ought to be paid to god only . and though they may pretend , that 't is no more to pray to the holy mary in heaven , than it would be to desire the prayers or assistance of some friend on earth ; yet it is apparent from what i have now been speaking , that there is a very vast difference between these two ; the one supposing no power or perfection in our friend , but what may without danger be ascribed to a creature ; the other necessarily implying such as are peculiar to god only . for to consider this pretence in a reflection or two : first , does any man that is well in his wits discourse with his friend at a thousand miles distance from him , with that seriousness that those who worship the blessed virgin pray to her ? and yet why is the one esteemed a piece of piety , while the other would be thought meer madness , but only that they suppose the blessed virgin , though absent from them , nevertheless to be capable of knowing what they do , while they think the other is not in a capacity of so doing ? for as for gods communicating it to her , i presume he is as well able to do it in the one instance as in the other ; and i think i may say , he has as much promised he will do the first as the last ; that is indeed , there is no grounds that he will do it to either . or , secondly , were this a rational thing , would yet they themselves endure that a man should , in the house of god , and in the midst of his solemn devotions to him , not only desire , but in the same breath with which he addresses to god , invoke the assistance of a pious christian yet living upon earth ? would they think this no more than an act of brotherly charity , and which one christian might warrantably use towards another ? much less , thirdly , would they permit the images of a living christian to be set up in their churches ; candles to be burnt before them ; and incense offered to them ; his name to be put in the liturgies of the church , and all the faithful upon earth be directed and encouraged every where to pray to him , as a most useful and innocent piece of piety : and with the same opinion and confidence of his hearing their prayers , and answering their desires , as they now call upon the blessed virgin ? would they say that this were no more than to ask a private friend , as we have opportunity , to pray for us ; or to desire by letter , the supplications of our absent brethren in our behalf ? and yet much less , fourthly , would they permit this living christian , not only to be thus called upon to pray for his votaries , but to bless them too , to keep them in their lives , and to receive them at the hour of death ? if indeed these are instances of brotherly charity , i shall for my part be content to allow , that their devotion to the holy mary is no more . but if the very supposition of such a power as this be something beyond the natural abilities of any creature on earth , with what conscience can it be said , that when they consecrate the images of the blessed virgin , burn tapers and incense before them , list themselves under her protection , commit all the care of their salvation to her , call her the queen of heaven , and sovereign lady of angels and men ; put her name into their liturgies , erect congregations to her honour , set apart festivals and days for her particular service , and then call upon her at the same time in all parts of the world , and this as expecting no small benefit from their prayers ; and therefore certainly in a confidence that she , though ten thousand times farther off from us , than one christian on earth can be from another , does nevertheless know what they call upon her for , and can and will grant their desires ; i say , with what conscience can it be pretended , that in all this they do but entertain a brotherly communion with her ; and in effect do no more than when a christian here below desires a fellow-christian to pray for him. it remains therefore , that to ascribe to the holy mary such a power as is necessary to receive our prayers , and to attend to our petitions , and to search our hearts , and know the motions of our souls towards her , and answer us accordingly ; is to raise her above the state of a creature , and therefore unlawful for us so to do . and it is observable , that when the ancient fathers first began to make some kind of addresses to the holy martyrs , not only the subject of them was innocent , but the supposition on which they went , as to this point of the saints or martyrs hearing them , however fanciful , yet was such as did not ascribe any undue perfections to them . they call'd upon them , not in all places , and at all times indifferently , but only at their monuments , at the places of their suffering , where their bodies or reliques were interr'd , and about which they had a conceit that their souls hovered for some time ; and therefore being present with them , were capable of knowing their desires . in process of time they began to multiply the places of calling upon them ; and then there grew a question in the church , whether the dead know the things that are done in this world by the living ? and in particular , whether the saints do hear the prayers of suppliants , so as to understand the requests that are made to them ? this was at first resolved in the negative ; but by degrees it grew to be more a doubt : lombard thought it was not incredible , but that they might know our affairs as far as was requisite either for their joy , or our help . but scotus went farther , and esteemed it probable , that god does specially reveal to them such of our prayers as are made unto them : and so it continued for some time , till at last it was found necessary to have the thing certainly believed , for the reason i before gave : and then cardinal bellarmin roundly concluded , that seeing otherwise it would be in vain to pray ordinarlly to those that we could not be sure were ordinarily able to receive our prayers , and understand our desires ; therefore it is certain the saints above do know them . and another tells us , that it is a matter of faith , that the blest above do know the prayers that we pour out unto them , seeing otherwise they would be made in vain . and even our late expositors are not only contented to allow all this to the saints , by a light communicated to them by god ; but give us some insinuation , as if they did not know why the saints might not be allowed some knowledge even of themselves , of what is done here below , as also of our secret thoughts . and thus have we at last these blessed spirits invested with the power and attributes of the divinity : and , as some have not doubted to call them , made gods by participation ; that is , partakers of the immensity , and other prerogatives of god. but let those who presume to allow this to any saint in heaven , consider a little who it is that hath said , i am the lord , that is my name , and my glory will i not give unto another : and certainly then they will see some cause , if not to correct their own ungrounded error in this matter , yet at least to think a little more favourably of us , that we dare not presume to joyn with them in it . but , secondly , the second point wherein we suppose them to have erred in their opinions of the blessed virgin , is , that they ascribe to her the right of a mediatrix to intercede for us . now by a right of interceding for us , i do not mean such an intercession as the faithful here upon earth many times make for one another ; when they put up their prayers to god to forgive their sins , or to grant them any blessings which they stand in need of . whether the saints above do in general pray for us or no , is a point which none of us can certainly resolve , and therefore is not fit to be disputed by any . that they have a great deal of love and charity for us , is not to be doubted ; but how they express it , god has no where thought fit to declare to us , nor is it therefore either fit or needful for us to enquire into it . the intercession which i here mean , is of another nature ; and implies such a kind of prayer as is founded on the merits of the person that intercedes ; whereby he is able to plead a right to gods mercy : so that we may intreat god for his merits to grant us his pardon and forgiveness . now , that this is the true notion which those of the roman church have both in general of a mediator , and in particular of the blessed virgin , when they address to her as their advocate ; is not only clear from the very addresses themselves which they make to her , but is moreover acknowledged by themselves in the accounts they give us of this power which they ascribe to her . i have before observed from one of their own authors , that to be a mediator , and to discharge the office of such a one , three things are required : viz. first , that he who intercedes should have merited that for which he asks : secondly , that he should have offered his merits to that end : and , thirdly , that god should have accepted of them : and all this , they say , is true of the virgin mary . she has merited all that she asks for us ; she offered her merits to be joyn'd with those of her son for our salvation , and god has accepted and ratified the offering , in order to that end. now that in this they attribute that to the virgin mary , which the holy scriptures have every where reserved as the peculiar prerogative of our saviour christ , not only st. paul plainly declares , but the whole analogy of the old and new testament assures us of it . . if first we consider the express words of holy scripture , what can be more plain than that declaration of s. paul to timothy , epist. ii . . that to us christians there is as but one god , so but one mediator between god and men , the man christ jesus , who gave himself a ransome for all . for if there be but one mediator , and that the man christ jesus , how then is the virgin mary too our advocate in heaven ? if the foundation of christ's intercession for us be built upon his death , as this text plainly declares , so that he is therefore our mediator to intercede for us in heaven , because he was our sacrifice and propitiation , i. e. our mediator of redemption on earth : if the intercession which he makes for us be this , that god having covenanted with him to forgive us , if he would lay down his life for us , our saviour christ having done this , do's therefore now , in right of this covenant , represent his death and passion to his father for our forgiveness ; then it must follow , that as the blessed virgin has neither any merits of this kind to plead , nor did god ever enter into any covenant with her to accept of any thing she did in order to our salvation , so neither has she any right to intercede for us in heaven , nor ought we therefore to pray to her so to do . it is i know a distinction which some here make use of , when forced by the evidence of truth to confess christ to be our only mediator , that there are two sorts of mediators , one of redemption , the other of intercession : that christ only is our mediator of redemption , and alone can plead a right to our forgiveness ; but that others , and especially the virgin mary is a mediator of intercession , to implore god's favour by humble prayer and supplication for us . but besides that it is evident from what i have before observed , that this is not indeed all the opinion they have of the blessed virgin as our mediatrix , whom they allow to have merits to plead as well as her son , and to intercede by a proper right and title for us ; this distinction is wholly frivolous : since as i have now shewn the very foundation of christ's interceding for us in heaven , is founded on his suffering for us upon earth ; and no one can appear in the presence of god to ask our pardon there , but he only who died and gave himself a ransome for us here . . but secondly , this will appear more clearly , if we consider the analogy which the author to the hebrews makes between the two covenants , and compare the high-priests interceding for the people under the law , with our saviour christ's interceding for us in heaven . it was the ordinance of god , under the mosaical dispensation , that upon the great day of expiation the high-priest should offer a propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of the whole people : and then carry the blood of the sacrifice into the most holy place , and present it before god , and so make an expiation for them . now the law having a shadow of good things to come , we are hereby taught to make this plain application ; that christ , our high-priest , having offered up himself as an expiatory sacrifice for the sins of the whole world , is now ascended into heaven , the most holy place , there to appear in the presence of god for us ; and by presenting his blood before the throne of grace to make an attonement for the sins of all the true israelites , who trust in it for their forgiveness . and as under the law , no one was to appear in the presence of god , but the high-priest only , under pain of death , and he only once a year , having first offered up the blood of the sacrifice ; so now under the gospel , christ only appears in the presence of god , with his own blood , to intercede for us ; and 't is through his merits and mediation alone , not through that of any other whatsoever in heaven or earth , that we ought therefore to apply our selves to god for pardon and salvation . but still the distinction before made will recur upon us : for be it that christ only has a power to plead the satisfaction of his death for our forgiveness ; yet may not the blessed virgin and the saints too pray for the same thing , and in this respect be called our advocates and mediators ? to this i answer , first ; that what the blessed virgin and the other saints may do , as to this matter , is unknown to us : in general they may possibly pray to god , to endue us with his grace , whereby we may repent and be saved ; but then neither have we any assurance that they do this , much less that they do it in particular for every single person that calls upon them ; neither if they did , would this entitule them to the name and dignity of mediators , properly so called , nor warrant us to pray to them as such . secondly , much less would this be sufficient to engage us to put them in an equal rank of mediation with christ himself : to joyn his merits and theirs together ; and pray to god ▪ that for our saviour and the virgin 's sake he would forgive us ; which yet the church of rome most notoriously does . and besides , for what concerns our present purpose , thirdly , this is not all they allow to the holy mary , when they call upon her as their advocate : no , they tell us plainly , as you have before seen , that she obtains nothing of god but what she has merited for us , she having joyned her actions and sufferings to those of christ for the salvation of mankind , and god having accepted of them for that end. and this i suppose i have sufficiently shewn to be utterly repugnant to the whole tenor of the new-covenant , and to the analogy which the holy scripture it self has made between that and the old. let us therefore go on , and enquire in the last place , thirdly , whether there be any reason why we should give her those titles , and ascribe to her such an authority as in all their solemn addresses they allow to her. and , first , for what concerns those titles which they give her , we shall need no long search after them : the litany of the blessed virgin alone contains above forty of them , and scarce one of which can without a very favourable construction be allowed to her . but indeed having form'd all their devotion upon this foundation , of turning the kingdom of heaven into an earthly court ; having set up the saints as masters of requests , to receive addresses , and present them to god as king ; it was but fit afterwards to keep up the decorum , by raising the blessed virgin to the dignity of qveen there ; and then they ought not to address to her , without all the titles and ceremonies that became the quality to which they had raised her . now 't is to this vanity we may ascribe the eight last compellations we meet with in her litany ; and by which she is set forth to us as queen of angels , patriarchs , prophets , apostles , martyrs , confessors , virgins , and all saints : and in all which , if there be not some excess , yet doubtless there is a great deal of presumption , and of the vain leaven of humane folly and ambition . to call upon god himself in a multiplicity of attributes , which are neither pertinent to our purpose , nor otherwise apt to raise those affections in our souls that are proper to the holy exercise we are about , is an argument of our weakness and vanity , rather than an instance of a reasonable and religious respect . but to set up a poor , humble woman in such a formal pageantry of majesty and glory : to address to saints in heaven , as if they valued the little ceremonies and titles to which men on earth aspire , this is at best to shew a mind too much affected with the vanities of this world ; but to do it without all warrant from god , or so much as the least signification of his pleasure in it , is , i think , too near a presumptuous impiety . but these are not the titles that the most offend us : others there are which we esteem by so much the more dangerous , by how much the more they encroach on the peculiar attributes of god and our blessed saviour . for indeed , to whom else can it belong to be esteemed the help of christians , the comforter of the afflicted , the refuge of sinners , the gate of heaven , the ark of the covenant , the c●●se of our joy , the seat of wisdom , and mirrour of justice ; but to him alone who is the author and finisher of our faith , from whom all help , and comfort , and refuge to sinners , does descend ; and who alone , by being the gate of heaven to us , is thereby the cause of all our joy. i will not deny but that it may be possible for those who have found out a way to reduce all the prayers that are made to the blessed virgin to that one sense , pray for us ; to find out some convenient meaning for all these dangerous titles too . but in the mean time , to what a desperate state , o god! must that church be arrived ; that those things should be a part of their solemn service , which cannot be uttered without impiety , nor be excused but by this shameful pretence ; that in their publick devotions , when one would think , if ever , they should take the advice of solomon , not to be rash with their mouths , nor hasty to utter any thing before god , even there they speak one thing and mean another ; they speak little less than blasphemy , but still with a very pious and innocent meaning , and such as no body would suspect to be intended by their words . secondly , as for the other thing here to be considered , the attributes which they ascribe to the blessed virgin , these are yet more dangerous than the worst of all their compellations of her . such are , . their ascribing to her a power not only of hearing their prayers , but of dispensing also blessings unto them : let mary and her son bless us : hail , holy queen , mother of mercy , our life , our sweetness , and our hope : to thee do we cry , poor banish'd sons of eve : to thee do we send up our sighs , mourning and weeping in this valley of tears . turn then , most gracious advocate , thy merciful eyes towards us ; and after this our exile ended , shew us the blessed fruit of thy womb. . of delivering them from danger . so in her office ; we fly to your protection , o holy mother of god ; despise not our prayers which we make to you in our necessities , but deliver us from all dangers , o ever glorious and blessed virgin ! . of enabling them to praise her , and to overcome her enemies : vouchsafe that we may be worthy to praise thee , o holy virgin ; and grant us strength and power against thine enemies . . of succouring them in their greatest necessities : mary mother of grace , mother of mercy , do thou protect us from our enemy , and receive us in the hour of death . . and lastly , not to mention any more : a capacity to receive praise and glory together with god and our blessed saviour , in our most sacred returns of thanksgiving to them : so a late author in our own language : " open my lips , o mother of jesus ! " and my soul shall speak forth " thy praise . " divine lady be intent to my aid ; " graciously make hast to help me . " glory be to jesvs and mary . " as it was , is , and ever shall be . now in all these instances , and many others that i might have mentioned , either they really intend what their words signifie ; and then what can all this be but a most desperate superstition , to give all those attributes , the power , the glory , to a meer creature , that is due only to god : or , if they do not , what is it then but to mock both god and the blessed virgin , to complement her with such titles , and ask of her such things , and offer her such praises , by which at the same time they neither seriously intend to signifie any thing ; but on the contrary , believe they should be guilty of a great impiety , should they really mean what their words do certainly denote . and if this be the case as to the foundation of all that service which these votaries of the blessed virgin give her beyond us , it must then necessarily follow , that their practice built upon it , can have no very good establishment . and i shall need say very little to apologize for our church , in that other instance wherein we are thought to be defective , secondly , in our actions built upon these opinions . now these may be reduced to three general points , correspondent to the three instances i before laid down , and upon which these actions are founded ; viz. i. of our not praying to her . ii. our not flying to her merits and intercession . iii. our not paying her those other expressions of worship , which those of the church of rome allow so profusely to her . for the first of these ; our not praying to the blessed virgin. i have already said , that we look upon this to be a proper act of religious worship , and such as does necessarily imply a supposition of such excellencies in her , as cannot be supposed in any created being , how great and glorious soever it may otherwise be . and therefore that it ought to be reserved as solely due to that god who alone is infinite in power and knowledge ; and who alone , by being present every where , is every where fit to be called upon . and this i say , with reference to the very thing it self , without considering what kind of prayers they are that are made to her . but now , secondly , not only to call upon the blessed virgin to pray for us , but that she would her self aid and assist us ; and which 't is evident , that in many , if not all the prayers of her office they do ; this does yet more encrease the danger of such a service , and yet more justifie our refusal of it . when therefore it shall be proved to us , either that we can with faith call upon the blessed virgin , and yet not suppose that she is able either to hear our prayers , or to answer our desires ; or that we can without impiety suppose that she can do either : when it can be shewed , that there is any manner of warrant in holy scripture , or so much as encouragement to pray to her ; or that 't is possible for any benefit to accrue to us by so doing , which we might not as certainly and readily obtain by going immediately to the throne of grace , through our lord jesus christ. in a word , when it can be made appear to us , either that prayer is not a proper act of religious worship , or that all such acts are not reserved by our holy religion , as due to god only : then will we be content that our adversaries should accuse us as enemies to the holy mary , for not joining with them in this service . but till then this one consideration shall be of more moment with us , than ten thousand of their anathema's , that seeing to pray to any one , does imply the person so called upon , to have such a knowledge and power , and presence , as no finite , created being , is , or can be capable of , we ought to give this service to that god only who alone is infinite in all these perfections : whom alone the scripture sets forth to us as a god hearing prayers , and searching the heart ; and therefore to whom alone , in all such addresses , all flesh must come . for the next thing proposed , secondly , our not flying to the blessed virgin s merits and intercession . what i have before offered , may suffice for our excuse : we have an advocate with the father , jesus christ the righteous ; and he is the propitiation for our sins . this is our mediator , who has promised us , that whatsoever we ask the father in his name , he will give it us . who has invited us to come to him in all our needs ; who was in all things tempted as we are , that he might know how to have compassion on us in our temptations ; and to whom therefore the apostle exhorts us to address on these occassions , let us therefore ( says he ) come boldly unto the throne of grace , that we may obtain mercy , and find grace to help in time of need . and whilst this saviour liveth continually to make intercession for us , we cannot imagine either what reason or piety there can be in seeking to any other . if indeed these votaries of the blessed virgin can prove to us , either that the holy scripture has commanded us to joyn the merits and intercession of the mother , with those of the son for our salvation ; nay , or but produce the least example or encouragement to warrant our doing of it : if they can give us but any shadow of reason , why the merits and intercession of christ should not be alone sufficient to obtain whatever we stand in need of , without the help of any others merits to make them the more effectual ; or being so , why we should seek to any others intercession : if they can shew , that notwithstanding all the promises before made to us , yet really our saviour christ does not love us so well as the virgin mary ; nor is so ready to hear us , and pity us ; to accept our prayers , and present them to god , as he hath declared himself to be ; and that the blessed virgin is more willing , and kind , and ready to do it for us : then indeed it may be worth our considering how to provide another and better advocate for our assistance ; but till then , we shall think it enough for us that we have an advocate whom we know , who we are sure does hear us , and who has promised to assist and succour us ; and that therefore we need not seek to any other ▪ of whom we can never be sure ; nay , have all the reason in the world to believe that she can neither hear , nor help ; nor will take any notice either of our prayers , or of our wants . for the last thing to be considered ; thirdly , those other expressions of worship which they allow to the blessed virgin . they are both too many in number , and too considerable in their weight , to be particularly examined in this discourse ; and the same answer will serve for them all , that they are instances of worship either in themselves unlawful , or not fit to be paid to any but to god only . i shall give an example or two in either kind , and so conclude . and , first , it is no small part of their respect to the blessed virgin , to consecrate her images , and set them up in their publick places of worship ; to light up candles , and burn incense before them ; to carry them forth in procession , and go on pilgrimages to them ; and report strange miracles that have been wrought by them . now all these are acts of worship which the word of god has expresly and utterly forbid , and which therefore we think it to be absolutely unlawful for any christian to joyn in . god having plainly declared , that he will not suffer any image to be set up and honoured by us ; nor hold them by any means innocent , that shall upon any account whatsoever presume so to do . secondly , they burn incense to her ; they build chappels , and altars , and oratories to her service ; they offer up the mass , i. e. if they are in the right , the body , soul and divinity of the son of god to her veneration ; they put themselves under her protection ; enter into orders and congregations for her more particular worship ; they vow themselves , and all they have , or hope to have , to her ; they swear by her name ; they pray , confess , absolve , in short , apply all the most solemn parts of their devotion to her : and by all these , and many other instances too long to be here particularly enumerated , they give that worship , and honour and glory to the holy virgin , which the christian religion teaches us , and the practice of the best and purest ages of the church directs us to give to god only . now if these things be indeed so as we suppose , and as i think i may presume to say i have in some measure proved them to be ; then certainly it cannot be wondered , if we refuse to give that service to the virgin mary , which we are persuaded belongs to god alone . but if we are mistaken in our opinions , and that all this which i have here mentioned , these doctrines and these practices , be no more than what may be ascribed to a meer creature ; let this be once evidently made out to us , and then they may with some colour of justice pass that censure upon us , which till then will be nothing but an ungrounded calumny ; that for not doing such things as these , we are none of those of whom that blessed virgin prophesied in the text , that behold from thenceforth all generations should call her blessed . i have now done with the several points i proposed to speak to ; and shall perhaps be thought by some to have insisted more than was necessary upon the discovery of these kind of superstitions . but from this suspicion i doubt not but you will soon clear me , if you will please only to go along with me in a few reflections arising from what has been offered , and with which i shall close up this discourse . and the first is , of the great importance of this subject , upon many accounts to us . the errors i have now been encountring , are not of any ordinary kind : they represent to you one of the greatest of sins , the worshipping of the creature with the service due to the creator ; and which i had rather thus describe , than 〈◊〉 by its proper name to you . and what the sad consequence of it ●as been , appears in this ; that while they have thus laboured to set up the veneration of the blessed virgin , they have but too much debased the honour of our lord ; and lessened his glory , to raise hers. i need not say how much more piety is shewn by many of that communion , especially among the vulgar sort , to mary , than to christ himself . how many more particular votaries she has , and how much more trust and confidence is put in her intercession , than in that of the blessed jesvs . i do not charge the whole church of rome as guilty of all this ; but i must needs say i could heartily wish they were not all too much accessory to it . whilst by such principles and such practices as these , they not only give occasion to the common sort to run into undue excesses ; but permit their more learned guides even to encourage them in it . it is well known , how far father craesset abroad , and one of our own countrymen nearer home , has but very lately revived the almost forgotten excesses of former ages . and when one of their own communion , afraid , and indeed ashamed of these abuses , put forth some advices for the correction of them , instead of encouraging the admonition , all the powers of the church were thought too little to overwhelm him , as if he had preach'd some new gospel , or denied the son of god to be come in the flesh. and now when this is the case , i do not well see how they will be able to clear themselves altogether of those follies , which they so readily encourage ; and not only neglect to correct themselves , but will not suffer those who would , to do it . nay , but we must not stop here : they have given a yet greater encouragement to the dishonour of our saviour than this . if we look into their churches , and there view their pictures , and their images , those books of the ignorant , as they are pleased to call them ; what can be either more wretched in it self , or more apt to seduce unthinking votaries , than every where to see holy mary with our saviour still an infant in her arms ; as if he were never to get out of the state of his pupillage . and this were yet tolerable , if they thereby took care to call back their minds to the condition of his infancy once when on earth . but alas ! i must add , what exceeds all extravagances besides , that they set him out still as a child in heaven . nor is there any thing more common in the lives of their saints , in the records of the miracles of the virgin , and even in their offices and books of devotion , than to hear of the son of god brought down in the arms of his mother , and still behaving himself as a little child towards her votaries . and what mean and low opinions such things as these must needs create in superstitious and ignorant minds of the saviour of the world , is very natural to conceive ; and the devotion of the people towards the blessed virgin , compared with their notions and zeal towards the holy jesvs , does but too fatally demonstrate . but , secondly , this consideration is not only thus important in it self , but of a more especial concern with regard to us . were the votaries of the blessed virgin content with a speculative opinion of her excellencies ; or would they be satisfied to pay her what homage they thought fit themselves , without forcing others to joyn in it ; this matter , though very scandalous to our religion , yet would not so much concern our practice . but now that the very publick devotion of the church is wholly over-run with this abuse ; so that 't is impossible to pray to god with them , unless you will be content to pray to holy mary too : it was certainly very necessary for us to understand the danger of such an error , which is thus combined with the most publick and solemn piety of a whole body of christians . and then , thirdly , this is a point not only of very great moment in it self , and of a particular concern to us ; but very plain too , and easie to be understood . in other things , though our arguments are strong to those that comprehend the force of them ; yet many times the subject is obscure , and the disputation past the capacity of the ordinary christian. thus in their doctrines about the church ; the authority , vnity , infallibility , and other either real or pretended privileges of it : the argument is nice , and easily perplexes an uninstructed capacity . but here the advice is evident , and the whole subject easie : the only hardship is to bring them to own their doctrine , but afterwards the most vulgar christian is able to discern the falseness of it . those first rudiments of christianity , thou shalt worship the lord thy god , and him only shalt thou serve : how shall they call on him in whom they have not believed ? there is one mediator between god and man , the man christ jesus , and the like , being abundantly sufficient to shew how impossible it is that those should not have departed from their first faith , who give religious honour to the virgin mary , and set her up as a mediatrix in heaven . now this being once proved , it will from hence presently follow , fourthly , that all the pretences of the church of rome against us , are vain ; and that we not only had sufficient reason , but that it was our duty to reform , as we did from them . for to consider this argument in one word . if the church of rome be actually and undoubtedly erroneous in this point , then let her fancy what she please , 't is plain she can err , and is not what she says , infallible . if she be not infallible , then there can be no obligation to believe and follow her at all adventures ; without examining what she teaches , whether it be true or false . if we may examine her doctrine , then the end of all examination being to find out the truth , and to cleave unto it ; it must follow , that when upon the enquiry , we had discovered her to be involved in grievous errors , it was our duty to abandon her corruptions , and to declare against them . and thus this one point alone being well cleared , does in the consequence of it , plainly prove a vindication of the whole work of the reformation ; and is alone sufficient to satisfie any unprejudiced mind , what just cause we had for it . and let us then bless god , who has opened our eyes to discover such abuses as these , and which had almost subverted the very chief principles of christianity . and let us as we ought , value nothing so much as that purity of religion in which we have the happiness to exceed most christians in the world. let our adversaries , if they please , revile us ; let them call us hereticks and schismaticks , despisers of the church , and haters of the blessed virgin ; let them fill heaven and earth with their anathema's against us , because we will not joyn with them in these and the like abominations . but let us stand fast in the lord , and in the religion which we have received , knowing from whom we have received it , and what is the rule and measure of it : and that though , i do not say they or we , or any other church or society of men whatsoever ; but though an angel from heaven , though st. peter himself should come to us and preach any other gospel , he is to be accursed . i shall conclude all with those excellent words of an ancient father of the church , against some who began in his time to honour the blessed virgin , though not with any part of that excess that these men now do ; yet more than he supposed was fitting for them : 't is true ( says he ) mary was holy , but she was not therefore god : she was a virgin , and highly honoured , but she was not set forth to us to be worshipp'd : and therefore the holy gospel has herein arm'd us before hand ; our lord himself saying , woman , what have i to do with thee ? wherefore does he say this ? but only left some should think of the blessed virgin more highly than they ought . he called her woman , as it were foretelling those schisms and heresies that should arise upon her account . but god permits us not to worship angels ; how much less the daughter of anna ? let mary be held in honour , but let the father , son , and holy ghost be worshipped . let no one worship mary ; for though she were most fair , and holy , and honourable , yet she is not therefore to be adored . to conclude ; let mary be held in honour , but let god be adored . now to this god who alone has infinite perfections , and is a god hearing prayer ; let us ascribe , as is most due , salvation , and glory , and power , and praise , and thanksgiving , for ever and ever , amen . finis . advertisement of books published by the reverend dr. wake . there having been lately a little , trifling discourse , concerning the blessed sacrament , published and spread abroad in the name of dr. wake , dedicated to the princess of denmark ; it is thought convenient here to let the world know , how great an injury has been done to him in it . to prevent such practises for the time to come , the reader is desired to take notice , that the doctor has yet published no other books than what are here subjoined ; nor will ever hereafter set his mark , where he is not willing to write his name . printed for richard chiswell . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . ] to . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the first part . second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against monsieur de meaux and his vindicator . the second part . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host : in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford , on this subject . to which is prefixed a large historical preface , relating to the same argument . two discourses of purgatory and prayers for the dead . a continuation of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome , being a full account of the books that have been of late written on both sides . preparation for death ; being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a distemper of which she died . printed for william rogers . a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry ; in which a late author , viz. the bishop of oxford's true and only notion of idolatry , is considered and confuted . to . the sum of a conference between dr. clagert and f. p. gooden , about transubstantiation . published by this author with a preface . printed for richard chiswell , and william rogers . two sermons ; one before the king and queen ; the other before the house of commons : both reprinted in this present collection . other tracts by the same author . a sermon preached at paris , on the th of january , s.v. / . the present state of the controversie . sure and honest means for conversion of all hereticks ; and wholsom advice and expedients for the reformation of the church . the preface by this author . a letter from several french ministers fled into germany , upon the account of the persecution in france , to such of their brethren in england as approved the king's declaration touching liberty of conscience . translated from the original french. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e * mat. xi . — xiii . . . mat vii . luk. xiv . , &c. cor. v. . mat. xiii . . tim. iii. . joh. xv . . cor. i. . — ib. ver· , , · and cor. iv . . cor. iv . . cor. ix . . cor. vi . . tim. iv . . aristot. eth. nic. lib. . c. . rom. xii . . mat. v. . luke xi . . — xvi . . co. i. , , , . john vii . . luke viii . . ib. mat. xxii . . mat. x. . andronic . rhod. par. eth. nic. l. . cap. . jo. v. . jo. xii . , . jo. viii . . joh. iv . ver . . col . cum vers . , . john iii. , &c. acts xxiv . rom. i. . see pontif . r. ordo ad reconcil . haer. luke xii . . cor. ●● . acts. xvi . . luke . xi . . notes for div a -e see chap. xxxi . , . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ‡ see munster and fagius on v. . of this chapter . crit. m. vol . titus ii . . psal. lviii . . mat. xvi . . psal. . , . hos. v. . isa. xxvi . . see the commination used on ash-wednesday . notes for div a -e cor. iv . . cor. iv . . see cor. v. . see the rhemists annot. on this chap. catholick scriptur . point . of indulgences . n. . mat. vii . . tim. iv . . prov. iii. . ma● . xvi . . psal. xiv . . morin . de poenir . l. . c. . n. . jo. iii. . psa. . . joh . phil. ii . . card perron . see this more at large serm. vi , vii . collect for the iv th sund. after epiph. notes for div a -e jude iii. v. . v. . see the r. pontific . o. d. ad reconcil . haerer . spondeo sub anathematis obligatione , m● nunquam quorumlibet suasionibus vel quocunque al●o modo ad — reversurum . et si ( quod absit ) ab hâc me unitate aliquâ occasione vel argumento divisero , perjurii reatum incurrens , aeternae obligatus poenae inveniar . &c. acts iv . . ii. chap. ver . . — . cor. ii ▪ . mat. v. . tim. ii . . d com. aquin. & his school . cor. xiv . mat. iv . . heb. xi . , . heb. xi . . dan. iii. — . — . — . — . mat. x. . matth. x. — . — . notes for div a -e acts xxiii . v. , &c. ib. v. , , . joh. xvi . . acts xxiv . . — v. . see grotius and dr. hammond on that verse , which in our translation seems to imply quite otherwise , viz. that he had a perfect knowledg of the jewish law. josephus , hist. l. . tacitus , hist. l. . verse . verse . acts xvii . . rom. xiv . . cor. v. . thess. iv . , &c. cor. xv . matt. xxv . , &c. rom. ii . , &c. gen. xviii . . wisd. v. ● — . notes for div a -e — v. . cor. v. . ‡ tacitus hist. lib. v. c. . says of him , that per omnem saevitiam ac libidinem , jus regium servili ingenio exercuit . et annal . l xii . c. . cuncta malefacta sibi impune ratus , tanta potentia subnixo . * joseph . antiq. jud. l. . c. . pag. . basil. . the account of which see above , p. . act. ii . . eccl. xi . . mat. xxv . . the soc●nians st . deny immortality to the wicked , smalc . contr . frantz , p. . volkelius , lib. iii. cap. . . dly , they affirm , that they shall be for ever destroyed , smalc . l. c. volk . l. c. pag. . and cap. . pag. . socinus in john . . bibl. fr pol. p. . woltzogen . in mat. iii. . and in mat. xxv . . and that dly , by fire , schlicting . comm . in hebr. x. . apud crellium , in bibl. fratr . polon . t. . see his paraphr . on the same vers . ibid. mat. xiii . .xxii. xxv . , . mar. ix . , & c· compared with rev. xiv . .xx. . rom. ii . , , , . add , for the reality of the pains , mat. xi . .xxiii. . luke xii . , &c. ‖ so scotus ‖ soto and others . see escobar sum . theol . exam. iv . de paenit . c. vii . sect. . † reginald . praxis fori paenit . l. v. c. . sect. . n. . vasquez . in . qu. . art . . dub . . see below . * soto in iv . sent. dist . . qu. . art . . concl . . ⸫ cod. de paenit . tract . . qu. . escobar . summ . theol. tract . vii . cap. . pag. . lugd. . & pag. . ad quaest. quando nam quis actum contritionis teneatur elicere . r. non statim ac peccat ; sed stato tempore , nempe in mortis articulo , & in vita aliquoties si solum jus naturale spectetur , & probabile est quinto quoque anno. see escobar . summ . mor. theol . tract . vii . cap. . n. , . pag. . morinus de poenitent . l. viii . cap. . n. . lugo de poenit. disp . v. sect . . n. , &c. psal. cxxx . . mat. xx . , — . john viii ▪ . jer. xiii . . heb iii. . heb iv . . notes for div a -e psal. cxi . . psal. cxxx . . mal i. , — . pet. iii. . eccles. xi . . mark ix ▪ ● . * mat. xiii . . mark iv . . luke viii . . — xix . , &c. tim. ii . . matt. xiii . . mark vi . . john xii . . hebr. iii. . rom. ii . . exod. vii . .viii. , . hebr. iii ▪ . — . ephes. iv . . rom. ii . . see matt. xxv . . , . luk. xiii . . phil. i. . tim. iv . . pro. iii. . eccl. v. . ib. xviii . — . — . — . notes for div a -e see ch . xiv . . acts xv . . — xxi . . acts xv . , . gal. v. , &c. gal. v. . rom. xi . , &c. rom. xv . . ibid. verse ● . see theodoret , chrysost. theophylact , &c. in loc . prop. . act. xv . . gal. v. . rom. xiv . . histoire des variations des eglises protestantes : par mr. l' evesque de meaux . the design of which , may be seen in the summary of his preface — les variations dans la foy preuve certaine de fausseté . charactere des heresies d'estre variables — ce charactere reconnu dans tous les ages de l'eglise . — charactere d'immutabilitè dans la foy de l'eglise catholique . — que les variations de l'un des partis ( de protestans ) est une preuve contre l' autre , &c. praef. ad lib. de summ. p. t. . p. . ingolstad . a. . bellarm. to . . p. . de not. eccl. a. see mr. chillingworth , p. , . bellarm. i● p. . ● prop. . joh. xvi . . — v. . joh. xiii . . verse . . prop. . rom. xv . . * see the petition of the archbishop and bishops to king james ▪ for which they were commited to the tower. phil. ii . , . joh. iv . rom. xiv . . joh. xiii . . rom. xii . . rom. xvi . . phil. ii . , . rev. xxi . . notes for div a -e joel . ii . ● — , — , — . (a) judaei putant in diebus joel tam innumerabilem locustarum super jud. eam venisse multitudinem , ut cuncta complerent , & non dicam fruges , sed ne vinearam quidem & arborum c●rtices , ramo●que dimitt●rent , ita ut omni virore consumpto arentes arborum rami ▪ & sicca vinearum flagella remanerent . hieron . in joel . i. v. . (b) ch. i. . (c) see among the ancients , st. hierom. loc . cit . drusius in joel . i. . groti●s in joel i. . theodoret in cap . . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . v. pl. (c) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . psal. lxxi . . sam. iii. . king. xxi . . (c) this passage is so very extraordinary , that i ought to give some account of it . pope boniface ix . having granted a large indulgence at rome , whither the lombards , by reason of the wars they then had , could not go to gain it , at the prayer of john galeas , visconte of milan , he grants the same indulgence to milan he had done at rome , viz. that all the subjects of the said galeas , though they had neither confess'd their sins , nor were contrite for them , should yet be absolved of all their sins ; only for visiting a few churches , and praying the sum of money prefix'd by the said b●ll : bonifacio pontifice à intercessione di ciovan galeazzo visconte la concesse in milano ( sc. la indulgenza ) nella medesina sorma ch' era à roma : cioé , che ciascuno nel dominio del visconte , se a●cho non fosse contrito ne confesso , fosse assolutio di ogni peccato , &c. co●io hist. milan terza parte , pag. . edit . venet. anno . (d) dr. brevint's saul and samuel at endor . crasset devotion veritabile envers la ste. vierge , part . ult . tim. iv . . (e) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . chrys. hom. ad antioch . . (f) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. — 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. chrys. ad antioch . hom. . * conc. tr. sess. xiv . cap. . † layman theol. moral . lib. . tract . . c. . §. . and so most of their other casuists , morinus , greg. de valentia , silas , &c. * veraciter , integraliter . lyr. mercer . † rev●ra , ex animo , non simulaté . drus. seriò ac bonâ fide . grot. psal. xliv . . chron. xxviii . . rom. viii . . hab. i. . joel ii . . deut. ii . . matth. xvi . . exodus xxxiv . , . isai. i. , — . isai , i. . ezek. xviii . jonah iii. . — . lam. iii. . ezek. xviii . lam. ii . . psal. cxxvi . . isai. i. . psal. cxliv. . sam. x , . isai. lviii . . isa. lviii . . psal. . . joel ii . . isa. lviii . . — v. . isa. lviii . . psal. l. . psal. xliv . . psal. lxviii . , — . exod. xv . . notes for div a -e tim. iii. . rom. viii . , — , — . * see dr. hammond's par. upon this verse , and note on rom. xiii . c . * see dr. hammond , mat. x. h. rom. xiii . c. rom. xiii . . rom. xiii . . tim. iii. . ver. , , ●● , , , . act. xxiv . . pet. iii. . eph. iv . . notes for div a -e non est meum quod vobis tradidi , sed à domino illud accepi : sicut ipse alibi dicit , non ab hominibus sed à deo omnia didicisse . hieron . in ver . . — see gal. i. , . illud christi , hoc facite , non est dictum , nisi apostolis , qui to mandato ordinati sunt primi sacerdotes novi testamenti . bellarm . de euch. l. . c. . §. haec autem . illud hoc facite , non significat solùm manducate & bibite ; quod convenit omnibus christianis , sed significat , consecrate , sumite & aliis distribuite ut me facere vidistis . ista autem tria non possunt convenire omnibus , ergo illud mandalum non est datum omnibus , sed solùm sacerdotibus . ibid. (c) concil trid. sess. xxii . can. (d) sess. xiii . can. , . (e) sess. xxii . can. (f) ibid. can. . (g) concil . trid. sess. xxii . cap. . christus corpus & sanguinem suum sub speciebus panis & vini deo patri obtulit : ac sub earundem rerum symbolis , apostolis quos nunc novi testamenti sacerdotes constituebat , ut sumerent tradidit : & eisdem , eorumque in sacerdotio successoribus ut offerrent praecepit , per haec verba , hoc facite in meam commemorationem . and can. . siquis dixerit illis verbis , hoc facite , &c. christum non instituisse apostolos sacerdotes , aut non ordinâsse ut ipsi aliique sacerdotes offerrent corpus & sanguinem suam , anathema sit . (h) see catech . ad paroch . par . . de ord. sacram . n. . §. tertio . (i) manifestum est quòd homo tenetur hoc sacramentum sumere non solùm ex statuto ecclesiae , sed ex mandato domini , dicentis , hoc facite in meam commemorationem . aquin. part . . qu. . art. . id corp. (k) estins in sent. l. . dist . . §. . pag. . l. a.b. where having shewn that facere cannot be interpreted consecrare ; he adds , non enim absolutè dicitur facite , sed hoc facite , i. e. id quod à me & à vobis nunc fit aut factum est , deinceps vos & vestri successores , facite in mei memori●m . et infra . ●aulus , cor. . illud facere etiam ad plebem refert edentem & bibentem de hoc sacramento , &c. (l) de euch. l. . c. . §. haec autem . (m) ibid. l. . c. . §. videtur tamen . where he gives this paraphrase of our text : id quod nunc agimus , ego dum consecro & po●rigo , & vos dum accipitis & comeditis frequentate deinceps usque ad mundi consummationem . (n) ibid. paulus autem resert potissimùm illa verba ad actionem discipulorum , id quod ex ver . . colligitur . et planum fieri potest ex instituto & proposito b. pauli , &c. q. v. (o) bellarm. ib. c §dicet aliquis . his words are ; neque obstat quòd s. thomas colligit ex hoc loco esse de jure divino ut omnes aliquando sumant eucharistiam ; ubi videtur intellexisse illud hoc facite dictum esse omnibus ; nam s. thomas non vult colligi immediatè sed mediaté . quia enim dominus jubet apostolis ut consecrent , sumant , & distribuant , consequenter jubet aliis ut accipiant de manu sacerdotum distribuentium . * catech. conc. trid. de ord. sacr. n. . §. . manibus capiti ( sc. ordinandi in sacerdotem ) ejus impositis , accipe , inquit , spiritum sanctum , &c. eique coelestem illam quam dominus discipulis suis dedit peccata retinendi ac remittendi potestatem tribuit . and again , de sacr. poenit. n. . il. lustr verò hujus ministerii testimonium praebent illa domini verba apud s. joann . quorum remiseritis , &c. neque enim omnibus , sed apostolis tantùm haec dicta fuisse constat , quibus in hâc functione sacerdotes succedunt . joh. x. . cor. iii. . phil. iv . . isa. liii . , — , — , — . psal. cxxix . . jer. i. . luk. xxii . . mat. xxvi . , . luk. xxii . . mat. xxvii . . act. ii . . phil. ii . . heb. vii . exod. xii . . xiii . , , . exod. xiii . . — , . gal. iii. . phil. ii . . tit. ii . . cor. v. , . heb. x. . * aben-ezra . vid. fag . in exod. xii . . notes for div a -e * see the instances of all the following particulars in the d def. of the expos. of the doctr. of the church of england : part . artic . . of the invocation of saints . luk. . , . cor. xi . . see the litanies of the bl. virg. aquin. . part . qu. , &c. (a) chrysost in joan. hom. . pag. , . edit . g.l. paris . . (b) august . de nat. & grat. c. . p. . b. ed lugd. . t●m . . contempl. vii . pag. , &c. contempl. viii . pag. , &c. offic. b. virg antver p. . pag. . crasset . devot . envers la ste v. part . . pag. , , , &c. contempl. on the life and glory of h. m. p. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . contempl. pag. . crasset devot . envers la v.m. par . . p. , , &c. crasset ver . dev . part . . p. . ibid. crasset ib. crasset , p. , . suarez . tom . . in . disp . §. . see lucians dialog . mars and mercury . crasset . devot . ver . par . . p. . crasset . par . . p. , . ibid. p. . crasset . ib. p. . ex libr. vi . revelat . s. brigittae . card. bona. de div. psalmod . c. . p. . crasset . par . . p. . crasset . ib. p. . crasset . ib. p. . crasset . ib. . crasset . par . . trait . . contempl. p. . &c. contempl. p. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . idem ibid. ibid. p. . idem ibid. apol. for the contempl . p. , , . bellarm. de purg. l. it . c. . bellarm. de eccles. triumph . l. . c. . gratian. c. . q. de mortuis , c. . p. , . par. . sent. l. iv . dist . . scotus in sent. iv . dist . . q. . rubio in sent. l. iv . d. . bellarm. li. cc. see above . pesant . in thom. qu. . ar . . disp . . conclus . . exposit. of bishop meaux , §. iv . bellarm. de cult . ss l. . c. . p. ● . crasset , par . . p. . eccles. v. . contempl. of the b. virgin , p. . joh. ii . , . joh. xv . . heb. iv . ● . & v. . heb. iv . . see crasset , par . . p. . crasset devot . verit . par . . trait . . p. i , &c. widenfelt's advices of the bl. virgin . galat. i. . the false-prophets try'd by their fruits being a sermon preached at st. james's westminister, november vth , in which it is shewn, that the principles, and practices, of the church of rome, with relation to those whom they call hereticks, are not only destructive of civil society, but are utterly irreconcileable with the gospel of christ / by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) the false-prophets try'd by their fruits being a sermon preached at st. james's westminister, november vth , in which it is shewn, that the principles, and practices, of the church of rome, with relation to those whom they call hereticks, are not only destructive of civil society, but are utterly irreconcileable with the gospel of christ / by william wake ... wake, william, - . , [ ] p. printed for richard sare ..., london : mdcc [ ] "published at the request of the gentlemen of the vestry, and several others, who heard it." errors in paging: p. - misnumbered p. - . errors in paging: p. - misnumbered p. - . advertisement: p. 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng church of england -- apologetic works. catholic church -- doctrines -- controversial literature. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - mona logarbo sampled and proofread - mona logarbo text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the false-prophets try'd by their fruits : being a sermon preached at st. james's westminster , november v th . . in which it is shewn , that the principles , and practices , of the church of rome , with relation to those whom they call hereticks ; are not only destructive of civil society , but are utterly irreconcileable with the gospel of christ. by william wake , d. d. and rector of st. james westminster . publish'd at the request of the gentlemen of the vestry , and several others , who heard it . london : printed for richard sare , at gray's-inn-gate in holborn . m d c c. mat. vii . , . beware of false prophets , which come to you in sheeps-cloathing , but inwardly they are ravening wolves : ye shall know them by their fruits . these words are a caution given by our blessed saviour to his disciples , to have a care what persons they admitted to be their guides , and instructors , in things pertaining to religion . that they should not blindly follow every one who should pretend to lead them , but should first diligently prove , and examine them : and know whether they were indeed the true ministers of christ ; or whether they were not rather false-prophets , whose design was not to instruct , but to deceive ; beware of false-prophets , which come to you in sheeps-cloathing , but inwardly they are ravening wolves : ye shall know them by their fruits . in my discourse upon which words , i shall i. endeavour to give you a clear account of the true meaning of our saviour in them. and having done this , i will proceed , ii. to shew you what vse we ought to make of them . ( st . ) in general ; with relation to all such as shall at any time pretend to preach the gospel of christ to us . ( dly . ) in particular ; as they may be more immediately applied to the subject , and solemnity , of this day . and , i. let us enquire , what is the true meaning of that caution , which our saviour here gave to his disciples : beware of false-prophets . in order whereunto , i shall distinctly consider these two things : st . who they were whom our saviour intended to represent to them , under the name , and character , of false prophets ? dly . what those fruits are , by which he directed them to discover , and to avoid them. st . as for the former of these , the persons whom our saviour here design'd to represent to his disciples , under the name , and character of false prophets ; they may be reduced to these two kinds : either , st , such as shou●d pretend to set up themselves as men commissioned by god , in an extraordinary-manner to reveal hi● will to mankind , tho' indeed they were never sent by him : or , dly , such as should pretend only to teach , and expound the common doctrine of christ ; but yet under the colour of that , should deliver their own imaginations ; and so preach themselves , and not the lord jesus . of the former of these , our saviour spake to his disciples mat. xxiv . , . when he told them , that false christs , and false-prophets should arise , and should deceive many : and therefore warn'd them not to be deluded by them . of the latter kind are all those who in the several ages of the church , have preached in the name , and pretended to deliver only that pure doctrine of christ , which was deliver'd by him to his apostles ; and by them communicated to the church ; but yet have mingled their own errours together with it : and by means thereof have brought in damnable heresies pet. ii . . scandalous to christianity , and dangerous to the souls of all those who have unhappily suffer'd themselves to be mis-led by them. now that those of this latter kind , no less than those of the foregoing , are truly comprehended under the name , and character , of false-prophets , the language of the new testament will not suffer us to doubt . where to prophesy , do's commonly denote to preach the gospel of christ : and to be a prophet , signifies no less to be a teacher of the doctrine already revealed , than to be a publisher of such things as were before unknown ; and , for the confirmation of which , he who did so , was therefore to be , in an extraordinary manner , both commissioned , and inspired by god. the truth is , tho' the former of these significations of the word prophet , was the more common under the old testament ; when such kind of persons were wont to be frequently sent by god to mankind ; yet this latter seems to be the more proper , and standing import of it , under the new. and the additional character which is here given to those of whom our saviour spake , that they should come in sheeps-cloathing , that is to say , under the habit , and appearance of disciples ; in the name of christ , and as pastors of his flock ; plainly shews that they were not to be the publishers of any new doctrine ; but to pretend , at least , to teach that old-religion , which our blessed lord , the great shepherd of the sheep , once for all , deliver'd to the saints . jude . so that however then i would not exclude the other signification of the word prophet from having been , in part , intended by our saviour , in the caution before us ; and according to which , it is certainly our duty to beware of false-prophets ; that is to say , of such as shall go about to preach a new religion , totally different from that of the gospel ; ( which was , in effect , the case of some of the most early hereticks , in the first ages after christ ; and of that great impostor mahomet afterwards : ) yet i cannot but look upon the more general design of our blessed lord to have been , to caution us against those , of whom we have commonly more need to beware ; i mean , the ordinary preachers of the gospel . and concerning whom it is without controversy our duty , and should be our care too , to take heed that we do not suffer our selves to be mis-led by them : whilst instead of delivering to us the pure doctrine of christ , they teach only their own inventions ; and , by so doing , both corrupt our faith , and ( without gods infinite mercy , ) expose us to everlasting ruine and destruction . and this may suffice to shew , who the false-prophets are , of whom our lord in the text , requires us to beware . let us consider , dly . by what marks we may discover , and so be enabled to avoid them . now the rule laid down by our saviour in order hereunto , and again repeated by him , ver . . is this ; ye shall know them by their fruits . and those may be of two kinds : either , st . the doctrine which they preach , and would impose on those to whom they deliver it , for the true doctrine of christ ; whether with respect to faith , or manners ; to what we are to believe , or what we are to do , in obedience to his gospel . or , dly , by their fruits , we may understand , the efficacy of their doctrine on the minds , and consciences , of those who are guided by them ; and the natural tendency which it has , either to promote that piety which our saviour came into the world to teach ; or to lead men into any wickedness contrary thereunto . these are the fruits by which we may judge what the prophet is who comes to us ; whether he be indeed a true-prophet , and as such to be received by us ; or whether he be only a woolf in sheeps-cloathing , and of whom we are therefore to beware . and from all which we may now lay down these three rules , as containing the summ of our saviour's advice to us , with relation to this matter . first : that whosoever , in matters of faith , shall preach any doctrine contrary to , or otherwise different from , that doctrine which was taught by christ to his apostles , and by them deliver'd to the church ; ( and the substance of which is fully , and clearly contained , in the writings of the new testament ; ) is a false prophet ; and to be avoided by us as such . secondly : that whosoever , in respect of manners , shall preach any doctrines which are inconsistent with the piety of the gospel ; or otherwise apt to corrupt the morality of it ; he do's also thereby shew himself to be a deceiver , and an impostor ; and it is our duty to beware of him as such . thirdly ; if such a prophet shall deliver this false-doctrine , ( whether in the business of faith , or manners ) not of his own motion , but as commission'd by some church , or society of men , calling themselves a church , so to do ; then that church , or society of men , which do's commission him , must be look'd upon to be a corrupt , and erroneus church ; and be no less avoyded by us than he who is so sent , or commission'd by it . and thus have i endeavour'd to give you a clear account , of the direction of our blessed saviour in the words before us : i go on now to the use i proposed . ii. to make of this caution ; ( st . ) in general ; as it respects all those who shall , at any time , pretend to be our guides in matters of religion : and , ( dly . ) in particular ; as it may be , in a more especial manner , applied to the solemnity of this day . ( st . ) of the general use we are to make of this caution ; as it respects all those who shall , at any time , pretend to be our guides in matters of religion . and here , st . if it be our duty to beware of false-prophets ; and if the way of discovering of them be , to know them by their fruits ; that is , as i have now shewn , by the doctrine which they teach , and the practises which they allow of ; then it must follow , that it is not only lawful for us , but our duty , in obedience to this command , to examine the doctrine which our spiritual guides propose to us ; and to compare it with that of christ , and his apostles : and either to receive them as true , and lawfull pastors , if what they teach be agreeable thereunto ; or else to reject them as false-prophets , if it shall appear to be otherwise . and indeed , however some , the better to maintain their usurped authority over the consciences of men , have set up another method ; and told us , that the prophet is to give credit and authority to the doctrine , not the doctrine to the prophet ; and , in consequence thereof , have forbidden men to examine what is deliver'd by them , and made them believe that it is sufficient that they have it from such hands as can neither mistake themselves , nor mis-lead others : yet not only our reason directs us to a contrary procedure , but the holy scriptures themselves every where exhort us to examine what is proposed to us ; and not take any thing , at all adventures , in a matter of such vast concern , as it must needs be to us , to be guided a-right in those things which regard the glory of god , and the salvation of our immortal souls . hence it is that we are commanded , sometimes not to believe every spirit , but to try the spirits whether they are of god ; because many false-prophets are gone out into the world , jo. iv . . at other times , to search the scriptures , jo. v. . and of our selves to judge the things that are right , luke xii . . and as for what concerns the authority of any man , or company of men , to the contrary ; are told by st. paul , gal. . . that tho' they ( the apostles of christ ) or an angel from heaven should preach any other gospel unto vs , than that which we have received , they should be accursed . and if an angel from heaven , or an apostle should he rise from the dead , and preach to us , must not be received any farther than what he delivers shall appear to be agreeable to the gospel of christ ; much less ought we not either without all examination to receive , or against the plain authority of holy scripture to submit to , the pretensions of designing men ; who the more they set up their own infallibility , and decline the tryal of god's word , the more ought they to be suspected by us ; and the more narrowly to be enquired into , that we be not deceived by them . but , dly . since our saviour deliver'd the caution of the text , not to his apostles only , but to the whole company of his disciples ; to all those who came to him , and offer'd themselves to be instructed by him ; it will follow farther , that this right of examining what is proposed to us , in matters of religion , is not any special privilege of the pastors , or governours of the church ; but is the common right , and duty , of all christians whatsoever : who as they are all concern'd to be secure in what they believe and practise , in such cases as these ; so are they all required , in order thereunto , to beware of false prophets , and to try them by their fruits . and this may serve yet farther to shew the little regard we are to give to their pretences who tell us , that the judgment of these things belongs only to the church ; that is , as some of them interpret it , to the pope , as successor of st. peter , and if ( we will believe them ) head of the church : as others understand it ; to the bishops and chief pastours of the church ; and to them not separately , and alone , but convened together into a synod ; and that , again , not in any particular church ; but in the catholick ; to them , or their deputies , lawfully met together , in a general council . for tho' it is not to be doubted , but that what is fairly debated , and orderly concluded upon , in such an assembly ; ( where it is fully assembled , and permitted freely to judge , and determine , according to the holy scriptures ; ) must needs be of more authority ; and probably may be more sure , than what is resolved by every single christian apart : yet , when all is done , as every particular person is to answer to god for his own soul , so he must examine , as far as he is able , both what he believes and how he practises ; and upon what grounds he do's both ; and not follow any assembly , tho' of never so much seeming authority , contrary to that which is of much greater authority than any humane assembly whatsoever can be , i mean , the word of god. and it may as well be said that all the other parts of christian piety , delivered by our saviour , in these chapters , belong not to single persons , or to ordinary christians at all , but only to the whole church , or at least , to the pastors and governors of it ; as that this command of taking heed of false prophets , and of knowing them by their fruits , is the business of such only , and not the duty of every private person . but , dly ; and to conclude these general reflections . if such be the case , that it is not only lawfull for , but the duty of , every christian to search the scriptures , and to examine what is proposed to him ; and to satisfie himself whether it be the true doctrine of christ or no : then it will follow farther , that if upon such a proof of what is tender'd to us by any person , or church , whatsoever , we should chance to be clearly , and evidently convinced , that they have departed themselves , and would draw away us , from the pure faith of christ , deliver'd to us in the holy scriptures ; it is our duty to take heed that we do not follow them in their apostacy ; but resolve rather to forsake them , than to abandon that gospel , which both they , and we , are commanded to adhere unto . that it is possible for men either by interest to be corrupted ; by prejudices to be byass'd ; or thro' infirmity to be deceived ; and by any , or all of these means , to fall away from the purity of the christian truth ; both the condition of humane nature assures us ; and the very caution of the text , do's evidently suppose . that by a careful attention , and diligent enquiry into the doctrine deliverd to us in the holy scriptures , we may be able to discover when they do so ; and to distinguish between truth , and falsehood ; right and wrong , as to these matters ; not only our saviour's command to do this ; but the plainness wherewith most of those things are delivered , which make up the summ of what is necessary for us to believe , and do , in order to our salvation , effectually shew . but then to what purpose should we trouble our selves to search the scriptures , and to understand our religion , and to know that we are dealt fraudulently with , by our guides , in it ; if after all , there is no remedy : but we must follow our church , and the pastors of it , whether they teach us the true doctrine of christ ; or whether they lead us into damnable hereresies , destructive of the very fundamentals of it . and yet how confidently do some men here also , rise up against us : and tell us , that we must believe them before our own reason ; nay , and ( in effect ) before god himself ? that 't is schism , and heresie , and i know not what besides , to doubt of , or differ with them , in any thing that they require us to believe . and that much better were it for us to shut our eyes altogether , and go on blindfold under their conduct ; than to follow the clearest light that scripture , reason , or even sense it self , can give us , in opposition to their errors . but let them assume what authority they please to themselves , and raise what clamours they can against us ; when all is done , this conclusion will remain firm as heaven , and clear as any first principle of science ; that if the scriptures be , as we all agree that they are , the word of god ; and were written for our instruction ; then we must follow the conduct of them : and hold fast to the truth which they deliver , tho' not only a company of assuming men , calling themselves the church , ( but upon what grounds , no body could ever learn , ) and pretending to infallibility ; ( in despight of the grossest errors ; ) but the whole world should conspire together , to oppose us in it . and thus have i shewn you , what that general vse is , that we ought all of us to make , of this command of our saviour , to beware of false-prophets ; and , to know them by their fruits . i proceed , ( dly ) to that more particular application which i proposed to make of it , to the subject of this days solemnity . i shall not need to tell you , that we are now met together to bless god for those wonderful deliverances , which he has twice afforded us of this nation upon this very day , from the designs of those who are the professed enemies of our religion ; and who have never ceased , from the first beginning of the reformation among us , to do what in them lies to subvert that , and to destroy us , upon the account of it . but of all the measures that were ever taken by them in order thereunto , never was there any more remarkable than that which was intended to have been executed on this day ; had not god , by a miracle of his providence , discovered , and disappointed it . a design it was , so black , and horrid , that we find many among themselves ashamed to own it . and therefore , they either altogether deny that there was ever any such plot carried on by those of their communion : or else , pretend , that it was onely a private attempt of a few-desperate men of their religion ; censured , and condemn'd for it , by all the better , and more sober members of their church . and indeed , far be it from me to charge the whole body of our english papists , either with the knowledge of this conspiracy heretofore , or with the approving of it since . i am sensible that several among them have not only declared their abhorrence of the design its self ; but of the very principles on which it was founded . but yet when all is done , certain it is that both the doctrine on which it was established ; has been * confirm'd by those of the highest authority in the roman church : and that their greatest men have not only given their approbation to such attempts ; † but have favoured those who were the principal actors in them. here then let us fix our selves , and try the cause between them , and us. if the doctrines of the romish church with relation to those whom they call hereticks , and their practices towards them ; be agreeable to the gospel of christ ; let us allow them to be , thus far , true prophets , and approved by their fruits . but else , if neither their doctrines nor practices , in this case , can be reconciled with the spirit of christianity ; we must then pronounce them to be false-teachers , and conclude that they have been justly rejected by us as such . and st , as for the doctrines of those of the church of rome towards such whom they call hereticks , they are to this effect . * that theirs is the catholick church , with which all christians are bound to communicate ; to which alone all the promises of the gospel do belong ; and out of which there is no salvation . * that all who differ from them , and forsake their communion , are schismaticks , and hereticks ; enemies to god ; and apostates from the church , and faith of christ. ** that this church has , therefore a right to pronounce a sentence of excommunication against them as such : and that being , by that means , cut off from the body of christ , they are , in the next place , to be cast out of all civil society too ; and be put to death , unless they shall abjure their heresie , and return again to their communion . † that this excommunication the pope has power to pronounce , not only upon private persons , but upon whole cities and countries , upon kings and subjects : and that this being done , they also may be prosecuted with the sword , and be rooted from off the face of the earth . * that for the better effecting hereof , his holiness ( as they call him ) has power to absolve princes from their oaths of government to their subjects ; and subjects from their obligations of fidelity to their princes : to dispose of kingdoms ; and transfer them from one state , or family to another . and that having done this , that person , or state , to whom the pope shall have given such an heretical kingdom , has from thenceforth a just right to enjoy it , and may lawfully endeavour by any means to make themselves masters of it . lastly : that if this cannot be done by open force , and it be for the interest of their religion that some other course should be taken ; any king , or prince , so excommunicated , as is aforesaid , by the pope , may lawfully be kill'd by any private person ; or otherwise , be deposed from his government : and another set up to defend their religion , and to extirpate , what they call heresie , out of that country . this is the substance of what is taught by those of the church of rome , with relation to such as they call hereticks : that is to say , in other words , to all those who are not of their perswasion . and dly , for their practices , in conformity thereunto , tho' you are but too well able of your selves to recount them , yet i will call to your remembrance a few particulars , that may suffice to represent them to you . i should perhaps be thought to look back too far , should i relate to you the † barbarous butcheries committed by them about the xiiith century , at the preaching of that * bloody monk , their now glorious st. dominick : and the greatest of whose merit , seems to have been this , that ( as the histories of those times inform us , ) he preached above an hundred thousand innocent men out of their lives . a most apostolical preacher no doubt ! and worthy of the honour , which in acknowledgment of his merits they thought fit to confer upon him ; that for the good service he had done in that cruel mission , the inquisition , then begun by him , ( that most lively pattern of hell upon earth ) should be entrusted to the monks of his | order ; and who , in the management of it , for the most part , do not at all degenerate from the fiery zeal of their anti-christian founder . if from those we pass on to the protestants of france , it is hardly to be said what infinite numbers of them , in a very few years , fell a sacrifice to the romish fury . to which if we add the persecutions they have since undergone , within our own memories , to the utter ruine of their religion in that country ; we shall need no other evidence to convince us , what the true spirit of popery is ; and what we are to expect from it , if ever it should happen to prevail any more among us. what havock has been made of the evangelical churches , in the other parts of europe , and that within these few years , is too fresh in your memories to need a repetition , as for our own country ; not only the laws still extant shew us , what severe acts were pass'd against the reformed , ever since the time of king henry the fourth ; but our histories tell us , with what rigour they were put in execution . and the short period of queen mary's reign , shall i hope be a lasting , as it was a burning , and shining monument , of what our fore-fathers underwent ; and of what we ought to fear , should they ever come to have the same power in their hands , that they then had , to destroy us. but to leave these vulgar instances of the romish cruelties , and come to those of a higher nature ; in which princes have been concern'd and for whom , if they chance to oppose their interest , they have as little regard as for the meanest of the people . it would engage me on too large a subject to speak of the several emperours , and kings , who were either murder'd , or deposed by the pope , and his faction , before the time of the reformation . let the histories of europe speak this to you : scarce a country of which is destitute of some instance or other of this nature . i shall only point out to you a few particulars , of many , since that time ; and those such as are no more to be denied , than they are to be excused , by them. * when that desperate wretch james clement , undertook the murder of king henry the third of france ; not only the prior of his convent encouraged him in it , and gave him the very knife with which he did it ; but when the news of this horrid fact was brought to rome , ** pope sixtus the fifth , in an open consistory approved the deed , and in very extravagant terms applauded the doer of it . and when , afterwards | john chastell atempted , in like manner , to assassinate king henry the fourth , and was justly condemn'd by the parliament of paris for it ; their procedure was so heinously resented at rome , that they caused their * sentence to put into their catalogue of prohibited books ; that is to say , of such as they thought not fit for any member of their communion to read. but i will not look any farther abroad for the examples of such villanies , as our own history affords us , but too great a plenty of at home . king henry the eighth had his private quarrels with the popes of his time . he saw himself trick'd and abused by them ; and he bravely resolved not to suffer a foreign bishop , any longer to insult it over an english king. and tho' in all other respects he continued to his dying day a zealous papist , yet for this one piece of rebellion only against that proud prelate , was he excommunicated by pope paul the third ; his subjects were absolved from their oath of allegiance ; and commanded to vse their utmost endeavours to depose him , and expel him out of his dominions . what paul the third did to king henry the eighth , pope pius the fifth renewed against his daughter , queen elizabeth . he declared her to be an heretick and a favourer of hereticks : and therefore , deprived her of her crown ; absolved her subjects from their allegiance ; and forbade them to obey her , on pain of excommunication . and all this he did meerly on the account of her religion . for before that time ; ( which was the twelfth year of her reign ) not one ** papist had suffer'd on the account of his religion : when * felton for fixing up this bull against the bishop of london's gate , and justifying the fact , was the first of that party , condemn'd , and executed for it . being thus encouraged by the popes authority , the romanists of those times were from thenceforth scarce ever out of some contrivance , or other , to destroy her. parry , one of the chief of those , who undertook to murder her , had not only the popes consent so to do ; but , in consideration of it , had his holiness's blessing sent from rome to him ; with a plenary indulgence for all his sins ; and the assurance of an extraordinary crown of glory in heaven , for the barbarous villany he had undertook to commit on earth . this enterprise failing ; they next resolved upon a forreign invasion : and the king of spain was perswaded , by pope pius the fifth , to engage in it . but that also miscarrying , their private attempts were again renewed : and still some priest or other , in every one of them , to encourage , and sanctifie the assassination . it would engage me in too long a discourse to speak particularly of the treasons of arden , and sommerville ; of hesket , and lopez ; of cullen and york ; of squire and babington : of the designs of the duke of norfolk ; the earl of westmorland , and many others ; who either by sword or poison ; by private attempts , or publick insurrections , endeavoured to deprive her both of her crown and life . i will only observe , that what the other popes had in vain attempted here in england ; | pope gregory the xiiith , and clement the viiith , no less encouraged in ireland : by not only abetting the rebellions which were raised there , but engaging the king of spain , once more , to endeavour her destruction . whilst the queen of scots lived , who was a zealous papist , * the pretence for several of these attempts then was , ( | as their excuse has been since ) that she had the better title to the crown of england . but that unfortunate princess being gone , and queen elizabeth now grown old ; † all possible endeavours were made by those very persons , ( with the pope at their head , ) to exclude the son , who would be thought to have had so much zeal for the mother . in this first attempt the jesuits seemed unwilling to engage : but then , to do them right , i must observe , that it was not out of any checks of conscience , any dislike they had to such an enterprize ; but because they had another design of their own in hand ; which , it seems , was this of the gun-powder conspiracy . a treason of so horrid , and dismal a complexion , that the transcendent cruelty of it not only stagger'd some of the conspirators themselves , but proved the happy means of our deliverance from it . whilst the desire of one among them to save his friend from that deadly blow ; by the providence of god , discovered the whole design , and saved both the king and the parliament with him. we ought not to wonder , if the better to conceal such a conspiracy as this , but | few were admitted to a particular knowledge of it : * tho' it was generally discoursed among the whole party , that something was in agitation for the interest of their cause ; and to which they were to be ready to lend their utmost assistance , as soon as matters should be ripe for it . yet even among those few who knew of it , † father garnet , the provincial of the jesuits was one ; and that not in confession as some now pretend , but by way of consultation , as himself ( at last ) ingenuously acknowledged . | that several others of the society were acquainted with it , may from undoubted proofs be made appear . give me leave to add , what * some have farther affirm'd ; that fawks himself , the villain who was to have executed the treason was , not long before , at rome , in conference with some considerable persons there ; and had three bulls ready to have been publish'd , had the design succeeded ; but that this failing they were suppressed . and here then let us stop , and not proceed to any following instances of their cruelty , and perfidiousness : but from what has been already alledged , both of their doctrines , and practices , as to these matters ; go on , finally to consider , whether such principles , and such actions , can ever be reconciled , either with the spirit , or rules of christianity . and , st . let them tell us , if they can , where in all the scriptures of the new-testament , either the title , or promises of the catholick church , are appropriated to the roman church ; or indeed to any other particular church , or society of christians , whatsoever : or what reason can be given for that fundamental arrogance , on which all the best of their pretences are built , why they , any more than we , should be called , or accounted , christ's catholick church upon earth ? the truth is , it is a contradiction in terms , for either of us to assume to our selves such a character . the catholick church , is the whole church ; of which every particular church , ( as the church of england , the church of rome , &c. ) are parts . and to say that any one of these , exclusive to all others , is the catholick church ; is to say , that a part is the whole ; which , i think , is as plain a contradiction as can well be affirmed by any . nay , but what if the church of rome be so far from being the catholick , or vniversal church , that it is not so much as a catholick , that is , any sound , or orthodox part of the church of christ ? let me not be thought , to speak any thing with a design to raise in your minds a wrong notion against any : but for the sake of truth , and out of the concern which i have for your immortal souls , i must freely declare ; that , after the best examination i have been able to make into her principles , and constitution ; i do , in my conscience , believe the roman church , as it is at present established , in matters of faith , worship , morals , and government ; to be by far the most corrupted of any christian church , that i know of , in the world ; and in which salvation can the most hardly , if at all , be obtain'd . but dly . were the church of rome all that she pretends to be ; and our church all that ever it has been call'd by it : yet how comes this to give them a civil authority over us ? christ meddled not with mens temporal interests : he taught no doctrines of cruelty and uncharitableness . he founded no dominion in grace : nor ever pretended to depose kings , and give away kingdoms . on the contrary , we know , how he would not so much as arbitrate in a private controversie : luke xii . . but declared freely , that his kingdom was not of this world ; jo. xviii . . nor were his disciples to expect any thing beyond other men , except it were troubles , and losses , and persecutions in it . mat. x. luke ix . . jo. xv . . xvi . . &c. hence we read that when upon the account of his adherence to the temple of jerusalem , ( which was plainly a religious concern ) a certain village of the samaritans deny'd him the common humanity of a nights lodging ; and some of his disciples were so hot upon it , as to desire him to revenge himself by fire from heaven for the affront ; all the answer they got was this reproof , which one would have thought might alone have been sufficient to answer all these kind of pretensions for ever , that they knew not what manner of spirit they were of ; luke ix . . for , says he , the son of man came not to destroy mens lives , but to save them . but dly . our saviour christ , has not only no where encouraged any proceedings of this kind , but has every where delivered such doctrines , as are utterly irreconcileable with them. that we must be subject to principalities and powers , and obey magistrates . tit. iii. . that we must do this , not only for wrath , but also for conscience sake : rom. xiii . . that we must love our enemies ; must bless them that curse vs ; do good to them that hate vs ; and pray for them that despightfully use vs , and persecute vs. mat. v. . that we must not avenge our selves ; but leave that to him , of whom it is written , vengeance is mine , i will repay saith the lord . rom. xii . . that we must not root up the tares before the time , but suffer them to grow till the harvest ; and that the separation shall be made by god , and not then by vs. mat. xiii . , . that we must bear with those who are weak in the faith ; must instruct them in meekness ; and endeavour to convert them from the error of their way , that they may be saved . rom. xv , . galat. vi . . thess. v. . tim. ii . , , . jam. v. · these are the doctrines of the gospel : and accordingly we know how our religion conquered the world , not by doing , but by suffering . not by disturbing kingdoms , and overthrowing of governments ; but by patiently submitting to all the evil that the rage of men , or malice of the devil , could bring upon the professors of it . and when this is so , what can we conclude but that certainly either the holy scriptures have given us a very wrong account of the doctrine of christ ; and that neither the apostles , nor those who were instructed by them , understood their own rights , and what authority their ecclesiastical character gave them over princes , and countries ; ( at least in order to religion : ) or that , if they did , then these men in teaching , and acting as they do , in these matters , must have utterly departed from the truth of christianity ; and have only the name of prophets ; the cloathing of sheep ; whilst in reality they are ravening woolves . which being thus resolved , i do not see what other conclusion we can draw from these premises , than that which our saviour , in the text , recommends to us ; which is , to beware of them. and indeed so we have all the reason in the world to be , whether we consider our souls , or bodies ; the interests of this present life , or the hope of that which is to come . for , first , as to the concern of our future state ; if it be possible for any errors to destroy salvation , which are not expresly contrary to the fundamentals of christianity ; tho' in the natural consequence of them , they do plainly overthrow the chiefest of them ; then i am perswaded that the errors of the church of rome , will , of all others , be found the most likely so to do . and , for the other thing mentioned , our present interests ; how far they must be affected by the return of popery again among us ; both the encroachments it *⁎* formerly made upon our civil rights and liberties ; and the pretensions it * still keeps on foot against us , more than against any other country , or people , besides ; not to say any thing of its common principles of tyranny and slavery , ruinous to societies , as well as dangerous to private persons , and families ; may suffice to convince us. let us then , upon all these accounts , heartily bless god , who ( upon this same day ) has twice delivered us out of its hands : and let us earnestly beseech him , that he would still continue to defend us , from ever falling any more under the power of it . and tho' the petition has too long been left out of our liturgy , yet let it never depart out of our minds , but be often the subject of our private supplications to almighty god , both for our religion , and for our country's sake . from the tyranny of the bishop of rome and his detestable enormities : good lord deliver us. finis . books printed for richard sare , at gray's inn-gate in holborn . the genuine epistles of st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp , the shepherd of hermas , &c. with a large preliminary discourse . vo . a practical discourse against profane swearing . vo . the authority of christian princes over ecclesiastical synods , in answer to a letter to a convocation-man . vo . an appeal to all the true members of the church of england , on behalf of the king's supremacy . vo . a sermon at the dorsetshire feast . . before the queen at whitehall , may . . before the lord mayor , nov. . . at grays inn , on the death of the queen . at st. james's , on the day of thanksgiving . the church of rome no guide in matters of faith , in answer to a late letter from a nephew to his uncle : containing the reasons why he became a roman catholick , and why he now declines any farther disputes or contests about matters of religion . vo . pr. d. the principles of the christian religion explain'd , in a brief commentary on the church catechism . vo . pr. s. these by the reverend dr. wake . fables of aesop , and other eminent mythologists , with morals and reflexions . folio . fables and stories moralized ; ( being a d part of the fables of aesop , and other eminent mythologists , &c. folio . both by sir roger l'estrange . mr. collier's view of the stage . his defence . his essays upon several moral subjects . maxims and reflexions upon plays ; ( in answer to a discourse printed before a play , called , beauty in distress ; ) written in french by the bishop of meaux ; with an advertisement concerning the author and book . by mr. collier . an answer to all the excuses and pretences that men ordinarily make , for their not coming to the holy communion . to which is added , a brief account of the end and design of the holy communion , the obligation to receive it , the way to prepare for it , and the behaviour of our selves , both at and after it . price but d. for the encouragement of such persons as are willing to give them away , for the promoting of piety and devotion . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e cor. iv . mark xiii . . act. xx . . . tim. iv . , , . mat. vii . . x. . xx . ii . . luk xi . . rom. xii . . cor. xiii . . xiv . . &c. heb xiii . . pet. v. . act. xxi . . joseph . antiqu . lib. xx . c. . de bell. jud. lib. v. c. , . orig. contr. cels. l. . epiph. adv . haeres . lib. i. tom. . &c. gal. i. . eph. v. . coloss. ii . . tim. iv . , &c. tim. iii. . &c. mat. v. . luk. vi . . . thess. v. . jo. iv . . mat. v , vi , vii , rom. xv . . tim. iii. . pet. . papists apology , p. . ( with the answer ) comp. p. . calendar . catholicum , an. . th nov. hen. morus , soc. jesu provinciae anglic. hist. l. . sect. , . see widdrington contr . suarez . pag. . & . * concil . lateran . . can. . concil . lateran . . can. . concil . lugd. . lab. tom. . col. , &c. concil . constant . sess. . mart. pp . bull , &c. p. . tom. . lab. see more below . † as tesmond & gerrard , who were both concern'd in the powder-plot . widdrington contra schulken , p. . * concil . constant. sess. . decretal . de haeret. l. . tit . . c , . ** concil . lateran . . can. . see foulis popists treasons , book . c. . sect. . the bull of p. paul iii. against k. henry viii . bellarm de laicis . l. . c. . decretal . de haeret. lib. . tit . . c. . vid. bullam . coenae dom. † sanders . de visib . monarch . p , , . parry 's confession , out of allen 's book , p. . thuanus 's hist. lib. . p. . c.d. becanus contr . angl. p. . add ; pope pius the fifth's bull against qu. eliz. &c. decretal . de haeret. l. . tit . . c. . concil . avenionens , an. . bellarm. resp , ad ap●log . pro juram : fidel ; p. , . * see this proved at large from their own authors , by foulis hist. of popish treasons , book ▪ . c. , , , . du moulin 's answer to philanx . anglicus . cap. . bp barlow 's popish principles , pernicious to protestant princ●s ; to which , add the bulls of p. paul iii. against king henry viii . of pius v. against q eliz. decret . c. . qu. . cap ▪ nos . sanctorum . card. allen 's admonition to the nobility and people of england ; with his answer to stanley 's letter , an. . becanus controv . anglic. c. . q. , . suarez defens . fid . cathol . lib. . c. . cui titulus : pontificem summum potestate coercivâ in reges uti posse usque ad depositionem etiam à regno , l. . c. . sect. . bellarm. de rom. pont. l. . c. , . idem de potestate summ . pont. contr . barclaium : in prolegomen . jul. caes. bullenger . hist. l. . p. . speaking of parry says , de theologis quaerit , an jure tyrannus pontificiis diris devotus , necari possit ? illi , posse , responderunt see card. como 's letter to the same purpose , below . suarez . defens . fid . cathol . lib. . c. . sect. , . mariana de rege & regis institut . l. . c. , . thuan. hist. l. . p. , , . † see usserius de christianarum eccles. success . c. . crackanthorp contra spalatensem , c. . sect. . mat. paris . ad an. . says , the number that was slain was infinite . * whose severity the very inquisitors themselves boast of . ludov. à param . de orig. & progress . inquis . l. . c. . n. . limburg . hist. inquisit . l. . c. . | vid. leg. . fred. ii. apud limburg . hist. inquis . c. . l. . et hist. progres , inquisit . per totum lib. thuan. hist. ad an. . popliniere hist. de france . liv . . d'aubigne hist. vnivers . part . . l. . c. . &c. mezeray hist. charles ix . &c. hist. des martyrs ; à geneve , . l. . &c. an. , &c. l. . an. . osiand . hist. eccles. ad an. . , , . lampadius m●llific . hist. par . . p. , &c. ● . see k. james 's apology for the oath of allegiance ; in his works fol. p. , &c. becanus contr. angl. p. . edit mogunt . . foulis romish treasons , at large , books , , , . from all sorts of histories ▪ vid. platinam in vit . bonifacii viii . &c. bellarm. de potest . p. contr . barclaium . * see foulis popish treasons , l. . c. . histoire des derniers troubles de france , an. . hist. d' aubigne , an. . tom. . l. . c. . thuani hist. l. . et lib. c. iii. p. . ** see the whole speech in foulis popish treasons , book . c. . | see mezera 's hist. of france , an. . histoire de troubles de france , an. . see the sentence of the parliament against him , li● . at large . hist. d'aubigne , to. . l. . c. . vid. ib. inscriptiones pyramid . contra jesuit●s sceler●● authores . thuan. hist. l. iii. n. . * titulo , arrestum contra joannem castellum : and again ; oratio m antonii arnaldi , &c. arrestum contra joannem castellum . see the bull : bullar . to. . p. . see the whole history related by sanders de visibil . monarch . p. . n. . and by girolamo catena , in his life of pius v. p. , &c. et append. p. , &c. ** nor yet meerly for that , either b●fore , or after ; king james 's premonition , p. . not priests in all q. elizabeth 's reign suffer'd for treason , and for religion not one. sir edw. coke 's speech at the arraignment of the gun-powder conspirators . * sanders de visib . monarch . p. . where he makes a felton a martyr . spondan . contin . baron . ad an. . sect. . cambden . elizab. an. . cambd. eliz. an. . cardinal como 's letter , of jan. . . le concede ( the pope ) sua benedictione , plenaria indulgenza & remissioni di tutti li peccati , assicurando si che oltre il merito che a havera in cielo , vuole anco sua santita constituirsi debitore , &c. and adds , metta dunque ad effetto li suoi santi & honorati pensieri ; i. e. to kill the queen . see fowlis popish treasons , book . c. . girolamo catena vita di pio v. in which the pope was so zealous , that he was for pawning the plate of the chu●ch , and coming himself in person , if need were , to further it . p. . cambd. eliz. an. . watson . quodlib . p. , . artic. , . see watson 's important considerations , &c. reprinted , lond. . o. bristow makes them all martyrs ; motive , p. . c. . for the historical part , see foulis 's popish treasons , book . c. , . cambd. eliz. an. , , &c. . | foulis pop. treasons , book . c. . cambd. eliz. an. , , &c. * catena . lettere de pio v. p. . | see the papists apology , ( the edit . with the answer ) . p. . † clement . viii . see cambden . eliz. an. , . doleman 's confer . about the next succession to the crown . tortur . torti . p. . &c. , . thuanus , l. . p. , , a. king james 's apolog. p. . casaubon . epist. ad front. ducaeum . inter epist. p. . edit . o. . sir edw. coke 's plea. hist gun-powder treason . ( o. lond. . ) p. , &c. see watson 's confession : casaub . epist. ad . front. ducaeum . p. , . | about , whereof were jesuits . see popish apol. p. casaub. ep. ad front. ducaeum . p. . * k. james 's premonition , p. . † thuanus ingenuously owns this : hist. lib. . p. . d. and the publick acts of this conspiracy u●deniably confirm it . see king james 's praemonition , p. , . bp. andrews at large proves it from garnet 's own confession , tortura torti , p. , &c. , . so does isaac casaubon . epist. ad front. ducaeum . p. , , , , . add sir edw. coke 's arraignment of garnet , p. , &c. and the relation of his execution , ib , p. . | historia pontifical . part. . l. . c. . says , that fawks being in flanders , y descubrio s● empresa à personas ecclesiasticas y de su nacion , para hazer les ayunar y rogar a dios , que su fin llegasse a efecto . bulenger confirms it , hist. l. . p. . where speaking of winter and fawks , oeno jesuitae , says he , consilia aperiunt ; qui pietatis studium laudat . and p. . speaking of three others , among whom , garne● one ; says ; rex , cognito tres jesuitas — conjurationis hujus nefariae flabella fuisse . — thuan. hist. p , . e. lib. . gerard the jesuit gave them the oath of secrecy ; and the sacrament upon it . tesmund confirm'd bates 's conscience in it : rei merito demonstrato : ib. p. . c. see winter's confession about owen to the same effect : king james 's works , p. . add to this , my lord stafford's declaration , at his trial , to this effect , p. . mezeray 's h●st . of france , an. . k. james 's praemonition , p. , . bp. andrew 's tortura torti , p. . casaub. epist. ad front. ducaeum , p. . sir edw. coke 's arraignment of the conspirators , p. , , , . his arraignment of garnet , p. . * foulis popish treason , book . c. . bishop andrews ad bellarm resp. c. . p. . *⁎* for which , see sir roger twisden 's hist. vindicat . of the church of england , &c. which largely shews it , chap. , . * see card. bellarm. apolog . pro resp ad jacob. r●g . c. . where he affirms the pope to have a direct dominion over the kingdoms of england and ireland ; ita ut rex , tanquam secundarius dominus , holds his realms of him . — the same is affirmed by card. allen. in his admonition to the nobility : that without the pope's confirmation , no man can lawfully take the crown , or be accounted king of england . they both took it from the pop●'s own mouth ; who before his colledge of cardinals declared . that the king of england was his vassal ; nay , in truth , his slave . mat. paris , ad ann. . see the first and second book of king edw. vi. in the litany . the case of the exiled vaudois and french protestants stated, and their relief recommended to all good christians, especially to those of the reformed religion in a sermon preach'd at st. james westminster, april , , being the day of the publick fast / by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) the case of the exiled vaudois and french protestants stated, and their relief recommended to all good christians, especially to those of the reformed religion in a sermon preach'd at st. james westminster, april , , being the day of the publick fast / by william wake ... wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for r. sare ..., london : . running title: a sermon preached at st. james westminster, on the day of the publick fast. "publish'd at the desire of the honourable the board of vestry, and of several persons of quality of the said parish." advertisement on p. [ ] at end. errata: p. . reproduction of original in cambridge university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- n.t. -- matthew x, -- sermons. fast-day sermons. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - mona logarbo sampled and proofread - mona logarbo text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the case of the exiled vaudois , and french protestants , stated : and their relief recommended to all good christians , especially to those of the reformed religion : in a sermon preach'd at st. james westminster , april . . being the day of the publick fast. by william wake , d.d. rector of s. james westminster , and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty . publish'd at the desire of the honourable the board of vestry ; and of several persons of quality of the said parish . london : printed for r. sare at grayes-inn-gate in holborn , . matt. x. . whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones , a cup of cold water only , in the name of a disciple ; verily i say unto you , he shall in no wise lose his reward . our blessed saviour having spent the greatest part of this chapter in declaring to his disciples what troubles , and persecutions , they should undergo for his sake ; takes occasion from thence , in the verses before the text , to shew , how we ought to behave our selves towards those who should fall into any sufferings upon such an account ; and how great the reward of our so doing should be . he that receiveth you , says he , receiveth me ; and he that receiveth me , receiveth him that sent me. he that receiveth a prophet , in the name of a prophet , shall receive a prophets reward . and he that receiveth a righteous-man , in the name of a righteous-man , shall receive a righteous man's reward . and , whosoever shall give to drink unto one of these little ones , a cup of cold water only , in the name of a disciple ; verily i say unto you , he shall in no wise lose his reward . i shall not trouble you with any nice enquiry into the distinction which our saviour , in these words , makes of those whom he therein recommends to our charity , and entertainment . three sorts of christians he manifestly refers to in them , and speaks of those in the text , as the least , and meanest , of them all. and yet even of these he tells us , that whosoever should give but a cup of cold water to drink , to one such christian , in the name of a disciple ; that is , should shew the least regard to him upon this account , that he belongs to christ ; he should in no wise lose his reward ; i. e. he should be very highly rewarded by god for it . now this being the occasion , and import of these words , i shall with relation to both , proceed to discourse upon them , in this following method ; i. i will shew you , that those who profess the gospel of christ , must expect oftentimes to meet with tryals , and persecutions , from wicked men , upon the account of it . ii. that it is the duty of every good christian , according to his ability , to assist and support those who suffer upon such an account . and , iii. that whatsoever charity we shall exercise towards such persons , upon the account of their sufferings , it shall turn to our great advantage in the other world ; where we shall be , in a singular manner , rewarded by god for it . i shall speak , but very briefly , to each of these points ; and so proceed to that application of them , which the present occasion requires of me. and , i. that those who profess the gospel of christ , must expect oftentimes to meet with tryals and persecutions , from wicked men , upon the account of it . this was what our saviour expresly declared to his disciples in this chapter ; and their own experience sufficiently convinced them of the truth of his prediction . if we look back to the first state of the church , before the conversion of the empire to christianity ; what are all its histories but the records of those tryals which its most eminent professors underwent for the sake of it ? what torments they endured ; what oppositions they met with ; and by what deaths they perfected all their other sufferings ? when , in the language of our apostle , every one who would live godly in christ jesus , was sure to suffer persecution . their religion was their crime : and there was no choice left them but to renounce it , or to resolve to suffer ; it may be , to die , for it . nor did the case become much better afterwards . 't is true , the pretence of the persecution was alter'd : men did not any longer suffer for the name of christ , as they had done before . but the truth of the gospel was still persecuted , tho' under another character : and the sufferings which christians have brought on their fellow christians , have not been at all less , than what had been inflicted upon them by their common enemies heretofore . it is indeed a most astonishing thing to consider to what a strange degeneracy the spirit of christianity has fallen in this particular . that a religion founded upon love and charity , and which breaths out nothing more than kindness , and gentleness , in all its precepts ; should yet have become the occasion of more cruelty , and barbarity , than ever any religion in the world , besides , had been . but that which is yet more amazing , as well as more deplorable , is ; that men should make it a matter of conscience to the principles of such a religion , to persecute one another : and think that they do god service , when they dye their hands with the bloud of his servants . yet to this degree of fury have some christians , in these later ages , arrived : and have thereby given us but too just a ground , still to continue the assertion i have laid down ; that those who will profess the gospel of christ , in the truth , and purity of it , must expect , even in christian countries , to fall oftentimes under the severest tryals , for the sake of it . how this barbarous , and bloudy spirit , first got admission into the church of christ , i shall not now enquire . certain it is , that as there is nothing more vnreasonable , in the nature of the thing its self , than to force conscience , and to persecute men into a right faith ; so is there nothing more contrary to all the rules of the gospel , than to propagate its interests by violence , and oppression . this the primitive christians , constantly objected to their heathen enemies . this all the best , and wisest men , have generally asserted ever since : and , even the most perverse , see the reasonableness of it , when it comes to be their own case ; and they are themselves in danger of suffering upon this account . and yet such is the strange partiality of mankind , that we hardly any of us know how to set bounds to this temper , when we have the power in our hands . we think we have all a right to persecute others , tho' none have any to return it upon our selves . and accordingly , we do all , in our several turns , both rail at persecution in matters of religion , and yet continue to set up for it . but as this temper has always been observed to prevail most on the worst side ; ( which is generally found to make up with violence , what it wants in argument : ) so of all kinds of christians never have any been more scandalously guilty of this barbarity than those of the church of rome ; that dishonour to the name , and scourge to the disciples of christ. whose religion as it has a great allay of paganism , in it ; so we ought the less to wonder if we see it wholly acted by a pagan spirit . and of the corruptions whereof i shall , at present , say no more than this ; that had we no other ground than this to reject it , even this alone would be enough to warrant us in our disowning of it ; that she has glutted her self with the bloud of the best-christians , and still continues to thirst for more : and openly avows that , principle , which i am now speaking against , as cruel and anti-christian ; that religion is to be propagated , and maintain'd by the sword. i shall not here enter on any particular relation of those persecutions , with which that church has filled the histories of the whole world , for some ages past : and of which not only europe , but asia , and america ; infidels , as well as christians , have been the spectators . blessed be god! neither her cruelties , nor her corruptions , are unknown to any of us. it shall suffice to say , that as our saviour christ from the beginning knew what would happen to his church to the very end of the world ; and foresaw as well , what the church of rome in these latter ages should do to it , as what the jews and heathens were at the beginning to bring upon it ; so we must conclude , that in this chapter , he referr'd indifferently to both : and designed no less to fortifie , and instruct us of these times , how to behave our selves under the persecutions of popery ; than to direct his apostles , and primitive disciples , how it would behove them to manage themselves , with relation to the heathen , and jewish , cruelty . let this then be our first conclusion , founded on the foreknowledge of christ , and the corruption of humane nature ; which hitherto we are sure has been , and we h●ve reason to fear , will always continue to be but too true ; viz. that those who profess the truth of christianity , and will hold fast to the purity of it ; must expect to meet with many tryals , and persecutions from wicked men , upon the account of it . i proceed , ii. to shew ; that it is the duty of every good christian , according to his ability , to assist and support those , who suffer on such an account . and that whether we consider them ( st . ) under the common character of christians . or ( dly ) under the more particular circumstance , of suffering for righteousness sake . ( st ) if we consider them under the common character of christians ; even this alone will oblige us not only to minister to their wants , but to do it with a singular desire , and affection of mind towards them. god who has commanded us to do good unto all men ; has also commanded us to do it , in a more especial manner , to those who are of the houshold of faith. there is a brotherly love required of us by christ , towards one another , beyond what we are obliged to have for the rest of mankind : and which ought to dispose us not only to a more tender sense of , and compassion , for their needs ; but , with that , to a more bountiful supply of them . so that tho' a christian must love his very enemy ; and do good to those who despitefully vse him , and persecute him ; yet he must remember , that there is a difference to be made by him between a brother and an enemy ; and he must as much love , and do good to the one , above the other , as he is more nearly related to the one , than to the other . but this is the least part of our obligation in the case before us : which as it supposes the suffering to be for the sake of christ's religion , so will it , ( dly ) oblige us , in a more particular manner , to relieve those , who fall into their distresses upon such an account . in such circumstances as these , not to assist our brethren , is to deny our faith : and the neglect we put upon them , will fall not so much upon them , as upon him whose disciples they are , and for whose sake they suffer . hence we may observe , in all the antient persecutions of the church , with what an officious diligence the other christians still attended upon their martyrs and confessors . how they ministred to them in their prisons , and bonds : went with them to their judgments ; and would not leave them at their very sufferings . with what zeal , and readiness , they furnish'd them with such things as they stood in need of : how they encouraged them in their conflicts ; and shew'd their earnest desire to partake with them in their sufferings , as they did in the cause for which they suffered . thus they confess'd christ , by owning of those who were persecuted for their confession of him : and thus ought every good christian to confess him still . in a publick war , if any one part of a country be destroy'd , it is but an act of justice for the rest , to bear their share in the loss ; and , to contribute towards the repair of the damage that was sustain'd by it . the case is , in reality , the same here . we are all members of the same common , catholic , church of christ. if persecution for the faith arises , which part soever suffers , 't is the church that is persecuted . and we ought to account our selves concern'd to bear our share in the evils which our fellow-christians undergo , for the common cause of the gospel ; as we hope to be one day made partakers with them , in the promises of it . here therefore is a duty , which not only christian charity , but even common-justice , and equity , oblige us unto . in this case , to desert our brethren , is to betray our faith ; and we shall , in effect , renounce the cause for which they suffer , if we refuse to partake with them in their sufferings . but to own and to receive them ; to cherish , and relieve them ; and that as suffering for the cause of christ ; this is openly to joyn with them in their confession : and , as our saviour here assures us , if we do communicate with them in their afflictions , we shall also be made partakers with them of their reward . which brings me to the last point i proposed to speak to ; iii. that whatsoever charity we shall exercise towards such persons , upon the account of their sufferings ; it shall turn to our great advantage in the other world ; where we shall be , in a singular manner , rewarded by god for it . there is hardly any virtue prescribed to us in the gospel , to the practice whereof so many promises have been made by god , as to this of charity . in the old testament , it pleased god to encourage the jews to a liberal exercise of it , by the hope of a present retribution that should be made to them for it . and tho' under the gospel , such promises as these are not to be expected ; yet has our saviour christ assured us , that a plentiful reversion shall be laid up for us in heaven , to reward every act of charity that we perform here upon earth . an eminent argument whereof we meet with in the account which he has given us of the last judgment : and in which he seems to make the whole issue of our acquittal , or condemnation , in a manner , to depend upon it . for having told us how he will then divide the sheep from the goats ; and set the one on his right hand , and the other on his left : he thus delivers the sentence which he will pass on both . he will say to those on his right hand ; come ye blessed of my father , inherit the kingdom , prepared for you from the beginning of the world. for i was an hungry and ye gave me meat ; naked and ye cloathed me ; sick and in prison , and ye ministred unto me . but he will say to those on his left hand ; depart ye cursed into everlasting fire , prepared for the devil , and his angels . for i was an hungry , and ye fed me not ; naked and ye cloathed me not ; sick and in prison , and ye ministred not unto me. these are the sentences , which our saviour christ will pronounce , upon the good and bad at the last day . and from which if we may not generally conclude , that our charity is the only thing that shall hereafter be enquired into , and and be either rewarded , or punished for ever ; yet thus much we may certainly infer , that it is one of the main things by which our piety shall be judged of : and that he who has a true love for his neighbour , and is upon all occasions ready to do all the good he can for him , shall hardly fail of being accepted by god , as he will be sure to be generally beloved of men , for his beneficence . but it is not only our charity that shall entitle us to a reward , in the present case ; tho' even that alone would be sufficient , to make good the promise of the text to us. he who relieves a persecuted christian , in the name of a disciple ; because he belongs to christ , and suffers for his sake ; shall be considered by god , not only for his charity towards his neighbour , but for his confession of christ too : and have a part in the reward , which the other is to receive upon the account of such his persecution . and this at once both ascertains , and encreases the retribution of such a charity . it renders it both more excellent in its self , and more acceptable unto god : who as he will , in the first place , reward those who suffer for his sake ; so will he in the next , consider those who own them in their sufferings , and extend their pious beneficence to them , upon the account of them . hence we may observe , with what extraordinary circumstances , our saviour christ delivers the promise of the text to this purpose . the person of whom he speaks , is one of the least of his disciples ; the meanest of any that should be called to suffer for his sake . the charity , in which he instances , is the poorest of all charities : a cup of cold water ; such as the most indigent person is able to give , and hardly any can be so far reduced , as to stand in need of it . and yet even this little , contemptible act of charity , if done to one of the meanest of christ's disciples ; in the name of a disciple , shall not lose its reward . so acceptable a thing is it to god to confess him , in any way , before men ! and so certainly shall he who do's it , be gloriously rewarded by him to all eternity . and here then let us stop ; and from the general consideration of the duty proposed , and of the great reward which it has pleased god to promise to the faithful discharge of it ; proceed to that application which his providence has call'd us , at this time , to make of it . in pursuance whereof , if the principles already laid down be admitted , as the true measure both of our duty and interest , in this particular ; then i shall need only to shew , that you have here a proper occasion presented to you , to practice the one , and to advance the other . and that i shall do in this following method . st . i will shew , that the persons here recommended to your charity , are indeed the disciples of christ. dly . that they do suffer for righteousness sake . and therefore , dly . ought to be considered , and relieved by us , upon the account of such their sufferings . and st . that the persons here recommended to your charity , are indeed the disciples of christ. this is a point that i should not have thought it needful to insist upon , had not the calumnies of our common enemies obliged me to it . but since they have thought fit again to revive the malicious slaunders of their ignorant , and prejudiced revilers ; and to set them off to the world with all the advantage that their wit , and language , enabled them to do ; it is necessary in justice to these poor , persecuted christians , to place their history in its true light ; and to express our charity towards them , as well by vindicating their reputation , as by ministring to their needs . to take then this matter from the beginning : the persons of whom we are now speaking , are a portion of the christians of the evangelical churches of piemont . the common name by which they are most known , is that of vaudois , or waldenses : so called not from peter waldo , as has commonly been supposed ; but from the place of their habitation ; the valleys under the alpes ; within three of which the churches we are now speaking of were comprehended . who it was that first planted the gospel in these parts ; or about what time it was done , we cannot certainly tell . but as our religion was propagated in the very times of the apostles , into the other parts of italy ; so is it most probable that it was , not long after , setled here too ; tho' by what evangelist , we are not able to determine . christianity being thus brought into these parts , and that , no doubt , in the same parity in which it was generally taught in those first ages ; continued in these churches , as it did in others , for some considerable time , if not free from all corruption ; yet at least , free from those dangerous errors , which afterwards began to creep into the world. but about the eigth century , the business of image-worship , added to some other more early superstitions ; began to disturb the peace of the church , and to enflame the zeal of the best christians to the opposing of it . great was the contention between the eastern and western churches upon this occasion : the one , with the d synod of nice , ( by them accounted a general council ) standing up in the defence of images ; the other , with that of frankford , as stifly declaring against the worship of them. among those who , in these western parts , appeared in the defence of the christian truths , none was more eminent than claudius , the learned , and zealous bishop of turin ; in whose diocess these churches of the valleys lay . the point he began with , was this of images : but his piety , and learning , soon carry'd him farther ; and led him on both to the discovery , and the reformation , of several other abuses , that had privily crept into those parts . the invocation of saints ; the superstitious vse , and honour of relics ; but , above all , the groundless pretence of the popes authority ; were the chief points against which he declared his resentments : and the issue of his endeavours was , that tho' he met with much opposition , and rais'd to himself many enemies , yet he went on prosperously with his undertaking ; and laid the foundation of that purity of christianity in his diocess , which has ever since been preserved by these churches of the valleys , to this very day . thus early began the reformation of religion in those parts : but that which most contributed to the future security of it , was another accident which fell out not long after ; and of which it will therefore be necessary for me to give you a particular account . in the first times of christianity , so far was the bishop of rome from being thought to have a general authority over the whole church of christ , that his jurisdiction did not extend to the neighbouring diocess of italy its self . his authority was limited to a certain tract of land about the city , called the sub-urbicary region ; whilst the churches of italy were under another government , and acknowledged the bishop of milan for their head. it cannot be doubted but that this must have been no small grievance to the ambitious tempers , and designs , of the bishops of rome : who therefore omitted no endeavours to gain the bishop of milan to their side ; and to persuade him to yield to their authority . yet still that church preserved its liberty for near d. years after christ ; and then by artifice , and faction , was either forced , or perswaded to part with it . it happen'd about that time , that among other things , a controversy was raised between the clergy , and people of that diocess , concerning the marriage of their priests . to compose this , pope nicholas the iid . became a mediator between them ; and sent peter damian , as his legate , to manage the difference for him . and the conclusion was , that tho' with much difficulty , and at the hazard of his life ; the cunning legate carried his point , and perswaded the bishop to submit to him . scarce was this affair thus ended , and the legat well gone , before the bishop began to perceive the false step he had made ; and resolved , in the best manner he could , to recover himself out of the snare into which he had fallen . in order whereunto , he called a synod of his own province ; disannull'd all that the legat had done ; and asserted the rights of the marry'd clergy . from hence began an open schism in the church of milan . the one part adhered to the interests of rome : the other , with their arch-bishop , stood up for their own liberties ; and the rights of the clergy . and being for this deserted by the rest , they communicated by themselves in a place called pataria , and from thence were afterwards known by the name of patarines . to this party , as that which had the greatest right on its side , the churches of the valleys joyn'd themselves . and being thus broke off from the communion of the roman church , they kept themselves free from the corruptions of it ; and maintained themselves in so much the greater purity , by their constant , and earnest oppositions to it . it was not long after this , that peter waldo , of whom i before spake , began a reformation of religion at lyons : whose party being dispersed , many of them chose to retire for safety into the valleys ; and thereby gave occasion to the vulgar error , of his being the first founder of the evangelical churches there . thus were these churches both betimes reform'd ; and settled , and secured , in their pure profession of the gospel . it would be too long to relate , what great good was done , by their means , to all the other churches of europe . what colonies they sent out into france , germany , england , and even into italy its self ; to propagate the truth of the gospel . from these churches it was that our wicleff derived his faith , and knowledge . from these , the churches of bohemia were establish'd . here , in short , was the truth of religion both taught , and maintain'd ; till at last it pleased god to give it a free passage , and a larger dominion ; by the great reformation which was generally made in europe , about the beginning of the last century . anno. . these then are the persons whom we now recommend to your charity . they are a part of the most antient of all the reformed churches of europe . who by breaking off betimes from the tyranny , and communion , of the bishop of rome , were never at all involved in the most part of those errors which that church abounds with ; and from the ninth century downwards , have stood clear of those , into which they were before fallen . i go on , ly , to shew ; that what they now suffer , is for the sake of the gospel of christ. i have before observed , that it was about the middle of the xi th century , that the church of rome usurping upon the authority of that of milan , occasion'd a seperation of many of the italic churches from its communion ; and of these of the valleys among the rest . and if we look back into the ecclesiastical history of that province , we shall find that from thenceforth they never enjoy'd any rest from those violences , and oppressions , which the malice and interest of that proud , ambitious see , found means to raise against them . to pass by the bulls , the sentences , and excommunications which were continually thunder'd out from the vatican against them : and the effect of which many of these poor men sufficiently felt , in the time of pope alexander the iii. anno. * how terible was the decree of pope lucius the iii. against them ? who not content to excommunicate them for their heresie , and to invite the civil government to engage on his side against them ; obliged all princes to take a corporal oath to make search after them , and to use their utmost endeavours utterly to extirpate them out of their dominions . thus their tryals , and persecutions began ; but they did not stop here . for what lucius decreed , pope innocent the iii , took care to put in vigorous execution . he renew'd this order against them ; and caused diligent search to be every where made after them . and to strengthen the churches authority , pope honorius the iii , not only continued the same method , but obtain'd of the emperour * frederic the ii , that memorable edict , which is still preserved in the feudal law , against them . but above all the rest , most effectual was the course which gregory the ix . pitch'd upon , to destroy them . he setled the inquisition into an establish'd office against them : and so perfected that design which his predecssor innocent the iii , had set on foot , for their ruin. how those barbarous executioners of the iniquity of the romish see , proceeded against them , it were too long to recount . much they suffer'd , both by their secret proceedings ; and by their open violences . i shall rather observe , that when this method also proved too slow to answer the eager desires , and expectations of their enemies ; at length pope innocent the viii . bethought himself of a more compendious way of doing their business . he raised a holy war against them : and sent albert his legate into the valleys , at the head of men , all bent with zeal , and arms , to their destruction . but from this bloudy attempt also , it pleased god to deliver them : who in despight of all their endeavours , has continued them still monuments of his own mercy ; and for a reproach of the cruelty , as well as corruptions , of their roman persecutors . at last , another method was resolved upon ; and that such a one , as nothing but the miraculous hand of god could deliver them from . a congregation was erected , and fix'd at turin ( the capital city of the dukes of savoy , in whose territories the most considerable part of these churches were seated ) for the propagation of the faith , and the destruction of hereticks ; so its stile ran ; but which in truth was intended for the particular design , of ruining the churches of the valleys ; as the event has too plainly shewn . it was about the time of the last jubilee , that this design was unhappily formed against them ; and it was but a very little while before they felt the deplorable effects of it . their whole country being so utterly ruined in . and their numbers so weaken'd ; that but for the present interposition of almost all the protestant princes , and states , of europe on their behalf , they must have fallen under a final desolation . but from this last disaster , that part of these churches which is now recommended to your charity , had the good fortune to be preserved : who having , some years before , been united to the french crown , as dependents on the garrison of pignerol , enjoyed thereby the protection of that state. what their condition since that time has been , the severe proceedings of that court against all the reformed churches of its dominions , may suffice to tell us. i shall only observe , that being forced by the persecutions they suffer'd from their new-masters , to retire to their brethren under the duke of savoy's government ; they accordingly bare their share in the great calamities which that prince brought upon the valleys in the year . how their present circumstances stand , his majesties letters set out to you . they are banish'd from their country ; forced to abandon their houses , and lands ; their friends , and relations ; and to seek for refuge in such other places , as the providence of god , and the charity of protestants states , and princes , should provide for them. and here then let us stop , and take a short view of the miserable condition of these poor , persecuted christians ; and consider what they have suffer'd , during these last years , upon the account of their religion . if st . we respect the cruelty of their persecutors , what barbarous slaughters have they committed upon them ? the histories are still extant , and some of them in our own language , that convey the particulars to us : and they give us so lively an image of the true spirit of popery , that i cannot but wish they were in the hands of every sober , and charitable christian among us . thus much in general , i may venture to say ; that whether we regard the number of those who have suffer'd by their hands , or the nature , and quality of their sufferings ; scarce did the whole church of christ undergo more in the ten heathen persecutions , than these poor churches alone have undergone , from the more than heathen cruelty , and inhumanity of their romish enemies . nor has dly : the injustice of their sufferings been less evident , than their sufferings themselves have been notorious . to say nothing of the strange paradox , of christians persecuting of christians , for the profession of the gospel of christ. to omit the inoffensiveness of their lives and manners ; and in which their very enemies themselves , after all the false pretences of some others of their party , have gloriously justified them. what can be more unjust ; than for a people dwelling as it were alone ; seperated by vast mountains from all their neighbours round about them ; content with what nature furnishes them withal ; and desiring only to live in peace with their neighbours , and in the quiet enjoyment of a good conscience towards god ; should , for nothing , be harass'd , and oppress'd : hunted like wild beasts ; persecuted with fire , and sword ; and treated as if they were not worthy to live upon the earth ? nay but this is not all : their enemies have not only thus persecuted them without a cause ; but against their own most solemn , and sacred engagements to the contrary . they have broken the publick faith ; violated their own treaties , and promises ; and effectually shewn how little truth they think themselves obliged to keep with those whom they call heretics ; whenever they can get a fair opportunity to destroy them . and had their fury , and their malice , been content to stop at their lives , and goods ; it might the more easily have been excused . but their cruelty , and their falseness , have carried them beyond these ; whilst to excuse their own proceedings , and bespatter their adversaries ; they have , dly ; done , what in them lies , to murder the reputation of those whom they have persecuted : and to render them odious to the present age ; and infamous , and detestable , to all succeeding generations . witness those false accounts which they have industriously spread abroad in the world , of these poor men. if we enquire into their faith ; they are arians , and manichees : that is to say , monsters of men ; and not worthy the name , or character of christians . if we consider their manners ; their very publick meetings are full of lust , and debauchery : and they commit in them such sins , as ought not to be once named among the saints . and as for the proceedings that have been made against them ; they have been for their sedition , and rebellion . they have drawn the fury of war upon themselves , by their own unquiet behaviour ; and and may thank their own , undutyful demeanor to their princes , for whatsoever calamities they have suffer'd from them . these are the accounts which those of the roman communion have delivered to the world of these poor christians . i shall not need to say that in all this they only set forth their own falseness and malice ; and publish to the world not what these christians are , but what they would have men think them to be . this their own authors , have sufficiently already done . it is enough that we know who they are that give us these characters , to enable us to judge what credit is to be given to them : and that beyond the alps , among those of their own communion , we our selves are set forth in as black characters , both with respect to our faith , and manners ; as ever these distressed persons have been represented to us , on this side the mountains . the short of the matter is , that both they and we , freely declare against the tyranny , and corruptions of the church of rome ; and that is enough to warrant the worst that can be said , to blacken , and bespatter both them , and vs. but i must not insist upon these matters ; but having now more fully than i design'd , shewn , both who the persons are who ask your charity ; and how they come to stand in need of it ; shall proceed , dly : and very briefly to represent to you , what just reason we have to succour , and assist them ; upon the account of these their sufferings . if ( st . ) we consider either the cause , or authors of their persecution ; it will from both appear that we of the reform'd religion must support them ; or they must be left to sink under their afflictions : for we may be confident , that if we do not help them , no body else will. were the case here that of christianity in general ; did these poor men suffer by the hands of turks , or infidels ; one might then hope that the common love , and duty , we all profess to our blessed saviour , and his gospel , might move every church , however differing in other matters , yet to joyn together for their relief . but it is the misfortune those for whom we are now concern'd , that they are persecuted not by the common enemy , but by those who are called by the same name of christians . they suffer , not for the defence of the gospel , but for the maintenance of the truth , and purity , of it ; against those who have either mistaken , or perverted the faith of it . and if we , who in this are agreed with them , do not relieve them ; with what reason can we expect , that those whom they oppose , and by whom they are persecuted , should help them ? here therefore is a case , in which the argument of the text returns with a double force upon us. these persons are not only the disciples of christ ; but of the same particular faith and communion with our selves . they are our brethren not only as they are christians , but as they are reform'd too ; and which is yet more , they suffer for being so . they might have believed in christ , and yet have continued in the peaceable enjoyment of their country , and possessions . but they could not have continued reformed without quitting them ; and therefore they readily forsook both . and surely the least we can do to testify our concurrence with them in this profession , will be to extend our charity towards them : and thereby to shew that we do own their cause ; and account it such , as deserves to be suffer'd for . but ( dly , ) it is not only a matter of charity , but of interest also to us , to help , and relieve them : and that is an argument , which where it is once received , seldom fails of prevailing with most men. it cannot be unknown to any among us , what endeavours have been used , and what projects have been laid , for these last forty , or fifty years , utterly to root the protestant interest out of europe . what progress has been made by our enemies to this purpose in piemont , hungary , bohemia , france ; shall i add , and here at home too , both in england , and ireland , is evident to all of us. and had the design succeeded , as it was verily believed and hoped it would have done ; i do not see what could have preserved the reformed religion from a general destruction . but blessed be god! who in most of these places has disappointed their designs : and we hope will , in the end , turn them , ( as he has already in part done ) to their own shame , and confusion . and has effectually convinced us , how necessary it is for us to unite together in interest and affection , against our common enemies ; if ever we mean to support our selves , and our cause , from ruine ; by their unwearied malice , and indefatigable endeavours against us. it is but a little time since we were called upon to receive those of the reformed church of france into our bosoms . by doing of this we have preserved so much of the protestant interest from sinking . and all that their persecutors have gained by their cruelties aginst them is but this , that they have forced them to change their country ; but have not at all lessened either their zeal for their religion , or their ability to defend it . we are now invited to preserve the remains of the same church , and of some of those of the vallies of piemont with them. a flock little in number , but of great worth : and such as we cannot suffer to perish , without fixing an eternal infamy upon our names , for our vncharitableness . whose turn it may next be to suffer in this cause , we cannot tell . this we know , that be it whose it will , our charity will have its reward with god ; and give a good example , and encouragement to the church of christ. we may , by what we do for these poor , persecuted men , prolong our own tranquility ; and so meet with a reward on earth . but though we should not ; yet this we are sure , that we shall hereby purchase to our selves an inheritance in heaven . our vnrighteous mamon , shall prepare for us an eternal habitation . what we now give for the sake of christ , and to his disciples , in his name ; he will one day return , as if we had done it unto himself : and verily i say unto you , ye shall in no wise lose the reward of it . errata . page . margin r. hebr. xiii . . p. . l. . r. purity . ib. margin l. ult . r. imagin . p. . margin l. . dele sir sam. finis . books printed for r. sare at grays-inn-gate in holborne . the genuine epistles of the apostolical fathers st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp , the shepherd of hermas , and the martyrdoms of st. ignatius , and st. polycarp ; written by those who were present at their sufferings ; being together with the holy scniptures of the new testament , a compleat collection of the most primitive antiquity for about years after christ ; translated and published with a large preliminary discourse , relating to the several discourses here put together , o. the authority of christian princes over their ecclesiastical synods asserted , with particular respect to the convocations of the clergy of the realm , and church of england . occasioned by a late pamphlet intituled , a letter to a convocation man , o. an appeal to all the true members of the church of enggland in behalf of the kings supremacy , as by law established ; by our convocations approved , and our eminent bishops and clergy-men stated and defended , against both the popish and fanatical opposers of it , o. a practical discourse concerning profane swearing , especially in the two great points of perjury and common swearing , o. the principles of the christian religion explained , in a brief commentary upon the church catechism , o. a sermon at the dorsetshire feast , . before the queen at whitehall , may the th . . before the lord mayor , november th , . at grays-inn upon the death of the queen . at st. james's upon the thanksgiving . these ten by dr. wake . fables and stories moralized , being a second part of the fables of aesop , and other eminent mythologists , &c. folio . by sir roger l'estrange . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e gal. vi . . heb. ixli . . pet. i. jo. iii. · mat. v. . matt. xxv . , . — : — : — . — . monsieur de meaux's variations des egl. protestan . liv . xi . leger . hist. des eglises evangel . des vallees de piemont . liv . . cap. . allix . remarks , chap. xix . vide car. m. & synod . paris . script . de tmagin . catal. test. veri● lib. ix . in claudio . ion. aurel. de cult . imag 〈…〉 claud. t●u●i● bibl pp . tom. ●i● car. à s. paul geogr . s. lib. ii . ital. n. iv . vii.x . allix . remarks . chap. xiii . allix . remarks ch. xiv . baron annal. an. leger hist. des vaudoises l. . c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vid. concil lateran iii. apud labb to. x p. . & cap. xxvii . de haereticis . * ibid col. . concil iv . late●an cap. . de haeret. add. la●b to xi p●g . . * frederic . ii . constit. sect. , , , & const. feud . pag. labb . to. xi col . leger . hist l. ii . c. . morland . l. ii . c. . leger . hist l. ii . chap. . leger . l. ii . c . &c. sir sam. morland . hist. of piem . l. ii . anno. . memor . recond . di vittorio siri . vol. vii . p. . &c. see the account of that persecution publish'd at oxford . o . leger . hist. des sr. sam. v●udois . morla●d . hist. of the evangel . churches of piem . book ii . c. &c. leger . hist. l. . c. . leger . hist. l. ● . c. . . allix . remarks c. . leger lib. l. . c. . &c. see leger . before . about . persons . a sermon preached upon the xxxth of january s.v. / , at paris in the chappel of the right honourable the lord vicount preston, his majestie's envoy extraordinary in the court of france wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : or : ) a sermon preached upon the xxxth of january s.v. / , at paris in the chappel of the right honourable the lord vicount preston, his majestie's envoy extraordinary in the court of france wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for moses pitt ..., london : . running title: a sermon upon the thirtieth of january, / . attributed to william wake. cf. bm. epistle dedicatory signed: w.w. advertisement: p. [ ]-[ ] at end. this work appears as wing w at reel : and as wing w (number cancelled) at reel : . reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- o.t. -- joel ii, - -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - emma (leeson) huber sampled and proofread - emma (leeson) huber text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a sermon preached upon the xxx th . of january s. v. / . at paris in the chappel of the right honourable the lord vicount preston , his majestie' 's envoy extraordinary in the court of france . london , printed for moses pitt , at the angel in st. paul's church-yard , . to the right honourable richard lord vicovnt preston , his majestie 's envoy extraordinary in the court of france . my lord , had i no other consideration in the publishing of this discourse , than to make an open acknowledgment of my duty to your lordship , ( and not be silent at a time when the applauses of the most indifferent persons declare their satisfaction at your continuance of that character , which none can better sustain , nor has any ever born it with greater honour and fidelity , than all men must confess your lordship to have done it ) i should think it sufficient to outweigh all those censures , which perhaps may pass , with security enough , both upon me and it. [ it was not to be doubted , but that a prince so wise to understand , so gracious to reward the services of the meanest of his subjects , would have a particular regard to a merit and loyalty great as your lordship 's ; and not so soon part with a minister , whom he knows to have been such , as others promise they will be . it is the vanity of most men to speak great things , it is your lordship's honour that you do them : and i may without danger of any censure , but your own , truly say , that in a station which affords , if any other , tryals and opportunities to exercise the highest abilities , you have exceeded not only your own promises , but even our hopes , and given us an assurance that there is nothing now remaining that can equal the greatness of your mind . permit me , my lord , to render this short testimony to your vertues , so far from flattery , that those who know your lordship , will confess it to be hardly the truth ; and if you please pardon my presumption in this address , i believe as unexpected to your lordship , as i can justly say it was undesigned by me . ] but , my lord , it has been thought fit to give your lordship this satisfaction , that whilst you are rendring your obedience to his majestie 's commands in england , we have not been less careful , both to shew our selves , and to exhort others to be as firm to their loyalty here : and since we could not have the honour of your presence to compleat the utmost solemnity of this day amongst us , by this address at least to joyn you in our service , and return our acknowledgments for that opportunity we have had under your protection , to remember the captivity of zion in a strange land. the only thing that might justly have deterr'd me from this attempt , was the meanness of the performance , did i not consider that saints and martyrs ( like that god before whom they stand ) are not so much taken with the elegant composures of their votaries , as with their piety and sincerity ; and accept him who brings an honest heart , rather than an accurate discourse to their memories . and this , my lord , were the sermon it self silent , yet the honour i have to belong to your lordship , would undoubtedly confirm to as many as have ever known your character . may your lordship long have the happiness to continue your services to his sacred majesty and the royal family , and encrease every day those applauses that are so justly paid to your great vertues ; whilst i still endeavour by all the duties of my employ , more and more to deserve that title i most desire , of being , with all humble duty and respect , my lord , your lordship 's most faithful and most devoted chaplain and servant , w. w. eccl . joe● . ii. , , . blow the trumpet in zion , sanctifie a fast , call a solemn assembly . gather the people : sanctifie the congregation : assemble the elders : gather the children , and those that suck the breasts : let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber , and the bride out of her closet . let the priests , the ministers of the lord , weep between the porch and the altar , and let them say , spare thy people , o lord , and give not thine heritage to reproach ; that the heathen should rule over them : wherefore should they say among the people , where is their god ? so contrary is the mournful appearance of this day , to those triumphs and rejoycings wherewith our primitive predecessors were wont to celebrate the memories of their martyrs , that either the spirit of christianity seems very much decayed in us , or something must be thought to have been defective in that saint , whose death we thus lament , instead of magnifying his conflicts , and glorying in his victory . indeed had we only to commemorate the merits of the martyr , the innocence and piety wherein he lived , and the constancy and magnanimity with which he died , these funeral obsequies would be very unbecoming the solemnity of out remembrance : and we might esteem it a crime to let our hymns and our praises fall any thing short of the most celebrated festivals of the saints of old ; when both the excellence of the cause , and the resolution of the person , and the barbarity of his sufferings , so far exceeded the most of theirs . and this perhaps the generations to come may think themselves obliged to do : but alass ! the return of this day brings with it another , and sadder remembrance to us ; and when our tongues would speak the glories of this martyr , our consciences confound us with horror to consider , that we our selves were his persecutors . had the death he suffered been the sin of some other hand , had an infidel nation risen up against him , or had the chance of war cut him off in our own , we might have regretted the loss of so royal a defender , but should soon have turned our sorrow into joy , and have giving him a name superiour to the chiefest of those hero 's that fabulous antiquity can boast of . but that we who were obliged by all the ties of god and man to obey him , should destroy that life , for which we ought not to have refused any hazard of our own ; that we who were certainly his subjects , and who pretend to be christians too , should violate all the rights of majesty ; trample under foot all the commands of that gospel , by which we are called ; and imbrue our hands in royal and innocent bloud , after so barbarous a manner , that no antiquity can afford a parrallel ; this raises those clouds that obscure so bright a day ; and instead of appearing at his monument with songs of eucharist for his victory , calls us here , between the porch and the altar , to confess our own sins . spare thy people , o lord , and give not thine heritage to reproach ; that the heathen should rule over them : wherefore should they say among the people , where is their god ? and here , would to god the sincerity of our repentance might in some degree , answer the heinousness of our sin . that out piety this day , might as effectually contribute to the appeasing , as the violence committed on it has too fatally concurred to the kindling gods anger against us. that as our church , so far from being involved in the guilt , that she partook in all his sufferings , has nevertheless provided , by an annual return of this day , to remember that sin , which neither we , nor our posterity , shall ever be able sufficiently to lament ; so may we as sincerely observe , as she has piously established the fast ; and speak at least our detestation of the sin , if we cannot attone the greatness of the guilt . it is not necessary that i should enter on any curious enquiry into the occasion of this prophecy , to apply it to our present assembling at this time : that which may be seen of it at the first view is sufficient to approve my choice , that the jews by their sins had provoked god's anger against them , and had already felt in great measure his punishments too . the famine consumed them ; the drought burnt up their ground ; the remainder of their increase the worm and the caterpillar consumed . in a word , they were brought down to the very brink of destruction , and had only remaining this solemn manner of repentance , to appease his anger , and to prevent their ruin . i hope there is no one so little sensible of those evils , our own nation has laboured under , that i need enter on a remembrance so fresh and so ungrateful . the wounds are scarce yet closed , which our own hands have given us ; and the repose we even now enjoy , seems rather an interval lent us by heaven to see if we will yet repent , than any firm and established peace . our fears have again been awaked at new attempts , and we have had but too just cause to apprehend , if not joel's famine of bread ; yet what is infinitely worse , amos's famine of the word among us : let us therefore as we have transcribed the example of these jews , both in our sins and in our punishments , so take now the advice of the prophet , as spoken to our selves ; it may be yet to redress and to secure all . blow the trumpet in sion : sanctifie a fast , &c. our text naturally resolves its self into these three heads of discourse , and every one so proper to our present consideration , that i shall not be able to pass by any . first : the nature of that fast , which the prophet here proposes to be observed by us ; blow the trumpet in sion : call a solemn assembly . secondly : the manner how we ought to prepare for it ; sanctifie the fast. thirdly : the method of celebrating of it ; let the priests , the ministers of the lord , weep between the porcb and the altar , and let them say , spare thy people , o lord. i begin with the first of these ; i. the nature of that fast , which the prophet here proposes to be observed by us ; blow the trumpet in sion : call a solemn assembly . so exactly correspondent is the establishment of this holy day to the prescription of our text , that it might almost be imagined , that our church had taken not only the authority of the prophet to establish the fast , but even the particulars of his advice for her direction how to do it . if first we consider the original of this fast ; ours , as well as his , is established by publick authority . the trumpet has sounded from zion , and the voice of it is gone out into all the corners of our israel . 't is our obedience to this call that draws us from our closets to the congregation , and makes our mourning now as publick and solemn , as both our own piety , and the sad occasion , would otherwise have rendred it great and sincere . secondly , for the extent of it , ours , as well as his , is universal : no quality , no sex no age exempt : not the bridegoom excepted in the days of his feasting ; nor the bride to accomplish the week of her rejoycing . from the elders of our tribes , to the least child in our houses , all are called to this fast , and 't is to be hoped that every one will be as ready to obey their call , as our governours have been carefull to proclaim it to us . lastly ; for the uniformity and solemnity of this fast , we have our form too prescribed wherein to keep it ; and though our offering be more large , and extended to those particulars , which our sins have occasioned , yet is the summ of all the very same , which the holy prophet commanded the priests , the ministers of the lord , to weep between the porch and the altar ; and say , spare thy people , o lord , and give not thine heritage to reproach ; that the heathen should rule over them : wherefore should they say among the people , where is their god ? such is the parallel of this day , with the pattern of that fast which the prophet joel prescribed in our text ; and sure nothing could have been more applicable to the circumstances of our own . first , for the authority of its establishment ; what could have been imagined more proper to appease the anger of heaven for faults committed by an usurped and pretended power , than so solemn a repentance prescribed by the lawful and true one ? long had the trumpet been blown to war and to rebellion ; the church become militant ; and our pulpits , instead of setting forth the gospel of peace , spoke nothing but wars , and seditions , and tumults to the people . it became us certainly at last to sound it to some other blast ; and remember , that god had appointed the priests a more proper use of the trumpet , to assemble the congregation to serve the lord , than always to give the alarum to the battle to destroy their enemies . this publick testimony of sorrow , was the only act that could have been opposed to the iniquity of those ordinances , that so many years involved us in ruin and confusion . and our courts of justice , in which such numbers of loyal and innocent persons have heretofore been condemned , though they can never make us a satisfaction equal to their crimes , yet seem at least in the establishment of this day , to speak their repentance for it : and by the authority they have given to this publick sorrow , would appear not only to beg it of us , but even to intreat us to intercede with heaven too for their forgiveness . secondly , for the universality of this fast ; what less could have been done , than when all the nation were involved in the guilt , to join them all in the repentance for it ? i shall not need to say , that they were our pretended representatives at least that were the authors of this murder , and that they did it too in the name of the people of england . and however so notorious was the violence , that not only the open royalist , but even many of their own faction , secretly regretted the villany they committed ; yet still , so many consented to it ; of the rest , so many did nothing , or at least not so much as they might , and ought to have opposed it ; and even those who most attempted to prevent it , yet by their sins and their impieties , fought so much more powerfully against their soveraign , than all their arms could do to promote his cause , that even they may too much be charged as the authors of our misery ; and so all of us seem to have conspired to have made the crime of this day , in the utmost propriety of the phrase , a national sin. lastly ; for the form prescribed , wherein to speak forth our sorrow and to implore our pardon ; as it was the piety of our governours , that with one voice , as well as one heart , we should all join in this great rogation ; so may it appear too no improper manner for the solemnity of this day above all others , that the priests , the ministers of the lord , should by the uniformity of a set and well composed liturgie , at one for the rudeness and irreverence , i wish i could not say for the rash and almost blasphemous offerings of those uncommissioned teachers ; who by the unpremeditated nonsense of their prayers , no less profaned the honour of god , than by the pulpit wildfire of their sermons , they ruined both the peace of his church , and the majesty of his anointed . and now when such has been the piety of our governours , to establish the fast , and our own engagements are so great to join in the observation ; 't will be time for us next to consider , how we are to do it ; that as they have blown the trumpet in zion , so may we provide to sanctifie the fast. this therefore brings me to the second part of this discourse , ii. the manner how we ought to prepare for it ; sanctifie the congregation , &c. the word in the original , which our text twice renders to sanctifie , in its own nature seems to signifie no more than to prepare : and in that great passage of exod. xix . when god commands moses to sanctifie the people against the third day , that he intended to come down among them upon mount sinai , v. . we find by the execution of his commission , that it implied only a solemn declaration that they should be ready to meet the lord , v. , . and moses , went down from the mount , and sanctified the people , and said , be ready against the third day . and the same no doubt was the design of the prophet joel in this place , where addressing himself , as is plain , to the elders of the jews , to them to whom the authority belonged , to blow the trumpet in zion : call a solemn assembly , i. e. to appoint the fast , that they should sanctifie the congregation . his meaning must be , that they should command the people to be ready against the day of the solemnity to lay aside all other business , and attend the service of the lord in the congregation . but though this therefore be the literal import of this phrase ; and perhaps all that was required of them to whom the prophet spoke , the rulers and governours of the people ; yet both the design of this warning , and the particular explication of the expression , almost always understood of that special sort of preparation , which consisted in cleansing and purifying themselves , call upon us , not only to be ready to assemble our selves on the day of the fast , but so to prepare our selves too , that we may be fit for the celebration . it was the great care of god almighty under the law , that upon all such solemn assembling as this ; the people should be sanctified before they came to the congregation , and then at least be free from any present guilt , when they met to implore the forgiveness of their past sins . hence we find what strict charges they had to purifie themselves , to wash or to change their clothes , to abstain even from lawful pleasures in which there might only seem to be a pollution ; and when this was done , what care the priests took to sanctifie the congregation , i. e. to reconcile the people , by their solemn forms of expiation to god. and sure our care to prepare our selves ought to be no less , because we are now no longer under the pedagogy of these ceremonies . and if the prophet joel here requires it , even of the jews themselves , that they should , though not omit the other , yet rather be careful to make that preparation of a spiritual holiness , which these shadows typified ; we certainly much more must resolve at this time to lay aside every accursed thing , and rent our hearts and not our garments , and turn unto the lord our god. so that here then it will be our business diligently to reflect , how we are prepared this day to sanctifie the fast. have we seriously repented of those sins that once provoked the justice of heaven to appear , as on this day , to our confusion ; and which , if our piety does nothing to prevent it , will again return to our greater desolation ? is there any one amongst us , that by the malignity of his nature , the desperateness of his fortunes , or a misguided zeal , has been actually concern'd in this great guilt , or otherwise partaken in the crime of it , by assisting , or encouraging , or even approving the doing it ? is there any one now present , who though unconcern'd in that black parricide , is yet involved in any of those principles that led to it ? has assisted , approved , or encouraged those new rebels , the progeny of the same old cause , that have again so lately endeavour'd to crown the son with the like glory their ancestours did the father ? let me beseech them either to sanctifie the fast with us , or not to joyn in the celebration : let them here sacrifice this day all such villainous thoughts , these practices , and these principles : let them offer up all those interests and resentments , that ever have , or ever may involve them in so great impiety . and having thus washed their cloths , by a repentance for what is past , let them to compleat the sanctification , here engage themselves for the time to come , actually to joyn in the contrary duties of loyalty and obedience to their king ; resolving evermore to disown all such men and such principles , as shall ever hereafter endeavour to engage them in the like detestable conspiracies . without this all our fasting and humiliation will stand us in little stead ; our assemblies , even this solemn meeting will be so far from appeasing , that it will kindle god's anger to a yet higher degree against us . in vain shall we cry every man to his god , whilest such jonases are imbarked in the same cause with us . but let us cast out the man for whose sake all these evils are come upon us ; let us examine ours souls that no accursed thing may remain in them ; then shall the storms of our civil confusions cease , when we have sacrificed these enemies to heaven and our own peace : religion and loyalty shall revive amongst us ; our country shall again flourish as a city that is at unity within it self ; peace shall be within our walls , and righteousness within our palaces ; then shall the tribes go up , the tribes of the lord , and shall worship in his house with a holy [ and united ] worship . the throne of judgement shall be established ; even the throne of the house of david for ever and ever . thus shall we render this great solemnity truly such a fast as the lord hath chosen ; our weeping and our mourning shall come up before him as the incense , acceptable in his sight : he will receive our confessions with favour , and mercy , and answer our requests with peace and security . i shall say no more to the second particular , the preparation with which we ought to sanctify the fast : our last business now to be considered , is , iii. being thus prepared , how we ought to keep the fast. and for this it is certainly impossible to pursue any better method , than that form of confession the prophet joel has here proposed to the jews ; viz. to implore the favour and mercies of heaven . . for the forgiveness of this great sin : spare thy people , o lord. . that our miseries may never be turned by the application of wicked men ; either , . to the scandal of god's people : and give not thine heritage to reproach : or , . to the ruin of our church or state : that the heathen should rule over them : or , . finally , to the reproach of god's providence : wherefore should they say among the people , where is their god ? . we must implore the favours and mercy of heaven for the forgiveness of this great sin : spare thy people , o lord. and here we are arrived at the proper business of this day ; to implore the pardon of a crime which my soul trembles to remember , and which i should doubt had exceeded the power of any repentance to expiate , had not the apostles left us an example , by exhorting the jews to labour for a forgiveness even of their crucifying the lord of glory . for indeed , what flouds of tears can ever be sufficient to wash off the stain of so much innocent and royal blood , as our late civil confusions have brought upon us ? is it possible for our sorrow ever to equal those violences and oppressions , those ruines and devastations , the murders , the sacrileges , those sins which our eyes have seen , and which it may be our hands have acted ? how shall i recount the most flourishing of states brought to desolation ? a church , the envy and hatred of hell , the delight of its friends , and terrour of its enemies ; so pure and orthodox its canons and confession , so learned the pens , so exemplary the lives of its professors , and when the fiery tryal came on , so firm and constant their sufferings , that the most primitive christians could not have desired any thing more conformable to their own piety ; persecuted , profaned , thrown down by enthusiastick zeal , and a thorough reformation : in a word , a king , so primitive too , that he seem'd to have revived some constantine , or theodosius , or marcian again among us ; so just and brave , that he was worthy to have ruled , though he had not been born to empire : cut off by the villainy of his own subjects ; a martyr to his religion , a sacrifice to his country , and the everlasting reproach as well as guilt of both . this is but a light description of that sin , which we are here assembled to commemorate and to lament ; and i must beg leave to add yet more ; for however it will easily be imagined that all this wickedness could not be accomplished but through innumerable crimes , which neither can any tongue express , nor any thoughts conceive , yet such unusual villainies then acted us ; which antiquity never knew , nor will posterity believe ; that we might well be esteemed to fail in that duty which this fast requires , should we not make some more solemn and particular remembrance of them . through what treachery did our anointed first fall into their nets ? when those perfidious men , to whose trust he had committed his sacred person , contrary to all the laws of nature and nations as themselves , whilst not yet villains enough to commit so black a treachery , confess'd contrary to all the sentiments of honour , and dictates of religion , sold him into the hands of his enemies , who even then design'd his destruction ? with a supplication indeed for his security , but such as a popish inquisitor uses when he delivers the poor heretick to the secular power , intreats for a life , which he both desires may not , and which he infallibly knows shall not be granted . and accordingly , how soon did all things conspire to his destruction ? when the violence of the faction broke off those treaties that had almost restored us to our peace : the lower house , that had usurped the power of the government it self before , now becomes its self reformed ; and to accomplish a villainy , which an ordinary malignant's conscience was not thought proof enough to go through with , only a few confiding men were to be trusted with so desperate a design ; a court of justice was erected , and majesty arraigned to answer for treason committed against his own rebels . how shall i recount the wickedness of their process ? a tryal only to make the condemnation the more grievous for being the more solemn and publick . in which their king was not allowed that liberty of defence which every ordinary subject claims as his right , and which they themselves enjoyed , for this notorious , this undeniable conspiracy : nay in which their president durst plainly tell his sacred majesty , that he was now in a court where reason was not to be heard . with what noise and insults was all the action carried on ? when the clamours of the people for justice first , and then for execution , was the only voice that was heard in our streets : and as if with our loyalty all sence both of religion and humanity had been lost too , some spit in his royal face as he past by ; others press'd upon him with the smoak of their tabaco , for which they knew he had a particular aversion , and even threw their pipes in his way : the least expression of reverence to him , was punished with all the violence a populer fury could execute ; and one , who , more compassionate than the rest , only wish'd him well , was kill'd upon the place for his unseasonable piety . when at last the fatal sentence was pronounced ; how hardly were they brought to allow him any assistance to prepare him for his death ? his prayers continually disturbed by the rudeness of those guards that intruded upon his most secret retirements : his last thoughts diverted with propositions to save his life , which they knew neither honour nor conscience would permit him to receive . what shouts , what acclamations , when the cruel stroke was given that finished the tragedy ? how greedily did they thirst after his blood , when some plunged their hands into his wound ; others dipt their staves in it . the very block on which he rested his sacred head cut in pieces , that every one might satisfie his cruelty with some memorial of their villainy ; and even the very boards and earth stain'd with his blood , distributed as a mark whereby to triumph over his fall . and here one would have expected a conclusion of their guilt , and that they should at least have desisted to pursue him now he was dead , and no longer in a condition to oppose their designs . but alas ! their malice extended beyond his execution ; and as they had condemned him for a malefactour ; so they resolved he should not even in his burial be honoured as a king. how small was the expence they prescribed for his interment : with what privacy was it transacted ; and he who had been the most zealous defender of the rights and ceremonies of the church in his life , not allowed the least usage of them at his funeral now he was dead . and here then , let our own consciences speak ; or if we fear they may be too partial , let the censures of the world tell us ; was there ever villainy like unto this guilt with which it pleased god to punish the sins of his people ? let us search the records of antiquity , let us ask of the generations that are past , and let us ask from one end of the heaven even to the other , if ever any thing was committed amongst them that can parallel this impiety . that a christian kingdom should break through all those bonds of duty and obedience , which the more righteous heathens have reverenced as sacred and inviolable . that so many oaths , and vows , repeated with that frequency , taken with that solemnity , should all be insufficient to preserve our fidelity . that religion and reformation , two things , than which none can be more excellent in themselves , nor are any more easily and more dangerously abused , should be able to cheat us into wickedness , which the barbarous scythians never heard of , and which when it was told them they were scandalized at the report . lastly , that not only the honour of god should be pretended for the motive , but even his assistance be desired , and even affirm'd to have been received in the execution of all this great sin . this is that circumstance which raises our crime to the highest pitch of guilt , and makes us even afraid to look up to heaven for the pardon of this sin , whose assistance we have so often , and so impudently implored to the commission of it . yet since it has pleased god to draw us at last out of the blindness our fury had involved us in , let us take this blessing for our earnest , that he has not yet totally forsaken us , but as he has delivered us from the evil , so if even now we return unto him , he will free us from the guilt too of our sins . only let our repentance be as sincere , as our crimes have been provoking ; who can tell but he may yet repent , return , and leave a blessing behind him ? but it is not only this pardon , which we are this day to implore at his hands : our text carries us on to yet other petitions ; that being justified before god , we may also prepare the way to take off the reproach of man , and clear our selves in the sight of both together . this brings me to the second part of the holy prophet's prayer , give not thine heritage to reproach . . that this great sin may never turn , by the application of wicked men , to the scandal and reproach of us or our religion . how necessary this part of the petition is to us , i could wish the publick declarations of the whole world did not too loudly speak . the monuments are still extant rhat shew us , how we were become a scandal and a proverb to all the nations round about us . nay that nothing might be wanting to illustrate the horrour of this villainy , it scandalized even our own selves too ; and those very factions , that brought their king to his ruin , by the secret orders of heaven , themselves lamented his fall , and confessed the impiety . how loudly did his praises now sound from those pulpits , that had bid defiance to him and his party heretofore ? the covenant its self was taught to change its voice , and from a band of rebellion to destroy the government , was shewn to be a league of loyalty to preserve the king. scandalous no doubt was the sin , and that villainy detestable indeed to all good men , which thus forcibly stagger'd the consciences of these separatists , by nature formed , by principle bred up to faction , and now by above eight years practice , one might have thought sufficiently instructed in rebellion , not to startle at a guilt they had themselves so zealously pursued . and how shall we escape the common reproach , who have been so unhappily united in a country and society , that has produced such monsters ? blessed be god who has left us a mark of distinction to prevent so great a slander : and amidst all our regret for the fatal villainy of this day , we cannot but joy and glory in this , that not any of our church was involved in this guilt , or ever possibly can be in the like . let the actions of our predecessors speak our innocence for what is past . their sufferings are as known , as the violence of their enemies has been notorious . their loyal writings , in the midst of a prosperous rebellion , still shew us , not only the righteousness of their cause , but even their readiness to assert it in defiance of danger . and our own assembling at this time , to detest the principles , no less than to bewail the practices , of those conspiratours , declares that we are not at all degenerate , but still maintain the same opposition to that faction , who under the cloak of reformation , have scandalized the very name of protestant , and by a sad experience taught us , that kings may be proscribed in other places besides rome , and that a fanatick has as strong an arm to lift up against a prince's life , as the stoutest jesuit or jacobin can boast of . let our principles be examined ; let the most accurate inquisition pass upon our writings ; let the solemnity of our piety for the death of our late soveraign , and the firmness , we have again had opportunity too much to shew , of our zeal and loyalty to our present king : and if all this be not sufficient , let the malice of those men who acted this villainy , that in those days involved the church in the ruin of its ▪ defender , and hath again endeavoured once more to put down her that they might come the more advantageously to strike at him ; let these shew that we have no part nor inheritance with them : only that as the royal martyr of this day , not only commanded his son with his last breath to forgive them , but himself prayed for their conversion ; so will we never cease as faithfully to execute his will , as that son has done it ; and with the same piety that he has pardoned the fact , beseech god to bring them to repentance too for it . these are our prayers , such our affections towards them ; may the god of heaven answer our requests , and give us at last both the satisfaction and the security of beholding their conversion . but if the greatness of their sins prevent the effect we so much desire of our present offerings , we must then beg leave to go on with our text , to another address to secure our selves ; the third particular now to be spoken to , and give not thine heritage to reproach , that the heathen should rule over them. . that our own sins at least , may never bring us to the like ruin , either of our church or state ; nor evermore permit these men , as they have heretofore done , to prevail against us . and this too is a petition no less proper to our present circumstances , than the preceding requests have been but too applicable to the memory of our past evils . our sins , which called down that last vengeance upon us , are still as hainous and universal to provoke a new one . our divisions are yet greater ; and and that fertile brood of factions , which that unnatural war produced , and which no country or antiquity ever heard of before , still continue more fatally , and more dangerously to distract us . we have again seen the government divided against it self : the people have been blown up into a new ferment ; the bishops and councellours have again been resolved to be popishly affected ; nay , the very militia has been once more attempted , and they were no doubt confiding men too into whose hands it should have again been put . and when all this would not do , new designs have been laid to seize that government by violence , they could not gain by petition . how was his sacred majesty almost caught in their traps ? the destruction so well laid , that it had been impossible to have escaped it ; and providence was forced to act almost a miracle to prevent it . and now when our danger has again so nigh overtaken us , certainly he must be very unsensible of the former evils , that can think himself unconcerned at such a time as this , to pray against the future . let the miseries that we suffered , and the sins that were committed in those days , when the heathen , i. e. these enemies to our church and state , ruled over us , be remembred : was there ever sorrow like unto our sorrow , wherewith the lord afflicted us in those days of his fierce anger ? i have before given you some general prospect of our calamities at this time , and your own knowledge will save me the regret of repeating to you any more . how did our cities become solitary , that were full of people ? our country , once great among the nations , how did she become tributary , even to her own vassals ? our king , the anointed of the lord , fell by their hand ; our princes were led into captivity ; our churches , the places of our assemblies , were profaned ; the solemn feasts and days , were forgotten in our zion , and god in the indignation of his anger , despised both the king and the priest. and all this we have had but too great cause to fear , may again return upon us . yet since it has pleased the almighty to stop the vengeance , and command the destroying angel to suspend the blow , if not to sheath his sword , and give us still longer respite to repent , and secure our selves ; let the consideration of this danger provoke us not to neglect the opportunity . let our repentance at this time be so sincere , that it may not only obtain our pardon for past offences , but prevail with heaven to prevent our impending dangers . let us no more give our enemies this advantage against us , to force the almighty to withdraw his presence from amongst us , and leave us again to engage them upon equal terms : but let our lives and our prayers both join in the request , to save and to defend us , spare thy people , o lord , and give not thine heritage to reproach ; that the heathen should rule over them : wherefore should they say among the people , where is there god ? this is the last consideration , which the method of our text now calls us to conclude with . . that neither the miseries we have suffered , nor the dangers and confusions we yet labour under , may by the censures of wicked men ever turn to the reproach of god's providence , any more than of our own church or cause . wherefore should they say among the people , where is their god ? it is not to be doubted but that this sarcastick exprobration was that reproach , which joel had before pray'd that god would not suffer his heritage to be exposed to . he had promised in his law to supply them with plenty of food , and to bless their victuals with increase : that their houses should be full of all manner of store ; their fields also should stand so thick with corn , that they should laugh and sing . well therefore might they fear the reproach of the heathen , when instead of this plenty , they should be forced to go and seek for necessary nourishment of them , whom they excluded from these promises ; who no doubt would be forward enough to make a by-word of them , and insult over their pretences , as if their god either could not , or would not relieve them . is this the people that hath the lord for their god ? behold , is not the meat cut off before their eyes ? their vine laid waste ? and the branches of their figtree made white ? their seed is rotten under their clods , their garners are made desolate , the barns broken down , because the corn is withered . how do the beasts groan because they have no pasture ? for the rivers of water are dried up , and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness . where is now their god to pity them ? and where is the lord to be jealous for his inheritance ? this was their reproach , the scandal of themselves , and their religion , which the prophet so much feared , and so earnestly exhorted them to pray against : and would to god we our selves this day had not too great cause to fear the like . witness , o ye pious and excellent souls , what scornings and reviling to your selves and your religion did ye then bear , when being forced from that plenty and tranquility you once enjoyed ; you become scattered abroad among the heathenand underwent their reproaches , more grievous and sensible than all the other miseries and calamities of your cruel exile ! but what need i look back to the times that are past when our own continue to afford us so plain an application . how far both our late calamities , and our present destractions have given occasion to the enemy to triumph in our misfortunes , as if they were not only the mark of our own sins , but even an argument of the common illness of our cause too , this alone may be sufficient to shew , that the romanists not only hope from them , to see this ferment one day settle among us into down right popery again ; but even at this day make this the great , and indeed it must be confessed the strongest , prejudice against the reformation , that since we have thrown off our obedience to that church , we have run so many and different ways of errour , and are yet at such distance from one another , as plainly shew there is no truth nor certainty to be found for us , but only in our return to them again . i shall not here enquire into the goodness of the consequence , but must needs say i could wish , there were not too much truth and scandal in the premises : and who can tell whether , since any lesser judgements have been ineffectual to reclaim us , god may not at last punish us with this blindness , and whilst we refuse to submit to the easie and lawful power of his church and his anointed , bring us once more under the intolerable yoke of that usurped authority , from whose slavery both our country and our consciences are now so happily asserted . this i am sure we have too much deserved , and may therefore justly have but too great cause to fear . only my hope is , that whatever our own demerits are , yet the innocence of our church shall still provoke god's providence to defend her : and that our deliverance , as at this time , from our enemies , shall always disappoint such fatal expectations , and convince them , that though we have sinned , yet are we his people ; that he chastises us as children , not punishes us as his enemies ; and is still our god , though angry and provoked . how great is the demonstration of his mercy and loving-kindness , that we even now continue a church and people , as at this day ? what miracles did he work to turn again the captivity of our zion , and deliver both us and our king from those usurpers that so long had triumphed over both ? has not the almighty shewn himself in our defence , who but so lately has delivered us both from popish and fanatick conspiracies ? let them ask where is their god , that have not known by what singular and unexspected means these designs were both discover'd and disappointed ? and though it pleases god still to leave these men like the canaanites in the land , to try , and to prove us , and which indeed but too much fulfil their character of being scourges to our sides , and thornes in our eyes : yet has he set bounds to their designs , which they have not been able to pass , and which we trust they never shall exceed , to ruine and destroy us . yet since both our peace and security are still in such danger through their rage and their devices ; let us endeavour not less by our piety than our policies , to countermine them . let us engage the assistance of heaven by the excellency of our lives , as well as the justice of our cause , to oppose their attempts : let us exceed them as much in the sincerity of our righteousness , as they have done all others in the outward pretences and hypocrisie of theirs . let us keep this day the fast which the lord hath chosen ; to break the bonds of wickedness ; to have pity on the distressed ; and to execute judgement and justice in the gates . let us turn unto the lord our god with all our hearts , with weeping , and with fasting , and with mourning ; and let us rent our hearts , and not our garments , and let us say , spare thy people , o lord , and give not thine heritage to reproach ; that the heathen should rule over them : wherefore should they say among the people , where is their god ? then will the lord be jealous for his people , and awake for his inheritance : he will restore us our judges as at the first , and our councellours as at the beginning . zion shall be redeemed with judgment , and her converts with righteousness : they shall be ashamed and confounded that seek her destruction : but for his church and his anointed , they shall be preserved for evermore . which god of his infinite mercy grant , for his dear son jesus christ's sake . amen . books sold by moses pitt at the angel in st. paul's church-yard . in folio . bible for churches with cronology and an index . the english atlas vol. st . containing the description of the north-pole , as also muscovy , poland , sweden and denmark . the second vol. of the atlas containing half the empire of germany . the third vol. containing the other half of the empire of germany . the fourth vol. containing the provinces . catalogus impressorum librorum bibliothecae bodleianae in acad. oxon. historia universitatis oxoniensis duobus voluminibus comprehensa . autore antonio a wood. marmora oxoniensa , ex arundelianis , seldenianis , aliisque conflata , &c. cum notis lydiati & aliorum . per humph. prideaux . iamblicus chalcidensis de mysteriis aegyptiorum , graec. lat. interprete t. gale. a short view of the late troubles in england from the year . to by sir william dugdale kt. garter king of arms ( this book was presented the queen's majesty by the university of cambridge when they entertained the king and queen in the year ) . gaulteri charletoni m. d. onomosticon zoicon , editio secunda , priori longe auctior . websters display of witchcraft , wherein is affirmed that there are many sorts of deceivers and imposters . . theses theologicae variis temporibus in academia sedanensi editae , & ad disputandum proprositae . authore ludovico le blanc , verbi divini ministro & theologiae professore . in quibus exponitur sententia doctorum ecclesiae romanae , & protestantium . . price s. taverneirs travels into persia , the east indies , tounquin , &c. vol. . in quarto . several english bibles with the liturgie , apocrypha , singing psalms and cronology . common prayer-books . theophilus and philodoxus , controversial dialogues , of prayer in an unknown tongue . the half communion . the worshipping of images . the invocation of saints . by gilb. cole d. d. historia jacobitarum in aegyto , lybia , nubia , aethiopia tota , & parte cypri insulae habitantium . per jos. abudacnum . a view and survey of the dangerous errors to church and state in mr. hobbs his book , intituled leviathan . by edward , e. of clarendon . votum pro pace christiana . autore an. sall. d. d. history of tythes , by john selden . london , . dr. pell's introduction to algebra . . s. dr. wallis opera mechanica . s. jer. horrocii . angl. opusc. astron. . in octavo . tho. lydiati canones chronologici , nec non series summorum magistratuum & triumphorum romanorum . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e num. . . gen. . ● num. . , . v. . jos. . . , &c. exod. . v. . v. , . levit. . , . exod. . v. , , , &c. num. . . exod. . , . genes . . . num. . ver. . isai. . . jon. . . jos. . . psal. . . . . v. . joel . . lam. . . lam. . . lam. . . exod. . . deut. . psal. . . joel . . . . . joel . . psal. . . jos. . . joel . . . joel . . . isa. . , . a collection of several discourses against popery by william wake, preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a collection of several discourses against popery by william wake, preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn. wake, william, - . wake, william, - . exposition of the doctrine of the church of england. aut wake, william, - . defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england. aut wake, william, - . second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england. aut wake, william, - . discourse of the holy eucharist. aut wake, william, - . two discourses of purgatory, and prayers for the dead. aut wake, william, - . discourse concerning the nature of idolatry. aut wake, william, - . continuation of the present state of controversy, between the church of england, and the church of rome. aut tenison, thomas, - . present state of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome. aut clagett, william, - . aut [ ], xxxvi, , [ ], xxiv, [ ], , [ ], xxii, , [ ], , - , - , [ ], - , - , [ ], xxxviii, [ ], , [ ], , [ ], xvi, , [ ], , [ ], p. printed for richard chiswell, at the rose and crown in s. paul's church-yard, london : m dc lxxx viii. [ ] there is a rule over the roman numeral dates on the general title page. each tract has separate dated title page, register and pagination; most have an initial imprimatur leaf, table of contents, final advertisment pages and errata. a reissue, with general title page, of wing ( nd ed.) c (begun by thomas tenison and completed by william clagett), w , w , w , w , w , w , w , and w . reproduction of the original in the harvard university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng church of england -- apologetic works -- early works to . catholic church -- controversial literature -- early works to . lord's supper -- real presence -- early works to . transubstantiation -- early works to . idolatry -- early works to . purgatory -- early works to . - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - emma (leeson) huber sampled and proofread - emma (leeson) huber text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion imprimatur . carolus alston r. p. d. hen. episc. lond. à sacris domesticis . march. . / . a collection of several discourses against popery . by william wake , preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . london : printed for ric. chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxviii . a table of the discourses contained in this collection . i. an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , &c. in answer to the bishop of meaux . ii. a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of monsr . de meaux and his vindicator . iii. a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsr . de meaux and his vindicator . part i. part ii. part iii. iv. a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and of the adoration of the host . v. an historical account of the doctrine of the real presence profess'd in the church of england , &c. vi. two discourses of purgatory , and prayers for the dead . vii . a discourse of the nature of idolatry , in answer to the bishop of oxon's reasons for abrogating the test . viii . the present state of the controversy between the church of england , and the church of rome . ix . a continuation of the present state of the controversy , &c. other treatises written by the same author . x. a sermon on the xxxth of january , preach'd at paris , anno / . xi . preparation for death : being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a dangerous distemper of which she died . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . to which is prefix'd a particular account of monsieur de meaux's book . london , printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxvi . the preface . the smalness of this treatise would hardly justifie the solemnity of a preface , but that it might be thought too great a rudeness to press without some ceremony upon a book , which both the merit and character of the author , and the quality of those approbations he has prefix'd to it , may justly seem to have fenced from all vulgar attempts , as sacred and inviolable . it may perhaps be some satisfaction to the reader too to know , how it is come to pass that a meer exposition of the doctrine of the church of rome , pretending to contain nothing but what they have always professed , and in their council of trent plainly declared to be their doctrine ; should have become so considerable , as not only to be approved by many persons of the greatest eminency in that church , but even to be recommended by the whole body of the clergy of france in their assembly ; and whereever it has come , done so many miracles , as not only common report speaks , but even the advertisement it self prefixed to it , takes care to tell us that it has . the first design of monsieur de meaux's book was either to satisfie or to seduce the late mareschal de turenne . how far it contributed thereunto i am not able to say ; but am willing to believe that the change that honourable person made of his religion , was upon some better grounds than the bare exposition of a few articles of the roman faith ; and that the author supplied either in his personal conferences with him , or by some other papers to us unknown , what was wanting to the first draught which we have seen of this . the manuscript copy which then appeared , and for about four years together passed up and down in private hands with great applause , wanted all those chapters of the eucharist , tradition , the authority of the church and pope , which now make up the most considerable part of it ; and in the other points which it handled , seemed so loosly and favourably to propose the opinions of the church of rome , that not only many undesigning persons of that communion were offended at it , but the protestants who saw it , generally believed that monsieur de meaux durst not publickly own , what in his exposition he privately pretended to be their doctrine . and the event shew'd that they were not altogether mistaken . for in the beginning of the year the exposition being with great care , and after the consideration of many years reduced into the form in which we now see it ; and to secure all , fortified with the approbation of the archbishop of reims and nine other bishops , who profess that having examined it with all the care which the importance of the matter required , they found it conformable to the doctrine of the church , and as such recommended it to the people which god had committed to their conduct , it was sent to the press . the impression being finish'd and just ready to come abroad ; the author , who desired to appear with all the advantage to himself and his cause that was possible , sent it to some of the doctors of the sorbonne for their approbation to be joyn'd to that of the bishops , that so no authority , ordinary or extraordinary might be wanting to assert the doctrine contained in it , to be so far from the suspition the protestants had conceived of it , that it was truly and without disguise catholick , apostolick , and roman . but to the great surprise of monsieur de meaux , and those who had so much cry'd up his treatise before , the doctors of the sorbonne to whom it was communicated , instead of the approbation that was expected , confirmed what the protestants had said of it ; and , as became their faculty , marked several of the most considerable parts of it , wherein the exposition by the too great desire of palliating , had absolutely perverted the doctrine of their church . to prevent the open scandal which such a censure might have caused , with great industry , and all the secrecy possible , the whole edition was suppressed , and the several places which the doctors had marked changed ; and the copy so speedily sent back to the press again , that in the end of the same year another much altered was publickly exposed , as the first impression that had at all been made of it . yet this could not be so privately carry'd , but that it soon came to a publick knowledge ; insomuch that one of the first answers that was made to it , charged monsieur de meaux with this change . i do not hear that he has ever yet thought fit to deny the relation , either in the advertisement prefixed to the later editions of his book , wherein yet he replies to some other passages of the same treatise , or in any other vindication ; whether it be that such an imputation was not considerable enough to be taken notice of , or that it was too true to be deny'd , let the reader judge . but certainly it appears to us not only to give a clear account of the design and genius of the whole book ; but to be a plain demonstration , how improbable soever monsieur de meaux would represent it , that it is not impossible for a bishop of the church of rome , either not to be sufficiently instructed in his religion to know what is the doctrine of it ; or not sufficiently sincere , as without disguise to represent it . and since a copy of that very book so marked , as has been said , by the doctors of the sorbonne is fallen into my hands , i shall gratifie the * * * readers curiosity with a particular view of some of the changes that have been made , that so he may judge whether of the two were the cause of those great advances , which the author in that first edition had thought fit to make towards us . it might perhaps appear a very pardonable curiosity in us , after the knowledge we have had of the first miscarriage of this book at the sorbonne , to enquire how it comes to pass , that among so many other approbations as have with great industry been procured to the later editions of it , we do not yet see any subscription of theirs to it , even now . monsieur de meaux could not certainly be ignorant of what weight the censure of that learned faculty is with us ; and that such an approbation might not only have been more easily obtained , but would also more effectually have wiped away the blot cast upon his book by their former refusal , than all the letters and complements that could come from the other side the mountains , and which france it self hath taught us , in maters more considerable than this , not to have too high a value for : nor can we suppose any thing else , than that the fear of a further correction kept it from being any more submitted to their censure ; and that the author would rather pass without the honour of their approbation , than run the hazzard of a second refusal . but for this , because we cannot speak any thing certain , we will not pursue our conjectures . certain it is that whatever the judgment of the sorbonne would now have been of it , many of the church of rome were still dissatisfied with it . * * * and how improbable soever monsieur de meaux would have us think that one of his answerers affirms , that a papist should have written against him ; yet not only the confessed sincerity of monsieur conrart who often declared that he had seen it , but the undoubted integrity of some others by whom i have been assured that they had it , in their hands , obliges me to joyn in the assertion , that monsieur m — , one of the roman communion had finish'd an answer to it , before any of the protestants were published , however upon some certain considerations it was thought fit to suppress it . it will perhaps be looked upon , that this confirmation of that manuscript answer deserves as little assent , as monsieur de meaux has thought fit to give to monsieur de la b — 's first assertion of it . and therefore to shew that it is not impossible , nor indeed very improbable , that papists should write one against another ; and that the method of the exposition , how plausible soever to deceive protestants , has nevertheless offended the sincere and undesigning of the other communion ; i will beg leave to produce two or three undenyable witnesses upon some of the first and chiefest points of it ; and which though not written purposely against it , yet i am perswaded , monsieur de meaux himself will be so just as to confess , that he cannot be altogether unconcerned in them . for his first point , the invocation of saints ; the great moderation of the exposition tells us only , that it is useful to pray to them , and that we ought to do it in the same spirit of charity , and in the same order of brotherly society with which we intreat our friends on earth to pray for us : that all the prayers of the church howsoever they may be worded , yet must still be understood to be reduced to this form , pray for us . now what monsieur de meaux here says in general concerning the invocation of saints , another tract printed about the same time at cologne , and intituled salutary advertisements of the blessed virgin , to her indiscreet adorers ; particularly applied to that service , which with so much superstition is paid in the church of rome to the mother of christ. the book is every where full of expressions of honour and respect for her ; and only speaks against that worship which monsieur de meaux here declares in the name of the council of trent to be none of theirs . it was sent abroad into the world with all the advantage imaginable : it had the approbation of the bishop of mysia , suffragan to the archbishop of cologne ; of the vicar general of the place ; of the censure of gant ; of the canons and divines of malines ; of the university of louvain ; and lastly of monsieur the bishop of tournay , who recommended it as a treatise full of solid piety , and very fit and necessary to draw people out of those errours and abuses into which their superstition had led them . yet notwithstanding all this applause , if we enquire what success this book had with others , father crasset the jesuit , who wrote purposely against it , * * * his book printed at paris , licensed by the provincial , approved by the three fathers of the society appointed to examine it , and lastly , authorized by the king's permission , tells us , † † † that for fear of giving scandal to hereticks , he had given a very great one to ( those he calls ) catholicks : that the learned men of all nations had written against him ; that the holy see had condemn'd him ; spain had banish'd him out of its dominions , and forbid to read or print his book , as containing propositions suspected of errour and impiety , that abused the holy scripture , and imposed upon catholicks , by taking them off from the piety and devotion due to the mother of god ; in a word , from the general invocation of saints and worship of images . i shall not need to say how far the fathers zeal carries him in the answer it self : it is evident that what monsieur de meaux tells us , is only useful , the jesuit declares to be absolutely necessary : that we are indispensably obliged to pray to her : that it is the intention of god , that we should obtain both grace and glory by her ; that all men should be saved by the merits of the son , and the intercession of the mother , and that forasmuch therefore as god has resolved not to give any grace but what passes through the hands of mary ; as we cannot be saved without grace , so it must be confessed that we cannot be saved without her . this is i presume somewhat more than what monsieur de meaux expounds to us ; and i shall leave it to any one to judge whether this father who has shew'd himself so zealous against the author of the blessed virgins salutary advertisements , could have been very well pleased with monsieur de meaux's exposition . the next point which the exposition advances , is concerning the worship of images , monsieur de meaux in the edition suppressed , affirmed , that the church of rome does not so much honour the image of the apostle or martyr , as the apostle or martyr in presence of the image . and though the censure passed upon this new fancy , obliged him to speak a little more plainly , yet is it only thus , even now , that when the church pays an honour to the image of an apostle or martyr , her intention is not so much to honour the image , as to honour the apostle or martyr in presence of the image . concerning which the reader may please to observe , that cardinal capisucchi one of the approvers of monsieur de meaux's exposition , has lately set forth a volume of controversies at rome , with all the most solemn permissions and approbations that can be desired , in which he formally contradicts the doctrine of the same exposition in this point ; and concludes , that the church in the councils of nice and trent forbids only such a divine honour to images as is idolatrous , i. e. says he , which is paid to images in and for themselves ; and by which the image is worshipped , as if some god or divinity were contained in it . but for that divine worship which is paid to the images of the holy trinity , of our saviour christ and the holy cross , upon the account of the things represented by them , and as they are in that respect one and the same with the thing which they represent , and ascribes not any divinity to the images , there never was , nor can be any dispute of it . monsieur de meaux may please to consider whether this be not sufficiently contrary to the doctrine expounded by him ; and how we are to reconcile the controversies of the cardinal capisucchi , with the letter and approbation of the * * * master of the sacred palace . in the mean time i will beg leave to add one instance more , that is nigher home , and i think still at this time depending ; and which the particular interest monsieur de meaux has more ways than one had in it , will i suppose undoubtedly satisfie him , that notwithstanding the assembly of the clergy have recommended so much both his book and his method , all nevertheless at this day are not very well satisfied , even in france it self , either with the one or other . monsieur † † † imbert priest and doctor of divinity in the province of bourdeaux was not long since accus'd , that upon good friday before he proceeded to the solemn service of that day , which consists chiefly in the adoration of the cross ; he turned to the people , and taking occasion from the rashness of some of the fathers of the mission whom he had with grief heard maintain , that the cross was to be adored after the very same manner as jesus christ in the sacrament of the eucharist ; profess'd to them that he could not enter on the service of that day without declaring truly to them what the real doctrine of the church as to this point was . that the church designed not that we should adore the cross which we see , but that we should adore jesus christ whom we do not see . that there was a great difference between the cross and the holy sacrament ; that in this our saviour christ was really present , whereas that was only a simple figure or representation of him . this was his accusation , and he confessed that his opinion was , that the church adored not the cross , and that the contrary opinion was not only false but idolatrous . that not only the protestants made their advantage of those who maintain'd such errours , but that he himself was scandalized to converse every day with the missionaries and others , whom he had openly heard preach a hundred times , that we ought to adore the cross with jesus christ , as the humane nature of our saviour with the divine . being accused for this , he defended himself with all the strength of argument that he was able ; yet being still accounted a heretick for it , he finally alledged in his defence , that the exposition of monsieur de meaux defended the very same ; that he went upon his principles , whose book was approved by the pope and several cardinals in italy , by the bishops and clergy of france and others of the greatest note in the church of rome . nevertheless he was suspended in a manner grievous and extraordinary : he wrote to monsieur de meaux himself about it , who presently sent to the archbishop of bourdeaux in his behalf : he addressed himself besides to many other the most considerable persons of the kingdom ; to monsieur the chancellour ; monsieur de chatteau-neuf ; to the intendant of the province , only that he might have justice in a cause , which according to monsieur de meaux's principles , was certainly very favourable ; but i do not hear that he has yet had any other effect of all his supplications , and the interest of those honourable persons in his behalf , than that they still draw more and severer menaces from his judges , and threats either of perpetual imprisonment , or even death it self for his offence . after this clear conviction i may reasonably hope it will appear no improbable matter to monsieur de meaux himself , either that one papist should have written against his book , or that many others should have expressed themselves to be of a mind very different from the principles and opinions of it . had it pleased him to have gratified the world with the sight of cardinal buillon's and monsieur l'abbé de dangeau's letters to cardinal bona and cardinal chigi , as well as of their answers to them , they would perhaps have shewn , that not only the protestants pretended such oppositions of his own party to his book , but that monsieur de meaux himself was not altogether unsensible of it . no sooner was the first impression of the exposition which was permitted to pass abroad , finish'd , but presently a copy was dispatch'd to rome , with letters and recommendations to prepare the way for its reception in that court ; and provide against those faults which some it seems accused it of , if the contradictors which opposed it at home , should think fit to pursue it thither . it is not to be supposed that either the dignity of the cardinal who sent the book , or of him to whom it was address'd , would have permitted them in such a manner to take notice of the faults and the contradictors which their letters speak of , had they not been both things , and persons worthy their consideration . but much less would monsieur l'abbé de dangeau have used his interest with cardinal chigi to gain the favour of the master of the sacred palace , and of the congregation del indice , if any one had or should speak against it , had there been no cause to apprehend that any one would attempt either . what other particular persons were employ'd upon the like offices , is a secret too close for us to be able to penetrate . only the advertisement it self gives us cause to believe that great interest was made even by the french ambassador himself to his holiness about it ; and that the few letters we see set out with so much industry both in the originals and their translation , and the long history of them in the advertisement , were the effects of a labour and interest , great as the long term of eight years that were spent in the procuring of them . the second answer to monsieur de meaux has so fully examined every one of these approbations , and so plainly shew'd how small account is to be made of them , that we do not find that in four years that it has been publish'd , any one has undertaken to reply to it . i will therefore only add in general a remark or two that may serve to inform those of our own country who are unacquainted with such intrigues , what the method of the approbations of the church of rome is , and how little stress is to be laid upon them . it is a long time since it has been resolved by many of their casuists , that it is lawful to disguise the sentiments of their religion , not only in private conferences , but in the very pulpit it self , when there is a sufficient reason for the doing of it . but i cannot tell whether it be yet so generally known that it is lawful for them to set their hands to and approve those books whose principles and doctrine they dislike , by an art peculiar to themselves , and which protestants , who are used to sincere dealing , will find it a little difficult to believe . the instance of cardinal capisucchi before mentioned is an undeniable proof of this for italy ; who about the same time that he sent his letter and approbation to monsieur de meaux of his exposition , wrote , as we have seen , directly contrary to the doctrine of it , and had his book approved with no less solemnity at rome , than monsieur de meaux can pretend his to have been . and for france , a person very justly esteemed both for his great quality and his own worth , monsieur the procureur general of the parliament of paris , having clearly revealed the mystery of it , i shall beg leave to represent it to the world , under the advantage of so great and unquestionable an authority . father thomassin about twenty years since printed a book which he called notae in concilia ; the design whereof was to set up the authority of the pope above all councils , which he renders in a manner useless to the decision of ecclesiastical matters . the copies of this book were all seized , and lock'd up in a chamber of the fathers oratorians at paris . ten or twelve years after , with some changes to fill up the leaves that had been censured , and the approbation of the doctors of the sorbonne , he again attempted to have it publish'd . but monsieur the procureur general opposed it , and told him that but in consideration of father harlay , his near relation , who interposed for him , he would have had his book burnt by the hand of the common hangman . the father justified himself that his book contained no other principles than what were found in cardinal bellarmine's controversies , which had been printed with authority , and were permitted to be every day publickly sold in france . the procureur general replyed , that they suffered in france , that an italian should write according to the principles of his country , and that this ought not to hinder but that a book , otherwise good , might be publickly printed and sold with priviledge ; but that for a frenchman to do the same , was another matter , and would have different consequences : and that in short , the italians used the same method towards them . and indeed the late change of the jesuits in their approbations plainly shews , that it is permitted to those of the church of rome to write and approve not so much according to their own opinions , as to the principles and genius of the country in which they live . for which reason the fathers of the society do no longer now , as formerly they were wont , take out their licence from the general of their order , but from their respective provincials ; who accommodate themselves to the current doctrine of the place in which the book is publish'd ; without which it would be almost impossible for them to write in france , but they should be subject to the danger of a censure at rome . after this general account of the nature of the approbations of the church of rome , i shall spare both my self and reader the trouble of examining the several letters before the exposition , though otherwise they lie open to many exceptions ; only concerning his holiness s brief , which monsieur de meaux so much triumphs in , it may not be amiss to observe , that the last pope , in whose time the exposition came first to rome with great recommendation , yet never gave any approbation to it ; and that the present pope did it upon occasion of † † † a submissive letter of the authors to him , and after the reports that he had heard of the great * * * conversions that were every where made by it , to which such an approbation would be likely to add a new force . so plain is the intrigue and design of this , that were the popes briefs otherwise of as great consideration , as the papists themselves shew them to be of little value , yet this could not be regarded by us , as any other than a meer artifice to deceive us , not a sincere , much less authoritative approbation either of the nature or principles of monsieur de meaux's book . but whatever the opinion either of the pope or papists has been of this exposition , certain it is the protestants have openly enough declared their thoughts concerning it ; and the exposition according to the fate of all other great and extraordinary things , has found enough on this side to oppose it . it was but a very little time after the first edition of it , that monsieur noguier and another author well known , yet whose name i spare , because he has not thought fit himself to discover it , wrote against it ; and with so much success , that the papists themselves confest , ' that it was an ill cause defended extremely well . monsieur de turenne not long before that last campagne in which he lost his life , made great boasts of a reply that was speedily to be publish'd to them ; but after the long expectation of above eight years , only an advertisement was prefix'd to a new edition of the book , which neither touches at all the greatest part of the exceptions that had been made against it , nor gives any satisfaction to those it do's take notice of . it has been the constant method of monsieur de meaux , having once written , to leave his tracts to the world , and take no care to defend them against those assaults , that seem with success enough to have been sometimes made upon them . we should think the great employments , in which he has had the honour to be engaged , might have been the cause of this , did not he who takes no care to defend his old books , find still time enough to write new . perhaps he looks upon his pieces to be of a spirit and force sufficient to despise whatever attempts can be made upon them ; but sure he cannot be ignorant , that protestants make another and far different conclusion , and look upon those opinions to be certainly indefensible , which so able and eminent an author is content so openly , and , if i may be permitted to add it , so shamefully to forsake . what other answers besides those i have now mentioned have been made to it , i cannot undertake to say ; two others only that i know of have been publish'd ; the author of the latter of which monsieur de brueys having in a very little time after his writing left his religion , might have made a new instance of monsieur de meaux's conquests , did not his inability to answer his own arguments against the exposition , give us cause to believe , that some other motives than those of that book induced him so lightly to forsake a cause , which he had so soundly and generously defended . and now after so many answers yet unreplied to , if any one desires to know what the design of the present undertaking is , they may please to understand , that having by a long converse among the papists of our own and other countries perceived that either by the ignorance or malice of their instructors , they have generally very false and imperfect notions of our opinions in the matters in controversie between us , i have suffered my self to be perswaded to pursue the method of monsieur de meaux's exposition as to the doctrine of the church of england ; and oppose sincerely to what he pretends is the opinion of the roman church , that form of faith that is openly profess'd and taught without any disguise or dissimulation among us . i was not unwilling to take the method of monsieur de meaux for my direction , as well upon the account of the great reputation both of the book and of the author , as because it is now some years that it has pass'd in our language without any answer that i know of made to it . besides , that the late new impression made of it , with all the advantages of the advertisement and approbations , which the later french editions have added to it , seemed naturally to require some such consideration . i do not pretend by any thing of this to treat monsieur de meaux as an enemy , but rather as both his great learning , and that character which i have ever learnt very highly to reverence , oblige me , to follow him as my guide . to render an account to him and to the world what our differences are , and point out in passing some of those reasons that are the most usually given amongst us , wherefore we cannot totally assent to what he proposes . i am perswaded the whole is done with that charity and moderation , that there is nothing in it that can justly offend the most zealous enemy of our church . if i knew of any thing in it that without dissembling the truth might have been omitted , i sincerely profess i would most willingly have done it , being desirous to please all , that so , if it be the will of god , i may by any means gain some . for this cause chiefly have i forborn to set my name to it , lest perhaps any prejudice against my person , might chance to injure the excellence of the cause which i maintain . this effect at least , if no other , i would willingly hope such a treatise may have upon those of our country that have been taught to believe very differently concerning us ; that they would please no longer to form such horrible ideas of our profession as they have heretofore been wont to do ; at least till it can be shewn that i have either palliated or prevaricated the doctrine of the church of england in this exposition . which i am yet so assured i have not done , that i here intirely submit both my self and it to her censure ; of whose communion i esteem it my greatest happiness that i am , and for whose preservation and enlargement i shall never cease , as i ought , to pray . a collection of some of those passages that were corrected in the first edition of the exposition suppressed by monsieur de meaux : to which is added , the censure of the faculty of louvain , upon some part of the doctrine still remaining in it . § i. monsieur de meaux in the very beginning of his book speaking of the design of it , had these words : . edit . so that it seems then to be very proper to propose to them ( the protestants ) the doctrine of the catholick church , separating those questions which the church has decided , from those which do not belong to faith. p. . it is evident , the meaning of monsieur de meaux in that passage must have been this ; that whatsoever was either not at all contained in his exposition , or was otherwise maintain'd by any particular authors , beyond the exposition he gives us of those points which are here mentioned , was not to be look'd upon by us , as any of the church's decision , nor necessary to be received by us as matter of faith. i shall not need to say how many doctrines and decisions , not only of private writers , but of the very council of trent it self , this would have at once cut off . it would perhaps have been one of the fairest advances towards an union , that ever the church of rome yet offered . but it seems whatever monsieur de meaux supposed , this was thought too great a condescension by others : and he was therefore obliged , without changing any thing in his book , to give us a quite other account of the design of it . later editions . so that it seems then we can do nothing better , than simply to propose to them ( the protestants ) the sentiments of the catholick church , and distinguish them from those opinions that have been falsely imputed to her . which is but little to the purpose . ii. i edit . p. , . the same church teaches , that all religious worship ought to terminate upon god , as its necessary end. so that the honour which the church gives to the blessed virgin and to the saints is religious , only because it gives them that honour with relation to god , and for the love of him . so that then , so far ought one to be from blaming the honour which we give to the saints , as our adversaries do , because it is religious , that on the contrary it ought to be blamed if it were not religious . there can be nothing more plain than that monsieur de meaux's opinion , when he wrote this , was , that the honour which the church of rome pays to the blessed virgin and saints departed is a religious honour ; nay would deserve to be blamed if it were not religious . this was by others thought a little too ingenuous , and what would give too great an advantage to our objections against it . and therefore instead of that free , honest confession , that the church of rome gives religious honour to the blessed virgin and saints departed , he now puts a doubt that insinuates the direct contrary , the same church teaches us , that all religious worship ought to terminate in god as its necessary end ; and if the honour which she rendereth to the blessed virgin and to the saints , may in some sense be called religious , it is for its necessary relation to god. so that really then the honour they give their saints in monsieur de meaux's opinion is religious , but 't is not fit that we should know it . iii. monsieur daillé some years since wrote a volume of the tradition of the primitive church , concerning the object of religious worship ; in which he clearly shews that the first years knew nothing of the invocation of saints , the worship of images , crosses , and reliques ; of the adoration of the host , &c. monsieur de meaux in his first exposition granted the whole , in these words since struck out , for monsieur daillé , says he , he thinks fit to confine himself to the first three centuries , in which it is certain that the church more exercised in suffering than in writing , has left many things to be cleared afterwards both in its doctrine and in its practice . edit . p. . now it being evident , notwithstanding this new thought , that the sufferings of the first years have not hindred , but that we have very large accounts of its doctrine and practice from the writings of those fathers who lived in them ; to confess that it is certain , that the tradition of the church of rome fails in many things both in doctrine and practice for the first years , is doubtless as fair a yielding up the cause , as to the matter of tradition , as we could desire ; and therefore however known by monsieur de meaux to be most certainly true , was yet thought too much by others to be confessed to the world , by a person of so great learning and eminence in their church . iv. as to the point of the invocation of saints , monsieur de meaux still shews us that he knows not what account to give of the grounds of it . he proposes several ways how the saints may possibly know our prayers , but cannot well tell us by which it is they do so . but in the first edition he shew'd yet more doubt : not only which way the saints hear them , but whether they hear them at all or no : not only , whether they joyn with them in their prayers , as they desire them to do , but whether it is not rather by some other means , yet more unknown to them , and not by their intercession , that they receive the benefit of them . the church , says he , contents her self to teach with all antiquity , these prayers to be very profitable to such who make them ; whether it be the saints know them by the ministry and communication of angels , who according to the testimony of scripture know what passes amongst us ; being established by gods order as administring spirits to co-operate with us in the work of our salvation : whether it be that god makes known to them our desires by a particular revelation : or whether it be that he discovers the secret to them in his divine essence in which all truth is compriz'd . and that in the manner , and according to the measure which he pleases ; or whether lastly by some other way yet more impenetrable and more unknown he causes us to receive the fruit of those prayers which we address to those blessed souls . ed. p. . so that in effect , whether the saints hear us or no , whether they joyn with us in our requests or no , according to monsieur de meaux's exposition , their church knows not ; which is sure a sufficient prejudice against their invocation ; and was , it seems , thought so by those who therefore caused all the latter part of this paragraph to be struck out , for fear of the advantage we might reasonably make of it . v. but if monsieur de meaux in his first exposition freely confess'd how uncertain the grounds of this invocation were , he no less freely left it to our choice whether we would practise it or not . he assured us there was no manner of obligation at all upon us so to do : and that the church would not condemn us if we did it not , provided we refused it not out of contempt , or with a spirit of dissension and revolt . furthermore , says he , there is nothing so unjust as to accuse the church of placing all her piety in these devotions to the saints ; since on the contrary she lays no obligation at all on particular persons to joyn in this practice . by which it appears clearly that the church condemns only those who refuse it out of contempt , and by a spirit of dissension and revolt . ed. p. , . this was monsieur de meaux's first exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church in this point : but such as his correctors it seems would not admit of : who therefore obliged him wholly to strike out that passage , that the church imposes no obligation at all upon particular persons to practise this invocation : and instead of condemning only those that refuse it out of contempt , or a spirit of dissension and revolt , which had freed us wholly from their anathema , to expound it now more severely . that she condemns those who refuse this practice whether out of disrespect or error . which will be sure to bring us under it . vi. in the article of images monsieur de meaux having first laid down this foundation , that the church of rome does not attribute to them any other virtue than that of exciting in us the remembrance of those whom they represent ; added in his first exposition which was suppressed , 't is in this consists the use and advantage of images . edit . p. . and to assure us yet further how little honour they had for them , concluded thus , so that to speak properly , and according to the ecclesiastical style , we do not so much honour the image of an apostle or martyr , as we do honour the apostle or martyr in presence of the image . edit . p. . now though we do not doubt but that this is the real opinion of monsieur de meaux , and all which he himself does , yet to say that the church of rome does neither require , nor practise , nor intend any more , was to presume too much upon our ignorance ; and indeed to give too great a scandal to many of his own communion , more zealous than himself for this service : and therefore we find it now expounded in a manner more conformable to the truth , though still exceedingly mollified , t is upon this is founded the honour which we give to images : and again . when we honour the image of an apostle or martyr , our intention is not so much to honour the image , as the apostle or martyr in presence of the image . vii . in the section of justification monsieur de meaux has omitted this whole paragraph since his first edition : the catholick church , says he , is no where more invincible than in this point , and perhaps it would need no long discourse to shew , that the more one searches by the scriptures into the design of the redemption . of mankind , which was to make us holy , the more one shall approach to our doctrine , and the more depart from the opinions of calvin , which are not maintainable , nay are contradictory and ruinous of all true and solid piety . ed. p. , . monsieur de meaux may please some other time to expound to us , what those opinions of calvin in this matter are which the church of rome is so invincible in , and which all parties among them will agree to be so contradictory , and ruinous to all true and solid piety , as he then said . in the mean time we will only beg leave to observe on occasion of this correction , that perhaps there are some in the church of rome of mr. calvin's mind in the worst of those principles monsieur de meaux refers to , and to assure him that there are several protestants in the world that are not ; tho they dare not therefore so severely censure the opinions of those that are . ix . monsieur de meaux having in a very few words explained the doctrine of justification , upon which the council of trent is so long and perplex'd , assured us in his first exposition , that that was enough for any man to know to make him a through christian. thus have you seen what is most necessary in the doctrine of justification ; and our adversaries would be extraordinarily contentious not to confess , that there is no need to know any more to be a solid christian. ed. p. . this would have been of great advantage to us , and have freed us from the anathema's of many other particulars , of which we more doubt , than of any thing monsieur de meaux has expounded of it ; but this others thought too great a concession ; and the bishop therefore , without changing any thing in his premises , was forced to draw a very different conclusion from them . thus have you seen what is most necessary in the doctrine of justification , and our adversaries would be very unreasonable if they should not confess , that this doctrine suffices to teach christians , that they ought to refer all the glory of their salvation to god through jesus christ. x. in the article of satisfaction , monsieur de meaux speaking of the temporal and eternal punishment of sin , and how the one may be retain'd when the other is forgiven , had this paragraph in the first edition , since struck out . the church has always acknowledged these two different manners of applying the remission of sins , which we have proposed ; because she saw that in the scriptures , besides the first pardon , and which ought to be the only , if men were not ungrateful , and which is pronounced in the terms of a pure remission , there is another absolution , and another grace , that is proposed in form of a judgment , where the church ought not only to loose and remit , but also to bind and retain . edit . p. , . the censure pass'd upon this , were enough to make one suspect , that either monsieur de meaux , or his correctors , were sensible upon further consideration , that they could not so easily find out these two forms , so distinguish'd in holy scripture , or prove that the church had always acknowledged them ; and therefore judged it safer not to undertake it . xi . in the article of confirmation , speaking of the imposition of hands , monsieur de meaux insinuated in his first exposition , that it had always been accompanied with the use of chrism ever since the apostles . thus , says he , all christian churches have religiously retained this practice , accompanying it ( the imposition of hands ) with holy chrism . ed. p. . this was too clearly false to be suffer'd to pass , and therefore it is now more loose , so as to admit of an equivocation , and yet seem to say still the same thing . thus all christian churches since the apostles times have religiously retained it , making use also of holy chrism . xii . in the article of the sacrifice of the mass , monfieur de meaux having expounded it according to our principles , in his first edition , concluded with us too . so that it ( the mass ) may , says he , be very reasonably called a sacrifice : ed. p. . but since the correction , the conclusion is much strengthned , tho the premises remain the same : so that there is nothing wanting to it , to make it a true sacrifice . xiii . as to the point of the pope's authority , the first exposition ran much higher than it seems the spirit of the gallicane church could bear . so that our profession of faith obliges us as to this point , to believe the roman church to be the mother and mistress of all churches , and to render a true obedience to the pope , the successor of st. peter , and vicar of jesus christ. ed. p. . it is now more loose , and in general thus ; we acknowledg a primacy in the successors of the prince of the apostles , to whom , for that cause we owe that obedience and submission which the holy councils and fathers have always taught the faithful . ed. p. . but it may be what was struck out of the exposition to please the correctors , monsieur de meaux recompensed in his letter to satisfy his holiness . xiv . in the conclusion , monsieur de meaux telling us that none of those articles he had expounded , according to our own principles , destroyed the foundation of our salvation , added in his first exposition what that foundation was , viz. the adoration of one only god , father , son , and holy ghost , and the trust in one only saviour . ed. p. . it is hard to say why this was not let pass , for we are unwilling to believe that the church of rome has any other foundation for salvation than this . but it may be to have put down this as the foundation of salvation , would have been too plainly to shew , that then we certainly have this , and that without mixture of any thing destructive thereunto . xv. monsieur de meaux go's on , in a very candid manner , since struck out ; in effect , says he , in all these explications , which contain the very bottom of our belief , there is not any one word repugnant to these two principles , either directly , or by consequence . so that acknowledging then this , that the church of rome do's believe and profess all that is essential to preserve the substance of the christian religion , so that they cannot reasonably impute to us any doctrine contrary thereunto , they must at the same time acknowledg , by their own principles , that the church of rome is a true part of the church of christ , to which every christian is obliged to unite himself in his heart , and in effect as far as in him lies . ed. monsieur de meaux may please to know , that we do confess the church of rome to be a part of the true church , thô indeed we think one of the worst ; and that we do with all our hearts desire a union with her ; and in effect do shew it as far as we are able , by retaining whatever we can of the same doctrines and practices with her . and if this were all they desired of us , as indeed it is all they ought , and all we can do : however an absolute union would not thereby be obtained , yet might we live at least like christians and brethren , in a common charity with one another , and so dispose our minds , as by god's grace to come in a little time to some better agreement in the rest too , than ever we are like to do without it . these are some of those passages that gave occasion to the correction we have spoken of at the sorbon , and to the suppression of the whole first edition , however authorized by the bishops of france in the same words it now is . i might have added many more ; but instead of it , will beg leave to offer the reader one correction made very lately by another faculty , that of louvain ; if not immediatly of monsieur de meaux's exposition , yet at least of a doctrine which they were before-hand given to understand , was so explained in it . monsieur de witte , pastor and dean of st. maries , in the city of mechlin , having , in a discourse with some persons of that city , on the th of july last , maintain'd the authority of the church and pope , according to the manner of monsieur de meaux's exposition ; complaint was made of him , first to the inter-noaen , then to his holiness himself , and four propositions drawn up against him , as the heads of his heresy . monsieur de witte maintain'd his opinion in several papers printed to that end ; in the * * * th of which , after several other authorities of persons of their church defending the same doctrine ; he tells them , that the golden exposition of faith of monsieur the bishop of condom , required nothing more to the sound , catholic , and orthodox faith in this matter ; which exposition , besides the elogies of many other eminent persons , was also approved by our holy father innocent the th himself , in his kind letter to him . but all this could not prevail with them to respect his doctrine ever the more for monsieur de meaux's exposition , or his holinesses brief . the faculty of divinity , at the command of the nonce , and with the knowledg , no doubt , and assent of the pope , to whom the whole affair had been communicated , censured his propositions , nov. . . and especially the second , in which monsieur de meaux's exposition of the catholick faith was principally concerned , as scandalous and pernicious . judicamus eam censurari posse uti scandalosam & perniciosam . may those who insist so much on the fidelity and authority of monsieur de meaux's exposition , please calmly to consider these things ; and tell us how we can rely on such an exposition of their doctrine , as notwithstanding so many formal approbations ; first , of the bishops of france , was yet corrected in so many places by the sorbon ; and secondly , of the pope , cardinals , and others in italy , and of the whole body of the clergy of france in their assembly ; has yet so lately been censured , at the command of the nonce , and with the consent of his holiness , by the faculty of one of their most eminent universities , to be scandalous and pernicious . a table of the articles contained in this treatise . i. the introduction . page . ii. that religious worship is to be paid to god only . iii. of the invocation of saints . iv. of images and relicks . v. of justification . vi. of merits . vii . of satisfactions , purgatory , and indulgences . part ii. viii . of the sacraments in general . ix . of baptism . x. of confirmation . xi . of penance and confession . xii . of extream unction . xiii . of marriage . xiv . of holy orders . xv. of the eucharist ; and first of the explication of those words , this is my body . xvi . do this in remembrance of me. xvii . the doctrine of the church of england concerning this holy sacrament . xviii . of transubstantiation , and of the adoration of the host. xix . of the sacrifice of the mass. xx. of the epistle to the hebrews . xxi . reflections upon the foregoing doctrine . xxii . of communicating under one kind . part iii. xxiii . of the word written and unwritten . xxiv . of the authority of the church . xxv . the opinion of the church of england , as to the authority of the church . xxvi . the authority of the holy see and of episcopacy . xxvii . the close . errata . preface ] page xxix the number of the sections mistaken to the end . p. xxxii . l. . dele ed. p. . p. xxxiv . l. . r. mechlin , ib. l. . r. inter-nonce . book . ] p. . l. . r. practise . p. . l. . r. works it in us . p. . in the margin , l. . del . . p. . the same . p. . marg. del . p. . p. . l. . r. vertut . p. . l. . r. mr. de meaux . l. . charity . p. . l. . r. vertue . p. . marg. ib. r. ver . . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england in the several articles expounded by monsieur de meaux . i. the introduction . it has always been esteemed more reasonable to doubt of principles first , and then to deny the conclusions that are drawn from them , than having granted the foundation , afterwards to cavil at the clear and necessary deductions from it . to profess that religious worship is due to god only ; and at the same time to say that we ought to adore men and women , crosses and images , and all that infinite variety of follies which these latter ages have set forth under the pious name of relicks . to declare , that we are saved only by christ's merits ; and yet still continue to teach us that we ought to set up our own . in a word , to say , that the death of christ was a perfect sacrifice , and one drop of his blood more than sufficient for the redemption of mankind ; and nevertheless go on to require our satisfactions as necessary too , and oblige us to believe that other propitiatory sacrifices besides that of the cross , ought to be offered up continually to god in his church , for the sins both of the dead and the living : this must certainly be the part of a disputant , either too ignorant to understand , or too obstinate to submit to any conviction . monsieur de meaux , the design of whose exposition seems rather to be an apology for the popish religion , than a free assertion and vindication of its errors , is above all things sensible of the justice of this reflection : and therefore endeavours by all means possible in the very entry of his treatise to prepare his reader against it , by shewing the injustice of charging consequences upon men which they do not allow ; and that therefore tho their superstructure should chance to overthrow their foundation , yet since they profess not to know that it does so , they ought not to be taxed with what they do not believe . it is not deny'd but that consequences may be sometimes either so obscure , or so far distant , that a person prejudicate for the principle , may well be excused the charge of a collection , which his actions shew he neither believes nor approves . but when the conclusions , as well as principles , are plain and confess'd , and the dispute is only about the name , not the thing ; we must beg leave to profess , that we cannot chuse but say that he believes not as he ought the infinite merits of christ's sacrifice , who requires any other offering for sin ; and that no subtilty of argument will ever perswade us that those destroy not their principle of worshipping god only , whom we see , contrary to his express command , prostrate every day before an image , with prayers and hymns to creatures that have been subject to like infirmities with our selves , and that are perhaps at this very time in a worser estate , than the most miserable of those that call upon them for their assistance . be it therefore allow'd to be as great a calumny , as monsieur de meaux can suppose it , to accuse men of consequences obscure and disavow'd ; the opinions we charge the church of rome with , are plain and confess'd , the practice and prescription of the chiefest authority in it . and to refuse our charge of them , is in good earnest nothing else than to protest against a matter of fact ; a plea , which even justice it self has told us , may without calumny be rejected as invalid . however , thus much at least we have got by this reflection , that it directs us to the true state of the controversy between us ; and shews , that we , who have been so often charged by the church of rome as innovators in religion , are at last by their own confession , allow'd to hold the ancient and undoubted foundation of the christian faith ; and that the question between us therefore is not , whether what we hold be true ? which is on all hands agreed , but , whether those things which the roman church has added as superstructures to it , and which , as such , we reject , be not so far from being necessary articles of religion , as they pretend , that they indeed overthrow that truth which is on both sides allow'd to be divine ; and upon that account ought to be forsaken by them ? the declaration of this , not so much by any new proof , as by clearing rather the true state of those points which are the subject of our difference , is the design of the following articles ; in which i shall endeavour to give a clear and free account of what we can approve , and what it is that we dislike in their doctrine ; and as far as the shortness of this discourse will allow , touch also upon some of those reasons that are the most usually given by us for both . article ii. that religious worship is to be paid to god only . that religious worship is due to god only , how necessary soever those practices of the roman church , which we are hereafter to consider , may have rendred it to monsieur de meaux to declare , yet is it , we suppose , but little necessary for us to say , we firmly believe , that the inward acknowledgment of his divine excellencies as the creator and lord of all things , is a part of the supream worship that is due to him . we believe that all the powers of our soul ought to be tied to him by faith , hope , and charity , as to that god who alone can establish and make us happy . and tho we do not think that there is now any sensible , or material sacrifice to be offered to him under the gospel , as there was heretofore under the law ; yet do we with all antiquity suppose the sacrifice of prayer and thanksgiving to be so peculiarly his due , that it cannot , without derogation to his honour , be applied to any other . what our opinion is of that worship which the roman church pays to the blessed virgin , and saints departed , we shall hereafter fully shew : but certainly great was the difference of those holy men whom monsieur de meaux mentions as their fore-runners in this practice , from the present manner of the popish invocation . gregory nazianzen in a rhetorical apostrophe , called to constantius in one , to his sister gorgonia in another oration , but he prayed to neither . st. basil ; st. ambrose ; st. j. chrysostom ; st. hierom ; st. augustin ; they desired sometimes that the martyr or saint would joyn with them in their requests , but they were rather raptures and wishes , than direct prayers ; and their formal petitions , but especially those of the church , were only to god almighty . they doubted whether the saints could hear them or no ; and were rather inclined to believe that they could not . the addresses of the mind , which the church of rome allows no less than the others to them , they look'd upon to be so peculiarly god's due , that they supposed he did not communicate them to the very angels that are in heaven . they declared against all thoughts of being assisted by the merits of their saints , or that god would ever the more readily , or indeed so soon accept their prayers coming by the intercession of another , as if they had gone themselves directly to the throne of grace . in a word ; they never imagined that this was an honour due to them ; but , on the contrary , constantly taught that it was a service belonging only to god almighty . well therefore might * * * monsieur daillé refer the beginnings of this invocation to these men , whose innocent wishes , and rhetorical flights , being still increased by the superstition of after-ages , first gave birth to this worship . but certainly the romanists cannot with any reason alledge them in favour of their error , till it be shewn either that we are mistaken in those differences we have here declared to be between what they did , and what the church of rome now practises ; or that they are otherwise proved to be so inconsiderable , as not to make any notable alteration in it . and yet that the ages before knew nothing , even of this , not only their confessed inability to produce any proofs from them of this superstition , but the contrary testimonies of the undoubted writings of ignatius , tertullian , clemens alexandrinus , origen , novatian , and others , so plainly shew , that it ought not to be esteemed at all rash at this distance to assert , that in this very small change , the fathers of the fourth century , did certainly begin to depart from the practice and tradition of those before them . and if that reason of the church of rome be of any strength , why they pray'd not to the holy men under the old testament , viz. because they were not then admitted to the sight of god , and therefore ought not to be prayed to . it seems to us that not only the greater part of the primitive fathers , but even those very men monsieur de meaux mentions , could not certainly have allowed such an invocation as is now used in their church ; the most of them being notoriously known , and even by their own writers freely confessed , to have believed the same , that neither do the saints and confessors of the christian church any more enjoy the presence of god even now . thus much was thought fit to be said to remove that prejudice monsieur de meaux had thrown in the way . we go on now with him to consider the doctrine it self , and what our church's opinion is of it . article iii. of the invocation of saints . the invocation of saints , as it is stated by monsieur de meaux , we look upon to be one of those practices which our church stiles , fond things , vainly invented , and grounded upon no warrant of holy scripture , but indeed repugnant to god's word . monsieur de meaux himself dares not say that they do or can ordinarily by any ability in themselves , hear , see , or know , the wants , state , or prayers of men upon earth , to be mindfull of them unto god in heaven . nor can it ever be proved that by any of those ways which he proposes , but seems himself not to lay any great stress upon , they are certainly and particuly communicated to them . we think therefore , that till this be cleared , it is too great a hazard to leave a mediator , who both certainly knows our wants , and has promised to hear us ; that has invited us , nay commanded us to come to him in all our needs , to go to intercessors which god has no where appointed , and which we can never be sure our prayers shall come up to . it sufficeth not that they may know some things , in some places , at some times , and of some men extraordinarily , unless we could tell what saints , and what things , and in what places , and at what times , they do know them . when this is cleared , it may then be more reasonable to desire us to joyn with them in this service . in the mean time , tho we should not charge them with idolatry meerly for this , yet we must needs confess we cannot but think these addresses to be too full of hazard and uncertainty to venture any requests at all , much less so many as they do every day , upon them . in vain therefore does monsieur de meaux endeavour to defend the innocence of this invocation , whilst he forgets to shew us the reasonableness of it . we should be pleased indeed to be assured of that ; but we cannot be convinced that we ought to joyn in the practice till we are satisfied of the other too . and yet we cannot but regret , that if their design be truly no more than this , to entreat the saints to pray for them , we should find the greatest part of their service addressing to them after so contrary a manner ; that they would interpose not only their intercessions , but their merits too for their forgiveness : not only that they would pray to god for them , but that they would themselves bless them . that the angels and saints would give them strength , grace , health , and power . that st. peter would have mercy upon them , and open to them the gate of heaven . that the blessed virgin would protect them from their enemies , and receive them at their death : in a word , that she would command her son to forgive them by that right , which as a mother she had over him . all which their very publick rituals so far allow , that the service which is paid to god in his church by the mediation of christ , is infinitely exceeded by the addresses of this nature , through the merits of the virgin mary , and of the saints . now if these prayers signify no more than , as monsieur de meaux expounds them , to entreat the saints to pray for them , why have we such scandal given us in the practice ? if they intend really what we suppose , and what their words do certainly signify ; what ingenuity can it be to impose upon us in the declaration ? however at least they will please to excuse us that we have fallen at so just a stumbling block ; and charged them as derogating from the merits of christ , whilst they have thus cry'd up the merits of their saints , and of a presumption unwarrantable , if not wholly idolatrous , in desiring any but god alone to help , and succour , and give them those blessings , which god only has power to dispense . . when therefore we shall be certainly assured that all that infinite number which the church of rome has canonized , are truly and infallibly saints . . when we shall be assured that these saints do already enjoy the presence of god almighty ; a circumstance which the papists themselves confess necessary to warrant their invocation . . when it shall be made undoubtedly appear , that either by their own knowledg , or by some other revelation , they do ordinarily and particularly understand all the requests that are made to them ; so that we can be as secure of their hearing us , as when we desire our brethren upon earth to pray for us . . when the liturgies of their church shall be reformed , and all those dangerous insinuations of the merit and personal assistance of their saints be removed . . when those desperate doctrines , and yet more desperate addresses of their school-men and controvertists , which scandalize the more moderate even of their own party , shall be censured . . and men taught to practise this invocation with such sobriety , as neither to make it so freely and publickly their worship as they do , nor with any opinion of being either sooner heard , or more effectually answered by this way of address , than by going directly to god by our saviour and only mediator jesus christ. . in a word , when even an invocation so moderated , shall be shewn either to have been commanded by god almighty , or to have been advised by his apostles , or to have been practised ordinarily and directly by the most primitive christians : or lastly , but to be no way injurious to the excellent goodness of that intercessor , who has so kindly invited , and even conjured us to come to him in all our needs ; then will we not fail to joyn our ora pro nobis with them : but till then we must beg leave to conclude with a charity and moderation , which we suppose they themselves cannot but approve in us , that it is a fond thing , vainly invented , and grounded upon no warrant of holy scripture , but rather indeed contrary thereunto . and what we have now said of their prayers , we must in the next place apply to their sacrifices too . to mention the names of the holy saints departed in the communion ; this we look upon to be a practice as innocent as 't is ancient . so far are we from condemning it in them , that we practise it our selves . we name them at our altars , we give god thanks for their excellencies , and pray to him for grace to follow their examples . but as we allow thus much to their memories , so we cannot but condemn that practice which monsieur de meaux seems to have omitted , tho yet the chief thing that offends us ; that they recommend the offerings which they make to god , through the merits of their saints which they commemorate , and desire that by their merits they may become available to the churches needs . as if christ himself , whom they suppose to be the sacrifice , needed the assistance of st. bathildis or potentiana , to recommend him to his father : or , that the merits of an offering , which they tell us is the very same with that of the cross , should desire the joynt deserts of a st. martin to obtain our forgiveness . they who shall consider these things as they ought , will , we doubt not , confess that we have some reason to complain , both that they derogate herein from christ's merits , and attribute to their saints more than they ought to do . if this practice be reformed , our complaint , as to this point , ceaseth . if it be not , in vain does monsieur de meaux endeavour to perswade us , that they only name their saints to give god thanks for their excellencies , whilst their publick practice avows , that they desire both the pardon of their sins , and even the acceptance of their very sacrifices themselves , by their mediation . article iv. of images and relicks . vvhat the opinion of the church of england is concerning the worship of images and relicks , will need no long declaration to shew , they being joyn'd by her in the same article with that of the invocation of saints before-mentioned , and by consequence , submitted by her to the same censure . but then , as we before complained , that both the practice of their church in the publick liturgies of it , and the approved doctrine of their most reputed writers , should so far contradict what monsieur de meaux would have us think is their only design in that service ; so we cannot but repeat the same complaints in this : that if all the use their church would have made of images and relicks , be only to excite the more lively in their minds the remembrance of the originals , not only the people should be suffered to fall into such gross mistakes , as 't is undeniably evident they do , in their worship of them ; but even their teachers be permitted without any reproof to confirm them in their errors . has st. thomas and his followers , nay , and even their pontifical it self , ever yet been censured by them , for maintaining in plain terms , that the image of the cross ought to be worshipped with the same worship as that saviour who suffered on it ? have the jesuits been condemned for teaching men to swear by it ? does not their whole church upon good-friday yet address her self to it in these very dangerous words , behold the wood of the cross ! come , let us adore it . and do not their actions agree with their expressions , and the whole solemnity of that day's service plainly shew , that they do adore it in the utmost propriety of the phrase ? does she not pray to it , that in this time of the passion , it would strengthen the righteous , and give pardon to the guilty ? is the hymn for the day of the invention corrected , wherein they profess that the cross heals their sicknesses , ties up the devil , and gives them newness of life ; and thereupon desire it to save its assembly , gathered together in its honour ? is the manner of consecrating them changed , in which they intreat god to bless the image of the cross which they there sanctify , that it may be for the establishment of their faith , an increase of their good works , the redemption of their souls , and their protection against the cruel darts of the enemy ? that christ would embrace this cross , over which they pray , as he did that upon which he suffer'd : that as by that he delivered the whole world from its guilt ; so by the merits of this , they who dedicate it may receive remission of their sins . in a word , that as many as bow down before it , may find health both of their souls and bodies by it . and is all this in good earnest no more than to excite more lively in our minds the remembrance of him that loved us , and delivered himself to the death for us , and to testifie by some outward marks our acknowledgment of that favour , by humbling our selves in presence of the cross , to declare thereby our submission to him that was crucified . is not this rather , if not absolutely to fall into , yet certainly too nearly to approach to that which monsieur de meaux himself confesses to be idolatry , viz. to trust in the images as if there were some divinity or virtue joyned to them , and for which they not only shew all imaginable marks of outward worship , by kissings , prostrations , and the like ceremonies ; but make as formal addresses to them , and that in the publick service of the church , as to god himself ? how this allow'd practice can be reconciled with the prohibition of the council of trent , not to believe any divinity or virtue tied to their images for which they ought to be adored ; nor to demand any grace of them , nor place any trust or confidence in them ; monsieur de meaux may please to expound to us . in the mean time , as we are so far from condemning the making of all sorts of images , that we think it not any crime to have the histories of the gospel caryed or painted in our very churches , which the walls and windows of several of them do declare : as we publickly use the sign of the cross in one of our very sacraments , and censure no man for practising it , only without superstition , on any other occasion : so we cannot but avow the scandal that is given us by those doctrines and practices before mentioned ; and that we think that worship justly to be abolished which the primitive church abhorred , and which at this day scandalizes not only so great a number of christians , but even our common enemy the jew & turk : in a word , which is so far from being commanded by god , that it needs many nice distinctions to render it not directly opposite to an express prohibition ; and is therefore if not down-right idolatry to those who know how to direct their intention aright , yet to the simple and ignorant , that is , to the much greater number , and the most zealous practioners of this service , so very near it , that the generality of the wisest papists , no less than we , complain of it . for the honour that is due to reliques , no protestant will ever refuse what ever the primitive church paid them ; or may be fit to express the honour we ought to retain for those bodies that by martyrdom have been made sacrifices to god almighty . if this be all mr. de meaux desires of us , we are ready to profess our opinion , that we judg it to be neither offensive to god , nor fit to be scrupled by any good man. we believe that according to the circumstances of the times , the church may testify this honour by more or less outward signs and marks of respect . and we do with satisfaction read that declaration of mr. de meaux , that we ought not to be servilely subjected to these outward ceremonies , but to be invited by them to offer up to god that reasonable service , in spirit and in truth , which he requires of us . and if this be the state of the question , we confess the explication of it has taken away a great part of the difficulty . but what then means the council of trent , to tell us , that we are not only to honour them , but to worship them too ? that by doing so , we shall obtain many benefits and graces of god. that these sacred monuments are not unprofitably revered , but are to be sought unto for the obtaining their help and assistance ; to cure the sick , to give eyes to the blind , feet to the lame , and even life to the dead . how comes it to pass that their church not only honours them , which we could allow , but carries them in processions , makes offerings to them , gives indulgences to such as shall go to visit them ; prescribes pilgrimages to them , swears by them , touches their beads , or hankerchiefs , with them to sanctify them ; thinks to obtain one blessing by virtue of this relick , another from that ; and the like superstitious usages , which we suppose we have good reason with our church , to conclude to be fond things , vainly invented , and grounded upon no authority of holy scripture , but indeed repugnant thereunto . when therefore all these abuses which we have named , and which monsieur de meaux seems content to allow with us to be such , shall be corrected : when in the matter of images , . the hymns and addresses that teach us , so contrary to the spirit of christianity , to demand graces of them , and to put our trust in them , shall be reformed ; st. thomas and his abettors censured ; and all other marks of an unwarrantable worship be forbidden . . when the pictures of god the father , and of the holy trinity , so directly contrary both to the second commandment , and to st. paul's doctrine , shall be taken away , and those of our saviour , and the blessed saints be by all necessary cautions rendred truly the books , not snares of the ignorant . when in points of relicks , . they shall be declared to have no sanctifying virtue in them : . nor that they ought to be sought to for any assistance spiritual or temporal to be expected from them . . when it shall be resolved to be no matter of merit to go to visit them : . nor any more extravagant indulgences be set forth for pilgrimages unto them : when all these things which monsieur de meaux passes over , and which yet are undeniably their practice and our scandal , shall be corrected ; then will we both believe and submit to the rest which he desires of us : we will honour the relicks of the saints as the primitive church did : we will respect the images of our saviour , and the blessed virgin : and as some of us now bow towards the altar , and all of us are enjoyned to do so at the name of the lord jesus ; so will we not fail to testify all due respect to his representation . in the mean time , if the outcries of their own church at these abuses cannot prevail with them to redress them , yet at least they will confirm us in the reformation we have made of them ; and whilst we find hezekiah commended in the holy scripture for destroying the brazen serpent , thô made by god's express command , and in some sort deservedly honourable for that great deliverance it brought to the jews , because the children of israel offered incense unto it . we shall conclude our selves to be by so much the more justifiable , in that the images we have removed were due only to the folly and superstition of men , and have been more scandalously abused , to a worser and greater dishonour of god. artic . v. of justification . the doctrine of justification is one of those points that deserves our careful consideration ; as being not only one of the chiefest of those points wherein we suppose the church of rome to have prevaricated the faith , but as monsieur de meaux remarks , one of the first that gave occasion to that reformation that was made from it . it is not necessary to say to what an extravagance the business of pardons , indulgences , and other means of satisfying the divine justice , was arrived ; and how much more confidence the people generally put in the inventions of men , than in the merits and satisfaction of christ. if they have been somewhat better instructed since , they may thank the reformation for it : tho we fear all the difference is , that they are somewhat more reserved in exposing these follies now , but yet still retain the foundation of that doctrine upon which they are built . we willingly allow monsieur de meaux this honour , that he has reduced the long decrees of the council of trent to a short and easie debate ; and proposed the things which contain our difference with such tenderness , as might invite us to close with a great part of it , did not the decrees of the council seem too plainly to refuse monsieur de meaux's exposition of them . we believe with him , that our sins are freely forgiven by god's mercy through christ ; and that none of those things which precede our justification , whether our faith , or our good works , could merit this grace . we are perswaded that our sins are not only covered , but are entirely done away by the blood of jesus christ. we confess that the righteousness of jesus christ is not only imputed , but actually communicated to the faithful , through the operation of the holy spirit , in so much that they are not only reputed , but made just by his grace we deny not that this righteousness is a true righteousness , even in the sight of god ; because that it is god who by charity works in us : only we think it withal such as is too weak to obtain for us the pardon of our sins , which monsieur de meaux seems content to confess with us . we willingly acknowledg that our righteousness is not perfect in this life . whilst we are in the body , the flesh will lust against the spirit , and in many things we shall offend all . the life of a christian is a continued state of repentance : and he must be too much opiniated of himself that refuses to conclude with st. augustine ; that our righteousness in this life , consisteth rather in the remission of our sins , than in the perfection of our vertue . in a word ; the sum of our difference as to this point , seems to be this . our church by justification , understands only the remission of our sins : we distinguish it from sanctification , which consists in the production of the habit of righteousness in us . we believe our sins are pardoned only through the merits of christ imputed to us . and for the rest , we say , that this remission of sins is given only to those that repent ; that is , in whom the holy spirit produces the grace of sanctification , for a true righteousness and holiness of life . the church of rome comprehends under the notion of justification , not only the remission of sins , but also the production of that inherent righteousness , which we call sanctification . they suppose with us , that our sins are forgiven only by the satisfaction of jesus christ. but then as they make that inward righteousness a part of justification too ; so by consequence , they say our justification it self is wrought also by our own good works . it appears by this , that were these things clearly stated , and distinguish'd the one from the other , the difference between us , considered only in the idea , would not be very great : and that we might safely allow whatsoever monsieur de meaux has advanced upon this point , provided it be but well and rightly explained ; tho in some things he has expressed himself after a manner unusual among us ; and which we suppose not so entirely conformable to the expressions of holy scripture . the sum of all is this . christ died , and by that death satisfied the justice of god for us . god therefore through the merits of his son , freely forgives us all our sins , and offers us a covenant of mercy and grace . by this covenant , founded only upon the death and merits of christ , he sends us his holy spirit , and calls us powerfully to repentance . if we awake and answer this call , then god by his free goodness justifies us ; that is , he pardons our sins past , gives us grace more and more to fulfil his commands for the time to come ; and if we persevere in this covenant , crowns us finally with eternal life . and all this he is pleased to do , not for any thing which we have , or can perform , but only through the merits and satisfaction of his son by faith applied to us . this is the foundation wherein monsieur de meaux seems content to agree with us . we go on to see how the following doctrine will stand upon this foundation . artic . vi. of merits . for what concerns the merits of good works , we are content to accept of monsieur de meaux's exposition ; that eternal life ought to be proposed to man as the grace of god mercifully bestow'd upon us through jesus christ , and as a recompence that is faithfully rendred to their good works , and to the merits of them by vertue of gods promise . the word merit we acknowledge to have been very antient in the church ; and tho to prevent those mistakes which many in these latter ages have made on occasion of that expression , we think it safer to discourse more reservedly of the merit , and press more strongly the necessity of good works : yet if it be understood so as monsieur de meaux expounds it , that all our merit derives its force only from the merits of jesus christ , who works in us both to will and to do ; and when we have done , renders by the same merits our good works acceptable to god , and available to our eternal life , we shall not be difficult to allow of it . if this be all the church of rome ascribes to good works , that our justification proceeds absolutely from god's bounty and mercy , and but accidentally only ( in as much as god has tied himself by his word and promise to reward them ) from our own performances ; we need no long exhortations to receive a doctrine which we have always defended against such of the church of rome as have opposed it , and are not yet , that we know of , censured for their so doing . that which we reject is , that we do as truly and properly merit rewards when we do well , as we do merit punishment when we do ill : so says the jesuit maldonate . that our good works do merit eternal life condignly , not only by reason of god's covenant and acceptation , but also by reason of the work it self ; so says cardinal bellarmine . all which vasquez sums up in the three following conclusions ; . that the good works of just persons are of themselves , without any covenant or acceptation , worthy of the reward of eternal life , and have an equal value of condignity to the obtaining of eternal glory . 〈◊〉 . that there comes no accession of dignity to the works of just persons by the merits or person of christ , which the same would not otherwise have , if they had been done by the same grace bestowed freely by god alone without christ. . that god's promise is indeed annex'd to the works of just men , but yet belongs no way to the merit of them , but cometh rather to the works themselves , which are already not only worthy , but meritorious also . from all which he draws this remarkable corallary ; seeing the works of just men do merit eternal life , as an equal recompence and reward , there is no need that any other condign merit , such as that of christ , should interpose , to the end that eternal life might be rendred to them . — wherefore we never pray to god that by the merits of christ , the reward of eternal life may be given to our worthy and meritorious works ; but that christ's grace may be given to us , whereby we may be enabled worthily to merit this reward . this is that doctrine of good works which we most justly do detest : and if the opinion of the church of rome be so directly opposite to it as monsieur de meaux professes , we are a little surprised that no index expurgatorius , no authentick censure , has ever taken notice of so dangerous a prevarication . but contrary-wise , these are the great authors of their party , approved , embraced , and almost adored , by the greatest and most learned of that communion . these are the principles which we suppose to have been an unwarrantable derogation to the grace of god , and directly opposite to the nature of justification by faith in christ , before established . and tho this point was far from being the only cause of our separation from their communion , yet let mr. de meaux himself please to say , whether such a doctrine of merits as this were not sufficient , if not to engage us wholly to leave a church that taught such things , yet at least to dissent from her in these particulars . artic . vii , &c. of satisfactions , purgatory , and indulgences . the whole of this point we think to be the advancement of a doctrine grounded upon no authority of holy scripture , but on the contrary , derogatory to god's mercy in jesus christ , and , as the doctrine of merits before considered , inconsistent with the nature of that justification we before establish'd . monsieur de meaux was pleased there to tell us , of god's justifying us freely for christ's merits : that our sins are not only covered , but entirely done away by his mercy ; and the sinner not only reputed , but made just by his grace . we cannot but be troubled to see our selves so soon deprived of this excellent hope ; and required our selves to satisfy god's justice here , which he assured us was entirely done for us by christ before . when christ , says monsieur de meaux , who alone was able to make a sufficient satisfaction for our sins , died for us ; having by his death abundantly satisfied for them , he became capable of applying that satisfaction to us after two very different manners ; either by giving us an entire forgiveness of our sins , without reserving any pains for us to undergo for them ; or in changing only a greater pain into a lesser , the eternal torments of hell into a temporal punishment . the former of these being the more entire , and the more agreeable to the divine goodness , he accordingly makes use of it at our baptism : but we suppose he gives the second only to them who after baptism fall again into sin ; being in a manner forced to it through the ingratitude whereby they have abused his former gifts , so that they are to suffer some temporal pain , tho the eternal be remitted to them . this is a very great doctrine , and ought certainly to have some better proof of it , than barely we suppose . however it be , our church has declared its self of an opinion directly contrary : that since the absolute forgiving of sin is confessed to be the more perfect way , and more becoming the divine goodness ; and that god has never , that we know of , revealed any other ; but rather has constantly encouraged us to expect his pardon after the largest and most ample manner that it is possible for words to set forth ; we are persuaded that accordingly whenever god do's pardon , it is in that way which is the most suitable to his divine goodness , and which alone he hath declared to us , that he do's it intirely for christs merits , not for any works or sufferings of our own . in vain therefore does monsieur de meaux labour to reconcile this doctrine with christ's absolute satisfaction . we confess that we ought not to dispute with god the manner of his dispensations ; nor think it at all strange if he who shews himself so easie at our baptism , is afterwards more difficult for those sins which we commit being baptized . there is nothing in all this but what we could most readily allow of , were there but any tollerable arguments to establish the doctrine that requires it . but whilst this is so destitute of all proof , that it is acknowledged to introduce a manner of forgiveness neither so intire , nor so befitting gods mercy as a total remission of the punishment , together with the guilt ; whilst we have the sufferings of christ to rely upon , which are so far from needing any addition of our own , that they are confessed to have been super-abundant to whatever the divine justice could require of us ; tho we can and do practice the same discipline for the other benefits of it , viz. to shew our indignation against our selves that we have offended , and to keep us from sinning for the future ; yet we cannot be so forgetful of our dear master , as to pretend to any part in that redemption , but only to enjoy the benefits of that forgiveness , which by his alone merits he has intirely purchased for us ; nor do we see any reason to believe that gods justice will require any more , than what has been super-abundantly paid upon the cross for the iniquities of mankind . 't is true , monsieur de meaux tells us , that the necessity of this payment does not arise from any defect in christ's satisfaction , but from a certain order which god has establish'd for a salutary discipline , and to keep us from offending . this indeed were something , would either monsieur de meaux have been pleased to shew us this establistment , or had not the council of trent declared more , viz. that the justice of god requires it ; and that therefore the confessors should be charged to proportion the satisfaction to the crime . from whence cardinal bellarmine concludes , that it is we who properly satisfie for our own sins , and that christs satisfaction serves only to make ours valid . this is an exposition somewhat different from monsieur de meaux's , who will have the church of rome believe , that we do not our selves satisfie in the least for our sins , but only apply the infinite satisfaction of christ to them . upon the whole it appears , . that these penances are not only a salutary discipline , but a satisfaction too . . they change the mercy of god into a forgiveness , that is confessed neither to be in its self perfect , nor so becoming the divine goodness as an intire remission of sin , the punishment as well as guilt , would be . . their establishment depends only upon a humane supposition of its fitness ; and derogates from the very foundation of that covenant god has entred into with us by christ , that he will be merciful to our unrighteousness , and our sins and our iniquites he will remember no more . upon all which accounts , tho we practise this discipline for many other benefits of it , and wish it were universally established , not only in a more perfect manner than either in ours or their church it is , but even in a strictness equal to what they tell us it is fallen from ; yet we cannot believe , that by any of these things we are able to make a true and proper satisfaction to god for sin ; which he only could do , who himself bore our sins in his own body upon the cross , and by that one suffering , for ever perfected them that are sanctified . article vii . of indulgences . the doctrine of indulgences the council of trent has asserted only , not explained : mon●ieur de meaux has stated it after a manner so favou●able to us , that i am persuaded he will find more in ●is own church than in ours to oppose his doctrine . it was the discipline of the primitive church , when the bishops imposed severe penances on the offenders , and that they were almost quite performed , if some great cause of pity chanced to arrive , or an excellent repentance , or danger of death , or that some martyr pleaded in behalf of the penitent , the bishop did sometimes indulge him , that is , did relax the remaining part of his penance , and give him absolution . monsieur de meaux having this pattern before his eyes , frames the indulgences now used in the church of rome exactly according to it . when the church , says he , imposes upon sinners hard and laborious penances , and that with humility they undergo them , this we call satisfaction ; and when having regard either to the fervour of the penitents , or to some other good works which she prescribes , she relaxes some part of the punishment yet remaining ; this is called indulgence . but to pass by for the present those abuses that are every day made of these indulgences , and which both the council and monsieur de meaux seem willing to have redressed ; such essential differences we conceive there are between the indulgences of the primitive , and those of the roman church , that tho we readily enough embrace the one , yet we cannot but renounce and condemn the other . in the primitive church these indulgences were matters of meer discipline , as the penances also were ; the one to correct the sinner , and to give others caution that they might not easily offend ; the other to encourage the penitent to honour the martyr that interposed for his forgiveness , or to prevent his dying without absolution . in the church of rome they are founded upon an errour in doctrine ; that as their penance is not matter of discipline , only to correct the sinner , but to be undergone as a satisfaction to be made to god for the sin ; so their indulgence is not given as monsieur de meaux expounds it , upon any consideration had of the fervour of the penitent , to admit him to absolution which he has already received , but by the application of the merits of their saints who they suppose have undergone more temporal punishments than their sins have deserved , to take off that pain , which notwithstanding their absolution , the sinner should otherwise have remained liable to . in the primitive church the bishop received the penitent to absolution , and the exemplariness of his repentance , or the intercession of the martyr that supplicated for him , was the only consideration they had for the indulgence . in the church of rome the indulgence is to be had from the pope only , in whose hands the merits of their saints lye , the overplus of which are , they say , the treasure of the church , to be dispensed upon all occasions to such as want , and upon such terms as his holiness shall think fit to propose . in the primitive church these indulgences were very rare , given only upon some special occasions , and the bishop never relaxed the remainder of the penance he had imposed , till the penitent had performed a considerable part of it , and shew'd by his contrition that it had obtained the effect of bringing him to a sense of his sin , and a hearty repentance for it , which was the end they designed by all . in the roman church they are cry'd about the streets , hung up in tables over every church door , prostituted for money , offer'd to all customers , for themselves or for their friends ; for the dead as well as the living ; and to visit three churches , say a prayer before this altar , at the other saints monument , in a third chappel , is without more ado , through the extraordinary charity that church hath for sinners , declared sufficient to take off whatever such punishment is due for all the sins of a whole life . and here then let monsieur de meaux in conscience tell us ; is all this no more than to release some part of the remaining penance , in consideration of the fervour of the penitent in performing the rest ? such pardons as these we do certainly with reason conclude , to be fond things , vainly invented , and grounded upon no authority of holy scripture , but indeed repugnant to gods word . but for the rest , we profess our selves so far from being enemies to the ancient discipline of the church , that we heartily wish to see it revived ; and whenever the penances shall be reduced to their former practice , we shall be ready to give or receive such an indulgence as monsieur de meaux has described , and as the primitive ages of the church allow'd of . article viii . of purgatory . but the temporal pains which they suppose due to sin , has yet another error consequent upon it . that since every man must undergo them according to the proportion of his sins , if any one chance to dye before he has so done , he cannot pass directly into heaven , but must undergo these punishments first in the other life , and the place where these punishments are undergone , they call purgatory . so that the doctrine then of purgatory , relies upon that satisfaction which we our selves are to make for our sins , besides what christ has done for us : and according to the measure that that is either true or false , certain or uncertain , this must be so too : since therefore monsieur de meaux tells us only , that the church of rome supposes the former to be true , they can only suppose the latter in like manner ; and therefore till they are able certainly to assure us of that , we shall still have reason to doubt of this . that the primitive church from the very second century , made prayers for the dead , we do not deny ; but that these prayers were to deliver them out of purgatory , this we suppose monsieur de meaux himself will not avow ; it being certain that they were made for the best men , for the holy apostles , the martyrs and confessors of the church , nay for the blessed virgin her self , all which at the same time they thought in happiness , and who the papists themselves tell us never toucht at purgatory . many were the private opinions which the particular christians of old had concerning the reason and benefit of praying for the dead . some then , as we do at this day , only gave thanks to god for their faith and their examples . others prayed for them , either for the bodies resurrection , or for their acquitting at the final judgment , as supposing it to be no way unfit to pray to god for those very blessings which he has absolutely promised and resolved to give . some thought an increase of glory might be obtained to the righteous by their prayers . all believed this , that it testified their hope of them , and manifested their faith of that future resurrection which they waited for ; and in the mean time maintained a kind of fellowship and communion between the members of christ yet alive , and those who were departed only , not lost by death . but then it is to be observed , that when they most ordinarily prayed for the dead , yet was there nothing determined as to this point ; all was left to the piety and opinion of particular men , nor durst they absolutely resolve whether the dead received any benefit by them ; as both the learned of the church of rome themselves confess , and the writings of primitive antiquity , even to st. augustine himself , undoubtedly shew . now as there is none of us that will condemn the charity of any man , to pray , or fast , or afflict himself for the pardon and forgiveness of his friends , his country , or his church , so it be done without any fond opinion of merit or satisfaction , and to hope too by such prayers to obtain god's mercy for them : so if any one will put up his particular requests for the dead too , for any of those ends for which the primitive christians did , we shall not condemn him . only let not that be made an article of our faith which we can never be assured of , and which when it was most practised , was received only as a private opinion , and in a sense far different from what is now asserted ; and for the rest we shall not refuse to consent to any liberty whereby peace may be obtained , and our free justification by faith in christ not injured . part ii. of the sacraments . article ix . of the sacraments in general . the doctrine of the sacraments has always been esteemed one of the most considerable obstacles to our union with the church of rome . we cannot imagine why monsieur de meaux should insinuate as if our disputes about these , except it be in the point of the eucharist , were not so great as about other matters , unless it be to serve for an excuse for his own passing so lightly over them , or to make us less careful in examining their doctrine . the sacraments of the new testament , in that proper sense in which we now take the word , we have always look'd upon to be not only holy signs to represent and confirm to us the grace of god , but also effectual tokens of his good will to us , by which he does work invisibly in us , and strengthen and confirm our faith in him . to obtain the benefit of the holy sacraments , we cannot believe it to be enough that we have no ill disposition , but do suppose that it is a sufficient obstacle if we have not a good one . we confess that the faith of the church , and those who present them to baptism , is all that is required to prepare infants to receive the spiritual regeneration which that sacrament confers . but for those who by age are capable of it , we suppose both in baptism and in the holy eucharist , an actual faith of gods promise annexed to the outward signs which we receive , to be indispensably necessary for the partaking of their effects . and tho if the rest be agreed , we shall not desire to determine any mans belief , as to the manner how the sacraments confer that grace which god has promised by them ; yet we judg it more agreeable to the analogy of our faith to say , that upon the performance of the outward ceremony , god bestows the inward blessing ; than that the blessing is conferr'd by virtue of the words which are pronounced , and the action which is done to us , as monsieur de meaux has expounded it . we do not by this at all take off from the necessity of the outward signs . we confess , that besides the inward preparation , there is required for our sanctification a special operation of the holy spirit , and an application of christs merits by the means of the holy sacraments . this we are so perswaded of , that we profess them to be ‖ ‖ ‖ necessary to salvation , insomuch that whosoever either carelesly neglects , or presumptuously despises the use of them , will in vain expect it by any other means . for the number of the sacraments , we acknowledg only two as generally necessary to salvation ; and are surprized to see the council of trent damning all such as will not receive a number , which neither has the scripture any where declared ; nor was it , that we know of , till the very th century ever heard of in the church . * * * hugo de st. victor is the first that we can find it in , years after christ ; ‖ ‖ ‖ lombard and the schoolmen follow'd him . pope † † † eugenius in his instructions to the armenians gave yet more countenance to it ; but that all those ceremonies which the church of rome now receives are truly and properly sacraments , and that there be neither more nor less than seven , never any one absolutely determined , till the council of trent first canonically decreed it , and commanded the church under an anathema to receive it . the special consideration of their five pretended sacraments , will give us an opportunity more particularly to establish that number we our selves propose . this presumption of the truth we must not omit here , that not only the ancient fathers of the church when they speak of the sacraments properly as we now do , mention only baptism and the lords supper ; but even the papists themselves who establish more , yet confess these to be so far the principal , that our own article says but little more , than what their greatest schoolmen have voluntarily confessed . article x. of baptism . how strict our church is in maintaining the necessity of baptism , the very office by which we do administer it , sufficiently shews . we declare that all men are conceived and born in sin , and that none can enter into the kingdom of god , except he be regenerate and born anew of water , and of the spirit . this is the law of christ which the eternal truth has established ; and whosoever shall presume to oppose it , let him be anathema . but now as all other laws , so this of christ , must , we think , be interpreted according to the rules of natural equity . the ancient church constantly professed her belief , that martyrdom excused the defect of baptism . many of the papists themselves suppose , that the desire of it , when by some unavoidable necessity the sacrament its self cannot be obtained , shall be reputed for it . monsieur de meaux insinuates that the acts of faith , hope , and charity , may supply the want of it . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ st. bernard plainly concludes the same , if , says he , a man desirous of baptism be suddenly cut off by death , in whom there wanted neither found faith , nor devout hope , nor sincere charity ; god be merciful unto me , and pardon me if i err , but verily of such a ones salvation in whom there is no other defect but his faultless lack of baptism , despair i cannot , nor induce my mind to think his faith void , his hope confounded , and his charity fallen to nothing , only because he hath not that which not contempt , but impossibility with-holdeth . when therefore so many ways have been allowed to excuse the defect of baptism , tho our church has rather taken all imaginable care that infants shall not die without it , than presumed rashly to determine what shall become of them if they do ; yet we cannot but condemn the uncharitableness of the church of rome in excluding them from all part in jesus christ , and denying that mercy to a tender and impotent age , which they so liberally extend to those of riper years . if not the want but the contempt of this sacrament be the only thing that is damnable , to be sure no contempt of baptism can be in them . if the desire of baptism in those that are capable of it , is by many of the church confessed to be reputed for baptism ; why shall we not hope that god who is all merciful , will accept the desire of the church and of their parents in their behalf , who by their age are not capable to have any of their own . ‖ ‖ ‖ if faith , hope and charity , as monsieur de meaux himself implies , may excuse them who actually have these graces , tho they want this sacrament ; why may not that faith , that hope , that charity of the church , which being imputed to them renders them capable of baptism , be as effectual to stand instead of it to them , as their own proper faith for others , if a necessity which could not be avoided prevents it ? in a word , since such is the mercy of god , that to things altogether impossible he bindeth no man ; but where what he commands cannot be performed , accepteth of our will to do it instead of the deed. . seeing god's grace is not so absolutely tyed to the sacraments , but that many exceptions have been , and are still confessed to be sufficient to obtain it , without the external application of them : seeing , . st. paul has told us that the seed of faithfull parentage is holy from the very birth , as being born within the covenant of grace ; tho we determine nothing , yet we think it the part of charity , not only to take all the care we can to present our infants to baptism whilst they live , but if by any unavoidable necessity they should die without it , ‖ ‖ ‖ to hope well of them : remembring that judgment of god , exod. . who when moses neglected to circumcise his son , spared the child in that he was innocent , but sought to kill moses for his carelesness in the omission . a necessity therefore of baptism we constantly maintain ; but absolutely to determine that all those who die without it , are excluded from the grace of christ , neither will monsieur de meaux presume to do of men , nor dare we much less to affirm it of infants . the lutherans condem the anabaptists for refusing baptism altogether to children , which we also condemn in them . but that therefore they make no allowance for extraordinary cases , where both the church and the parents desired to have baptized them , only that some unavoidable accident prevented it , neither did cassander believe , nor do the terms of their confession at all require . for the calvinists , so far were they from being the authors of this charitable opinion towards infants dying unbaptized , that many of the most eminent men of the church of † † † rome have long before them maintained the same . to conclude , if monsieur de meaux himself do's in good earnest believe the danger so great as he pretends ; may he then please to consider , what we are to judge of those who in so many places have not left any ministers at all to confer this sacrament . for our parts we freely declare their hazard to be infinitely greater than either the childrens or their parents ; who are so far from that indifference monsieur de meaux most injuriously charges them with , that in places where publick ministers reside , that they have the opportunity to do it , they fail not with all imaginable care to present them in the ambassadors chappels to baptism , if they have but the least apprehension that they are not in a condition to be carried to their own temples . article xi . of confirmation . to clear our way to that particular examination that is necessary of the following pretended sacraments of the roman church , it will be necessary to observe , that by their own confession these three things are absolutely required to the essence of a true sacrament . . christ's institution . . an outward and visible sign . . an inward and spiritual grace by christ's promise annexed to that sign . we cannot but admire , that neither in the council of trent , or in the catechism made by its order , is there any attempt to prove either of these from the holy scripture as to the point of confirmation . it was so much the more necessary to have done this , in that many of the greatest note in the roman church had denied the divine institution of it ; and some of them were approved by the holy see its self that did it . the outward sign had been none of the least controversies that have exercised their own pens : and indeed since they have laid aside that of imposition of hands which they confess the apostles used ; it was but reasonable to have shewn us some authority for that other they have established in its stead . what monsieur de meaux expounds , is a clear vindication of our practice , but defends nothing of their own doctrine . that we think it to have been an ancient custom in the church , and which the very apostles themselves practised , to lay hands on those that had been baptized ; and in imitation whereof we our selves at this day do the like , the practise of our church sufficiently declares . we confess that the use of chrism in confirmation was very ancient , yet such as we deny to have been apostolical . we do not our selves use it , yet were that all the difference between us , we should be far from judging those that did . the discipline of our church allows none that is not of the episcopal order to confirm . and for the benefit of it , as the bishop prays to god for his holy spirit to assist us in the way of virtue and religion , to arm us against temptation , and to enable us to keep our baptismal covenant which we then ( our selves repeat , and ) in the presence of the church-openly ratifie and confirm : so we piously hope that the blessing of the holy spirit descends upon us , through his prayer , for all these great ends ; both to strengthen the grace we already have , and to increase it in us to a more plentiful degree . article xii . of penance and confession . for penance and confession , we wish our discipline were both more strictly required , and more duly observed than it is . the canons of our church do perhaps require as much as the primitive christians themselves did : and it is more the decay of piety in the people , than any want of care in her , that they are not as well and regularly practised . we do not believe penance to be a sacrament after the same manner that baptism and the holy eucharist are ; because neither do we find any divine command for it , nor is there any sign in it established by christ , to which his grace is annexed . we suppose that if the ancient church had esteemed it any thing more than a part of christian discipline , they would not have presumed to make such changes in it , as in the several ages it is evident they did . the primitive christians interpreting those places of † † † st. matthew and st. john which monsieur de meaux mentions , of publick discipine , and to which we suppose with them they principally at least , if not only refer , at first practised no other . for private faults , they exhorted their penitents to confess them to god , and unless some particular circumstances required the communication of them to the priest , plainly signified that that confession was not only in its self sufficient , but in effect was more agreeable to holy scripture , than any other . if the conscience indeed were too much burdened by some great fault ; or that the crime committed was notoriously scandalous , then they advised a confession to the priest too . but this was not to every priest , nor for him just to hear the confession , and then without more ado to say i absolve thee ; they prescribed in every church some wise physician of the soul on purpose for this great charge , that might pray with the penitent ; might direct him what to do to obtain gods favour ; might assist him in it ; and finally , after a long experience , and a severe judgment , give him absolution . this was the practise of the eastern church ; till upon occasion of a certain scandal , nectarius first began to weaken it in his church at constantinople ; and st. j. chrysostome his successor seconded him in it . they reduced the practise to what it had been in the beginning ; that open and scandalous sins should be openly punished by the publick discipline of the church , and the private be confessed only to god almighty . yet still the publick confession remained in the practise of the western church . pope leo i. to take away the occasions of fear and shame that kept many from the exercise of it , first ordered , that it should be sufficient to confess to god and the priest only ; which is the first plausible pretence offered by them for auricular confession . thus this practise , now set up for a sacrament instituted by our saviour , and absolutely necessary to obtain god's pardon , first began . but the performance of it was yet left to every mans liberty . about years after christ , the council of lateran first commanded it to be of necessary observance : but we do not find that till the council of trent in the last age , it was ever required to be received absolutely as a sacrament of divine institution , and necessary to salvation . this short view of the practise of antiquity in this point , may be sufficient to shew , that unless it were the publick power of the church to censure open and scandalous offenders , which was the key of discipline our blessed saviour left to it ; for the rest , several churches and ages had their several practises . they advised private confession as upon many accounts which monsieur de meaux remarks , and which we willingly allow , very useful to the penitent : but it was not for above a years ever looked upon as absolutely necessary , nor by consequence as sacramental . the church of england refuses no sort of confession either publick or private , which may be any way necessary to the quieting of mens consciences ; or to the exercising of that power of binding and loosing , which our saviour christ has left to his church . we have our penitential canons for publick offenders : we exhort men if they have any the least doubt or scruple , nay sometimes tho they have none , but especially before they receive the holy sacrament , to confess their sins . we propose to them the benefit not only of ghostly advice how to manage their repentance , but the great comfort of absolution too , as soon as they shall have compleated it . our form of absolution after the manner of the eastern church at this day , and of the universal church for above years , is declarative rather than absolute . whilst we are unable to search the hearts of men , and thereby infallibly to discern the sincerely contrite , from those that are not ; we think it rashness to pronounce a definitive sentence in god's name , which we cannot be sure that god will always confirm . when we visit our sick , we never fail to exhort them to make a special confession of their sins to him that ministers to them : and when they have done it , the absolution is so full , that the church of rome its self could not desire to add any thing to it . for the rest ; we think it an unnecessary rack to mens consciences to oblige them where there is no scruple , to reveal to their confessor every the most secret fault , even of wish or desire , which the church of rome exacts : nor dare we pronounce this discipline sacramental , and necessary to salvation ; so that a contrite sinner , who has made his confession to god almighty , shall not receive a pardon , unless he repeat it to the priest too . this we must beg leave with assurance to say is directly contrary to the tradition of the church , and to many plain and undoubted places of holy scripture . and if this be all our reformation be guilty of , that we advise not that which may torment and distract , but is no way apt to settle mens consciences ; nor require that as indispensably necessary to salvation , which we find no where commanded by god as such , we assure monsieur de meaux we see no cause at all either to regret the loss , or to be ashamed of the change. article xiii . of extreme unction . of all those pretended sacraments of the roman church that have no foundation in holy scripture , this seems to stand the fairest for it . here is both an outward and visible sign , and an inward and spiritual grace tied to it . insomuch that monsieur de meaux himself , who never attempted to say any thing of it in the two foregoing instances , yet fails not to put us in mind of it in this . to interpret rightly that place of st. james which is alledged to prove it , we must remark , that anointing with oyl was one of those ceremonies used by the apostles in working their miraculous cures , mark . . they cast out devils , says the evangelist , and anointed many sick persons with oyl , and cured them . sometimes they used only imposition of hands , and sometimes they did it without either . together with these outward signs they usually added prayer too , some invocation at least in the name of jesus christ , as the more substantial and more effectual assistance . so that st. jame's direction there , if any man be sick let him call for the elders of the church , and let them pray over him , anointing him with oyl in the name of the lord , and the prayer of faith shall save the sick , and the lord shall raise him up ; referring as is evident to those miraculous cures which the apostles and their successors in the primitive church wrought by such anointing : we look upon it , that the advice , in as much as it belonged to that , could neither have been the institution of a sacrament at all ; and that together with the miraculous power of healing , it is now long since ceased in the church . monsieur de meaux ought not to refuse this interpretation : ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ the ancient rituals of the roman church for above years after christ , shew that they esteemed this to be the meaning of it ; they understand it plainly of bodily cures , and cardinal cajetan himself freely confesses that it can belong to no other . our saviour and his apostles , when they thus miraculously healed the infirmity of the body , at the same time forgave the sin of the soul too ; for this cause st james adds , and if he have committed sins , they shall be forgiven him . tho this extraordinary power be now ceased both in the one and the other kind , yet we still endeavour to perform whatever we are capable of on these occasions ; we send for the elders of the church when we are sick , they pray over us ; if we stand charged with any private sins , or publick censures , we confess them to them , and they fail not by their absolution , as far as in them lies , to forgive us . this is all , we think , is now remaining for us to fulfil of what this text requires ; we anoint not our sick for the recovery of their bodily health , as st. james here prescribed , because the miraculous power of healing , to which that ceremony ministred , is ceased in the church . we pray over them if it please god for the recovery of their present health , but especially for their eternal salvation : we exercise the power of the keys to the forgiveness of their sins , because the benefit of this is the same now that ever it was ; christ's promise remains , and whilst we piously make use of the same means , we doubt not but it shall be to the like effect . article xiv . of marriage . for the point of marriage , monsieur de meaux says nothing but what we willingly allow of : we deny that it is a ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ sacrament after the same manner that baptism and the holy eucharist are , because it both wants an outward sign to which by christs promise a blessing is annex'd ; and is so far from being generally necessary to salvation , as they are , and as we suppose all true and proper sacraments ought to be , that the church of rome has thought fit to deny one of the most considerable parts of their communion altogether the use of it . article xv. of holy orders . the imposition of hands in holy orders , being accompanied with a blessing of the holy spirit , may perhaps upon that account be called a kind of particular sacrament . yet since that grace which is thereby conferr'd , whatever it be , is not common to all christians , nor by consequence any part of that foederal blessing which our blessed saviour has purchased for us ; but only a separation of him who receives it to a special employ ; we think it ought not to be esteemed a common sacrament of the whole church , as baptism and the lords supper are . the outward sign of it we confess to have been usually imposition of hands , and as such we our selves observe it ; yet as we do not read that christ himself instituted that sign , much less tied the promise of any certain grace to it ; so monsieur de meaux may please to consider , that there are many of his own communion , that do not think it to be essential to holy orders , nor by consequence the outward sign of a sacrament in them . we confess that no man ought to exercise the ministerial office till he be first consecrated to it . we believe that it is the bishops part only to ordain . we maintain the distinction of the several orders in the church ; and tho we have none of those below a deacon , because we do not read that the apostles had any , yet we acknowledg the rest to have been anciently received in the church , and shall not therefore raise any controversie about them . article xvi . of the eucharist . and first of the explication of those words , this is my body . in our entry upon this point , we cannot but testifie our just regret , that this holy sacrament which was designed by our blessed saviour not only to be the greatest assurance of his love to us , but the strongest engagement of our charity to one another , should have become the chiefest subject of our contentions , and widened that breach which it ought to have closed . monsieur de meaux who grounds his opinion of the corporeal presence of christ in this holy eucharist , upon the words of institution , which he contends ought to be litterally understood , yet proposes two cases wherein he seems to allow it might have been lawful to forsake the letter . we will join issue with him upon his own terms , and shew , . that there are such grounds in those words for a figurative interpretation , as naturally lead to it . . that when we come to consider the intention of our saviour in this holy sacrament , we are yet more strongly confirmed in it . it is confessed by the greatest authors of the church of rome , that if the relative this in that proposition , this is my body , refers to that bread which our saviour christ held in his hand at the time when he spoke those words , the natural repugnancy there is between the two things affirmed of one another , bread and christs body , will necessarily require the figurative interpretation . for this is impossible , says ‖ ‖ ‖ gratian , that bread should be the body of christ. it cannot be , says ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ card. bellarmine , that that proposition should be true , the former part whereof designeth bread , the latter the body of christ. † † † so that if the sense be , this bread is the body of christ , either it must be taken figuratively thus , this bread signifies the body of christ , or it is plainly absurd and impossible . the whole difficulty therefore as to our first point consists in this , whether our saviour christ when he said , this is my body , meant any thing else to be his body , than that bread which was before him . now for this , the connexion of his discourse seems to us an evident demonstration . our saviour christ took bread , and gave thanks , and brake it , and gave it to his disciples , saying , take , eat , this is my body which is given for you ; do this in remembrance of me . for what did he demonstrate here , and say was his body , but that which he gave to his disciples ? what did he give to his disciples , but that which he brake ? what brake he , but that which he took ? and st. luke says expresly he took bread. what jesus took in his hands , that he blessed : what he blessed , the same he brake and gave to his disciples : what he gave to his disciples , of that he said , this is my body : but jesus , says the text , took bread ; of the bread therefore he said , this is my body . in a word ; forasmuch as the papists themselves believe the bread to be turned into the substance of christ's body , because christ said this is my body : either those words refer to the bread , and then by their own confession they will require our interpretation ; or if they do not , it is evident that then from these words they can have no grounds to conclude their own pretended change . so necessarily do both the words themselves and their own confession , lead us to the exposition which we make of them . and what these prepare us to receive , the same , dly . the intention of our saviour in this holy sacrament , do's yet more strongly confirm to us . when god delivered the children of israel out of egypt , he instituted the passover to be a continual remembrance of that great deliverance . in like manner our blessed saviour being now about to work out a much greater deliverance for us , by offering up himself upon the cross for our redemption , he design'd by this sacrament to continue the memory of this blessing , that as often as we eat of this bread , and drink of this cup , we might shew forth the lords death till his coming . that this sacrament instituted for the like end which the passover had been , and now for ever to succeed in its place , might be both the better understood , and the easier received by them , it pleased our blessed lord to accommodate himself as near as was possible to the ceremonies and phrases they had before been used to . he retain'd the symbols , and even the expressions they had so long been acquainted with ; only he changed the application of them to a new and more excellent remembrance . in the jewish passover , the master of the house took bread , and brake it , and gave it to them , saying , this is the bread of affliction , which our fathers eat in egypt . in this holy sacrament , our saviour after the very same manner , took bread , and brake it , and gave it to them , saying , this is my body which is broken for you ; do this in remembrance of me. now as it is evident , that that bread which the jews every year took , and brake , and said , this is the bread of affliction which our fathers eat in egypt , was not that very bread which their ancestors so many generations before had eaten there ; but was design'd only to be the type or figure of it : so neither could our saviours disciples to whom he spake , and who , as being jews , had so long been acquainted with that phrase , ever believe , that the bread which he held in his hand , which he brake and gave them , saying , this is my body which is broken for you , do this in remembrance of me , was the very , actual , real body of christ which they saw before them at the table . they understood it , no doubt , to be the type and figure of that body which was now about to be broken for them ; as that bread which the master of the feast , after the very same manner , was wont to break to them , was the type of that bread of affliction which their fathers had eaten in egypt . nor does the phrase , my body , at all weaken , but rather confirm this idea , as being the ordinary expression among the jews , whereby they called the passover , the body of the passover , the body of the paschal lamb. it was therefore used here by our saviour with that allusion , the more expresly to signifie , that he was the true passover now to be sacrificed for us , by whose blood we were to be delivered from the destroying angel , and for the remembrance whereof , we were therefore to keep this ceremony , as the jews had done their passover for the other . this we suppose to be the undoubted interpretation of this place . monsieur de meaux ought the less to except against it , in that it was the original remark , not of any protestant , or of any other party of christians differing from the church of rome in this matter , but was objected to them by the verv jews themselves long before the reformation , upon the same account . they shew'd by it , that in the doctrine of this pretended change , the church of rome had evidently opposed the design of our saviours institution , and advanced an interpretation , which no one accustomed to the jewish notions , as the apostles were , could ever have understood to be his meaning . the design of this discourse permits me not to proceed to any more particular vindication of this exposition , nor to mention many other arguments more usually proposed ; and wherein it has clearly been shewn , that they have not only the holy scripture , and the design of our blessed saviour in this sacrament , but sense , reason , antiquity , whatsoever is able to furnish an argument , all unanimously against them : it remains only to examine whether what monsieur de meaux has proposed , be any thing more reasonable , that so we may go on to the consequences established upon this foundation . where first we cannot conceive why monsieur de meaux designing to establish the exposition of the holy eucharist upon the analogy which it has to the jewish sacrifices , should flie off to the natureof their sacrifices in general , where the parallel is neither so clear , nor so uncontroverted , as to produce any necessary consequence from the allusion . it would certainly have been more reasonable to compare it , as we have done , with that particular sacrifice of the passover to which it succeeded , and from which therefore , if any , must be shewed the design of it . but we will clear the whole difficulty in a reflection or two , and prove , that what has been offered to us as a convincing argument , is , upon a nearer view , a meer fallacy . and . we desire it may be observed , that the peace-offerings under the law were designed as an acknowledgment on the peoples part , for those temporal blessings which it pleased god to bestow upon them . and because after the sacrifice of isaac , god first entred into the covenant with abraham , and promised him his blessing , and to be his god , and the god of his seed after him ; it seems to have been further their intention in all these sacrifices , to call to remembrance that offering of isaac as the foundation of all those blessings for which these sacrifices were appointed as a testimony of their gratitude . . that tho the passover , like the sacrifice of the cross , was first offered as a sin-offering for the delivery of the first-born in the land of egypt ; yet that yearly remembrance of it , which god afterwards establish'd , was always esteemed a peace-offering ; and indeed , the perpetual order of their sacrifices clearly demonstrates that it could be no other . so that the parallel therefore , for the explaining the nature of the holy eucharist , must be this : . that as the jews ate of their peace-offerings in general , to call to mind the sacrifice of isaac , and give god thanks for those blessings which they received by it , and of that of the passover in particular , in memory of gods delivering them out of egypt ; so the christians partake of this blessed sacrament , in memory of that deliverance which the sacrifice of the cross of christ , whom both isaac and the paschal lamb slain in egypt typified , has purchased for them . . that as the peace-offering which the jews eat , was not changed into the substance of that first sacrifice whereof it was the remembrance , but was eaten as a figure or commemoration of it ; so the christians in their sacrament are not to think the bread and wine which christ has appointed to be our peace-offering , should be changed into the very substance of that body which was offered for us upon the cross , but to be received only as types of it . for thus was the peace-offering in general , a type of isaac , and the passover in particular , the type of that first lamb , which was slain for their deliverance in the land of egypt . when therefore monsieur de meaux tells us , that the jews ate the proper flesh of their peace-offering ; we answer , that so do we the proper substance of ours ; we eat the bread which christ appointed to be the remembrance of that deliverance which he has purchased for us , as the body of the lamb was commanded by god to be the remembrance of theirs . monsieur de meaux adds , that the jews were forbidden to partake of the proper flesh of their sin-offering , and of the blood , because that a perfect remission was not then obtain'd , and that therefore by the rule of contraries , we ought now to eat of ours , because a full satisfaction is now made by christ. for reply to which , it might suffice to say , that this rule of contraries , should we follow it according to the letter , would lead monsieur de meaux into so many absurdities , that he would be forced himself to abjure his own principle . according to this rule , the apostles could not have eaten the flesh of christ before his resurrection ; the priests under the law being commanded not to eat of the sin-offering after the third day , and therefore by the rule of contraries they could not partake of it before . monsieur de meaux may please to consider how far he will approve of this conclusion : in the mean time as to his objection , we have before said , that the remembrance we make in the holy eucharist , like that of the paschal feast among the jews , shews it to be a peace-offering ; and for the rest , if , as monsieur de meaux pretends , this blood was mystically forbid under the law , to shew that a perfect remission of sins was not then obtain'd ; it will follow , that for the contrary reason , christ appointed the cup to be received in this holy sacrament , to testifie that full remission which his blood has purchased for us . the church of rome therefore in refusing the cup to the people , not only violates the express command of our blessed saviour ; but according to monsieur de meaux's principles , teaches them by it , that a full remission of sins is not yet obtain'd , even by the precious blood of christ himself . it may by this appear what little advantage monsieur de meaux can get to justifie their doctrine of the corporeal presence of christ in the eucharist , from the analogie of the ancient sacrifices , which do clearly and necessarily establish the contrary . for what remains of this discourse we are but little concerned in it . we confess this sacrament to be somewhat more than a meer figure ; but we deny that therefore it must be his very body . we acknowledge the power of god , to do whatever he pleases : yet monsieur de meaux may please to consider , that contradictions , such as to be and not to be at the same time , are even in their own schools usually excepted . monsieur de meaux supposes , that because christ did not explain his words in the figurative sense , the apostles must needs have understood them in the literal . but we have before shewed , that the jews , who are certainly the best judges , are of a quite contrary opinion , viz. that his apostles knowing his allusion , could never have understood them otherwise than in a figure . in a word , for his last remark , that the laws of discourse , which perm●… , that where there is a just proportion between the sign and the thing signified , the one may be put for the other ; yet suffer it not to be so , when a morsel of bread , for instance , is set to represent the body of a man : we must beg leave to say , that neither is the proportion so small betwixt the bread broken and christs body broken , as monsieur de meaux would suggest ; or , that if there were , yet since our saviours institution has set the one to represent to us the other ; we think that designation ought to be of more authority with us , than all their new laws of discourse ; invented purposely only to set the fairer gloss upon so great and apparent an error . article xvii . do this in remembrance of me. the explication of the preceding article , having engaged us to a length extraordinary , we will endeavour to recompence it by our shortness in this . we are entirely agreed , that the intention of the son of god was to oblige us by these words to commemorate that death which he underwent for our salvation . we confess , that that real presence which we suppose in the communion , do's not at all contradict the nature of this commemoration . we are persuaded , that as the jews eating of their peace-offering , which was the remembrance of god's covenant , and particularly of the passover , the type of that paschal lamb that was offered for them in egypt , called to mind the sacrifice of isaac , and that great deliverance god had wrought for them , in bringing them up out of the land of bondage : so whilst we eat of those holy elements which our saviour christ has instituted like the peace-offering a-among the jews , to perpetuate the memory of his death , we call to mind the more lively , that great deliverance which he has wrought for us , and render thanks for it , and by faith and repentance apply to our selves the merits of it . thus whilst we receive these holy signs which he has instituted for our memorial , we need no real descent of the son of god from heaven ; no new crucifying of the lord of glory to raise in our souls those just resentments we ought to have of so excellent a blessing . but as a child cannot but recollect the kindness and affection of a dear father , as often as he beholds the monument where his dead body lies interred : so we much more , cannot chuse but excite our love to our blessed redeemer , as often as we see before our eyes these sacred elements under which he is vailed . nor is it necessary for this , that this mystick tomb , as monsieur de meaux phrases it , should any more be changed into the very real body of our saviour to raise this remembrance , than that natural one into the dead corps of the father , to recall the tender affections of his child at the sight of it . in a word ; as we will not now move any argument from the nature of this remembrance , to oppose that substantial change , which we have before combated on more solid grounds ; so we suppose muchless ought monsieur de meaux from the sole opinion of that more lively remembrance , which he imagines the actual eating of the very flesh of christ would raise in us , then only to do it in a figure , to conclude him to be substantially there . it is evident , that they who believe this change , and they who believe it not , receive him entirely alike . they see , and taste , and feel the same thing : it is faith alone which works in both , and makes the one believing him spirituarlly present , to remember him with the same love , to honour him with the same reverence , and embrace him with the same hope , as the other , who thinks him corporeally , but yet after a manner altogether unperceivable , contain'd under the sacred elements that are presented to him . article xviii . the doctrine of the church of england , concerning this holy sacrament . the sum of our belief as to the nature of this holy sacrament is this : we esteem it designed by christ to be a perpetual memorial of his suffering for us : that so often as we eat of this bread , and drink of this cup , we might shew forth the lords death , till his coming . we believe that in this communion , we do not only remember , but effectually partake our blessed saviour , and all the benefits of his passion ; insomuch that to such as rightly , and worthily , and with faith receive the same , the bread which we break is a partaking of the body of christ , and likewise the cup of the blessing , is a partaking of the blood of christ. for the manner of this participation , we believe that the body and blood of christ , are given , taken , and eaten in this supper , only after a heavenly and spiritual manner ; and that the means whereby this is done , is faith. we believe that the wicked and such as are void of faith , tho they may visibly and carnally press with their teeth , as st. augustin saith , the sacrament of the body and blood of christ , yet are no way partakers of christ , but rather as st. paul tells us , eat and drink their own damnation , not discerning the lords body . in a word , we believe that transubstantiation , or the change of the substance of bread and wine into the substance of christs body and blood , can never be proved by holy scripture , but is repugnant thereunto ; contrary to the intention of our blessed saviour , and to the nature of this holy sacrament ; and has given cause to many great abuses , as in the following article , we shall have occasion more particularly to shew . this is our faith of this holy eucharist : and in this faith we are confirmed not only by those unanswerable proofs , which our writers have given , and some of which we have before touch'd upon ; but also from those irreconcilable differences , which this error has thrown the writers of the church of rome into . in effect we find every party exposing the falseness and impossibility of every ones hypothesis but his own . their greatest men confess the uncertainty of their own proofs . that there is not in scripture any formal proof of transubstantiation : so ‖ ‖ ‖ lombard , * * * scotus , and many others , that there is not any , that without the declaration of the church would be able to evince it : * * * so cardinal bellarmine himself confesses . that had not the church declared her self for the proper sense of the words , the other might with as good warrant have been received : so says ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ cardinal cajetan . that if the words of consecration refer to the bread , which is changed by them , then they must be taken in our sense : so the generality of that communion confess . in a word , ‖ ‖ ‖ that this doctrine was no matter of faith till the council of lateran , years after christ , and that had not that and the council of trent since interposed , it would not have been so to this very day . and here who can chuse but admire the power of truth ? that after so many outcries against us , for opposing a doctrine which they would make the world believe it is as clear as if it were written with a ray of the sun ; after so many anathema's against us for hereticks , and schismaticks , and ten thousand repetitions of their great scriptum est , this is my body : they should at last be forced to confess , that they are not , cannot , nor are ever like to be agreed in the explication of them . that they contain nothing in them necessary to prove this change . that had not the church declared its self for the litteral meaning ; the figurative interpretation might with as good reason have been received . that for years this doctrine was no matter of faith , and but for the council of lateran had not been then . in short , that if the words of institution refer to the bread , then are we doubtless in the right ; and if they do not , how will they ever prove the change which they pretend is made of the bread into the body of christ by them ? certainly confessions , such as these , ought to awake every papist careful of his own salvation , into an unprejudiced examination at least of these things . to consider what foundation there really is for this doctrine , and what desperate consequences , unknown to antiquity , contrary to the formal words of holy scripture , and without gods infinite mercy , absolutely destructive of their eternal salvation , have been built upon it . as we hope that these declarations have been permitted by god to fall from the greatest , and most esteemed of their church , not only to confirm us in our faith , but also to prepare the way for their return to that catholick truth , from which they have so long erred ; so we doubt not , by gods blessing , but that they will in time attain to it , when being sensible of that tyrannical usurpation that has been made over their consciences , and resolved to use that knowledg god has given them , to search the scriptures , and examine their faith , and not servily follow every guide that will but pretend to lead them : they shall seriously and indifferently weigh all these things , and find that therefore only they have thought us in darkness , because their own eyes were shut that they might not discern the light . article xix . of transubstantiation , and of the adoration of the host. what remains of this subject of the holy eucharist , being wholly consequent upon the foregoing mistaken interpretation of the words of our blessed saviour before considered ; we should have passed them over as things we have in effect already declared , that the church of england receives not ; but that we are perswaded the particular consideration of them will yet more fully shew the falsness of that foundation upon which they are built . monsieur de meaux in proving the corporeal presence of christ in the holy eucharist , from the words of institution , this is my body : had something that at least seemed to favour his mistake ; but to produce them here for transubstantiation , that is , not only to argue the presence of christ's substance , but also the change of the substance of the bread and wine into it , he has not the least appearance of the text for him . indeed were there no other way for christ to be present in the eucharist , but only by this change ; it might then be allowed that having , as he imagines , proved the one , he had in effect established the other . but the number of those who interpret the words in like manner according to the letter , yet are as great enemies as our selves to this change ; and suppose christs body to be present by a union of it to the bread , rather then by a conversion of the bread into it ; not only shews that there is no necessary consequence at all between the real presence , and transubstantiation , but that there is another manner of christs presence , both more agreeable to holy scripture , than that which they advance ; and that takes off infinite difficulties which their transubstantiation involves them in . that the substance of the sacred figures remains in this sacrament after the consecration , those clear expressions of st. paul , wherein he so often calls them * * * bread and wine after it , seem to us plainly to shew : † † † to break bread , the holy scripture tells us was the usual phrase all the time of the apostles , for receiving the holy communion ; and which the blessed spirit himself dictated . these passages monsieur de meaux certainly ought not to put off with a figurative meaning , unless he can give us some good reason why he follows the high road of the literal interpretation in the one , to establish the substance of christs body in the sacrament ; and forsakes it in the other , to take away the presence of the bread from it . for the adoration of the host , the church of england consequently to her principles of the bread and wine 's remaining in their natural substances , professes that she thinks it to be idolatry , and to be abhorred of all faithful christians . monsieur de meaux , in conformity to theirs , tells us , that the presence of christs body in the eucharist ought to carry all such as believe it without all scruple to the adoration of it . this therefore being taken as a principle acknowledged by them ; it may not be amiss to observe , that since it is certain , that neither christ nor his apostles appointed or practised , nor the church for above years required or taught any adoration of this holy sacrament ; neither could they , according to monsieur de meaux's principles , have believed the corporeal presence of our blessed saviour in it . is there any of the evangelists that mentions it ? they all tell us , take , eat ; do this in remembrance of me . but does any one add , this is my body , fall down and worship it ? when st. paul reproved the corinthians for violating this holy sacrament ; is it possible he could have omitted so obvious a remark , and so much to his purpose ; that in profaning this holy sacrament , they were not only guilty of the body and bloud of christ , which it was instituted to represent to us ; but even directly affronted their blessed master corporally present there ; and whom instead of profaning , they ought , as they had been taught , to adore in it ? with what simplicity do the ancient fathers speak of this communion in all their writings ? the elevation of the sacred symbols was not heard of till the seventh century ; and then used only to represent the lifting up of christ upon the cross , not to expose it to the people to adore it . the bell , the feast of the st. sacrament , the pomp of carrying it through the streets , all the other circumstances of this worship , are inventions of yesterday . the exposing of it upon the altar to make their prayers before it ; their addresses to it in times and cases of necessity ; their performing the chiefest acts of religion in its presence , never mentioned in antiquity . nay , instead of this worship , they did many things utterly inconsistent with it . they disputed with the heathens for worshipping gods their own hands had made . was it ever objected to them , that they themselves did the same : worship a deity whose substance they first formed , and then spoke it into a god ? they burnt in some churches what remained of the holy sacrament . they permitted the people to carry it home , that had communicated : they sent it abroad by sea , by land , without any the least regard that we can find had to its worship : they buried it with their dead ; they made plaisters of the bread , they mix'd the wine with their ink. these certainly were no instances of adoration : nor can we ever suppose that they who did such things as these , ever believed that it was the very body and bloud of their dear master , whom they so much loved ; and whom doubtless they would have been as ready to have worshipped , had they so believed ; as both monsieur de meaux supposes they ought to have been , and as we see others for the rest no more pious than those primitive christians were , now to do it . article xx. of the sacrifice of the mass. a third consequence of the corporeal presence of christ in the holy eucharist , is the sacrifice of the mass : in which we ought to proceed with all the caution such a point requires , as both makes up the chiefest part of the popish worship , and is justly esteem'd one of the greatest and most dangerous errors that offends us . monsieur de meaux has represented it to us with so much tenderness , that except perhaps it be his foundation of the corporeal presence , on which he builds , and his consequence that this service is a true and real propitiatory sacrifice , which his manner of expounding it we are perswaded will never bear ; there is little in it besides but what we could readily assent to . we distinguish the two acts , which he mentions , from one another . by the consecration we apply the elements , before common , to a sacred use ; by the manducation , we fulfil our saviour's command ; we take , and eat , and do this in remembrance of him. this consecration being separately made of his body broken , his blood spilt for our redemption , we suppose represents to us our blessed lord in the figure of his death , which these holy symbols were instituted to continue the memory of . and whilst thus with faith we represent to god the death of his son , for the pardon of our sins ; we are perswaded , that we incline his mercy the more readily to forgive them . we do not therefore doubt , but that this presenting to god almighty the sacrifice of our blessed lord , is a most effectual manner of applying his merits to us . were this all the church of rome meant by her propitiatory sacrifice , there is not certainly any protestant that would oppose her in it . where is that christian that does not by faith unite himself to his saviour in this holy communion ? that does not present him to god as his only sacrifice and propitiation ? that does not protest that he has nothing to offer him but jesus christ , and the merits of his death ? that consecrates not all his prayers by this divine offering ; and whilst he thus presents to god the sacrifice of his son , does not learn thereby to present also himself a lively sacrifice , holy , and acceptable in his sight ? this is , no doubt , a sacrifice worthy a christian , infinitely exceeding all the sacrifices of the law. where the knife is the word , the blood shed not but in a figure , nor is there any death but in representation . a sacrifice so far from taking us off from that of the cross , that it unites us the more closely to it ; represents it to us , and derives all its vertue and efficacy from it . this is , if any other , truly the doctrine of the catholick church , and such as the church of england has never refused : and except it be our doubt of the corporeal presence , monsieur de meaux had certainly reason to expect , that there was nothing in this we could justly except against . but now that all this is sufficient to prove the mass to be a true and proper sacrifice , truly and properly propitiatory for the sins and punishments , the satisfactions and necessities of the dead and the living ; and that to offer this true and proper sacrifice , our saviour christ instituted a true and proper priesthood , when he said , do this in remembrance of me : this is what we cannot yet understand , and what we think we ought not ever to allow of . we know indeed , that the primitive church , called the holy eucharist a sacrifice , in that large extent of the expression , whereby the holy scripture stiles every religious performance , our prayers , our thanksgivings , our vertues , our very selves , sacrifices to god : and accordingly in our own liturgy , we do , without all scruple , do the same . but when it comes to be set in opposition to a sacrament , and to be considered in the true and proper signification of the word ; we must , with all antiquity , needs profess , that we neither have , nor can we after that of christ admit of any . hence it is , that our church following the doctrine of the holy apostles and primitive christians , teaches , that the offering of christ once made , is that proper redemption , propitiation , and satisfaction for all the sins of the whole world ; and that there is no other satisfaction for sin but that alone . that the application of christs death by faith in the holy eucharist , is made to all such as with true repentance receive the same , we undoubtedly believe . we are perswaded , that by our prayers , which in this holy solemnity we never fail to offer for the wants and necessities , the pardon and forgiveness not of our selves only , but of all mankind ; of those who have not yet known the faith of christ ; or that knowing it , have prevaricated from the right way , we incline gods mercy to become propitious unto them . only we deny , that by this holy eucharist , as by a true and proper propitiatory sacrifice , we can appease gods wrath for the sins of the whole world ; can fulfil the satisfactions , and supply the necessities of other men ; of the dead and the living ; of them that are absent , and partake not of it . this we attribute to the sacrifice of the cross only ; and are perswaded that it cannot , without derogation to the merits of that most absolute redemption which was there purchased for us , be applied to any other . when we examine the first institution of this holy communion , we cannot perceive either in the words or action of our blessed saviour , any sacrifical act or expression . he took bread , and brake it , and gave it to his disciples , saying , take , eat , this is my body which is given for you : do this in remembrance of me. monsieur de meaux seems to imply , that the consecration made it a sacrifice . but this vasquez tells us , that others think to be only a preparation to it , because till after the consecration christ is not there , and by consequence cannot be offered . the council of trent seems to refer it to the oblation : this bellarmine opposes , because neither christ nor his apostles used any . bellarmine is positive , that either christ sacrificed in eating , or there is no other action in which he can be said to have done it . yet even this the greatest part of that communion reject ; because eating is not offering : and in the ordination where the priest receives the power of sacrificing , not any mention is made of it . in effect , reason will tell us , that this is to partake of the offering , not to offer it ; and monsieur de meaux himself accordingly distinguishes the two acts of consecration and manducation from one another , and refers the sacrifice wholly to the former . if we consider the nature of a true and proper sacrifice , they universally agree , that these four things are necessarily required to it : . that what is offered be something that is visible : . that of prophane , which it was before , it be now made sacred : . that it be offered to god : and . by that offering suffer an essential destruction . now we suppose , that the greatest part of these conditions are evidently wanting to this pretended sacrifice of christs body in the mass. . it is invisible : they confess it . . it was never prophane , that it should be made sacred : they will not presume to say that it was . . it suffers no essential destruction : the blood is not spilt but in a mystery , says monsieur de meaux , nor is there any death but in representation . as therefore none of these things truly and properly agree to this holy eucharist , so we suppose , that neither can it be truly and properly a sacrifice . we are perswaded , that the offering its self , like the necessary and essential properties of it , must be only in figure and representation . this is what we willingly allow monsieur de meaux , and what their own principles do undoubtedly prove . for what our saviour adds , do this in remembrance of me : however the council of trent has canonically resolved it to be the institution of a true and proper priesthood , to offer this sacrifice ; yet that it has no such proof , the preceding discourse evidently shews . our saviour christ commanding his apostles to do this , commanded them to do no more than what himself had done : so that if he therefore did not sacrifice himself , neither did he give any authority to them , or to their successors to sacrifice . article xxi . of the epistle to the hebrews . the epistle to the hebrews so clearly establishes our doctrine , in opposition to the pretended sacrifice of the mass , that monsieur de meaux had certainly reason to enter on a particular consideration of it . we will , after his example , follow the same method , and shew the whole design of that sacred book to be directly contrary to the principles of the roman church . monsieur de meaux observes , that the author of this epistle concludes , that there ought not only no other victim to be offered for sin after that of christ , but that even christ himself ought not to be any more offered . now , the reason which the apostle gives , is this ; because that otherwise , says he , christ must often have suffered : plainly implying , that there can be no true offering without suffering . so that in the mass then , either christ must suffer , which monsieur de meaux denies , or he is not offered , which we affirm . this is so evidently the meaning of that place , and so often repeated , that without bloud , there is no remission ; that monsieur de meaux is forced freely to declare , that if we take the word offer as it is used in that epistle , they must profess to the whole world , that christ is no more offered , either in the mass , or any other way . now , how these things can stand together , that the epistle to the hebrews contradicts not the offering of the mass , and yet that the same epistle absolutely declares , that christ can no more be offered , because he can no more suffer ; nor any more become a propitiatory sacrifice , because without bloud there is no propitiation : all which monsieur de meaux allows , and professes to the whole world , that in the notion of the epistle to the hebrews , christ is not offered in the mass , nor can be any where else , we are not very well able to comprehend . but that epistle goes yet further . it tells us , that christ ought to be but once offered , because by that one offering he has fully satisfied for our sins , and has perfected for ever them that are sanctified . if therefore by that first offering he hath fully satisfied for our sins , there is then no more need of any offering for sin : if by that first sacrifice he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified , the mass certainly must be altogether needless to make any addition to that which is already perfect . in a word , if the sacrifices of the law were therefore repeated , as this epistle tells us , because they were imperfect ; and had they been otherwise , they should have ceased to have been offered . what can we conclude , but the church of rome then , in every mass she offers , does violence to the cross of christ ; and in more than one sense , crucifies to her self the lord of glory . lastly , the council of trent declares , that because there is a new and proper sacrifice to be offered , it was necessary that our saviour christ should institute a new and proper priesthood to offer it . and so they say he did , after the order of melchisedeck , in opposition to that after the order of aaron under the law. now certainly nothing can be more contrary to this epistle than such an assertion : both whose description of this priesthood shews it can agree only to our blessed lord ; and which indeed in express terms declares it to be peculiar to him . it calls it an unchangeble priesthood , that passes not to any other , as that of aaron did from father to son , but continues in him only , because that he also himself continues for evermore . article xxii . reflections on the foregoing doctrine . and here then let us conjure our brethren of the church of rome seriously to consider these things ; and into what desperate consequences that great errour of the corporeal presence has insensibly led them . can any thing be more rash or more uncharitable , even the literal interpretation of this holy eucharist being allow'd , than their canon of trāsubstantiation ? to cut off from their communion the greatest and most orthodox part of the christian church , only for a nicety ; a manner of presence , which neither has the scripture any where revealed , and which they themselves never understood . is it possible for men to fall into a grosser or more dangerous error , than to set up a wafer for their god , and pay a divine worship to a morsel of bread ? shall their good intentions secure them ? had not the israelites a good intention to hold a feast unto the lord , when they worshipped the molten calf ? were they therefore not idolaters for it ? had this been a sufficient excuse , nadab and abihu had not been punished : their intention was certainly good to burn incence to the lord. the jews had a good intention even in crucifying the lord of glory : st. paul thought it zeal to presecute his disciples . our blessed saviour has foretold , and we live to see it accomplished , that the time should come when men should kill their brethren , and think they did god good service . the church of rome may do well to consider whether their good intention will justifie them that do it ; and whether both in this , and that , they do not run a desperate hazard , if it appear that they have no other plea than a well meant mistake to excuse them . for our parts we must needs profess that these things give us not only a scandal but a horrour for their religion . monsieur de meaux had certainly reason to say , that this is the chiefest and most important of all our controversies , and wherein we are at the farthest distance from one another . and would to god they had only offended us by these errours ; and had not exposed our common name to the reproach of the very heathen ; who have been confirmed by them in their idolatry , and thought it more rational to adore a stock or a stone , than with the christians to worship this moment what they eat the very next . but monsieur de meaux thinks we have no reason to appear so obstinate against them , who declare our selves so favourably towards the lutherans , who yet are involved in the same error . t is true we believe the lutherans mistaken in their literal interpretation of this holy sacrament . but we are perswaded they are infinitely less so , and less dangerously than the papists . they confess that there is no change made in the substance of the sacred elements . they believe that the bread and wine continue in their proper natures , and that christs body is present only when he is received . they adore not the holy eucharist : they found no propitiatory sacrifices upon it : they say no masses for the sins and satisfactions , for the wants and necessities of the dead and the living : they deny not the cup to the people ; their errour in one word , whatsoever it be , is only a matter of simple belief ; has no ill consequences attending it , nor do they damn us for not receiving it . let the church of rome do all this : let them raze their anathema's out of their councils , and banish their masses and adorations out of their churches ; let them no longer scandalize us with any unwarrantable practices , nor desire to enslave our consciences by submitting them to their own inventions ; and though we shall still think transubstantiation to be the greater error , yet will we receive them with the same charity we do the lutherans : we will pray to god to give them a better understanding , but will not drive them from our communion , for matters of simple belief , and which are only to themselves , tho' they be wrong . but till then , in vain do's monsieur de meaux exhort us to consider the ways of providence to bring us to a union , which god knows we could be glad to have on any terms but the loss of truth . in the mean time if the church of rome in good earnest thinks , that as we tolerate the foundation of all these errours , the corporeal presence in the lutherans , so we ought to bear the consequences of it in them : let them at least do what the lutherans have done ; let them embrace our communion ; let them leave off to persecute us where they have power , and damn us where they have not ; let them receive us as brethren , not lord it over us as our masters . this will make us hope that they are sincere when they conjure us to be at peace with them , and they may justly then accuse us of partiality , if we continue to repute them as enemies , when they will be thus content to love , and receive , and deal with us as friends . article . xxiii . of communicating only under one kind . this is the last of those consequences that give us a just detestation for that great errour of the corporeal presence on which they are founded . it is so plainly contrary to the express command of our blessed saviour , that we are perswaded it has pleased god to suffer them to fall into it , on purpose to correct that vanity whereby they have so proudly aspired to an opinion of infallibility : that whilst they lord it over mens consciences , and will not so much as give them leave to ask them a reason of what they do , they might here at last be surprised in an error which the most vulgar eye is able to discern . the church of england conformably to all antiquity declares , that the cup ought not to be deny'd to the lay-people ; forasmuch as both parts of the lords sacrament by christs ordinance and commandment , ought to be ministred to all christian men alike . for indeed , did not he who said of the bread , take , eat , this is my body , say also of the wine , with the same expressness , drink ye all of this , for this is my blood of the new testament which is shed for you for the remission of sins ? did not he who commanded them , do this in remembrance of me , for the bread , even according to their own construction , take and consecrate , and give to others , as i have done to you ; command them for the cup in like manner , do this ; i. e. consecrate , and give it to others , as i have done to you , in remembrance of me ? we confess , that the grace of god is not tied to the outward signs : yet we think withal , that without taking the outward and visible signs , we can have no pretence to the inward and spiritual grace of that holy sacrament ; which deriving all its effect from our saviour's promise , we can have no security that it shall have any good one to them , who do not receive it according to his institution . had christ esteemed it sufficient for us to receive the blood in the body , we suppose he would not have consecrated the cup afterwards . but if it was our saviour's pleasure , that to commemorate the more lively his passion , we should take his blood as it was spilt for our redemption , separate from his body ; we think it an unwarrantable presumption for us to make our selves wiser than god , and say , that it is sufficient to participate of both in one. monsieur de meaux has received so full an answer upon this point , from the reply made to his treatise written purposely on this subject , that he will have no cause to complain of us for not repeating here , what has been so fully and so successfully handled there . only as to that negligence of these latter ages , which he is pleased to alledge as the reason of this change ; we must needs say , that god be thanked , we cannot observe any such negligence of this holy communion in our churches , where yet this holy sacrament is administred to as large congregations , and with as great frequency as any where among them. both our priests and the people , give and receive it with that care and reverence , that we find as little grounds for any such pretence , as there is reason in it , were it never so true , to justifie so great and unwarrantable a change. part iii. of the church . article xxiv . of the word written and unwritten . our blessed saviour having founded his church upon the word which he preached , we confess , that the unwritten word , as to that gospel which he preached , was the first rule of christians . but god almighty foreseeing how liable such a rule must have been to infinite inconveniencies , thought fit to have that word which was first spoken by mouth , afterwards consigned to writing . by which means the word written and unwritten were not two different rules , but as to all necessary matters of faith , one and the same : and the unwritten word so far from losing its authority , that it was indeed the more firmly establish'd , by being thus delivered to us by the holy apostles and evangelists . we receive with the same veneration whatsoever comes from the apostles , whether by scripture or tradition , provided that we can be assured that it comes from them . and if it can be made appear , that any tradition which the written word contains not , has been received by all churches , and in all ages , we are ready to embrace it , as coming from the apostles . monsieur de meaux therefore ought not to charge us as enemies to tradition , or obstinate , to receive what is so delivered . our church rejects not tradition , but only those things which they pretend to have received by it : but which we suppose to be so far from being the doctrine of the apostles , or of all churches in all ages , that we are perswaded they are many of them directly contrary to the written word , which is by themselves confessed to be the apostles doctrine , and which the best and purest ages of the church adhered to . article xxv . of the churches authority . the church ; i. e. the universal church in all ages , having been establish'd by god , the guardian of the holy scriptures , and of tradition , we receive from her the canonical books of scripture . it is upon this authority , that we receive principally the song of solomon as canonical , and reject other books as apochryphal , which we might perhaps with as much readiness otherwise receive . by this authority we reverence these books , even before by our own reading of them , we perceive the spirit of god in them : and when by our reading them , we find all things conformable to so excellent a spirit , we are yet more confirmed in the belief and reverence we before had of them . this authority therefore we freely allow the church , that by her hands in the succession of the several ages , we have received the holy scriptures . and if as universal and uncontroverted a tradition had descended for the interpretation of the scriptures , as for the receiving of them , we should have been as ready to accept of that too . such a declaration of the sense of holy scripture as had been received by all churches , and in all ages , the church of england would never refuse : but then as we profess not to receive the scriptures themselves only , or perhaps principally upon the authority of the roman church , which has in all ages made up but a part , and that not always the greatest neither , of this tradition ; so neither can we think it reasonable to receive the sense of them only from her , though she profess never so much , to invent nothing of her self , but only to declare , the divine revelation made to her by the holy ghost , which she supposes has been given to her for her direction : whilst we are perswaded , that neither has any promise at all been made to any particular church of such an infallible direction ; and have such good cause to believe that this particular church too often , instead of the divine revelations , declares only her own inventions . when the dispute arose about the ceremonies of the law , acts . the apostles assembled at jerusalem , for the determination of it . when any doubts arise in the church now , we always esteem it the best method to decide them after the same manner . that the church has authority not only in matters of order and discipline , but even of faith too , we never deny'd : but that therefore any church so assembled , can with the same authority say now , as the apostles did then , it has seemed good to the holy ghost , and to us : this we think not only an unwarrantable presumption , for which there is not any sufficient ground in holy scripture , but evidently in its self untrue , seeing that many such councils are by the papists themselves confessed to have erred . hence it is that we cannot suppose it reasonable to forbid men the examination of the churches decisions , which may err , when the holy apostles , nay our saviour christ himself , not only permitted , but exhorted their disciples to search the truth of their doctrine , which was certainly infallible . yet if the determination be matter of order or government , as not to eat of things offered to idols , &c. or of plain and undoubted precept , as to abstain from fornication , and the like : here we fail not after the example of paul and silas , to declare to the faithful what her decision has been ; and instead of permitting them to judg of what has been so resolved , teach them throughout all places to keep the ordinances of the apostles . thus is it that we acquiesce in the judgment of the church ; and professing in our creed a holy catholick church , we profess to believe not only that there was a church planted by our saviour at the beginning , that has hitherto been preserved by him , and ever shall be to the end of the world ; but do by consequence undoubtedly believe too , that this universal church is so secured by the promises of christ , that there shall always be retain'd so much truth in it , the want of which would argue that there could be no such church . we do not fear that ever the catholick church should fall into this entire infidelity : but that any particular church , such as that of rome , may not either by error lose , or by other means prevaricate the faith , even in the necessary points of it ; this we suppose not to be at all contrary to the promise of god almighty , and we wish we had not too great cause to fear , that the church of rome has in effect done both . it is not therefore of the catholick church truly such , that we either fear this infidelity , or complain that she hath endeavoured to render her self mistress of our faith. but for that particular communion , to which monsieur de meaux is pleased to give the name , tho she professes never so much to submit her self to the holy scripture , and to follow the tradition of the fathers in all ages ; yet whilst she usurps the absolute interpretation both of scripture and fathers , and forbids us to examine whether she does it rightly or no , we must needs complain that her protestations are invalid , whilst her actions speak the contrary : for that if this be not to render her self mistress of our faith , we cannot conceive what is . in a word , tho we suppose the scriptures are so clearly written , that it can very hardly happen , that in the necessary articles of faith any one man should be found opposite to the whole church in his opinion : yet if such a one were evidently convinced that his belief was founded upon the undoubted authority of gods holy word , so far would it be from any horror to support it , that it is at this day the greatest glory of s. athanasius , that he stood up alone against the whole world in defence of christs divinity , when the pope , the councils , the whole church fell away . conclude we therefore , that god , who has made us , and knows what is best and most proper for us , as he has subjected us to the government and direction of his church for our peace and welfare , so to secure our faith , he has given us his holy word , to be the last resort , the final , infallible rule , by which both we and the church its self must be directed : and from this therefore if any one shall endeavour to turn us aside , or preach any other gospel unto us than what we have therein received , tho he were an apostle from the grave , or even an angel from heaven , let him be anathema . article xxvi . the opinion of the church of england , as to the authority of the church . for the two last articles of monsieur de meaux's exposition , i might very well have pass'd them by . the church of england , whose doctrine i pretend to explain , is but very little concerned in them . therefore only in a word , that we allow the church a just authority in matters of faith , both the declaration of our xxth . article , and the subscription we make to the whole shew : such a deference we allow to her decisions , that we make them our directions what doctrine we may , or may not , publickly maintain and teach in her communion : in effect , we shew whatever submission we can to her authority , without violating that of god , declared to us in his holy scriptures . whatsoever deference we allow to a national church or council , the same we think in a much greater degree due to a general . and whensoever such a one , which we much desire , shall be freely and lawfully assembled , to determine the differences of the catholick church , none shall be more ready both to assist in it , and submit to it . article xxvii . of the authority of the holy see , and of episcopacy . for the pope's authority , tho' we suppose no good consequence can be drawn from that primacy we are content to allow st. peter among the apostles , for that exorbitant power which has of late been pretended to : yet when other differences shall be agreed , and the true bounds set to his pretences , we shall be content to yield him whatsoever authority the ancient councils of the primitive church have acknowledged , and the holy fathers have always taught the faithful to give him . this monsieur de meaux ought to be contented with ; who himself absolves us from yielding to those pretences , that have indeed very justly rendred this authority , not only odious , but intolerable to the world. let those who are enemies to episcopacy , and who deny any due respect to the chair of st. peter , answer for themselves . the church of england has both retain'd the one , and will be ready according to what we have before declared , when ever it shall be requisite , to acknowledge the other . the close . such is the doctrine of the church of england in those points which monsieur de meaux has thought fit to propose , as the principal matters in debate betwixt us . may it please the unprejudiced papist to say , what he can find in all these , to warrant that bitter and unchristian hatred they have conceived against us . to cut us off , as much as in them lies , from the communion of christs church on earth , and to deny us all part of his promises in heaven . we firmly believe the holy scriptures , and whatsoever they teach or command , we receive and submit to , as to the word of god. we embrace all the ancient creeds , and in them all that faith which the primitive christians supposed , and which the religious emperors , by their advice , decreed should be sufficient to intitle us to the common name of catholicks . what new donatists , gentlemen , are you , to presume to exclude us from this character ? and may we not justly demand of you , what s. augustin once did of them on the same occasion ; you say that christ is heir of no lands , but where donatus is co-heir . read this to us out of the law and the prophets , out of the psalms , out of the gospel , out of the sacred epistles : read it to us , and we will believe . we accept the tradition of primitive antiquity truly such , with a veneration we dare confidently say greater than your selves . we have shew'd , that the very grounds of our difference is , that you require us to believe and practise such things as the holy scripture forbids us , and the primitive church never knew . you command us to worship images : is it not evident that both the law and the gospel have forbid it ? and is it not confess'd , that both the apostles and their successors abhorred the very name ? you command us to communicate only under one kind : that is in our opinion , nay , it is in yours too , to contradict the institution of our blessed saviour , and the practice of the very roman church for above a thousand years , and of all other christians to this very day . you command us to pray to saints and angels : does not st. paul forbid it ? did not the holy angel twice refuse it from st. john ? and many centuries pass without one probable instance of any that did it ? you command us under pain of your anathema to believe transubstantiation ? do you your selves understand what you mean by it ? is it any where written ? was it ever mention'd for above a thousand years ? you bid us adore the holy sacrament : has christ prescribed it ? have his holy apostles written it ? did not here also above a thousand years pass before any one attempted it ? you require us to believe the blessed eucharist to be a true and real propitiatory sacrifice for the sins and satisfactions both of the dead and of the living . have ye any probable proof of it ? are ye yet , or ever like to be agreed among your selves about it ? do not your own principles evidently shew the contrary ? men and brethren : consider , we conjure you , these things : and if you please , consider us too , what we are , and what our manners and conversation among you has been : believe us , at least , that we have no other end but truth in these enquiries : no other interest but to save our souls , and go the surest and directest way to heaven . the proofs we offer , they are not vain conjectures ; they are clear , we think , convincing arguments . and though the design of this little treatise has been rather to shew you what our doctrine is , than to give a just account of those reasons that detain us in it : yet perhaps even in this there may be somewhat to shew , that we do not altogether build in the air ; but deserve certainly to have our articles and our canons , both better understood , and better answer'd , if it may be , than they have ever hitherto been . for to resume yet once more some few of our differences . you think you ought to invocate the blessed virgin and the holy saints . now not to repeat what we have before said of the unlawfulness of it , this we suppose to be first needless , because we know we have a more excellent and powerful media or , that has commanded us to come to him ; and next uncertain , because you are not able to tell us how , nay , not to secure us that by whatever way it be , our prayers do always and certainly come up to them . if we are mistaken , at least we run no hazard in it : we address our selves continually to the throne of grace , where we are secure that we shall be both heard and answer'd . but now should you err , consider we beseech you how many prayers you every day lose , and what a dishonour you put upon your divine mediator . and if you please , consider too how unjust you are to damn us for not joyning with you in a practice , that has so great danger , so little assurance , and not any advantage . you suppose we ought to fall down before your images . not to do this is to be sure no sin , you dare not say it is . to do it may be , and you can never secure us it is not abominable idolatry , odious to god , and contrary to that holy faith into which we have been baptized . you damn us for doubting of the number of your seven sacraments . has god revealed it to you ? have the holy scriptures defined it ? or even tradition its self delivered it to you . if it be true ; can you yet escape the charge of rashness and uncharitableness , to damn whole churches for so needless a matter ? should it be false , how will you escape that anathema your selves ; you have then so falsely as well as uncharitably denounced against us ? you require us to believe that children dying unbaptized , are excluded the grace of christ for ever . to what purpose this ? for what benefit ? were it as evident as it is indeed uncertain , and we are perswaded false ; our modesty is safe in deciding nothing ; the errour of such among us as believe it not is charitable ; founded upon the sure mercies and goodness of god , who never inflicts any punishment where there is no fault ; and in a word , has not any the least ill consequence upon it . we take as great care to baptize our infants , as you can do who most believe it . but now if your opinion should be false ; what answer will you ever be able to make to god , for peremptorily defining what was so uncertain and uncharitable ? and for damning us , only because we dare not venture to cut off those from christ for whom he died , and whom we hope he will in mercy receive to him ? lastly , you deny us the entire communion ; you pronounce an anathema against us , because we will not confess that one part alone is sufficient . is it not certain that if we err , we have yet both christs institution , and the practice and opinion of many ages to absolve us ? but have you any thing to excuse you , if you are mistaken ? to take it as we do , you confess can have no danger , are you sure that to deny it as you do , may not be a sacriledge ? and what shall i say more ? for the time would fail me to speak of every one of those other points monsieur de meaux mentions , much more to add many others , and of no less consequence , which he has thought fit to pass by . in all which we have at least this undenyable advantage over you ; that besides the clearest arguments that we are in the right , the hazard we run is not very great if we should not be : whereas for you , neither is there any tolerable proof of the contrary errours , and an infinite danger should you chance to be mistaken . these things , as both the character of the book we have now examined , and the style of many other your latter most considerable authors , give us cause to hope , begin to be no longer totally hid from your eyes ; so shall we never cease in all our prayers to make mention of you , that you may be perfectly enlightned to discern , and impartially disposed , to receive and to embrace the truth . in the mean time , whilst both you and we mutually address our selves to the eternal truth for his assistance ; whilst as we ought , we implore his mercy , that he would give us a right understanding in all things ; remembring this that we are all but men , and that it is not therefore impossible for either of us to err : that it may be strength of passion , or prejudice of education , or even vehemency of affection , more than the light of reason , has hitherto kept us in a too fond partiality for our own opinions : let us at least , we beseech you , agree in that mutual charity which alone can secure us amidst all our errours ; which will both best dispose gods mercy to shew us what is right , and will best incline our minds to that sincerity which we all pretend to , and i hope all really have to embrace it . if we cannot yet agree in all the points of our religion ; let us consider , that neither are the dearest friends entirely of the same opinion in every thing . let us wait gods pleasure ; if it be his will to reveal even this also unto us : nevertheless whereunto we have already attain'd , let us walk by the same rule , let us mind the same thing . we believe in the same god ; we rely on the same redeemer ; we embrace the same creeds ; we attend the same hopes of an everlasting salvation : and in all these , amidst all our other differences , have at least an entire agreement in what is most necessary , and shall we hope to the honest and sincere among us , be sufficient for our eternal security . let these things engage us to have the same love too : to be more sparing in our anathema's , and more zealous in our prayers for one another , to seek and to maintain the truth , but to do it so as not to violate our charity . in a word , whether we write , or speak , to do both as men who in a little time expect to be brought before a divine tribunal , where we must render a severe account for all these things ; and one word spoken with this excellent spirit , to close those divisions that so long have seperated us , shall be preferred to ten thousand volumes of endless and uncharitable controversies , that serve only to widen our breaches , and heigthen our animosities . finis . an advertisement of books lately printed for richard chiswell . the apology of the church of england ; and an epistle to one signior scipio , a venetian gentleman , concerning the council of trent . written both in latin , by the right reverend father in god , john jewel lord bishop of sarisbury . made english by a person of quality . to which is added , the life of the said bishop ; collected and written by the same hand . o. the letter writ by the last assembly general of the clergy of france to the protestants , inviting them to return to their communion . together with the methods proposed by them for their conviction . translated into english , and examined by gilbebt burnet , d. d. o. the life of william bedel d. d. bishop of kilmore in ireland ; together with certain letters which passed betwixt him and james waddesworth ( a late pensioner of the holy inquisition in sevil , ) in matter of religion , concerning the general motives to the roman obedience . o. the decree made at rome the second of march . condemning some opinions of the jesuits and other casuists . a discourse concerning the necessity of reformation , with respect to the errors and corruptions of the church of rome . o. a discourse concerning the celebration of divine service in an unknown tongue . o. a papist not misrepresented by protestants . being a reply to the reflections upon the answer to [ a papist misrepresented and represented . ] o. imprimatur . carolus alston r. p. d. hen. episc. lond. à sacris domesticis . aug. . . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the contents are in the next leaf . london , printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown in s. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxvi . the contents . i. the preface : containing a farther account of monsieur de meaux's exposition , with an answer to his exceptions against my former preface . ii. the defence of my exposition ; being a full reply to whatsoever has been alledged against it by the vindicator : particularly as to the false citations , he pretends , of their authors , and misrepresentation of their tenets . iii. appendix : being a collection of some pieces relating to this controversie , viz. . the account of monsieur de meaux's pastoral letter , taken out of the last nouvelle , &c. . a summary of father crassets doctrine , of the worship of the b. virgin. . the opposition between card. bona and monsieur de meaux in the same point . . a copy of monsieur imbert's letter to monsieur de meaux , giving him an account of his being persecuted by the a. b. of bourdeaux , for maintaining the doctrine of his exposition . . the letter of s. chrysostom to caesarius , suppress'd by some doctors of the sorbonne , for being contrary to their canon of transubstantiation ; with an account of that whole transaction . . an account of authors cited by me , with their editions , to prevent any new calumnies . the preface . my former treatise of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , has given so full an account of the occasion and design of monsieur de meaux ' s book , as might supersede the necessity of adding any more upon that subject . but being called to a necessary justification of what i there advanced , not so much by the weak defence of his vindicator , embarqued with him in the same cause ; as by the flat denial of monsieur de meaux himself , of the principal foundation on which that account was built ; i hope i shall need no great apologie , if upon this occasion i enter somewhat farther upon a new history than might otherwise seem absolutely necessary for my defence , and by comparing this method of expounding with some others of a different nature , which have of late been sent abroad by those of the roman communion , endeavour to shew what the real intent of them all has been ; and what the design of those who now pursue the same method among us , may reasonably be supposed to be . it is i presume at this time not unknown to any , what great endeavours have been used in our neighbour nation , for the reducing of those of the reformed religion to the roman communion . and it must be confess'd indeed , they have omitted nothing that language and sophistry could be made to do , for the attainment of so great an end. the jansenists were some of the first who began this work : and it is not to be doubted but that persons of their avow'd reputation in point of learning , and who seem'd to have had this means only left them to regain the favour of their king , whose design they pursu'd ; would be sure to offer something worthy themselves , and proportionable at once both to the work it self , and to their engagements to it . the first attempt they made was a little piece , that has since given occasion to a very long controversie between monsieur arnauld and monsieur claude ; of the perpetuity of the faith as to the real presence of christ in the holy eucharist . a tract which if we regard only the neatness and subtilty of the composure , it must be avow'd scarce any thing ever appear'd more worthy that applause it met with in the world : and the design , though express'd in one particular only , yet so applicable to all the rest ; that were the argument good , the church of rome would have needed no other defence for all the corruptions that had , or could possibly creep into it . but the sophistry of this method has been sufficiently exposed in the volumes composed on this occasion . and indeed without entring on a particular examination , any man 's own reason will tell him at first sight , that a logical subtilty advanced against matter of fact , may be worth the considering for the curiosity of the undertaking , but like the philosopher's argument against motion , will never be able to convince any , but such as want ▪ diogenes ' s demonstration to expose its sophistry . in effect , the design of this first method amounted to thus much ; that transubstantiation ( and the same might have been said of any other point in dispute ) was visibly once the common doctrine of the church : and 't is impossible it should have been so then , had it ever been otherwise before . and this to be believed upon the strength of a sophistical argument , notwithstanding all the evident instances of matter of fact , which monsieur d'aubertine and others have at large collected to the contrary . the next attempt , and that as useful and universal as the former , was by another of the same party , and with no less applause , whether we regard the novelty of the invention , or the neatness of the performance : and his method was , by advancing certain matters of fact , which he calls just prejudices against the calvinists , to shew that without entring into dispute about any of the points in debate , the bare external consideration of the protestants in the manner of their reformation , and some other particulars , was enough to shew , that the truth could not possibly be on their side . but alas ! this too proved an argument too weak to stand the first examination that was made of it : and monsieur pajon , who undertook the defence of his party against it , has shewn that in his proof he has not only advanced an argument that might indifferently be brought against all sides , but which a * * * * * * late author has since proved , to be ten times more strong against themselves , than it could ever be thought to be against us . i shall not undertake an exact account of all the other methods that have succeeded these , with less applause , and as little effect . one , as is said by the same author , was published not long since to prove us guilty of schism in separating from the church of rome , whether we had sufficient grounds or not for our so doing : and that for this reason , because however the learned men of our party might have been convinced of the reasonableness of it , yet the generality being uncapable of forming such a judgment , must have separated without reason , and so have been schismatics . and if their separation was at first unlawful , their return will now by consequence be necessary to them . how far this method might heretofore have concluded with those whom it principally concerns , the vulgar and ignorant , i cannot tell ; but god be thanked there are few now so ill instructed in their religion , but what will have enough to free them from the sin of schism , if the knowledge of a sufficient reason of their separation may be allow'd to do it . thus much only i will beg leave to observe on occasion of these several methods that have been proposed for our conviction , that the great design of them all has been to prevent the entring on particular disputes , which had hitherto been the way , but such as experience had taught them to be the least favourable of any to them . and the same is the design of the late peaceable method set forth by monsieur maimbourg ; in which from the authority of the church in matters of faith , confess'd , as he says , by us , he proves , that the church , in which both parties once were , must then have had this authority over us all ; and to whose decision in the council of trent , we all by consequence ought to submit . it is not necessary that i should here say any thing to shew the weakness and sophistry of these several methods : that has been the business of those particular examinations , that have with success enough been made of them . this i suppose may at first sight appear upon the bare proposal of them , that they have more of ingenuity than of solidity in them ; and were , no doubt , designed by their inventors , to catch the unwary with a plausible shew of that reason , which the wise and judicious know them to be defective in . how far we may conclude from hence , as to the nature and design of monsieur de meaux's exposition , i shall leave it to others to consider . this is undenyable , that as it came out at a time when these kind of methods were all in repute , and with a design to help forward the same great business of conversion then in agitation ; so has it been cry'd up by those of that communion as exceeding all others in order to that end ; and if we may believe their reports , been above all others the most happy and successful in it . it is not easie to conceive that a person of monsieur de meaux ' s learning , should seriously believe , that a bare exposition of their doctrine should be sufficient to convince us of the truth of it . he could not but know that our first reformers were persons abundantly qualified to understand the real profession of a church in which they had been born and bred ; and in which many of them were admitted to holy orders , priests and professors of divinity . nor is the council of trent so rare or so obscure , that a meer exposition of its doctrine should work such effects , as neither the council nor its catechism were able to do . in a word monsieur de meaux himself confesses , his design was to represent his church as favourably as he could ; to take off that hideous and terrible form in which the ministers , he says , were wont to represent popery in their pulpits , and expose it in its natural dress , free from those frightful idea's , in which it had so long been disguised by them . one would imagine by this discourse that the whole business of the ministers of the reformed religion , was to do nothing but invent new monsters every day , and lay them to the church of rome : and that after all our pretences to peace and union , we were really such enemies to it , that we did all we could , even by lies and calumnies , to keep both our selves and the people from it . but indeed these hideous idea's monsieur de meaux speaks of , if they are such false representations as he pretends , they are not the ministers that invent them ; but their own greatest zealots , their schoolmen , their bishops , their cardinals ; nay their very popes themselves that have been the authors of them . how far monsieur de meaux's exposition differs from what they have delivered us as the doctrine of their pretended catholick church , has been in some measure shewn already , and shall in the following discourse be more fully evidenced . and whosoever shall please to consider the elogies and approbations , which these men have received , no less than monsieur de meaux , will be forced to confess it to be at least a disputable point , whether the ministers , from these authors , have represented their church in a hideous and terrible form ; or whether monsieur de meaux rather has not , instead of removing the visor to shew her in her natural dress , a little varnish'd over her face to hide her defects , and make her appear more charming and attractive than her own natural deformity would otherwise permit her to do . now of this a more convincing proof cannot , i think , be desired , than what i before advanced , and see no reason yet to retract ; viz. that out of an extraordinary desire of palliating , he had proceeded so far , as in several points wholly to pervert the doctrine of his church . insomuch that when his book was sent to some of the doctors of the sorbonne for their approbation , they corrected so many places in it , that monsieur de meaux was forced to suppress the whole edition , and change those places that had been mark'd by them , and put out a new and more correct impression , as the first that had ever been made of it . this monsieur de meaux is pleased to deny as an utter falsity ; for that he never sent his book to the sorbonne ; that their custom is not to license books in body ; and that that venerable company knows better what is due to bishops , who are naturally and by their character the true doctors of the church , than to think they have need of the approbation of her doctors . in a word , that it is a manifest falsity to say that a first edition of his book was suppress'd , because the doctors of the sorbonne had something to say against it . that he never did publish , nor cause to be printed , any other edition than that which is in the hands of every one , to which he never added nor diminish'd one syllable ; nor ever fear'd that any catholick doctor could find any thing in it worthy of reprehension . this is indeed a severe charge against me , and such , as , if true , it cannot be doubted , but that i have been as great a calumniator as his vindicator has thought fit to represent me ; or , as for ought i know , monsieur de meaux himself will be in danger of being reputed if it should be false . and therefore to satisfie the world in this main , fundamental point between us , i do hereby solemnly declare , that there was an impression of the exposition , such as i spake of ; that out of it i transcribed with my own hand , the several changes and alterations that are placed at the end of my preface ; that this book , with these differences is at this time in the hands of the reverend editor of my former treatise , and that whosoever of either communion is pleased to examine them , may when ever he will have free liberty so to do . this i the rather declare , because monsieur de meaux is so positive in it , as to charge me with no less than the pure invention of those passages i have cited from it . as for those passages , says he , which they pretend i have corrected in a second edition for fear of offending the sorbonne , it is as you see a chimerical invention ; and i do here once more repeat it , that i neither publish'd , nor connived at , nor caused to be made , any edition of my book , but that which is well known , in which i never altered any thing . for answer to which i must beg leave once more to repeat it too ; that these passages are for the most part chimerical inventions indeed , but yet such as he once hoped to have put off as the doctrine of his church , and as such sent them into the world , in that first edition we are speaking of ; out of which i have transcribed them in as just and proper terms as i was able to put them in ; and i appeal to any one , that shall please to examine them , for the truth and sincerity that i have used in it . but here monsieur de meaux has got an evasion , which , if not prevented , may in some mens opinion take off this seeming contradiction betwixt us , and leave us both at last for the main in the right ! 't is true , says he , this little treatise being at first given in writing to some particular persons for their instruction , many copies of it were dispersed , and it was printed without my order or knowledge . no body found fault with the doctrine contain'd in it ; and i my self without changing any thing in it of importance , and that only as to the order , and for the greater neatness of the discourse and stile , caused it to be printed as you now see . so that now then it is at last confess'd that an edition there was , such as i charged them with , different very much from what we now have . but that it was an edition printed without monsieur de meaux ' s knowledge ; and the changes which he made afterwards were only as to the order , and for the greater neatness of the discourse and stile . as to this last particular , the reader will best judge of what kind the differences were , by that short specimen i have given of them . if to say in one , that the honour which the church gives to the blessed virgin and the saints is religious , nay that it ought to be blamed if it were not religious ; in the other , to doubt whether it may even in some sence be called religious : if to tell us in the one , that the mass may very reasonably be called a sacrifice ; in the other , that there is nothing wanting to it to make it a true sacrifice . if to strike out totally in several places , positions that were absolutely of doctrine , or otherwise very material to the points that were so ; as in several instances it appears he has done ; if this were indeed only for the advantage of the order , and for the greater neatness of the discourse and stile , i am contented . i accuse not monsieur de meaux of any other alterations than such as these . and thus far we can go certainly in reply to his allegations , beyond a possibility of denial : for what remains , though i do not pretend to the like evidence of fact , yet i will offer some reasons why i cannot assent to his pretences even there neither . that the impression was made with monsieur de meaux ' s knowledge , if not by his express order , whoever shall consider the circumstances of monsieur cramoisy who printed it , either as a person of his reputation and estate ; or as directour of the king 's imprimerie ; or finally as monsieur de meaux ' s own bookseller ; will hardly believe that he would so far affront a bishop of his church , and one especially of monsieur de meaux ' s interest and authority at that time at court ; as to make a surreptitious edition of a book , which he might have had the author's leave to publish only for the asking . but further : this pretended surreptitious edition had the kings permission to it , which could hardly have been obtain'd without monsieur de meaux ' s knowledge . it was approved by the bishops of france in the very same terms that the other editions have been since ; which seems more natural to have been procured by monsieur de meaux himself , than by a printer , underhand , and without his knowledge and connivance . in a word , so far was monsieur de meaux from resenting this injury , of setting out his book so uncorrectly , and without his leave ; that the very same cramoisy , the same year , printed the exposition with his leave , and has continued to print all his other books ever since ; and was never that i could hear of , censured , for such fraudulent dealing , till this time , by the bishop or any other . all which put together , i must beg leave still to believe as i did before ; that there was not only a first impression , which is at length allow'd ; but that this first impression was not made without monsieur de meaux's order or knowledge . as for the other point , and i think the only remaining in this matter , concerning the occasion i mentioned for the suppressing that first edition ; the reader may please to know , that a person by many relations very intimate with one of the mareshal de turenne ' s family , upon the publishing of the pretended first edition of monsieur de meaux's exposition , first discover'd to him the mystery of the former , and shew'd him out of the mareshal's library the very book which , as he then assured him , had been mark'd by some of the doctors of the sorbonne , and lent it him for some time as a great curiosity . the knowledge of this raised the desire of endeavouring , if it were possible , to retrieve a copy of it : but the edition was so carefully dispatch'd , that the most that could be done was to get so many scatter'd sheets of it , as to make at last a perfect book , except in some few places in which it was transcribed from the original of the mareshal , word for word , page for page , and examined by the person himself , who was so kind as to bestow it on me . this is the book to which i refer the reader ; and for this i have the attestation of the same person under his hand , at the beginning of the book ; that it is in every part a perfect copy of monsieur de turenne ' s mark'd by the sorbonne doctors ; and i have been besides so just to monsieur de meaux , as to cite scarce any thing out of those places that were in the manuscript part , but have chosen such rather where the printed copy gave me full assurance and authority to do it . but to argue the improbability of all this , monsieur de meaux observes , that the sorbonne is never used to license books in body . and i desire monsieur de meaux to tell us , who ever said or thought they did ? that that venerable company knows better what is due to bishops , who are naturally and by their character doctors of the church , than to think they have need of the approbation of her doctors . i doubt not but the sorbonne very well knows the respect that is due to bishops : but that it should be any argument of disrespect to approve a bishop's book , when it was sent to them for that purpose , i cannot conceive . in short , we understand the reputation and authority of that venerable company too well , to believe it at all improbable that monsieur de meaux should desire their approbation ; nor are we so little acquainted with their books , as not to know , that it is no unheard of thing to see doctors of the sorbonne setting their approbation to a book , approved and authorized by bishops before . the next exception monsieur de meaux makes , is , that i should confirm what had before been urged against him , of a papist's answering his book ; in the truth of which i am as little concern'd as himself can be . only the assurance i have had of it from a person of undoubted sincerity , makes me still believe that it was so : and monsieur de meaux may remember that monsisieur conrart often profess'd that he had seen it in manuscript ; who was not only his old friend , but as himself characteriseth him , one endowed with all that the catholics themselves could desire in a man , excepting a better religion . for what relates to father crasset , it is not for me to contradict monsieur de meaux ' s declaration , that he never read his book ; but that he never heard it mentioned that there was any thing in it contrary to his exposition : this i must confess is admirable , whether we consider the notoriety of the thing , as it related to the salutary advertisements and the bishop of tournay ' s pastoral letter , which made so great a noise in france ; or that it was particularly proved , in the answer to his own advertisement dedicated to monsieur de ruvigny , above five years since , to be directly opposite to his exposition . and for the rest , i must beg leave to believe , whatever monsieur de meaux flatters himself with ; that that father would be so far from being troubled that any body should think his principles contrary to monsieur de meaux ' s , that i dare say he would rather think his pains but ill spent in writing of so large a book , did he not believe he had convinced the world that he looks upon them , nay and has proved them too , to be little less than heretical . as for cardinal capisucchi , monsieur de meaux tells us , he is so far from being contrary to the doctrine of the exposition , that his express approbation has been prefix'd to it . this indeed were a good presumption that he should not have any principles contrary to monsieur de meaux ; but if what i have alledged out of his controversies be really repugnant to what he approved in the exposition , it may indeed speak the cardinal not so consistent with himself as he should be , but the contradiction will be never the less a contradiction for his so doing . the next thing monsieur de meaux takes notice of is , the relation of monsieur imbert and monsieur de witte . the stories are matters of fact , and the papers from whence they were collected published by themselves . if they alledged monsieur de meaux ' s authority for principles that he maintained not , this concerns not us ; nor , whatever the little comment on the bishop ' s letter pretends , was it at all needful to be shewn by me that they did not , in the recital of the propositions held by them . 't is sufficient that they both declared themselves to stand to monsieur de meaux ' s exposition ; and were both condemned , without any regard had to monsieur de meaux ' s authority ; or being at all convinced , or so much as told , that they were mistaken in their pretences to it . the last thing monsieur de meaux takes notice of is , that i reflect upon him for being fertile enough in producing new labours , but steril in answering what is brought against his works . i do not at all envy monsieur de meaux ' s fertility ; his productions have not been many , and those so short , and with such an ingenuous character of temper and moderation as ought to be acknowledged even in an enemy . but i must confess i do admire , as many others do , that no reply has been made by him to those answers that have been sent abroad not only against his exposition , but even against the advertisement it self , which he says can bear no reply . this we so much the rather wonder at , for that an answer was openly promised by monsieur de turenne , and not without some kind of boasting too ; and that several of his own communion were so well satisfied with the pieces that had been publish'd against him , as to expect , no less than we , some such vindication . and here i shall take my leave of monsieur de meaux , for whom i must yet again profess , that i still retain all that respect that is due to a person whose character i honour , and whom i hope i have treated with all the caution and civility that the necessary defence of my self and of the truth would permit me to do . for what remains , my business now must be wholly with his vindicator , who has been pleased to fix such an odious character upon me , as i hope to make it appear i have as little deserved , as i shall desire to return it upon him . had he charged me with ignorance , had he loaded me with mistakes arising from thence ; or had he imputed to me the faults only of carelesness and incogitancy : all this might have pass'd without my censure ; and i should have been so far from vindicating my self , that i should have been ready , in great measure , to have acknowledged the charge , and to have submitted to his reproof . i know how little fit i am for controversies of this kind ; that neither my age , nor learning , nor opportunities have qualified me for such undertakings , as the defence of my religion and my duty to my superiors have , without any design of mine , engaged me in . and i doubt not but a censor less severe , than he who has thought fit to make himself my adversary , might have found out more real faults in my book , than he has noted pretended errors . but for the calumnies and misrepresentations , for the unsincere dealings and falsifications , he ascuses me of , and that in almost every article ; here i must beg leave to justifie my self ; and assure the vindicator , whoever he be , that my religion , i thank god , needs not such defences , nor would i ever have used these means to assert it , if it did . we have indeed heard of some that have look'd upon these things as not only lawful , but even pious on such occasions ; that have esteemed the interest of the church so sacred , as to be able to sanctifie the worst means that can be made use of to promote it : had i been bred in their schools , there might have been some more plausible grounds for such a suspicion ; and what wonder if i did no more , than what i had been taught was lawful for me to do ? but i have not so learnt christ. i have been taught , and am perswaded , that no evil may be done that good may come : i am assured by s. paul that they who say it may , their damnation is just : and did i now know of any one ●nstance of those crimes , whereof i am represented to the world as guilty in almost every chapter , i should think my self indispensably obliged to made a publick acknowledgement of it , and thank the vindicator that has called me to so necessary a duty . but now that i am not conscious to my self of any thing of all this , all that i have to reply to this uncharitable way of proceeding is , to intreat him by the common name of christian , and those hopes of eternity , after which i believe we would all of us be thought sincerely to contend , to consider how dangerous this way he has taken is ; what mischief it will bring , in the opinion of all good men , of whatsoever perswasion they be , to the very cause that is maintain'd by such means : in a word , what a sad purchace it will prove in the end , if to lessen the reputation of an unknown , obscure adversary , he should do that which shall lose him his own soul. but it is time now to clear my self of those calumnies that are laid to my charge . and the first is , that i endeavour to represent monsieur de meaux's exposition as a book that palliates , and prevaricates the doctrine of his church ; and the very approbations of it , as meer artifices to deceive the world , not sincere , much less authoritative approbations , either of the nature or principles of monsieur de meaux's book . i do not remember i have any where in express terms charged monsieur de meaux with prevaricating the doctrine of his church in the latter editions of his book ; though others i know have done it . but however , if this be the greatest of those calumnies i am guilty of , i am sure all that have ever lived among them , and seen their practices , and compared them with what he writes , will easily absolve me : and i shall hereafter shew that either monsieur de meaux has palliated , or else the greatest of their authors have strangely perverted the doctrine of the church . as to the other part of the accusation , that i should say that the approbations were meer artifices to deceive the world , it is not my calumny , but the vindicator's mistake . i never thought those letters monsieur de meaux has published any authoritative approbations of his book at all ; indeed in the place which he cites , i have said somewhat like it of the * * * * * * popes brief , and am still of the same mind ; and till he shall think fit to answer the reasons that induced me to believe so , he will hardly perswade me that this is a calumny . but if i am so little satisfied with the approbations of monsieur de meaux's book , i should at least have had some more authentick testimonies of what i my self publish . and he thinks it wonderful , that my book should have found such a reception as it did , only from my assuring the world that i had not palliated , nor prevaricated the doctrine of the church of england ; but submitted it to her censure ; and the sight of an imprimatur ; when the approbations of so many learned men , and even of the pope himself , are not thought sufficient to secure monsieur de meaux's treatise . this indeed were somewhat , if the truth of the exposition were on either side to be taken from the number of the approvers , and not the nature of the doctrine . if monsieur de meaux has really palliated the doctrine of the church of rome , 't is not any number of approbations that will be able to render him a faithful expositor . if my exposition be conformable to the doctrine of the church of england ; ( and if not , let him shew us the prevarications ; ) the want of a few letters can at most argue only my interest not to have been so great as his , or my vanity less ; but will not render the exposition ever the more unfaithful . and though an imprimatur be all the authority that is usual with us on such occasions , yet the vindicator may believe , by the reception he acknowledges the book to have had , that it would have been no difficult matter to have obtain'd other subscriptions than that of the reverend person who licensed it ; and if that will be any satisfaction to him , i do assure him , it has been approved by several other persons but little inferiour , whether in authority or reputation , to any monsieur de meaux has prefix'd to his exposition . for what remains of my preface , two things there are which he supposes worthy his animadversion : one , that whereas i accuse cardinal capisucchi to have contradicted the doctrine of the exposition , we must take notice , that the bishop of condom's intention was not to meddle with scholastic tenets , but purely to deliver that doctrine of the church , which was necessarily and universally receiv'd ; whereas cardinal capisucchi being obliged to no such strictness , would not , it may be , contradict the problematical niceties of those schools in which he had been educated . it is the catholic distinction of this author throughout his whole vindication , if any thing be alledged contrary to his liking , that it is presently a scholastic tenet , and not the necessary and universally to be receiv'd doctrine of the church . but that we may , if possible , discern what is the doctrine , and what the scholastic tenet in the present case , we will take only what at first sight offers it self , viz. that cardinal capisucchi do's positively affirm , † † † † † † that a divine worship may be paid to images , upon the account of the thing which they represent ; and that this doctrine was never doubted of in the church , nor deny'd by the council of trent . does monsieur de meaux allow of this ? does he tells us that a divine worship may upon any account be paid to an image ? or rather does he not plainly insinuate that he can hardly allow the image any honour at all ; we do not , says he , so much honour the image of an apostle or martyr , as the apostle or martyr in presence of the image . let us then lay aside the barbarous distinctions by which he would excuse a foul idolatry ; be it a school nicety , or whatever you will else , whether the representative image as representative , be representatively one and the same with the thing represented : our question without this gibberish is plain and intelligible ; whether , upon any account whatsoever , the image of our saviour or the holy cross be to be worshipped with divine worship ? this the cardinal affirms ; and this if monsieur de meaux does allow , let him speak it out without mincing ; if not , 't is plain for all the pretences of a scholastic nicety , that they differ in the exposition of a very material point of the doctrine of the roman church . the other thing which the vindicator thinks fit to take notice of in my preface , is the consequence which i draw from this , and some other instances of the like kind , viz. that the papists think it lawful to set their hands to , and approve those books , whose principles and doctrine they dislike . in answer to which , he again distinguishes between scholastic tenets , and matters of faith : and then tells us , every one knows that the doctrines of a church or matters of faith , being tenets necessarily and universally received , ought upon no account to be dissembled or disguised ; but as for scholastic opinions , we see not only one nation commanding one thing to be taught , and another the quite contrary ; but even one university against another in the same country , &c. but if i mistake not , this is not to answer my conclusion , but to start a new question . the point proposed was , not whether in matters that are not of faith , men may not hold different opinions , and yet live still in the same common church , whereof there can be no doubt , but it was a conclusion drawn from plain matter of fact , viz. that those of the church of rome think it lawful to set their hands to , and approve those books whose principles they dislike . this the instances i have brought shew plainly they do ; if they know it to be a sin , and yet do it , they condemn themselves ; if they think otherwise , then they believe it to be lawful ; which is all i affirm'd , and to which the vindicator has answered never a word . there is yet one thing more remaining before i close this ; and that is the remark the vindicator has made upon the passages collected by me out of monsieur de meaux ' s first edition , which have either been altered or omitted in the following impressions : viz. that the bishop in that edition had been so far from proposing the doctrine of the church of rome , loosely and favourably , as i pretend ; that on the contrary he rather proposed it with too much strictness : in a word , that he had been so far from perverting the doctrine of the church , that i was not able to propose one doctrine so perverted , without a forced interpretation of my own , according to my wonted way of turning all things to a wrong intention . as to the first of which , no one ever charged the bishop with proposing the doctrine of the church of rome loosely and favourably in every point . we know well enough that in some , he has kept to the plain doctrine of his church , as in that of the eucharist : in others proposed it rather with too much strictness , as in the case of infants dying unbaptized : all we say is , that in some other articles , such as the invocation of saints , worshipping of images , sacrifice of the mass , &c. he had expounded it more loosely and favourably than he ought to have done , and that without any gloss or interpretation of mine to turn things to a wrong intention . does not the church of rome lay any obligation on particular persons to joyn with her in the invocation of saints ? does she condemn those only who refuse it out of contempt , and with a spirit of dissention and revolt ? this monsieur de meaux once affirmed , and i think there needs no comment to shew , that this is to palliate the doctrine of their church . has the church of rome ascribed no other vertue to images , than to excite in us the remembrance of those they represent ? is that all the use they make of them ? do they not so much honour the image of an apostle or martyr , as the apostle or martyr in presence of the image ? or rather , did not monsieur de meaux here also mollifie the known doctrine and practice of his church ? in a word : is the church of rome contented to teach only that the mass may very reasonably be called a sacrifice ? is that exposition reconcileable to what we now read in him , that there is nothing wanting to make it a true sacrifice . may i not here at least , without my wonted way of turning all things to a wrong intention , beg leave to say , that either monsieur de meaux palliated the doctrine of his church in that , or he has otherwise perverted it in this ? had monsieur de meaux only retrenched or altered some things in his book , for the greater exactness of the method or neatness of stile ; he must have been a very peevish adversary indeed , that would have pretended to censure him for that . but to change not only the words but doctrine too ; to give us one exposition of it in one edition , and a quite contrary in another , this i think may , if not be represented as a heinous crime , yet at least deserve a remark ; and let the vindicator do what he can , will i doubt make the author pass with all indifferent persons , for such as yet i had never represented him , had not he himself first made the dilemma , viz. one that either did not sufficiently understand the doctrine of his church , or that had not sincerity enough to expound it aright . i should now pass to the consideration of those exceptions that have been made against what i have advanced in my book it self ; but before i do this , it will be requisite that i take notice of those directions , the vindicator has thought fit to give me in his postscript , in order thereunto . and here , not to deceive either his , or the reader 's expectation ; i must beg leave to excuse my self from entring any farther into dispute with the bishop of condom , than i have already done . i never designed a direct answer to his book ; and the reflections i have made upon it in my former treatise , were more to clear the doctrine of the church of england , than to argue against what he offered in behalf of the romish faith. this has been the undertaking of another pen , from whom the vindicator i suppose may expect , what is reasonably enough refused by me . but for the other part of his desire , that i would take the pains to peruse my self the authors cited by me , and not transcribe quotations , nor take up things by halves ; i have been so scrupulous in observing it , that i doubt i shall receive but little thanks from himself for it . it cannot be deny'd but that there have been faults enough committed on both sides for want of this care , and i do not desire to add to the number . i have done my best to take nothing of them without a serious examination of their sense , and a sincere application of it to the point in question . how far i have attain'd this i must leave it to others to judge ; but for the rest , the truth of my citations , i have been so cautious in them , that allowing only for the errata's of the press , i desire no favour if i am found faulty in that . i should indeed stand in need of a large apology to those , into whose hands these papers may chance to fall , that i have in many places run them out into so great a length : but the accusation that has been brought against me for want of doing this before , how unjust soever it be , has obliged me to this caution now ; and they are so ordered as to be no hindrance to those that are minded to pass them by . this benefit at least i shall attain by them , with those who please to compare them with what the vindicator alledges ; that they will find he might have spared himself the troublesome , and ungentile office indeed of undertaking what he could not effect , to demonstrate to the world the unsincerity which i have shewn in my quotations , and the falsifications of them ; his endeavours wherein have been so very unsuccessful , that i know not whether himself or his religion will suffer more by the weakness of his attempt . a table of the articles contained in the following treatise . part i. i. introduction . page ii. that religious worship is terminated only in god. iii. invocation of saints . ibid. iv. images and reliques . v. justification . vi. merits . vii . . satisfactions . — . indulgences . — . purgatory . part ii. viii . sacraments in general . page ix . baptism . ibid. x. confirmation . xi . penance . xii . extreme unction . xiii . marriage . xiv . holy orders . xv. &c. eucharist . xix . sacrifice of the mass. xx. epistle to the hebrews . xxi . reflections on the foregoing doctrine . xxii . communion under both kinds . part iii. xxiii . of the written and unwritten word . xxiv . &c. authority of the church . xxvi . authority of the holy see. xxvii . the close . the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , vindicated , &c. article i. introduction . he that accuses another of great and heinous crimes , ought to take all prudent care not to be guilty himself of these faults which he condemns in others . had the author of the vindication thought fit to govern himself by this rule , he would have spared a great part of that odious character he has been pleased to draw of me , in the beginning of this article . but it is not my business to recriminate , nor need i fly to such arts for my justification . only as to the advantage he proposes to himself from these endeavours , viz. to shew that all those books to which an imprimatur is prefix'd , will not hereafter be concluded free from errour ; he needed not sure have taken such pains for that : for i believe no one before him ever imagined that a permission to print a book , was a mark of its infallibility ; nor that every nameless author , who professes to be sincere , should pass for an oracle . it is not to be doubted but that faults there might have been in my book , for all that priviledge ; though the vindicator has had the ill fortune to miss the most of them . and for ought he has proved to the contrary , i believe it will in the end appear , that an imprimatur car. alston , is at least as good a mark of infallibility as a permissu superiorum ; and a church of england expositor , as fit to pass for an oracle , as a popish vindicator . but calumny and unsincerity are now the catholick cry : and to make it good against me , i am charged in this one article to have been guilty of both . my introduction is calumny in a high degree , and my state of the question , drawn from thence , as unsincere . i tell them , he says , of adoring men and women , crosses , images , and reliques ; of setting up their own merits , and making other propitiatory sacrifices for sin than that of the cross : and that these are all contrary to their pretended principles , that religious worship is due to god only ; that we are to be saved only by christ's merits , and that the death of christ was a perfect sacrifice . the logick of which he is content to own , that the consequence is good , but the accusation , he says , is false , and the charge , calumniatory . but if in the following articles it be made appear , that their own authors do allow of all this : if they do give a divine worship to the blessed virgin and saints departed ; if their very missal and pontifical do command them to adore the cross ; if it appear that their council of trent damns all those who deny the mass to be a propitiatory sacrifice for the sins of the dead and living , and yet cannot say it is the very same with that of the cross : if , finally , their greatest writers do allow a merit of condignity , and that not as a scholastick tenet , but as the doctrine of their church , and agreeable to the intention of their council they so much talk of ; then i hope the premises may be as clear of the calumny they are charged with , as my inference is allow'd to be just , for the consequence i would establish . in the mean time , pass we on to the state of the question , which i propose in these terms ; that we who have been so often charged by the church of rome as innovators in religion , are at last by their own confession allow'd to hold the antient and undoubted foundation of the christian faith ; and that the question therefore between us is not , whether what we hold , be true ? but whether those things which the roman church has added as superstructures to it , and which as such we reject , be not so far from being necessary articles of religion , as they pretend , that they do indeed overthrow that truth which is on both sides allowed to be divine , and upon that account ought to be forsaken by them ? this the vindicator says , is to state the question after a new mode , and represent them as consenting to it . let us see therefore what the old way of stating it is , and wherein the insincerity he charges me with , consists . the true state of the question betwixt us , he says , is , whether the protestants or papists do innovate ? the protestants in refusing to believe those doctrines which the church of rome professes to have received with the grounds of christianity , or the papists in maintaining their possession : and the dispute is , whether roman catholicks ought to maintain their possession , for which , he says , many protestants themselves grant they have a prescription of above years ? or whether the authorities brought by protestants against the roman catholick doctrine be so weighty , that every roman catholick is obliged to renounce the communion of that church in which he was bred up , and quit his prescription and possession . in all which the only difference that i can find is this ; that he presumes for his church in the state of the question , i for mine : i suppose the points in controversie to be superstructures which they have added to the faith ; he , that they are doctrines received with the grounds of christianity . in short , the point we both put upon the issue is precisely the same ; viz. whether the roman catholicks ought to maintain their possessions of these doctrines , or to quit them as erroneous ? whether protestants to embrace the belief and practice of them as true and lawful , or to continue , as they are , separate from the roman communion upon the account of them ? but where then is my unsincerity ? in this i suppose , that i seem to insinuate as if the roman church granted that we held the ancient and undoubted foundation of the christian faith. what others of that communion will grant , i cannot tell ; but whoso shall please to consider monsieur de meaux's arguing from monsieur daillè's concessions as to this point , will find it clear enough that he did ; if the foundation consists of fundamental articles , and that we are on both sides agreed in these , as his discourse manifestly implies . but the vindicator , jealous for the authority of his church , and to have whatever she proposes pass for fundamental , confesses that we do indeed hold a part , but not all those articles that are fundamental . this therefore we must put upon the issue , in which we shall not doubt to shew them , that those articles their church has added , are so far from being fundamental truths , that indeed they are no truths at all ; but do by evident and undoubted consequence , as i before said , and as the vindicator himself confesses , destroy those truths that are on both sides agreed to be fundamental . but if i have not mistaken the question between the papists and protestants , i am sure the vindicator has that between him and me. he tells us our present question , which we are to examine in the following articles , is , whether monsieur de meaux has faithfully proposed the sense of the church declared in the council of trent ? and thereupon asks me , what it do's avail me to tell them , that i will in the following articles endeavour to give a clear and free account of what we can approve , and what we dislike in their doctrine ? to which i reply , that it avails very much to the end i propounded in my book , viz. to give a true exposition of the doctrine of the church of england in the several points proposed by monsieur de meaux . so that in reality the question between us is this , not whether monsieur de meaux has given a true exposition of the doctrine of the church of rome , which it has been the business of others to examine ; but whether i have given a just account of the doctrine of the church of england . this was what i undertook to do , and what this author ought , if he could , to have shewn i had not done . article ii. that religious worship is terminated only in god. in this article i am but little concern'd . the vindicator states the case , what 't is they mean by religious honour being terminated only in god. he distinguishes between what they pay him , and what they give to the saints ; how truly , or to what purpose , it is not my business to examine . those who desire to be satisfied in it , may find a sufficient account in several late treatises written purposely against this part of monsieur de meaux's exposition ; and i shall not repeat what is so fully and clearly established there . article iii. invocation of saints . i might well have pass'd over this point altogether , which has been so learnedly and fully managed , but very lately , in a particular † † † † † † discourse on this subject . yet since the vindicator desires to know what authority i have for my assertion , that the addresses which monsieur daillé allows to have been used by the fathers of the fourth century , were rather innocent wishes and rhetorical flights , than direct prayers ; but especially for that accusation which he says i bring against them , viz. that they did herein begin to depart from the practice and tradition of those before them , i am content to give him that satisfaction . for the first then : that monsieur daillé himself look'd upon them as no other than such addresses as i have characterized , becuase * * * * * * monsieur de meaux has represented him as if he allow'd that the custom of praying to saints was establish'd in the church in the fourth century ; i then cited his opinion to the contrary , and have now subjoyn'd it in his own words † † † † † † . secondly : that these addresses were really of this kind , the several passages that are usually brought from these fathers , plainly shew : and both the * * * * * * examples i gave , and the differences i assigned , do abundantly prove it . that they could not have allow'd of such an invocation as is now practised in the church of rome , i proved from this plain argument , * * * * * * that they believed that the saints departed , were not admitted to the sight of god immediately upon their decease ; and therefore , by the papists own † † † † † † confession , ought to have believed that they could not be pray'd to . to all which the vindicator is pleased to return never a word . in short , that the fathers of the fourth century did herein begin to depart from the practice and tradition of the ages before them , i proved from this , † † † † † † that they are not able to produce any one instance of the three first centuries of any such invocation ; but rather have * * * * * * been forced to confess that nothing of that kind was to be found among them . besides that the maxims of those fathers concerning † † † † † † prayer were such , as are utterly repugnant to such an invocation . these were the arguments i then offer'd ; to which the vindicator would have done more justly to have try'd if he could have made some reply , than after all this to cry out , as if nothing had been said , what authority does he bring for his assertion ? by what authority does he condemn these prayers , these innocent wishes and holy raptures , as he calls them , as fond things , vainly invented ? &c. and now that i have satisfied his demand , may i in my turn ask him , where it is that i condemn those innocent wishes , and holy raptures , of these fathers , as fond things , vainly invented ? that i do , with our church , censure their invocation of saints as such , is confess'd ; but that i pretend to pass any judgment at all upon these holy men , is false ; nor was it any way necessary that i should do it . as for the authority he requires for our refusal of this invocation , it were very easy to shew it , had i nothing to do but to repeat things , that have been so often said already , that the world grows weary of them ; and is abundantly satisfied that they have nothing to reply to them . every text of scripture that appropriates divine worship to god alone , is a demonstration against them ; and that one passage of st. paul , rom. . . how shall they call upon him in whom they have not believed ? were not men willing to be contentious , might end the controversy . and for the antiquity which he speaks of , what can be more ridiculous , than to pretend prescription for that which has not the least foundation , neither in holy writ , nor primitive christianity ; of which not one instance appears for the first three hundred years after christ , but much to the contrary . he that desires a fuller satisfaction in these points , may please to recur to that excellent treatise i before mention'd , and which may well excuse me that i say no more about it . only because this was one of the points , in which i promised to shew , that they do adore men and women by such an invocation as cannot possibly belong to any but god only ; and that they make the merits of their saints to run parallel with the merits of christ , insomuch as for their merits , to desire that their very sacrifices may be accepted , and their sacraments be available to them ; i will subjoin a short specimen of every one of these out of their publick rituals , to shew that there was neither falshood nor calumny in my accusation of them . appendix to artic . iii. a specimen of the church of rome's service to saints , taken out of their publick liturgies . as to the prayers they make to them ; we find them thus addressing to the blessed virgin : we fly to thy protection , o holy mother of god , despise not our prayers which we make to thee in our necessities , but deliver us from all dangers , o ever-glorious and blessed virgin. offic. b. v. p. . and in one of their antiphona's ; vouchsafe me that i may be worthy to praise thee , o sacred virgin ; grant me strength and power against thine enemies . ibid. p. . they desire her conjunctly with our saviour , to bless them . ibid. p. . and in their hymns , they address to her in the most formal manner ; that she would help them that fall ; that she would have pity upon sinners ; that she would protect them against the enemy , and receive them at the hour of death . i shall add only one prayer more , part of which i before mention'd , and will now repeat it , because ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ cardinal bellarmine , and some others are so ashamed of it , as totally to deny they have any such prayer , o happy mother , expiating our sins , by the right of a mother command our redeemer . grant us the — of faith , grant us the good works of salvation ; grant us in the end of our lives that we may die well . nor is it the blessed virgin only to whom they thus address : the prayer to st. john is in the same strain : that he would loose the guilt of their polluted lips , that the tongues of his servants might sound out his praise . and in general , thus they address to the apostles and evangelists : o ye just judges , and true lights of the world , we pray unto you with the requests of our hearts ; that you would hear the prayers of your suppliants . ye , that by your word shut and open heaven , we beseech you deliver us , by your command , from all our sins . you , to whose command is subjected the health and sickness of all men , heal us who are sick in our manners , and restore us to vertue ; that so when in the end of the world christ the judg shall come , he may make us partakers of everlasting joy. for the next point , the merits of their saints , 't were infinite to repeat the prayers they make of this kind . i will subjoyn two or three . in the feast of st. nicholas , dec. th : o god who hast adorned thy bishop , st. nicholas , with innumerable miracles , grant we beseech thee , that by his merits and prayers , we may be delivered from the fire of hell. offic. b. virg. p. . and many there are of this nature all along their office. but since the main question is about their recommending to god their offerings , and sacraments , by the merits of their saints ; we will see that too . and for an instance of these we need go no farther than their very first saint , st. andrew , to whom in their secretum they thus address . we beseech thee , o lord , that the holy prayer of the blessed apostle , st. andrew , may procure thy favour to our sacrifice ; that as it is solemnly offer'd in his honour , so it may be rendred acceptable by his merits , through our lord. he that shall survey the following festivals , will find either the secretum , or post-communio , to run in the same strain : i shall instance only in the saints i formerly mentioned . let the merits of st. bathildis , o lord , prevail , that our gifts may be accepted by thee : let the sacraments which we have received , we beseech thee , be our saving defence , and through the merits of thy blessed martyr , st. martin interposing , absolve us from all sin. such is their service of the saints ; how agreeable to that duty we owe to god , or to the very pretences of monsieur de meaux , and the vindicator , let the world judg . article iv. images and reliques . in this article the vindicator takes notice , and that truly , of my complaining that the approved doctrine of their most reputed writers , should so much contradict what monsieur de meaux would have us think is their only design in that service . he tells us that properly speaking , according to the bishop of meaux's sense , and that of the council ; the image of the cross is to be lookt upon only as a representative , or memorative sign , which is therefore apt to put us in mind of jesus christ , who suffered upon the cross for us ; and the honour which we there shew , precisely speaking , and according to the ecclesiastical stile , is not properly to the cross , but to jesus christ represented by that cross. to this i opposed the doctrine of st. thomas , and the authority of their own rituals , to shew that they expresly adored the cross of christ , and not only jesus christ represented by that cross. in answer to the former of which , the doctrine of st. thomas , he tells me , that he is not to maintain every opinion held by the schools : that had i been sincere , i ought to have taken notice of the reason brought by st. thomas , and his followers ; which shews , that it is purely upon the account of jesus christ represented , and not upon the account of the cross it self , that he allows adoration to it . in short , he concludes the doctrine of st. thomas to be in effect the same with monsieur de meaux ' s exposition , that it is an adoration of jesus christ represented by the crucifix , but not an adoration of the crucifix it self . and the same is the account he gives of the pontifical , which he confesses admits of an adoration in the same sense . for the business of the pontifical , we shall see more particularly hereafter : in the mean time this short instance may serve to shew that his destinction is purely arbitrary . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ in the order of receiving an emperour , it is appointed , that if there be a legat present , his cross shall take the upper hand of the emperors sword , because a divine worship is due to it . † † † † † † as to st. thomas , he tells us only this , that the cross is not to be adored upon its own account , but either as it is the figure of christ crucified , or because it toucht his members when he was crucified upon it : that the wood of the true cross is to be worshipped with divine adoration upon both these accounts , but any other crucifix only upon the former . what does all this avail to the pretences of the vindicator ? it shews indeed st. thomas's grounds for his conclusion , but we are little concerned in them ; nor was it any unsincerity in me not to transcribe all his reveries . the conclusion he makes is plain and positive , and neither to be reconciled with the vindicator's fancy , nor to be eluded by his sophistry ; that the cross of christ is to be adored with divine adoration . what his reason is , we matter not ; sure we are , that no good one can be brought by him , or any body else , for it . the next argument i made use of was , that in the office of the benediction of a new cross , there are several passages which clearly shew , that they attribute such things to the cross , as are directly contrary to monsieur de meaux's pretences , as that they who bow down before it , may find health both of soul and body by it . this he cannot deny , but charges me with leaving out two words , that he says would have explain'd all , viz. propter deum , for the sake of god. it is very certain that i did leave out these words , as i did several others , i believe , as much to the purpose as these . but that i may shew how little reason there was for my expressing them , and to convince the world how clearly this passage charges them with adoring the cross , i will now propose it in its full length . in the form of consecrating a new cross ; first the bishop makes several prayers ; † † † † † † that god would bless this wood of the cross , that it may be a saving remedy to mankind ; an establishemnt of the faith ; for the increase of good works , and the redemption of souls ; a comfort and protection against the cruel darts of the enemy . after some other prayers to the same purpose ; the bishop blesses the incense , sprinkles the cross with holy water , and incenses it ; and then consecrates it in these words : * * * * * * let this wood be sanc † tified in the name of the fa † ther , and of the s † on , and of the holy ghost . let the blessing of that wood on which the members of our saviour were hanged , be in this present wood ; that as many as pray and bow down themselves [ for god ] before this cross , may find health both of soul and body , through the same jesus christ. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ then the bishop kneels down before the cross , and devoutly adores it , and kisses it . but if the cross be of any metal , or of precious stone , instead of the former prayer , the bishop is to say another : i shall transcribe only some part of it . after a long preamble , they beseech god , * * * * * * that he would sanc † tify to himself this cross , and bless it ; that our saviour christ would embrace this cross , [ which they consecrate ] as he did that [ on which he suffered ; ] and by the holiness of that , sanc † tify this : that as by that the world was redeemed from guilt , so the devout souls who offer it , may by the merits of this cross be freed from all the sins they have committed . * * * * * * then the bishop as before , kneeling down before the cross , devoutly adores it , and kisses it . i hope this length will not seem tedious to any who desire a true information of the doctrine and practice of the roman church in this matter . and i shall leave it to any one to judge what benefit those two words i omitted , could have brought to excuse such foul and notorious idolatry . for the rest of my citations , he passes them over so triflingly , as plainly shews he had nothing to say to them ; all the rest of his expressions , says he , drawn from the pontifical , are of the same nature ; either lame , or patch'd up from several places , and therefore if they make any thing against us , are not worthy our regarding . for monsieur de meaux , i shall only beg leave to remark this one thing ; that if the church of rome looks upon the cross only as a memorative sign ; to what end is all this consecration ; so many prayers shall i say , or rather magical incantations ? and how comes it to pass that a cross , without all this ado , is not as fit to call to mind jesus christ who suffered upon the cross , as after all this superstition , not to say any worse , in the dedication of it ? my third argument to prove that they adored the cross , was from their good fryday's service : and here i am again accused for not giving all the words of the church , and of adding somewhat that was not there , to make it speak my own sense . the words i cited are these , behold the wood of the cross , come , let us adore it . whereas their church intends not that we should adore it , i. e. the cross ; but come , let us adore , i. e. the saviour of the world that hung upon it . to judge aright of this cavil , and yet more expose their idolatry , i shall here give a just account from the missal , of the whole service of that day as to this point . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ * * * * * * the morning prayers being finished , the preist receives from the deacon a cross , standing ready on the altar for that purpose ; which he uncovers a little at the top , turning his face to the people , and begins this antiphona , behold the wood of the cross ; the people following the rest to come , let us adore ; at which all but the priest that officiates fall upon the ground . then the priest uncovers the right arm of the crucifix , and holding it up , begins louder than before , behold the wood of the cross , the rest singing and adoring as before . then finally the priest goes to the middle of the altar , and wholly uncovering the cross , and lifting it up , begins yet higher , behold the wood of the cross on which the saviour of the world hung , come , let us adore : the rest singing and adoring as before . this done , the priest alone carries the cross to a place prepared for it before the altar , and kneeling down , leaves it there . then he puts off his shoes , and draws near to adore the cross , bowing his knees three times before he kisses it : which done , he retires and puts on his shoes . after him the ministers of the altar , then the other clergy and laity , two and two , after the same manner , adore the cross . in the mean time while the cross is adoring , the quire sings several hymns ; one of which begins with these words , we adore thy cross , o lord. this is the service of that day . and now whether i had reason or no to apply , as i did , the adoration to the cross , let any reasonable man consider ; and whether i had not some cause to say then , what i cannot but here repeat again , that the whole solemnity of that days service plainly shews , that the roman church does adore the cross in the utmost propriety of the phrase . as for my last argument from the hymns of the church , he acknowledges the fact , but tells us , that these are poetical expressions ; and that the word cross , by a figure , sufficiently known to poets , fignifies jesus christ , to whom they pray in those hymns . i shall not ask the vindicator by what authority he sends us to the poets for interpreting the churches hymns : but if he pleases to inform us what that figure is which in the same place makes the cross to signify christ , in which it distinguishes christ from the cross ; and who those poets are to whom this figure is sufficiently known , he will oblige us . for that this is the case in very many of those hymns , is apparent : i shall instance only in one , and that so noted , that st. * * * * * * thomas , unacquainted it seems , as well as we , with this figure , concluded the adoration of the cross , to be the sense of their church from it . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ the banner of our king appears , the mystery of the cross shines , upon which the maker of our flesh was hanged in the flesh. beautiful and bright tree ! adorn'd with the purple of a king , chosen of a stock worthy to touch such holy members : blessed , upon whose arms , the price of the world hung . hail , o cross , our only hope ! in this time of the passion , encrease the righteousness of the just , and give pardon to the guilty . now by what figure to make the banner and the king the same ; the cross upon which the maker of our flesh hung , not different from that flesh that hung upon it ; the tree chosen of a stock worthy to touch christ's sacred members , the same with his sacred members ; what noted figure this is which is so well known to the poets , and yet has been so long concealed from us , that we are amazed at the very report of such a figure , and believe it next a kin to transubstantiation , the vindicator may please hereafter to inform us . in the point of reliques , the council of trent proceeded so equivocally , that the vindicator ought not to think it at all strange , if i endeavour'd more plainly to distinguish , what the ambiguity of their expressions had so much confounded . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ they , says the council , are to be condemned , who affirm that no veneration or honour is due to the reliques of saints . to this i replied , that honour them we do ; but that the council of trent requires more , not only to honour , but worship them too : so i render their venerari , whether well or ill is now the question . and first i observe , that in the very point before us , their own st. thomas gives the very same interpretation to the same word . for having proposed the question in these terms , whether the reliques of saints are to be adored ? he concludes it in the terms of the council , seeing we venerate the saints of god , we must also venerate their bodies and reliques . and again , in his second objection against this conclusion , he argues against the adoration of reliques thus ; it seems very foolish to venerate an insensible thing . to which he replies thus ; we do not adore the insensible thing for it self , &c. from all which it is beyond dispute evident , that by the veneration , thomas understood adoration of reliques . secondly , that it is the doctrine of their church , that reliques are to be adored , their greatest authors render it beyond denial evident . vasquez in his disputations upon thomas , tell us , it is , says he , among the [ pretended ] catholicks , a truth not to be doubted of , that the reliques of saints , whether they be any parts of them , as bones , flesh , or ashes ; or any other things that have touched them , or belonged to them , ought to be adored . and in conclusion says , that he has proved against hereticks , that reliques are to be adored : and this too in answer to the question proposed in the very terms of the council , whether the bodies , and other reliques of saints ought to be venerated ? nor is this a scholastic tenet , or to be put off with an impropriety of speech . the messieurs du port royal , are by all allow'd to have been some of the most learned men of their church , that this last age has produced ; and too great criticks in the french tongue , to use any expressions subject to ambiguity , which , that language so particularly avoids . the word adore in french is much more rarely used to signify in general any honour or veneration , than in the latine ; yet these very men , in one of their treatises publish'd by them , ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ of the miracles of the holy thorne , use this word to express the veneration they thought due to them . thus speaking of one of the religious that was troubled with the palsie , she was carry'd , say they , to the port royal to adore the holy thorne . of another , that having adored the holy thorne , she was relieved of her infirmity . they boast of the great multitudes that frequented their church to adore the holy thorne . and in one of their prayers which they teach their votaries to say before it , we adore thy crown , o lord. and now i suppose it is from all these instances sufficiently evident , that i had reason to interpret uenerari in the council , by worship in my exposition . as for the other thing he charges me with ; that referring to the words of the council i should make it say , that these sacred monuments are not unprofitably revered , but are to be sought unto for the obtaining of their help and assistance : whereas indeed the council's meaning is , to obtain the help and assistance of the saints , not the reliques : this is not my invention , but his own cavil ; and his citation of the words of the council a trick to deceive those who understand it only in his translation . for whereas he renders it , so that they who affirm , that no veneration or honour is due to the reliques of saints , or that those reliques and other sacred monuments are unprofitably honoured by the faithful ; or that they do in vain frequent the memories of the saints , to the end they may obtain their aid ( the aid of the saints , eorum ) are to be condemned . he has indeed transposed the latin , on purpose to raise a dust , and deceive his reader ; the true order being plainly as i before rendred it ; * * * * * * so that they who shall affirm , that no worship or honour is due to the reliques of saints ; or that these and the like sacred monuments , are unprofitably honoured ; and that for the obtaining of their help ( the help of these sacred monuments , eorum ) the memories of the saints are unprofitably frequented , are to be condemned . this is the true sense of the council ; and for the instances i added for the explication of it , they are the same by which their own catechism excites them to this worship , and every day 's experience shews how zealously the people follow these reliques , in order to these ends. article v. of justification . how far the true doctrine of justification was over-run with such abuses , as i mention'd , at the beginning of the reformation , he must be very ignorant in the histories of those times that needs to be informed . i do not at all wonder that the vindicator denies these things , who knows very well how far the interest of his church is concerned in it . but sure i am , a confident denial , which is all the proof he brings , will satisfy none but those , who think themselves obliged to receive the tradition of their church , with the same blindness in matters of fact , that they are required to do it in points of faith. as to the present article before us , two things there are that he doubts i shall be hardly put to prove . one , that it is the doctrine of our church to distinguish between justification and sanctification ; tho the th and th articles of our church do clearly imply it ; and our * * * * * * homily of salvation , in express words interpret justification , to be the forgiveness of sins . the other , that i impose upon them , as if they made their inward righteousness a part of justification , and so by consequence said , that their justification it self was wrought by their own good works . as to the former part of which imposition , as he calls it , 't is the very definition of the council of trent ; † † † † † † by justification is to be understood , not only remission of sins , but sanctification , and the renewing of the inward man : insomuch that in their th canon they damn all such as dare to deny it : ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ if any one shall say that men are justified , either by the alone imputation of christ's righteousness , or only by the remission of sins , excluding grace and charity , which is diffused in our hearts by the holy ghost , and inheres in them , or that the grace by which we are justified is only the favour of god ; let him be anathema . and for the other point , that they esteem their justification to be wrought , not only by christ's merits , but also by their own good works ; the can. of the same session , is a sufficient proof , where an anathema is denounced against him who shall assert , * * * * * * the good works of a justified person to be so the gift of god , that they are not also the merits of the same justified person ; or that he being justified by the good works which are performed by him through the grace of god , and merits of jesus christ , whose living member he is , does not truly merit increase of grace and eternal life . now if those words truly merit , do signify that our good works do in their own nature merit a reward , then it must be confess'd , that our justification is wrought by them . if they say that they are therefore only meritorious , because accompanied with the infinite merits of christ ; what can be more improper than to affirm , that that which in its own nature has nothing of merit , should truly merit only because something which has infinite merit goes along with it . it would certainly be more reasonable in the church of rome , if they do indeed believe what these men seem to grant , that good works are not in themselves meritorious , instead of affirming that they do truly merit eternal life , to confess with us that they have no merit at all in them ; but yet through the infinite merits of our blessed redeemer , shall , according to god's promises , have a most ample reward bestowed on them . article vi. of merits . it ought not to be wondred at , if to shew the true doctrine of the church of rome as to the point of merits , i recurr'd , not to the niceties of the schools , but the exposition of their greatest men ; and whose names were neither less , nor less deservedly celebrated in their generations , than monsieur de meaux's , or the vindicators can be now . the council of trent has spoken so uncertainly in this point , as plainly shews they either did not know themselves what they would establish , or were unwilling that others should . let the vindicator think what he pleases of these men , and their opinions , we shall still believe them as able expositors of the council of trent , as any that have ever undertaken it : and whoso shall compare what they say , with what the council has defined , will find it at least as agreeable to it , as any of those new inventions that have been started since . the doctrine of merits , establish'd by the council , in the canon i but now cited , is clearly this ; that the good works of a justified person are not so the gift of god , that they are not also the merits of the same justified person ; that being justified by the grace of god , and merits of jesus christ , he do's then truly merit both encrease of grace , and eternal life : in a word , the point of merit , as we now consider it , amounts to this , whether we do truly and properly merit by our own good works ? or , whether whatsoever we receive , be not a reward that is given us only through god's acceptance , and promise in christ jesus ? this we affirm , they the other ; and whether the testimonies i produced for the further clearing of their doctrine do prove it or no , is now to be enquired by us . st , ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ maldonate is express , and the vindicator's exception utterly impertinent to us , who dispute not the principle , but merit of good works : it is very clear , says he , that there is in us an inherent , as they call it , and proper justice of our own , tho proceeding from the grace and bounty of god ; and that we do as truly and properly when we do well , through god's grace , merit rewards , as we do deserve punishment when , without this grace , we do ill. dly , for bellarmine : † † † † † † the title of his chapter , cited by me , the vindicator says is something towards the sence i give it : he would more honestly have said , is word for word the translation of it : viz. that our good works do merit [ eternal life ] condignly , not only by reason of god's covenant and acceptation , but also by reason of the work it self . * * * * * * this is his position : for the explication of it , he tells us , that a merit of condignity may be vary'd three ways . for , st , if the work to be performed should be very much less than the hire promised by the agreement ; as if the lord of the vineyard instead of a penny , should have promised the labourers a hundred pound a day for their work : this would be a merit of condignity upon the account of the agreement , or covenant . and this he thinks too little for our good works , and condemns scotus for holding , x x x x x x that the works of just men are truly and properly good , but not so excellent as to bear a proportion to eternal life : and therefore that they are indeed accepted of god to a just and worthy reward of eternal life , but only by the covenant and promise of god , not for the dignity of the work it self . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ another sort of condignity is , when the work is equal , or perhaps greater than the reward , but there is no covenant that the reward shall be given to it ; this is condignity upon the account of the work , not the covenant . and such cajetan , and soto , esteemed our good works ; * * * * * * meritorius of eternal life upon the account of the work it self , tho there were no covenant that they should be accepted . this also he rejects . † † † † † † a third sort of condignity is , if there be both a covenant , and that the work be truly equal to the reward : as when the labourers were hired for the vineyard at a penny a day . and thus it is with our good works ; not that , without any covenant , the good work does not bear a proportion to the reward of eternal life ; but because , without the covenant , god would not be bound to accept the good work , in order to that reward , tho otherwise even or equal to it . this is so plain an account of their doctrine of merits , and so clearly given us as the sense of the council of trent , that i hope the length of it will be excused by every one but the vindicator ; who possibly does not desire that the council should be so freely expounded , as bellarmine here has done it . but vasquez goes yet further : ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ st , he rejects the opinion of bellarmine , as too little for their good works : and then proposes his own in the * * * * * * three conclusions mentioned by me ; to which i must refer the reader , and leave him to judg , whether the little exceptions the vindicator has made , be sufficient to excuse the doctrine of them . all i have now to observe is , that the third conclusion , which the vindicator complains he could not find , is the very subject of the chapter to which i refer him ; and which he could not well overlook , having found the second but in the foregoing : and for the rest , that vasquez to take away all doubt of his opinion , does largely shew that it is no way contrary to the council of † † † † † † trent , but rather a true and natural exposition of it . article vii . §. . of satisfactions . if the † † † † † † council of trent has express'd it self in such terms , as do plainly ascribe to our endeavours a true and proper satisfaction , whatever monsieur de meaux or his vindicator expound to the contrary , we are not to be blamed for charging them with it . 't is not enough to say , that they believe christ to have made an intire satisfaction for sin , and that the necessity of that paiment which they require us to make for our selves , does not arise from any defect in that , but from a certain order which god has established for a salutary discipline , and to keep us from offending . if christ has made an intire satisfaction for us ; i am sure it must be very improper , if not altogether untrue , to say , that we can make any for our selves . if god indeed has establish'd any such order as they pretend , let them shew it to us in scripture : otherwise we shall never believe that god's justice does at all require it , since for the insinite merits of a crucified saviour , that has made an infinite satisfaction to his justice , he may as well forgive temporal as eternal punishment . that * * * * * * bellarmine has taught , that it is we who properly satisfy for our own sins , and that christ's satisfaction serves only to make ours valid . had the vindicator been ingenuous , he would not have thought it sufficient to answer with the error of the press , but have look'd into the place where it indeed was , c. . of that book . that both * * * * * * he and † † † † † † others of their communion , have taught it as the doctrine of their church , that we can make a true and proper satisfaction for sin , is beyond denial evident ; and it has before been said , that the council of trent approves their doctrine . but that protestants ever assigned this , or any other single point as the cause of our separating from their communion ; that we ever taught that any thing at all should be given to a sinner , for saying a bare lord have mercy upon me ; much less more than they pretend to give by all the plenary indulgences of their church ; this is so shameful a calumny , that i am confident the vindicator himself never believed it . for his last remark , if it deserves any answer , that i reflect upon the bishop of meaux , for bringing only , we suppose , to establish this doctrine , when yet very often i do no more my self ; i have only this to say , that i believe he can hardly find any one instance wherein that is the only argument i bring for our doctrine : not to add , that possibly it would not be very unreasonable to look upon that as sufficient , not to receive their innovations , till they can bring us some better arguments to prove that we ought to quit our supposition . they who pretend to impose such things as these , are the persons on whom the proof will lie ; 't is enough for us to reject them , that we cannot find any footsteps of them , either in scripture or antiquity ; and have good reason to believe , by the weakness of their attempts , that there are not any . article vii . §. . of indulgences . for indulgences , the vindicator thinks it sufficient to answer all the difficulties i proposed , to confess that some abuses have crept in ; that there are indeed many practices in the church of rome , different from that of the primitive church ; but these being neither necessary , nor universally received , he will not quarrel with us about them . but are not these abuses still cherish'd in his church ? does not the pope still dispatch them abroad , and his missionaries preach them now as shamefully almost , as when luther first rose against them ? is it not necessary , nor universally received , to believe that these indulgences satisfy for the temporal pain of sin ? do they not put up bills over their church doors and altars , almost every sunday , to vend them on this account ? is not his holiness still esteem'd the churches treasurer ? and has he not but very lately sent a † † † † † † universal indulgence throughout their whole church ? when these things are considered , i doubt it will little avail the vindicator to put me in mind of my promise , that whenever the penances shall be reduced to their primitive practice , we shall be ready to give or receive such an indulgence as monsieur de meaux has described , and as those first ages of the church allow'd of . purgatory . §. . what i have said as to the design of the primitive christians in praying for the dead , would have deserved either an ingenuous acknowledgment of the truth of it , or some reasonable proof of its falseness or impertinence . we cannot but suspect that he was hard put to it for arguments , when all the reason he brings us for the belief of purgatory , is built upon the authority of two councils , neither of which are very much esteemed by us ; and the eldest of them years after christ. if the vindicator has any thing of moment to offer for it , he shall not fail of a just consideration . otherwise 't will be as foolish as it is false , to pretend to tell the world , that we make a breach in the church , and condemn antiquity upon no other grounds , than a bare supposition that it is injurious to the merits of jesus christ ; and which has no other proof than our own presumption . part ii. article viii . of the sacraments in general . as to the number of the sacraments , the vindicator confesses that it is not to be found , either in scripture or antiquity . he thinks it sufficient that the scripture mentions an exteriour ceremony , and an interiour grace annexed thereunto . he should then have shewn us that all those seven which they receive , have at least such an outward sign as he pretends , and an inward grace , by christ's institution , annex'd to it . and this so much the rather , for that no one of his church has yet been able to do it , tho the council of trent damns all those that dare to deny it . article ix . of baptism . we do not complain of the church of rome , for not believing that infants dying unbaptised are certainly saved : but we must , and do complain of monsiur de meaux , for declaring so positively , what we judge to be at least as uncertain as it is uncharitable , that they have not any part in christ. if i argued for the more favourable side , i confess'd at least that the church of england had determined nothing concerning it ; but that i went about to justify a breach with the church of rome on this account , is a calumny as great , as the little reflection of huguenot or puritan , before was ridiculous . that he should be astonish'd to hear a church of england man argue for this point , shews how little acquainted he ever was with the writers of it : i shall mention only two , who i believe were never suspected as puritanically inclined , and yet have argued much more strongly than ever i could have done for it : one the venerable and judicious ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ mr. hooker in his eccles. polity . lib. . sect. . the other the learned arch-bishop bramhall in a set discourse , which he thus concludes , this i take to be the doctrine of the soundest english divines , and which i believe to be the truth : saving always my canonical obedience to my spiritual mother the church of england , and in a higher degree to the catholick church , when it shall declare it self in a true and free oecomenical council . but neither i , nor any protestants , do believe that the church of rome , including all other churches of that patriarchate , or of its communion , is that catholick church . for the rest , whether his arguments or mine on this point are the better , i am but little concerned , tho he be very much . that which seemed the most to deserve an answer , he has thought fit wholly to pass by , viz. that several of his own authors had maintained the same with me ; and i persume he will not say were puritans or huguenots for their so doing . but that the world may see with what rashness these men talk , i will now be yet more express ; that whereas mr. de meaux , affirms that this denyal of salvation to infants dying unbaptized , was a truth which never any one before calvin durst openly call in question , it was so firmly rooted in the minds of all the faithful . this is so notoriously false , that not only the most learned of their own ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ church as i proved before , but the very * * * * * * fathers themselves , have many of them declared for this doctrine ; even st. * * * * * * augustine himself not excepted , till his dispute with pelagius provoked him to deny that , which in his cooler thoughts , he had more reasonably allow'd before . article x. of confirmation . in the article of confirmation , i affirm'd that several of their own party had deny'd the divine institution of this pretended sacrament ; and that neither the council of trent , or their catechism , had offered any thing to prove it . the vindicator replies , that my confession that the apostles used imposition of hands , and that when our bishops after their examples do the like , and pray for the blessing of the holy spirit upon us , we piously hope that their prayers are heard ; is a sufficient proof of an outward visible sign , of an inward and spiritul grace . had i indeed affirm'd that the apostles had instituted this imposition of hands , to be continu'd in the church , and promised that the grace of the holy ghost should certainly descend at their doing of it , for all those great ends our prayers design ; this might have made confirmation look somewhat like a sacrament to us. but to argue from a meer indifferent ceremony , continued only in imitation of the apostles , and to which no blessing is ascribed that may not equally be allow'd to any other the like prayer ; and then cry out that this must needs argue the divine institution of it , because none but god can promise grace to an outward sign , this is in effect to confess that there is nothing at all to be said for it . it is wonderful to see with what confidence those of the church of rome , urge the apostles imposition of hands for proof of confirmation , as it is now practised amongst them ; in which there is not any the least resemblance . our bishops lay on hands after their example : but for theirs , they anoint , make crosses in the forehead , tie a fillet about their heads , give them a box on the ear , &c. for which there is neither promise , precept , nor example of the apostles : but for imposition of hands , the only thing they did , this they have resolved to be but an ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ accidental ceremony , and accordingly have in their * * * * * * practice wholly laid it by . article xi . of penance . that penance is not truly and properly a sacrament , nor was ever esteemed so by the primitive church , i at large proved in my exposition of it : and the vindicator has not in his reply advanced any one thing to answer the objections that were brought against it . he allows publick confession to have been a part of discipline only , and alterable at pleasure ; but then affirms that either publick or private was always necessary ; and this we are to take of him upon his own word . in short , he repeats the sum of their doctrine to us ; and then , as if he had done his business , this , says he , we have always held and practised , and this we affirm to be conformable to the practice of the most antient and orthodox churches ; and adds , that he is astonish'd at our rejection of it . all which stuff is easily said , and may with the same ease and reasonableness be deny'd . and therefore to conclude this in a word ; if ever he gets so well out of his astonishment , as to come to his reason again , and will then undertake to prove penance to be truly and properly a sacrament , instituted by christ , and necessary to salvation , either in act or desire , he shall not fail of an ingenuous reply to his arguments . in the mean time , i have before shewn , that we do practise it , as far as is either necessary or convenient ; and farther than this we shall not think our selves bound to go , till we are somewhat better convinced of our obligations to it , than the vindicator has hitherto been willing or able to do . article xii . of extreme unction . in explaining the words of st. james brought for this pretended sacrament , i follow'd the interpretation which both the practice of the primitive church naturally leads to ; and which cardinal cajetan confesses , and their own publick liturgies shew , was for above years esteem'd the undoubted meaning of them . the vindicator , from bellarmine , advances many things , as he supposes , contrary to this exposition ; but the greatest part of which are utterly false , the rest impertinent . the grace of curing the sick , he says , was not given to all priests and elders alike , but only to some select persons . if this be true , it was then best like st. james's intention , that they should send for those priests to whom it was given . and however some others might have this grace , yet certainly it was principally at least given to the priests and elders , for the honour and benefit of their ministry . these did not only cure the sick , but the lame and the blind . and therefore he would , i suppose , have had st. james taken notice of these two . he might have added the dead likewise ; for those who healed the lame and the blind , raised the dead also . but what if st. james's word be * * * * * * general , and may very well be extended to all these ? yet since these gifts were but rare in the church , in respect of that the apostle here speaks of , and did evidently belong to a greater power , we deny his supposition , that those who ordinarily cured the sick by anointing , had also the power to heal the lame and the blind . their power of miracles was not tied to unction only : but yet since we find in st. mark that this was the ordinary sign , what wonder if st. james describe it by that which was the most common and frequent amongst them ? all those that were anointed , were not cured . this is false , and cannot be maintain'd without dishonour to that spirit by which they acted : neither had all they that were cured by them who had the gift of healing , any assurance by that cure of the forgiveness of their sins . this again is false : the sin here promised to be forgiven , is that for which the sickness was sent , if it was sent for any : now st. james expresly promises , that in this case , whenever the health of the body was restored , this sin should be forgiven too ; and therefore it must be false to say it was not . he adds , lastly , that st. james promises , that the prayer of faith shall save the sick , and the lord shall raise him up : which if it had been meant of bodily health , those only would have died in the apostle's time , who either neglected this advice , or whose deaths prevented the accomplishment of this ceremony . and if it must be understood of the soul's health , then it will follow that none were damned , either then or now , but what neglect this advice , or whose deaths prevent the accomplishment of this ceremony ; concerning the truth of which the vindicator may please to give us his opinion . but the vanity of this objection proceeds from the want of a true notion of the nature of these gifts . they who had the greatest measure of them , could not yet exercise them when they would . the same spirit that helped them to perform the miracle , instructed them also when they should do it . so that they never attempted it , but when they saw the sick person had faith to be healed , and that it would be for the greater glory of god to do it . st. paul had doubtless this gift of healing ; and yet he neither cured timothy of the weakness of his stomach , and his other frequent infirmities ; and left trophimus at miletum sick . that this gift of healing was in the church at this time , is not to be doubted , though this place should not belong to it . will the vindicator argue against this , that then none died till it went out of the church , but such as refused the benefit of it , or died suddenly before they had time to do it ? it may appear by this , how little they have to object against the true design and interpretation of thi● passage : for cardinal cajetan's authority , the vindicator tells us , that had i said only , that he thought it could not be proved , neither from the words , nor the effect , that st. james speaks of the sacramental unction of extreme unction ; but rather of that unction which our lord jesus instituted in the gospel to be exercised by his disciples upon the sick , i had been a faithful quoter of his sense : but to tell us he freely confesses it can belong to no other , is to impose upon him and the readers . as if when two things only are in controversy for the cardinal , absolutely to exclude the one , and apply it to the other , were not in effect ( for i design'd not to translate his words ) to confess , that it could belong only to that . but that which is most considerable is , that the antient liturgies of the church , and the publick practice of it , for above years , shew , that they esteemed this unction to belong primarily to bodily cures , and but secondarily only to the sickness of the soul. and because these rituals are not in every bodies hands , to argue at once the truth of my assertion , and shew how little conversant the vindicator has been in them , i will here insert some particular proofs of it . upon the thursday in the holy week , when this oil was wont to be consecrated , they did it with this prayer : ex s. gregorii libr. sacram. p. . fer. . post palm . emitte domine spiritum s. tuum paraclitum de coelis in hanc pinguedidem olivae , quem de viridi ligno producere dignatus es ; ad refectionem corporis ; ut tuâ sanctâ benedictione sit omni hoc unguentum tangenti tutamen mentis & corporis , ad evacuandos omnes dolores , omnesque infirmitates , omnem aegritudinem corporis . that by this blessing it might become the defence both of the mind and body ; to cure all pains and infirmities , and sickness of the body : nothing else mentioned . in the office of visiting the sick , several introductory prayers , all for the bodies recovery , are first said : such as this , pag. , &c. ad visit and. infirm . p. . deus qui famulo tuo hezekiae ter quinos annos ad vitam donâsti , ita & famulum tuum n. à lecto aegritudinis tua potentia erigat ad salutem . per. o god , who didst add to the life of thy servant hezekiah fifteen years , let thy power in like manner raise up this thy servant from his bed of sickness . through &c. some of these being said , the priest goes on thus : domine deus , qui per apostolum locutus es , infirmatur quis in vobis , inducat presbyteros ecclesiae & orent super eum ungentes eum oleo sancto in nomine domini , &c. cura quaesumus redemptor noster gratiâ spiritûs sancti languores istius infirmi : & sua sana vulnera , ejusque dimitte peccata , atque dolores cunctos cordis & corporis expelle , plenamque & interius exteriúsque sanitatem miserecorditer redde : ut ope miserecordiae tuae restitutus & sanatus , ad pristina pietatis tuae reparetur officia ; per &c. o lord god , who by thy apostle hast said , if any man be sick , let him call for the elders of the church , and let them pray over him , anointing him with oil in the name of the lord , &c : cure we beseech thee , o our redeemer , by the grace of the holy spirit , the sickness of this infirm person : heal his wounds , and forgive his sins , and expel all the pains , both of his heart , and of his body ; and restore him mercifully to full health , both inward and outward : that being by thy merciful aid recovered and healed , he may be strengthned to the former duties of thy service ; through &c. then the sick person kneels down upon the right hand of the priest , and this antiphona is sung : dominus locutus est discipulis suis , in nomine meo daemonia ejicite , & super infirmos manus vestras imponite & bene habebunt . psalm . deus deorum dominus locutus est : et repetit , in nomine meo &c. the lord said unto his disciples , in my name cast out devils ; and lay your hands upon the sick and they shall recover . then the psalm , the lord , the mighty god , hath spoken , &c. after which they repeat again : in my name &c. as before . then follows this prayer . oremus dominum nostrum jesum christum , & cum omni supplicatione rogemus , ut hunc famulum suum n. per angelum sanctum suum visitare , laetificare , & confortare dignetur . let us pray unto our lord jesus christ , and beseech him with all supplication , that he would vouchsafe , by his holy angel , to visit , make glad , and comfort this his servant . afterwards this antiphona . succurre domine infirmo isti n. & medica eum spirituali medicamine , ut in pristinâ sanitate restitutus , gratiarum tibi sanus referat actiones . succour , o lord , this infirm person n. and heal him with a spiritual medicine , that being restored to his former health , when he is well , he may return thanks unto thee . then follows another psalm , and after it this antiphona : sana domine infirmum istum cujus ossa turbata sunt , & cujus anima turbata est valdè : sed tu domine convertere , & sana eum , & eripe animam ejus . heal , o lord , this sick person whose bones are troubled , and whose soul is very much afflicted : but turn thou , o lord , and heal him , and deliver his soul. after this is said the th psalm , from whence the antiphona was taken ; which being ended , they anoint the sick person in several parts , but especially in that where the pain lies ; saying this prayer : inungo te de oleo sancto in nomine patris , & filii , & spiritùs sancti : ut non lateat in te spiritus immundus , neque in membris , neque in medullis , neque in nullâ compagine membrorum ; sed in te habitet virtus christi altissimi & spiritûs sancti ; quatenus per hujus operationem mysterii , atque per hanc sacrati olei unctionem , atque nostram deprecationem , virtute sanctae trinitatis medicatus sive fotus , pristinam & immelioratam recipere merearis sanitatem : per eundem . i anoint thee with this holy oil , in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost ; that no unclean spirit may remain in thee , but that the vertue of the most highest of christ , and the holy ghost may dwell in thee : to the end that by the operation of this mysterie , and through the unction of this holy oil , and our prayers , thou may'st be healed and restored by the vertue of the holy trinity , and receive thy former and better health , through the same . then follows this prayer . domine deus salvator noster , qui es vera salus & medicina , à quo omnis sanitas & medicamentum venit , quique nos apostoli documento instruis ut languentes olei liquore orantes tangeremus , respice propitius super hunc famulum tuum n. & quem languor curvat ad exitum , & virium defectus trahit ad occasum , medela tuae gratiae restituat in salutem . sana quoque quaesumus omnium medicator ejus febrium , & cunctorum languorum cruciatus , aegritudinemque , & dolorum omnium dissolve tormenta , viscerúmque ac cordium interna medica : medullorum quoque & cogitationum : sana discrimina ulcerum , vanitatumque putredines evacua , conscientiarumque atque plagarum obducito cicatrices veteres , immensásque remove passiones : carnis ac sanguinis materiam reforma , delictorúmque cunctorum veniam tribue ; sicque illum tua pietas jugiter custodiat , ut nec ad correptionem aliquando sanitas , nec ad perditionem nunc , te auxiliante , perducat infirmitas ; sed fiat illi haec olei sacri perunctio , morbi & languoris praesentis expulsio , atque peccatorum omnium optata remissio : per dominum nostrum . o lord god our saviour , who art the true health and medicine , and from whom all health and medicine doth proceed : who also , by the instruction of thy holy apostle hast taught us , that we should anoint the sick with oil , look down we beseech thee in mercy upon this thy servant n : and whom his weakness has brought down to death , and the decay of his strength draws towards his end , let the power of thy grace restore to health : heal , we beseech thee , his feavours , &c. — and let the holy unction of this oil be the expulsion of his present sickness and infirmity , and the remission of all his sins : through . then let the priest give him the communion of the body and blood of christ : and if occasion be , let them repeat this seven days ; and the lord shall raise him up ; and i f he be in sins , they shall be remitted . the priest ought also to say the morning and evening service every day to the sick person , adding the hymn ; ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ christe coelestis medicina patris ; which is a prayer entirely for the recovery of the bodily health . this was the method of their unction in pope gregory's missal ; and which i suppose shews that it had somewhat more than a bare respect to bodily cures ; indeed was , as i before affirm'd , especially designed for them . it were an easy matter to shew the very same to be the practice of the greek church at this day ; insomuch that * * * * * * arcudius himself could not dissemble it : but i shall close this with one observation more which † † † † † † cassander has given us , that it was anciently the custom to anoint , not only the elder persons , but even infants , after the same manner ; not sure for the forgiveness of those remains of sin which the former sacraments had not sufficiently cleared , but for the same end for which they then did all others , the recovery of their bodily health . article xiii . of marriage . that marriage is not a sacrament truly and properly so called , as the council of trent has defined it , their own authors sufficiently shew . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ lombard denies that there is any grace conferr'd in it , and affirms it as a † † † † † † sacrament , to have been instituted not only before christ , but even before the fall ; and therefore was not cited , either for ostentation , or for the silly reason mention'd by the vindicator . * * * * * * durandus in express terms declares , that forasmuch as it neither confers grace where it is not , nor encreases it where it is , it cannot be a sacrament truly and properly so called . it is therefore evidently false to say , that lombard is against me in this matter ; and for the torrent of fathers and † † † † † † scriptures which he talks of , it would have been more to this purpose to have produced their authorities , than thus vainly to boast of that which we certainly know he is not able to perform . article xiv . of holy orders . if the vindicator be truly agreed with me in this article , he must then renounce the number of his seven sacraments . i deny'd that there was any sign instituted by christ , to which his grace is annexed : all the authority imposition of hands has in scripture , being only the example of three or four places , where it was practised indeed , but no where commanded . i affirm'd that several of his own church had declared it not to be essential to holy orders , nor by consequence the outward sign of a sacrament in them . in a word , i said , that the grace conferr'd was no justifying grace , nor by consequence such as is requisite to make a true and proper sacrament : to all which he has thought fit not to offer one word in answer . article , , , . of the eucharist . as to the business of the eucharist , i had not entred on any argument about it , had not monsieur de meaux here thought fit to lay aside the character of an expositor , to assume that of a disputant . for the words of institution , which are the principal part of this controversy , i proposed two arguments to confirm the interpretation which our church gives of them : one from the the natural import of the words themselves ; the other from the intention of our saviour in the institution of this holy sacrament - to the former of these the vindicator thought he could answer somewhat ; but for the latter , it has been urged chiefly since bellarmine's time , and so our author had nothing to say to it . for the former then he tells us , first , of the insincerity of my attacque ; that the bishop declared there was nothing in the words of institution obliging them to take them in a figurative sense ; to which i oppose only , that there are such grounds in them for a figurative interpretation , as naturally lead to it . 't is true , i have not here used the very word obliged , but yet in my proof i proceed upon such grounds as i said would necessarily require a figurative interpretation ; which is much the same thing . and though i cannot tell what will oblige him to take those words in their true , i. e. figurative sense ; yet if i have proved , that there are such grounds in those words as naturally , indeed necessarily lead to it ; any reasonable man would think , that joyn'd with the other proof from the reason of the thing it self , might be sufficient to oblige him to acquiesce in it . but we will examine his process , which whether it argues more my unsincerity , or the falseness of their interpretation , i shall leave it to the reader to judg . first ; he confesses , as to my first position , that the words themselves do naturally lead to a figurative interpretation . no body , says he , ever deny'd but the words as they lie ( without considering the circumstances and practice of the church , delivering the interpretation of them down to us ) might possibly lead to a figurative interpretation : seeing the like expressions are frequently found in scripture : as for example , i am a door , i am a vine , &c. which being always taken by the church in a figurative sense , we should esteem him a mad-man that should think it possible after this , to perswade all the world they ought to be taken in a literal . and as it would be a madness to suppose all mankind might in future ages be so sottish , as to renounce this figurative interpretation of jesus christ's being a dore , and a vine , and fall so far into the literal sense , as to believe him to be substantially present in them , and pay the utmost adorations to him there , set them up in temples to be adored , and celebrate feasts in honour of them ; ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ so we cannot but think it to be irrational to imagine , that if the disciples and whole church in all nations , had been once taught these words , this is my body , were to be taken in a figurative sense , it could ever have happen'd that the visible church in all nations , should agree to teach their children the literal , &c. the meaning of which discourse , if i understand it aright , is this concession , that the words of institution do in themselves as naturally lead to a figurative interpretation , as those other expressions , i am a vine , i am a door : and the only thing which makes the difference is , that the church , as he supposes , has from the beginning interpreted the one according to the letter , the other in a figurative acceptation . secondly , as to my argument , that if the relative this , in that proposition , this is my body , referr'd to the bread which our saviour held in his hand , the natural repugnancy there is betwixt the two things affirmed of one another , bread and christ's body will necessarily require the figurative interpretation . this * * * * * * bellarmine , † † † † † † gratian , and others do confess , and the vindicator himself seems contented with it : only he believes , that all my logic will never be able to prove that the pronoun this must necessarily relate to ( panis ) * * * * * * bread , and not to ( corpus ) body . how far my logic has been able to do this , i must leave it to others to determine ; but for the vindicator's satisfaction , i do assure him , that bellarmine looks upon it to be good logic. and because it is in the middle of the citation i referred to , and which he has almost intirely transcribed , excepting only the part i am now speaking of , i will not charge him with unsincerity in the omission , but i must needs say 't was indiscreet to put the issue of the question upon what his cardinal had so freely confessed : † † † † † † the lord , says he , took bread in his hands , and blessed it , and gave it to his disciples , and said of it , this is my body : therefore he took bread , and blessed bread , and gave bread to his disciples , and said of bread , this is my body . and in ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ another place , arguing against this very opinion of the vindicator , that this in that proposition belongs to body , not the bread which he held in his hand ; says , that if a man points with his finger to a thing whilst he utters a pronoun demonstrative , 't were absurd to say that any thing else should be referred to , but that thing . our lord took bread , and reaching it out to them , said , take , eat , this is my body ; he seems to have pointed to the bread ; and therefore must have shewn some certain thing , even before the other words were pronounced . from which put together , i think we may frame this argument : if the relative this , in that proposition , this is my body , belong to the bread , so that the meaning is , this bread is my body , then it must be understood figuratively , or 't is plainly absurd and impossible : but the relative this in that proposition , this is my body , does belong to the bread , forasmuch as christ took bread , and blessed bread , and gave bread to his disciples , and therefore said of bread , this is my body : therefore that proposition , this is my body , must be understood figuratively , or 't is plainly absurd and impossible . how far the vindicator will approve this logick , i cannot tell ; but the first proposition is their common concession , and he himself seems contented with it . the second is bellarmine's own grant , nay what he contends for , and indeed what the connexion of the words do evidently require : and then for the conclusion , i believe a very little logick will be enough at any time to make good the sequel of it . but the vindicator has an exception against all this , and tells us , that it will all argue nothing against them , unless i beg the question , and suppose that no real change was made by those words . i presume it is as much a begging of the question for him to suppose there was , as for me that there was not . we do not now enquire how to expound the proposition , supposing there were such a change made as they imagine ; but the question is , whether these words do necessarily imply any such change , nay , rather do not oblige us to take them in a figurative sense to shew that there is none ? however he is resolved he will suppose the question first , and then prove it , tho' i must not . we will suppose , says he , and that not incongruously , that our blessed saviour in changing the water into wine , might have made use of these words this is wine , or let this be wine . i hope he does not look upon these two to be one and the same . but in short , if our saviour had said let this be wine , the meaning must have been , let this which is now water become wine . if he had said , this is wine , and the conversion not yet made , it would have been false : if after the conversion , no more than this , this that is contained in these pots is wine ; or , this which before was water , now is wine . and so in the point before us ; had our blessed saviour said , let this be my body , and a conversion had been thereupon as truly made , as of the water into wine , we should have made no doubt , but that it was a command for that which before was bread to become his body . if we take the words as they are , this is my body , and no conversion made before they were pronounced , the proposition in the literal sense must plainly be false . if a real conversion had first been made , as when the water was turned into wine , then would it signifie no more than this , this which before was bread , is now my body . so that all this will as little avail him , as he says the other did us , unless he also beg the question , and suppose a real change made by these words , which he knows is the very thing which we deny ; as we shall have reason to do , till they can prove that what , we are sure , was bread , is converted into the body of christ. and thus much for his disputing ; before he enters on an examination of those authorities i produced to shew the novelty and uncertainty of trans-substantiation , he is willing to state the case , and to that end would fain know what we mean when we say , that christ is not corporeally present in this sacrament : or how that which is not the thing it self , is yet more than a meer figure of it . in answer to which , i shall need seek no farther than those testimonies i before alledged out of the publick acts of our church to satisfie him . our catechism affirms , that the inward part , or thing signified in this holy supper , is the body and blood of christ , which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in the lords-supper : and the meaning of it our th ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ article expounds thus ; the body of christ is given , taken , and eaten in the lord's supper , only after a spiritual and heavenly manner ; and the means by which this is done , is faith . so that to such as rightly , and worthily , and with faith receive the same , the bread which we break , is , as st. paul declares it , the communion of the body of christ , and the cup of blessing which we bless , the communion of the blood of christ. in a word ; we say , that the faithful do really partake of christs body after such a manner , as those who are void of faith cannot , tho' they may participate the outward elements alike ; whom therefore our church declares , * * * * * * to receive only the sacrament of the body and blood of christ , but to be no way partakers of christ ; but rather as st. paul again says , to eat and drink their own damnation , not discerning the lords body . * * * * * * these are the words of our church ; and the meaning is clearly this : christ is really present in this sacrament , inasmuch as they who worthily receive it , have thereby really convey'd to them our saviour christ , and all the benefits of that body and blood , whereof the bread and wine are the outward signs . this great effect , plainly shews it to be more than a meer figure ; yet is it not his body after the manner that the papists imagine , † † † † † † christ's body being in heaven , and not on the holy table ; and it being against the truth of christs natural body , to be at one time in more places than one . the sacramental bread and wine then remain still in their very natural substance ; nor is there any corporal presence of christ's natural flesh and blood at the holy altar . the presence we allow , is spiritual , and that not only as to the manner of the existence ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ , which the vindicator seems to insinuate ( for we suppose it to be a plain contradiction , that a body should have any existence but what alone is proper to a body , i. e. corporal ) but as to the nature of the thing it self ; and yet it is real too : the bread which we receive , being a most real and effectual communion of christ's body , in that spiritual and heavenly manner which st. paul speaks of , and in which the faithful , by their faith are made partakers of it . thus does our church admit of a real presence , and yet † † † † † † , neither take the words of institution in their literal sense * * * * * * , and avoid all those absurdities we so justly charge them with : as to the authorities of their own writers , which i alledged to shew that the doctrine of transubstantiation had no grounds , neither in scripture nor antiquity : he is content to allow that the scriptures are not so plain in this matter , but that it was necessary for the church to interpret them in order to our understanding of it . and for antiquity , he desires us to observe , i st , that the council of trent having in the first canon , defined the true , real , and substantial presence of the body and blood of jesus christ in the most holy sacrament , brings this transubstantiation , or conversion of one substance into another , as the natural consequence of it . can. . if any one shall say , that the substance of bread and wine remains in the most holy sacrament of the eucharist , together with the body and blood of our lord jesus christ , and shall deny that wonderful and singular conversion of the whole substance of the bread into the body , and of the whole substance of the wine into the blood , the species of bread and wine only remaining ; which conversion the catholick church does most aptly call transubstantiation , let him be anathema . the design of the council in which canon is evidently this , to define not only the real and substantial presence of christ in the eucharist , against the sacramentaries , which before was done ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ; but also the manner or mode of his presence , against the lutherans , in two particulars ; st , of the absence of the substance of the bread and wine . ly , of the conversion of their substance into the body and blood of christ , the species only remaining . but this the vindicator will not allow , but advances an exposition so contrary to the design of the council , and doctrine of his church , that it is wonderful to imagine how he could be so far deceived himself , or think to impose upon others so vain and fond an illusion . it is manifest , says he , that the church does not here intend to fix the manner of that conversion , but only to declare the matter , viz. that the body and blood of jesus christ becomes truly , really , and substantially present ; the bread and wine ceasing to be there truly , really , and substantially present , tho the appearances thereof remain . now this is so evidently false , that suarez doubts not to say 't is herest to affirm it , forasmuch , says he , as the council not only determines the presence of christ's body , and absence of the substance of the bread , but also the true conversion of the one into the other ; thus establishing , not only the two former , but this last also as an article of faith. our dispute therefore , is not only , as this author pretends , about the real presence of christ's body , and absence of the substance of the bread , which he calls the thing it self ; but also about the manner , how jesus christ is present ; viz. whether it be by that wonderful and singular conversion which their church calls so aptly transubstantiation ? now this being that we are to enquire into , let us see whether the authorities i have brought , have not the force i pretend against their tenets . and . lombard writing about this conversion , plainly shews it to have been undetermined in his time . for having first asserted the real presence in this sacrament , and the change which he supposed was made upon that account : he goes on to that which the † † † † † † vindicator is pleased to call a scholastick nicety ; and it was indeed at that time no other , tho since become a matter of faith , viz. what kind of conversion is there made ? whether formal or substantial , or what else ? and for this , he tells us freely , he is not able to define it : that some have thought it to be a substantial change ; but for his part , he will not undertake to determine it . but dly , scotus is yet more free ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ he declares our interpretation contrary to transubstantiation , to be the more easie , and to all appearance the more true : insomuch , that the churches authority is the * * * * * * principal thing that moved him to receive their doctrine . † † † † † † he tells us that this doctrine of transubstantiation was not very ancient , nor any matter of faith before the council of lateran ; all which the vindicator himself does in effect confess . the same is , ly , affirmed by * * * * * * suarez of gabriel , and confess'd by the vindicator ; who also , contrary to his pretences , calls this manner of conversion , an assertion , that is , of faith ; tho he confesses , it is not expresly to be found in scripture , but deduced thence by the interpretation of the church . nay , so opposite is he to the opinion and pretences of this man , that he declares in this very place , which our good author examined ; but amidst all his sincerity , overlook'd this passage , as not much for his purpose ; that if any one should confess the real presence of christ's body , and absence of the bread , and yet deny the true conversion of the one into the other , he would fall into herest ; forasmuch as the church has defined , not only the two former , but also the third likewise . but , thly , the prevarication of our author in the next citation is yet more unpardonable . i affirmed , that cardinal cajetan acknowledged , that had not the church declared her self for the proper sense of the words , the other might with as good reason have been received . this he says , is false ; for that cajetan says no such thing ; nay , rather the contrary , as will appear to any one who reads that article : and then with wonderful assurance , begins a rabble of citations nothing to the purpose , in the very next words to those in which mine end . for the better clearing of this doctrine , says cajetan , we must know , that as to the existence of christ's body in the eucharist , there is nothing to be had expresly from the authority of the holy scripture , but the words of our saviour , saying , this is my body . for it must needs be that these words are true ; and because the words of scripture may be expounded two ways , either properly , or metaphorically ; the first error was of those who interpret these words metaphorically , which is rejected in this article . and the force of the rejection consists in this , that the words of our saviour have been understood in their proper sence by the church , and therefore must be properly true . this the vindicator was pleased to pass by , tho' the very next words to those he cites : nay , to say , that cajetan had no such thing in that article ; and appeal to any that should read it , for the truth of it . should a protestant have done this , he would , i believe , have found out a great many hard names for him , to testifie his zeal against falshood and unsincerity , and shew what a kind of religion that must be , that is not maintainable without such sinister doings : but i shall remit him wholly to the reader 's censure , and his own conscience for correction . as for my last assertion , that transubstantiation was no matter of faith , till the council of lateran , years after christ : they are the very words of scotus cited by bellarmine , and all his sophistry will not be able to prove that they make but little for my purpose . thus , notwithstanding all the little endeavours of the vindicator , to evade the truth of those concessions made by the greatest of his own communion in favour of our doctrine , my argument still stands good against them ; and transubstantiation appears to have been the monstrous birth of these last ages , unknown in the church for almost years . for what remains concerning the adoration of the host , since he has thought fit to leave my arguments in their full force ; i shall not need say any thing in defence of that , which he has not so much as attempted to destroy . article xix . of the sacrifice of the mass. if i affirmed , the sacrifice of the mass to be one of those errors that most offends us ; i said no more than what the church of england has always thought of it : and had the vindicator pleased to have examined my arguments , instead of admiring them , he would perhaps have found i had reason to do so . * * * * * * * * * * * * the council of trent affirms , that the mass is a true and proper sacrifice offered to god , a sacrifice not only of praise and thanksgiving , nor yet a bare commemoration of the sacrifice offered on the cross , but truly propitiatory for the dead and the living , and for the sins , punishments , satisfactions , and other necessities of both of them . † † † † † † a sacrifice wherein the same christ is now offered without blood , that once offer'd himself in that bloody sacrifice of the cross , the same sacrifice , the same offerer ; christ by his priests now , who then did it by himself , offering himself , only differing in the manner of oblation . this is in short , what their council has defined as to this mass-sacrifice , and what we think we have good reason to be offended at . that there should be any true and proper sacrifice , truly and properly propitiatory , after that of the cross ; that christ who once offer'd up himself upon the tree for us , should again be brought down every day from heaven , to be sacrificed a new in ten thousand places at a time on their altars : and by all these things so great a dishonour done to our blessed lord , as most evidently there is , and our writers have unanswerably proved , in the whole design , practice , and pretences of it . how little the doctrine of the real presence , as understood by the church of england , will serve to support this innovation , is at first sight evident from the exposition i before gave of it . that those who are ordained priests , ought to have power given them to consecrate the sacrament of the body and blood of christ , and make them present in that holy eucharist , after such a manner as our saviour appointed , and as at the first institution of this sacred mystery they certainly were , this we have always confessed ; and our † † † † † † rituals shew that our priests accordingly have such a power , by imposition of hands , conferred on them . but that it is necessary to the evangelical priesthood , that they should have power to offer up christ truly and properly , as the council of trent defines , this we deny ; and shall have reason to do so , till it can be proved to us , that their mass is indeed such a sacrifice as they pretend , and that our saviour left it as an essential part of their priesthood to offer it . for the rest , if with the council of trent , he indeed believes the mass to be a true and proper sacrifice , he ought not to blame us for taking it in that sence in which they themselves understand it : for certainly , it is impossible for words to represent a sacrifice more strictly and properly , than the council of trent has defined this . article xx. of the epistle to the hebrews . to elude the authority of this epistle , the vindicator , after monsieur de meaux , thinks it sufficient to tell us , that they understand the word offer when they apply it to the mass , in a larger signification than what the apostle there gives it ; as when we are said to offer up to god whatever we present before him : and that 't is thus they pretend to offer up the blessed jesus to his father in the mass , in which he vouchsafes to render himself present before him . that this is to prevaricate the true meaning of that phrase , the doctrine of the foregoing article plainly shews . if christ be in the mass a true and proper sacrifice , as was there said , it will necessarily follow that then he must be truly and properly sacrificed : ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ and one essential propriety , and which they tell us distinguishes a sacrifice from any other offering , being the true and real destruction of what is offered ; insomuch that where there is not a true and proper destruction , neither can there be , as they themselves acknowledg , a true and proper sacrifice : it must be evidently false in these men to pretend , that by offering in this matter is meant only a presenting of christ before god , and not a real change and destruction of his body offered by them . if in this exposition of their doctrine we do indeed misunderstand the meaning of it , we must at least profess it to be so far from any wilfull mistake , that we do no more than what their greatest men have done before us : and indeed it still seems most reasonable to us , that either this sacrifice is no true and proper sacrifice , as they say it is ; or it is truly and properly offer'd , as we affirm they understand it to be . article xxi . reflections upon the foregoing doctrine . if my reflections in this article be but as good , as my exceptions in the foregoing have been just , against their doctrine ; what the vindicator has said to these here , will i believe be found as little to the purpose , as what he endeavoured to reply to those before . tho' christ be acknowledged to be really present after a divine and heavenly manner in this holy eucharist , yet will not this warrant the adoration of the host , which is still nevertheless only bread and wine , from being what our church censures it , idolatry to be abhorred of all faithful christians ; nor will such a real presenting of our blessed lord to his father , to render him propitious to us , make the eucharist any more than a metaphorical , not a true and proper propitiatory sacrifice . if these men please to fix upon us any other notion of the real presence than what has been said , and which alone our church allows of ; we are neither concerned in the doctrine , nor shall we think our selves at all obliged to answer for those consequences they may possibly draw from it . article xxii . communion under both species . to prove the lawfulness of their denying the cup to the laity , the vindicator advances three arguments from the publick acts of our own church : the st . false ; the d . both false and unreasonable : the d. nothing to the purpose . st . he says , the church of england allows the communion to be given under one species in case of necessity : art. . this is false : the article establishes both kinds ; and speaks nothing at all of any case of necessity , or what may , or may not be done on that account . the cup of the lord is not to be denied to the lay-people , for both the parts of the lords sacrament , by christ's ordinance and commandment , ought to be administred to all christian men alike . dly . edward the sixth , he says , in his proclamation before the order of communion , ordains , that the sacrament of the body and blood of our saviour jesus christ , should from thenceforth be commonly delivered and administred unto all persons within our realms of england and ireland , and other our dominions , under both kinds , that is to say of bread and wine , except necessity otherwise require . this , as it is thus alledged by the vindicator , is both false and unreasonable : false , for that edward the th in that proclamation does not ordain any such thing , but only says , that forasmuch as in his high court of parliament lately holden at westminster this was ordain'd , viz. that the most blessed body and blood of our saviour christ , should from thenceforth be commonly administred to all persons under both kinds , &c. he for the greater decency , and uniformity of this sacred eucharist , now thought fit to appoint the following form and order for the administration of it . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ it is in the next place unreasonable , to argue as to the present state of the church of england , from what was allow'd only , and that in case of necessity too , in the very first beginning of the reformation . it was indeed the singular providence of god , that in the d year of that excellent prince , things were so far reformed from those long and inveterate errors , in which the ignorance and superstition of several ages had involved the church , that they had allowed , nay , commanded the holy sacrament to be given under both kinds , when for so many years it had been received only under one . but that labouring still under their former prejudices , they should in case of necessity permit that , which had been the universal practice of the church , without any necessity at all before ; this is neither to be admired in them then , nor is it reasonable to urge it against us now . his d argument is not only unreasonable upon the account we have now said ; but were it never so proper , is absolutely nothing to the purpose . in the rubrick , at the end of the same order of the communion , there is this remark : note that the bread that shall be consecrated , shall be such as heretofore hath been accustomed ; and every of the said consecrated breads shall be broken in two pieces at the least , or more by the discretion of the minister , and so distributed . and men must not think less to be received in part than in the whole , but in each of them the whole body of our saviour jesus christ. the meaning of which rubrick is very plain ; that whereas the people who had hitherto been accustomed to receive the wafer entire , were now to have but a part of it given to them ; to prevent any mis-conceits upon that account , as if because they did not receive the whole wafer as they were wont to do , they did not receive the whole body , i. e. the flesh of christ , ( for as to the blood , that they received afterwards in the cup : ) it was thought fit for the prevention of this scruple , to tell them , that they must not think less to be received in part than in the whole , but in each of them the whole body of jesus christ ; which what it makes for their denyal of the cup to the laity , i cannot very well apprehend . and now how well this author has proved it to be the doctrine of the church of england , to dispence with the cup in the holy eucharist , in case of necessity , i shall leave it to any indifferent person to judge . tho' after all , did we indeed , as some others do , believe that the church had power to do this ; how will this excuse them , who without any necessary or but reasonable cause deny it to the people altogether ; and damn all those that will not believe they had not only power , but just cause and reason so to do ? and why will it not as well follow , that they may take away if they please the whole sacrament from them , and damn all those that will not believe that they had just cause and power to do this too ; since even that in case of necessity may be dispensed with ; and whilst there is no neglect or contempt of it , prove neither damnable nor dangerous ? part iii. article xxiii . of the written and unwritten word . as to this article , there is indeed an agreement between monsieur de meaux and me , so far as we handle the question , and keep to those general terms , of the traditions being universally received by all churches , and in all ages ; for in this case we of the church of england are perfectly of the same opinion with them , and ready to receive whatever we are thus assured to have come from the apostles , with a like veneration to that we pay to the written word it self . but , after all this , there is , as the vindicator observes , a very material difference betwixt us , viz. who shall be judge when this tradition is universal ? he tells us , they rely upon the judgment of the present church of every age , declaring her sense , whether by the most general council of that age , or by the constant practice , and uniform voice of her pastors and people . and this is that to which he conceives every private person and church ought to submit , without presuming to examine how ancient that tradition does appear to be , or how agreeable it is to the written word of god. now here we must own a dissent as to this method of judging of traditions , for these two reasons : . because whether there were any such particular doctrine or practice received by the primitive church , is a matter of fact , and as such is in many cases distinctly set down by such writers as lived in or near that first age of the church . now where the case is thus , the accounts that are given by these writers , are certainly to those who are able to search into them , a better rule whereby to judge what was an ancient doctrine and tradition , than either the decree of a council of a latter age , or the voice and practice of its pastors and people . for let these agree as much as they will in voting any doctrine or practice to have been primitive , yet they can never make it pass for such among wise and knowing men , if the authentick histories and records of those times shew it to have been otherwise . and this being plainly the case as to several instances decreed by the councils , and practised by the pastors and people in the roman church ; we cannot look upon her late decrees and practices to be a good or a safe rule for judging of the antiquity , or universality of church-traditions . but . there is yet a more cogent reason against this method , which is , that it is apt to set up tradition in competition with the scriptures , and to give this unwritten word the upper hand of the written . for , according to this method , if the church in any age , does but decree in council , or does generally teach and practice any thing as an ancient tradition , then this must obtain and be of force with all its members , tho' many of them should be perswaded that they cannot find it in , nay , that it is contrary to the written word of god. now this we cannot but look upon as an high affront to the holy scriptures : and let them attribute as much as they please to the decrees and practices of their church , we cannot allow that any particular church or person , should be obliged upon these grounds to receive that as a matter of faith or doctrine , which upon a diligent and impartial search appears to them not to be contained in , nay , to be contrary to the written word of god. in this case we think it reasonable that the church's sentence should be made void ; and the voice of her pretended traditions be silenced by that more powerful one of 〈◊〉 lively oracles of god. article xxiv , xxv . of the authority of the church . in the two next articles , concerning the authority of the church , i was willing to allow as much , and come up as near to mons. de meaux , as truth and reason would permit . this it seems made the vindicator to conceive some great hopes from my concessions . but these his hopes are soon dasht , when he finds me putting in some exceptions , and not willing to swallow the whole doctrine , as it is laid down in the exposition . now the exceptions that seem most to offend him , are these , . that the church of rome should be taken for a particular , and not the catholick church . . that she should be supposed as such , either by error to have lost , or by other means to have prevaricated the faith , even in the necessary points of it . . that any other church should be allow'd to examine and judg of the decisions of that church . . that it should be left to private or individual persons to examine and oppose the decisions of the whole church , if they are evidently convinced that their private belief is founded upon the authority of god's holy word . these are the exceptions , at which he is the most offended : the . of these , he calls an argument to elude the authority of the church of rome ; and to shew the fallacy of it , he thinks it sufficient to say , that they do not take the church of rome , as it is the suburbican diocess , to be the catholick church , but all the christian churches in communion with the bishop of rome . now if this , in truth , be that which they mean , when they stile the church of rome the catholick church , then surely every other national church which is of that communion , has as good a title to the name of catholick , as that of rome it self . for seeing it is the purity or orthodoxness of the faith , which is the bond of this communion , this renders every distinct church professing this faith , equally catholick with the rest ; and reduces the church of rome , as well as others , within its own suburbican diocess , and so makes it only a particular , not the universal church . but now , should we allow the church of rome as great an extent as the vindicator speaks of , and that it were proper to understand by that name , all those other churches which are in communion with her ; yet all this would not make her the whole or catholick church , unless it could be proved , that there was no other christian church in the world besides those in communion with her ; and that all christian churches have in all ages profess'd just the same faith , and continued just in the same worship as she hath done . and this we conceive will not easily be made out with reference to the grecian , armenian , abassine churches ; all which have plainly for several ages differed from the church of rome , and those in her communion , in points relating both to faith and worship : so that in respect of these and the like christian churches , which were not of her communion , she could not be looked upon as a universal , but only as a particular church . now if this be so , then the vindicator himself allows , dly , that a particular church , may either by error lose , or by other means prevaricate the faith , even in the necessary points of it . indeed that promise of our saviour , that the gates of hell should not prevail against his church ; seems on all hands acknowledged , to refer to his whole church , not to any one particular branch or portion . and therefore , tho' the particular church of rome should have fallen into gross errors both in matters of faith and practice ; yet the catholick church of christ may still , as to other of its members , retain so much truth and purity , as to keep it from falling away , or being guilty of an intire infidelity . and then for the d. exception , the allowing any other particular church to examine and judg of the decisions of this church of rome : if she her self be but a particular church , and has no more command or jurisdiction over the faith of other churches , than they have over hers ; then every other national church is as much impow'red to judg for her self , as she is , and has an equal right to examine her decisions , as those of other churches ; and may either receive , or reject what by gods grace directing her , she judges to agree or disagree with his holy word . nor do's one branch of christ's church in this respect invade the prerogative of another ; since they do herein only follow the apostles rule , in trying all things , and holding fast that which is good . but the th exception , he says , is yet more intollerable than all the rest : that it should be left to every individual person , not only to examine the decisions of the whole church , but also to glory in opposing them , if he be but evidently convinced that his own belief is founded upon the undoubted authority of god's holy word . this , he says , is a doctrine , which if admitted , will maintain all dissenters that are , or can be from a church , and establish as many religions as there are persons in the world. these indeed , are very ill consequences , but such as do not directly follow from this doctrine as laid down in my exposition . for st , i allow of this dissent or opposition , only in necessary articles of faith , where it is every mans concern and duty , both to judg for himself , and to make as sound and sincere a judgment as he is able : and dly , as i take the holy scriptures for the rule , according to which this judgment is to be made , so do i suppose these scriptures to be so clearly written , as to what concerns those necessary articles , that it can hardly happen that any one man , any serious and impartial enquirer , should be found opposite to the whole church in his opinion . now these two things being supposed , that in matters of faith , a man is to judg for himself , and that the scriptures are a clear and sufficient rule for him to judg by ; it will plainly follow , that if a man be evidently convinced , upon the best enquiry he can make , that his particular belief is founded upon the word of god , and that of the church is not ; he is obliged to support and adhere to his own belief in opposition to that of the church . and the reason of this must be very evident to all those who own , not the church , but the scriptures , to be the ultimate rule and guide of their faith. for if this be so , then individual persons , as well as churches , must judg of their faith , according to what they find in scripture . and tho it be highly useful to them , to be assisted in the making of this judgment by that church , of which they are members ; yet , if after this instruction , they are still evidently convinced that there is a disagreement in any necessary point of faith , between the voice of the church and that of the scripture , they must stick to the latter rather than the former , they must follow the superior , not inferior guide . and however this method may through the ignorance or malice of some men , be liable to some abuse ; yet certainly , in the main , it is most just and reasonable , and most agreeable to the constitutions of the church of england , which do's not take upon her to be absolute mistress of the faith of her members , but allows a higher place and authority to the guidance of the holy scripture , than to that of her own decisions . as to the authority , by which i back'd this assertion , viz. that of st. athanasius , tho' it is not doubted but that that expression , of his being against the whole world , and the whole world against him , did refer chiefly to the eastern bishops ; and was not so literally true as to those of the west ; yet , if we consider what compliances there were even of the western bishops , at ariminum and sirmium , and how pope liberius himself , tho' he refused to subscribe the form of faith , sent to him from ariminum , and was for that reason deposed from his bishoprick , and banished out of italy ; yet afterwards , when the emperor constantius sent for him to sirmium , and required his assent to a form of faith , in which the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , was purposely omitted , he yielded thus far , and was thereupon restored to his bishoprick ; i say , if we consider these and the like particulars related by the church historians , we shall have little reason to believe that the western bishops , or even the pope himself , did throughly adhere to the faith of st. athanasius ; and therefore , that neither was he or i much in the wrong , in affirming , that he stood up in defence of christs divinity , when the pope , the councils , and almost the whole church fell away . article xxvi . of the authority of the holy see , and of episcopacy . in this article the vindicator is pleased to declare that he has nothing to say against the opinion of the church of england ; only he thinks fit to advise me to enquire , what that authority is which the ancient councils of the primitive church have acknowledged , and the holy fathers have always taught the faithful to give the pope . indeed , a very little inquiry will serve the turn to let a man see , that their pope do's at this day , lay claim to a great deal more than those councils or fathers did ever allow him . and we should be glad he would direct us to those places , either in the first councils or the primitive fathers , where the pope is stiled the universal bishop , or the supreme head on earth of the whole christian church ; where it is said , that he is christs immediate vicar ; and that all other bishops must derive their authority from him . these are things which he do's now pretend to , but we can find no footsteps of them in the first councils or fathers of the church . on the contrary , we find innumerable passages which plainly shew , that no such title or authority was anciently claimed by , or allow'd to the bishop of rome : and therefore we say , that these new and groundless pretences must be laid aside , before we can be content to yield him that honour , which has been sometimes given to his predecessors . as to that new question he has hookt in at the end of this article , whether the first four general councils might not be term'd neither general nor free , with as much reason as the council of trent ; i suppose it may easily be answer'd in the negative . st , it was not so general , because it was not call'd by so great and just an authority as those were : that was an authority to which christians of all places , and all ranks , acknowledged themselves bound to submit , and attend where they were summon'd by it ; whereas this was a meer usurpation , and being so , was not regarded by a great part of the christian world , who were sensible that they ow'd no subjection to it . dly , it was not so free , because those who had most to say in defence of the truth , durst not appear at trent , being sufficiently forewarn'd by what others had lately suffered in a like case at constance : add to this , that those who being present , did set themselves most to oppose error and corruption , were perpetually run down , and outvoted by shoals of new made bishops , sent out of italy for that purpose . so that such a council as this , could not with any shew of reason be termed , either free or general , much less ought it to be compared with those first four councils , which were in all these respects most opposite to it . close xxvii . and now , that i have gone through the several articles of the vindication , and found the pretensions of this author against me as false , as i think i have shewn his arguments to have been frivolous ; what shall i say more ? shall i complain of his injuries , or rather shall i yet again beseech him to consider the little grounds he had for them ; and see whether he has been able in any one instance , to make good that infamous character , which he has told the world , i have deserved in almost every article of my expoposition . have i calumniated them in any thing ? have i misrepresented their doctrines ? i have already said , i do not know that i have ; i think i may now add , i have made it appear that i have not . where are the unsincere dealings , the falsifications , the authors miscited , or misapplied ? excepting only an error or two , that 's the most , of the press ; has he given any one example of this ? some words now and then i omitted , because i thought them impertinent , and was unwilling to burden a short treatise with tedious citations . and i am still perswaded that they were not material , and that he might as well have found fault with me for not transcribing the whole books , from whence they were produced , as for leaving out those passages which he pretends ought to have been inserted . and for this , i appeal to the foregoing articles to be my vindication . but our author has well observed that nothing can be so clearly expressed , or so firmly established , let me add , or so kindly and charitably performed , but that a person who intends to cavil , may either form a seeming objection against it , or wrest it into a different sense . i never had the vanity to fancy my exposition to be infiallible , or that the sight of an imprimatur should make me pass for an oracle . but yet i was willing to hope , that amidst the late pretences to moderation , such a peaceable exposition of the doctrine of the church of england might at least have been received with the same civility by them , as that of the church of rome was by us ; and that our new methodists had not so wholly studied the palliating part of their master , as not to have learnt something of his fairness and civility also . this i had so much the greater reason to expect , for that it has been esteemed not the least part of the artifice of monsieur de meaux , not only to mollifie the errors of his church ; but to moderate that passion and heat that for the most part occurs in the defenders of it : and by the temper and candidness of his stile , insinuate into his reader a good opinion of his doctrine . but this is an artifice that our late controvertists seem resolved we shall have no great cause to apprehend . who therefore have not only wholly laid aside the moderation of this prelate ; but have in some of their last pieces fallen into such a vein of lightness and scurrility , as if their zeal for their church had made them forget that religion is the subject , and christians and scholars , to say no more of them , their antagonists . i am ashamed to say , what mean reflections , and trivial jestings make up almost the sum of their latest attempts . the papist represented , which seemed to promise something of seriousness and moderation , expiring in a fanatick sermon ; done indeed so naturally , as if the once protestant author had dropt not out of the church of england ; but a conventicle into popery . his late majesties papers answered with reason , and ( whatever is pretended ) with respect too by us ; instead of being vindicated , ridiculed in the reply : in which it is hard to say , whether the author has least shewn his charity to us , or his respect to the persons and church that he defends . these are the new methods that are now taken up ; but sure such as neither church i suppose will be very well satisfied with : and which seem more accommodated to the genius of those sceptics who divert themselves at the expence of all religion on both sides , than designed to satisfie the sober and conscientious of either . it is not improbable but that some such ingenious piece may in a little time come forth against what i have now publish'd ; to call me a few ill names , pass a droll or two upon the cause , tell the world how many sheets there were in my defence , and put the curious to another shilling expence , as a late author has very gravely observed . if this be the case , i hope i shall need no apology to men of sense and sobriety , if i here end both their trouble and my own together . let those who have been always used to it , rally on still with holy things if they think good ; for my part i esteem the salvation of mens souls , and the truth of religion , to be a more serious subject than to be exposed to the levity of a jest , and made the subject of a controversial lampoon . and if an account shall hereafter be given for every idle word that we now speak , i profess i cannot but tremble to think what shall be the judgment of those men , who in the midst of such unhappy differences as the church now labours under ; whilst our common mother lies almost dissolved in tears for the divisions of her children , and her dutiful sons on both sides are praying and endeavouring with all their industry to close them ; like an unnatural off-spring , divert themselves in the quarrel , find a harmony in her groans , and make a droll of that , which had they indeed any true zeal for religion , they ought to wish rather they could with their dearest blood be so happy as to redress . for what remains of the vindication , i shall say but very little to it . he enters upon his conclusion with a tragical harangue of the hardships they have suffer'd , both by , and ever since our reformation ; and how well we deserve their excommunication upon that account . and 't is no hard matter when men so well disposed , as this author seems to be , to speak evil of us , are to draw our character , to make it appear as odious and deformed as they desire . were i minded to recriminate , i need not tell those who are but very little acquainted with the true history of these things , what a fair field i should have for a requital . the corruptions of the church when this reformation begun ; the unchristian lives of those religious inhabitants that , he says , were turn'd by us into the wide world ; the cheats and ignorance of the clergy ; the tricks and artifices of their popes to prevent that reformation , which many of their own party , no less than the protestants , desired both in the head and the members ; and since he mentions cruelties , the barbarous butcheries executed on the reformed in savoy , bohemia , germany , ireland ; and to say no more , the proceedings at this day in one of our neighbour countries , whereof we have been our selves eye-witnesses , and of which , the noble charity of our royal soveraign towards these poor distressed christians , notwithstanding all the vain endeavours of some to hide it , suffers no honest englishman now to doubt ; all these would furnish out matter enough for a reply , and satisfie the world , that were the reformed as bad as hell it self could represent them , the romanists yet would of all men living have the least cause to complain of them . but i desire not to heighten those animosities , which i so heartily wish were closed ; and would rather such things as these might on all hands be buried in eternal oblivion , than brought forth to prevent that union , we had never more cause to hope for than at this time . and for our laws which , he says , have been made against them , he knows well enough what occasion was given to queen elizabeth and king james the st to establish them ; and i shall rather refer him to the answer which my lord burleigh made above years since to this complaint , than take the opportunity , he has so fairly given me , to revive the reasons . as for those injuries he tells us that perjury and faction loaded them with ; we are not concerned in them . it is well known that the church of england was no less , if not more , struck at in those times than themselves : if their present change of fortune makes them indeed neither remember those injuries , nor desire to revenge them , it shews only that the favour of providence has not made them forgetful of their duty ; nor their present prosperity unmindful of their future interest . this is not our concern , who have never that we know of injured them , unless to take all fair and lawful ways to defend our religion as by law established , may possibly , in some mens apprehensions , be esteemed an injury . the peace and liberty which we enjoy , we do not ascribe to their civility ; it is gods providence and our soveraign's bounty , whom the church of england has ever so loyally served ; whose rights she asserted in the worst of times , when to use our authors own words , perjury and faction for this very cause , loaded her with all the injuries hell it self could invent . but we gloried to suffer for our duty to him then , and shall not fail , should there ever be occasion , to do it again . and we have this testimony from our king , which no time or malice shall be able to obliterate , that the church of england is by principle a friend to monarchy , and i think cannot be charged to have ever been defective in any thing that might serve to strengthen and support it . for what remains with reference to the points in controversie , the foregoing articles are but one continued confutation of his vain pretences : and i shall only add this more to them , that whenever he will undertake to make good any one thing that he has advanced against us , either in his book or conclusion ; i will not fail to prove what i now affirm , that there is not a word of truth in either of them . in the mean time , before i close this , i cannot but take notice , how much the state of our controversie with these men has of late been changed ; and what hopes we are willing to conceive from thence , as to the sober part of their communion , that those errors shall in time be reformed , which they already seem not only to have discovered , but to be ashamed of . when our fathers disputed against popery , the question then was , whether it were lawful to worship images ; to invocate saints ; to adore reliques ; to depend upon our own merits for salvation ; and satisfie for the pain of our own sins . this was their task ; and they abundantly discharged it , in proving these things to be unlawful , contrary to our duty towards god , and to the authority of holy scripture . but now in these our days , there is started up a new generation of men , too wise to be imposed upon with those illusions , that in blind and barbarous ages had led the church into so much error and superstition . these see too clearly , that such things as these must , if possible , be deny'd , for that they cannot be maintain'd . and they have accordingly undertaken it as the easier task , by subtile distinctions , and palliating expressions , to wrest the definitions of their councils to such a sense as may serve the best to protect them from these errors ; rather than to go on in vain with their predecessors , to draw the scripture and fathers into the party to defend them . and that it may not be said i speak this at all adventures , i will beg leave in a short recapitulation of what is largely proved in the foregoing articles , to offer a general view of it . of religious worship . old popery . t is a wicked and foolish error of the lutherans and calvinists , to attribute * * * * * * religious honour only to god. and therefore such sentences as these , that god only is to be adored : that no creature is to be adored , must be put into the index expurgatorius , to be blotted out of s. athanasius and other authors in which they do occurr . new popery . religious honour or worship if taken strictly and properly is due only to god : soli deo honor & gloria . we ought not to deprive god of any thing that is due to him alone ; neither honour , nor worship , nor prayer , nor thanksgiving , nor sacrifice . we may honour those whom god has honoured ; but so as not to elevate them above the state of creatures . and this may be called a religious love or honour , when it is done for god's sake , yet it is but an extrinsecal denomination from the cause and motive , not from the nature of the act. invocation of saints . old popery . * * * * * * it is necessary to pray to the blessed virgin. it is the intention of god that we should obtain both grace and glory by her : that all men might be saved by the merits of the son , and the intercession of the mother . † † † † † † the curates therefore shall diligently instruct the people , that the saints who reign togegether with christ , do offer to god their prayers for men : that it is good and profitable in a suppliant manner to invocate them ; and recur to their prayers , help , and assistance , for the obtaining blessing of god by his son. upon this account in all their publick service of the church they address their prayers to them , after the same manner that they do to christ , together with whom , the council says , they reign in heaven : so that if 't is necessary to go to church , 't is necessary to pray to them . they confess their sins to them ; * * * * * * they dismiss departing souls out of this world in their names ; they make direct addresses to them as the council speaks , not only for their prayers , but also for their help and assistance ; they desire for their merits to be heard by god ; and that he would accept their sacrifices themselves for the sake of the saints they commemorate ; as in the d article of this treatise is fully to be seen . new popery . for invocation of saints , we only tell you it is lawful to pray to them ; vind. p. . that we do it in the same spirit of charity , and in the same order of brotherly society with which we intreat our friends on earth to pray for us . if we mention their merits , 't is only those victories they had obtained by his favours , which we beseech him to look upon , and not regard our unworthiness . as to the recommending our sacrifices to god by their prayers , as if christ who is the sacrifice , needed any other to recommend him to his father , we detest such thoughts , we abominate such doctrines . worship of images . old popery . the images of ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ christ and the saints , are to be venerated , not only by accident and improperly , but properly and by themselves , so as to terminate the worship upon them , and that as consider'd in themselves , and upon their own account , not only as they are the representatives of the original , * * * * * * the wood of the cross is to be adored with divine adoration ; and upon this account , if the popes legate at any time conduct the emperor into any city , his cross must take place of the emperor's sword ; because a divine worship is due to it , ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ this adoration is properly to the cross , as is evident , in that the church invites the people on good friday to adore it ; and in its hymns distinguishes the cross from christ , and addresses to the cross , as such . * * * * * * the church of rome in praying to god , that several vertues may proceed from the cross , shew it to be their opinion , that it has other vertues , than barely to excite the remembrance of those they represent . new popery . the use we make of pictures or images , is purely as representatives , or memorative signs , which call the originals to our remembrance . when the church pays an honour to the image of an apostle or martyr , her intention is not so much to honour the image , as to honour the apostle or martyr in the presence of the image . nor do we attribute to them any other vertue , but that of exciting in us the remembrance of those they represent . the honour we render them , is grounded upon this , that the very seeing of jesus christ crucified , cannot but excite in us a more lively remembrance of him , who died upon the cross for our redemption : now whilst this image before our eyes , causes this precious remembrance in our souls , we are naturally moved to testifie by some exterior signs , how far our gratitude bears us ; which exterior signs are not paid to the image , but to jesus christ represented by that image . of reliques . old popery . † † † † † † seeing we adore the saints of god , we must also adore their reliques . this is an undoubted truth amongst catholicks , that the reliques of the saints , whether they be any parts of them , as bones , flesh , ashes , or some other things that have toucht them , or belonged to them , are to be adored . new popery . we honour reliques as we do images , for those whom they belong'd to . we will not quarrel how we ought to call this respect and honour , but it is not worship , we seek not to them for any aid and assistance , to cure the blind , &c. and are therefore falsly charged with so doing , ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ those are to be condemned , who affirm that no worship or honour is due to the reliques of saints ; or that those sacred , monuments are unprofitably revered by the faithful ; or that for obtaining their help , men ought not to frequent the memories of the saints . of justification . old popery . * * * * * * by justification is to be understood , not only remission of sins , but sanctification , and renewing of the inward man. if any one shall say that men are justified , either by the alone imputation of christs righteousness , or only by the remission of sins , excluding grace and charity , which is diffused in our hearts by the holy ghost , and inheres in them ; or that the grace by which we are justified is only the favour of god , let him be anathema . * * * * * * if any one shall affirm the works of a justified man to be so the gifts of god , that they are not also the good merits of the justified man himself ; or that he being justified by the good works which are perform'd by him , through the grace of god , and merit of jesus christ , whose living member he is , do's not truly merit increase of grace and eternal life ; let him be anathema . new popery . they impose upon us who say that we make our inward righteousness a part of justification ; and by consequence hold that our justification it self is also wrought by our good works . of merits . old popery . we do as truly and properly , when we do well by gods grace merit rewards , as we do deserve punishment , when without his grace , we do ill . maldonat . the works of just persons , are truly equal to the reward of eternal life ; as the work of those who labour'd in the vineyard to the peny which they earned : and god by his covenant is bound to accept it for the reward of eternal life . this is the doctrine of the council of trent . they , therefore , are to be condemned who think our works of themselves , not to be worthy of eternal life , but to have the whole nature of merit that is in them , from the covenant and promise of god. this was the opinion of scotus , condemn'd above christ indeed , first obtain'd grace for us , whereby we might be enabled to work out our own salvation ; but this being done , we have no more need of christ's merits to supply our defects : but our own good works are of themselves sufficient to salvation , without any imputation of his righteousness . new popery . eternal life ought to be proposed to the children of god , as a grace that is mercifully promised to them , by the medition of our lord jesus christ ; and a recompence that is faithfully render'd to their good works , and merits , in vertue of this promise . we ask all things , we hope all things , we render thanks for all things , through our lord jesus christ , we confess that we are not acceptable to god , but in and by him . of satisfactions . old popery . to this question whether our works are to be called truly and properly satisfactory ? ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ bellarmin replies , that they are ; so that we may be said truly and properly to satisfie the lord. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ it is immediately our satisfaction , and christs only , in as much as we receive grace from him , whereby we our selves may be able to satisfie . as to mortal sins , gods grace being supposed to be given to us in christ , vasquez declares , we do truly satisfie god for our sins and offences . as for venial sins , we do so satisfie , as not to need any grace or favour of god to forgive our sins , or accept our satisfaction ; but our satisfaction is such , as doth in its own nature blot out both the stain and punishment of sin. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ there are some who say , that we do not properly satisfie , but do somewhat for the sake of which god applies to us christs satisfaction ; this opinion seems to me to be erroneous . bellarm. new popery . they impose upon us , who say that we believe that by our own endeavours we are able to make a true and proper satisfaction to god for sin. that which we call satisfaction , following the example of the primitive church , is nothing but the application of the infinite satisfaction of jesus christ. of indulgences . old popery . there being in all sins a temporal punishment to be undergone after the eternal , by the sacrament of penance , is remitted ; we call indulgence the remission of those punishments that remain to be undergone after the forgiveness of the fault , and reconciliation obtain'd by the sacrament of penance . the foundation of these indulgences , is the treasure of the church , consisting partly of the merits of christ , and partly of the superabundant sufferings of the blessed virgin and the saints , who have suffer'd more than their sins required . the pastors of the church have obtain'd from god the power of granting indulgences , and dispensing of the merits of christ , and the saints , for this end , out of the sacraments . the punishments remitted by these indulgences , are all those which are , or might have been enjoyn'd for sins ; and that whether the persons be alive or dead . new popery . we believe there is a power in the church of granting indulgences ; which concern not at all the remission of sins , either mortal or venial , but only of some temporal punishments remaining due after the guilt is remitted . so that they are nothing else but a mitigation , or relaxation , upon just causes of canonical penances , which are , or may be enjoyn'd by the pastors of the church , on penitent sinners , according to their several degrees of demerit . of the mass. old popery . the * * * * * * mass is a true and proper sacrifice : a sacrifice not only commemoratory of that of the cross , but also truly and properly propitiatory for the dead and the living . † † † † † † every true and real sacrifice requires a true and real death or destruction of the thing sacrificed : so that if in the mass there be not a true and real destruction , there is not a true and real sacrifice . to offer up christ then in the eucharist , is not only to present him before god on the altar , but really and truly to sacrifice , i. e. destroy him . new popery . the sacrifice of the mass was instituted only to represent that which was accomplish'd on the cross , to perpetuate the memory of it to the end of the world , and apply to us the saving vertue of it , for those sins which we commit every day . when we say , that christ is offered in the mass , we do not understand the word offer in the strictest sense , but as we are said to offer to god what we present before him . and thus the church does not doubt to say , that she offers up our blessed jesus to his father in the eucharist , in which he vouchsafes to render him himself present before him . of the popes authority . old popery . we acknowledg the holy catholick , and roman church , to be the mother and mistress of all churches ; and we promise and swear to the bishop of rome , successor of st. peter , prince of the apostles , and vicar of jesus christ , a true obedience . the pope has power to depose princes , and absolve subjects from their allegiance : so the council of lateran : if the temporal lord shall neglect to purge his land of heresie , let him be excommunicated ; and if within a year he refuses to make satisfaction to the church , let it be signified to the pope , that from thenceforth , he may declare his vassals absolved from their allegiance ; and expose his land to be seised by catholicks — yet so as not to injure the right of the principal lord. provided that he puts no stop or hindrance to this : and the same law is to be observed with reference to those who have no principal lords . new popery . we acknowledg that primacy which christ gave to st. peter , in his successors ; to whom , for this cause , we owe that obedience and submission , which the holy councils and fathers have always taught the faithful . as for those things which we know are disputed of in the schools , it is not necessary we speak of them here , seeing they are not articles of the catholick faith. it is sufficient we acknowledg a head establish'd by god to conduct his whole flock in his paths , which those who love concord amongst brethren , and ecclesiastical unanimity , will most willingly acknowledg . this is no scholastick tenet , but the canon of a council received by the church of rome as general . such is the difference of the present controversies between us from what they were , when it pleased god to discover to our fathers the errors they had so long been involved in . were i minded to shew the division yet greater , there want not authors among them , and those approved ones too , from whence to collect more desperate conclusions in most of these points , than any i have now remark'd . and the practice and opinion of the people , in those countries where these errors still prevail , is yet more extravagant than any thing that either the one or other have written . what now remains , but that i earnestly beseech all sober and unprejudiced persons of that communion , seriously to weigh these things ; and consider what just reason we had to quit those errors , which even their own teachers are ashamed to confess , and yet cannot honestly disavow . it has been the great business of these new methodists for some years past , to draw over ignorant men to the church of rome , by pretending to them that their doctrines are by no means such as they are commonly mis-apprehended to be . this is popular , and may i believe have prevailed with some weak persons to their seduction ; tho' we know well enough that all those abroad who pretend to be monsieur de meaux's proselytes were not so upon the conviction of his book , but for the advantages of the change , and the patronage of his person and authority . but surely would men seriously weigh this method , there could be nothing more strong for our reformation than this one thing , that the wisest and best men of the roman church esteem it the greatest honour and advantage they can do to their religion , to represent it as like ours as is possible ; and that their strongest argument to make proselytes is this , that were things but rightly understood , there is but very little or no difference at all betwixt us . and would to god indeed this were truly so ! that these differences were not only as small as they pretend , but wholly taken away : with what joy should we embrace the happy return of so many of our lost brethren into the arms of their mother ? how should we go forth with the highest transports to welcome them into our communion ? and celebrate the joyful festival on earth , which would create an exultation even among the blessed angels and saints in heaven . and why shall we not hope that this in time shall be the issue ? the good work is already begun ; the errors are many of them discover'd , and , what is more , disavow'd : and wherefore should we then distrust the mercy of heaven to hear our prayers , which we never make with more real zeal and fervour than in their behalf ; to shew them the truth , and open their eyes to a perfect conviction ? till this be accomplish'd , let us , who by god's grace are already members of the church of england , that is , of the best reform'd , and best establish'd church in the christian world , so seriously weigh these things , as not only to stand stedfast in that faith which has been delivered to us , but to use our utmost endeavours to convince others also of the excellence of it . let not any fond pretences of antiquity or possession amuse us . against god and truth there lies no prescription ; nor ought we to be at all concern'd to forsake errors , tho' never so ancient , for more ancient truths . let no prospect or temptation , whether of worldly evils on the one hand , or worldly advantages on the other , draw us from our stedfastness . god is faithful who will not suffer us to be tempted above what we are able : and he who for any of these things denies christ or his religion on earth , shall be denied by christ before his father which is in heaven . but let us be firm and sincere to god and our own souls ; careful to search out , and ready to embrace the truth whereever we find it . so shall our lives be orthodox , tho' perhaps our faith should not ; and if in any thing we do err , for we pretend not to infallibility , nor is it therefore impossible for us to be mistaken , yet at least we shall not be hereticks . finis . appendix containing a collection of the following pieces . i. the extract of a letter written from paris concerning monsieur de meaux's pastoral letter . ii. an extract of father crasset ' s doctrine concerning the worship which the roman church allows to the blessed virgin. iii. cardinal bona's exposition , and practice of the same . iv. monsieur imbert ' s letter to monsieur de meaux , proving that his persecution was truly for maintaining the doctrine of that bishop's exposition . v. the epistle of st. chrysostome to caesarius , suppress'd by some of the doctors of the sorbonne , for being contrary to the roman canon of transubstantiation . vi. a catalogue of the editions made use of by me in my quotations , to prevent , if it may be , all future calumnies . london , printed mdclxxxvi . advertisement . the following pieces have so near a relation to the present controversie , and are in themselves of so great a moment , that if their length deny'd them a place in the work it self , their importance hath made it necessary not to omit them here . i have prefix'd to every one of them such particular accounts as may serve to satisfie the reader 's curiosity concerning them ; and shall , i hope , be a sufficient apology for me , that i have so largely insisted upon them . appendix . num . i. the extract of a letter written from paris concerning monsieur de meaux's pastoral letter . to shew that monsieur de meaux does not always so write at first , as not to stand in need of any correction afterwards , i will beg leave to subjoyn the extract of a letter dated from paris , concerning his late pastoral letter ; which , 't is there said , he is about to change somewhat in ; whether only for the better advantage of the method , and greater neatness of stile ( as in his exposition ) we shall be better able hereafter to judge . it is in the last nouvelle juin . pag. , . on ecrit de paris , que m. de meaux retranchera de la edition de sa lettre pastorale l' endroit où il dit aux nouveaux catholiques de son dioceze , qu'ils n'ont point souffert de violence en leurs biens , ni en leurs personnes , & qu'il a oui dire la même chose aux autres eveques . je ne sçaurois dire precisement si ce sont ces propres mots , car je n'ay point veû cette lettre pastorale , je sçai seulement que c'est ce qu'on ecrit de paris . ce prelat a eu en vûe dans sa lettre , de preparer à la communion paschale ces nouveaux diocezains . je ne sçai pas ce qu'ils ont fait , mais ailleurs quand on a presenti les convertis , on leur a trouvé si peu de disposition à communier à pâques , qu'on n'a pas jugé à propos de pousser l'affair . dans la dernier fête-dieu plusieurs ont mieux aimé payer une amende , que de tendre devant leurs maisons . apres cela , il est apparent que m. de meaux retranchera l'endroit ci-dessus marqué , & que les gens d'honneur se plaindront in petto de ce qu'on se tue de leur soutenir , que les huguenots ont signé le formulaire le plus volontairement du monde . bien entendu , que ces gens d'honneur n'auront pas le tour d' esprit & de conscience , du quel nous avons parlé ci-dessus , pag. . they write from paris , that monsieur de meaux will retrench in the second edition of his pastoral letter the place where he tells the new converts of his diocess , that they have not suffer'd any violence either in their goods , or in their persons , and that he heard the other bishops say the same . i cannot say precisely whether these were his very words , having never seen his pastoral letter , i only know this , that thus they write from paris . the design of this prelate in his letter , was to prepare his new diocesans to communicate at easter . what they did , i cannot tell , but in other parts when they presented the converts in order to receive it , they found them so little disposed to communicate at easter , that they have not thought fit to force them to it . upon corpus christi day last , many of them chose rather to pay a fine , than put up hangings before their houses for the procession . after this , 't is more than probable that m. de meaux will strike out the passage above-mention'd , and that men of sense will complain in their minds to be thus eternally wearied with their pretences , that the hugonots have signed the formulary with all the readiness in the world . always provided , that these men of sense be not endow'd with that turn of wit and conscience , of which we have spoken heretofore , pag. . above . num . ii. an extract of father crasset's doctrine concerning the worship which the roman church allows to the blessed virgin. monsieur de meaux is very much of opinion , that father crasset has nothing in his book contrary to the principles of his exposition . i must transcribe his whole book , would i insist upon every thing in it opposite to this pretence : but i shall content my self for the present to propose only to monsieur de meaux some of this fathers questions ; that he may please to tell us whether he be indeed of the same opinion with the father in them . 't will be an admirable vindication of his exposition , and we shall not doubt , after that , of its being a true representation of the doctrine of the roman church . question . whether the intercession of the blessed virgin to god for us , be not only profitable , but necessary to our salvation ? resp. i do not find the father positive in his assertion here , but at least he recounts abundance of their saints that are so : st. germain , st. anselme , st. bernard , the abbè de celles , st. antonine , and st. bernardine ; whose horrid blasphemies see at large repeated and approved . qu. . whether a tender and constant devotion towards the blessed virgin , be not a mark of predestination ? answer this is what we read in all books ; hear from all pulpits : there are but few catholicks but what are of this opinion , and that this devotion towards the mother of god , is a mark of salvation , the good father undertakes to prove by the authority of the scripture , explain'd by the fathers , and confirmed by reason . qu. . whether a christian that is devout towards the blessed virgin can be damned ? answer . the servants of the blessed virgin have an assurance , morally infallible , that they shall be saved . qu. . whether god ever refuses any thing to the blessed virgin ? answer . the prayers of a mother so humble and respectful , are esteemed a command by a son so sweet and so obedient . . being truly our saviour's mother as well in heaven as she was on earth , she still retains a kind of natural authority over his person , over his goods , and over his omnipotence : so that as albertus magnus says , she cannot only intreat him for the salvation of her servants , but by her motherly authority can command him ; and as another expresses it , the power of the mother and of the son is all one , she being by her omnipotent son , made her self omnipotent . qu. . what blessings the virgin procures for her servants . answer . she preserves them from error and heresie , if they are in danger to fall into it ; and recovers them out of it , if they are fallen . . she defends and protects them in their temptations against their enemy ; and this not only men , but other creatures ; insomuch that a bird which a young lady had taught to say his ave maria , being one day seized by a hawk , whilst he was in his claws , said only his ave maria , and the hawk terrified with the salutation , let him go , and so he return'd to his mistress . . she comforts them in their distresses , assists them in their dangers , counsels them in their doubts , eases them in their pains , animates them in their combats , and finally , procures them a good death . to this end , . she gives them a timely foreknowledge of their death , that they be not surprised . she sends the angels to assist them in it , and sometimes comes her own self in person . . she obtains them the grace of repentance if they are in sin , and of perseverance , if they be in a state of grace . qu. . whether the blessed virgin has ever fetcht any out of hell. answer . as to purgatory , 't is certain that the virgin has brought several souls from thence , as well as refreshed them whilst they were there . . 't is certain she has fetcht many out of hell , i. e. from a state of damnation before they were dead . . the virgin can , and has fetcht men that were dead in mortal sin out of hell , by restoring them to life again , that they might repent ; which the father proves at large , for the establishment of our faith and of our hope . qu. . what honour ought we to render to the blessed virgin ? answer . we ought to render to her a religious honour . . to honour her images also with a religious honour , as sacred things ; and this the many miracles done by them do require . . to build temples to her , which many grave authors do assure us was done , before her birth , during her life , and since her death and coronation in heaven . qu. . whether it be good to make vows and pilgrimages to the honour of the virgin ? answer . it is good to make vows , and undertake pilgrimages to the places where she is specially honoured . the practice of devotion towards her. . to wear her scapulary : which whoso does , shall not be damned , but this habit shall be for them a mark of salvation , a safeguard in dangers , and a sign of peace and eternal alliance . they that wear this habit , shall be moreover delivered out of purgatory the saturday after their death . . to enter into her congregations . and if any man be minded to save himself , 't is impossible for him to find out any more advantageous means , than to enrol himself into these companies . . to devote ones self more immediately to her service : for which the father gives several very grave forms . ib. & seq . these are some of the heads of father crasset's book . it were infinite to recount his particular follies , with which every page and sentence is crouded . and however monsieur de meaux is pleased at a venture to espouse all this , yet i must still beg leave to believe , that he neither approves this practice , nor will receive these principles . and these things , not only monsieur de la b — in his answer , but the author of the preservative at large alledged against him ; which being a book so well known in france , and mentioned to monsieur de meaux in a particular manner by * * * * * * monsieur imbert in his letter to him , and having caused such contests between † † † † † † monsieur arnauld and the ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vindicator of the preservative , upon this very account , still increases my wonder , that for all this , monsieur de meaux should never hear there was any thing in this book of father crasset's , contrary to his exposition , nor believe the father to be of any opinion repugnant to his principles therein established . the reader may please to remember , that this book of father crasset's was licensed by the provincial , approved by the fathers of the society , permitted , and priviledged by the king , and printed by the archbishop of paris's printer , . num . iii. cardinal bona's doctrine and practice of this worship . in my preface to my former treatise , to shew with how little sincerity many times those of the church of rome will approve books , whose principles they dislike ; i observed that cardinal capisucchi had in his controversies plainly contradicted , in the point of worshipping images , what he approved in monsieur de meaux's exposition . this , monsieur de meaux saies , cannot be , for this admirable reason , qu'on trouvera son approbation expresse parmi celles que j'ai rapportées ; that his express approbation has been given to his book . i have already said what i thought sufficient to the consequence of this answer : but now to satisfie the reader that cardinal capisucchi is not the only person that has thus complemented monsieur de meaux contrary to his own principles and conscience , i will here offer another plain instance in m. de meaux's learned and holy cardinal bona , whose memory , he saies , shall be for ever blessed in the church . this learned cardinal was desired by card. buillon to examine the exposition with all rigour , because that some persons accused it of certain defects ; and he assures him that he did particolarmente osservare in che potesse esser ripreso ; particularly observe whether there were any fault in it . the effect of this particular observation was very favourable to monsieur de meaux : the cardinal found nothing but matter of great satisfaction to himself , and praise to the author ; and yet has this man as flatly opposed monsieur de meaux's principles in the point of invocation of saints , before-mention'd , both in his doctrine and practice , as 't is well possible for words to do it . for monsieur de meaux's doctrine , i shall not need say any thing here , after what i have so fully accounted above : the reader may please to compare it with the extract i shall now offer him out of cardinal bona's works . in his dedication which he makes of his book of divine psalmody to the blessed virgin , thus he concludes to her : possess me as your own , o soveraign queen of heaven ! and seeing it has pleased you in this oratory dedicated to your service , to bestow so many favours upon distressed mortals , suffer not me to go hence without some mark of it . renew your tokens , change your miracles . as you are wont to open the eyes of the blind , that they might behold the light , now open the eyes of my mind , and fill them with your brightest light , that i may with a pure contemplation , behold the light of god's countenance that is impressed upon us . if ever you have cleared the stopp'd ears of the deaf ; give joy and gladness to my inward hearing , that i may hear the voice of the bridegroom speaking in silence to the heart of jerusalem . if you have here broken the chains of dumb tongues , give to my mouth a right and well-sounding speech , that when i sing the praises of god , my words may be pleasing in the presence of the eternal king. if you have restored health to the diseased , heal me who labour under an inveterate sickness , that my mind may in the last day be found intire , without the sickness of any evil affection . this i most humbly beg , here prostrate upon my knees , before this wonder-working image of yours , and upon that solemn day which your nativity has rendred venerable to us . such is the entrance he makes upon this book , and indeed the work that follows is all of a piece . in his . chapter , page . he gives this account , why in all their offices they conclude with a prayer , or some complement at least , to the blessed virgin. it is to this end , that if by humane frailty they have committed any errour in the dreadful service of god , our lord being appeased by her mediation , may not impute it to them for sin : for she preserves all those that trust in her. she reaches out her saving hand to those , who in this damnable world are in danger . she restrains the malicious endeavours of our enemies . no day , no hour , not a moment passes , without some favour of hers. her the heavenly host worship , hell it self observes , the world adores . her majesty the chiefest of the blessed spirits tremble at . by her order the world is govern'd ; the stars give light , the sun shines , the winds blow , the gardens spring , the woods grow , the seasons keep their constant revolutions , the elements serve our needs . the ornament of our manners , the brightness of our works , all this we receive from her favour , when we worship and uenerate her. the church knows of how great danger it is to have her exiled children divorced from the care of their most indulgent mother , and therefore by a most wise counsel has decreed , that they should by a frequent observance fly to her protection ; not only by instituting a special office to her , but by addressing to her in the end of all her offices , according as the reason of the times should require . this is a short specimen of what is scattered up and down in all the parts of his book ; i need not say how extravagant his verses are , when the prose is thus high flown : i will give but one instance more , which one would think should contain , if any , a certain account of his perswasion , taken out of his last will ; in which , having commended himself to our blessed saviour , he comes in the next place , as is most fit , to the virgin , and so on to the rest of his friends and patrons above . page . tom. . and to thee also , o blessed virgin mary , mother of mercy , queen of the world , comforter of the afflicted , refuge of sinners , salvation of those that perish , to thee , o fountain of piety , in this dreadful hour , i commend my soul. help me now that am afraid ; lift me up that am falling ; direct me that am in error , comfort my soul that is desolate , and obtain of thy beloved son for me , the mercy which i have desired . you have always mercifully assisted me in all my dangers ; o forsake me not in this last , on which eternity depends . — holy michaël ! archangel ! who camest to help the people of god , prince of the heavenly host — deliver me from the snare of unclean spirits , and bring my soul into a place of comfort and refreshment . and thou , holy angel , to whose safeguard and protection i unworthy sinner have been committed , assist me in this moment , drive for from me all the power of satan ; save me from the mouth of the lion. — draw me out of the snare which they have laid for me , and preserve my soul from their evil designs . assist me you also , o my patrons , and tutelary saints ! thou first of all , o st. john , forerunner of christ , — make my paths straight , and direct my way in the sight of the lord. blessed peter ! key-bearer of the heavenly kingdom ! prince of the apostles ! by the power that is committed to thee , loose thou the bonds of my sins , and open unto me the gate of paradise . and thou , o glorious father of the monks of st. benedict ! impute not thou unto me to my damnation , the innumerable transgressions that i have made of thy rule . — o ye captains and heads of the holy order of the cistercians , st. robert , st. alberic , st. stephen , and st. bernard ; who have so long patiently endured me an unfruitful tree in this your vineyard . — o forsake me not in this hour ! but remember that i am your son , tho' unworthy the name . — the cardinal goes still further on with the rest of his patrons ; ( for he had taken care to provide enough of them ) but i fear i have tired the reader with these i have already transcribed . monsieur de meaux , i know , will tell us , that all this is no more than if he had desired as many of the good company that were about him at this time , to have done the same ; and for his expressions , though they are some of them a little extraordinary , yet the cardinal's intention , no doubt , like that of the church , was to have them all reduced to this one and the same catholick meaning , pray for me. and for those who are resolved to believe this fond pretence , there is no hopes of conviction . but for unprejudiced persons , who see the vanity , indeed the unreasonableness and absurdity of this evasion , i doubt not but they will find a plain opposition between monsieur de meaux's principles and the cardinal 's , and that this good man needed a very great apology to his patrons , for having approved a doctrine so derogatory to their power and honour , as that of the exposition in his opinion undoubtedly was . but i shall say no more to shew the unsincerity of cardinal bona in this matter : i might have added a yet greater instance , than either of these cardinals , of the same pious fraud , in the approbation of the pope himself ; * * * * * * whose briefs , with reference to the affairs of france , and which this bishop , who has had so great a part in them , could not be ignorant of , however publish'd at the same time that he sent his complement to mr. de meaux , do but ill agree with his exposition . indeed , they run in such a strain , as plainly shews , that were but his power equal to his will , he would soon convince the world , that not this mans pretences , but the dictates of pope gregory vii . the unam sanctam bull , and the canon of lateran , were the true exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . and of this i am ready to make an ample proof , from the several pieces set out by publick authority in france , when ever mr. de meaux or his vindicator shall think fit to question the truth of what i now say . num . iv. copie d'une lettre ecrite à monsieur l'evêque de meaux , cy devant evêque de condom . au port de st. marie ce . juin . monseigneur , votre grandeur rapellera , sans doute , mieux l' ideé de mon nom , lors que je luy dirai que je suis celuy pour qui elle a eu la bonté de parler il y a environ ans à madame de chaune pour avoir son consentement d'une chapelle , comme tutrice de monsieur de — & j ' eûs l' honneur de la voir plusieurs fois à st. thomas du louvre , avec messeigneurs de perigueux & de xainte . depuis ce tems la , j'ai souffert la persecution , & particulierement depuis l' exposition de la foi , que vôtre grandeur a publiée . ses enemis qui n'osent pas se declarer contre elle , se declarent contre ceux qui disent la même chose . et aujourdui monseigneur l' archevêque de bourdeaux me fait faire le proces , pour avoir expliqué à l' epargne le jour de vendredi saint , que nous adorions jesus christ crueifié en presence de la croix , & que nous n' adorions rien de ce que nous voyons . et parce que le curé dit sur le champ assez haut le bois , le bois ; j ' ajoutai , non , non , c'est jesus christ , & non pas le bois . et comme il ajouta , ecce lignum , venite , adoremus ; je le relevai en luy disant , auquel le salut du monde a eté ataché . venez , adorons ce salut de monde . j ' ajoutai que le sentiment de l' eglise etoit , que si par impossible nous pouvions separer la divinité du fils de dieu d'avec son humanité , nous n' adorerions pas l' humanité , puis qu'il est certain qu'il n'y a rien d' adorable que dieu ; & qu' ainsi nous devions nous persuader que nous allions au calvaire adorer jesus christ , sans nous arreter au crucifix . que l' eglise , comme une bonne mere , nous l'avoit donné par une sainte invention pour aider à nôtre foi , & pour fraper plus vivement nôtre imagination , & non pour etre l' objet de nôtre culte , qui se termine à jesus christ. voila , monseigneur , tout mon crime , & ce que l'on me reproche . j'ai ecrit au promoteur & au vicaire general , & à monseigneur l'archevêque . je leur expose , que j ' ofre à me dedire , si j'ai mal parlé ; j ' ofre à ●e justifier . au prejudice de cela il persiste dans l' interdiction qu' il lacha verbalement sur le champ . je me suis pourvû par apel comme d' abus au parlement de guienne ; j'ai fait assigner le promoteur , & bien que j'ay fait toutes les honetetes possibles à la justice ecclesiastique , & rendu toutes les deferences , le dit seigneur archevêque me menace , comme ceux qui luy ont rendu ma lettre me le mandent , de prison perpetuelle , & de fers aux pieds . vôtre grandeur peut connoitre par ce procedé combien il y a de personnes qui detournent nos freres separéz de rentrer dans l' eglise . l'on m'objecte , ce que l'on dit contre vôtre livre , que j'adoucis , mais que le sentiment de l' eglise est contraire . on le verra mieux dans le proces que me sera fait , car je defie mes enemis de pouvoir faire des reproches contre ma vie & moeurs , & de me reprocher d'autre doctrine que celle de vôtre grandeur , que je tache d' exprimer dans les mêmes termes , la trouvant tres conforme aux sentimens de l' eglise romaine , & ainsi si je suis convaincu d' heresie , j'ose dire à vôtre grandeur qu' elle doit etre à ma garentie . j'ose pourtant l' assurer , que j'ay assez de lumiere pour bien defendre cette doctrine , & pour detruire le preservatif , si l'on ne me fait point de violence . je defie tous les docteurs du monde de toutes les religions . la grace que je demande à v. g. est que si l' archevêque se servoit de toute son authorité pour m' opprimer , qu' elle daigne interposer la sienne pour m' obtenir la liberté de me defendre . elle voit combien l' honneur de dieu y est interessé , dans un tems ou toute la province est remplie de missionaires , de capucins , & de jesuites ignorans , qui prechent l' adoration de la croix , & la font faire dans une province ou tout est remplie de religionaires , & ou j'ose promettre conversions , si la religion etoit pratiquée conformément à vôtre exposition . les messieurs de la religion p. r. n'ont autre objection à me faire si ce n'est que l'eglise romaine vous traite & me traite d'heretique . je demande pardon à votre grandeur , monseigneur , si j'ai crû etre obligé de luy faire connoitre mon procedé , apres quoi je l'assureray de la soumission , . de son tres humble & tres obeissant serviteur , imbert , prieur . the copy of a letter sent to monsieur the bishop of meaux , formerly bishop of condom . port st. mary , june th . . my lord , your lordship , without doubt , will better call to mind my name , when i shall have told you , that i am the person for whom you had the goodness , about years since , to speak to madam de chaune , to obtain her consent , as tutress to monsieur de — for a certain chappel ; since which i have had the honour to see you several times at st. thomas in the louvre , with my lords of perigueux and xainte . since that i have suffered persecution , and especially since the time that your lordship has published your exposition of the faith. your enemies , who dare not declare themselves against your lordship , declare themselves against those who say the same things . and at this instant , the archbishop of bourdeaux has caused a process to be made against me for having explain'd upon good-friday , that we adore jesus christ crucified in presence of the cross , and that we do not adore any thing of what we see . and forasmuch as the curé replied upon the place aloud , the wood , the wood ; i added , no , no , 't is jesus christ , and not the wood. and when he added , ecce lignum , venite , adoremus ; i took him up , saying , on which the saviour of the world hung , come let us adore this saviour of the world. i said further , that the doctrine of the church was , that if by an impossible supposition we could separate the divinity of the son of god from his humanity , we should not adore his humanity ; forasmuch as 't is certain , that there is nothing adorable but god ; and that therefore we ought to think , that we are now going out of mount calvary to adore jesus christ , without stopping at the crucifix . that the church , like a good mother , had given that to us by a holy invention , to assist our faith , and make the livelier impression upon our imagination , but not to be the object of our worship , which must terminate upon jesus christ . behold , my lord , all my crime , and what i am reproached with , i have writ to the promoter , and to the vicar general , and to the archbishop himself . i have offered , if i have spoken any thing amiss , that i will recant it : i have offered to justifie my self : notwithstanding all this , his grace still persists in the verbal interdict , which he immediately pronounced against me . i have transferr'd my cause by appeal , as of abuse , to the parliament of guienne : i have caused the proctor to be summon'd ; and though i have used all imaginable fairness , with reference to the ecclesiastical jurisdiction , paid them all possible deference , nevertheless the said archbishop threatens me , as i am informed by those who gave him my letter , with perpetual imprisonment and chains , for my offence . your lordship may see by this proceeding , how many there are that hinder our separating brethren from returning to our communion . they object to me , that which is also said against your lordship's book , that i do mollifie , but that the doctrine of the church is quite the contrary . this will more plainly appear by the process against me ; for i defie my enemies to reproach me for my life and manners , or for any other doctrine than that of your lordship , which i endeavour to express in the self same terms , as finding them most agreeable to the sentiments of the roman church : so that if i am convicted of heresie , i am bold to say , your lordship must be my surety . but i dare assure you , my lord , that i have knowledge enough to defend this doctrine , and destroy the * * * * * * preservative , might i be but secure from violence : i defie all the doctors of the world , of whatsoever religion they be . the favour which i have to beg of your lordship , is , that if the archbishop should make use of his authority to oppress me , you will please to interpose yours so far , as to procure me only the liberty to defend my self . you see how far the honour of god is concerned in it , and especially at a time when the whole province is filled with missionaries , capuchins , ignorant jesuits , and others , who preach up the adoration of the cross , and cause it to be done in a country full of protestants , and among whom i durst promise converts , were the practice of our religion conformable to your exposition . the protestants have hardly any other objection to make to me , than this , that the church of rome treats both your lordship and me as hereticks . i beg your lordship's pardon for this ; i thought my self obliged to acquaint you with my case ; after which , i have only remaining to assure you of the submission of , my lord , your lordship 's most humble and obedient servant , imbert . such was the account which monsieur imbert gave of his case to m. de meaux ; i was the more willing to publish it , that those who have never seen the factum which he printed of it , and which is too long to be inserted here , may at least by this perceive that his crime was truly his adhering to m. de meaux's exposition ; and that he had reason to say , as he does in this letter to him , that if he was convicted of heresie , m. de meaux ought to be his warrant for it . and because the bishop has been pleased to endeavour to take off the force of this great allegation , by lessening the character of the person , i shall leave it to the indifferent reader to judge , whether this letter carries any thing of the stile of an extravagant , a man of no learning , as well as of no renown , such as m. de meaux in his answer pretends him to be . num . v. the epistle of st. chrysostome to caesarius , cut by some of the doctors of the sorbonne , out of the greek edition of palladius , published by monsieur bigot , . with a dissertation premised , containing an historical account of the whole affair . it will perhaps be look'd upon by some , as a little unseasonable , to joyn a piece of antiquity so considerable as this epistle , to a treatise of so little importance as the foregoing defence may justly be esteem'd to be . but since the main thing i charge m. de meaux with , is , that a first edition of his book was suppress'd for containing some assertions not so suitable to the sentiments of the sorbonne doctors , to whom it was sent for their approbation , to shew the undistinguishing justice of their proceedings , and that m. de meaux is not the only bishop they have dealt thus rudely with on these occasions ; i was willing to communicate to the world one instance more of the like nature , especially since the original leaves , rased out , and suppress'd by them , have here also fallen into my hands , and may at any time be seen with the suppress'd edition of m. de meaux's exposition . it may be some satisfaction to m. de meaux to consider , that in this case , he has run no other fortune than what is common to him with the great st. chrysostome : and possibly the reader too will from hence begin to find it no difficult matter to believe , that those who made no scruple to suppress a whole epistle of st. chrysostome , a patriarch and a saint , for contradicting their doctrine in one only point , may indeed have made as little of correcting m. de meaux's exposition , tho' a bishop's , that had prevaricated their faith in so many . nor was i less engaged on the vindicator's account to this publication ; 't is one of his greatest difficulties , and which he seems the most desirous to be resolv'd in , how there can be such a thing as the real presence in the eucharist , without transubstantiation ? i have before told him what i suppose sufficient to explain this matter . but because i cannot expect that either my church or book should pass pass with him for an oracle , it may be some confirmation of the idea to shew him one of their pretended patrons concurring with me in the exposition , and manifestly supposing a union betwixt the bread and christ's body in the holy eucharist , and yet stifly contending at the same time , that the nature of the bread is not changed in it . all the danger is , that this holy father , who , as monsieur * * * * * * bigot observes , has hitherto pass'd for the great doctor of the eucharist , as st. austin of grace , may possibly by this run the hazard of losing his credit amongst them ; and as it has fared but very lately with theodoret upon the same account , that they will henceforth begin to lessen his reputation , since they cannot any longer suppress his doctrine . but before i offer the epistle it self , it is fit that i premise something for the better understanding of it . it was written to caesarius , a monk , that had a little before fallen into the apollinarian heresie , to reduce him to the catholick faith. i shall therefore beg leave to begin my reflections with a short account of that , as far as may serve to open the way to what we are to read of it in this . reflection i. of apollinarius and his heresie . apollinarius the younger , from whom this heresie derives its name , was son to the elder apollinarius , a very learned man , and never , that we read of , charged with any heresie . he was of alexandria , where he was ordain'd a priest , and became deservedly eminent for this , that when julian forbad the christians the reading of human writers , being envious of that reputation which many of the fathers of the church had so justly acquired in that sort of learning ; he with his son , repaired in great measure this disadvantage , by opening of two schools : the father turning the writings of the old testament into heroick verse , and composing several tragedies of the historical parts of them : the son explaining the new in dialogues , after the platonick manner ; and by this means preserving the church from that ignorance , which the apostate emperor thought to have reduced it to . ii. as for the younger apollinarius , he is on all hands acknowledged to have been a very extraordinary man ; eminent for his learning , and particularly cherished by st. athanasius , as one of the most zealous defenders of the nicene faith , whilst he was yet but reader in the church of laodicea . he wrote against porphyry in books ; against the arrians , eunomians , origen , and the other hereticks of those times . in a word , both his zeal and his learning were such , that , if we may take the account which vincentius lirinensis has left of him , had he not fallen into heresie , he might justly have been equall'd to the chiefest builders of the church . iii. the occasion of his heresie is diversely reported by ecclesiastical writers . * * * * * * ruffinus tells us , that his extraordinary facility to write upon all sorts of subjects , and his great understanding in all kinds of learning , raised in him a love of disputation ; and that the desire of refuting whatever others said , made him at last himself become a heretick . † † † † † † sozomen relates , that st. athanasius in his passage through laodicea , where apollinarius then was , contracted so intimate a friendship with him , that george , bishop of that place , and who detested the communion of st. athanasius , as the other arrians did , excommunicated ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ apollinarius upon this account , and would never be perswaded to receive him , whatever instances he could make to that purpose ; and that upon this he conceived so great a discontent , that it carried him in the end to form himself a new heresie . and lastly , * * * * * * theodoret differing from both these , tells us , that being rejected from the government of the church , to which in the contest between meletius and paulinus , he also , as head of a third party , aspired ; he thereupon began to spread openly that heresie he had before invented , and to set himself up for chief of it . iv. whether any , or all these causes concurr'd to ruine one of the greatest ornaments of the church , and who had till then been the admiration of the best men , not only st. athanasius , basil , &c. who were his friends , but all the others , as many as have left us any account of the history of those times , having constantly represented him in the most advantageous manner that could be expected : certain it is , that his loss was a very sensible blow to the church , and is as such , exceedingly lamented by epiphanius in the account of his heresie . v. he had now been some time made * * * * * * bishop of laodicea ; whether of the great laodicea in syria , or of the other in phoenicia of libanus , is not certainly known . it was not long after this promotion that he became a heretick . athanasius , who died within years after , having written a long letter to epictetus , bishop of corinth , against his errors ; tho' either his respect to a person he had so much esteem'd , or being unwilling to exasperate one , whom he so earnestly desired to reduce to the catholick faith , made him that he did not once name him in his whole epistle . vi. but we will come yet nearer ; for in the year . athanasius being the third time return'd from banishment , held a council at alexandria ; in which , among other things , we find the heresie of apollinarius expresly condemned , tho' no mention made of his name ; whether it were that he was not yet known as chief of those hereticks , or that , as some think , he sent a renuntiation of his heresie to the council by the monks that went thither . about ten years after , anno . the same heresie was again condemned in another council at rome , under pope damasus ; and lastly , in the second general council at constantinople , anno . he is by name anathematized among the other hereticks , can. . of that synod . vii . as to the heresie it self , i shall not enter any farther into the search of it , than may serve for the explication of that capital error , which gave occasion to this epistle of st. chrysostome . now this , to take it in his own words as they are reported by photius from eulogius , was , that 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , that god and flesh make up but one nature , which balsamon and zonaras thus explain , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . that he said , that the son of god took indeed an animate body of the blessed virgin , but without the rational soul , the divinity serving instead of that . viii . and the same is the account which the other ecclesiastical writers have left of him ; gregory nazianzen , theodoret , epiphanius , theorianus , &c. all which unanimously agree in this point of his asserting , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . that the body of our saviour was animated , but that he had not the rational soul ; for that that soul was superfluous , where the divine 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or word was present . ix . but tho' this were the last resolution of his heresie as to this point , yet was it not his first error . it was a part of the doctrine maintained by arrius and eunomius , that christ took a body destitute not only of the rational soul , but altogether inanimate ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , saies theodoret , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . that god the word took a meer body , and that himself supplied the want of the soul. and the same was the beginning of apollinarius's heresie too . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , saies socrates , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . they first asserted , that god at his incarnation took upon him man without any soul. afterwards , as if they repented , and meant to correct their error , they held , that he took indeed the animal soul , but was destitute of the rational , god the word being instead of that . both which vincentius lirinensis tells us , they sometimes joyned together , saying , in ipsa salvatoris nostri carne , aut animam humanam penitus non fuisse , aut certe talem fuisse cui mens & ratio non esset ; that in the body of our saviour there was either no human soul at all , or at least such as was not rational . x. i shall not now enter on any other points of their heresie , such as their making this flesh not to have been assum'd by christ at his conception , but to have been always with him consubstantial with the divinity ; which divinity therefore by consequence suffer'd , and was mortal ; which epiphanius , theodoret , but especially gregor . nazianzen has at large related . only since , some , for the more distinct conception of the apollinarian heresie , have thus distinguish'd it from that of eutyches afterwards ; that the eutychian affirm'd , that our blessed saviour took nothing from the blessed virgin , but that the very logos , the word it self being , as theodoret expresses it , immutably converted , and made flesh , only passed through the virgin ; whereas apollinarius supposed the flesh of christ , which he took of the virgin , to be converted into the divine nature : it appears by gregory nazianzen , that this was no certain distinction , forasmuch as the apollinarian too affirmed oftentimes the same thing ; that , as the father expresses it in the place i before cited , our saviour was even before he descended , the son of man , and descending , brought his . flesh along with him , which he had whilst he was in heaven , before all ages , and consubstantial with his essence . which is what theodoret long since observed , when in his . dialogue , speaking with relation to them both , he says , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . they who have patcht together this various and many-form'd heresie , sometimes say , that the word is become flesh , sometimes that the flesh is changed into the word . wherefore laying aside these subtleties , this we may undoubtedly conclude , that whatever their other differences were , whether as to his body , which we see is uncertain , or to his soul , in which the variety was more constant and more discernable ; the eutychian affirming the union of the two intire natures , the humane and divine ; whereas the apollinarian deny'd that our saviour ever assumed the reasonable soul at all : certain it is , for what concerns our present purpose , that they both agreed in this , that after the union of the word and flesh , there was but one only nature common to both , the substance of the two , that were before , being now confused and permixt ; from whence they were both of them afterwards called by † † † † † † st. chrysostom and others 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , from their confusion of the two natures into one , and making not only one person , as the catholick church did , but one nature too alone in christ. reflection ii. st. chrysostme's argument from the eucharist against the apollinarians , consider'd and explain'd . such is the account which the antient fathers have left us of the apollinarian heresie , and the same we find to have been the notion which st. j. chrysostom in this epistle had of it . he proves the divine and humane natures to be distinct in christ ; that the properties of the one , ought no otherwise to be confounded with the other , than as they are united in the same person . he charges the apollinarians with saying that our saviour's body is converted into the divinity , and upon that account attributing passion to the deity : and finally , he concludes all with this exhortation to caesarius , whom he designed by this epistle to recover from their errours . wherefore , dearly beloved , says he , laying aside the novel phrases , and vain speeches of these men , let us return to what we have before said ; that it is pious , most pious indeed , that we should confess our saviour christ , who died for us , to be perfect in the godhead , perfect in the manhood ; one only begotten son , not divided into two , but bearing in himself together the unmixt proprieties of two distinct natures . not two different persons , god forbid ! but one and the same lord jesus , god , word ; cloathed with our flesh , and that not inanimate , without the rational soul , as the wicked apollinarius pretends . let us then assent to these things , let us fly those who would divide him ; for though the natures be distinct , yet is there but one undivided and indivisible union to be acknowledged in the same one person and substance of the son. ii. and now if this be the catholick doctrine which this holy father here designs to bring caesarius to ; such the errours , which by the subtlety of the apollinarians he was involved in : it will be very easie to conceive the allusion he here makes between the two natures united in christ , and the two parts , which the catholick church has ever acknowledged in the holy eucharist ; to the destruction of the romanists pretences of transubstantiation , and to the solid establishment of the real presence of christ in this sacred mystery , such as the church of england believes , and has been established by me in the foregoing discourse . iii. the words of st. chrysostome in this epistle are these : christ is both god and man ; god , in that he is impassible ; man , for that he suffer'd . yet but one son , one lord : he the same without doubt , having one dominion , one power of two united natures . not that these natures are consubstantial , forasmuch as either of them , does without confusion retain its own properties , and being two , are yet inconfused in him . for as [ in the eucharist ] before the bread is consecrated , we call it bread , but when the grace of god by the priest has consecrated it , it is no longer called bread , but is esteemed worthy to be called the lord's body , although the nature of bread still remains in it ; and we do not say there be two bodies , but one body of the son : so here , the divine nature being joyned with the [ humane ] body , they both together make up but one son , one person . but yet they must be confess'd to remain without confusion , after an indivisible manner , not in one nature , but in two perfect natures . iv. in which passage , whether we consider the expressions themselves , or the application of them , they are utterly destructive of transubstantiation . first , as to the expressions themselves . they tell us plainly , that the nature of bread remains in the eucharist after the consecration : that our not calling it bread , but christ's body , does not therefore intend to signifie that the nature of bread is at all changed ; for that the bread by consecration becomes indeed worthy to be called the lord's body , but yet still retains its own nature of bread . v. these are such plain expressions of the bread's continuing in its own nature after consecration , that the papists themselves have not been able to deny it . so that their only refuge is , that by the bread's retaining still its own nature , we are , they say , to understand only this , that its accidents remain , but for its substance , that is changed into the body of christ . * * * * * * thus gardiner , turrian , bellarmine , gregory de valentia , vasquez , suares , perron , gamachaeus , and last of all , father † † † † † † nouet , in his controversie against monsieur claude . vi. this is indeed to cut the knot when it was not to be untied ; and makes st. chrysostome in effect to say thus much , that the nature of bread after the consecration , still remains , though indeed the nature be changed , and only the accidents continue . and would it not have been an admirable similitude , to shew that the humane nature of christ was not changed into the divine , as the appollinarian pretended , to alledge the example of the eucharist , in which the nature of the bread was changed into the very nature of christ's body , as the papists believe . vii . but s. chrysostome was not so absurd , as these men would represent him ; and his other expressions utterly overthrow this evasion . . he tells us plainly , that all the change that was made in the bread by consecration , was in the name , not the substance : that whereas before it was called bread , by being consecrated it became worthy to be called the lord's body . . had st. chrysostome believed the bread to have been truly changed , and become the very body of christ , would he have said that it became worthy to be called the body of christ ? and not rather plainly have told us that it became the very body of christ ? do men use to say that the heaven is worthy to be called the heaven ? the sun , worthy to be called the sun ? and why shall we think st. chrysostome the only ridiculous man , to use such a phrase as no man in the world ever did , or would have done besides ? but . and to put this point beyond al doubt : when st. chrysostome here speaks of the nature of bread , in allusion to the nature of christ ; if we will have him consistent with himself , we must suppose him to have used that expression with reference to both , in the same sense . as therefore in his discourse immediately before and after , by nature , with reference to christ , he does not mean the properties only , but the very substance of his humanity and divinity ; so here in his allusion to the eucharistical bread , he must still mean the same , the substance of the bread , and not barely the properties , or accidents of it ; and of this i am perswaded no indifferent person will make any doubt . secondly , as to the design of this allusion , viii . the apollinarians , as we have seen , affirm'd the change of one nature in christ into the other ; that however , before the union , they were two distinct things , yet by being united , the humane nature became converted , or if you will , transubstantiated into the divine . ix . now the falseness of this s. chrysostom , shews by the example of the eucharist . that as there the bread by being consecrated becomes indeed worthy to be called christ's body , yet do's not lose its own nature , but continues the same bread , as to its substance , that it was before : so here , the humane nature of christ , being by the incarnation hypostatically united to the divine , did not cease to be a humane nature , but still continued what it was before , however united with the other in one person . x. so that as certainly then as the humane nature of christ does now continue to be a humane nature , notwithstanding that incarnation ; so certainly does the bread in the eucharist continue bread after this consecration . as certainly as apollinarius was deceived in supposing the manhood of christ to be swallowed up and changed into the godhead ; so certainly is the papist deceived in imagining the substance of the bread to be swallow'd up and converted into the substance of christ's body , in this holy sacrament . xi . christ's humane nature being united to the divine , became worthy thereby to be called , together with it , by the same common name of christ , lord , jesus , the word , the son of god ; the bread being by consecration mystically united to christ's body , becomes worthy to be called , together with it , the lord's body ; but that is all , the humane nature still continues what it was before ; in the one , the nature of the bread still continues what it was before in the other , and there is no transubstantiation made in either . xii . in a word , in the hypostatick union , though there be two distinct natures , god and man , yet there is but one person , one son made up of both . so in the holy eucharist , though there be two different things united , the bread and christ's body , yet we do not say there be two bodies , but one mystical body of christ , made up of both ; as the king and his image , to use the similitude of the antient fathers , are not two , but one king : or in the example of st. chrysostome himself , christ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ●…y . reflection iii. of the epistle it self , and the attempts that have been made against it . i. and now when such is the force of this epistle , that it utterly destroys one of the principal errors of popery : it is not at all to be wondred at , if those men who were resolved not to be convinced by it themselves , have used all imaginable means to provide that others should not . ii. it is now above years , since this passage was first produced by peter martyr , in his dispute with gardiner , bishop of winchester , concerning the eucharist . he then profess'd that he had copied it out of the florentine ms. and that the whole epistle was put by him into arch-bishop cranmer's library . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ this gardiner could not deny , who therefore in his answer to him . endeavour'd first to ascribe it to another john of constantinople , who lived about the beginning of the th century . secondly , to elude the force of this passage , by that strange interpretation of the word nature , i have before mentioned , and in which all the others have since follow'd him . iii. † † † † † † turrian , who by his writing seems to shew that he had somewhere or other seen this epistle , contends in like manner , and if we may believe vasquez , and de valentia , proves it too , that this epistle was not chrysostom's , but the other john's , to whom the bishop of winchester had before ascribed it . but yet still the argument recurr'd upon them , forasmuch as this other john was in the beginning of the th age , and transubstantiation by consequence was not the doctrine of the church then . iv. and indeed gamachaeus is not very unwilling to acknowledge this : for having with the rest assigned this epistle to the other john , he tells us , he is to be excused , for that transubstantiation was not so plainly delivered and explain'd in those days as it is now . v. but this * * * * * * cardinal perron could not bear , he neither thought fit to rely upon an evasion , which he saw would not do their business , nor could he endure to allow so antient an author as either of the two johns , to have been so directly opposite to their sentiments in this matter . and therefore flatly accuses peter martyr of forgery , and uses abundance of arguments to perswade the world , that there was never any such epistle as had been pretended . vi. thus stood this passage , and the whole epistle for its sake ; till about six years since the learned bigotius , who had twelve years before brought a copy of it from florence , resolved to ruine all the endeavours of these men , by publishing the very epistle , which the cardinal had so loudly proclaimed to be a forgery , and proving it to be indeed the genuine off-spring of st. chrysostome , contrary to what the rest had in vain pretended . vii . and this he accordingly , with great sincerity performed , ann. . for in his edition of palladius that year , among the other pieces which he added to it , this epistle of st. chrysostome had one of the first places , and was strengthned by him with such attestations , as shew it to be beyond all doubt authentick . in his preface he declared how he came by it , and made a short apology for that passage of it that had caused so great a contest ; but such as it seems , he was either conscious to himself , not to have been very strong , or fear'd at least that his censors would not esteem it to be so . viii . and in this i speak no more than what he himself declared to his friends , insomuch that he resolved to reserve privately some few copies , for fear the rest should run that risque , which indeed they accordingly did . for being now quite finish'd , and just ready to come abroad , some of the doctors of the sorbonne , whereof monsieur grandin and mr. faure have been charged as the principal , caused it to be suppressed , and the printed leaves cut out of the book , without any thing to supply the place of them . ix . and of this the edition of palladius of that year remains a standing monument , both in the preface , and in the book ; and it was publickly complain'd of by a very learned man , in an expostulation prefixed to a piece of anastasius , publish'd by him about two years after . x. but what that reverend person could not then obtain , being since fallen into my hands , i mean the very leaves cut out by these doctors , of mr. bigot's preface , and the epistle rased out of the book ; i was unwilling to come into a part of their fraud , by detaining any longer that , which both so well deserved , and had so long since been prepared for a publick view . xi . i hope the learned world , whom i principally design to gratifie in this matter , will accept this never the worse , for that mr. le moyne the last year published this epistle among his varia sacra : that learned man having neither given the greek fragments , which i now publish from monsieur bigots own impression ; nor monsieur bigots account of it , in the part of the preface which was suppress'd . not to add , that the latine copy of mr. le moyne is so very false , that it renders the epistle utterly unintelligible . i do not pretend to anticipate his design , which he appears so jealous of : that is too vast to be injured by any thing i can offer ; and i shall be glad if what i now publish may be any way serviceable to it . xii . as to the authority of this piece , i shall need say no more than what monsieur bigot has already done to prove it to be genuine . so many ancient authors have cited it , as st. chrysostom's epistle to caesarius ; such fragments of it remain in the most antient writers as authentick , that he who after all these shall call this piece in question , may with the same reasonableness doubt of all the rest of his works , which , perhaps upon less grounds , are on all sides allow'd as true and undoubted . but it is time now to see what account monsieur bigot himself gives of it . suppressa in praefatione emerici bigotii , de epistolâ chrysostomi ad caesarium , monachum . hanc orationem sequitur epistola ad caesarium , monachum , quae licet nitore suo nativo , id est , graeco eloquio , destituta , nihilominus sub velo veteris latinae interpretationis mirificos eloquentiae disertissimi doctoris radios exhibet . primus qui ultimis temporibus hujus meminit epistolae , fuit petrus martyr , florentinus , qui ex eâ locum quendam protulit in locis communibus . insolitus loquendi de eucharistia modus , qui ex eâ referebatur , à johannis chrysostomi phrasi * * * * * * ac genio prorfus alienus lectores in diversas traxit sententias . aliis supposititiam esse affirmantibus , aliis pro virili contendentibus , veram esse as genuinam ; omnes integram videre summe concupivêre ; dolueruntque petrum martyrem , qui primus de eâ mentionem injecerat , minime indicâsse quae in bibliotheca extaret codex ms. florentiae delitescere omnium erat suspicio , quia florentinus fuit petrus martyr , sed ubi , ab omnibus nesciebatur . mihi quae fortuna faverat in reperiendo contextu graeco vitae st. johannis chrysostomi , hic etiam non defuit . ejus exemplar reperi apud r. r. p. p. dominicanos , in monasterio s. marci . cujus te in partem 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 venire libens patior ; nec expecto ut mihi succlames in commune , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , si mode exorari te sinas , ut benignâ interpretatione emollias , quae duriuscule sonant de eucharistiae sacramento , & in memoriam revoces tot & tam insignes locos , in quibus adeo luculenter de hoc sacro-sancto mysterio loquitur joannes noster , ut doctor eucharistiae vocari meruerit , sicut s. augustinus doctor gratiae vulgo praedicatur . dixi petrum martyrem primum postremis temporibus hujus epistolae meminisse , quae antea graecis patribus notissima fuerat , utpote qui multa testimonia ex ea adversus monophysitas & acephalos adduxerunt , ut observare licet in notis , quas margini apposui , indicando codices ex quibus textum graecum apud illos patres à me inventum descripst . caeterum ubi deficiebant verba graeca , vacua columnarum spatia reliqui , nec passus sum ea punctis , aut lineolis , sicut librariorum mos est , repleri , ut possint inibi viri eruditi verba graeca adscribere * * * * * * siquando ea invenerint . cum enim experimento noverim , quo casu , quâve fortunâ in ea quae attexui testimonia , inciderim , non despero ab aliis alia posse inveniri . quisque experiatur cui fortuna erit faventior ; & si cui ea obsecundaverit , is ne publico invideat , neque apud se inventa privatim detineat . qui veteres libros tractant , norunt nullam veteris cujuscunque libri editionem , quae ex unico exemplari fuerit eruta , hucusque prodiisse , omni ex parte perfectam . manu exarati codices mutuas aliorum exposcunt operas , ut quod in uno corruptum est , ab alio sanetur ; quod in une vetustas obliteraverit , ab alio lucem accipiat . hoc verum esse de codice hujus epistolae fateri cogor , qui licet annorum sit , parum tamen emendatè scriptus est , & opem à graeco praecipuè codice , aut ab alio saltem latino , postulat . in eo quem vidi , aliquando voces continuae sunt , aliquando simplex vocalis e pro diphthongo ae scripta fuit ; t pro d , & vice versa d pro t ; verbis aliquando ita corruptis , ut ad sanitatem reduci minimè possint absque subsidio aliorum codicum . quae scribarum incuria deterruit , opinor , petrum martyrem ab eâ edendâ . taceo interpretationem , quae minus accurata , imo planè barbara videtur . ego his omnibus naevis lectores benevolos nequaquam offensum iri arbitratus sum ; imo eam libenter excepturos puto quam damus epistolam , latinè quoquo modo versam , cujus fragmentum à petro martyre editum , eruditorum animos pridem sollicitavit . quis enim illud cum legerit , joannis chrysostomi mentem percipere possit , ex eoque animadvertere , quâ occasione , quo animo ejus verba * * * * * * scripta sunt ? in eâ porro epistolâ mirari licet summam & insolitam dei amantissimi viri charitatem , qui licet innumeris aerumnis oppressus esset , atque continuis terroribus ob isaurorum incursiones , ut ipse scribit in epistolis ad olympiadem , paenè exanimaretur ; nihilominus cum audisset caesarium , monachum , amicum suum in apollinaris & 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 haeresim incidisse , eum pro incredibili suâ bonitate ab haeresi avertere , atque in sincerae pietatis viam revocare hâc epistolâ molitus est . quantum vero apollinaris haeresis tunc grassaretur , & quàm multos invafisset , ex eo colligere licet , quod contra apollinaristas & synusiastas scripserunt diodorus , tarsensis episcopus , quem supra memoravi , gregorius nyssenus , cyrillus alexandrinus , theodorus mopsuestenus , theophilus antiochensis , ut alios plures omittam . atque ut ab eo errore caesarium revocaret joannes , eumque ad catholicam fidem , quae duas in christo naturas inconfusas sub unâ personâ confitetur , epistolâ reduceret , comparationem ab eucharistiae sacramento mutuatur , in quo panis post consecrationem , non jam panis , sed corpus christi appellare dignus efficitur ; etiamsi natura panis , inquit , in ipso permansit , & non duo corpora , sed unum corpus filii praedicatur . quibus verbis sanctus doctor veram ac realem , ut vocant , corporis christi in eucharistia presentiam supponit , & agnoscit ; alias certe nulla esset cum humanâ ac divinâ in christo naturâ eucharistiae comparatio . ips : chrysostomus homil. . ad populum antiochensem : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . elias enim pallium reliquit discipulo suo ; dei autem filius ascendens in coelum , nobis carnem suam reliquit : sed elias se exuit , christus vero & carnem suam nobis reliquit , ipsamque habens , ascendit . et hom. . in matthaeum : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sic etiam in mysteriis faciamus , non illa quae ante nos jacent , solummodo aspicientes , sed verba quoque ejus tenentes . nam verbis ejus defraudari non possumus , sensus vero noster deceptu facillimus est : illa falsa esse non possunt , hic saepius atque saepius fallitur . quoniam ergo ille dixit , hoc est corpus menum , obediamus , & credamus , & oculis intellectûs id perspiciamus . integrum librum consicerem , si ex chrysostomo locos omnes excerperem , in quibus de sacratissima eucharistia similiter loquitur ; sed laetius ac salubrius tibi erit , eos in fonte legisse . thus far bigotius's preface : as to the epistle it self , i have publish'd it exactly as it was in the paris edition , whose pages i have retain'd , that those who please , may see the defect in that part of palladius , out of which it was rased . for the little notes which i have added , they contain a collation , . of the latin of bigotius , with the latin of mr. le moyne's copy , in which i do not know that i have omitted the least variation , even of a single letter . . of the greek fragments collected by bigotius , with some other mss. that have been communicated to me . in which , a denotes the arundel ms. cited by dr. cave in his chartophylax eccles. c. one of monsieur colbert's library , examined by the learned monsieur allix . m. the latin copy publish'd by monsieur le moyne . epistola s. johan . chrys . * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 † † † † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 t t t t t t 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 † † † † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 † † † † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . incipit epistola b johannis episcopi constantinopolitani , ad caesarium , monachum , tempore secundi exilii sui . inspeximus literas tuae reverentiae : inspeximus autem b b b b b b non a a a a a a praeter c c c c c c lachrymas . quomodo enim b b b b b b non c c c c c c lachrymabimur , & animam ipsam dolore conficimus , videntes fratrem singularem vitam à pueritiâ eligentem , & d d d d d d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , id est , consummatè circa pietatem se habentem , subitò autem e e e e e e haereticorum jactibus pulsum . et dicas forsitan ab errore ad id quod melius est venis , se te , & gratiam confiteri his , qui f f f f f f admirabilem illum g g g g g g protulerint librum , quem magnum esse h h h h h h optima tua nominant scripta , qui splendidè praedicat [ i i i i i i concursum essentialem & commixtionem sacram factam ex divinitate & carne , unam autem ex hâc , perfici naturam . ] istud mirabitur insipientis . apollinarii inconsideratio , ista eorum qui introducunt a a a a a a contemperationem & b b b b b b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , id est , commixtionem impiissima [ c c c c c c intentio , quae ] procedens immutat quidem arrii , apollinarii , d d d d d d & sabellii , d d d d d d & manetis nihil . passionem autem excogitari & adponi secundum illos unigeniti e e e e e e imaginatur deitati , quod à f f f f f f christianis alienum est . posside igitur . temetipsum iterum , dilectissime , & ad priorem regredere ordinem ab abominabili illâ abstinens [ g g g g g g opinione , quae est apollinaris , & eorum qui synusiastae dicuntur . impia cogitatio assidua è puris ] influens nocere novit , qui secundum nos sunt simplicitati conviventes . a a a a a a ductoris enim eorum est liber , apollinarii b b b b b b dico ; c c c c c c etsi hunc sibi tua reverentia non rectè faciens negotiata est . verum tamen nos recordantes tuae nobiscum conversationis , sentientes autem ex his quae scripsistis , errorem subsistere erga tuam dilectionem ex illorum insipientiâ non solum erga dispensationis d d d d d d mysterium , magis autem & erga nominum conjunctionem , excogitavimus deo cooperante nostrae infirmitati de omnibus manifestam ostentationem facere , ad redargutionem quidem e e e e e e malae opinionis eorum qui f f f f f f haereticum tibi protulerunt librum , * * * * * * correctionem autem tuae venerationis . g g g g g g deum ergo quando dicis , dilectissime , agnovisti id quod simplex est a a a a a a naturae , quod incompositum , quod inconvertibile , quod invisible , quod immortale , quod incircumscriptibile , quod incomprehensibile , & istis similia . hominem autem dicens , significâsti id quod naturae est b b b b b b infirmum , esuritionem , sitim , super lazarum lachrymas , c c c c c c metum , sudoris ejectionem , & his similia , quibus id quod divinum est extra [ est . d d d d d d christum autem ] quando dicis conjunxisti utrumque , unde & passibilis dicatur idem ipse & e e e e e e impassibilis , passibilis quidem carne , impassibilis autem deitate . eadem ipsa & de filio , & f f f f f f christo , & jesu , & domino praedicantur . communia enim ista , & [ g g g g g g susceptibilia duarum ] essentiarum nomina sunt ; quarum conjunctio in haereticis quidem errorem facit , proprio pro communi utentes nomine [ a a a a a a christi uno . his autem ] communibus istis b b b b b b uti oportet nominibus quando dispensationis confitendum est mysterium . si enim c c c c c c deum dixeris pertulisse , qualicunque d d d d d d cogitatione quod * * * * * * impossibile est , dixisti , id quod blasphemum est , [ e e e e e e & in * * * * * * manetis , & ] in aliorum f f f f f f haeresim declinâsti . impietatem , si iterum hominem dixeris qui pertulit , inveniris purum aedificans templum . templum † † † † † † crucis extra inhabitantem nunquam dicitur , quia iam non est templum . et forsitan dicunt , & quomodo g g g g g g dominus dixit , vt quid me vultis occidere hominem qui veritatem vobis locutus sum quam audivi à h h h h h h deo ? ben& egrave ; & omninò sapienter hoc dicendum est . [ a a a a a a neque enim ex hoc ab inhabitanti defraudabatur : ] sed significare volens patientem naturam hominis memoriam fecit , propter quod & b b b b b b deus & homo c c c c c c christus : b b b b b b deus propter impassibilitatem , homo propter passionem . unus filius , unus d d d d d d dominus , idem ipse proculdubus unitarum naturarum , unam dominationem , unam potestatem possidens , e e e e e e etiamsi non f f f f f f consubstantiales existunt , [ g g g g g g & unaquaeque h h h h h h incommixtam proprietatis conservat agnitionem , propter hoc quod i i i i i i inconfusa sunt , dico . ] sicut enim antequam k k k k k k sanctificetur panis panem nominamus , divinâ autem illum * * * * * * l l l l l l sanctificante gratiâ , mediante sacerdote , liberatus est quidem m m m m m m appellatione panis , dignus autem habitus est a a a a a a dominici corporis appellatione , etiamsi natura panis in ipso permansit , & non duo corpora sed b b b b b b unum corpus filii c c c c c c praedicatur : sic & * * * * * * hic divinâ d d d d d d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , id est inundante corporis naturâ , unum filium , unam personam , utraque haec fecerunt . agnoscendum tamen inconfusam & indivisibilem rationem , non in unâ solùm naturâ , sed in duabus perfectis . si enim unius , quomodo idquod inconfusum est , quomodo quod indivisibile , quomodo unitio dicitur aliquando ? [ e e e e e e sibimet ipsi enim uniri quae ] una est , aut confundi , aut dividi impossibile est . quod ergo infernum evomuit , unam in a a a a a a christo naturam dicere putamus * * * * * * divinam solam nominantes , non omni modo unam negant , b b b b b b nostram , dico , salutem aut humanan retinentes , non divinae abnegationem faciunt , c c c c c c dicuntque perdidit quod proprium erat . si enim unus est , salva nobis est unitio d d d d d d omnimodo , & ea quae unitioni sunt propria , salvari necesse est : si * * * * * * enim non , nec unitio , sed confusio & abolitio . mox autem ad interrogationis fluctuantes resposionem , ad aliquid aliud exiliunt , quod non sit proprium ad interrogationem : & inconstantes emittunt voces ; pertulit e e e e e e deus & non pertulit , & si petantur modum dicere , ad ignorantiam recedunt , proserentes ; quomodo f f f f f f voluit christi apud ipsos memoria fugiente posthaec a a a a a a vituperari in hoc ? mox dicunt , & b b b b b b christus non est c c c c c c deus sed & homo . et iterum dicunt , post d d d d d d unitionem non oportet dicere duas naturas . attende significationem dicti . unitionem dixisti : unius unitionem non invenis fieri , quomodo e e e e e e praevenientes diximus , sed verbum caro factum est & f f f f f f speculare eorum querentur subtilitatem . intulit enim , & inhabitavit in nobis . nunquid non ibi videtur , g g g g g g quia aliud est quod inhabitat praeter habitationem . si cognovissent , nunquam h h h h h h dominum gloria crucifixissent . dominum iterum quando dixeris , non proprium sed commune ▪ i i i i i i significatur nomen , passionis & impassibilitatis susceptibile . consueverant autem & istud * * * * * * praetendere putamus : non corpus k k k k k k dei & sanguinem accipimus , fideliter ac a a a a a a piè suscipiendum , non quia corpus & sanguinem possidet id quod divinum est naturâ , sed quià b b b b b b ea quae carnis sunt , propria facit . o inconsideratio ! o impia cogitatio ! periclitatur enim apud ipsos dispensationis mysterium , & iterum dominicum corpus , sicut c c c c c c verum corpus confiteri non patiuntur : per cogitationem enim dici conversum d d d d d d esse hoc in deitatem imaginantur , unam hinc construentes naturam , & ipsam cujus sit non e e e e e e juvantes dicere , ut passionem divinitati ; undique secundum apollinarium excogitantes , decidant à f f f f f f praemissis bonis putamus non g g g g g g contremiscent ista dicere audientes . non cogitant aeternum judicium , & h h h h h h domini vocem dicentis , ego sum & non i i i i i i immutor . caro infirma k k k k k k spiritus autem promptus * * * * * * pater si possibile est transeat à me calix iste . † † † † † † tristis est anima mea usque ad mortem . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ palpate & videte , quia a a a a a a spiritus carnem & ossa non habet sicut me videtis habere . putamus deitati ista apta sunt . audiant & petrum dicentem * * * * * * b b b b b b christo pro nobis passo carne , & non dixit deitate . et iterum , tu es christus filius dei vivi : viventis dixit , non morientis . et quaecunque his similia divina nos edocet scriptura , cui violenti esse haeretici non desistunt . horum istas novitates* vocum declinantes , d d d d d d charissime , ad id quod praejacet , revertamur ; pium & valde pium , e e e e e e christum qui morte circumdatus est , confiteri in divinitate perfectum , & in humanitate perfectum , unum filium unigenitum , non dividendum in filiorum dualitatem , portantem tamen in semetipso indivisarum duarum naturarum inconvertibiliter proprietates , non alterum & alterum , absit , sed unum & eundem e e e e e e dominum , f f f f f f jesum , g g g g g g deum , verbum , carne nostrâ amictum , & ipsâ non inanimatâ , aut irrationabili , sicut impius h h h h h h apollinaris dixit . istis mentem intendamus , fugiamus eos qui dividunt . i i i i i i nam etsi duplex natura , veruntamen indivisibilis & indissipabilis unitio , in unâ filiationis confitenda personâ , & una k k k k k k substantia . fugiamus qui unam naturam post unitionem prodigaliter dicunt ; unius enim cogitatione impassibili deo passionem adjungere impelluntur , difpensationem abnegantes , & diaboli gehennam arripientes . ista propter mensuram epistolae sufficere arbitror , ad confirmationem tuae dilectionis , ô magnifice . explicit a a a a a a epistola b. joannis episcopi constantinopolitani ad caesarium , monachum , tempore secundi exilii sui . amen . num . vi. having , to satisfie the vindicator , used such exactness in my quotations , as to refer , for the most part , to the very pages where they are ; it was thought fit , if it may be , to prevent all future cavil , that i should here subjoyn this following account of the editions made use of by me . a. aquinatis summa theologiae , fol. colon. . articles of the church of england . see sparrow . arcudius de concordiâ ecclesiae occidentalis & orientalis , fol. paris . albertinus de eucharistia , fol. daventriae . arnauld perpetuité de la foy de eglise catholique touchant l'eucharistie , edit . vo . paris . amicable accommodation , &c. b. bellarmini controversiae vol. ingolstadii . idem de indulgentiis , vo . coloniae . blondel of the sybilline oracles , engl. fol. lond. . breviarium romanum , vo . antverpiae . bramhal's works , fol. dublin . bigotius vita chrysostomi per palladium , g. l. to . paris . balsamon in concilia in synodico , oxonii . bonae card. opera vol. vo . paris , . nouvelles dela repub . de lettres mr. b — juin . c. crasset , veritable devotion , &c. to . paris . card. capisucchi capit. theol. selec . concilia labei vol. paris . common prayer of the church of england . claude réponse au pere nouet , vo . amsterdam . cosins history of popish transubstantiation , vo . lond. . cassandri opera , paris . ejusd . consultatio , vo . vid. grotii via ad pacem . cajetanus card. in d. thomam , venetiis . ejusd . comment . in s. scr. lugduni . canones , &c. concil . trident. mo . coloniae . calvisii chronologia , fol. francofurti . cave , chartophylax ecclesiasticus , vo . lond. . d. dallaeus adversus latinorum de cultus religiosi objecto traditionem . to . genevae . . idem de poenis & satisfactionibus amstael . . durandus in sententias , lugduni . e. estius in sententias , paris . euchologium cum notis goar . paris . expostulatio de joan. chrysost. epist. suppressa , lond. . to . epiphanii opera gr. lat. coloniae . l' esprit de mr. arnauld vol. vo . deventer . . f. forbesii instructiones historico-theologicae , amst. . g. grotius via ad pacem , cum consult . cassandri , vo . . gregorii nazianzeni opera , gr. lat. paris . — invectiva in julianum , to . etonae . gregorii papae liber sacrament . menardi , to . edit . paris . gratiani decretum , fol. paris . gamachaeus . godefry vie de s. athanase vol. . paris . idem vie de s. basile vol. . paris . h. hookers ecclesiastical polity , fol. lond. . book of homilies , oxford . i. index ex purgatorius , fol. madriti . jesuits loyalty collect . of several treatises , to . lond. instruction pour gagner le jubilé , mo . paris . jurieux preservatif contre le changement de religion . vo . — le janseniste convaincu de vaine sophstiquerie , amst. . — prejuger legitimes contre le papisme , to . . innocent the xi . bull for an universal jubile upon the relief of vienna , august th . . l. ludolphi historia aethiopica lat. fol. francofurti . . lombardi sententiarum libri . vo . moguntiae . m. maldonate in prophetas majores , to . moguntiae . — in evangelia , fol. moguntiae . missale romanum , vo . paris . missale in usum sarum , fol. . stephani le moyne varia sacra , to . lugd. bat. . petri martyris de eucharistiâ . monsieur maimbourg peaceable method , engl. to . monsieur de meaux's exposition , engl. to . . — french edition , mo . à paris . traité de la communion sous les deux especes , mo . paris . — pastoral letter , engl. to . . n. noüet de la presence de j. c. dans le tres saint sacrament , to . paris . nicole , prejuges legitimes contre les calvinistes . paris — les p. r. convaincus de schisme , vo . paris o. officium b. virginis , vo . antverpiae . office of the holy week , lat. english , vo . paris . p. pontificale romanum , fol. venetiis . la politique du clergé de france , mo . amst. . du perron replique à la reponse du roy de la grande bretagne , fol. paris . du perron de l'eucharistie , fol. paris . petavius dogmata theologica , fol. paris . papist represented and misrepresented , st . edition . pajon examen du livre qui portepourtitre prejugez legitimes contre les calvinistes , vol. mo . à bionne . r. reponse à un ecrit publie contre les miracles de la sainte espine . seconde reponse à monsieur de condom , vo . . ruffinus . rituale romanum , to . antverpiae . reflexions generales fur l' exposition de monsieur de meaux , vo . à cologne de brandebourg . s. sparrow's collection of canons , &c. to . lond. . sexti senensis bibliotheca , fol. coloniae . suarez opera , fol. moguntiae . in p. d. th. . scotus in sententias , primitive letter , fol. socrates , sozomen , fol. paris edit . valesii . t. thomasi codex sacramentorum , to . romae . theodoret. opera vol. g. l. fol. paris . theophilus , turrianus , citati ab albertino . v. vasquez in d. thomam , ingolstadii . in part . venetiis . vindication of the b. of condom's exposition . vincentius lirinensis . gregorius de valentia , apud albertinum . z. zonaras in concilia : in synodico oxoniensi . . errata . pag. xvii . lin . of the read of their , pag. . l. . these r. those , pag. . l. . marg . and this is . pag. . l. ult . p. . r. . pag. . r. hard put to prove . p. . l. . p. . r. p. . pag. . l. . art. . . pag. . l. . of r. to . l. . i have . pag. . not . lachrimas , lachrimabimur . some literal faults there are besides these , which the reader may please to correct . add to pag. . lin . . but why do i thus long insist upon probabilities ? monsieur de meaux himself owns that he hath both seen and read the preservative ; and in his treatise of communion , does particularly encounter what monsieur jurien had therein advanced against his exposition : and yet has this man , after all , the confidence to tell the world not only that he never read father crasset's book , which is very improbable , but that he never so much as heard it mentioned , that there was any thing in it contrary to his exposition ; tho' that author , in that very book , has spent no less than * * * * * * six or seven pages on purpose to prove it ; not to say any thing of the † † † † † † many other treatises , and some of them answers to his exposition too , but all of them well known in france , that have done the same . he that can believe this , let him also believe , that m. de meaux had no hand in the first edition of his exposition ; that the sorbonne doctors never corrected it , nor he suppress'd it upon that account ; that that whole edition was condemned only to make some little alterations for the benefit of the method , and the greater neatness of the discourse and stile . in a word , that what he has so shamefully asserted in his late * * * * * * pastoral letter , as to a certain point , which i shall beg leave not to name , but which we can at any time bring him thousands to contradict , he either ever believed himself , or ever heard any other bishops say ; all which , as they have been shewn to be equally credible , so no doubt are they equally true too . finis . a second defence against the bishop of condom . imprimatur , liber cui titulus [ a second defence of the exposition of the church of england , &c part i ] novemb. . . h. maurice , reverendissimo in christo p. d. wilhelmo archiepiscopo cant. à sacris . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england : against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the first part. in which the account that has been given of the bishop of meaux's exposition , is fully vindicated ; the distinction of old and new popery historically asserted ; and the doctrine of the church of rome in point of image-worship more particularly consider'd . london , printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxvii . the table of this first part . i. an address to the vindicator , laying down the method of the following defence . ii. the preface ; in which is contain'd , . an historical vindication of the distinction of old and new popery . p. iii. . an enquiry , how far we may judge of the doctrine of the church of rome , from the practices and opinions of the particular members of it . p. xii iii. the defence : divided into three general sections . p. i sect . i. after a short introduction , considers the bishop of meaux's second letter , in an address to the said bishop . p. the bishop of meaux's exposition written for the conversion of the mareshall de turenne . p. the several parts of the letter examined . p. . that there was an edition of the exposition suppressd , different from what we now see . p. . that these differences were in points considerable , and not only for the greater neatness of the stile , as the bishop pretends . p. . of st. chrysostom's epistle to caesarius . p. . that monsieur m — did answer the bishop of condom's exposition . ib. . . that father crasset's principles are not to be reconciled with the bishop of condom's exposition , as is pretended . p. . concerning the persecution in the diocess of meaux , and the bishop's repeated denial of it shewn to be a wretched prevarication . p. . cardinal capisucchi's doctrine in point of image worship , utterly inconsistent with the bishop of condom's exposition . p. his opinion at large considered , and compared with the principles of monsieur de meaux and his vindicator . p. . monsieur imbert's case examined . that he was prosecuted by the archbishop of bourdeaux , for maintaining the doctrine of the bishop of condom and the vindicator . p. . of cardinal bona — p. monsieur de witte , and — p. the pope's brief — ibid. the close . p. sect . ii. being an answer to those false imputations which the vindicator has cast upon me , and the rest of my brethren of the church of england . p. the reasonableness of this consideration . ib. the summ of this section divided into three parts . part i. in which it is shewn with what spirit and design the vindicator took this course to defame us . p. . that the principles of many of the casuists of the roman church do allow the defaming of an adversary by such accusations as they know to be false . p. . that we have just cause to believe , that the vindicator has proceeded according to these principles , shewn . . from the accusations themselves , which he brings against me ; of which several instances are collected by way of specimen , whereby to judge of the rest . p. . from his laying hold on the lightest , and most pitiful occasions to run out into the most grievous accusations against me . p. . for that the allegations he advances , are many of them such as he can never be sure are true . p. . and some such as he certainly knew were false . p. part ii. in which his reflections are particularly consider'd , and refuted : in two points . p. . a refutation of those scandalous reflections which he has cast upon the generality of the church of england . p. a summary of them . . that we have misrepresented the doctrines of the church of rome , reviled , blackened , and calumniated its members , and ridicul'd its ceremonies . answered . p. . that we have done this out of malice and interest , and kept the people by ignorance to our party . p. this calumny answer'd , in its several parts , of malice — p. interest — ibid. ignorance . p. . that we have been estranged from devotion , and are therefore scandaliz'd at their ceremonies , because we have not the zeal that those of their church have . answered . p. . that many of our church are so byassed in their affections to us , that they will scarce allow themselves their common senses in the examen of things , but pass their votes against any thing that tends towards popery , tho against justice , equity , and conscience . answered . p. . that some factious spirits have animated the pulpits zeal ; and that by this means the parliament was hindred from proceeding in its loyalty as it began . answered . p. . that we manage things against them upon politick motives ; that we have designs , and leading-men , and certain persons to gratifie by what we do ; and that this will bring ill consequences upon the kingdom , &c. p. ii. an answer to those imputations that he has laid upon my self in particular . p. . to the ill names that he gives me . ib. . to his charges of wilful faults committed by me in the defence . p. . to his reflections that have no manner of reference to the subject of our dispute ; but were brought in meerly for reflection-sake . p. as to my preaching . p. — popularity . . to his catalogue of faults drawn up against me at the beginning of his reply . p. . to his charge of ill language , with reference . to the bishop of meaux . p. . to others , in which are justified those expressions so much cavill'd at ; of . st. thomas's reveries . p. . of some of their new saints horrid blasphemies . p. . of some of their churches addresses , being more like magical incantations , than christian prayers . p. part iii. in which is shewn by above xl instances of books yet unanswered , that we have fully obviated all their arguments beyond the possibility of a fair reply ; which might justly excuse me from entring any more on a particular review of the several articles in debate ; tho' i shall nevertheless in a second part of my defence , pass through all again with him . p. to the reverend the author of the vindication of the bishop of meaux's exposition , &c. sir , after two such obliging addresses , as i have now had the honour to receive from you , i should be very much wanting in my respects to a person who has shewn so near a concern for my salvation , should i any longer neglect my return to you ; and might reasonably expect to have my rudeness and incivility muster'd up to increase my damnation in the next catalogue your charity shall prompt you to publish of my sins . i cannot indeed tell whether i may not be defective in my gratitude , by sending my thanks to your self alone ; and your great caution in the close of your vindication made me once think that i ought to have return'd you your own inscription , to the author , or authors of those excellent pieces you have been pleased to oblige the world with on my account . for i have some reason to believe , that whatever you were as to the first , yet you are not the only person concern'd in the second reply . but yet since your books run altogether in the singular number , and that whoever gather'd your materials first , or supervised them after , yet i doubt not but you were the only architect your self , and alone concern'd in those immediate addresses to me ; i am confident i shall not be much mistaken in my particular return to you , or at least that you will have the goodness to excuse so easie , and so involuntary an error . and first , sir , i desire to return you my acknowledgments for your great care of my future state. i do beseech you to believe , that it is exceeding dear to me ; and that i am sensible that your advice is very just and reasonable that you give me for it . and tho' i shall shew you in what follows , that for what concerns either your self or your church , i had no great need of it ; yet it pleases me very much to hope that when i shall have fully proved by gods grace , where the fault lies , one who is so forward to preach to others , will certainly take great heed that he does not in the mean time himself become a cast-away . it were perhaps too much to expect that condescension from you , which you are pleased to recommend to me , viz. to make a publick acknowledgment of the calumnies you have thrown not upon my self alone , but upon the generality of our church , and to retract the false witness you have born against your neighbours ; especially since this , sir , cannot , you know , be done without acknowledging the insincerity ( for i am willing to give all things the softest names i am able ) of your late attempts in the new methods of conversion . and indeed some experience makes me think i may without uncharitableness presume , that the pride of nature is as powerful on your side to hinder persons from retracting what they have once advanced , as it is on ours : and the principles of your church do much more indispose you to confess your errors , than , god be thanked , ours do us . but sure , if any one , you , sir , who so much consider that eternity is at stake , and that an injustice which will render us miserable for that eternity , cannot be expiated without making satisfaction , will not find it so difficult to acknowledge your mistake ; no , not tho it should have been wilful ; ( which i dare not yet say of yours , however you , in charity no doubt to my soul , judge mine to be so ; ) rather than run into inevitable damnation . and i pray god give you this serious thought and resolution . having thus perform'd this first duty , i must in the next place , sir , thank you for what , next to my salvation , has always been most dear to me , the care you have had of my reputation . it may perhaps be thought by some that are not sensible how great my obligations in this particular are to you , that i might well enough have spared this complement ; especially since your modesty makes you utterly disavow any such tenderness of it . indeed , sir , as to your expressions , it must be confess d you are very free with me. you not only still adhere to your first charge of calumnies , misrepresentations , unsincere dealings , falsifications , every thing that you could think of that might serve to bespatter me , but only false quotations , which i do not now find you so ready to insist upon ; but that your reader might be sure to take notice of them , you draw them up into a catalogue at the beginning of your reply , and all along in your margin you put him in mind to remark them : but yet , sir , after all this , i cannot but own to you , that your books have done more to secure my reputation among all those whose esteem i value , viz. the honest and judicious readers , than any thing my best friends could have done for me. i need not , sir , tell you , that my exposition first , and then my defence , made some noise among very great numbers of both churches . i had discovered such secrets as perhaps few could have done besides ; such as startled many worthy persons of your own communion ; and which some even of our own side , who did not know what evidence i had ready to produce for them , could hardly almost believe . whilst great enquiry was made about them , some of your religion knew not what to think , others flatly deny'd all that had been said ; you , sir , more kind , procure me a letter from that worthy person the bishop of meaux himself ; pretending indeed to disavow , but really acknowledging all that i had said with reference to his exposition . a favour for which , now i am discharging these kind of debts , i shall not fail to publish to the world my engagements to him . it was not long before my defence made a new noise , and but little inferiour to that of my exposition . for besides that , it confirm'd all my former allegations with new proofs ; it gave me opportunity moreover to make some further discoveries , both of your church's worship , and of your own sincerity . and this , sir , you tell me did induce many others to an imitation of those calumnies i there threw upon you ; but i must beg leave to mind you of another inducement too , and that is , that it did induce the generality of your side to calumniate me , as one who had uttered nothing but downright untruths , and charged you with such things as were not to be found either in your books , or in your practice . but i may now reasonably presume that they will from henceforth retract this calumny too , ( if at least you will allow it to be a calumny to accuse falsely one of our religion ; ) since you have here satisfied the world , that these things you do write and practise , tho' indeed for want of an infallible interpreter , we who judge according to the principles of reason , are not able rightly to understand the meaning of them . and therefore , sir , tho' your words still stile me criminal , yet your allegations every where protest against them ; and i desire no other advocate than your self to plead my innocence . there is , sir , yet a favour which i ought not to pass by , tho' i could not a long time divine the meaning of it ; and it is your great self-denial , which prompted you , i suppose , through all your book , as well as in that single place , where you your self have been pleased to remark it , not to take too much satisfaction in having your adversary at an advantage . it was indeed generously done of you ; tho' some ( considering the nature of your church , ) will be apt to think it was not merely an excess of charity that made you treat your adversary with so much favour , but either the insuperable ilness of the cause you had to maintain , or some other defect , which i shall beg leave not to name . however it puts me in mind of the supererrogating merits of many of your saints , to whose honour the prudent vvriters of their lives , have remember'd it , that they were wont to counterfeit themselves mad or foolish , and do a thousand ridiculous and extravagant things , that being laught at , and despised by all the world for them , they might thereby have the better opportunity of exercising their christian humility and self-denial . but , sir , i fear by this time my civility may begin to grow more troublesome to you than my rudeness would have been , should i have dispensed with my self , as to this point of ceremony . and indeed i have so much to say in order to yours and the worlds satisfaction , that i ought not to spend too much time in unnecessary preliminaries . three things there are , which i would willingly do in the following defence , and which i think will comprise all that can reasonably be desired of me , viz. i. to discharge my obligations to the bishop of meaux . ii. to vindicate my self against such imputations as do immediately concern my own particular , but do not at all affect the cause i am to maintain . iii. to consider what you have further offer'd to clear your church of those great exceptions i had brought against it . and in all these i should be heartily glad i might acquit my self to yours ; but however i hope i shall do it to my readers satisfaction , and to whom therefore i must now beg leave to address my self , as to whose examen ( if i may presume to borrow your own phrase ) i freely commit it to judge betwixt us . the preface . when i consider the nature of those methods that have of late been made use of by many of the church of rome to propagate their errors ; with what industry they conceal the real doctrine of their church , and by complaining loudly against others for misrepresenting their opinions , endeavour to keep men from suspecting that the juggle indeed lies at their own doors . i cannot but call to mind the complaint of an ancient father against the heathen philosophers , and in apology for the christian religion : * * * * * * would to god , says he , we could but look into your own opinions , into the secret recesses of your mind in which you turn and devise various and hidden thoughts . we should find that you your selves think the very same with us . but what can be done to men that are obstinately bent to serve a cause ? — ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ye know that ye maintain an ill cause , and what ye have once done without reason , that ye defend , lest ye should otherwise seem to have been once mistaken , and think it better not to be overcome , than to assent to that which you cannot but confess to be the truth . i shall perhaps be thought by some to assume too great a liberty , in applying this to those with whom i have now to do . but yet when i see men so industrious in expounding the doctrine of their church into a sense that may come as near the reformation as is possible ; when for the doing of this they are forced to so many shifts as plainly shew there is something of violence in the undertaking : * * * * * * words forced from their natural signification to speak that which they call the church's sense ; ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ the order of sentences inverted ; * * * * * * figures pretended that were never heard of in the world ; the irrefragable , angelical , subtil , seraphical , invincible , illuminate , illustrious doctors , whose sentences and summs our fathers so much admired , now laid aside , as containing only ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ scholastick opinions , and not the necessary and universally received doctrine of the church ; the rest of their writers thrown off as private men , and for whose opinions the church is not to be responsible : i cannot then but think , that these men are certainly conscious to themselves , that they have been in the wrong , and that there was reason in our reformation ; tho' 't is neither safe nor convenient for the members of a church that has so long been used to damn us as hereticks on this account , and would be thought infallible in her decisions , to own it to the world. it is one of my chiefest crimes , and for which i perceive there is no indulgence to be expected , that i have in some measure endeavoured to bring these designs to light ; to shew that all this is indeed but a lure to draw men in , and that when once they are ensnared , they will then find things to be far otherwise than they are made at first to believe : or that if they are in good earnest in their present pretences , then they herein plainly depart from what their church once held , and are upon that very account esteem'd by others of their communion at this day , to be little better than protestant hereticks . how far the allegations i have heretofore brought to prove this , have been invalidated by what our author has endeavour'd this second time to return to them , i shall then consider , when i come particularly to examine the several articles of his reply . in the mean time i cannot but observe , that how much soever the vindicator may dislike the distinction i made of old and new popery , it is yet no other than what i found in effect made to my hand in some of the bishop of meaux ' s own converts , and in books which are said to have undergone his particular perusal before they were permitted to come into the world. 't is this which we find in plain terms avow'd by monsieur brueys , in his * * * * * * examination of the reasons which occasion'd the separation of the protestants from the church of rome . for having expounded his new faith so scrupulously according to monsieur de meaux ' s principles , that as himself tells us , ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ he says nothing but what that bishop had inspired into him ; so that he did in a manner but copy his sentiments , and repeat in publick what he had learnt in private from him ; he finally exhorts the protestants to return now from their odious separation , since the doctrine of the church was so expounded , as none of their forefathers had ever understood it ; nor , if they had , would ever have separated from it . i say return now , ( they are monsieur brueys ' s own words ) for it must be sincerely confess'd that the doctrine and worship of the roman church was never so cleanly expounded as in these our days . and i cannot but think , that had our fathers believed things to be , as in effect they are , and as they are now proposed to us , they would never have separated from its communion . i do not at all question , but that our fathers , who undoubtedly understood the doctrine and worship of a church in which they had been born and bred , and were many of them admitted to places of chiefest honour and dignity in it , could they now rise up from their graves , would stand amazed to see with what insincerity it is now expounded to us in these days . and tho' it has been so fully shewn , that no one has cared to give us an answer to it , that even taking the ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ roman doctrine according to their own exposition , we are not yet able to embrace it ; yet it must be acknowledged we should have much less to say to justifie our separation , had it been always such us 't is now represented to us . but this is not the only person that has given us grounds for this distinction ; for however we confess that popery is more cleanly expounded now than it was heretofore ; yet even in these happy expounding days of ours , there are still some who repine to see the good old popery so much run down , and give us very different interpretations both of the doctrine and worship of their pretended catholick church . and of this the author of the wholesome advices of the blessed virgin to her indiscreet worshippers will afford us a notable example ; who having given such a cleanly exposition of the church's doctrine in the points of the invocation of saints , and worship of images , as the bishop of meaux , and his vindicator now do ; tho' approved with all the solemnity i have heretofore shewn , and may now more fully be seen in the edition that has since been made of it in our own language , was nevertheless condemn'd in the most violent manner that can well be imagined , and that by the authority of the pope himself ; and drew the zeal of father crasset to overwhelm him with a whole volume of doctors and saints that lived in the former days of superstition and sincerity , before these new expositors had by pretending to interpret , indeed corrupted their faith. father crasset having thus defended the honour of the blessed virgin , and justified the old popery to be the true and standing doctrine of his church , his authority was soon alledged by the * * * * * * protestants in opposition to the bishop of condom's exposition . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ monsieur arnaud , who undertook the defence of the bishop , and it seems could not foresee how by the metamorphosing power of a cleanly exposition , even this father's book should come one day to be perfectly reconciled to monsieur de meaux ' s , freely gives up the author for a * * * * * * pitiful jesuit , and whose authotity was not fit to be compared with that of a bishop , supported with the approbations of so many other bishops and cardinals , and in short , of the pope himself . it is not then only in our calumnies that this reflecting distinction of old and new popery is to be found , but in the real disagreement of those of their own communion , who all equally pretend to understand the doctrine of their church , and the decisions of the council of trent . but to put this matter , if it be possible , out of all doubt , i will here subjoyn the copy of a letter written by an eminent convert upon his change , in which this distinction is plainly express'd , and the bishop of condom's popery evidently distinguish'd from that of the people , and of the bigots , or ( as he calls them ) the tartuffes of that church . the person who wrote it was monsieur ranchin , a counsellor of the parliament of tholouse , to monsieur ranchin his kinsman , and counsellor in the court of accounts , aids , and finances of montpellier . tholouse , april . . i am not much concern'd , my dear cousin , to think that my conversion has caused so general a joy , as you are willing to make me believe it has . it is sufficient to me that our family , and particularly your self , has taken some part in my change : and i most humbly thank you for the obliging testimony you have given me of it in the letter which you have done me the honour to write to me . but , sir , i ought a little to complain of your accusing me to have tarried so long out of interest in the p. r. religion . this might indeed be said in enggland or in holland , but that in france one should be of the p. r. religion out of interest , is what i never heard before . as for my own particular , i can truly say , that my professing that religion has been the ruine of my family . but i am become a catholick , because i thought that i might obtain salvation in that communion . it is the book of monsieur the bishop of condom that has convinced me ; that admirable book approv'd of late by the pope . if you have not yet seen it , i advise you to get it , and read it all your life . i do also in part owe my conversion to another little book composed by one in flanders , intituled , wholesome advices of the blessed virgin to her indiscreet worshippers ; and to the pastoral letter of the bishop of tournay , in form of an apology , dedicated to the people of his diocess , and which is also truly a golden book . for were the faith of the church such as the people and the tartuffes practise it , i would never have gone where i am ; and i have learnt from these books , that the pure belief of the church is quite different from their practise . you will comprehend by this , my dear cousin , that these books are no less necessary to the catholicks , than to the p. r. but i consider too late , that instead of a letter i am writing a treatise of religion . i hasten to conclude , and to assure you that i am , &c. were i minded to indulge my self the liberty of commenting upon this letter , i should not want occasions from a piece so very extraordinary , to make some rare and useful remarks . but i shall confine my self to the particular for which i alledged it . monsieur ranchin was one of the counsellors of the chamber of the edict of languedoc , whilst it subsisted . the king having suppress'd that chamber , and incorporated the officers into the parliament , monsieur ranchin soon perceived that things would not stop there , but that those of the reform'd religion must expect in a little time to be turn'd out of all their places . he had a great family , and but a small estate for a person of his quality . and now it was that the exposition of the bishop of meaux began first to open his eyes : he perceived the roman religion to be quite different from what he had hitherto thought it ; insomuch that from henceforth he became disposed to embrace it , not by way of abjuration of what he held before , but by way of addition , i. e. by adding the roman superstitions to it . this was easily consented to by those of the other party ; he insisted upon having the communion in both kinds , but that was deny'd him ; but the principal matters were agreed to , viz. that for the change he was to make , he should have crowns in hand , and a pension of a more per annum , together with the assurance of his place to himself and his son after him , besides the hopes of higher advancement . and thus our new convert enters into the bosom of the catholick church , not that the disliked his own religion , or thought the other better ; no , his letter evidently implies the contrary ; but he thought that by the help of the bishop of meaux's exposition he might make a shift to be saved in it . he saw the abuses that were in that church , and he loudly declares against them : he professes he was so far from being of the religion of the people , and of the tartuffes of the church of rome , that nothing , no not ready money in hand , and a good place and pension for the future , should have been able to carry him to it . he advises his kinsman to read those golden books ( he had indeed reason to call them so , for so they were to him ) that had so well expounded the doctrine of the catholick church ; and were no less necessary for the roman catholicks than for the protestants instruction : that according to these he did hope he might be saved in the church of rome ; but for the people and the tartuffes , that are not yet so happy as to understand these expositions , there is no salvation to be had for them . and here at least i think it cannot be deny'd , but that we have two sorts of popery very openly and freely avow'd : one such as that a man may be saved in the profession of it , viz. that of the bishops of meaux and tournay , and of the wholesome advices of the blessed virgin to her indiscreet worshippers : the other of the people and the tartuffes , or zealots of that church , and for whom monsieur ranchin it seems had no great hopes . nor let it be thought so very extraordinary in this person that he entred into the roman communion at the same time that he saw and condemn'd the excesses of it . this has been but too common in those parts . * * * * * * and my author from whom i have borrowed the foregoing account , gives us a notable instance of another , one ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ monsieur pawlet , a minister of his own acquaintance ; how being convicted in one of their synods of such crimes as rendred him unworthy of his charge , he endeavour'd to cover his infamy by changing his religion ; and was wont afterwards frequently to declare , when he came among those of his former profession , that he could not but very much blame such as follow'd his example ; that for his own part , he knew the secret how to save himself , notwithstanding his change ; but for the other revolters who were ignorant of it , they would all infallibly be damned . but the resolution of the inhabitants of montauban is yet more extraordinary ; who being by the missionary dragoons convinced that it was their duty to obey their prince in changing their religion , did it with this declaration ; we acknowledge that the abuses which are imputed to the church , were not sufficient to oblige our ancestors to separate from it : wherefore we do now reunite our selves to the church , but yet so as not to prejudice thereby those remonstrances which we shall be permitted to make to the clergy to purge the roman church from many abuses . i need not sure repeat what i have already said with reference to monsieur imbert's case . for however the bishop of meaux may endeavour to lessen the reputation of that man , yet since he cannot deny the truth of my relation ( which is indeed no other than what he himself publish'd both in his letter and factum of it ) we may thereby plainly see how his exposition of the faith agreed neither with the missionaries preaching , nor with the peoples practice . and let the vindicator cry out * * * * * * calumny as much as he pleases in his answer to my account of their good-friday-service , and tell the world that i ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ falsify their words , because i render their venite adoremus , behold the wood of the cross , come let us adore it ; the dispute between that unfortunate man and the curate upon that very occasion , monsieur imbert insisting upon the same exposition the vindicator does now ; whilst the other cry'd out , the wood , the wood , come let us adore it , sufficiently shews that all were not agreed on the new popery interpretation : and the hard usage he has met with from his diocesan since , for supporting that exposition the vindicator so much contends for , may satisfie the world , that not only the curè , but even the archbishop of bourdeaux himself thought there was neither calumny nor falsification in the application i made of that day's service . i am sure poor monsieur imbert has been made but too sensible of it , and i shall rather be content the vindicator should still esteem me a falsifier and a calumniator , than be so uncharitable as to wish him the like conviction . it may perhaps be thought a little too late , since the new alliance struck up between father crasset and the bishop of meaux , to remember the quarrel between the wholesome advices of the blessed virgin to her indiscreet worshippers , and the true devotion towards the blessed virgin establish'd and defended ; that is to say in other words , between the new popery and the old. but tho' father crasset be now become an expounder too , yet may i not beg leave to remark from the subject of those advices against which he wrote , that there are , it seems , some in the church of rome , who perswade themselves that tho' they live sinful lives , yet they may be assured of their salvation , if they do but perform some devotion to the blessed virgin ? — nay , that think that tho' they have no love for god , yet they may be saved by supplicating our lady : — who pray to the holy virgin , as if she had more goodness and mercy than jesus christ , and so put more confidence in her intercession , than in the merits of her son : — who pay their homage to the holy virgin , as to some inferiour divinity , and believe that without her there is no approaching god , even through jesus christ himself : — who make the virgin mary mediatrix between men and jesus christ , as if she had some merit in her self which she had not received from her son : — who give the same titles of honour to the virgin mary , which ought to be given to god only ; — nay , and even make her equal with god and jesus christ : — who depend so much on the virgin mary , that they never have recourse to jesus christ ; — preferring their devotion to the virgin , before their love to god : who as to the point of images put their trust in them , as if there were some divine power in them ; imagining that there is a great difference between some of the images of the virgin , and that some are better than others ; and that it is no longer ago than * * * * * * . that it was thought a crime to be condemn'd , not only by a pope and a king , but by the learned of all nations , a crime worthy of banishment in this life , and of damnation in the other , but only to advise them better . it may be the vindicator will here cry out , that these are only private men , and that the church is not to answer for their extravagancies : but yet still this at least shews that there is an old and new popery amongst them , and that 't was none of my fiction to oppose them to one another . but however , because he is concern'd that i took no notice of his admonition , and may otherwise in his next reply clap a new note of calumny in his margin , to prevent , if it may be , not so much my own defamation as his sin , may i humbly beg leave to enquire what at last this thing called the church's sense is , and how we may come to the knowledge of it . if the pope and all the states of the church , if the large dominions of his catholick majesty , if the learned of all nations , if not the simple people only , but the most holy bishops and most learned doctors , nay , and even the fathers themselves be sufficient to declare a doctrine of the church , all these father crasset has assured us do maintain that honour of the blessed virgin , which this adviser writes against , and which is utterly destructive of the bishop of meaux ' s pretences . but if all these be but private mens opinions , and the church is not concern'd to answer for them , how then comes the bishop of condom to be so catholick an expositor , that whatsoever he delivers , must presently pass for the sense of the church , but what all others say , only for scholastick niceties , or the doctrines of particular persons , and which the church is not obliged to maintain ? now this i so much the rather desire to be inform'd of for that , i. as to number ; 't is certain that the patrons of old popery in italy , spain , flanders , and germany , among the tartuffes and common people in general , as monsieur ranchin is pleased to assure us , do very much exceed both the french expositors , and their late disciples , the english representers and vindicators . ii. as to the expressions , not only of the publick service and rituals of their church , but even of the council of trent its self ; they are so plain on their side , that it needs a great deal of artifice in these new undertakers to reduce them to what they call the church ' s , but is indeed their own sense . the council of trent directs them with reference to the * * * * * * saints themselves , to fly not only to their prayers , but to their aid and assistance too ; that is , says our ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ infallible expositor and his * * * * * * vindicator , to the aid and assistance of their prayers : but others , with less art indeed , but with more sincerity , and in the very words of the council , to their prayers , aid , and assistance . as to their reliques ; the council of trent declares , that those who affirm that veneration and honour is not due to the reliques of saints , or that the said reliques , and other sacred monuments are unprofitably honoured by the faithful ; or that for the imploring of their aid , the memories of the saints are in vain frequented , are to be condemned . this the council decrees ; and the old popery men accordingly do go to these reliques , these sacred monuments , to receive the benefit of them : some , to sanctifie their handkerchiefs , or beads , or rings ; some to procure health and strength by virtue of them ; others for other benefits which they hope to obtain by them : all which is so undoubtedly their practice , that the * * * * * * representer himself is content to allow of it : since , as he expresses it , god has made them the instruments of many evident miracles which he has visibly work'd by them , as is manifest upon undeniable record : but this , says the ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vindicator , is a false translation ; for we do not seek to those sacred monuments for the obtaining of their help and assistance , no , that 's not the council ' s meaning ; but we seek for the help of the saints at their monuments : and be either the words of the council , or the practice and belief of the people never so against it , yet our infallible interpreter assures us upon his word , that the sense of the church is what he expounds to us . concerning images ; ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ the council of trent determines , that the images of christ , the blessed virgin , and the saints , should be bad , and retain'd in temples , and that due honour and veneration be given to them . upon this the old popery-men dispute what this due honour and veneration is : some will have it only an inferiour cult , but more to be the same , whatever it is , that 's given to the proto-type : and these are so positive , that theirs is the church's sense , that cardinal capisucchi however approving monsieur de meaux's exposition , yet can hardly forbear passing very severe censures on those who deny it . i shall hereafter more fully shew his opinion as to this point ; suffice it to add here that instance which he gives us of * * * * * * aegidius magistralis , canon of sevil in spain , who was forced to abjure , among others , these two propositions as heretical , viz. st . that the images of saints are not to be adored with the same adoration with which the proto-types are adored . ly . that the cross is to be worshipped only with an inferior worship ; which proposition , says he , is heretical , and i retract it . then he declares with s. thomas , that the cross is to be worshipped with a supreme adoration . so that this , it seems , is not thought a meer scholastick nicety in spain , whatever it be in france or england ; but so much the church's sense , that it was declared to be heresie to oppose it . but what now does our catholick expositor say to all this ? why , truly , that these men quarrel with one another to very little purpose , seeing that after all their disputings , to speak precisely , and according to the ecclesiastical stile , when we honour the image of an apostle or martyr , our intention is not so much to honour the image , as to honour the apostle or martyr in presence of the image . which his reverend vindicator thus paraphrases : the cross , whether taken as wood or stone , or moreover as the image of jesus christ crucified , is not properly the object of our worship , but is a help to recal our wandring thoughts back to a consideratirn of the benefits we have received by his dying for us : and whilst we have these good thoughts in our minds , our affections are inflamed , and we in presence of that image , which occasion'd these pious affections , shew by some exteriour act what are our inward sentiments , and pay our adorations to our redeemer , but not to the image that represents him . this is the pure and innocent doctrine of the church , without the mixture of scholastick niceties . that here are two very different expositions of the same council , is not to be deny'd ; and whether is most agreeable to its decision , and by consequence to be esteem'd the church's sense ; whether that due honour is to be given them , as st. thomas and the schools say ; or that * * * * * * none at all , as the vindicator , or none in effect , as monsieur de meaux says , 't is , i think , easie to determine . and the abjuration of aegidius magistralis who favour'd this new doctrine , but was forced to retract it as heretical ; not to remember the hard fortune of poor monsieur imbert any more , may in ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ cardinal capisucchi ' s phrase , be at once both a caution and a conviction to them . as to the service of the church ; and which one would think should certainly speak the church's sense , that is so clear against our new expositors , that the vindicator is put to great shifts to reconcile its offices to their interpretations . in those the saints are pray'd to , to help and deliver them , to open to them the gates of heaven ; to command that they be loosed from their sins ; to loose their polluted lips , that they may pray as they ought to do ; to receive them at the dreadful hour of death , and by their merits to pardon their transgressions . and all this the people and the tartuffes , i. e. the false zealots of their church in the simplicity of their hearts believe that they do for them . but our new expositors assure us they are all grosly mistaken ; for however the words do indeed in their own natures signifie all this , yet the sense of the church is but one ; and be the expressions what they will , yet after all , we must understand by them no more than this , pray for us . but wherefore this extravagan●t exposition must pass for the church's sense , or how their declaration makes it become so , when that of so many others that interpret all these phrases according to their proper meaning , is to be look'd upon only as the opinion of private men , we are yet to learn. in their addresses to the cross , they cry out , we adore thy cross , o lord ; they fall down before it , and adore it ; and this , not only the people and the whole church does , but for endeavouring to mollifie the design of it , one man is imprison'd another banish'd , a third recants and abjures his opinion as heretical ; yet still 't is calumny , 't is falsification , misinterpretation , and what not , for us to presume to say that they do adore the cross , or that the church's sense is any other than to adore , not the cross , but jesus christ represented by that image . let us add to all this , iii. that not only the expressions of their councils and rituals more visibly favour the old popery , but the allow'd practice of the church , most evidently confirms it . 't is well known that a great part of the devotion of italy and some other countries , consists in these things . with what zeal they enrol themselves under the more immediate protection of the blessed virgin , to love , honour , and serve her all their lives ; and what confidence they repose in her , as i have before observed ; how every place , and person , and trade , and company , have their tutelary saints to guard , and to defend them ; every disease for man and beast , its proper physician above to cure it . how they flock to such images as have been eminent , whether for some pretended miracles , or any other vertues above others ; and with what ardor they accompany them , if they chance at any time to be carried abroad in procession ; what a value extraordinary they put upon any thing that has but touch'd the shrines in which are kept the reliques of their saints , as being sanctified thereby ; and how much devotion they esteem it to go ●o the places where they are kept to visit and adore them : how many excellent things they are taught an agnus dei is good for , not only to secure them against thunder and lightning at land , against storms and tempests at sea , but if pope urban the vth. may be believed , even to break sin , as if it were the blood of christ ; not to mention any more of their superstitions . now as this cannot be deny'd to be their practice , so we desire to be informed how it comes to pass , that if the church's sense be indeed so contrary to it , these things are not only thus universally tolerated , but encouraged , and there especially where one would think the roman religion should best be understood ; i mean in those places where there has been the least mixture of protestant heresie to corrupt it ; where the vigilant eye of christ's vicar does more immediately watch over it ; and above all , the sacred authority of the holy inquisition , that rock upon which the church is built , has hitherto defended it against such reforming expositors as we have here to do with . it may , i think , by this time appear how unwarrantable a presumption it is in these upstart interpreters to run down all others of their church that do differ from them as only private men , and at the same time to forget that themselves are no more . and he must certainly be very willing to be deceived , who knows any thing of these matters , that can believe that after all the disputes of so many learned men on both sides , as have heretofore labour'd in this controversie , nevertheless the true doctrine of the church of rome was never rightly understood till these new cato's dropp'd down from heaven to publish to the world their expositions of it . it is , doubtless , much more reasonable to expound the doctrine of any church according to the general and allow'd practice of it , than according to the singular notions of a few private men , tho pretending to deliver nothing but the church's sense . a neat turn , and a happy invention may palliate the foulest things , and make them appear in the idea exceeding innocent ; but what a general practice confirms , no colour can disguise ; and let men say never so many fine things in their defence , yet all reasonable persons will still believe , that the church of rome does certainly approve that which its most zealous votaries so universally follow . and indeed after all , monsieur de meaux himself must acknowledge this to be most reasonable : so that if his exposition does differ from what is generally practis'd in his church , all his pretences of its agreement with the council of trent , will not suffice to justifie his sincerity . it is upon this very principle , that himself in his discourse of universal history attacks the heathens . he presses them with the publick practice of the people towards their gods , and values not what the poets or philosophers said with great pomp of words concerning the divine nature , whilst he saw the others involved in such gross superstitions . nor is this my reflection , it was made by one of his own communion , not long since , upon this very occasion . and because it may serve at once , both to clear what i am now shewing , and more fully satisfie the world , that this bishop's exposition , how much soever pretending to deliver to us the true doctrine of the catholick church , yet was not thought at all conformable , even by those of his own religion , to the general practice of it , i will beg leave to offer it in his own words . as for what i have said , that we must judge of the pagan religion not from the impertinencies of the poets , or the specious discourses of the philosophers , but from the worship which was practised by publick authority , i do not see what any one can reasonably except against it . for it is most certain , that 't is this alone which must justifie or condemn any religion . and 't is from this that the ancient fathers heretofore run down the heathens . monsieur de condom himself , who seems not to approve this method , but pretends that we ought to impute nothing to the catholick religion , but the meer decisions of councils , has nevertheless thought sit to impute to the pagan religion those abuses that were publickly committed amongst them . he decries it upon this principle , that its mysteries , its feasts , its sacrifices , the hymns which they sung to their gods , their paintings , which they consecrated in their temples ; all these had relation to the loves , and cruelties , and jealousies of their gods. the same monsieur de condom ( says he ) decries paganism upon this account , that they consecrated to their gods the impurities of the theatres , and the bloody spectacles of their gladiators ; that is to say , whatever can be imagined most corrupt , and most barbarous ; and he laughs at the expositions and softnings which the philosophers brought to all this , when they were to encounter the objections of the christians . he has reason ( continues our author ) so to do ; but yet this shews , that the method which himself has taken to render the catholick religion fair and agreeable to the protestants , is not to be maintain'd . for what is it to us , may they say , whether the abuses and superstitions that offend us in the church of rome , be to be found in the decisions of their councils , or not ? as long as we see them publickly and solemnly authorized by it , and that their worship consists in them , it is enough for us to keep our selves from its communion . for might not the heathens have defended themselves the very same way ? might they not have said , that those things which we reproach'd them with , were indeed abuses into which the people was insensibly fallen by the connivance of the magistrates , and by the ignorance or avarice of the priests ; but that we could never be able to prove , that the college of pontifs , and of the church duly assembled , had decided these things ? there is no doubt but the heathens might have made these excuses , had they been as subtile and ingenious as monsieur de condom , but what should we have answered ? that certainly they must take us to be very fools to defend themselves after such a manner . suppose a man should invite another to settle himself in a city where robbery and murder should be evidently and publickly tolerated , by shewing him that there was not to be found among all the laws of that city , any one statute that order'd men either to kill or rob , would he not have reason to laugh at him ? what is it to me , would he say , whether there be any law that commands you to murder or rob , or no ? 't is sufficient to me to keep me from dwelling there , that they do without contradiction rob and kill . confess we then ( says he ) that the hereticks may make the same answer to monsieur de condom , and that therefore the true and only means to free our religion from their exceptions , is to shew that it does not tolerate any thing but what is good : and that not only the decisions of its councils are orthodox , but also that the publick worship , the customs and doctrines authorized in it , are just and holy . and here then let us fix our selves : upon this principle be it resolved , whether i have falsified and calumniated ; or whether monsieur de meaux and his vindicator have not rather palliated and prevaricated the doctrine of the church of rome . if what these men expound to us be indeed , in our vindicator ' s phrase , the universally received doctrine of that communion ; if 't is according to these softnings , not that a few converts , whose very character carries a design in it ; but the pope himself proceeds ; the inquisition judges ; the most catholick countries ( where there is no design to be served by these mollifyings ) italy and spain believe , the people practise , and their chiefest saints have gone to heaven , and are now honour'd there : if this be the exposition which their books of controversie follow in stating of the points in difference between us ( and where one would think they should certainly deliver the church's sense against us ) which their publick rituals in their natural and most proper meaning speak ; which their treatises of devotion recommend ; and which by all these several ways the church publickly authorises ; be it then confess'd that we do indeed misrepresent them to the world. but if otherwise these softnings be only the inventions of some few persons , who , 't is much to be feared , see well enough the errors of their church , but want either the courage or the honesty to avow it ; if they are so far from being universally received , that as we have seen they are openly opposed , nay , condemned ; and those who have endeavour'd to support them , imprison'd , banish'd , forced to recant , and abjure their opinions as heretical , i hope it will not be thought at all unreasonable in us to let the world know wherefore we suspect these expositors , who , by whatsoever name we shall distinguish them , whether they be condomists , representers , or what else you will , they are indeed all of them but a sort of half-reformers , seeing the others have so much a more just pretence both for number and authority , to be esteem'd , what in truth they are , the old romanists . i shall close all with that reflection which monsieur maimbourg makes in general upon these kind of expositions , on the occasion of that paper which monsieur granvelle , by order of the emperor charles the v th . did present to cardinal contarini , the pope's legate in the diet of ratisbone , . and which was by him afterwards , with some little alterations , sent to rome , as a model of union between the romanists and protestants . it may be observed , says he , that in all times these pretended accommodations and managements of religion , which have been contrived to re-unite the hereticks with the catholicks , in these pretended expositions of the faith , which either suppress , or dissemble , or express in doubtful terms , or too much soften some part of the doctrine of the church , have never satisfied either the one or other party : but they have both equally complain'd , that men should not deal sincerely in a matter so delicate as the faith is , where 't is impossible to fail in one point , without being defective in the whole . how far not only i may beg leave to apply all this to the bishop of meaux's exposition , but even monsieur maimbourg himself designed hereby to reflect upon it , i shall leave it to those to judge , who know how far that author took all occasions , under the pretence of writing the histories of past-times , to make particular reflections upon the men and actions of the present . i am perswaded that at least , it is the true character of it ; and i hope , before i have done , to satisfie the unprejudiced reader , that i have good reason to think so . but if after all , some there shall be , whom no reason can prevail with , who in monsieur de meaux's own phrase , take pains to blind themselves , and will not see the light at noon-day ; i shall only say to them , what tertullian once did to some hereticks in his time ; that 't is not so much for want of evidence that they are not satisfied , as because their cause requires that they should not : for if men once resolve not to be perswaded , 't is then necessary for them not to acknowledge those things by which they are confuted . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux and his vindicator . addressed to the reverend vindicator . and thus far have i cleared the way to my defence , and shewn both that there is at this day an old and new popery in the church of rome , and how we are to proceed in order to the finding out which is the true and genuine sense of that church . i must now remember the method i before laid down , and shall from henceforth carefully pursue . two things there are , which i shall chiefly aim at in this undertaking , viz. clearness and sincerity ; and in either of which , but especially in the latter , if i prove defective , i shall neither be able to satisfie my own conscience , nor my reader 's expectation . as for the former of these , i have made such a division of my discourse , as seem'd to me most proper for this end . i have resolved to give every thing its due weight , by separating what belongs to my self alone , from what concerns the cause i am to maintain . and to the end that nothing of passion or frowardness may arise to hinder me from weighing all things with that indifference i desire , i shall first distinctly consider what is fit to be replied to those severe , for i will not yet call them unjust , reflections you have so industriously made upon me , that so i may afterwards have nothing to do , but freely to examine the force of your arguments ; without being diverted by the reproaches that accompany them . and for the latter , i do here promise you to make it sincerely my endeavour , not only that what i defend be the truth , but to defend it only with truth . you may think of me as hardly as you please , or as your furious zeal shall prompt you to do ; but i assure you i never will endeavour to perswade that to others , of truth , of which i am not first my self convinced . so that , if then you have indeed discover'd in my book any of those ill things you charge me with in your reply , you shall not fail to find me as ready to acknowledge my faults , as , i bless god , i always have been ; and if i may be allow'd to know my own heart , still am unwilling to commit them : or if this will not satisfie you , i will add , as you have been to discover them . believe me , good sir , my desire is to go the right way to eternal happiness : but whether this way lie on the right-hand , or on the left , or straight-forward , to me it is indifferent . and however you have thought fit , according to your usual charity towards those that differ from you , to assume to your self the prerogative of god in judging the secrets of my soul , and to affirm , as you most rashly and unchristianly do , what you can never be sure is true , and what i am sure is undoubtedly otherwise , that if i would speak my conscience , i know that what i say is false ; yet give me leave to tell you that my conscience is so far from accusing me in this matter , that i have hitherto felt no other motions at the reading of these bitter reproaches , than what fill me with wonder and indignation at your presumption ; at the same time that they engage me not only to forgive you my self , but earnestly to beseech god to forgive you too . and for your other reflections , wherein you seem to have taken a particular satisfaction to blacken me all you can ; ( you being , as i shall hereafter shew , much more sollicitous about your calumnies than your arguments : ) tho' you have been so scrupulously careful not to allow , no , not for the smallest errors , that you have often taken the liberty to invent there where you could not otherwise find whereof to accuse me ; yet so far shall i be from returning any thing of this upon you , that on the contrary , i will shew you that your example is not contagious where your principles do not prevail ; and that i am therefore as far from being moved by your calumnies , as i hitherto see any reason to be convinced by your arguments . but of these things more particularly hereafter . i must now pass to the first thing i proposed to do which was to discharge my obligations to the bishop of meaux , whom , you tell me , i have endeavoured to expose , by my contemptible raillery , to my own confusion among thinking men. to which all that i shall say at present , is , that for the contemptible raillery you speak of , it is none of my talent . i have heretofore shewn you some of your own friends , who have indeed attain'd to a perfection in it , and 't is pity they should lose that reputation , seeing they have so very little to pretend to besides . i have treated the bishop of meaux , and by the help of god always will treat him as his character requires me to do . i have neither laugh'd at him , nor mocked him , nor sharpened what i have said with any light , satyrical pleasantry , to render either his person , or his exposition ridiculous : and these are the only notions of raillery that i know of , or that i believe your better attainments in the french language will be able to discover . no , sir , be assured that what i have said , was serious truth , and deliver'd in such a manner , as i believe no one but your self ever mistook it for raillery . and if from what i shall now further remark it does appear , that even by that bishop's own confession i have spoken nothing without good grounds for it , i shall then leave it to any of your thinking men , be their faith what it will , freely to judge where the confusion ought to lie . sect . i. an answer to the bishop of meaux's second letter ; addressed to the said bishop . my lord ; tho i do not see any such great difference between your former letter and this , i am now about to consider , but that the answer i had given to that , might have excused me from saying any thing to this ; yet my respect to your character , which i cannot but reverence , be the person what he will that bears it , engages me to pay that to the dignity of your place , which i should not have thought due to the weight of your arguments . i could wish that our controversie had been so managed from the beginning , that i might have addressed my self to you without an interpreter , either in your own tongue , or in the language of the church : but it being now become the subject of a popular debate , i must leave it to those from whom you received the former , to send you an account of my present defence ; tho' i cannot but apprehend that they who have committed so many mistakes in communicating your letter to the world , will not be infallible interpreters of mine to you . your vindicator accuses me in his reply to my defence , of having endeavour'd to expose you by my contemptible raillery . it is not improbable but that he who has the confidence to lay so unseemly a behaviour to my charge , in the face of so many persons as have read my books , and must therefore know it to be a false and groundless imputation , may also have represented my demeanour to your lordship much otherwise than indeed it has been . but , my lord , i know better what i owe to your character , than to fail in any due reverence towards it ; and if i may be permitted to add it , am too sensible how you ought to have respected it your self , to be guilty of any rudeness that may seem farther to lessen it . i believe indeed , i may have said things that have been very ungrateful to you , but i am perswaded i have done it in such a manner , that you your self cannot justly complain of any want of civility in me . and i will now , as i have hitherto done , be by so much the more careful not to offend you in my expressions , by how much the more i apprehend that i must displease you in my allegations . it is indeed a thing to be lamented , that one , whom god has called to so high a dignity in his church ; whom he has endow'd with all the accomplishments of nature and art , that might fit him to do some eminent good in his generation ; to whom he has given favour in the sight of one of the greatest princes of christendom , and whose eyes he has opened to see many of those errors , to which others of his communion are still blind , should not attempt something worthy both his own character , and all these great opportunities : that the knowledge he has of some at least of those superstitions which his church is involved in , should not yet provoke his zeal to do somewhat that might effectually deliver it from them . i have heard , my lord , of the endeavours you use to reform these things in your own diocess ; and i am perswaded you would be glad to see your exposition establish'd , not by a few vain complements , which you know signifie nothing ; but by the effectual practice and decision of your church to become indeed an exposition of the faith of it . and though , were it as authentically ratified as it is now pompously approved , we should not even so be in a condition of returning to you ; yet we should then despair , but that being once sensible you could err , god almighty who disposed you to go thus far , he would not suffer you to stop there ; but would incline your hearts totally to embrace that truly catholick faith , from whence you have departed , and to which you now seem willing again to return . think i beseech you what an honour it would be to your see , if as the last reformation in france began there , so now a new and more lasting one might spring up , not from a poor trades-man as before , but from whence it ought to come ; the supream pastour of it . and if any secular hopes or fears have hitherto kept you from employing those advantages , i before mentioned , to this great end ; and for which perhaps it was that god has given them to you ; be perswaded at least yet to consider your dignity ; and what your people , your religion , your own soul requires of you ? 't is yet in your power to redeem all , and by your courage and sincerity now at the last , not only to blot out all that scandal you have hitherto given us ; but if it shall please god to bless your endeavours , to render your name honourable to the present , and your memory precious to all future generations . but if none of these considerations shall be able to stir you up to so glorious an enterprize ; if you are still so tender of the credit of your exposition , that you will not be perswaded to pursue any reformation , but by a method which you ought by this time to see will never accomplish it : you must then excuse us if we endeavour to lay open your designs to the world ; and keep you from doing any hurt , if you will not be perswaded to do all the good that you ought . the first thing i said concerning your exposition was , that it was designed either to satisfie or to seduce the mareschal de turenne . this your vindicator confirms with an authority which shall to me remain unquestionable . and though when i consider how many points were wanting to that first draught which appear'd of it , i must still believe that either your personal conferences with him , or some other papers to us unknown did perfect his conversion ; yet i will not doubt , but that it was the exposition that prepared the way to it . nor do i hereby at all pretend to undervalue the efficacy of your book : it is certainly neither for your lordship's nor the mareschal's reputation , to have it thought that he parted so easily with his religion , as he must have done , if the meer reading of an exposition of some few matters , and those none of the most considerable in debate betwixt us , were all the care that he took about it . but it may be the vindicator judges of your lordship's pains in converting hereticks , by the little they take who now labour in this design among us : and which i cannot more nearly compare with any thing than that method † † † † † † whereby tertullian tells us , the valentinians were wont heretofore to make proselytes to their faction : they trust not , says he , their own disciples , before they have made sure of them : they have an artifice by which they perswade them before they instruct them : but truth perswades by teaching , not teaches by perswading . i. but i return to your lordship's letter : where the first thing you except against is what i mentioned in my exposition , concerning a private edition of your book which was suppress'd , because the sorbonne doctors , to whom it was sent for their approbation , excepted against some things in it . now this , as it was none of my invention , but communicated to me by a person of undoubted integrity , and who came to the knowledge of it by the means * * * * * * i have heretofore said ; so i thought i had the more reason to credit the relation , because in your advertisement wherein you take notice of the other objections of monsieur de la b — , you pass over in profound silence all that he had charged you with concerning this suppressed edition ; though a point certainly considerable enough to have had some notice taken of it , had it not been a little too hazardous , especially in your own countrey , so soon to deny it . and i must confess i was inclined to conclude , as i formerly told you , that you therefore took no notice of it , because you were sensible it would not have then been safe to disown it . but now it seems you thought you might securely disavow it . and therefore in your former letter you solemnly declare , that you never did publish nor cause to be printed any other edition than that which is in the hands of every one , to which you never added nor diminish'd one syllable . in return to which i have also declared , that there was an edition , such as i spake of , differing in many particulars from what we now see ; that a copy of this edition was in my own hands , and free for any one that pleased to examine it . but it seems you durst not trust to your first denyal , and therefore you were pleased upon second thoughts to confess in effect what you had twice before deny'd ; that t is true indeed there was such an impression , as i said ; but that it was made without your order or knowledge . to this i answered , that it was printed by your own bookseller , a person of great credit and estate ; with the king's permission and approbation ; all which could not well be done without your knowledge , nor would monsieur cramoisy have presumed to do it without your order . and what has your lordship now to except against this ? can you say that these presumptions are not reasonable against you ? no , that you do not pretend . can you deny the fact ? neither dare you put it upon that issue . but how then will you clear your self ? why , you persist to affirm , that there never was any such edition own'd and avow'd by you : no , my lord , that we know ; you were so far from owning and avowing it , that you endeavoured with all possible care to suppress it . but did you never make such an impression , though you did not , nor do not yet care to own it ? and if some-body ( you say ) has been pleased to tack the king's approbation and priviledge with the name of cramoisy to some other edition , it is but a weak argument to give the lie to what you say . behold the vain presumption that is brought to oppose so plain a matter of fact. here is a book printed , cramoisy's name , and the king's approbation to it : this edition is collected from monsieur cramoisy's own printing house ; collated with another of monsieur de turenne's that cannot be doubted to be authentick ; attested by the person that compared them , to be the very same ; and if this be so , the bishop of meaux remains actually convinced of being privy to the impression which he confesses was made , but , as he pretends , without his order or knowledge ; and to all this , he has only this to say , that it may be some body has tack'd cramoisy ' s name , and the king's approbation to an edition that they do not of right belong to . judge , my lord , your self , if you can but for one moment sequester your thoughts from your own concern in this matter , whether so poor a supposal be sufficient to overthrow such positive evidence against you : and do not force me to appeal to any other to judge betwixt us . i shall be thought perhaps to undervalue my better authorities in this matter , should i say that those who are acquainted with monsieur cramoisy's letter , will soon discern whether my book came not out of his imprimerie . but if it be not sufficient to confound your supposal , that it was gathered up from your own printers ; collated with monsieur de turenne's copy ; to which i am sure you will not say these things were falsly tack'd ; and attested to be the same : i will then add only this more ; that whenever your lordship will help us to a copy of that impression you speak of , made without your knowledge or order ; that we may compare it with what we have ; and give us some good assurance , that neither did cramoisy print it , nor any other with your consent ; if it does upon collation appear that ours is one of that stollen edition , i will no longer insist upon the authority of it . in the mean time , your lordship , subjoyns two suppositions , which very much confirm me in all that i have said of this matter . but what if i had taken out some leaves and put in others in the room of them ( for so the french signifies ) after the book was printed , before it was made publick ; what if i had corrected in it what i thought fit , or if they please altogether changed it ? what consequence can they draw from thence against me upon account of those alterations ? let us put the case also , if they please , that some body should have been so vainly curious as to take the trouble to find out this impression , before i had thus corrected it ? o , my lord ! may i not here at least beg leave to think , that out of the abundance of your heart , your hand wrote this ? would your lordship have made such supposals in our favour , had not your conscience here got the better of your reason ? suppose , you say , before the book was publish'd , some leaves had been cut out , and you had corrected what you thought fit , or it may be altogether changed it . is not this the very thing we charge you with , and which you have been so weakly endeavouring to perswade the world you did not do ? and if i may be allow'd to answer one supposal with another ; what if you did do this upon the corrections that were made by those sorbonne doctors , to whom it was sent for their approbation ? again : suppose , you say , some one was so vainly curious , as to take the trouble to find out this impression before you had corrected it . i reply , that then 't is very possible , that the person from whom i obtain'd my copy was one of these ; and if so , then both monsieur cramoisy's name , and the king's priviledge may honestly belong to it ; and my book be one of those that was first printed , and that with your knowledge and approbation ; before these leaves you speak of were changed in it . you see , my lord , of what advantage these supposals are to us ; and i doubt not but this will make you hereafter assure us that they were only cases put , for discourse sake , not that you really did this . and to this you may be sure there is no reply ; all i shall desire is , that if you intended no more by them than so , why you could not have as well made the supposal in the very terms of our charge ; which would have been much more proper than to alter them to another very like it ; for my part i cannot but think , that as i said before , your heart here guided your hand , and the conscience of what you knew you had done , led you to make this supposal of it . but here the vindicator desires to come in with his supposal too ; and that is yet nearer to what we say . suppose , says he , the bishop had permitted an impression to be made , or ( which it may be was all he did ) had caused a dozen or fourteen copies to be printed off ; to shew them to his friends , before he would put the last hand to his book : nay ( if you will ) let us suppose , that some of the doctors of the sorbonne were of the number of those friends to whom he communicated these copies , and that they had made some corrections , observations , or additions . why truly , sir , i say then , that supposing you had the bishop's authority to write this , you have fairly given away his cause and credit together ; by confessing that there was , as we affirm , a private edition made , that it was communicated to some of the doctors of the sorbonne ; that these doctors did correct it , and that then it was reprinted as we now see it . but i have more to observe from this passage , and it may be that which will unriddle this whole intrigue . . whereas the vindicator having supposed that the bishop caused a few copies to be printed for his friends , he then immediately changes his stile from a supposal to a kind of affirmation of it ; which , says he , it may be was all that the bishop did . . he supposes that some of the sorbonne doctors might be of the number of those friends , and might have made some corrections and observations in it . . he doubts , whether a few such copies could be properly called an impression : and now to add my supposal to all the rest , what if this were the case ? the bishop prints a few copies of his book ; but they being but a very few , and designed only for his friends , not the publick ; he does not think that this could properly be called an impression : and therefore whereas we charge him with a private impression , he readily denys that he had made any . for so few copies cannot properly be called an impression . he sends it to some doctors of the sorbonne , and they make corrections in it . but these doctors he sent it to as friends not doctors , and therefore when we charge him with sending it to the sorbonne for their approbation ; he assures us he never did any such thing , because he designed only their private judgment as his friends , not to prefix their publick approbation as doctors to it . i do not say that this is the case ; but however i thought i might make such a supposal of it upon the grounds that were so fairly offered to me ; and i shall submit it to the reader to think what probability there may be in it . but to return from this digression , to the vindicator : you will tell me , it may be , that you did not intend i should make this use of your suppositions ; that which you would know , is , what all this signifies to the book as it is at present ? and this , my lord , is your lordships question too . i answer ; that this shews , as i said in that place where i first produced this allegation , that those protestants were not mistaken , who thought the doctrine of your exposition as it was first drawn up by you , would never pass among th●se of your own party . and when your lordship considers how you insult over them in your advertisement for this belief , you will see some reason to own that it was neither to * * * * * * cavil with you , as you express your self ; nor to juggle and perplex the world with tricks , as your translator makes you speak , that i mentioned these things ; but to seek and shew the truth , and let the world see how this new mystery wrought . and this , my lord , to the first point : i go on with you to the ii. second ; where you say , you do really acknowledge , that the edition of your book which you publish'd , differs in some things from your , ms. — and for the same reason you doubt not but we may find in the edition ( or as the bishop's letter has it , the * * * * * * editions ; for i know not whether the vindicator has corrupted the one , or false-translated the other ; ) which you did not approve , some things not agreeing word for word with the true one : but that a little justice must needs make us acknowledge the difference to regard only the beauty or conciseness of the stile , and not at all the substance of the faith. in all which i find nothing more than what you had before said , in your former letter ; and the examples of some of your changes which i offered in answer to this pretence then , may still serve to satisfie the world what credit is to be given to the same assertion now . but because you desire your reverend father to remember the occasion of this difference , we ought not by any means to forget it : viz. that it was made for the instruction of some particular persons , and not to be printed : i shall take it for granted , that these particular persons for whom it was made , were either your new converts , or such as you desired to have so . now the exposition being framed for their instruction , and not to be printed ; is it not very natural to believe that you might have soften'd things in it to serve that design , somewhat more than you could afterwards justifie when you came to publish it ; and that the alterations therefore might be such as our copy shews in things that concern the substance of the faith as well as the beauty and conciseness of the stile ? and for this i have yet another presumption . the † ms. copy which at first went abroad , and was that which i suppose you drew up for the particular persons you speak of , ended at the article of the eucharist . now. i cannot but observe that the most considerable alterations do end there too : for however indeed in the point of the eucharist you had omitted the name of transubstantiation , yet in effect you asserted the thing ; in the adoration of the host , communion in one kind , and the following articles , we find changes indeed , but rather in the stile , than , as you say , in the substance of the faith : the business of the mass was the only considerable instance in which you prevaricated . from whence i conclude , that those first articles were written , as you say , for the instruction of particular persons , and not to be printed ; and therefore you thought you might take the liberty to write them as you pleased , and as your design led you to do : but when you came to add the others in order to the publishing your exposition , though you were still exceedingly careful to mollifie things all you could , and sometimes more than was thought fitting , yet you were forced to proceed with greater circumspection . but your lordship desires to have our pretended edition put into the hands of some person of credit ; where you may have it seen by some of your friends ; and you do then engage your self either to shew the manifest falsity of it , or if it has been truly printed after your ms. to make appear as clear as the day , that the differences we so much magnisie deserve not even to be thought upon . this indeed , my lord , is an extraordinary favour , considering that you have suffered an extract made out of this very book by monsieur de la b — of twenty changes to pass now almost this xv . years without any reply . and because i would not be too importunate , be pleased only at your leisure to shew us in them , whether it may be worth our while to put you to the trouble of considering any more . but if you succeed no better in the other xix . than you have done in this one , wherein you have first made the experiment , it will be neither for your credit nor our satisfaction to disturb your self about it . the point is , concerning the honouring the blessed virgin and the saints : the case lies thus , in both your editions you lay down this principle ; that all religious worship ought to terminate upon god , as its necessary end. — from this you infer : i. edit . therefore the honour which the church gives to the blessed virgin and the saints i s religious , because it gives them that honour with relation to god , and for the love of him ; and therefore again , i. edit . so far ought one to be from blaming the honour which we give to the saints , as our adversaries do , because it is religious , that on the contrary , it ought to be blamed if it were not religious . i am not now to question the reasonableness of this consequence ; but to observe the new turn that you give it in your second edition : where the principle remaining the same , you infer thus , directly opposite to the former conclusion . ii. edit . therefore if the honour which it ( the church ) renders to the blessed virgin and the saints may in some sense be called religious , it is for its necessary relation to god. this is the case ; let us see how you answer it . you tell us that at the bottom what you said at first was true : very likely , but that is not our question : that which we expect is that you shew us , as clear as the day , that the difference is only in the stile , not the substance of faith. you add therefore ; that if afterwards you gave it another turn , it was only that you might speak with more brevity , and avoid the pittiful equivocations which are every day made upon the word religious . and this is all you have to say to it . to which i answer : first , though it be not material , yet that it is not true , that your new turn was that you might speak with more brevity ; for whereas you had before said , that this honour was religious , you now put in a few other words , which do not indeed add much to the length , but makes a great deal of difference as to the sense , if it may in some sense be called religious . but , dly , the reason you give do's not at all satisfie us : we come not now to hear the distinctions of the schools , but to read an exposition of the necessary doctrine of the church ; and in which you tell us , that one word ill rendred would spoil all . what then is the churches sense concerning that honour which it renders to the saints departed ? you pronounce dogmatically : first , it is a religious honour , and were to be blamed if it were not religious . then comes out a new edition , and having considered better of the matter , you doubt whether it may even in some sense be called a religious honour . † † † † † † your vindicator comes after you , and with another turn sets all right again , that it cannot be called a civil honour , and therefore it must be a religious . and which of these , or whether they be all of them the churches sense , we are yet to learn. had you , my lord , distinguish'd in your exposition as you would be thought to do now : had you told us , that this honour as it refers to god , and is done out of love to him , is religious , but in any other respect ( if there be any other ) you could not well tell what it was ; we had then understood yours , if we had not the churches sense of it . but to tell us without any distinction in one edition that it is religious , and in another to doubt , whether it may in any sense be called religious , this is such a kind of turn as he once gave to the canon law , who being to expound a certain decree which began we command ; that is , says the gloss , we forbid : and i think plainly shews , that either here you did not well know the sense of your church , or you did not care that we should . and thus much to your second remark . as for the iii. point ; i shall not need to insist upon it . it neither belongs to your lordship , nor is there any difference between us concerning it . since you freely confess that the epistle of st. chrysostome ought not to have been stifled ; and † † † † † † monsieur de le faure himself , who gave the advice by which it was suppressed , afterwards repented of it . as to the iv. objection ; concerning monsieur m — s writing against your exposition , i am not at all concerned whether your lordship will believe it or no : though for the sake of truth i will add thus much , that monsieur m — has again own'd it , since the publishing of my defence , to a person of great worth , who at my desire enquired about it . and for the conclusion we would draw from it , your lordship must needs have seen it , had the person who inform'd you of these things given you so full an account of these things as he ought to have done ; viz. to shew that all even of your own communion were not satisfied with your exposition ; and to confirm by the testimony of a second witness what monsieur conrart had before declared concerning it . and now i mention the name of your old friend monsieur conrart , i could wish for the sake of that good opinion you have so worthily testified of him in your advertisement , you had given some other character of him in your letter . for however i am perswaded you meant no more by your † † † † † † expression than to signifie that firm perswasion he had of the truth of his religion ; yet your translator has from thence taken occasion to represent him to the world as a hot-headed man , which you know to have been far from the true character of a person so sober , however opiniated of his faith , as monsieur conrart was . the v. objection is this . in the preface to my expositi●n , i had observed , how father crasset in his answer to the wholesome advices of the blessed virgin to her indisereet worshippers , had in that opposed your lordship's exposition . to this you return this answer in your former letter . i have not read that book , but neither did i ever hear it mentioned , there was any thing in it contrary to mine . this in my defence , i told you was very strange , considering that not only monsieur de la b — in his answer to your advertisement , and monsieur arnauld in defence of your exposition , had taken notice of it ; but even monsieur jurieux in his preservative had objected it to you : which book i supposed you must have read , because you answer a part of it in your treatise of communion in one kind . what do's your lordship now offer to excuse your prevarication in so clear a matter ? * * * * * * i still continue to say that i never read father crasset ' s book which they bring against me. i know well indeed that monsieur jurieux objected it to me. so your translator renders you ; i suppose that the charitable reader might believe , that you do now know it , since i put you in mind of it ; and not believe a person of your lordship's character , would so openly confess that you did know that , which you so utterly deny'd to have ever heard mention'd before . but alas ! this is no such great matter with your lordship ; and therefore to set things right as they ought to be , and shew at once both yours and your translator's sincerity , i must desire the reader to cast his eye upon the french original , where he will find your words to be these ; * * * * * * t is true , indeed , i knew well enough that monsieur jurieux objected it to me : and therefore in conscience , my lord , what did you do when you told us in your other letter , that you never heard it mention'd , that there was any thing in it contrary to your exposition . o my lord ! think a little upon these things : and do not imagine that a trifling flourish will secure you either against gods judgment , or the worlds censure . for what if monsieur jurieux were such a one as you pretend ? that was wont to mingle true , false , and doubtful things together : yet since you confess you did read in him that father crasset had contradicted your exposition , will that excuse you from being guilty of an offence against truth , in saying that you had never heard any such thing mention'd ? but , my lord , i must go farther with you ; he did not barely say it , he proved it too , and that by a very large extract out of his book : and be monsieur jurieux's credit never so small with your lordship , yet your own reason could not but tell you when you read those passages , that in this at least he was certainly in the right . and i once more appeal to your own conscience , whether you never read in monsieur de la b's ? answer to your advertisement , nor in monsieur arnaud's defence of your exposition , the very same : and whether these also will not one day rise up in judgment against you , for so positively denying that you had ever heard of any such thing ? but you go on : father crasset himself troubled ( * * * * * * as for the offended , that is a piece of the translator's liberality ) that any one should report his doctrine to be different from mine , has made his complaints to me ; and in a preface to the second edition of his book , has declared that he varied in nothing from me , unless perhaps in the manner of expression : and this you say you leave to them to examine , who shall please to give themselves the trouble . the truth is you saw by what monsieur jurieux had copied from him , that should you read his book you must give him up for a pitiful jesuit : and therefore thought it the best way to stand neuter , and not be engaged to say any thing about him. think not , my lord , * * * * * * the expression too slighting : your own defender is my precedent for it ; who finding it impossible to reconcile the extravagancies of his book with the doctrine of your exposition , utterly disclaims both it and the author in the very terms i have mentioned , and with greater contempt than i am willing to transcribe from him. but since you are resolved you will not interest your self in this matter , i must here address to father crasset himself ; and since his doctrine is , he says , the same with that of your exposition , desire him that he will please to inform us wherein it is that that heretical , banish●d , condemn'd author of the wholsome advices , against whom he writes , differs from it . is it that he blames those who pay their homage to the blessed virgin as to some inferiour divinity , and believe that without her there is no approaching to god even by jesus christ ? but this , reverend father , the bishop of meaux blames no less than he. is it that he advises the worshippers of the holy virgin , not to think that she has any merit but what she received from her son ? — that they ought not to give the same titles to her as to god ; — nor make her equal with god and jesus christ ? * is it that he condemns those who depend so much on the blessed virgin that they have no recourse to christ ; and prefer their devotion to her before the love of god ? * is it that he advises the people not to put any trust in images , as if there were any divine power in them , and it were not in effect all one to worship the blessed virgin in any place or before any image ? this , my father , is that authors doctrine whom you oppose , and if the bishop of meaux will disown all , or any part of this doctrine as contrary to his exposition too , i shall for my part be content that then your true devotion toward the blessed virgin pass as agreeable to the principles of it . you will , it may be , tell us , that though you oppose his book , yet you are not his enemy in every one of these particulars : nor will i affirm that you are . but yet since you charge him as an enemy to the honour of the blessed virgin , and to the worship of images , you ought to shew us what those principles are , in which you esteem him as such ; and then we shall soon see whether the bishop of meaux's exposition do's not maintain the very same doctrine . good god! to what a state are we arrived ? that men can presume in the face of the world to deliver such falsities ? judge , reader , whoever thou art , are these men fit to be trusted to deliver to us the principles of faith , that in the plainest matters of fact , shew so little a concern for truth ; even when they know 't is impossible for them to hide their confusion ? and here , my lord , i could have wish'd i might have finish'd these remarks : sorrow and anguish are in the next consideration , more than in all i have yet delivered : and i cannot without confusion repeat , what you would be thought to have written without blushing . but i must follow whither your self have led me ; and speak those things which if you have yet any regard to your own dignity , any sense even of common christianity it self , will certainly bring upon you the most sensible perplexity of mind , and great confusion of face . in your pastoral letter to the new converts of your diocess , you tell them , i do not marvel , my dearest brethren , that you are returned in troops and with so great ease to the church where your ancestors served god. not one of you hath suffer'd violence either in his person or goods . let them not bring you these deceitful letters which are address'd from strangers transform'd into pastours , under the title of pastoral letters to the protestants of france that are fallen by the force of torments . so far have you been from suffering torments , that you have not so much as heard them mention'd . you are returned peaceably to us , you know it . this you now again confirm , as to what has pass'd in the diocess of meaux , and several others , as you were informed by the bishops your brethren and your friends : [ † † † † † † for so your words are , not and other your friends , as your translator renders you . ] and you do again assert in the presence of god who is to judge the living and the dead , that you spoke nothing but the truth . and believe me , my lord , that god whom you call to witness has heard you ; and will one day bring you to judgment for it . for tell me , good my lord ; have those edicts which the king has publish'd against the protestants of france ; and in which he involves not only his own subjects , but as far as he can all the other protestants of europe , made any exception for the diocess of meaux ? have not their churches been pull'd down , their ministers banish'd ; their children ravish'd out of their bosoms ; their sick forced into your hospitals , exposed to the rudeness of the magistrates and clergy ; their shops shut up ; their offices and employs taken from them ; and all opportunities of the publick service of god been precluded there as well as in other places ? see , my lord , that black collection which monsieur le fevre has lately publish'd with the king's priviledge of those edicts , whereby , as he confesses , the reformed have in effect been persecuted for these xxx . years . has your diocess escaped the rigour but of any one of these ? or is there nothing of violence either to mens persons or goods in them ? your lordship , i perceive by some of your private letters , is not a stranger to monsieur le suër , and to whom i have had the honour for some years to be particularly known . was not he driven from la ferté even before the edict of nantes was revoked ? and was there nothing of violence in all this ? was that poor man forced to forsake all that he had , and seek for refuge in foreign countrys , first in england , then in holland , and did he yet ( with his numerous family ) suffer nothing neither in his person nor goods ? and might i not say the same of the other ministers his brethren in your diocess , were i as well acquainted with their conditions ? but it may be you will expound your self of those who remained behind , and changed their religion . and can you in conscience say that they return'd peaceably to you ? does a town that holds out as long as it can , and when it is just ready to be carried by storm , then capitulates , yield it self up peaceably to the will of the conqueror ? they saw desolation every where surround them ; the fire was come even to their very doors . the dragoons were arrived at your own city of meaux . before they were quarter'd upon the poor people , you call them for the last tryal to a conference . here you appear moderate even beyond your own exposition ; and ready to receive them upon any terms . what should they now do ? change they must ; the deliberation was only whether they should do it a few days sooner , and prevent their ruine , or be exposed to the merciless fury of these new converters . upon this follows the effect you mention ; the holy spirit operated upon your preaching , as it heretofore wrought in the council of trents decision . when the courrier arrived from rome , then presently the fathers became enlightned ; and it seemed good to the holy ghost and them . when the dragoons stood arm'd to ruine them if they did not yield ; then they return'd in troops , and with great ease , to the church , where their ancestors served god. and yet after all , has no one , my lord , even of these , suffered violence either in his person or goods ? judge , i pray you , by the extract i will here give you of a letter which i received in answer to my particular desires of being informed how things pass'd in your diocess . it is true that the dragoons were not lodged in the diocess of meaux ; but they came to their doors , and the people being just ready to be ruined , yielded to their fears . insomuch that seeing afterwards the pastoral letter , they would not give any heed to it ; saying , that seeing it was so visibly false in an article of such importance , it did not deserve to be believed by them in the rest . one only gentleman of the bishoprick of meaux , louis seguier , lord of charmois , a relation of the late chancellors of the same name ; had the dragoons . 't is true that after he had signed , he was repair'd in some part of the loss he had sustained . but it happened that he did not afterwards discharge the part of a good catholick . he was therefore put in prison , first in his own country ; but it being impossible there to deprive him of all sort of commerce , to take him absolutely from it , he has since been transferr'd to the tour of guise , where he is at present . two other gentlemen of the same country , are also prisoners on the same account . but there is an answer to your pastoral letter which goes yet farther . he tells you of monsieur monceau , a man of . years of age , shut up in a convent : of the cruelties exercised upon two orphan children of monsieur mirat , the one but of . the other . years old , at la ferté sous jouarre : nay , my lord , he adds how even your lordship who in the conference appear'd so moderate , in the visitation of your diocess , . months after threatned those who would not go to mass ; that continued to read their protestant books , or to sing their psalms . and will you yet say there has been nothing of violence in your diocess ? you are returned peaceably to us , you know it . i must then descend to the last sort of conviction , and out of your own mouth you shall be judged . your lordship will easily see what it is i mean. the copies of your own letters to monsieur u — who was forced to flie from his country , and out of your diocess upon the account of the persecution you now deny , and which were printed the last year at bearne in switzerland , have sufficiently satisfied the world of your sincerity in this point . your first letter is dated at meaux , october . . in this , after having exhorted him to return to you , by assuring him , that he should find your arms open to receive him ; and again , that he should meet in you the spirit of a true pastor ; among other things you tell him , that we ought not to please our selves that we suffer persecution , unless we are well assured that it is for righteousness sake . it was too much to deny the persecution to one who was just escaped out of it , and therefore you thought it better to flourish upon it . * * * * * * to this he replies , jan. . . that he pleased himself so little in the persecution , that it was to avoid those places where it reigned , that according to the precept of the gospel , he was fled into another . and then goes on to testifie the just scandal which the persecution had given him against your religion . your answer to this was of april . . or rather not so much to this , as to one he had sent about the same time to his lady , and wherein he had it seems again declared how scandalized he was at the persecution . and here you enter in good earnest on the argument . instead of denying the persecution , you defend it . and though you seem to testifie in your reasons as little regard to the truth of the ancient history of the church , as in your pastoral letter to the condition of the present ; yet you sufficiently shew of what manner of spirit you are of ; since for your part you cannot , you say , find where hereticks and schismaticks are excepted out of the number of those evil doers , against whom st. paul tells us , that god has armed christian princes . and here , my lord , i shall stop , and not multiply proofs in a matter so clear as this . only let me remember you that there is but † † † † † † . days difference between the date of this and of your pastoral letter ; too little a while to have made so great a change. but i suppose we ought to remember here , what you told us before of the ms. copy of your exposition : that these private letters were design'd only for the instruction of a particular person , and not to be printed ; whereas that other which you address'd to your diocess was intended to be published , and therefore required another turn . as for the bishops your brethren and friends , who have , you say , affirmed the same thing ; your lordship would do us a singular pleasure to let us know whether they were not some of those that approved your exposition . it was pity they did not set their reverend names to your pastoral letter too . we should then have been abundantly convinced of their integrity ; and that they are as fit to approve such tracts , as your lordship to write them . and he must be very unreasonable that would not have been convinced by their authority , that your exposition gives as true an account of the doctrine of your church , as your pastoral letter does of the state of your diocess . you will excuse me , my lord , that i have insisted thus long upon these reflections . if you are indeed sensible of what you have done , no shame that can from hence arise to you will seem too much ; and if you are not , i am sure none can be enough . i beseech god , whom you call to witness against your own soul , to give you a due sense of all these things ; and then i may hope that you will read this with the same resentiments of sorrow and regret , as i can truly assure you i have written it . this to the th . objection . the occasion of the next was this . vi. in the preface to my exposition i had observed , that cardinal capisucchi , one of the approvers of your exposition , had in his own writings contradicted your doctrine as to the point of image-worship . to this you reply in your former letter , that he is so far from being contrary to the doctrine you have taught , that he had on the contrary expresly approved your book . i answer'd in my defence , that this was a good presumption that he should not have any principles contrary to yours ; but yet that if what i had alledged out of his controversies were really repugnant to what you taught in your exposition , it might indeed speak the cardinal not so consistent with himself as he should be , but that the contradiction would be never the less a contradiction for his so doing . to this therefore you now rejoyn , that it is a weak objection , which runs upon the equivocation of the word latria ; concerning an absolute and relative worship . and falls so visibly into a dispute about words , that you cannot imagine how men of sense , can amuse themselves about it . that for your part , you never engaged your self to defend the expressions of the school , though never so easie to be explicated , but only the language of the church in her decisions of faith. in short ; that cardinal capisucchi has written an express treatise about images , and said nothing in the whole that contradicts you . i am very glad , my lord , you refer us to the treatise of cardinal capisucchi that you mention ; though i am apt to believe you did it out of a presumption that i could not procure it to examine your pretences . for indeed the whole design of it is so expresly against you , that one would stand amazed to think that a christian and a bishop , and what is perhaps yet more to you , an expounder of the catholick faith , that would pass with the world for a person of honesty and integrity , should venture his , reputation on such self-evident falsities . for to examine the comparison : i. the doctrine of your exposition concerning images is this : that all the honour which is given to them should be referred to the saints themselves who are represented by them . the honour we render images is grounded upon this . no man , for example , can deny but that when we look upon the figure of jesus christ crucified , it excites in us a more lively remembrance of him who loved us so as to deliver himself up to death for us . whilst this image being present before our eyes causes so precious a remembrance in our souls , we are moved to testifie by some exteriour signs , how far our gratitude bears us ; and by humbling our selves before the image , we shew what is our submission to our saviour . so that to speak precisely , and according to the ecclesiastical stile , when we honour the image of an apostle or martyr , our intention is not so much to honour the image , as to honour the apostle or the martyr in presence of the image . in fine , one may know with what intention the church honours images , by that honour which she renders to the cross and to the bible . all the world sees very well that before the cross she adores him who bore our iniquities upon the wood : and that if her children bow the head before the bible , if they rise up out of respect when it is carried before them , and if they kiss it reverently , all this honour is referred to the eternal verity which it proposeth to us . we do not worship images , god forbid : but we make use of images to put us in mind of the originals . our council teaches us no other use of them . all which your vindicator thus plainly and dogmatically delivers to us , in the four following propositions , in the preface to his reply : . we have a veneration for images as for sacred utensils dedicated to god and the churches service ; and that too in a lesser degree than for our chalices , &c. . in the presence of them , we pay our respect to the persons whom they represent : honour to whom honour , adoration to whom adoration ; but not to the images themselves , who can claim nothing of that nature , viz. honour or adoration , from us . . that the hard expressions of the schools , as of absolute and relative latria , may perhaps be defended in the sense meant by them ; ( it seems 't is a doubtful case whether these men can be excused from being guilty of idolatry or not ; and one of these is cardinal capisucchi ; but ought not to be the subject of our present controversie , because they are not points that are universally and necessarily received . . in answer to my demand , whether upon any account whatsoever the image of our saviour and of the holy cross were to be worshipped with divine worship ? he replies freely and plainly without any of the school errantry ; that the image of our saviour or the holy cross , is upon no account whatsoever to be worshipped with divine worship . this is the doctrine of your exposition , and your vindicator's interpretation of it . let us see iidly ; whether cardinal capisucchi in that treatise to which you appeal , has nothing that contradicts this : that so we may from hence too learn how far we are to credit your alegations : and first , whereas your lordship affirms , that all the honour which is given to images should be referr'd to the saints themselves ; that is as your vindicator expounds , it , that in the presence of them you pay your respect to the persons whom they represent , but not to the images themselves who can challenge nothing of that nature from us ; * * * * * * cardinal capisucchi on the contrary lays down this express position , that the holy images are to be worshipped , and are rightly worshipped by the faithful ; nay , so as that the worship should † † † † † † terminate upon them . — ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ for as inanimate things , though in themselves they are not holy , yet in order to another to which holiness does primarily agree , they are called holy , and in relation to that other thing , may and ought justly to be adored with it : so images , though of themselves they are not holy , yet they are holy in order to the exemplar which they represent , and they may and ought to be adored in order to that , and together with it . secondly , having thus resolved against your first foundation , that images are to be adored ; he next enquires , what worship is to be paid to them ? your lordship's position is this : we do not worship images , god forbid : but we make use of images to put us in mind of the originals . our council teaches us no other use of them . which your vindicator thus more plainly delivers ; that the image of our saviour or the holy cross , is upon no account whatsoever to be worshipped with divine worship . let us see if there be nothing in the cardinal's treatise that contradicts this . and here , first , he rejects the opinion of durandus , that properly speaking , images are not to be adored , but because they resemble things worthy of adoration , which by remembrance are adored in presence of the images ; therefore the images themselves improperly are , and are said to be adored . are not these , my lord , almost the very words of your exposition ? hear then what the cardinal says to them . this opinion , says he , is to be rejected . and i beseech you consider the reason he gives for it . because , says he , in truth it takes away the worship of images ; and teaches that they ought only improperly to be adored . but if we must hearken to your exposition , this can be no reason , unless it be to establish the opinion which he pretends to combat . for according to your lordship , the church does not worship images ; god forbid . but to go on with the cardinal ; whence raphael de turre says , that this opinion is dangerous , rash , and savouring the heresie of those who oppose images . an admirable character of your lordships exposition . for several councils , says he , have defined , and the holy fathers taught , that images are to be adored , by a tradition kept from the times of the apostles unto our days ; but now if images should be venerated only improperly , as this opinion ( let me add , and your exposition ) asserts ; then the images would not be truly adored ; and therefore this opinion does truly savour the heresie of the enemies of images . — the same is asserted by ferdinandus velosillus ; who therefore concludes this opinion to be not only false , but rash and erroneous , especially since the definition of the council of trent . behold , my lord , the wonderful concord between the cardinal and your lordship ; for tell me now i beseech you , is there nothing in all this that contradicts you ? or rather , do you not here see what you deliver so magisterially as the churches sense , condemned as dangerous , rash , erroneous , and savouring of heresie , and contrary to the definition of the council of trent ? but ● . dly , in the next paragraph , he lays down the opinion of vasquez : and if the other did not allow images as much honour as you pretend to , i hope this man did . the opinion , says he , of vasquez is , that images are no otherwise to be adored , but because in the presence of them , and about them are exhibited those external signs of honour , as kneeling , kissing , uncovering the head , and the like : ( i think this , my lord , will come up to your instance of the respect that you pay to the bible , and from which you explicate your doctrine ; ) but that the inward veneration is by no means to be directed to the image , but only to the thing represented by the image . — this opinion , says the cardinal , is in effect the same with the foregoing ; for since vasquez does assert that the inward a●t of the adorer terminates only on the thing represented by the image , he does by consequence affirm , ( what your lordship and your vindicator would have us believe to be the doctrine of the church ) that the images themselves are not truly and properly to be adored . you see , my lord , the cardinal still sticks to his principle , that the images themselves are truly and properly to be adored . — but let us hear him out . vazquez tells us that the council [ of trent ] do's not much care how the adoration of images is called , whether salutation , or embracing ; or adoration , provided we do but grant that out of affection to what they represent ( see my lord your own principle ) the images themselves are to be kiss'd , the head to be bared to them , and other signs of submission to be paid , concerning which the controversie was with the enemies of images . — in which , says the cardinal , he involves many falsities . for it is both defined in our councils that the holy images are truly and properly to be adored , and therefore that even the inward act of adoration is to be terminated upon the images ; and the controversie with the opposers of images , was not only about giving to images the external signs of honour , but concerning the true and proper adoration , which therefore concerns the inward act of veneration . and a little lower , he repeats and commends these words of lorca ; this proposition , that honour and adoration is due to the image , is so certain and firm among all the faithful ( and i hope your lordship would be thought at least , one of them ) that the contrary cannot without scandal be admitted . nor is it lawful for any one to deny this proposition , and hold the opposite at pleasure , though he does add , that images are to be kiss'd ; because from the doctrine of the councils and fathers it appears , not only that images are to be kiss'd , but we are taught expresly , that they are to be venerated and adored . behold , my lord , another instance , of the the admirable agreement between the cardinals treatise and your exposition ; whose doctrine he is so far from admitting as the churches sense , that he tells you plainly , 't is contrary to your councils decrees , and therefore may not be held at pleasure ; indeed that it is such as cannot without scandal be admitted . thirdly , having thus refuted these new popery expositions of your churches doctrine , he now comes to lay down the true opinion , and which therefore i suppose must be the churches , as he shews it to be the council of trents sense . and it is this : that the worship of the image and of the exemplar is one and the same — so that the image of christ ( contrary to the vindicators th . position ) is to be adored with the supreme worship that christ himself is — that for the images considered in themselves , as they are gold , silver , brass , iron , stone , wood , &c. no reverence is to be given to them : but as they are the images of christ or some saint , so they are to be worshipped with the same adoration as the person whose image it is . nay , he adds , that this supreme worship terminates upon the image , whereas your lordship lays it down as a fundamental principle , that all religious worship terminates in god alone . 't is true he adds , that this is not for any excellence in the image , but upon the account of christ represented in it ; and from hence he thinks to free your church from idolatry . but as to this , i do still say i am not at present concerned ; my business being not to examine the reasons that are offer'd to justifie this worship , but to clear the matter of fact , viz. whether the church of rome ( whatever her reason be ) does hold that images are truly and properly to be worshipped ? and to this i think the cardinal has spoken very honestly and plainly . and i shall leave it to your lordship and to the world to consider , whether there was either conscience or truth in that assertion , which has occasioned this search , that cardinal capisucchi has said nothing in all this treatise that contradicts you . but of these things more particularly when i come to the article it self to which they belong . i go on in the mean time to the vii . objection : in my exposition i told you that monsieur imbert , a doctor of divinity , of the province of bourdeaux , was clapt in prison by order of the archbishop for having instructed the people in the good fryday service , that they ought to apply their adoration to christ , and not to the cross which was there exposed to them . and that although he alledged your exposition in his defence , and upon that account your self had written to the archbishop in his behalf , yet was not all this sufficient to avail for his deliverance . to this you reply in your former letter , that this imbert was a man of no renown as well as of no learning , who thought to justifie his extravagancies before the archbishop of bourdeaux his superiour , by alledging your exposition to this prelate . but that all mankind saw very well that heaven and earth was not more opposite than your doctrine , from that which this daring person had presumed to broach . it would have been , my lord , more for your own honour as well as the worlds satisfaction in this matter , to have told us a little what this extravagant doctrine was , which this daring person had presumed to broach , so contrary to your exposition . at least you should have given us some evidence to let us see that he had been convinced by his superiour of having abused your authority ; that your exposition did by no means favour any such extravagancies as he alledged it for , and that it was a daring presumption in him by such pretences to abuse so catholick an exposition of the churches faith. that he produced your exposition for his warrant of what he had taught , you do not , cannot deny . that he was ever convinced of pretending falsly to the authority of it , we never heard : and if your lordship means to have it believed , you must really begin to produce some better authority now a days , than your bare word to assure us of it . and indeed , my lord , i am apt to think you will never be able to do this . the factum of his case was too long to be printed , and is too well known to need a new publication . instead of that i chose rather to communicate to the world the letter he wrote to your lordship on this occasion . and here we have a full account what that daring doctrine he had broached was ; and how little reason you had to disclaim it as contrary to your exposition . the archbishop of bourdeaux , says he , has caused a process to be made against me , for having explained upon good fryday , that we adore jesus christ crucified in presence of the cross , and that we do not adore any thing of what we see : — that therefore we ought to think that we are now going out to mount calvary , to adore jesus christ , without stopping at the crucifix . that the church like a good mother had given that to us by a holy invention to assist our faith , and make the livelier impression upon our imagination ; but not to be the object of our worship , which must terminate upon jesus christ. and this , he tells you , is all his crime ; he defies his enemies to reproach , if they can , his life and manners , or to tax him with any other doctrine than that of your lordship , and which he endeavoured to express in the self same terms . and is this then in your opinion such daring doctrine ? or can you with any shadow of sincerity say , that this is as opposite to your exposition , as heaven and earth to one another ? your lordship may pretend what you please , but i doubt your vindicator will hardly allow that there is any heresie in the explication he here gives of your good frydays service . but let us see what you now say further to this . you confess the letter and the contents of it : only you say , you did not believe him , because you were too well acquainted with my lord the archbishop of bourdeaux his diocesan , of whom he made his complaint . and in this you had certainly reason : for it is not easily to be believed that so great a prelate , who , as you observe , had not very long before himself approved your exposition , should now prosecute a poor man with such violence only for teaching the doctrine of it . but as you had always lived in a strict correspondence and friendship with that archbishop , you wrote to him on this subject , and understood that this monsieur imbert was an odd kind of man ( the translator calls him * * * * * * hot-headed ) who had done even in the church very remarkable extravagancies , which he was more cautious than to boast of to you . his conduct had been tainted with many other irregularities , which indeed hindred you from interesting your self for him any farther in the business , or to intercede for one in whom at first † † † † † † you thought there had been nothing but weakness and ignorance : ( for so i chuse to transcribe you , and not to follow your translator's blunders . ) concerning monsieur imbert's other faults i am wholly ignorant , and therefore cannot pretend to answer for them . but as we are by nature exceedingly apt to pitty the miserable , so i cannot but compassionate this poor mans misfortunes , and till i see the contrary made out by some better evidence than your lordship has yet given us , i must beg leave to believe him to have been an honest worthy man. in the mean time i do not find that in all this you deny the cause of his prosecution and imprisonment to have been what he declared to your self and to the whole world , viz. that he maintained the doctrine before mentioned . if his diocesan indeed persecuted him , not for asserting this doctrine , but for those other irregularities you pretend he was guilty of , prove this and you do something . but else , were the man as bad as you represent him , yet if he suffered for teaching that faith which you expound to us ; if he produced your book for his warrant , and yet still was persecuted ; all his other faults will not hinder but that your lordship's doctrine was condemned and punished in him . and though i am an utter stranger to his conduct ; yet if this matter did pass so as it appears to have done , i will be bold to say the worst of his irregularities was a venial sin in comparison of the archbishop his diocesan's insincerity ; to prosecute one of his clergy for teaching that doctrine , which in the general assembly of . he had , as you tell us , himself approved . and here i cannot but observe the progress you make in lessening this poor man. at first you only say , and that nothing to your purpose , that he was a man of no learning nor renown . when i had published his letter , and which i will again say was not written by a fool or an idiot ; so that this was not found sufficient to take off the force of a matter of fact of such importance ; next , his conduct is question'd ; you charge him with irregularities , but prove none ; nor can you say that he was prosecuted for any other crime but this one , that he relied too much upon your authority , and so taught that for the catholick faith , which he has since to his cost learnt not to be universal . judge , my lord , if this be a generous way of defence ; much less becoming the charity of a christian , and the dignity of a bishop . but there is one presumption against all this in your former letter , and which ought therefore to be considered . monfieur imbert had said in his factum , that his opinion was that the church adored not the cross ; and that the contrary opinion was not only false but idolatrous . that not only the protestants made their advantage of those who maintain'd such errours , but that he himself was scandalized to converse every day with the missionaries and others , whom he had heard openly preach a hundred times , that we ought to adore the cross with jesus christ , as the humane nature of our saviour with the divine . from hence your lordship raises this argument to lessen his credit . that it never entred into the mind of any catholick , that the cross was to be adored with jesus christ , as the humane nature of our saviour with the divine in the person of the son of god : and if this man , say you , gives out , he is condemned for denying those errors , which no body ever † † † † † † sustained , he shews his malice to be as great as his ignorance . now certainly , my lord , it is a very bold undertaking to answer for all the catholicks of the world , that such or such a thing never enter'd into their heads , especially when a person here positively declares , that he had heard it openly preach'd above a hundred times : unless it may be , you esteem this to be an assertion of such malignity , that a man cannot have it enter into his mind without the forfeiture of his catholicism . i do indeed confess it is a most extravagant notion ; and such as , one would think , should never enter into any christians thoughts ; but we know too well what excesses those whom you call catholicks are capable of falling into , and especially your missionaries , to look upon this assertion to be at all incredible . but since you are so sure that this never entred into the mind of any catholick , what does your lordship think of your friend cardinal capisucchi . i suppose a cardinal and master of the sacred palace may be allow'd to pass with you for a good catholick ; and yet in the very tract to which your lordship appealed , behold the very thing you here so confidently deny : as the humane nature of christ , though it be a creature , is adored with supream adoration , because 't is united to the person of the word , and with the person of the word makes up one christ : so the image of christ being in its representative essence one and the same with christ , is adored with the same adoration with which christ is adored . here , my lord , is one catholick into whose mind this error has entred ; and i may presume to say , i know another catholick of the same mind , even the bishop of meaux himself ; unless you will retract here what you before asserted , that there is nothing in this treatise of cardinal capisucchi , that contradicts your sentiments . thus you see how rash you were in your presumption against monsieur imbert's assertion ; and were i minded to retort your own conclusion upon you , it would , i believe , be hard to say whether of those two very ill things you impute to him were greater in this reflection . and now , reverend father , to close this objection almost in your own words , let your heart be truly grieved to see such objections brought against you ; and consider , if you yet can , in the anguish of your soul , how by your own fault you have suffer'd your self to be brought into such snares , as too much shew to what weak and miserable shifts , wise men will sometimes be reduced , when they do not act by a steady principle of truth and integrity . your next point concerns those extracts i made from cardinal bona about praying to saints ; the common difficulty so often † † † † † † repeated ( not , as your translator has it , proposed ) by protestants . you give us some pretended evasions of the difficulty raised by them ; and then , according to your wonted tenderness , conclude , that it troubles a christians heart to see , though the sense of the church be made never so evident in her decisions , people should still continue thus to cavil ( and as your translator adds , no doubt , for the greater , beauty of the stile , to juggle ) with you about words . but all this i shall rather consider in its proper place , where your vindicator objects the same things , than enter into any disputes here . i will only observe , that my extracts from cardinal bona , were neither out of his hymns , nor any other poetical works ; but out of his discourse upon your offices , out of his last will and testament , and in which certainly , if any where , one would think , he should have written with the greatest exactness . and yet are they so irreconcileable with your pretended exposition of the catholick faith , that i shall leave it to any one that has ever read them , to be deluded by you if he can . you tell me , you will say nothing about monsieur de witte , because you find nothing in that objection that concerns you in particular . nor will i say any more of it than to re-mind you , that if your exposition does concern you , then his case does so too : for he alledged your exposition , as i have shewn in his defence , and yet was censur'd by the faculty of louvain , without ever being shewed that he alledged it wrongfully . and because i doubt not , but you would have your general expressions concerning the pope's authority expounded by the iv. propositions of the clergy of france , . in which your lordship , with the bishops of tournay , s. mal● , de la vaur , de chalons , and d' alet , had the chief hand ; i must put you in mind that the archbishop of strigonia with his clergy has censured these propositions , and in them , your lordships exposition , as to that point too , as not delivering the true doctrine of the catholick church . concerning the pope's brief to your lordship , i observed this : that the very same day , that he dated his brief to you in approbation of your exposition , he dated another to the late bishop of pamier in approbation of the defence he made of his authority in the business of the regale . now if your exposition gives his holiness all that power he pretends to over the gallicane church , he had as much reason to approve your book , as monsieur de pamier's actions . but if in expounding the point of his authority you give him no such power as he pretends to ; nay if you your self at that very time actually joyned with the other bishops of france in opposition to it , what insincerity must it be in the head of the church , christ's vicar upon earth , at the same time to claim an authority which neither your book allows , and you your self opposed , and yet with the same pen sign one brief to you in approbation of your doctrine , and another to monsieur de pamier , to thank him for his opposing of it . and thus have i passed through the several parts of your lordships letter . i could have been very well pleased i might have been freed of so ungrateful an undertaking , had not your new reviving of all these things forced me once more to lay open those faults , which i am both sorry and ashamed , that any one of your dignity should ever have committed . i have only remaining here in the close of all , earnestly to beseech you by the bowels and mercy of christ jesus our saviour , seriously to consider these things . think on that account which both you and i must shortly give of what we are now doing before the eternal tribunal . if i have willingly and knowingly varied in the least tittle from the truth ; if i have standred your lordship in any thing ; nay , if i have but taken any pleasure in discovering the weakness of a person of your place and character in the church ; be i then responsible for it to god , and let mine enemies triumph in my confusion . but if i have spoken nothing but in the necessary defence of the truth , and in a spirit of charity remonstrated to you your prevarications : if your own conscience be a thousand witnesses , to tell you that these things are indeed so , as i have now exposed them to yours and the worlds consideration ; o , my lord , think then upon these things . whilst you have yet the time , give god the glory . take that shame and confusion to your self now , which may prevent an eternal confusion hereafter . consult , consider , and be wise ; and take it not in scorn that i have shewn you the way to surmount all these reproaches . to exchange that scandal which you have given to the church , for a name that shall never be forgotten . declare only what in truth you are . put off those disguises you have hitherto walked in , and confess once for all that your church has erred , and stands in need of a reformation . 't is in vain to palliate , what your books , your practice , all declare to us . your errors , in short , may be reformed , but they are too notorious to be denyed , too gross to be justified . sect . ii. wherein are considered those false imputations which the vindicator has cast upon me , and upon the rest of my brethren of the church of england . hitherto i have been considering the weak defences of an insincere yet moderate adversary . i must now shift the scene , and prepare from henceforth to encounter nothing but rudeness and incivility . so much easier is it esteemed by some men to blacken an enemy , than to answer him ; and what they cannot do by confuting his reasons , they hope to make up by lessening his reputation . it was the consideration of st. cyprian in his answer to such another antagonist as i have now to do with , that though he had before thought it better with silence to despise his ignorance , than by speaking to provoke his madness , remembring that advice of solomon , prov. xxiii . . speak not in the ears of a fool , for he will despise the wisdom of thy words : and again chap. xxvi . . answer not a fool according to his folly , lest thou also be like unto him ; yet when he began to calumniate the christians , as the authors of all the evils that befell the world ; he then esteemed himself obliged to speak ; lest his silence should now be imputed not so much to his modesty , as to his diffidence , and whilst he scorned to refute his false accusations , he should seem to acknowledge the faults with which they had been charged . had this gentleman , who has thought fit to make himself my adversary , so laid his reproaches upon me , as not to have wounded through my sides the common interests of the church of england ; i should have judged it as unnecessary to take notice of his revilings , as i esteem it to be unchristian to return them : and have contented my self with that general answer which the archangel once gave to the father of lies , the lord rebuke thee . but now that i am marked out not so much as a private person , as the defender of a publick cause ; now that the rest of my brethren are all represented , as guilty of the same ills that i am charged with ; and our very religion it self impeached as needing such defences , as both that and we detest and condemn ; it would be want of charity to the church i am of , rather than any breach of it towards such an enemy , to decline a just defence ; i shall therefore take up the example of this holy father , as mine adversary has done that of his antagonist ; lest if i scorn to refute his false accusations , i should seem to acknowledge the faults with which we are charged . §. i. it has ever been esteemed the first step to invalidate the credit of such kind of imputations , to shew a calumniating spirit in the author of them . here therefore i will begin my defence ; and were i to prove this to him only who has been the author of these reproaches , i am perswaded i need only appeal to his own conscience to bear witness against him . but since i can expect but little justice from one from whom i have already received so great an injury , and am now by a publick scandal , called forth ( against my will ) to as publick a vindication ; you must excuse me , sir , if i take all the christian ways of a fair defence which charity allows me ; and shew your testimony in this matter to be so very suspicious , that though the jury be not pack'd , nor the vulgar call'd in to give their verdict , yet i doubt not but all reasonable men will confess that you are a very unfit witness to be credited against me . and first ; though i perceive i shall displease you in the allegation , yet i must beg leave to repeat what i before said in my defence , that some men do think that any thing may be done against a heretick ; and that lying and calumny are but venial sins , when committed with a good intention to serve the church , and to blacken an adversary . you are pleased indeed with great assurance to deny this ; and tell us , with your usual sincerity , that you have heard some roman catholicks accused as if they taught such doctrines ; but that you always found the calumny to stand at the accuser's doors , whose art was only ( according to your , gentile way of expressing things ) to cry whore first . i could wish that not only for the sake of your old casuists , but of some at least of your new converts , you had not been so very positive in this particular . for believe me , sir , i could tell you the men who are not ashamed at this day publickly to own what you so confidently deny . and indeed it were better that you your self believed it too , unless you would resolve to leave off to practise it . it being more tolerable to do evil by following the guidance of an erroneous conscience , than to know a thing to be sinful , and yet to commit it . but you deny that any of your church have ever held any such doctrine ? i pray , sir , of what church were those who in their solemn theses publickly defended , ( and that in the most formal terms ; ) that it is but a venial sin by false accusations to lessen the authority of one that detracts from us , if it be like to prove hurtful to us . this was openly maintained in the university of louvain , in the year . and i cannot chuse but think , that in your opinion at least , i may be one of those that are meant by it . you tell me often that i have detracted from you , and my authority therefore , if it be not lessened , may be hurtful to you ; and how shall i be sure that you esteem it more than a venial sin , by false accusations to detract from me ? i shall not need to multiply authorities from your particular casuists to prove this ; since the condemnation that was made of this very doctrine in the decree of the present pope , no longer ago than , will satisfie the world that such things have been taught in your church ; and a man must have a great deal of charity to suppose , that after so solemn an act as this , you could indeed be ignorant of it . you may consult at your leisure the d . and th . opinions there mentioned , and consider the meaning of this doctrine contained in them . that it is only a venial sin in any to lessen the great authority of another which is hurtful to himself , by charging him with some false crime — it is probable that he does not sin mortally who fastens a false crime upon another that he may defend his own justice and honour : and if this be not probable , there is scarce any opinion probable in divinity . and now , sir , i am pretty confident that , if not for my sake , yet in duty to his holiness's decree you will a little mollifie your charge of calumny against me for this assertion : and if you desire any farther conviction , you may please when you write next to the bishop of meaux , to engage him to enquire of his new disciple father crasset , whether he never heard of one who for practising this doctrine in the very pulpit , was by ordinance of the bishop of orleans , sept. . . forbid to preach in his diocess , and the people to hear him under the pain of a mortal disobedience . really , sir , when i consider with what assurance you deny a matter so well known to all the world , and compare it with the maximes by which you have proceeded against me in your reply , i cannot but fear that after all your pretences this doctrine may have had some influence upon you : however , seeing it is plain , that you make so little scruple to practise it , you should not have been so very positive in denying it . but this is only a general presumption : and i shall be content that it be no farther remember'd against you , than i shall hereafter make it appear your actions do deserve . i must now come more closely to you ; and because i would not trespass too much upon either yours or the reader 's patience by making any tedious proof of that which i am confident you know , and the other will soon see , does not need any : i will offer only three or four considerations , out of many that occur to me , to invalidate your authority . and here not to mention , st , that great care you seem industriously to have taken that your reproa●hes might not be lost , ( whatever became of your arguments ) by summing them up into a catalogue at the beginning of your reply , and afterwards filling all along your margin with the like scandalous reflections : to pass by , ly . your nauseous repetitions of the very same charges not only in the same place , but almost in the very same words ; as if my faults were to increase in proportion to your repetitions of them : to say nothing , dly , of those general accusations , you often bring not against my self alone , but the rest of my brethren of the church of england , without so much as the least shadow of a proof of them ; what less than an unquestionable argument of a detracting spirit can arise . st . from those obliging titles you every where bestow upon me , even where you have not so much as a pretence for it ; and that scandalous idea you would from thence give your reader of me. shall i gratifie your ear with a repetition of some few of them : hear then those strains of rhetorick you so delight in . a doctor of the populace : p. . a pretended son of peace , p. . a pretended lover of peace and unity , but indeed a multiplier of accusations to hinder such good effects , p. . one that courts the applause of the vulgar , p. . and has learnt a machiavilian trick to keep them from seeing what is as clear as the sun , by casting a thick mist of calumnies before their eyes , p. . one who is willing to let himself be perswaded of any thing that but renders the papists odious , p. . that has a willingness to shew at least some kind of opposition to every thing that is said , p. . rash and bold in his assertions , p. . far from agreeing to any thing that has once been esteemed a difficulty , p. . having no intention to contribute any thing to the healing of the church in any punctilio , ib. whose whole business is nothing but shifts , p. . one that is loth to trouble himself with such distinctions as make for peace , p. . that is conscious to himself that he cannot defend his cause , and yet has not sincerity enough to repent , p. . one that says such things as would he speak his conscience he knows not to be true , p. . one that is wilful in his mistakes , and knows them well enough if he would be but so ingenuous as to acknowledge it , p. . in short , one that do's not believe himself what he writes , though he is willing that others should believe him , p. , . i pass by your more common appellations ; of falsifier ; caviller ; unchristian and unscholar-like calumniator ; perverter of the churches sense ; wilfully blind ; wilful prevaricator ; wilful mistaker of your doctrine ; unsincere , &c. all which you either in express terms call me , or at least plainly insinuate me to be ; and of which we must discourse a little by and by . for indeed i think what i have already mentioned may be sufficient to satisfie any sober man how well versed you are in the controversial dialect of your party : and whether you were not exceedingly desirous that something should stick , when you took all this pains , * * * * * * in your own phrase , to cast so much dirt upon me. dly , nor do's it less betray the true nature of your spirit to consider what pittiful , light occasions you lay hold on , to run out into the most terrible out-crys against me. thus in the article of satisfactions , the bishop of meaux distinguishes between two sorts of remission of sins ; the one , wherein god intirely forgives us , without reserving any punishment ; the other a partial remission only , wherein he changes a greater punishment into a less , that is , an eternal pain into a temporal . this first manner , says the bishop , being more compleat , and more conformable to his goodness , he makes use of it immediately in baptism : but we suppose he makes use of the second in the pardon he grants to those that fall after baptism . in my exposition , i tell him , that this is a very great doctrine , and ought to be tender'd to us with some better argument , than a bare , we suppose . upon this you make a tragical out-cry against me for an incorrigible falsifier , that though you had before told me of my prevaricating , yet i still take no notice of it ; for that the bishop of meaux says no such thing . what not as we suppose ? no ; but what then do's he say ; consider , reader , the falsification ; and be astonished at his cavil ; he says only , we believe . and now let any one from henceforth trust me that can : that am so plainly caught in so important a cheat. but pray , sir , bating that it serves to fill up your catalogue and margin with a hard word against me ; what is the great difference now between saying we suppose that god does not remit the whole punishment , and we believe that he does not . you tell us this latter phrase was conformable to his design of an exposition , not a proof . and is not , we suppose , as conformable to the design of an exposition , and as little fit for a proof , as we believe ? really , sir , i am perswaded the reader will think that had you marked this observation with a cavil in your margin , you would have expressed your self more properly , than by putting a falsification to it . and yet , though it be hardly worth the while , i will tell you what i presume might be the occasion of this little difference ; for really i am not yet convinced that it deserves to be called a mistake . in my edition of monsieur de meaux's exposition , which i have so often had occasion to speak of , the word is neither exactly as you , or i , render it ; but another to the same sense , we esteem . now this being no very proper english phrase , and having not yet set eyes on your translation , when i wrote my exposition , i chose rather the word we suppose , as bearing the same sense , and being on this occasion more generally used amongst us . this , sir , i believe was the grounds of our difference ; and one that had not a huge mind to find faults , would have been ashamed to inscribe so great a crime as falsification , to a trifle that all men of sense will despise , and that i ought to apologize but only for taking notice of . though yet perhaps i have taken the only way to make it considerable , by observing from it , what spirit and disposition you are of . another opportunity of clamor that you lay hold on is this ; and for meaness cousin german to the foregoing . in the point of the mass , the bishop of meaux willing to take off the argument which the epistle to the hebrews raises against it ; observes that the apostle concludes , that we ought not only to offer up no more victims after jesus christ , but that jesus christ himself ought to be but once offered up to death for us . in my exposition i thus quote him : monsieur de meaux observes , that the author of this epistle concludes , that there ought not only no other victim to be offered for sin after that of christ , but that even christ himself ought not to be any more offered . now the reason which the apostle gives is this , because that otherwise ( says he ) christ must often have suffered , hebr. ix . . plainly implying that there can be no true offering without suffering ; so that in the mass then , either christ must suffer , which monsieur de meaux denys , or he is not offer'd , which we affirm . but where now is the falsification ; why i make advantage , you say , of the bishop's words by an imperfect quotation ; for had i added but the next words , that would have solved the difficulty . the next words you mean are these ; that christ ought to be but once offer'd up to death for us . the difficulty was this ; christ can be but once offer'd , because he can no more suffer : monsieur de meaux confesses that christ can no more suffer ; ( which i think is the meaning of his words , that he can be but once offered up to death for us ; ) therefore he ought to confess , that he can be no more offer'd . good sir , enlighten us a little in this matter : for i assure you by offering i meant offering to death , the only kind of offering that i know of a true and proper sacrifice ; and the interposing of those words are so far from clearing the difficulty , as you pretend , that without either them , or some other equivalent to them , my argument is utterly lost . and now , let the reader judge , whether that man be not fond of calumniating his adversary , that can have the face to call this a falsification . and hitherto i have offered some presumptions to shew with what spirit you write against us : i will now come to such proofs as shall put it beyond all doubt ; and shew you to be , what i am sure ought to lessen your credit against us , a most false and unjust accuser of your brethren . for , dly . what else can be said of those charges you bring against me , of such crimes as without some divine revelation you can never be sure of . and though i think enthusiasm no more than miracles is not yet ceased in your church , yet you tell me that you do not your self pretend to be inspired , and i do not hear that you have at this time any hypochondriack lady amongst you , to deliver oracles to you upon these occasions . you reflect upon me as one , who am conscious that i cannot defend my cause , yet have not the sincerity to repent : that i speak such things , as would i deliver my conscience i know to be false : that i am willful in my mistakes , and do not my self believe what i write , though i am willing that others should . thus you charge me with a sin somewhat like the sin against the holy ghost ; that knowing the way of truth , i not only refuse to embrace it my self , but ( as you sometimes insinuate too ) keep as many others as i can out of it . but this , sir , i take it , is to divine , not to reason ; should i tell you in return , that i have some cause to believe , that if you do indeed credit your own calumnies , it is because you measure my insincerity by the sense you have of your own hypocrisie , i should not perhaps be altogether out in my conjecture . but , sir , i shall leave you rather to the judgment of god , to whom alone these secrets are known : and to return to my own defence ; tell me i beseech you , sir , ( if you can ) what occasion my life and manners have given you for such reflections ? are my interests in the church of england so great , or my expectations otherwise so low in the world ; as to prompt me to such villany ? is conversion so certain a way to ruine , that a man should rather damn himself for ever , than follow the dictates of his conscience , at this time of day especially , to embrace your religion ? it is well known to several of your own church ( and whose civilities to me i shall always most thankfully acknowledge ) with what readiness i have at all times pursued the means of instruction . let them tell you , sir , if ever they found me inclined to such perverseness or hypocrisie , as you here most unchristianly suggest against me . they know my conduct whilst i was amongst them ; and from what some of them very honourably have done , i ought not to doubt but that the rest will at any time justifie me against such scandalous insinuations . so free i was in my enquiries , so desirous of understanding both your religion and your reasons to the bottom ; that many of your church were inclined to think , what i hear others did not stick confidently to report , that i designed to come over to you . and though after a most impartial examination of your arguments i remained more convinced than ever , both of the purity of my own , and of the dangerous corruptions of your church ; yet i assure you , sir , i am the same indifferent person i ever was . not willing indeed to be deluded with sophistry , nor to follow every guide that will without any reason pretend to lead me ; but most willing to yield to truth whereever i find it . and however you may uncharitably represent me to the world ; yet i faithfully promise you that if even in this reproachful book of yours , there should be any thing to convince me that i have been mistaken , i will not fail ingenuously to acknowledge it ; and where i am not convinced , you may suddainly expect to receive my reasons of it . there is now but one thing more remaining to make a demonstrative proof of a calumniating spirit and design in you ; and that is , lastly ; to shew , that you accuse me not only of such things as you can never be sure are true ; but of such as you know to be evidently false ; nay of such as i have shewn you already to be so , and that so clearly , that you have nothing to return to it , and yet still you persist in your calumny against me. this i think is the last degree of proof ; and i shall leave it to your self to judge whether i do not make it good against you . in the article of extreme unction , i expounded those words of st. james , c. v. , . of the miraculous cures which were in those days common in the church ; and added in confirmation of it that card. cajetane himself freely confess'd they could belong to no other . — to this you reply in your vindication , that had i said that card. cajetane thought it could not be proved neither from the words , nor from the effect , that the words of st. james speak of the sacramental unction of extreme unction , but rather of that unction which our lord jesus instituted in the gospel to be exercised by his disciples upon the sick ; i had been a faithful quoter of his sense ; but to say that he freely confesses it can belong to no other , is to impose upon my readers . in my defence i shew the vanity of this cavil : that seeing there were but two interpretations proposed of these words , either to refer them to extreme unction , or to miraculous cures , for the cardinal utterly to exclude the former , and apply them to the latter , was certainly in effect ( for i pretended not to give his words ) to confess that they could belong to no other . instead of answering this , you again charge me both in your catalogue and in your margin with falsification as to this point . i told him , say you , that cardinal cajetane did not positively say as he affirmed he did : and then presently , as if your conscience had given your reflection the lie ; you go on , but what if he had ? why truly , sir , then any one may see that it was not any concern for truth , but a meer desire to defame me , that here inspired you to lay so great a crime to my charge ; and your own conscience at the same time seems to have told you , that you did not your self believe me to be guilty of it . §. ii. and thus have i shewn from the very nature of your reply , with what design it is that you write against us. i might now go on to consider your arguments , without troubling my self to return any more particular answer to your reproaches . but it is fit the world should be fully satisfied of your character : and indeed the reasonings of your reply are not so dangerous , but that we may venture to let them lie , whilst we go on to consider your revilings . i shall need no other apology for this undertaking than what your self have already made for me. it is i confess an ungrateful employment to expose the vices even of an enemy . but where a publick challenge is made , and the greatest of crimes charged upon those who abhor such villainies : in your own words , where so great a concern as the reputation of an innocent church is join'd with the single honour of such an adversary as you are ; i think i may be excused if i let the dirt fall where it ought , when by wiping it off from the one , it must necessarily stick upon the other . your reflections are of two kinds : either such as strike at the generality of our church ; or such as concern my self only , i shall take a view of both in their order . and , ist. your reflections on the generality of the church of england , are such as these . that they are men whose interest and malice prompt them to defame you . i. vi. who , whenever any argument pinches them , fall to reviling ; and make it their business to misrepresent your doctrines ; to calumniate your practices , and to ridicule your ceremonies . v. from whom nothing is to be expected but clamour , insincerity , and misrepresentation . xii . who seem to have no other end in all their controversial books or sermons , but to cry down popery at any rate , least they should suffer prejudice by its increase . xxiii . who keep their people in ignorance , and pretending to be their guides , shew themselves by their writing to be blind , or which is worse , malicious . xxv . men , who from their very pulpits second the common cry . xiii . least people should open their eyes , and see the truth ; and so whilst they pretend to be lovers of peace and unity , yet resolve to multiply accusations to hinder such good effects , p. . men who cannot endure that any of their party should seem to close with rome , as those who live by breaking the churches peace , . men who have been estranged from devotion , . and are so far byass'd , many of them , in their affections to their party , that they will scarce allow themselves their common senses in the examen of things , but pass their votes against any thing that leads towards popery ; tho against justice equity , and conscience , . . factious spirits , who have animated the pulpits zeal , to hinder the parliament from going on to testifie its loyalty as it had begun , by throwing fears and jealousies into the minds of those who were bigotted in their religion . xi . men , in short , who manage things upon politick motives to gratifie some persons at this juncture , least there should appear a possibility of union with the church of rome . . who have something more in the bottom , than what appears at first sight , in being thus zealous against popery . as q. elizabeth had , who being conscious of her mother's marriage , and her own birth , run out against the pope , to secure her title to the crown of england ; not foreseeing the ill consequences that will follow in the nation , . by keeping open our bleeding divisions to the ruine both of church and state , . this , sir , is your charge ; and such as either they or you must resolve to sink under the burden of it . the truth is , i cannot but wonder , that a person who so gravely exhorts others , to consider what rash judgment is , and what punishment god has reserved for those that are guilty of it , should be able to speak of so excellent a body of men , in so infamous a manner . for certainly greater crimes than these can hardly be imputed to the devil himself ; and i am verily perswaded that in all this scandalous catalogue there is not one single allegation either in its self true ; or which ( now , sir , that you are hereby publickly challenged to it ) you shall ever be able to make good against us . but i must be more particular . and , st . the first charge against us is , that whenever your arguments pinch us , we fall to revilings , and make it our business to blacken and calumniate you ; to misrepresent your doctrines , and to ridicule your ceremonies . i will not here in return to this clamour , desire the world to consider how unfit a preacher you are of honesty and civility , who have shewn your self in this reply to have observed but very little any measures of either . i will rather intreat you to reflect , how unfortunately this charge has been managed by the first undertaker of it ; who having advanced such a charge against us in particulars , and being fully answer'd to every one , never durst vindicate his calumny against the first attack , tho' the challenge still lies against him to do it . and methinks whilst those large defences remain yet without a vindication it is a great assurance and indiscretion too in you , by reviving the calumny , to put the world in mind where it has been shewn to lie . i know not what opinions you may have of your church and of your arguments . but we have always found so much to censure in the one , and so little to press us in the others , that we have never had the least temptation to run to such shifts , as you here accuse us of . but what can be done , when men dissemble their doctrines , misrepresent their practices , and out-face the plainest matters of fact ; and then cry out nothing but calumny and falsification , if any one goes about to discover their hypcorisie . but , iidly . your next charge is yet more grievous ; you tax us with malice and interest to defame you ; and say , that by the methods by which we carry on disputes , we give you cause to think , that we have no other end in all our controversial books or sermons but to cry down popery at any rate , least we should suffer prejudice by its increase . that is , in other words , that those of the church of england , who oppose your designs , are all of them a pack of atheists and hypocrites ; who value nothing but their temporal interests ; and therefore seem resolved at any rate to run down popery , least they should suffer prejudice by its increase . a character so vile and scandalous ; so void of all appearance of truth as well as of modesty , as sufficiently shews what manner of spirit it was that assisted you in the writing it . and whosoever he be to whom it belongs ; tros rutulusve fuat ; let him be anathema . but i reply to this calumny : . that this is a charge which you can no otherwise pretend to make good than by our outward actions ; for i am confident you never received any assurances of this kind in confession from us . now then , tell me , i beseech you ; or rather , sir , tell the world , before which you have traduced us , from which of our actions is it that you presume to pass so uncharitable a censure against us ? are our lives so scandalous , or our writings so destitute of all sense of religion , as to speak us to be govern'd only by malice and int●rest ? do we no longer preach up the doctrines of piety in our sermons ; nor profess in our assemblies the belief of a future judgment , and an eternal state of life or death after this ? either make good this charge against us , or resolve to fall under the weight of that infamy you thought to have cast upon us . and remember what you tell me ( and what i know not any one in the world on whom i can more properly bestow it than your self ) of a certain necessary duty both to god and men ; viz. of making a publick acknowledgment of those calumnies you have thrown upon us , and without which , according to your own sentence , you cannot expect your sin should be forgiven you . but , dly , you affirm that 't is out of malice and interest that we oppose you . as to the former of these , i confess indeed your principles and your actions too , against those you call hereticks , are such , as might almost tempt a good man to malice against you . but , sir , those principles and those practices are so contrary to christianity too , that no man need be acted by malice , whilst 't is so much his duty to oppose you . you may call our firmness , ( as you do our religion ) what you please : 't is easie to give ill names to the best things . but whilst our arguments stand good against you , no man can , without great uncharitableness , say , that 't is out of malice that we oppose you ; seeing those shew , that 't is a well-grounded zeal for the truth and purity of the gospel , that moves us against such corrupters of it as you are , and which shall , i trust , make us steady even to the death against you . for the other part of your charge , interest : were a christian capable of being led by so base a motive , yet how comes this to inspire us against you ? st . is there so much less of interest to be carried on in the church of rome than in the church of england ? have not the clergy on your side as great a command over the consciences and over the purses too of their flock , as on ours ? where would our interests suffer by preaching up the golden doctrines of satisfactions , purgatory , indulgences , masses , and prayers for the dead ; of the necessity of auricular confession , and of the priests power to forgive sins ? certainly , sir , you forgot your self when you imputed our firmness to this motive . it has indeed been an objection against you , that in most of those points wherein you differ from us , you have secular interests to serve by them : but i never yet heard that the divines of the church of england had any such interest to oppose these corruptions . . again ; those who have been so honest , ( in your opinion at least ) as to lay aside their malice and follow a good conscience in embracing of your religion , have their temporal interests sustain'd any loss by it ? much more would all those who now write or speak against you , come over to you , wherein i pray would their worldly concerns lose by their so doing ? . but it may be we gain something by being firm to our principles : as to the other world no doubt we do ; but will you say , sir , that they who are the most stedfast against popery , do take the readiest course to advance their fortunes by it in this ? in short , were we so wicked as to be govern'd by so mean a consideration , i do assure you we are not so blind as not to see whither interest would lead us . and i shall leave it to the world to judge , whether it has not pleased god here to direct your malice to your own confusion , in chusing out such a topick as this , whereby to calumniate our stedfastness . but , dly , there is yet a third thing which you insinuate as another means , we use to keep our party firm against you , and that is ignorance . you desire them to read your book , that they may see how much they have been kept in ignorance by us : pref. you mean , i suppose , as to the points wherein we differ from you , and which are many of them very considerable . now were this indeed so , yet methinks it is not very decent for a guide of the church of rome to complain of it . the truth is , we do give our people all the instruction that we can : we put the holy scriptures into their hands in their own tongue ; we exhort them to read them ; and we know who they are , that not only do not do this , but blame us for doing it . we instruct them with all diligence , by writing , preaching , catechizing , &c. and as ignorant as they are , yet we find them ( and so do you too ) too wise to be deluded by such seducers as would fain draw them away from us . there is no one so ignorant , but what can at least give you an orthodox summary of his belief ; can say amen , with understanding , to the publick service ; and in short , can tell you , sir , that which all your learning ; or , because that is not much , i may add , and all the learning of your church will never be able to answer ; that god spake these words and said . thou shalt have none other gods but me , . thou shalt not make to thy self any graven image nor the likeness of any thing in heaven above , or in the earth beneath , or in the water under the earth ; thou shalt not bow down to them nor worship them . as for those rare mysteries of ave maria's and pater noster's ; of the extraordinary virtues of holy water , and agnus dei's ; of st. francis's girdle , st. dominick's beads , and simon stock 's scapulary ; of the great significancy of oil and balsam , of white fillets and boxes on the ear ; of ashes and incense ; of lighted tapers , and naked images ; of the several ways of lifting up hands , and crossing and knocking breasts ; of standing , bowing , creeping , &c. in these i confess our people have ( for us ) been kept in ignorance ; and i hope they will never have occasion of being instructed in them . but for any ignorance of any thing that is worth their knowledge even in your religion , ( which i suppose you here especially aim at ) for any designed concealment of your true doctrine from them ; much more for any thing generally necessary , or but profitable to their salvation , we must beg leave to justifie our selves in the words of st. paul , that we have not shunn'd to declare unto them all the counsel of god. iii. your next charge is , that we have been estranged from devotion . and indeed , what wonder is it , if men , who , as you say , are acted only by the influences of malice and interest , are not much acquainted with the ardours of devotion ? but , sir , setting calumny apart , whence is it that you derive this charge against us ? have we no service of god in our churches ? or is our liturgy so unapt to excite devotion in those who duly attend upon its offices ? have you never , sir , your self heard us recommend with all earnestness , the practice of this piety to our congregations ? should we put our prayers into an unknown tongue , that if not the zeal , yet at least the wonder and astonishment of the people might be increased ? instead of reading our service aloud , would you have us turn our backs to the assembly , and whisper they know not what between our hands into a corner , that no body may hear us ? or what is it , sir , that we must do to satisfie you , that we are not utterly estranged from devotion ? in short , all the pretence i find you have for this charge , is , that we think many of your ceremonies uncouth ; and you tell us it is because we are unacquainted with devotion : but we will take your own words , for indeed they are very extraordinary , and 't is pity they should be lost , the case you say is this , as the church of england in general for gravity and reverend behaviour exceeds the conventicles , or other reformed churches ; so the cathedrals of the church , we confess , are more solemn than the country churches ; the catholicks , as 't is fit , far beyond the english cathedrals ; and what is the issue ? the churches of england are censured as superstitious by the kirkmen and conventiclers ; the cathedrals are censured as such by the parish churches ; and the catholick is censured also by the reformed cathedral : still the more solemn and devout church is censured by the less . so that here now is a religious war ; and the conventicles , the parish churches , the cathedrals , and the mass-houses are in their respective synods assembled to damn and anathematize one another ; and you as a catholick moderator thus decide the controversie : there is a little devotion ( and but very little ) in the conventicles ; there is somewhat more in the parish churches ; there is a pretty deal more in the cathedrals ; only in the mass-house is to be found the perfection of piety , the ne plus ultra of devotion upon earth . is not this rare stuff ? and will not the world , think you , be strangely edified at so demonstrative a proof that we are ( god be thanked not totally , but yet , especially when we go to our parish churches , very much ) estranged from devotion ? but pray , sir , where is the necessity , that because we have not so much ceremony as you , we must be further estranged from devotion too ? if you will allow our saviour and his apostles ; if you will grant that the primitive christians were devout without all this ceremony , why may not we be so too ? and if we may , how will you justifie your self from being grosly uncharitable in thus insinuating upon so slender a ground , that we are not ? we want nothing that may serve for decency and order in gods service ; the ceremonies we have cast off are only those useless ones , of whose burden , st. austin even in his time complain'd , who was yet i hope no stranger to devotion . to go no further than those ceremonies upon which you thus traduce us . in your good friday service , the priest takes a cross , and standing on one side of the altar uncovers a little of it from the top , and then sings , behold the wood of the cross , the people answering , come , let us adore , and at the same time falling down upon their faces ; then he goes to the other side of the altar , and uncovers the right arm of it , and sings , whilst the people answer and fall down , as before ; then he comes to the middle of the altar , and quite uncovers it , and so they all fall down and sing as before ; then he sets it up on a place before the altar , and pulls off his shooes , and comes up to adore the cross , bending his knee three times before he kisses it ; after this the rest of the priests , and the people two and two do the like . this is the manner of that service ; and to say the truth , it does seem to us very uncouth , and to have but little of the true spirit of devotion in it ; but however , let us for one moment suppose it to be a reasonable service ; pray , sir , why might not there have been as much piety , tho there had been less ceremony ? for instance ; what if the priest had uncovered the cross all at once ? what if he had stood all the while in the same place , and not uncovered one part at one end of the altar , a second at the other , the rest in the middle ? might not the people have had the same zeal by beholding the cross , to adore him that suffered upon it ? suppose the priest and the congregation had gone with their shooes on to the place where the cross stood ( as i believe verily they might have done , for all gods command to moses to put his shooes from off his feet , because the place on which he stood , was by gods presence made holy ground ) . nay , what if instead of bending their knees three times before they kiss'd it , they had done it but once , or not at all ? i confess in this case a great deal of the state of the business had been lost , and the people would not have been half so agreeably entertained ; but i cannot see why they might not have had the same true , inward devotion towards our saviour for all any such defect . to conclude this : if you can prove that we have no regard to decency or order in gods service ; if you can shew that we despise prayer , or neglect to exhort our people to the practice of it ; if we do , like you , amuse them only with noise and shew , instead of a reasonable , intelligible service ; sometimes whisper the prayers , that they cannot always speak them in such a language that the ignorant among you do not know how to improve their zeal by them ; then on gods name continue to revile us ; but if you cannot say we do any thing of this kind , i must then plainly tell you that you have most unchristianly judged us ; and i beseech you , as ever you would free your self from being thought a calumniator , give us but any one argument that an honest man shall not blush to read , to prove us , as you say , estranged from devotion . iv. and hitherto you have aimed especially at the clergy of the church of england ; your next reflection is upon the laity ; and indeed it was but fit that having set forth the guides as men of no religion , you should represent the flock to have neither justice , equity , nor conscience . but we will take it in your * * * * * * own words . you tell us then of some among us , that are so biassed in their affections to our party , that they will scarce allow themselves their common senses in the examen , but pass their votes against any thing that tends towards popery , tho against justice , equity , and conscience . this , sir , is another of those severe reproaches , which without the least shadow of a proof you cast on many of our church ; and for which , till you shall think fit by some very good arguments to clear your self , i must again beg leave to esteem you a calumniator . in the mean time , till you shall think fit to remove that reproach , you may please to know , that men so prejudiced and obstinate , as you speak of , whatever they may pretend , yet really are none of our disciples : we direct all men , as you very well know , to use both their senses and their reason in examining their religion : and you can sometimes alter your note , and inveigh against us for our so doing . and we should be heartily sorry that any of our friends should be so nigh to a perversion , as to have abandon'd the use of any of these faculties . they pass their votes , you say , against any thing that tends towards popery , tho against justice , equity , and conscience . this i am sure they never learnt of us . we have always directed men to act according to justice , equity and conscience : and not to be afraid of any thing that is good , because a papist does it . indeed , sir , i have heard of some who when they receive a proselyte into their church , make him swear , that he will never by any perswasions , or by any other means be drawn off from it : and if by any occasion or argument he shall fall away , he wishes that incurring the guilt of his perjury , he may be found obliged to eternal punishment : and this we have always blamed in them as most unwarrantable and unchristian . but the truth is , you have here , as in most of your other reflections , taken up our objectious against you ; and what we with truth lay to your charge , you most detractingly , because most falsely , return upon us . but , v. you have yet more to accuse us of . you tell us of certain factious spirits that have animated the pulpits zeal , to throw fears and jealousies into the minds of those who were bigotted in their religion , to the hindring of the parliament from proceeding in its loyalty as it had begun . i do not very well understand , what liberty this is you take to censure the loyalty of so . great a body as the lords spiritual and temporal , and the members of the honourable house of commons amount to : but sure i am , it is not such a pen as yours that can blast their reputation . as for the factious spirits that animated the pulpits zeal , when you dare speak openly what you mean by it , you may be sure of an answer either from them or me. in the mean time , god be thanked the pulpits zeal has ever been employed to keep up in the subjects that duty which by gods command they owe to their prince ; and nothing is at this day , next to our zeal for our religion , more our desire and our endeavour , than to make men loyal to their soveraign . our pulpits still speak the same principles of subjection they ever did . we are neither ashamed of the doctrine of passive obedience , nor afraid of its practise ; tho some of your acquaintance have endeavoured to laugh both that and us out of countenance for its sake . our steadiness to our religion , shall never make us fail in our duty to our king. in one word , we will both by our preaching and actions make it our business to fulfill that great evangelieal precept , of rendring unto coesar the things that are coesars ; and unto god the things that are gods. but , sir , since you mention fears and jealousies , i will shew you who they are that have alarm'd the nation with them : for , vi. thus finally , you reflect upon us , that we are men who manage things upon politick motives to gratifie some persons at this juncture . you insinuate as if there were something more in the bottom of our opposing you , than what appears at first sight : you tell us a very dangerous story of q. elizabeth , how that doubting the goodness of her title to the crown of england , books were filled with revilings against the church of rome , the better to secure it . then you speak again of designs , and of leading-men ; and of ill consequences that will follow in the nation , to the ruin both of church and state , if we keep open these divisions . i would willingly believe that you had no other meaning in all this , but only to insinuate once more to the world that we are a sort of mercenary creatures that have indeed no religion , but are acted only by politick motives , to gratifie i know not whom at this juncture . and that the hints that follow , of something more being in the bottom than at first sight appears ; of q. elizabeth's title to the crown ; of designs , and leading men ; of ill consequences to the nation , &c. are but words put together , without any other intention than to render your little reflection the more considerable . but , sir , all men do not make so favourable a construction ; they think there is somewhat alluded to in that history , which if you dare justifie , we need not be ashamed of giving you an answer . they desire you to speak out , how you apply all these things : whether there be any body now living to answer to queen elizabeth ; whether those words of her mothers marriage , and her own birth , making her title doubtful to the crown of england , have any signification ; how our zeal against popery is to bring such ill consequences upon the nation ; and whether here you threaten or prognosticate only these things to us ; and who gave you authority to do either ? when you shall have explain'd your self as to all these particulars , you may then expect a further answer : in the mean time give me leave to tell you , that whether you have any meaning in it or no , the very mention of these things is dishonest ; and may raise such fears and jealousies in the people , as all our zeal for peace shall not be able to allay : and i know not well what i ought to think of those men who at the same time that his sacred majesty proclaims a publick peace to his subjects , whatever their perswasions be ; and particularly declares in favour of the church of england , that he will protect and maintain it in the free exercise of our religion , as by law establish'd ; and in the quiet and full enjoyment of all our possessions , without any molestation or disturbance whatsoever ; nevertheless dare threaten us with ruin and destruction . † † † † † † you speak of the ill consequences that will follow in the nation by our opposing you ; p. . of keeping open divisions to the ruin both of church and state , p. . * * * * * * another tells us of his majesties withdrawing his royal protection from us . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ a third in plain words declares that the church of rome will triumph , when perchance a certain divine of the church of england may smart for having attempted its destruction . these are such insinuations as the pulpits zeal would never have presumed to throw into the minds of their auditors ; and they certainly deserve to be some other way taken notice of than i am authorized to do it . but 't is well that having shewn how small your charity is to us , you now let us see , that your duty is not much greater to your prince . and before you shall next think fit to charge us with raising of fears and jealousies in men's minds , i desire you to consider how you will be able to purge your selves , from being by these kind of insinuations , indeed the greatest incendiaries . and thus have i offer'd what seems to me to be sufficient to vindicate those of our church from your false and scandalous aspersions . i shall detain you but a very little while in the other part : wherein i am ii. to consider those imputations you have brought against my self in particular . for indeed it was not for these that i enter'd at all on this ungrateful employment of laying you open to the world ; and if my church , and its more worthy members be but clear of your censures , it is no great matter how much such an inconsiderable part of it as i am , suffer by them . something yet i will add , that i may not seem wanting to my own defence , and give credit to your censures , by neglecting to refute them . and first , to all the hard names you have so liberally bestow'd upon me , and the crimes for which you have not offer'd the least shadow of a proof ; i shall only say , the lord forgive you . call me , if you please , a doctor of the populace ; tell the world that i court the applause of the vulgar : that i am but a pretended son of peace : that my business is nothing but shifts : say that i am wilfully blind , a wilful prevaricator , a wilful mistaker of your doctrine : call me unsincere , caviller , and as many other names of the like kind as i have either now forgot , or you shall be able hereafter to invent : my answer shall still be the same to them all , lord lay not this sin to your charge . secondly , to your several reflections , whereby you represent me to the world as a wilful prevaricator in many instances , i have already said that this is what you can never be sure is true , and what i am sure is utterly false : and i do not know by which of my actions i have ever given you a cause for so unchristian and slanderous an imputation . believe me , sir , it is not a light matter that you here lay to my charge : to be conscious to my self that i cannot defend my cause , and yet not to have the sincerity to repent , must imply a most incorrigible spirit in me ; and if i may guess by your reply , you have not found my defence so weak as to justifie such an imputation to mistake is humane , and i shall be far from pretending an exemption from that to which we are all by nature subject ; but to do it wilfully , and being admonish'd of it , nevertheless still to persevere , and put such things upon the world , as in my conscience i know not to be true : to endeavour to make others believe what i do not believe my self ; these are crimes for which no apology is to be made , nor therefore ought any one , without very convincing reasons , to be presumed guilty of them . but to undertake positively to charge another with them , as you have done me ; and upon such slender proofs , and with such repeated assertitions : this sir , must proceed from an uncharitable spirit ; and will , i am perswaded , much more prejudice you than me , in the opinion of all considering men. however , as i shall in my reflections upon your reply , particularly answer your pretences ( where you have any ) for these censures ; so i do now assure you , that whatever mistakes you may think you have discover'd either in my exposition , or my defence , they are sins of ignorance , and not voluntary errors , as you most rashly pronounce them to be . thirdly , for those reflections which have no relation to the cause in hand , but are drawn in meerly to defame me without the least provocation ; tho i might pass them by as foreign to my present design , yet i will stop so long as to give some answer to them . two of these especially there are ; and of neither of which ( excuse me , sir , this little vanity which your reflections force me to ) i think i need to be ashamed . the . concerns my preaching ; in which not only i my self , but all those whom you call by way of scoff , ( and with more disrespect than so honourable an assembly deserves ) my learned auditory are involved together with me. you say that you hear , and in that you speak properly , ( for i 'm told that you your self have vouchsafed sometimes to make up a part of my then , i hope , truly learned auditory , ) that i tell my congregation , that you give divine worship to saints ; that i speak many things ad faciendum populum , and my learned auditors admire my learning , and applaud my eloquence . other reflections of this kind you have , and to which i shall only say , that i have never delivered any thing on those occasions , but what i have firmly believed to be the truth ; and which , had i not been so perswaded , i should never have durst to utter in that holy place . and if this be all the effect of those critical sunday-nights conferences , in which ( if i am rightly informed ) my sermons have sometimes been put upon the rack by you ; i may now conclude that i have not much transgress'd , in those few things i have therein spoken against you . . the other thing for which you sometimes reflect upon me , is popularity . you call me a doctor of the populacy , p. . you tell the world , that i court the applause of the vulgar , p. . and it seems have had the good fortune to obtain it , p. . now this , sir , may be a fault , if you can say that i have done any thing that is ill for it ; or that in any of my actions i have managed my self otherwise than i ought to have done in consideration of it . but if it should chance to be only your envy or concern at any thing of a reputation you may think i have got in the world , that prompts you to give it so invidious a name , i must then tell you that whilst i know my innocence of any wicked designs in it , or endeavours after it ; i shall be no more ashamed of , that i pretend to what you call popularity ; and i will endeavour , sir , if i can , to be still more popular ; that so i may have the greater influence upon mens minds , to perswade them to their duty , and confirm them in that steadiness , from which such false teachers as you are , would endeavour to draw them off . but for the rest , i have neither courted any ones applanse , nor gone one step out of the way in which my duty and my conscience have led me , to gain an esteem or interest in the world. in this method by gods grace i shall always walk ; and i make no doubt but my learned auditors , and my friends the vulgar , will approve my resolutions . and as i have nothing but this integrity whereby to deserve their regard , so whilst i keep firm to it , i shall not fear to lose their esteem . the approbation that is founded on any other bottom often changes : but where good men value , and honesty is the only ground of the esteem , there it is impossible it should ever fail , till either the one or the other fall from their principles . fourthly , for those reflections which are involved in the course of your reply , and cannot well be separated from it , i shall examine them as they lie in their several places there , and not follow the catalogue into which you have collected them against me. there i shall shew you , that what you call calumnies , are indeed most undoubted truths : the falsifications you tax me with , either your mistake , if you indeed thought them so , or your crime if you did not . that in my whole defence there is but one thing that can any ways be call'd an error in the translation of all those numerous passages i have brought against you , and that such as no one else would , and you ( who are so obnoxious to such mistakes as to commit above a dozen in the translation of a short letter ) ought certainly the least of any to have censured . there you shall see the unsincerities shewn to lie at your own door : the uncharitable accusations , proved to be , if not the new , yet the old doctrine of your church . the wilful mistakes , and affected misapplications of equivocal words to be no mistakes , nor misapplications at all : what you call a false imposition in me , to be indeed a bold denial of your own words : the authors you pretend to be misapplied , if there be any such , ( for i have yet found them no where but in your catalogue ) speaking properly what they were brought for : and the plain contradictions no where to be found but in your own undistinguishing brain . in the mean time i have this only with you to intreat the judicious reader , that he will suspend his judgment till these things are examined , and not take all for gospel , that is said with confidence . there is now only one charge more remaining , and from which i ought , before i proceed farther , to defend my self against your reflections ; and that is , v. concerning the ill language you pretend i have used in my defence ; a fault which i assure you no man more disapproves , nor is more scrupulously careful to avoid than my self ; but then i must confess that perhaps i do not think all to be ill language that you shall please to call so ; for tho i esteem it generally the best to use the softest expressions that may be , yet there is a necessity in some cases of speaking plain , and of calling evil things by their proper names ; and really sir , when we have to do with such a cause as yours , and such vindicators of it as your self , let us do what we can , we must appear to write a satyr . you are , for instance , very much offended that i should charge your church with idolatry ; that i should represent some of your saints as speaking horrid blasphemies ; that i call st. thomas's notions in defence of image-worship , reveries ; and the addresses with which you consecrate them , rather magical incantations , than christian prayers ; these , sir , are hard words , i do confess ; and if i have no grounds for them , unjust reproaches , calumnies , or what else you please of the like kind ; but yet till you answer my reasons , and convince me of my error , that these things are indeed not such as i suppose , i cannot imagine how i should change my stile ; or what other words to find out that might express my sense , and yet not offend your ears . again : 't is possible , you will hereafter say , that in these very reflections wherein i complain of you for calling us falsifiers , calumniatars , cavillers , misrepresenters , and the like , i do yet sometimes my self return the very same language upon you ; this indeed is true , but then here is the difference , you accuse us of these things without reason , often without any occasion , and therefore do calumniate , whereas i never ( that i know of ) return them upon you , till i have first shewn a just cause for the doing it ; and tho it be calumny to call an honest man , a knave , or a dishonest man , yet i know not what other kind of name we can give to him that is truly so . this , sir , is my notion of these things ; and if i am out , i shall be most willing to stand corrected by you ; in the mean time let us see whereon it is that you ground this charge against me . two places there are in which you accuse me of it . the i. refers to the rishop of meaux , whom as you pretend , i have endeavoured to expose by my contemptible raillery . to this i have already replied , that i know not wherein i have been guilty of any thing that looks like raillery in all my treatment of that bishop , having always been mindful of his character in every thing i have written against him : that i am sorry the necessary defence of truth has forced me to speak what i have done concerning him ; and if after all , i should chance in my pursuit of his unsincerities , ( let not that word offend you , i have proved before , what i now say , and much more ) to have dropt any expression that looks like raillery , as i cannot yet find upon a diligent examination , that i have done it , so neither will i justifie my self in it , whenever you shall be able to prove your allegation : but , sir , this is not the only instance in which you give me occasion to complain ( in a very mild word ) , of your groundless accusations . ii. the other place in which you charge me with this fault , is more considerable , because there you do ( what you have seldom done any where else ) bring some instances of it ; and out of respect to so extraordinary a piece of justice , i will neither call them by any hard name , nor any further insist upon your undue repetition of them . the expressions you accuse me of are these three . i. that i call st. thomas's opinions , reveries . ii. the rhetorical expressions of the greatest saints , horrid blasphemies : and iii. the pious and significant ceremonies of the church , magical incantations . in every part of which charge you are a little mistaken . for . they are not s. thomas's opinions , but the arguments and distinctions with which he endeavours to defend your churches opinions , that i called reveries . . nor are there any of the greatest saints , tho some of them i confess were pious men , whose expressions i stiled horrid blasphemies . nor . are they the pious and significant ceremonies of christs holy catholick church ; but the prayers of a church , usurping those titles of holy and catholick , that can the least belong to her of any church in the christian world ; they are , i say , the prayers of that church , which in just indignation to so great a superstition as the consecrating stocks and stones , in the name of the father , son , and holy ghost , i said , looked more like magical incantations than prayers . it may be you will think these remarks might well have been spared ; but we live in a critical age , wherein men , you know , cannot endure to have things misrepresented ; and when you charge me with speaking reproachfully of your church , you should have been very careful to see that in the charge of it you did not speak ( tho but a little ) falsely of me . but i. it displeases you that i should call some of thomas aquinas's notions , reveries . it was indeed a bold thing in me to fail in my respects to a doctor , who as you tell me former times have stiled angelical ; i wonder you did not add out of your breviary , that he was one too who attained to all his knowledg , not by study and labour , but by divine inspiration ; for this would have added much to my offence ; nay , to whom ( if all that is there said , be true ) a certain crucifix once upon a time declared , that all he had written concerning him was well ; and one part of that was this very thing before us , that the wood of the crucifix was to be adored with the same adoration as christ himself ; and after the attestation of it by so notable a miracle , i cannot but wonder how you dare to question it . but then , sir , you ought to have considered whether you were sure there was any dis-respect in my expression : now had you not been too little acqainted with the french tongue , ( as i shall hereafter shew you are with some others ) to turn critique in it ; you would have known that reverie is not necessarily a word of reproach , but used very innocently to signifie a deep thought , a profound meditation , and from thence secondarily , the productions themselves that come from such reflections : and therefore you ought not , without all distinction , to say that i affront st. thomas in calling his notions reveries , for so the best mens works may without affrout be called ; but since this displeases you , whatever i may do to others , yet i assure you i never will so far affront you , as even in my thoughts to suppose you to be a reverie , i. e. a man of profound thought , and deep meditation . and thus were i minded to cavil , i might end this objection . but , sir , to satisfie your little remark , i do confess , i did not mean that expression in this best sense ; no , the subject upon which i spoke it , was too bad , not to reflect some of its illness upon the very words that are used about it ; and when i said , that i did not think my self obliged to transcribe all st. thomas's reveries ; i did indeed mean , what i now call them in plainer words , his vain and trifling reasons , which he brings to justifie that wicked doctrine of your church , that the cross of christ is to be adored with a supreme divine worship . this i understood by that expression , and such i take his discourse there to be ; and i will now leave it to the world to judg , what else they can make of such profound nonsense as this . honour or reverence is not ( primarily ) due to any but a rational nature ; but to an insensible creature , honour or reverence is not due , but with respect to a rational nature : and this may happen two ways ; one , upon the account of its representing a rational nature : the other , because it is some way joined to it : by the first means , we worship the image of a king ; by the second , his garments ; and we venerate both with the same veneration , with which we venerate the king himself . — is not this , think you , wonderful reasoning ? and was i not horribly to blame , to call such fine notions , reveries ? but now for the application . — if therefore we speak of that cross upon which christ was crucified , it is to be adored upon both accounts by us , both as it represents christ , and as it touch'd his members , and was sprinkled with his blood ; and upon both these accounts with the same supreme worship with which christ is adored ; and hence it is that we speak to the cross , and pray to it as if it were christ . — i doubt , sir , you will think this last looks something like a reverie , because ( as i remember ) it crosses your notions . but we will go on : but if we speak of the image of christ in any other matter , so we adore the cross only as the image of christ , which we adore with divine adoration . these are aquinas's notions on this point ; and these i called his reveries , i. e. his vain fancies and imaginations ; and so i still esteem them to be ; if you think otherwise , and that these dreams and shadows of reason , are indeed conclusive proofs , why then do you reject this doctrine , * * * * * * and tell us , that perhaps it maybe defended ; and not speak out boldly that it is good and orthodox , and what we ought to follow ; but if you like this arguing really no better than i do , wherefore do you expose me for calling that a vain fancy , which , after all , you your self look upon as no other ? to conclude ; i am perswaded that no one among you has a juster respect for st. thomas than i have ; i have always esteemed him an excellent doctor , and profited by his works ; but what can the best man do , when he has not truth on his side ? error may be palliated , and a greatdeal of thought be spent , and wit shewn to give it the appearance of truth , but when all is done 't is error still ; and the arguments that are brought to support it , how fine and subtil soever they may seem , are yet but reveries , i. e. visions , shadows of reason , not rational and conclusive proofs ; and upon this ground , tho not only an angelical doctor , or a crucifix from a wall , but even an angel from heaven , should argue in this sort , i should not be ashamed of the expression , if i had called it ra●ing . but ii. the next thing you find fault with , is ; that i call some of the expressions of your saints , with reference to the virgin mary , horrid blasphemies . and here you put me upon a very ungrateful work , to rake into the ashes of good , but superstitious men , and who falling into corrupt times , were by their piety carried into vain and extravagant expressions of it : but as i hope god has pardoned their well-meant , tho very indiscreet zeal ; so i desire that what i here repeat in my defence , may not be a means to lead any one to triumph in their weakness , whose vertues otherwise we few of us perhaps shall be able to come up to ; and this i say of some of those i am to mention ; for however your church has thought fit indifferently to canonize them , yet i hope saints as well as stars , may differ from one another both in their goodness and in their glory . the . you mention is st. germain , whose expressions to the blessed virgin , or as you call them , rhetorical flights , will i think justifie the worst that can be said of them : o mother of god , says he , your defence is immortal ; your intercession is the life ; your protection is security ; if you do not teach us the way , no one can become spiritual , nor adore god in spirit . — o most holy virgin ! no one can have the knowledg of god but by you : o mother of god! no one can be saved but by you : o virgin mother ! no one can be delivered from dangers but by you : o favoured of god! no one can obtain any gift or grace , but by you . the second is st. anselm . his expressions of this kind are numerous ; and i will mention only some of them : o blessed virgin ! says he , as it is necessary that every one who is hated and despised by you , should perish , so is it impossible that he whom you regard should be lost . — only be it your will that we should be saved , and then we cannot but be saved . — hence he elsewhere calls her , the repairer of the lost world : and adds , that as god creating all things by his power , is become god and father of all ; so mary the blessed mother of god by restoring all things , is become the mother and lady of all . in one of his addresses to her , he says , that god has given this to her in common with himself , that with her all things should be possible . and to go yet one step farther , he tells us in plain terms , that a man is sometimes sooner saved in calling upon the name of mary , than by calling upon the name of christ. ly , your next saint is st. bernard : and he too is voluminous in his expressions . thus he also makes her redemptrix of the world : we have , says he , sent before us from earth to heaven an advocate , who being mother of our judg , and mother of mercy , will treat sincerely and with efficacy the business of our salvation ? 't is she that hath obtain'd the reparation of the whole world , and the salvation of all men . — it must be confess'd that one man , and one woman have done us a great deal of harm ; but another man , and another woman , have repaired with advantage all the ill which the former had done us . i acknowledg that jesus christ is sufficient to save us ; but it was not expedient that man should be alone ; it was more congruous , that both the one and the other sex should come in to our reparation , seeing neither of them was wanting to our destruction . — consider then more deeply with how great an affection of piety god would have us adore her , who has put the whole fulness of good in mary : so that if there be any hope in us , if any grace , if any salvation , we should know that it proceeds from her. — and therefore he elsewhere calls her , the ladder of sinners ; his great trust , and the whole foundation of his hope . but i must not insist too largely . the next you name is , fourthly , the abbot of celles ; i will produce but one passage from him : approach , says he , by a devout contemplation of spirit towards the blessed virgin , because through her , and with her , and in her , and from her , the world both hath , and will have all that is good. — she is our advocate to her son , as the son to the father . she sollicites for us both the father and the son. oftentimes those whom the justice of the son might condemn , the mercy of the mother delivers . — in short , as our saviour once said , that no one could come unto him ( whilst he was on earth ) unless the father drew him ; so dare i ( says he ) in some sort affirm , that no one comes now to thy glorified son , unless thou by thy holy assistance drawest him . thly , as it is impossible ( says st. antonine , from st. anselm ) that those from whom the v. mary turns the eyes of her mercy should be saved ; so is it necessary that those towards whom she turns her eyes , interceding for them , should be justified and glorified . thly , from the time , says st. bernardine , that the virgin mother conceived in her womb the word of god , she obtained , as i may say , a certain jurisdiction and authority over all the temporal processions of the holy ghost . so that no creature has obtain'd any grace or vertue of god , but according to the dispensation of his holy mother . he that desires more of this , may see in dr. j. c's apology for his contemplations on the life and glory of holy mary ; who tho he be not yet a saint , yet may for his zeal deserve hereafter to be canonized ; and make as great a figure one day in the church , as any that i have named . these , sir , are some of the expressions to which i referred : you may think as you please of them , and give what dexterous expositions your wit shall enable you , to free them from censure : but i dare venture it to all sober men now to judg , whether i was much out in my expression , when i said in my defence , that they were horrid blasphemies . dly , your last censure is , that i said of those collects which you use in the consecration of a cross , that they seemed to be magical incantations rather than prayers . and i would to god , sir , we had not too good grounds for such a censure : i should most willingly retract my expression . but in the mean time , till you will learn to be ashamed of doing such things , i see no cause wherefore i should be confounded for giving them their proper names . you pray to god , that he would bless the wood of the cross ; to what purpose , i pray , give a blessing to the stock of a tree ? that it may be a saving remedy to mankind ; an establishment of the faith ; for the encrease of good works ; and the redemption of souls ; for a comfort and protection against the cruel darts of the enemy . is not this , sir , a most edifying prayer for a church , calling her self catholick , to use ? to desire the blessing of god upon that which he has expresly forbidden us to make , for any such purpose as that , for which it is here consecrated ? but to go on with the ceremony : you incense it , you sprinkle it with holy water ; you consecrate it , in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost : you pray again , that as by the cross upon which christ suffer'd , the world was redeemed from guilt ; so by the merits of this cross , the souls of those who offer it , may be freed from all the sins which they have committed . and now the work is done ; and it is fit for you to fall down before it , and worship it . consider , sir , i beseech you , in the spirit of a christian , what it is about which these prayers are bestow'd ; and what it is you beg in them . and seeing you desire that such benefits may be derived to you from a senseless , inanimate creature ; think what the import of magical incantations is , and tell me if these requests do not look more like charms , than prayers ; and whether i was very much out , when in a just indignation at so wretched an abuse of the name of the holy trinity , i said , they seem'd rather the one than the other . but if my expression still offends you , consider then , how much more justly these practices scandalize us . do not tell the world that i reproach christs holy catholick church , as guilty of magical incantations : no , 't is your church , the corrupted roman church alone , that i charge as coming in these things too nearly to the practices of the heathens : god be thanked , christ has other churches that are freed from such abuses , as all his faithful servants lament in you , and earnestly desire you would your selves learn at last to be ashamed of . i will add but one word more , and it is this : that before you censure me any farther for this expression , you will please to remember , that there is another practice in your church , which i might have mentioned in my defence , called exorcizing ; but far distant from the ancient ceremony designed by that word . this your ritual authorizes ; and for the fuller practice of it , directs us to your approved authors ; such as mengus , and some others . the plain english of that hard word , you know is conjuring , and the thing does not at all belie the name . you may force me to speak of this if you think fit ; and to add to this , your other ceremonies of christening of bells , consecrating water ; agnus dei's , and the like ; and what wonderful benefits you pretend to derive from thence . but i had rather if you please be prevented in this design , than vindicate my self so much to your churches scandal . sect . iii. and here i shall finish my present reflections ; and might , i think , have concluded my whole defence . for having justified the distinction i had advanced of old and new popery ; having shewn you , that it is not meerly from the decrees of your councils , but from your private authors and common practice , that we are to interpret your churches doctrine : having particularly answer'd all the bishop of meaux's pretences , and i hope sufficiently vindicated ( even in your opinion ) my self and brethren from your unjust and scandalous imputations ; nothing now remains , but to consider the doctrine of your reply ; and that has been already so fully done , that neither can you answer it , nor am i able to add any thing to it . but you have always had a particular gift , to advance again without blushing , those objections to day , which but yesterday were confuted beyond a possibility of reply . . you charge us with misrepresenting your doctrines * * * * * * ; you speak largely of a certain book that undertook to prove this to the world ; but you forget to tell us , that a learned a a a a a a man of our church , went along with this book through all the several particulars , and shew'd you the contrary . and thus the calumny goes on ; but the defence we have made , is never like to be consider'd . . you seem concerned , that i took so little notice of your second article about the nature and object of religious worship ; but you do not acknowledg that my reason was , because it had been fully done in several b b b b b b treatises on that very subject , and which lie still unreplied to . . you run out into a great length about the invocation of saints : but is it to answer any thing we had replied to your arguments on that subject ? no , tho i directed you to a c c c c c c book purposely written on this subject , wherein all your objections are obviated , and from which i have reason to believe you borrow'd some of your quotations against me ; yet you neither take care to prevent the same replies that have been there made , nor have the ingenuity so much as once to confess by whom you have profited . . concerning images , much has pass'd since my defence came out ; the d d d d d d representer tri'd all his strength to defend them , but was content to leave the field : what do you now do ? you take his arguments , you follow his evasions ; but make no new advance , nor seem at all concern'd to own , that they have been fully e e e e e e answer'd some months since . . in the article of purgatory , you talk with great assurance about the intention of the primitive church in praying for the dead : which i said in my exposition , was no proof that they believed a purgatory . you reply , that those who have been abused by me , and others of my coat , need only read the fathers , or look into the nubes testium for satisfaction . but , sir , what must i call this , to be sent to a book , that has been on that very point f f f f f f answer'd in every one of his pretences ; and no one has yet appear'd in his vindication ? . in the article of extreme unction , you have a g g g g g g challenge sent you ; and which i am commission'd once more to desire that you will be pleased to accept . in consideration whereof you will not be dissatisfied if i return but little on that subject to you . . h h h h h h the holy eucharist has in every respect been fully consider'd . scripture , antiquity , sense , and reason , all produced against you . what have you here done ? you have put together the common arguments we have a hundred times baffled ; and improved nothing to obviate the same replies . but you , sir , may expect from me , what some others will suddenly have from a much better hand , a full satisfaction to your pretences ; tho in truth neither you nor they could reasonably expect it . . for the * * * * * * adoration of the host , you refer us to the two oxford discourses ; but you never observe that there have been i i i i i i two answers made to them . and a k k k k k k particular discourse has past now some time upon this subject , in which most of your allegations are prevented , and yet you take no notice of it , but bait us eternally with the same repeated crambe ! . as to the point of the mass , you may expect a full l l l l l l answer before you receive this . and , . m m m m m m for communion in one kind , when you can either bring some other arguments than what the bishop of meaux has done , or vindicate those from our answer to him , you may expect to be consider'd ; but else it is a great confidence in you to expect it . . n n n n n n as to the point of tradition , i do not find that any one has yet confuted a particular treatise about it . . o o o o o o for the authority of the church to which you seem particularly to desire my reply , i do promise you that in due time you shall have it . but because i would not deceive your expectations , i must tell you freely , i can say nothing but what you have had already in those excellent discourses to which i refer you ; and which we are apt to think you have found to be more than enough . . p p p p p p for the remaining points , the authority of the holy see , and of the council of trent ; methinks you should be ashamed to desire any answer to them , till you first return some reply to those learned men that have so lately written upon them . . p p p p p p for the other articles which i have passed by , it is not because there has not been enough said to them , but because what has been said , is to be found in those other treatises to which i have already referred ; and i believe when i come to examine your discourse more particularly , i shall not find any one thing , except a few cavils , ( which indeed are all your own ) that will need my consideration ; and those do not deserve it . you see , sir , how reasonable a pretence i might here have to take my leave of you , and not insist any longer on these points , till you shall think fit , by giving us a substantial answer to what has been already offered , to encourage us to make some new advances against you . but i will not insist upon any of these things ; nor give you cause by my declining a particular examination of your reply , to think any better of your arguments , than i hope by this time you may do of your reproaches . i will travel with you once more through every article ; and tho in confideration of these excellent treatises i have now mentioned , and which are almost in every bodies hand , i shall only reflect upon your arguments , and not insist so as if i were particularly to state every point again ; yet i will do it in such a manner as you shall have no cause to say , i either declined your difficulties , or was unwilling , if you have any strength , to examine it to the bottom . and of this you may expect an account in a little time. in the mean while , i commend my present reflections to yours , and both them and you to the reader 's consideration . errata . page xx . l. . r. converters . p. . l. . r. the truth . p. . l. . r. should not then . p. . l. . r. readily . p. . marg . l. . r. me l' . p. . l. . r. decisions . p. . l. . r. than . p. . l. . r. than . p. . l. . r. they . p. . l. . r. rever . qu. besides a few literal faults which the reader is desired to excuse . finis . postscript . being a full answer to a pamphlet published the last night , called , a third part of a papist misrepresented . ecce iterum crispinus — i little thought when this last sheet was sent to the press , that i should have deprived the world of a more useful advertisement of the late tracts that have been published , for the inglorious undertaking of refuting so trifling a book . but since it is now become the mode to draw up full answers to the most solid discourses in single half-sheets , i know not why an author that has nothing in him , may not be exposed in much less room . the sum of his defence is this , that we do without all grounds advance against them a distinction of old and new popery , to make the world believe that 't is they who dissemble their doctrine , not we that misrepresent it . now this i have at large answered in the foregoing discourse , and thereby destroyed the whole foundation both of his and his parties present pretences ; and since he observes the ill luck his last adversary had to suppose they had forsaken their charge , when at that very time the vindicator was printing his reply in defence of it ; i cannot but take notice , that himself is not much more fortunate , to establish the whole stress of his cause upon the denial of a distinction , which is at the same instant shewn by undoubted matter of fact , to be most just and well-grounded . for his beloved elegancies of bartholomewfair-booths ; false cards ; and cogging-dice ; of the pretty slights of legerdemain ; of skrewing mouths , distorting noses , and drawing in cheeks ; for the wonderful tricks of his friend the posture-master in the pall-mall , &c. whereby he here , as usually , embellishes his periods ; they sufficiently shew how very serious this gentleman esteems the matter of religion to be , and how well the fineness of a merry-andrew's wit , agrees with the profoundness of a representers reasoning . and tho such a character-maker as this , ( who never yet knew what it was to answer an adversary with good sense , and but seldom with good manners ; and has here ( i know not how ) fallen even below his own self ) , be more fit to be despised than confuted ; yet to satisfie him that his adversary design'd not any retreat at all by the method he took of dealing with him , and therefore not an honourable one ( as he pretends : ) i do hereby promise him , that he shall not pass , as he deserves , without a consideration : but may expect that which shall abundantly satisfie the world , that he ought , tho there be no great reason to expect that he will at this time of day begin to be ashamed of his undertaking . imprimatur . liber cui titulus , a second defence of the exposition of the church of england . h. maurice r mo in christo p. d. wilhelmo arciepiscopo cant. a sacris . jan. . . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux , and his vindicator . the second part. london : printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard , mdclxxxviii . the contents . the answer to the preface . what little cause those of the church of rome have to complain of the evils of heresie and schism ? num . , . whether papists or protestants have sought the most advantagious means for the redressing of them ? n. . the holy scripture the only sure foundation whereon to build our faith , n. . how vain the attempts of those of the church of rome have been in their disputes against us ? n. . of the several methods that they have taken in them . n. . their complaints of our misrepresenting their doctrines and practices , groundless , n. . of the first conversion of the english by austin the monk , n. . . that neither did austin teach , nor the british churches believe or practise as the church of rome do's now . n. . that for a long time after austin , both their belief and practice was different from that of the church of rome at this day , n. . of king henry viiith , edward vith , q. mary , q. elizabeth , and the state of religion in their days , n. . that the papists have been under-hand the causes of our divisions , n. . of the state of religion under k. charles ist , n. . how far we allow that salvation is to be had in the church of rome ? n. . of the original of our civil wars in k. charles ist's time , n. . of the state of religion under k. charles iid , and k. james iid , and what was the occasion , of our present controversies and how they have been carried on ? n. . what use our readers ought to make of these discourses , n. . and the method of my present defence , n. . the vindicators apology for their new friends , n. . and his presumption why they cannot be supposed to palliate their doctrine , considered , and refuted , n. . the oath to be taken by a new convert , at his admission into the church of rome , n. . introduction . that our adversaries advance nothing new against us , but repeat the same things over and over , without taking the least notice of the answers that have been given to them . the answer to the first article . the vindicator an instance of this . his first article entirely stolen out of t. g. and confuted by dr. stillingfleet above years since ; pag. . num . . that the true and genuine sons of the church of england , have constantly charged those of the church of rome with idolatry , n. . in particular those whom he quotes to the contrary , viz. dr. jackson , n. . dr. field . a. b. laud. dr. heylin , mr. thorndyke , n. , . and dr. hammond , n. . his other little cavils as to this point consider'd , n. . and the authority of the book of homilies asserted , n. . his particular exceptions against my defence as to this article answered : and his shuffling exposed , n. , &c. the answer to the second article . concerning the object of religious vvorship . p. . that the vindicator has in vain new modelled the b. of meaux ' s position , n. . the scheme which he has laid down to justify the doctrine and practice of the ch. of rome in giving religious worship to others besides god consider'd , in some short reflections upon the several parts of it . the answer to the fourth article . of the invocation of saints . of the state of the question between us , and the vindicator ' s , three positions for the clearing of it , pag. . n. , . the sum of this article reduced to ii. general points . i. point . whether it be lawful to pray to the saints to pray for us ? our adversaries confess it not to be necessary , n. . that it is unlawful upon the vindicator ' s , own principle so to do , viz. that we may not give any religious service strictly and properly so called , to any other than god only , n. , . that the act of invoking the saints is strictly and properly a religious act : shewn , i st , from the very nature of the act it self , n. . it is not an act of the same kind with that of desiring of our living brethren to pray for us , n. . but attributes to the creature the perfections proper to god. ib. the bp of meaux ' s shuffling upon this occasion more particularly laid open , n. . dly , from the circumstances of it , n. . of the time , place , and manner in which the romanists invoke their saints , n. . of their offering up the mass to their honour ; and desiring its acceptance through their merits , n. , &c. of their making vows to the saints , n. , &c. ii. point . what the true doctrine and practice of the church of rome is , as to the point of invocation of saints . the sum of this part reduced to iv considerations . sect . i. whether all the prayers that are made to the saints by those of the church of rome , can fairly be reduced to this one sense , pray for us ? that they cannot , shewn ; st , from the doctrine of the council of trent , and of its catechism , n. . dly , from the opinion which those of the church of rome have , of the state and power of the saints departed , n. . dly , from the neglect of the council of trent , and of the governours of the church of rome , either to establish any such interpretation , or to censure those that have taught otherwise . n. . thly , from the words of the prayers themselves , which utterly refuse such an exposition . n. . and from the other service which the church of rome allows to the saints , and which cannot be reconciled with these pretences . n. . thly . from the opinions and practice of some of the greatest saints in the roman calendar ; and of other persons of especial note amongst them . n. . examples of all this . n. , &c. that the holy scripture is in vain alledged to countenance this superstition . n. . sect . ii. after what manner it is that the church of rome prays to god through the merits of her saints . the vindicator's pretences . n. . that the church of rome do's truly pray to god for mercies , through the merits of her saints , n. . the vindicator's excuses for this , considered and exploded . n. . that the holy scripture do's by no meanes countenance any such practice . n. . sect . iii. in which the vindicator's arguments for the establishing of this worship are particularly consider'd , and their weakness laid open . pag. . that the practice of invocation of saints , ●…s not to be proved by holy scripture . n. . nor has it the antiquity that is pretended : shewn in two periods . st period . that the custome of praying to saints , had no being in the church for the first years . v. . the vindicator's proofs particularly examined , and shewn to be either false , or ridiculous n. . that the fathers of the first three centuries pray'd to god only . n. . my presumption heretofore alledged for this ; viz. that those fathers did not believe that the souls of the just went immediately to heaven ; justified : and the vindcator's answer shewn to be insufficient . n. . sixt●… senensis in vain misrepres●…d by him. n. . that this practice did not pass quietly in the following ages . n. . his pretence that the fourth general council pray'd to flavian both false and impertinent . n. . his little exception of the few writings that remain of the primitive fathers , neither true , nor to the purpose . n. , . how this practice by degrees crept into the church ? n. . iid . period . what grounds this superstition had in the fourth century ? that most of the addresses of this age were rather rhetorical flights , than formal invocations . n. . eight differences , proposed between what the fathers of the fourth age did , and what those of the church of rome do now , as to this matter . n. . that the invocation of saints was never salemnly establish'd in the church before the latter end of the th century . n. . &c. sect . iv. what our reasons are against this service . the true state of the difference betwixt us as to this matter . n. . that the church of rome do's exact a complyance in this practice , & anathematize those who oppose it . n. . that this is , st , repugnant to god's holy word . n. . dly , contrary to antiquity . n. . dly , unreasonable in the constitution . n. . because , they are neither certain that the saints hear their prayers . n. . nor that those whom they pray to are indeed saints . n. . and pray to many as such , that never lived in the world. n. . such were , s. george . n. . s. lazarus . s. longinus . s. christopher . s. ursula , &c. a brief account of whose acts is offer'd , and their falseness observed . a pleasant relation of a bishop and martyr , made out of two words of an ancient inscription ; and the great miracles that were wrought at his monument . n. . that the wiser papists complain of this extravagance . thly . that it is unprofitable and impious in the practise . n. . that it is unprofitable . n. . that it is impious . n. . several remakable instances of impiety in this practice . n. , &c. the whole conluded with an account of the procession of the jesuits of luxembourg , may . . n. , &c. the answer to the fourth article . of images and reliques . the sum of this chapter reduced to three general considerations . sect . i. of the benefit of pictures and images . n. . concerning which it is observed : st , that the vindicator ought not at this time to confound pictures and images together . n. . dly , nor single figures , and historical representations . ibid. § . . dly , that it is impertinent to this point to discourse of the benefit , where the dispute is concerning the worship of images . ibid. § . . for that , thly , no benefit , were it ever so great , would be able to excuse this . ibid. § . . thly , that images are not useful to the ignorant , as is pretended . ibid. § . . thly , but on the contrary , very pernicious and injurious . ibid. § . . an account of horrible abuses in many of their images and pictures ; viz. of god the father . n. , . of the holy trinity . n. . of our saviour christ . n. . and of the b. virgin . ibid. &c. the pretence , that there is now no danger of idolatry in all this , proposed ; and the way open'd to the refuting of it . n. , . sect . ii. the charge of image-worship made good ; and the evasions answer'd , by which the vindicator endeavours to excuse his church from the guilt of it . n. . this is done in three particulars . i st , the voice of the ch. of rome proposed , in her definitions as to this matter . n. , . iidly , this voice interpreted by card. capisucchi , who approved monsieur de meaux ' s exposition ; and to whose book mr. de meaux himself appeals . n. . after rejecting several opinions , which in the cardinal's judgment did not allow sufficient honour to images . n. , &c. he concludes it to be the churches sense , that the same worship is to be given to the images , as is given to the things represented by them . n. . that aquinas allow'd supreme divine worship to the cross ; contrary to the vindicator's pretences . n. . some reflections upon what this cardinal has said , with reference to the point before us . n. , &c. an account of one of the roman church lately put into the inquisition , for denying the worship of images , recommended to the vindicator's consideration . n. , . iiidly , this farther shewn to be the sense of the church of rome , from those authorized practices i alledged in my defence . . the instance from the order of receiving an emperor , justified . n. . dly , the argument from the office of consecrating a new cross made good ; and the vindicator's evasions shewn to be inconsistent with the design of it . n. . of their agnus dei's ; and the superstition that is committed in the design and consecration of them . n. , . of holy water ; and the superstition committed in the design and use of it . n. . of incense . n. . that the primitive church used incense . n. . but that this is no plea for what the church of rome do's now . the consecrating and burning of incense in that church ; superstitious . n. . idolatrous . n. . dly , the instance of the good-friday service farther vindicated : and the exceptions made against it shewn to be frivolous . n. . that those of the church of rome do suppose this to be a good proof of their paying divine worship to the cross . n. . two extravagant proofs to excuse this worship from being idolatrous , proposed and answered . n. , , , &c. thly , the argument taken from the hymns of the church of rome justified . n. . and the vindicator's interpretation of them , shewn to be absurd . n. . sect . iii. that the church of rome thus worshipping of images , is truly and properly guilty of idolatry . this made good in two points , n. . i. point . of the true nature of idolatry . the late notion of idolatry proposed ; and that in this sense we do not charge the church of rome with it , n. . what idolatry , according , to the scripture is ; shewn in two particulars : i st , q. whether according to the scripture-notion of idolatry , those may not be guilty of it , who yet both know and worship the one true god ? n. . that they may , made manifest from the instances ; st , of the golden calf ; n. . dly , of the calves of dan and bethel , n. . other arguments to make good the affirmative of this question : n. . that this was the notion of the primitive fathers , n. . and is confess'd by the principal authors of the church of rome it self , n. . iidly , q. how this may be done by them ? two ways proposed from what has before been said , viz. st , by worshipping the true god after an idolatrous manner , n. . dly , by giving divine worship to any other besides him , n. . ii. point . that the church of rome in the worship of images is truly and properly guilty of idolatry . this shewn according to the vindicator's desire in two different respects : i st , with reference to those who hold that images are to be worshipped with the same worship as the things which they represent , n. . iidly , as it concerns their opinions , who denying , this , yet allow an inferiour , honour to them , n. . of reliques . two things proposed to be proved in answer to the vindicator's exceptions : i st , that those of the church of rome do truly and properly worship the reliques of their saints . for their expressions it is undeniable , n. . that their practice is agreeable to their words ; shewn , st , in the instance of that worship which they give to the wood of the true cross , n. . dly , to all the other reliques that have ever touch'd our saviour christ , n. . dly , from their allow'd practice of swearing by them , n. . a famous story of s. guria for the illustrating of this matter , n. . thly , from their other practices ; especially their carrying of them in procession , an instance whereof is given from the roman pontifical , n. , &c. iidly , that they do seek to them for help and assistance . my interpretation of the council of trent in reference to this point made good , against the new pretences of the vindicator , n. . the thing it self justified from the publick prayers of that church , n. . and from a memorable instance of a prince of the family of the dukes of radzevil ; with which the whole is concluded . errata . page . of the contents , for fourth article , read third article . p. . num . . line . r. our schism . p. . n. . l. . r. err. p. . n. . l. . uncertain , r. unsincere . p. . n. . l. . r. their usurpations . p. . l. . r. were now . p. . n. . l. . del . after all . p. . n. . l. . images , r. angels . p. . l. . r. recising . p. . marg. expos. r. def. of the expos. p. . marg. r. lib. carol. p. . marg. r. reg. moral . . p. . l. . for and i , del . and. p. . n. . l. . r. moliri . pervicaciâ . p. . l. . r. curarum . p. . l. ult . for v. r. vlth cent. p. . n. . l. . r. upon a verbal . p. . n. . l. . cloth with which . p. . l. . and only , del . and. p. . n. . l. . r. radzevil . the pages are interrupted in two places , pag. . and p. . an answer to the preface . the design of your preface seems reducible to these two points , viz. i. of the state of the controversy between the papists and protestants in general . and , ii. of the disputes that have heretofore been , and are at this day managed against you , by us of this church in particular . . ad pag. . ] the former of these you introduce with a short harangue of the mischief which heresie and schism bring along with them , not only to the individual persons that are guilty of them , but also to the nations in which they are propagated . you represent to us the miserable broils , and other worse consequences that have attended these controversies of religion in this and the last age : and from thence you conclude , how much they are to be commended who labour to establish truth and unity , and those to be condemned , who seek all means possible to obscure the one and obstruct the other . . answ. ] to all which i have only this to reply ; that we need no arguments to convince us of these things . there are none more sensible of the mischiefs of schism and heresie than we are ; or that do more truly lament the divisions that are in the church , or would more heartily contribute , what in us lies , to the closing of them . but then as we have good cause to believe both from the authority of holy scripture , and from the nature of mankind , that whilst there is a devil in hell , and men of interest and designs upon earth , there shall also be heresies , that they who are approved may be made manifest : so we cannot but complain that those should be the most forward to charge us both with the guilt and mischief of them , at whose doors the crime , and therefore the evil consequences of it , will one day be found to lie . the former of these , it will be the business of the following discourse to make good : and for the latter , whosoever shall impartially consider the origen of those broils with which the world has , you say , been agitated in this and the last age upon the account of religion ; not to mention those other mischiefs of treasons , plots , massacres , persecutions , and the like , will soon be convinced who they are that have cause to complain of these evils . for what you add , . ibid. ] that they who will but impartially consider matters , will find that catholicks have upon all occasions sought the most advantageous means to procure this christian peace ; tho to their grief they have still been hindred from effecting this good work. answ. ] i do not well know what you design by it . if by the most advantageous means , you understand those means of knowledg which god has given us whereby to come to discern the truth of religion ; such as , . a diligent reading of the holy scriptures , the using of all imaginable assistances for the understanding the sense of them , by studying the original languages in which they were written , searching of antiquity , collating parallel places , and the like . . the divesting of our selves of our prejudices , and forming in our minds an impartial desire to find out the truth , with an honest readiness to embrace it , on what side soever it lies . and lastly , to all this add our earnest prayer to god for his grace to bless and prosper our endeavours ; these i confess are the best means to discover christian truth ; and to exhort all others to the use of them , the most advantageous way to promote it . but then i cannot imagine why you should seem to appropriate these means to your selves , as if you only sought truth and peace by them ; seeing it cannot be deny'd but that we have employ'd all these with as great diligence as you can pretend to have done it . but now some other means indeed there are , which you have pursu'd , and which it may be you understand by this expression : and then we neither deny your assertion , nor envy you the glory of being singular in your endeavours of procuring peace by them . such are , . the means of force and violence ; your holy leagues , and private treacheries , your inquisitions , plots , persecutions , and such like . . the means of fraud and deceit , your false expositions and misrepresentations of your doctrine to deceive the ignorant and unwary , till you get them into your nets . . the means of confidence and uncharitableness , your bold anathema's and vain thundrings of damnation against all that differ from you , your assuming the name and priviledges of the church catholick to your single communion , and excluding all others out of it , as schismaticks and hereticks . and lastly , to mention no more , the means of gross ignorance , and blind obedience ; by depriving men of their liberty of reading the holy scripture , by keeping your service in an unknown tongue , by teaching men to depend intirely upon your churches dictates , and not to depart from them , tho sense , reason , scripture , all be contrary to them . these are , i confess , some of those peculiar means whereby you have sought to procure christian peace ; and experience tells you , that they are indeed the most advantageous of any to the cause you have to defend . and if these be the means which you say we have opposed , i hope we shall always continue so to do , and rather bear all the evils of these divisions , than either buy peace upon such terms , or pursue it by such means as these . . ad p. , . ] to what i observed from the late methods that had been taken up in our neighbour country to avoid the entring upon particular disputes , which i said you were sensible had been the least favourable of any to your cause , you reply , that you have never declined fighting with us at any weapon : which how true it is , the account before given of your managing the present controversie with us sufficiently declares . and indeed you seem in some sort to have been sensible of it ; and therefore recur to your antient authors for proof of your assertion . the sum of what you say is this : . reply . ] that there have been three sorts of protestants since the reformation ; . some who appealed to scripture only , neither would they admit of primitive fathers nor councils . . others who perceived that they could not maintain several tenets and practices of their own by the bare words of scripture , and despairing of fathers and councils of latter ages , pretended at least to admit of the first four general councils , and of the fathers of the first three or four hundred years . . others finally who ventured to name tradition as a useful means to arrive at the true faith. and all these you say you have convinced of their errors . . answ. ] it has always been your way to multiply sects and divisions among protestants as much as ever you were able , and then to complain against us upon the account of them ; and here you have given us a notable instance of it . the three opinions you have drawn out as so many different parties amongst us , do all resolve into the very same principle : that the holy scripture is the only , perfect , and sufficient rule of faith : so that all other authorities , whether of fathers , or councils , or unwritten tradition , are to be examined by it , and no farther to be admitted by us than they agree with it . this is in effect the common belief of all protestants whatsoever , as appears from their several confessions , and might easily be shewn out of the writings of our first reformers , and the most eminent of those who have lived since , and built their faith upon the same foundation . it is true indeed , there have been some who , the better to maintain their separation from the church of england , have from this sound principle , that nothing is to be received by us as a matter of faith , but what is either plainly expressed in the holy scripture , or can evidently be proved by it , drawn a very ill consequence , viz. that nothing might lawfully be done or used in the worship of god , unless there were some command or example for it in scripture ; and have by this means run themselves into great inconveniences . but the rule of faith , which an uninterrupted tradition , by the common consent of all parties of christians ; however otherwise disagreeing in other points , has brought down to us , and delivered into our hands as the word of god , this has among all protestants been ever the same , viz. the holy scripture . and if for the farther proof of the truth of our doctrine , we have at any time put the issue of our cause to the decision of the church of the first three or four hundred years , it is not because we suppose that those fathers who then lived ; have any more right to judg us , or determine our faith , than those that follow'd after ; but because upon examination we find them to have yet continued ( at least as to the common belief received and establish'd amongst them ) in their purity ; and that what was generally establish'd and practised by them , was indeed conformable both to their and our rule , the word of god. . this then is our common principle , and this you cannot deny to be most reasonable . for whatsoever authority you would have us give to those holy fathers , yet it cannot be doubted , but that , st , being * * * * * * men subject to the same infirmities with our selves , they were by consequence obnoxious to errors as well as we ; and therefore may not without all examination be securely follow'd by us . especially if we consider , dly , that we are expresly forbid in holy scripture , to rely on any persons whatsoever without enquiry , whether what they teach be true or not : dearly beloved , ( says st. john ) believe not every spirit , but try the spirits whether they be of god or no. the same is st. paul's doctrine , to prove all things , and then hold fast that which is good . st. peter exhorts all christians to be ready to give a reason of the hope that is in them : and our blessed saviour himself once gave the same encouragement , of examining even his own doctrine ; and why ( says he ) of your selves do you not judg that which is right ? nay but , dly , these holy fathers were not only capable of erring , but in many things they actually did err , and are forsaken by you upon that account . the millenary opinion was generally received in the first ages of the church . they derived it from st. john to papias , from him to justin martyr , irenaeus , melito , tertullian , &c. yet is this opinion now rejected by you . the doctrine of the necessity of communicating infants , was the common doctrine of the fathers in s. austin's time ; and is confess'd by your most learned men , cardinal perron and others to have been generally practised in the church for the first six hundred years : yet have you anathematized those who shall now assert , with those fathers , that there is any necessity at all of communicating children before they come to years of discretion . i need not say what heats arose between one of your own popes and st. cyprian about rebaptizing of hereticks ; and both of them in the wrong . the ancient fathers generally believed , that the souls of the blessed do not yet enjoy the vision of god : but from the time of pope john the xxii . the contrary is become the catholick doctrine among you . the necessity of communicating in both kinds , was believed in the time of pope gelasius , and the council of constance , in that very canon in which it took away the cup from the laity , yet confess'd that christ had establish'd it in both kinds , and the church constantly administred and received in both kinds , in obedience to his institution : but 't is now no less than damnation to say , that one kind alone is not sufficient . in the primitive church it was generally received , that the souls of the faithful , after they are deliver'd from the burden of the flesh , are in joy and felicity . now you teach that they go first to purgatory , a place of pain and sorrow , inferior in nothing but the duration , to hell it self . other instances i might add to shew , that you your selves do no otherwise follow the fathers , than as you esteem them to have follow'd the truth , and therefore have thought fit to forsake them in the several points i before mentioned : and therefore certainly you ought not to condemn us , if we pay no other deference to them : nor appeal to them but only as witnesses of the doctrine of the church in those times , not as judges and masters of our faith. . ad pag. iv. ] reply . and in all these several ways you say you have shewn us to be mistaken , insomuch that there has not been any thing like an argument produced against your faith , or to justify your schism , but what has been abundantly answer'd and refuted . . answ. ] this , sir , is a boast which i believe the world will think you might very well have spared at this time . i need not send you back , as you have done us , to our ancient authors ; and desire you once more to consider what has been offer'd , both from scripture and antiquity , by monsieur de mornay , aubertine , chamiere , blondell , daillé , larrogue , and others abroad ; by bishop jewel , bishop morton , a. b. usher , dr. j. forbes , dr. white , dr. barrow , and many more of our own country : and whose names among the wisest even of your own church are much more valued , than for a coccius or a brerely to be able to obscure them . i appeal only to the present times to witness against you ; and would intreat you , before you tell us any more of your performances , to give some good reply to that catalogue i have sent you of above fourty treatises lately published in all these kinds of arguments that you speak of ; and your declining of which do's not very well suit with such vain pretences . . ibid. ] you add ; that you have so far complied with the infirmities of your adversaries , that you have left no stone unturn'd to reduce them to the unity of the faith , and that by meekness as well as powerful reasoning . . answ. ] it must be confess'd indeed that you have not been wanting in your endeavours to convert us . your zeal has even equall'd that which our saviour christ once remark'd , or rather reproved in your predecessors the scribes and pharisees : and i would to god it had not too often produced the same effect also . as for the means that you have made use of for the carrying on of this work , i have already in part recounted them to you . and shall only now add , that if your meekness has been no greater , than your arguments have been powerful , we shall have as little cause to applaud the one , as we have hitherto had to be convinced by the other . and indeed whosoever shall consider your behaviour towards those you call hereticks ; will find that some other word would better have suited your character than that of meekness . if there be any , who deluded by your present pretences of moderation doubt this , let them look only upon the actions of a neighbour kingdom , and whose clergy has ever been esteemed the most moderate of your church . for if such a deportment as theirs towards our brethren , be the meekness you boast of ; i shall only beg leave to say with solomon , that then the tender mercies of some men are cruel . but you go on to shew us wherein you have made a testimony of this meekness : you say , . ibid. ] you have not only condescended to satisfy the curiousity of them that have more leisure by writing large volumes upon every particular controversy — but you have gone a shorter way to work ; and to some have manifested the unerrable authority of the church of christ , against which he had promised that the gates of hell should not prevail . others you have shew'd it from the nature of truth and error , and the impossibility that a universal tradition could fail , especially when god had promised that the words he would put into their mouths , should not depart out of their mouths , nor out of the mouths of their seed , nor out of the mouth of their seeds seed , from hence forth and for ever . to others you have proved the innocence and antiquity of your doctrine from the testimony of learned protestants themselves . . answ. ] this indeed was a great condeseension ; that being so well satisfied on all these accounts that you had the truth your selves , you should so far vouchsafe , as for our sakes , to prove that you had so . but truly , unless you can produce some better proof that your church cannot error than this , that our saviour once said of his church , that the gates of hell should not prevail against it , you will never satisfy any reasonable man of it . how often , sir , have you been told , that here is something indeed to establish the perpetuity of the church , but nothing of its infallibility . unless you will suppose ( what you know we utterly deny ) that the church cannot subfist except it be infallible in every point . the church may fall into many errors , and yet continue a church still . a man is never the less a man , because he has an ague , or some other distemper upon him. and whilst the church thus subsists , christ's promise is made good , that the gates of hell should not prevail against it . though now , dly , were the infallibility of the church in this text clear to a demonstration , yet still the main thing would be wanting , how to prove your church to be the catholick church , and to have alone the right to this promise , which for ought appears from this passage any other may pretend to upon as good grounds as she. . again ; as to the point of tradition , with what confidence can you say it is impossible that should fail , seeing the instances i have before given of your departure from the tradition of the primitive fathers in so many particulars , plainly show that it has fail'd ? for your argument which you alledge from isa. . . it has the same faults with the foregoing , and one more . for that passage ; st , if it speaks any thing at all of these matters , it is for the perpetuity , not infallibility of the church . dly , that there is not one word in it of any priviledg , either in the one or the other kind bestow'd upon your church in particular ; and the greek , or any other church may as reasonably argue from it as your selves . nay , dly , 't is plain from the context that it do's not belong to any of us , the covenant here spoken of being made with zion , and those that turn from transgression in jacob ; that is ( as st. paul himself applies it , rom. . ) to the covert jews , when they shall come in and embrace the gospel of christ. . and for your last method , the concessions of protestants themselves , this will but little avail you : seeing if it could be proved that any of our particular writers had said some things in favour of your doctrine , this would be of no force against any but themselves , any farther than their arguments shall upon examination be found to warrant their assertions . we have often told you , that our faith depends not on any humane authority . such concessions may shew the weakness or error of him that made them , but they are nothing available to prescribe against the truth of the gospel . and this , i say , supposing that you could produce the opinions of protestants ( as you pretend ) in favour of your doctrines ! but now let me tell you , the collection to which you refer us , has been found so very insincere by those who have had occasion to examine it , that should we allow these kind of authorities to be as conclusive against us as you can desire , you would not yet be able either to advantage your selves , or to convince any others by them . . ad pag. . ] you see , sir , what little reason we have to expect very much from these methods , which in your great humility you have condescended to make use of in order to our conversion . and we cannot but congratulate our good fortune , that you seem to tell us you have yet some better arguments in reserve ; those which you say might have been brought to prove the authority of your church . and though you think us so fond of flying off to particular disputes , that no arguments can keep us from them ; yet i do hereby promise you , that when-ever you shall have clearly made out this proposition , that the church of rome is infallible , and whatsoever she proposes to be received by us is the truly catholick faith , without which there is no salvation ; and then shew me , how i shall infallibly know , amidst so many different proposals of her doctrine , what that faith is which this church teaches as necessary to that end ; i will from thenceforth become as blindly obedient a disciple , as the most implicit believer whose credulity you have ever yet imposed upon with these pretences . . ibid. ] for your next allegation , that you could never get us to take your doctrine aright , if what i have heretofore said be not sufficient ; i will once more put you in mind that you must first resolve to answer from point to point , the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented , before you can expect to be credited by us . and if from what we have truly said concerning you , you are indeed grown to be look'd upon ( in your own words ) to be as bad as devils , and your doctrines as the dictates of hell it self ; though i believe in this excess you do something misrepresent both your selves and us ; you may attribute it if you please to our calumnies against you , but i believe all indifferent persons will be able to find out some better reasons for it . . ad pag. . ] as for your expositions which you from hence thought fit to publish to the world , as your last reserve for our conversion ; the world is sufficiently satisfied with what sincerity you have proceeded in them . and for what you add , in the close of this first point , concerning the character of the times that we are fallen into , such as you say s. paul foretold , in which men will not endure sound doctrine ; it is indeed too true , but withal it is such a complaint as is equally made on all hands , whilst every one thinks his own way the best . but i will , in return , send you to another character of the same apostle concerning these days , which is all your own , thess. . vers . , to the th ; and i think it is so plain , that you may without an infallible interpreter understand the meaning of it . . and thus far you pursue the former consideration , of the state of the controversy between the papists and protestants in general . your next work is to give some accounts of your disputes with us of this church in particular . . you begin with the history of the first conversion of the english by augustine the monk , sent hither by pope gregory the great . but your account of it is so very uncertain , that i would willingly hope , however you quote bede for it , yet that you never read one word of him , but took it upon the credit of one of your new converts , whose errors in this point you have as blindly embraced , as his book testifies him to have most implicitly taken up your prevarications . . ad pag. . ] reply . you tell us , that notwithstanding the long want of intercourse with rome , and the members of that communion , occasion'd by great oppressions and persecutions during the reign of pagan kings , yet had there not many errors crept into this christian part of the nation . for s. augustine found only two customs amongst them which he could not tolerate , the one their keeping easter at a wrong time , and the other some errors in the ceremonies in administring baptism . these two he earnestly sollicited them to amend , but they were obstinate , and would not suffer any reformation in those two points , till god was pleased to testify his mission , and the authority he came with , by the authentick seal of miracles . . answ. ] in which relation you are many ways mistaken . for , st , as to the intercourse that you say was a long time lost between rome and the british churches , by reason of the persecutions of pagan kings ; this is not easy to be credited : it being the middle of the th century e're the romans left this island , and the saxons were called into it . it was near the middle of the th before the britains were disposses'd of the rest of their country , and forced to retrench themselves within the mountains of wales . during all this time their intercourse with rome , if they had any , might well have continued ; and it was not fifty years after , that austin the monk came into england . dly , you say , that austin found only two customs among the christians here that he could not tollerate . 't is true indeed , upon the second meeting that he had with the brittish bishops , he told them , that though in many things they were contrary to the custom of his church , yet if in those two mentioned they would obey him , and joyn with him in preaching the gospel to the saxons , he would bear with them in the rest : but did they therefore acknowledg his authority in complying with his desires ? so you would make us believe . they were obstinate , say you , till god was pleased to testify his mission , and the authority he came with by the authentick seal of miracles . as for his miracles , we have no great opinion of their authority , since we read in the passage to which i just now referr'd you , that antichrist himself shall come with this attestation . it is the doctrine that must give credit to the miracles , not these to the doctrine . should an angel from heaven preach any other gospel than that which we have received , st. paul has commanded us , for all the wonder , to bid him be anathema . but i return to the history , in which you so notoriously prevaricate , that i cannot imagine how one that pretends in this inquisitive age to deliver the antiquities of his own country , durst betray himself so notoriously ignorant of it . see , sir , the words of your own author bede , expresly contrary to your allegation . but they answer'd , that they would do nothing of all this , nor receive him for an arch-bishop . insomuch that austin came to high words with them , threatning them with that destruction which they afterwards , to their cost , met with from his new saxon converts . and your illustrious annalist card. baronius , cannot forbear making some severe reflections upon the state of our island at that time , as if god had therefore given it into the hands of the barbarians , because of the refractory and schismatical minds of these bishops . . ibid. ] reply . your adversaries ( you say ) acknowledg , that when st. austin came into england , he taught most , if not all the same doctrines the roman catholick church now teaches , &c. . answ. ] if s. austin ( as you call him ) taught the same doctrine which pope gregory the great taught , who sent him hither , and whose disciple we are told he was , i must then put you in mind that a very learned man has lately shew'd you ( and i may reasonably presume you could not but know it ) that he did not teach most , much less all the doctrines which you now teach . no , sir , the mystery of iniquity was not yet come to perfection ; and tho your church had even then in many things declined from its first faith , yet was it much more pure than now it is . had you when you took this pretence from your friend mr. brerely , look'd into the answer that was at large made to it ; i am perswaded you would have been asham'd to have again advanced so false and trifling an objection . look , sir , i beseech you into the protestants appeal , or if that be too much for one of your employments , look into the treatise to which i refer you : there you will find , . that the scripture was yet received as a perfect rule of faith. . the books of the maccabees , which you now put into your canon , rejected then as apochryphal . . that good works were not yet esteem'd meritorious : nor , . auricular confession a sacrament . that , . solitary masses were disallow'd by him : and , . transubstantiation yet unborn . that . the sacrament of the eucharist was hitherto administred in both kinds : and , . purgatory it self not brought either to certainty or to perfection . that by consequence , . masses for the dead were not intended to deliver souls from those torments : nor , . images allow'd for any other purpose than for ornament and instruction . . that the sacrament of extreme unction was yet unform'd ; and even . the pope's supremacy so far from being then establish'd as it now is , that pope gregory thought it to be the fore-running of antichrist , for one bishop to set himself above all the rest . these are the instances in which you have been shewn the vast difference there is between pope gregory's doctrine , and that of the council of trent ; and which may serve for a specimen to satisfie the world with what truth you pretend , that we acknowledg that s. austin when he came into england , taught most , if not all the same doctrines that you now teach . and this may also suffice for your next argument founded upon it , viz. . add pag. , . ] reply : that these doctrines and practices were either then taught and exercised by the british christians also , or they were not . if they were not taught by them , certainly we should not have found them so easily submitting to them . if they were taught by the british bishops also , then they were of a longer standing than s. austin ' s time : and we must either grant they were introduced by the first preachers of the gospel here , or evidently shew some other time before st. austin when this church embraced them . . answ. ] a dilemma is a terrible thing with sense and truth , but without them 't is a ridiculous one ; as i take this to be . for , . it is evident from what i have before said , that austin did not teach the same doctrines , nor establish the same practices that you do now teach and establish ; but did indeed in most of your corruptions differ from you . so that like the unwise builder , you have erected a stately fabrick , and founded it upon the sand. . had he been as very a romish missionary as your self , yet is your argument still inconclusive . for whereas you suppose the brittish bishops submitted to him , they were on the contrary so far from either obeying his authority , or following his prescriptions , that , as i have shewn you , they utterly rejected both : and i will presently add , that for above a hundred years after his death , they utterly refused so much as to communicate with his proselytes , nor esteem'd them any more than pagans . so that i may now turn your own argument upon you , that seeing they had such an abhorrence for austin and his followers , that they look'd upon them no better than heathens , it very probably was , because they neither approved what he taught , nor saw any cause to submit to that authority to which he pretended . you see , sir , what an admirable argument you here flourish with ; and how little cause we have to expect any great sincerity from you in other matters , when in the very history of your own country you so wretchedly prevaricate , and against the express authority of that very person whom you quote for your relation . . having thus given us a proof either of your skill or your integrity in the account of the first conversion of our island under pope gregory the great ; you next make a very large step as to the progress of your religion , and such as still confirms me more and more , how very unfit you are to turn historian . . add pag. . ] reply . this faith and these exercises ( say you ) taught and practised by st. austin were propagated down even till king henry the viiith's time . answ. ] in which account , whether we are to complain of your ignorance or your unsincerity , be it your part to determine ; this i am sure , they cannot both be excused . . i have already shewn you that that faith which was found in the church of england in king henry the viiith's time could not have been propagated down from the time of austin's coming hither , seeing that monk neither taught nor practised the greatest part of those corruptions which were afterwards by degrees brought into ours , as well as into the other churches of the roman communion . but however not to insist upon this fundamental mistake : can you , sir , with any conscience affirm , that the doctrine which you now teach was till king henry the viiith's time without interruption received and practised in this country ? . first ; for the brittish bishops whom you before bring in as submitting themselves to austin ; your own author bede expresly declares that in his time ( which was an hundred years after the death of austin ) they entertain'd no communion with them . seeing ( says he ) to this very day it is the custom of the britains to have no value for the faith and religion of the english , nor to communicate with them any more than with pagans . which henry of huntingdon thus confirms : that neither the britains nor scots , ( i. e. irish ) would communicate with the english , or with austin their bishop any more than with pagans . so that for one age , at least , the british bishops then neither own'd the authority of your church , nor had any manner of communion with the members of it . but , . secondly ; have you never heard of some other kings of england , who , with their parliaments , have most stifly opposed the pretences of the pope , and refused all messages from him , and made it no less than high-treason for any one to bring his orders or interdicts into the kingdom ? what think you of another henry , no less brave than his successor , whom you so revile , in his defence of himself against his rebellious subject , but your saint , thomas a becket ? i could add many acts of parliament made long before king henry the viiith's time to shew you , that tho he indeed proved the most successful in his attempts to shake off the pope's authority , yet that several other of our princes had shewn him the way , and that the usurpations of that see were neither quietly own'd , nor patiently submitted to by his royal predecessors . and then , . thirdly ; for the matter of your doctrine , it must certainly be a great piece of confidence in you to pretend that this came down such as you now believe and practise , from the time of austin the monk , to king henry the viiith's days . i speak not now of the great opposition that was made to it by wickleffe , tho supported by the duke of lancaster , the lord marshall of england , and divers others of chiefest note in this kingdom , in the time of edward the third , and richard the second . i need not say in how many points he stood up against the doctrine of your church ; what a mighty interest he had to support him against the authority of the pope , and the rage of the bishop of london and his other enemies on that account ; so as both freely to preach against your errors , and yet die in peace in a good old age. the number of his followers was almost infinite , and tho severe laws were afterwards made against them , yet could they hardly ever be utterly rooted out . but yet , least you should say that wickleffe was only a schismatick from your church , which constantly held against him ; i will rather shew you in a few instances , that even the church of england it self , which you suppose to have been so conformable to your present tenets , was in truth utterly opposite to your sentiments in many particulars . and because i may not run out into too great a length , i will insist only upon two , but those very considerable points . . the first is the doctrine of transubstantiation : which as it came but late into the roman church , so did it by consequence into ours too . certain it is , that in the th century the contrary faith was publickly taught among us . now , not to insist upon the authority of bede , who in several parts of his works , plainly shews how little he believed your doctrine of trans●bstantiation ; this is undeniably evident from the saxon homily translated by aelfrick , and appointed in the saxons time to be read to the people at easter before they received the holy communion ; and which is from one end to the other directly opposite to the doctrine of the real presence as establish'd by your council of trent . and the same aelfrick in his letters to wulfine bishop of scyrburne , and to wulfstane archbishop of york , shews his own notions to have been exactly correspondent to what that homily taught . the housell ( says he ) is christes bodye not bodelye , but ghostlye . not the bodye which he suffred in , but the bodye of which he spake when he blessed bread and wyne to housell a night before his suffring , and said by the blessed bread , thys is my bodye , and agayne by the holy wyne , this is my bloud which is shedd for manye in forgiveness of sins . understand nowe that the lord who could turn that bread before his suffering to his bodye , and that wyne to his bloude ghostlye , that the self-same lorde blesseth dayly through the priestes handes bread and wyne to his ghostlye bodye and to his ghostlye bloud . all which he more fully explains in his other letter . nay it appears by a recantation of wickleffe mention'd by knyghton , that even in the latter time of that man's life there was no such doctrine then in england as transubstantiation publickly imposed as an article of faith. by all which it is evident that your great doctrine of the real presence with all its necessary appendages , was not , as you pretend , propagated down from austin's to king henry the eight's time , but brought in to the church some hundreds of years after that monk died . . the other instance i shall offer to overthrow your pretences is no less considerable , viz. the worship of images . it is well known what opposition was made not only by the emperor charles the great , and the fathers of the synod of franckfort , but by the french clergy in their synod at paris , and by almost all the rest of the bishops of the western church against your pretended general council of nice , wherein this doctrine was first establish'd . the definitions of this council being sent to the emperour out of the east , he transmitted a copy of them into england . hereupon alcuinus , who had formerly been his school-master , wrote an answer to him in the name of the clergy of england , to declare their dislike of this doctrine : and the account of which our ancient histories give us in these words . in the year from the incarnation of our lord charles king of france sent to britain a synode booke which was directed unto him from constantinople : in the which book alas ! many things unconvenient and contrarye to the true fayth were found : in especial , that it was establyshed with a whole consent almost of all the learned of the east , no less than of three hundredth bishops or more , that men ought to worship images , the whiche the churche of god doth utterlye abhorre . against the whiche alcuine wrote an epistle wonderouslye proved by the authoritye of holy scripture , and brought that epistle with the same booke , and names of our byshops and princes to the king of france . and thus neither was this doctrine nor practice propagated down from austin to king henry the eighth ; but on the contrary unknown to austin , and rejected as you see by the church of england , almost years after his first conversion of it . . ibid. ] and this may suffice to shew both your skill in church-history , and the little pretence you have for that vain and most false assertion , that your religion was taught and practised by s. austin , and propagated down even to king henry the eighth ' s time ; whereas indeed it is made up of such corruptions as crept into it long after his decease . your next business is to rail at king henry the eighth , which you do very heartily , tho let me tell you that better men than you are , even of your own commuion , and who were much more acquainted with the affairs of those times , speak better things of him . and had he been as bad as you are able to represent him , yet i could send you to some of the heads of your church , who have as far excell'd him in wickedness as ever any of your canonists have pretended they did in authority . but the merits of princes , as well as ordinary persons , are measured by some men , not according to their real worth , but as they have served their interests , or opposed the usurpations . and tho king henry the eighth be now such a monster , yet had he not thrown off the pope's supremacy , you would have made no difficulty to have forgiven him all his other sins whilst he lived , and would have found out somewhat to justify his memory now he is dead . we know how one of the best popes of this last thousand years called heaven and earth to celebrate the praises of a traytor that had murder'd his master , and possess'd himself of his empire . and cromwell himself , tho a usurper , and heretick , yet wanted not his panegyrists among those pretenders to loyalty , who now cannot afford a good word to the honour of a prince , from whose royal line their present sovereign at this day derives his right to the crown he wears . . but however , were the vices of that prince otherwise never so detestable ; yet i shall leave it to the world to judg who proceeded with the most care and sincerity in the point you insist upon of his divorce with q. catherine : the king who consulted almost all the learned men , as well as the most famous universities of europe , and then acted according to their determination : or the pope who by his notorious jugling with him in the whole process of that affair , shew'd that he resolved to decide it not by any laws of god or the church , but meerly as his greater interests with the emperor or the king should move him to do . . ibid. ] the next step you make is from king henry , to his son king edward the sixth . and here you tell us , reply , p. . ] that as schism is commonly follow'd with heresy , so now the protector , who was tainted with zuinglianism , a reform from luther , endeavour'd to set it up here in england . in which you again discover your zeal against us , but not according to understanding . there is hardly any one that knows any thing of the beginning of this reformation , but will be able to tell you that the chief instrument of it was one whom you have not once mentioned , arch-bishop cranmer . i will not deny but that the protector concur'd with him in his design , but whether he was zuinglian , or what else , neither you nor i can tell . dr. heylin , who on this occasion is usually your oracle , seems rather to think he was a lutheran , tho easie to be moulded into any form . but this i know , that had you been so well vers'd in these things , as one who pretends to write historical remarks ought to be , you would have spared that idle reflection of zuinglius's being a reform from luther , it being evident to those who understand his history , that neither himself , nor the cantons in which he preach'd were ever lutherans . but on the contrary , whereas luther appear'd but in the year , zuinglius began to preach against the corruptions of the church of rome some years before , when the very name of luther was not yet heard of : and had several conferences with cardinal matthews then in switzerland to this purpose , before ever the other appear'd in publick against them . so unfortunate a thing is it for men to pretend to be witty upon others , without considering their own blind side . but you go on ; . ad pag. . ] reply . and from that time the catholick doctrine which had been taught by our first apostles , and propagated till then , began to be rejected and accused as erroneons , super stitious , and idolatrous , and they who profess'd it , persecuted . answ. ] this is still of the same kind , as false , as it is malicious . how false it is that the doctrine you now profess was either planted here by our first apostles , or propagated till this time in the church of england , i have already shewn . and for the persecution you speak of , methinks you should have been asham'd to mention that word , being to name q. mary's reign in the very next line . but what at last did this persecution amount to ? were any roman catholicks banish'd , or put to death for their religion ? were the laws turn'd against them ; or any dragoons sent to convert them ? no ; bonner and fisher , and two others , heath bishop of worcester , and day bishop of chichester were deprived of their bishopricks , and the three first imprison'd . a very few of the inferiour clergy suffered in the same manner , and all after much provocation . this was the very utmost of what you call persecution : and soon after we meet other kind of trials : for this king dying , . ibid. ] reply . you tell us the catholick religion began again to bud forth under q. mary . answ. ] and then as if you were afraid of burning your fingers in those fires which her * * * * * * persecution kindled against us ; you immediately pass to her sister's succession : and to whose reign i will so far comply with you , as to pass without one word of reflection , which you know i might here have occasion enough to make . . ibid. ] reply . but that bud being early nipped by her death , queen elizabeth , by the advice of the new council which she chose , and to secure her self in the throne , resolved to destroy the catholick interest , and set up a prelatick protestancy , which might have the face of a church . but other pretended reformers opposed her prelats , and call'd their orders anti-christian , and would needs have the rags and remnants of popery , as they called them , taken away : telling them , that if the word of god was to be the sole rule of reformation , such things as were not to be found in that rule were certainly to be rejected . answ. ] the method by which queen elizabeth proceeded in her reformation , was such as will sufficiently justify both her piety and prudence in the choice of it . never was more care taken that nothing should be done out of interest or passion ; but all things be establish'd upon the best and surest foundations . and had not some misguided zealots , out of a too great affection to those models they had seen abroad , run into unreasonable oppositions at home , the church of england had at this day been the most flourishing , as it is the most primitive church in the world. . but though this then be a matter justly to be lamented by us , yet certainly you have no cause to complain of that great queen's proceedings towards you . it is well known how many years pass'd before any severe laws were made against recusants ; and how the attempts of the pope , and the king of spain from abroad , and of your brethren in compliance with them at home , forced her to that severity , which was afterwards , but with great moderation , used against you . bonner , though infamous for his cruelties in queen mary's days , was yet suffered to go in safety now . heath lived not only in great security , but even in favour with the queen her self . tonstal and thirleby , found a retreat with the arch-bishop at lambeth : the rest of the bishops continued in quiet amongst us ; only three chose to retire beyond sea. when the high commission was establish'd for visiting the churches of england , they were expresly ordered by her majesty's injunctions to reserve pensions for those that refused to continue in their benefices : and the reformation it self appear'd so reasonable to them , that of nine thousand four hundred beneficed men in england , there were but fourteen bishops , six abbots , twelve deans , twelve arch-deacons , fifteen heads of colledges , fifteen prebendaries , and eighty rectors of parishes that left their benefices upon the account of religion . consider , sir , this procedure , and then compare it with that of the queen her sister ; or if these things be too far out of your reach , look upon the methods that have been used in our neighbour country , and that not in the severe accounts of any particular persons , but in the publick edicts , in the report which one of your own party , monsieur le fevre has publish'd with the king's permission ; and then say freely , which has most in it of the true spirit of christianity , the meekness whereby this princess establish'd the truth in her kingdoms , or that furious zeal which has been employ'd to root it out of this other . . ad pag. . ] reply . from that time ( you say ) the nation has been variously agitated with disputes . answ. ] and give me leave to tell you we are in great measure to thank you for it . they were your brethren , that creeping into chambers and conventicles , under pretence of a purer reformation , endeavoured to divide us among our selves , and especially to draw as many as they could from the establish'd religion , which you have ever the most hated . such was faithfull commin in the th year * * * * * * : father heath in the th of that queen's reign : and both discover'd to be priests in masquerade . and it was in this very year † that the puritans chiefly began to appear : and the heads of them which our historians mention , hallingham , coleman , and benson , are named in a letter that dropt out of father heath's pocket , to have been some of your emissaries . how far the same policies have kept open our divisions since it is now no longer a mystery . we know how provision has been made to tutor up scholars , not only in learning , but in handy-craft trades too , in italy , france , germany , and spain : how they have been taught twice a week regularly to dispute pro and con , concerning presbytery , independency , anabaptism , atheism ; every one to take his part among us , according as his fancy or genius leads him . who was it but a st. omer's josuit that confess'd ( as we are credibly informed ) that they were twenty years in hammering out the sect of the quakers ? and indeed the principle they go upon to refuse all oaths , is a neat contrivance for priests and jesuits to avoid the oaths of allegiance and supremacy , without a possibility of being discover'd . but this may suffice to shew how unreasonable you are to complain of those divisions which your selves have in great measure been the authors of amongst us : and shall , i hope , make us hereafter better understand one another , than to give you any longer the opportunity of keeping up these differences amongst us , and then i am sure we need not much fear whatever you can do in your own shapes to ruin us . . ibid. ] during this time , you say , all things were carried to an extremity against you : so furious was our rage against the truth . answ. but certainly you here again make history , and do not report things as they truly pass'd in those days . i am sure if we may conclude any thing , either from the writings or actions of those times , nothing can be more moderate than we shall find them both to have been . it was then our xxxix articles were drawn up , and in which i am confident you will not have the face to say , that things were carried to any undue excess against you . and if the homilies in some particulars may seem somewhat severe , yet i believe there are but few expressions in them that you have not very well deserved . but this first dream gives you occasion in the next paragraph to run into a contrary extravagance , and that as groundless as the foregoing : for you add , . ad pag. , . ] reply . that things growing calmer in king james and king charles the first time , such calumnies and accusations ( as had before been used ) were looked upon by the more learned party as the effects of passion ; and moderation taught them to acknowledg the church of rome to be a mother-church , and that salvation was to be had in her. that many of those accusations which were brought against her , were but the dreams of distracted brains ; and the more moderate persons begun to look upon her with a more favourable eye . . answ. ] i wish you had here given us some proofs of what you say , that so we might have known who these learned men were , and what those charges that they begun to leave off against you . it is well known how earnestly king james wrote against your church ; king charles the first was your avow'd enemy even to his death : the most learned men of those times have left such volumes against you as you never were , nor ever will be able to answer : and i shall hereafter shew you , that even those whom you alledge as excusing you from idolatry ( which is i believe in your own estimation , our severest charge against you ) are for all your preten●… far from thinking that there is either falshood or calum●… in such an accusation . . it is therefore great confidence in you , without the least shadow of authority for what you do , to represent such eminent persons as favourers of your doctrine . but ●…s has been ever your way , and we ought not to wonder at it , seeing we can remember the time that we our selves were reported to be popishly affected : and it is but a few months since that some of you put out a book to shew an agreement at this day between the church of england , and the church of rome ; though i suppose he may by this time begin to repent of an undertaking , which has brought nothing but infamy to the author of so false and scandalous an attempt . . what you mean by our acknowledging your church to be a mother-church , i do not very well comprehend . we confess indeed it was a roman missionary that especially contributed to the conversion of the saxons : and this i believe no man ever denied ; but let me tell you , that if your own historian bede be to be judg , our country was much more beholden to the labours and prudence of the scots & french , than to the romans . look into the account that has lately been given by a learned person of our church in his answer to one of your new converts . there you will find that they were columba , aidan , ced , ceadda , finan , colman , trumhere , agilbertus , and felix , that restored christianity and propagated it among the saxons ; when the planting of it by austin was almost lost . insomuch that at the death of deus-dedit arch-bishop of canterbury , there was in all brittain but one bishop of roman ordination , remaining ; viz. wini , who called in two brittish bishops to his assistance for the ordaining of ceadda to be arch-bishop of york . and to shew what great obligations we have to own the church of rome as a mother-church ; when things are now in peace , and the paschal controversy laid aside , and great hopes that all things would come to a right understanding , wilfrid returning from rome , revived again the old quarrells , and forced colman and his followers to retire into ireland ; st. chad to leave his bishoprick of york ; and so deprived our country of the benefit of so many excellent pastors , as bede himself , no friend to them , could not chuse but give an extraordinary character of them . but that you may see what little reason we have to acknowledge your church above all others to be our mother-church , i will lay this whole affair in short before you . our whole island heretofore was divided into four languages ; of britains , scots , picts , and english. as for the britains , they were so far from being converted by austin , that at his coming he found an establish'd church amongst them , and that utterly refused to have any thing to do with him. for the scots , they were establish'd christians before austin's time , under palladius their bishop ; and your own annalist carries their conversion yet higher . the picts embraced our faith at the preaching of columbanus , who came hither out of ireland , years before austin's arrival . and lastly , for the english , tho we are far from detracting any thing from the labours of s. austin , yet neither may we forget that the glory even of their conversion is not his alone ; but must be ascribed to those other holy men who were his fellow-workers in the gospel , felix , aidan , ceadda , lethardus , &c. and some of which had begun before him , and prepared the way for that success which afterwards attended his preaching . . as to what you add , that they began to confess then too , that salvation was to be had amongst you ; it is what we do not any more deny at this day . we do hope that some men amongst you may be saved , because we hope there may be some in your church who live in a more excusable ignorance of the truth , and that these holding still the foundation , and being ready to submit to any conviction that should be offer'd , may by god's grace , and a general repentance , even for their very errors among the rest of their unknown sins , be saved through faith in christ jesus . but yet that you may not mistake our charity , give me leave to tell you , ( . ) that we think it much more difficult for any one to be saved in your church now , than it was before the reformation ; because that then your errors were neither so well known , nor so fully refuted as they have been since : and therefore ignorance was in those days much more invincible , and by consequence more fit to excuse than it is now . ( . ) that for those who live , as you do , in a country where you might , would you sincerely apply your selves to it , find sufficient means of instruction , it is yet more dangerous than in those parts where these helps are wanting . but especially ( . ) will this hold good against you whom god has call'd to be the pastors of his church , and whose character engages them to be in an especial manner , sedulous and inquisitive ; earnest in their prayers , and unprejudiced in their desires to know the truth , more than against the lay-members of your church . so that however we will not judg you , yet neither can we with any comfort say that god will acquit you . and ( . ) for those whom by this argument you endeavour to draw away from us ; that we confess that men in your church may be saved , but that you utterly deny that they can be in ours , and therefore it is best for them to be on yours , that is , the safer side . if they do indeed use all possible means to be satisfied in the points in debate betwixt us ; if they indifferently apply themselves to the examination of them ; and after a diligent trial , remain at last convinced in their consciences that yours is the best and purest church ; we shall then be encouraged to hope well of them , as we do of others of your communion , notwithstanding such a change . but now , should interest , or prejudice , or any humane motives chance to have interposed to byass their judgments ; if they chuse your religion , without this diligent , and impartial examination , and suffer themselves without reason to be seduced by you : we must freely profess our charity in this assertion is not meant for them ; nor do we think your church in this case any way of salvation at all to such converts , much less a safer than that of the church of england . in short , the sum of this matter is ; we hope honest men may be saved in your communion ; but we are sure they shall be in ours . whether god will condemn you for professing errors that you do not know to be such , we cannot tell , we believe he will not ; sure we are he would damn us , should we who are convinced of your corruptions , be seduced by any base motives to go over to you . and this is enough for us to know ; the other is your concern , and do you look to it . but you go on , and tell us ; . ibid. ] reply . that the aversion which the people had imbibed from so long continu'd slanders , could not be removed ; and the arising factions in the state blew up the coals afresh , and pretended this moderation was nothing but an inclination to popery , which so frighted the mobile , that they were ready to join with any party that pretended to suppress such a monster as they thought it to be : from hence came rebellions , and the horrid murder of king charles the first . . answ. ] that the people had an aversion to popery then , i can easily believe , from what i have the satisfaction to find in them at this day . but that this aversion sprung from any slanders that had been laid upon you heretofore , i no more believe , than i do that it proceeds from our misrepresenting your doctrine now . no , sir , believe me , there is enough in popery to make an honest man hate it , without raising any calumnies against it to render it the more odious : and i do not find since your endeavours to vindicate your selves against us , that it begins to be at all more liked than it was before . . for what you mention of the original of the civil wars in king charles the first 's reign , i readily grant that the fears of popery contributed much to blow up the people into rebellion . but i am perswaded we must look somewhat farther , if we mean to rise up to the true authors of them . shall i tell you freely what i think ? i do believe there was more at the bottom of those civil wars , than either the people did then believe , or it may be the wisest men are at this day able sufficiently to dive into . but yet thus much we do all know , st , that the king himself in the very first breaking out of them , observed , that the fanaticks proceeded upon popish principles against him . their maxims ( says he ) are the same with the jesuits ; their preachers sermons have been deliver'd in the very phrase and stile of becanus , scioppius , and eudaemon johannes . their poor arguments which they have deliver'd in their seditious pamphlets printed or written , are taken almost verbatim out of bellarmine and suarez ; and the means which they have used to induce a credit of their conclusions with their proselytes , are purely and meerly jesuitical fables , false reports , false prophesies , pretended inspirations and divinations of the weaker sex ; as if now herod and pilate were once again reconciled for the ruin of christ and of his true religion and worship . . that in the year , there was discover'd to the arch-bishop of canterbury a design , in which the pope , cardinal richlieu , many of the english papists , but especially the jesuits , were concerned in stirring up those divisions that had just before broke out in scotland , for the ruine of the king and of the arch bishop . this may be seen at large in the histories of those times , and the very papers themselves may be found in mr. rushworth's collections . . that sir william boswell , his majesty's resident at that time at the hague , and to whom this discovery was first made ; did find out that the romish clergy gull'd the misled party of our english nation under a puritanical dress . that they had received indulgences from the see of rome and council of cardinals , to educate their scholars in principles and tenets contrary to the episcopacy of the church of england . that within the compass of two years , above sixty of the romish clergy were gone out of france , to preach up the scotch covenant , and to pull down the english episcopacy , as being the chief support of the imperial crown of our nation . . that arch-bishop bramhal being in france , some time after the king's death , did there learn how all these things were managed : that in the year , above an hundred romish clergy were sent over into england ; who were most of them souldiers in the parliament army ; and were daily to correspond with the romanists in the king's army : that in the year . they had a consult with one another , wherein they discoursed about the death of the king , and england's being a commonwealth ; that hereupon the romish orders wrote to their several convents , but especially to the sorbonists , to know whether it might be lawful to make away the king and the prince ? in short , that the sorbonists return'd , that it was lawful for roman catholicks to work changes in governments for the mother-churches advancement , and chiefly in an heretical kingdom , and so lawfully make away the king. . * * * * * * that after the engagement at edge-hill , several romish priests were found among the slain of the parliament army . this father salmonet declares in his history of those civil wars , printed in france , with the allowance of the king : and adds , that the parliament had two companies of walloons , besides others of that religion in their army . . when the rebellion broke out in ireland , it was we know bless'd with his holinesses letters , and assisted by his nuntio , whom he sent on purpose thither for that service . † † † † † † lastly ; that monsieur du moulin has confirm'd this with several plain instances , which he declared himself ready to make a legal proof of before his judges , and after years attendance , in a new edition of his book desired once more that he might be called to account for it , and yet died without being ever attempted to be disproved . these things , i say , we know of this matter , and therefore tho i do confess that the fears of popery was the pretence to blow up the people , yet whether there might not be some other persons and designs at the bottom , i shall leave it to the reader to consider what credit he will think fit to give these relations , and then judg as he sees cause . . ad pag. . ] reply . during this war , there was ( you say ) a good understanding between the papists and the prelatick party , which was the cause of a no less pleasing union after the restauration of king charles the second till shaftsbury and his adherents invented a malicious calumny , laying a pretended plot to their charge — the truth of which being detected by a subsequent real one , the more moderate of the church of england again began to favour them : only still the laws enacted against them being in force , there were persons enough ready to put them in execution . answ. ] to all which i have nothing more to say , but that being come now to the affairs of our own times , i suppose every man is already satisfied what to believe as to these things : or , if he be not , i am sure there is nothing here to direct him . the accounts of these transactions have been publish'd by authority ; and those who desire more nearly to consider them , may recur to the history of the latter of the plots mention'd ; and to the several trials and narratives , especially to mr. coleman's letters , for his information in the former . . ad pag. . ] reply . in this posture were affairs , when it pleased god to take to himself his late majesty : no sooner was his present majesty ascended upon the throne , but he declared himself a catholick : yet was pleased to declare that he looked upon the church of england as proceeding upon loyal principles , and that he would protect her. this gain'd the hearts of that party , and had so much power over the parliament , that notwithstanding the conclusion of a sermon preach'd before them , in which it was declared , that an english man might be loyal , but not a papist , that parliament testified its loyalty to such a degree as shall never be forgotten . and thus after a long story nothing to the purpose , and that too fraught ( as we have seen ) with many falsifications , we are at last come to the point to be considered , of the controversies that are now depending betwixt the two churches , and the original whereof you here recount to us . . ad pag. , . ] reply . this was the occasion of our following controversies , and the first thing that appeared in print against the roman catholicks , tho the author of the present state of the controversies would not take notice of it . and the more considering men of your party ( you say ) look'd upon it as the throwing out of the gauntlet , and bidding defiance to all the catholicks of england . this produced a remonstrance from you , and that an answer from the doctor , and there ( as almost all our controversies have done since ) it ended , tho a reply was prepared and approved of . but it was thought fit by those ( who were to be obeyed ) to let the controversie die , rather than stir up a religious litigation upon a point which not only the protestations of catholicks , but their practices had justified them in . . answ. ] what you thought of that passage in dr. sherlock's sermon i cannot tell ; but others think that by your clamours against it you have given the doctor occasion to satisfy the world that what he had said was but too true . and since you tell us that there is an answer ready prepared and approved , and that the controversial spirit is now let loose , so that our quarrels will not be much increased by such an accession , i dare say the doctor will be very glad to see that answer , and whether it has force enough to convince him of his mistake . as for your pretence why you declined engaging any farther in this dispute , viz. that it was a point , which not only your protestations , but your practices had justified you in ; tho i readily acknowledg that the english-man has in many of your communion been too strong for the papist , ( and far be it from us to detract from their worth ) yet as to your assertion in the general , that both your protestations and practices have sufficiently justified you in this point , give me leave to tell you that we are not very forward to credit the one , because we have known too much of the other . we cannot so soon forget the names of mariana , suarez , bellarmine , of parsons , stapleton ; and many others of your communion , as not to remember what sort of loyalty has sometimes been taught in your schools . who were they that sainted thomas à becket , and have applauded even the assassines of some princes since , but the venerable heads of your church ? and in what esteem campian and garnet are at this day among you , we are not ignorant . when that wicked wretch j. castell assaulted henry the fourth of france , he found an apologist among you ; and the arrest of the parliament of paris against him , stands at this day among the prohibited books in the last index set forth at rome . they were these things that moved our king james the first , to set out his admonition to all christian princes against you ; and even that your card. bellarmine was not ashamed to answer , in defence of his doctrine of the popes authority over kings : in short , he that would know what credit is to be given to you in your assertion as to this matter , need only recur to mr. foulis collection , and i am confident he will then confess that the distinction the doctor made in behalf of his country-men of your religion , is the best apology that can be offer'd , and the most to the honour of our nation , tho it may be not so much for the credit of your church , viz. that your principles consider'd , the english man may be , i will add , and has often been found loyal , but then he has laid aside the papist to be so . . ad p. . ] reply . you tell us , that this imputation of the doctor 's , joyned with the mistakes that most men had conceived of your doctrine , gave occasion to the representer to shew your doctrines truly as they are in themselves , without the mixture of the particular opinions of the schoolmen , or the practices which are neither universally nor necessarily received . answ. ] and this book , tho it produced not any manner of authority for its representations , and was contrary in most points to the opinions of the chiefest writers of your church , soon received an answer in every particular . there your doctrine was truly stated from your own authors , his false colours detected , and to your shame never replied to . for i suppose no one will be so far mistaken , as to think that tristle that came out against it deserves the name of an answer . . ad pag. . ] and whilst this book yet subsists in its full force , and that we have so effectually shewn you the opinions of the most eminent divines of your church , the practice of the generality amongst you , and the very words of your councils and liturgies , to be utterly inconsistent with your new representations , that you are not able to make any reasonable defence of the one , and are forced utterly to reject after all the other ; what a forehead must that man have that can tell the world as you do , that we cannot deny ( what yet you complain of me in this very book for denying ) that all catholicks do believe according to that doctrine which the representer expresses , and which you in vain endeavour ( as i shall hereafter shew you ) to defend . . ad pag. . ] reply . during this dispute two books ( you say ) were publish'd , with the same intention : the first , the acts of the clergy of france in their general assembly , . in which was shewn in one column the doctrine of your church from the words of the council of trent , in the other the calumnies of protestants against you , from the very words of their authors . and this you think to have been so clear a proof of what the representer had said , that you suppose his adversaries would not think fit to contest it longer against such plain and ample testimonies . answ. ] and here you think you have found out somewhat to boast of : a wonder indeed not every day to be seen ; a book never yet answered by us . 't is true , i do not know of any one here at home , that has taken the pains to examine the clergy's quotations , as the answer to papists protesting against protestant popery has done , for the instances there offer'd by their humble imitator the representer . but then the discovery that was made by that worthy author of the whole cheat , by distinguishing matters of dispute , from matters of representation , has abundantly confuted all their pretences . we charge you ( for instance ) with idolatry , for worshipping of images , praying to saints , and for adoring the host. if you do not worship images , nor pray to saints , nor adore the host , then indeed we misrepresent you . but now for the other point , that therefore you commit idolatry , this is our consequence which we draw from those practices , and must be put to the trial betwixt us . if our reasons be good , our conclusion will be so too : if they are not , we are then mistaken in our opinion , and you may say we are in an error , but we do not therefore misrepresent you . we never yet pretended that you thought idolatry to be lawful ; or that you confess'd that you committed it : we accuse you of it only as a thing which upon the premises before mention'd , we conclude you to be guilty of ; and in that certainly , if we misrepresent any body , it must be our selves , not you . now this one thing being observed , the book you mention is utterly overthrown , and both the artifice and the evidence fall together . . ibid. ] the other book you tell us you publish'd was the bishop of meaux's exposition , and what has been done on this occasion is very well known , and i shall not need to give any account of it . . ad pag. . ] and thus have we done with the two points to which i reduced the sum of your preface : what farther remains is your advice to the readers of our books , what they are to take notice of , and what to pass over in them . you tell them that you will lay down the true state of the difference betwixt us , and that whatever they find written by us that does not immediately oppose some of those tenets , they should pass it over , tho never so plausible or pleasing . . now how politick such an advice as this may be to hinder the good effect of our writing , i will not dispute ; but sure i am it is highly unreasonable . for what if the very subject of the controversie should be ( as indeed at this time it is ) whether those things which you here lay down be your churches doctrine , or only your private exposition of it ? ought not the judicious reader in this case to consider our allegations , and see whether we have not reason to say that you do endeavour to delude them , by pretending that to be your belief , which in truth is not received by the generality of your church as such ? as for instance : you positively deny that the holy cross is upon any account whatsoever to be worshipped with divine worship . now this we deny too , and therefore as to this point there can be no dispute betwixt us . but now what if i should undertake to shew , that you here impose upon your reader , and that whatsoever you pretend , yet your church does teach , that the holy cross is to be worshipped with divine worship , and practises accordingly ? is not this think you fit to be considered by him ? or is the bishop of meaux's exposition become so far the guide in controversie in france and england , that all other expositions are to be look'd upon as superannuated , and this only to contain the true interpretation of your pretended catholick faith. . but indeed i do not wonder that you would perswade your proselytes not to read our books , since you easily guess that those things may well stagger them , which were not your obstinacy or your prejudices too strong , for your reason and conscience to grapple with , must long e're this have convinced , as they have sufficiently confuted , your own selves . . ad pag. . ] and because you are not willing to prolong disputes , you do here declare , that if the defender do meddle hereafter with such points as those which are not of necessary faith , you shall not think your self obliged to answer him , tho after that he may perhaps boast how he had the last word . answ. ] that is to say , the great business of the defender has been to discover your true doctrine , and yours to dissemble it . now if the defender makes any answer at all to your reply , it must be to maintain those doctrines to be yours which he had laid to your charge , and which you deny ; and this if he does , you here declare you will have done with him : which i think is plainly to confess , that you have had enough of this argument . . but , sir , the defender has such a kindness for his subject , and such a respect for you , that he is resolved not to part either with you or it . and therefore , for what concerns his subject , he will still make good in the several points in which he advanced it , his distinction of old and new popery against you , and which in your last defence you have been shewn your self to allow of : he will prove that you do palliate the ancient doctrine of your church ; and that greater men than any either the bishop of meaux or your self , have and do interpret your churches sense in a much other manner than you represent it . and to this you may return or not , as you think fit . for your self , he is resolved to be so far your humble servant as to joyn issue with you upon your own terms , and shew you how you have abused the world to no purpose at all ; for that even taking your doctrine as you misrepresent it , yet still we are not able nevertheless to embrace it . but then for your other proposal , of throwing aside all the rest of our points , only for the sake of those t●o which you mention , here he desires to be excused : it being much more for the edification of his friends the populace ( and whose applause you know he courts ) to give them a full prospect of your doctrine , and your misrepresentations of it , than to run the circle with you in the single point of the churches authority , in which they may more easily be amused and deluded by you . but you say , . ad pag. . ] reply . that you may be bold to foretell without pretending to be a prophet , that nothing of this will be done by me , but that i shall either still fly to the tenets and practices of particulars , or misrepresent your doctrine , or fob off your arguments with such an answer as i think sufficient to monsieur arnaud's perpetuité , which i said wanted only diogenes ' s demonstration to confute it . answ. ] i am very glad , sir , you profess your self to be no prophet , ( and i have long been convinced that you are no conjurer ) for if your arguments be no better than your guesses , i shall have a very easie task of it . i have already told you what method i resolve to proceed in , and i hope you will comply so far with me as to excuse one part of it , seeing i go utterly besides my measures to gratify your desires in the other . as for your fear that i should fob off your arguments , by which i suppose you mean that i shall endeavour to elude them with some imperfect answer , i do promise you it is groundless ; i will very carefully sift your reply to the bottom , and not let any thing , that is not very impertinent , pass my examination . but shall i beg leave now that i have satisfied yours , to confess my own fears ; and that is , that as far as i can yet judg by what i have hitherto read of your reply , i shall find but few arguments in it either to fob off , or to answer . for having already consider'd your calumnies , i much doubt by that time i have rectified your mistakes too , i shall have little more remaining to encounter . . as to monsieur arnaud's perpetuité , i do still say that diogenes's demonstration is the best confutation of it . the case in short is this ; monsieur aubertine has shewn in the first ages of the church , that the doctrine which we now embrace of the holy eucharist contrary to transubstantiation , was the ancient catholick doctrine of the church . this he confirms by a multitude of clear testimonies drawn out of the writings of those fathers who lived in those times . now for monsieur arnaud after this to think to confute this evidence by a logical argument , that had not the doctrine of transubstantiation been the doctrine of the church at the beginning , it could never have become so afterwards ; and that such a little shift is sufficient to overthrow all those testimonies , this must certainly be a meer reverie , ( you will i hope excuse me that expression , now you know the meaning of it ) and needs no other confutation , than to shew him that the matter of fact is evidently opposite to his pretences . . ad pag. . ] reply . but such things as these ( you say ) are now adays put upon the world without a blush : and they who are this day ingenuous , learned , honest men , shall be to morrow time-servers , blockheads , and knaves , if they chance to cast but a favourable eye towards popery . answ. ] o tempora ! o mores ! to what a sad state are we arrived , that men should be able to do such ill things , and yet not blush at them ! but what now is the matter ? why , men who were yesterday esteem'd very honest men , are the next found out to be knaves and time-servers . good sir , be not too hasty ; 't is possible this may be done , and yet no cause of blushing neither , unless for those persons who are so found out . for , . what if we mistook those men for honest men , who at the bottom were not so ? and when we saw our error , alter'd our opinion ? and as every thing that is done , must be done some day or other ; what if we took them for honest men to day , and to morrow find that they were not so honest ? is it any crime for one upon good grounds to change his mind in this case ? again , . there is a certain season when the worst man first begins to be so . now , what if one that had hitherto done nothing to forfeit his reputation , should begin to do such notorious ill things as to deserve our censure ? here we had both reason to believe him an honest man whilst he was so , and as much reason to believe him otherwise , since his actions have declared his change. so that then , for ought i can find , we must come at last to the grounds of these charges , before we can judg of them . and for that , whenever you will please to give us your instances of the persons who have been thus censured by us ; that have been heretofore esteemed honest , ingenuous men , and are now found out to be knaves and blockheads ; though i shall have no occasion to justify any such censure , till you can prove that i have been concern'd in passing of it ; yet i doubt not but those who have done this , will be able to give you abundant satisfaction for it . . ibid. ] reply . you conclude all with an insinuation , the most likely to catch those that are not well acquainted with you , of any thing in your whole book : that it is not likely you should palliate your doctrine to gain proselytes , seeing that proselyte the first time he should see you practise contrary to your doctrine , would be sure to return and expose your villany . answ. ] but yet to this i answer ; st , that 't is possible you may palliate your doctrine , and your proselyte never discover it . it is no such strange thing for men to profess one thing and do another ; and yet by subtle distinctions justify themselves to those who are prepared to deny sense and reason , rather than not believe them . you tell us for instance , that the holy cross is upon no account whatsoever to be worshipped ; and yet certainly your good-friday service directly leads you to it . but then if your new proselyte begins to enquire what this means ; presently you tell him a story of absolute and relative worship ; and he who knows nothing more of the matter than you are pleased to let him , humbly submits himself to yours and the church's judgment . . if we urge your expressions against you , and he fortunes to get something of this by the end ; either you confidently deny that you have any such words , ( a case which has happen'd to my self in this very allegation ) or if you are baffled there ; then 't is not ( for instance ) come , let us adore the cross ; but , come , let us adore christ who suffered on it : concerning which we must discourse a little by and by . . if this too fails , and we shew you plainly that you say , we adore thy cross , o lord : so that our saviour is himself distinguish'd from his cross which you worship ; then the cross there is put to signify christ's passion ; though i am afraid the adoring of christ's passion is something like that which you call jargon , and we in plain english , nonsence . . if even this be beaten off , and other hymns produced in which that cross is plainly specified which bore christ's sacred members ; the tree upon whose arms the price of the world hung : then you have your figures ready , 't is a metonymie in one line , a prosopopaeia in the next ; in the third a conjunction of both together : and with these quirks the poor implicite proselyte's head is turn'd round . he believes there is something meant by all these hard words , though he knows nothing of the matter ; and his opinion of your integrity , joined with the good assurance with which you pronounce your oracles , and thunder out your anathema's against us as hereticks and schismaticks ; calumniators , falsifiers , misrepresenters , and what not ? makes him that he no longer questions your pretences . . as for your authors he knows nothing of them ; or if he did , yet those who have so many tricks to elude such clear expressions of their publick rituals , could not want distinctions enough to expound them . or however a general out-cry against them as private men , and for whose opinions the church is not to answer , will at once silence all such allegations that they shall not make any the least impression upon them . by all which it appears that you may ( as we affirm you do ) palliate your doctrine , and yet your proselyte be never the wiser for it . . but now , dly , if he should discover something of this kind , yet is it not necessary , that he should therefore presently return and expose your villany . i will suppose that those few proselytes you have made , may all be reduced to these two kinds ; men of conscience , or men of interest and design . for the latter of these , whilst they serve their interests by the change , there is no great fear of their making any such dangerous discoveries . religion is not their concern ; and whether it be new popery or old that they embrace , they neither know , nor care : it is to them indifferent ; and they understand , as well as value , both alike . as to the conscientious converts , ( allowing for their capacities , and that they are able to overcome all the foremention'd difficulties , and to discover the cheat , which i fear is what the much greatest part of these are not able to do ) : it is indeed hard to say what a terrible conflict this will be apt to make in them . but yet the point of reputation , the opinion of the world , shame of return . and the dangers those commonly run who venture to reveal such sacred mysteries ; these considerations have sometimes kept good men a longer time in suspense , than any of your proselytes have yet had to resolve upon a return to us . and who can tell , what time and changes may one day bring forth ? . again : we know there have been many in your church , who though they have discover'd these prevarications , yet have thought , that as long as they did not themselves join in your errors , they might hold their tongues , and live quietly in an external communion with you : and their eyes have been so dazled with the splendor , succession , extent , &c. of your church , that they have preferr'd it with all its faults to others who seem to them to want these advantages . such were the famous george cassander , father barnes , and others that i might mention . nay , it is no very long time , since a person yet living , monsieur ferrand , has publish'd a book to shew , that were the church of rome as corrupt as we pretend it to be , yet we ought not nevertheless to separate from it . and should any of your converts be of this perswasion , they may still continue to all appearance in your church , though they see the errors , and your falsifications of the true doctrine of it . . but , dly , though i do affirm that what you publish is not the ancient doctrine of your church , yet i do not deny but it is that which you endeavour to make pass with your converts as such . this you teach your proselytes , the bishop of meaux his dioces ; and they rarely meet with any one that maintains the contrary . but this do's not hinder , that because this is the popery of a few english missionaries , and french expositors ; that therefore it has been all along the common doctrine of your church ; or is conformable to the practice of other countries at this day . and all men have not the leisure to go into italy or spain ; or the ability to read over your several authors for satisfaction in it . . but , thly , to quit all these suppositions ; yet since you make it no less than a mortal sin to have any doubts of your religion ; you are sure , as soon as any such arise in their minds to hear of it in confession from them . being thus acquainted with the first motions of this kind , you presently take all the ways imaginable to stifle them , and hinder them from coming to an open defection from you . so that though your proselyte should begin to stagger ; yet unless he utterly abandon your party without ever consulting you in it , ( which men of conscience will never do ) he is almost under an impossibility of ever doing it at all . . to all which i will add but this farther : which well may , and i am perswaded do's keep many from telling of tales , and exposing ( as you call it ) your villany ; and that is , that when you receive a new convert into your church , you require a terrible oath from him , never by any argument to leave or to forsake you , upon pain of perjury and damnation if he do's . and to the end the reader may know , what is the last step he is to make , if he has any thoughts that way ; and to convince him what little force there is in your suggestion , i will here transcribe it from your pontifical , in its full length . the oath that is ordered by the church of rome to be administred to a new convert . ( pontif. rom. ord. ad reconc . apost . schism . vel haeret. ) i. n. having found out the snare of division with which i was held , after a long and diligent deliberation with my self , am , by the grace of god , return'd with a forward and ready will , to unity of the apostolick see : and lest i should be thought to have return'd not with a pure mind , but only in shew , i do hereby promise , under the pain of falling from my order , and under the obligation of an anathema to thee bishop of such a place ; and by thee to peter prince of the apostles , and to the most holy father in christ our lord n. pope , and to his successors , that i will never through the perswasions of any persons whatsoever , or by any other means return to that schism , from which by the grace of our redeemer freeing me , i am deliver'd : but that i will always remain in all things in the unity of the catholick church , and in the communion of the bishop of rome ; and therefore i do say upon my oath , by god almighty and these sacred gospels , that i will without wavering remain in the unity and communion aforesaid ; and if ( which god forbid ) i shall by any occasion or argument divide my self from this unity , may i incurring the guilt of perjury , be found condemn'd to eternal punishment , and have my portion with the author of schism in the world to come . — so help me god , &c. thus do's your new proselyte swear himself firm to your party ; at least i 'me sure he is here required to do it . and now you may as well expect that a fellow conspirator should discover the treason he is to commit , as a convert thus engaged to you , ( though he should find it out ) expose your villany . an answer to the reply , &c. being a further defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england . introduction . it was the opinion of a late author concerning a very short treatise that he had publish'd upon most of the points in controversy between us and the church of rome ; that tho he had neither put himself to the expence of any new arguments against us ; nor produced the authority of either ancient fathers , or even of modern writers to back his assertions ; he had nevertheless answer'd in that one treatise , not only all those late discourses that had just before been publish'd by our divines on those subjects , but a great part of all the books and sermons that had ever been writ or preach'd against his church . tho i am not very fond of following any copy which that author can set me , and in this especially do think his vanity so ridiculous , that he is rather to be pitied than imitated ; yet being once more called upon for a farther vindication of my self , to another review of the most considerable articles wherein we differ from those of the other communion , i cannot but observe , that not only my present adversary has not advanced in this new attempt one jot beyond what i had before confuted , but that in all their books , their whole business is meerly to transcribe one another ; so that from the † † † † † † bishop of condom's exposition , even to the * * * * * * eye catechism , there is nothing new ; but the same answer that is made to one , do's really in effect overthrow them all . . 't is this has put me upon the troublesome design , not only of resuming and collating the bishop of meaux's exposition , and the vindication of it , with the reply that is now before me on every article ; but to search all those other treatises that have been publish'd since the representer first broke the peace with us : to convince the world that matters are now driven as far as they can go ; so that in reading any one of their books they may really find as much , as when they shall have taken the pains to consult them all . if this will not engage them to produce something more than they have yet done to answer our arguments , it shall at least i hope excuse us , if we from henceforth dispense with our selves the trouble of large confutations ; so that instead of transcribing again our own books , as often as they shall please to furnish out a new title to their old objections , we shall need only to direct them to those replies that have been already made ; and in which their pretensions have been confuted before they were publish'd . . it was the complaint of s. austin against such kind of antagonists as these in his time ; that whether out of too much blindness , by which even the clearest things are not seen ; or out of an obstinate stubbornness , whereby even those things which are seen , are not endured , they would defend their own unreasonable notions after a full answer had been given to them , as if it were reason and truth it self that they maintain'd . — and therefore ( says he ) what end shall there be of disputing , what measure of speaking , if we must always answer those that answer us ? for they who either cannot understand what is said , or are so harden'd with a spirit of opposition , that tho they did understand , yet would they not submit ; they answer , as it is written , and they speak iniquity , and are indefatigably vain . whose contrary sayings if we should as often refute , as they have resolved with an invincible forehead not to care what they say , so they do but by any means contradict our disputations ; who do's not see how infinite , and troublesome , and fruitless this would be ? the answer to the first article . you will excuse , sir , this little address to my reader ; i shall from henceforth keep close to your reply , and notwithstanding st. austin's insinuation to the contrary , attend you once more whithersoever you shall please to lead me. and to shew how exactly applicable what i have before said of your books in general , is to your reply above any in particular ; the first observation i have to make is , that for what concerns the common cause of religion in this first article , you have entirely taken , or rather indeed stollen it ( since i do not remember that you have once mention'd your author ) out of t. g's discourse against dr. stillingfleet , and which that most learned man had fully answered some years since . and yet you neither take notice of his answers , nor offer any one thing to prevent the same replies from being made by me to the same objections . . you begin your * * * * * * vindication with a scandalous charge of calumnies , misrepresentations , &c. this you persist in in your † † † † † † reply ; and so does ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ t. g. against his adversary . he tells him how in the prosecution of his argument , he should be forced to lay open his frequent contradictions , calumnies , and misrepresentations : by which the reader may now see that you meant me no harm in all these hard words against me ; but you found them in your author , and you transcribed the railing with as little judgment as you have done the reason of his books . after this short and civil preface , you tell me , . ad pag. . ] reply . that there was a time in which the * * * * * * genuine sons of the church of england , excused the roman catholick church of that odious imputation of idolatry ; and * some of them ( never † † † † † † excommunicated nor censured by the church of england for it ) maintain'd , that we cannot defend the charge of idolatry against the church of rome , without denying that church to be a true church , and by consequence without contradicting our selves , and going against the intention of the reformation , which was not to make a new church , but to restore a sick church to its soundness , a corrupt church to its purity , &c. [ see t. g. first answer , pref. p. . ] answ. ] had you but ingenuously own'd from whence you had taken this objection against our church , the reader would presently have known whither to have gone for the confutation of it . but seeing you are resolved to make it your own , i shall answer two things ; st , that what you have said is false . dly , that you either did , or ought to have known it to be so . . first , it is false that those whom from t. g. you are pleased to stile the genuine sons of the church of england , have excused your church of that odious imputation of idolatry , or by consequence did think that we could not defend it against you without contradicting our selves , and going against the intention of the reformation . . your first author is dr. jackson ; and he so far from excusing you in this point , as you most wretchedly assert , that in a set discourse under this very title , * * * * * * of the identity or aequivalency of superstition in rome heathen , and rome christian , he spends above sheets on purpose to prove the charge of idolatry upon you : and answers all your evasions , by which you endeavour in vain to clear your selves of the guilt of it . the very subject of his first chapter is to shew , that rome christian in latter years , sought rather to allay than to abrogate the idolatry of rome heathen ; p. . in his th chapter , having mention'd that conclusion of your church , * * * * * * that saints are to be worshipped with religious worship : he pronounces sentence against you in these very words , * this we say is formal idolatry . the title of his th chapter is positive , † † † † † † that the same expression of our respect or observance towards saints or angels locally present , cannot without superstition or idolatry be made to them in their absence . and in the th chapter , speaking of your form of commending a departing soul ; [ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ depart out of this world in the name of god the father almighty who hath created thee , in the name of jesus christ the son of god , who suffer'd for thee ; in the name of the holy ghost , who was poured forth upon thee ; in the name of angels and arch-angels ; in the name of thrones and dominions ; in the name of principalities and powers ; in the name of cherubims and seraphims ; in the name of patriarchs and prophets ; in the name of holy apostles and evangelists ; in the name of holy martyrs and confessors ; in the name of holy monks and hermites ; in the name of virgins , and of all god's saints and saintesses ; this day let thy soul be in peace , and thy habitation in holy sion . ] if ( says he ) thus they pray with their lips only , they mock god as well as the saints . if thus they pray with internal affection of heart and spirit , they really worship saints with the self-same honour wherewith they honour god — they might with less impiety admit a christian soul into the church militant , than translate it into the church triumphant in other names besides the trinity . they might better baptize them only in the name of god the father , and of s. francis , s. benedict , and s. dominick , &c. without any mention of god the son and holy ghost , rather than joyn these , as commissioners with them in dismissing souls out of their bodies . to censure this part of their liturgy as it deserves , it is no prayer but a charm , conceived out of the dregs and reliques of heathenish idolatry , which cannot be brought forth but in blasphemy , nor be applied to any sick soul without sorcery * * * * * * . . this is the first of our church-men that you say excused you from the odious imputation of idolatry . and since i perceive his authority is of some weight with you , as being one of the genuine sons of the church of england , which t. g. would not allow his adversary , nor it may be will you therefore esteem me to be ; i hope you will for his sake , who here charges your offices with charms and sorcery , as well as with superstition and idolatry , be from henceforth a little more favourable to my reflection on another occasion of your † † † † † † magical incantations . . i have been detain'd a little longer than i designed in this first author ; but i will make amends for it , by referring you for the ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ three next to the like account which * * * * * * dr. st. gave to your friend t. g. from their own words : as for † † † † † † mr. thorndyke , it is confess'd he was once in the opinion that you mention ; but you knew very well that he changed his mind before his death . you may see by an extract that has lately been ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ publish'd out of his will , what an ill notion he had of your church in general , and for the point before us , t. g's reverend and learned adversary eight years ago publish'd a paper from * * * * * * mr. thorndyke's own hand , in which , among other exceptions against you , he makes this his th : to pray to saints departed for those things which only god can give ( as all papists do ) is by the proper sense of their words down-right idolatry . if they say their meaning is by a figure , only to desire them to procure their requests of god ; how dare any christian trust his soul with that church , which teaches that which must needs be idolatry in all that understand not the figure . . such was the last judgment of this learned and pious man in this matter . if after this it be necessary to say any thing to his former opinion ; i will only observe , that the ground of it was this mistake , viz. † † † † † † that a christian church without renouncing the profession of the true god , cannot be guilty of idolatry . now this ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ card. bellarmine himself , and others of your church , do utterly deny : for ( says he ) it is idolatry , not only when one adores an idol leaving god , but also when an idol is adored together with god. . the last of your divines whom you cite as excusing you from idolatry , is the reverend * * * * * * dr. hammond : but your falseness is as notorious in him as in all the rest . for in a particular discourse of idolatry , § . he approves and explains the design of our homilies against the peril of idolatry : § . . he says , that your worshipping of images in the most moderate way that can be , is for ought he knows a kind of idol-worship , but to be sure a prohibited act : § . . that to put up those petitions to the blessed virgin which are terminated in her self , ( as many forms , if not her whole office may appear to be ) are acts parallel to the old idolatry . § . . that your worshipping of images , notwithstanding all your distinctions of worshipping god mediante imagine , or relativè , &c. is idolatry . § . . that the worship of the bread in the sacrament must certainly be idolatry . that your error about transubstantiation , and your good design of worshipping christ there may , he hopes , be some excuse for you ; but that your opinion will not hinder it from being at least material idolatry , and the worshipping of something that is not god. . so that now upon the whole it remains , that there is not so much as a shadow of truth in your assertion , that the true and genuine sons of the church of england have excused your church of the odious imputation of idolatry . my next business is to shew , that you did or ought to have known that there was not one word of truth in what you said . . now this will depend upon the answer which i shall leave any honest man to give to these two plain questions . . whether when you stole all this out of t. g. you either did not , or ought not to have known , that dr. st. had answered all these cavils many years since , and shewn that there was no truth nor sincerity in them ? . whether a man that quotes but six authors for an assertion derogatory to the establishment of their church , and contrary to the publick doctrine of the homilies and injunctions ; and to the private opinions of the generality of the divines of it , ought not to have been sure that those authors at least did affirm that which he pretends they did ? the latter of these will conclude against you , that you ought to have known that what you here say is false , because you ought to have examined these authors , and then you would have known it to be so . and for the former ( were not your conscience unfit to be appeal'd to in a matter of truth against your self ) i durst appeal to your own soul , whether you did not know , that the learned man i have so often mentioned , had shewn t. g. how false these pretences were ? but i go on with you to your next paragraph : where you tell me , . ad pag. . ] reply . you would gladly know , wherefore at this time i charge you with the odious imputation of adoring men and women , crosses and images , &c. answ. ] to satisfie you in which demand , i reply , . that i charge you with this , because it is true , and i have both shewn it already , and will yet farther shew it to be so . . i do it at this time , because at this time you have the confidence to deny it , nay to charge us with calumny , and misrepresentation for having ever accused you of it . so that your wise question is in effect but this ; we the vindicators and representers of new popery have publickly exposed you to the world as a pack of knaves , that have misrepresented our doctrine , and wherefore do you go about to vindicate your selves , and not suffer us to make silly people believe in quiet that what we say is true ? . ibid. ] reply . where ( say you ) do i find any thing of this in the articles ? and for the book of homilies , i must be little versed in our own doctrine not to know , that several eminent divines of our own church , do not allow that book to contain in every part of it the dogmatical doctrine of the church of england [ thus t. g. speaks into your mouth , and you , as his engine , eccho them to us . t. g's first answer to dr. st. pref. p. , . ] answ. ] now to this you should have known that dr st. gave this answer . that the articles of our church have confirm'd those homilies ; that these articles were not only allow'd and approved by the queen , but subscribed by the whole clergy in convocation , anno. . now ( says the dean ) i desire t. g. to resolve me whether men of any common understanding would have subscribed to this book of homilies in this manner , if they had believed the main doctrine and design of one of them had been false and pernicious , as they must have done , if they had thought the practice of the roman church to be free from idolatry . i will put the case that any of the bishops then had thought that the charge of idolatry had been unjust , and that it had subverted the foundation of ecclesiastical authority : that there could have been no church or right of ordination , if the roman church had been guilty of idolatry ; would they have inserted this into the articles when it was in their power to have left it out ? and that the homilies contain'd a wholsome and godly doctrine , which in their consciences they believed to be false and pernicious ? i might as well think that the council of trent would have allow'd calvin's institutions as containing a wholsome and godly doctrine , as that men so perswaded would have allow'd it the homily against the peril of idolatry . . for your objection from * * * * * * t. g. that several eminent divines of our church , do not allow that book to contain in every part of it the publick dogmatical doctrine of the church of england ; and three of whose names ( from * t. g. still ) you adorn your margin with . he answers , † † † † † † be it so : surely there is a great deal of difference , between some particular passages and expressions in these homilies , and that which is the main design and foundation of one of them . but in this case we are to observe , that they who deny the church of rome to be guilty of idolatry , do not only look on the charge as false , but as of dangerous consequence , and therefore altho men may subscribe to a book in general as containing wholsome and godly doctrine , tho they be not so certain of the truth of every passage in it , yet they can never do it with a good conscience , if they believe any great and considerable part of the doctrine therein contained to be false and dangerous . . thus did this reverend person confute your oracle : if you had offer'd any thing to prevent the same answer from being return'd to you , i should have been far from complaining against you for advancing of an old argument with new strength : but when you saw how unable ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ t. g. was to defend these cavils , nevertheless still to produce them ; and tho you could not but be conscious to your self at the same time that they were not to be maintain'd ; i shall only say , that it serves to convince me of the truth of what an ancient greek poet once observed , and the meaning of whose words you may enquire among the learned at your leisure ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . . ad pag. . ] reply . your next paragraph consists of a story of q. elizabeth , and that too eccho'd form t. g's inspiration : but to this i have already return'd my answer , and when you shall think fit to speak out what you mean by it , you shall not fail of a farther consideration from me , if i be not prevented by your receiving it from a more proper hand . . and thus have we done with what concerns the general cause , in this introduction ; and the sum of all is this ; that of four paragraphs of which it consists ; the first is calumny ; the second false ( and i am reasonably perswaded known by you to be so ) : the third impertinent , and long since answered ( as was also the foregoing ) by the reverend dr. st. the last seditious : i go on to the following part of this first article , to examine what relates to my self in it . . where first you except against my quoting your particular authors to find out your churches meaning , and call it calumny , tho what calumny it is to say that those authors , whom you cannot deny but that i truly cite , have expounded your churches sense otherwise than you and some others do , i cannot imagine : but however you tell us ; ad p. , . reply . ] that you have nothing to do with the doctrine of the schools : that i must take your doctrine from your councils ; the publick , authentick , and universally recieved definitions and decisions of the church . answ. ] and in this you still follow your old guide t. g. but i have † † † † † † already shewn you the weakness of this pretence ; and for your next supposal that even those authors do not say what i affirm they do , if your proofs are as convincing as your assertion is confident , i have already promised you all you can desire , that i will not fail to confess that you deserve not so ill a character as i thought . ad pag. . ] reply . your next paragraph charges me with unsincerity in stating the question betwixt catholicks ( as you call them ) and protestants , for that i represented you as allowing us to hold the ancient and undoubted foundation of the christian faith. answ. ] and is it not the ancient and undoubted foundation of the christian faith which we hold , and which has been deliver'd down to us in those very creeds which your selves profess , and into the faith of which you still baptize your children ? nay , do not you your self confess this to be true in the very place where you cavil against me for this assertion ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vindic. p. . where you grant , that what we hold is the ancient and undoubted foundation , and only deny that it is intirely so ? and again , in this very reply in which you repeat your accusation ; * * * * * * p. . i told him ( say you ) that we do not allow that proposition , especially if he mean all fundamentals . so that then the unsincerity lies not in my saying that what we hold is fundamental ; for this you tell me ( vindicat. p. . ) no body ever deny'd , but for pretending that you allow'd that we held all which you esteem'd to be fundamental . now for this i must observe , st , that you dare not say positively that i affirm'd any such thing , † † † † † † i told him ( say you ) that we do not allow that proposition , if he mean all fundamentals . so that you positively charge me with unsincerity for pretending that you granted what you do not , upon supposition that i meant any such thing . dly , that to make something of this charge , you are forced to go back from your own concession : for whereas in your vindication you had said plainly , that tho you do not allow us to hold all fundamentals , yet no body ever deny'd that we held some of them ; here you clap in an insinuation even against this too : i told him that we do not allow . that they hold the ancient and undoubted foundation ; especially , if he meant all fundamentals . so that tho you do deny it especially if we mean all fundamentals , yet you do not altogether allow even that what we hold is fundamental . but , dly , where at last do you find that i ever said , that you granted that we held all which you esteem to be fundamental ? in my exposition , i tell you , in the very next words to those you cavil at , that this was the thing to be put upon the issue ; whether those articles which you had added to this ancient and undoubted foundation as superstructures to it , were not so far from being necessary articles of religion , as you pretend , that they indeed overthrow that faith which is on both sides allow'd to be divine . and when in your vindication you first made this little exception ; i again repeated it in these very words , which you take no notice of in your reply : but the vindicator , jealous for the authority of his church , and to have whatsoever she proposes pass for fundamental , confesses that we do indeed hold a part , but not all those articles that are fundamental . this therefore must be put upon the issue . — so that whereas you accuse me of perverting the bishop of meaux's sense , it is indeed you that have ( i fear wilfully ) perverted mine . what i said , both of you acknowledg , viz. that what we hold is the ancient and undoubted truth ; and you cannot deny the state of the question to be just as i have said , whether what you farther advance , and what we reject , be not so far from being fundamental truth , that it is indeed no truth at all , but rather contrary to , and destructive of that truth which is on both sides allow'd to be divine ? . ad p. . ] reply . but you go yet farther in this point against me ; and accuse me in the next place of perverting your own sense too , by saying that you confess that those articles which you hold , and we contradict , do by evident and undoubted consequence destroy those truths that are on both sides agreed to be fundamental . and you wonder with what spectacles i read this . answ. ] the spectacles i use are p'ain honesty and plain reason ; if you have better , i envy you not . in stating the question between us , i said * * * * * * the thing to be put upon the issue was , whether those additions which the church of rome has made to the ancient and undoubted faith , were not so far from being fundamental truths , that they do , even by your own confession , overthrow those truths that are on both sides allow'd to be fundamental ? this you deny you ever said , and yet in the very next word● you confess the contrary : † † † † † † 't is true ( say you ) i tell him , that were the doctrines and practices which he alledges the plain and confess'd doctrines and practices of the church of rome , he would have reason to say that they contradict our principles : but i tell him also that we renounce these doctrines and practices . but this is not now the question , whether you renounce these doctrines and practices or no : did not you confess that those doctrines which i charge you with do overthrow the truths that are on both sides allow'd to be divine ? this you cannot , nay you do not deny : and this was what i asserted , and for which you most injuriously accuse me of perverting your sense . as to your denial of these things , that i have already shewe to be a groundless pretence , and shall yet farther prove you to be as guilty of prevaricating in your evasion , as it is evident you have been in your accusing of me . . ibid. ] for the parallel you add between our charging you as guilty of idolatry upon the account of your worship , and the fanatick's clamours against us for our ceremonies , and against the justice of which you think we have little to say , it still more confirms me that the ancient poet i before mention'd was a wise man : for after so full a confutation as has been given to this parallel by * * * * * * two several hands , for you to presume still to say , that we have little to reply to it ; this would certainly have made any other creature in the world blush , but a man that has taken his leave of modesty . . ad pag. . ] for your last little reflection , which you have dubb'd with the title of protestant charity and moderation ; i shall only tell you , that to charge you with adoring men and women , crosses , images and relicks , is no more a breach of charity , than it would be to charge a man with murder or theft whom i actually saw killing his neighbour , or stealing away his goods . if you are indeed guilty of doing this , 't is charity to admonish those of their danger , whom you might otherwise ensnare by your confident denying of it . but the truth is , it is the justice of this reflection that so much troubles you : and you could be well enough content we should accuse you of doing this , if you could but find out any means to prevent our proving of it . the answer to the second article . that religious worship terminates ultimately in god alone . . ad p. . ] reply . in the beginning of this article you seem a little concern'd that i took no more notice of what you had said in your vindication , concerning your distinctions of religious worship : you pretend that i did not do it , because if i had , all my quotations out of your liturgies would have signified just nothing ; neither could i have made so plausible an excuse for my calumnies and falsifications : and you conjure me not to obstruct the hopes of a christian unity by a future misapplication of these terms . . answ. ] it is perhaps none of the least instances of that perplexity , into which sin and error commonly lead those who have been involved in them , to consider what a multiplicity of obscure and barbarous terms the iniquity of these latter ages has invented to confound those things , which are otherwise in themselves of the greatest clearness and evidence . whilst men kept to that primitive rule of the gospel , * * * * * * thou shalt worship the lord thy god , and him only shalt thou serve ; the law was simple and easie , and there was no need of any distinctions , either to excuse or to condemn the worship of any other besides him . the command was so plain , that the devil himself had nothing to say to it : as for the sophistry we are now to encounter , ( and by which you would have been able to have taken that offer which our saviour refused , and yet have salved your conscience of any breach of the precept too ) he was either yet to learn it , or else it appeared to him so thin and contemptible , that however he has since inspired others with it , yet he was ashamed himself to insist upon it . but however , seeing mens words are their own , and let them express their conceptions after what manner they please , it is enough for us that we understand their meaning ; i shall content my self to draw up a short summary of what you here offer , and which indeed is all that your party has to insist upon on this occasion , and we shall hereafter see when you come to the application of these distinctions , whether there be any thing in them to excuse you of that guilt we here charge you with . . but before i enter upon this enquiry , i cannot but observe the change you make in the title of this article . hitherto we have had it in these words , † † † † † † religious worship is terminated only in god : now you add another restriction , ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ that religious worship terminates ultimately in god alone : by which you would seem to imply , that religious worship may terminate upon the objects to which you pay it , as saints or angels ; ( and wherein you certainly depart from your own and the bishop of meaux's former principle ) but that ultimately it must end in god alone . but the truth is , ( * * * * * * what you have been already told ) all worship do's properly terminate in the object to which it is given . you may honour a saint for god's sake , and it is an honour to god by accident so to do : but when all is done , still the proper honour that is given to the saint terminates in him , and do's not pass to any other . and this you must confess , unless you will spoil all your own distinctions . for whatever the honour be that you give to the saints , either it must finally terminate in them , and then your new addition is useless ; or if it pass on to god , you must either dishonour god if you give him such an inferior honour as you do the saints , and which is altogether unsuitable to his infinite nature and majesty ; or if you give the saints the same honour you do god , then you raise them up into a state above the condition of meer creatures , and so yet more dishonour god , by setting up competitors with him in his service . so that then your new modelling of this position will stand you in no stead : and you must after all say , either that no religious honour must be given to any other but god , ( as our saviour has declared , and as we affirm ) if you do truly believe that all religious honour ought to terminate in him alone ; or you must confess , that religious worship may be terminated , and that ultimately , upon the creature ; which indeed your practice shews you do believe , and for which we justly accuse you of idolatry . . but we will examine your own scheme , that so we may the better understand your pretences . and , ad pag. , . ] reply . st , as to the words ( you say ) that honour , and worship , and adoration , may admit of different senses , and according to them be differently applied . there is a divine worship proper to god , and there is a civil worship that is paid to men ; and a dulia , or inferior sort of religious worship , that you give to saints angels , and holy things . dly , that as to the outward actions of the body , whether bowing , kneeling , &c. there may be a difference in these two ; they being not so appropriated to god , but that they may be paid to the creature also . that therefore , dly , both the actions and expressions are to be distinguish'd , according to the excellency of the object on which they are terminated . if the excellency be natural , or naturally acquired ; then the honour that is paid is civil or humane . if it be supernatural , then the honour is religious . and this religious honour is either a sovereign honour proper to god alone , call'd latria ; or it is inferior , and of which there are several degrees according to the several measures in which god bestows his supernatural gifts upon his servants ; and is that you call dulia . and this inferior religious honour may be paid , not only to rational natures , but sometimes also to inanimate things . . answ. ] this i think is the sum of what you desire me to take notice of ; and i will now return you a few general reflections upon it . and , st , though we are contented to take all these hard words in your own sense , yet i must observe to prevent any misapplication of them to the passages of either holy scripture , or primitive antiquity , before st. austin's time. that for what concerns the hebrew phrases of the old testament , by which this worship is express'd , they are all of them promiscuous , and indifferently used with reference both to god and the creatures . but now with the greek phrases in the new testament it is otherwise . one of them indeed , viz. that from whence you derive your term dulia , is ambiguous ; but for the other two , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 & * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the former is never at all , the latter never but once , and that too in a parabolical sentence , applied to any other worship than that of god only ; not to any humane or civil respect . dly , as to the distinction you make between civil and religious honour properly so called , we readily embrace it : and we do confess , that the difference must be taken from the diversity of excellency in the objects on which they are terminated . from which we infer , that there must be therefore the same proportion between civil and religious worship , as there is between god and men. seeing then there can be no analogy between these two , neither can there be any between the worship that is paid to the one , and to the other . by consequence , that properly speaking , there can be no other honour attributed to a creature but what is civil , and which must be diversified , according to the different excellencies of those to whom it is given . and this you your self allow in your vindication , [ p. , . ] where you declare that this honour is but an extrinsecal denomination from the cause and motive , not from the nature of the act ; and that you do renounce any other sort of religious worship which is so from the nature of the act , and by consequence only due to god. and here again in your reply you found the appellation of religious honour with reference to the saints , either upon the motive of it , which is religious ; or , because it ultimately refers to god , for whose sake , and upon account of whose gifts we honour them . now taking this then to be not only your own private opinion , but the sense of your church ; and that you may see , i desire to close as far as possibly i can with your notions , i add , dly , that as to the first of these , the religious motive ; we are content in this respect to allow the denomination of religious worship to others besides god. such is the honour we render to our parents , to civil magistrates , &c. upon the account of god's command so to do . and thus the two terms of civil and religious are not opposite , but co-ordinate , and consistent with one another . secondly , for the other grounds on which you call this honour , religious , namely upon the account of those supernatural gifts or excellencies which god has bestow'd upon his creatures ; we are ready to allow of this too . and thus we confess , that the honour which we , as well as you , pay to the saints , may be called religious ; when we bless god for their excellencies , and pray to him for grace to follow their examples . we never denied but that godly and religious men were to be reverenced , not only for their other qualities , but yet more especially for their sanctity and devotion . but then , thly , as for religious honour properly so called , and as it respects not meerly the religious motive , or the supernatural gifts which god has bestow'd upon his servants , but the very nature and quality of the act it self ; such acts by which we pay not only all that worship which may be due to the excellencies of a pure creature , but the proper exercises of religion , as prayer , confession , and such like ; and these with all the circumstances of a proper , religious worship ; in the house of god , in the midst of his solemn service ; it may be in the same breath and form in which we address to the creator ; this is that religious worship which we constantly affirm , and which you your self confess may not without impiety be given to any but god only ; and it is for this we charge you with that , which by your own acknowledgment none of your distinctions reach to , nor will therefore excuse you of , viz. idolatry . thly , as for the outward expressions of this honour by bodily actions , as bowing , kneeling , prostrating , &c. these we confess are ambiguous , and must be determined by the other circumstances . but then we deny that they are to be interpreted meerly according to the intention of him that performs them . there is an external adoration , which no internal act of the understanding or will can excuse , if it be applied to any besides god. such as is perform'd with those circumstances of a religious worship before mention'd , as to time , place , words , and the like . in short , it is , we say , idolatry by any external act whatsoever , to shew that we do attribute religious honour to any other but god alone . thly , and for the rest , we do affirm , that there are some other kind of external actions so peculiarly appropriate to god , that they cannot without idolatry be attributed to any other . such as , st , sacrifice * * * * * * , by your own confession : † † † † † † to which i will , dly , add all those other things of the like kind which god appropriated to himself under the law ; as religious adoration , erection of temples and altars , burning of incense in token of divine worship , solemn invocation , and vows ; in all which neither our saviour nor his apostles having made the least alteration , we ought certainly ( as both the jews and primitive christians most undoubtedly did ) to esteem them still his own peculiar prerogative . having thus establish'd in general our notion of religious worship ; let us see if any of these distinctions will ( as you pretend ) excuse you of that imputation which has been laid upon you . answer to the third article , of the invocation of saints . in the beginning of this article i cannot but acknowledge a commendable endeavour in you to clear the true state of the question betwixt us : and tho i am not absolutely of your mind , nor do i see any cause for your supposal that mr. † † † † † † thorndyke spoke the sense of the church of england in every one of those particulars mention'd by you in order thereunto , yet i will not enter into any controversie with you about them . . and first , be it allow'd that the words prayer , invocation , calling upon , address , &c. are or may be equivocal ; i. e. ( as that learned man phrases it ) that we may make use of the same expressions in signifying our requests to god and to man ; tho yet for the two first of these , viz. prayer and invocation , they are seldom applied to any other than a religious sense . this t. g. long since observed , and you have now borrowed it from him ; and you may make what use of this remark you please in managing of this controversie . . we do not deny but that we ought to honour the saints departed , as well as holy men upon earth ; only we desire that that honour be such as becomes them to receive , and us to pay . we honour them when we praise , and much more when we follow their faith and patience . and because the reason and end of this honour is religious , you may without being contradicted by me call the honour it self religious too ; seeing you explain your self to mean no more by it , than an an external denomination from the cause and motive , but not from the nature of the act its self . . nor will i dispute with you , lastly , whether the saints in happiness do not in general pray for the church militant : for 't is to as little purpose to deny what cannot be disproved , as to affirm what one cannot prove . i have as great an honour as any man for mr. thorndyke's memory ; but yet i cannot see the proof even of this in those scriptures which ( as you say ) he proves it by . some fathers i know have said so ; but their saying it is not to me a sufficient proof of a point of doctrine . when all is done , the congruity of the thing is the best that can be brought for it . and if upon this account you are resolved to call them advocates or intercessors between god and us , you will i hope excuse me if i do not comply with you in it . that they are full of charity towards us who are members of the same body with them , i make not the least question : but how they express it i do not certainly know , because many particulars there are from whence such a matter is to be concluded , which are all hidden from my knowledge . one thing i know , that we have a mediator at the right hand of god , who knows all our wants , which i see no reason to believe the greatest saint in heaven does . i am likewise assured that his right to intercede for us is founded upon the sacrifice of his death . and since the gospel gives this honour and prerogative to him only , to appear in the presence of god for us , i shall never whilst i live help forward an ambiguity in those titles , of a mediator with god , or an advocate with the father , or an intercessor in heaven , by attributing of them to any saint whatsoever . these expressions so applied are dangerous , and scandalous ; and 't is but a frivolous pretence for the doing of it , that possibly the saints may do something for us in heaven , upon the account of which the titles of our redeemer may in some sense be given to them . . as for the state of the question which you next propose , you should know by this time that we are by no means agreed that the only thing in dispute betwixt us is , whether it be lawful for us to pray to the saints that they would pray for us ? and , whether such kind of addresses as these are of such a nature as to make gods ( for so you tell me i very disrespectfully call them ; tho i believe you will find 't is your misrepresenter's phrase , and not mine ) of men and women . you do indeed with your guides t. g. and the bishop of meaux tell us , that all the prayers of your church , be their words never so repugnant , must yet be reduced to this sense , pray for us : but you have often been told , that this is utterly disallow'd by us . however , to take off all occasion of cavil , as far as is possible , i will offer you the state of the question in such terms as you shall have no just cause to except against it ; viz. whether it be lawful to pray to the saints , after the manner that is at this day prescribed and practised in the church of rome ? and i will so far comply with you , as to consider it in both respects : . according to your own representation of it : . according to that which is indeed your practice , and fre●ly acknowledged by the greatest men of your church to be so . i. point . whether it be lawful to pray to the saints , to pray for us ? . this is the least that can possibly be made of this matter : and because i would bring the point to the fairest issue that may be , as i have proposed the question according to your own desire , so i will dispute it with you upon your own principles . . and first ; for what concerns the terms of the question , they are exactly taken from your own words : you tell us in your vindication , that all you say is , that it is lawful to pray to the saints ; and here in your reply , that the difference between us is whether it be lawful for us to pray to them ? in which yet you seem to fall a little below even the bishop of meaux himself , who tells us , that your church teaches that it is profitable at least to pray to them . but however such is our security according to both of you , that neither you nor he care to say it is our duty so to do , or that we run any danger in the neglect of it . whatever therefore be the issue of this dispute , it is wholly your concern to look to it ; thus much we are agreed in , that there is no sin in our omission . for where there is no law , there is no transgression . . but i will now presume to go farther : and since you dare not say that such an invocation is necessary , i will undertake to affirm , that neither is it profitable , nor indeed lawful , but utterly forbidden . and for proof of this , i shall lay down no other foundation than what you have your self establish'd ; viz. that religious honour or worship may be taken in a double sense : first , strictly , and so is due only to god : secondly , more largely , and so may be paid to creatures . and what you mean by these terms , you thus more fully express : that by religious honour in this latter sense , and as you apply it to the saints , you understand only an honour so called by an extrinsecal denomination from the cause and motive , but not from the nature of the act it self . that is such an honour as may be in it self civil , and is only called religious because it is done for god's sake , and in obedience to god's commands . but for a strict and proper religious worship , such as is in its own nature so , this you confess with us to be due to god only . from whence i conclude , that to give such a worship to any creature , must be to pay that service to the creature which is due only to the creator ; and that is , in our sense , to commit idolatry . . and now from this principle which you have your self laid down , and which you think will be alone sufficient to answer all objections brought against your doctrine ; i take leave to inferr , that if even such an invocation as you confess you pay to the saints , be strictly a religious honour , in the very nature of the act it self , and not barely by an extrinsecal denomination from the cause and motive of it ; it will then remain that you are guilty in this service of giving that worship to the saints which is due only to god , and are by consequence therein guilty of idolatry and this i shall shew , i. from the very nature of the act it self . ii. from the circumstances of it . i. that the very nature of the act it self of invocating the saints , does shew , that it is strictly and properly a religious worship . . this is what i know monsieur de meaux denies : he tells us , that when you pray to the saints , you do it in the same spirit of charity , and according to the same order of brotherly society , which moves us to demand assistance of our brethren living upon earth . thus he smooths your invocation of saints departed , to make it lie even with our desires of one anothers prayers . but did he in good earnest believe , that nothing but a spirit of charity , and the order of brotherly society , is to be discerned in the act of calling upon departed saints to pray for us ? we have indeed that charity for them , as to believe , that they have charity for us : and though they are highly advanced above us , we yet take them to be our brethren . but is this all that is implied in the act of calling upon them to pray for us ? for my part , i cannot but believe , that monsieur de meaux himself was sensible of a vast difference in the case , as appears by his endeavouring to blind it afterwards . and i shall now offer some reasons , that may perhaps convince others , as they have fully satisfied my self about it . . for . if the nature of that act of invoking the saints in heaven , be the same with that of desiring my christian brother to pray for me upon earth , then on the other hand this is also of the same nature with that . and by consequence , i may as well fall down upon my knees here in london , and desire my christian brother , who is now , it may be , in japan , or somewhere in the east indies , or perhaps on his return homewards , to pray for me , as do the like to s. peter or s. paul , who , for any thing i can tell , are at a vastly greater distance from me , than my friend upon earth is . but if there be something more than a spirit of charity , or an acknowledgment of brotherhood , in calling upon my living friend , who is out of all natural distance of hearing , there is also something more than this in calling upon the dead , who it may be are a thousand times farther from me , than the living can be from one another . would not such an invocation of my friend , think you , suppose him to be more than a brother , or a man ? would not the nature of the act ascribe to him not only the praise of charity , but likewise the power of hearing and knowing all that is said upon earth , at any distance whatsoever ? i grant , that if this were indeed no more than according to the order of fraternal society ; neither would it be any more than so for you to call upon the saints deceased to pray for you . but if the former would be more , when you have said all that you can , the latter must necessarily be so too : and you do thereby elevate the saints above the condition of creatures . for whether you believe them to be omnipresent or not , the very act of invoking them indifferently in any place , and their being called upon in several places at the same time , does imply their omnipresence , unless you could give us some other ground of certainty , that they hear you , besides this , that wherever they are when they are spoken to , and wherever you are when you speak to them , 't is all one , they do as surely know what you say , as if they stood within the common distance of hearing . now that action , which in the very nature of it ascribes an immensity of presence to the object , about which it is conversant , is religious in the very nature of the act. and then i leave it to you to determine whether it be idolatrous or not , if it be paid to any thing that is not god. but , . secondly , if you are not yet satisfied , i would desire to know , whether prayer to god , which you will not deny to be in its own nature a religious act , be not so upon this account as well as others , that 't is an acknowledgment of his immense presence . but how is it such an acknowledgment , otherwise than as we do in all places , and at all times call upon him . since therefore you do in all places , and at all times call upon the saints as well as upon god , i pray tell us why this invocation should not also be in its own nature religious worship . if you allow this , then you have already pass'd sentence upon your self : if you do not , i should be glad you would find a little leisure to shew us the difference . this is an argument that has been often enough urged to be taken notice of ; and if you shall still go on to say nothing to it , we shall conclude the reason to be , that indeed you have nothing to object against it . . and what i have now said of this invocation , upon the account of the distance of the saints from us , that they are now out of the compass of all civil commerce ; and therefore to pray to them must be properly a religious worship , will be yet further confirm'd , thirdly , by another of your practises ; in that your church allows not only vocal , but even mental prayer to be made to them . now this can be no act of civil honour , seeing no creature , such as man ( the object of all civil honour ) is , can be capable of searching the heart , so as to find out the secrets of it . for god , even god only knows the secrets of all the children of men. and therefore to pray in our minds to the saints , to offer up the secret aspirations of our souls , in honour to any creature , this must be an act of religious worship , and such therefore as by your own acknowledgment is due to god only . . now that you could not be ignorant of these things , and by consequence are the more inexcusable in this your worship , appears from what monsieur de meaux has told us ; viz. that by addressing prayers to the saints , and honouring them all the world over as present , you do not attribute to them a certain kind of immensity , nor the knowledge of the secrets of the heart , which god has reserved to himself ; seeing it is manifest , that to say a creature may have the knowledge of these things by a light communicated to him by god , is not to elevate a creature above his condition . thus he gives that to the saints in the close , which he deny'd in the beginning . they have not a kind of immensity , nor do they know the secrets of our hearts ; no , by no means , for that is necessary to be said to save your selves from giving divine honour to the saints : but for all that they have the knowledge of these things by a light communicated to them by god ; and this is also necessary to be said , to save your invocation of them from being a foolish and absurd devotion . and for the same reason he supposed before , that some grounds , which he would not examine , might be had to attribute to the saints some certain degree of knowledge as to those things that are acted amongst us , as also of our secret thoughts . thus he doubles , and treads with fear , like a man that has lost his way in a dark night , and is afraid of a ditch every step he takes . to say that the saints know all our wants and desires , and the secrets of our hearts , is to give them a certain kind of immensity which he dares not say they have ; and therefore those words are slipt in , that some grounds may be had to attribute to them a certain degree of knowledge , as to these things . now a certain degree of knowledge , seems not to be a certain kind of immensity ; and so you are for a while safe on that side . well , but a certain degree of knowledge as to these things , will not serve to make all the prayers of all men , at any time , and in any place , to this or that saint , wise and profitable prayers . for a certain degree is but a degree ; and to answer all that is , or that you would have to be done in this kind , nothing will serve but a certain kind of immensity . and therefore on the other hand , a creature may have the knowledge of these things , i. e. of all these things . so that now the prayers are profitable again ; but then what shall we do to keep off immensity from being attributed to the creature ? he has a trick for that , and it is this ; viz. that this kind of immensity or knowledge of all prayers that are or can be any where offer'd to them , is communicated to them by god , and as long as god has made them thus immense , we may do so too . . and thus he represents the saints as dii facti , made gods , and that by the almighty himself ; which being done with respect to omnipresence , may , whenever a wretched cause requires it , be done as well with respect to omnipotence , and all the other divine perfections ; and in one word leads to such consequences , as cannot but stir up the indignation of all good men. nothing should be maintain'd in the minds of christian people with more care than the distinct notion they ought to have of god and his creatures . but your doctrine and practice in this kind does so confound these apprehensions of the one and the other , that they cannot tell what prerogative , as to the matter of hearing prayers , god has above his saints ; since they hear all , as well as he. prayer to god every where is that which principally supports in the minds of men the apprehension of his being every where present : and tho much of it is due to the natural impressions which god has left of himself in our souls , yet the reflexions we make upon it , are chiefly owing to the frequent addresses we make every where , publickly and privately , to the invisible being , the lord of all , of whom we have some knowledge by nature , and more by christian instruction . but when prayer is made to other invisible beings as generally as to god , how can it be otherwise , but that the people should conceive them to be as omnipresent as god himself is ? especially if it be considered , that when their educated and philosophical men , come to vindicate their practice and doctrine from this imputation , they cannot so much as speak sense about it , but with all their art , talk more meanly and confusedly than meer nature would instruct an honest man to do . the difference between the people and the blind guides on the one side , and between the seers on the other , being only this , that the worship , and the notions of the former go together , and are of a piece ; but the latter , with as bad a worship , have better notions ; and give that honour to the saints by their practice , which their notions ( as they would have us think at least ) deny to them . but for that reason they are the more to blame ; and tho their idolatry be not so gross as the peoples , yet it is more inexcusable . . and yet if we may judge of their thoughts by their words , some of the refined controvertists do not come much behind the common people in this stupidity . if they think otherwise than they say , they are to answer to god for that too . cardinal bellarmine , and others , who had none of these expounding designs to carry on , speak out freely , and tell us , that the saints are dii per participationem , god's by participation ; and upon that account he justifies the practice of the church of rome , in swearing by them , and making vows to them . nor indeed do i see how that differs very much from monsieur de meaux's giving them the knowledge which the hearing of all prayers requires , as by a light communicated to them by god. for what is that but to say , that god has ( in effect ) made them partakers of his immensity ? nay , the representer ( if we may conclude any thing from his arguing ) seems plainly to yeild , that the saints have a natural knowledge of our prayers : for ( says he ) abraham heard the petition of dives , who was yet at a greater distance from him ( than the saints are from us ) , even in hell : and told him likewise the manner of his living whilst as yet on earth . nay , since 't is generally allow'd , that the very devils hear those desperate wretches who call on them , why should we doubt that the saints want this priviledge ? . no wonder therefore if bellarmine makes a greater difference between the prayers to the saints , and our desires of good mens prayers upon earth , than monsieur de meaux seems willing to acknowledge ; and looks upon it to be a worship due to them , thus ( in the words of your synod of trent ) suppliantly to call upon them : for what can be more reasonable than to esteem that prayer , the invocation of suppliants , and the worship of invocation , which is made with such deference of respect from the very nature of the act , as is due to god the only omnipresent being ? and what more unreasonable and foolish , than to call our desires of each others prayers by such titles as these ? and hitherto have i shewn , that in the very act of praying to the saints , without any regard had to the form or substance of your petitions , or the circumstances with which you call upon them , you give proper , religious worship to them , which you acknowledge it is unlawful for you to do . i proceed , secondly , to shew this yet more plainly , ii. from the circumstances of it . . and here to avoid , if it be possible , all your little cavils so usual upon this occasion , as in speaking to the former part of this argument , i have managed it so as not to concern my self with any of your distinctions of supreme and inferiour religious worship ; so here i will not insist on those exteriour actions of the body , which you tell me are equivocal , and of which monsieur de meaux roundly affirms , that the nature of that exteriour honour which you render to the saints , must be judged from the internal sentiments of the mind . the circumstances i shall now insist upon are such , as are not liable to any of these evasions ; but will , if not silence a contentious spirit , yet i am confident , satisfie any unprejudiced christian , that the prayers which you make to the saints are properly a religious act , and not only called so by an external denomination from the cause and motive of them . . for . what else can be gathered from those outward circumstances , of the place , time and manner ( to say nothing of the gestures of the body ) with which you call upon them ? do not all these speak plainly to us what the nature of this worship is ? you pray ( for instance ) to the saints in the house of god , it may be , in a temple which you have consecrated at once to the service of god , and to the honour of the saint whom you invoke . you accompany these prayers with incense smoking before their images ; a circumstance which was once reckon'd as a peculiar instance of external religious adoration ; and which was therefore thought so appropriate an act of divine worship among the primitive christians , that they chose to die rather than to throw a little incense into the fire upon the heathen altars . you call at the same instant upon the one and upon the other , and too often place them in an equal rank with one another . thus , if you confess your sins , you do it to god almighty , to the b. virgin , to st. michael the archangel , to s. john baptist , to the holy apostles s. peter and s. paul , and in short , to all the saints : if you commend a departing soul , you bid him go out in the name of god the father almighty , who created him ; and of jesus christ , son of the living god , who suffer'd for him ; and in the name of the holy ghost , who was poured out upon him ; in the name of angels and archangels , of apostles , evangelists , &c. if you conjure a tempest , you call upon god and the holy angels ; you adjure the evil spirit , you contradict him , by the vertue of our lord jesus christ , and the blessed virgin mary . in the offices of the church , your addresses to god , and the blessed virgin , are so inter-woven with each other , that there is no alteration but only in the manner of the expression , and very often not in that neither : as when you pray ( for instance ) that the virgin mary and her son would bless you . in the doxologies of your greatest men at the end of their works , nothing more frequent than to see glory and praise return'd to god and the blessed virgin ; and in your ordinary conversation no exclamation more frequent than that of jesu-maria . even your solemn excommunications and absolutions are made in the name and authority of the holy trinity , the blessed virgin , and all the saints ; and the passion of christ joyn'd in equal rank with the merits of the virgin mary for the remission of their sins . by all which it undoubtedly appears , that either your invocation of god himself is not properly a religious ●…t ; or if that be strictly a religious worship , the other will be so also . . secondly , another circumstance which plainly shews your invocation of saints to be in the very nature of the act a religious service , is , that you offer not only your prayers , but your very sacrifice too to their honour and veneration : and this i am sure you will not deny to be truly a religious act. thus in the missal of salisbury . accept , o holy trinity , this oblation , which i , unworthy sinner , offer in honour of thee , and of the blessed virgin mary , and of all saints . and in the common roman missal , accept , o holy trinity , this oblation which we offer to thee in memory of the passion . resurrection , and ascension of our lord jesus christ , and in honour of the ever blessed virgin mary , and of the blessed john the baptist ; and of the holy apostles peter and paul. and in the post-communio of the mass of the b. virgin. having received , o lord , the defence of our salvation , grant , we beseech thee , that we may every where be defended by the patronage of the blessed virgin , for whose veneration we have offer'd this to thy majesty . now , not to enter on an enquiry , how far these expressions will in some measure apply the very sacrifice it self to those saints ; it being hardly intelligible otherwise what honour can be done to the saints , by a sacrifice offer'd solely to god ; it cannot be doubted , but that this being confessedly a proper religious act , whatever honour is hereby done the saints , must be strictly and properly a religious honour ; not meerly in denomination , but in the very nature of the thing it self . and i desire monsieur de meaux to tell us , whether this too be done with the same spirit of charity , and in the same order of brotherly society with which we intreat our brethren upon earth to pray for us . and what would be thought of him , that out of kindness or respect to his fellow christian , should offer up the son of god for his honour , or ( as the last prayer has it ) in his veneration . i do not pretend that this is properly an act of prayer to saints ; and therefore i propose it only as a circumstance from whence to conclude what the true nature of your invocation of them is . for if it appear , that the other parts of that worship you pay to the saints , are properly religious acts , it will not be doubted but that your praying to them is certainly so too . and tho you have restrain'd the terms of our question to this one particular instance , of calling upon them , yet it suffices me in general to conclude against you , that you do give proper religious honour to others besides god , if it appear , that any part of that worship you pay to the saints is such . . nor is it by any means to be forgot here , that in almost every one of these masses you desire to be accepted by the merits of that saint in whose honour or veneration the mass it self is offer'd . i will give you an instance or two of this . regard , we most humbly beseech thee , o lord , these things which we offer to thee : and by the merits of thy blessed bishop julian , deliver us from all sin . let the merits of s. bathildis obtain , that these gifts may be accepted by thee . we load thy table , o lord , with mystical gifts , in commemoration of s. agatha thy virgin and martyr ; humbly beseeching thy majesty , that by the help of her merits we may be freed from all contagions . thus ( as i have heretofore observed ) do you joyn the merits of christ , whom you suppose to be the offering , with the merits of your saints ; and make a bathildis or a julian , joynt intercessors with the son of god for your forgiveness . what is this but truly to ascribe to the creature the honour of the creator , and to worship them with a religious worship , in the utmost propriety of the expression ? . i shall add but one circumstance more , and that of another sort of service with which you sometimes accompany your prayers to the saints , and which i think will undeniably convince you , that you do give them the most strict acts of religious service ; and that is , your making of vows to them . that this is a proper act of religion , both the holy scripture evidently shews , and the reason of the thing it self declares ; a vow being in its own nature nothing else than a promise made to god ; and such by which he is acknowledged to be the searcher of the heart , and the just avenger of all perfidious promisers , as he is the bountiful rewarder of those who are faithful in his service . and your own authors unanimously acknowledge it to be an act , not only of proper , but of supreme religious worship . . and yet even this too is paid by you to the saints : and i desire you to consider what you then did , when at the entry into your order ( if you herein , as i suppose , agree with the manner of your brethren the dominicans ) , you solemnly vow'd to god , to the b. virgin , to s. benedict , and to all the saints , that you would be obedient to your superiors . now this i the rather remark , because the answer that is made by your writers , to justifie this practice , plainly condemns you ( not only in this point , but in that of your prayers too ) upon your own principle , as idolaters . they acknowledge the act to be properly religious ; that these vows are made after the very same manner to god and the saints . and card. cajetane anticipating this objection , that to vow is an act of supreme religious worship ; and how then may it be given to the saints ? answers , that it is an act of the same kind to vow and to pray ; but ( says he ) we pray to the saints in order to god , and therefore in the same manner we vow to them too . and the main excuse which he makes for both , is the utter ruine of yours and monsieur de meaux's pretences , viz. that the saints are gods by participation . a remark which card. bellarmine thought so considerable , that he from thence distinguishes between the promises that are made to men on earth , and to the saints in heaven ; so that the former are only promises , the latter are vows ; because a vow does not agree otherwise to the saints , than as they are gods by participation . . the consequence of all is this plain conclusion , that if a vow be strictly and properly an act of religious worship , and not only call'd so by an extrinsecal denomination from the cause and motive of it ; and prayer ( as card. cajetane says ) be an act of the same kind with it ; then are they both acts , by your own acknowledgment , due only to god : and therefore it must be a sin to give them to any other ; and being a sin in a matter of religious worship , whereby that honour is given to the creature which is due only to god , it remains , according to our notion , that it must be idolatry . . and thus have i hitherto argued against that worship you pay to the saints , upon your own principle , and according to your own proposal : i shall only add , to close this first point , that whether these arguments shall be thought of force sufficient to convict you of what i am persuaded you are guilty in this service , it is your concern alone to weight . if they are , i need not say any thing to exaggerate your offence which you commit in this matter : if they are not , yet whilst we are neither defective in our veneration towards those blessed souls , but pay them all that honour ( as i have before shewn ) of which they are now capable ; whilst we transgress no command of god in our omission of these superstitions ; nor fail continually to address our selves to the throne of grace , through our great and only mediator jesus christ ; we are not only sure of his intercession , who we know is able both to hear and help us ; but also in a most likely way of obtaining the charitable assistances of those holy souls too , who , if they have any knowledge of us , or concern for what passes here below , will doubtless need no sollicitation to be kind to us ; but without our intreaty offer up their prayers to god , for all those who thus serve him in sincerity and truth . . but i must now go much farther , and bring my charge more closely against you , by shewing , secondly , ii. point . what the true doctrine and practice of the church of rome is , as to the point of invocation of saints ? now the sum of this point may i think best be reduced to these four considerations , by which you endeavour in your reply to justifie your selves in this particular . for , i. as to the prayers themselves , you cannot deny but that in the natural sense of them they do imply a proper and formal invocation of the saints to whom you address : but then you tell us , that the churches sense is much otherwise ; and therefore that whatever their words may seem to imply , yet the intention of them all is one and the same , viz. pray for us . ii. that as to what we object concerning the merits of the saints , your concluding of all your prayers in this form , through jesus christ our lord , plainly shews , that you mean no more by it than this , that god would vouchsafe to call to mind the glorious actions and sufferings of his saints , performed in and by his grace , and upon those accounts accept your sacrifices , or hear your prayers . iii. that for those addresses you have the warrant both of scripture and antiquity . whereas , iv. we have neither against them : those pretensions i offer'd in my defence being either false or deceitful ; or at least not conclusive enough to engage you to lay aside a practice which has been so many hundred years in the church , and that by our own confession . this is the sum of what is said on this occasion , not only by your self , but by the generality of your party : and to this i shall answer with all the plainness and candour that i am able . sect . i. whether all the prayers that are made to the saints by those of the church of rome , are fairly to be reduced to this one sense , pray for us ? . for thus it is that you expound your selves . that in what terms soever those prayers which you address to the saints are couch'd , the intention of your church reduces them always to this form , pray for us . you charge me with voluntary fixing the words of your addresses , which are equivocal , to a univocal sense ; and that had i either as became a christian or a scholar taken notice of this direction laid down by the bishop of condom , both in his book , and in his advertisement , i should have saved my self the labour of amassing such an appendix as i have made to this article , and the reader the trouble of perusing it to as little purpose . since tho your church does indeed make her addresses to the saints for protection and power against your enemies ; for help and assistance , and the like ; yet it does appear manifestly to any one who is not wilful in his mistakes , that all these are reduced to an ora pro nobis ; it being a kind of aid , succour , and protection , to recommend the miserable to him who alone can succour them . . answer . ] such then are your pretences . to your reflections i have spoken already ; i come now to examine your reasons : and to convince others , if not you , that i was not wilful in my mistakes as to the meaning of your prayers , but that you are a sort of miserable shufflers , in your pretended expositions of them . for tell me now , i beseech you , by what authority is it that your new guides * * * * * * t. g. and the bishop of meaux undertake thus to detort the plain expressions of your addresses to a signification utterly repugnant to the natural meaning of them ? have any of your general approved councils positively defined this to be all your design in them ? and if they have not , are you not , according to your own language , in your accusing of me on this occasion , a falsifier , a calumniator , and a misrepresenter too ? does the council of trent , where it decrees this service is to be paid to them , say that this shall be the universal , ecclesiastical sense of these devotions ? nay , does but so much as one single rubrick in all your offices give us the least intimation of it ? . it is , i know , pretended by monsieur de meaux , that your catechism authorizes this exposition of them ; where it teaches the difference there is between your praying to god and to the saints . for that you pray to god either that he would give you good things , or that he would deliver you from evil , but to the saints , that they would undertake your patronage , and obtain for you those things you stand in need of . that from hence arises two different forms of prayer ; for that to god you say properly have mercy upon us , or hear our prayers ; but to the saints , pray for us . . such are that bishops pretences , and it must be confessed they have something that is plausible in them ; tho what will soon vanish when it comes to be examined to the bottom . for be it allow'd , as he desires , that there are here proposed two different forms of prayer ; for indeed we do not deny but that in general you may pray with other sentiments to god , than to the saints ; tho too often in your prayers themselves we find no great care taken to distinguish them : to god , as to the first and supreme dispenser of all good ; to the saints only as his ministers , and inferiour distributers of it . but does this therefore reduce all the prayers you make to the saints , in whatever terms they are conceived , to this one form , pray for us ? judge , i beseech you , by those words which immediately follow in the catechism , but were not for the turn of an expounder , and therefore his lordship thought good to omit them : altho it be lawful , in another manner , to ask of the saints themselves that they would have mercy upon us , for they are very merciful . . if this be another manner from the foregoing then i am sure all the prayers of your church are not to be reduced to that one form , pray for us . but what is this other manner ? we may pray ( says the catechism ) that being moved at the misery of our condition , they would help us with their favour and deprecation with god. so that here then is somewhat more , at least in the opinion of your own catechism , than a meer praying for us ; here is encouragement to ask not only their prayers , but also their favour and interest too . but indeed the catechism goes yet farther : for giving a reason why angels are to be invocated , they are ( says the catechism ) to be prayed to , because they both continually look upon god , and most willingly undertake the patronage of our salvation which is committed to them : and from thence in the next section it infers the like necessity of honouring the saints . . this is plain dealing , and gives us an authentick exposition of that passage in the council of trent , whose sense you no less pervert than that of your liturgies ; viz. that for obtaining the benefits of god by his son jesus christ , you should betake your selves to their ( the saints ) prayers , aid , and assistance : and to this end , that you should not barely invoke them , but invoke them in a suppliant manner ; as those who reign now with christ. a circumstance this which was not put in by chance , but was thought so considerable as to be mention'd in pope pius's profession of faith , where nothing superfluous was to be admitted ; and where you declare , that you firmly believe that the saints who reign together with christ , are to be venerated and invoked . insomuch that ( as i have before observed ) your great cardinals , cajetane and bellarmine , doubt not to call them gods by participation ; and to deliver it as the catholick doctrine ( and we know how conformable the catholick practice is to it amongst you ) that the saints are set over us , and take care of us , and that the faithful here on earth are ruled and govern'd by them . by all which it appears with what sincerity you pretend that all your church teaches is only to pray to to the saints in the same spirit of charity , and according to the same order of fraternal society , with which you demand the assistance of your brethren living upon earth . and how false it is , that you are taught to reduce all the forms of your addresses to this one meaning , pray for us ; seeing you both direct the faithful to recur to them for their prayers , aid , and assistance ; and suppose them capable as reigning together with christ , and gods by participation , but especially as having the care of the faithful committed to them , to rule and govern them , to lend you other help and assistance besides that of their prayers , and ( as i shall presently shew ) pray to them accordingly so to do . . but secondly , we will examine this point a little further ; for indeed the whole mystery of this service in the church of rome depends upon a right understanding of what notion they have of the saints above . and because i will do this without any suspicion of falsity , i will deliver nothing but from card. bellarmine's own words . in his book of the eternal felicity of the saints , among other reasons that he gives why the place and state of the blessed should be called the kingdom of heaven , he has this for one , because all the blessed in heaven are kings , and all the qualities of kings do most properly agree to them . the just ( says he ) in the kingdom of their father , shall be themselves kings of the kingdom of heaven ; for they shall be partakers of his kingly dignity , and of the power , and riches , and other goods that are in the kingdom of heaven . which is , i suppose , a plain paraphrase of what he elsewhere says , that they are gods by participation , or partakers of the dignity and power of god. . having thus established his foundation , he now goes on to the practical demonstration of it . the goods ( says he ) of an earthly kingdom are usually reckon'd to be these four , power , honour , riches , and pleasure . an earthly king has power to command his subjects ; if they do not obey him , he can punish them with bonds , imprisonment , exile , scourging , death . again ; kings will be honour'd with an honour almost above the nature of men ; for they will be adored upon the knee ; nor will they vouchsafe oftentimes to hear those that speak to them , unless in this bended posture , and with their face down to the ground . but yet ( as he afterwards shews ) this power is mix'd with infirmity ; this honour oftentimes changed into disgrace . but with the saints above it is much otherwise : for their power is exceeding great , and without any mixture of infirmity . this he illustrates with a story , which at once shews what their power is with reference to us , and how they are pray'd to in the church of rome upon presumption of it . st. gregory ( says he ) relates in his book of dialogues , that a certain holy man , being just ready to be slain by the hangman , whose arm was stretch'd out , and sword drawn for that purpose , cry'd out in that instant , saint john hold him ; and immediately his hand wither'd , that he could neither put it down again , nor so much as move it . s. john therefore ( continues the cardinal ) from the highest heaven heard the voice of his client , and struck his executioner with this infirmity so suddenly , as to hinder the stroke already begun . this is the power of those heavenly kings , that neither the almost infinite distance of place , nor the solitariness of a poor and unarm'd righteous man , nor the multitude of armed enemies , could prevent s. john from delivering his suppliant from the danger of death . . i shall not need to transcribe what he in the next place adds concerning the worship that upon this and other accounts is paid to the saints , beyond that of any earthly monarch . but from what has been said , i conclude , that it is the opinion of those in the church of rome , that ( as the council of trent expresses it ) the saints reign together with christ ; and , are gods by participation ; that is , are made partakers of the dignity and power of god. . that therefore whatever intercourse the faithful upon earth may have with them , it must be vastly different from what they have with their brethren here below , who are neither admitted to such a dignity , nor partakers of this power . . that since the saints are thus kings in heaven , when those of the roman church address to them in a suppliant manner , as their clients , for help and assistance , they do not do this in the same spirit of charity , nor after the same order of fraternal society with which they would desire the prayers of their fellow-christians yet living . and , . that seeing the bless'd in heaven have power together with god of taking care of us , and bestowing blessings upon us ; there is neither truth nor reason in that vain pretence , that all the prayers that are made to them , must be reduced to this one form , pray for us ; but that we ought indeed to understand them to desire of the saints , what both their principles allow them to do , and their words declare that they do desire ; viz. their help and assistance , as reigning together with christ. . but , thirdly , i have yet more to say in answer to this evasion . it is well known how much those prayers you make to the saints , scandalized many of the most eminent men of your church . wicelius doubted not to say of one of your hymns , that it was full of downright blasphemy , and horrible superstition ; of others , that they were wholly inexcusable . ludovicus vives profess'd , that he found little difference in the peoples opinion of their saints , in many things , from what the heathens had of their gods : and that numbers in your church worshipp'd them no otherwise than god. now this the council of trent could not but know , and it then lay before them to redress it . if therefore those fathers had thought , that there was no other form of invocation allowable to the saints , than ( as you now pretend ) to pray to them to pray for us , is it to be imagined , that at such a juncture as this they would have taken no care about a thing so justly scandalous , not only to the protestants , whom they desired to reduce , but even to many of their own communion ? how easie had it been for them to say , that to satisfie the complaints of these learned men , and of their enemies ; and to prevent any mistakes of the like kind for the future , it seem'd good to the holy ghost and to them to declare , that in what terms soever the prayers of their church were conceived , yet that the ecclesiastical sense of them was in all one and the same , viz. pray for us . but now instead of such a declaration , and which such wise men in this case would never have omitted , they regard no complaints that were made against this service ; but roundly decree an invocation to be due to them , and establish it upon the old foundation before-mention'd , and which had given rise to all these excesses , viz. that the saints reign together with christ ; and were therefore in a supliant manner to be call'd upon ; and that for the obtaining benefits of god , they were to fly , not only to their prayers , but also to their help and assistance : and when according to their order for reciting the missals and breviaries , they were again set out , the one four , the other six years after the council was ended : the hymns and prayers were left still as we see , and not so much as the least note in a rubrick , for a right exposition of them . . nay , i will go yet farther : there was not only no care taken then , but at this day men are suffer'd to run , without censure , into the same excesses . we know to what extravagance card. bona , father crasset , and but the other day doctor j. c. our own countryman , have gone ; and no one of your church censures them for it . cassander immediately after the council , no less complain'd of these things than vives and wicelius before ; and that too was disregarded . on the contrary , whilst the extravagances of these votaries are encouraged , the moderation of the others is censured by the highest authority of your church . the psalter of s. bonaventure goes abroad with permission , but the comments of lud. vives are put in the expurgatory index , and george cassander's works absolutely prohibited . if advices are given from the blessed virgin to her indiscreet worshippers , all the servants of the b. virgin run to arms to encounter him : the learned of all nations write against him , the holy see condemns him , spain banishes him out of all its dominions , and forbids to read or print his book , as impious and erroneous . but if a crasset in his zeal for the mother of god , runs into such blasphemous excesses as no pious ears can hear , without indignation ; if he rake together all that the folly and superstition of former ages has said or done the most excessively on this subject , to make up a volumn scandalous to that church and society that endures him ; not only the divines of his order approve it , but his provincial licenses it to be printed ; the king's permission is obtain'd for 〈◊〉 ; and the expounders themselves are so very good natur'd , that they cannot see any harm in it . and then let the world judge what your true doctrine , as to the invocation of saints , must be . for , . fourthly , had the council of trent been of the same opinion with monsieur de meaux , i shall leave it to any reasonable man , that will but be at the pains to examine your offices , to say , whether there was not great need of some such advertisement as i before said . as for example : in the office of the blessed virgin you thus address to her : we fly to your protection , o holy mother of god ; despise not our prayers which we make to you in our necessities ; but deliver us from all dangers , o glorious and ever blessed virgin . — and again , vouchsafe that i may be worthy to praise thee , o sacred virgin : give me strength and power against thine enemies . now that these prayers are conceived in as formal terms as any can be to god himself , is not to be deny'd : i desire you therefore to tell me by what rules of interpretation , by what publick and authentick decree of your church , we are to expound a prayer made to the blessed virgin , that she would give strength and power , into a desire that she would pray to god that he would do this ? . but however , let us for one moment suppose this to be reasonable , and try whither such a method of interpreting will carry us . for instance , thus you * * * * * * pray to the apostles . o ye just judges and true lights of the world , we pray unto you with the requests of our hearts , that ye would hear the prayers of your suppliants . that is to say , we do desire you in a friendly way , and only after the order of brotherly society , though in complement we call our selves indeed your suppliants , and intreat you to hear our prayers , that you would pray for us . ye that by your word shut and open heaven , deliver us , we beseech you by your command from all our sins . that is , you who by your prayers to god are able to incline him either to shut or open h●aven , we intreat you , that by your command , meaning only your prayers , you would deliver us ; that is to say , would pray to god , that he would deliver us — , from all our sins . you to whose command the health and sickness of all men are submitted , heal us who are sick in cur manners , and restore us to vertue . that is to say , o ye holy apostles , to whose command , as far as prayers may be so called , the health and sickness of all is subjected ; forasmuch as your requests can prevail with god to submit it to you : heal us , i. e. pray to god that he would heal us , who are sick in our manners ; and restore us ; that is to say , intreat god , that he would restore us to vertue . . such , according to your principles , is the paraphrase of this prayer . if this be a natural way of expounding , then be also your pretences allow'd of : but if to pray in such words as these , meaning no more than what i have express'd , be a downright mocking both of god and his saints , then let the world judge what we are to think of your interpretations . . but however , for once let us allow even this too : what shall we do with those prayers where god and the saints are both join'd together in the same request . as for instance , let mary and her son bless us . here , i doubt , it will be something difficult to reduce them to what you call the churches sense , pray for us , unless you pray to god too as well as to the saints , to pray ( to whom i cannot imagine ) for you . . i shall add but one consideration more , from your service of the saints , to overthrow your new expositions ; but that such as i shall be very glad to receive an honest answer to . for be it that in defiance of all sense and reason , your prayers to the saints , in what terms soever they be conceived , must all be interpreted , as you pretend . yet what shall we do in those cases where the very nature of the service utterly refuses such kind of colours ? as , i. when in your vows , you vow'd ( as i before observed ) , to god , and the blessed virgin , and to st. benedict , and to all the saints , that you would be obedient to your superiours . ii. when in your doxologies , you give glory to god , and the b. virgin mary , and last of all to jesus christ. so greg. de valencia . praise be to god , and the virgin mother mary , also to god jesus christ , the eternal son of the eternal father , be praise and glory . so card. bellarmine closes this very dispute of the worship of saints . honour and glory be to god , and to the most holy virgin mary , and to all the saints . so your collector of the lives of the saints . vers. open my lips , o mother of jesus . resp. and my soul shall speak forth thy praise . vers. divine lady , be intent to my aid . resp. graciously make haste to help me . vers. glory be to jesus and mary . resp. as it was , is , and ever shall be . so dr. j. c. now what you will think of all this i cannot tell , but sure i am s. athanasius pronounces it to be downright idolatry , and what no good christian would ever be guilty of . iii. when in your commendation of a departing soul , you bid him , depart out of the world , in the name of the father , son , and holy ghost ; of angels and archangels , of patriarchs , prophets , apostles , and of all saints , as i have before at large recited it . iv. when in the confession of your sins , you confess , to god almighty , and the blessed virgin mary , to s. michael , the archangel , to s. john baptist , to the holy apostles peter and paul , and to all the saints . v. when in absolving your penitents from them , you join , the passion of our lord jesus christ , and the merits of the blessed virgin , and of all the saints ; together , for the remission of all his sins . vi. when in your conjurings against storms , you contradict the evil spirit by the vertue of our lord jesus christ , and of the blessed virgin. vii . when in your excommunications , you shut men out of the church , in the authority of god almighty , the father , son , and holy ghost , and of the blessed apostles , peter and paul , and of all the saints . viii . when in absolving them from this sentence , you remit this bond , in the same authority of god almighty , and of the blessed apostles , peter and paul. lastly , when in consecrating of a church or altar , you bid this stone be sancti ✚ fied , and conse ✚ crated , in the name of the fa ✚ ther , and of the s ✚ on , and of the holy ✚ ghost ; and of the glorious virgin mary , and of all the saints . and again , let this church be sanc ✚ tified , and con ✚ secrated , in the name of fa ✚ ther , and of the s ✚ on , and of the holy ✚ ghost ; to the honour of god , and of the glorious virgin mary , and of all the saints . now in all these several instances , there is no room for any such interpretation as you pretend in the case of your prayers ; but here either your hearts join in what your lips utter , and then it is plain you give as proper divine worship to the saints as you do to god , which you confess to be unlawful : or if they do not , what is this but to speak words of vanity in your most solemn service , and in which you ought especially to take heed not to offend ? . thus do the very words of your liturgies utterly refuse such an exposition as you pretend to be your only meaning in all your prayers to the saints . i will add yet one consideration more , to shew the insincerity of it , fifthly , from the concurrent practice of the most eminent persons of your church , and whose authority you cannot with any justice except against . . now of this the famous psalter of s. bonaventure , may alone serve for a sufficient evidence ; which as it has been publickly set forth , and authorized amongst you , so i need not tell you , that the design of it was to apply all the addresses that are made to god in the psalms and hymns of the church ; nay , and even the very creeds to the blessed virgin. come unto mary all ye that labour and are heavy laden , and she shall refresh your souls . come unto her in your temptations , and the serenity of her countenance shall establish you . when i called upon thee thou heardest me , o lady , and from thy high throne didst vouchsafe to remember me . blessed art thou , o lady , for ever , and let thy majesty be exalted for evermore . o lady , in thee do i put my trust , deliver my soul from mine enemies . o give thanks unto the lord , for he is good : o give thanks unto his mother , for her mercy endureth for ever . . i might pass at this rate through all the other psalms , and to these add the te deum , benedicite , athanasian creed , &c. all burlesqued to he● honour : but there has been so many large collections of these already publish'd , that i shall subjoin only one prayer at the close of all . o my holy lady mary ! i commend to thy blessed trust and especial custody , and into the bosom of thy mercy , this day and every day , and in the hour of my death , both my soul and body : i commit all my hope and consolation , all my troubles and my miseries , my life and the end of my life , to thee ; that by thy most holy intercession and merits all my works may be directed and disposed , according to thine and thy sons will. amen . . i will not now insist upon this , that this book has been often printed among you with licence and commendation , and particularly my editions of it ; the one italian and latin , printed at genoa , . with the licence of the superiors , and submitted by the translator giovan battista pinello to the censure of the church ; the other at leige in the same year , by le sage : but this last had the honour of being particularly commended by the vicar of that church , and censor of books , as a piece that was profitable to be printed , and very piously and commendably to be recited by all men in their private prayers , to the honour of the b. virgin. the author of it is at this time a canonized saint in your church , and is now in his turn worshipped by you . if therefore you approve these addresses ( as i presume you must ) be pleased to try , ( 't will be a pretty expounding task ) how you can reduce all these hymns and prayers to this one sense of your church , pray for us . but if you disallow these addresses , as ( what in truth they are ) scandalous and idolatrous , what then shall we say if you pray to those as in heaven now , who whilst they lived were guilty of such desperate superstitions ? . and now i am instancing in your saints , i cannot forbear presenting you with a strain or two of your pious , but very superstitious and indiscreet st. bernard : and this too to try your faculty of expounding . to thee , o holy virgin mary , as to the ark of god , as to the cause of things , as to the business of ages , do all look that are both in heaven and hell ; both they that have gone before us , and we who now live , and they who shall hereafter be born . — all generations shall call thee blessed , o mother of god! — in thee the angels have found joy , the righteous grace , and sinners pardon for ever . worthily do the eyes of the whole creation look upon thee , because in thee , and by thee , and of thee the kind hand of the almighty hath re-created whatever he had created . we embrace thy footsteps , o mary , and with most devout supplication we fall down before thy blessed feet . we will hold thee , and not let thee go till thou shalt bless us . for thou art able , &c. . but i insist too long upon these matters ; and therefore in stead of multiplying new instances , shall refer you to those i have already offer'd : and from your saints descend to the heads of your church ; one of which thus piously call'd upon s. peter and s. paul at the head of a synod , in excommunicating the emperour henry iv. anno . in these words . blessed peter , prince of the apostles , and thou o blessed paul , doctor of the gentiles ; vouchsafe , i beseech you , mercifully to incline your ears unto me , and hear me . and then , after some particulars too large to be transcribed , he thus goes on : go to now i beseech you , o fathers and holy princes , that all the world may know and understand , that as you have in heaven the power of binding and loosing , you have also on earth power over empires , kingdoms , principalities , &c. for you have often taken away patriarchates , &c. from the wicked and unworthy , and have given them to religious men. let the kings and all the princes of the world now learn how great you are , and how much you can do , and fear to undervalue the command of your church : and execute judgment on the aforesaid henry so suddenly , that all men may know that he shall fall , not by chance , but by your power . this is a blessed prayer for a pope to make ; and i doubt will be found to signifie somewhat more than to pray to those saints to pray for him. if you think otherwise , let us see your paraphrase , and then we shall be able the better to judge of it . to conclude , let any man but read over the late books of father crasset , and dr. j. c. and then i will leave him to believe if he can , that all you mean in your invocation of saints , is only to desire them to pray for you . . and this may suffice to your first pretence , of the interpretation you would put upon these addresses . as for the authority you would be thought to have from holy scripture , for them , it is so very trifling , as not to deserve a consideration . for who would not laugh at that man that should seriously argue after this manner ? . when the children of israel were under oppression , god raised up a deliverer or saviour for them , who delivered them : therefore it is lawful to pray to saints as our saviours in heaven . again , . st. stephen calls moses a ruler and a deliverer of the children of israel ; and st. paul a mediator , because at the delivery of the law god sent it by his hands to them : therefore we may now give the titles of mediators and redeemers to the saints departed , with reference to our spiritual and eternal concerns , tho they neither are , nor have been , either redeemers or mediators to us . . st. paul tells timothy , that if he discharged the part of a faithful pastor , as he exhorted him to do , he should be a blessed instrument of salvation both to himself and others : therefore we may now pray to timothy as our saviour in heaven . . are not these , sir , weighty arguments ? and were you not resolved utterly to confound us , when you alledged such proof out of holy scripture as this ? but you have one passage at least that will do our work. grace and peace are the proper gifts of god : but this st. john wishes to the seven churches of asia , not only from god , but also from the seven spirits which are before the throne : therefore we may warrantably pray to the blessed virgin , let the virgin mary and her son bless us . a notable proof this , and almost as terrible as that which follows : the holy scripture says of princes , that they are gods ; therefore we may pray to the saints as gods too . but we will consider every part of it . grace and peace are the proper gifts of god. this is confess'd : what will you infer from thence ? but these st. john wishes not only from god , but also from the seven spirits . i answer , . if your own gloss be good , those seven spirits are set to signifie the seven fold gifts of the holy ghost ; and your own rhemists in their annotations ( from whence i am apt to believe you borrow'd this argument ) confess it may be well understood so . but , . not to deal too strictly with you ; let us allow these seven spirits to signifie created angels ; what will be the consequence ? st. john wisheth all grace and peace to the churches of asia from god , by the ministration of his holy angels , whose ministry he employs in dispensing his graces and blessings for the preservation of his church : therefore we may wish to the church now , grace and peace from christ and the blessed virgin , who is neither angel nor ministring spirit , nor that we know of any way employ'd by god for the service of it . nay , but this will not do yet : we must carry it yet further . st. john wishes all peace and happiness from god and his holy angels to the church : therefore we may not only wish the like from god by their ministration , but may solemnly pray to saints and angels themselves , together with god , for grace and peace . and if this be your way of arguing from holy scripture , 't is well you have infallibility of your side , for i am confident otherwise you would never persuade any man , by way of reasoning , to submit to your conclusions . . but the representer has yet a passage to justifie the utmost extravagance of former times , and prove even that prayer , which bellarmine was fain to deny they ever used , of the virgins commanding our saviour by the right which as a mother she had over him , to be most agreeable to holy writ . for does not the scripture say of joshua , c. x. . that he spoke to the sun , and it stood still , the lord obeying the voice of a man ? this is an argument that must be carefully look'd to , or , like wit that depends upon a turn of expression , 't will be utterly lost . and therefore in the vulgar latin and doway bibles , this is a good proof ; but in our own , 't is none at all . for as we render it , it would be a most wild inference thus to conclude ; joshua pray'd unto god that the sun might stand still ; and god hearkned unto his voice , and answered his request : therefore we may pray to the blessed virgin by the right of a mother to command her son. but be it as he desires ; god obey'd the voice of joshua ; i. e. as the chaldee paraphrast has it , he accepted his prayer ; as the doway bible it self expounds it , he condescended to work so great a miracle at the instance of his servant : how will it even thence follow , that we may desire the blessed virgin to command our saviour by the right of a mother over him ? but such twigs as these must be laid hold on , when men are resolv'd to keep to their conclusion , tho at the same time they have not so much as the shadow of a proof to support it . sect . ii. after what manner it is that the church of rome prays to god through the merits of her saints ? this is the next point to be considered by us ; and thus you establish it . . reply , p. . ] you tell us , that the word merit is equivocal , and misapplied by me : that the truth of your doctrine is , i. to reduce all your prayers to this form , that god would be pleased not to regard your unworthiness , but ( the merits of our redeemer ever supposed ) respect the merits of his saints also , and for their sakes hear your prayers , and accept your sacrifices . ii. that this is plainly shewn in your solemn concluding of all your addresses in this manner , through jesus christ our lord. whereby it appears , that you mean no more , than to beg of god almighty that he would vouchsafe to call to mind the glorious actions and sufferings of his saints , performed in and by his grace , and upon these accounts accept you . iii. and finally , that for this you have the authority of the holy scripture it self . . answ. ] for answer to which discourse , i must first desire you to come a little out of the clouds , and not play with us in ambiguous terms , whilst you charge me with it . the word merit , you say , is equivocal ; and the two senses you give it are , first , to signifie that we do by our own natural force alone deserve the reward of grace and glory . and in which sense if you pretend that we charge you with pleading your own merits , you do certainly most falsly accuse us . the other sense you give the word is , that our good works may be said to merit , because they apply the merits of jesus christ to us , and are the means by which we attain eternal life , in vertue of the promises of god , and merits of our blessed redeemer . in which were you sincere ( for all the impropriety of the speech ) yet we should not be far from agreeing with you . but now what is all this , to your praying to god to hear you by the merits of the saints ? this may do well in its proper article ; but here it serves only to amuse the reader with that which is nothing to the purpose , that so he may be disposed to forget what you were to prove . jam dic posthume de tribus capellis . . you tell us then , in the next paragraph , that you pray , that god would not respect your own unworthiness , but regard the merits of his saints , and for their sakes , i. e. for their merits , hear your prayers , or accept your sacrifices . but where then is the misrepresentation ? for this is the very thing we charge you with , viz. that not content to address your selves to god , in the name and through the merits of our only mediator jesus christ , you have sought out to your selves other intercessors , in whose name , and through whose merits to offer up both your prayers and sacrifices to god. and whether we do not in this very justly accuse you , let your addresses themselves satisfie the world. o blessed john the baptist , reach out thy hand to us , and be to us continually a holy intercessor , to the clemency of the most high judge , that through thy merits we may deserve to be freed from all tribulation . o god! by whose grace we celebrate the memories of thy saints saturninus and sisinnius , grant that by their merit we may be helped , through our lord. mercifully accept , o god , our offerings which we have made unto thee , for the sake of the passion of thy blessed martyrs saturninus and sisinnius ; that by their intercession they may be made acceptable to thy majesty . and in the breviary of salisbury , we find this to be a part of the constant service : be propitious we beseech thee , o lord , unto us thy servants , through the glorious merits of thy saints whose reliques are contain'd in this church ; that by their pious intercession we may be protected in all adversities . grant we beseech thee , almighty god , that the merits of thy saints whose reliques are contain'd in this church may protect us , &c. it were infinite to recount all the other prayers which run in the same strain throughout all your offices , insomuch that the very * * * * * * canon of the mass is infected with it . i will mention only one instance more , which is indeed a singular one ; not so much because of the expression of it , wherein the general word of merit is restrain'd to the particular merit of his death , as because it was made to one who died in actual rebellion against his prince ; and concerning whom therefore it was for some time debated amongst you , whether he were damn'd or saved ? by the blood of thomas ( a becket ) which he shed for thee , make us to ascend to heaven whither he is gone . . it remains then , that you do recur to the saints not meerly for their prayers , but that by their merits and intercession they would obtain grace and pardon of god for you . this is the doctrine of your catechism : that the saints help us by their own merits , and are therefore the rather to be worshipped and invoked , because they both pray continually for the salvation of men , and that god bestows many benefits upon us by their merit and favour . 't is from hence that the master of the sentences interprets your praying for their intercession , to be the same thing as to pray that by their merits they would help you . and aquinas , we pray to the saints ( says he ) not to inform god of our petitions by them , but that by their prayers and merits our prayers may become effectual . we may say to the saints ( says card. bellarmine ) save me , or give me this or that ; provided we understand , give it me by thy prayers or merits . so that in all this we say no more of you , than what both your doctrine and practice warrant us to do . . let us see therefore how you excuse your selves in this matter . you say , that your concluding of all your prayers through jesus christ our lord , shews that you desire all at last by his merits . but indeed this is but a poor shift ; and as a very learned man has long since told you , that close comes in in your addresses , much after the same manner that the mention of a certain sum of money does in deeds of trust , only pro formâ : and you are never the less guilty , for this conclusion , of what we charge you with , viz. that you join the merits and intercession of the saints , with the merits and intercession of christ for pardon and acceptance . and to the end that you may see what sensless petitions you hereby make to god in these addresses , i will only take one of your prayers in the literal meaning of it , and apply it in a plain paraphrase to your pretensions , by way of petition to some earthly prince . thus then you pray upon the third of may. grant we beseech thee , almighty god , that we who adore the nativity of thy saints , alexander , &c. may by their intercession be deliver'd from all evils that hang over us , through jesus christ our lord. now changing only the names , this , according to your exposition , will be the paraphrase of it . i beseech your sacred majesty that you would vouchsafe to pardon my offences against you , and deliver me from those evils that hang over me for them , at the intercession of your lord chancellor , &c. and in honour of this his birth-day ; and that for the sake of the prince your son , our royal lord and master . in this extravagant petition , the very transcript of the foregoing prayer , he must be blind who sees not that the conclusion of it , for the princes sake , &c. is very impertinent , and does not at all hinder but that the request is formally made by the interest of my lord chancellor , and in honour of his birth-day : and therefore that notwithstanding this conclusion ( which is really the remains of your old forms , before ever any new intercessors were put into them ) you remain justly chargeable with what i accused you of , that you make the saints joint intercessors with christ to god ; and desire not only through his merits , but by theirs also , to obtain your requests . . as for your last pretence of holy scripture for this practice , it is every jot as little to the purpose in this , as i have shewn it to be in the foregoing point . . god tells isaac ( say you ) that he would bless him , for his father abrahams sake . moses , praying for the people , desires god to remember abraham , isaac , and jacob , i. e. because god , in pursuance of his covenant made with abraham , blessed his son , and moses put him in mind of that covenant , to appease his anger , that he should not destroy the israelites ; therefore it is lawful now to pray to god not only by the merits of christ ( the only mediator of god's covenant with us ) but also of the saints too , for pardon and salvation . god , in remembrance of his promise made to david , shew'd mercy unto solomon for his sake : therefore solomon might have urged to god the merits of david for pardon of his sins ; and therefore we ( who have another , and better , and only advocate ) may address to god by the merits and intercession of the saints for forgiveness . i wonder you did not put in the city jerusalems merits too , to prove that we may not only pray through the merits of the saints , but of their cities also : for the text seems as express in this , as in the other : i kings xi . . but he shall have one tribe for my servant david's sake , and for jerusulems sake , the city which i have chosen out of all the tribes of israel . what you mean by your last passage , i must confess i cannot divine ; unless you think that because elijah , who was sent by god's express command to make a proof of his divinity before all the people of israel , who were gone after baal , began his prayer with that usual character of his being the god of abraham , isaac , and jacob ; it was therefore through their merits that the fire came down from heaven , and burnt up his sacrifice . sect . iii. in which the arguments offer'd by the vindicator for the establishing of this worship are particularly consider'd , and their weakness laid open . . hitherto we have been clearing the matter of fact , what your practice in this invocation of saints is ; i come now in the next place to examine your arguments , and see what grounds you have to support so great a superstition . and first , for what concerns the holy scripture , i find you do not much care to be try'd by that : you plead possession for your warrant , and are resolved that shall be sufficient , till we by some better right can throw you out of it . now in this i cannot but commend your discretion ; for indeed those who go about to found this article upon the authority of holy writ , do in the opinion of many of your own church but loose their labour , since ( as they tell us ) for the old testament , the holy patriarchs and prophets that lived before christ's incarnation were not yet admitted into heaven , and therefore were not capable of being pray'd to ; and for the new , it was not express'd there for fear of scandalizing the jews , and least the gentiles should have been thereby moved to think , that the worship of new gods had been proposed to them . . wherefore passing by the holy scripture , which you look upon as unfit to be appeal'd to in this case , let us come to the possession you so much boast of ; and see how you defend it against those arguments i offer'd to prove that this custom of calling upon the saints had no footing in the church before the latter end of the iv. century ; and was then but beginning to creep into it . and to reduce your confusion to the clearest method i can , i will distinctly consider your allegations in these two periods . first , of the first years , wherein i affirm that there was no such prac●ice in the church . secondly , of the f●urth century ; towa●ds the latter end of which i confess it began to appear ; tho' still with very great difference from what you now practise . i. period . that the custom of praying to saints had no being in the church for the first years . . now for this i shew'd you in my defence , that the fathers of the iv. century did certainly herein depart from the practice and tradition of the ages before them ; because * that you were not able to produce so much as one instance out of the first three centuries of any such invocation : * but rather were forced to confess , that nothing of that kind was to be found amongst them . * that this was in effect what your greatest authors , card. du perron , card. bellarmine , and even the bishop of meaux himself had done : * and that indeed your own principles oblige you to this acknowledgment ; seeing you both allow that without believing that the saints departed go forthwith to heaven , they could not have pray'd to them ; and yet cannot but say that this , the holy fathers of the first three ages did utterly deny . these were my arguments ; let us see how you clear your possession from the force of them . . first , you clap a marginal note upon my assertion ( in earnest of your future civility ) primitive fathers calumniated by the defender : and to wipe off this calumny you undertake to shew that they did pray to the saints within the first years . this is i confess to the purpose , and if you can do it , let the note of calumny stick upon me ; but indeed i rather think that this undertaking will fix another , and a much more proper note upon you. but let us hear your proofs . ibid. ] and first you say , my brethren the centurists of magdeburg acknowledg that origen prayed to job , and admitted the invocation of angels . . answer ] if this be true , then , sir , i tell you in one word , that my brethren the centurists were mistaken ; and that , ( considering the time they wrote in ) is no great wonder . but now did you never hear in your life , that your brethren , erasmus , sixtus senensis , possevin , bellarmine , baronius , labbé , du pin , &c. have all confess'd , that neither the tracts , nor comments upon job were origen's ? has no one ever told you , secondly , that another of your brethren card. du perron , has utterly rejected the authority of origen , as an incompetent witness in matter of fact , and that especially in the very point before us ? were you indeed so ignorant , thirdly , as not to know how opposite this father is to you ( as i shall presently shew ) in his undoubtedly genuine works as to this matter ? as for the other passages you quote , fourthly , out of his comments upon ezekiel ; besides that he there supposes the angel present with him : could you look upon this place and not see that another of your brethren , your own editor , calls it an apostrophe to his guardian angel ; and i desire you to try if you can make any more of it . and lastly , for what you finally alledge out of his lamentations ; did you in good earnest not know that it was a book mark'd , not by your brethren only , but by your holy father pope gelasius as apchryphal ; and rejected as such by all the learned men of your own communion ? so unfortunate , or rather unfaithful have you been in your first entry upon antiquity . it may be you will go on a little better . reply . ] you tell us in the next place a story of one justina , how being in danger of making shipwrack of her chastity by the magical art of st. cyprian , she had recourse to the intercession of the blessed virgin mary , begging of her to assist her whose virginity was in danger . . answer . ] if by this story you design to prove the invocation of saints to have been the practice of the church within the first years , ( and indeed it is for this you do produce it , ) i must then again complain of your unsincerity ; seeing it is both acknowledged by your own authors , and indeed confess'd by your own self , that gregory nazianzen was mistaken in the relation , and attributed that to the great st. cyprian , bishop of carthage , which could not belong to him. as for the other cyprian to whom card. du perron , baronius , &c. apply it , he is not pretended to have lived within that period , and so your proof is without the compass of what you undertook to shew . . but secondly , had there been any truth in this story , even with reference to this other cyprian , how comes it to pass that none of the ancient martyrologies , no not your own breviary , since the reformation of it , makes the least mention of any such thing : would all these have omitted so considerable a passage had there been any grounds of certainty in it . . to reply therefore to this instance , i say , it is more than probable that st. gregory took up this story either from some flying report , or out of some counterfeit acts : for one part of it , at least that which relates to st. cyprian bishop of carthage , you confess your † † † † † † selves that in this he was certainly mistaken . and if any other cyprian we hear nothing either in eusebius , or any other historian or writer of that age. the first cardinal baronius has produced being beda and adelhelmus , who lived not till the eighth , and metaphrastes in the latter end of the ninth century . but however let us see even what they say of this matter . they tell us that the cyprian here meant was bishop of antioch , and suffer'd martyrdom at nicomedia with st. justina : and thus it stood in your own breviary too till the reformation of it by the order of the council of trent . but now it is beyond dispute evident that this is utterly false ; for that in those times there was no such bishop of antioch , both the accounts of the succession of that sea given us both by ancient and modern historians plainly shew ; and card. baronius himself confesses it : who is therefore forced for the credit of the business contrary both to his own authors , and to your ancient brevaries , to degrade him from a bishop to a deacon . and for this he has no authority . so evident do's it remain , that this whole matter is what the card. calls , one part of it at least , a fable to be exploded by all wise men. and this is another proof either of your integrity or ability in church history . but we will hope the next may be better . . reply . ] and thus you go on with your undertaking , you tell me you will not cite dionysius the areopagite , because it may be i will not allow him to be the author of the book under his name : nor justin martyr , because i shall be apt to say he does not speak plain enough : nor irenaeus , tho' he says plainly that the virgin mary was made an advocate for the virgin eve ( i presume you mean that eve pray'd to the virgin mary years before she was born , as father crasset says they built temples to her ere she came into the world ) because it may be i shall find out an evasion for that too . . answ. ] quid dignum tanto feret hic promissor hiatu ? you will not insist upon dionysius , nor upon justin martyr , nor upon irenaeus : but what then will you insist upon ? for you have said nothing at all to the purpose yet . after all this gaping , we have two testimonies only offer'd to us for the practice of years : one a passage of origen already rejected as spurious : and the other out of a tract of methodius , if not certainly spurious , yet justly suspected by your own critick's , being neither quoted by any of the ancients , nor mention'd by photius ; and of a stile more luxuriant than that fathers other writings are ; and that speaks so clearly of the mystery of the trinity , of the incarnation , and divinity of the word , whom he calls , in a phrase not well known in his time , consubstantial with the father ; of the trisagion never heard of for above years after his death ; of the virginity of mary after her conception ; and of orginal sin ; that your late critick monsieur du pin had certainly reason to place it among his spurious works , however it be now cited with such assurance by you . . but to quit this exception against the book : the very passage it self is so manifest a piece of oratory , that had you ever consulted it , in the greek set out by combefis , you could not have doubted of it . he had begun his apostrophe two or three pages before what you produce ; and he ushered it in with this express introduction , to prepare us for it , that he would conclude his speech with an address to the city of the great king , and to all his brethren and fathers there , as if they were now present with him ; and accordingly he apostrophe's the city jerusalem , p. . the whole catholick church , p. . a. all the people of god , ibid. b. the blessed virgin , ibid. c. holy simeon , p. . b. and so concludes all , joyning with that blessed man in his address to our saviour christ. and tho his expressions may be very high , ( as the whole sermon is ) yet we cannot but think it very unreasonable to conclude the dogmatical sense of the church from the rhetorical flights of a single man , were the piece otherwise never so genuine : but indeed it is worthily rejected ( for the reasons before mentioned ) by the learned criticks both of your and our communion . . this then is the sum of your arguments to establish this practice in the first three centuries . were it necessary , after what has been done by so many better hands , to recount the opinions of those holy fathers as to this point , i should certainly be able to make some better proof of the antiquity of our praying to god only , than you have been able to do of your addressing to the blessed virgin and to the saints . . in the epistle of the church of smyrna concerning the death of polycarp , anno . we find that the jews had perswaded the heathens , that if they suffer'd the christians to have the body of that holy martyr , they would leave christ , to worship polycarp : not knowing ( says that letter ) that it is not possible for us to leave christ , who hath suffer'd for the salvation of all those that are saved in the world ; nor to serve or religiously adore any other . for as for jesus christ , we adore him as being the son of god. but as for the martyrs we love them as the disciples and imitators of the lord. and that very justly considering their insuperable zeal which they bore to their king and master , and god grant that we may be both the disciples of their piety , and partakers of their glory . . this is indeed the true spirit of christianity , and the exact account of the honour we now pay to the saints . we adore only our saviour christ , as the son of god , and therefore ( as the ancient latin translation of this letter reads it ) we pray to no other . but for the saints , we love and honour them ; we recite and magnifie their noble acts : we encourage our selves by their examples to the like performances , as those who earnestly desire to be partakers of their glory . this is all the honour they are now capable of receiving ; and this was all that the primitive church in those best ages , was ever known to have given to them . . the church of christ ( says irenaeus ) does nothing by the invocation of angels , nor by any other perverse curiosity ; but by addressing her prayers purely , and only , and openly to the lord who has made all things . . * * * * * * origen tell us , that to invocate the lord , and to adore god , are the same thing . so do tertullian and cyprian , using the words to pray and to adore promiscuously in the same signification . in a word , this was the constant doctrine of those first ages ; and i will chuse to deliver it in the words of that father whom you have especially alledged to the contrary : we worship ( says † † † † † † origen ) the one only god , and his one only son , and word , and similitude , with our utmost supplications and honours ; bringing our prayers to the god of all things , through his only begotten son ; — * * * * * * we must pray to god only , who is over all , and to his only begotten son the first born of every creature , and beseech him as our high-priest to carry our prayers which we make to him , to his god and our god , to his father , and the father of all those that live according to the word of god. — a a a a a a this is our profession of faith , which we constantly maintain as long as we live , by the blessing of god , and of his only son jesus christ , who was manifested amongst us . as for the favour of others , ( if that be to be look'd after ) we know that thousands of thousands stand before him , and ten thousand times ten thousand minister unto him. these as our brethren and friends when they see us imitating their piety towards god , work together to the salvation of those that call upon god , and pray as they ought to do . . i will add but one testimony more in a matter both so plain in its self , and so often insisted upon by others , and it is of novatian proving the divinity of christ , from the churches praying to him , for none but god ( says he ) knows the secrets of the heart as our saviour did — if christ be only a man , how is he every where present to those that call upon him ? seeing this is not the nature of a man , but of god , to be able to be present in every place . if christ be only man , why is a man called upon as a mediator in prayers , seeing the calling upon a man is judged of no value to give salvation ? if christ be only man , why is any hope put in him , seeing that hope is represented as accursed that is placed in man ? . such was the opinion of the church in the first three centuries : as for that extraordinary discovery you are pleased next to make , that all you do in your liturgies is , to beg of god to hear the prayers of his saints , and that for this you are able to furnish me with many examples out of the ancient liturgies and fathers within the first years ; it is so false an assertion , and so vain an undertaking , that either you must be ignorant even to astonishment both in the doctrine of your own church , and in the acts of primitive antiquity , or else most certainly you never believed , either what you say or what you promise . . but tho you are not then able to answer my challenge of producing any warrant from the fathers of the first years for this doctrine and practice ; it may be you are able at least to answer my presumption from those times against it : viz. that those fathers did not believe that the souls of the just went streight to heaven , and therefore by your own principles could not have believed that they ought to be prayed to as there . . reply ] to this you say , that you are not bound to defend every argument that bellarmine and suarez bring , especially when others of your writers think them unconclusive . in short , you cannot deny the matter of fact , tho you would be thought to suppose rather than allow it to be true ; and all you have to say is , that whatever they believed besides , sure you are they did pray to the saints . . answ. ] that the fathers about the latter end of the iv. century began to invocate the saints we do not deny ; tho' it were rather in the way of a rhetorical compellation , than of a formal address . and if herein they contradicted any other of their principles , we know they were but men , and as such might possibly in their religious heats do some things not entirely consonant to themselves in their cooler hours . now then taking it for granted that those fathers i heretofore mentioned did teach , that the saints departed do not yet enjoy the beatifick vision , i say with those great men of your church , whom you here forsake , that they could not reasonably pray to them . since it is upon this vision , especially , that you found your opinion of that particular knowledge you suppose they ordinarily and constantly have of those things that are done here below , and without which it would be vain and absurd to call upon them . and therefore tho you have no regard to bellarmine's or suarez's authority , yet for the sake of sense and reason answer their arguments ; and tell us a little ( upon your own principles ) how those fathers could think the saints were fit to be pray'd to , if by denying them to be yet in heaven , they by consequence must have deny'd them to have any ordinary and certain knowledge of what is done here upon earth ? . reply . ] but sixtus senensis ( you say ) after all concludes , that those fathers do not intend to exclude the saints departed from the beatifick vision , but only from that perfect happiness which we shall enjoy after the resurrection . and it would have been much more christian-like in me , to have imitated his example , than to argue as i do against their praying to saints from this principle . . answ. ] had i been crampt , as he was , with a defininimus of my church , i might possibly have been tempted to make excuses for those fathers , as he did . but a man need only look upon their words , as they are cited by him , to see how little such shuffling will avail , to reduce their doctrine to your pretences . and the truth is , this sixtus senensis was so honest as to confess , tho you were not so honest as to take notice of it . for having offer'd that exposition of their words which you mention , he immediately subjoins , thus ( says he ) have i interpreted the expressions of s. ambrose , austin , and chrysostome . but if there be some sayings of the holy authors which cannot suffer such an interpretation , yet we should at least remember that this errour ought not to prejudice the learning and piety of such illustrious fathers , seeing the church in their time had not yet determined any thing certain to be believed in this matter . thus sixtus senensis ; ingenuously confessing how the case stood . and this you cannot be presumed not to have seen in him , seeing they are in the very same place with what you transcribed from him . and what then must i think of such a one , as values not how he reports things , so he may but by any means seem to say somewhat ; tho he knows at the same time , that he cannot expect long to triumph in his unsincerity . . and now there is but one thing more remaining , to get over this unlucky period of the first years . reply . ] for what if the few writings of the ancients of the first years which remain , be silent in this particular , does it follow that they approved not the practice ? answ. ] no , sir , this in not the case : we do not pretend to a bare silence of those holy fathers , but we produce their express authorities against you : and that i hope is a good argument that our possession is at least years better than yours ; and that you , not we , have been innovators in this particular . . reply . ] had this custom of praying to saints been only introduc'd in the fourth age , and been so dangerous as moderns would persuade the world that it is , certainly the succeeding general councils would have taken notice of it , or some one of the fathers would have written against it . but , on the contrary , we find the fourth general council allowing this invocation in the third person , let flavian the martyr pray for us . . answ. ] to your instance from the fourth general council , i reply , that besides that you your self confess that it is nothing to the purpose , there being a mighty difference between wishing that the saints would pray for us , and praying to the saints for their aid and succour , you should have known that this council was held in the middle of the fifth age , and so is without the compass of what i am here to consider . . but i will go yet farther with you as to this instance ; and to that end i must tell you , that your authors have very much deceived you in their accounts of it . for first , it was not the synod , but only a party in that synod , that cry'd out , let flavian the martyr pray for us . and secondly , even they that did cry out thus , were as far from designing to pray to flavian at all , as you were from understanding the meaning of their exclamation . the occasion of those words in short was this : in the eleventh and twelfth actions of that council there arose a difficult debate concerning bassianus and stephanus , whether of the two was lawful bishop of ephesus . bassian had this plea , that he had held it quietly four years ; that proclus and his successors , bishops of constantinople , had communicated with him as lawful bishop of that see ; among whom was flavianus but lately deceased . upon this the fathers that were of bassianus party urged to the synod , that flavian by communicating with him , had acknowledged him to be lawful bishop of ephesus : and thereupon press the holy bishops to have this respect to flavian a catholick and martyr , as to acknowledge bassianus to be the true bishop , seeing he had communicated with him as such . and here comes in among other expressions , this that is the subject of our present debate . the bishops and clergy of constantinople cry out , in honour of their late martyr , this is the truth ; this we all say : let the memory of flavian be eternal ; let the memory of the orthodox flavian be eternal : flavian lives after his death ; let the martyr pray ( or entreat ) for us ; flavian judges with us . this was the occasion of those words ; and it plainly shews , that all they meant by them was , that the judgment of flavian , a holy bishop and martyr , should prevail with the synod to judge of bassianus side , with whom he had communicated . . as for your argument , that had this custom of praying to saints been introduced in the fourth age , it would certainly have been condemned in the following : i reply , first , that this is at most but a meer presumption , against plain and undoubted matter of fact , and such as not only this , but too many other corruptions which have crept into the church , without any notable opposition for some time made to them , abundantly overthrows . but , secondly , tho your argument therefore ( if we should allow it ) would be good for little ; yet it has another misfortune too , which most of your proofs labour under , that it is as false as it is unconclusive . for , good sir , did you never , in your enquiry into these matters , hear of such a canon as the thirty fifth of the council of laodicea , anno . expresly condemning the worship of angels ? did you never meet with such an order as that of the third council of carthage in s. austin's time , commanding all the prayers that were made at the altar to be directed to the father ? at least i am confident you cannot be ignorant what vigilantius did in opposition to this superstition ; and whose piety s. hierome himself ( tho his hot antagonist ) could not but acknowledge . nor was he alone in this quarrel : s. jerome speaks of several bishops that were of his party , and join'd with him in his endeavours against this growing evil. even s. austin himself , as appears from many places of his works , spoke not a little contrary to it , and plainly insinuates he would have done more , had not this practice already so possess'd mens minds , that it was not safe so to do . . but to quit all these , the publick declaration which epiphanius made against the collyridians ( a sort of women in those days superstitious in their honour of the blessed virgin ) is alone enough to shew that this practice did not pass without opposition in those times . 't is true ( says he ) the body of mary was holy , but she was not therefore god. she was a virgin , and highly honour'd but she was not set forth to us to be worshipped ; but she her self worshipped him who was born of her flesh . and therefore the holy gospel has herein armed us before hand ; our lord himself saying , woman , what have i to do with thee ? wherefore do's he say this ? but only least some should think of the blessed virgin more highly than they ought ; he called her woman , as it were foretelling those schisms and heresies that should arise upon her account . — but neither is elias to be adored , tho he be yet alive : nor is st. john to be adored ; nor tecla ; nor any of the saints — if god will not permit us to worship angels how much less the daughter of anna ? — let mary be held in honour , but let the father , son , and holy ghost be worshipped . let no one worship mary . for tho she were most fair , and holy , and honourable ; yet she is not therefore to be adored . in a word ; let mary be held in honour , but let god be adored . to conclude this point you tell us ; reply ] that it seems most extravagant to you that protestants should demand of you to shew them some testimonies of the fathers of the first three hundred years , who lived under persecution , few of whose writings remain , the greatest part being lost and destroy'd , and yet reject the fathers of the ivth . age who wrote when the church began first to be in a flourishing condition . can any one imagine that the church when in grots and caverns taught one thing , and when she came into the light practised another ? . answ. what meer harangue is this ? but we must be contented where better is not to be had . and therefore i reply , st . as to your insinuation , which since cardinal perron first invented it , has been the constant common place of the little crowd of controvertists that have follow'd after , viz. that the fathers of the first three hundred years lived under persecution , and therefore wrote but little , and of that little the greatest part was lost too ; tho i can easily excuse this in you as a sin of ignorance , yet i must needs say of the cardinal and others , that they have herein greatly injured those holy men ; who were neither so lazie nor fearful as they have represented them to have been . . for not to say any thing of the foundation of all our religion , the holy scriptures , which were written within this period ; how large a catalogue has eusebius alone preserved of the works of those holy fathers : and yet how many of the latin church has he omitted : look into his history , and there you will find those great names , clemens romanus , papias , quadratus , aristides , hegesippus , justin martyr , dionysius of corinth , pinytus , apollinarius , melito , modestus , irenaeus , theophilus , tatian , bardesanes , clemens alexandrinus , rhodo , miltiades , apollonius , serapion , heraclitus , moscarinus , candidus , sextus , and arabien ; all to have been writers of the second century : tertullian , judas , beryllus , hippolytus , caius , africanus , dionysius alexandrinus , nepos , cyprian , origen ; in the third . and the writings of which last author only were said to have amounted to six thousand volumes ; and which tho st. jerome retrench'd to a third part , yet still he left two thousand to him . . in what sort of writings were these holy men defective ? some publish'd apologies for our religion ; others disputed against the heathens , the jews , the heretick's of those times . some wrote of the discipline of the church ; others moral discourses , for the direction of mens lives and manners . their histories , their accounts of the holy men , who suffer'd for the faith ; their comments on the holy scripture , their sermons are yet upon record : and when such was their diligence , why should it be insinuated as if living under persecution they wrote but little ; and therefore that it is unreasonable to appeal to them ? . nor is your next pretence any better : that their writings are lost and destroyed : for tho it be indeed in great measure true , that in respect of what they wrote there is but a small part brought down to us ( and we have some reason to believe that the opposition they made to your corruptions has been in some measure the cause of it ; ) yet have we still enough to shew us what the faith of those times was , and how vastly you have declined from it . and when both the writings of holy scripture , and of those fathers that do remain speak so plainly against you , we have no great reason to believe that those which are lost were at all more favourable to you . . but can any one imagine , that the church when in grots and caverns should teach one thing , and when it came into the light practise another ? i answer , yes ; this is very easie to be imagined . affliction keeps men close to their duty , whereas prosperity too often corrupts the best manners . when it pleased god to convert the empire to christianity , there were but too many instances of heathen customs , accommodated to the principles of the gospel ; and this was one . whether it were that they could not so soon forget their ancient rites ; or that they thought it a religious policy to extend the pale of the church by suiting christianity as much to the heathen ceremonies as it was possible , and to dispose men thereby the more readily to embrace it ; or whether finally , that simplicity of the gospel which suited well enough with a state of persecution , was now thought too mean for an establish'd church , the religion of the emperour , and they were therefore willing to render it more pompous , and set it off with greater lustre in the eyes of men , tho in so doing they a little departed from the purity of their lower and better state. . let us add to this , the opinion which then began to prevail among those holy fathers , of the particular intercession of the saints for us ; and which both the prayers that were made in those days at the memories of the martyrs , and the miracles god was sometimes pleased to work there ; not to say any thing of the visions and apparitions that were sometimes thought to be seen there , very much confirm'd them in . now this naturally prepared the way for the invocation which follow'd upon it . for now the poets began instead of their muses , to call ( more christianly ) upon the saints and martyrs to assist them . the orators , following the genius of the age , indulged themselves all the liberty of their eloquence , in apostrophe's to the saints at their memories . and as things seldome stop in their first beginnings , by degrees through the ignorance of some , and superstition of more ; they fell into a formal invocation , about the beginning of the vth. century . . but here another accident fell out for the carrying on of this service . for about this time nestorius began to teach that men ought not to call the blessed virgin the mother of god. now this made some think his design was secretly to revive the heresie of arrius or sabellius under a new cover ; and their zeal for the divinity of christ made them in the council of ephesus , anno condemn his opinion as heretical ; and in opposition to him they fell into the contrary extream , of an immoderate magnifying of her ; tho' ( as i shall presently shew ) they still continued within much better bounds than you do now : it being almost three hundred years after this , before ever the invocation of her or the saints , was publickly establish'd in the church . and this brings me to my next proposal ; which was secondly ; ii. period . to consider what grounds this superstition had in the ivth . century . . and here , first , to what i said concerning the first beginnings of this invocation , viz. that the most part of your allegations from this age were rather rhetorical flights than formal prayers ; you return very pleasantly . reply . ] that the rhetorick lies wholly at my door , who fly to so poor a shift . that these passages are some of the duriores loci more difficult places which some only nibbled at ; others could not digest ; and i shift off under the notion of rhetorical flights or novelties . . answ. one would think by this droll you had been lately reading the judgment of your university of doway concerning bertram . altho ( say they ) we do not much value that book , yet since he has been often printed and is read by many , and that in other ancient catholick's we tollerate many errors , and extenuate , or excuse them ; often times find out some contrivance or other to deny them , or to set a convenient gloss upon them when they are opposed to us in disputes , or in engaging with our adversaries ; we do not see why we should not allow the same equity to bertram . . but what now is this shifting ? why i said that , which all the learned men in the world must allow to be true , viz. that the fathers of the ivth . age were many of them great orators , and made use of rhetorical addresses to the saints . and that from those conditions they sometimes expresly put into their writings , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. if thou hast any sense , if thou hast any concern for what is done here below , and the like ; we may reasonably conclude , that this was all they meant , even where they do not express any such thing . . but did not those fathers do somewhat more than this ? can all their expressions be fairly reduced to such apostrophe's ? to this i have already said , that we do acknowledge that about the latter end of this century , s. basil , gregory nazianzen , gregory nyssen , amongst the greeks , and their great imitator s. ambrose among the latins , did begin to invocate the saints . and had you thought fit to consult that excellent treatise to which i referr'd you , or rather to take notice of what was said there , ( for i am apt to believe you did consult it ) i should not have been troubled with these impertinences here . and therefore tho it were not difficult to find some considerable faults with those few passages you have alledged from those holy men ; ( as when you say that s. basil exhorts those who are in tribulatian to flie to the saints , those who are in joy to have recourse to them , whereas he only historically relates what they did do , he ( says he ) who is afflicted flies to them , he who is in joy runs to them ) yet i shall quit all to you , and without either shifting or nibling leave you to make the most you can of them . . but then that you may not put any more such crude notes upon your reader as you have done here , where you say , that protestants grant praying to saints to have been established in the ivth . age : i will very briefly transcribe from two learned men of our church some considerable differences between what the ▪ fathers of this century did , and what you do now ; and of which if you will not yet be perswaded to take any notice , i hope at least all indifferent persons will see by them how impertinently you alledge their authority for your excuse . first , that in your church , prayer to saints is look'd upon as a part of worship that is due to them ; insomuch that ( as i have shewn ) cardinal bellarmine places it among one of those advantages that accrues to them upon their canonization : but this those holy fathers never believed ; on the contrary they absolutely define prayer , as a service proper to god only , and argued against the arrians upon this very topick , that christ must needs be god , because the church prayed to him . if you pretend that there are two sorts of prayers , one proper to god , another that is not : i reply , . that this is false , because ( as we have seen ) all prayer is a religious worship , and therefore proper to god only . secondly , it concludes nothing ; because you offer the most proper sort of prayer for help and assistance to the saints , that you can do to god himself . secondly , in your church you allow mental prayer as well as vocal to be made to the saints : but in the primitive , this was reserved as peculiar to him who searcheth the heart , and alone knoweth the secrets of all the children of men. thirdly , in your church it is resolved that the saints are capable of hearing and knowing your requests : in the primitive this was never determined , and the contrary seems to have been the most generally received . fourthly , in your church formal prayers are made to the saints ; but the addresses of these holy fathers were either wishes only , or requests of the same nature with those which are in this kind usually made to the living ; where they who are requested , be evermore accounted in the number of those that pray for us , but none of those that are prayed unto by us . fifthly , in your church the saints are made not only joynt petitioners with us , but advocates too ; and that to plead not only christs merits , but their own likewise . but against this these fathers openly protested as an open derogation to the high prerogative of our saviors meritorious intercession , and a manifest encroachment upon his great office of mediation . sixthly , in your church it is thought a more proper way of access , and a surer means of obtaining your requests to address by some saint to god , than to go immediately to the throne of grace , through our saviour christ. but this those fathers earnestly opposed , exhorting all men to go directly to god by his son jesus christ. seventhly , in your church the saints are indifferently called upon all the world over ; which does in effect attribute a divine perfection , viz. that of omnipresence to them : but in the primitive church , those who sought the intercession of the saints , limited their presence to some determinate places , as particularly to their memories , where they thought them within hearing ; and did not call upon them indifferently every where . eightly , this in your church is an establish'd practice ; they who oppose it are declared to do wickedly , and an anathema is pronounced against them on that account . but in the primitive there was no rule , or order for it ; it was the effect of a private and voluntary zeal , encouraged it may be by the guides of the church , but no part of the established service of it . . and this may suffice to shew how vain your pretences to the antiquity even of this age are to warrant your superstition ; and upon what slender grounds you affirm , after your master the bishop of meaux , that this invocation of saints was establish'd , nay that we grant it was establish'd in the fourth age. but to convince you yet more with what little reason you either boast of this , or tax us with receding from our old principle of being tryed by the fathers of the first four general councils ; upon this account i will now make you a more liberal offer ; and that is to prove if you can any authentick establishment of this service in the church . i do not say now in the sixth century ; but in the seventh : nay or even before the latter end of the eighth : in short , i do affirm that the first solemn establishment of it was in the second council of nice . and indeed that synod which decreed the worship of images in opposition to the second commandment , was the most proper to define the religious invocation of saints contrary to the first : and because there is something almost as bad in the manner of the establishment , as in the thing it self , i will close all with a brief account of it . . about the end of the sixth century both the worship of images , and the invocation of saints , having taken deep root in the minds of many superstitious persons ; controversies began to arise about them ; and generally the same persons were found to be either friends or enemies to both . in the year constantine copronymus called a synod of bishops , to examine into these matters , and both the invocation of saints , and worship of images were utterly condemned by them . . thirty years after this council the abettors of these superstitions prevailing , another anti-synod was convened by the au●hority of the empress irene at nice . in † † † † † † this the acts of the former council of constantinople were recited , and instead of the canons which they made in condemnation of this worship ; ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ two others were read in their names , establishing of it . how this came to pass it is not known ; but this the † † † † † † nicene fathers themselves acknowledge that the other synod had established the quite contrary : nay they were such enemies to this invocation , that binius tells us , they exacted a solemn ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ oath of all their party , that they would never invocate the saints , apostles , martyrs , or the blessed virgin. and yet have these good fathers transmitted down to posterity those two spurious canons of the council of constantinople , as approving that very worship , which the council in the true definitions of it had utterly disclaimed . . as for the synod of nice its self ; if the definitions there made were of any force ; that of frankford , seven years after , has utterly taken it away ; in which it was so wholly abrogated , and annulled , as not to be placed in the number of synods , or be any otherwise esteem'd of than that of ariminum . and i should beglad you would find me any other ( but pretended ) establishment of it , before your synod of trent in the very last age. i have only now remaining in the last place to shew ; sect . iv. what our reasons are against this service ? . you had ask'd me in your vindication , what authoritie have you to oppose us ? you say that [ to invocate saints ] is repugnant to gods word : shew that word , if you cannot we are in possession , and the antiquity and un-interruptedness of our doctrine , besides the reasonableness and innocency of it , confirms us in our belief . . to this i answered ; that every text of scripture that appropriated divine worship to god alone was a demonstration against you : and that that one passage of st. paul , rom. x. . how shall they call upon him in whom they have not believed ? were not men willing to be contentious , might end the controversie . and for the authority you speak of , that it was rediculous to pretend prescription for that , which has not the least foundation neither in holy writ nor in primitive christianity ; of which not one instance appears for the first three hundred years after christ , and much to the contrary . . to this you now reply in your margin with great assurance ; protestants destitute of scripture proofs against the doctrine of invocation of saints : but all you have to say in the book is , that you do not give divine worship to the saints , nor call upon them in that strict sense in which they are duties only to be paid to god. that is to say , you play with words , and make use of such distinctions as if they were allowed , a man might evacuate any other of gods commands , without a possibility of being confuted . and i desire you to tell me what answer you would make an impudent woman that should give her husbands bed to another , and being charged by you for breaking the seventh commandment , should tell you that you were not to be so uncharitable as to judge of what she did by the external act , that the law forbad only lying with another man , as with her husband ; and that in this strict sense she was still innocent , by reserving that highest degree of conjugal affection to him only , the giving whereof to another would make her guilty . . but since you are so desirous to know what our reasons against this invocation are , i will now very freely lay them before you , if you will first give me leave only to prepare the way for them , by stating truly the difference between us in this matter , which you are wonderfully apt either to mistake or to palliate . . you tell us in your vindication , that all you say , is that it is lawful to pray to the saints ; and so again in your reply . the difference ( you say ) between us is , whether it be lawful for us to beseech or intreat them to pray for us ? monsieur de meaux in the same moderate way tells us , that the church teaches that it is profitable to pray to the saints : and the representer ( from the council of trent ) says of a true papist , that his church teaches him ( and he believes ) that it is good and profitable , to desire the intercession of the saints , reigning with christ in heaven . in your discourses with those of our communion , there is nothing more ordinary with you , than to make them believe , that you value not praying to the saints , nor condemn any for not doing it . that if this be all they scruple in your religion , they shall be received freely by you , and never pray to a saint as long as they live . nay i have heard of some who have gone so far in this matter , as to venture their religion upon it , that you do not necessarily require the practise or profession of this service at all ; nor pronounce any anathema against us for opposing of it . . but this is not ingenuous ; nor as becomes the disciples of christ. for tell me now i beseech you : if we unite our selves to your church , will you not oblige us to go to mass with you ? or can you dare for our sakes to alter your service , and leave out all those things that relate to the blessed virgin and to the saints in it ? shall we be excused from having any thing to do with your litanies and processions , your vespers or your salves ? or will you purge all these too in order to our conversion ? when we lie in our last agonies , will you be content to anoint us in the name of the father , son , and holy ghost ; and leave the angels , arch-angels , patriarchs , prophets , and apostles , martyrs , confessors , virgins , and all the saints out of the commission ? and when our souls are now expiring , shall we be sure you will not then at least trouble us with that long beadroll which your office prescribes to be call'd upon in that ceremony ? if you have indeed the liberty to do this , why do ye not use it , and remove so great a stumbling block as this out of our way ? but if you cannot dispense with these things for our common conversion , how shall we believe that you can do it to satisfie a private proselyte ? . the truth is invocation of saints in your church is not esteemed so indifferent a matter as you would have it thought to be . it is a worship you suppose due to them : and to which they acquire a right by their canonization . so cardinal bellarmine informs us : and therefore in your profession of faith set forth by the order of pope pius ivth . you are obliged with a firm faith to believe and profess , that the saints , who reign together with christ , are to be venerated and invoked . and tho the alarm which the council of trent was in upon the news of the popes sickness , and the haste which thereupon they made to conclude that synod permitted them not to frame any canons in this last , as they had done in the other sessions ; yet the materials put together in the chapter shews us what anathema's would have been thunder'd against us . for to take it only as it lies in that session . there we find the bishops and pastors of the church commanded to teach ( what therefore i hope is undoubtedly the churches sense in this point ) that the saints who reign together with christ offer up their prayers to god for men : that it is good and profitable in a suppliant manner to call upon them : and that for the obtaining benefits of god by his son jesus christ our lord , who is our only saviour and redeemer , we should flie to their prayers , aid and assistance . they declare that those who deny ( which you know we all do ) that the saints who enjoy eternal happiness in heaven are not to be invoked , or say that this invocation is idolatry ( as we generally believe it to be ) or that it is contrary to the word of god ; or derogatory to the honour of the one mediator between god and man christ jesus ; or that it is foolish to supplicate those who reign in heaven in word or in mind ; do think wickedly . . these are the words of your council . if therefore you permit your prosolytes to profess what they do not believe ; if you receive those as good catholicks into your church , whom nevertheless you know to remain still infected with wicked opinions , contrary to the doctrine and practise established amongst you ; if you allow them to assist at your prayers , without any intention to joyn in them , nay in an opinion that they could not pray with you , without committing a grievous sin ; then go on to make folks believe , as you do , that you oblige no body to pray to the saints , and that they may be of your church , and yet still believe or do what they please in this matter . but if otherwise this be all gross hypocrisie , if there be nothing but cheat and design in these pretences ; then may i humbly desire all sincere members of our communion to beware of such guides , as value not how they charge ours , or palliate their own religion , so they may but by any means draw unwary men into their net. . but the council of trent goes yet further : it does not only establish this doctrine , but in express terms anathematises those who oppose it : for in the close of that chapter i but now mentioned , thus it decrees : if any one shall teach or think contrary to these decrees : let him be anathema . all which your epitomator caranza thus delivers in short , the synod commands ( all those who have the care of souls ) that they should teach the invocation of saints ; the honour of reliques ; and the use of images ; and that those who teach otherwise do think wickedly . and if any one shall teach or think contrary to these decrees , let him be anathema . . it remains therefore that your church does teach and require of all its members both the profession and practise of such an invocation , as i have before explain'd : and of which i now undertake to shew : . that it is repugnant to gods holy word . . contrary to antiquity . . that is unreasonable in the constitution ; and . unprofitable and unlawful in the practise . i. it is repugnant to gods holy word . . and here , first i will not doubt once more to tell you that to pray to saints after the manner that it is now done in the church of rome , is contrary to all those passages of holy scripture which attribute religious worship to god only ; such as deut. vi. . thou shalt fear the lord thy god and serve him , and swear by his name ; and again chap. x. , . xiii . . &c. all which our saviour christ has taught us to interpret with such a restrictive term , as excludes all others from a share in our service . mat. iv. . it is written , thou shalt worship the lord thy god , and him only shalt thou serve . i have already shewn that all prayer made to a person that is absent , with a confidence that he is able both to know our wants , and to hear our prayers , and to answer our desires , is in its own nature a religious worship . now then from these places of holy scripture , i thus argue : it is repugnant to gods word to give any proper acts of religious worship to any but god only ; but all such prayer as is made in your church to the saints departed , are proper acts of religious worship ; and therefore it must be contrary to gods word to pray to any but god only . . nor am i here at all concern'd in your distinctions of a supreme and an inferior religious honour ; seeing both you and i are agreed that all honour properly religious ( such as prayer ) is comprised under these prohibitions . if i were , i would then tell you that the devil here did not require of christ such a supreme worship , but on the contrary acknowledged himself to have a superior , from whom he derived his power of disposing of all the kingdoms of the earth , and the glories of them . all he desired was to have some religious honour paid to him. and our saviour by alledging this sentence of the law against it , evidently shews that it is not only such a supream religious worship as some of you pretend , but that all such honour in general , is the peculiar service of god alone . but this ( if you stand to your own principles ) you cannot object , and for others , what i have now said may suffice to obviate their pretences . . secondly , what i have now concluded from this general principle of holy scripture , i will in the next place more particularly inforce from these other passages , where the worship of creatures is expresly prohibited . in the xth. of the acts , when cornelius fell down at st. peters feet , and would have worshipp'd him , he took him up saying , i my self also am a man. it is a poor shift here to say , that cornelius would have worshipp'd st. peter with a supream divine worship ; he was not certainly so ignorant as to think , that when the angel bid him send to joppa for simon peter , who lodged with simon a tanner , he meant he should send for the great god that had made heaven and earth . nor is it of any more moment which others amongst you suggest , viz. that cornelius did well to adore him , but that st. peter out of modesty refus'd it . and the answer he gave , i my self also am a man , utterly overthrows all such insinuations ; being as much as if he had said , that no man whatsoever was to be worshipped . . but this will more evidently appear in another instance , viz. that of st. john , revel . xix . . who when in his ecstacy he fell down and would have worshipp'd the angel that discoursed with him , the blessed spirit utterly forbad him ; see ( says he ) thou do it not , for i am thy fellow servant : worship god. in which words are plainly establish'd these two conclusions against this service ; st . that angels ( and so likewise the saints ) being our fellow servants are not to be worshipp'd : dly , that god only is to be adored . . but st. paul is yet more plain : he exhorts the colossians in general , and in them us : colos. ii. . let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels . it is answered by some among you , that this was said in opposition to the heresie of simon magus who would have sacrifice offer'd to the angels : or at least of some others , who thought that tho' christ had abolish'd the law , yet was it still to be observed out of respect to the angels by whom it had been deliver'd . but besides that i do not find any such thing charged by any of the ancients upon simon magus , as is pretended ; had s. paul designed only to forbid one particular act of religious worship being paid to them , would he in general have said that they were not to be worshipped ? or had he intended to signifie the abolishing of the law , would he not have said so here , as well as in his other epistles ; and not have given such an obscure insinuation of it , as when he meant to forewarn them against observing the law , to bid them have a care of worshipping angels . but the truth is the meaning of the text is too plain to be thus eluded . and i shall give it to you in the words of an ancient father who lived in those very times in which you yet pretend such a service was establish'd : those who maintain'd an observance of the law together with the gospel , taught also that angels were to be worshipped ; saying that the law was given by them . this custom remained a long time in phrygia and pisidia . upon which account the synod of laodicea in phrygia , forbad them by a law to pray to angels . but. . thirdly , and to come more immediately to the worship of invocation . the same apostle in that question , rom. x. . how shall they call upon him in whom they have not believed ? furnishes us with another maxime of holy scripture against all such prayers ; viz. that no one is to be invoked in our religious addresses , but he only in whom we believe . but now reason , scripture , the common creeds of all christians shew that we are to believe only in god the father , son , and holy ghost , and therefore upon him only must we call. as for your distinction that this indeed in one sense is very true , but then in another and secondary sense others besides god may be both believed in , and called upon ; if you mean in a civil respect , it is indeed very true , but nothing to your purpose , seeing in this sense we can no more believe in than we can call upon such persons as are absent from us , and know nothing at all of us , which is the case of the saints departed . but for believing in a religious sense , as it is properly an act of divine faith , and the foundation of that assurance with which we call upon god by our saviour jesus christ ; this admits of no distinction , nor may it by any means , or in any measure be applied , without sin , to any other than god alone . . i will add but one principle more of holy scripture against this service , and so close this first point . rom. xiv . . that whatsoever is not of faith is sin. but now those prayers which have no foundation in holy scripture cannot be of faith ; for ( says the same apostle rom. x. . ) faith cometh by hearing , and hearing by the word of god ; and therefore such prayers must be sin. if god has any where revealed it to you , that you may lawfully give such a religious worship to the saints , shew this , and our dispute is ended . but if you cannot do this , nor by consequence cannot pray to them with any well grounded perswasion of conscience , that this is what god allows , and what the saints are capable of receiving , i do not see how it can be avoided but that to you it must be sin so to do . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . as an ancient father argues from this very principle in the like manner . . for the other part of this service , the intercession of the saints for us ; i might to this oppose all those passages of the new testament , where christ is set forth to us as our only mediator . but i shall content my self with one single text , . tim. ii. , . there is one god , and one mediator between god and men , the man christ jesus , who gave himself a ransome for all . now if there be but one mediator , then saints and angels are not mediators as you pretend . if the foundation of christs mediatorship be this , that he gave himself a ransome for all ; then seeing the saints have not done this , it must follow that neither can they be our mediators . and this cuts off your new distinction of a mediator of intercession , and a mediator of redemption ; which besides that it is the issue of your own brains , and was invented only to support a tottering cause , is here utterly destroy'd ; seeing the foundation of christs mediating now in heaven , and appearing in the presence of god for us , is by vertue of his being our mediator of redemption upon earth ; and he therefore is become our intercessor there , because he shed his bloud for our expiation here . this is that great argument upon which the author to the hebrews so much insists , chap. ix . x. and the analogy of the high priest under the law , making first the expiatory sacrifice for the people , and then entring into the holiest to appear before god for them , most evidently confirms it to us . and this may suffice for the st . point , that this service is contrary to the principles of holy scripture . ii. it is contrary to antiquity . . and here i am fallen into a vast ocean ; and should never have ended , should i go about particularly to shew how vain your pretences are to possession for this superstition . it shall suffice me at present only to point out to you a few of those remarks which others have more largely pursu'd ; and which do abundantly declare how little conformable the best and highest antiquity has been to what you now practise . . i have already given some short account of the first three centuries : and how little able you are to lay any claim to the authority of them . you have there seen what the opinion was of those holy fathers , touching the state of the saints departed : how they thought that they do not yet enjoy the beatifick vision , and by consequence were not in a condition to be called upon by the church on earth . i have shewn you the fathers arguing against the arrians for the divinity of christ from the churches praying to him ; and which evidently proves that they thought none but god was capable of such a service . i have offer'd you the definition which those holy men gave of prayer ; viz. that it was an address to god , a conversing with god , and the like ; and in all which they still restrain'd it to him as his own peculiar prerogative . there we find no mention of any calling upon the blessed virgin or the saints . no distinction of supreme and inferiour religious worship ; of mediators of redemption and intercession : in short none of those evasions with which all your discourses on this point are now filled ; and without which indeed , according to your principles , it is impossible to explain it . . but i will now add yet more . it was a general custome in the third and following ages ( concerning which we are particularly to enquire ) to pray for the saints departed , for martyrs and confessors , nay for the blessed virgin her self , as has been elsewhere fully proved , and i suppose you will not have the confidence to deny it . now let me appeal to any reasonable man to say ; could the church in those times have prayed in a suppliant manner to the saints , as reigning with god , nay and gods themselves by participation , to aid , and assist them , when on the contrary they thought them in such a state as to need prayers to god for them ? is it to be believed , that they addressed to those as mediators and intercessors with god , for whom they themselves interceded to god ? it is a memorable remark that has been made to confirm the force of this argument , that since the prevalency of this praying to saints in the church of rome , your publick rituals have had a notable change . those very saints which in your ancient missals you pray'd for , being now a la mode pray'd to . thus upon iv. kalends of july in the sacramentary of pope gregory i. above years after christ we find this prayer made in behalf of s. leo , one of your popes . grant o lord that this oblation may be profitable to the soul of thy servant leo. but in the present roman missal , the collect is changed , and the address made by the intercession of the saint now , that was formerly made by way of intercession for him. grant to us , o lord , that by the intercession of blessed leo , this offering may be profitable to us . and of this change , pope innocent the d. gives this honest account : viz. that the authority of holy scripture says , that he injures a martyr , that prays for a martyr ; ( wherein yet his infallibility mislead him , it being s. austin and not the scripture that said so ) and they do not want our prayers , but we theirs . which the gloss thus more fully expresses ; it was changed ( viz. this prayer for pope leo ) because anciently they pray'd for him , but now to him. and from whence therefore we may warrantably infer , that in those first ages praying to saints was not establish'd , seeing it was then the general custom to pray for them . . the truth is , the whole face of the ancient church seems clearly opposite to the present practise : some doubted whether the holy saints departed , do at all concern themselves for us , or conduce any thing to our salvation . so origen . and these to be sure never prayed to them . others made open opposition to such service . so the council of laodicea ; s. epiphanius , vigilantius , and others before mention'd . now you canonize saints , and esteem it necessary so to do , to prevent mens praying to those in heaven , who are it may be at this time tormenting in hell. but in those first ages we find none of these apotheoses ; and bellarmine himself could not find out any instance of any saint that was canonized before the viiith . century . if we go into your churches , we find them filled with altars and chappels , images and reliques of the saints : candles are lighted up before them ; incense is burned to their honour : but in those primitive ages , not the least shadow is to be met with of any such superstitions . your books of devotion are now filled with little else than advises how to pray to the blessed virgin ; to list your selves into her service ; to vow your selves to her worship ; her psalter , and rosary , and salutation is in every part of your performances . even the catechism of the council of trent it self , the most cautious book that has been set forth for some ages in your church , having taught you first how to pray to god , fails not to instruct you that you must in the next place have recourse to the saints , and make prayers to them . how comes it to pass , if this were the primitive practise too , that none of those holy fathers , in any of their practical discourses have ever treated of these things ? nay on the contrary , they every where thunder in our ears , that protestant , heretical maxim , that we must pray to god only , and that we ought not to address our selves to any other . . in all your sermons , you call upon the blessed virgin for assistance . in the ends of your books , her name seldom fails of standing in the same return of praise in which god and our saviour are glorified . your publick service , and private prayers , are all over-run with this superstition . but is there any thing of this in the primitive rituals ? look i beseech you into the account that has been given us of the publick service of the ancient church by justin martyr , tertullian , nay by the clementine constitutions themselves : consult the relation which pliny made to the emperour trajan of their manners . try those famous liturgies of the church within the first years , which no body has the happiness to be acquainted with but your self ; see if you can pick us up but one instance , but some shadow of an instance to flourish with on this occasion . . what are the lives of your saints , but continued histories of their devotion to the blessed virgin , and the saints , and the favours which upon that account they received from them ? but in the ancient compilers of such kind of discourses , we find only dry accounts of their piety towards god ; of their zeal and constancy in the faith ; of their patience in suffering any thing , rather than submit to such superstitious practises as these , which the heathens indeed would have drawn them to , but which the church utterly abhorred . but for their knight errantry in honour of the blessed virgin ; for watching whole nights before her images ; or in her chappels ; for turning vagabonds in order to the visiting her chamber at loretto ; or fetching a feather from compostella ; of this new method of piety there are not the least traces . . i might run out these remarks into almost infinite examples , were they not things as well known , as your contrary superstition is notorious . but i shall reserve these , and some other observations of the like kind , till you think fit to call me to account for them . in the mean time i conclude from this short specimen i have here given , that certainly the face of the church must be very much changed as to these things ; or otherwise that so great a difference could not possibly be found in the lives , the writings , the actions , the customs , the opinions , the expressions , prayers , practises , of those holy fathers , from what we see and lament in your church at this day . i go on thirdly to shew ; iii. the unreasonableness of this service . . and for that i shall offer only this one plain argument ; if the saints cannot ordinarily hear your prayers , nor are able to attend distinctly to those addresses that are made to them : if those whom you canonize are not indeed such as you suppose , but many at this day tormented in hell , upon whom you call for assistance in heaven : if some of those to whom you pray never had any being , but either in the heralds office , or in the fruitful womb of a legendaries brain : then it cannot be doubted but that to pray to the saints must be the most unreasonable devotion in the world ; you speak to the wind , and call upon them to as little purpose as if you should here in england make an address to a man in china or tartary ; and you might as well have continued the deities , as you do the practise of the ancient heathens in this service : it being altogether as wise a devotion to pray to a jupiter or an apollo that never lived in the world , as to a st. george or a st. christopher that never had any more being in it than they . and yet were we now to inquire into these circumstances , without a full knowledg of which this invocation can never be a reasonable service , what uncertain accounts should we receive from you . for , . first . as to the main foundation of all whether the saints hear your prayers ? in what doubt is your bishop of meaux still in his exposition , and you know he was once in a great deall more ? all he has to say is that you teach that your prayers to the saints are very profitable , whether it be that they know them by the ministry and communication of the angels ; or whether it be that god himself makes known to them our desires by a particular revelation ; or whether it be that he discovers the secret to them in his divine essence in which all truth is comprised . if we enquire of your more ancient authors , we shall find all full of uncertainty . lombard thought it was not incredible to suppose that the saints might know the prayers that were addressed to them . scotus went a little farther , and judged it to be probable that god revealed these things to them : and so did gabriel biel. those who pretend to more certainty yet are able to give but very little reason why ; * * * * * * unless you will take this for a reason , that their church generally belives so , and that otherwise it would be vain and absur'd to pray to them . in short , how the saints hear your prayers you do not pretend to know ; and i desire you to give me but one rational argument to convince me that ( by whatever means it is ) they do ordinarily , and constantly , and certainly , and particularly , understand the addresses that you make to them . for to deal freely with you , i never yet met with any thing that but inclined me to believe this , but much to the contrary . . secondly , concerning the canonization of your saints , may i beg leave to ask you : are you sure that all those whom your church has placed in heaven are truly there ? if you are not , i am sure you do very unreasonably to pray to them . now this i the rather desire to be satisfied in because here again i find your authors very much unresolved what to say . first , it is but the common opinion , ( no matter of faith ) that the power of canonizing saints belongs to the pope ; and therefore it cannot be without all doubt whether those whom he canonizes are infallibly saints or no. secondly , the jesuit vasquez tells us , there are catholicks ( he means those of your communion ) who do not think it without doubt that all whom your church has canonized are indeed saints : and he mentions no less a man than cardinal cajetane for one . and that cardinal in the book to which vasquez refers , alledges the great doctour of your schools s. thomas for another . to these i will add melchior canus , antoninus , and gerson , who at most esteem it but piously credible , not absolutely certain . but augustinus triumphus goes farther ; and doubts not freely to declare that all who are canonized by the pope cannot be in heaven . and prateolus tells us that herman the author of the heresie of the fratricelli was for twenty years together after his death honour'd as a saint , and then his body was taken up and burnt for a heretick . and now if you are not yet sensible of the danger you run by this means , whilst you not only call upon a damned soul for aid and assistance , but ( as in some of your prayers you do ) pray unto god so to give you grace on earth as he has glorified them in heaven ; i shall leave it to your own cardinal bellarmine to inform you of it . thirdly , it is confessed by those of your own church that among your canonized saints , some there have been whose lives were not to be commended : others whose opinions have been condemned as heretical ; and for my part , when i consider the character of some to whom you pray , such as thomas a becket , dominick , &c. i cannot but say , that if these be the men whom you place in heaven , what the poor indians did of the spaniards , that then the other is certainly the more desirable portion . for , and i am perswaded that were but s. martin again alive to summon their souls before him , as he once did that of a supposed saint in his time , they would make the same confession that wretched spirit is reported to have done , and prove much more worthy your compassion than your adoration . now that which the more encreases this danger is fourthly , the almost infinite number of saints that have been received amongst you , and whose consecration depending wholly on matter of fact , in which you do not pretend the pope to be infallible , it can hardly be supposed but that he must have very often proved mistaken . for to keep only to your own order ; a late author of yours tells us , that your domestick saints alone did long since by computation amount to fourty four thousand . and i find another † † † † † † list increasing them to fifty thousand . now to consider all the arts and intrigues that are used to procure these canonizations ; by what popes many of them have been placed in heaven ; what characters several among them have in your own histories of their lives ; these and many other reflections would i confess prompt me , were i otherwise as well satisfied of the innocence of this worship , as i am fully convinced of the unlawfulness of it , yet to pray to the greatest part of your saints , as he once did to saint cutbert ; si sanctus sis , ora pro me : if thou art a saint , pray for me . . it is i know , the last refuge of many , who consider this uncertainty , to say , that at least your good intention shall render these prayers acceptable to god ; for what ( says the learned erasmus ) if the saints do not perceive our desires , yet christ do's know them , and will for them give us what we ask ? but yet still this will not make it a reasonable service ; nor can you with a firm faith call upon those in heaven , of whom you have at most , but a pious credulity that they are there : and tho' some of your authors do believe , that your own piety shall excuse you , yet others utterly deny it , and doubt not to say , that you may as well excuse the heathens themselves , who in worshipping the parts of the world , supposed ( according to varro's divinity ) that they worshipped the divine nature , that was diffused through it . but . thirdly , that which is the worst of all , is , that you have not only no certainty of the happiness of those saints whom you canonize , but you pray to some who ( for ought appears ) never had any being in the world. now among these , i shall not doubt in the first place , to account our own country saint and champion st. george , and of whom our english legends still recount so many miracles ; tho' cardinal baronius himself has confess'd that they are for the most part absolutely false . in the roman breviary since the reformation of it by pope pius v. there is no account at all of his life ; and your own * * * * * * authors tells us the reason is , because there is no certain truth of any of those things that are extant concerning him . and indeed , if the antient histories of this saint were justly censured by pope gelasius , as apocryphal , we have no great reason to believe , that the latter legends deserve any better reception . as for the famous story which still continues in those equally books of the ignorant , the english lives of the saints , and the sign posts ; where we see this great champion , like another perseus , mounted to deliver the fair andromeda from the dragons mouth ; baronius charges jacobus a voragine with the pure invention of it , and almost every body now , but our english compiler , is grown asham'd of it . in short , if there be any foundation at all in antiquity for this story , it is but little for the satisfaction of those who worship this saint . your own authors confess , that this george lived about the time of dioclesian , that he was by birth a cappadocian ; that he had encounters with athanasius a magician : now all this seems to perswade us , that our s. george was no other , than george the arrian bishop , who was also a cappadocian by birth , who had encounters with s. athanasius , whom the arrians called a magician ; and who was deified by those hereticks , after his violent death in the time of julian . and in memory of which perhaps it was , that they first mounted him upon a camel , ( being led through the streets upon one ) and then for greater decency changed it into a horse ; to which jacobus a voragine added the dragon and the lady ; with the warlike equipage of cask and lance : and thus is our tutelary saint , brought under suspition of being , if any thing at all , a wicked heretick ; that persecuted one of the greatest bishops of his time , for asserting the divinity of the son of god ; and yet is this man still pray'd to in your church ; and i have now by me an antient ritual in which he is seen armed at all points , his spear in the dragons mouth , the lady by him on her knees : and these prayers addressed to him . saint george , famous martyr ; praise and glory become thee : by whom the princely lady being grieved by a wicked dragon , was preserved . almighty and everlasting god , who mercifully hearest the prayers of those who call upon thee ; we humbly beseech thy majesty , that as for the honour of thy blessed and glorious martyr s. george thou causedst the dragon to be overcome by a maid , so by his intercession thou wouldest vouchsafe to defend us against all our enemies visible and invisible , that they may not be able to hurt us , through jesus christ our lord. now what is this but to mock god in his solemn service ? to pray to him through the intercession of a man that either never lived in the world , or it may be was one of his most hated enemies ; and deified by a crew of wretched hereticks , for his fury in opposing the eternal generation of the saviour of us all . . and what i have thus chosen more particularly to insist upon in this example , i might shew in several others not a whit less fabulous . our saviour in s. luke gives a parabolical account of the different states of men in the other world , under the names of dives and lazarus . as for the former there was no great danger of making him a saint . but for lazarus he is transubstantiated into a real man. temples are built among you to his honour : anniversary solemnites are consecrated to his memory , and because he was represented in scripture as full of sores , he is now made the patron of the lepers in heaven . from the greek word signifying a spear , you have first found out a name for the centurion that ranour blessed lord into the side ; and having metamorphosed the spear into a man , it was no hard matter to make the man a saint : and now upon the th . of march , who so much honour'd , as s. longinus . nay what is yet more pleasant , baronius assures us that his venerable body is kept in the church of st. austin at rome . . s. christopher is another of your saints that never lived . he is pretended to have suffer'd under dagnus king of lycia , who also never was in the world ; and being of a giantly stature to have dwelt by a river side where there was no bridge , and there he made it his business in charity to carry over all that pass'd that way : which our saviour so much approved as to suffer him once upon a time to carry himself over upon his shoulders . now all this cardinal baronius confesses to be a meer legend ; but our thorough paced english-irish collector , tho he confesses he never saw any approved author that said it , yet for the pictures sake which are so common amongst you , declares generously that he was resolved to believe it . and the ancient ritual i before mention'd , prays to our saviour that in consideration of his riding over the river upon s. christophers back , he would deliver you from all dangers . . i should never have done should i insist on this manner upon all the other imaginary saints whom you worship . such were our own country-woman again , s. ursula and her virgins ; who is pretended to have been daughter to dionet king of cornwall , in the time of marcian , when there was no such king in england ; and to have been martyr'd at cologn , whither she went by ship , being the first and last that ever sail'd thither ; and yet this lady makes no mean figure in your church . she is patroness under god and the blessed virgin , of a whole religious society ; and with great devotion pray'd to , december . i might to this visionary saintess , add others of the same sex ; s. catharine , s. margaret , &c. but i shall content my self with one memorable instance , not so commonly known , which may suffice to shew with what uncertainty you pray to many in these devotions . the account is given by one of your own communion , and who himself discover'd the mistake . . about eight miles from evora a city of portugal , there is a place which they call the cave of the martyrs ; where they pretend were slain a great number of christians with their bishop and his two sisters ; to one of which , called columba , there was a chappel erected , and in the place where the other was slain , there issued out a spring of sweet water , called to this day , holy-well , and very good for curing a weak sight . the sepulchre of the bishop himself is in a church of the blessed virgins , empty , and open . over it is a table of stone supported by four pillars , so that a man might go under it . hither came all those that had pains in their loyns , and imploring the aid of this martyr , they went away certainly cured . there was also the picture of this bishop : and upon this stone table they sacrificed the mass , in honour to him , calling him by his proper name viarius . . this was the ancient tradition , and worship . when ressendius , who relates this story , came hither , in order to the publishing the life of this saint , among others he was then writing ; he desired the priest who had given him this account of their martyr , to shew him if there were any antient records , or inscriptions , that confirm'd it . upon this he brought him to the altar beforemention'd , and there he found this inscription . s. q. jvl. claro . c. v. iiii. vi ro viarvm cvranda rvm ann. xxi . q. jvl. nepotiano . c. i. iiii. viro . viarvm cvran darvm . ann. xx. calp . sabina . filiis . the priest pointing with his finger to these words viarum cvrandarum , see ( says he ) the proper name of the martyr viarius : and for curandarum , it is as much as to say cura cutarum , i. e. a bishop . as for the other names ( continued he ) i suppose they may be the proper names of the other martyrs that suffered with him . . ressendius held his countenance as well as ever he could , but went immediately away to cardinal alphonsus , who was at that time bishop of evora , and told him all that had pass'd , and how a couple of heathens , overseers of the high-ways , had been worshipp'd there for christians , and martyrs . the cardinal commanded the tomb to be stopped up , to the great discontent of the people , who had been wont to receive mighty relief by their addresses to this viarius ; and cursed the learning and curiosity of ressendius , that had deprived them of so great and useful a saint . . i shall make no other application of this story , than what i find in the complaint of another learned man of your church , as to this very matter . there is also ( says he ) another error , not uncommon ; that neglecting , in a manner , the antient and known saints , the common people worship more ardently , and diligently , the new and unknown ; of whose holiness we have but little assurance , and some of which are known to us only by revelation ; insomuch that of several of them it is justly doubted , whether ever there were any such persons in the world . . from all these considerations , i now conclude against the reasonableness of this invocation . . no man can reasonably pray in faith to such persons , as he can never be sure are able either to hear his prayers , or to answer his desires : but you can never be sure that your saints are able to do either of these ; and therefore you cannot reasonably pray with any good assurance to them . . it is unreasonable to pray to those as saints , who , it may be , are not in heaven , nor ever shall be there : but this is very probably the case of many of your saints , and you cannot be sure it is otherwise , when you address to them ; and therefore it is unreasonable in you to pray to them . . to pray to those who never were in the world , is the most unreasonable thing that can be imagined ; but in your prayers to many of your saints , you address to those that never were in the world ; and therefore upon this , and upon all the foregoing accounts , i conclude it very unreasonable to pray to the saints at all . there is yet one thing more remaining to finish this whole subject of invocation of saints , viz. iv. that it is unprofitable , and impious in the practice . first , that it is unprofitable . . and if the former consideration stand good ; this will necessarily follow from it . for if either those whom you pray to are meer figments of your own brain , that have neither truth nor existence ; or if tho they do exist , yet they are not saints as you suppose ; or tho they should be saints too , yet have no means ordinarily and particularly to hear your prayers , nor can attend to those numberless addresses that are at the same time from all the parts of the world put up to them ; it must then be a most unprofitable , as well as a most senseless practise to pray to them ; and what our saviour once objected to the samaritans , will be found no less true of you , that ye worship ye know not what , nor why . . but let us allow that you invoke none but what have lived , and are sanctified : let us also grant that which yet the holy fathers so much doubted of , that the saints do already enjoy the beatifick vision ; and therefore ( according to your divinity ) are capable of understanding your prayers , by whatsoever way it be that they do so : i dare yet ask of you , what profit is there in this service ? for tell me now , i beseech you , o ye worshippers of dead men ? have we not an advocate in heaven , jesus christ the righteous , who is the sole and full propitiation of our sins ? has he not promised that whatsoever we ask the father in his name , we shall receive it ? has he not told us that he is the way , the truth , and the life ? and that no one can come to the father but by him ? is it not he that has set us an example how we ought to pray ; when ye pray say , our father which art in heaven : shew us if you can any precept , or encouragement , or example , for going to any other . is it that our saviour christ has not compassion enough for us , that you go to others as more merciful ? thus some of you i know have said : but on the contrary the scripture tells us that we have not a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities , but was in all points tempted like as we are : and from thence presently infers let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace , that we may obtain mercy , and find grace to help in time of need . or is it finally , that the interest of the blessed jesus is not great enough with his father ; unless you add a mad francis , a bloody dominick , a rebellious becket , an enthusiastick ignatius , to be joynt advocates with him ? if these indeed be your thoughts , let us plainly know the impiety of them ? and upon what unchristian foundations the benefit of this practise is established by you ? but if you dare not say that any saint in heaven can prevail , where christ alone cannot ; if you are ashamed to own , that you think any one can love us more dearly , than he who gave himself for us , and redeem'd us with his own most precious blood ; or by consequence can be more ready to hear and intercede for us : tell me then , what profit is it , that having this fountain of living water , you run to the broken cisterns of the merits and intercession of your fellow creatures , which can hold no water . . but i will go yet further , to shew you the unprofitableness of this service . it was objected by a great man of your own church ; if ( says he ) the saints know our necessities , and those defects which we express in our prayers : how comes it to pass that we do not oftner find our selves relieved by them ? to this he answers ; that altho the saints in heaven have doubtless the greatest charity imaginable for us , yet they have withal their wills so intirely conformed to the will of god , as not to lend any assistance to us , but according to what they see the knowledge and will of god disposed towards us . an excellent reflexion certainly ; and which no one can doubt to be most true . but then it will follow from it , that you do in vain sollicite the saints , who cannot lend you any assistance , till god is pleased to permit himself to be intreated for you . whilst our heavenly father is our enemy , all the host of heaven are so too . we must first be reconciled to him , before ever we can expect any favour or acceptance with them . in short , it was the conclusion of an antient father , whom i before mentioned , that the only way to make the angels and saints our friends , is to make god so first : and tho' we know little of what those blessed spirits above do for us , yet we have all the reason in the world to believe that they love and hate according to the divine pleasure ; and if they do pray for us , the most ready way to obtain their prayers , is to be constant , and zealous , and persevering both in our prayers and piety towards god , through his son jesus christ our lord. . i shall conclude this with the words of s. austin , let it not be any matter of religion to us to worship dead men ; because if they have lived well , they desire no such honour , but rather that we should worship him ; by whose illumination they rejoyce , that we are companions of their piety . they are therefore to be honoured for our imitation , not to be worshipped out of religion — and the same let us think of angels ; that they above all things , desire that we should , together with them , worship god only , in whose vision they are happy — tying our souls to him alone , from which religion derives its very name , let us lay aside all superstition . behold i worship one god , the one principle of all things — whatsoever angel loves this god , i am sure that he loves me too . whosoever remains in him , and can understand the prayers of men , in him he hears me . whosoever has god for his good , do's in him help me — let the adorers of the parts of the universe tell me : what good person is there that he does not reconcile to himself , who worships him only whom every good person loves , and in whose knowledge he rejoyces , and by recurring to which principle , he becomes good . let therefore religion bind us to the one god almighty , &c. but i insist too long on these reflections : i add only , secondly , to close all , that this invocation of saints departed , is as impious , as it is unprofitable . . for first , to take this practice in the most moderate sense that may be , yet to pray to any creature after the manner that you do to the saints departed , is to make them the objects of a proper religious worship , and to pay that service to the creature , which is due only to the creator ; and this certainly cannot be done without a very great impiety . . secondly , to pray to the saints but only as intercessors , even this do's usurp upon the peculiar prerogative of our blessed saviour , who is our only mediator , and whose singular priviledge it is to appear in the presence of god for us . and to joyn others with christ in his great office and employment , to make to our selves new mediators ; what is this but tacitely ( at least ) to imply , that we dare not trust either his mercy , or his interest ; in the concern of our everlasting salvation . but then . thirdly , to pray , as you evidently do , not only that the saints would intercede for you , but that god would be merciful to you , not only through the merits of christ , but of the saint whose memory you celebrate ; this is a downright undervaluing of our saviour's bloud , and do's despight unto the covenant of grace . . fourthly , to pray to the saints , ( as if we may be allow'd to understand the meaning of plain words you do ) as the arbitrary dispensers of benefits to you , that they would themselves grant you those things which you ask of them ; this makes your service yet more intollerable . and tho' you seek to evade the justice of this censure by those unreasonable expositions of your prayers , i have before refuted , yet i am sure it ought to be more than enough to make us avoid that practice which cannot be excused but by such forced interpretations , as should men use the like on other occasions , all society must be overthrown , and mens words be no longer relied upon as sufficient to declare the sense of their minds . . fifthly , as to what concerns the practice of the people in this point , it cannot be deny'd ; nay , it is by some of your own church openly complain'd of , how much their hope and confidence , their love and service are hereby lessen'd towards god ; and what greater signs of zeal appear in them towards the blessed virgin , than towards our saviour christ himself . and indeed , you who ought to have better inform'd them , are the very persons that have especially help'd to mislead them . 't is from you they have learnt , as a great practice of piety , to salute her ten times , for god's once . 't is you that have taught them to joyn mary still with jesus in their mouths : insomuch , as if it be possible , to let her name be the last expression of their dying breath . 't is you that have told them , that to list themselves into her fraternity , is one of the surest means in the world to ascertain their salvation . from you they learn in all their prayers to call upon her : at the sound of a bell thrice every day wherever they are , or whatever they are about , to fall down upon their knees and salute her . your confessions , absolutions , excommunications , vows , thanksgivings , visitations , commendations , conjurations , are all transacted in her name , as well as in the name of the holy trinity . whilst our saviour christ is represented by you either as still in the state of pupillage , an infant in her arms , or expiring upon his cross , she has her crown , and glory about her head ; sometimes the moon under her feet , and not seldom the whole trinity joyning to set forth her honour . her titles in all your offices are excessive : the queen of heaven , the mother of divine grace , the mirrour of righteousness , the seat of wisdom , the cause of our joy , the tower of david , the ark of the covenant , the gate of heaven , the refuge of sinners , the help of christians , the queen of angels , patriarchs , prophets , apostles , martyrs , confessors , and all saints : these are the common names you give her , in your hymns , your litanies and prayers to her . and what impression all this must make upon untutor'd minds ; how much greater value they will be hereby apt to set upon her than upon christ himself , every mans reason will soon tell him , and a sad experience confirms it to us . . but indeed sixthly , it is here ( in the words of the prophet ) as with the people so with the priest : your superstition is not at all less , tho much more inexcusable than theirs . witness those great names for whom you have appeared to be so much concern'd ; st. bernard , st. germain , st. anselme , st. antonine , st. bernardine , &c. and whose blasphemous devotion i have before exposed to the world. let the writings of card. bona , and father crasset , the contemplations of the blessed virgin , and the late apology for them in our own language be consider'd . for i am very much mistaken , if it be possible for the most ignorant zealot to be more unreasonably extravagant , than these learned men have approved themselves to be . . nor may you turn off these with your old distinction , that they are but private persons , and for whose excesses therefore your church is not to answer . they were approved in what they did , and many of them are at this day worshipped by you as canonized saints ; and 't was this superstition that especially contributed to their exaltation . who was it that composed that exorbitant hymn , yet used in your church , ave maris stella , but your devout st. bernard ? s. herman , another of your own order , made those others neither less extravagant , nor less authorized by you , salve regina , alma redemptoris mater , and ave regina caelorum . and the late editor of his life tells us , that being lame in body , and dullin mind , he pray'd earnestly to the blessed virgin in this romantick manner : help , o help , the doubly wretched herman . his prayer smote the tender hearted virgin , and immediately she appear'd to him , and offer'd him his choice , whether he would have firmness of body , or accuteness of mind . he chose the latter , and express'd his gratitude to his great benefactress , by composing those famous hymns beforementioned to her honour . . it was another of the same order , and that had in your opinion two the greatest characters any man can pretend to ; a pope in the church militant , and now a saint in the church triumphant , who appointed the three solemn [ devotions i have spoken of , to be every day paid to the blessed virgin at the sound of a bell , and composed the course of the virgin , that what was done before by the monks only , might from thenceforth become the public service of the church to her . . what is the great commendation that is given of s. gerard , and he too a saint of your own order . but that having caused an image of the blessed virgin to be curiously wrought , he set it up in a chappel built on purpose for it , and appointed incense and sweet odours to be every day for ever burnt to it . that he taught the hungarians to call her their lady , having perswaded their king stephen to make his kingdom tributary to her . in short , that he never heard the name of mary pronounced , but he worshipp'd it , bowing his face towards the ground . . 't was this was the great thing for which yet another of your order st. joscio was canonized . whose piety to the virgin whilst he lived , was rewarded with a notable miracle at his death . for no sooner was he dead , but there grew five roses of an extraordinary sweetness out of his head , two out of his eyes , two out of his ears , and one out of his mouth ; and upon every one of them a letter of the virgin mary's name ; so that the whole m. a. r. i. a. was composed by them . . thus has this devotion to the saints , almost wholly overcome your piety towards god. your devotions , your histories , your lives , your miracles , are all framed to promote it . and now i am mentioning those evils which from these kind of legends have been derived to corrupt both the opinions and practice of those who are acquainted with little else than these fables : i will refer it to your self to tell me , whether you can endure to see the dignity of our saviour , and the majesty of god himself , so lessen'd as it is by many of your communion , to encrease the veneration of the saints . . when st. gothardus was chosen by the emperor henry to succeed bernard in the bishoprick of hildersheim , and the monk modestly declined that honour ; the blessed virgin the same night appears to him , and sharply reproves him in this ranting rhetorick , scito imperatorem meo id jussu motiri . peccasti penicaciâ tua in me & filium . know ( says she ) that the emperour has done this at my command ; thou hast sin'd by thy obstinacy , against me and my son . this indeed was as became the queen of heaven ; and one would think by it , that she still maintain'd the right of a mother over her son. . but you have dealt yet worse with our saviour than this ; your writers represent him at this day as a little child in heaven , as if he were ever to continue in the same impotent state , in which your pictures and images express him . thus we read in the life of st. paula , that the blessed virgin appear'd to her with her little boy , who kist paula , and squeezed some of his mothers milk into her mouth . nor was this any thing extraordinary ; the writer of her life assures us , that she was often wont to take him into her arms and play with him . and the like happened to many other of your saints ; as for instance , saint aldegundis , st. francisca , of whom we are told , that being committed to the care of an arch-angel , she did oftentimes read the office of the blessed virgin in the night , by the light that proceeded from his rays : and was for her diligence in it so acceptable to the virgin , that she several times came down from heaven to refresh her , and offer'd her son to be kiss'd , and embraced by her . . but the favours of the blessed virgin to st. ida were of all others the most considerable . for coming down into her cell with her infant jesus ; behold ( says she ) o ida ! thy love : take him into thy lap , and satisfy thy self with the kisses and embraces of him whom thou lovest . — my author goes on beyond all bounds even of common decency : but i must stop here , and not repeat those blasphemies , which cannot be read without trembling . but , o blessed jesus ! how long wilt thou suffer this dishonour ? and permit an unbounded superstition to run to these excesses ? i appeal to all the christians of the world , what mean , dishonourable notions must they have of the god of heaven and earth , that in such a discerning age can presume to publish such romances ? these stories might indeed become a homer , or a virgil ; but what is fancy in them , being applied to a venus and a cupid , is an unpardonable blasphemy to be thus used of the saviour of the world , who is god over all blessed for ever . . these are the effects of this superstition : i might add many other examples no less horrible , in which our blessed lord has been diminish'd to make up the honour of his servants . but i shall shut up all with an impiety of another kind , though the effect of this worship ; and which ought the more to be taken notice of , both because it was done by a society which would be thought at least the most zealous of any for their faith ; and was exposed publickly in the sight of the sun , and before the eyes of many to whom i now write . the thing i mean is the late procession of the jesuits at luxemburg , may . . designed for the glory of the blessed virgin the honour'd and affectionate patroness of france and luxembourg . the procession indeed was singularly extravagant ; and it needed the skill of that learned society , to put prophaness into so scholastick a dress . heathenism and christianity walk'd together , as if the fathers of the society had equally reverenced the ancient deities of the one , as the modern deities of the other . on the one side were carried the image of the blessed virgin , and the holy sacrament . on the other , mars , vulcan , the cyclops and nayades , ceres , flora , pomona , &c. and these too with all the pomp , and even under the names of gods and divinities . at several stations , where the procession was to rest , theatres were erected , to serve to inspire agreeably ( say the learned fathers in the account which they printed of this days work ) a piety towards our lady of consolation . so the blessed virgin there is called . the second of these theatres , was for the god mars ; who commands his warriors to take heed not to commit any insult from henceforth upon the chappel of our lady of consolation . this is mars's care : and the device for the god mars , was procul , ô , procul ite profani . virg. in the third theatre , ceres , flora , pomona , &c. rejoyce at the return of our lady of consolation . and their motto , still under the title of divinities , was jam redit & virgo , redeunt saturnia regna . it were too long to transcribe all the other follies and impieties of this days solemnity , in which the holy scripture found no room ; the sacrament but very little : the whole piety was designed to the blessed virgin ; and because christianity had not gods enough in it , to set forth her glory , all the poetic deities were revived , to inspire agreeably a devotion into the people for her. this was indeed a master-piece of contrivance ; and what invention shall next be had , to excite a devotion to her , we may expect to see the first time the gentlemen of the society shall have occasion to make their complying consciences do something extraordinary , for the flattery of a prince so much their friend , and therefore so much their favourite as he , for whose honour this solemn procession was in great measure designed . in the mean time , i shall leave it to the reader seriously to consider , what sad effects such a devotion as this has given birth to ; and what just cause we have to oppose a superstition , contrary to the holy scripture , unknown to the best and most primitive antiquity ; unreasonable in its self , and which is worst of all , not only , very unprofitable , but very wicked too in its practice . answer to the fourth article , of images and reliques . in the beginning of this article you tell me ( but with very little reason ) that you might have past over this point without any further consideration ; the best argument you bring for it , being , if i mistake not , this , that you are not obliged to defend what i had advanced against you upon it . and indeed tho the reason be but a poor one , yet i am perswaded you had done better both for the interest of your cause , and for your own credit , to have contented your self with it , and have past over this article altogether ; rather than by giving such loose answers to my allegations , to have satisfied the world , that you have no just exceptions to make against them . . were i minded in return to excuse my self the trouble of any farther answer to you , i could , i believe , give you some more plausible pretences for it . i might tell you , ( st , ) that your distinctions are now so well known , and have been so often exploded by us , that there is no longer any danger that even my friends the vulgar should be circumvented by them . i might add , ( dly , ) and that with great truth , that this whole subject has been utterly exhausted by that learned man , i have so often mention'd , in his defence of the charge of idolatry against t. g. and from whom you have here again borrow'd your chiefest strength . i might mind you , ( ly , ) how after two endeavours to reply to him , t. g. was forced to give over ; and it is now above eight years since neither he nor any of your church has thought fit to carry on the dispute . i might desire you , ( thly , ) to compare your performances upon this point with what the representer ventur'd not above a year since to make a flourish with ; and see if you could find out but any one thing in all you here repeat , that his learned and judicious adversary had not utterly confuted . but he too has forsaken the cause ; and i am now called upon to give you the same answers that have been made to both these , and then without pretending to be a prophet , i dare be bold to say for all your blustring , you will go off the stage as tamely and quietly , as any of your predecessors have done before you . there is a certain circle of shifts and distinctions which you all run ; and no sooner are those spent , but your bolt is shot ; you drop the question , and begin again upon a new score . . these and many other reasons i might offer to decline any farther examination of this point ; but i have promised you before , that i would neither misrepresent your doctrine , nor fobb off your arguments . and i will here perform it with such exactness , that●even your incense and holy water shall not be forgotten . and if for our diversion you shall think fit the next time you write to add to these all your other follies , of holy ashes , consecrated candles , agnus dei's , and in one word , whatever superstitions of the like kind , your pontifical , ceremonial , missal , breviary , office of the blessed virgin , with all the rationals and comments that have ever been written upon them can furnish you with , i do once more promise you , that no pretence of their impertinence shall hinder me from sifting both them and you to the bottom . as to the present subject , i shall observe this plain method : i. i will make good the charge of image-worship against you . ii. i will shew you , that in this service too , you are truly and properly guilty of idolatry . . but before i enter upon these particulars , i must stop so long as to consider the new introduction you endeavour to amuse your reader with : viz. sect . i. of the benefit of pictures and images . and which brings to my mind what tully ( reckoning up the several opinions of the philosophers concerning the nature of the soul ) said once of aristoxenus , who of a fidler became a philosopher , and asserted the soul to be a harmony ; hic ab artificio suo non recessit , & tamen aliquid dixit . you tell us then , . reply , § . . ] that they are the books of the ignorant , silent orators , apt to increase in us the love of god and his saints , and ( o elegant ! ) blow up the dying coals of our affections into a flame of devotion , that the representations of holy persons , and of their glorious actions , do by their powerful eloquence inflame us towards an imitation of their graces and virtues , and renew in us afresh the memory of the persons whom they represent , with a reverence and respect for them . . answ. ] in all which tho you fight with your own shadow , and say nothing that either contradicts our principles concerning worship , or justifies your practises ; yet have you been so unhappy as to offer just matter for our animadversion : for , st . it is no small mistake in you , thus to joyn pictures and images together , as if they were all one ; when yet both your own superstition , and the opinion both of the jews and gentiles ( as to the point of worshipping of them ) have always made a very great difference between them . as for the ancient heathens , they adored their 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , statues , or graven images ; because they conceived them most apt to be animated by their gods , of which they were the resemblances . whereas pictures were not thought so capable of receiving that animation . the same was the distinction of the jews too , who upon this very account have always look'd upon the former sort of † † † † † † sculptures to be the thing especially forbidden in the second commandment ; insomuch that they thought it unlawful to have them even for ornament ; but for * * * * * * pictures painted or woven , those they did not esteem to have been absolutely forbidden to them . and at this day in your church , your images are set up with solemn consecrations to receive your adoration . but i do not know that any pictures are dedicated for altar-pieces , or other uses , with the like solemnity . . another confusion of the like kind you make in what follows , in speaking of the pictures not only of holy persons , but of their actions too . for every body knows how much more use there may be , and how much less danger there certainly is in historical representations , than in single figures , but especially carved images . . were the benefit of images never so great , yet you know this is neither that which we dispute with you , nor for which they are set up in your churches . your trent synod expresly defines that due veneration is to be paid to them . your catechism says that they are to be had not only for instruction , but for worship . and this is the point in controversie betwixt us . we retain pictures , and sometimes even images too in our churches for ornament , and ( if there be such uses to be made of them ) for all the other benefits you have now been mentioning . only we deny that any service is to be paid to them ; or any solemn prayers to be made at their consecration , for any divine vertues , or indeed for any vertues at all , to proceed from them . this is our business ; the rest is all impertinence in such discourses as these , where men are to dispute , not harangue . and for images set up in churches , with these ceremonies , and for this purpose , i add . that were the benefits of them otherwise never so great , yet will not this be any manner of excuse to you for the violating of god's law , seeing , as you have been often told , and indeed do your self confess , no evil is to be done , for any good whatsoever that may come of it . tho now . i am not altogether satisfied of the great usefulness of images for the instruction of the ignorant . they may indeed serve to call good things and persons to their remembrance , when they have before been instructed , and by consequence in that respect are no longer ignorant of what is represented by them . but let a man , that is properly ignorant , i. e. who never heard of the xiith ( for instance ) of the revelations , see the virgin mary ten thousand times painted with a half-moon under her feet , i do not believe he would become one jot the wiser for it . nay , . in opposition to your pretences , though all this is out of the way , yet i dare affirm , lastly , that for such images and pictures as are too often ●…d both in your churches and ●ouses , they are so far from serving to any of those uses you pretend , that on the contrary , if men are not very well instructed , they will be apt to beget in them most pernicious notions , contrary to the honour of god , to the nature of our saviour christ , and to the covenant of his gospel . . for tell me , i beseech you ; was not this the great reason wherefore god forbad any resemblance to be made of himself under the law , that it was a lessening and debasing of his nature so to do ? and does not st. paul urge this very consideration against the athenian idolatry ? acts xvii . . and is not the divine nature as excellent now , and as much debased by yours , as ever it was by their representations of it ? i need not tell you of the frequent pictures of god the father in the shape of an old man , and commonly in a pope's dress ; and the meaning of which ( if one may conjecture the design of this by the natural tendency of it ) can be no other than this , viz. to perswade the ignorant , that as you sometimes call the pope a god on earth , so god is no other than the pope of heaven . . and this , were it only in some sacred places , would yet be too prophane for any pious christian to endure . but alas ! you have not been so reserved . every office carries this abuse in it ; hardly a psalter or catechism without it : nay , i will add , what i should hardly be credited in , had not thousands among us with indignation beheld it , that in the open streets of your cities , we may see that god who is over all blessed for ever , exposed to the scorn and meanness of a sign-post . . how miserably have you by these pictures , abused the mystery of the sacred trinity ; sometimes you make it a monster ; as where you paint one body with three heads ; one head with three faces ; sometimes one body with two heads , and a pigeon in the midst ; of which card. capisucchi makes mention . the sacred trinity in the belly of the virgn , which gerson says , he saw with his own eyes in a church of the carmelites ; the most ordinary figures are , either an old man holding a crucifix in his hands , and a pigeon upon his shoulder ; or , ( as in your eye-catechism ) on one side an old man with a globe , on the other a younger with a cross upon his shoulder , and a dove betwixt them : and what is all this but to debase the glorious godhead ? in st. paul's phrase , to change the truth of god into a lie , by representing the incorruptible god by an image made like unto a corruptible man ? and where is there a christian so insensible of that dishonour that is hereby done to the majesty of that god , whom the wiser heathens themselves never debased to the likeness of any created being , as not with the same apostle to have his spirit stir'd within him , at the sight of such impiety ? . nor are you at all less excusable in your representations of our blessed saviour , and the holy virgin ; not to descend to any other of the saints . for besides that such similitudes exhibit only one , and that his inferior nature , viz. his manhood ; how do these pictures insensibly breed a mean opinion of him , in the minds of the ignorant and unwary ? as st , nothing is more ordinary in the most solemn places of your worship , than to see our blessed lord still set forth as a child , in the arms of his mother . and what notions this has bred in many of your communion , i would to god the greater esteem they seem to have for the virgin , than for christ , did not too plainly shew . but that which renders this more intollerable , is , that you thus represent him not only upon earth , but at this time even in heaven ; and indeed , seeing in your legends , you speak of him as a child still , i do not wonder if in your pictures , you represent him too as such . . thus in one of your eye-catechisms , set forth in portugal , for the instruction of the people ; the latter part of the ave-maria , is set in this manner before them . all sorts of men and women upon earth , are drawn in an open scene , upon their knees , and hands lifted up to heaven , and in the clouds over them , the blessed virgin in glory with our saviour ( as a child ) in her arms ; and under it this inscription , o holy mary , mother of god , pray for us sinners now , and in the hour of death . amen . jesus . . in the calender of the saints of your order , there is a figure of st. odilo , devoting himself to the blessed virgin in this manner . o most holy virgin , and mother of the saviour of all ages , receive me from this day forward as your servant , and in all my causes , be my most merciful advocate . for from this time , after god , i set nothing before thee , but voluntarily deliver my self for ever to be your possession , as your proper servant . amen . above him sits the blessed virgin in glory , with our saviour in her arms , holding her about the neck , after the manner of a little child . many of the like kind are there in those volumes ; but i may not insist upon them ; i will add only some of those figures , in which the whole trinity are made to concur to her honour . thus in the office in the virgin , printed at antwerp . she is set forth in glory in heaven , with god the father on the one side , and god the son on the other , holding a crown over her head , the holy ghost above overshadowing her , and all the people on the earth below adoring . . i will not deny , but that these may be very good instructions for father crasset's , or doctor j. c's disciples . but i cannot see how any of the expounding and representing party , will be able to prove such pictures as these , to be much for the edification of the people . i shall finish these remarks , ( which have already run out into a greater length than i design'd , tho i might have added much more ) with the account which the learned gerard vossius gives us , of a picture over an altar in flanders , in which that blasphemous epigram is express'd of mens doubting whether they should run to the blood of christ , in which alone there is redemption to be obtain'd ; or to the milk of the virgin. this is certainly to contradict the very foundation of the gospel ; and to lead the ignorant into error in that point , in which it is of all others the most dangerous to be mistaken ; viz. whether they ought to place the hopes of their salvation in the redemption of christ , or in the mercy and interest of his mother . . you may at your leisure consider how to improve these things into helps of devotion , and useful instructions for the illiterate populace . i might have added , what has lately been elsewhere observed , of the prophaness of many ( in italy especially ) in this point : where the most celebrated madonna 's , are the pictures of the painters whores , set up in their churches , as objects of the peoples veneration . but this and other excesses of the like kind i purposely forbear , lest i should be thought to please my self in your impieties , which i heartily lament , and earnestly be-beseech god to reform in you . nor should i have said thus much , but only to shew how little reason you had to enter on this new and most impertinent subject of the benefit of images ; and that were our cause to be try'd by this alone , we might even so expect to carry it against you . and this to your first pretence . . the next thing you offer in favour of your images , is reply § . ] that there is no now danger of idolatry in this practice , seeing all persons are taught that there is but one god , to whom adoration is only due ; and therefore , that they cannot be capable of erring so grosly , as to give divine honour to an image , or to think any virtue annexed to them for which they ought to be adored . in short , it is ( you say ) by the subtilty of the devil ( who hates any thing that excites devotion ) that these helps to piety , are now branded with the horrid note of idolatry , and catholics represented , as if they paid the act of adoration to the images themselves . . answ. ] that the devil is an enemy to piety , and to all those things that may any way serve to promote it , i can easily believe ; but that it is he , who upon this account stirs up us to oppose your idolatry , i shall hardly credit , tho you should give me as good an assurance of it , as ever your brother the old monk did the second council of nice , when he told them that the devil himself had confess'd to him , how much he hated your holy and venerable images . i am sure tertullian was so far from this , that he thought 't was the devil that instigated men to bring them into the world , and not to help to cast them out . but to overthrow at once , both your reflection and argument together , i do here roundly affirm , that what you say is so far from being true , that there is now no danger of idolatry in the worship of images , that on the contrary i will shew , that in the worship of them publickly authorized and practiced amongst you , you do actually commit it . and then every body will see what spirit it is that acts us in opposition to this service ; and who it is that blinds you so far , as to make you contend for that , which both the holy scripture condemns , and the primitive christians neither knew , nor would have endured . and this brings me to my first proposal ; wherein i am sect . ii. to make good the charge of image-worship against you , and answer those evasions , by which you endavour to clear your selves of it . . now that you give religious worship to images , has been so fully proved in that learned book i have before refer'd you to , in answer to t. g. both from the definitions of your councils of nice and trent , and from the unanimous voice of almost all the great men of your church , who have written any things of this matter , that i shall need say but very little here in confirmation of it . and therefore not to multiply quotations by transcribing what has been already collected as to this matter , i shall content my self with this plain , and i think unexceptionable manner of proceeding against you ; st , i will propose to you the voice of your church in her definitions . dly , i will give you the interpretation of her sense in these definitions , from card. capisucchi only ; and out of that book to which mons. de meaux himself appeals . dly , i will from both vindicate the account i have given of the practice of your church , in conformity to these principles . . st , for what concerns the first of these , the voice of your church , as to this point ; the council of trent declares , that the images of christ , of the blessed virgin , and of the saints , are more especially to be had and retained in temples , and that due honour and veneration is to be paid to them . not that it should be believed that there is any divinity or virtue in them , for which they are to be worshipped ; or that any thing is to be asked of them , or that any trust is to be put in images ; but because the honour which is given to them , is referr'd to the proto-types which they represent ; so that by the images which you kiss , and before which you uncover your heads , and fall down ; you adore christ , and worship the saints which they represent . . thus that wary synod ; neither determining what honour should be given to images , nor yet setting any bounds to any . but then , as it expresly allows them the external marks of divine worship , so by fixing the grounds of this honour to be the passing of it to the proto-type , not only soto , turrian , and naclantus , three great divines concern'd in that synod , but also the generality of those who have treated since of this matter , have concluded , that the same adoration is to be paid to the image , and the proto-type ; so that if christ himself be worshipp'd with divine worship , then must the crucifix also be worshipp'd with the very same . but this will better appear , . dly , from the account i am to give of the doctrine of your church , as to this worship , from cardinal capisucchi . and to whose book since mons. de meaux has thought fit to appeal , i am content to submit the decision of this controversy to his sentence , and shall leave the world to judg whether i have misrepresented , or whether the bishop and you have not departed from the doctrine of the council of trent . . now that we may know precisely , what in his opinion , that due honour and veneration is , which you pay to images , and which the council so cautiously declined the telling us ; we will consider first of all , what was thought to be so by them , whose opinions he rejects , as not fully delivering your churches sense . such were . first of all durandus ; who thought that properly speaking , the images are not to be adored ; but because they resemble things worthy adoration , which by remembrance are adored in presence of the images , therefore the images themselves improperly are , and may be said to be adored . now this he rejects , because ( says he ) in truth , it takes away the worship of images ; and concludes it with another of your great men , raphael de tuire , to be dangerous , rash , and savouring of haeresy ; or as ferdinandus velosillus phrases it , false , rash , and erroneous ; but especially , since the definition of the council of trent . the next whose opinion he rejects , is vasquez ; who taught that the images themselves were no otherwise to be adored , but because in the presence of them , and about them , are exhibited the external signs of honour , such as kneeling , kissing , uncovering the head , &c. but that for the inward act of adoration , this was by no means to be directed to the image , but to the thing represented by the image . and this too he rejects upon the same grounds that he did the foregoing , viz. because that by asserting , that the inward act of the adorer terminates only upon the thing represented by the image ; he do's by consequence affirm , that the images themselves are not truly and properly to be adored . . the next opinion which he rejects , is that whereby an inferior honour is supposed due to images , and not an honour of the same kind with that which is paid to the exemplar . and this has been proposed with some variety . catherine and peresius thought that no other worship besides this inferior , honorary respect , was due to them . sanders distinguish'd , that the images consider'd by themselves , and without any regard had to the exemplars , deserved only an inferior honour ; but being consider'd conjunctly with the exemplar , were to be worship'd with the very same worship that the exemplars themselves were . and this was also the opinion of suarez , that images consider'd only as sacred utensils , were to have no other honour than was usually given to any other the like holy things ; but that being consider'd as images , they were to have the very same worship with the proto-types whom they represented . lorca deliver'd his opinion yet more subtilly : . that the image of christ might by accident be adored with the same adoration as christ himself ; but that this was only improperly call'd the adoration of the image , it being christ himself that alone was truly and properly adored . . that for that adoration which terminates on the image , it is an adoration much inferior to that wherewith christ himself is adored . . that tho the adoration wherewith the image of christ is adored , be in the kind of the act different from that with which christ himself is worshipped ; yet that it proceeds from the same habit , the virtue of religion , from which the adoration of christ himself proceeds , and upon that account may be called by the same name with it . and all these opinions the cardinal still rejects upon his old principle , that the image is adored with the very same act with which christ himself is adored , and by consequence must be worship'd with the same divine worship . . the next whose opinion he refutes , is card. bellarmine ; who supposed that , the worship which is properly given to an image , is not the same with that which ( for instance ) is given to christ himself ; but a sort of imperfect worship , which may by a certain analogy be reduced to the same kind of worship that is paid to the exemplar . but yet that the image may by accident be worshipped with the same worship as the exemplar , when the exemplar is considered as shining forth in its image . this also he refutes , utterly denying that any inferior honour is to be given to an image , which requires properly , and in its own nature the very same worship that is paid to the exemplar which it represents . . lastly , cardinal lugo's opinion was , that the image and the exemplar were to be adored as two distinct objects of adoration ; as when a man sees the son of his friend , he at the same time loves both the son and the father , not together with the very same act , yet both directly : the son for the father's sake , and the father accidentally upon the occasion of the son 's bringing him to his remembrance . thus in the present case , when a christian beholds the image of christ , presently he calls his blessed saviour to mind , and directly worships both the image for christ's sake , and christ for his own . and this also the cardinal rejects , not so much for that it does not give sufficient honour to the image ; for lugo also held that the same divine honour was to be given both to christ and his image , as because it distinguish'd the objects ; whereas according to card. capisucchi , christ and his image are to be adored not only with the same act , but also as the same object of worship . . having thus rejected all those several opinions , he finally concludes , that the true opinion , and which ought to be held , is , that the worship of the images and the exemplars , is one and the same ; so that the worship of the images is not distinct from that of the exemplars , but they are both worshipped together . this he proves to be the churches sense by a cloud of witnesses , from st. thomas to this day ; and shews it to be what both the second council of nice , and the later synod of trent designed in their definitions . and then finally , closes all with the instance of aegidius magistralis , i heretofore mentioned , who having deni'd that divine worship was to be paid to images , was forced by the inquisition to recant and abjure it as heretical ; and exhorts all those to consider it who find fault with st. thomas for saying that the cross and images of christ were to be adored with supreme divine worship . . and this may suffice by the way to answer your exception against the authority of aquinas ; who as you see allow'd a true and proper worship to be paid to the cross as well as to christ. and that you may not shift off this reply ( as you have done my former answer ) only with scorn and derision , i must mind you , that 't is not now a doctor of the populace whom you think uncapable of penetrating into the profound mysteries of scholastick niceties , that says this ; but card. capisucchi , a schoolman and disciple himself of st. thomas , and whom perhaps you will allow to have as deep a reach as your self in these matters . for vasquez having brought the very same interpretation of aquinas's doctrine that you now insist upon against me , the cardinal thus roundly answers him , that according to st. thomas the image of christ is absolutely and simply to be adored with the same adoration with which christ is adored . — and that therefore the same adoration which is given to christ , ought to be given to his image also . . and thus have i in short laid before you the sum of this cardinal's doctrine , who both approved m. de meaux's exposition , and to whom monsieur de meaux himself appeals for the vindication of this very part of it . i have already sufficiently shewn how inconsistent these two are with one another ; i will now only apply what i have here further added to my former account of this matter , to the point before us . and , . first , it may not be amiss to observe what great diversity of opinions there has been in stating of that worship which is paid by you to images , and what difficulty you have found to defend your practice against that charge of idolatry we have so justly brought against you upon the account of it . how the caution of some , and the distinctions of others amongst you , have been branded by the rest as scandalous and erroneous ; and one forced to abjure as heretical , what others have set up as the only true exposition and representation of the churches sense . and this you will give me leave the rather to remark , because you are so often pleased to reflect upon our divisions , which yet are neither so frequent nor dangerous , as among you who pretend not only to truth , but infallibility in all you believe . and if the consequence you are wont from thence to draw against us , that because we differ in some things , therefore we have no certainty in any , be good , ( as you say it is ) you may now see that it will equally fall upon your selves too ; and by so much the more heavily , by how much your pretences in this matter are greater than ours . but , . secondly , tho there be then such a diversity of opinions amongst you as to this worship ; yet it is to be remarked that they who have allow'd the least honour to images , have yet still confest that some honour was due to them . in this ( says capisucchi ) all catholicks do agree that images are to be worshipped , and are rightly worshipped by the faithful . even durandus himself , who disapproves the images of the holy trinity , yet allowing both the use and worship of other holy images . from whence therefore i conclude , that those in this cardinal's opinion , are no catholicks who tell us that , all the honour they have for them , is only such a respect as they pay to any other sacred utensils . that if they seem to act in their presence some external signs of veneration , this is meant only to the persons whom they represent , but not to the images themselves , which can claim nothing of that kind from us . in short , as monsieur de meaux expounds it , that they do not worship the images ; no , god forbid ; but only make use of them to call to mind the originals . the council of trent teaches no other use of them . . thirdly , it may from hence farther appear , that the worship which this cardinal thought due to inages , was not an improper , accidental , abusive worship , but a true , proper , and real adoration ; the image being to be adored in the very same act with which the exemplar was . so that now according to this exposition , the cross of christ is to be worshipped truly and properly with a supreme divine adoration . and that not only as to the outward acts , but by the inward sense of the soul too ; all which are so to be paid to christ , as to terminate at once both upon him , and upon the crucifix by which he is to be adored . and this , . fourthly , we are to look upon , not as a private opinion , or a meer scholastick nicety , but as the true and proper sense of the church , and to be held of all . so the cardinal expresly declares ; as being the doctrine of the councils both of nice and trent ; and for denying of which , aegidius magistralis was by the inquisition forced to recant , and renounce his doctrine contrary thereunto , as heretical . . this is an instance which with card. capisucchi i will take the liberty to recommend to your consideration . for certainly if what he says be true , you who deny that the cross is upon any account whatsoever to be worshipped with divine worship , can be no otherwise than a downright heretick . and tho you are at present secure in a happy expounding country , where you may safely make what representation of your doctrine you please , or rather that the necessity of your present circumstances moves you to do , without any other danger than that of losing your credit with honest and inquisitive men , which you do not seem much to value ; yet should time and other circumstances invite you hereafter into a hotter climate , you might run some worser hazards among those who have not given themselves up to follow your innovations . it happened not many years since , that a french gentleman being travelling in the east-indies , fell into some company at goa , and there discoursing about matters of religion according to your principles , maintain'd , that the crucifix was no otherwise to be adored , than by reporting all the honour to our saviour christ represented by that image . and another time , he fortuned to say of an ivory crucifix which hung up at his beds-head , that it was onely a piece of ivory . for this he was clapt into the inquisition , and after some years imprisonment for his heretical sayings , hardly escaped the fire , with this sentence , that he was declared excommunicate ; that for reparation of his fault , all his goods should he confiscated ; himself banish'd the indies ; and condemn'd to serve in the galleys ( or publick prisons ) of portugal five years ; and further accomplish those other penances which should more particularly be enjoin'd him by the inquisitors . as for his crime , it is thus set forth in the preamble to his sentence , that he had said that we ought not to adore images ; and had blasphemed against that of a certain crucifix , by saying of a crucifix of ivory , that it was a piece of ivory . . this was plain dealing , and a sensible convicton that it is not meerly a scholastick nicety with the fathers of the inquisition , that the cross is to be worshipped with divine worship . the truth is , the contrary opinion of durandus , holcot , mirandula , and some others , ( and who allow'd all the acts of external honour to be paid to them , only they deni'd them that inward veneration which makes it properly a religious worship ) has been always esteemed as false and scandalous , and savouring of heresie ; and is expresly censured as such by those great men , suarez , medina , victoria , catherine , arriaga , cabrera , raphael de turre , vellosillus , and many others at large , collected by cardinal capisucchi on this occasion , as abettors with himself , of a true divine adoration to be paid to the holy cross , and other images of god , and the blessed trinity . i go on finally from these principles , . thirdly , to vindicate the account i have heretofore given of your practices in consequence to this doctrine . and first , i observed that in the solemn procession made at the reception of the emperor , the legat's cross is appointed by the pontifical to take place of the emperor's sword , because latria or divine worship is due to it . . this you cannot deny to be faithfully quoted out of your pontifical : but you say there is some kind of impropriety in the speech ; and we must understand it so , not as if divine worship were due to the cross , but to christ crucified upon it . a strange liberty of interpreting this , which turns plain affirmatives into downright negatives ; and this contrary to the sense , not only of your greatest authors , ( as i have shewn ) but in their opinion contrary to the sense of your church too . these all say with the rubrick , that a divine worship is due to the cross ; you declare 't is no such thing ; no , god forbid . such worship is upon no account whatsoever to be given to the cross , but only to christ represented by the cross. i will not desire you to consider what wise arguing you make of what your pontifical here says ; that the cross must take place of the emperor's sword , because christ is to be worship'd with divine worship : it shall suffice me to leave you to the censures of your own learned writers and inquisitors , who have already pronounced this exposition to be false , scandalous , and savouring of heresie . only let me once more caution you to remember the hard fate of poor monsieur imbert , of aegidius magistralis , and the french traveller i just now mention'd ; for however it may be safe enough to dissemble with us here , yet will it behove you to take great heed that you alter your tone , if ever you should chance to fall into those parts , where the old popery doctrine is still the measure of the inquisitors proceedings . . my next instance was from your form of blessing a new cross : to your cavil about my omitting some words , i have said enough heretofore ; but the dear calumny must be continu'd , tho not only those two words were added , but so many more set down , that you seem as much dissatisfied with my length here , as you pretended to be with my brevity before . . you pray , that the wood of the cross which you bless , may be a wholsome remedy to mankind : a strengthner of faith ; an increaser of good works ; the redemption of souls ; a comfort , protection , and defence against the cruel darts of the enemy . you incense it ; you sprinkle it with holy water ; you sanctify it in the name of the father , son , and holy ghost ; and then both the bishop and people devoutly adore it , and kiss it . . this is in short the sum of that ceremony ; in which you desire to know what is amiss ? i answer ; that take this whole office together , with the ceremonies , prayers , and other circumstances of it , and it is superstitious and idolatrous ; and i shall not doubt once more to repeat , what before so much offended you , that the addresses you here make , look more like magical incantations , than christian prayers . for , . first , if we enquire into the design of this ceremony ; it is to consecrate a piece of wood or stone , that it may become a fit object of adoration : which being directy contrary to the second commandment , cannot be done without a very great sin. . dly . to this end , secondly , you pray that several benefits may proceed from this wood of the cross ; and if those words signify any thing , whereby you beseech god , that it may be a wholsome remedy to mankind , a strengthner of faith , &c. we must then look upon it , that you do believe , that by this consecration there is a virtue , if not residing in it for all these purposes , yet at least proceeding from it ; which your council of trent confesses was one of the things that made the worship of images among the heathens to be idolatrous . nor will your little evasion here stand you in any stead ; that you pray only that the cross may be a means for the obtaining all these benefits ; and that this is no more than a preacher may desire for his sermon , or the author of a good book for what he is about to publish : for , . a piece of wood or stone , carve it into what figure or shape you please , is not certainly so proper a means for the conveying of such benefits to men , as a good book or a good sermon are : and therefore what may be very naturally desired for the one , cannot without great superstition be applied to the other . i may , and i heartily do pray , that what i am now writing may be a saving remedy to you , by correcting your faith , and encreasing your charity ; because i am perswaded here are arguments proper to such an end , if it shall please god to dispose you impartially to consider them ; but now , i believe , you would think me very extravagant , should i pray to god to sanctify the paper on which 't is printed , or my bookseller's sign that sells it , as you pray to god to sanctify the wood of the cross ; that as often as you see the leaves of this book , or look upon the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard , these good effects may be wrought in you . . again , . as the thing it self is not a proper means of producing these effects in us ; so the manner by which you pray it may be done , renders it yet more superstitious . to get instruction by hearing or reading ; to have ones faith confirm'd , or charity enlarged , or zeal heightned , by pious considerations , or powerful motives , all this is very natural ; and we may therefore lawfully pray to god for to bless them to us in order to these ends. but to pray to god , that by bowing our selves down before a cross , we may find health of soul and body ; to sanctify a piece of wood , that by its merits it may free men from all the sins they have committed , this must be more than a natural effect , neither the thing nor action being proper to produce it ; and whether such requests be not more like magical incantations than christian prayers , i shall leave it to any indifferent person to consider . . but dly , that this which you pretend , is not all that your church designs by those prayers , is evident , in that this exposition cannot possibly be applied to several of those things which you ask of god in those addresses . for instance , you pray , that the blessing of the wood upon which our saviour hung , may be in the wood of the cross which you consecrate ; and that by the holiness of that , he would sanctify this ; that as by that cross , the world was delivered from guilt , so by the merits of this , the devout souls who offer it , may be free from all the sins they have committed . now tell me in conscience , if you dare speak the truth ; is not all this somewhat more , than to pray that the cross may accidentally become a means of working good effects in you , by putting you in mind of the price of your redemption ? do you not here see somewhat , which your council of trent calls the idolatry of the gentiles ? viz. an encouragement to worship the cross , as if some divine virtue were in it , for which it ought to be adored . for , so certainly he must do , who believes that by these prayers , the blessing of that cross , on which our saviour hung , is in this which he worships ; and that bowing down before it , he shall find health both of soul and body . nay , but . thly , i must once more ask you that question , i before proposed on this occasion ; and which , tho you heartily rail at , yet you shift it off without answering one wise word to it . if you design no real virtue to proceed from the cross which you thus consecrate , nor allow any adoration to be paid to it , but intend it meerly for a memorative sign , and no more : to what purpose all these prayers , and sprinklings , and smokings , and blessings , and other ceremonies for the consecration of it ? as to your question , why we dedicate our churches to god ? i will then allow it to be a parallel , when you can prove that we pray that god would sanctify the walls or seats of them , that they may become a wholesome remedy to mankind , and by their merits free us from all the sins we have committed . in the mean time it shall suffice to tell you , that as all we design in those ceremonies , is no more than a solemn setting of it apart for prayer and devotion to god only ; so all we desire , is , that god would vouchsafe favourably to accept our offering of that place to his service , and give a blessing to those holy offices that are from thenceforth to be peformed in it . . but thly ; and to conclude this point ; he that would know what your intention in these prayers is , need only consider what prayers you make in behalf of other things of the same nature : and in which you so evidently desire a divine virtue may proceed from the very things themselves which you sanctify , that there is no doubt to be made of it . i shall give but one instance of this , viz. the prayer you make at the consecration of your agnus dei's ; in which you thus address your selves to god. do thou vouchsafe to bless ✚ , sanctify ✚ , and consecrate ✚ them , that being sanctified by thy liberal benediction , they may receive the same virtue against all diabolical subtilties , and the deceits of the evil spirit ; that for those who carry them devoutly about them , no tempest may prevail against them , no adversity may get the dominion over them , no pestilent breath , no corruption of the air , no falling-sickness , no storm at sea , no fire , nor any iniquity may overcome them , or prevail against them . . such are the admirable virtues which you desire may proceed from these little images ; and by the prayers you make at the consecrating of these , we may easilly understand how to interpret your addresses for the same purpose in the other . but now to make your practice exactly parallel with the old heathen superstition ; i must observe , that it is not enough that you carry these agnus dei's devoutly about you , but they must be worshipped too ; for so your prayer of consecration says ; bles ✚ , and sanctify ✚ these blessed things , that through the veneration and honour of them , the crimes of us thy servants may be blotted out . and now i shall leave it to you , to try once more your gift of expounding , and see if you can bring all this to your new sense : and for your encouragement in it , i will promise you if you can , to give you something more of this matter , which will be more difficult , and which i forbear at present to insist upon . . i should now go on to the next instance ; but i must intreat the reader 's excuse , if i stop one moment to follow your rambling discourse in two points , as little to your purpose , as the handling of them will appear to have been for your reputation . . i. the first is concerning the use of holy water . reply ] which you tell us was established by pope alexander the i. an. . and is good for dispelling incantations and magic frauds , rather than introducing them ; and has been famed for sundry miracles , which god has been pleased to work thereby in several ages . . answ. ] for the antiquity of this usage , i wonder you should stop at pope alexander i. when had you but look'd into the clementine constitutions ( a much more authentick piece than your decretal epistle ) you might have found st. matthew to have been the author of it . and the one would have been as easily believed as the other . . nor have you been less defective in setting out the benefits of it , than you were in your account of its antiquity . and therefore to spare your modesty , i will help to publish them for you . holy water then ( if all be true that is in print ) is good , not only to drive away evil spirits , but more over to cure infirmities ; to wipe out venial sins ; to cleanse the pollutions of defiled consciences ; to cure distractions ; to elevate the mind , and dispose it for devotion ; to obtain grace , and dispose men for the holy sacrament . it cures barrenness , preserves the health , purges the air from pestilential vapours ; besides a great many other good things that are not so fit to be named . all the mischief is , that it is nor certain it do's any of these things ; because ( as * * * * * * bellarmine well observes ) there is no promise of god made to it ; but yet being sanctified by the prayers of the church for these ends , you may as securely believe it , as many other things that have no better a foundation . . and are not these now rare follies for a man to force us to publish whether we will or no ? did ever any mountebank set out his false ware with greater vanity , than those of the church of rome have here done theirs ? and indeed was there ever less reason to believe his remedies , than in this case there is to credit your pretences ? in short , seeing you sanctify water in the name of god , by prayer for these ends , either shew us some promise , some warrant at least from the holy spirit of god so to do ; or all reasonable men will look upon this after all you have said for it , as none of the least both of your follies , and of your superstitions . ii. the other thing you mention is your incense . . and this is indeed to our purpose ; and i shall presently shew you how little you consider'd your own interest in the mention of it . i pass by your pretended significations of it , as impertinent in a discourse where truth only is sought . for the antiquity of it you refer us to dionysius and st. ambrose ; in which you again shew your skill in church-history . the one of these being an author that lived not till the latter end of the fourth century , and the other probably much later . but now the use of incense , in the greek church especially , was of a much earlier date . the apostolical canons speak expresly of it : and if that oration of hyppolitus about the end of the world , be truly his , as from st. jerome's mentioning of it in his catalogue it seems to be ; we have then two considerable instances to assure us that it was in use in the greek church even in the third century . you see how far i am from detracting any thing from the force of your argument : but yet now after all , without fear of censuring primitive antiquity in this matter , whose innocence i as freely acknowledg , as i heartily honour its piety ; i shall not doubt to say that the present usage of it in your church is so far from being innocent , that it is in truth superstitious and idolatrous . . first , it is superstitious . for indeed what else can we make of your praying to god , ( as in this very ceremony of consecrating a cross you do ) that , he would bless ✚ , and sanctifie ✚ this creature of incense , that all weaknesses and infirmities , and all the snares of the enemy perceiving its smell , may flie and be separated from his creatures ; that they may never be hurt by the biting of the old serpent , who have been redeemed with the precious blood of his son. . now if you make this prayer in faith , that it is pleasing to god , and have a confidence that it shall be accepted by him , you must then shew us some grounds , some security in the word of god for it . but if you cannot do this , what is it but superstition , that is , a vain and fond service , to intreat the favour of god in the usage of a thing to which he has neither annexed any promise , nor for the doing whereof has he any where given us the least encouragement . but , . secondly , the use you make of this incense , is yet worse than the consecration of it . you offer it up to creatures , nay to the very images which you worship ; and in doing of which i do not see how you will excuse your selves of being guilty of idolatry . that the burning of incense was part of that religious worship under the law , which god was pleased to appropriate to himself only , is not to be denied . it was indeed a more peculiar act of divine worship , than that of bloody sacrifices themselves . and therefore both the altar on which it was offer'd was covered with gold , and it stood in a more holy place than that of the burnt-offerings ; and is in a more singular manner said to be most holy unto the lord , exod. xx. , . hence it was that king hezekiah immediately brake to pieces the brazen serpent , as soon as he consider'd that the children of israel burnt incense before it . and yet if we enquire into the use that is made of it in your church , we shall find it offer'd not only to the saints , but even to their very images and reliques . vasquez ingenuously confesses , that the israelites gave no other worship to the brazen serpent than what you give to your images at this day ; and that hezekias therefore commanded it to be broken in pieces , not that he thought the people adored it as a god , but because he saw such a divine worship paid to it . it is one of the chief things remarked by your own writers in the life of a great saint of your order , st. gerard bishop of chanade in hungary , whom you commemorate septemb. . that he caused a church to be built in chanade , his episcopal see ; and in it dedicated a chappel to the honour of the blessed virgn ; where having set up her statue , he every day offer'd incense to the figure , and took care by an ordinance which he made , that her altar should never be without fine odours upon it , which should continually smoke to her honour . . now this being the undoubted practice of your church , and such as you cannot deny to be contrary to the express command of god under the law ; insomuch , that cardinal bellarmine freely confesses it would have been criminal in a jew to have offer'd incense to any besides god only ; either you must evidently prove to us , that those acts which were then appropriate acts of divine worship , are not so now , but remain indifferent to be paid to the creature , as well as the creator ; or you must give us leave to conclude , that you do in this , attribute that honour to an image , which god has reserved as peculiar to himself ; and are by so doing , guilty of idolatry . . and thus have i dispatch'd the two things you called me , without any provocation of mine , to examine ; and which it may be you will now begin to think you might as well have let alone : i return to my defence , in which i am next to consider , what you have to except against my third argument , which i brought to shew , that you do truly and properly adore the cross ; and that was from your good-friday service . reply . ] to this you answer , that you bad here also shown my unsincere tricks , in adding and diminishing words , to make your church speak as i would have it . and you pronounce me once more a calumniator , for saying , that this proves that your church do's adore the cross , in the utmost propriety of the phrase . . answ. ] these are hard words ; but i have always observed , that men are most uneasy when truth touches them to the quick . if you are not yet sensible that it was indeed a pitiful cavil to pretend i had false translated your service , by what i have offer'd in my former part from mons. imbert's case , and who for opposing that interpretation of those words which i deliver'd , was used after the manner that i have declared ; i am confident you are the only person even of your own church , that needs to be convinced of it . in all the french translations of your missal , i have ever seen , it is render'd in the very words that i gave it , behold the wood of the cross , come let us adore it : and particularly in that of mons voisin , approved by those of your church , even to excess , you will find it in these express terms , voila le bois de la croix , r. venez adorons le. . in the missal of salisbury , the determination of that address to the cross , is undeniably evident . the priests uncover the cross , and sing the whole antiphone , behold the wood of the cross , come let us adore ; to which the quire kneeling down , answer ; we adore thy cross , o lord. and i cannot but observe , that when jo. aegidius canon of sevil ( of whom i have so often spoken ) was forced to retract , as heretical , his denial of supreme divine worship to the cross ; ludovicus de paramo tells us , that the fathers of the inquisition convicted him of his heresy , especially by this argument , taken from your good-friday service ; viz. that the church on that solemn day did truly and properly adore the cross , when it said , we adore thy cross , o lord. . and this may by the way suffice , to shew how falsely you expound even those words , not to signifie the cross of christ , but his passion . which besides , that it is foreign to the ceremony of worshipping the cross , which you are then about ; and not a little nonsence into the bargin ; is here interpreted , not only by me , but by the fathers of the inquisition , of the cross properly so called ; and whose authority i presume you will not care to despise . and now i shall leave it to any jury that you please , to judg of my translation ; and what character you deserve for your little reflection upon me . and i do assure you withal , that i will never from henceforward so far distrust my reader 's memory , as to say the same things again , tho you should give me the same occasion . . for the other point ; that this do's plainly shew , that your church adores the cross in the utmost propriety of the phrase ; if you will allow those great men i before quoted , to understand the sense of your church in this point , then 't is plain , that my assertion must stand good . you see they freely confess it ; nay , what is more , they pronounce you a heretick for denying it . as for your applying of this worship to our saviour christ ; if you mean thereby to signify that christ only is worshipp'd in this ceremony , exclusive to the cross ; it is evidently false , seeing the whole action , as well as words , shew , that the cross is at least worshipped together with him ; or rather ( to speak more precisely ) christ is worshipped together with the cross. nor will cardinal bellarmine , to whom you direct me , stand you in any stead . for even he allows the cross to be improperly and accidentally worshipp'd with the same kind of worship that christ himself is . and if you please to let me send you to another cardinal , and who being both a great schoolman himself , and master of the sacred palace , may be presumed to know somewhat of your churches sense ; he will tell you , that your cardinal bellarmin was too wary in his distinctions : and that he ought without any of those softning limitations , freely to have asserted , that the cross was truly and properly to be worshipped with divine adoration . and that i think , is much the same with what i said , that you do worship the cross in the utmost propriety of the phrase . . but you have here two singular arguments to excuse this service from the charge of idolatry , and which ought not to be forgot . for , reply . ] first , st. paul ( you say ) lookt upon it to be no superstition , to fall on our face in the assembly , and worship god , cor. xiv . . answ. ] ergo ( ô lepidum caput ! ) if st. paul may be judg , 't is no idolatry in you to fall on your faces in the assembly , and worship the cross . what would t. g. have given to have met with such a consequence in his learned adversary ? but indeed we needed not this proof to convince us ( in that gentleman's phrase ) that you never look'd over aristotle's threshold , however your ill genius has prompted you to become a controvertist . . well , ●…t if st. paul wont do , yet at least you are sure the primitive christians were on your side . and you prove it by an instance most fit to keep company with the foregoing argument . the case in short is this . reply . ] st. athanasius relates how some jews in his time , in the city of berthus ( berytus ) in syria , used great indignities to a crucifix , which a christian had accidentally left behind him , when he removed from his lodgings . and you desire your antagonist to answer you this question : whether i would have excused those jews , because they did those actions to an inanimate being ; or would not rather have interpreted their intention , as passing from the cross to our blessed saviour . . answ. this is indeed a most melting argument , and which as i remember , set all the good fathers of the second council of nice , a crying . but sir , be not you too much affected with it , for i will venture to give you that consolation , which one of your * * * * * * brethren once did his congregation in france ; when having preach'd in a most tragical manner about the passion , not of a crucifix , but of our blessed saviour himself , insomuch , that the whole assembly was in tears at it ; the good father bid them not weep , for that , after all , it may be it was not true . for st , as to the book which you cite for this goodly story , 't is certain it was written above years after athanasius was in his grave , and is of no manner of credit among the learned . dly , as to the story : it was invented in the time of irene the empress , when all the world was set upon making and finding out fables and miracles , for establishing the worship of images . dly , all the authority we have , that ever there was any such thing done , and that it was not a meer invention ( as were many others of the like kind at that time ) is that of sigebert , whose chronicle besides , that it was written yet another years after this supposed insult upon the crucifix , was also an author whom bellarmin himself confesses , is not to be credited in every thing he says . and especially , when in all probability he had no other warrant for it , than the acts of the council of nice , and the pretended treatise of st. athanasius , which you quote for it . so unlucky a thing is it for you to meddle with church-history . . but whether the relation be truth or fable ; the question is put , and must be answer'd : would i not have thought that these jews hereby intended to affront our saviour christ ? i answer , yes ; no doubt they did . and why then ( say you ) should i not in like manner interpret this service of yours to terminate not upon the crucifix , but to tend to him who suffer'd upon the cross ? i answer , . that had you put your question as you ought , you should have ask'd , why then we do not look upon your intention to be to honour , not the cross , but him that suffered upon it . now there is a very great difference between these two . and however your friend t. g. supposes , that actions must necessarily go whither they are intended ; yet i think both he and you ought by this time , to be satisfied of the falseness of that maxim ? and therefore should we allow your intention to be only to worship christ , and not the cross , yet it do's not thence follow that all your worship must by the interpretation of gods law terminate upon him . but now , . i have shown , that for all your pretences , it is not your intention that your worship should so terminate upon christ , as not to terminate also upon the cross together with him . . if it were , yet for all your intention you would nevertheless be far from honouring christ : seeing that to worship christ by an image is a prohibited act ; and god cannot be honour'd in the very same act in which he is disobey'd . and though an intention to dishonour chris● , by abusing his image , is sufficient to do it , ( as in all other cases , one ill circumstance will make the whole action to be evil ; ) yet a good intention alone is not sufficient to make an act good , nor by consequence for the glory of god , unless that intention it self be also govern'd by the rules of his commandments . for otherwise a man might do the worst things with a good intention , and that should be sufficient to sanctify all his villanies . so far have you hitherto been from producing the least shadow of an answer to overthrow the force of my allegations . my last instance was : . fourthly ; from the hymns of your church . in which i shewed that you address your selves to the cross , and beg spiritual graces of it ; and that you could not say the cross was here put by a figure to signify christ crucified upon it ; because the very words of the hymns shew , that 't is the material cross as distinguish'd from christ , of which they speak . . and here you are in a great distress ; you catch at every thing that comes near you ; but for the most part without considering whether it be to any purpose or no. as for instance : you observe , first , that i am brisk and confident , and have a mind to expose your literature as well as your idolatry . but , sir , may i beg leave to ask you on this occasion the very same question that you do me. who is it you mean , when you say , i have a mind to expose your literature ? if you understand that of your party , i must tell you i am so far from exposing it , that i shall presently shew you that they are the most learned men of your church whom i follow in the application of that hymn i alledged . but if by your literature you meant your own , you have then made a most unlucky piece of work of it , in joining your literature and your churches idolatry together ; and i doubt your brethren will have but little cause to applaud the comparison . for do but grant it to be as easie to prove the one , as it is to expose the other , and i will never desire a fairer advantage against both , than you have here offer'd to me. for , . secondly , you say i must confess that your churches hymns were made by poets , unless i will be so great a hypocrite as to deny that prudentius and fortunatus were poets . i suppose prudentius and fortunatus clubb'd together to make the hymn that i refer to : only the mischef is , that the one lived in the end of the ivth , the other not till about the middle of the vth century . nay , but what now if neither of these were author of that hymn ? i am sure gretser , a very inquisitive man in these matters , speaks very doubtfully of it , and leaves it in question , whether venantius fortunatus , or theodulphus bishop of orleans , was the author of it ; and he lived yet later , about the beginning of the ixth century . but to let this pass ; and consider , . thirdly , how you prove these men to be poets , for indeed it is very remarkable . you tell me , that if i will but look into the corpus poetarum , i shall find them to have had a place among the poets . a most undoubted way this , to find out whether an author were a poet or a schoolman ; and i dare say you were beholden to no man's literature but your own for this remark . . well , but to grant that which i perceive you do not know very well how to go about to prove , that the author of this hymn , whoever he was , was a poet ; what will follow ? why then you say , fourthly , i shall presently find the figure he there uses ; his title being not of the cross , but of the passion of our lord . and then you take a great deal of pains to prove , what no man ever deni'd , that the cross in holy scripture is oftentime put to signify , the force , effects , and merits of christ's death and passion . now if this be any thing to the purpose , as all that drops from a person of your literature must be supposed to be ; then i must conclude , that seeing the title of that hymn is of the passion of our lord , whereever i meet the word cross in it , i am to understand it not of the material cross , but of christ's passion . this you must mean , or else all this ado is meer reverie , and impertinence . now then let us see what mad work we shall according to this new exposition make of that hymn . the passion of our king comes forth ; the mystery of the passion shines ; upon which passion the maker of our flesh was hanged in the flesh. beautiful and bright passion ! adorned with the purple of a king. chosen of a fit stock to touch such sacred members . blessed passion ! upon whose arms the price of the world hung . hail , o passion ! our only hope ; in this time of the passion , increase righteousness in the godly , and give pardon to the guilty . . now this i am confident a man of so much literature as you are , will not allow to be a proper paraphrase of this hymn : and if instead of the passion , you put christ for the cross , this will yet more increase the nonsense and confusion . in short ; if all the corpus poetarum were alive , and should lay their heads together with you , they could not find out any of their figures that would do the business ; but must have some new ecclesiastical figure found out to make the cross signify christ and his passion , at the same time , and in the same place in which it distinguishes both from the cross. and such a figure i do say would be as great a mystery , in verse , as transubstantiation is in prose . and i desire you , if you can , to give me but one parallel text of scripture , in which the cross is at once taken both literally for that cross on which christ suffer'd ; and figuratively , for christ and his sufferings upon it . . in the mean time it shall suffice me once more to mind you of what i perceive you have nothing to say to ; viz. that aquinas and his followers , who have been sometimes reckon'd men of literature in your church , have understood this hymn according to the plain and literal meaning of it : and that so confidently as to conclude from it , that your church holds divine honour to be due to the cross. we ought to worship the images themselves ( says soto ) for the church doth not say , we worship thee , o christ ; but , we adore thy cross , o christ. and again , o crux ave , &c. we direct our words and signs of adoration to the images , ( says catherine ) to which likewise we burn incense : as when we say to the cross , o crux ave. and to the same purpose , marsilius ab ingen ; ludovieus de paramo ; philippus gamachaeus , &c. see dr. st. answer to t. g. part . . but if all this will not yet satisfy you , but you are still resolved to adhere to your new figure , i will then give you another instance , and which i believe may be prose , for i do not remember i ever saw it in the corpus poetarum , though this i shall leave to your literature to determine : and i pray be pleased to send us the paraphrase of this antiphone , according to your new method of expounding : o cross ! brighter than all the stars ; famous in the world ; exceeding amiable to men ; more holy than all things ; which alone hast been thought worthy to bear the weight of the world. sweet wood ! bearing the sweet nails , and sweet burdens ; save the present company gathered together this day to thy praise . and this may serve for the second point ; which was , to make good the charge i had brought against you , of giving divine worship to images . i proceed now finally to shew ; sect . iii. that the church of rome thus worshipping of images is truly and properly guilty of idolatry . . there is nothing in all our disputes with those of the church of rome that seems so much to offend them , as this charge . they think it not only unreasonable to suppose that men in the clear light of christianity should be capable of falling into idolatry , but even destructive of the very nature of a church , and by consequence contrary to all those promises of christ in his gospel , that the gates of hell should never prevail against it ; and indeed were our notion of idolatry the same with what some of their late advocates have set forth as the true and only notion of it , i should not at all wonder at their resentments ; but rather confess that we had justly deserved all those reproaches which their intemperate pens have of late bestow'd upon us . . but whatever their opinion of the true and only notion of idolatry be , yet common equity should have taught them to confess , that we mean no more in our charge of it against them , than this , that those of the church of rome , in their worship of the host , of saints and images , do give that honour to the creature , which ought to be given only to god. we do not pretend that you have either renounced the worship of the supreme deity ; or that you do adore either the sun , moon and stars ; or even angels and saints as such . and therefore howsoever you may dislike our notion of idolatry , yet you ought not to revile us for fixing a false charge against you , but to shew that we give an ill name to a true charge . and because i now desire not to be mis-understood , i do first of all declare , that by my present conclusion i intend no more than this , that you do give the proper acts of divine worship to images , as i have already shew'd you do to saints ; and that this is truly and properly idolatry . . to discharge therefore this last part of my undertaking as i ought to do ; i will proceed distinctly upon these two things , ist. to fix our notion of idolatry , against those new idea's that have of late been given of it . iidly . to shew , that according to the true notion of it , the church of rome in her worship of images is guilty of idolatry . i. point . i. of the true nature of idolatry . . this is what you desire me to reflect upon , and i hope it will not be thought amiss if i here with all imaginable tenderness communicate my reflections to you . reply , p. . ] three things ( you say ) there are required to make that honour which we do pay to any thing , become idolatrous . st , the understanding must acknowledge an excellency in the object truly divine , and worthy of adoration in the strictest sense , where really there is no such excellency . dly , the will must have a propension and inclination to it as such , and pay that honour to it . and lastly , the body must pay the exterior obeysance , of bowing , kneeling , prostrating , kissing , &c. in pursuance of this interior love and knowledge . . ans. that is to say , that no one is an idolater , but what takes somewhat to be god that indeed is not so , and upon that account gives the worship due to the supreme god to a created being . and this explains what you had said before ; that you wonder how it could enter into the minds of men of common sense to conceive it possible , that in the clear light of christianity , where all persons are taught there is but one god to whom adoration is only due , they should yet fall down and adore a stock or a stone , and pay divine honour to it . that the idolatry of the ancient jews and heathens consisted in believing a plurality of gods , and adoring them as such : so that in short , let men but keep to the knowledge of the one true god , and not worship saints , or images , as such ; and then there is no danger of idolatry for any other worship that may be paid to them . . and now let idolatry be as stabbing and cut-throat a word as it will ; be its punishment , if it were possible , greater than what a reverend author has lately told us is its least , death and damnation ; if this be the only idolatry , viz. to worship somewhat else besides god , as supposing it to be very god ; i dare confidently affirm in behalf of all those popular divines that have ever used that scolding word , that the church of rome is not idolatrous in the worship of saints or images , nor has it in this sense ever been charged by us as such . but to shew the vanity of this pretence ; and yet more clearly express what we mean by this charge , i will now very plainly examine these two things : i. whether , according to the scripture-notion of idolatry , those may not be guilty of it , who yet both know and worship the one true god ? ii. how such persons may become guilty of it ? i. whether , according to the scripture-notion of idolatry , those may not be guilty of it , who yet both know and worship the one true god ? . and here it is not my design to enter on any large discourse about the general nature of idolatry ; but still remembring the particular point before me , to prove it only in such instances , as are more immediately applicable to it . and such are especially these two : st , the idolatry of the golden calf . dly , of the calves of dan and bethel . . as to the former of these , it has of late been suggested , that it was made by aaron as the symbol of the egyptian apis or osyris ; and to whose idolatry the israelites now return'd in the worship of it . but this is indeed a very weak suggestion ; and whosoever will but consider the circumstances of what was done by that people on this occasion , will presently see , that they design'd that calf to be the symbol not of any egyptian deity , but of the true god , whom accordingly they worshipp'd in presence of it . and this will appear ; . st , from the occasion of this idolatry ; which was not any infidelity as to the true god , or that they had now any better reasons given them for the worship of others besides him ; but because moses delayed to come down from the mount , therefore they urged aaron to make them a god , that might go before them . they had now rested a long time in that place , and were impatient to go on towards the land of promise . but having now no moses to enquire of gods pleasure , they wanted an oracle to consult upon these occasions . and therefore they cri'd out unto aaron , up , make us gods that shall go before us , for as for this moses the man that brought us up out of the land of egypt , we wot not what is become of him . . now that this was all they intended by it , will appear , dly , from the character which the people presently gave to the calf , as soon as it was made : this is thy god ; or as the chaldee paraphrast renders it , this is thy fear , o israel , which brought thee up out of the land of egypt . for sure the people were not so stupid as to think it was either that image which had brought them up out of egypt ; or that the gods of egypt had plagued their own people for their sakes , and with a high hand deliver'd them out of their power . no , doubtless they understood by it their god , who but just before at the delivery of the law , had assumed this as his own peculiar character , i am the lord thy god , which have brought thee out of the land of egypt , and out of the house of bondage . and this naturally suggests to me a third evidence of this truth . . from the title which aaron himself gave to that god , of which this calf was the symbol . ver. . and when aaron saw it , he built an altar before it ; and aaron made proclamation and said , to morrow is a feast unto the lord . this was the peculiar and incommunicable name of the god of israel , which he assumed unto himself , exod. vi. . when he renew'd his covenant with them ; and we do not find any one place in all the holy scripture , where it has ever been attributed to any other . . thly , had the people hereby designed this to be the symbol of the egyptian deities ; how comes it to pass , that ( as we read in the next verse ) they offer'd burnt-offerings , and peace-offerings unto it . for this , both the scripture tells us , was an abomination to the egyptians ; and a late advocate for you , freely confesses , that they esteem'd bullocks and rams to be sacred animals , and therefore never offer'd any of them to their gods. . lastly , the scripture plainly distinguishes this idolatry from that of the egyptians , and makes the one to have been the punishment of the other . it is confess'd , or rather contended for by the author i but now mentioned , that the egyptian idolatry consisted in worshipping the sun , moon and stars , as the supreme deity : now , this st. stephen tells us , that god afterwards permitted them to fall into , and therefore it must have been some other idolatry , which in this case they were guilty of ; for speaking of their setting up the golden calf , acts vii . . he thus goes on , ver . . then god turned , and gave them up to worship the host of heaven . . as for the other instance i proposed to consider ; the calves of dan and bethel ; the occasion of their making , was this . when the ten tribes had thrown off rehoboam from being their king , and had chosen jeroboam to reign over them ; this new usurper , fearing lest if the people went up at the yearly sacrifices to jerusalem , where rehoboam still reigned over the other two tribes , it might in time occasion their falling away from him , set up two calves in dan and bethel , and made altars before them , and perswaded the people , saying , it is too much for you to go up to jerusalem : behold thy gods , o israel , which brought thee up out of the land of egypt . . now that jeroboam intended these calves to be symbols of the god of israel , appears , st , from most of those reflections i before made . he gives them the same character by which they constantly understood the god of israel ; behold ( says he ) thy god , that brought thee up out of the land of egypt . he offer'd sacrifies before them , and consecrated the priests that ministred unto them , with a young bullock and seven rams . all which is exactly agreeable to what god required of them , but was utterly inconsistent with the idolatry of egypt . but . dly , we have some more peculiar proofs of this matter . i speak not now of the readiness of the people in complying with him , which it is not imaginable they would so easily have done , had he intended to lead them to the worship of strange gods. nor will i insist upon the danger , which so sudden an innovation might have brought to this new king , and who was not so little a polititian , as to attempt such an alteration at a time when he was hardly yet well establish'd in his new usurpation . these are indeed great probabilities , but such as this cause needs not ; seeing it has the evidence of holy scripture fully confirming it ; it being certain that the idolatry of these calves did not take them off from the service of the true god. let us examine all along the history of the kings of israel ; we shall find them constantly worshipping the jehovah , the god of israel . jehu was zealous for him ; he destroy'd the idolatry of baal out of his concern for the lord ; and had the kingdom by gods own immediate promise setled upon his posterity for his so doing . and yet it is expresly said of him , howbeit from the sins of jeroboam , who made israel to sin , jehu departed not from after them , viz. the golden calves that were in bethel , and that were in dan. . who was it but the true god for whom elijah appear'd so zealous ? king. xviii . when he enter'd into that famous trial with the prophets of baal ; if the lord be god , follow him ; but if baal , than follow him . and the fire came down from heaven , and burnt up the sacrifice , and all the people confest , saying , the lord he is the god ; the lord he is the god. . hence it is , that when ahab fell into that other kind of idolatry which consists in worshipping of false gods , he is represented as much more heinously offending god , than the other kings of israel , who worshipp'd the calves of dan and bethel , kings xvi . . and it came to pass , as if it had been a light thing for him to walk in the sins of jeroboam the son of nebat , that he went and served baal , and worshipped him . . by all which it undoubtedly appears , that in both these cases , they design'd by those calves to worship the true god ; and then seeing it is confest they did commit idolatry in that service , it must remain that men may know , and serve the true god , and yet by worshipping him in this prohibited manner , may in the interpretation of the divine law commit idolatry . . i shall conclude this with that confession which the evidence of truth in this matter has extorted from cardinal bellarmin and and some others of your own communion ; where answering this objection , that when the golden calf was set up , aaron proclaimed a feast not to any other strange god but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the lord , to the jehovah , it is ( says he ) the solution of abulensis and others , that there were two sorts of idols among the hebrews . one without the name of any certain god , as that of micha , judges xvii . and perhaps the golden calf which aaron made , exod. xxxii . and jeroboam renew'd , king. xii . for the scripture does not call the calf the god moloch , or the god baal , these are thy gods , o israel . the other sort of idols had a certain name ; as baal , moloch , ashtoreth , chamos , &c. as is plain , king. xi . &c. they say therefore , and that not improbably , that it may be admitted of the former kind , that the jews did think that in the idol they worshipped the true god. . and now tho this might suffice to shew how consistent the guilt of idolatry is with the acknowledgment of one true god , yet will i add a reflection or two more , for the farther confirmation of it . for , first , were such a notion as this of idolatry to be admitted , it would serve no less to excuse the heathens than those of the church of rome of the guilt of it . for however they worshipp'd other inferior deities , as these do saints and angels with a lower degree of religious honour ; yet even they too acknowledged one supreme god , who was over all , and to whom the highest worship and adoration alone was due . this has been so largely proved by t. g's worthy and learned antagonist , not to mention any others who have occasionally treated of this argument , that i shall not need to enter on any particular induction in order to the asserting of it . . secondly , it cannot be question'd but that this new notion of idolatry , set up on purpose to excuse you from that imputation , is utterly repugnant to the principles of the ancient fathers , who certainly charged those with idolatry , who yet believed and worshipp'd the very same god with themselves . thus st. athanasius charges the arrians with idolatry for adoring christ , whom they esteem'd to be a creature . he tells them , that no supposition of any excellencies whatever in him , altho derived from god , would excuse them . but that if they thought him a meer man , and yet adored him , they would be found worshippers of men for all that . nay he doubts not to parallel them with the gentiles , and to compare the service they paid to our saviour upon this supposition , with that which the other gave to their inferior deities . and the same was the opinion of all the rest of those great men , gregory nazianzen , nyssen , epiphanius , &c. and whose words are so well known , that i shall not need to transcribe them . . but now that i have mentioned epiphanius , i may not forget another sort of idolatry exploded by him , and yet more near our purpose than the foregoing . i mean that worship which some superstitious women in his time paid to the blessed virgin by offering a cake to her . now this that holy father condemns as downright idolatry , and the device of the devil . and to shew how consistent the charge of idolatry is with the worship of one god , he gives us a similitude that would almost imply a necessity of acknowledging the one true god to compleat the nature of it : idolatry ( says he ) comes into the world through an adulterous inclination of the mind , which cannot be contented with one god alone : like an adulterous woman that is not satisfied with the chast embraces of one husband , but wanders in her lust after many lovers . so possible did those ancient fathers think it to be for men in the clear light of christianity , and retaining the acknowledgment of the true god , nevertheless to commit idolatry . . i might add here the exhortations of the new testament , where both s. paul and s. john , among other cautions to the christians of their times , place that of fleeing from idolatry ; and this in such a manner , as evidently supposes them very capable of continuing the profession of christianity , and the knowledg and worship of god , and yet of falling into it . but i shall content my self , lastly , to close up this with the confessions of learned romanists themselves , who have acknowledged idolatry to be consistent with the worship of the true god. . s. thomas defines idolatry to be a sin , whereby the singularity of god's dominion is taken from him : and card cajetane in his notes upon this same question , supposes that a christian may commit idolatry , and yet be so far from renouncing the true god , as not to violate any part of his faith in him . gregory de valentia , says 't is idolatry ; whensoever a man intends to apply to a creature , either by words or by actions , any estimation which is proper unto the majesty of god , whether it be done directly or indirectly . vasquez reckons those to be idolaters , who give to an image the service due to god ; and defines an idol in general to be , whatsoever is worshipped as god that is not truly so . now all these either manifestly suppose the knowledg of the true god , or at least do not exclude it . . but what need i insist upon generals , seeing if we may believe those of your own communion , you are not only capable , for all your christianity , of falling into idolatry ; but in this very point of image-worship , are actually guilty of it . for , st , cardinal bellarmine disputing against that which i have shewn by such a number of witnesses to be the true doctrine of your church , viz. that the image of christ is to be worshipp'd with proper divine worship ; doubts not to say this is idolatry ; and therefore argues in this manner against it : that this worship is either given to the image for it self , or for the sake of another . if for it self , it is plainly idolatry ; if for another , it is not proper divine worship , because the very nature of that is to be given for it self . again ; either the divine worship ( says he ) which is given to the image relatively for another , is the same with that which is given to god , or it is an inferior worship . if it be the same , then the creature is equally worshipped with god , which certainly is idolatry . for idolatry is not only when god is forsaken , and an idol worshipped , but when an idol is worshipped together with god. if it be an inferior worship , then it is not the proper divine worship . . so that now then the point is reduced to a fair issue . either we must pay the same adoration to the image that we do to the original , and then card. bellarmine pronounces us idolaters ; or we must give it only an inferior honour , and then card. capisucchi , and the inquisition , damn us as hereticks . nay , but there is idolatry committed go which way you will. for vasquez , another learned jesuit , and whose works have been no less approved than card. bellarmine's , tells us ; that if a man give inferior worship to an image , distinct from that which is given to the thing represented by it , he thereby incurs the guilt of idolatry , because he expresses his submission to a meer inanimate thing , that hath no kind of excellency to deserve it from him . and now seeing there is so much danger of idolatry , whatever the honour be that is given to images , i hope we may be the easier excused , if admonished by these confessions , and directed by god's commandments , we refuse to give them any honour at all . and thus much be said to the first point , that a man may be capable of falling into idolatry , though he continues both to know and worship the one true god. my next business is , dly , to shew , how this may be done by him . . i shall mention only two ways , and which i have already before infinuated ; ●iz . . by worshipping the true god after an idolatrous manner . . by giving divine worship to any other besides him. . by worshipping the true god after an idolatrous manner . . this was the case of the israelites , in the examples i have before mention'd , of the calves of aaron and jeroboam . they directed their adoration to the jehovah , the lord their god that brought them up out of the land of egypt . to him they proclaim'd the feast , and offer'd burnt - offerings and sacrifices upon their altars . yet because they set up a symbol of him , contrary to his command , and worshipp'd him after an idolatrous manner , they are expresly charged as idolaters in holy scripture ; and the worship that was intended by them to god , is represented as given to a molten image . . and the same was the case of that other image which card. bellarmine joins with these , viz. the teraphim of micha , judg. xvii . that these were designed for the service of the true god , is plain , seeing both his mother is said to have consecrated the silver of which they were made 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 to the jehova , vers. . and micha himself hired a levite of the lord 's to be his priest , vers. , . and he comforted himself upon this consideration , vers. . now know i that the lord will do me good , seeing i have a levite to my priest. and again , chap. xviii . . the priest asked counsel of god ; for some of the danites that enquired of him , and god , or the jehova , gave them a true answer . it is supposed by some in favour of this micha , that being a religious man , and the publick service of god being very much obstructed by the miserable violence of those times , he made himself a little oratory , and placed in it all the furniture of the tabernacle , with these teraphim to resemble the cherubims of the ark , whose figure s. hierome and others suppose them to have had . but whatever becomes of this fancy , that which i have to observe now is , that what the original hebrew stiles teraphim , the old vulgar latin calls idols ; and in that famous passage , sam. xv . . they are both join'd in the same rank of ilness with one another ; for rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft ; and to transgress an idol and a teraphim : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , so symmachus rendèrs it ; and so both the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in that place must undoubtedly be understood . and indeed card. cajetan himself confesses as to the very point before us , that the whole work ( however micah intended it ) was in god's estimation without question idolatry : and to whose opinion we have already seen card. bellarmine to have agreed ; not to mention tostatus and others whom he refers to as acknowledging the same likewise . . dly , as for the other way by which a man may commit idolatry , who yet both acknowledges and worships the true god , viz. by giving divine worship to any other together with him ; i have already offer'd instances of that in the cases of the arrians and collyridians ; the one of which for worshipping christ , whom they supposed to be but a creature ; the other for offering a cake to the virgin mary , are charged by the ancient fathers as guilty of idolatry . nor is this without foundation from the holy scripture . for besides , that first of all we find there all religious worship appropriated to god only ; and therefore to give such worship to any other , must be practically to set up another god. to say nothing , dly ; that if any such worship has at any time been offer'd any holy men or angels , they have not only constantly refused it as a great abomination , but have still given this reason for it , that they were creatures , and by consequence not to be adored : stand up ( says st. peter to cornelius ) for i also am a man. sirs , why do ye these things ? ( says st. paul to the men of lystra , who would have offer'd sacrifice to him ) we are also men of like passions with you . see thou do it not , ( says the angel to st. john ) for i am thy fellow servant : worship god. all which sufficiently shew , that to worship any other besides god , is to raise them above the state of creatures , and in effect to make idols of them . we may observe , dly , that to give even the least part of that service which is due only to god to any creature , is expresly called idolatry . thus because we ought to trust in god only : covetous men who ( as st. paul tells them ) trust in uncertain riches , are in the new testament called idolaters . and sure those do not less deserve this character , who trust in the blessed virgin and the saints , or by any other act of proper religious worship , such as prayer , and in one word all those other instances of religious adoration i have heretofore mentioned , shew that they divide the proper service of god with them . . let us add to this , thly , that cardinal bellarmine himself confesses that idolatry is committed , not only when god is forsaken and an idol worshipped , but when an idol is worshipped together with him . and this he proves from exod . xx. . ye shall not make with me gods of silver , &c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 i. e. says your learned vatablus , to worship them together with me : for i will that ye should worship me alone , and not joyn any companion with me. . i shall finish this with the consideration of that charge which s. paul brings against the gnostick hereticks , and in which he plainly argues against their idolatry , rom. . . that they changed the truth of god into a lie , i. e. says theodoret , they gave the name of god to an idol : and worshipped or served the creature 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 besides , but yet togethér with the creator , who is blessed for ever , amen . for whereas ( says the same father ) they ought to have worshipped the true god , they gave divine worship to the-creature ; to the same accusation are they subject , who calling the only begotten son of god of a creature , do yet worship him as god. for they ought in their divinity either not to rank him among the creatures , but with god that begat him , or if they will have him to be a creature , they ought not to give worship to him as a deity . . hence athanasius calls this the folly of the arrians and greeks : to worship the creature , besides or with the creator . and again , the apostle ( says he ) accuses the greeks that they worshipped the creatures , seeing that they served the creature besides the creator ; seeing then the arrians say that our lord is a creature , and serve him as such , wherein do they differ from the greeks or gentiles ? and lastly , s. jerome in answer to the charge of vigilantius , who accused them of idolatry for worshipping the reliques of the martyrs , utterly renounces the charge upon the same foundation : but as for us ( says he ) so far are we from adoring the reliques of the martyrs , that we do not worship the sun or the moon , not any angels or arch-angels , not the cherubims nor seraphim , nor any name that is named either in this world or in that to come , lest we should serve the creature rather than the creator , who is blessed for ever . . and thus have i endeavour'd in as short a compass as i could , to clear the general nation of idolatry , as far as concerned the point before me , and in which i suppose you to have erred more for your churches sake , than for any great difficulty there is in understanding the nature of this sin. it will now be an easie task from these principles to infer , ( which is my next point . ) ii. that your church in the worship of images is truly and properly guilty of it . and this i shall shew according to what you desire ; st , with reference to those who hold that images are to be worshipped with the same worship as the things which they represent . dly , as it concerns their opinion , who denying this , yet allow an inferiour honour to them . first , that they are guilty of idolatry , who worship images with the same honour as the things which they represent . . where first i must observe , that this , however of late opposed by you and the rest of our new representers , is yet not only the most general received doctrine of the roman church , but so esteem'd to be the sense of your two councils of nice and trent , that card. capisucchi produces a long catalogue of your greatest writers who have look'd upon it as savouring of heresy to oppose it . and not only monsieur imbert in france , but also aegidius magistralis , and the french gentleman , whose case i before represented , will assure you , that in the inquisitions of italy , spain , and portugal , 't is somewhat more than a scholastick nicety , or a probable opinion , which may without danger be opposed by you . and therefore , tho to make good my promise , i shall also dispute this point with you too upon your own principles ; yet i must needs declare that 't is here i esteem my self truly to oppose the doctrine of your church in this particular . . now that they who hold this sort of image-worship are thereby guilty of idolatry , is so evident that your own card. bellarmine could not forbear reproaching them with it : and whose words i will once more produce , not more for the authority than the weight of them ; where maintaining this conclusion , that images of themselves and properly are not to be worshipped with the same worship with which the exemplar is worshipped , he thus argues against the contrary opinion : either that latria or divine worship which is given to the image , for another is the same with that worship which is paid to god , or it is some inferiour honour : if it be the same , then the creature is equally worshipped with god himself , which is certainly idolatry ; for it is idolatry , not only to forsake god and worship an idol , but to worship an idol together with god. as it is written , ye shall not make gods of gold or of silver together with me. thus this great writer . and tho i ought not to expect such free declarations from you , whose business it is to dissemble , and soften , and accommodate things all you can , yet have you plainly enough insinuated the very same . for when you lay down this position , that the image of our saviour christ , or the holy cross , is upon no account whatsoever to be worshipped with divine worship , that worship being due only to god : all you have to say for the other opinion is , that it may , nay that 's not enough , it may possibly be defended , which is , i think , a tacit confession , that , to say the truth , you doubted it could not . 't is true , you afterwards grow more confident , and improve your possibly into easily ; i say these expressions of the schools may be easily defended ; but then you add , that it must be done by interpreting them so as not to shock this first principle , that god alone is to be worshipped ; that is to say , by changing the conclusion ; and whereas they say , that the cross is to be worshipped together with christ with divine worship ; you give it the new turn , that not the cross , but christ in presence of the cross is to be worshipped with divine worship . for otherwise you had before told us , that the holy cross it self must upon no account whatsoever be worshipped with divine worship ; and again here , this first principle ( say you ) must not be shock'd , that god alone is to be adored with divine adoration . . it appears by this how uneasy you are in this case , and it is not a little confirmation to us of the security of our condition , to see that you whose concern it so much is to be very well assured of what you do , yet cannot agree among your selves what honour is to be given to images . but one party thinks that cannot be maintain'd without idolatry , which the other declares may not be deny'd without heresie . as for the images of the blessed virgin and the saints , that those commit idolatry who worship them with the same religious worship that they pay to the exemplars , will follow from what i have before said of your worshipping the blessed virgin and saints themselves . for if it be idolatry to give religious worship to the prototypes , it must then be much more so , to pay it to the images . . for your other images , those of our saviour christ and the holy trinity , i shall need no other argument than that of card. bellarmine before-mention'd , to shew the worship of those too to be idolatry . it being evident that to give divine adoration to any creature , that is , to worship any creature as god , is to make an idol of it , and therefore the service that is thereby paid to it must be idolatry . now that this is the case of those who hold this opinion , if what i have already cited from them be not sufficient to show , and especially where they declare ( as we have seen ) that not only christ , but the image it self too is to terminate the divine worship which is paid to christ by it ; i am sure the reason which they bring to establish their conclusion will be more than enough to do it : viz. that the same indivisible act is at once and indivisibly the worship both of the image , and of christ represented by the image . and if the image of christ be adored with the same indivisible adoration with which christ is adored , that adoration must be the supreme divine adoration , seeing with such only christ is to be adored . . but how then do's the cardinal excuse this from being idolatry . he answers , that it is not idolatry , because the image as an image is in that respect christ himself . for in this respect ( says he ) the image of christ is not consider'd precisely as it is a creature , but as it is a divine thing , and christ himself by representation . and then he dogmatically concludes , that it is not at all inconvenient that a creature as it is a divine thing , and after a certain manner one with god , should be honour'd with the very same divine honour , with which god himself is honour'd . in short , he confesses that the images of christ , upon the account of their being so , may be adored with the very same adoration that christ himself is ; and that in such a respect it is not at all inconvenient for the creature to have divine worship paid to it . he looks upon idolatry to be then only committed when the image is worshipped exclusively to god , but that it is none to worship god by an image , or to worship an image together with god. but yet since he confesses that images consider'd as images , in their representative natures , are still but creatures , and to worship any creature with the worship due only to god ( whatever the pretence be for the so doing ) is in effect to set up another god , which must needs be idolatry ; it will remain that no pretence of scholastick niceties will be able to excuse this great man from card. bellarmine's censure of idolatry ; seeing ( as he truly tells us ) it is idolatry not only to forsake god and worship an idol , but to worship an idol together with god. but all this will more evidently appear from the other consideration , in which i am to shew , secondly , that even those who deny this supreme divine honour to images , are yet guilty of idolatry in what they allow to them . . the truth is , the case of these men is , i think , rather more inexcusable than that of the other kind , because that ( in s. paul's words ) rom. . . knowing the judgment of god that they which commit such things as these are worthy of death , they not only do the same , but 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . they assent to those who do them . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , so theophylact ; they defend and patronize them : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . as theodoret very well observes upon this place . . now that this is indeed truly your case appears , st , in that at the same time that you assert in express terms , that you do not worship images , god forbid : that the cross is upon no account whatsoever to be worshipp'd with divine worship ; you nevertheless comply with those others before mention'd in all the most forbidden instances of divine adoration . you incense them , you carry them solemnly in processions , you consecrate them for this very end that they may be worshipped , you prostrate your selves before them in the church of god , and in the time of prayer , you desire several graces to accrue to you by your serving of them , nay you address your very prayers to them , which your own aquinas makes use of to prove that a proper divine adoration is due to the cross ; for having laid down this conclusion , that the cross is to be adored with the same adoration that christ himself is ; he immediately subjoins , and for this cause it is that we speak to the cross , and pray to it as to christ himself . where you must observe ( says card. cajetan in his notes on that passage ) that s. thomas brings our speaking to the cross as an effect of the same adoration with which christ is adored . for because we speak to the cross as christ , 't is a sign that we recur to the cross as to christ. by all which it appears that you are in this matter 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or self-condemned : if you believe this worship to be lawful and yet deny it , of hypocrisy towards us ; if you think it to be idolatrous , and yet comply with it , of a great sin towards god. . and that which yet farther confirms me in this is , to consider what wretched evasions you make use of to excuse your selves in these particulars . can any thing be more pitiful than the expositions you have here offer'd , of your consecrating of crosses , of your good-friday-service , and of the hymns of your church , which i had alledged as instances of that worship you give to images ? do not these plainly shew a desperate cause : and that you are but too sensible that your old practices are not to be reconciled with your new pretences . . if while i am endeavouring to convince you of idolatry , i do by the way discover your insincerity , 't is what i cannot help . but all the use i shall make at present of these remarks shall be to observe , that even those among you who pretend the most to deny a divine worship to images , yet must allow such acts of it as these i have here recounted . now that even this will involve you in this guilt , is evident from the scripture-notion of idolatry before establish'd . for i desire you to tell me , if you can , what did those israelites do when they worshipped the golden calf , that you do not at this day practise in the very same manner ? was it , . that they worshipped god by an image ? but if this be idolatry , you cannot deny but that you do the very same . or , was it , . that they did not refer their worship finally to god , but terminated their adoration upon the very image it self ? nay , but aaron in express terms proclaim'd a feast unto the lord ; and to whom can we suppose that they offer'd their burnt-offerings and their peace-offerings , but to the same lord to whom the feast it self was proclaim'd ? . to conclude ; there is nothing in that whole history to make us doubt but that they design'd that calf only as a symbol of the god of israel : and their idolatry by consequence was no other than what the most moderate men of your church must confess themselves to be guilty of , viz. that , contrary to god's express command , you set up graven images as representations of our saviour christ and the holy trinity ; and worship the infinite and incomprehensible god , in a figure made like unto a mortal man : which god himself has warranted us by his holy word to call idolatry . . it remains therefore upon the whole , that either you must shew us to be mistaken in our notion of idolatry ; or you will never be able to acquit your selves of the charge of it . and when you have done this , we shall then only tell you , that you commit a sin in this service , that you violate god's holy law which forbids it ; but for the denomination of it , we shall leave it to you , whose sin it is , to give it what particular name you your selves think fit . of reliques . . in the point of reliques you offer only two things in answer to all that i had said upon that subject , viz. reply ] first , that the whole of my discourse proceeded upon verbal dispute , what we are to call that honour which you give to them , and which you deny to be properly worship . secondly , you once more egregiously cavil about the translation of that part of the council of trent which concerns this subject , and deny that you seek to the sacred monuments or reliques of the saints for the obtaining of their help and assistance . . answ. ] for answer to which pretences , because i as little love to prolong disputes at any time , as you do when you have no more to say in order to the carrying of them on ; i will lay aside words , and bring the issue to the things themselves , and shew how miserably you have prevaricated in this point too , as wellas in the foregoing , by proving , i. that you do properly worship the reliques of your saints . ii. that you do seek to them for help and assistance . and when this is done , i shall not need say any thing to prove that you here also commit idolatry ; seeing you allow the cases of images and reliques to be the same ; and the council of trent makes this to be the very difference between the heathens and them , and that by which they hope to escape the censure of idolatry , viz. that they do not believe any divinity or virtue in images for which they ought to be worshipped , or that any thing is to be asked of them , or any trust to be put in them . tho how truly they declare this , the account i have before given of your consecrating both of crosses and agnus dei's will sufficiently show . i. that you do truly and properly worship the reliques of your saints . . this is a point that in any other age , or country but ours , would have needed no proof . and it is not the least argument of an innovating spirit in you , that no words or expressions are of any value with you , as often as you are minded to give us what you call the churches sense . let your writers use never so many phrases to assure to us their opinion that reliques are to be worshipp'd , all this signifies nothing , they meant no more by it than an honour or veneration due to the sacred remains of those saints who were once the temples of the living god ; and not a worship or adoration taken in its strict sense . there is hardly an expression that can signifie a proper worship which your own authors have not made use of to declare the service they thought due to them . i adore , worship , embrace the reliques of the saints , said one in the second council of nice , and the whole assembly resolved , act. iv. that their bones , ashes , raggs , blood , and sepulchres , should be adored , only men should not offer sacrifice unto them . card. baronius speaks of it as an honour done him by pope clement viiith , that tho most unworthy of so great an undertaking , he was yet sent by him to examine and adore the venerable body of s. cecilia . and though the cautious synod of trent said only that reliques should be venerated , yet seeing it neither condemned the opinions of those who taught they were to be worshipped , but rather allow'd the acts of proper divine service to be paid to them . what can we conclude , but that they made use of a loose expression to satisfy the more moderate party of your communion , at the same time that they resolved by their practice to favour the superstition of those who properly adored them ? . now that this was truly the case , will appear , first , from what i have before said , concerning the holy cross ; which is consider'd by you in a double capacity , both as an image and as a relique ; and is upon both accounts declared to be worthy of the very same adoration that christ himself is ; and i hope that is a proper worship in the strictest sense . for thus st. thomas argues ; if we speak of the very cross upon which christ was crucified , it is to be worshipped with divine worship , both as it represents christ , and as it touch'd the members of christ , and was sprinkled with his blood. and for this cause we both speak to the cross and pray to it , as if it were christ crucified upon it . where note , ( says cajetane ) that our speaking to the cross is here produced as an effect of the same adoration with which christ is adored . this i think is plain enough , and may serve to shew both with what sincerity you deny that properly speaking you do worship reliques ; or that 't is not the cross , but christ crucified upon it , to whom you speak in these addresses ; and which i have before vindicated against your cavils . . now this is the more to be consider'd , in that here you cannot say , as you do in the case of images , that the figure and the proto-type are in a manner united together , and that therefore the image in its representative nature is in some sort very christ : the reason of this worship being only a former relation to our saviour ; because ( says aquinas ) it heretofore touch'd his sacred members , or was sprinkled with his blood. upon which single account cardinal capisucchi doubts not to affirm , that the wood of the cross is so sanctified and consecrated by christ , that every the least particle of the cross divided from the whole , and from the other parts do's remain consecrated and sanctified ; and therefore that every the least piece of the cross is to be adored with the very same supreme divine adoration that christ himself is . so truly have you told us , that you do not allow relicks a worship or adoration taken in its strictest sense . . and what i have now said of the cross , will in the next place no less hold for the nails , lance , and other instruments of his passion . upon which account , as we have seen that you address to the cross , so you also do to the lance ; hail o triumphant iron ! happy spear ! wound us with the love of him that was pierced by thee . it is possible you may find out this too in the corpus poctarum ; and by the same figure that the cross signifies at once both the material cross , and our saviour that hung upon it , may make the spear here signify at once both s. longinus's spear , and the body of christ that was wounded with it . and that you may see how much it will be worth the while to have such an ecclesiastical trope invented . i will add one instance more of another relique that has an address made to it altogether as much wanting it as either of the foregoing . the relique i mean is the veronica , or cloth which our saviour christ wiped his face , and left the impression of his visage upon it . and to this you thus pray ; hail holy face of our redeemer , printed upon a cloth white as snow ; purge us from all spot of vice , and join us to the company of the blessed . bring us to our country , o happy figure ! there to see the pure face of christ. this is i suppose a plain instance enough what kind of honour you pay to reliques . and that this cloth might never want votaries to worship it , your pope john xxii , has vouchsafed no less than ten thousand days indulgence to every repetition of this prayer . i might add other instances of this kind of superstition : but i go on , . thirdly , to another instance of your giving religious worship to reliques ; and that is your allow'd practice of swearing by them . now that to swear by another , is to give that thing by which you swear the vvorship due to god only ; both the nature of an oath , which implies a calling of god to witness , and therebly acknowledges him to be the inspector of the heart , and the just avenger of the falshood of it , and the authority of holy scripture plainly declare ; thou shalt fear the lord thy god , says moses , deut. vi . . and shalt serve him only , and swear by his name . how shall i be favourable unto thee ? says god by the prophet jeremy , chap. v. . thy children have forsaken me , and sworn by those that are no gods. but now the catechism of your late synod of trent allows you to swear by the cross , and reliques of your saints ; and there is nothing more common among you than so to do . when the emperor comes to rome to take the imperial diadem at his holiness's hands , he thus swears : i king of the romans swear — by the father , son , and holy ghost ; and by the vvood of the cross , and by these reliques of the saints , &c. in which we find the holy trinity join'd in the same rank with the wood of the cross , and with the reliques of the saints . . nor am i here concern'd in those pretences that are sometimes brought to excuse this , viz. that you hereby intend no more than to swear by god , seeing it is plain that you do it at once both by god and them. and again ; that you do not believe that thereby any strength is added to the oath which it would not otherwise have ; for allowing this , yet still you do swear by them ; and if there be neither any reason for it , nor benefit in it , you are never the less culpable , but the more inexcusably so upon this account . but indeed you do expect a benefit by this swearing ; and suppose that the saints do hereby become sureties with god to you to see the oath fulfill'd , and to punish the perjury if it be not . and so you not only swear by the reliques as well as by god , but ascribe all the reason and design of an oath to the saints in common with god. i will illustrate this in one of your own instances , which will clear this matter to us . it happen'd that one of your saintesses , s. guria , was married to a goth , a souldier in the roman army , that was sent to deliver the city edessa from the hunns . the siege being raised , and the army recall'd , the souldier required his wife to go home with him . her mother could not bear this ; but being forced to comply , she brings the souldier and her daughter to an altar , under which were buried the bodies of three saints . and being there , she thus spake to him ; i will not give thee my daughter , unless laying thy hand upon this tomb , in which are contain'd the reliques of the holy martyrs of christ , thou shalt swear that thou wilt treat my daughter well . this he readily did : but yet soon after , without any regard to his oath , he used her very ill . it were too long to recount all the circumstances of her misfortunes , or her miraculous deliverance out of them , by the aid of these holy martyrs . i observe only as to my present purpose , that being reduced to the utmost degree of despair , the saint now , as her last refuge , puts the holy martyrs in mind of her husband 's swearing by their reliques , and how they were thereby become sureties to her mother for her good entertainment , and ought not to suffer her to be thus abused . immediately , the martyrs spoke to her , and told her , that as faithful sureties they would deliver her : and straightway she was miraculously brought out of a coffin under ground ( for her husband had buried her alive ) to the very place where their bodies lay , and where her husband had sworn to her . and then they once more spoke to her to this effect : we have now satisfied our suretiship , go to thy mother . it was not very long after this , that the war breaking out again , the same souldier came back to edessa , where he was surprised to find his wife alive ; and being prosecuted for the injuries he had done her , and for the perjury he had committed , was condemn'd to be hang'd for it . but , . fourthly , and to conclude this point . i will to these add those superstitions which are your common practice ; and of which every one that has lived any time among you , must needs have been eye-witnesses . such are your running to visit the shrines of your saints upon their solemn festivals ; which with what devotion you do it , all paris on the d of january every year is sufficiently sensible . your carrying them in procession is indeed very remarkable ; and of which i shall leave those who have ever known a dry time in the city i last mention'd , to consider what they have then seen . but because i must not expect to be credited by some men in any thing that can possibly be deny'd ; i will leave these matters of fact to those who have been spectators of them : and for the satisfaction of those who have not , will give a short extract of the form of procession , with which you bring the reliques of your saints into a new church . . first the bishop with his clergy leads the procession to the place where the reliques were lodged the night before ; when they are come to it , they sing this anthem , move your selves , o ye saints of god from your mansions , and hasten to the place which is prepared for you . then the bishop uncovering his head before the reliques prays thus . grant unto us , o lord , we beseech thee , that we may worthily touch the members of thy saints that are more especially dedicated unto thee . then the incense being prepared with the cross , and lighted candles leading the way , and follow'd by the clergy , singing their anthems , the priests appointed take up the carriage , and one going by them all the way incenses the reliques . the bishop and clergy singing , among others , this anthem , rise up ye saints of god from your habitations ; sanctify the places ; bless the people , and keep us sinful men in peace . — walk o ye saints of god ; enter into the city of the lord , for a church is built unto you , where the people may adore the majesty of god. being come to the door of the church , they make a stop whilst some other ceremonies are performed . then the bishop crosses the door with holy chrism , and bids it be blessed , and sanctified , and consecrated , and consign'd , and commended , in the name of the father , son , and holy ghost . and so they carry in the reliques , the bishop and clergy singing as before . this is the order of that solemnity . what name it deserves i shall leave it to others to say . but sure i am , that all this is somewhat more than such an honour and respect which you pretend is all that you give to them . let us see , iidly , whether you do not seek to these sacred monuments for help and assistance ? . it is indeed a hard case that we must be forced now to prove that which is a known practice of daily experience amongst you . the council of trent it self confesses , that by them many benefits are bestow'd by god upon men ; and then i am confident it will not be thought at all improbable , that it should encourage men to recur to them for their help . but here you have a notable evasion . you do not deny but that men go to these sacred monuments and reliques to receive benefit ; but this you say will not justify my translation unless when they come there they pray to the reliques , instead of desiring the saints , whose they are to pray for them . and to make this look like a rational answer , you change the terms of the question ; which was not ( as you falsly insinuate ) whether the council of trent directs you to * * * * * * implore the aid of the monuments or sacred reliques ; but whether it do's not condemn those who say that for the † † † † † † obtaining of their help the memories of the saints are in vain frequented . and though they do not pray to the reliques ; yet if for the obtaining their help your people do recur to them , which you cannot deny but that they do , the presumption offer'd in vindication of my rendring that passage of your council is still good ; and you have shewn nothing but your own falseness in this new answer to it . if it were necessary to prove that you do pray to reliques , you may see by what i have already offer'd , that even so you would not have secured your self from having made your self a false translation , where you charge me with one. but you have chosen your jury , and i accept of it ; and only for their better direction , i must desire them to look the words in the council it self , and not in your transcript of them ; who have purposely omitted all the antecedent to which the eorum refers ; that so they might be sure to see no more than what made for your purpose . should i have done this , i should have found all the variety of hard words muster'd up against me , mutilation , falsification , false imposition , wilful prevarication , wilful mistake , unsincere trick , &c. that either your margin could have contain'd , or your malice have invented ; and the truth is , i should have deserved them . but i shall leave this also to your jury to judg of : and for all your good assurance , i dare venture all my little learning , against all your little , that the verdict is brought in against you ; and that you are concluded in this matter to have been either very blind , aut illud quod dicere nolo . . for what concerns the thing it self ; whether you do not seek to the monuments of the saints for the obtaining the help of their reliques ; this is what will need no proof to those who are but never so little acquainted with your superstition : and have seen with what zeal you touch your beads and psalters at the very shrines in which they ae contain'd , to sanctify them thereby . how upon all occasions they are brought forth by you : to cure your sickness ; to preserve you from tempests at land , and in storms at sea ; but especially to drive away evil spirits , for which they are the most beneficial . the messieurs du port royal , have given us a whole volume of the miracles wrought by the holy thorn. there you may see how sister margaret , one of the nuns , being ill of the palsy , was carried to adore the holy thorn. how another being sick , recurr'd to it for its help , and found it too ; having no sooner adored the holy thorn , and kissed it , but she was well of her infirmity . infinite examples of the like kind might be produced , but i shall content my self to shew what opinion you have of the power of your reliques , from the very prayer that you make at the blessing of those little vessels in which they are put . we most humbly beseech thee almighty god , father of our lord jesus christ , that thou wouldst vouchsafe to bless these vessels that are prepared for the honour of thy saints through the intercession of the same saints : that all those who shall venerate their merits , and humbly embrace their reliques [ may be defended ] against the devil and his angels , against thunder , lightning and tempest ; against the corruption of the air , and the plagues of men and of beasts ; against thieves and robbers , and invasions of men , against evil beasts , and against all the several kinds of serpents and creeping things , and against the wicked devices of evil men. here i hope are benefits enough to invite a man to seek to them , and if they can help in all these cases , we need not doubt but they shall have votaries enough to recur to them for it . . but that which is most admirable is , that in all these cases , false reliques are every jot as good as true ones ; and which makes somewhat for the opinion of vasquez , that provided a man do's but think 't is the relique of a saint , he may securely worship it , tho it may be 't is no such thing . we have before heard what mighty cures were wrought at the monument of the famous bishop and martyr viarum curandarum : and whether the council of trent prescribed it or no , ressendius assures us , all the country round about did come to the monument of this pretended saint , for the obtaining help and assistance , and fancied at least that they found it too . tho it afterwards appear'd that 't was an old heathen inscription , and those words far enough from signifying either the name of a man , or the character of a bishop . many have been the cheats of the like kind , and which ought very much to lessen the credit of those miracles that you pretend are wrought in your church : but i shall finish all with one so much the more to be considered , in that it was the happy occasion of undeceiving a very great person , and disposed him to receive that truth he afterwards embraced : and may it please god , that the recital i shall here make of it , may move those who are yet in captivity to these superstitions to deliver themselves from the like impositions . . prince christopher , of the family of the dukes of radzecil , a prince much addicted to the superstitions of your church , having been in great piety at rome to kiss his holiness's feet ; the pope at his departure presented him with a box of reliques , which at his return soon became very famous in all that country . some months had hardly pass'd when certain monks came to him to acquaint him that there was a d. man possess'd of the devil , upon whom they had in vain try'd all their conjurations , and therefore they humbly intreated his highness that for his relief , he would be pleased to lend them his reliques which he had brought from rome . the prince readily complied with their desires , and the box was with great solemnity carried to the church , and being applied to the body of him that was possess'd , the devil presently went out with the grimaces and gestures usual on such occasions . all the beholders cry'd out , a miracle ! and the prince himself lifted up his hands and eyes to heaven , and blessed god who had favour'd him with such a holy and powerful treasure . it happen'd not long after that the prince relating what he had seen , and magnifying very much the virtue of his reliques : one of his gentlemen began to smile , and show by his actions how little credit he gave to it . at which the prince being moved , his servant ( after many promises of forgiveness ) ingenuously told him , that in their return from rome he had unhappily lost the box of reliques , but for fear of being exposed to his anger , had caused another to be made as like as might be to the true one , which he had filled with all the little bones , and other trinkets that he could meet with , and that this was the box that his monks made him believe did work such miracles . the prince the next morning sent for the fathers , and enquired of them if they knew of any demoniaque that had need of his reliques : they soon found one to act his part in this farce ; and the prince caused him to be exorcised in his presence . but when all they could do would not prevail , the devil kept his possession , he commanded the monks to withdraw , and delivered over the man to another kind of exorcists , some tartars that belonged to his stable , to be well lash'd till he should confess the cheat. the demoniaque thought to have carried it off by horrible gestures and grimaces , but the tartars understood none of those tricks , but by laying on their blows in good earnest quickly moved the devil , without the help of either hard names , holy water , or reliques , to confess the truth , and beg pardon of the prince . as soon as morning was come , the prince sent again for the monks ( who suspected nothing of what had pass'd ) and brings their man before them , who threw himself at the princes feet , and confess'd that he was not possess'd with the devil , nor ever had been in his life . the monks at first made light of it , and told the prince it was an artifice of the devil who spoke through the mouth of that man. but the prince calling for his tartars to exorcise another devil , the father of lies , out of them too , they began presently to relent , and confess'd the cheat , but told him they did it with a good intention to stop the course of heresy in that country . upon this he dismiss'd them , but from that time began seriously to apply himself to read the holy scriptures , telling them that he would no longer trust his salvation to men who defended their religion by such pious frauds , so they called them , but which were indeed diabolical inventions . and in a short time after , both himself and his whole house made open profession of the reformed religion . anno . and thus much be said in answer to your ivth article . finis . books lately printed for richard chiswell a discourse concerning the celebration of divine service in an unknown tongue . quarto . a papist not misrepresented by protestants . being a reply to the reflections upon the answer to [ a papist misrepresented and represented ] . quarto . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church ] . quarto . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england ; against the exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . o. a catechism explaining the doctrine and practices of the church of rome . with an answer thereunto . by a protestant of the church of england . o. a papist represented and not misrepresented : being an answer to the first , second , fifth and sixth sheets of the second part of the [ papist misrepresented and represented ] ; and for a further vindication of the catechism , quarto . the lay-christian's obligation to read the holy scriptures . quarto . the plain man's reply to the catholick missionaries . o. an answer to three papers lately printed , concerning the authority of the catholick church in matters of faith , and the reformation of the church of england . quarto . a vindication of the answer to three papers concerning the unity and authority of the catholick church , and the reformation of the church of england . o. mr. chillingworth's book , called [ the religion of protestants a safe way to salvation ] made more generally useful by omitting personal contests , but inserting whatsoever concerns the common cause of protestants , or defends the church of england , with an exact table of contents ; and an addition of some genuine pieces of mr. chillingworth's , never before printed , viz. against the infallibility of the roman church , transubstantiation , tradition , &c. and an account of what moved the author to turn papist , with his confutation of the said motives . an historical treatise written by an author of the communion of the church of rome , touching transubstantiation . wherein is made appear , that according to the principles of that church , this doctrine cannot be an article of faith. o. the protestant's companion : or an impartial survey , and comparison of the protestant religion as by law established , with the main doctrines of popery . wherein is shewed , that popery is contrary to scripture , primitive fathers and councils ; and that proved from holy writ , the writings of the ancient fathers for several hundred years , and the confession of the most learned papists themselves . o. a sermon preached upon st. peter's day : by a divine of the church of england . printed with some enlargements . the pillar and ground of truth . a treatise shewing that the roman church falsly claims to be that church , and the pillar of that truth mentioned by s. paul in his first epistle to timothy , chap. . vers. . o. the peoples right to read the holy scripture asserted , o. a short summary of the principal controversies between the church of england and the church of rome ; being a vindication of several protestant doctrines , in answer to a late pamphlet , intituled , [ protestancy destitute of scripture proofs . ] o. an answer to a late pamphlet , intituled , [ the judgment and doctrine of the clergy of the church of england concerning one special branch of the king's prerogative , viz. in dispensing with the penal laws . ] o. a discourse of the holy eucharist in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host ; in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford on this subject : to which is perfixed a large historical preface relating to the same argument . two discourses ; of purgatory , and prayers for the dead . the fifteen notes of the church , as laid down by cardinal bellarmin , examined and confuted . o. with a table of the contents . preparation for death : being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a dangerous distemper of which she died . by w. w. m. a. o. the difference between the church of england and the church of rome , in opposition to a late book , intituled , an agreement between the church of england and church of rome . a private prayer to be used in difficult times . a true account of a conference held about religion at london , sept. , , between a. pulton , jesuit , and tho. tenison , d. d. as also of that which led to it , and followed after it . o. the vindication of a. cressener , schoolmaster in long-acre , from the aspersions of a. pulton , jesuit , schoolmaster in the savoy ; together with some account of his discourse with mr. meredith . a discourse shewing that protestants are on the safer side , notwithstanding the uncharitable judgment of their adversaries ; and that their religion is the surest way to heaven . o. six conferences concerning the encharist , wherein is shewed , that the doctrine of transubstantiation overthrows the proofs of christian religion . a discourse concerning the pretended sacrament of extreme unction ; with an account of the occasions and beginnings of it in the western church . in three parts . with a letter to the vindicator of the bishop of condom . the pamphlet entituled , speculum ecclesiasticum , or an ecclesiastical prospective-glass , considered , in its false reasonings and quotations . there are added , by way of preface , two further answers , the first , to the defender of the speculum ; the second to the half-sheet against the six conferences . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of mons. de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the first part . in which the account that has been given of the bishop of meaux's exposition , is fully vindicated ; the distinction of old and new popery historically asserted ; and the doctrine of the church of rome , in point of image-worship , more particularly considered . o. the incurable scepticism of the church of rome . by the author of the [ six conferences concerning the eucharist . ] o. mr. pulton considered in his sincerity , reasonings , authorities : or a just answer to what he hath hitherto published in his true account ; his true and full account of a conference , &c. his remarks ; and in them his pretended confutation of what he calls dr. t 's rule of faith. by tho. tenison , d. d. a full view of the doctrines and practices of the antient church relating to the eucharist , wholly different from those of the present roman church , and inconsistent with the belief of transubstantiation . being a sufficient confutation of consensus veterum , nubes testium , and other late collections of the fathers pretending to the contrary . o. an answer to the representer's reflections upon the state and view of the controversy ; with a reply to the vindicator's full answer , shewing that the vindicator has utterly ruin'd the new design of expounding and representing popery . imprimatur . ex aed . lamb. feb. . . guil. needham rr mo in christo p. ac d. d. wilhelmo archiep. cant. à sacris domest . a collection of several discourses against popery . by william wake , preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . london : printed for ric. chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxviii . a table of the discourses contained in this collection . i. an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , &c. in answer to the bishop of meaux . ii. a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of monsr . de meaux and his vindicator . iii. a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsr . de meaux and his vindicator . part i. part ii. part iii. iv. a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and of the adoration of the host . v. an historical account of the doctrine of the real presence profess'd in the church of england , &c. vi. two discourses of purgatory , and prayers for the dead . vii . a discourse of the nature of idolatry , in answer to the bishop of oxon's reasons for abrogating the test . viii . the present state of the controversy between the church of england , and the church of rome . ix . a continuation of the present state of the controversy , &c. other treatises written by the same author . x. a sermon on the xxxth of january , preach'd at paris , anno / xi . preparation for death : being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a dangerous distemper of which she died . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence and the adoration of the host. in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford on this subject . to which is prefixed a large historical preface relating to the same argument . london , printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown in s. paul's church-yard . mdclxxxvii . the preface . the nature of the holy eucharist is a subject that hath been both so frequently insisted upon , and so fully explain'd in our own and other languages , that it may well be thought a very needless undertaking for any one to trouble the world with any farther reflections upon it . for not to mention now those eminent men who have heretofore labour'd in this work , nor to run beyond the points that are here designed to be examined ; what can be said more evidently to shew the impossibility of the pretended substantial change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of christ in this holy sacrament , than has been done in the late excellent discourse against transubstantiation ? it is but a very little time since the adoration of the host has been shewn not only to be a novel invention , contrary to the practice of all antiquity , but the danger of it evidently demonstrated , notwithstanding whatever pretences can be made of a good intention to excuse them from the charge and danger of idolatry , who continue the practice of it . and both these not only still remain unanswer'd ; but if we may be allow'd to judge either by their own strength , or by our adversaries silence , are truly and indeed unanswerable . it is not therefore out of any the least opinion that any thing more need be said to confirm our cause , much less that i esteem my self able to undertake it with the same success that those other champions of our faith have done it , that i venture these discourses to a publick view . but since our adversaries still continue , without taking notice of any of these things , to cry up their great diana no less than if she had never at all been shewn to be but an idol , i thought it might not be amiss to revive our instances against it : and that we ought not to appear less sollicitous by a frequent repetition of our reasons , to keep men in the truth , than others are by a continual insisting upon their so often baffled sophistry , to lead them into error . 't was an ingenious apology that seneca once made , for his often repeating the same things ; that he did but inculcate over and over the same counsels , to those that over and over committed the same faults : and i remember an antient father has left it as his opinion , that it was useful for the same truths to be vindicated by many , because that one man's writings might possibly chance to come where the others did not ; and what was less fully or clearly explain'd by one , might be supplied and enlarged by the other . and a greater than either of these , s. paul , has at once left us both an example and a warrant for this sollicitude ; phil. . . to write the same things to you , to me ( says he ) is not grievous , but for you it is safe . indeed i think if there be any need of an excuse for this undertaking , it ought to be rather to apologize for a far greater absurdity which we all commit in writing at all against those men , who in these disputes concerning the holy sacrament , have most evidently shewn that to be true of christians , which was once said of the antient philosophers , that there can be nothing so absurd which some men will not adventure to maintain . in most of our other controversies with those of the church of rome , we shew them to be erroneous ; in this they are extravagant ; and as an eminent pen has very justly express'd it , the business of transubstantiation is not a controversie of scripture against scripture , or of reason against reason , but of downright impudence against the plain meaning of scripture , and all the sense and reason of mankind . the truth is , as the same person goes on , it is a most self-evident falshood : and there is no doctrine or proposition in the world that is of it self more evidently true , than transubstantiation is evidently false . and if such things as these must be disputed , and this evidence , that what we see and handle , and taste to be bread is bread , and not the body of a man ; and what we see and taste to be wine is wine , and not blood , may not pass for sufficient without any farther proof , i cannot discern why any man that hath but confidence enough to do so , may not deny any thing to be what all the world sees it is , or affirm it to be what all the world sees it is not , and this without all possibility of being further confuted . but yet since it has pleased god so far to give over some men to a spirit of delusion , as not only seriously to believe this themselves , but also vashly to damn all those that cannot believe it with them , we ought as well for the security of those who have not yet abandoned their own sense and reason , in compliance only with others who in this matter profess to have laid aside theirs ; as in charity to such deluded persons as are unhappily led away with these errors , to shew them their unreasonableness : to convince them that christianity is a wise and rational religion : that 't is a mistaken piety to suppose that men ought to believe contradictions ; or that their faith is ever the more perfect , because the object of it is impossible : that our senses ought to be trusted in judging aright of their proper object ; that to deny this is to overthrow the greatest external evidence we have for our religion , which is founded upon their judgment ; or if that will be more considerable , is to take away all the grounds that even themselves can pretend to , wherefore they should disbelieve them in favour of transubstantiation . and this i perswade my self i have in the following discourse sufficiently shewn , and i shall not need to repeat it again here . for the words themselves , which are the grounds of this great error , i have taken that method which seemed to me the most proper to find out the true meaning of them ; and , as far as the nature of the enquiry would permit , have endeavour'd to render it plain and intelligible even to the meanest capacity . and i have some cause to hope that the most learned will not be dissatisfied with the design , what ever they may be with the performance ; it being from such that i have taken the greatest part of my reflections , and in which i pretend to little of my own besides the care of putting together here , what i had observed scattered up and down in parts elsewhere . it was so much the more fit at this time to insist upon this manner of arguing , in that a late disturber of the fathers , the better to shew the antiquity of his new religion , has pretended to search no less than into the secrets of the jewish cabala after it , and to have found out transubstantiation there amongst the rest of the rabbinical follies : now however the very name of galatinus be sufficient to learned men to make them esteem his judgment in his jewish to be much the same as in his christian antiquity which follows after , in those eminent pieces of s. peter ' s and s. matthew ' s liturgies , s. andrew ' s work of the passion of our lord ; dionysius ' s ecclesiast . hierarch . &c. yet because such stuff as this may serve to amuse those who are not acquainted with the emptiness of it , i was so much the rather inclined to shew what the true notions of the jewish rites would furnish us with to overthrow their pretences ; and that the rabbins visions are of as little moment to confirm this conceit as their own miracles . but whatever those of the other communion shall please to judge of my arguments , yet at least the opinions of those eminent men of their own church may certainly deserve to be consider'd by them , who have freely declared that there is not in scripture any evident proof of transubstantiation ; nay some of whom have thought so little engagement upon them either from that or any other authority to believe it , that they have lived and died in their church without ever embracing of it . and of this the late author of the * * * historical treatise of transubstantiation , and which is just now set forth in our own language , may be an eminent instance , being a person at this day living in the communion of the church of rome , and in no little esteem among all that know him. it is not fit to give any more particular character of him at this time . they who shall please to peruse his book , will find enough in it to speak in his advantage ; and if they have but any tolerable disposition to receive the truth , will clearly see , that this point of transubstantiation was the production of a blind and barbarous age ; unknown in the church for above one thousand years , and never own'd by the greatest men in any ages since . the truth is , if we enquire precisely into this business of transubstantiation , we shall find the first foundation of it laid in a clayster by an unwary monk about the beginning of the th century : carried on by a cabal of men , assembled under the name of a a a a general council to introduce the worship of images into the church , ann. . b b b formed into a better shape by another c c c monk ann. . and he too opposed by almost all the learned men of his age ; and at last confirmed by a d d d pope of whom their own authors have left us but a very indifferent e e e character ; and in a f f f synod of which i shall observe only this , that it gave the pope the power of unmaking kings , as well as the priests that of making their god. but indeed i think we ought not to charge the council with either of these attempts ; since , contrary to the manner of proceeding in such assemblies , received in all ages , nothing was either judged or debated by the synod : † † † the pope only himself formed the articles , digested them into canons , and so read them to the fathers ; some of which , their own historian tells us , approved them , others did not , but however all were forced to be contented with them . such was the first rise of this new doctrine ; years after christ. but still the most learned men of that and the following ages doubted not to dissent from it . a a a aquinas who wrote about years after this definition , speaks of some , who thought the substantial form of the bread still to remain after consecration : b b b durandus doubted not to assert the continuance of the matter of the elements , whatever became of the form ; and that 't was c c c rashness to say that christ's body could be there no otherwise than by transubstantiation : to which d d d scotus also subscribed , that the truth of the eucharist might be saved without transubstantiation , e e e and that in plain terms ours was the easier , and to all appearance the truer interpretation of christ's words ; in which f f f ockam and * * * d'alliaco concurr'd with him . g g g fisher confess'd that there was nothing to prove the true presence of christ's body and blood in their mass : a a a ferus would not have it inquired into , how christ's body is there ; and b b b tonstall thought it were better to leave men to their liberty of belief in it . those who in respect to their churches definition did accept it , yet freely declared that c c c before this council it was no matter of faith , nor but for its decision would have been now ; that the ancients did not believe it ; that the scripture does not express it ; in short , that the interpretation which we give is altogether as agreeable to the words of christ , and in truth free from infinite inconveniences with which the other abounds . all which plainly enough shews that not only the late private heretical spirit , whose imperious sentiments , and private glosses , and contradictory interpretations ( as a late * * * author has elegantly expressed it ) like the victorious rabble of the fishermen of naples riding in triumph , and trampling under foot ecclesiastical traditions , decrees , and constitutions , ancient fathers , ancient liturgies , the whole church of christ , but especially those words of his , this is my body , has opposed this doctrine ; but even those who are to be supposed to have had the greatest reverence for all these , their own masters and doctors , found it difficult to embrace so absurd and contradictory a belief . and here then let me beseech those into whose hands these papers may chance to fall , seriously to consider this matter , and whether the sole authority of such a pope as innocent iii , whose actions towards one of our own kings , and in favour of that very ill man dominick and his inquisition , were there nothing else remaining of his life , might be sufficient to render him detestable to all good men , ought to be of so great an authority with us , as to engage us to give up our senses and our reason ; nay and even scripture and antiquity it self , in obedience to his arbitrary and unwarrantable definition . it is i suppose sufficiently evident from what has been before observed , how little assurance their own authors had , for all the definition of the council of lateran , of this doctrine . i shall not need to say what debates arose among the divines of the council of trent about it . and though since its determination there , men have not dared so openly to speak their minds concerning it as before , yet we are not to imagine that they are therefore ever the more convinced of its truth . i will not deny but that very great numbers in the roman communion , by a profound ignorance and a blind obedience , the two great gospel perfections with some men , disposed to swallow any thing that the church shall think fit to require of them , may sincerely profess the belief of this doctrine ; because they have either never at all considered it , or it may be are not capable of comprehending the impossibility of it . nor shall i be so uncharitable as to suppose that all , even of the learned amongst them , do wilfully profess and act in this matter , against what they believe and know to be true . i will rather perswade my self that some motives or prejudices which i am not able to comprehend , do really blind their eyes , and make them stumble in the brightness of a mid-day light . but yet that all those , who nevertheless continue to live in the external communion of the church of rome , are not thus sincere in the belief of it , is what i think i may with out uncharitableness affirm ; and because it will be a matter of great importance to make this appear , especially to those of that perswasion ; i will beg leave to offer such proofs of it as have come to my knowledge , in some of the most eminent persons of these last ages , and to which i doubt not but others , better acquainted with these secrets than i can pretend to be , might be able to add many more examples . and the first that i shall mention is the famous † † † picherellus , of whom the testimonies prefix'd to his works speak so advantagiously , that i shall not need say any thing of the esteem which the learned world had of him . * * * i must transcribe his whole treatise should i insist on all he has delivered repugnant to their doctrine of transubstantiation . suffice it to observe that in his exposition of the words of institution , this is my body , he gives this plain interpretation of them , this bread is my body which is both freely allowed by the papists themselves to be inconsistent with their belief as to this matter ; and which he largely shews not only to be his own , but to have been the constant doctrine of the primitive fathers in this point . but in this it may be there is not so much ground for our admiration , that one who was not very fond of any of the errors of that church , should openly dissent from her in this : it will more be wondred that a person so eminent amongst them as cardinal du perron , and that has written so much in defence of transubstantiation , should nevertheless all the while himself believe nothing of it . and yet this we are assured he freely confess'd to some of his friends not long before hisdeath : that he thought the doctrine to be monstrous ; that he had done his endeavour to colour it over the best he could in his books ; but that in short he had undertaken an ill cause , and which was not to be maintain'd . but i will set down the relation as i find it in monsieur drelincourt ' s * * * answer to the landgrave of hesse ; and who would not have presum'd to have offer'd a relation so considerable , and to a person of such quality , had he at all fear'd that he could have been disproved in it . † † † your highness ( says he ) may believe me if you please : but i can assure you with all sincerity and truth that if the late cardinal du perron has convinced you of the truth of transubstantiation , he has convinced you of that of which he could never convince himself , nor did he ever believe it . for i have been informed by certain persons of honour , and that are in all respects worthy of belief , and who had it from those that were eye witnesses ; that some friends of that illustrious and learned cardinal who went to see him as he lay languishing upon his bed , and ill of that distemper of which he died , desired him to tell them freely , what he thought of transubstantiation : to whom he answer'd , that 't was a monster . and when they farther ask'd him , how then he had written so copiously and learnedly about it ? he replied , that he had done the utmost that his wit and parts hadenabled him , to colour over this abuse and render it plausible ; but that he had done like those who employ all their force to defend an ill cause . and thus far monsieur drelincourt . i could to this add some farther circumstances which i have learnt of this matter , but what is here said may suffice to shew what the real opinion of this great cardinal , after all his voluminous writings , as to this doctrine was ; unless some future obligations shall perhaps engage me to enter on a more particular account of it . to these two great instances of another nation i will beg leave to subjoyn a third of our own country : father barnes the benedictine , who in his pacific discourse of most of the points in controversie between us and the papists , expresly declares , that the assertion of transubstantiation , or of the substantial change of the bread , though it be indeed the more common opinion , is yet no part of the churches faith : and that the scripture and fathers , when they speak of a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 may be sufficiently expounded of that admirable and supernatural change of the bread , by the presence of christ's body added to it , without the departure of the substance of the bread it self . it appears by these words how little this monk thought transubstantiation an article of faith. but a greater than he , and who not only did not esteem it necessary for others , to receive it , but clearly shews that he did not believe it himself , is the illustrious monsieut de marca , late archbishop of paris , and well known to the world for his great learning and eminence . his treatise of the eucharist was publish'd with authority , by one of his near relations the abbé faget at paris . with some other little tracks which he had received from the archbishops own hands . in the close of that treatise he thus delivers his opinion : † † † the species of the bread is in its essence and nature distinct from the body of christ adjoyn'd to it , although the reason of the eucharist requires that the inward substance of the bread should be converted into that body after a manner that exceeds all imagination . but yet this change hinders not but that the bread which is seen still retains its own nature , being , and essence , or substance , together with the proprieties of its true nature , among which one is the faculty of nourishing our bodies , &c. whence it follows that it was rightly observ'd by gelasius , that the sacrament of the body and blood of christ was a divine thing , because the bread and wine being perfected by the holy spirit pass into the divine substance , viz. the spiritual body of christ ; but on the other side , that the substance and nature of the bread and wine do not cease to be , but continue still in the propriety of their own nature . and here i suppose any one who reads this passage alone of this treatise might without the help of * * * monsieur baluze's animadversion easily have concluded , that if this be indeed the work of monsieur de marca , 't will be impossible to hinder him from passing with many persons for a heretick as to the point of the eucharist . but before i quit this instance , i cannot but observe with reference to this treatise , what care the romanists take to hinder the sentiments of learned men in this point from coming to a publick knowledge : and which might give us some cause to suspect , that their great concern is not so much whether they do indeed believe transubstantiation themselves , as not to let the world know that they do not . this has been heretofore shewn in another treatise with reference to s. chrysostom ; whose * * * epistle to caesarius some of the sorbonne doctors caused most shamefully to be out out of monsieur bigot's edition of palladius , because it too plainly spoke the doctrine of the protestants as to this point . and the same has almost happened to this treatise of monsieur de marca here mentioned : † † † before it came to a publick sight , the passages that seemed most visibly to oppose their doctrine , were either changed or suppress'd ; * * * ( of which the passage before cited is one ) as appears by the paris edition now extant of them . but † † † the providence of god that brought to light the other , has discover'd this cheat too ; for before the alarm was given , and that the chancellor , a a a the sorbonne doctors , but especially monsieur baluze by his letters to the president de marca , the archbishop's son , upon this occasion , had awakened the abbé faget to consider more nearly what he had done ; b b b several presents had been made of the intire work as it was in the authors ms. ; and , if we may credit their own relations , the printer who was a protestant and the same that printed c c c monsieur claude's books against the perpetuire , had obliged that learned person with a copy ; by which means both the genuine sentiments of monsieur de marca in opposition to transubstantiation are preserved , and their fraudulent endeavours to suppress his opinion discovered . to this eminent person i will beg leave to subjoyn a fifth , and he too no less known to the world both for his learning and reputation , nor less a heretick in this point , however not hitherto so openly discovered as the other : and that is father sirmond the jesuit . in his life of paschasius radbertus , he tells us , that this monk was the first who explained the genuine sense of the catholick church in this mystery : and indeed if what * * * blondel and some others have observed concerning him be true , that it was for impanation , not transubstantiation ; the jesuit perhaps spoke his real judgment of him , though not in that sense that he is usually understood to have done it . but however that be , certain it is that this learned father so little believed the doctrine of the present roman church as to this point , that he freely confess'd he thought it had herein departed from the antient faith ; and at the desire of one of his friends wrote a short treatise to confirm his assertion . this though it be not yet made publick , is neverthess in the hands of several persons of undoubted integrity : i will mention only one , whose learning and worth are sufficiently known to the world , viz. monsieur bigot : who discoursing with father raynauld at lyons about this matter , the jesuit confess'd to him that it was true , that he had himself a copy of his treatise which he would communicate to him , and that it was father sirmond whom upon this account he reflected upon in his book , de bonis & malis libris , where he observes , that men of great parts love to innovate , and invent always somewhat of their own in difficult matters . when monsieur bigot return'd to claim the performance of his promise , the jesuit excused himself to him that he could not light upon it ; which when he afterwards told to father chiflet another jesuit of dijonois , he again confirmed to him the truth of the relation , and voluntarily offer'd him a copy of the treatise , which he told him was transcribed from father sirmonds original . this monsieur bigot has not only acknowledged to some of his friends of my acquaintance , but promised to communicate to them the very treatise ; and i dare appeal to the candor of that worthy person for the truth of what i have here related , and whose name i should not have mentioned , but only to remove all reasonable cause of suspicion in a matter of such importance . and what i have now said of father sirmond , i might as truly affirm of a fourth person of as great a name , a doctor of the sorbonne , whose treatise against transubstantiation has been seen by several persons , and is still read in the ms. but because i am not at liberty to make use of their names , i shall not any further insist upon this example . my next instance will be more undeniable , and it is of the ingenious monsieur de marolles abbot of ville-loyn , well known in france for his excellent writings and great abilities . a little before his death , which happen'd about the beginning of the year . being desirous to free his conscience as to the point of the holy eucharist , in which he supposed their church to have many ways departed from the right faith , he caused a paper to be printed , in which he declares his thoughts concerning it ; and sent it to several of his most learned acquaintance , the better to undeceive them in this matter . one of these persons , to whom this present was made , having been pleased to communicate to me the very paper which by the abbot ' s order was brought to him , it may not perhaps be amiss to gratifie the reader ' s curiosity , if i here insert it at its full length . * * * permission hoped for to speak freely for the truth . i cannot but exceedingly wonder that a certain preacher , who reads the holy scriptures , and will maintain nothing but by their authority , should nevertheless undertake to defend against all opposers by the scriptures , the real presence in the eucharist out of the act of receiving ; and think himself so sure to overcome in this occasion , as to talk of it as a thing certain , and in which he knows he cannot be resisted . it would certainly be more safe not to be too much prepossessed with anything . i will not name the person , because i have no mind to displease him , but in the mean time , neither sense , nor reason , nor the word of god have suggested to him one word of it ; unless the apostle was mistaken when he said , if ye are risen with christ , seek those things that are above , where christ is sate at the right hand of god. set your affection on things above and not on things upon the earth . coloss. . , . for how could he speak after this manner , if jesus christ be still upon earth by his real presence under the species in the eucharist ? when he ascended into heaven , he said not to his disciples which saw his wonderful ascension ; i shall be with you always by my real presence under the species of the eucharist , which shall be publickly exposed to you . in his sermon at the supper which he had just now celebrated , and which immediately preceded his passion , jesus christ according to s. john says expresly to his apostles , that he was about to leave them , that he should not be long absent , that he would send to them the comforter ; but not one word of his real presence in the eucharist , which he had so lately instituted under the bread and wine , to be a mystery of our faith for the nourishment of the soul to life eternal , as ordinary bread and wine are for the nourishment of the body to a temporal life , and that too for all the faithful , as is clearly signified by those words , drink ye all of this . whereupon i have elsewhere remark'd the custom of libations which were in use time out of mind throughout the whole roman empire , and which custom was establish'd in honour of the gods : as may be seen in the version of athenaeus in ; and as i had observed long before upon virgil and horace , though there was but little notice taken of it . which makes me think it very probable , that our saviour intended to sanctifie this profane custom , as he did some others , which i have remarked in the same place . when men undertake to prove too much , they very often prove nothing at all : to maintain that jesus christ is intire in the eucharist with all his bodily extension , and all his dignity , so as he is in heaven ; so that under the roundness of the bread there is nothing that is round ; under the whiteness there is nothing white ; this is what the scripture has not said one word of , they are indeed meer visions , and which are not so easie to maintain as men may think . the priest who celebrates breaks the host in three pieces ; one of these he puts into the cup , of the two others he communicates , in memory as 't is plain of what we read , that jesus the night in which he was betray'd took bread , and when he had given thanks he brake it , and said , take , eat , this is my body which is broken for you , do this in remembrance of me. cor. . , . in the mass there is here no more bread , they are only the appearances of bread , that is to say , the accidents , and which are not tied to any substance . and yet so long as there is but one atom of those accidents which they call eucharistical species in the consecration that has been made , the true flesh of the lord jesus is so annex'd to them , that it remains there whole and intire , without the least confusion , and may be so in diverse places at the same time . i doubt not but those who teach us this doctrine have thought of it more than once ; but have they well consider'd it ? for there is not one word of it in all the sacred writings . is it nothing that jesus christ said to his apostles but a little while before his passion , when he was now about to celebrate his holy supper with them , you shall have the poor always with you , but me ye shall not have always , matth. . . his real presence in the eucharist , out of the act of communicating , not excepted ? they say to the people , behold your creator that made heaven and earth : and the people seeing the consecrated bread in the ciboire wherein 't is carry'd abroad , says , behold the good god going in procession to confound the hereticks : and according to their natural inclination , they adore with all their hearts they know not what , because so they have been instructed ; and the better to maintain their prejudice intire in this matter , they become mad : but alas ! they know not what they do , and we ought to pity their excess . on the other side , who can tell whether the priest has consecrated , or indeed whether he be capable of consecrating ? is it a point of faith to believe , that among so many priests , not one of them is a cheat and an impostor ? this certainly cannot be of faith ; and if this be not , neither is that which exposed with so much pomp , to carry the true body of the lord through the streets , of faith. thus the belief is at best but conjecture ; and then whatsoever in such cases is not of faith is sin , according to the apostle , rom. . . i know not what colour can be sufficient to excuse so strong an objection , unless men will absolutely resist the holy scripture , and right reason founded upon it . 't is further said , that jesus christ is in many places at the same time , in the hosts which are carried in very different manners ; but neither for this is there any text of scripture . you will say , this may be ; i answer , the question here is not of the infinite power of jesus christ , but of his will , and which we must obey when it is known to us ; and of this as to the present point we read nothing in the holy scripture . the shorter way then would be to say , that the sacrament of one parish is not the same with that of another , although both the one and the other concur in the same design to worship god ; as the paschal lamb of one family , was not the lamb of another , although both the one and the other were to accomplish the same mystery . thus for instance , on corpus christi-day , the sacrament of s. germain d' auxerrois , where the perpetual vicar consecrates the host , and monsieur the dean , the first curé , carrys it the procession under a rich canopy crown'd with flowers , this host is not the same with that of s. paul's which is carried after another manner , viz. the image of that apostle made of silver gilt , falling from his horse at his conversion , under the sacrament of jesus christ hung up in rays of gold , and carried under the covering of another stately canopy ; and so of all the other churches . as for the stories of several hosts that have been stabb'd with penknives , and have bled , they serve only to bring in some superstition contrary to the word of god , which never pretended that there was material blood in the consecrated bread , because it is the body of jesus christ in a mystery of faith. for what is said of an infant that was seen in the stead of the host , and of the figure of christ sitting upon a sepulchre instead of the same host , are meer fables suggested by the father of lies . it is further reported of certain robbers that carrying away the vessel in which the host is kept , they have thrown the host it self upon the ground , and trampled it under foot , sometimes have cast it into nasty places , without any fear that it should avenge it self ; this is a most horrible thought , and of which we ought not to open our mouths , but only to detest so dreadful a profanation . the same must be said of those hosts which have been cast up , as soon as received , whether by sick persons , or sometimes by debauched priests , disordered with the last nights intemperance ; both which have sometimes happened , not to say any thing of those other terrible inconveniences , remark'd in the cautions concerning the mass. all which shew that men have carry'd things too far , without any warrant from the word of god. it is not therefore so easie , as some imagine , to maintain the doctrine of the real presence out of the use , against the opinions of any opposer . in the mean time the truth is terribly obscured , and few give themselves the trouble to clear it . on the contrary it seems that among the many writers of the age , there are some who make it their whole business to hide it , and to keep themselves from finding it out , as if they desired never to be wiser than they are . the vanity of lying flatters them but too much in all the humane passions which sway them . there are nevertheless some faithful disciples , and apostolick souls who are exempted , to obey god by his grace , and to give glory to his name . it was not long before his departure that david said , every man is a lyar : psal. . . and s. paul to the romans . . to show that god only is true , adds immediately after from psalm * * * . . thou mightest be justified when thou speakest , and be clear when thou judgest . such was the opinion of monsieur de marolles as to this point : i should too much trespass upon the reader 's patience to insist thus particularly upon others of lesser note . the author of the late historical treatise of transubstantiation , has fully shewn not only his own opinion , but the tradition of all the ages of the church against it : and though i dare not say the same of whoever he was that set forth the † † † moyens surs & honnestes , &c. that he did not believe transubstantiation himself , yet this is clear , that he did not desire any one should be forced to believe it ; or indeed be encouraged to search too nicely into the manner how christ is present and eaten in the holy sacrament . whether monsieur de meaux believes this doctrine or not , his authority is become of so little importance , that i do not think it worth the while to examine . yet the first french * * * answer to his exposition observes , that in the suppress'd edition of it he had not at all mentioned that the bread and wine are turned into the body and blood of christ those words in the close of that paragraph which we now read , viz. that the bread and the wine are changed into the proper body , and proper blood of jesus christ , and that this is that which is called transubstantiation , being put in † † † for the greater neatness of the discourse and stile , since . but now for his vindicator , 't is evident , if he understands his own meaning , that he is not very well instructed about it . * * * it is manifest , says he , that our dispute with protestants is not about the manner , how jesus christ is present , but only about the thing it self , whether the body and blood of jesus christ be truly , really , and substantially present after the words of consecration , under the species or appearance of bread and wine , the substance of bread and wine being not so present . in which words , if his meaning be to exclude totally the manner , how jesus christ becomes present in the eucharist , as his expression is , from being a matter of faith , it might well have been ranged amongst the rest of their new popery . but if he designs not to exclude the manner of christ's presence , but only the mode of the conversion , as he seems by some other of his words to insinuate , viz. whether it be by adduction , &c. from being a matter of faith , he ought not then to have deny'd the manner of christ's presence in the eucharist , which their church has absolutely defined to be by that wonderful and singular conversion so aptly called transubstantiation ; but more precisely to have explain'd his school-nicety and which is altogether as unintelligible , as the mystery which 't is brought to explain . i might to the particulars hitherto mentioned , add the whole sect of their new philosophers , who following the hypothesis of their master des-cartes , that accidents are nothing else but the modes of matter , must here either renounce his doctrine or their churches belief . but i shall close these remarks , which have already run to a greater length than i designed , with one instance more , from a prelate of our own church , but yet whos 's truly christian sincerity will i am perswaded justifie him even to those of the roman communion : and it is the learned archbishop usher , who having been so happy as to convert several roman priests from their errors , and inquiring diligently of them , what they who said mass every day , and were not obliged to confess venial sins , could have to trouble their confessors so continually withal ; ingenuously acknowledged to him , that the chiefest part of their constant confession was their infidelity as to the point of transubstantiation , and for which as was most fit , they mutually quitted and absolved one another . and now that is thus clear from so many instantes of the greatest men in the roman church , which this last age has produced ; and from whose discovery we may reasonably enough infer the like of many others that have not come to our knowledge , that several persons who have lived and enjoyed some of the greatest honours and dignities in that communion , have nevertheless been hereticks in this point ; may i beseech those who are still mis-led with this great error , to stop a while , and seriously examine with me two or three plain considerations , and in which i suppose they are not a little concerned . and the first is , of their own danger : but especially , upon their own principles . it is but a very little while since an ingenious person now living in the french church , the abbé petit publish'd a book which he calls a a a the truths of the christian religion proved and defended against the antient heresies by the truth of the eucharist : and what he means by this truth , he thus declares in his preface , viz. the change of b b b the bread into the body of the son of god , and of the wine into his blood. he there pretends that this doctrine however combatted by us now , was c c c yet more undoubted in the primitive church than either the divinity of christ and the holy ghost , or the certainty of our future resurrection . and this he wrote as the title tells us , d d d to confirm the new converts in the faith of the catholick church ; meaning according to their usual figure , the roman . how far this extravagant undertaking may serve to convince them i cannot tell ; this i know , that if we may credit those who have been that abbot ' s most intimate acquaintance , he believes but very little of it himself , unless he also be become in this point , a new convert . but now if what has before been said of so many eminent persons of their church be true , as after a due and diligent examination of every particular there set down , i must beg leave to profess i am fully perswaded that it is ; 't will need no long deduction to shew how dangerous an influence their unbelief must have had , in some of the chiefest instances of their constant worship . for . it is the doctrine of the e e e council of trent that to make a sacrament , the priest must have , if not an actual , yet at least a virtual intention of doing that which the church does : and in the f f f rubricks of their missal , the want of such an intention in the priest is one of the defects there set down as sufficient to hinder a consecration . now if this be true , as every roman catholick who acknowledges the authority of that synod must believe it to be ; 't is then evident that in all those masses which any of the persons i before named have said , there could have been no consecration : it being absurd to suppose that they who believed not transubstantiation , could have an intention to make any such change of the bread into the body of christ , which they thought it impossible to do . now if there were no consecration , but that the bread continued meer bread as it was before ; then secondly , all those who attended at their masses , and adored their hosts , pay'd the supream worship of god to a bare wafer , and no more . how far the modern plea of their good intention to adore christ in those sacred offices , may excuse them from having committed idolatry , it is not necessary i should here examine . they who desire a satisfaction in this matter , may please to recur to a late excellent treatise written purposely on this subject , and where they will find the weakness of this supposal sufficiently exposed . but since a a a many of their own greatest men confess that if any one by mistake should worship an unconsecrated host , taking it to have been consecrated , he would be guilty of idolatry ; and that such an error would not be sufficient to excuse him ; may they please to consider with what faith they can pay this divine adoration to that which all their senses tell them is but a bit of bread ; to the hinderance of whose conversion so many things may interpose , that were their doctrine otherwise as infallible , as we are certain it is false , it would yet be a hundred to one that there is no consecration : in a word ; how they can worship that which they can never be secure is changed into christ's body , nay when , as the examples i have before given shew , they have all the reason in the world to fear , whether even the priest himself who says the mass does indeed believe that he has any power , or by consequence can have any intention , to turn it into the flesh of christ. and the same consideration will shew , thirdly ; how little security their other plea of concomitance , which they so much insist upon , to shew the sufficiency of their communicating only in one kind , viz. that they receive the blood in the body , can give to the laity , to satisfie their consciences that they ever partake of that blessed sacrament as they ought to do . since whatever is pretended of christ's body , 't is certain there can be none of his blood in a meer wafer : and if by reason of the priest's infidelity , the host should be indeed nothing else , of which we have shewn they can never be sure ; neither can they ever know whether what they receive be upon their own principles , an intire communion . and then lastly , for the main thing of all , the sacrifice of the mass ; it is clear that if christ's body be not truly and properly there , it cannot be truly and properly offer'd ; nor any of those great benefits be derived to them from a morsel of bread , which themselves declare can proceed only from the flesh and blood of their blessed lord. it is i know an easie matter for those who can believe transubstantiation , to believe also that there is no hazard in all these great and apparent dangers . but yet in matters of such moment men ought to desire to be well assured , and not exposed even to any possible defects . i do not now insist upon the common remarks , which yet are authorized by their own missal , and may give just grounds to their fears ; that if the wafer be not made of wheat but of some other corn , there is then no consecration : if it be mixed not with common , but distill'd water , it is doubtful whether it be consecrated . if the wine be sowre to such a certain degree , that then it becomes incapable of being changed into the blood of christ ; with many more of the like kind , and which render it always uncertain to them , whether there be any change made in the blessed elements or no ; * * * the relations i have given , are no● of counterfeit jews and moors , who to escape the danger of the inquisition have sometimes become priests , and administred all the sacraments for many years together , without ever having an intention to administer truly any one of them , and of which i could give an eminent instance in a certain jew now living ; who for many years was not only a priest , but a professor of divinity in spain , and all the while in reality a meer jew as he is now . the persons here mention'd were men of undoubted reputation , of great learning and singular esteem in their church ; and if these found the impossibilities of transubstantiation so much greater than either the pretended authority or infallibility of their church ; certainly they may have just cause to fear , whether many others of their priests do not live in the same infidelity in which these have died , and so expose them to all the hazards now mentioned , and which are undeniably the consequences of such their unbelief . but these are not the only dangers i would desire those of that communion to reflect on upon this occasion . another there is , and of greater consequence than any i have hitherto mentioned , and which may perhaps extend not only to this holy eucharist , but it may be to the invalidating of most of their other sacraments . * * * it is the doctrine of the roman church that to the validity of every sacrament , and therefore of that of orders as well as the rest three things must concur , a due matter , a right form , and the person of the minister conferring the sacrament , with an intention of doing what the church does . where either of these is wanting , the sacrament is not performed . if therefore the bishop in conferring the holy order of priesthood has not an intention of doing what the church does , 't is plain that the person to be ordained receives no priestly character of him ; nor by consequence has any power of consecrating the holy eucharist , or of being hereafter advanced to a higher degree . now the form of conferring the order of priesthood they determine to be this ; † † † the bishop delivers the cup with some wine , and the paten with bread into the hands of the person whom he ordains , saying , receive the power of offering a sacrifice in the church for the living and the dead , in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost . by which ceremony and words , their catechism tells us , he is constituted an interpreter and mediator between god and man ; which is to be esteemed the chiefest function of a priest. so that then the intention necessary to the conferring the order of priesthood is this ; to give a power to consecrate , i. e. to transubstantiate the host into christ's body , and so offer it as a sacrifice for the living and the dead . if therefore any of their bishops , for instance cardinal du perron , or monsieur de marca , did not believe that either the church or themselves as bishops of it , had any authority to confer any such power , they could not certainly have any intention of doing in this case what the church intends to do . having no such intention , the persons whom they pretended to ordain were no priests . being no priests they had no power to consecrate . all the hosts therefore which were either offered or taken , or worshipped in any of the masses celebrated by those priests whom these two bishops ordained , were only meer bread , and not the body of christ ; and as many of them , as being afterwards advanced to a higher dignity , were consecrated bishops , received no episcopal character , because they were destitute of the priestly before . thus the danger still encreases : for by this means , the priests whom they also ordain are no priests ; and when any of them shall be promoted to a higher degree , are uncapable of being made bishops ; and so by the infidelity of these two men , there are at this day infinite numbers of priests and bishops , who say mass , and confer orders without any manner of power to do either ; and in a little time it may be there shall not be a true bishop or priest in the whole gallicane church . but , ii. a second consideration which i would beg leave to offer from the fore-going instances is this : what reliance we can make upon the pretended infallibility of their church ; when 't is thus plain that so many of the most learned men of their own communion did not only not believe it to be infallible , but supposed it to have actually erred , and that in those very doctrines that are at this day esteemed the most considerable points in difference between us. it is plain from what has been said in the foregoing reflection , that disbelieving transubstantiation , they must also have lookt upon all the other consequences of it , viz. the adoration of the host , the sacrifice of the mass , &c. as erroneous too . nom though it be not yet agreed among them , nor ever likely to be , where the supposed infallibility of their church is seated , yet since all manner of authority has conspired to establish these things ; popes have decreed them , councils defined them , and both popes and councils anathematized all those that shall presume to doubt of them ; 't is evident either these men did not believe the church to be infallible , as is pretended ; or they did not believe the roman , to be , according to the modern phrase , indeed the catholick church . iii. and upon the same grounds there will arise a third reflection , which they may please to make with us ; and that is , with what reason they can press us with the authority of their church in these matters ; when such eminent persons of their own communion , and who certainly were much more obliged to it than we can be thought to be , yet did not esteem it sufficient to enslave their belief . it is a reproach generally cast upon us , that we set up a private spirit in opposition to the wisdom and authority of the church of god : and think our selves better able to judge in matters of faith , than the most general council that was ever yet assembled . this is usually said , but is indeed a foul misrepresentation of our opinion . all we say is , that every man ought to act rationally in matters of religion , as well as in other concerns ; to employ his understanding with the utmost skill and diligence that he is able , to know god's will , and what it is that he requires of us . we do not set up our own judgments against the authority of the church ; but having both the holy oracles of god , and the definitions of men before us , we give to each their proper weight . and therefore if the one at any time contradicts the other , we resolve , as is most fitting , not that our own , but god's authority revealed to us in his word , is to be preferred . and he who without this examination servilely gives up himself to follow whatever is required of him ; he may be in the right , if his church or guide be so ; but according to this method shall never be able to give a reason of his faith ; nor if he chance to be born in a false religion , ever be in a capacity of being better instructed . for if we must be allowed nothing but to obey only , and not presume to enquire why ; he that is a jew must continue a jew still ; he that is a turk , a turk ; a protestant must always be a protestant : in short , in whatsoever profession any one now is , in that he must continue , whether true or false , if reason and examination must be excluded all place in matters of religion . * * * and indeed after all their clamours against us on this occasion , yet is this no more than what themselves require of us when 't is in order to their own advantage . is a proselyte to be made , they offer to him their arguments : they tell him a long story of their church ; the succession , visibility , and other notes of it . to what purpose is all this , if we are not to be judges , to examine their pretences whether these are sufficient marks of such a church as they suppose ; and if they are , whether they do indeed agree to theirs , and then upon a full conviction submit to them . now if this be their intention , 't is then clear , let them pretend what they will , that they think us both capable of judging in these matters , and that we ought to follow that , which all things considered we find to be most reasonable , which is all that we desire . and for this we have here the undoubted examples of those eminent persons of their own communion before named ; who notwithstanding the authority of their church , and the decision of so many councils esteemed by it as general , have yet both thought themselves at liberty to examine their decrees , and even to pass sentence too upon them , that they were erroneous in the points here mentioned . and therefore certainly we may modestly desire the same liberty which themselves take ; at least till we can be convinced , ( and that by such arguments as we shall be allow'd to judge of , ) that there is such an infallible guide whom we ought in all things to follow without further inquiry , and where we may find him , and when this is done i will for my part promise as freely to give up myself to his conduct , as i am till then , i think reasonably , resolved to follow what according to the best of my ability in proving all things , i shall find indeed to be good. iv. i might from the same principles , fourthly , argue the reasonableness of our reformation , at least in the opinion of those great men of whom we have hitherto been speaking : and who thinking it allow'd to them to dissent themselves from the received doctrine of their church , which they found to be erroneous , could not but in their consciences justifie us , who , as a national church , no way subjected to their authority , did the same ; and by the right which every such church has within it self , reformed those errors , which like the tares were sprung up with the good seed . this 't is evident they must have approved ; and for one of them , the abbot of ville-loyne , i have been assured by some of his intimate acquaintance , that he had always a particular respect for the church of england , and which others of their communion at this day esteem to be neither heretical nor schismatical . v. but i may not insist on these things , and will therefore finish this address with this only remonstrance to them ; that since it is thus evident , that for above years this doctrine was never establish'd in the church , nor till then , in the opinion of their own most learned men , any matter of faith ; since the greatest of their writers in the past ages have declared themselves so freely concerning it as we have seen above , and some of the most eminent of their communion in the present have ingenuously acknowledged that they could not believe it ; since 't is confess'd that the scripture does not require it ; sense and reason undoubtedly oppose it , and the primitive ages of the church , as one of their own authors has very lately shewn , received it not ; they will at least suffer all these things to dispose them to an indifferent examination , wherefore at last it is that they do believe this great error ? upon what authority they have given up their senses to delusion ; their reason to embrace contradictions ; the holy scripture and antiquity , to be submitted to the dictates of two assemblies , which many of themselves esteem to have been rather cabals than councils : and all to support a doctrine , the most injurious that can be to our saviour ' s honour ; destructive in its nature not only of the certainty of the christian religion , but of every thing else in the world ; which if transubstantiation be true , must be all but vision : for that cannot be true unless the senses of all mankind are deceived in judging of their proper objects , and if this be so , we can then be sure of nothing . these considerations , if they shall incline them to an impartial view of the following discourses , they may possibly find somewhat in them , to shew the reasonableness of our dissent from them in this matter . however they shall at least i hope engage those of our own communion to stand firm in that faith which is thus strongly supported with all sorts of arguments ; and convince them how dangerous it is for men to give up themselves to such prejudices , as neither sense nor reason , nor the word of god , nor the authority of the best and purest ages of the church , are able to overcome . a table of the principal matters contained in this treatise . preface . the occasion of this discourse . page i the method made use of for the explaining the nature of this holy eucharist . iv no proof of transubstantiation in holy scripture . v the rise and establishment of it . vi , vii several of their greatest men before the council of trent believed it not . vii , viii and many have even since continued to disbelieve it . x so , picherellus . x cardinal du perron . xi f. barnes . xii monsieur de marca . xiii f. sirmond . xv monsieur l — . xvii mons. de marolles . ib. others . xxiv , &c. consequences drawn from these examples : i. of the danger of the papists , especially upon their own principles . xxvii with reference to this sacrament : and therein to the . consecration . xxvii . adoration . ib. . communion in one kind . xxix . mass. xxx with reference to their entire priesthood . xxxi ii. against the infallibility of the roman church . xxxiii iii. against its authority . xxxiv iv. as to the reasonableness of our reformation . xxxvi v. that these things ought to dispose those of that communion to an impartial search into the grounds of their belief as to this matter . xxxvii part i. the introduction . of the nature of this holy sacrament in the general . pag. christ's design in the institution of it . that he establish'd it upon the ceremonies of the jewish pas●over . , , , the method from hence taken to explain the nature of it . , chap. i. of transubstantiation ; or the real presence established by the church of rome . what is the doctrine of the church of rome in this point . ib. — this shewn upon the principle before laid down , to be repugnant , . to the design and nature of this holy sacrament . . to the expression it self , this is my body . the papists themselves sensible of it . that the sixth of s. john does not at all favour them . — this doctrine shewn further to be repugnant , i. to the best and purest tradition of the church . ii. to the right reason . iii. to the common sense of all mankind . conclusion of this point , and transition to the next . chap. ii. of the real presence acknowledged by the church of england . the notion of the real presence falsly imputed , by a late author to our church . in answer to this four things proposed to be considered , i. what is the true notion of the real presence as acknowledged by the church of england . . ii. that this notion has been constantly maintained by our most learned and orthodox divines . — so those abroad ; calvin . — beza . — martyr , &c. — for our own divines ; consider the express words of the twenty ninth article , in k. edw. vi. time . — archbishop cranmer . — bishop ridley . — that the same continned to be the opinion of our divines after . shewn . from the history of the convocations proceeding as to this point in the beginning of q. eliz. reign . ib. . from the testimonies of our divines . — bp. jewell . — mr. hooker . — bp. andrews . — a. b. of spalatto . — bp. montague ib. — bp. taylour . — mr. torndyke . whose testimonies are cited at large : of . reformatio legum ecclesiasticarum . . bp. morton . . a. b. usher . . bp. cosens . . dr. jo. white . . dr. fr. white . . dr. jackson . . dr. hammond . whose authorities are refer'd to ; , iii. that the alterations which have been made in our rubrick , were not upon the account of our divines changing their opinions , as is vainly and falsly suggest●d . iv. that the reasons mentioned in our rubrick , concerning the impossibility of christ's natural body's existing in several places at the same time , is no way invalidated by any of this author's exceptions against it . . not by his first observation . ib. . nor by his second . . nor by his third . . nor by his fourth . the objection , of this opinion's , being downright zuinglianism ; answered . and the whole concluded . part ii. chap. iii of the adoration of the host as prescribed and practised in the church of rome . two things proposed to be considered ; i. what the doctrine of the church of england as to this point is . our authors exceptions against it , answered . ii. what is the doctrine of the church of rome ; and whether what this author has said in favour of it may be sufficient to warrant their practice as to this matter . their doctrine stated . ib. the defence of it , unsufficient : shewn in answer , . to his protestant concessions . . to his catholick assertions . first . second . third . ib. fourth . fifth . sixth . seventh . eighth . ib. . to the grounds he offers of their belief . the lutherans practice no apology for theirs . ground first . second . third . fourth . fifth . answer'd . some arguments proposed , upon their own principles , against this adoration . conclusion . errata . pag. xvii . l. . fourth r. sixth . p. xviii . l. . in r. on . p. xxii . l. . r. they are . p. xxiv . l. . r. that thou . p. . marg . hammond . l. . p. . p. . marg . casaubon . ib. l. . body is of christ. p. . l. . dele . which . p. . l. . then that . p. . l. . r. this holy. p. . l. . for then r. the. p. . l. . catholicâ . l. . asks . a few lesser faults there are , which the reader may please to correct . a discourse of the holy eucharist , with particular reference to the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host . introduction . of the nature of this holy sacrament in the general . to understand the true design of our blessed saviour , in the institution of this holy sacrament , we cannot , i suppose , take any better course than to consider first of all , what account the sacred writers have left us of the time and manner of the doing of it . now for this st. paul tells us , cor. . . that the lord jesus the same night in which he was betray'd ( having first eaten the passover according to the law , exod. . matt. xxvi . . ) took bread , and when he had given thanks he brake it , * * * and gave it to the disciples , and said , take , eat , this is my body which is broken for you , this do in remembrance of me. after the same manner also he took the cup when he had supp'd , saying , this cup is the new-testament in my blood : this do ye , as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me . such is the account which st. paul gives us of the original of this holy sacrament : nor do the evangelists dissent from it ; only that st. matthew with reference to the cup , adds , drink ye all of it , matt. xxvi . . to which st. mark subjoins a particular observation , and which ought not here to be pass'd by , that they all drank of it , mark xiv . . it is not to be doubted , but that the design of our blessed saviour in instituting this holy sacrament , was to abolish the jewish passover , and to establish the memory of another , and a much greater deliverance , than that of the first-born , now to be wrought for the whole world in his death . the bread which he brake , and the wine which he poured out , being such clear types of his body to be broken , his blood to be shed for the redemption of mankind , that it is impossible for us to doubt of the application . and as god almighty under the law , designed that other memorial of the paschal lamb , now changed into a so much better and more excellent remembrance , to continue as long as the law its self stood in force : so this blessed eucharist , establish'd by christ in the room of it must no doubt have been intended by him , to be continued in his church , as long as the covenant seal'd with that blood which it exhibits , stands : and therefore , that since that shall never be abolish'd ; 't is evident that this also will remain our duty , and be our perpetual obligation to the end of the world. this is the import of our saviours addition , do this in remembrance of me ; and is by st. paul more fully expressed in those words , which he immediately subjoyns to the history of the institution before recited , cor. xi . . for as often as ye eat this bread , and drink this cup , ye do shew , i. e. in the jewish phrase , set forth , commemorate the lords death till his coming . and that this holy sacrament now establish'd in the place of the jewish passover , might be both the better understood , and the easier received by them ; it is a thing much to be remarked for the right explaining of it , how exactly he accommodated all the notions and ideas of that ancient ceremony to this new institution . i. in that paschal supper , the master of the house took bread , and presenting it before them , instead of the usual benediction of the bread , he brake it , and gave it to them , saying , ‖ ‖ ‖ this is the bread of affliction which our fathers ate in egypt . in this sacred feast , our saviour in like manner takes bread , the very loaf , which the jews were wont to take for the ceremony before mentioned ; breaks it , and gives it to his disciples , saying , this is my body which is broken for you ; alluding thereby , not only to their ceremony in his action , but even to their very manner of speech in his expression , to the passover before them , which in their language they constantly called , * * * the body of the paschal lamb. ii. in that ancient feast , the master of the house in like manner after supper took the cup , and having given thanks , gave it to them , saying , † † † this is the fruit of the vine , and the blood of the grape . in this holy sacrament our blessed lord in the very same manner takes the cup , he blesses it , and gives it to his disciples saying , this cup is the new-testament in my blood ; his action being again the very same with theirs ; and for his expression , it is that which moses used , when he ratified the ancient covenant between god and the jews ; [ exod. xxiv . . compared with hebr. ix . ] saying , this is the blood of the testament . iii. in that ancient feast , after all this was finish'd , they were wont to sing a * * * hymn , the psalms yet extant , from the cxiii . to the cxix . thence called by them , the great hallelujah . in this holy supper , our saviour and his disciples are expresly recorded to have done the like , and very probably in the self-same words . [ see matt. xxvi . . mark xiv . . ] in a word , lastly , iv. that ancient passover the jews were commanded to keep in memory of their deliverance out of egypt . the bitter herbs were a * * * remembrance of the bitter servitude they underwent there , exod. i. . the red wine was a † † † memorial of the blood of the children of israel slain by pharaoh : and for this they were expresly commanded by moses , exod. xiii . . to * * * shew , i. e. to annunciate or tell forth to their children what the lord had done for them . and so in this holy sacrament , christ expresly institutes it for the same end , * * * do this , says he , in remembrance of me ; which st. paul thus explains , cor. xi . . for as often as ye eat this bread , and drink this cup , ye do ( or rather , do ye ) * * * shew ( the very word before used ) the lords death till his coming . so clear an allusion does every part of this sacrament bear to that ancient solemnity ; and we must be more blind than the jews themselves , not to see , that as that other sacrament of baptism was instituted by christ from the practise and custom of the ‖ ‖ ‖ jewish doctors , who received their proselytes by the like washing ; so was this holy eucharist establisht upon the analogy which we have seen to the paschal supper , whose place it supplies , and whose ceremonies it so exactly retains , that it seems only to have heightned the design , and changed the application to a more excellent remembrance . i know not how far it may be allow'd to confirm this analogie , that it was one of the most ancient traditions among the * * * jews of old , that the messiah should come and work out their deliverance , the very same night in which god had brought them out of egypt , the night of the paschal solemnity . but certainly considerable it is , that as god under the law , the same night in which he deliver'd them , instituted the passover to be a perpetual memorial of it throughout their generations ; so here our saviour instituted his communion not only in the same night in which he deliver'd us , but immediately after having eaten his last passover ; to shew us , that what that solemnity had hitherto been to the jews , this sacrament should from henceforth be to us ; and that we by this ceremony should commemorate ours , as they by that other had been commanded to do their deliverance . this the holy scriptures themselves direct us to , by so often calling our blessed saviour in express terms , the lamb of god , joh. i. . st. peter speaking of our redemption wrought by him , tells us , that it was not obtained by corruptible things , such as silver and gold , but by the precious blood of christ , as of a lamb without blemish , and without spot , pet. i. . and st. paul so clearly directs us to this allusion , that no possible doubt can remain of it ; christ , says he , our passover is sacrificed for us , therefore let us keep the feast , cor. . v. . and now after so many arguments for this application , as , being joined together , i think i might almost call a demonstration of it ; i suppose i may without scruple lay down this foundation both for the unfolding of the nature of this holy sacrament in the general , and for the examination of those two great points i am here to consider in particular , viz. that our saviour in this institution addressing himself to jews , and speaking in the direct form of the paschal phrases ; and in a ceremony which 't is thus evident he designed to introduce in the stead of that solemnity ; the best method we can take for explaining both the words and intent of this communion , will be to examine what such men to whom he spake must necessarily have conceived to be his meaning , but especially on an occasion wherein it neither became him to be obscure ; and the apostles silence , not one of them demanding any explication of his words , as at other times they were wont to do , clearly shewing that he was not difficult to be understood . this only postulate being granted , which i think i have so good reason to expect ; i shall now go on to examine by it , the first great point proposed to be consider'd , viz. of the real presence of christ in this holy sacrament , and that st . as established by the church of rome . dly . as acknowledged by the church of england . part i. chap. i. of transubstantiation , or the real presence establish'd by the church of rome . transubstantiation is defined by the * * * council of trent , to be a wonderful conversion of the whole substance of the bread , in this holy sacrament , into the whole substance of the body of christ , and of the whole substance of the wine into his blood ; the species or accidents only of the bread and wine remaining . for the better understanding of which wonderful conversion , because the church of rome , which is not very liberal in any of her instructions , has taken † † † particular care that this should not be too much explain'd to the people , as well knowing it to be a doctrine so absurd , that even their credulity could hardly be able to digest it ; it may not be amiss if , from the very words of their own catechism , we examine a little farther into it . now three things there are , which , they tell us , must be consider'd in it : i. * * * that the true body of christ our lord , the very same that was born of the virgin , and now sits in heaven at the right hand of the father , is contained in this sacrament . now by the true body , they mean not only his human body , and whatsoever belongs to it , as bones , sinews , &c. to be contain'd in this sacrament ; ‖ ‖ ‖ but the intire christ , god and man ; so that the eucharistical elements are changed into our saviour , as to both his substances , and the consequences of both , his blood , soul , and divinity its self , all which are really present in this sacrament ; * * * the body of christ by the consecration , the rest by concomitance with the body . again : when 't is said , † † † that the whole substance of the bread is changed into his whole body , and the whole substance of the wine into his whole blood ; this is not to be so understood , as if the bread did not contain the whole substance of his blood , as well as of his body , and so the wine , the whole substance of his body , as well as of his blood ; ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ seeing christ is intire in each part of the sacrament , nay in every the least crumb or drop , of either part . ii. the * * * second thing to be consider'd for the understanding of this mystery , is , that not any part of the substance of the bread and wine remains ; tho nothing may seem more contrary to the senses than this ; in which they are certainly in the right . iii. † † † that the accidents of the bread and wine , which either our eyes see ( as the colour , form , &c. ) or our other senses perceive ( as the tast , touch , smell ) all these are in no subject , but exist by themselves , after a wonderful manner , and which cannot be explain'd . for the rest , the conversion its self , ‖ ‖ ‖ it is very difficult to be comprehended , how christs body , which before consecration , was not in the sacrament , should now come to be there , since 't is certain that it changes not its place , but is still all the while in heaven . nor is it made present there by creation , * * * nor by any other change ; for it is neither increased nor diminish'd , but remains whole in its substance as before . † † † christ is not in the sacrament locally ; for he has no quantity there , is neither great nor little. * * * in a word , men ought not to inquire too curiously , how this change can be made , for it is not to be comprehended , seeing neither in any natural changes , nor indeed in the whole creation , is there any example of any thing like it . such is the account which themselves give of this mystery : from all which we may in short conclude the state of the question before us , to be this ; that we do not dispute at all about christ's real presence , which after a spiritual and heavenly manner , we acknowledg in this holy eucharist , as we shall hereafter shew ; nor by consequence of the truth of christs words which we undoubtedly believe : but only about this manner of his presence , viz. whether the bread and the wine be changed into the very natural body and blood of christ , so that the bread and wine themselves do no longer remain ; but that under the appearance of them is contain'd that same body of christ , which was born of the blessed virgin , with his soul and divinity ; which same body of christ , tho extended in all its parts in heaven , is at the same time in the sacrament without any extension , neither great nor small , comes thither neither by generation , nor by creation , nor by any local motion ; forasmuch as it continues still at the right hand of god in heaven , at the very same instant that it exists whole and intire in every consecrated host , or chalice ; nay more , is whole and intire , not only in the whole host , or the whole chalice ; but in every the least crumb of the host , and every the least drop of the chalice , here upon earth . and here it might well be thought a very needless , indeed an extravagant undertaking , to prove that those elements , which so many of our senses tell us ; continue after their consecration the very same , as to what concerns their natural substance , that they were before , are in reality the very same : that what all the world sees , and feels , and smells , and tasts , to be bread and wine , is not changed into the very natural flesh and blood of a body actually before existent ; had it not entred into the minds of so great a part of the christian church to joyn in the maintaining of a paradox , which has nothing to defend it , but that fond presumption they have certainly done well to take up , that they cannot possibly be in the wrong , and without which it would be very difficult for them to perswade any sober man that they are here in the right . to shew that those words , which they tell us , work all this miracle , and are the only reason that engages them to maintain so many absurdities as are confessedly the unavoidable consequences of this doctrine , have no such force nor interpretation as they pretend ; i must desire it may be remembred what i before remark'd , that this holy sacrament was establish'd by our saviour in the room of the jewish passover , and upon the very words and ceremonies of it . so that , if in that all things were typical ; the feast , the customs , the expressions merely allusive to something that had been done before , and of which this sacred ceremony was the memorial ; we ought in all reason to conclude , that both our saviour must have designed , and his apostles understood this holy sacrament to have been the same too . now as to the nature of the passover ; we have already seen that it was appointed by god as a remembrance of his delivery of the jews out of the land of egypt , when he slew all the first-born of the egyptians , exod. xii . the lamb which they ate every year in this feast , was an eucharistical sacrifice and type of that first lamb which was slain in the night of their deliverance , and whose blood sprinkled upon the posts of their doors had preserved their fore-fathers from the destroying angel , that he should not do them any mischief . the bread of affliction , which they broke , and of which they said , perhaps in the very * * * same manner that christ did of the very same loaf , take , eat , this is the bread of affliction which our fathers ate in egypt ; they esteem'd a type and figure , of that unleaven'd bread which their forefathers so many ages before had eaten there ; and upon that account called it * * * the memorial of their delivery out of egypt . † † † the cup of blessing which they blessed , and of which they all drank in this feast , they did it at once in memory both of the blood of the children of israel slain by pharaoh , and of the blood of the lamb , which being sprinkled upon their doors , preserved their own from being shed with that of the egyptians . now all these idea's with which the apostles had so long been acquainted , could not but presently suggest to them the same design of our blessed saviour in the institution of this holy sacrament : that when he , as the master of the feast , took the loaf , blessed , and brake it , and gave it to them , and bid them in like manner henceforward , do this in remembrance of him ; he certainly designed that by this ceremony , which hitherto they had used in memory of their deliverance out of egypt , they should now continue the memory of their blessed lord , and of that deliverance which he was about to work for them . that as by calling the lamb in that feast the body of the passover , they understood that it was the remembrance of god's mercy in commanding the destroying angel to pass over their houses when he slew their enemies ; the memorial of the lamb which was killed for this purpose in egypt ; so christ calling the bread his body , nay , his body broken for them , could certainly mean nothing else but that it was the type , the memorial of his body , which as yet was not , but was now just ready to be given for their redemption . this is so natural a reflection , and in one part at least of this holy sacrament so necessary too , that 't is impossible to explain it otherwise . this cup , says our saviour , is the new testament in my blood ; that is , as * * * moses had before said of the old testament in the very same phrase , the seal , the ratification of it . now if those words be taken literally , then st . 't is the cup that is transubstantiated , not the wine ; ly , it is changed not into christ's blood ( as they pretend ) but into the new testament in his blood ; which being confessedly absurd and impossible , it must in all reason follow , that the apostles understood our saviour alike in both his expressions ; and that by consequence we ought to interpret those words , this is my body which is broken for you , of the bread's being the type , or figure of his body ; as we must that of the cup , that it was the new testament in his blood , i. e. the sign , or seal of the new testament . so naturally do all these notions direct us to a figurative interpretation of his words ; the whole design of this institution , and all the parts and ceremonies of it being plainly typical , in remembrance ( as christ himself has told us ) of him. but now if we go on more particularly to inquire into the expression its self , this is my body which is broken for you , that will yet more clearly confirm this interpretation . it has before been observed , that these words of our saviour in this holy sacrament , were used by him instead of that other expression of the master in the paschal feast , when in the very same manner he took the very same bread into his hands , and blessed it , and brake it , and gave it to those who were at the table with him , saying , this is the bread of affliction which our fathers ate in egypt . and can any thing in the world be more plain , than that as never any jew yet imagined , that the bread which they thus took every year , was by that saying of the master of their feast changed into the very substance of that bread which their forefathers had so many ages before consumed in egypt , in the night of their deliverance ; but being thus broken and given to them , became a type , a figure , a memorial of it : so neither could those to whom our saviour christ now spake , and who as being jews had so long been used to this phrase , ever imagine , that the pieces of that loaf which he brake , and gave them , saying , this is my body which is broken for you , do this in remembrance of me , became thereupon the very body of that saviour from whose hands they received it ; and who did not sure with one member of his body , give away his whole body from himself to them ; but only designed that by this ceremony they should remember him , and his body broken for them , as by the same they had hitherto remembred the bread of affliction which their fathers ate in egypt . i ought not to omit it , because it very much confirms the force of this argument , that what i have here said of this analogy of the holy eucharist , to the jewish passover , was not the original remark of any protestant , or indeed of any other christians differing from the church of rome in this point : but was objected to them long before the reformation , by the * * * jews , themselves to shew that in their literal interpretation of these words , they had manifestly departed from the intention of our blessed saviour , and advanced a notion in which 't was impossible for his apostles , or any other acquainted , as they were , with the paschal forms , ever to have understood him . and if † † † st. augustine , who i suppose will not be thought a heretick by either party , may be allow'd to speak for the christians ; he tells us , we are to look upon the phrase , this is my body , just , says he , as when in ordinary conversation we are wont to say , this is christmas , or good-friday , or easter-day ; not that this is the very day on which christ was born , or suffer'd , or rose from the dead , but the return or remembrance of that day on which christ was born , or suffer'd , or rose again . it is wonderful to consider with what confidence our new missionaries produce these words on all occasions ; and thereby shew us how fond they would be of the holy scripture , and how willingly they would make it their guide in controversie , did it but ever so little favour their cause . can any thing , say they , be more express ? this is my body ; is it possible for words to be spoken more clear and positive ? and indeed were all the expressions of holy scripture to be taken in their literal meaning , i will not deny , but that those words might as evidently prove bread to be christs body , as those other in st. john , i am the bread that came down from heaven , argue a contrary transubstantiation of christ's body into bread , john vi . , . or those more usual instances , i am the true vine ; i am the door of the sheep ; that rock was christ ; prove a great many transubstantiations more , viz. of our saviour into a vine , a door , and a rock . but now , if for all this plainness and positiveness in these expressions , they themselves tell us , that it would be ridiculous to conclude from hence , that christ was indeed turned into all these , and many other the like things ; they may please to give us leave to say the same of this before us , it being neither less impossible , nor less unreasonable to suppose bread to be changed into christ's body , than for christ's body to be changed into bread , a vine , a door , a rock , or whatever you please of the like kind . but i have already shewn the ground of this mistake to be their want of considering the customs and phrases of the jewish passover , and upon which , both the holy eucharist it self , and these expressions in it were founded : and i will only add this farther , in confirmation of it ; that in the stile of the hebrew language in general , there is nothing more ordinary , than for things to be said to * * * be that which they signifie or represent . thus joseph interpreting pharaoh's dream , gen. xli . . the seven good kine , says he , are seven years ; and again , the seven good ears of corn are seven years , i. e. as is plain , they signify seven years . and so in like manner in this place ; christ took bread , and blessed , and brake it , and gave it to his disciples , saying , take , eat , this is my body which is broken for you : that is , this bread thus taken , and blessed , and broken , and given to you ; this bread , and this action , signifies and represents my body which shall be broken for you . and indeed , after all this seeming assurance , it is nevertheless plain , that they themselves are not very well satisfied with their own interpretation . † † † we have shewn before , how little confidence their greatest schoolmen had of this doctrine ; those who have stood the most stifly for it , could never yet * * * agree how to explain these words , so as to prove it : and cardinal bellarmine alone , who reckons up the most part of their several ways , and argues the weakness too of every one but his own , may be sufficient to assure us , that they are never likely to be : and might serve to shew what just cause their own great * * * catharinus had so long since to cry out , upon his enquiry only into the meaning of the very first word , this : consider , says he , reader , into what difficulties they are thrown , who go about to write upon this matter , when the word this only has had so many , and such contradictory expositions , that they are enough to make a man lose his wits , but barely to consider them all . 't was this forced so many of their † † † greatest and most learned men before luther , ingenuously to profess , that there was not in scripture any evident proof of this doctrine ; and even cardinal cajetan since to own , that had not the church determined for the literal sense of those words , this is my body , they might have passed in the metaphorical . it is the general acknowledgment of their ‖ ‖ ‖ greatest writers at this day , that if the pronoun this in that proposition , this is my body , be referr'd to the bread , which our saviour christ held in his hand , which he bless'd , which he brake and gave to his disciples , and of which therefore certainly , if of any thing , he said this is my body , the natural repugnancy that there is between the two things affirm'd of one another , bread and christs body , will force them to be taken in a figurative interpretation : for as much as 't is impossible that bread should be christ's body otherwise than in a figure . and however , to avoid so dangerous a consequence , they will rather apply it to any thing , nay to nothing at all than to the bread ; yet they would do well to consider , whether they do not thereby fall into as great a danger on the other side ; since if the relative this do's not determine those words to the bread , 't is evident that nothing in that whole proposition do's ; and then how those words shall work so great a change in a subject to which they have no manner of relation , will , i believe , be as difficult to shew , as the change its self is incomprehensible to conceive . and now after so plain an evidence of the weakness of that foundation which is by all confessed to be the chief , and has by many of the most learned of that church been thought the only pillar of this cause ; i might well dispense with my self from entring on any farther examination of their other pretences to establish it . but because they have taken great pains of late to apply the † † † sixth chapter of st. john to the holy eucharist , tho' it might be sufficient in general to say that no good argument for a matter of such consequence , can be built upon a place which so many of the * * * most eminent and learned of that communion have judged not to have the least relation to this matter ; yet i will nevertheless beg leave very briefly to shew the weakness of this second attempt too ; and that 't is in vain that they rally these scatter'd forces , whilst their main body continues so intirely defeated . it is a little surprizing in this matter , that they universally tell us , that neither the beginning nor ending of our saviours discourse in that chapter belongs to this matter ; that both before and after that passage which they refer to , 't is all metaphor ; only just two or three words for their purpose , literal . but that which raises our wonder to the highest pitch , is , that the very fifty first verse its self on which they found their argument , is two thirds of it figure , and only otherwise in one clause to serve their hypothesis . i am , says our saviour , the living bread which came down from heaven ; this is figurative : if any man eat of this bread , he shall live for ever : that is , they say , by a spiritual eating by faith : and the bread which i will give , is my flesh , which i will give for the life of the world. this only must be understood of a proper manducation , of a real eating of his flesh in this holy sacrament . it must be confessed , that this is an arbitrary way of explaining indeed , and becomes the character of a church whose dictates are to be received , not examined ; and may therefore pass well enough amongst those , with whom the supposed infallibility of their guides , is thought a sufficient dispensation for their own private consideration . but for us , who can see no reason for this sudden change of our saviours discourse ; nay think that the connexion of that last clause with the foregoing , is an evident sign that they all keep the same character ; and are therefore not a little scandalized at so capernaitical a comment , as indeed who can bear it ? v. . they will please to excuse us , if we take our saviours interpretation to be at least of as good an authority , as 't is much more reasonable than theirs , v. . do's this , says he , offend you ? do's my saying that ye must eat my flesh , and drink my blood scandalize you ? mistake not my design , i mean not any carnal eating of me ; that indeed might justly move your horrour ; it is the spirit that quickneth , the flesh profiteth nothing ; the words that i speak unto you they are spirit , and they are life . he that desires a fuller account of this chapter , may please to recur to the late excellent † † † paraphrase set out on purpose to explain it , and which will be abundantly sufficient to shew the reasonableness of that interpretation which we give of it . i shall only add , to close all , that one remark which * * * saint augustine has left us concerning it , and so much the rather in that it is one of the rules which he lays down for the right interpreting of holy scripture , and illustrates with this particular example : if , says he , the saying be preceptive , either forbidding a wicked action , or commanding to do that which is good , it is no figurative saying : but if it seems to command any villany , or wickedness , or forbid what is profitable and good , it is figurative . this saying , except ye eat the flesh of the son of man , and drink his blood , you have no life in you , seems to command a villanous or wicked thing : it is therefore a figure , enjoining us to communicate in the passion of our lord , and to lay it up in dear and profitable remembrance , that his flesh was crucifi'd and wounded for our sakes . and now having thus clearly , i perswade my self , shewn the weakness of those grounds , on which this doctrine of the substantial change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of christ in this holy sacrament is establish'd ; i shall but very little insist on any other arguments against it : only in a word , to demonstrate , that all manner of proofs fail them in this great error , i will in the close here subjoin two or three short considerations more , to shew this doctrine opposite , not only to holy scripture , as we have seen , but also , . to the best and purest tradition of the church . . to the right reason , and . to the common senses of all mankind . i. that this doctrine is opposite to the best and purest tradition of the church . now to shew this , i shall not heap together a multitude of quotations out of those fathers , through whose hands this tradition must have past : he that desires such an account , may find it fully done by one of the roman communion , in a little * * * treatise just now publish'd in our own language . i will rather take a method that seems to me less liable to any just exception , and that is to lay down some general remarks of undoubted truth , and whose consequence will be as evident , as their certainty is undeniable . and , i. for the expressions of the holy fathers ; it is not deny'd , but that in their popular discourses they have spared no words ( except that of transubstantiation , which not one of them ever used ) to set off so great a mystery : and i believe that were the sermons and devotional treatises of our own divines alone , since the reformation , searcht into , one might find expressions among them , as much over-strain'd . * * * and doubtless these would be as strong an argument to prove transubstantiation now the doctrine of the church of england , as those to argue it to have been the opinion of those primitive ages . but now let us consult these men in their more exact composures , when they come to teach , not to declaim , and we shall find they will then tell us , that these elements are for their * * * substance what they were before , bread and wine : that they retain the true properties of their nature , to nourish and feed the body : that they are things inanimate , and void of sense : that with reference to the holy sacrament they are images , figures , signes , symbols , memorials , types and antitypes of the body and blood of christ. that in their use and benefit , they are indeed the very body and blood of christ to every faithful receiver , but in a spiritual and heavenly manner , as we confess : that , in propriety of speech the wicked receive not in this holy sacrament the body and blood of christ , although they do outwardly press with their teeth the holy elements ; but rather eat and drink the sacrament of his body and blood to their damnation . ii. secondly , for our saviours words which are supposed to work this great change , 't is evident from the liturgies of the eastern church , that the greek fathers did not believe them to be words of consecration ; but to be the same in this holy eucharist that the haggadah , or history of the passover was in that ancient feast ; that is , were read only as an account of the occasion and design of the institution of this blessed sacrament , not to work any miracles in the consecration . and for the * * * african churches , they at this day expound them in this very sacrament after such a manner , as themselves confess to be inconsistent with transubstantiation , viz. this bread is the body of christ. iii. let it be considered , thirdly , that it was a great debate in the primitive church for above a thousand years , whether christs glorified body had any blood in it or no ? now how those men could possibly have questioned whether christ's glorified body had any blood at all in it , had they then believed the cup of eucharist to have been truly and really changed , into the blood of his glorified body , as is now asserted , is what will hardly , i believe , be ever told us . iv. we will add to this , fourthly , their manner of opposing the heathenism of the world. with what confidence could they have rallied them as they did , for worshipping gods which their own hands had made ? that had neither voice , nor life , nor motion ; exposed to age , to corruption , to dust , to worms , to fire , and other accidents . that they adored gods which their enemies could spoil them of , thieves and robbers take from them ; which having no power to defend themselves , were forced to be kept under locks and bolts to secure them . for is not the eucharistical bread and wine , in a higher degree than any of their idols were , exposed to the same raillery ? had their wafer , if such then was their host , any voice , or life , or motion ? did not their own hands form its substance , and their mouths speak it into a god ? could it defend its self , i do not say from publick enemies , or private robbers , but even from the very vermine , the creeping things of the earth ? or should we suppose the christians to have been so impudent , as notwithstanding all this , to expose others for the same follies of which themselves were more notoriously guilty ; yet were there no * * * heathens , that had wit enough to recriminate ? the other † † † articles of our faith they sufficiently traduced ; that we should worship a man , and he too a malefactor , crucified by pilate ; how would they have triumph'd , could they have added , that they worshipped a bit of bread too ; which coster himself thought a more ridiculous idolatry than any the heathens were guilty of ? since this doctrine has been started , we have heard of the reproaches of all sorts of men , jews , heathens , mahometans , against us on this account . ‖ ‖ ‖ were there no apostates that could tell them of this secret before ? not any julian that had malice enough to publish their confusion ? certainly had the ancients been the men they are now endeavour'd to be represented , we had long ere this seen the whole world filled with the writings that had proclaimed their shame , in one of the greatest instances of impudence and inconsideration , to attacque their enemies for that very crime , of which themselves were more notoriously guilty . v. nor does their manner of disputing against the heretical christians any less speak their opinion in this point , than their way of opposing the idolatry of the heathens . it was a great argument amongst them to expose the frenzy of eutyches , who imagined some such kind of transubstantiation of the humane nature of christ into the divine , to produce the example of the eucharist ; that as there the bread and the wine , says p. gelasius , being perfected by the holy spirit , pass into the divine substance , yet so as still to remain in the property of their own nature , or substance of bread and wine ; so here the humane nature of christ still remains , though assumed by , and conjoyned to the divine . which words , as their editor has done well to set a cautè upon in the margent to signifie their danger , so this is clear from them , that gelasius , and so the other writers that have made use of the same argument , as st. chrysostome , theodoret , &c. must have thought the bread and the wine in the eucharist no more to have been really changed into the very body and blood of christ , than they did believe his humane nature to have been truly turned into the divine ; for that otherwise the parallel would have stood them in no stead , nay would have afforded a defence of that heresie which they undertook to oppose by it . vi. yet more : had the primitive christians believed this great change ; how comes it to pass , that we find none of those marks nor signs of it , that the world has since abounded with ? * * * no talk of accidents existing without subjects , of the senses being liable to be deceived in judging of their proper objects ; in short , no philosophy corrupted to maintain this paradox . no adorations , processions ; uows paid to it , as to christ himself . it is but a very little time since the † † † bell came in play , to give the people notice that they should fall down and worship this new god. the ‖ ‖ ‖ feast in honour of it , is an invention of yesterday ; the adoring of it in the streets no ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ older : had not those first christians respect sufficient for our blessed saviour ? or , did they perhaps do all this ? let them shew it us if they can ; but till then , we must beg leave to conclude , that since we find not the least footsteps of any of these necessary appendages of this doctrine among the primitive christians , it is not to be imagined that we should find the opinion neither . vii . but this is not all : we do not only not find any such proofs as these of this doctrine , but we find other instances directly contrary to this belief . in some churches they ‖ ‖ ‖ burnt what remained of the consecrated elements ; * * * in others , they gave it to little children to eat : † † † in some , they buried it with their dead ; in all , they permitted the communicants to carry home some remnants of them ; they sent it abroad by sea , by land , from one church and village to another , without any provision of bell or taper , canopy or incense , or any other mark of adoration ; they sometimes made ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ poultices of the bread ; they mix'd the ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ wine with their ink ; all which we can never imagine such holy men would have presumed to do , had they indeed believed them to be the very body and blood of our blessed lord. viii . lastly : since the prevalence of this doctrine in the church , what opposition has it met with ? what schisms has it caused ? what infinite debates have there risen about it ? i shall not need to speak of the troubles of berenger in the eleventh : of the waldenses , albigenses , and others in the twelfth century . of wickliff , hus , &c. who continued the opposition ; and finally , of the great reformation in the beginning of the last age ; by all which this heresy has been opposed ever since it came to any knowledg in the church . now is it possible to be believed , that so many centuries should pass , so many heresies should arise , and a doctrine so full of contradictions remain uncontested in the church for almost a thousand years ? that berenger should be one of the first that should begin to credit his senses , to consult his reason , or even to defend his creed ? these are improbabilities that will need very convincing arguments indeed to remove them . but for the little late french trick of proving this doctrine necessary to have been received in the primitive church , because it is so in the present , and if you will believe them , 't is impossible a change should have been made ; i suppose , we need only turn the terms of the argument to shew the weakness of the proof , viz. that from all these , and many other observations , that might be offer'd of the like kind , 't is evident that this doctrine at the beginning , was not believed in the church , and let them from thence see , if they can conclude that neither is it believed now . thus contrary is this doctrine to the best and purest tradition of the church : nor is it less , secondly , ii. to right reason too . it were endless to heap together all the contradictions that might be offer'd to prove this ; that there should be length , and nothing long ; breadth , and nothing broad ; thickness , and nothing thick ; whiteness , and nothing white ; roundness , and nothing round ; weight , and nothing heavy ; sweetness , and nothing sweet ; moisture , and nothing moist ; fluidness , and nothing flowing ; many actions and no agent ; many passions , and no patient ; i. e. that there should be a long , broad , thick , white , round , heavy , sweet , moist , flowing , active , passive nothing . that bread should be turned into the substance of christ , and yet not any thing of the bread become any thing of christ ; neither the matter , nor the form , nor the accidents of the bread , be made either the matter , or the form , or the accidents of christ ; that bread should be turned into nothing , and at the same time with the same action turned into christ , and yet christ should not be nothing ; that the same thing at the same time should have its just dimensions , and just distance of its parts one from another , and at the same time not have it , but all its parts together in one and the self-same point ; that the same thing at the same time should be wholly above its self , and wholly below its self , within its self , and without its self , on the right-hand , and on the left-hand , and round-about its self : that the same thing at the same time should move to and from its self , and yet lie still ; or that it should be carried from one place to another through the middle space , and yet not move . that there should be no certainty in our senses , and yet that we should know something certainly , and yet know nothing but by our senses ; that that which is and was long ago , should now begin to be ; that that is now to be made of nothing , which is not nothing , but something ; that the same thing should be before and after its self . these and many other of the like nature are the unavoidable , and most of them the avow'd consequences of transubstantiation , and i need not say all of them contradictions to right reason . but i shall insist rather upon such instances as the primitive fathers have judged to be absurd and impossible ; and which will at once shew both the falseness and novelty of this monstrous doctrine ; and such are these ; * * * that a thing already existing should be produced anew : that a finite thing should be in many places at the same time ; that a body should be in a place , and yet take up no room in it ; that a body should penetrate the dimensions of another body ; that a body should exist after the manner of a spirit ; that a real body should be invisible and impassible : that the same thing should be its self , and the figure of its self : that the same thing should be contained in , and participate of its self ; † † † that an accident should exist by its self without a subject , after the manner of a substance . all these things the primitive fathers have declared to be in their opinions gross absurdities and contradictions , without making any exception of the divine power for the sake of the eucharist , as some do now . and indeed it were well if the impossibilities stopp'd here : but alas ! the repugnancies extend to the very creed it self , and destroy the chiefest articles of our faith , the fundamentals of christianity . how can that man profess that he believes our saviour christ to have been born xvi . ages since , of the virgin mary , whose very body he sees the priest about to make now before his eyes ? that he believes him to have ascended into heaven , and behold he is yet with us upon earth ? there to sit at the right hand of god the father almighty , till in the end of the world he shall come again with glory to judg both the quick and the dead ? and behold he is here carried through the streets ; lock'd up in a box ; adored first , and then eaten by his own creatures ; carried up and down in several manners , and to several places , and sometimes lost out of a priests pocket . these are no far-fetch'd considerations ; they are the obvious consequences of this belief ; and if these things are impossible , as doubtless , if there be any such thing as reason in the world , they are ; i suppose it may be very much the concern of every one that professes this faith , to reflect a little upon them , and think what account must one day be given of their persisting obstinately in a point so evidently erroneous , that the least degree of an impartial judgment , would presently have shewn them the falseness of it . but god has not left himself without farther witness in this matter ; but has given us , thirdly , iii. the conviction of our senses against it . an argument this , which since it cannot be answered , they seem resolved to run it down ; as the stoick in lucian , who began to call names , when he had nothing else to say for himself . but if the senses are such ill informers , that they may not be trusted in matters of this moment , would these disputers please to tell us , what authority they have for the truth of the christian religion ? was not christianity first founded upon the miracles of our blessed saviour and his apostles ? or were not the senses judges of those miracles ? are not the incarnation , death , resurrection and ascension of our lord , the most fundamental articles of our faith ? have we any other argument to warrant our belief of these , but what comes to us by the ministry of our senses ? * * * did not christ himself appeal to them for the proof of his own rising ? the romanist himself believes transubstantiation because he reads in the scripture , or rather ( to speak more agreeably to the method of their church ) because he has been told there are such words there , as , hoc est corpas meum : now not to enquire how far those words will serve to warrant this doctrine , is it not evident that he cannot be sure there are any such words there , if he may not trust his senses : and if he may , is it not as plain , that he must seek for some other meaning than what they give of them ? let us suppose the change they speak of to be supernatural ; be it as much as miracle as they desire : the very character of a miracle is to be known by the senses . nor god , nor christ , nor any prophet or apostle , ever pretended to any other . and i shall leave it to any one to judge what progress christianity would have made in the world , if it had had no other miracles but such as transubstanation to confirm it : i. e. great wonders confidently asserted , but such as every ones sense and reason would tell him were both falsely asserted , and impossible to be performed . but now whil'st we thus oppose the errors of some by asserting the continuance of the natural substance of the elements of bread and wine in this holy eucharist ; let not any one think that we would therefore set up the mistakes of others ; as if this holy sacrament were nothing more than a meer rite and ceremony , a bare commemoration only of christ's death and passion . our church indeed teaches us to believe , that the bread and wine continue still in their true and natural substance ; but it teaches us also that 't is the body and blood of christ , which every faithful soul receives in that holy supper : spiritually indeed , and after a heavenly manner , but yet most truly and really too . the primitive fathers , of whom we have before spoken , sufficiently assure us , that they were strangers to that corporeal change that is now pretended ; but for this divine and mystical , they have openly enough declared for it . nor are we therefore afraid to confess a change , and that a very great one too made in this holy sacrament . the bread and the wine which we here consecrate , ought not to be given or received by any one in this mystery , as common ordinary food . those holy elements which the prayers of the church have sanctified , and the divine words of our blessed saviour applied to them , though not transubstantiated , yet certainly separated to a holy use and signification , ought to be regarded with a very just honour by us : and whilst we worship him whose death we herein commemorate , and of whose grace we expect to be made partakers by it , we ought certainly to pay no little regard to the types and figures , by which he has chosen to represent the one , and convey to us the other . thus therefore we think we shall best divide our piety , if we adore our redeemer in heaven , yet omit nothing that may testifie our just esteem of his holy sacrament on earth : nor suffer the most zealous votary for this new opinion , to exceed us in our care and reverence of approaching to his holy table . we acknowledg him to be no less really present , tho after another manner than they ; nor do we less expect to communicate of his body and blood with our souls , than they who think they take him carnally into their mouths . let our office of communion be examined ; let the reverence and devotion , with which we celebrate this sacred feast , be consider'd ; all these will shew how far the church of england is from a light esteem of this great mystery ; indeed , that it is impossible for any to set a higher value and reverence upon it . i shall close this with the declaration of one , who after many years spent in great reputation in their communion , was so happy as to finish his days in our church ; upon his first receiving the blessed communion among us : * * * tantam magnorum praesulum demissionem , tam eximiam principum & populi reverentiam , in sacra eucharistia administranda & recipienda , nusquam ego vidi apud romanenses , qui tamen se unos sacramenti istius cultores jactant . that he never saw in the church of rome , so great a reverence both in administring and receiving this holy eucharist , as he found among us ; insomuch , that he supposed it would hardly be believed among them , what from his own experience , he recounted concerning it . porro haec quae narravi & trita nimis ac vulgo nota videbuntur fratribus nostris reformatae ecclesiae : nova omnino & fortè incredibilia apparebunt romanae congregationis alumnis ; quorum scilicet auribus perpetuò suggeritur per suos instructores , nullam apud protestantes existere fidem praesentiae christi realis in eucharistiae sacramento , nullam devotionem aut reverentiam in eo sumendo . and this may suffice for the first thing proposed ; of the doctrine of transubstantiation , or of the real presence professed and established in the church of rome . our next business will be to inquire : ii. what that real presence of christ in this holy eucharist is , which is acknowledged by the church of england . chap. ii. of the real presence acknowledged by the church of england . it may sufficiently appear from what has been said in the foregoing chapter , what just reason we have to reject that kind of presence which the church of rome supposes of christ in this holy eucharist . but now in answer to our reflections upon them on this occasion , a late author has thought fit to make the world believe , that we our selves , in our opinion of the real presence , are altogether as absurd as they are ; and that the same exceptions lie against our own church , which we urge against theirs : all which , if it were true , would but little mend the matter , unless it may be thought sufficient for a man to prove , that he is not mad himself , because most of his neighbours are in the same condition . indeed herein he must be allowed to have reason on his side , that if the case be so as he affirms , we , of all men living , ought not to press them with such contradictions , as our own opinion stands equally involved in . 't is true , he confesses for what concerns the church of england , as it stood in the latter * * * end of king edward the oth's time , and as it may perhaps be thought to stand now , since the † † † reviving of the old rubrick against the adoration of the sacrament at the end of our communion-office ; it seems not to lye open to such a recrimination : but taking our opinion of the real presence from the expressions of our own divines , and of those abroad , such as calvin , &c. whose doctrine , amongst all the rest , the church of england seems rather to have embraced and agreed with , especially since the beginning of the reformation by q. elizabeth ; it plainly implies , that the very substance of christ's body ; that his natural body , that very body that was born of the blessed virgin , and crucified on the cross , is present as in heaven , so here in this holy sacrament , either to the worthy receiver , or to the symbols : which not only contradicts the present declaration of our church ; viz. that the natural body of christ is not in this blessed sacrament ; but will also lay a necessity upon us to quit our reason too that we give for it ; viz. that it is against the truth of a natural body to be in more places than one at one time ; and on which we seem to found our faith in this matter . this is , i think , the design of the former of those discourses lately printed at oxford , as to what concerns the real presence ; and in answer to which , that i may proceed as distinctly as possible , i shall reduce my reflections to these four generals : . what is the true notion of the real presence , as acknowledged by the church of england . . that this has been the notion constantly maintain'd by the generality of our divines . . that the alteration of the rubrick , as to this matter , was not upon any such difference in their opinions , as this author seems to surmise . . that the reason alledged by it , concerning the impossibility of christ's natural body's existing in several places at the same time , is no way invalidated by any of his exceptions against it . but before i enter on these reflections , i cannot but observe the unreasonableness of our adversaries , in repeating continually the same arguments against us without either adding of any the least new force to them , or even taking notice of those replies that have more than once been made against them . the publisher of this treatise has not been so indiligent an observer of what has past under his eyes , with reference to these kind of controversies , as not to know , that this very objection , which is the foundation of his first discourse , was made by his old friend t. g. above nine years since ; and fully answer'd by his reverend and learned adversary not long after . and therefore that he certainly ought either quietly to have let alone this argument already baffled , and not have put the world in mind where that debate stopp'd ; or , at least , he should have added some new strength to it . but to send it again into the world in the same forlorn state it was before ; to take no notice either from whose store-house he borrow'd it , or what had been returned to it ; this is in effect to confess , that they have no more to say for themselves : and 't is a sad cause indeed that has nothing to keep it up , but what they know very well we can answer , and that they themselves are unable to defend . but to return to the points proposed to be consider'd : and , first , to state the notion of the real presence , as acknowledged by the church of england . i must observe , st . that our church utterly denies our saviour's body to be so really present in the blessed sacrament , as either to leave heaven , or to exist in several places at the same time . we confess , with this author , that it would be no less a contradiction for christ's natural body , to be in several places at the same time by any other mode whatsoever , than by that which the church of rome has stated ; the repugnancy being in the thing its self , and not in the manner of it . dly , that we deny that in the sacred elements which we receive , there is any other substance than that of bread and wine , distributed to the communicants ; which alone they take into their mouths , and press with their teeth . in short , all which the doctrine of our church implies by this phrase , is only a real presence of christ's invisible power and grace , so in and with the elements , as by the faithful receiving of them , to convey spiritual and real effects to the souls of men. as the bodies assumed by angels , might be called their bodies , while they assumed them ; or rather , as the church is the body of christ , because of his spirit quickening and enlivening the souls of believers , so the bread and wine , after consecration , are the real , but the spiritual and mystical body of christ. thus has that learned man , to whom t. g. first made this objection , stated the notion of the real presence profess'd by us ; and that this is indeed the true doctrine of the church of england in this matter , is evident not only from the plain words of our xxviii . article , and of our church catechism ; but also from the whole tenour of that office which we use in the celebration of it . in our exhortation to it , this blessed eucharist is expresly called the communion of the body and blood of our saviour christ : we are told , that if with a true penitent heart and lively faith we receive this holy sacrament ; then we spiritually eat the flesh of christ , and drink his blood. when the priest delivers the consecrated bread , he bids the communicant take and eat this in remembrance that christ died for thee , and feed on him in thy heart by faith with thanksgiving . in our prayer after the receiving , we thank god , for that he doth vouchsafe to feed us who have duly received these holy mysteries , with the spiritual food of the most precious body and blood of his son our saviour jesus christ , and doth assure us thereby of his favour and goodness towards us , and that we are very members , incorporate in the mystical body of his son. all which , and many other the like expressions , clearly shew , that the real presence which we confess in this holy eucharist is no other than in st. pauls phrase , a real communion of christ's body and blood ; or as our church expresses it article xxviii . that to such as rightly and worthily , and with faith receive the same , the bread which we break is a partaking of the body of christ , and likewise the cup of blessing is a partaking of the blood of christ. hence it was that in the prayer of consecration in king edward vi . time , the church of england after the example of the ancient liturgies of the greek church used that form , which our author observes to have been since left out . and with thy holy spirit vouchsafe to bless and sanctifie these thy gifts and creatures of bread and wine , that they may be unto us the body and blood of thy most dearly beloved son jesus christ — i. e. as the sense plainly implies , may communicate to our souls all the blessings and graces which christ's body and blood has purchased for us ; which is in effect the very same we now pray for in the same address ▪ hear us , o merciful father we most humbly beseech thee , and grant that we receiving these thy creatures of bread and wine , according to thy son our saviour jesus christs holy institution , in remembrance of his death and passion , may be partakers of his most blessed body and blood. between which two petitions there is so near an affinity , that had not our author been very desirous to find out mysteries where there are indeed none ; he would hardly have suffer'd his puritan friend to have lead him to make so heavy a complaint , about so small a variation . i will not deny but that some men may possibly have advanced their private notions beyond what is here said : but this is i am sure all that our church warrants , or that we are therefore concern'd to defend . and if there be indeed any , who as our author here expresses it , do believe christs natural body to be as in heaven , so in the holy sacrament ; they may please to consider how this can be reconciled with the rubrick of our church , that the natural body and blood of our saviour christ are in heaven and not here , it being against the truth of christs natural body , to be at one time in more places than one . in the mean time i pass on to the next thing i proposs'd , secondly , to shew in opposition to the pretences of our adversary , that this has been the notion of the real presence constantly maintain'd by our most learned and orthodox divines . and here , because our author has thought ●it to appeal not only to our own , but to the forreign divines for this new faith which he is pleas'd to impose upon us , viz. that the very substance of christs body , that his natural body , that that very body that was born of the blessed virgin , and crucified on the cross , &c. is present , as in heaven , so here in this holy sacrament ; i. e. in both at the same time : i must be content to follow his steps , and enquire into the doctrine first of mr. calvin and his followers ; next of our own country-men in this particular . and first for mr. calvin , and his followers , i cannot but observe what different charges are brought against them in this matter . on the one hand we are told by becanus the jesuit , that , * * * the calvinists , says he , deny the body and blood of christ to be truly really , and substantially present in the eucharist : on the other , here is one will prove , that they believe his very body , his natural body , now in heaven , to be nevertheless at the same time in the holy sacrament . it were to be wish'd that they would let us once know what 't is they will stick to , and not by such contradictory charges shew to all the world , that both their accusations may be false , but that it is utterly impossible they should both be true . and indeed in this very instance they are both false ; the calvinists hold neither the one or other of these extreams . in the edition of his institutions printed at basil . mr. calvin thus delivers his opinion , of the body and blood of christ in the holy eucharist . we say , that they are truly and efficaciously exhibited to us , but not naturally : by which we signifie , not that the very substance of his body , or that the true and natural body of christ are given there , but all the benefits which christ did for us in his body . this is that presence of his body , which the nature of the sacrament requires . but because i do not find these words in the editions of that book since , least any one should thereupon conclude that he had also changed his opinion ; we may observe the very same delivered by him in * * * another of his books , and which will be so much the more considerable , in that it was written purposely for the clearing of this matter . now in this he affirms , † † † that christs body was not only once given for our salvation , but is also every day reached out to us for our sustenance , that so , whilst he dwells in us , we may also enjoy the fellowship of all his goods . — then he explains how christ is our food , viz. † † † because by the incomprehensible vertue of the holy spirit , he inspires his life into us , that he may communicate it to us , no less than the vital juice is diffused from the root into all the branches of the tree , or than vigour flows from the head into all the members . — he declares christs body to be finite , and enclosed in heaven ; and therefore as to his flesh to be distant in place from us . — that it is not necessary that the essence of his flesh should descend from heaven , that we may be fed with it , but that to remove all such impediments , and overcome the distance of places , the virtue of the spirit is sufficient — in short , that all inventions contrary to this are to be rejected , such as , the ubiquity of christs body , the inclosing of it under the symbol of bread , and his substantial presence upon earth . by all which it sufficiently appears , that mr. calvin was no friend to our authors fancy ; but evidently explained the real presence after that spiritual manner we have before laid down . for beza , and the rest as he calls them , of the same sect ; we cannot better learn their opinion than from the acts of the colloquy of poissy , and which chiefly lay upon this point . at this conference the most eminent men of the calvinian party were assembled ; the first of them which spoke , was beza : in that part of his discourse which referr'd to the holy eucharist , his words were much like those which our author has quoted out of him . and by his own exposition of them , we shall be better able to judg of his meaning , than by his adversaries gloss. * * * we do not say that in the eucharist there is only a commemoration of the death of our lord jesus christ ; nor do we say , that in it we are made partakers only of the fruits of his death and passion ; but we joyn the ground with the fruits , affirming with st. paul , that the bread which by gods appointment we break , is the participation of the body of christ crucified for us ; the cup which we drink , the communion of the true blood that was shed for us ; and that in the very same substance which he received in the womb of the virgin , and which he carry'd up with him into the heavens — then descending to the popish doctrine of transubstantiation : it overthrows , says he , the truth of christs humane nature and of his ascension — so little did he suppose , that christs natural body could be at the same time both in heaven and in the sacrament . hereupon he explains himself yet farther ; — but now if any one should ask of us , whether we make christ absent from the holy supper ? we answer , by no means . but yet if we respect the distance of place ( as when we speak of his corporal presence , and of his humanity , we must ) we affirm , says he , that christs body is as far distant from the bread and wine , as heaven is from earth — if any one shall from thence conclude , that we make christ absent from the holy supper , he will conclude amiss : for this honour we allow to god , that though the body of jesus christ be now in heaven and not elsewhere , and we on earth and not elsewhere , yet are we made partakers of his body and blood after a spiritual manner , and by the means of faith. thus do's beza in like manner expound their doctrine of the real presence , by a real communion of christs body and blood , and flatly condemns our authors invention , of his natural bodie 's being either in the symbols , or any where else upon earth . the same is the account which † † † peter martyr in the same conference gave of it ; and of whom * * * espensius , one of the popish delegates , confess'd that no divine of that time had spoken so clearly and distinctly concerning this sacrament , as he did . and however ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ genebrard fasely pretends that the other protestants dissented from him , yet 't is certain they were so far from it , that they all subscribed the very same paper out of which he read his declaration . but i will close this with the same words with which these protestants did their final resolution in the colloquy as to this matter ; we affirm that no distance of place can hinder the communion which we have with christs body and blood ; because the supper of the lord is a heavenly thing , and though upon earth we receive with our mouths bread and wine , viz. the true symbols of his body and blood ; yet by faith , and through the operation of the holy spirit , our souls ( of which this is the chief food ) being carry'd up into heaven , enjoy the body and blood present . and in this respect we say that the body do's truly joyn its self to the bread , and the blood to the wine , but yet no otherwise than sacramentally , neither after a local or natural manner . but because they do effectually signifie , that god gives them to the faithful communicants , and that they do by faith truly and certainly receive them . and thus far i have consider'd the forreign divines produced by our author , and in which we find the very same explication which our church gives of the real presence . for our own authors , i shall insist the rather upon them , both to take off any impression which the scraps here put together by those whose business it is to represent their own sence , not their authors , might otherwise be apt to make upon some men ; and also to shew the exact concord there has been ever since the reformation amongst us as to this matter . now for what concerns our divines in king edward vi ths . time , we have our authors own confession , that towards the latter end of the reign of that excellent prince , they seem to have deny'd any such real and essential presence as he would fasten upon those of queen elizabeth's after . for as the first days of this prince , says he , seem to have been more addicted to lutheranism , so the latter days to zwinglianism ; as appears in several expressions of bishop ridley and peter martyr . and indeed the articles agreed upon in the convocation at london . plainly shew it ; in the xxixth . of which we find this express clause ; since the very being of humane nature doth require that the body of one and the same man cannot be at one and the same time in many places , but of necessity must be in some certain and determinate place ; therefore the body of christ cannot be present in many different places at the same time . and since , as the holy scriptures testifie , christ hath been taken up into heaven , and there is to abide till the end of the world , it becometh not any of the faithful to believe or profess , that there is a real or corporal presence , as they phrase it , of the body and blood of christ in the holy eucharist . i shall therefore produce only a witness or two of this king's reign ; and so pass on to those that follow . and st , a. b. cranmer in his answer to gardiner , bishop of winchester , objecting to him , that he deny'd the presence of christ in this holy eucharist , replies , that it was a thing he never said nor thought . — my book in divers places saith clean contrary , that christ is with us spiritually present ; is eaten and drunken of us , and dwelleth within us , although corporally he be departed out of this world , and gone into heaven , pag. . — as he giveth bread to be eaten , with our mouths , so giveth he his very body to be eaten with our faith. and therefore i say , that christ giveth himself truly to be eaten , chawed and digested ; but all is spiritually with faith , not with mouth , pag. . — as the washing outwardly in water is not a vain token , but teacheth such a washing as god worketh inwardly in them that duly receive the same ; so likewise is not the bread a vain token , but sheweth and preacheth to the godly receiver , what god worketh in him by his almighty power secretly and invisibly . and therefore as the bread is outwardly eaten indeed in the lord's supper , so is the very body of christ inwardly by faith eaten indeed of all them that come thereto in such sort as they ought to do ; which eating nourisheth them unto everlasting life . and in his treatise of the holy sacrament , lib. . where he sets himself particularly to state this very question , how christ is present in this holy sacrament , he declares , cap. . that whereas the papists suppose christ to be under the species of bread and wine ; we believe him to be in those who worthily receive these holy elements . they think him to be received by the mouth , and to enter with the bread and wine ; we assert , that he is received only by the soul , and enters there by faith. that christ is present only sacramentally and spiritually in this sacred mystery , p. . that since his ascension into heaven , he is there , and not on earth , p. . and that he cannot be in both together , . — in short , he gives us this rule for interpreting the expressions of the fathers , where it is said , that we eat the flesh , and drink the blood of christ ; that we receive in the holy sacrament , the very body that hung on the cross , &c. cap. . p. . these , says he , and other expressions of the like kind ( which speak christ to be upon earth , and to be received of christians by eating or drinking ) , are either to be understood of his divine nature ( which is every where ) ; or else must be taken figuratively or spiritually . for he is figuratively only in the bread and wine ; and spiritually in those that receive this bread and wine worthily . but truly , and as to his body and flesh , he is in heaven only ; from whence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead . thus did this learned and holy martyr understand our doctrine of the real presence ; and the same was the idea which his companion both in doctrine and suffering , bishop ridley , has left us of it . in his discourse of the lord's supper , pag. . he tells us , that the substance of the bread continues as the matter of this sacrament ; but so , that by reason of its change , as to use , office and dignity , it is turned sacramentally into the body of christ ; as in baptism , the water is turned into the laver of regeneration — that the humane nature of christ is in heaven , and cannot in any manner lye hid under the form of bread , p. . — then he enquires , whether therefore we take away the presence of christ's body from the sacrament ? p. . and utterly denies , that this is either said or thought by him . the substance of the true body and blood of christ , says he , is always in heaven , nor shall it depart thence before the end of the world. now this substance of his body and blood being conjoyned to his divine nature , has not only life in it self , but can , and is wont to bestow it upon all those who partake of it , and believe in his name . — nor is it any hindrance to this , that christ still remains in heaven , and that we are upon earth . for by grace , that is , life ( as s. john interprets it , c. ) and the properties of it , as far as may be profitable to us in this our pilgrimage here below , he is with us to the end of the world. as the sun , who though he never leaves his orb , yet by his life , heat , and influence , is present to us : pag. , . hitherto then there can be no doubt , but that both the church and the divines knew no other real presence than what has been before acknowledged to be still our doctrine . we must now go on to the times of tryal , the days of q. elizabeth , and her successors , when our author supposes , that men of different judgments had the power . now for proof of this , besides the expressions of particular men , which we shall presently consider , we have two general presumptions offer'd to us ; one , that dr. heylin , and others , have observed , he says , of this queen , that she was a zealous propugner of the real presence ; which may be very true , and yet but little to the purpose , if she propugned it in the same sense that her brother king edward the th , and the church of england had done before , and not in the new notion imposed upon her by this author , but without any manner of proof to warrant his suggestion . the other , that upon the re-view made by her divines of the common-prayer and articles , they struck out of the one the rubrick against the adoration of the sacrament , and the passage before mention'd ( being of the same temper as the declaration in the liturgy ) , out of the xxixth article ; and which has accordingly been omitted ever since . and here i cannot but again take notice of the disingenuousness of this author , in dissembling the true account that has so largely been given by our late accurate compiler of the history of our reformation of this whole matter , only for the advancing so pitiful an insinuation of what i dare appeal to his own conscience whether he did not know to be otherwise . i will beg leave to transcribe the whole passage ; and shall then leave it to the indifferent reader to judge whether a man so well acquainted with books , and so interested in this matter , could have lived so long in the world without hearing of so eminent a matter in our church-history as this . the author is treating about the difference between the article establish'd in king edward the six's time , and those in q. elizabeth's . in the article of the lord's supper there is a great deal left out ; for instead of that large refutation of the corporal presence , from the impossibility of a bodies being in more places at once ; from whence it follows , that since christ's body is in heaven , the faithful ought not to believe or profess a real or corporal presence of it in the sacrament . in the new article it is said , [ that the body of christ is given and received after a spiritual manner ; and the means by which it is received , is faith. ] but in the original copy of these articles , which i have seen subscribed by the hands of all that sate in either house of convocation , there is a further addition made . the articles were subscribed with that precaution which was requisite in a matter of such consequence : for before the subscriptions there is set down the number of the pages , and of the lines in every page of the book to which they set their hands . in that article of the eucharist these words are added ; christ when he ascended into heaven made his body immortal , but took not from it the nature of a body : for still it retains , according to the scriptures , the verity of a humane body ; which must be always in one definite place , and cannot be spread into many , or all places at once . since then christ being carry'd up to heaven , is to remain there to the end of the world , and is to come from thence , and from no place else ( as says s. austin ) to judge the quick and the dead : none of the faithful ought to believe or profess the real , or ( as they call it ) the corporal presence of his flesh and blood in the eucharist . but this in the original is dash't over with minium ; yet so that it is still legible . the secret of it was this ; the queen and her council studied ( as hath been already shewn ) to unite all into the communion of the church : and it was alledged , that such an express definition against a real presence , might drive from the church many who were still of that perswasion ; and therefore it was thought to be enough to condemn transubstantiation , and to say , that christ was present after a spiritual manner , and received by faith. to say more , as it was judged superflous , so it might occasion division . upon this these words were by common consent left out . and in the next convocation the articles were subscribed without them ; of which i have also seen the original . this shews , that the doctrine of the church subscribed by the whole convocation , was at that time contrary to the belief of a real or corporal presence in the sacrament ; only it was not thought necessary or expedient to publish it . though from this silence , which flowed not from their opinion , but the wisdom of that time , in leaving a liberty for different speculations , as to the manner of the presence ; some have since inferr'd , that the chief pastors of this church did then disapprove of the definition made in king edwards time ; and that they were for a real presence . thus that learned historian . and here let our adversary consider what he thinks of this account ; and whether after so evident a confutation from plain matter of fact of his objection before it appear'd , we may not reasonably complain both of his weakness and in-sincerity ; neither to take any notice of such a plain history of this whole transaction , or to imagine that so vain a surmise of q. elizabeth's being a great propugner of the real presence , would be sufficient to obviate so clear and particular an account of this matter . but though this might suffice to shew the continuance of the same doctrine of the real presence in this queen's , that was before profess'd in her brother's reign ; yet it may not be amiss to discover a little further the truth of this matter , and how falsly this author has alledged those great names he has produced . i will therefore beg leave to continue my proof , with an induction of the most eminent of our divines that i have at this time the opportunity to consult , to our own days . and first for bishop jewel ; though the part he had in the convocation before mention'd , may sufficiently assure us of his opinion ; yet it may not be improper to repeat the very words of a person of his learning and eminence in our church . in his reply to harding thus he expresses the doctrine of the church of england , as to the real presence : whereas mr. harding thus unjustly reporteth of us , that we maintain a naked figure , and a bare sign or token only , and nothing else — he knoweth well , we feed not the people of god with bare signs and figures , but teach them , that the sacraments of christ be holy mysteries ; and that in the ministration thereof christ is set before us even as he was crucified upon the cross. — we teach the people , not that a naked sign or token , but that christ's body and blood indeed and verily is given unto us ; that we verily eat it ; that we verily drink it ; that we verily be relieved and live by it : that we are bones of his bones , and flesh of his flesh ; that christ dwelleth in us , and we in him : — yet we say not , either that the substance of the bread and wine is done away , or that christs body is let down from heaven , or made really or fleshly present in the sacrament . we are taught according to the doctrine of the old fathers , to lift up our hearts to heaven , and there to feed upon the lamb of god — thus spiritually and with the mouth of our faith we eat the body of christ , and drink his blood ; even as verily as his body was verily broken , and his blood verily shed upon the cross — indeed the bread that we receive with our bodily mouths , is an earthly thing ; and therefore a figure ; as the water in baptism is likewise also a figure . but the body of christ that thereby is represented , and there is offer'd unto our faith , is the thing it self , and not figure . to conclude , three things herein we must consider : st , that we put a difference between the sign and the thing it self that is signified : . that we seek christ above in heaven , and imagine not him to be present bodily upon the earth : . that the body of christ is to be eaten by faith only , and none otherwise . i shall not trouble the reader with any more of our divines who lived in the beginning of this queen's reign , and subscribed the article before-recited ; but pass on directly to him whom our author first mentions , the venerable mr. hooker , and whose judgment having been so deservedly esteemed by all sorts of men , ought not to be lightly accounted of by us . and here i must observe , that this . learned person is drawn in only by a consequence , and that no very clear one neither , to favour his opinion . the truth is , he has dealt with mr. hooker just as himself , or one of his friends has been observed to have done on the like occasion with the incomparable chillingworth ; has pick'd up a passage or two that seemed for his purpose ; but dissembled whole pages in the same place that were evidently against him . for thus mr. hooker in the chapter cited by him , interprets the words of institution : if we doubt , says he , what those admirable words may import , let him be our teacher for the meaning of christ , to whom christ was himself a school-master . let our lord's apostle be his interpreter ; content we our selves with his explication ; my body , the communion of my body ; my blood , the communion of my blood. is there any thing more expedite , clear and easie , than that as christ is termed our life , because through him we obtain life : so the parts of this sacrament are his body and blood , because they are causes instrumental , upon the receit whereof the participation of his body and blood ensueth ? — the real presence of christ's most blessed body and blood is not therefore to be sought for in the sacrament , but in the worthy receiver of the sacrament — and again , p. . he thus interprets the same words ; this hallow'd food through the concurrence of divine power , is in verity and truth unto faithful receivers instrumentally a cause of that mystical participation , whereby as i make my self wholly theirs , so i give them in hand an actual possession of all such saving grace as my sacrificed body can yeild , and as their souls do presently need . this is to them and in them my body . and this may suffice in vindication of mr. hooker . those who desire a fuller account , may find several pages to the same purpose in the chapter which i have quoted . the next our author mentions , is the learned bishop andrews , in that much noted passage , as he calls it , in the answer to bellarmine . and indeed we need desire no other passage to judge of his opinion in this matter ; in which st . he utterly excludes all defining any thing as to the manner of christs presence in the eucharist . . he professes that a presence we believe , and that no less a true one than the papists . . he plainly insinuates that the presence of christ in the eucharist , was much the same as in baptism ; the very allusion which the holy † † † fathers were wont to make , to express his presence by in this holy sacrament ; which since our adversaries can neither deny , nor yet say is so real , as to be essential or corporeal ; they must of necessity allow that there may be a true presence ( which is all the bishop affirms ▪ ) without such a substantial one as this author here contends for . but to shew that whatever this bishop understood by the real presence , it could not be that christs glorified body is now actually present in this sacred mystery , will appear demonstratively from this , that he declares it is not this body which we either represent or partake of there ; insomuch that he doubts not to say , that could there be a transubstantiation , such as the church of rome supposes , it would not serve our turn , nor answer the design of this sacrament . 't is in his sermon on cor. v. , . we will mark , saith he , something more : that epulemur doth here refer to immolatus : to christ not every way consider'd , but as when he was offer'd . christs body that now is , true ; but not christs body as now it is , but as then it was , when it was offer'd , rent , and slain , and sacrificed for us . not as now he is glorified ; for so he is not , he cannot be immolatus ; for as he is , he is immortal and impassible ; but as then he was when he suffer'd death , that is passible and mortal . then in his passible state , he did institute this of ours , to be a memorial of his passible and passion both . and we are in this action not only carry'd up to christ ( sursum corda ) [ so that christ it seems is not brought down to us ] but we are also carry'd back to christ , as he was at the very instant , and in the very act of his offering . so , and no otherwise , doth this text teach ; so , and no otherwise do we represent him . by the incomprehensible power of his eternal spirit , not he alone , but he as at the very act of his offering is made present to us , and we incorporate into his death , and invested in the benefits of it . if an host could be turned into him now glorified as he is , it would not serve ; christ offer'd is it . thither must we look ; to the serpent lift up : thither we must repair ; even ad cadaver : we must hoc facere , do that is then done . so and no otherwise is this epulare to be conceived . and so i think none will say they do or can turn him . whatsoever real presence then this bishop believed , it must be of his crucified body , and as in the state of his death ; and that i think cannot be otherwise present than in one of those two ways mentioned above by arch-bishop cranmer , and both of which we willingly acknowledge ; either figuratively , in the elements ; or spiritually , in the souls of those who worthily receive them . and from this account of bishop andrew's opinion , we may conclude what it was that casaubon and king ●ames understood by the real presence , who insist upon that bishops words to express their own notion and meaning of it . nor can we make any other judgment of the arch bishop of spalato ; who in the next § * * * to that cited by our adversary is very earnest against those who receive unworthily this holy sacrament , and by consequence ties not christs natural body to the bread ; and declares it to be after a spiritual imperceptible and miraculous manner . as for the term corporaliter , which he there uses , and which melancthon and some others had used before him , that may be well enough understood in the same sence , as vere or realiter ; and is often so used both in scripture and in the holy fathers . as when st. paul says of christ , that in him dwelleth the fulness of the godhead bodily ; that is really , in opposition to the shechinah or presence of god in the tabernacle . and again , the body of christ ; that is the substance , the reality , opposed to the types and figures of the law. and so in the hebrew exposition 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is often used for essence as well as body , and applied to spiritual as well as corporal things . nor can i see any more reason to understand arch-bishop lawd in any other sence . he asserts the true and real presence of christ in this sacred feast ; but he do's not say , that christ's natural body which is now in heaven , is also in this holy sacrament , or in the worthy receiver ; nor have we any reason to believe that he understood it so to be . * * * and the same must be said of † † † bishop hall , bishop montague , and bishop bilson ; in whose expressions as they are quoted by our author , i find nothing that proves the sence he would impose upon them ; and whose works had i now by me , i might possibly be able to give some better account of them . though after all , should one of these in his violence against his adversaries , or the others in their pacifick design of reconciling all parties as to this point , have said more than they ought to do , i do not see but that it ought to have been imputed to the circumstances they were in and the designs they pursued , rather than be set up for the measure either of their own , or our churches opinion . and now i am mentioning these things , i ought not pass over one other eminent instance of such a charitable undertaking , and which has given occasion to our author of a quotation he might otherwise have wanted , in that excellent bishop of st. andrews bishop forbes ; concerning whose authority in this matter i shall offer only the censure of one , than whom none could have given a more worthy character of a person , who so well deserved it as that good bishop did ; i do not deny , but his earnest desire of a general peace and union among all christians , has made him too favourable to many of the corruptions in the church of rome : but though a charity that is not well ballanced , may carry one to very indiscreet things ; yet the principle from whence they flow'd in him , was so truly good , that the errors to which it carry'd him , ought to be either excused , or at lest to be very gently censured . there remain now but two of all the divines he has produced to prove his new fancy , which he would set up for the doctrine of the church of england ; and those as little for his purpose as any he has hitherto mentioned ; bishop taylor and mr. thorndyke . for bishop taylor , i cannot acquit our author of a wilful prevarication ; since it is evident that he has so plainly opposed his notion , and that in the very book he quotes , and which he wrote on purpose to shew our meaning of the real presence , that he could not but have known that he mis represented him . i shall set down the state of the question as it is in the beginning of that treatise . the doctrine of the church of england , and generally of the protestants in this article is ; that after the minister of the holy mysteries hath rightly pray'd and blessed or consecrated the bread and the wine ; the symbols become changed into the body and blood of christ after a sacramental , i. e. in a spiritual real manner . so that all that worthily communicate , do by faith receive christ really , effectually , to all the purposes of his passion — it is bread and it is christs body : it is bread in in substance , christ in the sacrament ; and christ is as really given to all that are truly dispos'd , as the symbols are p. . — it is here as in the other sacrament ; for as there natural water becomes the laver of regeneration ; so here bread and wine become the body and blood of christ : but there and here too the first substance is changed by grace , but remains the same in nature — we say that christs body is in the sacrament really , but spiritually . they ( the papists ) say it is there really , but spiritually . for so bellarmin is bold to say that the word may be allowed in this question . where now is the difference ? here ; by spiritually they mean present after the manner of a spirit ; by spiritually we mean present to our spirits only ; that is , so as christ is not present to any other sence but that of faith or spiritual susception — they say that christs body is truly present there , as it was upon the cross , but not after the manner of all , or any body — but we by the real spiritual presence of christ , do understand christ to be present , as the spirit of god is present in the hearts of the faithful , by blessing and grace ; and this is all we mean besides the tropical and figurative presence . such is the account which that excellent bishop here gives not only of his own , but , as he expresly terms , it of the church of england ' s , and the generality of the protestants belief in this matter . our author's dissimulation of it is so much the more inexcusable , by how much the more zealous an advocate he makes him of his cause , when all this that i have transcribed , was in the very same section , and almost in the same page with what he has cited . for his little remark upon the title of the bishops book , where he calls it of the real presence and spiritual , whence he would infer a difference between the two terms , and find something real that is not spiritual in this sacrament ; it is evident that the design of that distinction was this : there be several sorts of real presences ; the papists , the lutherans , the church of england , all allow a real presence in the sacrament , but after dif●erent manners ; it was therefore necessary to add somewhat more , to shew what kind of real presence she undertook to maintain , and he knew no word more proper to express it by than spiritual , which does not therefore imply a distinction from , but limitation of the other term real . and thus he explains it , n. . and . of that section , where he shews that the spiritual is also a real presence , and indeed more properly so than any other . in short , thus he concludes the state of the question , in the same section , on , between us and the church of rome , so that now , says he , the question is not , whether the symbols be changed into christ's body and blood or no ? for it is granted on all sides : but whether this conversion be sacramental and figurative ? or whether it be natural and bodily ? nor is it whether christ be taken really , but whether he be taken in a spiritual or in a natural manner ? we say the conversion is figurative , mysterious , and sacramental ; they say , it is proper , natural , and corporal . we affirm that christ is really taken by faith , by the spirit , to all real effects of his passion ( this is an explication a little different from our authors ) they say he is taken by the mouth , and that the spiritual and the virtual taking him in virtue or effect , is not sufficient , tho' done also in the sacrament . hic rhodus , hic saltus . if this does not yet satisfie him that he has injur'd this learned man in the representation of his opinion , directly contrary to his sense , i will offer him yet one passage more , taken from another part of his works , and which , i hope , will throughly convince him . it is in the th . letter , to a gentleman that was tempted to the communion of the church of rome . he had proposed to the bishop this question . whether , without all danger of superstition or idolatry , we may not render divine worship to our blessed saviour , as present in the blessed sacrament or host , according to his humane nature , in that host ? the question is certainly every way pertinent to our present purpose ; let us see what the answer is that he makes to it . we may not render divine worship to him as present in the blessed sacrament according to his humane nature , without danger of idolatry , because he is not there according to his humane nature , and therefore you give divine worship to a non ens , which must needs be idolatry . well , but still it may be the bishop does not intend to exclude the corpus domini , but only the corporal or natural manner of that body : let us therefore hear how he goes on . for idolum nihil est in mundo , saith st. paul , and christ as present by his humane nature in the sacrament is a no●ens . for it is not true ; there is no suchthing . what , not as christ there , no way as to his humane nature ? — no , he is saith the bishop , present there by his divine power , and his divine blessing , and the fruits of his body , the real effective consequents of his passion ; but for any other presence , it is idolum ; it is nothing in the world. adore christ in heaven ; for the heaven must contain him till the time of restitution of all things . this then is bishop taylor 's notion of the real presence : and now i am confident our author himself will remit him to the company of those old zuinglian bishops , cranmer , ridley , and the rest , who lived before that q. elizabeth had propugned the real presence of his new model into the heads of the governours of the church of england . and now i am afraid his cause will be desperate unless mr. thorndyke can support it . and how unlikely he is to do it , he might have learnt from what has been answered to t. g. on the same occasion . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ t. g. had in his first dialogue quoted the same place which our author has done since , to prove his belief of the real presence : his * * * adversary confesses this , but produces an●●her that explains his meaning ; † † † if it can any way be shew'd , says he , that the church did ever pray that the flesh and blood might be substituted instead of the elements under the accidents of them , then i am content that this be accounted henceforth the sacramental presence of them in the eucharist . but if the church only prays that the spirit of god coming down upon the elements — may make them the body and blood of christ , so that they which receive them may be filled with the grace of his spirit ; then is it not the sence of the catholick church that can oblige any man to believe the abolishing of the elements in their bodily substance , because supposing that they remain , they may nevertheless come to be the instruments of gods spirit to convey the operation thereof to them that are dispos'd to receive it , no otherwise than his flesh and blood convey'd the efficacy thereof upon earth . and that i suppose is reason enough to call it the body and blood of christ sacramentally , that is to say , as in the sacrament of the eucharist . thus mr. thorndyke expresses himself as to the real presence : but yet after all , i will not deny but that this learned person seems to have had a particular notion in this matter , and which is far enough from what our author would fix upon him . he thought that the elements by consecration were united to the godhead of christ , much after the same manner as his natural body was by incarnation ; and that so the very elements became after a sort his body . the church from the beginning did not pretend to consecrate by these bare words , this is my body , this is my blood , as operatory in changing the elements into the body and blood of christ ; but by that word of god whereby he hath declared the institution of this sacrament , and commanded the use of it ; and by the execution of this command . now it is executed , and hath always been executed by the act of the church upon god's word of institution , praying that the holy ghost coming down upon the present elements , may make them the body and blood of christ. not by changing them into the nature of flesh and blood ; as the bread and wine that nourished our lord christ on earth , became the flesh and blood of the son of god , by becoming the flesh and blood of his manhood , hypostatically united to his godhead , saith gregory nyssene . but immediately and ipso facto , by being united to the spirit of christ ; i. e. his godhead . for the flesh and blood of christ by incarnation , the elements by consecration being united to the spirit ; i. e. the godhead of christ , become both one sacramentally , by being both one with the spirit or godhead of christ , to the conveying of god's spirit to a christian. and thus have i consider'd the several divines produced for this new conceit concerning the real presence ; and shewn the greatest part of his authors to be evidently against it ; some not to have spoken so clearly that we can determine any thing concerning them ; but not one that favours what they were alledged for ; viz. to shew that they believed , christ's natural body to be both in heaven and in the sacrament ; only after another manner than the papists . it were an easie matter to shew how constant our church has been to the doctrine of the true , real , spiritual presence which it still asserts , and which it derived from its first reformers , whose words have been before set down by a cloud of other witnesses ; as may be seen by the short specimen i have put together in the * * * margent . but i have insisted too long already on this matter ; and shall therefore pass on to the third thing i proposed to consider ; viz. thirdly , that the alterations which have been made in our rubrick , were not upon the account of our divines changing their opinions , as is vainly and fasly suggested . to give a rational account of this affair , we must carefully consider the circumstances of the times , the tempers and dispositions of the persons that lived in them ; and what the designs of the governing parties were with reference to them ; and then we shall presently see both a great deal of wisdom and piety in the making of these alterations ; allowing the opinions of those who did it , to have continued , as we have seen , in all of them the same . when first this rubrick was put into king edward's liturgy , the church of england was but just rising up out of the errors and superstitions with which it had been over-run by the prevalency of popery upon it . it had the happiness to be reformed , not as most others were , by private persons , and in many places contrary to the desires of the civil power ; but by a unanimous concurrence of the highest authority both civil and ecclesiastical , of church and state. hence it came to pass , that convocations being assembled , deliberations had of the greatest and wisest persons for the proceeding in it , nothing was done out of a spirit of peevishness or opposition ; the holy scriptures and antiquity were carefully consulted ; and all things examined according to the exactest measures that could be taken from them ; and a diligent distinction made of what was popery , and what true and catholick christianity , that so the one only might be rejected , the other duly retained . now by this means it was that the ancient government of the church became preserved amongst us ; a just and wise liturgy collected out of the publick rituals : whatever ceremonies were requisite for order or decency , were retain'd ; and among the rest , that of receiving the communion kneeling for one , which has accordingly ever since been the manner establish'd amongst us . but that no occasion of scandal might hereby be given , whether to our neighbour-churches abroad , or to any particular members of our own at home : that those who were yet weak in the faith , might not either continue or fall back into error , and by our retaining the same ceremony in the communion that they had been used to in the mass , fancy that they were to adore the bread as they did before : for all these great ends this caution was inserted ; that the true intent of this ceremony was only for decency and order ; not that any adoration was thereby intended , or ought to be done unto any real or essential presence of christ's natural flesh and blood , which were not there , but in heaven , it being against the truth of christ's natural body to be at one time in more places than one. and this is sufficiently intimated in the words of the rubrick to have been the first cause and design of it . thus it continued the remainder of king edward's time : but now queen elizabeth being come to the crown , there were other circumstances to be consider'd . those of the reformed religion abroad were sufficiently satisfied , both by this publick declaration , which had stood so many years in the liturgy of our church ; and by the conversation and acquaintance of our divines , forced by the dispersion in the foregoing reign , to seek for refuge among their brethren in other countries , of our orthodox faith , as to this point . our own members at home had heard too much of this matter in the publick writings and disputations , and in the constant sufferings of their martyrs , not to know that the popish real presence was a meer figment , an idolum , as bishop taylor justly stiles it ; and their mass to be abhorred rather than adored . there was then no longer need of this rubrick upon any of those accounts for which it was first establish'd ; and there was a very just reason now to lay it aside . that great queen desired , if possible , to compose the minds of her subjects , and make up those divisions which the differences of religion , and the late unhappy consequences of them had occasion'd . for this , she made it her business to render the publick acts of the church of england as agreeable to all parties as truth would permit . the clause of the real presence inserted in the articles of her first convocation , and subscribed by all the members of it ( to shew that their belief was still the same it had ever been as to this matter ) was nevertheless , as we have seen , struck out for this end their next session . the title of head of the church , which her father had first taken , her brother continued , and was from both derived to her , so qualified and explained , as might prevent any occasion of quarrelling at it by the most captious persons . that petition in the litany inserted by king henry viii . from the tyranny of the bishop of rome , and all his detestable enormities , good lord , &c. struck out : and in conformity to what was done in the articles as to this point , this rubrick also was omitted , lest it should give offence to those who were still zealous for their mistaken principles and worship . this was the wise and christian design of that excellent princess ; and how happy an effect this moderation might have had , if the bishop of rome had not by his artifice and authority with some of her subjects , prevented it , the first years of her reign sufficiently shew . thus was the occasion and reason of its omission in q. elizabeth's time , as great as the necessity of its first insertion in king edward's . and in this state it continued all the reign of that queen , and of her two successors , king james and king charles . st , i shall not need to say by what means it was , that new occasion was given for the reviving of it . we have all of us heard , and many of us seen too much of it . how order became superstitious , and decency termed idolatry : the church of england traduced as but another name for popery ; and this custom of kneeling at the communion , one of the strongest arguments offer'd for the proof of it . and now when panick fears had found such prevalence over the minds of men , as to destroy a king , and embroil a kingdom into a civil war , of almost twenty years continuance ; and tho by the good hand of god our king and our peace were again restored , yet the minds of the people were still unsetled , and in danger of being again blown up upon the least occasion ; what could be more advisable to justifie our selves from all suspicion of popery in this matter , and induce them to a conformity with us in a ceremony they had entertain'd such a dread of , than to revive that ancient rubrick ; and so quiet the minds of the people now , by the same means by which they had been setled and secured before ? this i am perswaded is so rational an account , as will both justifie the proceedings of our governours in these changes , and shew the dis-ingenuity of those , who not only knowing , but having been told these things , will still rather impute it to an imaginary wavering , or uncertainty of opinion , than to a necessary and christian accommodation to the times . for the change in the prayer of consecration , i have already said , that 't is in the words , not the sense : and if our governours thought the present expressions less liable to exception than the former , they had certainly reason for the alteration . for the other exceptions there is very little in them , whether the minister lay his hand on the sacred elements , when he repeats the words of institution , as at this time , or only consecrates them by the prayers of the church , and the words of christ , without any other ceremony , as heretofore : whether with the church of rome we use only the words of christ in the distribution ; or with most of the reformed churches , the other expression , take and eat this , &c. or ( as we chuse rather ) joyn them both together : whether we sing the gloria in excelsis deo — before or after the receiving ; but because the chiefest mystery he thinks lies in this , that whereas in king edward's days the rubrick called it an essential presence , which we have now turned into corporeal ; i must confess i will not undertake to say what the occasion of it was ; if they thought this latter manner more free from giving offence than the other would have been , i think they did well to prefer it . let every one entertain what notion he pleases of these things ; this i have shewn is the doctrine of the church which we all subscribe , that the natural body and blood of our saviour christ are in heaven , and not here ; i. e. in the sacrament ; and if there can be any other real presence than such as i have shewn to have been the constant belief of our divines consistent with this rubrick , i shall no more desire to debar any one the belief of it , than i shall be willing to be obliged to believe it with him . and now after so clear an account as i have here given of the several changes that have been made in our rubrick , were i minded to recriminate , and tell the world what alterations have been made in their mass , & those in points infinitely more material than any thing that can be alledged against us , i much question whether they would be able to give us so good an account of it . and something of this i may perhaps offer as a specimen of the wisdom of this author in the choice of his accusation before we part ; in the mean time i go on to the last thing proposed to be here consider'd . thly . that the reason mention'd in our rubrick concerning the impossibility of christs natural body's existing in several places at the same time , is no way invalidated by any of this authors exceptions against it . now these being most of them founded upon the former mistaken notion of the real presence falsely imputed to us , will admit of a very short and plain consideration . st . he observes that protestants , but especially our english divines generally confess the presence of our saviour in the eucharist to be an ineffable mystery . well , be it so ; what will he hence infer ? why this he conceives is said to be so in respect of something in it opposite and contradictory to , and therefore incomprehensible and ineffable by humane reason . but supposing they should not think it so from being opposite and contradictory to , but because the manner how christ herein communicates himself to us is hid from , and above our humane reason ; might not this be sufficient to make it still be called an ineffable , and incomprehensible mystery ? whereas the other would make it rather plain and comprehensible nonsence . 't is a strange affection that some men have got of late for contradictions ; they are so in love with them , that they have almost brought it to be the definition of a mystery , to be the revelation of something to be believ'd in opposition to sense and reason . and what by their notions and parallels , have advanced no very commendable character of christianity ; as if it were a religion full of absurdities ; and as fisher the jesuit once told king james st . with reference to this very subject , the rather to be believed because it is contrary to reason . but if this be indeed our authors notion of mysteries ( and the truth is transubstantiation can be no other mystery ) we desire he will be pleased to confine it to his own church , and not send it abroad into the world as ours too . we are perswaded , not only that our worship must be a reasonable service , but our faith a reasonable assent . he who opposes the authority of holy scriptures , says bishop taylor , against manifest and certain reason , do's neither understand himself nor them . reason is the voice of god as well as revelation , and what is opposite to the one , can no more be agreeable to the other , than god can be contrary to himself . and though , if the revelation be clear and evident , we submit to it , because we are then sure it cannot be contrary to reason , whatever it may appear to us ; yet when the contradiction is manifest , as that a natural body should be in more places than one at the same time , we are sure that interpretation of holy scripture can never be the right which would infer this , but especially when there is another , and much more reasonable , that do's not . and in this we are after all justified by one whose authority i hope our author will not question , even his own self ; if , says he , we are certain there is a contradiction , then we are certain there neither is nor can be a contrary revelation ; and when any revelation , tho' never so plain , is brought ; we are bound to interpret it so , as not to affirm a certainly known impossibility . and let him that sticks to this rule , interpret christs words for transubstantiation if he can . but do not our own authors sometimes say , that notwithstanding all the difficulties brought against transubstantiation , yet if it can be shewn that god has revealed it , they are ready to believe it ? perhaps some may have said this , because for that very reason that there are so many contradictions in it , they are sure it cannot be shewn that god has revealed it . but if he means , as he seems to insinuate , that notwithstanding such plain contradictions as they charge it with , they thought it possible nevertheless , that god might have revealed it , and upon that supposition , they were ready to believe it ; i answer from his own words , that their supposa● then was absurd and impossible ; since he himself assure us , that none can believe a thing true , upon what motive soever , which he first knows to be certainly false , or which is all one , certainly to contradict . for these we say are not verifyable by a divine power ; and ergo , here i may say , should a divine power declare a truth , it would transcend its self . which last words if they signifie any thing and do not transcend sense , must suppose it impossible for such a thing as implies a certain contradiction , to be revealed . ii. observation , but our author goes on , i conceive that any one thing that seemeth to us to include a perfect contradiction , can no more be effected by divine power than another , or than many others the like may . seeing then we admit that some seeming contradictions to reason may be verified by the divine power in this sacrament , there is no reason to deny but that this may be also as well as any other . now not to contend with him about words ; whoever told our author , that we allow'd that there was any thing in this sacrament , as received by us , that seemed to us to include a perfect contradiction ? perfect contradictions we confess are all of them equally verifyable by a divine power , that is , are all of them impossible . and for this we have his own word before . now if there be any such things as perfect contradictions to be known by us , that which seems to us to be a perfect contradiction , must really be a perfect contradiction ; unless contradictions are to be discover'd some other way than by seeming to our reason to be so . and such it not only seems , but undoubtedly is , for the same one , natural , finite body , to be in more places than one at the same time ; if to be and not to be , be still the measure of contradictions . he that says of such a body , that it is in heaven and on earth , at london and rome , at the same time , says in effect that 't is one and not one ; finite and not finite ; in one place and not in one place , &c. all which are such seemingly perfect contradictions , that i fear 't will be a hard matter to find out any power by which they can be verify'd . iii. observation , he observes thirdly ; that those who affirm a real and substantial presence of the very body of christ to the worthy communicant , contradistinct to any such other real presence of christs body , as implies only a presence of it in virtue , and spiritual effects , &c. must hold this particular seeming contradiction to be true , or some other equivalent to it . if by the real presence of the very body of christ , he means , as he before explains it , that christ's natural body , that very body which is now in heaven , should be also at the same time here upon earth ; it is , i think , necessary for those who will affirm this , to hold some such kind of contradiction , as he says : and 't is for that very reason , i am perswaded , he will find but few such persons in the church of england ; which so expresly declares , that christ's natural body is in heaven , and not here , upon this very account , that it is contrary to the truth of a natural body to be in more places than one at the same time . however , if any such there be , as they herein depart from the doctrine of their church , so it is not our concern to answer for their contradictions . iv. he observes , lastly : it seems to me that some of the more judicious amongst them ( the divines he means of the church of england ) have not laid so great a weight on this philosophical position , as wholly to support and regulate their faith in this matter by it ; as it stands in opposition not only to nature's , but the divine power : because they pretend not any such certainty thereof , but that if any divine revelation of the contrary can be shewed , they profess a readiness to believe it . i shall not now trouble my self with what some of our divines may seem to him to have done in this matter ; 't is evident our church has laid stress enough upon this contradiction . indeed where so many gross repugnancies both to sense and reason are crowded together , as we have seen before there are in this point , it ought not to be wondered if our divines have not supported and regulated their faith wholly upon this one alone . we do not any of us think it either safe or pious to be too nice in determining what god can , or cannot do ; we leave that to the bold inquisitiveness of their schools . but this we think we may say , that if there are any unalterable laws of nature , by which we are to judg of these things ; then god can no more make one body to exist in ten thousand places at the same time , than he can make one , continuing one , to be ten thousand , than he can divide the same thing from its self , and yet continue it still undivided . and if any of our divines have said , that they cannot admit that one body can be in several places at once , till the papists can demonstrate the possibility thereof by testimony of holy scripture , or the ancient tradition of the primitive church , or by apparent reason . we need not suppose that they said this , doubting whether it implied a contradiction , but because the certainty of the contradiction secured them against the possibility of any such proof . * * * and now i know but one objection more that is , or can be offered against what i have said , and which having answered , i shall close this point : for if this be all the church of england understands , when it speakes of a real presence , viz. a real sacramental presence of christ's body and blood in the holy signs , and a real spiritual presence in the inward communion of them to the soul of every worthy receiver ; will not this precipitate us into downright ‖ ‖ ‖ zuinglianism , and render us after all our pretences as very sacramentaries as they ? indeed , i am not able directly to say whether it will or no , because i find the opinion of zuinglius very variously represented as to this matter . but yet , first , if by zuinglianism he means that which is more properly * * * socinianism , viz. a meer commemoration of christ's death , and a thaksgiving to god for it ; 't is evident it does not , forasmuch as we positively confess , that in this holy sacrament , there is a real and spiritual grace communicated to us , even all the benefits of that death and passion which we there set forth . and this , or somewhat very like it , i find sometimes to have been maintained by † † † zuinglius . but now , secondly , if by zuinglianism he understands such a real presence , as denies only the coexistence of christ's natural body now in heaven , at the same time in this holy sacrament , but denies nothing of that real and spiritual * * * communion , of it we have before mentioned ; this is indeed our doctrine , nor shall we be ashamed to own it for any ill names he is able to put upon it . but yet i wonder why he should call this zuinglianism ; since if the common name of catholick , or christian doctrine , be not sufficient , he might have found out a more ancient abettor of this real presence , than zuinglius , and the truth is , one of the most dangerous opposers both of their head and their faith that ever was ; i mean st. paul , who has not only clearly , express'd himself against them , as to this point of the eucharist , cor. x. . but in most of their other errors left such pernicious savings to the world , as all their authority and infallibility , let me add , nor all their anathema's neither , will not be able to overcome . i shall close up this discourse of the real presence acknowledged by us in this holy sacrament , with a plain familiar example , and which may serve at once both to illustrate , and confirm the propriety of it . a father makes his last will , and by it bequeaths his estate and all the profits of it to his child . he delivers it into the hands of his son , and bids him take there his house and lands , which by this his last will he delivers to him . the son in this case receives nothing but a roll of parchment , with a seal tied to it from his father ; but yet by virtue of this parchment he is intituled to his estate , performing the conditions of his will , and to all the benefits and advantages of it : and in that deed he truly and effectually received the very house and lands that were thereby conveyed to him . our saviour christ in like manner , being now about to leave the world , gives this holy sacrament , as his final bequest to us ; in it he conveys to us a right to his body and blood , and to all the spiritual blessings and graces that proceed from them . so that as often as we receive this holy eucharist , as we ought to do , we receive indeed nothing but a little bread and wine into our hands ; but by the blessing and promise of christ , we by that bread and wine , as really and truly become partakers of christ's body and blood , as the son by the will of his father was made inheritor of his estate : nor is it any more necessary for this , that christ's body should come down from heaven , or the outward elements which we receive , be substantially turned into it , than it is necessary in that other case , that the very houses and lands should be given into the hands of the son to make a real delivery or conveyance of them ; or the will of the father be truly and properly changed into the very nature and substance of them . part ii. chapter iii. of the adoration of the host , as prescribed and practised in the church of rome . we are now arrived at the last part of this discourse ; in which i must thus far change the method i pursued in the other subject , as to consider , first , what the doctrine of the church of england as to this point is ; and what our adversaries exceptions against it are . secondly , what is the doctrine of the church of rome ; and whether what this author has said in favour of it , may be sufficient to warrant their practice as to this matter . for the former of these , the doctrine of the church of england , we shall need go no farther than the rubrick we have before-mention'd ; wherein it is expresly declared , with reference to this holy sacrament , that no adoration is intended , or ought to be done , either to the sacramental bread and wine there bodily received , or to any corporal presence of christ's body and blood : for that the sacramental bread and wine remain still in their very natural substances , and therefore may not be adored , ( for that were idolatry to be abhorred of all faithful christians ) and the natural body and blood of our saviour christ , are in heaven and not here ; it being against the truth of christ's natural body , to be at one time in more places than one. this then being sufficiently cleared , let us see what this author has to observe against it . . he supposes that we will grant , that if there were a corporal presence of christ's natural body in this holy sacrament , then kneeling and adoration would be here also due upon such an account . he means , that were christ himself here in his body actually present , he ought to be adored ; and this he need not doubt of our readiness to grant . . tho the corporeal presence of christ's body , i. e. of its being there ad modum corporis , or clothed with the ordinary properties of a body , be deny'd ; as it is , not only by the english divines , but by the lutheran and roman : yet let there be any other manner of presence ( known from divine revelation ) of the very same body and blood ; and this as real and essential , as if corporeal ; and then i do not see but that adoration will be no less due to it thus , than so , present . now to this i shall at present only say , that the supposition being absurd , do's not admit of a rational consideration . those who deny a bodily presence of christ's body in the eucharist , and ask whether adoration may not be paid to his body , which is confess'd not to be bodily present there , supposing it to be there some other way ; ought to have no other satisfaction than this , that they suppose an impossibility , a thing which cannot be ; and therefore concerning which no reasonable answer can be given . some i know have been more free , and allowing for the unreasonableness of the supposal , have resolved contrary to our author : but i think it very needless to dispute of the affections of a chimera ; and wrangle about notions that have neither use nor existence . . he observes , lastly , that the church of england hath believed and affirmed such a presence ( he means of christ's body in the eucharist ) to which they thought adoration due . i presume it was then in the times of popery ; for since the reformation , i have shewn before , that she has always held the contrary . but our author will prove it , and that since the reformation ; for , he says , he has in his time met with no less than five of our writers , and those of no mean account neither , that have been of this opinion . this indeed is a very notable way of proving the doctrine of our church : but what now if i should bring him fifteen others that have deny'd it ; then i hope the doctrine of the church of england may be as fair for the contrary . but we will examine his evidence . first ; bishop andrews , he says , declares , that tho we adore not the sacrament , yet we adore christ in and with the sacrament , besides and without the sacrament : and assures the world , that k. james looked upon christ to be truly present , and truly to be adored in it . how this bishop thought christ truly present in the sacrament we have seen before ; and may from thence easily conclude how he supposed he might be adored there : viz. as in all other holy offices , in which we confess him by his divine power to be present with us , but especially in this sacred mystery . and thus we all adore him , both in and with , and without the sacrament ; we confess him to be truly present , and therefore truly to be adored by us . but now for christ's natural body , ( of which , and not of christ himself , our dispute is ) if that be any otherwise truly present than as we before shew'd , let it be remembred , that according to this bishop , it must not be his glorified body , his body as it now is ; but his body crucified , his body as offer'd for us , and in the state of his death ; so he expresly affirms ; and this i believe our author himself will confess in his sense to be impossible . his next witness is bishop taylor : we worship , he means , says this author , the body , or the flesh of christ [ in the eucharist ] . but is he sure the bishop meant so ? if he be , i am sure the bishop thought we all of us committed idolatry in so doing . for being consulted , as we have seen above , whether without all danger of idolatry we may not render divine worship to our blessed saviour as present in the blessed sacrament or host , according to his humane nature in that host ? he expresly declares , we may not render divine worship to him as present in the blessed . sacrament , according to his humane nature , without danger of idolatry , because he is not there according to his humane nature ; and therefore you give divine worship to a non ens , which must needs be idotry . and indeed this our author knew very well was his opinion , who himself in his next treatise , cites the xiiith section of his real presence , which was written on purpose to prove the unlawfulness of worshipping christ's body in this sacrament . but dissimulation of other mens opinions in matter of religion , is perhaps as lawful on some occasions , as if it were their own : and why may not an author prevaricate the doctrine of his adversary in defence of the catholick faith , since i have read of a * * * protestant minister , who in the troubles of france being brought over to the king's interest , was secretly reconciled to the church of rome , and permitted so far to dissemble his own opinion , as not only to continue in the outward profession of the protestant religion , but even to exercise the functions of his ministry as before ; and that by the express leave of his holiness , for three whole years , the better to carry on the catholick cause in betraying the secrets , and managing the debates of his brethren . as for bishop forbes , and the arch-bishop of spalatto , it is not to be wondred if men that had entertained the design of reconciling all parties , were forced to strain sometimes a little farther than was fit for the doing of it . and for mr. thorndyke , we have seen that his notion of the real presence was particular , and widely different both from theirs and ours ; and therefore that we are not to answer for the consequences of it . but however , to quit these just exceptions against them : will he himself allow every thing to be the doctrine or not of the church of rome , which i shall bring him three of their authors to affirm or deny ? if he will , then transubstantiation is not their doctrine , for i have already quoted above twice three of their most learned men against it . to adore an unconsecrated host by mistake , is idolatry ; for so s. thomas , paludanus , catharine , and others , assure us : to worship the host , supposing their doctrine of transubstantiation false , a worser idolatry than any heathens were ever guilty of ; so several of their writers confess . but now if our author will not allow this to be good arguing against them , with what reason do's he go about to urge it against us ? secondly ; we must in the next place consider what the doctrine of the church of rome as to this point is ; and whether what this author has advanced in favour of it , may be sufficient to warrant their practice of this adoration . for the doctrine of the church of rome , i find it thus clearly set down by the council of trent : there can be no doubt , but that all the faithful of christ , after the manner that has ever been received in the catholick church , ought to give that supreme worship which is due to the true god , to his holy sacrament . for it is nevertheless to be adored , because it was instituted by our lord christ that it might be received ; foras much as we believe the same god to be present in it , of whom the eternal father when he brought him into the world , said , and let all the angels of god worship him . that therefore , according to this council is to be worshipped , which christ instituted to be received ; and in which they believe christ to be present : but 't is no other than the holy sacrament , as these trent-fathers here expresly and properly stile it ; which we all confess christ instituted to be received , and in which they suppose christ to be present : and therefore 't is the sacrament which is to be adored . which reasoning i find card. pallavicini thus improving in his history of this council : it is well known , says he , that to make a whole adorable with the supreme adoration , it is sufficient that one part of that whole merits such a worship . this he illustrates in the example of christs humanity ; and thence concludes , how then ought we not in like manner to adore this sacrament which is a whole , that contains as its principal part the body of christ ? it is therefore , as i conceive , the undoubted doctrine of the church of rome , that the holy sacrament of the eucharist , for the reason here given , is to be adored , with that supreme adoration that is due to the true god. now to warrant their practice in this matter , our author thus proceeds in proof of it : i. he premises some propositions , which he calls , protestant concessions . ii. some others , which he stiles , catholick assertions . and then , iii. goes on to shew what warrant they have for that belief on which this adoration is founded . i shall distinctly follow him in every one of these . in his first part , which he calls , protestant concessions , i will go on with him thus far : st . * * * that supreme and divine adoration is due to our lord and saviour jesus christ. dly , that where-ever the body of our lord now is , there must also his whole person be . and therefore , dly , ‖ ‖ ‖ that where-ever christ's body is truly and really present , there his divine person is supremely adorable . but now for his next assertion ; * * * that it is affirmed by many protestants , especially those of the church of england , that this body and blood of our lord is really present , not only in virtue , but in substance in the eucharist . † † † if he means , as in his former treatise he explain'd himself , that the very natural body of christ , that body that was born of the virgin , and crucified on the cross , and is now in heaven , is also as to its substance truly and really present on earth in the holy eucharist , or to the worthy receiver : i have in the foregoing chapter fully shewn this new fancy to be neither the doctrine of the church of england , nor the opinion of those very writers whom he produces for proof of it . and as to the ‖ ‖ ‖ adoration of it upon any such account , i have just now declared his mistake of them in that point too . and i shall not follow our author 's ill example in repeating it all over again . for his * * * fifth remark , that the lutherans affirm that christ's body and blood are present , not only to the worthy communicants , but to the consecrated symbols , and whilst so present , which is during the action of the lord's supper ( i. e. says he , as i conceive them from the consecration , till the end of the communion ) are to be adored . i answer ; first , as to the former part , it is confess'd that the lutherans do indeed suppose christ to be present , not only to the worthy communicants , but also to the consecrated symbols . but now , secondly , for the other part , that during the action of the lord's supper , he is to be adored there ; this is not so certain . for , . i do not find any thing establish'd amongst them as to this matter , neither in the confession of auxpourg , nor in any other publick acts of their church . . i find several of their divines utterly denying , that christ's body is to be adored in the holy sacrament ; and our * * * author himself confesses it . tho now , . † † † i will not deny but that some others of them do allow , if not that christ's body , yet that christ himself is to be adored after a peculiar manner in the action of the lord's supper ; and as far as i conceive , do by the action mean , as our author here represents it , from the consecration to the end of the communion . so that then , with this limitation , his proposition i presume may be admitted ; that the lutherans do acknowledg , that christ is present during the action of the lord's supper ; and therefore it is by several of them supposed , that he ought to be adored in it . as to the sixth and last concession , which he draws from monsieur daille's apologie , that tho we do not our selves belive the real presence of christ ' s body in the signs , yet neither do we esteem the belief of it so criminal , as to oblige us to break off communion with all those that hold it ; and therefore , that had the roman church no other error but this , that it would not have given us any sufficient cause of separation from it ; we are ready to admit it ; always supposing that the belief of it had not been press'd upon us neither , as a necessary article of communion ; nor any anathema pronounced against us for not receiving it . and for the other part of it which he subjoyns , that a disciple giving divine honour , upon mistake , to another person , much resembling our saviour christ , would have been no idolater ; from whence he would infer , that therefore allowing a consecrated host to be truly adorable , a person that should by mistake adore an unconsecrated one , would not be guilty of idolatry . we are content to allow it ; tho what use he can make of it in this controversy , unless against his own brethren , s. thomas , paludanus , and others , i do not understand ; since he knows we utterly deny any host , consecrated or not , to be fit to be worshipped . and this may serve for his first foundation of protestant concessions , ; which were they every one as certain as his first is , that christ is to be adored , i cannot see what his cause would gain by it ; and he has not by any application of them in this treatise , given us the least reason to think that they are of any moment in it . but some men have a peculiar faculty of amusing the world with nothing : and i remember , i once heard a judicious and modest man give this character of an author much resembling ours , with reference to his guide in controversy , that for a book which carried a great appearance of reasoning , it had the least in it of any he ever met with . but i go on , ii. to his catholick assertions . and first : catholicks ( as he calls them ) affirm in the eucharist after the consecration , a sign , or symbol to remain still distinct , and having a divers existence from that of the thing signified , or from christ's body contained in or under it . this 't is true the papists , or if you please , the catholicks do affirm ; because that otherwise they could not call it a sacrament . but now , if we enquire what that which they call a sign , or a symbol in this holy sacrament is , we shall find it to be neither such as our blessed saviour establish'd , nor indeed any thing that can in propriety of speech be so termed . for our saviour christ , 't is evident that the symbols instituted by him , were bread and wine : they were these that he took and blessed , and gave to his disciples ; and commanded them also in like manner to take , and bless , and give to others in remembrance of him ; and as the symbols of his body and blood in this holy eucharist . but now for the papists ; they destroy the bread and the wine ; they leave only a few aiery , empty species , that is , appearances of something , but which are really nothing , have no substance to support them . the symbols establish'd by christ were festival symbols , a matter apt for our corporal nourishment ; so signify to us , that as by them , viz. by bread and wine , our bodies are nourished to a corporal life ; so by the body and blood of christ , which they both represent and communicate to us , our souls are fed to life everlasting . but for that which hath no substance , i. e. nothing which can be converted into our bodily nourishment ; how that can be a symbol of this spiritual food , i do not very well understand . indeed our author tells us , that tho after consecration , the substance of the bread and wine is deny'd to remain , yet is substance here taken in such a sense , as that neither the hardness , nor the softness , nor the frangibility , nor the savour , nor the odour , nor the nutritive virtue of the bread , nor nothing visible or tangible , or otherwise perceptible by any sense , is involved in it : that is to say , that the symbol or external sign then in this eucharist , is according to them , a hard , soft , frangible , gustible , odoriferous , nutritive , visible , tangible , perceptible nothing . verily a fit external species indeed to contain , a one , manifold ; visible , invisible ; extended , unextended ; local , illocal ; absent , present ; natural , supernatural ; corporal , spiritual body . secondly ; concerning the adoration of the sacrament , he tells us , that this word sacrament , is not to be taken always in the same sense ; but sometimes to be used to signify only the external sign , or symbols ; sometimes only the res sacramenti , or the thing contain'd under them , which is the more principal part thereof . this indeed is a sort of new divinity . i always thought hitherto , that when we talked of a sacrament , properly so called , we had meant an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace : and that this particular sacrament had been a whole composed of the external species , ( whatever they are ) as the sign ; and the body and blood of christ as the inward part , or thing signified . thus i am sure the catechism of the council of trent instructs us . first , for the name ; it tells us , that the latin doctors have thought that certain signs , subjected to the senses , which declare , and as it were set before the eyes , the grace which they effect , may fitly be called sacraments . and for the nature of them , thus it defines a sacrament from s. austin , it is the sign of a holy thing ; or more fully , as i before said ; a visible sign of an invisible grace , instituted for our justification . so that neither then symbols alone , nor the invisible part , or grace alone , can with any manner of propriety be called a sacrament ; but the sign referr'd to the grace ; and as it is the symbol instituted by christ for the conferring of it . this therefore can with no good reason be called a catholick assertion ; being neither general nor true : but however , since he seems content to allow it to be an impropriety of speech , and that , i confess , the * * * catechism of the council of trent does lead him into it ; let us see what use he can make of it . † † † and as protestants much press , so catholicks ( roman catholicks ) willingly acknowledg a great difference between these two , the worshipping of the sacrament , as this word is taken for the symbols ; and the worshipping of christ's body in the sacrament . there is , no doubt , a great difference between these two : but then they who tell us , the sacrament is to be adored , if they will speak rationally , must mean neither the one nor other of these , but the host ; that is , as card. pallavicini expounds it , the whole , of which christ's body is a part ; in the language of the council of trent ; the sacrament in which they believe christ to be present , and for that cause adore it ; as the cardinal again argues ; * * * that , to make a whole adorable , it is sufficient that one part be so ; and therefore since the body of christ is adorable , the sacrament for its sake is to be worshipped . it is therefore a meer shift to tell us that the sacrament is to be adored ; i. e. christ's body in the sacrament . nor will the remark of our author help us out , that tho the chapter indeed calls it the sacrament in which is christ's body , yet the canon speaks more precisely , and calls it christ in the sacrament ; unless he supposes the council to have been infallible in the canons only , and not in the chapters ; as some have thought , that they may be out in their proofs , but cannot be in their conclusions . but however , since he so much desires it , for my part i shall be content to allow them this too ; for i should be glad by any means to see them sensible of their errors . but yet so as that it be esteem'd only a private opinion this , not a catholick assertion . thirdly ; catholicks , he means the papists still , ground their adoration , not upon transubstantiation ; as if transubstantiation defeated , adoration is so too ; but on a real presence with the symbols , which in general is agreed on by the lutherans together with them . by which assertion , if he means only to make this discovery , that christ's real presence , together with the substance of the bread and wine , is in his opinion as good a ground for adoration , as if he were there only with the species of the bread , the substance being changed into his body ; i have no more to say to it . but if he would hereby make us believe , that 't is all one whether christ be adored , as supposed here by the lutherans in this holy eucharist , and as imagined there by the papists ; i must then deny his assertion ; and desire him to keep home to his own manner of real presence , and which i shall presently convince him , will leave them in a much worse condition than their neighbours , whom he would draw into the same snare with them . and therefore , whereas he concludes , fourthly ; that supposing transubstantiation to be an error , yet if the tenent of corporal or real presence ( as held by the lutherans , or others ) be true ; catholicks ( he would say papists ) plead their adoration , is no way frustrated , but still warrantable : i must tell him , that the adoration of those among the lutherans , who worship christ in this sacrament upon the account of his real presence in , or with the bread , tho it be an error , yet is infinitely more excusable than theirs , who suppose the bread to be turned into christ's body ; and because it may not be thought that i speak this out of any prejudice against them , i will here offer my reasons for it . st , they that adore christ as really present , together with the bread , do no violence to their senses : they confess , that what they see , and taste , and feel , and smell , is really bread and wine . whilst the papist in denying the bread and wine to remain ; or that what he sees , and feels , and smells , and tastes , is what all the world perceives and knows it is , contradicts his senses , and in them the law of nature , that means which god has given us to direct and lead us into the search of truth ; and by consequence errs against infinitely greater means of conviction , and so is more inexcusable than the other . dly ; they who worship christ , as supposing him to be together with the bread in this holy eucharist , are erroneous indeed in this , that they take christ's body to be where really it is not ; but yet their object is undoubtedly right , and in that they are not mistaken . but now for the papist ; he adores , 't is confess'd , what he thinks to be christ's body ; and would not otherwise adore it : but yet still 't is the host that he adores , the substance that is under those species which he sees ; and which if it be not christ , but meer substance of bread , the case is vastly alter'd between the lutheran and him. the former adores christ , only as in a place where he is not ; the latter not only do's this , but moreover adores a substance for christ which is not his body and blood , but a meer creature of bread and wine . monsieur daille therefore might rightly enough say of a lutheran , that his adoration is mistaken , not in this — that it addresseth it self to an object not adorable , but only that by error it seeks and thinks to enjoy it in a place where it is not ; and so becomes only vain and unprofitable : and yet our author has no manner of reason from thence to pretend , that a papist who terminates his adoration upon a substance which really is not christ's body , but only mistaken by him to be so , shall be in the same condition : there being an apparently vast difference between worshipping christ in a place where he is not , and worshipping that for christ which really is not christ , but only a created substance . and this in truth our author seems to have been sensible of , and therefore thinks to evade it , by saying , that they do not worship the substance that is in that place , under such accidents whatever it be , ( which if bread should happen to be there , he confesses would make them bread-worshippers ) but they worship it only upon supposition that it is christ's body , and not bread. well , be this so : but what now if they are mistaken in their supposition : they worship , he confesses , the substance-that is under those accidents , supposing it to be christ's body ; but still , mistaken or not , that substance which is under those species , whatever it be , they do worship : and if they have , as he thinks , a rational ground for this supposition , which we shall see by and by , yet this will only excuse them from being formal idolaters ; but will not hinder but that their worship is still directed to an undue object , if that which is under the species be indeed but bread , and not christ's body as they imagine . and this then may serve to argue the falseness of what he lays down as his fifth , catholick assertion : that supposing both the lutherans and papists mistaken in their opinion , yet there can be no pretence why the one should not be as excusable as the others . since as i have said ; st , they err more grosly in abandoning the conviction of their senses , which the lutherans do not ; dly , they worship a substance for christ , which really is not : to which if this be not enough , i will add yet two other reasons : dly , that they make the consecration , without which christ is not present upon their own principles , to depend on such uncertainties ( as i shall more fully shew anon ) that they can never be sure that christ is there , which the lutherans are free from : and lastly ; they anathematize those who dissent from them as to this point , and so make a schism in dividing the unity of the church , which the lutherans are so far from doing , that they neither establish any doctrine of adoration at all , nay many of them do not believe it ; and upon occasion , freely communicate with those who dissent from them in their belief , both of their way of the real presence , and of the adoration . and for the same reason i cannot totally assent to his sixth assertion : that supposing there be no such real presence as either of them believes , yet that their adoration of christ , who is a true object of supreme adoration , and only by them mistaken to be in some place where he is not , cannot be termed any such idolatry , as is the worshipping of an object not at all adorable . this as to what concerns those of the lutherans who adore christ in the sacrament , is true : but for the papist it is not . he intends , i allow it , to worship christ , but he mistakes an object for christ , which is only a piece of bread. he worships his host , supposing it to be our saviour's body , but his error is gross , and he not only mistakes christ to be in a place where he is not , but he mistakes that to be christ which indeed is not , but only a simple wafer . his worship therefore is not like the manichees worshipping of christ in the sun ; but rather as if the manichee should , from some mistaken grounds , have fancy'd the sun it self to be turned into christ's body ; and then in defiance of all scripture , sense , and reason , should have fallen down before it ; but with a good intention not to adore the sun , but the body of our blessed lord under the species or accidents of the sun. this is the true parallel ; only that herein still the manichee would have been the more excusable of the two , by how much the sun is a more likely object to be mistaken for christ's glorified body than a morsel of bread ; and less capable of being discovered by our senses and examination not to be so . it remains then , that these lutherans only adore christ where he is not ; the papists not only do this , but more-over they adore that for christ which really is not , but a meer created substance . both the one and the other are erroneous ; but the papist's mistake , renders him at the least guilty of material idolatry , whereas the lutherans is only an undue application of his worship as to the place , but right as to the person . let us see , seventhly ; how far their mistake will excuse them , in answer to his seventh assertion : that however a manichaean may be guilty of idolatry for worshipping christ in the sun ; and an israelite for worshipping god as specially resident in the calves of dan and bethel , because it is adoring a fancy of their own , without any rational ground or pretence thereof ; and however meerly a good intention , grounded upon a culpable ignorance , can excuse none from idolatry , or any other fault ; yet if catholicks , ( i. e. the pretended roman catholicks ) can produce a rational ground of their apprehending christ present in the eucharist , tho possibly mistaken in it , they are to be exexcused from idolatry . which proposal is so just , that i am very willing to allow it ; and shall be heartily glad that the grounds of their mistake may in the end prove to have been so reasonable as to excuse them . but then it must be remembred too , that he confesses if these grounds be not reasonable , but as he says of the manichees , their adoring of the host be indeed an adoring a fancy of their own without any rational ground ; so that their ignorance in this matter is culpable , then by their own allowance they are idolaters . this therefore brings me to the last thing to be enquired into . iii. what grounds they have for this adoration ? and whether they be such as , should they be mistaken in it , will be sufficient to excuse them ? and thus after a great deal of preamble , but very little to the purpose , we are at last come to the main question . i have already so largely shewn our reasons against transubstantiation , or that real presence on which this adoration is built , that i shall not need to insist here . yet because the stress of this controversy depends principally on ●his last part , i will , st , examine the strength of those grounds which this author has offer'd , to warrant their adoration . dly , i will propose an argument or two upon their own allowed principles against it . but before we proceed to these points , we must vet have one touch more upon the old string : for the lutherans , he says , being allow'd to have such a plausible ground or motive for their adoration , whereby they become absolved by other protestants from idolatry , in adoring our lord as present there , i see not why the grounds of roman catholicks should be any whit less valued than theirs . in answer to which , the reader may please to remember , that i have before said , that we do not excuse those lutherans who do this so much upon this principle , that they have a more plausible ground or motive for their adoration ; but for this rather , that confessing the substance of the bread to remain , they do not mistake their object , but pay their adoration indeed to christ , only supposing him to be there where in truth he is not . but , dly , this author is very much mistaken if he thinks the lutherans have no better a foundation for their real presence than the papists . indeed , were the difference no greater than between a con and a trans , it would , i confess , be hardly worth the while to contend about it . but when we come to the point it self , we may observe these four advantages , among many others of the lutherans side . . they confess for the outward elements , that they are really what they appear to be , bread and wine ; and so they do no violence to their senses ; which , as i have said , is a great aggravation against the papists . . by this means they are at no defiance with all those texts of scripture where they are so often called bread and wine after consecration : all which the papist contradicts , but the lutheran does not . . from the words of christ , this is my body ; we all of us confess may be inferr'd , that christ's body is in this holy sacrament : but whence do's the papist infer the destruction of the substance of the bread ; so that what is taken , and blessed , and given , is not bread , but christ's body under the appearance of bread ? this is an error which i am sure the text gives no manner of colour to ; and therefore our author cannot with any reason pretend , as he do's , whether we consult the text of holy scripture , or our own senses , that they have as good grounds for their real presence , as the lutherans have for theirs . to all which let me add , thly , that by transubstantiation they destroy the very nature of a sacrament , by leaving no true external sign or symbol , and which is another unanswerable argument against them , whilst the lutherans acknowledging the substance of the bread to remain , do not destroy at all the nature of this sacrament , but retain the same sign which our blessed lord established , and so have no objection on this side neither to convict them . but yet notwithstanding all this , do not some of our writers confess , that the papists interpretation is more rational than the lutherans ? i answer ; what certain protestants may have said in zeal for their own opinions , and in particular hospinian upon the account of his master zuinglius , i cannot tell : but sure i am , we are not bound to answer for all that any protestant author has said . and if these reasons i have here given for the contrary are valid , they ought to be more regarded , than the ungrounded assertions of a sacramentary historian . well , but still the papist do's not ground his adoration upon transubstantiation , but on corporal presence ; and so they must both be excused , or neither . this is a fetch to very little purpose : for let me ask this author ; he confesses he founds his adoration upon the corporal presence : do's he believe the corporal presence in the way of transubstantiation exclusive to all others , or no ? if he do's , then 't is evident that the corporal presence and transubstantiation , must with him stand or fall together ; and so if he adores on the account of the corporal presence , he do's it upon the account of transubstantiation . if he do's not believe this , 't is plain he is no papist , nor submits to the authority of the church of rome , which has defined the corporal presence to be after this particular manner , exclusive to all others , and anathematized all that dare to deny it . laying aside therefore this comparison , and which in truth will do them but very little kindness : let us view more particularly what rational grounds they have to exhibit for this their belief of their corporal presence of christ in the eucharist , and of the adoration of him upon that account . i. ground : and the first is divine revelation : for which our author offers the two usual instances , of the words of institution , and the th chapter of s. john ; both which therefore i have at large discoursed on above , and i believe sufficiently shewn how false a foundation these are of this belief . but yet since our author reminds us ; * * * that against these no argument taken from our senses or reason is valid : i will beg leave to remind him of his own assertion too , * * * that none can believe a thing true upon what motive soever , that he knows certainly to be false , or which is all one , certainly to contradict — so that if our reason then makes us certain of such a contradiction , we may be certain that there neither is nor can be a contrary revelation ; and when any revelation , tho never so plain , is brought , we are bound to interpret it so , as not to affirm a certainly known impossibility . from which principle it seems to me to follow , that were hoc est corpus meum , as evident a proof of transubstantiation , as their own authors confess it is not ; yet if our sense and reason tell us that there are certain contradictions against the common principles of nature , and the universal sentiments of all mankind , no otherwise to be avoided but by taking those words in the sense in which we do ; we are then bound to interpret them so , as to avoid these impossibilities . and this i am confident i have at large shewn above to be the case , and thither i refer the reader . ii. ground . their second ground is founded upon the authority of those councils that have determined this matter ; the declaration , as he calls it , of the most supreme and universal church-authority that hath been assembled in former times for the decision of this controversy , long before the birth of protestantism . these are great words indeed ; but i wonder who ever heard before that a few miserable * * * synods of particular prelats , such as are all those to which he refers us , assembled against berengarius , were the most supream and universal church-authority . for his little reflection , that they were assembled long before the birth of protestantism , i must tell him , i doubt he is mistaken . the religion of protestants , like that of papists , is composs'd of two great parts ; catholick christianity , common in some measure to us all ; and protestations against popery . now 't is true , for what concerns the latter of these , we allow popery to have the advantage of us , as to the point of antiquity , nor are we ashamed to own it : it being necessary that they should have fallen into errors , before we could protest against them ; but as to the present matter , our author in his * * * guide , to which he refers us , confesses that berengarius , against whom these little synods were called , proceeded upon protestant grounds , i. e. in effect was a protestant as to this point : and therefore 't is false in him now to say , that these councils were assembled long before the birth of protestantism . but i return to his church authority ; and answer ; . if this doctrine be certainly contrary to sense and reason , as was before said , then he has told us before , that no motive whatever , no revelation , tho never so plain , can be sufficient to engage us to believe it . . for his councils , the eldest of them was above a thousand years after christ , when by our own confession , the error , tho not of transubstantiation , yet of the corporal presence , was creeping into the church . . these councils were themselves a party against berengarius , and therefore no wonder if they condemned him . . they were neither universal of the whole church , or even of the western patriachate in which they assembled ; and therefore we can have no security that they did not err , tho we should grant this priviledg to a truly general council that it could not . . 't is evident that some of them did err ; forasmuch as the very * * * formularies of recantation prescribed to berengarius , do not agree the one with the other ; and one of them was such , that their own † † † authors tell us it must be very favourably interpreted , or it will lead us into a worser error than that which it condemn'd . . were they never so infallible , yet they none of them defined transubstantiation , but only a corporal presence ; and so whatever authority they have , it is for the lutherans , not the papists . . and this their own writers seem to own ; forasmuch as none of them pretend to any definition of transubstantiation before the council of lateran ; and till which time they freely confess it was no article of faith. such is the church authority which this discourser would put upon us . but now that i have mentioned the council of lateran , as i have before observed , that it was the same council which establish'd this error , that also gave power to the pope to depose princes , and absolve their subjects from their obedience ; so i cannot but remak further in this place , the zeal of our author in the defence of its authority . it is but a very little while since another of their church , ‖ ‖ ‖ father walsh , in his letter to the bishop of lincoln , did not think that the * * * learned person of our church , to whom he refers us , had so clearly proved these canons to have been the genuine † † † acts either of the council , or even of the papist himself , but that a man might still have reason to doubt of both : but indeed , tho that father be of another mould , yet there are still some in the world , and i believe of this author's acquaintance , who like this council , never the worse for such a decision ; but think the third canon as necessary to keep princes in a due obedience to the church , as the first , de fide catholià , to help out the obscurity of the text in favour of transubstantiation . but he goes on ; and upon these premises , ask us , what more reasonable or secure course in matters of religion can a private and truly humble christian take , than where the sense of a divine revelation is disputed , to submit to that interpretation thereof , which the supreamest authority in the church , that hath heretofore been convened about such matters hath so often , and always in the same manner decided to him , and so to act according to its injunction ? now , not to say any more as to his expression of the supremest church authority , which it may be he will interpret not absolutely , but with this reserve , that hath been convened about such matters ; i answer from himself , . it is a more reasonable and secure course to follow that interpretation which is agreeable to the common sense and reason of mankind , and against which he tells us , not only the authority of a synod , but even a divine revelation is not sufficient to secure us . . these synods , as i have shewed , besides that they were particular , were moreover parties in the case . and then , . it is false to say that they always decided the same , or , that that which they decided is the same which the church of rome now holds in this matter . all which our * * * authors have fully proved , and this discourser therefore ought to have answered . iii. ground . but now , he says , if these councils be declined , as not being so ancient as some may expect ; i. e. not held before some controversy happen'd in the church touching the point they decided : they have yet another very rational ground of their belief , and that is , the evident testimony of the more primitive times . it would have been more to the purpose , if he could honestly have said of the most primitive times . but however his modesty is the greater now , tho his argument be not so strong . as to the point of antiquity , i have already fully discussed it above ; and we are but very lately assured by one of their own authors , that antiquity is of our side in this point . for the six or seven fathers he has mentioned , ‖ ‖ ‖ some of them are spurious ; others have been † † † expresly answered by us ; and all of them at large by monsieur aubertine , larrogue , and others . if this does not satisfy him , he may shortly expect a fuller account in our own language ; * * * a specimen of which has already been given to the world in earnest of what is suddenly to follow . iv. ground . his next ground is taken from the universal doctrine and practice of the later both eastern and western churches till luther's time , and at present also excepting his followers . to which i answer ; that this ground is not certainly true ; and if it were , yet certainly 't is nothing to the purpose . . it is not certainly true : indeed , that the latter ages of the western churches before luther , that is , from the time of the council of laterane , did profess the belief of transubstantiation is confess'd : and that a great part of the greek church at this day do's the same , since their new colledge at rome , and their money and missionaries sent among them have corrupted their faith , i do not deny : but that this was so before luther is not so certain ; and whosoever shall impartially read over the long debate between the late monsieur claude , and monsieur arnaud concerning this matter , will , i believe , confess that this can be no rational ground for their belief . ludolphus tells us of the ethiopian church , that at this day , it neither believes transubstantiation , nor adores the host : and tellezius confesses it , because they consecrate with these words , this bread is my body : for the * * * greeks , the muscovites , the armenians , the nestorians , maronites , &c. those who please to interest their curiosity in a matter of so little moment as to their faith , may satisfy themselves in the authors , to which i refer them . tho now , . to allow the matter of fact to be true , i pray , what force is there at last in this argument , the church both eastern & western , in these last ages have believed transubstantiation ; therefore the papists have a rational ground to believe it . that is to say , you protestants charge us for believing transubstantiation , as men that act contrary to the design of christ in this holy eucharist , that have forsaken the tradition of the primitive ages of the church ; that destroy the nature of this holy sacrament , and do violence to the common sense and reason of mankind : be it so ; yet at least we have this rational ground for our belief , tho it should be false , viz. that we did all of us peaceably and quietly believe it , till you came with your scripture , and antiquity , and sense , and reason , to raise doubts and difficulties about it ; nay more , we all of us still do believe it , except those that you have perswaded not to do so . spectatum admissi risum teneatis amici ? v. ground . of no greater strength is his last ground for their belief , viz , that since luther's time no small number of protestants , even all the genuine sons of the church of england , have proceeded thus far , as to confess a real presence of our lord's body and blood in the eucharist , and adoration of it , as present there . for , . if we did acknowledg this , yet it seems we are mistaken in it ; and then what grounds can it be for a papist to believe transubstantiation , that we hereticks by a mistake do not believe it , but only a real spiritual presence , and as such are anathematized by them for our error ? . i have before shewn , that were this a rational ground , yet it fails them too ; for neither do the genuine sons of the church of england , nor any other that i know of , either believe christ's natural body to be substantially present in the holy eucharist , or to be adored there : i am sure if there be any such , they cannot be the genuine sons of the church of england in this matter , who believe so expresly contrary to her formal declaration , as this author has himself observed . and then for the lutherans , to whom he again returns ; it is hard to conceive what rational ground of security they can derive from their practice ; that because they commit no idolatry in worshipping what they know certainly to be christ , the papist commits none for worshipping what he do's not know certainly is christ ; in truth what , if he pleased , he might know certainly is not christ. and now after a serious and impartial consideration of the grounds produced in vindication of this worship ; tho i could have wish'd i might have found them as rational as our author pretends them to be , and shall be glad , as they are , that they may hereafter prove sufficient to excuse them from the guilt of formal idolatry in this adoration ; yet i must needs say , i do in my conscience think 't is more an excess of charity , than any necessity of argument , if our writers do sometimes , either not at all , or but faintly , charge them with idolatry . and the testimonies he produces , argue rather the candor of our affections towards them , even such as to hope , almost against hope for their sakes ; than give any security to them in their errors . and because i would willingly , if possible , convince them of it , i will very briefly subjoin a reason or two . dly ; why even upon their own principles i am not satisfied that they have such a rational ground for this adoration , as may be sufficient to excuse them . for , st , it is granted by this author , that a meerly good intention grounded upon a culpable ignorance , cannot excuse them from idolatry . so that if their ignorance then be really culpable , their good intention will not be sufficient to excuse them . now the ignorance upon which this practice is founded , is their mistaken interpretation of those words , this is my body ; and whether that be a rational or culpable mistake , we shall best be able to judg by two or three observations . . it is confess'd by the greatest men of their church , that there is no necessity to interpret those words in that manner that they do ; so that had not the authority of their church interposed , they might have been equally verified in our interpretation . and this must be allow'd , unless we shall say , that all places of holy scripture must be understood in a literal sense , whatever the consequence be of so doing . . our author himself confesses , that if the taking of them in the literal sense do's involve a certain contradiction , then it cannot be right ; but we are bound to seek out some other exposition to avoid a certain contradiction . . it is undeniable , that their interpretation of these words destroys the certainty of sense , and in that of the truth of the christian religion , which was confirmed by miracles , known only by the evidence of sense ; and by consequence of this particular point , that transubstantiation is revealed to us by god , or can be rely'd upon as coming from him . now from these principles i thus argue : if that sense of these words , this is my body , upon which they ground their adoration , do's necessarily imply many plain and certain contradictions , then by their own confession that cannot be the right sense of them . but that it do's so , and that without gross and culpable ignorance they cannot doubt of but know it , i thus shew . he that believes these words in the sense of transubstantiation , must believe the same natural body , at the same time , to be in ten-thousand several places upon earth , and yet still to be but one body , and that all the while in heaven : he must believe that the same natural body is at the same time extended in all its parts , and yet continuing still the same body without any change , to be unextended , and have no distinct parts , nor be capable of being divided into any : he must believe the same body at the same time , to move , and to lie still : to be the object of our senses , and yet not to be perceptible by any : with infinite others of the like kind * * * as i have more fully shewn before . but now all these are gross contradictions , contrary to the nature of a body , and to the common principles of reason in all mankind ; and no man can , without culpable ignorance pretend not to know them to be so : and therefore , notwithstanding any such supposed divine revelation as may be pretended from those words , this is my body , they cannot , by our author 's own rule , without culpable ignorance , not know that they are mistaken in this matter . again : no papist can have any reason to believe transubstantiation to be true , but because he reads those words of holy scripture , this is my body . that these words are in scripture , he can know only by his senses : if his senses therefore are not to be trusted , he is not sure there are any such words in scripture . if they are to be trusted , he is then sure that the interpretation which he puts upon them must be false . since then it is confess'd , that there is no necessity to understand those words in a literal sense ; and that both upon the account of the contradictions that such an exposition involves to the common principles of reason , and to the certain evidence of the senses of all mankind , it is necessary to take them in some other meaning , it remains that without gross and culpable ignorance they cannot pretend not to know , that this could never have been the intention of our blessed saviour in those words ; and that such ignorance will not excuse them , our author himself has freely confess'd . but , dly , let us quit this reflection , and for once suppose the possibility of transubstantiation . yet still it is confess'd by them : . that there is no command nor example in holy scripture for adoring christ in the eucharist . . that infinite defects may happen to hinder him from being there ; and then what they worship is only a piece of bread. . that they can never be sure that some of these defects have not happened ; and by consequence , that what they suppose to be christ's body , is indeed any more than a meer wafer . from whence i argue ; he that without any command or warrant of god , pays a divine adoration to that which he can never be sure is more than a meer creature , can never be sure that he do's not commit idolatry : but whosoever worships the host , worships that which he can never be sure is more than a meer creature ; and therefore he can never be sure that in so doing he do's not commit idolatry . now concerning the former of these , how dangerous it is for any one to give divine worship to what he can never be sure is any more than a meer creature , be it considered , what jealousy god has at all times express'd of his honour as to this matter ; how strict he has been in the peculiar vindication of his supreme prerogative in such cases . how therefore he that will come to him , must be very well assured that it is god to whom he approaches ; and therefore if he has but the least reason to doubt of it , ought not to worship with a doubting mind ; because he ought not to do that the omitting whereof can be no fault , but the doing of which may , for ought he knows , be a very great sin. and for the second ; whether every roman catholick , who adores the host , has not even upon his own principles , very great cause to doubt , whether he adores christ's body , or only a bit of bread , will appear from those infinite defects which they themselves allow as sufficient to hinder a consecration ; and which make it great odds , were their doctrine otherwise never so true , whether yet one host in twenty , it may be in five hundred , be consecrated . . with reference to the holy elements to be consecrated : if the bread be not all , or at least the greater part , of wheat-flower ; if it be not mix'd with pure water ; if the bread be corrupted , or the wine sour ; if the grapes of which the wine was made were not ripe ; if any thing be mingled with the wine but water ; or if there be so much water mix'd with it , that that becomes the prevailing ingredient ; in all these cases , and many others which i omit , there is no consecration . and of all this , he who adores either the bread or wine , can have no security . but , . be the elements right , yet if the priest , being either ignorant , or in haste , or unmindful of what he is about , should by mistake , or otherwise , err in pronouncing of the words of consecration ; whether by addition , or by diminution , or by any other alteration , there is no consecration : the bread and wine continue what they were ; and of this too he that worships them can never be certain . . let the words be never so rightly pronounced , yet if the priest had no intention to consecrate ; if he be a secret atheist , or jew , or moor : if he be a careless negligent man ; it may be do's not believe he has any power to make such a change , ( as i have shewn that several of their greatest men in this very age have doubted of it ) : if he consecrate a number of wafers for a communion , and in his telling mistakes , intending to consecrate but twenty , and there are one and twenty before him ; in all these cases , for want of a due intention in the priest , there it no consecration ; but that which is adored , is only a little bread and wine . . let the priest have a good intention , yet if he be no priest ; if he were not rightly baptized , or ordained ; if he were a simoniac , or irregular , or a bastard , &c. or if there were no defect in his ordination , yet if there was any in his who ordained him ; or in the bishops that ordained that bishop that ordained him ; and so back to the very time of the apostles , if in the whole succession of priests to this day , there has been but any one invalidity , whether by error or wilfulness , or for want of a due intention , or by ignorance , or by any other means ; then he that consecrates is no true priest , and by consequence has no power to consecrate ; and so all is spoiled , and whosoever worships in any of his masses , adores only a piece of bread instead of our saviour's body . when therefore so many defects may interpose upon their own principles to hinder this conversion , that 't is exceeding probable , nay 't is really great odds , that not one host in twenty is consecrated ; it must certainly be very hazardous to worship that for god , which upon their own principles they can never be sure is so ; nay , which 't is twenty to one is not god , but a meer inanimate creature of bread and wine . 't is this has forced their most learned men to confess , that they can never be sure of a consecration ; and our author himself to declare , that they do not worship the substance that is under the accidents of bread and wine , whatever it be , but upon supposition that it is christ's body ; which is what pope adrian th , following herein the authority of the council of constance , prescribed ; that they ought always to adore the host with such a reserve : the council of constance , says he , excuses those who in their simplicity adore an unconsecrated host , because this condition is tacitly implied , of it be rightly consecrayed : and therefore he advises , let them so adore the host , i. adore thee if thou art christ . but now if , as the apostle tells us in another case , whatsoever is not of faith , is sin ; and , he that doubts , is damned if he eats : i shall leave it to any sober christian to say what security there can be in such a worship , which is neither advised , encouraged , or commanded in holy scripture ; and which they themselves confess they can never be certain is addressed to a right object ; and therefore are forced to such shifts and reserves , as were they once admitted , might make any other creature in the world as warrantably adorable as their host. how much better were it for them to adore their blessed saviour in heaven , where his glorified body most certainly is : where there can therefore be no danger to lift up our hearts unto him . were his sacred body indeed substantially present in this blessed sacrament , yet still it would be in a manner to us imperceptible , in the state of his death , and by consequence of his humiliation ; and we might therefore have some cause to doubt whether , since we have received no command concerning it , it were our saviour's pleasure that his body should be adored by us in that state : so that there could be no sin in the not doing of it . but now amidst so many doubts , not only upon ours , but even upon their own principles , that they dare not themselves worship at a venture , that which yet they do worship ; tho i shall leave them to their own master to stand or fall at the great day , yet i must needs profess . i think there is very much hazard in it . a great sincerity , and great ignorance , may excuse a poor untaught , and therefore blindly obedient multitude : but for their guides , who lead them into error , for those to whom god has given capacities and opportunities ( as to those now among us he has done , of being better informed ) i can only say , lord , lay not this sin to their charge ! and this may suffice to have been said to the third thing proposed , of their rational grounds for this worship . for what our author finally adds ; that to adore that which the adorer believes not to be our lord , but bread , would be unlawful to be done by any , so long as the person continues so perswaded — but then if we suppose the church justly requiring such adoration upon such a true presence of our lord , neither will the same person be free from sinning greatly in his following such his conscience , and in his not adoring . i answer : it will then be time enough to consider this , when either the church to which we owe an obedience , shall require it of us , or they be able to prove that in such a case the church would not sin in commanding , and not we in refusing to obey her . but , blessed be god , there is no great danger of either of these : our church is too well perswaded of the unlawfulness of such a worship , ever to require it of us . and for that church which has so uncharitably undertaken to anathematize all those who will not own her authority , and receive her errors , tho never so gross , as articles of faith : we are so fully convinced of the unreasonableness of her pretences , and of our own liberty , that we shall hardly be brought to submit our selves to the conduct of such a blind guide , lest we fall into the same ditch , into which she her self is tumbled . and it would certainly much better become our author , and his brethren , to consider how they can justify their disobedience to their own mother , than to endeavour at this rate to lead us into the same apostacy , both to our religion and our church with them . the conclusion . and thus by the blessing of god , and the advantage of a good cause , have i very briefly passed through this author's reflections , and i am perswaded sufficiently shewn the weakness and falsity of the most of them . if any one shall think that i ought to have insisted more largely upon some points , he may please to know , that since by the importunate provocations of those of the other communion , we have been forced too often to interrupt those duties of our ministry , in which we could rather have wish'd to have employ'd our time , for these kind of controversies which serve so very little to any purposes , either of true piety , or true charity among us : we have resolved thus far at least to gratify both our selves and others , as to make our disputes as short as is possible ; and loose no more time in them , than the necessary defence of our selves and the truth do require . i have indeed pass'd by much of our author's discourses , because they are almost intirely made up of tedious and endless repetitions of the same things , and very often in the same words . but for any thing that is argumentative , or otherwise material to the main cause , i do not know that i have either let the observation of it slip , or dissembled at all the force of it . it was once in my thoughts to have made some reflections in the close upon the changes of their rituals , in requital for our author's observations on the alterations of our liturgie ; but i have insisted longer than i designed already , and shall therefore content my my self to have given the hint of what might have been done , and shall still be done , if our author , or any in his behalf desire it of me . in the mean time i cannot but observe the unreasonableness of that method which is here taken ; from the expressions of some of our divines , and the concessions of others , whose profess'd business it was to reconcile , if possible , all parties , and therefore were forced sometimes to condescend more than was fit for the doing it ; and even these too miserably mangled and misrepresented , to pretend to prove the doctrine of our church contrary to the express declarations of the publick acts and records of it . this has been the endeavour of several of our late writers , but of this discourser above any . had those worthy persons , whose memory they thus abuse , been yet living , they might have had an ample confutation from their own pens ; as , in the very instance before us , has been given them for the like ill use made by some among them , of the pious meditations of a most excellent and learned father of our church ; and who might otherwise in the next age have been improved into a new witness against us . i do not think that bp taylour ever thought he should have been set up as a favourer of popery , who had written so expresly and warmly against it . yet i cannot but observe a kind of prophetick expression in his book of the real presence , which being so often quoted by these men , i somewhat wonder it should have slipp'd their remark : where speaking of their shifts to make any one they please of their side , he has these words ; and — i know no reason , says he , but it may be possible , but a witty man may pretend , when i am dead , that in this discourse i have pleaded for the doctrine of the roman church . we have now lived to see some of those witty men that have done but little less than this ; tho how honest they are in the mean time , i will not determine . but i hope this design too shall be from henceforth in good measure frustrated : and therefore , since neither their new religion , nor their new advocates will do their business ; since it is in vain that they either misrepresent their own doctrine , or our authors in favour of it ; may they once please either honestly to avow and defend their faith , or honestly to confess that they cannot do it . such shuffling as this , do's but more convince us of the weakness of their cause ; and instead of defending their religion by these practices , they only encrease in us our ill opinion of that , and lessen that good'one which we willingly would , but shall not always be able to conserve of those , who by such indirect means as these , endeavour to support it . finis . books lately printed for richard chiswell . a dissertation concerning the government of the ancient church : more particularly of the encroachments of the bishops of rome upon other se●s . by william cave , d. d. octavo . an answer to mr. serjeant's [ sure footing in christianity ] concerning the rule of faith : with some other discourses . by william falkner , d. d. . a vindication of the ordinations of the church of england ; in answer to a paper written by one of the church of rome , to prove the nullity of our orders . by gilbert burnet , d. d. octavo . an abridgment of the history of the reformation of the church of england . by gilb . burnet , d. d. octavo . the apology of the church of england ; and an epistle to one signior scipio , a venetian gentleman , concerning the council of trent . written both in latin , by the right reverend father in god , john jewel lord bishop of salisbury : made english by a person of quality . to which is added , the life of the said bishop : collected and written by the same hand . octavo . the life of william bedel , d. d. bishop of kilmore in ireland . together with certain letters which passed betwixt him and james waddesworth ( a late pensioner of the holy inquisition of sevil ) in matter of religion , concerning the general motives to the roman obedience . octavo . the decree made at rome the second of march , . condemning some opinions of the jesuits , and other casuists . quarto . a discourse concerning the necessity of reformation , with respect to the errors and corruptions of the church of rome . quarto . first and second parts . a discourse concerning the celebration of divine service in an unknown tongue . quarto . a papist not misrepresented by protestants . being a reply to the reflections upon the answer to [ a papist misrepresented and represented ] . quarto . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church ] . quarto . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england ; against the exceptions of monsieur de m●aux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . . a catechism explaining the doctrine and practices of the church of rome . with an answer thereunto . by a protestant of the church of england . . a papist represented and not misrepresented , being an answer to the first , second , fifth and sixth sheets of the second part of the [ papist misrepresented and represented ] ; and for a further vindication of the catechism , truly representing the doctrines and practices of the church of rome . quarto . the lay-christian's obligation to read the holy scriptures . quarto . the plain man's reply to the catholick missionaries . . an answer to three papers lately printed , concerning the authority of the catholick church in matters of faith , and the reformation of the church of england . quarto . a vindication of the answer to three papers concerning the unity and authority of the catholick church , and the reformation of the church of england . quarto . imprimatur , may . . guil . needham . two discourses : of purgatory , and prayers for the dead . london , printed for ric. chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard , mdclxxxvii . the contents . introduction . the occasion of these discourses , the doctrine of purgatory derived from the ancient philosophers . the opinions of the primitive fathers concerning the state of men after death . all vastly distant from the doctrine of the romish purgatory . which had no foundation for the first years . how it then began to creep into the western church ib. in the other churches not received at this day sect . i. what it is that the church of rome means by purgatory . shewn — from the council of trent . ib. — from private writers of that church . sect . ii. that there is no ground for such a purgatory in holy scripture . shewn in a particular examination of the two main places alledged by them , viz. maccab. xii . matt. xii . . sect . iii. that the primitive church for years , knew nothing of the romish purgatory . shewn in the particular examination of the several passages alledged from origen . gregory nyssen . ib. st. jerome . st. hilary , &c. st. cyprian . gregory nazianzen . st. basil. theodoret. tertullian . ib. st. austin . sect . iv. that the principles of right reason do not engage us to the belief of purgatory . shewn in the examination of cardinal bellarmin's first reason . second reason . third reason . sect . v. that the doctrine of purgatory is contrary to scripture , antiquity , and reason . to scripture . — antiquity . — reason . discourse ii. of prayers for the dead . sect . i. of the practice of the primitive church in praying for the dead . that the primitive christians pray'd for the dead . ib. the grounds on which they did it . . that this do's not at all favour the present practice of the church of rome . sect . ii. the allegations brought by those of the church of rome , to justifie their practice of praying for the dead , examined ; and their weakness demonstrated . the pretences of the nubes testium considered , and in order thereunto , the case of aerius inquired into . the authorities of the fathers examined . dionysius areopagita . tertullian . arnobius . eusebius . theodoret. ibid. st. ambrose . st. jerom. st. austin . tertullian , cyprian . st. ambrose . st. chrysostom . the greek church . ib. close . in which a short apology is made , that we do not now pray for the dead , after the manner that we confess the ancient church did . errata . page . line . palinurus . p. . l. . pozzuolo . p. . l. . it must be , r. there must have been . in the marg. p. . l. . post 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , r. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. p. . l. . for figments r. pigments . some of lesser moment there are , which the reader will please to excuse . a discourse of purgatory , &c. introduction . there is so near a connexion between the two points of purgatory and prayers for the dead , as they are now establish'd in the church of rome , that it is impossible to state the one as we ought , without entring on some consideration of the other . it has been so much the rather thought fit to give an account to the world of both these , in that the opinions of the primitive fathers touching the state of the souls departed , and the early practice of praying for the dead founded thereupon , being not well understood by the generality now a days , seem to give our adversaries a greater pretence to antiquity in these points , than in most others that are in debate betwixt us . for what concerns the latter of these , i shall in the next discourse , say what i suppose may be sufficient to shew how little grounds the ancient custom of praying for the dead in the primitive ages of christianity , will afford to the practice of those who pretend to be their followers in the same custom now . as to the business of purgatory , which is our present concern , we willingly allow it to have been of very venerable antiquity ; and to have exceeded not only our reformation , but even christianity its self for some hundreds of years . the truth is , the church of rome is beholding for this doctrine , as well as for many other things in her religion , to her worthy ancestors the heathen poets and philosophers : and tho i cannot tell how far cardinal bellarmin's argument will hold good to prove it from thence to have been the dictate of right reason it self , because this might engage us to give up the cause to paganism , not only in the points of the worship of images and inferior deities , &c. which perhaps the cardinal may be content to think the voice of nature too ; but even as to all the other parts of their superstition , in which they were more universally agreed than in their notion of a purgatory ; yet for what concerns the thing its self , we do not deny but that many of them did certainly believe it . eusebius recounts it of plato , that he divided mankind into three states : some who having purified themselves by philosophy , and excelled in holiness of life , enjoy an eternal felicity in the islands of the blest , without any labour or trouble , which neither is it possible for any words to express , or any thoughts to conceive . others , that having lived exceedingly wicked , and therefore seemed incapable of cure , he supposed were at their death 's thrown down headlong into hell , there to be tormented for ever . but now , besides these , he imagined there were a † † † middle sort , who , tho they had sinn'd , yet had repented of it ; and therefore seemed to be in a curable condition , and these he thought went down for some time into hell too , to be purged and absolved by grievous torments ; but that after that , they should be deliver'd from it , and attain to honours according to the dignity of their benefactors . now that they supposed those who were in this state migh●●eceive help from the prayers and sacrificings of the living , the complaints of the ghosts of * * * elpenor in homer , and of ‖ ‖ ‖ palniurus in virgil abundantly shew . and indeed the ceremonies used for their deliverance , as described by those poets , † † † so nearly resemble the practice of the present roman church , that were but their poems canonical , it would be in vain for the most obstinate heretick here to contend with them . it must then he confessed , that our adversaries in this point have at least four hundred years antiquity , not only against us , but even beyond christianity it self . and i suppose i may without any injury to the memories of those holy men , who have been our fore-runners in the faith , say , that 't was the impression which these opinions of their philosophy had made upon them , that moved them when they became christians to fall into conjectures concerning the state of the soul in the time of separation , not very much different from what they had believed before . it is not necessary to recount the errors of origen as to this matter : who turn'd even hell it self into a purgatory , and thought that not only wicked men , but the very devils too might be so purged in it , as to come forth angels of light. st. augnstine tells us , that the platonicks were of an opinion not much different from this , who though they would not have any sins past unpunished , yet supposed that all punishments , whether of this life or the next , were designed to amend , and therefore that whatever pains awaited men after death , they were all purgatory . and though this conceit of origen has been condemned by the church as heretical , yet there remained other opinions for some centuries after , not much differing from it . * * * some thought that all men whatsoever should in the end be saved ; others , and among these * * * st. jerome himself , that all christians should be delivered : † † † some who restrain'd their charity yet more , still allow'd salvation to all that dyed within the pale of the catholick church ; to which , others finally added this further condition , that they had not only stood firm to the faith , but also been charitable to the poor . which last circumstance is the very same that virgil from the platonicks again required in those who should be translated to the elisian fields ; in which therefore he places not only them whose virtue and piety had intituled to that happiness , but also by their alms had made others mindful of them . quique sui memores alios fecere merendo . but not to insist more particularly on these things , three opinions there seem to have been among the ancient fathers concerning the state of men after death , more generally received . * * * . that the souls departed do not straightway go to heaven , but remain in a quiet and pleasing state free of all troubles and pains , yet earnestly expecting their final consummation in glory . . another opinion there was , which from the credulity of * * * papias became almost the universal belief of the first ages of christianity concerning the ‖ ‖ ‖ millenary kingdom of christ ; that our blessed saviour before the final judgment should come down from heaven , and raise from the dead those of the faithful , whose piety had been most eminent and approved ; and with them reign a thousand years at jerusalem , in great plenty , and with extraordinary splendour ; and that this was that which st. john meant by the first resurrection , and at the end whereof the other was to follow . . a third opinion , and that too embraced by many of the most ancient fathers , was , that all men being raised up at the last day , should pass through a certain * * * probatory fire , in which every man should be scorched and purified ; and some be tormented more , others less , according as they had lived better or worser lives here upon earth . such were the opinions of the primitive fathers as to this matter . it is evident to any one that shall please to compare these with the account i shall hereafter give of the present roman purgatory , how vastly different they were from what is now proposed to us as an article of faith. but yet from these opinions it is , that those of that communion , impose upon the unwary their pretence of antiquity for this doctrine ; whilst whatever those holy men have written of a third place , meaning the place of sequester * * * before-mentioned ; but especially of the ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ purgatory fire of the end of the world , they presently apply it all to their own fancy , and which in those first ages found no manner of entertainment , it is , i know , generally pretended by those of the other communion , that st. augustine at least began to favour their opinion . and indeed i will not deny but that he does sometimes speak of a purgatory after this life ; but yet so as that it refers either to the same purgation we before spake of , at the end of the world ; or else to that * * * grief which he imagined those souls who had been passionately tied to the things of this world , might still retain in their place of sequester : and which he therefore thought to be the meaning of that obscure place of s. paul , cor. iii. . so confidently produced by our adversaries on all occasions , in favour of their doctrine . but all this he proposes with so much doubt and uncertainty , as plainly shews it to have been in this fathers time so far from an article of faith , that he durst not affirm any thing at all concerning it . thus then had the roman doctrine of purgatory no manner of foundation in the primitive church . about dc years after christ , pope gregory the great first began to give countenance to it . the publick practice of praying for the dead continuing still in force in the church , and those opinions of the primitive fathers upon which that was first established , being now no longer received with that universal belief they had heretofore been , it was but natural to seek out some other grounds for a practice which they saw so generally received , and yet could not well tell what account to give of the reason of it . let us add this , that about that time a sad barbarity began every where almost to overspread the world : the goths and lombards in italy , the franks and burgundians in . france , the vandals and west-goths in spain , the saxons in britain , destroying almost all learning out of the world. from henceforth miracles and visions govern'd the church : the flames of aetna and vesuvius , were thought on purpose to have been kindled to torment departed souls . some were seen broiling upon gridirons , others roasting upon spits , some burning before a fire , others shivering in the water , or smoaking in a chimney . the very ways to purgatory were now discovered ; one in sicily , another in pozzueto , a third nearer home , in ireland . one found out by the help of an angel , another of the devil . insomuch that pope gregory himself was carried away with these illusions , and which some are not ashamed even at this day to support . by these means came purgatory first establish'd in the roman church , in the vi , vii and viii . centuries : but yet , still the article continued rude and unpolish'd . pope gregory discover'd how certain souls for their punishment were confined to baths , and such like places on earth , but he had not as yet found out any one common place for them to be tormented in , in hell. nay for some ages after , it seems not to have been risen to a matter of certainty , so far was it yet from being an article of faith. insomuch , that in the xii . century many doubted of it , as we may gather by that expression of * * * otto frisingensis , ann. . that there is in hell a place of purgatory , wherein such as are to be saved , are either only troubled with darkness , or decocted with the fire of expiation , some ( says he ) do affirm ; plainly enough implying that all did not believe it . it is not necessary to say , what opposition this novel invention met with in the several centuries in the latin church , from claude bishop of turin , in the ix . century , from peter bruges and henry his successor at tholose ; from the waldenses in france and piemont , among whom this doctrine was never received , and who are therefore condemned by cardinal bellarmin himself on this account . i will rather observe , that the eastern churches have continued all along free from this error . for however the pope and his ministers so far prevailed with the greeks in the † † † council of florence , as to perswade them to yield to a kind of pretended union in this matter ; yet both their apology penn'd by * * * marcus eugenicus arch-bishop of ephesus , and presented to cardinal cusan , and the deputies of the council of ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ basil the year before , wherein they positively declare , that they neither had received any such doctrine from their ancestors , and therefore neither would they ever accept it ; plainly shews they had no such tradition amongst them ; and the proceedings of the same marcus , and of the greek church after , neither of which would be drawn to consent to this union , more fully confirm it . and it is well known how the christians of ‖ ‖ ‖ asia and africa do not at this day consent with the roman church in this point , as some of their own authors confess ; tho others not so ingenuous , would endeavour to perswade the contrary . but however this be , purgatory is now become an article of faith , and of too comfortable an importance to be easily parted with ; nor have i the vanity to hope i shall be able to argue those men out of it , who by this craft gain their living , and will no doubt therefore be as zealous in defence of it , as ever demetrius was of the great goddess diana upon the same account . but for those whose interest it rather is to be freed from these terrors after death , which serve only to enrich the priests , and keep the laity all their lives in fear and subjection ; i hope to satisfie them , that these are only imaginary flames , invented for gain , establish'd upon false grounds , and kept up by artifice and terrors to delude the people , but which themselves many of them no more believe , than did that great cardinal , who minded one day to pose his chaplain , and proposed this question to him ; how many masses would serve to fetch any soul out of purgatory ? to which when he appear'd , as well he might , unable to reply ; the cardinal thus pleasantly solved the doubt , that just so many masses would serve to fetch a soul out of purgatory , as snow-balls would serve to heat an oven . but 't is time now to come to a closer examination of all these things , and in order thereunto , let us first see ; sect . i. what it is that the church of rome means by purgatory . had the doctrine of purgatory been as clearly explain'd by the council of trent , as it was peremptorily defined in it , we should have had the less need to make the present enquiry . in pope pius the iv's creed , it is only said in general terms , that they constantly believe that there is a purgatory , and that the souls there detain'd , are helped by the suffrages of the faithful . nor is their decree concerning it at all more clear ; it only adds , that they are assisted by the suffrages of the faithful , but especially by the acceptable sacrifice of the mass ; and therefore , that the bishops should diligently take care that the wholesome doctrine of purgatory deliver'd by the holy fathers and councils , should be believed , held , and taught by all the faithful in christ. indeed in the foregoing sessions , we find two other things defined with reference to this doctrine , but such as conduce very little to the better understanding of it . st . it anathematizes those who shall say , that after the grace of justification , the fault and guilt of eternal punishment is so remitted to the penitent sinner , that there remains no guilt of a temporal punishment to be paid by him , either now , or hereafter in purgatory , before he can attain to the kingdom of heaven . and dly , in their canons of the mass they resolve , if any one shall say that the mass is not a propitiatory sacrifice , or that it ought not to be offer'd for the living and the dead , for their sins , pains , satisfactions , and other necessities , let him be anathema . and accordingly the bishop of meaux in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church , contains himself within the same bounds . those ( saies he ) who depart this life in grace and charity , but nevertheless indebted to the divine justice some pains which it reserved , are to suffer them in the other life . — this is what the council of trent proposes to our belief touching the souls detain'd in purgatory , without defining in what their pains consists , or many other such like things . the misrepresenter calls it , a place or state where souls departing this life , pardon'd as to the eternal guilt or pain , yet obnoxious to some temporal penalty , or with guilt of some venial faults , are purged and purifi'd before their admittance into heaven . alexander natalis is yet more precise : he distinguishes what is of faith in this matter , and what not , and thus resolves . that it do's not at all belong to the faith. st , concerning the place , whether it be in this world , or upon earth , or in the dark air where the devils are ; or in the hell of the damned ; or in some place underneath nearer the earth , that the souls are purged . dly , concerning the quality of those sensible pains which the souls held in purgatory undergo ; whether it be true and corporeal fire , or whether darkness and sorrow , or any other torment inflicted by the justice of god , punishing them after a wonderful , yet true manner . dly , concerning the duration of these purgatory pains , how long the souls are detained there . for tho soto thought that no soul continu'd in purgatory above ten years , yet it is a matter altogether uncertain how many years those pains shall last . — the only thing therefore , he says , that is in controversy between the catholicks ( as he calls them ) and protestants , is this , whether the faith teaches that there is a state of the dead , in which they shall be expiated by temporary punishments , and from which they may be freed , or otherwise helped by the prayers of the church . but tho this then be all which these men suppose is to come into our inquiry ; yet i must observe , that the catechism set out by order of the council of trent , determines concerning the pains themselves , that they are caused by fire . there is ( says that catechism ) a purgatory-fire in which the souls of the faithful being tormented for a certain time , are expiated ; that so a passage may be opened for them into their eternal country , into which no defiled thing can enter . so that i do not see how they can chuse but allow the pains of purgatory to be determined by them to the particular kind of fire . st. thomas is yet more precise ; not only that it is fire in which the souls are tormented , but that it is the very same fire that torments the damned in hell , and the just in purgatory . and bellarmin himself confesses , that almost all their divines teach , that the damned and the souls in purgatory , are tormented in the same fire , and in the same place . but yet , since they suppose that nothing ought to come into this dispute , but what is just defined in the council of trent ; we will take the state of the question according to their own desire , and enquire only in the words of cardinal bellarmin , whether there be any such place , ( as they suppose ) in which , as in a prison , the souls are purged after this life , which were not fully purged before : that so being cleansed , they may be able to go into heaven , where no unclean thing shall enter . sect . ii. that there is no ground for such a purgatory in the holy scripture . to demonstrate this , it will not , i presume , be expected that i should shew the weakeness of all those places , which tho some of their controvertists have alledged , yet the more learned among them freely confess to have nothing to the purpose in them . cardinal bellarmin has put together xix several texts out of both testaments ; but yet was far from thinking them all to his purpose ; confessing either of all , or at least of all out of the old testament , except the first , that they are but probable arguments . of these alexander natalis utterly rejects xvi ; and one he mentions not , as indeed he needed not to do it , when bellarmin himself had set a particular mark upon it , as impertinent . the misrepresenter unwilling to see his cause reduced to two only places of holy scripture , restores again to its authority † † † one of those which natalis had rejected ⸪ ⸪ ⸪ , and adds another which they had all of them over-look'd , but very unfortunately : for that st , they have ever been esteemed ‖ ‖ ‖ two of the most difficult ard obscure places of all the new testament ; and therefore , certainly must be very unfit to build an article of faith upon . and then dly , for st. austin , upon whose authority he would be thought to alledg them ; 't is evident that he utterly mistook the design of that father , if he thought that he understood them of the roman purgatory , as both his words evidently shew , and his own masters * * * natalis , has ingenuously confess'd for the one , and ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ bellarmin for the other so that then i may reasonably presume to have answer'd the design of the present section , if i can give a fair account of those two places which they all agree to be the principal supports of this doctrine ; and from whence some of them doubt not to say it may be demonstratively concluded . now the first of these , is that noted passage in the maccab . cap. xii . where ⸪ ⸪ ⸪ ( they tell us ) it is said , that money was sent to jerusalem , that sacrifices might be offerr'd for the slain ; and 't is recommended as a holy cogitation to pray for the dead . this not only bellarmin ranks in the front of his scriptnre proofs , but the misrepresenter has again advanced it , and natalis doubts not to call it a demonstrative testimony . but to all this our exceptions are very just : st , that the book it self is not of sufficient authority to establish a matter of faith. dly , that if it were , yet is not the text by any means clear for the proof of that , to which it is applied by them . st , for the authority of the book it self . thus much our adversaries themselves confess , and i think we need desire no more ; that this book was never received by the * * * jews as canonical : that st. jerome therefore rejected it our of the canon of the christian church : that it was not of a ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ long time after received into it ; insomuch , that in ‖ ‖ ‖ pope gregory the great 's time , that is dc years after christ , it was lawful to doubt of its authority ; for indeed , that pope himself did not receive it as canonical . and sure then it ought not to be thought unreasonable in us to doubt of the authority of a book , which being a part of the old testament , was yet never received by the jews as canonical , and of whose authenticalness therefore , the primitive christian church for the first dc years declared themselves altogether unsatisfied . but dly , to allow the book the credit which they desire ; yet still the text is by no means clear for the proof of that to which it is applied by them . the story its self is this , that when judas the day after the battel came to bury the bodies of them that were slain , they found under the coats of every one that had been killed , things consecrated to the idols of the jamnites , which was forbidden to the jews by the law. this discovered to them the cause of their death , and how they were slain by god for their sin. hereupon judas and all his men betook themselves to prayer , and besought god that the sin might wholly be put out of remembrance . and judas upon this occasion exhorted the people to keep themselves by their example from the like sin ; and lastly , he made a collection among them of a sum of money , and sent it to jerusalem , to offer a sin-offering unto the lord. this is the story , and the design of all is very easy ; that judas considering the danger he had been in by the sin of these men , pray'd to god that it might not be imputed to the people , and offer'd a sin-offering for the congregation according to the law ; remembring what the whole people had once suffer'd in the like case for achan's transgression . but our adversaries will have this sin-offering to have been for the dead , and the history expresly says it was so . i answer , st , the history says no more than what we have set down , that judas did this : for the rest , it is the conjecture of the historian , not an historical narration of what design judas had in it . now that this could not have been his design , is evident , dly , in that neither the law of moses , nor any other part of the holy scripture , makes any mention of any such sacrifice either prescribed or allow'd of , for the dead . and dly , had the law in some cases approved of sacrifices for the dead , yet certainly it could not have done it in this , idolatry being one of those sins for which there was no offering allowed , nor any atonement to be made for it . but what then is it that this historian designed ? i reply , it was this : that judas by this sacrifice made an atonement for the dead , to the end that their sin being forgiven , they might have a happy resurrection . this he expresly declares , v. , . for considering ( says the historian ) that there is an excellent reward laid up for those that dye godly , which was a holy and godly thought ; he therefore made an expiation for the dead , that they might be absolved from their sin. for many of the jews then , as some christians have done since , thought offerings might be made for the forgiveness of those sins after death , that were not forgiven before . therefore seeing that these souldiers died in a grievous sin before they had time to repent , the historian supposed that judas might have designed this offering to expiate their offence , that so they might obtain a happy resurrection . but now this was only the conjecture of the historian , and as before we have seen very ill grounded , to be sure far enough distant from the roman purgatory . for st , this respected the future resurrection● , that the present sufferings of the dead . dly , the prayers here spoken of , were offered for men who dyed in a mortal sin ; but the papists deny that any such go to purgatory , or can receive any benefit from the prayers of the living . dly , whatever becomes of all the rest ; how was it possible that these prayers should have been designed for the slain to deliver them out of purgatory , when if we will believe the papists themselves , their souls were not there , but either in hell , or in the limbus , where they supposed the souls of the ancient fathers were detained , till our saviour christ descending thither , set them free . so that which way soever then we consider this passage , it cannot give us any manner of satisfaction . if we look upon it as a part of that history , the book is not canonical ; nor was ever esteem'd so by the jews , or by the christians of the first years . if we take it as the history of what judas did , this respected not the dead at all ; nor by consequence can it belong to purgatory . if , according to the opinion of the relator , it regards the dead indeed , but then with reference to their future resurrection , not their present punishment ; and so is still impertinent . if finally , according to the hypothesis of the papists themselves , it is utterly impossible it should belong to purgatory , because there was as yet no such place , and therefore these souldiers could not be there , or by any sacrifices be delivered from thence . and this i hope may be a sufficient reply to this first passage . the other , from whence they also tell us their doctrine of purgatory may be demonstratively concluded , is in the xiith of st. mat. v. . where our saviour speaking of the sin against the holy ghost , tells us , that it shall not be forgiven neither in this world , nor in that to come . he would , i believe , be thought to make a very strange conclusion , that should without more ado argue thus abruptly from this passage , therefore there is a purgatory : and indeed they themselves are sensible of it . and therefore bellarmin confesses , that according to the rules of logic , purgatory cannot be inferr'd from hence : but according to the rules of prudtnce he thinks it may , because that otherwise , he says , christ must be said to have spoken improperly , which we ought not to suppose he did . but if there be nothing in this place to prove purgatory , according to the rules of logic , i suppose it must be some mistake then , in that which he told us before , that it may be demonstratively inferr'd from thence . for as for the rule of prudence , that will at most make it but very probable . but indeed this rule will fail them as well as the other , as we shall evidently see in examining the proofs which they make from it . now their argument lies thus : our saviour christ says , that the sin against the holy ghost shall not be remitted neither in this world , nor in that to come : we must therefore suppose that some sins shall be remitted in the world to come , or else our saviour spake improperly , which according to the rules of prudence we may not say . now the world to come , must signifie the state of the soul between the day of every mans death , and the final resurrection , because that after that , no sins shall be remitted : and it must be to those who are in a middle state , because those who are blessed , are already forgiven ; and those who are damned shall never be remitted . this is the sum of their arguing from this place : but now if it appear that we can have no manner of assurance of any of these suppositions ; much more if it be clear that not one of them is true ; then i presume it will follow , that neither is it prudentially credible that our saviour here intended to establish a purgatory , but rather altogether certain that he did not . st , then : our saviour says , that the sin against the holy ghost shall not be forgiven , neither in this world , nor in that to come ; therefore , they conclude , some sins shall be forgiven in the world to come . i answer : it is most certain that some sins shall be forgiven in the world to come , even all those that are forgiven in this , and for which therefore god shall not call us to account at the last day . as if one should say , to him that repents and believes , his sins shall not be imputed neither in this world nor in the world to come ; that is , they shall never be imputed . and so both st. mark and st. luke interpret the phrase , * * * he shall not be forgiven , says the one ; he shall not be forgiven for ever , says the other : what is this to purgatory ? but our adversaries are more acute : christ says the sin against the holy ghost shall not be forgiven neither in this world nor in that to come ; therefore some sins that are not forgiven in this world , shall be forgiven in the world to come . this indeed is no consequence , according to the rules of logic , as bellarmin acknowldges ; but how then does it follow ? because that otherwise our saviour christ would have spoken improperly , which according to the rule of prudence we ought not to say . the cardinal might have added , according to the rule of civility and good breeding too . but still how does this appear ? why because that otherwise it would have been impertinent to say that it shall not be forgiven neither in this world , nor in the world to come , if no sins should be forgiven in the world to come , that are not forgiven in this . i answer , st , he might have said it to exaggerate his speech , and so the better enforce the hainousness of the crime ; and it is a thing very ordinary on such occasions to use many words , when one would have been sufficient : but dly , he might , and certainly did do it , to prevent the mistake of the jews , and cut off all hopes of pardon for this sin : two things there were which they understood by the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or world to come ; the kingdom of the messiah , and the state after death ; and in both these they thought a remission might be had for some sins , that were not otherwise to be forgiven : our blessed saviour therefore to take away all hopes of remission for this sin , and make the deeper impression upon their minds , bids them not flatter themselves with any such fond expectations ; that this was a sin that should never be forgiven them , neither in this world , nor in the world to come ; i. e. neither now nor in the kingdom of the messiah ; neither in the hour of death , nor in the day of judgment . but dly , they suppose , that the world to come must signify the time between every mans death and the general resurrection . but now for this , there is no manner of ground , either in the holy scripture , or in the language of the jews ; nor can it be with any propriety so esteem'd . for the world to come , cannot be supposed to begin till this world ends , i. e. till the time be , that according to their own * * * confession , purgatory shall be no more . whatever then our saviour christ means by the world to come , or however sins shall be remitted there ; it cannot be understood of purgatory , which now is in this present world , and in the other shall be destroy'd . dly , they suppose , lastly ; that the persons whose sins shall be forgiven , are not the perfectly just , in whom there is no spot of sin remaining ; nor yet the damned , whose sins are irremissible ; but such as are in a middle state , i. e. that depart with sanctifying grace and charity , but yet guilty of some lesser sins , of which they are to be purged . i relpy , st , that there is not a word of all this so much as hinted in the text ; and any one might from thence as reasonably conclude for either of the other kinds , as they do for this middle sort . for as concerning the just , it is not certainly at all absurd to say , that their sins are then forgiven , when they are finally acquitted at gods tribunal , as they shall be in the world to come . and for the wicked , since we here are told that blasphemy against the holy ghost is the only sin that shall not be forgiven ; nay , our saviour expresly says , that all other sins shall be remitted ; it may with much more agreement to the text follow , that all men , be their sins what they will , shall have grace of repentance whereby they may be pardon'd in the world to come , the blasphemers of the holy ghost alone excepted , than that those only shall be forgiven , who die with venial sins . but dly , what have we here to do with the remission of sins ? purgatory is a place , not where sins are remitted , but where they are punish'd with the greatest severity ; nay , what is still more , punish'd after they are remitted ; nay , what is still more extraordinary , therefore punished , because they are remitted . for if the guilt were not remitted , the sinner could not go to purgatory , nor have the favour of being punish'd there . and therefore it is utterly impertinent from the remission of some sins in the world to come , to conclude there is a place where all sins , even the least , are exacted , and that so rigidly , that there is no escaping thence , till either by their selves or their friends , they have paid the very uttermost farthing . in short , if we will conclude any thing as concerning the remission of sins from this ; the rules both of logick and prudence will direct us to make one part of the opposition answer to the other : and then it will stand thus . the sin against the holy ghost shall never be at all forgiven , whether as to guilt or punishment , but shall be avenged to all eternity . therefore all other sins upon repentance shall be forgiven , both as to the fault and punishment , so as not to be required , neither now or hereafter . any other remission than this , the scripture no where speaks of , nor do's this text infer it : and to suppose without proof that there is any other , is in good earnest to beg the question . the sum of all , is what i before said : that our blessed saviour intended by this phrase , to cut off all hopes of pardon for this sin , by telling them that it should not be remitted , neither by any expiation in this life , nor by any extraordinary grace of god in the age of the messiah , or in the life after this ; which are the only notions of the world to come , that the jews knew , and in both which they fanci'd some sins not elsewhere remissible , might be forgiven . and this may suffice to have been said to shew how far the holy scripture is from establishing this doctrine as an article of faith ; for sure , if these places which they call demonstrative , are so little to the purpose , we can have no great expectation from the rest , which themselves esteem but only probable proofs of it . sect . iii. that the primitive church for . years , knew nothing of the romish purgatory . but if the scriptures be thus silent in this matter , let us see if the fathers of the church in the first ages of the gospel received the present doctrine of purgatory as an article of their belief . i shall need to insist so much the less on this here , because the greatest part of the authorities , that are usually produced to this effect , relate not immediately to purgatory , but to prayers for the dead ; and therefore will be more proper to be consider'd in the next discourse . those that speak precisely to this point are but few ; and i shall take them in such order , as seems most natural for our examination . and the first i shall mention , is origen . we ought so much the rather to complain of the sophistry of our adversaries in making use of his testimony ; in that , either they themselves must deny that his opinion concerning purgatory , was the same with theirs , or they must confess that those fathers and councils who condemned him as an heretick on this account , have in him pronounced their sentence also . i have before observed of this father , that he thought there were no pains but purgatory after this life ; insomuch , that after a certain time not only all men , tho never so wicked , but the devils themselves should be purified by them , and so saved in the end . this bellarmin elsewhere confesses to have been his opinion , and to this the place which he quotes out of him clearly refers : he that is saved , is saved by fire , that so if by chance he has any thing of lead mixed in him , the fire may melt and separate it , that so all may be made pure gold. and is not this a rare testimony for purgatory , which neither they themselves approve of , and which , both the ancient fathers epiphanius , st. jerome , st. austin , nay , and even the th general council its self , has condemned as heretical ? and what i have now said of origen , i must in the next place assirm of another father , and he the first which bellarmine produces on this occasion , viz. gregory nyssen , who has long since been observed as to this matter , to have favour'd the heresie of origen . indeed we are told by photius , that germanus patriarch of constantinople in the vii . century , wrote an apology for him , in which he shews that this was not the opinion of gregory nyssen himself , but that his works had been corrupted by the followers of origen , the better to countenance their error ; which so ever it were , it is the same thing as to the authority of his writings in this controversy : and indeed the very places cited by bellarmin shew , that this was the purgatory he contends for ; viz. such , in which all were to be purified , and at last saved for ever . he distinguishes two orders of men , of which one by the discipline of christ are purged here on earth , * * * such are the patriarchs , prophets , apostles , disciples , martyrs , and as many as preferred ( says he ) a virtuous life before a sensual and material enjoyment ; in the other he ranks , all other men whatsoever , who shall return , he says , to that grace that was once given them , after that by the future discipline ( i. e. in the world to come , after the final judgment ) they shall have cast off in the purgatory fire their propension to matter : for so it is in the original ; and not as bellarmin renders it ; a wiping away the spots of matter in a purgatory fire after this life . to these two i must in the next place subjoin st. jerome , whom , tho' i will not with ‖ ‖ ‖ ruffinus accuse of being involved in the error of origen , yet † † † bellarmin himself cannot deny him to have been charged with an opinion not very much differing from it , viz. that all catholick christians shall in the end be saved , after they have been tried and purified in the fire . and this the very place which they cite in favour of their purgatory , plainly shews to have been his opinion ; as we believe ( says he ) the torments of the devil , and of all that deny the faith , and of those wicked men who have said in their heart there is no god , to be eternal : so for those who are sinners and wicked , but yet christians , whose works are to be tried and purged in the fire , we believe that the sentence of the judge shall be moderate , and mixt with clemency . in which words , this opinion which the romanists themselves confess to be erroneous , is plainly contain'd , viz. of the moderate punishment of wicked men and sinners , if christians ; i. e. of their salvation after a certain time of purgation in the fire of the last judgment ; ( for so the opposition to the eternal punishment of the others , requires us to expound it ) : but for the burning of good men , whose sins are forgiven , and who depart this life in a state of charity , and in the grace of god , such as are punish'd in the popish purgatory , of this there is no mention . and the same is so evidently the meaning of the other passage alledged by bellarmin from this father , that there can be no doubt of it : if , says he , origen says that all rational creatures are not to be destroyed , and allows repentance to the devil ; what is this to us , who say , that the devil and his companions , and all wicked and prevaricating men shall perish for ever ; and that christians , if they are overtaken in their sins , shall be saved after punishment ? and hitherto we have considered such passages as the error of origen , sufficiently different from the doctrine of the romish purgatory , has given occasion to . but there was another opinion in the primitive church , which i have mentioned above , and to which many other expressions of the other fathers do allude , viz. that all those who at the last day shall appear before the judgment-seat of christ , shall be proved by a certain terrible fire , by the force of which the good and bad shall be separated , and if any evil of their past life still adheres to the good , it shall then in that purgatory fire be intirely done away . now to this belong those passages that are produced on this occasion from lactantius , hilary , st. ambrose , eusebius emissenus , and some of st. austin himself . i shall offer one proof of this in the last instance of cardinal bellarmin , st. hilary , which he thus quotes , an unwearied fire is to be undergone by us , in which are to be endured those grievous punishments , of a soul to be expiated from its sins . but the whole passage is indeed this : st. hilary in his annotations on the v. of the . psal. my soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments ; applies it unto the future judgment ; and among other observations has this passage , seeing we must render an account for every idle word , do we desire the day of judgment in which that unwearied fire is to be passed through ? in which those grievous punishments are to be undergone for the expiating of a soul from sin ? a sword shall pass through the soul of the b. virgin mary , that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed . if that virgin who bore god , is to come into the severity of the judgment , will any one dare desire to be judged by god. this certainly is such a testimony as had bellarmin ever examined it , he would have been ashamed to have produced it for a proof of purgatory . the authority of st. cyprian , as it is commonly cited by them , seems more considerable ; 't is one thing to be purged from sins by a long time of torments , and to be mended a great while by fire ; another by suffering to have purged all sins . but the truth is , this is as little to the purpose as any we have yet seen . st. cyprian in that epistle to antonian , defends a certain new decree of his church that had been made in favour of those who fell in times of persecution , whereby they were admitted to penance , and by which it was feared by some , lest the christians should be rendred more slow to suffer for the faith. in this epistle st. cyprian shews antonian , that though the church had granted something of favour to these libellatick christians , yet still their condition was infinitely worse than that of the martyrs , so that there was no cause to doubt but that every one ought to prefer martyrdom , notwithstanding the new favour that was allow'd to them . and then entring upon the comparison , 't is one thing ( says he ) to stand in expectation of pardon , ( as the penitents did ) another to be arrived at their glory ( as the martyrs were ) : 't is one thing being clapt into the prison , not to go out thence till they have paid the uttermost farthing ; ( i. e. not to be admitted into the church till they had past through all the several parts of the penance inflicted on them ) another presently to receive the reward of their faith and courage : one thing to be cleansed by a long grief for sin , and to be purged a long time by fire ; another to have purged away all sins by suffering . ( all which still refers to the afflictions and troubles of the penance they were to undergo , and concerning which all this discourse of st. cyprian is ; whereas the holy martyrs by suffering , were already cleansed from all their sins . there is nothing more ordinary than by the phrase of fire to signifie any kind of afflictions : and if the conjecture of the reverend editor of the oxford cyprian , be accepted , as the authority of several manuscripts , seems to render it exceeding probable , that instead of diu igne , it ought to be diutine : then it will follow , that this father spoke nothing at all of fire , but only said this , that it is infinitely better with the martyrs to be justified from all their sins in heaven , than with the penitents be put under a long course of severe discipline for them here in the church on earth . and this interpretation the learned rigaltius approves ; and what s. cypr. himself adds , plainly shews that it cannot refer to the romish purgatory , where going on still with the antithesis , he adds , 't is one thing in the day of judgment to expect with anxiety the sentence of the lord , ( as these penitents were to do ) ; another to be presently crown'd by the lord , as these martyrs were . now this could not be said of the souls in purgatory , who if you believe them , are in no anxiety about their future sentence , but actually secure of their salvation , as soon as they shall be deliver'd from those severe , yet temporary pains in which they are . for gregory nazianzen , both his * * * scholiast nicetas interprets the fire he speaks of , to be that of hell , and the occasion of his words , and the persons to whom he addresses , shew it can be understood of no other . the persons were the novatians ; the occasion to exhort them by the fear of this punishment to return to the communion of the church . now for schismaticks , if they continue obstinate in their separation , i suppose the church of rome will allow there shall be reserved some worser fire than that of purgatory . the next father produced by bellarmin , is st. basil , who upon is. ix . . says , that sin is therefore by the prophet compared to grass , because grass is the most fruitful among herbs : — and then he goes on in the words produced for purgatory ; if therefore we shall lay open our sins by confession , we shall make this grass dry , and worthy to be devoured by the purgatory fire . now that this purgatory-fire cannot be that which the romanists mean , is evident from this , that the sin is not devoured by that , but being first devoured by confession and repentance , is here punish'd in this fire . we must therefore seek out some other meaning , and for that we can take no better than what this same commentary affords us ; viz. that it signifies the holy spirit , operating upon the hearts of the penitent , and with his coelestial fire consuming those sins which by confession are dried , and made fit for that holy flame . so on the th of isaiah , speaking of the altar which the prophet there saw , he says was signified by it , a certain coelestial altar , namely the place of the purifying of souls ; from whence that purgatory-fire is sent out to the sanctified powers . with this fire did the heart of cleophas and simon burn , when our lord open'd to them the scriptures . with this fire are they heated , who are warm'd by the holy ghost , &c. as for the other passage that is alledged from the same comment , it is so clear , that by the purging , or rather the castigating fire which he there speaks of , he understands those evils and afflictions that god was about to bring upon the israelites for their amendment , that i shall not need say any thing more to it . for theodoret , whom bellarmin cites out of his comments on cor. . he is indeed the clearest of all to their purpose : we believe , says he , this to be the very purgatory fire , in which the souls of the dead are try'd and purged as gold in a crucible . but now the misfortune is , that theodoret has no such words ; nay , though they themselves are the editors of his works , yet have they never yet dared to insert this pretended explication into them . it is indeed an instance of the peculiar confidence of these men in their pretences to antiquity , not only to go on to alledg * * * theodoret for an abetter of their doctrine , after they had been publickly challenged by a ⸪ ⸪ ⸪ greek author in his tract against purgatory concerning it ; but especially , when his comments on this very place of st. paul , which themselves have set forth , interpret the fire he there speaks of , to be ‖ ‖ ‖ the fire of hell ; and the day which is to reveal it , the day of judgment . there are yet remaining two of the writers of the latin church to be consider'd by us ; the first tertullian in his book de anima , c. . so bellarmin alledges him ; but it should have been the . but this author is utterly forreign to his purpose : all he says is , that the souls of men shall be restor'd to their bodies , some sooner , others later , in christs millenary kingdom , according to what their sins or piety have deserved : that if we live wickedly , the judg shall cast us into the infernal prison , from whence we shall not go out , until every the least offence has been paid for by the delay of our rising . and this was all that rigaltius himself understood by it . as for st. austin , the last father to be considered by us , i have already said enough to obviate whatever authorities can be brought from him . he was in the opinion of those who believed a probatory-fire at the end of the world ; and to this , many of his expressions refer . again , he thought that those who departed hence , did not go straight to heaven ; and therefore , that those whose † † † affections were very much tied to the things of this world , might still retain in their separate state some desires towards them , and be troubled for the loss of them : and by this we must explain some others of his sayings . but in all these he expresses himself with so much doubt and uncertainty , as plainly shews how little he thought any of these things to be articles of faith ; and whatever they were , yet are they , to be sure , all of them vastly different from the roman-purgatory . and now after so particular an examination of the several testimonies produced in favour of this doctrine ; i think i may venture to conclude with the same that i began this section , that neither the holy scripture nor fathers of the first . years , do at all authorize the romish purgatory . let us see , finally , whether the reasons offer'd for the establishment of it , will have a sufficient weight to engage us to believe it . sect . iv. that the principles of right reason do not engage us to the belief of purgatory . and st , thus they argue . there are some sins in their own nature venial , and worthy only of a temporal punishment : but it is possible a man may depart out of this life with such only : therefore it is necessary that he may be purged in another life . to this rope of sand , rather than argument , i reply ; st , that the supposition it goes upon , is false . dly , that the conclusion it infers , is inconsequent . for the former of these ; that some sins are less than others , it is confessed ; but that any sins are properly venial , we deny . to be venial , is to be worthy of pardon , or not to deserve punishment ; but whatsoever do's not deserve punishment , can be no sin , for all sin infers an obligation to punishment ; and therefore to be a sin , and yet be venial , is in proper terms no better than a flat contradiction . again , the sins here spoken of , are supposed to be worthy of a temporal punishment ; but sins that are worthy of a temporal punishment , are not properly venial ; therefore , either the sins here spoken of , must not deserve even a temporal punishment , or they cannot be said to be properly venial . but dly , be the sins , as they desire , venial ; how do's it from hence follow , that it is necessary that these be punish'd in another life ? and why is not the blood of christ which cleanses the greatest sins , a sufficient purgatory for the least infirmities ? venial sins are by themselves confess'd to be intirely consistent with the grace of god ; nay , so consistent as not to destroy , or but even lessen it . now for a christian , who has lived so well as to be still in the grace and favour of god ; that has received an actual pardon of all his other sins , through the merits and satisfaction of christ , so as to be absolutely certain of a crown of glory for ever ; to think that such a one , i say , shall be punish'd with torments , inferior in nothing but the duration to those of hell-fire its self , for such slips and infirmities as the best of men are encompass'd with , and which no man can ever hope perfectly to overcome ; and this , notwithstanding all the promises of mercy and forgiveness , which god has declared to us ; this certainly is so far from being a dictate of right reason , that it is impossible for any one that has any reason at all , and is not exceedingly carried away with prejudice for his opinion , ever to believe it . again , dly , thus they argue : when sinners are reconciled to god , the whole temporal pain is not always remitted with the sin : now it may happen , and often do's happen , that in a mans whole life , he do's not fully satisfie for that temporal pain ; and therefore there must be a purgatory wherein to do it . i answer , that this too proceeds upon a false supposition , that god when he forgives our sins , do's not also forgive the intire obligation to punishment , which by our sins we stood engaged to ; and which both scripture and reason contradict . st , that god do's sometimes afflict those persons whose sins he forgives , whether to prove , or to amend , or to secure them for the future , this 't is confess'd we read in scripture ; and that this is most reasonable , cannot be deni'd upon the account of those excellent ends that are to be served thereby , both to the benefit of the sinner , and to warn others by his example not to offend . but where is there any mention of any thing of this kind either threatned or done in another life ? what end is there to be served in this ? when men go to purgatory , they are already in the grace of god , or otherwise they could not come thither ; they are already forgiven their sins , and secure of their salvation . the punishments therefore of that place can serve no end , either of improving him that suffers them , or of keeping others by his example from offending . add to this , that the justice of god is already intirely satisfied by the merits and sufferings of christ : so that then these punishments can be inflicted for no other purpose than for the delight god takes in punishing . but to say that god delights in the punishment of any , much more of good men , who are his children , who love him , and whom therefore he both loves and intends to glorify to all eternity ; this is certainly to advance a notion unworthy of god , and contrary to all those kind and endearing idea's which the holy scriptures have given us of him ; and therefore ought not without evident proof , which is not so much as pretended to by them , to be admitted . dly , when we say that god forgives sin , we must understand by it one of these two things , viz. that he remits either the stain , or the guilt of it . for by sin there is only these two contracted . as for the stain or pollution of sin , that is not properly forgiven , but is wash'd away by god's sanctifying grace upon our repentance and reconciliation to him : and for the guilt , that is nothing else , but that obligation to punishment , which every man by sinning , renders himself obnoxious to ; so that to remit the guilt , is to remit the obligation to punishment . to say therefore that god forgives the guilt of sin , and yet that our obligation to punishment remains , is in effect to say , that god forgives the guilt , which he do's not forgive , which must be a contradiction . but may not god forgive the guilt as to the obligation it lays upon us to eternal punishment , and yet retain it as to a temporal one ? no doubt he may ; and had he declared that he would do so , we must have believed it . but then this would not have been properly to forgive the guilt , but to commute it , to lessen it . and since neither has he any where declared that this is all he does when he forgives sins ; nor does his justice require that he should do no more ; but especially , seeing wherever god speaks of the remission of sins , he does it without restriction , in the most large , comprehensive terms that can be imagined : we see no cause either to suspect his goodness , or to lessen his mercy by our own arbitrary and ungrounded limitations . but dly , there is yet another argument , and it is this : the opinion that takes away purgatory , is not only false but pernicious ; for it makes men lazy in avoiding sinning , and in the doing of good works . whilst he that believes that there is no purgatory , but that all sins are abolish'd by death to those that die in faith , saith to himself , to what purpose do i labour in fastings and prayer , in continence and almsdeeds ? why do i defraud my heart of its delights and pleasures , since at my death , my sins , whether few or many , shall all be done away — habeat jam roma pudorem ; tertius e coelo cecidit cato . — for is not this rare cant ? to hear those who have taken away the fears of hell , with a demure countenance exclaim against us as wicked , in throwing off so great an engagement to piety as , if you will believe it , they esteem purgatory to be ? but yet since the point is brought at last to this issue , let us see the comparison . st . we who deny purgatory , thus press the practise of good works upon our auditors . that god , to whom we are engaged by all imaginable ties of love , duty , and gratitude , expresly requires them of us , as the only means to retain his favour . that if we be zealous in his service now , we shall certainly receive an eternal weight of bliss and glory in his kingdom . but that if we be careless and negligent of our duty , nothing but everlasting torments shall remain for us . that , let us not deceive our selves , or flatter our souls with any new ways of getting to heaven ; without holiness no man shall ever see the lord. repentance is the only thing that by faith can reconcile us to his favour : and repentance cannot be true , except there be a true love of god , and an utter detestation of sin , and a hearty contrition that we have ever committed it ; and a stedfast resolution never to fall any more into it ; and this improved in an actual , sincere endeavour , what in us lies , to abound in good works , and fulfil that duty which he requires of us . that without this , 't is not any power or authority of the church , absolving us from our sins ; any pardons or indulgences , either before or after our commission of them , that can stand us in any stead , or restore us to god's favour and the hopes of salvation . but that if we do this , then indeed we may assure our selves of his acceptance ; we may raise our hopes to the blessings that he has promised ; and that we may be the more encouraged to pursue them , may assure our selves that all those joys which he has prepared for us , and which it does not now enter into the heart of man but to conceive any thing of as he ought to do , are not at any great distance : as soon as ever we have finish'd our course here , we shall presently be translated , if not to a perfect fruition of them , yet to such an antepast , as shall be more than a sufficient reward for all our endeavours in the pursuit of them . this is the method of our preaching : let us now set cardinal bellarmin in the pulpit , and see how much more effectually he will press these things upon his congregation . and because i would not make the worst of the matter , we will not consider him in quality of a jesuit , instructing the people by artifice and distinction , how to evacuate the whole morality of the gospel , by stating precisely the point , how often a man is obliged to love god ? whether upon all sundays and holydays ? or only once a year ? or once in five years ? or but any one time in a mans whole life ? or finally not at all , neither living nor dying ? this were , it may be , to carry matters too far ; we will stop within the bounds of their more common belief . and here first of all , as is most fitting , we must be sure to put them often in mind of the obedience they owe to the church : of the high opinions they ought always to retain of her , and of that intire submission wherewith they are to yield themselves up to her conduct . that they be sure not to fail to go to mass every sunday and holyday ; that they eat no flesh on any of the fasts of the church , unless they are otherwise dispensed with to the contrary : that once at least every year they receive the sacrament , and before they do so , that they fail not to go to confession ; that they make no doubt but by the priests absolution they are certainly forgiven their sins whatsoever they were ; that indeed it were well that they were contrite for them ; but if they are not , 't is all one , attrition with the sacrament of penance do's the same thing : that this therefore sets them free of all danger of hell , so that be their lives what they will , there is no great fear of that ; but yet that to secure their piety , the church has thought fit to discover to them another very terrible place called purgatory , whither they must go to satisfie for their sins before they can get to heaven . that , indeed , let them live how they will , hither they must come : but yet let them not be discouraged ; there are several secret ways of avoiding it , with infinitely more security than the best life in the world can give them . first , an indulgence may be had , and that too before-hand , to secure the greatest sinner from ever coming thither . if this fail , yet they may enter themselves into some holy fraternity , as for instance that of the scapulary , and then they certainly get out of purgatory the saturday after they dye . at least , that let the worst that can happen , a good number of masses when they are dead , infallibly does the business . 't is true , none of these things can be had without money , and therefore the poor must take heed and have as few sins as they can to answer for ; but yet that if they watch their time , an indulgence will come at an easie rate , and the church in charity will fall her price , rather than refuse that money that will be so much to the benefit of her faithful children . this is , i think , the difference between us : let the world now judg , who it is that give the greatest encouragement to vice , the cardinal in these easie methods of salvation , or we by retaining the old scripture-way of repentance and a good life . but the truth is , the argument ought to have lain thus ; the opinion that takes away purgatory , and leaves men that have lived well , in repose at their death , cuts off all the benefit of masses , prayers for the dead , and the like ; not to say any thing of the dear concern of indulgences , by which our church and our clergy in great measure subsist ; and therefore tho' we know we have nothing to say for it , yet we are resolved we will not quit the belief of it : and this indeed is the honest truth ; but for the rest , 't is in good earnest nothing to the purpose . sect . v. that the doctrine of purgatory is contrary to scripture , antiquity , and reason . hitherto we have seen how little grounds the church of rome has to establish this doctrine as an article of faith ; we will now go yet further , and shew not only , that there is no obligation upon us either from scripture , or antiquity , or reason , to believe this doctrine ; but that according to the principles of every one of these , we ought not to do it . st . for scripture . it is not a little to be consider'd in opposition to this doctrine , that these sacred writings not only every where represent to us this present life as the time of tryal and exercise , of sufferings and afflictions ; but also encourage us on this very consideration to bear them with patience and resignation , that as soon as we die they shall all end , and we shall receive the blessed reward which god has prepared for them that bear them as they ought to do . i look upon it , says st. paul , rom. viii . . that the sufferings of this present life are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed . and again , cor. iv . . for the sufferings of this present life work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory . many other places of this kind there are , in which our present sufferings are compared with , and opposed to , our future reward . now if when all these encounters are ended , there be still another , and a more dreadful sort of tryal to be undergone elsewhere , how could the apostle have used those kind of antitheses ; and have encouraged us to a constancy in our present afflictious , from the prospect of a time , when according to these men there are yet greater and more severe ones to be undergone by us ? and this then may be a second observation ; that the scrpture always speaks of the death of good men as a blessing , an immediate rest from their labours ; and therefore sure understood nothing of those torments to which the church of rome now condemns them . so revel . xiv . . i heard a voice from heaven saying unto me , write ; blessed are the dead which die in the lord , from henceforth , yea saith the spirit , that they may rest from their labours . 't was this assurance made the holy men of old so desirous of their dissolution , that they might find an end of all those labours and evils which they suffer'd here : phil. . . i am in a straight , says st. paul , betwixt two , having a desire to depart and to be with christ which is better , &c. surely st. paul never thought of purgatory , when he talk'd thus of going to christ ; nor would he have appear'd so desirous of his dissolution , had he known he should have been cast into such a fire as the romanists suppose to be in this infernal region . nor can it here be reasonably said , that this was the apostles peculiar happiness ; and therefore that tho' he indeed was secure of going immediately to christ , yet others were not therefore to expect the like favour : for cor. v. . we find him promising the very same to all christians indifferently ; we know , says he , that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved , we have a building with god , a house not made with hands , eternal in the heavens . and again , verse . when we are absent from the body , says he , we are present with the lord : by all which it appears , that when good men dye , they go to the lord ; to christ ; to their heavenly house ; and that sure is not purgatory . to this agree those few instances we have of just mens dying , in the new-testament . lazarus in the parable , was in abraham's besome ; the penitent thief on the cross was promised that he should be that day with christ in paradise : and we have good reason to believe that the same is the state of all others , not only from the passages already mentioned , and many more of the like kind that might have been offer'd ; but also from this , that we have not in all the holy scripture the least intimation of any such place as purgatory : that there is neither precept nor example of any one that either pray'd for the delivery of their friends departed , out of these pains , or any directions left for any one hereafter so to do : now certainly it is not easie to be imagined , that the holy penmen should have been so perfectly silent in this matter , had there been so great a cause for it , as the delivery of their souls out of purgatory undoubtedly would have been ; or had they then esteemed it so excellent and necessary a piece of christian charity , as it is now pretended to be . and this presumption against purgatory the holy scriptures will afford us . if we look dly , to the holy fathers , we shall find them proceeding exactly upon the same principles : they thought the just when they were departed were presently in a state of happiness ; that it was injurious to christ , to hold that such as died in his faith were to be pitied ; that christians therefore ought not by any means to be afraid of dying : 't is for him , says s. cyprian , to fear death , that is unwilling to go to christ. it is for him to be unwilling to go to christ , who doth not believe that he beginneth to reign with christ. — simeon said , lord now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace ; proving and witnessing that the servants of god then have peace , then enjoy free and quiet rest , when being drawn from these storms of the world , we arrive at the haven of our everlasting habitation and security . — let us therefore embrace the day that bringeth every one to his own house , which having taken us away from hence , and loosed us from the snares of this world , returneth as to paradise , and to the kingdom of heaven . i shall leave it to any one to consider , whether this holy father , who discoursed thus of our dying , believed any thing of these tormenting purgatory-fires , that now keep men in anxiety , and make the best christians afraid to dye . and the same is the language of all the rest . st. chrysostom particularly inforces the same considerations , from those psalms that were usually said at the burial of the dead . return to thy rest , o my soul , for the lord hath been gracious unto thee . you see , says that holy father , how that death is a blessing , a rest. — god calls it a blessing , and dost thou lament ? what couldst thou have done more , if thou hadst been his enemy ? but to put this matter , as to the point of antiquity , beyond all doubt , i will remark distinctly two or three things . st , that several of the most ancient fathers not only believed the souls of the faithful to be in happiness , immediately upon their departure , but to be carried immediately into heaven . so athenagoras , st. cyprian , origen , gregory nazianzen , chrysostom , cyril alexandrinus , st. hierom and others . now , certainly they who believed that just men when they dye go straight to heaven , could not have believed that they were for a long while after their death tormented in purgatory ; and therefore all these at least must have been of an opinion different from the church of rome , in this matter . dly , another thing remarkable in some of the ancient fathers , is , that they utterly deny that the soul is capable of being purged in another world ; and this is , to be sure , expresly contrary to the present doctrine of the romanists in this point . thus gregory nazianzen speaking of the judgment after death ; 't is better , says he , to be now chastised and purged , than to be deliver'd over to that torment , when it shall be no longer a time of purgation , but of punishment . where we see the father expresly opposes the time of purgation in this life , to the time not of purgation , but of punishment in the next . and st. chrysostom , if the soul be purged here , ( i. e. from sin ) that fire shall not hurt it , when it departs hence : but the soul that goes hence in sin , that fire ( not of purgatory , but of hell ) shall receive . this was the doctrine of those times ; the soul that was clear of sin , by gods pardon and forgiveness , no fire could hurt ; that which was not , no fire could cleanse ; but it was to remain in torments of hell for ever . nor may we omit to observe , dly , that the fathers take no notice of purgatory in such places , as had they believed it , they could not well have omitted it . hence we see no mention of it in any of their creeds or councils , or catechetical discourses , in which the other articles of their faith are set down and explain'd . the th general council , which condemned origen for his errors concerning the pains after death , never mentioned any other purgatory in opposition to that which he had heretically invented . but that which shews it yet more plainly to have been unknown to them , is , that not only st. austin , but pope gregory himself , the great patron of this error , yet spoke of it with some doubt ; not as they use to do of a point firmly believed by the church , but as a peculiar thing in which they were not themselves very well resolved . when the fathers disputed against origen , they none of them mention any of the purgatory-pains , which the orthodox faith taught , to distinguish them from those from which he erroniously had invented . when epiphanius disputed against aerius , concerning the reason and benefit of praying for the dead , is it to be imagined he could then have forgot the great concern of delivering the souls departed out of purgatory , had the church then believed any such thing ? to all which , if we finally add , that the greek church neither at this day do's , nor ever did receive this doctrine , i cannot tell what clearer evidence we can desire to shew , that this whole business of purgatory , is but an error of the latin church , not an article of the catholick faith. dly , for reason . i shall only offer this one reflection : whether there can be any reason to think there should be such a place , and such punishments as purgatory , for no end or purpose in the world. they who go thither , must be perfect in charity , in the grace of god , secure of their salvation ; their satisfaction must have been made by christ's blood , and so god's justice satisfied . now when all this is already done , to what end is it that they should be tormented ? had there been any means by such a purgatory , either to fit them for heaven , or to satisfie the divine justice , there might then have been some pretence for it . but to think that god punishes men only for punishing-sake ; and this too his own servants , men who are in his favour , that have lived well , and upon that account are justified by him through the blood of christ ; this is such an idea of an infinite love , mercy and goodness , as sure can never be the dictate of right reason ; i think i may say , is utterly inconsistent with it . of prayers for the dead . we have now pass'd through the former part of our undertaking , and found but little reason to be concern'd for those imaginary flames , which so much terrify those of the other communion . it only remains that we descend to the great argument that is most usually insisted upon by them , to prove at least the antiquity of their error , and that is from the undeni'd primitive custom of praying for the dead ; and concerning which , i suppose , it may be sufficient to offer these two things . st , to give a general account , what the practice of the primitive church was ; from whence it will appear how little advantage the church of rome can derive to themselves by it . dly , to answer those allegations , that are from hence brought by them in favour of that praying for the dead , which is now practised by them in their church . sect . i. of the practice of the primitive church , in praying for the dead . now that i may give the clearer account of this , i must observe ; st , that it is one thing to enquire whether we may not innocently pray for the dead ; and another , whether we ought to do it ? . that there is a great difference between praying for the dead in general , without defining what the particular intent of it is , and what advantages accrue to the dead thereby , and determining that we are to pray for the dead upon such a certain account , as for instance , to delive their souls out of purgatory , and that our prayers are effectual in order thereunto . . as to the former of these , we do not deny but that the fathers did begin very early to pray for the dead ; and some of them were so zealous for it too , that epiphanius ( as we shall see below ) made it no small part of his accusation of aerius , that he opposed the practice of it . but yet , we do not find that they pretended it was any part of a christian's duty to do this : that the gospel has any where required it of us , or recommended it to us : in short , they did it as something which seemed to them very pious and fitting ; but they tied up no man's conscience with any decisions or anathema's about it . . for the benefit and advantage of it , in this they were yet less agreed than in the other : insomuch , that when aerius , whom i before mentioned , earnestly demanded what good came to the dead from our prayers ? * * * epiphanius chose rather to fly off to the custom of the church , to the necessity of these prayers to distinguish the condition of our blessed lord from that of all other persons , and the like ; than he would say expresly , how or wherein the dead were profited by them ? many were the private opinions of those holy men , as to this matter . some who believed the millenary doctrine before mentioned , that the dead in christ should revive within the compass of a thousand years , some sooner , others later , according as they had lived better or worser lives on earth ; flatter'd themselves , that by their prayers they might hasten the felicity of their friends , and accordingly pray'd , * * * propter maturam resurrectionem , for their speedy rising in christs kingdom . . others supposed that in the general conflagration of the world at the last day , all men should pass through the fire ; that the better christian any one had been , the less he should feel of the torment of it : and these pray'd for the dead , that god would have mercy on them in that day , and not suffer them to be too much singed and burnt , not in the fire of purgatory , but in the general conflagration at the end of the world. . some believed that the souls of just persons departed , went not straight to heaven , but were reserved in a certain place of sequester , where they earnestly expected and continually wish'd for their absolute consummation with all the faithful in christ's kingdom . and these pray'd that god would give them ease , rest and refreshment , in the bosom of abraham , that they might be comforted with the blessed company of the holy angels , and the vision of our saviour christ , till the so much wish'd-for day of judgment should come . . and lastly , not to mention any more ; others there were who thought that the sentence was not instantly pronounced as soon as men died ; or if it were , yet not so peremptorily , but that still , till the last day , an encrease of glory might be added to the crown of righteousness which god hath designed for the just ; and some diminution made of the torments of the wicked . now these pray'd for the dead out of this hope , to render them either more happy or less miserable , to augment their glory , or to diminish their pains for ever . and all these were the private opinions of particular men , no definitions of the faith of the church in this matter : † † † many of the holy fathers declaring no other cause of their praying for the dead than only to shew their hopes of them , that they still lived , and therefore ought to have some communion maintain'd with them : or else to distinguish all , even the greatest saints , from our blessed saviour , and shew his infinite prerogative above them , whilst they pray'd for all the rest , to testifie their infirmity , and only gave thanks for him to manifest his glory . having given this particular account of the opinions of the primitive fathers as to this point , and to some or other of which i shall shew , that all the passages produced out of them , in vindication of the doctrine of purgatory may be applied ; it will be no difficult matter to shew how little all this can favour the present doctrine of the roman church in this matter . . the primitive christians , 't is true , pray'd for the dead , but they never put it into any of their creeds , as the council of trent has done now . nay epiphanius himself , in the close of his book , making a distinct recapitulation of what was the catholick faith , and what the constitution of the church , places prayers for the dead among * * * the latter ; and which were therefore used , because the custom of the church gave authority thereunto . . the prayers that are made for the dead by the church of rome , are expresly determined to this particular end , to help and relieve the souls that are detained in purgatory . whereas we do not find in the primitive church any thing at all defined as to the immediate design and benefit of them ; and are only sure of this , that it was not to deliver the souls out of purgatory . now this in general is evident , in that we find them to have pray'd for the best persons , for the holy apostles , martyrs , and confessors ; for the blessed virgin her self ; for those whom they supposed at the same time to be in happiness , and whom the papists themselves do not suppose to have ever touch'd at purgatory . thus we find in the liturgies , said to be of the ancient church , that their prayers were made for all these : the author of the ecclesiastical hierarchie , having first described the party deceased † † † as replenisht with divine joy , and now no more fearing any change for the worse ; being publickly pronounced a happy man , and verily admitted in to the society of the saints that have been from the beginning of the world ; then brings in the * * * bishops praying for him , that god would forgive him all the sins he had committed through humane infirmity , and bring him into the light and land of the living , into the bosom of abraham , isaac , and jacob : into the place where there is no more any pain , or sorrow , or sighing . in the liturgy said to be st. basils , we find them thus praying for the dead ; be mindful , o lord , of them which are dead , and are departed out of this life , and of the orthodox bishops which from peter and james the apostles until this day have clearly professed the right word of faith ; and particularly of ignatius , dionysius , julius , and the rest of the saints of worthy memory . be mindful , o lord , of them also , who have stood unto blood for religion , and by righteousness and holiness have fed thy holy flock . in the liturgy ascribed to the apostles , thus they pray , we offer unto thee for all the saints which have pleased thee from the beginning of the world ; patriarchs , prophets , just men , apostles , martyrs , confessors , bishops , priests , deacons : surely , i hope not to deliver all these out of purgatory . in the liturgy of the church of aegypt ascribed to st. basil , gregory nazianzen , and cyril of alexandria , it stands thus : be mindful , o lord , of thy saints ; vouchsafe to remember all thy saints which have pleased thee from the beginning ; our holy fathers the patriarchs , prophets , apostles , martyrs , confessors , preachers , evangelists , and all the souls of the just which have died in the faith ; especially , the holy glorious , the evermore virgin mary , mother of god ; and st. john the forerunner the baptist and martyr : st. stephen the first deacon and martyr ; st. mark the apostle , evangelist , and martyr , &c. in the liturgy of the church of constantinople , said to be st. chrysostoms , we find the very same : we offer unto thee , this reasonable service for those who are at rest in the faith ; our fore-fathers , fathers , patriarchs , prophets , and apostles , preachers , evngelists , martyrs , confessors , religious persons , and for every spirit perfected in the faith : especially , for our most holy , immaculate , and most blessed lady , the mother of god , the ever-virgin mary . i suppose , i need no other evidence than these publick records of the very prayers of the primitive church , to shew that they did not pray for the dead , with any intent to the bringing them out of purgatory ; and by consequence that there can be no manner of proof derived from what those holy men did , to justifie what the church of rome now does . were it at all needful to enforce this from the testimonies of private writers , i could easily run them out into a greater length than i am willing to do . * * * st. cyprian pray'd for laurentinus and ignatius , whom he in the same place acknowledges to have received palms and crowns for their sufferings . † † † st. ambrose pray'd for the religious emperors valentinian and gratian ; for ‖ ‖ ‖ theodosius ; for his brother * * * satyrus ; all which at the same time he declares he thought to be in happiness . gregory nazianzen did the like for his brother caesarius : and all these and many other proofs might at large be produced , were it needful to insist . but this will more properly be done in the next point ; wherein i am to examine the proofs offered by those of the roman church in favour of their own present practice from the custom of the primitive fathers which we have hitherto been speaking of . sect . ii. the allegations brought by those of the church of rome , to justifie their practice of praying for the dead , examined ; and their weakness demonstrated . before i enter on this debate , it may not be amiss to premise what the true state of the point in controversy is ; viz. not whether the primitive fathers did not pray for the dead , after the manner we have now seen ; for that we have already confess'd they did : but whether they pray'd for the dead upon the same principles that the church of rome does now , as supposing them to be in a state of torment , undergoing the temporal pains due to their sins , and in which , therefore they were charitably to be relieved by the prayers and suffrages of the living . this is that which our adversaries are to prove to us ; and i will now enquire what one of the latest of them in his collections upon this point , has offer'd to this purpose . and here , st , i cannot but observe his loose proposing of the point in debate , and the short account he gives of the case of aerius in this matter , whom he sets at the head of his enquiry . in the first century , says he , about the year of christ . aerius went out of the church , and teaching many erroneous doctrines , related by st. epiphanius , haer. . endeavour'd to draw numbers after him . his principal tenets were those wherein he condemned prayers for the dead , &c. — and a little below , aerius condemned praying for the dead : the fathers practised it , and own'd it as advantageous to the souls departed . that the fathers practised praying for the dead , and that many of them believed it advantageous to them , we have before freely allow'd : and that aerius was to be condemned for what he did in opposition hereunto , we shall hereafter shew : in the mean time this gentleman ought to have known , that this is neither what they affirm , or we deny : if he will state the question as he ought , it must be as we have before done it . aerius condemn'd praying for the dead , to deliver them out of purgatory ; the fathers practised it , and own'd it as advantageous in order to this end : but this neither did aerius condemn , nor the fathers practice ; and therefore , the state of this question alone , had it been sincere , would have confuted his whole chapter . to give then such an account of aerius , as may let us distinctly see what his error was , and how little chargeable we are with it , however it has pleased the writers of the roman church not without some ignorance , as well as much uncharitableness to impute it to us : i must first observe a small mistake in our author , as to the point of his chronology , whereby he is pleased to place * * * aerius in the first century , about the year of christ . i shall not need to say that there must be something of an error in this , because his own friend natalis , out of whom he has transcribed every article of this chapter , will assure him , that he was contemporary with epiphanius , and living at the time that that father wrote : so that unless we shall suppose him to have been almost years old , we must conclude that this gentleman has placed him near years before his time . but this only by the way : as for the error its self with which epiphanius charges him , it is this , that he opposed the mentioning the names of the dead : asking , to what purpose they did it ? he that is alive prayeth , or offereth the sacrifice ; what shall this advantage the dead ? but if the dead are indeed profited thereby , then let no man from henceforth trouble himself to live well ; only let him oblige his friends , or give money to persons to pray for him , that none of those inexpiable sins he hath committed may be required of him . this was the case of aerius : and had the church indeed universally believed , as some of the fathers did , that the judgment after death was suspended till the general resurrection , and that in the mean time the sins of the dead might be expiated by the prayers of the living , he had but justly enough opposed so dangerous an error . but this was not the common opinion of the church , nor her design in those prayers : which as the author of the ecclesiastical hierarchy tells us , were made only for good men : either for such as had committed no notorious faults , or had repented of them , and so died in an assured hope of god's favour and acceptance . and therefore epiphanius in answer to this objection , gives other reasons why they pray'd for the dead ; viz. to declare their faith and hope concerning them ; to distinguish the infinite prerogative of our saviour christ above all , even the chiefest of his saints , by praying for these , but giving thanks only for him : and then for the benefit these prayers did the dead , he tells him that tho' they were not of force to cut off all sins , which was the foundation of his objecting , yet they were profitable to them , to implore the mercy of god for those who had been sinners , but repented ; and to obtain for them a recompence for all in the resurrection of the just . the prayers therefore of the church , for the rejecting of which epiphanius here justly reproves aerius , were not such as the church of rome now useth ; it being not imaginable , had the church then known any thing of praying of souls out of purgatory , that either aerius could have ask'd the question , to what purpose are these prayers ? or epiphanius being ask'd , not presently have replied , to deliver the souls departed from the flames of purgatory . the prayers that aerius condemned were those which the primitive fathers made upon the account that from epiphanius i have just now given : and which those of the church of rome do no less condemn than he did ; whilst they so often tell us , that if there be no purgatory , prayers for the dead must be unprofitable : so says † † † aquinas : that the manner of praying for the apostles , martyrs , &c. is by disuse deservedly abolish'd : ‖ ‖ ‖ so mendoza : nay , that to offer sacrifices for those that are in bliss is plainly absurd and impious : so says * * * azorius ; who in this certainly outruns aerius himself , who only pretended that it was unprofitable ; but never durst say it was impious and absurd . it is therefore very improper in our collector of the primitive fathers to insinuate as if we were aerians upon the account of our not praying with them for the dead . aerius rejected the prayers that the primitive church made , upon those principles that we have said , and which the romanists themselves reject and condemn with him : we reject those prayers which the church of rome makes now for delivering souls out of purgatory . had we lived in those times that aerius did , we had readily complied with the practice of those holy men , upon such grounds as they used it : had those holy fathers lived now in the dregs of the church , and seen the abuse of the romanists in this matter , i make no doubt but they would have censured both the cause and the practice of the present praying for the dead , as false and unfitting ; i am sure epiphanius elsewhere gives us sufficient reason to believe that he would ; where speaking concerning the state after death , he tells us , that in the age to come , after the death of a man , there is no advantage of fasting , no call to repentance , no demonstration of charity ; — there lazarus does not go to the rich man , nor the rich man to lazarus : neither abraham sends the poor man to labour that he may grow rich , nor do's the rich man obtain , tho' with prayers , intreating merciful abraham . then the garners are sealed , the time is ended , the combat finish'd , the lists are empty , and the crowns distributed . those that have not yet encountred have no more opportunity , and they who have been overcome in the lists are cast out . in short , all is perfectly ended when once we are departed hence . and now having thus prepared the way to the following enquiry ; let us see whether his fathers will prove any better advocates for their cause , than this loose and imperfect state of the question between us seems to promise . and st . i must take notice that the greatest part of those he has here cited , say only in general , that they were wont to pray for the dead , that god would forgive them their sins , and instate them in the light and land of the living ; or something of the like kind . now it is evident from what has been before observed , that all these argue nothing more than what we have already confess'd to have been the practise of the primitive church , but give not the least authority to those prayers which are made in the church of rome to deliver the souls departed out of purgatory . so dionys. areopag : the venerable prelate coming , prays over the dead body , he implores the divine clemency to pardon all the sins committed by the deceased party , through humane frailty , and that he may be received into the state of bliss , and region of the living . this is indeed the sense of what the pretended dionysius says , tho' not his words : but then i must observe st , that this prayer is made over those , who having lived holy lives , are now come to the end of their combats , and therefore rest in joy and in a certain hope , and are already received into those most holy seats , to which all those in time shall be promoted , who are here endued with a divine perfection . so that it must be an intollerable presumption to pretend that this prayer was designed to deliver the deceased out of a place of torments , nothing inferiour to those of hell fire , such as we are told purgatory is . dly , the author inquiring to what purpose these prayers were made , answers , that the holy bishop knowing the promises of god to those who had lived well , now pray'd that those sins which by human frailty had been committed by the person deceased , being forgiven , the rewards promised to the just might be accomplished in him . here then is a plain account of the design of their praying , but no way favourable to the business of purgatory . dly , pachymeres in his paraphrase , explaining what the meaning of those hymns and lessons was , which were read at the funeral of such a one for whom they thus pray'd , says , 't is to signifie those eternal mansions , to which the party deceased is gone , and to exhort the living to strive after the like holy end . now , surely these eternal mansions of the blest were not the roman purgatory ; and it would have been but an uncomfortable exhortation to have proposed to the living , that they should use their utmost endeavours , that they might come into this place of torments . thly , in his account of the prayers themselves , he says , that the bishop knows from the holy scriptures , that by the just judgment of god , a blessed and divine life is prepared for the just , the divine goodness mercifully overlooking the spots which by humane frailty we contract , and from which no man is free . and therefore knowing this , he prays , that whatever spots of this kind , he by his frailty may have contracted , that god would mercifully overlook them , and give him his sacred reward . and the same was the language of the ancient liturgies of the church , which we have before cited ; in which , having named the holy apostles , martyrs and confessors , which even the romanists themselves will not send to purgatory ; they pray , that they may rest in the country of the living ; in the delights of paradice , in gods kingdom , in the bosom of abraham , isaac and jacob ; as † † † st. james's liturgy has it in the very words of dionysius : make them * * * rest in the tabernacles of thy saints , says st. mark ‖ ‖ ‖ in the light of thy countenance , says st. basil , and st. chrysostom ; ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ give them rest , says st. cyril : now , if these prayers for this rest were to this end , that god would deliver them out of purgatory , and set them at ease , as the church of rome pretends , then certainly the holy apostles and the blessed virgin , must have been in a very ill condition , who after years ( for so late , some of these prayers must be confess'd to have been ) were still esteem'd by the church to lie in those purgatory-flames ; and it was great uncharitableness in st. peter and his successors , that they would not all this while open the treasure of the church , and by some powerful indulgence set them at liberty . conclude we therefore , that there is no manner of consequence in this argument , the primitive fathers pray'd for the rest of the souls departed ; therefore they thought them in torment in a purgatory-fire , suffering the temporal punishment due to their sins , and by these prayers believed they could deliver them from thence . and yet is this the most that the greatest part of the testimonies which are offer'd to us , say ; and by consequence are , as we see , wholly impertinent to the purpose of the church of rome : i shall need only name them , since the same answer i have given to this first , will by application serve for all the rest. so tertullian , whose words our * * * collector thus renders , ‖ ‖ ‖ we make oblations for the dead , and keep the anniversary of their birth . — he is speaking in that chapter of several customs of the church , which tradition and long usage had establish'd , but for which there was no authority of holy scripture ; and this he gives as one instance . but were these oblations to deliver them out of purgatory ? i shall only desire him to consider the interpretation which their own editor gives of the natalitia , which he renders anniversaries , and then affirm it if he can . by the natalitia , says he , is meant the solemnities used to be kept in honour of the martyrs , every year , on the day when by dying to the world they were born to heaven . it seems then these solemnities tertullian here speaks of , were for those who were already born to heaven , for the holy martyrs ; and not as is pretended , to deliver their souls out of purgatosy . nor does † † † arnobius add any thing more : what reason was there that our churches should be so outragiously thrown down , in which prayers were offered to our soveraign god , peace and mercy was implored for all , for magistrates , armies , kings , friends and enemies , whether alive or dead . here is mention of praying for the dead ; but as for purgatory , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . what eusebius speaks concerning the death of constantine , is no way more pertinent . he tells us that they offer'd up prayers to god for the soul of the emperor ; but that these prayers were to deliver his soul from the temporal pains of purgatory , he says not one word . i have already consider'd epiphanius , and we find in his reprehension of aerius much against them , but nothing in their favour : as for what * * * theodoret relates of theodosius the younger , that he pray'd for his father and mother , begging that they might obtain pardon for all their sins of frailty . it still confirms that they did in those days pray for the dead , and for the forgiveness of their sins ; but for the remission of any present temporal punishment which they thought they were undergoing for them , this we do not find that they pray'd for . for st. ambrose , had his whole words been transcribed , we should have seen at first view that they were nothing to the purpose . he exhorts faustinus , not so much to bewail his sister , as to pray for her . what to deliver her soul out of purgatory ? no surely , for in the words immediately foregoing , he tells him , that being taken for a time from us she doth pass a better life there . but this little oversight ought not in justice to be imputed to our collector ; who transcribes natalis , and not the fathers themselves ; and could therefore give us no more than what he found in him . the next from whom he supposes may be inferr'd the doctrine of praying souls out of purgatory , is st. jerom : who in the epistle mention'd to pammachius some time after the death of his wife paulina , particularly commends him that he had sold all his goods , and given them to the poor , and taken up the resolution of leading a monastick life . other husbands , says he , dress their wives tombs with violets , roses , and purple flowers , and by these services ease their disturbed mind : but our friend pammachius pays no other duty to the holy ashes , and venerable bones , but by giving alms , cherishing them by this sweet odour , because he knows 't is written , as water extinguishes the fire , so do alms blot out sin . this is in some measure , st. jerom's sense , but by no means suitable to the elegance of his expressions : but not to insist on that ; was this charity , to deliver her soul out of purgatory ? nay , but st. hierome in the close of that very epistle says , that she was with her sister bloe●ila already with the lord : that they both enjoy'd a sweet and pleasant sleep : and in the very words cited , there are so many expressions of her present quiet , as can never be reconciled to the purgatory torments . but this the translator left out : cherishing them ( say he ) by this sweet odour : st. hierom's words are these : with these figments and these odours he cherishes her dead ashes now at rest : which plainly enough shews that he thought her in a state and place vastly different from the condition of souls in purgatory ; all that st. hierom then meant by this , was only thus much , that this charity of pammachius was most pleasing to paulina , that her soul rejoiced in it , as in a fragrant and delightful odour ; and that hereby he should engage the mercy of god not for himself alone , but for his wife too , in whose name he did it , and to whose salvation it should therefore not a little conduce . as to what is alledged of st. austin's praying for his mother monica , nothing certainly could have been more inauspicious to the consequence that is pretended to be drawn from it ; for besides , that in all which he says there is not one word of any temporal pains , which he desired she might be freed from ; he expresly declares , that he believed god had already done all that he desired : if therefore he desired to have her deliver'd out of purgatory , he believed god had already done it , and therefore the prayers he now made , could not be to obtain her freedom . but this circumstance our author cautiously omitted , tho in the middle of what he set down ; and that the charge of such false dealing may not always lye upon natalis , i must here free him from it ; this being the only passage in the whole chapter which our collector has not borrowed from him ; and must therefore bear now the blame himself , unless he has some other friend , that i do not at present know of , upon whom to lay the imputation . i shall not need to give any answer more to the other passage or two from the same father ; in none of which is there the least mention of any purgatory pains , or that the prayers were made for their deliverance from them . and hitherto then we have considered such testimonies as cannot with any shew of reason be pretended to make any thing for the custom of praying for the dead , now used in the church of rome . but now dly , some others there are that may seem more immediately to their purpose ; in which they expresly desire rest , comfort , and refreshment for the dead . i have already answered in great measure this argument , by shewing that these things they prayed for , even for the apostles and martyrs , and the b. virgin her self ; and therefore that these expressions cannot be said to signifie that the persons for whom they prayed , were either in purgatory or any other place of torments . but i will now more expresly remove this difficulty , and to that end i must repeat what i have before observed , that many among the ancient fathers supposed that the souls departed , do not go straight to heaven , but are kept in a place of sequester , where they earnestly desire the accomplishment of the number of christs saints , that they may be consummated with them in glory . now with reference to this opinion it was , that they prayed to god to give them rest : so tertullian , and st. ambrose , alledged by our collector ; to grant them repose ; a quiet sleep : so st. cyprian , i. e. as tertullian himself explains it , that they might have comfort in the bosom of abraham , till the time of the resurrection shall come . if it shall be objected against this , that to pray for their rest implies as if they were not now in ease , and so reduce us to a necessity of confessing either a purgatory or some other the like place of punishment . i answer st , if this be so , then the b. virgin , the apostles , martyrs , and confessors were all at this time in purgatory , above years after their death ; for thus we see they prayed in the primitive church by name for them , which yet the church of rome dares not say . but dly , in the continuance of their prayers for the dead , they used the same supplications that they did at their first departure ; and therefore pray for their rest and repose , as if they were but now just about to enter into it ; and this account cardinal bellarmin himself gives us of it . to which let me add dly , that the ancient fathers thought , that in this place of refreshment there were divers degrees of it ; and therefore they prayed that god would give them rest , not as if they were now totally destitute of it , but as desiring it might be increased to them in a yet higher degree : or else thly , as tertullians words seem to imply , they desired hereby their rest , i. e. the continuance of that rest they now enjoy'd to the day of judgment . nor is it any prejudice to this , that the dead were now out of a capacity of having their state ever alter'd , and therefore that it was in vain to pray for that happiness which they were already secure of , since as bellarmin himself confesses , the ancients thought it no way improper to pray for those things which they knew god was resolved to give : and we see our blessed saviour in his own short prayer has commanded us to pray that god's kingdom may come , which whether we pray or no , will in its due time most infallibly be accomplish'd . whether these reasons may , any or all of them appear to be a sufficient vindication of such kind of prayers i cannot tell : but this is certain , that the primitive christians did pray for the rest of those whom they esteemed already in happiness , and by consequence that these prayers do not argue a state of torments from whence the dead were to be delivered by them . and because it may be of great moment to be well assured of this , i will subjoyn an undeniable instance of it , in one of the very particulars offer'd by our collector , but with what sincerity i shall leave the reader to judge , in favour of purgatory . st. ambrose in his oration on the death of theodosius , thus prays for him : give perfect rest to thy servant theodosius , that rest which thou hast prepared for thy saints . let his soul ascend thither from whence it had its origine ; where it may be out of the power of death , where it may know that death is not an end of nature but of sin. i loved him , and therefore i pursue him to the region of the living ; nor will i leave him , till by my tears and prayers i bring him whither his merits call him , into the holy mount of our lord , where there is life without end . thus our collector tells us st. ambrose prayed for theodosius : but did this holy bishop think him as yet in purgatory , and that by his prayers he should set him at rest from the torments of it ? let us judge by what goes before in the same oration : theodosius of honourable memory , being freed from doubtful fight , doth now enjoy everlasting light , and continual tranquility ; and for the things which he did in this body , he rejoiceth in the fruits of gods reward ; because he loved the lord his god , he hath merited the society of the saints . and again in the same oration : he hath not laid down , but changed his kingdom , being taken by the right of his piety into the tabernacles of christ , into the heavenly jerusalem . now surely the tabernacles of christ , the jerusalem that is above , are no characters of purgatory ; and yet here st. ambrose thought theodosius at the same time that he pray'd for him . but st. ambrose is yet more express ; * * * theodosius therefore ( says he ) remains in light , and glorieth in the company of the saints . let the reader now judge , whether the prayers of this holy man for the rest of theodosius , be any president for those prayers that are made for the rest of souls , by the church of rome . . there is yet one witness to be consider'd , and upon which our collector insists more largely than ordinary , and that is st. chrysostome : who in the places cited out of him speaks indeed of certain benefits which came to the dead by our prayers ; and thereupon exhorts all persons to perform this office to them . i have before mentioned an opinion of some fathers , that even the damned in hell might be advantaged by the prayers of the living ; and if not be freed from , yet be at least alleviated in their torments . and in this excessive charity st. chrysostome was one of the forwardest ; as is evident in the very ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ homilies cited by this collector , were i at liberty to insist on a thing so well known . we are not therefore to wonder if we find this father so earnestly pressing this charity of praying for the dead , which he thought of so great a force as even to relieve the greatest sinners . if this be either the belief or practise of the roman church , we shall not deny them a patern in this holy father ; but if this be what they neither believe nor allow of , how impertinent must it be to produce his praying for the dead , on such principles as they condemn , to be a witness of the antiquity of their praying for the dead to deliver them out of purgatory , which he knew nothing at all of , nor did at all intend by his prayers . . as for what is finally added concerning the greek church , it is confessed that they do pray for the dead upon the same grounds , and after the same manner that the ancient church did ; but that they pray for them as the romanists would now insinuate , this is false , as we have before shewn ; nor do the testimonies produced at all convince us of it . and this may suffice to have been said to the several proofs that are offer'd by those of the roman communion in favour of this error , concerning prayers for the dead ; for as for isidore hispalensis , he is beyond the period i have fix'd to my reflections ; and for st. perpetua's dream which the misrepresenter , from natalis too , heretofore insisted upon , i may reasonably presume by our collector's omission of it , that he thought it sufficiently answer'd by the learned author that first undertook the examination of his pretences against us . close . and now after so particular examination of all these things , there is but one objection more remaining that i can foresee may possibly be made against us , on this occasion : for be it that we have reason to throw off the romish error of purgatory , and by consequence those prayers for the dead which are made in that church to deliver the souls from thence ; yet since we cannot deny but that the primitive christians did pray for the dead for many other ends , and which we do not presume to condemn them for , wherefore at least do we not continue the ancient practice , and pray for them as those holy men of old did ? this perhaps may be a scruple that some may raise , and having answer'd it i shall conclude : and st , if he be one of the roman communion that makes this objection , he may please to tell us , wherefore it is , that they of his own church do not do this ? or why he should require us to follow the ancient practice of the church in those things which themselves do not think sufficient to oblige them to a conformity ? they may call us aerians or what else they please upon this account ; but if to follow the error of aerius , this be to become properly aerians , we have before seen that they do so ; nay they outstrip him in it ; whilst that sort of praying for the dead , which the ancients used , he thought only needless and irrational ; but there are amongst them those who doubt not to call it impious and absurd . i have before shewn what the grounds were on which those holy men prayed for the dead : now there is not one of these which is not at this day disclaim'd by the church of rome , no less than by us , and especially that which was the chiefest foundation of all , viz. the opinion of the state of the soul out of heaven during its separation , they have in the council of florence flatly condemn'd . now if it be then no crime in them to reject the opinions of those primitive christians on which this practice was founded , nay to censure the very practice its self upon any other account but that which they now assert , and which the ancient fathers , as we have seen , never knew ; how comes it to be more unlawful in us to do this , than it is in them ; or why may not we as well give off praying for the dead as the ancient church did , as they themselves not only leave it off , but even censure it to have been impious and absurd , which we never presumed to do ? but dly , if the person who makes this objection , be of some other communion , i have several reflections to offer in our justification in this matter . st , let his reverence for antiquity be never be so great , yet he will not i am sure , say either , that those holy men were infallible in every thing they did , or that we ought to receive at all adventures whatever can be proved to have descended from them . we do indeed confess , that this custom of praying for the dead , was one of the most early practices of the church . but then we have seen what it was that introduced it : and their grounds are many of them such , as are now generally disclaimed by almost all christians ; such as that of christs millenary kingdom ; of the passing of all men , through the purgatory-fire at the end of the world ; of the souls of the just being in a place of sequester out of heaven till the last day , and the like ; the rest so inconsiderable , as that we cannot by any means think them sufficient to warrant so dangerous a practice . for what is it to engage us to this , that the ancients thought hereby to distinguish the best of men from our saviour christ ? to testifie their hopes of a future resurrection ? to maintain a kind of fellowship and communion with them ? there are other ways enough to do all this , without engaging in such a piety as the holy scripture , is not so much as pretended to countenance : the most that ever the holy fathers offer'd for it , being the custom of the church ; and tertullian expresly places it among those things which are no where written . how far such an authority might then have obliged us to compliance with the practice of the church had we lived in those primitive times , it is not necessary to enquire ; but since neither the holy scripture requires it , nor do's the custom of the church now exact it of us , nor do we acknowledg those opinions on which it was heretofore used , nor can we see any benefit that we are able to do the dead by them ; it is but reasonable to omit that , which might justly give offence to some , but cannot possibly bring advantage to any . but dly , we have yet a more particular reason , why it is by no means fitting at this time , thus to pray for the dead ; and that is , to prevent that danger which the present practice of the church of rome would be apt to expose men to , should we do it . to pray for the souls departed as that church do's , neither did the primitive fathers ever allow , and we have sufficiently shown how dangerously erroneous it is to do so . it is therefore by no means convenient to continue a practice , whereby it might be very easy to lead men into such gross mistakes ; and however , some might still be able to make the distinction , and see a great difference in the design and intention of the same kind of praying ; yet the ill use that is made , even of what those holy fathers did , sufficiently shews us how apt men are to confound those things together , that have so nigh a relation as to the practice , and the act being the same , to lead them to believe that the principle is so too . in short , dly , we cannot imagine , if there were indeed any such great piety in this practice , as to deserve our apology for the omission of it , how it comes to pass that neither precept nor example of any such thing , is to be found in the holy scriptures : and to those , who make that the rule of their religion ; we do not see that any more need be said than this , that we find nothing there to authorize such a devotion , and that , therefore we cannot think it fitting to make it a part of the churches service . i shall close up all with the words of our church in her homily upon this subject : let these and such other considerations be sufficient to take away the gross error of purgatory out of our heads ; neither let us dream any more that the souls of the dead are any thing at all holpen by our prayers : but as the scripture teacheth us , let us think that the soul of man passing out of the body , goeth straight ways either to heaven , or else to hell ; whereof the one needeth no prayer , the other is without redemption . the only purgatory wherein we must trust to be saved , is the death and blood of christ , which if we apprehend with a true and stedfast faith , it purgeth and cleanseth us from all our sins , even as well as if he were now hanging upon the cross. the blood of christ , saith st. john , hath cleansed us from all sin. the blood of christ , saith st. paul , hath purged our consciences from dead works , to serve the living god. also in another place , he saith , we be sanctified and made holy by the offering up of the body of jesus christ done once for all . yea , he addeth more , saying , with the one oblation of his blessed body and precious blood , he hath made perfect for ever and ever , all them that are sanctified . this then is that purgatory , wherein all christian men put their whole trust and confidence ; nothing doubting , but if they truly repent them of their sins , and die in perfect faith , that then they shall forthwith pass from death to life . if this kind of purgation will not serve them , let them never hope to be released by other mens prayers , tho they should continue therein unto the worlds end . he that cannot be saved by faith in christs blood , how shall he look to be deliver'd by mans intercessions ? hath god more respect to man on earth , than he hath to christ in heaven ? if any man sin ( saith st. john ) we have an advocate with the father , even jesus christ the righteous , and he is the propitiation for our sins . but we must take heed that we call upon this advocate , while we have space given us in this life , least when we are once dead , there be no hope of salvation left unto us . for as every man sleepeth with his own cause , so every man shall rise again with his own cause . and look in what state he dieth , in the same state he shall also be judged , whether it be to salvation or damnation . let us not therefore dream either of purgatory , or of prayer for the souls of them that be dead ; but let us earnestly and diligently pray for them which are expresly commanded in holy scripture , namely for kings and rulers , for ministers of gods holy word and sacraments , for the saints of this world , otherwise called the faithful ; to be short , for all men living , be they never so great enemies to god and his people , as jews , turks , pagans , infidels , hereticks . then shall we truly fulfil the commandment of god in that behalf , and plainly declare our selves to be the true children of our heavenly father , who suffereth the sun to shine upon the good and bad , and the rain to fall upon the just and unjust . for which , and all other benefits most abundantly bestow'd upon mankind from the beginning , let us give him hearty thanks , as we are most bound ; and praise his name for ever and ever . amen . finis . books lately printed for richard chiswell . . a discourse concerning the necessity of reformation , with respect to the errors and corruptions of the church of rome . quarto . first and second parts . . a discourse concerning the celebration of divine service in an unknown tongue . quarto . . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . ] quarto . . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . quarto . . an answer to three papers lately printed , concerning the authority of the catholick church in matters of faith , and the reformation of the church of england quarto . . a vindication of the answer to some late papers concerning the unity and authority of the catholick church , and reformation of the church of england . quarto . . an historical treatise written by an author of the communion of the church of rome , touching transubstantiation . wherein is made appear , that according to the principles of that church , this doctrine cannot be an article of faith. quarto . . an answer to the first , second , fifth and sixth sheets of the second part of the [ popish representer ] . the lay-christians obligation to read the holy scriptures . quarto . . the plaiu man's reply to the catholick missionaries , o. . the protestant's companion : or an impartial survey , and comparison of the protestant religion as by law established , with the main doctrines of popery . wherein is shewn , that popery is contrary to scripture , primitive fathers and councils ; and that proved from holy writ , the writings of the ancient fathers , for several hundred years , and the confession of the most learned papists themselves . quarto . . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence and the adoration of the host. in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford on this subject . to which is pre●…ed a large historical preface relating to the same argument . quarto . . the pillar and ground of truth . a treatise shewing that the roman church falsly claims to be that church , and the pillar of that truth , mentioned by st. paul in his first epistle to timothy , chap. iii. vers. . quarto . . a brief discourse concerning the notes of the church , with some reflections on cardinal bellarmin's fifteen notes , of which eight are extant , the rest will be published weekly in their order . . a defence of the confuter of bellarmin's second note of the church [ antiquity ] against the cavils of the adviser . quarto . . the peoples right to read the holy scriptures asserted . in answer to the th , th , th , th and th chapters of the [ popish representer . ] . a short summary of the principal controversies between the church of england , and the church of rome . being a vindication of several protestant doctrines , in answer to a late pamphlet intituled [ protestancy destitute of scripture proof ] . imprimatur liber cui titulus , a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry , &c. ex aedib . lambeth , febr. . . guil. needham , r. r. in christo p. ac d. d. wilhelmo archiepisc. cant. à sacr. domest . a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry : in which a late author's true and onely notion of idolatry is considered and confuted . si inter solos pontificios versarer , &c. i. e. if i conversed with none but papists , and considered their religion corrupted with old wives tales , and were altogether destitute of a rule of faith , by which to discern the vast difference between the christian religion , and the trifles of popery ; and lastly , if no histories were extant , shewing how these dotages crept in : if it were thus , i say , then i frankly confess , that i should very much suspect the christian religion , nay i should utterly reject it as foolish and mean , and beneath the esteem of old gossips ; nor should i less hate the name of christianity , than i do that of popery . tentam. physic. theol. auth. samuele parkero , p. . london : printed for william rogers , at the sun over against st. dunstan's church in fleet-street . mdclxxxviii . the preface . were we to judge of the merits of a book meerly by the good opinion which the author seems to have of it , we might reasonably believe , that the discourse concerning the nature of idolatry , which i am about to consider , was not onely set forth in defence of a truly infallible church , but that the author of it thought himself delivering nothing but oracles all the while he was composing of it . if his reasons had born proportion to the nature of his attempt , we should easily have forgiven him , or rather we should have thanked him , no less than the gentlemen of the roman communion would have done in such a case . he does indeed treat men with contempt , whom all the world knows to be above his contempt , nor can i believe him to be so singular as not to know it himself ; but yet had he reasoned well , we had yielded to him : for an over-bearing spirit in an adversary , neither makes us to submit to a bad argument , nor to resist a good one . it seemed something strange , that that author should think to trample upon us now , for pretending that the church of rome has defined transubstantiation as 't is understood by us , and that she has established an idolatrous worship in her communion : for not only the greatest persons of the reformed religion have brought this charge against her , but to the truth of it himself has subscribed in his time . but it was much more amazing to find so new a confidence supported by arguments so weak , that 't is not without reason that some of the roman communion are said to complain , that they have been betrayed , rather than defended by him . how unsuccessfully he has managed his design of expounding transubstantiation , has been shewn in a late discourse proving transubstantiation to be the peculiar doctrine of the church of rome , and in the preface to the examination of the new articles of the roman creed by catholick tradition . if i make it appear that he has miscarried as much in the point of idolatry , his theological part will then be considered ; and for the rest , we do not by any means presume to meddle with it . as for the subject which i have undertaken , one would have thought , that a man who resolved to despise all that had ever written upon it , and not according to his opinion , should have taken care , if not to produce something that could not be answer'd , yet at least not to offer any thing that had been already confuted . but on the contrary , this author , after all this noise , has for the most part been only an humble transcriber of the old exploded pretences ; and which i may truly say were much more strongly , as well as more modestly urged by dr. godden against his learned adversary . and when i consider how much more roughly this author uses him , than that doctor did , i am apt to think it might in some measure proceed from the sence he had that dr. st. in discovering the sophistry of his old antagonist , had before-hand confuted whatever this new one could find out again to revive the controversie . and for this i shall leave the following discourse to be my evidence ; and of which i shall say no more here , than that in his own phrase : i have delivered my judgment , as i will answer for my integrity to god and the world. but now there is another thing , which i ought not in this place to pass by . it has been insinuated by this hot reasoner , as no small crime in us , that we charge the church of rome with idolatry , not only ( says he ) because of the falseness of the calumny , but the barbarous consequence that may follow upon it , to incite and warrant the rabble , whenever opportunity favours , to destroy the roman catholics and their images , as the israelites were commanded to destroy the canaanites and their idols . and in the next page he tells us , that this charge of idolatry has ever been set up as the standard against monarchy . there are many more passages of the like kind , in which he exercises his gift of eloquence : for i dare say he never learnt it , unless he has in his time studied to imitate a tempest ; for i know not what other original he could propound to himself . this stile is the fittest in the world to his purpose , and will perhaps be a copy for the future to them that intend to speak neither according to charity nor truth ; which are ever best heard in a calm . but however , if this too were for the declaration of his judgment , we will no more complain of the violence of his expressions , than we do of the force of his arguments ; only i would beg leave to say , that he should have been sure he could discharge the church of rome of that guilt , before he had fix'd a mark of calumny upon the whole body of the reform'd , who accuse them of it ; lest when men examine his proofs , and find them defective , they be tempted to retort the censure , especially considering with what freedom and violence he has been pleased to lay it upon us . but now for his great fear that this should incite the rabble to any violence against those of the other communion , i dare venture to say , there is not the least reason to be at all apprehensive of it . he knows very well how free the christians of the first three centuries were in laying the very same charge against the gentile world ; and yet we do not find that they ever shew'd themselves either the less obedient to their emperours , or the less charitable to their neighbours , upon the account of it . and though i am verily perswaded that the romanists , in the invocation of saints , and in the worship of images and reliques , and of the host , are guilty of idolatry ; yet i thank god i am not conscious to my self of one disloyal thought to my king , or of the least uncharitableness towards any of my country-men , who differ from me in these particulars . and what i can thus truly profess in my own behalf , i doubt not but i may do for all others the true and genuine members of the church of england ; and who by being such , must , i am sure by principle , be both obedient subjects , and charitable christians . as for this author , he has made as broad a signe that he intends to leave us , by insinuating , that the charge of idolatry ought to be followed with blows , as by his concern not to have idolatry charged upon the church of rome . we who do protest against certain practices as idolatrous , do also protest against violating either loyalty or charity , upon the account of religion . this author , it seems , likes us neither upon one account , nor the other ; or this at least is to be said , that he has been thus long of our communion , and has not all this while understood what we teach concerning a christian's duty to his neighbour . did we indeed profess that of idolatry , which some others do of heresie , that 't is a sufficient ground for the excommunicating of a king , and absolving his subjects of their allegiance ; had we ever been caught not in otesian conspiracies , but in real plots against our soveraign upon this account , there might then have been just cause for such an insinuation . but whilst our principles are so loyal , that we have even been laught at for our asserting them , and that too by some of those who would now be thought so zealous for their princes safety ; it was a very unreasonable apprehension , to think that the charge of idolatry ( and that too begun in the time of a prince of whom it was misprision of treason , but to say that he was guilty of it ) should in the bottom have been the designe against the monarchy , which we have so often declared , and in the very person of our present king have shewn , we think our selves obliged to support , whatever his religion be who is to sit upon the throne . and for what concerns our brethren of the roman communion , it is well known that we are not of those who destroy men for conscience sake . we have never been infamous either for parisian massacres , or military conversions . they are others that have ruined at once both the churches and the servants of the living god , out of zeal for their religion . we have indeed taken care to remove the idols out of our israel ; but for the worshippers of them , if they have suffer'd any thing , it has not been for their idolatry , but for that which shews there is something else more dangerous to the english monarchy than this charge . the truth is , when i consider how heinous a suggestion this is , and what little foundation there is , either from our principles , or our practices , to support it , i am under some temptation to reply to this author , as an ancient father once did to a heathen who accused them of such cruelties and filthiness in their ceremonies , as none but themselves were capable of committing . nemo hoc potest credere , nisi qui possit audere . and this i hope may serve for my excuse , if i have at this time appear'd in defence of a charge in which every true member of the church of england is so highly concern'd ; and for which all orders and degrees among us , have been so contemptuously exploded by this author . or if i must still be content to bear the censure of such as he , i shall at least comfort my self in this , that i can fall under no reproach , but what must at the same time reflect upon all the great names of the primitive christian church , with whom i had rather suffer the angry reflections of a few of our own communion , than flourish with them , and gain their applauses . to say the truth , when such learned defenders of our church are struck at , and that in so impetuous a manner as that most deservedly esteemed person he has so often mentioned , and i think never without something to raise his repute amongst honest and judicious men ; i should be even ashamed not to be ill spoken of by such a one at the same time , if i had had the honour of his acquaintance . as for what concerns the charge its self , i shall leave it to any one to judge , whether if the roman church be indeed guilty of what we say it is , we can discharge our duty either towards god , or our neighbour , as we ought to do , without endeavouring to convince them of their danger . and when others are so zealous for the reputation of a few men whose breath is in their nostrils ; sure we may be excused if we express some jealousie for the honour of that god who has made both them and us . it is indeed a most deplorable spectacle to consider whether blind superstition , and a zeal not according to understanding , has been able to carry otherwise good and pious men. nor is it the least of my wonders , to consider persons whose learning i admire , and whose sincerity i am unwilling to question , yet either by the prejudice of education , or by some other causes to me unknown , so byassed in their affections to the grossest errors , that the most plain and convincing arguments have not been able to prevail upon them . 't is hardly to be believed , but that they are themselves the publishers of their own doings , that in the clear light of christianity men should be so blind as to contend for giving religious worship to their fellow creatures , and set up senseless images to be joyned in the very same act of divine adoration with the great god the creator of heaven and earth . and i would to god their impiety had stopp'd here ; but indeed it has gone much farther ; they have found out ways how not only all other things , animate and inanimate , may be warrantably adored with divine adoration , but even the devil himself be worshipped , without sin ; by virtue of a good intention to honour god , and not certainly knowing it to be the devil . and if we may believe a man in his own case , one of them once went much farther : he made no scruple to worship the devil whom he knew to be so , and that without taking any care ( for ought appears by his relation ) to terminate his worship finally upon god. and because it is indeed a singular instance , to shew to what extravagance such principles as we oppose , are apt to carry indiscreet votaries , i will , to avoid all suspicion of falshood , give you a short account of it in his own words . father gauffre being sent for to exorcise a terrible devil call'd arfaxa , which was got into the foot of sister bonaventure a nun , she earnestly pray'd him that he would confess her ; for as the father observes , the devil had a particular desire to speak to him . after some discourse had pass'd betwixt them , and they began to understand one another a little better , i threw my self ( says the father ) upon my knees before him , telling him , that my designe was to confound my pride by that of the devils , and to learn humility of them that had none . the devil , enraged to see ▪ me in that posture , told me , that he had received a command to prevent me . but when i continued , for all that , to humble my self before him , he thought to take advantage of it , and told me , thou dost this to adore me. i replied , villain , thou art too infamous , i consider thee as the creature of my god , and the object of his wrath ; and therefore i will submit my self to thee , though thou dost not deserve it : and for that very reason i will immediately kiss thy feet . the devil surprized at this action , hindred me . upon which i conjured him to tell me , as far as he could guess at it , what the will of god was , whether that i should kiss his feet , or he mine ? he answer'd , thou knowest what motion god gives thee ; follow that . immediately i threw my self upon the ground , and kissed his feet : at which he was in a rage : and then i commanded him by the reliques of father bernard , to kiss mine ; which he did accordingly , with great readiness . after this , i continued upon my knees before him , for about half a quarter of an hour . and now when these things are publickly taught and done in the roman church , is it not high time for us to speak , and to assert the honour of god , and the purity of his religion ? shall others , without scruple , maintain and propagate their errours , and shall it be a crime in us , even when attacked in the most violent manner , to defend the truth ? nay , but let god be served , though all the world be dissatisfied . in the mean time , whilst forced by these considerations to assert our religion , we pursue these examinations , be it your parts ( for whose sake we principally labour ) to encourage our endeavours by a firm adherence to that form of sacred doctrine which you have received . as you have hitherto maintained an unreprovable zeal for your profession , so go on more and more to contend earnestly for the faith that was once deliver'd to the saints . and above all , be careful to adorn your holy religion with a suitable practice , that they may be ashamed , who falsly accuse your good conversation in christ. for so is the will of god , that with well doing ye should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men . let the same mind be in us , which was also in those primitive christians before-mentioned . let us boldly assert the truth , as those who know what account they are one day to give unto god for it ; but let us also be charitable towards our neighbours ? and if they will rather be esteem'd our enemies , let us remember , that even under that name , we are yet to love them . let us still be careful to maintain the character of the best subjects , as we have long asserted the most loyal principles : that as the prosperity of our king makes up a considerable part of our daily prayers , so by a sincere discharge of all humble obedience towards him , he may be convinced of the malice of those who would insinuate any false suggestions against us ; and effectually see , that , excepting only our duty towards god , we are much more forward and ready to do his majesty effectual service , than any man can be , whose loyalty is not supported by religion . chap. i. in which the charge of idolatry which we bring against those of the church of rome , is freed from those odious imputations that have been of late suggested against it . it may possibly appear to some not a little surprizing , that a church which makes no scruple of practising what is idolatrous , should yet be so very unwilling to lie under the imputation of it : there is nothing in all our disputes with those of the other communion , which they would be thought so highly to resent as this ; the very mention of it has seem'd to scandalize them ; and if heat and confidence could have born us down , they had long since effectually deliver'd themselves from all suspicion of it . it is not my business to enquire into the reasons of this proceeding , and which , when duly consider'd , will be found to have nothing in it , but what is exceeding natural . men are always more forward to do ill things , than to avow them , or to own them under their proper names : idolatry ( as our author says ) is a scandalous charge . by his leave , the charge is not always scandalous , though the crime be ever so , and the charge reputed scandalous by them who are charged with it . though a church that does countenance the commission of it , may by subtile arguments and bold denials keep up its reputation well enough amongst those who are resolv'd at any rate to believe her , yet 't were impossible she should long support her interest , should she freely avow the doing of it . but of all the methods that have been made use of to put a stop to this charge ; there has been none so surprizing as what this author has here found out ; and could he but have made it good , i am perswaded there would not have been any more effectual . he represents it as inconsistent not only with the principles of charity towards our neighbour , but even of loyalty towards our prince ; and makes the very mention of it to be little less than a setting up of the standard against monarchy . and yet he is not so unacquainted with the principles and dispositions of those of the church of england , as not to know , that next to our sollicitude for the honour of god , there are no two things in the world , we value our selves more upon , than that character we have so justly obtained , of teaching the best measures both of duty to our king , and of love , and kindness , and charity towards one another . i must therefore , before i proceed to vindicate our notion of idolatry , first say somewhat to remove this great prejudice that has been offer'd against it ; and this i shall do , i. by considering upon what weak grounds this author has undertaken to insinuate these crimes against us . ii. by shewing what horrible consequences would follow from it , should what he pretends indeed be true . . of the weak grounds upon which he has undertaken to insinuate such things against us . now all that he has to say for this odious charge , if taken out of his turbulent and declamatory stile , is but this : that idolatry is a sin very heighnous to god , and which he therefore , under the law , commanded to be punished with death . this is the sum of what he has dilated upon in three whole pages ; and against this i have many things to except . for , . what if idolatry be a damnable sin , may we not therefore say , without uncharitableness , that those are guilty of it , whom we effectually prove to be so ? must we therefore become mens enemies because we tell them the truth ? i am sure a very little charity would have taught him to have made a better conclusion ; nor can i imagine what greater instance of my affection , i could shew my best friend , if i saw him in such a course as i thought would render him eternally miserable , than to tell him freely of the danger of his sin , and press him with the best reasons i had to perswade him to forsake it . it may be he will say , he does not deny but that we may charge men with great sins , provided that they be truly guilty of them : but yet that the heighnousness of this crime should make us careful not to do it , but upon very good grounds ; for to this purpose i find he sometimes expresses himself : so black a crime as this ( says he ) is not lightly to be charged on any party of christians . and again , before so bloudy an indictment be preferred against the greatest party of christendom , the nature of the thing ought to be very well understood . and if this be all he means , we readily acknowledge the reasonablness of it : but then he ought not to fly out into such tragical common places against us for charging the church of rome with idolatry ; but to come close to the point , and shew that we have not sufficient grounds for what we do . if those whom we accuse of this crime , be indeed innocent of it , whether god had commanded idolaters to be stoned under the law or not , we could not justifie our charging of them with it : but if our arguments do prove them guilty , the heinousness of the sin , and the danger of it , may be a good motive to dispose them seriously to weigh our allegations , but i am sure it can lay no obligation upon us not to impute to it them . . as to the other insinuation , that god commanded idolaters under the law to be put to death : and for proof of which , we have two long passages transcribed out of exodus and deuteronomy ; what would he infer from it ? would he prove to us , that therefore they ought to be put to death by us under the gospel too ? does he look upon these precepts as obligatory to us now ? if so , i dare be bold to say , he has done more in one single page , to stir up the people against the romanists and their images , than all those popular divines he so complains of , in all the books they have ever written upon this subject . and yet this must be his meaning , if it has any meaning at all . for to examine this matter a little more closely : god ( he says ) commanded the israelites in deut. . . if thy brother , the son of thy mother , or thy son , or thy daughter , or the wife of thy bosom , or thy friend which is as thine own soul , entice thee secretly , saying , let us go and serve other gods , &c. thou shalt not consent unto him , nor hearken unto him , neither shall thine eye pity him ; but thou shalt surely kill him : thine hand shall be first upon him to death , and afterward the hand of all the people . and thou shalt stone him with stones that he die . now either he looks upon this precept as still in force , and would hereby insinuate to the people , that it is their duty , if they think the romanists guilty of idolatry , utterly to destroy them ; and this is certainly one of the most seditious , as well as one of the most false suggestions in the world : or if he does not believe this command obligatory to us now , nor would insinuate any such thing by the repetition of it , what impertinence must it be to say that we cannot in charity charge the church of rome with idolatry , because god commanded heretofore under the law that all those that were guilty of it should be put to death . but though these kind of precepts do not oblige us now , yet may not such a charge be apt to stir up the deluded rabble to think so ; and so upon occasion encourage them to destroy the roman catholicks and their images , as the israelites were commanded to destroy the canaanites and their idols ? answer , yes ; provided there were but a few such orators as himself among them , to fill their heads with such notions as these , and never tell them the impertinence of them . for instance : that these were onely the political laws of the jews , and therefore can no more warrant us now to do any violence to our neighbour , upon any such pretence , than because the jews were commanded to do no work upon the sabbath day , we may therefore lawfully stone any one that we see gathering a few sticks upon it . but if the question be , whether the charge of idolatry , as it is managed by us against the church of rome , may not be apt to cause any such mischief ? i say , it is not ; and that for these reasons : for , . let him examin all our books of controversie , and see if he can find any of these old laws produced , much less insisted upon , and inforced by us , to mislead the people into any such desperate mistakes : on the contrary , we take all occasions to declare to them , that no pretences of this kind can warrant us so much as to withdraw our affection from those who differ from us : that the jews indeed esteem'd themselves allowed to hate their enemies ; that is , those who were not of the same religion with themselves , but worshipped other gods ; and more especially those canaanites , whom we are told it pleased god to destroy from off the face of the earth for their idolatry : but that our saviour christ has utterly forbid us to make any such distinction : i say unto you , love your enemies , bless them that curse you , do good to them that hate you , and pray for them that despitefully use you , and persecute you . we set before them the examples of the primitive christians ; with what charity they behaved themselves towards the gentiles among whom they lived ; with what an humble obedience they submitted themselves to their idolatrous emperours , and underwent the most cruel persecutions for their religion's sake , even when they had power sufficient to have asserted their faith , and to have destroyed both the idolaters and their idols together . and by these maxims we exhort them to walk ; and according to these it is that we both now do , and i am perswaded shall always behave ourselves with all christian charity towards those of the roman communion , notwithstanding we both believe them to be guilty of idolatry , and charge them accordingly . but . we do not only tell them , that those kind of laws are now no longer in force , and that therefore we may not by vertue of them presume to run into any violence against our brethren : but we teach them moreover , ( what yet more shews the impertinent malice of this suggestion ) that they never were intended , even under the jewish state , to be in force against such idolaters as they of the church of rome are . it is manifest to every one that has impartially considered the notion of idolatry , in the old testament , that there were two very different kinds of it : . one whereby they totally apostatized from the law , to worship other gods than the god of israel ; as when 't is said that they fell off to worship strange gods ; i. e. they renounced the religion established by the law of moses , and took in another religion , with all the ceremonies and sacrifices belonging to it , as the aegyptian , canaanitish , or chaldaean : and such as these were concluded under the sentence of the law before mentioned . . but then another sort of idolatry there was , in which they still pretended to adhere to the law of moses , and worship the god of israel , but yet after an idolatrous manner , as when jeroboam set up the two calves in dan and bethel ; parallel to which , is that idolatry with which we charge those of the other communion at this day . now in this case ; though we find the prophets severely exclaiming against their new altars , yet we do not meet with any inforcement of this precept for putting such idolat●…rs to death , or that they are any where charged as guilty of it upon this account . in short , he that would know how innocent this charge is , of any of those ill consequences that are here brought against it , need onely look back to the state of the church in the days of constantine : there he will find our primitive fathers , freely accusing the arrians of idolatry , and sometimes warm enough too in their disputes against them ; but yet i believe all the records of those times , will not furnish this author with so much as one instance of any bishop that ever put the emperour in mind of this law against them ; or so much as insinuated to him , that he might warrantly destroy them out of his dominions for their idolatry . and sure our behaviour towards those of the church of rome , has not been so different from what theirs was against the arrians , that any such violence should be fear'd from us now , as was never so much as urged by the hottest opposers of idolatry in those days . but dly , if there be then no good grounds for such insinuations as these , which he has here offer'd onely to render our charge of idolatry odious , i am sure there is cause enough upon other accounts , to make them justly be detested by all good men. for . not to say any thing of the sad consequences that may arise from hence , should such insinuations as these ever be able to gain so much credit with his sacred majesty , as to make him entertain that ill opinion of us and our religion , as we should justly deserve , were we such as we are here represented to be : can any thing be more desperate , than to impeach at once the whole body of a great and orthodox church , of holding principles so inhumane , as to out do the very cannibals themselves ; and for which they have no other grounds than the ( rude and rash assertions of some popular divines , that have no other measure of truth or zeal , but hatred to popery . in short , of maintaining fanatick pretences , and such as have ever been set up as the standard against monarchy . what is this but , in other words , to say , that all the orders and degrees of men amongst us , that have ever been concern'd in charging the church of rome with idolatry , our princes and our nobles , the houses of parliament and convocation , as many as concurred either to the approving or subscribing the book of homilies , or to the establishing or the obeying of the laws made in the last reign , not to say any thing of those learned men who have from time to time written expresly on this subject , were all in plain terms neither better nor worse than a pack of unlearned , cruel , barbarous , cannibal , fanatical , antimonarchical villains . certainly , a man had need have either a very good cause , or a very hard forehead , that can have the confidence to pronounce such a sentence as this , and of which i will only say , in his own words , that how inconsistent soever idolatry may be with salvation , i fear so uncharitable a calumny can be of no less damnable consequence . but however , . to allow this great author to take any liberty he pleases with us : what shall we say as to the primitive christians , whose examples we follow , by whose principles we manage this whole controversie , and with whom therefore we must either stand or fall . were all they a parcel of seditious fellows too ? it cannot be deny'd , but that those holy men very freely charged the gentiles first , and then the heretical christians , the arrians , and others , with idolatry . and the passages of those writers , justin martyr , origen , clemens alexandrinus , tertullian , cyprian , athanasius , greg. nazianzen , epiphanius , theodoret , and others , have been too often alledged , to need a repetition here . and which ought not to be forgot , at the time that they did this , their emperours were themselves of that very religion which they so accused . now then , according to this learned gentleman , all these holy bishops and martyrs were even as bad as we ; and antiquity has been so sottish as to celebrate the praises , and recommend to us the examples of a long series of factious fanaticks , who for their rudeness to their emperours , and cannibal uncharitable censures of their brethren , justly deserv'd all the torments and persecutions that they underwent . but , . because those that pretend the highest regard to the authority of the fathers , can yet easily except against it , when they are pressed with it , what will this author say to that of the apostles ? it cannot reasonably be doubted but that st. paul very well understood the true nature of charity , who so often and earnestly recommended it to his disciples ; and that he was no friend to any seditious , anti-monarchical principles , i believe his th chapter to the romans , will sufficiently demonstrate . yet behold this very st. paul charging the emperours religion as idolatrous , exhorting all men to forsake it as such ; and going up and down in all parts , preaching where-ever he came against it , on this account . and i desire this gentleman to consider with himself what he can say in defence of this holy apostle , that shall not vindicate us too . so that now then upon the whole it appears , that out of an over-eager desire to traduce us , this judicious author has in his heat exposed all the christians of the first three hundred years , the catholicks of the following centuries , nay the blessed apostles themselves , besides the whole body of the reform'd religion in this and the last age , as the worst of monsters , and such as deserve to be esteem'd any thing , rather than christians . let those , whose cause he has so unfortunately undertaken , consider this ; and i am perswaded they will begin to grow asham'd of their advocate . and how unjust soever they may esteem our charge of idolatry , yet they will not say , it is such as cannot be maintain'd against them , without inspiring us at the same time with all the horrible impulses of cruelty and barbarity against themselves , and of faction and rebellion against the government ; which some men would insinuate . as for our selves , we earnestly beseech all those of the church of rome , against whom we at any time advance this imputation , that they will as candidly consider our arguments , as we can truly profess they are charitably proposed by us ; and whether they shall remain satisfied or not , that there is reason in our charge , yet to give us so much credit with them at least , as to believe that we think there is ; and shall be heartily glad to be convinced that we were mistaken in our opinion . chap. ii. in which this author 's true and only notion of idolatry is consider'd , and the method laid down for a more particular examination of it . i will now take it for granted , that under the shelter of so great an authority as i have shewn to be equally concern'd with us , in all the scandalous imputations that can be raised against our charging those of the church of rome with idolatry , i may venture to search a little more particularly into the nature of it , without being thought either a cannibal or a fanatick , or to have any design of setting up a standard against the monarchy , for my so doing ; especially considering that i resolve not to encounter any church or party of men in the world on this occasion , but meerly to shew that this man's notion of idolatry , though set off with such assurance as few writers have ever equalled , is yet , after all , so far from being supported either by scripture or antiquity , that it is indeed utterly repugnant to both . and therefore that the church of rome is only vindicated by him from the charge of an idolatry that no man ever produced against her , but for such idolatry as we accuse her of , she may still fall under the weight of that , for any thing that has here been offer'd to the contrary . according to this author , idolatry is neither more nor less than this : the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , the moon , and the stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity , as the supream god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . from whence it follows , that to make a man an idolater , these three things are required . . that he cast off all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . . that he believes there is no other supream god than either the sun , moon , or stars , or some other the like visible and corporeal parts of the world. . that in pursuance of this apprehension , he worships these visible and corporeal deities as the supream god. now to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , and to believe no other supream god , but some visible and corporeal part of the world , in opposition to a spiritual and invisible godhead , is , i think , to be an atheist , though here is much ado to describe him . for to believe none but a visible god , in opposition to an invisible one , and to believe none but a corporeal god , in opposition to a spiritual god , is to believe no god at all ; unless a man can suppose a supream god , without understanding , or any perfection whatsoever of a spiritual and invisible nature . by consequence , for a man with these apprehensions to worship this god which he has made to himself , is not well capable of any other construction , than that he takes some pains , and goes a little way about to expose all religion and worship to contempt . i would be very glad to understand our author's notion of idolatry ; and therefore if it were possible , i should be content that his idolater should not be an atheist for a while , that we might see what else we can make of him . for a man to take nothing else for the supream god , but a certain visible being , from which he shuts out all apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , is certainly to be a downright atheist , though his atheism might have been described in fewer words . and yet on the other side , to worship something in good earnest as the supream god , seems to imply that a man is not an atheist : for an atheist is one that does not so much as believe that there is a supream god. but he surely believes a god , who worships any thing for the supream god , whatever that be which he so worships . now if thomas aquinas were here , it would strangely perplex him to clear this matter . i do not mean to make good sense of the words , for that i take to be impossible , but to tell us by the words , what the author's drift should be . for they make up a nonsense so very stiff , that it will not bend one way or the other . and if i must understand something by every word that he says , i can have no more notion of his idolatry than i have of nothing . and if he had said , idolatry is neither more nor less than nothing , i had been as much edified as i am now . unless he would give us to understand , that idolatry is meer speculative madness , which no body that has common sense and understanding , can possibly be guilty of . for all that part of the world that either is or ought to be out of bethlehem and the like hospitals , do by the supream god , understand something at least , that is not only able to help or to hinder , but knows also when to do one and t'other , and is willing to do accordingly . and therefore to worship any thing as the supream god , and at the same time to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , is to worship a thing because i am sure it knows something , while i take care to be as sure at the same time , that it knows nothing at all . i can compare this to nothing , as i have already intimated , but to some extraordinary instance of madness . for instance : if i should ever see a man fall down upon his knees , and seem in good earnest to ask blessing of a post , and to call it father , i should presently think of this author's idolater : for his idolater is rather more than less mad than he that fancies a post to be his father . for men in their wits , have at least as high an opinion of what they take to be their supream god , as they have of their parents : and therefore to worship that as the supream god , which no less wants the perfections of a spiritual and invisible nature , than a post does , is a misfortune that cannot light upon any body but a mad man. so that our author's idolater is a man whom either all the world must acknowledge to be out of his wits , or if you put him into his wits , he is a meer atheist ; though i am confident he would not have described himself so wittily , as this author has described him . this notion of idolatry is to me so monstrous a notion , that i am apt to look again and again into the book , to see if the words be there in which he has deliver'd it . but when at last i find that they are undoubtedly there , i am taken with a new fear , that the author did not mean what he says ; and therefore that i do not understand his meaning , though i understand the meaning of his words . in such a case as this , i have nothing to do , but to take another notion of idolatry ; which though it be not the true and only notion of it , has yet plain sense , and comes as near to his , as a notion that has sense can come to one that has none . and it is this : that idolatry is the worship of the sun , moon , or stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity , as the supream god , not so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead ; but so as to suppose that as they are visible beings , so they have invisible natures too , and some spiritual perfections , which are indeed proper to the true god. now this notion of idolatry is , in one part of it , quite contrary to our author's . for they who worship any visible deity as the supream god , with this perswasion , that it has indeed spiritual and invisible perfections , do not thereby exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead ; because they have the sense of such a godhead in the notion of that very thing which they worship . but though this is not the idolatry which his book speaks of , yet , as i said , 't is the likest to it that i can think of . and if he does not mean what his book says , 't is a hunder'd to one but he means this . but if i should be mistaken , 't is no great matter ; for if i can but shew that this is not the only notion of idolatry , it follows out of hand , that the notion of his book cannot possibly be so neither : so that one way or other i am sure to reach him , whether he and his book have one meaning or two . . according to this notion then , those who retain the sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , though they do worship the heavenly bodies , the sun , moon , and stars , but this only as inferior and subordinate deities , cannot be idolaters . and therefore if the gentiles , the aegyptians , for instance , or the chaldoeans , did believe one supream god , and worshipped the sun moon , and stars , upon the account of those coelestial spirits they supposed to reside in them , this worship was not idolatrous . in like manner , those gentiles that worshipped any corporeal deity , or any thing visible or invisible besides the supreme god , if they believed all the while that it was not the supreme god , and did not worship it as such , they i say could not be idolaters . and therefore i think if the gentiles were idolaters in worshipping any of their deities , it must be because they had no knowledge of the true god. so that either st. paul or this author was out in the true and only notion of idolatry . for though st. paul accused the gentiles of idolatry , yet he confessed , that they knew god. for ( says he ) though they knew god yet they glorified him not as god. rom. . . if we do but interpret the cautions of the new testament against idolatry , by our author's notion of idolatry , they will be paraphrased so as i believe they never were done before his time , and i suppose will never be after it . for instance ; when st. paul said to the corinthian christians , my dearly beloved , flee from idolatry ; this was as much as if he had said , my dearly beloved , idolatry being neither more nor less than the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , the moon , the stars , or any other visible or corporeal deity as the supreme god , i intreat and earnestly require you to flee from idolatry . and therefore though i do not bid you worship the heavenly bodies , or their images upon earth , yet i strictly charge you , not to worship them as the supreme god , or as if there were not an invisible god above them all ; if ever you should find it convenient to worship the sun or moon , or stars , or any representation of them here below . this would be an admirable paraphrase , and which i doubt not but our author would be able to make good against all those that neither do , nor can , nor ought to understand these things . but whether our nobility and men of quality are willing to come into this number i think i need not say . . but because to created beings he afterwards adds mortal ones , of which more hereafter , i suppose he means reasonable beings , let us see how things will go upon these new terms . dearly beloved , if ever you should worship saturn or jupiter , or such like men who died long since , still remember that they were once visible and mortal men , and have a care not to worship them as the supreme god. i mention here only dead heathens , there being yet no christian hero's in st. paul's time to whom any such worship was given , nor for some ages after . now i think this will pass as little as the other with men that ought and do understand . for besides the barbarous stuff which this notion makes the apostle to speak , it presses a meer monster upon us ; that the apostle supposes it utterly impossible for a christian that does not at once renounce his whole faith and profession , to be guilty of idolatry . st. paul certainly was a very deep man in hiding his purpose , if by intreating the christians to flee from idolatry , he meant no other thing than that they should not take and worship the sun , or the moon , or some dead man , as the supreme god. and our author is as deep a man in finding out this hidden purpose of the apostle , which till he arose no man was ever so happy as to do . but indeed with all his rhetorick he will never make himself and the apostle of one mind in this matter . for thus st. paul goes on : ye cannot drink the cup of the lord and the cup of devils ; ye cannot be partakers of the lord's table , and of the table of devils . do we provoke the lord to jealousie ? are we stronger than he ? now if they who partake in idolatrous sacrifices are idolaters , and if idolaters have no sense of a supreme god , above the pretended deities to whom they offer , they will not i conceive care one jot whether they partake of the lord's table or not , nor be concerned about the lord's jealousie at all . and yet st. paul plainly supposes , that if christians should be guilty of idolatry , they would yet probably be concern'd about god's jealousie , and desire to partake of the lord's table . thus when the same apostle wrote to the very same persons not to keep company , no nor so much as to eat with one called a brother , if he were a fornicator , or covetous , or an idolater , or a railer , or a drunkard . i cannot but wonder what an idolater has to do in this company , if this author's idolater , and st. paul's idolater were the same idolater . for whatsoever the fornicator , or covetous , or railer , or drunkard , might pretend for a title to brotherhood ; i am yet certain , that he is fallen even from all right to that name , who worships the sun ( for instance ) as the supreme god , and so renounces god the maker of the world , and the father of our lord jesus christ. st. paul speaks of his idolater as one within the church , and one of those wicked persons that were to be cast out of the civil as well as the religious communion of it . but if there be no idolater besides this author's idolater , who has renounced the maker of heaven and earth , and lost all apprehension of him , he has prevented the apostle's direction , and is out of the church by his own act. . these things do , i confess , give me a great prejudice against this author's true and only notion of idolatry . and there is one thing which i believe will make him less fond of it himself , when he comes to consider it ; and that is , that his notion does by no means suit with the sense of that church , to which he designed a good turn in all this . it is very well known how the fathers of trent , to vindicate their worship of images from being parallel to what the gentiles heretofore paid to theirs , did , among other differences , lay down this for one : that they do not believe any divinity or vertue to be in them , for which they ought to be worshipped . for to believe this , their catechism tells us , is to make the images become idols , and by consequence , the worship of them to be idolatry . now if it be idolatry to worship images with such an opinion , then it cannot be the only notion of idolatry to worship the sun , moon , or stars , or any corporeal deity , as the supream god , or their images as the images of a pretended supreme god : for without any thing of all this , one may believe divinity and virtue to be in images , and worship them upon that account . for example : the heathens had a mighty opinion of aesculapius after his death , that in his temples , and by his images , he could cure diseases . let us suppose now a person to fall down and worship one of these images , in hopes of some divine virtue coming thence . were this worship idolatry , or not ? if it were not , then was the council of trent to blame , to make this an instance of the gentiles ' idolatry ; if it were , then in the opinion of the roman church , the account of idolatry which this author has given , cannot be the only notion of it : for this was neither the worshipping of any corporeal deity , as the supream god , nor of any corporeal image of the supream god. lastly , in all the accounts which the missionaries of the church of rome have given us of the heathen nations where they have come , we find them generally acknowledging a supream , spiritual , and invisible godhead . and that if they worship the sun , moon , or stars , it is not that they esteem them to be meer visible and corporeal deities , much less think them to be the supream god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible god above them ; but they worship them either as inferiour deities , to whom god has committed the government of the world under him ; or they look upon god to be the soul of the world , and that therefore the parts of it deserve honour upon that account : or finally , they esteem god to be of so great perfection and excellency , that he is above their service , and that therefore they ought to pay their external adoration to somewhat below him . now i shall leave it to this author to consider upon what grounds , according to his true and only notion of idolatry , he will charge these men with this guilt ; or if out of his great charity he shall think fit generously to acquit them of it , i will then send him to some of his friends of the roman communion for better instruction . these and many other reasons , that i might add , occur to me upon the very first view only , to make me suspect his hypothesis . but now when i examine it more particularly , i find it yet more gross and unreasonable . the sum of what he offers for it , is an historical deduction of the state of idolatry in the old testament , compar'd with the accounts that are given of the idolatry of the ancient , especially the eastern nations , who acknowledged no other deities , but the stars , among whom the sun was supream ; in opposition to which false principle , rabbi maimon says , god enacted the law of moses . and according to this law , it appears , that idolatry is giving the worship of the supream god to any created , corporeal , or visible deity , or any thing that can be represented by an image , which nothing but corporeal beings can ; and to suppose such a being the supream deity , is the only true and proper idolatry . in opposition to which positive conclusion , i will content my self at present to say , that there is not one word of truth in it ; for that neither was the religion of the eastern nations , such as he pretends , nor the nature of idolatry under the law , what he represents it to have been . and to the end i may plainly clear this whole matter , i will distinctly shew three things . first , that the idolatry of those nations whom he mentions , the egyptians , chaldeans , persians , arabians , &c. did not consist in worshipping the sun , moon , and stars , as the supream god ; so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . nor therefore , secondly , was this the only idolatry forbidden to the jews by the law. but thirdly , that as the jews retaining both the apprehension and worship of the god of israel , were yet guilty of idolatry for worshipping him after a gentile manner , so may christians be now . and therefore that the church of rome may justly be charged by us as idolatrous , though we do not pretend in any wise to say either that she worships the sun , moon , and stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity as the supream god ; or that she has lost all apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . and thus having established the true notion of idolatry , i shall last of all consider such objections as may be necessary to be replied to for the clearing of it ; and so leave the particular charges to be made good by those who shall have occasion so to do . chap. iii. of the idolatry of the ancient heathens ; especially , of the chaldeans , egyptians , and persians ; and that it did not consist in their worshipping the sun , moon and stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity , as the supreme god ; so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . this is the fundamental mistake of our author concerning his notion of idolatry ; and which being overthrown , his whole hypothesis built upon it , must fall together with it . for thus it is that he argues : god designed by his law , to preserve the jews from falling into the idolatry of the nations round about them : against this , we find not only all its precepts , but even the rights and ceremonies of it , to have been directed . but the idolatry of those nations was no other than the worship of the sun , moon and stars , or of some the like visible and corporeal deities , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . and therefore this must be the true and only notion of it in the old testament . i shall hereafter more fully shew the weakness of this proof , when i come to demonstrate , that there were two sorts of idolatry mention'd in those holy scriptures extreamly different the one from the other . and therefore that tho this were the true notion of idolatry in one respect , yet it would not follow that it was the only notion , by reason of the other . and this i shall do in the next chapter . my business at present is to shew , that what he has thus confidently laid down , is so far from being the only notion of idolatry , that it is indeed no notion of it at all ; for that those very heathens whom he insists upon for his warrant in this matter , were not guilty of such an idolatry as he pretends they were . we have already seen his definition of idolatry , that it is neither more nor less than this : the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , the moon , and the stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity , as the supreme god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . this he pretends is the only scripture notion of it . and thus ( he says ) all learned men of all nations , all religions , ever understood the old notion of idolatry , till this last age , when folly and passion cast it at any thing that peevish men were angry with . so rabbi mamion , the most learned and judicious of the jewish doctors discourses at large , that the ancient idolatry was nothing but the religion of the eastern nations , who acknowledg no other deities but the stars , among whom the sun was supreme . and then he immediately subjoyns , that the ancient heathens worshipped only the stars , without any notion of heroes or d●mons : so diodorus siculus says of the egyptians ; herodotus of the persians and chaldeans ; strabo and justin , of the arabians , and caesar of the germans . he confesses indeed , that there was another sort of idolatry introduced afterward , the worship of men and women ; but this he takes to have been much more modern , and a meer invention of the vain and lying greeks ; but that whensoever it came in , it was grafted upon the old stock , of giving the worship of the supreme god , not only to created , but to mortal beings . so this author . to which i reply . i. that as to this latter sort of idolatry , seeing he has declin'd the consideration of it , as being of too young a date to found the scripture notion of idolatry upon it , i shall not insist upon it ; tho i am by no means satisfied , either in his account of its antiquity , or that it was a meer invention of the vain and lying greeks . for . it has been the opinion of very learned men , that this kind of idolatry was practised in egypt soon after the flood . and that the most ancient osiris , was no other than mitzraim , the son of cham , whom they worshipped together with his father , and from whom the whole country is in scripture called by his name . in the cv . psalm . it is expresly stiled , the land of cham : and plutarch informs us , that in the sacred rites of isis , they call it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , very probably upon the same account . and that which makes this the more likely is , that in the division of the world among the sons of noah , gen. x. arabia fell to the lot of cham ; and in that chush his eldest son fixed himself , from whence the country is called , the land of cush , in kings xix . . and then it may easily be conceiv'd that his second son mitzraim , should go into the next adjoyning country , the land of egypt . now if this be so , then it follows , not only that this sort of idolatry was much more ancient than is pretended ; but that being practised in egypt before the children of israels going down thither ; it may be reasonably enough allow'd a sufficient antiquity for us to derive something from it of the notion of idolatry , with reference to the times under debate . but , dly , as to the very apis its self , the chief deity of the egyptians , and whom our author contends to have been the sun ; it is not improbable , but that they meant no other than the patriarch joseph by it ; and whom they honour'd with divine honours , upon the account of his wonderful preservation of them in the seven years famine , gen. xli . thus julius firmicus expresly interprets it , and what is more , adds , that this was according to the manner of their country : the egyptians ( says he ) after his death , according to the appointment of their country , built temples to him. and again , this man is worshipt in egypt , he is adored , &c. to him ruffinus agrees ; and st. augustin , or whoever else was the author of that book under his name , de mirabilibus scripturae , informs us , that the egyptians upon this account , set up the symbol of an ox over the sepulchre of joseph , in memory of their deliverance . thus suidas interprets their serapis ; who as clemens alexandrinus ( out of aristeas ) tells us , was the same with apis ; and both suidas , ruffinus , and julius firmicus , add , that his statue was set up with a bushel upon his head , to denote the plenty of corn which he provided for them . and in the very scripture it self , joseph is either call'd , or at least compar'd to an ox , deut. xxxiii . . and some of the rabbins have given this account of the very calves of jeroboam , that they were the symbols of joseph , set up by him in honour of his ancestors , from a part of whose tribe , viz. that of ephraim , he was himself descended . here it were an easie matter to multiply proofs upon this occasion , to shew that the idolatry of consecrating heroes into gods , and worshipping them as such , is by no means of so fresh a date , as this author would have it thought to be . for what he adds , that whensoever it came in , it was grafted upon the old stock of giving the worship of the supreme god , not only to created , but to mortal beings : i answer , . that this is evidently contrary to all the accounts we have of their worship ; and according to which it appears , that the heathens paid no other worship to their divi , or deified men , than what the church of rome at this day does to her saints ; but as carefully distinguish'd between the adoration of the supreme god , and these heroes , as the other do between him , and those blessed men that reign together with him , as their language tells us . . whenever this idolatry came in , 't is evident that the very nature of it utterly overthrows his only notion of idolatry before laid down ; unless he supposes that they thought their heroes , whom whilst they lived they knew to be but men , born into the world after the common order of nature , and even dying after the same manner as all others , became after death the supreme god that made heaven and earth ; and believed all this so firmly , as not only to give the worship of the supreme god to them , but to exclude all sense and apprehension of any god above them . for so ( he says ) a man must do , before he can be guilty of idolatry . now if this be his opinion , i would then ask this learned antiquary one small question : seeing the number of their heroes was very great , whom the same persons at the same time worshipped ; did they believe every one of these to be the supreme god that made heaven and earth , and give the highest divine honour accordingly unto every one of them as such ? that they did this , no man of sense will either say or believe ; and yet if they did not , the true and only notion of idolatry is at an end ; for which ever of their heroes they believed to be the supreme god , and worshipped as such , they must have adored the rest only as inferior deities , and with an honour suitable to their apprehensions of them . either therefore he must quit his true and only notion of idolatry , which he tells us is neither more nor less than , the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , the moon , and the stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity , as the supreme god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead ; or he must give us some assurance that the egyptians ( for instance ) worshipping of joseph under the symbol of an ox , did believe him to be the supreme deity , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of any superior godhead , and did worship him accordingly ; that is , that those men were so sottish as to think that a man who had lived and died amongst them , was the great god that framed the world , and all things in it , many ages before himself had any being . but ii. to come to the other , and ( as he supposes ) the more ancient idolatry , and in his notion of which , i affirm him to have been utterly mistaken : and here i must observe , that it is not at all doubted , but that these heathens did worship the sun , moon , and stars ; that which i pretend is , that this author is very much out in the account which he gives of their worship of them . . he affirms , that they worshipped these heavenly bodies as visible and corporeal deities , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead : whereas on the contrary , they believed these very bodies themselves to be animated by celestial spirits who resided in them , and rendred them thereby proper objects of their adoration . . that they worshipped these visible and corporeal deities , as the supreme god ; whereas they constantly acknowledged a first and invisible godhead , superior to them . . that they worshipp'd no other gods but these , and amongst these the sun as supreme ; when on the contrary it is certain , even from the very authors that himself produces , that they worshipp'd other deities , both heroes and doemons , of which this man yet pretends with so much assurance , that they had no notion . and all these are not only gross errors for an author who writes with such confidence as if he would be thought to have been initiated into all the religions of which he discourses , but such as utterly ruin all that he has to say to support his true and only notion of idolatry . but i must examine these points more particularly . and . that these nations did not worship the heavenly bodies as visible and corporeal deities , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . this is an assertion not only so monstrously absurd in its self , but so contrary to all the accounts we have from antiquity , of the theology of those nations to which he refers us , that i must once more confess , that i never lay under a greater temptation to disbelieve my own senses , or to suspect my understanding of plain words than now : on the one hand , i am sure our author here defines idolatry to be , the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , the moon , and the stars , or some other visible and corporeal deity , not only as the supreme god , but so at to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead : that is to say , that he who is an idolater must worship them as mere corporeal parts of the creation , void of all understanding ; for so i think visible and corporeal gods must be taken , when opposed to all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . and yet on the other hand , how to reconcile such a paradox with either the common reason of mankind , as i have observed before ; or the clear evidences of the gentile world to the contrary , as i observe now , i am not able to comprehend : but let our author take his choice ; for i will here again do more than i need , rather than be thought to omit any thing that was fit to be taken notice of . if he thinks good to own this notion , i will then offer what may serve to confute it ; but if being admonished of the absurdity of it , he shall chuse rather to wrest his words to some other meaning than they naturally bear , i shall only have spent some little time in confuting that , which if he does not , i am certain no body else will ever affirm . and to begin where himself does , with the holy scriptures , not only the most certain , but the most ancient history in the world. he produces indeed a few texts from whence it may be concluded , that the heathens of old , did worship the sun , moon , and stars ; but that they worshipped them ( according to his notion ) as corporeal deities , and so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead ; for this he has not so much as offer'd at one single proof . for . as to his first instance , ( and which indeed is the first account we have ) of idolatry . the scripture , 't is true , tells us that terah , abraham's father , worshipped strange gods ; but that these gods were corporeal deities , and that they worshipp'd them so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , of this there is not a word : see josh. xxiv . . and i shall presently shew the contrary . if we go on with him to the next ( and as he thinks the first plain ) intimation we find of idolatry in palestine , in the history of jacob ; after his conversation with the shechemites , where upon his departure from that city by god's especial command , he builds an altar at bethel to god , and commands his family to put away their 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or strange gods. neither here shall we find our author's notion so much as insinuated , but as i will now prove , much to the contrary . it is not to be doubted , but that these gods were the same that they worshipped in syria when they were in the house of laban ; and that therefore the images which jacob buried , could be no other than the teraphim , so usual amongst them , i. e. such as rachel stole from her father laban , gen. xxxi . . how far from hence it might be proved that their idolatry did not consist merely in their worshipping of the sun , moon , and stars , i shall not now dispute : let us suppose these teraphims to have been not only made by planetary influences , but designed to represent the sun , or some other heavenly bodies ; then , i say , it follows both from the history of laban , and from the accounts we have of these idols , that they did not worship the sun as a corporeal deity , and by consequence that that cannot be the true notion of their idolatry , which is pretended to be . for , . as to laban , we read gen. xxxi . . that when he ratified the covenant with jacob , he called to witness not only the god of abraham , but the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , his own domestick deity too , i. e. in our author's opinion , the sun , the god ( says he ) of abraham , and the god of nachor judg betwixt us : now this plainly shews that laban lookt upon his father's god ( and who was also the god of tera before-mentioned , josh. xxiv . . ) not to be a mere corporeal deity , but as having an intellectual being incorporated in it , that was both capable of hearing their oath , and of judging betwixt them , and without which he could never have called him to witness their contract . . for what concerns the teraphim , it appears from holy scripture , that the chaldeans made use of them not only as symbols for worship , but for oracles too , and as such , were wont to consult them ; it was for this , that rachel is supposed to have stollen away her father's gods , gen. . that so when he should come , and miss her husband , he might not be able to enquire of them which way to pursue after him . we read in ezek. xxi . . that the king of babylon consulted with his teraphim , which st. jerome calls consulting with his oracle , after the manner of his country : and the prophet zachary x. . tells the people , that their teraphim had spoken vanity : now how could this possibly be , had the chaldeans worshipped only visible and corporeal deities ? is not this an undeniable evidence , that they acknowledged in the heavenly bodies , invisible spirits to descend and influence their teraphim , so as to make them speak ? many are the accounts that may be given of these idols , and which have been collected with much exactness by those great men , gerard vossius , mr. selden , &c. but i shall content my self to subjoin the authority of one only person , now living , and no way inferior to any that can be produced , it seems ( saith he ) to have been the opinion of those ancient idolaters , that some spiritualities from superior intelligences , and heavenly powers , did influence such images as they made in such figures as they thought acceptable to them , and dedicated to them ; and therefore called such their images themselves god , and thought them so , at least deos vicarios , inferior deities ; mediators between them and the superior , and did offer sacrifice , and burnt incense , that they might draw down and entice ( as it were ) those spiritual influences to reside on those images , that so they might declare to them , and do for them what they desired . and elsewhere he says , that the modern zabii not only pretend to succeed the old chaldees in their religion , but that as to their rites about telesms , and figures , and images , we cannot but easily believe , that they were derived to them from ancient times . and now that i mention the zabii , i cannot but observe the wonderful acuteness of our author in his reflections upon them ; he calls it the dream of the zabii ; and he decretorily condemns all that is said by learned men on their behalf , merely because he ( a person so acurately versed in all the learning of the east ) can find no ancient footsteps of any such people in the world ; and that dr. spencer has discover'd for him , that the name is ●no older than mahomet , who call'd them zabii , because they lay eastward from arabia ; for so the word signifies , easterlings . thus this author , and still , as becomes himself , he pronounces , dictator-like , and is alway in the wrong ; for the question is not about the name of zabii ( which from henceforth must signifie easterlings , tho the learned dr. spencer had collected no less than five several significations of it , and every one supported by probable conjectures ) ; but about the people , or rather the religion ; and to draw this matter out of the clouds , and shew what an admirable critick we have got here , it is just as if a man should undertake to prove the britains to be a people of no antiquity , because they are now called . welch , and that 's but a modern name . now according to this true state of this matter , it is evidently shew'd by that learned person i before mentioned , that the religion of the zabii is not only of no modern date , but is as ancient , or even more ancient than abraham . abulfeda calls it the most ancient religion ; and saidus batricides attributes the original of the zabii , thus consider'd , in their manners and superstitions , to the time of nachor , abraham's grandfather . to this subscribes the learned and inquisitive hornbeck ; and who thinks them to be the same with those that were anciently called saboei ; and abul-pharajius , cited by dr. spencer , thus confirms it , that which we certainly know of the sect of the zabii , is , that their profession is altogether the same with the profession of the ancient chaldeans . as for the point before us ; we are told that they worshipped the host of heaven , supposing the stars to be animated by divine understandings . dr. pocock adds , that they lookt upon the planets , as mediators between the supreme god , and men ; and cites gregorius , abulfaroeus and sharestanius , for his warrant ; which last expresly says , that they worship the bodies of the planets , as the habitations of the living , rational , and intellectual substances , which they suppose to animate them . now these are all plain and rational accounts , why they should worship these heavenly bodies ; but to talk of their worshipping the sun , moon and stars , as visible and corporeal deities , and that so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , is to represent their worship contrary not only to truth , but to common sense and reason too . but when men are resolved to advance such notions , as this author does , they must have proofs of the same kind . and this for the chaldeans . as to the egyptians , jamblicus informs us , that they worshipped indeed the sun , moon and stars , as visible gods ; but such as were compounded of soul and body , and they esteem'd those planets to be seats only of those coelestial spirits that were to take care of human affairs . it was a nice question put by porphyry , to an egyptian priest , how the sun , moon and stars could be gods , seeing the gods are incorporeal ? jamblicus answers , that the incorporeal gods assume those bodies , by which they become visible . and syrianus asserts , the coelestial animals ( as he calls them ) to be the images of the maker of the world , and to communicate sense to it . but it may be said , that these were philosophers , and endeavour'd to make the best of their idolatry . i answer , that jamblicus declares , he delivers nothing but according to the old egyptian books : and he delivers it for the true egyptian theology ; that there was one supreme god above all ; next him the demiurgus ; the third principle he calls 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and some think the sun is meant by it , as the immediate governor of the world. if so , there is great reason why the sun should be worshipped under the names of moloch and baal , as being king and lord of this inferior world. and thus neither did the egyptians worship these heavenly bodies , so as to exclude all sense of a spiritual and invisible godhead . if from both these nations we pass finally to the persians , jac. golius will give us the very same account of them , viz. that the ancient persians did worship coelestial spirits , as having a particular presidency over the material part of the world. and now , after so many plain testimonies in this matter , were it yet needful to look into any other countries , we should find the case to be every where the same . pliny pleads much for the divinity of the sun ; but do's he believe it to be a visible and corporeal deity , so as to exclude any invisible and spiritual godhead ? no , on the contrary , he calls it the spirit and mind of the world. he attributes sense and understanding to it ; and affirms from homer , that it sees and hears all . and indeed this is so often insisted upon by that poet , that eustathius from thence observes , that the sun was to be consider'd not only as a luminary of the heavens , but as a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , a spirit cloathed with such an illustrious body . and in another place he takes notice of the decency of homer , that he calls the heavenly powers to be witnesses of oaths , and particularly the sun. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . so little truth is there in this first of our authors pretence , that the ancients did worship the sun , the moon , and the stars , as visible and coporeal deities , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . let us see dly , whether they who worshipp'd these planets , look'd upon them as the supreme deities , so as not to acknowledg any divinity above them . and here it must be confess'd , he has at least an appearance of truth . for , as for the chaldeans , maimonides tells us of the ancient zabii , that they had no other gods but the stars ; and that among them , they look'd upon the sun as supreme . from whence our learned pocock seems to think it not far from the truth , to say , that possibly they derived their very name of zabii ; saba in the hebrew , signifying an host , as if one should say , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , worshippers of the host of heaven . the same is the account which sanchoniathon , mentioned both by eusebius and st. cyril , gives of the phoenicians , that they worshipped the sun , moon and stars , as the only immortal gods , among which the sun was chief , called by them beth-samen , lord of heaven . and for the persians , herodotus tells us , that the sun was their only god : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ; to which strabo and trogus , in justin , assent . and hesychius , tho he rejects this , yet acknowledges him to be the first or supreme god amongst them 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ( says he ) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . all which seems to be confirm'd by those ancient inscriptions collected by gruterus and others , deo soli invicto . omnipotenti deo . and again , soli invicto & lunae aeternae . from all which it may be thought to follow , that ( as this author here tells us ) the gods which those ancient heathens worshipped , were nothing but the heavenly bodies , or the sun as the supreme deity . but yet if we enquire more exactly into these things , we shall find their worship to have been much otherwise than what at first sight it appears to be ; for to begin with those i last named , the persians ; and than whom none have been more famed for adoring the sun : plutarch tells us that they had a notion of a deity whom they call'd oromasdes , superior to him , and the account of whom ( derived to them from zoroaster ) he thus delivers to us . they believed that there were two contrary principles , the one good , the other evil. the former of these they called oromasdes , whom they also look'd upon as the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or creator , as agathias informs us ; the other arimanius . between these two , they placed their mithras , or the sun , who was esteem'd by them , as much inferior to oromasdes , as superior to arimanius . to this oromasdes , they ascribed the creation of the stars , and of the good gods , thus plutarch : but photius carries it yet a little further in his account of a book written by theodorus , bishop of movestia , concerning the persian rites , he says , that they believed the first principle of all , to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and that he begat the other two , which with some little difference , he calls ormisdas and satan . but not to insist upon these accounts : we are told by a learned man in his notes upon alferganus , that the persians gave the names of their gods to their months and days , according to the ancient religion of the persians and magi , whereby they did believe their gods to preside over them ; it being a principle amongst them , as well as among all other nations of the east , that the things of this lower world are administred by angels . the spirit over the sun , they called mihrgian , from mitro the sun. but above all those , they believed there was one supreme god. eubulus , who wrote the history of mithras ( which was extant in st. jeromes time ) hath given a particular account of the cave which zoroaster made in honour of another and superior mithras , the father and maker of the world. even herodotus himself , whom this author so confidently produces for his warrant ( but cites no particular passage of him ) distinguishes their jupiter from the sun , and says , by it they understood the whole heaven in which the sun is fixt ; and sacrificed to him distinctly from the other . and so does strabo , another of his authors : xenophon often mentions a 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , as a deity superior to the sun ; especially , where speaking of cyrus being admonished in a dream of his approaching death , he tell us , that he sacrificed to his country jupiter first , and then to the sun : and plutarch brings in darius in like manner addressing to him , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . thou our country jupiter , or supreme god of the persians . i might add here , that the same is the opinion of those persees , who stick to their ancient religion at this day . but these have been already collected by a very eminent hand . i shall conclude , therefore , with the form of that proclamation , which cyrus gave in favour of the jews , and by which it plainly appears that they believed the same first and soveraign deity with our selves , ezra i. . thus saith cyrus king of persia , the lord god of heaven hath given me all kingdoms of the earth , and hath charged me to build him a house at jerusalem . and in the next verse , he calls the same god , the lord god of israel . and i hope this author will not say that was the sun , or any other visible and corporeal deity . i have enlarged my self the more on this part of antiquity , because the persians , if any , must have been found to worship the sun , as the supreme god. i shall be very short in other nations , and so close this consideration . and for what concerns the egyptians , i have already given some account of their theology ; and we may learn from thence , how it came to pass , that the sun ( whom none of the heathens looked upon as absolutely the supreme and highest being ) is yet so often spoken of by them as such . for as jamblicus informs us out of the old egyptian books , they believ'd one supreme god above all , next him the demiurgus , and then 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or the sun ; whom they esteem'd the supreme visible god , and as he who had the super-intendency over the visible world. to which i will add the authority of prophyry , and that the rather for that in his epistle to anebo , he seems to suspect that the old egyptians look'd no farther than the sun , moon and stars . but 't is plain that this was only a difficulty , which he puts to the egyptian priest ; since himself owns that they represented the creator , whom they call'd cneph , with an egg in his mouth , to signifie the production of the world ; and of which the sun is but a part. and here i may not omit another notion of the egyptians , and which was not theirs only ; and from whence we may again know how to understand those who seem to represent the sun as the supreme deity . it was a principle in their theology , that the supreme god of all , is not to be worshipped by any external and sensible thing , not so much as by vocal prayer , but only by pure silence and contemplation : but that sacrifices and hymns were to be made to powers inferior to him. among these they esteemed the sun , moon and stars to be the chief ; from whence it was obvious enough to mistake , that because these were the highest deities , to whom they paid any external adoration , therefore they had no other superior to them . and now there remains only the chaldeans and phoenicians , to be consider'd ; and of these , both gregarius abulfarajus and sharestanius , cited by our learned dr. pocock , gives us accounts very different from that of maimonides before mention'd ; and that judicious and reverend author , justly esteems the credit of abulfarajus , preferrable to r. maimon's , for that he was better acquainted with their writings , and read them in their own language , which the other did not . and if what sharestanius reports be true , that it was their principle , that between the supreme god and us , there must be some mediators ; this again will furnish us with yet another reason , why the sun may easily have been mistaken for their supreme deity , because he was the principal mediator betwixt god and them , and the highest to which they paid any immediate external adoration . and tho this author is as positive , as if he had all the evidence in the world for it , that god made an extraordinary discovery of himself to abraham , as lord of all things , in opposition to the idolatry of his own country , by which he would imply that the chaldeans in those days did not suppose god to be the lord of all things ; yet is it ( like the rest of his book ) all imagination , without any thing to support it . for indeed we have all the reason in the world to believe that the chaldeans had at this time the knowledg of the one true god. . it appears by manifest computation , that shem , from whom tera and abraham were descended , was yet living with them , and it is altogether unaccountable , either that himself should have lost the knowledg of the one true supreme god ; or that if he retain'd it , all the rest of his family should have been utterly ignorant of it . . it is indeed said in holy scripture , josh. xxiv . v. . that they worshipped strange gods ; but it is not said that they either worshipped them as the supreme god , or had utterly lost all sense and apprehension of any such spiritual and invisible godhead . . in all the history of god's calling abraham out of ur of the chaldees , we do not find any thing to make us believe that god was pleased to make the discovery of himself to him , as lord of all things , in opposition to the idolatry of his family . . it is hard to suppose , that when all the barbarous nations , as we have seen , preserv'd the notion of the true , supreme god , only these chaldeans should lose it ; it was but on the other side the river , that we find the knowledg of god preserv'd in the land of canaan . and lastly , we do certainly know , that but two generations after laban , tho he did worship ( as it is said of tera ) 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , strange gods too , yet he retain'd with them a very good sense and apprehension of the supreme god , as is plain from gen. xxxi . where the god of abraham is found to appear to him , v. . and again v. . he ratifies his covenant with his son jacoh , swearing by the god of abraham , as well as by the strange god , the god of nahor . to conclude ; macrobius , than whom none could have taken more pains to shew the universal worship of the sun , was yet so far from thinking that it excluded all sense and apprehension of a supreme god , that he plainly says in the beginning , that he intended to treat only of the dij qui sub coelo sunt , the lower sort of worldly gods ; and in his commentary upon the dream of scipio , he plainly acknowledges a higher divinity , whom he calls the prima causa , & omnipotentissimus deus ; the first cause , and most almighty god. i shall close all with a passage of plutarch , which will at once shew both that the heathens had a knowledg of the supreme god amongst them , and that it was he whom they all every where adored as such , however differing in their manners and ceremonies from one another : no inanimate thing can be a god to men ; but they who bestow upon us a continual supply of what is sufficient for us , have therefore been esteemed gods by us ; which gods are not different among different nations , as if the barbarians and greeks , the southern and northern people had not the same god ; but as the sun , and moon , and heaven , and earth , and sea , are common to all , but are called differently by different men ; so tho there be but one word , or reason , ordering all those things , and but one providence dispensing all things , and the inferior powers which are appointed over all , having had several names and honours from several persons , and by the laws of several countries , have been every where worshipp'd throughout the whole world. i pass on finally to enquire , . whether these ancient idolaters , as is pretended , did so worship these heavenly bodies , as to worship nothing besides , and in particular so as to exclude all notion of heroes and doemons . this indeed is an assertion worthy our author , who as he has hitherto advanced nothing but paradoxes , so he resolves he will not now alter his character by representing antiquity truly at the last . i have already shewn in opposition to this suggestion , how the egyptians had their divi , or canonized men presently after the flood ; and that we have some reason to believe their principal deities , viz. apis and osyris , to have been such ; i will now add , that the first dynasties of manetho , of gods and demi-gods upon earth , confirms this , and to which the old egyptian chronicon in syncellus adds yet more force . st. cyril tells us from sanchoniathon , that not only the most ancient greeks , but especially the phoeniceans and egyptians , from whom this superstition was derived to all others ( tho our author , ever in the wrong , will have the greeks to be the inventors of it ) esteemed those the greatest gods , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , who had either found out some things useful for the life of man , or otherwise deserved well of their country . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and looking upon them as their benefactors and causes of great good to them , they worshipped them as gods , and prepared temples for that purpose , and consecrated pillars and other ensigns of honour to their memory . and as the holy father from the same author goes on , these they greatly worshipped , and the phoenicians especially , dedicated festivals unto them . but it was not enough for our author merely to advance a most false conclusion concerning these gentiles , unless he also chuse an evidence for it that speaks the direct contrary to his assertion : for thus it became him to keep up a just decorum between his principles and his proofs , that so we may be satisfied , that he values truth alike in both . this ( says he ) is attested by all historians , viz. that the old heathen nations worshipped only the stars , without any notion of heroes and demons . and the very first he instances , in is diodorus siculus for the egyptians . but this is perfectly to astonish us , and too plainly shews that some mens assurance is without bounds , as well as without reason : for what ? does diodorus siculus say that the egyptians worshipp'd only the stars , without any notion of heroes and demons ? this is worse than to write history out of an invisible manuscript ; 't is indeed to write history directly contrary to the visible records out of which he pretends to have taken it : for let this author look into diodorus siculus , whom i would willingly hope he has never yet read , and there he will find him in his first book , so far from what he pretends , that on the contrary , he expresly distinguishes between two sorts of gods among the egyptians , and discourses of them in order : and first of the celestial gods , p. . two of which he says the egyptians first of all had , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the sun and the moon : having discoursed of these , he thus formally concludes his account , and this the egyptians say concerning their celestial gods , and such as had an eternal generation . and then goes on immediately on the other sort , which this author pretends diodorus siculus denies them to have had any notion of : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . but besides these ( the sun and moon , &c. ) they say there are other terrestrial gods , mortals indeed by nature , but for their wisdom and prudence , and the benefits they did to mankind , endued with immortality ; of which kind ( says he ) were some of the kings of egypt . in the next page he places amongst these , our author's friends , isis and osiris , whose history he relates : and finally , to raise his ill choice to the highest evidence , having given a long relation of these kind of deities , he conclud●… as directly against our author 's other assertion , that this kind of idolatry was the invention of the vain and lying greeks , as if he had been retain'd on our side , by shewing expresly how they derived this kind of idolatry from the egyptians , by the means of orpheus , who had been initiated in the egyptian rites ; and then gives us this universal conclusion , p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . that the egyptians do in general say , that the grecians have appropriated to themselves the most eminent of their heroes and gods , as well as of their colonies . so much would it have been for our author's reputation , if diodorus siculus too , had been an invisible manuscript . . the next author he produces , is herodotus , who , he says , affirms the same of the persians and chaldeans , that they worshipped only the stars , without any notion of heroes and demons ; but concerning the former part of his assertion , i have already shewn , that they did not worship only the stars , but acknowledged a supreme deity above them ; and for the latter , the very same herodotus who says this of the persians , in his first book , does directly contradict his conclusion , that this was the sense of all the old heathen nations , but especially that the worshipping of men and women , was the invention of the vain and lying greeks , in the very next , where he tells us that they derived their twelve gods from the egyptians , who were the first inventors of this idolatry . . the same ( he says ) in the next place is affirmed by strabo and justin , of the arabians : had he been pleased to produce some passages from these authors wherein they do say , that the arabians worship only the stars , without any notion of heroes and demons , we should have had less cause to suspect his assertion ; strabo indeed says that the arabians worship the sun , but that either he or justin have ever affirmed what this author pretends , i am yet to learn ; in the mean time this i am sure , that other authors have given us a very contrary account of them . lucan tells us , that their only god was jupiter ammon , whom that learned critick , gerard vossius does not without reason suppose to have been cham , whose eldest son chus , as i have before shewn , first planted himself there . arrian in his history of alexander's expedition , says that they had two gods , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or the heaven , and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or bacchus ; and that 't was this encouraged that great conqueror to invade them , that he might make himself a third god amongst them ; and this may be well enough consistent with the other account , if what some learned men suppose , be allow'd ; that these were their own proper gods , whereas jupiter hammon , was rather the deity of the ammonites , among whom his oracle stood , and to whom they only sent ambassadors to consult upon occasion , it not appearing that the arabians had any temple for him in their own country : so that here too our author is mistaken , for that the arabians had other gods than the stars , and were not without all notion of heroes and doemons . . his fourth instance is in the ancient germans , and of them i confess caesar does say what he pretends , but then it is to be observ'd , that in the very same place , he utterly overthrows all the use this author can be supposed to make of it , viz. to shew , that all the old heathen nations worshipped only the stars , without any notion of heroes or demons ; seeing in the very same place , he says of the ancient gauls , that they worshipp'd such kind of gods as he denies any of the heathen did , and that with a superstition so like that of some of his acquaintance , that i cannot forbear taking notice of it : the gauls , says he , are very superstitious , and therefore if they fall into any dangerous distemper , or are concerned in war , or in any other danger , they straightway sacrifice , &c. for this purpose they have their particular gods ; mercury to prosper them in their journeys , or help them in their traffick ; apollo to cure them in their sickness ; minerva to find out any artificial works ; mars for war , &c. and this our author could not but know , since in the very passage to which he refers , he opposes the germans to them ; the germans ( says he ) differ much from this custom ( viz. ) of the gauls , which he had just before recounted ; for they esteem them only for gods whom they see , and by whom they are manifestly help'd , the sun , vulcan , and the moon . but i have yet more to except against this instance ; for however cesar came to be so misinformed , the ancient germans had other gods , even such as this author denies to all the ancient idolaters . tacitus mentions mars as the chief god of the tencteri , a nation bordering upon the bhine ; and in his book de moribus germanorum , he speaks of hercules as another of their deities . that they also worshipped mercury , we learn from the same author , whom in their language they called gota , or wota , as gotefridus viterbiensis in his chronicon observes , from whence also he supposes , that their word got , signifying god , is derived ; tho in this , other learned men dissent from him . and lastly , the same tacitus mentions yet another god more ancient than all these , the first founder of their country , tuisto , whom they worshipped , with his son manus ; and these , some think , were no other than gomar , and his son thogorma or aschenar , by whom germany was peopled after the flood , tho vossius rather supposes them yet of a greater antiquity , believing tuisto to be adam , and manus , to whom also tacitus assigns three sons , noah , by whom the world was again established after the flood . . and this may suffice for his particular authorities . his next are universal ; for he says eusebius in his book de preparatione evangelica , has shewn this to be the sense of all the old heathen nations , as may be seen in his collections of their several opinions , where he proves , that the ancient heathens only worshipped the stars , without any notion of heroes or demons . good god! what can be done with such a man as this ? eusebius has proved that all the ancient heathens worshipped only the stars , without any notion of heroes and demons , which was a mere invention of the vain and lying greeks : and yet has this very eusebius quoted diodorus siculus , for his account of the egyptian theology . he distinguishes with him their gods into coelestial and terrestrial : of the first , he treats in his first book from that author ; of the second in his next . the very title of his chapter is , an epitome of the egyptian theology , and how it passed from them to the greeks . in the beginning of it , he speaks how their gods , who had been mortal men , were for their benefits they did to mankind , and for their wisdom , made immortal deities . he exemplifies this in a large account of their mythology ; and then concludes expresly with his author , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . that the greeks had appropriated to themselves , the principal hero ' s , and gods of the egyptians . and yet this is the author that has shewn at large , how all theold heathen nations worshipp'd only stars , without any notion of hero ' s and daemons . his other author is macrobius , who he says , has proved it of all the ancient idolaters , that they worshipped the sun as the supreme deity . he should have added to make good his conclusion , and that so as to exclude all notions of hero ' s and daemons . but this macrobius never undertook to do : and i have before shewn , that in the very book of his saturnals , here mention'd , he was so far from shewing that they worshipp'd the sun as the ( absolutely ) supreme deity , that in the beginning of his discourse , he expresly restrains it to the dii duntaxat qui sub coelo sunt , or sub-coelestial deities : and in his comment upon scipio's dream , he acknowledges above the sun and heaven , many other gods ; viz. . an eternal psythe , the creator both of the heaven , and the sun. dly , a perfect mind or intellect , and ( as he calls him ) omnipotentissimus deus , the most omnipotent of all gods. . he has two authors whom he produces ; our own learned selden , in his book de diis syris , and gerard vossius , in nothing inferior to him , who have proved all the idols mention'd in scripture , to have been so many appellations of the sun , whom the ancient idolaters believed to have been the supreme god , and creator of the world , ( and therefore of himself too , for he is part of it ) as baal , baal-peor , bel , molech , baal-zebub , and mythras ; tho i doubt this last was taken from some invisible manuscript of the bible , for i do not remember that i have ever met with it in any of the editions that are extant of those sacred volumes . but to let this pass too ; did mr. selden then , and gerard vossius in good truth , undertake to shew , that all the ancient idolaters worshipp'd the sun as the supreme god , so as to exclude all notion of daemons and hero's ? st , mr. selden gives only a critical account of the syrian deities ; and in several of them shews , that others at least have believed them to be somewhat else than the sun. dly , gerard vossius is so far from favouring this man's pretences , that on the contrary 't is he , who has spent his whole first book of idolatry , to give an account of the ancient hero's , that were consecrated by the gentiles into gods ; 't is he that interprets the egyptians osyris to be mitzraim ; the beel of the chaldeans to be nimrod ; the tuisco of the germans , gomer , or perhaps adam . in short , he shews this sort of idolatry to have been introduced among the heathens the very age after the flood , even before god called abraham from uz of the chaldees . and thus have i consider'd this author's pretences to antiquity ; and i think i may say , there is nothing but falseness and vision , in all his notions and authorities . upon the whole , i shall beg leave very briefly , to conclude as to the nature of idolatry . i. that seeing all these ancient idolaters , did acknowledg one supreme , invisible and spiritual godhead , their idolatry did not consist in worshipping the heavenly bodies , so as to exclude all sense and appehension of any such thing . ii. that seeing they believed the sun and other heavenly bodies , to be the vehicles only of immaterial and spiritual substances , who had the superintendency over the affairs of this lower world , and were to be applied to as mediators between god and them ; their idolatry did not consist in worshipping any visible or corporeal deities , as the supreme god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , superior to their deities . by consequence , iii. that either this , which our author here lays down , is not ( as he pretends ) the true and only notion of idolatry ; or if it be , none of those ancient nations were idolaters . iv. tho i dare not presume to establish true and only notions in this case ; yet from what has been said , i think we may reasonably conclude their idolatry , to have consisted especially in these two things ; either , st , that they worshipp'd the true god by corporeal and visible symbols ; or that dly , together with the true god , they worshipp'd other inferior deities ; whether intelligences , ( which they supposed to reside in the heavenly bodies ) or daemons . and that by consequence , to worship the supreme god in any corporeal representation or image whatsoever ; or to pay divine worship to any created being , whether spirit or separate soul ; either as having the power over this inferior world to administer things in it , or as mediators between the supreme god and us ; this is , if not the only , yet at least a true notion of idolatry . chap. iv. of the notion of idolatry under the law ; and that it did not consist in the giving the worship of the supreme god to some created , corporeal or visible deity as supposing it to be the supreme god. this was the next point i proposed to examine , and our author thus delivers his opinion of it . that according to the law , idolatry is giving the worship of the supreme god to any created , corporeal , or visible deity , or any thing that can be represented by an image , which nothing but corporeal beings can , and to suppose such a being the supreme deity . and though there may seem to be two sorts of it . first , either to worship a material and created being as the supreme deity , or secondly to ascribe any corporeal form or shape to the divine nature ; yet in the result both are but one ; for to ascribe unto the supreme god any corporeal form , is the same thing as to worship a created being , for so is every corporeal substance . this is , i say , the true and onely notion of idolatry . this indeed is great and magisterial , and would almost dispose a man to think , that there should certainly be at least something of truth , where there is so very much confidence . but we have had already sufficient reason to suspect him , where he seems least to suspect himself . here i cannot but wonder that a person of his character should send abroad such notions into the world for the dictates of holy scripture , as are evidently contrary to the tenor of it ; unless he thought our nobility and gentry as little acquainted with that book , as some of their guides are said to have thought it fit they should be . to make a man an idolater according to the idea this author has given of it , two things are required , which i much question whether they ever yet concurred in any considerable number of men in the world , viz. . that he give the worship of the supreme god to some created , corporeal , and visible part of the universe . dly , that he give this worship to it as esteeming such a being to be the supreme god. i will not be so rude as to enquire by what rules of discourse he infers all this from the second commandment , that because god there forbids the israelites to make any graven image , the likeness of any thing that is in heaven above , or in the earth beneath or in the water under the earth ; to bow down before it and worship it ; therefore , this image must be the similitude of some visible and corporeal deity ; and that deity be supposed to be the supreme god , and be worshiped as such . he that can infer this from the second commandment , would doe well to tell us how he does it . but not to be importunate here . if this be the true and onely idolatry , according to the law , i would desire to know ; first , seeing the law was deliver'd by the ministry of angels , and these were no visible and corporeal deities ; what if the jews had paid divine adoration to them ? would this have been idolatry according to the law ? if it would , i should be glad to know what part of his definition it is that makes it to be so ? secondly , i have before shewn that the ancient heathens , the egyptians , chaldeans , &c. though they worshiped indeed the sun , moon and stars ; yet they neither believed them to be the supreme god nor the image of the supreme god ; nor that they were onely visible , and corporeal deities : they look'd upon them as the vehicles of celestial spirits , which dwelt in them ; and as such they pay'd their adoration to them . now then was this idolatry by the law , or was it not ? if it were not , how came the israelites to be charged with idolatry ( according to this author 's own principles ) for joyning with them in this service ? if it were , how will this agree with his true and onely notion of idolatry ? seeing they worship'd these heavenly bodies neither as the supreme god , nor so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible deity . but , thirdly , to come to the holy scripture it self we read kings . that soloman in his old age turned away his heart , and worshiped 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 other gods , viz. ashtoreth , and milcom , and chemosh , and moloch , i. e. according to this learned man's notion , the sun , and moon , and i suppose he will not deny that herein he committed idolatry . but now can any one believe that solomon who had been so well instructed in the knowledge of the lord god of israel ; he to whom god had twice himself appeared ; and whom he had endu'd with wisedom above all the men upon the earth ; finally who had not so long since built him a magnificent temple at jerusalem ; where the service of the true god was continued , even whilst he worshiped the gods of his wives . can any one , i say , be so stupid as to believe that this solomon gave the worship of the supreme god to the sun and moon , as supposing them to be the supreme deities , and that he did not onely not worship but likewise not so much as believe the onely supreme god ? and yet this we must say , if we will allow this author to have given us the true and onely notion of idolatry . besides it is certain that whilst he was engaged in his idolatrous worship , god did not utterly forsake him , but admonished him of it and threatned him with the loss of his kingdom for serving strange gods , which is inducement enough to conclude that he had still an apprehension of the true god. if solomon did immediately upon this admonition give over his impious worship , it shewed evidently that he retained the knowledge of that god who had twice appeared to him . for to suppose that he had quite lost all sense and apprehension of him just when he fell to idolatry , and just recovered some sense of him upon this admonition , and that all the while between , he believed his visible and corporeal deities , or some one of them to be the supreme god , and had no sense of him who is truely so , is to make solomon almost such a man as i before shewed our author's idolater to be according to the meaning of his words : i am sure it is not to make him one of the wisest men that ever was in the world. but supposing that solomon went on for some time after this to worship his strange gods , yet he must now at least have recovered some sense of the true god , it being this admonition in all likelyhood , that sooner or later brought him to repentance : and then our author's principles do from that time that he was admonish'd , acquit solomon of all idolatry , though he went on to serve the gods of his wives . it is a shame to run this matter any farther , and i make no doubt but that i have all men of sense whether of ours , or of the roman church with me in this matter against our author . but that i may not seem onely to destroy his idea , without fixing any other in the room of it ; i now proceed to observe , that we find two sorts of idolatry mention'd in the old testament ; and ( such is the misfortune of this positive man , ) both of them utterly destructive of his true and onely notion of it , viz. i. the worshiping of the true god , by a material symbol or representation . ii. the worshiping of other gods , than the god of israel , and that whether it be so as , . utterly to forsake the true god , and serve others onely , or . to worship other gods together with him. st . that according to the holy scripture , it was esteemed idolatry among the jews , to worship the true god by any material symbol or representation . and of this i shall desire no better proof , than those very instances which this author so much insists upon , for the establishing of his notion , viz. those of the golden calf , and of the calves of dan and bethel . that the children of israel did commit idolatry in the worship of these is on all hands agreed ; and yet that both these were designed as symbols of the true god , and not of any visible or corporeal deities , will i think appear evident , almost to a demonstration , from these following reflexions . st . that it is altogether incredible that the israelites in either of those cases , could so soon have forgotten the true god , as to give divine worship to visible and corporeal beings , as supposing them to be the supreme deity . if we consider their circumstances when they worshiped the golden calf , exod. . it was but a very few days since god had made a very great discovery of himself to them at mount horeb , when he gave them the law , and asserted himself to be the jehovah , their god which had brought them up out of the land of egypt , exod. . . and in the case of jeroboam's calves , the knowledge of god in which they had been bred up ; a continued publick service of him at jerusalem ; the feasts and sacrifices , and other ceremonies which they observed in obedience to his command , the very seal of his covenant which they carried about them in their flesh , not to say any thing of that temple which solomon had so lately built unto him ; all these must certainly have made too deep an impression upon their minds , to permit them so suddainly to fall away into such an utter forgetfulness of him , as to worship visible and corporeal deities as the supreme god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of him who really is the supreme god. such an ignorance as this is hardly to be found , even among those infidels that have never had any revelalation of the true god at all made to them : but that men who had once been instructed in the knowledge and worship of him , should so suddenly fall off from both , as they must here have done according to this author 's true and onely notion of their idolatry , this i think is as incredible , as the notion it self , which he would prove by the supposition of it . but , dly . that the people did not fall into any such apostasie , but design'd in those calves to worship the god of israel , is evident from the characters given of that deity whom they served by them . for as to the golden calf , we read exod. . . that when it was set up they cry'd out , this is thy god o israel , which brought thee up out of the land of egypt , and aaron built an altar before it , and made proclamation and said , to morrow is a feast to the jehovah or the lord. and so jeroboam in the very same manner , having set up his calves in dan and bethel , kin. . . it is too much for you ( said he to the people ) to go to jerusalem ; behold thy god o israel , which brought thee up out of the land of egypt . now may i desire this learned author to tell us . . where in holy scripture do's he find the name jehovah , or the lord attributed to any other but the true god ? or if we should suppose the people to be ignorant in this case , yet could aaron the high-priest be so forgetfull , as not to remember that this was that peculiar name which god assumed to himself , exod. . . and of which our author himself takes notice , p. . . . whom should they then , and jeroboam mean after by the jehovah that had brought them up out of the land of egypt , but him who at the delivery of the law , appropriated this character to himself , ex. . . and who was under that title worshiped by the jews at jerusalem where his temple stood , and whither all the tribes were wont to go up to worship him . it is too much for you to go up to jerusalem . behold thy god , o israel , which brought thee up out of the land of egypt . . had jeroboam hereby designed to set up a new god amongst them , how came it to pass that he used no arguments with them at all as to that matter , but merely remonstrated to them the trouble of going up to jerusalem to worship ? never sure were people easier persuaded out of their religion than the ten tribes , if our author thinks , that the distance of place made him chuse rather to return to the idolatry of egypt , than to be at so much pains to worship the true god. dly . but all this will farther appear , in that it is altogether incredible that the egyptian gods should be the god that delivered the israelites out of the hand of egypt ; and sent all those plagues upon their own servants . but especially that thick darkness under which they lay for three days , seems to be a very odd effect for the sun to have wrought . but to quit such suppositions ; two things there are by which it undoubtedly appears that the israelites in these cases , could not have design'd any return to the egyptian idolatry . for , . as to the golden-calf , it is said that they offer'd burnt offerings , and brought peace offerings unto it . and jeroboam sacrificed unto the calves which he had made and consecrated priests with a bullock and seven rams to their service . now all this was most agreeable to what god required in his service : but so utterly repugnant to the superstition of the egyptians that our author himself confesses god commanded their beasts to be offer'd in sacrifice to him , in contempt of the sacredness in which they were held by those idolaters . he tells us that to offer a young ram was the greatest affront that could be put upon the egyptians , who held a ram not onely in religious esteem , but the most sacred of all their holy animals . and particularly upon the account of the sacredness . of these animals , the egyptians ( says he ) never offer'd any of their species in sacrifice . in so much that when pharaoh bid moses go sacrifice to the lord in the land of egypt , moses answers that they durst not doe it , because it would be an abomination to the egyptians , so that they would stone them : that is , it would be a prophaneness and open affront to the religion of the egyptians if they should offer in sacrifice those very animals that the egyptians had consecrated to the honour of their gods. and for the same reason the israelites were also commanded to sacrifice young-bullocks , as well as rams ; for that next to a ram the bullock was the most sacred of all the holy animals . our author is very large on this argument ; but i think what i have here offer'd , is little less than a demonstration against him as to this point ; that the jews in the worship of their calves did not return to the idolatry of egypt , seeing they offer'd such sacrifices before them as by his own confession were an open affront to the religion of the egyptians . dly . it is evident from holy scripture , that the idolatry of these calves was a distinct idolatry from that of worshipping the heavenly bodies ; and according to the estimate which god himself put upon it , much less heinous . and this we find in both the instances before mention'd . for as to the golden calf , stephen says acts . , . that they made a calf in those days , and offer'd sacrifice to the idol , and rejoyced in the work of their hands ; then god gave them up to worship the host of heaven . now here must be a manifest difference allow'd between these two , seeing the one is represented as the punishment of the other , and what a ridiculous paraphrase would it make of these words , to suppose that they adored the sun in both ; viz. that for worshiping the sun , under the symbol of the golden calf , god gave them up to worship the sun under the name of moloch . as for jeroboam's calves , we find this also distinguish'd from that of worshiping the heavenly host. for thus the idolatry of ahab was aggravated against him ; kings . . that as if it had been a small thing for him to walk in the sins of jeroboam the son of nebat ; he went and served baal , and worshipped him. now if the idolatry of the golden calves was the worship of the sun too , ( as this author would have it , ) then this passage concerning ahab must be expounded in this manner ; that as if it had been a small thing for him to worship the sun under the calves , he even proceeded to such a height of impiety , as to worship the sun under the name of baal . but thly , and to conclude this point ; that under the calves they worshiped the true god , is evident from the whole course of the history of the ten tribes , and of the state of religion under them . we find god as well revealing himself to these as to the other two . his prophets came amongst them , and though they often inveigh'd against their altars , yet never charged them as deserters of the god of israel . nay , in many cases we find those who worshiped the golden calves , yet accepted by god as zealous in his service . i shall instead of many , offer onely one example , that of jehu . kings . . who as he was expresly design'd by god to be king over israel , so he there bids jehonadab , come and see his zeal for the lord . now the zeal he there meant was in destroying of baal out of israel . this he most effectually did , as may be seen at large in that chapter ; and for the doing of it , had the throne confirm'd by god to his posterity for four generations . i shall therefore make bold to conclude , that jehu was no worshipper of baal or the sun , but of the god of israel , whose service he promoted , and for whom elijah not long before had appeared in opposition to this very baal , kings . . how long ( says he ) halt ye between two opinions , if the lord be god follow him ; but if baal then follow him . and yet jehu still worship'd the golden calves that were in bethel , and that were in dan ; he observed not to walk in the law of the lord god of isral with all his heart , seeing he departed not from the sin of jeroboam which made israel to sin. i conclude upon the whole , that that cannot be the true and onelt notion of idolatry which this author pretends , viz. the giving the worship of the supreme god to some created corporeal or visible deity , as supposing it to be the supreme deity , since ( as we have now seen ) to worship even the true god , under the worship of some corporeal symbol or representation , as the israelites did in these calves , is in the account of the holy scripture to commit idolatry . i go on , dly . to shew : that to worship any other god , besides the god of israel , whether it be so as to forsake the true god , or but onely to joyn the worship of any other with him ; this is also according to the sense of holy scripture , to commit idolatry . now this will appear from the examples of this kind of idolatry , that occur in those sacred writings ; i shall mention onely an instance or two in either kind . and , st . that to give divine worship to any other than to the god of israel , though they do not worship that being as the supreme deity , but on the contrary worship the true god together with it , is according to the censure of the holy scripture idolatry . this was the case of solomon in some of the last years of his life , for however , at the persuasion of his wives ; he neglected very much the service of the true god , yet we do not find that he utterly forsook either the worship or the acknowledgment of him . on the contrary , the holy scripture plainly enough insinuates , that he still served the god of israel , and his fault was , that he did not serve him onely , but worshiped moloch , and chemosh and ash●●reth , and milcom together with him . for thus speaking of his idolatry it says , kings . . that his heart was not perfect , with the lord his god : and again ver . . that he went not fully after the lord as did david his father , i. e. he did not wholly give up himself to serve the lord , and him onelt as his father had done . another , and a more notable instance of this we meet with in kings . where the kings of assyria having led the ten tribes into captivity , and planted some of his own subjects in their countrey , we read ver . . that god sent lions amongst them to destroy them , because they neglected to worship him . upon this the king of assyria ordered one of the priests of bethel to go up and teach them , the manner of the god of the land ; then one of the priests whom they had carried away from samaria , came and dwelt in bethel , and taught them how they should fear or serve the lord. howbeit every man made gods of his own , and so they feared the lord and served their own gods and their graven images . such was the state of these samaritans , and their practice will furnish us with two very usefull remarks upon this occasion . for . since these samaritans were punished for not worshiping the god of the countrey , i. e. of the god whom the israelites were wont to worship ; it follows that the god of the israelites was not the same with the god of the samaritans : and therefore since these are supposed to have worshipped the sun , it follows that the israelites did not worship the sun ; but some other and him the true god. dly . that these samaritans at the same time that they committed idolatry in serving their own gods , did also both know and fear the true god , and therefore their idolatry could not consist in giving the worship of the supreme god , to their created and visible deities , as supposing them so to be . but their sin was that they gave divine worship to their own false gods , after they had been instructed in the worship of the true , and joyned both the one and the other in their religious service . but , dly . as it was therefore thought to be idolatry , to worship any other being together with god , so must it much more have been esteemed so , to forsake the true god , and worship any other corporeal and visible deity . an instance of this we seem to have in ahab , who seduced by jezabel his wife , did evil in the sight of the lord , above all that were before him , and what this was we find in the next verse , viz. that not content with the idolatry of jeroboam , in worshiping god after an idolatrous manner , he utterly forsook him and served baal , and built a temple and an altar for him . now that ahab had utterly laid aside the service of the true god , seems evident upon two accounts , st . of the great persecution that he suffered his wife to make of the prophets of the lord , kings . . when as obadiah tells elijah , he hid them in caves from her fury . dly . from the miserable state of the kingdom , in that time as we find elijah reporting it even to god himself , kings . . the children of israel , says he , have forsaken thy covenant , thrown down thy altars , and slain thy prophets with the sword , and i even i onely am left , and they seek my life to take it away . indeed it is not to be doubted , but that the idolatry of this time was very deplorable . but now wherein did it consist ? did ahab worship baal or the sun as a corporeal deity , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a superiour , spiritual and invisible godhead ? this is not credible , seeing throughout his whole reign we find him corresponding upon all occasions with the prophets of the lord , and therefore sure he could not be without some sense and apprehension of him . and what i have now shewn in the example of ahab i will yet farther confirm in another , that will perhaps be liable to less exception , and that is the instance of manasse king of judah . this king not content to forsake the god of his fathers set up his idolatry in the very temple of the lord ; but yet neither had he lost all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . he had been bred up by his father in the knowledge of the true god , the prophets of the lord still continued to put him in mind of his danger , and no sooner did he feel the punishment of his rebellion , but he returned to his god , ver . . when he was in affliction he besought the lord his god , and humbled himself greatly before the god of his fathers . and thus have i taken a short view of the several sorts of idolatry which occur in the old testament , and from thence it appears , that this sin is consistent not onely with the acknowledgment but even with the worship of the true supreme deity , and therefore that it is a very false account , which this author has here given us of it , viz. that idolatry is neither more nor less than the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , moon and stars or any other visible and corporeal deity as the supreme god ; or as he elsewhere defines it , that idolatry is the giving the worship of the supreme god to any created , corporeal or visible deity , and to suppose such a being the supreme deity is the onely , true and proper idolatry . but before i quit this point it may not be amiss to observe yet one instance more of idolatry , ( i am sure generally supposed at least to be so ) and which i cannot tell whether it may properly be reduced to any of the foregoing kinds , and it is that of the brazen-serpent to which the children of israel burnt incense in hezekiah's time , as we may see kings . . this pious king observing their superstition caused it to be broke into pieces , and we find this recorded among the rest of his enterprizes , for rooting idolatry out of his country . he removed the high places and brake the images , and cut down the groves , and brake in pieces the brazen-serpent , that moses had made : for unto those days the children of israel did burn incense to it , and he called it nehushtan . i do not believe that even this author himself will have the confidence to say that this was an image of either the sun , moon or stars , or of any other visible and corporeal deity , or that the people worshiped it as supposing it to be the supreme god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , and yet the learned men on both sides confess , that here was idolatry committed , though it may be the people were far from thinking that they did so , and then it will remain that to give any appropriate acts of divine worship to any creature , whatever sense men have of the thing to which they give them , or their intension be in so doing , is nevertheless esteemed by god to be idolatry . chap. v. the objections against the notion of idolatry laid down in the foregoing chapter consider'd , and refuted . since i first began the examination of this book , i have been under some temptations to doubt whether the author of it really designed to serve the interest of those of the church of rome in the writing of it , or by a seeming defence of their idolatry , intended onely to shew how little he could say in their behalf , and to give us an occasion by answering his arguments to convince the world upon what just grounds we advance that charge against them . it does indeed a little startle me when i consider how base a thing it is , and unbecoming the character of a christian , to put on onely an appearance of zeal in behalf of a party , to whom it must be confess'd he has been highly obliged , and whom therefore if he could not serve , yet at least he ought not to have betray'd . but then it seems to be something worse , i do not now say for a christian , but for a bishop that has not yet quitted either the revenues or the communion of the church of england , nor retracted the subscription he once made of this very charge of idolatry against those for whom he would now be thought to plead ; to revile that church which nourishes him , and whose opinions we must suppose him to hold , till we see him as formally renounce them , as ever he once subscribed to them . and if on the one hand he seems to shew a great deal of bitterness against us in his expressions , yet on the other , it must be confessed his arguments are so extremely civil as not to carry so much as the appearance of reason in them . and few of the romanists have ever undertaken this cause , that have not said a great deal more in their own defence , than this amphibious advocate has offer'd for them . but whether this author designed to expose them or us or himself onely , as i am not much concern'd to know , so neither will i undertake to determine . this is plain , that had he meant to ridicule the church of rome never so much , he could not have taken a more effectual way of doing it . and whether our nobility do , or can , or ought to understand transubstantiation or no , yet i am sure men of much meaner capacities than those honourable personages for the most part are , will be able to discern the truth of this remark . and that he must indeed have thought them not onely uncapable of judging of abstruse propositions , but even destitute of common sense and reason , if he hoped to impose such discourse as this upon them for arguing . now to make this appear , i shall need onely desire the reader to observe with me these two things : i. that the position he undertakes to defend is , that the notion of idolatry in holy scripture is neither more nor less than this . the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , the moon , and the stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity , as the supreme god , so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . ii. that to prove this , it is not sufficient to shew , that this is idolatry , or that the jews did sometimes fall into it : but it must be shewn that they never committed any other idolatry ; and particularly that this was the idolatry of the golden-calf , and of the calves of dan , and bethel . for though the worship of the heavenly bodies , ( as the author represents it ) were one sort of idolatry , yet if the scripture has charged the jews with this guilt for any other worship , wherein they did not adore the sun , moon and stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity as the supreme god , it will then follow that this , which is alledged , cannot be the onely notion of idolatry , and it must be false to assert , that idolatry according to the word of god is neither more nor less than this . now from these two remarks onely , it will presently appear what slender pretences some men will take up with to run out into the most excessive clamours against those whom they oppose . for , st . as to what he so largely insists upon , as if there were something very important at the bottom of it , viz. that the jews were a people prone to idolatry , and that the design of god throughout the whole law , was to preserve them from it , though it be a great truth , yet it is certainly in this place a great impertinence . seeing neither do we deny this , nor can he make any use of it , in establishing his true and onely notion of idolatry . for i hope he did not intend to argue thus , the jews were very prone to idolatry , and god intended his law to restrain them from it ; therefore idolatry is neither more nor less , than the worship of the heavenly bodies , the sun , moon and stars , as the supreme deity . dly . it will from hence appear , that all those passages of holy scripture , where god charges the jews with worshiping other gods , with serving the hoast of heaven , &c. conclude nothing , seeing it is confessed that they did fall into this idolatry too ; but that does not hinder but that they may have fallen into some other besides ; and we are assured that so they did ; nay , that they were suffered by god to fall into this , as a punishment for having committed the other , so st. stephen expresly tells us , acts . , . they made a calf in those days , and offered sacrifice to the idol , and rejoyced in the work of their hands . then god gave them up to worship the hoast of heaven . nor is it any more to the purpose , dly , to prove that the scripture says , that to worship the sun and moon is idolatry ; unless he could find out some text where it adds , that they who worshiped the sun and moon , worshiped them as visible and corporeal deities with the honor due to the supreme god ; and so as to exclude all sense and apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead , and that this is the true and onely idolatry . but now this which was the onely point in question , he has prudently forgot , and whilst he lives will never be able to prove it . in short if there be any thing more than noise and shew in what he has said , it must be in his account of the two points before consider'd . viz. the golden-calf and the calves of dan and of bethel : for as for the brazen-serpent and the honor paid to that , he is as silent as if there had been no such thing in his bible . for the former of these , the golden-calf , he expatiates very much , but sure never were words put together with less pertinence than here . the thing to be proved is , that the jews intended by this calf to worship the egyptian apis or serapis or osyris , that is , the sun as the supreme deity . but how does he go about to prove this . first , he learnedly shews that the apis whom the egyptians worshiped was not the king of the argives , nor son to jupiter . and this i think may be foreign enough to what we are seeking , which is the design of the jews in setting up the golden-calf . secondly , he assures us 't is much more propable that the greeks borrowed the very word apis from the egyptians . and thereupon he takes occasion to make a learned reflexion upon our translation of jer. . . which it may be was one of the passages for which he has been wont to censure our version with as little modesty as understanding . for to say no more of it than this , if we have rendred this verse amiss we have erred not onely with all the learned versions the syriack , the chaldee paraphrase , and even the vulgar latin it self , but with the original hebrew too ; and in all which there is this onely difference , that what they call valiant in one number , we render valiant men in the other . and all this is still as impertinent to the point in hand , as any thing can well be imagined to be . and yet from this , thirdly , he boldly infers , that the calf must have been the symbol of some egyptian idol , and that the people thinking themselves betray'd or deserted by moses after fourty days absence forced aaron to restore to them the symbols of their old gods to go before them , instead of this new god that seemed to have deserted them . and this indeed is pertinent , but it has another terrible defect , viz. that it wants proof . in short the onely reason he has to offer for what he says , is this ; that all their other worship seems to have been forced and constrained , but this is free and voluntary : and that there could be no other ground of that great joy they shew'd on this occasion , but that they were restored to the exercise of their former religion . and to this i have many things to reply . first , that this is at best but a plausible presumption , and such as if compared with the reasons i have alledged to the contrary , will not be thought to deserve the name of an argument . for , secondly , whereas this author ( always positive if that might pass for proof ) says , that there could be no other ground of this joy than that they were restored to the worship of their old gods ; i would fain know how he comes to be assured of this ? i am confident were it fit to establish a principle of this moment upon the sandy foundation of our own conjectures , one might be able to find out other reasons for it . for why might they not have had just cause of rejoycing to behold a symbol of their own god set up amongst them , as well as if it had been a figure of an egyptian idol ? what if despairing of moses's return to them , as they design'd this symbol to supply his place , to direct them in their journey , and to be an oracle at which they might continually enquire god's pleasure , so they testified some transports of joy upon the erecting of it ? nay but , thirdly , what if we should say that we cannot discern any such extraordinary joy , more than what the solemnity of a feast dedicated to the jehov ah for the setting up of a visible symbol of his presence amongst them might very well warrant ? the case in short was this ; moses delay'd to come down from the mount , the people were impatient to continue on their journey towards the promised land ; but how to learn god's pleasure they knew not , and for this purpose they cryed unto aaron , that he would make them a god to go before them ; such as very probably they had seen in egypt , and which might serve instead of an oracle unto them . this aaron makes , and for the dedication of it appoints a feast unto the lord , and offers such sacrifices as god indeed required , but which this author himself confesses were an abomination to the egyptians : and upon the occasion of this feast it was that it is said , they rejoyced in the works of their hands . acts . . and again , the people sate down to eat and drink and rose up to play , cor. . . and what this joy was we find particularly expressed , exod. . . they were singing , and dancing before the calf . now all this was very natural on such an occasion ; and what ever sin they committed in it , yet i cannot see any necessity there is to conclude that there could be no other ground for such a joy than their returning to the idols of egypt . and the arguments i have before given clearly shew that whatever it● was , it could not be that , seeing that the whole solemnity was consecrated to the jehov ah , and performed in a manner utterly inconsistent with the egyptian idolatry . as for the calves of dan and bethel , our author has ( if possible ) yet less to say against their being the symbols of the god of israel , than he had in the former case . he produces onely the learned visorius to prove that monceius was mistaken in imagining that jeroboam set up these calves in imitation of solomon's cherubim . but now this is not our question , whether the calves were made in imitation of the cherubim , but whether the god of israel , or the gods of egypt were worshiped by the ten tribes at dan and bethel ? and yet without saying one pertinent word , he concludes , with as good assurance as if he had made a demonstration of it ; so that it is plain that these calves were set up by him as idols , or symbols of a new or separate religion from the tribe of judah . one thing indeed there is that may seem to deserve an answer , and that is , why the people for three whole years did not comply with him , if he kept up the old religion that had been established under david and solomon ? but now this is a gross mistake in a person that would be thought so learned in the scriptures . the people did comply very readily with jeroboam , and were far from refusing for any such time as is pretended . and that passage to which this author must , i suppose , refer chron. . . is spoken not of the israelites , but of the kingdom of judah ; namely , that for three years they walked in the way of david and solomon . and now let any reasonable man consider what a pitifull vindication is this , to support so much clamour and confidence ? and how must all men of sense , even in the roman communion despise such trifling after what they have seen their own dr. godden perform upon this very subject ? the truth is we ought to give that learned man his due . he has said what was to be said to excuse his church from idolatry ; and his performance shews that he wanted nothing but a better cause to have acquitted himself to every one's satisfaction . but he had a hard mistress to serve , and he was not unsensible of it . but for this new advocate his arguments are as much short of the doctor 's , as his assurance is greater . there the d. of paul's found something worthy his consideration , but here is nothing but a great noise , and a great deal of anger and scorn , without any just occasion , though in such a case the cause ought to be very plain . in short , i cannot imagine any other effect this discourse can possibly have than to raise the credit of dr. godden's ; and after whom it is indeed a bold undertaking for another to engage : for could this point have been defended , he was the person that of any other seems to have been the most likely to have done it . but he too has fail'd , and because his performance was good , considering the matter of it , the worth of the man argues the badness of the cause , and the impossibility of defending it . chap. vi. that the account which has been given of the notion of idolatry under the law , is equally applicable to the case of the christians now . the objection from the cherubims answered : and the whole concluded . i am now come to the last point to be considered , and it is indeed so necessarily consequent upon the foregoing , that if what i have before said concerning the notion of idolatry under the old-testament be allowed , this cannot be denied : viz. that as the jews retaining both the apprehension and worship of the truely supreme god , were nevertheless guilty of idolatry , for worshiping him after a gentile manner , so may christians be now , and therefore that the church of rome may justly be charged by us as idolatrous , though we do not pretend in any wise to say either that she worships the sun , moon , and stars , or any other visible and corporeal deity as the supreme god , or that she has lost all apprehension of a spiritual and invisible godhead . i shall not much enlarge my self upon the proof of a consequence , both in it self very plain , and which this author is so far from denying , that his whole book is built upon the supposal that he makes of the truth of it ; it is indeed the onely thing wherein he seems to have any reason , nor can any thing be more just than for the understanding what idolatry is to search the holy scriptures , and see what is there declared to be so . as for the new-testament , we find the apostles earnest indeed in their cautions against idolatry , but we do not see that they any where defined the nature of it ; they spake as to men who understood these things , and were acquainted with the notion of idolatry , and needed onely to be warn'd against falling into it . they give not the least intimation that it was not the same then , it had ever been esteemed before , or that christians were to think any otherwise of it , than the jews had been wont to do under their law. all we can conclude from their exhortations to the christians to avoid it is , that christians were capable of falling into it , and by consequence that men who have not lost all sense and apprehensions of a supreme , spiritual and invisible godhead may for all that become idolaters . so that to know what the scripture notion of idolatry is , we must with this author search into the history of the old testament , and from thence i have shewn two cases wherein men may without excluding either the sense or worship of the true god , yet justly be charged with this crime . i. by worshiping the true god , by any corporeal image or representation . ii. by giving divine worship to any other besides god , though they do not onely retain the notion , but even the adoration too of the true god together with it . it were an easie matter to enlarge upon both these points here in the application of them , but my design now is not to accuse any particular church of this guilt , but onely to shew in general what idolatry it self is , and that the church of rome though it both knows and worships the true god yet may do it in such a manner , and give such worship to other beings , as justly to deserve the censure which has been brought against her , for any thing this author has said to clear her of it . indeed as to the former of these ways whereby i pretend a man may be guilty of idolatry , viz. by worshiping god by any corporeal image or representation , he has offer'd somewhat in prejudice of it . for did not god himself command two cherubims to be made , and used in his worship ? and were not these sacred images set up in the place of worship , and does not this shew that god was so far from forbidding the use of images in his service , that he would not be worshiped without them ? but , to this i answer that god did indeed command two cherubims to be made and placed at the two ends of the mercy seat ; but that they were put there for any use to be made of them in his service , or for any other purpose than to over-shadow the mercy seat , from whence god had promised to deliver his oracles unto them , this we utterly deny . hence we find that when god had directed moses how to make this throne of his glory , exod. . . he commanded him , to put the mercy seat above upon the ark of the testimony , and there ( says he ) i will meet thee , and i will commune with thee from above the mercy seat from between the two cherubims which are upon the ark , and in the viith . of numbers ver . . it is said , that when moses went into the tabernacle of the congregation to speak with god , he heard the voice of one speaking to him , from off the mercy seat , from between the two cherubims . now here we may plainly see what the object of divine worship was , not the cherubim but the invisible majesty which spake from between them , and communed with moses . the mercy seat it self was but the place where god had promised to meet them ; the cherubim were the ornament , and covering of that , but neither the one nor the other of these were the object of divine worship , or figures or similitudes of that god who alone was adored there . and this the learned men of the church of rome confess no less than we , aquinas having objected against the second commandment , that the cherubim were put in the tabernacle and in the temple : answers that they were neither put there as representations of god , nor for any worship to be paid to them . and explaining the ark and all that belong'd to it as a mystery , he says , that the holy of holies represented heaven ; the ark was the foot stool of the divine majesty ; but that because god was incomprehensible to any creature , propter hoc nulla similitudo ejus ponebatur , therefore was there no similitude of him placed there the better to denote his invisibility . as for the cherubim he says they represented the multitude of angels attending upon his throne ; and there was therefore more than one , that all worship might be excluded from them , to whom it had been commanded that they should worship onely one god. so far was aquinas from thinking — that these images were any representations of god , or that any worship was to be paid to them , and the same has been confessed by others of no less note of that church , vasquez lorinus , azorius and even by his own visorius , whom he has before alledged , but is not pleased to take notice of on this occasion . but here our author supposes he has something to boast of . for if we may believe him our own great defender of this charge has given up the cause as to this matter , and confessed that it was lawfull to worship towards an image , but not to give worship to one . this is i fear a wilfull perverting of that learned man's words . the question was about the jews adoration towards the ark , and the holy of holies . his answer is this ; that they onely directed their worship towards the place , where god had promised to be signally present among them , which ( says he ) signifies no more to the worship of images , than lifting up our eyes to heaven doth when we pray , because god is more especially present there . what is there in all this to allow it to be lawfull to give worship towards an image , but not to it ? nay he plainly deni'd that there were any images for worship there , or any worship directed towards them . but there was a symbol of god's immediate presence as on his throne between the cherubim , and this appointed by god himself , and thither the people directed their worship , and i desire this author , if he can , to tell me what there was more in this , than there is in directing our worship towards heaven when we pray . and whether according to his true and onely notion of idolatry , he may not as well say that we worship apis or baal or maloch , i. e. the sun , moon , and stars , in this , as that the jews worship'd the cherubim by that ? nor is there any more sincerity in what he calls his second reply , and in which he represents him as allowing that the cherubim might be adored once a year by the high priest , but not exposed to the people to worship . for in that very place he denies the cherubim to have been any representations of god , but says that his throne was between them on the mercy seat ; and adds in plain words , that they were never intended for objects of worship . and yet this author insults and triumphs upon this , in a very glorious manner , as if the cause had been gained by it . had that learned man said that the high priest adored the cherubims once a year , then indeed there might have been some colour forthose sweet expressions of shameless shifts and pretences . but this he utterly deny'd ; and he might as well have made him confess it to be lawfull to worship images , though he disputed against it , and have brought him in allowing that 't was no idolatry so to do , as to represent him confessing that the high priest adored the cherubim once every year . but what defence can there be against such adversaries , as will make men confess what they reject , and affirm what they deny ; and yet when they have done , dare to appeal both to god and the world for their sincerity ? and now from what has been said , i will venture to conclude in behalf of our church , and of those learned men of our communion , who have been concern'd in this controversie , that the notion of idolatry which both the one teaches , and the others have defended , is after all this author's clamours against it neither new nor unlearned , nor fanatical , nor anticatholick , nor antichristian , nor any of those ill things he pretends ; but the truly ancient , learned , and catholick notion of it . the notion which god in his holy word has established ; which the jews received ; the apostles taught , and the christian church till these latter days , that mens interest prompted them to seek out to themselves new inventions , constantly maintained . it was by this notion that st. paul censured the worship of the golden calf as idolatrous , and condemned the gentile world of the same crime , rom. . , . that though they knew god , yet they did not glorify him as god , but changed the glory of the incorruptible god , into an image made like unto corruptible man , and to birds , and fourfooted beasts and creeping things . this was the notion that made our fore-runners in the faith , chuse rather to suffer martyrdom than to give religious worship to any creature whatsoever . and whatever this author thinks of those primitive saints , i am confident he will find but very few besides , that will believe they sacrificed their lives to their folly and passion , and died onely to defend a mistaken notion of idolatry . it was this notion upon which the ancient fathers condemned the arians of idolatry ; they did not believe christ , to be either the sun or moon , or any other visible or corporeal deity , or the image , of the supreme and invisible godhead . they believed him to be the most divine and excellent being after god , onely they denied that he was coëternal and coëqual with the father ; and yet those holy , orthodox fathers censur'd them as idolaters , because supposing him to be a creature they worshiped him as a god. and upon the very same notion it is that the reformed churches have ever looked upon the worship of images and saints in the church of rome , as deserving the very same censure ; and i cannot but wonder that this author should charge the invention of this notion upon a person now living , which he must needs have known both our church and the writers of it have constantly asserted , before any of this generation ever saw the light . i should now add somewhat in answer to those bitter reflexions he has made upon the same reverend person , whom he seems to have resolved at any rate to run down : but though the charge be severe , yet is it so inartificially laid , as plainly shews there was no achitophel in the contrivance ; and i will onely say that whoso shall consider the little credit he had in those days , to which this author refers , with them whom himself looks upon as the contrivers and managers of that plot which he would be thought to lay to his charge , will soon discover a great deal of ill will utterly ruined , for want of a little skill in the management of it . but we ought not to wonder , if he who in the beginning of his discourse flew out into such violence against all the abettors of this charge as a company of fanatick , anti-monarchal villains has in the close thought fit to fix some particular marks of his displeasuere , upon the last and most learned assertor of it . this was the least he could do to make amends for the misfortune of a approving and licensing that very book which was written in defence of this charge . and it is well for us all that there are some men in the world , who as ulpian tells us can do no injury , sive pulsent sive concivium dicant . how far this author may be reckoned in the number of these i shall leave the final result of his judgement in this case to satisfie the world , viz. that idolatry made the plot , and the plot made idolatry , and the same persons made both . for whether this can be the result of any man's judgment that is well in his head , i shall leave it to those who have no distempers there to determine . but he has delivered himself , as he will answer for his integrity to god and the world. to this judgment i now leave him : and though i fear it be too late to provide against the sentence of the last , yet i heartily pray he may consider what he has done , and how he will stand in judgment before the other . finis . books lately printed for will. rogers . the doctrines and practices of the church of rome , truly represented ; in answer to a book intituled , a papist misrepresented , and represented , &c. quarto . an answer to a discourse intituled , papists protesting against protestant popery ; being a vindication of papists not misrepresented by protestants : and containing a particular examination of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , his exposition of the doctrine of the church of rome , in the articles of invocation of saints , worship of images occasioned by that discourse . quarto . an answer to the amicable accommodation of the differences , between the representer and answerer . quarto . a view of the whole controversie , between the representer and the answerer ; with an answer to the representer's last reply ; in which are laid open some of the methods , by which protestants are misrepresented by papists . quarto . the doctrine of the trinity and transubstantiation , compared as to scripture , reason and tradition ; in a new dialogue between a protestant and a papist , the first part : wherein an answer is given to the late proofs of the antiquity of transubstantiation , in the books called , consensus veterum , and nubes testium , &c. quarto . the doctrine of the trinity , and transubstantiation , compared as to scripture , reason and tradition in a new dialogue between a protestant and a papist , the second part : wherein the doctrine of the trinity is shewed to be agreeable , to scripture and reason , and transubstantiation repugnant to both . quarto . an answer to the eighth chapter of the representer's second part , in the first dialogue , between him and his lay-friend . of the authority of councils , and the rule of faith. by a person of quality : with an answer to the eight theses , laid down for the tryal of the english reformation ; in a book that came lately from oxford . sermons and discourses , some of which never before printed : the third volume . by the reverend dr. tillotson , dean of canterbury . octavo . a manual for a christian souldier , written by erasmus , and translated into english. twelves . a new and easie method to learn to sing by book , whereby one ( who hath a good voice and ear ) may without other help , learn to sing true by notes . design'd chiefly for , and applied to the promoting of psalmody ; and furnished with variety of psalm-tunes in parts , with directions for that kind of singing . a perswasive to frequent communion in the sacrament of the lord's supper . by john tillotson , dean of canterbury , in octavo , price three pence . a discourse against transubstantiation . in octavo . price three pence . the state of the church of rome when the reformation began , as it appears by the advices given to paul iii. and julius iii. by creatures of their own. with a preface leading to the matter of the book . quarto . a letter to a friend , reflecting on some passages in a letter to the d. of p. in answer to the arguing part of his first letter to mr. g. the reflecter's defence of his letter to a friend , against the furious assaults of mr. i. s. in his second catholick letter . in four dialogues . quarto . a sermon preached at the funeral of the reverend benj. calamy , d. d. and late minister of st. lawrance-jury , lond. jan. th . / . by w. sherlock . d. d. master of the temple . a vindication of some protestant principles of church-unity and catholick-communion , from the charge of agreement with the church of rome . in answer to a late pamphlet , intituled , an agreement between the church of england and the church of rome , evinced from the concertation of some of her sons with their brethren the dissenters . by william sherlock , d. d. master of the temple . a preservative against popery : being some plain directions to unlearned protestants , how to dispute with romish priests . the first part by william sherlock , d. d. master of the temple . the present state of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome ; or , an account of the books written on both sides . in a letter to a friend . imprimatur , guil. needham , may . . london : printed for tho. basset , james adamson , and tho. newborough , . the present state of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome , &c. in a letter to a friend . sir , in pursuance of my promise made to you , to send you such an account as you desire , of what has been lately published here , with reference to the points in controversie between us and the church of rome ; i now give you the trouble of this address . it was you know the design of the clergy of this city some years since , to reduce the matters in debate with the dissenting party , to a certain number of cases , and in the plainest and most inoffensive manner that they could , to shew them how little cause they had to separate from our communion upon any of those pretences , which were said to be the cause of separation . i need not tell you what their performances were , for you have read their tracts , and are therefore able to judg , from your own knowledg , concerning them . as to the success which they have had , we that live here , have not only observed that our churches have been more charged since , but do also know , that several for whose sake those discourses were principally intended , have declared themselves abundantly satisfied , both with the strength and temper that appear'd in them . when this first undertaking was finished , their next resolution was to run through the principal points of difference between the papists and us after the same manner , that those who had not the liesure or opportunity to consult longer books , might here in short be led to a true knowledg of the controversie , and stand the firmer in the truth , by being better acquainted with the grounds of it . it was also hoped , that many who had hitherto been detained in their errors for want not so much of a will to embrace the truth , as of light to discern it by , might possibly take this opportunity of seeing with their own eyes , and discover that way of error in which their ignorance or their prejudices had so long detained them . but before they had finished this their second undertaking , the sudden and unexpected death of our late royal sovereign broke their measures , and from thenceforth they thought fit to be of the defensive side , and for some time published no more discourses of this kind , but waited to see whether the gentlemen of the roman communion would make any attaques upon us , or be contented that the controversie should rest as it was . but because you desire an account of all that has been done of this nature , i will let you know how far they advanced in their design , and give you a catalogue of their tracts , tho not just in the order as they came out , yet in that order which seems to have been design'd , and is most natural for you to peruse them . and in the first place , as a preparatory to all the rest , there is a little tract intituled , i. a perswasive to an ingenuous trial of opinions in religion , &c. and which they who know the unreasonable prejudices of those of the roman communion , as to any free enquiry , cannot doubt to have been exceeding necessary . to which i must add , ii. the difference of the case between the separation of protestants from the church of rome , and the separation of dissenters from the church of england . for both these tracts , as you may easily discern , were design'd to remove such mistakes and prejudices as are common to papists and to dissenters , and were therefore thought to be a proper transition from the first undertaking to the second . then follow those treatises that relate to the questions about the church , and for which our adversaries of late seem the most concern'd . iii. a discourse of the unity of the catholick church maintain'd in the church of england . iv. a discourse about the charge of novelty upon the reformed church of england , made by the papists , asking of us the question , where was our religion before luther ? v. the protestant resolution of faith , being an answer to three questions , . how far we must depend on the authority of the church for the true sense of scripture ? . whether a visible succession from christ to this day , makes a church which has this visible succession , an infallible interpreter of scripture ? . whether the church of england can make out such a visible succession ? vi , vii . two discourses concerning the necessity of reformation , with respect to the errors and corruptions of the church of rome . another sort of general questions necessary to have been premised to the particular disputes , do refer to the principle on which we are to proceed in the management of them . and to this purpose there were published the two following tracts , viii . a discourse about tradition , shewing what is meant by it , and what tradition is to be received , and what tradition is to be rejected . ix . a discourse concerning a guide in matters of faith , with respect especially to the romish pretence of such a one as is infallible . thus far they proceeded upon general points , and no farther , tho more were design'd to be debated , as one may see by the dividing and managing of the arguments which they finished , and as i my self have been told by some that were best able to inform me . but as these general discourses were coming abroad into the world ; the particular disputes were prepared , and those that follow were published . x. a discourse concerning the object of religious worship ; or , a scripture proof of the unlawfulness of giving any religious worship to any other being besides the supreme god. xi . a discourse concerning the devotions of the church of rome , especially as compared with those of the church of england , in which it is shewn , that whatsoever the romanists pretend , there is not so true devotion among them , nor such rational provision for it , nor encouragement to it , as in the church established by law amongst us . xii . a discourse concerning the invocation of saints . xiii . of prayer in an unknown tongue . xiv . of auricular confession , as it is prescribed by the council of trent . xv. a discourse against transubstantiation . xvi . of the adoration of the host. these are the tracts that were published in pursuance of that design i mention'd before , since which time , our divines have kept themselves , as i told you , upon the defensive part , their whole work having been little else than to answer such printed books , or papers scatter'd about in writing , as the romanists have from time to time sent abroad . i need not tell you that at length we were surprised with a book published by some romanist , which has made no little noise all over the kingdom , and has been the occasion of many more : but that which surprised us was this , that there was not the least notice taken in it , of those discourses now mentioned , and not long before published in behalf of the church of england against the church of rome . the discreet persons of that communion acknowledged they were above contempt ; and it was the general perswasion of our communion , that they would not admit of any just and reasonable answer ; and for this very reason , some appearance of an answer was generally expected to save , if it might be , the reputation of the roman cause , or at least of the ability of our adversaries to maintain it , unless they should think fit to let the controversie lye still , which if they had done , i believe our divines had thought themselves obliged by the example , not to publish new books upon it , but to content themselves with that diligence in their parochial stations , that might be sufficient to countermine any secret endeavours to draw people from the communion of this church : but it seems our adversaries thought fit to begin a dispute , and that without taking the least notice of what had been so lately done on our side : which tho we wondred at , at first , yet we have given over wondering at it now that we are something used to their way of controversie . for some of them ( as the representer knows ) can without blushing for the matter , drop the defence of arguments , and the maintaining of disputes begun by themselves ; and yet they write on still , as if the cause went for them , and they had not made one false step in the management of it . but i must now give you a particular account how these gentlemen began , and in what manner they carried on that assault , of which it is possible they may have had some cause to repent them since . the first that led the way , was one that calls himself r. l. with a book full of cunning and dissimulation , intituled a papist misrepresented and represented . in which he runs through most of the points in controversie between us in a two-fold character ; in one of which he pretends to shew that which papists are commonly misunderstood to be ; in the other , that which , as he says , they really are . the real design of this method , you must know is this . popery in its proper colours is so unlike catholick christianity , that it is in vain ever to hope to promote it , if it appear in its own shape . it is necessary therefore , that the religion , like the prophet , should come to us in sheeps cloathing , and the heresie to be made look as orthodox as is possible . some things are denied , others mollified , all disguised , and a double benefit thereby obtaind : popery is to be received as a very innocent , harmless thing ; and the protestants , especially the ministers and first reformers represented to the world , as a sort of people that have supported themselves by calumnies and lies , and made a noise about errors and corruptions , which are no where to be found , but in their own brains or books , but which the church of rome detests no less than we. but this trick was quickly discovered , and the design laid open by an excellent hand , in a treatise which he called i. the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented ; in answer to a book intituled , a papist misrepresented and represented , &c. in which the author passes through every point of his characters , and truly states the question between us , and gives a short , yet sufficient account of our reasons against their tenets . i shall not need enlarge my self to give you any account of this controversie which has been lately summed up , to satisfie the world , that this author has taken as little care to defend his characters , as he shew'd sincerity in the first drawing of them . the books themselves that have passed on both sides are these , reflections upon the answer to the papist misrepresented , &c. ii. a papist not misrepresented by protestants , being a reply to the reflections , &c. papists protesting against protestant popery ; in answer to a discourse intituled , a papist not misrepresented by protestants . iii. an answer to a discourse intituled , papists protesting against protestant popery , containing a particular examination of monsieur de meaux late bishop of condom ' s exposition of the doctrine of the church of rome , in the articles of the invocation of saints , and worship of images . an amicable accommodation of the difference between the representer and the answerer , in return to his last reply . iv. an answer to the amicable accommodation of the difference between the representer and the answerer . a reply to the answer to the amicable accommodation . to which has lately been returned , v. a view of the whole controversie between the representer and the answerer , with an answer to the representers last reply . this is in short the sum of what has hitherto pass'd in this dispute , the misrepresenter not having yet taken any notice of this new antagonist , who it's thought by some , has summ'd up this controversie so effectually , as to put an end to it . as for his second part which he acted afterward under the character of the catholick representer , i shall have occasion to give you some farther account of it when i come to those pieces of our own divines that have either been the occasion of , or the answers to his sheets and half sheets . the next that appeared upon the stage , was the famous bishop of condom , the great abettor , if not founder of this new sect of expositors of their religion , and the occasion of his appearance this . our misrepresenter being answer'd the first time , as has been said by the learned author of the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented . the new method of expounding and representing , i. e. dissembling the good old doctrine of the church began to sink ; and the people who were principally design'd to be seduced by it , generally discovered the snare that had been laid for them . it was now too late to recede into the old popery again . the misrepresenter had not only forsaken , but in good measure anathematiz'd that , and profess'd that they abhorr'd it no less than we ; and therefore to own it now , was in effect to confess that we had reason to reform those errors which themselves were once ashamed to abet : so that what remained , was to put a good face upon the matter , and see if the original pattern , the pompous exposition of this bishop , with the long relation of an advertisement , and the glorious trains of briefs and approbations before and behind , might not possibly support the undertaking , and keep up the credit of their new popery , which must otherwise necessarily fall . such was the occasion , or rather the necessity of publishing this bishpps book , which you have seen under the title of , the exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church in matters of controversie . to which there have been two answers made , of one of which there has been no notice taken by the other party : 't is called i. an answer to the bishop of condom's exposition , &c. with refletions on his pastoral letter . the only excuse i can think of for the other parties not replying to this answer , was because another came out before it , which is yet but a lame pretence , since the book is not only a direct and full answer to all that was offered by the bishop of condom , either in the way of exposition or argument , but has also a considerable variety of useful reflections , which perhaps made it more advisable to let it alone , than to go about to consult it . the other is , ii. an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the bishop of condom , in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick faith this answer was so exquisite in all its parts , that it could not fail of gaining a general esteem ; but the suddenness in which it was dispatch'd , rais'd the admiration of all . and that which made it yet more taken notice of , was the preface prefix'd to it , in which the worthy author ( who had the advantage of informing himself of these matters , by living some time in france ) gives a large account of this bishops exposition , and of a suppress'd edition , which it seems had carried the trick a little too far , and therefore was not permitted to see the light , together with some other matters of fact that very much laid open the design . but to those particulars wherewith you are already well acquainted , i beg leave to add another piece of history which i have learn'd concerning this matter . you must understand then that the project of converting the french-protestants , which has been more or less carried on ever since henry the fourth's time , was more especially agitated at the conclusion of the pyrenean treaty almost years since : the spaniards being apprehensive of the french power , and willing to divert it by an undertaking , which they thought might find them work at home , and not leave them at leisure to disturb their neighbours . it was resolved there , at the same time that the civil power began to oppress them , the church should offer some terms of a reunion to them , and all possible endeavours be used to encline them to accept it : to this end money was secretly given to several of the ministers , to favour this project ; but the design being discover'd by a minister of bas-languedoc , the synod of nismes , ann. . and that of cevennes being assembled not long after , appeard so vigorously against it , that they were forc'd to lay aside the design for some time . about ten years after it broke out again ; but the ministers of languedoc and the synod of the isle of france opposing it , as those of nismes and cevennes had done before , it came to nothnig . now this second attempt was dated precisely at the same time that the bishop of condom's exposition began to see the light : and that which convinces me that it was purposely contriv'd for the advancing this design is this , that the marshal de turene , who was this bishops convert , and the principal defender of this exposition , was also at the same time the great undertaker for this project . 't is well known how to this end he sent a person through the several provinces of france , with private instructions to those ministers , which he thought he could most influence to close with it : and in effect he did obtain several of their subscriptions , whom when the protestant synods would afterwards have censur'd for their so doing , the kings commissioners took their parts , and would not suffer them to do it . and here i ought not to forget one particular which may be worth your knowledg , and that is this . among others to whom the marshal sent , one was the famous monsieur le blanc , he was at that time prisoner at sedan , and the moderation that he shewed in stating the controversies of grace , free-will , predestination , &c. gave them great hopes that he might easily be drawn in to the favouring their project of an accomodation with the church of rome , by meeting one another half way . the agent brought him a letter from monsieur de turene to this purpose , but was mightily surprized , when instead of what he expected , hee found him stiff and inflexible , and absolutely resolved not to relax any thing . indeed the very attempt that was made upon him , so disturbed him , that he could not be satisfied with his private resentment of it , but in the year . published a disputation to them , that the re-union which they had attempted with the lutherans made nothing to one with the papists , which he there shews to be impossible . this with what you have read in the preface to the tract , which has occasiond this digression , may seem to satisfie you , what the quality of the bishop of condom's exposition is , and what intreague it was designed to serve . you have the politiques of the clery of france , in which book you may see the very propositions that were made for this accommodation , and which are a pure original of new popery , and so conformable to the french expositor , and our english misrepresenter , that you cannot doubt but that they all designed to carry on the same design . for the little value that is to be set upon the approbations prefix'd to it : the author of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , has i think said enough to satifie you : to which you may add , that in the late divisions between the jansenists and their opposers in france , the books on both sides have been very solemnly approved , and the jansenists above any . and in the present case , either the approbations of the bishop of condom's exposition signifie nothing , or those heretofore prefix'd to cardinal bellarmines works , and their other learned controvertists are become super-annuated ; for all these cannot possibly stand together . but i run too far from my business , and must return to our expositor , who was not long without an answer , entituled iv. a vindication of the bishop of condom ' s exposition , with a letter from the said bishop . i will not tire you with giving my own sense of the performances of any whose titles i send you , and whose books i leave you to judg of when you read them . i will only observe to you , that we are very much beholding to the bishop , with confessing the particulars wich his adversary had charged him with , and which there are many that before did hardly believe . and for his excuses which he makes , the truth is , they are so little to the purpose , that he has gain'd but little credit even among his friends by them . and if this be as they say , the first notice he ever took of any adversary that appeared against him , he would do very well to have a care of setting out vindications of his works , at which he appears to be so horribly unlucky . but for all this you may recur to the reply that has been made by the same author who wrote the exposition of our doctrine in his second undertaking , called v. a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of the bishop of condom and his vindicator . in which besides an answer to the bishops letter , and a particular review of all the several articles in debate , you will find in the appendix some pieces that will gratifie your curiosity , relating to the point of the invocation of saints . and in the close of all , the epistle of s. chrysostome to caesarius , which had been indeed very basely suppress'd by by them , but is now happily recovered , to the everlasting reproach of those who have so often and confidently urged the authority of that father for to support their new heresie of transubstantiation , and which he here in as plain words speaks against , as if peter martyr had not only first produced , but as some of them have said , had written the epistle for him . and thus far this controversie has proceeded , which at present stops here , though the reverend father who writ the vindication , had prepar'd us to expect that it should not long do so , but we now begin to think , that both the vindicator and the representer , are sensible that their design will not bear being driven on any further . but tho we have done with the business of the exposition , yet we must not so soon part with the bishop . for since the publication of that , these new popery-men , have favour'd the world with two other of his pieces , the . a pastoral letter to the new-converts of his diocess . the . a treatise of communion under one kind . the latter of these which had drawn in french an admirable answer heretofore , from that exact historian , monsieur larroque ; which 't is said , the bishop himself thought too strong to be answer'd with any advantage ; has also not long since produced us a treatise very worthy your perusing in our own language , intituled a discourse of the communion in one kind , in answer to a treatise of the bishop of meaux , of communion , &c. and in the two discourses , i mean the bishops and the answer , you may expect to find whatever artifice and insincerity can do on one side , or truth and learning reply on the other . for what concerns his pastoral letter , i have seen several answers to it in french , and one particularly very accurately done , called reponse à monsr . l'eveque de meaux sur sa lettre pastorale ; which if you think fit , i will send you : i do not know that any one has particularly undertaken it here , any farther than what was done by the author of the second answer to his exposition , who made some reflections upon the pastoral letter too . in this letter , there is one notable passage ; and the account of which , because you may not perhaps meet with elsewhere , i will run the hazard of another digression to offer it you here . in the d page , there is set in capital letters , this notable declaration , not one of you hath suffer'd violence , either in his person or goods . and page . so far , says he , have you been from suffering torments , that you have not so much as heard them mentioned ; i hear other bishops affirm the same : you are returned peaceably to us , you know it . i doubt not but this passage a little surprised you , as it did all the world that ever read it ; being so contrary to all the accounts that have come from thence . indeed his majesties brief alone may serve for a confutation to so shameful an assertion , and shew us how little we can rely upon those gentlemen , when they talk to us of things that were done . or . years ago , that make no scruple of dealing thus with us in a matter of fact , in the sight of the world , before whose eyes these things are acted : nay , to tell the very protestants themselves , that they had suffer'd no violence , that they knew it , when the contrary was as evident to them , as that their host is not the body of a man ; and no doubt the bishop might as easily be able to prove the one , as with all his fine words perswade the other . but i will open to you the mystery of this . you must know then , that , as far as i can learn , the dragoons were not lodged in the bishoprick of meaux ; but yet they came up to the very gates of the city . being thus in sight of their danger , and expecting every minute when it would fall upon them , the bishop thought that certainly now , if ever , they would be disposed to compliance . with this advantage he invites them to a conference , appears more moderate than even his own exposition ; and desires very little more of them than what any one might venture to subscribe . such advances backt with so good an authority as the dragoons at the gates , could not but prevail upon them ; they subscribed as he desired , and so the dragoons were dismissed without doing them any farther mischief . in this state , they continued for about three months , when the bishop began to visit his diocess , and especially , those parts in which there were the most protestants . his carriage upon this review was very different from what it had been before . he was now no longer the free , relaxing , good natur'd bishop of meaux , that held the conference with them , but rigid as any little emissary . he threatned those , who refused to go to mass , and assist at the other offices of the church ; and tho several told him that this was not what he had promised them , yet he took but little notice of it . mons. de soguier , lord of charmoi , and cousin to the late chancellor soguier , and several others more obstinate than the rest , both had the dragoons quarter'd upon them in his diocess , and are at this day prisoners upon this account . this i have read in some late french pieces , which have taken notice of it ; but the main of what i send you , is an extract of a letter , which was written to a friend of mine out of france ; and who being himself not long since there , confirm'd to me several of those particulars , as to this bishops diocess . i presume you have heard how this bishop , who in his pastoral letter dated march . denies , as you see , that there has been any thing of violence used to the protestants in france , did in another letter to a person of quality that had escaped thence , and whom he desired to draw back if possible to his country , and his church , both own and justifie the persecution . this letter was dated but apr. . after the other . this honourable person had such indignation against him for his double dealing , that he has permitted the bishops letter to him , to be printed ; and which agrees as well with his pastoral letter , as his exposition does with cardinal bellarmine's controversies ; the old popery from whence we reformed , with the new by which they would now seduce us . a third subject there has been for a more important controversie than either of the foregoing , occasioned by the papers left by his majesty concerning the authority of the catholick church ; and the method of which lies thus : the two papers written by the late king charles the second . . the answer intituled , an answer to some papers lately printed concerning the authority of the catholick church in matters of faith , and the reformation of the church of england . to these there came out almost at the same time two replies . a defence of the papers written by the late king of blessed memory . in which there is little remarkable besides the unhandsome levity of the stile , and the ungrateful drolls in a matter of so much seriousness . a reply to the answer made upon the three royal papers . this is much more to be commended both for its strength and decency ; and they would perhaps much more have served the interest of their cause , and shewn their respect to his late majesty , had they suffer'd no other to appear . but to both of them the same worthy author who wrote the former reply , has very lately publisht a most learned and excellent answer , and which i would very much recommend to your careful consideration , entituled , a vindication of the answer to some late papers concerning the unity and authority of the catholick church , and the reformation of the church of england . a discourse so learnedly and clearly written , that we ought to thank our adversaries for their importunity that has produced us so excellent a treatise in a point of such importance . i think i have now set down all the disputes that have proceeded to any length this last year : for the rest , they are either such as you may call occasional treatises only , or such as are not advanced into any set and regular debates . i. of the former kind i understand these following : first , concerning st. peter's supremacy , a discourse intituled , a sermon preacht upon saint peter ' s day , printed at the desire of some that heard it , with some enlargements . the occasion of which was this : dr. godden had the last year published a sermon on this subject which he preacht in the q. dowagers chappel ; whereupon the reverend author of this discourse having likewise preacht on the same day , and upon the same text , was prevailed with to print his too . another subject that has occasionally produced us two or three very good treatises , is , the worship of saints : our late misrepresenter and the bishop of meaux's exposition having been pleased very much to palliate the doctrine and practice of the church of rome as to this matter ; and pretending that what they now do is no more than what was done even in the fourth age of the church ; it was necessary some particular discovery should be made of this artifice , and it has accordingly been done very effectually in the following tracts . speculum b. virginis ; a discourse of the due praise and honour of the virg. mary . in which is clearly set forth what we allow , and what the bold extravagancy of the church of rome has carri'd them to do in the worship of the blessed virgin. a discourse of the worship of the blessed virgin and the saints , with an account of the beginning and rise of it among christians , in answer to monsieur de meaux ' s appeal to the fourth age in his exposition and pastoral letter . wholsome advices from the blessed virgin to her indiscreet worshippers . this last is but a translation : it was written originally by a papist , one mr. widenfelt , a person of good esteem and reputation in his country ; who being scandalized at the extravagant practices of his church in this matter , wrote this little treatise to awaken their consideration , and if possible , reduce the people from their usual extravagance , to the temper and moderation of the present advocates for their cause , as to this matter . but alas ! he found them too fond of their old popery , to leave it so easily : instead of doing any good upon them , his book was censured in a very extraordinary manner , and the honour of the blessed virgin vindicated against these new hereticks , by her faithful champion father crasset the jesuit : a short specimen of whose book you may see at the end of the defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england ; or if you had rather have it from their own pens , as indeed none can better expose their extravagancies of this kind , than they have done themselves , you may then consult a late popish book called , contemplations on the life and glory of holy mary the mother of jesus ; with a daily office agreeing to each mystery thereof . by j. c. d. d. to which he has since added , an apology for his contemplations , &c. but of all this , you will find a particular account in an excellent preface prefixt to these advices by the translator of it ; who professes himself to be a lay-man of our church , and has the character of a very worthy , as he has sufficiently shewn himself to be a very ingenious gentleman . it may be proper here to remark , that this preface has been attacked by the catholick representer ; or the misrepresenter transformed : in his th chapter of his second part ; and to which he has returned a smart reply , called , . a letter to the misrepresenter of papists . another occasional treatise came forth not long since , intituled , . a discourse concerning a judg of controversies in matters of religion ; with an address to wavering protestants , shewing what little reason they have to think of any change of their religion . it was written in answer to some papers that had been sent to the learned author , by a person of quality , asserting the necessity of such a judg. if i should tell you from whose pen this treatise came , you would need no other inducement carefully to read it . and to encourage you to it , i will only say thus much , that it has been generally received with great applause here , and do's certainly as well deserve it , as any thing that has hitherto been publish'd among us . here has been published likewise a short tract concerning the nature of the catholick church , and the authority of it . it is not level'd against any particular author ; but design'd to answer the little captious arguments now much in vogue ; and therefore , necessary to have been thus prevented : the chief points handled in it , are these three . . what is the nature of the catholick church . . that the church of rome is not the catholick church . . that the holy scriptures , and not the church , are the rule of faith. the title of this treatise , is this , . a plain and familiar discourse by way of dialogue , betwixt a minister and his parishioner concerning the catholick church . to these i may add a treatise , concerning the defection of the church of rome from what it once was . it is an answer to a popish paper , which the author has printed at the beginning of his book , given about it seems by those of that party , and sent by way of letter to a gentleman : it is called , . an answer to a late paper given about by some of the church of rome . another subject that has occasionally been handled , is , concerning schism and heresy : it is an answer to some things in a popish pamphlet , called , why are you a catholick ? the author treats of the nature of these two , and enquires to which church it is that they really do belong : in short , whether the papists or we , are schismaticks and hereticks ? the title is this , . a vindication of the church of england from the foul aspersions of schism and heresy , unjustly cast upon her by the church of rome . in two parts . the last subject that has occasionally , but yet more copiously been handled , and which upon that account , i reserved to this place , is concerning the worship of images , &c. it began by this means . a reverend divine of our church , took occasion from the late pretences of our misrepresenting the opinions of the papists , to set forth an excellent catechism , called . a catechism truly representing the doctrines and practices of the church of rome , with an answer unto them . it is not to be wonder'd that such a book as this should be thought proper to be set forth ; when the whole business of those of the other communion , was to palliate by any means the true doctrines and practices of their church ; it certainly became us to represent them to the world , as indeed they are . this has here been done from their own authors , and with great sincerity . but notwithstanding this , the misrepresenter that then was , in one of his answers to the first great controversy i have mentioned , took him to task for it : in the close of a new edition of this catechism , an answer was made to his exceptions . not long after this , the misrepresenter began a new undertaking , to oblige the world with a sheet a week , first ; called the second part of the papist represented and misrepresented ; and after , of half a sheet , which he has continued to the number of sixteen chapters , under the new character of the catholick representer . in his st , d , th and th sheets or chapters , he falls upon the author of this catechism , with reference to the point of the worship of images , and of the cross ; which has produced us three short , but yet excellent answers , called . . the papists represented and not misrepresented , in answer to the first sheet of the second part . . the like to the second . and . to the fifth and sixth . the business of all which is the same , viz. to shew what the true doctrine of the church of rome is in the points before mention'd , of the worship of images , and of the cross. for the other sort of tracts that have been written , ii. more immediatly in answer to some of their set discourses . they have also been on different subjects : such as these . ( . ) concerning transubstantiation . upon which their late attempts , either to set up that , or to ruin the other mysteries of the gospel , but especially , that of the trinity , have occasioned several short , but accurate discourses : i shall send you the titles of them . . the answer to the popish dialogue between a new catholick convert and a protestant , to prove the mystery of the trinity to be as absurd a doctrine as transubstantiation : by way of short notes upon the said dialogue . . the doctrine of the trinity and transubstantiation compared , as to scripture , reason , and tradition : in answer to the same , and in two parts . to which i will add for the affinity of the subject , two other treatises , viz. . a paraphrase with notes , and a preface upon the th chapter of st. john , shewing that there is neither good reason , nor sufficient authority to suppose that the eucharist is discoursed of in that chapter , much less to infer the doctrine of transubstantiation from it . . an historical treatise of transubstantiation , written by an author of the communion of the church of rome : wherein is made appear , that according to the principles of that church , this doctrine cannot be an article of faith. to these discourses upon this subject , we cannot more fitly add any thing , than what has lately been done on another relating to the holy eucharist , viz. ( . ) concerning the real presence , and adoration of the host. you ought to know very well what gave occasion to this controversie ; viz. the two discourses set out by mr. w — at oxford on this subject . as for the answer to them , it was sent you into the country , and bears this title : . a discourse of the holy eucharist in the two great points of the real presence , and of the adoration of the host ; in answer to the two discourses set forth at oxford on the same subject . it was i believe expected that this controversie would have either exposed our church , had we own'd the extravagant notion of the real presence mr. w — would put upon us , and which is indeed cousin german to transubstantiation ; or have raised , it may be , a civil war amongst us , if we did not . but i believe both their expectations will fail them ; for certainly whatever some particular persons may have believed themselves , yet the doctrine of the church of england is plainly as the answerer has represented it ; and as we expect it will be farther proved in the other reply which we are told is preparing at oxford by an eminent person there to the same book . there is prefixt to this extant , a very large preface , which has properly enough retorted mr. w's — argument ; and shewn the world that if other divines ( as he pretends ) have believed a substantial presence of christ's natural body in the holy eucharist , 't is more than many of the most eminent of theirs have done , who are here plainly discover'd not to have believed transubstantiation . a third subject that has given occasion to another answer , is what they have called a protestants plea for a socinian . the design was to prove , that in interpreting scripture by reason , and not submitting to the infallible interpretation of what they call the church , we make an apology for the socinians , and all other hereticks whatsoever . the falseness of this pretence has been at large shewn in the answer which an eminent person of our church has lately put out to it , called , . the difference between the protestant and socinian methods , in answer to a book , entituled , a protestants plea for a socinian . in which besides a full account of this matter , you will find many other curiosities relating to the method and principles of the socinians , which you have never it may be elswhere met with . to these i may add the answers that have been set forth by way of notes on some papers called , lucilla and elizabeth , or the donatist and protestant schisms parallel'd . and , a request to protestants to produce plain scripture directly authorizing certain tenets , which he there subjoins . the answers are called , . a protestant of the church of england no donatist . . an answer to the request to protestants , &c. which last answer has had a reply called , protestancy destitute of scripture proof , against which there is , i am told , a defence of the answer now in the press . there are some other little things which i ought not to forget , because they have done a great deal of good . as , the plain mans reply to the catholick missionaries . and an answer to the eighth chapter of the representers second part in the first dialogue between him and his lay-friend . published by the lay-man of whom i have spoken above . as for the conference at the d. of p. which you have heard of , one mr : g. who maintained the roman side , tried to resolve the infallibility of the church into oral tradition , and afterwards boasted so unmeasurably of the advantages he had made of the controversie , that he drew upon himself a just rebuke in a printed paper called , a letter to mr. g. concerning the conference at the d. of p. which having produced two letters from the other side , there presently came forth , a second letter to mr. g. in answer to two letters lately published concerning the conference at the d. of p. there is also lately published a discourse by an ingenious and worthy gentleman , concerning the authority of councils , &c. to which is added a short but an effectual answer to the eighth theses , by which mr. w. — in his part v. of church-government pretends to try the english reformation . the title is , of the authority of councils , and the rule of faith. by a person of quality . with an answer to the eight theses laid down for the trial of the english reformation , in the book that came last week from oxford . after which there came forth a discourse which is here exceedingly well received , and the design whereof is sufficiently explained by the title , viz. an apologetical vindication of the church of england , in answer to those who reproach her with the english heresies and schisms , or suspect her not to be a catholick church upon their account . i ought not to conceal the answer to that libel upon the reformation which you have seen , called pax vobis ; though it is not a just answer to the book , but a preface rather to more that is to follow . the title is some dialogues between mr. g. and others , with reflexions upon a book called pax vobis . when the answerer has finished his design , you may have what remains , as i am told under the same title . i shall conclude your trouble at present with telling you of a sett of discourses concerning the notes of the church , as they are laid down by bellarmine . thus far the design has proceeded already . . a brief discourse concerning the notes of the church , with some reflexions on cardinal bellarmine ' s notes . . bellarmine ' s first note of the church , concerning the name of catholick examined . . the d note of the church examined , viz. antiquity . . the d note of the church examind , viz. duration . 〈◊〉 perceive we may expect the rest in order . i am sir , yours , &c. the end . postscript . when the author let this paper go out of his hands , there were some discourses omitted , which he intended to add towards the close ; but because it was published before he was aware , there was no other way left to supply the defects of the letter , but by sending abroad this postscript after it . to those discourses therefore that are mentioned in this letter , these are to be added . i. the plausible arguments of a romish priest answered by an english protestant . which is a book that seems to be contrived on purpose to make the most material differences between both churches , easie to be considered and sufficiently comprehended by persons of the plainest education . to which i must add , ii. a discourse between two protestants , in answer to a popish catechism , called , a short catechism against all sectaries . in which tract one shall find all that plainness which is fit to enlighten ordinary capacities , together with that solidity of reasoning , which cannot but gratifie persons of the best education and abilities . to the same purpose there was another book published not long since , called , iii. a plain defence of the protestant religion , fitted to the meanest capacity , being a full confutation of the net for the fishers of men. above a year since there were some queries put to protestants , which were answered in a book that has this title . iv. some queries to protestants answered , and an explication of the roman catholicks belief , in four great points considered . . concerning their church . . their worship . . justification . . civil government . tho i omitted , how i know not , the defence of the dublin letter , yet it ought to have been remembred in the first place . 't is an answer to the third chapter of the second part of the catholick representer , and has this title , v. transubstantiation no doctrine of the primitive fathers . there is another tract which ought to have been mentioned among the discourses against transubstantiation ; in which , tho there is an attempt to explain the real presence by a singular hypothesis , that neither serves the turn of the papists , nor is needed by protestants ; yet 't is in many respects so very rational and useful , that i am glad i did not forget to mention it here . the title is vi. a brief discourse of the real presence of the body and blood of christ in the eucharist , against the bishop of meaux and monsieur maimbourg . and here i must not forget a book that will not be forgotten in hast , viz. vii . the school of the eucharist , with a preface concerning the testimony of miracles . the answer to mr. sclaters reasons , and to the nubes testium has been published in two parts ; the reverend author seeming to design to go through with the latter . the parts are called , viii . the antiquity of the protestant religion , with an answer to mr. sclaters reasons , and the collections made by the author of nubes testium . the first part. the antiquity of the protestant religion concerning images , with an answer to the collections made by the author of nubes testium . the second part. in the mean time , they that would farther know what little regard is to be had to that collector , may look into the first part of the doctrine of the trinity and transubstantiation compared : of which book i have given notice before . there was published last week another learned as well as smart answer to mr. sclater , whose consensus veterum , will now no longer be spoken of with contempt , after it has proved the occasion of the veteres vindicati : a book so excellent in it self , that it needs not the help of comparison with the book it answers , to set it forth . and i heartily wish that unhappy man who has a particular right to the instructions of those papers which his own have produced , may receive the greatest benefit by them . the title is , ix . veteres vindicati , in an expostulatory letter to mr. sclater of putney , upon his consensus veterum , &c. wherein the absurdity of his method , and the weakness of his reasons are shewn , his false aspersions upon the church of england are wiped off , &c. upon this occasion i will take leave to say , that altho many count it needless to answer authorities that are borrowed out of baffled books , that have been forty times urged , and as often reply'd to ; yet we are obliged to those that will undergo this task , not only because we know what advantages our adversaries desire to make , by saying , that such and such a book that quotes the fathers is not answer'd : but because our arguments and answers from antiquity are not at a stand , tho theirs are . ours , i do verily believe , need no improvement , but that now and then they are capable of it , is what several books of the learned men of our times are undeniable instances of . by the author of the plain mans reply to the catholick missionaries , there was another little tract published , which was not inserted in its place . the title is , x. the country parsons admonition to his parishioners , perswading them to continue in the protestant religion . to both these there has been lately published an answer by the other side , to which we expect a reply . the next that lies before me is , xi . the judgment of private discretion in matters of religion , defended in a sermon at s. pauls in covent-garden , by mr. kidder . and another tract there is written by a lay-gentleman , entituled , xii . a modest enquiry whether s. peter were ever at rome , and bishop of that church ; wherein the arguments of cardinal bellarmin and others for the affirmative are considered , and some considerations taken notice of , that render the negative highly probable . since the fifth part concerning church government which mr. w — published , he has sent us from oxford another book concerning the spirit of luther , and the celibacy of the clergy : he seems to have a set of books which he intends to publish one after another , for the diversion of this age , and to leave the defence of them to the next . for since his two discourses concerning the real presence , &c. he has thought fit to publish two other books , without taking any notice , or so much as offering to vindicate the first . which tergiversation will not i believe save his new books from being answered , since there is so great a choice of learned men in that famous university , of which he is a member , that some or other without doubt will be at leisure to attend his motions , and to do him right from time to time . this week was published the examination of bellarmin's fourth of his fifteen notes of the church , viz. amplitude ; and because the answer of the examination of the second is just now come to my hand , i am not unwilling to do our adversaries that kindness to publish it here , if it be a kindness to them , which will be better understood in a little time . i have no more to add but that we may expect in a little time , to see two discourses concerning purgatory and prayers for the dead ; a subject which has not been throughly handled since the revival of these controversies . it will be no injury to the performance to raise an expectation of it , if it be done by that hand , which i am told we are obliged to for it . errata . pag. . lin . . for charged , r. thronged . l. . for longer , r. larger . p. . l. . for he , r. is . p. . l. . for consult , r. confute . p. . l. . for prisoner , r. professor . l. . for them , r. shew . l. . for seem , r. serve . finis . a continuation of the present state of the controversy . imprimatur , liber cui titulus , [ a continuation of the present state of the controversie between the church of england , and the church of rome . ] junii . . h. maurice rr. in christo p. d. wilhelmo archiep. cant. a sacr. a continuation of the present state of the controversy , between the church of england , and the church of rome . being a full account of the books that have been of late written on both sides . the second edition . london : printed for ric. chiswell , at the rose and crown in st. paul's church yard . mdclxxxviii . to the very reverend and worthy the authors of the discovrses here collected , in defence of the church of england . gentlemen , after so much pains as you have taken , and so much good as by the blessing of god on your endeavours you have done to that church of which i esteem it my happiness that i am a member , may it be permitted to a private and obscure hand to return you this small tribute , in acknowledgment of that sense which not my self alone , but i dare say every single person of our communion has of what we all owe to your learning and your integrity . i present you here with a short view of your own labours ; or rather , i offer to the world a small collection of those discourses you have written in defence of our religion . and how unsuitable soever it may appear to usher a few titles of books into the world under the protection of so many great names , yet i am confident the consequence of this undertaking cannot but be as honourable to you all , as i heartily wish it may , and as i am sure it ought to be : when it shall be consider'd how vast a number , and of what acurate and learned discourses is here comprised , and for almost all which we are in the compass of about three years indebted to you . it is indeed a matter of just wonder to all those who are acquainted with your method of living here , how persons engaged not only in a laborious attendance on their parochial cures , and a constant return of painful and acurate preaching ; but almost utterly distracted with that multitude of other business which in these last years has taken up the greatest part of your time , should yet find leisure to discharge all these , and at the same time to adorn the press with so many books as might alone have seemed more than enough to have employ'd your whole industry . but blessed be god , who has raised you up against such a time as this , and given us so great an earnest of his favour to us , that as we had never more need of able , and honest , and firm guides , than at this day ; so i may venture to challenge any age of the church , to shew such a number of truly learned , and pious , and constant pastors , as the church of england , and especially this city , do's now abound with . may your labours and your examples always find such a success as they deserve , and as they have of late met with amongst us . and since we cannot now have any excuse for our apostacy should we renounce our holy profession , after so much as you have done to convince even the most ignorant persons amongst us of the truth and purity of it ; may we ever firmly adhere both to you and it : that when we shall appear before the great bishop and pastor of our souls , we may all of us give up our accounts with joy . this , as it is my hearty wish , so i am perswaded it is the sincere resolution of every one of those whom god has committed to your care. and that in this firmness we may be all of us established more and more , shall be the continual prayer of him who in all thankful duty will ever remain , gentlemen , your most humble and obedient servant . to the reader . as for those who shall please to peruse this treatise , i have but very little to premise to them . they will here see an exact collection , as far as i was able to make it , of the controversie on both sides between our divines , and those of the church of rome . and in that , the victory of truth over error . never certainly was any cause more entirely baffled than the popish is at this time . never was a controversie more fully handled , and that in such a manner as to instruct even the meanest capacities , than this has been in these last years . insomuch that now there is scarce a person amongst us so ignorant , that is not able to make a stand against the rudest attacques of our adversaries . nay , our very footmen esteem themselves , ( and i think have satisfied the world that they are not mistaken ) an equal match for jesuits , i. e. for those who would at least be thought the most able men of their party , and dropt down from heaven on purpose to oppose the growth of protestant heresie . what others may judg of this , i cannot tell : but , for my part , i cannot but from thence conclude , that certainly the hand of god is with us for good. and that he who has given us this opportunity to understand the weaknesses and deceits of our enemies ; and endu'd us with so great and general a resolution , never upon any account whatsoever , to depart from our most holy religion , will also crown all our future endeavours with such a success , that the generations to come shall rise up and call us blessed ; when they shall see our firmness and our labours in the lord , and receive from our hands that pure and uncorrupted truth , which i am persuaded those excellent treatises i here mention , shall deliver down even to the very end of the world. the contents . the occasion and design of this continuation . page the whole divided into ii. generals . first part . of the cases against popery , begun in the lat e king 's time. ib. the catalogue of them reduced to the following heads . . preliminary discourses . , . of the church . . of the rule of faith. . of particular points . ib. an account of the disputes that have arisen , on the occasion of the discourse against transubstantiation . second part . of the discourses that have been publish'd in defence of the church of england , since the time of his present majesty : with an account of the popish treatises that occasioned them . these reduced to the several following heads . sect . i. of the representing controversie . the papist represented and misrepresented . the bishop of condom's exposition . good advice to the pulpits . and the disputes occasioned by these treatises . sect . ii. of the pretended agreement between the church of england , and the church of rome . sect . iii. of the disputes concerning the holy eucharist . . real presence . . . communion in one kind . . transubstantiation . sect . iv. of the disputes concerning the church . . of the notes of the church . . of the unity and authority of the church . . of the infallibility of the church . sect . v. of the prerogatives of st. peter , and the popes as his successors . sect . vi. of the reformation of the church of england , and the imputations of schism and heresie laid against us on the account of it . sect . vii . of the disputes concerning the rule of faith : and in particular , . of the holy scripture . . of tradition . sect . viii . of the disputes concerning the idolatry of the church of rome . . in general . . in particular . worship of images . invocation of saints . sect . ix . of the disputes concerning the validity of orders , in the church of england . in the church of rome . that the papists are upon their own principles , uncertain whether they have any true priests in their church . ib. sect . x. of other particular points in dispute betwixt us . popish treatises . discourses of the church of england . a full account of what pass'd on the occasion of the conference between dr. tenison , and father pulton the jesuit . sect . xi . in which the several treatises before mention'd are reduced to their distinct arguments , for the direction of those who would fully satisfie themselves in any particular point in dispute betwixt us , and those of the church of rome , viz. . general discourses . . of religious worship . . of prayer in an unknown tongue . — . of the invocation of saints . particularly of the b. virgin. . of images and reliques . . of idolatry . . of merits , satisfactions , purgatory and indulgences . — . of the sacraments . . of confession and penance . . of extreme unction . — . of orders . . of the real presence . . of transubstantiation . — . of the sacrifice of the mass. . of the adoration of the host. — . of communion in both kinds . . of the rule &c. of faith. . of the holy scripture . — . of tradition . . of the church . — . of st. peter and the pope . . of the reformation . — . of schism and heresie . . of the celibacy of the clergy . sect . xii . in which the whole is closed , with an account of the present undertaking , to examine the texts of scripture alledged in favour of the popish errors . a continuation of the present state of the controversie . it is now some time since it has been very much desired , that a full account might be given to the world , of the several tracts that have these late years been publish'd on the points in controversie between the church of england , and the church of rome . the present state of the controversie , set forth about two years since , being become very imperfect ; and serving rather to raise mens expectations of some further account to be given of this matter , than to satisfie their desires with what is there offer'd . i will not pretend to have been so diligent an observer of these things , as not to have let many discourses slip , in such a number as have appear'd on both sides : and must , therefore , humbly entreat the representer's favour to me , if he find some defects in my present undertaking ; and that he will not impute that to a spirit of misrepresentation in me , which really proceeds only from my ignorance or inadvertency . what discourses have come to my hands , i will faithfully give an account of ; and if he , or any other for him , will put forth an appendix of what is wanting here , it will be much more to the satisfaction of the world , than to run over once more , his common place against me , as a new and upstart sort of misrepresenter , and fancy that the eyes of all the world are set upon him , to chastise me for my unsincerity . the present state of the controversie gives an account how the divines of our church , at the time of the late king's death , were engaged in a design of publishing some discourses on the several points in controversie between us and the papists ; correspondent to what they had done , not long before , with reference to our disputes with our brethren the dissenters . and how the favourable reception their former attempt had met with from these , encouraged them to hope their labours would not be altogether unacceptable to those . but the catalogue of what they have done in pursuance of this design , is imperfect ; and it may not be amiss , before i proceed any farther , to give a more compleat one here . a full account of the cases that have been published on the points disputed between the church of england , and the church of rome . i. preliminary discourses . . a preservative to an ingenuous tryal of opinions in religion . . the difference of the case between the separation of protestants from the church of rome , and the separation of dissenters from the church of england . . a preservative against popery : being some plain directions to unlearned protestants how to dispute with romish priests . in two parts . by the reverend dr. sherlock , master of the temple . i place this discourse here , because i do not see to what other glass it could more properly have been reduced , though it is but just now publish'd , and perhaps , was never design'd by its learned author , to add to the number of this kind of treatises : but that which is more pertinent for me here to observe , is , that the former part of this undertaking soon met with such an answer as is now commonly given to our books , when any at all is given , viz. one single sheet from father sabran the jesuit , and who is now well known by his late little encounters of this nature . it was called , . an answer to dr. sherlock ' s preservative against popery , &c. to this an exact and solid answer was return'd by a protestant footman , one w. giles ; and who may justly be offer'd to the world as an instance of what use our late discourses have , or might have been , for the instruction even of the meanest persons in the matters in controversie between us , and the church of rome . the knowledge which this ingenious and diligent man obtain'd , being entirely due to them ; and yet how considerable it is , i shall leave it to any one to judge , that will but have the curiosity to examine his performance . it is called , . a defence of dr. sherlock ' s preservative against popery , in reply to a jesuit ' s answer : by w. giles , a protestant footman , living with madam h. in mark-lane . this defence , and the preface of the publisher of it , did put the jesuit quite out of all patience , and decency ; and made him forget himself so far , as once more to provoke the reverend dr. sherlock , by publishing an answer to both parts of the preservative against popery , and to the footman's defence of the first , under this title : . dr. sherlock's preservative considered , first part , with its defence , &c. by lewis sabran of the society of jesus . this answer was writ in such a violence of passion , and does charge the reverend master of the temple at such a rate with ignorance , calumny , and god knows what , that he hath at last condescended to chastise this ignorant jesuit himself ; and the world will very speedily see , that never man set pen to paper with such a stock of ignorance and confidence together , as this father sabran . after which , if he shall still continue to write in spite both of good learning , and of good manners , it is to be hoped , that at least we shall be excused by all those who have any share of either , if we do not give either our selves or them the trouble of any farther replies to him . a vindication of both parts of the preservative against popery : in answer to the cavils of lewis sabran , jesuit . by william sherlock , d. d. master of the temple . ii. of the church . . a discourse of the unity of the catholic church , maintained in the church of england . . a discourse about the charge of novelty upon the reformed church of england made by the papists , asking of us the question , where was our religion before luther ? . the protestant resolution of faith , being an answer to three questions : . how far we must depend on the authority of the church for the true sense of scripture ? . whether a visible succession from christ to this day , makes a church which has this visible succession , an infallible interpreter of scripture ? . whether the church of england can make out such a visible succession ? . two discourses concerning the necessity of reformation , with respect to the errors and corruptions of the church of rome . there was a third part intended by the reverend and learned author of these two discourses , which we have hopes that it will be published ere long under the same title . iii. of the rule of faith. . a discourse about tradition ; shewing what is meant by it , and what tradition is to be received , and what is to be rejected . . a discourse concerning a guide in matters of faith , with respect especially to the romish pretence of such a one as is infallible . iv. of particular points . . a discourse concerning the object of religious worship ; or a scripture-proof of the unlawfulness of giving any religious worship to any other being besides the supreme god. . a discourse concerning the devotions of the church of rome , especially as compared with those of the church of england : in which it is shewn , that whatsoever the romanists pretend , there is not so true devotion among them , nor such rational provision for it , nor encouragement to it , as in the church establish'd by law amongst us . . a discourse concerning the invocation of saints . . of prayer in an unknown tongue . . of auricular confession as it is prescribed by the council of trent . . a discourse against . transubstantiation . . of the adoration of the host. these are the several discourses mention'd in the former † † † catalogue ; to these i must add several others that have since been publish'd . . two discourses of purgatory , and prayers for the dead . to which i may subjoyn a discourse just now publish'd , viz. . purgatory proved by miracles , &c. . a discourse concerning the sacrifice of the mass. . of extreme unction . and here it may not be improper to observe , that the author of this accurate discourse , thought fit to premise to it an address to the vindicator of the bishop of condom , upon the occasion of some things just then publish'd by him in his reply to our expositor , relating to this argument ; but especially concerning cardinal cajetan's confessing that their only text for this pretended sacrament , that of st. james , made nothing for it . to this the vindicator gave a half-sheet reply , called , a letter from the vindicator of the bishop of condom , to the author of a late discourse concerning the sacrament of extreme unction . and this produced another letter in reply to it , intituled , a second letter from the author of the discourse concerning extreme unction , to the vindicator of the bishop of condom . which put an end to this debate : though the vindicator made us hope for a reply to that excellent discourse ; but i presume will not esteem himself obliged to be as good as his word . . a treatise in confutation-of the latin service practised , and by the order of the trent council continu'd in the church of rome . . of the authority of councils , and the rule of faith. . of the celibacy of the clergy . . of the incurable scepticism of the church of rome . . a discourse concerning the merits of good works . . an historical discourse concerning the necessity of the ministers intentions in administring the sacrament . i shall perhaps be look'd upon to have referr'd many tracts to the number of these discourses against the papists , that did not enter into the first design that was laid for them . but i know not to what head i could so properly refer them , as to this ; and if they help to make up the collection of particular points in debate betwixt us , it matters not by what occasion , or with what design they were first composed . i do not know that any more of these treatises have been particularly attack'd by those of the other communion , except that one only against transubstantiation : which having , after some years being let alone , given at last occasion to a formed controversie , yet in agitation , i will , before i go any farther , remark what has hitherto passed concerning it . the first that appear'd in answer to it , was a hot new-convert , under the glorious title of , reason and authority ; or the motives of a late protestant's reconciliation to the catholic church ; together with remarks upon some late discourses against transubstantiation . but the performance was so mean , so disproportion'd to the strength and merits of the discourse he had undertaken to attack ; that it is to be presumed , the weakness of the new convert obliged some more able controvertist to appear as his second ; and to publish not long after a new , and better answer , call'd , transubstantiation defended ; and proved from scripture , in answer to the first part of a treatise intituled , a discourse against transubstantiation . and to make all sure ; a third about the same time undertakes the same cause , in a discourse which he calls , an answer to a discourse against transubstantiation . it is no part of my design to give any character of these treatises ; i will only observe , that the second , which seems to have been written with the most care , continues still unfinish'd ; the author ( whoever he be ) having not yet thought fit to publish his d part. now this i the rather remark , to satisfie those who have long expected our reply to these treatises , what has been in some measure the cause of the deferring it : tho the multitude of other discourses that have since been published on this subject , may well excuse so small an omission : however , since after almost a years attendance , there is now but little hopes of any thing more to be expected from this antagonist , i may venture to promise the reader that he shall not continue much longer without the answer that has been prepared to what is already published ; and which might long since have been finished , had not the reverend author desired to acquit himself of all his task at the same time . and this may serve in short to have been remarked concerning the first part of this design , of the discourses which our divines began to publish in the late king's time upon the points in controversie between us and the church of rome . we must now pass to a more troubled and perplex'd undertaking ; and endeavour to reduce to the clearest method we can , those many tracts that have since come out in answer to one another on both sides ; and the number of which is now so great , that it is no easie matter to give an exact account of them . and for the doing of this , i shall consider them not in the order of their coming out , but reduce them as near as i can to the several distinct subjects to which they refer . now the first thing that began all our late disputes , was the pretence so much insisted upon , of our misrepresenting the doctrines and practices of the church of rome : and it shall therefore be the first kind of discourses i will here consider . sect . i. of the treatises that have been publish'd on the representing and expounding controversie . . what the occasion and design of this uundertaking was , has already been remarked in the first part of the present state : and therefore i shall not need to say any thing to it here . the treatises that have passed on both sides , may be consulted in this following order . i. a papist misrepresented and represented . r. the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented ; in answer to a book intituled , a papist misrepresented and represented , &c. ii. reflections upon the answer to the papist misrepresented , &c. r. a papist not misrepresented by protestants ; being a reply to the reflections , &c. iii. papists protesting against protestant popery ; in answer to a discourse intituled , a papist not misrepresented by protestants . r. an answer to a discourse intituled , papists protesting against protestant popery ; containing a particular examination of monsieur de meaux ' s late b. of condom ' s exposition of the doctrines of the church of rome , in the articles of the invocation of saints , and worship of images . iv. an amicable accommodation of the difference between the representer and the answerer , in return to his last reply . r. an answer to the amicable accommodation of the difference between the representer and the answerer . v. a reply to the answer to the amicable accommodation . r. a view of the whole controversie between the representer and the answerer , with an answer to the representer ' s last reply . and here the matter rested when the first state of the controversie was published ; and it was then generally believed would have done so . but the representer had by this time got too much assurance to be easily put out of countenance ; and tho by the longer time he took in his answer to this last treatise , than to either of the foregoing , and which his performance sufficiently shews was not for any extraordinary pains he resolved to take in his reply to it , he seems to have struggled a little with himself , before he could get the better of his conscience , in going on at so pitiful a rate of vindicating his pretences , yet at last there came out something that was to be called an answer to our last piece , in a preface to a further continuation of his unjust pretences against us , viz. vi. the papist misrepresented and represented ; d part ; with a preface containing reflections upon two treatises ; the one , the state , the other , the view of the controversie between the representer and the answerer . but to this too , the worthy author of the view of the controversie soon returned such an answer as i find has not a little discomposed the representer : and i believe no less troubles the vindicator too of the bishop of condom's exposition , viz. r. an answer to the representer's reflections upon the state and view of the controversie , &c. to this the representer has now satisfied us , that he never intends to reply : for having lately set out an answer to another discourse of which we shall speak hereafter , viz. the apology for the pulpits : he adds triumphantly in the title , that it is not only an answer to that discourse , but also , a vindication of the representer against the stater of the controversie . but such a vindication as this , could certainly never have come from any other pen but the representer's : and is by the same figure a reply to this treatise , by which he heretofore told us , that his papist represented and misrepresented was enough to answer not only all our late discourses against popery , but a great part of all the books and sermons that had ever been writ or preached against them . the truth is , i can hardly forbear here to leave a while my design of pursuing the treatises that have been published on this controversie , to expose the confidence of this vain man : but since the worthy author of that book which he pretends to answer , has thought fit to give him up as a priviledged person , who is past either sense of modesty , or hopes of being reclaimed , i shall pay that deference to his judgment , as not to trouble my self with any vindication of his discourse against so trivial and occasional an attempt against it . but if there be any of this author's communion who shall think fit in good earnest to attack this , or any other of those discourses which he has published against them , i will then take the liberty to promise , that tho to our great regret , the incomparable author of them be now in his grave , and no longer in a state to vindicate his own works , yet neither his labours nor his memory shall want a defence , and let his adversaries whenever they please begin the experiment . and here i suppose we may now take a final leave of this first controversie ; the papist represented and misrepresented . i will only add , that since this first attempt of his began , he has carry'd it on in two other parts , under the title of the catholick representer . the second of which coming out weekly in several chapters , has received a very full , and i suppose a satisfactory answer ; there being no care taken to reply to what our divines have with great care and learning return'd to it . the third has been consider'd , as far as was thought necessary , by the late worthy and learned author of the defence of the state and view of the controversie before mentioned . ii. it was not long after the beginning of this , that the better to promote the same design , another engagement of the like kind was set on foot , under the title of an exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church in matters of controversie . i need not say that this piece was originally written in french , and published many years since by the bishop then of condom , now of meaux . the prosecution that has been made of this matter in the books that have been published on both sides , have given a very large account of this to the world ; and what is farther necessary for the understanding of the design of it , may be seen already set down in the former part of the * * * present state of the controversie . i will therefore only perfect the catalogue of what has past in this enterprize also on both sides , by adding to that already given , those other treatises , that have been publish'd since the former state was sent abroad . . an answer to the bishop of condom's exposition , &c. with reflections upon his pastoral letter . and concerning which i shall observe only , what was before remarked , that to this day no attempt has been made of returning one word in answer to it . . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the bishop of condom , in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick faith. to this in a little time came out an answer intituled , . a vindication of the bishop of condom ' s exposition , with a letter from the said bishop . and to that not long after , a reply , called , . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england against the exceptions of the bishop of condom , and his vindicator . and here this controversie rested for some time , and it was by many supposed would have ended . but at last both the bishop and his vindicator resolved once more to venture into the world ; and so after a long expectation , an answer was published to this last treatise , viz. . a reply to the defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england ; with a second letter from the bishop of meaux . to this there have been two treatises already returned , and we may in some time expect a third to be added to them , as soon as the author has discharged himself of a new ‖ ‖ ‖ adversary , which has since attacked him on another account . the vindicator it is hoped will not think much of a little delay in this matter ; especially since i am commissioned to promise him , that let him make what hast he will , the last part shall be got ready for him , before he has finished any reasonable answer to those already published . if it be enquired here , wherefore this last defence was divided into so many parts ; i presume this account may be given of it ; that the vindicator having run his answer into a greater length than the ordinary rate of these discourses usually allows of , either no just reply must have been made to it , which our expositor was unwilling they should be able to object to him ; or if there were , he thought it would be much more acceptable to the world , as well as less burdensome to himself , to publish his answer at several times , than to be opprest with so large a volume , as it would have amounted to all together . what is already finished will be found under these titles : . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux and his vindicator . part i. in which the account that has been given of the bishop of meaux ' s exposition , is fully vindicated ; the dictinction of old and new popery , historically asserted ; and the doctrine of the church of rome in point of image . worship , more particularly consider'd . part ii. in which the romish doctrines concerning the nature and object of religious worship : of the invocation of saints , and worship of images and reliques , are consider'd , and the charge of idolatry made good against those of the church of rome upon the account of them . and thus far our expositor has carried his reply : whilst the second of these parts was writing , the vindicator attacked the first according to their modern way of controversie , in a sheet and half ; yet call'd it , a full answer to the second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in a letter to the defender . but the author of the view of the controversie being at that time engaged in a reply to the representer , and finding some congruity that the answer to both of them should come out together , for the reasons given in the preface to his treatise ; the defender was left at liberty to go on with his design , and yet the vindicator not suffered to complain for want of consideration : the reply i have in part mention'd before , but i will now give the title of it at its full length : an answer to the representer's reflections upon the state and view of the controversie . with a reply to the vindicator's full answer ; shewing , that the vindicator has utterly ruined the new design of expounding and representing popery . iii. having now given account of those two principal controversies that have of late been carried on among us , of expounding and representing the points in debate betwixt us and the church of rome ; i cannot better close this point , than with this remark , that in a very little time after the bishop of condom's exposition was set forth by the vindicator , we were also obliged with the translation of another of that prelate's pieces , called , a pastoral letter to the new converts of his diocess . it is not necessary to say that the bishop in this piece pursued still the design of his exposition . that has been already shewn in the answer to it , which i before remarked , at the end of the other reply that was made to his exposition , and which still continues unanswered . that which has made more noise is his open declaring to the new converts of his diocess , that they knew there had been no such thing as a persecution in france . and the falseness and unsincerity of which declaration has been sufficiently exposed , both in the former part of the ‖ ‖ ‖ state of the controversie ; and in the second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england : and thither i shall remit those that desire to inform themselves more particularly of this matter . iv. i should here have dismissed this argument , had not the great misrepresenter that began this point , lately pursued it in a new undertaking , and of which i cannot better give an account , than in this place . it is not long since , that with the old design of exposing the ministers of the church of england to the censures of the world , as men who made it their business , at any rate , to run down popery , he set forth a malicious discourse , call'd by him , . good advice tu the pulpits , &c. in which he takes together out of the sermons published in the last years of the late king's reign , whatever he thought would serve to make them odious . the design was well enough laid ; and the circumstances of the times consider'd , it were not to be wondred if some things should have pass'd more hot against those of the church of rome , than was to have been wished . but either our ministers were then , as they have always been , very moderate ; or this author has been a very careless examiner of their excesses . however his attempt soon met with a solid confutation , in an excellent treatise , entituled , . an apology for the pulpits . and in which our divines are fully justified against his exceptions . to this he has lately set forth an answer , called , . pulpit-sayings ; or the characters of the pulpit-papist examined . to which there is an answer called , . pulpit-popery , true popery . and hitherto has this first sort of controversie been carried on : a second thing which has given occasion to some disputes these late years , and which , for the affinity it has to the foregoing . i chuse next to mention , is , sect . ii. of a pretended agreement of the church of england with the church of rome . and this too the representer is reported to have had a principal hand in . it is no very long time since a book was published in order to this end , and called in express terms , an agreement between the church of england and the church of rome . i think i needed not have made any change of my former head for this treatise ; there being perhaps not a more foul misrepresentation in the world , than what the great chastiser of misrepresenters has made here in such a pretence as this . but tho his title be general , yet the main design of his book was to expose a particular person of our church , and whom indeed they have all the reason in the world , if they can by any means , to run down ; for i know no man that does them and their cause more mischief , by those excellent treatises which he continues still to publish against them . however both the general and the particular design of this new contrivance , has been effectually answered in the two replies that have come forth to it , viz. . the difference between the church of england and the church of rome , in opposition to a late book , intituled , an agreement , &c. . a vindication of some protestant principles of church-unity and catholick-communion ; from the charge of agreement with the church of rome . by dr. sherlock . but what this author attempted in a more general manner , the publisher of discourses against us at oxford , more particularly endeavoured with reference to the holy eucharist ; in which , as he pretends , there is little or no difference between the true sons of the church of england , and those of the other communion : and which therefore shall be the next general head of controversies , to which i will now pass , viz. sect . iii. of the disputes which have passed these last years , concerning the holy eucharist . and here , i. concerning the real presence . this is the point in which mr. w. would fain piece up a kind of agreement betwixt us , though all the world sees nothing can be more different than the doctrine of the real presence as taught in the church of england , and that of transubstantiation , which is the real presence believed in the church of rome . but however it be , mr. w. doubts not to make it appear ; that our divines have asserted the very same presence of christ , in effect , in the eucharist , that the romanists maintain ; in a treatise , called , . two discourses concerning the adoration of our blessed saviour in the eucharist . and the former of which wholly pursues the pretended agreement i have now been speaking of . to this there came out first a london answer , in which his quotations were fully examined , his pretences considered , and the whole matter largely stated : and in return to his allegations of some of our church that believed their real presence , an account was given of several that have lived and died in their communion , that neither did nor could believe any such thing . the title of it is , . a discourse of the holy-eucharist in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host. not long after this , a person of great worth at oxford publish'd a second confutation of the same piece , but with this difference , that whereas the former discourse examined at large his quotations , this chiefly consider'd the principles on which he proceeded , and the arguments he brought to justifie his pretences . it is called , . a reply to two discourses lately printed at oxford , concerning the adoration of our blessed saviour in the holy eucharist . and here this controversie rested till the last term , when mr. w publishing another treatise upon the same subject , viz. . a compendious discourse on the eucharist : added to the end of it two appendixes , in answer to the two tracts that had been written against them . it appears by the heat and bitterness of these little satyrs , how much those books had troubled him , and how unable he is to command himself , even there where he pretends the most to do it . one would have thought after what the representer had done , we had seen the height of what a licentious pen could arise to in matters of such seriousness . but indeed this poor impotent old man has convinced us of our error , and shewn such an indecent passion in the menage of his answer , as is much more to be pitied than valued . but i shall leave it to those who are engaged with him , to take notice of these things : it is not to be doubted , but that in a little time their answers will be finish'd ; both the one and the other , being , as i am informed , already in good forwardness . ii. communion in both kinds . having thus given an account of what has pass'd as to the point of the real presence ; the next thing that naturally offer'd its self , was the doctrine of transubstantiation . but there has pass'd so much concerning this controversie , that i was willing before i came to that , to consider all the lesser debates that have risen relating to this holy sacrament . the occasion of this engagement was this : monsieur de meaux having some years since composed a famous book upon this argument , it was thought fit by those of the church of rome to translate that also , as well as the rest of his tracts , into our language . accordingly we find it to have been publish'd some time since , under the title of a treatise of communion under one kind . now however it might have been sufficient for us to have follow'd their example , in translating that most accurate answer of the late monsieur larrogue to it ; yet one of our divines was content to give it a new consideration , in an excellent book , called , a discourse of the communion in one kind . in answer to a treatise of the bishop of meaux , of communion , &c. and here this flourish ended : the translator ( whoever he was ) of the bishop's treatise , looking upon himself to be no more obliged to defend it against his english adversary , than the bishop thought himself to be to vindicate it against the attack of his french antagonists . but tho this controversie proceeded no farther , yet the subject has been lately again revived by a very learned hand , who having searched throughly into antiquity as to this point , has given us an accurate collection , called , a demonstration that the church of rome and her councils have erred ; by shewing that the councils of constance , basil , and trent , have in all their decrees touching communion in one kind , contradicted the received doctrine of the church of christ. iii. of transubstantiation . and now having cleared the way of all other debates touching this holy sacrament , we are at last arrived to the great point in dispute betwixt us , the doctrine of transubstantiation . but how to dispose of my self in so copious a subject , and upon which so many books have been written , is hard to resolve . i have already remarked what has passed on the occasion of the discourse of transubstantiation , the first that began this debate . the next that gave occasion to the revival of this controversie , was the author of the dublin letter , who being answered by the representer in his second part , cap. . a learned man of our communion made good his party in an excellent discourse , which he calls , transubstantiation no doctrine of the primitive fathers ; being a defence of the dublin letter , &c. and that no pretence to antiquity might remain unconsidered as to this matter , the same learned hand has since obliged us with a full view of all that can reasonably be desired from the primitive fathers as to this matter , viz. a full vew of the doctrines and practices of the ancient church relating to the eucharist , wholly different from those of the present roman church , and inconsistent with the belief of transubstantiation , &c. . a d sort of discourses there have pass'd on this argument in which our adversaries of the roman communion , have made it their business to prove the doctrine of the trinity to be as full of contradictions as that of transubstantiatiom : but whether this be more likely to make us papists or socinians , to believe the doctrine of transubstantiation , or to disbelieve that of the trinity , i shall not determine . however our divines have resolved to shew that there is no manner of reason for them to do either ; and the tracts that have been published on this occasion , are especially these . on the popish part. a dialogue between a new catholic convert and a protestant , concerning the doctrines of the trinity and transubstantiation . on our part. . an answer to a late dialogue between a new catholic convert , and a protestant , &c. . a second dialogue between a new catholic convert , and a protestant , shewing why he cannot believe the doctrine of transubstantiation , tho' he do firmly believe the doctrine of the trinity . . the doctrine of the trinity and transubstantiation compared as to scripture , reason , and tradition . in a new dialogue between a protestant and a papist . in . parts . . transubstantiation contrary to scripture ; or the protestant's answer to the seeker's request . . other discourses there have been in great numbers on both sides as to this point , and it shall suffice only to transcribe the names of them . popish tracts concerning transubstantiation . . a seeker's request to catholic priests and protestant ministers , for satisfying his conscience in the truth of what he ought to believe of the lords-supper . . the catholic answer to the seeker's request . . the catholic letter to the seeker . protestant treatises against transubstantiation . . a plain representation of transubstantiation , as it is received in the church of rome . . the absolute impossibility of transubstantiation demonstrated . . an historical treatise of transubstantiation . . a paraphrase with notes , and a preface upon the th chapter of st. john. . a brief discourse of the real presence . . the school of the eucharist . . six conferences concerning transubstantiation . . the protestant's answer to the seeker's request . . the protestant's answer to the catholic letter to the seeker : or , a vindication of the protestant's answer to the seeker's request . to which we may add two books , written indeed long since by two eminent bishops of this church , but thought fit to be reprinted again , since mr. w's attempts from oxford about the real presence . the first is , . a brief declarationn of the lord's supper , written by dr. nicholas ridley bishop of london , during his imprisonment . with some determinations and disputations concerning the same argument , by the same author . . diallacticon viri boni & literati , &c. i mention this book , ( tho a latin one ) because it is a very excellent discourse written by dr. john poynet , bishop of winchester , in edward v●'s days , and was very rarely to be met with till this reprinting of it . sect . vi. another subject which has open'd a large field to disputes between us , and has accordingly been frequently insisted upon , is the church ; with reference to the marks , and nature , and prerogatives of it . i. of the notes of the church . he must be very little acquainted with the late methods made use of by those of the church of rome , in propagating their religion among us , who knows not this to have been all along their great endeavour , to fly , as much as possible , all particular disputes , and keep themselves within the general notions of the church : that so applying whatever is , or is pretended to have been said of the church catholic , to their own particular communion , they might more easily deceive unwary and ignorant men. but in this too , as well as in all other points in debate , they have not fail'd to meet enough to encounter their pretences . and to the end it might be better seen how vain a pretence it is in them to call themselves catholics , and their church the catholic church , as if ( in the words of the prophet ) they were alone , and there were none besides them : one of the first controversies to be remark'd in this point is , that of the notes of the church ; and upon which they undertake to shew theirs , exclusive to all others , to be the catholic church of christ militant upon earth . the former part of the state of the controversie gave an account of the beginning of these ; how our divines engaged themselves to a weekly consideration of them , till they had past through the largest catalogue we have yet had of these notes , viz. that of cardinal bellarmin . they were then advanced to the third only , but now the whole is finished ; and those little exceptions which our adversaries thought fit to make to them , are fully answered , and they altogether compose a just volume ; and plainly shew , that were the church indeed endued with all those prerogatives they pretend it is , yet would it stand them in no stead , seeing , that according to their own notes , the church of rome cannot possibly be the catholic or universal church . the notes which on this occasion have been particularly examined , are these . . an examination of bellarmin's first note concerning , [ the name of catholick . ] . — his second note , [ antiquity , ] . — his third note , [ duration , ] . — his fourth note , [ amplitude or multitude and variety of believers . ] . — his fifth note , [ the succession of bishops . ] . his sixth note , [ agreement in doctrine with the primitive church . ] . — his seventh note , [ union of the members among themselves , and with the head. ] . — his eighth note , [ sanctity of doctrine . ] . — his ninth note , [ efficacy of the doctrine . ] . — his tenth note , [ holiness of life . ] . — his eleventh note , [ the glory of miracles . ] . — his twelfth note , [ the light of prophecy . ] . — his thirteenth note , [ confession of adversaries . ] . — his fourteenth note , [ the unhappy end of the church's enemies . ] . — his fifteenth note , [ temporal felicity . ] to which is prefixed , a brief discourse concerning the notes of the church ; with some reflections on cardinal bellarmin's notes . and annexed , a vindication of the brief discourse concerning the notes of the church ; in answer to a late pamphlet , intituled [ the use and great moment of the notes of the church , as delivered by cardinal bellarmin ( de notis ecclesiae ) justified . a defence of the confuter of bellarmin ' s second note of the church [ antiquity ] against the cavils of the adviser . ii. of the unity and authority of the church . this is another argument that has exercised the pen of a very great person amongst us : the occasion of his entring on the debate , was given by the publishing of some papers of his late majesty , and which are in every bodies hand , called , . the two papers written by the late king charles the second . to these an answer was published , intituled , . an answer to some papers lately printed concerning the authority of the catholick church in matters of faith , and the reformation of the church of england . it was not long before two of the other side appeared about the same time , in defence of the royal papers : the one very light , and in some places even ridiculous , and which shews , that the author's talent lies towards controversie no more in prose , than it appears by the hind and panther , that it do's in verse ; called , . a defence of the papers written by the late king of blessed memory . the other , much more solid and grave than the former , intituled , . a reply to the answer made upon the three royal papers . to both of which the learned author returned a most accurate and elaborate discourse , viz. . a vindication of the answer to some late papers , concerning the unity and authority of the catholic church , and the reformation of the church of england . and thus far this controversie proceeded : but there have been some other discourses besides these , published on this subject : in particular , the excellent discourse just published by the reverend dr. sherlock , with this title , a discourse concerning the nature , unity , and communion of the catholick church : wherein most of the controversies relating to the church , are briefly and plainly stated . part . by william sherlock , d. d. master of the temple . to these , for the affinity of the subject , i cannot do better than adjoyn , iii. such other treatises as have been publish'd , relating to the authority and infallibility of the church . where first i will beg leave to mention some short pieces which have passed betwixt a country parson , and a romish missioner . the occasion , as i am informed was this : the minister having observed some endeavours to seduce his flock , thought it his duty to give them some seasonable directions ; which he therefore published under this title : . the country parson's admonition to his parishioners , with directions how to behave themselves , when any one designs to seduce them from the church of england . in which tract , he advises his parishioners , as far as possible , to avoid all disputes about religion : but if the importunity of others shall force them to it , he then directs them how to bring the matter to a short issue , viz. by putting them to prove the pretended infallibility of the church of rome . and this he manageth under the title of , . the plain man's reply to the catholic missionaries . i ought not to conceal how acceptable those little pieces have been to the world , nor what good they have done among those for whose use they were chiefly designed . and this those of the other side have been so sensible of , that they have thought it worth their while to set out a pretended confutation of them both ; called , . the plain man's answer to his country parson's admonition : together with the missionaries answer to the plain man's reply . to which the worthy author of the two first treatises , has lately replied , under these titles , . a defence of the country parson's admonition . . a defence of the plain man's reply . and here i think this controversie has ended . if any answer has been published to these last papers , it is more than i have yet seen or heard of ; and i believe there is none . as for those separate discourses that have come forth , relating to this matter , the principal , if not all , are these that follow . on the part of the church of england . . the pillar and ground of truth ; a treatise shewing that the roman church falsly claims to be that church , and the pillar of that truth mentioned by s. paul , in tim iii. , . . a discourse concerning a judge of controversies in matters of religion . . a plain and familiar discourse by way of dialogue , betwixt a minister and his parishioner , concerning the catholic church . . reasons why a protestant should not turn papist , in a letter to a romish priest. . monsieur claude ' s conference with the bishop of meaux . . an historical examination of the authority of general councils . . of the authority of councils , and the rule of faith. . a sermon on s. mark ' s day , by dr. patrick . . doubts concerning the roman infallibility . . a short discourse concerning the church's authority in matters of faith. on the church of rome ' s side . . a peaceable method for the re-uniting protestants and catholics in matters of faith. written in french by monsieur maimbourg . . seek and ye shall find : or a search into the grounds of religion , &c. . monsieur de meaux ' s conference with monsieur claude concerning the authority of the church . sect v. to these disputes concerning the church , i do not know any that i can so fitly subjoin , as those which regard the pretended priviledges and authority of st. peter and of the popes , as his successors . it is now some time since an eminent person of the other communion , dr. godden , began the contest as to this matter , in a sermon preach'd by him in the queen dowagers chappel , and called , a sermon of st. peter , preached before her majesty , the queen dowager , june . . in requital of this , a very learned man of our church , set out a sermon which he had occasionally preach'd in his own church , the very same day , upon the same text ; intituled , a sermon preach'd upon s. peter ' s day ; printed at the desire of some that heard it , with some enlargements , by a divine of the church of england . i will not say any thing more of these two discourses , than this , that whoso shall please to read them , will find what is to be urged from that famous text , thou art peter , &c. on either side ; and when they compare them together , may judg as they shall find the evidence of truth to incline them . but of this large subject much more has been set forth ; and it shall suffice to give a very brief account of it . . the catholick ballance ; or a discourse determining the controversies concerning , . the tradition of catholic doctrines . . the primacy of s. peter , and the bishop of rome . . the subjection and authority of the church in a christian state. . the antiquity of the protestant religion ; with an answer to mr. sclater ' s reasons , and the collections of nubes testium . . a modest enquiry , whether s. peter were ever at rome , and bishop of that church ? . sure and honest means for the conversion of all hereticks ; and wholesome advice and expedients for the reformation of the church . . dialogues between philerene and philalethe . these are , i think , the chief discourses that have been published by our divines relating to the prerogatives and authority that some pretend to , in behalf of st. peter , and the bishops of rome , his successors . as for those which have been sent abroad on this head by those of the other communion , these are the principal that have come to my knowledg . . st. peter ' s supremacy faithfully discuss'd according to holy scripture , and greek and latin fathers : by mr. clenche . . the popes supremacy asserted from the considerations of some protestants , and the practice of the primitive church , in a dialogue between a church-divine and a seeker . in vindication of nubes testium . concerning this last discourse , you must observe , that it does belong to the controversie about the nubes testium betwixt the representer and the divine of our church who answered that collection . the representer made a very faint defence of his nubes against that answer , but gave it a good title , calling it , the primitive fathers no protestants : to which mr. g. shortly after replied in his primitive fathers no papists ; after which that controversie rested , till the representer peept out again with this tract in defence of one point only of his nubes testium ; but whoever will take the pains to look into it , will find that the representer's stock is quite spent , and therefore he is forc'd to patch up these learned dialogues out of his own nubes testium , and the appendix , with the addition only of a few bold strokes ( which f. sabran would have call'd calumnies ) about dr. sherlock , &c. so that this book deserves no answer at all ; however a very learned person of our church having undertaken to answer mr. clenche's book , and dr. godden's sermon about the pope's supremacy , hath condescended to consider this tract also , and the world will very speedily be obliged with a compleat and learned answer to them all under this title . a discourse of the popes supremacy , in two parts : the first , in answer to a treatise entitul'd , saint peter's supremacy faithfully discuss'd according to holy scripture and greek and latin fathers . and to a sermon of st. peter preach'd before her majesty , the queen dowager on st. peter and st. paul ' s day , by tho. godden , d. d. the second , in answer to a discourse entitul'd , the pope's supremacy asserted from the considerations of some protestants , and the practice of the primitive church , in vindication of nubes testium . sect . vi. such have been the treatises that have pass'd on both sides concerning the popes authority . the next point which seems to follow the nearest upon these , and which indeed is chiefly founded on arguments drawn from the pretences before mention'd , is that of our unwarrantableness in separating from the church of rome , and chair of st. peter : and concerning which much has been done on both sides . as for our divines , the treatises they have publish'd in vindication of our reformation from the charge of schism and heresie , have been these that follow . . a vindication of the church of england from the foul aspersions of schism and heresie unjustly cast upon her by the church of rome . in two parts . . an answer to a late printed paper given about by some of the church of rome : in a letter to a gentleman . . an answer to the considerations which obliged dean manby to embrace what he calls the catholic religion . . notes upon lucilla and elizabeth . . an apologetical vindication of the church of england , in answer to those who reproach her with the english heresies and schisms , or suspect her not to be a catholic church , upon their account . . a few plain reasons why a protestant of the church of england , should not turn roman catholic . . an answer to the spirit of m. luther , and the original of the reformation , lately printed at oxford . . animadversions on mr. w's discourse of church-government . in two parts . . reflections on the relation of the english reformation , lately printed at oxford : and on the oxford theses , two parts . . an answer to a book intituled , reason and authority , or the motives of a late protestant's reconciliation to the catholic church . together with a brief account of augustine the monk , and the conversion of the english. . the state of the church of rome when the reformation began ; as it appears by the advices given to paul iii. and julius iii. by creatures of their own. . the queries offer'd by t. w. to the protestants concerning the english reformation , re-printed and answer'd . nor have those of the roman communion been sparing in this argument , but have made this a great subject of contention against us : as will appear by the following account . . lucilla and elizabeth , or the donatist and protestant schism parallel'd . . the sum of a conference had between two divines of the church of england , and two catholic lay-gentlemen , in . . the church of england truly represented according to dr. heylin ' s history of the reformation . . the considerations which obliged peter manby dean of london-derry to embrace the roman catholic religion . . schelstrate his dissertation against dr. stillingfleet , concerning patriarchal and metropolitical authority . as to this book , since mr. schelstrate's friends heve ventured to expose it in a translation here , the reverend and most worthy dean of paul's will not fail , if god continue him health and opportunity , to give an answer ; and i am sure the world will not be angry with me for raising their expectations of the dean's answer , since they are satisfied that he will make them sufficient amends for them . . a discourse concerning the spirit of martin luther , and the original of the reformation . . church-government part v. a relation of the english reformation , and the lawfulness thereof examined . . some queries to protestants concerning the english reformation : by t. w. . the schism of the church of england demonstrated in four arguments , formerly proposed to dr. gunning and dr. pearson the late bishops of ely and chester , by two catholic disputants , in a celebrated conference upon that point . this little paper with a large title was the other day reprinted at oxford by the converts there . the foul dealings and egregious disingenuity concerning that conference , as well as the weakness and falseness of its arguments , have been fully shewn in an answer we have received just now from cambridg , from a reverend person who was particularly related to one of those abused bishops . the title of his answer is , the reformation of the church of england justified , according to the canons of the council of nice , and other general councils , and the tradition of the catholic church , being an answer to a paper re-printed at oxford , &c. sect . vii . and these are the chief treatises that have been publish'd on these more general points . we come now to examine what has been done on the more particular controversies . and first we will begin with that which is the ground of all , the rule of faith . many have been the debates concerning this ; both with relation to what we suppose to be the only divine rule , viz. the holy scripture , and with reference to that other which those of the church of rome have added to it , viz. the tradition of the church . and , . as to the point of the holy scripture , these discourses have pass'd of late concerning it : on the part of the church of rome . . the protestant's plea for a socinian , justifying his doctrine from being opposite to scripture , &c. . protestancy destitute of scripture proofs . . a request to protestants to produce plain scriptures , directly authorizing xvi tenets held by them . . the th , th , th , th , and th chapters of the second part of the catholic representer . . an address to the ministers of the church of england . . a clear proof of the certainty and usefulness of the protestant rule of faith. . the catholic scripturist . . pax vobis . on the protestant part. . the difference betwixt the protestant and socinian methods , in answer to a book written by a romanist , and intituled , the protestant plea for a socinian . . an answer to the request to protestants to produce plain scriptures directly authorizing their tenets . . a summary of the principal controversies between the church of england and the church of rome , in answer to protestancy destitute of scripture proofs . . the lay-christians obligation to read the holy scripture . . the peoples right to read the holy scripture , asserted ; in answer to the th , th , th , th , and th chapters of the d part of the popish representer . . a treatise proving scripture to be the rule of faith ; writ by reginald peacock , bishop of chichester , before the reformation , about the year . . an answer to the address presented to the ministers of the church of england . . a vindication of the answer to the popish address , presented to the ministers of the church of england ; in reply to a pamphlet , abusively intituled , a clear proof of the certainty and usefulness of the protestant rule of faith. . some dialogues between mr. g. and others , with reflections on a book called pax vobis . to which i must add another and fuller answer preparing to that same little piece , not yet publish'd , viz. . the protestant and popish way of interpreting scripture impartially compared , in answer to pax vobis . . for what concerns the other point , tradition ; it has been the great endeavour of some of late to set up once more the infallibility of it . but none with more noise , by an accident , which i am now to recount , than mr. g. and the great master of controveesie , and patron of this new hypothesis , j. s. it happen'd about a year and half since , that the forwardness of mr. g. to engage in a dispute wherein he was sure to have the disadvantage both in the point , and in the person that was to manage it against him , led him into a conference with the reverend and learned the dean of pauls . i need not say what passed there , the whole having since been published : the subject of the debate , was the infallibility of oral tradition . the conference being over , mr. g. ( according to the perpetual custom of the vain and assuming spirit of that party ) began to make great boasts in the coffee-houses , what feats he had done , and how great a victory he had gained ; tho the gentleman , for whose sake the conference was held , declared himself much more confirmed in the communion of our church than he was before , and resolved to continue in it . this enforced the dean to publish a short expostulatory letter , called , . a letter to mr. g. giving a true account of a late conference at the d. of p. in return to this , mr. m. who was with mr. g. at the conference , returned a letter or two to dr. stillingfleet , concerning the conference ; and these produced a second from the dean of st. pauls , called , . a second letter to mr. g. in answer to two letters lately publish'd concerning the conference at the d. of p. one of the answers to the d. of p's first letter , was called , . a letter to the d. of p. in answer to the arguing part of his first letter to mr. g. to this a person not yet concerned , put in a reply , intituled , . a letter to a friend ; reflecting on some passages in a letter to the d. of p. in answer to the arguing part of his first letter to mr. g. and here mr. j. s. was thought fit to be entrusted with carrying on this weighty controversie ; which he did in several letters , which he calls catholic letters ; in answer to the former letter , to the second of the dean's , and to a sermon , which in pursuance of this controversie , he preached at guildhall . to these dr. s. has since replied in a treatise , which he calls , . a discourse concerning the nature and grounds of the certainty of faith , in answer to j. s. his catholic letters . it was expected that this excellent discourse , which made such a discovery of the vanity and contradictions of that busy man , would have stopt his mouth for the future , especially since the blackloist heresy was now like to be brought on the stage again . but j. s. was long since past such modesty ; and since , if the worst that can come , he can eat his words now again , as well as he did before , when he was cited to rome , to be censured for those dangerous heretical opinions which he is now again broaching in england : he is for venturing on , and wrote a fifth catholic letter ( as he ridiculously calls it ) against the dean . but tho his letter has , i believe , met with as few readers as himself has admirers , and there is no danger in the world of its doing any mischief , since i do not believe it possible to hire any manof sense to read three pages in it ; yet in compassion , i suppose , to the poor head-strong man himself , there is a very learned person hath undertaken to answer not only that fifth letter , but the other discourses of the romanists about tradition , in an historical discourse concerning tradition . this we may expect to have published shortly . in the mean time the reverend dean himself did take another and more effectual course to disprove j. s's phantastical demonstrations of oral tradition , by shewing , that tho we should allow tradition to be as certain and infallible a rule as they desire , yet it would do them no service , who in all those points wherein they differ from us , have no catholic tradition to warrant them ; upon this , in a short time after the publishing his discourse , he set forth the first part of a work which we suppose may put a final end to this debate , viz. . the council of trent examined and disproved by catholic tradition ; in the main points in controversy between us and the church of rome : with an account of the times and occasions of introducing them . part i. we are promised a second part , if god continue the reverend author health and leisure ; we cannot but earnestly wish for it , since the first part was so very acceptable , and so very satisfactory . and thus far this controversy has been carried on on both sides . i had almost forgot to observe , that tho the dean of pauls himself undertook mr. j. s. his catholic letters ; yet the reflecter was not wanting to his own defence as far as he was particularly concern'd in them . but in a second discourse defended his letter against mr. j. s. his attack in his second catholic letter : the treatise is called , . the reflecters defence of his letter to a friend , against the furious assaults of mr. j. s. in his second catholic letter . in four dialogues . in this condition was this controversy when the continuation first appear'd abroad . but mr. j. s. has since carri'd it a little farther in a new piece , which he calls , . a letter to the continuator of the present state of our controversy . and in which , tho one would think his main design were what he adds in the rest of his title , to lay open the folly of my extravagant boastings , and the malice of my wilful forgeries : yet , after two leaves and a half , spent in railing at me , he insensibly falls to his old adversaries , and spends the rest of his pains upon them . and to their correction i shall leave him , who are chiefly concern'd to take notice of his insolence . as for my self , i heartily pity his vanity ; and shall neither trouble my self , the world , nor him , by taking the least notice of his recitings . besides this long encounter upon the score of tradition , other discourses have been published on both sides upon this point , whether the church of rome has indeed such an antiquity as it pretends , for the articles in dispute betwixt us ? and such was , first , the famous collection of one of their earliest converts , mr. sclater , minister of putney , in a book which he call'd , . consensus veterum : or the reasons of edward sclater minister of putney , for his conversion to the catholic faith and communion . and to which a reply was published , that has put an end to this undertaking , viz. . veteres vindicati : in an expostulatory letter to mr. sclater minister of putney , upon his consensus veterum . but the next collection was more general , and has run into a longer debate : it was called , . nubes testium : or , a collection of the primitive fathers , giving testimony to the faith once delivered to the saints . to this the same learned man who had before encountred mr. sclater's pretences , gave a short but exact answer ; and shew'd , that tho the representer ( for it seems his it was ) called it a collection of the primitive fathers , he might much better have entituled a collection of natalis alexander , out of whom he stole the far greatest part of it . the representer will , i hope , excuse this reflection , which i make only for the sake of truth , and to shew how unwilling i am in any thing to deserve being thought a misrepresenter ; which is now become as dangerous a name , as ever that of heretic or schismatic was heretofore . the answer is called , . an answer to the compiler of the nubes testium : wherein is shewn , that antiquity did not for the first five hundred years believe , teach , or practice , as the church of rome doth at present believe , teach , and practice . and here we are to meet a very strange accident , the great chastiser of misrepresenters , that honest , sincere man that cannot endure false dealing , but was dropt down from heaven to be the scourge and censor of a licentious age , himself become a misrepresenter : and by a strange kind of metamorphosis , from an angel of light transforming himself into a spirit of darkness . in short , he was it seems enraged to the last degree , to see not only his venerable authorities all ruined , but his treasury discovered , and the very places mark'd from whence he had stollen his book , without so much as once acknowledging to whom he was beholden for it . and yet what should he do ? reply to it fairly he could not ; for after all his shew of antiquity , the fathers were a sort of christians that he was utterly unacquainted with ; and had he been as well versed in them as he is in natalis alexander , yet could he not have fairly brought them to speak in behalf of his church . he therefore resolved under a new form to pickeer with the author , and see if he could prevent him by some cunning stratagem from being in a capacity of shewing him any such trick for the future . and therefore now no more the reverend father he was before , but as a zealous brother of the other extreme , tho yet a misrepresenter still , he lets fly at the principles of his adversary ; and undertakes out of his grand concern for the protestant interest , to shew our divines that this gentleman was one , who for all his pretences in their behalf , really endeavour'd to set up popery in masquerade . and to this end came out a formal piece called , . a letter from a dissenter to the divines of the church of england in order to a union . but to the great surprize of this gentleman , his adversary , who it seems was as well acquainted with henry hill's press , as natalis alexander's history , and by a sort of beauties so essential to the representer , that do what he can he is not able to disguise himself , presently found out what an ass was crept into the lyon's skin . and to let the whole world see what an honest fair dealer this representer is , he quickly gave an account of it in print , in his answer to the pamphlet , intituled , . a vindication of the principles of the author of the answer to the compiler of the nubes testium , from the charge of popery : in answer to a late pretended letter from a dissenter , to the divines of the church of england . to this i do not know that the representer has yet replied : but in defence of his nubes testium we have an answer that every way befits the character of its author : it is call'd , . the primitive fathers no protestants : or a vindication of nubes testium from the cavils of the answerer . and that has produced us another defence : viz. . the primitive fathers no papists : in answer to the vindication of the nubes testium . to which is added an historical discourse concerning invocation of saints , in answer to the challenge of father lewis sabran the jesuit . and here it was thought this controversy would have ended , till the other day the representer peept out with his defence of one chapter of his nubes testium , which i have already mentioned under this title , the popes supremacy asserted . to which an answer will be shortly in the press . and here this debate might have ended , had not a short postscript at the close of the first answer to the nubes testium , engaged our worthy author in a new quarrel with father sabran a jesuit ; and who is now grown more famous in the world from his new antagonist the protestant footman , who as we have before observed , undertook the defence of the reverend master of the temple from such pitiful cavils , as indeed were not worth the while of the learned man himself to take notice of ; and are abundantly answer'd by his new and more proper antagonist . in his sermon before the king at chester , this jesuit told his majesty and the auditory , that he follow'd the advice of st. austin when he recommended himself to the blessed virgins intercession , and advised them to do the same : and for this quotes his thirty-fifth sermon de sanctis . upon this there began a hot debate in letters betwixt f. sabran , and the answerer , concerning this authority of st. austin ; and at last from a particular passage , rose up to a general point , of the practice of the primitive church as to the invocation of saints . the pieces themselves may be consulted in this order . . a letter to a peer of the church of england , clearing a point in a sermon preach'd at chester , in answer to a postscript joyned unto the answer to nubes testium . . a letter to father lewis sabran jesuit , in answer to his letter to a peer of the church of england , &c. . a reply of lewis sabrand of the society of jesus , to the answer given to his letter written to a peer of the church of england , &c. . a second letter to father lewis sabran , jesuit , in answer to his reply . and here the controversy about st. austin's sermon was either ended or dropt , the jesuit being now ferretted by the second letter out of all his starting holes . but mr. g. in his primitive fathers no papists , taking into consideration a challenge , which the jesuit had made him in one of his letters about invocation , published an historical discourse to prove that invocation of saints was neither the doctrine nor the practice of the primitive fathers . upon this the jesuit begun again , after having taken a little breath , and in a whole sheet undertakes to answer that large historical account , with this title , . the challenge of father lewis sabran made out , against the historical discourse concerning invocation of saints . to which mr. g. very soon after replied in . a third letter to father lewis sabran , jesuit ; wherein the defence of his challenge concerning invocation of saints , is examin'd and confuted . in this letter mr. g. made such discoveries of the strange disingenuity , and confident ignorance of the jesuit , that he was resolved to rid his hands of such an adversary as had neither learning nor good-manners , and therefore told him in the conclusion of his letter that he would trouble himself no more with answering such an adversary . upon this the jesuit , whose only stock is confidence , being turn'd off by his learned adversary , was forc'd to address his next reply to a third person , and pitcht upon mr. needham , because he had licensed mr. g's third letter to him ; and directed a letter to him with this title , . a letter to dr. william needham ; in answer to the third letter by him licensed , written to father lewis sabran , of the society of jesus . to which mr. g. did finally reply in an address to the jesuit's superiors ; and this it 's supposed will end this controversy , it is call'd , . a letter to the superiors , ( whether bishops or priests ) which approve or license the popish books in england ; particularly to those of the jesuits order , concerning lewis sabran , a jesuit . and all these engagements the first answer to the nubes testium produced : but tho we now quit our author , yet we must not therefore leave the subject . for about the same time that the former answer appeared , another learned person of our church began to consider it by parts , in several letters to a person of quality : and the account of which i will now give , as far as the pieces are come to my knowledg . the first that appeared , was called , . the antiquity of the protestant religion : with an answer to mr. sclater ' s reasons , and the collections made by the author of the pamphlet intituled , nubes testium . in a letter to a person of quality . the first part. the next he entituled , . the antiquity of the protestant religion , concerning images : with an answer to the collections made by the author of the pamphlet , intituled , nubes testium . in a letter to a person of quality . the nd part. what notice has been taken of the former of these , i am not able to say ; but the latter has produced us an answer , entituled , . a discourse of the use of images , in relation to the church of england and the church of rome ; in vindication of nubes testium . to which our author has replied in . a third letter to a person of quality , being a vindication of the former ; in answer to a late pamphlet , intituled , a discourse of the use of images . and to that in pursuance of his first design , has lately added a fourth , which he calls , . a fourth letter to a person of quality ; being an historical account of the doctrine of the sacrament , from the primitive times to the council of trent , shewing the novelty of transubstantiation . to conclude this head , i shall only add one general discourse on this subject , which i have before mention'd , and can never name too often , viz. of the authority of councils , and the rule of faith . sect . viii . having hitherto pursu'd the business of the rule of faith , and the treatises that have been publish'd on the occasion of it ; we will now go on to the more special examinations that have been made by both these rules ; viz. scripture and tradition , of the particular points in debate betwixt us . and because i have just now mention'd some such examinations of the two great rocks of offence to us , the worship of images , and the invocation of saints ; it may not be amiss first of all to see what has been further done upon these arguments , and the other instances of what we esteem , the idolatry of the church of rome . there is perhaps nothing in all our disputes with those of the other communion , which they so unwillingly care to enter on , as this . they look upon the very name of it to be a kind of reproach to them , and would be thought as heartily , as we our selves can desire , to detest the guilt of it . but yet 't is too evident to be deny'd , that our charge is very justly brought against them ; and by consequence that it ought not to be doubted , but that our separation from them must have been most reasonable , if it can indeed be made appear , as we are perswaded we have plainly shewn , that we could not have continued in their communion , without joyning with them in the practice of one of the greatest of sins , viz. idolatry . but before we come to the particulars in which this charge is brought against them , it is fit we should first state the general notion of idolatry ; and this has been effectually done , but very lately . the reverend the bishop of oxon , having in a treatise which he published for the abrogating of the test and penal laws , given us just occasion to do so . this book is so well known , and the answer to it was so lately published , that i shall not need say any thing more of either , but only add their titles , which are these , viz. . reasons for abrogating the test. . a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry : in which a late author ' s true and only notion of idolatry is consider'd and confuted . i must not forget to observe also , that the bishop in his tract pretending to give a new and very strange account of the romish doctrine of transubstantiation , that part of his book received two particular considerations , the one in the preface to the reverend dean of paul's book , entituled , the council of trent examined and disproved by catholic tradition : the other in a learned discourse , under this title , . transubstantiation the peculiar doctrine of the church of rome . i am told we owe this book to a very ingenious nonconformist ; and as we cannot but thank him for the discourse he has given us , so he deserves to be thanked for his design of answering the other part of the bishop's book about the nature of idolatry ; in which he was prevented , as i am told , by the other discourse about the nature of idolatry coming out while that good design was under his hands . i cannot but wish that our brethren had begun sooner to assist us in such a large controversie as we have been obliged to manage , and that others amongst them would follow the example , which this learned author has so worthily set before them . another writer hath given us a very ingenious short answer to both parts of the bishop's book , and calls it , . a discourse concerning transubstantiation and idolatry , being an answer to the bishop of oxford's plea relating to those two points . as for the particular instances wherein we make good this charge of idolatry against them ; i have before mentioned that of the adoration of the host , and the discourses that have been published on that argument . the two points remaining , and of which something was said under the last head , are , the worship of images , and the invocation of saints . i. of the worship of images . upon which point , besides the two letters written in answer to the nubes testium , the following discourses have also been set forth , viz. . the fallibility of the roman church demonstrated from the manifest error of the second nicene and trent councils ; which assert , that the veneration and honorary worship of images is a tradition primitive and apostolical . . a discourse concerning the second council of nice , which first introduced and established image-worship in the christian church ; anno domini . for the other point , ii. the invocation of saints . many discourses have been published , and a full account given of this matter ; and if we may judge by the slender returns that have been made to them , little is to be said in vindication of this superstition . the treatises that i have seen , are these that follow . . speculum b. virginis : a discourse of the due praise and honour of the virgin mary . . a discourse concerning the worship of the blessed virgin , and the saints ; with an account of the beginning and rise of it among christians ; in answer to monsieur de meaux ' s appeal to the ivth age , in his exposition and pastoral letter . . wholesom advices from the b. virgin to her indiscreet worshippers . this piece was only a translation which an ingenious lay-man of our church put into english , and set a large preface before it : to this the catholic representer gave an attack in the th chapter of his second part ; and thereby obliged our author to make a smart reply upon him , called , a letter to the misrepresenter of papists . . an account of the life and death of the b. virgin , according to the romish writers , with the grounds of the worship paid to her . . the life of s. mary magdalene of pazzi , a carmelite nun ; with a preface of the nature , causes , concomitants , and consequences of extasie and rapture ; and a brief discourse added , about discerning and trying spirits , whether they be of god. . an abridgment of the prerogatives of s. ann , mother of the mother of god. . the enthusiasm of the church of rome demonstrated in some observations upon the life of ignatius loyola . . the virgin mary misrepresented by the roman church , &c. part i. wherein two of her feasts , her conception , and nativity , are considered . we are in hopes that the excellent author of this most ingenious and diverting discourse will e're long oblige the world with a second part , and teach the papists at length to grow ashamed of their intolerable superstitions towards the virgin mary . as for those of the other communion , it is but little they have published in particular on this subject , besides what i have already mentioned . but two pieces there are which i ought by no means no forget , viz. . contemplations on the life and glory of h. mary . . an apology for the contemplations , by dr. i. c. which apology was fully answered in the ingenious preface to the book called , an account of the life and death of the blessed virgin. sect . ix . i shall mention but one particular more , on which we have of late , as heretofore , been attack'd by those of the roman church , and effectually vindicated our selves , both against their calumnies , and their reasons ; and that is as to the validity of orders in the church of england . the occasion of reviving this matter , was given by a little scurrilous libel that went abroad , under the name of , the church of england truly represented . and in reply to whose calumnies , three discourses have been published , two of them new , the other only reprinted , viz. . a vindication of the ordinations of the church of england ; in answer to a paper written by one of the church of rome , to prove the nullity of our orders . . a defence of the ordinations and ministry of the church of england ; in answer to the scandals raised or revived against them , in several late pamphlets , and particularly in one intituled , the church of england truly represented , &c. . a short defence of the orders of the church of england , as by law establish'd ; against some scattered objections of mr. webster of linne . but this subject hath been most largely and learnedly handled by the learned mr. brown , of s. john's college in cambridge , in his sermon ad clerum ; and in another sermon preached before the university on commencement sunday ; translated into latin ; and both together printed at cambridge under this title . . concio ad clerum habita coram academia cantabrigiensi junii . an. . pro gradu baccal in s. theologia ; ubi vindicatur vera & valida cleri anglicani , ineunte reformatione , ordinatio . cui accessit concio habita julii . . de canonica cleri anglicani ordinatione latine reddita & aucta ; a th. brown , s. t. b. coll. d. joh. evang . soc. annexum est instrumentum consecrationis matth. parker , archiep. cant. ex ms. c. c. c. cantabr . i hear the worthy author hath been very earnestly requested to translate these latin sermons into english ; and i am told , that he delays it only upon the account of some answer that the papists have been talking they would give to them , being desirous to make his translation and vindication one trouble . i cannot therefore but in the behalf of those who are so desirous to have these sermons in english , request our adversaries , that if they have any thing to say to them , they would make a little more haste with it . and for the mighty master of controversie , who i hear hath resolved to answer a paragraph in one of them , i must needs tell him , that nine months is more by eight and an half , than an ordinary controvertist would have taken to answer such a piece in . but in this controversie we have not been merely upon the defensive part , but have attack'd their orders , as well as defended our own . this a learned man of our church hath done in a book under this title , . roman catholics uncertain whether there be any true priests or sacraments in the church of rome . sect . x. having thus reduced the principal treatises that have been set forth , to their particular heads , as far as in so great a confusion of matter i could well do it ; it remains only to add here such treatises on both sides , as i have before pass'd by , or could not be so readily brought to any special consideration . now those of this kind , which have been set forth by the church of rome , are these , . question of questions . . why are you a catholic ? . propery anatomized ; or the papists clear'd from the false imputation of idolatry and rebellion . . veritas evangelica ; or the gospel truth asserted in xvi useful questions . . pope pius profession of faith vindicated , &c. . dr. sherlock sifted from his bran and chaff . . the pharisee unmask'd . . assertio vii sacramentorum ; by king henry viiith , against luther . . a reformd catechism , by p. manby . . animadversions on the rishop of bath's sermon , &c. to these they have , because not at leisure to write new books , or for some other better reason , added an old book written by one f. huddleston , a benedictine ; it is called , . a short and plain way to the faith and church , &c. to this there is an answer almost finished by a very learned person , who will demonstrate to the world , how little that book had in it to convince . on our part have appear'd of this miscellany kind , these that follow . . remarks on popery misrepresented , with reference to the deposing doctrine . . pope pius's creed , with comments . . the additional articles in pope pius's creed , no articles of the christian faith. . a few plain reasons why a protestant of the church of england should not turn roman catholic . . thirty plain , but sound reasons why protestants differ from popery . . a discourse shewing that protestants are on the safer side , notwithstanding the uncharitable judgement of their adversaries ; and that their religion is the surest way to heaven . . a pacifick discourse of the causes and remedies of the differences about religion , which distract the peace of christendom . . the missionaries arts discover'd . . a request to roman catholics to answer certain queries on several of their tenets mention'd . . a brief account of the first rise of the name protestant , &c. . an historical relation of several great and learned romanists that have embraced the protestant religion . . a catechism truly representing the doctrines and practices of the church of rome ; with an answer to them . . the plausible arguments of a romish priest answer'd by an english protestant . . a discourse between two protestants , in answer to a popish catechism , call'd , a short catechism against all sectaries . . a plain defence of the protestant religion , fitted to the meanest capacity : being a full confutation of the net for the fishers of men. . some queries to protestants answer'd : and an explication of the roman catholic ' s belief in four great points consider'd ; . concerning their church . . their worship . . justification . . civil government . . the judgement of private discretion in matters of religion , defended in a sermon at s. paul ' s covent-garden , by mr. kidder . . the protestant resolved : or a discourse , shewing the unreasonableness of his turning roman catholic for salvation . . a discourse , wherein is held forth the opposition of the doctrine , worship , and practices of the roman church , to the nature , designs , and characters of the christian faith. . two short discourses against the romanists , by mr. dodwell , cambden professor in the university of oxford . . an answer to a discourse concerning the celibacy of the clergy , printed at oxford . . a letter to a lady : furnishing her with scripture testimonies , against the principal points and doctrines of popery . in return to the last of these discourses , father darrell the jesuit has been pleased to set out a single half sheet , which he calls , a letter to a lady : wherein he desires a conference with the gentleman who writ her that letter . this is indeed a new way of answering books , and becoming the busie , assuming spirit of that society . one would wonder , after so little success as they have hitherto met with in these encounters , what should move this reverend father to be so forward to come into the same list with goodwin , pulton , and a few others of the same character . for tho abundance of noise in a conference , and of misrepresentation after , may help out a weak cause , and an illiterate defender of it , when they are sure before-hand of the person for whose sake it is held ; yet methinks they should be more wary than to run upon such hazards , where , in all probability , they are not like either to gain their proselyte , or to have the opportunity of these kind of subterfuges to assist them . however , tho i have neither the honour to know the lady , or the author of that letter ; yet for this good father's satisfaction , i will venture for once to promise him , that if her ladyship does desire it , not only the author of that letter will be ready to meet him , but to shew how willing we are to encourage a hopeful design , let him chuse his gownman between blackwall and hide-park corner , and i dare say there is not one among them all that on this or any other occasion will decline to shew him how little reason he has for his forwardness . i am now hastning to an end of this undertaking ; and , i think i cannot better finish it , than with a short account of a controversie which made no small noise in the world , between the reverend dr. tenison , and father pulton the jesuit . about michaelmas last they met at a house in long-acre , on the acount of a boy whom mr. pulton had perverted from our religion . great things were presently talked , as usual on such occasions , concerning this conference ; and the papists fail'd not to boast of a mighty conquest made over the doctor . this forced him to resolve on a publication of what passed , tho otherwise as little fit , as designed to be communicated to the world . each party set forth his own account , and first mr. pulton his , in two books , called , . a true account of the conference , &c. . a true and full account of a conference held about religion , between dr. thomas tenison , and a. pulton one of the masters in the savoy . dr. tenison's was entituled , . a true account of a conference held about religion , at london , sept. . . between a. pulton jesuit , and thomas tenison , d. d. this was followed on the jesuit's part , with a new discourse , called , . remarks of a. pulton , upon dr. thomas tenison's late narrative , with a confutation of the doctor 's rule of faith ; and reply to a. cressener's pretended vindication . to which dr. tenison reply'd in a second treatise , viz. . mr. pulton consider'd , &c. and this produced another discourse from another hand , viz. mr. meredith , who was present at the conference , called , . some farther remarks on the late account given by dr. tenison of his conference with mr. pulton . as for what is added in mr. pulton's d. treatise in answer to a. cressener , the meaning of it is this : mr. cressener a schoolmaster , being present at the conference , mr. pulton in his account of it , gave him some occasion to complain of his relation , as to that part of it which concerned him ; and therefore , to justifie himself , he published a short treatise , to which mr. pulton there refers , viz. . the vindication of a. cressener , schoolmaster in long-acre , from the aspersions of a. pulton jesuit and schoolmaster in the savoy . and thus this controversie ended ; but yet i must not leave it , till i have taken notice of another that it begat , and that no less memorable than the foregoing . for upon the occasion of this conference , a paper was taken notice of much used by the puny controvertists of our days , called , . speculum ecclesiasticum : or an ecclesiastical prospective glass : written , as we are told , by a souldier of that party , t. ward ; and to which dr. tenison procured a young man , a friend of his , to write an answer ; which he did , entituled , . the speculum ecclesiasticum consider'd , in its false reasonings and quotations . but before this was published , the doctor obtained a copy of a defence which the soldier had prepared of his quotations , but was not yet come from the press ; and to finish all at once , an answer was set forth to that too at the same time ere it could appear abroad in the world . this the soldier resented , and expressed his sense of it in a letter to dr. tenison ; which , together with a reply to it , were published under the title of , . an answer to the letter of the catholic souldier , in a letter from c. d. to a. b. the examiner of his speculum . however , not long after , the defence was publish'd with a dreadful name , viz. . monomachia : or , a duel between dr. thomas tenison pastor of st. martins , and a roman catholic souldier . and so i think this worthy controversie ended . sect . xi . having now run through the several heads of controversy that have of late exercised the pens of our learned men in defence of our religion , it may not be amiss to stop here awhile , and by a brief recapitulation of the whole , see what more remains to a compleat vindication of our selves against all the tricks and artifices , as well as against the arguments of our adversaries . it is sufficiently evident from the foregoing collection , what slender returns those of the church of rome have made to the many excellent discourses , which themselves ( without any provocation of ours ) have extorted from us . and what prejudice they have hereby done to their religion , i am confident they themselves are not unsensible . i need not say what a number of disputes they have altogether let fall ; how many of our books , to this day , remain un-answered , and are ever likely to be so . in a word , what trifles many times they have set forth under the arrogant title of full answers to those they have thought fit to take notice of . and now at last , to compleat all , they seem to have utterly deserted the controversie ; and , too late , to see that truth and learning are not to be run down by those who are utterly destitute of the one , and , as far as we may be allowed to guess by their performances , have but very slender pretences to the other . the truth is , popery is a religion fit only for an inquisition to maintain , and dragoons to propagate . ignorance and barbarity brought it into the world ; interest and passion maintain and keep it up : no sooner did learning begin to revive , but popery began immediately to decay ; and ever since , the one has still decreased in proportion , as the other has flourish'd . and to think at this time a day seriously to dispute a nation so resolute and knowing as ours , again into the errors of it , plainly shews either that our adversaries have a very mean opinion of our understandings , or i am sure deserve that we should have no very great one of theirs . but whatever they once may have flatter'd themselves withal , i am confident they now begin to be satisfied , that popery is a religion that will not thrive in our northern climate . and tho they are pleased sometimes to divert themselves with our divisions , and , it may be , did from thence conceive some hopes of promoting their interest amongst us ; yet i doubt not but they now see , that we are not so much divided amongst our selves , as we are all of us heartily united against them . as for the divines of the church of england , how firmly they have adhered to the protestant interest , is not unknown to any . their preaching , their conversation , but , above all , their writings declare it to the world : and how fouly , by consequence , they were heretofore either mistaken , or misrepresented , when they were exposed by some ( who i believe wish'd them so ) as papists in masquerade , or at least as popishly affected . never perhaps was there a controversie more successfully managed than this has been in these late years . till now , these points were handled in such a manner , that if the learned applauded the performance , yet the vulgar were but little the better for it . but in these discourses , strength of argument , and plainness of discourse seem to vie with one another . the arguments so sound , as to convince all gain-sayers ; and yet the plainness so great , that the meanest persons may comprehend the force of them . and thus have they pursued not one or two points , but i may warrantably say , the whole controversy betwixt us . insomuch that from henceforth we may well excuse them any farther trouble , till either our adversaries shall think fit to answer their discourses , or to advance some other arguments than those which have already been obviated and confuted . but indeed there is no great likelihood of either of these ; and i dare venture to promise my reader , that let those of the church of rome attacque him where they please , let them in writing or discourse offer what they are able to him , he shall here in this collection , which i therefore on purpose make of several of these treatises under their proper heads , find more than enough to answer all their allegations . i. general discourses : or such as consider the most part of the points in debate betwixt us . . the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented . . answer to the bishop of condom's exposition . . exposition of the doctrine of the church of england . . two defences of the exposition . . an answer to the compiler of the nubes testium . . the primitive fathers no papists . . pope pius's creed with comments . . the additional articles in pope pius's creed , no articles in the christian faith. ii. of religious worship . . a discourse concerning the object of religious worship . . a discourse concerning the devotions of the church of rome . iii. of prayer in an unknown tongue . . a discourse of prayer in an unknown tongue . . a treatise in confutation of the latin service , &c. iv. of the invocation of saints . . a discourse concerning the invocation of saints . . second defence of the exposition , artic. iii. . an answer to papists protesting against protestant popery . . mr. gee's third letter to father sabran . . the primitive fathers no papists . . a discourse in answer to monsieur de meaux's appeal to the ivth . age. paticularly of the b. virgin . see several discourses collected , pag. , . v. of images and reliques . . the antiquity of the protestant religion concerning images . . the vindication of it . — see above , pag. . . the fallibility of the church of rome demonstrated , from the manifest error of the second nicene and trent councils , in the point of images . . a discourse concerning the d . council of nice , which first introduced and established image worship in the christian church . . second defence of the exposition , part . art. iv. . answer to papists protesting against protestant popery . vi. of idolatry . a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry , in answer to the bishop of oxon. vii . of merits ; satisfactions ; purgatory ; and indulgences . . two discourses of purgatory , and prayers for the dead . . purgatory proved by miracles . . apology for the pulpits . appendix of indulgences . . the primitive fathers no papists . . summary of the controversies for purgatory . . a discourse concerning the merits of good works . viii . of the sacraments . an historical discourse of the ministers intentions , in administring the sacraments . ix . of confession and penance . a discourse of auricular confession , as prescribed by the council of trent . x. of extreme unction . . a discourse of extreme unction . xi . of orders . . a vindication of the ordinations of the church of england . . concio ad clerum , &c. see pag. , . . a defence of the ordinations and ministry of the church of england . . a short defence of the orders of the church of england . to these learned discourses we shall shortly have added another upon the same good subject from the reverend and learned dr. prideaux , prebendary of norwich , intituled , . the validity of the orders of the church of england made out against the objections of the papists in several letters to a gentleman of norwich that desired satisfaction therein . . roman catholics uncertain whether there be any true priests or sacraments in the church of rome . xii . of the real presence . . a discourse of the holy eucharist in the two great points , of the real presence , and the adoration of the host. . a reply to two discourses , printed at oxford , &c. xiii . of transubstantiation . . a discourse against transubstantiation . . transubstantiation no doctrine of the primitive fathers . . full view of the doctrines and practices of the ancient church , relating to the eucharist , &c. . transubstantiation contrary to scripture . . a paraphrase , with notes and a preface on the vith of st. john. . the absolute impossibility of transubstantiation demonstrated . see many other tracts above , from pag. . . veteres vindicati , in answer to mr. sclater . . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in answer to mr. w. . fourth letter to a person of quality . see above , p. . . transubstantiation the peculiar doctrine of the church of rome , see p. . xiv . of the sacrifice of the mass . . a discourse concerning the sacrifice of the mass xv. of the adoration of the host . . a discourse of the adoration of the host. xvi . of communion in both kinds . . a discourse of communion in one kind , in answer to the bishop of meaux . . a demonstration that the church of rome and her councils have erred , touching communion in one kind . xvii . of the rule &c. of faith . . a discourse concerning a guide in matters of faith. . the protestant resolution of faith. . of the authority of councils , and of the rule of faith. xviii . of the holy scripture . . an answer to the request to protestants . . a summary of the principal controversies betwixt the church of england , and the church of rome . . the lay-christian ' s obligation to read the scripture . . the peoples right to read the scripture . . the protestant and popish way of interpreting scripture , impartially compared ; in answer to pax vobis . see other discourses above , p. , . xix . of tradition . . discourse about tradition . . an historical discourse concerning tradition . . the council of trent examined and disproved by catholic tradition . see more discourses above , p. , , . to which i must add an excellent treatise omitted in its proper place , but which ought not by any means to be forgotten , called , . a treatise of traditions . in parts . xx. of the church . . a discourse of the unity of the catholic church maintained in the c. of e. . a discourse of the charge of novelty , brought against the ch. of e. . the notes of the church . see above , p. . . of the unity and authority of the church : see discourses above , p. . to which we must add a book since published , which ought by no means to be forgotten , being ( as we are assured ) the genuine issue of the great and admired bishop sanderson ; it is called , . a discourse concerning the church , in these following particulars , . concerning the visibility of the true church : . concerning the church of rome : . concerning protestant churches : . an answer to the question , where was your church before luther ? . of the authority and infallibility of the church . several discourses , p. , , . . two short discourses against the romanists , by mr. dodwell . xxi . of st. peter , and the pope . . a sermon preach'd upon s. peter ' s day . . the catholic balance . . a discourse of the pope's supremacy , in two parts . to which we may add a tract since printed , with this title , . pope gregory the great his opinion of the supremacy of the bishop of rome , taken from his own writings . see other discourses above , p. , , . xxii . of the reformation . . two discourses concerning the necessity of the reformation . . an answer to the spirit of martin luther , and the original of the reformation . . reflections on the relation of the english reformation , printed at oxford . see other discourses above , p. , . xxiii . of schism ; and heresie . . a vindication of the church of england , from the foul aspersions of schism and heresie , parts . . an apologetical vindication of the church of england , &c. see other discourses above , p. , . xxiv . of the celibacy of the clergy . . a discourse of the celibacy of the clergy . . an answer to a discourse concerning the celibacy of the clergy ; printed at oxford . sect . xii . and now after so full an account of these discourses , and of the several controversies that have been handled in them ; i have only remaining for the close of all , to give a short account of that excellent undertaking in which our divines are at this time engaged ; and which being finished , i do not see what more can be desired in order to our full satisfaction in this matter . i have before recounted how by a joint labour they run through the consideration of the pretended notes of the church , on which the romanists establish their usurped authority . no sooner were those ended , but they presently resolved upon another , and a more useful project , which was to search into our adversaries books ; and collect all those passages of scripture which are usually alledged by them to maintain their errors . and by giving the true explication of them , at once to secure their flock from their false glosses , and let them into a better understanding of those sacred books . in this undertaking they have already made a considerable advance , as will appear by the following catalogue : . popery not founded on scripture : or , the texts which papists cite out of the bible for the proof of the points of their religion , examined , and shewed to be alledged without ground . after which follow the texts themselves , which they bring for , . the obscurity of the holy scriptures . . the insufficiency of scripture , and the necessity of tradition . . the supremacy of st. peter , and of the pope , over the whole church , in two parts . . their doctrine of infallibility . . the worship of angels and saints departed . in two parts . . the worship of images and reliques . . the seven sacraments , and the efficacy of them . in two parts . . the sacrifice of the mass. two parts . . transubstantiation . . auricular confession . . satisfactions . two parts . may they go on with success to finish this good work ; whilst we ( for whose sake they take all these pains ) encourage their endeavours , by a firm adherence both to them and to their doctrine , and by our constant contending for the faith we have received from them , declare to all the world , that their labour has not been in vain in the lord. finis . a postscript of n. n. to mr. john sergeant , occasion'd by his letter to the continuator of the present state of the controversie . mr. sergeant , having perused your letter to the continuator of the present state of our controversie , i perceive , that you are mightily concern'd at the historical discourse concerning tradition , which he mentioned to be writing , and that you a a a would gladly find some way to save our friends this vast labour , and excuse them from this impossible task [ of answering you ] . i quickly apprehended your meaning , that you had a great desire not to be answered ; and therefore in pure complaisance to you , the first time i met with the author of the historical discourse , i desired him , in yours and my own name , that he would excuse himself the writing of that book , and told him , that i understood by your letter , that you would take it extreamly kindly at his hands , if he would not give himself the trouble of answering you . but this courtship would do no good upon him ; so that i was forc'd to alter my strain , and began to threaten him ; sir , said i , if you dare to answer mr. sergeant , he will be reveng'd of you , for he has a plaguy sharp pen , and will not spare you . all the answer i had to my threats , was to be laught at , he assuring me he would venture that . upon this , i told him , it was no jesting matter ; that if he did provoke you , you would turn the rough side of your tongue to him ; and ask'd him , whether he could digest the being call'd rogue , or lyar , or mad dog ? his answer was , that he could not very well : why then , said i , look you , sir , you shall have these , and ten times worse , if you dare to answer mr. sergeant ; and upon this i out with your letter , and shew'd him how smartly you could handle your pen. how will you like , sir , quoth i , to be call'd hot brain'd b b b calvinist in masquerade , par boyl'd by the scalding zeal against popery ; into a stanch protestant ? to be call'd c c c a wilful and bold calumniator ? to be told , you are a careless , d d d open , and confident liar ? to be nick-nam'd , a knight of the post , that writes without fear , shame , or wit ? to have your book call'd , e e e a little ridiculously malicious satyr , wholly made up of vapour , insolence , silly amplifications , ironies , invectives , and open falshoods ? to be nick nam'd , a thersites with a f f f steel'd impudence ? sir , said i , if mr. sergeant could bestow all these complements in so very few pages upon the continuator , for no reason in the world , what must you expect , if you should dare to provoke him by an answer ? be wise then , and learn so much wit as to sleep in a whole skin , and thank me for my good advice . now would you think it , mr. sergeant , that any man could have dar'd to have withstood all this ! and yet this strange man did , and bragg'd withal , that neither this , nor more than this , should fright him from answering you . i had but one other argument left to persuade him , and concluded , that it would do his business for him . well , sir , said i , to be short with you , why will you run your head against a wall ? mr. sergeant does assure me , that his fifth letter is g g g an elaborate discourse , and that it is ( in one word ) h h h unanswerable ; why then will you be medling with a book that cannot be disprov'd , that is unanswerable ? i always took you for a prudent man , shew it now , and let mr. sergeant alone : for he says , the best i i i wits of our nation have also declared in his favour , that his letters are unanswerable : ( k ) that he is inform'd his fifth letter , in particular , has sold so well , that there are not an hundred left of them . nay more , that f. w. had said , that these same letters ( which you will be daring to meddle with ) had laid dr. stilling fleet so flat , that he would never be able to rise again . and can you not be quiet , without bringing the best wits of the nation , and f. warner , a jesuit , upon your head ? they have declared already against you , and they will in honour stand up for john sergeant , and then what will become of you ? but all this was lost , mr. sergeant , upon him , and was so far from silencing him , that he seem'd to grow proud of having the honour of baffling john sergeant , and the best wits of our nation : and for f. warner , he had like to have call'd him f — for daring to take dr. stillingfleet's name into his mouth , who had so lately , and so thoroughly expos'd him in his appendix to the council of trent's examination . in short , as to the selling of your letter , he told me , that if he were not mis-inform'd , 't is no great wonder your bookseller should not have above an hundred remaining , seeing there were but . in all printed , and those at your own cost , and a considerable number of which you gave in presents to your friends , who therefore were obliged , in gratitude , to commend it . and now mr. sergeant , you see what pains i have taken in your behalf ; and tho the continuator neglects you , and this other author defies you , yet that your letter has not been without some effect upon me . what the issue of it will be , we shall see in a little time , as soon as this historical discourse concerning tradition comes out : in the mean while , all i can further do , is heartily to wish you , what i fear you will much more need than the continuator do's sincerity , a better cause , and a more civil pen ; and remain , sir , your very humble servant , n. n. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e method . . advertisement pag. . * * * see the collection at the end of the preface . * * * see his advertisement . [ avis salutaires de la bien heureuse vierge à ses devots indiscrets . this tract was publish'd first at gand in latin , by monsieur widenselt a german , intendant of the affairs of the prince of suarzembergh ; afterwards translated into french. ] * * * see his book entituled la veritable devotion envers la st. vierge . o. † † † la preface p. , . pag. . &c. see the collection at the end of the preface . art. . p. . * * * so he was when he wrote to monsitur de meaux . † † † the whole of this is taken out of the factum which he printed of his case . see the advertisement . cardinal bona ' s letter : v. e. mi accenna che alcuni lo , accusano de qual che mancamento . and a little after , ne mi maraviglio che gli habbino trovato à dire , perche tutte le opere grande , e che sormontano l'ordinario sempre hanno contradittori — answer to cardinal buillon . ] see the answer of cardinal chigi to monsieur l'abbé de dangeau ; [ parlai al padre maestro di s. palazzo , & al secretaris della congregatione dell indice , e connobbi veramente che non vi era stato chi havesse à questi padri parlato in disfavore del medesimo . ] see advertisement , &c. † † † l' auteur — fit avec un tres profond respect ses tres humbles remercimens au pape par une lettre du . nov. . dont il recent reponse par un bres de sa sainteté du jan. . avertiss . and in the brief it self , devotionem interim atque observantiam quam erga sanctam hanc sedem nosque ipsos qui in eâ catholicae ecclesiae immerito praesidemus tuae ad nos literae luculenter declarant , mutuae charitatis affectu complectimur . ] * * * the bishop of strasburgh having accounted to his holiness his design of translating the exposition into the german language , sa sainteté lu● fit dire qu'il connoissoit ce livre , & qu'on luy raportoit de tous costez qu'il faisoit beaucoup de conversions . avertissement . card. bona's letter . notes for div a -e * * * [ intituled , prosecutio probationis locum mat. . non recte refundi in apostolorum principis successores . ] nihil praeterea , ad sanam catholicam , & orthodoxam fidem deposcit aurea illa expositio catholicae fidei jacobi episcopi condomensis , praeter illustrissima clarissimo●um virorum elogia , ipsius s. patris innocent . xi . peramantissimis literis comprebata . notes for div a -e * * * and that it is the most he does ; see de cult . lat. l. . c. . artic. xxii . this passage is often deny'd : see cassander consult . in art. . artic. xxii . art. xxii . king. . ezek. . . de justif. l. . c. . vasqu●z in d. th. , ae 〈◊〉 . d. ● . c. . . c. . . c. . disp. . c. . n. , . see aboue p. . concil . trid. sess. . c. . l. . de purg . c. . hebr. c. . v. . catech , conc . trid. hebr. . . see our d artic. notes for div a -e artic. . of the ch. of en. ‖ ‖ ‖ so our chu . catechism . * * * de cerm. ec. &c. l. . c. . ‖ ‖ ‖ lib. . sent. dist. . † † † ann. . in conc. flor. see our office of pub. bapt ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ep. . if it be indeed his . ‖ ‖ ‖ by monsieur de meaux , see before . cor. . ‖ ‖ ‖ see cassan. consult . art. . & de bapt. infant . where he cites many others of the c. of r. of the same opinion . consult . art. . † † † gerson . gabriel biel , cajetan , and others . † † † mat. . . john . . james . , . . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 vid. sacram. grge. p. et rursus . & serqq . menard . annot . mss. 〈◊〉 alia ejusd . opin . cajet . annot. in loc . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ lomb. of our side . see cassand . con. ‖ ‖ ‖ gratian de consecrat . d. . c. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ l. . de euch. c. . ss . primum . † † † id. ib. l. . c. . luk. ● . . exod . cor. . cor. . . gen. . , &c. cor. . . see our . article . see t he same article . the same article . cor. . the same article . ‖ ‖ ‖ lomb. . sent . dist . . * * * scotus . dist . . q. . * * * bellarm. de euchar. l. . c. . ss . secundo dicit . where he cites many others of the same opinion . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ in . d. th. q. . art . . ‖ ‖ ‖ see scotus cited by bellar. l. . de euch. c. . ss unum tamen . so also gabriel cited by suarez , t. . disp . . sect . . so lombard . l. . sent . dist . 〈◊〉 . lit . a. * * * cor. . . &c. — . . † † † acts . . &c. see her rubrick at the end of the communion office. cor. . , &c. concil . trident. sess. . see article . in. . d. th. disp . . c. . l. . de miss . c. . ibid. see sess. . cap. . heb. . , . heb. . . heb. . . ibid. v. . ibid. v. . hebr. . . ibid. v. ● . exod. . . lev. . joh. . . see our th article . notes for div a -e acts . . acts . . gal. . , . de unitate eclesiae , c. . see article . article . article . col. . v. . rev. . . — . . article . article . article . article . article . article . article . article . philip. . , . notes for div a -e la perpetuité de la foy de l'eglise catholique , touchant l'eucharistie . ann. . albertinus de eucharistiae sacramento . fol. prejugez legitimes contre ▪ ●es calvinists . an. . examen du livre qui porte pour titre , prejugez legitimes , &c. an. . * * * * * * monsieur jurieu prejugez legitimes contr● le papisme an. . les pretendus reformez convaineûs de schisme . . advertisment pag. , . exposit. pag. . vindicat. pag. , . vindicat. pag. , . collect. n. 〈◊〉 ibid. n. . vindicat. pag. . vindicat. pag. . m. de m's advert . p. . vindicat. pag. . seconde reponse . p. , &c. for all this , see the appendix . num . . vindicat. pag. . see appendix num . . where i have shew'd cardinal bona another of his approvers , to be nevertheless in his own writings contrary to monsieur de m's exposition . vindicat. p. , . for what concerns mr. imbert , see his own letter to monsieur de meaux , appendix , num . . for monsieur de witte 's case it has been already printed , and i have nothing new to add to it . vindicat. p. . see de la b's . answer to the advertisement . p. . vindicat. pag. . ephes. . . rom. . . vindicat. pag. . expos. of the c. e. pag. . * * * * * * of which see more in the appendix . n. . p. . vindicat. pag. . vindicat. pag. . † † † † † † to satisfie the vindicator what the cardinal's words are , i will give them at length . ex his constat & in concilio nicaeno secundo , & in tridentino , aliisque , latriam duntaxat idololatricam sacris imaginibus denegari , qualem gentiles imaginibus exhibent , ac proinde latriam illam interdici quae imaginibus in seipsis & propter ipsas exhibeatur , quoque imagines seu numina aut divinitatem continentia more gentilium colantur ; de hujusmodi enim latriâ controversia erat cum judaeis & haereticis , qui h●c ratione nos imagines colere asserebant . caeterum de latriâ illâ quae imaginibus s. trinitatis , christi d. aut sacratissimae crucis exhibetur , ratione rei per eas repraesentatae , & quatenus eum re repraesentatâ unum sunt in esse repraesentativo , nullamque divinitatem imaginibus tribuit aut supponit , nulla unquam fuit aut esse potuit controversia . art. . p. . monsieur de meaux ' s expos . pag. . vindicat. pag. . virdicat . p. , , . vindicat. pag. . collect. n. . ibid. n . ibid. n. . vindicat. pag. . . m. de m's advert . p. . vindicat. pag. , . vindicat. pag. . ibid. vindicat. pag. . notes for div a -e vindicat. pag. . vindicat. pag. . vindicat. pag. . expos. p. . vindicat. pag. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . see his expos . §. . p. . vindicat. pag. . vindicat. pag. . † † † † † † discourse concerning the worship of the b. virgin and the saints , in answer to monsieur de meaux's appeal to the fourth age. vindicat. pag. . * * * * * * expos. monsieur de meaux , pag. . §. . it will not be unuseful to take notice how those of the p. reformation begin to acknowledge , that the custom of praying to saints was established even in the fourth age of the church . monsieur daillé grants thus much in that book he publish'd against the tradition of the latin church , about the object of religious worship . † † † † † † monsieur daillé's words are these : neque eum à vero longè aberraturum puto , qui dixerit hunc fuisse apud christianos primum ad sanctos invocandos gradum , cum calefacti atque inardescentes rerum praeclarè ab iis gestarum meditatione , praedicatione , atque exaggeratione animi , ad eos denique invocandos prorumperent . certè quae de o seculo prima hujus invocationis afferuntur exempla , ea ferè sunt hujus generis . ex encomiasticis quorundam disertissimorum & eruditione seculari florentissimorum hominum in sanctos orationibus desumpta , gregorii nazianzeni in cyprianum ; in athanasium , in basilium ; gregorii nysseni in theodorum , qui ambo o sed jam praecipiti seculo celebres habebantur , &c. adv. lat. tradit . de cultûs relig . objecto , l. . c. . pag. . * * * * * * the examples i gave were from greg. naz. and they are these : . invectiv . in julian . pag. . he thus bespeaks constantius . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . upon which the greek scholiast observes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . dly . orat. . in gorgon . p. . l d. he thus addresses to his sister . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * * * * * * the opinion that the souls of just men do not go staright to heaven , seems to owe its rise to the verses of the sibylls ; which being very ancient ( within years after christ ) and by the most primitive fathers taken for a●thentick , drew the whole stream of the writers of those times into the same mistake . blondel in his book of the sibylline oracles affirms l. . c. . p. . that all the authors we have left us of the second , and as far as the middle of the third age , were of that opinion : and adds that even in the following ages many of those very men monsieur de meaux has alledged for the invocation of saints , were involved very far in the same error ; viz. s. basil , ambrose , chrysostom and s. augustine . this is yet more fully shewn by monsieur daillè in his book de cult . rel . obj. l. . c. . p. . & seq . and in another of his rooks de poenis & satisfact . where to the fathers last mentioned he adds s. jerom l. . cap. , , . all which sixtus senensis himself confirms , bibl. l. . annot . . p. . and particularly as to the fathers in question , s. ambrose , s. chrysostom , s. augustine . p. , . † † † † † † bellarm. de sanct. beat . l. . c. . p. . l. d. not. est ; quia ante christi adventum sancti qui moriebantur non intrabant in coelum , nec deum videbant , nec cognoscere poterant ordinarie preces supplicantium , ideo non fuisse consuetum in t. v. ut diceretur s. abraham ora pro me . see again c. . p. . l. b. sect. atque ex his duabus , collat . cum pag. . l. d. sect. alii dicunt . the same is suarez's opinion t. . in . d. th. disp . . sect. . p. . col . . l. e. quod autem aliquis directè oraverit sanctos defunctos ut se adjuvarent , vel pro se orarent , nusquam legimus . hic enim modus orandi est proprius legis gratiae , in quosancti videntes deum passunt etiam in eo videre orationes que ad ipsos funduntur . and this the common doctrine of their writers . † † † † † † this i before challeng'd the answerer to do , and he has not attempted it . bellarmin has but two within the first years . one of irenaeus mis-interpreted , and one of hilary , as little to the purpose . de sanct. beat . l. . c. . p. , . * * * * * * so cardinal perron himself repl. à la rep . du roy de la grande bretagne , liv . . cap. , . where he is forced to monsieur de meaux's shift of concluding from the following ages what he could not prove from the preceding ; and at last to confess freely , p. . quant aux autheurs plus proches du siecle apostolique , des quels la persecution nous a ravis la pluspart des ecrits , encore qu' il ne s'y trouve pas des vestiges de cette coutûme — ill suffit — qu'it ne se trouve rien en leurs ecrits de repugnant à l'eglise de . premiers conciles , pour ce regard . which is no more than monsieur de meaux himself insinuates , where to this very assertion of monsieur daillé's i have made use of , he has only this to say , that 't is not likely that monsieur daillé should at this distance understand the sentiments of the fathers of the first three centuries better than those of the next age did , expos. sect. . p. . all which he allow'd in express terms in his suppressed edition . see my collect. n. . p. xxiii . † † † † † † i shall mention but two ; st , that they constantly defined prayer , as due to god only : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , says basil. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , greg. nyssen . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , chrysostom . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , damascen &c. and , dly , that it was the great argument used by s. athanasius , and the other fathers of these times , to prove our saviour to be god , that he was prayed to . vindicat. p. . vindicat. p. . sub tuum praesidium consugimus s. dei genetrix ; nostras deprecationes ne despicias in necessitatibus , sed à periculis cunctis libera nos semper virgo gloriosa & benedicta . dignare me laudare te virgo sacrata ; da mihi virtutem contra hostes tuos . nos cum prole pia , benedicat virgo maria. alma redemptoris mater , quae pervia coeli porta manes , & stella maris , succurre cadenti surgere qui curat populo ; tu quae genuisti naturâ miran●…e tuum sanctum genitorem , virgo prius ac posterius , gabrielis ab ore sumens illud ave , peccatorum miserere . offic. b. v p. . maria mater gratiae , mater miserecordiae , tu nos ab hoste protege , & horâ mortis suscipe . ib. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ bellarm. l. . de sanct. beat . c. . p. . l. a. reflects upon calvin in these words . quintò ibidem dicit , nos rogare virginem ut filium jubeat facere quod petimus . at quis nostrum hoc dicit ? cur non probat ullo exemplo ? i before observed that cassander owns the prayer , consult . art. . and monsieur daillé assures us , that in the missal printed at paris but in the year . in libr. extrem . p. . it is still extant in these words ; o'foelix puerpera , nostra pians scelera , jure matris impera redemptori . da fidei foedera , da salutis opera , da in vitae vesperâ benè mori . and indeed however scrupulous bellarmine is of this matter , yet others among them make no doubt to say , that she does not only intreat her son as a suppliant , but command him as a mother . so peter damien , serm. . de nat. mariae , speaking to the virgin , tells her , accedis ante aureum illud humanae reconciliationis altare , non solùm rogans sed imperans . for so father crasset , who both cites and approves it , translates the passage ; thou comest before the golden altar of our reconciliation , not only as a servant that prays , but as a mother that commands . and albertus magnus , serm. . de laud. virg. pro salute famulantium sibi , non solùm potest filio supplicare , sed etiam potest authoritate maternâ eidem imperare . that for the salvation of those that serve her , the virgin cannot only intreat her son , but by the authority of a mother can command him. this father crasset proves from more of the like stuff , in his . part. trait . . qu. . p. , . concluding the whole with this admirable sentence ; eadem potestas est matris & filii , quae ab omni potente filio omnipotens facta est : the power of the mother and the son is the same , who by her omnipotent son , is made her self omnipotent . this is the last french divinity , approved by the society of the jesuits , published with the king's permission ; and espoused at a venture by monsieur de meaux in his epistle . ut queant laxis resonare fibris , mira gestorum famuli tuorum , solve polluti labii reatum , sancte johannes . vos saecli justi judices & vera mundi lumina , votis precamur cordium , audite preces supplicum . qui coelum verbo clauditis , serasque ejus solvitis , nos à peccatis omnibus solvite jussu quaesumus . quorum praecepto subditur salus & languor omnium , sanate aegros moribus , nos reddentes virtutibus . ut cum judex adveneric christus in fine saeculi , nos sempiterni gaudii , faciat esse compotes . ibid. p. . deus qui b. nicolaum pontificem innumeris decorasti miraculis , tribue quaesumus ut ejus meritis & precibus à gehennae incendiis liberemur . sacrificium nostrum tibi domine quaesumus b. andraei apostoli precatio sancta conciliet , ut in cujus honore solemniter exhibetur ejus meritis efficiatur acceptum . per. missale rom. fest. nov. p. . ut haec munera tibi domine accepta sint s. bathildis obtineant merita ; quae seipsam tibi hostiam vivam , sanctam & beneplacentem exhibuit . praestent nobis quaesumus sumpta sacrament a praesidium salutare , & intervenientibus b. martini confessoris tui atque pontificis meritis ab omnibus nos absolvant peccatis . see missale in usum sarum fol. . & . in fest. nov. vindicat. p. . ibid. p. . vindicat. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ pontific . ord. ad recip . processionaliter imperat . p. . col . si verò legatus apostolicus imperatorem reciperet , aut cum eo urbem intraret , vel alias secum iret vel equitaret , ille qui gladium imperatori praefert , & alius crucem legati portans simul ire debent . cr●● legati , quia debetur ●i latria , erit à dextris , & gladius imperatoris à ●inistria . † † † † † † thomas . p. q. . art . . utrum crux christi sit adoranda adoratione latriae ? conclus . crux christi in quâ christus crucifixus est , tum propter repraesentationem , tum propter membrorum christi contactum , latria adoranda est : crucis verò effigies in aliâ quâvis materiâ , priori tantùm ratione latria adoranda est. and in the body , unde utroque modo adoratur eâdem adoratione cum christo , scil . adoratione latria . vindicat. p. . page . pontificale de benedictione novae crucis . pag. . col . . † † † † † † rogamus te domine pater omnipotens sempiterne deus , ut digneris benedicere hoc lignum crucis tuae , ut sit remedium salutare generi humane ; sit soliditas fidei , bonorum operum profectus , & redemptio animarum ; sit solamen & protectio , & tutela contra saeva jacula inimicorum . per. * * * * * * ibid. p. . col . . sancti † ficetur istud lignum in nomine pa † tris , & fi † lii , & spiritus † sancti : et benedictio illius ligni in quo sancta membra salvatoris suspensa sunt , sit in isto ligno , ut orantes inclinantesque se [ propter deum ] ante istam crucem , inveniant corporis & animae fanitatem : per. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ tum pontifex flexis ante crucem , genibus ipsam devotè adorat & osculatur . * * * * * * ut sancti † fices tibi hoc signum crucis atque conse † cres : — illis ergo manibus hanc crucem accipe , quibus illam amplexus es ; & de sanctitate illius , hanc sancti † fica : & sicuti per illam mundus expiatus est à reatu , ita offerentium famulorum tuorum animae devotissimae , hujus crucis merito , omni careant perpetrato peccato . p. . * * * * * * tum pontifex flexis ante crucem genibus eam devotè adorat , & osculatur : idem faciunt quicunque alii voluerint . vindicat. p. . vindicat. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ note first , that in the office of the holy week , printed in latin & english at paris , , the title of this ceremony is , the adoration of the cross . pag. . * * * * * * missale rom. feria vi. in parasceve . p. . completis orationibus sacerdos depositâ casulâ accedit ad cornu epistolae , & ibi in posteriori parte anguli altaris , accipit à diacono crucem jam in altari praeparatam ; quam versâ facie ad populum à summitate parùm disco-operit , incipiens solus antiphonam , ecce lignum crucis , ac deinceps in reliquis juvatur in cantu à ministris usque ad venite adoremus . choro autem cantante , venite adoremus , omnes se prosternunt excepto celebrante . deinde procedit ad anteriorem partem anguli ejusdem cornu epistolae , & disco-operiens brachium dextrum crucis , elevansque eam paulisper , altiùs quàm primò incipit , ecce lignum crucis ; aliis cantantibus & adorantibus , ut supra . deinde sacerdos procedit ad medium altaris , & disco-operiens crucem totaliter , ac elevans eam , tertiò altiùs incipit , ecce lignum crucis , in quo salus mundi pependit , venite adoremus : aliis cantantibus & adorantibus ut supra . postea sacerdos folus portat crucem ad locum ante altare praeparatum , & genu flexus ibidem eam locat : mox depositis calceamentis accedit ad adorandam crucem ; ter genua flectens antequam eam deosculetur . hoc facto revertitur , & accipit calceamenta & casulam . postmodum ministri altaris , deinde alii clerici & laici , bini & bini , ter genibus flexis , ut dictum est , crucem adorant . interim dum fit adoratio crucis cantantur , &c. — deinde cantatur communiter annā : crucem tuam adoramus domine . p. . vindicat. p. . * * * * * * . p. q. . art . . p. . thus argues : illi exhibemus latriae cultum , in quo ponimus spem salutis , sed in cruce christi ponimus spem salutis , cantat enim ecclesia , o crux ave , &c. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vexilla regis prodeunt , fulget crucis mysterium , quo carne carnis condito● suspensus est patibulo . arbor decora & fulgida , ornata regis purpurâ , electa digno stipite , tam sancta membra tangere . beata cujus brachiis soecli pependit pretium . statera facta corporis , praedamque tulit tartari . o crux ave spes unica ! hoc passionis tempore , auge piis justitiam , reisque dona veniam . vid. breviar . rom. dom. passionis . p. , . the english translation in the office of the holy week , is this : o lovely and refulgent tree , adorned with purpled majestie ; cull'd from a worthy stock , to bear those limbs which sanctified were . blest tree , whose happy branches bore the wealth that did the world restore : hail cross of hopes the most sublime , now in this mourning passion time , improve religious souls in grace , the sins of criminals efface . pag. , . of reliques . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ con. tr. sess. . affirmantes sanctorum reliquiis venerationem atque honorem non deberi , damnandos esse . thom. . p. q. . art . . pag. . utrum reliquiae sanctorum sint adorandae ? conclus : cum sanctos dei veneremur , eorum quoque corpora & reliquias venerari oportet . sec. obj. stultum videtur rem insensibilem venerari . resp. ad secund . dicend . quod corpus illud insensibile non adoramus propter seipsum ; sed , &c. vasquez in . p. d. th. disp . . p. . proposes this question : an corpora & aliae sanctorum reliquiae venerandae sint ? to this he answers , c. . p. . apud catholicos veritas indubitata est , reliquias sanctorum , sive fuerint partes ipsorum , ut ossa , carnes , & cineres ; sive res aliae , quae ipsos tetigerunt , vel ad ipsos pertineant , adorandas & in honore sacra habendas esse . and again , disp. . c. . p. . cum ergo jam contra haereticos constitutum sit , reliquias esse adorandas , superest explicare quo genere cultûs & honoris eas venerari debeamus . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ response à un ecrit publié sur les miracles de la sainte espine . pag. , , — , &c. cited by monsieur daillé . vindicat. p. . * * * * * * ita ut affirmantes sanctorum reliquiis venerationem atque honorem non deberi , vel eas aliáque sacra monumenta inutiliter honorari , atque eorum opis impetrandae causâ memorias sanctorum frustra frequentari , omnino damnandos esse . vindicat. p. . vindicat. p. . * * * * * * pag. . the very beginning of the homily : because all men be sinners and offenders against god , &c. no man can by his own acts , &c. be justified or made righteous before god : but every man is constrain'd to seek for another righteousness or justification to be received at god's hands , i. e. the forgiveness of his sins and trespasses in such things as he hath offended . edit . oxon. . † † † † † † justificatio , non est sola peccatorum remissio , sed & sanctificatio & renovatio interioris hominis . c. tr. sess. vi . c. . p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ siquis dixerit , homines justificari vel solâ imputatione justitiae christi , vel solâ peccatorum remissione exclusâ gratiâ & charitate quae in cordibus eorum per spiritum s. diffundatur , atque illis inhaereat ; aut etiam gratiam quâ justificamur esse tantùm favorem dei , anathema sit . can. . sess. vi . * * * * * * siquis dixerit hominis justificati bona opera ita esse dona dei , ut non sint etiam bona ipsius justificati merita ; aut ipsum justificatum bonis operibus quae ab eo per dei gratiam , & jesu christi meritum , cujus vivum membrum est , fuerit , non verè mereri augmentum gratiae , vitam aeternam , & ipsius vitae aeternae , si tamen in gratiâ decesserit , consecutionem , atque etiam gloriae augmentum , anathema sit . vindicat. p. . concil . trid. sess. vi . can. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ maldon . in ezek. . . p. . ex hoc loco perspicuum est aliquam esse nostram , ut vocant , inherentem propriámque justitiam , quamvis ex dei gratiâ , & largitate profectam : & nos tam proprie & verè , cum gratiâ dei benè agentes praemia mereri , quàm sine illâ malè agentes supplicia mereamur . † † † † † † de justis . l. . c. . opera bona justorum meritoria esse ex condigno , non solùm ratione pacti , sed etiam ratione operum . * * * * * * meritum ex condigno tribus modis variari potest . nam si fortè opus aliquod sit multò inferius mercede ex conventione promissâ , ut si dominus vineae conduceret operarios , & non denarium diurnum , sed centum aureos promercede promitteret , esset ejusmodi meritum ex condigne ratione pacti , non operis . p. . l. b. x x x x x x opera justorum esse bonae verè & propriè , sed non tan excellentia ut proportionem habeant cum vitâ aeternâ . et ideò acceptari quidem à deo ad justam & dignam mercedē vitae aeternae , sed ex pacto & promissione non ex operis dignitate . p. . l. a ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ si opus sit revera aequale mercedi , vel etiam majus , sed conventio nulla intervenerit . * * * * * * opera bona justorum esse meritoria vitae aeternae ex condigno ratione operis , etiamsi nulla extaret divina conventio . p. . d. † † † † † † si & pactum intercedat , & opus sit verè par mercedi ; ut cum operarii ad vineam conducuntur pro denario diurno , id meritum erit ex condigno ratione operis & ratione pacti : and he explains it thus , p. . l. b. non quidem quòd sine pacto , vel acceptatione non habeat opus bonum proportionem ad vitam aeternam ; sed quia non tenetur deus acceptare ad illam mercedem opus bonum , quamvis par & aequale mercedi nisi conventio interveniat . quam sententiam conformem esse non dubitamus concilio tridentino , &c. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vasquez in , dae . q. . d. . c. . p. . jam verò hâc nostrâ aetate non pauci theologiae professores mediam quandam viam elegerunt , inter scoti opinionem quam primo cap. memoravimus , & aliorum sententiam quam nos ut veram inferius probabimus . dicunt ergo rationem meriti perfecti & condigni , quod simpliciter meritum dicitur , duobus compleri , nempe & dignitate operis , & promissione mercedis : which was bellarmine's opinion . * * * * * * pag. . the first is that of c. . p. . bona opera justorum , absque ull● acceptatione & pacto , ex se habere dignitatem vitae aeternae . this is against scotus and the hereticks , whose doctrine he thus represents : opera bona necessaria esse ad vitam aeternam ; ita tamen ut ipsa justorum opera non sint digna remuneratione vitae aeternae , nisi deus benignitute suâ dignaretur illa remunerare . scotus's opinion he puts down thus , c. . p. . opera justorum ex se spectata , quatenus procedunt ex auxilio gratiae dei , & positâ sanctitate animae , per quam spiritus s. in justis habitat ; non habere condignitatem & rationem meriti vitae aeternae , sed totam dignitatem , & totam rationem meriti habere petitam ex promissione & pacto dei. the second conclusion , c. . p. . is this : operibus justorum nullum dignitatis accrementum provenire ex meritis aut personâ christi , quod alias eadem non haberent , si fierent ex eâdem gratiâ à sobo deo liberaliter sine christo collata . the third ; which the vindicator pretends he could not find , tho the title and subject of the very next , c. . p. . is ; operibus justorum aocessisse quidem divinam promissionem , eam tamen nullo modo pertinere ad rationem meriti , sed potiùs advenire operibus , non tantum jam dignis , sed etiam jam meritoriis . as for the conclusion , wherein the vindicator endeavours to excuse him , it is this : first he supposes the merits of christ to have obtain'd grace for us , whereby we may be enabled to work out our salvation ; and then this supposed , he affirms , that we have no more need of christ's merits to supply our defects , but that our own good works are of themselves sufficient , without any more imputation of his righteousness . see this at large , q. . art . . d. . c. . n. , . p. . † † † † † † see disp . . c. , . p. , &c. † † † † † † conc. trid. sess. . cap. . can. . vindicat. pag. , . * * * * * * lib. . de purg . c. . to this objection , si applicatur nobis per nostra opera christi satisfactio , vel sunt duae satisfactiones simul junctae , una christi , altera nostra , vel una tantùm . resp. p. . after two other manners of explication , he adds ; tertius tamen modus videtur probabilior , quòd una tantùm sit actualis satisfactio , eáque nostra . neque hinc excluditur christus , vel satisfactio ejus ; nam per ejus satisfactionem habemus gratiam unde satisfaciamus ; & hoc modo dicitur applicari nobis christi satisfactio ; non quòd immediatè ipsa ejus satisfactio tollat poenam temporalem nobis debitam , sed quòd mediatè eam tollat , quatenus , viz. ab eâ gratiam habemus sine quâ nihil valeret nostra satisfactio . * * * * * * as to the point of satisfaction , belarmine distinguishes between a satisfaction to justice , and a satisfaction to friendship : and then concludes ; cum homines peccant in deum , amicitiam simul & justitiam violant . as to the former , non potest homo deo satisfacere , &c. p. . the question is , de satisfactione quâ justitiae restauretur aequalitas . and because he supposes that the guilt being remitted , and we received into friendship with god , the eternity is thereby taken from the pain , the question amounts to thus much ; an satisfacere possint homines pro expiando reatu illius poenae qui interdum remanet post remissionem culpae ? and whether those works by which it is done ; sint dicenda propriè satisfactoria ita ut nos dicamur verè ac propriè domino satisfacere . now both these he affirms , and explicates the latter from the council thus , c. . de poenit . lib. . p. . l. c. per opera illa poenalia de quibus hàctenus locuti sumus verè ac propriè domino satisfieri pro reatu poenae , qui post culpam dimissam remanet expiandus . † † † † † † i shall instance only in vasquez , in p. d. . c. . p. . first he lays down the opinion of several of the schoolmen , alex. d' ales , ricardus , ruardus tapperus , &c. who held , that a meer man might condignly satisfy for his own sins . this he rejects , because he supposes it cannot be done without god's assisting grace , to which we forfeited all right by sin : and so it will follow ; nostram satisfactionem pro peccato proprio perfectam non esse , ex eo quòd fiat non ex propriis sed ex acceptis , p. . c. . n. . but now , secondly , god's grace being supposed , he concludes as to mortal sins , c. . p. . n. . nos reipsa nunc satisfacere deo pro nostro peccato & offensâ . he tells us , that some indeed allow that our contrition may be called a satisfaction , tho not a sufficient one , n. . nam qui pro compensatione exhibet id quod potest ; licet minus sufficiens illud sit , dicitur aliquo modo satisfacere . this reason vasqutz dislikes ; he is content this satisfaction should be called minus sufficiens ; but then only upon the account before mentioned , of its proceeding from the grace of god : so that , si contritio praecederet infusionem gratiae habitualis ex parte efficientis , non solùm satisfaceret pro maculâ peccati condignè , sed etiam condignè mereretur gratiae habitualis infusionem . and this he expounds as the doctrine of the council of trent , n. , , p. . as for venial sins , disp. . c. . p. . ita concedimus ( says he ) homini justo pro suo peccato veniali condignam & perfectam satisfactionem , ut ea non indigeat favore dei condonantis peccatum , vel aliquid illius , aut acceptantis satisfactionem , sed talis sit ut ex naturâ suâ deleat maculam & poenam peccati venialis . vindicat. p. . vindicat. p. . † † † † † † this bull is dated august . . and it runs thus : we give and grant , by virtue of the presents , a plenary indulgence , and intire remission of all sins . and that the confessors absolve them in the court of conscience of all sins , excesses , crimes and faults , how grievous or enormous soever they have been , and in what fashion soever they were reserved . and for all this , the condition proposed is , to visit some one of the churches appointed by the ordinary , to fast the wednesday , friday , and saturday ; to confess their sins , and receive the sacrament , and give somewhat to the poor . and this the a. b. of paris promises the people , in his instructions for the jubilee , shall restore them to the same state they were first put into by baptism . instructions pour gagner le jubilé , pag. . paris , . par ordre de monseigneur l' archeveque . vindicat. p. . notes for div a -e vindicat. p. . vindicat. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ pag. , &c. a. bp bramhall ' s works , tom. . disc. . p. . m. de meaux ' s exp. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ first we have cassander , libr. de baptismo infant . p. . and he there cites of his side jo. gerson , serm. in nat. b. mariae , par . . preached before the council of constance , and all the fathers there assembled , p. . gabriel biel in . dist . . q. . cajetan in . p. d. th. q. . art . , , . tilmannus segebergensis de sacram. c. . art . . * * * * * * grot. via ad pacem , p. . in art . . consult . cassandr . adds to these , inter veteres , scriptorem quaestionum ad antiochum quae athanasio tribuuntur ; nazianzenum de s. baptismate , duobus locis ; & scholiastem ejus nicetam : * * * * * * sed & ipsum augustinum antequam in certamine cum pelagio incalesceret , l. . de lib. arb . c. . locum joan. . intelligendum de iis qui possunt & contemnunt baptizari , asserit lombard . l. . dist . . vindicat. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ so estius in . sent. dist . . §. . p. . * * * * * * so the same estius proves from the council of florence ; in quo , says he , legitur quòd loco illius manùs impositionis per quam apostoli dabant spiritum s. in ecclesiâ datur confirmatio , cujus materia est chrisma . ex quibus verbis utrumque colligitur , & initio necessariam fuisse manuum impositionem sacramenti necessitate , & eandem ejus necessitatem , signaculo chrismatis introducto , cessâsse . vindicat. p. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . vindicat. p. . * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 answers to the hebrew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and signifies all sorts of infirmities : and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , is no unheard of phrase for being lame . mark . . vindicat. p. . tim. . . tim. . . vindicat. p. , — . nec ex verbis , nec ex effectu , verba haec loquuntur de sacramentali unctione extremae unctionis : sed magis de unctione quam instituit dominus jesus , à discipulis exercendam in aegrotis . cajet . annot. in loc. the same is in effect the prayer of the greek church : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 euch. p. . nor is it much different in that publish'd by thomasius , as p. gelasius's ritual , before p. gregories , upon the same day , p. . only that he generally joins mentis & corporis . s. james . , . instead of this , arcudius gives us this form out of a very ancient manuscript in the greek church : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. and in another office ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . arcudius de sac. ext. unct. p. . and the prayers in the office of the euchelaion are all exactly conformable , to what i have here observed . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ see the hymn , cassandr oper. p. . * * * * * * arcud . de sacram . extr. unct. l. . c. . de formâ hujus sacramenti . † † † † † † cassander . oper. p. . where he also cites cusanus for the same remark . vindicat. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ cassand . consult . art. . de num . sacram . in fine . de matrimonio verò non modò p. lombardus negavit in eo gratiam conferri , sed longè post eum durandus disertè inquit , non esse matrimonium univocè sacramentum sicut alia sacramenta novae legis , nam nec conferre gratiam non habenti , nec augere habenti ; non esse itaque sacramentum propriè ac strictè dictum . † † † † † † lib. . d. . l. c. p. . fuit tamen conjugium ante peccatum institutum , non utique propter remedium , sed ad sacramentum . et d. . l. a. cum alia sacramenta post peccatum & propter peccatum exordium sumpserint , matrimonii sacramentum etiam ante peccatum legitur institutum à domino . * * * * * * sent. d. . q. . † † † † † † for his torrent of fathers , bellarmine has been able to collect but six or seven , of which not one to the purpose , nor any very ancient : and for the scriptures , estius one of the wisest of their own party , is forced to confess ; cum igitur hujus doctrinae non poffit ex scripturis haberi probatio , saltem aperta & evidens ; consequens est articulum hunc , matrimonii sacramento gratiam conferri , unum esse ex traditionibus ecclesiae non scriptis , & ad verbum dei non scriptum sed traditum pertinere . sent. d. . §. . p. . vindicat. p. . vindicat. p. . ibid. pag. , . expos. ch. of eng. p. . vindicat. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ this is the pretence of mr. arnauld , and at large refuted by mr. claude in his answer to him ; whose works being in english , i shall refer the reader , who desires to see the vanity of this argument exposed , to what he has there said . * * * * * * de euch. l. . c. . p. . l. d. speaking of carolstrad's opinion of the eucharist ; scripsit , says he , verba evangelistae , hoc est corpus meum , hunc facere sensum , hic panis est corpus meum , quae sententia aut accipi debet tropicè , ut panis sit corpus christi significativè , aut est planè absurda & impossibilis , nec enim fieri potest , ut panis sit corpus christi . et l. . c. . p. . non potest fieri ut vera sit propositio in qui subjectum supponit pro pane , praedicatum autem pro corpore christi , &c. † † † † † † hoc est impossibile quòd panis sit corpus christi : de consecrat . d. . c. . p. . in gloss. * * * * * * in the aethiopian church they give the holy eucharist with this explication , hic panis est corpus meum . ludolphi hist. l. . c. . n. . † † † † † † bellarm. de euchar. l. . c. . p. . lit. d. dominus accepit in manibus panem , eumque benedixit , & dedit discipulis & de eo ait , hoc est corpus meum . itaque panem accepit , panem benedixit , panem dedit , & de pane dixit , hoc est corpus meum . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ id. l. . c. . p. . lit. b. siquis digito aliquid ostendat , dum pronomen effert , valdè absurdum videtur dicere pronomine illo non demonstrari rem praesentem . atqui dominus accepit panem , & illum porrigens ait , hoc est corpus meum ; videtur igitur demonstravisse panem . neque obstat quòd propositio non significat nisi in fine totius prolationis . nam etsi ita est de propositione quae est oratio quaedam , tamen demonstrativa pronomina mox indicant certum aliquid , etiam antequam sequantur caeterae voces . et sanè in illis verbis , bibite ex hoc omnes , valdè durum est non demonstrari , i d. quod erat , sed i d. tantùm quod futurum erat . vind. p. . vindicat. p. , , , . see the church catechism . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ article . * * * * * * article . * * * * * * see the appendix . n. v. in which st. chrysostom gives the very same account of it . † † † † † † rubrick at the end of the communion office. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vindicat. p. , . that this exposition is agreeable to the doctrine of the ch. of england , the authorities already cited , shew . see also the homily concerning the sacrament , part . p. . &c. and the same is the explication , which all the other protestant confessions have given of it ; as is evident by the collation of them made by bishop cosins , in his history of transubstantiation , cap. . where he has set down their words at large , p. . &c. † † † † † † vindic. p. . * * * * * * ibid. p. . vind. p. , . ibid. p. . sess. . can. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ can. . vindic. p. . see suarez cited below . vindic. p. . † † † † † † vind. p. . lombard . l. . d. . lit . a. p. . de modis conversionis . si autem quaeritur qualis sit illa conversio , an formalis , an substantialis , vel alterius generis , definire non sustineo : quibusdam esse videtur substantialis , &c. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ dicendum , says scotus , quod ecclesia declaravit istum intellectum esse de veritate fidei . si quaeras , quare voluit ecclesia eligere istum intellectum ita difficilem hujus articuli , cum verba scripturae possint salvari secundum intellectum facilem , & veriorem secundum apparentiam ; dico quod eo spiritu expositae sunt scripturae , quo conditae . see . sent. d. . q. . p. . * * * * * * and before , in sect. quantum ergo , he profess'd , principaliter autem videtur me movere quod sic tenet romana ecclesia . in a word , bellarmine himself cites scotus for this opinion : non extare locum ullum scripturae , tam expressum , ut sine ecclesiae declaratione evidenter cogat transubstantiationem admittere , bell. de euch. l. . c. . p. . l. d. † † † † † † and again , p. . l. a. unum tamen addit scotus , quod minime probandum est , ante lateranense concilium non fuisse dogma fidei transubstantiationem . vind. p. . * * * * * * suarez in part . d. th. vol. . disp . . § . p. . sacramentum eucharistiae conficitur per veram conversionem panis & vini in corpus & sanguinem christi . haec assertio est de fide : nam licet sub his verbis non habeatur in scriptura , ea tamen docet ecclesia ab apostolis edocta ; docens simul ita esse intelligenda verba formae , & in vero sensu eorum hanc veritatem contineri . and then p. . col . . adds , . . ex hac fidei doctrina , colligitur corrigendos esse scholasticos qui hanc doctrinam de conversione hac , seu de transubstantiatione , non admodum antiquam esse dixerunt , inter quos sunt scotus & gabriel biel , lect . . in can. &c. and then , do infero , siquis confiteatur praesentiam corporis christi , & absentiam panis , neget tamen veram conversionem unius in aliud , in haeresin labi , quia ecclesia catholica , non solum duo priora , sed etiam hoc tertium definit ac docet . vind. p. . cajetan in . d. th. q. . art . . p. . col. . in comment . circa praesentis & sequentium articulorum doctrinam , pro claritate & ampliori intellectu difficultatum , sciendum est ex autoritate s. scripturae de existentia corporis christi in sacramento eucharistiae , nihil aliud haberi expresse , nisi verbum salvatoris dicentis , hoc est corpus meum : oportet enim verba haec vera esse . et quoniam verba sacrae scripturae , exponuntur dupliciter , vel proprie vel metaphorice ; primus error circa hoc fuit interpretantium haec domini verba metaphorice ; quem magister sent. l. . d. . tractat. qui & hoc articulo reprobatur . et consistit vis reprobationis in hoc , quod verba domini intellecta sunt ab ecclesia proprie , & propterea oportet illa verificari proprie habemus igitur ex veritate verborum domini in sensu proprio , &c. cited by the vindicator . vind. p. . vindic. p. . see p. . vind. p. , . vindic. p. . * * * * * * canon . . siquis dixerit in missa non offerri deo verum & proprium sacrificium , aut quod offerri non sit aliud , quam nobis christum ad manducandum dari , anathema sit . * * * * * * canon . . siquis dixerit missae sacrificium tantum esse laudis & gratiarum actionis , aut nudam commemorationem sacrificii in cruce peracti , non autem propitiatorium , vel soliprodesse sumenti , neque pro vivis & defunctis , pro peccatis , poenis , satisfactionibus , & aliis necessitatibus offerri debere , anathema sit . concil . trid. sess. . p. . de missa . † † † † † † ibid. cap. . p. . una eademque est hostia , idem nunc offerens sacerdotum ministerio qui seipsum tunc in cruce obtulit , sola offerendi ratione diversa . vindicat. ib. † † † † † † in the ordering of priests , when the bishop imposes his hands , be bids him be a faithful dispenser of the word of god , and of his holy sacraments : and again , when he delivers him the bible , take thou authority to preach the word of god , and to minister the holy sacraments , &c. sparrow collect. p. . vindic. p. . vindicat. p. , . mr. de m's expos . p. . vind. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ sacrificium verum & reale , veram & realem occisionem exigit , quando in occisione ponitur essentia sacrificii . bellarm. de miss . l. . cap. . p. . a. vindicat. p. . rubrick about kneeling at the end of the communion . vindicat. p. . see art. . sparrow ' s collect . pag. , and . see sparrow ' s collect. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ note , that this order of communion was the first thing of this kind that was done after the reformation ; the mass was yet left remaining ; and edward the th afterwards published two other books , in which were considerable alterations , and where there is no mention of any thing of this kind . sparrow ' s collect . p. . concil . trid. sess. . can. , . notes for div a -e vindic. p. . vind. ibid. vind. p. : vind. p. . vind. p. matt. . . vind. p. . ibid. p. . see article . sozomen eccl. hist. lib. . cap. . vindic. p. . vindic. p. . vindic. p. . vind. p. . amicable accommodation . vindicat. p. , . see the words of his majesty's brief . see that and a vindication of it by the secular priests an. . published with some other pieces in a collection called , the jesuits loyalty . to . vindicat. p. . * * * * * * impius & imperitus lutheranorum & calvinistarum error est , nullum nisi deo religionis honorem tribuentium . maldonat in matt. . . pag. . b. index expurgat . in athanas . adorari solius dei est ; creatura nulla adoranda est . dele . pag. . vind. p. , . * * * * * * speaking of s. bernard , he concludes , c'est de cettegrande verité qu'il conclut que nous sommes obligez indispensablement de l'honorer & de la prier ; quia sic est voluntas dei , qui totum nos habere voluit per mariam . il veut que nous ayons par marie la grace & la gloire : and p. . il veut que tous les hommes soient sauvéz par les merites du fils & par l' intercession de la mere ; d' autant que dieu a resolu de ne nous faire aucune grace qui ne passe par les maines de marie . comme on ne peut estre sauvé sans grace , il faut dire qu'on ne le peut estre que par marie , qui est le canal de toutes les graces qui descendent du ciel en terre . * crasset . p. , . † † † † † † mandat s. synodus omnibus episcopis , & caeteris docendi munus curamque sustinentibus , ut — de sanctorum — invocatione fideles diligenter instruant ; docentes eos , sanctos una cum christo regnantes orationes suas pro hominibus deo offerre : bonum atque utile esse suppliciter eos invocare ; & ob beneficia impetranda a deo per fi●ium ejus jesum christum , ad eorum orationes , opem , auxiliumque confugere . p. , . concil . trid. self . . c. de invocatione , &c. ss . * * * * * * ord. commend . animae . p. . monsieur de meaux , p. . vind. ib. vindicat. p. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ imagines christi & sanctorum venerandae sunt non solùm per accidens vel improprie , sed etiam per se & proprie ; ita ut ipsae terminent venerationem ut in se considerantur , & non solum ut vicem gerunt exemplaris . bellarm. de imag. l. . p. . * * * * * * pont. rom. p. . see above , p. , , . pontific . see above , art . p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ missal . rom. feria vi. in parascev . p. . see article . above , ib. * * * * * * pontificale de benedictione novae crucis , p. . see above in the consecration of a new cross. art. . p. , . vindicat. p. . expos. m. de m. p. . id. p. . vind. p. . vindicat. ib. p. . mons. de meaux expos. p. , . † † † † † † thom. . par . qu. . art. . p. . see above p. , . thomas . vasquez in part . d. tho. disp . . p. . vasques , see above , art. . p. . vind. p. . p. . vind. ib. p. . vind. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ita ut affirmantes sanctorum reliquiis venerationem atque honorem non deberi , vel eas aliaque sacra monumenta à fidelibus inutiliter honorari , atque eorum opis impetrandae causa , sanctorum memorias frustra frequentari , omnino damnandi sunt , p. , . concil . trid. sess. . c. de invocat . &c. * * * * * * conc. trid. sess. . cap. . p. . concil . trid. concil . trid. ib. see above , art. . p. . * * * * * * see above , art. . p. . conc. trid. sess. . c. . vind. p. . maldonat . in ezek. , . p. . bellarmin . de justificatione lib. . cap. . bellarmin . see art . . above . vasquez in d. th. ae . q. . disp . . p. . art. . p. , . vasquez ibid. p. . &c. vasquez , see above l. c. expos. m. de m. p. . ib. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ bellarm. de poenit. lib. . cap. . see above , art. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ bellarm. lib. . de purgat . cap. . id. ib. art. . vasquez in part disp . . see above , art. . vasquez above , l. c. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ quidam asserunt , nos proprie non satisfacere , sed solum facere aliquid cujus intuitu deus applicat nobis christi satisfactionem : quae sententia erronea mihi videtur . bellarm. de purg. l. . c. . p. . a. b. vindicat. p. , . m. de m. expos. p. . bellarm. de indulgentiis lib. . cap. . p. . ibid. cap. . ibid. c. . p. , . ibid. c. . p. . papist represent , n. viii . p. . m. de m. expos. § . p. . * * * * * * concil . trid. sess. . can. . &c. p. . & ibid. c. . p. . conc. trent . art. . † † † † † † verum & reale sacrificium , veram & realem mortem aut destructionem rei immolatae desiderat . bell. de missa l. . c. . p. . c. vel in missa fit vera & realis christi mactatio , & occisio , vel non fit : si non fit , non est verum & reale sacrificium missa : sacrificium enim verum & reale , veram & realem occisionem exigit , quando in occisione ponitur essentia sacrificii . . a. and again , per consecrationem res quae offertur , ad veram , realem , & externam mutationem & destructionem ordinatur , quod erat necessarium ad rationem sacrificii . ib. i. d. sect. tertio . bellarmin . bellarmin . vindicat. pag. . vindicat. ibid. p. . concil . trid. jur. pii ti p. xliv . in fine . si dominus temporatis requisitus & monitus ab ecclesia , terram suam purgare neglexerit , ab haeretica foeditate . excommunicationis vinculo innodetur . et si satisfacere contempserit infra annum , significetur hoc summo pontifici , ut ex tunc , ipse vassallos ab ejus fidelitate denuntiet absolutos , & terram exponat catholicis occupandam . — salvo jure domini principalis , dummodo super hoc ipse nullum praestet obstaculum , nec aliquod impedimentum opponat : eadem nihil ominus lege servata circa eos qui non habent dominos principales . concil . later . . can. . de haeret. p. . expos. monsieur de meaux . p. . vindic. p. , &c. cor. . . matt. . . notes for div a -e page . p● . trait . . q. . page . page , . page . page . ibid. page , . page . page . page . page . ib. . ib. . ib. . page . page . page . page . part. pag. . pag. . pag. . pag. . pag. . ibid. pag. . pag. . pag. . pag. . pag. . * * * * * * in his letter below n. . † † † † † † reflexions sur le preservatif , &c. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ le janseniste convaincu de vairie sophistiquerie . article . pag. . &c. notes for div a -e avertissement de l' edit . françoise , mo . paris . pag. . see card. bona's answer to card. buillon . oper. tom. . tom. . pag. . see especially c. . p. . &c. see his will in the beginning of the . tome . * * * * * * see the procéz verbal de 〈◊〉 assembleé extraordinaire des messeigneurs l' archevêques & evêques en mars & may . mr. de meaux himself was one of this assembly , and signed with the rest the report of the a. b. of reims , in which there is abundantly sufficient to shew how repugnant his holiness's proceedings were to the doctrine of the exposition , approved by him at the very same time that he was engaged in these attempts so contrary to it . i know not whether it be worth the observing , that the very same day the pope sent his complementing brief to monsieur de meaux , in approbation of his exposition ; he sent another to the bishop of pamiéz , to approve his defending the rights of his church , against the king : which was judg'd in the assembly , of which mr. de meaux was one , to be an interposing in an affair , which neither the holy councils nor fathers had given him any authority to meddle with . notes for div a -e * * * * * * an answer to monsieur de maux's exposition , intituled , preservatif contre le changement de religion . pages in to . vindicat. p. . cet imbert est un homme sans sçavoir , qui crût justifier ses extravagances - en nommant mon exposition , &c. notes for div a -e * * * * * * see mr bigot's preface below . godefry vie de s. athanase , livre ii. cap. . ex basil. ep. . socrat. eccles. hist. lib. . cap . calvisii chronol . pag. . an . . sozomen . eccl. hist. lib. . c. . see epiphan . haer. . theophilus l. . paschal . vincen. lirin . lib. adv . prof . novationes . quid illo praestantius acumine , exercitatione , doctrinâ ? quam multas ille haereses multis voluminibus oppresserit , quot inimicos fidei confutaverit errores , indicio est opus illud non minus librorum , nobilissimum & maximum , quo insanas porphyrii calumnias , magnâ probationum mole confudit . longum est universa ipsius opera commemorare , quibus profectò summis aedificatoribus . ecclesiae par esse potuisset , nisi profanâ illâ haereticae curiositatis libidine , novum nescio quod adinvenisset , quo & cunctos labores suos , velut cujusdam leprae admixtione , foedaret , & committeret , ut doctrina ejus non tam aedificatio , quam tentatio potiùs ecclesiastica diceretur . * * * * * * ruffin . lib. . cap. . † † † † † † sozomen lib. . c. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ petavius saies it was for keeping too much company with the heathen epiphanius . see dogm . theol. t. . l. . p . c. . * * * * * * theodoret : eccles. hist. l. c. . epiphan . haer. . * * * * * * godefry places it an. . see bals. zon. com . in can . concil . oec . secundi . see this letter in epiphan . haeres . . see this council in labbe's collection , t. . p. . vid. binnii not . loc . cit . photii bibl . in eulogio p. . comment . in conc. . oecumen . can . . theodoret. haeres . fabul . l . c. . theodoret. haeres . fab. l. . c. . & epist. . de arrio , & eu●… . socrates hist. eccl. l. . c. . vincent . lirinens . adv . haeres . c. . epiphan . haeres . . theodoret. eccles . hist. l. . cap. . greg. naz. orat . . p. . &c. theodoret. haeretic . fab. l. . c. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , eutyches , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . naz. orat . . supr . dict . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , apollinarius , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . pag. . see petav. dogm . theolog. tom. . l. . c. . pag. . §. . † † † † † † apollinarius by st. chrysostom , eutyches by others . see below . ☜ * * * * * * see most of these cited by albertinus , de eucharist . l. . pag. . in chrysostomo , c. . † † † † † † nouet de la presence de jesus christ dans les tres saint sacrement , liv . . c. . art . p. . see this argument managed by monsieur claude , rep. à pere nouet . partie . c. . p. . ann. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ lovanii confutatio cavillationum , &c. ad obj. . † † † † † † libr. . de euchar. cap. . vasquez dis . . c. . n. . valentia de transub . cap. . §. similiter . excusari posse , quòd nec transubstantiatio ejus temporibus ita perspicuè tradita & explicata fuerat , sicut hodiè . see albertinus de euch. p. . l. . supr . cit . * * * * * * perron de 〈◊〉 eucharistie . p. , , . expostulatio . pag. iii. s. anastasii in hexaëmeron lib. . cui praemissia est expostulatio &c. lond. . . tom. . praefat. lit i , ij . pag. prior . inter lin . , & . * * * * * * lit. i , ij . pag. altera . * * * * * * lit. i. iij. * * * * * * lit. i. iij. pag. altera . * * * * * * praeter authores à bigotio laudatos , unde fragmenta graeca hujus epistolae collegit vir eruditissimus ; extat alius nicephori liber ms. in biblioth . colbert . continens quinque diversos tractatus . ex secundo eorum contra mamonas quaedam collegit , & mecum communicavit reverendus d. p. alix . titulus autem in illo ms. ita se habet , pag. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . paulò aliter legitur hic titulus in antiquo codice bibliothecae arundelianae à r. d. d. cave in chartoph . eccles. nuper edito , p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. uti in ms. colbert . pag. . lit . gg. part . alt . folii ed. paris . anastas . in ms. colleg. clarom . nicephor . c. p. in antirrhet . ms. bibl. colbert . * * * * * * alludit ad hunc locum vetus author contra severianos & acephalos , à turriano editus , bibl. patr. edit . . tom. . ad fin . ubi post laudarum quendam ambrosii locum , subdit , chrysostomus ad caesarium monachum . haec est haeresis ipsissima introduceritium mixtionem & compositionem . vid. expostulationem p. x. var. lect . ms. m. † † † † † † locus hic corruptus videtur : quid si legamus 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vel 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ut sensus sit , istud admiraberis , vel potius , istud admirari debuisses insani apollinaris absurdum ; haec quippe est haeresis ipsissima , &c. pag. . edit . paris . gg. iij. ms. m. anastas . in ms. clarom . nicephor . anastas . joan. damascen . to. iv. var. lect . canisii . p. . * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 theorianus in legatione ad armenios . p. . ms. m. ms. m. t t t t t t 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . anast. nicephorus . * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 deest in ms. a. † † † † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ms. c. ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ms. a. ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ib. deest . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 deest in a. † † † † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ib. * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ib. ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 pro 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , ib. in ms collect . biblioth . reg . gall. n. . p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ib. edit . paris . p. . b b b b b b n. a a a a a a pter . c c c c c c lachrymas : lachrymabimur . b b b b b b n. c c c c c c lachrymas : lachrymabimur . d d d d d d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . e e e e e e haeredicorum . f f f f f f ammirabilem . g g g g g g proculerit . h h h h h h optime . i i i i i i concursum essentialem sacrum facta ex divinitate & carnis unam autem ex hoc perfici naturam . a a a a a a contemplationem . b b b b b b 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . c c c c c c intentioque . d d d d d d et deest . d d d d d d et deest . e e e e e e emaginatur . f f f f f f 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . g g g g g g opinionem & qua apollinaris & eorum qui synusiaste dicuntur ipsa cogitatio assiduae puris , &c. a a a a a a ms. m. doctoris . b b b b b b dico , abest . c c c c c c et si . d d d d d d misterium . e e e e e e male. f f f f f f ereticum . * * * * * * edit . paris . pag. . g g g g g g dominum . a a a a a a nature . b b b b b b in firmum . c c c c c c meum . d d d d d d ē xūm dn ] e e e e e e im-passibilis , deficit i● , spatio tamen relicto ubi olim fuerit . f f f f f f xpo. & inū . & dnō . g g g g g g susceptibili avarum ] ms. m. a a a a a a xp● unos autem . ] b b b b b b uti oportet , deest . c c c c c c dm . d d d d d d cogitationem . * * * * * * edit . paris . pag. . e e e e e e et immane sed . ] * * * * * * sic videtur legendum ; & in manetis , & in aliorum haeresum declinâsti impietatem . si iterum , &c. f f f f f f haeresum . † † † † † † forte melius carnis . ms. d. le moyne . g g g g g g dns. joan. . . h h h h h h dō . ms. m. a a a a a a neque enim ex inhabitanti defraudabatur deitare ] b b b b b b ds . c c c c c c est christus , martyrl . c. in tract . de euchar. oxon. ms. m. b b b b b b ds . d d d d d d dns . e e e e e e etiam si . f f f f f f consubstantialiter martyr . g g g g g g ms m. et unaquaeque in quo mixtam proprietatis conservat agnitionem propter hoc quod inconfusa sunt duo . ] h h h h h h incommixta . martyr . ib. i i i i i i inconfusa sint duo . id. ☞ k k k k k k ms. m. scificetur . * * * * * * edit . paris . pag. . l l l l l l scificante grā . id. m m m m m m ab appellatiōne . ibid. ms m xps . a a a a a a dominicae . b b b b b b unus , c c c c c c praedicamus . * * * * * * hic martyr loc . cit . haec . totum hunc locum post turrianum in edit . damasceni , sic citat albertinus de euch. l. . p. . sic & hic divinâ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 insidente corpori natura , &c. d d d d d d 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . e e e e e e sibimet ipsi unirique . ] a a a a a a xpo. * * * * * * quae sequuntur extant apud jo. damascenum . b b b b b b nam . c c c c c c dicunt que . d d d d d d omni modo . * * * * * * edit . paris . pag. . lit . hh. e e e e e e ds. f f f f f f volunt xpi . a a a a a a vituperari . b b b b b b xps . c c c c c c ds. d d d d d d unitatem . e e e e e e prenientes . joan. . . f f f f f f speculaneorum . g g g g g g qui. cor. . . h h h h h h dnm. i i i i i i significat . * * * * * * edit . paris . pag. . k k k k k k di. ms. d. le moyne . a a a a a a piae . b b b b b b ea deest . c c c c c c unum corpus . d d d d d d eti . e e e e e e invenientes . f f f f f f pmissis . g g g g g g contremescent . h h h h h h dni . i i i i i i inmutor . k k k k k k sps. malac. . . mat. xxvi . . ms. m. * * * * * * ibid. . † † † † † † — ibid. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ luk. . . a a a a a a sps. * * * * * * edit . paris . pag. . lit. hh. ij . mat. . . b b b b b b xpo. d d d d d d charissimae . e e e e e e xpm. xps . e e e e e e dnm. f f f f f f ihm. g g g g g g dm . h h h h h h apollinarius . i i i i i i nam etsi enim . k k k k k k subsistantia . ms. m. a a a a a a epistula . notes for div a -e vindicat. p. . * * * * * * pag. , , , , , , . † † † † † † such are among others . m. la b. answer to his advertisement p. . reflexions generales sur l'exposition de m. de meaux , p , . m. arnaud reponse au preservatif . m. jurieu's vindication : le janseniste convaincu de vaine sophistiquerie , p , &c. l'esprit de m. arnauld , vol. . p. . politique du clergé de france , p. . * * * * * * pastoral letter , p. , . notes for div a -e vindication p. . the reply , p. . reply at the end of the preface . vindic. p. . vindic. p. . reply p. . cor ix . . reply p. . ib. p. . ib. p. ▪ ibid. reply p. . . &c. vindic. p . reply p. . reply at the end of the preface . reply , p. . reply , p. . reply , p. . notes for div a -e * * * * * * arnob. adv . gent. lib. vi . p. . utinam liceret introspicere sensus vestros , recessusque ipsos mentis , quibus varias volvitis atque initis obscurissimas cogitationes ! reperiremus & vos ipsos eadem sentire , quae nos — sed studiis facere quid pervicacibus possumus ? quid intentantibus gladios , novasque excogitantibus ●poenas ? [ animantis . ] ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ a●●eritis malam scientissimi causam , & quod semel sine ratione fecistis , ne videamini aliquando nescisse , defenditis ; meliusque putatis non vinci , quàm confessae cedere atque annuere veritati — lugd. batav . . * * * * * * bp. meaux's expos. p. . § iv. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vind. p. . rep. p. . * * * * * * vind. p. . repl. p. , . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ vind. p. , . reply , p. . , &c. reply , p. , . reply , p. . * * * * * * examen des raisons qui ont donnè lieu à la separation des protestants . a la haye , . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ aussi je ne dis rien dans cet examen qu'il ( monsieur l'evêque de meaux ) ne m'ait inspirè : je ne fais presque que copier ses sentimens , & redire au public ce qu'il m'a dit en particulier , ou ce que ces ouvrages m'oat persuadè . avertissement . la raison , la charitè , la gloire de dieu , la paix de l'eglise , le bien de l'etat , & l'interest de leur salut demandent qu'ils reviennent aujourd'huy de cette separation odieuse , en remettant les choses en l'estat ou elles estoient auparavant . je dis aujourd'huy : car on doit avoûer sincerement qu'on n'avoit jamais si nettement exposè les dogmes & les cultes de l'eglise catholique qu'on l'a fait de nos jours . et je ne sçaurois m'empescher de croire que si nos peres avoient crû les choses telles qu'elles sont en eff●t , & qu'on nous les propose aujourd'huy , ils ne se seroient jamais separez de sa communion . ibid. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ first answer to the papist misrepres . answer to the conclus . but especially in the answer to the papists protesting against protectant popery . expos. of the c. e. pref. pag. vi , vii . * * * * * * preservatif . p. , &c. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ reflexions sur le preservatif . a anvers . . * * * * * * p. . v. reflex . le livre d'un pitoiable jesuite , nommè le pere crasset . reply , p. . * * * * * * dial. entre photin & ireneè . a mayence . . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ part. . dial. iii. pag. . ibid. part . . page . nous reconnoissons , que les abus qu'on impute à l'eglise , ne sufisoient pas pour obliger nos peres à s'en separer : c'est pourquoi nous nous re●…nissons à l'eglise ; sans prejudice de remonstrances qu'il nous sera permis de faire au clergé pour repurger l'eglise . romaine de beaucoup d'abus . * * * * * * reply , p. , , . see in the margin . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ defence of the expos. of the c. e. pag. , . append . see the advices of the b. virgin. adv. i. advice v. advice vii . advice viii . advice ix . advice x. advice xi . advice xii . advice xiv . advice xvii . * * * * * * see father crasset's devotion , envers la s●inte vierge . pref. paris . reply . p. . . reply , p , . see his preface . * * * * * * sess. xxv . — ad eorum orationes , opem , auxiliumque confugere . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ advertisement , pag. . * * * * * * reply , p. . * * * * * * papist repres . &c. part. i. ch . iv. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ reply , p. . ibid. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ conc. trent . sess. . * * * * * * capisucchi controv. theol. p. . reply , p. . bishop of meaux's expos . §. v. p. . vindic. p. . * * * * * * see before . and reply . preface . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ib. p. . see the defence of my expos. app. ad art. . reply , p. . lettre a monsieur l. a. d. c. touchant les cometes . pag. . & seqq . de l'edition de rotterdam . . and in the considerations sur le livre de monfieur brueys . pag. . &c. rotterdam . . histoire de lutheranisme , liv . iii. pag. . ●…eply , p. . ●…ariò 〈◊〉 agno●…a per 〈◊〉 tertull. de praescrip . haer. cap. xvii . pag. . ed. paris . . notes for div a -e mr. chill . pref. reply , p. . reply , pref. defence , p. , . reply , pref. expos. c. e. ii. reply , pref . expos. c. e. ib. † † † † † † tertul adv. valent. c. ii. p. . n● discipulis quidem propriis ante committunt , quàm suos fecerint . habent artificium quo prius persuadent quàm ●…ant . veritas autem docendo persuedet , non suadendo docet . c. reply p. . expos. c. e. p. iii. * * * * * * defence of the expos. p. xi . expos. c. e. p. iii , iv. vindic. p. . , . def. p. viii . vindis . p. . def. p. x , xi . reply , p. . ibid. reply , p. . mais quand l'aurois adjousté des cartons à unè impression deja faite ? p. . translated , p. . but what if i had made some additions to a printed impressions ? reply , pref. ibid. reply , pref. expos. c. e. p. 〈◊〉 . * * * * * * ceux qui de bitent avec tant de soin des choses si vaines , cherchent des chicanes & non pas la verite . reply , p. . reply , p. . * * * * * * dans les editions . reply , p. . defence , p. ix , x. reply , ibid. rep. de monsieur de la b — avertissement , p. . reply , p. . expos. c. e. p. xxii . ibid , p. xxiii reply , p. . advertisement to your expos. p. , . † † † † † † reply , p. . reply , p. . † † † † † † see this epistle reprinted by monsieur bas●age , rotterdam , . p. . reply , p. . † † † † † † monsieur de meaux's expression is , entesté de la religion : hot-headed of his religion : reply , p. . . reply , p. . expos. c. e. p. vi , vii . vindicat. p. . def. p. xiii . & . * * * * * * reply , . * * * * * * j'ay bien sçeu , à la verite , que mr. jurieux 〈◊〉 opposoit . reply , p. . reply , p. . ibid. ibid. * * * * * * le pere crasset touchè de ce , &c. father crasset touch'd or troubled , &c. reply , p. . * * * * * * reflections sur le preservatif : le livre d'an pitiable jesuit nommé le pere crasset . v. reflex . p. . le miserable livre d'un pere crasset , p. . pourquoy veut il que nous sassions de difficulté de dire q'un pere crasset ●'est trompé p. . past. letter , p. , . reply , , . † † † † † † dont les eveques , mes confreres & mes amis , m'avoient fait le recit , p. . see all this in the collection made by the kings authority , and dedicated to him by monsieur le fevre dr. of sorbon ; called nouveau re●…il de tout ce qui ●'est fait pour & contre les protestants ea france . à paris , . ibid. extract of a letter concerning the state of the protestants in the diocess off meaux . reponse à la lettre pastorale de monsi●ur de meaux : à amsterdam , chez pierre savoret . . pag. , &c. pastor . letter . ibid. la seduction eludeé : ou lettres de monsieur 〈◊〉 eveque de meaux à un de ses diocésains , qui 〈◊〉 est sauvé de la persecution . vous me trouverez toujours les bras ouverts : — je ne ce●seray de vous rapeller par mes voeux & par mes prieres ; etant cordialement , & av●c 〈◊〉 esprit d' un veritable pasteur , votre , &c. p. . songez qu'il ne ●aut point se complaire quand on souffre persecution , si 〈◊〉 on n'est bien asseuré que ce soit pour la. justice . p. . * * * * * * ibid. p. , . ibid. pag. , , . dites moi en quel endroit de l' ecriture les here iques & les schismatiq●es sont exceptez du nombre de ces malsaiteurs contre lesquels st. paul a dit que dieu m●… a armé les princes . p. . † † † † † † lettre pastorale march . lettre à monsieur de u. april . reply , p. . expos. c. e. viii , ix . vindic. p. . defence , p. xiv . reply , p. . exposition , sect. v. p. , . advertisement , p. . reply : preface , p. , . p. . ibid. * * * * * * card. capisucchi controversiae theologicae selectae , ●ol . romae , . controver . xxvi . quest. . paragraph , . p. . † † † † † † pag. . . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ paragr . . . see above . ibid. quest. ii. pag. . paragr . i. pag. . ibid. paragr . ii. pag. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . ibid. p. . paragr . vii . p. . ibid. . ibid. . reply , p. . expos. c. e. p. ix , x. vindic. p. . def. p. , . * * * * * * une teste malfaite , reply , p. . † † † † † † ou d'abord je n'avois cru que de la foi●lesse & de l' ignoraace . reply , p. . in whom i had found nothing but weakness mixed with ignorance . p. . expos. c. e. ] p. x. vindic. p. ● . † † † † † † maintained . capisucchi , libr. cit . pag. ● . reply , p. . † † † † † † tant rebat●●e reply , p. . ibid. expos. c. e. p. xxxiv . reply . ibid. ad dem●●rianum , p. , . ed. oxon . st. jude . see st. cypr. before . reply , p. . defence , p. xvi . reply , p. . provincial letter , xv. provincial letters , l. xv. * * * * * * reply , p. . expos. sect. viii . p. . reply , p. . pag. . art. xxi . reply , p. . reply , pref. p. . expos. c. e. p. . art. xiii . vindic. p. . reply , p. . reply , preface . reply . reply , p. . the misrepresenter . see below . close . reply , p 〈◊〉 . reply , pref. reply , p. . act. . , . reply , p. . reply , p. ● . ib. . missale rom. reply , p. . * * * * * * reply , p. . pontific . ord. reconc . haeret. vel schismat . p. . ed. venet. ann. . reply , pref. mat. xxii . . reply , p. . pag. . pag. . king's indulgence . † † † † † † reply , p. , . * * * * * * new test of the c. of e. loyalty , p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ answer to the conferences about the eucharist . see before . reply , p. . ibid. . pag. . reply , pref. i. reply , pref. brev. rom. in fest. vii . martii . aquinas sum . . part . q. xxv . art. . * * * * * * reply , pref . p. xviii . crasset veritable devotion p. . crasset . p. . ibid. . ibid. . ibid. . ibid. ibid. . crasser , p. . ibid. p. . ibid. . ibid. . crasset , p. , . crasset , ib. crasset . . lond. . * * * * * * reply pref . a a a a a a the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented . never answer'd . see the view of the whole controversy , which has plainly shewn that the business of the reflections was to decline an answer . reply , art. ii . p. . b b b b b b a discourse concerning the object of religious worship . unanswer'd . answer to papists protesting against protestant popery , &c. unanswer'd . see for this , also the view of the whole controversy , which the representer ha● now shewn , is never like to be fairly answer'd . reply art. iii. p. . c c c c c c speculum b. virginis . unanswer'd . a discourse concerning the worship of the b. virgin , and the saints , in answer to mons. de meaux's appeal to the th age. unanswer'd . a discourse concerning invocation of saints . unanswer'd . d d d d d d catholick representer , st and d , th and th sheets . e e e e e e answer to these sheets ; the last yet unanswer'd . three letters to a person of quality , about images ; the last unanswer'd . the fallibility of the roman church , out of the second nicene and trent councils about images . unanswer'd . reply , art. vii . p. . f f f f f f two discourses of purgatory and prayers for the dead . unanswer'd . an answer is lately publish'd to the whole book ; and we fear will remain like the rest , unanswer'd . g g g g g g a discourse concerning the pretended sacrament of extreme unction . unanswer'd . h h h h h h an historical treatise of transubstantiation , by one of the c. r. defence of the dublin letter . veteres vindicati , in answer to mr. sclater . plain representation of transubstantiation . dialogues concerning the trinity and transubstantiation . answer to the oxford discourses . paraphrase upon the vi. of st. john. six conferences publisht by dr. tenison . all unanswered . * * * * * * pag. . reply . i i i i i i a reply to two discourses concerning , &c. from oxford . unanswered . a discourse concerning the holy eucharist in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host. unanswered . k k k k k k a discourse concerning the adoration of the host , &c. unanswered . l l l l l l a discourse concerning the sacrifice of the mass. unanswered . m m m m m m a discourse of communion in one kind , in answer to the bishop of meaux . unanswered . n n n n n n a discourse about tradition . the catholick balance . unanswered . o o o o o o of a guide in matters of faith. the protestant resolution of faith. answer to reason and authority , &c. a discourse concerning a judg in controversies . a plain discourse concerning the catholick church . of the authority of councils , and the rule of faith. two discourses of schism and heresie . the difference betwixt the protestant and socinian methods . the pillar and ground of the truth . vindication of the answer to certain papers . all unanswered . p p p p p p sermon upon st. peter's day . sure and honest means for the conversion of all hereticks . the catholick balance . summary of the controversies between the c. of e. and the r. c. dr. barrow of the popes supremacy . the necessity of reformation , par . . all unanswered p p p p p p a discourse concerning auricular confession . the doctrines and practices of the church of rome truly represented . unanswered . notes for div a -e pref. p. , &c. ib. p. . ib. p. . pag. . pref. p. . notes for div a -e cor. xi . . * * * * * * durandus . l. . sent. d. . q. . de s. gregorio ; nescio cur non possit dici quòd gregorius cum fuerit homo , non deus , potuerit errare . john . . thess. . . pet. . . luke . . concil . trid. sess. . can. . de consecr . dist. . sess. . conc. trid. sess. . can. . prov. . . reason and authority . eede lib. . c. . gal. 〈◊〉 . . bede . loc. cit . baron . annal. tom. . an. . protestants apology , p. , &c. d edit . prot. appeal , lib. . cap. . vind. of the answ. of some late pape●s , p. , &c. lib. . cap. . lib. . hist. h. de knyghton de event . anglice l. . p. , . hoveden . annal . ad ann. . simeon dunelm . hist. p. . mat. west . ad an. . spelm. conc. tom. . p. . see ●h●anus . see your hist. coll. p. . hosp. hist. sacram . par . . p. . lampadius par . . p. . scultetus annal. ad . an. . * * * * * * see dr. burnet's cont. of his refl . ●n varillas p. , . * * * * * * see foxes & firebrands , part , & . † see camden's eliz. ad annum . foxes and firebrands , part . p. . ed. . see a. b. bramhall's letter to a. b. usher . p. . foxes and firebrands , part , p. . answer to reason & authority pag. , &c. see masox de minist . angl. l. . cap. . bede . l. . c. . ibid. l. . c. . ibid. l. . c. . baron . ad ann. . bede . l. . c. . see the king 's large declar ▪ about the scotch troubles , p. , . see his majesty's declarat . after the battel at edg-hill . kings works , part . pag. . vol. . p. , &c. see in the life of a. b. usher , append . p. . letter . see bp usher's life , . letter , p. . * * * * * * salmonet hist. des troubles d'angleterre , liv . . p. . † † † † † † answer to philanax anglicus . pag. . notes for div a -e † † † † † † see the reply , pres. p. vi . * * * * * * the original whereof was first published in spanish , anno . st. austin . de civit. dei. lib. . c. . reply p. . * * * * * * vindic. p. . † † † † † † reply p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ t. g's first answ. pref. pag. . reply p. . * * * * * * t. g's first answ. pre● . pag. . † † † † † † t. g' s secon● answ. p. ● . dr. jackson , see his works , vol. fol. lond. an. . * * * * * * tom. . * * * * * * pag. . † † † † † † ibid. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ibid. p. . breviarium roman . de ord. commendationis animae deo. * * * * * * see more in express words , cap. . § . p. . cap. . § . p. . tom. . † † † † † † which he also in express words charges your adoration of the cross with , cap. . §. . p. . oper . tom. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ dr. f●ild . a. b. laud . dr. heylin . * * * * * * see in the preface to his first book concerning the idolatry of the c. r. and his general pref. to the several late treatises , &c. lond. . † † † † † † mr. thorndike . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ mr. pulton considered . lond. . * * * * * * dr. sti●ling . conferences against t. g. lond. . pag. . † † † † † † just weights and measures , p. . edit . lond. . cap. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ de imag. lib. . cap. . pag. . * * * * * * dr. hammond pract. disc. lond. . § . p. . sect. . p. , . sect. . p. . sect. . p. . sect. . p. . answer to several late treatises ; by dr. still . lond. . the general preface . * * * * * * t. g' s first answer to dr. still . pref. pag. , . † † † † † † dr. still . ibid. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ see dr. still . conferences against t. g. p. , &c. t. g's dialogues against dr. still . p. . t. g. dial. against dr. still . p. , . † † † † † † first part preface . repl. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ vindic. art. . p. . * * * * * * reply , art. . pag. . † † † † † † reply ; see before . vindic. p. . reply p. . expos. c. e. p. . defen . of the expos. p. . * * * * * * expos. c. e. p. . def. p. . † † † † † † reply p. . vindicat. p. . * * * * * * answer to the amicable accommodation — the view of the whole controversy , &c. * * * * * * mat. iv . . † † † † † † monsieur de m. expos. art. . vindic. art. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ reply , art. . * * * * * * answer to papists protesting , p. , &c. sect. iii. * * * * * * mat. . . reply , p. . ibid. p. . * * * * * * bp of meaux's expos. sect. iii. p. . † † † † † † see this prosecuted at large in dr. still . first answer to t. g. p. , to . reply , p. . † † † † † † p. . vind. p. , . reply , p. . ibid. reply , p. . ibid. vindic. p. . reply , p. . exposit. sect. iv. p. . see vidicat . p. . ibid. p. , . vindic. p. . expos. artic. iv. kings viii . . expos. sect. iv. de cultu 〈◊〉 . lib. iii. c. . expos. §. iv. p. . part . §. ii . p. . conc. trid. sess. ult . reply , p. . expos. p. . missal . r. in ord . miss . rituale r. ord. comm. an. ritual . fr. de s●les . p. . in sin . offic. b. v. pag. . pontific . r. ord. excom . & absolv . p. , . in ord. missae . fol. . ord. miss . p. . paris . . rituale fr. de sales . par . post . p. . lyon. . missale in usum sarum . fest. januarii . fol. x. ibid. fol. xiii . numb . xxx . deutr. xxiii . aquinas ae . qu. . a. . vid. annot. cajet . in d. th. qu. . ar. . p. . lugd. . ibid. bellarm. de cult . ss . lib. iii. c. . p. . d. reply , art. iii. §. . p. . reply , art. iii. sect . . p. . * * * * * * answer to dr. st. p. , , . full answer , p. . ibid. p. . catechism . conc. trid. part. iv. p. . tit. quis orandus sit ? catechism . ibid. ibid. pars iii. de cultu & invocatione ss . n. , . p. . concil . trid. sess. xxv . de invocat . &c. p. . bellarm. de ss . beat . l. i. c. , . bishop of meaux's expos . sect. iv. de aeternâ felicitate ss . lib. . cap. . see before . lib. . cap. . p. . colon. . ibid. pag. . lib. iii. cap. . expos. mr. de meaux , sect . iv. reply , p. . in elencho abusuum . lud. vives comm. in s. august . de civ . dei . lib. viii . cap. . crasset devotion veritable , pref . p. . officium b. virg. p. . antw. . ibid. p. . * * * * * * ibid. p. . officium b. virg. pag. . contemplat . pag. . see below . rit . rom. ord. comm. anim. missale r. in ord. miss . rituale rom. desacr . poenir . rituale fr. de sales . p. . pontific . rom. ord. excom . & absol . ibid. ibid. de consecrat . ecclesiae . p. . ibid. p. . psalterium s. bonavent . psalm . psal. iv . psal. vii . — cvii. speculum b. virginis , &c. permiss . jo. chapeaville . leodii . nov. . vid. in psal. s. bonav . leodii , . p. . defence , append . . def. part . p. . greg. vii . baron . ann. ad an . . t. xi . p. . see platina in his life . judges iii. . acts vii . . galat. iii. . tim. iv . . revel . i. . gloss. ord. in loc . rhemists test. p. . doway bible in loc . p. . reply , sect . xviii . p. , . reply , p. . breviarium in usum sarum in servit . b. virg. par . . * * * * * * missal . rom. p. . mornay de la messe , p. . saumur , . catech. trid. par . iij. p . de invoc ss . n. . tit . sa●cti suis meritis nos adjuvant . aquin. dae . q. . art . . bellarm. de bear. ss . l. . c. . dr. jackson , tom. . p. . idem . ib. reply , p. . reply , ib. reply , ib. see defence of the expos. p. . in annot . defence ibid. defence of the expos. art. . p. . reply . p. . §. . replique au roy de la grande bretagne liv . v. c. . p. . reply p. . n. . reply p. . see baron mart. ad . sept. p. . edit . paris . et annal . ad ann . . n. . † † † † † † baronius calls it explodenda fabula . ad ann . . n. . billius caecutiisse hic gregorium in orat. annot . vid in martyr . ubi supr . vid in brev. eccles. sarisb . ad . sept. ibid. reply ibid. pag. . crasset par . . trait . . qu. . p. . horace de art. poet . bibliotheque . t. . pag. . methodius gl. edit . combefis . paris cum s. amphilochio . . apud euseb. eccles. hist. lib. iv . c. . p. . b. ed. . vales. paris . . edit . usser . irenaeus lib. ii . c. . p. . ed. paris . . * * * * * * in rom. l. viii . c. . tertull. de orat. cap. . cypr. de orat . dom. † † † † † † orig. contr . cels. lib. viii . pag. . ed. cantabr anno . . * * * * * * ibid. . a a a a a a ibid. pag. . novatian de trinitate . c. xiii . p. . a. ibid. c. d. ad fin . tertull. paris . reply p. . §. . reply p. . §. . reply , p. . reply , p. . sect . . ibid. labbé conc. tom. iv . act. xi . p. . b. can. . vid. epist. ad januar. ep. . epiphan . haeres . pag. . c. d. joh. . ib. . c. ib. . d. ib. . b. ib. . d. reply , pag. . see def. of the expos. p. . &c. reply . p. . discourse of worship of saints in answer to mr. de meaux's appeal to the iv. age. ushers answer to a challenge . p. . p. . p. ibid. &c. p. . p. . p. : . discourse in answer to mr. de meaux's appeal to the ivth . age. p. . &c. baron ad ann. . n. . spondane . ibid. n. . binnius in syn. const. p. . t. vi. concil . labbe . † † † † † † action . vi. ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ defin. xv. xvii . † † † † † † annot. epi-phan . in def . xvii . ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ ‖ binnius annot . in concil . const. t. vi. p. . baron . l. c. act. concil . franc. in lib. cant. praef . in l. . vindic. p. . def. pag. . reply p. . §. . vind. p. . repl. p. . expos. sect. iv. p. . papist repl. n. . p. . concil . trid. sess. . concil . trid. ibid. caranza summ. sess. xxv . conc. trid. p. . lovami . acts x. . rev. xix . . xxii . . colos. ii. ● . theoderet in loc . rom. x. . reply . p. . rom. xiv . . s. basil. reg. miral . . cap. . tim. ii. . . discourse of purgatory and prayers for the dead . sacrament . greg. p. . missale rom. pag. . decret lib. . tit . . p. , . de beatit . ss . lib. . c. . reply . p. . in his suppress'd edition . expos. of mr. de meaux . sect. iv. p. . lombard sent . lib. iv. dist . . scotus ibid. qu. . gabr. biel. in can. miss . l. . * * * * * * bellarm. de eccles. triumph . l. . cap. . bellarm. l. . de . beat. ss . c. . . vasquez . l . de ador. disp . v. c. . cajetane . libr. de indulg . c. . canus loc . theol. lib. : c. . gerson de : dom . cons. . &c. de exam. doctr . cons. . see bishop taylours polem . disc . pag. . de ss . beat . l. . c. . sect. secundo . vid bellar. de beat . ss . l. . cap. . calendarium benedictinum ad . dec. † † † † † † dr. jackson t. . p. . vossius thes. theol. p. . catherinus annot. in cajet . dogm . de canoniz . pag. . baron in martyr . r. apr. . * * * * * * ribadeneira . ad . april . baron . ann. ad ann. . §. . baron . not. in mart. xv. march. not. ad martyrol . jul. . ressendii epist. ad barthol . kebedium . pag. . cassander consult . p. . john ii. . jo. xiv . . ib. vi. . heb. iv. , . durand . in sent . iv. d. . q. . de verâ religione . p . lugd. . isaia xxiv . . calendar . benediction . to. . jul. . pope urban . ibid. jul. . ibid. sept. : cal. ben. to. . sept. . ibid. ad iv. maii , p. ● . to. . cal. ben. to. . jan. . ibid. mart. . ib. mart. . tom. iv. p. . dec. xi . see the account publish'd by that society : la s te vierge patrone honoree & bienfaisante dans la france & dans le luxembourg . reply , p. . reply , ibid. reply , pref. reply , pref. reply , p. . tusc. qu. l. . sect. . reply , p. , . † † † † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 maimon . see dr. hamm. of idolatry , sect. . * * * * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 id. ibid. rev. xii . . deut. iv. . isa. xi . . act. xvii . . capisucchi , pag. . gerson . rom. i. , . acts xvii . tom. . jan. . de idololatria card. capis . controv. p. , . ibid. . card. capis . ibid. par . ii . p. . id. par . iv . p. , . capis . par. v. pag. . ibid. par. vi. pag. . card. capis . contr . par . vii p. . vid. p. . reply , p. , , . reply , p. . capis . contr . p. . capisucchi , lb. pag. . reply , pre● . p. , . reply , pref. relation del ' inquisition de goa , pag. , . cap. , . cap. . ibid. cap. . pag. , . edit . leyd . . reply , p. . reply , p. . reply p. , . sacrar . cerem . lib. i. 〈◊〉 . de consecr . agn. dei. reply p. . lib. viii . cap. . see domenico magri notizia de vocaboli ecclesiastici in aqua benedicta . marsilius columna hydragiolog . sect. . c. . * * * * * * de cultu ss . l. . c. . p. . b. pontifical . rom de benedict . nov. cruc . exod. xx. , . king. xviii . . bellarm. de ss . beatit . l. . p. . c. . d. vasquez . in . vol. . q. . disp. . art. . c. . p. . vie des sts. calend. ben. ad sept. . bellarm. de imag. ss . l. . c. . p. . reply p. . lud. de par. de orig. s. inquis . l. . tit . . c. . n. . reply p. , . reply p. . card. capis . ib. ub supr . & par . xvi . pag. . reply p. . reply p. . * * * * * * de la conformitè des merveilles anciens avec les moderns , par. . ch. . p. bell. de scrip. eccles. p. . reply , p. . ib. p. ▪ lib. . de cruce , c. . soto de just. & jure . l. . q. . art. . cathar . de cult & ador. imag. p. . breviar . rom. may . p. . paris . reasons for abrogating the test , p. , . reply , p. . reply , p. . ibid. p. . reasons for abrogating the test , p. , &c. reasons for abrog the test , p. . exod. xxxii . ibid. ver . . exod. xx. ibid . ver. . reasons for abr. the test , p. , &c. kings xii . . chron xiii . . king. x. . ibid. . king. xvi . . bellarm. lib. . de imag. c. . p. , . defence of the disc. of idolatry , par . athanas contr . arrian . orat. . p. . ib. . dae q. . ar. . resp . ad . cajet . pag. lib. . de idol . vasquez in . t. . p. . bellarm. de imag . ss. l. . c. . p. . c. in . t. . p. . comm. jude . vers. . acts . . acts . . rev. . . colos. . . ephes. . . bellarm. l. c. §. . supr . vatabl. in l●c. tom. . p. . c. jeronim . epist. ad ripar . t. . erasm. fol. . reply , pref. pag. . card. capis . de cult . im. qu. ii . par . . pag. . ibid. par . . p. . ibid. . aqu. . p. qu. . ar . . in corp. reply , p. , &c. reply , ibid. reply , p. . reply , p. . annal. ad . ann. . §. . aquin. . par. qu. . art. . cajet . in th. ibid. aquin. loc . cit . paragr . appendix . p. . reply , p. . vid. card. capisuch . l. c. in . praec . decal . p. . pontific . roman . de benedictione ecclesiae , p. , &c. full answ. pag. . * * * * * * full answ. ibid. † † † † † † see expos. p. . defence , pag. . reponse à un ecrit publié sur les miracles de la ste espine . p. . pag. , . pontific . ro● pag. , . see above 〈◊〉 . . drelincourt response à m. le landgrave ernest. p. . §. lx . notes for div a -e discourse against transubstantiation , pag. . ibid. consensus veterum p. , &c. ibid. p. . * * * traitté a●un autheur de la communion romaine touchant la transubstantiation . lond. . about or . see blondel de l'eucharistie . c. . p. . a a a . concil . nic. b b b blondel . l. ● . cap. . pag. . c c c paschasius radbertus . d d d see the treatise of transubstantiation ; hist. of the th age. e e e innocent . iii. super omnes mortales ambitiosus & superbus , pecuniaeque sititor insatiabilis , & ad omnia scelera pro praemiis datis vel promissis cereus & proclivis . matt. paris . f f f concil . la●●an . iv. can. . de haereticis . † † † his omnibus congregatis i● suo loco presato , & juxta morem conciliorum generalium in suis ordinibus singulis collocatis , facto . capitula lxx see this conprius ab ipso papâ exhortationis sermone , recitata sunt in plen● concilio quae aliis placibilia , aliis videbantur onerosa . matt. paris . ad ann. . firmed by mons●eur du pin. dissert . vii . paris . o . pag. , . a a a see . q. . art. . utrum factâ consecratione remaneat in hoc sacramento formá substantialis panis ? b b b in. . d. . q. . quid ergo dicendum de conversione substantiae panis in corpus christi ? salvo meliori judicio , potest aestimari , quod si in isto sacramento fiat conversio substantiae panis in corpus christi , quod ipsa fit per hoc quod corruptâ formâ panis materia ejus sit sub formâ corporis christi c c c id. in . dist . . q. . art. . d d d scotus in . dist . . q. . e e e id. . sent . q. . q. . f f f ockam in . q. . * * * alliaco in . q. . art . . g g g contr. capt . babyl . cap. . a a a ferus in matt. . cum certum sit ibi esse corpus christi , quid opus est disputare num panis substantia maneat , vel non ? b b b lib. . de eucharistiâ : see the treatise of transubstantiation , . part . c c c vid. bellarm . de euch. l. . c. . p. , . suarez in . part . d. th. vol. . disp . . p. , . cajetan . in . d. th. q. . art . . scotus , l. c. . sent. d. . q. . uid . etiam ockam , alliac . locsupr . cit . * * * consensus veterum pag. . k. john. † † † petri picherelli expositio verborum institutionis coenae domini . lugd. batav . . o. * * * hoc est corpus meum , i. e. hic panis fractus est corpus meum . pag. . hoc est corpus meum , i. e. panis quem frangimus est communio cum corpore christi . pag. . — and pag. . expounding gratian. dist . . can. non hoc corpus , ipsum corpus invisibiliter , de vero & germano corpore in coelis agente intelligitur : non ipsum visibiliter de corpore & sanguine sacramentalibus , pane & vino ; corporis christi & sanguinis symbolis : quae rei quam significant nomen per supradictam metonymiam mutuantur . * * * reponse à la lettre de monsig . le prince ernest aus cinq ministres de paris , &c. geneve . † † † votre altesse me croira s'il luy plait . mals je luy puis dire avectoute sincerité & verité , que si le desunt cardinal du perron luy a persuadé la transubstantiation , il luy a persuadé ce qu'il n'a pû se persuader à soymème , & qu'il ●'a nullement cru . car je scay par des gens d' honneur & dignes de foy , qui l'avoient apris de temoins oculaires , que des amis de cet illustre & scavant cardinal , qui l'estoient allé visiter lors qu'il estoit languissant en son lit , & malade de la maladie dont il est mort , le prierent de leur dire franchement ce qu'il croyoit de la transubstantiation , & qu'il repondit , qu'il la tenoit pour un monstre . et comme ils luy demanderent , comment donc il en avoit écrit si amplement & si doctement ; il repliqua , qu'il avoit deployé toutes les adresses de son esprit pour colourer cet abus , & pour le rendre plausibile ; & qu'il avoit fait comme ceux qui font tous leurs efforts pour defendre une mauvaise cause . catholico-romano-pacificus oxon. . pag. . assertio transubstantiationis se● mutationis substantialis panis , licet sit opinio communior , non tamen est fides ecclesiae . et scripturae & patres docentes 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , sufficienter exponi poss●nt de admirand● & supernaturali mutatione panis per praesentiam corporis christi ei accedentem , fine substantialis panis desitione . et. p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 illam in augustissimo sacramento factam , plerique graves & antiqui scriptoresita explicant , ut non fiat per desitionem substantiae panis , ●d per receptionem supernaturalem substantiae corporis christi in substantiam panis . v. pl. illustriss . atque reverend . p. de marca parisiens . archiep. dissertationes pos●humae . de sanctissimo eucharistiae sacramento dissertatio , in fine . † † † species panis est essentiâ & naturâ distincta á corpore christi sibi adjuncto , licet ratio eucharistiae id exigat , ut substantia panis interior conversa suerit in illud corpus modo quodam qui omnem cogitationem exsuperat . caeterum mutatio illa non officit quin panis , qui videtur , [ id est , accidentia ] suam naturam , extantiam & essentiam [ sive substantiam ] retineat , & naturae verae proprietates , inter quas est alendi corporis humani facultas — . unde consequitur rectè observatum à gelasio sacramenta corporis & sanguinis christi divinam rem esse , quia panis & vinum in divinam transeunt su●stantiam , s. spiritu perficiente , nempe in corpus christi spiritale : sed ex alia parte non definere substantiam & naturam panis & vini , sed ea permanere , in suae proprietate naturae . quoniam scil . postquam panis in divinam substantiam transivit , [ non interiit integra panis natura quam substantiam quoque vocat , nec desivit : sed ] in suae proprietate naturae permansit ad alendum corpus idonea , quod est praecipuum con●ecti panis munus . note , that in the paris edition ; they have put in those words printed in the black letter ( id est , accidentia ) and omitted those that i have caused to be set in capitals : but in the original leaf , which i have left in s. martin's library to be seen by any that pleases , and which was cut out for the sake of this passage , it stands as i have said : and as it is truly represented in the holland edition . * * * baluze lettre à monsieur le presid . marca . s'il est vray , ce qu● j'ay de la peine à croire , que seu monsigneur ait composé les traittez que m. faget a fait imprimer sous son nom , dont il se vante dans la preface & dans la vie d'avoir les originaux escrits de la main de l'auteur , nous ne scaurions empescher que seu monsigneur ne passe dans l'esprit de beaucoup de gens pour heretique , a● sujet de l'eucharistie . * * * defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of engl. appendix , p. . n. v. † † † see the preface to the reader before the edition of the same treatises o anno . and monsieur baluze's letter to the bishop of t●●●e o● this occasion . p. . * * * the original leaves cut out by them having fallen into my hands , may be seen by those that desire it in s. martin's library . † † † see monsieur bdluze . lettre pag. . a a a mais enfin le refus que mrs. de sorbonne luy ●nt fait de luy domer leur approbation — ▪ luy ont fait ouvrir les yeux , s'estant laissé entendre , quoyqu ' un peu tard , qu'il a fait une sottise . ibid. b b b et p. . je dis , un peu tard ; parce qu'il avoit de jafait des presentes de son livre , & que le libraire en avoit aussi debité quelques uns . c c c baluze lettre à monsieur l'evesque de tulle , p. . sirmond . vit. pasch. radbert . * * * eclaircisseme●… de l'euch . c. . p. , &c. ingenia praeclara in rebus difficilibus aliquid semper de suo comminis●…ntur . nam praeclara ingenia multa novant circa scientias . theoph. raynaudi s. j. erotemata de malis ac bonis libris : lugduni . p. . * * * the abbot means , that now at his death he hoped he might speak freely what he durst not in his life-time do . * * * li. . † † † il nous suff●t qu● 〈◊〉 . c. qui est la verit è meme nous ait assuré que ce sacra●ent est verit abl●…nt son corps , & qu'il ait ordonne de manger sa chair & boire son sang : car il faut absolument qu'il y soit , puis q'il il nous ordonne de l'y manger , sans s'embarasser l'esprit de quelle maniere & comment cela se fait . part , p. . * * * advertissement n. . p. . mr. b. speaking of that edition , il n'y avoit en aucun lieu de l'article , ni le terme de transubstantiation , ni cette proposition , que le pain & le vin sont changez au corps & au sarg de j. c. dans la derniere [ edition ] apres ces mots , le propre corps & le propre sung de j. c. il ajoure ausquelles le pain & le vin sont changez ; cest ce qu'on appelle transubstantiation a † † † monsieur de meaux letter of his alterations ; vind. p. . & . pour l'ordre , & pour une plus grande netteté du discours & du style . * * * vindication of the bishop of condom's expos. pag. . the same is affirmed by monsieur du mo●lin of several priests in france : disp. sedannens . de sacr. euch. par . . p. . nec abs re de ●…tentione presbyteri dubitatur , cum plurimi sacerdotes canant missam re●ictante conscient●● , quales multos vidimus qui ejurato papismo satebantur se diu cecinisse missam 〈◊〉 missa alie●issimo . a a a les veritez de la religion prouvees & defendnes contre les anciennes heresies , par la virité de l'eucharistis . . b b b que du pain divienne le corps ●u fils de dieu , & du vin son sang . preface p. . c c c quoiqu'il n'y ait point , presentement de verites plus incontestables que les trois grands articles de nostre foi , qui sont contenus dans le symbole , c'est à dire , la divinite de j. c. la divinite du s. esprit , & la resurrection : cependant l' ose dire que la presence réelle de j. c. au saint sacrament etoit une verité encore plus indubitable dans les premie●s siecles de l'eglise . pres. p. . d d d traitté pour confirmer les noveaux con●ertis dans la soi de l'eglise catholique . e e e concil . trid. sess. vii . can. . siquis dixerit in ministris dum sacramenta conficiunt , non requiri intenlionem , saltem saciendi quod facit ecclesia , anathema sit . f f f vid. de defectibus circa missam , c. de defectu intentionis . in missali . r. a discourse concerning the adoration of the host. lond. . a a a vid. catharin . in cajet . pag. . ed. paris . . where he quotes s. thomas and paludanus for the same opinion : this book of his was seen and approved by the pope's order by the divines at paris : as himself tells us in the review of it . lugdun . . de defectibus circa missam : de defictu panis . si panis non sit triticeus , vel si triticeus , sit admixtus granis alterius generis in tantâ quantitate , ut non maneat panis triticeus , vel sit alioqui corruptus : non conficitur sacramentum . si sit consectus de aquâ rosaceâ vel alterius distillationis , dabium est an conficiatur ? et de defect . vini . si vinum sit factum penitus acetum , vel penitus putridum , vel de uvis acerbis seu non maturis expressum , vel admixtum tantum aquae ut vinum sit corruptum , non conficitur sacramentum . * * * da moulin , in the place above cited , mentions one that in his time was burnt at loudun for consecrating a host in the name of the devil . thes. sedann . th. . n. . p. . vol. . * * * eugenii iv. decret . in act. concil . florent . ann. . concil labb . tom. . p. . concil . trident. sess. vii . can. . † † † ibid. pag. . catech. concil . trid. de sacr. ord. n. xxii . p. . item , n. l. p. . * * * all this is lately granted by the catholick representer . cap. vi. notes for div a -e * * * matt. xxvi . ‖ ‖ ‖ see dr. hammond on mat. xxvi . lit . e. casaubon in mat. xxvi . . &c. * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vid. buxtorf . vindic. contr . capel . p. . hammond in mat. xxvi . l. e. &c. † † † allix preparat . a la sainte cene. cap. . pag. . * * * dr. lightfoots heb & talmud . observat●on mat. xxvi . ver . , . t. . p. , . * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . ‖ ‖ ‖ see dr hammonds practical catechism lib. . pag. . oper. fol. lond. . * * * vid. fagium . in annotat . in exod. xii . . where he renders their words thus , et in eadem die viz. xv . mensis nisan , sc. martii , redimendus . est israel in disbus messia . vid. vol. . critic . m. p . notes for div a -e * * * concil . trid. sess. . cap . & can. . † † † catechismus ad parochos . par. ii. cap. de euch. sacr. n. . , . * * * catech. ibid. n. xxv . sect. primum . ‖ ‖ ‖ ibid. n. xxxi . sect. totus christus ut deus & homo in eucharistia continetur . * * * ibid. n. xxxiii . sect. per concomitantiam in euch. quae sint . † † † ibid. n. xxxix . sect. conversio quae sit in euchar. &c. ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ ibid. n. xxxv . sect. christus totus in qualibet particula , & n. xlii . &c. * * * ibid. n. xxv . sect. secundum . † † † ibid. n. xxv . sect. tertium & n. xliv . sect. accid . sine subjecto const . in euch. ‖ ‖ ‖ ibid n xxxvii . sect. primo ●atione . * * * ibid. n. xxxix . sect. conversio quae sit in euch. &c. † † † ibid. n. xliii . quonam modo christus existat in euchar. * * * ) ibid. n. xli . sect. de transubstant . curiosius non inquirendum . * * * vid. cameron . annot. in matt. xxvi . . in illa verba , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , inter critic . pag. . i. . * * * allix serm. pag. . † † † hammond pract. catechism . lib. vi . pag. ed. fol. * * * see exod. xxiv . . heb. ix ● . and this allusion is applied by s. peter , ep. i. . vid. hammond . annot. in loc . lit . a. * * * vid. apud author . fortalitii fidei , lib . consid. . impos . . those who have not this book , may find the quotation at large in the late edition of joan. parisiensis , in praefat. pag. , . † † † epistol . xxiii . ad bonifac . vol. . pag. . oper. ed. lugd. . * * * expressions of this kind are very frequent in holy scripture . the seed is the word of god , luke viii . . the field is the world ; the good seed are the children of the kingdom : the tares are the children of the wicked one , matt. xiii . . the seven angels are the angels of the seven churches ; and the seven candlesticks are the seven churches , rev. i. . with infinite more of the like kind . † † † see the preface . * * * see their opinions collected by monsieur aubertine de eucharistiâ , lib. . cap. . , , , . * * * tract . de verbis quibus conficitur . † † † see their testimonies cited in the late historical treatise of transubstantiation ; in the defence of the exposition of the church of england , p. , , . in the preface above , &c. ‖ ‖ ‖ see bellarmin's words in the defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , pag. , . to which may be added , salmer . tom. . tr. . suarez . disp. . sect. . vasquez . disp. . c. . &c. † † † concil . trid. sess. xiii . * * * see them thus ranged by albertinus de euch. lib . cap. . pag. . two popes ; innocent iii. pius ii. four cardinals , bonaventure , d' alliaco , cusan . cajetane . two archbishops , richardus armachannus , & guererius granatensis . five bishops , stephanus eduensis , durandus mimatensis , gulielmus alti●iodorensis , lindanus ruremondensis , & jansenius gandavensis . doctors and professors of divinity in great abundance ; alexander alensis , richardus de media villa , jo. gerson , jo. de ragusio , gabriel biel , thomas waldensis , author . tract . contr . perfidiam quorundam bohemorum , jo. maria verratus , tilmannus segebergensis , astesanus , conradus , jo. ferus , conradus sasgerus , jo. hesselius , ruardus tapperus , palatios , & rigaltius . here are . of the roman church , who reject this application of this chapter . for the fathers , see the learned paraphrase lately set forth of this chapter , in the preface : all which shews how little strength any argument from this chapter can have to establish transubstantiation . † † † a paraphrase with notes , and a preface upon the sixth chapter of saint john , lond. . * * * de doctrin . christian. lib. . cap. . * * * a treatise of transubstantiation , by one of the church of rome , &c. printed for rich. chiswell . . such are 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , but never 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and note , there is hardly any of these words , which they have applied to the bread and wine in the eucharist , but they have attributed the same to the water in baptism . * * * see treatise first , of the adoration , &c printed lately at oxford ; which would make the world believe that we hold , i know not what imaginary real presence on this account ; just as truly , as the fathers did transubstantiation . * * * it is not necessary to transcribe the particulars here that have been so often and fully alledged . most of these expressions may be found in the treatise of transubstantiation lately published . the rest may be seen in blondel , eclaircissements familiens de la controverse de l ▪ eucharistie , cap. iv , vii , viii . claude rep. au . traittè de la perpetuitè , i. part. cap. iv , v. forbesius instructiones historico-theolog . lib. xi . cap. ix , x , xi , xii , xiii , xv . larrogue histoire de l' eucharistie , liv . . cap. ii . this arcudius himself is forced to confess of some of the latter greeks , viz. that they take these words only 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , historically . see his book de concord . lib. . cap. . and indeed all the ancient liturgies of that church plainly speak it ; however both he and goar endeavour to shift it off ; in which the prayer of consecration is after the words of institution , and distinct from it . so in liturg. s. chrysostom . edition . goar . pag. . n. . . are pronounced the words of institution . then pag. . numb . . the deacon bids the priest , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . who thereupon thus consecrates it ; he first signs it three times with the sign of the cross , and then thus prays 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and so the cup afterwards . * * * the same seems to have been the custom of the african church , whose prayers now used , see in ludolph . histor. l. . cap. . where is also the expression mentioned , n. . hic panis est corpus meum , &c. see this whole matter deduced through the first ages to st. augustine , whom consentius consulted about this very matter , in a particular treatise written by monsieur allix de sanguine christi , vo . paris . so justin martyr . apol. . tertul. apolog. cap. . arnobius , lib. . minutius felix . p. . octav. julius firmicus , pag. . edit . lugdunens . to , . hieron . lib. . in esai . st. augustinus in psal. . & in psal. . lactantius instit. lib. . cap. . chrysostom . homil . . in genes . &c. * * * and yet that none did , the learned rigaltius confesses . not. ad tertul. l. . ad uxor . c. . † † † see tertul. apol. c. . et de carne christi , c. . . justin martyr , apol. . arnob . l. . orig. contr . cels. l. . ‖ ‖ ‖ see du perron de l'euchar . l. . c. . p. . see this fully handled in a late treatise called , the doctrine of the trinity and transubstantiation compared &c. . this argument is managed by st. chrysostome epist. ad caesarium monachum . by theodoret dial. . pag. ed. g. l. paris , . tom. . gelasius in opere contra eutychen & nestorium . he thus states the eutychian heresie , dicunt unam esse naturam , i. e. divinam . against this he thus disputes , certe sacramenta quae sumimus corporis & sanguinis christs divina res est . — et tamen non desinit substantia vel natura panis & vini . — satis ergo nobis evidentur ostenditur , hoc nobis de ipso christo domino sentiendum quod in ejus imagine profitemur . — ut sicut in hanc sc. in divinam transeant s. spiritu perficiente substantiam , permanentes tamen in suae proprietate naturae , sic , &c. * * * see the contrary proved , that the fathers did not believe this , by blondel , de l'euch . c. . claude rep. an . . traitte de la perpetuite , part . . c. . † † † under greg. ix . ann. . vid. nauclerum ad ann. cit . ‖ ‖ ‖ instituted by urban iv . ann. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ indeed , in all probability , a hundred years later . ‖ ‖ ‖ so in that of jerusalem . see hasych . in levitic . l. . c. . * * * so in that of constantinople . evag. hist. l. . c. . † † † vid. apud . autor . vit. basilii , c. . in vit. pat. l. . this custom was condemned in a council at carthage , anno . vid. codic . eccl. afric . justel . c. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ vid. st. august . oper. imp . contr . julian . lib. . c. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ see an instance of this in baronius , ann. . sect. . the th general council did the same . in act. syn. this is the foundation of the authors of the treatises , de la perpetuite : answered by mons. claude . see mr. chillingworth against knot , c. iv . n. . * * * see examples of every one of these collected by blondel , eclaircissements familiers de la controverse de l'eucharistie , cap. . p. . † † † monsieur claude rep. au . . traitte de la perpetuite , part . . c. . n. . p. . ed. to . paris . * * * john xx . , . see the church catechism , and article twenty eighth . the communion-office , &c. * * * andr. sallii votum pro pace , c. . p. . ed. oxon. . vid. ibid. pag. . cap. xxiv . n. . two discourses concerning the adoration of our b. saviour in the eucharist . oxford . . tract . i. pag. , . * * * tract . i. §. . † † † ibid. §. . . tract . p. . §. . answer to t. g's dialogues . lond. , pag. . tract . i. . pag. . tract . i. §. . * * * calvinistae negant corpus & sanguinem christi , verè , realiter , & substantialiter praesentem esse in eucharistiâ . becani manuale . l. . c. . p. . ed. luxembergi . . calvin . dicimus verè & efficaciter exhiberi non autem naturaliter . quo scil . significamus non substantiam ipsam corporis , seu verum & naturale christi corpus illic dari , sed omnia quae in suo corpore nobis beneficia christus praestitit . ea est corporis praesentia quam sacramenti ratio postulat ; edit . basil. o. . * * * dilucida explicatio &c. contra westphalum . edit . anno . † † † christi corpus non modò semel fuisse datum in salutem nostram , dum ad expianda peccata immolatum in cruce fuit , sed quotidiè nobis in alimentum porrigi , ut dum ipse habitat in nobis , bonorum eriam ejus omnium s●cietate fruamur . — apud hospin . hist. sacram. part da ann. . p. . † † † rursum alimentum à nobis vocatur hoc sensu , quia incomprehensibili spiritûs virtute nobis vitam suam inspirat ut sit nobis communis , non secus atque à radice arboris vitalis succus in ramos se diffundit , vel à capite in singula membra manat vigor . ibid. — imprimis obstaculum de corporis immensitate submovere necesse est . nisi enim constet finitum esse caelóque comprehendi nulla erit dissidii conciliandi ratio — p. . christus sicuti in gloriam coelestem semel est receptus , ita l●corum intervallo quoad carnem , est à nobis dissitus ; divinâ autem essentiâ & virtute , gratiâ etiam spirituali caelum & terram implere . — idem ergo corpus quod semel filius dei patri in sacrificium obtulit , quotidie nobis in coena offert , ut sit in spirituale alimentum . tantùm de modo tenendum est , non opus esse descendere carnis essentiam è coelo ut eâ pascamur , sed ad penetranda impedimenta & superandam locorum distantiam sufficere spiritûs virtutem . — commenta procul facessant ; qualia sunt de corporis ubiquitate , vel de occultâ sub panis symbolo inclusione , vel de substantiali ejus in terris prasentiâ . hospin . p. . haec omnia refert ex illo calvini loco . beza . * * * see hospin . hist. sacram. part. . ad ann. . p. . edit . genev. . comment . de statu relig. & reipub . in galliâ ad ann. . p. . et postea pag. . ita se exprimit in eundem planè sensum affirmamus j. c. adesse in usu coenae , in quâ nobis offert , dat & verè exhibet corpus suum & sanguinem suum operatione spiritus sti. nos verò recipimus , edimus & bibimus spiritualiter & per fidem illud ipsum corpus quod pro nobis mortuum est , eùmque illum sanguinem pro nobis effusum . edit . ann. . o. beze . hist. eccles. pag. ▪ . for all this see beza's own history ad ann. . p. . and when in the conference d'espense pressed them with departing from calvin ; beza declared , that they were not at all contrary to him : that for the word substance , which he sometimes used in expressing christs real presence , it was only to signifie , that they did not feign any imaginary body of christ , or fantastick reception or communion of his body in this holy supper ; but that for the rest , they all believed , that no one could participate of him otherwise than spiritually and by faith , not in taking him into the mouth , or eating him with the teeth . see pag. . ibid. peter martyr . † † † respondeo pro meâ parte , corpus christi non esse verè et substantialiter alibi quàm in caelo . non tamen inficior christi corpus verum , & sanguinem illius verum quae pro salute humana tradita sunt in cruce , fide spiritualiter percipi in sacrâ coenâ . histoire eccles. de beze . liv . . p. . anno . * * * vid. hist. de beze ib. p. . comment . de stat . rel . p. . ad ann . hospin . pag. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ see hospin . of this whole matter pag. . affirmamus nullam locorum distantam impedire posse communicationem quam ha●emus cum christi corpore & sanguine , quoniam coena domini est res coelestis ; et quamvis in terrâ recipiamus ore panem & vinum , vera scil corporis & sanguinis signa ; tamen fide & spiritûs sancti operatione mentes nostrae ( quarum hic est praecipuè cibus ) in caelum elatae perfruuntur corpore & sanguine praesente . et hee respectu dicimus , corpus verè se pani conjungere , & sanguinem vino ; non aliter tamen quam sacramentali ratione , neque locali neque naturali modo , sed quoniam efficaciter significant deum illa dare fideliter communicantibus , illósque fide verè & certo p●r●ipere . hospin . l c. comm. ibid. p. . ubi subjicitur haec est perspicua de corporis & sanguinis j. c. praesentia in sacramento caenae ecclesiarum reformatarum sententia — beze hist. eccles. pag. . where he adds , that they reject not only tra●substantiatim and consubstantiation , but also toute maniere de presence par laquelle ●e corps de christ ●'●st colloquè maintenant reellement ailleurs qu'au ci●l . and then adds , why they thus use the word substance in this matter , and what they mean by it . see pag. . ad ann . treatise §. xxvi . pag . a. b. cranmer . answer to gardiner , bishop of winchester . fol. london , . pag. . pag. . assertio verae & catholicae doctrinae de sacramento corporis & sanguinis , j. christi servatoris nostri . lich● , vo . . bp. ridley ridlei de caenâ dominicâ assertio ; geneve apud jo. crispinum . . . tract . §. iv. pag. . . treatise . pag. . §. i. and again , p. . §. xxxi . dr. burnet's hist. of the refomation , vol. . pag. . ann. . edit . . . mss. c. cor ▪ christ. cant. an explanation of christ's presence in the sacrament . bp. jewel . v th article of the real presence against harding , pag. . lond. . see also his defence of the apology of the church of england , pag. , &c. mr. hooker . tr. i. cap. . §. . pag. . difference between the protestant and socinian methods , in answer to the protestants plea for a socinian , pag. . bishop andrews . tract . pag. . §. xi . n. . † † † habemus christum praesentem ad baptismatis sacramentum , habemus eum praesentem ad altaris cibum & potum . augustin . stola , quae est ecclesia christi , lavatur in ipsius sanguine vivo i. e. in lava●ro regenerationis . origen . statim baptizatus in sanguine agni vir meruit appellari . hieron . christi sanguine lavaris , quando in ejus mortem baptizaris . leo. p. &c. see sermon vii . on the resurect . pag. . serm. l●nd . . kasavbon , ●ing james , a. bishop of spalato . * * * vol. . de rep. eccles. lib. . cap. . pag. , . see the . tra. §. xi . note . pag. 〈◊〉 . coloss. ii . , . see ham●…d in coloss . annot. d. arch-bishop lawd . tract . §. xiv . pag. . * * * montagve origenes eccles. tom. prior . par . poster . p. . . . &c. panis in synaxi fit corpus christi ; — sed et corpus christi creden●es 〈◊〉 . ad eundem utrumque modum & mensuram ; sed non naturaliter ; — ●…que nec panis ita est corpus christi ; mystice tantum , non physice . vid. plur . † † † bishop hall . montague bilson . bishop forbes . author of the life of bishop bedel ; in the preface . bishop taylor . polemical discourses . p. . london . . treatise st . p. th . pag. . pag . see pole●ic . disc. append. pag. . . treat . st . pag. . mr. thorndyke . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ t. g. dialogue st . pag. . * * * answer to 〈◊〉 . g's . dial. pag. . † † † thorndyke laws of the church . ch. . pag. . see his just weights and measures , ●● . lond. . — pag. . * * * reformatio legum eccles. ex authorit . henr. . & edw. . lond. . tit. de sacram. cap. . pag. . — morton de euch. part . . class . . cap. . §. . pag. . lat. . ●● . — fr. white against fisher , pag. . lond. . fol. — a b. u●…er's answer to a challenge , c of the real presence , p. , . lond. . — id. serm before the house of commons , pag. , , &c — dr. hammond pract. catech. part . ult . answer to this question ; the importance of these words , t●at the body and blood of christ are verily and indeed taken and received ; p. . edit . lond fol. . — dr. jackson's works , tom. . pag. , . lond. dr. jo●…'s way to the true church . lond. . §. . n. pag. . cosens hist. transubst . p. , , , &c. edit . london , . vo . treatise st . §. xx . n. . pag. . bishop taylours polem . disco . of the real presence . sect. ii . pag. . ibid. treatise st . §. . pag. . treatise st . § xx . n. . pag. . treatise st . §. xxii . p. . tract . . §. xxviii . p. . * * * this is evident in b. taylor , who thought that god could not do this , because it implied a contradiction : real presence , §. xi . n. . p. . and ibid. n. . he saith 't is utterly impossible . so also dr. white professes , that according to the order which god has fixed by his word and will , this cannot be done : confer . pag. , . and before , pag. . to this objection , that tho in nature it be impossible , for one and the same body to be in many places at once , yet because god is omnipotent , he is able to effect it : we answer , says he , it implieth a contradiction , that god should destroy the nature of a thing , the nature of the same thing remaining safe : see more , p. , . white ' s works , lond. . ‖ ‖ ‖ see . treatise , pag. . §. xxxii . p. . §. xxxii . p. . §. xxxvi , xxxvii , &c. * * * smalcius de coen . dom. p. . id disp. . de hypocr . p. . volkelius lib. iv . cap. . p. , , &c. socinus in paraenesi , c. iv . sclichtingius disp . de coen . dom. p. . † † † zuingl . see de provid . dei , cap. , &c. * * * and this our author seems to insinuate : see the places above cited : and indeed others have alledged this as the true opinion of zuinglius : see calvin . tract de coen . dom. defens . sacram. admonit . ad westphal . & passim . alibi . vid. insuper libr. de orthod . consens . c. . and especially hospin . p. , , , &c. hist. sacr. part : vid. cosens hist. transubstantionis , cap. 〈◊〉 . §. . p. . notes for div a -e rubr. at the end of the communion . treatise . ch. . §. . p. . ib. §. x● . treatise . p. . §. xli . ibid. treatise . §. xlii . p. . see above . treatise . §. xliii . p. . see polemical discourses . letter , at the end , p. treatise . p. . §. vi . n. . * * * the story was publish'd in the memoirs of monsieur d'eageant , printed with permission at grenoble , . pag. i will set it down in his own words . il'y avoit deja quelque tems que d'eageant avoit gagné l' un des ministres de la province de languedoc , qui etoit des plus employez aux affaires & meneés de ceux de la r. p. r. & en l' estime particuliere de monsieur de lesdiguiers . il avoit meme secrettement moyenne sa conversion ; & obtenu un bref de rome , portant qu' en core qu' il eut etc receu au giron de l'eglise , il luy etoit permis de continuer son ministere durant ans , pourveu qu'en ses preches il ne dit rien de contraire à la creance de la vraye eglise , & qu' il ne celebrât ponit la cene . le bref fût obtenu , afinque le ministre pût estre continué dans les emplois qu'il avoit , & decouvrir les meneés qui se faisoient dans le royaume . concil . trid. sess. xiii . cap. . p. . nullus itaque dubitandi locus relinquitur , quin omnes christi fideles pro more in catholicâ ecclesiâ semper recepto latriae cultum , qui vero deo debetur , huic sanctissimo sacramento in veneratione exhibeant . neque enim ideò minùs est adorandum quòd fuerit à christo d. ut sumatur institutum : nam illum eundem deum praesentem ineo adesse credimus , quem pater aeternus introducens in orbem terrarum , dicit ; et adorent eum omnes angeli dei. hebr. i. card. pallavicino istoria del concilio di trento : parte seconda , l. . c. . pag. . ora è notissimo , che , accióche un tutto s'adori con adorazione di latria , basta che una parte di quel tutto meriti questo culto . — come dunque non douremo parimente adorare questo sacramento , il quale è un tutto che contiene come parte principale il corpo di christo. answer to his second discourse . i. part , protestant concessions . * * * §. i. pag. . ibid. §. ii. ‖ ‖ ‖ ibid. §. iii. * * * §. v. n. . p. . † † † see treatise . p. . §. . ‖ ‖ ‖ disc. . p. . §. vi . n. . * * * §. vii . p. . * * * see below , disc. . p. . † † † conrad . schlusselburgius , catal. haeret . l. . arg . . p. . item arg. . p. . it. arg . . p. . francof . . and hospinian quotes it of luther himself , that it was his opinion , concord . discor . p. . n. . genev. . §. vi . p. , . ibid. pag. . . part. catholick assertions . pag. . §. ix . pag. . §. x. pag. . §. xi . catech. ad parach . part . de sacram. n. iii. & v. p. . * * * catec . conc. tr●d● part . de euch. §. viii . nota p. . † † † pag. . §. xi . * * * see above , pag. , . pag. . §. xiii . p. . §. xvii . p. . §. xviii . p. . §. xix . ibid p. . p. . §. xix . p. . §. xxi . p. . §. xxii . pag. . §. xxiii . see ibid. pag. , . pag. . pag. . §. xxiv . ibid. * * * pag. , . * * * see treatise . p. . p. . treat . . p. . §. xxv . * * * these are his synods ; at rome , vercelles , tours ; rome again , an. . and again , an. . * * * disc. . p. . §. lvii . * * * in the first formulary prescribed him by p. nicholas . in the siynod of rome , . he thus declares , panem & vinum quae in altari ponuntur post consecrationem non solum sacramentum sed etiam verum corpus & sanguinem , d. n. j. christi esse ; & sensualiter non solùm sacramento , sed in veritate manibus sacerdotum , tractari , frangi , & fidelium dentibus atteri . the former part of which confession is lutheran ; the latter utterly deny'd by the c. of r. at this day . in the second formulary prescribed him by gregory viith , . confiteor panem & vinum — converti in veram ac propriam carnem & sanguinem j. c. d. n. et post consecrationem esse verum corpus christi — non tantùm per signum & virtutem sacramenti , sed in proprietate naturae , & veritate substantiae . this speakes of a conversion , but of what kind it says not ; and lombard and the other schoolmen , to the very time of the council of lateran , were not agreed about it : and p. gregory himself in his ms. work upon st. mat. knew not what to think of it . † † † jo. semeca ad can. ego berengar . not . ad jus canon . nisi sanè intelligas verba berengarii in majorem incides haeresim quam ipse habuit ; & ideò omnia referas ad species ipsas ; nam de christi corpore partes non facimus . so hervaeus in . dist . qu. . art . . says , that to speake the more expressly against the hereticks , be declined a little too much to the opposite side . so ricardus de media villa in . dist . princip . . qu. . berengarius fuerat infamatus quòd non credebat corpus christi realiter contineri sub pane , ideò ad sui purgationem , per verba excessiva contrarium asseruit . pag. . ‖ ‖ ‖ lond. . pag. , &c. * * * mr. dodwel consid. of present concernment , §. . † † † monsieur du pin utterly denies these canons to have been the decrees of the council . dissert . vii . c. iii. §. . pag. , . §. xxv . * * * particularly blondel , to whom this author refers us , eclairciss . de l'euch . c. , &c. albertinus de euch. lib. . p. . p. . §. xxvi . treatise of transubstantiation , by an author of the c. of r. ‖ ‖ ‖ s. ambrose de sacramentis . euseb. emyssen . de paschate . † † † cyril hierosol . in the relat. of the conference at my lady t. . in the paper sent my lady t. p. , , . and for s. ambrose de sacr. allowing the book , yet see the explication of what is there said , given by himself , l. . c. . see a late treatise of the doct. of the trinity and transubst . compared , part . p. , . * * * transubstantiation no doctrine of the primitive fathers . cyrill's authority examined , p. , . ambrose's , p. , . chrysostom's , p. . greg. nyssen's , p. . hist ethiop . l. . c. . n. . ibid. * * * de eccles. graec. stat. hodiern . d. smith , p. . lond. . claude reponse au . traitte ; liv . . c. . p. , &c. charenton . . id. ult . resp . à quevilly . lib. . c. , , , , , . histoire critique de la creance & des coutumes , des nations , du levant . — voyage du mont liban . remarques , p. , , &c. larrogue hist. de l'eucharistie , liv . . c. . pag. . edit . amst. o. albertinus de eucharistiâ , p. , . fol. daventriae . p. . §. xxviii . ibid. pag. . p. . §. xxx . p. . §. xxii . * * * see above , ch. . of transubstantiation . pag. , . see all this in the beginning of the missal , de defectibus circa missam . see above in the preface . see bellarm. de justif. c. . pag. . adr. vi. quodlibet . sect. . suppos . . see gerson , tract . de exam . doctr . consid . . pag. . §. xxxiii . real presence , §. xii . n. . pag. . notes for div a -e bellarm. de purgat . lib. . cap. . p . colon. . praeparat . evangel . lib. . cap. . pag. . ed gl . paris , . † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * * * in odyss l. . ‖ ‖ ‖ in aeneid . l. . † † † vid. ib. odis . virg. aeneid . l. . bellarmin l. . de purgat . c. . p. . de civitat dei l. . c. . p. . to . lugd , . * * * see for all those , s. austin de civit. dei , l. . c. , , , , . * * * see below sect. † † † august . ench●… . ad laurent . c. . p. . to. . v●rgil aeneid . l. * * * bellarmin de sanct . beat . l. 〈◊〉 c. . p. . owns it to have been the opinion of tertullian . lactantius and victorinus martyr : but sixtus sinensis more fairly confesses it of many others . bibl. lib. . annot . . p. . edit . . colon ●● . irenaeus , justin martyr , clemens , origen , prudentius , ambrose , s. chrysostome , s. augustine , theodoret , &c. * * * see eusebius h●st . eccles. l. . c. . edit . valerii . ‖ ‖ ‖ justin martyr , contr . tryph. pag. . c edit . henr. steph. gr. — irenaeus vid. apud euseb. hist. eccles. lib. . cap. — tertullian passim , &c. this is asserted by almost all the fathers of the primitive church . * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * * * st opinion . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ d opinion . * * * vid. august . loc . supr . citat . enchirid. cap. . ad dulcit . quaest . , &c. * * * lib. . chron. cap. . esse apud inferos locum purgatorum , in quo salvandi vel tenebris tantum afficiantur vel expiationis igne decoquantur quidam asserunt . bellar. de purg. l. . cap. . p. , . † † † session . ta . conc. labb . tom. . pag. . & p. . * * * vid. apud sixt. senens . bibl. l. . annot . . pag. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ june . . ‖ ‖ ‖ histoire critique , pag. . . edit . franck fort , . for the greeks , id. pag. . cites gabriel sionita affirming the same of the melchites , purgatorium nullum existere pessime crediderunt . id. pag. . that the georgians believe a purgatory , but not such as the c. r. see concerning the armenians , p. . job ludolph . hist. aethiop . lat. shews the same of the ethiopians , that they deny a purgatory , l. . c. . n , . see bellarm l. . de purg. cap. . pag. . acts xix . . &c. c. richlieu . see it at the end of the council of trent , p. . edit . labbe paris . fol. sessio . . pag. . session . can. . pag. . session . can. iii. pag. . expos. b sh. condom , s●ct . viii pag. . papist misrepr sect. xxiii . pag. . in dissert . saec. iv . dissert . xli . pag. . catechism . ad paroch . part . . artic. v. sect. v. pag. . colon. . in . sent. dist . . qu. . art . . bellarm. de purg. lib. . cap. . pag. . de purgat . l. . c. . p. . a. ibid. cap . arg . ult . sect. utuntur nostri , p. . d. † † † cor. iii. . ⸪ ⸪ ⸪ pet. iii. . ‖ ‖ ‖ bellarm. de purg. l. . c. v. p. . a. natalis alex. dissert . xli . saec. iv . p . * * * vid. in loc . cor. . . pag. , . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ bellarm. de christi anima , lib. . cap. . pag. . per tot . natal . alex. in loc . pag. . ⸪ ⸪ ⸪ misrepres . n. . p. . bellarm. de purg. l. . c. . misr . sect. xxiii . pag. . natalis ub . supr . p. . see mons. du pin. biblioth . dissert . prel . p. , &c. * * * bellarm de purg. l. . cap. . p. . natalis alex. saec . iv . par . . dissert . . p. . ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ bellar. ibid. p. . a. b. ‖ ‖ ‖ canus l. . c. . ad . . maccab. xii . , v. &c. joshua vii . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * * * 〈◊〉 mark iii. . luke xii . * * * bellarm. de purg. l. . c. . p. . d dico , post novissimum judicium non fore purgatorium . mat. v. . see dr. lightfoot upon the place . origen . lib. . de purg. c. ii p. . c. origen . homil. . in exod. qui salvus fit per ignem salvus fit , ut siquid forte de specie plumbi habuerit admixtum , id ignis decoquat & resolvat , ut efficiantur omnes aurum purum , bellar. de purg. l. . c. . p. . b. gr. nyssen . codex . p. . ed. g. l. * * * greg. nyss. de mortuis orat. pag. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . . a. to. . ed. gl . paris . ibid. p. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . b. which bellarmine from p. francisc. zinus , faultily renders , aliis autem post hanc vitam purgatorio igne materiae labes abstergentibus . de purg. l. . c. . p. . s. hierome . ‖ ‖ ‖ see bellarm. de purg. l. . c. . p. . a. † † † ibid. . c. sicut diaboli & omnium negatorum atque impiorum , qui dixerunt in corde suo non est deus , credimus aeterna tormenta ; sic peccatorum & impiorum , & tamen christianorum , quorum opera in igne probanda sunt atque purganda , moderatam arbitramur , & mixtam clementiae sententiam judicis . comm. in is. in ●in . bellarm. l. . c. . p. . a. bellarm. ib. p. . d. hieron . lib. . contr . pelag. ultr . med . si autem origines omnes rationabiles creaturas dicit non esse perdendas , & diabolo tribuit paenitentiam ; quid ad nos , qui diabolum & satellites ejus , omnesque impios & praevaricatores dicimus perire perpetuo ; & christianos , si in peccato praeventi fuerint , salvandos esse post poenas ? bellarm. de purg. l. . c. . p. . &c. nobis est ille indefessus ignis obeundus , in quo subeunda sunt gravia illa expiandae a peccatis animae supplicia . bell. p. . hilar. in psal. . gimel : pag. . f. . a. edit . paris , . an cum ex omni ocioso verbo rationem simus praestituri , diem judicis concupiscimus , in quo nobis est ille indefessus ignis obeundus , in quo subeunda sunt gravia illa expiandae a peccatis animae supplicia ? b. mariae animam gladius pertransibit , ut revelentur multorum cordium cogitationes ; si in judicis severitatem , capax illa dei virgo ventura est , desiderare quis audebit a deo judicari ? cyprian . bellarm. de purg l. . c. p. ● d. cyprian . epist. . antoniano . pag. , . edit . oxon. aliud est ad veniam stare , aliud ad gloriam perveni●e ; aliud missum in carcerem non exire inde , donec solvat novissimum quadrantem , aliud statim fidei & virtutis accipere mercedem : aliud pro peccatis longo dolore cruciatum emundari , & purgari diu igne , ( f. diutine ) aliud peccata omnia passione purgasse ; aliud denique pendere in die judicii ad sententiam domini● ; aliud statim a domino coronari . see his annot. in loc . p. , . * * * tom. . op. g. l. p. . c. paris . gregory . nazianz . greg. naz. homil. . t. . p. . st. basil . bell. p. . c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . basil. in . is. tom. . p. . ed g. l. paris , . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. to. . cap. . p. . b. vid. ibid. pag. . e. theodor . bellarm. pag. . c. d. * * * see bellarm. l. . de purg. c. . p. . b. ⸪ ⸪ ⸪ nilus de purgatorio , p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ theodoret. in cor. . , . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . to. . p. . a. and below lit. b. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . et lit. c. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . edit . paris g. l. . tertul . et judex te tradat angelo executionis , & ille te in carcerem mandet infernum , unde non dimittaris nisi modico quoque delicto mora resurrectionis expenso , pag. . edit . paris . st. austin . † † † see his enchiridion . cap. , , . et in quaest. ad dulcit . qu. . see above , introduction . bellarm. de purg. l. . 〈◊〉 . . p. . c. bellarm : ibid. p. . c. bellarm. de purg. lib. . c. . p. . d. rom. viii . . cor. iv . . rev. xiv . . phil. i. . cor. v. . vers. . see his book de mortalitat . p. . hieron . in os. com . . augustin . epist. . ad hier. to. . p. . a. et tract . . in joan. to. . p. . a. auctor . quaest. sub justini nomin . quaest. . p. . d. e. paris , . chrysost. hom. de s s. bernice & prosdoce . t. . frontod . pag. . paris , g. l. . legat. pro christianis . cyprian libr. de mortal . p. . vid. supr . orig. contr . c●ls . l. , . greg. naz. or. . to. . p. . chrysost. vid. supr . cyril . alex. in joan . . ●b . . to . ●ed g. l. paris , . p. . b c. hier. epist. . fol. c to. . edit . erasm. notes for div a -e * * * epiph. heres . . l. . n. . p. . a. edit . an. . ibid. n. . p. . c. tertullian . lib . contr . mare c. . p. . intra quam aetatem ( sc. , annorum ) concluditur sanctorum resurrectio , pro meritis maturius vel tardius resurgentium . * * * tertull. de monogam . c. . p. . a. ambros. de obit . valent. t. . te quaeso , summe deus , ut charissimos juvenes matura resurrectione suscites , &c. † † † epiphan . ib. sect. . p. . see epiph. tom. . l. . p. . vol. . n. . * * * ibid. n. . p. . see sess. . conc. trid. de purg. symb. pii iv. &c. † † † de ecclesiast . hierarch . cap. . pag : . . . a. b. c. . c. * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. pag. . a. see all these collected by a. b. usher ; answer to a challenge ; ch. of prayers for the dead ; p. . &c. edit . . constitut apost . lib. . cap. . liturg. aegyptiac . ex arabic . convers . usher . ib. p. . chrysost. liturg . edit . goar . in euchol p. . paris . . * * * cypri . epist. xxxix . pag. . ed. oxon. † † † de obitu valentin . imper . ‖ ‖ ‖ id. de obit . theodos. imper . * * * id. de obit . fratris greg. naz. in funer . caesarii or. . nubes testium : of aerius , pag. . ibid nubes testium , p. . bell. de purg. l. . c. . d p petavius in epiphan . pag. . n. . natal . alex. disp . . saec. iv . pag. . part . . * * * page . natalis alex. hist. iv . sec. par . . p. . paris . epiphan . her. . pag. . b. dionys. eccles. hierarch . cap. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . page . epiphan . ibid. n. vii . p. . † † † contr. gent. lib. . c. . ‖ ‖ ‖ controvers . theol. qu. . schol. sect. . * * * azorius instit . moral . tom. . l. . c. . see these cited by a. b. usher . answer to a chall . pag. , . epiphan . her. . pag. . d. . a. b. c. nubes test . p. . natalis alex. saec . iv . to. . p. . dionys. hierarch . eccl. p. . a. dionys. ib. p. . c. ibid . c. dionys. ibid. p. , . dionys. eccl. hierarch . p. . d. ibid. p. . † † † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . litur . jacob. bibl. patr. * * * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . lit. marc. ‖ ‖ ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . lit. basil. & chrys. ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ da illis requiem , cyril . heros . liturg. * * * natalis alex. diss . . ●ii saec. p. . nubes test. p. . ‖ ‖ ‖ ob ●tiones pro defunctis , pro ●natalitiis a●… die facimus . de corona c. . pag. . a. le prieur . annot. in loc . p. . † † † natalis alex. p. . nub. test. . cur immaniter conventicula dirui ( meruerunt ) in quibus summus oratur deus , pax cunctis & venia postulatur , magistratibus , exercitibus , regibus , familiaribus , inimicis , huc vitam degentibus , & resolutis corporum vinctione , lib. iv . natalis alex. ib. pag. nub. test. . * * * natal . alex. pag. . nub. test. . natalis alex. p. . nub. test. . haec ad tempus quidem erepta nobis meliorem illic vitam exigit . epist. . natalis alex. p. . nub. test. . vid. arg eras. p. . tom. . fol. . edit . eras. tom. . natalis alex. p. . nubes test. . et credo jam feceris quod te rogo , sed voluntaria oris mei approba domine . st. august . confession . l. ix . c. . tom. . p. . b. nub. test. vid. supr . lib. de an. c. . id. lib. iv. contr . marc. c. . lib. . de purg. cap. v. p. . c. lib. . de purg. cap. v. ib. absolutus igitur dubio certamine , fruitur nunc augustae memoriae theodosius luce perpetua , tranquillitate diuturna , & pro iis quae in hoc gessit corpore , munerationis divinae fructibus gloriatur . ergo quia dilexit augustae memoriae theodosius dominum deum suum , meruit sanctorum consortio . regnum non deposuit sed mutavit ; in tabernacula christi jure pietatis asci●u● , in illam hierusalem supernam . * * * manet ergo in lumine theodosius , & sanctorum caetibus gloriatur . nub. test. p. , , &c. ⸫ ⸫ ⸫ hom. . in act. tom. . in n. t. p. , . hom. . in ep. phil. to. . in n. t. p. , . see above . third part of serm. concern . prayer , p. . ed. ox. . john i. hebr. ix . hebr. x. john ii . notes for div a -e pag. . pag. . . . minut. felix . oct. p. . pag. . vasquez in part . d. th. q. . disp . . recit veritable de ce qui s'est fait & passé ans exorcismes de pi●●ieurs r●ligienses de la ville de louciers en presente de monsieur le penitencier d' evreus & de monsieur le gauffré . pag. , . this book was printed at paris , anno . with permission . jude , v. . pet. . . joh. . . mat. . . notes for div a -e page , &c. page . page , , . page . page . page , . page . page , . page . numb . . , &c. mat. . , &c. page . verse . tertul. apol. page . . pag. . notes for div a -e pag. , . pag. , . pag. , . notes for div a -e p. . p. . p. , . p. . ibid. p. . p. . ibid. p. . see vossius de idol . l. . c. . plutarch de iside & osiride . p. . jul. firm. p. , . ruffin . l. . hist. eccles. c. . suidas in voce 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . cl. alex. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . . page . page . page . ibid. page , . page . page . gen. . hierom in l. . in ezek. p. . vossius de idol . lib. . selden de diis syris syntag. . c. . dr. pocock on hosea xiii . . p. . id. on hosea iii. . page . pag. , . de legib. heb. l. . c. . sect. . spencer ib. l. . c. . sect. . dr. spencer ib. p. . de conve●● , indor . l. . c. . hist. dynast . d. . p. . spencer ib. p. , . not. in spec . hist. arab. p. . ibid. p. . jamblic . de myster . sect. . id. sect. . c. . syrian . in metaphys . l. . jambl. de myster . sect. c. . cap. . gol. not . in alferg . p. , . pliny l. . c. . eustath . in homer , odyss . t. p. . in iliad . 〈◊〉 p. . p. . mor. nevoch , l. . c. . hornbeck de convers. ind. l. . c. . pocock not. in spec. hist. ar. p. . euseb. praep. evan. l. . c. . p. . cyril . contr . jul. l. . p. . c , herodot . l. . strabo l. . trogus apud justinum l. . vid. voss. de joel . l. . c. . apud voss. loc . cit . vid. hornb . de con. ind. p. . elmenhorst . in arnob . p. , &c. p. . de iside & osiride . photius cod. . jac. golius not. in alferg . p. . porphyr . de antro nympharum . herod . clio n. . p. . strabo l. . p. . see dr. cudworth . l. . c. . see dr. still . answ. to t. g. p. . see before . euseb. pr. ev. lib. . porphyr . de abst. l. . sect. . not. in specim . hist. arab . p. . ibid. p. . p. . macrob. saturnal . plutarch de iside & osiride . p. , . p. . cyrillus alex. contra julian , l. . p. . c. d. page . diodorus siculus ed. hanov . g. l. an. . page . ibid. p. . p. . diod. siculus p. , . page , . herodotus , l. . c. . p. . strabo l. . p. . lucan l. . v. . arrian de exped . alep . l. . p. . vossius de idol . l. . c. . caes. com. l. . hist. l. . cap. . cap. . vos . de idol . l. . p. . de moribus germ. c. . page . euseb. praep . evan. l. c. . lib. . c. . lib. . c. . p. . pag. , , , . p. . p. . notes for div a -e page . pag. . — vers. . collat. cum jos. . . pag. . ●…ngs . . — . . exod. . . kings ● . , . ver . . ver . . . kings . . kings . . chr. . . pag. . pag. , . notes for div a -e pag. . ibid. pag. . pag. , . page . pag. . pag. . pag. , , &c. pag. . ibid. pag. . pag. . notes for div a -e pag. . . aquinas . q. . art. . ad . pag. . notes for div a -e the cases against popery . † † † present state , pag. , , , . present state , p. . the representing controversie . papist misr . part . . pref. dr. claget . the expounding controversie . * * * pag. , . ‖ ‖ ‖ o. w's appendix in answer to the discourse of the real presence , and adoration of the host. ‖ ‖ ‖ pag. . sec. defence , answer to the bishops letter . good advice to the pulpits . agreement between the c. of e. and the c. of r. 〈◊〉 . sherlock . of the real presence . of communion in both kinds . of transubstantiation . of the notes of the church . isa. xlv . . of the unity and authority of the church . of the authority and infallibility of the church . of the infallibility of the church . of the authority of the church . of s. peter and the pope of st. peter and the popes supremacy . of the charge of schism and heresie . of the rule of faith. of the nature of idolatry . see above , page . . of the worship of images . of the invocation of saints . of the validity of orders in the c. of e. miscellany treatises . notes for div a -e a a a letter to the continuator , &c. p. . b b b letter to the continuator , &c. p. . c c c p. . d d d p. . e e e p. . f f f p. . g g g p. . h h h p. . i i i p. . p. . a brief discourse of the real presence of the body and blood of christ in the celebration of the holy eucharist wherein the witty artifices of the bishop of meaux and of monsieur maimbourg are obviated, whereby they would draw in the protestants to imbrace the doctrine of transubstantiation. more, henry, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a brief discourse of the real presence of the body and blood of christ in the celebration of the holy eucharist wherein the witty artifices of the bishop of meaux and of monsieur maimbourg are obviated, whereby they would draw in the protestants to imbrace the doctrine of transubstantiation. more, henry, - . wake, william, - . p. printed for walter kettilby, london : . attributed to henry more, and also to william wake--nuc pre- imprints. reproduction of original in the huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due 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each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bossuet, jacques bénigne, - . maimbourg, louis, - . transubstantiation. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - rina kor sampled and proofread - rina kor text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion imprimatur . guil. needham r mo in christo patri ac d. d. wilhelmo archiep. cantuar. à sacr . domest . ex aedib . lambeth . iul. . . a brief discourse of the real presence of the body and blood of christ in the celebration of the holy eucharist : wherein the witty artifices of the bishop of meaux and of monsieur maimbourg are obviated , whereby they would draw in the protestants to imbrace the doctrine of transubstantiation . john . v. , . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . calvin instit. lib. . cap. . in sacra sua coena jubet me christus sub symbolis panis ac vini corpus ac sanguinem suum sumere , manducare ac bibere . nihil dubito quin & ipse verè porrigat & ego recipiam . tantum absurda rejicio quae aut coelesti illius majestate indigna , aut ab humanae ejus naturae veritate aliena esse , apparet . london , printed for walter kettilby at the bishop's head in s t paul's church-yard , . a brief discourse of the real presence . chap. i. . the occasion of writing this treatise . . the sence of the church of england touching transubstantiation . . three passages in her articles , liturgie and homilies that seem to imply a real presence . . a yielding at least for the present that the church of england is for a real presence , but of that flesh and blood of christ which he discourses of in the sixth chapter of st. john's gospel , though she be for a real absence of that which hung on the cross. . that our saviour himself distinguishes betwixt that flesh and blood he bore about with him , and that he there so earnestly discourses of . . that this divine food there discoursed of , the flesh and blood of christ , is most copiously to be fed upon in the holy eucharist , and that our communion-service alludes to the same , nor does by such a real presence imply any transubstantiation . . the occasion of writing this short treatise was this . i observing the papers here in england , published in behalf of the church of rome , and for the drawing off people from the orthodox faith of the church of england , which holds with the ancient pure apostolick church in the primitive times , before that general degeneracy of the church came in , to drive at nothing more earnestly , than the maintaining their grand error touching the eucharist , viz. their doctrine of transubstantiation : into which they would bring back the reformed churches , by taking hold of some intimations , or more open professions of theirs , of a real presence ( though they absolutely deny the roman doctrine of transubstantiation ) and thus entangling and ensnaring them in those free professions touching that mystery of the eucharist , would by hard pulling hale them into that rightfully relinquish'd errour , for which and several others , they justly left the communion of the church of rome : i thought it my duty so far as my age , and infirmness of my body will permit , to endeavour to extricate the reformation , and especially our church of england from these entanglements with which these witty and cunning writers would entangle her , in her concessions touching that mysterious theory , and to shew there is no clashing betwixt her declaring against transubstantiation and those passages which seem to imply a real presence of the body and bloud of christ at the celebration of the holy eucharist . . concerning which , that we may the more clearly judge , we will bring into view what she says touching them both . and as touching the former ( article . ) her words are these : transubstantiation ( or the change of the substance of bread and wine in the supper of the lord ) cannot be proved by holy writ , but it is repugnant to the plain words of scripture , overthroweth the nature of a sacrament , and hath given occasion to many superstitions . and in the latter part of the rubrick at the end of the communion-service , she says , that the sacramental bread and wine remain still in their very natural substances , and therefore may not be adored ( for that were idolatry to be abhorred of all faithful christians ) and the natural body and bloud of our saviour christ are in heaven and not here , it being against the truth of christ's natural body to be at one time in more places than one . this is sufficiently express against transubstantiation . . now those passages that seem to imply a real presence in the eucharist are these . in the above-named article . the body of christ , saith our church , is given , taken , and eaten in the supper only after an heavenly and spiritual manner . and the mean whereby the body of christ is received and eaten in the supper , is faith. against which our adversaries suggest ; that no faith can make us actually receive and eat that , which is god knows how far distant from us , and that therefore we imply that the body of christ is really present in the eucharist . another passage occurs in our catechism ; where it is told us , that the inward part of the sacrament , or thing signified , is the body and bloud of christ , which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in the lord's supper . where [ verily ] and [ indeed ] seems to imply a real presence and participation of the body and bloud of christ. the last place shall be that in the homily , of worthy receiving and reverend esteeming of the sacrament of the body and bloud of christ. the words are these . but thus much we must be sure to hold , that in the supper of the lord there is no vain ceremony , no bare sign , no untrue figure of a thing absent . but as the scripture saith , the table of the lord , the bread and cup of the lord , the memory of christ , the annunciation of his death , yea the communion of the body and blood of the lord , in a marvellous incorporation , which by the operation of the holy ghost ( the very bond of our conjunction with christ ) is through faith wrought in the souls of the faithful . whereby not only their souls live to eternal life , but they surely trust to win their bodies a resurrection to immortality . and immediately there is added , the true understanding of this fruition and union which is betwixt the body and the head , betwixt the true believers and christ , the ancient catholick fathers both perceiving themselves , and commending to their people , were not afraid to call this supper , some of them , the salve of immortality , and sovereign preservative against death ; others the deifick communion , others the sweet dainties of our saviour , the pledge of eternal health , the defence of faith , the hope of the resurrection ; others the food of immortality , the healthful grace and the conservatory to everlasting life . there are so many high expressions in these passages , that our adversaries who would by this hook pluck us back again into the errour of transubstantiation , will unavoidably imagine and alledge from hence that if we will stand to the assertions of our own church , we must acknowledge the real presence of the body and bloud of our saviour in the sacrament . . and let us be so civil to them as at least for the present to yield , that understanding it in a due sense , we do acknowledge the real presence . but it does not at all follow from thence that we must hold that that very body of christ that hung upon the cross , and whose bloud was there shed , is really present in the sacrament , but that our church speaking conformably to christ's discourse on this matter in the sixth of iohn , and to the ancient primitive fathers , whose expressions do plainly allude to that discourse of our saviour's in the sixth of s. iohn , doth assert both a real presence of the body and bloud of christ to be received by the faithful in the eucharist , and also a real absence of that body and bloud that was crucified and shed on the cross. and this seems to be the express doctrine of our saviour in the above mentioned chapter of s. iohn , where the eternal word incarnate speaks thus — john . v. . i am the living bread which came down from heaven , ( viz. the manna which the psalmist calls the food of angels also ) if any eat of this bread he shall live for ever ( viz. of this true manna , of which the manna in the wilderness was but a type ) and the bread that i will give is my flesh ( which therefore still is that immortalizing manna , the true bread from heaven ) which i will give for the life of the world , that the whole intellectual creation may live thereby , it being their vivifick food . for as you may gather by vers . , . he does not understand his flesh that hung on the cross. and it was the ignorance of the iews that they thought he did : and therefore they cryed out on him , saying , v. . how can this man give us his flesh to eat ? and that is because they took him to be a mere man , or an ordinary man , not the incarnate logos . which logos clemens alexandrinus calls 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the impassible man ; and trismegistus , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , that one man the son of god born of him , which he says is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the author of regeneration , as having the life in him , the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , iohn . v. . and this 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or life the divine or spiritual body , one necessary element of regeneration , which mystery we cannot here insist upon . but in the mean time let us observe our saviour's answer to this scruple of the iews , he is so far from receding from what he said , that he with all earnestness and vehemency asserts the same again . then iesus said unto them , verily , verily , i say unto you , except you eat the flesh of the son of man ( that is of the messias , or the word incarnate ) and drink his bloud , you have no life in you . whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my bloud hath eternal life , and i will raise him up at the last day . for my flesh is meat indeed , and my bloud is drink indeed . he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my bloud dwelleth in me and i in him . as the living father hath sent me and i live by the father , so he that eateth me ( viz. that eateth his flesh and drinketh his bloud ) even he shall live by me . this is that bread that came down from heaven , not as your fathers did eat manna and are dead ; he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever . . this is that earnest , lofty and sublime discourse of our saviour touching his real flesh and blood , that the scandal given to the jews could not drive him off from , and persisting in it he gave also offence to his disciples , that muttered and said , this is an hard saying , who can hear it ? wherefore i must confess ingenuously , that it seems to me incredible , that under so lofty mysterious a style , and earnest asseveration of what he affirms , though to the scandal of both the iews and his own disciples , there should not be couched some most weighty and profound truth concerning some real flesh and blood of his , touching which this vehement and sublime discourse is framed , which is a piece of that part of the christian philosophy ( as some of the antients call christianity ) which origen terms 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . the object of this eating and drinking is the flesh and blood of christ : but to rectifie the errour of his disciples , he plainly affirms , that he doth not mean what he said of the flesh and blood he then bore about with him . in v. , , . does this offend you ( saith he to them ) what and if you shall see the son of man ascend up where he was before ( then my particular natural body will be far enough removed from you , and your selves then from so gross a conceit as to think i understand this of my natural , particular body or flesh ) . no says he , the flesh profiteth nothing , it is the spirit that quickens ; the words that i speak unto you , they are spirit and they are life , that is to say , they are concerning that spiritual body and life or spirit that accompanies it ( that which is born of the flesh is flesh , and that which is born of the spirit is spirit ) the both seed and nourishment of those that are regenerate ; the principles of their regeneration , and the divine food for their nutrition , whereby they grow up to their due stature in christ. . and where , or where so fully is this divine food to be had , as in that most solemn and most devotional approaching god in the celebration of the communion of the body and blood of christ , where we both testifie and advance thereby our spiritual union with him , according as he has declared in iohn ch . . he that eateth my flesh , and drinketh my blood , dwelleth in me , and i in him . upon which our communion-service thus glosses : that if with a true penitent heart and lively faith we receive this holy sacrament , we then spiritually eat the flesh of christ and drink his blood , we dwell in christ and christ in us , we are one with christ and christ with us . and whereas the adversaries of our church object , we cannot eat the flesh of christ and drink his blood , in the celebration of the lords supper , unless his flesh and blood be really present ; we do acknowledge that that flesh and blood which our saviour discourses of in s t iohn , and which our liturgie alludes to , as also those notable sayings of the fathers above-cited out of the homily , touching the worthy receiving the lord's supper , is really present in the eucharist . and that there is that which christ calls his flesh and blood distinct from that which he then bore about with him , and was crucified on the cross , he does most manifestly declare in that discourse in s t iohn , as i have already proved . so manifest is it that the real presence does not imply any transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the body and blood of christ. chap. ii. . the bishop of meaux his establishing transubstantiation upon the literal sense of [ this is my body ] . . that according to the literal sense , the bread that christ blessed was both bread and the body of christ at once , and that the avoiding that absurdity cast them upon transubstantiation . . that transubstantiation exceeds that avoided absurdity as contradicting the senses as well as reason , and labouring under the same absurdity it self . . further reasons why the road of the literal sense is to be left , and that we are to strike into the figurative , the former contradicting the principles of physicks . . of metaphysicks . . of mathematicks . . and of logick . . that transubstantiation implies the same thing is and is not at the same time . . a number of absurdities plainly resulting from transubstantiation . . and therefore to prop up this great mistake of transubstantiation , they are fain to recur and stick to a literal sense of those words of our saviour [ this is my body ] which i finding no where more handsomely done than by the right reverend bishop of meaux , i shall produce the passage in his own words ( that is the translation of them ) in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church , sect. . the real presence , says he , of the body and blood of our saviour is solidly established by the words of the institution ( this is my body ) which we understand literally ; and there is no more reason to ask us why we fix our selves to the proper and literal sense , than there is to ask a traveller why he follows the high road. it is their parts who have recourse to the figurative sense and who take by-paths , to give a reason for what they do . as for us , since we find nothing in the words which jesus christ makes use of for the institution of this mystery obliging us to take them in a figurative sense , we think that to be a sufficient reason to determine us to the literal . . in answer to this , i shall , if it be not too great a presumption , first accompany this venerable person in this high road of the literal sence of the words of institution ( this is my body ) and then shew how this road , as fairly as it looks , is here a mere angiportus that hath no exitus or passage , so that we must be forced to divert out of it , or go abck again . first then , let us take this supposed high road , and say the words ( this is my body ) are to be understood literally . wherefore let us produce the whole text and follow this kind of gloss , luke . . and he took bread , and gave thanks , and brake it , and gave unto them , saying , this is my body , which is given for you , this do in remembrance of me . likewise also the cup after supper , saying , this cup is the new testament in my blood , which is shed for you . now if we keep to the mere literal sense , this cup ( as well as this bread is the body of christ ) must be really the new testament in christ's bloud , which is a thing unavoidable if we tye our selves to the literal sense of the words . but why is not the cup the bloud or covenant in christ's bloud ? but that a cup and bloud are disparata , or in general , opposita , which to affirm one of another is a contradiction ; as if one should say a bear is a horse , and therefore we are constrained to leave the literal sense , and to recur to a figurative . but precisely to keep to the institution of that part of the sacrament that respects christ's body ; it is plain that what he took he gave thanks for , what he gave thanks for he brake , what he brake he gave to his disciples , saying , this ( which he took , gave thanks for , brake , and gave to his disciples , viz. the above-mentioned bread ) is my body . wherefore the literal sense must necessarily be , this bread ( as before it was this cup ) is my body . insomuch that according to this literal sense it is both really bread still , and really the body of christ at once . which , i believe , there is no romanist but will be ashamed to admit . but why cannot he admit this but that bread and the body of christ are opposita , and therefore the one cannot be said to be the other without a perfect repugnancy or contradiction to humane reason ; as absurd as if one should say a bear is a horse , or a rose a black-bird , whence , by the bye , we may note the necessary use of reason in matters of religion , and that what is a plain contradiction to humane reason , such as a triangle is a circle , or a cow an horse , are not to be admitted for articles of the christian faith. and for this reason , i suppose the church of rome fell into the opinion of transubstantiation , ( from this literal way of expounding these words [ this is my body ] ) rather than according to the genuine leading of that way , they would admit that what christ gave his disciples , was both real bread and the real body of christ at once . . but see the infelicity of this doctrine of transubstantiation , which does not only contradict the inviolable principles of reason in humane souls , but also all the outward senses , upon which account it is more intolerable than that opinion which they seem so much to abhor , as to prefer transubstantiation before it , though it contradict only reason , not the outward senses , which rightly circumstantiated are fit judges touching sensible objects , whether they be this or that , fish or fowl , bread or flesh. nay i may add that these transubstantiators have fallen over and above that contradiction to the rightly circumstantiated senses , into that very absurdity , that they seemed so much to abhor from , that is the confounding two opposite species into one individual substance , viz. that one and the same individual substance should be really both bread and christ's body at once . but by their transubstantiating the individual substance of the bread into the individual substance of christ's body , they run into this very repugnancy which they seemed before so cautiously to avoid ; two individual substances ( as species infimae ) being opposita , and therefore uncapable of being said to be the same , or to be pronounced one of the other without a contradiction . it is impossible that the soul of socrates , for example , should be so transubstantiated into the soul of plato , that it should become his soul , insomuch that it may be said of socrates his soul , that it is the soul of plato ; and there is the same reason of transubstantiating the substance of the bread into the substance of the body of christ. so that the substance of the bread may be said to be the body of christ , or the substance of his body , which it must either be , or be annihilated , and then it is not the transubstantiation of the substance of the bread , but the annihilation of it , into the body of christ. . and having rid in this fair promising road of the literal sense , but thus far , i conceive , i have made it manifest , that it is not passable , but that we have discovered such difficulties as may very well move me to strike out of it , or return back . and further , to shew i do it not rashly , i shall add several other reasons , as this venerable person ( that thinks fittest to keep in it still ) doth but rightfully require ; as declaring , it is their parts who have recourse to the figurative sense , and who take by-paths to give a reason why they do so . wherefore besides what i have produced already , i add these transcribed out of a treatise of mine writ many years ago . besides then the repugnancy of this doctrine of transubstantiation to the common sense of all men , according to which it cannot but be judged to be bread still , i shall now shew how it contradicts the principles of all arts and sciences ( which if we may not make use of in theology , to what great purpose are all the universities in christendom ? ) the principles , i say , of physicks , of metaphysicks , of mathematicks , and of logick . it is a principle in physicks , that that internal space or place that a body occupies , is equal to the body that occupies it . now let us suppose that one and the same body occupies two such internal places or spaces at once . this body therefore is equal to two spaces which are double to one single space ; wherefore the body is double to that body in one single space , and therefore one and the same body double to it self , which is an enormous contradiction . . again in metaphysicks , the body of christ is acknowledged one , and that as much as any one body else in the world. now the metaphysical notion of [ one ] is to be indivisum à se ( both quoad partes and quoad totum ) as well as divisum à quolibet alio ; but the body of christ being both in heaven , and without any continuance of that body here upon earth also , the whole body is divided from the whole body , and therefore is entirely both unum and multa , which is a perfect contradiction . . thirdly , in the mathematicks ( concil . trident. sess. . ) the council of trent saying , that in the separation of the parts of the species ( that which bears the outward show of bread and wine ) that from this division there is a parting of the whole , divided into so many entire bodies of christ , the body of christ being always at the same time equal to it self . it follows , that a part of the division is equal to the whole that is divided , against that common notion in euclid , that the whole is bigger than the part . . and lastly , in logick , it is a maxim , that the parts agree indeed with the whole , but disagree one with another ; but in the above said division of the host or sacrament , the parts do so well agree , that they are intirely the same individual thing . and whereas any division , whether logical or physical , is the division of some one into many , this is but the division of one into one and it self , which is a perfect contradiction . . to all which you may add , that the transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the body and blood of christ implys , that the same thing both is and is not at the same time ( which is against that fundamental principle in logick and metaphysicks , that both parts of a contradiction cannot be true ) which i prove thus . for that individual thing that can be made , or is to be made of any thing , is not ; the progress in this case being à privatione ad habitum , as the schools speak , and the terms of generation or of being made , viz. à quo and ad quem being non esse and esse , or non-existent and existent , so that that passing , is from non-existent to existent . now the individual body of christ is to be made of the wafer consecrated , for it is turned into his individual body . but his individual body was before this consecration ; wherefore it both was and was not at the same time . for in the making thereof there was a passing from the terminus à quo , which is the non-existency of the thing to be made , to the terminus ad quem , to the existency of it , which yet was in being before . . these difficulties are sufficient to show that this high road of the literal sense taken to establish transubstantiation is not passable , so that there is a necessity of diverting or going back . nor will it be much needful to hint briefly these or other like absurdities more intelligible to the vulgar capacity , such as , that the same body at the same time is greater and lesser than it self ; is but a foot distant from me or less , and yet many thousand miles distant from me : that one and the same person may be intirely present with himself , and some hundred thousand miles absent from himself at once : that he may sit still on the grass , and yet journey and walk at the same time : that an organized body that hath head , feet , hands , &c. is intirely in every part of it self , the comely parts in the more uncomely : that the same body now in heaven may really present it self on earth without passing any space either directly or circuitously : that our saviour christ communicating with his disciples in the last supper , swallowed down his whole intire body , limbs , back , belly , head and mouth and all into his stomach , which might amuze and puzzle one to conceive how it was possible for his disciples not to miss the sight of his hands and head , though his cloaths were still visible as not being swallowed down into his stomach . or , whether our saviour swallowed down his own body into his stomach or no , this puzzle will still remain , how his disciples could swallow him down without his cloaths , he being still in his cloaths ; or how they could swallow him down in his cloaths , the bread being not transubstantiated into his cloaths , but into his body only . these and several such absurdities it were easie to enumerate . but i hope i have produced so much already that i may , and any one else , be thought to have very good cause to leave this high road of the literal sense , and betake our selves to that more safe path of the figurative , whereby transubstantiation with all its absurdities is avoided . chap. iii. . an evasion of the incredibility of transubstantiation drawn from the omnipotency of god. . ans. that it is no derogation to god's omnipotency not to be able to do what it implies a contradiction to be done . . if this transubstantiation had been fecible , yet it had been repugnant to the goodness and wisdom of christ to have effected it . . a marvelous witty device of taking away all the absurdities of transubstantiation , by giving to christ's body a supernatural manner of existence . . that the neat artifice of this sophistry lies in putting the smooth term of supernatural for counter-essential or asystatal . . that it is an asystatal manner of existence , proved from the author's description thereof in several particulars . arguments from the multiplication of christ's body , and difference of time of its production . . from non-extension of parts . . from independency of place . . to make a body independent of place as unconceivable as to make it independent of time. . the argument from being whole in every part of the symbols . . out of which absurdities the most witty evasion offered to our consideration that i have met with , is in that ingenious and artfully composed treatise , entitled , a papist mis-represented and represented . in his chapter of the eucharist toward the end , it is well worth the transcribing that i may offer some brief answers to the things there comprized . the papist represented , saith he ( pag. . lin . . ) not at all hearkning to his senses in a matter where god speaks ; he unfeignedly confesses , that he that made the world of nothing by his sole word , that cured diseases by his word , that raised the dead by his word , that expelled devils , that commanded the winds and seas , that multiplied bread , that changed water into wine by his word , and sinners into just men , cannot want power to change bread and wine into his own body and bloud by his sole word . . it is an invidious thing to dispute the power of the eternal logos or word incarnate , who is god of god , very god of very god , and therefore omnipotent , and can do all things that imply no contradiction to be done , as most certainly none of these things there specifi'd do imply it . but things repugnant to be done we may , and that with due reverence , declare god cannot do . as the apostle does not stick to say , god cannot lye , hebr. . . and why is it impossible for god to lye , but that it is repugnant to the perfection of his nature , and particularly that attribute of his veracity . nor will any adventure to affirm that he can make a globe or cylinder which shall be equidistant from , or touch a plane though but in half of their spherical or cylindrical superficies : or a circle from whose center the lines drawn shall be unequal , or a rectangle triangle , the power of whose hypotenusa shall not be equal to both the powers of the basis and cathetus . and in fine , there are sixt and immutable ideas of things , and such necessary and inseparable respects and properties of them , that to imagine them mutable , or that god can change them , is to disorder and change the eternal and immutable intellect of god himself . of which those indeleble and necessary notions , which the minds of all mankind are conscious to themselves of , if they be but awakned into free attention thereto , is but a compendious transcript . and therefore god his being not able to do any thing that is a contradiction to those eternal ideas and habitudes of them in his own mind , is no lessening of his omnipotency , but to imagine otherwise , is to dissolve the eternal frame of the divine intellect , and under a pretence of amplifying his omnipotency , to enable god to destroy himself , or to make him so weak or impotent as to be capable of being destroyed by himself , which is a thing impossible . . but suppose the eternal word incarnate could have turned the bread and wine into his own individual body and bloud , and the thing it self were fecible , though it seems so palpably contradictious to us : yet there would be this difficulty still remaining , that it is repugnant to his wisdom and goodness so to do ( as the apostle says , it is impossible for god to lye ) in that manner he is supposed to have done it , that is , in declaring , a thing is done that is repugnant so apparently to our intellectual faculties , and leaves so palpable an assurance to all our senses , though never so rightly circumstantiated , that it is not done , but that it is still bread ; and yet that these species of bread and wine should be supported by a miracle , to obfirm or harden us in our unbelief of this mystery of transubstantiation . how does this sute with either the wisdom of god , if he would in good earnest have us to believe this mystery , or with his goodness , to give this scandal to the world , for whom christ died , and to occasion so bloudy persecutions of innumerable innocent souls , that could not believe a thing so contrary to all sense and reason , and indeed to passages of scripture it self , whose penmen he did inspire ? wherefore this is a plain evincement that our saviour meant figuratively when he said [ this is my body ] and that his disciples understood him so ( there being nothing more usual in the jewish language than to call the sign by the name of the thing signified ) and that this literal gloss has been introduced by after-ages without any fault of our saviour . but in defence of the literal sense which he would have to infer transubstantiation , our author holds on thus , viz. . that this may be done without danger of multiplying his body , and making as many christs as altars , or leaving the right hand of his father , but only by giving to his body a supernatural manner of existence , by which being left without extension of parts , and rendred independent of place , it may be one and the same in many places at once , and whole in every part of the symbols , and not obnoxious to any corporeal contingencies . and this kind of existence is no more than what in a manner he bestows upon every glorified body , than what his own body had when born without the least violation of his mother's virginal integrity , when he rose from the dead out of the sepulcher without removing the stone ; when he entered amongst his disciples , the doors being shut . . this is , as i said , a witty contrived evasion to elude the above-mentioned repugnancies i have noted , and exquisitely well fitted for the amusing and confounding of more vulgar and weak minds , or such as have not leisure to consider things to the bottom , and for the captivating them into a profession of what they have no determinate or distinct apprehension of , by distinctions and exemplifications that give no real support to the cause they are brought in for to maintain . for first , to pretend that by a supernatural manner of existence a body may be in more places than one at once , at the right hand of god the father in heaven , and on the altar at the same time , &c. the artifice of the sophistry lies in this , that he has put a more tolerable and soft expression in lieu of one that ( according to his explication of the matter ) would sound more harsh , but is more true and proper in this case . for this manner of existence of a body which he describes is not simply supernatural , which implies it is a body still , as a mill-stone by a supernatural power held up in the air is a mill-stone still , though it be in that supernatural condition . but the condition he describes is such as is not only supernatural but counter-essential or asystatal , that is , repugnant to the very being of a body , or of any finite substance in the universe . it is as if the mill-stone were not only supernaturally supported in the air , but were as transparent , as soft and fluid , and of as undetermined a shape as the air it self , or as if a right-angled triangle were declared to be so still , though the hypotenusa were not of equal power with the basis and cathetus , which is a thing impossible ; but if instead of a supernatural manner of existence , it had been said an asystatal manner of existence , that is , an existence repugnant to the very being of a body or any finite substance else , it would have been discovered to be a contradiction at the very first sight , and therefore such as ought to be rejected , as well as the affirming that what christ gave was really bread and really his body at once . . and now , notwithstanding this soft and smooth term of [ supernatural ] that it is an asystatal manner of existence , that is here given to the body of christ , may appear from our author's description thereof . for in vertue , he saith , of this supernatural manner of existence , there may be a transubstantiation without danger of multiplying christ's body , and making as many christs as altars . but it is impossible this absurdity should be avoided , supposing transubstantiation . for there is not a more certain and infallible sign of two bodily persons being two bodily persons , and not the same person , that distance of place , wherein they are separate one from another , and consequently two not one body , and this is the very case in transubstantiation , which manifestly implies , that the body of christ is in many thousand distant places at once . which imagined condition in it is not supernatural but asystatal , and contradictious to the very being of any finite substance whatever , as has been intimated and firmly proved before , chap. . and as distance of place necessarily infers difference of bodies or persons , so does also difference of time of their production . that which was produced , suppose sixteen hundred years ago and remains so produced cannot be produced suppose but yesterday , or at this present moment , and so be sixteen hundred years older or younger than it self . this is not only supernatural but asystatal , and implies a perfect contradiction ; but yet this is the very case in transubstantiation . the body of christ born suppose sixteen hundred years ago , is yet produced out of the transubstantiated bread but now or yesterday , and so the same body is sixteen hundred years older or younger than it self , which is a perfect contradiction . . secondly , the papist represented declares , that the body of christ by vertue of this supernatural manner of existence , is left without extension of parts , which is a perfect contradiction to the very nature and essence of a body , whose universally acknowledged definition is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , implying a trinal inpenetrable dimension or extension . besides , did christ's body at his last supper so soon as he had transubstantiated the bread into it , lose all extension of parts ? what then filled out his cloaths as he sat with his disciples at table ? or how could the jews lay hold on christ's body to crucifie it , if he had no extension of parts to be laid hold on ? how could there be hands and feet and organization of parts , either at the table or on the cross , if there were no extension of parts to be organized ? and lastly , being the transubstantiated bread is the very individual body of christ , if they would have this being left without extension of parts , to be understood of it , how can the very same individual body of christ have extension of parts and have no extension of parts , have organization of parts and have no organization of parts at once : so that the condition of christ's body here supposed is plainly asystatal , not as is smoothly expressed only supernatural . . thirdly , whereas the papist represented declares , that this supernatural manner of existence of christ's body renders it independent of place , what can the meaning of that be , but that by vertue of this priviledge it might exist without any place or ubi , which bodies in their natural condition cannot ? but this clashes with the very story of our saviour christ , who was certainly in the room in which he ate the passover with his disciples , after he had transubstantiated the bread into his individual body , and therefore it did not exist independently of place , in virtue of any such supernatural manner of existence as is imagined . and as this does not agree with matter of fact , so it is a perfect contradiction to the essence of any body or finite substance to be exempted from all connexion with place or ubi , but a finite substance must be in a definite ubi , and while it is in such a definite ubi , it is impossible to conceive that it is in another place or ubi , whether intra or extra moenia mundi . he that closely and precisely considers the point , he will not fail , i think , to discern the thing to be impossible . and what contradiction it implies i have demonstrated above . so that we see there can be no such supernatural manner of existence conferred on a body in making it independent of place or ubiety , as to capacitate it to be one and the same body in diverse places at once , but that this supposed supernatural manner is truly an asystatal manner , and such as is repugnant to the very being of a body , or any finite substance whatsoever . . to make a body in this sense independent of place or ubiety , is as unconceivable as to make it independent of time , which yet would so compleat this impossible hypothesis , that under this pretence when a thing has such a supernatural existence as exempts it from all connexion with or relation to time , but supposes it utterly independent thereof , as was explained before touching place , we may suppose what we will of a body , that it may be bread and not bread at the same time , that it may be at thebes and at athens at the same time , as we ordinary mortals would phrase it , sith it is lifted up above all relation and connexion with time , nor hath any thing to do with any time. but yet this assuredly is not a mere supernatural manner of existence , but plainly asystatal , and such as if god could cause , there would be no eternal and immutable truths , but under a pretext of exalting the omnipotence of god , they would imply him able to destroy his own nature , which would argue an impotency in him , and to extinguish and confound the inviolable ideas of the divine intellect , as i intimated above . . and fourthly and lastly , that in vertue of this supernatural manner of existence , the body of christ should be whole in every part of the symbols , and thereby become not obnoxious to any corporeal contingencies ; ( which is said , i suppose , to avoid the absurdity of grinding a pieces the body of christ with our teeth when we chew the supposed species ) thus to exist whole in every part , is not a mere supernatural manner of existing , but asystatal , and implies either that the least part of christ's body is as big as the whole , or that the whole body is god knows how many thousand times bigger than it self . for certainly the whole body comprized under the whole bread or species of bread , is many thousand times bigger than one particle thereof no bigger than a pins point . besides that this making the body of christ whole in every part , takes away all possibility of distinct organization of his body , unless you will have every pins point of it to have head , feet , hands , arms , and the rest of the parts of an humane body , or have the same individual body organized and unorganized at the same time , which are as palpable contradictions as any can occur to the understanding of a man. and thus much i thought fit to intimate touching this witty distinction of a natural and supernatural manner of existence of a body , and to shew that this pretended supernatural manner of the existence of christ's body , arising from the bread transubstantiated , as the papist represented describes it , is indeed an asystatal manner of existence , and inconsistent with the being of any body , or finite substance whatsoever . chap. iv. . the supernatural manner of the existence of a body consisting in non-extension of parts , independency of place , and being whole in every part. . the first exemplification of such a manner of existence in glorified bodies , not to reach the case . . nor the second , in christ's body born without the least violation of his mothers virginal integrity . . nor the third in christ's rising out of the sepuloher without the removing of the stone . . nor the fourth , in christ's entring amongst his disciples the doors being shut . . transubstantiation implying a number of contradictions as harsh as that of the same body being both christ ' s body and bread at once , and there being no salvo for them but this device of a supernatural manner of existence , and this so plainly failing , it is impossible that transubstantiation should be the true mode of the real presence . . it remains now that we only touch upon lightly the exemplifications of this supernatural manner of existence of a body , consisting in these peculiarities , non-extension of parts , independency of place , and being whole in every part , and to note how none of these instances reach the present case . . as first that of a glorified body . what scripture , reason or authority ever suggested to us that the glorified body of christ himself , much less every glorified body , is without extension of parts , has no relation to or connexion with place , or is whole in every part . for without extension of parts it cannot be so much as a body . and were not moses and elias together with christ at his transfiguration on mount tabor , at least lively figures of the state of a glorified body , but it is evident by the description that they had extension of parts , else what should shining garments do upon what is unextended , and what glory can issue from a single mathematical point as i may so call it ? and in that they were on mount tabor together , it is manifest they had a connexion with or dependency on place , nor did exist without being in some ubi . and that the glorified body of christ is in heaven not on earth , is plain from act. . . and touching his body he rose in , and therefore was his resurrection-body , matt. . . the angel says , he is not here , for he is risen ; which had been a mere non sequitur , if his body could have been in more places than one at once , which property the papist represented gives it upon account of transubstantiation . and for as much as the transubstantiated bread and the body of christ is one and the same individual body , and that this that is once christ's body never perishes , it is evident , that the body he rose in , being one and the same body with the transubstantiated bread , must have the capacity by this supernatural manner of existence above described , to be in more places than one at once , which is a perfect contradiction to the angels reasoning : he is not here , for he is risen , and gone hence . for according to this supernatural manner of existence , which they suppose in christ's body upon the account of transubstantiation , he might be both there and gone thence at once . . the second instance of this supernatural manner of existence of a body , is christ's body born without the least violation of his mothers virginal integrity , which is such a secret as the scripture has not revealed , nor any sufficient authority assured us of : the mother of christ still continuing a virgin , because she had nothing to do with any man , though that which was conceived in her by the overshadowing of the holy ghost came out of her womb in the same circumstances there , that other humane births do . but suppose the body of christ pass'd the wicket of the womb without opening it , as the sun-beams pass through a crystal or glass , does this import that his body is either independent of place , or is devoid of extension , or whole in every part ? surely no , no more than that light that passes through the pores of the crystal : so that there is nothing repugnant to the nature of a body in all this . no non-extension , no independency of place , no penetration of corporeal dimensions , nor any being whole in every part . . the third instance is christ's rising out of the sepulcher without removing the stone . but this instance may very justly be rejected , it disagreeing with the very history of the resurrection , which tells us the stone was removed , matt. . . and behold there was a great earthquake , for the angel descended from heaven , and rolled back the stone from the door , and sate upon it . wherefore we see the stone was removed . nor can i imagine why this should make a third instance , viz. christ's body passing out of the sepulcher , the stone unremoved from the door thereof , unless from an heedless reflection on the fore-going verse ( where mary magdalen and the other mary are said to go to see the sepulcher ) and connecting it to an ill grounded sense with what follows in the second verse , and behold there was a great earthquake ; as if it were implyed that the earthquake and the rolling away the stone were at that very time that these two women went to see the sepulcher , and christ having risen before , that it would follow that he rose before the stone of the sepulcher was removed ; but this is a mistake . for agreeably to vatablus his gloss ( who for erat [ & ecce erat terrae motus magnus ] puts fuerat , and for descendit , descenderat , and for devolvit lapidem , devolverat ) which implies the thing done before these women came to the sepulcher ; it is manifest out of the other evangelists that the matter was altogether so ; for mark . . it is said of the two above said parties , that very early in the morning , the first day of the week they came unto the sepulcher at the rising of the sun , and they said among themselves , who shall roll us away the stone from the door of the sepulcher , and when they looked they saw the stone was rolled away , &c. and it is expresly said in luke , that they found the stone rolled away from the sepulcher . and the like is recorded in st. john , ch . . so that it is a plain case the stone was rolled away before their going to the sepulcher . what time therefore can we imagine more likely of this rolling away the stone and terrible earthquake , than at the very resurrection of christ , who rose in this awful terrour to the keepers , the earth quaking , and the too glorious angels officiously opening the stony door of the sepulcher , that the king of glory might pass out , without any further needless or useless miracle , such as he ever declined in his life time , before his death and resurrection ? wherefore this third instance , it is plain , cannot with any shew be accommodated to the present case , it being raised out of a mere mistake of the story . . the fourth and last instance is , christ's entring amongst his disciples , the doors being shut , recorded john . , and . there the disciples are said to be gathered together privately or secretly for fear of the jews , for which cause they lockt or bolted the doors with-inside , that no man might suddenly come upon them . but while they were in this privacy or closeness , christ , notwithstanding , suddenly presented himself in the midst of them , for all this closeness or secrecy , and not without a miracle , supposing himself or some ministring angel to unlock or unbolt the door suddenly , and softly , sine strepitu , which upon this account would be more likely , in that if he had come in , the doors being still shut , that might have seemed as great an argument to thomas that he was a spirit , as the feeling his hands and side that he was no spirit . wherefore , i conceive , it is no sufficiently firm hypothesis , that christ entred among his disciples , the doors in the mean time , at his very entrance , remaining shut . but suppose they were so , this will not prove his body devoid of extension , to be independent of place , and whole in every part , more than his passing the wicket of the womb , like light through crystal , did argue the same in the second instance but the truth of the business will then be this , that he being then in his resurrection-body ( even that wherewith he was to ascend into heaven , which yet he kept in its terrestrial modification , and organization , for those services it was to do amongst his disciples while he conversed with them after his resurrection upon earth ; as he made use of it in a particular manner to s t thomas ) he had a power to modifie it into what consistencies he pleased , aerial , aetherial , or coelestial , it remaining still that individual body , that was crucified . this therefore might easily pass through the very pores of the door , and much more easily betwixt the door and the side-posts there , without any inconvenience more than to other spiritual bodies . for the resurrection-body is an heavenly and spiritual body , as s t paul himself expresly declares . but yet as truly a body as any body else ; that is , it hath impenetrable trinal dimension , is not without place or ubiety , nor whole in every part . this very story demonstrates all this , that his body is not without place . for it stood in the midst of the room amongst his disciples . nor the whole in every part ; for here is distinct mention of christ's hand and his side , as elsewhere of his flesh and bones , luke . . which would be all confounded , if every part were in every part . and if there be these distinct parts , then certainly his body hath extension , and this ingeniously excogitated distinction of the natural and supernatural manner of existence of a body , can by no means cover the gross repugnancies , which are necessarily imply'd in the doctrine of transubstantiation . . a doctrine raised from the literal sense of those words [ this is my body ] which literal sense if we were tyed to , it would also follow that that which christ gave to his disciples was as well real bread as his real body : [ this ] plainly referring to what he took , what he blessed , and what he gave , which was bread , and of this he says , this is my body . wherefore adhering to the literal sense , it would be both real bread and the real body of christ at once . but this , as being a repugnancy , as was noted above , and contradiction to the known inviolable and immutable laws of logick and humane reason , is justly rejected by the church of rome , for this very reason , that it implies a contradiction , that one and the same body should be bread and the real body of christ at once . wherefore transubstantiation containing , as has been proved , so many of such contradictions , every jot as repugnant to the inviolable and immutable laws of logick , or humane reason ( that unextinguishable lamp of the lord in the soul of man ) as this of the same body being real bread and the real body of christ at once : and there being no salvo for these harsh contradictions , but the pretence of a supernatural manner of existence of a body , which god is supposed to give to the bread transubstantiated into the body of christ , that is , into the very individual body of christ , they being supposed by transubstantiation to become one and the same body . i say this neat distinction of a supernatural manner of existing being plainly demonstrated ( so as it is by the papist represented , explained ) not to be a mere supernatural manner of existence , with which the being of a body would yet consist , but a counter-essential , asystatal , and repugnant manner of existence , inconsistent with the being of a body ; and none of the instances that are produced as pledges of the truth of the notion or assertion at all reaching the present case , it is manifest that though there be a real presence of christ's body and bloud in the celebration of the holy eucharist , acknowledged as well by the reformed as the pontifician party , that it is impossible that transubstantiation , which the papist represented here declares , should be the true mode thereof . chap. v. . the author's excuse for his civility to the papist represented , that he shews him that the road he is in is not the way of truth touching the mode of the real presence . . that the bishop of meaux makes the real presence the common doctrine of all the churches as well reformed as un-reformed , and that it is acknowledged to be the doctrine of the church of england , though she is so wise and so modest as not to define the mode thereof . . the sincere piety of our predecessors in believing the real presence , and their unfortunateness afterwards in determining the mode by transubstantiation or consubstantiation . . and therefore the papist represented , being in so palpable a mistake , and by keeping to the literal sense having so apparently wandred from the path of truth , i hope my thus industriously and carefully advertizing him thereof for his own good , will be no otherwise interpreted than an act of humanity or common civility , if not of indispensable christianity , thus of my own accord , though not roganti , yet erranti comiter monstrare viam , or at least to assure him that this of transubstantiation is not the right road to the due understanding of the manner or mode of the real presence of the body and blood of christ in the celebration of the holy eucharist . . which opinion of the real presence the bishop of meaux declares to be the doctrine of all the churches as well reformed as un-reformed ; as i must confess i have been of that perswasion ( ever since i writ my mystery of godliness ) that it is the doctrine of the church of england , and that the doctrine is true . and this i remember i heard from a near relation of mine when i was a youth , a reverend dignitary of the church of england , and that often , viz. that our church was for the real presence , but for the manner thereof , if asked , he would answer , rem scimus , modum nescimus , we know the thing , but the mode or manner thereof we know not . and the assurance we have of the thing is from the common suffrage of the ancient fathers , such as the above-cited place of our homilies glances at , and from the scripture it self , which impressed that notion on the minds of our pious predecessors in the church of god. . for i do verily believe that out of mere devotion and sincere piety , and out of a reverend esteem they had of the solemnity of the eucharist , they embraced this doctrine as well as broached it at the first . and if they had kept to the profession of it in general , without running into transubstantiation or consubstantiation , and had defined no further than the plain scriptural text in the sixth of st. iohn and the suffrages of the primitive fathers had warranted them , viz. that there was a twofold body and blood of christ , the one natural , the other spiritual or divine , which we do really receive in the holy communion ( within which limits i shall confine my self here without venturing into any farther curiosities ) it had been more for the peace and honour of the christian church , and it might have prevented much scandal to them without , and much cruelty and persecution amongst our selves : the history of which is very horrid even to think of . but though there have been these mistakes in declaring the mode , yet the thing it self is not therefore to be abandoned , it being so great a motive for a reverend approaching the lord's table , and duly celebrating the solemnity of the holy eucharist . nor can we , as i humbly conceive , relinquish this doctrine of the real presence of the body and blood of christ , without the declining the most easie and natural sense of the holy scripture , as it stands written in the sixth chapter of st. iohn . chap. vi. . gratian his distinction of the flesh and blood of christ into spiritual or divine , and into that flesh that hung on the cross , and that bloud let out by the lance of the souldier . . the same confirmed out of s. austin , who makes the body and bloud of christ to be partaken of in baptism , and also from s. paul and philo. . other citations out of philo touching the divine logos agreeable with what christ says of himself in his discourse john . and out of which it further appears that the antient fathers ate the same food that we , the divine body of christ , but not that which hung on the cross. . a strong confirmation out of what has been produced , that gratian his distinction is true . . the first argument from our saviour's discourse , that he meant not his flesh that hung on the cross , because he says , that he that eats it has eternal life in him . . the second , because his flesh and bloud is the object of his discourse , not the manner of eating and drinking them . . the third , because of his answer to his murmuring disciples , which removes his natural body far from them , and plainly tells them , the flesh profiteth nothing . . gratian's distinction no novel doctrine . . out of which sixth chapter of s. iohn , that is manifest which a member of the roman church her self , has declared , an eminent canonist of theirs , gratian , in [ canon dupliciter ] as it is cited by philippus mornaeus , lib. . de eucharistiâ , cap. . dupliciter intelligitur caro christi & sanguis : vel spiritualis illa atque divina de quâ ipse dicit , caro mea verè est cibus , & sanguis meus verè est potus , & nisi manducaveritis carnem meam , & biberitis sanguinem meum , non habebitis vitam aeternam ; vel caro quae crucifixa est , & sanguis qui militis effusus est lanceâ . i the rather take notice of this passage , because he makes use of the very phrases which i used without consulting him in my philosophical hypothesis of the great mystery of regeneration , calling that body or flesh which christ so copiously discourses of , iohn . spiritual or divine , which he plainly distinguishes , as christ himself there does , from that body that hung on the cross , and that blood that was let out by the lance of the souldier . . for we cannot be regenerate out of these in baptism , and yet in the same place s. augustine says , we are partakers of the body and blood of christ in baptism ; and therefore as terrestrial animals are not fed ( as they say the chamaeleon is ) of the air , but by food of a terrestrial consistency , so our regeneration being out of spiritual principles , our inward man is also nourished by that food that is spiritual or divine . and that is a marvellous passage of st. paul , cor. . where he says , the fathers did all eat the same spiritual meat , and did all drink the same spiritual drink , for they drank of that spiritual rock that followed them , and that rock was christ , where st. austin , anselm , thomas aquinas , and others , as you may see in iacobus capellus , avouch , that the ancient patriarchs ate the same spiritual food that we , which therefore must be the flesh and blood of christ , in that sense christ understands it in , iohn . and that passage of philo ( that grotius notes on the same place ) is worth our taking notice of , and that in two several treatises of his he interprets the manna of the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the divine logos , which agrees hugely well with our supposing that the flesh and blood of which our saviour saith , it is meat indeed and drink indeed , he speaks this as he is the eternal logos , to whom appertains the universal divine body , as being the body of his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , life or spirit , as i have noted in my analytical account of the fore-part of the first chapter of st. iohn's gospel . see my scholia at the end of my enchiridium ethicum . . and it is marvellously applicable to our purpose what philo says on that passage of deuteronomy , chap. . v. . he made him to suck honey out of the rock , and oyl out of the flinty rock ( in his 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) where he says the rock signifies 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . the solid , steady and infrangible wisdom of god ; implying the immutableness and unalterableness of the natures , properties , and respects of the ideas of things in the divine intellect , the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , not to be changed or violated for any superstitious purposes whatsoever , as i have intimated before . wherefore as s t paul calls christ , who is the eternal logos , a rock , so does philo , by saying , that rock moses mentions in his song is the steady , solid and infrangible wisdom of god. which therefore is that essential wisdom , the same that the divine logos , or second hypostasis of the trinity . and not many lines after in the same treatise , the lawgiver , says he , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , calls this rock manna the divine logos that was before all beings , and without whom nothing was made that was made , as s t iohn testifies . and in his [ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ] speaking of israel , which he would have signifie one that sees god : he , says he , lifting up his eyes to heaven sees , and thence receives , ( 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ) the manna , the divine logos , the heavenly incorruptible food of the soul devoted to holy speculation . which passages i could not forbear to produce , they having so great an affinity with that which our saviour professes of himself , that he is this bread from heaven , the true manna , and incorruptible food of the soul , whereby she is nourished to eternal life , iohn . out of all which may be more easily understood how the fathers did all eat the same spiritual meat , and drink the same spiritual drink , which cannot well be conceived but of such a divine body and bloud of christ , as is universal , not restrained to his particular humane nature , but belonging to him as he is the eternal logos , in whom is the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 life or spirit , which goeth along with the divine body of this life or spirit of christ , and consequently is rightly called his body . which being the necessary principles of regeneration ( for ex eisdem nutrimur ex quibus constamus ) and there being no salvation without regeneration , and no regeneration continued and advanced without congenerous food ; we must necessarily conclude with s t paul , that , the fathers all ate the same spiritual meat , and drank all the same spiritual drink , water , honey , oyl out of the same rock , christ , the eternal word or logos . and certainly that body and blood of christ out of which the fathers were regenerate , and by which they were fed , cannot be the very body and bloud of christ which hung on the cross , and whose bloud was there let out by the lance of the souldier that pierced his side : and therefore there was a body and bloud of christ before he was incarnate , for the regenerate souls of the antient people of the iews to feed upon , belonging to him as he is the eternal logos ; in whom is the life and that spirit of which it is said , that which is born of the flesh is flesh , and that which is born of the spirit is spirit . which things are more fully treated of in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , or a philosophical hypothesis touching the great mystery of regeneration . . wherefore there is all the reason in the world , if not plain necessity to admit , what we cited out of gratian that famous canonist of the church of rome . that we are to understand that there is a two-fold flesh and bloud of christ , either that spiritual and divine flesh , of which he himself says , my flesh is meat indeed , and my bloud is drink indeed , and , unless you eat my flesh and drink my bloud , ye shall not have everlasting life . or that flesh which was crucified , and that bloud that was let out of his side by the lance of the souldier , which we shall now endeavour briefly to demonstrate out of that discourse of our saviour in the sixth of s t iohn . . first then , that the flesh of christ that hung once on the cross , and into which the bread of the romanists is supposed to be transubstantiated in the sacrament of our lord's supper , is not the flesh here meant is plain from what is said thereof in this sixth chapter of s t iohn v. . whoso eateth my flesh and drinketh my bloud hath eternal life . but every one that eateth the bread transubstantiated into the body of christ , that once hung upon the cross , in the roman communion , has not eternal life in him . nay if that souldier that pierced our saviour's side and let out his bloud with his lance had drunk also thereof , and cut some piece of his flesh from his body and eaten it , is any one so fond as to think , that he thereby would have been made partaker of eternal life ? but if christ meant that body or flesh of his and not some other that is rightly also called his flesh or body , it would follow that that souldier by doing that savage and inhumane act , would have obtained everlasting life . wherefore it is plain from hence , that there is another body or flesh of christ and another blood , distinct from that blood that was shed on the cross , and from that body that hung there , which our saviour aims at in his discourse . . secondly , it is plain that our saviour's discourse in that chapter ( he passing from that temporal food which he had lately procured for the multitude , to a spiritual and eternal ) has for its object or subject not the manner or way of receiving his body and blood , as if it were meant of that very flesh and blood on the cross , but that it was to be received in a spiritual manner , which interpreters , several of them , drive at ; but the object of his discourse is his very flesh and blood it self , to be taken ( as the fish and loaves were wherewith he lately fed them ) or it is himself in reference to this flesh and blood which belongs to him as he is the eternal word , and in this sense he says , he is the bread of god that cometh down from heaven and giveth life to the world , v. . and v. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , i am the bread of life , and speaking of the manna he presently adds , your fathers ate manna , and yet died , viz. the natural death , the natural manna being no preservative against the natural death . and v. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , as before he called himself 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . for in him is the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ( iohn . ) or life and spirit , and this spirit or life in the divine body . i am the living bread coming down from heaven ( as the manna is said to do , and to which philo compares the divine logos ) if any one eat of this bread he shall live for ever . he speaks not of the manner of eating of it , but of the bread it self to be eaten , and yet immediately thereupon he calls this bread his flesh , which he says , he will give for the life of the world , that is to the end that they may be enlivened thereby , he thus communicating to them his divine body and spirit together . and then presently upon the iews striving amongst themselves and saying , how can this man give us his flesh to eat ? ( the reason whereof was because they took him to be a meer man , and thought that christ himself understood it of his humane flesh ) he affirms with greater earnestness and vehemency , verily , verily , i say unto you , unless ye eat the flesh of the son of man ( viz. of the messias , who is the logos incarnate ) and drink his bloud , ye have no life in you . whoso eateth my flesh , and drinketh my bloud hath eternal life , and i will raise him up at the last day . for my flesh is meat indeed , and my bloud is drink indeed . and so all along to the very end of his discourse , he speaks of a really eating his flesh , and drinking his blood , not of the manner of eating , as if it never came nigh them , but only they thought of flesh and blood god knows how far distant from them , and so ate the humane flesh of christ by meer thinking of it , and drank his bloud after the same imaginary manner , which would , i think , be a very dilute and frigid sense of such high and fervid asseverations of our saviour , if the mystery reached no farther than so . . but thirdly and lastly , that it does reach further than so , is exceeding evident from what our saviour utters upon his disciples being scandalized at this strange discourse of his , v. . when iesus knew in himself , that his disciples murmured at it , he said unto them , does this offend you ? what if you shall see the son of man ascending where he was before , which he must needs understand of his particular visible body which he bore about with him , and which his humane soul did actuate , and which was appropriated to his humane nature , which is finite and circumscribed . it is an elliptical speech of his , but thus naturally to be supplyed as i have also noted above , as if he suppressed by an aposiopesis this objurgatory sense insinuated thereby . will you then imagine so grosly as if i understood it of this very flesh i bear about with me , when as this particular body of mine after my ascension into heaven will be removed at a vast distance from you . i tell you this flesh of mine , as to this purpose i have all this time driven at , profiteth nothing , you cannot feed of it at such a distance if it were to be fed on . the text runs thus , v. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , it is that quickening spirit i aim at in my discourse , that divine or spiritual body of mine . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , that flesh , which you understand and are so scandalized at the eating thereof , profiteth nothing as to this purpose , nor the blood taken in your sense has any thing to do here . the words that i speak unto you they are spirit and they are life . the object of those words spoken is my spiritual body and blood , not as i am a man , but the eternal word , the divine logos , which contains in it the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or spirit , and my divine body universal , that belongs to that my life or spirit . this is the true mystery of the matter , for by these two things asserted by our saviour , . that we are to eat his flesh and drink his blood as we hope ever to have eternal life . . and his declaring his flesh profiteth nothing , it is manifest that that distinction of gratian is true , which he seems to have taken out of st. hierom , or some other ancient father , who tells us the flesh and blood of christ is twofold , the one natural and which he bore about with him and hung once on the cross , the other spiritual and divine , which we may really eat and drink , that is really receive and draw in at the celebrating the holy eucharist by a sincere , fervid and devotional faith. and consequently there is a real presence of the body and blood of christ in partaking of the lord's supper , whereby our souls are nourished to eternal , life . and in that , he says , his natural flesh profiteth nothing to this purpose ( for it cannot be said that it profiteth nothing at all , since in vertue of the crucifixion of that flesh , and effusion of that blood on the cross , we have the remission of our sins ) christ plainly infers that he has ( which cannot be well understood but as he is the eternal logos ) another flesh , viz. that spiritual and divine flesh , which is mainly profitable for this purpose , for the maintaining , perfecting and renewing the inward man , that he may attain to his due growth in christ. and lastly , how can christ say his flesh that was crucified on the cross profiteth nothing , when by being meditated upon at the solemnity of the holy eucharist , and also at other times , it may serve to kindle and inflame our love and devotion towards him , and so urge us to greater degrees of repentance and mortification , and serious holiness ; it therefore being useful and profitable for all this , i say , why does he then affirm it profiteth nothing , but that he does on purpose advertise us that it profiteth nothing as to the present case he has spoke to all this while , viz. to be the real meat and food of the inward man , and to be really received into him , to maintain and increase those divine principles in him out of which he is regenerated . this his particular flesh and blood , that hung on the cross , cannot be profitable for , nor can be come at , at such a distance , to be taken in and received ; which therefore plainly implies those other , which were mentioned above out of gratian ( the divine or spiritual flesh and blood of christ only ) to be properly useful to this purpose . . and for this divine and spiritual flesh and blood of our saviour distinguished from his natural ; besides st. hierome you have also the suffrage of clemens alexandrinus , in his paedagogus , lib. . cap. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . the blood of our lord is twofold , the one carnal , by which we are redeemed from corruption ; the other spiritual , wherewith we are anointed , and by vertue of drinking thereof we attain to incorruption . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . and as he makes the blood of our lord twofold , so we may be sure he makes his body or flesh , because his mystical body and blood go together . according to that which m r pelling in his pious and learned discourse of the sacrament , quotes out of s t ambrose , who , says he , speaking of that body which is received in the eucharist , calls it the spiritual body of christ , the body of a divine spirit ; and he does confidently affirm of all the antients who have either purposely interpreted , or occasionally quoted the words of christ , in the sixth of s t iohn , touching the eating his flesh and drinking his blood , that they all understand him to speak of a spiritual flesh and blood , distinct not only from the substance of the holy elements , but also from that natural body of christ which he took of the substance of the holy virgin , pag. . so little novelty is there in this distinction of the body and blood of christ into natural , and spiritual or divine . chap. vii . . an apology for being thus operose and copious in inculcating the present point from the usefulness thereof . . the first usefulness in that it defeats monsieur de meaux his stratagem to reduce us to transubstantiation , as if no real presence without it . . the second usefulness , for the rectifying the notion of consubstantiation . . the third for more fully understanding the mystery of the eucharist , with applications of it to several passages in our communion-service . . the fourth for a very easie and natural interpretation of certain passages in our church-catechism . . the priviledge of the faithful receiver , and of what great noment the celebration of the eucharist is . . the last usefulness in solidly reconciling the rubrick at the end of the communion-service , with that noted passage in our church-catechism . . the reader may haply think i have been over operose and copious in inculcating this distinction of gratian's , touching the body and blood of christ in the holy eucharist . but the great usefulness thereof , i hope , may apologize for this my extraordinary diligence and industry . for the notion being both true and unexceptionable , and not at all clashing , so far as i can discern , with either the holy scripture , or right reason and solid philosophy , to say nothing of the suffrage of the primitive fathers , but rather very agreeable and consentaneous to them all ; and also having , as i said , its weighty usefulness , it was a point , i thought , that was worth my so seriously insisting upon ; and as i have hitherto endeavoured faithfully to set out the truth thereof , i shall now , though more briefly , intimate its usefulness . . and the first usefulness is this , whereas that reverend prelate the bishop of meaux tugs so hard to pull back again the reformed churches to the communion of the church of rome , by this concession , or rather profession of theirs , that there is a real presence of the body and blood of christ at the celebration of the eucharist , to be received by the faithful , and that therefore they must return to the doctrine of transubstantiation , as if there were no other mode of a real presence to be conceived but it : the force of this inference is plainly taken away , by this distinction that gratian , one of their own church , hath luckily hit upon , or rather taken out of some antient father , and is more fully made out in this discourse , that there is a spiritual and divine body of christ , distinct from that particular body of his that hung on the cross , which the faithful partake of in the lord's supper . whence it is plain there is no need of transubstantiation , which is incumbred with such abundance of impossibilities and contradictions . . secondly , this notion of ours is hugely serviceable for the rectifying of the doctrine of consubstantiation in the lutheran church , who are for an ubiquity of the particular body of christ that hung on the cross , which assuredly is a grand mistake . but i believe in the authors thereof there was a kind of parturiency , and more confused divination of that truth , which we have so much insisted upon , and their mistake consists only in this , that they attributed to the particular body of christ , which belongs to his restrained and circumscribed humane nature , that which truly and only belongs to his divine body , as he is the eternal logos , in whom is the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the life or spirit of the logos , to which spirit of his this body belongs , and therefore is rightly called his body , as appertaining to his spirit . for this body , this divine and spiritual flesh , as gratian calls it , is every where present , though not to be received as the food of the inward man , but only by the faithful and regenerate , so that according to this notion there may be a consubstantiation rightly interpreted , that is a compresentiation , or rather compresentiality of both the real bread and wine , and the real body and blood of christ at once ; so that they both may be really and indeed received by all true believers . and lutheranism in this point thus candidly interpreted , will prove a sound and unexceptionable doctrine . and i charitably believe the first authors of it , if they had fully understood their own meaning , meant no more than so . and i wish i had as much reason to believe that the pontificians meant no more by their transubstantiation , but a firm and fast hold of the real presence . i hope the most ingenuous of them at this time of the day mean no more than so , viz. that they are as well assured of the real presence of the body and blood of christ to be received in the celebration of the eucharist ; as if the very bread was turned into his body , and the wine into his blood by a miraculous transubstantiation . . thirdly , it is from this notion or distinction of the antient fathers , as i hinted above , of the body and blood of christ into natural and spiritual or divine , that we have ever been well appointed to give a more full and distinct account of the nature of the solemnity of the eucharist as it is celebrated in our church , it plainly comprizing these two things . the first the commemoration of the death of christ , of the breaking his body or flesh , viz. the wounding thereof with nails and spears . the other , the partaking of the divine body and blood of christ , by which our inward man is nourished to eternal life : which our eating the bread and drinking the wine are symbols of . both which in our communion-service are plainly pointed at . the first fully , in the exhortation to communicants , where it is said , and above all things you must give most humble and hearty thanks to god the father , the son , and the holy ghost , for the redemption of the world by the death and passion of our saviour christ , both god and man , who did humble himself even to the death upon the cross for us miseable sinners — and to the end we should always remember the exceeding great love of our master and only saviour jesus christ thus dying for us , and the innumerable benefits , which by his precious blood-shedding , he hath obtained to us , he has instituted and ordained holy mysteries as pledges of his love , and for a continual remembrance of his death . and in the prayer of consecration , the celebration of the eucharist is again said to be a continued or perpetuated commemoration of christ's precious death till his coming again . but now for our receiving the spiritual and divine body and blood of christ , such passages as these seem to intimate it . in the exhortation to the communicants , it is there said , if with a true penitent heart and lively faith we receive this holy sacrament , then we spiritually eat the flesh of christ and drink his blood , then we dwell in christ and christ in us , we are one with christ and christ with us . this passage plainly points to our saviour's discourse , iohn . v. . where he says , he that eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood , dwelleth in me and i in him . and he thus dwelling in us , he enlivens us , we becoming one with christ in a manner as the soul and body makes one , as it followeth in the next verse , as the living father has sent me , and i live by the father , so he that eateth me shall live by me , and so we become one with christ and christ with us , we living by christ as he by his father ; that is to say , as christ ▪ lives by his father , so we live by the spirit of christ dwelling in us , rom. . . which spirit or life of christ always implies the divine body . as he that is joined unto the lord in this body is one spirit , cor. . . now this exhortation so plainly alluding to this passage of our saviour's discourse , which speaks not of his particular natural flesh , but of that which is his spiritual or divine flesh , it is plain that the genuine sense of the exhortation in this place is , that we really though spiritually ( that is by a fervent and devotional faith ) eat or receive the real body and blood of christ , viz. that divine and spiritual body and blood of his above-mentioned . and this passage of our saviour's discourse is again alluded to in the prayer immediately before the prayer of consecration in these words , grant us therefore , gracious lord , so to eat the flesh of thy dear son jesus christ , and to drink his blood that our sinful bodies may be made clean by his body , and our souls washed through his most precious blood , and that we may evermore dwell in him and he in us , john . . and these two places so plainly alluding to our saviour's discourse in the sixth of s t iohn , it is very easie and natural to conceive that what occurs in the thanksgiving after our receiving the sacrament does sound to the same purpose . almighty and everlasting god , we most heartily thank thee for that thou dost vouchsafe to feed us who have duly received these holy mysteries , with the spiritual food of the most precious body and blood of thy son and our saviour jesus christ — the words even of themselves do very naturally point at a real though spiritual partaking or receiving into us the body and blood of christ , namely , of that flesh and blood which our saviour discourses of , iohn . and therefore we may be much more assured that they do so , if we take notice , the sense is so back'd and strengthned by the other two passages which do plainly relate to the body , or flesh and blood christ discourses of , in the sixth of s t iohn's gospel . i will only add one consideration more , and that is from the title of our communion-service . can there be any more likely reason why the lord's supper is called the holy communion , than that it refers to that of s t paul , cor. . . the cup of blessing which we bless , is it not the communion of the blood of christ ? the bread which we break , is it not the communion of the body of christ ? because there is one bread , we being many are one body . for we are all partakers of that one bread. which is that bread from heaven , which our saviour discourses of in the sixth of s t iohn . but the words i have chiefly my eye upon are those : the cup being called 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the communion of the blood , and the bread , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the communion of the body of christ ; and the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , in all likely hood , having the same sense that it had , pet. . . in 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , where we are said to be called to the participation of the divine nature , communion here in s t paul's epistle to the corinthians must naturally imply our real receiving or partaking of the body and blood of christ in the celebrating of this holy communion , and that by thus partaking of that one divine body and blood of his , signified by the eating and drinking the bread and wine , we , though many , become one body : not in a political sense only , but , if i may so speak , divinely natural , we being made all members of that one universal divine body of christ , as he is the eternal logos , and so becoming 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , pet. . . wherefore , that passage in s t paul's epistle to the corinthians , does marvelous-fully set out the nature of that part of the lord's supper , that is distinguished from the commemoration of his death ; and gives the most genuine reason of its being called the holy communion , it implying the real communication of that one divine body of christ to the faithful , and their real union thereby with christ and with one another , which is a full and perfect holy communion indeed . . fourthly , this notion of the fathers touching the spiritual or divine body and blood of christ , affords us a very easie and natural interpretation of that passage in our church-catechism , touching the sacrament of the lord's supper , where to the question , what is the inward part , or thing signified ? it is answered , the body and blood of christ which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in the lord's supper . in the answer to a former question , why was the sacrament of the lord's supper ordained ? it is answered , for a continual remembrance of the sacrifice of the death of christ , and the benefits received thereby . one eminent benefit whereof is the remission of our sins through the bloud of christ shed on the cross , for without blood there is no remission ; the other is the feeding of the regenerate soul , or inward man , by the real , but spiritual or divine body and blood of christ , which contains in it our through sanctification , which is also a fruit or benefit of the sacrifice of the death of christ , forasmuch as we had not been capable of regeneration and of growth and degrees of sanctification by the feeding on and really receiving the spiritual and divine body of christ , without our reconciliation by his blood shed on the cross , which our church here calls the sacrifice of the death of christ. now as in this answer there is contained that great benefit of the remission of our sins in the blood of christ , and thereby of our reconciliation to god ; so in the answer mentioned before is contained that singular benefit of perfecting our sanctification by the nourishing and corroborating our inward man by eating or partaking of the spiritual or divine body and blood of our saviour , which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in the lord's supper . [ verily ] that is to say , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , truly , in counterdistinction to typically , or symbolically , the bread and wine being but types or symbols of this . touching which in the answer to the question , what are the benefits whereof we are made partakers thereby ? it is said , the strengthening and refreshing our souls by the body and blood of christ , as our bodies are by the bread and wine , viz. which are but types of the true , spiritual or divine body and blood of christ , but they have a very handsome analogy the one to the other . but we proceed to the following words , [ and indeed ] that is to say , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , reverâ , or really , not as one scoptically would make us to profess , that this real participation of the body and blood of christ , has no reality any where but in our phancy , which we call faith. to which sense the translator of the peaceable method for the re-uniting protestants and catholicks , speaks in his preface to his translation . to which exception , this notion of the primitive fathers , according to which our communion-service is framed , and our homilies allude to , and we so much insist upon , is not lyable . [ by the faithful ] and that only by them , which body and blood the faithful do not receive by champing it with their teeth , and swallowing it down their throat . but by a fervid and living devotional faith more than ordinarily kindled at the celebrating the holy eucharist , they draw this divine and celestial food ( the true manna from heaven ) into their hearts , whereby their inward man is fed and strengthened , and nourished up to eternal life , and so the new birth getting growth daily , arrives at last to the due measure of the stature of christ. . this is the priviledge of the faithful receiver . but for those that are devoid of this true and living faith , though the divine body and blood of christ is every where present to the faithful , yet they who are unregenerate , and consequently devoid of the divine life , are capable of no union therewith , nor of any growth or strength therefrom . but it is like the light shining into a dead man's eye , of which there is no vital effect . but for those who are regenerate , and consequently have a real hunger and thirst after the righteousness of god , though the great feast upon this heavenly food is more especially and copiosely injoyed in the celebration of the holy eucharist , yet they may in some good measure draw it in day by day by faith and devotion , as without the presence of the bread and wine we may at any time devotionally think of the sacrifice of the death of our saviour . but certainly this solemn institution of celebrating his last supper , being particularly and earnestly injoyn'd us by christ , if we conscientiously observe the same , it will have a more than ordinary efficacy in us for the ends it was appointed . . sixthly and lastly , as those words of the catechism [ the body and blood of christ which are verily and indeed taken and received , &c. ] have , considered in themselves , a very easie and natural sense so explained , as we have according to the analogy of the doctrine of the primitive fathers and our church's homilies that allude to them , explained them ; so do they not at all clash with those words of the rubrick affixed at the end of the communion-service , where it is affirmed , that the sacramental bread and wine remains still in their very natural substances , and therefore may not be adored ( for that were idolatry to be abhorred of all faithful christians ) and the natural body and blood of our saviour christ are in heaven , and not here , it being against the truth of christ's natural body to be at one time in more places than one . there is i say , in this , no contradiction to what occcurs in the catechism , which affirms that there is a real presence of the body and blood of christ , which are verily and indeed taken and received by the faithful in the lord's supper , though here a real presence is denyed of the natural body of christ. but it is to be considered that this affirmation and negation is not of the same body of christ , and therefore can be no contradiction , and further to be observed , how the very rubrick suggests to us this distinction of the natural body of christ ( which is appropriated to his particular soul , and which hung on the cross and was crucified ) and his divine or spiritual body , the body of the essential life or spirit of the eternal logos , and therefore rightly termed the body of the logos incarnate , or of christ. and therefore when passages of the ancient fathers in the primitive times before the degeneracy of the church came in , may some of them favour a real absence , other a real presence of the body and blood of christ according as different places of the scripture might occur to their minds touching this matter , the controversy might well be composed by distinguishing betwixt the natural body of christ and his divine or spiritual body . according to the former whereof is the real absence , according to the latter the real presence of christ's body and blood , to be received by the faithful in the celebration of the holy eucharist . chap. viii . . monsieur maimbourg so cunning and cautious as not to attempt to bring the protestants to transubstantiation by their common consent in the real presence , but by a more general maxime , which , he says , we are all agreed in . . the aforesaid maxime with the explication thereof . . six supposals surmiz'd for the strengthening this engine for the pulling the protestants into the belief of transubstantiation . . a counter-engine consisting of sixteen common notions , in which , not only the romanists and we , but all mankind are agreed in . . an examination of the strength of monsieur maimbourg's engine , by recurring upon occasion to these common notions ; the first prop examined , viz. the churches infallibility by assistance of the spirit , and discovered to be weak from the dissention of churches in matters of faith in his sense . . from the promise of the spirit being conditional . . and from the predictions in the prophetical writings of a general degeneracy of the church . . the examination of the second prop , that would have transubstantiation believed upon the synodical decision of a fallible church . . the examination of the third prop , that would have the synodical decision pass into an article of faith. . the fourth prop examined by defining truly what heresy and schism is . . the fifth prop further explained by mounsieur maimbourg , in two propositions . . an answer to the two propositions . . i have , i hope by this time , sufficiently proposed and confirmed both the truth and usefulness of the distinction of the body and blood of christ ( which occurs in the primitive fathers ) into natural , and spiritual or divine . from whence it may plainly appear to any pious and uprejudiced reader , that the inference of a transubstantiation of the bread and wine into the real body and blood of christ , from a real presence of them in the lord's supper , is very weak and invalid . which monsieur maimbourg ( as well as the bishop of meaux , formerly bishop of condom ) though he take special notice of in his peaceable method , viz. that this real presence of the body and blood of christ in the lord's supper , is generally acknowledged by the protestants , chap. . whom he will have to hold , that the sacrament is not a figure or empty sign without efficacy , but they do maintain , saith he , that it does communicate unto us in a most real and effectual manner , the body of jesus christ to be the food of our souls ; and he will have monsieur claud himself acknowledge , that before this novelty of transubstantiation was introduced , every one believed that iesus christ is present in the sacrament , that his body and blood are there truly received by the faithful ; yet he is so wise and cautious as not to trust to the strength of this engine for the pulling us back into a belief and profession of that incredible hypothesis , but according to the fineness of his wit , has spread a more large net to catch us in and carry us captive , not only into this gross errour of transubstantiation , but into all other errours which the church of rome has broached , or may hereafter broach and propose as articles of faith. and therefore it is a point worth our closest consideration . . his general maxim is this , that that church in which are found two parties concerned , has ever had the power to determine all differences , and to declare that as matter of faith , which before there was no obligation to believe , and that we are bound to acquiesce in her decisions , under penalty of being schismaticks . by the church her declaring as matter of faith ( which seems to sound so harshly ) he does not mean , that the church has authority to frame new articles of faith , ( pag. . ) but that she is to act according to a rule , which is holy scripture , and tradition truly and purely apostolical , from which we have also received the holy scripture it self . and ( page . ) the church never did make , and undoubtedly never will make any new articles of faith , since it is not in her power to define any thing but according to the word of god , which she is always to consult with , as with her oracle , and the rule she is bound to follow . his meaning therefore must be this , that besides those plain and universally known articles of the christian faith , and acknowledged from the very beginning of christianity , such as are comprised in the apostles creed , there have been , and may be other articles of faith more obscurely and uncertainly delivered in scripture , which , until the church in a lawful synod or council has determined the sense of those places of scripture that appertain to the controversie , men have no obligation to believe , but go for the present , for but uncertain and indifferent opinions . but when once the true church , in which the parties differing in opinion are , and her lawful representative assisted by the holy ghost , ( as is affirmed chap. . pag. . ) a canonical assembly , which alone has full power and sovereign authority to say juridically ( chap. . pag. . ) it seemed good to the holy ghost and to us , has given definitive sentence touching the controversie , that which before was but an indifferent opinion , becomes now matter of faith , and is to be received as an article of faith by the dissenting party , upon penalty of being schismaticks and hereticks . this i conceive to be his precise meaning . but the great artifice of all is , that he will have this meaning of his to be the general opinion also of the protestant churches . who can , says he , ( page . ) question , but the protestant churches of england , france , germany , and switzerland and the low countries do hold as a fundamental maxim , that in such controversies as do arise concerning doctrine in matters of religion , the true church of which the dissenting parties are members , has full and sovereign power to declare according to the word of god , what is of faith , and that there is an obligation of standing to her decrees , under pain of being schismaticks . and ( page . ) i demand , saith he , nothing more for the present : i will content my self with what themselves do grant ; that that church of which the parties contesting are members , ( be she fallible or infallible ) has full power to decide differences , and her decrees do oblige under the penalty of being schismaticks . . now from this general maxim granted , as he conceives , on both sides , and which he does chiefly endeavour to prove from the carriage of the synod of dort , toward the arminians ( all which things to repeat here would be too moliminous and inconsistent with the brevity i intend , a full answer to monsieur maimbourg's method requiring some more able pen ) he declining , i say , all dispute touching the merit of the cause , the point of transubstantiation , he would hence draw us in , to the imbracing that doctrine merely because we were once of that church that has synodically determined for it , and consequently reconcile us to all the rest of the errours of the church of rome . but that we may not so easily be taken in this net , or pulled in by this engine , we will first examine the supposals that support the strength of it , or of which it does consist . the first and chiefest whereof is , that such synods to whose definitive sentence he would have us stand , are assisted by the holy ghost . the second , that whether they be or be not , we are to stand to their determination . the third , whatever matters of opinion ( as they are for the present but such ) are decided by such a synod , pass into articles of faith the fourth , that those that will not close with these decisions be they what they will , they are guilty of schism , as being bound to assent . the fifth , that these decisive synods or assemblies , are to decide according to the rule of the word of god. the sixth and last , that both the protestants and papists are agreed in all these . . now before i examine these particulars , these supposals , parts or props of his general maxim , by which he would draw the protestants again into the church of rome , and make them embrace transubstantiation , and all other superstitions and errours which they have synodically decided for matters of faith : i will , following the very method of this shrewd writer , propose not only one maxime , but several maximes , wherein both the romanists and we , and indeed all mankind are agreed in , and which therefore i will instead of maximes call common notions , in allusion to those of euclid . and the first shall be this , i. that which in it self is false , no declaring or saying it is true can make it true . ii. whatever is plainly repugnant to what is true is certainly false . iii. whatever is false can be no due article of a true faith or religion . iv. the senses rightly circumstantiated are true judges of their object , whether such an object be earth , air , fire , or water , body or spirit , and the like . besides that this is a common notion with all mankind , the incarnate wisdom himself has given his suffrage for it , in his arguing with s t thomas , iohn . v. . then saith he to thomas , reach hither thy finger , and behold my hands , and reach hither thy hand and thrust it into my side , and be not faithless but believing . what is this but the appealing to the truth of sense by our saviour himself ? and luke . v. . behold my hands and my feet that it is i my self , handle me and see , for a spirit has not flesh and bones as ye see i have . here is an appeal both to sense and reason at once , and that about the very body of christ , touching which the great controversie is raised . v. an essence or being that is one , so long as it remains so , as it is distinct from others , so it is undividable or inseparable from it self . vi. the whole is bigger than the part , and the part less than the whole . vii . in every division , though the parts agree with the whole , yet they disagree amongst themselves . so that the part a. is not the very part b. nor the part b. the very part c. nor can each part be truly and adequately the whole by the foregoing common notion . viii . the same body cannot be actually a cube and a globe at once , and there is the same reason of any other different figures of a body . ix . no revelation , the revealing whereof , or the manner of the revealing whereof is repugnant to the divine attributes , can be from god. x. no tradition of any such revelation can be true , for as much as the revelation it self is impossible . xi . no interpretation of any divine revelation that is repugnant to rightly circumstantiated sense and pure and unprejudiced reason , whether it be from a private or publick hand , can be any inspiration from god. xii . no body can be bigger and less than it self at once . xiii . that individual body that is already , nor ceaseth to be , cannot be made while it is already existing . xiv . one and the same body cannot be both present with it self and many thousand miles absent from it self at once . xv. one and the same body cannot be shut up in a box , and free to walk and run in the fields , and to ascend into the very heavens at the same time . xvi . and lastly ( to omit many other such self-evident truths or common notions ) it is impossible , that a man should swallow his whole body , head , feet , back , belly , arms , and thighs , and stomach it self , through his mouth , down his throat into his stomach , that is , every whit of himself into one knows not what of himself , less than a mathematical point or nothing . for if all be swallowed , what is there left of the man for it to be swallowed into , but a mere point or rather nothing ? . certainly all the world as well papists as protestants , as soon as they do but conceive the meaning of the terms , will assent to the truth of these propositions at the very first sight ; which therefore has made me call them common notions . let us now apply our selves to the use of them in the examining the strength of monsieur maimbourg's general maxime , wherein he will have the papists and protestants agreed . the first prop thereof is , that the true church is infallible by the promise made to her of being assisted by the holy ghost . but here i demand whether this promise be made to the universal church or any particular church or churches throughout all ages . that it is not made to the universal church throughout all ages , is plain , in that the parts thereof have been and are still divided in several matters of faith. that no such promise is made to any particular church or churches , is plain from hence , that these churches are not named in any part of the scripture ; which omission is incredible if there had been any such entailment of infallibility upon any particular church or churches . but of all churches , i humbly conceive , it is impossible it should be the church of rome , unless it be possible that all those common notions which i have set down , and in which all the world , even the church of rome her self , if they will speak their consciences , are agreed in , be false , which they must be if transubstantiation be true . and therefore let any man judge whether is themore likely , viz. that transubstantiation should be false or those common notions not true . . again , how does it appear that this promise of the assistance of the holy ghost is not conditional ? indeed christ says , iohn . . when the spirit of truth is come he will guide you into all truth , viz. the same spirit that is promised , chap. . v. , , . but the words of this pretended charter of infallibility are there set down more fully : if you love me keep my commandments ; and i will pray the father and he shall give you another comforter that he may abide with you for ever , even the spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive — the promise of the assistance of the holy ghost for the infallibly concluding what is true , even from the words of this pretended charter of infallibility , is conditional , that is to say , if they so love christ as to keep his commandments , and become not worldly and carnal ( for the world cannot receive this spirit of truth ) then this spirit which leadeth into all truth shall assist them . wherefore as many as christ sends this infallible spirit to , he first fits them for it by mortifying the spirit of the world in them , and making them members of his truly holy church ; for the calling themselves holy church , makes them never a jot the more holy , if they really be not so , by the first common notion . and besides , if the words of this charter of infallibility had not been so express , yet in common sense and reason this condition would necessarily have been understood . forasmuch as nothing can be more absurd than to imagine the assistance of the holy ghost to be so cheap and trivial a thing , as to be procured for the concluding controversies arising or set on foot in the church , which are needless and frivolous , or more for satisfying curiosity than edification , and which tend to division , and tearing the church violently into parts , which was one before and in a salvable condition without this decision , as monsieur maimbourg confesses himself : or that the holy ghost will assist such assemblies as are worldly and carnally minded , and are called to conclude for the worldly advantage and interest of a worldly polity , who for the upholding and increasing their temporal empire ( whereby they lord it over the world , and ride on the necks of kings and princes ) call themselves spiritual . certainly when all christian truth tends to real and indispensable holiness , if mankind were not left to the liberty of their own will , but christ would have them so infallibly wise , he would all along have prepared them for it , by making them unexceptionably holy , that they might become wise in his own way and method . and lastly , there being predictions in daniel and the apocalpyse of an antichristian state in the church to come ( in which there will be such a general apostasie from the apostolick purity ) even according to their own interpreters , i demand what assurance we have that these times came not ( in a very great measure ) upon the church , some hundreds of years before transubstantiation was concluded on by the roman church , which therefore must much invalidate the pretence of the infallibility of any such councils . and our church of england , as all know , in her homilies , whether by inspiration or by mere solid reason and judgement refers the vision of the seventeenth chapter of the apocalypse , to the church of rome . and , i hope , to any unprejudiced reader , that has leisure to examine things , i have even demonstratively made out that truth in my exposition of the apocalypse , and most punctually and distinctly of all in my ioint-exposition of the thirteenth and seventeenth chapters thereof , synops. prophet . book . chap. , , , &c. with the preparatory chapters thereto . let any one read them that please , and in the due fear of god consider them . wherefore , to conclude , touching this first prop of his general maxim , whereby he would insinuate that synods , to whose definitive sentence he would have us to stand , are assisted by the holy ghost , it does not only not underprop , but undermine his grand maxim. forasmuch as we have no assurance that those roman councils which have concluded for transubstantiation were assisted by the holy ghost , but rather quite contrary . . the second prop is , that whether a synod be or be not assisted by the holy ghost , we are to stand to their determination . if the synod be not assisted by the holy ghost then they are fallible , and may be in the wrong : so that the sense is , whether the synod determine right or wrong , yet we are to stand to their determination . which as odly as it sounds , yet in some sober sense , i must confess ingenuously , for ought i know , may be true , that is , in such things as are really disputable , and which for no sinister base design , but merely for the peace of the church and her edification , it has been thought fit to make a synodical decision of the controversie . but is this colour enough for the church of rome's determination to be stood to ? of making the bread in the sacrament to be transubstantiated into the very body of christ that hung on the cross at ierusalem ( and has ever since his ascension been in heaven ) by the priest's saying over it , this is my body , the bread still remaining bread to all outward appearance , as before , so that christ is fain to be at the expence of a perpetual miracle to make the transubstantiated bread look like bread still , though it be really the body of christ that hung on the cross at ierusalem . which , as i have noted above , is against his wisdom and goodness , in that , if transubstantiation be a true article of the christian faith , this is the most effectual way imaginable to make men , if left to their own free thought , to mis-believe it , however force and cruelty might constrain them to profess it : and so it is against his goodness , to expose so great a part of his church to such bloody persecutions as this article has occasioned in the christian world. that christ should do a perpetual miracle not that will confirm mens faith , but subvert it , not to edifie his church but distract it , and lay all in confusion and blood ! let any one consider how likely this is to be . this therefore could never be a point , bonâ fide , disputable , but to such as were horribly hoodwinkt with prejudice , and blinded with a desire of having a thing concluded by the church which was of such unspeakable advantage , as they then thought , for the magnifying the priest-hood , though i believe nothing will turn more to their disrepute and shame in the conclusion . now i dare appeal to monsieur maimbourg himself , whether we are to stand to the determination of a fallible synod in a point , that , besides what i have already hinted , contradicts all those common notions , which i have above recited , and in which all mankind are agreed . and such is this point of transubstantiation . . now for the third prop , that whatever matters of opinion ( as they are for the present but such ) are decided by such a synod , pass into articles of faith ; this prop is also really a puller down of this general maxim. for by an article of faith , must be meant such an article as after the synodical decision , is necessary to be believed by all parties upon pain of damnation but to this i answer , first , no falshood can be an article of faith , nor can what is in it self false , by all the declaring in the world that it is true , become true , by the first common notion . and secondly , since the whole church before , in which arose the controversie , were in a salvable condition , how unchristian an act must this be , to put so many thousand souls in the state of damnation , by so unnecessary , nay mischievous a synodical decision ! and therefore what pretence can there be to the assistance of the holy ghost , which christ has promised his church , when they machinate that , which so manifestly tends , according as the synod acknowledges , to the damnation of such a multitude of souls , which before the decision were in a salvable condition , and also to most barbarous persecutions of their persons , as it is notoriously known in history , touching transubstantiation . . the fourth prop charges those with the guilt of schism and heresie that will not close with the above-said synodical decisions , be they what they will. in which matter we cannot judge whether the charge be right , unless we first understand what is truly and properly heresie and schism . the former whereof i demand what it can be , but a dissent from the catholick church even in those things in it , that are apostolical . for whatever national church is found to have all and nothing else in it but what is apostolical , or not inconsistent with the apostolical doctrine and practice , is most assuredly one part of that one catholick and apostolick church , which we profess our belief of in our creed . and for the latter it can be nothing else but a separation from the catholick church , or from any church that is part thereof , even then , when she approves her self to be catholick , that is to say even then , when she is apostolick , or , though she be apostolick , and offers no opinions or usages but such as are conformable to the usages and doctrines of christ and his apostles , or have no repugnancy thereto . to separate from the church in such circumstances as these , certainly is that great crime of schism ; but to separate from that part of the church which imposes opinions and practices plainly repugnant to the precepts of christ and his apostles , this is no schism but union with the truly antient catholick and apostolick church . and the declaring it schism does not , nor can make it so , by common notion the first .. and if it were schism to separate from such a church as propounds things repugnant to the precepts of christ and his apostles , the guilt of this schism is not upon them that thus separate , but upon those that impose such anti-apostolical matters . . the fifth prop , that these decisive synods or assemblies are to decide according to the rule of the word of god , the strength of this prop he endeavours more fully to display pag. . and he calls upon the brethren of the reformed churches to reflect seriously upon these two propositions he sets down . the first is , that as the word of god is infallible in it self , so certainly the judgment of him who truly judges according to this rule is also infallible : and consequently they are obliged to believe , that the church when she judges according to this rule or the word of god , does not only not err , but that she also cannot err . the second , that they [ the reformed ] are bound [ as well as we the romanists ] to believe that the church of god deciding controversies of faith , does judge according to the true sense of the word of god : because upon the matter it is concerning this very sense that she gives judgment betwixt the parties , who give it a different sense , and who are obliged in conscience to submit to her judgment , under pain of being schismaticks and hereticks , as their synod of dort has positively declared . . the first of these propositions may pass for firm and sound , provided that the meaning of her judging according to this rule is the giving the right and genuine sense thereof : of which she can neither assure her self nor any one else , but by being assured of that holiness , integrity , and singleness of heart , in those of the synod , that makes them capable of the assistance of the holy ghost ; and also that their decision clashes not with those indeleble notions in the humane soul , that are previous requisites for the understanding the meaning of not only the holy scriptures , but of any writing whatever . and unto which if they find any thing in the letter of the sacred writ repugnant , they may be sure it is a symbolical or figurative speech , but in other writings , that it is either a figurative speech or nonsense . he that has not this previous furniture , or makes no use of it , it is impossible he should prove a safe judgeof the sense of scripture . and if he runs counter to what is certainly true , it is evident his interpretation is false by the second common notion , and that he is not inspired by common notion the eleventh . touching the second proposition , i demand how any can be bound to stand to the judgment of any synod , if they decline the previous requisites , without which it is impossible to understand the right meaning of any writing whatsoever ; and whether their pretending to judge according to a rule , does not imply , that there are some common principles , in which all parties are agreed in , according to which , though they cannot discern that the synod has certainly defined right , yet if the synod run counter to them , they may be sure they have defined wrong , touching the very sense controverted between the parties . their professing they judge according to the rule , implies the rule is in some measure known to all that are concerned . nor does it at all follow , because the object of their decision is the very sense controverted between the parties , that the synod may give what judgment she will , break all laws of grammar and syntax in the expounding the text , much less contradict those rules which are infinitely more sacred , and inviolable , the common notions which god has imprinted essentially on the humane understanding . if such a violence be used by any interpreters of scripture , neither the synod of dort , nor any reformed church , has or will declare , that under pain of being schismaticks and hereticks , they are obliged in conscience to submit to their determination . chap. ix . . the examination of the sixth prop , by demanding whether the maxime monsieur maimbourg proproses is to be understood in the full sense , without any appeal to any common agreed on principles of grammar , rhetorick , logick and morality . . instances of enormous results from thence , with a demand whether the protestant churches would allow of such absurd synodical decisions . . that the citations of history , touching the synod of dort , prove not , that all synodical decisions pass into proper articles of faith , with the authors free judgment touching the carriage of that synod , and of the parties condemned thereby . . his judgment countenanced from what is observed by historians to be the sentiments of king james in the conference at hampton court. . and yet the sixth and last prop of the general maxime implies as much , which affirms , that both the protestants and papists are agreed in all the five foregoing supposals , or to speak more compendiously in that his general maxime . that that church in which are found the two parties concerned , has ever had the power to determine all differences , and to declare that as matter of faith , which before there was no obligation to believe , and that we are bound to aquiesce in their decisions under the penalty of being schismaticks . but i demand here of monsieur maimbourg , whether he will have his maxime understood in a full latitude of sense , and that immediately without recourse to any principles in which the synod and the parties are agreed , and counter to which , if any determination be made it is null , such as grammatical syntax and lexicographical sense of words ; and ( which are laws infinitely more sacred and inviolable ) the common notions ( as i said before ) essentially imprinted on the soul of man , either of truth or morality , whether without being bounded by these , the protestant churches as well as the pontifician are agreed , that we are to stand to the determination of a synod , under the penalty of being schismaticks . . as for example , if a synod should interpret , drink ye all of this , of the clergy only , and declare it does not reach the laity , though the apostles and primitive church understood it did : if notwithstanding s t paul's long exhortation against religibus exercise in an unknown tongue , cor. . they should by some distinction or evasion conclude it lawful . if when as it is said , thou shalt not make to thy self any graven image to worship and fall down before it , they should distinguish and restrain it only to the graven images of the heathen gods. if when as it is said , thou shalt have no other gods but me , they should distinguish gods into supream and subordinate , and declare , we may have many subordinate gods , but only one supream . if when as it said , honour thy father and thy mother , they should restrain it to a father or mother of the same religion with our selves , whether political father or natural , otherwise we are free from this command , and may despise both our natural parents and our prince , if they be not of the same perswasion with our selves . and whereas it is said , thou shalt not commit adultery , if they should understand it only of such an adultery as is committed for the mere pleasure of the flesh , not for the health of the body , or assisting the conjugal impotency of his neighbour . if the commandment against murther , or killing an innocent person , they should restrain to murther that is accompanied with delight in cruelty , not that which is committed to raise a livelyhood , or secure an interest the murtherer has espoused . if the commandment against stealing , they should restrain to such theft as is against men of our religion and perswasion , but that we may rob and steal from others without sin . and according to the same tenour they should interpret , thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbour , &c. i demand , i say , whether monsieur maimbourg does conceive , that the protestants , nay , or his own party , are agreed that all such determinations are to be submitted to upon penalty of being schismaticks . let him ask the reformed churches if they be thus agreed , or rather let him ask his own conscience , if he think they are . wherefore it is plain , that what he produces out of the history of the synod of dort , reaches not the point that he drives at , that is to say , that it is acknowledged by them , that after a synod has decided the controversie , or given the sense of places of scripture controverted , be it what it will be , the decision is to be stood to , under penalty of being schismaticks , and that there are not some commonly known truths , common notions of reason and morality , with which if the determination of a synod does clash , it is ipso facto null , and a demonstration that the spirit of god did not assist . . i observe farther , that all the citations that are produced either by monsieur maimbourg himself , or his translator , in his preface and appendix , will not amount to the protestants professing that every controversie or controverted opinion , after the decision of the synod , passes into an article of faith , which properly signifies such a doctrine , as without the belief of which , when it is proposed , he that mis-believes it forfeits his salvation ; for hereby the synod of dort had damned all the lutheran churches . for my own part i must confess , that in points that are so obscure , intricate , and abstruse , and which , as touching the main part of them , have exercised and much baffled humane understanding through all ages , it had been a great piece of christian prudence for that synod to have made decrees against all bitterness of speech of the disagreeing parties one against another , and to have admonished them that they were bound , notwithstanding their difference of opinion , to live in mutual love one to another , which is the true badge of christ's genuine disciples , rather than to have exasperated one party against another , by making that doctrine authentick , which is really in it self from places of scripture , and reason so intricate and disputable . but it seems to have been the sleight of satan for the weakning the reformed churches that drove them to it . but i must say , on the other side , that when the synod had determined , they who were determined against , ought to have submitted to her determination in a thing so really disputable , and by this christian policy to have conserved the peace of the church , and out-witted the devil . for if they had had any modesty in them , they might very well in such abstruse , dark and disputable points have compromised with the synod , and preferred the peace and safety of the reformed churches , before the satisfaction of their own opinionativeness . . and that wise prince , king iames the first of blessed memory , seems to come near to what i have said , in the words delivered by his embassadour at the synod of dort , as they are cited by monsieur maimbourg himself in his peaceable method , pag. . that for the allaying those troubles , there was but that one only means which the church had ever made use of , a national synod , which was to be judge in the case , and to decide which of the two opinions was more conformable to the word of god : or at least how and in what manner the one or the other might be tolerated in the church of god. which latter part is cunningly left out by the translator , in his preface , pag. . but in those latter words , king iames plainly intimates his moderate sentiments touching the controversy , and that he would not have the decision made too rigidly and pinchingly on either side . and sutably to this excellent judgment of his , in the conference at hampton-court , when the puritans would have had the nine lambeth articles , which are more full and express against the points of arminianism , to be embodyed into the articles of our church , concluded on in the convocation holden at london , in the year . the king earnestly refused it . and in his instructions to his divines he sent over to the synod of dort , this remarkable one was amongst the rest , that they would advise the churches that the ministers do not deliver in pulpit to the people those things for ordinary doctrines , which are the highest points of the schools , and not fit for vulgar capacities , but disputable on both sides . and we may be sure when he was so careful in this for the foreign churches , he would not neglect to infuse the same good principles into his own . and that he could not easily believe that upon the decision of the synod of dort , that passed into an article of faith , without which there is no salvation , which yet he would have hid from the knowledge of the people . chap. x. . what synodical decisions are capable of passing into proper articles of faith , and what not . . the necessity of distinguishing the doctrinal decisions of synods into articles of faith , properly so called , and articles of communion . . the meaning of the king's answer to mr. knewstub , in the conference at hampton-court : and that synods have unlimited power to put what sense they please on places of scripture , and make them pass into articles of faith , not proved to be the opinion of the protestant churches . . that our english church is against it , largely proved out of her articles . . no article of faith pre-existent in scripture that cannot be fetched thence but by interpreting against the proleptick principles of rightly circumstantiated sense and common notions ingrafted essentially in the humane understanding . . of decision of points necessary to salvation , and to the justifying the christian worship , and those that are less necessary , and less clear , and lastly , those that have an insuperable difficulty on both sides . . monsieur maimbourg's general maxime , that it is not agreed in by the protestant churches , abundantly demonstrated , with a note of the subtilty of the romanists in declining the dispute of the particular merits of their cause , and making it their business to perswade , first , that their church is infallible . . a meeting with monsieur maimbourg once more in his own method , and thereby demonstrating that transubstantiation is grosly false , and consequently the church of rome fallible , with an hint of a true peaceable method of reconciling papists and protestants . . wherefore it seems needful to take notice of this distinction of the doctrinal decisions of synods , that some pass into , or rather are of the nature of the articles of faith , the knowledge of them being necessary to keep us from sin and damnation . and such were the doctrinal decisions of those ancient primitive councils , who out of scripture plainly declared , the truth of the divinity of christ and triunity of the god-head , without which the church would be involved in gross idolatry . and therefore the decisions of the controversies did naturally pass into professed articles of the christian faith , and such as our salvation depended on . but to imagine that every doctrinal decision of a synod passes into a proper article of faith , without which there is no salvation , and that a synod has power to make that an article of faith , before which men were safe and sinless as to that point , is to put it into the power of a synod to damn god knows how many myriads of men which christ dyed for , and had it not been for these curious , or rather mischievous decisions , might have been saved ; than which what can be more prodigious ? . whence we see plainly it is most necessary to make this distinction in doctrinal decisions of synods , that some may be articles of faith , others only articles of communion , that if any oppose or disparage the said articles , whether they be of the clergy or laity , they make themselves obnoxious to excommunication ; and if a clergy-man does not subscribe to them , he makes himself uncapable of ecclesiastical imployment . this is all that monsieur maimbourg can squeeze out of all his citations out of the story of the synod of dort , so far as i can perceive , or his translator in his preface and appendix , out of those he produces touching the church of england . . and that which his translator in his preface would make such a great business of , viz , this wise kings answer to m r knewstubs , at the conference at hampton court , when he was asked , how far an ordinance of the church was to bind men without impeachment of their christian liberty : to which he said , he would not argue that point with him , but answer therein as kings are wont to speak in parliament , le roy s'avisera . and therefore i charge you never speak more to that point how far you are bound to obey when the church has once ordained it . i say nothing more can be collected out of this answer , but that he modestly intimated his opinion , that he meant not that all synodical decisions passed into articles of faith , but may be only articles of communion in the sense i have already explained . and what i have already said , if seriously and considerately applyed to what he produces in his appendix , will easily discover that they prove nothing more touching the church of england , than what we have already allowed to be her doctrine touching the authority of synods . but that a synod without any limitation or appeal to certain principles in which both the synod and parties contesting are all agreed in , may by her bare immediate authority , give what sense she pleases on places of scripture , alledged in the controversy , and that her decision passes into an artiticle of faith , which the parties cast are bound to assent to , under the pain of becoming hereticks and schismaticks . nothing can be more contrary than this to the declarations of the church of england . so far is it from truth , that all the protestant churches are agreed in his grand maxime above mentioned . . let the church of england speak for her self , artic. . as the church of jerusalem , alexandria , and antioch , so also the church of rome has erred , not only in their living and ceremonies , but also in matters of faith. and article . general councils may not be gathered together without the commandment and will of princes . and when they be gathered together ( forasmuch as they be an assembly of men , whereof all be not governed with the spirit and word of god ) they may err , and sometimes have erred even in things appertaining to god , wherefore things ordained by them , as necessary to salvation , have neither strength nor authority , unless it may be declared that they be taken out of the holy scriptures . here our church plainly declares , that forasmuch as a council or synod consists of fallible persons , they can determine nothing necessary to salvation , but what they can make out that it is clearly , to any unprejudiced eye , contained in the scripture , not fetched out by weak and precarious consequences , or phanciful surmises , much less by a distorted interpretation , and repugnant to common sense and reason , which are necessarily supposed in the understanding of any scripture or writing whatsoever , as i have intimated above . and even that article ( . ) which the translator produces in his preface , in the behalf of monsieur maimbourg's grand maxime , do but produce the whole article and it is plainly against it . for the words are these : the church has power to decree rites and ceremonies and autority in controversies of faith ; and yet it is not lawful for the church to ordain any thing that is contrary to god's word written , neither may it so expound one place of scripture that it be repugnant to another . wherefore although the church be a witness and keeper of holy writ , yet as it ought not to decree any thing against the same , so beside the same , ought it not to inforce any thing to be believed for necessity of salvation . it is true , the church is here said to have authority in controversies of faith. as certainly if any should raise new stirs in any national church , touching such points as the antient primitive synods have concluded for , in the behalf of the divinity of christ , and triunity of the god-head , pretending they have clearer demonstrations than ever yet were proposed against those decisions or any of like nature , which may concern the iustifiableness of our christian worship , and indispensable way of salvation , the church has authority as she ever had , in such controversies , to ratifie such articles of faith , but she is not said to have authority to make every synodical decision an article of faith , whether the nature thereof will bear it or no. nay her authority is excluded from inforcing any thing besides what is clearly enough contained in the scripture ( as assuredly those points are above mentioned , though with weak or cavilling men they have been made questionable ) to be believed for necessity of salvation . which is the proper character of an article of faith , according as the preface to the athanasian creed intimates . and monsieur maimbourg himself is so sensible of this main truth , that in the explication of his general maxime , he acknowledges that the church has no autority to coin any new articles of faith , but only to declare she has discovered them existent before in the scriptures , but not so clearly espi'd or discerned as by an assembled synod . . but certainly no article of faith , that is to say , no truth necessary to salvation can be said to be pre existent in the scriptures , and having lain hid to be discovered afterwards , that is not discovered but by such forced interpretations of the text , that are repugnant to common sense and reason . is not this a reproach to the wisdom of god , that he should inspire the holy penmen to set down truth necessary to salvation so obscurely , that the meaning cannot be reached without doing violence to common sense and reason , and running counter to those previous principles , without which it is impossible to make sense of any writing whatever ? or without interpreting one place of scripture repugnantly to the plain sense of another . which this article expresly forbids as unlawful . so plain is it that our church limits the authority of a synod to certain rules agreed of on all hands , against which they have no authority to define any thing : and plain places of scripture is one rule , contrary to which it is not lawful to interpret any either pretendedly or really obscure place . nor can any place at all be plain without the admittance of those proleptick principles of rightly circumstantiated sense and common undeniable notions essentially ingrafted in the mind of man , whether they relate to reason or morality . these , both synod and contesters , are supposed to be agreed on , and therefore no synodical decision repugnant to these according to our church in interpreting of scripture ( if i rightly understand her ) ought to have autority with it . . but as for doctrinal decisions , such as concern the justifiableness of the christian worship , and are of necessity to salvation , and such as , although either weak or willful cavilling men may make questionable , yet are clearly enough delivered in scripture , these , questionless , a synod has autority to determine as articles of faith. and such as have not the like clearness nor necessity , as also innocent and indifferent rites and ceremonies , when the one and the other seem advantagious to the church , such synodical decisions may pass into articles of communion , in that sense i have above explained . and lastly , as in that case of the synod of dort , when the points controverted have on both sides that invincible obscurity and intricacy , and there seems to be forcible arguments for either conclusion . what , i humbly conceive , is to be done in that case , i have fully enough expressed already , and therefore think it needless again to repeat . . in the mean time , i hope , i have made it manifoldly apparent that monsieur maimbourg's general maxime , viz. that the church , in which are found the two parties concerned , has ever had the power to determine all differences , and to declare that as matter of faith , which before there was no obligation to believe ; and that we are bound to acquiesce in her decisions under the penalty of being schismaticks , is not , ( especially as he would have his maxime understood ) agreed on by all churches , as well protestant as pontifician . and that therefore this snare or net , wherewith he would catch and carry captive the protestants into a profession of the infallibility of the church in synodical decisions ; so that the church must be first allow'd infallible , that we may glibly swallow down whatsoever she decides , even transubstantiation it self , with all other errours of the church of rome ; this net or snare , i hope , i have sufficiently broken . and i will only note by the bye , how the subtilest romanists declining the merits of the cause , labour tooth and nail to establish the absolute infallibility of their church . but our saviour tells us , by the fruit you shall know them . wherefore any man or company of men that profess themselves infallible , their infallibility must be examined by their doctrines , which if they be plainly any one of them false , their boast of infallibility most certainly is not true . . but forasmuch as an appeal to a maxime pretended to be agreed upon by both sides , both papists and protestants , is made use of with so much wit and artifice , to ingage the protestants to imbrace transubstantiation and the rest of the romish errours : i hope monsieur maimbourg will not take it amiss , if i civilly meet him again in his own way , and show him by an appeal , not only to one maxime but above a dozen at least of common notions , which i did above recite , and in which both papists and protestants , and all mankind are agreed , that it may demonstratively be made evident that the doctrine of transubstantiation is grosly false . for that which in it self is false , no declaring or saying it is true , though by the vote of an entire synod , can make it true , by the first of the common notions above-mentioned , chap. . sect. . secondly , whatever is plainly repugnant to what is true , is certainly false , and consequently can be no due article of a true faith or religion , by the second and third common notions . and therefore transubstantiation cannot pass into an article of faith by the authority of any synod whatever . thirdly , now that the doctrine of transubstantiation is false , is manifest from the assurance of our senses rightly circumstantiated . to which our saviour christ appeals , who is wiser than all the synods that ever were or will be , as was observed in common notion the fourth . but our senses assure us it is bread still , not the body of christ. fourthly , if transubstantiation be true , an essence or being that is one remaining still one , may be divided or separated from it self , which is repugnant to the fifth common notion . fifthly , if transubstantiation be true , the whole is not bigger than the part , nor the part less than the whole , which contradicts the sixth common notion . sixthly , if transubstantiation be true , the parts in a division do not only agree with the whole , but agree one with another , and are indeed absolutely the same ; for divide a consecrated wafer into two , viz. a. and b. this a. and b. are the same intire individual body of christ according to this doctrine , which contradicts the seventh common notion . seventhly , if the said doctrine be true , one and the same body may be a cube and a globe at once , have the figure of an humane body and of a pyramid and cylinder at the same time , according as they shall mould the consecrated bread , which is repugnant to the eighth common notion . eighthly , transubstantiation , if it be any truth at all , it is a revealed truth ; but no revelation the revealing whereof , or the manner of revealing is repugnant to the divine attributes , can be from god , by common notion the ninth : but if this doctrine of transubstantiation were a truth , it seems not to sute with the wisdom of god to reveal a truth that seems so palpably to overthrow and thwart all the innate principles of humane understanding , and the assurance of the rightly circumstantiated senses , to both which christ himself appeals , and without which we have no certainty of the miracles of christ and his apostles . and he hence exposes his church to be befool'd by all the lucriferous fictions of a fallacious priesthood . and besides this , the circumstances or manner of its first revelation at the lord's supper as they would have it , shows it cannot be ; for the consecrated bread retaining still the shape and all other sensible qualities of bread without any change , and that by a miraculous supporting them , now not inherent in their proper subject bread , which is transubstantiated into that very body that holds it in his hands , or seems so to do . i say , as i have also intimated before , to be thus at the expence of so vast a miracle here at his last supper , and to repeat the same miracle upon all the consecrations of the bread by the priest , which is the most effectual means to make all men infidels , as to the belief of transubstantiation , and to occasion thence such cruel and bloody persecutions , is apparently contrary to the divine wisdom and goodness ; and therefore neither pretended tradition nor fresh interpretation of the inspired text , can make so gross a falshood true , by the tenth and eleventh common notions . ninthly , if transubstantiation be true , one and the same body may be many thousand times bigger or less than it self at the same time , forasmuch as the least atom or particle of his body or transubstantiated bread is his whole body as well as the bigger lump according to this doctrine , which contradicts the twelfth common notion . tenthly , if this doctrine be true , the same individual body still existing and having existed many years , may notwithstanding be made whiles it already exists , which contradicts the thirteenth common notion . eleventhly , if transubstantiation be true , one and the same body may be present with it self and many thousands of miles absent from it self at once , be shut up in a box and free to walk in the field , and to ascend into heaven at the same time , contrary to the fourteenth and fifteenth common notions . and lastly , if this doctrine be true , a man may swallow his own body whole , head , feet , back , belly , arms , and thighs , and stomach it self through his mouth , down his throat into his stomach , that is to say , every whit of himself into one knows not what of himself , less than a mathematical point or nothing . this christ might have done , and actually did if he did eat the consecrated bread with his disciples , which contradicts the sixteenth common notion . wherefore since in vertue of one single maxim , monsieur maimbourg supposing the protestants as well as the paepists agreeing therein ( though in that , as i have show'd , he is mistaken ) would draw in the protestants to imbrace the doctrine of transubstantiation , and other ertors of the roman church , i appeal to him how much more reasonable it is , that he and as many as are of his perswasion should relinquish that doctrine , it contradicting so many common notions , which not only all papists and protestants , but indeed all the whole world are agreed in . and hence clearly discerning the infallibility of the roman church , upon which this and other erroneous doctrines are built ( such as invocation of saints , worshiping of images , and the like ) plainly to fail , that they should bethink themselves what need there is to reform their church from such gross errours , and to pray to god to put it into the mind of their governours so to do ; which would be a peaceable method indeed for the reuniting protestants and catholicks in matters of faith , and principally in the subject of the holy eucharist , as the title of his method has it . but to require an union , things standing as they are , is to expect of us that we cease to be men to become christians of a novel mode unknown to the primitive church , and under pretence of faith to abjure the indeleble principles of sound reason , those immutable common notions which the eternal logos has essentially ingrafted in our souls , and without which neither certainty of faith can consist , nor any assured sense of either the holy scriptures or any writing else be found out or understood . soli deo gloria . the principles of the christian religion explained in a brief commentary upon the church catechism. by william wake, d.d. rector of st. james westminster, and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) the principles of the christian religion explained in a brief commentary upon the church catechism. by william wake, d.d. rector of st. james westminster, and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty. wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for richard sare, at grays-inn gate in holborn, london : . with errata at foot of p. , and a final advertisement on n v. running title reads: the principles of the christian religion explain'd. reproduction of the original in the lambeth palace library, london. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng catechisms, english -- early works to . christianity -- creeds -- early works to . - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - rachel losh sampled and proofread - rachel losh text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the principles of the christian religion explained : in a brief commentary upon the church catechism . by william wake , d. d. rector of st. james westminster , and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty . london , printed for richard sare , at grays-inn gate in holborn . . the preface . the design of the following treatise being to instruct those , who are yet to learn , in the principles of their christian religion , i shall not think it necessary to make any apology for my publishing of it . it is so proper a part of our ministerial office , not only to teach these things , but to use our utmost endeavours , to inculcate them upon the minds of those who are committed to our charge ; that we never more truly pursue the business of our calling , than when we are doing of it . and no one ought to make an excuse for doing that , the neglect of which would need an excuse , or rather would not admit of any . it has pleased god , to whose providence i desire in all things to submit my self , to engage me in a cure , in which 't is next to impossible , in the ordinary method of teaching , to instruct all those who belong to it . neither will our churches receive them ; nor can i hope , by any private application , effectually to supply what i am sensible must be wanting in our publick ministration . to make up the defects of both , i knew no way so ready , as to compose a short summary of what is most necessary for every christian to know ; and to order it in such wise , that every one who pleases may partake of the benefit of it . this i have done in the present treatise : which as it was design'd by me particularly for those of my own parish , for whose instruction i am principally concern'd ; so , to them i must beg leave , in a more especial manner , to recommend the use of it . i am not aware 〈◊〉 that there is any thing in it above the capacity of the most ordinary christian to comprehend ; who will but duly consider what he reads , and is not utterly a stranger to the principles of his religion . 't is true , i have inserted many things into this , which are not wont to be handled in other catechisms : as designing it not for children , ( for whom such treatises are commonly framed ; ) but for men and women ; for such as either have , or i am sure ought to have , already pass'd the first rudiments of the gospel of christ. but i have endeavour'd to express my self with so much clearness , and perspicuity , that i hope all sorts of persons may be able to profit by what i have done ; and see , in a short compass , both what that holy doctrine which we profess is , and upon what grounds we build our belief of it . i have chosen to do this in the form of a catechism , not only because i look upon that to be the plainest , and most natural way of instruction ; but because it is certainly the shortest , and most easy to the memory . and would but parents take care to teach their children , at a competent age , to answer the questions here proposed ; they might possibly , thereby , not only take a good method for the instruction of them in the knowledge of that religion into which they were baptized ; but might , at the same time , improve themselves too , in the understanding of it . it has been the wisdom , as well as piety , of the church of england , to make a suitable provision for the instruction of all sorts of persons in her communion , in the knowledge of their christian profession . in order hereunto , she has appointed catechetical exercises for younger persons , as well as sermons for those of a greater age , and understanding : and has obliged masters , and parents , no less to send their children , and servants , to the one , than to come themselves to the other . how others may judge of this her pious care , i cannot tell : but , for my own part , i must freely profess , that i never think my self employ'd to better purpose , than when i am discharging this part of my ministry . and i am confident , that would all sorts of persons but duly attend upon these instructions ; they would reap a more substantial benefit by them , than from those other exercises which have , i know not how , so universally crept into the place of them . it being certain , that the only way either judiciously to hear , or truly to profit by , sermons ; is to lay a good foundation for both , by a previous catechetical institution in the principles of religion : and which , if men have neglected when they were young , the best way to remedy that defect , will be , not only to send their children , but to come themselves also , to our publick catechizings ; where not only the ignorant may be informed , but those who are the best improved , may possibly meet with somewhat , either to confirm their faith , or to direct their practice . i have divided the following treatise into sections ; that so taking of one every lord's day , the whole may be gone through once in the year . i have more or less referr'd to scripture-proofs , for every point that i have proposed : and that not only to shew upon what ground i build my answers , but moreover to accustom the pious reader to a better acquaintance with those holy writings . and i have purposely made the sections very short , that so he may not only peruse what i have written ; but may be encouraged thereby , at the same time , diligently to compare it with , and examine it by , the great rule of our faith , the word of god. if by what i have done , i shall minister to the improvement of any good christians in the knowledge of their religion ; but especially to those of my own cure ; i shall think my pains very happily bestow'd . if not , yet at least i shall have this satisfaction , that i have done what in me lay to supply their necessities : and that it must be , in some measure , their own faults , if they shall still continue ignorant of what was needful to have been known by them , in order to their salvation . the principles of the christian religion explain'd : in a brief commentary upon the church-catechism . sect . i. q. from whence is the word catechism derived ? a. from a greek word , which signifies to teach by word of mouth : and therefore it has been used particularly to denote such a kind of instruction , as is made by way of question and answer . q. what is that you call your church-catechism ? a. it is a plain , and summary institution of the principles of the christian religion , set forth by authority , and required to be learned of every person , in order to his being confirm'd by the bishop ; and prepared both for the profitable reading , and hearing of god's word , and for the worthy receiving of the lord's supper . q. what do you look upon to be the proper subject of such an institution ? a. it ought to comprehend all such things as are generally necessary to be known of all persons , in order to their due serving of god here , and to their being saved hereafter . q. what are those things which may be accounted thus necessary to be known by all christians ? a. they may , in general , be reduced to these two heads : viz. the knowledge of the gospel-covenant ; that is to say , of the promises made by god to mankind through our lord jesus christ , and of the conditions upon which we may become partakers of them . and , dly , of the means which god has appointed whereby to convey his grace to us ; and thereby both to assist , and confirm us , in the discharge of our duty to him. q. what are the promises which god has made to mankind , through jesus christ ? a. pardon of sins : grace to fulfil our duty in this life : and , upon our sincere performance thereof , everlasting salvation in the life which is to come . q. what are the conditions required of us by god , in order to our being made partakers of these promises ? a. a hearty repentance of our sins past : a sincere endeavour to live according to god's commands for the time to come : and both these made perfect , by a lively faith in god's mercies towards us , through jesus christ , jo. iii. . q. what are the means ordained of god , whereby to convey his grace to us ? a. they are chiefly two : constant prayer to god for it : and a worthy use of the holy sacraments , luk. xi . . mark xvi . . acts ii . . cor. x. . xi . , &c. q. are there not , besides these , some other means ordain'd by god , and necessary to be made use of by us , in order to our salvation ? a. yes there are ; particularly the hearing , reading , and meditating upon his word : the substance of which , tho' it be sufficiently gather'd together , and represented to us in our catechism , yet ought not that to hinder our reading of the holy scriptures , nor to deprive us of any other means of christian instruction ; but rather should be used as a help whereby to render both the reading , and hearing of god's word , more plain and profitable to us. psal. i. . tim. iii. . jo. v. . rom. xv . . q. does your church-catechism sufficiently instruct you in all these ? a. it does : for therein both the nature of the christian covenant is declared to us , and the conditions are set forth on which we may become partakers of it . and we are particularly instructed , both how we ought to pray to god ; and what those sacraments are , which are necessary to be administred unto , and received by all of us. sect . ii. q. what is your name ? a. n. or m. q. who gave you this name ? a. my godfathers , and godmothers , &c. q. what is that name which is here demanded of you ? a. it is my christian name ; therefore so called , because it was given to me by my godfathers , and godmothers , at my baptism . for as from my natural parents i derive the name of my family ; so from those who were my spiritual parents , i take that name which properly belongs to me as a member of christ's church . gen. xvii . , . gen. xxi . , . luk. i. , . luk. ii . . q. whom do you mean by your godfathers and godmothers ? a. i mean those persons who became sureties for me at my baptism : and upon whose promise there made in my name , i was baptized , and so foederally admitted into the communion of christ's church . q. what are the benefits which by your baptism have accrued to you ? a. they are many , and great ones ; but may , in general , be reduced to these three ; that thereby i was made a member of christ , the child of god , and an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven . q. how were you hereby made a member of christ ? a. as i was made a ( a ) member of his mystical body , the church ; of which christ is the ( b ) head. ( a ) cor. xii . . ye are the body of christ , and members in particular . ( b ) ephes. iv . . v. . christ is the head of the church . q. how were you hereby made the child of god ? a. as , by this means , i was taken into covenant with him ; was adopted into his family ; dedicated to his service ; and intituled to his promises . gal. iii. , , ye are all the children of god by faith in jesus christ. for as many of you as have been baptized into christ , have put on christ. — and if ye be christs , then are ye abrahams seed , and heirs according to the promise . see gal. iv . , . eph. i. . q. how were you hereby made an inheritor of the kingdom of heaven ? a. as , by my baptism , i became intituled to a right to it ; and was actually put into such a state , that if i be not wanting to my self , i shall not fail of being made partaker of it . tit. iii. , &c. but after that , the kindness and love of god our saviour toward man appeared , not by works of righteousness which we have done , but according to his mercy , he saved us , by the washing of regeneration , and renewing of the holy ghost : — that being justified by his grace , we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life . pet. i. , &c. blessed be the god , and father of our lord jesus christ , who according to his abundant mercy , hath begotten us again unto a lively hope , by the resurrection of jesus christ from the dead ; to an inheritance incorruptible , and undefiled , and that fadeth not away , reserved in heaven for vs. q. are all , who are baptized , made partakers thereby of these benefits ? a. they are all , at that time , either made partakers of them , or intituled to them . but those only continue to hold their right to these privileges , who take care to fulfill their part of the covenant which was therein made between god and them. q. have none , but such as are baptized , a right to these benefits ? a. none have a right to them but such as are baptized , or were ready to have been baptized , had they had the opportunity of receiving that holy sacrament . jo. iii. . except a man be born of water , and of the spirit , he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven . mark xvi . . he that believeth , and is baptized , shall be saved . sect . iii. q. what did your godfathers , and godmothers then for you ? a. they did promise and uow three things in my name , &c. q. what is the first thing which your godfathers , and godmothers , promised in your name ? a. that i should renounce the devil , and all his works , the pomps , and uanity , of this wicked world , and all the sinful lusts of the flesh. q. what does the renouncing of all these import ? a. it imports an utter forsaking of them : and obliges me not only inwardly to detest them ; but so to watch , and govern all my outward actions , as not to follow , nor be led by them. q. do you think that you shall be able thus to renounce the devil , the world , and your own flesh ? a. so perfectly , as i could wish , i cannot hope to do it in this present life : yet i trust that , by the grace of god , i shall always from my heart detest , and abhor them ; and so order my life , and actions , as not to be drawn into any evil courses by them ; nor even into the actual commission of any very great , and voluntary sins . q. what mean you by the devil ? a. it is the common name given in scripture to those wicked spirits , who having rebelled against god , and being thereupon justly cast off from that glorious state in which they were created by him ; do make it their constant business and endeavour to draw as many of us as they can into the same rebellion , and thereby into the same state of misery with themselves . pet. v. . be sober , be vigilant : because your adversary the devil , as a roaring lion , walketh about , seeking whom he may devour . q. what are the works of the devil , which , together with him , you , at your baptism , promised to renounce ? a. (a) all manner of sin : but chiefly i comprehend , under this first rank , those sins which either more immediately relate to him , or proceed from his suggestions ; (b) such as pride , malice , envy , revenge , murder , lying ; and , above all , witch-craft , and idolatry . q. what is the next enemy which , at your baptism , you promised to renounce ? a. this wicked world , with all the pomps , and uanitiy , of it . q. how is it that you call the world , ( the work of god's hands ) a wicked world ? a. not that it is in its self so , but only to shew how far , and in what respect , i am to renounce it ; namely , in all such cases in which it would draw me into any wickedness , for the sake of any thing which i desire , or enjoy , in it . gal. . . christ gave himself for our sins , that he might deliver us from this present evil world. john ii . . love not the world , neither the things that are in the world : if any man love the world , the love of the father is not in him . q. what do you mean by the pomps , and vanity , of this wicked world ? a. they do most properly denote the vain shew , and magnificence , of such as are great , and rich , in it : but do withal comprehend the riches themselves which minister to these vanities ; together with the covetousness , injustice , oppression , and whatsoever other sins , of the like kind , men commit for the support of their vanity , and to obtain such things as minister only to the pomp , and pride , of life . q. what is the third enemy , which your religion engages you to renounce ? a. the sinful lusts of the flesh. q. what mean you by the word flesh ? a. i mean that natural corruption which dwells in our flesh , and through which we are continually apt either to be led into sin , or to be hindered in our duty . rom. vii . . . for i know that in me , that is in my flesh , dwelleth no good thing . rom. viii . . therefore , we are debtors not to the flesh , to live after the flesh : for if ye live after the flesh ye shall die ; but if ye , through the spirit , do mortifie the deeds of the body , ye shall live . see gal. v. , . q. what do you understand by the sinful lusts of the flesh ? a. those inordinate desires , and inclinations , which proceed from this principle ; and dispose us to those sins which are in a peculiar manner called , in scripture , the works of the flesh : see gal. v. . rom. viii . . coloss. iii. . joh. ii . . q. what was the second thing which your godfathers , and godmothers , promised for you at your baptism ? a. that i should believe all the articles of the christian faith. q. where are those articles to be met with ? a. they are only to be found in , and believed upon the authority of , god's word : yet have been collected into that short summary of our faith , which is commonly called the apostles creed . q. what was the third thing , which your godfathers , and godmothers , promised in your name at your baptism ? a. that i should keep god's holy will and commandments , and walk in the same all the days of my life . q. has there been any such summary collection made of god's commandments , as you say there has been of the principal articles of your christian faith ? a. yes there hath , and that by god himself , in those ten commandments which god deliver'd to the jews heretofore ; exod. xx , and which continue no less to oblige us now . mat. v. , &c. q. dost thou not think that thou art bound , &c. a. yes verily , and by god's help so i will , &c. q. upon what grounds do you think your self obliged to make good what your godfathers , and godmothers , promised for you at your baptism ? a. upon many accounts ; but chiefly because what was then transacted , was not only done in my name , but for my benefit , and advantage : and i must resolve to fulfil what they promised for me , or i shall not receive the blessings , which , in consideration thereof , god was pleased to make over to me . besides that they promised nothing on my behalf , but what it would otherwise have been my duty , as well as interest , to have fulfill'd . q. by what means do you hope you shall be able to fulfil what they promised for you ? a. by the grace of god , which i am assured shall not be wanting to me , if i do but heartily pray to god for it , and take care to use it as i ought to do . luke xi . . if ye being evil know how to give good gifts unto your children , how much more shall your heavenly father give the holy spirit to them that ask him ? q. how are you assured of god's grace to enable you to believe , and to do , what he requires of you ? a. inasmuch as by my baptism i was put into a state of salvation , which i could not have been , were i not thereby secure of whatsoever is needful , on god's part , to be bestow'd upon me , in order to my attaining of salvation , through jesus christ our saviour . rom. i. . the gospel of christ , is the power of god unto salvation to every one that believeth . phil. ii . , . work out your own salvation with fear and trembling : for it is god which worketh in you both to will , and to do , of his good pleasure . q. how came you to be called unto such a blessed state as this ? a. only by the mercy of god , and thro' the merits of jesus christ our saviour ; and therefore i do most heartily thank our heavenly father , that he has called me to this state of salvation , through jesus christ our saviour . q. do you think that you shall be able still to go on , and persevere in this state ? a. it is my earnest desire and purpose so to do ; and i trust that by the grace of god , i shall do so . b for which cause , i will never cease to pray unto him for the continuance of his grace ; that so i may be found faithful and sincere in my duty to my lives end. thess. iii. . the lord is faithful , who shall stablish you , and keep you from evil. eph. iv . . grieve not the holy spirit of god , whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption . phil. . . being confident of this very thing , that he which hath begun a good work in you , will perform it untill the day of jesus christ. sect . iv. q. but what if notwithstanding all your present desires , and resolutions , you should chance to fall away from your duty ; and thereby put your self out of this state of salvation ; ●s there no way left for you to recover your self , and to return again to it ? a. yes , there is ; by a true repentance for the sins which i shall have committed , and an humble confession of them to god ; with earnest prayer for his forgiveness , through the merits , and intercession , of jesus christ , our blessed saviour and redeemer . q. what mean you by repentance ? a. i mean such a conversion of a sinner to god , whereby he is not only heartily ‖ sorry for the evil he has done , and resolved to forsake it ; † but do's actually begin to renounce it , and to fulfil his duty according to his ability ; with a steadfast purpose to continue god's faithful servant unto his life's end. q. what are the chief acts required to such a repentance ? a. to forsake evil , and to do good : to turn from those sins which we repent of ; and to serve god by an universal obedience of him , in whatsoever he has required of us . q. what is the first step towards a true repentance ? a. to be thoroughly convinced of the evil of our ways , and heartily sorry for it . q. is any kind of sorrow to be look'd upon as a part of true repentance ? a. no ; there is a sorrow for sin which proceeds , not from any love of god , or sense of our duty to him ; nor yet from any real hatred of the sins which we have committed ; but meerly from the fear of god's judgment , and of the punishment which we may be likely to suffer for them . this is that sorrow which is commonly called attrition ; and may be in the most wicked men , without ever bringing them to any true repentance for their sins . q. what then is that sorrow which leads to a true repentance ? a. it is that godly sorrow which proceeds from a sense of our duty , and of the obligations we lie under to the performance of it . when we are sorry for our sins upon the account of our having thereby offended god ; broken the covenant of the gospel ; and grieved the holy spirit which was given to us ; and are therefore resolved immediately to forsake our sins , and never to return any more to them . q. how is such a sorrow to be wrought in a sinner ? a. only by the grace of god , and the serious consideration of our own estate towards him : the former to be attain'd by our constant prayers for it ; the latter , by accustoming our selves often to examine our souls , and to try our ways , by the measures of that obedience which the gospel of christ requires of us . q. do's not god make use of many other ways to bring men to such a sorrow ? a. god has many ways whereby to bring sinners to repentance . sometimes he do's it by bringing some temporal evils , and calamities , upon them : sometimes by visiting them with terrors , and disquiets of mind : sometimes he calls upon them by the outward ministry of his word ; and sometimes by the evils which befal others , especially those who were their companions in their sins . but whatever the occasions be which god is pleased to make use of to bring us to repentance , it is the grace of the holy spirit , and the serious consideration of our own wretched estate , that begins the work , and produces in us that godly sorrow , which finally ends in a true repentance . q. what are the chief motives , with respect to us , to engage us thus to sorrow for our sins ? a. the threats of god , denounced in the holy scriptures , against impenitent sinners ; and the promises there made of pardon to all such as shall truly repent , and return to their duty , as they ought to do . q. what is the next thing required in order to a true repentance ? a. confession of sin : not that god has any need of being informed by us of what we have done amiss ; but to the end we may thereby both raise in our selves a greater shame , and sorrow , for our evil doings ; and give the greater glory to god , by such a solemn humbling of our selves in confession before him . q. is such a confession necessary to our forgiveness . a. so necessary that we have no promise of any pardon without it : prov. xxviii . . he that covereth his sins shall not prosper ; but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy . joh. i. , . if we say that we have no sin , we deceive our selves , and the truth is not in us . if we confess our sins , he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins , and to cleanse us from all vnrighteousness . q. to whom is our confession to be made ? a. always to god ; and in some certain cases to man also . q. what are those cases in which we ought to confess our sins to man , as well as unto god ? a. they are especially these three . . i● case we have offended , or injured our neighbour , and upon that account need to obtain hi● pardon , as well as god's . . if by any ope● and notorious transgression we shall happe● to have either deserved , or , it may be , to hav● fallen under , the censures of the church ; an● so confession to the church be necessary , to restore us to the peace of it . or , . if we shal● have any private reason that may move us to acquaint any person with our sins ; for advice , for prayer , for absolution ; or for any the like advantage , which cannot be had without it . q. what think you of that confession ( commonly called by them auricular-confession ) which the church of rome requires , as necessary to forgiveness ? a. i look upon it as a great and dangerous imposition , that has no warrant from god ; is a great rack and snare to the consciences of good men , and may be apt to encourage most others in their sins : whilst by the absolution , which is so readily given them thereupon ( and the efficacy of which is so highly magnified in that church ) they are taught to entertain a much less opinion both of the heinousness , and danger , of their evil-doings , than either the scripture warrants , or their own interest should prompt them to admit of . q. is there not somewhat yet required , beyond this , in order to our forgiveness ? a. yes there is : for to all this there must be super-added an actual forsaking of those sins which we confess , and that absolute , and without reserve : so that we must firmly resolve , and , as much as in us lies , heartily endeavour , never to return again any more to them . q. but ought there not , beyond all this some satisfaction to be made to god , for the sins which we have committed ? a. yes certainly ; and such there has been made , by our saviour christ , for us ; who has fully satisfied the justice of god in that kind , and left nothing more for us to do , in that behalf . q. what do you then say to those satisfactions , which the church of rome teaches we may , and ought to make , for our sins ? a. that they are built upon a false foundation ; are contrary to the goodness of god , and beyond the capacity of man. q. what is the foundation upon which they are built ? a. it is this ; that when god forgives us our sins , whether upon our own repentance , or by virtue of the priest's absolution ; he remits indeed the fault , and purges away our guilt ; and by this acquits us from the everlasting punishment that would otherwise have been due to them ; but yet still retains us under an obligation to some temporal sufferings , either by satisfactory works to be done for them in this life ; or by undergoing a certain proportion of pain for them after death , in a place which they call purgatory . q. how does it appear that this foundation is false and erroneous ? a. because , in the first place , it is absurd to suppose , that god should forgive the whole guilt of our sins , and yet , having done so , should afterwards punish us for them : and , secondly ; it is injurious to the sufferings and merits of christ , whose death was a sufficient satisfaction for the sins of the whole world ; and has left no room either for god to require , or for us to pay , any thing more . q. does repentance then , if it be sincere , without any thing more , restore us again to our state of grace , and reconcile us to god almighty ? a. if it be sincere , it does , through faith in jesus christ. q. does god allow repentance to all sins ? jo. vi . . act. xiii . . xvi . , . pet. i. , &c. a. there is no sin but what true repentance washes away : but there may be some cases in which god may deny us his grace , so that we shall not be able truly to repent . q. what cases are they ? a. they may all be reduced to this one general ; namely , a wilful abuse , and resistance , of the divine grace : whether it be by a long habit of sinning ; or by frequent acting against the dictates of our own consciences , and the motions of god's holy spirit : to say nothing of some sins , which are in an eminent manner destructive of the divine grace , such as pride , covetousness , sensuality ; but especially that sin which is particularly called in scripture , the sin against the holy ghost . q. what is meant by that sin ? a. i suppose it to have been the particular sin of the jews heretofore , in not only obstinately refusing to receive our blessed lord for their messiah , after sufficient proofs given by him to convince them that he was so ; but ascribing those miracles which he wrought in proof of his authority , to the help of the devil , when at the same time they either were abundantly convinced , or , but for their own fault might have been , that he did them by the power of god. mat. xii . . comp. mark iii. . luk. xii . . q. do you look upon this sin to have so wholly belonged to those men , as not to be capable of being committed by any now ? a. that very sin , which in scripture is so called , cannot now be committed , because christ is not now upon earth , nor have we therefore any occasion given us , thus to blaspheme against the holy ghost . yet some sins there are of a like nature , which may still be committed ; and which , being committed , may prove no less dangerous to those who are guilty of them , than that sin did prove to the pharisees heretofore . q. what sins are those , which you suppose to come the nearest to it ? a. apostacy from the christian religion , after having been convinced of the truth , and made partakers of the promises of it . next to that , an apostacy from the truth , and purity of the gospel , for the sake of some worldly fears on the one hand , or present hopes on the other , to the communion of a church , which not only obstinately resists the truth ; but damns , and persecutes , all such as profess it . and , lastly , apostacy to idolatry , which seems to be the sin unto death spoken of by st. john , jo. v. . and for the remission of which he gives us but little encouragement to pray , v. . q. what then do you think of those who go off from the communion of the church of england , to that of the church of rome ? a. as of apostates , and idolaters : to whom god may , by an extraordinary effect of his mercy , give grace for repentance , and so for salvation ; but of whom otherwise , we have no ground of hope . q. do you think such in a more dangerous estate , than those who were from the beginning bred up in the roman communion ? a. i do ; forasmuch as they have both rejected the truth once known , and received by them ; and cast off the way , in which the providence of god had placed them ; and that , it may be , on some base grounds , to be sure , without any sufficient reason to justifie their doing of it . q. what then do you think of those who have always been of the communion of that church ? a. i think them , in general , in much greater danger now , than they were before the reformation : and still those in more danger who have lived among those of the reformed church , and so were in a better capacity of being convinc'd of the errors of their way . but , most of all , do i think the estate of those dangerous , or rather desperate , who are learned , and know their errors ; or are priests , and so called to instruct the people in the purity of christ's religion . the sincere , and ignorant , who want capacity , or want opportunity , to know the truth , i hope god will forgive : the careless , the prejudiced ; but , most of all , the obstinately blind , among them , i neither can acquit , nor do i think that god will forgive them. sect . v. q. what was the second thing which your godfathers , and godmothers , promised in your name ? a. that i should believe all the articles of the christian faith. q. where are those articles to be found ? a. in the holy scriptures ; and particularly those of the new testament . q. what mean you by the holy scriptures ? a. i mean those books , which thro' the assistance of the holy spirit , were written by moses , and the prophets , under the law ; and by the apostles and evangelists of christ , since the publishing of the gospel ; to direct us in the knowledge of god , and of the duty which he requires of us. q. how do you know what books were written by these persons , in order to these ends ? a. by the constant , universal , and undeniable testimony both of the jewish and christian church : from the former of which we have received the scriptures of the old , from the latter those of the new testament . q. how do you know that these books were written by the assistance of the holy spirit ? a. by the authors who wrote them ; who were doubtless no less inspired in what they wrote , than in what they taught , of the gospel of christ. . by the design of god in the composing of them ; which was to leave thereby a constant , infallible rule of faith , to the church , in all ages of it . . by the opinion which all christians from the time that they were publish'd , have had of them ; and the deference which , upon that account , they have paid to them. and , lastly , by the subject-matter of them , and those internal marks of divine wisdom , and piety , which are so conspicuous in all the parts of them. q. do you look upon these scriptures , as the only , present , rule of your faith ? a. i do : nor is there any other certain foundation , on which to build it . q. what think you of the tradition of the church ? a. could i be sure that any thing , not contain'd in the scriptures , came down by a certain , uninterrupted tradition , from the apostles , i should not except against it . nay , i do therefore receive the holy scriptures , as the rule of my faith , because they have such a tradition to warrant me so to do . but because there is no such tradition for any thing besides , therefore neither do i build my faith upon it : but , on the contrary , do suppose that , by the providence of god , the holy scriptures were purposely written , to prevent those doubts , those forgeries , and deceits , which his infinite wisdom foresaw , an oral tradition would always have been liable unto . q. can the holy scriptures alone make your faith perfect ? a. they can : nor ought i to believe any thing as an article of my faith , which is not to be found in them , or cannot plainly be proved by them. q. what do you think of the church's definitions ? a. that i ought to submit to them in whatsoever they define agreeably to the word of god : but if in any thing they require me to believe what is contrary to the word of god , or cannot be proved thereby ; i ought absolutely to reject the one , and am under no obligation to receive the other . q. but is not this to make your self wiser than the church ? a. no , by no means ; but only to make the word of god , of more authority with me than the word of man : whilst i chuse rather to regulate my faith by what god has deliver'd , than by what man defines . q. are the holy scriptures so plain , and easy to be understood , that every one may be able to judge for himself what he ought to believe ? a. in matters of necessary belief , they are very plain , even to the most ordinary christian : yet we do not deny but that every man ought to hear the church ; and attend to the instructions of those who are the pastors of it . only we say , that neither the church , nor its pastors , ought to teach any thing as an article of faith ; or require any man's assent to it , as such , that cannot be shewn to have been either expresly deliver'd in the word of god ; or , by a plain and necessary consequence , be proved thereby . q. but how shall the unlearned be able to know what the scriptures propose ; seeing they are written in a language which such persons do not understand ? a. by reading them in their own vulgar tongue , into which every church has , or ought to have them faithfully translated , for the benefit of those who do not understand the languages in which they were composed . q. do you then think that the people ought to be suffered promiscuously to read the holy scriptures ? a. who shall forbid them to read what was purposely designed by god for their instruction ? the scriptures are as much the voice of the apostles , and evangelists , to us of these times , as their preaching was to those of the age in which they lived . and it may , with as good reason , be ask'd , whether we think the people ought to have been promiscuously suffer'd heretofore to hear the apostles preach ; as whether they ought to be suffer'd promiscuously to read their writings now. q. but amidst so many things as the holy scriptures deliver , how shall the people be able to judge what is necessary to be believed by them ? a. let them believe all they meet with there , and then to be sure they will believe all that is necessary . but for the sake of those who either want ability to read , or capacity to judge , what is most necessary , in point of faith , to be known , and profess'd by them ; the * church has , from the beginning , collected it into a short summary ; which every person , of old , was required both to know , and assent to , before he was admitted into the communion of it . q. what is that summary of which you speak , and which you account to comprehend all the most necessary articles of our christian faith ? a. it is commonly called the apostles creed : not that the apostles themselves composed it ; ( at least not in the very form in which we now have it ; ) but because it seems to come the nearest , of any , to the apostles times ; and does , with the greatest simplicity of expression , comprehend a short summary of the apostles doctrine . q. what mean you by the word creed ? a. it is the same in latine , as belief in english : and it is so called in both from the first words of it , i believe ; and which in sense , though not in expression , run through every article of it . sect . vi. q. rehearse the articles of your belief . a. i believe in god the father almighty , &c. q. you said that those words i believe , were not only the first words of your creed , but the most material ; as running , in effect , through every branch of it . tell me , therefore , what do you mean when you say , i believe ? a. to believe , in the general , is to assent to the truth of any thing , upon the sole authority of the person who delivers it : who , if he be a man only , the assent which i give to what he says , produces in me a humane faith ; if , as here , he be god , then the assent which i give to what is deliver'd by him , is properly a divine faith. q. what is the difference , with respect to us , between these two ? a. it is very great : for because a man , though never so wise , and careful himself , may yet not be honest , and so impose upon me : or should he be never so upright , may yet , after all his care , be mistaken himself , and thereby lead me into errour ; therefore in assenting to what such a one proposes , i can at the most give but such a belief to it , as is suitable to a meer humane testimony . i may believe what he says to be true , but yet so as not to exclude a possibility of its being otherwise . whereas god being neither capable of being deceived himself , nor of imposing upon any other ; when i give my assent to what he has revealed , i do it not only with a certain assurance that what i believe is true , but with an absolute security , that it cannot possibly be false . q. but why do you say , i believe , and not we believe ; as when you pray , you say , ovr father , & c ? a. because though one man may pray , yet one man cannot believe for another . and however in charity i may suppose every christian to believe what is here delivered ; yet since 't is certain there are many infidels , and hypocrites , scatter'd up and down among the faithful , and i cannot certainly distinguish who are indeed believers , and who not ; neither can i , with an assurance of faith , say , we believe , because i cannot certainly tell , whether another man does truly believe these articles or no. besides , that this creed being intended to be the form , upon the confession whereof , persons should be admitted to baptism ; and in that case , every one was to make a distinct profession of his faith , in order thereunto ; it was fitting the creed its self should be penn'd after such a manner , as was most proper for the main end for which it was compos'd . q. are all the things contain'd in this creed to be proved by divine revelation ? a. they are all plainly deliver'd to us in the holy scriptures ; which being confessed by all christians to be the word of god , what is deliver'd by them , must be look'd upon to be delivered to us by god himself . q. what are the general parts of which this creed does consist ? a. they are these four : first , it shews us what is most needful to be believ'd , and professed by us , concerning god the father : secondly , concerning our lord jesus christ : thirdly , concerning the holy ghost : and fourthly , concerning the church of christ ; its duties and privileges here , and the blessings and glory which god has prepared for it hereafter . q. do you think it necessary not only to believe all these things , but also , upon occasion , to profess the belief of them . a. i do think it necessary , whenever our duty to god ; or the edification of our neighbour ; or the honour of our religion , shall require it of me. mat. x. . whosoever shall confess me before men , him will i confess also before my father which is in heaven . but whosoever shall deny me before men , him will i also deny before my father which is in heaven . rom. x. . if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the lord jesus , and shalt believe in thy heart , that god hath raised him from the dead , thou shalt be saved . for with the heart man believeth unto righteousness ; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation . see pet. iii. . sect . vii . q. what is the first article of your creed ? a. i believe in god the father almighty , maker of heaven and earth . q. what is god ? a. he is an eternal , infinite , incomprehensible spirit ; immortal , invisible ; most perfect himself , and the giver of all perfection , to all other things . q. how do you profess to believe in god ? a. i do firmly believe that there is such a being as god , heb. xi . . and that there is but one such being ; so that besides him there neither is , nor can be , any other . cor. viii . . . we know that there is none other god but one : — to us there is but one god the father . isaiah xlv . , . i am the lord , and there is none else ; there is no god besides me : i am the lord , and there is none else . q. upon what account do you give to god the title of father ? a. upon several accounts , but chiefly on these two : . with respect to our lord jesus christ , whom , in the next article , we profess to be his son : and , secondly , as he may also be accounted our father . cor. i. . blessed be god , even the father of our lord jesus christ. see joh. x. , , &c. q. how do you believe god to be our father ? a. by right of creation ; so he is the father of all mankind : cor. viii . . to vs , there is but one god the father , of whom are all things . by right of adoption ; so he is the father of us christians in particular . eph. i. , . blessed be the god , and father of our lord jesus christ — who hath predestinated vs unto the adoption of children , by jesus christ , to himself . q. what do you mean by the attribute of almighty ? a. i mean two things : ( st ) that god has a right of absolute power , and dominion , over all the world. dan. iv . . his dominion is an everlasting dominion , and his kingdom is from generation to generation . and ( dly ) that he has an infinite power of action ; so that he can do all things , and with him nothing is impossible . mat. xix . . q. can god then do all things ? a. he can do all things that are not either simply impossible to be done , as implying a contradiction : or else contrary to his goodness , and perfection , to do ; as to sin ; to be ignorant ; and the like . q. by what act especially has god manifested himself to be almighty ? a. by making the heaven , and the earth . q. what do you understand by that expression , the heaven , and the earth ? a. i comprehend under it all things that ever were made ; visible , and invisible ; as being all made , and created by god. q. how did god make all these ? a. after two different manners . some he produced by an immediate creation : thus were the angels form'd , and the spirits of men ; and thus was that first matter produced , of which moses speaks , gen. i. . that in the beginning god created the heaven , and the earth . to the other parts of the creation he gave being , by forming them out of an antecedent matter : so he made this visible world , as we read , gen. i. q. by whom did god make the world. a. by his son ; sometimes call'd the word : job . i. . all things were made by him , and without him was not any thing made that was made . and again , vii . . the world was made by him. q. was this son , the same jesvs , who afterwards came into the world , to publish the gospel , and die for us ? a. so the scriptures expresly tell us : heb. i. , . god , who at sundry times , and in divers manners , spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets , hath in these last days spoken unto vs by his son ; by whom also he made the worlds . and st. paul , speaking of him , in whom we have redemption through his blood , even the forgiveness of sins ; col. i. . tells us , ver. . that by him were all things created , that are in heaven , and that are in earth , visible and invisible ; whether they be thrones , or dominions , or principalities , or powers , all things were created by him , and for him ; and he is before all things , and by him all things consist . q. is there any thing more comprehended in this article , with relation to god the father ? a. this only ; that as god , at the beginning , thus created all things ; so having created them , he has ever since continued to support and preserve them . heb. i. . and that so particularly , that there is not the least thing in the world , to which his providence does not extend it self . mat. vi . . . x. , . q. how do you profess to believe all this of god ? a. because though some part of it might have been discover'd by natural reason , and accordingly was found out by the wiser heathens ; yet the full , and perfect knowledge of all this , is due to revelation : and by the accounts we have of these things in the holy scriptures , we both more clearly understand them , and are more firmly perswaded of the truth of them. sect . viii . q. what does the second part of your creed contain ? a. it contains a short summary of all such things as are necessary to be known , and believed by us , concerning our lord and saviour jesvs christ . q. how is he here described to us ? a. by his person ; his office ; his relation to god , and to vs. and in iesus christ , his only son , our lord. q. how is his person set out , in this article , to us ? a. by the name which he went by whilst he was upon earth ; jesvs . q. how came our saviour to be called by that name ? a. he was so called by the express command of god , deliver'd by an angel ; first to the blessed virgin , luk. i. . and then to joseph . mat. i. . q. is there any particular significancy in that name , that should move god , in such an extraordinary manner , to give it to him ? a. there is : for it denotes a saviour ; and was given by god to our blessed lord to shew , that he was to be the saviour of the world ; and that no other was to be so : mat. i. . thou shalt call his name jesus , for he shall save his people from their sins . acts iv . . neither is there salvation in any other ; for there is none other name under heaven given among men , whereby we must be saved . q. how was this jesus to save the world ? a. by delivering us both from the power , and from the punishment of our sins ; and by putting us in a way of attaining unto everlasting salvation . tit. ii . , &c. rom. vi . , , &c. q. what is the title given to our blessed lord , with respect to his office ? q. he is called christ ; which is the same in greek , that messias is in hebrew , or syriac : and is as much as to say , the anointed . joh. i. . we have found the messias , which is being interpreted , ‖ the christ. joh. iv . . i know that messias cometh , which is called christ. q. why had our saviour this title given to him ? a. to shew , that as by the ceremony of anointing heretofore , god consecrated those whom he called to some certain offices ; so was this jesus to be separated , though not by a visible vnction , yet by the invisible power , and grace of the holy spirit , for all those offices , to which men were anointed , by god's command , under the law. act. x. . god anointed jesus of nazareth , with the holy ghost , and with power . q. what were those offices , to which men were consecrated , by the ceremony of anointing , under the law ? a. they were chiefly three ; to the office of a prophet , a priest , and a king. q. was our saviour to be consecrated to all these ? a. he was ; and that by express prophecies , before his coming into the world. see psal. xlv . cx . deut. xviii . , , &c. isa. ix . . lxi . . q. how did god anoint him to these offices ? a. the holy ghost came upon him ; and god , by a voice from heaven , declared him to be his son , and commanded all the world to hear him : mat. iii. , . and he received the spirit without measure , for the discharge of all of them. joh. iii. . q. you say , that god before prophesy'd of such a christ ; did the jews know that he had done so ? a. yes ; and at that very time that christ came into the world , they generally expected the coming of him. mat. xi . . joh. iv . . vii . . luke iii. . q. how then came it to pass , that they did not more readily receive him ? a. because they had flatter'd themselves with the expectation of a temporal prince ; who should deliver them from their enemies , and restore again the kingdom unto israel : and therefore they could not bear the disappointment of receiving such a messias , as our saviour professed himself to be . luke xxiv . . act. i. . q. what security have we , that this was indeed the messias , of whom moses , and the prophets spake ? a. the greatest that can be imagin'd . ( a ) he came at the exact time that the messias was to come . ( a ) gen. xlix . . malach. iii. . dan. ix . ▪ . (b) he descended of the tribe out of which the messiah was to proceed . gen. xlix . , . isa. xi . , . comp . mat. i. luk. iii. (c) he was born at the place where the messias was to be born . mich. v. . mat. ii . . he was conceived of a virgin , as the messias was to be conceived . isa. vii . . mat. i. . luk. i. , . besides all which , he had such extraordinary witness born to him , as is not to be gain-said . god raised up a singular fore-runner to prepare the way for him . being come into the world , he own'd him , by a voice from heaven , to be his son : mat. iii. . he himself wrought such miracles , as no one ever did : joh. vii . . ‖ he empower'd his disciples to work the same miracles in his name , and for the confirmation of his authority . mat. x. , . mark xvi . , . being put to death at the instigation of the jews , he was by god raised again the third day from the dead ; and , in the presence of his disciples , visibly taken up into heaven , where he now sitteth at the right-hand of god. acts i. , . q. you said that jesus was called christ , because he was to be consecrated by the holy ghost to the several offices , to which men were anointed under the law : tell me therefore , how does it appear that this christ was a prophet ? a. it is manifest that he exercised all the parts of the prophetick office. he foretold things to come . jo. ii . . mat. xvii . , . xxiv . , &c. he declared god's will to the world : and he commission'd his disciples , to go and publish the same doctrine of salvation to all mankind . mat. xxviii . , . mar. xvi . . q. how do you believe christ to have been a priest , seeing he was not descended of a priestly tribe , or family . heb. vii . . a. as the scriptures teach me to believe : i believe him to have been a priest not according to the legal institution ; but of another , and more ancient kind : after the order of melchisedeck . psal. cx . . heb. v. . vi . . vii . , &c. q. what is the order of which you speak ? a. it is evident that when god chose the tribe of levi , and the family of aaron , to minister unto him under the law , he took them instead of the first-born of every tribe , and family , who , by virtue of their birth-right , had the priesthood belonging to them . exod. xix . . xxiv . . now melchisedeck living before this was done , was a priest by that ancient right , and not according to the law. but then besides this , he was a king too ; and so the high-priest over his people . now such a priest , and prince together , was christ over his church . heb. vii . , . again : of melchisedeck we know not either who went before him , or who succeeded him in these offices . so that his priesthood , as to us , was a solitary priesthood , in which as he succeeded none , so neither does it appear that any succeeded him. and such also is the priesthood of christ : there was never any such high-priest before , nor shall there ever rise up any like him . heb. vii . , . — , . q. wherein did he exercise this office ? a. in all the parts of the priestly function : he offer'd up himself a sacrifice for our sins . heb. vii . . ix . , , . having done this , he ascended into heaven , there to appear in the presence of god for vs , heb. ix . , . and he blesseth us , not only by delivering us hereby from the punishment of our sins , but by sanctifying our souls ; and so freeing us , in great measure , even from the present power of them. heb. ix . . x. , , , . q. how does it appear that our lord was not only a prophet , and a priest , but a king also ? a. the scripture expresly calls him so : jo. xii . . xviii . . and that authority which he has all along exercised over his church , proves him to have been so . q. what is that authority ? a. while he was yet upon earth , he gave laws unto his church , for the regulation of the lives and actions of those who should become members of it . mat. vii . , . these laws he establish'd with the royal sanction of rewards and punishments : mat. vii . , . he settled a ministry , for the conduct of his church under him : jo. xx . , , . he rules in the hearts of the faithful , by his spirit . he has already begun to subdue our enemies , sin , the devil , and death : and he will hereafter utterly destroy them . cor. xv . , , . he now sits , in full power , at the right-hand of god , interceeding for us : and , at the end of the world , he will descend from thence with glory , to judge the world , and so put in execution his promises , and threatnings ; by infinitely rewarding those who shall be found to have observed his laws ; and exceedingly punishing those who shall have broken them : mat. xxv . , &c. sect . ix . q. what is that relation which christ is here said to have to god ? a. he is his only son. q. in what respect do you believe christ to be the son of god ? a. he is called so in the holy scriptures upon several accounts : * as he was conceived by the holy ghost of the virgin mary : luk. i. . * as he was anointed by the holy ghost to the office of the messiah : jo. x. . * as he was begotten again of god when he raised him from the dead : act. xiii . . rom. i. . and , lastly , * as being raised from the dead , he was made by god the heir of all things . heb. i. . q. in which of these respects do you here profess to believe , that jesus christ is the only son of god ? a. precisely speaking , in none of them all ; though yet i acknowledge the most of them to be so proper to him , as not to be capable of being applied to any other . but when i here profess christ to be god's only son , i do it upon a much higher , and more excellent foundation ; namely , upon the account of his eternal generation , and that communication which god the father thereby made of the divine nature to him. q. do you then look upon christ to have been made by god partaker of the divine nature ; and so , to have been from all eternity , god , together with him ? a. if i believe the scriptures to give a true account of the nature of christ , so i must believe : for i find the same evidences in them of the godhead of christ , that i do of that of the father . q. what be those evidences ? a. first , they give the name of god to him ; and that in such a manner as plainly shews it is to be understood , in its most proper import , and signification . jo. i. . xx . . rom. ix . . tim. iii. . jo. v. . phil. ii . . secondly , they ascribe the most proper , and incommunicable attributes , of god to him. such as omnipotence ; jo. v. . rev. i. . xi . . omniscience : jo. xvi . . xxi . . luk. vi . . comp . jo. ii . . rev. ii . . immensity : jo. iii. . mat. xviii . . xxviii . . jo. iii. . immutability : heb. i. , . xiii . . and even eternity it self : rev. i. , . xxii . . prov. viii . . mich. v. . isa. ix . . to him , thirdly , they ascribe such works , as can belong to none that is not god. the creation of the world : jo. i. , . col. i. . heb. i. , . the preservation of it : heb. i. . miracles : jo. v. , . vi . . the mission of the holy ghost : jo. xvi . , . xiii . . and , in short , all the works of grace , and regeneration : jo. v. . x. . xiii . . act. xvii . . xx . . eph. v. , &c. add to this , fourthly , that he is there shewn to be honoured as god : jo. v. . heb. . . prayer fs made to him : act. vii . . cor. i. . faith , and hope are directed to be put in him : jo. xiv . . psal. ii . . praises and thanksgivings are given to him. jo. xiv . . rev. iii. . glory , and honour , are rendred to him. rev. v. . compare iv . . and no wonder ; since , lastly , the nature of god is therein also expresly ascribed to him : heb. i. . phil. ii . . col. ii . . compare col. i. , . q. but if christ , therefore , be god , as well as the father , how can he be called the son of god ? a. because he received his divine nature from the father ; who is the beginning , and root , of the divinity ; and has communicated his own essence to christ : who , therefore , though he has the same nature , and so , in that , is equal with the father ; yet is he in order after him ; as being god of god. q. how does it appear that christ received his divine nature from the father ? a. it can only be known by that revelation which god has made of it in the holy scriptures : where he is , for this reason , said to be the brightness of his glory , and the express image of his person , heb. i. . the image of the invisible god : col. i. . cor. iv . . to be from god : jo vii . . to have life from the father : jo. v. . and the like . and upon this account it is , that our saviour himself says , that the father is greater than he : jo. xiv . . that he can do nothing of himself , but what he seeth the father do : jo. v. , . or if this be not yet plain enough ; they tell us farther , in express terms , that he is the begotten , and the only begotten , son of the father , jo. i. , . iii. , . heb xi . . jo. iv . . v. . q. but will not this make the holy ghost , as much god's son , as christ ? and how then is christ his only son ? a. in matters of this kind , which are so far above our capacities , and of which we know nothing , but what god has been pleased to reveal to us , we must speak , as god , in his word , has taught us to speak . now the scriptures no where call the holy ghost , the son of god ; nor god , the father of the holy ghost : and therefore though we know not what the precise difference is , yet because the proper act of a father is to beget ; we say that christ received his divine nature from god by generation ; but of the holy ghost we say , as the scriptures do , that he proceedeth from the father : jo. xv . . and is the spirit not of the father only , but of the son also . gal. iv . . rom. viii . . phil. i . pet. i. . q. what is the last respect in which our saviour is here represented to us ? a. his relation to vs : ovr lord . eph. iv . . cor. viii . . rev. x. . q. how is christ ovr lord ? a. as he is god , together with the father ; and as by him god created the world ; so has he the same original right of dominion with him , and is lord of all his creatures . q. is there not some other ground for this title , and which restrains it in a particular manner to mankind ? a. yes , there is : inasmuch as by his coming into the world , and dying for us , he redeemed us from death , and so became our lord , by virtue of that purchase which thereby he made of us. q. when did christ begin , in this respect , to be our lord ? a. he entred , in part , upon this authority before his death , though not without respect to his dying for us : as is evident from his publishing his gospel ; abrogating the law ; and setting out the conditions of life and death to mankind . hence , before his death , he asserted to himself the power to forgive sins : mat. ix . , . but the full exercise of his dominion , he entred not upon till after his resurrection ; when , as himself declared to his apostles , mat. xxviii . . all power in heaven and earth was given unto him. see eph. i. , . q. how long will christ continue , in this respect , to be our lord ? a. christ will continue to be our lord for ever ; and of his kingdom there shall be no end : luk. i , . but then as the subject matter of a great part of that authority which he now exercises over his church , is proper only to the present state of it , and will determine at the day of judgment ; so will all the farther exercise of such authority cease together with it . christ , as mediator , must reign , till he has put all his enemies under his feet ; till sin , death , the devil , and all wicked men , shall be destroy'd ; and all his faithful servants , be delivered from the power of them . psal. cx . . cor. xv . . but that being done , christ will deliver up this authority , to god , even the father : cor. xv . . nevertheless , still , as god-man , he will continue to reign with , and over , his saints , to all eternity , in heaven : and so make good what daniel foretold concerning him , dan. vii . . that his dominion is an everlasting dominion ; which shall not pass away ; and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed . sect . x. q. what does your creed teach you farther to believe concerning our lord jesus christ ; in the following articles which relate to him ? a. all such matters as are necessary to be known , and believed by us , with relation to the great work of our redemption , which was accomplish'd by him. q. by what means did christ accomplish the redemption of mankind ? a. by giving up himself to the death upon the cross for us. pet. i. , . q. how could christ , whom you believe to be god , die ? a. he took upon him our nature , he became man , like unto one of us ; and being found in fashion as a man , he yielded up himself to death , even the death of the cross for us : phil. ii . , . act. xx . . q. after what manner was christ made man ? a. not by the conversion of his divine nature into the humane ; nor by any confounding of the two natures together : but by vniting our humane nature to his divine ; after a singular manner , and such as cannot be perfectly express'd by us. q. were then two distinct natures , the divine and humane , vnited together in christ ? a. yes , there were : and that in such wise as to make the same jesus christ , by the distinction of the two natures , in the vnity of the same person ; become truly , and really , at once , both god , and man. q. how was christ made man ? a. he was conceived by the holy ghost , and born of the uirgin mary . q. how could christ be conceived by the holy ghost ? a. not by the communication of any part of his own substance to him ; but as that blessed spirit set nature on work , and took away the need of any human concurrence to his production : and as , having thus prepared a body for him , of the substance of the virgin ; he breathed into it a most perfect , reasonable soul. q. wherefore was it needful for the holy ghost to do this ? a. both for the honour , and purity of our blessed saviour : † that so he might come into the world free from all tincture of sin : * and also , that by the extraordinariness of his birth , he might fulfil the prophecies , which god had before deliver'd concerning it . q. how was christ born of the virgin mary ? a. the substance of his body , was derived from that of the blessed virgin : he grew in her womb ; and at the full time of her delivery , she brought him into the world : and upon all these accounts , she was as much his mother , as any other woman is mother of the child that is born by her. q. had our saviour then a real body , like unto one of us ? a. he had both a real humane body , luke xxiv . . jo. iv . , and rational soul ; mat. xxvi . . luk. xxiii . . and was in all things like unto us , only without sin. heb. ii . . iv . . q. wherefore do you give the title of virgin , to the mother of our lord ? a. to testify our belief , that in the production of our saviour she had no knowledge of any man , but was at once a mother , and a virgin : not to determine any thing of her condition afterwards ; though we piously suppose , and it has been generally received , that she still continued , as she then was , a virgin. q. should not this relation of the blessed virgin to our saviour , oblige us to pay a more than ordinary respect to her ? a. no doubt it should : and therefore it will become us always to mention her with honour ; to imitate her vertues ; and to give thanks to god , for that extraordinary favour which he was pleased , to bestow upon her , that she should be the mother of our lord. luke . i. . q. what think you of that worship , which , upon this account , is paid to her , in the church of rome ? a. as of the grossest idolatry that , it may be , was ever committed in the world : such as no good christian can think of without horrour ; nor any one partake of , without the hazard of his salvation . q. what is that worship , of which you speak such hard things ? a. it is the most proper worship of god. * they pray to her in all their religious service : * they put their trust in her : they rely upon her for * grace , and * salvation : * they consecrate particular offices of devotion to her : * they erect societies to her honour : * they depend more on her mercies , than christs ; and * recur much oftner to her , than to him , for pardon , and forgiveness . sect . xi . q. you said , that the end of christ's being born of the virgin mary , was , that he might thereby be in a capacity of dying for us : tell me , therefore , how did christ do this ? a. he suffer'd under pontius pilate ; was crucified , dead , and buried . q. who was pontius pilate ? a. he was governor of judaea , under tiberius the roman emperor , at the time of christ's death ; and condemn'd our saviour to be crucified . q. why do you take notice of the person under whom christ suffer'd ? a. for several reasons . . to fix the time of his suffering , which had been particularly foretold by the prophet daniel , years before it came to pass . . to shew that at that time the sceptre was departed from judah , and so the time of jacob's prophecy , concerning the coming of the messiah , accomplish'd . and , . to account for the manner of christ's death ; which was also extraordinary , and foretold by the prophets : crucifixion being not a jewish , but a roman , kind of punishment . q. how came pontius pilate to condemn our saviour to this death ? a. he did it to satisfy the importunity of the jews , after having plainly declared , that he was not worthy to die . mat. xxvii . . luk. xxiii . , . . q. what do you observe from this ? a. the same which the providence of god evidently design'd to declare by it ; viz. that christ suffered for our sins , not for any evil that himself had done . q. did christ suffer any thing before his crucifixion ; that you say , first , he suffer'd ; and then that he was crucified ? a. yes , (a) very much : he was betray'd by one of his own apostles , was deny'd by another ; * was forsaken by them all. ‖ he was accused as a rebel , and false-prophet by the jews ; † was evil-intreated by the souldiers ; hurried from the chief priests to pilate ; thence to herod ; from him back to pilate again . he was blind-folded ; buffeted ; scourged ; crown'd with thorns ; spit upon : he carry'd his own cross through the city : and besides all this , underwent that inward grief , and anguish of mind in the garden , which much surpass'd all that he endured upon mount calvary . mat. xxvi . , . mar. xiv . , . q. wherefore was christ crucified ? a. to fulfil both the types , and prophecies , concerning his death . gen. xxii . . numb . xxi . . comp . jo. iii. . psal. xxii . . zach. xii . . and , in the next place , to deliver us from the curse of the law , by making himself a curse for vs. gal. iii. . q. how did christ suffer all this ? a. only in his * humane nature : his body bore all the inflictions of the jews , and souldiers , without : his soul was the seat of all his fears , and horrours , and pains , which he felt within . the † divine nature only gave worth , and value , to what the humane bore . the same person was god , and man , who underwent all this : but the man only suffer'd ; the divine nature , neither did , nor could suffer any thing . q. wherefore to his being crucified , do you add , that he died ? a. because though crucifixion 〈◊〉 was capital punishment , and extended unto death , yet it was not necessarily , in its self , mortal . so that christ might have been crucified , and yet for all that , not have died. q. was it necessary to our redemption , that christ should die ? a. it was : for the wages of sin is death : rom. vi . . and without shedding of bloud there could be no remission : heb. ix . . and therefore we could not have been deliver'd from death , on any other terms , than by christ's dying in our stead . whereas by dying , he has made a full satisfaction for our sins ; has taken away the sting of death ; and conquer'd him who had the power of death , that is , the devil . heb. ii . . ix.x. rom. v. , . cor. xv . , . q. how was christ's body disposed of , after he was dead ? a. it was decently , and honourably buried , by joseph of arimathea , and nicodemus , principal men among the jews ; and that according to the prophecies of god to that purpose . mat. xxvii . . mar. xv . . jo. xix . , &c. comp . psal. xvi . . isa. liii . , . q. what became of his soul , while his body lay in the grave ? a. he therein descended into hell. psal. xvi . . act. ii . . q. what does the word hell signify ? a. it is diversly used in the holy scriptures . sometimes it signifies the (a) grave : (b) sometimes the state of the dead : and sometimes ( especially in the new testament ) it denotes the (c) place of the damned , wherein they are to be tormented for ever and ever . q. in which of these significations do you here understand it ? a. in the first it cannot be taken : for of the burial of christ's body there was mention before ; and a soul cannot go into the grave . neither can it be taken in the last ; for christ finished all his sufferings on the cross : jo. xix . . and had nothing to undergo in the place of torments . q. but might not christ descend thither , to triumph over the devil in his own place ? or to deliver from thence , all such as should there believe in him ? a. something of this , i confess , has been suggested ; but without any sufficient arguments to support it . q. what then do you take to be the true meaning of this article ? a. it is evident that it must refer to the place whither christ's soul went in its state of separation : acts ii . . now what that place was , seems clearly pointed out to us in the holy scriptures . for , first , our blessed saviour promised the penitent thief , but a little before his death , that that day he should be with him in paradise : luk. xxiii . . and , secondly , as he was expiring , he gave up the ghost , with these words , father , into thy hands i commend my spirit . christ therefore having now finish'd his passion , expired upon the cross. his body was laid in the sepulchre ; his spirit return'd unto god that gave it ; and together with the soul of the penitent thief , was carry'd by the holy angels into paradise , where the souls of the righteous rest till the day of the resurrection . and from thence it return'd on the third day , and was again reunited to its body , as ours also shall be , at the day of judgment . q. what is your opinion of the limbus patrum , or prison , in which those of the church of rome suppose the souls of holy men , who dyed before the time of christ , to be shut up : and to deliver whom , they say , our saviour now went down thither ? a. as of a meer fiction , for which there is not the least ground in scripture , ‖ but much to the contrary ; and fit to keep company with their other dream of purgatory since . sect . xii . q. was christ to continue always under the power of death ? a. no , but the contrary was foretold concerning him : that god would not leave his soul in hell , nor suffer his holy one to see corruption . psal xvi . . acts ii . . q. how was he deliver'd from the power of the grave ? a. he rose again the third day from the dead . q. how do you understand these words ? a. that upon the third day after his death , his soul and body , which had been separated from one another , were , by the mighty power of god , brought together again , and vitally united to one another . and so the same jesus who was dead , became again alive ; or , as it is in my creed , rose again the third day from the dead . q. did christ raise himself from the dead ? a. i before said , that he was raised by the mighty power of god : nor could any thing less than a divine power have done it : eph. i. , . yet as christ was god , as well as man , so he did also , upon that account , concur to his own resurrection . and thus the scripture tells us , jo. ii . . destroy this temple ( says christ to the jews ) and in three days i will raise it up . jo. x. , . therefore doth my father love me , because i lay down my life that i may take it up again . no man taketh it from me , but i lay it down of my self : i have power to lay it down , and i have power to take it again . which is also , by the way , another evident argument to prove that christ is god. q. how does it appear that he did thus rise from the dead ? a. by the testimony of those who were eye-witnesses of it : and saw him first cruelly put to death , and afterwards beheld him alive again . q. are the persons who give testimony hereunto , such as may be securely rely'd upon , in a matter of this moment ? a. they are : for , first , we have the testimony of his most bitter enemies , as well as of his friends , to prove his death : mar. xv . , , . mat. xxvii . , &c. nor will the sufferings which he underwent , permit us to doubt of it : jo. xix . , . and , secondly , as for his being alive after ; the jews , who set a guard upon his sepulchre , on purpose to prevent his being stollen away , and the pretence of his resurrection , which they were afraid his disciples had design'd to raise thereupon , yet could not deny , but that in despight of all their care , he was gone out of the sepulchre ; and what was become of him they could not tell . mat. xxvii . , &c. xxviii . , &c. q. but what positive witness have you , of his being alive after his crucifixion ? a. we have the † witness of his * apostles ; of his * disciples ; of above * five hundred persons , who saw him , and conversed with him ; and many of which died for the testimony which they gave unto it : none ever went back from it . we have besides this , the witness * of ‖ angels : the witness * of a (a) persecutor , by this very assurance converted into an apostle . and , lastly , the witness * of (b) god himself ; who , without all dispute , enabled the first preachers of this very article to work wonderful miracles , in confirmation of it ; and thereby as effectually , as could be desired , gave his own evidence to the truth of it . q. why do you add the circumstance of the time of his resurrection ; that he rose the third day ? a. to shew that he rose according to the types , and prophecies , that had gone before concerning him ; and upon the very day that he himself had foretold he would rise . jon. i. . ii . . compare mat. xii . . — mat. xvi . . jo. ii . , . q. how does it appear that it was the third day on which he rose ? a. * he suffer'd on the sixth day , being our friday , between nine and twelve a clock in the morning : † he rose on the first , commonly called , our sunday morning after ; and so was dead , part of friday ; all saturday ; and part of sunday . for the jews computed the day from the evening ; and so saturday night , six a clock , the first day of the week , according to them , began . q. was there any thing remarkable in the day on which he rose ? a. it was the day on which god had before designed he should rise . and therefore , on this day , the sheaf of the first-fruits , by which their harvest was to be consecrated , was lifted up before god , among the jews ; lev. xxiii . . to signify , that christ , our first-fruits , should on this day be raised up by god from the dead ; and so become a surety to us , of our future resurrection . see rom. xi . . cor. xv . , . q. what is the special importance of this article to us ? a. it is very great : inasmuch as , first , it does beyond contradiction confirm the divine authority of our blessed lord ; rom. i. . and the truth of our religion : rom. viii . , . and , in the next place , does assure us , that the price of our redemption was fully paid by him ; rom. iv . . and is a pledg to us , that as christ was raised from the dead , so shall our mortal bodies be quickned also , by the same spirit of christ , which dwelleth in vs. rom. vi . , . viii . . sect . xiii . q. how did our blessed lord dispose of himself , after that he was risen from the dead ? a. he continued upon the earth , forty days , with his disciples , both to confirm them in their belief of his resurrection : jo. xx . , , . act. i. . and to instruct them more fully in all those things , which they were afterwards to preach to the world : acts i. . and then , at the end of them ; he ascended into heaven ; where he now sitteth at the right-hand of god , the father almighty . q. after what manner did christ ascend into heaven ? a. he went up visibly in the presence of all his disciples . a cloud came down under his feet ; and he mounted by degrees in it . they follow'd him a long time with their eyes ; till at last having lost sight of him , but yet still looking after him to the place where he passed , two angels appear'd to them , and thus confirm'd them in the truth of what they had seen ; ye men of galilee , why stand ye gazing up into heaven ? this same jesus which is taken up from you into heaven , shall so come in like manner , as ye have seen him go into heaven . acts i. , , . q. did christ ascend in the same body , in which he conversed with his disciples , after his resurrection ? a. he did ascend in the same body ; and has assured us thereby , that we shall hereafter be received up thither in our bodies , as well as souls ; and so reign , in both , together with him. q. into what part of heaven did christ ascend ? a. he ascended into the highest heaven ; where god does in a singular manner shew his majesty , and glory . and therefore our creed tells us , that being ascended into heaven , he * sat down at the right-hand of god , the father almighty : where also he shall continue , till he shall come again from thence to judge both the quick , and the dead . luk. xxii . . cor. iii. , . q. what do you mean by the right-hand of god ? a. not to represent god under the figure of a man ; nor to intimate any particular ‖ posture of christ above ; though having a humane body , he might well enough be described in it . but , as by the one , i understand a place of power , honour , and authority ; king. ii . . psal. xvi . . xliv . . luk. xxii . . heb. i. , . so , by the other , i suppose is meant , the settled possession , and enjoyment of all these : prov. xx . . heb. x. . and the sense of the whole i take to be this ; that christ being ascended up into heaven , was immediately thereupon enstated by god in the full possession of his regal office , and dignity ; and † shall continue to enjoy it , till he shall have finish'd the whole work of our redemption : by bestowing glory , and salvation upon all his faithful servants ; and by finally destroying , in hell-fire , all the enemies of his power and dignity . q. does our saviour do any thing , at present , for us , with god in heaven ? a. yes ; he perfects his priestly office there , by interceding effectually with god for our forgiveness : as the high priest under the law , when he went into the holy place , before the ark , with the bloud of the sin-offering , did thereby finish the propitiation which he was to make , for the sins , and offences , of the people of the jews . rom. viii . . tim. ii . . heb. ix . , , . jo. ii . . sect . xiv . q. how long shall our saviour christ continue to sit , and intercede for us , at god's right-hand ? a. till the end of the world : which being come , he shall return from thence with glory to iudge both the † quick and the dead . acts iii. . the heavens must receive him till the times of restitution of all things . and then , this same jesus , which was taken up into heaven , shall so come in like manner , as he was seen to go into heaven . acts i. . q. what do you mean by that phrase , the quick , and the dead ? a. by the quick , i understand those who shall be found alive on the earth at the day of judgment : cor. xv . . thess. iv . . by the dead , those who shall have before departed out of this life . and i make mention of both to shew , that all men shall be judged ; and that ‖ christ shall be the judge of all. acts x. . cor. v. . tim. iv . . pet. iv . . q. do you then believe that there shall be a general day of judgment , to the whole world ? a. i do believe there shall be such a day , and that most solemn , and terrible : mat. x. . xi . , . xii . . jo. v. , . acts xvii . . rom. ii . , &c. pet. ii . . iii. , heb. vi . . ix . . jo. iv . . jude . * wherein , first , the angels shall sound the trumpet ; at the voice of which , all that are in the graves shall arise , and come forth , and be gather'd together into one certain place : † then our saviour shall come down in the clouds of heaven , with power and great glory ; and the books shall be open'd , and the judgment sit ; and every man be judged out of the things which are written in those books , according to his works . see mat. xxv . . comp . mat. xxiv . . q. after what manner shall this judgment be transacted ? a. the particular manner is unknown to us : yet this we are told , that we shall then be call'd to an account for all that we shall have done in the whole course of our lives here on earth . every evil work ; every foolish , and wicked word ; every secret thought , shall be brought to light . nothing that we now covet the most to hide , but shall be then disclosed . and we shall be either acquitted , or condemn'd , according to what we shall have done , whether it be good , or whether it be evil. eccles. xii . . cor. iv . . cor. v. . mat. xii . . rom. ii . . rev. xx . . q. shall there be any particular method observed , in the proceedings of this judgment ? a. yes , there shall : for , first , the ‖ just shall be raised , and judged , and acquitted ; and caught up into the air , at some convenient distance from the earth , where , with the holy angels , they shall fill up the retinue of our blessed saviour . then the * wicked shall be raised , and brought to judgment : and being condemn'd , not only by christ , and his saints , but by the sentence of their own consciences , they shall , together with the devils , † be driven away by the angels thereunto appointed , into their place of torments . which being done , our saviour shall , together with all his saints , return triumphantly to heaven , and there reign in glory at the head of them for ever , and ever . mat. xxv . thess. iv , &c. sect . xv. q. what does the third part of your creed contain ? a. it contains all that is needful to be known , and profess'd by us , with relation to the holy ghost . q. what do you account needful to be believed concerning him ? a. not only that there is a holy ghost ; but that he is the third person in the ever-blessed trinity ; and partakes , as such , of the same divine nature , with the father , and the son. q. how does this appear ? a. by the plain testimony of the holy scriptures ; by which alone we are capable of knowing any thing , in these matters . now those sacred writings evidently speak of him , not only as a person ; but as a divine person ; and that distinct both from the father , and from our lord jesus christ. q. wherein do the holy scriptures speak of this blessed spirit , as of a person ? a. * they give him the proper names of a person : god ; acts v. , . lord ; cor. iii. . the spirit ; sam. xvi . . jo. xvi . . the comforter ; jo. xiv . . xvi . , &c. * they ascribe to him the properties of a person ; vnderstanding , cor. ii . . will , cor. xii . . * they represent him as doing personal acts : he is sent ; he cometh ; goeth ; heareth ; teacheth : jo. xiv . . xv . , . jo. xvi . , , &c. is tempted ; resisted ; grieved : eph. iv . . speaketh ; commandeth ; intercedeth : acts x. . xiii . . rom. viii . . * they join him with those who are confessedly persons ; viz. god the father , and our lord jesus christ. in the form of baptism : mat. xxviii . . in st. paul's wish for the corinthians : cor. xiii . . in st. john's catalogue of witnesses : jo. v. . they oppose him to such spirits , as we all allow to be persons : sam. xvi . . * they represent him under personal apparitions : mat. iii. . acts ii . . and by all this undoubtedly assure us , that he is a person . q. by what arguments from the holy scriptures do you prove , that he is a divine person ? a. by the same by which i before shew'd the son so to be . they ascribe to him the names of god : acts v. , . cor. iii. . the attributes of god : heb. ix . . psal. cxxxix . . job xxvi . . the honour of god. they tell us , that he is the spirit of god : cor. ii . . . that a sin may be immediately committed against him : mat. xii . . that his dwelling in us , makes our bodies the temples of god : cor. iii. . that christ , by being conceived by him , became the son of god : luke i. . they teach us to baptize in his name , together with those of the father , and son : mat. xxviii . . and shew us even st. paul himself paying a religious invocation to him : thes. iii. , . thes. iii. , &c. q. how do you prove him not only to be a divine person , but a person distinct both from the father , and the son ? a. he proceedeth from the father ; and therefore is not the father : jo. xv . . he is sent by the son ; and therefore is not the son : jo. xvi . , . he is sent , sometimes by the father , in the name of the son ; and sometimes by the son , from the father ; and therefore is neither the father , nor the son : jo. xiv . . xv . . q. but did not you before say , that there is but one god ? and how now do you say , that the father is god , the son is god , and the holy ghost is god ? a. that there is but one god , the holy scriptures plainly declare ; and even reason it self confirms it to us. and yet the same scriptures as plainly declare , every one of these three to be god. and the only way we know of reconciling these two , seemingly contrary , assertions ; is to say , that these three partake of one , and the same divine nature , communicated from the father , to the son ; and from both to the holy ghost : and that therefore they together make but one god. q. how can it be possible that three distinct persons , should so partake of the one , divine nature , or essence , as all together to make but one god ? a. that is not my concern to determine : this i am sure , that if the scriptures be ( as we all allow that they are ) the word of god , what they plainly deliver must be true , because it is , in effect , delivered by god himself ; who can neither be himself deceived , nor will deceive me. now that they deliver both these propositions to me ; that the father is god , the son is god , and the holy ghost is god : and yet , that there are not three gods , but one god : i am as sure , as i can be of any thing that is spoken , or written , for my understanding . that therefore both these assertions are true , and credible , i am sure . but how , or after what manner , i am to understand them , so as to remove all shew of contradiction in them , this the holy scriptures have not revealed ; nor do i therefore presume to pronounce any thing , more particularly , concerning it . q. why then do you say that they are three persons , and but one , in the divine essence ? a. because i know not how better to express the vnity , and distinction of them ; and they are terms which the church has long received ; and i see no reason to depart from them , unless i knew of some better , and more apt expressions , to use in their stead . q. is there any thing farther needful to be known , concerning the holy ghost ? a. yes , there is ; and that is with relation to his office : that it is he who sanctifieth me , and all the elect people of god. q. how is it that the holy ghost does this ? a. he regenerates us at our baptism : jo. iii. . tit. iii. . gal. v. . he vnites us unto christ : cor. xii . , . jo. iii. . co-operates with us in all our religious vndertakings : cor. ix . . he illuminates our vnderstandings : psal. cxix . . acts xvi . . disposes our wills : phil. ii . . settles us in the faith of christ : eph. ii . . phil. i. . heb. iv . . enables us to fulfil our duty : rom. viii . . gal. v. . helps our prayers : rom. viii . , . jo. v. . fortifies us against temptations : cor. x. . and carries us through all the dangers , that either our own weakness , or the cunning , and malice of the devil , may raise against us ; to draw us away from , or hinder us in our duty . phil. i. . cor. . i. . cor. i. . eph. iv . . q. will the holy ghost alone do all this for us ? a. no , but we must use our own endeavour , if ever we mean to be assisted by him . it is by the grace of the holy spirit alone , that we are able to do those things which god , and our duty , require of us. but that grace is not to exclude , but to assist and perfect our own endeavours ; and to enable us thereby to do that , which , without it , we should never have been able to have done . phil. ii . . work out your own salvation with fear and trembling : for it is god which worketh in you , both to will , and to do , of his good pleasure . q. by what means may we obtain this help of the holy spirit ? a. by fervent prayer to god for his grace : luke xi . . and by a diligent care to use that portion of it , whatever it be , which god hath given us , to his honour , and service : mat. xiii . . xxv . . and upon our doing of which , not only that grace which we have already , shall be sure to be continued to us , but greater degrees shall be added to it . pet. iii. . q. are these the only ends for which the holy spirit was given by christ , to his church ? a. no ; his operations are very many , and can hardly be particularly enumerated . he not only regenerates , and sanctifies us ; disposes us to our duty ; and fortifies us against temptation ; but moreover , directs us in our doubts ; comforts us in our afflictions ; supports us in our troubles ; arms us against the fear of death ; gives us strength , and courage , in trials and persecutions : and , in such cases as he sees needful , seals our souls , with such an inward sense , and assurance of god's favour , as makes us firmly satisfied of our future , everlasting , salvation . rom. v. . viii . , . cor. i. . eph. i. . gal. iv . . q. how long shall the holy ghost continue thus to comfort , sanctify , and guide , the faithful ? a. as long as there shall any faithful remain in need of his assistance : which because there will be to the end of the world , therefore christ has promised , that he shall also , till then , continue to conduct , and govern , his faithful servants . jo. . . mat. xxviii . . sect . xvi . q. what does the fovrth , and last part of your creed relate to ? a. to the church of christ : its duty and privileges here ; and its future hope of glory and immortality hereafter . q. what is the first thing which you are taught to believe concerning christ's church ? a. that there is a holy catholick church . q. what is that church , of which this article speaks ? a. it is the vniversal church of christ ; the general assembly of all those , who from the time of the first publishing of the gospel , to this day , have believed in christ ; or shall hereafter profess his faith , to the end of the world. q. how can such a church be the object of our faith ? a. not as to that part of it which we see , and communicate with ; but chiefly in these two respects . first , as we believe , by the word of god , that those who have gone before us , in the true faith of christ , and the fear of his holy name , though out of all visible communion , at present , with us , do yet live to god ; and are still members of christ's church , though in a different state from us ; and shall , together with us , be gather'd into one glorious society at the last day . and , secondly , as , upon the same grounds , we do also farther believe , that in all the ages yet to come , to the end of the world , christ shall continue to have a church upon earth ; so that no power of men , or malice of the devil , shall ever be able utterly to root it out , or to destroy it . q. how can a society , consisting of such different members , and those at so great a distance , both in time and place , from one another , yet all together make but one church ? a. because how different so ever the members of this church may otherwise seem to be ; yet they are all * united together under one head , the lord jesus : * are * sanctified , and ruled , by the same holy spirit : * endued with the same love to god , and towards one another : * live by the same laws : * profess the same faith : * partake of the same sacraments : * have the same hope of salvation set before them : * worship the same god , by the same advocate , and saviour jesus christ : and ( as to what concerns all the true , and lively members , of this society ) * shall one day be gathered together into one actual place , and portion ; in the glorious kingdom of god for ever . q. wherefore , do you give this church the title of catholick ? a. upon several accounts , but chiefly these two : first , to distinguish it from the jewish church ; which was confined to a certain people ; and was to continue , but for a certain time : whereas the christian church takes in all mankind ; and is to last to the end of the world. psal. ii . . acts x. , . mat. xxviii . . mark xvi . . luk. xxiv . . cor. xii . . and , secondly , to shew that in this creed , which comprehends what is to be believed by all christians ; we profess not our faith of any one , determinate , church ; which may cease , and fail ; ( such as the church of england , or church of rome ; ) but of the catholick , or vniversal church of christ ; as that which shall never fail ; and to which , alone , the promises of god belong . q. may not any one , determinate church , be called the catholick church . a. no , it may not ; any more than london may be called england ; or england , the whole world. the catholick church , is the vniversal church ; and that neither ours , nor any other particular church is ; nor , whilst there are more such christian churches in the world , can be . but , a catholick church , a particular church may be called : and such ours is ; though that of rome , i doubt , will hardly be able to make a good pretension to this title , any more than to the other . q. do you make a difference then , between a catholick church , and the catholick church ? a. there is certainly a wide difference between them . the catholick church , is , as i before said , the whole church . but a catholick church , implies no more than a sound part of it ; a church in communion with the catholick church of christ , in opposition to the conventicles of hereticks , and schismaticks : who , whatsoever they may pretend , are really no parts of the catholick church ; nor shall be consider'd by christ , as such . q. whom do you account hereticks , and schismaticks ? and how does it appear that they are not parts of the catholick church ? a. the catholick church , is that church which professes the true faith which christ , and his apostles deliver'd to it ; and that , if not free from all errour whatsoever , yet without any such errours , as destroy the foundation of that doctrine , which was committed to its custody . now a heretick is one , who not only errs in some matters of lesser moment , but in matters of such consequence , as subvert the very foundation of christianity . but he who does this , can never be a member of that church , whose doctrine he not only does not receive , but rejects : and who by his errours destroys that very faith , by which alone he can be intituled to the character either of a true disciple , or a sound member of christ's church . q. but why may not schismaticks be accounted true members of christs church . a. because none are schismaticks but such as forsake , and cut themselves off from , the communion of the catholick church . now it is a contradiction that those should continue members of the catholick church , who by their own voluntary departure from it , have renounced the communion of it . q. do you look upon the church of england to be a true part of the catholick church ? a. it certainly is : inasmuch as it professes the true catholick faith , deliver'd in the holy scriptures , and drawn up in the creeds of the church ; and , by the most ancient councils , acknowledged to be sufficient to denominate those who profess'd according thereunto , to be truly catholick christians : and also holds communion with all such churches as profess the same faith ; and , as far forth , as they do so . q. what is your opinion of the church of rome , in this particular ? a. that she is both schismatical , and heretical . schismatical ; in cutting off all others from her communion , who will not profess her errors , and submit to her vsurp'd authority : heretical ; in professing such doctrines as quite destroy the foundations of christianity ; and are inconsistent with that truth , which yet she pretends to maintain . q. in what respect do you believe the catholick church to be holy ? a. as both the * end of christ in gathering of it ; the * rules he has given to it ; the * promises he has made it ; * it s sacraments , * ministry , all its * ordinances , were design'd to make it holy. but especially , as * all those who are indeed the faithful members of it , are actually sanctify'd by the grace of the holy spirit : and so are truly , though imperfectly , holy , now ; and shall be made altogether holy , and without spot , hereafter . eph. . . sect . xvii . q. what is the first duty , or privilege , belonging to those who are members of christ's church ? a. the communion of saints . q. what do you mean by saints ? a. though the word , in our language , be more restrain'd ; yet in that , in which this creed was composed , it may indifferently denote either holy persons , or holy things : and this article may very well be extended to both of them. q. whom do you mean by holy persons ? a. though all christians in general , are so called in scripture ; and we are charitably to presume that all such are holy persons : yet , by saints , we are most properly to understand , such as answer the end of their calling , by a lively faith , and a holy conversation ; in which two , the gospel-saintship seems to consist . q. with whom , and in what things , do you believe such persons to have communion ? a. i believe that all the true members of christ's church , have a right of fellowship , or communion , with god the father , and our lord jesus christ ; as they are received into covenant by the one , through the death , and passion , of the other . ‖ i believe that they have a fellowship with the holy ghost , by his dwelling in them , and sanctifying of them. * i believe that they have fellowship with the holy angels ; who both minister unto them in their exigencies , and have a most tender , affectionate concern for them. † i believe that they all have a fellowship with one another , as * members of the same mystical body of christ ; * professors of the same faith ; * heirs of the same promises ; * guided by the same spirit ; and * governed by the same laws : and i believe that they ought , as living members , * to have a fellowship of love , and charity , also towards each other . and , lastly , i believe that they have a right of communicating in all the ordinances of the gospel : in the prayers of the church ; in the ministry of the word and sacraments ; and whatsoever else hath been ordain'd by christ , or establish'd in the church , for the common good , and benefit , of all the members of it . q. do you not , by this account of the present article , utterly shut out those from any part in it , who yet are most commonly called saints ; i mean , such as have departed this life in the fear of god , and the faith of jesus christ ? a. no , by no means : i believe them to partake in this communion also ; as they are still living members of christ's holy catholick church . and therefore i believe , that they have a fellowship , no less than we , with god , and christ. that they are sanctified by the same spirit ; are visited by the holy angels ; have some kind of fellowship with one another ; and with vs also , however separated , by death , from us. q. wherein do you suppose their fellowship with us to consist ? a. i look upon the case to be much the same with us , as it is with members of the same civil society upon earth ; when they are , in a foreign country , far distant from one another . * we are members of the same church ; * vnited to the same head ; * sanctified by the same spirit ; * heirs of the same promises ; * shall , in a little time , be in the same place , and state ; and when the end of the world comes , * we shall all be translated to the same glory and happiness , in god's heavenly kingdom . q. to what offices of communion does this belief oblige us , at present , towards each other ? a. to the members of christ's church still living , it obliges us to love and charity ; to mutual prayers for , and help of , each other ; in all such things as may promote the salvation of us all . how the saints departed maintain communion with us , we cannot tell . probable it is that they do , in general , pray for us , as it is certain they wish well to us. but for our selves , who are yet here on earth ; we must bless god for the grace he was pleased to bestow upon them ; and by which they were delivered from the sins , and temptations of this evil world ; and enabled faithfully to serve him unto the end. we must set before us their examples , and imitate their vertues . we must account of them as living members of christ's body ; and be not only ready , but desirous , to go to them , whenever it shall please god to call for us. we must take care decently to dispose of their bodies ; and faithfully to fulfil , as much as in us lies , what they have left in trust with us , to be done for them after their departure . q. what think you of that honour which is paid to them in the church of rome ? a. it is not only vain , and without all warrant from god's word ; but is indeed superstitious , and idolatrous . to pray to any creature , and he at a vast distance from vs ; in the house of god ; with all the outward marks of adoration ; nay , and oftentimes , in the same words , and in the same breath , that we pray to god ; and that , lastly , with a confidence that the person so pray'd to , can hear our prayers , and answer our desires ; being evidently to give to the creature the honour due to the creator ; which cannot be done without the peril of idolatry . sect . xviii . q. what is the next privilege which you believe does , of right , belong to those , who are the members of christ's church ? a. the forgiveness of sins . q. what is sin ? a. it is the transgression of god's law , jo. iii. . whether by our omitting to do what that required us to have done ; or by our doing any thing contrary to its commands . q. what mean you by the law of god ? a. the will of god , howsoever made known to us ; whether by the light of our own consciences , or by the declarations of his word ; especially that which is deliver'd to us , in the books of the new testament . q. how does god forgive sin ? a. he washes away the stain of it by his sanctifying grace ; r and remits the punishment of it ; for the sake , and through the merits , and mediation of jesus christ , our saviour . q. what assurance have we that god will thus forgive us our sins ? a. the covenant of the gospel is founded upon the promise of it : so that if we believe that christ died for our sins , we must also believe that god , for christ's sake , will forgive all those , who truly repent of their sins . luk. xxiv . . acts v. . xiii . . xxvi . . eph. iv . . q. is this the peculiar privilege of the church of christ ? a. so the scriptures tell us : there being no other name under heaven given among men , by which we must be saved , but only that of the lord jesus . acts iv . . q. from whom is this forgiveness to be sought ? a. who hath power to forgive sins but god only ? mark ii . . of him therefore it must be sought , in the name of jesus christ. q. but has not christ left a power with his church to forgive sins ? a. he has left with his church a ministerial power , to declare forgiveness of sins , to all such as truly repent of them , and believe in him . and when the ministers of his word , are called in to the assistance of sick , or scrupulous persons ; they may , upon the supposition of a true repentance , pronounce , in god's name , the pardon of their sins to them . but in this they only deliver the sentence of god ; which , if the sinner be truly penitent , god will infallibly make good : otherwise , it will be of no use to them ; because it was erroneously , though charitably , pass'd upon them. q. but does not the church of rome , ascribe much more , to the absolution of the priest , than this ? a. yes , it does : nor is this one of the least presumptuous , or least dangerous , of its errours . they tell us , that the sentence of the priest , in this case , is not only declarative , but judicial . and , which is yet worse , they add ; that though a sinner be not affected with such a sorrow for his sin , as would otherwise be sufficient to obtain god's pardon ; yet , by rightly confessing to a priest , his sins shall be forgiven ; and an entrance opened into heaven , by the power of the keys , in absolution . by the former of which , as they usurp upon the prerogative of god. mark ii . . so do they , by the latter , lay a very dangerous stumbling-block in the way of wicked men ; whilst they encourage them to rely on such a sorrow for the forgiveness of their sins , as will certainly fail , and ruin them in the end. sect . xix . q. what is the third privilege promised by god to christ's church ? a. the resurrection of the body . q. shall not all men whatsoever be raised again at the last day ? a. they shall . q. how then is this a privilege of those who are the faithful members of christ's church ? a. because though all men shall be raised , yet not all after the same manner . the bodies of the faithful shall be raised in a most blessed , and glorious state : cor. xv . , &c. they shall be perfected in all their parts , and qualities ; shall be render'd an habitation fit for a glorified soul to dwell in ; and be prepared for the enjoyment of an everlasting felicity . and thus to rise ; in such a state , and for such an end , is certainly a very great benefit , and the peculiar privilege of christ's holy church . q. how then shall the wicked be raised ? a. their bodies shall also be restored to them ; and that in such a state , as to be capable of undergoing for ever those torments which god has prepared for them. but their resurrection shall be to shame , and misery : and what is the blessing of the righteous , shall to the wicked be a means of encreasing their pain , and enlarging their punishment . q. shall we receive the same bodies , we now have , at the resurrection ; or shall some other bodies be prepared for us ? a. the very nature of a resurrection does unanswerably prove , that we shall receive our own bodies ; and the end of it confirms it to us : our bodies being therefore raised , and restored to us , that we may be rewarded , or punish'd , in the same estate both of soul and body , in which we had done things worthy either of reward , or punishment . q. shall all mankind , not only good , and bad , but every single person , of either kind , be raised at the last day ? a. all that ever died shall be raised : jo. v. . cor. v. . but many will be found , at the last day , alive on the earth . now they shall not die , nor , by consequence , rise from the dead . but they shall be changed : that is to say , the men of that age , ( whether good or bad ) shall , by the mighty power of god , be put into the same state with those who being dead , were raised from the dead : and so be brought , with them , before the judgment seat of christ : cor. xv . . thes. iv . . sect . xx. q. what shall follow upon the resurrection ? a. the last , and general judgment of mankind ; which being pass'd , and the sentence pronounced upon every one , according to his works ; it shall immediately be put in execution : the wicked shall go into everlasting punishment , but the righteous into life everlasting . mat. xxv . . q. shall the wicked , as well as the righteous , live for ever ? a. they shall ; if such a state of inexpressible misery , as they shall be condemn'd to , may be called living . for they shall never cease to be ; nor ever cease to be tormented to all eternity . mat. x. . xxv . , . xviii . . compare mark ix . . q. how then is everlasting life a privilege of the church of christ ? a. as the resurrection of the body , was before said to be . that life which alone deserves to be so called ; that happy and glorious life , which god has prepared for the faithful in his kingdom ; that is the singular privilege of christ's church , and of the faithful members of it . the other , is rather an everlasting duration ; a state of endless dying , rather than an everlasting life . q. but can it be consistent with the justice , and mercy of god , to punish the temporary , and transient sins of men , with an everlasting state of misery , and sufferings ? a. we must confess it so to be , or say , ( which is as unreasonable ▪ as it would be wicked ) that god will deal unjustly , and unmercifully with sinners , at the last day . for certain it is , that this he has declared shall be the result of their evil-doings . q. why may we not by the everlasting death , and everlasting punishment , of which the scriptures speak , on this occasion ; understand rather the final destruction of such wicked persons ; than an eternal continuance of them in pain , and misery ? a. because the scriptures have plainly declared , were men willing to understand it , that by everlasting punishment , is meant everlasting torment . that their worm shall not die , nor their fire be quenched ; but they shall dwell in everlasting burnings . mark ix . . isa. lxvi . . that there shall be weeping , and wailing , and gnashing of teeth . mat. viii . . xiii . , . all which phrases , howsoever they be understood , must denote suffering , as well as punishment : an eternity of pain , not an eternal state of death , and insensibility . besides that everlasting death , or destruction , would not otherwise be , properly speaking , an everlasting punishment . for as soon as men are thus dead , they cease to suffer ; and , for that very reason , cease to be punish'd . and one may as well say , that a malefactor , who was executed for his crimes a hundred years ago , still continues to be punish'd by the magistrate ; as that after a man should be once annihilated , he should afterwards continue to be punish'd , for his sins , by god almighty . q. wherein do you suppose the everlasting happiness of the righteous shall consist ? a. as to the particulars of it , they are altogether unknown to us ; nor indeed are we able in our present estate , perfectly to comprehend the greatness of them . thus much , in general , we are told ; that we shall be placed in a most glorious , and perfect state ; free from all sin , and from all misery : where we shall enjoy all the pleasure , and satisfaction , that our natures , vastly enlarged , shall be capable of . we shall dwell in the presence of god ; shall be continually entertain'd not only in the contemplation , but with the fruition , of all the riches of his goodness , and glory . we shall be companions with the holy angels ; and pass our time , in the greatest love of god , and of one another , that can be imagined . we shall turn all our service , into praise , and wonder ; shall have nothing left to wish , or desire of him . and we shall both love , and serve , and praise him , with such rapture , and satisfaction ; with such joy to our selves , as well as such fervour towards god ; as no thoughts can conceive , nor is it possible for us , by any words , to express the greatness of it . sect . xxi . q. what was the third thing , which your godfathers and godmothers promised for you at your baptism ? a. that i should keep god's holy will and commandments , and walk in the same all the days of my life . q. do you account it to be necessary for you , herein also , to fulfil what they promised for you ? a. i do ; and that so necessary that i cannot be saved without it . q. do you then expect to be saved by virtue of your own good works ? a. god forbid : on the contrary , i am perswaded that when i shall have done all that i can , i shall be but an vnprofitable servant : luk. xvii . . but however , i must sincerely endeavour , what in me lies , to keep god's commandments ; and then i am assured that god will reward me , not according to my works , but according to his own mercy , and promises to us , in jesus christ. q. are you able , of your self , by your own natural strength , to keep god's commandments ? a. no , i am not : for in me , that is to say , in my flesh , dwelleth no good thing . rom. vii . . it is the grace of god which must work in me , both to will , and to do , according to his good pleasure . phil. ii . . q. being thus assisted by the holy spirit , can you perfectly keep god's commandments ? a. no , i cannot ; nor will it ever be possible for me , in this life , to do it . i must serve god sincerely , with all my heart ; i must serve him zealously , with all my strength ; i must go as far as i can , and as the measure of the grace which he is pleased to allow me , will enable me to do , towards perfection : but to discharge a perfect , that is to say , an vnsinning obedience , to god's commandements , this neither i can ; nor did ever any one else , but he who was god as well as man , do it . for , in many things , we offend all : and if we say that we have no sin , we deceive our selves , and the truth is not in vs. jam. . . jo. i. . q. will not this undervalue the grace of the holy spirit , by which we are sanctified ? a. not at all : forasmuch as i ascribe to that the glory of all the good i do ; and take to my self the shame , of whatsoever is evil , or defective , in me ▪ q. what think you of those of the church of rome , who , notwithstanding ▪ this , talk of works of supererrogation : and thereby pretend not only perfectly to keep god's commandments ; but to do even more , than god required them to have done ? a. i think that they neither understand themselves , nor their duty : it being certain , that the measure of our duty , is to love the lord our god with all our heart , and with all our soul , and with all our strength : beyond which , as it is not possible for any man to go ; so neither is there any that can justly say , he has ever , for any long time together , absolutely come up to the utmost height of it . q. seeing then our obedience cannot be brought to perfection in this life ; what is that obedience which god does now require of us in order to our salvation ? a. it is the obedience of an honest , humble , sincere heart : such as leads us , in the first place , to an vniversal obedience of all god's commandments . secondly , to a hearty endeavour to come up to as perfect a discharge of our duty , according to the measures of them , as our present condition will admit of . and that , thirdly , with constancy , and perseverance , unto our lives end. mat. x ▪ . cor. i. . pet. i. . heb. x. , . rev. ii● . sect . xxii . q. has there been any such summary collection made , of the main branches of what we are to do ; as we had in the creed , of what we are to believe ? a. there is such a collection , and that deliver'd by god himself ; in what we commonly call the ten commandments . q do those commandments which were given by god to the jews , still continue in force , and oblige us christians ? a yes , they do ; mat. v. , &c. and that in some measure more strictly than they did them : the most part , if not all of them , having been either more fully expounded , or more perfectly delivered to us , by christ in the new testament , than they were first given by god to the jews in the old. see mat. v. vi.vii . chapters . q. why do you call them the ten commandments ? a. not only because they have been usually divided into that number ; but because they were originally delivered so by god ; and are accordingly so called by moses . exod. xxxiv . . deut iv . . q. what do these commandments in general refer to ? a. to the two great branches of our duty ; our duty towards god , and our duty towards our neighbour . q. what authority have you for this division of these commandments ? a. the authority of our blessed saviour , mat. xxii . . and indeed god himself seems to have had regard unto it , when he commanded moses to prepare two tables for them : on the one of which , were to be engraven those which concern our duty towards god ; on the other , those which contain our duty toward our neighbour . exod. xxxi . . xxxii . . xxxiv . . . . q. how many commandments does each of these tables comprehend ? a. as to the commandments themselves , it is not doubted by any , but that those of the first table end with that which concerns the sabbath ; and that the second begins with that which requires us to honour our father , and our mother . but in dividing the commandments of each table , there is a difference between vs , and those of the church of rome . for they join the two first into one ; and then , to complete the number of ten , divide the last into two : and so assign , not as we do , four to one table , and six to the other ; but three to the first table , and seven to the second . q. is it a matter of any moment , how each precept is divided , so long as all are retained ? a. in its self it is not : but as the design of this new division was to enable them thereby to drop the second commandment , against their image-worship , altogether ; ( and which accordingly , from thenceforth they did oftentimes omit , in their common books of devotion ; ) so it is certainly of great moment to be taken notice of . now the first , and second commandments , have apparently a different prospect , and were design'd to prohibit two very different things . but the last commandment solely respects the sin of coveting : and if the difference of the instances which are given in it , the better to clear , and inforce the observance of it , be sufficient to make a several command , according to the distinction of them ; they may as well divide it into six , or indeed into six hundred commands , as into two. for at this rate , thou shalt not covet thy neighbour's house , will be one : thou shalt not covet thy neigbour's wife , another : nor his man-servant , will be a third : nor his maid-servant , a fourth : nor his ox , a fifth : nor his ass , a sixth : nor any thing that is his ; a hundred more , in one general expression . q. but is there not one great branch of our duty here wanting , namely , our duty towards our selves ? a. there is not : for all those duties which we so call , have a manifest regard , more or less , to our duty to god , and our neighbour ; and may be comprised under the offices relating to them. at least , since there is no duty of this kind but what is required by god of us , the better to fit us for his service , and acceptance ; it must be confess'd , that the first commandment alone , will take in , whatsoever of this nature may seem wanting in the whole . q. is there any other division of these commands , that may be fit to be taken notice of , before we proceed to the particular consideration of them ? a. there is yet one ; namely , that of these commandments , some are positive , and declare what we are to do ; as the fourth commandment of the first table ; the fifth in the second . others are negative , and shew us what we are to avoid ; as all the others of both tables . q. what do you observe from this distinction ? a. a great difference with respect to our obligation to obedience . for ( st ) the positive commands , though they are always in force , and therefore oblige all who have any concern with them , and so long as they are under the power of them ; yet they do not extend to all persons , nor oblige at all times . as for example : to honour our father and mother , is a duty of eternal obligation . but then many there are , who have no father , nor mother ; and therefore neither can they lie under any obligation to honour them. again ; to observe the sabbath day to keep it holy , is a command that never ceases to oblige . but yet should a man be made a prisoner , or a slave , in a pagan , or other country , where he had no means , nor opportunity to observe it ; whilst he lay under those circumstances , he would not be guilty of any sin by not observing of it . but now the negative commands , not only oblige always , but all persons ; at all times ; and in all circumstances . and therefore , to worship any other god , besides the lord : to make any graven image , to bow down before it , and worship it : to take god's name in vain : these , and the like prohibitions , oblige men to a constant , uninterrupted observance of them ; be their circumstances , or conditions of life , what they will. nor can it , at any time , or upon any occasion , be lawful for any man , to worship another god ; to make a graven image to worship it ; to take god's name in vain ; and the like . q. have you any thing farther to observe from this division ? a. this only ; that these two kinds mutually include one another : so that when god commands any duty to be perform'd , we are to understand that he does , by the very same command , forbid whatsoever is contrary thereunto , to be done by us. and again , when he forbids any thing to be done ; he does thereby require us to fulfil the opposite duty , imply'd ; as well as to avoid the sin which is expresly taken notice of . to clear my meaning in an instance of each kind . god commands us , in the fourth commandment , to keep holy the sabbath-day ; and that by sanctifying of it to a religious rest : and , by the same commandment , he forbids us to do any servile work upon it ; or any thing whereby this day , may be unhallow'd , or profaned by us. and this would have been understood , by the other part of the command , though god had not expresly taken notice of it . in like manner ; when in the sixth commandment , god forbids us to commit murder ; we are to understand , that we are not only prohibited thereby to stab , or poison , our neighbour ; but are required to do , what in us lies , to cherish , and preserve his life : to help him , if he be assaulted by another ; to feed , and cloath him , as far as we are able ; and to prevent , according to our ability , whatsoever may bring him in danger of losing of it . q. are there any other general rules that may be of use to us , in the vnderstanding of the commandments here proposed to us ? a. there are several such rules ; but those of most consequence seem to be these four. first , that in every commandment , the general thing express'd , comprehends under it all such particulars , as either directly depend upon it ; or may fairly , and reasonably , be reduced to it . thus the seventh commandment , though in express terms , it forbids only the sin of adultery ; yet , under that general , is to be extended to all manner of fornication , vncleanness , lasciviousness ; not only to all unchast actions , but to all wanton words , thoughts , desires : to all immodest behaviour , and indecent attire . to whatsoever , in short , may intrench upon that gravity , and reservedness , which our religion requires of us ; or may be apt to tempt us to such sins as are here forbidden : such as high and full diet ; soft cloathing ; the company 〈◊〉 younger , especially of wanton women ; from all which we must abstain by vertue of this commandment : as also , from all places of danger ; such as play-houses , balls , dancings , musick-meetings , and the like . q. what is the next general rule to be observed , in the interpreting of these commandments ? a. that where any duty is required , or sin is forbidden ; we are to reckon our selves obliged thereby , to vse all such means as may enable vs to fulfil the one , and to avoid the other . thus , because in the eighth commandment we are required not to steal ; therefore , in order to our more constant , and ready avoiding of it , we must account our selves obliged , not only to watch our actions , that we do not in any thing defraud our neighbour ; but moreover must do , what in us lies , to keep our selves out of such circumstances as may be likely to tempt us thereunto . we are therefore , by vertue of this commandment , required to work for the supply of our own needs , and of the wants of those who depend upon us. we are to live soberly , and frugally ; free from vice , and all extravagance . we are to avoid all lewdness , gaming , and the like occasions of excess : to abstain from all idle , dissolute , and dishonest conversation , and acquaintance ; and from whatsoever else may be apt to tempt us to , or engage us in the sin , which is here forbidden to us. q. what is the third rule to be observed , for the better understanding of these commandments ? a. that the last commandment is to be look'd upon by vs , not so much as a single commandment , as a general caution given to vs , with relation to most of the duties of the second table ; which ought to be govern'd , and influenced by it . thus because we must not steal from , or defraud our neighbour of his goods , neither must we covet them . because we must not commit adultery , neither must we lust. because we must do no murder , neither must we desire the hurt , or death of our neighbour . for this is the first spring of evil in our hearts ; and by stopping of which , we shall the most effectually arm our selves against the commission of it . q. what is the last general rule to be observed , for the better interpretation of god's commandments ? a. that wheresoever we are prohibited to do any thing our selves , as sinful , there we are to take care that we be not partakers of other mens guilt , who do commit what was so prohibited : by advising , assisting , encouraging , or otherwise aiding , and abetting them , in it . nay , we must not so much as give any countenance to the evil which they do , by making excuses for , and extenuating their guilt ; by hiding , or concealing of it ; least by so doing , we make our selves accessary to it , and contract to our selves a stain by it . sect . xxiii . q. you said that the first table contain'd those commandments which concern our duty towards god : what is the first of these ? a. thou shalt have none other gods but me. q. is this all that belongs to this commandment ? a. yes , it is . q. what then do you account that which goes immediately before it , and was also deliver'd by god himself ; namely , i am the lord thy god , which brought thee out of the land of egypt , out of the house of bondage ? a. it is a general preface , or introduction , to the commandments ; and represents to us the two great grounds , or motives , on which god required the jews to obey those commandments which he was about to deliver to them ; namely , first , * that he was the lord their god : and secondly , that he had brought them out of the land of egypt , out of the house of bondage . deut. i. . vi . . xxvi . . judg. ii . . q. do these reasons extend to us christians ? a. they do , and that no less , if not more , than they did to the jews . for we are the spiritual israel , and heirs of the promises . he is the lord our god , by a more excellent covenant than he was theirs . he has brought us out of that slavery of which the jews egyptian bondage was but a type : and has prepared for us an inheritance in heaven , in comparison of which their land of canaan is nothing to be accounted of . q. what is the full import of the first commandment ? a. * that we should have the lord for our god ; and * that we should have no other besides him. q. what is it to have the lord for our god ? a. it is to think of him , and to worship him , as god. q. how ought we to think of god ? a. as of an eternal , and all-perfect being ; the maker , and preserver , of all things : and our most gracious and merciful father , in , and through his son , jesus christ our lord. q. how ought we to worship god ? a. with all the powers and faculties both of our souls and bodies : in publick , and in private : according to all that in his holy gospel he has required , or by the force of our own natural reason , directed us to do . q. what are the main things wherein we are to express our duty towards god ? a. it is almost impossible to recount them : but , in general , it is our duty , to (a) believe in him ; to (b) fear him ; to (c) love him , with all our heart , with all our mind , with all our soul , and with all our strength : to (d) worship him ; to (e) give him thanks ; to (f) put our whole trust in him ; to (g) call upon him ; to (h) honour his holy name , and his word ; and to (i) serve him truly all the days of our life . q. what are the chief offences that may be committed , against this part of the first commandment ? a. they are chiefly these : first , atheism , and infidelity , whether it be speculative , or practical ; that is to say , whether men do really believe that there is no god ; or live so as if they did ; without either any due worship of him , or regard to him. next to these ; all vnworthy opinions of god , or blasphemous thoughts , or speeches , against him. such are the thoughts , and speeches , of those who not only deny the doctrine of the trinity , but make it their business to expose , and ridicule the belief of it . and , lastly ; such are all the heinous , but especially the habitual sins , which men fall into ; and the consequence of which plainly shews , either that they do not , in good earnest , believe the lord to be their god , or that they are yet to consider what that belief requires of them. q. what is the other thing proposed to us in this commandment ? a. not to have any other , besides the lord , for our god ? q. is there any other god , besides the lord ? a. no , there is not ; nor does this commandment at all suppose that there is . but when these commandments were delivered , the world generally believed in , and worshipped , other gods , besides the lord ; who was almost utterly forgotten by them. and therefore it was highly necessary , that the lord should , in the very first place , caution his people against this folly , and idolatry . q. how many ways may a man have others for their gods , besides the lord ? a. by as many ways as we are capable of shewing , that we have him for our god : namely , first , by thinking of them as god ; and , secondly , by worshipping of them as such . q. is it possible for any man who knows , and worships the lord , to have any other god besides him ? a. so this commandment evidently supposes ; and so indeed it may easily enough be : there being nothing so unreasonable which an immoderate superstition is not capable of leading , sometimes , even wise-men into . and therefore not only god here gives this caution to the jews ; but st. paul , in like manner , forewarns even the christians to whom he preached , to flee from idolatry ; cor. x. . and not to keep company with a brother , that is a christian , who was guilty of it . cor. v. . q. how can this be ; seeing he who knows , and believes aright of god ; must know , and believe , that there neither is , nor can be , any god besides him ? a. would men always act consistently to their own knowledge , and profession , it would then indeed be impossible for those who had a right notion of god , to have any other god besides him. but , as in other cases , men may know very well what their duty is , and yet act contrary to it ; so it is certain that they not only may , but have done , in the case before us. in short , whosoever gives divine honour to any being , does thereby profess that being to be god , as much as he who swears allegiance to any person , does by such his action , recognize that person for his prince . now such an honour religious prayer , and invocation , without all controversy are . yet these the church of rome does publickly , and solemnly , pay to others , besides the lord ; and , by so doing , shews to all the world , that she has other gods , besides him. q. what do you then suppose to be the full import , of this second part , of the present commandment ? a. that we should neither believe in , account of , or worship any other , as god , besides the lord : whether it be by forsaking him , and falling off altogether to idolatry ; or by giving the honour of god to any other being , together with him. sect . xxiii . q. what is the second commandment ? a. thou shalt not make to thy self any graven image , &c. q. how does this commandment differ from the foregoing ? a. the design of the first commandment was to determine , and set us right in , the object of our religious worship ; and to prevent us from giving divine honour to any besides the true god. the design of this , is to direct us in the manner of worshipping him ; that so we may not only serve the true god , but may serve him after such a manner as he requires , and is most sitting for us to do . q. what is the full import of this commandment ? a. it is this ; first , * that we must not make any image of god , at all ; be our design what it will , in making of it . nor , secondly , * that of any other being , with an intention to pay any honour , or worship , to it . q. do you think it utterly unlawful to make any image at all of god ? a. it is certainly unlawful , and is in many places of scripture expresly forbidden ; as being highly dishonourable to the infinite nature , and majesty of god ; and of great danger , and harm to us. see deut. iv . . isai. xl . . xlii . . rom. i. . q. what think you of the image of christ ; may that be made without offending against this commandment ? a. christ being man , as well as god , his body may certainly be aptly enough represented by an image ; nor would it be any sin so to do , provided that no use were made of any such image , in any part of our religious worship . but to represent god the father in a graven image ; to paint the holy trinity , and that in so profane a manner as it has often been done in the church of rome , is certainly a great sin , and a great scandal ; and directly contrary to the intention of this commandment . q. do you then look upon all vse of images in god's service to be vnlawful ? a. i do account it contrary to the prohibition of this commandment , and by consequence , vnlawful . and therefore when aaron first , and afterwards jeroboam , made use of them for this purpose ; we find how highly god was pleased to resent it ; and with what detestation it is condemn'd in the holy scriptures . exod. xxxii . kings xii . . xiii . . psal. cvi . . q. what say you to the practice of the church of rome , in this particular ? a. that it is scandalous , and intolerable : there having never been greater idolatry committed among the heathen in the business of image-worship , than has been committed in that church ; and is , by publick authority , still practised by it ; especially in the ceremony of their good-friday , cross-worship . q. do you think they are so foolish as to worship the cross ; or is it idolatry to worship christ , in presence of the cross ? a. if we may either believe their own words , or judge by their actions , they adore the cross , as well as christ ; and both alike , and with the same worship . as for the new pretence of worshipping christ in presence of the cross , it is a meer delusion , contrived only to cheat ignorant people : and carries just as much sense in it , as if you should ask , whether it were lawful to say your prayers in presence of a post ; or to write a letter in the presence of a candlestick ; the nonsense of which there is no one so dull as not to discover . q. what is the positive duty required of us in this commandment ? a. to worship god after a manner suitable to his divine nature , and excellencies : god is a spirit , and whoso will worship him aright , must do it in spirit and in truth , jo. iv . . rom. xii . . comp. mat. xv . , . q. how has god enforced these commandments ? a. he has done it after a very singular manner : by declaring , st ; that he is a jealous god , acts xvii . . and will not suffer his glory to be given to another ; neither his praise to graven images . isai. xlii . . but dly , will visit this sin not only upon those who commit it , but on their posterity also , to the third , and fourth generation . as , on the other side , dly ; to those who are careful to worship him as they ought to do , he will shew abundant mercy in this present time ; and , in the world to come , give them life everlasting . q. can it consist with the justice of god to punish one for the sin of another ? a. no certainly , nor does god here threaten any such thing . but god , who is the great lord of the whole world , may so punish a man for his sins , that the evil of it shall reach not to himself alone , but to his posterity also . and thus the children may be visited , and yet not punish'd , for their father's idolatry . as in the case of high-treason , the father by forfeiting his honour , and estate , brings the ill-consequence of his crime upon his family as well as upon himself ; and the prince , by exacting the penalty of the law , does truly visit ; tho not punish , his posterity ; for the offence which he alone committed . q. how then do you understand this part of the commandment ? a. god had , in general , promised to the jews temporal blessings to encourage their obedience ; and had denounced present evils against them , to keep them from sinning . but to set a particular mark of his indignation upon the sin of idolatry , he thought fit to declare , that if they offended in this matter , he would not only severely punish them himself , but would deliver them up into the hands of their enemies , who should both oppress them , and their children after them. whereas if they continued firm to his worship , tho' otherwise they should be guilty of many lesser crimes , yet he would not cast them off from his favour ; but , on the contrary , would bless both them , and their posterity , with plenty , and prosperity , all their days . this i take to have been the literal meaning of the present denunciation ; and how exactly it was made good to them , their history sufficiently declares to us. q. may this be , in any wise , apply'd to us now ? a. thus far it may , to teach us how heinous the sin of idolatry is ; how odious in the sight of god ; how worthy of his vengeance ; how certain to feel it . the jews were , in their whole estate , a figure to us : as therefore god threatned that he would , with the utmost severity , require this sin of them ; so most certainly he will do it of us ; it may be in this present life , but without all controversie in the life which is to come . sect . xxv . q. what is the third commandment ? a. thou shalt not take the name of the lord thy god in uain , &c. q. what is the design of this commandment ? a. to secure that honour we ought to pay to god , by a reverend esteem of whatsoever relates to him. q. what mean you by the name of god ? a. i understand thereby god himself , and whatsoever has any immediate relation to him. psal. xxix . . exod. xxxiv . . deutr. xxviii . . q. when may we be accounted to take god's name in vain ? a. when we make mention of god , or of any thing which belongs unto him , rashly , and irreverently : in a way that is not suitable to his divine honour , and majesty ; nor to that deference we ought to pay , to his sovereign power , and authority over us. q. upon what occasions , especially , may god's name be made use of by us ? a. chiefly on these three ; in swearing : vowing : praying : and in all these it may be , and oftentimes is , taken in vain . q. when may we be accounted to take god's name in vain , by using it in swearing ? a. when we swear falsely : lev. xix . . whether it be by a positive asserting of what is untrue ; or by tricking , and equivocating , in what is in some respect true ; tho' not in that , in which we would be understood to swear . dly , when we swear needlesly ; where either the matter was not of moment enough to justifie the solemnity of an oath , or might have been sufficiently determined without one. of which kind are the greatest part of those voluntary oaths , which are so frequently used by profane persons in their common discourse . dly , when we swear rashly , but especially in matters of promise ; in which we are the most exposed to the danger of perjury . and thly , when we swear irreverently : whether we take an oath carelesly , and lightly , and without due regard to the honour of god's name , our selves ; or administer it so to others . q. what think you of those who swear not only by the name of god , but by that of some creature ; such as the blessed virgin , or the like saint ? a. i think it to be , without all controversie , sinful : as giving that honour to the creature , which is due only to the creator . and so god himself declares that he accounts it : deut. vi . . thou shalt fear the lord thy god , and serve him : and shalt swear by his name ; ye shall not go after other gods. and again , deut. x. . thou shalt fear the lord thy god ; him shalt thou serve , and to him shalt thou cleave , and swear by his name . and when , in process of time , that people began to do otherwise ; the prophet jeremy tells us how heinously god resented the affront that was thereby put upon him : jer. v. . how shall i pardon thee for this ? thy children have forsaken me , and sworn by them that are no gods. and again , amos viii . . they that swear by the sin of samaria , and say , thy god , o dan , liveth , and the manner of beersheba liveth : even they shall fall , and never rise up again . comp. josh. xxiii . . jer. xii . . zeph. i. . q. how does it appear that to swear by any creature , is to give to that creature by whom we swear , the proper honour of god ? a. the very nature of an oath declares it : which supposes the person whom we swear by , to be capable both of discerning the truth , or falshood , of what is sworn ; and the sincerity or insincerity , with which we swear ; and also of punishing us for our perjury , if we swear otherwise than we ought to do . all which are actions proper to god alone : and above the capacity of any creature ; and therefore being ascribed to one who is not god , must needs give the honour due to god alone , to that person by whom we swear . q. is it lawful to swear in any matter of moment ; if we take care to swear in such a manner as we ought to do ? a. it has been the opinion of many good men , that we should decline all voluntary swearing , even in matters of moment , as much as may be : and that for fear of perjury , which is a sin of a very heinous nature , yet if we are required to do it by such whom we ought not to disobey , and we do it faithfully , and reverently ; it is both an act of religious worship ; and for the glory of god ; and upon both those accounts undoubtedly lawful . nor did our saviour ever intend to forbid swearing altogether ; but only to restrain all voluntary , and needless , vse of it in common conversation ; and to keep us , when we do swear , to the doing of it only by the name of god , and not by that of any other thing , or person . see mat. v. , &c. q. how may god's name be taken in vain , by vowing ? a. * by vowing to do any thing which may not lawfully be fulfill'd : * by vowing that which we are not able to fulfil : * by vowing rashly , and indiscreetly ; what tho' we should be able to fulfil , might yet much better , and more prudently , have been let alone : * by vowing any thing for a long time to come , it may be for one's whole life ; and of our future capacity to make good which hereafter , we cannot , at the present , judge : and lastly ; * by accustoming our selves to vow frequently ; which must necessarily expose us to the hazard of not performing our vows . q. is it not then good to make vows at all ? a. there is no doubt to be made but that a vow , duly regulated , is not only lawful , but acceptable to god. but then that it may be so , we should take heed ; st , not to vow upon every occasion ; but when we have some considerable motive to engage us to the doing of it . dly , to see that what we do vow , be in its self good ; fit for vs to vow , and for god to accept . dly , that we be sure not to vow any thing , but what we are in a capacity to fulfil . eccles. v. , . when thou vowest a vow unto god , defer not to pay it , for he hath no pleasure in fools ; pay that which thou hast vowed . better is it that thou shouldst not vow , than that thou shouldst vow , and not pay. q. when do we take god's name in vain , in praying ? a. * when we pray , without minding what we are about : * when we pray for such things as we ought not to pray for : * when , in our prayers , we use vain repetitions of god's name , without need , and against reason . but , especially , when we join the name of any creature , with that of god , in our prayers ; as the papists in many , or rather most , of their prayers , do . q. are there not other ways , of taking god's name in vain , besides those we have hitherto spoken of ? a. there are several other ways : * by profane cursing , as well as swearing : * by any light , and unfitting vse of god's name , in our common , and vain conversation : * by all lewd , atheistical discourse : * by blaspheming , or speaking reproachfully , of god , or his religion : * by murmuring against him : * by ridiculing , abusing , or otherwise profaning his holy word : * by despising , or exposing his ministers , upon the account of their function ; and as they stand related to him : * by an irreverent behaviour in his publick service ; in the use of his prayers , and sacraments : in short , * by a contemptuous treating of any thing in which his name , and honour , are concern'd . q. what does this commandment positively require of us ? a. to honour god's holy name , and word : to employ our tongues to his praise , and glory : never to make mention of god , or of any thing which relates to him , without a religious reverence : and to use our utmost endeavour , upon all occasions , to keep up the reputation of religion ; and the respect which is due to holy things , for the sake of god , and as they have a relation to him. q. what is the sanction wherewith god has enforced this commandment ? a. it is this ; that the lord will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in uain . q. what do you understand thereby ? a. that he will severely punish such sinners ; and not suffer his name to be profaned by them , without bringing some exemplary vengeance upon them , for such their presumption . q. if this be so , how comes it to pass that such persons oftentimes escape , without any such exemplary mark of god's vengeance against them ? a. we are not to call god to account for his actions . it is enough that he has assured us , that he will not hold such persons guiltless : and that therefore every such sinner , must either repent , in a very singular manner , of his offence in taking god's name in vain ; or he shall assuredly be punish'd with an extraordinary severity for it ; it may be in this present life , but without all question , in that which is to come . sect . xxvi . q. what is the last commandment of the first table . a. remember that thou keep holy the sabbath-day , &c. q. what do you mean by the sabbath-day ? a. the commandment it self explains it . 't is a seventh day of rest , after six of work and labour : six days shalt thou labour , and do all that thou hast to do ; but the seventh day is the sabbath of the lord thy god ; in it thou shalt do no manner of work. q. wherefore did god establish a seventh day of rest , after six of work and labour ? a. in memory of his having created the world in six days ; and on the seventh day rested , or ceased from creating it : and to keep up thereby the memory of his being the creator of the world ; and to engage mankind solemnly to acknowledge , and worship him , as such . — for in six days the lord made heaven and earth , the sea , and all that is therein , and rested the seventh day ; wherefore the lord blessed the sabbath-day , and hallowed it . q. was this command given by god to mankind from the beginning of the world ? a. so moses tells us , gen. ii . . and it is not to be doubted but that accordingly such a sabbath did continue to be observed , so long as any sense of true religion remained upon the earth . q. how then did it become needful for god to renew it again in this place ? a. as it was needful for him to renew many other precepts , which yet were certainly both given by him , and observed in the world , long before . no body doubts but that adam , and his first descendents , both knew , and worshipped the true god ; yet this was provided for again now. so immediately after the floud , the law against murder was solemnly promulged ; gen. ix . . yet nevertheless the same command was here again repeated . as for the case before us ; as men lived farther off from the creation , and wickedness prevailed over the face of the earth , and the true worship of god was corrupted by almost a universal idolatry ; so was the solemn day of his worship neglected likewise . and tho' it may have in some measure been received after the floud , and continued , in some part of abraham's family ; yet , in their aegyptian slavery , it was utterly abolish'd ; and the very memory of it seems to have been lost among them . q. when did god renew this command to them ? a. presently after their passing thro' the red sea , exod. xvi . when he began to give the manna to them. for then he commanded them to gather it every morning six days ; but on the sixth day to provide a double quantity for the next day ; because that thereon they should keep the sabbath to the lord , and no manna should fall , or be gathered , upon it . q. on what day of the week did that sabbath-day fall ? a. on that which they , from thenceforth , observed for their sabbath-day , and which answers to our saturday . q. was that the same day on which god rested from the creation , and which he had before commanded adam to keep in memory of it ? a. that we cannot tell : by the providence of god so it may have been ; but that it was so , god has not declared to us , nor is it possible , ( without a particular revelation , ) for us to come to the knowledge of it . that which is more certain is , that god designed this particular day to be kept by the jews in memory of his delivering of them out of their egyptian slavery , and of his miraculous feeding them with manna in the wilderness . and for this reason it was that he required that strict rest of them , of which we read : exod. xxxi , , &c. nehem. xiii . . isai. lviii . . that thereby they might both keep up the memory of the hard work they had been held to during their abode in egypt , where they were not suffer'd to rest on the sabbath-day ; and be the more engaged to serve that god , who had so wonderfully delivered them from that wretched estate . q. how then , upon the whole , are we to consider the jewish sabbath , here establish'd by god ? a. it is evident from the several reasons given for it , in the command its self , that it must be consider'd in two different respects : st , as a day to be kept by them in memory of the creation : exod. xx . . and to declare themselves thereby to be the worshippers of that god , who created the heaven and earth : and to this end , they were required to observe a seventh day of rest , after six of labour ; because god wrought six days , and rested the seventh . and , dly , as a day to be observed in memory of their egyptian-bondage , and of god's delivering them out of it : deut. v. . and thus the jews were tied to observe not only the proportion , but the very day of the week too ; as being that day on which they had pass'd the red sea , and so were set intirely free from their slavery . for which reason also they were obliged not only to worship god upon it , but moreover to abstain from all bodily labour ; and that under the pain of death , exod. xxxi . , &c. numb . xv . . q. how far do you suppose this command obliges us now ? a. as much as ever it did the jews , tho' not exactly after the same manner . we worship , as they did , that god who in six days created the heaven , and earth ; the sea , and all that in them is , and rested the seventh day : and in acknowledgment thereof we stand obliged , with them , to keep a seventh day of rest , after six of labour . but then as they worshipp'd this god under the peculiar character , of the god who brought them out of the land of egypt , out of the house of bondage , so were they determined to take that particular day , the seventh of the week , for their sabbath , on which he compleated their deliverance ; and strictly to abstain from all bodily labour upon it . now in this respect we differ from them . we worship god , the creator of the world , under a much higher , and more divine character ; as he is our father , and deliverer , by jesus christ our lord : who upon the first day of the week , rose from the dead , and thereby put an end to the jewish oeconomy . and in testimony hereof , we keep the first day of the week for our sabbath ; and so profess our selves to be the servants of the true god , thro' the covenant which he has been pleased to make with us , in christ jesus our lord. q. upon what authority was this change of the sabbath-day made ? a. upon the greatest that can be desired : the reason of it has been already mention'd ; viz. christ's rising on this day from the dead . the thing it self was done by the apostles , who no doubt had in this , as in all the rest that they did , the direction of the holy ghost . and as for the jewish sabbath , which is the seventh day , besides that the ground of it does not concern us ; st. paul speaks of it as ceasing with the law , no less than the new-moons , or meats , and drinks , prescribed by the same law. col. . ii. . q. how are we to keep our sabbath day ? a. we are to consecrate it to a religious rest , * by attending upon the publick service of the church ; * and hearing god's word read , and preach'd there . * by participating of the holy sacrament : * by private prayer , meditation , and reading : * by works of charity , and mercy : * by taking all the care we can to improve our own piety , and to help other men in the enlivening of theirs . q. is all bodily labour forbidden to vs , upon this day , as it was to the jews ? a. no , it is not : . works of charity , and necessity , may certainly be done upon it . friendly visits and entertainments may , in a reasonable measure , be allow'd also : provided that neither the publick service of the church , nor the necessary improvement of our own private piety , be at all neglected thereby . but as for all works of gain ; all such allowances as are inconsistent with the religious design of the day , or may be apt to give offence to any good men ; they ought , without question , to be avoided upon it . q. what is forbidden by this commandment ? a. to neglect , and profane the sabbath : not to employ it to the honour , and service , of god ; much more to spend it in idleness and pleasure ; in sin , and debauchery , as too many wicked persons are wont to do . q. is there any thing farther required of us , in order to the full observance of this commandment ? a. this only ; that we be careful not only to sanctify the sabbath day our selves , but to see that all who belong to vs , do likewise . for , for these also , the commandment tells us we are to answer : in it thou shalt do no manner of work ; thou , nor thy son , nor thy daughter ; thy man-servant , nor thy maid-servant ; thy cattle , nor the stranger that is within , thy gates . and since now the piety of our ‖ own laws have provided for the better observation of this day ; we ought , in obedience to them , as well as out of conscience towards god , not only to be careful of our selves , and families , but to bring all others , as much as in us lies , to a due regard of it : if not out of duty towards him , whose sabbath it is , yet for fear of that punishment , which the civil magistrate is to inflict on those who despise , and profane it . sect . xxvii . q. what do the commandments of the second table respect ? a. our duty towards our neighbour . q. what is the general foundation of our duty towards our neighbour ? a. to love him as my self ; and to do to all men as i would they should do unto me : the one of which shews , what that inward affection is , which every one ought to have for his neighbour ; the other , how we ought to regulate our outward actions towards each other . q. is a man obliged , in all cases , to do all that for his neighbour , which he would desire his neighbour should do for him ? a. yes , certainly ; provided the rule be but rightly stated , and duly limited , by us : otherwise it may prove a snare , rather than a guide , to us. q. how then do you suppose that this rule is to be vnderstood by us ? a. we must first set our selves in our neighbour's place , and then put it to our consciences ; were his case our own , what would we desire that one , in our circumstances , should do for vs , and then conclude , that we ought to do the same for him. thus for example ; if a poor man ask an alms of us ; we must not think that we are at liberty to refuse him , because we neither need , nor desire , that any one should relieve us : but we must bring his case home to our selves ; and suppose that we were in his circumstances ; poor , and destitute ; would we not then think it reasonable , that one , in our circumstances , should relieve vs ; and that will shew us , that therefore we ought to relieve him . q. but must we then , after such a change of circumstances , absolutely do to others , whatsoever we would , in the like circumstances , desire , that they should do to us ? a. i do not say that neither : men may desire what is vnlawful , and then in conscience of our duty to god , we must deny them . they may desire what is vnreasonable , or may be greatly inconvenient to us ; and , in such cases , though we owe a duty to our neighbour , yet we must remember that we owe a duty to our selves too ; and must consider our own interests , as well as those of our neighbour . if a man should fall into such circumstances , as to need my telling of a lie ; or forswearing my self , to bring him safely out of them ; though i should be so wicked as to desire , in the like case , that another would do the same for me , yet i am not therefore obliged , by this rule , to do this for him ; because neither ought i to desire such a thing of another , nor ought any other to desire it of me. again ; should a man desire me to be bound with him for a considerable sum of money ; which i cannot pay , without great damage to my self , and prejudice to my family : though i should perhaps wish , that , had i the same occasion that this man has , another would be bound for me ; yet because the desire is vnreasonable , and such as in duty to my self , and my family , i ought not to comply with ; neither am i obliged , by vertue of this rule , to answer his desires in it . q. what then do you take to be the true import of this rule ? a. that whatsoever i could justly , and reasonably , desire of another man , in my circumstances ; and it would become him , in charity , to do for me ; the same ought i to do for my neighbour : and thereby make it manifest , as the other rule directs , that i do , indeed , love him as my self . q. to how many commandments has god reduced our duty towards our neighbour ? a. to six ; which make up the whole of the second table ? q. what is the first of these ? a. honour thy father , and thy mother , that thy days may be long in the land which the lord thy god giveth thee . q. what is the proper extent of this commandment ? a. it expresly regards only our natural parents ; but the reason of it extends to all sorts of persons who are in any respect our superiours , and to whom we owe any singular honour upon that account : and to the most of which the very name of fathers is given in the holy scriptures . q. what are the chief relations to which this commandement may be referr'd ? a. they are especially these following : . of children towards their parents . . of subjects towards those who are in authority over them. . of scholars towards their governours . . of ordinary christians towards their ministers . . of servants towards their masters . . of wives towards their husbands . . of younger persons towards the aged . and , . of those who are in a lower degree , towards such as are in a higher place of state , and dignity . q. does not this commandment require some return of duty from those , who are , upon any of these accounts , to be honoured by us ? a. in the equity of it , it certainly does : and therefore as it is our duty to honour them , so it is no less their duty to behave themselves , as their relation requires , towards us. q. what do you mean by honouring of such persons ? a. not a bare , formal respect ; but , with that , all that love , duty , and obedience ; all that help , and service ; which they may justly expect from us , and which our own reason tells us , we ought to yield to them. q. what are the particular duties which are required of children towards their parents ? a. to love , honour , and succour , their father and mother : to obey their orders , and bear with their infirmities ; and submit to their correction . to promote their comfort , and welfare , by all fitting means ; and if they need , and their children are able , to provide for , and support them. q. are all these duties to be equally paid to both our parents ? a. they are , and that by the express words of the commandment , honour thy father and thy mother . comp. prov. i. . vi . . eph. vi . q. what return of duty ought parents to make to their children ? a. it is their duty to breed them up carefully whilst they are young ; vertuously , and religiously , when they are capable of discerning between good and evil. to love them : to provide , according to their ability , for them : to bring them up to some honest and useful employment : to encourage them when they do well ; to correct them when they do amiss : to be gentle , and courteous , towards them ; and not by their passions , or perverseness , provoke them to anger , and alienate their affections from them . q. what is the duty of subjects towards those whom god has set in authority over them ? a. to submit to their laws , to be faithful to their interests , and obedient to them in all their just commands . to live quietly under their government ; and to contribute , according to their capacity , towards the support , and defence of it : by their counsel ; their estate ; and ( if need be ) by venturing their very lives for their service . q. what if the civil power shall command me to do that which is contrary to my duty towards god ? a. i must , in that case , obey god rather than man. if for this i shall be punish'd , i must patiently yield to it ; and glorify god , that he has thought me worthy to suffer for my duty to him. exod. i. , . dan. iii. , &c. vi . , &c. a. what if any difference should arise in the commonwealth , of which i am a member , between the prince , and the people ? a. i must carefully examine where the right lies ; and act so , as is most agreeable to the rules of religion first ; and , ( where they are silent , ) to the laws , and constitution of the state , to which i belong . q. what is the duty of the civil magistrate towards his people ? a. to order all his counsels , designs , and enterprizes , as much as in him lies , to the publick good. not to vex , or oppress his subjects , but to rule them with gentleness , and moderation ; but especially with an exact justice , and equity . to be faithful to the trust committed to him ; and not seek to oppress , or enslave his people . but above all , to take care of the service of god ; and see that the true religion be maintain'd , and protected in his dominions : and to use his utmost endeavours for the suppression of all vice , profaness , and irreligion ; as being at once both odious to god , and destructive of the publick peace , and welfare , of any people . psal. ci . isa. xlix . . q. what is the proper duty of scholars towards their teachers ; and ( which is much the same ) of ordinary christians towards their spiritual rulers and guides ? a. to respect them highly for their office , and works sake : to attend upon their instructions with care , and diligence : to submit themselves to their conduct , in those things wherein they are set over them : and to reward them according to their several stations , and the work which they have to do . q. how ought those , who are teachers , to behave themselves towards them who are committed to their charge ? a. they should attend to their teaching with faithfulness and diligence : should be careful to consider what instruction is most proper for every one , and give it in that way that may be likely to prove the most profitable to them. they are freely to tell them of their faults ; to admonish them of the danger , as well as sinfulness of them ; and to help them , according to the best of their power , to correct them . in short ; it is their duty , and ought to be their study , and endeavour , to guide those whom they have the charge of , the best , and most direct way they can , for the attainment of that knowledge which they pretend to bring them to . q. what is the duty of the wife towards her husband ? a. faithfully to observe her marriage vow and covenant : to love , honour , and obey him ; to be true and just to him in all his concerns : to order his house with prudence and discretion : to bring up his children in the nurture , and fear of the lord ; to instil good principles betimes into them , and root out bad ones : not to forsake him in any troubles , or adversities , that may fall upon him ; but to continue faithful , and united to him , in person , and affection , to her lives end. q. what is the husbands duty towards his wife ? a. to be true to her bed ; kind and loving to her person ; to communicate to her of his substance ; and to look after her in all her sicknesses , or other distresses : to protect her against the injuries of others , and to cherish her himself as his own flesh : to keep only to her , and not be separated from her , so long as it shall please god to continue her life to him . q. what is the duty of servants towards their masters ? a. to be diligent in their business ; true and just to what they are intrusted withal ; careful in the management of their concerns , as if it were for themselves : not profuse , or extravagant , in any thing which is committed to their care , but thrifty , and watchful ▪ not to be eye-servants , but to use the same industry , and integrity , in their master's absence , as they would do if he were present with them . q. how ought masters to behave themselves towards their servants ? a. with kindness and gentleness ; providing for them what is convenient ; not laying too much work upon them , nor too rigorously exacting what they do . to have a due regard to their souls as well as bodies ; and in order thereunto , not only to allow them a sufficient time for the service of god , but to see that they employ the time so allow'd them , to the glory of god , and the promoting of their souls welfare . and , lastly , to be just in paying them their wages ; neither keeping it back from them , when it is due , nor otherwise defrauding them of their hire . q. what is the duty of the younger towards the aged ? a. to give a seemly respect , and honour to them ; and not to injure , or affront them , for any infirmities which their age may chance to have brought upon them. q. how ought elder persons to behave themselves towards the younger ? a. they ought to advise them in their affairs ; to encourage them in their duty ; to set a good example to them ; and prudently to reprove them for , and endeavour to reform in them , what they see amiss . q. how ought those who are in a lower degree , to behave themselves towards such as are in fortune , and quality , above them ? a. they ought to give them honour , suitable to what the difference of their ranks , and stations , may justly require : not to envy , or back-bite them ; not to wish , or do them any evil , out of any malice , or enmity against them , for what they enjoy , in character , or estate , beyond them . q. what is the duty of those who are of a higher rank , towards such as are below them ? a. not to behave themselves proudly , or arrogantly , towards them ; not to despise them for their poverty , or meanness in the world ; but to remember that they are both men , and christians ; and , upon both those accounts , as high in god's esteem as themselves . that when we come before the judgment-seat of christ , we shall all stand upon the same level ; all titles , and honours , and distinctions shall be laid aside ; and only the vertue , and piety of the soul be consider'd . that in the mean time , the poorest , and lowest man , may be wise and good , brave and constant , chast and temperate ; and that these , in reality , make a great man , beyond all the outward trappings of titles , and retinue . and , lastly , it is their duty to be liberal , and charitable , out of what god hath given them , to those who are in need ; which is the best use that any man can put his riches to , and will turn to the highest account at the last . q. what encouragement has god given us , to make us the more careful to observe this commandment ? a. that thy days may be long in the land which the lord thy god giveth thee . q. what is the import of this exhortation . a. it contains a promise to those who should honour their father and mother ; that they should live long in that good land , to which the lord was then leading them , by the hand of moses his servant . q. what encouragement does this give to us now ? a. it shews us , in a type , what we may promise our selves upon our obedience . that as long life , and that in the land of canaan , their expected inheritance , was the highest temporal promise god could make to the jews ; as being indeed the foundation of all the present blessings they were capable of receiving : so , if we carefully observe this command , it shall not only promote our present peace , but shall be a good means to procure to us an everlasting inheritance , in our heavenly canaan ; and intitle us to a more than ordinary degree of happiness in it . sect . xxviii . q. what is the sixth commandment ? a. thou shalt do no murder . q. what is murder ? a. it is the wilful , and unlawful , taking away of the life of a man , by what way , or means , soever it be done . q. is not all killing , murder ? a. no ; that only is murder , which is voluntary , and unlawful . q. wherefore must the killing be wilful , and designed ? a. because if a man slay another purely by chance , without any design , or intention , so to do ; without malice , and without premeditation ; it is a misfortune , it is not murder . q. wherefore must the killing be vnlawful ? a. to exclude those cases in which tho' the killing be voluntary , yet it is not murder ; nor forbidden by god as such . q. what are those cases ? a. * the execution of justice , after a lawful manner , for a suitable offence ; and by a lawful magistrate . † the killing of an enemy in a just war : * the killing of another for the necessary defence of a man 's own life : to which under the law were added some other cases , of which it may be doubted how far they are to be allow'd under the gospel . q. what be they ? a. the killing of any person who would have inticed them to commit idolatry : * the avenger of bloud , slaying him who had vnawares kill'd his brother . and , lastly , ‖ the execution of vengeance on any wicked person , by an extraordinary impulse from god ; as phineas did , in the day of the assembly . num. xxv . , &c. q. what is your opinion of self-murder ? a. that it is as much forbidden by this mandment as any other . q. what think you of those who meet in a set duel , and so kill ? a. if both agree to it , which soever falls , they are both guilty of murder . q. what if men draw in a sudden heat , and one be slain ? a. the heat being criminal , it will not excuse the mischief consequent upon it , any more than drunkenness , in the like case , would have done . the laws of men may distinguish as they please ; but in the sight of god 't is murder . q. what are the peculiar aggravations of this sin ? a. they are very many , and very great ones : murder being above most other sins , . a heinous offence against god , who is the sole lord of all his creatures ; after whose image we are made ; and who must therefore be , in a singular manner , both injured , and affronted , by the destruction of his creature , and his image . . it is a sin against nature ; which has established a common relation betwixt us ; design'd us for society ; and , in order thereunto , has made it one of its fundamental laws , that we should love , and protect , and do good , to one another : and this law cannot by any thing be more eminently trampled under foot than by murder . . it is a sin against the civil society ; the end of which is protection ; to provide for the safety , and security , of those who are the members of it : and the very bands of which must therefore be broken hereby . . it is a sin against the magistrate ; who alone , under god , has the power of life and death ; and who , by this violence , is deprived of the counsel , help , and support , of one of his subjects . and , lastly , it is a particular , and signal offence , against all the relatives of him who is murdered , and such as perhaps may be utterly ruinous to them. to say nothing of the injury that is hereby done to the person murder'd ; and who , thereby , is not only deprived of his life , and of all the advantages he enjoy'd by it ; but is , it may be , taken off in the midst of his sins , and so undone to all eternity . q. is there nothing else , besides murder , forbidden by this commandment ? a. yes , much more ; viz. all variance , hatred , emulation , envy , revenge , evil-speaking , quarrelling ; all rash and immoderate anger ; and , in one word , whatsoever tends towards murder , or may be likely to end in it . q. what are the positive duties which this commandment requires of us ? a. to do all we can for the safety , and preservation , both of our own , and our neighbour's lives : if they are sick , to advise and and assist them , with our money , and our service . if they are well ; to prevent their quarrels , and make up their differences . if they are needy , to feed them , and cloath them . if they have injured us , to forgive them : if we have injured them , to make them all reasonable satisfaction . in one word ; to do all we can to promote love , and peace , and good will , among all men. sect . xxix . q. what is the seventh commandment ? a. thou shalt not commit adultery . q. what is adultery ? a. it is the violation of the marriage-bed , by which party soever it be done . q. how many ways may the marriage-bed be polluted ? a. either by the one's leaving the other altogether , and marrying again ; or by the one's being false to the other , whilst they still continue to hold together . q. is this all that is here forbidden by god ? a. it is all that this commandment does expresly forbid ; and seems to have been chiefly design'd by god , when he deliver'd it to the jews : but our saviour has taught us to extend it much farther . q. what does our saviour teach us to understand by this prohibition ? a. that we are to abstain not only from adultery , but from all manner of carnal pollutions whatsoever , and from all the most distant approaches to it , and incitements towards it . such as fornication , vncleanness , sensual desires , and inclinations ; all lewd , and effeminate conversation ; all wantonness of behaviour ; all undecent dressing ; all familiar conversation of younger persons of different sexes together : all excess of meat , drink , sleep , cloathing : all places , and exercises , which may be likely to raise our passions to any immoderate heighth . in short ; from whatsoever is contrary to the gravity , and modesty , and purity , of the gospel of christ. q. was adultery the only pollution that was forbidden by god under the law ? a. no ; fornication was forbidden then , no less than it is now : exod. xxii . . deut. xxii . . xxiii . . so were all incestuous and vnseemly marriages : lev. xviii . . &c. deut. vii . . all vnnatural communication between near relations : lev. xx . , &c. deut. . . but above all , most detestable was the sin of sodom accounted then , as well as now it ought to be : lev. xviii . , . xx . , , . rom. i. , . comp . versa . q. what are the positive duties comprehended under this commandment ? a. to keep our bodies in temperance , soberness , and chastity : and , in order hereunto , not only carefully to avoid all temptations , and incentives , to the contrary ; but , if need be , to exercise our selves in great watchings , and fastings , and other corporal austerities ; which are in no cases more proper , than for the suppression of these sins . to be modest in our behaviour ; grave , and chast , in our conversation ; to regulate , as much as may be , our very thoughts , and desires : and , above all things , to take care that we have somewhat to employ our selves about ; that may spend our spirits , and take up our thoughts : as considering that there is nothing more dangerous to the purity of a christian , than idleness ; and that unhappy privilege of a great fortune , to have nothing to do . q. how was this sin of adultery punish'd under the law ? a. it was punish'd with death : and that not only upon a civil account , as being most injurious to society ; but also typically , to denote what such persons are to expect from god in the other world , even death eternal . q. what are the particular aggravations of this sin ? a. that it is not only a very heinous sin in the sight of god , but such as is destructive of humane society also . that it breaks the most solemn vow that can be made between man and man : seperates the nearest relations : lays the ground of infinite quarrels , and hatred , and divisions in families ; and oftentimes occasions murders , seditions , and contentions , in the civil state. that it propagates sickness , and infirmities , to mens posterity : is an enemy to all serious counsels , and generous actions : emasculates mens minds ; enfeebles their bodies ; and , upon all these accounts , ought as well to be severely punish'd by the civil magistrate now , as we are sure it shall be punish'd by god with eternal damnation . sect . xxx . q. what is the eighth commandment ? a. thou shalt not steal . q. what do you here understand by stealing ? a. not only the secret , and fraudulent taking away of what is anothers ; but all kind of vnlawful getting , or detaining of any thing , whereby another is injured , or oppressed , in what of right belongs , or ought to belong , to him . q. what are the chief ways whereby this sin may be committed ? a. ‖ chiefly by these three : . by stealth , and robbery ; as the one implies a secret thievery , or conveying away of another's goods ; the other a more violent , and forcible taking of them. . * to these may be added , as not very different from them , all the artificial ways which men have got of doing the same thing ; by cheating , in buying and selling ; in borrowing what they are not able , or never intend , to pay ; which is in truth stealing . by extortion upon , or oppression of , those who are in need ; or whom we are otherwise able by our power , or authority , to over-bear ; which is the same thing with down-right robbery . . to all which , let me add , lastly ; all aiding , advising , encouraging , or otherwise communicating with others in any of these crimes : by receiving , buying , or concealing what is stoln ; by helping any one to cheat , or over-reach another ; by serving any great and violent oppressor , in crushing , and ruining a poor man. q. are there yet any other vices forbidden by this commandment ? a. there are several others that may fairly be reduced to it : such as * prodigality , in spending a man's estate , and beggaring his family . * negligence in making an honest provision , according to a man's station , and opportunities , for his children . * contracting of debts , which we are not able to pay. * engaging for others , beyond what we are able , or it is fitting for us to answer . * taking vsury of any , especially of a needy man. to which may be added the whole mystery of ruining estates , and families , * by the excessive rates of procuring , continuing , advancing of money , and interest ; * by buying mens goods , or estates , at vnder-rates ; * by taking advantage of gain by mens private wants , or by the publick necessities ; * the trade of pawns , as it is commonly managed , and the exactions depending thereupon ; * and , lastly , all such other trades as live upon the vices , and extravagancies of men ; with all manner of vnlawful , and injurious ways of gain . q. what think you of going to law ? a. that as it may be managed both by the counsellor , and the client , it is as much theft as ever the law punish'd ; and will , as such , be required of both by god. and therefore tho' such cases there be in which a christian may go to law without violating this , or any other command ; yet is it certainly the last resort , and not to be used till all other means have proved ineffectual , to secure our property , or to recover our right . and , for the most part ; it is in law , as in war , where one side is certainly in the wrong , and generally both are to blame : and let those who by their purse , their tongue , or their art , defraud another of his right , know assuredly , that however they may build up their houses by iniquity , and escape the punishment of man for what they do , yet they shall not be acquitted at the tribunal of god. q. what are the duties which this commandment requires of us ? a. to be fair , and upright , in all our dealings ; not willingly to wrong , or be accessary to the wronging of , any . if we should happen to have unwillingly injured any man , to be ready to make him a full , and ample restitution for it . to be free , and charitable to the poor ; careful to provide a competent subsistence for our families ; and diligent in pursuing some honest , and useful calling , in order thereunto . sect . xxxi . q. what is the ninth commandment ? a. thou shalt not bear false-witness against thy neighbour . q. what do you here understand by bearing of false witness ? a. the false-accusing of , or witnessing against him in judgment : and which is commonly attended with perjury , as well as lying ; and so becomes an offence at once against the third commandment , by our taking god's name in vain ; and against this , of injuring our neighbour , by bearing false-witness against him. q. is there any thing else forbidden in this commandment ? a. there is ; namely all sort of calumny , and evil-speaking , against any ; whether it be in , or , out of , judgment . q. how do you distinguish between calumny , and evil-speaking ? a. by calumny i mean , a reproach falsly raised upon , and reported against , a person , who is wholly innocent of it . when we are the makers , as well as spreaders , of an untruth ; at least , know what we say of our neighbour to be false ; or have just reason to believe it to be so . by evil-speaking , i understand , the relating of what is , or has been told to us , as true ; and is believed by us so to be ; when we do it not to the person concerned , for discovery of the truth ; or to some friend of his , in order to his being admonish'd of it ; but to our indifferent acquaintance : and that whether it be done with a design to defame him , or only in the common way of discourse , for want of better matter to entertain our company withal . q. is there any thing yet more forbidden in this commandment ? a. to this commandment must be reduced all * subornation of false-witnesses in judgment ; * all credit ; or countenance that is given to them ; * all counterfeiting of hands , and seals , or any other writings to his prejudice : all * tale-bearing ; * rash-speaking , and * censuring : all * credulity , or being ready to believe what is evil of our neighbour : all * encouragement that is given to those who are apt to speak evil of other men. q. what is required of us by this commandment ? a. to be religiously strict in speaking truth of our neighbour ; * not only to take care that what we say be true , but that by our manner of delivering it , by our flourishing upon it , or otherwise circumstantiating of it , we do not give occasion to any to mistake us. * to be charitable both in what we hear , and say of other men. * to vindicate their reputation as far as fairly we can ; and to * hold our tongues , at least not to * aggravate their faults , where we cannot . sect . xxxii . q. what is the last commandment ? a. thou shalt not covet thy neighbours house ; thou shalt not covet thy neighbours wife ; nor his servant , nor his maid , nor his ox , nor his ass , nor any thing that is his. q. what is the sin forbidden in this commandment ? a. the vnlawful desire of what is another man's . q. when is such a desire vnlawful ? a. when it puts men on any deliberate thoughts , and contrivances , to obtain that which is anothers ; without the consent , and allowance of him to whom it belongs . q. what if a man's desire be so bounded , as not to put him upon any undue means to obtain what is another man's ? a. if it be so bounded within the use of lawful means , that he is determined not to make use of any other , tho' he should never obtain it , it is not sinful . as if ahab had only desired naboth's vineyard for the convenience of it ; and as soon as he saw that naboth would not part with it , had rested in the refusal , and gone no farther ; he would have done nothing amiss . but if a man's desire be violent , and vnreasonable , if it makes him resolve to compass what he covets by any means ; if fair means will not do , to have it by foul ones ; such a desire as this , is sinful . and therefore when ahab grew discontented at naboth's refusal ; and after that the malice and cunning of jezebel had destroy'd him , went down , and took possession of it ; the event shew'd his coveting to have been criminal ; and that his desire was as inordinate , as the event was tragical . q. what think you of such a desire , as tho' it be violent and immoderate , yet is presently suppress'd ; and does not proceed to any wicked resolutions , endeavours , or actions , in order to the accomplishment of what it covets ? a. st. james seems to warrant us to think favourably of it : jam. i. , . yet it cannot be doubted but that all such desires proceed from an evil principle within us ; and we ought to watch all we can , even against the first motions of them , and suppress them . mat. v. . , . q. what is the duty required in this commandment ? a. contentment with our estate whatsoever it be , so as neither to murmur against god , nor to envy our neighbour , upon the account of any thing which he possesses . there being nothing more certain , than that he who is not satisfied with what himself enjoys , will be apt , upon every occasion , criminally to covet what is another man's . sect . xxxiii . q. we have now done with the several branches of that duty which god requires of us ; and which our godfathers , and godmothers , promised , at our baptism , that we should fulfil : is there any thing yet remaining necessary to be known by us in order to our salvation ? a. yes there is ; namely , to understand what those means are which god has ordain'd for the conveying of his grace to us , and to enable us to fulfil that duty which he has required of us. q. by what means may we obtain the grace of god , in order to this end ? a. chiefly by these two : hearty prayer to god for it ; and a right use of the holy sacraments . q. what is prayer ? a. it is a religious ‖ calling upon god , founded upon the belief both of his infinite knowledge , power , and presence ; and of his gracious goodness , and mercy towards us in * jesus christ : and by virtue whereof , he is not only always † present with vs , to hear and receive our prayers , ‖ thoroughly acquainted with all our needs ; and * fully able , to supply them ; but is also most † willing , and ready so to do ; if we call upon him as we ought to do . q. upon what is the necessity of our praying to god founded ? a. besides that it is a part of that religious worship which it behoves us to pay to him ; and being publickly perform'd , is one of the highest acts of outward honour , that we are capable of giving to him ; it is necessarily establish'd upon these two principles ; first , a due sense of our own weakness , and wants : and , secondly , a firm belief , that god is both able , and willing , to relieve us. q. what are the wants , which we chiefly need to have supply'd by god ? a. there is nothing wherein we do not stand in need of his support . our life , health , food , and raiment ; all that we have , or hope to enjoy , in our present estate , proceeds from him ; and we do , in all these , intirely depend upon his providence . but that for which we ought to be more especially concern'd , and have yet more need to beg the divine assistance , is for the supplying of our spiritual wants ; that god would enable us to fulfil our duty towards him ; and thereby , 〈…〉 would qualify us for his favour at the present , and for his pardon , and acceptance , when we come to die . q. are we not able , of our selves , to fulfil our duty towards god , as we ought to do ? a. so far from it , that we cannot have so much as any saving knowledge of it , or desire after it , without the concurrence of his grace , to open our vnderstandings , to purify our affections , to regulate our wills , and to prepare us both to believe , and do , according to his good pleasure . q. by what means may we be enabled to live according to god's commandments ? a. by the special grace of the holy spirit ; which he never denies to any christian who heartily prays for it , and duly improves that portion of it , which god has before bestow'd upon him . q. does god always answer the prayers that are made to him ? a. he does , if they are made after such a manner as he requires ; and for such things as he sees to be expedient for us ; unless he should have some extraordinary reason to refuse us : in which case , though he may not grant us the very things which we desire , yet he will recompense us the more abundantly in some other way . q. after what manner ought we to pray to god ? a. with faith ; with diligence ; with attention ; with fervour ; and with perseverance . q. are these conditions so strictly required by god , that no prayers are heard by him which want any of them ? a. that may not generally be affirm'd : there are great inequalities in the affections of the best men in their prayers ; nor can any avoid all kind of wandrings , and disturbances , in them . nay , sometimes the best christians , may be the most distracted , with vain thoughts , and melancholy fancies , in their devotions . that which is certain is this , that every man ought to pray as frequently as his circumstances of life will permit him ; and when he does pray , ought to do it with the utmost zeal , and attention , that he is able to do . which having sincerely endeavour'd , he ought not to doubt , but that god will pardon his infirmities , in that , as well as in the other instances of his duty , and accept his prayers ; and grant him his desires . q. what are the things which we ought to pray for ? a. for those of this life in general only , unless it be on some special occasions ; and with an intire submission of our selves to god's will , in whatsoever he shall please to order for us. but as to the graces which are necessary for us , in order to the other life , we are to pray particularly ; earnestly ; absolutely ; and without any qualifications ; because we know these things to be always proper for us to ask ; and always suitable to the will of god , to give to us. q. at what times ought we to pray ? a. continually , and without ceasing : not that we are to account our selves thereby obliged to spend our whole time in prayer , but to look upon those expressions to imply a constant , daily attendance , upon this duty ; the frequency whereof must be left to every one's state , and condition , to determine . q. what is that general proportion which every christian ought to observe , in the times of his daily prayers ? a. if he has opportunity for it , and can have leisure so to do , it were to be wish'd that he should come every day to the publick prayers of the church : but if this cannot be done , he must at least , every day , without fail , pray to god in private , morning and evening ; and , if he has a family , he should every day , at some convenient time , pray with that also , in order to the better keeping up a sense of religion in it . q. do you think it to be a matter of necessary duty , to pray publickly with the church ? a. in general it certainly is ; especially upon the lord's day , and such other solemn times of prayer , as both the laws of the realm , and the canons of the church , require of us. as for the daily prayers , if we live in a place where they are publickly read , and are not hinder'd by any necessary business to come to them , i do not see how we can excuse our selves from usually joining to them. q. has our saviour left us any particular direction how we should pray ? a. he has left us a form of his own composing , not only to be continually made use of by us ; but also to be a pattern to us , after what manner we ought to put up our own addresses to god. q. in what does that form chiefly direct us to compose aright our own prayers ? a. it teaches us especially these four things : first , that we should make our prayers short , and pertinent ; as being most suitable both to the wisdom , and majesty of god ; and to our own weakness , and infirmities . secondly , that we should pray for others , as well as for our selves ; and that in our private , as well as our publick prayers . thirdly , that we may pray for the necessaries of this life ; though our main concern should be , in our prayers , as well as our endeavours , after those of the other . fourthly , that we should pray to god only , and to him as our father , through jesus christ our lord. q. have you any thing else to observe from the form of this prayer ? a. this only , that to pray to god by a set-form , is so far from being a thing either in its self vnlawful , or injurious to the holy spirit ; that we see our saviour himself has here given us an example for it ; as under the law , god was pleased , in several cases , to direct the very words in which he would be address'd to by the jews . sect . xxxiv . q. say the lord's prayer . a. our father , &c. q. what are the general parts of this prayer ? a. it is divided into three general parts : * a preface , or introduction ; * the petitions ; and * a doxology , or conclusion . q. what is the preface to this prayer ? a. our father which art in heaven . q. wherefore did our saviour begin his prayer with this compellation of god , our father ? a. to shew us , that all our hope of being heard , or accepted by god , is by vertue of that relation wherein we stand to him , in , and through his son jesus christ. jo. xiv . . no man cometh unto the father , but by me. jo. xv . . xvi . , . verily , verily , i say unto you , whatsoever ye shall ask the father in my name , he will give it you . — ask , and ye shall receive , that your joy may be full . see col. iii. . q. why was that circumstance added , which art in heaven ? a. to shew the difference between him , and our earthly parents ; who sometimes are hard towards their children , and will not give them what they ask : oftentimes are not able to supply their needs : and , in many cases , cannot tell what is best for them ; but either deny them , when they ought to have given them what they desired ; or give them , when it would have been more advisable not to have done it . whereas our heavenly father is all-merciful , all-powerful , and all-wise ; and , by consequence , liable to none of these defects . q. what do you learn from this introduction ? a. to come to god with great assurance , but with great reverence too : who as our father will not fail to hear his children , if they ask , as they ought , of him ; as he is a heavenly father , can give us whatsoever we stand in need of . q. is god so in heaven , as our earthly fathers are upon earth ? a. no , by no means : for god being infinite , is every where present ; neither shut out of any place , nor circumscribed by any . * but because god is pleased to shew himself in heaven , in the highest excellencies of his divine majesty , and glory ; and is there attended by his holy angels ; therefore heaven is consider'd as his court , and his throne . and we very properly direct our prayers to god there , where our saviour sits to intercede with him for us ; and where the blessed spirits attend upon him , and fall down before him , and worship him . q. wherefore are we taught to say , ovr father ? a. not as if god were not the father of every one of us in particular , as well as of us all in general ; or that we might not each of us truly , and properly say , my father : but to enlarge our affections , and correct our pride , and increase our charity ; and to teach us that there is no man so mean , but what has as good a right to call god his father , as the greatest among us ; nor any , therefore , who ought not to be look'd upon as a brother by us , and to be treated , and loved , and pray'd for by us , accordingly . sect . xxxv . q. how many petitions are there in this prayer ? a. six : three with respect to the honour , and glory of god ; and which may be accounted pious wishes , rather than formal petitions : and three with relation to our own needs . q. what is the first of these ? a. hallowed be thy name . q. wherefore did christ begin his prayer , with this petition , or desire ? a. to shew us that we ought to make god's glory the first thing in our prayers , as well as the chief end of all our actions . cor. x. . whether ye eat , or drink , or whatsoever ye do , do all to the glory of god. q. what is here meant by the name of god ? a. the same as in the third commandment : viz. god himself ; and whatsoever does in any wise relate to him. exod. vi . . xxxiv . , . psal. cxxxviii . . q. what is meant by hallowing ? a. it denotes the separation of any thing to a holy vse ; and the treating , and respecting , of it accordingly . q. what then do you look upon to be the full import of this petition ? a. that it would please god to make himself known to , and to be adored , and glorified by , the whole world. that he would so dispose ours , and all other mens hearts , that we might never mention his name , but with a religious reverence . that whatsoever has any relation to him , his word , his sacraments , his ministers , his houses of prayer , may all be treated by us with a regard suitable to the majesty of him to whom they belong : and that neither we our selves , nor any others , may ever entertain any opinions , or commit any sins , whereby either god the father , or his son jesus ; the glory of the one , or the gospel of the other , may be vilified , or profaned . sect . xxxvi . q. what is the second petition of this prayer ? a. thy kingdom come . q. in how many respects is god a king ? a. chiefly in these three : first , ‖ as he is the king of all the world ; which he created by his power ; and rules , and governs , as well as supports , by his providence . secondly , † with relation to his church and people ; which he governs , and conducts , by his word , and holy spirit . and , thirdly , with * respect to his heavenly kingdom , where he reigns with glory , and majesty , over his angels now ; and will rule over all his saints hereafter , to all eternity . q. how is it that we here , either wish , or pray , that god's kingdom may come . a. as we desire ; first , that all men may both more clearly know , and more worthily obey the true , and only god ; the lord of heaven , and earth . secondly , that , to this end , it would please god to enlarge the borders of his church , and bring all nations within the pale of it . and that where it is already establish'd ; he would go on , more and more , by his grace , to destroy the power of sin , and the dominion of satan ; and to implant the fear , and love of his name , in the hearts of all his servants . that so , thirdly , his eternal kingdom may also be enlarged ; the fulness of his saints be accomplish'd ; and the blessed time come , when we shall all be translated into his heavenly kingdom ; and all other powers , and dominions , being done away , god alone shall be exalted , and rule over his saints , for ever and ever . sect . xxxvii . q. what is the third petition of this prayer ? a. thy will be done in earth , as it is in heaven ? q. how does god declare his will to us ? a. chiefly two ways ; by the dispensations of his providence , and by the rules he has set us to live by ; whether they be by nature implanted in us , or be revealed to us in the gospel of christ. q. does this petition respect both these ? a. it does ; and so teaches us to pray , that ( with respect to the former of them ) we may always seriously consider the ways of his providence , and discern what it is that he would have us either do , or suffer , in obedience thereunto . that whatsoever it be , that he shall thereby call us to , whether to a prosperous , or unprosperous state ; to receive good from him , or to suffer evil ; we may , in the one , improve his blessings to the glory of his name , and the benefit of those about us ; * in the other , may patiently submit to whatsoever he shall call us to suffer for his sake . with relation to the † latter , ( the rules he has given us to walk by ) that we may faithfully obey all his commandments , how contrary soever they may chance to be , to our own corrupt desires , and affections ; and continue his obedient , and constant servants , all the days of our life . q. why is this circumstance added , as it is in heaven ? a. to shew us what kind of obedience we ought to pay to god's will. that as the angels in heaven not only do the will of god , but do it with all readiness , chearfulness , constancy , and delight ; so may we , if it shall please god , in some measure fulfil it too . q. is it possible for us , ever to attain to such a perfection of obedience , in this present life ? a. it is hardly to be expected , yet we must pray for it , and endeavour to come up as near as is possible to it . and in the mean time , must learn from hence not only how we ought to serve god , but how we shall hereafter do his will , when we come to the blessed state , as well as place , of those holy spirits in heaven . sect . xxxviii . q. what is the first of those petitions , which you said related to our own needs ? a. give us this day our daily bread. q. what do you observe from the general composure of this part of the present prayer ? a. that as man consists of two different parts , a soul , and body ; and has need of several things to be given him for the good of both : so are we here directed to beg of god , first , what is necessary to our present life ; and secondly , what may conduce to the everlasting happiness of our souls , in the life that is to come . q. how does our saviour express what is necessary to be asked by us , for the sustenance of our present life ? a. he calls it our daily bread. q. what does the word bread denote ? a. it is commonly used in scripture for all sort of provision , as it is indeed the chiefest , and most necessary ; and such as may supply the defect of all other . and it is here made use of , to signify all that is necessary for our support ; excluding at the same time whatsoever is superfluous ; and desired rather to gratify our lusts , than to preserve our life . q. what is meant by our bread ? a. it may imply these two things : either , first , what is necessary for us ; that is to say , for our selves , and for those who depend upon us. or , secondly , it may be called our bread , as intimating that we are to labour for it ; and so it is ours , because gotten by our own work , and the blessing of god , upon our endeavours after it . q. what do you understand by the word daily ? a. what is sufficient for the next day : but then we add withal , this day , or day by day ; to shew , that though because such is the uncertainty of our present life , that how many , or how few days , we may have to come , we cannot tell , therefore we ask no more of god than what is needful for our present support : yet we trust , that god , of his goodness , will every day give us our bread , as he did the jews their manna in the wilderness , so long as he shall think fit to continue us in this state of our pilgrimage ; until he shall bring us to our heavenly canaan , that good country which he has provided for us. q. wherefore do we pray to god for such a support ? a. not to exclude our own reasonable care in providing for it , much less to excuse our labouring after it ; but to shew , that we depend altogether upon the providence of god , and owe our lives , and all the support of them , not to our own cunning , or industry , but to his blessing : and to engage us thereby both to rely the more confidently upon god , and to make those suitable returns of love , and praise , and gratitude , that we ought to do , to him. q. are the rich as mueh concern'd thus to pray to god , as the poor ? a. they are altogether : our saviour composed this prayer for both alike . it is the same providence of god which maintains both ; and and gives abundance to the one , and a competency to the other . q. is it unlawful for any man to take care of , or provide for any thing more than the next day ? a. no , by no means : god himself has sent us to the ant to learn the contrary ; prov. vi . . who provideth her meat in the summer , and gathereth her food in the harvest . such a care as goes no farther than a prudent foresight , and neither prompts us to any evil , nor keeps us back from any good , is certainly not only innocent but commendable . without this , the world could not subsist otherwise than by a continual miracle ; which we ought not to expect , where ordinary methods are to be had . the solicitude which our saviour forbids , and which is indeed sinful , is that which proceeds from an immoderate concern for the future : when men are uneasie , and discontented ; distrustful of god's providence , and still hoarding more up , as if they could never have enough ; and trust more to their own care , and foresight , than to god's blessing . sect . xxxix . q. what are the blessings which we are here taught to ask of god for our souls ? a. the forgiveness of sins past ; and the prevention of them for the time to come . q. how do you pray to god for the forgiveness of your past sins ? a. in these words ; and forgive us our trespasses , as we forgive them that trespass against us. q. what do you mean by forgiving of trespasses ? a. i pray that god would do away all my sins , of what nature , or quality soever they be ; that he would wash away the guilt , and remit the punishment of them. q. do you trust that god will do this ? a. yes , if i take care to make good the condition upon which i ask it of him ; by forgiving of those who trespass against me. q. will that alone suffice to intitule you to god's forgiveness ? a. no , it will not : without forgiving of others , i shall never be my self forgiven ; mat. vi . . but that i may be forgiven by god , i must not only forgive others , but must my self repent of my sins , and ask pardon for them , in the name , and thro' the merits , and mediation of jesus christ our saviour . q. why then is this added , as the condition upon which we are to pray to god for his forgiveness ? a. it was fit to be mention'd upon several accounts : st . as a consideration very fit to be offered by us to god , to induce him to forgive us. if we who are proud , and peevish ; easie to be affronted , and hard to be reconciled ; yet , for god's sake , and in obedience to his commands , forgive those who have offended vs ; how much more shall our most gracious , and merciful father forgive vs , in what we have offended him . it was fit to have been added , dly ; as a motive , upon the same grounds , to assure us , that if we truly repent of our sins , and beg of god the forgiveness of them , god will certainly remit them to us. it was fit to have been added , dly ; to put us continually in mind of the necessity we lie under to forgive injuries , and to engage us readily , and heartily so to do : considering that till we have done it , we cannot pray to god for his forgiveness ; and that if we do not do it sincerely , god will certainly find it out : and tho' by pretending a reconciliation where really it is not , we may delude men , yet we cannot possibly deceive god. q. what think you of those , who say their lord's prayer , and yet either continue at variance with their neighbour ; or at least do not truly , and from their hearts , forgive him ? a. i think that they . do not pray for pardon , but for vengeance : they imprecate the wrath of god upon their own heads ; and do , in reality , pray after this desperate manner . thou , o god! hast commanded me to forgive my brother his trespasses : thou hast declared that unless i do so , thou wilt not forgive me my sins . well ; let what will come , i am resolved to stand to the hazard of it . i will not forgive , nor be reconciled to my brother ; do thou deal as thou pleasest with me. sect . xl. q. what is the last petition of this prayer ? a. and lead us not into temptation , but deliver us from evil. q. what is meant by temptation ? a. it , in general , signifies no more than trial ; and may be taken in an indifferent , or even in a good sense , to denote any occasion of proving , and experimenting a man's faith , or obedience . so god tempted abraham : gen. xxii . . but it is more usually taken in an ill sense ; to denote such a trial , as is designed to seduce , and lead us into sin. so the devil tempts us : gal. vi.i. thes. iii. . heb. ii . . so every man is tempted by his own lusts ; jam. i. . so god tempteth no man : jam. i. . q. what is the evil which you here pray against ? a. that also may be taken in a double sense ; and signifie either an evil person , or an evil thing . in the former it may respect all wicked men , but especially the wicked one , the tempter . in the latter , not so much the evil of sin its self , as the evil of temptation , to which is seems most properly to refer . q. what then is the full import of this petition ? a. i therein desire , that god would neither try me himself beyond my strength , nor suffer the devil , the world , or my own flesh to do it . that , if it be his will , i may not be exposed to any great temptations at all : but if for any ends of his wise providence he shall think fit to † suffer me to be tempted ; that then he would be pleased * graciously to strengthen , and support me in my temptations , and carry me with innocence , and integrity , through them ; and not suffer me to be led into sin by them. sect . xli . q. what does the last part of this prayer consist of ? a. a doxology , or conclusion : for thine is the kingdom , and the power , and the glory , for ever , and ever . amen . q. what do you mean by a doxology ? a. a form of giving glory , and praise , and honour to god. q. why was this doxology here added by our saviour ? a. to shew us that all the religious service we pay to god ; whether we pray , confess , give thanks , or whatever we do , still we ought to design it all to his glory . it was also added to keep up in our minds a due sense of the reason we have both to pray to god for all the things we have before consider'd ; and to expect a suitable return of them at his hands . q. how does this doxology shew , that we ought to ask these things of god ? a. very plainly : for because god is king of all the world , therefore he ought to be apply'd to by all his creatures . because his is the power ; he is able both to hear , and answer our requests ; and therefore of him it is most fit to desire whatsoever we stand in need of . because his is the glory , of all our religious invocation ; ( 't is a worship that peculiarly belongs to god , as distinguish'd from the creature ; ) therefore to him only ought we to make our prayers , and not to any other . q. how does this doxology encourage us to hope that we shall receive what we ask of god ? a. because we do hereby profess to believe that he can grant what we desire ; and the things we ask are so much for his own glory , as well as our advantage , that we ought not to doubt but that we shall receive them from him. q. after what manner do we acknowledge these excellencies to be in god ? a. in a super-eminent manner , beyond what they are , or can be , in any one besides . others may have authority ; but as derived from him , who only is the supreme king over all the earth . others may have power , but god only is almighty . others may have glory ; a majesty suitable to their station , and character in the world. but to god only belongs the excellency of divine honour , and worship . to him only is prayer , and religious invocation to be made : he only is either capable of it , or can pretend any right to it . q. why do you to this doxology add , for ever and ever . a. to shew that these divine perfections , and prerogatives did always belong to god ; and will always continue to belong , in this singular manner , to him. q. what does amen import ? a. it is a word of wish , and approbation ; and denotes our assent to that to which it is subjoin'd , with an earnest desire of its accomplishment . so that putting its several significations together , it is as much as if we should say ; god of his goodness grant what i have here pray'd for ; and so i trust he will do , of his mercy towards me , through jesus christ our saviour . sect . xlii . q. what is the other means appointed by god for the conveyance of his grace to us ; and to confirm to us his promises , in christ jesus ? a. the worthy participation of the holy sacraments ? q. what mean you by this word sacrament ? a. i mean an outward and uisible sign of an inward and spiritual grace , given unto us , and ordained by christ himself , as a means whereby we receive the same , and a pledge to assure us thereof . q how many such sacraments hath christ ordained in his church ? a. two only as generally necessary to salvation ; that is to say , baptism , and the supper of the lord . q. how does it appear that these two are properly sacraments ? a. because the whole nature of a sacrament , as before described , does belong to them . for , st . there is in both these an outward and visible sign ; viz. water , in baptism ; bread and wine , in the lord's supper . dly . there is an inward and spiritual grace , both signified , and conveyed , by these signs . the washing of regeneration , tit. iii. . by the one ; the body and blood of christ by the other . cor. x. . dly . there is for both a divine institution . for baptism , mat. xxviii . . go ye and teach all nations , baptizing them in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost . for the lord's supper ; luk. xxii . . this do in remembrance of me. see cor. xi . , . thly . they were both ordain'd as a means whereby to convey their several graces to us , and as a pledge to assure vs of them . baptism to regenerate us ; jo. iii. . tit. iii. . the lord's supper to communicate to us the body , and blood , of christ : cor. x. . for which reason , lastly ; they are generally necessary to salvation . all christians have a right to them ; nor may any , without hazard of missing of these graces , refuse to use them , who have the opportunity of being made partakers of them . jo. iii. . except a man be born of water , and of the spirit , he cannot enter into the kingdom of heaven . cor. xi . . this do in remembrance of me. q. are these all the sacraments that any christians receive , as establish'd by christ ? a. the church of rome to these adds five more ; tho' they cannot say that they are all of christ's institution ; viz. confirmation : penance : extreme-vnction : orders : and matrimony . q. how does it appear that these are not truly sacraments ? a. because not one of them hath all the conditions required to make a sacrament , and the most part have hardly any of them. confirmation is , we confess , an apostolical ceremony : as such it is still retain'd , and practised by us. but then it is , at most , but an apostolical ceremony . christ neither ordain'd any such sign ; nor made it either the seal , or means , of conveying any spiritual grace to us. penance ; if publick , is confessedly a part of church-discipline . if private , is only the application of the power of the keys to a particular person , for his comfort , and correction . it has neither any outward sign instituted by christ , nor any inward grace , particularly annex'd to it . indeed if a true penitent receive absolution from his minister , god ratifies the sentence , and forgives the sin. but so god would have done , had neither any confession been made to , or absolution received from , him. and that the sin is forgiven , is owing to the mercy of god , upon the repentance of the sinner ; and not to be ascribed to the priest's sentence . in extreme vnction there is an outward sign , but neither of christ's , nor his apostles , institution . they anointed sick persons for the recovery of their bodily health ; and , in certain cases , advised the elders of the church to be sent for , to do likewise . but as to any spiritual effects , they neither used any such sign themselves , nor recommended it to others : nor is there any the least ground on which to expect any such benefit from the use of it . matrimony , is a holy state , ordain'd by god , and highly to be accounted of by all men. but it neither confers any grace where it is not , nor encreases it , where it is : and therefore is not to be look'd upon as a true , and proper sacrament . ordination , is also a divine institution . by the administration of it authority is given to those who partake of it , to minister in holy things ; which , otherwise , it would not have been lawful for them to do . we do not at all doubt but that the grace of god accompanies this ordinance ; and the discharge of those ministries which are perform'd in consequence of it . but then this grace , is only the blessing of god upon a particular employ ; not such a grace , as is necessary to the making of a sacrament . and it is given to such persons rather for the benefit of others , than for the furtherance of their own salvation . q. how many parts are there in a sacrament ? a. two ; the outward and uisible sign , and the inward and spiritual grace . sect . xliii . q. what is the first sacrament of the new testament ? a. it is baptism . q. what is baptism ? a. it is the sacrament of our new , and spiritual birth , jo. iii. . the seal of our adoption , rom. iv . . and the solemn means of our admission into the communion of the christian church ▪ acts ii . . col. ii . , . by the outward washing whereof , our inward washing from our sins , by the blood , and spirit , of christ , is both clearly exhibited , and certainly sealed to us. rom. iv . . acts ii . . . heb ix . . tit. iii. . q. how is baptism perform'd ? a. by dipping in ; pouring on of ; or sprinkling with water ; in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost . q. in which of these was this sacrament administred at the beginning ? a. to aged , and healthful persons , in that hot country in which our saviour lived , it was for the most part administred by dipping , or plunging , the person who was baptized , into the water : according to the common ceremony among the jews , of receiving proselytes with the very same ceremony ; and from which our saviour seems to have taken occasion to institute this sacrament . q. were any baptized otherwise at the beginning ? a. it cannot be doubted but that as all who embraced the gospel were baptized , so many of these could not be dipped in water . such were very old , and sick persons ; and it may be all , at the first ; when three , and five thousand at a time , believed , and were baptized ; very likely in a private house ; acts ii . . acts iv . . where it would have been very difficult to have had water enough , and endless , to have dipped them all . q. what are the necessary parts of this sacrament ? a. water , and the word : the one to represent our spiritual washing , and cleansing , by the blood of christ ; the other to declare the faith into which we are baptized , and by which we hope to be saved ; namely , of god the father , the son , and the holy ghost . q. how came the custom of dipping , to be so universally left off in the church ? a. chiefly upon the ground of charity ; because when the gospel became every where received , and the persons to be baptized were the children of believing parents ; many of which ( in these cold countries , and for a great part of the year ) could not be dipped in water without the hazard of their lives ; it was necessary either to sprinkle them only with water , or not to baptize them at all . q. what ground had the church to admit of sprinkling , as sufficient to answer the design of this sacrament ? a. the example of the purifications under the law , which were made as well by sprinklings , as washings : heb. ix . , . the application of this made by st. paul , to the spiritual cleansing of us from our sins : heb. x. , . and by st. peter to the same purpose : pet. i. . the analogy between the sprinkling of the water in baptism , and that sprinkling of the blood of christ , by which we are cleansed from our sins : all these , as they left a sufficient latitude to the church to administer this sacrament , in any of these ways ; so the law of charity required that the church should make choice of sprinkling , rather than of a total immersion ; and we cannot doubt , but that the god of charity does approve of it . mat. ix . . sect . xliv . you said , that in every sacrament there were two parts , an outward , and visible sign , and an inward and spiritual grace : tell me therefore ; q. what is the outward uisible sign , or form in baptism ? a. water wherein the person is baptized , in the name of the father , and of the son , and of the holy ghost . q. is this element so necessary a part of this sacrament , that the church may in no case depart from it ? a. it is of divine institution , and was designed to denote our spiritual cleansing by christ's blood : that as our bodies are wash'd with , and cleansed from their pollutions , by water ; so are our souls purified from sin by the blood of christ : and for both these reasons it is a necessary , and immutable part , of this holy sacrament . q. is the form of baptism necessary to the administration of this sacrament ? a. it is necessary ; nor can this sacrament be duly administred by any other . q. was no other form ever used in the apostle's times ? a. it is indeed said of some in those times , who had been jewish converts , or had received john's baptism , that they were baptized in the name of the lord jesus . but this does not hinder but that they may have been baptized ( as no doubt they were ) in the words appointed by christ for that purpose . all it implies is , that they were baptized into the faith , and gospel of christ ; as by comparing the passages of scripture together , it will evidently appear . see act. viii . . x. . xix . . rom. vi . . gal. iii. . q. are then the words appointed by christ so necessary , that to use any other , will destroy the efficacy of this sacrament ? a. that i dot say : for as persons of all countries are to be baptized , so , no doubt , but the form of words may be translated into the language of every country ; and baptism be effectually administred , so long as the sense is preserved . that which we insist upon is , that every person who is baptized , ought to be baptized in the name , as well as to profess the faith of , the father , son , and holy ghost . q. what is the inward or spiritual grace , of this sacrament ? a. a death unto sin , and a new-birth unto righteousness ; for heing by nature born in sin , and the children of wrath , we are hereby made the children of grace . q. are all men , by nature , born in sin ? a. they are , ever since that by the transgression of our first parents sin entred into the world : nor was ever any exempt from this unhappy state , but he only who knew no sin , the lord christ jesus . q. are all men , by nature , children of wrath ? a. being born in sin , they must of necessity be also children of wrath : seeing all sin is both hateful to god , and worthy of his punishment . q. have the children of believing parents , in this case , no privilege above others ? a. yes , they have : for being descended from those who are members of christ's church , they are born within the covenant ; are the heirs of god's promises ; and have a right to baptism , as the children of the jews had to circumcision . and therefore should they chance to die before they have received it , yet this being no fault of theirs , we piously believe that it shall be no barr to their pretensions ; but that they shall nevertheless be saved , by the merits of jesus christ. q. how are those who are baptized , made thereby children of grace ? a. as by baptism they are taken into covenant with god ; are regenerated by the holy spirit ; and wash'd from their sins by the blood of christ : so that should they die before they commit any actual sin , we are assured , by god's word , that they shall certainly be saved . q. are all who are baptized made partakers of these benefits ? a. they are all thereby put into a state of salvation , and become children of grace . but those only continue in this state , and hold fast their right to these benefits , who take care to live according to the gospel of christ ; and to fulfil those promises , which either themselves made ; or which were , by others , made in their name , and on their behalf , at their baptism . sect . xlv . q. what is required of persons to be baptized ? a. repentance , whereby they forsake sin ; and faith , whereby they stedfastly believe the promises of god made to them in that sacrament . q. what repentance is required to prepare any person for baptism ? a. the same which is required to qualify a man for god's forgiveness after baptism . for baptism , if duly received , washes away all sin : and therefore no one can worthily come to it , who does not heartily repent of all his sins ; and firmly resolve never more to return to any . act. ii . , . iii. . viii . . q. what is the faith which every one ought to bring to this sacrament ? a. a firm belief of the truth of the whole christian religion ; but more especially , of all those articles of it , which he solemnly , at his baptism , is to profess his belief of to the church . act. viii . . q. if such a repentance , and such a faith , be required of all who are baptized , how come infants to be baptized , who by reason of their tender age cannot perform either of them ? a. because they promise them both by their sureties , which promise when they come to age themselves are bound to perform . q. are not actual faith , and repentance , required of those who are to be baptized ? a. yes , if they be persons capable of it : otherwise it is sufficient that they be obliged to believe , and repent , as soon as they shall be capable of so doing . q. how can any one promise this for another ? a. upon a supposition of charity : that as children are born of christian parents , and under a security of being bred up to a sense of their duty , and the knowledge of the true religion ; and of the infinite obligations that lie upon them , to repent , and believe ; so they will take care ( by god's help ) so to order both their faith , and manners , as their interest , as well as duty , requires them to do . q. but what if they should not fulfil , what has been promised in their names ? a. in that case , the covenant made on their behalf will be void : and so by not fulfilling what was promised for them , they will lose all those blessings , which god would otherwise have been obliged to bestow upon them. q. would it not be more reasonable to tarry till persons are grown up , and so in a condition to make the covenant themselves , before they were permitted to be baptized ? a. we are not to consider what we think best , but what god has directed us to do . now god expresly order'd the children of the jews to be admitted into covenant with him , at eight days old. into the place of circumcision , baptism has succeeded ; as the gospel has into the place of the law. there is therefore the same reason why our children should , from the beginning , be admitted into the christian ; as why the jews children should have been entred into the legal covenant . our infants are as capable of covenanting , as theirs were : and if god thought fit to receive them ; and did not account the incapacity which their age put them under , any bar to hinder them from circumcision ; neither ought we to think the same defect , any sufficient obstacle to keep our infants from being baptized . sect . xlvi . q. what is the other sacrament of the new testament ? a. the sacrament of the lord's supper . q. why do you call it the lord's supper ? a. because it was both instituted by our lord at supper , and was designed to succeed into the place of the paschal supper among the jews . q. ought this sacrament to be administred only at the time of supper ? a. that is not necessary , any more than that we should be obliged to eat our own supper before it ; that we should celebrate it only once a year ; in an vpper room ; in an eating posture ; and the like . our saviour took that occasion , and that season , for the institution of it ; but he did not intend thereby to oblige us to celebrate it in all the exact circumstances of time , place , posture , &c. that occurr'd in his own administration of it . q. why was the sacrament of the lord's supper ordain'd ? a. for the continual remembrance of the sacrifice of the death of christ , and of the benefits which we receive thereby . q. what do you mean by a continual remembrance ? a. a remembrance that is not to determine after a certain time , as the paschal supper did ; but is to continue to be kept up by this holy sacrament , to the very end of the world. q. is there any thing more intimated by that expression ? a. yes , there is ; namely , that this sacrament ought not to be celebrated only once in the year , as the passover was ; but to be administred from time to time , so as to keep up a constant , lively remembrance , in our minds , of the sacrifice of the death of christ. q. wherefore do you call it the sacrifice of christ's death ? a. because christ , by his dying , became an an expiatory sacrifice for the sins of mankind . q. did christ then suffer death for the forgiveness of our sins ? a. he did : he took upon him our sins , and died for them ; that by his death we might be free'd , both from the guilt , and punishment of them . q. was it necessary that christ should die , in order to his being such a sacrifice ? a. it was necessary ; for without shedding of blood there is no remission : heb. ix . . and death being the punishment of sin , he could no otherwise have free'd us from death , than by dying himself in our stead . q. can christ any more suffer , or die , now , since his rising from the dead ? a. no , st. paul expresly tells us that he cannot ; rom. vi . , . christ being raised from the dead dieth no more ; death hath no more dominion over him . for in that he died , he died unto sin once , but in that he liveth , he liveth unto god. q. how then do those of the church of rome say , that he is again offer'd for us , as a true , and proper sacrifice in this holy sacrament ? a. this sacrament is not a renewal , or repetition , of christ's sacrifice ; but only a solemn memorial , and exhibition of it . to talk of an expiatory sacrifice for sin , without suffering , is not only contrary to scripture , but is in the nature of the thing its self absurd , and unreasonable : every sacrifice being put in the place of the person for whom it is offer'd ; and to be treated so , as that person , in rigour , ought to have been , had not god admitted of a sacrifice in his stead . and therefore the apostle , from hence , concludes , that christ could not be more than once offer'd , because he could but once suffer . but to suppose that christ , in his present glorified state , can suffer , is such a contradiction to all the principles of our religion , that the papists themselves are ashamed to assert it . q. what think you of the sacrifice , as they call it , of the mass ? a. we do not deny but that , in a large sense , this sacrament may be called a sacrifice ; as the bread and wine , may be called the body and blood of christ. but that this sacrament should be a true , and proper sacrifice , as they define the sacrifice of the mass to be , it is altogether false , and impious to assert . q. what was then the design of our saviour , in this institution ? a. to leave to his church a perpetual , solemn , and sacred memorial of his death for us. that as often as we come to the lord's table , and there join in the celebration of this holy sacrament , we might be moved , by what is there done , at once both to call to our remembrance all the passages of his passion ; ( to consider him as there set forth crucified before our eyes ; ) and to meditate upon the love of christ thus dying for us , and upon the mighty benefits , and advantages , which have accrued to us thereby . sect . xlvii . q. you before said , that in every sacrament there must be two parts , an outward , and an inward : what is therefore the outward part , or sign of the lord's supper ? a. bread and wine , which the lord hath commanded to be received . q. did christ institute this sacrament in both these ? a. yes , he did : he first took bread , gave thanks , and brake it ; saying , take , eat , this is my body which is broken for you , this do in remembrance of me . and then ; after the same manner he took the cup , saying , this cup is the new testament in my blood ; this do ye , as oft as ye drink it , in remembrance of me . cor. xi . , . q. for what end did christ appoint these outward signs of this sacrament ? a. the words of his institution plainly shew it ; that those who celebrate this sacrament , might eat of the one , and drink of the other , at his table . q. is it necessary for all those who join in this holy sacrament , both to eat of that bread , and to drink of that cup ? a. it is so necessary that they cannot , without violating our saviour's institution , come to to the holy table , unless they do it . for christ appointed both to be taken ; and he who takes not the cup , as well as bread , does not communicate in christ's body , and blood , at all . q. may not a person who only looks on , and sees the priest officiate , commemorate christ's death , and meditate upon the benefits of it , as well as if he received the elements of bread , and wine ? a. i will answer your question with another : may not a person who is not baptized , when he sees that holy sacrament administred , be truly penitent for his sins , and believe in christ ; and desire to be regenerated , and adopted into the communion of his church ; as fully as if he were himself wash'd with the water of baptism ? but yet the bare looking on , in this case , would not intitule such a one to the grace of regeneration ; nor will it any more intitule the other , to the communion of christ's body and blood. in all these cases , the question is not what we think we might do , but what christ has commanded us to do : and we must observe what he requires , if ever we mean to be made partakers of what he promises . now that in the present instance is not idly to look on ; but to do this ; i. e. to eat this bread , and drink of this cup , in remembrance of him. q. do you think it necessary that every communicant should receive this sacrament in both kinds ? a. i do think it necessary ; for so our saviour has appointed it . thus he gave it to his disciples , and thus they received it at his hands . q. but his disciples were priests , and therefore their receiving this sacrament in both kinds , does not argue , that it is necessary for the people to do likewise ? a. whether all who were then present at the table with our saviour were priests , is very uncertain . the blessed virgin , we are sure , was at that time at jerusalem ; and , no doubt , did eat the passover , according to the law , with him ; yet she was certainly but a lay communicant . and many others , for ought we know , there might be in the same circumstances . but not to insist upon this ; our saviour made no distinction between priests , and lay communicants , as to the business of receiving of this sacrament in one , or both kinds . he gave both the bread , and wine , himself , to all that were at the table ; and he has left a general commandment to us to do likewise . and his words , and his action together , evidently require this of all of us : that those who administer this sacrament , should administer it as christ did ; and those who receive it , should receive it as the disciples did of him. q. do you then make no distinction between the priests , and the people , in what concerns this holy sacrament ? a. as to the manner of receiving it , none at all . when those who are priests receive this sacrament of another priest , it is as when they hear the word preach'd : they do it not as priests , but as christians . and therefore at the institution of this sacrament , our saviour christ alone acted as a priest : he resembled the ministers of his church ; the disciples represented the faithful ; who were afterwards to receive the sacrament from the ministers of the church , after the very same manner that they received it at christ's hands . q. but is not this sacrament as perfect in one kind , as in both ? a. can a thing be perfect , which wants one half of what is required to make it perfect ? q. yet it cannot be deny'd , but that he who receives the body of christ , does therewith receive the blood too ? a. though that be not the question , yet if not only may be , but , in this case , is , absolutely deny'd by us ; nor indeed can it , without a manifest absurdity be affirm'd . it was the design of our saviour christ in this sacrament to represent his crucified body ; his body as it was given for vs. now we know that when he suffer'd , his blood was shed , and let out of his body ; and that to represent his blood thus separated from his body , the cup was consecrated apart by him. and how then can it be pretended that he who communicates in such a body , must partake of the blood together with it ? but this is not our business ; the points which we insist upon are these : first , whether christ having confessedly instituted this sacrament in both kinds , and commanded us to do likewise ; those do not evidently depart from his institution , who give , and receive it , only in one ? and if they do ; then , secondly , whether they have any reason to expect to be made partakers of the benefits of this holy communion , who do not receive it after such a manner , as christ has commanded us to do ? q. did the apostles give the cup to the lay communicants in their churches ? a. yes , certainly ; or else st. paul would never have argued with the corinthians against communicating with idolaters as he does , cor. x. , &c. i speak as to wise men , judge ye what i say . the cvp of blessing which we bless , is it not the communion of the body of christ ? — ye cannot drink the cvp of the lord , and the cup of devils . nor have spoken of this sacrament , as he does in the next chapter : ver. , , , . in every one of which , he takes notice of their drinking of the sacramental cvp , as well as of their eating of the sacramental bread. q. what then do you think of those of the church of rome , who deny the cup to the laity ? a. as of a most presumptuous sort of men , who sacrilegiously deprive the people of what christ has given them a right to . q. do you think this change so considerable , as to warrant you to break off communion with that church which has made it ? a. no one can with a good conscience receive this holy sacrament after any other manner , than christ has ordain'd it to be received . if therefore the church of rome shall obstinately refuse to give it to the lay communicant in both kinds , he is bound in conscience not to receive it of her priests at all : but to go to those who are ready to distribute it to them in the same integrity , in which it was first instituted by our blessed lord. sect . xlviii . q. what is the inward part , or thing signified , in this holy sacrament ? a. the body and blood of christ , which are verily , and indeed , taken and received by the faithful in the lord's supper . q. are the body , and blood of christ , really distributed to every communicant , in this sacrament ? a. no , they are not ; for then every communicant , howsoever prepared , or not , for it ; would alike receive christ's body , and blood , as to its substance , there . that which is given by the priest to the communicant , is , as to its nature , the same after consecration , that it was before ; viz. bread , and wine : only alter'd as to its vse , and signification . q. if the body and blood of christ , be not really given and distributed by the priest , how can they be verily and indeed taken , and received , by the faithful communicant ? a. that which is given by the priest is , as to its substance , bread , and wine : as to its sacramental nature , and signification , it is the figure , or representation , of christ's body , and blood ; which was broken , and shed for us. the very body , and blood of christ , as yet , it is not . but being with faith , and piety , recieved by the communicant , it becomes to him , by the blessing of god , and the grace of the holy spirit , the very body , and blood of christ : as to those who come unworthily to it ; it is made damnation ; that is , it renders them worthy of it , and , without repentance , will certainly consign them over unto it . q. how does the bread , and wine , become to the faithful , and worthy communicant , the very body and blood of christ ? a. as it intitules him to a part in the sacrifice of his death , and to the benefits thereby procured to all his faithful , and obedient servants . q. how does every such communicant take , and receive , the body and blood of christ , in this sacrament ? a. by faith : and by means whereof he is as truly intituled to a part in christ's sacrifice , by receiving the sacramental bread , and wine , which is there deliver'd to him ; as any man is intituled to an estate , by receiving a deed of conveyance from one who has a power to surrender it to his use. q. what are the benefits whereof those , who thus receive this holy sacrament , are made partakers thereby ? a. the strengthning and refreshing of their souls by the body and blood of christ , as their bodies are by the bread and wine . q. how does such a receiving of this holy sacrament strengthen our souls ? a. as it adds a new confirmation to us , every time we receive it , of god's mercy towards us , through the sacrifice of jesus christ ; and thereby fortifies , and corroborates us , more and more , both in the discharge of our duty ; and to a resistance of all such temptations , as may be likely to draw us away from it . q. does it strengthen us in any other respect besides this ? a. yes , it does : for being thus secured of a right to christ's sacrifice for us , we are thereby fortified against all doubts , and fears , of our salvation ; are confirm'd against the apprehension of any present dangers , or sufferings , which we shall reckon not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in vs : and , finally , are strengthned against the fear of death its self , which we are hereby taught to look upon as a passage only to a most blessed , and everlasting state. sect . xlix . q. is this the only way in which you suppose christ's body , and blood , to be really present in this sacrament ? a. it is the only way in which i conceive it possible for them to be present there . as for his divine nature , that being infinite , he is by virtue thereof every where present . but in his humane nature , especially his body , he is in heaven only ; nor can that be any otherwise present to us on earth , than by figure , and representation ; or else by such a communion , as i have before been speaking of . q. does not christ expresly say , that the bread is his body ; the cup his blood ? a. he does say of the bread , and wine , so taken , blessed , broken , and given , as they were by him in that sacred action , that this is my body , &c. and so they are . the bread which we break , is not only in figure , and similitude , but by a real , spiritual communion , his body : the cup of blessing which we bless , is , by the same communion , his blood. but this does not hinder but that , as to their own natural substances , they may , and indeed do , still continue to be what they appear to us , the same bread , and wine , that before they were . q. what think you of those who believe the very elements of bread and wine , ( by the words of christ ) to be really changed into the body and blood of christ ; and to have nothing of their own remaining but the meer appearance , or species , of what they were before ? a. if any really do believe this , i think they contradict both sense , reason , and scripture , in so doing . q. do you suppose that we ought to judge of a thing of this nature by our senses ? a. i know no other way of judging of sensible objects , but by our senses . and if i must not believe what i see , and taste , and smell , to be bread , and wine ; to be truly bread , and wine ; i must resolve to turn sceptick , and not believe any thing at all . q. is not the word of god to be more rely'd upon , than our own senses ? a. i do not at all doubt but that we ought , without all controversy , to believe whatever the word of god proposes to us. but where does the word of god require me to believe any thing in opposition to my senses , which it is the proper business of my senses to judge of ? q. does not the word of god say , this is my body ? a. it does say so of the bread , so blessed , given , and received , as it ought to be , in this sacrament : and accordingly i believe that it is so . but does the word of god any where say , that it is not bread ? or that i am not to believe it to be bread , though my senses never so evidently assure me that it is ? q. can the same thing be christ's body , and bread , too ? a. i have before shewn you not only that it may be so , but that it truly , and really , is so : bread , in substance ; the body of christ , by signification ; by representation ; and spiritual communication , of his crucified body , to every faithful , and worthy receiver . q. how is transubstantiation contrary to our reason ? a. as my reason tells me it is a contradiction to say of one and the same natural body , that it should be in heaven , and on earth ; at london , and at rome , at the same time . that it should be a true humane body , and and yet not have any one part , or member , of such a body : to omit a hundred other absurdities , that are the necessary consequences of such a belief . q. how does the scripture contradict this belief ? a. as it tells us , that christ's body is in heaven ; absent from us : that there it is to continue till the day of judgment . that he has now a glorified body , and is not capable of dying any more : whereas the body we receive , in this holy sacrament , is his crucified body ; his body given for us ; his blood shed for us ; which can never be verified in his present glorified body . q. do not those who believe transubstantiation , believe the bread and wine to be changed into christ's mortal , and passible body ? a. no , they do not ; but into that body in which he now sits at the right-hand of god in heaven . q. how then does their belief of transubstantiation contradict the sense of the holy scriptures , as to what concerns the nature of christ's body in the eucharist ? a. because by supposing christ's glorified body to be that which we receive in this sacrament , they utterly destroy the very nature of it . it was the design of this sacrament , to exhibite , and communicate to us , the body and blood of christ , not any way , but in the state of his suffering ; as he was given for vs , and became a sacrifice for our sins . now this he neither was , nor could have been , in his present , glorified estate . so that if the body , and blood of christ , be in this sacrament , it must be not that which he now has in heaven , but that which he then had when he suffer'd for us upon earth ; and they must not only bring christ down from above , but must bring him back again to his mortal , and passible estate ; or they will never be able to make good any such change as they pretend to ; and that , i think , is sufficiently contrary to scripture , as well as in the nature of the thing its self impossible . sect . l. q. what have been the ill effects of this errour ? a. chiefly those two which i before mentioned ; that it introduced the doctrines of the mass sacrifice , and of the half communion ; to which may be added , thirdly , the adoration of the host. q. what do you call the host ? a. it is the wafer which those of the church of rome make use of , instead of bread , in this sacrament . q. do those of that church adore the consecrated wafer ? a. they do , and that as if it were really , what they pretend to believe that it is ; our saviour christ himself . q. is there any great harm in such a worship ? a. only the sin of idolatry : for so it must needs be , to give divine worship to a piece of bread. q. ought not christ to be adored in the sacrament ? a. christ is every where to be adored ; and therefore in the receiving of the holy communion , as well as in all our other religious performances . q. how can it then be sinful for those who believe the bread to be changed into the body of christ , upon that supposition , to worship the host ? a. as well as for a heathen who takes the sun to be god , upon that supposition , to worship the sun. q. but he intends to worship christ , and that can never be justly said to be idolatry ? a. and so the other intends to worship god : but to put another case , which may more easily be understood . if a man will , in defiance of sense , and reason , believe a post to be his father , and , upon that supposition , ask blessing of a post ; does his opinion , or rather his madness , alter the nature of things , and make him ever the less ask blessing of a post , because he takes it to be his father . the papist will needs have a piece of bread to be christ's body ; and , upon that presumption , he pays divine honour to it : does he ever the less give divine honour to a piece of bread , because he fancies that bread to be the body of christ ? q. will not his intention direct his action aright ? a. no , it will not : or if it would , his very intention it self is wrong . for his intention is to adore the host. 't is true , he believes it to be christ's body ; and therefore adores it : but still , right or wrong , the host he adores ; which being in reality no more than bread , he must needs commit idolatry in adoring of it . sect . li. q. what is required of them who come to the lord's supper ? a. to examine themselves , &c. q. when ought such an examination to be made ? a. it were much to be wish'd , that men would be perswaded to live under the constant practice of it ; and consider every week , or indeed every day , how their accounts stand towards god. but , at least , if they neglect it at other times , yet certainly they ought to do this very nicely , and scrupulously , before they come to the holy communion . q. how must this examination be perform'd ? a. by a careful , and diligent search into our lives , and actions ; that so we may , if possible , know what the true state of our souls is , in all those particulars concerning which we are here directed to examine our selves . and this accompanied with earnest prayer to god , for his assistance in , and blessing upon , our endeavours . q. what is the first point concerning which we are to examine our selves ? a. whether we repent us truly of our former sins , stedfastly purposing to lead a new life . q. how may we know whether we do this , so effectually as we are here required to do ? a. we can only judge by the present frame , and disposition , of our souls . if we are heartily sorry for , and ashamed of our sins : if we earnestly desire god's forgiveness of them : if we are instant with god in our prayers for pardon ; and where we have done any injury to our neighbour , are ready to ask his forgiveness also , and to make all reasonable satisfaction to him ; if , lastly , as far as we can judge of our selves , we do all this uprightly , and sincerely : if we reserve no secret affection for any sin in our souls , but universally resolve to forsake all our evil ways ; and in every thing to follow the rules of our duty ; we may , i think , justly conclude , that our repentance , and resolutions , are hearty , and without deceit ; and , as such , will qualify us for the worthy receiving of this holy sacrament . q. but what , if after all this , we should relapse into sin again ? a. if we do it by surprise , or infirmity ; if we fall back only into some lesser sins , and such as will hardly be altogether to be avoided by us in this present life ; we ought not to be discouraged . but , indeed , if after this we fall into the commission of some heinous , deliberate , wasting sin ; but especially should we relapse into a habit and course of such sins ; this would be of a dangerous consequence to us ; and make our last state worse than our first . q. would it not therefore be the safest way , rather to abstain altogether from the holy table , than to run the hazard of coming vnworthily to it . a. were it a matter of indifference whether we ever received this sacrament , or no , this might the more reasonably be insisted upon ; but as the case now stands , is altogether idle , and absurd . for , first , to come to the holy table is a matter of express duty ; what christ has commanded us to do ; and it is equally dangerous not to come at all , as it is to come vnworthily , to it . secondly , by not coming , we deprive our selves of the grace of god , which this sacrament was designed to convey to us ; and in that , of the greatest benefit , as well as comfort , to our souls , in the course of our duty , that our religion has provided for them . to all which , let me add , thirdly , that the shortness , and uncertainty of our lives , being consider'd , we ought , upon that account , to make the same preparation against the hour of our death , that we are required to do , for coming to the holy table . and since men are so very apt to put both the thoughts of death , and their provision for it so far off ; it is an instance of the great mercy and concern of our saviour christ for us , that by calling us frequently to his table , and requiring so strict a preparation for it ; he has engaged us to put our souls into such a posture , upon that account , as will fit them for dying ; should we chance , e're we are aware , to be surprized by death . q. what is the next thing wherein we are to examine our selves , before we come to the holy communion ? a. whether we have a lively faith in god's mercy through christ ; i. e. do stedfastly believe , that if we do truly repent us of our sins , god will not only most certainly forgive them ; but , as an earnest of it , does here , in this very sacrament , ratify , and seal anew his covenant with us ; and make us partakers of the benefit of that redemption , which our blessed saviour purchased for us , by the sacrifice of his own body and blood. q. what is the next particular upon which we are to examine our selves , before we come to the holy communion . a. whether we come to it , with a thankful remembrance of christ's death ; which is therein design'd to be set forth , and shewn by us. whether we are sufficiently sensible of the infinite love of god , and condescension of jesus christ , hereby declared to us ? whether we are careful always to keep up in our minds , a lively memory of his death , and passion ? and do , by the sincerity of our love to god , and the zeal we have for our duty , endeavour , in some measure , to testify how hearty a sense we have of those unspeakable mercies which he has been pleased thereby to favour us withal . q. what is the last thing concerning which we are to examine our selves . a. whether we are in charity with all men ? whether we do not only freely forgive whatsoever injuries any may chance to have done us , but are so intirely friends with them , as to be ready to do them all the kindness we can ; and that as truly , and heartily , as if they had never offended us , or otherwise done us the least injury . q. is this all that is required of us , before we come to the lord's supper ? a. other exercises there are , which may profitably be made use of by us , in order to our better performance of those duties we have before mentioned . such are , some extraordinary acts of prayer and devotion : a retirement from the business , and conversation , of the world ; but especially from the follies , and vanities of it . and these accompanied with some acts of prayer , and mortification , whilst we are making the examination of our selves before proposed . but these must be govern'd by the rules of prudence ; as every man's business ; opportunities ; needs ; state of health , and the like circumstances , either require , or will allow of . q. is such a preparatory examination of our selves , so necessary before we come to the holy table , that we may , in no case , presume to come without it ? a. no , it is not : those who live in a strict , and regular course of life , and have nothing extraordinary happen'd to . them , as they always know what their state towards god is , so are they always ready to receive this holy sacrament ; and need not be afraid to partake of it , because they had not the opportunity of making a particular , previous preparation of themselves for it . yet , if even these should design to go , at a certain time ( before known ) to the communion , they not only piously may , but in duty ought , to do somewhat of this kind , in order to their going with the better dispositions to it . q. what if by this means , a good christian should not be able fully to satisfy himself , concerning his worthiness to go to the holy table ? a. in that case he ought to consider what it is that puts him in doubt of it ; and having so done , let him take the advice of some person whom he can rely upon , but especially of his minister , about it : that so being free'd from his scruples , he may go with a quiet mind , and a full perswasion of conscience , to this spiritual feast ; and certainly receive the benefits of it . q. what if it shall appear that he is not in a state of going worthily to this sacrament ? a. he must , for the present , refrain from it ; and make all the haste he can to remove the impediment , and reconcile himself to god ; that so he may be in a condition both to come worthily to it ; and to be made partaker of those graces , which are thereby communicated to every faithful receiver of it . sect . lii . q. is there any thing yet farther required of those who come to the lord's supper ? a. yes , there is ; namely , that they be first confirm'd by the bishop : it being ordain'd by the church , that none shall be admitted to the holy communion until such time as he be confirm'd , or ready , and desirous , to be confirmed . q. what do you mean by confirmation ? a. i mean the solemn laying on of the hands of the bishop , upon such as have been baptized , and are come to years of discretion . q. how is this performed among us ? a. it is directed to be done after a very wise , and solemn manner . for , first , the bishop having given notice to the minister of his intention to confirm , and appointed a time for the doing of it ; the minister is to call together such of his parish , as are come to years of discretion , and have not yet been confirmed ; and to examine them in their church-catechism , and to prepare as many as he can for the bishop to confirm . secondly , having done this , he is either to bring , or send in writing , with his hand subscribed thereunto , the names of , all such persons , within his parish , as he shall think fit to be presented to the bishop to be confirm'd . these being approved of by the bishop , are brought openly into the church , and required by the bishop , in the presence of god , and the congregation there assembled , to renew the solemn vow , and promise , which was made in their names , at their baptism ; and , in their own persons , to ratify and confirm the same ; acknowledging themselves bound to believe , and do , all those things which their godfathers and godmothers then undertook for them . which having done , the bishop heartily prays to god for his grace to enable them to fulfil this their vow ; and laying his hand severally on every one's head , beseeches god to defend this his servant with his heavenly grace , that he may continue his for ever ; and daily increase in his holy spirit more and more , until he comes to his everlasting kingdom . to all which are finally added the joint prayers both of the bishop , and the church , to the same effect ; and so the ceremony is ended . q. what are the reasons that chiefly moved the church of england to retain such a ceremony as this ? a. there may several be assigned , but especially these four : * apostolical practice ; * the reasonableness of the thing its self ; * the benefit of it to the person who is confirmed ; and * the satisfaction that arises from hence to the church of christ. q. did the apostles practise such an imposition of hands ? a. the apostles did lay their hands on those who had been baptized ; and by their imposition of hands , such persons did receive the holy ghost . acts viii . . xix . . q. does the bishop give the holy ghost now , as the apostles did , by their imposition of hands ? a. that we do not say ; nor did the apostles themselves do it . they laid on their hands , and god gave his holy spirit to those on whom they laid them . and we piously presume , that by the fervent prayers of the bishop , and the church , those on whom he now lays his hands , shall also receive the holy ghost , if they do but worthily prepare themselves for it . q. is there any promise of god on which to build such a hope ? a. a general one there is , and such as may in this case , above any , be depended upon by us. for , first , we are directed to pray not only for our selves , but for one another also . to encourage us hereunto , christ has promised us to grant whatsoever is piously ask'd , by the joint suffrages of his church , of him. mat. xviii . . and particularly , has declared , that god will give the holy spirit to them that ask him. luk. xi . . add to this , that it has always been accounted a part of the ministerial office , not only to instruct , but to pray for , and bless their people when therefore the chief pastor of the church , and his congregation , solemnly join together , to beg of god the grace of his holy spirit , in behalf of such persons as these ; ( who have just now been dedicating themselves a-new , to his service ; and ratifying the covenant made between god , and them , at their baptism ; ) how can we chuse but believe , that god will certainly grant their request ; and give his holy spirit to those for whom he is thus earnestly , and solemnly , ask'd of him ? q. from whence does it appear , that such an imposition of hands was reasonable to have been ordain'd , and to be continued , in the church ? a. from the condition of those who are commonly baptized among us ; and who being , for the most part , infants , and so constrain'd to make use of others to become sureties for them at their baptism ; it was certainly very reasonable , that there should be some solemn time appointed , when such persons ( being come to years of discretion ) should themselves ratify their baptismal covenant ; and acknowledge their obligation to believe , and do , what their godfathers , and godmothers , had before promised for them . q. what are the benefits of this institution , to those who are confirmed ? a. besides the benefit of god's grace , which we reasonably presume to be hereby procured to such persons , by the prayers of the bishop , and church , on their behalf ; these two advantages do evidently accrue to them : that , first , they are , by this means , secured of the care of their godfathers , and godmothers , to see that they be duly instructed in the principles of their christian religion ; and in which , were this ordinance strictly observed , they could not be deficient , without being certainly found out , and censured by the church for their neglect . and , secondly , that by being thus solemnly called upon to ratify their baptismal vow , and covenant ; they are engaged to begin betimes , both to consider their duty , and to apply themselves to the serious discharge of it . q. how does this ordinance give a satisfaction to the church of christ , as to these matters ? a as , by this means , care is taken to have all these things openly transacted before it . the person , who perhaps was privately baptized , being now publickly confirmed , in the face of the congregation . the vow , which was made by others in his name ; being here solemnly renew'd , and ratified , by himself . the child , who was baptized by some minister of an inferior order , being now established in the communion of the church , by the chief pastor of it . and , lastly , the godfathers , and godmothers , who became sureties , both for the good instruction , and education , of the person , whom they answer'd for ; being hereby fully acquitted , and discharged , of their trust ; and declared to have faithfully fulfilled , what they had so sacredly promised , and vndertook to do. q. do you look upon all godfathers , and godmothers , to be obliged to see , that those for whom they answer , be first duly instructed in the principles of their religion , and then brought to be confirmed by the bishop ? a. they are certainly obliged , as far as a solemn promise , made in the presence of god , and in a matter not only lawful , but pious , and charitable , can oblige them . nor can i imagine , how any one , who has taken such an obligation upon himself , will ever be able to answer it , either to god , or his own conscience , if he shall neglect to fulfil what he undertook in that behalf . q. what think you of those who come to the lord's supper , without either being confirmed ; or having any desire , or intention , to be confirmed ? a. they are doubtless to be blamed : inasmuch as thereby they not only break the orders , and disobey the command of the church ; which , for such good reasons as we have seen , requires them to be confirmed ; but seem ashamed to own their christian profession ; and to despise the prayers of their bishop for such graces , as they certainly ought to desire ; and cannot reasonably hope , by any more effectual means , to obtain of god , than by a pious , and reverend participation , of this holy ordinance . q. may not the grace of god be obtain'd as well by our own prayers , as by the bishop's imposition of hands upon us ? a. that is not the question : we know that god has promised his holy spirit to every one who faithfully prays for him. but the question is this ; first , whether if a man may obtain this grace by his own prayers alone , he may not expect more certainly to do it , by adding the prayers of the bishop , and the church , to them ? and , secondly , whether he who carelesly neglects , or presumptuously despises the orders of the church ; and the pious provision made by her , for all her members , at their first setting out into the dangers , and temptations , of the world ; may not justly fear , lest god should refuse that grace to his own solitary prayers , for which he neglected , or despised , the prayers of the bishop , and the church , on his behalf ? q. what is required of persons to be confirmed ? a. first , that they be of years of discretion : that is to say , of a capacity to understand the nature of their baptismal covenant . what god therein promises to us ? and what we are thereby obliged to believe , and do , in obedience to his will ? secondly , that they be not only capable of this knowledge ; but be actually instructed in these things . thirdly , that being hereby brought to a clear sense of what was done for them , by their godfathers , and godmothers , at their baptism ; they be now ready , and desirous , in their own persons , to ratify , and confirm the same . and , lastly , that in testimony of their sincere resolutions to make good what they here promise , and vow , they do now truly repent of all their sins , and stedfastly resolve , by the grace of god , to go on in a constant obedience to god's commands , unto their lives end. q. at what times ought such persons to be confirmed ? a. at such times as the bishop appoints for this purpose . only , if it be possible , they should endeavour to be confirmed , and thereby fully take upon themselves the first sacrament ; before they proceed to the participation of the second . q. how often ought any christian to be confirmed ? a. the nature of the office plainly shews it . confirmation , as it is understood , and practised by us , is nothing else but a solemn ratification of our baptismal covenant . now no man ought to be baptized more than once : nor will he therefore need any more than once , to take that covenant upon himself . if after this , he shall fall into any sins , whereby to put himself out of a state of grace ; or even to be cut off from the communion of the church ; there are other means of restoring him again to both , upon his sincere repentance for what he has done amiss . but our baptism must not be repeated ▪ nor will our confirmation therefore need to be , any more , repeated by us. finis . errata . page . l. . for be was , r. was a. p. . l. . r. commandment . p. . l. . for tha● god would , r. both. p. . l. . for to them , r. in them. p. . l. . r. don't . p. . l. . blot out to . borks printed for richard sare , at grays inn gate in holborn . the genuine epistles of st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp , the shepherd of hermas , &c. with a large preliminary discourse . vo . a practical discourse against profane swearing . vo . the authority of christian princes over ecclesiastical synods , in answer to a letter to a convocation man. vo . an appeal to all the true members of the church of england , on behalf of the king's supremacy . vo . a sermon at the dorsetshire feast . . before the queen at whitehall , may . . before the lord mayor , nov. . . at grays inn , on the death of the queen . at st. james's , on the day of thanksgiving . these nine by the reverend dr. wake . fables of aesop , and other eminent mythologists , with morals and reflexions . folio . fables and stories moralized ; ( being a second part of the fables of aesop , and other eminent mythologists , &c. ) folio . both by sir roger l'estrange . mr. collier's view of the stage . his defence . his essays upon several moral subjects . maxims and reflections upon plays ; ( in answer to a discourse printed before a play , called , beauty in distress ; ) written in french by the bishop of meaux ; with an advertisement concerning the author and book . by mr. collier . an answer to all the excuses and pretences that men ordinarily make , for their not coming to the holy communion . to which is added , a brief account of the end and design of the holy communion , the obligation to receive it , the way to prepare for it , and the behaviour of our selves both at , and after it . price but d ▪ for the encouragement of such persons as are willing to give them away , for the promoting of piety and devotion . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e acts xxi . , . luk. . . acts xviii . , . heb. v. . — vi . , . heb. viii . . &c. gen. iii. . heb. viii . . luk. xi . . pet. ▪ . jo. iii. , . pet. . , . cor. vii . · jam. v. . rom. xii . . eph i , . jo. i. ; heb. ii . , . rom. viii . , . acts iii. . rom. viii . , . gal. iv . , . ephes. . . pet iii. . pet i. , gal. iii. . heb. ii . , eph. ii . , , . mat. xiii . . luk. viii . . je. viii . . eph. iv . . — vi . . tim. iii. , . heb. ii . . jam. iv . . jo. iii. , , . (a) jo. viii , . jo. iii. . (b) tim iii. . jo. viii . . jam. . , . joh. ii . . — v. . . jam. iv . . jo. ii . . act xxv . . phil. ii . . mat. xix . . , . rom. xiii . . luk. xviii . . jo. vi . . cor. iii. . phil. . . — ii . . jerem. xxxii . . ezek. xxxvi , . jo. iii. . thes. iii. . tit. iii. , . tim. i. . jo. vi . . ephes. ii . . phil. i. . jo viii . . gal. vi . . rom , ii . . cor. xv . . b cor. i. . cor. i. . ephes. iv . . jo. i. . luk. xv . . , &c. ‖ cor. vii . . † ezek. xviii . . isa. i. , . prov. xxviii . . psal. xxxiv : . isai. i. . psal. xxxviii . . cor. vii . , , , cor. vii . . mat. xviii . . luke xiii . . prov. xxviii . . ezek. xviii . . — xxxiii . . isa. lv . . jo. i. . mat. v. . cor. v. tim. v. . jam. v. . prov. xxviii . . isa , lv , , ezek , xxxiii , heb , ix , ● , , , heb. x. , . pet. ii . . — iii. . jo. i. . prov. . , &c. xxviii . . heb. iii. , . — vi . . — xii . . prov. xvi . . jam. iv . . pet. v. . psal. x. . cor. v. . vi . . eph. v. . jam. iii. ▪ jud. . jo. ix . ▪ jo ▪ v. . heb. vi . . &c. 〈◊〉 x. . tim. iii. . pet. . i. . pet. iii. . jo. xx . . luk. i. . tim. iii. , , . thes. ii . . tim. iii. . psal. cxix . . jo. v. . mat. xxii . . jo. v. . acts xvii . . . * act viii . . . tim. . . jo. iv . . isa. vi . . — xli . . — xliv . . kin. viii . . psal. xc . . job xi . . tim. vi . , . heb. xiii . . jer. xxxii . . mat. xix . . jer. xxiii . . psal. cxxxix . . deut. vi . . jo. xvii . . mark xii . . cor. viii . . eph. iv . . rom. viii . . jam. i. . jo. iii. . psal. xciii . xcvii.xcix . gen. xviii . . psal. cxxxv . . tit. i. . hab. i. . gen. i. . col. i. . neh. ix . . job ii . . psal. xxxvi . . jo. xiv . . joh. iii. . luk. ii . : tim. i. . luk. ii . . acts xiii . . ‖ in the margin , the anointed . kin. xix . , . exod. xl . , . sam. xv . . isa. lxi . . comp . luk. iv . , . joh. v. . — ix . . (b) ma● . xii . . mat. xxii . . heb. vii . . (c) joh. vii . , . luk. ii . ▪ . isa. xl . . mal. iv . . luke i. . mat. iii. . mark i. ▪ . mat. xi . . jo. iii. . — xxi . . ‖ jo. xiv . see below ▪ sect. xii . mat ▪ v. ●vi.vii . luk. ix ● heb i. . gen. xiv . . eph. v. . heb. x. . rom. viii . . acts iii. . isa. ix . , . luk. i. , . mat. xxi . . rev. xix ▪ , . psal. xiv . . isa. vii . . — ix . . acts xx . . jo. i. . — iii. . act. xiii . . comp. heb i. , . v. . acts x. . jo. xx . . psal. ii . . rom. x. . rom. xiv . , , . cor. ii . . phil. ii . , , , . acts ii . . jo. xiii . . rom. xi● ▪ . phil. ii . , , &c. jo. i. . heb. ii . . mat. i. , . luk. i. . † heb. vii . . cor. v. . pet. i. . * mat. i. . isa. vii . . luk. i. . gal. iv . . luk. ii . , , . — xi . . tim. ii . . cor. xv . . mat ▪ i. . luk. i. , . isa. vii . . mat. xxvii . , . luk. iii. . dan. ix . . gen. xlix . . isa. liii . , . rom. iv . . cor. xv . . heb. vii . . ix . . x. . pet. ii . , . (a) mat. xxvi . , , , . luk. xxii . , , . cor. xi . . * mat. xxvi . . mar. xiv . . ‖ luk. xxiii . ● , . jo. xix . † mat. xxvi . xxvii . luk. xxii . xxiii . jo. xviii . xix . * pet. iii. . — iv . . † acts xx . . cor. ii . . luk. xxiii . . mar. xv . . . acts ii . ● ▪ v. , &c. isa. liii . . pet. i. , . rom v. . viii . . col. i . (a) ( b ) gen. xxxvii . — xlii . . sam. ii . . (b) psal. xvi . . (c) psal. ix . . mat. v. , , . x. . xxiii . . luk. xii . . &c. luke xxiii . . eccles. xii . . ‖ mat. viii . . luk ▪ xvi . , ▪ eph. i. , . acts ii . . gal. i. . jo. v. . acts i. , . mat. xxvii . , . luk. xxiii . . — xxiv . i. , . † cor. xv . , &c. luk xxiii . . jo xx . , , . acts i. , , . ‖ jo. xx . . (a) acts ix . . (b) acts ii . , . — iii. , . — iv . , , . — v. , , , . * mat. xxvii . . mar. xv . . luk. xxiii . . jo. xix . . † mat. xxviii . . mar. xvi . , . luk. xxiv . . jo. xx . . cor. xiii . . acts xiii . . pet. i. . rom. . . luk. xxiv . , . acts i. , . eph. iv . . heb. iv . . — vi . . — ix . .. * mar. xvi . ps●l . cx . . comp . act. ii . . 〈◊〉 . i . ‖ see rom. viii . . pet. iii. . acts vii . . phil. ii . , . eph. i. , &c. act. v. , . † cor. xv . . heb. x. , ▪ psal cx . . † act. x. . pet. iv . . tim. iv . . mat. xvi . . ‖ act. xvii . . rom. xiv . . * mat. xxiv . . — xxv . . thes. ii . . † dan. vii . , . rev. xx . , , . ‖ cor. xv . . thes. iv . , . mat. xxv . , . * mat. xxv . . — xix . . cor. vi . ● . † mat. xxv . . comp. ma● . iii. . xxviii . . eph. ii . . gal. iv . , , . jo. v. . jo. vi . : deut. xxix . . acts xiii . . thes. ii . . jer. xxxii . . ezek. xxxvi . . cor. iii. . jo. iii. . thes. iii. . mat. vi . . cor. iii. . eph. iv . . acts iv . . — v. . — xiii . rom. xiv . . thes. i. . rom. viii . . cor. iv . , . eph iv . . phil. i. ● . cor. xv . ● . thes. iv . . luk ▪ xx . . mat. xvi . . acts ii . . & c.. cor. x. . gal. v. . eph. i. . iv . , , . v. , . col. i. . heb. xii . . psal. lxxvi . , . — cxlvii . , . mat. xvi . . — xxviii . , . eph. i. . — iv . . — v. , . col. . . tim. . , , . pet i. , . thes. iv . . cor. vii . . heb. xii . . rom. i. . xv . , , . eph. i. . phil. i. . col. i. . iii. , &c. cor. i. . eph. iii. . — v. , , . jo. i . ‖ jo. xiv . . cor. xii . . cor. xiii . . gal. iv , . phil. ii . . * luk. xv . . — xvi . . heb i. . mat. xviii . . † cor. xii . . jo. i. . rom. xii . . act. ii . . rom. xii . . — xv . . cor. x. . heb. xii . , . r jo. i. psal. xxxi . , . comp. rom. iv . . luk. xxiv . . act. iii. . xiii . , . cor. xv . . cor. v . phil. iii. . mat. xiii . . . dan. xii . . jo. v. . act. xxiv . . dan. xii . jo. v. . rom. viii . . cor. vi . , . cor. v. . mat. xx● . . — xviii ▪ . mark ix , . comp. rev. ii . . xiv . . xxi . . cor. xv . , &c. phil ii . . jo ii . . rev. xxi . . psal. x●i . . cor. ii . . mat. vii . , , &c. mat. xxii . . &c. mat. v. . — xix . . col. i. . pet. v. . cor. vii . . — xiii . . mat. xxii . . compare deut. x. . psal. cxix . . cor xv . . mat. xxii . pet. iii. . mat. xix . . — xxii . . rom. xiii . . jam. ii . . * lev. xviii . . xix . , , , &c. xxi . , &c. xxii . &c. num. iii. , , . rom. ii . , . cor. x. . gal. iii. , . vi . , . phil. iii. . heb. viii . . , &c. luk. i. , . gal. iv , . heb. xii . . rev. iii. . xxi . , , &c. see before , sect. vii . psal. v. . xlv . . xcv . . cxxxii . . jo. iv . . cor. vi . . phil. iii. . heb. x. . mat. vi . , &c. (a) heb. xi . . jo i. . vi . . act. xiii . . rom. x. . gal. iii. . jo. iii. . v. . (b) psal. xxii . . xxxiii . . xxxiv . . mat. x. . luk. i. . cor. vii . . phil. ii . . (c) mat. xxii . (d) see before . (e) psal. xcii . i . cv . . cvi , &c. eph v. . thes. v. . (f) psal. ii . . xviii . . cxv . , , . rom. xv . . cor. i. . tim. vi . pet. iii. . (g) psal. xiv . . xviii . . cxvi . , , . cxliv. . act. ii . . rom. x. , , . cor. i. . (h) psal. xcix . . lxvi . . cxix . , &c. , , , . col. iii. . thes. ii . . heb. ii . . iv . . jam. i. . (i) psal. ii . . c. . luk. i. . thes. i. , . heb. ix . . cor. viii . , . gal. iv . . kin. xi . . kin. xvii● , . lev. xix . . xxvi . i . acts xvii . . ezek. xiv . . lev. xxvi . . deut. iv . . amos v. . deut. viii . . isai. xlii . . psal. cxv . . kings xiv . , xv . . kings xxii . . xxiv . . lam. v. . king. xi . . kings viii . . cor. vi . . gal. v. . rev. xxi . . — xxii . . isai. xlviii . i . mal ▪ iii. . psal. xxiv . . mat. v. , &c. psal. lxiii . . judg. xi . numb xxx . . deut. xxiii . , , . psal. lxvi . . prov. xx . . mat. vi . . lev. xxi . lev. xxiv . . kings xix . . lev. xxii . . luk. viii . cor. xi . . prov. xiii . . psal. xcix . ● ▪ isai. lxvi ● jer. iv . . mat. v. . cor. x. . col. iv . . heb. xii . . lev. xxiv . . sam. . . — xxi . . kings xix . . zech. v. , . gen ii . ● ▪ act. xx . . cor. xvi . , . r. v. i , . jer. xvii . . isa. lviii . . act. xiii . . — xv . . — xvi . . ‖ car. ii. c●p . mat. xii . . mat. ii . . isa. xlix . . kin. v. . gen. xlv . . job xxix . . judg. xvii . . — xviii . . kin. ii . . — vi . . — xiii . . cor. iv . . lev. xix . . eph. vi . , . tim. vi . , . pet. ii . . tim. v. , , . mat. iv . . mark vi . , , . deut. xxvii . . prov. i. . xxx . . lev. xix . . mat. xv . . mark vii . . eph. vi . , . col. iii. . tim. v. . tim. iii. . deut. xi . , , . prov. xiii . , xxii . , . xxiii . , . luk xi . . cor. . . tim. v. . eph vi . . col. ili . . heb. xii . . exod. xxii . . eccles. x. . prov. xxiv . . mat. xxii . . rom. xiii . . tit. iii. . pet. ii . , . pet. ii . , . jude , . act iv . . — v. , , . kin. iii. , . psal. lxxii . , &c. lxxviii . . prov xx . . rom. xiii . . tim. ii . . pet ii . ● . mal. iii. . mat. x. , . luk. x. . cor. iv . , . — ix . , &c. thes. i. , . tim. v. . heb. xiii . . . gal. vi . . ezek. iii. , &c. mal. ii . pet. v. . rom. xii . . tim. iv . , &c. tim. ii . , , &c. act. xx . . tim. iv . . tit. ii . , . prov. xxxi . . eph. v. , , . col. iii. . pet. iii. ● . tim. ii . . col. iii. . eph. v. . &c. pet. iii. ● . col. iii. . . eph. vi . ● . . tim. vi . . tit. ii . , . pet. ii . ● . jos. xxiv . . col. iii. . — iv . . jam. . . eph. vi . . lev. xix . . job xxxii . . prov. . . tim. v. , . tit. ii . , . rom ▪ xiii . . prov. xxix . . rom. xi . . — xii . . tim. vi . . psal. xli . . tim. vi , . . cor. ix . . heb. xiii . . ecclus. iii. . deut. v. . eph. vi . , . gen. ix . . exod. xxi . . num ▪ xxxv . . * exod. xxi . . num. xxxv . . rom. xiii . . † num. x. . deut. xxi . . prov. xx . . — xxiv . . * exod. xxi . . num. xxxv . . rom. xiii . . deut. xiii . , , , . * num. xxxv . , . ‖ exod ii . . comp. acts vii . . sam. xv . . gen. ix . . mat. v. . gal. v. . rom. xii . ● ▪ jam. iii. , . rom. xii . . . mat. v. , . luk. x . gal. v. . eph. v. . thes. iv . ▪ heb. x. . jam. ii . . jo. iv . . . lev. xviii . ● ▪ prov. vi . . mat. v. , &c. gal. v. . eph. v. , . col. iii. . cor. iii. . vi . . ix . . tim. ii . . tim. ii . . pet. ii . . — iii. . — iv . . job xxxi . , . mat. xv . . rom. xiii . . eph. v. , , . thes. iv . , , &c. col. iii. , . gal. ● . . cor vii . . t it ii . pet. v. ▪ lev. xx . . job xxxi . . prov. vi . cor. vi . , . eph. v. . heb. xiii . ● . lev. xix . , . ‖ eph. iv . . lev. xix . , . rom. ii . . prov. xx . . xxii . . xxviii . . psal. xxxvii . . luk. . . cor. v. , . vi . . vii . . thes. iv . . jam. v. . * exod. xxiii . . lev. xxv . . tim. v. . prov. vi . . xi . . xxii . . deut. xxiii . , . psal. xv . . prov. xxviii . . jer. xvii . . prov. x. . xiii . . xx . . mat. v. . cor. vi . , , . psal. xv . , . prov. xvi . . ezek. xxxiii . , . mich. vi . eph. iv . . thes. iii. , . luk. iii. . prov. vi . , . tit. iii. , . tim. vi . . lev. xix . prov. xi . . — xviii . . kings xxi . . mat. xxvi . . psal. xv . . . mat. vii . , . eph. iv . . jam. i. . psal. xv . , . eph. iv . . pet. iii. . mat. vii . , . cor. xiii . , . luk. xxiii . . acts xxv . . rom. vii . . gal. . . pet. ii . . col. iii. . eph. iv . . kings xxi . ib. ver . . — . ezek. xxxiii . . tim. vi . . phil. iv . . heb. xiii . . rom. xiii . . cor. xiii . . thes. iv . , . see the preface to this prayer : ch. cat. ‖ rom. x. . * jo. xvi . . † psal. lxv . . xciv . . kings viii . , &c. ‖ mat. vi . . * lev. xxxii . , . † mat. vii . . xxi . luk. xi . . jo. vi . . jam. i. . psal. v. . xliv . , . l. . isa. xlv . . jam. i. . mat. vii , , . act. xvii . , . luk. xi . . jo. xvi . . jam. i. . deut. xxix . . act. xiii . . jo. vi . . cor. iii. . eph. ii . . phil. ii . . luk. xi . . mat. xiii . . xxv . . luk. viii . . mat. vii . . — xxi . . jo. xvi . , . jam. iv . . jo. iii. . jam i. . v. , . luk. xviii . . rom. xii . . eph. vi . . jo. v. . mat. vi . heb. xiii . . prov. xxx . . eph vi . . phil iv . . col. iv . . thes. . . thes. i. . heb. xiii . . jam v. . pet. iv . . zech. viii . luk. xxiv . . act. vi . . heb. xiii . . thes. v. . rom. i. . &c. psal. lv . . jos. xxiv . . psal. ci . heb. xii . . act. i. . — ii . , . — iii. . cor. xi . . xiv . , , &c. num. vi . ▪ — ● . , . thes ii . ● ▪ eph ▪ ii . ▪ kin viii . . psal. cxv . . cxxiii . . luk. xi . . jam i. . psal. ciii . lam. iii. . eccles v. . mat. vii . , . thes ▪ ii . jer. xxiii . . kin ▪ viii . , , , . isa. xl . . psal. cxxxix . , &c. * psal. xi . . cxxiii . . cxxvi . . mat. v. , . xii . xvi . . xxiii . . act. vii . . ps●l . cxlviii . . prov. xvi . . isa. vi . . kin. v. . psal. xx.i. xliv . . act. vii . . exod. xx . ● . xxix . . lev ▪ x. . kin. ix . . psal. lxxii . . lxxxvi , . cxiii 〈…〉 mat. v ● . jo. xv . . act. xiii . . rom. xv . . cor. x. . vi . . pet. iii. . iv . ● thes. . , ●● . ‖ ps●l ciii . ▪ cx . ● cxiv . , ●● . † mat. iii. ▪ iv . . xxiv . . heb. i. . * mat. v. , . xiii . ● . luk. xxiii . , . cor. vi . ▪ pet. i. . act. xxvi . . col. i. . psal. ii . . mich iv . . rev. xi . . xii . . mat. xxviii . . cor. xv . . tit. i. . — ii . , ▪ mat. xxvi . . act. xxi . , . * luk. xxii . . job . i . heb. x. . † psal xl . . — cxliii . . mat. vii . . jo. iv . . vi . , . act ix . . rom. ii . . xii . . eph vi . pet. ii . . jo. ii . . psal. ciii . , . job i. . isa. vi . mat. xviii . . gen. iii. . xliii . , . ps xxxvii . . — xli . . isa. xl . . mar. iii. . luk iv . . cor. ix . . thes. iii. , . prov. xxx . . tim. vi . . ● thes. iii. ● ▪ exod. xvi . . kin. xxv . . neh ▪ v. . ●am . ii . . mat. vi . , &c. heb xiii . . ● pet. v. . gen iii. . act. xx . . cor. iv . , tim. vi . . thes. iii. . deut. viii . . comp. mat. ●v . . act. xvii . . pet. v. . acts xi . , , . cor. xii . ▪ mat. vi . . psal. cxxx . . jo. i. . luk. vi . . jo. i. , . luk. xi . . mat. vii . . mat. vi . . mark xi . . . mal. iii. . mat. xxii . . acts v. . jam. . , . mat. iv . . xxvi . . luk. viii . . mat. iv . . jo. xvii . . mat. xxvi . . cor. x. . heb. ii . . rev. iii. . † sam. xxiv . . chr. xxi . . job . . pet. v. . * psal. xxiii . . cor. x. . pet. ii . . chr. xxix . . cor. x. . pet. . . psal. xcvi . . . psal. xxii ● . chron. xx . . psal. xcvi . , . dan. ii . . tim. . . phil. iv . . tim. vi . . tim. iv . . pet. iv . . numb . v. . kings i. . jer. xxviii . . cor. xiv . . cor. i. . cor xii . ● . see below . sect. lii . mark vi . . jam. v. , . mark. vii . numb . viii . ▪ exek . xxxvi . . heb. x. ● . mat. iii . . jo iii. . acts viii . . isa. lii . . ezek. xxxvi . . lev. xvi . , , . heb. ix . . — x. . act. ii . . — viii . . — xix . ● . psal li. . rom. v. . eph. ii . . act. ii . . rom. . . cor. vii . . mark xvi . . act. ii . , . — xxii . . eph. ii , . tit. iii. . gal. iii . pet. iii . mar. xvi . . heb. x. . xi . , . deut. xxix . , . gen. xvii . . deut. xxix . , , . cor. vii . . mat. xxvi . , . mat. xiv . . cor. xi . . cor. xi . . comp. act. i. . act. ii . — xx . cor. xi . . heb. ix . , , . x. . pet. ii . , . iii. . rom. iv . . — v. . viii . . cor. v. . col. i. , . cor. iii. . isa. liii . . eph. v. . col. i. . jo. ii . . heb. ix . . cor. xi . , . . cor xi . mat. xxvi . . exod. xii . , &c. cor. xi . . — , . cor. xi . . ● cor. x. . act. i. , . — iii. . rom. vi . , . heb. ix . , . cor. xi . , , . cor. xi . , . luk. xiv . , . cor. xi . , . mat. v. , . xxii . , &c. rubr. at the end of the confirmation office. ●am . v. . eph. vi . . tim. ii . , . lev. ix . , . num. vi . , , . deut. x. . chron. xxx . . sam. ii . . eph. vi . . col. iv . . thes ▪ v. . thes iii. . heb. xiii . . the missionarie's arts discovered, or, an account of their ways of insinuation, their artifices and several methods of which they serve themselves in making converts with a letter to mr. pulton, challenging him to make good his charge of disloyalty against protestants, and an historical preface, containing an account of their introducing the heathen gods in their processions, and other particulars relating to the several chapters of this treatise. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w a estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) the missionarie's arts discovered, or, an account of their ways of insinuation, their artifices and several methods of which they serve themselves in making converts with a letter to mr. pulton, challenging him to make good his charge of disloyalty against protestants, and an historical preface, containing an account of their introducing the heathen gods in their processions, and other particulars relating to the several chapters of this treatise. wake, william, - . hickes, george, - . [ ], xxiv, p. printed, and sold by randal taylor ..., london : . reproduction of original in huntington library. has been erroneously attributed to george hickes. cf. brit. mus. cat. attributed to william wake. cf. nuc pre- . errata page precedes t.p. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng pulton, a. -- (andrew), - . church of england -- controversial literature. catholic church -- controversial literature. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - andrew kuster sampled and proofread - andrew kuster text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion imprimatur , liber cui titulus , the missionarie's arts discovered , &c. guil. needham , r. r. in christo patri , ac domino domino , wilhelmo archiep. cantuar. â sacr. domest . feb. . / . errata . in the preface . page , . line . in marg . r. avons . ibid. l. . r. don● . p. . l. , in marg . after danse r. a la. in the book . page , l. . r. acknowledged . ibid. . l. . dele of . p . l. . r. pretences . p. . l. . r. tower. p. . l. . r. those pillars . p. . l. . dele § . . p . l. . r. given . ibid. l. r. barbarini . p. . l. r . r. as . p. . l. . dele when . p. l. . r. vigorous . p. . l. . r. unwillingly . p. . l. . after the r. decisions of the. p. . l . r ireland . p , , l , , r , expos'd . p , ▪ , for and r , had . p , , for leave , r , believe , p. , l , , dele a. in the margin . page , line ▪ r , fimo . p , . l. , r , p , . p. , l , , r , perjurii . ibid , r , aeternae . p . l. . . p. , l. , after epistle r , of epiphanius , p , , l , , r , commecdavit . p. . l , , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , p , , l , . for in r , and. p , , l , , r , c , . p , , l , , r , misrep . p , , l , , r , contz . ibid. r , sect , , ibid , l , r , p , , p , , l , . r , pigritia , p , , l , , r , p , . in some of the french quotations , the ( é ) is left without an accent , which with some few literal faults the reader will easily amend . the missionarie's arts discovered : or , an account of their ways of insinuation , their artifices and several methods of which they serve themselves in making converts . with a letter to mr. pvlton , challenging him to make good his charge of disloyalty against protestants . and , an historical preface , containing an account of their introducing the heathen gods in their processions , and other particulars relating to the several chapters of this treatise . jer. . . believe them not tho' they speak fair words unto thee . tertull. adv. valent. habent artificium quo prius persuadent quam edoceant . veritas autem docendo persuadet , non suadendo docet . persius . sat. . — fronte politi , astutam vapido servant sub pectore vulpem . london , printed , and sold by randal taylor near stationers hall. mdclxxxviii . to the reverend mr. pulton , jesuite and schoolmaster in the savoy . reverend sir , though the author of the * answer to dr. pierce's sermon had the hardiness to affirm , that it is evident more rebellions have been rais'd against princes for religion onely , in this last reformed age , in a few protestant countries , than have been rais'd by catholicks for any cause whatsoever , in seven ages before throughout all christendom ; wherein he is seconded by another , who with the same modesty tells the world , that in this last century , there have been more princes depos'd and murder'd for their religion by protestants , than have been in all the other since christ's time by the attempts and means of roman catholicks : yet these gentlemen were so politick , as to avoid the infamy which a confutation would subject them to , by concealing themselves from the world : but what either a sense of their inability , or a consciousness of their immodesty hinder'd them from prosecuting , you have very freely engag'd your self to perform ; by renewing their assertion , and advising your learned adversary not to meddle with the subject of the disloyalty of your party , lest you return the charge upon the reformed churches . but , sir , we are not to be frighted with blustring words ; nor will your informing us that * you have many remarks in store to shew that whatever catholicks have judg'd in the theory about the deposing power , it was the reformers who reduc'd it to practice , and that you will produce them if farther provoked , terrifie us any , more than your several volumes of collections out of the fathers , which you boast of ; we know , sir , your assertion is untrue , and therefore are not afraid to bring it to the test. i do therefore here challenge you as you would not appear a slanderer , and guilty of venting a most pernicious and notorious falshood , as you value the honour of your church , and your own reputation , to publish those remarks you say you have made ; and vindicate your self , or else acknowledge that you have printed and published an assertion , without regard either to truth or modesty . i must confess in any other case i should be apt to censure my self for the freedom of this address , but it is certainly a time to speak , when a man pretending to be a priest of the living and true god , shall in defence of his religion ( which if true , needs no such abominable arts to uphold it , ) vent so bold a slander , tending to expose the pure churches of christ , as enemies to their sovereigns , and so render them odious to those from whom they have all imaginable reason to expect protection , as from nursing fathers . i will not tye you up to your own assertion , that the reformers have deposed and endeavoured to depose more princes in the space of one hundred and fifty years , than the roman catholicks had done in sixteen hundred ; for you will be more puzzled to find a papist in the first centuries of that period , than you were to tell under what pope the fourth council of lateran was assembled . nor do i desire the enquiry should be confin'd to the term of the last seven hundred years on the romish side , which the above-cited author pitch't upon ; but will freely remit you above five hundred of that , and in the time since the reformation do engage my self to prove what i have asserted p. . of this treatise . i do not much expect an answer to this challenge , for those men who could lye near twenty years under such a charge as dr. du moulin laid against them , and dar'd them to call him to an account for , the murder of k. charles the first , without ever venturing to clear themselves , may easily bear this ; besides your champions have of late left their doctrines to defend themselves . however i once again renew the challenge , which if you accept , it will soon be seen that you are not alone , guilty of such insincere and immodest dealing , since the vindicator of mr. de meaux hath told the world , that not only the protestations but the practices of the romanists have justified them in the point of obedience to princes . a little time will shew who is in the right ; for having your remarks ready , i suppose we need not expect long , if you have any design to justifie your self , and think you are able ; but if not , do but own your rashness and error , which in duty you are bound to do , that the church of god may have some reparation for so bold a calumny ; and notwithstanding this freedom you shall find me on all occasions , reverend sir your most obedient servant as far as love to truth will permit anonymus . advertisement . good and solid reasons why a protestant should not turn papist , or protestant prejudices against the roman catholick religion in a letter to a priest. sold at the ship in st. paul's church-yard , . the preface . the design of the ensuing discourse is laid down in the introduction ; so that the business of this preface is chiefly to supply some particulars which either are omitted or could not conveniently be inserted in the book it self . § . . the device of bewitching mens senses with pomp and shew , i have both mention'd and expos'd , yet is it look't upon so considerable in that corrupt church , that it is not onely defended by cardinal pallavicini , and thrust into the number of the notes whereby they pretend to distinguish their church from all others ; and prove that it is the onely true one ; but so much stress laid upon it , that it seems one of the main pillars of the roman fabrick ; which if we may believe one of the learnedest divines of france , could not subsist without it . the world ( saith he ) could not bear a religion calculated onely for philosophers ; the people did not know what it was to think , and to govern themselves by the impressions that abstracted thoughts made on their minds , they must have outward things to strike upon their senses and imaginations : to amuse , to terrifie , and to excite them ; so legends , dreadfull stories , and a pompous worship were necessary to make the impressions of religion go deep into such course souls : from whence he concluded , that the reformation had reduc'd the christian religion to such severe terms , that it was onely a religion for philosophers : thus these gentlemen contradict themselves , one while pretending that our religion is founded upon such loose principles , as require no strictness nor mortification of its professors ; at another time advancing a charge which would sound well in the mouths of any but such as bend their whole endeavours to find a way for men to go to heaven and keep their sins too , and who blame the reformed churches for nothing more than their calculating their doctrines in opposition to the laziness and lusts of men as their great master , whose steps they follow , did before them . the precepts of christianity are so severe in themselves , that the founders of the papal greatness could not find their interest in too strictly pressing the observation of them ; the ambitious , the covetous and the luxurious man can see nothing there to gratifie his predominant desire ; and seeing such a grandeur as that of the papacy could not be upheld by those melancholy vertues of humility , contempt of the world , meekness and mortification ; there must be some method found to dispence with them : the first step in the prosecution of this design was ; to draw men insensibly from the contemplation of the more spiritual part of religion , to external pomp , which by charming the senses might keep them so fixt as to afford no leisure for inward reflexions ; while the spirits being dilated and the affections rais'd by the impression they make on the beholders of them , those superficial emotions , are highly extoll'd for divine transports , and the operations of the holy spirit . they knew well that nothing renders any thing more odious to the vulgar , than to represent it in a ridiculous manner ; and therefore instead of the more rational way of convincing mens vnderstandings , they have taken up the method of jeering men out of their opinions ; tho' the shame sometimes ( as it ought always to do among thinking men ) returns upon themselves ; as it did * when they attempted to ridicule the jansenists in a procession at mascon in the year . i have noted the concession of baronius , that the heathen rites and ceremonies were purposely introduc'd among the romanists in their service of god ; and i thought that pretty difficult to do without violating the very first principles of christianity ; but the † jesuits of luxembourg have found a way to consecrate not onely the pagan rites , but their gods too , to the service of the blessed virgin , which they pretend is the service of god. the relation is of such nature , and so scarce even in french , that i am sure the reader will not be displeas'd to see , what a prophane puppet-shew they make of religion , and to what extravagances their humour of gorgeous shews carries them . ‖ there were several pageants carried through the town which they tell us were design'd to inspire agreeable sentiments of piety towards our lady of consolation ; in one of them sat mars the god of war , who commanded his souldiers , not to do any mischief to the chappel of our lady of consolation ; and the word for this god , was , procul , o procul este profani . as if any thing could be more profane than this heathen deity in a christian procession ; no doubt the people were wonderfully excited to piety by this object introduc'd into one of the most solemn acts of their religion . * then came ceres , flora , pomona , the naiades , the nymphs of the field and of the groves , rejoycing for the return of our lady of consolation ; ( whose image they were conducting to her chappel ) and the word for these rustick divinities , was , — jam redit & virgo , redeunt saturnia regna . then four nymphs , fame , religion , truth and glory , the first of which affirm'd , that lewis the great was as illustrious for his piety towards the holy virgin , as for his many victories ; and the word for them all was , cedant arma sacris . religion was certainly very much advanced in the esteem of the beholders , who saw her put in the same rank with fame and glory . after them came † joy , fortitude , plenty and health , the ordinary effects of our lady of consolation ; at the head of the towns of that province , perswading them to put themselves under the protection of the virgin ; who ‖ appeared in triumph , with peace , plenty and learning on one side , on the other mars and bellona in chains ; who discover'd by their looks that the deliverance of that country from war was onely to be attributed to their patrone the blessed virgin. which was farther express'd in these following verses ; * mars says the word , the sword devours no ( more ; ) our laurels are no longer dy'd in gore , peace , which we long desir'd and wish'd in ( vain ) learning and plenty are return'd again ; to mary's bounty we these blessings owe who freely doth this sweet repose bestow . and the three * genii of the church , of france , and of luxembourg , are made to speak thus , by an irrevocable law we three to celebrate great maries praise agree , our . keys and . lillies we to her submit our . lyons humbly couch beneath her feet . the heavenly powers bless this accord of heart , in which the earth seemeth to bear a part . . the arms of the church . . the arms of france . . the arms of luxembourg . from the praise of the virgin they pass to another subject ; but still designing to raise devotion in the spectators , where they bring in † lewis the thirteenth , dedicating himself and kingdom to our lady ; for which they extol him in these lines . lewis whose virtues fame resounds a far lewis the just in peace , the just in war , was ne're so just as in one glorious deed , by which he did even himself exceed : and hath a rule to other princes given , off'ring his kingdom to the q. of heaven . and thus having introduc'd false gods to honour the virgin , in the next place they endeavour the same by false assertions , for ‖ victorie and the virtues , carrying palms and crown'd with laurels , expose upon seven tablets the great actions of the present french king , which he performed for the honour of the virgin. but because the world would not easily believe that the ensuing particulars , were undertaken with that design ; they pretend a revelation of it , which like the old heathen oracles is deliver'd in verse . an inscription for lewis the great ▪ while the whole world his mighty actions sees , it wonders at th' amazing prodigies before unheard of ; but the true design it cannot find , because it can't divine : that lay unknown to all , from all conceal'd , till heav'n applauding it , the cause reveal'd ; he sought not glory for himself alone , but he preferr'd the virgins to his own , to honour her more than himself he fought . and won his victories her glory to promote . then descending to particulars , * the first tablet tells us of churches built and dedicated to the blessed virgin. the † second sets forth the taking of so many towns in holland , and re-establishing the worship of the virgin in their churches . the ‖ third informs us that the enemies of the virgin are driven from port royal and out of france . in the * fourth they tell us that the algerines were punished by the french bombs for being enemies to mary . the † fifth brags of the extinction of the hereticks in france enemies of the mother of god. the * sixth and seventh are much to the same purpose , importing that the french king hath put an end to the war , which was so dishonourable to our lady , so that now they can go on pilgrimage and pay their devotions to her . these tablets are compos'd of so many false and ridiculous materials , that i cannot forbear inserting some reflexions which one of the roman communion hath made upon them ; who † wonders that they should pretend the war of holland was on a religious account ; but is very much scandaliz'd at their telling the world that the reconciliation of the churches was in honor of the virgin , while they take no notice of the greater parts of their worship then restor'd ; which passage he freely acknowledges would incline one to believe , that they place all religion in the adoration they pay to her . he positively ‖ affirms that the second tablet is absolutely false ; and * laughs at the inscription of the third , for if the design against algiers had been to punish them for their enmity to our lady , they would certainly have been obliged by the articles of peace , to render her more honour for the future . he † charges them with misrepresenting those they call hereticks in the fifth inscription , who he says are no enemies to the blessed virgin , and that in the ‖ sixth they have represented that great prince ( whom they design'd to flatter ) as an enemy to the q. of heaven , while they tell us that the war of luxembourg was dishonourable to her ▪ when all the world knows the city was besieg'd and taken by that monarch . and indeed the whole procession throughout was such a piece of heathenish pomp , that the same author tho' a romanist * complains of it as unworthy the gravity of the christian religion , and which is sufficient to make the worship of the blessed virgin be look't upon as superstitious and prophane ; † for ( saith he ) can any one believe that it was possible for so many persons of all sorts as were spectators out of curiosity , and little enough acquainted with spiritual things , to have any serious reflexions upon the great mysteries of religion in the midst of so many vain shews which continually distract the mind , and insensibly lead it to other subjects . these considerations are so weighty with that reverend ‖ prelate the arch-bishop of mechlin , that he hath prohibited not only such profane spectacles in their processions ; but even the carrying the images of their saints , at the same time with the sacrament , which is found by experience prejudicial to devotion , the generality of the people being so busied in observing the curious images , and their rich ornaments , that they have no leisure for serious devotion . and this perhaps is one of the reasons why that bishop is said to be a jansenist and but little esteem'd among them . neither is it altogether to be pass'd over that these jesuits could not be content to expose those pagan deities under the names of gods and divinities , to the eyes of the spectators , but they have also * published an account of the procession , which because i could not procure , i have given but an imperfect relation from the adviser ; but which i think is sufficient to the end for which i have inserted it , and i appeal to all the world whether it be possible for such a representation , wherein † there is not one word of scripture , but several passages out of heathen poets ; nothing of religion , of the benefits and beauties of it , but pagan divinities bestowing blessings , delivering from war , &c. and such a medly of falsities , to tend any way to promote holiness , when every particular is in it self destructive of it . § . . every day furnishes us with fresh instances of the strange immodesty of these gentlemen ; i have shewn p. , , . that it is an usual practice among them when press'd with any passage out of the fathers or other writers , to deny that they wrote the book out of which it is quoted ; or else to set themselves to devise some interpretation by which to avoid its force , the reader will find several instances of it , and that the inquisitors and other of their divines defend this method , and advise to use it ; but mr. meredith without any proof , affirms , that when the work of any father is quoted by catholicks , if it were ever doubted of there is no remedy but it must pass for spurious , and when it shall happen to be undoubted , they will do as much as in them lies to render it dubious , at least in those places which are quoted . but when nothing of this will do , their last shift is interpretation : and this ( he says ) is one of the methods which the protestants use in their disputations . 't is true , the papists have forg'd so many authors , and corrupted others to that degree , that it is reason enough to be suspicious of every thing they publish ; but we are so far from doing this , that the books we call in question are such as have evident characters of forgery in them , and which are suspected by the learned romanists themselves ; we fairly propose our objections to be answered , which generally have that weight as to convince the more knowing of our adversaries ; we decry all such shifts as this gentleman mentions , while any one that looks into the second chapter of the following discourse will find , that it is a rule among those of his communion , to invent some favourable exposition , or deny the authority and genuineness of the author . the charge shews so much ▪ impotent malice , which would fain be doing some mischief , that i am apt to believe it is rather an insinuation of some furious missionary , than the real product of mr. meredith's pen ; who seems more zealous than spitefull in his erroneous profession , and knowing no better , may perhaps be prevail'd on to publish anothers pretended observation , which neither he nor any for him can make good : if they can , it is incumbent on them to prove it , by as full evidence as i have given of their being guilty of this dis-ingenuous artifice . i know the methods of these gentlemen too well to let any thing pass , which may be liable to an exception without preventing it ; if they would fairly answer a discourse , i would wait till they publish their objections , but the trick of running about and casting virulent reflexions upon particular passages in private , makes it necessary for me to give the reason why i affirm , that the cause of the great bitterness against the waldenses was , their freedom in taxing the vices of the pope and clergy ; i could demonstrate the truth of it from what is acknowledged by themselves of those poor people , who could deserve such treatment upon no other account , seeing according * to rainerus their bitter enemy they were blameless in every thing , but that they spoke against the roman church and clergy ; but i will confirm my assertion with the authority of the * sieur du haillan , in his history of philip the second , who affirms , that tho' they had some ill opinions , yet they did not irritate the pope and princes and clergy against them , so much as their freedom of speech did ; which brought upon them an universal hatred , and caus'd so many abominable tenets to be falsely imputed to them . this testimony coming from a roman catholick of his quality , both confirms my observation and shews the original of those misrepresentations and calumnies we labour under , that they are purely in prosecution of their doctrine , which avows the lawfulness of slandering another to preserve ones honour ; a position which is own'd and defended by their greatest casuists , and which they reduce into practice upon all occasions , as i have proved in the third chapter . § . thus they dealt with molinos , a few months since at rome insinuating that his design was , under the pretence of raising men to a higher strain of devotion , to wear out of their minds the sense of the death and sacrifice of christ , and attempting to perswade the people that he was descended of a jewish or mahometane race , and carried in his blood or first education some seeds of those religions ; to which they added several immoral crimes , tho' they were asham'd to insist upon them in his process , so that their slanderous reports have gain'd but very little credit . they have been so kind of late as to let us see who they were that first devised those noisie calumnies that most of the clergy of our church were papists , by appearing barefac'd and endeavouring to prove that the whole controversie lay between the dissenters and the church of rome ; since when , one of their greatest champions hath put on the disguise of a † dissenter , and attempted to perswade us that the learned answerer of nubes testium held several popish principles , and that it would be all one to joyn with the papists or the church of england : but he was soon discovered by his ingenious adversary , and so expos'd for his wretched artifice that if he had not a face of an unusual composition he would blush to appear in publick after such a shamefull trick : which i hope will make our brethren the dissenters more cautious how they entertain such surmises of those men , who so learnedly and successfully oppose popery , when they who would be thought the onely true protestants , are content to sit still , and be lookers on . i expect to have the * decree of the d . of march . opposed to it , and to have a great many hard names bestowed on me , for daring after that to lay such doctrines as are condemn'd in it to their charge . but besides that this decree is an unanswerable evidence that those doctrines were taught by the jesuits and other casuists , it is notoriously known that these censures are so little regarded that they are almost contemptible . the † apologist for the decree of the senate of venice against the jesuits , tells us , that on this side the alps the censures of the roman congregation are so little valued , that every person is at liberty to read those books , which they condemn ; whose practice in this point is defended by gretzer . that in spain they have an index of prohibited books peculiar to themselves , whereby those books are frequently allowed , which are forbidden at rome , and many others which are permitted there , are censur'd in it ; but at venice they observe neither index , nor do they admit of any of the roman decrees ; which indeed are in themselves of no moment being often grounded * on mistakes and misconceptions , by which the best books are sometimes prohibited and condemned . so that † doctor holden assures us that among all thinking and sober men there is little or no regard had to them . and it is impossible to be otherwise : when a book shall upon the most strict examination be twice approv'd and yet afterwards condemned as contrary to the faith ; which is the case of doctor molinos at this time ; whose treatise intituled the spiritual guide was in the year . printed with the approbation of the arch-bishop of rheggio , the general of the franciscans , d'eparsa a jesuite , and qualificator of the inquisition , and two others , and received with great applause in all places , even of the present pope himself , who lodg'd him in his palace , and gave several marks of a great esteem ▪ for him : and when his book and the discourses of the now cardinal petrucci were afterwards upon some complaints , brought before the inquisition , and severely ▪ examin'd ; they were again approv'd , and the answers which the jesuits had writ censured as scandalous ; but upon the interposition of the french king the same treatises were condemn'd by that very court which had approv'd them , molinos publickly expos'd and sentenc'd to perpetual imprisonment . cardinal petrucci under disgrace , and the pope himself so far suspected , that some were deputed by the inquisition to examine him , so heretical were those opinions now , which but a little before were sound and orthodox . that passion and interest as doctor ‖ holden observes , influence all the determinations of that court is so well known to our english romanists , that the author of nubes testium , not onely read , but transcribed his whole book out of alexandre natalis ; though the pope had two years before * forbidden all the faithfull under pain of incurring excommunication ipso facto without any other denunciation , to read , keep , print , transcribe , or use any of that fryers works , and when his learned adversary * told him of this , he makes so light of it , † as to turn it off with a flout as a matter not worth regarding , and not only so , but he affirms , that natalis was then of very good repute as to his authorities and every thing else . and as little respect have the romanists of france shewn to the decree of march . . for by the jesuits means , ‖ who informed the procurator general that since the court of inquisition was not acknowledged in france , it would be prejudicial to the king's authority to suffer any decree made in it to be printed there , a remonstrance was made to the court of parliament at paris , and the censure declared to be of no authority in that kingdom , so an impression that was made of it was called in , since which it hath not been publickly sold in france . the pretence of the jesuits for procuring this act , was the honour of the king , but the true motive appears to be their love to the propositions condemn'd in it ; for the first draught of the declaration of the parliament had these words , though that these propositions are justly condemn'd ; but father le chaise caus'd them to be struck out . thus in this part of the world we find the censures of that court , to have no authority , and even among those who pretend to own them , a faculty may take off the obligation , and they be dispenced with from yielding obedience to them ; and we know that such private dispensations are not difficult to be obtain'd in the roman court. so that upon all accounts the romanists according to their own principles and practices are at liberty still to teach those doctrines which are censur'd in that decree ; and there is some reason to believe that it was not design'd to hinder them , but onely to amaze the world , seeing it was not made by the pope in consistory which would have given it much more authority , than the cardinals of the court of inquisition could stamp upon it . § . . in the fourth chapter i have mention'd the bulla coenae as a lasting evidence of the claim which the pope lays to a power over kings , but not having the bull by me , i onely gave a short hint of it from a late author of that communion : but i find in cardinal tolet , that not onely the persons there mention'd are excommunicated every year , but that the absolution which is given the next day after the publishing of that bull extends not to such as impose taxes on their people without the pope's consent , who imprison or punish or otherwise bring a clergy-man into secular courts , who harbour hereticks or read so much as two or three lines in their books ; who furnish hereticks with arms or materials for arms , with ships or timber to build them with ; who hinder appeals or journeys to rome , who hinder the romish clergy from exercising their jurisdiction , and who possess any church-lands or goods ; but all these are left under the sentence of excommunication ; till by repentance they obtain absolution from his holiness ; and all ecclesiastical persons are required to publish this bull in the greatest congregations , that all the faithfull may know the contents of it . thus his majesty of great britain , the french king , the states of venice and holland , sweden , denmark , the princes of germany , &c. are excommunicated by this bull ; who have done and daily do refuse to observe several , if not every part of it : and what they look upon an excommunicated prince to be may be seen in their canon law , * whereby all those who have sworn allegiance to him are absolved from their oaths , and forbid to yield him any manner of obedience . i reserve the account of their treasons to be published when ever mr. pulton or any for him shall think fit to begin with us , as he hath threatned he would upon the first provocation , which i have given him , but having affirmed , p. , . that they have been often both in publick courts of ●ustice and in other places , call'd upon to renounce the deposing power as unlawfull , but could not be perswaded to it ; to prevent their cavils at that assertion i thought it not unnecessary to give some few instances which may suffice to prove it . we are assured by the greatest states-man of his , and perhaps of any age , that the priests who were apprehended and executed for treason in his time always restrain'd their confession of allegiance onely to be the permissive form of the popes toleration ; as for example , if they were ask'd whether they did acknowledge themselves the queen's subjects and would obey her , they would answer , yes , for they had leave for a time so to do ; and at their very arraignment when they laboured to leave in the minds of the people an opinion that they were to dye , not for treason , but for matter of faith and doctrine — they cryed out that they were true subjects , and did and would obey her majesty ; immediately — they were asked by the queens learned councel whether they would obey and be true subjects if the pope commanded the contrary , they answered by the mouth of campion , this place ( meaning the court of her majesties bench ▪ ) hath no power to judge of the holy fathers authority ; and other answer they would not make . the very same account of them , with some other particulars , is given us by the secular priests , in their * important considerations ; that being ask'd which part they would take , if the pope or any others by his appointment should invade the realm : some answered , when that case happened they would then consider what they had best to do ; others , that they were not resolved what to do , and others positively , that if any such deprivation or invasion should be made for a matter of faith , they were then bound to take part with the pope . which mr. campion was so zealous for , that he was not contented to affirm that he would take part with his holiness , but very earnestly demanded , pen , ink and paper that he might sign his resolution . and mr. kirby , cottom , richardson , ford , shert , johnson , hart and filbee all priests , affirmed under their hands to her majesties commissioners appointed to examine them , that the pope hath power to depose princes , and her majesty was not to be obeyed against his holiness's bull ; in which answer they all agreed , only two sheltred themselves under this general assertion , that th●y held as the catholick church held . and his majesty of blessed memory , k. † james tells us , that the conspirators who suffered for the gunpowder treason justified themselves , and even at their deaths would acknowledge no fault ; ‖ and when faux and winter were admitted to discourse together in the tower , they affirmed , they were sorry that no body set forth a defence or apology for the action ; but yet they would maintain the cause at their death . * when some of the plotters escap'd to callis , and the governour assured them of the king's favour , and that though they lost their country they should be received there , they replyed that the loss of their country was the least part of their grief , but their sorrow was , that they could not bring so brave a design to perfection ; and not onely they who were ingag'd in it justifi'd the design , but mr. copley assures us , that he could never meet with any one jesuite who blam'd it . some time after the jesuits were banish'd france for the attempt upon the king by chastel one of their scholars , when they were soliciting a repeal of that s●●tence , the parliament of paris remonstrated to the king , that it was absolutely necessary for them to renounce those treasonable doctrines of the popes power over princes , or else france could not with safety admit them to return ; but tho' they were very desirous of admission they would not renounce those positions for it . it is notoriously known how many breves were sent over into england to forbid the taking the oath of allegiance , which they affirm to contain many things contrary to the catholick faith. immediately after the murther of k. henry the fourth of france , the jesuits desir'd leave to teach schools in their colledges , upon which the parliament required , that they should first declare , that it is unlawfull for any person to conspire the death of the king , that no ecclesiastick hath any power over the temporal rights of princes , and that all are to yield the same obedience to their governours which christ gave to caesar : these positions were proposed to them to subscribe , but they refus'd to do it without leave from their general . ann. . father ogilby a jesuite was taken in scotland , who being asked whether the pope be judge in spirituals over his majesty , refus'd to answer except the question were put to him by his holiness 's authority , but affirmed that the pope might excommunicate the king ; and that he would not to save his life , say it is unlawfull , if the k. be depos'd by the pope , to kill him . in the time of the late confusions , when mr. cressy published the reasons of his leaving the church of england and turning romanist ; he therein inserted a declaration differing little from the oath of allegiance , affirming that all the roman catholicks in england were ready to sign it ; but his ●uperiors were of another mind , and therefore that edition was soon bought up , and the profession of obedience omitted in the second : and when some english gentlemen of that communion had subscribed certain propositions of the same import with that declaration , their subscribing was by the roman congregation censur'd as unlawfull . what opposition was made to the irish remonstrance , after the king's restauration is generally known , and i have given a short account in the third and fourth chapters ; all that i shall remark here is this , that it was a transcript of mr. cressy's declaration which the pope forbad the irish clergy , and they refus'd to sign ; nay , when father walsh advised them to beg his majesties pardon for the execrable rebellion , they not onely refus'd to ask pardon , but so much as to acknowledge that there was any need of it : affirming publickly , that they knew none at all gvilty of any crime for any thing done in the war . they often offer'd to declare that the deposing power was not their doctrine , but could not be perswaded to condemn the doctrine which abets it as unsound and sinfull , wherein they have been imitated by some late writers on their side , who tho' call'd upon to affirm it unlawfull to maintain such a power over kings , would never do it . but tho' father cann would not renounce these doctrines , he proposed at rome that a formal oath abjuring the oath of allegiance should be imposed upon those who had taken it ; and that all who should be admitted students in the jesuits house , should swear never to take the oath ; since as he affirmed , a time might come , in which it would be necessary for their interests , that they be under no such tye to an heretical prince . § . . the last chapter of the following sheets , gives a brief account of some of their artifices to misrepresent the doctrines of the reformed churches , for every single instance , i might have given some hundreds , for i never yet saw any of their controversial writings which represent our doctrines as they are , but lest i should be charg'd with imitating such a bad example , i desire the reader to take notice that the first quotation out of securis * evangelica is not quoted as a strict misrepresentation , but to shew how while they † tell us ; that the people swallow all down greedily in the lump , that antecedents and consequen●s go down with them all at once , and therefore we ought not to draw odious consequences from their doctrine ; they are doing that which they blame us for , and are licens'd to do it by the greatest licensers of their church ; now if their rule be good , then is father porter guilty of a notorious misrepresentation in that instance , if it be not good , then they must acquit us from that imputation which with so much noise and little reason they have endeavoured to fix upon us : let them choose which side they think best § . . before i close the preface i must take notice of one thing more which i have not touched in the book it self , it being my design there onely to prevent the danger of their usual manner of address ; which would be of no force if our people did not give them a very great advantage , by running on all occasions into disputes with them ; i would not have them kept in ignorance ( for blessed be god ovr cavse needs no romish arts to vphold it ) but it is an ill-thing to be making experiments in religion , and for unskilfull and weak men to be trying their skill , with those who by reason of their sophistry will be too hard for them ; i cannot therefore but earnestly request the reader to keep them ( if he fall into their company ) to plain scripture , which it is his duty to be well acquainted with ; or else to propose their arguments to some learned minister , and i dare appeal to the judgment of any impartial person , on which side the truth lies . i designed to have published some directions for the help of the unlearned , by which they might be able to deal with the missionaries , but i am happily prevented by the learned and reverend doctor sherlock , whose seasonable and excellent discourse ought to be in the hands of all prostestants , who by it may be enabled to deal with the greatest champion among them ; and i am heartily glad that so good a pen hath undertaken a work of that consequence , and i hope in a little time will oblige the world with the second part , in the mean while the answer which hath appear'd against it hath shew'd the world how little can be said for popery . § . . i would not have the gentlemen of the church of rome pretend , that i have ( as one of their celebrated writers expresses himself ) imitated the scavenger in stopping no where but at a dung-hill , for i have quoted none but allowed and approved authors ; such as are daily published with allowance by their party , and therefore they ought not to be asham'd of , or such as have been long received with applause among them ; and as for what i have cited out of protestant books , let them invalidate their testimony if they can , i will engage for the truth of my quotations and know of no objections against any author i have cited which are of any force . § . . i design very speedily to publish the second part giving an account of several other artifices , by which they endeavour to possess the people with favourable opinions of them ; such as their miracles , the brags of the holiness of their church , of their succession , unity and certainty ; of the usefulness of their confession , and that all antiquity is on their side : exposing their method of disgracing the holy scripture , of forging and corrupting authors , the sowing several sects and heresies to divide us ; and that successfull artifice of disguising and palliating their doctrines ; to which add the working on the peoples affections by asking what is become of their popish ancestors ? and blinding their judgments by perplexing and sophistical similitudes ; with several other topicks which they frequently insist on . but after all that we can do , 't is god alone must give the blessing who is the god of truth , to whom if our prayers be constant and fervent , and our obedeince to his commands universal and sincere , he is engaged by his promise which can never fail to keep us in the truth ; in which that all who read this treatise may continue unmov'd , and order their conversations so as becomes the gospel of truth , and holiness , is the hearty prayer of the author of it . the catalogue . that the gentlemen of the church of rome may have all the help in the world to convince me of falsifications , if they can ; and to spare them that trouble which they put us to , by careless and ignorant quotations , i have here given them a catalogue of the books cited in the ensuing treatise , with their editions . a. arcana societatis jesu , edit . vo . acts of the conference at paris , lond. to . acosta de noviss . tempor . ludg. vo . answer to the consid . on the spirit of martin luther , oxford to . animadv . on fanatacism fanatically 〈◊〉 to the cath. church , lond. , vo . animadversions on a sermon of the bish. of bath and wells , lond. to . augustini opera , paris fol. ambrosii opera , col. fol. answer to the provin . letters , paris , vo . advice to the confuter of bellarmine , lond. , to . the agreement bet . the ch. of eng. and the ch. of rome , lond , , to . athanasii opera , col. , fol , answer to the letter to a dissenter , printed for h. hills , lond. , to . answer to two main questions of the first letter to a dissenter , lond. . to . answer to a disc. against transub . lond , , to , avis aux r. r. p. p. jesuits sur leur procession de luxembourg , edit . , s. ans. to the let. from a diss. lond , . to . answer to pap. prot. against prot popery , lond , , to . answer to dr. sherlock's preservat . against popery , lond , . to . avis aux r. r. p. p. jesuits d' aix en provence . sur on imprime qui à pour titre : ballet dansé à la reception de monseigneur archeveque d' aix , a col. . s. b. bvrnet's answer to the letter of the fr. clergy , lond , , vo . bellarmini controvers . colon. , fol. baronii annales , antw. , fol. dr. burnet's letters of his travels , rotterd . , vo . lucae brugensis in evangel . antw. , fol. a. b. bramha●'s works , dubl . . fol. dr. burnet's history of the reformation , lond. — his vindicat. of the ordin . of the ch. of england , lond. , vo . — his history of the rights of princes , lond , , vo . bernardi giraldi patavini apologia pro repub . venetorum . — vid. arcana societatis , jesu . birckbeck's protestant evidence , lond. , to . baiting of the pope's bull , lond. , to . burnet's sermon before the lord mayor , jan. . / . to . c. f. cross's sermon before the q. april . . lond. , to . considerations on the spirit of martin luther , oxford , , to . jesuits catechism , edit . , to . p. crasset la veritable devotion envers la s. vierge , paris , , to . discourse of communion under both species , by the bp. of meaux , paris , , s. conference with campion in the tower , lond. , to . crashaw's falsificationum romanarum , tomi primi , lib. primus , lond. , to . catholick scripturist . lond. , vo . chrysostomi opera . paris , ● . canones & decreta consilii tridentini , col. , s. contzeni politica mogunt , , fol. collection of treat . concern penal laws , lond. . to . copleys reasons of his departure from the ch. of rome , lond. , to . cressey's exomologesis , paris , , vo . cressener's vindication , lond. , to . jo. camerarius , de frat. orthod . eccles. in bohemia , deest mihi titulus . campion's reasons , lond. , to . and the same in latin cosmop . . corpus confessionum fidei , gen. , to . the connexion , lond. , vo . conference entre deux docteurs de sorbonne , &c. edit . vo . d. drelincourt's protestants self defence , 〈…〉 def. of the expos. of the doct. of the ch. of england , lond. . to . discovery of the society in relation to their politicks , lond. , vo . defence of the confut . of bell. sec. note of the ch. lond , , to . defence of the papers written by the late k. lond. , to . difference between the prot. and socin . methods , lond. , to . diff. bet . the ch. of e. & the c. of r. l , to . a discourse for : taking off the penal laws and tests . lond , , to . a discourse of the notes of the church , lond. , to . declaration of the favourable dealing of her majesties commissioners , , to . decree made at rome , march d. , to . e. europae speculum , lond. , vo . capt. everard's epistle to the nonconformists , edit . . vo . exposit. of the doctrine of the church of england ▪ lond. . to . exposit. of the doctrine of the catholick church , lond ▪ to . f. ellis's sermon before the k. dec. . , to . f. fifth part of ch. government , oxf. , to . fowlis's history of romish treasons ▪ lond. , fol. franckland's annals , lond. , fol. the franciscan convert , lond. , to . g. gage's new surv. of the west-indies , lond. , fol. gee's foot out of the snare , lond. . to . the gunpowder treas . with a discourse of the manner of its discovery , lond. , vo . good advice to the pulpits , lond. . to . gratian , edit . , to . h. hospiniani historia jesuitica , tig. . fol. history of the irish rebellion , lond. . fol. dr. harsenet's declarat . of egregious pop. impostures in casting out devils , lond ▪ , to . the hind and the panther , lond. , to . hunting the romish fox , dubl . . vo . history of geneva by mr. spon . lond. , fol. history of the church of great britain from the birth of our saviour , lond. , to . history of the powder treason , lond. . to . histoire de france par seigneur du haillan . deest mihi titulus . i. instructiones secret . pro super . societ . jesu . see arcana societ . jesu . index expurg . librorum qui hoc seculo prodierunt , edit . , s. instance of the church of englands loyalty , lond. , to . the jesuits reasons unreasonable , lond. , to . see collection of treatises . important considerations , lond. . to . it is in the collection of treatises concerning the penal laws . k. jame's works , lond. , fol. k. mr. king's answer to the dean of londonderry , lond. , to . key for catholicks , lond. , to . l. last efforts of afflicted innocency , lond. , vo . long 's history of plots , lond. , vo . a letter in answer to two main questions in the first letter to a dissenter , lond. , to . letter from a dissenter to the divines of the church of england , lond. , to . three letters concerning the present state of italy , , vo . m. mysterium pietatis , vltraj , ● , vo . moral practises of the jesuites , lond , , vo . maldonati in evangelia , mogunt , , fol. masoni , vindiciae ecclesiae anglicanae , lond. , fol. mirrour for saints and sinners , lond. . fol. manual of controversies , doway , , vo . monomachia , lond. , to . mr. meredith's remarks on dr. tennison's account , lond. , to . n. novvelle de la republique des lettres juin . , vo . novelty of popery , by dr. du moulin , lond. , fol. nubes testium , lond. , to . new test of the c. of e. loyalty , l. , to . nouvelle de la republique des lettres , oct. , vo . o. ogilby's japan , lond. , fol. p. protestancy destitute of scripture proofs , lond. , to . pontificale romanum , col. , vo . pastoral let. of the bish of meaux , l , to . present state of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome , lond. , to . pap. misrepres . and repres . lond. , to . ●ult●n's remarks , lond. , to . provincial letters , lond. , vo . mr. pain 's answer to the letter to a dissenter , lond. , to . policy of the clergy of france , lond. , vo . pulton's account of the confer . lond. . to . popery anatomis'd , lond. , to . parson's treatise tending to mitigation , , vo . the primitive rule before the reformation , antw. , to . a picture of a papist . edit . , vo . primitive fathers no protest . lond. , to . preservative against popery , by dr. sherlock , lond. , to . primitive fathers no papists , lond. , to . papists not misrepresented by protestants , lond. , to . papists protesting against prot popery , lond , , to . parsons's conversions out of eng. vo . r. ri●herii histor. concil . gener. , vo . rushworth's collect. p. r. lond. , fol. reply to the defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the ch. of eng. lond. , to . reflexions on mr. varillas , amst. , s. reply to the reasons of the oxford clergy against addressing , lond. , to . ricau● ▪ s state of greek and armenian churches , lond. , vo . reflexions on the answer to the papist misrepresent . lond. , to . religio laici , lond , to . request to rom. cath. lond. , to . reynerus adv . waldenses . ingol . , to . rogers's faith , doctrine and religion professed in england , cambr. , to . reasons of fryer neville's conversion , lond. , to . reflexions on the historical part of the fifth part of church government , oxford , ● , to . s. summary of the principal controver . bet . the church of england and the church of rome , lond. , to . secret instructions for the society of jesus , lond. . vo . sure and honest means for the conversion of hereticks , lond. to . state of the church of rome before the reformation , lond. , to . saul and samuel at endor , oxf. , vo . spanhemii histor ▪ imaginum , lug. bat. , vo . surii commentar . brevis , , vo . smith's acc . of the gr. church , lond. , vo . — his miscellanea , lond. , vo . sheldon's survey of the miracles of the church of rome , lond. , to . dr. st●ll . unreas . of separ . lond. , to . speed's chronicle , lond. . st. amours journal , lond. , fol. seissellius adv . valden . paris , ● . securis evangelica , rom. , vo . a supplication to the king 's most excellent majesty , lond. , to . st. peter's supremacy discuss'● ▪ lond , , to . t. treleinie's undeceiving the people in the point of tithes , lond. , to . terry's voyage to east-india , lond. , vo . tertulliani opera , franek . , fol. touch-stone of the reform . gosp. l. , s. transubstantiation defended , lond. . to . traver's answer to a supplicatory epistle , lond. , vo . toleti instructio sacerdo●um , venet. , to . travels of sig. de la valle , lond. . fol. v. vindica ▪ of the bishop of condoms exposition , lond. , to . vasquez de cultu adorationis ▪ mog . vo . bp. vshers life and letters , lond. , fol. vidicat of the sincerity of the prot. religion , lond. , to . veritas evangelica , lond. , to . the use and great moment of the notes of the church , lond. , to . w. walsh's histor. of the irish remonstrance , lond. , fol. — his letters on several subjects , , vo . wilson's hist. of g. britain , lond. , fol. correct the errata thus . . l. ▪ in the margin r. p. . p. . l. . r. commendavit . introduction . having observed the difference between the method followed by protestant divines , and that which the gentlemen of the church of rome take , in their unwearied endeavours , for gaining proselytes ; i have several times taken notice , that instead of handling particular controversies , they , for the most part , wholly decline them , and take another course ; wherein what their design is , will easily be apprehended , if we consider that their experience tells them , that prejudice is the main prop of their church , which renders their people deaf to whatever is objected to their doctrines ; and they know very well how far that goes to make them believe whatever is imposed on them . it is an usual thing to hear the common people justifie themselves in matters of practice by the examples of those they have an esteem for ; and if they can find any thing they are blam'd for , countenanc'd or practis'd by a person they look upon as a pious or wise man , 't is their common argument , such a man who is much better and wiser than i , is of this opinion , or acts as i do , and why may not i ? i am sure he would not do it if it were not lawfull : which observation those masters of craft , who manage even the eternal affairs of souls by the wiles of policy and cunning , make such use of as to bend all their endeavours to create in the people a good opinion of them , and then they know their work is as good as done ; and not onely my own observation assures me that this is their design , but i offer this evidence of it ; among all the romish converts you shall scarce find one , who is able to give you any particular reason for his change , but onely this , that he cannot think so holy a church would deceive him ; and he is convinced , that it is his duty in all things to submit to her without examining her doctrines , which is a clear proof that their main endeavour is to insinuate themselves into the good opinion of those they would pervert ; and having sufficiently possess'd them with such favourable thoughts , they easily prevail upon them to give themselves up to be conducted by them ; so that prejudice and affection makes more papists than evidence of truth and reason . thus by insisting upon generals to possess the affections , rather than inform the judgments of men , they go on uncontroll'd , our divines going the fairer way to work , and aiming at the rectifying mens understandings , not the forming of a party of proselytes , as if truth was to be found by the voices of the giddy multitude , and not by rational and convincing evidence ; which made the ingenious answerer to the dean of london-derry , profess , (a) that he always believed that they rather designed to gain proselytes by confounding their heads than by clear reason and information ; their design being , (b) to make a shew of saying somewhat , ours to instruct our people . i have had occasion to be acquainted with several of their converts , and do profess i could hardly ever meet with any who understood the matters in dispute , but acknowledge it was the force of these general arguments that prevailed on them to a change . and this way is not onely followed by some among them , but the whole (c) clergy of france , have propounded general methods to be prosecuted to this end , and the university of (d) lovaine have published theirs . finding therefore that all their success proceeded from particular artifices , i thought it my duty to endeavour , to prevent their doing any farther mischief , by laying them open to the world , that the unchristian sleights being discovered , and their force enervated , the people may be upon their guard , knowing what dealing they are to expect from these busie men , and not be so easily possess'd with those fatal prejudices which they labour to instill into them , in order to enslave them to such a number of errors and superstitions , as no one sect besides was ever guilty of ; which i shall endeavour to doe in the following chapters . chap. i. of their manner of address . when the missionaries have a design on any particular person , after acquaintance once got , they are very cautious not to begin to insist closely upon any religious subject , untill by their industry and diligent observation they have discovered the disposition and inclination of their intended proselyte : this is one of the secret rules found in the college of jesuits at paderborn , that in attempting to gain young men to list themselves in their (a) order , they endeavour to please them with such diversions as are best suited to their tempers , and most apt to allure them , to be of that society where they meet with what is so agreeable to their inclinations . it is indeed usual with them to cast out several loose words , either concerning the holiness and certainty of their faith , or the uncertainty and vanity of the protestants , which they know are as so many latent darts , which will pierce deeper when other arguments come to drive them on ; but till they find how the disposition of the person lyes , they cannot practise their several arts , which vary according as the tempers differ of those they deal with . their character of religious men gives them always an opportunity to discourse with a serious look , and grave accent of the great things of salvation , which they seldom or never omit to lay hold on , seeing such discourses are very apt to make impressions upon the minds of those who are devoutly inclin'd ; and if the person they deal with be such an one , they are very proper and seasonable to be us'd to him ; and on the other hand , if he be not , they can put no stop to their design , for by their reiterated pretences of zeal for the salvation of souls , their frequent instances of their trouble to see so many led in error , and ready to perish , and their free offering the utmost of their service for so good a work , with their earnest and serious urging the great danger a protestant is in , they gain even with the loose and vicious , a good opinion of them , that they are really in earnest , and believe and design what they pretend ; and there being scarce such a thing in the world as a real speculative atheist , they know that all are desirous of happiness hereafter , though not willing to leave their sins for it , therefore even with the worst they get this advantage , that by their lamentations , and zealous pretences , they are believed to have a design onely to lead them to heaven ; which point gained , they know how to accommodate their doctrine even to those , by offering them such an easie way to future happiness , that distasting the four methods of repentance , and universal holiness , they will willingly go where they have hopes of gaining heaven , and keeping their sins too . by this means being sure to gain by serious discourses whoever they have to deal with , you will certainly meet with as heavenly and religious expressions as can be invented ; and after they have enlarg'd upon the worth of souls , the importance of the right faith , and their own intentions being onely to enlighten those who are in the darkness of heresie , which they will express with the utmost of their rhetorick , and set off with the most devout looks , and earnest actions ; they will vary their expressions , to find out what is most taking ; sometimes they will tell you , we require what god never commanded , by teaching those duties under pain of damnation , which are in themselves not necessary , and the omission of them onely venial transgressions , which do not in themselves deserve damnation ; and that we call those mortal sins , affirming that all are absolutely obliged to avoid them , which god never esteem'd as such ; and that we make the case of christians too hard , affirming that there is no difference between counsels and commands ; whereby we bind every one to doe those things , which none according to them , except by a particular vow , are oblig'd to ; that we affirm all our duties to be so imperfect , that they are in themselves sins , thereby discouraging christians in their performance of them ; and affronting the grace of god , as if he could not enable us to keep all his commands perfectly , but there will still be imperfections in their performances , which make work for daily repentance , so over-burthening the consciences of christians , where god hath not done it : this , they know , will be greedily catch't at by the libertine , who is glad to hear of an easier way to heaven , than the protestant church shews to her members ; and if the person they address to , should happen to be of a devout and severe principle , they know how to make use of the same charge , to work their ends ; by complaining , that whereas god hath left some things onely recommended by way of counsel , we by preaching them as commands , take away all the merit of those performances , which is greater where men are left free , than when they are obliged under penalties ; and that we do thereby frighten men from real holiness ; and by such a general discourse , which they can apply to all tempers , they make their way , towards fixing a good opinion of themselves , in the minds of men , who are much taken if they be inclin'd to vice with the hopes of more liberty , which is offer'd them under the shew of holiness , and if serious with the hopes of meriting , and attaining to a greater degree of glory , by their free uncommanded obedience , than they could expect from an obedience yielded onely to severe commands ; for the feeding of whose humour they will inlarge upon that usual topick , that we have no repentance nor good works in our church , ( a scandal which they often cast upon us ) and consequently have none of that strictness which a pious soul delights in ; and this seeming argument for the greatest strictness they can turn to the encouragement of an idle and vain disposition , by extolling the easiness of their absolution and pennance , when we take such methods , as keep a man all his life to a serious examination and enquiry whether his repentance be sincere . these discourses , and such as these being applicable to all sorts of men , are common with them even at first ; but when they have made a discovery of your dispositions , they come more particularly to their several methods , which are suited to each temper ; and having endeavoured with all their power by actions , as well as words to render themselves esteemed , according to that secret instruction to the (a) superiours of the jesuites , that they should ingratiate themselves with the people , by shewing the end of the society , to be as tender of the welfare of their neighbour as of their own ; and upon this account undergo the meanest offices , visit the hospitals , and assist the poor ; make charitable collections , and dispose of them to the poor in publick , that others being excited by their liberality , may be the more kind to the society . they begin afresh , if they deal with a devout soul , to enlarge upon their care of souls , and their unwillingness to meddle with these matters being more enclined to the more practical duties , as when the jesuites have a mind to advance any of their partizans to a high place in any prince's court , they are directed to (b) insist upon the great concern that religion and justice hath in those who are advanced to dignities , and therefore that such ought to be elected as are eminent for their vertues , which they are to enumerate , and then be sure to propose a friend of the societies , as endued with the vertues they before commended ; but at the same time express their unwillingness to meddle . just so they govern themselves in making converts , among the piously inclined ; and as (c) sir edwin sands observes , of their gestures , and such pretences , when a fryar an abandoner of the world , a man wholly rapt with divine affections and ecstasies ; his apparel denouncing contempt of all earthly vanity ; his countenance preaching severity , pennance and discipline , breathing nothing but sighs for the hatred of sin ; his eyes lifted upward as fixed on his joys ; his head bowed on the one side with tenderness of love and humility , extending his ready hand to lay hold on mens souls , to snatch them out of the fiery jaws of that gaping black dragon , and to place them in the path that conducts to happiness ; when such a man , i say , shall address himself to a woman — or to any other vulgar person of what sort soever , perswading , beseeching with all plausible motions of reason , yea with sighs of fear , and tears of love , instanting and importuning no other thing at their hands than onely this , to be content to suffer god to save their souls , and to crown them with everlasting happiness : which they shall certainly attain by ranging themselves with the heavenly army of god , that is , by adjoyning themselves to the church of christ and his vicar ; and this again and again iterated and pursued with shew of incredible care of their good , without seeking other meed and commodity to himself , save onely of being the instrument of a soul's salvation . is it to be marvailed , though — he prevail and possess them in such forcible sort , that no access remain for any contrary perswasion — and certainly by their dealing thus with men at single hand in private — they prevail as experience doth daily shew exceedingly . but as they take this method to deal with some , so they address themselves to others in a quite contrary manner , they having ( as i shall prove more particularly hereafter ) not onely several ways of insinuation , but several , yea contrary doctrines fram'd on purpose to be as baits for all sorts of men ; which as i have often observ'd , so i find it noted by that ingenious gentleman , who had spent a great part of his time in italy , the mint of their policies , which they have , to my knowledge , made great use of in these kingdoms , and some neighbour nations : (a) the particular ways ( saith he ) they have to ravish all affections , and to fit each humour — are well nigh infinite ; there being not any thing either sacred or profane , no vertue or vice almost , nothing of how contrary condition soever , which they make not in some sort to serve that turn ; that each fancy might be satisfied , and each appetite find what to feed on ; whatsoever either wealth can sway with the lovers , or voluntary poverty with the despisers , of the world ; what honour with the ambitious ; what obedience with the humble ; what great imployment with stirring and metall'd spirits ; what perpetual quiet with heavy and restive bodies ; what content the pleasant nature can take in pastimes and jollity ; what contrariwise the austere mind in discipline and rigour ; what love either chastity can raise in the pure , or voluptuousness in the dissolute ; what allurements are in knowledge to draw the contemplative , or in actions of state to possess the practick dispositions ; what with the hopefull , prerogative of reward can work ; what errors , doubts and dangers with the fearfull ; what change of vows with the rash , of estate with the inconstant ; what pardons with the faulty , or supplies with the defective ; what miracles with the credulous ; what visions with the fantastical ; what gorgeousness of shews with the vulgar and simple ; what multitude of ceremonies with the superstitious and ignorant ; what prayer with the devout ; what with the charitable , works of piety ; what rules of higher perfection with elevated affections ; what dispencing with breach of all rules with men of lawless conditions . and so he goes on to shew how the very constitution of their church is made up of such contrariety ; which i shall insist farther on in another place , my business here being to shew how they are prepared to fit each temper and inclination , with suitable discourses and allurements . they know the greatest part of men in the world are either very much taken with gaudy and pompous sights , which bewitch their senses , and so wholly possess them , as to take away all room for rational reflexions ; or so charm'd with the delights of their belov'd corruptions , that they are unwilling to part with them . to catch the first sort , we find them boasting of the splendour and outward glory of the church of rome , to such a degree , that they have made this (a) pomp a mark of the true church ; this is observ'd by an ingenious author of their own communion : that * they insist much upon the fine churches they have at rome , whose admirable structure doth greatly edifie believers , and as cardinal pallavicini says [ lib. . c. . ] is of it self capable to convert infidel princes ▪ this way of catching people by gaudy shews , and splendid sights is look't on with such a favourable eye among them , that the three bishops † from bononia in a letter of advice to pope julius the third , observe that the vulgar are given to admire and to be amused with these things , in the contemplation of which their minds are as it were so intangled that they have no relish for any other food ; no inclination to any other doctrine : they affirm that they were design'd for that purpose , and therefore give it as their judgment , that they should be augmented and multiplied , for ( say they ) if the introducing and appointing those few which we have mention'd were of such use to the settlement of your kingdom , of what advantage would it be were there some new ones added , and this advice was so exactly observed , that the excellent richerius a doctor of the sorbon , tells us , that ‖ this was the the scope and design of the reformation established by the trent council , nothing being effected for the truth , but external pomp provided for ; so that innumerable splendid , gaudy ceremonies were dayly invented ; whence proceeded a magnificent and theatrical way of adorning their churches , the sacerdotal ornaments glittering with gold and silver , while the priests who wore them were mere stocks ; by which artifices the peoples minds were amus'd and insensibly drawn from the consideration of the necessity of reformation : which made the * learn'd andreas masius complain , that piety was extinguished and discipline neglected , while all applications were made and inventions used to increase their pomp. the glittering gold in their temples and curious images of saints and angels , the numerous and stately altars , the mighty silver statues , the rich and glorious vestments you see up and down in their churches , strike the senses into a kind of ecstasy ; which they are so sensible of , that with all their rhetorick they enlarge upon this subject striving to perswade their intended proselytes to see with what magnificence they perform their worship ; thus when his majesty of blessed memory * king charles the first being then prince , was in the spanish court , there were great summs expended in solemn glittering processions , and their churches set out with their richest ornaments , to charm his senses , but he was too well grounded in his religion to be caught with that bait : and i remember this is given by † capt. robert everard as a motive to his conversion as he calls it to the roman church . the great use they make of it , enclines me to believe this device is accompanied with more than ordinary success ; it is also so universal , that in the indies they have these pageants , to delight the senses and phancies of the indians ; ‖ against christmass day , they set up a thatch't house like a stall in some corner of their churches , with a blazing-star over it , pointing to the three wise men from the ●ast ; within this stall they lay a crib , and the image of a child , the virgin mary standing on one side , and joseph on the other , there is likewise an ass and an ox , the three wise men kneel and offer their gifts , the shepherds stand aloof off with theirs , and the angels hang about the stall , with several instruments of musick ▪ and there is scarce an indian that cometh not to see this bethleem , as we are assured by one who was a fryer , and dwelt in those parts above twelve years ; who gives several other instances of the same nature : i have frequently been answered by their converts ( when desiring to know what they found amiss in our church ) that we d●d nothing to keep up the remembrance of our saviour , which they were at the greatest charges to effect ; and i have received a relation from a gentleman very conversant among them , which for several reasons i think worth inserting . this gentleman in his travels being at brussels in the low-countries , was often invited by the priests there to their churches and convents , after some time spent in debating points in difference between the two churches , they finding no probability of his conversion ; one day told him , there would be a great ceremony at such a church the fryday following ( being good-fryday ) at which they desired he would be present , one of them adding that he thought the sight of it alone was enough to convert any heretick ; and instanced in one or two persons on whom it had a very powerfull effect : according to their desire the gentleman went , and by the motion he felt in himself , ( the representation being so lively that it melted him into tears ) doth profess , he believes the weaker sort of men , who are not very well grounded in their religion may be strangely altered by such a sight ; tho' upon deliberation he found it so gross a piece of idolatry that it created in him a greater detestation of the religion of the church of rome than he had before . it being never that i know of related by any author , i believe it will be very acceptable to the reader to have an account of it . at the upper end of the church there is a large stage erected , in the midst of which is set up a cross , on which is nailed an image of our saviour ( given as they say by the infanta isabella ) made of pastboard , but exactly to the life , having joynts , and the veins appearing as full of blood ; it is crown'd with thorns , and hangs in the posture of a crucified person ; on one side stands the image of the blessed virgin , all in mourning and on the other , a coffin to lay the image in . after the sermon , ( the governor , and most of the nobility being present , ) there come forth , six fryers bare-foot in their stoles , who fall prostrate before the image , frequently beating their breasts , lifting up their heads , and looking on it with all the signs of grief and adoration ; then rising by degrees , two of them remain kneeling , each holding an end of a large swathe which is put under the armes of the image ; two standing under the image to receive it , and the other two ascending two ladders which are placed at the back of the cross ; when one with a great deal of reverence taking off the crown of thorns , wipes it and descending brings it to the front of the stage , where shewing it to the people they all kneel with much devotion , then approaching the image of the virgin , he falls on his knees and lays it at her feet ; then returning up the ladder , they with a great noise and knocking take out one of the nails , upon which the arme of the image falls , exactly like the arme of a dead man : this nail he carries to the people , who , as before , prostrate themselves , and he with the same gesture presents it to the virgin ; after which the other nails are shewn and presented : the body being taken down , and brought by them with a slow pace , and mournfull look to the people , they adore again , when the fryers upon their knees present it to the virgin , and with much ceremony lay it in a glass coffin , in which it is carried round the town the several orders ( the carthusians and jesuits excepted , who attend at no procession ) with lighted candles preceding , the governour of the netherlands , and the nobility following bare-headed : what they did afterwards , the gentleman saw not . thus have the romanists brought the most gross pageantry into their church to be motives to their religion , not considering that the heathens of japan and china , and the inhabitants of america , whose images and the inside of their temples are all of massy gold , have in this respect a fairer title to be the true church than they ; from whence the heathens of old cannot be excluded ( if pomp , as bellarmine and others teach , be a mark of the true church ) seeing their ceremonies and rites of this nature are copyed from them , as is confessed by cardinal * baronius , that the offices of pagan superstition were purposely introduc'd and consecrated to the service of god , ( as he calls it ) and true religion . and yet by this very method they gain so much that † a diligent observer of them before cited , affirms , that were it not that the musick , perfumes , and rich sights , did hold the outward senses with their natural delight ; surely their worship could not but either be abandon'd for the fruitlesness or only upon fear and constraint frequented . and in this particular they have their several baits according to the several dispositions of men , for the more refin'd sort of those who are caught with these glorious and splendid sights , they have such representations as i have mentioned ; but for the less discerning , they are ( like their similitudes ) so gross , that in a person of a very moderate understanding , they are fitter to excite a loathing and contempt than admiration ; for what other effect can proceed from such a picture , as of that over the altar at worms , which one would think was invented by the enemies of transubstantiation to make it appear ridiculous ? there is a wind-mill , and the virgin throws christ into the hopper , and he comes out at the eye of the miln all in wafers , which some priests take up and give to the people . but notwithstanding the coursness of this emblem , it is so agreeable to the genius of the german boors , that it is to this day over one of their altars there . this practice of theirs , in which they place so much confidence , and to which they are beholden for much of their success , is so far from being warrantable , that it is directly contrary to the design of the gospel , whose simplicity is such , as that it needs none of these gew-gaws to support it , and therefore was spread by the first planters of it without them : saint paul was so far from making use of such vanities , that he durst not use the * enticing words of man's wisedom in his sermons and exhortations ; which surely is much more tolerable , than to endeavour to gain men to the true religion , by bewitching them with those sensual objects , which the design of christianity is to wean them from ; and certainly when we are caution'd not to be like † children tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine , through the slight of men ; there is a particular caution included therein against suffering such vain shews , and gaudy pomps to make impression on us , which are the peculiar delights of children , and must needs argue us very much ‖ children in understanding and religion to be intic'd by them . the truth of this is so clear , that those among the romanists , who endeavour to fix in their minds a right idea of christianity , remembring that the founder of it said , his kingdom was not of this world , conceive such an indignation against these carnal and vain methods , that one of them doth not stick to say , * that if any man be converted by these , he is a fool ; and assures us , that he knows that upon people of understanding , who apply themselves to solid things , and grow in spirit and truth , this hath a contrary effect , for these things do debauch the mind , and set it on wandering . the enquiry ( continues he ) is about seeking god , and finding him in those places ; and it is not the sight of the fine guilding , or the excellent painting of an edifice , nor the hearing of a sweet harmony , but rather the lifting up of our minds above sensible objects , and separating them as much as possibly we can from sense and imagination : it is the fixing the eyes of our understanding with a religious attention upon that invisible spirit , upon that sun of justice ; and when we do it with that love and reverence that is due to it , we shall never fail of seeing and hearing the most delightfull things . and then he goes on to lay down reasons why we ought not to be wrought upon by such external things : the fathers ( saith he ) were of opinion that antichrist should one day seize upon the most magnificent temples of the christians ; this was the opinion of st. hilary , and of st. jerome ; this last mentions the very rock of tarpeius . therefore the popes ought not to glory over-much in their buildings , since antichrist shall one day place himself in them . — i like well enough to see such fine things as these , but i confess that i have more devotion in a little church without magnificence or rich ornaments , than i have in such places . i find that my devotion does insensibly divide , and that sense doth sometimes carry away a part of my mind , and transport it to sensible objects which do not deserve it , and that my affection is thereby weakned , whatever care i take to gather it up and unite it . this hath a much more dangerous effect upon the common people , who have no knowledge , and whose religion lyes onely in their eyes and ears , they do in an horrible manner fasten on these things , which are onely obvious to their sense , and go no higher . and shall these things which the sober romanists themselves confess to be an hinderance of piety , destructive to devotion , and fit to prevail upon none but fools , be the motives to rational men to leave the pure worship of god , to have their eyes delighted by gaudy shews , and their ears pleased with all sorts of musick ? i doubt not but the doctrine of ecstasies and raptures , so highly applauded in the romish church , hath its greatest support from these external glories , which are proper to raise the affections to such a pleasing height , as renders them almost insensible ; which though onely the effect of the pleasure the senses are entertain'd with , are by them extoll'd as holy motions , and divine illuminations , while the soul is not at all affected , or better'd by such transports . there lyes therefore an indispensable obligation upon every person , but especially upon such as by their natural dispositions are apt to be affected by such things , to keep a constant and severe watch over their affections , that they do not blind their understandings ; remembring religion consists in the vnderstanding and will , being rightly informed and directed ; not in the motion of the spirits , and tickling of the senses ; the doctrine of the gospel being designed for the good of souls , never an article of it calculated to gratifie and please the flesh . besides , how unreasonable is it that those things which antichrist shall boast of , and pride himself in , should be ever us'd as an argument to proselyte any to a party ? as if they must needs be the onely true church , because in this they resemble antichrist . if men would but seriously reflect , it is an easie matter to perceive even from hence , that what i noted in the introduction , of their designs , is true ; for what doth all these glorious shews tend to the making a man wise unto salvation , or the fitting him for the enjoyment of god ? all the tendency they can have is to work upon mens affections , which i before observ'd , is their main design . now we know that such emotions are seldom permanent , which made the excellent richerius , speaking of these things , ( though himself a papist ) affirm , that those who thought these methods would be long of force , will in a little time find themselves mightily deceived . and this is not unknown to the missionaries , who therefore strike while the iron continues hot , and ply the person whose affections are thus raised with their miracles , their holiness and such particulars , which we shall discourse of anon . and i cannot think it one of the least weighty considerations , to deter men from being gull'd by such trifles , to reflect that these things are designed either for such as have no real sense of religion , or to bring them to have none ; the first sort being very glad of such a worship as gratifies their voluptuous humours ; and others more soberly inclin'd , are thereby taught to worship god wholly in a sensual manner , and so estrang'd from the pure and spiritual part of religion , which god alone delights in . neither is this method onely calculated for such , but they have likewise a singular dexterity in accommodating themselves even to the vices and corruptions they find men most addicted to ; if ambitious , they endeavour to feed that humour ; if voluptuous , to gratifie them in that ; if revengefull , they permit them to follow their inclinations ; if covetous , ( though of all vices , they are most enrag'd against that ) yet , for a while , they can find a way , not to be grievous to them , and as pliable they are to the prodigal . this is an observation made of the jesuites by several doctors of the sorbonne in paris ; * they speak of nothing but magnificence and liberality to those who are vain ; telling them , that by these actions they establish their reputation ; and the more to puff them up with such conceits , they cite examples to that purpose . nay , lest they should be terrified with the torments of purgatory after this life : † bellarmine affirms , that in probability there is a purgatory where those pains are not endured ; which is seconded by many of their divines , who , together with bellarmine , found it upon revelations made to venerable bede , and others : and ‖ aquila expresly and purposely defends this opinion ; and lest they should grow cold , considering that they must not meet with sensual joys in heaven , all the happiness of the bless●d spirits consisting in the vision of god , which these voluptuous men cannot apprehend any great delight in , they have therefore coined a new description of that happy place ; * affirming that there shall be a sovereign pleasure in kissing and embracing the bodies of the blessed ; that the angels shall put on womens habits , and appear to the saints in the dress of ladies ; that women shall rise with long hair , and appear with ribbands and laces as they do upon earth ; that married people shall kiss one another , and their children as in this life . thus these subtil deceivers will rather follow mahomet's steps in asserting a sensual paradise , than lose one of their proselytes . i neither design here to enlarge upon this subject , nor pretend to instance in all their turnings and artifices to this end : the first , because i refer it to another head , when i come to treat of their disguising and varying their doctrine ; the latter , because i cannot pretend to do it , their arts being numberless ; but by such instances as these are , the reader may easily discover them , when they act a part of the same nature . in christmas ann. . one father leech told † mr. j. gee , that if any but hear mass , and after hearing be sprinkled with holy-water and kiss the priest's garments , he could not commit that day any mortal sin , though he would never so fain ; and my author cites in the margin , some ‖ authors who teach the same ; an excellent maxim to make the greatest sin become none at all , and very much a-kin to that , that god sees no sin in his children . this suiting themselves to the carnal desires of men , is so usual among them , that * one of their own authors could not forbear making this observation . do not you hear them how they speak plausibly to itching ears , altering , fashioning and re-fashioning their religion ; according to the will and wantonness of them whose glory next unto their own they prefer before the glory of god ? this prostituting the holy name of christianity to serve the interest of a party , and making that god in whom is no variableness , and who is infinitely holy to be the author of such contrary and wicked doctrines , is in it self so odious , and doth at first sight appear so unworthy , that i think it needless to make any reflexions on it . i shall close this chapter with some reflexions upon what i mention'd in the beginning , their great pretences of zeal for the good of souls , after i have briefly mention'd their remaining arts , which they practise in their first address ; in endeavouring to discover the capacities of those they deal with , that if they be of slow and heavy vnderstandings , they may deal with them as with such , where arguments of the nature of that emblem before-mention'd of christ thrown into the hopper , will be most proper : if they discover quick and sprightly parts , all the ingenious reflexions upon the protestants , that they can call to mind , are with a pleasant smile cast out , and they endeavour with all manner of address to render their company acceptable and diverting ; and when they have thus ingratiated themselves , if you speak of any of our books or divines , they will with a slighting accent tell you , they are not worth their minding ; as i remember , objecting a passage out of dr. stillingfleet against idolat●● , to one of them ; he reply'd , he mistook the question so , that he had not patience to read him ; though another went further , affirming that he was either a knave or a dunce : thus the author of the request to protestants , begins with such a magisterial sentence , against his answerer ; * that he concluded it a pamphlet unworthy of special notice , and expected , if not more pertinent , yet at least more plausibly replies , except protestants meant their profession should be expos'd by silence , or a silly defence , and for the future esteem'd destitute of any divine evidence ▪ though what little reason he had to say so , the world hath since seen , and i dare appeal to any impartial person on their own side , whether , there be not more of affected scorn than truth in that fine speech . nay , they will not onely make the world believe that they despise us , but will express their contempt even in the most unhandsome language , * as dr. ruze , tho' a frenchman and at paris when the ministers monsieur de spina and monsieur barbaste minister to the q. of navarr , desired liberty to pray before they began the conference , which was then to be held , in the house of the duke de montpensier , told them , that if they would go pray , he would go to piss during the time of prayer . i cannot here forbear anticipating the next chapter by desiring the reader that whenever he meets with such carriage , he would make it rather a subject for his laughter , than his serious thoughts ; and in the following chapter i shall give him some reason for it ; and i desire he would take this as a maxim , to suspect every thing they say ; a maxim very necessary to be observed , as an antidote against their great design in the beginning of a proselyting intrigue ; for i durst venture any person among all their reasons , if this insinuating way of ingaging mens affections were laid aside . if men would learn to love those who are of another profession , while they hate their errors and superstitions , we might hope to see again the primitive charity restored ; and therefore notwithstanding the bitterness of romish spirits , and their greatest kindnesses carrying a design in them , it is our duty to love their persons , especially those who by particular obligations deserve it ; i know it is an usual way among them to enquire into the wants and conditions of others , and they know where to get money to supply them , and are ready with all officiousness to assist and oblige their acquaintance , especially those they are tampering with ; and though we see through these artifices , yet we are bound to be ready to do the same , or greater kindnesses for them if we are able ; but on the other side our just respect for them ought not to lessen our love to truth or make us less diligent in searching after it ; neither ought we to have such an opinion of them as to have a less esteem for our religion : to suffer that would be to love them more than god , and to concur with them to our own deceiving in such unworthy actions , as an honest heathen would be asham'd of ; i know they have made several converts by this one artifice ; they will go to a person whom they know to be under straits , and among other arguments , insist on the want of charity in our church , and advise them to go to some of our ministers and see what they will do for them ; upon this some of them have come to some divines whom i could name , and that very lately , complaining of their wants , and that there is no provision made for them , relating what proffers they have from the gentlemen of the church of rome , if they will be of that church . now for a minister to maintain these people is impossible , all that he can do being to give them some present relief ; this the priests make their advantage of , remonstrating how true it is , that as they affirm'd our church is void of charity ; which so abounds in theirs , that if they will be reconcil'd they shall have a plentifull allowance , which guilded bait hath been greedily swallowed by too many . i cannot say that they have kept their words with none , but i know there are several whom they have gained by this means , who being once made sure by the * oath which they make them take , have their allowances taken off , under pretence that the stock is exhausted by the multitude of converts , and they are able to continue it no longer . from several instances which may be produc'd of this kind , it were an easie matter to form very strong arguments against too much credulity ; but our holy religion needing no worldly consideration to uphold it , i shall only reason from the weakness of a change which is begun to be effected by such an artifice ; it being one of the most heinous sins to chuse a religion for profit's sake , and incompatible with true holiness . seeing worldly gains are so far from being permitted to have any force in a soul endued with that , that the being christ's disciple infers a renunciation of them all ; from whence i may draw another proof ; that the design of those gentlemen is not to inform mens vnderstandings , but so they get them to their side , they have their end ; but this i refer to the second part , where i design to treat more particularly of this method . there is yet another effect which the readiness of the missionaries to oblige those they deal with , is design'd to produce , the creating such a good opinion of them , as shall incline men to be guided by their directions : this i mention'd before , but chose to insist upon it here , because it is usually furthered by the opinion of zeal and love to souls , which by their words and gestures they endeavour to drive the people into a belief of . but here it is to be considered that a fair carriage is not the sign of a messenger of truth , but may be and is found in deceivers and false prophets ; * our saviour having long since told us that false prophets come in sheeps clothing ; and the great apostle of the gentiles informs us , that with † good words and fair speeches they deceive the hearts of the simple ; and therefore is the more earnest with the ‖ colossians , because he knew deceivers would use enticing words ; such going about for that end who have a * form of godliness though not the power ; and for these who go about in the name of christ to promote their own ends , with words † smoother than butter ; our saviour , when he told us of them , gave us likewise a rule how to deal with them , ‖ ye shall know them by their fruits , not by their outward actions , for none are more outwardly strict than deceivers , but by their doctrines ; if they be not of god , all the rest is but sheeps cloathing , but pretence to innocence and sincerity when the essence of it is wanting ; that sheeps cloathing being expounded by the romanists themselves to imply * an affected simplicity and sincerity , † enticing words , and specious works . now for any man to be caught with these which are the special properties of false prophets and deceivers , would appear incredible , if experience did not shew how little the cautions of our saviour are reflected on , which renders such weak persons the less capable of excuse , because though they were warn'd of this snare they would not avoid it . this shew of zeal and piety , we are told by the jesuite ‖ acosta , will be industriously affected by the messengers of antichrist , whereby he says , they will ensnare many heedless and unthinking souls ; which makes that caution of the wise man , absolutely necessary to be frequently reflected on , and diligently observed , when he speaketh fair , believe him not , for if the antichristian emissaries shall bid as fair for the good opinion of men by such specious preserve , how great an indifference ought every one to preserve for all persons , till they see their fruits . this is equally the duty of all sides , neither can we be too suspicious in matters of our eternal concern , where nothing but evident proof from divine authority should prevail with us . for in obedience to the command of st. john * to try the spirits whether they are of god , it is our business to receive no doctrine till it is confirmed by the word of god ; this suspicion and caution is recommended to us by the great champion of the romanists at oxford , so that all reason concurs to excite us to that diligence , for which the apostle paul so highly commends the inhabitants of † berea , that they would not believe what he taught till by searching the scriptures they found he agreed with them . i know indeed the gentlemen of the church of rome will not allow such a search , but the aforesaid ‖ author expresly affirms that when new doctrines come into the world , christians are directed to try such doctrines whether they be of god , which is all i at present plead for . if i should urge to this end , the same reason which solomon does , where he gives this advice ; * he that hateth , dissembleth with his lips , and layeth up deceit within him ; when he speaketh fair believe him not , for there are seven abominations in his heart . i could find several instances given by their own divines to justify such a caution ; but because this chapter is lengthen beyond what i at first intended , i shall remit them to another place , and mention onely the instance of mr. parsons the famous writer against k. james's succession to the crown , and in defence of the pope's deposing power ; of whom several † french divines observe ; that no mans writings are fuller of spite than his . but it is mixt with such floods of crocdiles tears , when he is most spitefull , that he then always pretends so much charity and tenderness , as if every hard word he uses went to his very heart ; by which the simpler sort are greatly blinded . nay , they are so us'd to this pretence of love to souls , that in the inqvisition , when they are tormenting a heretick , as they call him , with the greatest torments , they pretend all is out of love to his soul ; though all the world knows , that tortures make no real converts ; and consequently seeing they can have no effect upon the soul , they can do that no good . i know it is very hard for one whose disposition is ingenious , to guard himself from such insinuations , and therefore have been the more prolix , in setting forth the command of our saviovr , and the necessity of being very watchfvll over our selves , lest out of a piece of good nature we throw away our souls , and make shipwrack of the faith. let us endeavour to have a real love for them , and our desires for their salvation be sincere and fervent , but till they can shew us a chvrch that doth more sincerely advance the great ends of holiness and piety , let us hold fast the profession of our * faith without wavering ; and not throw away our selves out of love to others , as those unfortunate † gentlemen who purely out of love to catesby , became partakers of his guilt in the gvnpowder-treason , and so lost their fames , their lives , and greatly hazarded their souls . chap. ii. of their strange confidence in asserting any thing that may tend to their advantage . to strengthen that advice with which i concluded the former chapter , it is an excellent observation , no less true than ingenious made by an eminent * divine who lived seventeen years abroad among the romanists , † that the proper genius , and as it were the universal spirit of that church consists much in a confidence to raise any thing which they have , although that were but a dung-hill into a castle , and by the noise of strange expressions to perswade you out of your own knowledge , that you may believe the enchantment . transubstantiation , &c. had been as soon tumbled down as started up , had they not been kept on foot by this kind of roman-hectoring . which is so fit a name for their carriage , that there are no men in the world to whom the appellation of spiritval hectors , so properly belongs , as to these gentlemen ; all the brags , fain'd stories , huffing expressions , confident assertions , and supercilious looks , which are the very constituent qualities of those we call hectors , are so exactly copyed by these men , that an indifferent person would be ready to conclude the difference to be very small , if any . they do with much unconcernedness insist upon the common arguments of their predecessors , without taking the least notice of the answers which have been made to them , yea reiterate the very same objections to the same person who has answered them before ; like flies , which although you drive them away will still return and never cease to trouble you ; so these men after you have refuted all their objections they come to you again and produce the same things , as if they were new : and as flies bring others with them and all together make one , and the same buzzing , so when you can suffer these people no longer , they send you their emissaries and disciples , you see many new faces , but you hear still the same song , and see them go round the same circle ; insomuch that * monsieur drelincourt professes that one certain objection hath been made him , and refuted above an hundred times . this excellent method our present controvertists are so fond of , that they do not scruple to propose objections verbatim out of authors who have not onely been several times refuted , but convicted of the greatest insincerity and wilfull forgery : the author of the † fifth part of church-government hath copyed out of sanders , who not onely reviles our princes with all the bitter words of an overflowing gall , and dyed in open rebellion ; but hath been often refuted , and convinced of forgery by several , and particularly by dr. burnet , in his history of the reformation from publick records ; and in pleading against our ordination , hath brought no arguments , but such as were distinctly reply'd to by ‖ arch-bishop bramhall , mr. * mason , and dr. † burnet ; the two first long since , and the last very lately ; transcribing as the learned reflecter observes not onely the matter but the very form of those arguments which have been so often confuted . and the collector of ( that book so much admired among them , and recommended at this very day by no less a person than the vindicator of the * bishop of condom ) the nubes testium hath exactly transcribed that notorious plagiary alexandre natalis , whose wretched falsifications have been several times exposed , and particularly in the point of images by † spanhemius , to say nothing of our own divines , and yet this disturber of antiquity copies even his very forgeries , without the least notice of the ▪ little credit he is of among the romanists themselves . if at any time they apprehend a rub in their way , either from any doctrine or practice of their own , or any passage of the ancient fathers , it is almost incredible with what prodigious assurance they will deny it . wherein they have an excellent example set them by the bishop of meavx , who writing to the new converts of his diocese very gravely tells them ; ‖ that not one of them hath suffered violence either in his person or goods ; so far have you been ( saith he ) from suffering torments that you have not so much as heard them mention'd ; i hear other bishops affirm the same ; but for you my brethren i say nothing to you , but what you may speak as well as i , you are returned peaceably to us you know it . this strange assertion coming from a person of his character , was received at paris with such surprize , that men began presently to believe , he would strike it out of the next edition ; so that the author of the * republique des lettres was inclinable to credit that report , because men of sense would complain in their minds to be thus eternally wearied with these pretences , that the huguenots signed the formulary with all the readiness in the world , but instead of that in his letter of may the th . this present year , he confirms that bold passage with a * solemn protestation in the presence of god who is to judge the quick and dead , that he spoke nothing but the truth , and that he never design'd to expunge that clause : it is not without a sensible regret that i relate this passage , but when a person of his quality , and refin'd wit , shall with so great solemnity impose upon the world wherein so many thousands can convince him of imposture , and call god to witness to so notorious an untruth , we may well expect to meet with very little sincerity from others , who are so great admirers of this bishop . it is a very true and just remark made by a late † author , that his majesties brief alone may serve for a confutation of so shamefull an assertion , and shew us how little we can rely upon these gentlemen when they talk to us of things that were done twelve or fourteen years ago , that make no scruple of dealing thus with us in a matter of fact , in the sight of the world , before whose eyes these things are acted , to which i may add the witness all covntries can bear to the contrary , where multitudes of those poor distressed , persecuted christians have taken sanctuary . but for the particular matters of fact in that prelates diocese my ‖ author informs us , that as far as he can learn , the dragoons , ( by whom they make their proselytes ) were not lodg'd in the bishoprick of meaux ; but they came up to the very gates of the city . being thus in sight of their danger , and expecting every minute when it would fall upon them , the bishop thought that certainly now if ever they would be dispos'd to a compliance ; ( so that tho' not tortur'd they were frighted into it . ) with this advantage he invites them to a conference , appears more moderate than even his own exposition ; and desires very little more of them , than what any one might venture to subscribe . such advances back't with the terrors of the dragoons at the gates , prevailed upon them ; upon which the dragoons were dismiss'd . how this agrees with not so much as hearing violences mention'd , and returning peaceably , is onely for them to make out who are so good at reconciling contradictions ; especially if we look on his carriage afterwards , when * he actually proceeded to mention violence , for he threatned those that would not come , and quarter'd the dragoons ▪ upon the obstinate ; and particularly on monsieur de seguier couzen to the late chancellor of that name , who are to this day prisoners on th●● account . nay this same gentleman who so gravely tells ●s he heard the same from other bishops , viz. that there was no force us'd , did in a letter dated but a few days after that wherein he denies any violence to be used to the protestants , both own and justifie the persecution to a person of quality who had escaped out of france , and he desired to reclaim ; which kindled such an indignation in that honourable person , that he printed the bishops letter to him : and yet can this prelate appeal to god concerning the truth of that which he had contradicted under his own hand ? we need not wonder at his singular dexterity in this matter , seeing it hath been his chief employment as a bishop , to make proselytes , and it would be a great wrong to his quick apprehension ; to suspect his being throughly vers'd in the artifices necessary for accomplishing his end . which is an opinion none that is conversant in his works can well be of , he having taken so much care to furnish us with instances of his excellency therein . for being charg'd by the learned † expositor of the doctrine of our church , with teaching prayer to saints in such a manner , as that it was directly contrary to the same doctrine as laid down in ‖ father crassets book on that subject , by his * letter of april the th . . † affirms he never read that jesuit's discourse , neither ever heard it mention'd that it was contrary to his exposition ; which he again asserts in his letter of may . . now to prove this of the same stamp with the former passage , the very looking into the * bishops book of communion under one kind , where he is answering monsieur jurieux , who objects that book of father crasset against his lordship , and spends several pages to prove that it plainly contradicts his exposition ▪ is sufficient . so that we must either conclude the bishop answered a book which he never read , or that his protestation that he never heard there was any thing in that jesuites book contrary to his , mvst be vntrve ; for he could not peruse monsieur jurieux discourse , without finding the difference insisted on . this was urg'd against him by his † adversary , but he thinks fit in his reply to take no notice of it ; contenting himself with an unjust reflexion upon that french divine , but never offers to weaken this argument , which had been alledg'd purposely to prove his assertion false . and which will always remain as an unanswerable instance of his insincerity ; unless he fly for refuge to that equivocating shift , that he never heard father crassets doctrine was different from his , tho' he had indeed read a discourse which affirm'd that it was , which is an excuse fit for such a cause and the best that it will ever bear . there seems to be a kind of conspiracy among the french-clergy to deny this persecution , or at least to represent it as neither so violent or universal as indeed it is , to which purpose it is ‖ affirm'd in a discourse said to be written by order of the clergy , ( under this title a letter from a chvrch man to a friend ) that there were not forty churches of protestants demolish'd in the ten years preceding the year eighty two , when it is notoriously known , that in the province of poitov alone , near that number were pull'd down ; and the agent of the clergy had the may before said at the opening of the assembly , that the k. had demolish'd an infinite number of them . but it is not particular actions onely , which they are so ready to deny and disclaim ; but if any authors , whether fathers , or of a latter date , of whatsoever kind be objected to them , they reckon it a good and sufficient answer , either to deny that there are such authors , or that they wrote those books , or that the passages insisted on are to be found in them ; or if all these be made too evident to be handsomely denied , they have then some wrested interpretation which without any hesitancy they will offer as the sense of the author they are press'd with . this liberty of rejecting books when they are press'd with them , is not onely practis'd but defended ; * vasquez telling us , that it is frequent among the catholicks , when they are urg'd with testimonies out of the councils or fathers to deny that they are theirs , and this ▪ he says is the readiest ( and often the best ) refuge they can find ; and † baronivs , being prest with a passage out of clement's constitutions , answers , that he might deny the authority of them , which he affirms to be a very justifiable shift ; this is confess'd by the authors of the ‖ index expurgatorius belgicus to be their usual practice , and they give directions how to improve it ; which the missionaries are very observant of , as the experience of those who converse with them , may easily discover . i remember when i urg'd one of them with the novelty of transubstantiation , he told me it was so far from being new , that it was never question'd , till berengarivs oppos'd it ; when i desired him to call to mind that bertram liv'd some ages before that he mention'd , he reply'd in a great heat , there was no such man , and turning to the company , desired them to take notice how we coyn'd authors at our pleasure ; but when i undertook to justifie both that there was such a writer who oppos'd their doctrine , and had satisfi'd those who were present , he had no way to come off , but by pretending he mistook the name , but i could not prevail with him to tell who it was he suppos'd i nam'd . when campion the jesuite who made such a bustle with his brags of challenging the universities was * prest with some texts out of the book of judith to prove that she was not inspir'd by god , he confidently affirmed , there were no such passages , tho' it was presently proved that they were to be found in the vulgar latin : and mr. chark † alledging tertullian against hermogenes in defence of the sufficiency of scripture , mr. campion first deny'd that tertullian wrote the book , and being convinc'd of that , without reading the place , he immediately of his own head began a discourse of the fathers design therein ; as if it were revealed to him by inspiration , for he had just before disclaim'd the knowledge of any such piece of tertullians , which way of expounding the fathers and scripture at random , he was so in love with , that in the last conference , being press'd with that passage of our saviour , thou shalt ‖ worship the lord thy god , and him onely shalt thou serve ; from whence mr. clark inferr'd * that as the text of deuteronomy , thou shalt worship no † strange gods , justified our saviours adding the word onely , him onely shalt thou serve , so we by the same warrant and words do in the question of justification , take the words ‖ not by works , * not by law , to import as much as faith onely , for all works whatsoever being excluded by these negative speeches , faith alone , remaineth . to evade this mr. campion with his usual boldness reply'd , that the word worship doth of necessity infer so much , and therefore christ did well to expound it by onely : but it was not so in the other instance . where by endeavouring to outface that argument , he gave up the whole cause of worshipping images and saints , by confessing that god alone is to be worshipp'd . and the jesuit cotton confessor to henry the great of france , * when carolus scribanius , under the feigned name of bonarscius had published his book wherein he defended the power of popes over the lives and temporalities of kings , finding how ill it was resented at the court of france , confidently asserted , that it was a book written by the hereticks , and published only to make the jesuits odious ; and yet the same man when he had opportunity highly commended , the very same book ; as very fit for the instruction of youth , and was a means of dispersing many copies of it . let the impartial reader but reflect on this carriage which is so universally approv'd among them , and he will find it was not without reason that i desir'd of him in the former chapter , to distrust every thing they say . it was a habit , i was very unwilling to endeavour after , till my experience of their way of writing , and observations of their discourses , convinc'd me of the absolute necessity , all who deal with them lie under to attain it ; for i cannot call to mind any one of their books , nor remember any particular conversation which i have been engag'd in with them , wherein i have not met with such shuffling and insincere answers , offered with as grave a countenance , and as much assurance as if there was no jugling at the bottom . to alledge all the instances which the late passages of this nature furnish us with , would be as troublesome to the reader as tedious to me . † the oxford champion , gives luther the lye , for quoting a passage which though this civil gentleman is pleas'd to deny it , is in the author he professes to take it from : the late ‖ bishop of meath assures us , there are who contrary to all evidence confidently aver , write and openly proclaim to the world , that there was no rebellion in ireland in . but they themselves , the irish and papists of ireland were then the sufferers , and the protestants the first aggressors , which they back with such confidence , that the bishop assures us , it hath already gain'd great belief with many . an eminent divine lately discoursing with some of the roman church , and producing the roman breviary , in confirmation of the point he was insisting on , one of them very confidently told him that it was forg'd by the protestants , and when he offer'd the passion week printed in english at paris he met with the same answer . and at this day they spread among their people a report , that the reason of the few hardships ( for they strive to represent them as few as possible ) of the french protestants is because they designed to rebell against the king. it is almost incredible what a multitude of such instances might be given , and as strange , that men who pretend to so much religion , should be guilty of them ; but they find the effects of them so pleasing , that there is no hope they should ever be prevail'd on to relinquish these unhandsome methods , and behave themselves with more modesty and respect to truth . for hereby they have so possess'd their people with false notions , and fill'd their heads with such invented stories , that they look upon us as a parcel of men who can neither write nor speak truth ; insomuch that but a few days ago , when i offer'd to a gentleman of that communion to prove his church guilty of forging avthors , and altering the genuine works of the ancient fathers and modern divines , he reply'd that he was so sure of the contrary , that tho' i should swear it he would never believe it true ; nay if i should shew him the very books , he was sure they must be some of our own making , and therefore would giv● no credit to them ; just such an encounter * mr. crashaw had with some of the same religion upon this subject ; when objecting the index expurgatorius , they presently reply'd it was never done by the catholick church , but it was some trick of beza or junius devised to disgrace the catholick cause . to justifie his accusation he produced stella on luke , which was purged as the title it self declared according to the rules of that index ; they answered , the title might be put in by some of us in malice , to make the world believe the romish church did what they have not done . nay , when he produc'd possevine the jesuite affirming that he was so purg'd ; they would not be satisfied but still declar'd there was no such thing . and this is the case of many thousands at this day among them . neither is this confident trick of asserting whatever they fansie may advance their cause , practis'd onely when they are pressed with an argument or authority ; but in their own arguments against us they will not stick to publish the greatest falsities , if it may either create an ill opinion of us , or enhance their peoples esteem for them . their usual entrance is with great boasts of their cause , and that if their enemies dare mee● them , the world shall see with how much ease they will baffle all their arguments , though the jesuite * gontiere was sadly foil'd , when having so far prevailed upon monsieur liembrun , that the gentleman had promis'd to become a romanist ; after a conference which he desired the jesuite would hold with dr. du moulin ; when the conference began , he was so puzz'ld to prove his own mission , that after much turning over the bible , he retir'd ●●lent and in confusion to a corner of the room ; upon which monsieur liembrun in indignation addressed himself to gontiere : father , said he ; you told me that if i brought a minister before you , you would confound him , here is one , and you stand dumb . upon which , the gentleman was confirmed in his religion . and mr. campion , notwithstanding all his brags , and vain challenges , was so miserably baffl'd , in the four conferences held with him in the tomes , that whoever reads the relation published by his own party , will have other thoughts of his abilities and learning , than he could possibly form from the idea , the commendations given of him by the missionaries , might prevail with him to entertain . these brags having raised the expectation of the people to admiration , they are well prepar'd to feed the humour , in which the description given of * monsieur maimbourg , is a character of their conduct , that they have no regard to truth , or likelihood in what they assert ; and tho' i know there are many among them who abhor such practices , yet the much greater number of them do all copy after the same pattern ; when the ingenious author of the † pap. misrepresented and represented , would establish the books ( which our church rejects for apocrypha , ) as a part of the canon of scripture , he cites st. gregory nazianzen and st. ambrose , neither of whom have any thing to the purpose , the first onely mentions the persons of the maccabees , and commends them ; and the latter quotes them as we do any other books , but hath not the least tittle of their being part of the sacred canon ; but thinking to establish two points by one authority , he tells us in the same chapter , that st. jerome doubted of the book of judith , which for some time seem'd to him apocryphal , till the council of nice declar'd it otherwise : now tho' i doubt not it was his design , to establish the authority both of a general council , and the book of judith by this one instance , yet he hath unhappily fail'd in both ; the confidence with which he backs this affirmation being all the strength of it , for it was impossible there should be any truth in it , seeing when the council of nice sate , st. jerome was either not born , or but two years old ; and the council made no decree at all about the books of scripture , yet doth that witty author venture these three untruths in one chapter , as if because setting a good face on the matter , prevails with the people of his communion , who are kept from examining what they hear affirmed , we must therefore believe all he saith with the same implicit faith. but when baronius and bellarmine , those champions of the church of rome , ‖ care not by what means they establish the doctrine of the pope's power , which is the character given of them by a learned man of their own communion ; their unfaithfulness being so obvious , that a * franciscan fryer yet living observes , that the great annalist baronius , seems to have had no other end in writing his twelve laborious tomes , than to heap together how well or ill soever all the topicks he could imagin for asserting to the bishop of rome the universal monarchy ; when we find that pillar of the cause pointing out the way to the inferior missionaries 't is no wonder if an exact imitation of these great examples be affected by them . and indeed this disposition is so natural to the guides of that church , that no sooner can a proselyte breath among them , but he is running in the same path ; thus mr. * cressy very seriously attempts to perswade the world that when examination is made of miracles in order to the canonization of any saint , the testimony of women will not be received , for which he gives this reason , because naturally imagination is stronger in them than judgment , and whatever is esteemed by them to be pious , is easily concluded by them to be true ; but though there be very much weight in this reason , yet the matter of fact is so notoriously false , that there is scarce any of their noted saints , in the process of whose canonization we do not find the oaths of women pass current , nay , sometimes without any other testimony to confirm them ; for as his right honorable and learned answerer observes , the single testimony of the nurse was the only evidence of the first miracle that st. benedict ( mr. cressy's great patron ) wrought : and in the canonization of ignatius loyala the founder of the jesuits ; the attestation of isabella monialis was taken to confirm his working miracles ; and yet no doubt this plausible assertion of mr. cressy's passes for truth among very many who being destitute of opportunities to discover the mistake , yield firm credit to it , because it is confidently advanc'd . there is nothing more frequent in these gentlemens mouths , than all the fathers are of this opinion , antiqvity is vnanimovs in this point , and such like bold expressions ; though they deserve as much credit as mr. cressy's pretence and very little more . for though † mr. mumford the jesuite , tells us , that the text of st. paul , let a bishop be the husband of one wife , was only a permission at that time , when it was impossible to find fit men for that office who were single ; ( an assertion perfectly false ) that the apostle would have no man who married a second wife be made a bishop ; and that the text is so interpreted by the covncils and fathers vnanimovsly , * st. chrysostome will tell him that this text is so far from being only a permission of marriage for a time , that it is designed for encreasing the esteem of it ; and if he pleases to consult him in another † homily upon the same subject , he will find , that the interpretation he calls ridiculous is given by that great divine , the apostle ( saith he ) forbiddeth excess , because among the jews the association of a second marriage was lawfull and to have two wives at once ; so that all the fathers we see are not unanimous in his exposition , though he is pleas'd to say they are ; and if we are as he tells us in the same place ridiculous in interpreting the words of saint paul in this sense , that a bishop should have but one wife at once ; we have very good authority for being so ; though his consideration or sincerity was but small when he tells us all the fathers are vnanimovs of his side , and that 't is ridiculous to dissent from him . with the same briskness we are told by the ‖ irish animadverter on the bishop of bath and wells's sermon , that melchisedeck's bread and wine is own'd by all to be a type of the sacrament ; i suppose he meant all of his communion , for he must be very ignorant , not to know that the protestants deny it ; and yet by his telling the bishop , that he durst not meddle with that point , because of this vniversal consent , he seems to extend his all beyond the narrow ●ounds of the roman church . but we may well expect such a spirit of confidence in the members of a church , in whose rvle of faith , the covncil of trent we find this assertion , * that the ancient fathers when they gave the eucharist to infants , did not teach it was necessary to salvation that they should receive it . an affirmation which we may in some sort excuse the fathers of that council for being so hardy as to advance , their skill in antiquity being so very small , that it is more than probable very few of them knew the contrary ; though a little more modesty might have been expected , than so rashly to pronounce against the whole current of the fathers , and the universal tradition of the church for some ages , nay against the decree of pope innocent the first , who as * saint augustine assures us , taught , that little children cannot have eternal life , without baptism and the participation of the body and blood of christ ; with which place when mr. campion was press'd , he after the example of this council , as † positively answer'd there is no such decree , though the very work of saint augustine was brought , and this passage shew'd him . with the very same sincerity , doth ‖ bellarmine affirm that the whole chvrch and all the greek and latin fathers teach , that when christ said upon this rock will i build my church , he thereby meant peter ; and * alexandre natalis , that the fathers with a nemine contra dicente interpret the rock to be that apostle ; there needs but very little reading to confute this , notwithstanding all the assurance it is back't with , for not onely particular fathers tell us , that when our lord said upon that rock , he meant , upon the faith of the confession peter had then made , insomuch that saint † ambrose is positive it is not of the flesh but of the faith of peter , that this is said , but that main stream of antiquity runs this way to establish that exposition which ‖ st. austin so plainly gives , that the church was established upon that faith which peter had then confessed , when he said thou art christ the son of the living god ; nay , so far are the ancient writers from being unanimous in this point , that there are three several opinions among them , some and but very few affirming it was peter's person , in the same sense as all the * apostles are called the foundation of the church , others that it was himself , christ designed by the word rock , and the third that which i have mention'd that it was the faith then confessed by st. peter which hath near threescore fathers and councils to authorise it ; where the first hath hardly six ▪ judge now on which side the nemine contra dicente lies . by this time i think it pretty evident , that these gentlemen are too much akin to those , * who are desirous to be teachers of the law , but understand not , ( or at least mind not , ) what they say , nor whereof they affirm ; which makes the advice of one of themselves in another case very seasonable , † who tells us , that this huffing humour is caution enough to any reasonable man to take care ; for if it be our duty to take nothing in religion upon trust , it is certainly of very great concern that we be suspicious in trusting those , whose insincerity is so very great , that they are not asham'd to publish the most palpable vntruths ; what is to be expected then from their discourses with ignorant and unwary men , especially in private , where they are in no such danger of being expos'd . chap. iii. of their slanders . when the prophet jeremiah was in the name of the lord , endeavouring to reform the corruptions of the jewish church , he complains , that his enemies said one to another , * come and let us devise devices against him , and let us smite him with the tongue ; † report say they , and we will report it ; which made him give that caution and advice to those who obeyed the voice of the lord by him . ‖ take ye heed every one of his neighbour , and trust ye not in any brother : for every brother will utterly supplant , and every neighbour will walk in slanders ; whose case being so very like that of the reformed churches , both in the work he undertook , reformation , and in the opposition which was made to him by calumnies and slanders , his advice is as seasonable to us , as to the reforming jews ; we having to deal with a politick sort of men , who notwithstanding the wise * solomon hath pronounc'd that he that uttereth slanders is a fool , establish it as a maxim which they are very diligent observers of , that it is no mortal sin to calvmniate falsly to preserve ones honovr , like the hereticks † st. augustine speaks of , who not being able to defend their cause set themselves to revile their adversaries , spreading the most false reports , that seeing they cannot evade the force or obscure the evidence of the truth contained in the holy scriptures , they may render those who preach it odious , by reporting all the evil of them they can invent . i know this is a severe charge , and will be look't upon even by many sober and impartial men , as uncharitable , but if they can either prove that the passages i relate are false , or the authors i cite , who maintain it lawfull are forged and corrupted ; i am willing to lie under that imputation : but on the other side , if they prove to be truly cited , i must desire of the reader that their character of religious men , and their formal pretences to sincerity , may be look't upon as indeed they are but a fair covering , and cloak for their designs ; and i challenge the whole body of them , to prove one particular instance or citation false ; wherein i do not ( as mr. pulton in his remarks ) charge those slanders on them , which are only the additions which a story gets by running from hand to hand ; for i know it is possible a man may relate things that are false , without being guilty of the slander , by being deceived in the account which was given him of those matters ; but when men make it their business to defame and assert the lawfulness of doing it by false reports , i think it is no piece of injustice or want of charity to call them slanderers . i am not insensible that the generality of men are apt to reason with themselves , that surely religious men cannot be of such sear'd consciences , as to damn themselves by such malicious backbiting ; but in this case such a reflexion is ungrounded , for their great casuists defend it to be lawfull ; and are so far from being apprehensive of damnation , that they justifie its practice , as father * dicastillo informs us ; i have maintained ( saith he ) and do still maintain that calumny when it is used against a calumniator , though grounded on absolute falsities , is not for that any mortal sin either against justice or charity . and to prove it i have brought a cloud of our fathers to witness it , and whole vniversities consisting of them , all whom i have consulted , and among others the reverend father john gans confessor to the emperor , the reverend father daniel bastele confessor to the arch duke leopold , father henry , sometimes preceptor to those two princes ; all the publick and ordinary professors of the vniversity of vienna , all the professors of the vniversity of grats , all the professors of the vniversity of prague , of all whom i have at hand the approbations of my opinion written and sign'd with their own hands : besides that , i have on my side , father pennalossa a jesuite , and confessor to the king of spain , father pillecorolli a jesuite , and many others . and when this was objected to the jesuits by the author of the provincial letters in his fifteenth letter ; the † answerers of that letter where they undertake to defend themselves , instead of condemning add more authority to father dicastillo's position , by citing several authors besides those mentioned before in defence of it . neither do they deny the doctrine of caramuel who asserts , that it is a probable opinion , that it is not any mortal sin to caiumniate falsly to preserve ones honour , for it is maintained by above twenty grave doctors so that if this doctrine be not probable there is hardly any such in all the body of divinity . and the same is asserted by the theses of the jesuits at ‖ lovain , ann. . in case of calumniating and imposing false crimes , to ruine their credit who speak ill of us . besides these vniverslties and divines , who teach the lawfulness of calumnies and false reports , we find it among other rules of the jesuits ; that they should be sure to put this doctrine in practice , even against those of their own cummunion , the ancient orders of the roman church ; for if such happen to be an hindrance to their ambitious designs , by standing in their way , * the rule is , let their faults be diligently noted , and they represented as dangerous to the publick peace , which as is observed by † one no enemy to their order , was a succesfull means of their enlargement , and succeeding greatness , their instilling into the minds of princes by false insinuations , an evil opinion of the other religious orders . ‖ among the same instructions they are directed , that all those who hinder and disswade men from giving estates or money to the society should be turned out , and to prevent their doing mischief after their ejection . * let their faults be exposed ( saith the eleventh rule ) even such as in discharging their consciences they have revealed to their superiors : and let strangers be possess'd that they were guilty of those crimes which the people are wont to hate us for ; this made † mariana a famous member of that society affirm ; that if the apostle st. paul himself should contradict the jesuits , and not approve their errors , they would be sure to represent him , as an extravagant and restless disturber of and enemy to peace . the observation of which spirit and doctrine made ‖ one who had been many years a priest declare , they do not account it evil ( as i verily think ) to calumniate the protestants by any device whatsoever that may carry any probability with it , nor make any conscience to tell and publish any untruths , which they think being believ'd may advance and promote such points and matters , as they take upon them to defend for the honour of the church of rome and dignity of their priesthood , which he affirmed upon oath the th . of june . § . . this is observ'd to be their way of treating their adversaries , by the ingenious and loyal * father peter walsh , a fryer of the franciscan order , who acknowledges , that their catholick writers are generally hurried on to exorbitant passions and barbarous language ( besides many down-right lies and meer calumnies often ) against all those that leave their church . neither is the treatment they afford those who continuing members of their church oppose any of their designs more christian and sincere ; an example whereof we have in a † french bishop , who had been a great benefactor to the jesuits , insomuch that in their poems and panegyricks , they had magnified and extolled him for an excellently learned and very pious prelate ; but when he refus'd to joyn with them in their conspiracy against king henry the third , they set themselves to defame him ; both in their ordinary discourses , their books and sermons , affirming they had discovered four and forty heretical tenets in three single leaves of his works ; which drew such a vindication from the bishop as will be a blot to their whole order , while the remembrance thereof remains in the minds of men . and indeed it cannot be supposed they will let slip any occasion of discrediting their enemies , when as you have s●en before they believe they may do it without hazarding their salvation ; and that by the credit they have in the world they may calumniate without any great fear of being accountable to the justice of men . * when monsieur puys pastor of st. niceer at lyons , translated into french a book , concerning the duties of christians towards their parishes against those by whom they are diverted from them : the jesuits esteeming themselves to be reflected on ( though no mention was made of the society ) one of that order , father alby , wrote against the translator , affirming that he was become scandalovs , lay under the suspicion of impiety , of being an heretick and excommunicated , and deserved to be cast into the fire : but all these imputations were only the pure off-spring of their own inventions for some time after , ( in the presence of † several divines and persons of quality , who all signed the declaration made by both the fathers ) viz. sep. . . when mr. puys declared to the jesuit that in what he had written he designed no reflexion upon that society , for which he had a very great esteem ; father alby immediately reply'd , sir , the belief i was in that your quarrel was against the society , of which i have the honour to be a member , oblig'd me to take pen in hand to answer it ; and i thought the manner of my proceeding lawfull and justifiable . but coming to a better understanding of your intention , i do now declare , that there is not any thing that might hinder me from esteeming you a man of a very illuminated judgment , of sound learning and orthodox , as to manners unblamable , and in a word , a worthy pastor of your church . so that by the jesuit's own confession he had no ground for his calumnies , but thought it a lawfull and justifiable manner of proceeding to represent a person impious and an heretick , in whom he knew no fault , but that he suppos'd him no friend to his order . this passage is so generally known , that the jesuits who pretended to answer the provincial letters , durst not deny it , and therefore pass it over . in the same manner is that pious and venerable prelate the late bishop of pamiers , treated by them ; whose life was an exact copy of the primitive holiness and simplicity , yet the * jesuits affirm he was damn'd , for he had excommunicated three of their order , and put them all under an interdict of hearing confessions in his diocese . whatsoever crimes they can imagine will render the protestants odious to the people , they with all imaginable diligence , pronounce them guilty of ; in which they act ( as † sir edwin sands observes ) like a supernatural artist , who in the sublimity of his refin'd and refining wit disdains to bring only mere art to his work , unless he make also in some sort the very matter it self ; so these men in blacking the lives and actions of the reformers , have partly devised matter of so notorious untruth , that in the better sort of their own writers it happens to be check'd , partly suborned other postmen to compose their legends that afterwards they might cite them in proof to the world as approved authors and histories . because they supposed it would be a means to render the reverend dr. du moulin contemptible to the world , they reported ( as ‖ he tells us himself ) that he was a fryers son , though the whole city of orleans knew the contrary , where his father was born , and of very good note . and i know a minister who travelling in some popish countries and having been a means to recall a person to our church , who was near seduc'd by the continual importunities of some english priests , had a report rais'd of him , that he was a drunkard , and continually spent his time in an alehouse or a tavern ; which report the very priest that rais'd it was afterwards asham'd of , when it was prov'd to his face , that the gentleman had not been within the doors of a publick house except the first night , he came to that town , during the stay of some months , which he made there : with the very same dis-ingenuity we find the author of * advice to the confuter of bellarmine , insinuating that the writer of the reflexions on the notes of the church , imployed his pen to confute them over a pot of ale ; which unhandsome passage he hath neither been pleas'd to explain , tho' * his answerer desir'd to know why he commenc't his advice with such a suggestion ? nor to defend the truth of a charge which such a passage necessarily implies . but they are not content to invent crimes , and charge men with actions , they never own'd or were guilty of , but pretend likewise to dive into mens thoughts , which † surius was so expert at , that he sticks not to affirm , that the protestant divines do generally write against their consciences , and maintain positions , which they know are false ; and ‖ mr. cambden's adversary was so well acquainted with that learned persons interior ( to use a monkish word ) that he tells the world , mr. cambden dissembled his religion ▪ a calumny , those who are inclin'd to credit may see clearly refuted in the place cited in the margin . that eminent patriarch of the greek church , ( whom with dr. smith i shall not be asham'd to esteem a holy martyr ) * cyrillus lucaris , could no sooner begin to print some of the ancient fathers , and other discourses against the popish errors , but the emissaries of rome perswaded the bassa who then presided at constantinople , that the patriarch under pretence of printing would coin and stamp false money , and † finding some passages in one of his books , against the mahometan religion , they accus'd him to the visier for writing against the alcoran , ( were not these fathers rare christians ? ) and that he designed to stir up the greeks to mutiny , which had near cost that holy man his life , but upon the english embassador sir thomas row his expostulating the matter with the vizier , the malicious and false informations of the missionaries appear'd so horrid and abominable , that the grand vizier promis'd to restore all the goods which had been seiz'd upon the first accusation , and cast the jesuits into prison , where they had all been strangled , if the intercession of the english embassador had not prevailed for their lives ; but they were banished the grand segniors dominions , and their * house and library give to the patriarch . in the same manner because father paul the famous writer of the history of the trent council , oppos'd himself to the ambitious pretences of the pope , who claim'd a temporal authority over all princes , † the court of rome carried the greatest bitterness against him daily writing libels and invectives stuft up with lies and forgeries ; in the inventing of which there was none more concern'd than maffeio barbarian at that time nuncio in france , and afterwards pope by the name of vrban the eighth ; nay so far are they guided by this principle that rather than be wanting in the observation of it , they care not how unlikely their slanders are , or else they could never have been guilty of so great an indiscretion against the famous causabon , as after they had aspers'd his father and his whole family to declare him ( as they did ) a man of no judgment , affirming that he could not write latin , or scarce understand it ; when he was known to all the learned men of europe , to be one of the greatest scholars of that age. but the jesuit ‖ parsons was resolv'd not to trouble himself with particular persons , nothing less than the whole body of protestants in england would serve his turn ; which made him several times assure mr. sheldon , that he would undertake to make the devil speak in any bishop , arch-bishop or arch-heretick in england : and therefore the priests concern'd in the exorcising of * sarah williams and her sister ( of whom we shall give a larger account when we come to treat of their miracles ) were accustom'd frequently to affirm that all the protestants in england were possess'd , and they should have their hands full with those possessed creatures when the nation became catholicks . these one would think were pretty handsome calumnies , and fit for such men to invent and publish ; but their late poetical court hath taught the succeeding gentlemen who shall be employ'd in this office , a way to affirm the truth of their reports notwithstanding all imaginable evidence of their falsity ; for , he not content to affirm that * among all the volumes of divinity written by protestants , there was not one original treatise which handled distinctly and by it self , that christian virtue of humility ; he renews † the same challenge near a year after , though the ‖ author of the difference between the protestant and the socinian methods , had told him there was one written by mr. will. allen ; and set down the place where , and year in which it pass't the press . in the first indeed he limited his assertion , to such as he had seen and heard of , wherein as he shew'd some modesty , so he was likely to do no great harm , it being sufficiently known that in matters of divinity his acquaintance goes but a very little way , though in his own profession he is deservedly esteemed a master ; but to enlarge his assertion , and after such an information , to make that general , which he was too modest to do before , shews him an excellent proselyte : and in this point he seems able to instruct even his ghostly fathers . another artifice by which they endeavour to create an aversion in the peoples minds for the ministers of our church , is by flying at them altogether , and reproaching them as covetous and greedy of wealth ▪ this they are instructed to do by seignior * ballarini , who giving advice to father young , concerning the best way of managing the popish interest in england ; among the other directions , lays down this , that the bishops and ministers of the church of england be represented us worldly and careless ; which letter was found in father young's study after his death , and translated out of italian into english. and this slander they have so far improv'd , that as a person of honour † observes , they have entred into a conspiracy in undervaluing whatsoever is written by any clergyman how learned or vertuous soever in defence of the church of england , as if he spoke onely for his own interest , so that they who would undermine it by all the foul and dishonest arts imaginable have the advantage to be considered as persons ingaged in that accompt , merely and purely by the impulsion of their consciences , and for the discovery of such errors as are dangerous to the souls of men ; whilst they who are most obliged and are best able to refute those malicious pretences , and to detect the fraud and ignorance of those seditious undertakers , are look'd upon as men not to be believ'd , at least partial , and that all they say is said on their own behalf ; this is a sad truth , and a new engine to make a battery , at which atheism may enter without opposition , with all its instruments and attendants . in prosecution of which design it is usual with them to recount the riches of the clergy , while they maliciously and falsly insinuate that the revenues ecclesiastical in england are far greater than in popish countries ; but if we come to examine but the wealth of eclesiastical persons in the popish times in this nation , we shall find , that it exceeded by many degrees that poor pittance which reformed divines enjoy● , among whom it is known that multitudes have hardly sufficient to buy themselves bread ; * several hundreds of our livings not amounting to ten pound a year a piece , and several not to five , when the sole revenues of the monasteries and hospitals , beside the two vniversities and several monasteries not valued , in k. henry the eighth's time , amounted to † one hundred eighty six thousand , five hundred and twelve pounds odd money ; besides the bishopricks and parishes which being joyned to the former summ , the clergy of the church of rome were possessed of the yearly summ of above three hundred and twenty thousand one hundred and eighty pounds even in those times , what would they have yielded then at this day ? if then the gentlemen of the church of rome judge the provisions for the reformed clergy too great , the possessions they enjoyed will certainly appear subject ( and consequently themselves ) to the same accusation , but upon much better grounds . especially when we consider that never any clergy in the church of god , hath been or is maintained with less charge than the established clergy of the church of england ; which an ingenious * gentleman hath evidently proved . to whose arguments , if our adversaries think fit to reply , they shall not want a defender : and i am ready to prove out of their own authors , that the revenues of the french clergy amount to above one million , and two hundred thousand pounds of our english money yearly , that they possess seven parts in twelve of the whole revenue of the kingdom ; and that the arch-bishoprick of toledo in spain is as rich as some kingdoms . and now let all the world judge to whom the appellation of hirelings belongs , which they are so ready to bestow on us . but not content to cast their reproaches upon the body of the clergy , the oxford writer hath attempted to bring the charge of worldliness home to a particular bishop , but so unsuccessfully , that it is evident , he was forc'd to use his invention to maintain it , which all his assurance , ( tho' he hath a great talent that way ) will not be able to do ; for whereas he affirms , that the † excellent hooper ( who in q. maries days seal'd the protestant religion with his blood , ) held two bishopricks at once ; it is notoriously false : for he never held but the bishoprick of worcester , from which glocester was divided by k. henry the eighth , and reunited to it by k. edward ; so that all hooper enjoy'd was but one bishoprick which had some years been divided into two ; and yet our author pretends he held them in commendam . if this means will not do the work , and our divines still keep up their esteem in the minds of the people , the next design is to expose them as guilty of some immoral crime ; to this end they have ( in this city ) dress'd some of their own party in the habit of a minister , who according to instructions resorted to houses of ill repute , while others of the gang planted there on purpose , pointing at the supposed minister have been heard to say aloud there goes dr. or mr. such an one , that the people might suppose the most eminent of their ministers , frequenters of such places ; and i can name some divines whom they have by this artifice endeavoured to defame . if they have a design that any one of our ministers should be esteemed idle and lazy men , and negligent in their office , they watch till he is gone abroad , then repairing to some sick person of their acquaintance ; they desire them to send for him while they are in the house and when the messenger returns , with an account that he is not within ; they take occasion to tell the sick persons that our ministers are never to be found ; but always gadding abroad , without minding the concerns of their people , but for their parts , they are always ready to perform the duty of their office to all sorts , that send for them ; and thus they serv'd an eminent divine very lately . but that gentleman had a pretty good stock of confidence , who urging a woman to become his proselyte told her ; that our divines were men of no learning , and could not preach but by the helps they receiv'd from hearing and reading the sermons of the romish priests : and yet this was very gravely urg'd by one of them not many months since . i do not relate this passage that i think there is any danger of its being believ'd even by the meanest understanding to our prejudice ; but to let the world see that there is no slander how improbable or sensless soever which these men are asham'd of . the truth is they find calumny their best weapon , and therefore are resolv'd to use it at all adventures , hence it is we find among the rest of the directions given by the jesuite † contzen , in his advice for bringing popery into a countrey , that those who preach against a toleration , suspecting the design of the papists in it , be traduced as men that preach very unseasonable doctrine that are proud , conceited and enemies to peace and vnion . and for the better managing the popish interest in england , seignior * ballarini , directs father young , to make it appear under hand that the doctrine , discipline and worship of the church of england comes near to them ; that our common prayer is but little different from their mass ; and that the ablest and wisest men among us are so moderate , that they would willingly go over to them or meet them half way ; for thereby the more stayed men will become more odious , and others will run out of all religion for fear of popery . and we find even at this time they are observing this instruction , to which end † one of their number hath been at the pains to shew , that the church of england and the church of rome are agreed ; and the whole controversie lies between the church of rome and dissenting protestants ; but i suppose since the difference between the two churches hath been so clearly related in the ‖ answer to that pamphlet , they will for the time to come keep closer to the advice of doing their business under hand , for the discourse will hardly convince any body that we are agreed with them . but it is very pleasant to behold these gentlemen labouring with all their might to asperse the reformers , when if those passages they lay to their charge be blots indeed , they are as prejudicial to the gospel it self and to the greatest of the romish saints , as if we allow'd them in their full latitude , they can be to us . thus the * considerer upon the spirit of luther , spends much time and pains to prove that luther's doctrine was not of god , because he relates several arguments which the devil us'd against the mass , thereby attempting to drive him to despair , because he had for many years been a romish priest ; upon which † mr. pulton puts this question , now i ask whether the doctrine delivered by the spirit of untruth can be from the holy ghost ? now tho' we tell these gentlemen that luther spoke this by way of parable , yet seeing that they are deaf on that ear , let it be for once allowed that it was a real conference , and all they can draw from it is , either that knotty question of mr pulton , whether the doctrine delivered by the spirit of untruth can be from the holy ghost ? or that luther could not be an holy man , because the devil was so often with him , which is the great argument of the oxford considerer , and mr. pulton himself in the tenth page of his remarks . as for the question , i find in the gospel , the devils themselves bearing testimony to our saviour , * that he was christ the son of the living god , acknowledging him to be the † holy one of god ; and an whole ‖ legion of these unclean spirits crying out , what have we to do with thee jesus thou son of god ? and when to st. paul , the spirit of divination bore the same witness , * that he was the servant of the most high god , and shewed the way of salvation ; nay i find also that god made use of the evil spirit's testimony for the conversion of many , when the † sons of a jew undertook to call upon a man who was possess'd , the name of the lord jesus saying , we adjure you by jesus whom paul preacheth ; the evil spirit answered jesus i know , and paul i know , but who are ye ? and the man in whom the evil spirit was leap't on them and overcame them , — and this was known to all the jews and greeks also dwelling at ephesus , and fear fell on them all , and the name of the lord jesvs was magnified ; of which the following verses give particular instances . now the same answer which mr. pulton will make to an heathen , putting the same question in this case , will give full satisfaction to that which he puts to us , for if it be a good evidence to prove the doctrine of lvther false , because the devil owned the truth of it , the conclusion will hold as firm against the deity of christ , and truth of the gospel , which the devil was forced to confess . and if the second inference concludes against luther what shall we think of their admired ‖ st. anthony , to whom the devil frequently appear'd , and using an articulate voice spake to him , acknowledging that he had often attempted to corrupt him , but was not able ; nay , that he was seldom without the company of the devil either beating him or discoursing with him , the author of that life informs us in a multitude of instances ; and yet for all this , the papists will maintain his saintship , so that the devil's molestation is no argument against luther or his doctrine ; and there is hardly any of their noted saints whom the writers of their lives do not affect to represent to us as persons from whom the devil was seldom or never absent . nor is it any wonder these gentlemen should be so busie in scandalizing our divines , though the reflexion falls as severely upon their own canoniz'd saints , when they have so little consideration as to charge us with those things , which others of their own writing at the same time , and on the same subject , do acquit us of ; an instance of which we have in their frequent cries , that the * exclusion bill was managed in the house of commons by the sons of the church of england , and that the † rebellion was to be laid to their charge ; ‖ that if we look to the excluding party they were five to one church of england men ; so that our church must take the shame of all those things to her self ; these loud clamours have made more noise in the world , than all their new tests and instances of the church of england's loyalty , which i shall examine in another place ; but to the comfort of our church her adversaries agree not together , so that she needs no vindication but what she is able to bring from her greatest enemies ; therefore one * of them tells the dissenters , that they were the actors not onely in . but in the business of the rye and the west too ; and one who pleads the very same cause assures us , † that the dissenters appear'd so rigorous in choosing their representatives , that they carried it for three parliaments successfully against the church of england ; and it was in those three parliaments , that the exclusion bill was promoted and stickled for ; which is a clear demonstration , that the exclusioners were not five to one of the church of england . but as these gentlemen contradict themselves in this point , so by the same assertion they overthrow their great work of perswading the dissenters that the church of england never was , nor never will be willing to ease their consciences by a comprehension ; when by affirming the exclusion parliaments to have been compos'd of church of england men , they give themselves the lye , seeing all the world knows it was in those parliaments , that the bill of comprehension was promoted . as they will coin immoral actions for us , so likewise with the same sincerity , they make a great complaint of our falsifications , when he that examines into the matter will find no such thing ; thus the vindicator of monsieur de meaux fills part of a page , with a list of his adversaries falsifications , and calumnies , &c. of which you may judge by this instance ; * that ingenious gentleman tells us , that mr. de meaux had affirmed , that the denying of salvation to infants dying unbaptiz'd was a truth , which never any one before calvin durst openly call in question ; this the † vindicator calls a corrupting the bishops words ; which are these , ‖ the lutherans believe with the catholick church the absolute necessity of baptism , and are astonish'd with her that such a truth should be denied , which never any one before calvin durst openly call in question : now i appeal to all the world , whether it be not the same thing , to affirm that baptism is absolutely necessary to salvation , and that those who dye unbaptiz'd are not sav'd ; for if it be absolutely necessary , then without it there can be no salvation , and whoever asserts that denies salvation to those who have it not ; let our vindicator then defend himself from the imputation of calumny , which i lay to his charge in this particular , the calling that a falsification and corruption which is the true meaning of the bishops words . i shall end this head with two instances of their calumniating the poor protestants of france , though i could give as many hundreds * durirg the heat of the war between france and holland , the reformed of dauphine had kept a fast in all their churches ; and the synod that had ordered it had enjoyned all the ministers that belonged to it assisted by their ancients to visit families , and put them in mind of what had been promis'd god on the fast-day , which one of the ministers ( against whom the fryers of st. anthony had a long time watch't for an occasion ) performing , those pretended religious wrote to mr. le tellier secretary of state , that something was contriving against the king's service ; that the hugonots had celebrated a fast through all the dauphinate ; that there was a plot couched under this fast , and that devotion was onely the pretext of it ; that this minister had held secret assemblies at the houses of the principals of his parish , that he had prayed for the success of the hollanders arms , and that great summs of money were gathered by him and his party to send to the prince or orange ; and with this fair story they caused a great deal of trouble to the gentleman , and suborned witnesses to maintain the accusation , but he broke through all and clear'd his innocence to the shame of his false accusers : and as they persecuted those poor people with slanders in their own countrey , so they continue to prosecute the same unworthy methods against them in ours , where they are fled for relief from the grievous oppressions of their enemies ; for knowing the greatest part of their subsistence must come from the charity of their protestant brethren , they have endeavoured to hinder them of that by spreading a report that they are papists : this as to london is known to many hundreds , and that they have done the same in ireland , we are informed by an ingenious and worthy † gentleman , who tells us who they are that can prove the truth of his assertion . thus are we dealt with by the romanists as the primitive christians were treated by the heathens , but that which supported them doth likewise encourage us , seeing he whom we serve hath pronounced * blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you , and say all manner of evil against you falsely for my sake : though we cannot forbear to admonish our adversaries of that divine threatning , † whoso privily slandreth his neighbour , him will i destroy ; which is spoken so particularly to them , that it is impossible for them to escape while they doe such things , though they may flatter themselves , that their slanders are publick , when the denunciation is against those who slander privily ; but if one of those crimes be of such an hainous nature , how much greater is the guilt of both , which i wish i had no reason to charge upon them . nay , we have this to comfort our selves with , that these ‖ false accusations are commonly the last refuge and therefore that cause which staies it self so much upon them cannot hold long . i noted before that these gentlemen pretend to know what passes in the most inmost recesses of the hearts of men , and well they may , when they are so ready to dive into the secrets of the divine providence , and from the sudden death of persons to conclude what the designs of god in such particular dispensations are . in which knowledge they pretend to be so vers'd , that it is one of the notes whereby to know their church , given us by themselves , the unhappy death of the churches enemies , that this can be no note of the church , i shall not concern my self to prove , but refer my reader to the * discourse on this subject where he will be abundantly satisfied , that it cannot be a note to know the church by ; and that it is more favourable to us than the roman church if it were one : all i shall observe is , that if all the stories they invent and the reports they spread of the unhappy end of their adversaries were true , yet we know † that there is a just man that perishes in his righteousness , and there is a wicked man that prolongeth his life in his wickedness , ‖ that there are just men to whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked , and there are wicked men to whom it happeneth according to the work of the righteous ; so that * seeing all things come alike to all , there can nothing be concluded against any church , from the judgments which fall on the heads of particular members of it . and our saviour himself assures us , that such judgments are often sent , where the persons punished are not greater sinners than those who at the same time are spared , which he illustrates by the instances of those upon whom the tower of † siloam fell ; and the unfortunate ‖ galileans whose blood pilate mingled with their sacrifices . but let our saviour observe what he will , there are a sort of men , whose policies scorn to be founded upon his holy maxims , and are therefore resolved to invent dismal stories , where they cannot find true ones , to work upon the spirits of the more unthinking sort ; and therefore in the time of the siege of paris , during the league in france , the priests were grown to that height of immodesty , ( not to give it a worse name ) as * to perswade the people there , who generally believed it , that the thunder of the pope's excommunications had so blasted the hereticks , that their faces were grown black and ugly as devils , their eyes and looks ghastly , and their breath noisome and pestilent . † and in spain the same instruments of rome had possest the people , that since the english left the roman religion they were transformed into strange horrid shapes , with heads and tails like beasts and monsters ; which was so generally believ'd among them , that when the earl of notingham went ambassadour into spain ann. . the countrey people could hardly believe their eyes , that the english were such comely and accomplish'd gentlemen , whose deformity they had before so often heard confidently asserted . and as they are always employ'd in aspersing the living , so they exert the same diligence in forming some hideous relation of the manner of their deaths , their implacable malice following them as it did father ‖ paul sarpi the venetian to his grave , publishing impudent and fabulous stories concerning his death , of his dying howling , of strange apparitions of black dogs , of terrible noises heard in his cell and chambers , and several such lying forgeries , as those idle people us'd to invent upon luther , calvin and others who will not truckle to the vsurpations of the roman court. but the people of venice who knew him better , accounted him a saint , hanging up their votive tablets at his sepulcher . nay , they can go yet a step farther , and those very judgments which god inflicts upon themselves , they have the face to affirm , were strokes of divine vengeance on the protestants ; thus when there were some * hundreds of the rom●sh profession met to hear father drury a noted jesuit ●reach , in the black fryers , oct. . . it pleas'd god that the chamber where they were , fell down , and near a hundred persons with the preacher were kill'd out-right , and many hurt , yet had they the confidence to affirm , that this was a protestant assembly , publishing † a book relating great iudgments shewn on a ●ort of protestant hereticks , by the fall of an house in black fryers london , in which they were assembled to hear a geneva lecture ; and dr. ‖ gouge tells us when and where this relation was printed , in his account of that sad providence . i might particularize in abundance of such passages , but these are enough to let the reader see that it was not without cause i gave him caution in the first chapter to suspect them , for into what a maze of errors doth he run , who takes the accounts given by those men of the lives and deaths of their adversaries upon their authority , who give themselves such a liberty to devise fables and then report them . this over politick and wise sort of men , reach yet a note higher , and knowing of how great consequence the revolt of any eminent divine is , are as liberal in their reports that such and 〈◊〉 persons are become catholicks ( as they call them ) in which they have as little respect to truth , as in the former instances . but they find by their experience that news make their impression upon their first reporting , and that then if it be good , it greatly raises up the spirit and confirms the mind , especially of the vulgar , who easily believe all that their betters tell them ; that afterwards when such stories happen to be controll'd , mens spirits being cold are not so sensible as before , and either little regard it or impute it to common error or uncertainty of things ; yea , and that the good news comes to many mens ears who never hear of the check it hath ; and at least it may serve their turn for some present exploit , as merchants do by their news , who finding some difficulty in accommodating their affairs , have in use to forge letters or otherwise to raise bruits , either of some prosperous success in princes actions , or of some great alteration in some kind of merchandise , which may serve for that present instant to expedite their business . whether the missionaries take this piece of policy from them , or are onely imitated by them , is not material , but that , being secure of an evasion if their report be found untrue , that they were mis-informed , and knowing well that hundreds who hear the account they give , are never undeceiv'd by wanting opportunities to discover its falsity ; they are no modester in this particular , than in the other slanders is most certain . * thus in the year . they spread a report throughout germany , holland and italy , that beza had renounced his religion before the senate , and had exhorted the magistrates to reconcile themselves to the church of rome ; † and that by his example many citizens of geneva had done the like ; ‖ whereupon he was absolv'd by the bishop of that city , before his death , by special order from the pope . this we are assur'd by several * french priests was generally believed , till beza wrote several french and latin letters , to convince the world of the forgery , and that he was yet alive , and † he died not till six years after . of the very same nature , was the report of the conversion of the ‖ reverend peter du moulin , which even while he was minister of the protestant church in paris , and writing against rome , was publickly preach'd in the city in many pulpits , and benefices assigned to him ; they asserted in their sermons , that he was preparing to go to rome ; which was so generally believ'd that the people flocked to a certain church , and there waited expecting to hear him make his recantation . upon which he observes , that such tricks are apt to astonish the people for a season , and an untruth that was belie●●d for three days hath done some effect . and i am able to prove that a minister now in england travelling in company with others of our nation of the protestant religion , and making a small journey alone , to a neighbour city to that they then resided in ; the priests came to several of his fellow travellers , assuring them that the said minister was become a romanist , that he was publickly reconcil'd , and therefore surely they would not refuse to relinquish that religion , which he whose profession obliged him to defend it , and who understood it best , durst not continue in . this report was affirmed with so much confidence , that upon the ministers return , several persons of the roman catholick religion , congratulated him for his happy change , and one of the english was ready to follow his example if he had not in time discovered the cheat . and it is no longer since than the winter . that a report went current through all the countreys in england , where there are many romanists , that dr. burnet was at rome become a papist , and 〈◊〉 great preferments were bestow'd upon him ; this hath been 〈◊〉 to me by several for a certain truth , when i made 〈◊〉 enquiry , those gentlemen affirming , that they had it from very good hands , and had seen some letters from foreign parts which confirm'd it . but more immodest was the pretence of the dean of norwich's conversion about two years since , which several priests affirm'd to a servant maid , whom they knew to be a great admirer of that divine , urging ●er to follow the example of such a learned man , who was so deservedly esteem'd by her , which they reiterated with so much confidence , and frequency , that the maid promised to turn likewise ; but being convinc't by an eminent person , ( who carried her to hear the reverend dean preach ) that she was abus'd by a notorious untruth ; she was confirm'd in her aversion to that church , which is upheld by such unworthy means : and i cannot but observe the provid●●ce of god in this matter , that the sermon which the maid was carried to hear , was levell'd against the popish errors ; whereby she was not onely inform'd of the abuse , but instructed too . but their greatest traffick is in the pretended conversion of dying persons , thus they would make a romanist of dying beza six years before his death ; and this blot they have endeavoured to cast upon the memory of that excellent prelate bishop king , mr. * musket the jesuite publishing a book of his conversion to rome upon his death-bed , intituled the bishop of londons legacy . this relation we are assured did mightily † shock the peoples minds ; but it is wholly false , his son dr. henry king since bishop of chichester , preaching a sermon for his fathers vindication at st. pauls cross , nov. . . where he assures the world , that the bishop before his death received the eucharist at the hands of his chaplain dr. cluet , together with his wife , his children , his family , sir henry martin his chancellor , mr. philip king his brother , &c. protesting to them that his soul had greatly longed to eat that last supper , and to perform that last christian duty before he left 〈◊〉 ; and ga●● thanks to god , that he had liv'd to finish that blessed work. and then drawing near his end , he caus'd his 〈◊〉 to read the confession and absolution in the common prayer . and the person who was reported to reconcile him , mr. ‖ thomas preston , being examined before the a. b. of canterbury and other commissioners , protested before god , as he should answer it at the dreadfull day of judgment , that the bishop of london did never confess himself to him , nor ever received sacramental absolution at his hands , nor was ever by him reconcil'd to the church of rome ; neither did renounce before him the religion established in the church of england ; yea he added farther , that to his knowledge he was never in company with the bishop , never receiv'd any letter from him , never wrote to him , nor did he ever see him in any place whatsoever , nor could have known him from another man. the same did * father palmer the jesuite ( whom they affirmed to be one of those by whom he was reconcil'd ) affirm that he never saw the bishop . this book of musket's was known to be such a notorious forgery , that † mr. anderton an ingenious priest , expressed his sorrow that ever such a book should be suffered to come forth ; for it would do them more hur●●han any book they ever wrote ▪ yet have they since altered the title , and so printed it again , and a ‖ book exceedingly admir'd among them , written about fifteen years since and dedicated ( as i remember to the d. of buckingham ) insists much upon this conversion ; which makes me beseech my brethren of our church , that they would be carefull to what assertion they give credit ; and believe nothing in the writings of these men upon their authority , for let a thing be never so false , they will not stick to report it , and though it be expos'd and confuted , they will urge it with the same confidence , as an uncontradicted truth . in the same manner when father redmond caron , who wrote in defence of loyalty to the king against the rebellious opinions and doctrines of the court of rome , lay upon his death bed in dublin , ann . . the priests raised a report that he retracted his signature of the loyal irish remonstrance , and all his books on that subject , but they were too quick in spreading this piece of calumny against that loyal man , for the account came to his ears before he died , upon which in the presence of many of his own order , he protested solemnly that he was so far from recanting , that the doctrine which he had taught , he looked upon as the doctrine of christ , and that it was his duty to maintain it . thus if any of their own church be of a sounder principle than themselves , they cannot help practising that rule of the ‖ jesuits , whereby they are directed , to report that such as leave them are very desirous to be receiv'd again ; and although they are so often prov'd and expos'd to the world as calumniators and forgers , they with the greatest unconcernedness invent and report anew upon the next occasion . but that the world may not be always fed with false stories , they cast about for an artifice to deceive them by false converts , appointing men to pretend themselves protestants , and after some time to be reconcil'd to the romish church , by the means of their missionaries . * thus ann . . at the sessions at glocester in the month of august , one richard summers was apprehended , who outwardly seem'd a protestant , but being one day present at a discourse between one of the bishop of glocesters chaplains and a puritan ( as they were then call'd ) us'd this expression , if this be the fruits of protestantism , i will lament my ways and turn to my mother the ch. of rome , seeing the ch. of england is divided . the chaplain upon this suspecting this man , one day disguis'd himself , and trac'd him to an house , where he found him in a surplice , and heard him say mass ; after which he dogg'd him to his lodging and had him apprehended . 't is an attempt not impossible to succeed , to raise such reports of particular private men , but to tell the world of whole bodies of men , whole nations and countries and sovereign princes becoming converts , when they know the contrary to be the real truth ; is something more amazing , and able to surprise the most thinking men ; yet were not these gentlemen asham'd to affirm even at rome it self ( where it is an ordinary practice ) with great solemnity , that the patriarch of alexandria with all the greek church of africa , had by their ambassadours submitted and reconcil'd themselves to the pope ; and receiv'd from his holiness absolution and benediction ; but tho' this was found a fable , about the same time they reported that the † k. of scots ( k. james ) had chas'd the ministers away , and executed two of them , bestowing their goods upon the roman catholicks ; that not only ‖ beza had recanted his religion , but the city of geneva also sought to be reconcil'd , and had sent to rome an ambassage of submission : this news was whispered among the jesuits two months , before it became publick , but at length there came a solemn account of it , which run through all italy , and was so verily believed to be true , that several went to rome on purpose to see those ambassadours ; and to make up the full measure of this romish policy , there was news sent from rome to lyons , that q. elizabeth's ambassadours were at rome making great instance to be absolv'd . and there is a certain secular priest who not long since assur'd me , that he had seen an original instrument under the hand of the late arch-bishop of york , and other prelates , with several divines , among whom he named dr. wallis of oxford , approving several of the romish doctrines , and particularly prayer to saints , or for the dead ; but tho' upon my earnest intreaty he promis'd to procure me a sight of it , yet he never perform'd it to this day : but this is usual among them ; when they have a design either to make or confirm proselytes , these * assertions that our greatest men are papists , in private , are never out of their mouths ; and within these few years they reported publickly † in ireland , that not onely his late and present majesty , but all the nobility and gentry of the kingdom of england , were privately of their religion . and no longer since than ‖ the year . it was generally reported at rome for six months together that the armenian patriarch with six and thirty bishops were on their way thither ; to submit to , and acknowledge the apostolical see ; tho' this was a sham like the rest of their great conversions , on which i shall make some few reflexions by a short account of the greatest of them , which they are most ready to boast of at this day . the conversions in the indies have made so great a noise among them , that multitudes are possest with a belief of every thing they are pleas'd to report concerning them ; but * a jesuite of note assures us , that during forty years of the missionaries abode among them ; there was hardly one indian to be found who understood any two articles of the creed , knew any thing of christ , or an eternal life ; that the missionaries are careless and do not take any right course for their conversion ; that among so many thousands of indians who are said to be christians , it was a rare thing to meet with any who own'd christ , but all like those ephesians who st. paul mentions not to have heard whether there be an holy ghost , might answer we have not heard whether there be a christ ; and this small progress he imputes to the carelesness and evil examples of those who are sent thither , who took no pains to that end , so that though the ancient priests were suitable to their calling , yet the missionaries were so unworthy , that they destroyed more souls than they gain'd or converted . so little did they make it their business to make them christians , that they † permit them to pray and worship before their ancient idols , so they direct their intention to a little image of christ or some saint which they have under their clothes ; against which the congregation of cardinals de propaganda fide published a decree , july . . which considerations made one of their own ‖ communion affirm , that they are the strangest conversions in the world , that they take no care at all to instruct these people or to teach them any thing ; they baptise them only without explaining to them the virtue of that sacrament or what it signifies ; nay without turning them from their former idolatry . these now are their conversions , neither are they any better in that part of the indies subject to the mogoll , where they have indeed spilt the water of baptism upon some few faces ( saith * one who liv'd in a publick employment some years there ) working upon the necessity of some poor men , who for want of means which they give them , are content to wear crucifixes , but for want of knowledge in the doctrine of christianity are only in name christians . so that the jesuits congregations there are very thin , consisting of some italians which the mogoll entertains to cut his diamonds ; — and of other european strangers which come thither , and some few natives . † and yet the christian religion is tolerated there , and the priests of all religions very much esteemed by the people . * much the same account is given of the converts in japan , that besides reading pater noster , ave maria , and some prayers to saints , they have little or no knowledge of religion . nor are these remote converts only in such a miserable condition , but to come a little nearer home , if we look upon the proselytes in france , we shall find their case very little better if not worse ; for so little are they instructed † that two hundred peasants came at once to the intendant of their province , complaining , that since their conversion they knew not what prayers to make , for they had been forbidden their old prayers , and were not taught any other ; nay they are so unwilling of that profession ‖ that upon corpus christi day . many of them chose rather to pay a fine , than put up hangings before their houses for the procession ; and yet we hear daily brags of these converts which are such as we should be asham'd of , and so would any other church but that which glories in her shame . but as they triumph mightily in conversions which were never made , and converts not instructed , nor really altered but only frighted for a time ; so upon every little occasion they raise as loud reports of the accession of whole nations to their church ; wherein they are indeed a little more ingenious than in those which had no ground at all . * thus when several bishops of lithuania and russia nigra ( in the year . ) in hopes of restoring themselves to some honours in the diet of poland , which by means of the jesuits they were deprived of ; sent two of their number to rome to offer their submission and obedience to clement the eighth then pope ; there was and is yet great boastings of those churches being reconcil'd to rome ; though their going thither in the name of the ruthenick churches was protested against by constantine duke of ostorovia , and the rest of the greek church who resolv'd to continue in obedience to the patriarch of constantinople . i could give more instances of this nature , but i refer them to another chapter ; and conclude this point of feign'd conversions , with a known passage of the intendant marillac's in france , by which we may learn what credit to give to the reports of this nature , when they have the confidence to affirm such a thing of a person of honour in publick , and before his own face ; yet did that persecutor of the protestants in poictou one day dining with the marquess of verac , give order that the inhabitants of the place should assemble at the cross ; where he went after dinner , and getting upon the steps of the cross told the people in the marquess's presence , that the king requir'd them all to turn roman catholicks , which he exhorted them to do , by telling them , that their lord the marquess was there come along with him to change his religion ; which bold and impudent untruth , that noble gentleman immediately contradicted by assuring the people of the contrary and that he had no design to change his religion . after this what credit can be given to these mens reports in private . the affinity between the slandering the persons of our divines , and misrepresenting the doctrines of our church , leads me to expose that unchristian artifice , but because the charge of disloyalty is advanc'd with great confidence against us , and of great moment , i shall give that a chapter by it self . chap. iv. their accusing us of disloyalty . it is one of the directions given by the jesuit * contzen , to traduce such as oppose their designs as men that are enemies to the publick peace , which advice seignior † ballarini in his letter to father young thinks most proper to be followed , for the better managing the popish interest in england , to asperse the bishops and ministers of this church , as so factious that it were well they were remov'd . and that the missionaries are at this day observing those directions , is so evident , that it would be time and pains spent to no purpose , to prove it : hence we have had ‖ a new test of the church of englands loyalty , an * instance of the same , and such scurrilous and weak pamphlets , sent abroad in the world , either to create an ill opinion of our loyalty , or to exasperate the members of our church , and provoke them to some undecent carriage ; endeavouring to find some failure on their part , that they may catch at an occasion to make the world believe , that they have † forfeited that protection his majesty hath so graciously promised to afford them . but our loyalty hath a better foundation than to be shaken by such malicious arts , it being founded upon the same bottom with our church , the apostles and prophets and our blessed saviour , the chief corner-stone of the building , which all the arts of men and devils shall never overthrow , not upon the will of man as theirs is . yet these gentlemen think it sufficient to prove us disloyal , to cull out a few instances of men of rebellious practices ; and this they charge upon the church of england ; but with what justice let the world judge . they cry out upon us as misrepresenters of their doctrines , because we affirm they teach the deposing power to rest both in the pope and in the people and shew their practices to accord with that doctrine , when ever they had occasion : if this be to misrepresent , what name may we call their dealing by , who charge us with rebellion , when we freely condemn all such practices and that openly ; and that in our religion there is no rule to be found that prescribeth rebellion , nor any thing that dispenseth subjects from the oath of their allegiance , nor any of our churches that receive that doctrine . when on their side several general councils have asserted , above twenty of their popes pronounc'd that right inherent in them , and i am able to prove , that above three hundred of their divines defend and plead for either the popes or peoples power to depose their princes . and though i know there are many in that church , who ( at least at present ) do heartily disown that doctrine , yet i will not stick to affirm that it hath all the characters of an article of faith , nor doth the dissent of so many hinder it from being so , for there are multitudes among them who disown transubstantiation , others the pope's supremacy , and several other points which others amongst them acknowledge to be articles of their faith. * neither will a late author's plea , that if it were such an article the opposers of it would not scape without a brand of heressie , prove the contrary ; for we know that they have been often mark'd with that brand , and are once a year excommunicated at rome in the bulla coenae ; wherein † all persons who hinder the clergy in exercising their jurisdiction , according to the decrees of the council of trent ( which france does ) all secular powers who call any ecclesiastical person to their courts , all princes that lay any taxes on their people without the popes consent , are declar'd excommunicate , and if they remain so a whole year they shall be declar'd hereticks . we are told by * one of themselves , that a doctrine when inserted in the body of the canon-law becomes the doctrine of their church , now in the canon-law we find it asserted † that the pope may absolve persons from their oath of allegiance , that pope ‖ zachary deposed the k. of france not so much for his crimes as that he was unfit to rule , that we * are absolv'd from all oaths to an excommunicate person , and it is our duty to yield no obedience to him . that † clergymen ought not to swear allegiance to their prince , and that ‖ they are exempt from the jurisdiction of the secular magistrate . and the * council of trent hath confirmed all these canons , to the observation of which † all their priests and dignifyed men are sworn : let the world then judge whether this doctrine be an article of faith or no. but they have not onely taught and establish'd this treasonable principle upon the same foundation with their other doctrines , but though often call'd upon to joyn in a denial of it , and to condemn it as sinfull , they could never be prevail'd on to clear themselves from such an odious charge as hath been all along justly brought against them . this was once thought the only way they had to justifie themselves , by a person who hath since made himself a member of their church , who tells us . ‖ 't is not sufficient for the well-meaning papist to produce the evidences of their loyalty to the late king ( charles the first ) i will grant their behaviour to have been as loyal and as brave as they can desire , but that saying of their father cress. is still running in my head , that they may be dispenc'd with in their obedience to an heretick prince , while the necessity of the times shall oblige them to it , for that ( as another of them tells us ) is onely the effect of christain prudence , but when once they shall get power to shake him off ; an heretick is no lawfull king , and consequently to rise against him is no rebellion . i should be glad therefore that they would follow the advice which was charitably given them by a reverend prelate of our church : namely , that they would joyn in a publick act of disowning and detesting those iesuitick principles , and subscribe to all doctrines which deny the pope's authority of deposing kings and releasing subjects from their oath of allegiance . and * a late author of their own church judges this so necessary , that he affirms , no clergy man ought to be received without subscribing the condemnation of the bull de coena domini ; and till the monks and jesuits shall solemnly renounce and condemn it , it will be no great injustice done them , to accuse them of attempting against the lives of kings . if any man did suspect me to be an arian , and i knew it , and could justifie my self from such cursed opinions , and did it not ; the world would have reason to impute to me all the consequences of this pernicious heresie ; and the same author tells us , it is well known all the monks and especially the jesuits have by their fourth vow obliged , themselves to the execution of this infernal bvll . nor is it onely by private men they have been exhorted to such a renunciation of those doctrines , but in publick courts of justice both in france and england . it is indeed very usual with them to deny this doctrine in discourse , but that it is onely a formal denial , when they really maintain it , i offer to prove against them from their own principles and practices ; a plain instance whereof † mr. sheldon gives us of his own knowledge ; who was one morning denied absolution by a sussex jesuit , because he would not acknowledge the pope's power to depose princes ; and yet the very same day at dinner in the pres●●ce of several , this jesuit denied any such power in the pope . but the doctors of rome have been very carefull to provide against any such scrupulous persons , as cannot perswade themselves of the lawfulness of this point , and therefore have found out a way to discharge the conscience from any guilt , and set men at liberty to follow an opinion which they believe unsound ; upon which principle there is no manner of security from such men , for they may declare their judgment of the unlawfulness of any action , and yet do it the next moment by virtue of the rare engine of probability by which they can do any thing in that church . for it is a doctrine taught by almost all their divines , and insinuated into the peoples minds by the confessors , that the authority of a learned doctor makes an opinion probable , and that every one without hazarding his soul may follow what opinion he pleases , provided that it be taught by some eminent doctor ; yea he is obliged to follow the opinion of his confessor if he be learned , and if he do not he sins . and when the author of the provincial letters complain'd of this doctrine , his * answerers defended it for lawfull and orthodox . now as one of their own church observes , † the generals of orders can raise whole legions of divines to speak what they have a mind should pass for probable ; but there is no need of it in this case , where so many councils , popes , and so many hundred doctors , have maintain'd the treasonable doctrines we charge upon them ; which accordding to them is a sufficient warrant for any to reduce these speculations into practice , as hath been asserted by them in this very case , and with reference to his late majesty ; for when father walsh pressed the irish clergy to subscribe the loyal formulary , father john talbot and others told him , ‖ that it was to no purpose to expect any profession , declaration or oath of allegiance from them , being it was in point of conscience lawfull enough for such as would or did take such oath to decline from , retract , and break it ; even the very next day , or next hour after having taken it ; provided onely they followed herein the doctrine of probability , that is , if they followed any divines who hold such an oath to be unsafe and unsound in catholick religion , or otherwise unlawfull or sinfull . and by the same argument did the romish bishop of ferns in the year . defend all that was done in the irish rebellion , and refuse to acknowledge it any sin ; because * ( saith he ) the authority of those who teach the contrary is great , their learning great , their sanctity great , the light they had from god great , and their number great . i might instance in a great number of such doctrines confirm'd by the highest authority among them , but i think this sufficient to let the world see , how confidently the missionaries attempt to cast the odium of disloyalty upon us , whose doctrines disallow and detest all such principles as damnable and heretical , which for many hundred years they have maintained with the greatest vigour . but that church is too politick , to content her self with teaching such doctrines onely , for she hath provided such means for putting them in practice in any countrey whatsoever , as were too subtile for any other politicians to invent , to which end she obliges all her clergy to a single life , that so they may continue in a more absolute subjection : this could not be hop'd for while they were married , and the princes and several states of christendom had such a pawn of their fidelity as their wives and children , therefore having rais'd the esteem of the clergy that their persons were counted sacred and liable to no punishment , that there might be nothing so nearly related to them wherein they might be punish'd as their wives and children they have prohibited marriage to them all ; by which means being ready for any desperate attempt they have such multitudes of them as are sufficient to make a good army in most princes dominions ; but 't is not the clergy alone , who are thus at their devotion ▪ but by dispensations and tolerations to be administrators of abbeys and bishopricks and other benefices given to lay-men , they oblige them to uphold their interest ; as for their religious orders , they ( especially the jesuits ) give their generals an account of all occurrences of state in those provinces and kingdoms whereof they are the respective assistants ; to which end they have correspondents in the principal cities of all kingdoms ; who sending all their informations to the general , they ballance the interests of every prince , and then resolve that the affairs of such a prince shall be promoted , the designs of another oppos'd , as is most for their own advantage ; to effect which , the confessors of great men give intelligence of the inclinations of those whose consciences are unfolded to them ; whereby they become acquainted with all determinations concluded in the most secret councils ; and have a particular account of the power , possessions , expence and designs of every prince of their communion ; and the very same advantage they make of confession , by diving into the peoples inclinations , and thereby discovering who stand well affected to their prince who dissatisfy'd and exasperated , by which means they sow discord between princes and their subjects , rendring them odious to and fearfull of one another , wherever they find their advantage by such distrusts ; thus knowing all the discontented people in a state , they are able at any time to raise a party , and being acquainted with the princes designs , they know how to defeat them , that the insurrection may be more successfull . but mr. pulton tells us , that it is expresly prohibited the jesuits to speak of the deposing power even in private discourses , but it is then to be observed , that the doctrine it self is not blam'd , only silence impos'd concerning it ; this order was made in the year . since which several of that society have defended that point , and even in rome it self where sanctarellus's book that pleads for it was printed ann. . and that it was onely for france , is affirmed by a papist , who answers this objection of mr pulton's ; when the jesuits asserted that by that order they were bound under pain of damnation not to speak of that subject , that none in the church were bound under the like penalty not to teach it , but they ; wherein he observes , their immodesty in the assertion , when none of their rules bind under so much as a venial sin ; and their concession that none in the church think it damnable to teach that the pope may depose princes . i suppose mr pulton was conscious of his imposing upon the world in this point , therefore he presently shifts from that to lay a grievous charge to our door ; * that it was manifest from history that the reformers had deposed and endeavoured to depose more princes in the space of one hundred and fifty years , than the roman catholicks had done in . wherein he hath back't that hardy assertion of the author of philanax anglicus , who affirm'd , that in the last century there ha●e been more princes depos'd and murder'd for their religion by protestants , than have been in all the other since christ's time by the attempts and means of roman catholicks . if it were not that i know mr. pulton's skill in history to be very mean , i should look upon him as the most immodest man that ever wrote ; who after the confutation of the others assertion , hath the face to renew it again , and publish it to the world ; but when i consider 't is want of knowledge in history that makes him so bold , i am willing to excuse him upon that account , from wilfull imposture tho' all the world cannot clear him from strange rashness and confidence . i will therefore bate him all but near two hundred years , and undertake to prove whenever call'd to do it , that the r●manists treasons owned by their popes and great men , since the reformation do far out number all the plots and insurrections they can lay to the protestants charge ; which notwithstanding have been condemned by the whole body of our divines . mr. pulton himself affirmed to mr. cressener , that all good princes ought to consent to the church ; to which it being returned , what if princes have no mind to part from their right in obedience to the churches decrees , must they be dispossess'd against their will ? he asserted , that in such a case the church hath power to decide in favour of it self ; this relation had been given the world of their discourse , before mr. pulton published his remarks , in which he doth not once deny this passage though he makes reflexions upon others 〈…〉 cressener's vindication . but mr. pulton is not alone in this opinion , for there is a certain jesuite , who highly brags of the loyalty of his church , that very lately affirmed in my hearing , that in case of oppression of the subjects by their prince , it is but reasonable that the pope being the common father of christendom should have a power to depose or other ways punish the oppressor ; and another great stickler for that church , a convert , never attempted to clear his church of this charge , it being very plain ( as he affirmed ) that such a power must reside some where , and the pope was certainly the fittest to be intrusted with it . and indeed i cannot see how men of any ingenuity can condemn it , when they pretend the pope's approbation of m. de meaux's book , is a clear evidence that the doctrine contained in it is the doctrine of their church , for ( not to mention at present the actions of former popes ) this very pope , who approv'd that book doth at this time notoriously assert his power over kings , by excommunicating his majesty of france in the matter of the franchises ; thereby approving of that doctrine as much as the bishop's , and giving us the same authority for the deposing power , that the papists pretend for that prelates exposition . let mr. pulton or any for him make good his bold slander against our church ; and find so many treasons and rebellions in the protestant communion if he can , as i will undertake to prove upon the romanists ; affirming confidently is a talent possess'd by most of the missionaries , but proving what they affirm is beneath them ; there have been above six and fifty open rebellions raised , and parricides committed upon great princes in about one hundred and sixty years , and eighty two bulls , indulgences and supplies of the popes for the furtherance of those treasons , besides an infinite number of horrid conspiracies , upon which i cannot but observe that at the beginning of the reformation they own'd these doctrines publickly , and till the pope gave them leave , would never pay obedience to our princes ; but by all the traiterous conspiracies imaginable endeavoured to depose and murder them ; they had the pope's bulls and resolution of many vniversities to satisfie their consciences , which m●y be well put into the ballance with the late decrees of the sorbonne against the deposing power ; for if their decrees of late be evidence enough to acquit the roman catholicks from the imputation of disloyal principles , as * some affirm they are , then surely so many decrees of the same faculty defending those principles , so many censures of other vniversities pass'd upon the opposers of them , and so many bulls and breves of popes to the same purposes may well justifie us in affirming that there is no security of their obediences any longer than the pope pleases . till he forbad them , they took the oath of allegiance and defended it , but ever since have refus'd it with a strange obstinacy ; and what security is there that his orders shall not have the same obedience rendred to them in other points ? nay since that , we have seen the romanists of england who before were ready to subscribe the remonstrance , decline giving the king any assurance of their obedience , because the pope commanded them not to do it . could they have been prevailed on to renounce these doctrines , as sinfull and unlawfull , they would have at least shewn that at present their principles were such as become faithfull subjects ; but when they cannot be perswaded to do this , all their profession that it is not their doctrine gives no assurance of their loyalty . but if they should do this , it is well observ'd by a late writer ▪ † that while they found their loyalty upon this supposition , that the deposing doctrine is not the doctrine of the roman church , doth not this hypothesis afford a shrewd suspicion that if it were the doctrine of the church of rome , or ever should be so ; or they should ever be convinc'd that it is so , then they would be for the deposing of princes no less than those who at this day believe it to be the doctrine thereof . and i wonder how the gentlemen of that church can alledge the decrees of the sorbonne as an evidence that they hold not the doctrine of the deposing power , for the same faculty , aug. . . and the th . of the same month approved the oath of allegeance , and condemned the pope's temporal power over princes as heretical , and yet our english romanists will not take the oath , nor be perswaded to condemn the deposing power ; though they pretend to disclaim it . and indeed it would be folly to expect that the decree of one single faculty should be of more authority than the bulls of so many popes , and canons of councils the supream heads of the roman church . but ( as i observ'd before ) it is more strange to hear these men affirm that the doctrine contain'd in the bishop of condoms exposition , is the doctrine of their church , and yet deny that the deposing power is so , when all the authority that exposition hath is from the pope and cardinals approbation , which in a more solemn manner hath been often given to that doctrine ; so that either their argument for the bishops book concludes nothing , or it is an evident demonstration that the roman catholick church teaches the doctrine of deposing princes . i offer to prove against them , that the popes power in that point was universally believed as a matter of faith in that church for near five hundred years ; now let them answer this argument , nothing can be believed as a matter of faith , but what was taught them by their fathers , and so upward from the apostles times ; but the doctrine of the deposing power , was believed as a matter of faith , therefore it was deliver'd from the apostles times : let them either answer this argument which is their own upon other points , or confess that the deposing power is an article of faith in that church ; for if the argument be good , it proves that to be an article of faith as well as others , if it be not , th●y give up all their brags of the evidence of oral tradition from hand to hand ; so much insisted on by mr. g. and others of their champions among us . but because it may be objected , that the deposing bulls were the effects of the passionate tempers of those popes , i desire that one of their own communion may be heard in that point ; * who speaks thus , i maintain that all these disasters proceeded not only from the pettish humour of any one pope , but were the natural effects of the principles of the papacy ; and though we do not see it visibly break forth every day by some bloody example , yet we ought not to believe that the habit or the will is ever the less , but that there is some external extraordinary reason which suspends the action , and which doth sometimes make them act directly contrary to their own inclination . — how can any man maintain that princes need not stand in the fear of the pope , when three popes of this present age , have condemned the opinion that the pope cannot depose kings as wicked and contrary to the faith ? and now i have examined and refuted their calumny , of our disloyalty in general , and mr. pulton's charge in particular ; which i have known asserted by others with so peculiar a confidence , that it hath stagger'd many loyal but weak protestants , in which as in all the rest of this discourse i once again challenge the whole body of the romish clergy to find one false quotation ; and by the falsity of mr. pulton's assertion i beg the reader to judge what credit the rest of their defaming insinuations deserve . chap. v. of their laying doctrines to our charge which we never taught . after such a bold assertion as that of mr. pultons , which i refuted in the preceding chapter ; we need not wonder if we meet with the same treatment which the christians in tertullian's time under went ; seeing we have to do with a sort of men who repeat their slanders the oftner they are reprov'd , and not asham'd to impute doctrines to the reformed which their confessions disclaim , and the writings of their divines confute . at a time when the gentlemen of that communion make so loud complaints of being misrepresented as to their doctrines and practices , and with the utmost of their rhetorick exaggerate the injury which by such misrepresentations is done to truth and their church ; it might rationally be expected that they should believe what they say , and have some sense of such injust proceedings ; or at least should in policy take care that their own writings be not stuffed with false charges against their adversaries . but it is somewhat surprizing to find no care taken in so material a point , and that they are no more solicitous to represent our doctrines right , than to defend their own , which they seem wholly to abandon ; if any pains be taken by them , it is to bespatter the protestants , and coin opinions for them ; for they find it much more easie to refute those imaginary positions , than overthrow the well-grounded tenets of the reformed churches . hence it is that that there is no calumny so absurd which they blush to publish ; and that the old charge against the waldenses and albigenses is renued , by the author of popery anatomiz'd , who copies from the jesuit * parsons , affirming , that they denyed the resurrection of the dead , or that there is any such place as hell ; that with the manichees they held two gods , and that it avails a man nothing to say his prayers ; with several other doctrines of a horrid nature : but if we consult the authors that wrote in and near the time , we shall find a quite contrary account ; † that they were to all appearance a very pious people , living righteously before men , and believing all things rightly concerning god , and all the articles of the creed ; and that their lives ‖ were more holy than other christians ; insomuch that when the * king of france sent commissioners to enquire of , and inspect their life and doctrine , and they inform'd him , that they baptiz'd , and taught the articles of the creed and precepts of the decalogue , observ'd the lord's day , preached the word of god , and that they were not guilty of those abominable crimes imputed to them ; he swore that they were better than he or his people , who were catholicks . but though the romanists have no authority for their charge , yet they have a motive which is always prevalent in that church , the waldenses and with great freedom reprov'd the vices of the pope and clergy ; and this was the chief thing which subjected them to such an universal hatred , and caused several wicked opinions to be father'd upon them , which they never own'd . for they agreed with the faith of the protestants at this day as popliniere affirms , who alledgeth the acts of a disputation between the bishop of pamiers and arnoltot minister of lombres , written in a language favouring much of the catalan tongue ; affirming that some had assured him that the articles of their faith , were yet to be seen engraven 〈◊〉 certain old tables in alby , agreeing exactly with the reforme● churches : and mr. fountain minister of the french church at london told arch-bishop vsher , that in his time a confession of the albigenses was found , which was approved of , by a synod of french protestants . thus , as the romanists have brought most of the heathens rites and the ceremonious part of their worship into theirs , so they seem to be actuated by the same spirit which taught the pagans to represent our holy religion in the most odious manner ; and they have found such success attending this unchristian artifice , that it is hugg'd as their darling , and when any party discovers their corruptions , they endeavour to expose them as men of seditious principles , which will effectually render princes jealous of them , and draw upon them the displeasure of those under whose protection they might otherwise be secure ; that the common people may entertain as great an aversion to them , it is not onely their practice , but a principle of their policy , laid down by a famous , * jesuite , to charge them with such opinions as are absurd in themselves and abhorr'd by all men . by this means they are sure to possess the vulgar with such prejudices , that they will lend no ear to the other side , whom they look upon as a sort of monsters , according to the character these politicians have given of them . and such opinions being easily confuted if they can but once perswade an ignorant protestant , that the church of which he is a member holds them , there needs no great industry to prevail with such a man to leave it . this course the popish bishop of ferns in ireland took to perswa●e father andrew sall , who had left the jesuits among whom he had continued many years , and about sixteen years since became a member of our church , to return to the romish communion ; insomuch that father walsh confesses , that he had strangely misrepresented the church of england in his book against that convert . but i think never did any of their writers equal father * porter , reader of divinity in the college of st isidore at rome , who this very year in a book printed there , and dedicated to the earl of castlemain ; and licensed by the companion of the master of the sacred palace and others , as a book very usefull for the instruction of the faithfull ; tells us , that the † god of the protestants , doth not differ from the devil , nor his heaven from hell ; and that the whole ‖ frame of our religion is founded in this horrid blasphemy , that christ is a false prophet ; which he attempts to prove by another misrepresentation as great as this , for ( saith he ) the * english confession of faith asserts , that general councils guided by the holy ghost and the word of god may err ; for which he cites the . and . articles of our church ; the latter of which onely asserts that the church ought to be guided in her decisions by the word of god , and tho' the former doth affirm , that the church of rome hath erred , yet it saith nothing of general councils , the article indeed affirms that they may err , and the reason it gives is because they are an assembly of men who are not all guided by the spirit and word of god ; so that all this fryers exclamation of the horridness of such a doctrine , as he charg'd upon us , serves onely to shew his own immodesty , and to let the world see with what strange confidence some men can advance assertions , and alledge authorities which any one that can read , will discover to be forg'd . this i confess seems to be a new charge of his own inventing , but that which he brings in another place , † that we are not oblig'd by our religion to pray , was long since framed by the priests at the beginning of the reformation who perswaded the people , ‖ that in england the protestants had neither churches nor form of religion ▪ nor serv'd god any way ; and they had so possess'd them with that opinion , that several persons were reckon'd lutherans onely because they were horrid blasphemers . that the decalogue is not obligatory to christians , and that god doth not regard our works , is one of the monstrous opinions which campion had the confidence to 〈◊〉 both our vniversities was maintained by the church of england ; and like a child , who to cover one untruth backs it with another , he quotes the apology of the church of england , as his voucher wherein these words are found , ( which are so clear that they alone are enough to make those blush who by translating and publishing this treatise of campions , the last year have made his forgeries their own ; the words of the apology are these ) * although we acknowledge we expect nothing from our own works , but from christ onely , yet this is no encouragement to a loose life , nor for any to think it sufficient to believe , and that nothing else is to be expected from them ; for true faith is a living and working faith , therefore we teach the people that god hath called us to good works . and that the reader may see what credit is to be given to the romanists in this point , i shall give an account of the doctrine of the several reformed churches about the necessity of good works ; and then shew with what confidence these gentlemen affirm that the protestants teach that good works are not necessary . the four ‖ imperial cities in their confession of faith presented to the emperour , in the year . having explained the doctrine of justification by faith onely , have these words , but we would not have this understood as if we allowed salvation to a lazy faith , for we are certain that no man can be saved , who doth not love god above all things , and with all his might endeavour to be like him ; or who is wanting in any good work : and therefore enjoyn their ministers to preach up frequent prayer and fasting as holy works and becoming christians , in which the * augustan co●fession agrees with them , that good works necessarily follow a true faith ; ( for even at that time the calumny that they denyed the necessity of them was very common as appears by their solemn disclaiming any such opinion in the † twentieth article ) affirming , ‖ that he cannot have true faith who doth not exercise repentance . the same is taught by the * helvetian churches in their confession compos'd at basil , ann. . that true faith shews it self by good works ; and in another † fram'd at the same place , ann. . we find this assertion , that faith is productive of all good works . the ‖ bohemian churches affirm that he who doth not exercise repentance , shall certainly perish ; and that good works are absolutely necessary to salvation , is the doctrine of the * saxon reformers , in their confession of faith offer'd to the council of trent , ann. . and in that presented to the same council by the duke of † wirtemberg the following year , there is this profession , we acknowledge the decalogue to contain injunctions for all good works , and that we are bound to obey all the moral precepts of it . — ‖ we teach that good works are necessary to be done . * and in particular it commends fasting , and in the † twenty second article of the french confession it is affirmed , that the doctrine of faith is so far from being an hindrance to a holy life , that it excites us to it , so that it is necessarily attended with good works . the church of england agrees with the rest of the reformed , artic. . that good works are acceptable to god , and do necessarily spring out of a true and lively faith. and the ‖ confession of faith subscribed by all the churches of helvetia , ann. . and afterwards by the reformed of poland , scotland , hungary and geneva ; gives this account of the faith of those churches . faith causes us to discharge our duty toward god and our neighbour , makes us patient in adversity , and produces all good works in us , so we teach good works to be the off-spring of a lively faith. and although ▪ we affirm with the apostle , that we are justified by faith in christ , and not by our good works ; yet we do not reject them : but condemn all who despise good works , and teach that they are not necessary . and in the thirteenth and fourteenth articles of the * scotch confession , they maintain the necessity of all good works , because they are commanded by god ; which is likewise the doctrine of the dutch churches , as appears by the profession of their faith in the † synod of dort , affirming , that it is impossible that true faith should be without works , seeing it is a faith working by love ; which causes a man to do all those good works , which god hath commanded in his word . and the same doctrine is delivered in the articles of the church of ireland , but because i have not those articles at hand i omit the words . thus by an vniversal consent of all the protestants , we find the necessity of good works maintained , and i challenge our adversaries to produce any one allowed author who holds the contrary among us ( which is a unity beyond what they can shew in their church for any one point ) though if they could , it would not justifie their charge who so often tell us , that we must not take the faith of any church from private writings , but their publick confessions . but these gentlemen scorn to be tyed by any rules , tho' never so just , even in their own opinions ; and therefore in * a supplication directed to king james , by several romish priests , they affirm that whosoever leaveth their communion for ours , beginneth immediately to lead a worse life , so it is grown into a proverb , that the protestant religion is good to live in , but the papist religion good to dye in . and indeed they made it their business to possess their people with that opinion , so that father francis † de neville a capuchin , confesseth , that he did imagine for a long time , that they of the reformed churches admitting justification by faith alone , did it to exclude good works from the way of salvation , and shew themselves in that to be enemies of charity and of other virtues , and did therefore extreamly condemn them : but when he came to sound their doctrine , and see how they judge good works necessary to salvation ; and that the faith whereof they speak is not a dead faith , but a lively faith accompanied with good works : he acknowledged they were wrongfully blam'd in this , as in many other things also . but though this gentleman was so sincere , yet there are but few among them who tread in his steps ; for to pass by all the controvertists of the last age , we need go no farther than these late years to find instances of their misrepresentations in this particular , ‖ one of them in a book dedicated to her majesty , tells the world , that the principle of our religion takes from us the yoke of fasting , freeth us from all necessity of good works to be saved , and of keeping the commandments of god ; and that we might not think he asserted these onely to be consequences of our doctrines he adds , that most protestants hold that position , and that it is our express doctrine ; and in another place he affirms , that praying , watching and fasting are wholly out of use among protestants , and not only contrary to the liberty of their new gospel , but even fruitless , vain , superstitious toys according to the tenets and principles thereof . * another sets it down as one of the protestant articles , that good works are not absolutely necessary to salvation . which father † turbervill confirms by being more particular , the catholick church ( saith he ) teacheth much fasting , prayer and mort●●●cation , she exhorts to good works , voluntary poverty , chastity and obedience , the contrary to all which holy doctrines , are taught by protestants . and a ‖ very late author insinuates that it is all one to protestants whether god be served with fasting , watching , mortifying , or without ; but the roman divine father * porter , is more express , that one of the causes which renders the reformed so averse to popery , is , that they abhor fasting , and repentance , and account prayer and other offices of religion tedious ; † that our religion allows us to believe that good works are not necessary to salvation , ‖ that by our doctrine thieves , murderers , blasphemers , &c. may attain heaven by their being so , if they will but believ● ▪ and that by being svch they are as much the sons of god , as the apostles were , with abundance more of such abominable stuff , fit only for carrying on a most malicious design . when with their best rhetorick these gentlemen have endeavoured to perswade the world , that they are abus'd in the account given of their doctrines by our divines , all they pretend to complain of amounts to no more than this , that we have drawn consequences from our doctrine which they will not hear ; and we find not that their greatest malice can pretend to much more ; surely then it is high time for them to reflect a little upon that counsel of our * saviour , first to pull the beam out of their own eye . 't is not for want of materials , but because i would not be prolix , that i produce no more particulars in this point of good works , for i do not remember to have seen any one of their writings which is not guilty in this kind ; i have more need to make an apology for insisting so long upon this one particular , but i was easily induc'd to it , knowing that one of their great designs is to possess the devouter sort of men with a belief that we left their communion to have greater liberty for the flesh , in prosecution of which they are so strangely immodest , as to publish such false opinions for us , as directly contradict our publick confessions , the discovering of which i look'd upon the best way to oppose their slanders . but to take a short view of other particulars : the author of veritas evangelica before cited , runs wholly upon this point , that we believe the whole church hath failed , and thence argues that christ had no church for some years ; into the same error father † mumford the jesuit runs ; and another affirms ‖ that we teach the church of all nations is confin'd to england . because we reject all traditions that are not according to the rule of lirinensis , received every where , at all times and by all ; father * porter laies this down as one of our principles , that all traditions of all sorts are the inventions of men ; though he could not but know that we receive the scriptures from such an universal tradition , and are ready to embrace any other doctrine conveyed to us as they are . with the same sincerity and modesty he affirms , † that we pretend that the express words of scripture are our rule of faith without any interpretation or consequence drawn from them ; tho' ( not to mention other churches ) the † church of england declares , that we are to be guided not onely by the express words of the scripture , but by the consequences drawn from it , and yet this gentleman affirms , that our confessions of faith pretend onely to the express words . it is notoriously known that our differences about church government are no articles of our faith , and yet this author tells ‖ us , that the equality of power in the pastors of the church is one of the fundamental articles of the reformation . a way of misrepresenting which hath been sufficiently blacken'd by themselves , so that i need say nothing to expose it . but to leave this fryer , whose whole book consists of little else but as bad or worse assertions ; one of their * champions , could perswade the world , that we account the belief of transubstantiation to be idolatry : a cunning artifice to draw the people from considering where the charge is laid , not against the doctrine of the corporal presence , but the adoration of the host. and his fellow † advocate , seems resolv'd not to be behind hand , when he affirms , that we believe there is nothing to be hoped for of substance in the sacrament . we dispute with great earnestness against the idolatrous worship given to angels and saints in that church , and our adversaries have found it impossible to make a fair defence for it , therefore they betake themselves to prove that those happy spirits pray for us , which we acknowledge as well as they , and yet a very celebrated writer affirms that we deny it : we profess to believe the article of the communion of saints , but mr. ‖ ward hath the assurance to tell the world , that protestants believe no communion of saints . hitherto we have had instances of their direct way of misrepresenting , but they are not so unskilfull as not to be furnished with finer methods , and which are not so easily discovered by the vulgar ; when they are eagerly disputing 'tis an easie thing to drop some assertion which in the heat of discourse shall pass unheeded by the warm adversary , but they will be sure to resume it ( and make their advantage , of it s not being contradicted , ) either during the conference or afterwards , to some of the persons then present ; which renders it necessary for those who engage with them to watch every word , and not onely attend to the main question ; for by this method they gain one of these two points , if their insinuation be not answered at first , they will urge the point as granted , and if the disputant deny it , they presently cry out that he is now reduc'd to a strait , and so denies what he own'd before , which observation shall be surely seconded and applauded by their adherents , and often leaves an impression in the weaker hearers : on the other hand , if when they find themselves pressed , and at a stand , ( which is their usual time to drop such a bye assertion ) and that their artifice is discovered , and their position denied , they leave the first point and pursue the other , and so engage insensibly in a desultory dispute from one thing to another , never fix'd , by which they render most disputations ineffectual ; so that whether stopt in their design or not , they make their advantage , either to misrepresent our doctrine or extricate themselves from the difficulties they can't resolve . thus one of their divines urging the authority of the fathers to a protestant , and not willing to expose himself so far , as to affirm in express terms that we thought those holy men divinely inspired , us'd this expression , that seeing we owned the authority of the divinely inspired fathers , he would prove the infallibility of the church from their writings : to this the gentleman not regarding the epithete , answered that he could not , and so proceeded in the dispute : they had not been parted many hours , but the fryer desired some of the company to observe how the protestants contradicted themselves about their rule of faith , professing to receive whatever was inspired by the holy ghost , and yet not admitting the writings of the fathers into the rule , tho' the opponent had acknowledged that they were inspired from above ; and when it was reply'd that there was no such concession , he urg'd that when he termed them divinely inspir'd , there was no exception taken at it , which was a tacit affirming them to be so . but the gentlemen were too wise to be caught with so very slight an appearance . i shall have occasion to give a farther account of this under another head ; therefore i shall at present onely observe that how thin soever this artifice is in it self , they use it in their publick discourses , as well as private conversation ; mr. clench arguing for the infallibility of councils , hath these words ( speaking of our appeal to the four first general councils ) * i know no reason why the church should be credited in the four first general councils , and slighted and dis-believed in the following : christ promised he would be with them to the consummation of the world , — i can find no place where christ promis'd to be with them for a limited time , so as to direct them in their first assemblies , and to leave them for the future to themselves . here he would make the reader believe that we receive those synods as believing them secur'd from error , by christ's promise ; for else his argument is impertinent ; but we do not receive them on any infallible authority of theirs , not because they could not err , but because they did not ; and therefore we reject others , because they have err'd , for we know of no promise made to them , but are yet ready to receive any such councils as the first were , who govern themselves by the holy scriptures . they find no great difficulty in confuting imaginary opinions , which makes them so very dexterous in this method ; to dispute against our doctrine of justification by faith was too hard a task , and therefore f. t. coins a new definition of it in the middle of his argument and immediately runs away with that , endeavouring to prove , that faith is not an assured belief that our sins are forgiven ; learnedly arguing against his own imagination : however he had what he aim'd at , for he made a shew of saying somewhat , and if he could but perswade any ignorant protestant that the definition was own'd by the reformed , he was sure he had overthrown it . with the same sincerity another of their champions would insinuate , that the protestants left the communion of rome , because of the wickedness of the members of that church , and therefore heaps up authorities to prove that it is not a sufficient motive for a separation from them ; but all his labour is to very little purpose , for we know the tares and wheat are to grow together till harvest , and not onely the wickedness of their priests and bishops , but the errors and monstrous corruptions of their church , could not have justified our separation , if they had not endeavour'd to force us to be partakers of those abominations , which we durst not do least we should be partakers of those plagues , which are denounc'd against them . it was an easie matter to prove the former no ground for separation , but some thing hard to undertake the other point , so that our author wisely wav'd it . it was observ'd by the * duke of buckingham , that these gentlemen serv'd themselves of hatefull nick-names when they are pressed in disputes about religion ; which is another of their artifices to promote the same end ; it was long since put in practice by those bishops at nice , who set up the worship of images , for no sooner were they press'd with a passage out of eusebius , but they brand him with the title of an arian ; which example hath been since followed by the gentlemen of that communion on purpose to make the world believe that their adversaries held the doctrines those names import : the nicolaitans are represented in the revelation as the worst of men , therefore the defenders of priests marriage had that name imposed on them , that the common people might think they held the community of wives as tha sectt did ; and so the opposers of transubstantiation were nick-nam'd stercoranists and paintes . this artifice they made great use of in suppressing the loyal remonstrance in ireland , which i gave some account of in the former chapter ; the name of protestant is a most odious appellation among them , therefore riddere the commissary in his letter to cardinal barberin stiles them irish protestants , and the same cardinal had before called them ▪ the valesian sect. the success attending this method hath been so great , that father contzen hath form'd it into a rule ; and how well it is observ'd , may be seen by their daily practice . for as mr. travers complains , they call us calvinists , &c. but we content our selves with the honourable name of christians ; to be a franciscan , a thomist , a scotist , we leave to them who have rent asunder christ's body , but we have no such custom to name our selves of any men . it was an old device of the arians , to call themselves the onely true catholicks , and all others ambrosians , athanasians , &c. but this is not the onely heretical example , after which the romanists do exactly copy . the preceding instances are warrant enough for me to renew my request to the reader , not to leave them when they affirm that such a particular doctrine is part of the reformed religion ; for we have seen that they are not over sincere in that matter : if men are found fathering doctrines upon their adversaries , which they abhor as much or more than they ; will any man in his wits believe such an imputation coming from those men ? but not onely the insincerity of the persons , but the deceit of the method it self , ought to make us cautious ; for if any particular doctrine were taught by some of our divines , it doth not follow that it is a part of the protestant religion ; if a person be of any particular opinion , he ought not to lay such a stress upon it as to make it part of his religion , for that consists in a few and plain articles , and if the other be overthrown as long as these remain , the religion remains intire . i mention this because i have some experience that these gentlemen do not misrepresent our doctrines onely to make the world have an ill opinion of them , but to get advantage of engaging with those who hold some particular ill grounded opinion , that having refuted it , they may seem to have triumphed over a protestant principle . and this advantage is too often given them by unwary men , who presuming on their own abilities , choose rather to defend some private sentiment than the common articles of our faith. an ill cause will not admit of a sound defence , and therefore it is no hard task to overthrow unwarrantable positions : which should make those who deal with them use more care ; for if they should be able to defend their opinion , the truth of the protestant religion is not one jot more apparent but the adversaries of it have a plausible pretence to affirm that such a position is one of the doctrines of it ; and if it be foumd uncapable of defence , these gentlemen who brag when there is no cause , will triumph unmeasurably and amuse many ignorant and weak souls . the summ of all is , that having to do with men whose talent at misrepresenting improves daily , it is our indispensable duty to be well acquainted with the particulars of our faith , that neither their eloquence in perswading , their artifice in deforming our doctrines , nor the fame of their abilities , may either put us on defending those doctrines which we do not teach , nor perswade us , that our religion approves them . we have many instances of those who have split upon this rock ; i never met with any of their converts who vnderstood ovr religion , bvt having entertain'd wrong notions of it , were perswaded to change vpon the confvtation of those imaginary tenets . i desire these gentlemen to name any one book of controversie which they think is written with most sincerity on their side ; and i engage my self to produce several false imputations in it ; by this trick they find most success , so that if all our people would labour to understand their religion , the romanists would have but few converts . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e * the primit . rule before the reformat . par ▪ . p. . ant. . to . see vindic of the 〈…〉 the 〈◊〉 p. . 〈◊〉 . to . mr , pulton's acc. p. . * mr. pulton's remarks , p. , . mr. pulton's acc . p. . dr. t 's acc. of the conference , p. . prim. rule bef . the ref. par . . p. ▪ vind. of the sincer. of the prot. relig. p. . &c. lond. . to . i have defied them now seventeen years to call me in question before our judges , and so i do still . reply to the def. of the exposit. of the doct. of the ch. of eng. pref. p. . notes for div a -e three letters concern . the pres. state of italy . p. . see chap. . * see 〈◊〉 a rr. pp . jesuits . sur leur procession de luxembourg , du . may , . p. . s. † and not onely they , but the jesuits of aix in provence have done the same and there is nothing more usual among those of goa in the east indies . see avis anx r.r. p. p. jesuits des aix en provence . col. . s . & de la vall●'s travels . p. . . lond. . fol. ‖ avis a rr. pp . jesu . p. . pendant que la procession marchera elle rencontrera dans le ville , divers theatres , dont les spectacles differens , serviront à inspirer agreeablement la piet● envers n●tre dame de consolation . mars commande à ses guerriers , & à vulcaine , bronte , ste●ope , pyracmon , & autres anciens bombardiers de prendre garde de ne plus faire aucune insulte à la chapelle de n. dame de consolation . — mot. pour le dieu mars procul ô , procul este profani . * id. p. . cerés , flore , pomone , les naïades , les nymphs des prairies , & des bois , se rejouissent du retour de nôtre dame de consolation , a la campagne . — mot des nymphs , & dez divinitez rustiques — jam redit & virgo , redeunt saturnia regna . ibid. p. . la renommée accompann●e de la religion , de la verite , & de la gloire , publie au monde que loüis le grande n'et pas moin illustre par la solide piete envers la sainte vierge , que par l'éclat de ses victoires . mot pour des quatre nymphes , cedant arma sacris . † ibid. p. . la joye , la force , la abondance , & la sante effets ordinaires de n. dame de consolation , marchent à la teste des vi●es du luxembourg pour marquer que ces agreeables nymphes on t persuadè à toute la province de se mettre sous la protection de la sainte vierge . ‖ la province du luxembourg ▪ fait voir sur son char la ste vierge triomphante , & montre d'un côte la paix , l'abondance & les beaux arts ; & de l'autre mars , & bellone dans les chaines . on comprend assez de son geste & de sa contenance qu'elle attribué l'eloignement de ses maux & le retour de son bonheur à la protection de sa chere patronne . p. . * ibid. si mars arreste ses guerriers . si le sang repandu ne tient plus des ( lauriers ) et si la paix long temps bannie , et l'abondance & les beaux art's , rentrent dans nos heureux remparts , cest l' effet du repos que nous donne marie * ibid. p. . inscription pour les trois gentes , de l' eglise , de la france , & du luxembourg . pard ' immuables loix , nous conspirons tous trois , a celebrer les grandeurs de marie , nos clefs , nos lyons , & nos lis , luy sont par faitement soumis . le ciel benit cette belle harmonie qui tient nos coe●rs si bien unis , et la terre en par●it rav●e ▪ † ibid. p. . loüis xiii . de glorieuse memoire accompagne de sa cou● qui offre sa personne , & son royaume , à là sainte vierge — inscription pour loüis le juste . juste en la paix , juste en la guerre , loüis repandit par la terre , vn nom que la justice orna deces appas mais ce monarque auguste jamais ne fut plus juste , que quand trazant la regle aux autre potentats , a la rein e du ciel ii offrit ces estats . ‖ ibid. p. . la victoire & les vertus chargées de palmes & couronnées de lauriers , qui representent en plusieur● tableaux les grandes actions de nostre invincible monarque faite pour l' honneur & le service de la sainte vierge . inscription pour loüis le grand . pendant que la terre ●tonnée decent prodiges inouis que fait l' admirable loüis ne comprend pas le but de cette destinée , le ciel applaudissant á ses faits glorieux nous dit que ce grand roy s'acquerant ( la victoire , ) travaille bien moins pour sa gloire que pour l' honneur de la reine des ( cieux . ) * ibid. p. . tableau . eglises de diées à nostre dame baties , reparèes , & ornées . † ibid. prise de la hollande & retablissement du culte de la vierge dans les temples reconciliez . ‖ ibid. p. . adversaries du culte de la mere de dieu chassez de port-royal , & de la france . * ibid. p. . mahometans ennemis de jesus christ , & de marie punis de alger . † ibid. . defaite de l' heresie ennemie de la mere de dieu . * p. , . le roy met fin à la guerre contraire aux honneur de nostre dame de cons●●ation . — paix redonnée à ●● europe qui va retablir la sureté à la campagn● ensuite les pelerinages . & les autres devoirs de pieté que l'on a coust●me de rendre à nostre dame de consolation . † p. . il ne parroit par aucun act public qu● la guerre , contre les hollandois ait este pour cause de religion : & de plus pour quoy pretendre que le but du roy , dans la reconciliation de quelques temples en hollande ait esté le cul●e de la vierge plustot que l' adoration du s. sacrament , & le rétablissement en general de la religion catholique . n'est ce pas donner lieux aux heretiques de croire qu'on met toute la religion dans le cul●e de la vierge cequi ne leur peut etre qu' un grand sujet de scandale ? ‖ p. . car c'en est une horrible adire — il est faux , &c. * p. . ory eut il jamais une plus grand chimere que de vouloir qu'il act fait bombarder alger , pour punir les mahometans de ce qu'ils sont ennemis de jesus & de marie . il fau droit donc qu'il eut mis pour condition dans la paix qu'il à faire depuis auec eux , qu' a l' avenir ils porteroient plus d' honneur à la sainte vierge . † p. . nous nous plaignons avec raison de ce que les heretiques pour nous rendre odieux nous imputent beaucoup de choses que nous avous toujours soustenu n'estre poiut les sentimens de l' eglise catholique . nous devons done garder le mesme equite envers eux . or ils toujours protesté qu'ils n' etoient point ennemis de la vierge , ‖ p. . orn'est ce pas loüis le grand qui à assiege cette place , vous ne le representez done point comme fort de vot à la sainte vierge puis qu'un di●ant d'unepart qu'il à mi● fin à la guerre contraire aux honneurs de nostre dame de consolation , nous f●ites ●●●endre de l' autre qu'il à fait un● guerre contraire aux honneurs de nostre dame de consolation . * p. . ces mannieres theatrales d' honorer la mere de dieu , sont si indignes de la gravité de la religion chrestienne , & qui ne peuvent que donner sujet aux ennemis de l' eglise de decrier la devotion que les fidelles ont à la sainte vierge , & de la faire passer pour un culte superstitieux & profane . † p. . et en effet comment peut on croire que tant de personnes peu spirituelles que la curiosite a fait trouver à cette feste , ayent pû avoir une attention raisonnable à cet auguste mystere parmi tant de vains spectacles qui rempliss●ient leur esprit de continuelles distractions & qui les port●ient incessemment à penser à toute autre chose . ‖ ibid. on szait aussi qu c'est pour ce la que m. l' archeveque de malines avoit defendu avec grand raison non seulement de meler des choses profanes aux choses saintes dans les processions ; mais m●sme d●y porter les images des saints quand on●y porte le s. sacrament , parce que l' experience à fait connoître , que c'est un suj●t de tentation , à la p●us grande part du peuple , qui s' occupe bien d' avantage à regarder ces images , s●ornées & si bien parées , qu'● rentrer dans soymem● pour adorer jesus christ , &c. * with this title . la ste vierge patrône honorée & bien faisante dans la france , & dans le luxembourg , dessein de la procession qui se ●erapar les ecoliers du colege de compagnie de jesus , à luxembourg le . may . jour auquel l'image miracule use de notre dame de consolation patrone du duche de luxembourg & compté de chiny sera reportée de la capitale de la province en sa chapelle . † avis p. . parmi tant de choses profanes & de verses de poêtes payense il n'y a pas un seul mots de l' ecriture , qui auroit du faire seule les ornemens d' une procession vrayment chrêtienne . — m●r. remarks . p. . p. . * rainer . cont . wald. c. ▪ ●olummodo romanam ecclesiam blasphemant & clerum . * sieur du haillan . l' hist. du france . p. . et bien quils eussent des mauvaises opinions , si est ce qu'ell ne susciterent pas tant la haine du pape , & des grands princes , & des ecclesiastiques contre eux , que fut la libertie du language ; ce fut le principal point qui lesmit en haine universalle & qui les charger de plu● de mes chantes opinions , qu'ils n'en avoyent . see the acc. of the quietists in three letters concerning the present state of italy . p. , . &c. in the agreement between the ch. of engl. and the ch. of rome . † letter from a dissenter , lond. . to . p. , . see the answer to it , and primitive fathers no papists . p. , . * the title of it is , decretum ss . d. n. innocentii divina providentia papae xi . quo . casuistarum propositiones damnavit . decree made at rome ● . of march , . lond. . to . † bern. ger. pat. apolog. p. , . trans alpes catholici non aeque se vel concilii [ tridentini ] vel congregationis [ romanae , ] legibus subjecerunt adeoque nemo sibi privilegium arrogari patitur , quod aliis plerisque omnibus liberum esse ac solutum videat ; qua quidem in re nihil eos peccare , ipse gretserus jesuita , in libro suo primo de jure & more , prohibendi libros malos . c ▪ . — demonstrat . in hispania autem alio librorum vetitorum indice utuntur , eoque ●it ut plures libri palam ibi venales prostant , quos in italia legere piaculare sit , sic rursum alios ibi legere nefas habent quos romae nemini religio sit cognoscere , veneti nostri , satis se catholici hominis officio fungi arbitrantur , si libris fidem catholicam bonosque mores ex professo oppugnantibus se abstineant ; caeterum nec romano nec hispanico librorum indice se obligari patiuntur , neque eo nom●ne quisquam adhuc romanorum ponti●icum venetae reipublicae nego●●●m ●ace●ere animum induunt , &c. * see st. amour's journal , par. . ch . . † see his letter at large in the history of the irish remonstr . p. . see the letter about the quietists p. , , , , . ‖ in his letter before cited . * by his breve of july ▪ . . wherein are these words . de apostolicae potestatis plenitudine omnes & singulos libros supradictos tenore praesentium damnamus & reprobamus , ac legi , seu retineri prohibemus ipsorumque librorum omnium & singulorum impressionem , descriptionem , lectionem & usum , omnibus & singulis christi fidelibus etiam specifica & individua mentione & expressione dignis , sub poena excommunicationis per contra facientes ipso ●●cto absque alia declaratione incurrenda — omnino interdicimus . see it at large in nouvelle de la rep. des lettres vo . . * answ. to n●bes testium in the pref. p. . lond. . to . † primit . fath ▪ no prot. p. , . ‖ see burnet's history of the regale , pref p. . and his sermon on jan. . / . before the lord mayor . p. . . policy of the french clergy . p. , . when this decree was objected in a disputation at thoulon against one of the propositions condemned in it , the moderator who defended that position answered , that it was not made by the pope in consistory . and mr. de la berchere now a. b. of aix , order'd the morals of m. abelly ( which maintain many of the points censured in that decree ) to be taught in his seminary . see avis au r.r. pp . jesuits de aix en provence sur imprimè qui a pour titre , ballet danse reception de m l'arcevêque d' aix . p. , , . . a. col. . s. see tolet. instruct. sacerdot . cap. . ad . fulminatur contra hereticis credentes , re●eptat●res , legentes paucas lineas librorum haereticorum . — appellantes ad futurum concilium — imponentes nova paedagia seu gabellas in terris suis , praeterquam in casibus sibi à jure ex speciali sedis apostolicae licentia permissis ; qui deferunt ad infideles aut haereticos arma & equos , lignamima , eorumque materiam ferrum , filum ferri stannum , & alia metallorum genera , &c. eos q●i aliqua injuria afficiunt , venientes ad sedem apostolicam , — eos qui avocant causas beneficiales à commissariis apostolicis , & authoritate laicali imp●diunt earum cursum ; vel executi●nem literarum apostolicarum , — eos qui impediunt archiepiscopos , &c. ne possint uti jurisdictione ecclesiastica ; occupantes quaevis loca jurisdictionis ecclesiae romanae , sive sint fructus , sive redditus sine licentia romani pontificis . — imponentes onera , decimas , &c. quibuscunque personis ecclesiasticis — quoscunque magistratus & quomodo libet se interponentes in causis criminalibus personarum ecclesiasticarum — protestatur pont. absolutionem solennem in die jovis coenae faciendam non comprehendere nec suffragari ulli ex praedictis , nisi prius à commissis cum vero proposito similia non committendi destiterent . — praecipit in virtutes sanctae obedientiae patriarchis , &c. ubi libet constitutis ut , praesentes literas semel in anno aut pluries in ecclesiis suis dum in eis major populi multitudo ad divina convenerit solemniter publicent . * caus. . cann . nos sanctorum . eos qui excommunicatis fidelitate aut sacramento obstricti sunt , apostolica auctoritate à juramento absolvimus , & ne sibi fidelitatem observent omnibus modis prohibemus . see declarat . of the favourable dealing of her majesties commiss . p. . . to . * p. . hunt. of the rom. fox , p. , . fowl's hist. of rom. treas . p. , , , . † premonition p. . of his works . ‖ account of the proceedings , p. . * hist. of the gunp. treas . p. . copley's reasons . p. . see hist. jesuit . p. . oportetigitur ut illi qui tenent & in regno vestro manere volunt , eas [ sc. opiniones ] publice in suis collegiis abjurent . one was dated sep. . . another aug. . . a third , feb. . . and a fourth , may , . . hist. jesuit . p. , , , , , , . franck. ann. p ▪ , . cressy's exomolog . p. . par. . vo . lord clar. against cressy . p ▪ , . hist. of the ir. remonst . p. , . hist. of the ir. rem . pref . p. . . hist. of ir. rem . p. . see pap. not misrep . by prot. p. . . to , & answer to pap. prot. against prot. popery . p. . lond. . to . see three letters of the pres . state of italy , p. . * see p. ● . † pap. protest . against prot. popery . p. . . in his preservative against popery , lond. . to . answer to dr· sherlocks preser . against popery . lond. . to . pap. prot . against prot. popery . p. . notes for div a -e (a) answer to the considerations which obliged peter manby , &c. p. . lond. . to . (b) summ. of prin. cont. p. . lond. . to . (c) see burn. answ. to the meth. of the french clerg . vo . . (d) mysterium pietatis vltraj . vo . . (a) instruct. secret . pro super . societat . jesu , p. . it is one of the pieces published in the arcana societat . jesu . vo . . see it in english . printed at london for tho. dring . . vo in the d part of the mystery of jesuitism . thus where we teach meditation to be the duty of every christian. fa. cross in his sermon before the q. ap. . . saith , i do not approve the opinion of those who hold it obligatory to all . (a) instructiones pro super . societ . jesu , p. . — vt se gratam & acceptam praebeat societas incolis l●ci , multum ad hoc conducet explicatio finis societatis , praescripti in regula secunda summarii , incumbere in salutem proximi aeque ac suam . quare humilia obsequia obeunda , in xenodochiis , & limo jacentes invisendi . — eleemosynae conqui●endae , dandaeque pāuperibus allis videntibus , ut aedisicati facto nostrorum sint in nos liberaliores . (b) ibid. p. . — saepe inculcent principib●● , distributionem honorum & dignitatum in repub. spectare ad justitiam ; gravitérque deum offendi si contra eam à principibus peccetur ; se tamen nolle dicant ingerere in ullam administrationem reip . & haec se invitos dicere ratione sui officii ; quod ubi apprehenderint principes , explicetur ipsis , quibus virtutibus praediti esse debeant viri ass●mendi ad dignitates reip . commendationis capita sumantur , ex amicis societat●s nostrae , &c. — (c) europae speculum , p. , · lond. . vo . (a) europae speculum , p. , . (a) bellar. lib. de not . eccl. c. . * sure and honest meanes for the conversion of heretic . p. . lond. to . . † see their letter at large in vergerius ; and lately in english ; intituled , the state of the church of rome , before the reformation . to . . ‖ richer . histor . concil . gen. l. . par . . p. , . colon. . . * apud richer . ubi sup . * ru●shw . collect . par . . p. . fol. lond. . † in his epistle to the nonconformists . , vo . ‖ gages new survey of the west-indies . p. . edit . lond. . fol. ogilby in his history of japan , edit . lond. . p. , , , &c. gives an account of the same method used by the missionaries in that country . * ad ann . . sect . . consulto introductum videtur ut quae erant gentilitiae superstitionis ●fficia eadem veri dei cultui sanctificata in verae religionis cult●m impenderentur . † europae speculum . p. . lond. . ● . burnet's letters of his travels . p. , . edit . roterd. . . * cor. , . † ephes. . . ‖ cor. . . * sure and honest means for converting hereticks . p. . ibid. pag. . for this he cites , hil. contr . auxentium . & hieron . ad marcellam viduam . lib. . part . p. . * moral practice of the jesuites , p. . lond. . vo . † lib. . de purg. c. . ‖ moral practice of the jesuites , p. . * ibid. p. , . note , that this book entituled , the business of the saints in heaven ; was written by f. l. henriquez , approved by fr. prado provincial of castile . ap. . . and allowed of by order of the general of the jesuites , mutius ▪ vitelleschi . † gee's foot out of the snare . p. . to . lond. . ‖ barst. in lib. instit . the propitiator . pag. . vid. fitz-sim . in fin . citat . in divers . loc . * ebber . in praef . in com . philip ▪ super . christ. ad cor. cited by mr. gee . p. . thus . an non audis dicentes grata multitudini , flectentes , fingentes , ac refingentes , religionem ad nutum & cupiditates dominorum & coetuum quorum gloriam nisi suam pluris faciunt quam gloriam dei ? * protestancy destitute of scripture-proofs . p. . to . . * acts of the , conf. at paris in july , and august . ann. . in the preface . p. . to . lond. . this conference was printed the same year . in french with this title , conference entre deux docteures de sorbonne , & deux ministres de l' eglise reformee . vo . * see the oath in the pontifical , edi● . c●lon . . p. , . vo . where after they have professed obedience to the pope , they go on thus , jurans dico per deum omnipotentem , & sancta dei evangelia , me in unitate & communione praemissis in concusse mansurum . et si ( quod absit ) ab hac me unitate aliqua occasione vel argumento divisero , perjuris reatum incurrens aeterne obligatus p●enae ●nveniar , & cum auctore schismatis habeam in futuro saeculo portionem . * matt. . . † rom. . . ‖ col. . . * tim. . . † psal. . . ‖ matt. . . * lucas brugensis in loc . edit . antwerp . . † maldonate in loc . edit . mogunt . . ‖ joseph . acosta de noviss ▪ tempor . l. . c edit . lugd. . vo . ad signorum magnitudinem accedet apta & composita ad decipiendum sanctitatis simulatio qua solet ( sc. antichristus ) homines parum cautos externa specie vehementer allicere . pro. . . * joh. . . † act. . , . ‖ considerat . on the spirit of martin luther p. . oxford , . to . * prov. . , . † jesuits catech . praef . p. . edit . . to . * heb. . . † mr. rockwood and sir everard digby . see the gunpowder-treason , with a discourse of the manner of its discovery , p. , . — lond. . vo . * dr. brevint . saul and samuel at endor . praef . p. . ox. . to . † ibid. p. . * drelincourts protestants self defence , in the preface , l●nd . . s. † oxford . . to . ‖ in his consecration of protest . bishops vindicated , in the first ●ome of his works , dublin , . fol. & in tom. . * vind. eccl●s . aug. lond. . fol. † in his history of the reformation . lond . fol. and his vindicat● of the ordination of the church of england , lond , ● ●o . * reply to the def. of the expos . of the doct. of the ch. of eng. p. . of the preface , lond. . to . † spanhemii histor . imaginum , lugd. batav . , vo . ‖ bishop of meaux pastor . lett. p. , . lond. , to . * nouvelle de la republique des lettres . juin . . p. . il est apparent que m. de meaux retranchera l'endroit cidessus marques , & que les gens d' honneur se plaindront in petto de ce qu'on se tue de leur sou tenir ▪ que les huguenots ont signe le formulaire le plus v●l●ntairement du monde . * on parle e●core dans cette cinquieme objection de ceque jay dit dans ma lettre pastorale touchant ce qui c'est passé dans le diocesse de meaux . & dans plusieurs autres , dont les evesques mes confrere & mes amis n'avoient fait le recit ; & may je persist à dire , sons les y ieùx de dieu , qui jugera les vivans & les morts , que je n'ay rien dit que de veritable ; & que l' autheur de le republique des lettres av●it rezen un mauvais memoire , quand il a di● que ●e retranchi●●● cet article dans les editions ●●●bantes , puisque , je n'y ay pas se●lmeat songe - reply to the def. of the expos . of the doct. of the ch. of eng. p. . † present state of the controv. between the ch. of eng. and the ch. of rome , p. . lond. . to . ‖ ibid. , , . * ibid. p. . his pastoral letter , bears date march . and this to the gentleman , april . † expos. of the doct. of the ch. of eng. p. . of the preface , lond. . to . ‖ laveritable devotion envers la sr. vierge , par. . to . * vind. of the bishop of condom's exposition , p. , lond , , to . † reply to the def . &c. p. . * edit . paris , . s . † def. of the expos. of the doct. of the ch. of england , p. . lond. . to . ‖ see last efforts of afflicted innocency , p. , . lond. . vo . * de cultu adorat . lib. . disput . . c. . mogunt . , vo . speaking of alanus copus and sanders denying the epistle to joh. hierosol . to be his , saith , id commune etiam & frequens effugium esse solet iis qui testimoniis conciliorum , aut patrum in aliqua controversia nimis premuntur . † ad ann . . n. , . ‖ in catholicis veteribus plurimos feramus errores & extenuemus , excusemus , excogitato commento persaepe negemus , & commodum iis sensum affingamus , dum opponuntur in disputationibus , aut in conflictionibus cum adversariis , index expurg . libror. qui hoc seculo prodierunt , edit . . s. * confer . with campion in the tower p. . lond. . to . † ibid. , . ‖ ibid. p. . * mat. . . † deut. . . ‖ rom. . . gal. . . * rom. . . * hospi● . histor. jesuit , p. , . edit . tig. . fol. pater cotton , tum dixit eum librum nequaquam à suae societatis hominibus emanasse , sed genovae ad constandum jesui●is odium fictum ab haereticis fuisse . qui tamen postea , longe aliter , quid sentiret , expressit , laudato scribanii opere & distributis multis illius exemplaribus , atque etiam claro admodum viro commandaret eum , tanquam juventu●i latinis literis imbuendae apprime utile , &c. † see answer to the considerations on the spirit of martin luther , p. , . oxford . . to . ‖ see his letter in the preface to the history of the irish reb. lond. . fol. * see his falsificationum roman●rum 〈◊〉 primi liber pri●●s , in the preface , lond. ● . ●o . * see du moulin 's life ▪ p. , . prefixt to his novelty of popery , edit . lond. fol. * reflexions on mr. ●ari●●as , p. . amsterd . . ● s. † edit . lond. . chap. . ‖ richer . h●stor concil . gen. lib. . par . . p. . quibus viris hoc propositum esse nemo nescit ut temporalem curiae romanae monarchiam quovis jure vel injuria vendicent . * walsh . hist. of the irish remonstrance , pref . to the cath. p. . edit . lond. . fol. * see animadversions upon fanaticism fanatically imputed to the catholick church , by the lord clarendon , p. . lond. . ●e . ibid. & p. . † catholick scripturist p. . lond. . ● vo . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . hom. . in tit. † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . hom. . in . tim. ‖ animadversions by way of answer to a sermon preached by dr. ke●n . &c. p. . lond. to . * sess. c . eos nul●a 〈◊〉 necessitate i● fecisse sine controversi● credendum est . * lib. . ad bonif. cont . duas epist. pelag. cap. . beatae memoriae innocentius papa sine baptismo christi , & sine participatione corporis & sanguinis christi , vitam non habere parvulos dicit . † confer . with camp. in the tower the second day , p. . ‖ de romano pontifice ▪ lib. . c. . * dissert . . p. . pa. . † non enim de carne petri sed de ●ide dictum est , lib. de sacrament incarnationis . ‖ super hanc fidem super hoc quod dictum est , tu es christus . in epist. primam johannis tract . decim . * ephes. ▪ ● . * tim. . . † good advice to the pulpits , p. . lond . to . * jerem. . . † chap. . . ‖ chap. . . * prov. . . † ep. . qui non habendo quod in causa suae divisionis defendant , non nisi hominum crimina colligere affectant ; & ea vice plura falsissime jactant , & quia ipsam divinae scripturae veritatem criminari & obscurarè non possunt , homines per quos praedicatur adducunt in odium , de quibus & fingere quicquid in mentem veniat possunt . * de jus● . l. . tr . . disp . . n. . see this passage in the provincial letters , p. . edit . lond. . vo . † answer to the prov. letters , p. . edit . paris . . vo . prov. letters . p. . ‖ ibid. p. . * instruct. secret . pro super . societ . jesu . p. , . † discov . of the society in relat . to their politicks , p. . lond. · vo . ‖ instruct. secret . ut supra . p. . * ibid. p. . dicantur malae ejus inclinationes , vitia , defectus , quos de se in manifestatione conscientiae aliquando superioribus aperuerat . — externis insinuentur causae dismissionis illae ob quas vulgus nos odio habent , sic enim plausibilior erit dismissio quorumcunque . † bernardi giraldi patavini pro repub . venetorum apologia p. . he cites mariana's words in his book de regimine societatis jesu , c. . si ipse paulus apostolus , generali jesuitarum & assentatoribus ejus contradiceret , neque errores illorum probaret , futurum esset ut pro extravagante , inquieto , & turbatore pacis haberetur . ‖ anthony tirrell in his exam . before commissioners , june . . see it at the end of dr. harsenet's declaration of the popish impostures , lond. . to . * four letters on several subjects , p. . — . † hospir . histor. jesuit . p. ▪ — pontum tyardaeum episcopum cabillonensem , eruditionis ac pietatis singularis , ●irum , cum jesuitae in suam factionem & conspirationem contra regem henricum tertium pertrahere non possent , — populi furiosum odium & invidiam in caput ejus modis omnibus concitare studuerunt . est collegium divioni jesuitarum , quod episcopi hujus non exiguis beneficiis adauctum fuit . erat enim bonae partis fundi illius clientelaris patronus ; — quamobrem libello , etiam graecis , latinis & gallicis versibus , atque oratione soluta scripto & ipsi dicato cum amplissimo laudum ejus praedicatione , habuerunt gratiam , & fidem dederunt . sed quod in conspirationem jesuitarum , & parricidium regis consentire noll●t , quidam carolus inter jesuitas collegii istius ascriptus linguam suam & calamum superiorum instinctu , vehementer contra illum acuit . — contra hunc praesulem , ob dictam causam non solum in familiaribus colloquiis , sed etiam publicis in contionibus atque editis quoque libellis debacchatus est : ac inter alia 〈◊〉 . — se quadraginta quatuor haereses in tribus foliolis homiliarum ejus in orationem dominic●m exprompsiss● , &c. vid. locum . * provincial letters p. , , , . † viz. mr. de ville , vicar general to the cardinal of lyons . m. scarron , canon and pastor of st. pauls . m. margat . messieurs borrand , sevé , aubert and darvie canons of st. nicier . m. du gu● president of the treasurers of france . m. groslier , provost of merchants . m. de flechere , president , and lieutenant general . messieurs de boissat , de st. romain , & de bartoly gent. m. bourgeois the king's advocate in the treasurers court of france . m. de cotton , father and son and mr. boniel . in their answer to the fifth letter . * burnet's hist. of the rights of princes , p. . lond. . vo . † europ . spec. p. . ‖ novelty of popery , p. . * advice to the confuter of bellarmine , p. . lond. . to . * def. of the confut. of bella● ▪ d. note of the ch. p. ● lond. . to . † laurentii surii comment . brevis , p. . col. . vo . quod quidem nos de sectarum authoribus dictum praecipue volumus , quos plerosque perspicuum est contra suam mentem & conscientiam longe aliter & scribere & docere quam rem ipsam se habere non sint nescii . ‖ bishop vsher's life and letters , p. . . lond. . fol. * mr. thomas davis , his letter to arch-b . vsher , ib. . † smith's acc . of the gr. ch. p. , , . lond. ● . vo , see also his miscellanea . p. , , , , , , , , . lond. . vo . * mr. davis's letter , ut supr . † fowles hist. of rom. treasons , p. . lond. . fol. ibid. p. . ‖ sheldon's survey of the miracles of the church of rome , p. . lond. . to . * see their examinations in dr. sam●el harsene●'s . declaration of popish impostures in casting out of devils . * defence of the papers written by the late king , p. . lond. . to . † hind and panther in the pref. lond. . to . ‖ difference between the protest . socinians and methods , p. . lond. . to . * s●illin . unreason . of separat . pref . p. . lond. . to . † lord carend . against cressy , p. , . * speed in his chronicle reckons that in the beginning of king james his time , there were . livings under ten pound , edit . lond. . at the end of the reign of k. henry the eighth . p. . † ibid. p. . * the undeceiving of the people in the point of tithes . by ph. trelinie gent. lond. . to . † fifth part of ch. government , p. . see appendix to dr. burnet's history of the reformation , vol. . p. . reflect . on the hist. part of ch government , par . . p. . oxford , . to . † adami contzen politicorum libri decem . p. . he advises to follow the example of those , qui cum recusarent , quasi superbi contumaces in obedientes magistratui accusabantur , &c. * long 's hist. of plots p. . lond. . v o. dr. stillin ▪ unreasonableness of separation , p. . of the preface . † the agreement between the ch. of eng. and the ch. of rome , lond. . to . ‖ the difference between the ch. of eng. and the ch. of rome . lond. . to . * considerations on the spirit of ma●tin luther , sect . . † pulton's remarks , p. . * luke . . † mar. . , . ‖ luke ● . , , . * a●● . . , . † act. . , , , , , , , . ‖ in vita antonii , inter athan ●pera , vol. . edit . colon. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * answer to a letter to a dissenter , p. . printed for h. hills , . to . † mr. pain 's answer to the letter to a dissenter , p. . . to . ‖ reply to the reasons of the oxford clergy against addressing , p. , . . to . * letter in answer to two main questions , p. . . by t. g. lond. . to . † discourse for taking off the test , — p. . lo●d . . to . * defence of the expos. of the doct. of the ch. of england , p. ● . † reply to the defence , &c. p. . ‖ expos. of the doctrine of the chathol . church , p. lond. . to . * policy of the clergy of france , p. , , . lond. . vo . † hunting of the romish fox , p. , . du●lin . . vo . * matt. . † psal. . . ‖ answer to a letter to a dissenter , p. . printed for henry hills . * disc. of the notes of the church , p. . to . lond. . to . † ecces . . . ‖ chap. . . * chap. . . † luk. . . ‖ luk. . . . * europae spec. p . † wilson's hist. of great britain . p . lond. . fol. ‖ fowlis hist. rom. treasons p. . * wilson 's hist. of great brittain , p. . † mirror or looking-glass both for saints and sinners , p. . lond. . fol. ‖ key for catholicks , p. . lond. ▪ to . europ . spec. , . * m. spon's history of the city and state of geneva , p. . lond. . fol. † jesuits catech , p. . ‖ sands europ . spec. p. . * jes. catech. p. . † history of gen. p. . ‖ novelty of popery , lib. . c. . cont . . p. . * gee's foot out of the snare , p. . † birckback's protestant evidence . cent. p. ● . lond. . to . ‖ ib. p. . and foot out of the snare . p. . see a relation of this forgery in the history of the ch. of great britain from the birth of our saviour . p. . . lond . to . * foot out of the snare ▪ p. . † ib. p. . ‖ it is a thick quar●o , i have seen it , but cannot remember the title . history of the irish remonstrance , p. . ‖ instruct. secret , p●o super . societ ▪ jesu . p. . de d●smiss● in exhortationibus dicatur , quod iterum ardenter petat ingredi societatem . * hunting of the romish fox , p. . , europ . spec. p. , . † ibid. ‖ ibid. in hist ▪ of geneva , p. ● . * shel●on of miracles p. . † franciscan convert by ant. ega● . p. . lond. . to . ‖ ricaut's state of the gr. and armenian ch. p. . lond. . vo . * acosta . de procur . 〈…〉 . lib. . c. . pos● 〈…〉 , ab 〈…〉 turba , vix quemquam 〈…〉 , quid vita aeterna , &c. 〈◊〉 c●●echisandi ratio umbra●itis & 〈◊〉 s●milis . — 〈…〉 simile supervisum est inter tot millia christianorum nomine donatorum , tam esse rarum qui christum agnoscat , ut quod ephesii olim de spiritu sancto , paulo responderunt , possint hi de christo melius usurpare , neque an sit christus audivimus . id. lib. . c. . — invenies tam tenuis & inopis messis apud indos potentissimam causam in eo esse quod divinis & occultis quidem sed justis consiliis , antiquis gentibus praedicatores fuerint praedicatione sua digni , cum nostri tam sint plerique indigni , ut longe plus evertant & dissipent quam aedisicent , atque plantent . id. l. . c. . see more out of the same author ap . hesp in . histor. jesuit . p. . † provin . letters , p. , ▪ and mor. pract . of the jesuits . p. . ‖ sure and honest means , &c. p. . * terries voyage to eas●-india , p. . lond. . vo . † ibid. p. . * ogi●by's japan , p , . † last efforts , p. . ‖ nouvelle de la repub. des lettres , juin , . — dans la de●nier fete dieu plusieurs 〈◊〉 mieux aime payer une amende que de tendre devant leurs maisons . * smith's account of the greek church , p , . and his narratio de vita cyrilli lucarii ▪ p. . inter jus miscellanea . last efforts , , . * lib. . c. . sect. . † unreason . of sepa . pref . p. . ‖ new test of the ch. of engl. loyalty , lond. . to . * instance of the ch. of engl. loyalty , lond. . to . † new test of the ch. of eng. loyalty ; p. . * reflex . on the answ. to the pap. misap . p. . lond. . to . † sure and hon. means , p. . * fa. ellis ser. before the k. dec . . . p. . st. gregory's judgment is become that of the whole church , being inserted in the body of the canon-law . † gratian. cau. . quaes . . can. auctoritatem — edi● . . to . a fidelitatis etiam juramento romanus pontifex nonnullos absolvir . ‖ id. ibid. can. alias . * id. ibid. can. nos sanctorum . † id. dis●i●ct . . fol. . ‖ id fol. . col . . ●it . ● . * decernit & prae●ip●t 〈◊〉 , canones & concilia generalia omnia , nec non alias apostolicas sanctiones in favore ecclesiasticarum personarum , libertatis ecclesiasticae & contra ejus violatores editas , &c. sess . . c. . † bulla pii ti . super forma juram . profess . fidei . they are enjoyned to swear thus , omnia tradita a sacris canonibus indubitanter recipio , atque profiteor , & contraria omnia , damno rejicio & anathematizo . ‖ mr. drylen's religio l●ici , in the preface , lond. . to . * sure and honest means , p. , . † sheldon of the miracles of the ch. of rome , p. . * answer to the provincial letters , p. , . † the jesuits reasons unreasonable . — see it in collectos treat . concern . the penal laws . p. . lond. . to . ‖ hist. of the irish remonst . p. . * see his letter in the hist. of the irish remonst . p. . europ . spec. p. . d●scov . of the jes in relat . to their politicks . in his account . p. . jesuits reasons unreasonable , p. , ● . * in his account , p. . vindicat. of the sincerity of the prot. religion p. . lond. . to . cressen . vind. p. . lond. . to . * answ. to two main quest. of the let. to a diss. p. . see history of the irish remonstrance . † request to rom. catho . p. . lond. . to . walsh's letters , p. , , . * sure and honest means , p. , . tertullian . apolog. c. . &c. dicimur sceleratissimi , de sacramento infanticidii , pabulo inde & post convivium incesso , quod eversores luminum caues , lenones scilicet tenebrarum & libidinum impiaram in verecundia procurent , &c. popery anat. p. . * in his three conver. of engl. p. . c. . edit . . vo . † rainer . contra wald. c. . haec secta magnam habet speciem pietatis , eo quod coram hominibus juste vivant , & bene omnia de deo credant , & omnes articulos quae in symbolo continentur . ‖ claud. seiss . adver . wald. p. . puriorem quam caeteri christiani vitam agunt . * joa . camer . p. ● . illi ad regem referunt illis in locis homi●es baptizari , articulos fidei & decalogum doceri , dominicos dies religi●se coli , dei verbum exponi , beneficia & stupra apud eos nulla esse . his auditis rex jurejurando addito ; me , inquit & caetero populo meo catholico meliores illi viri sunt . vsher's life and letters , p. . letter to mr. tho. lydiat . * carpantur primum illa quae in vulgus male audiunt , quaeque absurditatem primo aspectu etiam rudibus ostendunt , cont . politic. c. . p. . walsh . lett. p. . * securis evangelica romae , . vo . † colligitur deum religionis reformatae non differre à diabolo , nec ejus paradisum ab inf●rno , p. . ‖ p. . structura religionis reformatae , fundatur in hoc horrenda blasphemia , christum esse falsum prophetam . * ibid. — confessio angliae art . . & art . dicit concilia generalia , gubernata à spiritu sancto , possunt errare . roger's faith , doctrine and religion professed in engl. cambr. . to . † secur. evang. p. . ‖ europ . spec. p. . . campion's reasons reas. . lond. to . see it also in the first edition in latin , cosmop . . norunt isti suorum axiomata , opera nostra deus nequaquam curat , &c. * quamvis autem dicamus nihil nobis esse praesidii , in operibus & factis nostris , & omnem salutis nostrae rationem constituamus in solo christo , non tamen ea causa dicimus , laxe absolute vivendum esse quasi tingi tantum & credere s●tis sit homini christiano , & nihil ab eo aliud expectetur , vera fides viva est nec potest esse otiosa , ergo docemus populum , deum nos vocâsee ad bona opera ut in eis ambul●m●● , &c. corpus confess . fidei . p. . gen. . to . ‖ confess . argentin . c. . nolumus autem haec sic intelligi , quasi salutem in ignavis animi cogitationibus fidéve charitate destituta — ponamus : quandoquidem certi sumus neminem justum aut salvum fieri posse nisi amet summe deum , & intitetur studiosissime . — . c. . negamus quenquam plene posse salvum fieri , nisi huc per spiritum christi evaserit , ut nihil jam bonorum operum in eo desideretur . — .c. . praecationes & religiosa jejunia actiones sanctissimas , quaeque christianos plurima doceant habemus , &c. * confess . august . art. . docent quod ●um fide reconciliamur necessario sequi debeat justitia bonorum operum . † art. . quod adversarii criminantur nos , negligi à nobis doctrinam de bonis operibus , manifesta calumnia est , &c. ‖ ibid. sec. de bonis operibus . nec existere fides potest nisi in his qui poenitentiam agunt . * confess . basil. sive mylhysiania art. . — haec [ fides ] per opera charitatum se sine intermissione exercet , exercet atque ita probatur . † art. . fides — praeclaros omnium fructus pullulat — & est operum foecundissima . ‖ confess . bohe. art. . docent ut qui in dei nomine dum in vivis est poenitentiam agere neglexerit , eum malo exitio perdendum . * confess . saxon. art. de nova obedientia . — necessaria est cura vitandi tales lapsus . haec manifesta necessitas , proposita summa poena si quos non movet ad bene operandum . † confess . wirtemb . art. de lege . agnoscimus legem dei cujus epitome est decalogus , praecipere optima justissima & perfectissima opera , & hominem obligatum esse ad obediendum moralibus praeceptis decalogi . ‖ ibid. art. de bonis operibus docemus bona opera , divinitus praecepta necessario facienda esse . * ibid. art. de jejunio . jejunium sentimus utile esse . &c. † confess . gall. art. . tantum abest igitur , ut bene sancteque vivendi studium fides extinguat ut etiam illud cieat & inflammet in nobis unde bona opera necessaria consequuntur . ‖ confess . helv. c. . eadem [ fides ] retinet nos in officio quod deo debemus & proximo , & in adversis patientiam firmat , & confessionem veram format , atque facit , & ut uno verbo omnia dicam omnis generis bonos fructus & bona opera progignit . docemus enim vere bona opera enasci ex viva fide . — quamvis ergo d●ceamus cum apostolo , hominem gratis justificari per fidem in christum & non per ulia bona opera , non ideo tamen vili pendimus , aut condemnamus opera bona . — damnamus itaque omnes , qui bona opera contemnunt , non curanda & inutilia esse blaterant . * confess . scot. art. . causa bonorum operum , & art. . † confess . eccles. belgicar . in synodo dordr . art. . fieri non potest ut sancta haec fides in homine otiosa sit : siquidem non loquimur de fide vana , sed de eâ quae in scriptura dicitur , fides per charitatem efficax ; quae inducit hominem ut illis operibus quae deus verbo suo praecepit , sese execeat ▪ * a supplication to the k. most excellent majest . lond. . to . † reasons of fat. neville's conversion , chap. ● . ‖ verit. evang. p . lond. . to . * touchst. of the refor . gos. p. . lond. s. † manual of controv. p. . doway , . vo . ‖ use of the notes of the church , p. . * secur. evang. introd . sect. . ra. dices ex quibus horror catholitorum pullulat , sunt — horror jejuniorum & operum poenitentiae , pigritia & tedium frequentandi cultum laudesque divinas . † idd. p. . i●dulget praetensa reformatio , credere quod bona opera non sint necessaria ad saultem . ‖ id. p. . coelum religionis reformatae admittit , homicidas , adulteros , blasphemos , &c. qua tales , esto nunquam sua peccata detestati fuerint modo crediderint . and in another place , p. . ex principiis ejusdem religionis , sequitur adulteros , homicidas , idololatras , qua tales tam esse filios dei , quam fuere apostoli , &c. * mat. . . † catholick scriptur . p. . ‖ primit . rule bef . the refor . par . . p. . * secur. evangel . p. quintum principium ▪ omnes omnino traditiones sunt inventiones humanae . † secur. evang. introd . sec. sec. . sec. . & p. . where under this head , recensentur praecipuae heterodoxae religionis principia . he reckons that for one . † art. . ‖ secur. evang. p. . omnes pastores ecclesiae aequalem habent authoritatem & potestatem , &c. — haec sunt dogmata fidei reformatae , hae bases & fundamenta pretensae reformationis . * transub . defend ▪ in the introduction . † answ. to a dis. against trans . p. . touchstone of the reform . gosp. p. . . ‖ monomachia . p. . * st. peter's supremacy discuss'd , p. . man of cont● . p. . nubes testium , p. . * in his answer to the span. ambass . inform . see the connexion , p. . concil . nicaen . 〈◊〉 . act. . hist. of 〈…〉 p. . cont. pol. p. . traver's answer to a supplicatory epistle p. , ▪ se● the picture of a papist , p. . a defence of the missionaries arts wherein the charge of disloyalty, rebellions, plots, and treasons, asserted page of that book, are fully proved against the members of the church of rome, in a brief account of the several plots contrived, and rebellions raised by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes since the reformation / by the authour of the missionaries arts. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a defence of the missionaries arts wherein the charge of disloyalty, rebellions, plots, and treasons, asserted page of that book, are fully proved against the members of the church of rome, in a brief account of the several plots contrived, and rebellions raised by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes since the reformation / by the authour of the missionaries arts. wake, william, - . hickes, george, - . [ ], p. printed for richard wilde ..., london : . attributed to wake. cf. halkett & laing ( nd ed.). has been erroneously attributed to george hickes. cf. bm. advertisements: p. 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(qc) and xml conversion a defence of the missionaries arts : wherein the charge of disloyalty , rebellions , plots , and treasons , asserted page of that book , are fully proved against the members of the church of rome , in a brief account of the several plots contrived , and rebellions raised by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes since the reformation . by the authour of the missionaries arts. london , printed for richard wilde , at the map of the world in st. paul's church-yard . . to the reader . it is strange , that of all men papists should calumniate protestants with treason and rebellions ; were modesty an essential in the complexion of a jesuite , surely they would forbear , or charity they so much talk of , and so little practise , to be found among them . are horrid massacres , villanous assassinations , or poisonings , the effect of charity ? or , is malice inveterate , traducing or lying the fruit thereof ? yet nothing is more obvious in the whole course of history than those diabolical machinations and hellish conspiracies of priests and jesuites , especially within this last hundred and fifty years ; and , generally speaking , princes , and crowned heads , have been most the objects of their fury ; and lest the palliation of villany should pass on the weaker sort , and this objection any way obtain , that forsooth most of these contrivances were against heretical princes , excommunicated by the pope and church , and by consequence delivered over to satan , and that the killing of them really was no murther , no more than of wolves or bears . to this i answer , that princes of the same communion , as henry the third of france , could not escape their fatal stab , who never made profession of any other ; and though henry the fourth was first a protestant , and by them constrained to change , nay , and highly indulging them in his latter years , and as mathieus says in his life , to all appearance was devout , i mean in their way ; yet from ravilliac's hand all this could not defend him . we need not long here fix , but look on former times , where for five or six hundred years nothing hath been more common , or more lamentable , than the story of several princes , struck with the lightening of the court of rome , and others wholly ruined by the vatican thunder , the consequences being either their own tragical ends , or , at the most favourable , strong and lasting rebellions , which all conversant in history may plainly see ; and so dextrous were they in translating to the other world , that in the very host it self was poison given to one of the ●erman emperours , so that silence to none is a more necessary virtue , especially in this case , than to regular monks and friars , who for several ages have been the very pest and bane of secular princes , acting not only their villanies in the time of the holy war , but in the time of their antipopes also . but to return to our own nation : what barbarities have they not committed ? what impieties have they not been guilty of ? what cruelties have they left unattempted ? and yet with a brazen front daily bespatter protestants , accusing them of what themselves were authours of ; imitating herein the very skum of mankind ; for none shall sooner call another rogue than he that really is one ; in whose mouth is whore and bitch more frequent , than hers that is a common prostitute ? and to proceed : what disorder did they not cause , to plague and pester harry the eighth ? what commotions did they not raise all the reign of queen elizabeth , besides the attempts upon her person ? what divisions did they not nourish all the time of edward the sixth , and in his death had no small share ? how horridly desperate they were in king james's time , appears by their inhumane powder-treason ; how intriguing they were in his cabinet councils is but too sad a truth to relate ; fomenting his humour in the spanish match , a blemish inglorious to his memory , leaving the pallsgrave ( though his son in law ) a victim to the house of austria ; and after by the match with france , how did he embroil his son ! they managing underhand the queen , and she by her powerfull influence did the king ; so that all the mischievous evils of charles the first they , like a mole , wrought under ground , spotting his life with that business of rochell , and the attempt of the isle of rhee , from whence the protestants generally date the ruine of their church in france , and by the rising of the french monarchs since that time has endangered the ruine of the whole protestant interest all over europe , as of late years has been manifestly evident ; and lastly they drew a civil war upon him , though the effects proved fatal , as well to themselves as others , ( priests generally being no reaching politicians ; ) the consequence of which all men here do know : but that which most surprizes is their villany in conclusion ; for when his farther life could yield them no advantage , they then conspired his death ; and to that end was a correspondence kept with ireton and some others , not doubting , he being gone , to have the bringing up of the children , the queen being wholly theirs , and managed to their devotion ; and how fatal this has been i need not farther speak ; and if any are desirous of farther satisfaction , let them read dr. moulin's answer to phila●a● anglicus , written by an apostate protestant , who found not his account by turning papist , as indeed few of them have done ; a man i must needs say of very good natural parts , though in several things but ill applied them ; and his conversation spoke him a gentleman , but withall of a violent and impetuous temper to whatever he took , and unfortunate in most things he projected . i am the longer on this character , because most of our whiffling priests and noisie jesuites have raked for their clamours against protestants about the business of rebellion , for many years last past , out of the dunghill of that book , written not long after the king 's coming in ; so that 't is plain , that by their legerdemain tricks in the parliament army they made them mutinous against their lords and masters ; and in the time of the agitatour's being rampant , meeting , as they say , in putney church , they were very brisk in masquerade among them , several priests , some as troupers , others private soldiers then listed , and though these agitatours were first set up by ireton , yet in process of time they became so unruly , and so beyond measure insolent , that they were by force necessitated to suppress them , and they were the occasion of breaking up that separate party of cromwell and ireton in the name of the army which they had entred into with the king , and by reason of them the king was frighted from hampton-court , making his escape to the isle of wight , which did not long precede his death . now after a lapse of some years his son charles the second , with the rest of the royal family , were restored , and let us take a short view of their transactions under him , where no sooner he was settled , but there came in whole shoals of priests from several parts beyond seas , and ireland , who for several years before had scarce any , and those that were skulking and lying close , was in a little time almost over-stocked ; and father walsh , who was a kind of a trimmer among them , and , to speak truth , an honester sort of a man than most of them were , and willing to introduce the king's authority as well as that of the popes , to that end went over with the duke of ormond ; and being countenanced by him , summoned an assembly in dublin to be held , of the most principal of them , where what a stir he had , and how strangely bigotted those irish understandings were to the see of rome , is by himself at large set forth in his loyal formulary : but one thing which himself notes is not unworthy the recital , the general among them were so strongly possest with some strange catastrophe that was to arrive ( eminently no doubt ) to their advantage , in the year approaching of sixty six , that they generally expressed themselves so averse from complying with the king in those matters , a violent presumption that the firing of london had been for some years in contriving ; and the mention that is made of a plot in the april gazette , — . was put into the heads ( by some rascally priests ) of those poor little rogues that were hangued , one of the main things charged upon them being the firing of the city of london , and what influence their councils had in that prince's reign , is obnoxious to all considering men , by the breaking the triple league by that close alliance between france and england for the extirpation of protestancy out of heretical holland , and no doubt , had it succeeded , out of england also , and the reason why it was not effected , was the parliament's and people's aukwardness to the war ; but notwithstanding they were so not discouraged , but they resolved to go on with their designs still in england , keeping , by the means of coleman and father le chaise , a constant correspondence with the court of france , and so strong was their ascendent with charles the second , that he publishes a declaration for liberty of conscience , by which , as coleman in his letters says , he doubted not the bringing in of their religion ; but this so allarmed the parliament , that they were strangely uneasie and restless with him , resolving to give him no more money untill he had recalled it , which at last with regret he did . this strangely nettled our roguish catholicks , who by this thought their game cock sure ; but being frustrated , used him in their discourses as if he had been a cobler , as pitifull , irresolute , nothing of honour , his word no ways to be relied on , and not worthy of a crown ; and from that day forward plotted his removal , to make way , as they supposed , for a man of honour and resolution , and who would not be balked with any thing of a parliament ; which at the last , as a great many suppose , they effectually did . and now james the second ascended the throne , and how the sceptre by him was swayed , needs no long characterising ; for father petre , with his ghostly associates , managed most things under him , who with that priestly violence so hurried on things , that on him at last the tower of siloam fell , and so weak and ridiculous were their politicks , that they are not worth blurring paper . now to sum up all , it is plain by what precedes , that she several popes and court of rome , in places where they power had , have been most imperious and domineering , and nothing so bloudy , base , or cruel , but by their priests has acted been , not in other countries only , but in this our nation too , for since the twelfth year , or thereabouts , queen elizabeth's reign , popery we may compare to an imposthume breeding in the very trunk of this political body , and broke in the year forty two into a civil war , discharging only part , not all the corrupt matter ; and since regathering head , and filling up , about four years ago broke the second time , casting forth filth and corruption in quantity abounding , the stench thereof offending almost all men in the nation , but i do not doubt but our state physicians will use such detersive or cleansing medicines , as well as sanative , as shall not effect a palliative but a real and thorough cure , and that the countrey may be restored to its sound habit of body . now therefore as to the ensuing treatise , it was occasioned by that hero of english jesuitism , mr. pulton , who being strangely nettled at those stinging truths contained in the missionaries arts , challenges the authour to make good his assertion in page . viz. that the romanists treasons owned by their popes , and by their great men approved of since the reformation , do far outnumber all the plots and insurrections that the papists , or malice itself can lay to the charge of protestants ; all which notwithstanding have been wholly condemned by the body of our famous divines : to satisfie therefore this savoy champion , and vindicate the assertion aforesaid , the authour of this account with no little pains has endeavoured to give entire satisfaction : but such has the misfortune been of writers protestant , that in dealing in controversies they have to doe with a sort of men , that when they have , yet will seemiugly take no answer ; and their last refuge is generally banter and whiffle , if downright railing will not doe the feat . the subject of this treatise is most matter of fact , and the citations , though from their own selves no way unfairly used ; for if otherwise they appear , let them openly be exposed , that all that are impartial may see and judge , whether any thing of passion , envy , or malice , has prepossed the authour , i know 't is natural for men , when they have a bad cause to manage , to be froward and testy , and where they are galled to kick and wince , and instead of arguing closely to the purpose , to seek evasions that may seem plausible , at least to the less refined understanding , which has been the great masterpiece of romish priests and jesuites for many years together ; for by their little witticisms and jokes upon names , they keep up among their party a kind of reputation , not unlike jack pudding's on a stage , they please ( though at the same time delude ) the foolish and gazing people ; and if it happens that one slip falls from a protestant pen , or a citation carelesly passed , that has not proved true , what a clutter have they not made about it , though the main of the subject still remains good . this , as a demonstration , plainly proves the weakness of their cause ; and had mr. pulton but candidly read the history of the last hundred years , he must have acknowledged that this his great challenge was a vain and frivolous motion , and never needed to have given the authour this trouble ; which being done , it 's hoped will be to his firm conviction , and not only his , but any other who have been imposed on by false notions . the truth is , this treatise has been written above this year , but such was the iniquity of the times , that they would not bear , much less permit its then publication ; however it s hoped 't is not too late the world in this point to satisfie , the only scope , design , and end of this discourse . advertisement of books printed for and sold by richard wilde at the map of the world in st. paul's church-yard . the child's monitor against popery : written to preserve the child of a noble-man from being seduc'd by his popish parents , now made publick to prevent others being drawn aside from the protestant religion : by the author of the country parsons advice to his parishioners . price . . d. the countrey parson his admonition to his parishioners , in two parts ; persuading them to continue in the protestant religion : with directions how to behave themselves when any one comes to seduce them from the protestant religion : by the authour of the plain man's reply to catholick missionaries , in two parts : very fit to be given by ministers and others to such as shall want such helps . price . d. the plain man's devotion in two parts ; being a method of daily devotion . to . a defence of the plain man's reply to catholick missionaries . to . mr. king chancellor of st. patrick's , dublin , his full answer to peter manby , dean of london-derry , his pretended motives to embrace the romish religion ; clearly proving his considerations were frivolous and groundless , and that he had no just cause to leave the communion of the church of england . . the missionaries arts ( to gain proselytes ) discovered : worthy the perusal of all protestants . to . a defence of the missionaries arts , being a brief history of the romanists plots , insurrections , and treasons , carried on to extirpate the protestant religion , and other evil designs , for the last years ; wherein is fully proved that the papists have far exceeded any that can be laid to the protestant's charge , notwithstanding their false pretences of being free from disloyalty and rebellion : by the authour of the missionaries arts. to . . a plain defence of the protestant religion , fitted to the meanest capacity ; being an answer to ensnaring questions , often put by the papists to pervert protestants from their holy religion : by the authour of the missionaries arts , in vo . mr. shaw's new syncritical grammar , teaching english youth the latine tongue , according to the rules in the oxford grammar . . manuductio in aedem palladis : quâ utilissima methodus authores bonos legendi indigitatur , sive tractatus utilissimus de usu authoris : by thomas horne , m. a. formerly chief school master of tunbridge , afterwards of aeton school near windsor . this book is highly approved of and recommended by the learned school-masters to their scholars , for their instructions not only in reading good and usefull authours , but also for their imitation of those excellent authours , recommended by this ingenious authour , who may well be esteemed a competent judge of good latine ; having by the consent of all composed this book so elegantly that it 's admired by most . price s . d . . all the works of that famous historian salust , containing the history of the conspiracy and war of catiline , undertaken against the government of the senate of rome . dly , the war which jugurth many years maintained against that state , with all his historical fragments : two epistles to caesar , concerning the institution of a common-wealth ; and one against cicero with annotations ; with the life of salust . this excellent book , written by so faithfull an historian , will certainly gratifie the curious , being written with greater fidelity than others ; and the style of it being adapted to the present idiom of speech , and the orations worded in a style not much inferiour to the sublime originals . . the academy of sciences ; being a short and easie introduction to the knowledge of the liberal arts and sciences , with the names of those famous authours that have written on every particular science ; a book highly usefull for the end it proposes : by d. a. doctor of physick . . observations in chirurgery & anatomy ; with a refutation of mistakes and errours in anatomy and chirurgery . written chiefly for the benefit of tyroes & students in chirurgery . by james young , chirurgion . . plutarch's morals , d. vol. translated from the greek by sev . hands . wit revived ; or , a new way of divertisement , in questions and answers : by asdryasdust tossoffacan . the vanity of the creature : by an eminent hand . octavo . guy miege's english grammar . vo . sir john tl●yer's touchstone of medicines . vo . . the complete planter and siderist ; or , choice collections for propagating all manner of fruit trees , and making sider . the art of pruning fruit trees . vo . . guy miege's present state of denmark . vo . a new three-fold grammar , for the english-man to learn french and italian . for the french-man to learn english and italian . for the italian to learn french and english. vo . . montaign's essays the third and last volume . vo . the gentlewoman's companion for cookery and behaviour . ovid's epistles , englished by the wits of the age , with the addititions of three new epistles , and seven cuts . vo . dyer's works . mo . dr. burnet against varillas . mo . cornelius tacitus in to . juvenal & pertius . to . mr. petit of the rights of parliament . vo . sir john pettus of the constitution . a brief account of the several plots contriv'd , and rebellions rais'd by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes , since the reformation . in the year a . about three years after luther began to preach , was that almost universal rebellion in spain , against the emperour charles the fifth , which lasted four years . three years after , the earl of desmond entred into a b conspiracy against our king henry the eighth , and had procur'd a promise of assistance from king francis the first of france ; the articles of which agreement are yet extant ; whereby it appears that the design was , to make the duke of suffolk ( then in france ) king ; but king francis being taken prisoner at the battel of pavia the year following , and the duke of suffolk slain , the design fell . the next year the irish rebell'd , and murther'd many of the english inhabitants . but c ten years after , the pope drew up his bull against k. henry , though he did not publish it till . wherein he asserts his authority over kings , to plant and destroy as he sees good ; and then proceeds with the advice of his cardinals to summon the king and all his adherents , to appear before him at rome on a day appointed ; threatening them with the greater excommunication , in case of non-appearance ; and declaring him and his posterity incapable of any honours , possessions , or even of being witnesses ; absolves all his subjects from their oaths of fidelity , and commands them upon pain of excommunication , not to obey him or his officers ; enjoyning all christians to have no commerce with him , all ecclesiasticks to leave the land , and all dukes , marquesses , &c. under the same penalty , to drive him out of his kingdom ; declares all leagues made with him by any princes void , exhorting them to endeavour his ruine with their whole power ; bestowing all the goods of his adherents upon such as would seize them ; commanding all bishops to declare the king and his followers excommunicate , and denouncing the same censures against whosoever should hinder the publication of this bull. this piece of prodigious impudence and vanity would not satisfie the pope , but he immediately set his instruments to work to prosecute the design of his thundering bull ; so that the beginning of the next year this letter was written from paris to one fryar forrest . * brother , we behold how the king is changed from a christian to an heretick ; and how he hath robb'd christ's vicar of his rights and privileges , by placing himself in his holiness's seat there , as supreme over the catholick church within the realm . it was the late damn'd assembly of lords and commons furthered his pride , otherwise he could not nor durst not assume it to himself : we have thought of these passages , and do agree , that there is no way to break this tyrant's neck but one ; puff him up in his pride , and let our friends say unto him , that it is beneath so mighty a monarch as he , to advise with parliaments , but to act all in person ; and that it behooveth his majesty to be chief actor himself . if he assumes this , it will take off great blemishes from the nation , which the church holds them guilty of , and doe our business : for then the people ( it being contrary to their laws ) will fall from him ; also the catholick party of his council will be too strong for the hereticks , and then the common sort will be the abler to declare his tyranny . this is to be contriv'd with the church's members , and cautiously , because it is observed that the parliaments of england have hindred the church in most of the kings reigns , otherwise she had held her party better than she does now . you have our convent's hearty prayers for your guide . from st. francis at paris primo . id. jan. . thomas powell . this letter was found two years after among father forrest's papers , together with an account of vast summes which he had expended for the church of rome and her designs . * but this design not being sufficient , the pope offered england to james the fifth , king of scots , and presented him with a cap and consecrated sword. when that offer of what was none of his succeeded not according to his desires , the same pope paul the d. by his bull of the † year following , absolv'd in general , all subjects from their oaths of allegiance , unto heretical kings , princes and states , as they be enemies unto the holy see of st. peter ; all men from the tye of their heretical wives ; wives from their heretical husbands , &c. which was accompanied with a ‖ rebellion in lincolnshire , under the conduct of one mackarel , a monk , to the number of twenty thousand ; against whom the king prepar'd to march in person : but their first fury being over , they embraced the king's pardon , and returned home . but this commotion was succeeded by * another more dangerous , led by the lord lumley , several knights and gentlemen , with most of the clergy : this army in the north consisted of men , well armed , who call'd themselves the holy pilgrimage , and the pilgrimage of grace ; they had the five wounds of our lord , the chalice , and the host , painted in their standard , and the name of jesus upon their sleeves ; their whole pretence was for religion : in their march they took pontefract castle , but were at length appeas'd . but † soon after the same persons raised another insurrection , in which several monks came armed into the field as souldiers , who were taken , and with the ring-leaders of the rebellion executed . ‖ two years after ( if not the next year to the last rebellion , for some place it in the year . ) the marquess of exceter , the lord montacute , and his brother , sir edward nevill , and others , enter'd into a conspiracy to depose the king , and advance reynold pool , then dean of exceter , and afterwards cardinal to the throne ; for which , the marquess , lord montacute , and sir edward nevill , were beheaded upon tower-hill . in the year . * pope paul the third , not content with his shewing his pretended authority over kings in the two bulls mention'd before , published another in favour of the jesuits , whereby he exempts them and their goods from the power of any but himself ; and commands all princes to swear not to molest the society , or invade their privileges ; and pronounces an anathema against all who will not obey the bull. * two years after this , king edward the sixth being settled in the throne , one body , a commissioner , pulling down images by the king's order , was stabbed by a priest , and a rebellion was rais'd in cornwall , humphrey arundell , governour of the mount , with other gentlemen , gathering together ten thousand men , besieged exceter , and reduc'd it to very great extremity ; declaring they would have popery and the six articles restor'd : they fought four several battels with the king's forces , but at last were entirely routed , and their leaders executed yet the next year in † norfolk they rebell'd again , and when the king sent them his pardon they refus'd it : after which , they took the city of norwich , and fir'd it , beat the marquess of northampton , and were very near defeating the earl of warwick , whose cannon they took , and refus'd the king's pardon a second time , but were at length defeated ; and so were a another party , who took arms upon the same account , that year in yorkshire . there were other insurrections in this king's time , which i will not at present mention , only observe what is confess'd by a late noted authour of the romish church , ‖ that these risings of the laity in such numbers , for their former way of religion , would not have been , had not their clergy justified it unto them . b after this , we find that pope paul the fourth ; following the steps of his thundering name-sake , when the dyet of the germans at ausburgh made an edict for full liberty of conscience , whereby the protestants were maintain'd in the possession of their church revenues , fell into a furious rage ; publickly threatening the emperour and king of the romans , that he would make them repent it ; protesting , that if he did not recall the edict , he would proceed against them with as severe censures as he intended to use against the protestants ; telling all the ambassadors in his court , that he was above all princes , that he expected not that they should treat with him as with their equal , that he could alter and take away kingdoms as he thought good : and one day at dinner , in the presence of many persons of the highest quality , he affirmed , that he would subject all princes under his foot. no wonder then that the same spirit of opposition to princes actuate the members of the church , which possess'd their head in such a degree , that upon the resignation of the emperour c charles the fifth , ferdinand his brother was rejected by the pope ; who affirmed , that none had power to resign but into his hands ; and so it belong'd to him to nominate a successor , not to the electors : but he kept the imperial crown , though the pope would never acknowledge him for emperour . with the same haughtiness did he demean himself towards d sir edward karn , the english agent at rome ; who acquainting him , by order from her majesty , of queen elizabeth's accession to the crown , the pope answer'd , that the kingdom of england was held in fee of the apostolick see , that she being illegitimate could not succeed , and therefore it was great boldness in her to assume the government without his leave ; yet if she would renounce her title , and refer all to him , he would act as became his honour . but the queen took no care to satisfie this blustering gentleman , who soon after dyed . * but the pope who succeeded him , pius the fourth , issued out a strict bull , commanding all the learned of that church to find out arguments to persuade subjects to break their oaths of allegiance , in favour of the apostolick see ; in order to which , he granted several dispensations to preach among the protestants of england , and to marry , if need were . and the same year his good sons in ireland , by their example , shewed their obedience to it ; * for shan o neale , earl of tyrone , rebelled , but finding himself too weak , submitted and had his pardon , though not till two years after . in the mean while , viz. † the next year , the pope's nuncio in ireland joyn'd himself to the rebels , publickly assisting them ; and by his authority pronounced the queen deprived of that kingdom . but the year following , though the irish submitted , yet ‖ arthur pool and others , contriv'd to joyn themselves with the duke of guise , land an army in wales , and proclaim the queen of scots : to which , the * following pope afterwards added his endeavours to get our queen murthered , as the writer of his life informs us . but in the mean time , that it might not be said of this , that he neglected any thing for the advantage of his supreme power , to keep his hand in ure , † he published a monitory against the queen of navarre , declaring , that if she did not turn romanist within six months , he would deprive her of her dominions , and give them to any that would conquer them ; but the king of france promising to stand by her , his terrible threat serv'd only to shew how ready he was to depose all princes that offended him , if his power had been equal to his will. ‖ and in this year it was that the council of trent made that excellent decree , whereby they confirmed all the canons of popes and councils ; which set the pope above princes , gave him power over them , and exempted the clergy from being subject to them ; thereby endeavouring to depose all princes , who knew themselves and their rights too well to truckle under the usurped power of their supreme head. * but though the pope could not send any sovereign prince of his errand to destroy the house of navarre , yet such obedient sons were the cardinal of lorrain , and the rest of the house of guise , that they resolv'd its ruine . to which end they sent captain dimanche into spain , to get assistance , there , designing to fall upon bearn , seize the queen of navarre , the young king , and his sister , and send them to the inquisition in spain , to be proceeded against as hereticks : but this design was discovered , and so came to nothing . but in the same year we are informed by one of the english spies at rome , that the pope granted indulgences and pardons to any person that should assault queen elizabeth , either in private or publick ; or to any cook , baker , vintner , physician , brewer , grocer , chirurgion , or any other calling , that should make her away ; together with an absolute remission of sins to such person 's heirs , and an annuity for ever , and to be one of the privy council , successively , whosoever reigned . † to the endeavours of the pope , o neale likewise added his , by rebelling again , and murthering the english ; committing the most barbarous cruelties imaginable ; but his power was broken in a pitcht battel the year following ; notwithstanding which , he continued his rebellion till two years after , when he was stabb'd by alexander oge , whose brother he had slain before . but though the rebels had such ill success , yet the pope will not be disheartened , but the next year sends one ‖ rodolpho , a rich florentine gentleman , into england , to stir up the people against the queen : to him the king of spain joins the marquess of cetona , who , under the pretence of an embassy , was sent over to countenance the rebellion , and command the forces which the duke of alva should send from the low countries ; in order to which la motte , governour of dankirk , had come privately , iu the habit of a sailer , to sound the ports . rodolph● was furnished with plenty of money from the pope , which he distributed to make a party ; into which they drew the earls of northumberland and westmorland , with others , who , perceiving their plot discovered , submitted , and begged pardon . this design the pope was so zealous for , that he assured the spaniards he would go along with them himself , if need were , and engage all his goods and treasure in the service . nor was this the only design of the pope * at this time ; for in pursuit of his predecessour's bull against her , he advised the queen-mother of france to seize on the dominions of the queen of navarre , because she was an heretick ; offering ( if she approved of it ) by his papal authority to appoint one of the house of valois to be king of those territories ; which if she did not like , he was resolved to give them to the king of spain ; but that prince , knowing they must be won by the sword , declined accepting the pope's bounty . † hitherto the members of the church of rome made no scruple to resort to the protestant churches , both for prayer and preaching ; but this year pope pius quintus published his bull against the queen , upon which they all withdrew from any such communion with us . ‖ in this bull the pope calls the queen the pretended queen of england , a servant of wickedness ; affirms that her council consisted of obscure , heretical fellows , declares her an heretick , and cut off from the unity of christ's body ; that she is deprived of her title to her kingdoms , and of all dominion , dignity , and privilege whatsoever , and her subjects absolved from all manner of duty and obedience to her ; and that by the authority of this bull he doth absolve them , and depose her ; and forbidding all her subjects , under pain of anathema , to obey her : with this bull he sends * morton , a priest , into england , to spread this censure , and persuade the people to back it with an insurrection ; upon which , as ‖ surius tells us out of sanders , many persons of quality resolved to execute it : accordingly the * earls of northumberland and westmorland , who were pardoned but the year before , took arms in the north , trampled under feet the english bible and service-book , bearing in their standard the cross and five wounds of our saviour , and being betwixt five and six thousand men , they grew so insolent , that they would give the queen no better title , than the pretended queen ; but the pope being too slow in sending the hundred thousand crowns he promised them , and they at length finding their numbers too small to cope with the queens army , dispersed , and every one shifted for himself . † the earl of westmorland escaped into flanders , where he dyed miserably ; but northumberland being taken , was beheaded at york ; who was nevertheless looked upon by the romanists as a glorious martyr , and the drops of his bloud kept by them as holy relicks . that this rebellion had no better success , sanders , and from him ‖ surius , give this reason , because the catholicks had not timely notice of the pope's bull : and the same * person informs us , that those that were executed for this treason , refused to the very last to acknowledge the queens authority . among which sanders mentions plumtree , and others , as well as the two earls , who are termed glorious martyrs of the catholicks by bristow in his motives , and several others . to correspond with the pope's intentions in his bull , † ireland puts in for a share this year , where jame fitz-morice , of the house of desmond , and two of the botelers , raised a rebellion ; but the latter being drawn to a submission by the loyal earl of ormond , fitz-morice , after many shifts , followed their example , and was pardoned . but though the two earls and their accomplices had sped so ill , yet * leonard dacres renew'd the rebellion in the north , and fought a bloudy battel against the queens forces with great obstinacy , though in the end he was forced to fly into scotland . and now , that the catholicks might no longer remain in ignorance of the queens being deprived of the kingdoms by the pope , one felton this year had the hardiness to fix the bull at the bishop of london's gates ; for which being apprehended , he confessed the fact , and gloried in it , at his death affirming the queen had no right to the throne , being deposed by the sentence of the pope : yet doth † surius affirm , that he dyed a martyr for the catholick faith , justifying the action as done out of zeal for the church , and in obedience to the lawfull commands of the pope : the same is affirmed by * parsons , † spondanus , and ‖ hilarion de coste , who styles him the valiant soldier of jesus christ , commends his invincible courage and zeal for the faith ; and affirms , that his martyrdom is one of england's most glorious trophies ; though the same person can afford the queen no better a title than the impious and wicked queen ▪ the true iezebel of our days : and that all the world may see what they thought of him at rome , no sooner could thuanus affirm that it was a very rash action , but the index expurgatorius commands that passage to be blotted out ; so jealous are they of the honour of this grand traitor . with as great encomiums do we find the memory of dr. story celebrated by the writers of that church : this man was one of the most violent persecutours in queen mary's days , for which cruelties being questioned in parliament in the beginning of queen elizabeth's reign , he answered , that he knew no fault he was guilty of , but only that he busied himself in cutting off the branches , while he neglected to pull up the root it self ; which if he had done , heresie had not got up again : for this being imprisoned , he found means to escape into flanders ; but being apprehended and brought into england this year , he rejoiced that he should suffer martyrdom : upon his tryall he declined the jurisdiction of the court , affirming that he was a subject to the king of spain , and acknowledged no lawfull judge in england ; for which he gave this reason , that seeing the pope had declared the queen deprived of her right , he durst not acknowledge her authority , lest he should fall under the censures of that bull : and at the moment of his execution , being asked by an earl whether the queen was his sovereign , he replied , she was not ; yet is he reckoned among the martyrs for the romish faith. the next year was that bloudy massacre of paris , though contrived two years before , wherein ( it being carried over all france ) above protestants were butchered in cold bloud ; the duke of guise and his party did all they could to have the king of navarre , and prince of conde , slaughtered with the rest ; but they being preserved by the king , the chief design of the papalins in that bloudy action was prevented . but four years after was that desperate confederacy entred into by that duke and his adherents in france , which they and the pope afterwards termed the holy league , which had all the parts of a most desperate rebellion ; and continued for so many years , to the destruction of one prince , and infinite vexation of another : it was first begun at * peronne , and afterwards formed into a more † strict union , by which , under a shew of maintaining the king , they took from him all his authority , to confer it upon the head of their conspiracy : nay , the zeal for this rebellious association was so great , that they subscribed it with their bloud ; and in order to the prosecution of what they had there promised , they sent nicolas david , an advocate of the parliament of paris , to rome ; but he being slain by the way on his return , cardinal de pellive afterwards managed their business with the pope . but among the memoirs of that advocate there was found an account of the transaction between the pope and the duke of guise , wherein the design laid down is to pull down the house of valois , then reigning , from the throne , and set up the duke of guise : in this transaction the liberties of the gallican church are called a damnable errour , nothing else but the shift of the waldenses , lutheranes , and calvinists ; and it is affirmed that france shall never prosper as long as the crown continues in that line . the whole platform of the design is there laid down , and the pope is to advance that duke to the crown of france , as the successour of charlemagne ; in consideration whereof the duke is bound to cause the see of rome to be plainly acknowledged by the states of the kingdom , without restriction , or modification , abolishing the privileges and liberties of the gallican church . thus do we find the pope promoting the most rebellious designs , to advance his own usurped greatness . and his missionaries not desiring a better example than that of their holy father , in prosecution of his designs cuthbert mayne came into england , dispersing libells to maintain the pope's authority over the queen ; and he confessed under his own hand , that he brought with him several holy grains to distribute among the catholicks , which they should keep as so many preservatives , by the producing of which they should be safe , when the protestants were to be destroyed . in the same business several * others were employed , and one hemford sent over with a dispensation of the pope's bull , whereby the romanists had liberty to yield outward obedience till an opportunity offered itself for the execution of that deposing sentence . and one haydock was employed to prepare things against such a time , and to note the fittest places for landing an army , as himself wrote to allen the jesuite . besides these one paine , a priest , and fifty others , were furnished at the pope's charge , who undertook to kill the queen as she went to take the air. and yet these are the men whom † sanders , in his letter to the aforenamed jesuite , terms chosen vessels . but our countrey was not the onely nation afflicted with these plots and traiterous contrivances ; for about the same time was ‖ sebastian , king of portugal , betrayed by the jesuits to the loss both of his life and kingdom , which they had before engaged to transfer to the spanish king , in which they were as good as their word ; ( though near fifty years since it is returned to the obedience of its lawfull heir ; ) during which war , attempting to deliver one of the isles of the azores to the spaniards , they were discoved , and treated as their wickedness deserved ; but of this more hereafter . the pope's designs upon the queen's life being by the good providence of god frustrated , the holy father , gregory the th . carried on the projects of his predecessour , ( who had willingly lent an ear to the advice of thomas stukely , an english fugitive , ) and in hopes of getting the kingdom of ireland for his own son , the marquess of vineola , ( where we find , though popes do not marry , yet they can get children , ) created stukely marquess of leinster , adding several other titles , and assisting him with forces and a plenary indulgence , dispatcht him away for ireland ; but by the way being persuaded by the king of portugal to join with him against the moors , he was slain in the battel together with that king. but though ireland was delivered from this danger , yet soon after † james fitz-morice , who was pardoned in the year . went over into france , where he desired assistance to beat the english out of ireland , and reduce that nation to the french obedience , but king henry the third then reigning , having sufficient employment for his forces at home ; fitz-morice addressed himself to the pope and the king of spain ; the former embraced this opportunity , and sent sanders with him as his nuncio , with a consecrated banner ; and the latter assisted them with men and money ; the pope in the mean while raising souldiers in his countrey for their assistance and relief . fitz-morice and sanders , with the spaniards , landed in kerry in ireland , and committedall manner of outrages , in one of which fitz-morice was killed by the sons of william a burgh , soon after made baron of castleconnel ; in his place succeeded his brother john e. of desmond , to whom the pope sent an indulgence , dated may . . wherein he highly magnifies the piety of james , laments his death , and exhorts all the nobility , clergy , and people of the land , to follow this john , in fighting against the hereticks for the catholick cause ; and to encourage them in that good work , he grants a ‖ plenary indulgence and remission of all their sins , in the same extent as was granted to those who were engaged in the holy war. and when the spaniards were required by the lord gray , then deputy of ireland , to express their intention in thus invading her majesties dominions , they returned answer , that they were sent from the pope and king of spain , to whom his holiness had given ireland ; for that elizabeth had justly forfeited her title to the kingdom by heresie , that they would keep what they had got , and get more if they could : but in a small time after they were glad to surrender upon mercy , the earl of desmond having been routed before , and allen , the priest , who came with the legate sanders , slain . this ill success put a stop to the recruits the pope was preparing to send after them . sanders dyed of hunger in the woods , and the earl of desmond was slain two years after by a common soldier . and to encourage these rebels , and to excite to more such attempts , this pope gregory the thirteenth , the same year , renewed the bull of pius quintus against the queen : there were five hundred copies of it printed at rome , and the bull it self dispersed over all italy , spain , and part of germany , as is attested by one who was then in the english college at rome * ; who likewise assures us , that one of their readers in divinity , before above two hundred scholars , affirmed , that it was lawfull for any man of worship in england to give authority to the vilest wretch that is , to endeavour the queen's death ; but that this pope did excommunicate the queen we find in our excellent † annalist , and is acknowledged by the * romish priests in their ‖ important considerations , printed the last year of that queen's reign . but though he pronounced that terrible sentence against her , yet ( as is observed by * one who had been a great stickler for the romish church , ) he dealt a great deal more subtilly , and more dangerously than his predecessour ; for finding the danger the romanists were daily exposed to , by their endeavouring the destruction of the queen , whom they durst not obey , or cease to hurt , for fear of the curses denounced in the bull ; he qualified it in such a manner , that the jesuite hart ( as the lord burleigh tell us ) acknowledg'd , † the bull of pius quintus , for so much as it is against the queen , is holden by the english catholicks for a lawfull sentence , and a sufficient discharge of her subjects fidelity , and so remains in force ; but in some points touching the subject , it is altered by the present pope : for where in that bull all her subjects are commanded not to obey her , and she being excommunicated and deposed , all that do obey her are likewise accursed , which point is perilous to the catholicks ; for if they obey her , they are in the pope's curse , and if they disobey her , they are in the queen's danger : therefore the present pope , to relieve them , hath altered that part of the bull , and dispensed with them to obey and serve her , without peril of excommunication : which dispensation is to endure but till it please the pope otherwise to determine . here we have a plain confession of that learned gentleman , ( who is by them termed a * noble champion of christ , and holy priest , one that had taken deep root in the foundations of the faith , and of sound learning , ) that the loyalty of the romanists depends upon the will of man , ( except they will affirm their pope to be more than man ; ) which is a point they have been put in mind of from rome itself , since his majesties restauration , as we shall observe anon . this qualification of the bull was granted to parsons and campion , two jesuites , upon their coming into england , when among other things they desired of the pope , that the bull should always oblige elizabeth , and the hereticks , but by no means the romanists , as affairs now stand , but hereafter , when the publick execution of the bull may be had or made . furnished with this and other faculties , those two gentlemen ‖ repared into england , setting themselves to contrive a way how to set her majesties crown upon another head : * at first they came in the habits of soldiers , afterwards they went about in the garb of gentlemen , and in the north they altered their habits into the vestments of our ministers , preaching there , and being secretly entertained by the popish gentry and nobility , courageously executed their commission ; in discharge of which parsons exhorted the roman catholicks of those parts to deprive her majesty of the crown ; and the way being thus broken , many flocked after them for the same purpose . at this time † mr. sherwin being apprehended , and asked whether the queen were his lawfull sovereign , notwithstanding any sentence of the pope's , he desired no such questions might be demanded of him , and would give no other answer : but the pope well knowing that this generation of sturdy blades would in time be all gone , for the breeding up of more to succeed them , assisted allen in setting up the seminary at doway for english romanists , allowing an annual pension for their maintenance , purposely for to plot and contrive ways to expulse the queen , and demolish the church of england , in obedience to the pope's bulls , † for which end every scholar among them , at his education , took this oath : i a. b. do acknowledg the ecclesiastical and political power of his holiness , and the mother church of rome , as the chief head and matron , above all pretended churches throughout the whole earth ; and that my zeal shall be for saint peter and his successors , as the founder of the true and ancient catholick faith , against all heretical kings , princes , states , or powers , repugnant unto the same . and although i may pretend , in case of persecution or otherwise , to be heretically disposed , yet in soul and conscience i shall help , aid , and succour the mother church of rome , as the true , ancient , apostolical church . i farther do declare not to act or contrive any manner of thing prejudicial unto her or her sacred orders , doctrines , tenents , or commands , without the leave of her supreme power , or the authority under her appointed , or to be appointed ; and when so permitted , then to act or further her interest more than my own earthly gain and pleasure , as she and her head , his holiness and his successours , have , or ought to have , the supremacy over all kings , princes , estates , or powers whatsoever , either to deprive them of their crowns , sceptres , powers , privileges , realms , countreys or governments , or to set up others in lieu thereof , they dissenting from the mother church , and her commands , &c. thus by all imaginable ways did this pope provide for the death or deposition of that virgin queen ; in order to which he had so possess'd the missionaries with his power to dethrone princes , that it was offer'd to be prov'd to the world , that the priests which were apprehended and executed for treason , * always restrained their confession of allegiance only to the permissive form of the pope's toleration ; as for example : if they were asked whether they did acknowledge themselves to be the queen's subjects , and would obey her , they would say yes , for so they had leave for a time to doe ; but being asked if they would so acknowledg and obey her any longer than the pope would so permit them , or notwithstanding such commandment as the pope would or might give to the contrary , then they either refused to obey , or denied to answer , or said they could not answer to those questions without danger : and at their very arraignment , when they laboured to leave in the minds of the people and standers by , an opinion that they were to dye , not for treason , but for matter of faith and doctrine , they cried out that they were true subjects , and did and would obey her majesty . immediately to prove whether that speech extended to a perpetuity of their obedience , or so long time as the pope so permitted , they were openly in the place of judgment asked by the q's learned counsel , whether they would so obey , and be true subjects , if the pope commanded the contrary ; they plainly disclosed themselves in answer , saying by the mouth of campion , this place ( meaning the court of her majesties bench ) hath no power to enquire or judge of the holy fathers authority ; and other answer they would not make . the very same account , with some other particulars , is given us by the † secular priests themselves , of the behaviour of mr. campion , and the rest ; some of whom being asked which part they would take , if the pope , or any other by his appointment , should invade the realm , or which part ought a good subject to take , answered , when that case happened , they would then consider what they had best doe ; others , that they were not yet resolved what to doe ; and others positively , that if such a deprivation , or invasion should be made for any matter of faith , they were then bound to take part with the pope . nay , so zealous was mr. campion in defence of that rebellious doctrine , that being visited in prison by some gentlemen of * oxford , one of them asked him whether he thought the queen lawfull heir or no ; to this he made no answer ; but when the question was put , whether if the pope invaded the land , he would take part with him or the queen , he openly replied , he would join with the pope , and very earnestly demanded pen , ink , and paper , with which he signed his resolution ; which principle he was so rooted in , that he affirmed in the tower to several * persons of quality , who demanded whether he did acknowledge the queen to be a lawfull queen , or did believe her deprived of her right , that this question depends much on the fact of pope pius the fifth , whereof he is no judge , and therefore refused to answer farther . the same loyal doctrines were vented by several other priests the ensuing year , who affirmed under their hands to the commissioners who examined them , that the pope had power to depose princes , and that her majesty was not be obeyed against his holiness's bull , who hath authority to discharge subjects of their allegiance ; which all of them , viz. kerby , cottom , richardson , ford , shert , johnson , hart , and filbee , agreed in , two of them only sheltring themselves with this general assertion , that they held as the catholick church held . johnson particulary affirming , that if the pope invaded her majesty upon a civil account , he would take part with her , but if upon a matter of faith , it was his duty to assist the pope . in which diligence to poison the members of their church , these zealous priests did but follow the example of their holy father , who this very year , ( as mr gage , agent for the spanish match at rome , informs us , out of the records of the dominican convent there , ) laid out one hundred fifty two thousand pounds , and some odd money , for maintaining his designs here ; of which sixty thousand was allotted to foment disturbances in scotland and ireland ; so very desirous was the pope to regain his usurped power over these nations . and it was not long before the end of all that labour and charge was found to be the murther of that excellent princess , which one † sommerville of e●slow in warwickshire undertook to effect , at the instigation of hall , a priest , who finding this desperate young man to waver , and that his resolution was much shaken with the horridness and danger of the attempt , advised him to proceed , promising his prayers for good success ; but the design being discovered , sommerville strangled himself , after condemnation . but this was not the only plot which the enemies of england had laid for its destruction ; for throgmorton , * one of sommerville's accomplices , was the same year discovered , having been employed to sound the havens , and procure a list of such gentlemen in the several counties as were disposed to joyn the spanish forces , who were to land under the conduct of the duke of guise ; all which was confessed by throgmorton , before his death . thus we find how vast summs were expended by the pope ; which had the same influence in ireland , where desmond continued so desperately in rebellion , that he swore he would rather forsake god than forsake his men ; but neither the pope's blessing nor purse could protect him from that deserved death which after long wandring in a miserable condition he suffered the latter end of this year . but though the pope could not preserve his rebellious instruments from the just punishment of their treasons , yet he would ( for the encouragement of others ) doe honour to their memories : thus the rector of the english college of jesuits at rome , in presence of all the students , sung a collect of martyrs in honour of campion , of whose treasons we gave an account before ; and his relicks , with sherwin's and others executed for treason , were kept and worshipped by our english papists . and because those positions which were found so usefull for the propagating sedition , might ( if trusted only to the missionaries to instill them into the people by their sermons and discourses ) be in time forgotten , and neither believed nor obeyed ; the romish factors considering that litera scripta manet , to provide against the ill consequences which the fearfulness of the priests , or diligence of the state might produce , by hindring the preaching of the former , caused gregory martin's treatise of schism to be reprinted this year , in which he exhorted the ladies of the court to deal with the queen as judith did with holofernes ; for the printing of which , carter , the romish printer , was executed , and is reckoned among their martyrs . at the same time there was one harper in norwich , ( a great friend of throgmorton's , who was executed the year before , ) who though pretending to be a zealous puritan , preaching with great diligence and fervour , kept a constant correspondence with that traitor , among whose papers was found a letter , in which he desired throgmorton to let him know how their friends in spain and london did correspond , * and whether that king continued in his purpose , that the engagers might be satisfied , and have notice ; upon this discovery a pursuvant was sent to apprehend him , but he escaped just as the officer arrived at norwich . and now was discovered a design , in which the pope was particularly engag'd , if we may believe parrie's own confession , who in his travels falling into acquaintance with palmio , a jesuite , told him that he had a great desire to doe something for the romish cause in england , by whom he was encouraged , his zeal commended , and the lawfulness of assassinating her majesty was maintained ; but being somewhat dissatisfied , the jesuite recommended him to campeggio , his holiness's nuncio at venice ; by this means he wrote to pope gregory , informing him of his design , and desiring a passport , that he might confer of it with his holiness at rome ; in the mean while he went to paris , where he was animated by thomas morgan , who sollicited the queen of scots affairs , when receiving such a passport as he desired , he resolved to kill the queen , if it were warranted by some learned divines , and he could procure a full pardon for it from the pope . that the first might not be wanting , cedretto , a noted jesuit , and provincial of guyenne , approv'd his resolution , and ragazzani , the nuncio , recommended him to the pope , promising that his prayers should not be wanting for the success of the attempt : with which encouragement he came to london , where he received a letter from cardinal como , wherein the cardinal informs him , that his holiness did exhort him to persevere , and bring that to effect which he had promised ; and that he might be the better assisted by that good spirit which moved him thereto , his holiness granted him his blessing , a plenary indulgence and remission of all his sins , assuring him that he should merit highly by the action , which he terms holy and honourable ; to which the cardinal added his prayers and wishes for its success . this he confessed confirmed his resolution to kill his sovereign , and made it clear to his conscience , that it was lawfull and meritorious ; which redounding so highly to the dishonour of that bloudy church , the whole relation is by the index expurgatorius commanded to be left out of thuanus's history : and well they might ; for as it shewed the pope's inclination to bloud and treason , so it was one of the greatest instances of ingratitude imaginable , parry owing his life to the mercy of this princess , who had four years before , pardoned him , when he was tried and condemned for burglary . but though the divine goodness was so conspicuous in the many wonderfull preservations of that great queen , yet it pleased the all-wise providence to permit the devilish designs of the jesuites to be attended with success in holland , where the renowned prince , william of nassaw , was this year murthered by * balthasar gerard , a burgundian , who confessed that a jesuite , regent of the college of trers , told him , that he had conferred with three of his brethren , who took the design to be from god , assuring him , that if he dyed in that quarrel , he should be enrolled in the kalendar of martyrs . this method of satisfying their consciences with their confessour's authority , was so generally taken by the zealous assassins of those times , that the leaguers in france kept several priests in pay , who daily preached and asserted , that princes ought to be deposed who do not sufficiently perform their duty ; and a bachelour in divinity of the sorbonne maintained in a publick disputation , that it was lawfull for any private man to depose or kill any prince , who is a wicked man , or an heretick : which opinion had so entirely possest the * cardinal of bourbon , that because the king of navarre was an heretick , he had the confidence to tell king henry the third , that if his majesty should dye , the crown would belong to him , and he was resolved not to lose his right : but because these doctrines without force to practise them would prove but empty speculations , the duke of guise had the latter end of this year a conference with the king of spain's commissioners , whereby he associated himself with the spaniards against his sovereign , obliging his party to maintain war against the king as long as the king of spain pleased . to promote which design cardinal pellevee sollicited the pope for his approbation of it ; and when the duke of nevers , declared his resolutions to have nothing to doe with them , unless he had the opinion both of eminent divines , and the pope too , in favour of the undertaking ; his confessour , and monsieur faber , told him , that he ought to take up arms with the leaguers , by which he would be so far from sinning , that he would merit highly , and perform an action very acceptable to god ; and the aforesaid cardinal , with other divines , assured him that the pope approved of it , declaring it lawfull to fight against hereticks , and such as favour or adhere to them , though it were the king himself ; he indeed advised them not to attempt his life , but to seize his person , and force him to promote their ends ; in obedience to which the cardinal of bourbon published a declaration , dated march . . justifying his arms , but professing great respect to the royal person . this pope dying , his successour , sixtus the fifth , was more open in avowing the leaguers cause , and therefore published his bull against the king of navarre , declaring him an heretick , depriving him and his posterity of all their rights , absolving his subjects from their allegiance , and excommunicating all such as should obey him . while this pope was making tryall of his thunderbolts in france , he had his agents privily endeavouring to execute the commands of his predecessour in this nation , for which henry piercy , earl of northumberland , being apprehended , shot himself through the heart during his imprisonment ; he had been pardoned for a former rebellion , and being found a prosecutour of throgmorton's design , became this year his own executioner . but a more formidable , because more threacherous and secret , design was managed by some english seminaries at rhemes , who thought it meritorious to destroy the queen ; where one savage was so wrought upon by the persuasions of dr. gifford , the rectour , and two other priests , that he vowed to murther her ; to whom ballard , another priest , joining , treated with mendoza , the spanish embassadour in france , about an invasion ; after which he drew in mr. babington , a rich and well accomplish'd gentleman , who desired that five more might be joined to savage , to make sure work ; * babington affirmed , that several counties in england were ready ; and being assured of assistance from spain , they resolved that the usurper ( so they termed the queen ) should be sent to the other world , assoon as the invaders landed ; * but ballard being taken , babington resolved to effect her death immediately , though divine providence prevented it by his apprehension , who , with the rest of his companions , freely confessed the fact , for which ‖ sixteen of them suffered death . yet did not this deter mr. william stafford , at the sollicitation of the french ambassadour , from engaging in an enterprise of the same horrid nature ; which though he refused to act himself , yet he directed them to one moody , who willingly embraced the motion upon promise of preferment from the duke of guise ; but while he was contriving a way to effect it , stafford discovered all , and justified it to the ambassadour's face , who at first denied any knowledge of it . with the same diligence were the romanists in france driving on their treasonable designs ; for at a council , held by the chief conspiratours at the jesuites college near st. pauls in paris , they resolved to surprise boloign , there to receive the spaniards who should land to their assistance : a plot was laid to secure the king , as he returned from hunting , and another to seize the bastile , assault the louvre , and put the king into a convent ; during which action their word was to be , let the mass flourish ; and the king of navarre was to be cut off by the spaniards ; but these designs being discovered , as also another plot to seize the king in the abby of st. germains , their hopes were disappointed ; in which conspiracies cardinal pellevee , a french man , then at rome , was so deeply concerned , that the king ordered his revenues to be seized and distributed to the poor . but his majesty going from paris , they proposed the seizing of the city in his absence , the duke of guise designing to secure the king in the countrey ; and for the exciting those rebellious spirits to some action , the preachers at paris generally vented nothing but sedition , affirming that the king was a tyrant , and an enemy to the church and people ; and when the king sent to apprehend one of these furious leaguers , he retired into the house of one hatte , a notary , where bussy , and his men , fought in his defence against the king's officers , headed by the lieutenant civil : and the sorbonne doctours made a decree , that princes might be deposed from their government , if they did not what became them , as the charge taken away from a negligent guardian . and that there might want no encouragement , the pope presented the duke of guise , the head of the rebels , with a rich sword , thereby declaring his approbation of his proceedings . the same year * sir. william stanley being made governour of deventer , and rowland york of zutphen , for the queen , they betrayed both these places to the spaniard , upon which the former beginning to sink in his reputation , lest the sense of his treasons should put him upon thoughts of returning to his loyalty , ‖ dr. allan , afterwards cardinal , wrote to him and his traiterous accomplices , telling them that the queen being deposed by the pope , could make no just war , and all her subjects were bound not to serve or obey her in any thing : and in another of his books he affirms , that god had not sufficiently provided for our salvation , or the preservation of his church , if there were no way to restrain or deprive apostate kings : therefore ( saith he ) let no man marvel , that in case of heresie the sovereign loseth his superiority and right over his people and kingdom . and now we are come to the year eighty eight , wherein as the conspirators acted more publickly , having prepared all things ready for their designed subversion of the government , and being aided by that armado of the spaniards , which they vainly thought invincible ; so the divine providence as openly declared against them , notwithstanding their navy was blessed by the famous nun of lisbon , ‖ and the assistance given by the fiery pope , who published his crusado as against the turks , and promised to contribute a million of gold ; to which he added the apostolical benediction , covenanting that the crown of england should be held as feudatary to the see of rome ; and for encouragement to those who should assist his cause , he ‖ gave plenary indulgences to them all ; neither did he stop here , but having provided for the invaders , by securing them of money and heaven , he thundred out his * bull against the queen , whereby he deprived her again of her dominions , confirming the censures of pope pius , and gregory , his predecessours ; commanding all , under penalty of god's wrath , to render her no obedience , or assistance , and enjoining them to aid the spaniards against her ; concluding all with declaring it both lawful and commendable to lay hands on her , and granting a full pardon to all undertakers . to second which bull cardinal allen ( advanced to that dignity the year before ) published a book at antwerp , wherein he enlarges upon the bull , and tells the world , that it was at the vehement desire of some english men , that the pope engaged the spaniard , and appeared in the cause himself . this book is said to be written by one parsons , though it was owned by the cardinal ; and therein it is affirmed , * that the roman catholicks in england were destitute of courage , and erroneous in conscience , or else they had never suffered her majesty to reign so long over them . the way thus prepared , the spanish armado put to sea , while the prince of parma was preparing a great army in flanders , where the ‖ earl of westmorland , and the lord pagit , and sir william stanley , lay with seven hundred english , ready to be transported ; and the hopes of the romanists came nothing short of what was to be expected in men elevated by such great preparations ; insomuch that the * jesuites at rome had appropriated several palaces in london to themselves , and were so sure of success , that they would have had te deum sung in the college church for joy , upon the news of the spaniards being arrived in the narrow seas ; and the secular priests acknowledge the like disposition in the party here † we had ( some of us greatly approved the said rebellion , many of our affections were knit to the spaniard . — in all these plots none were more forward than many of us that were priests . with the same zeal towards the action were the foreign clergy actuated , * among whom johannes osorius , the jesuite , preached two sermons in defence of the attempt , and in commendation of the spaniards for thus fighting against hereticks ; in one of which his confidence of the success transported him so far as to give thanks for the victory ; but he and his party trusted too much in the arme of flesh , they thought themselves so powerfull , that they forgot one that was above them , who made that terrible fleet the scorn of the world , and so protected the just cause of the queen , and assisted her navy , that most of that armado perished in the sea , or were taken , or burnt ; so vain a thing it is to forget and fight against the almighty , who blessed where the pope cursed , and turned the harangues of the thanksgiving-jesuite into three sermons of humiliation , for so great a disappointment of the papal designs , and the entire destruction of its strongest forces . in the beginning of the year several missionaries were sent into scotland , to get the assistance of the papists there : the lord maxwell actually took the field with a small party , who were defeated : the lord bothwell secretly listed soldiers ; and collonel sempill arriving at leith , in order to the design , was seized , but soon rescued by the earl of huntley . yet could not these wonderfull disappointments work any remorse in the papists , who still laboured , by means of the jesuite * holt , and others , to persuade the king of spain to another invasion ; which ‖ parma comforted the romanists in scotland with promises of effecting , and sent them ten thousand crowns to prepare matters against the next spring . as busie were the leaguers in france , prosecuting their intended rebellion with all diligence , * the duke of guise and his council resolved to put the king in a monastery ; in order to which , when he went his usual processions in the time of lent , they designed to seize him ; but being prevented by a discovery , another resolution was agreed on , to secure his person at his return from bois de vincennes , slenderly accompanied ; but failing in this also , the duke of guise came to paris , contrary to the king 's express order , where he was received with great joy , and soon after , his party being numbred , and found considerable , he openly rebelled , barricadoing the streets , and forcing the king to flie , who made his escape with very few attendants : soon after the king of spain sent six hundred thousand crowns to the rebels , and the pope by solemn letters applauded the duke's zeal , compared him to the maccabean heroes , and exhorted him to go on as he had begun ; but here the insignificancy of the pope's blessing again appeared , the duke of guise being soon after slain at blois , and so receiving the just reward of his continued rebellions . thus were the designs of wicked men , who prostituted the holy name of religion to serve their lusts , baffled and defeated , both in their attempts against the incomparable queen elizabeth , and the french king , as also in * a plot against the k. of navarre , which by the same divine providence , was this year discovered . but the scotch papists were so possessed with spanish promises , and influenced by their gold , and the persuasions of ‖ holt , creighton , and other jesuites , that several noblemen conspired to seize the king ( afterwards king james the first of england ) at his palace in edinburg , where huntley coming before the others , was upon suspicion apprehended , which terrified the rest ; but being set at liberty , joined himself to the earl of crawford , and others , in open rebellion , entred aberdeen , but were so terrified by the approach of the royal army , that they retreated , were taken , and after tryall imprisoned . and here i find such an account of the conversions made by the jesuites in scotland , as fully confirms the observation made before of their design , in their diligent endeavours to make proselytes ; for mr. bruce , the chief agent for the spaniards , in his ‖ letter to the d. of parma , commending the zeal of the missionaries in scotland , tells him that they had converted the earls of arroll and crawford who were very desirous to advance the catholick faith , and spanish interest in this island , and resolved to follow entirely the directions of the fathers jesuites ; whence it appears their main design is to enlarge their empire , for as the same gentleman affirms , † no sooner any person of quality is converted by them , but they forthwith encline and dispose their affections to the service of the king of spain , as a thing inseparably conjoined with the advancement of true religion in this countrey ; so that by the confession of this great man , popery and treason were inseparable at that time ; the romanists being so in love with it , that they made their address † to the broken fleet of the spaniards the last year , to land what forces they had , several great persons being ready to receive them . and the two new noble converts wrote to the duke of parma , testifying their entire devotedness to the spanish interest . nor was scotland alone thus infected ; for in england the † earl of arundell was this year tried , and dyed in the tower , who rejoiced at the spaniards coming , prayed for their success , and exceedingly grieved at their overthrow : and the jesuite parsons prevailed to have a seminary , wherein to instruct youth in such treasonable principles as his own , founded at valedolyd . but though this island was sufficiently pestered this year by the papal agents and factours for rebellion , yet were we favourably dealt with , in comparison of the treasons and insurrections in france against henry the third , a prince of their own communion , who , after the death of the duke of guise , was opposed by an almost universal rebellion , † the priests calling on their auditours to swear to revenge the duke's death , and railing with all manner of virulency against the king ; insomuch that father lincestre affirmed , that if he were at the altar , and the eucharist in his hand , he would not scruple in that very place to kill him . the rebels styl'd him tyrant , & heretick ; * and to have his picture , or to call him king , was crime enough to deserve death ; they threw down his arms and statues , and practised all sort of magick , incantations , and charms , to hasten his death . ‖ the parisians wrote to the pope , desiring to be absolved from their allegiance , with several other requests of the same nature ; and in their * letters to the cardinals styled their sovereign , the late king of france , and sent agents to rome , giving them , among other instructions , orders to desire the pope not to entertain or hear the king's ambassadours , and messages , and to excommunicate all that join with him , and having chosen the duke of mayenne for their general , would have had him take the title of king , but he refused it ; yet they broke the king 's great seal , and made a new one . to these the city of lyons joined , affirming that kings ought to be resisted , and they will resist the king in conjunction with the holy union , to whom the parisians sent a letter , exhorting them to defend their religion , &c. against that prodigal , perjured , cruel , and murthering prince ; the duke of mayenne refusing to have any peace , or admit so much as of a truce , and prosecuting the war with the utmost vigour . to these attempts and perseverance in them they were encouraged by the sorbon doctours , who in a decree made jan. . . * resolved , that the people were freed from their oaths of allegiance and fidelity , and that they may legally , and with a safe conscience , take arms for the defence of the roman religion , against the wicked counsels and practices of the king. which decree they ordered to be sent to the pope for his confirmation ; and this they affirm was concluded on and resolved by an entire consent of the whole faculty , not one dissenting . and with the same zeal , and no more loyalty , they licensed † a book , which asserted that the king ought to be assassined ; affirming , that there was nothing in it contrary to the roman church : to promote which they concluded that the king ought to be no longer prayed for , declaring all such of the body as should not agree to this , to be guilty of excommunication , and deprived of the prayers and privileges of the faculty . and that there might remain no badg of royalty to put them in mind of their duty , the cordeliers struck off the head of the king's picture which was in their church , and the jacobins defaced those in their cloisters : but this was done after the pope had once more publickly owned the rebels and their cause , who by his bull asserted his power of rule over all kingdoms and princes of the earth , proceeded to admonish the king , to release the cardinal of bourbon , and archbishop of lyons , in thirty days , and within sixty days to make his submission to his holiness for the death of the cardinal of guise , or he would proceed to absolve his subjects from their allegiance ; which so pleased the leaguers , that they reported stories of * god's immediate judgment against the opposers of this thundering bull. but the king's army pressing the parisians , and having reduced them to the last extremity , they found an instrument for their purpose ; who was so wrought upon by the fiery preachers , that he resolved to kill the king : he was a jacobin friar , and confessing it to father bourgoin , prior of the convent , he encouraged him in it , telling him he should be a saint in heaven , and accounted an holy martyr by the church ; which so emboldened him , that with a knife , given him by that father , he stabbed the king into the belly , and was himself slain upon the place . this jaques clement was accordingly honoured by the clergy of the league , as they had promised , his picture was made , and shewed publickly , and they were about setting up his statue in the churches instead of the king 's , and pared off the very ground where he was slain to preserve as relicks ; and several divines preached and wrote in his praise , compared him to ehud , and affirmed he had done a greater work than judith . the cardinal de montalto rejoiced at it , and the pope made a long oration in its praise , and decreed that no funerals should be celebrated for the king. immediately upon this murther the leaguers at paris would have made the duke of mayenne king , but he declining it , they proclaimed the cardinal of bourbon by the name of charles the tenth ; and the parliament of tholouse commanded all the bishops within their churches to give thanks to god for this deliverance ; and that the first day of august ( on which the king was slain ) should be kept for ever in remembrance of that action ; and that their rancour against the king of novarre might the better appear , they forbad any to accept him for their king. and not the leaguers only , who had been in open rebellion against henry the third , but the roman catholicks of his army , refused to obey him any longer , unless he would become a romanist ; nay , there were many of that party found , who absolutely renounced him , and joined with the rebels , some few only remaining loyal ; by which defection of the greatest part of his army , he was forced to raise the siege for his own security . things standing in this posture , the pope , fearfull lest any rebellion should be prosecuted without his assistance , sent a legate into france , with great summes of money for the leaguers , who was accompanied with bellarmine , afterwards cardinal , and a famous defender of the deposing power . to encourage them farther , the king of spain by his declaration exhorted all to join with him against the hereticks of france , protesting he designed nothing but the advancement of the catholick religion , and extirpation of heresie : and the parisians were so poisoned in their principles , that the city being straitened by the king's forces , and provisions failing , they threw several into the river , for murmuring at the hardships they endured . about this time the cardinal of bourbon , their pretended king , dyed ; upon which the states were summoned to meet for the election of another ; and for the encouragement of the people the legate ordered a procession of all the religious orders , who , to shew their zeal , marched in order , armed like soldiers , the bishop of senlis leading them ▪ and their relicks carried before them ; at which the cardinal legate was present in his coach ; and the parliament forbad any , upon pain of death , to talk of any agreement with the king ; in which madness the parliament of roan had led the way , who decreed , that whoever joined with the king should be guilty of high treason , and put several prisoners to death , only because they were the king's servants . nor could all the prodigious straits to which paris was reduced , incline that headstrong people to obedience ; the famine was so great as no age can shew the like ; all eatable things were devoured , and but one little dog to be found in all the city , which the dutchess of montpensier kept for her self , and refused two thousand crowns only for its brains ; yet was the rebels obstinacy as great as ever , accounting those who dyed of famine martyrs , and continuing as intent upon the war as in their plenty ; but finding force not successfull , they again employed assassins ; of whom two franciscan friars and a priest were seized by the king at st. denis in a secular habit , who confessed there were three and twenty more , besides themselves , who had sworn the king's death ; at length the city was relieved by the duke of parma's army , and the king raising the siege retired . but as we have not hitherto found a plot without a priest in it , so they contributed all they could to the vigorous resistance which the leaguers made ; ‖ for the doctours of the sorbon finding some propositions spread about the city , importing , that henry of bourbon ought to be king , and that the pope hath no power of dominion over sovereign princes , presently condemned them ; which decree was confirmed by the legate , and sworn to by the bishops and curates . but not content with this , the same faculty , on may . this year , decreed by an unanimous vote , † that all catholicks by divine law are forbid to admit any prince that is an heretick , or a favourer of hereticks ; that if he should procure an absolution for his heresie , yet if there be evident danger of his hypocrisie , he is by divine law to be rejected : that whosoever endeavours that he should be king ought to be opposed : and then they apply all to henry of bourbon , affirming , that there is evident danger of hypocrisie , and therefore though he should obtain sentence of absolution , yet the french are obliged to keep him from the crown , and abhor the thoughts of making peace with him : that those who favour him are deserters of religion , and remain in continual mortal sin ; but such as oppose him every way they can invent , do merit very much both of god and man ; and they who are slain in the cause , are to be reputed champions for the faith , and shall obtain an everlasting crown of martyrdom . and soon after they ‖ renewed this and their former decrees ; and when the city was so very much straitened , they wrote a letter to the pope , complaining that his legate had not proceeded with severity enough against the king , commending bourgogn , and other rebels , who were executed , calling them maintainers and defenders of the truth ; and earnestly supplicating for assistance from his holiness , who , besides what power he exerted by his legate , sent them * fifty thousand crowns for a supply . thus they went on with an excessive spleen against the king in france , but the jesuites attempting to doe the same things in † transilvania , were expelled the countrey ; yet in scotland their designs went on , from whence william creighton , the jesuite , went into spain , into whose king he so insinuated himself , that he resolved to be guided by his advice , both for the invading england , and the alteration of religion in scotland ; which was the account himself gave of his negotiation by a message to the earl of huntley , desiring as many blanks and procurations as could be had of the scottish noblemen , for the greater credit of his agitations . in the mean time the duke of mayenne solicited the pope and spaniard for aid , and entred into an obligation with the duke of lorrain , and others , not to admit any to the crown except he were of their family ; but if they failed in that , to exclude all , who were not of the roman catholick religion : but the leaguers drew up a letter , and sent it to the king of spain , affirming that it was the desire of all the catholicks to see his catholick majesty sway the sceptre of that kingdom , and reign over them ; or that he would appoint some of his posterity , offering the crown to the infanta isabella , that king's daughter , in particular : and to make all sure within themselves , they contrived a new oath , whereby not onely the king , but all the bloud royal were excluded from the crown ; and set up a court of justice to proceed against the royalists . in which rebellious actions they were encouraged by the pope , greg. . who sent a nuncio into france with two bulls , one interdicting the clergy , if within days they forsook not the obedience and part of the king ; and depriving them of all their benefices , if they left him not within thirty days ; the other threatening the nobility , and all others , with the papal curse , if they assisted that heretick , persecutour , excommunicated person , who was justly deprived of his dominions ; which were the mild expressions with which this meek servant of servants treated that great prince : and farther , to shew his fatherly care of the rebels , he sent an army to their relief , under the command of his nephew , and allowed them fifteen thousand crowns a month ; whose steps were followed by his successour , innocent the th , who remitted them fifteen thousand ducats every month of his popedom , which was but short ; for he sate not much above eight weeks in that chair . yet were not these designs of the leaguers , and mayenne , sufficient to content the pope , but the young cardinal of bourbon hoped for the crown , and so formed another party of seditious persons , called thirdlings , among whom was perron , afterwards cardinal ; and this faction also had the countenance of the last pope , who , to advance this cardinal , exhorted the states to chuse a roman catholick for their king. and his example was so far approved of by clement the eighth , who was chosen in his room , that he continued the same allowance to the leaguers , renewed the same exhortations , and declared any other but a romanist incapable of the crown . the parliament of roan published a severe edict against all who adhered to the king ; and discourses were spread abroad , maintaining , that it was unlawfull to desire his conversion , and that such as proposed or endeavoured it were excommunicated , and ought to be driven away , lest they should infect the rest ; and the parliament of paris enjoined obedience to the pope , and his legate , declaring that the convention of estates designed to chuse a popish king : and by this time those few romanists who had continued with the king , became rebellious too , requiring him to change his religion within a time which they prescribed , otherwise protesting they would elect another of their own persuasion . thus rebellion and the roman catholick cause went on prosperously in france ; but not having the same strength and opportunities in england , the more secret methods were made use of ; ‖ the spaniard was importuned to make another invasion , which he prepared for ; but the romanists , unwilling to trust to that alone , took a shorter course , and by * mr hesket's means attempted to persuade the lord strange , † afterwards earl of derby , to take upon him the crown , which they pretended he had a title to ; and soon after father holt , and others , employed patrick cullen , an irish fencer , to murther the queen , which he readily undertook , and for a very small reward ; but his barbarous intention was discovered , and he , upon apprehension confessing the design , and who set him on , was executed . two years before this the jesuite creighton , upon his going into spain , had desired blanks , to be filled up with credentials and procurations , from the noblemen of the popish party in scotland ; and this year he received them ; the persons who sent them farther engaging , that all the romanists in scotland should assist them , upon the arrival of the army , which the king of spain promised should be with them by the end of the spring , to the number of thirty thousand , whereof some were to remain in scotland , and the rest march directly into england : these blanks were sent by a servant of the king 's , with letters from several jesuites , but he was apprehended , and some of the conspiratours imprisoned and executed ; ‖ the jesuites complained in their letters , that the spaniards were too slow , and therefore desired the invasion with great earnestness . upon this discovery , the earls of angus , huntley , and arrol , rebell'd , but the king's army marching against them before they had formed any considerable body , they fled into the mountains , submitted , and were imprison'd in order to a tryall . at the same time , tir oen in ireland , after having persuaded , and underhand maintained several insurrections , openly declar'd himself for the rebells , taking on him the title of o neal ; which by an act of parliament was declared treason for any to assume . nor was england long free from open rebellion , yet clear'd of a treasonable generation , who were daily employ'd in new conspiracies against the queens life ; for * lopez , one of the queens physicians , undertook to poison her , for which he was to have fifty thousand crowns ; but being discovered , confessed all , and with two of his accomplices was executed . but being unwilling to depend wholly on this doctour , the jesuite , holt , dr. worthington , and others , employed edmond york , nephew to him who six years before had betrayed zutphen to the spaniards , and richard william , with others , to kill the queen ; who upon their apprehension confessed , that after several consultations among the priests and jesuites in flanders , holt threatned , that if this plot failed , they would take this honourable work out of the hands of the english , and employ strangers for the future ; that they had vowed to murther the queen ; and that one young , tipping , garret , with two others , had undertaken the same design . while god was thus confounding the designs of these bloudy men in this nation , the leaguers in france seemed to have forgotten , that an all-seeing eye beheld their actions , where the duke of mayenne put forth a declaration , affirming , that henry of bourbon could not be lawfull king , because he was an heretick ; and therefore they cannot be blamed for opposing him in obedience to the pope's bulls , and admonitions : to which , his holiness's legate added another , assuring the romanists that the pope would never consent to the admission of an heretick , that such who assisted the king were in a desperate condition , and exhorting all to be obedient to the pope ; and when the estates were met , he proposed that all should take an oath , never to acknowledge the king , though he should be converted to their church ; nay , so great was his fury , that when the romanists with the king sent to the states some propositions for a treaty , he declared the very proposals to be heretical , and by his influence the doctours of sorbon asserted the same , as intimating a declared heretick might be king ; but the proposition was accepted , and a conference agreed on , but with this clause in the answer to the proposal , that to fight against an heretical king is not treason ; yet the legate entred his protestation against the meeting , and the parisians attempted to make the young duke of guise king : nor were things better in the royal army , where the romanists , whom the king most trusted , were falling from him ; upon which resolving to change his religion , his intensions were no sooner published , than the legate forbad all bishops to absolve him , pronouncing all that should be assisting to his reception into the roman church excommunicated , and deprived , and all their actions in that affair null and void . but hower the king was reconciled , and sent his ambassadours to rome ; but the pope , who had formerly refused to admit any message from him , prohibited their entrance , neither would he receive the prelates that absolved him . in the mean while the leaguers stormed at the king's reconciliation , and set themselves to destroy him by private treason , now force could doe no good ; for which purpose one barriere , or le barr , was employed , who confessed that the curate of st. andrews of arts in paris commended the design , telling him he would merit heaven and glory by the act , and recommended him to varade , rectour of the jesuites college , who affirmed that the enterprise was most holy , exhorting him with good constancy and courage to confess himself , and receive the b. sacrament , and then leading him to his chamber , gave him his blessing : he mentioned also another preacher of paris , who counted it meritorious . thus encouraged , he bought a knife seven inches long , and went to st. denis where the king then was , but being discovered was executed , affirming at his death , that there were two black friars that went from lyons upon the same account . it is probable the preacher at paris , mentioned in his confessions , was father † commolet , the jesuite , who two days before this barriere's execution at st. denis , in a sermon at paris ( which yet continued obstinate against the king ) exhorted his auditours to have patience , for they should see in a few days a wonderfull miracle of god. but the next year paris was reduced to its obedience , soon after which the university endeavoured the expulsion of the jesuites , accusing them of all manner of injustice , of the ruine of families , and many other crimes , but insisting particularly on their treasons , charging them with being abettors to the spaniard , fomenters of civil wars , and always ready to assassinate the french king , whom they omitted to pray for , while they extolled the spaniard ; that they taught and asserted the pope's deposing power ; that they refused to give absolution to several persons of quality , because they would not renounce the king ; that they had been the cause of the death of twenty-eight barons , fifty noble-men of france , and above five hundred monks and friars in the tercera islands , and had refused to renounce the league . which spirit of rebellion was so strong amongst the leaguers , that a little before the seduction of paris , the pope's legate published a declaration , exhorting all catholicks to oppose the king ; assuring them that the pope would never grant him absolution ; and upon the rendition of aix to his majesty , the famous genebrard was so vext at the loyalty of the place , that he left it , resolving not to live among the royalists ; nay , when the king entered paris the cardinal pellivee , lying upon his death-bed , very angrily told those about him , that he hoped the arms of the spaniards , and good catholicks would yet drive the huguonots out of paris : and hay , a scotch jesuite , affirmed , that if the king passed by their college , he would leap from the top of it upon him , and did not doubt to go directly to heaven . but to return to the jesuites , who finding their banishment out of the kingdom thus zealously endeavoured , and fearing lest the king , to whom they had been such bitter enemies , should consent to it , resolved to dispatch him ; * † francis jacob one of their scholars at bourges had boasted that he would doe it ; but john chastel who was bred under them at paris , went farther , and with a knife struck the king in the mouth , and beat out one of his teeth , he was immediately apprehended , and on examination , confessed , * that he esteemed it an act highly conducing to promote religion ; and that father gueret , his master in the jesuites school , had taught him those doctrines ; upon which sentence of death was pass'd upon him , by which also so the * jesuites were banished as corrupters of youth , disturbers of the publick peace , enemies to the king and kingdom ; and enjoined to depart the realm within fifteen days ; and all their goods confiscated , to be disposed of as the court should see sit . this sentence was published after the search made in the jesuites college , wherein was found a book of t. guignard's , which he confessed to be his own writing , lamenting that the king was spared in the parisian massacre , applauding the murther of king henry the third , affirming , that if the king were shut up in a monastery , he would be treated more gently than he deserved ; and concluding , that if he could not be deposed without force of arms , they ought to be taken up against him ; for which , and his other treasons , he was executed ; but † gueret , chastell's master , of the same order , was only banished with the rest ; in memory of which fact , and to the perpetual ignominy of that order , chastell's house was demolished , and a pillar erected in the place ; on one side of which was engraven the decree of the court , † on another a copy of verses expressing the crime , and discovering to the world that it was attempted by the persuasions of the jesuites ; on the third another inscription to the same purpose ; and on the fourth a summary account of their banishment , and the reasons of it , * wherein the jesuites are termed , a mischievous and novell sort of superstitious men , and disturbers of the nation , by whom that young man was encouraged and persuaded to that horrid fact. this pillar , as appears by the date of the inscriptions , was not erected till the following year ; however , having such a relation to their banishment , which was decreed the th . of december , . i thought it most proper to give an account of it in this place . one would think that if any fact would render men ashamed , this murtherous attempt was so horrid as to make those concerned in it blush ; but so far were they from that , that francis veron , † a jesuite , wrote an apology for the murtherer , calling the enterprise ‖ a most holy , most humane , most laudable and worthy act ; that it is acceptable to god , and conformable to all laws and decrees of the church ; and in the same book he extolls clement , that stabbed the former king. thus fruitfull were the french romanists in their contrivances of rebellion and murther , and as willing were their brethren in these nations to promote enterprises of the same nature ; for † tir-oen in ireland , continued in the rebellion which he began the year before , but distrusting his own power , submitted himself to the lord deputy ; yet the very same month he rebelled again , several provinces revolting to him ; by which accession of forces he grew very powerfull : and in scotland the noblemen who were imprisoned and condemned for their insurrection the last year , having been pardoned by the king , took arms again , being assisted with money from the spaniards , and defeated the king's forces under the earl of argyle , though much superiour in number to them , but were at length reduced so low , that they begged leave to depart the land , which was granted them ; so promising to enterprise no more against the king , they left the kingdom : bothwell , the chief of them went to naples , where he lived miserably ; the rest about three years after got their pardons , and returned home . yet were not these all the popish enterprises upon the estates and persons of princes which were discovered this year ; for i find that about this time they employed le four , and others , to murther prince maurice of nassaw , general of the forces of the united provinces . but the indefatigable romanists , though so often disappointed , would once more apply themselves to the spaniard , to favour their cause in england ; who to correspond with their desires and satisfie his own ambition , sent diego brocher , upon the english coast , who with four gallies put into mounts bay in cornwall , fired st. paul's church , and * three small fish towns ; and this was all the king of spain made of his vast expences and preparations against england . tyr-oen having the two last years strengthned himself , writes this year to the king of spain , desiring him not to give ear to those who affirmed , that he design'd any accommodation with the english ; assuring him , that he was resolved never to submit to , or have any treaty with them . about the same time the jesuites at london had laid a plot to seize the tower , and keep it till the spaniards arrived to their assistance ; in one of their letters from their correspondents in spain , dated june the th . . they are put in hopes that the spanish armada should be with them about the august following ; cautioning them to advise all the romanists of the design before-hand , and proclamations were ready printed in spain , to be dispersed at their arrival here ; and the better to secure the spaniards landing in scotland , the conspiratours fortified the isle of elsay in the western seas , for their reception ; but were surprized before they had proceeded far , so the enterprize miscarried . and now we are come to the last conspiracy that hath been discovered against the life of queen elizabeth , which was the attempt of edward squire , a servant in her stables , to whom walpoole , the jesuite , gave a very strong poison , which squire undertook to press out upon the pommel of her saddle ; but before he could bring himself to undertake so horrid an action , he had several conflicts in his own mind ; which the jesuite perceiving , told him , * that the sin of backsliding did seldom obtain pardon , and if he did but once doubt of the lawfulness , or merit , of the act , it was enough to cast him down to hell ; exhorting him to go through with it ; † for if he failed , he would commit an unpardonable sin before god ; and at parting , after having bless'd him , he used these words , my son , god bless thee , and make thee strong ; be of good courage ; i pawn my soul for thine ; and being either dead or alive , assure thy self thou shalt have part of my prayers . thus satisfied with the jesuites , he , upon the first opportunity , poisoned the pommel of the queens saddle , but it pleased god the poison had not the expected effect ; upon which the jesuites not hearing of her death in some time , suspected squire of unfaithfulness , and got him under-hand accused of some design against the queen ; upon which being apprehended he confessed all , and was executed . but tyrone created more trouble to the queen in ireland , where daily he encreased his strength , took fortified places from the english , and in several skirmishes got the better of the queens forces . and continuing his rebellion , slew sir henry bagnall , and routed the english under his command , took the fort of black-water , and in it great store of ammunition and arms , and created james fitz-thomas earl of desmond , and got several advantages over the forces of the kingdom . in england anthony rolston was employed by the jesuite creswell to prepare things for an invasion , which the spaniard intended to make very suddenly ; in order to which a fleet was prepared , and a proclamation drawn up by the admiral , justifying the action , and declaring his intention to be , to reduce these kingdoms to the obedience of the catholick roman church . this year also was apprehended in holland one peter pan , a cooper of ipres , who confess'd , that his design was to murther prince maurice of nassaw , * that the jesuites of doway , for his encouragement , promised to make his son a prebend , and the provincial gave him his blessing in these words , friend , go thy ways in peace , for thou goest as an angel under god's safeguard and protection . but almost innumerable were the conspiracies against king henry of france , against whom ( after mayenne and all others had submitted ) the dukes of aumale , and mercent continued obstinate , refusing to acknowledge him ; and the pope's agent at brussels , first employed ridicove , a dominican of ghent , to murther the king ; assuring him , that the pope and cardinals approved of the action ; but he , after two journeys into france about it , was apprehended , and executed ; confessing , that the daily sermons he had heard in praise of clement , who stabb'd the former king , and was esteemed a martyr among them , had so enflam'd him , that he resolv'd to follow his steps . besides this man , one arger , of the same order , undertook the same exploit ; to whom the pope's agent added clement odin , another son of st. dominick ; but god defeated all their designs , and preserv'd that great king's life some years longer . in the mean while tir oen continued his rebellion in ireland , having received assistance from the spaniard , and a plume of phoenix feathers from the pope ; and the new earl of desmond wrote two * letters to the king of spain , begging his assistance to drive the english out of ireland , and to advance the catholick cause , which he was resolved to maintain . what effect these and other addresses had , we shall see presently . but tir oen not resting wholly on the spaniard , wrote a very earnest letter to the pope , subscribed by himself , desmond , and others ; † desiring his holiness to issue out a bull against the queen , as pius the fifth , and gregory the thirteenth had done ; which they press him to doe , because the kingdom belonged to his holiness , and next under god depended solely on him . in the mean while , the rebellion went on , and daily conflicts happen'd ; but lest the tediousness , or danger of the war should discourage them , pope clement the eighth sent a letter , directed to all the prelates , noblemen , and people of . ireland , wherein ‖ he owns , that they had taken up arms by his advice , for recovering their liberty , and opposing the hereticks , commends the fitz-geralds who headed former insurrections , highly extolls tyrone , and grants a full remission of all sins to him and his assistants . yet could not this concurrence , and benediction of the pope preserve their strength from being broken by the lord mountjoy , who this year arrived lord deputy in ireland ; insomuch that several of the chief rebels submitted , * but at the same time sent to rome to crave pardon for their outward compliance : but tyrone continued obstinate , which forced the lord-deputy to proclaim him traitor , setting a reward of two thousand marks upon his head ; however the spaniard sent a ship to his relief , laden with arms and monies , as an earnest of more supplies . it is certain from the confession of the traitors themselves , that the foundation of the gun-powder treason was laid the following year ; but it is very probable that there was a rough draught of it made in this , as appears by the case resolv'd by delrio the jesuite ; whether if one discover in confession , that he hath laid gun-powder under an house , by which the house is to be blown up , and the prince destroyed , the priest ought to reveal it ? upon which he concludes , that he ought not ; it was a case that had never happened before and so not likely to have been thought of by a person not cautious of such a design ; and this resolution garnet after served himself of , alledging , that all the knowledge he had of the treason was communicated to him in confession , which he was bound not to disclose , upon any account whatsoever . soon after his last letter in tyrone's behalf , the same pope sent his breves into england , commanding all the roman catholicks not to admit , after the queen's death , any prince whatsoever , unless he would bind himself by oath to promote the roman catholick religion to his utmost power : in prosecution of which , knowing that king james , the next successour , was a firm protestant , several designs were formed against his life ; hay and hamilton , two papists , were sent into scotland , to stir up the jesuites there , who were received and cherished , notwithstanding the king had by his proclamation forbidden any to harbour them , affirming that if any did , he would look upon them as designers against his life . but while these jesuites , and others of the same stamp , were endeavouring to prepare matters for a rebellion , one ‖ mowbray , son to a scotch nobleman ; undertook to destroy the king , but was apprehended at london , and sent prisoner into scotland by the queen ; and about the same time the * duke o● tuscany , by some letters he had intercepted , discovered another design against his life , which was to be effected by poison , an account of which he sent immediately to the king by sir henry wotton , then in his court , with several antidotes against the poison , if it should be given him , notwithstanding all his diligence to prevent it . during these designs in scotland the pope sent a letter to tyrone , calling his rebellion an † holy league , ‖ assuring him that he was exceedingly pleased at their courage and zeal , extolling his piety , exhorting him to go on as he had begun , and praying that god would fight for him ; promising to write to all catholick princes to assist him , and to send a nuncio to reside with him ; and giving his blessing to him and all his followers , who should hazard themselves for the catholick cause . besides which he sent a † breve to the whole body of the irish nation , requiring them to join with tyr-oen against the queen ; and if we may believe * don juan de aquila , general of the war in ireland for defence of the faith , he went farther than this , and excommunicated , and ( as far as in him lay ) deposed her majesty . this spanish commander arrived at kingsall with a great fleet , and began to fortifie the town ; and published a declaration , affirming , that the war made against queen elizabeth by his master , in conjunction with tyr-oen , was just , she having been excommunicated , and her subjects absolved from their fidelity by several popes ; exhorting them , that now christ's vicar commanded them , they would in obedience to him take arms ; protesting , that if any continued in obedience to the english , they should be prosecuted as hereticks , and hatefull enemies of the church . soon after don alonso del campo landed with a supply of soldiers , but suddenly after his arrival was taken prisoner , the army of the spaniards and rebells in conjunction routed , and the former glad to be permitted to return home . yet were the english papists as diligent as ever to introduce the spaniards , and therefore dispatched away ‖ thomas winter , to trie what could be done for their assistance , who were ready to sacrifice their lives for the catholick cause ; and to assure the king of spain , that if he would send over an army , they would have in a readiness fifteen hundred or two thousand horses for the service ; being introduced by the means of the jesuite creswell , the duke of lerma assured him of assistance , and the count de miranda told him , that his master would bestow two hundred thousand crowns for that use , and would have an army in england by the next spring . with this gratefull account of the posture of affairs he returned , and great preparations were made , that they might be ready against the arrival of the forces ; but all their measures were broken by the queen's death , yet was mr. wright sent into spain , and guy faux after him ; but the king refused to meddle , having sent his ambassadour to conclude a peace with king james ; upon which disappointment they entertained new designs , which we shall have account of in a little time . while these matters were transacting in spain and england , tyr-oen and osulevan continued their insurrection in ireland , the latter keeping the castle of dunboy for the king of spain , to whom he sent to desire him to accept it , which he did , and sent osulevan twelve thousand pounds , with a supply of arms and ammunition ; and the rest of the rebells received encouragement from their correspondents in spain , who assured them , his catholick majesty would not omit the winning of ireland , if it cost him the most part of spain ; and that an army of fourteen thousand men , with a nuncio from the pope , were set sail for their relief , which news rendered them so obstinate , that they endured all extremities ; but the taking of dunboy by the lord deputy put a stop to those succours , there being no place for to receive them at their landing ; yet did mac eggan , the apostolical vicar , revive the fury of the rebells , but he was slain the latter end of this year , fighting at the head of his men , with a sword drawn in one hand , and his breviary and beads in the other . we have seen the pope approving this rebellion , so that the divines of his church could doe no less than follow the dictates of their supreme head , which the jesuites of salamanca did this year by a declaration of theirs ; in which they resolve , * that we must hold for certain that the pope hath power to bridle and suppress those who forsake the faith : and having farther stated the question , they proceed to affirm , that it is lawfull for any catholick to assist tyr-oen , and that with great merit , and good hope of eternal reward , because it is by the pope's authority , that all such romanists as take part with the english sin mortally , and cannot be saved , or receive absolution , till they forsake the english army ; and those are in the same condition who give the english any tribute , except such as the pope hath given them leave to pay , ( so that they are to be subjects no longer than the pope pleases . ) and then they proceed to shew , that the bull in favour of the rebells was not procured by surreption , but proceeded from the pope's own inclination to them , and that the permission given to the roman catholicks to obey her , extended only to such obedience as doth not oppugn the catholick religion , which the assisting her against tyrone doth . and this declaration is dated the seventh of march. . and it could be nothing less than such an extraordinary encouragement , that could render the irish so audacious as they were upon the queen's death ; in limrick they seized the churches , and set up mass in them ; the same they did at waterford , in the cathedral , and at the sessions house they pulled down the seats of justice ; in cork they refused to proclaim the king , and by force opposed the commissioners ; they went in a solemn procession , took the sacrament to spend their lives in defence of the roman catholick religion ; wrote to several cities to assist them , seized upon the king's stores , and assaulted his forces , alledging that he could not be lawfull king , because he was not appointed by the pope . and for their farther satisfaction the university of salamanca , subscribed the declaration which the jesuites made the year before ; and the divines of valedolid did the same . about this time the jesuites laboured to get the sentence of their banishment out of france reversed , the pope interposing his mediation in their favours , upon which the parliament of paris attempted to dissuade the king from consenting to it by a long * oration ; alledging , that it was their avowed doctrine , that the pope hath a power of excommunicating kings ; that a king so excommunicated by his holiness , is no other than a tyrant , whom the people may oppose ; that clergy-men are exempt from the prince's power , are none of his subjects , and cannot be punish'd by him for any crimes : and having enumerated several of their treasons , they affirm , † that it is absolutely necessary for them to renounce these doctrines , or else france cannot with safety admit them to return . but though they were very desirous of admission , they would not renounce those positions for it ; however by importunity , and the solicitation of the pope , and others , they were at length received , but upon conditions , ‖ two of which were , that they should build no colleges without express permission from the king ; and that one of their number should be always near the king , to be accountable for the actions of the society . thus were they admitted , but marks of distrust set upon them ; though they have , by their address , turn'd the latter of these conditions , which was at first design'd for their disgrace , into a mark of honour , the king's confessour being ever since a jesuite . though the gun-powder plot was not ripe for execution till two years after , yet they were consulting about it at this time ; when after a long complaint of their grievances , mr. percy told mr. catesby , that there was no way but to kill the king , and he was resolv'd to doe it : but to that gentleman desired him not to be so rash , for he had laid a surer design , which would certainly effect it , without any danger to themselves ; and then imparted to him the contrivance of blowing up the king and parliament . which design in may , the following year , the conspiratours obliged themselves by oath upon the holy sacrament to keep secret ; † catesby justifying the action by the breves which the pope had sent to exclude king james ; it being as lawfull to cast him out as to oppose his entrance ; and bates , another of the conspiratours , was assured by the jesuite greenwell , that the cause and action were good , and therefore it was his duty to conceal it . upon the approaching of the parliament they began to work , endeavouring to make a mine under the parliament-house ; but soon after percy hired a cellar , in which they stowed the gun-powder , with billets heap'd upon it , to hide it in case of search . the may before the plot was to be executed there was an insurrection of the romanists in wales , but it was soon supprest ; yet all things went on in order to the fatal blow ; when about a week before the parliament was to sit , the design was discovered , and so prevented ; upon which the conspiratours flew into † rebellion , but were all either killed or taken by the sheriff of worcestershire the ‖ king in his speech to the parliament soon after , told them that faux confessed that they had no other cause moving them to the design , but merely and only religion ; which was acknowledged by sir everard digby at his tryall , to be the chief motive which enduced him to make one among them , and which he resolved to hazard his life , his estate , and all , to introduce ; protesting , that if he had thought there had been the least sin in the plot , he would not have been of it for all the world ; and the reason why he kept it secret , was because those who were best able to judge of the lawfulness of it , had been acquainted with it , and given way unto it ; and therefore afterwards he calls it the best cause . the persons , upon whose authority he so much relied , were the jesuites , who asserted the holiness of the action ; for garnet , their superiour , had affirmed that it was lawfull , and father hammond absolved them all after the discovery , when they were in open rebellion ; and greenwell , the jesuite , rode about the countrey to excite as many as he could to joyn with them ; nay , † garnet confessed that catesby in his name did satisfie the rest of the lawfulness of the fact. * parsons had kept a correspondency with that jesuite to promote it , and at the same time ( not willing to discover it to them , and yet desirous of their prayers , ) ‖ ordered the students of his college at rome to pray for the intention of their father rectour : and after the discovery , * father hall , encouraged some of the traitors , who began to doubt that the action was unlawfull , seeing god had defeated it in so providential a manner , telling them , that we must not judge of the cause by the event ; that this was no more than what happened to the eleven tribes when they went up at first to fight against benjamin , and that the christians were often defeated by the turks ; nay , so highly was it approv'd by that order , that , not to mention here the honours done to the conspiratours , since their deaths , several jesuites gloried in , and bragg'd of it ; for a little before the discovery , † father flood caused the jesuites at lisbon to spend a great deal of money in powder , on a festival day , to try the force of it , and persuaded one john how , a merchant , and other catholicks , to go over into england , and expect their redemption there : and father thompson was wont afterwards to boast to his scholars at rome , how oft his shirt was wetted with digging under the parliament house . and that the pope himself was concerned in the design is more than probable , for it is confessed by a jesuite that there were three bulls granted by him , which should have been published if the conspiracy had succeeded ; and sir everard digby hath left it under his hand , that it was not the pope's mind that any stirs should be hindered which were undertaken for the catholick cause . the pope's carriage after the discovery is another shrewd argument that he was privy to the plot , for he not only made no declaration either by word or writing in abhorrence of it , but when * greenway , one of the conspirators , escaped to rome , he advanced him to the dignity of penitentiary , and † gerard , another , was a confessour at st. peters in the same city . this execrable conspiracy appeared so horrid and unworthy , not only of religious men , but contrary to humane nature , that † sixteen of the students under the jesuites at rome , forsook the college , and some of them renounced the roman church ; and * mr. copley , who had been a priest some years , ( as appears by his reasons , one of sound learning and judgment , ) assures us , that it was one of the causes of his conversion . yet were there many found among the romanists who justified the design , hardly any condemning it : thus the same gentleman professes , that though some termed it an inconsiderate act , yet he could never meet with any one jesuite who blamed it . the * conspiratours justified themselves , and even at their deaths would acknowledge no fault : and when † faux and winter were admitted to discourse together in the tower , they affirmed , they were sorry that no body set forth a defence or apology for the action ; but yet they would maintain the cause at their deaths ; nay there was one who had the hardiness to attempt * to justifie the design from the imputation of cruelty , because both seeds and root of an evil herb must be destroyed ; and when some of the plotters escaped to callis , the governour assured them of the king's favour , and that though they lost their country they should be received there ; they replyed , that the loss of their country was the least part of their grief ; but their sorrow was that they could not bring so brave a design to perfection . and notwithstanding garnet was so deep in the conspiracy , yet † mr. wilson placed him among the martyrs , in his english martyrology ; and it is affirmed by * one who liv'd among them , that he and campion are beatified by the pope , which is the next degree to canonization , and that every one of them is painted in the jesuites churches , with the title of blessed father ; † and we are assured that garnet's picture was set up in their church at rome , among their martyrs , several years after ; and * st. amour , a doctour of sorbon , found his pictures commonly sold at rome , in the year . with this inscription , father henry garnet , hang'd and quarter'd at london , for the catholick faith ; by which they shew themselves either approvers of the design , to that degree as to count it a point of their faith , or else they must appear deceivers of the people , and slanderers of the english nation , in affirming , that he dyed for his religion , when he justly suffered for the most hellish conspiracy that was ever laid ; yet delrio , and gordon , two jesuites , went farther ; the first in prosecution of his determination in the point which we mentioned before , compares him to dionysius , the areopagite ; the latter placing him in heaven , desires him to intercede there for the conversion of england , and it was once publickly prayed in louvain , o holy henry ! intercede for us . but they had designs elsewhere at the same time that this their holy martyr was promoting their cause in england ; king henry of france his life was so burthensome to the jesuites , that they were impatient , so that father coton , the king's confessour , or rather hostage for his society , to be satisfied in the point , wrote down several questions which he had propounded to a maid said to be possessed , one of which was how long the king should live ; which is a capital crime in itself ; * for ( as tertullian long since argued ) who hath any business to make such an enquiry , except he hath designs against his prince , or hath some hopes of advancement by his death . and as busie was the pope paul the fifth for the advancement of the roman cause , he fell out with the duke of * savoy this year , for presenting an abbey to cardinal pio ; and to shew his authority over princes and states , ( which is a kind of deposing them , and clear evidence of popish principles , ) when the commonwealth of luca made an edict against the protestants , though he liked the thing , yet he pretended they had no power in those matters , and therefore commanded them to raze the edict out of their records , and he would publish one for the same purpose by his own authority ; and when the state of genoa prohibited some seditious meetings of ecclesiasticks , he threatened them with excommunication , and forced them to recall their order . but the venetians would not be frighted by his thunders , though he threatened them with the same censure , if they did not speedily revoke their decrees concerning the building of churches , and giving lands to the church , ( which they had prohibited any to doe without the senate's order , ) and required them to deliver two clergymen , whom they had imprisoned for many horrid crimes ; concluding his breve with an assertion of his power to deprive kings , and that he had legions of angels for this assistance . but when the senate would not gratifie him in thus yielding their rights to an usurper , the pope told their ambassadour , that the exemption of clergy-men from the jurisdiction of the magistrate was jure divino , that his cause was the cause of god , and he would be obeyed ; and therefore in a consistory of one and forty cardinals he published a bull of excommunication against that state , wherein he declares , * that by the authority of almighty god , and the apostles peter and paul , the duke and senate of venice , if within four and twenty days after the publication of the bull they do not revoke their decrees , are excommunicated ; and if they continue obstinate three days more , he lays an interdict upon the whole state , forbidding the clergy to perform divine offices in any part of their dominions , and threatens farfarther punishments , according to the sacred canons . this bull he expected would gain his point , by causing the ecclesiasticks to withdraw themselves , and that the people , seeing themselves deprived of church-offices , would run into sedition ; but the event answered not his expectation , for the people joined unanimously with the senate ; but the jesuites , and others , refused to celebrate mass , upon which they were banished the dominions of venice ; after † which they did all they could to stir up the common people : but not succeeding in this , the pope published a jubilee , granting indulgence to all but those of interdicted places ; this he expected would make the people murmur , but he was deceived in that point too ; so that he declared in a full consistory that he would have war with the state of venice , and called the spaniards to his aid ; but finding the senate resolute in defence of their rights , he was glad to recall his bull , and make a peace with them , and though he earnestly pressed for the restauration of the jesuites , yet he could not obtain it . about this time the oath of allegiance being established by law , the romanists sent to rome to know what they should doe in this case , where it was consulted by seven or eight of their learnedest divines , who all agreed , that the pope's power of chastizing princes is a point of faith , and consequently cannot be denied without denying of the faith ; and the pope told father parsons , and fitzherbert , he could not hold those for catholicks who took the oath ; which he soon after declared by his breve , addressed to the romanists of england , septemb . . . wherein he affirms , † that they cannot , without most evident and grievous wronging of god's honour , bind themselves by the oath , seeing it contains many things contrary to faith and salvation . but when some romanists who had taken it began to question the breve , willing to think it was obtained from his holiness by surreption ; he sent † * another to undeceive them , wherein he blames them for entertaining such thoughts , and assures them , that it was written upon mature deliberation , and therefore they are bound fully to observe it , rejecting all interpretation to the contrary ; upon which several who were willing before refused it , some of whom were imprisoned . it is an hard thing for men accustomed to doe evil to learn to doe well , which truth tyr-oen is a great example of , for notwithstanding after his frequent rebellions he was pardoned by king james , and received into favour , yet returning into ireland he began new contrivances , and fearing he was discovered , fled this year into flanders , which caused the king to publish a severe proclamation against him ; from thence he went to rome , where he was maintained at the pope's charge till his death . this same year parsons published his treatise tending to mitigation , wherein he labours to take off the imputation of rebellious principles from the romanists , and yet he tells us in the same book , that this is catholick doctrine , that in publick perils of the church , and common-wealth , christ our saviour hath not left us wholly remediless , but besides the natural right which each kingdom hath to defend themselves , in certain cases , he left also supreme power in his high priest , and immediate substitute , to direct and moderate that power , and to add also of his own when extraordinary need requireth , though with great deliberation . where we have a plain justification of the pope and people's power to depose and resist their princes , a most excellent argument to clear the papists of disloyalty . though we find no plots discovered this year in england , yet in transilvania the jesuites were employed in poisoning stephen potscay the prince : and in france father cotton recommended a spaniard to the king , who had not been in the court many hours , when the king had intelligence of his coming from barcellona purposely to poison him ; upon this he sent for father coton , who desired his majesty not to give any credit to the advice ; and when the king ordered him to produce the spaniard , he pretended to seek him , but at his return told his majesty that he was escaped , and he could not find him . this year the pope sent another breve into england , directed to the arch-priest , forbidding him to take the oath , and commanding him to deprive all priests of their faculties who took it , except they immediately renounc'd it ; prohibiting likewise the resort of any to the protestant churches . at the same time divines of italy , germany , and france , wrote against it , all grounding their exceptions upon this , that it takes away the pope's power of deposing kings . so rebellious had the writings and practices of the jesuites been , that the bohemians petition'd the emperour against them ; and the valesian magistrates refused to admit them , because wherever they came they distrurbed the publick peace , and were under such a tie of blind obedience , that if their superiour enjoin'd them a treasonable attempt they must obey . they had made it their business , for some time , to endeavour to get footing in transilvania , but when all their importunity could not prevail , they engaged several of the nobility in a design against the prince's life , which proceeded so far that one of the conspiratours attempted to run him through , but was prevented , and several of his companions taken , the rest escaped . and now king henry the great of france having amassed a very considerable treasure , prepared for some great design , which the romanists grew so jealous of , that they secretly caused several to subscribe their obedience to the pope , in a book which was kept on purpose ; it was half written through , and some names subscribed in bloud ; several designs were formed against his life , four piedmontiers , a lorrainer , and three others , conspired his death ; advice was given of several other plots from many other places , and reports were spread in foreign parts that he was killed : father hardy , in his sermon at st. severius in paris , reflecting upon the king's treasure , said , that kings heaped up treasures to make themselves feared , but there needed but a blow to kill a king. all these were but fore-runners of that horrid murther which was committed in a few weeks after by ravilliac , once a monk , who stabbed him to the heart with a poisoned knife , as he was going to the arsenal in his coach , so that he expired in an instant ; upon his examination he confes●ed that he resolved to murther the king , who he supposed had a design to make war upon the pope , because making war against his holiness is the same as to make war against god , seeing the pope was god , and god was the pope ; and that he had revealed his design to the jesuite d' aubigny in confession , and shewed him the knife , and that he had heard several of that order maintain the lawfulness of it in their sermons . no sooner was the king dead , but the jesuites desired leave to teach schools in their colleges ; which acquest the parliament took into consideration , and required that they should first declare , that it is unlawfull for any person to conspire the death of the king ; that no ecclesiastick hath any power over the temporal rights of princes ; and that all are to render the same obedience to their governours , which christ gave to caesar. these positions were proposed to them to subscribe , but they refused to doe it without leave from their general ; upon which they were prohibited by a decree of parliament to teach , and threatened with a farther deprivation if they would not obey . the romanists had tried all manner of ways to deprive king james of his life or crown , but finding none successfull , they had the impudence to publish a book this year , affirming , that his majejesty was a counterfeit , and not the son of queen mary of scotland . the year following cardinal perron , who had been one of the young cardinal of bourbon's party against king henry the fourth , in the assembly of estates in france , asserted not only that subjects may be absolved from their allegiance , and princes deposed in case of heresie , but that they who hold the contrary are schismaticks and hereticks . this speech was made to divert the estates from imposing an oath like our oath of allegiance ; which design so disturbed the ‖ pope , that he affirmed the voters of it were enemies to the common good , and mortal adversaries to the chair of rome . and about the same time suarez printed his book at colen , wherein he teaches , that kings may be put to death by their own subjects ; which treatise came into the world with the approbation of the bishop of conimbria , of silvis , and lamego , and the university of alcalum , with several others . in scotland one father ogelby , a jesuite , was taken , who being asked whether the pope be judge in spirituals over his majesty , refused to answer , except the question were put to him by the pope's authority ; but affirmed that the pope might excommunicate the king ; at his trial he protested against the judges , that he could not own them , for the k. had no authority but what was derivative from his predecessours , who acknowledged the pope's jurisdiction ; adding , if the king will be to me as they were to mine , he shall be my king , otherwise i value him not : and as for that question , whether the k. deposed by the pope , may be lawfully killed , doctours of the church hold the affirmative not improbably , and i will not say it is unlawfull to save my life . in france several of the princes raised commotions , which were appeased with conferring places of trust and honour upon the chief among them , who were headed by the prince of conde ; fruits ( as the historian observes ) accustomed to be reaped in france , from that which in other places is punished by the executioner . not satisfied with their honours , they took arms again under the same leader , and passed the loire ; but the prince of conde falling sick , matters were composed by the endeavours of the english ambassadour , and some others . in savoy conspiracies were formed against that duke's life , and to deliver up the prince , his son , to the spaniards , but timely discovery prevented them , and preserved the duke from another design of some who undertook to poison him . the next year the jesuites were banished bohemia , and moravia , for coining money , and sowing dissentions between the magistrates and people , and a plot was discovered at * venice , against the senatours , whom the conspiratours designed to murther , by a sudden insurrection , ( assisted by the marquess of bedmar , ambassadour from spain , and the duke of ossuna , viceroy of naples , ) and make an utter subversion of the state ; * this was carried on , in conjunction with the spaniards , by those citizens , and others , who were the pope's partisans , and a number of factious persons , discontented with the actions of the senate , who longed for a change , and would stick at nothing to effect it . and in france the † queen mother being imprisoned , the duke d'espernon , with a strong party , rebelled in her defence ; but before the king's army was come up against him , he procured his pardon , and the liberty of the queen . soon after this the jesuites were driven out of ‖ hungary , and silesia , for their seditious practices ; and * another rebellion broke out in france , which the king marched in person to suppress : † in the valteline the revolt was universal , the governours of provinces , and the heads of families , were all murthered , and under pretence of defending the roman catholick religion , all manner of outrages were committed , and a new form of government erected ; these broils continued some time , and the bitterness of the papists was such , that they would make no accommodation , if the protestants were tolerated there ; * so that if a protestant bailiff be sent among them , he cannot publickly exercise his religion . at this time the match between prince charles and the infanta was prosecuted , at least with a seeming willingness on both sides , and being to have some romish priests of her houshold , the pope urged very earnestly that they might be exempt from his majesty's jurisdiction , so very diligent he was in catching at any shadow which might seem to favour the exemption of the clergy . three years after this sanctarellus his book was printed at rome , wherein the deposing power was asserted in its utmost latitude , and though father coto , and two other jesuites , were required to answer it , yet no reply appeared ; the former affirming before the parliament , that though he disapproved the doctrine in france , yet he would assent to it if he were at rome . the oath of allegiance being vigorously press'd in england , the pope sent a bull to the romanists , exhorting them to continue firm , * and let their tongue rather cleave to the roof of their mouth then permit the authority of st. peter , to be diminished by that oath ; and commanding them strictly to observe the breves of pope paul the fifth ; and † father fisher justified suarez , and the doctrine of his book , asking , what could be found prejudicial in it to princely authority ; and affirming that if it contained any such thing it would not be permitted in catholick kingdoms . we have mention'd that the exemption of the clergy was desired by the pope in the treaty for the spanish match ; and now his emissaries in this nation affirmed that the king could have nothing to doe with her majesties chaplains , because he was an heretick ; and his holiness threatned to declare those to be apostates who should seek their establishment in the queens family from the king. but though these were plain indications of what they desired , yet they kept their designs so secret , that they were not discovered till some time after ; but there was a conspiracy detected at genoa , which , if it had not been prevented , would have ended in the murther of the nobility , and alteration of the government . and the next year a plot was detected in mantua against the life of the prince , and some officers apprehended , who would have betray'd viadana to the governour of millan . in ireland the papists assaulted the archbishop of dublin , wounded several of his followers , and forced him to fly for his life ; following him in a tumultuous manner along the streets ; and that they had several seditious designs in hand at the same time , is evident from the confession of † mac-enerry , a dominican , who for this very reason left the church of rome , because of her rebellious doctrines , and the many conspiracies he had taken an oath of secrefie to conceal , which he observed inviolably ; and though he informed the bishop of limrick , that there were many plots then contriving against his majesty's government , yet for his oaths sake he would not name any persons who were concerned in them . the duke of orleance had retired in disgust from court some years since , and was received by the duke of lorrain ; but being forced this year to leave that retreat , he went to brussells , from whence , aided by the spaniards , he marched at the head of an army into france , but was defeated , and several of his adherents executed . while france was thus almost continually pestered with rebellions , the designs of the papists ripened apace in ireland , ; they had erected friaries , in the countrey instead of those which were dissolved in dublin ; and even in that city they had a college of students , whereof father paul harris was dean , and at a synodical meeting of their clergy , they decreed , that it was not lawfull to take the oath of allegiance . if it were not that all the designs of that party from the year . to . were summed up , and perfected in the rebellion in ireland , and the execrable civil wars of england , i should wonder how they came to be so still , and that no more conspiracies were discovered , besides that great one which andreas ab habernsfield was informed of in holland , and of which he sent the king an account , under the hand of the discover , who affirms , that one maxfield was sent into scotland , to stir up a rebellion there , and that the king was to be poisoned ; for which end they kept a strong poison in an indian nut , which he had often seen : they had likewise another design , if they could prevail upon the scots , or discontented english , to rebell , that thereby the king should be straitened , and forced to depend on the papists for assistance , and then they would make their own terms , and secure to themselves a publick liberty , which if he refused to consent to , they would not only desert him , but dispatch him with the indian nut , which they reserved on purpose . he gives also an account of the persons concerned in the plot , among whom were several ladies of quality , for whose encouragement the pope sent a breve to sir toby mathews , one of the principal conspiratours , wherein he exhorts him , and the women engaged with him , to proceed with diligence in the design ; assuring them , that he did not despair to see the authority of the holy see ( which was subverted in england by a woman ) again restored in a very little time , by the endeavours of those heroick ladies . this breve is an unanswerable evidence that the succeeding troubles derived their original from the insatiate lust of rule which possessed the pope , who herein approves of those very methods which afterwards proved the ruine of that excellent prince , and so miserably distracted these poor nations . but he appeared more publickly an abbettor of the irish massacre and rebellion , wherein so many thousand protestants were murthered in cold bloud , sending his nuncio to assist , and affording them all the aid that he was able to give ; a design laid with so much secrefie , and executed with so much cruelty , that nothing but the very spirit of popery could be barbarous enough to engage in it ; in prosecution of which they did all they could totally to beat the english out of the kingdom . the same year the marquess de villa real , the duke de camina , and the marquess d' armamar , who by the instigation of the archbishop of braga , had undertaken to kill the king of portugal , father to her majesty the queen dowager of england , and to fire the ships and the city in several places , that they might have the better opportunity to promote the interest of the spaniards , were put to death . nor did france yet enjoy any more quiet , where the count de soissons , and the duke of guise ; and others , raised a rebellion , and routed the king's army , but the count being slain with his own pistol , the confederacy was soon broken . yet the very next year the duke of orleance combined with the spaniards , who were to assist him with forces for a new rebellion . the pope had involved ireland in bloud the former year , and in this the wars began in england , where several † priests were found among the dead at ●dghill battle ; but the endeavours of his holiness to encrease those miserable confusions , were managed with all imaginable secrefie , while the irish were openly commended by him , and * assured of his prayers for their success in his breve to owen o neal , dated octob. . . and so willing was he to lay hold on all occasions for the exercising his deposing power , that because the † prince of parma offended him , he declared him to have incurred the greater excommunication , and deprived him of all his dominions and dignities . but not content with sending the forementioned breve to o neal , his holiness granted a bull of plenary indulgence , may . . to all the catholicks in ireland , who joined in the rebellion ; which was prosecuted as fiercely as the pope could desire , and a defence of it set forth by an † irish jesuite in portugal , ( though the title-page mentions franckfort , ) who asserts , that the english kings have no title or right to ireland ; that if they had , yet it is the duty of the irish to deprive them of their rights , seeing they are declared hereticks , and tyrants ; that this power of deposing such princes is inherent in every state ; but if the authority of the holy see be added to that power , none but a fool , or an heretick , will deny what the doctours of divinity , and of the civil and canon law , do generally teach , and which is confirmed by reasons and examples . and so far did the pope approve of the contents of this book , that when , soon after its publication , the irish had submitted to the king , and promised to assist him in his wars , his holiness by his nuncio took upon him to be their general , absolved them from their oaths , and imprisoned and threatened the lives of those who had promoted the peace , and desired to return to the king's subjection , which renewed the rebellion again , and brought infinite miseries on that bigotted nation . at the same time above * an hundred of the romish clergy were sent into england by order from rome , who , the better to promote the divisions there , were instructed in several trades , both handicraft and others ; these , upon their arrival , were ordered to disperse themselves , and give intelligence every month to their superiours abroad ; accordingly they listed themselves in the parliament army , and kept a constant correspondence with their brethren , who for the same end served under the king. the next year many of these missioners were in consultation with those in the king's army , to whom they shewed their bulls , and licenses , for taking part with the parliament about the best methods to advance their cause ; and having concluded that there was no way so effectual as to dispatch the king , some were sent to paris , to consult the faculty of sorbonne about it , who return'd this answer , that it is lawfull for roman catholicks to work changes in governments , for the mother church's advancement , and chiefly in an heretical kingdom , and so they might lawfully make away the king ; * which sentence was confirmed to the same persons by the pope , and his council , upon their going to rome to have his holiness's resolution in the point . and now those of them who had before followed the king after his flight from oxford , * agreed to desert the royal cause ; and , as one of them inform us , to ingratiate themselves with the enemy , by acting some notorious piece of treachery ; and father carr , who went by the name of quarter-master laurence , declared , that he could with a safer conscience join with and fight for the round-heads than the cavaliers ; in prosecution of which resolve they dispersed themselves into all the garisons of the king's party , to endeavour the revolt of the soldiers to the parliament ; in which they succeeded as they had projected , my authour being one of those who seduced the wallingford horse from their obedience ; and in scotland the lord sinclare , a pretended presbyterian , but a real papist , commanded a regiment of his own religion , and it being a maxim receiv'd among them , that the surest way to promote the catholick cause was to weaken the royal party , and advance the other , they bent all their endeavours to expedite and accelerate the king's death ; and his majesty having in the treaty of the isle of wight consented to pass five strict bills against popery , the jesuites in france , at a general meeting there , presently resolved to take off his head ; and this his majesty had notice of by an express from thence , but two days before his removal from the isle of wight . this year mr. cressy published the reasons of his leaving the church of england , and turning romanist , wherein obviating the objection so often made against the romanists about their rebellious principles and practices , he sets down a declaration , which he affirms that they were all ready to subscribe , and which differs but little from our oath of allegiance : but here we may see what credit can be given to the representations of their doctrines , which their writers study to make as favourable as possible : for though mr. cressy thought himself a good representer in this point , yet his superiours were of another mind ; and therefore that edition was soon bought up , and in the next the profession of obedience quite left out ; and that this was not an omission of the printer , but the action of his superiours , we are assured by an honourable person from mr. cressy's own mouth , and we shall find in a little time , that the same form hath been condembed by the pope himself . but the ensuing year , as it was dolefull to the english nation , so it brought great disturbances to the most potent princes of europe ; in france the parisians rose in arms , shot at the lord chancellour sequier , and wounded his daughter , barricadoed the streets , and forced the king to set the counsellour broussell , and other factious persons , at liberty . and at the treaty at osnebrugh , when by several articles of the peace the possession of church lands were assured to the protestant princes ; the pope displeased with it , took upon him to make void the peace by a * special bull , declaring all those articles unjust , and of no force , and commanding the princes concerned to observe his bull , in which he renews his claim to the superiority over princes , and particularly the emperour , not only by the bull in general , but by asserting , that † the electours of the empire were established by the authority of the bishop of rome . but to come to their contrivances in england ; where , when several papists had subscribed to some propositions , importing the unlawfulness of murthering princes , and breaking faith with hereticks ; and that the pope hath no power to absolve subjects from their allegiance ; the very same with the declaration published the year before by mr. cressy , this action was condemned at rome , where by a congregation it was decreed unlawfull . and now in prosecution of the pope and sorbon's sentence the last year , that excellent prince , king charles the martyr , was by their contrivances brought to the block ; which though they were willing to disown now , yet at that time they were very sollicitous to let the world know that they were the promoters of it ; * the friars of dunkirk expressed great resentment that the jesuites would engross to themselves the glory of that work , whereas they had laboured as diligently and succesfully as any , and in several other places the friars were very jealous , lest that order should rob them of their part of the honour : and the benedictines were not a little carefull to secure their land in england from the jesuites , for they thought their return sure upon the king's death ; so that the nuns contended vigorously among themselves who should be abbesses in their own countrey . at the time of his majesty's execution mr. henry spotswood , riding casually that way , saw a priest on horseback in the habit of a trouper , with whom he was well acquainted , flourishing his sword over his head in triumph as others did ; he told mr. spotswood , that there were at least forty priests and jesuites present in the same equipage , among whom was preston , who afterwards commanded a troup of horse under cromwell . father sibthorp , in a letter to father metcalfe , owns that the jesuites were contrivers of this murther , and that sarabras was present , rejoycing at it ; one of the priests flourishing his sword , cryed , now our greatest enemy is cut off . when the news of this tragedy came to roan , they affirmed , that they had often warned hi● majesty , that if he did not establish the romish religion in england , they should be forced to take such courses as would tend to his destruction ; and now they had kept their words with him : and in paris a lady having been perverted from the reformed church by a jesuite , upon hearing her ghostly father affirm , that now the catholicks were rid of their greatest enemy , by whose death their cause was much advanced , and therefore she had no reason to lament , left that bloudy and rebellious church , and continues a protestant ever since . but though , as secretary morris affirms , there are almost convincing evidences , that the papists irreligion was chiefly guilty of the murther of that excellent prince ; yet we are beholden to the guilty consciences of those gentlemen , that the world hath not been long since more fully satisfied , as to every particular ; for dr. du moulin in the first edition of his book ann. . had challenged them to call him to an account for affirming , that the rebellion was raised and promoted , and the king murthered by the arts of the court of rome ; the book came to a fourth edition , in all which he renewed the challenge , and in the last in these words : i have defied them now seventeen years to call me in question before our judges , and so i do still ; affirming that certain evidence of what he asserted should be produced whenever authority shall require it . i remember once a jesuite attempted to prove the truth of the nag's-head ordination , because that charge had been laid to our church some years before any offered to confute it , or to produce the lambeth record , which he affirmed was an evident sign that the thing was true , or else having such means to confute it they would not have been so long silent ; what then may we think of those gentlemen who had so heavy a crime charged on them , and yet for near twenty years together never called the accuser to account ? the doctour always refused to produce his evidences , till required by authority ; only he gives us this account , that the papers of resolution in favour of the murther , when it was found to be generally detested , were by the pope's order gathered up and burnt ; but a roman catholick in paris refused to deliver one in his possession , but shewed it to a protestant friend , and related to him the whole carriage of the negotiation . and i am sure if the protestants had been under such an imputation , the papists would make good use of their silence to prove their guilt . but farther to shew their aversion to the royal party , no sooner had the rebels of ireland , in consideration of the straits they were in , made a cessation for some time with the lord inchequin , but the nuncio excommunicated all who observed it ; and upon the conclusion of a second peace with the duke of ormond , his majesty's lieutenant , the assembly of the bishops and clergy at james-town renounced it , and as much as in them lay , restored the former confederacy anew ; but of this we shall have a farther account in its due place . in the mean while reilly , vicar general to the a. b. of dublin , betrayed the royal camp of rathmines to coll. jones , governour of dublin for the parliament , which service he afterwards pleaded for himself to the safety of his life , which was in danger for his cruel actions in the rebellion , and he well deserved more than bare safety from those men , that defeat being the total ruine of his majesty's affairs in ireland . at the same time the rebels in france encreased both in insolence and power daily , the coadjutour of paris going to st. germains , in obedience to the queens commands , was tumultuously stopt by the people , who hindered the nobility from following the king , and broke their coaches ; the parliament forbad all places to receive any garisons from the king , listed men , and resolved upon a war ; the duke d'elbease , duke of lonqueirlle , prince marsil liack , afterwards d. of rochfecault , the prince of conty , and many other persons of the greatest quality joining with them . soon after normandy and poictou declared for the parisians , who sent deputies to call in the spaniards to assist them ; but these troubles being in a little time appeased , new ones began in provence , and guienne , the parliaments of those provinces , prosecuting the war with great fury , declared they would have no pardon from the king ; and one gage , a priest , endeavoured to persuade them to take the sovereign power on themselves , which they declined ; but to maintain the war they treated with the spaniards for assistance , both of men and moneys . this year the prince of conde joined himself to the troudeurs , which was the usual nickname of the discontented party ; but finding that they intended the advancement of chasteau neuf , his mortal enemy , he left them in disgust ; however the parisians made several insurrections ; and upon the imprisonment of that prince an open rebellion broke out in berry , whose example was followed by normandy , and burgundy , to support which the spaniards agreed to contribute foot , and horse , besides great summes of money ; and soon after the parliament of bourdeaux declared for the rebells . during these transactions the popish bishops of ireland met at james-town , published a declaration against all that should adhere to the d. of ormond , his majesty's lord-lieutenant in that kingdom ; upon which my † authour makes this remark , that if the archbishops , &c. in ireland will take upon them to declare against the king's authority where his majesty hath placed it , they assume an authority to themselves that no other clergy ever pretended to , and declare sufficiently to the king , how far they are from being subjects , or intend to pay him any obedience longer than they are governed in such manner , and by such persons as they think fit to be pleased with . but not satisfied with refusing obedience to the king's commissioner , the confederates agreed , that if compounding with the parliament should be best for the people they should doe it : and presently after the marquess of clauricard had at their request taken the government upon him in his majesty's name , it was proposed in their assembly , that they might send to the enemy to treat with them upon surrendring all that was left into their hands . thus did they chuse rather to submit to the parliament , than obey the king , for they were not forced to that submission ; the army of the enemy having made no progress at that time , neither had it been flusht with any new success . as forward was father bret to persuade the gentlemen who had defended the castle of jersey for the king , to renounce the royal family , and kingly government , by taking the engagement ; affirming , that they were not to acknowledge any supreme but the prevailing power . all this while the rebellion in france increased , the parisians took arms , designing to seize the king ; and the prince of conde fortified several places , and confederated with the spaniards , whom , under the conduct of the duke of nemours , he called into france to his assistance , with which he maintained the war all this year , to whom the duke of orleance joined himself , and with all his interest increased the party . the next year mr. tho. white published his book of the grounds of obedience and government , wherein he asserts , that if a prince governs ill he becomes a robber , and the people may expell him , in which case they are not bound by any promise made to him ; and that they have no obligation to endeavour the restauration of a prince so dispossessed of his dominions , but rather to hinder it ; nay , though he were wrongfully driven out ; and such a prince is absolutely obliged to renounce all right and claim to the government ; and if he doth not , he is worse than an infidel . thus after their designs had effected the death of that good king , and expulsion of his late and present majesty , they contributed their endeavours to hinder their return , and debauch those who might attempt it ; yet had some the confidence to commend this gentleman to his late majesty , though the king knew him too well to take any notice of him . that they designed to hinder the restauration of the king , by an absolute compliance with the usurping power , is affirmed by one of their communion , who tells them that they were refractory to the queen's desires at rome for his majesty's assistance , and that collonel hutchinson could discover strange secrets about their treating with cromwell . and it is certain that in ireland there were several precepts granted by the archbishop of armagh , and others , to pray for the success of that usurper's forces ; while dominick decupsy , a dominican , esteemed a person of great holiness , and long , the jesuite , asserted , that the king being out of the roman church , it was not lawfull to pray for him particularly , or publickly on any other day except good fryday , as comprehended among the infidels and hereticks ; and then only for the spiritual welfare of his soul , not for his temporal prosperity . the civil wars continuing still in france , our present sovereign , then duke of york , went into the king's army ; and the princes being straitened , called in the duke of lorrain , who with his army marched to their succour , so that they kept the field all this and the ensuing year . anno . there was a discourse written by benoist de treglies , collateral of the council , or regent of the chancery of naples , in which this proposition was maintained , that when a pope intends to exercise any jurisdiction in a countrey , he ought to let his writs be examined by the temporal prince , that so it may be known whether the causes and persons contained therein be of his jurisdiction : which proposition having been examined by the inquisition at rome , at the express command of the pope , that congregation declared it to be heretical and schismatical , prohibiting the book , and threatening the severest censures against the authour . the following year affords us a farther evidence of the hopes the romanists had conceived of the restauration of their religion here ; for dr. baily , at the end of the life of fisher , bishop of rochester , speaking of the lord cromwell , and the great influence he had upon the proceedings in the beginning of the reformation , expresses their hopes of his party from the usurper , and his counsels , in these words : who knows but that the church may be healed of her wounds by the same name , sit hence the almighty hath communicated so great a secret unto mortals as that there should be such a salve made known to them , whereby the same weapon that made the wound should work the cure. oliva vera is not so hard to be construed oliverus , as that it may not be believed that a prophet , rather than a herald , gave the common father of christendom , the now pope of rome , ( innocent x. ) such ensigns of his nobility , ( viz. a dove holding an olive branch in her mouth , ) since it falls short in nothing of being a prophesie , and fulfilled , but only his highness running into her arms , whose embleme of innocence bears him already in her mouth . three years after this popish loyal flattery , father ferrall , a capuchin , presented a treatise to the cardinals of the congregation , de propaganda fide , proposing some methods to revive the rebellion in ireland , and drive out not only the english , but also all the irish who were descended from the old english conquerours , as not fit to be trusted in so holy a league ; and about the same time father * reiley , the popish primate , coming through brussels , refused to kiss the king's hand , though some offered to introduce him : and to obtain favour with richard cromwell , he alledged that the irish natives had no affection to the king , and his family ; and therefore were fit to be trusted by the protectour ; and upon his arrival in ireland , he made it his business to gain a party there to hinder the king's restauration , promising them great assistance ; upon which the king gave notice of those contrivances to don stephano de gamarro , the spanish ambassadour , in holland , so that he was recalled to rome , to avoid the danger of the law. and ( which is a farther evidence of the enmity of that party to the royal family ) when general monk was at london , in prosecution of that great and good design which he afterwards completed , and had by his prudent conduct gained the affections of the people monsieur de bourdeaux , the french ambassadour , told mr. clergis , † that cardinal mazarine would be glad to have the honour of his friendship , and would assist him faithfully in all his enterprises ; and that the general might be more confident of the cardinal , he assured him that oliver cromwell kept so strict a league with him , that he did not assume the government without his privity , and was directed step by step by him , in the progress of that action ; and therefore if he resolved on that course , he should not only have the cardinal's friendship and counsel in the attempt , but a safe retreat , and honourable support in france , if he failed in it . soon after his majesty's restauration , which all the contrivances of these men could not hinder , the jesuites presented a paper to several persons of honour , pleading to be included within a favourable vote which had been made with reference to all other romanists ; in which they acknowledge , that no party in their church think the deposing doctrine sinfull , but themselves , who are by order of their general forbidden to meddle with it : but , as their answerer observes , this makes them but the more guilty , seeing their loyalty depends upon the will of their general , which is all they pretend to be influenced by in this matter : but this is not all , for they impose upon the world in that assertion , there being no such decree which respects any other countrey but france ; and whereas ( if we should grant them that ) they pretend to be bound by it under pain of damnation , this likewise is false ; for none of their constitutions oblige them under so much as a venial sin. therefore the same person advised them to join in a subscription of abhorrence of those deposing doctrines , which had been too often maintained by them ; but this was a piece of loyalty to which they could never arrive . the former year some of the irish clergy and gentry , to make some amends for their rebellion , had subscribed that declaration which mr. cressy published in the year . which hath since been called the irish remonstrance , and made a great noise in the world for some years ; for no sooner was an account of this loyal action transmitted to rome , but the internuncio de vecchiis , then resident at brussels , by the pope's order declared , that his holiness had condemned it ; and cardinal barberini , in a letter to the noblemen of ireland , affirmed , that such as subscribe it do , to shew their fidelity to the king , destroy their faith ; and therefore exhorted all to beware of those seducers who promoted the subscriptions to it , and † father macedo , a portugueze , who had formerly made a latine panegyrick upon cromwell , was employed to write against it . the * dominicans refused absolution to some of their order , because they would not retract their approbations ; and the provincial box'd another for the same cause ; † the augustinians absolutely refused to sign it ; so did the ‖ franciscans , and * the jesuites . † anthony mac gheoghegan , popish bishop of meath , and several others , sent father john brady to rome , to get a direct censure published against it : and the theological faculty at ‖ lovain , declared that it contained many things contrary to the catholick faith , and ought not to be signed by any ; but father shelton , and several other priests , were more particular , who told father walsh , the procurator for the irish clergy in this affair , ‖ that they would not subscribe that form , nor any other , denying a power in the pope to depose the king , or absolve subjects from their allegiance , because this is a matter of right , controverted between two great princes . two years after † de riddere , commissary general of the franciscans for the belgick provinces , in a national congregation of all the provincials of that order subject to him , declared the subscribers of the remonstrance to be schismaticks , reserving a power to their superiours to proceed against them when it should be convenient . and the nuncio de vecchiis , in a letter to father caron , ‖ calls the remonstrance a rock of offence ; but the bishop of * ferns he declared himself more positively for the deposing power in his letter to dr. james cusack , jun. . . and therefore in his letter to the ‖ d. of ormond , sep. . this year , he justifies all that was done at james-town by the romish bishops , who broke the peace of . and two years after they excommunicated the duke , then his majesty's lieutenant there , refusing to obey him any longer . and the same bp. in two † letters to father walsh the next year , seriously professed that he durst not renounce the pope's deposing power , which was maintained by saints , ( st. thomas one , ) cardinals , patriarch , a. bps. bps. and classical authors , with other eminent divines ; and chose rather to continue a banisht man , than declare against them . and when his majesty had granted liberty to the r. clergy of that nation to hold a national synod that year , to try if they would give any assurance of their loyalty , * card. barberini wrote to them not to subscribe that protestation ; and the † internuncio rospigliosi affirmed , that to sign the remonstrance rendered the subscribers instruments of the damnation of others . * the cardinal minded them that the kingdom remained under excommunication , and therefore advised them to consider what they did . at length the assembly me● , and the card. fent letters dissuading them to give any such assurance of their loyalty , as being prejudicial to the cath. faith , which was seconded by another from the internuncio , and the bp. of ipres , directed to some of the synod , who were very obedient to these admonitions ; for when father walsh endeavoured to prove that several great divines had opposed the deposing doctrine , † father nettervile interrupted him , affirming that none had asserted the contrary , but a schismatical historian , and a poet , meaning sigibertus gemblacensis , and dante 's aligherius ; * soon after which they resolved not only not to sign the remonstrance , but not to suffer it to be read in the house : and when the procuratour desired them to beg his majesty's pardon for the late execrable rebellion , * they not only refused to ask pardon but so much as to acknowledge there was any need of it ; affirming publickly that they knew none at all guilty of any crime for any thing done in the war. and when the lord lieutenant desired them to give his majesty some assurance of their future obedience , in case of any deposition or excommunication from the pope , they refused even this without so much as putting it to the question . they offered indeed several forms instead of the remonstrance , but in none of them renounced the deposing power ; in that the assembly signed at their breaking up , they disowned the doctrine , but would not declare that doctrine which abetts it unsound and sinfull ; wherein they have been imitated by some late writers , who though called upon to affirm it such , never did it . once indeed they seemed to come something near what was expected , when their * chairman told father walsh , that it was not out of any prejudice against the remonstrance they would not sign it , but because they thought it more becoming their dignity and liberty to word their own sense ; for the rest , they were far from condemning that remonstrance or the subscribers thereof : yet would they not own this when desired under their hands , but refused ; so that no good being expected , they were dissolved , leaving an undeniable evidence of their aversion to loyalty , and approbation of the treasonable doctrine of the ch. of rome . soon after the dissolution of this synod the e. of sandwich , ambassadour in spain , informed his majesty that primate reilly was emplyed to stir up his countrey-men to rebell , upon which a gurd was set upon him , and in a little time was sent into france . the bp. of ferns still justified the rebellion , defending the actions of the clergy for laudable , vertuous , meritorious deeds , and becoming good men ; and therefore needing no repentance : and this is the last account i find of him , for he soon after dyed . and now the controversie about the regale growing hot between the king of france and the present pope , his holiness had so much of the spirit of his predecessours , who were for asserting their power over all the kingdoms of the world , as to threaten the king with excommunication , and that speedily , if he would not renounce his claim , and he was as good as his word ; for the king not being affraid of his thunders , and refusing to lose his right , and the assembly of the clergy joining with his majesty , the pope sent a bull of excommunication to his nuncio , requiring him to publish it in the assembly ; but by the diligence of the cardinal d'estree , the assembly was adjourned before the arrival of the bull. at the same time szlepeche , my primate of hungary , with his clergy , maintained the deposing power , by a censure of the contrary opinion ; and the next year the spanish inquisition at toledo did the same ; which was followed three years after by four theses , publickly maintained by the jesuites at their college of clermont in auvergne , wherein it was defended ; and even among our selves the authour of popery anatomised defends the decree of the council of laterane , in that the kings and princes of europe by their ambassadours consented to it , affirming that the christian world apprehended no injury , but rather security in that decree . finis . advertisement of two other books writ by the authour of this book . . the missionaries arts discovered : or , an account of their ways of insiruation , their artifices , and several methods of which they serve themselves in making convert to the church of rome . with a letter to a 〈◊〉 . . a plain defence of the protestant religion , fitted to the meanest capacity , being a full answer to the popish net for the fishers of m●n , that was writ by two converts ; wherein is evidently made appear , that their departure fr●m the protestant religion was without cause or reason . fit to be read by all protestants . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e a fowl. p. . anno . . b fowl. p. . . . . c fowl. p. . see the bull at the end of brutu● fulmen . lond. . to . . . . * hunting of the romish fox . p. , , . * fowlis hist. of romish treas . p. . † foxes & fire-brands , part . . p. . dublin , . mr. mason minister of finglas , in the year . copied the substance of the bull out of the records at paris . . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . surii commentar . p. . speed's chron. p. . * surii comment . brevis . p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chron. p. . † speed's chr. p. , . ‖ speed's chr. p. . . * bulla q●arta pauli tert●i . jesuitis concessa apud hospin . histor. jesuit . p. , , . this bull is called by the jesuits , mare magnum . . * speed's chronicle . p. , to . anno . † speed's chronicle . p. , , . . a speed's chron. p. , . ‖ fifth part of church government . p. . oxford . ▪ b hist. of the council of trent , p. , . london . . vo . . c fowl. hist. of romish treasons . p. . . d idem . p. . * f●xes and firebrands . part . . p . . * fowlis's hist. p. . . † idem . p. . . ‖ idem . p. . * gabut . vit. pii quinti . l. . c. . apud . fowl. ubi supra & thuanus . lib. . ibid. . † fowl. hist. p. . ‖ concil . trid. sess. . c. . decemb. . . * fowlis's hist. p. . . edward dennum , see his letter to the lord cecil of april . . . in foxes and firebrands , p. , to . — out of the memorials of the lord ce●● . † speed's chr. p. . fowlis hist. p. . . . . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. , . import . consi● . p. . * id. p. . † sir ed. coke at the tryall of the gunp. trait . hist. of the gunp. tr. p. . . ‖ see the bull in fowlis hist. p. . and speed's chron. p. . * surii comment . p. . ‖ id. * speed's chr. p. , . fowl. hist. p. . † execut. of justice for treason . pr. lond. . to . ‖ surii comment . p. . non illos habuere successus , conatus illorum nobilium , quos peraverant , fortassis quod catholicis omnibus ea denuntiatio , needum innotuisset . * idem . p. . noluerunt elizabetham legitimam reginam confiteri . † fowl. hist. p. , . * speed's chr. p. . . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chron. p. . † surii com. p. , , . * resp. ad f●li● . regin . angl. † ad an. . sect. . ‖ see fowlis ubi supra . surii comment . p. , , . . . 〈◊〉 hist. p. ● . . fowl. hist. p. . * see the instrument of that confederacy in maimbourg's hist of the league . p. . lond. . vo . † see the instrument in fowlis , p. , , . see the account of this transaction in the appendix to the vindication of the sincerity of the prot. relig. . speed's chr. p. . * nelson , hance , lacies , briant , &c. † see his letter in speed●● . ‖ hist. jesuit . p. , . . . anat of popish tyr. in the ep. dedi ▪ lond. to . fowlis's hist. p. , . † fowlis ubi supra . fowl. p. . . see the bull at large in fowlis , p. . ‖ eandem plenariam peccatorumvestrorum indulgentiam & remissionem , quam adversus turcas , pro recuperanda terra sancta bellantes consequuntur , tribuimus , &c. * john nichols in his declaration of his recantation , apud fowlis , p. . and reniger de pii quinti , and greg. . furoribus , c. . lon. . vo . † cambd. eliz. l. . ad an . . * important consideration , p. . ‖ see them reprinted in the collect. of trea. concerning the penal laws . lond. . this passage is p. . * auth. tyrrell in his recantation , p. . † they are his own words , see execution of justice , &c. p. . * see reynolds conser . with hart , pref. to the e●gl . seminaries , p. lond . to . petatur à ●●mo domino nostro , explicatio bullae quam catholici cupiunt intelligi hoc modo , ut obliget semper illam & hereticos , catholicos verò nullo modo obliget , rebus sic stantibus , sed tum demum quaudo publica ejusdem bullae executio fieri poterit . execut. for trea. p. , . ‖ important considerations , p. , . * hunting of the romish fox , p. , . out of cecil's memoirs . † import . con. p. . & fowl. hist. p. . † hunting of the rom. fox , p. , , , . out of cecu's memoirs . . * declaration of the favourable dealings of her majest . commissioners , p. . . to . † important consid. p. . * hunting of the romish fox . p. , . * fowlis , p. . . fowlis , p. , , , . hunting of the romish fox , p. . † speed's ch● p. . execut. for trea p. . anno . anat. popish tyr. p. . speed's chron. p . . * foxes & firebrands , part . . p. . fowlis's hist. p. . anat of popish tyranny , p. . . fowlis hist. p. . * foxes and firebrands . part . . p. , . fowlis's hist. p. . idem . p. . see the letter in fowlis , p. , and speed , . idem . p. . idem . p . * histor. jesuit . p. . speed's chr. p. . jes. cat. p , . fowl. hist. p. . * id. p. . id. p. . anno . fowl. hist. p. . id. p. . id. p. . sep. . . speed's chron. p. . anat. of pop. tyr. epist. dedicat. anno . ca●●d . annal. ad an . . fowlis's hist. p. , * speed's chronicle . p. . anat. of pop. tyr. p. . * speed's chr. p. . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . fowl. hist. p. , . id. p. , . . fowlis , p. . id. p. . * speed's chr. p. . anat. popish tyr. p. . anno . ‖ fowl. p. ● . coll. of trea. conc. the penal laws , p. , . def. of eng , cath. p. , . cited shy fowl. p. . . ‖ fowl. p. . speed's chr. d. ‖ fowl. p. . * speed's chr. p. . fowlis , p. , . id. p. . speed's chron. p. . import . consid. p. . * id. p. . ‖ fowlis , p. . speed , p. . * fowlis hist. p. . † important consid. p. . * fowl. p. . fowlis's hist. p. , . * fowlis's hist. p. . ‖ id. p. . * fowl. p. . id. p. . id. p. , , . * id. p. . . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . vide praef. ‖ id. p. . † ibid. † mr. bruce in the same letter , ibid. fowlis , p. , . † speed's chronicle . p. . fowlis hist. p. . import . consid . p. . † fowlis hist. p. . * id. p. ● . ‖ id. p. . . where see the letter . * id. p. , , . fowlis's hist. p. , . * conclusum est , nemine refragante , primùm , quod populus hujus regni solutus est & liberatus à sacramento fidelitatis & obedientiae , &c. deinde , quod idem populus licitè , & tutâ conscientia , armari , uniri , & pecunias colligere & contribuere potest , ad defensionem & conservationem religionis apostolicae , catholi●● , & romanae , adversus nefaria consilia & conatus praedicti regis , &c. see the whole decree in fowlis , p. , . † id. p. . fowlis , p. . see the bull at large in fowlis , p. . * ibid. p. . ib. p. , , . that he was set on by the jesuites , see hospin . histor. jesuit . p. , . fow. p. . hist. jesuit . p. , . . see it at large in fowlis hist. p. . ib. p. ▪ . ib. p. . ib. p. . . ibid. fowl. p. . ibid. id. p. . idem . p. . ‖ fowl. p. , . † jure divino prohibentur catholici haereticum hominem , aut f●utorem haeresecos , ad regnum admittere . quod si ejusmodi absolutionem à criminibus impetraverit , & tamen subsit manifes●um simulationis , is nihilominus eodem jure excludi debet . quicunque autem satagat , ut is ad regnum perveniat , — est religioni atque ecclesiae perniciosus , contra quem eo nomine agi potest & debet , cujuscunque gradus & eminentiae sit . — cùm igitur henricus b●rbonius haereticus fit , & si forte absolutionem in foro exteriore impetraret , manifestum appareat simulationis — 〈…〉 regni aditu , 〈◊〉 absolutionè obten●● , — franci prohibere , & a pace cum eo facienda abhorrere tenentur — qui dicto henrico ad regnum aspiranti favere , suppetiásve , quovis modo ferunt , religionis desertores sunt , & in continuo peccato mortali 〈◊〉 ; — qui ●e alli opponunt quocùnque modo , zelo religionis , plurimum apud deum & homines merent●● — si ad sanguinem usque resistant , eos aeternum in praemium , & ut fidei propugnatores martyrii palmam , consecut●ros , judicare fas est . conclusum , nemine repugnante , 〈…〉 congregatione general● , &c. septimo die maii , . fow. p , . &c. ‖ fowl. p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. * id. p. . † ob hanc causam etiam publico ordinam decreto extra provincia ejecti sunt , an . . sub mensis januarii initium . histor. jesuit . p. . fowlis , p . jesuites catec . p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. . fow. p. . id. p. . id. p , . . fowlis's hist. p. , . ‖ important consid. p. . * ibid. anat. of popish tyranny , p. . † fowlis's hist. p. . important consid. and anat. of pop. tyr. p. . speed's chron. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . ‖ fowlis , p. , . . id●m . p. . idem . p. ● . * speed's chr. p. . anat. popish tyr. p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. import . consid. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chr. p. . fowl. p. . &c. fowl. p. , . id p. . ●●es . catech. ● . . c. . histor. jesuit . p. . † jes. cat. l. . c. . histor. jesuit . p. . sumptura est de barrierio supplicium , . aug. die verò . qui erat dominicus , pater commoletus , jesuita parisiensis , in epilogo concionis suae m●nuerat & adhortatus fuerat auditores , ne paululùm adhuc obdurarent , & quietis essent animis , siquidem brevi miraculum à deo magnum ipsos esse percepturos , atque oculis suis visuros . . histor. jesuit , p. , &c. fowlis hist. p , &c. hist. jes. p. . jes. cat. l. . c. . fowlis , p. . † fowlis hist. p. . hist. jesuit . p. . fowl. p. . jesu . cat. l. . c. . histor. jes. p. , , . * id. p. . ratus id religioni conducere . * constituit insuper ut omnes sacerdotes collegii clermontii , & omnes alii praedictae societati addicti , tanquam corruptores juventutis , perturbatores publicae tranquillitatis , — toto regno exeant . illorum au●em mobilia & immobilia bona vertentur , &c. — secundùm arbitrium & decretum curiae . hist. jes. p. . histor. jesuit . p. , . where you may see the summe of his book , and the arrest of parliament against him . see also fowlis , p. , &c. † of him see hist. jesuit . ubi supra . † speaking of chastell , there are these lines , malis magistris usus & schola impia , sotericum e●eu nomen usurpantibus . expressing by whose instigation he undertook the murther . * pulso tota gallia hominum genere novae & maleficae superstitionis qui rempublicam turbarunt , quorum instinctu particularis adolescens dirum facinus instituerat . hist. jes. p. . † sand. hist. of k. james , p. . ‖ c'st un acte tres sainct , tres humaine , tres digne , tres louable , & tres recommendable . — conformement à dieu , aux loix , au decrets , & à l'eglise . apolog. pour . j. chastel , p. . . see also hist. jaes . p. . † fowl. p. . speed's chron. p . fowlis's hist. p. , . hist. jesult . p. . . fowl. p. . * mousehole , meulin , and pensans . . fowl. p. . a. p. reply to a notorious libell , p. , . cited by fowl. p. . fowl. p. . speed. p. . fowl. p . import . consid . p. . anat. of pop. tyran . p. . . * speed , p. . † jes. cat. l . c. speed , p. , . . id. p. . cambd. annal. ad an . . * jes. cate● . l. . c. . hist. jes. p. . fowl. p. , . . fow. p . speed. p. . * see them at large in fowlis , p. . . . † desideramus ut quem ●dmodum faeli●is recordationis pius v. p. m. contra reginam angliae — bullam excommunicationis ediderat , necnon greg. . eandem continuaverat — similem quoque sententiam ad hoc bellum promovendum , & ad felice● exitum deducendum sanctitas vestra emittere dignetur . fowl. p. . ‖ cùm rom. pontificum praedecessorum nostrorum , & nostris & apostolicae sedis cohortationibus adductis — hugoni o neale — conjunctis animis & viribus praesto fueritis . see the letter at large in fowlis , p. , . speed , p. . . * fowlis p. . this year col. sempill betrayed lyer in flanders to the spaniards . wadsw . engl. span. pilgr . p . lond. . — to . delr . disquis . magi. l. . c. . lov. . to . account of the proceedings against the gunp. trait . p. . lond. . to . anno . foxes & firebrands , pt . . p. . fowl. p. . acct. of the proceedings against the gunpowder trait . p. . foxes & firebrands , ubi supra . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . * walton's life of sir henry wotton , p ● , &c. † 〈…〉 & principes , &c. ‖ 〈◊〉 ex his 〈◊〉 in domino 〈◊〉 — laudamus egregiam pietat●m & fortitudinem tuam . — conservate filii hanc mentem , conservate vnionem , — & deus erit vobi●●um , & p●gnabit pro vobis . vbi opus p●rit , scribemus effica●iter ad reges & principes catholicos , — ut vobis & causae vestrae omni ope suffragentur . cogitamus etiam prope●iem mittere ad vos peculiaerem nuncium nostrum . tibi & cateris qui tibi unanimes pro sidei 〈◊〉 propugnatione adhaerent , nostram & apostoli●am benedictionem benig●● impertimur . fowl. p. . † walsh's hist. of the irish rem . pref. p. . * see his declaration in fowlis hist. p , &c. speed's chr. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chr. p. . ‖ hist of the gunpow . tr. p. , . . hist gunp. tr. p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. * tanquam certum est accipiendum , posse rom. pontif. sidei desertores , armis compell●re ac coercere ; — posse quoscunq●e catholicos hugoni o neal in praed . bello favere , idque magro cum merito , & spe maxima retributionis aeternae ; cùm enim bellum gerit authoritate summi pontificis . — eos omnes catholicos peccare mortaliter , qui anglorum castra — sequuntur ; nec posse illos aeternam salutem consequi , nec ullo sacerdote à suis peccatis absolvi , nisi prius resipiscant , ac castra anglorum deserant . idemque de illis censendum est qui illis tribuunt , praeterea tribu●a consueta quae ex summi pont. indulgentia & permissione eis licet anglis regibus — solvere — surreptio intervenire non potest , nulla narratur petitio eorum in quorum favorem expeditur ; at summus pont ▪ aperte in illis literis docet se & antecessores suos sponte exhortates fuisse ad illu● bellum gerendum hibernos . — permissum est etiam catholicis haere●icae reginae id genus obsequii praestare quod catholicam religionem non oppugnet . — da●um salamanticae , . martii . . fowl. p. . fowl. p. . hist. of the irish remon . pref. p. . . * see it at large in hist. 〈◊〉 p. . 〈◊〉 re●ula ind●●itata habent quod ille excommunicandorum regum potestatem habeat , quod rex excommunicatus nihil sit aliud quam tyrannus , cui populus rebellare possit ; — quod omnes regnicolae qui minimum in ecclesia ordinem habeant , si quodcunque crimen committant , illud pro laesae majestatis 〈◊〉 haberi non possit , propterea quod regum subditi non sint , nec ad eorum jurisdictionem pertineant . † oportet igitur ut illi qui tenent , & in regno vestro manere volunt , eas publicè in suis collegiis abjurent . ‖ hist. jes. p. . ne ulla collegia — sine expressa regis permissione insticuant . — vt semper aliquem habeant , natione gallum , qui regi à sacris concionibus esset , & de omnibus negotiis rationem totius societatis nomine ipsi re●dere possit . account of the proceed , p. . hist. of the gun-powder plot. p. . anno . † acct. of the proceedings , p. . 〈◊〉 . fowl. hist. p ▪ . an account of the proceed . p . . † ib. p. . hist of the gun-powder treason p. . wilson's hist. of k. j. p. . ‖ account of the proceed . p. . see his papers at the end of the account , p. , &c. account of the proceedings , p. , . † causab . ep. ad front. du●aeum , p. . lond. . to . * account of the proceed . p. . ‖ fow. p. . * account of the proceed . p. . † robins . anat. of the english nunnery at lisbon , p. . lond. . to . fowl. p. . fowlis , p. . in his papers ubi supr . p . * copley's reasons , p. . † vindication of the history of gunp. tr. p. . † fowl. p. . * copley's reas. p. . ib. p. . * k. james premon p ● . of his works ▪ † account of proceedings , p. . * see key for cathol . p. . hist. of the gun-powder treas . p. . † copley's reasons , p. . * robins . anat. p. . † primarius quidem baro s●●tus , idemque spectatissimae in religione constant●ae , cum romam venisse● , in templo ilio jesuitarum , inter alios sodalitatis illius martyres , 〈◊〉 gar●etti effigiem vidit . bernard . giral . patavi . pro repub. ven. apolog. p. . * st. amo●r's journal . p. . lond. . fol. — pater henricus gar●ettus anglus , l●ndini pro fide catholica suspensus , & sectus . . maii. ● . fowl. p. . vind●c . of the sincer. of the prot. relig. p. . out of thuanus ad an . . * tertul. apol. c. . cui autem opus est scrutari super caesaris sal●te , nisi à quo adversus illum aliquid cogitatur , aut post illam speratur & sustinetur . — * fowl. p. . idem . p. . fowl. hist. , &c. histor. jes. p. . . fowl. p. . * authoritate omnipotentis dei , ac b. petri & pauli apostolorum ejus , ac nostra , nisi dux & senatus intra viginti quatuor dies a die publicationis praesentium — computandos praedicta decreta omnia , &c. revocaverint , &c. — ●xcommunicamus , & excommunicatos nunciamus & declaramus . et si di ●i dux & senatus per tres dies post lapsum dictorum viginti quatuor dierum , excommunicationis sententiam animo sustinuerint in lurato , — universum temporale dominium dict . reip. ecclesiastico interdicto supponimus , — ilidsque etiam p●en●s contra ipsos — juxta sacrorum canonum dispositionem — leclarandi facultatem reservamus . — dat. apr. . anno . † fowlis hist. l. ▪ , &c. ib. p. , . † non potes●is absque evidentissima gravissim●que divini honoris injuriâ obligare vos juramento , — cùm multa contineat quae fidei & saluti apertè aversantur . . * aug. . . decrevimus vobis significare literas illas post longam & gravem de omnibus quae in illis continentur deliberationem ●dhibitam fuisse scriptas ; & ●b id teneri vos illas omnino observare , omni interpretatione secùs suadente rejectà . fowlis's hist. p. . treatise of mitigation , p. . hist. jesuit . p. . hist. jes. p. . vindicat. of prot. relig. p. . . fowl. p. , . si intra tempus hoc facere distulerint , eos 〈◊〉 t●●ibus & privilegiis omnibus●●rives . . histor. jesuit . p. . idem , p. , , . anno . hist. jesuit . p. . . vindic. of the sincer. of the plot. relig. p. . fow. p. . i● . p. , &c. hist. jesuit . p. . hic quidem mos est regum , ut ingentes thesauros ad sui amplitudinem & aliorum terrorem colligant , at rustliculum unum ad regem supprimendum sufficere . histor. jesuit . p. , . fowlis's hist. p. , . . histor. jesuit . p. , &c. . fowl. p. . . see his speech at large in his diverses o●●vres , paris , . fol. ‖ fow. p . his defens . fidei catholicae . — see brutum fulmen , p. . &c. frankl . annal. p. , . nani's history of venice , p. , . . ib. p. , . anno . . nani's history of venice , p. , . . hist. jesuit . p. , . * nani , p. , . * consp . of the span. agt. the state of venice , p ▪ , . lon. . vo . † nani p. . ‖ hist. jesuit . p , . . * nani , p. . . † id. p. . * burne●'s trav. p. . . wilson's hist. of great brit. p. . . fowlis , p. . mister . pret. , . sen. quid si essetis romae ? p. coto . mut●retur nobiscum coelo animus , sentiremus ut romae . . * see baiting of the pope's bull , in init . — ad haereat lingua vestra faucibus vestris , priusquam authoritatem b. petri eâ jurisjurandi formulâ imminutam detis . † jesuits reasons unreasonable , p. . . rushworth's collect. part . . p. . . nani's history of venice , p. . . idem . p. ● . foxes & firebrands , pt . . p. , . . † hunting of the rom. fox , p. , . . nani's history of venice , p. , &c. anno . bp. bedell . long 's history of plots , p. . . see whole account published under this title , the designs of the papists , lond. . to . see it in frankland's annals , p. , . non diffidimus , — quia sicut occasione unius foeminae authoritas sedis apostolicae in regno augliae suppressa fuit , sic nunc per tot heroicas foeminas , — brevi modò restituenda sit , — . see the history of the irish rebellion , fol. nani's hist. p. . nani's hist. p. , &c. . id. p. . † long 's hist. of plots , p. . * nos divlnam clementiam indesinenter orantes , ut adversariorum conatus in nihilum redigat , &c. see it at large in the append . to the hist. of the irish rebel . p. . † nani's hist. p. . . hist of the irish remon . pres. p. . † disputatio apolog. de jure reg. hibern . pro cath. hibern . advers . heret . anglos , p. . cited by walsh in the history of the irish remonstrance , p. , . in these words : ordines regni optimo jure poterant ac debebant omni dominio hiberniae priva●e tales reges , postquam facti sunt haeretici atque tyranni — hoc enim jus & potestas in omni regno & republica est . — jam si consensui regui in hac re accederet author●tas apostolica , quis nisi hareticus , vel stultus au lebit negare quod hic affirmamus , & doctores theologi , & juris utriusque periti passim docent , rationes probant , exempla suadent . . anno . ●d . clarendon against cressy , p . * bp. bramhali's letters to a. p. vsher , ap ▪ vsher's life & letters , p. . . id. p. . anno . * vindic. of the sincerity of the prot. relig. p. . * mutatus polemo . p. , . i● . p. . . . . vindic. of the sincer . of the prot. relig. p. . cressey 's exomolog . p. . paris , . vo . ld. clarendon against cressey . p. , . . priorato's hist. of france , p. , &c. lond. . fol. * declaratio ss . dom. nostri innoc. divinâ providentiâ papae . nullitatis articulorum nuperae paci● germaniae , religioni gatholicae , sedi apostolicae , & quomodo libet praejudicialium , — see it in hoornbeck disputat . ad bull. inn. . † numerus septem electorum imperii — apostolicâ authoritate praefinitus . — hist of the irish remon . p. , . * vindic. of the sincer. of the prot. relig. p. , . foxes & firebrands , part . p. . vindication of the prot. rel. p. . id. p. ● ▪ . in his letter to dr. du moulin , aug. . . idem ▪ p. . ib. p. , &c. id. p. . see the excommunication in the appendix to the hist. of the irish rem . p. . wals●'s letters in the pref. . hist of the irish remon . p. . priorat●'s hist. of france , p. , &c. . id. p. , &c. see it at large , a●d the duke's answer to it , hist. of the irish remonst . ap. p. . † hist. of the irish rebell . p. . id. p. . . vindic. of the prot. relig. p. . priorato's hist. of france , p. , , , . . lon●'s hist. of plots , p. , . vindic. of the prot. relig. p. , &c. jesuites reasons unreasonable , p. , . hist. of irish rebellion , p. . priorato's hist. of france , p. , &c. . st. amour's annals , p. . . baily's life of fi●her , p. , . london , . vo . . hist. of the irish remonst . p. . * the same who had betrayed rat●mines to jones . . hist. of the irish remon . p. . † long 's hist. of plots , p. , . . jesuites reasons unreasonable , p. , &c , id. p. . hist of the irish remon . p. , , . where see the letters , and p. , . † id. p. . * p. . † p. . ‖ p. . * p. . † p. . ‖ p. . ‖ p. . † p. . . . ‖ p. . * p. , &c. ‖ p. , . anno † p. , &c. . * p. . † p. . * ld. clarend . against cr●ss●y , p. , . hist. of the irish remonst . p. , &c. † p. . * p ▪ . * id. pref. p. , . idem . p. . * p. . p. . . walsh's letters p. . anno . . news from france , p. . lond. . to . walsh's letters in the pref. . . popery anat. p. . lond. . to . of our obligation to put our trust in god, rather than in men, and of the advantages of it in a sermon preached before the honourable society of grayes-inn, upon the occasion of the death of our late royal sovereign queen mary / by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) of our obligation to put our trust in god, rather than in men, and of the advantages of it in a sermon preached before the honourable society of grayes-inn, upon the occasion of the death of our late royal sovereign queen mary / by william wake ... wake, william, - . 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng mary -- ii, -- queen of england, - -- sermons. trust in god -- sermons. death -- sermons. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - jonathan blaney sampled and proofread - jonathan blaney text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion of our obligation to put our trust in god , rather than in men , and of the advantages of it . in a sermon preached before the honourable society of grayes-inn : upon the occasion of the death of our late royal sovereign queen mary , by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to his majesty , and preacher to the same society . published at the request of several of the masters of the bench , and others , that heard it . london : printed for r. sare at grayes-inn-gate in holbourn , . psal. cxlvi . , , . put not your trust in princes , nor in the son of man in whom there is no help . his breath goeth forth , he returneth to his earth ; in that very day his thoughts perish . happy is he who hath the god of jacob for his help , whose hope is in the lord his god. if ever any people had a just occasion given them to enter upon those reflections which these words naturally present to us ; and to consider , how little dependance is to be placed upon the * best or greatest among the children of men : i may with confidence say , that we of this nation , have at this time , a most eminent occasion given us by the divine providence so to do . it has pleased god , within these few days , to deprive us of a most excellent princess ; under whom , we had flatter'd our selves , that we should have long enjoy'd , a more than ordinary portion , of happiness and prosperity . a person she was , as by the greatness of her character qualified beyond most others to have become a national blessing ; so by the many incomparable endowments , god had bestow'd upon her , in a singular manner disposed so to be . and as this raised our hopes into some more than ordinary expectations from her ; so that firmness of constitution which she enjoy'd , accompanied with a yet early and vigorous youth , seem'd to promise us , that we should be many years blessed under the influence both of her authority and of her example . but alas ! how suddainly are all these hope 's cut off , and our expectations brought to an end ! and nothing left us but the sad reflection , how grievously mistaken we were in our opinion of our own happiness ; and how little trust is to be put in any , but that god , who alone enjoys a certainty of being , and therefore can alone with safety be depended upon . in the words before us , there are these two things that naturally offer themselves to our consideration : first , that it is a vain thing to put our trust in any man , be his rank or condition never so great ; upon this double account , ( ) that his power to help us , is very small : ver . . and , ( . ) his continuance short and uncertain , ver . . and therefore to trust in such a person , must be to repose our confidence in one , who oftentimes cannot help us ; and , in a little while , will fail us . secondly , that he who will place his trust upon a sure foundation , must place it upon god ; who alone is always able , and will always continue in a condition , to help and defend us . and , first , that it is a very vain thing to put our trust in any man , be his rank or condition never so great ; because both his power to help is very small , and his continuance short and uncertain : and therefore to trust in such a person , must be to build our hope upon one who oftentimes may not be able to help us ; and very probably , in a little while will fail us . this is a consideration , both so certain in its self , and so obvious even to the meanest capacity ; that did we not see men every day overlook it in their practice , one might think it hardly needful to offer any arguments , either to illustrate , or to confirm the truth of it . if ( ) we consider the power , of the greatest persons , to help us ; alas ! how little is it at the best ? and , for the most part , how useless to us ? in how many cases does it surpass their power to do us any good ? and even in those in which it may seem the most in their power to assist us ; yet how many accidents may there fall out , to prevent us from being at all the better for it ? it may be they are unwilling to grant us what we desire of them . perhaps they are disposed to do somewhat for us ; but they will not be perswaded to do so much as our needs require : and so spoil all the advantage we hoped to have reaped from their kindness to us , for want of making their supply suitable to our occasions . it may be they are willing to do all that we desire of them , but not presently : they put off the time ; till at last , by their delays , their favour comes too late to us . or lastly ; it is possible that in a little while they may change their minds , and with them , their affections towards us . and so where we thought to have found a friend , we meet an enemy : one who is disposed rather to do us a mischief , than to lend any help or assistance to us . so impotent ; so trifling ; so uncertain , and dis-ingenuous a creature , is man ! and then , what a vanity must it be for any one to place his trust upon the interest or authority , the love or favour of such a one ? who in the chiefest of our needs , cannot help us at all : and in those , wherein he is able to relieve us , will be apt either altogether to fail us ; or else to mix so much of humane frailty and infirmity with his favour , as shall render it of very little use and value to us . nor let any one think that there is any order of men exempted from the force of these reflections . even the greatest persons lye open to them , no less than those of a lower degree . their power indeed is greater , and they can do much more for us than other men. but yet still it is far short of our wants ; and cannot answer one half of those exigencies , in which we shall stand in need of some one to help and assist us . their minds are mutable no less than other mens : and they are by so much the more likely to change in their affections towards us , by how much the more they are exposed to the delusions of those about them ; who are still envious of such as they take into their particular favour ; and will therefore be still endeavouring , by all imaginable ways , to bring us into disgrace with them . their favours are , generally , the longest in coming , and the hardest to be obtain'd : whilst the very formality which attends the dispensing of them , oftentimes , costs so much , and causes such delays ; as is utterly inconsistent with many of those wants , wherein we might otherwise promise our selves the most considerable advantage from their favour and affection towards us . and from all which we must therefore conclude , that it is a very vain thing to place any confidence in man upon this first account , viz. that the power , even of the greatest persons , to help us is exceeding small ; exposed to so many casualties , and attended with such inconveniencies , as renders it of very little use , and of no dependance at all to us . but ( dly ) were the case quite otherwise ; were there any order of men so perfect , in all other respects , that they could supply us with all that we should ever be likely to want , and would give us whatsoever we should desire : and were their inclinations towards us so fixt and immutable , that we might depend upon them that they would never forsake us , but be at all times ready to grant us whatsoever we should ask of them : yet still their life is so uncertain , and , at the best , so short ; that it would be a very vain thing for us , after all , to set up our trust and confidence upon them . for alas ! where is the man so great and self-sufficient , that can secure himself the next hours breath ? and in the heighth of all his fortune presume to say , that to morrow shall not lay him equal with the dust , and return him to the earth from whence he was taken ? it is an extraordinary character which the holy spirit gives to some persons , psal. lxxxii . . i have said that ye are gods , and that ye are all the children of the most high. and yet what follows immediately upon it ? a sad , but certain truth : nevertheless ye shall die like men. this is the conclusion of all ; the common end of the greatest , as well as of the meanest , persons . here they may seem to be a sort of gods upon earth : may dispense the fortunes of men as they please ; set up , whom they will set up ; and pull down , whom they will pull down . they may be honour'd too as such , by those who know no religion above their interests ; nor think any divinity more worthy of their regard , than those who have it in their power to promote them to riches , and honour , and authority . but death observes none of these formalities . when that strikes , the crowned head falls as surely before it , as he who had not where to lay his head , till the grave afforded him a place for it . all the difference is , that as such persons are exposed to more dangers , and subject to greater hazards , than lesser men ; so are their lives more uncertain ; and , generally speaking , more short too . a cottage may , and oftentimes do's afford us an example of a vigorous old age : but this is a sight which the palaces of princes are seldom blessed with ; nor can it reasonably be expected they should often enjoy it . and when this is the case , what a folly must it be to build our hope upon such protectors ? who are so far from being able to help us , that alas ! they are not able to help themselves , in those instances , in which both they and we , the most , stand in need of assistance . whose breath is not their own : who live by the meer favour of another : who to day appear in glory and honour ; and to morrow go down into the grave , and yield to the fate of other ordinary men. so foolish a thing is it , in point of reason , to put our trust in man ; be the place , the power , or authority which he enjoys , what it will. and for a yet more sensible confirmation of this great truth ; give me leave , but briefly , to illustrate it to you , in that fatal evidence it has pleased god at this time to give us , in the person of our late royal soveraign ; how little dependance is to be placed upon any human support ; upon the best , or greatest of the children of men. if , first , we consider her with respect to her power and dignity ; she was queen of a mighty and renowned people : endued with the highest authority that a crown could give her ; and in that with the largest capacity that any creature could pretend to , of doing good. her opportunities were many , and her advantages very great for such a purpose . much was expected from her ; and we must , with gratitude , acknowledge , that much she did do. for indeed , ly ; her will was not at all less , nay i may venture to say , it was much greater than her power . nor did she value any thing so much in the eminence of that station to which it had pleased god to raise her amongst us ; as that it put her in a condition of extending the exercise of her vertues a great deal farther , than it had been possible for her to have done in a lesser fortune . never was there any in so high a place , more free and easie of access , even to the most ordinary persons : more desirous to oblige all , or that better knew how to do it . insomuch that i believe it has seldom been known that any ever applied to her , but what have gone away easie and contented from her : and either obtained what they wanted , or not known how to complain , if they have not . the truth is , she was a person in whom nature and grace seem to have concurr'd , to make up one great master-piece of excellency and perfection . her natural disposition was free and generous ; open and sincere . she had a sweetness of temper , finish'd and heightned with a large mixture of christian charity and compassion : such as never loved to see any in misery , otherwise than as it gave her an opportunity thereby of doing somewhat for them to make them easie. thus was she fitted to do good : and a singular dexterity she had in the doing of it . she knew what was fit to be done for every one ; and after what manner ; and at what time. and seldom did she vouchsafe a favour to any , but the very way that she bestow'd it in , doubled the obligation ; and made a deeper impression upon the mind of him who receiv'd it , than the benefit it self did . in short ; so great was her comprehension ; so correct her judgment ; so easie her dispatch , of whatever came before her ; that god seemed to have fitted her soul to her place and character : and to have given her a capacity as far beyond that of other common persons , as she was in rank and dignity above them. such good reason had we , upon all those accounts , to expect some more than ordinary blessings under her government ; and to put a greater trust and confidence in her , than was almost fit to be placed in any creature . and the more to encourage us so to do , it had pleased god to all his other endowments , to add such a vigour of body , and firmness of constitution , as seem'd to equal the vivacity of her mind : and promised us almost an age of happiness yet to come , under the influence of her conduct . and now , when so many circumstances concurr'd to encourage our relyance upon her ; who could blame us for being willing to flatter our selves , that such a queen was certainly raised up by god to do some extraordinary good for that church and kingdom to which he had given her ? but alas ! a sad experience has shewn us that we ought not to have put our trust even in such a person . and if such a person may not be rely'd upon , we may then safely conclude , that we must look beyond this world for our support : and not place our confidence on any but that god who alone , both can do all things for us ; and will continue , for ever , to help and defend us. which therefore brings me to the other point i proposed to speak to ; secondly , that he who will place his trust upon a sure foundation , must place it upon god ; who alone is able to succour us in all our exigencies , and will always continue in a capacity so to do. and st . that god is able to succour us in all our exigencies ; is evident from hence , that he is able to do whatsoever he pleases both in heaven and earth . * that he has no equal , much less any superiour power , to controul his will ; and to hinder him from bringing whatsoever he purposes , to the end which he designs . * that as he is the first being , and author of all others ; so was there nothing before him to confine , or limit his perfections . he received not his power from any ; nor has he therefore any restraint upon it but what proceeds from himself , and is subject to his own will. man , as he was created by god , so was he limited too by him in his state and condition , to a certain degree of perfection , beyond which he cannot go , nor raise up himself above it . and therefore , whatsoever power he has , is confined within those bounds which the divine wisdom has thought fit to set to it : nor can he go , the least tittle , beyond what god has permitted him to do. but god himself is free and without constraint . with him nothing is impossible , but what is sinful ; and that is not an instance of true power , but of impotency and infirmity . so that if we would then trust in man , we must do it with those restrictions which his nature requires us to limit our trust withal : and depend upon him as one whose power may fail ; whose mind may change ; nay , whose very life may be taken from him . but with god we shall need none of these referves . he is absolutely able , in every thing , to help and succour us : and in all such cases wherein it is fitting for him to do it , he will help us , if we do but duly apply our selves to him , and depend upon him. and when such is the advantage of god , in this respect , above any of his creatures ; much more above man , the lowest of all the rational kind in power and dignity : well may the psalmist pronounce him blessed , whose wisdom and piety have taught him to fix his trust there , where nothing can hinder it from being beneficial to him , but his own neglecting to seek for help as he ought to do. i say nothing now of the many other arguments that might be offered to encourage us in this trust , and to shew the happiness of that man who has placed his hope upon it . such are , * the infinite wisdom of god , in judging what is best for us , and after what manner it will be most for our interest to be helped by him . * his infinite knowledge , for the discovery of our wants , oftentimes long before we our selves are sensible of them . * his power to relieve us , not only in all our exigencies , which i have before observed ; but to do it in a moment , at the very minute that it will be most seasonable for us to have it done . and , not to mention any more ; * his ability to prevent evils from coming upon us , no less than to free us from them , or to support us under them , when they have overtaken us. and in all which the wisdom and power of man can either do nothing at all , or nothing comparable to what god is able to do. but one consideration more there is , which neither the express words of my text , nor the occasion of the present discours , will permit me to pass by : and that is , dly . that god is not only thus able , as i have shewn , to help us in all our needs ; but will continue for ever in a capacity to save and defend us. for god is eternal in his duration , as well as infinite in his power ; and as he never had a beginning of being , so neither can he ever come to an end of it . now how far this sets him up above all earthly benefactors , i have already shewn you ; and the mighty loss , we have just now sustain'd , does but too plainly declare . when one of our earthly benefactors dies , not only all his good dispositions towards us perish together with him , but all his power too of putting them in execution , from that instant , ceases . and we from thenceforth become as destitute and forlorne , as if we had never had any such friend or patron , to rely upon . in such a trust therefore there is no certainly : nothing on which to build any lasting hope ; any wise and comfortable expectation . but god endureth for ever , and therefore his help can never fail us . he will be our god unto death ; nay , and even after it too , will save and deliver us. the grave it self , which puts an end to all things else , cannot take us out of his hand , nor deprive us of his protection . but in that melancholy place and state , tho' we know but little else of what relates to it ; yet this we are sure of , that our souls continue under his care : and that , after a certain period of time , our very bodies themselves shall again be restored to us ; and so we shall be for ever with the lord . and thus have i shewn you , what the advantages of that god are , above all other supporters , in whom our text exhorts us to put our trust ; and pronounces him happy who has taken care so to do . and when such are his advantages above any of his creatures , in this respect , as well as in all others ; what resolution can we better take up , than that which is pointed out to us in that exhortation of the evangelical prophet , isai. . . trust ye in the lord for ever ; for in the lord jehovah is everlasting strength . and this may suffice for the two points i proposed to speak to : i shall only draw a few plain consequences from what has been said , and so conclude this discourse . and , first , since such is the vanity of putting our trust in any humane help ; let us resolve to take off our hearts from all such dependencies : and not build our hope on such a foundation , as we are sure in a little time will fail us , and we cannot tell how soon it may do so . i do not deny , but that as god orders the affairs of mankind by the ministry of second causes ; so we may , without incurring any just censure for it , look to them as the instruments which he makes use of in his dispensations towards us . nay , we may put some kind of trust too in them : provided that it goes no farther than the nature of such causes admits of ; and that we still take care to look beyond them , to that god who employs them to our interest and advantage . but yet , when all is done , our last and highest dependance must be placed upon god only ; who alone is able , and will always be so , in all our exigencies to help and deliver us. it cannot be doubted but that we of this country , and especially we of this church , have indeed received as great a loss , as could well have happen'd to us , in the unexpected death of our late royal sovereign . a princess she was , such as this nation never before had , nor was it now worthy of her . to draw her character , and set her out to you with all the advantage that her real worth deserves , is a task too difficult for me to presume to attempt : though this security i should have in the doing of it , that let me say what i could , no one would accuse me of flattery in ir ; a vice ever odious , and i think no where more so than in the pulpit . for howsoever 't is impossible to speak of her , and not say great things ; yet very hard it is to speak , but a small part , of what all must allow might justly be reported of her. let it suffice , at present , to say ; that if a queen so vertuous , that her very example was enough to convert a libertine , and to reform an age : so courteous and affable , as to be the wonder and delight of all that knew her : so great a lover of her country , and the interests of it ; as to be willing to hazard what , next her conscience , she the most valued , her good name , and good opinion in the world , for the preservation of them : so firm and constant in her mind , as not to have once known , no not in death it self , what it was to fear : so happy in business , as to astonish , rather than satisfie , those who were the best versed in it : i say , if to have been deprived of such a queen as this ; and that at such an age , when our expectations were at the highest from her , be a loss above the power of words to express ; then such is our loss : the greatness of which we are so far from being able sufficiently to declare , that perhaps we cannot yet make a just estimate of it . but yet , were we not hereby too much convinced , how little we ought to depend upon such kind of helps ; i might presume to say , to the glory of god , and to our own comfort , that we had still enough of these remaining , to suppress all disorderly fears , and undue repinings at that which we have lost . god has , 't is true , removed our queen from us : but he still continues his sacred majesty to us , notwithstanding all the dangers to which he has been exposed . he has deprived us of the benefit of her conduct : but he has left us him , under whom she herself grew up in that wisdom and courage , we so much admired in her. and even beyond this , we have the prospect of a yet farther succession to fill the throne ; and to support the interests both of the church and state amongst us . but yet when all is done , 't is not upon these fair and promising expectations that we must place our trust , or account the fortune of our publick welfare to depend : but it is that god , who has so long and wonderfully defended us , that must still be our support ; or all these helps nothing to us . indeed these are the persons by whom we justly may , and therefore accordingly do hope to be protected and defended . and a singular happiness it is to us , that we have such a fair succession of the royal family before our eyes . but yet when all is done , 't is from the blessing of god in preserving these persons to us , and prospering their endeavours , that we must look for safety : and god , even without any such helps , could , if he pleased , secure and protect us . but , secondly , as these considerations should move us , not to put our trust in any humane help ; so should they keep us from being very much surprised , if at any time such kind of helps shall chance to fail us . it was a great expression , and argued a worthy mind , in him anciently , who being told of the death of his son , pass'd it off with this only reflection ; that he always knew that he was mortal . and the same should be our consideration upon these occasions . we know that all humane helps are transitory and uncertain : and why then should we stand amazed , as if some strange thing had happen'd to us , when we come to be deprived of that , which we always knew we had no security of . i am not so unsensible of the loss we have now received , as not to think that we ought to pay a very just regret to it ; and to consider seriously with our selves , for what sins of this nation especially it is , that god has taken away from us our royal defender . but yet i cannot think that it ought to be any great surprize to us : unless it be some new calamity to see a mortal die , and to find that to have happen'd to one , which happens to thousands every day . nay , but thirdly ; we ought not only not to be surprized at the failure of such kind of helps , but neither should we be immoderately concern'd and cast down at it : because god is never the less able to preserve us for the loss of these ; but can either raise us up new supporters , or save us without any , if he rather sees fit so to do. i am verily perswaded that we have at this time received as sensible a blow , in this respect , in the loss of our royal sovereign , as could have befallen us in any one life , excepting that of his sacred majesty . but yet far be it from me so far to despond , or to distrust the providence of god , as to think we must needs be ruined , because our queen is taken from us . this were certainly to confine too much the power of god , and to give too great an advantage to our enemies ; who because they earnestly wish our ruine , are therefore ready , upon every occasion , to flatter themselves that the time is coming which they so much desire to see . but to shew you how little reason either we have to be dejected , or they to exalt their hopes , on any such account ; let us suppose the case to be as bad as the most melancholy mind can fansie , or our most bitter enemies could desire it to be . that we were indeed left naked and destitute of all humane help ; and had no prospect remaining of any succour , much less had so good a one , as i have before shewn ; and as it is evident to all the world that we have : yet still i say that all this would not be enough to warrant us to distrust god ; but rather , fourthly , we should then more especially rely upon his help , when all other supports do the most fail us . it is too common a thing with most men , when their affairs go smoothly on , and all succeeds according to their expectations ; to attribute too much to their own power and policy ; and to forget that god ; without whose help all their own endeavours would be to no purpose . and therefore to prevent this , god is pleased oftentimes to suffer men to fall into great difculties , not that he designs their ruine , but only to make them sensible of their own weakness ; and to draw them back to him who is their only sure defence , the rock of their salvation , in whom they ought to trust . it were an easie matter for me to confirm the truth of this remark in a multitude of instances ; from whence it may appear , that god has in all ages then especially exerted his power in the delivery of his servants , when their enemies have thought themselves the most secure of their destruction . but i shall content my self with a few examples ; tho' such as i am perswaded , may abundantly suffice to shew , how false a conclusion men make , when they presume to determine ; that because god deprives any people of the present , visible means of deliverance , therefore he designs to give them up to destruction . when haman projected the universal extirpation of the whole people of the jews ; and was come so near to an accomplishment of it , that the order was signed , and the command gone forth for a general massacre of them ; who could have imagined any other , but that the final ruine of that poor nation was at hand . and yet by what a strange concurrence of unexpected events were they delivered from his danger , and the mischief turn'd upon his head who had contrived their destruction ? nor was their preservation afterwards less remarkable , when caligula sent petronius into syria , to set up his statue in the temple at jerusalem ; and the jews resolved , every man of them , to perish , rather than submit to so abominable a profanation of that holy place . it were too long for me to relate to you , how far petronius insisted upon the putting of this command in execution ; and what he did in order thereunto . it shall suffice to say , that his army was drawn together , and all just ready to come to the last extremity : when the governour considering how sad a thing it would be to root out a whole nation for so small a matter , stopp'd his souldiers , and wrote the emperour an account both of what he had done , and how averse he found the jews to his design ; and therefore intreated him not to pursue his attempt any farther . but in vain was this delay ; nor could any of these remonstrances alter the emperour's resolutions . but on the contrary , he renew'd his orders yet more peremptorily , of having the jews destroy'd for opposing his will ; and commanded petronius himself to be murdeed with them , for deferring so long the execution of his orders . and now , what could be expected by that miserable people , but ruine and desolation ? when behold ! god took their cause into his own hand : and so disposed matters , that before this second command could reach syria , the news of the emperour 's own murder flew thither ; and saved both the governour and them from that destruction , which was just ready to break in upon both. so able is god , when things seem to be at the very worst , to interpose his hand ; and to save those who trust in him , not only without any visible means , but against all humane appearances . and for yet fresher instances of this , let me only desire you to reflect how strangely god has preserved , for several ages together , those ancient reformed churches in the valleys of piedmont ; notwithstanding all the power and malice of their enemies to root them out . it is but a very little while since we saw them reduced to so wretched an estate , that we accounted them to have been dispersed beyond all hope of any future restitution . their own prince , supported with the power , and led on by the example and encouragement of a mighty neighbouring monarch , had resolved upon their ruine . sorrow and distress encompass'd them on every side , and from whom to expect a deliverance they could not tell . and yet , lo ! these very churches are again already restored to their ancient splendor : and to encrease the wonder , are now protected by that very power that before destroyed them. but what need i lead you into foreign countries for instances to shew , that god is not confined , in his workings , to humane appearances : but oftentimes is then the most ready to support his servants , when all other helps the most fail them. our own country , and our own church , ever since the reformation ; has been more or less a continued evidence of the truth of this remark . how melancholy was the prospect which our forefathers had , at the untimely death of that most excellent prince , king edward the sixth ? when queen mary being set upon the throne , nothing was to be expected by them , but an utter extirpation of all that seemed in any wise to favour the purity of religion among them. what she did , and how far she went , in a few years , to blot out all the memory of her brother's piety , i shall not need to say : the history is still fresh in all your memories . yet in the midst of all their trouble ; when the hope of their enemies , and their own fears were at the highest ; it pleased god upon a sudden to take off that queen , and put such an end to their dangers , as nothing else could have done . but though by this means therefore we were secured against their open violence , yet god still permitted them to endeavour , by secret treachery , to carry on their designs against us : and has by that means furnish'd us with yet more engagements to relie upon his protection ; who has so often , and wonderfully delivered us from their devices . witness the many subtle and barbarous attempts , that were made by them upon the life of queen elizabeth : the open force , and domestick disturbances which they raised up against her. and yet in all these they miscarry'd ; and in many of them so signally , as plainly shew'd the hand of god was against them . when that queen was gone , and king james settled upon the throne , it was but a little while before they return'd to their old malice , but in a new way ; and that such , as all the cunning of hell had never before contrived ; i mean that of the gun-powder conspiracy . and that too was discovered after a most wonderful manner , and at a most critical juncture , when all was just come to the point of execution . i might add to these examples , the happy restauration of our church and government , after the fatal murder of king charles the first . their frequent disappointments since ; but especially that of the last reign . but i think i have already given you instances enough to convince you , that were we now left in as bad an estate , as blessed be god! we are in a very good one : yet still whilst we held firm to our holy religion , and continued our trust in god , there would be no cause for us to despond : seeing god can defend us without any humane help ; and , as i have now shewn you , has often done it , when we could have been protected by none but him. and this brings me to the next thing i have to observe from the foregoing discourse ; and that is , fifthly ; that we should therefore be sure never to depart from our trust in god , and then we may be confident we shall not be forsaken by him. for god loves to be depended upon ; and has seldom been known to fail those , who have constantly stuck to him. a notable example of which we have in the history of the present psalm , and which the antients tell us was this . when cyrus had given leave to the jews to return to jerusalem , and to rebuild their temple , and restore the worship of god in it ; the samaritans , a sort of mix'd people , half jews , and half idolaters , so wrought with their adversaries , that little was done in it , notwithstanding all the favour that was shewn them by that great monarch . no sooner was cyrus gone , and cambyses placed upon his throne ; but all hope seemed utterly lost to them , of either restoring their temple , or regaining any part of that liberty they had before been encouraged to expect . but what then was their behaviour on this occasion ? did they distrust god ; and give way to such fears as the insolence of their enemies , and their own circumstances , did indeed but too much expose them to ? on the contrary , it was at this very juncture of time , that those two great prophets , haggai and zechariah , composed the psalm we have now before us : and exhorted the people not to consider the ill-prospect which , according to humane appearance , their affairs were in ; but to trust in god , who whenever he pleas'd , could turn all things to their advantage , and no doubt in his due time would do so . and what was the issue of this excellent advice ? why in a very few years cambyses died , and darius came into the throne ; and in despite of all that either their half brethren , or their open enemies could do to hinder it , so encouraged the work , that both their temple and their city were re-built ; and themselves restor'd both to their liberty and to their religion . and if to trust in god be able to work such wonderful effects as these ; how much more may we promise our selves from it , who have so fair a prospect before our eyes ; if we do but firmly rely upon him , and not suffer any thing to shake our confidence of his mercy . but then , sixthly ; and to close all : that our hope may be sure to have its due effect , let me add finally ; that we must not think it enough barely to trust in god ; but must take care withall to live so , that we may be , in some measure , worthy of his protection . we must to the purity of our religion , add the reformation of our manners ; and then we may securely defie our greatest enemies to do us any mischief . and because examples , in these cases , are not only more instructive than precepts , but more apt to perswade too ; and that this is all that now remains to us of that noble pattern , which was wont to shine so brightly in all our eyes ; to reflect upon her piety , and by that to learn how to improve our own : i will conclude all with a few remembrances of what our late blessed sovereign did , to shew you what we ought to do. and , first , since good-nature is , i think , by all allowed to be one of the best preparations to the divine grace ; i shall in the first observe it as a singular part of the felicity of her sacred majesty , that she enjoy'd all that is properly understood by that phrase , in as high a perfection , as , it may be , any person in the world ever did. her temper was naturally sweet and chearful ; easie to her self , and acceptable to all others . and if that old rule of the jews be true , that the holy ghost loves to dwell in a quiet and comfortable breast ; i may be bold to say that her soul was always in a disposition for that blessed spirit to descend upon it , and to abide in it . to improve this excellent temper , she had a greatness and generosity of mind , equal to her rank and quality : free from jealousies and suspicions , as she was from fear of any . in a word , clear of all those passions which agitate lesser souls , and keep them in a continual hurry and distraction . thus was she prepared by nature for that extraordinary progress which she afterwards made in christian piety and vertue . and as st. luke tells us to those , to whom st. paul preached the gospel heretofore ; that as many as were ordain'd to eternal life , believ'd ; that is , such as were in their tempers and dispositions fitted and qualified for the reception of what he deliver'd to them : so may it no less truly be said of her sacred majesty that she was , in like manner , ordained to eternal life ; and therefore made such vast attainments in all those graces that were necessary to bring her to it . but , secondly : to this first advantage , it pleased god to add as great an eminence of , what we usually call , good parts ; as i believe has ever been known in any of her sex. her apprehension , was quick and piercing ; her judgment , deep and correct : nor could any thing almost be propos'd to her , but she was presently ready with all clearness to receive it , and with no less accuracy to pronounce and determine concerning it . and when such was her capacity , it is not to be wonder'd if she soon came to a right apprehension of the design and end of christianity : and was thoroughly convinced of the mighty concern which there lay upon her , to live in an exact obedience to its commands . but this was not all the advantage she had in this respect : for though her parts were such , as would , with a very moderate exercise , have carried her into a perfect knowledge of her religion ; yet she did not rely upon them : but to her natural abilities , added such a care and diligence , to improve her understanding , and to enflame her affections , in all such things as seemed any way to referr to it ; as few in a lesser station have ever done . to pass by her constant attendance upon the publick service of god , and those opportunities of instruction which she provided for , on all the more solemn returns of it . to say nothing of her frequent and useful conversation with those who ministred unto her in holy offices . what a large proportion of her time did she every day spend in her own private retirements ? and of which no business , no ceremonies , much less any vain pleasures or avocations , could ever deprive her. what vast numbers of excellent books did she there read ? and that not lightly , or superficially , but with the severest care and reflection ? and how cautious was she , if any difficulty chanced to arise to her in her reading , which she could not presently resolve to her own satisfaction , to be sure to call in some of those who attended on her , to clear it to her ? nor did she in her reading run lightly off from book to book ; the common method of empty and unsettled minds ; tho' she read over a great many . but when she met with any discourse that seem'd particularly to affect her , or otherwise to come up in any peculiar manner to her own circumstances ; she stuck closely to it : and by so doing , evidently shew'd that piety and instruction were indeed the ends she aim'd at in this exercise : that she read for profit , not curiosity ; and sought for use , not diversion , in it . such was her care to get instruction : and the same excellent disposition that moved her thus diligently to inform her self in all the parts of her duty , engaged her yet more , thirdly , to desire with all imaginable sincerity to be made acquainted , with the true and genuine measures of it . it is the folly of many , but especially of great personages , that they cannot endure correction ; nor will bear to have the truth spoken freely to them , in such instances as are contrary to their own carnal desires and affections . and therefore it is that they seldom know either themselves , or their duty ; either what they ought to do , or what their state and cdndition is with relation thereunto . but this was not the case of that admirable person of whom we are now speaking : she knew how dangerous an instrument of the devil flattery is , and how fatally her station exposed her to it : and she took care for nothing more than to secure her self against the danger of it . i shall never forget with what weight of reason , and sincerity of concern , i have sometimes heard this great queen represent the danger which princes , above all others , are apt to run in this respect . and with what earnestness she has exhorted those about her , to deliver to her the plainest truths ; and with all freedom to tell her if they had observed any thing amiss in her conduct , that she might amend it . o wonderful condescension ! a sincerity of piety beyond exception ! and that in a place where there are usually but too many temptations to pride and self-opinion : and it must therefore be an argument of a more than ordinary wisdom and integrity , to be able to withstand the force of them . but yet still all this is only the preparatory , tho' indeed a very good one , to that which i am especially to observe to you , and that is , fourthly , her sincere piety and religion . and for that , give me leave to say thus much ; that if a constant attendance upon all the offices of devotion both in publick and private : if such a behaviour at them , as shew'd her soul to be wholly fix'd on what she was about ; and was enough to have raised a spirit of piety in all that beheld her : if the influences of this devotion upon her whole life and conversation , and those so eminent as to speak her not only good but excellent ; an ornament to the court , and an honour to her religion : if all this may suffice to shew a mind wholly consecrated to the service of god , and the discharge of her duty ; then was the soul of this blessed princess unquestionably so ; and that , for ought i know , beyond any that at this day remains behind her. but for the clearness of her conscience in the discharge of her duty , besides what we saw and admired in her ; two arguments there are that may especially be offer'd , and i think ought not to be passed by . first ; that while she lived , she was always easie in her own mind : and which since it could not proceed either from any ignorance of her duty , or unconcern'dness for it ; we must conclude it did arise from a full perswasion , that she did live according to the tenour of it . and , secondly , that when she came within the prospect of death , and knew how near she was to it , she still appear'd unconcern'd at it : and thereby gave a finall evidence that she accounted her self prepared for it , and therefore was not afraid of it . i should too far exceed the bounds i am here confined to ; should i enter upon the consideration of those particular vertu 's , which seemed to shine in a more especial manner , above all others , in her. bur two there are which i must not overlook ; and those are , her true humility , amidst all the temptations of a court and crown to the contrary ; and her extensive charity : such as sometimes deprived her even of the means of exercising of it ; and might have abundantly satisfied any mind but hers , who knew no end of doing good ; but has , after all , been seen sometimes , even with tears , to regret , that she could do no more . but i must restrain my self ; and set some bounds to my reflections , tho' my subject is beyond any . and for the rest content my self with satisfaction to remember , what i was wont with wonder to behold . and , oh! that it would please god that both you and i might so effectually meditate upon these things , as to form our lives according to her example ! and become now the disciples of our great queen , as we have hitherto been her subjects ! this will be the best offering we can pay to her memory , who while there is any sense of goodness remaining amongst us , must never be mentioned without honour . this is that improvement of our great loss , which our religion expects from us ; what our souls call for : and what , if she has yet any knowledge of what is done here below , our royal soveraign will , above all things , be the best pleased withall . and if we thus improve the memory of her vertu 's , we shall be even gainers by her departure . such a demonstration of our love and honour to our royal mistress , will do more to establish our tranquility , than any human conduct or prudence could have done without it . it will engage god on our side : and , if god be for us , we need not fear who can be against us. let us then , as we have now paid our just sorrow to the loss of this blessed saint , so from henceforth resolve to make this farther improvement of it . let us thank god , that tho' he has removed one great supporter from us , he has yet left us another ; and , our present circumstances consider'd , the more necessary one to us , in the person of his sacred majesty . let us strengthen his hands both by our piety towards god ; and by our duty to him : by uniting now all that affection and obedience in him alone , which we before paid to both their majesties . let us consider his courage ; and as far as either piety or prudence will allow us , let us trust in his fortune : that is to say , as far as any human help may be trusted in . but yet still let us remember , that our last dependance must be upon god : who as he has hitherto preserved us , so will he still go on to save and defend us ; if we do but firmly adhere to him , and prepare our selves for his favour , as our duty requires ; and as i have now shewn you , in a most illustrious example , we may and ought to do it . finis . advertisement . the genuine epistles of the apostolical fathers , st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp . the shepherd of hermas , and the martyrdoms of st. ignatius and st. polycarp , written by those who were present at their sufferings . being , together with the holy scriptures of the new testament , a compleat collection of the most primitive antiquity for about ci. years after christ. translated and published with a large preliminary discourse relating to the several treatises here put together . by w. wake , d. d. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e * so 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 v. . imports . * psal. cxxxv . . psal. ix . cii . . psal. xlviii . . thes. iv . . psal xviii . lxii . . &c. esther iii. . , . chapters v. vi , vii , viii . joseph . ant. l. xviii . c ▪ . de bell. jud. lib. i. cap. . see their history written by gilles , leger , morland , &c. see dr. burnet's hist. of the reform . see foulis 's popish treasons , l. vi c . l. vii . c. . ad finem . see foulis , ib. l x. c. . kings xxii . , , . so the lxx . and syriac , and other ancient versions , in the title of this psalm . vid. r. d. kimchi , in sam. x. . & kings iii. , . acts xiii . . dan. . . rom. . . a sermon preached before the queen at white-hall, april , being the fifth wednesday in lent / by william wake. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a sermon preached before the queen at white-hall, april , being the fifth wednesday in lent / by william wake. wake, william, - . p. printed for ric. chiswell and w. rogers, london : . 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- n.t. -- timothy, st, v, -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - john latta sampled and proofread - john latta text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a sermon preached before the queen at white-hall , april . . being the fifth wednesday in lent . by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties : and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . publish'd by her majesties special command . london : printed for ric. chiswell at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard : and w. rogers at the sun over-against st. dunstan's church in fleetstreet . . tim. v. . lay hands suddenly on no man , neither be partaker of other mens sins . saint paul having planted a christian church at ephesus , and being called by his apostolick charge to preach the gospel to other places also , settles timothy there to supply what was yet wanting to the full establishment of it ; and not long after his departure , sends him this epistle to instruct him how he should behave himself in the house of god , and fulfil that great trust which was committed to him therein . in the verses before the text , we find him directing this holy man , how he should proceed in inflicting the censures of the church upon offenders , viz. that he should first admonish them openly , in the presence of the whole congregation ; that so both they who had sinned , might be the more earnestly moved to repent themselves of it ; and that others being terrified thereby , might have the greater care how they fell into the like sins , least they also became exposed to the same correction , v. . them that sin , rebuke before all , that others also may fear . dly . that he should proceed in these judgments uprightly and sincerely , without partiality , without fear or favour to any , v. . i charge thee before god and the lord jesus christ , and the elect angels , that thou observe these things ; that is , that thou proceed according to these rules , in exercising the discipline of the church upon offenders ; without preferring one before another , or as our margin reads it , without prejudice , doing nothing by partiality . lastly , that having tied any man by the censures of the church , he should have a care not to make too much hast to loose him again , and restore him to the communion of it ; but should diligently enquire into , and prove his repentance : least by his easiness in receiving sinners into favour , he should lessen their fear and apprehension of sinning , and so bring upon himself the guilt of those crimes which such an unwarrantable lenity would be like to encourage wicked men to commit , when they should see how little it would cost them to expiate their sins , and satisfie the church for them , v. . lay hands suddenly on no man , neither be partaker of other mens sins . it is a difficulty that has somewhat divided both the ancient and modern interpreters of this passage , to what it is that the laying on of hands here spoken of is to refer ? whether to the admitting of persons into holy orders in the church ; or , as i have before explain'd it , to the receiving penitents into the communion of it ? for in both these cases the ancient christians made use of this ceremony of laying on of hands . if we understand the exhortation of the text with reference to the former of these , the meaning of it will be this : that he should have a care diligently to examine the faith , and to enquire into the lives and manners of those whom he admitted into any holy office or function in the church ; and see that they were duly qualified for it , according to those rules which he had before so largely given him for that very purpose . but tho i shall not presume to censure this account of these words , yet i must confess i think the latter interpretation of them which i before gave , as it equally agrees with the expression of st. paul , and with the primitive custom of laying on hands upon those whom they received again into communion after having fulfil'd the penance impos'd upon them for their sins ; so does it seem to me somewhat better to agree with the rest of the apostle's exhortation in that place . and the consideration which he lays before him to engage him to this care , is no other than what we find from hence transcribed sometimes into the penitential canons of the ancient church ; namely , lest by his remisness in this particular , he should have other mens sins imputed to his account , and be responsible to god , for all those crimes which he neglected to punish with that severity he ought to have done . but which soever of these two be the true meaning of st. paul's charge in the former part of the text , lay hands suddenly on no man : the reason of it in the latter will be in both the same ; namely , that timothy by his negligence in either of these cases would have render'd himself guilty of other mens sins , and therefore ought to be very careful and circumspect , that he might not do so . and this is the use which i shall now make of these words . it is a matter of sad and serious consideration that we who labour , the very best of us , under so great a load of our own sins , should yet as if that were not sufficient to ruine us , add every day a number of other mens to them , to encrease our account , and aggravate our condemnation . there is i believe but seldom a day passes , wherein we do not some of us render our selves guilty in this particular . i speak not now with reference to those , who not only live in an habitual commission of the most heinous sins themselves , but take a great deal of satisfaction , and even make it their daily employment , to draw as many others as they can into the commission of them . as if they meant to emulate the impiety of those whom st. paul has characterized , or rather branded in holy scripture , as the most desperate and diabolical of any in the world , rom. i. . who knowing the judgment of god , that they who commit such things are worthy of death , not only do the same , but have pleasure in those that do them . no , a man need not rise up to such a heigth of villany , to render himself guilty in the sight of god , of other mens transgressions . he may be so at a much lesser rate ; and that i fear upon such accounts , as the best of us all shall hardly be able utterly to clear our selves of it . i shall therefore make it my endeavour in a few reflections to shew , i st . what those circumstances are whereby we may be most likely to render our selves partakers of other mens sins ? from whence it will appear , ii dly . how careful we ought to be , of our selves and our actions , that we may keep our selves from being so . i st . what those circumstances are , whereby we may render our selves partakers of other mens sins ? for the better clearing of which point , i shall in the first place lay down this as a principle out of all doubt ; that no man becomes a partaker of the sins of another , but by his own act , i. e. by somewhat which himself does to involve his soul in the guilt of it . for else , as a great man among the heathens themselves very well argued , another mans wickedness might be my evil , which , says he , god would not have , that it might not be in another mans power to make me unhappy . 't is true indeed so great was the care of god heretofore to restrain the jews from an idolatrous worship , that he threatned for this sin to visit the iniquities of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation ; i. e. upon those who could not possibly have been in any manner accessary to their impieties . but besides that there is a great deal of difference , between being partakers of other mens sins , and being visited , or punished upon occasion of them ; and that too only with some temporal evils , such as their own sins had very well deserved : we are plainly assured by god himself , ezekiel xviii . that even this complaint should be taken away ; the children should no more bear the iniquity of their fathers , neither the fathers of their children , but the soul that sinned it should die . and in all the accounts we meet with in the new testament of the judgment to come , we are expresly told that every man shall receive according to his own works ; or as our apostle has phrased it , gal. vi . . every man shall bear his own burden . it remains therefore that no one either becomes partaker of the guilt of another mans sins now , or shall be punish'd for them hereafter , any farther than he has by some circumstance or other render'd himself accessary thereunto . and our present business must be to enquire how many ways a man may do so ? now those are in general these three : ( st . ) by giving occasion to other mens sins , ( dly ) by approving of them when committed . and ( dly ) , by neglecting to hinder them from committing them when we might and ought to have done it . ( st ) , a man may become a partaker of other mens sins , by giving occasion to the committing of them . this is in general so very clear that i do not know that it has ever been deny'd or doubted of by any . but now how many ways a man may become so far the occasion of anothers sin , as to render himself thereby a partaker in the guilt of it , i shall not undertake precisely to define . i will offer some of those that are the most obvious , and particularly reflected on as such in the holy scriptures . and first , he who contrives the commission of any sin , and either by his authority over any other commands , or else by his arguments and insinuations persuades him to commit it ; it is not to be question'd but that such a one does undoubtedly thereby render himself partaker of it . this was the case of david in the business of uriah , sam. chap. xi th & xii th : when having committed adultery with bathsheba , and not knowing otherwise how to prevent the scandal of it ; he order'd joab , who then commanded the royal army before rabbah , to set uriah her husband in the fore-front of the hottest battel , that he might be smitten and dye ; and so he might take bathsheba to be his wife . but tho joab therefore executed the command , and the enemy slew him as he had projected it ; yet god charges neither the one nor the other of them with his death . he lays the whole guilt of his bloud at the king's door , who had been the occasion of it ; sam. xii . . wherefore , says the prophet , hast thou despised the commandment of the lord , to do evil in his sight ? thou hast killed uriah the hittite , with the sword : — thou hast slain him with the sword of the children of ammon . and then he goes on in the next verses to pronounce judgment against him upon the account of it ; now therefore the sword shall not depart from thy house : behold i will raise up evil against thee out of thine own house ; and i will take thy wives before thine eyes , and give them unto thy neighbour , and he shall lye with thy wives in the sight of this sun : for thou didst it secretly , but i will do this thing before all israel , and before this sun . and immediately upon this admonition we find david himself confessing his sin , and imploring god's forgiveness , v. . and david said unto nathan , i have sinned against the lord . and in that great penitential psalm , psal. li. composed on purpose to be a standing memorial in the house of god , of his humiliation and repentance for this very sin , he particularly acknowledges himself guilty of the murder of uriah , and deprecates god's anger upon the account of it , v. . deliver me from blood-guiltiness , o god! thou god of my salvation , and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness . the truth is , such a one as this , is for the most part more guilty of the sin committed , than he who was either over-aw'd or perswaded into the commission of it . for tho every man ought to have such a care of himself , and such a concern for his duty , as not to suffer either the authority of the greatest person , or the insinuations of the dearest friend in the world , to be able to prevail with him in a matter where the glory of god , and the salvation of his own soul are at stake : yet there is a certain easiness and tenderness in our natures , that not only too much exposes us to be overcome by such persons as we have either a very great value for , or have otherwise been very much obliged to , and do what we ought not , out of a false and unreasonable regard to them ; but does also render us many times extremely pityable , tho not excusable , in the doing of it . whilst he who thus executes the office of the devil ; projects the villany , and prompts us to the execution of it , must remain utterly inexcusable both in the sight of god and man , for his impiety . but secondly , a man may be the occasion of anothers sin , and so become partaker of it , tho he does not in so eminent a degree as this concur to it ; if he does but in any other manner truly and effectually assist him in the committing of it . now this may be done many ways : as , st . by contributing a helping hand to the doing of it : upon which account it was a constitution of the roman law , that if one committed a theft by the assistance of another ; as for instance , if one set a ladder ready , or left a door open , that another might go in and steal his neighbours goods ; he was adjudged thereby to be partaker of the crime , and stood liable to the same punishment that the other did , who committed the robbery . and the same must be said , dly , of him who counsels and advises another to any sin ; and thereby puts him upon the execution of it : as if , for example , a man should persuade another in necessity , to supply his own wants by stealing or defrauding his neighbour of his goods . and especially , dly , if he not only in general advises him to do this , but in particular , points out to him a fair occasion , to put his advice in execution . as if , for instance , he should not only counsel him in general to steal , but should moreover tell him where a good booty was to be had ? how he might get into his neighbours house ? what time would be the most proper for it ? and in what part of the house he should find what he went for ? nay but thly . tho a man should not go so far as this , nor be at all guilty of helping or advising his neighbour to do evil ; yet if he gives his consent to it ; if he encourage him in the performance , and approves his doing of it ; he does even by this render himself partaker of the guilt of it . 't is upon this account that st. austin charges st. paul with the death of the blessed steven . he was none of the witnesses against him , nor did he throw one stone at him . but he was standing by , and consenting unto his death ; and he kept the raiment of them that slew him . and by doing of this he rendred himself no less guilty than the most zealous of those that appeared against him . others cast the stones at him ; but st. paul slew him by their hands . the sum of this second remark is in short this : that whatsoever the means be by which any one assists another in his wickedness ; if he knows the thing to be evil , and yet still goes on to promote and encourage the execution of it ; he sins thereby against his own soul , and shall render an account to god for every such crime , as any other shall have committed by his help and assistance . but i must go yet farther : for , thirdly , a man may be adjudged by god to be the occasion of other mens sins , and as such to partake in them , tho' he do's not thus directly contribute to the execution of them . and that especially by these two ways : * by his wicked doctrine ; and , * by the scandal and influence of a bad example : and by either of which , if another be led into sin , we find the person who conduced but even thus far towards it , nevertheless charged by god as partaker of it . first , he that advances any wicked doctrine , whereby either to deceive men into the commission of sin , or to strengthen them in it , do's thereby render himself partaker of their evil-doings . it was a sad complaint which god once made against the prophets of old , ezek. xiii . that they prophesied falsly in his name , and seduced his people , by palliating their vices , and sowing pillows under their arms , and not suffering them to see their danger ; saying still peace , peace , and there was no peace . but god denounces a terrible judgment against them for their so doing , at the third and following verses : thus saith the lord , wo unto the foolish prophets that follow their own spirit , and have seen nothing . who say , the lord saith , and the lord hath not sent them . therefore thus saith the lord god ; my hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity and that divine lies , and i will accomplish my wrath upon them , to wit , upon the prophets of israel , which prophesie concerning jerusalem , and see visions of peace for her , and there is no peace , saith the lord god. it would , i fear , be a melancholy reflection to consider , how many of these kind of prophets there are at this time among us , who by false principles and mistaken notions of christianity , that i do not add , and by their open profaneness too , by their new systems both of faith and morality , fall under the same censure , and thereby involve their souls in a greater destruction . but indeed , what other account can we give of all those principles and doctrines , whereby some extenuate the danger , others cover over the very nature of sin ? some lead men ignorantly into it , by teaching them that what is indeed unlawful , may innocently be done by them ; others let them see and know what they do , but then tell them they run no great hazard in the doing of it : a little sorrow and confession at the last , and all is secure . or should the worst that can happen , yet alas ! hell is no such dreadful place as 't is commonly misapprehended to be : it being unreasonable to think that god should punish a few temporary sins , with everlasting torments . in short , that 't is but to die , and perish , and enjoy nothing ; and why then should a man trouble himself with the dull formality of religion now , when he has so little to apprehend and be afraid of hereafter ? but let such men as these know , that it is not a light offence that they commit in all this . there is a time coming when they shall render a severe account for these their delusions : and undergo a punishment not only proportionable to their own sins , but to all that deluge of evil which by such principles as these , has broke in upon the world in these latter days . it was one of those great evils for which god pronounced that severe denuntiation against the jews heretofore , isaiah v. . that they call'd evil good , and good evil ; they put darkness for light , and light for darkness ; bitter for sweet , and sweet for bitter : that is , they confounded the natures of things , destroyd all distinction betwixt good and evil , vertue and vice ; they ran down piety as a vain practice , and recommended profaneness , as true gallantry and bravery : therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble , and the flame consumeth the chaff , so their root shall be rottenness , and their blossom shall go up as dust ; because they have cast away the law of the lord of hosts , and despised the word of the holy one of israel . secondly , a man may become the occasion , and so partake of other mens sins , not only by his evil doctrine , but by the scandal and influence of a bad example . and that , not only if he thereby designs to lead them into sin , but tho' he should not have the least desire , much less intention so to do . for sin being always scandalous , and apt to give offence , he who do's any thing that he ought not , and thereby leads his brother from his duty ; must answer to god not only for the evil that he did , but for all the consequences of it , to the deceiving of any other into the like offence . and thus the holy scripture not only condemns jeroboam for making israel to sin , upon the account of the calves that he set up in dan and bethel , on purpose to draw them away from the true worship of god : kings xii . . it is too much for you to go up to jerusalem ; behold thy gods , o israel , which brought thee up out of the land of egypt : but represents st. peter to us as guilty of leading the gentile converts into error ; tho' by complying as he did with the judaizing christians he design'd only to condescend to their weakness , and not to give any the least cause of offence to the others . the case was in short this : there were in those first times many among the jews who tho' they readily embraced the gospel of christ , yet could not presently perswade themselves that they ought to abandon all the rites and ceremonies of their own law. with these therefore the apostles thought fit to bear for a while , and to permit them to observe their former customs , as far as was consistent with the nature of christianity so to do . but for the gentile converts , those who had never been at all subject to the law , to them they preach'd a gospel liberty , and exhorted them not to submit themselves to any such burden . st. peter being at antioch , in a church which st. paul had establish'd of this latter sort , freely for a time communicated with them ; not making any distinction of meats or drinks , nor at all observing the law of moses in any of those things . but it happen'd whilst he was there , that certain brethren came down from the church of jerusalem to him , who were still zealous for the law ; and in compliance with these , he began whilst they were with him to alter his manner of living , and no longer to use his former liberty , but to live again after the manner of the jews . he withdrew , says st. paul , and seperated himself , fearing them of the circumcision . this example of his led many of the jewish converts , who before had lived in all freedom with the gentiles , into the like abstinence ; insomuch that barnabas himself was carried away with the dissimulation ; and so began to raise some doubts and disturbances in that church . but st. paul reproved him openly before them all : he charged him that he did not walk uprightly according to the truth of the gospel : he withstood him to the face , and tells us plainly he was to be blamed : and that for compelling the gentiles to live as do the jews ; i. e. for encouraging them to it , and perswading them falsly by his example , that it was necessary for them so to do . it is in the case of sin now , as it was in that of an involuntary injury under the law. if a man open'd or digged a pit , and neglected to cover it , and another man's oxe or ass fall therein , tho' he made it only for his own use , and had not the least design of doing thereby any prejudice to his neighbour , yet because he did not take due care to fence it , and prevent all occasion of harm from happening by it , he was to repair his neighbours dammage , and give money to him for the oxe or ass , and the dead beast was to be his . and so here : if a man do's any thing that may be apt to lead another into sin , and takes not that due care he ought to prevent his being deceived by it , and another be thereby encouraged to do evil , he shall answer for his neglect : and if his action was not only scandalous but sinful too ; evil in its self , as well as apt to draw others into sin ; he shall be called to an account before god not only for his own but also for his neighbours soul ; and his sin shall be required yet one fold more of him for the occasion it gave to his brother to do wickedly . there is yet one way more whereby a man may give occasion to , and so partake of other mens sins , and which comes yet nearer to the case of timothy in the text , than any i have hitherto named ; and that is , fourthly ; by advancing evil men to places of trust and power , and thereby giving them opportunity to do much more mischief , than they could have done in a private capacity . i need not say how great a part of the calamities under which the world now labours might be prevented , were none but men of great integrity , and abilities suitable to the station to which they are called , ever permitted to have any rule or authority , either in civil or religious concerns . such as these , would not only not do any hurt themselves , but would in a little time either by their influence and example , or else by a due severity against offenders restrain others from doing it . but when the blind lead the blind ; when they who should teach , and make others good , are not good themselves ; what wonder if we see so little sense of piety among the people , when there is so little of it among those that should set them an example ? it is therefore certainly a great care that those ought to have , whose concern it is to provide that none but honest and worthy men be admitted into such stations , where if they are inclined to be evil , they may do a great deal of mischief to those below them . and if instead of having such a care , as far as is possible , not to suffer any wicked and profligate persons to receive any favour or countenance from them , they shall either take no care at all , or it may be , ( which has sometimes happen'd ) be well-enough contented that the vilest wretches should be the most honour'd and promoted by them ; what less can they expect than to answer for those sins , which such men by their means have had the opportunity to commit ? when jeroboam , whom we before mention'd , had set up his two calves in dan and bethel , and exhorted the people no more to go up to jerusalem , but to worship the gods which he had made for them ; we read , kings xiii . . that for the better carrying on his design , he provided priests for them of the lowest of the people ; such as he thought fit for his purpose , that would be ready for any thing he should command them to do ; whosoever would he consecrated him , and he became one of the priests of the high-places . and how heinously god resented this , we may see in the very next verse ; and this thing became sin unto the house of jeroboam , even to cut it off and to destroy it from off the face of the earth . but because the great aggravation of jeroboam's sin was that he admitted such fellows into the priest hood on purpose to debase religion , and confirm the people in the idolatry which he design'd to establish among them ; we will look farther to the instance of the text , where neither of these things can be supposed . here the only fault we can imagine timothy was capable of being guilty of , must have been the not being so careful and circumspect as he ought , in trying and examining such persons as he admitted into any holy office in the church . and yet st. paul having exhorted him to this care in the former part of the text , if we take his words in that sense in which they are more generally understood ; lay hands suddenly on no man ; makes use of this consideration to enforce it upon him in the latter , that otherwise he should be responsible to god for all that mischief which should accrue to the church by the means of such persons as he admitted into the government of it , without that due caution he ought to have used in a matter of such importance ; neither be thou partaker of other mens sins . i shall conclude this point with that advice which the heathen orator once gave to his friend : if you should ever come to be in authority , says he , employ no wicked person in any of your affairs ; for whatsoever faults he commits , the blame will be sure to fall on you . and this may serve for the first way whereby we may become partakers of other mens sins , viz. by giving occasion to the committing of them . the ( d . ) is , by our approving of them when committed . and this too is a circumstance which renders a man not only partaker of anothers sin , but oftentimes more heinously guilty than he who committed it . a man may fall into sin by ignorance or surprise ; may be hurried on by his passions , and carried away in such a manner by the violence of temptation , as not to be able to command himself , and to withstand the force of them . and this tho' it will not altogether excuse , yet will lessen and extenuate a mans guilt ; will render him tho' not innocent , yet not extremely ill : he may commit the sin , and yet be so far from being pleased with it , that he may abhor himself for committing of it . but there can be no excuse for any one to justifie and approve what he knows to be evil. here is no room for passion or surprise : in short , it must be the evidence of a soul harden'd in wickedness , not only to do what is evil , but to take pleasure in it ; and to applaud and encourage the practise of it . now two ways there are whereby we may declare our approbation of anothers sin : and by both , but especially by the former of which , we shall be sure to render our selves partakers of it . st . by making some advantage to our selves by it . ldy , by justifying and applauding of it to others . st . by making some advantage to our selves by it . this was the case of ahab in the business of naboth , and for which god charges him with all the murder and oppression , that without his knowledge or direction had been committed in it , kings xxi . he desired by any means to have purchased naboth's vineyard , and he was much discontented be cause he could not perswade him to part with it he laid him down upon his bed , and turned away his face , and would eat no bread ; but it does not appear that he at all design'd by any unjust violence to ravish it from him. but his wife wrote letters to the elders of his city , and commanded them saying ; proclaim a fast , and set naboth on high among the people : and set two men , sons of belial , to bear witness against him , saying , thou didst blaspheme god and the king ; and then carry him out , and stone him that he may die . this they did , and put him to death accordingly : and then the queen first made her husband acquainted with what was done . but what then was ahab's crime ? why , he received the news with satisfaction ; he was pleased with what had pass'd ; and he rose up from his bed , and went down to take possession of the vineyard . and for this god charges him by elijah with all the violence that without his knowledge had been before committed . thus saith the lord , hast thou killed and also taken possession ? therefore , in the place where dogs licked the blood of naboth , shall dogs lick thy blood , even thine . the truth is , so great is the equity of this proceeding , that we find even the positive laws of most cuntries , to observe the same measure . he that conceals a thief , and receives what is stollen , and partakes with him in his booty ; shall , if discovered , be look'd upon as if he had committed the theft : and therefore solomon says of such a one , prov. xxix . . that he hateth his own soul , that is , he puts his life in danger by it . and for what concerns the conscience , is even by the heathen moralists themselves adjudged as much a thief as the other . and the reason of this is clear , because by joining with the sinner at the last , and partaking with him in the advantage for which the villany was committed , instead of correcting him for it himself , or bringing him forth to a publick punishment ; he plainly declares his consent to what was done , and both preserves him , and encourages him to do the like again . nay but , dly , tho' we should not make any advantage to our selves by the sins of others ; yet our very justifying and applauding of them , would of themselves be sufficient , to render us partakers of them . the malignity of sin lies not so much in what we do , as in the affections of the heart , the will and intention with which we do it . the outward act may accidentally add indeed to the aggravation of our guilt : but 't is the heart and the affections of that to which god principally looks ; and for which we shall either be acquitted or condemn'd at the last day . a man may do that which is in its self very innocent , and yet commit a great sin by doing it , if he thought it to be evil , and yet did it . and on the other side , there are such circumstances wherein what is in its self unlawful , may yet without sin be done by us , if a man were invincibly , and therefore excusably , ignorant that it was so . he that loves any evil , and wishes for an opportunity to commit it , and would be sure to embrace it if he had , is already guilty of it , tho' he should never find the opportunity he desires for it . thus in the instances which our saviour christ himself gives us , matth. v. he that looks upon a woman to lust after her , has already committed adultery with her in his heart : he that is angry with his brother , and would do him a mischief if he could , is already a murderer , though he never should be able to strike his ponyard into his breast . and therefore in the case before us ; if when a sin is done by another , we are pleased with it , we commend the fact , and so declare our selves to be in our hearts consenting to it ; we evidently thereby , as far as concerns our will and inclinations , bear a part in it , and shall accordingly be accounted in god's sight to have a share in the guilt of it . hence it is that we may observe , how studious good men have always shew'd themselves , in flying the very conversation of sinners : as if their keeping company with evil men , should seem to some an approving of their evil actions . it was the resolution of holy david , psal. ci . that he would not suffer any wicked man to stand before him , to dwell in his house , or receive the least favour and countenance from him . and in the cxix th psalm , v. . he makes it the consequence of his own resolving to be good , to drive all such from him as would not be so in like manner with him : depart from me ye evil-doers , i will keep the commandments of my god. and the same was the advice which st. paul gave to the corinthians , ep. v. . he bids them not to keep company with a wicked christian : if any man , says he , that is called a brother be a fornicator , or covetous , or a railer , or a drunkard , or an extortioner , with such a one no not to eat . and again , in his d to timothy , c. iii. having set down a large catalogue of sinners that should rise up in the latter days ; he bids us , ver ▪ . from such turn away . and st. john in his d epistle , having given the same advice to the person to whom he there writes , that if any of those who had deny'd the faith of christ , after having been once made acquainted with it , should come to her , she should not receive them into her house , nor bid them god speed ; subjoins this very thing as the reason of it , for he that biddeth them god speed , is partaker of their evil deeds . and tho' i should be very unwilling to pronounce any thing rashly in a matter of such a nature , and am sensible there are many cases ; some wherein a man cannot avoid having to do with wicked men , as in the common concerns and affairs of this world : others in which a man may worthily keep company with them , as our saviour did with the publicans and sinners heretofore , the better to gain some opportunity to reclaim their manners , and convert them from their evil ways : yet i cannot but think it worth the while of a christian to consider with himself , how he will otherwise be able to excuse himself hereafter to god almighty , that he has received , loved , embraced the most profligate sinners ; shewn his favour and countenance to the most daring rebels against piety and religion ; and delighted in the conversation of those now , whose portion he deprecates , and whose companion he would be very unwilling to become at all adventures hereafter . nay perhaps has done yet more than this : has loved them for their very vices ; been pleased with their prosaneness and debauchery ; and smiled sometimes at those sins in others , which he would have been ashamed to commit himself . but i must not insist upon all these things : and therefore , dly , and to conclude this whole matter ; the last circumstance , whereby we may become partakers of other mens sins , is , by neglecting to hinder them from committing them , when we might , and ought to have done it . now tho this be a circumstance which seems more especially to regard those whom god hath set up as watchmen over the house of israel , yet is there no one that must think himself altogether unconcern'd in it . we all of us i hope have , i am sure we all of us should have the same zeal for the glory of god , and the same charity for the salvation of one anothers souls . and tho' god has indeed in a particular manner appointed some certain persons to watch more than others for your salvation , and to call upon you to look to your selves , and not give way to the tempter : yet whosoever he be that sees another about to do that which he knows will be odious to god , scandalous to good men , and without a timely repentance ruinous to his own soul , and has an opportunity to admonish him of his sin , and to hinder his committing of it , and yet neglects so to do ; let him fear , lest what god once denounc'd against the prophet ezekiel heretofore , be finally verified in himself ; c. . . when i say unto the wicked , o wicked man , thou shalt surely die , if thou dost not speak to warn the wicked from his way ; that wicked man shall die in his iniquity , but his blood will i require at thy hand . but though we are therefore all of us obliged , as we tender our own souls , to do what we can in our several capacities to save others ; and in order thereunto should hinder them from sinning , whenever it lies in our power so to do : yet it is not to be doubted , but that such persons as either by nature or friendship , or any the like engagement , ought to have a more particular concern than others , for their neighbours welfare ; or else by their place , and business , and character , are engaged in a more especial manner to watch over them , should be more than ordinarily careful as to this matter , and will have much more than others to answer for , if they be not . and two waies in general there are , whereby such persons must labour to hinder men from sinning , as ever they mean to clear themselves from being partakers in their iniquities . first , by discouraging sin all they can before it be committed : by setting forth the folly and unreasonableness of it now , and the great danger that shall certainly be the consequence of it hereafter : by shewing the vanity of all those little pretences , in which wicked men are apt to put their trust ; and not leaving them any hopes of impunity , either in this world or in the next , without a true repentance of their sins , and a reformation from them . secondly , by a severe enquiry into , and punishment of it after . this indeed is what the great temper and moderation of our present discipline , that i do not say some defect in it , permits not us , as st. paul here commanded timothy to do . we cannot call sinners publickly into the church , and lay open their crimes to them , and rebuke them before all , that others also may fear . but the civil magistrate has great opportunities of supplying this defect ; and no doubt god will require it so much the more at their hands , in that it is now no longer in ours . there is indeed a mercy to be remembred and shewn in judgment ; and our own frailty ought to admonish us to make great allowances for other mens infirmities . but there may be an excess even in good nature it self ; and whatever the consequence be , care must be taken that neither the honour of god be profan'd , nor his laws despised ; that neither virtue be run down , nor vice encouraged : and to that end men must be kept from open and scandalous sins at least , if they cannot from others ; and be punish'd even in mercy now , that if possible they may be reform'd , and so not perish for ever . and let us then ly , which was the other general point we proposed to consider ( the consequent application of all these reflections ) be perswaded to endeavour what in us lies to prevent both our own and other mens sins . instead of approving and encouraging any in their wickedness . let us , as our apostle advises , heb. . . consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works . instead of giving them any occasion , or laying any stumbling-block in their way , whereby to lead them into sin , let us by our good example both teach them what they ought to do , and if possible , make them in love with it . and let us look upon our selves to lie under the same engagement to god for one another , that judah once took upon himself for his brother benjamin , gen. . . of my hand shalt thou require him ; if i bring him not unto thee , and set him before thee , then let me bear the blame for ever . i am sensible that i am now exhorting you to a duty but very little , if at all , consider'd by most men. we think it to be enough for us to search out our own souls , and account with god for our own miscarriages : and may perhaps be ready to complain of this as some new contrivance against your liberty , to call upon you to repent for other men's sins . but if the case be indeed so as the text plainly implies , and as i think i may presume to say , i have in some measure made it appear to be : if there be many waies by which we may , and by some or other of which it is probable the very best of us have rendred our selves partakers of other mens sins : then i am sure it must remain , that we have a concern to look beyond our own particular offences ; and to enquire to how many sins of others we may have contributed by any of these means i have before mentioned ; and the less we have been wont to do this heretofore , it will argue the greater , not lesser necessity for us to set very seriously about it now . it is indeed an amazing reflection to sit down and think , how much more guilt we may possibly contract by every sin that we commit , than we are any of us willing to believe , or it may be able to comprehend . for not to say any thing at all of those common aggravations , which we are every where taught to examine our selves about : such as sinning against knowledg , against the checks of our own consciences , and the motions of god's holy spirit to the contrary : sinning against often repeated promises , against the most serious resolutions , against the most solemn and sacred vows of obedience : in a word , sinning against many providential admonitions ; such as trouble , afflictions , losses , sickness , and the like ; sent by god on purpose to reclaim us . let us consider only this one thing now before us , how many men our sinning may be the ruine of ? how many souls may , for ought we know , perish by our means ? and what a desperate increase this must add to our own guilt ? for if he who converts a sinner from the error of his way , and so is instrumental to the saving but of one soul from death , shall for that cover a multitude of his own sins : o! then , how fatally must we multiply evil against our selves , when by our neglect of our duty we lead perhaps multitudes into error , and involve their souls in everlasting destruction . if we have therefore hitherto neglected so serious a consideration ; if our repentance has been only for the sins we our selves have committed , without any regard to the mischief we may have done our brother by them ; let us now at least be perswaded to think that we have yet one great part of our humiliation still behind ; to deprecate god's wrath not only for our selves but for others too ; and implore his forgiveness of all those sins which have ever by our means been committed by any in the world , and that he would not impute them either to their , or our damnation . this if we do with that affectionate earnestness as becomes so great an aggravation , i am perswaded we shall not only very much increase our contrition , and so perfect our repentance for what is past ; but may also by the grace of god , establish our selves the better against returning to our evil waies for the time to come . and our desires not to partake in other men's sins , be improved into one motive more , to keep us from continuing in our own . i shall conclude this discourse , after the same manner , and almost in the same words that s. basil once did his canonical epistle to amphilochius , upon the occasion of that very reflection we have now been making . let us , saies he , consider the terrible judgment of god , and the day of his appearing , and let us fear lest we perish in other men's sins . let us call to mind the admonitions of god to us ; what evils we have been exposed to , what calamities we have suffered : and let these convince us , that for the iniquities of our lives we have been forsaken by him . our people have been led into captivity , our brethren dispersed far and near ; because those who profess the name of christ , have yet lived so contrary to their profession , but if after all this men will not understand , that for these causes the wrath of god is come upon us , wherefore should we after this have any thing more to do with them ? nevertheless , let us not cease day nor night , in publick and in private , to intreat and beseech them to consider these things ; but let us not be drawn away with their wickedness . let us wish and pray , that if it shall please god we may yet gain them at the last , and deliver them out of the snares of the devil : but if this we cannot do , yet at least let us save our own souls , thô we cannot theirs , and not partake with them in their sins , lest we also partake with them in their destruction . now to him that sitteth upon the throne , and to the lamb ; be ascribed as is most due , blessing , and glory , and wisdom , and thanksgiving , and honour , and power , and might , for ever and ever : amen . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e tim. iii. . cor. ii . — . chrys. hom. xv . in . tim. gr. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . chap. iii. . marc. ant. l. viii . sect. . ●d . com. ezek. xviii : sam. xi . — — . sam. xii . — . — . — — . — . psal. li. . inst. l. iv . tit. . sect interdum . serm. de sanctis . i , iv , v. acts xxii . . ezek. xiii . . &c. isaiah v. ● . isaiah v. . gal. ii . — . — . — . — . — . exod. xxi . . — . kings xiii . . is●er . ad dem. ● . chrysost. in rom. hom. v. pag. , . kings xxi . . — . — . — . — . — . — . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 phocyl . mat. v. . — . ep. jo. . — ● . ep. jo. . james v. , . bevereg . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . tom . ii. p. . a sermon preached in the parish church of st. james, westminster, april xvith, being the day of the publick thanksgiving for the preservation of his majesty's person from the late horrid and barbarous conspiracy and for delivering this kingdom from the danger and miseries of a french invasion / by william wake. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a sermon preached in the parish church of st. james, westminster, april xvith, being the day of the publick thanksgiving for the preservation of his majesty's person from the late horrid and barbarous conspiracy and for delivering this kingdom from the danger and miseries of a french invasion / by william wake. wake, william, - . p. printed for richard sare, london : . "publish'd at the desire of the honourable the board of vestry and of several other persons of quality of the said parish." reproduction of original in the union theological seminary library, new york. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- o.t. -- psalms xxviii, -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. great britain -- history -- william and mary, - -- sermons. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - jonathan blaney sampled and proofread - jonathan blaney text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a sermon preached in the parish church of st. james westminster , april xvith . . being the day of the publick thanksgiving , for the preservation of his majesty's person from the late horrid and barbarous conspiracy ; and for delivering this kingdom from the danger and miseries of a french invasion . by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to his majesty , and rector of st. james westminster . publish'd at the desire of the honourable the board of vestry ; and of several other persons of quality of the said parish . london : printed for richard sare at grayes-inn-gate in holbourn . . psalm xxviii . . the lord is my strength and my shield ; my heart trusted in him , and i am helped : therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth , and with my song will i praise him. tho' it be difficult to say what the particular occasion was which moved the royal psalmist to compose this psalm ; yet there is more than enough , in the very subject of it , to shew , how suitable it is to that great deliverance which we are now assembled to offer up our thanksgivings unto god for . if first , we consider the author of it ; the inscription will tell us that it is a psalm of david . and if we look to the character which he attributes to himself in the words following the text ; we shall find , that when he composed it , he was king of israel : and designed it as an acknowledgment to god for some signal favour which he had received from him , after his advancement to that high dignity . if secondly , we enquire into the subject of it ; it is evident from the whole series of the psalm , that it was intended for a thanksgiving to god , for some eminent deliverance which he had vouchsafed to him . for this he praises god in the verse before the text : blessed be the lord , because he hath heard the voice of my supplications . and in the words of it , declares the joyful sense he had of his own preservation : the lord is my strength and my shield ; my heart trusted in him and i am helped ; therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth , and with my song will i praise him. but this is not yet all : for , thirdly ; if we look to the circumstances of that deliverance , we shall find it to be still more agreeable , to the occasion of our own thanksgiving . for ( st . ) the danger to which the psalmist was exposed , was not only a design against his person , but such as extended to his very life . he had cruel and merciless men to deal with ; and had not god seasonably interposed his hand , he had fallen a sacrifice to their rage and malice . so the first verse of this psalm tells us ; unto thee will i cry o lord my rock , be not silent to me ; lest if thou be silent , i become like them that go down into the pit. and in the psalm immediately foregoing ; and composed , not only about the same time ; but , as is reasonably conjectured , upon the same occasion too , with this before us ; he represents his adversaries as so many savage beasts , that had designed to tear him in peices , and to glut themselves with his blood : verse . when mine enemies , and my foes , came upon me to eat up my flesh , they stumbled , and fell. ( dly . ) the persons who had conspired against him , were not only a sort of merciless , and bloody men ; but they were as false , and treacherous , as they were barbarous and cruel . they spoke him fair , at the same time that they had resolved to stab him to the heart . they had long endeavour'd by calumny and mis-representation , to alienate the affections of his people from him : and when they saw that this would not do ; then they resolved , at once , to make an end of him. and for this we have , again , the psalmist 's own words , in both these psalms ; who therefore upon this very account prays to god against them : draw me not away with the wicked , and with the workers of iniquity , who speak peace to their neighbours , but mischief is in their hearts . deliver me not over unto the will of mine enemies ; for false witnesses are risen up against me , and such as breath out cruelty . but ( dly . ) tho' the design of these barbarous men , was chiefly against the person of king david ; yet it did not stop there . no ; they resolved to extend their malice to all that adhered to him : and not to leave , till they had compleated their vengeance , in the utter ruine both of the one , and of the other . it was this gave occasion to that conjunction we meet with both of his and their deliverance , ver . . the lord is their strength ; and he is the saving strength of his anointed . and drew from him that prayer with which he concludes this psalm ; ver . . save thy people , and bless thine inheritance ; feed them also , and lift them up for ever . and as such was their design against david , and his followers ; so if we enquire ( thly . ) what may have been the cause of so inveterate a malice against both , we shall be able to give no other account of it than this ; that god had wonderfully raised up the one , to the throne of judah , and the other thought themselves obliged in conscience to submit to him , and to support his authority . this is what the psalmist again declares to us , in the th . and th . verses of this psalm : where he ( for this very reason ) either fore tells , or prays for , their disappointment : give them according to their deeds , and according to the wickedness of their endeavours ; give them after the work of their hands ; render to them their desert : — because they regard not the works of the lord , nor the operation of his hands : that is to say , those evident marks of god's singular providence , which were so plainly to be seen , in his raising him up to be king of israel . in the words before us , there are these four things to be consider'd : i. the deliverance it self for which david , in this place , blesses god ; i am helped . ii. the author of his deliverance ; it was the lord . iii. the motive which induced god to deliver him : the lord was his strengh , and his sheild ; his heart trusted in him , and therefore , he was helped . iv. and lastly . the return which the royal psalmist made to god for his deliverance : therefore , says he , my heart greatly rejoiceth , and with my song will i praise him. these are the several parts which my subject leads me to consider : and i shall do it , all along , first ( but very briefly ) as they relate to king david , and his people ; and then , more fully , as they may be applied to our own royal sovereign , and to that wonderful deliverance , god has been pleased to afford us , out of the hands of our enemies . and , first : let us consider the deliverance it self , which is to be the subject of our present thanksgiving ; i am helped . what the particular blessing was to which david here refers , we cannot tell : but as the whole tenor of this psalm assures us , that it was some very signal danger from which god had rescu'd him ; so , i have before observ'd , that the occasion of it was owing to that implacable malice which some few wicked men had conceived against him , for his being made king of israel ; notwithstanding the visible marks of god's hand , which appear'd in the whole progress of that affair . it is , indeed , an astonishing thing to consider , that after so many , and such plain assurances as god had given of his pleasure , in this particular ; yet still such numbers should continue not only , not to regard his work , but even to bid defiance to his providence ; and to set themselves up against one , whom they could not but see , he was resolved to exalt . that samuel was a true prophet , and appointed by god to deliver his will to that people ; none among them ever doubted . he was the person whom god employed to introduce the kingly government among them : and it was upon his credit , that saul himself was received by them for their king. and yet it was this same samuel that publish'd god's decree for taking the crown from saul ; and that so openly , and in such a solemn manner , that it was not possible for any among them to have been ignorant of it . nay , but this was not all : samuel not only made known to them the decree of god concerning saul ; but shew'd them the very person whom god had chosen for them in his stead . he anointed him , for this very end , in bethlehem ; and commanded the jews to look upon him , and receive him as their king. this was so notorious , that even saul himself knew of it : and jonathan , saul's son , and heir apparent to the crown , not only knew the same thing , but consented to it ; and used his utmost endeavour to promote the will of god in it . and now , when all this was so plain , as i have here represented it to you , and as you all know that it was ; who could have imagined , that there should ever have risen any doubt , whether the jews were to stick to the house of saul ; or to lay that aside , and without any more ado , submit to david , as their king ? yet so we see it proved : for abner , saul's general , no sooner saw that his master was slain , but he took ish-bosheth his son , and made him king in his stead ; and eleven of the twelve tribes of israel , acknowledged his authority . it would be too long a story to recount to you , what unhappy divisions this threw that people into ; and through what a multitude of dangers , god , at last , brought his anointed to the full possession of that power which he had allotted to him. i shall only observe , that so generous , as well as innocent , was the conduct of the holy david , in the whole course of this affair ; as shew'd him to have deserved the crown , tho' god had not bestow'd it , in so singular a manner , upon him. tho' saul several times endeavour'd , by the foulest means , to destroy him ; and god , ( as if it had been on purpose that he might make him a retaliation ) twice put saul himself into his hands ; yet this brave prince not only scorn'd to take the advantage of him , but would not consent that any of his party should touch him . and when , ( tired out with the confusions they had lain under , and convinced of the will of god , to set david upon the throne ) two of the chief officers of his army treacherously slew ish-bosheth their master , and brought his head to king david ; that excellent man , did not only not shew any favour to them ; but as he had before done to the amalekite , who slew saul , ( tho' at his own desire , and meerly to keep his enemies from doing of it , ) he punish'd them according to their desert : he cut off their hands and their feet , and hang'd them up in hebron ; and gave an honourable burial to the head of that unfortunate prince , whom they had so basely and barbarously murder'd . but tho' god had therefore in so eminent a manner set david upon the throne , and david himself had appear'd , in all respects , so worthy of that dignity : tho' never any prince more generously exposed himself for the publick safety , or came off with greater honour , or put things into a better posture , than he did that country ; yet was not all this sufficient to quiet the minds , and to reconcile the affections of some perverse tempers to him : but they were still ready , upon every occasion , to assault his person ; and to do , what in them lay , to subvert his authority . and which may be a sufficient demonstration to us , that some mens resentments , are not only without bounds , but beyond conviction too : and that we ought not to wonder if no rational considerations can take place with those , whose passions and prejudices are so violent and infatuating that we see a prophet could not ; and it may al , most be question'd , whether an angel from heaven would have been able to perswade them . such was the case of the jews heretofore ; and i would to god , i had no cause to say , that the same is our case at this very day . but what then means our solemn assembling at this time ? why are we here met together to bless god for the preservation of our royal sovereign , if neither his person was in danger , nor his authority invaded ? to recount the several steps by which it pleased god to bring our david to his throne ; and shew you what just reason an injured people had to look to themselves , and not suffer their liberties to be subverted , and their religion destroy'd , without taking any due care to preserve either ; would divert me too far from the subject before me , and to which i desire now particularly to apply my self . i shall therefore only say thus much as to this matter ; that if ever it may be lawful for any people to provide for their own safety : if the constitution of a limited monarchy , be not a meer notion , that has neither meaning , nor priviledge in it : if a nation govern'd by laws of its own approving ; and that never engaged to obey any sovereign , but what mutually obliged himself to rule according to those laws ; has as just a right to the legal government of the prince , as the prince has to the legal obedience of such a people : in short , if it be absurd to say , that a whole kingdom may have a right to its laws and liberties , and yet have no right to defend them , tho' they should never so apparently , or in such considerable instances , be broken in upon ; tho' such things should be enterprized , as all men must see were design'd , and if not prevented , must end in a total dissolution of the constitution : then had this kingdom also reason to stand up in defence of its laws , and its religion , establish'd by those laws : and to lay hold on the happy opportunity of the desertion of a king , who was resolved rather not to rule at all , than not to rule in his own way . whether this were our case , as to matter of fact , whether our constitution was really in danger of being subverted , and our religion , laws , and liberties were invaded ; this must be left to every ones own conscience to judge of . but if they were , and if our monarchy be in the very frame and constitution of it a limited monarchy ; and establish'd not upon the imperial laws of a few visionary politicians , but upon the fundamental laws of its own making , or allowing : then i must solemnly profess that either i am uncapable of judging what sense and reason is ; or it must follow , that an absolute monarch , a prince not bounded by law , but governing only by the arbitrary motions of his own will , is no king of our acknowledging : our constitution knows no such monarch , nor did we ever oblige our selves to obey such a one. and now having thus truly shewn you how our case stood when it pleased god to send our royal deliverer to us , i shall need say very little to convince you , that he did not come without a particular providence attending him in the whole course of our deliverance . and tho' success when it stands without any other support , much more if it be contrary to justice and equity , is but a very bad argument of the divine approbation ; because god may permit what he does not allow of : yet where a whole kingdom is manifestly injured , oaths are broken , laws despised : where the religion of a nation is endeavoured to be subverted ; and a free people to be subjected to the intolerable yoak of an arbitrary power , and an idolatrous worship ; and god visibly appears on their behalf , in such extraordinary instances of his providence , as scarce any age can parallel : it must be obstinacy and perverseness not to see that his arm has brought salvation unto them ; or seeing it , not to be persuaded , with all thankfulness , to accept of it . for not to say any thing of those many deliverances we have heretofore assembled to bless god for : how great was the mercy that saved us from our present danger ? how evident was the hand of god , in every circumstance of it ? that men , neither the most religious , nor compassionate of any in the world ; enemies to our religion , and ( if it were possible ) somewhat worse than enemies to our present government ; should yet be so strook with the regret of an enterprize , which alone could give them any just hopes of succeeding in their designs against us , as to become themselves the discoverers of their own wicked undertakings ; is certainly very strange : and what can hardly be accounted for , without acknowledging some extraordinary impulse of conscience in it . that having discovered it ; those who suffer'd for it ; and whose concern for their own reputation , if not for the common cause , one would think , should have prompted them to leave the credit of such an attempt as much in doubt , as was possible ; should yet joyn their own testimony , to the witness that had before been given of the truth of it ; this is yet more wonderful : and what neither the principles , nor politicks of the church of rome , usually allow their proselytes to do . that to strengthen both the witness of some , and the confessions of others , as to this matter ; so many foreign proofs should be sent us from all parts abroad , and shew that to have been publish'd before-hand almost to all europe , which ought , if possible , to have been concealed even from those who were to be actors in it ; this must be the effect of a more than ordinary infatuation : and cannot be reconciled to the usual caution , and closeness of those , who were the great contrivers , and abettors of it . in short ; that when such a time was taken to invade us from abroad , as ( had our own measures succeeded ) we must have been left utterly destitute of any possibility either of preventing , or opposing it at home ; he who governs the wind and the sea , should so order matters , that it was not possible for us to send away those ships , on which our safety was to depend : this is , above all the rest , an evident instance of god's favour to us ; and ought to be as wonderful in our eyes , as it has been astonishing in those of our enemies . so plainly was god pleased to shew himself on our side , in every circumstance of this deliverance . and that we may the better know what returns we ought to make for it , give me leave to offer you , a very few observations , with reference thereunto . and , st . if we consider it only in that part of the design which was the first to have been put in execution ; god has prevented the murder of our king : of that king whom he had chosen to be the instrument of our preservation ; and in whose safety our very enemies themselves account our welfare to consist . and god forbid ! we should have a less esteem of our royal sovereign , than those who the most hate him , shew us that they have . dly : this murder was to have been follow'd with a foreign invasion : an invasion from that prince who has already fill'd most of the other parts of europe with ruin and desolation . and , particularly , has shewn himself so irreconcilable an enemy to the protestant religion , as to be resolved ( if it were possible ) to root out the very memory of it from off the earth . and here then let us consider , what a confusion and desolation this must have put our unfortunate country into ? when we should have seen , our houses in flames about our ears ; our land destroy'd ; our friends and relations slaughter'd before our eyes : the best and greatest of our nation , those from whose courage or conduct , from whose counsel or interest , we might have especially hoped for help , secretly cut off , in the very beginning of our disorders . in short , when our land being become a seat of war ; we should have beheld , and suffer'd all those miseries , and calamities , which we tremble to hear of , tho' at the greatest distance from us. oh! how happy would those have been , who should have had the priviledge of being first destroyed ? rather than to have outlived the fortunes of their country , their own peace , and their churches establishment . but , blessed be god! who has graciously deliver'd us out of their hands ! and thereby given us a new earnest of his favour to us : and manifested to the world , that in vain are all the counsels of men to destroy those , whom he has resolved to help and support . and thus have i shewn you , not only what our deliverance is ; but withal , which was my iid . point ; to whom we are to ascribe the glory of it . for tho' god be , indeed , the sovereign dispenser of all our fortunes ; and , as such , must be recurr'd to as the final author of whatsoever good we enjoy : yet in some cases he is pleased in a more particular manner to discover his hand in the blessings which we receive from him ; and therefore ought in a singular manner to be look'd unto , as the donor of them . so he did in davids deliverance ; and so he did in our late preservation . it was neither our hand , nor our counsel that saved us : neither the strength of our armies , nor the cunning of our contrivance , that disappointed the designs of our enemies against us. but it was the arm of the lord that defended us : he was our strength and our shield ; and therefore we were helped . which being so let us go on , iiidly , to consider , what it was that induced god to deliver david heretofore ; and for which we may justly presume he was pleased , in so wonderful a manner , to preserve us now : my heart trusted in him , says he , and i am helped . there is nothing more frequently taken notice of by the royal psalmist , throughout this whole book , than this one thing ; that he was therefore so often , and in so signal a manner , protected by god , because he put his trust in him. it is upon this ground that he sometimes prays to god for help : psal. vii . . o lord my god! in thee do i put my trust ; save me from all them that persecute me , and deliver me. and again , psal. xv . . o my god! i trust in thee , let me not be ashamed , neither let mine enemies triumph over me. and when god heard his prayer , and preserved him from his enemies ; it is to this that he ascribes his doing of it : i have trusted in the lord , therefore i shall not slide , psal. xxvi . . and again , psal. xxi . . the king trusteth in the lord ; and thro' the mercy of the most high , he shall not be moved . it is this that he recommends to all others , as the best means they could use to secure to themselves the favour of god , and the protection of his good providence . trust in the lord , says he , and do good ; so shalt thou dwell in the land. they that trust in the lord shall be even as mount zion , which may not be removed , but standeth fast for ever . and , lastly , not to mention any more particulars ; it is this that makes him speak so often of god , as the particular defender of such persons : the lord , says he , redeemeth the souls of his servants ; and none of them that trust in him shall be destitute . psal. xxxiv . . and again , psal. xviii . . he is a buckler to all those that trust in him. now this being the benefit of such a trust , even with respect to our present welfare ; it cannot but be a matter of great consequence to us to know , wherein the nature of this trust do's consist ; and how we may intitule our selves to the benefits of it ? and here , st . i must observe , that we ought not so far to mistake either our duty , or our interest , as to imagine that because we are commanded to trust in god , therefore we must take no farther care of , nor make any suitable provision for the success of our affairs . this would be not so much to trust in god , as to presume upon him : to expect that he should work miracles for our sakes ; and do all to save those , who will do nothing to save themselves . on the contrary we see how even david himself , amidst all his trust in god's help , yet still took care to make the best provision he could for his own safety . and when the israelites before , were sent by his own peculiar commission , to kill and take possession ; and were assured of victory , before they went into the field : yet still they were required to act with as much art and cunning ; to contrive as wisely , and to fight as resolutely , as if the whole success of their enterprizes were to have depended upon their own courage and conduct . and so must we do now : god has , 't is true , in a wonderful manner , deliver'd our king , and discover'd the designs of our enemies against us. he has shewn us what kind of men we have to do with ; and from whence our danger is likely to arise . and it must be , in great measure , our own fault , if we do not prevent it . but yet , if because god has done thus much for us , we shall from henceforth grow careless and secure : if while our enemies threaten us from abroad , and we are beset with a discontented , designing party at home ; we shall neither be careful to discover what their strength is , nor to consider how to fortifie our selves against them : we must blame no body , but our selves , if we shall at last fall into their snares , and sink under those attempts , we have now so narrowly escaped . but dly . tho' we may , and ought to use our best endeavours to provide for our own security ; yet we must not place our dependance upon them : but when we have done all that we can , must still look up to god , for deliverance and success . and this is truly to trust in him ; and will furnish us with a clear notion of the nature of that great duty which is required of us on all these occasions . to provide for our own safety , and to take those measures that seem the most likely to promote the publick welfare ; this is not only very lawful , but is reasonable and necessary . nor shall we ever be secure , without doing of it . but yet , when all is done , 't is neither our arms , nor our counsels ; neither our strength , nor our policy , that we must depend upon : but we must still recur to god for help ; and put our whole trust and confidence in his mercy . so david did ; and it was this that crown'd his enterprises with honour and victory . i will not trust in my bow , says he ; neither shall my sword save me. thro' thee will we push down our enemies ; thro' thy name will we tread them under , that rise up against us . psal. xliv . , . and in another psalm , he makes this wise , and pious remark , upon the different conduct of his enemies , as to this matter ; and how it succeeded with them accordingly : psal. xx . , . some trust in chariots , and some in horses ; but we will remember the name of the lord our god. they are brought down and fallen ; but we are risen and stand upright . for men to look only to the number of their forces ; the exactness of their discipline ; and the cunning of their management ; and then boast of their enterprises as certain and infallible ; and exalt themselves in their own imaginations , as if no disappointment could happen to them : this is not only to shew too great a contempt of god's providence , but too little a reflection upon the state of the world ; and those numerous accidents to which the greatest and wisest undertakings are exposed . and i am pretty confident , our enemies themselves begin , by this time , to be sensible of their own folly in this particular : and to perceive how vain a thing it is to lay great designs , and build up mighty expectations upon them ; and not consider all the while , that there is a god who ruleth in the kingdoms of men , and whose counsel , when we have done all we can , shall stand. but above all , dly : as we must not trust in our own strength or policy for success , and security : so must we take heed not to engage in any wicked courses , either to promote our interests , or to prevent our danger . for this will be plainly to forsake god ; and to trust in our own devices , even in defiance of his ability to controul , and disappoint us. there is a certain justice to be observed even against an enemy : and war its self has its laws , from which the more upright heathens thought it , not only evil , but scandalous to depart . and much more ought we christians to do likewise . and tho' to a weak mind , and a bruitish policy ; it may appear a very wise method of proceeding , to endeavour , by secret treachery , to cut off a dangerous enemy ; and do that by a suddain stab , or a deadly draught , which cannot without much hazard be accomplish'd in a fair engagement : yet there is a god above , who as he abhors himself , and has taught us to detest such barbarous undertakings ; so do's he for the most part bring them to nought : and leave the projectors only to the regret of having been disappointed in their designs ; and to the hatred and contempt of mankind , for having ever engaged in them. thus god did do in the case of david , whom saul so often endeavour'd , and hoped to have destroy'd : and thus has he done for our royal sovereign . he has deliver'd him from the secret practices , as well as from the open violence of his enemies . and continued him to be , as he is this day , a living monument of his own mercy ; and of the un-christian , un-manly designs of those , who are great only in treachery and deceit : in endeavouring basely to destroy those , whom they never yet durst meet in the field of honour ; nay , to whom they would rather tamely yield up , if they had it , the empire of the world , than let the sword decide it between them , to whom it should belong . and let them rejoice , if they please , in their inglorious proceedings . let them raise armies , and train up forces , not to fight , but to countenance the treachery of their proceedings . let them buy victory ; and corrupt those , whom they would be thought to engage : and fancy , after all , that they are great and honourable ; because they are able to command panegyric's , and to reward the mercenary authors of them . but posterity will know the baseness of their proceedings ; and god , in a little time , will judge them for them. in the mean while it will be our parts to provide , the best we can , against their wickedness : and having so done let us not doubt , but that god will turn their devices to their own confusion ; and not suffer us to fall by them , whilst we continue to put our trust in him. and now , it remains only that i conclude all with the ivth and last point , which i proposed to speak to , viz. the return which the royal psalmist made to god for his deliverance : therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth , and in my song will i praise him . in which words we have these ( ) things represented to us : st . the inward sense which david had of god's mercy to him : his heart greatly rejoiced . and , dly . his outward expression of it ; in my song will i praise him. these two together made up the return of that holy man ; and both of them must concur in our thanksgiving ; if ever we mean to render it pleasing and acceptable to god almighty . st . we must entertain a worthy , and grateful sense of our deliverance . and this , one would think , every one should do , who is capable of understanding what it was ; and from what a deluge of miseries , we have reason to believe , we are freed by it . were the mischief , design'd against us , to have reach'd no farther than to the death of the king ; yet sure we cannot have so soon forgot , how much we owe to him , as not to account our selves , in an eminent manner , concern'd for his preservation . he who in the time of our greatest danger ventured his own life and fortunes , to secure ours ; and when our enemies seem'd to be in their full career , trampling both our laws , and religion under their feet ; stept forth into the gap , and bravely withstood the torrent , which would otherwise have born down all before it : as he must needs deserve our most grateful acknowledgment for so seasonable an interposition ; so shall he , i hope , be always consider'd by us , as the repairer of our breaches ; the supporter of our state ; the defender of our liberties ; and the preserver of the true religion among us : and in whose safety , we therefore ought , as we do , most heartily to rejoice . but this is not all : the very danger he was exposed to , was meerly for our sakes ; and upon the account of that protection which he continues to afford us , against the fury of our enemies . nor would they ever have thought of destroying him , had he not been so zealous to save us. the truth is , if we will consider the design of our enemies aright ; we must look upon our solemn rejoicing at this time , to be not so much upon the account of our royal sovereigns preservation , as of our common deliverance . our country ; our families ; our estates ; nay our very lives themselves : the constitution of our monarchy ; the laws by which we are govern'd ; the religion in which we serve god now , and thro' which we expect to be saved hereafter ; all these were struck at : and , had their attempt succeeded , must all have fallen together with the great defender of them . nor can any one excuse himself from a grateful resentment of this happy deliverance , without declaring himself thereby a publick enemy : an enemy , not only to his prince's safety ; but to the peace , the welfare , nay to the very establishment of the church and government under which we live . we were appointed as sheep for the slaughter ; our land to have been made an akeldama , a field of blood : the fury of war , always very dismal , and no where more , than where the french tyranny has the fortune to prevail ; was to have been doubled upon us. whilst we should have been exposed not only to the rage of those abroad , ( and who by the treatment they have given their own countrymen , have sufficiently shewn , what all others , of a different religion , must expect from them ; ) but to the particular resentments of our own domestick enemies . or to speak all in one word ; we should have been laid open to all the cruelty that a false zeal , and a persecuting church could inspire into the minds of men ; who would have set no bounds to their rage ; as they know no measure of their hatred , and malice , against us . oh! the horrour and confusion , the shreiks and the lamentations , that would have been seen , and heard in all our streets ! how often should we in vain have wish'd to die , rather than live to behold and suffer such evils , as would , before this time , have come upon us ? as the horrour of a shipwreck at sea , or of an earthquake at land ; as a city taken by storm ; as if the day of judgment were coming upon the earth ; such would the case of this miserable country have been . but , blessed be god! who has not given us over for a prey unto their teeth . our soul is escaped , even as a bird out of the snare of the fouler ; the snare is broken , and we are delivered . nay , we are not only saved from our present danger , but are , i hope , in some measure awakened to provide for our future safety : and effectually convinced what canaanites we have among us ; and how much it will concern us to beware of them . and , i would to god ; they did not give us , every day , more and more reason so to do . for even since the discovery of this horrid , barbarous , base design ; where is almost the man , that has given us any good assurance of his abhorrence of it ? that he is asham'd of the undertaking ; that he detests those who were engag'd in it : or is indeed concern'd for any thing of it , unless it be for this one thing , that they succeeded no better in the execution of it . but such is the power of passion and prejudice ; and so unaccountable are the working of some mens consciences ! for sure , otherwise , one would think it should be somewhat more than infatuation , to imagine , that to call in a french power is a likely method to secure english liberties : or that those who have been so zealous to roct out the protestant interest at home , will yet be so good natured , as to establish it abroad . i hope there is no one will so far mistake my design in insisting upon these matters ; as to think that i desire hereby to raise up any storm , against the quiet and conscientious part of those who differ from us , in point either of religion or government . on the contrary , i freely profess , that i love , and value , a sincere and upright christian , let his opinion be never so contrary to what i take to be the right : and for the whole world i would not , willingly , be the occasion of the least evil , to such a one . persecution for matters of opinion , is what , i thank god , i have ever abhorr'd : and i hope i shall never be so far transported in my zeal for any cause or party , as to give the least encouragement to it . but then i must beg leave to observe withal , that true religion , is first pure , then peaceable ; it is humble and charitable ; it thinketh no evil , nor wisheth any ; it rejoyces not in iniquity ; but desires the welfare and happiness of those , who are at the greatest distance from its own perswasion . and if instead of maintaining such a character , men will be peevish and morose ; turbulent and unquiet : if they will not only shew an implacable hatred towards all such as differ from them , but will , upon every occasion , publickly censure and revile them too : if they will rejoyce in their harm , and be concern'd at their welfare ; and resolve at any rate to procure their ruin , though they were sure to perish together with them : in short , if such be their conscience , that they can without remorse consent to have a king murder'd ; their country invaded ; their religion and liberties given up into the hands of those who are the profess'd enemies of both : i cannot but think , that then it is high time for us to look to our selves , and to have a care of such zealots ; and to consider , the rather , how to prevent our ruin , for that it is become a matter of conscience , with some men , to do all they can to destroy us . and now if , from what has been said , it appears , that our hearts ought greatly to rejoyce at this deliverance ; then i am sure i shall need add very little to perswade you , dly . to let your tongues declare the sense of them . for the expressions of the mouth , naturally follow the disposition of the mind : and when the one is full of a grateful resentment of god's mercies ; the other will break out , into songs of praise and thanksgiving for them . now this we have , in some measure already done ; and shall again go on , with the church , to do . but we must not let our thanksgiving stop here ; nor think that the acknowledment of one such solemn meeting , is a sufficient return for so great a preservation . rather , we should teach our very children to speak of this mercy ; and deliver the memory of it down to succeeding generations . that the ages yet to come may know what a deliverance we have received ; as well as enjoy the benefits of it . and by more and more instances be convinced , how impossible it is to reconcile a popish power , to the interest of a protestant church and kingdom : and that they ought rather , to expose themselves to any hazards , and to undergo any burdens ; than be brought again under the yoak of it . thus then let us rejoyce in the blessing we have received , and thus let us speak of it in all our gates . and may that god who regardeth the heart , and knoweth the secret thoughts of every one of us ; approve our sincerity , and accept of our thanksgivings ! and ever more preserve us , from the treachery , and violence of all our enemies ; but , especially from the tyranny of the great oppressor . may he incline those to consider and praise him , who are yet to be convinced of the justice of our cause , and the happiness of our deliverance : nay , who perhaps break in upon the solemnity of this day , with murmurings and repinings against god for preserving us . and as for those who are true and steddy to the publick interest of their country and religion ; may he every day render them more useful , and serviceable to both ! may they be active and vigorous ; firm and resolute ! neither afraid to own a good cause , though reviled by those who wish ill to it ; nor unwilling to venture themselves , and all they have , for the support of it . may they to the sacrifices of their lips , add the piety of their lives : and by a general reformation of manners , and union of hearts and affections among us , remove the only obstacles that seem any way likely to prevent our common happiness ! and having thus disposed our selves for his blessing ; may that god who has sent this great salvation to us , multiply more and more his favours upon us ! may he direct our counsels ; animate our resolutions ; and give success to our undertakings ! but especially ; may he preserve our royal sovereign from all the treacherous designs of his enemies against him ; and from the hands of those who delight in blood ! may his arms be prosperous ; and his reign happy ! may he finish all his enterprizes with honour , and victory : and may we consider more and more , how much our safety depends upon his welfare ; and with what zeal we ought to unite together against all such , as by seeking his destruction , shall give us the highest , and most fatal demonstration that can be given , of their desire to promote our common ruin. i shall conclude all , with the words of our royal psalmist , when god had given him rest from all his enemies , and had delivered him from the hand of saul , psal. xviii . . the lord liveth , and blessed be our rock ; and let the god of our salvation be exalted . he has deliver'd us from our enemies ; he has lifted us up above those that rose up against us ; he has deliver'd us from the violent man : therefore , will we give thanks unto thee o lord among the heathen , and sing praise unto thy name : salvation and glory , and honour and praise , and thanksgiving ; be unto the lord our god , for ever and ever , amen . finis . books printed for r. sare at grays-inn-gate in holborn . the genuine epistles of st. barnabas , st. ignatius , st. clement , st. polycarp , the sphepherd of hermas , and the martyrdoms of st. ignatius and st. polycarp . translated and published with a large preliminary discourse , by w. wake , d. d. o. a practical discourse concerning swearing , especially in the two great points of perjury and common sw earing : by w. wake , d d. o. fables of aesop and other eminent mythologists , with morals and reflexions . folio . the visions of don francisco de quevedo . o. seneca's morals , o. tully's offices , o. erasmus's colloquies . o. bona's guide to eternity . o. all six by sir roger l'estrange . compleat sets , consisting of eight volumes of letters , writ by a turkish spy , who lived forty five years undiscovered at paris , giving an impartial account to the divan at constantinople , of the most remarkable transactions of europe during the said time . o. humane prudence , or , the art by which a man may raise himself and fortune to grandeur . the sixth edition . o. moral maxims and reflections in four parts . written in french by the duke of rochfoucault . now made english. o. epictetus's morals , with simplicius's comment , made english from the greek . by george stanhop , late fellow of king's college cambridge . o. the parson's councell or ; or , the law of tythes . by sir simon degge . o. of the art both of writing and judging of history , with reflections upon antient as well as modern historians . by the learned and ingenious , father le moyne , o. an essay on reason . by sir george mackenzie . o. the unlawfulness of bonds of resignation . o. the doctrine of a god and providence ; vindicated and asserted by tho. gregory late of wadham-college , oxford ; and now lecturer near fulham . o. some discourses on several divine subjects . by the same author . death made comfortable , or the way to die well . by john kettlewell , a presbyter of the church of england . o. dr. gregory's divine antidote against john smith , a socinian writer . o. dr. gregory's sermon upon the thanksgiving day , for his majesties preservation from the intended assassination . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e psalm xxviii . . psalm xxvii . . sam. viii , &c. sam. x. . sam. xv . . &c. sam. xvi . . sam. xx . xxiv . . lb. xxiii . . sam. ii . , &c. sam. xviii . , . xix . , &c. sam. xxiv . xxvi . sam. iv . . . sam. i. . sam. iv . . ps. xxxvij . v. . psal. cxxv . . dan. iv . prov. xix . . psal. cxxiv , . jam. iij. . colos. iij. . cor. xiij . , . preparation for death being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france, in a dangerous distemper of which she died. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) preparation for death being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france, in a dangerous distemper of which she died. wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ] p. printed for richard chiswell ..., london : . attributed to william wake. cf. halkett & laing ( nd ed.). reproduction of original in bodleian library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng death. death -- religious aspects. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - judith siefring sampled and proofread - judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion preparation for death . being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a dangerous distemper , of which she died . numb . xxiii . . let me die the death of the righteous , and let my latter end be like his . london , printed for richard chiswell , at the rose and crown , in s. paul's church-yard . . advertisement . could either my desires , or endeavours have prevailed for the suppressing of the following letter , it had been buried in the same grave with her to whom it was address'd . but being fallen into the hands of her relations after her death , many copies were dispersed before my return into england , and thereby a necessity put upon me either to publish it my self , or to have the dissatisfaction of seeing others do it , for me . this being the true account of the edition of this short treatise , i shall need the less apology , if there seem nothing in it for which it should be exposed to a publick view . it was writ as a private letter , to a person of more piety , than curiosity ; and without any prospect ; nay i may add more , upon an assurance that it should never come to any ones sight but her own . and therefore it ought not to be wonder'd if it appear with all the plainness and freedom , which an epistolary stile and character required . for the rest , as i can sincerely profess that it was no principle of vanity that led me first to write it , so much less does any such motive induce me now to publish it . it was to serve a greater and better end , i both then did , and now do design it : and if those who shall hereafter peruse it , do it but with the same piety that she did for whom it was composed , i am perswaded neither they nor i shall have any cause to repent us of our labour . paris april . s. n. . madam ▪ the address i here make you , how meanly soever i have performed it ; is yet so suitable to your circumstances , and so well befits ▪ my character ; that i make no doubt but you will accept it with the same charity that i have designed it . and therefore instead of making apologies for my undertaking , i will rather send it to you with my hearty prayers , that those few directions i have here put together , may be as truly useful to you , as i do assure you they were really by me intended for your service . you are not , madam , to expect in this short draught any thing but what you have often already heard , and , i perswade my self , have long practised . religion is none of those things that change with the fashion , and accommodate themselves to the mode : and though we have of late met with some who have endeavoured upon the foundations of christianity to erect a new scheme of court-divinity , by making the way to heaven both broader and smoother than it is : yet both the projectors and those that follow them will sadly find themselves mistaken in the end ; when the one shall perish for betraying their master , and the others be condemn'd for not rejecting their innovations . but , madam , if you find nothing new in the matter , i am sure much less will you have any thing in the stile and method , but what is plain and easie . in such discourses as these , he seems to me to speak most properly , that expresses himself most clearly . some things indeed i should have added ; others have changed , and have dress'd the whole with greater care ; but i had little time , and much other business , which i am sure you know to be more than pretence . the rules yet i am confident are sound and useful , and may as they are , serve your devotion ; but if your abundance of better helps frustrate that design , yet at least you will be pleased to esteem it an undoubted testimony of that sincerity with which i am , madam , your most humble , and most obedient servant , w. w. introduction . there is nothing hath proved more fatal to that due preparation we ought to make for another life , than our unhappy mistake of the nature of this . we are brought into the world , children , ignorant ▪ and impotent ; we grow up in vanity and folly ; and when we come to be men , we are but very little more prudent and more considerate . the whole of our reflections terminates in this , what course we are to take to pass our time ; some to get , others to spend their estates ; and when interest or inclination , friends or fortune have determined the choice , we are then entred in , and our remaining business is to pursue this end to the best advantage , for our present ease and our future establishment . thus are our thoughts and our desires wholly tied to this world ; we vainly project a settlement in it , nor look we any farther than the little interests and employments thereof engage us . . i am sure , madam , i need not say much to convince you , who have had so many opportunities to settle this reflection upon your own experience , and who , i am perswaded , have so profitably employ'd them , that this is the just character of the far greater part of mankind : and for the unhappy influence of it to the decay of christianity , i think it is not to be doubted that 't is the tying of our affections so much to this world , that above any thing indisposes us to think of another . whilest we set up our hopes and our establishment here , we either altogether forget , or at least do not so vigorously consider , that god has provided another and better place for us , whither we shall in a very little time be transferred by him , and for which therefore the great affair of our whole lives now should be to provide . . is it possible to be imagined that we should see such numbers engage their lives and labours , some to heap together a little dirt that shall bury them in the end ; others to gain an honour , that at best can be celebrated but by an inconsiderable part of the world , and is envied and calumniated by more than 't is truly given ; most to pursue the pleasures ( as they call them ) of their natures ; which begin in sin , are carried on with danger , and end in bitterness ; and scarce one that troubles himself about the blessings of heaven , or at least lives as if he did so ; would men seriously perswade themselves that they have here no abiding place , no city to dwell in : but are only in their passage to the heavenly jerusalem , their city which is above , where alone true happiness is to be found , and upon which therefore their thoughts and their endeavours ought chiefly to be employed . . can we behold the vices and debaucheries of many ; the carelessness and irreligion of almost all ; and believe that the christian world is seriously convinced of those great truths their religion teaches them of a future life , and a vast eternity of rewards and punishments , according as we observe or neglect the duties it commands in this ? . how shall we believe that those men are perswaded of the true business of this life , that 't is the time of tryal , that god has thrown us into this world as into a circle , to exercise our selves in it , and receive the crown if we come off with victory , who so shamefully decline the combat ; and are so far from obtaining the victory , that we are scarcely to be brought but even to do any thing towards it . . in a word ; were it possible that the thoughts of eternity , but especially the near approaches of it , by a mature age , a crasy constitution , or a violent sickness , should amaze so many as we find it does , make them so unwilling to go to christ , and receive the reward of their labours ; had they ever truly considered all these things ; and not rather with old simeon sing their nunc dimittis , with comfort and assurance ; and cry out with s. paul , phil. . . to me to live is christ , and to dye is gain ; and again , v. . i have a desire to depart and to be with christ. . were i now , madam , to deal with any other than your self , these and the like considerations would engage me , before i entred on the following prescriptions , to dispose your mind to a reception of them , by shewing you the great interest we have in eternity ; that our lives are uncertain , to be sure cannot be long here , and that therefore we ought to hasten all we can , before it be too late , to examine our souls , and provide for futurity . that all the little objects we now pursue , for which our ease , our conscience , nay our very religion it self is sacrificed by us , are but vanities and trifles , neither worthy in themselves , nor satisfying in their enjoyment ; but , madam , your vertue , and your prudence , make all such preparations unnecessary formalities , and instead of opening the way to the following address by such insinuations , i ought rather to apologize for my indiscretion in the whole undertaking , which your piety prevents , and which your dayly ▪ practice shews you already to understand beyond any thing i am able to offer for your assistance . . nevertheless since it has pleased god to an excellent natural disposition to add yet other obligations , and by the troubles of this life to draw you to himself ; to shew you worthy of his favour , and i trust more highly to reward you in the next ; be pleased to give me leave this way to congratulate with you those evils , which so many are wont to lament , and which no one more sincerely wishes ( if it please god ) to see you free from , than my self ; and as you have done me the honour to command my attendance whilst you were with us here , pardon me if i intrude upon your meditations a few of my most serious reflections , to supply my absence ; and be a testimony of that real respect wherewith i honour you now in your retirement . chap. i. of contentedness under your condition . tho' i am infinitely distant from that excellent perfection which made the primitive christians glory in their tribulations , and st. paul rejoice in that sting in the flesh which god had given him as a peculiar blessing from above ; yet is it really some satisfaction to me , that i am not now wholly liable to that censure , which is so usually made on these occasions , that 't is easie for any man when he is well to give advice to them that are not . it hath pleased god , for the rashness perhaps of my usual discourse , to make it at present very uneasy for me to speak at all . i cannot but acknowledge his mercy in the admonition , and if it please him altogether to silence me , so , that i shall not only , as now , speak with difficulty , but wholly ▪ be disabled to open my mouth , to any articulate utterance , yet i hope he will give me grace even in my thoughts to praise him ; to consider the justice of his proceeding with me , and to implore his pardon of what my sins have justly deserved . . it cannot be deny'd but that this is an exercise of the most difficult nature , and the apostle himself confesses even where he most exhorts us to an acquiescence in it , that no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous , but grievous ; yet considerations there are that are able to alleviate our greatest miseries , and make us , if not come up to the character of those who rejoyce in tribulations , yet at least satisfy the duty i am now recommending , of being patient and contented under our sufferings . . and the first of these both in our practice and this discourse ought to be , to look up to that hand that inflicts them . it is our great unhappiness when any calamities fall upon us , that we are uneasie and dissatisfied ; and our whole business and project is , how to remove them , not to consider from whence they come . sometimes indeed , if the cause be visible , we discourse of it as of a chance or a misfortune , but we stop at the instrument , and never pass on to him that directed it ; the second cause we know , but trouble our selves no further to recur to the first : whereas , would we seriously consider , * that the providence of god orders all the affairs of the world ; * that without his assistance we can no more get quit of our affliction , than but by his permission we first fell into it ; * that this unquietness therefore is a murmuring against his justice , a rebellion against his providence , upon whom alone we ought to rely ; and whose mercy we should by all imaginable submission implore ; we should then acquiesce in his dispensation , till it pleased his goodness to remove our evils ; cry out with old eli , it is the lord , let him do what seemeth him good : and as we dayly pray that his will may be done in earth , so by our submission shew that we truly desire it . . let us to this add , secondly ; that god delights not to afflict , nor ever willingly grieves the children of men. * it may be we suffer in our calamity the punishment of our sins , and then let us not murmur at that which is the just reward of our deservings . * perhaps god proves us in this life , that he may the more plenteously reward us in the next ; and how then shall we repine against his mercy , which makes these light afflictions that are but for a moment , work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory ; to be sure if we make that use of them which he intends , if we repent seriously , submit contentedly , and serve him faithfully , they shall turn to our advantage : tho' the passage be troublesome , yet is it secure , and shall in a little time bring us ease and quiet , and peace at the last . . for let us not mistake the goodness of god , nor imagine that because he smites us , therefore we are forsaken by him , but let us consider rather , thirdly ; that 't is the very condition of all his promises , through much tribulation to bring us to his kingdom ; that blessed place where all evils shall be removed , and there shall be no more any death , nor sorrow , nor crying , nor pain . we have a full account of this , heb. . a place so satisfactory , that i will transcribe only one passage , to engage you to recur your self to the rest ; my son despise not thou the chastning of the lord , nor faint when thou art rebuked of him ; for whom the lord loveth he chastneth , and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth . but , fourthly ; . let us look into the ages that have gone before us ; let us consult our own experience in the present ; we shall find the observation of our apostle ever to have been verified , that the best men generally fall under the severest pressures , our saviour christ was our forerunner in this trial , as well as in the reward that accompanies it : he began as we ought to follow after , and for the joy which was set before him endured the cross , despising the shame . which of his holy apostles escaped this trial ; what numbers of the primitive saints were under the perpetual persecution of the most malicious enemies that hell could raise against them , for many hundred years . they were stoned , they were sawn as under , were slain with the sword , they wandred up and down in sheeps skins and goats skins , being destitute , afflicted , tormented , and yet were these the men , of whom the world was not worthy , whom we ought with comfort to look up unto , and run with patience the race that is set before us . . these considerations , though i have ( as i ought ) proposed in general terms , yet i am sure , madam , you will not fail by a particular application to bring them home to your own concerns ; and for your easier performance i will go on if you please to make yet a reflection or two that may fortifie you in it . . in enquiring into the goods that you have lost , or the evils , you either fear or suffer ; i shall not trouble you with an enumeration of that which i know you despise , the flatteries , the courtship , the other vanities of the world ; the very loss of these is a happiness almost equal to what you undergo for it . and though that beauty , which yet others , i perswade my self , valued too more highly than your self , was a blessing which you owed much to heaven for ; yet the additional ornaments you have hereby the opportunity of making to your soul , will in the end give you a more solid satisfaction , and as much chain to you the affections of the good and wise , as the other attracted the eyes of the rest . . for your present distemper ; it is , god be thanked , neither so troublesome for the present , as to take you off from all satisfaction ; nor , i am willing to perswade my self , shall it prove so dangerous in its consequence , as to deprive you of all hope of seeing your self again in your former health , only disciplined and instructed , not utterly cut off by sickness . . however , let us suppose now , as well as fear the worst ; is there any thing particular in dying young ? do not thousands every day do it ? and have you known none in health and vigour , who have pitied your condition , and behold they are themselves gone before you , even since you fell into this distemper : and what is the harm then of this ? that you have fairer warning than others , who are unexpectedly cut off , and so have a better opportunity , as well as greater engagements , to cultivate your soul , and provide for your latter end ? to dye is no pain , to leave this world is only to get quit of a troublesome place , where you could never find any ease or quiet , any solid satisfaction and comfort . to go to heaven is to be transferr'd to that kingdom you have ever long'd for ; to enjoy all the glories of eternity , to become company for saints and angels , and behold the blessed presence of god , in whose presence there is fulness of joy , and at whose right hand there are pleasures for evermore . . the truth is , the greatest part of your misfortune is founded on the opinion of the world : we fools esteem these things evils , and this makes others believe they really are so . but the good christian who considers them only as necessary passages to a glorious immortality ; that through this dark scene of fansied horror sees a crown and a throne , and everlasting blessings prepared for him ; joyfully receives his summons as he has long impatiently expected it : goes off out of the world as contentedly as the actor when the play is ended leaves the stage . his only concern is , whilst he appears upon it , so to demean himself , that he may have a plaudite at last ; and then 't is all one whether his part ended in the third act , or continues on to the very last scene . . such , madam , are your obligations to this first duty , and the performance of them will especially engage you to these three things ; . never despair either of gods blessings here , or of his reward hereafter ; but go on as you have begun ; fulfil your duty as he has commanded ; embrace his promises with faith and assurance ; and for the rest , leave it in his hands ; as in the hands of a most merciful saviour , who himself became man , and suffer'd death upon the cross for our sakes , and by that stupendious act of mercy , has taught us ever to rely in all things upon his goodness . . murmur not at your sickness , for thereby you will sin against god's providence and government ; but submit with peace to what you suffer , and pray for your deliverance . i do not say you should affect a rude insensibility : sighs and groans and mournful expressions , this is the sick mans proper language ; david roared for the disquietness of his soul ; our blessed lord himself in his last and sharpest pang of sorrow , cryed out with a loud voice , before he gave up the ghost . there is nothing in this but what is innocent ; and though too much of it may betray your weakness , yet whilst you keep still a resignation to god's disposal , it cannot be imputed to you for any sin . . take heed of that , which is the general fault of sick persons , and which a long disorder almost unavoidably brings with it , and that is peevishness . this will but render you uneasie to your self , and to those about you ; it troubles your repose , without doing you any good ; and is equally to be avoided both for the folly , and for the sin . . i shall close this reflection with one necessary remark , which i desire you to apply to all the following ; that in speaking thus to you , i am so far from charging you as guilty in this matter , that i can sincerely say , i believe the exhortation wholly needless , only it was my duty in so important a concern to omit nothing that might any way be thought necessary ; and it will be your satisfaction to see how far you are advanced in your duty ; and your engagement to pursue that very little , which you may perhaps find to be still wanting . chap. ii. that you ought not to be amazed at the fear of death . there is nothing in the world more generally dreaded , and yet less to be feared than death . indeed for those unhappy men , whose hopes terminate in this life , no wonder if the prospect of another seems terrible and amazing . hell is a place which the most resolute soul cannot but tremble to think of , how much more to enter into ? but for him who has lived well , and who therefore relies on god's mercies for an eternal salvation , to shew this concern , it betrays either much weakness or great doubt , and either his faith , or his hopes , or both , are less firm than they ought to be , he therefore that will not fear to dye , must first be careful to live well . . the stroak of death is nothing ; children endure it , and the greatest cowards find it no pain : but when to this we shall add the certain apprehension of its being the gate to an eternal life , then may we presume to say , we have wholly conquer'd this king of terrours , and sing the epinikion of st. paul , cor. . o death where is thy sting ! o grave where is thy victory ! thanks be to god who giveth us the victory through our lord jesus christ. secondly ; he must take off his affections from this world . . it was the reflection of the son of sirach ecclus . . o death , how bitter is the remembrance of thee to a man that liveth at rest in his possessions , to the man that hath nothing to vex him , but hath prosperity in all things . whilst we please our selves with the vanities we enjoy here , we cannot expect but that it must needs be a trouble to us to be divorced from them : but let us only change the scene ; instead of these earthly , transient goods ; let us raise our souls to the heavenly and eternal : then shall we begin to think the time long , that we are divorced from them , and wish for that end , we before feared . tully tells us that cleombrotus was so taken with this speculation , that having only read in plato the conjectures of that great man concerning the state of the soul after death , he had not patience to tarry the tedious course of nature , but by a violent death cut the thread himself , that he might immediately enjoy what he so infinitely desired . . nor may we fortify our selves much less against the fear of death , thirdly , from the consideration of those evils it frees us from , than of that happiness it transfers us to . when the great emperor of persia wept over his army upon this consideration , that within the revolution of a single age , not a man of all that innumerable confluence would be left alive ; artabanus standing by , improved his meditation ; by adding , that yet all of them should meet with so many and great evils , that every one should wish himself dead long before that . it is the true character of our lives which job once gave . man that is born of a woman hath but a short time to live , and is full of trouble . it is the great blessing of heaven that as our lives are very miserable , so are they very short too , and what we usually complain of as our misfortune , we ought rather to congratulate as our happiness . had david died a little sooner , how much trouble had he escaped which now he endured , in the rebellion and death of his own son , and all the miseries of a civil war that was raised against him . let any man consult his own experience , and say , how many sorrows he had miss'd , had god called him to his rest but a few years before ; and therefore whether the promise he has made to deliver the just from the evils to come , ought not to be made our dayly prayer for its accomplishment , rather than fill our souls with terror at the apprehension . but fourthly : death do's not only free us from misery , but sin too . . the life of a christian is a continual warfare , full of dangerous conflicts and doubtful consequences : our lusts sollicit us , the world encourages , the devil tempts us ; we fall often , and are never secure . but death frees us from all danger , sets us safely on shore in our long-expected canaan , where there are no temptations , no dangers , no possibility of falling ; but eternal purity , and immortal joys secure our happiness for evermore . . there is yet an advice which may usefully be added here , and it is this , that since the time of our dying is uncertain , we should every day expect what every hour may bring to us : it is our great unhappiness in this matter that though we live never so many years , we are still surprized . we put the evil day far from us , and then it catches us at unawares , and we tremble at the prospect . but let us stand on our guard , let us live like those who expect to dye , and then we shall find these terrors very much lessen , and that we fear'd death only because we were unacquainted with it . philip king of macedon had a page constantly attending in his chamber to tell him every morning as soon as he awaked , remember , o king , that thou art mortal . . but to quit you wholly of this fear , and that ▪ i may close this point too with something particular , give me leave , madam , to desire you , instead of a thousand arguments , to recur only to your own experience ; you have already lookt death in the face , you are acquainted with it , what have you found so terrible in it as to disturb the repose of a good christian , i.e. of such a one as your self . i cannot without satisfaction remember the calm , the quiet , the peace you were then in ; when every hour seemed to tell you 't was your last . death is an enemy you have already met , and already conquer'd ; you have pull'd out his sting , by the preparation you have made for it , and you know he has nothing now remaining that can injure or affright you . only maintain your conquest , by securing your innocence ; and working out your salvation , and then you may with confidence undervalue that which so much terrifies the world , and which yet all , even those who the most dread it , must in a little time meet whether they will or no. chap. iii. that you ought to be careful to provide for another world. this is the great duty of our lives , and ought to be the chief business of us all every day of them . no man knows what the next hour may bring forth , and to put our salvation , and the hopes of eternity to so dangerous a hazard as we do , when we procrastinate ( though never so little ) our working of it out with fear and trembling , is to shew either a very unwarrantable presumption upon god's goodness , or a very light esteem of our own souls . . our lives depend on so many curious parts and organs , so many diseases assail them every moment , so many accidents may take them from us , that we can never say the next minute is our own ; and that he therefore who neglects his salvation to day , may without danger put it off to to morrows consideration . god has told us that his spirit shall not alway strive with man , but as he offers to every one a space to repent , so there is a time too ( if we omit that opportunity ) when there shall be no longer any space for it . and how can any of us tell that this hour is not the last wherein god will give us his grace for so great a work ; so that though we should live to see the next , yet that then our sentence shall not be found already pronounced , and we shall not be able to repent , though we never so much desire it . . such obligations therefore have we all immediately to consider our ways , and turn our feet to god's testimonies : but , madam , it has pleased his great goodness to lay more than ordinary ties upon you , to do this : he has taken you off , by a peculiar instance of his mercy , from the vanities and tempations of the world : he has disabled you from falling into many sins ; and calls upon you to watch against the rest ; he has brought you to an early knowledge of your self , and of him , at an age when most others are the servants of sin , and creatures of vanity . he has given you opportunity from the writings and conversation of the best men , to understand your duty , your danger , and your interest : and , madam , what you ought above all things to bless him for , he has given you a heart too , to receive instruction , and that is desirous of his glory ; and though after so many better means as you have had of informing your self how to proceed in this important business ; after the knowledge you have attain'd , and the progress you have made , there is little need for me to add any thing on this subject ; yet i know i cannot better satisfie your piety , or discharge my own duty , than by laying before you , in a short view , a prospect of your labours , through which you have so long been travelling , and are now so nearly come , to everlasting life . . at the first creation , when god created man upon the earth , he planted in him a law teaching him his whole duty , he gave him besides , a positive law not to eat of the fruit of the tree of knowledge ; and to perform this , he added a perfect strength and ability whereby he might for ever have lived without the least sin ; had adam done this , his perfection ( the knowledge and ability god created in him ) had still continued , and after a certain period of years , which god should have determined , he had been rewarded with an assumption to eternal felicity . . this is that which is usually called the first covenant , which adam fatally breaking by his disobedience , soon forfeited ; and came short of that glory which god had prepared for him : yet it pleased the lord to enter into a second with him , the tenour of which was , that the seed of the woman should bruise the serpent's head : i. e. that christ taking our nature upon him , and so becoming the seed of the woman , should perform that covenant of unsinning obedience which adam broke , and yet being faultless , undergo a shameful , and ignominious death for him and his posterity ; and so bruise the serpent's head ; i. e. deliver us from the power of the devil , who by this transgression had got the dominion over us . . and this is that covenant we now live under , the promises of which are * pardon of sins through the blood of christ ; * strength and grace to perform the conditions , * and eternal glory to reward our labours ; this is what god on his part has declared to us ; for the requisites on ours , what we must do to obtain these blessings , that is the great business of us all to know , and the peculiar design of this place briefly to consider . . where , first , i must lay down this for your encouragement , that we are no longer now tied to the heavy yoke of a perfect , unsinning obedience ; not to have committed any deliberate sin , nay or even to have persisted in a habit and course of it ; but it is , * a sincere endeavour to perform whatsoever god enables us ; * an unfeigned obedience to the whole gospel of christ : and * a hearty bewailing of our own infirmities , as often as we come short of it ; with * a real ▪ desire , and * true endeavour of doing better for the future . . to enter on a minute consideration of this would engage me to lay before you a summary of the whole gospel of christ : but , madam , this were to exceed the limits of my design , & you have abundant assistances for this knowledge , in those excellent books which you have chosen for the companions of your travels . only because certain it is that the very best of us come short of our duty , and stand in need of god's pardon , and forgiveness ; i will briefly lay before you the method you are to take to obtain this , in the particular consideration of those two great duties of faith and repentance . sect. i. of faith. tthere is scarce any duty which ha's been so obscured in the writings of learned men as this . i will not enter here into any of their disputes , but briefly say , what i think fit for your practice and performance of it . . faith then is an assenting to , or believing * the whole word of god , but especially of his gospel , and of the * commands & * threats and * promises therein contained . this is the nature of that faith which is required of us , and it is then perfect when it affords to every one of these that assent which is proportioned to it , viz. . a firm assent to whatever the gospel has revealed : . an obediential submission to the commands : . an humble fear and awe of the threats : and . a fiducial relyance on the promises of it . . to have the first of these you must in general firmly believe , that whatever god hath said , is infallibly true ; and though in particular , there be many revelations which you cannot it may be understand the possibility of ; as that god became man , was born of a mother still remaining a virgin ; that he suffered and died , and yet lives for ever ; yet must you undoubtedly conclude , that since he has plainly told you these things are so , you ought firmly to believe him , seem they never so repugnant otherwise to your apprehension . . to have the second , you must in general assent to god's commands , that they are most fitting , just , and righteous ; and that all men therefore ought diligently to fulfill them ; and in particular you must resolve that by the assistance of heaven you your self will. . for the third you must believe stedfastly that these threats shall certainly , as most justly they ought , be executed upon all those impenitent sinners against whom they are denounced , and that except you take care to work out your reconciliation , and get out of the number of these unhappy creatures , you shall certainly find your part in them . . for the last you are infallibly to believe what god has promised ; especially that he will give pardon of sin , and everlasting salvation to all humble and repenting sinners ; and for what refers to your own particular , you are confidently to rely upon his word , that if you perform your part , christ will never fail in his ; and that therefore you ought to fulfill those duties , which he commands , and to which alone this promise of reward is given . . it is a question which my little experience lets me know do's oftentimes trouble very good men , that certainly their faith in this last instance is not right , because they still find it accompanied with fears and doubts of their own salvation . but , madam , you must consider that the faith which god requires in this matter is only this , that he will certainly reward all those that believe in him , and obey his commandments ; this we are undoubtedly to assent to ; but now for the particular application of this faith to our selves , that deserves no more of our assent , nor can indeed warrantably have it , than what is founded on the serious consideration of our own performances . now though our conscience bearing witness to our sincerity , may give us great cause to hope we are in a state of salvation , yet is it no part of any man's faith undoubtedly to believe it ; nay rather some degree of fear and trembling mixt with it may be a good means to secure us in our duty ; whilst a confident dependance is very often ill grounded , and may create such a negligence as will certainly ruine us . . let your endeavour therefore be to fulfill god's commands , to repent as often as you fail of it , and to hope for pardon and acceptance of him . infinite reason you have for all this ; and this will be sufficient for your present comfort , and for your future acceptance . but if still , either * the greatness of the danger , or * glory of the reward ; * either your desires of becoming better , * or a true and humble sense of your own unworthiness ( which is almost the perpetual case of the best persons ) keep your soul under an awe and a concern , and will not suffer you to rise up to that confidence , which some men , i fear , unwarrantably themselves pretend to , i am sure unwarrantably require of others ; assure your self , that whilst you firmly acquiesce in the general belief , that god will reward all them that love him , and doubt of your self only because you fear whether you do this so well as you ought ; this doubting shall prepare you to receive the reward of your humility , but never bring you in danger of any punishment for your infidelity . sect. ii. of repentance . repentance is usually defined to be a change of mind , an absolute entire conversion of our souls from sin to god. it is not a thing to be done at certain times , as when we give an alms , we exercise a particular act of charity ; but 't is a state of life , and consists in a continual sincere practice of all those duties which god has required , and a hearty sorrow , confession , and resolution of better obedience , as often as we violate any of his commands . . the passage to it is difficult and uneasie ; it contains many steps which the habitual sinner will find it hard to overpass . i shall here consider only four of the more principal , and which are ever found in that christian who truly lives in a state of it . . the first is , to have a true sense of sin , of its odiousness , and of its danger . i.e. you must firmly be convinced that every sin you commit , sets you at enmity with heaven , and will ( if not forsaken ) render you uncapable of it : that to persevere in any evil course , is the way to make you unhappy in this life , and shall certainly throw you into everlasting torments in the next : of all this you must seriously perswade your self , and that not lightly and in general , deceiving your own soul ; but bringing it home to your particular concern in it ; affecting your mind , and engaging your utmost endeavours to avoid that evil , which is thus odious to god , and thus dangerous to your everlasting salvation . the second step to this duty , is , to have a hearty sorrow and contrition for your sin . . and this you must endeavour after , not by being frighted and terrified , and so upon that account troubled , as often as you reflect on those infinite evils your sins are like to bring upon you . there is no man living so wicked , but would do the same ; but , madam , you must really sorrow that you have ever sinn'd ; that you have provoked so loving and merciful a father ; that you have disobey'd so gracious a redeemer , and all to gratify your passions in some baser instance , which you ought to abhor upon these grounds alone , though there were no punishment awaiting your transgressions . . nor must this sorrow and contrition be only for the grosser evils of our unregenerate estate , but even when we live best we must repeat it as often as we transgress the divine command ; nay we should employ it too , even upon the weaknesses , the frailties , the pollutions of our natures : our very proneness and inclination to sin : for however these ( unconsented to ) are no actual transgressions ; yet are they matter of sorrow and grief to every true christian , and therefore ought to be part of his humiliation also . the third preparatory to this duty , is , confession . . and this so necessary to our pardon , that we have no promise of any forgiveness without it : to fulfill this you must not satisfy your self to acknowledge to god almighty in general , that you are a sinner ; but you must carefully remark , and particularly enumerate also , at least the several kinds of sin whereof you know your self guilty : you must shew your sense of them by aggravating them with all the unhappy circumstances , and heightning accidents of them ; and for the rest , you must comprise your unknown and lesser sins under some such general confession as that of the holy david , who can tell how oft he offendeth ? o cleanse thou me from my secret faults . . you will , madam , doubtless expect that i should here add somewhat of another sort of confession , which i have sometimes had the honour to discourse with you about ; i then told you that unless some accident rendred it so , i did not esteem it absolutely necessary . the expediency of it , i must confess , i ever much approved , and have often wish'd others would do so too ; and the reasons i have at large given you may be summed up into these : . that st. james has advised us to confess our faults one to another , chap. . . and pray one for another . . if we have injured another , then we ought to go and confess our fault to him , as ever we mean to obtain the forgiveness of god. . but if our sin belongs only to him , yet to confess to his minister is in some sort a fuller satisfaction to his justice ; it declares our greater detestation of that offence , for which we are content to commit this violence upon our selves . it gives us this comfort too , that thereby we get the opinion of our spiritual guide concerning the state of our repentance ; and his direction and assistance for the perfecting of it ; and if we desire his particular absolution , we must then make our confession to him before we can obtain it . what force these motives may have upon you , i cannot tell ; but for the present you are passing into a place where you will have little opportunity to practise it , and should therefore resolve to supply it , by a more due and careful performance of it to god almighty . the last thing preparatory to a true repentance , is , a firm resolution and vow of a new life . . that you will immediately quit all your sins , and all the occasions that are wont to lead you into those sins ; that you will wholly resign your self up to the guidance of christ ; and perform whatsoever you know to be his will ; and this do truly and sincerely all the days of your life . . and here , madam , behold in short the duties that are required of you : this is what you must do to inherit eternal life ; and if you have ( as i make no doubt ) already come up thus far , you are then firmly to persevere in it unto the end ; if you fulfil this resolution , though you * fall sometimes by infirmity ; * are betrayed by ignorance , * or surprized by some sudden , and dayly incurring temptations ; * nay , though you should be so unhappy as to fall into some greater act , even of deliberate sin , which you might have avoided , and which you presently retract by confession and amendment , you are nevertheless in a regenerate estate , you live the life of a christian here , and shall inherit the reward that is promised to him , in a glorious immortality hereafter . . i shall close this with my earnest desires , which not any doubts of your goodness , but my real concern for your welfare , extort from me ; that you will seriously consider your own state as to this affair ; flatter not your self , * neither a transient sorrow that you have sinned , * nor a wish that you had not , * neither a faint and general , god be merciful to me a sinner ; * nor an imperfect resolution not to be so any longer ; * not an observing , for the rest , the whole law , if you indulge your self but in any one habit of sin ; * not praying to god to give you his grace ; without your own sincere endeavours of using it ; nothing but a steady resolution brought to practice ; god's grace used , his commandments obey'd as far as your infirmities will permit , and his pardon begg'd where you have not ; this is that which alone must save your soul , and carry you on to that glorious immortality , which i beseech him to give you for his son jesus christ's sake . chap. iv. a consideration of some particular duties which i would more especially recommend to you . i thought , madam , here to have ended your trouble , and referr'd my self 〈◊〉 what may concern your farther practice , to those excellent and useful treatises you have so wisely provided for that purpose ; but they speak in general , and though i know the care you take to apply them to your self , yet i cannot but beg leave to add two or three considerations that may more immediately be accommodated to your particular circumstances . first , that you duely implore the blessings of heaven by your constant prayers to god almighty i need not tell you that you have * many wants to be supplied , * many blessings to receive , * many sins to be forgiven , and that there is nothing can obtain all these for you but your prayers ▪ or were you so all-sufficient as not to need the influences of providence to support you , yet would sure every day bring to your remembrance slips and infirmities to be confess'd to him , to be sure blessings and mercies to be gratefully acknowledged , in a perpetual return of praises and thanksgivings to the great donor . upon all which accounts there can never be any pretence for your neglect of that duty , which so many continual engagements oblige you to . . let me to this , add the great assistance it will afford you in the performance of all the rest of your duty ; whilst thus you have your conversation in heaven , all the little goods here below will seem poor and inconsiderable in your sight ; this will strengthen your patience in bearing your calamities , whilst with faith you contemplate the glorious end to which they lead ; it will raise in your soul the greatest care of fulfilling the divine will , lest you lose so excellent a reward ; in a word ; this exercise will call down the favour of heaven upon you , either to remove those afflictions you now labour under , from you , or you from them ; will bring you peace , and comfort , and satisfaction in this life , and an everlasting peace and repose in the next . . it has been the great discouragement of some christians in the exercise of this duty , that they do not find these great benefits of their devotion : that they are told indeed of the mighty influences of prayer : and have read how that by it joshua changed the order of nature , and made the sun stand still in the midst of the firmament ; elias tied up the windows of heaven that it rained not for three whole years in israel ; hezekias added fifteen years to his life ; the apostles gave feet to the lame , eyes to the blind ; and even life to the dead ; but themselves are so far from working such miracles , that they cannot so much as obtain the supply of those ordinary wants they very often labour under . . but , madam , we must not for all this think either that the arm of the lord is shortned , that he cannot , or his will alter'd that he should not hear us , as well as he did them ; indeed for such miraculous effects , we have now no longer need of them , and it would therefore be a fond presumption in us to expect them ; but for the rest there are two considerations which men would do well to reflect on before they charge god foolishly . . whether we do not very often receive the benefit of our prayers , when yet ungratefully we charge heaven with denying our petitions . . if our requests are really deny'd , whether the fault do's not ly at our own doors that they are so . . for the former of these we may very easily be mistaken , and i doubt very often are so : did we indeed perfectly know the state of our own condition , and what was most proper and convenient for us , we might then have some reason to conclude our prayers were not heard , if our desires were not answered : but now that such is our ignorance that though we are sensible enough of the evils that lie upon us , yet we cannot say either whether they are fit to be removed at all ; or when , or by what means ; or for what state ; we ought to be very wary in our thoughts of god's providence , and not rashly pronounce what we can never be sure of ▪ . should you now , for instance , your self , madam , pray to god for a recovery from this sickness ; how rash would it be to accuse god of not hearing your prayers , because you found your disease to continue still ? * it may be he sees it has not yet perfectly wrought in you all those good effects he intends ; that if you should at this time recover your health , it might occasion your return to the sins and follies of your age . * it may be he intends yet longer to prove your vertue , that so he may afterwards more plenteously reward it ; * perhaps he punishes your sins by it in this life , that he may spare you in the next . now if these or the like are the causes of your affliction , certainly you could not have a greater injury done you , than the removing of your distemper : and those prayers you make for a recovery are to be lookt upon as best heard by god , and best answer'd for you , if they move him to a longer continuance of your sickness . again : * though god does not answer your requests in the very removal of your distemper ; it may be yet he shews their efficacy in supporting you with strength and patience to bear it ; infinite are the methods of his providence , and impossible it is for us to trace them all , and though we are not able to point out the very mercy which our devotion has obtained , yet this god has promised , and we must therefore firmly believe and rely upon it , that if we ask , we shall , we do , receive . . but here my other consideration must come in , st. james , speaking of the ineffectualness of some mens devotion , tells them , ye ask , and receive not , because ye ask amiss ; and that i fear is too often our condition ; and therefore that you may be able both to know and avoid this , i will beg leave , madam , to give you only a short catalogue of what qualifications seem to me more immediately requisite to render your devotion prevalent . . take heed that the things you desire be such as are fit for god to give , and you to receive ; let not any instances of sin defile your requests ; and even in the most innocent matters , rather beg in general the blessings of god which he knows requisite , whether for your soul or body , than descend too much to the particulars your self , and prescribe to him , who so little understand your own wants . secondly before you pray , clear your soul from all those sins which you know displeasing to god almighty ; for till that be done he regards you as his enemy ; and you cannot therefore expect that he should reward you as his servant . thirdly prepare your soul with all those necessary graces that are more immediately requisite to this performance : with humility and resignation ; with faith in his power and hope of his mercy , with love and charity towards god and towards your neighbour ; all which will infinitely dispose him to give , and prepare you to receive . fourthly , when you pray , let it be with attention , with fervency , with perseverance ; to which end i should think it better that your prayers were short and frequent , than over long ; which only make them tedious and uneasie to you in your present state , but never the more acceptable to god ; who delights not in mens words , but requires their hearts ; and hears the shortest ejaculation , as certainly as the longest prayer . fifthly , in a word : having pray'd , leave the issue contentedly in his hands : let it satisfy you that you have his promise for your security , and that if thus you make your requests to him , you shall sooner or later most certainly find that your labour has not been in vain , in the lord. a second duty , that i must more particularly recommend to you is charity : a grace that has more promises annext to it than any other moral or theological vertue , st. paul prefers it even to faith it self , cor. . and could we have every other vertue which the gospel enjoyns in the highest perfection , yet he plainly assures us that without this , they would all avail us nothing . . charity taken in its largest extent is nothing else but , the sincere love of god and our neighbour : the former of these requires not only your highest esteem of him , your desires of going to him , and filling your self with his goodness ; but also a sincere endeavour to please and obey him , to fulfill his commands , and hate all those things that he dislikes , and may any way set you at enmity with him . . the latter engages you to a universal love of all men , even your very enemies ; to retain no malice nor hatred against any ; to be ready to do them all the kindness you are able , by reproving the vicious , instructing the ignorant , relieving the poor ; for all which , you have the peculiar promise of god for your engagement ; and shall receive the pardon of your sins , and everlasting glory for your reward . i must now hasten to a conclusion , and therefore will presume to add only this one caution more , i thirdly , that you would take an especial care how you employ your time . it is not , madam , for me to divine what opportunities you may have for this , nor can i therefore advise you any thing in particular : only let me beg you to lose no occasion of doing all the good you can ; which whatever the issue of your present sickness be , is to be sure your duty , and shall prove your blessing either in this world or another . . i need not desire you to spend the hours you may have for your friends and your diversion innocently , but if i may presume to speak my thoughts in a matter of no great importance , i should perswade you not only to do this , but even to deny your self somewhat of that full liberty which others do usually allow themselves ; the wise man has told us , that mirth is not proper in the time of sorrow ; since it has pleased god to lay his inflictions upon you , you ought so far ( i had almost said in civility to him ) to comply with your circumstances , as to be a little more reserved than otherwise were needful , and though not to fly ▪ to the other extreme ( which , i rather ought to disswade you from ) yet to keep in such a temper , as may both speak you sensible , as you ought , of your condition , and yet not discontented at god's dispensations . . but , madam , whatever your employs be , let no day pass without some time to retire into your self , and either by reading , meditating , or some other pious exercise to feed your zeal , and confirm your devotion . . lastly , in your most busy occupations , when you are never so much taken up with other affairs , yet steal now and then a minute to the thoughts of heaven , send up an ejaculation to the god of your salvation ; this is a piece of thrift that by frequent exercise will do you much good , and yet never injure any other business . augustus caesar is highly commended by the ancient poet , that in the midst of his most troublesome occupations he could still find time to look up to heaven , and consider the frame , and contemplate the parts and motions of it . how much more should we always be at leisure to reflect on him that framed both that and us ; to whose providence we owe every minute of our lives , and whom therefore we ought , above all other things , incessantly to praise for his unspeakable mercies . close . and now , madam , that i may close with what i begun , after so long an intrusion upon your meditations , with these reflections , which i am confident make a great part of your dayly entertainment ; the only thing that can render either these papers or their recommendations acceptable unto you ; that can secure you against sin , and endear vertue and religion to your practice , will be to raise your affections above this world , by seriously considering the excellence and certainty of another life ; and how vain and transient , indeed how troublesome and unsatisfying are the highest felicities of this . . i have not here time to delineate to you the glories of god's heavenly kingdom , nor indeed could i tell you ( if i had ) what the happiness of that place is likely to be , where all tears shall be wiped from our eyes , and there shall be no more death , nor sorrow , nor crying , nor pain ; when our bodies shall be freed from every disease ; our souls from every trouble ; those shall be chang'd into incorruptible and immortal substances , these be entertain'd with the most comfortable and ravishing objects , and both continue to be thus unspeakably happy throughout all eternity , without the least danger of either losing or lessening their enjoyments . . blessed god! how contrary is this to our melancholy and uncomfortable portion here below ? a place , where not a day passes , but we eat our bread with sorrow and cares ; the present troubles us , the future amazes us ; and even the past fills us with grief and anguish . i forbear to mention the particular evils which every man best knows by his own experience : if we look abroad upon the present face of the world , what do we see in the several kingdoms about us , but wars and confusion , all things running to ruine , and destruction , to the confounding and devouring of each other . if we consider the church , that holy mother of us all , how do her unnatural children rend and tear her sacred bowels by their contentions ? what schisms , what heresies , what profaneness is there in it ? only in sin and impiety we agree on all sides ; here there is neither jew nor gentile ; but all are united in a monstrous confederacy against god and our own souls . . if we contract our view , and confine it to our own sinful nation ; it has pleased god to preserve us yet in peace , to see if we will repent and anticipate his judgments ; but alas ! his hand is lifted up to strike , and we do nothing to prevent the blow : and what can we expect but that it should at last fall upon us to our confusion . . pardon me , madam , if i freely confess to you my fears , that i tremble to think what shall be the issue of so great an impenitence , as we have now these many years shew'd under all the various methods of god's providence to redeem us . . he has sent the sword , both of civil troubles and publick war amongst us , and it has been deeply stain'd in the blood of the best and chiefest of our strength ; our princes have been forced into captivity ; our church been chased into the wilderness ; the breath of our nostrils , the anointed of the lord ▪ has been cut off by the vilest of his subjects , yet have we not return'd , nor sought our god. . the fire has consumed our dwellings , the plague destroy'd its thousands and ten thousands in our streets , yet behold we are still incorrigible , we go on as before in the ways of our own hearts , and speak peace to our souls even in the midst of all these dangers . . great certainly is our sin , and fatal , i fear , shall be the punishment of it , and what shall we do , ( for , madam , i must here beg leave to joyn my self in this reflection ) to prevent our part in the common destruction ? let us take heed that we have no share in their sins , and then by god's mercy we shall have none in the punishment . let us live as those who attend such trials , and then he will either be pleased to take us from the evil to come , or cover us with his hand in the midst of it : he will to be sure with the danger make a way for us to escape ; and being past through this short storm , will bring us to that port where we shall find everlasting rest , and a consummated felicity ; those blessings , which neither eye has seen , nor ear heard , nor does it enter into the heart of man to conceive ; but which god has prepared for them that love him : among which blessed number that you may then be found , as it was the only intention of these reflections to prepare you , so shall it ever be the hearty prayer of him who with all imaginable respect and sincerity remains , madam , your most humble , and most obedient servant , w. w. the contents . * . introduction to pag. that the fatal source of all our evil is , that our affections are tied to this world , and we do not as we ought , consider another . * . the letter it self divided into . chapters . chap. i. of contentedness . p. . this i. a duty very difficult . n. . yet which we are engaged to , . because 't is god who smites us . n. . . he always designs our good in it . n. . . and by our afflictions shews that we are his . n. . . that the best men have still had their share . n. . . particular considerations . n. . to ● . this ii. expressed in . particulars : . of not despairing ; nor , . murmuring ; nor , . being fretful under our calamities . chap. ii. of the fear of death . p. nothing more generally dreaded . n. . yet this fear may be banished , . by living well . n. . . by taking off our ▪ affections from this world. n. . by considering the evils it frees us from . n. . by viewing the sins it prevents . n. . by expecting it every day . n. . particular considerations . n. chap. iii. of providing for another world. p. this we ought immediately to set about . n. , , . how we ought to do it , . in general . n. . to . . in particular by i. faith. ii. repentance . i. faith. p. what it is . n. , . the parts of it . n. . ib. these fulfilled . in a firm assent to god's truths . n. . . an obedience to his commands . n. . . a fear of his punishment . n. . . a hope of his promises . n. . what faith every man is bound to have of his own salvation . n. , . ii. repentance . p. what it is . n. . the parts of it . n. . . a sense of sin . n. . . contrition for it . n. , . . confession of sin . n. , . . resolution against it . n. , , . chap. iv. of particular duties . p. . i. prayer . p. its necessity . n. , . why we do not always perceive the benefit of it . n. , . . we often receive it when we think we do not . n. , . . if we receive it not , the fault lies at our own doors . n. . the qualifications requisite that we may obtain it . ii. charity . p. its excellence . n. . parts towards god. n. . towards our neighbour . n. . iii. of spending your time well . p. . take all occasions of doing good . n. . . live innocently . n. . . often return to holy exercises . n. . . constantly intermix pious ejaculations . n. . * the close . p. finis . advertisement . private devotions digested into six litanies , with directions and prayers , by hen. valentine . a private prayer to be used in difficult times . newly published . both printed for ric. chiswell . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e luk. . . phil. . . . notes for div a -e heb. . v. . sam. . . cor. . . revel . . . v. . . heb. . . heb. . . — . heb. . . ps. . . matthew xxvii . notes for div a -e — v. . — v. . job . . notes for div a -e psal. . . gen. . . gen. . . psal. . . notes for div a -e phil. . . josh. . . kings . kings . . james . . cor. . . a sermon preach'd before the lord-mayor and court of aldermen in the church of st. mary le bow, on thursday the th of november, being the day of the publick thanksgiving william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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(eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a sermon preach'd before the lord-mayor and court of aldermen in the church of st. mary le bow, on thursday the th of november, being the day of the publick thanksgiving william wake ... wake, william, - . [ ], p. printed for r. sare ..., london : . reproduction of original in huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- o.t. -- psalms cxliv, - -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - apex covantage keyed and coded from proquest page images - judith siefring sampled and proofread - judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion stamp mayor . curia tent. jovis tertio die decembris . annoque regni regis & reginae willielmi & mariae , angl. &c. tertio . ordered , that the thanks of this court be return'd to dr. wake , for his sermon preach'd at the parish church of st. mary le bow , before the lord-mayor , aldermen and citizens of this city , on thursday the th of november last , being the day of thanksgiving for the preservation of their majesties persons , the success of their forces in the reducing of ireland , and for his majesty's safe return ; and that he be desired to print the same . goodfellow . a sermon preach'd before the lord-mayor and court of aldermen , in the church of st. mary le bow ; on thursday the th of november , being the day of the publick thanksgiving . by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties , and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . london , printed for r. sare at grays-inn-gate next holbourn , . psalm cxliv . , , . . i will sing a new song unto thee o god ; upon a psaltery and instrument of ten strings will i sing praises unto thee . . it is he that giveth salvation to kings , who delivereth david his servant from the hurtful sword. . rid me and deliver me from the hand of strange children , whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falshood . it is but a very little while since we were wont to meet together in this place , to implore the favour of god in the preservation of their majesties persons , and for the good success of their arms in those great enterprizes they were pleased so generously to undertake , for the necessary defence of our country ; the preservation of our religion and liberties ; and to put a quicker end to those unhappy confusions , we have been so long and dangerously exposed to . we are now assembled with all possible thankfulness to acknowledge his mercy , in the gracious return which he has vouchsafed to make to these our requests . that he has preserved our king , and prosper'd his enterprizes ; and given a success to our arms , if not equal to what perhaps some would have wish'd , yet i am sure beyond what any of us could reasonably have expected . now this being the design of this days solemnity , i cannot tell how i could better entertain your devotion than in offering you some reflections upon the words before us . in which we have the thanksgiving and prayer of a king : a gratulatory acknowledgment of god's mercy to him in his past deliverances , and an earnest request that he would still continue to deliver him both from the power and malice of his false and treacherous enemies . that this psalm was composed by king david the † inscription of it will not suffer us to doubt . and that he composed it upon the account of some great deliverance which god had given him , from a personal danger , as well as for some great victory which he had obtain'd against his enemies , the words of the text sufficiently demonstrate . but now what that deliverance in particular was which he here acknowledges with so much gratitude , and promises god he would ever celebrate with the most pious resentments , and in the most solemn manner that he was able , we are no where told ; nor is it perhaps an easy matter to determine any thing certainly concerning it . indeed were the title which the septuagint praefix to this psalm , of such authority , that we might securely rely upon the credit of it , we should then soon come to a resolution of this point . the danger which the psalmist here refers to , being ‖ therein expresly said to have been that which he underwent when he encountred singly with goliah , sam. xvii . and from whose sword the † chaldee paraphrast on the text tells us he here blesses god for delivering of him. but as 't is certain that this inscription is not now to be found in any of the hebrew copies at this day , so † theodoret assures us that neither could he in his time meet with it in any . and the expressions of this psalm both in the d and th verses , plainly shew that when he composed it he was not only king of israel , but throughly established in the throne . for so those words must be understood v. . blessed be the lord my strength who teacheth my hands to war and my fingers to fight : my goodness and my fortress , my high tower and my deliverer , my sheild , and he in whom i trust , who subdueth my people under me : i. e. who after all the contests that have been raised against me to oppose my authority , has at last fully establish'd me in the throne , and brought all israel to submit themselves unto me. now this has made others suppose that the sword from which god had delivered david , and for which he here offers this eucharistical return to him , was the sword of saul , who so eagerly sought after his life ; and from whose hand he could never have escaped , had not the same providence which before design'd him for the throne , in a wonderful manner preserved him for it , and at last confirm'd him in it . it cannot be deny'd but that this is a conjecture agreeable enough to one part at least of the business of this psalm , which was to return thanks to god for putting an end to those oppositions that had been raised against him by the friends of the house of saul ; and bringing all israel to receive him as their king. but tho' i shall not therefore exclude this from being a part of what the psalmist here intended to bless god for , yet i cannot think that this comes up to the full meaning of the words of the text. for if we look more narrowly into the expressions of it , we shall find good grounds to believe that david not only composed this psalm after he was come to the crown , but do's more especially refer to some deliverance which he had received after his coming to it ; and by consequence after all his dangers from the house of saul were at an end. for having first vow'd a thanksgiving to god , vs. . i will sing a new song unto thee o god : upon a psaltery and instrument of ten strings will i sing praises unto thee . he tells us vs. . that the subject of his hymn should be this , it is he that giveth salvation unto kings , that has deliver'd david his servant from the hurtful sword : i. e. as the connexion plainly shews , when he was a king ; and as such received salvation from him. in short , as the passage i have now mentioned does i think plainly enough argue that this psalm was a thanksgiving for some deliverance which god had vouchsafed to him since he was king of israel ; so we may reasonably conclude from the acknowledgment which he makes in the beginning of it , of his being at last peaceably settled in the throne , as a blessing which he had but newly received of him , that it was a deliverance from some danger which befell him not long after his solemn inauguration at hebron , sam. v. and the character which he gives us of his enemies in two places of this psalm , that they were strange children , whose mouth did speak vanity ; and their right hand was a right hand of falshood , farther shews that they were some of the idolatrous nations round about him that rose up against him , and put him in that hazard out of which god had in a singular manner delivered him. now this will lead us to a very probable account of the occasion and design of the psalm before us. for in the second of sam. v. . we read that no sooner had the philistines heard that they had anointed david king over israel , but they immediately armed themselves against him , in hopes that whilst he was yet scarce well setled in his government they might be able to deal with him ; least if they tarried till mens affections were wholly engaged to him , he should then grow too strong for them . but god who had in so wonderful a manner brought him to the throne , now no less miraculously preserved him in it . he went forth himself into the battle to smite the host of the philistines ; he directed him both when and how to fall upon them. and having thus discomfited them in two battles ; and tho' not utterly destroy'd them , yet obtained a considerable advantage against them ; he composed this psalm , as a solemn thanksgiving and prayer to god almighty ; both to bless him for that success he had already obtain'd , and to implore his favour in the utter subversion of these his treacherous and idolatrous enemies . i have before observed that this psalm consists of two principal parts ; viz. st . a thanksgiving for that great deliverance which god had already given him out of the hands of the philistines : and ly . a prayer for the continuance of his favour and protection ; that he would still go on to save him from his enemies , and to bless his government with peace and prosperity : and my text leads me to consider both of them ; i st . the thanksgiving , vss. . . i will sing a new song unto thee o god! &c. ii dly . the prayer , vs. . rid me and deliver me from the hand of strange children , whose mouth talketh vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falshood . i begin with the former of these : . the thanksgiving , which david here made to god almighty for preserving him from the sword of his enemies , and for the good success he had met with in his enterprizes against them. it was a part of that religion which the light of nature taught the very gentiles themselves , as to implore the help of their gods in times of danger and distress ; so to make their solemn returns of praise and thanksgiving to them , as often as they escaped with safety out of it . the same reason which forced them to acknowledge the being of a god in the creation of the world , carrying them on to confess the interest he had in the government of it : and that it was to his providence therefore they ought both to recommend themselves in all their affairs , and to render the praise of whatsoever success they met with in them . hence we find so many a titles given to them almost upon every occasion of their saviours and deliverers : so many b trophies and monuments set up to perpetuate the memory of their blessings to posterity : so many publick c festivals appointed , wherein to commemorate their favours : so many d shews , and games , and spectacles set forth in honour of their benefactions : and to come yet nearer to the business of the text , so many sacred e hymns composed , to declare the greatness of their love and kindness to mankind . the very f triumphs of their generals were no less design'd in honour of their gods , than for the praise and glory of their commanders ; who esteem'd it a sufficient reward for all their dangers , to go with pomp and majesty to their temples ; and there with the publick acclamations of their country , present the spoils of their enemies before them ; and confess it was by their help that they were return'd from the field with safety and success . and from all which no other conclusion can be drawn than this ; that as they were sensible their help came to them from above , so they thought it their duty by all possible means to express their grateful resentments of it . and indeed if to be insensible of the favours which one of our fellow-creatures bestows upon us , has ever been esteem'd enough to fix one of the blackest imputations , ( for so we all of us account that of ingratitude to be ) upon such a one : how much more both wicked and ungrateful must he be judged who neglects his god , and takes no notice of those blessings which his bountiful providence showers down upon him ? but there is yet much more to be consider'd by us as to this matter : for not only our piety towards god , and that grateful sense we ought to have of his mercies to us , oblige us thus to return our thanks for them ; but our very interest too concurs to engage us to it . he who neglects to acknowledge the kindness of one of his fellow-creatures , and thereby forfeits all pretence to any farther favours from him ; runs only the hazard of being deprived of that little help which such a one might otherwise have afforded him some other time , and of which perhaps he may never find any great want. to be sure the most we can suppose he could lose by it , would be to become thereby exposed to the resentments of a man whom he needs not much fear , and against whom he may find out many ways to defend himself . but it is not so with relation to god-almighty : his providence is always over us , and we cannot subsist the least moment of our lives without it . in him we live , and move , and have our being . the very breath that we draw in , the world in which we dwell , our health and strength , our food and raiment ; in a word , our lives and all the comforts of them , are all of them the effects of his continued bounty to us . and should we by our ingratitude provoke him to withdraw his favour from us , we should then become destitute indeed , for ever lost to all the hopes both of this world and of the other . now the only acknowledgment we can make to god for all his mercies to us , is this of praise and thanksgiving . he is above receiving any other returns from us. whasotever we have besides , it is all of his bounty to us , nor can he at all be profited by it . and sure when god bestows so many blessings upon us , and expects only this little tribute to be paid for them , that we should own them to be his gift , and celebrate his mercy for the giving of them : we must needs be very inexcusable indeed , if we neglect to return this to him ; and more insensible than the very † gentiles themselves ; who , as we have before observed , never fail'd in the most solemn manner they were able , so to do . such then was the justice and reasonableness of that acknowledgment which the royal psalmist here engaged himself to make to god almighty , for delivering him out of those imminent dangers to which he had been exposed . i will sing a new-song unto thee o god! upon a psaltry and instrument of ten strings will i sing praises unto thee . and it is supposed by some that the very next psalm to this , was that hymn which he composed in pursuance of this vow : and in which with all the heighth of poetry , and in the most exquisite form that art and piety joyn'd together and assisting one another could produce ; he sets forth the glorious goodness of god , to the whole world , but especially to mankind ; and among them more particularly to such as duly serve him , and put their trust and confidence in his mercy . and in conformity to whose example it will behove every one of us this day to lift up our hearts to heaven in songs of praise to that god , who has now again in our case , as he did heretofore in davids , in so extraordinary a manner made good the character of the text to us ; it is he that giveth salvation unto kings , that hath delivered david his servant from the hurtful sword. but of our own concern in this duty , i shall take occasion to speak more particularly hereafter . in the mean time having thus briefly consider'd in the general , what those grounds were upon which the holy psalmist took up the resolution you have seen in the words of the text , i will sing a new-song unto thee o god : let us for our further direction in the duty before us , enquire more expresly , what the subject of his praise was , and what ours ought at this time to be ? now this he tells us in the next verse ; viz. that it should consist in a grateful acknowledgment of gods particular providence . ( st . ) over ‖ all kings and princes whatsoever , more than over other men : it is he that giveth salvation unto kings . ( dly . ) among them in a more especial manner over himself , more than any other king besides : it is he that giveth salvation unto kings ; and delivereth david his servant from the hurtful sword. and ( st . ) that we ought to bless god for that particular providence he is pleased to exercise over kings and princes , beyond what he usually does over other ordinary persons . ‖ for let not the greatest monarchs mistake themselves , as if it were their own power or conduct that secured them against those many and imminent dangers to which their very place and station continually exposes them . but rather let them consider , ‖ what would all their guards and their attendants , all their mighty power and forces avail them , were there not a superiour eye of providence continually watching over them , to protect and preserve them ? that a whole nation should stand in awe of one single person , whom they all know to be but a man like unto themselves ; that they should obey his commands , and tremble at his justice : that those who oftentimes despise their own lives , should yet not dare to strike at his ; but startle at the very thought of doing him a mischief : 't is not their own wisdom , or power or resolution , 't is not the name or ensigns of majesty , than can be thought sufficient to work such a restraint . it is the providence of that god by whom kings reign , and princes decree justice , that alone is able to give such a reverence and security to them . he has set his stamp of majesty upon them ; he has declared them to be his ministers : and this forces even the most violent men to have such a regard for them , as nothing but this could ever engage them to . and this i say ought at all times , but especially on such solemn occasions as these , to be esteem'd a matter of especial praise and thanksgiving to god for it . for were it not for such a restraint as that we have now been speaking of , what would become of all the peace , and order , and government of the world ? kings might enact laws ; they might settle our liberty and property at home , and enter into leagues of peace and commerce abroad : but alas ! what precarious things would all these be , were they left open by god to the violence and fury of every bold invader ; and no longer to be of any force , than till some desperate and turbulent spirits should be found to run all things into disorder and confusion ? but blessed be god! who has not given us up to the wild passions , and ungovern'd appetites of wicked and violent men. but as he has laid the strongest obligations upon us to be subject to the higher powers , not only for wrath but also for conscience sake ; to obey their laws , and support their government ; to bear with their infirmities , and if occasion be , even suffer too rather than dare to resist their authority : so has he impress'd on our minds a certain awe of that power which he has put into their hands , that will not permit us , no not in our very hearts to despise or disregard them ; and by frequent instances of his vengeance has effectually assured us , that there is a singular eye of providence that overlooks them , and that no one shall lift up his hand against them and go unpunish'd . this as it is the great security of all the peace and quiet , of all the happiness and prosperity which we enjoy ; so ought we upon all occasions to be ready to declare our sense of it , by our grateful acknowledgments to god for it . but the royal psalmist had a yet more particular subject for his praise than this . for ( dly . ) this god who has such a near and tender regard for all kings and princes whatsoever , above other men ; did in a singular manner shew his concern for him , more than for any other prince that then lived in the world. if we consider him before his coming to the throne ; from how many dangers did it even then please god to save and deliver him ? let the hazards which he run with the lion and the bear ; his encounters with goliah first , and then with whole armies of the philistines : his narrow escape from the † javelin of saul ; and his yet more narrow escape from the hands of those * murderers whom he sent on purpose to slay him : let the perils he underwent when ‖ saul with his army hunted him up and down from place to place ; forced him to flee sometimes into the wilderness , among the wild beasts for refuge ; at other times into the enemies country , to those very † philistines whom he had so much enraged by his frequent encounters against them ; not to mention any more particulars , declare to us . nor were those he underwent , dly , after he came to the throne any less remarkable : whilst the kingdom was yet divided against him , and but one of all the tribes of israel stuck firm to him , and own'd his authority for above seven years . and when at last it pleased god to unite the whole people under him ; no sooner was he free from those civil disturbances at home , but a forreign enemy forthwith invaded him from abroad , and again exposed him to new dangers . 〈◊〉 out of all these difficulties god deliver'd him ; and were it necessary for me to go on to the following parts of his life , we might find yet greater instances than these of his wonderful preservations of him . and as 't is certain that no one ever took more care to magnify the mercies of god , than david did ; so i may say that never had any prince greater reason than he had so to do : who seems to have been chosen by god out of all the kings of the world , to shew what a tender regard the almighty has to his own ministers , whilst they take care to live well , and to demean themselves as becomes that place , and character which he has bestow'd upon them. this then was the case of the royal psalmist , when he resolved upon that song of eucharist , of which the text speaks , in acknowledgment of all those blessings which god had vouchsafed to him. and if we enquire into the reason of all this , what it was that moved god to shew such a particular regard to this great man ; i think we may give these two accounts of it . st . that he was king of gods own peculiar people ; that people which he had chosen out of all the inhabitants of the earth to be his own inheritance . to whom alone of all the nations of the world he had declared his will , and given many noble discoveries of himself ; whilst the rest of mankind lay in a miserable state of darkness and idolatry : and of whom therefore he took a singular care , more than of any other people or country besides . now if god had an especial regard to the jewish nation more than to any other ; if he kept as it were his peculiar residence among them , and maintain'd a more than ordinary communication in all other respects with them : it ought not to be wonder'd , if we find him in a singular manner watching over their king too , more than over those of any other people or nation besides , and in an extraordinary manner careful to save and desend him. but this is not yet all : for if we look into the history of the holy david , we shall find that god did not only favour him more than any king of all the nations round about him , but more than any other king , even of israel its self . and therefore i add dly . that this great man was not only king of god's own peculiar people , and as such the guardian of his laws , and supporter of his worship : but he was moreover himself a most excellent person too , a man after god's own heart ; and by his own piety , no less than by his place and character in a more particular manner intituled to the divine care and protection . and this is what i take to be implied in that expression of the text where he calls himself god's servant ; it is he that giveth salvation unto kings , who delivereth david his servant from the hurtful sword. ‖ intimating to us , that it was this relation in which he stood to god above all other kings , and indeed almost beyond all other men that ever lived in the world , of being zealous and faithful in his service , that engaged his providence to such an extraordinary concern for him. and if we look into all the following reigns we shall find , that according as any of his successors shew'd themselves either ‖ careful for gods service , or * negligligent of it ; accordingly god appear'd to be more or less careful to prosper and protect them . whilst solomon continu'd to walk in the steps of his father david , never was any prince more great or honourable than he was . but when peace and plenty , his wives and his pleasures corrupted his religion , and made him halt between god and baal , the temple and the groves : tho' for his father david's sake god would not rend the kingdom from him in his own time , yet he threatned to deprive his son of it ; and raised up many dangers and troubles against him , to disturb his peace , and diminish his glory . on the other side we are told of hezekiah , kings xviii . . that after him was none like him of all the kings of judah , nor any that were before him. for he clave to the lord and departed not from following him , but kept his commandments which the lord commanded moses . and what the consequence of his piety was we read in the very next verse ; and the lord was with him , and he prospered whithersoever he went forth . it were an easie matter to add many more examples in proof of this remark , were it at all necessary to insist upon it . the summ of all is this ; that as god do's in a particular manner exercise his providence in the preservation of kings and princes above other men ; so among them he is yet more especially careful to prosper and protect those who profess his true religion , and take care both to live themselves , and as far as they are able , to engage their people too to live according to the rules of it . indeed there are certain seasons when god suffers the best princes not only to fall into some lesser dangers , but it may be utterly to be cut off by wicked and violent hands . when the sins of a nation are come to their full period , so that all the piety and prudence of their governours are neither able to reclaim them from their evil ways , nor to intercede with god for a longer forbearance of them . such was the case of the ‖ jews in the time of king josiah ; a better prince than whom never sate upon the throne of david . yet god suffer'd him to fall by the hand of † pharaoh-necho king os egypt , that so he might not survive the ‖ fortunes of his country , nor see the evil which was then just ready to break in upon it . and when schism and faction , when base designs , and open immoralities had in like manner prepared us of this country for some great destruction : we know how it pleased god from small beginnings , and unforeseen accidents , to throw us into a miserable state of war and confesion ; and to deprive us at once both of an excellent prince , and with him of our church and monarchy too . but then even this god appoints in mercy to them , when it would really be more grievous to them to live than to die : and the misfortune generally is not so much theirs , as the country's or nation 's from which they are taken . and so on the other hand , there is a time when the worst princes are strangely preserved ; tho' yet even then we may observe that for the most part they perish miserably in the end. when god raises them up to be the scourge and plague of a wicked world ; and makes use of them as he did sometimes of the kings of egypt and babylon heretofore , to punish the people and kingdoms round about them. but otherwise , i believe it will generally be found true , that the more careful any king or prince is to live well , and govern justly , and do what in him lies to propagate a true sense of piety among his people , the happier he proves ; and is the more eminently preserved by god , as he is certainly the more dearly beloved by him. and good reason there is why god should observe this method with them : for [ st . ] this , if any thing , will lay the strongest obligations upon such persons to be very careful to support the honour of god , and the credit of religion : when once they shall perceive that their welfare in this present world , as well as their final happiness in the other , depends upon it . and i need not tell you what a mighty advantage this must needs bring to vertue and piety ; to find not only a refuge in the courts of princes , but a respect and encouragement too : and be countenanced by those whose very examples are influential , and will contribute more to the promoting a sense of religion in the world , than all the motives or arguments that we can urge , will ever be able to do without it . [ dly . ] such a procedure as this gives a great justification to the ways of providence , in the menagement of affairs here below . it shews that there is a god who judgeth in the earth : that he do's not look on as an unconcern'd spectator of the affairs of men ; but when he sees occasion , both can and do's interpose too , and reward or punish the greatest persons , according to their works . the fortunes of princes as they are placed in a much higher sphere than those of other men , so are they by consequence more conspicuous too ; and lie open a great deal more to publick observation . and when once it shall be remark'd that they flourish or decay , are either exalted or cast down , according as they live or not in the exercise of piety : this will effectually silence all the cavils of the greatest sceptick in his disputes against a providence ; and force him whether he will or no to confess , that verily there is a reward for the righteous , doubtless there is a god who observes whatsoever is done by us , and will not suffer the wicked always to go unpunish'd . again , [ dly . ] it is commonly alledged , and i think very truly too , that kingdoms and nations , are therefore either rewarded or punish'd in this world , because they shall not as such be judg'd in the other . and the same may be said of their rulers too : when the greatest monarch goes down into the grave , all his pomp and power ; his titles and majesty perish together with him . and he shall stand in judgment in the same undistinguish'd rank with the meanest of his subjects . whatsoever reward therefore god shall please to give to such an one as a king , it must be all in this present life . now tho' i will not deny , but that those who employ their power and authority which god has committed to them to the ends of vertue and religion ; to promote the peace and welfare of their country , and as far as they can , to procure the happiness of all the nations round about them ; both may receive a super-abundant reward for it , and i doubt not shall receive a more than ordinary retribution in the other world : yet i cannot but think there may be some reason too , why they should meet with some part of their recompense in this . and since to their private piety as they are christians , they add a publick concern for the glory of god , and the good of the world as they are princes : tho' i dare not say that god in justice ought , yet i think we may affirm that 't is not without good reason that he do's vouchsafe in a singular manner to watch over them , as a common blessing to mankind ; and prosper their endeavours in what tends so much to the noblest ends of his providence , to his own honour , to the interest and reputation of his religion ; and in one word , to the publick advantage both of m●ns peace and tranquility in this life , and of their everlasting happiness and salvation in the other . and this may suffice for the first thing i propo●d to speak to , of the general obligation which ●…y , upon the royal psalmist thus to praise god ; and of the particular manner wherein he engaged to do it . i shall add but very little as to the other consideration , ii dly . of the prayer with which he closed up his thanksgiving : save me and deliver me from the hand of strange children , whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falshood . i have before observed , that the enemies against whom david here prays ; and whom he brands with the ignominious character , of a vain , idolatrous , and perfidious people , were the philistines , who declared war against him , immediately upon his being anointed king in hebron . now tho' by the blessing of god he had already obtain'd two considerable victories over them , whereby he was for the present at ease from them : yet he knew , that by the assistance which the neighbouring countries were all ready to lend to them , they would again be in a condition in a little while to make head against him ; and he doubted not but that as soon as ever they were able , they would be treacherous enough to do it . and it was upon this apprehension , that having first given thanks to god for his present deliverance , he in the next place subjoyn'd his earnest request to him , that he would in like manner preserve him from their attempts for the time to come . and how necessary such a prayer was , the event shew'd . for it was not very long before he was again engaged with them : and then god remembred his prayer , and not only deliver'd him out of their hands ; but strengthen'd him in such a manner , till at last after many encounters . he utterly disabled them from giving any farther trouble to him. but i insist too long upon the consideration of these words as they lie before me in this psalm : and the solemnity of this day calls me off to another application of them . and tho' i doubt not but you have in a great measure prevented me in your reflections upon the foregoing parts of this discourse ; yet i cannot conclude without pointing out to you somewhat more plainly , how great an interest we have in the subject of it . and i st . as to what concerns the eucharistical part of the text , never had any people greater reason to joyn with holy david in his thanksgiving to god , than we of this nation at this time have . for indeed , when did god ever more eminently shew himself to be the saviour of kings , than in those frequent and signal deliverances which he has afforded to our own royal soveraign from the hurtful sword ? if ( st ) we consider his personal deliverances ; i may venture to affirm , that never did any prince more generously expose himself for any people , than his majesty in these late years has done for us ; nor i think ever did any more narrowly escape with safety out of them . for not to say any thing of the common hazards of war ; tho' perhaps no prince either undertook more expeditions , or carried them on with greater diligence , or appeard in them with more courage ; or ended them with better success ; or less consider'd his own safety , in comparison of the publick good , than our royal master has done , since the time of him of whom our text speaks . i can scarce yet without astonishment remember , how near the fatal blow came to him , which had not the watchful providence of god , for sure nothing else could have done it , prevented , must for . ever have quench'd the light of our israel ; and have at once put a final period both to his life , and in that to all our hopes . but that god who raised him up to assert his cause , and to vindicate the liberty not of this country only , but of all europe , from the rage and power of its common enemy and oppressor , had yet more victories for him to obtain . and therefore he heard our prayers , and cover'd his head in that day of battle ; and sent him back to us with so much the greater joy , by how much the nearer we were to have been utterly deprived of him. but that which ought yet more to be consider'd by us , and to raise up our souls to a still greater heighth of thanksgiving for this deliverance is ; that as his danger was imminent , so was it of such a nature too , that nothing but the same god who preserved david heretofore from the hurtful sword , could have delivered our king from the stroak of it . here was no room for counsel or advice ; no opportunity for any humane means to have interposed for his preservation . neither the courage of his bravest , nor the conduct of his wisest servants , could have stood him in any stead . no ; it was that god who did deliver him , that alone was capable of doing of it : and therefore not unto us , o lord , but unto thy name be the glory of it . and these are such circumstances as would at any time have engaged us to a lively sense of so great a deliverance : but at such a time as that was , in which god was pleased thus wonderfully to preserve him , to restore him again to us ; this is what gives a singular addition to the blessing of it . for a nation to be deprived of a good prince , a king endued with all those royal vertues , which even the enemies of our great soveraign cannot deny to be most conspicuous in him ; must certainly at any time have been a very great calamity , and what would have call'd for the lamentations of all that truly valued either the honour or welfare of their country . but to have been deprived of such a prince in a time of trouble and difficulty ; when nothing but his conduct , his courage and reputation could possibly have prevented us from an utter ruin and confusion : i want words to express how fatal the consequence must have been of it . and yet this , or rather if possible , somewhat beyond all this was our case , when god sent us this great deliverance . our enemies defied us from abroad ; they threatned us even there where we thought our selves the most secure against them : where we were wont till now to give laws , and strike terrour into all other nations besides . and had they obtain'd this farther advantage against us ; what could have hindred but that our very name and nation , our liberties and religion , must for ever have been buried in reproach , and desolation ? nor was the insolence of those within any less . they began already to devour us again in their hopes ; and expected only when the happy minute should come , that would again have put them in a condition to have accomplish'd their wicked designs against us . thus did all things seem manifestly to threaten us with rain and confusion . nothing now remain'd but the dread of our absent prince ; and whom tho' at the greatest distance they cannot but tremble at , to rescue us from these dangers . and we may truly say , it was the reputation of his name , and the apprehension of his conduct , that then kept us in peace and quiet , when we justly fear'd that all was running into war and tumults . and had the providence of god then fais'd him ; had not the almighty in a most wonderful manner preserved him ; and given him a more than ordinary success in his undertakings : we should now have been perhaps one of the most miserable , to be sure one of the most slavish and contemptible nations in the world. i should much exceed the bounds of such a discourse as this , should i go on particularly to recount to you what mighty deliverances god has again vouchsafed to him , since that of which i have been hitherto speaking . to what dangers he has been exposed in an element that of all others has ever been the most contrary to him ? what new hazards he has again encountred in the field ? and all this for our sakes , to promote our welfare , and if it be possible , secure it to all succeding generations . blessed be god! who has again brought him back to us in health and safety , and crown'd him yet once more with honour and victory . that has turn'd those dangers we before lay under , into some hopes , that i do not say into a fair prospect of peace and security . that has restor'd our country its king , our church its defender , and all of us our publick welfare and security . and who if we be not our selves wanting to his desires , shall by the blessing of the same god , not only save us from ruin , but repair our credit , and revive that spirit amongst us which enabled our ancestors so gloriously to triumph over their enemies heretofore : and shew that it is not in vain we either bear the arms of france , or pretend a right and title to it . that our nation is still the same it ever was , and has only wanted a prince to lead it on . and having now at last met with such a one , who can tell but we may yet see that proud monarch at last shewn no longer to be invincible ? but that a king of england , supported by the favour of god , the justice of his cause , and the ●●●●age and affections of his people , is still able to give a check to his carier ; and deliver europe from the insolence of a power which it had never fear'd , had not the pacifick temper of our late princes , and even the help of our arms unhappily raised it to too great a heighth , either for the common peace , or our own security . which brings me to the consideration of that other sort of deliverances which god has vouchsafed to our king , as he did to david heretofore , viz. dly . from the force and power of his enemies . and this again carries me into a new field of discourse , and ministers another large and noble subject to us of praise and thanksgiving . it is but a little while since we seem'd to have been a nation mark'd out by heaven for ruin and destruction . † our religion and liberties , were begun to be both equally trampled under foot . our laws were over-ruled , and become no longer of any use to us : the very legis-lative power its self , ‖ contrived by our ancestors in such a manner as to be the great security of the subject , and barrier against the arbitrary and unbounded power of the prince ; by † secret practices , and unwarrantable attempts endeavour'd to be turn'd against us , and made the very means of running us into slavery . in the midst of this distress , god raised up a mighty and unexpected salvation for us . a prince not less injured , but much more able to assert his rights , and exact a satisfaction than we were . and god prosper'd his enterprize in such a manner , as i believe is not to be parallell'd in story , nor will posterity perhaps believe it . that there should be a conquest without a battle : a kingdom peaceably deliver'd up by a prince to his greatest enemy ; who had at the same time to all appearance a better force actually in the field to defend it , than the other had to force him out of it . but what can be done , when god infatuates mens counsels , and strikes a terror upon their hearts , that will not suffer them bravely to defend , what they have vainly undertaken ? and tho' subjects for conscience sake may submit to the most unjust usurpations , and not dare by force to right themselves : yet i think few have ever been so delicate in their obedience , as to esteem themselves under any obligation to fight themselves into slavery ; and contend for their chains , with those who would set them at liberty from them . thus did god begin to save us from our enemies , and from the hands of those that hate us ; or rather in the words of the text , from the hands of strange children ; whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falshood . but we have yet more than this to fill out our hymns of praise and thanksgiving . god has not only saved us from this danger within , but has preserved us too from that which was the natural consequence of it , the fury of war-abroad : and given such a success to our arms , as i am perswaded the most sanguine amongst us , could hardly have flattered himself withall . when was it ever heard before , that a little weak town , and a few undisciplined men , baffled all the attacks of a numerous army , provided with all things necessary for the reducing of it : and at last forced them , after a siege of fifteen weeks , to quit their attempt as vain and unpracticable ? that a whole kingdom , fenced by nature to a degree of being almost impregnable ; supported by men every way engaged both by interest and religion , by all their hopes of this world and the other , to do their utmost to defend it ; assisted by a powerful force from abroad , and to all this , animated with a spirit of hatred and revenge ; should yet in two years time be reduced to that degree , as not to let the least corner of it remain unconquer'd ? where can we find any instances that may serve to parallel the battles that have been fought , and the attempts that have been made upon this occasion ? scarce did ever despair its self oblige men to run such hazards as our forces have freely done ; and that by the wonderful providence of god , with success too . nor let any here object either the treachery or cowardise of our enemies ; as if it were to those we ought to ascribe a great part of that success we have had against them . but rather let us attribute these blessings , as most certainly we ought to do , to the favour of god ; to the justice of our cause , and to the fortunes and bravery of our princes ; dear to heaven , and raised up by it to be the instruments of providence , in reforming the manners , and redressing the oppressions of an injured and groaning world : in short , to the help of that hand which has so plainly shewn its self in all this deliverance ; that we may with assurance cry out with the holy man in our text ; it is the lord who giveth victory unto kings ; that hath delivered david his servant from the hurtful sword. and having thus fulfill'd this first part of the duty of this day ; let us now to our tribute of praise and thanksgiving add , dly . our prayers too , that he would vouchsafe to accomplish what he has thus graciously begun for us ; and not cease to protect our king and prosper his arms , till he shall have finally deliver'd us out of all our dangers . it was the great complaint of david heretofore , and what made him so much the more earnest in his requests to god for his assistance ; that his enemies were men of no religion , neither whose faith could be rely'd on , nor could any thing keep them from doing him a mischief , but only their being reduced into such a state , as not to have it in their power to hurt him. this is the character which he gives us of them in the text : and what a deep impression the consideration hereof made upon his mind we may see by this , that he not only insists upon it , in his prayer to god against them , as one great motive to implore his help for the utter destruction of them ; but repeats it again and again : send thine hand from above , says he , rid me and deliver me out of the great waters , from the hand of strange children , whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right-hand is a right-hand of falshood , vss. , . and again , vs. . rid me and deliver me from the hand of strange children , whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right-hand is a right-hand of falsehood . so that then if we would know how far we are concern'd to joyn with david in the prayer before us , we must stop a little , and consider how nearly our enemies resemble his . and if upon the enquiry it shall appear that they come up in every particular to the full character of those in the text ; if it shall be found that we have now to do with the same strange children that he had heretofore , whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood : then doubtless it must remain that we ought also to pray as he did , that god would rid us and deliver us out of their hands . and st . as to what concerns the point of religion ; they are in the utmost import of the phrase , strange children . they not only differ from us both in their faith and worship ; but they do what in them lies to destroy our religion , and even our selves for its sake . how many a protestant churches have within these few years been demolish'd by them ? what b multitudes of our brethren have they persecuted even into strange countries ? and with what unheard of c cruelty have they treated such as could not escape out of their hands ? nor did their fury stop within the bounds of their own country : it reach'd even into forreign lands ? and they did what in them lay to promote the same treatment to them all the world over . i need not tell you by whose means the ancient d churches of the valleys were almost totally extirpated . and how fast the same design was carrying on in our own country , you all very well know . when the decree for revoking the once supposed irrevocable edict of nantes was resolved on ; it was not thought sufficient to extend the fury of it to the subjects of the crown of france only , but they struck even at forreigners too . e and all the grace that could be allow'd them was that they might live , and traffick in that country , but then they must not exercise any act of religion within its territories . nay but this was yet too much , and therefore another f edict was sent out , and such as i believe was scarcely ever heard of before ; forbidding all ministers , as well strangers as french , to come into that kingdom upon any account whatsoever , upon pain of death . i shall not now enquire how consistent such decrees as these are with the common laws of nations ; or whether it ought not justly to excite all other princes to rise up and unite against him as their common enemy , who thus sets himself up , * ‖ as if he were indeed , what some of his flatterers doubt not to represent him , the universal monarch ; and all other princes but as so many slaves and vassals to him. but sure i am that our prayers cannot but be seasonable and even pious against such an enemy ; who is not only a stranger to the true religion , but one of the greatest persecutors of it that ever was ; and as such may well be look'd upon by us , to be gods enemy no less than ours . but , dly . and to carry the parallel yet higher : we have to do not only with strange children , as david also had ; but with such whose mouths also speak vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood . that is in other words with such as can never securely be trusted by us , whilst they are in a condition to do us a mischief . a sufficient argument of which may i think be taken from the consideration of those measures by which they have acted in this last reign ; and grown up to that power which is now become so formidable to all europe . for give me leave freely to remonstrate it to you : when did they ever neglect by any means to enlarge their borders , and encroach upon all their neighbours round about them ? what little pretences have many times served them so to do ? and why then should it be thought that they will be more careful to repress their violences and keep within the bounds of equity and moderation for the time to come , than they have been to observe any such kind of measures hitherto ? the truth is when i consider with what gross injustice the many treaties of pacification confirmed by ‖ five successive kings to those of the reform'd religion , have all been broken ; how the great edict of nantes its self , not only call'd perpetual and irrevocable , but with all possible care endeavour'd to have been † made so too ; confirm'd ' twice by that very prince , who has since revoked it ; has nevertheless been violated , and contrary to the express intention of it , their religion prohibited , their estates confiscated , themselves banish'd , or else forced either to rot in their prisons , or be made slaves in their galleys : i cannot but think , that certainly that maxim so often charged upon those of the other communion ‖ that faith is not to be kept with hereticks , is much more catholick than they would have it believed to be ; but especially in those places where that society prevails , which is of all others the most deservedly scandalous , for being the great supporters of such kind of tricks and devices . and should this be the case ; then i am sure we may here also have again another reason both to look to our selves ; and to pray with the holy psalmist that god would deliver us from such enemies , whose mouth speaketh vanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood . but i must now go yet farther ; and offer you another reflection , which will shew us to have still more reason than ever he had to pray against our enemies . and that is upon the account of that ruin and destruction which they carry wherever they come almost beyond whatever any people in the world ever did before . for however the misfortunes of war are always very deplorable ; and they who are esteem'd the most moderate nevertheless allow themselves a great liberty to wast and destroy ; yet i think it has been ever judged by all civiliz'd nations whatsoever , that there is a † moderation to be observed even against an enemy ; and that the laws both of god , of nature , and nations require it of us . it is this that has prevail'd with the greatest generals heretofore to spare the country of their enemy , as far as might be done without injury to their own cause . but alas ! our adversaries are above such menagements . on the contrary , their delight is to ruin what they cannot conquer ; and according to one of their own ‖ emblems , to ravage and destroy all before them . how many † noble and antient cities have they but very lately left in flames , and that without the least reason , that should have moved them so 〈◊〉 do ? ‖ even the houses of god , and sepulchres of the dead ; which the most barbarous people were wont to regard with reverence , and thought it a sacriledge to violate ; have all partaken in their undistinguishing , and unrelenting fury . when the great emperour of persia declar'd war against the assyrians , the historian tells us it was agreed between them , that the husband-men and common-people should on both sides be secure ; and the war extend , only to those who were arm'd for it . and we read that it was a constant law among others in those eastern countries to observe the same measures . but now we see even these miserable disarm'd people , not only spoil'd of all they have , but contrary to their own agreements , as well as to common-humanity , put often-times under the severest execution , when they have nothing but their lives left them to lose . and when such is the cruelty , and fury of our enemies ; certainly we ought to pray with all earnestness to god against them , as we would do against some devouring fire , or a raging pestilence : and beseech him that he would still continue to deliver us out of their hands , as well as bless him that he has hitherto preserved us from it . nor let us look upon our selves to be ever the less concern'd to do this , because we do not lie so much expos'd to their assaults , as some others may seem to do . it is indeed the singular happiness of our situation , ‖ that we cannot presently be surpris'd by them : but yet if we do not timely prevent it , we may be conquered . they who from either none at all , or at best but a very small power at sea , are already grown up to such a pitch as to dispute with us for victory ; may perhaps , if not prevented , in a little time become able indeed to give laws to us . and what the consequences of that must be , i cannot without horrour consider . but god forbid ! we should ever be so unhappy as to fall into the hands of those whose usage of their own country-men too plainly shew what all others are to expect from them . rather let it be the great business both of our prayers and of our endeavours , now that god seems again to offer us a fair opportunity of securing our selves and country , our religion and liberties , against their devices , effectually so to do . let the consideration of that success which he has already given to our arms , encourage us to go on with the greater diligence to our common preservation . let it unite our minds , and quicken our preparations , that so we may not fail in the last act ; nor fall at once both under the reproach and the concern of being ruin'd by our own fault , when hardly any thing else could have done it . and that god may continue to bless us in these our great undertakings ; let us to our care for our own and our countries welfare , add also our hearty zeal for the honour of god , and the promotion of truth , and peace , and piety among us. let us do what in us lies to imitate the examples ; and to comply with the pious care and endeavours of those whom god has made the happy instruments of our preservation . that so we may in some measure answer the ends of his providence in our deliverance : and being saved from our enemies , and from the hands of those that hate us , may serve him without fear ; in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life . so may all those blessings we have already receiv'd , be only the beginnings of that great felicity we shall from henceforth enjoy . when god shall have changed even this prayer too , into a song of thanksgiving ; and instead of supplicating any more with david , rid us and deliver us from the hand of strange children , whose mouth speaketh uanity , and their right hand is a right hand of falsehood : we shall have only remaining to give thanks as he did , when his labour was at an end , and god had finally deliver'd him from all his enemies ; sam. xxii . . thou hast girded us with strength to the battle , them that rose up against us hast thou subdu'd under us. thou hast also given us the necks of our enemies , that we might destroy them that hate us . they looked but there was none to save ; even unto the lord but he answer'd them not . — therefore , we will give thanks unto thee o lord among the heathen , and we will sing praises unto thy name . he is the tower of salvation for his king ; and sheweth mercy unto his anointed ; and to his seed for evermore . now unto the king eternal , immortal , invisible ; to the great and wise god , who is the blessed and only potentate , the king of kings , and lord of lords ; be honour and glory for ever and ever . amen . advertisement . two sermons , the one preached at the reviving of the general meetings of the gentlemen and others of the county of dorset , december the . . and the other before the queen , may . . by w. wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties , and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . both sold by r. sare , at grays-inn gate next holbourn . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e † a psalm of david . ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 † tom ●in psal. . compare this with psal. . . . sam. . . . so r. kimchi in loc . v. . v. . . . compare deut. . . kings . . jer. . . &c. sam. v. — . — . — . — . see dionys. hal. l. vi . p. . et supr . l. ii . p. . a jupiter fe●etrius liv. dec. i. l. . stator . ib. imperator . l. . p . g. victor . l. . p. . i. pistor . lactantius de f. r. p. . tonans . sueton. in aug. n. . conservator . tacitus . hist. l. . custos . ib. propugnator , &c. apollo . solianus . medicus , &c. de fortunae cognominibus . vid. alex. ab alex. gen. d. l. i. c. . hercules . victor . custos , &c. ib. l. ii c. . b liv. dec. i. l. . suet. in augusto . n. . in domitiano . n. . dionys. halic . ● vi. p. . alex. ab alex. l. i. c. . plut. in rom. n. . . plin. n. h. l. vi. c. . c themist . or. xiii . p. . ed. to dionys. halic . l. . p. . ib. p. . l. . p. . l. . ad finem . virg. aen l. viii . ver . . . . &c. . &c. d liv. dec. i. l. . p . h. vid. dionys hal. loc . citatis in ( d ) . tacit. ann. l. xiv . c. . liv. dec. i. l. i. p. . d. in tarq. prisc. suet. in aug. c. . vid. alex. ab alex. l. v. c. . & l. vi . c. . e dionys. hal. l. . p. . & p. . plut. in rom. n. . see orph. hymn . callim . in laud apoll. virg. aen. l. viii . v. . &c. . f see rosinus antiq. rom. lib. x. cap. . . dionys. hal. lib. . p. . alex. ab alex. l. v. c. . plin. h. nat. l. xv . c. . seneca l. de concol . cap. . plin. panegyr . c. . see rosinus ant. r. l. x. c. . acts xvii . . psal. civ . , , . psal. l. , , , , . psal. exvi . , , . † chron. x. . dan. iv . , . jonas . . &c. ‖ see r. kimchi in loc . ‖ see cic. de nat. deor. l. ii . ad fin . quae ratio poëtas , maximéque homerum impulit , ut principibus . heroum — certos deos discriminum & periculorum comites adjungeret . vid. pl. ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . heracl . in vs. . huj . psal. et supr . in vs. . vid. cat. ib. in vs. . prov. viii . rom. xiii . , , . hieroclea de prov. p. . rom. xiii . , . sam. xxvi . . 〈…〉 . ib. c● . xviii , xix . &c. † sam. xviii . ● . * ib. xix . ● . ‖ ib. ch. xxii xxiii , xxiv . &c. † sam. xxvii , xxviii sam. ch. ii , iii , iv . ib. ch. v. ▪ — . psal. . . deutr. iv . , , , &c. sam. vii . . exod. xxv . . jer. vii . . ezek. xxxvii . . sam. xiii . . psal. v. . xxxiv . , . xxxvii . , &c. ‖ compare chron. x. , . with joseph . ant. l. vii . c. . where speaking of david's care in this particular , he observes : that it was the neglect of this that ruined saul : 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . sam. vii . s. ib. xxii . , &c. ‖ kings xv . . kings x. . chron xv . xvii . . xx . . xxvi . . xxvii . . * sam. ii . . kings xi . , , . xiv . , . xv . . xvi . , , . xvii . . xxi . . chron. xii . , , &c. xxv . , . see kings c. x. kings xi . . — . , , . — , , . hosea x. . & xiii . . kings xxiii . ‖ kings xxii . ●… . xxiii . . † . chron. xxxv . ● , &c. ‖ kings xxii . , , ●… . isai lvii. ●… . kings xxii . , &c jer. xxv . . l. . jer. xxv . . xliii . . ezek. xxvi . . themist . orat. xvii . p. . ed. paris . to . psalm ●…iii . . habet hoc primum magna fortuna , quod nihil tectum , nihil occultum esse patitur . plin. paneg. c. . sam. v. see jos. ant. l. v. cap . sam. viii . , &c xxi &c. compare with xxii . . see joseph . an● . lib. vii . cap. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . at the b●●●e in ireland . sam. xxi . psalm cxv. . † see the declar . of the lords and commons , feb. . . ‖ see knygh●on p. k. ch. ist , ans. to the xix . propos. † see inst. f. . ●… inst. . stat. . h. . see k. j's letter to the e. of fev . about disbanding the army , with the e's letter thereupon to the prince of orange . luke i . a see a catalogue of them set out in triumph by monsieur le feure , nouveau recueil : a la fin . de la me partie . monsieur varillas boasts that they were . b see * plaints des protestans : * ' etat des reformez en france : * lettres pastorales de mr. jurieu : * recueil de mr. le feure : * defense des libertez des eglises r. de france . c see * plaints des protestans : * ' etat des reformez en france : * lettres pastorales de mr. jurieu : * recueil de mr. le feure : * defense des libertez des eglises r. de france . d see an account of this in the letters between the d. of savoy and the fr. k. translated from the originals , and printed , anno . e arrest . du . . janvier . . — a la charge qu'ils ne pourront faire dans le royaume aucun exercise de leur religion . f du . juillet . . art. . nous defendons a tous ministres de la r p. r. tant francois qu' estrangers de rentrer dans notre royaume-pour quelque raison on pretext que ce puisse etre — & en cas qu'il s'y en trouve — voulons qu'ils●●●ent punis de mort . see their majesties declaration of war , against the french k. * alone against all. un a tous ‖ see le feure , in his dedication . on se persuaderoit difficilement , que vous eu●●iez forcé toute l'europe a embrasser les conditions de paix qu'il avoit plu a v. majesté de luy prescrire . que vous eu●iez obligé des souveraigns a venir implorer votre clemence , aux pieds de vostre trone . nor is this any more than what their publick inscriptions justifie : in one we find this verse : undarum . terraeque potens , atquo arbiter orbis . in another he is set forth under the emblem of the sun , at whose breaking out all the other princes , like so many stars disappear ; with this motto , ut patet , ista latent . particularly with relation to england , a lion is represented running from the cock ; with this motto , veni , vidi , vici . and to mention no more , in another medal the king of france is drawn standing with the globe on the point of his sword , vaunting that he do's what he pleases with it ; quod libet , licet . see the collect. of father menetrier . 〈◊〉 an acount of all this in a little tract lately reprinted , viz. christianissimus christianandus . ‖ charles ix . . gave them an edict which he call'd perpetual and irrevocable . this was confirm'd by hen. iii. in . and . and again in . and . then follow'd the great edict of nantes under king hen. iv. this was confirm'd by lewis xiii . an. . & again an. . and by the present k. an. . and . in the former of which , speaking of the edicts before mention'd , 't is said ; lesquels edits , bien que perpetuels , nous avons de nouveau , entant que besoin est , ou seroit , confirmez , & confirmons par ces dites presentes . † see def. des lib. des egl. r. de f● . pt . st . ‖ see the state of the protestants in ireland , chap. iii §. . p , &c. to . † see this largely discuss'd by grotius de jure belli , &c. lib. iii. ch . , , , , . see grotius , ib. l. . cap. . §. . themist . or. x. p. . ‖ in a late medal . they represent themselves under the figure of a bomb towring in the air , with this inscription , quocunque cadat , dat stragem . spire , worms , ban , &c. see the emperor's letter to king james apr. . . a great part of the nor of ireland , burnt by rosen . ‖ see grotius , l. c. st. austin commends the goths when they took rome for sparing these , de cio . d. l. . grot. ib. xenophon , o econ . l. . see diodorus siculus , l. . to which grotius adds many more instances . de jure . b. ac p. l. . c. . §. . & in annot. ‖ in another of their late medals they have represented the helm of a ship in the sea , with this inscription , legem . po●… aqui● . luke i. . s●… . xxii . — , — , — . — , — . tim. i. . ib. vi. . an appeal to all the true members of the church of england, in behalf of the king's ecclesiastical supremacy ... by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) an appeal to all the true members of the church of england, in behalf of the king's ecclesiastical supremacy ... by william wake ... wake, william, - . [ ], xxv, [ ], , [ ] p. printed for richard sare ..., london : . errata: p. . advertisements: p. 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng divine right of kings. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - john latta sampled and proofread - john latta text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion an appeal to all the true members of the church of england , in behalf of the king 's ecclesiastical supremacy ; as by law establish'd ; by our convocations approved ; and by our most eminent bishops , and clergy-men , stated , and defended ; against both the popish , and fanatical , opposers of it . by william wake , d. d. and chaplain in ordinary to his majesty . london : printed for richard sare at grays-inn-gate in holborn , mdcxcviii . to the most reverend father in god thomas , by divine providence , lord archbishop of canterbury , primate of all england , and metropolitan . my lord ; this appeal which addresses it self to others for their judgment , sues , with all humility , to your grace for your protection ; and that such , as , i conceive , is neither unfit for me to ask , nor for your grace to afford . you will here see what that true agreement is between the priesthood and the empire , which our laws have establish'd ; our convocations approv'd of ; and our greatest clergy-men hitherto defended ; without the censure of any , but the profess'd enemies of our church and constitution . but now a new sort of disciplinarians are risen up from within our selves , who seem to comply with the government of the church , much upon the same account that others do with that of the state ; not out of conscience to their duty , or any love they have for it ; but because it is the establish'd church , and they cannot keep their preferments without it . they hate our constitution , and revile all such as stand up in good earnest for it : but , for all that , they resolve to hold fast to it ; and go on still to subscribe , and rail . in opposition either to the errors or designs of these men , the present appeal bespeaks your grace's protection , not so much for its self , as for the articles and canons of our church ; and for those excellent worthies who , in their several successions , have appear'd in defence of the king's supremacy over the state ecclesiastical , as by law declared , and establish'd . that you will vouchsafe still to continue to own a cause , in which not only the church of england , but the church catholick , ever since the civil powers have become christian , is concern'd together with her : the authority we plead for in behalf of our kings , being no other than what the most famous bishops and councils of the church have given to their empeperors ; and who , by consequence , must all be involved in the same censure with our parliaments and convocations . and they who now revile the one , would as freely condemn the other , but that they are sensible that many who are well content with the reproach of king henry viii . and his clergy , would not endure to hear the like charges made against constantine and theodosius ; and those bishops and councils which all christians , in all ages , have been wont to pay so great a regard to . this , my lord , is the cause which i here bring before your grace : in the defence whereof i have once already been engaged , and shall , with god's assistance , again appear ; when those who now talk with such confidence against my former allegations , shall give me occasion to shew how just they were , and how little , in reality , there is to be excepted against them . in the mean time , i was willing , for the better discovery of these new-reformers ; by this short , preliminany treatise , to draw aside the curtain , and let the world see whose off-spring they are , and from whom they derive both their principles , and their animosities , against us. i cannot but hope , that by this i shall awaken all the sincere members of our church to beware of them ; and not give countenance to such attempts , as under a shew of bettering our constitution , do in reality tend to the utter subversion of it . to your grace i submit both the design and the performance ; and with all possible duty and respect remain , my lord , your grace's most humble and obedient servant , william wake . the preface . when i entred upon the defence of the kings supremacy , in answer to the letter to a convocation man , i was not so little acquainted with the tempers and designs , of a certain party among us , as not to know that my undertaking would be likely to displease those , who think any the least authority that is given to his present maiesty , to be an encroachment either upon their civil or ecclesiastical rights . nor was i unsensible what might possibly be reply'd to the arguments which i brought in proof of it : the knowledge i had of what the papists were wont to return to the like allegations of our writers against them , having , in some measure , inform'd me what , upon this occasion , might probably be said in answer to me. but to find my self charged , as if in defending the authority of the prince , i had betray'd the rights of the church , and appear'd in such a cause as neither became my function , nor had any of our clergy ever before concern'd themselves withall ; this , i confess , was a perfect surprise to me , and abundantly convinces me that some mens resentments are as much beyond modesty , as they are without reason . it cannot be unknown to any , who is not an utter stranger to the history of our reformation , upon what principles it was undertaken , and at last happily setled among us . how the prince's authority was both the means by which it was carry'd on , and the ground on which we justify'd our selves in the doing of it . and , indeed , at the first , none but the papists , ( that is to say those who had engrossed this power into their own hands , and could neither endure to part with it , nor to submit to the use which they saw we intended to make of it ; ) complain'd of what we did , in restoring the prince to his antient , and undoubted right ; or pretended to enter any process against us , upon the account of it . it is true , some time after , another party , ( how opposite soever to the papists in other matters , yet in this too nearly approaching to them ) began to set up themselves ; and to claim the same power in behalf of their kirk , that the romanists had pretended to in right of their pope and church . but against both these our bishops and clergy continued firm and costant ; and were , by all impartial judges , allow'd to be as much superiour to them both in their arguments , as they were in the justice of the cause which they maintained . thus stood this controversy till our own times : insomuch that i hardly know any author , professing himself a member of the church of england , who has either cast any aspersion upon our first reformers , for restoring the crown to its antient jurisdiction ; or pretended that the divine rights of the church , were in any wise violated , or infringed by it . but it seems the case is very much altered now : and it is , of a suddain , become an encroachment , not to be endured by our new-church-patriots , for the king to pretend to lay any restraint upon their assemblies ; and an enterprise unbecoming a minister of the gospel , tho' by more than one obligation engaged so to do , to appear in defence of the royal supremacy . it is indeed very strange to consider after what manner a certain writer has of late deliver'd his sense as to both these ; and such as will hardly be credited , except i repeat it in his own words . 't was natural ( says he ) to expect the insurrection of infidels and hereticks , against the proposals and power of a convocation . — but who would have dreamed that any clergy man — of the church , should lift up his heel against her. — when the great luminaries of the church shall sign the theta upon her rights , liberties and authorities , divine and humane ; and this voluntarily , and without any bribe offer'd , or menace denounced , the concession is taken for sincere , and for that cause , just. king henry the viii of famous memory , notwithstanding all his claims at common-law , and his interest in his parliament , thro' power , and the rewards by abby and church-lands , could not have made himself so absolute in eccesiasticals . had he not procured before the submission of the clergy . nor could he have compassed that , but by the terrour of a praemunire under which they had fallen , and upon which he was resolved to follow his blow , and so to bend , or break them . and yet this act of a popish , vnreform'd , and will nigh outlaw'd convocation , extorted for fear of ruin , and thro' ignorance , and non-suspicion of the acts consequent upon it , prejudges more against our liberties , than all secular constitutions could possibly have done without it . and must we now consecrate all these procedures , the results of which we feel in the total ruin of ecclesiastical discipline , and christian piety , by our voluntary pleas , and acclamations : and to gratifie the civil powers to an arbitrary vtmost , violate the most important truths of principles and histories ; treat the synods of the church with spite and contumely ; and recommend the greatest slavery of her to the appetite of civil powers . this is a severe charge , and a man had need have a very good cause , or a very impregnable face , who treats kings and parliaments , convocations and clergymen after such a rate . for , when all is done , it cannot be denied but that what that convocation did , and that king and parliament enacted , was , after two intermediate reigns , again repeated in the first of queen elizabeth ; is at this day approv'd of by the canons of king james the first ; and allow'd of in the nine and thirty articles of religion ; to which this author himself has more than once subscribed . and methinks the consideration of that , if nothing else , might have induced him to have been more temperate in his charge against me ; who have defended no other authority in the prince , than what both he , and i , and every other clergy-man of the church of england , have solemnly declared our assent to , and are obliged to our power to maintain . but our author does not intend to leave this point so easily ; his zeal carries him yet farther in opposition to the king's supremacy . to say nothing of his fresh invectives against that king , and that convocation , which first began to assert the royal authority , against the invasions which had so notoriously been made upon it : pag. . he affirms the authority of the church in the convention , freedom , and acts of synods , to be of divine right . this he again insists upon , pag. . and in the next page calls them divine privileges , given by god , and granted to priests , for the conduct and conservation of the church . and in the same page , speaking of the prince's breaking in upon these supposed rights , he says ; not only the romish church , but all other sectaries , and the scotch kirk illustriously scorn to admit any servitude , notwithstanding not only national protection , but promotion : being sensible that a liberty of religion , government , and church-discipline , is more valuable than all worldly wealth , or interest ; and without which they cannot apprehend any protection to religion , or the societies that profess it . from which last words i suppose i shall not injure his sense if i infer ; that then , according to his notion , the church of england is really at present in a persecuted state , and has been so ever since the reformation : and cannot be look'd upon so much as a protected church , till this act of the submission of the clergy shall be repealed . a strange reflection certainly ! and very unbecoming those manifold blessings our church has enjoy'd under its reformed princes ; and does at this time enjoy under her glorious preserver : whose greatest crime i am afraid it is , in some mens opinion , that he has delivered us from that slavery into which we were running , tho' such as our new disciplinarians seem to think the only way to a canonical liberty . i must transcribe a great part of his book , should i here repeat all that this author has said , in the most spiteful manner that he knew how to express it , against all that plead for , or speak well of , this part of the king's supremacy . see how he harangues his brethren of the clergy upon this occasion , p. . we , we only , says he , are the poor , tame , dis-spirited , drowsie body ; that are in love with our own fetters : and this is the only scandalous part of our passive obedience to be not only silent , but content , with an oc — n of our p — rs , which are not forfeited , nor forfeitable to any worldly powers whatsoever . ; it might perhaps be here no improper question , to ask , what this gentleman means by so warm an application to the whole body of the clergy ? whether he would have them take heart upon the matter , and having so redoubted a champion to lead them on , like true missionaries , see what they can do to raise up a croisade against these wicked magistrates , who so unwarrantably usurp upon the churches neither , forfeited nor forfeitable , powers ? at least thus far , 't is plain , he has gone towards it , that as he has before shewn the church to be out of the protection of the prince , so he will by and by declare the prince to be out of the bosom of the church ; and by both , authentically qualified for a holy war to be made upon him. for thus he goes on ; p. . can a claim of an oppressive supremacy be deem'd a glorious jewel in a christian crown , which if exercised , must of necessity forfeit the king's salvation ? and is it not a dangerous complaisance in priests , to fan such an ambition , as must end in the ruin of the church , the priesthood , and the soul of the prince , which the liberties , and powers hierarchical , were design'd to convert , direct , and preserve ? but still it may be doubted how far he accounts the king's supremacy to be oppressive ? that the whole act of the submission of the clergy to king henry the viiith falls under this censure , we have already seen . in short , all that he thinks fit to be allow'd to the christian prince , is this : that the church be obliged to acquaint him with her desires , reasons , places , seasons , and necessaries of convening : to petition his leave and favour ; his inspection , assistance , and succour to the piety of her designs : to secure him of her fidelity to all his proper honours and interests : that they will keep within ecclesiastical concerns ; and do all things openly , to the glory of god , and the good of souls , in the vnity , order , and purity of the church , preserved by the rules of catholick , and canonical communion ; and this under the guard and watch of temporal powers . well , but what if the prince shall not approve of the reasons that are offered to him , for their assembling ; nor think either the time convenient , or the place proper ; and shall thereupon refuse them the leave they petition for ? what if he shall think their designs not to be so pious as they pretend , but rather to have a great allay of humane passion and prejudice in them ? what if he shall differ with them in his notion of what is his proper honour and interest ? may he in such a case forbid them to meet ? may he assign them some other time or place ? or command them not to meddle with such causes , or persons , as he shall judge his honour , or interest , to be concern'd in ? what if what they call ecclesiastical concerns should chance to have an influence upon civil affairs ? and that instead of preserving , they shall act so as to divide the vnity of the church ? may he , by the temporal power which is still left to him , put a stop to their proceedings ; or annul their acts ; or receive and appeal from their sentences ? on the contrary , he flatly tells us , that all the power of calling ; moderating at , and dissolving synods ; of confirming their acts , or suspending their sentences ; is negative of those liberties and authorities of the church , which she once claim'd as of divine right ; and of which he before affirm'd , that they were neither forfeited , nor forfeitable . and here then we have a plain account of the judgment of this author in the case before us. i was willing , the rather , to put it together in this place , that so by comparing it with what is said in the following collection , the reader may be the better enabled to judge , who has acted more sincerely upon the church of england's principles ; i , in asserting the king's supremacy , as by law establish'd ; or he , in his violent , and impetuous opposing of it . or , if this shall not be thought enough to convince those , who have been dissatisfied with my undertaking , how close i have kept to our churches doctrine ; let me then , for a final proof , desire this author , in his next attempt , to satisfie the world in these ( ) points . st . let him shew wherein i have ascribed any more , or greater power , to the prince , than our laws have given him ; and our convocations , and clergy , have either expresly , or by a plain consequence , approved of , and declared to be his right ? dly . let him tell us , wherein the opinion , here advanced by him , differs from that of our missionary papists and jesuits , who have written against the supremacy ; and against whom our divines have so learnedly maintain'd the king's prerogative ? dly . let him inform us , whether any writers of the church of england , since the passing of this convocation act , have ever made any such exceptions , as he has here done , against it ; and charged it as destructive of the divine rights and powers of the church : and who those writers are ? and in what books they have done it ? this being done , if it shall appear that in any thing i have run into an undue extreme , and , by that means , derogated from the churches authority ; i shall then be ready to comply with the advice he has given me , and not only humble my self before god for the wrongs i have done the church , but publickly make a reparation of them . but if , upon the enquiry , it shall appear , that i have affirm'd nothing but what the law establishes ; our convocations have agreed to ; and our most eminent clergy men have constantly defended ; i must then be excused if i look upon my self to have done no more than in duty i was bound to do ; and , by opposing whereof , i take this gentleman not only to have acted contrary to the laws of the land , and the articles and canons of the church ; but to have actually incurr'd an excommunication for such his offence . having said thus much with respect to the subject of my late treatise , i shall add but little more concerning the design which is here laid for the answering of it . as this author has order'd the matter , it is become absolutely necessary for him to go on with it . for having charged me with violating the most important truths of principles and histories ; having told the world that i have treated the synods of the church with spite and contumely ; and recommended the greatest slavery of her to the appetite of the civil powers ; ( and every part of which charge does , i conceive , accuse me of no small crime ) the weight of this accusation must fall very heavy either upon him or me ; and i look upon my self as concern'd to tell him , that i do expect he should make it good , or honestly own that he cannot do it . only for his own sake as well as mine , and which is yet more , for the satisfaction of those who shall think fit to interest themselves in this controversy ; some few things there are which i would here recommend to him ; and they are such , as , in my apprehension , ought not to be thought at all unreasonable by him. and st . since this debate , however managed , must be likely to run out into a considerable length , i would desire him not to increase the necessary bulk of it , by alledging passages out of the antient fathers , to prove that which neither of us make any doubt of . thus p. . he produces the authority of athanasius to prove that the nicene fathers were not constrain'd , by any force that was laid upon them , to condemn arius , but did it freely , and of their own accord . now this i allow to be very true ; but cannot help thinking it to be , in our present case , very little to the purpose . and p. . he cites a much larger proof out of gregory nazianzen , the appositeness of which to our debate i cannot yet imagine ; unless it be that he thinks all greek to be equally pertinent to most readers ; in which he is certainly in the right . dly . i would intreat him not to insist upon any testimonies of antiquity , which have been already alledged again and again , by harding and stapleton ; by saunders and dorman , and the rest of our popish fugitives , in their treatises against the oath of supremacy , and as often answer'd by our writers ; unless he shall think fit , at the same time , to take notice of their replys to them , and shew that they do not destroy the force of his allegations . to what purpose , for example , does he bring the sayings of athanasius against the synod of tyre ; of osius against constantius ; of st. ambrose against valentinian the younger ; to us who know what has long since been return'd to them by our learned ⸪ jewel and ‖ bilson ; * whitgift and † andrews ; and the rest of our writers upon this subject . this may pass with those , who are ignorant of these matters , for a shew of reading ; and they may , for a while , look with wonder on the vnknown character ; and applaud the learning of the text , and margin . but when the common place shall be lay'd open , and they shall begin to discover out of whose magazine these authorities are transcribed ; and shall be convinced how often they have already been both alledged and answered ; the most charitable reader will be apt to shake his head , and think the worse both of the cause , and the defenders of it . and this i desire with relation to other mens writings : as for my own book , dly , i would request him , when he cites my words , but especially when he does it with a design of reflecting upon them , that he would take them as they lie ; and not leave out , or insert , any that may have an influence upon the sense of what he quotes . of the former of these i take my self to have some reason to complain , in his references of p. . and . of his book . but of the latter yet more , p. . where he says , that i give the prince power to suspend not only the sentences of synods , but their canons too ; and of which i do assure the reader he will not find the least mention in the passages to which he is referr'd . but thly , and to go yet farther ; would his design , or prejudices , give him leave , i could wish he would take care to distinguish a little better between what i relate as matter of history , and what i deliver as my own sense . it being easie to imagine that in a work of such a nature as that is which he has undertaken to examine , many things may be recited from others , which a man is not bound himself to approve of . had he used this precaution , he would not have told his reader , as he does , p. . that i charge the synod of ariminum with the sin of disobedience , for dissolving themselves without the emperours leave : whereas , in truth , i only give a sincere account of the matter of fact , and shew ( from my author ) what those fathers did , and what resentments the emperour had of it ? what reasons those holy bishops had for returning to their churches , after a tedious absence , tho' not licensed by constantius so to do , it cannot be thought we at this distance should be so well able to judge , as they , at that time were . and if they were satisfied , that they had reason so to do ; far be it from me to condemn them for preferring their duty to their flocks , before the satisfaction of a violent , and heretical prince . let me to this add , thly , as not very different from what i have now mentioned , such other mistakes , as either want of care , or the heat of contention , has sometimes led him into ; and by reason of which , he charges me with several things which i am by no means concern'd to admit of . thus , for example ; it is not less than four several times that he speaks of my definition of a synod : and in one place censures me for the vn-accuracy of it , p. . and indeed a very loose definition of a synod it is , tho' fit enough to keep company with that which himself gives of it , in the same place . but then it is a great mistake , to say that i had any thoughts of defining a synod in the place to which he refers . on the contrary i acknowledge the very meeting , of which i there speak , not to be what we properly mean by a synod . only i shew both from the persons of which it consisted , and from the business which it met about ; that if the prince has authority over such an assembly as that was , there is no reason why he should not have an equal authority over synods ; which both consist of the same kind of persons , and meet about the like affairs . but thly , and to have done : there is yet one thing more which i cannot but think to be worthy his regard , and it is this ; that before he draws up any more charges of absurdities and contradictions against me , he would take some tollerable care to examine matters thoroughly ; and to advise with some clearer heads ; and not charge that upon my words , which is really the misfortune of his own vnderstanding . what a strange confusion , for example , is it , p. . because i prove from the matters of fact in the first ages after the empire became christian ; and from what was orderly and regularly done in those times too , the princes supremacy ; to fancy that i had overthrown my own foundation , by saying that in the dreggs of popery , and when princes had lost their antient and just authority , many things were done by the clergy in their synods very irregularly ; and their bare doing of which is by no means sufficient to prove that they had a right to do it . again , p. . because i cite eusebius for an expression of constantine's , that he was bishop in things without the church ; what strange logick is it from thence to conclude that princes have nothing to do in the affairs of synods ? whereas it is notorious that those , above any thing , were the very matters of which he spake . so , p. . i quote socrates for saying , that the greatest synods were called by the emperors : ergo , says he , 't is plain that the lesser ones were not ? again , p. . i affirm that in peaceable times , and under princes who take care of the church , synods ought not to meet but by the command or allowance of the civil magistrate . to this , he conceives it is a contradiction to say , as yet i do , that in cases of extreme necessity , when princes shall so far abuse their power , as to render it absolutely needful for the clergy , by some extraordinary methods , to provide for the churches welfare ; that necessity will warrant their taking of them . — and again ; because i assert that in quiet times , and under a pious , christian prince , the prince is to judge , when it is proper for synods to meet : to this he fancys it to be a contradiction to allow , that when the danger is apparent , and the necessities of the church will not bear the farther delay of them , if the prince does refuse to let them meet , they must rather venture his displeasure , and do it of themselves , than be wanting , in such circumstances , to the churches safety and preservation . these are some of those absurdities which this ingenious writer has been pleased to lay to my charge . many more there are of the like kind ; and by which whether he has more exposed my weakness , or his own , i am very well content to leave it to any impartial reader to judge . it is one of the ill effects that commonly attend controversial writings , that it is very difficult to manage them either with that temper and ingenuity that becomes scholars , or with that charity that good christians ought to do . and 't is this has given me almost as great a disgust at them , as ever gregory nazianzen profess'd himself to have against synods , and that almost upon the same account . pride and ill-nature commonly domineer in them ; and sometimes it so falls out that an opponent must be freely dealt with , or a good cause must suffer in the opinion of a great many , who conclude that a man therefore only spares his adversary , because he could not get an advantage against him . how far i have fallen under this censure , in the management of the present controversy , i must submit it to others to judge ; but do hope i have not so far transgress'd , as this late author charges me to have done . as for the logick , law , and history , of the person i had to deal with , what it really is , i pretend not to say ; what it appear'd to me to be , my book has shewn : and if i have any where fail'd in my allegations against him , this gentleman , no doubt , will take care to call me to account for it . but honesty is a tender point ; and i do not remember i have any where touch'd upon it . 't is true i have shewn , what was indeed too plain to be deny'd , that whosoever he were that wrote that pamphlet , he could be no friend to our present establishment . and this i am sure was to my purpose to observe , how little so ever it was to his , to have it so plainly discover'd . however , if in any thing i have been mistaken in my judgment either of his affections , of his abilities , i am heartily sorry for it ; and shall be ready to submit to whatsoever pennance his most vpright , logical , historical second , shall , from his better skill in antiquity , and the laws of our church , think fit to lay upon me for it . the contents . introduction , § . . the design of the following treatise , viz. to shew what has been the sense of the church of england , ever since the reformation , as to the authority of christian princes over the ecclesiastical synods of their realms , § . . the substance of the h. . c. . to this purpose , § . . of its repeal by q. mary , and revival by q. elizabeth , § . . that the authority , therein given to the king , is no other than what did always , of right , belong to the crown , § . . that it was to secure this authority , the oath of supremacy was framed , § . . — the present obligation of which is enquired into ; ibid. that the same authority is agreed to in the th article , § . . — the sense of which is shewn , ib. and the nature of that subscription we make to those articles consider'd , § . . and is yet more fully enjoin'd by the canons of . § . . — which ipso facto excommunicate all those who impugn this supremacy , § . . ii. this supremacy confirm'd from the sense of our divines and others , ever since the reformation , § . . of the times of k. h. . — k. edw. . — and q. mary . § . . queen elizabeth . the judgment , of her self , and her parliament , § . . of all her first bishops , § . . of archbishop whitgift , § . . archbishop bancroft , § . . bishop jewel , § . . bishop bilson , § . . dr. 〈◊〉 , § . . mr. hooker § . . king james . of the revival of the dispute , concerning the supremacy , under this king , § . . the judgment of the king himself , ib. and — of b. andrews , § . . against the papists . of the controversy which the king had on this subject , with the scotch ministers , § . . vpon this occasion b. andrews judgment more fully declared , § . . which was also the sense of the rest of the clergy at that time , § . . particularly of our learned mason , § . . king charles i. the judgment of these times , more particularly shewn , § . . from the sense of the king himself , § . of his bishops , especially a. b. laud , § . . and of the whole convocation , , § . . the judgment of a. b. bramhall , § . . bishop davenant , § . . and dr. heylin , § . . king charles ii. the state of the parliament and convocation , in consider'd : how far this shews the same sense to have continued of the supremacy , that had all along obtain'd before ? § . . this farther shewn from the opinion of ; bishop taylor , § . . b. s. parker , § . . dr. falkner , § . . dr. barrow , § . . iii. vpon this foundation , an appeal is here made , to all the true members of our church , against those who now oppose this authority , § . . and it is farther shewn , that i have not been mistaken in point of law , § . . that the cause was not unbecoming a clergy man to appear in , § . . that the time was not improper for the handling of it , § . . that it is not probable , the church will suffer by what i have done ; but may , by their fury , who oppose me in this point , § . . the close , § . . an appeal to all the true members of the church of england , &c. after an age and half 's dispute with those of the church of rome , in defence of the king's supremacy , and of the laws that have been made for the establishment of it ; it cannot but seem a little strange to us , to be now call'd upon to begin the controversy again , with some among our selves , who would be thought the best , if not the only true members , of the church of england . but that which seems yet more amazing is , that tho' our laws subsist in the same state which they have been in ever since the reformation ; our articles and canons made in pursuance of those laws continue firm , and unrepealed : tho' the books that have been written by our bishops , and clergy , in defence of both , are not only not censured , but are read , approved , and received on all hands , as delivering the undoubted sense of our church and convocations , as well as of our princes and parliaments , with relation to this matter ; it should now , nevertheless , be thought a crime to assert the supremacy of the christian magistrate ; and a scandal for a clergy-man , more especially , to appear in behalf of that cause , by defending whereof so much honour has been gain'd , by the greatest writers of that order , heretofore . had we now to do with the same adversaries that those learned men were engaged with ; were the persons who , in our days , set up against the rights of the prince , either open romanists on the one hand , or avowed members of the kirk and consistory on the other ; we should the less wonder either at the principles which they advance , or the zeal with which they appear in favour of them . but to be summon'd by members of our own communion to defend the doctrine of our own canons and articles ; to be rail'd at as little better than apostates from the church catholick , for pretending to vindicate the constitution of the church of england , as by law establish'd ; this is a novelty which we know not what to make of , a prodigy becoming a time , and place , of wonders . to lay open the design of this new-attempt , and which may otherwise , in time , improve into another schism , and produce us a third church of england , composed only of such persons as will disclaim all authority of the civil-magistrate , from having any thing to do in matters of religion ; it may possibly be of some use to represent to such , as have not yet lay'd aside all regard to her , the plain sense of our reformed church , in the points under debate ; and shew them from whom i received the doctrine which i have asserted , in vindication of the kings supremacy . and having done this , i cannot but hope that some of them will consider ; what is the true design of those who are so forward to pull down , what our wise and pious ancestors , took so much care to build : and whether the methods we are now running so blindly into , must not end either in downright popery , or fanaticism , at the last . when the foundation was first laid for a regular reformation of religion among us ; one of the first things which those , who carry'd on that great work , saw it needful to do , was , to restore the crown to that authority , which the prevalence of the papal power had so notoriously deprived it of . in order hereunto , the convocation having agreed to submit themselves to the king , an act of parliament was framed upon that submission , in which , among others , these four things were establish'd . st . that the convocation should from thenceforth be assembled only by the kings writ . dly . that it should make no canons , or constitutions , but by virtue of the kings licence , first given them , so to do . dly . that having agreed on any canons or constitutions , they should yet neither publish nor execute them , without the kings confirmation of them : nor , thly ; by his authority , execute any , but with these limitations ; that they be neither against the kings prerogative ; nor against any common , or statute law ; nor , finally , in any other respect , contrary to the customs of the realm . this act being thus pass'd , continued in force all the time of king henry the viii . and his son king edward the vi. queen mary succeeding , and rescinding whatsoever her father , or brother had done , in prejudice of the romish church , abolish'd , among others , this act also . but her reign ending within a few years after ; one of the first things done , by her sister queen elizabeth , was to revive such laws , made by those two kings , as were thought necessary for the reformation of the church ; and so this statute was brought again in force . the title of the act by which this statute was revived , and the other authorities therein express'd were again annex'd to the crown , is this ; an act restoring to the crown the antient jurisdiction over the estate ecclesiastical and spiritual , &c. and that taken from the words of the act its self ; wherein the design of this statute is declared to be , for the restoring of the rights , jurisdictions , and preheminencies , appertaining to the imperial crown of this realm : and in another place ; to the imperial crown of this realm , of right belonging and appertaining . and from which it is , i suppose , obvious to conclude , that in the opinion of that parliament , such an authority over our convocations , as is before shewn to have been establis'd by the h. viii . c. . and was hereby again vested in the crown ; was not either by that , or this , statute , first given to our kings , but only restored to them , as a part of their royal jurisdiction over the state ecclesiastical ; and which did always , of right belong , and appertain to them . the rights of the crown being thus once more , by law , restored to it ; to secure them the better against any new encroachments for the time to come , it seem'd good to this parliament ( after the example of those of king henry the viii . ) that an oath should be framed , in recognition of the supremacy here declared to belong to our royal sovereigns ; and be enjoyn'd to be taken by all officers and ministers ecclesiastical and temporal ; as in the act may more fully be seen . in this oath , we solemnly testify and declare in our conscience , that the king's highness is the only supreme governour of this realm , and of all other his highness dominions and countries , as well in all spiritual , or ecclesiastical things , or causes , as temporal . — and we do promise , that , to our power , we will assist and defend all jurisdictions , priviledges , preheminences , and authorities , granted , or belonging , to the kings and queens of this kingdom ; or united , and annex'd , to the imperial crown of this realm . now this oath being design'd , as both the subject of it shews , and * the words of the act it self , expressly declare , to be for the better observation and maintenance of that statute ; it must follow , that the supremacy which we there testify in our conscience to belong to our princes , must be interpreted by what that act has united and annex'd to the crown ; and so comprehend all that authority of the king over his convocation , which in the th . h. viii was expressly restored to our princes ; and which being again , by the repeal of that act , recovered from them , was by this present statute , once more , re-setled in the crown , as it had been before . how those , who now appear so zealous in opposition to this authority , and have probably more than once , solemnly taken this oath , will acquit themselves either before god , or the world , of a manifest violation of it , by their present behaviour , is past my skill to comprehend : unless , because some part of that oath is now laid aside , they should chance to think , that therefore the whole obligation of it is ceased , even to those who have taken it in its former integrity . but indeed should we allow that there were some weight in this ; yet since the laws made in defence of the kings supremacy , are still the same they ever were ; our recognition of it must be look'd upon to be the same too : and in renouncing all forreign jurisdiction in causes ecclesiastical , which we still do ; we must be accounted as effectually to acknowledge the kings supremacy , according to the legal notion of it , as when we the most fully declared our assent to it ; tho' it should be granted , that we do not now so expressly oblige our selves to the defence of it , as we were heretofore wont to do . and this i say with particular respect to the present state of this oath ; for otherwise , as to what concerns us of the clergy , it cannot be doubted but that our obligation , as to the substance of it , is still the same it ever was : the declaratory part of this oath being what we in terms subscribe to , in the first article , of the th canon ; and the promissory , no other than what is tied upon us in the st canon , by an authority which our adversaries , i conceive . will not presume to except against . but not to insist upon the present obligation of this oath ; thus much , at least , must be confess'd , ( and that is enough for my purpose ) that all those who heretofore took the oath of supremacy , as it was first drawn up in the statute of queen elizabeth , did thereby , without question , both declare their approbation of the kings supremacy , as by that act establish'd , and promise to their power , to assist and defend it . but now this all our clergy , and almost all others who were admitted to any employ , whether civil or ecclesiastical did do : and therefore it must be allow'd that till within these last ten years , the authority by me ascribed to the king , was not only agreeable to the sense of the laity , but to that of the clergy too ; since every clergy man in the realm , till then , did upon his oath , both declare his approbation of it , and engage himself , to his power , to defend it . and how that authority which was so universally received and acknowledged by us , for so long a time , should now become so detestable in it self , and so destructive of the rights and liberties of the church , i would desire these gentlemen , if they can , to inform me. it was about four years after the session of this parliament , and the passing of this act , that the nine and thirty articles of religion were agreed upon in convocation , and publish'd by the queen's authority . of these the th relates to the civil magistrate ; and is drawn up so exactly according to the words , as well as sense , of the oath of supremacy , that we cannot doubt but that the convocation had a particular respect thereunto , in the framing of it . the queen's majesty hath the * chief power in this realm of england , and other her dominions ; unto whom the * chief government of all estates of this realm , whether they be ecclesiastical , or civil , in all causes , doth appertain . so this article determines : and what we are to undestand by supreme power , and supreme government , of all estates , and in all causes , our laws tell us ; and from which we may be sure , neither the queen , nor the convocation , had any intention to depart . but the article goes on . where we attribute to the queen's majesty the chief government , by which title we understand the minds of some dangerous folks to be offended ; we give not our princes the ministring either of god's word , or of the sacraments ; the which thing the injunctions also , set forth by elizabeth our queen do most plainly testifie : but that only prerogative , which we see to have been given , always , to all godly princes , in holy scripture , by god himself ; that they should rule all estates and degrees committed to their charge by god , whether they be ecclesiastical or temporal . — and if you would know what ruling of the ecclesiastical estate is hereby intended , the injunctions to which the article referrs us will fully clear it ; where having first denied , as the article also does , that by the words of the oath of supremacy before-mention'd , the kings or queens of this realm , possessors of the crown , may challenge authority and power of ministry of divine service in the church ; they declare , that her majesty neither doth , nor ever will challenge any authority than what was challenged , and lately used , by the noble kings of famous memory , king henry the viii . and king edward the vi. which is , and was of antient time due to the imperial crown of this realm ; that is , under god , to have the sovereignty and rule over all manner of persons born within these her realms , dominions and countries , of what estate , either ecclesiastical or temporal , soever they be . these are the words of the queens injunction , and agreeably whereunto , it is manifest , the convocation design'd to frame this part of their article , as they took the oath of supremacy for their pattern in the foregoing . and in consequence whereof , as well as in conformity to the laws of the realm , then establish'd , we must conclude , that this power of calling and directing the convocation being one main part of that jurisdiction which was declared by act of parliament to belong to the crown , and was accordingly restored and annex'd to it thereby ; and having , as such , been challenged and used both by king henry the viii . and king edward the vi. is also a part of that supremacy which the convocation here intended to attribute to the queen ; as we are sure the queen must have understood it to have been hereby ascribed to her . and of this i shall give a more particular proof when i come to consider the notions which this queen , and her clergy , had of her authority as to this matter . in the mean time i cannot but desire this late writer , and all others , of the same judgment with him , who have in like manner subscribed these articles , seriously to bethink themselves with what conscience they did it ; if they had in good earnest so ill an opinion , as they now pretend , of that power which those articles , most certainly , allow of , and profess to be due to the civil magistrate . that the author of the late treatise , not so much againt my book , as against our laws , and government , must have * several times subscribed these articles , the character of a minister , which he takes to himself , sufficiently assures us. no man can be ordained a deacon , or priest , without doing of it : nor being in orders , can be admitted to any cure of souls , or to any other ecclesiastical administration whatsoever , but he must again repeat it . the method taken for performing of this subscription is full , and positive . for first , the substance of what we are to subscribe to , is drawn up into three articles ; whereof the first , and third , are these . . that the king's majesty , under god , is the only supreme governor of this realm , and of all other his highness's dominions and countries , as well in all spiritual or ecclesiastical things , or causes , as temporal , &c. — which being the very words of the oath of supremacy , must be taken in the same sense , that i have before shewn , that oath was to be understood in . — and , . that we allow the book of articles of religion — and acknowledge all and every the articles therein contain'd — to be agreeable to the word of god. and then , to these articles we subscribe in these very words ; i , s. h. do willingly , and ex animo , subscribe to these three articles above mentioned , and to all things contained in them . he therefore who does this , either must subscribe to them against his conscience ; or he must , thereby , be concluded to profess this belief ; that the authority given to the king by our laws , and approved of in these articles , is agreeable to the word of god. the danger of impugning any of these articles , is great , and unavoidable . to affirm them , in any part , to be superstitious , or erroneous ( whether he who does it be found out or no ) is by the canons of our church , excommunication ipso facto . and if the offender be discover'd , and fortunes to be a clergy-man , he is by the statute law of the realm to be convented before his bishop for it ; and if he does not presently revoke his error , is , in the first instance , to be deprived of all his ecclesiastical promotions ; and , in the second , loses them without more ado . this is the law both of the church , and of the state , in the present case : and with what conscience any clergy-man , beneficed in such a church , can excuse himself for flying with so much virulence in the face both of these laws , and of these canons ; i shall leave it to any one , who has any conscience himself , though never so much prejudiced against the king's supremacy , to consider . to the articles of religion , set forth by queen elizabeth , let us add the next authentick evidence of our church's sense , in this particular , the canons and constitutions , made by the convocation in the first year of king james i. of these the very first is design'd to assert the supreme authority of the king's majesty over the church of england . in order whereunto it ordains , that all persons ecclesiastical , shall faithfully keep and observe , and , as much as in them lieth , shall cause to be observed , and kept of others , all , and singular laws and statutes , made for restoring to the crown of this kingdom , the antient jurisdiction over the state ecclesiastical . which last words being the very title of the act of the first of queen elizabeth , we must conclude the meaning of the canon to be this ; that they shall faithfully observe the laws referred to in that statute , and do what in them lies , to cause all others to observe the same . seeing then that act of the h. . c. . is one of those which is there expresly revived , it will follow , that it expresly comes within the words of this canon ; and that the powers therein annexed to the crown over the convocation , are hereby approv'd and allow'd of , as part of that antient jurisdiction which always , of right , belong'd to our kings over the estate ecclesiastical . but the next canon is more express , and will come more fully up to our present purpose . it s design is to restrain the impugners of the king's supremacy over the church of england : and thus it runs , in our english version of it . whosoever shall hereafter affirm that the king's majesty hath not the same authority , in causes ecclesiastical , that the godly kings had amongst the jews , and christian emperors in the primitive church ; or impeach any part of the regal supremacy in the said causes , restored to the crown , and by the laws of this realm therein established , let him be excommunicated ipso facto , and not restored but only by the archbishop , after his repentance , and publick revocation of those his wicked errors . it is plain by comparing of these two canons together , that the design of the convocation was , in the first , to declare , and assert the king's supremacy , and to oblige the clergy to a strict , and diligent observance of it : by the second , to restrain all sorts of persons , from denying , or otherwise endeavouring to hurt , or extenuate , the legal notion of it . and two things there are which will deserve to be taken notice of in this second canon ; first , what that supremacy is which our convocation was so careful to assert , and defend ? and secondly , what it is to impugn this supremacy , within the meaning of this canon ? first , as for the former of these , the supremacy here meant ; two rules there are delivered by this canon , whereby we may come to a right understanding of it . first , it is that authority over the estate ecclesiastical , which by the statutes of king henry the eighth , and king edward the sixth , was restored , and by the act of queen elizabeth confirm'd , as of right belonging , to the imperial crown of this realm . and , secondly : it is such a power , in matters of religion , as the godly kings had amongst the jews , and christian emperors in the primitive church . and from which , by the way , it may be observed , what good reason i had to enquire into the authority of the christian emperors in these cases ; and to argue from thence in behalf of that power which our church ascribes to our own princes , on the like occasions ; how much soever some men may slight such proofs , as being sensible that they are not to be answer'd . secondly , to impugn this supremacy , within the meaning of this canon ; is either , first , to deny altogether , this authority ; and affirm , that the king either has not , or ought not to have , any such power : or it is , secondly , by any other means to impeach ( or , as the latin canon has it more plainly ) to extenuate , or hurt this supremacy : which , i conceive , is then done when men write and argue against it ; when they censure the laws for establishing of it ; and damn the prince , so long as he shall continue to exercise it , according to those laws . but these are not the only canons which justify what i have written in defence of the king's supremacy , and condemn those who appear against it . the twelfth is yet more express to my particular case , and will shew what the sense of our church is , concerning those who abet the , now so much magnified , opinion , on the other side . whosoever shall affirm that it is lawful [ cuivis ministrorum aut laicorum ordini , vel eorum alterutris simul congregatis ; ] for any sort , [ rank , or degree ] of ministers , or laics , or for either of them gathered together ; to make canons , decrees , or constitutions concerning ecclesiastical things , without the king's authority ; and shall submit themselves to be ruled and govern'd by them , let them be excommunicated ipso facto ; and not be restored until they repent , and publickly revoke those their wicked and anabaptistical errors . for if , in the opinion of our church , it be necessary for the clergy to have authority from the king to meet on such occasions ; if to say that any persons , of what order soever they be , may without his licence make any canons , decrees or constitutions ecclesiastical ; nay or but even submit themselves to be govern'd by such as shall be so made , be a wicked , anabaptistical , errour ; and for which a man deserves to be cast out of the communion of our church ; then it must without all question be allow'd , that according to the doctrine establish'd among us , the clergy can neither meet nor act , but with the king's permission : nor ought we to account those constitutions of any authority , which any persons shall make without his leave ; or , as such submit to them ; how much soever they may please to cry up their divine powers , and vnalienable rights , to justify their irregular , and anabaptistical proceedings . the sentence of both these last canons is , that they who offend against them are to be , ipso facto excommunicated : and concerning which i shall only observe thus much ; first , that in such a case there is no need of any admonition , as where the judge is to give sentence ; but every one is to take notice of the law at his peril , and see that he be not overtaken by it . and , secondly ; that there is no need of any sentence to be pronounced , which the canon it self has pass'd ; and which is by that means already promulged upon every one , as soon as he comes within the obligation of it . in other cases , a man may do things worthy of censure , and yet behave himself so warily in them , as to escape the punishment of the church , for want of a legal evidence to convict him . but , excommunicatio canonis , ligat etiam occulta delicta : where the canon gives sentence , there is no escaping ; but the conscience of every man becomes obliged by it , as soon as ever he is sensible that he has done that which was forbidden under the pain of such an excommunication . to these canons relating to the kings supremacy , i might add those which speak of the authority of our synods , and there again expressly provide for the princes rights . thus can. . the church affirms the assembling of synods , to be by the kings authority . in the th , she acknowledges the necessity of his licence , both for the making and ratifying of her decrees , in causes ecclesiastical . and can. . censures such as shall , upon this account , undervalue the acts of our synods , in these words : whosoever shall affirm that their proceedings in making of canons and constitutions , in causes ecclesiastical , by the kings authority , as aforesaid , ought to be despised and contemned ; the same being ratified and enjoyn'd , by the said regal power , supremacy and authority ; let them be excommunicated , and not restored untill they repent , and publickly revoke that their wicked errour . but in a case so plain i shall not need to insist on any more proofs ; and therefore shall content my self to observe , that the title given by publick authority to these canons , is this : constitutions or canons ecclesiastical ; by the bishop of london , president of the synod for the province of canterbury , and the rest of the bishops and clergy of the same province , by the kings authority , treated and concluded upon : in their synod , &c. — afterwards , by the same royal majesty , approved , ratified and confirm'd and by the authority of the same , under the great seal of england , promulged , to be diligently ; observed thro' both provinces , as well of canterbury , as york . this is the true title given to these canons : and was fit to be thus particularly taken notice of , because in our english book of canons , which is of most common use , this inscription ( as well as many of the canons themselves ) is very imperfectly rendred , and may be apt to lead men into some mistakes concerning these , as well as other matters . it were easie to make several observations , to our present purpose , upon the several parts of this truly accurate , and legal , title : but i shall chuse rather to express the process of this convocation , in the words of an author , who may perhaps be less liable to exception ; and whose account of it is this : that the clergy being met in their convocation , according to the tenour and effect of his majesties writ , his majesty was pleased , by vertue of his prerogative royal , and supreme authority in causes ecclesiastical , to give and grant unto them , by his letters patents , dated april . and june . full , free , and lawful liberty , licence , power and authority , to convene , treat , debate , consider , consult and agree upon such canons , orders , ordinances , and constitutions , as they should think necessary , fit , and convenient , for the honour and service of alimighty god , the good and quiet of the church , and the better government thereof from time to time &c. — which being agreed on by the clergy , and by them presented to the king , humbly requiring him to give his royal assent unto them , according to the statute made in the of king henry viii . and by his majesties prerogative and supreme authority , in ecclesiastical causes , to ratifie and confirm the same ; his majesty was graciously pleased to confirm and ratifie them by his letters patents — straightly commanding , and requiring , all his loving subjects , diligently to observe , execute and keep the same , &c. — and here i shall put an end to my first kind of proofs , in defence of that authority which i have ascribed to our kings , over the convocations of the clergy of the church , and realm , of england . i proceed in the next place more fully to confirm this authority to be agreeable to the doctrine of our church ; from the testimony 's of our most learned divines , who have written upon this subject , from the beginning of the reformation , to our own times . ii. it has been the endeavour of some of late who would be thought still to retain a good affection to the reform'd religion , nevertheless to cast the worst aspersions they are able , upon those who were the chief instruments of god's providence in the reformation of it . what their design in this their procedure is , or how , upon the principles now set on foot , to justifie what was heretofore done among us as to this matter ; or indeed , without a miracle , ever to have had any thing at all done in it , i cannot tell . it being certain that such a convocation , as they now seem alone to allow of as canonical , would never have departed from the way that they were in ; or have endured any proposals tending to such a change , as was otherwise happily made among us. but however since such is their prejudice , both against the opinions , and actions , of our first reformers , i will so far comply with their unreasonable humours , as to pass lightly over those times of church servitude , as well as church reformation ; and come to such authorities , as , i suppose , they will not have the confidence to except against . to pass by then the opinion of the convocation , which , about years after the submission made to king henry the viii . set out the first doctrinal treatise that led the way to the discovery , and renuntiation , of the popish errors . what shall we say to the publick declaration made by king henry himself against the council of mantua ; and in which he cannot be supposed to have spoken any thing but what , he thought , carry'd its own evidence along with it ? ‖ in times past , says he , all councils were appointed by the authority , consent and commandment , of the emperours , kings and princes . why now taketh the bishop of rome this upon him ? wherefore we think it best that every prince call a council provincial , and every prince to redress his own realm . and this he spake not of his own head , but with the advice of his bishops and clergy ; of the former of which , all but two , subscribed to the instrument which was presented to him upon this occasion . and when notwithstanding this , he was again sollicited by the emperour , and some other princes , the year after , either himself to come , or to send his ambassadors to it ; he again renew'd his former protestation , and made again the same exceptions against it . nor in this did he do any more , than some even of his popish bishops had before approved ; and that on such occasions , wherein it cannot be pretended that any force was laid upon them . i shall in proof of this , alledge only the letter of tonstal and stokesly to cardinal poole ; in which the authority of the christian prince , over the convocations of his clergy , is fully asserted ; and proved from the like instances of the antient kings and emperours , that i have made use of to the same purpose . and tho' queen mary in her zeal to the papal interest , repealed whatever acts had been pass'd by her father and brother against it , and this of the submission of the clergy among the rest ; yet she did not therefore give up the power over her synods ; but still continued it , according to the substance of that statute : as is evident from her calling and dissolving , not only the first convocation of her reign , but of that which was held two years after ; and to assemble which cardinal pool himself had her licence ; as he also had to make such canons , as should be thought needful , in it . qveen elizabeth . but i will not tarry any longer in these times , but pass forward to that of the next reign ; in which the reformation was both more regularly carry'd on , and at last brought to the state in which it continues at this day . queen mary having , as i observed , abolish'd whatever laws had been made in the two preceding reigns in derogation to the papal vsurpations ; the first thing done by queen elizabeth was , to set the crown again upon its antient foundation ; and to restore it to that jurisdiction over the estate ecclesiastical , which of right belong'd to it . this was the work of the very first act that pass'd in her reign ; and by vertue whereof the statute made th henry the viii . c. . to ratifie the submission of the clergy , was brought again in force . i have before observed what care was taken by this parliament to secure these rights of the crown , by an oath then establish'd , under the title of the oath of supremacy . i must now add , that the more to oblige the clergy to a due observance of them , the queen her self , this same year , set out her injunctions ; and in the very first place took care , of her supremacy in them . for thus the injunctions begin : that all deans , archdeacons , parsons , vicars , and all other ecclesiastical persons , shall faithfully keep and observe ; and , as far as in them may lie , shall cause to be observed and kept of other , all and singular laws and statutes made for the restoring of the crown , the antient jurisdiction over the state ecclesiastical . and that this power over the convocation was one branch of it , the revival of the law of king henry the viii . relating to it , which was made the same year , and in that very act whose title the injunction transcribes , is a proof not to be gain-said . it is evident then that this queen , as well as her parliament , looked upon this power to be not only no vsurpation upon the churches priviledges , but to be a part of that jurisdiction which had always of right belong'd to the crown ; and was vsurp'd from it in the times of popery . and so , in the next place , did her bishops too . for however being not yet assembled in convocation , they could not so authoritatively settle the articles of religion as shortly after they did ; yet being met together , they agreed upon certain articles to be sent to their clergy , and by them publish'd to the people , in the mean time , till a convocation should be call'd , to consider farther of this matter . in the th of these their articles they treat of the power of the civil magistrate : and therein require their clergy to acknowledge the queens majesties prerogative , and superiority of government , of all estates , as well ecclesiastical as temperal , — to be agreeable to god's word ; and of right to appertain to her highness , in such sort as in the late act of parliament is express'd ; and sithence by her majesties injunctions , declared and expounded . it would be needless to observe that the act of parliament here referr'd to is that of the same year , made for the restoring the crown to its jurisdiction over the estate ecclesiastical ; and by which the so often mention'd act of king henry the viii . was expresly revived . as for the queen's injunctions , i have already shewn that where they treat of this matter the most favourably , they nevertheless assert the same power to the queen that king henry the viii . and king edward the vi. challenged , and used : and what that was , in the particular under debate , is not doubted of , or deny'd by those , who the most oppose us in the present vindication of it . so that here then we have in our first entry upon this reign ; the queen , the parliament , and the bishops , all approving of , and confirming this authority . and so they continued , all her time , to do : there being hardly any controversy either more largely debated , or more accurately handled , than this of the royal supremacy ; against which our adversaries , on both sides , appear'd with all their skill , and were as effectually answer'd , by the greatest , and most learned , of our church . among these , as there was no one higher in dignity , so neither was there any more eminent both for his abilities , and good affections to the church of england , than arch-bishop whitgift : and whose controversy with the puritans , is one of the most learned , and judicious works , of those days . in this , the xx th tract , is wholly spent in the defence of the princes right in ecclesiastical matters : wherein having charged his adversaries with holding the popish opinions , and even using their very arguments ; he tells them , pag. , . that the continual practice of the christian churches , ( in the time of christian magistrates ) before the vsurpation of the bishop of rome , was , to give christian princes supreme authority in making ecclesiastical orders , and laws ; yea , and which is more , in deciding of matters of religion , even in the chief and principle points . this he proves by several instances ; and then concludes in these very words , whereby it appeareth , that the chief authority in — councils , was given to the emperour , and that he was esteem'd as the chief judge . in his next division he shews , that the learned and antient fathers , have committed the matters of controversy to emperours . and then adds , the practice therefore of the authority of princes in ecclesiastical matters , even in determining and judging controversies in religion , you might have learnt by these examples in ambrose time . against this t. c. then objected , as some others ( from their pattern ) do now , the disability of princes to decree of what pertains to the church . the archbishop replies : that the deb●ting , and deciding of matters in religion by bishops , doth not derogate from the prince's authority . no godly princes , having godly bishops , and ministers of the church , will alter , or change , determine , or appoint , any thing in matters of religion , without their advice and counsel . but how if there be dissention among them ? shall not the prince determine the controversie , as constantinus , theodosius , and other godly emperours did ? in short ; to t. c. 's endeavour to clear the puritans from running in with the papists in this particular , the archbishop thus replies . concerning the determination of matters in religion , i know not wherein you differ from them . for tho' the prince mislikes your determination , yet can he not himself conclude any thing ; only he may compel you to go to it again , and take better rold : but if it shall please you to go forward in your determination , or if you cannot agree among your selves , i see not what authority you have given the civil magistrate to determine the matter ; but for ought i can espy , if you and your seniors be disposed to be peevish , either must the prince have no religion , or such as you shall appoint unto him. for potestatem facti you have given him , that is , you make him your executioner ; but potestatem juris you do as fully remove from him as the papists do : for he hath not , as you say , any authority to make orders , or laws , in ecclesiastical matters . thus this great assertor both of the prince's , and of the church's power . to him let me add , his successor , both in the see of canterbury , and in this controversy , archbishop bancroft : who , in his survey of the pretended holy discipline , thus marks out those parts of it , which he look'd upon to be prejudicial to the regal authority . no civil magistrate hath pre-eminence ( by ordinary authority ) to determine church causes . no chief magistrate , in councils , or assemblies for church matters , can either be chief moderator , over-ruler , judge , or determiner . no civil magistrate hath such authority , that without his consent it should not be lawful for ecclesiastical persons , to make any church-order , or ceremony . the judgment of church matters pertaineth to god : the principality , or direction of the judgment of them , is , by god's ordinance , pertaining to the ministers of the church . as they meddle not with the making of civil laws , and laws for the commonwealth , so the civil magistrate hath not to ordain ceremonies pertaining to the church . these he calls puritane-popish assertions ; and says , that they do much derogate from the lawful authority of christian princes . there is but this only difference betwixt them , and the rankest jesuits in europe ; that what the one sort ascribe to the pope and his shavelings ; the others challenge to themselves , and their aldermen . for the better clearing of which , he compares their principles together : and thus he sets down the puritane hypothesis , from their own stating of it . the prince may call a council of the ministry , and appoint both the time , and hours , for the same — he may be assistant there , and have his voice , but he may not be either moderator , determiner , or judge . neither may the orders , or decrees there made , be said to have been done by the prince's authority . — they are to defend councils , being assembled . if any one behave themselves there tumultuously , or otherwise disorderly , the prince may punish him . lastly , he not only may , but ought to , confirm the decrees of such councils , and see them executed , and punish the contemners of them . thus far mr. cartwright : and in the next page , the archbishop shews that the papists say the very same things ; and of both he affirms in his following chapter , that hereby they exclude christian princes from their lawful authority in causes ecclesiastical . having thus seen what these masters of the consistory allow to christian princes in ecclesiastical matters , it might not perhaps be improper for me to ask of our new disciplinarians , wherein they differ from them in the point before us . but , indeed , it is clear , that if there be any difference at all between them , it consists in this , that those men , as bad as they were , yet really allow'd more authority to the civil magistrate over their church assemblies , than our modern disputers are willing to afford him over our convocations . and then i shall leave it to any one to judge , what those great prelates would have said of these , who wrote so severely , as we have seen , against those . from these archbishops of the see of canterbury , let us descend to two of their suffragan bishops ; and engaged against another party , tho' still in defence of the same authority ; viz. jewell , bishop of salisbury , and bilson bishop of winchester . as for the former of these , our learn'd jewell , he thus declares to us the right of the prince , in the defence of his apology , against harding . page . the christian emperors in the old time appointed the councils of bishops . — continually for the space of tears , the emperor alone appointed the ecclesiastical assemblies , and call'd the councils of the bishops together . as for right of place , and voice in council , it pertaineth no less to the prince , than to the pope . — the emperor theodosius , as saith socrates , did not only sit among the bishops , but also order'd the whole arguing of the cause ; and tare in pieces the hereticks books , and allow'd for good the judgment of the catholicks . but ye say , they sate as assessors only , not as judges : that is to say , they sate by the bishops , and held their peace , and told the clock , and said nothing . the lay prince hath had authority in council , not only to consent , and agree unto others , but also to define and determine ; and that in cases of religion ; as by many evident examples it may appear . in all cases , as well ecclesiastical , as temporal , the emperor was judge over all. whatsoever the council had determined , without the emperors consent , it had no force . — theodosius , at the desire of the bishops , confirm'd the council of ephesus . so high an erastian was this good old bishop ; and so freely has he sacrificed all the rights of the church to the will of the prince . nor has bishop bilson come at all behind him : the second part of whose book , entituled , the true difference between christian subjection , and vnchristian rebellion . o. oxford , . is but one continued discourse in defence of the supremacy , and of which it shall suffice to point out some brief heads on this occasion . . that the emperors heretofore call'd councils : this he proves ; pag. , , , , &c. . that they appointed the time , and place of them ; p. , . nay , and even the persons that should come to them ; p. . and have voices in them ; p. . . that they directed what should be handled in them ; p. . managed their debates ; p. . and forbad them to call in question the faith , that had by former synods been establish'd ; p. , . . that they judged of their proceedings ; p. . and that in matters of doctrine ; p. . by the common rule of all christians , the word of god ; p. , , . . that they confirm'd the councils decrees ; see p. . and this not at all adventures ; but chose such of their canons as they approv'd , and passed them into laws ; p. . . that as to their sentences ; they received appeals from councils ; p. , , . suspended ; p. . and if they thought them too severe , released the rigour of their censures , and determinations ; p. . these are some of the points which this learned man not only allows of , but defends from the examples of the jewish princes , and christian emperors . and i will be bold to say , either his treatise is altogether false and scandalous ; contrary to the rights of the church , and the sense of the antient fathers ; or my discourse , after all that has been said against it , must be confessed to be true and orthodox , and agreeable to the doctrine of the church of england . but because bishops may be look'd upon as suspicious men , let us see what those of an inferior order , have written in this case : and for these i will take but one of a kind ; dean nowell , for the dignitaries ; and the venerable mr. hooker , for the rest of the lower house . as for mr. hooker , the latter of these , he was much too young to have had any part in that convocation , in which our articles of religion were settled . but dr. nowell , was not only one of the most considerable members of the lower house at that time , by his own dignity ; but chosen , by the clergy , for their prolocutor , and so had the chief management of all that was done in it . it was but three years after this , that mr. dorman , one of our fugitive english papists , attacking the queen's supremacy , as by law establish'd , and then newly approv'd of by the convocation ; this learned dean thought himself concern'd to undertake the defence of it . and indeed he has so well discharged his part in it , that , i believe , it will be very hard for our modern transcribers of their arguments and authorities , to alledge any thing , upon this occasion , that will not be found to have been fully answer'd , before-hand , in that book . his treatise is expresly referr'd to , and approved of by archbishop whitgift , in his discourse upon this subject ; and so may be look'd upon to deliver the sense of that great archbishop , as well as the dean's . nor can it be reasonably doubted by any , but that it does deliver the sense of the whole convocation , and clergy of the church of england , in this particular . let us see then , how he states the point , between us , and his adversary , as to this matter ; and , by what kind of proofs he undertakes to vindicate the one , against the other . the matter in debate , he thus accurately determines ; for. . we expresly divide the offices of christian and godly princes , from the offices of bishops , and other ministers of the church under them , as distinct , and divers offices . and we do teach , that the offices of preaching of god's word ; of the pronouncing of publick prayer in the church of christ ; the power of the keys , or of binding and loosing , and of ministring the holy sacraments , are , by the word of god , appointed to be the peculiar offices of bishops , and of other ecclesiastical ministers . — and we teach , and preach , even in presence of princes ; that neither princes , nor any other persons , saving only bishops , and other ecclesiastical ministers under them , may intermeddle with the said offices , and ministries ecclesiastical , so peculiarly , and only appertaining to the said bishops , and other ministers of the church . — p. . when we do speak of causes ecclesiastical , wherein christian princes are the chief governors ; we mean not that princes should execute these peculiar offices of priests , as is also in the queen's majesty's injunctions — notified to all the subjects of the realm , that will be disposed to understand the truth , without cavillation . but now touching the authority of princes , to oversee that the bishops , and clergy , do these their offices — diligently , and truly , according to the rule of god's word ; to command them to do their duty ; to admonish them , being therein slack ; to reprehend them offending ; depose , or deprive them , being incorrigible ; — this we say is the office of a chief governor over the the said persons ecclesiastical , which doth appertain to christian princes , every one in their own dominions . further ; besides the office of preaching , and ministring the sacraments — there are many other orders , matters , and causes ecclesiastical , touching ceremonies , and the outward regiment of the church , ( which may be term'd the ecclesiastical policy ) — page . there is also the authority to receive appellations , and finally to determine controversies arising amongst persons ecclesiastical : to summon and call bishops , and other ecclesiastical persons , as men exercised in the study of the scriptures , to synods , convocations , and councils in necessary cases ; — to order , govern , and protect , the said bishops , and clergy , being so call'd together ; and to approve , and authorize things for the outward order ecclesiastical , and policy , determined in such synods . these be those causes ecclesiastical that we do speak of , which do not pertain to bishops and priests only . in these cases , and causes , ecclesiastical , the authority of a christian prince is not only not excluded from intermedling , with the bishops and clergy , but the prince's authority is chief therein : which authority the christian prince exercising , doth not intermeddle with any office , belonging to bishops and priests only ( as the adversaries of the truth do falsly bear men in hand ) but with their own offices , by the examples , and practice , of all antient godly princes , as well in the old law , as in christian religion , proved of right to them to appertain — and to our prince also , by the antient laws and statutes of the realm , ( as to the learned in the said laws is not unknown ) of right appertaining . this is the account which he gives of the doctrin of the church of england , concerning the authority of christian princes in matters of religion . the proofs he alledges are full , and conclusive : from the examples of constantine , p. , to . theodosius , p. , to . the council of chalcedons , p. , to . the third council of constantinople , p. , to . justinian the emperor , p. , &c. to omit many other particulars , in the vindication of which i am not so immediately concern'd . and i will be bold to say , there is nothing by me advanced in this argument , which has not been both more highly carried , and more particularly explain'd , in behalf of the prince , by this great champion of our church , in his accurate , and solid treatise upon the same subject . such was the opinion of dean nowell ; nor does mr. hooker come at all behind him . the antient imperial law , says he , forbiddeth such assemblies as the emperor's authority did not cause to be made . before emperors became christians , the church had never any general synod ; their greatest meetings consisting of bishops , and others the gravest in each province . as for the civil governor's authority , it suffered them only as things not regarded , or not accounted of , at such times as it did suffer them . so that what right a christian king hath , as touching assemblies of that kind , we are not able to judge till we come to later times , when religion had won the hearts of the higher powers . constantine was not only the first that ever did call any general council together , but even the first that devised the calling of them , for consultation about the business of god. after he had once given the example , his successors , a long time , follow'd the same . touching that supremacy of power , which our kings have in the case of making laws , it resteth principally in the strength of a negative voice , which not to give them , were to deny them that without which they were kings only by a meer title , and not in exercise of dominion . if it be demanded by what right , from constantine downwards , the christian emperors did so far intermeddle in the church's affairs ; either we must herein condemn them , as being over-presumptuously bold ; or else judge that by a law which is termed regia , that is to say , royal , the people having derived unto their emperors their whole power for making laws , what matter soever they did concern ; as imperial dignity endow'd them with competent authority and power , to make laws for religion ; so they were thought by christianity to vse their power , being christians , unto the benefit of the church of christ. was there any christian bishop in the world which did then judge this repugnant unto that dutiful subjection which christians owe to the pastors of their souls ? wherefore of them which in this point attribute most to the clergy , i would demand , what evidence there is whereby it may clearly be shew'd , that in antient kingdoms christian , any canon , devised by the clergy alone in their synods , whether provincial , national , or general , hath , by meer force of their agreement , taken place as a law ; making all men constrainable to be obedient thereunto , without any other approbation from the king , before , or afterwards , required in that behalf . and this shall suffice for the reign of this great , and wise queen . i shall make no apology for taking these last quotations out of that part of mr. hooker's works , which are not of equal authority with the books publish'd by himself in his life time : there being so much of mr. hooker's stile , and reason in them , as makes me undoubtedly conclude , that , as they are , they proceeded from him. and those who are supposed to have interpolated these books , were never charged with turning things to the advantage of sovereign authority . so that if any changes , or omissions , should have happened in this place , it must have been to the disadvantage , not to the interest , of the cause before us. but i shall be content to take his opinion as it still is left to us ; and is sufficiently contrary to that wild notion of chruch power , which is now again set on foot , tho' by another sort of men , in pretence at least , among us . king james i. we have before seen how the oath of supremacy , fram'd in the beginning of the reign of queen elizabeth , set the pens of those of that age , on work , in discussing the authority of the christian prince , in causes , and over persons , ecclesiastical . it was not very long after the coming of king james into england , before another oath , again revived the same controversy ; and set the most learned men of the church of rome , upon a fresh opposition of the royal authority . among those who , on our side , appeared in defence of it , as no one began sooner , so is there none that ought to be rather taken notice of by us , than the king himself ; who with good learning , as well as with a stile becoming a prince , solemnly asserted his own royal rights , and jurisdiction . and , first , in his apology for the oath of allegeance , we have his opinion plainly deliver'd , in several points relating to our present disquisition . answerably to the fathers , spake the councils in their decrees : as the council of arles , submitting the whole council to the emperour in these words : these things we have decreed to be presented to our lord the emperour ; beseeching his clemency , that if we have done less than we ought , it may be supplied by his wisdom ; if any thing otherwise than reason requireth , it may be corrected by his judgment ; if any thing be found fault with by us , with reason , it may be perfected , by his aid , with gods favourable assistance . but why should i speak of charles the great , to whom not one council , but six several councils , frankford , arles , tours , chalons , mentz and rhemes , did wholly submit themselves : and not rather speak of all the general councils , that of nice , constantinople , ephesus , calcedon , and the four others commonly so reputed , which did submit themselves to the emperours wisdom and piety in all things ? insomuch as that of ephesus repeated it four several times , that they were summon'd by the emperour 's oracle , beck , charge , and command ; and betook themselves to his godliness , beseeching him that the decrees made against nestorius , and his followers , might , by his power , have their full force and validitie . and in his defence of the right of kings , he thus confirms the same principles . it is willingly granted that emperours never challenged , never arrogated , to be sovereign judges in controversies of doctrine and faith. nevertheless it is clearer than the suns light at high noon , that for moderation at synods , for determinations and orders establish'd in councils ; and for the discipline of the church , they have made a good , and full use of their imperial authority . the first council held at constantinople , bears this title , or inscription ; the dedication of the holy synod to the most religious emperour theodsius the great , to whose will and pleasure , they have submitted these canons , by them address'd , and establish'd in council : and there also they beseech the emperour to confirm and approve , the said canons . the like hath been done by the council of trullo , by whom the canons of the fifth and sixth councils , were put forth and publish'd . this was not done because emperours took upon them to be infallible judges of doctrine , but only that emperours might see and judge whether bishops ( who feel the prick of ambition , as other men do ) did propound nothing in their convocations and consultations , but most of all in their determinations , to undermine the emperours authority ; to disturb the tranquility of the common-wealth ; and to cross the determinations of precedent councils . now to take the cognizance of such matters out of the kings hand , or power , what is it but even to transform the king into a standing image : — yea , to bring him down to this basest condition , to become only an executioner , and ( which i scorn to speak ) the unhappy hangman of the clergies will ? the king having thus asserted the authority of christian princes , in this particular ; was soon assaulted by those of the other party . cardinal bellarmine , at that time accounted one of the most learned controvertists of the church of rome , first , under the name of tortus , fell with great bitterness upon him . to him his majesty scoring to reply , bishop andrews , took the cause upon himself ; and with great spirit , and judgment , replied to him . so that here then , in these two , we may expect to see what is to be said , on either side , upon this subject . as for the cardinals opinion , i am not concern'd to take any notice of it : but that which the bishop asserts , and with great force of reason , and evidence of antiquity , defends , is to this effect : that kings have power both to call synods , and to confirm them ; and to do all other things which the emperours heretofore diligently did do ; and which the bishops of those times willingly acknowledged of right to belong to them . and st . that to christian princes belongs the sole right of calling synods , he proves from the history of the general councils that were assembled under them , p. . and from the examples of those which were afterwards held under charles the emperour ; p. . dly . that having assembled them they have a right of inspecting and examining ; of approving or rejecting their acts ; he likewise shews p. , . you know , says the bishop , how constantine wrote to the synod of tyre : all you , as many as made up the synod of tyre , hasten without delay to come to us , and shew us truly how sincerely and rightly ye have judged : p. . he adds , dly . that they may come to , and make a part of the synod : this he proves , p. . and then , p. . thus sums up the royal authority : put this , says he , together : the king assembles the synod ; the synod presumes to do nothing without his knowledge . the king commits the whole affair to their power : they , by vertue of his princely command , proceed to do what was needful to be done . i might easily confirm this same opinion both of the king and bishop , with the concurrent authority of burhil , tooker , and some others , who , were afterwards , engaged in the same controversy . but i must not enlarge upon this subject , having so much more yet to observe both of this king , and this bishop , upon another occasion , as to the points under debate . the king being dissatisfied with the proceedings of the presbyterian ministers in scotland , for holding a generally assembly at aberdeen , contrary to his command ; sent for a certain number of the most eminent of them to come up to him , to london , and satisfy him in some things , in which he thought he had just reason of complaint against them . to these ministers , after other things transacted with them ; he deliver'd three quaeres relating to his authority in ecclesiastical matters , and demanded their several answers to them . the second of these questions , and from which we may sufficiently conclude what opinion his majesty had of his own royal supremacy , was this : whether they acknowledge his majesty , by the authority of his prerogative royal , as a christian king , to have lawful and full power , to convocate , prorogate , and cause desert , upon just and necessare causes known to him , the assemblies of the kirk , within his majesties dominions ? how they trifled with his majesty in their answer to these questions , as well as in all the other affairs about which they had been sent for , is neither material to my purpose to shew , and may at large be seen in the histories here referr'd to by me . that which i have further to observe is , that during the course of this transaction , the king caused four of his english bishops , on certain days appointed to them , to preach before him at hampton-court , and commanded the scotch ministers to be present at their sermons . the third of these turns fell upon our learned andrews , at that time bishop of chichester ; whose subject , assign'd him by the king , was , to prove the power of princes , in convocating synods and councils . in order whereunto he first laid down these two points : . that when the prince calls , the clergy are to meet : and . that they are not to meet , of themselves , unless he call them . the proof of these points he thus pursues : st . from the law of god , p. . . confirm'd by the law of nature , and nations , p. . and dly . from matter of fact : before christ ; from moses , to the macchabee's , in the jewish church . p. , . after christ ; from constantine , till a thousand years after christ ; ( ) by general councils ; ( ) by national , and provincial councils , assembled . ( ) under emperours , and ( ) kings , by the space of many hundred years , p. . this is the substance of his sermon ; and from which i shall proceed to extract some part of what he says , in the prosecution of most of the heads , before laid down . st . in speaking of the law of nations he has this remark : the law of nations in this point might easily appear , if time would suffer , both in their general order for convocations so to be called , and in their general opposing all conventicles called otherwise . verily the heathen laws made all such assemblies vnlawful , which the highest authority did not cause to meet ; yea , tho' they were — sub praetextu religionis , say the roman laws . neither did the christian emperours think fit to abate any thing of that right ; nay they took more straight order . dly . concluding his account of the jewish state , he has these words : thus from moses to the maccabees , we see in whose hands this power was . and what should i say more ? there was in all god 's people no one religious king , but this power he practised : and there was of all god 's prophets no one , that ever interposed any prohibition against it . what shall we say then ? were all these wrong ? shall we condemn them all ? — yet to this we are come now , that either we must condemn them all , the one after another ; the kings as usurpers for taking on them to use more power than ever orderly they received ; the prophets for soothers of them in that their unjust claim ; or else confess that they did no more than they might , and exceeded not therein the bounds of their calling . and indeed that we must confess , for that is the truth . dly . in treating of general councils , he thus speaks of that of nice . at nice there were together bishops , the lights of the whole world , the chiefest and choicest men for holiness , learning , vertue , and valour , that the christian religion ever had , before or since . — did any of them refuse to come being called by him , ( constantine ) as not called aright ? or coming , was there any one of them that did protest against it ; or pleaded the churches interest to meet of themselves ? — verily the council of nice , ( which is , and ever hath been so much admired by all christians ) cannot be excused before god or men , if they thus conspired ( all ) to betray the churches right ; and suffered it , contrary to all equity , to be carried away ; leaving a dangerous precedent therein , for all councils , ever after , to the worlds end. — there is no man of reason but will think it reasonable , if this were the churches own peculiar , if appropriate unto it , ( and so known to them to be ) there ought to have been plain dealing now , at the very first council of all , that if constantine would embrace religion , he must forbear to meddle with their assemblies . thly . but it may be general councils have a fashion by themselves : those congregations may be called thus ; but national or provincial , such as ours , how ? even so too , and no otherwise — yea , i add this , which is a point to be consider'd , that even then when the emperours were profess'd arians , even then did the bishops acknowledge their power to call councils ; come to them being called , sued to them that they might be called ; — and sometimes they sped — and sometimes not . and yet when they sped not they held themselves quiet , and never presumed to draw together , of their own heads . but it may be this was some imperial power , and that the emperours had , in this point , more jurisdiction than kings ? not that neither : for about years after christ , when the empire fell in pieces , and these western parts came into the hands of kings , those kings had , held , and enjoy'd , and practised the same power . if it be excepted that there are of these ( provincial and national ) councils , which carry in their acts no mention how they were called ; for them we are to understand , that after the decrees of the first nicene council were by constantine's edict confirm'd , wherein , as likewise in the council of chalcedon , it was order'd , that each province should yearly hold their synods twice — we are to conceive the emperour's authority was in all afterwards ; habitually at least . — thly . but what say you to the years , before constantine ? how went assemblies then ? — truly even as the jews did before in egypt . they were then a church under persecution , till moses was raised up by god , a lawful magistrate over them . — no magistrate did assemble them in egypt : and , good reason , they had none then to do it . true it is therefore , that before constantine's time they met together as they durst ; and took such order as they could . — but when constantine came in moses place , it was lawful for him to do as moses did . and so he did : and they never said to him — look how we have done hitherto , we will do so even still ; meet no otherwise now , than in former times we have , by our own agreement ; — no , but they went to him , as to moses , for their meetings ; at his hands they sought them ; without his leave , or liking , they would not attempt them : yea ( i dare say ) they blessed god from their hearts that they had lived to see the day , that they might now assemble by the sound of the trumphet . to conclude this point then ; these two times , or estates of the church , are not to be confounded : there is a plain difference between them , and a diverse respect to be had of each . if the succession of magistrates be interrupted , in such case , of necessity , the church , of her self , maketh supply , because then god's order ceaseth . but god granting a constantine to them again , god's former , positive order , returneth , and the case is to proceed , and go on , as before . — in a word , none can seek to have the congregation so called ( as before constantine ) but they must secretly , and by implication , confess , they are a persecuted church , as that then was ; without a moses , without a constantine . thly . hitherto we have seen the opinion of this learned prelate in the case before us ; let us now see what application he made of what he had offer'd on this subject . you may please to remember , says he , there was not long since a clergy in place that was wholly ad oppositum , and would never have yeilded to reform ought . nothing they would do ; and ( in eye of the law ) without them nothing could be done . they had encroached the power of assembling into their own hands . how then ? how shall we do for an assembly ? then — the prince had this power , and to him , of right , it belonged . this was then god divinity : and what writer is there extant , of those times , but it may be turn'd to in him ? and was it good divinity then , and is it now no longer so ? was the king but licensed , for a while to hold this power till another clergy were in , and must he then be deprived of it again ? was it then usurped from princes ; and are , now , princes usurpers of it themselves ? — nay i trust we will be better advised , and not thus go against our selves , and let truth be no longer truth , than it will serve our turns . i shall conclude all i have to draw out of this discourse , with the same words , that the learned preacher concludes his sermon ; it remaineth that as god , by his law , hath taken this order , and his people , in former ages , have kept this order , that we do so too : that we say , as god saith , — this power pertaineth unto moses : and that neither with core we say we will not come ; nor with demetrius run together of our selves , and think to carry it away with crying great is diana . but as we see the power is of god , so truly to acknowledge it , and dutifully to yeild to it : that so they , whose it is , may quietly hold it , and laudably use it , to his glory that gave it , and to their good , for whom it was given . it will not , i hope , be thought much of , that i have so long insisted upon the judgment of this great prelate , in the present case . no man there was in that time , or perhaps in any other age of the church , that was either fitter to deliver the sense of our clergy , or better qualified to maintain it . i might add that this discourse , being preached first , and then publish'd , by the express command of the king , carries with it somewhat more than a private authority and when it shall be consider'd how little a while it was , before this , that that convocation met , which took such care both to explain its sense of the royal supremacy , and to give the utmost cononical enforcement , that could be given to it ; we may well conclude this to have been the vniversal judgment of our church divines in that reign ; as we are sure it was of those , of the reign foregoing . i have already alledged the authorities of those two eminent archbishops , whitgift , and bancroft : to these i have added those of bilson , and hooker ; and i thought it but reasonable to give them a place in the same period in which their books were publish'd . but yet i must observe , that the most of these , not only continued to the present time ; but attain'd to their highest promotions under this government the synod of , was held under the presidence of bancroft , then bishop of london : bishop bilson , was a member of it ; and , no doubt , concurr'd heartily to the passing of those canons , which relate to the king's supremacy in it . i shall therefore , here , add only the judgment of one learned man more ( who must never be mentioned but with a particular respect by us ; ) mr. mason ; and that out of a work which he wrote expresly in vindication of the reformed church , and ministry of england . champanaeus , his adversary , had thus far allow'd of the authority of the christian prince in matters of religion ; that he might make laws in defence of the true religion ( which he was to learn from the clergy ) and might , nay was bound , to see them put in execution . but that princes should have a power of judging , or defining , in ecclesiastical matters , as the proper judges , and hearers of them , this , he says , is a paradox never heard of in the christian world , before the time of henry viii . to this mr. mason replies , that it is indeed the business of pastors to explain the doubtful things of the law : but that it belongs to the prince to promulge the truth , when known , and to command his subjects to obey it . — that he must judge whether the priests do go according to the law of god. — and to that end , must search the scriptures ; pray to god ; advise with learned men ; and not be led away with the fair titles , or characters of any , nor have so much regard to the number of votes , as to truth . upon this foundation he proceeds , at large , to assert these following points . . that it is the prince 's business to call councils , and to appoint the time , and place of their assembling — . that he has the power to propose to the bishops and clergy , what shall be treated on in their synod . . to prescribe the rule , and measure of judging . . to restrain them from calling in question the faith already orthodoxly setled , in former synods . . to rescind the pernicious decrees of councils , and to confirm and ratify , such as are pious , and wholesom , by his authority . [ lib. iii. c. iv . p. . ] to which points , thus put together by himself , let me add from the other parts of his discourse ; . the power to preside in synods , and to govern their acts. . to appoint judges in ecclesiastical matters , and over ecclesiastical persons . . to judge between the bishops , if they shall happen to differ , even in matters of faith. and , lastly , to suspend the acts of councils , tho' in relation to points of doctrine , so that during such suspension , they shall not take effect . this is that authority which this renowned defender of our ministry and reformation , look'd upon as due , of right , to the christian prince . of what esteem this work in those days was , may be gather'd not only from the great care , and accuracy with which it was composed ; but from that concern which the archbishop of canterbury shew'd for the publication of it . twice it was solemnly dedicated to king james : and being first publish'd in our own language , it was thought considerable enough to carry both the doctrine , and defence , of our church to those abroad , in a latin translation . and i have never yet heard that any of its adversaries could charge it with any false representation of our church's sense , how little soever they pretended to be satisfied with his vindication of it . king charles i. but i shall not tarry any longer in this reign ; but proceed to pursue the history of the supremacy , in the sense of our most eminent bishops , and divines , during the unfortunate reign of that excellent prince , and true friend of our church , king charles the first . and here , one would have thought , that the account i took care , on purpose , to give , with a more than ordinary particularity , of the convocation of , might have sufficiently convinced all unprejudic'd persons , what the judgment of those times was , in the present case . but since it is insinuated by some , who cannot deny but that that prince did , in fact , both claim , and exercise , all that power over the convocation , for which i am pleading ; as if all this were done meerly in compliance with the iniquity of our laws , and not as what either the king , or his archbishop , in their own consciences , approved of ; i will proceed to clear this matter , a little farther ; and shew , that we have all the reason in the world to believe , that in the management of that convocation , they , both of them , acted not more agreeably to the laws of the realm , than to the real sense of their own judgment . it was but about twelve years before the meeting of that synod , that upon the breaking out of some disturbances , upon the account of the arminian tenets , the king was induced to publish anew the articles of religion , and to prefix his royal declaration to them , suitable to that occasion . the words of this declaration are these : being , by god's ordinance , according to our just title , defender of the faith , and supreme governor of the church within these our dominions ; we hold it most agreeable to this our kingly office , and our own religious zeal , to conserve , and maintain the church , committed to our charge , in unity of true religion , and in the bond of peace ; and not to suffer unnecessary disputations , altercations , or questions , to be raised , which may nourish faction both in the church and commonweal . we have therefore , upon mature deliberation , and with the advice of so many of our bishops , as might conveniently be called together , thought fit to make this declaration following : that the articles of the church of england ( which have been allow'd , and authorised heretofore , and which our clergy , generally , have subscribed unto ) do contain the true doctrine of the church of england , agreeable to god's word : which we do , therefore , ratify , and confirm , requiring all our loving subjects to continue in the vniform profession thereof , and prohibiting the least difference from the said articles ; which , to that end , we command to be new-printed , and this our declaration to be publish'd therewith . such is the beginning of this declaration ; and in which we may already observe , several notable instances of that supremacy we are enquiring into . for , st . it is plain this king thought himself authoriz'd , as supreme governour of the church within his dominions , to take care of the vnity of it ; and to put an end to those disputes , which some had raised , to the manifest endangering of it . dly . upon his own mature deliberation , and with the advice of such of his bishops as he thought fit to call to his assistance ; he judges anew of the doctrine of the church , contain'd in the xxxix articles , and confirm'd by so many synods of the clergy , as had met , since the first establishment of them . and , dly , upon that judgment , he again ratifies and confirms them ; and requires all his subjects to continue in the vniform profession of them . but we will go on with the declaration , which the king farther makes : that we are supreme governor of the church of england ; and that if any difference arise about the external policy , concerning the injunctions , canons , or other constitutions , whatsoever , thereto belonging ; the clergy , in their convocation , is to order and settle them , having first obtain'd leave under our broad seal so to do ; and we approving their said ordinances and constitutions ; provided that none be made contrary to the laws and customs of the land. this is the next paragraph ; and it gives us a clear account of the ecclesiastical constitution of the synods of this realm . to them it belongs to deliberate of what concerns the policy of the church ; and to make canons , &c. for the ordering of it . but before they can do this , they must have the king's leave , not only to sit ; but to go about any such work , being sate : and having done it , the king is to have the last review ; he is to confirm , or reject , what they do ; and even that too within the bounds that the laws have set both to him and them. but we will go yet farther . in the next place then the king thus declares ; that out of our princely care , that the church-men may do the work which is proper unto them , the bishops , and clergy , from time to time , in convocation , upon their humble desire , shall have licence under our broad seal , to deliberate of , and to do all such things , as being made plain by them , and assented unto by us , shall concern the setled continuance of the doctrine , and discipline , of the church of england now established , from which we will not endure any varying , or departing , in the least degree . and here we have not only our former reflections , again confirm'd , but with an addition of some farther instances of the prince's authority in these cases . the clergy in convocation , are humbly to move the king for his licence , to do , what they shall judge to be necessary , for the better establishment of either the doctrine , or discipline , of the church of england . to this the king is pleased to promise them , at all times , a favourable answer : that they shall have leave to do , what they desire , and he shall judge needful , to be done by them . but still he declares it shall be with this restraint , that what they desire to do , be consistent with the doctrine and discipline of the church , already establish'd : for from that , the king resolved that the clergy , even in convocation assembled , should not be at liberty to vary , or depart in the least degree . all which being supposed , yet still they are only to deliberate , and make plain to the king , what they think to be of use , even within these restrictions . but the king is to allow , or not allow of it ; and upon his rejecting , or ratifying their resolutions , the whole authority , and even subsistence of them is to depend . such was the opinion which this prince had of his own royal authority over the convocations of his bishops and clergy . wherein the power here claim'd by him , comes short of what our laws have assign'd the king , and i , in my late treatise on this argument , have contended for ; it will , i believe , be very difficult to shew . i shall only add , that this declaration was made by him , with the advice of so many of the bishops , as might conveniently be called together . who those bishops were , with whom the king consulted upon this occasion , we are not told . but that archbishop laud was one of them , we have all the reason in the world to believe . he was , at that time , a privy-counsellor ; dean of the chappel ; and one of the commissioners for the administring of the archbishoprick , upon the sequestration of archbishop abbot ; and especially advised with by the king , in all matters of importance , relating to the affairs of the church . and upon all which accounts we may venture almost confidently to say , that this declaration was , without controversy , publish'd by his advice , above any others ; and speaks his sense , in these matters , no less than the king 's . it is indeed a thing justly to be wonder'd at , after what i have formerly publish'd , that any one who pretends to have any veneration for the memory of that great prelate , should be able to make any doubt of his judgment in this particular . the integrity which he shew'd in all his actions , sufficiently assures us , that what he swore to , in the oath of supremacy ; subscribed in the articles of religion ; approved of in the canons of the church ; advised in this last declaration ; and acted under at the head of the convocation , anno , was undoubtedly agreeable to the inward sense of his own mind . and i would desire those who , upon such slender grounds , now insinuate the contrary , to consider , what a mean spirit they must take a person of his high character to have been acted by ; who can suppose , that in a matter of such vast concernment to the church , and upon which the divine rights , and authority of it , in their opinion , so much depend ; he should nevertheless , against his own conscience , run in with the iniquity of the times , and thereby give so dangerous a countenance , to those enslaving principles , to which he submitted . however , since such is the rashness of some men , that they care not what injury they do the greatest personages , so they may but seem thereby to justify their own errors ; i will now give such an evidence , not only of that archbishop's , but with his of all the other bishops , and the whole convocations sense , in this case , as will , i think , admit of no exception . in the canons of ; ( and whose authority , tho' i pretend not to assert , yet i conceive i may , without offence , produce them as a private evidence of the judgment of those who compos'd them ; ) the very first is concerning the regal power . in this they not only approve of the acts made for the acknowledgment of the king's authority over the state ecclesiastical ; but enjoin them all to be carefully observed , by all persons whom they may concern . they add : that a supreme power is given , by god himself , to kings , to rule and command all persons , of what rank soever , whether ecclesiastical , or civil . the care of god's church , say they , is so committed to kings in scripture , that they are commended when the church keeps the right way , and taxed when it runs amiss : and therefore her government belongs , in chief , unto kings . for otherwise , one man would be commended for anothers care , and taxed for anothers negligence , which is not god's way . the power to call , and dissolve , councils , both national , and provincial , is the true right of * all christian kings , within their own realms and territories . and when , in the first times of christ's church , prelates used this power , 't was therefore only , ‖ because in those days they had no christian kings . and again , in the viiith canon , they oblige all preachers positively , and plainly , to preach , and instruct the people , in their publick sermons , twice in the year , at least ; — that they ought willingly to submit themselves , unto the authority , and government of the church , as it is now establish'd under the king's majesty . it is therefore as plain , as any thing can well be ; that this convocation undoubtedly approved of all the laws ( even this of the submission of the clergy : ) made for the security of the king's authority over the state ecclesiastical ; that they look'd upon the government of the church to belong , in chief , unto kings : that they accounted the power of calling and dissolving synods , to be the true right of all christian princes ; and that the bishops have only then a power to do this , when the church is in a state of persecution , and the necessities of it enforce them thereunto . and , by consequence , that they themselves not only met and acted under the powers , * i have formerly shewn , because they were forced so to do , but approved of the vse which the king made of them ; and were satisfied , that in meeting , and acting , according thereunto , they behaved themselves so as became christian bishops , and clergy-men to do , under the favour and authority of a christian king. i shall observe only this one thing farther , to prevent any new cavils in this particular ; that we are assured by him , who best knew it , archbishop laud himself ; that these canons were pass'd with the greatest freedom , and vnanimity , that ever any canons were : so that upon that account also , we may the more undoubtedly look upon them , as delivering the real sense of the church of england in those days . to the judgment of this archbishop , and the convocation held by him , let me subjoin that of an eminent bishop in our neighbour country , the learned bramhall , afterwards archbishop of ardmagh , and primate of all ireland . in his survey of the scotch discipline , among other exceptions which he takes at it , we have these , to our purpose , particularly insisted upon by him : that they affirm , st , that ecclesiastical persons have the sole power of convening , and convocating synods . dly , that no persons , magistrates , or others , have power to vote in their synods , but only ecclesiastical . dly , that synods have the judgment of true and false religion , of doctrine , heresy , &c. that they have legis-lative power , to make rules and constitutions , for keeping good order in the kirk , — and all this without any reclamation , or appellation , to any judge , civil or ecclesiastical . thly , that they have these privileges not from the magistrate , or people , or particular laws of the country , — but immediately from god , &c. lastly ; that they have all this power , not only without the magistrate , but against him ; that is , tho' he dissents , &c. so different a notion had this great writer of these powers of the kirk , for which our late author so highly applauds them ; and sets up their discipline above our own , slavish constitution . but the archbishop proceeds ; and against these vsurpations of the kirk , lays down , chap. ii . these orthodox , church of england principles . that all princes and states , invested with sovereign power , do justly challenge to themselves the right of convocating national synods of their own subjects ; and of ratifying their constitutions . — and that he is a magistate of straw , that will suffer the church to convene , whensoever , or wheresoever , they list : — to convocate before them whomsoever they please : — to change the ecclesiastical policy of a common-wealth ; to alter the doctrine and religion establish'd ; and all this of their own heads , by a pretended power given them from heaven . synods ought to be called by the supreme magistrate , if he be a christian — and either by himself , or by such as he shall please to chuse for that purpose , he ought to preside over them — this power the emperors of old did challenge over general councils : christian monarchs , in the blindness of popery , over national synods : the kings of england over their great councils of old , and their convocations of latter times . but , say they , we give the magistrate a political power to convocate synods ; to preside in synods ; to ratify the acts of synods ; to reform the church — here are good words , but they signify nothing . for , in plain english , what is this political power to call synods , &c. — it is a duty which the magistrate owes to the kirk , when they think necessary to have a synod convocated , to strengthen their summons by a civil sanction ; to secure them in coming to the synod , and returning from the synod : — to compel obstinate persons , by civil laws and punishments , to submit to their censures and decrees . what gets the magistrate by all this ? — for they declare expresly , that neither all the power , nor any part of the power , which synods have to deliberate of , or to define ecclesiastical things , doth flow from the magistrate . — but can the magistrate call the synod to account for any thing they do ? can he remedy the errors of a synod , either in doctrine , or discipline ? no : — this is one main branch of popery , and a gross encroachment upon the right of the magistrate . and accordingly we find him charging the papists with it , in his writings against them . he maintains , that all ecclesiastical coercive jurisdiction , did originally flow from the civil magistrate . he bids them weigh all the parts of ecclesiastical discipline , and consider what one there is which christian emperours of old did not either exercise by themselves , or by their delegates ; or did not regulate by their laws , or both. and then , particularly instances in the points of , calling councils ; presiding in councils ; dissolving of councils , and confirming councils . and pag. . he insists upon it as one just ground of our separation from the court of rome ; that they endeavour'd to rob the king of the fairest flowers of his crown ; namely of his right to convocate synods , and to confirm synods within his own dominions ; of his legis-lative , and judiciary power , in ecclesiastical causes , &c. to the opinion of this learned prelate , were conformable the sentiments , of all the other bishops , and clergy of these kingdoms , as to these matters . christian emperours , says bishop davenant , heretofore called councils . — as in civil causes , princes advise with their learned in the law , so in theological matters , they ought to consult with their divines . — yet are they not so tied up to the opinions of their clergy , but that if they go contrary to the law of god , princes are obliged by their duty , as kings , to set forth the true religion to their subjects , tho' the clergy should never so much , or so generally , oppose them in it . and in another of his books , he proves the last judgment , in matters of religion , to belong to princes , by this argument . he to whom the holy bishops remit their decrees to be examined ; from whom they desire the confirmation of them ; whom alone they acknowledge to have the power to prescribe to the people the true religion , by a judiciary , coactive power ; him they constitute supreme judge in the business of religion . but all this is ascribed to pious emperours and kings ; as both from councils and fathers , may evidently be made appear . i add , that the clergy cannot , by vertue of their function , compel the king to receive for the true religion , whatsoever they shall resolve , by their votes , so to be : — but they must direct him by god's word , and always leave it to him to confirm that by his authority , which shall to him , upon examination of their reasons , appear to be agreeable to god's word . kings sin when they throw off all care of religion ; and leave it to their bishops alone : confirming by their authority , and defending with their sword , whatsoever faith , they shall think fit to prescribe . it is true indeed , that as other christians , so princes themselves are to be directed in matters of religion , by the fathers of the church : but they are to be directed by the light of god's word ; and not to be drawn at the pleasure of bishops , to the defence of any errour whatsoever . the church of england did not innovate , says dr. heylin , in setling the supremacy in the royal crown . — the like authority was exercised , and enjoy'd by the christian emperours , not only in their calling councils , and many times assistiug at them , or presiding in them ; by themselves , or their deputies , or commissioners ; but also in confirming the acts thereof . the like he shews to have been done by our own kings heretofore ; and then concludes thus ; so that when the supremacy was recognized by the clergy , in their convocation , to king henry the viii . it was only the restoring of him to his proper , and original ▪ power . if you conceive that by ascribing to the king the supreme authority , taking him for their supreme head , and by the act of submission which ensued upon it , the clergy did unwittingly ensnare themselves , and draw a vassallage on those of the times succeeding , inconsistent with their native rights , and contrary to the usage of the primitive church , i hope it will be no hard matter to remove that scruple . — its true , the clergy of this realm can neither meet in convocation , nor conclude any thing therein ; nor put in execution any thing which they have concluded , but as they are enabled by the king's authority . but then it is as true , that this is neither inconsistent with their native rights , nor contrary to the usage of the primitive times . — i grant , indeed , that when the church was under the command of the heathen emperours , the clergy did assemble in their national , and provincial synods , of their own authority . which councils being summon'd by the metropolitans , and subscribed by the clergy , were of sufficient power to bind all good christians , who lived within the verge of their authority . but it was otherwise when the church came under the protection of christian princes . as for the vassallage , which the clergy are supposed to have drawn upon themselves , by this submission ; i see no fear , or danger of it . — that which is most insisted on for the proof hereof , is the delegating of this power by king henry the viii . to sir thomas cromwell , — by the name of his vicar general in ecclesiastical matters ; who by that name presided in the convocation , anno . and this is look'd upon both by saunders , and some protestant doctors , not only as a great debasing of the english clergy , but as a kind of monstrosity in nature . but certainly these men forget — that in the council of chalcedon , the emperour appointed certain noble-men to sit as judges , whose names occur in the first action of that council . the like we find exemplified in the ephesine council ; in which , by the appointment of theodosius and valentinian , the roman emperours , candidianus , a count imperial , sat as judge , or president . it is not possible to imagine any thing more express to our present concern , than what this learned , and zealous defender of our church has here advanced . if any one should be so uncharitable as to imagine , that this great man had any byass of private interest upon him , when he wrote this ; he may please to know , that this book was set forth by him in the time of oliver cromwel , when our church was in its worst estate ; and there seemed but little hopes remaining of its ever recovering its self to a new establishment . but indeed this was his real judgment ; and the general sense of our clergy in those days . nor had our greatest church-men then learnt either to think otherwise of the princes right ; or to run down the learning , and piety , of those holy men , by whose courage and conduct the reformation was carry'd on ; and many of whom sealed the sincerity of their opinions , with their own blood. king charles ii. i have now but one period more to pass over , and that a very short one too ; wherein i am to enquire , how this doctrine continued to be received after the restauration of king charles the ii. and upon that last reveiw , that was then made of our constitution . that , at that time , both the king , and his parliament , were not only well affected to the interests of our church , but ready to concur with whatever the convocation could reasonably have proposed to them , for the better settlement of it , is not to be doubted . but what then did they do , as to this matter ? was this enslaving act , made by our ‖ saint henry the viii . and continued by all his ⸪ oppressing successors of the reform'd religion ; repealed by this zealous , church-parliament ? or , because that cannot be pretended ; did that reverend synod , which altered so many other things , ever once touch upon this , and were stop'd in it ? neither can that be affirm'd . was there , in that large body , any one , ( but one ) generous , freeborn spirit , who being scandalized at the restraints under which the divine rights of the church had so long lain , moved the convocation to protest against the king's supremacy , if they could not yet be so happy as totally to shake it off ? neither does any thing of this occurr , in the diary , which i have seen , of that convocations proceedings . now that which makes me the rather to remark this , is , that both that parliament , and that convocation , had this very business of the king's supremacy , and the churches power , under their consideration : and an act was made for the better execution of the one , but still so as not to prejudice the other . here therefore was a just opportunity given to the convocation to have declared its self ; and for the parliament to have provided for the liberties of the church . they were actually repealing one branch of that very statute , of the first of eliz. c. . and two lines more had done the business . but alas ! they were both negligent in this particular : or rather , ( for that is the truth , ) they neither of them thought the church was at all oppress'd , by this just jurisdiction of the prince over it . but we know acts of parliament are obstinate things , and will no longer bend , as they were wont to do , to the ecclesiastical canon . did the synod therefore , at least , make bold with its own constitutions ; and rescind those base , and flattering canons , which stampt upon this act the churches approbation ; and , by so doing , sign'd the theta upon her rights , liberties , and authorities ? on the contrary , they continue still in force ; and have ( as far as one of king henry's convocations has power to do it ; ) ipso facto excommunicated some among us , who , while they make a noise in the world , as if they only were the true sons of the church of england , are really cut off from all communion with her. in a word ; when upon the review of the liturgie , several other alterations were made in the forms of ordaining of bishops , priests , and deacons ; did they slip aside the oath of supremacy , that bond of iniquity , contriv'd by the atheists , and erastians , of the parliament in the first of q. elizabeth , on purpose to run down the rights of the clergy ; and set up an oppressive supremacy over them ? but , they still stand as they did before ; and may move some to consider , who have been ordain'd by these forms , how to reconcile the solemn recognition of that oath , in behalf of the king's authority , with what they have since written , with so much bitterness , against it . but tho' the convocation therefore did nothing to recover the church out of that slavish estate , into which former convocations , and parliaments , had brought her ; it may be some others of the clergy , at least , in their writings on this subject , may have remonstrated against it . that any have done so , till this present controversy began , is what i never heard : this i know , that several have asserted , and , which is more , defended too , the supremacy , on its present legal bottom , beyond the possibility of a reasonable reply . among these i know not whom more properly to mention , in the very first place , than our pious , and learned bishop taylour . it was but a very little while before the restauration of king charles , that he published his excellent book of cases of conscience ; and which has never , i conceive , fallen under any censure , tho' often re-printed , since . in these having first , in general , shewn , that the prince has authority in matters of religion ; and asserted it so highly , as to say , that without it , he is but the shadow of a king , and the servant of his priests : he proceeds , more particularly , to lay down this , as his next rule of conscience ; that kings have a legislative power , in the affairs of religion , and the church . which having also shewn ; his next conclusion to our purpose is this ; § . . the supreme civil power , hath a power of external judgment , in causes of faith : that is , as he explains himself , a power to determine what doctrines are to be taught to the people , and what not . and to prevent mistake , he thus declares himself , more particularly , as to this matter . § . . i do not intend by this , that whatsoever article is by princes allow'd , is therefore to be accounted a part of true religion : for that is more than we can justify of a definition made by a synod of bishops . but that they are to take care that true doctrine be establish'd ; that they that are bound to do so , must be supposed competent judges what is true doctrine ; else they guide their subjects , and some body else rules them : and then who is the prince ? the prince then is to judge what is true doctrine ; yet this he must do , by the assistance , and ministries of ecclesiastical persons . — kings are the supreme judges of law : — yet in cases where there is doubt , the supreme civil power speaks by them whose profession it is to vnderstand the laws . and so it is in religion : the king is to study the law of god ; not that he should wholly depend , in religion , upon the sentences of others ; but be able , of himself , to judge . — but the prince's office of providing for religion , and his manner of doing it , in cases of difficulty , are rarely well discoursed by theodosius the younger , in a letter of his to st. cyrill : the doctrine of godliness shall be discuss'd in the sacred council ; and it shall prevail , or pass into a law , so far as shall be judged agreeable to truth and reason . where the emperor gives the examination of it to the bishops , to whose office , and calling , it does belong : but the judgment of it , and the sanction , are the right of the emperor ; who would see the decrees should be establish'd , if they were true and reasonable . ib. § . . this i observe in opposition to those bold pretences of the court of rome , and of the presbytery ; that esteem princes bound to execute their decrees , and account them but great ministers , and servants , of their sentences — and a little lower he saith ; if he ( the prince ) be not bound to confirm all , then , i suppose , he may chuse which he will , and which he will not . — § . . he shews that princes are not bound to govern their churches , by the consent , and advice of their bishops ; but only that it is reasonable they should . for ( says he ) bishops and priests , are the most knowing in spiritual affairs ; and therefore most fit to be councellors to the prince in them . in his fifth rule , § . . he affirms , that kings have power of making laws . — and therefore , as secular princes did use to indict , or permit the indiction of synods of bishops ; so when they saw cause , they confirm'd the sentences of bishops , and pass'd them into laws . before princes were christian , the church was govern'd by their spiritual guides ; who had authority from god , in all that was necessary , and of great convenience , next to necessity : and in other things they had it from the people . for the ( better ) providing for these , god raised up princes to the church . — and then ecclesiastical laws were advised by bishops , and commanded by kings . they were but rules , and canons , in the hands of the spiritual order ; but made laws by the secular power . — these canons , before the princes were christian , were no laws farther than the people did consent ; but now even the wicked must obey . this was the judgment of that great bishop , as to the princes supremacy in matters ecclesiastical . and this judgment he delivered in his full years ; in one of his last works , and that purposely design'd to guide the consciences of such as should make use of it . i shall from him descend but to one more , whom i fitly place the last of his order ; and to whose judgment , tho' i pay no more than it deserves , yet i cannot but think it may have some weight with those , whom i am now concern'd especially to convince . in his discourse of ecclesiastical polity , chap. . he affirms , the affairs of religion to be subject to the supreme civil power , and to no other . p. . that as , in the first ages of the world , the kingly power , and priestly function , were alway vested in the same persons ; — so when they were separated , in the jewish state , the supremacy was annexed to the civil power , and so continued until , and after , our saviour's death : ibid. this he more largely delivers , p. . tho' in the jewish commonwealth , the priestly office was — separated by a divine , positive command , from the kingly power ; yet the power , and jurisdiction of the priest remain'd still subject to the sovereign prince : their king always exercising a supremacy over all persons , and in all causes ecclesiastical . the power wherewith christ invested the governors of his church , in the apostolical age , was purely spiritual : they had no authority to inflict temporal punishments , or to force men to submit to their canons , laws , and paenalties . they only declared the laws of god , and denounced the threatnings annexed to them. but when christianity was become the imperial religion , then began its government to re-settle where nature had placed it ; and the ecclesiastical jurisdiction was annex'd to the civil power . — so that tho' the exercise of the ministerial function , still continued in the persons that were thereunto originally commissioned by our saviour ; the exercise of its authority , and jurisdiction , was restored to the imperial diadem . constantine was no sooner settled in his imperial throne , but he took the settlement of all ecclesiastical matters into his own cognizance . he called synods and councils , in order to the peace and government of the church : he ratified their canons into laws , &c. in the exercise of which jurisdiction , he was carefully follow'd by all his successors . nay he doubts not to affirm , that had it not been for the care of christian princes , christianity had , in all humane probability , been utterly destroy'd by its own tumults and seditions . he adds , that this supremacy of the civil power , in religious matters , is expresly asserted by our church ; which is not content barely to affirm it , but denounces the sentence of excommunication against all that deny it . thus stood this author ' s judgment in this case , about the year : it is true , that being engaged against another sort of adversaries , and which led him to somewhat different reflections ; we find him a little gone off from this hypothesis ; in the year . yet even there he is much more for the supremacy , than those we have now to do with . he affirms indeed , p. . that from the precedent of the apostles , in the first council of jerusalem , the governours of the church , in all ages , enjoy'd a power of making canons and constitutions , for discipline , and good order . but withal he adds , that by the example of the primitive church , our bishops submitted the exercise thereof to the king 's sovereign authority , as we see in that famous act called , the submission of the clergy . whereby ( says he , p. . ) they do not pass away their power of making ecclesiastical canons ; but only give security to the government , that , under that pretence , they would not attempt any thing tending to the disturbance of the kingdom , or injurious to the prerogative of the crown . which , in truth , is such a submission , as all the clergy in the world ought , in duty , to make to their sovereign , at least in gratitude , for his protection ; and that without any abatement , or diminution of their own authority ; viz. the standing laws of christianity being secured , to submit all other matters to his sovereign will and pleasure . and p. . he approves king james reply to cardinal perron , where he lets him know , that tho' christian kings and emperors , never arrogated to themselves a power of being sovereign judges in matters and controversies of faith ; yet for moderation of synods ; for determinations , and orders , establish'd in councils ; and for the discipline of the church ; they have made a full , and good vse of their imperial authority . such was the last sense , if i mistake not , of this writer ; and that when he was in his highest exaltation of the churches authority . and all the difference i can find between his own last , and first opinion , is but this ; that what he before gave the christian prince as his own due , he now grants him by the concession of the clergy ; yet so , as to declare the clergy bound to yeild it to him , and to affirm the churches rights to be in no wise injured , or impeach'd by it . but i shall not insist any longer on this authority ; but pass on to consider the judgment of an author , or two , of a lower rank ; but whose learning , and steddiness , will much more recommend them to all sober , and indifferent persons . of these the first i shall mention , shall be our excellent dr. falkner ; who in his discourse of christian loyalty , fully examines , and determines the case before us. concerning the christian doctrine , and profession , ( says he ) tho' no authority has any right to oppose any part of the christian truth ; yet princes may , and ought to , take care of the true profession thereof in their dominions ; and to suppress such dangerous errours , as are manifestly contrary thereunto . — but in cases of difficulty , for the deciding , or ending of controversies , about matters of faith ; the disquisition , and resolution of the spiritual guides , ought to take place , and be embraced . — in such cases , the catholick christian emperours , did , by their authority , establish the decisions of the oecumenical councils . but in matters of truth which are plain , and manifest from the holy scriptures themselves , or the declarations of approved councils agreeing therewith ; the saecular governour , so far as is necessary , may proceed upon the evidence thereof to his own understanding . in establishing rules and constitutions for order , decency , and peace , it belongeth to the ecclesiastical officers to consult , advise , and take care thereof . — but yet this with such dependance upon the royal power , as king charles has declared — [ that is ; that they first obtain the kings leave to do it ; and execute nothing but with his approbation . see above § . . ] in such an extraordinary case , as that in the primitive times was , when the civil power will not own the church ; the ecclesiastical governours , by their own authority , may establish necessary rules of order , as was then done . but since the external sanction of such things , doth flow from the general nature of power and authority ; wheresoever the temporal power will take that care of the church , which it ought , it hath a right to give its establishment to such constitutions ; and the ecclesiastical officers , as subjects , are bound to apply themselves thereto , for the obtaining of it . the calling of councils , so far as is needful for the preservation of the peace and order of the church , may be perform'd , as the former , by ecclesiastical officers , where the civil disowneth the church . but this being no particular exercise of the power of the keys , but only of a general authority , doth peculiarly belong to the prince , or supreme governour , if he will make use thereof . — the antient right , and exercise of the authority of kings , in summoning provincial , or national councils , is sufficiently observed , and asserted , by p. de marca . but indeed he himself in his th chapter , abundantly demonstrates both that , and all the rest that is contended for , in the present dispute . and the heads of which are such as these : that the antient emperours had power to call councils : p. , , , , , : to be present at them : p. , . and by themselves , or their deputies , to preside in them : p. , , . to direct them what they should consult about : p. , , . to appoint the time , and place , of their meeting : p. , . to keep the bishops from leaving the council , till all should be finish'd for which it was called : p. . to confirm what they do aright : p. , , , , , . to rescind what they do amiss : p. . to suspend their acts from taking effect , till they should give way to it : p. . these are the instances which may be observed , in that chapter , of the jurisdiction and authority , which the antient emperours exercised over their synods heretofore : and by which we are to expound , as our church has taught us , the supremacy of our own princes in the like cases . i shall conclude what i have to observe from this learned writer , with a remark , which i wish some men would be perswaded a little more seriously to consider : p. . some things which , at first sight , may seem an abatement of the authority of the church , is rather such a way of regulating the exercise of its power , as , under religious princes , is for the churches advantage . of this nature i conceive that constitution [ of the h. viii . ] that no new canons shall be enacted , promulged , or executed , without the royal assent , and licence , to enact , promulge , and execute the same . for hereby the cergy give such security to the king , against all jealousies of renew'd ecclesiastical usurpations , that thereupon the church may , under the kings favour , and with the assurance of greater safety and protection , practise upon its establish'd constitutions ; which are so good , that we have great reason to bless god for them . and hereupon it may also be hoped , that what shall be farther needful , may be super-added , by the royal licence ; and become more effectual to its end , by the confirmation of that authority . there is yet one author more , who must not be pass'd by ; our learned , and accurate dr. barrow : and a better than whom i could not have desired , to close up this collection withall . in his treatise of the vnity of the church ; ( a discourse which would some men more diligently read , and more judiciously consider , they would not talk so loosely as they do , on that subject : ) he gives us this account of the state of the church , in the times immediately after christ. each church did , seperately , order its own affairs ; without recourse to others , except for charitable advice , or relief , in cases of extraordinary difficulty , or urgent need. each church was endow'd with a perfect liberty , and a full authority , without dependence , or subordination to others ; to govern its own members ; to manage its own affiairs ; to decide controversies and causes incident among themselves ; without allowing appeals , or rendring accounts , to others . it is true that the bishops of several adjacent churches , did use to meet upon emergencies , — to consult , and conclude upon expedients , for attaining such ends ( as they met for . ) this probably they did at first in a free way , without rule , according to occasion , as prudence suggested : but afterwards by confederation , and consent , these conventions were formed into method , and regulated by certain orders , establish'd by consent ; whence did arise an ecclesiastical unity of government , within certain precincts . hence every bishop , or pastor was conceived to have a double relation , or capacity ; one towards his own flock , another towards the whole flock . of councils , he thus delivers his opinion . general councils , are extraordinary , arbitrary , prudential means , of restoring truth , peace , order , discipline . — during a long time the church wanted them ; afterwards had them but rarely ; and since the breach between the oriental , and western churches , for many centuries , there hath been none . the first general councils , ( indeed all ) were congregated by emperours ; — their congregation dependeth on the permission , and pleasure , of secular powers ; and , in all equity , should do so . and in his most elaborate treatise of the popes supremacy : the most just and pious emperours , who did bear greatest love to the clergy , — did call them without scruple : it was deem'd their right to do it ; none did remonstrate against their practise . the same he shews of national and provincial councils , p. , &c. to these they summon'd the bishops in a peremptory manner , and directed both the time , and place of their meeting . the popes petition'd them to call [ councils ] and sometimes they prevailed , and sometimes they did not . this power , upon many just accounts , peculiarly doth belong to princes . it suiteth to the dignity of their state ; it appertaineth to their duty ; they are most able to discharge it . — they alone can , well , cause the expences needful for holding synods , to be exacted and defray'd : they alone can protect them ; can maintain order , and peace , in them ; can procure observance to their determinations . they alone have a sword to restrain , resty and refractory persons : — to oblige them to convene ; to conferr peaceably , to agree , to observe what is setled . it inseperably doth belong to sovereigns , in the general assemblies of their states , to preside and moderate affairs ; proposing what they judge fit to be consulted , or debated ; stopping what seemeth unfit to be moved ; keeping proceedings within order and rule ; and steering them to a good issue : checking disorders and irregularities , which the distemper , or indiscretion , of any persons , may create in deliberations or disputes . — this therefore he shews the emperours to have done , in all the first synods . the word presidency hath an ambiguity : — it may be taken for a priviledge of praecedence , or for authority to govern things . this latter kind of presidency , was disposed of by the emperour , as he saw reason . the power of enacting , and dispensing with , ecclesiastical laws , touching exteriour discipline , did of old belong to the emperour : and it was reasonable that it should . by many laws , and instances it appeareth , that appellations have been made to the emperours in the greatest causes . — so the donatists did appeal to constantine : athanasius , and the aegyptian bishops , to the same ; priscillianus to maximus : idacius to gratian. — iii. and here i shall put an end to these collections . it would have been a very easie matter to have added many more ‖ authors , than i have here alledged , and to have much enlarged upon those which i have produced . but what is already done may suffice ; till those who now advance the contrary opinion , shall be able , at least , to make some tolerable proof , that they do not forsake the received doctrine of our church , in opposing an authority , ⸪ by law , confessedly , establish'd : and , i think , no less confirm'd by our articles , and canons , too . it remains now , that i take the liberty freely to appeal to every sincere member of our communion , to judge in this case , between me , and those , who so warmly oppose me , and so highly charge me , upon this occasion : and to consider , what i have done , with relation to the rights , and liberties , of the church of england , for which i ought to humble my selfe before god , and to make a satisfaction to her. is it that i have asserted the king's authority , over the ecclesiastical synods of this church , and realm ? but so the laws speak , as well as i : and to these , both the articles , and canons of the church , require me to conform . nay , they do more ; they require me not only to conform my self , but to do , what in me lies , to move all others to the observance of them . and if for this i must be censured ; these laws , and canons , must run the same fate with me. and i shall always account it an honour , to suffer , for asserting the laws of the realm ; and for maintaining the doctrine , and constitutions of the church of england . or is it that i have gone beyond the bounds of the law , and given a greater , and more general authority , to the christian prince , than either the submission of the clergy , or the act of king henry the viiith founded thereupon , have declared to belong to him ? this , for ought i know , i may have done , and yet not be guilty of any fault neither , in the doing of it . i have before said , and do here again repeat it , with the same assurance i at first delivered it ; that i do not found the right of our kings to this jurisdiction , either upon that , or upon any other act , that has been made in pursuance of it . i fix it upon the right of ‖ sovereignty in general ; and upon that antient jurisdiction , in causes ecclesiastical , which the very statute of queen elizabeth speaks of ; and allows to have been always , of right , belonging to the imperial crown of this realm . to this our * laws themselves agree : they speak still of restoring to the crown its antient rights ; and our † lawyers have accordingly constantly affirm'd , that these acts ; and particularly that which we are here especially concern'd in , the eliz. c. . was not introductory of a new law , but declaratory of the old. and therefore , before i can justly be condemn'd upon this account , my proofs must be answer'd ; and it must be shewn , that what i ascribe to the king , is not a parcel of that jurisdiction , which was once enjoy'd by the kings , and princes , of this realm ; and did always , of right , belong to them . and that , i believe , it will be no easie matter to do . st . i affirm that it is the right of every christian king , to call his clergy together in convocation ; and that without his call , they cannot regularly assemble , to any such purpose , of themselves . but so our law expresly declares ; that the convocation shall evermore be called by the king 's writ : and it is notorious to every one , who has any knowledge in these matters , how dangerous it would be for the clergy to presume to come together without it . dly . i assert that the very persons who meet in our convocations , are determined , and empower'd , by the king 's writ ; and that none have a right to assemble , but such as he calls by it . let the writs of summons be examined , and let it there be seen whether the case be not so , as i pretend it to be . let this author tell me , if he can , why such and such dignitaries are required , personally , to come to the convocation ; others to send such a certain number of delegates to represent them ; but that the writ of summons so directs , so authorizes them to do ? and tho' i do not suppose it to be now in the king's power to alter this form , yet the sovereign legislative authority , may , without controversy , do it ; and appoint any other method of framing the lower house of convocation , that should appear to them to be more proper and expedient . dly . i declare , that by our law , the convocation can deliberate on no canons , or constitutions , without first obtaining the king's licence so to do . it is the express resolution of the act of submission : and our convocations do accordingly , notoriously , govern their proceedings by it . thly , i add , that heretofore , the christian emperors prescribed to their synods , the very method they should observe , in handling the matters which lay before them . this indeed i affirm ; and , i think , i have proved it too . and , if to this end , our king should think fit , either himself to come ; or to appoint any other to preside in his stead , and direct the debates of our synods , as he should command them to do ; i do not see that he would therein do any more , than what some of the best christian princes have done before him . thly , i pretend , that to the civil magistrate it belongs to confirm , or annihilate , such of the acts of their synods as they think fit . our laws agree to it ; our kings claim it ; our convocations submit to , and approve , of it . and let those who scruple this , consider , how low they sink the authority of a prince ; if they leave him not the power , which every ordinary person claims , of judging for himself ; but would oblige him , at a venture , to confirm whatsoever the lords of the consistory shall please to define . thly . that the prince may alter their constitutions , i no otherwise affirm , than as i say it is in his power to make laws in matters ecclesiastical : and that for the doing of this , he may advise with his clergy , and follow their counsel , so far as he approves of it . thus charles the emperor made up his capitular : and thus any other sovereign prince , may take the canons of the church , and form them in such wise into an ecclesiastical law , as he thinks will be most for the honour of god , and the good of his people . thly . in cases of appeals , i shew what power the antient emperors both claim'd , and exercised : and i modestly vindicate to our own sovereign the same authority , which the fathers of the church , without all scruple , allow'd to their princes . and except it be in such cases where the king is a party , and the appeal therefore is to stop at the vpper house of convocation ; i see no reason why this authority should not be reserved to the king , and i conceive the law of our realm does allow of it . thly . as for the dissolving of the convocation , that is so evidently a part of the royal jurisdiction , and has been so fully adjudged to belong to the king ; that i do not see what exceptions can be taken at it . however the constant practice of our convocations , in this matter , is on my side : and i have herein ascribed no authority to the prince , but what our clergy , for above these hundred and fifty years last past , have constantly submitted to ; and , by that submission alone , have sufficiently vested in him. but if i am not mistaken in point of law , what is it that deserves so tragical an outcry , as this late author has made against me ? is it , that being a clergy-man my self , i appear'd in defence of the king's authority over the clergy ; and which , in some mens notion , is the same thing as to say , against the rights of the church ? so indeed the convocation seem'd to think , in the case of dr. standish , heretofore ; and so some seem to account it now . but , god be thanked , the reformed church of england , never yet thought it any offence in her clergy to stand up for the just rights of the prince ; nor have i any apprehension that i shall ever be condemn'd , upon this account , by any true members of her communion . and for others , give me leave to ask , only ; am i the first , of our order , that have appear'd on this occasion ? or do i stand alone in this cause ? but what then shall we say of all those learned bishops , and clergy-men , whose books i have here quoted to the same purpose ? nay rather , what shall we say of those whole convocations , who compiled our articles , and canons ? and have obliged us thereby , not only occasionally to defend the kings supremacy ; but to the best of our wit , learning , and knowledge , publickly to declare , and confirm it to our congregations , four times every year . if this be that for which i ought to be censured ; i am afraid so great a part of our order will go along with me , as may make it even scandalous to stay behind : and be number'd among that little , noisy , turbulent party , that now set themselves up as judges over us. but if both the law be on my side ; and it be no improper enterprize for a clergy-man to appear in ; what shall we say , more ? was the time improper ? did i take an unseasonable opportunity of asserting this authority ? nay but this they should have consider'd , who by appearing so eagerly against the princes power over the convocation , made it absolutely necessary for some or other of our church , to do her right ; and let the world know , that she never commission'd any of her members , to broach any such principles , on her behalf . that she is content to act under the royal supremacy ; and is sensible that it is her duty so to do . that if some hot men , ( for ought she knows her enemies , ) will under pretence of asserting such a power to her , as she has always disclaim'd , endeavour to raise any jealousies in the mind of her defender against her ; it is what she cannot help : and she hopes , she shall not be the worse accounted of , for such attempts , as she neither approves of , nor knows how to prevent . and now , there is but one thing more , that can , i think , be objected against my undertaking : and i shall lay it down in the words in which it is charged upon me . for what if the publick from such a work ( inscribed to the metropolitan ) should be tempted to proceed to further resolves against the powers hierarchicall ? this i confess would be such a use of it , as i should be heartily sorry for ; tho' even , in such a case , i cannot tell whether i should ever the more deserve to be censured for what i had done . there can nothing be either so well design'd , or so carefully perform'd , of which an ill use may not be made . and if that should be sufficient to cry down any undertaking , i do not see how we shall be able to satisfie our consciences , in anything we have to do . but , in reason , i am sure the church might have expected to suffer much more by the letter to the convocation man , than by the answer which i made to it . when church-men set up their divine rights , in opposition to the laws of their country ; and upon visionary notions , endeavour to lead men into discontents against their governours ; it is natural , not to say necesiary , for princes to look to themselves , and consider how to stop those attempts at the beginning , which , experience has shewn them , may otherwise , in time , grow too strong for them. it was the intollerable insolence , and vsurpations , of the roman church , that made her first fear'd , then hated ; and , at last , crush'd the hierarchic in many places , to peices . and whatever party shall think fit to pursue the same methods , ought , in all reason , to expect the same treatment . if clergy-men will enjoy the protection of princes , it is but reasonable that they should be content to acknowledge their authority . to contend for more power , than either christ has left us ; or our calling requires , or the bishops , and councils , under the first christian emperours , pretended to , or desired ; is neither prudent , nor justifyable : it is to render the church suspected by the state ; and to set those powers in opposition to , which ought mutually to help , and support , one-another . i have before shewn what opinion a very learned man , upon this ground , had of the act of submission , now so much railed at , in these days . he look'd upon it as a law of great benefit to the church , even for this reason alone , that it freed the civil powers from entertaining any more fears , and jealousies , of the clergy . this was a remark founded upon good reason , as well as upon the experience of those former miscarriages , which the clergy had run into , for want of such a restraint . and i cannot but every day more and more acknowledge the goodness of god towards our church , in that very thing , for which some men so tragically lament the oppression , and slavery , of it : being fully perswaded that nothing , at this day , preserves us from ruin , and desolation ; but that we have not power , of our selves , to do the church a mischief ; and the prince , who sees but too much of our tempers , is too gracious to us , and has too great a concern for the churches good , to suffer us to do it . these are the advantages which i look upon the church to derive to her self from this act. it prevents all jealousies , which either the odd principles , the violent tempers , or the wicked designs , of some men , might justly raise in the minds of our governours against us : and frees them from all . temptation , as well as from all need , of laying any farther restraints upon us. it encourages the civil powers to be willing to allow us both liberty to come together , and leave to deliberate , of what may be profitable to the church ; when ever they shall judge it to be , in any wise , needful , or but proper so to do . and , in the mean while , it hinders us from throwing all into confusion , in such times of faction , and discontent ▪ of heats and animosities , as we are at present in ; to the certain scandal , and division , of the church ; it may be , to a new confusion of all things in the state too . and thus have i deliver'd the real sense of my own conscience , in the matter before me . i have shewn what my principles , as to the kings supremacy , are ; and from whom i have learnt them . that the laws , the articles , and canons of our church , are my instructors : and all these , as explain'd to me , by the greatest , and most eminent of our profession , both for character , and ability , that our church has produced ever since the reformation . all that i desire , in return , is , that those who now appear so vehemently against me , in this point , would as freely declare their sense ; and as plainly shew from whom they have received it . if they can make as fair a plea to our church's patronage , as i have here done , i must then ingenuously own , i have been greatly mistaken . if they cannot , i shall then leave them under this character ; that whatever they may pretend , they must , in reality , be either of the conclave , or of the consistory ; and manage this cause , for the pope , or for the kirk . whether of these parties they will fly unto , to me it is indifferent . this i am sure of , that if they are resolved to hold to our church , in defiance of her doctrine ; they must , at least , be confessed to be in a very low degree of communion with her : she having solemnly , by her canons , excluded them from her sacraments ; and left them no regular method of returning to the participation of them , but by the archbishop's , absolution ; and that upon sincere repentance for what they have done , and after a publick revocation of their present wicked errors . finis . errata . page vii . margin , for can. read . p. . f. . can. r. : p. . l. . f. attain'd to , r. enjoy'd . the literal errors the reader will please to correct . in my other book of the authority of christian princes : p. . blot out line . , , . in which i find my self to have been mistaken . books printed for r. sare , at grays-inn-gate . the authority of christian princes over their ecclesiastical synods asserted ; with particular respect to their convocations of the clergy of the realm , and church of england . occasioned by a late pamphlet , intituled , a letter to a convocation-man , &c. o price s. a practical discourse concerning swearing o. price s. d. also several sermons upon particular occasions . all by w. wake , d. d. notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e municip . eccles . pref. ib. preface . municip . eccles . pref. pag. . ib. pag. . pag. . th . can. first can. ibid. p. . comp. p. . pag. , . pag. . pag. . by the , , and . can. preface . p. . ⸪ def. of the apolog. p. . . &c. ‖ bilson . p. . . . . . * whitgift . fol. † tort. torti . . . pag. . . . . see euseb. vit. const. l. . p. . comp. p. . pag. . pag. . notes for div a -e §. . § . § . the act of h. viii c. . . h. viii . c. . § . & ph. & m. c. . eliz. c. . § . eliz. c. . ib sect. . & . which i observe in answer to the peevish cavils of a late author against me on this account : municip . eccles. p. . . see below . §. . § the oath of supremacy . . h. viii . c. . and . h. viii . c. . * eliz c. , sect. . which all persons in h. orders , are , at their ordination , obliged to do . see of w. & m. c. . . eliz. c. . — from the st of eliz to the st of w. and m. above years . §. . the nine and thirty articles . * in the latin article it is supreme . §. . see p. . municip . eccles. pag. . * especially if graduated in the university too . see can. . ibid. can. v. eliz. c. . §. . of the canons of king james the first . comp. munic . eccles. pag. . municip . eccles . chap. x. p. . pag. , , . § . excommunication ipso facto . cap. . ext. de appellat . heylin ref justified . p. . . § . the testimony of our clergy in defence of this supremacy . municip . eccles . pag. . ib. p. . . § . of k. h. . & q. mary . institution of a christian man : anno. . see the convocations address to the king ; subscribed by both houses . ‖ regis ▪ senatus , populique angliae sententia de concilio &c. witebergae , anno . a. . ib. b. . bishop burnet . hist. ref. vol. . app. p. . . regis angl. epistola de synod . vincentina . vitebergae anno. . munucip . eccles . pref. fox m●rt . vol. . fox ibid. vol. p. . . strype . hist. of a. b. cranmer . p. . § . the parliament . the queen sparrow's collect . p. . . eliz. c. . § . all the bishops together . bishop burnet hist of the reform . vol. append . p. . . eliz. c. . sparrows collect . pag. . see municip . eccles. p. . § . a. b. whitgift . defence of the answer to the admonition , &c. ib. p. . whose authority the municip . eccles. also , brings against it ; p. , . ib. pag. . see municip . eccles. p. . very foolishlyly , as well as disrespectful , as to this matter . pag. . §. . archbishop bancroft . see the survey , &c. chap. xxii , xxiii . page . page . p. . municip . eccle . p. , . §. . bishop jewell . jewell def. of the apolog. p. . ibid. p. . pag. . ibid. p. . pag. . ibid. p. . pag. . ibid. p. . §. . municip . eccles . pref. and pag. . bishop bilson . pag. , to . — ibid. p. , . §. . dean nowell . dean nowell's reproof of mr. dorman's book , entituled , a proof , &c. o. lond. . part second . against t. c. before : §. . comp. pag , , , . §. . mr. hooker . eccles. polit. p. . pag . page . §. . king james . the king 's works , p. . ib p. . § . bp. andrews . tort. torti . p. . comp. municip . eccles. p. . . see also . p. . §. . see spotswood , lib. vii . p. . calderwood hist. p. . ⸪ let the author of the municip . eccles. answer this question better , if he can . §. . sermons . pag. . pag. . comp. municip . eccles. p. . . pag. . comp. municip . eccles. p. , , &c. pag . comp. municip . eccles p. , , &c. pag. . pag. . comp. municip . eccles. p. . ib. p. . ib. p. . ib p. . comp. municip eccles. p. . comp. municip . eccles. chapt. vi . & vii . ib. p. . ib. p. . see municip . eccles. p. . ib. p. . § . anno . §. . mr. mason . de ministerio anglic. lib. . c. . pag. . page . ibid. p. . pag. , , — . . comp. munic . eccles. pag. , . ibid. , . ib. p. , . — . — . — . §. . municip . eccles . p. . §. . king charles i. book of articles , printed anno . rolles rep. hill. . jac. in cam. scacc. colt vers . glover . p. , &c. §. . archbishop laud. municip . eccles . pag. . §. . sparrow's collect . p. . * therefore not of ours only ; nor by the stat. of h. . municip eccles. ‖ therefore not by a divine , unalienable right which they had so to do . * from the writs and commission of king ch. . hist. of a b. laud , p. , , , , . §. . archbishop bramhall . see his w●rks , page . municip . eccles . p. . page . p. , . comp. municip . eccles. p. , . see his works tom. . pag. . comp p. . ib. § . bishop davenant . determin . qu. xix . p. . de doub . controv . par . i. p. . ib. p. . ib. p. . § . dr. heylin . historic & misc. tracts fol. lond. . pag. . comp. municip . eccles. pref. & . p. , , , &c. ib. numb . vi . see the same tract : p. , , , , ▪ , &c. more to the same effect . § . ‖ municip . eccles . p. . ⸪ ib. p. ▪ . &c. ib. p. . car. . cap. xii . an act for explanation of the car. . c. xi . entituled , an act for repeal of a branch of a statute eliz. c. i. concerning commissioners for causes ecclesiastical . ibid. pref. and p. . ibid. pref. p. , . ibid. p. . § ▪ . bp. taylour . book iii. ch . . rule . ib. §. , , . ib. rule . §. . bp parker . ibid. p. . ib. p. . ib. p. . ib. p. , . ib. p. . ib. p. . the case of the church of england stated . § . dr. falkner . christian loyalty . p. . ib. pag. . ib. pag . can. . comp. munic . eccles. pref. § . dr. barrow . see his works , st vol. p. . ib. comp. p. . . if the author of the municip . eccles. thinks this account , of the original of synods , clearer than mine , he may take it , as an explanation of my meaning ; and which i see no cause yet to retract . municip . chap. . ib. p. . ib , p. . ib. p . comp. p. . ib p. . ib. p. , . ib. ib. p. . comp. . ib. p. . ib. p. . . ib. p. , . ib. p. . ib p . § . ‖ horn against fecknam : bridges against sanders : burhill and tooker mention'd §. . sarravia : sutcliffe : whitaker : abbot bp. of salisbury : reynolds against hart : morton bp. of durham against bellarmine : carleton bp. of chichester : dr. ferne. &c. ⸪ municip . eccles. p. , . . municip . eccles . p. . can. . ‖ see mr. hooker's judgment , §. bishop andrews , § . convoc . of , §. . a. b. bramhall , sect. , &c. * eliz. c. . sect. . † coke v. rep. cawdries case — id. . inst. p. , . more 's rep. p. . . crook rep. p. . heylin . ref. just. p. , . — see the queen's injunctions ; above sect. . canons of k. james , §. . inst. pag. . §. . municip . eccles . pref. . can. § . §. . municip . eccles pref. p. . comp. p. . see above §. . §. . a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at white-hall, may the th. m.dc.xc. by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; 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ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- n.t. -- luke xvi, -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - john latta sampled and proofread - john latta text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at white-hall , may the th . m.dc.xc . by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties : and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . published by their majesties special comand . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . chrysost. conc. . de lazar. london : printed for ric. chiswell at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard : and w. rogers at the sun over-against st. dunstan's church in fleetstreet . . luke xvi . . but abraham said ; son , remember that thou in thy life-time receivedst thy god things , and likewise lazarus evil things : but now , he is comforted , and thou art tormented . the words are part of a parable , in which our saviour christ sets forth to us the different methods of god's providence in his dispensations to mankind , with relation to the happiness of this life , and of the other . that however he may here seem to scatter his blessings at all adventures , upon the good and bad indifferently , and permit the wicked to triumph in their impiety ; yet there is a time coming when he will call them to a severe account for all their actions , and render to every man according to his works . there was a certain rich man , which was cloathed in purple and fine linnen , and fared sumptuously every day . and there was a certain beggar , named lazarus , which was laid at his gate full of sores ; and desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich mans table : moreover the dogs came and licked his sores . and it came to pass that the beggar died , and was carried by the angels into abraham's bosome ; the rich man also died , and was buried . and in hell he lift up his eyes , being in torments , and seeth abraham afar off , and lazarus in his bosome . and he cried , and said , father abraham , have mercy on me ; and send lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water , and cool my tongue , for i am tormented in this flame . but abraham said ; son , remember , that thou in thy life-time receivedst thy good things , and likewise lazarus , evil things : but now , he is comforted , and thou art tormented . it has been one of the oldest complaints that we any-where meet with against the providence of god in his managing the affairs of this lower world , that he so often permits the greatest sinners to be very easie and prosperous ; whilst better men are forced many times to encounter with all the difficulties and discouragements , not only of a poor and despicable fortune , but that too rendred yet more uneasie , by the injuries and oppressions which the wicked are suffered to bring upon him . if we look back into the state of the world before our saviour ; even then when it pleased god to make temporal blessings the encouragement to obedience ; yet we shall find nevertheless the best men very frequently both wondring at , and complaining of the inequality of this procedure . truly , says holy david , psal. lxxiii . . god is good unto israel , even to such as are of a clean heart : but as for me , my feet were almost gone , my steps had well nigh slipp'd : for i was envious at the foolish , when i saw the prosperity of the wicked . and job himself , thô so patient in his own sufferings , yet could not forbear to expostulate with god , about the flourishing condition of evil men ; job xxi . . wherefore do the wicked live , become old , yea , are mighty in power ? and the best account could then be given of this matter was ; that thô providence did permit them to flourish for a while , yet it commonly brought some severe judgment upon them at the last : and as the heathens themselves sometimes observed , therefore raised them up to a height of fortune extraordinary , that their fall might be the greater , and more remarkable . this was what the prophet david , after all his search , acquiesced in , as the best argument both to satisfy himself , and to vindicate god almighty . surely , says he , thou dost set them in slippery places , and castest them into destruction : how are they brought into desolation as in a moment ? they are utterly consumed with terrors : as a dream when one awaketh , so , o lord , when thou awakest shalt thou despise their image . and again , in another psalm ; he gives this as the reason , why we should not be troubled at the prosperity which wicked men seem sometimes to enjoy . fret not thy self because of evil-doers , neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity ; for they shall soon be cut down like the grass , and wither as the green herb . and solomon not only insists upon the same reason , but almost transcribes the very same words : prov. xxiv . . fret not thy self because of evil men , neither be thou envious at the wicked ; for there shall be no reward to the evil man , the candle of the wicked shall be put out . and the same was the reflection which the rest of the holy men in those times contented themselves with upon this occasion . they saw but little of a future state , and of that eternal retribution god will hereafter make of rewards and punishments , to every one according to his works : and therefore they sought out that punishment for sinners in this world , which they could not so certainly assign to them in the other . nor indeed was this any more than what the tenor of the law it self directed them to . for it having pleased god to set before them the promises of this present life , as the rewards of their obedience ; and by the threatnings of troubles and disappointments , of losses and afflictions now to be undergone , to affright them from sin : it was but natural for them to be surprised , when contrary to all this , they saw wicked men in great prosperity ; and to conclude according to what both the law of god , and the methods of his dispensations , and their own experience led them to do , that their happiness should not be of any long continuance ; but , as the psalmist expresses it , in the psalm i before mentioned , ps. xxxvii . , . i have seen the wicked in great power , and spreading himself like a green bay-tree : yet he passed away , and lo , he was not ; yea i sought him , but he could not be found . such was the case even of the best men heretofore under the law : and i shall not need to say , how apt we all of us are , to complain of god's providence upon the same account even now . and if not with the sceptick , to take occasion from hence to dispute whether he has any concern at all for the affairs here below ; yet at least with jeremy to reason sometimes with him of his doings , jer. xii . . righteous art thou , o lord , when i plead with thee , yet let me talk with thee of thy judgments ; wherefore doth the way of the wicked prosper ? but the instance of the text explains the difficulty , gives a final satisfaction to all our doubts , and for ever silences our complaints ; and vindicates both the justice and goodness of god almighty . whilst drawing aside the vail which hung before their eyes , it gives us a clear prospect of a state of things , beyond the narrow bounds of this present world. a state where all these seeming irregularities shall be set to rights : where the sinner shall be divested of all his present happiness ; and the greatness , the riches , the pleasures he now enjoys , expire into the sad result of that sarcastick concession , which solomon once made to the wicked in his days ; rejoice , o young man , in thy youth , and let thy heart cheer thee in the days of thy youth ; walk in the ways of thy heart , and in the sight of thine eyes : but know thou , that for all these things , god will bring thee to judgment . nay , but the text carries us yet farther : it not only sets before us the different state of the poor despised lazarus , and the rich voluptuary , in the other world ; thô that had been sufficient to justifie the providence of god , both for all the good which the one had received , and for all the evil which the other had suffer'd here on earth : but seems in great measure to represent to us their several conditions in this life , as the very ground and reason of their different portions in the other . son , remember , that thou in thy life-time hast received thy good things , and likewise lazarus evil things ; but now he is comforted , and thou art tormented . he does not tell him of the abuse he had made of his riches , in employing them only upon his pride and sensuality . he reproaches him not with his uncharitableness , that could let this poor man lie and perish at his gate , and not take so much notice as his very dogs did of him . no ; he represents to him only the happiness he sometime enjoyed whilst he was in this world ; and the grandeur and jollity in which he lived in it : as if a continued state of prosperity in the present life were almost incompatible with the blessings and glories of the other . and however i shall not presume to be so rash , as to make a general rule of this remark ; that those who are great , and rich , and honourable now , are not to expect any further portion hereafter : and , god be thanked ! have instances at this time before my eyes , that i am perswaded , would be sufficient to confute the uncharitableness of such a conclusion : yet thus much i may take leave to observe from it ; that such persons as these , shall of all others the most hardly be saved . and therefore that we ought to be so far from censuring god's providence for dispensing so large a share of these blessings to them , or from envying of them upon any such account ; that we should rather pity their danger , who are beset with so many more and so much greater temptations than other men ; and must therefore take a great deal more care and pains , be much more watchful over themselves , and zealous in their duty ; or else what we falsly call their happiness , may prove their ruin to all eternity . it was a severe censure which our saviour once pass'd upon the riches , and i fear i may extend it to all other the like advantages , to the honours , the power , the pleasures of this world ; mat. xix . . verily i say unto you , that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven . and again , ver . . i say unto you , it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle , than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven . and when his disciples thereupon began with some amazement to ask of him , who then can be sav'd ? we do not find him at all moderating his reflection . he tells them , that it was indeed possible for such a one to be saved : but it was like removing a mountain , or raising a dead man to life . a work to be done only by a miracle of god's grace ; not after the ordinary manner of other men , but by that mighty power which makes nothing impossible to a divine agent : jesus said unto them , with men this is impossible , but with god all things are possible . and this is that which i shall now endeavour both from the remark and the example of the text , more particularly to represent to you . i am sensible that i am now speaking to persons of a more than ordinary fortune and character in the world. and i know how much harder it will be , without great care , for such to be saved , than for those of an inferiour degree : and therefore how necessary it is , that they should be fully convinced and persuaded of it . and i am not in the least apprehensive , that i shall at all discourage their piety by such an undertaking . it is the honour of great and generons minds to be brave and daring . the difficulties that would affright others , serve only to animate and encourage them the more to overcome them . and this promise they have from god almighty , that as their task is more difficult than other mens , so shall his grace be dispenced to them in a greater and more plentiful degree . so that if they benot wanting to themselves , he will not fail to assist their endeavours : he will bless them with an extraordinary measure of his grace now , and will crown them with a more exceeding and eternal weight of glory hereafter . for the better clearing of all which , i shall observe this method : i st . i will shew , how much more difficult it is for those who are great , and rich , and powerful , to be saved , than for other men ? and upon what grounds it is , that it becomes so ? ii dly . i will consider what influence such a reflection ought to have upon all sorts of men , . upon the one , to stir them up to a greater care of their future happiness . . upon the other , to engage them to a patient acquiescence even in the meanest condition . and , i st . i am to shew , how much more difficult it is for those who are great , and rich , and powerful , to be saved , than for other men ? and upon what grounds , and for what reason it is that it becomes so ? now this will appear from these two considerations ; st . of that obligation which those who enjoy these advantages lie under , to a more strict and careful discharge of their duty , than other men . and dly . of those temptations which these very things many times bring along with them , to the ruining of such persons : whilst instead of ministring to their piety , and so encreasing their reward , they serve rather to expose them the more to danger ; and in the consequence thereof , become oftentimes the greatest occasion of their eternal destruction . for if such persons as these have a larger and more comprehensive duty to fulfil , upon the account of these advantages , than other men ; and if these very things which thus encrease their duty , are also at the same time apt to prove the greatest lets and hindrances to them in the performance of it ; nay perhaps become even snares and temptations to them to draw them aside from it : 't is then a plain case , that their condition must be more dangerous than that of ordinary christians , who neither lie under such engagements , nor are exposed to such temptations . and st . that those to whom god has given these advantages above other men , do thereby become engaged to a more strict and careful discharge of their duty than others . for proof whereof i shall need go no farther than that great evangelical rule of our blessed saviour , luke xii . . that unto whomsoever much is given , of him much shall be required ; and unto whom men have committed much , of him they will ask the more . he was speaking in the verse before , of the difference which god would make in his exactions hereafter , according to the different degrees of mens knowledg and capacities now . that servant which knew his lord's will , and prepared not himself , neither did according to his will , shall be beaten with many stripes ; but he that knew not , and did commit things worthy of stripes , shall be beaten with few stripes . and the same is the case in all other advantages whatsoever : whether they be the internal assistances of grace and knowledg ; or else the external blessings of honour , riches , authority , and the like ; whatever the instance be , whereby it pleases god to enable us to do more good , and make a more plentiful return of duty and service to him than other men , our account shall be required in proportion thereunto , and to whom god has committed much , of him he will ask the more . so that now then to prove that there is a greater and more extensive duty incumbent upon such persons as these i am now speaking of , than upon the ordinary sort of christians , i shall need only to shew , that god has given them a greater capacity of doing good ; and that by consequence it must be their own fault , if they do not make a return , in some measure at least , proportionable thereunto . . and the first advantage that i shall mention is that of time : and which however i fear at present but little regarded by many of us , is yet without question not only a very valuable thing in it self , but such a blessing as whatever we do now , yet the hour is coming when we shall all begin to put a just estimate upon it . and when i consider the great business a christian has to do in this world , what duties to fulfil ? what lusts and passions to overcome ? how many difficulties and temptations to encounter with ? and then think , how short our life at the best is ? what accidents may arrive to throw us the next moment into the grave ? how much of our time the necessities of our nature deprive us of ? how much more is stollen from us by the unavoidable obligations which the business and conversation , and too often the ceremonies and impertinence of the world lay upon us ? to say nothing now of our very vanities and sins ; which yet i fear in all of us have their share , and in many of us a very large one too , to their service : i must confess there is nothing wherein i could sooner chuse to envy the happiness , of those above me , than in this one advantage ; tho' such as most of them seem to put the least value of all upon , and suffer very little occasion to deprive them of . and for the opportunity which such persons hereby have the better to improve their piety , and pay a more constant and regular attendance upon the offices of religion ; it is so very evident , that i shall not need to say any thing in proof of it . whilst being freed from those necessities under which others labour ; and the supplying whereof not only fills up the greatest part of their time , but too much possesses their very hearts and affections too : which being forced to converse so much with the affairs of this world , become thereby not a little indisposed to entertain themselves with the joys and blessings of the other ; they are infinitely more at liberty , as well as exceedingly more engaged to lift up their minds and desires to heaven , and to bless that god who has so highly favour'd them above the rest of mankind ; and to spend that time in the more excellent pursuits of the glories of their future state , which they have no need to do in a solicitous care for the support of their present condition . but i must go yet farther : for such persons as these have not only more time , & so a greater opportunity , as well as higher engagements to serve god , and work out their salvation , than the ordinary sort of christians ; but they have moreover better capacities , and larger abilities to do good , than other men. for , dly . if we consider them in themselves , and their personal qualifications only , there is often seen another kind of spirit in them , than what we find in the common and vulgar race of mankind . whether it be that from the begining they are accustomed to a more generous sort of life , and bred up with other maxims and notions of things , than those of an inferior order : or that it pleases god , to their greater opportunities of serving him in all other respects , to give a better and more excellent capacity too , to these than to other men : but this is plain , that something there is in the very temper and disposition of those of a higher rank , more generous and excellent than what we ordinarily meet with in those below them . their thoughts are more elevated , their desires more noble , their reason more improv'd ; and by standing upon a higher ground , they see further than commonly others do , whose very hearts and minds are many times as mean and groveling as their fortunes and their employments . and to all which if we add , what such persons for the most part have , the great happiness of a better and more ingenuous education too : it cannot be doubted but as this must needs put a very great difference in all other respects between those of a higher quality , and the common crowd of mankind ; so does it at the same time exceedingly better fit them for the service of god , and for more high and extraordinary attainments in the ways of piety and religion . it is indeed very sad to reflect how small a sense too many of the meaner sort of the world seem to have of religion . and one would almost wonder how persons bred up in a church where the gospel of christ is so duly and plainly preach'd to them ; where the holy scriptures are read to them in their own tongue , and put into their hands for their own private use and meditation ; should nevertheless so many of them remain as ignorant of the first principles of their religion , as if they had never enjoyed any of these opportunities of being instructed in it . but then there is this to be said for it ; that neither their parts nor their education enable them , nor will the necessary affairs of their lives permit them to have so distinct and thorough a knowledge of the mysteries of the gospel ; of the love of god , and the merits and satisfaction of our redeemer ; of the terrors of the final judgment ; and what the glories or miseries of another world import ; and what mighty obligations all these things lay upon us to live well , and to depart from all iniquity . and yet even among these , we may find many who are zealous for god's service beyond what one could almost have expected from them . that improve every opportunity , suffer no occasion to slip them that they can possibly steal from their present employments , to encrease their knowledge , and to exercise their piety . how much more ought those to whom god has given so many more and better opportunities to do this ; whose souls are more raised , whose understandings more enlarged , who know the mysteries of christ's kingdom , what promises god has made to assist our piety , and what blessings he has prepared for ever to reward it , to be in an extraordinary manner careful of themselves : and not suffer these poor souls to rise up in the judgment against them and condemn them , for that being so much better fitted , to discharge their duty , and having so much more liberty to do it than they ; they have nevertheless so grosly neglected their souls , and taken no care to exceed , or it may be even to equal them in well-doing . but dly , such persons as these , have not only more time , and a better capacity , than those of a lower degree ; but what is yet more , they have in many respects , a greater ability too of doing good , and of promoting the interests of piety and religion . and that especially upon these three accounts , ( st ) of their riches . ( dly ) of their authority . and in the consequence of both these , ( dly ) of their very example . ( st ) if we consider them as persons of larger fortunes , and more plentiful estates , than other men ; how many advantages will this one thing minister unto them for the better advancing the service of god , and the interests of christianity ? what influence will this give them not only over their own houses , but over multitudes abroad who some way or other depend upon them , and need only their encouragement to become religious ? to pass by all other benefits , and offer but one instance instead of many . it cannot be doubted but that the more it has pleased god to dispense to any one of these things , the more he not only is able , but ought in duty to lay out in the exercise of that most excellent vertue of charity and beneficence ; and than which i know not whether there be any more acceptable to god , or more advantageous to our eternal salvation . and though there is scarce any state so mean as to be utterly exempt from all discharge of it ; yet they are the rich and wealthy ; those to whom providence has been free and liberal no less to set them an example what they ought to do to others , than to enable them to do it ; whom we are to look upon as the chief stewards of heaven , and dispensers of its blessings to the poor and needy . and therefore s. paul , though he recommends a christian charity to all , and passes by none in his exhortations to it ; yet we may observe that they are such as these whom he bids timothy in a particular manner call upon not to be wanting in it : charge them that are rich in this world — that they be rich in good works ; ready to distribute , willing to communicate ; laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against the time to come , that they may lay hold on eternal life . for the next instance , ( dly , ) that of power and authority : i shall not need to say what a mighty advantage this also gives to such persons of doing more than ordinary good , by obliging others to become so . and indeed i cannot tell whether there be any more truly beneficial ; but sure i am , a more noble and worthy use there cannot be made of any power or authority we may have committed to us , than for the promoting the glory of god , the salvation of mens souls , and a publick sense of piety and religion in the world. and how those to whom god has given so glorious an advantage as this of serving him , in a more than ordinary manner , will be able to excuse themselves at the last day , if they do not especially employ it to this best of ends , i must confess i do not see : nor can i perswade my self , that a private piety is all god will exact of such persons , in whose power it was in some measure to have reformed the age ; and if not to have made it good , yet at least to have kept it from being openly and scandalously wicked . nay , but ( dly , ) and to close this point : should those whom we are now speaking of have no such advantages as these , in point either of riches or authority ; which nevertheless i believe but few of them want : yet still the very influence of a great mans example is beneficial . it not only strikes mens eyes , but for the most part , i know not how , charms their very hearts and affections into a love first , and then into an imitation of it . there is nothing more ordinary in the common practise of the world , than for those of an inferiour rank to take their measures from such as are above them. 't is this makes sin its self become reputable , when countenanced by the examples of the great and honourable : and the commands of god , and all the terrors of eternity are too weak to prevail against the power of vice , when got into credit and custome among such persons . how much more might we hope to see piety and religion revive among us , would the princes and nobles of our israel seriously resolve to set the example : and make vertue as necessary to a good esteem , and interest , and reputation with men , as it is to gain the love of god , and the blessings and glories of eternity ? and thus have i consider'd very briefly a few of those advantages which oblige persons of great authority , and fortune and quality in the world , to a more strict and careful discharge of their duty than other men . let us see , dly , what the effect of all this generally is . and whether these very things at the same time that they thus lay a greater obligation upon such persons , are not apt , considering the evil inclinations of corrupt nature , to be perverted to a quite contrary purpose ; both to tempt them first , and then to enable them to be more highly criminal than other men ? in speaking to which point i presume no one will so far misunderstand me , as to think i have any design to make an apology for the sins of great men , by shewing what extraordinary dangers and temptations their very condition often times exposes them to . for though where there is a sincere desire , and an hearty endeavour to live well , this consideration perhaps may , and i doubt not shall prevail with god to make greater allowances for the slips and infirmities of such persons , than of those who have not so many difficulties to encounter with ; yet cannot this be any excuse for those who by this means suffer themselves to be utterly drawn away from their duty , and engaged in a course and habit of sin : but on the contrary , will aggravate their guilt the more ; for that knowing their danger , they nevertheless neglected to look to themselves , and to take that due care they ought to have done to preserve their innocence . and st , for the first advantage , that of time : i have before observed , that this is a benefit which such persons seem to put the least value of all upon , though one of the most considerable ; and i must now add , that being thus neglected by them , it proves for the most part a snare and a temptation to them : and this is one of the chiefest causes of their sin and ruine . the man who lives by his industry , and in the sweat of his brow eats his bread ; he wants indeed the opportunity of paying that constant attendance which others may do , upon the solemn exercises of piety and devotion . his thoughts are taken up with the affairs of this present life , how to carry on his business , and supply his needs . and this hinders his soul from having its conversation so much in heaven ; whilst his concerns after the things of this lower world renders him very often unable , i had almost said unfit to contemplate the joys and glories of the other . but though he cannot therefore be so active in the more immediate service of god almighty , yet he spends his time in serving the order of his creation . he is honest and innocent ; and his business , though it hinders him from rising so high in religious attainments , as those who have greater leisure may ; yet at the same time keeps him from their temptations too , and from falling into any great and dangerous irregularities . whilst those who have more time for the discharge of their duty , and whose thoughts and considerations have no need to be thus employ'd upon an anxious sollicitude after the things of this world , are yet oftentimes far enough from raising them up to those of a better . they are idle and lazy : they look upon it to be one part of their birthright , indeed the great priviledge and characteristick of their condition , to have nothing to do ; and then the tempter never fails to stand ready for them : and experience shews how easie the transition is , from the doing of nothing , or that which is as good as nothing , to the doing ill. . for the second benefit , that of quicker parts , and a more ingenuous education ; it is indeed an advantage not so apt to prove a snare to men as the other ; but yet such as may be abused to very wicked purposes . and the church has in all ages had but too many instances of this kind , to shew how much more capable men of a brisk wit , and a comprehensive knowledge , are of being eminently wicked , and doing a great deal of mischief to religion than other men. what is it but this that has given birth to most of those satyrs and pasquils , wherein we find not only the mysteries of christianity , but even the practice of all religion exposed to scorn and ridicule ? i shall not need to send you back to julian and porphyry , and the like profess'd enemies to the christian faith for witnesses of this . our own age , and even our own country , has bred up those who at the same time that they have call'd themselves by the sacred name of christ , have nevertheless bid defiance to his gospel ; and esteem'd it a piece of wit and gallantry to burlesque scripture , and laugh the greatest articles of religion out of countenance . who have employ'd their parts only to find out some new colours for scepticism and infidelity : to free themselves from the practice of religion now , and to harden themselves against the fears of damnation hereafter . but shall not god visit for these things ? shall not his soul be avenged on such wretches as these ? yes , the time is coming when he shall turn all their laughter into mourning , and bring those evils upon them they now pretend to scoff at the very name of . and give them a sad and eternal conviction how much they were mistaken in their notions , when they thought profaneness to be sense ; and to make a mock of sin and damnation the only sure and approved evidence of a man of depth and knowledge : and that when all is done , what job so long since observed is indeed the very truth ; behold , the fear of the lord that is wisdom , and to depart from evil that is understanding . and when thus even mens parts and education , those best advantages to vertue and piety , may be turned into a snare and a temptation ; much more , dly , will those other benefits yet remaining , of riches , and power , and greatness , be found to fall under this reflection ; which are both infinitely more easie to be abused , and not at all less able to minister to their greater guilt , and in the consequence of that , to their more certain destruction . the truth is , whether we consult our reason or our experience ; what use such persons commonly do make of these things ; or what , without a great deal of care , they will be apt to make of them ; we shall find but too much cause to conclude what i am now asserting to be most true : that if on the one hand , riches , and greatness , and power , and advantages that both enable and engage those who have them , to do much more good in their generation than other men ; yet they may , and without very great heed , will be apt to expose them to many temptations too ; and instead of rendering them more excellently good , make them only more exceedingly wicked , than otherwise they either would , or could have been . and i shall not need to spend the time in a solemn proof of that which our saviour thought to be so very plain , as to make it almost a general rule , a kind of aphorism in christianity ; that a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of god : and of which , if you please , we will take the instance of our text for the application ; son , remember , that thou in thy life time receivedst thy good things , and likewise lazarus evil things ; but now , he is comforted and thou art tormented . and now to conclude this first point : is it thus evident , as we have seen , that persons of a greater quality and higher station in the world , do lie under much greater obligations , and have an higher and more difficult duty to fulfil than other men ? and have we so much reason to believe , that those very advantages which encrease their obligations , are at the same time but too apt to prove their greatest lets and hindrances in the fulfilling of them ? it must then remain , that either such persons as these must take a great care of themselves , or they shall more hardly be saved than those of an inferiour rank : whose duty is more easie , whose temptations are much fewer ; who have neither so great a task to fulfil , nor so many difficulties to encounter with in the fulfilling of it . which being so , let us consider , ii dly , what influence therefore this reflection ought to have upon all of us : . upon those who are great , and rich , and honourable in the world , to stir them up to an extraordinary care of their future happiness . . upon all others ; to engage them to a patient acquiescence even in the lowest and meanest condition . i st , that the consideration of what we have now been discoursing , ought to stir up all such persons as these , to a more than ordinary care of their future happiness . this is a consequence , that if men believe any thing at all of another life after this , must be allow'd to be the natural result of what we have now been discoursing . for if both the duty of such persons be greater , and their temptations stronger than other mens ; if god expects a more excellent service from them than from the ordinary sort of christians , and yet they are certainly exposed to more lets and hindrances than others usually are , in the fulfilling of it : what then can we conclude but that it will undoubtedly concern them , as they tender their eternal welfare , to look very carefully to themselves , that they neither come short in their duty , nor are carried away by the strength and force of their temptations . but here therefore a difficulty will arise ; for if the case be such as we have now shown , and as indeed our saviour christ himself hath set it out to us : if such persons as these shall hardly be saved ; and again , it be easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle , than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of heaven : will not this rather serve to discourage than to heighten their endeavours after it ? and lead them sooner to the epicure's conclusion , let us eat and drink , for to morrow we shall die ; than to the christian resolution of striving to enter in at the straight gate ; because many will seek to enter in , and shall not be able ? this indeed seems to be a very reasonable objection , and which ought to have a fair and satisfactory answer made to it . and therefore , i st , i reply : it is most certain , that were we to judge of this matter according to the power of corrupt nature , there might be but too much cause for such persons to give way to these kind of reflections , and look upon their condition as little better than desperate . and so much our saviour christ himself implies , mat. xix . . with men this is impossible ; that is to say , were we to look no farther than our own natural strength , without considering what the grace of god , and the power of his holy spirit is able to do , we might well reckon the difficulties that arise to hinder the salvation of a rich and great man to be insuperable . but with god , all things are possible ; he can make that which is thus difficult of its self , become easie to us , and remove all just cause not only of despair , but even of complaint from us , upon that account . and therefore , dly , i say , that such persons as these ought not to be at all discouraged from the prospect of any of these difficulties , because though their duty be indeed greater , and their temptations more dangerous than other mens ; yet if they do but add their earnest endeavours , god will give them such a measure of his grace , as shall be sufficient to enable them to overcome all their difficulties , and to fulfil the duty that he requires of them . jesus said , with men this is impossible , but with god all things are possible . as if he had said , to enable a rich man to despise his wealth in comparison of his duty ; to support him against the temptations it exposes him to , and to incline him to make that due use he ought of it : this is indeed a work which humane strength either could not at all , or not without some extraordinary difficulty , be able to accomplish . but let not this therefore discourage any of you ; for though humane strength cannot do it , a divine power can . and if there must be a double portion of gods spirit bestow'd upon such persons , or they cannot be saved : let them do their parts towards it ; let them pray fervently , and labour sincerely to discharge their duty , and they shall have a double portion , rather than they shall perish for want of it . god will give them an assistance suitable to their needs , and their grace shall be as much greater than that of ordinary christians , as their duty and difficulties are greater than theirs . nay , but this is not yet all : for , dly , our saviour not only assures us , that such persons shall have a measure of grace proportionable to their needs , though that had been sufficient to remove all grounds of despair from their minds : but to encourage them yet more to a carefulness in their duty , he has promised , that if they do thus heartily labour to fulfil it , they shall not only have a sufficient assistance from god to support them now , but a more glorious reward of their piety hereafter . ver. . where when st. peter remark'd to him , how they had despised all their present concerns to follow him , and become his disciples ; behold , we have forsaken all , and follow'd thee : what shall we have therefore ? he not only pronounces a blessing upon them for their piety , ver . . verily i say unto you , that ye which have follow'd me in the regeneration , when the son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory , ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones , judging the twelve tribes of israel : but makes a general promise to all others , that should not suffer any of those things they now have to draw them away from his service , that they should receive a more exceeding reward for it , ver . . and every one that hath forsaken , not only that has actually left them , but hath in his mind so given them up , as to resolve not to value any of these things in comparison of his duty ; every one that hath thus forsaken houses , or brethren , or sisters , or father , or mother , or wife , or children , or lands for my names sake , shall receive an hundred fold , and shall inherit everlasting life . and now when this is the case ; when such persons as these have not only a promise , that god will endue them with a more plentiful portion of his spirit than other men , and so render their duty , though so much greater in its self than that of others , yet to them as easie as our lesser engagements are to us ; who as we have not their difficulties , so neither have we the promises of such an assistance , as we see they have , to support us : but are moreover assur'd , that their piety shall receive a proportionable reward ; they shall as much out shine in us in the firmament of glory hereafter , as they now exceed us in their power , and riches , and in what is yet more valuable , their ability of doing good : it must certainly be very much their fault , and what will doubtless render them exceedingly more inexcusable than other men , if they be not in some measure as careful of themselves , and as zealous in their duty as all these excellent advantages engage them to be ; and as for other mens sakes as well as their own , we ought to beseech them that they would become . but this is not yet all the use we are to make of these reflections ; which ought not only to encrease the piety , and inflame the zeal of those above us : but at the same time , dly , to teach us , whom it has pleased god to place in a lower , but if we knew our own happiness , a no less blessed estate ; to be perfectly contented with our condition , though it should chance to be never so low and mean in the world. for , since this present life is but a time of tryal , a state in which we are not to continue very long , and then whatever our portion here may be , if we do but manage our selves as we ought in it , we are sure we shall be exceedingly happy in the other world : wherefore should we murmur or repine against gods providence ? as if eternal glory were not a sufficient recompence for a little trouble and misery in the pursuit of it . i confess , i am not so great a sceptick , as to go about to perswade you , that there are not some advantages in a plentiful portion of the good things of this present world : or that it is all one , whether a man be poor and despised , or else rich and honourable in it . but yet this i may affirm ; that to him who is accustomed to think , and has a quick and lively apprehension of the happiness of the other life , the wants of this will be very supportable . and while we can lookup to heaven , and there see the poor lazarus in abraham's bosome , we shall be able to find an argument not only of contentedness , but even of comfort too in the reflection ; though we should chance for the present to lie , as he once did , at the rich mans door , and feed on the crumbs that fall from his table . and , oh! that it would please god , we might all so seriously meditate on these things , that whatever our portion now be , we may have a blessed reversion in heaven ; where alone true happiness is to be expected by us . consider , i beseech you , the time is coming , it cannot be far off , when we must all lie down in the grave : when the rich and mighty shall as certainly die as the poor and miserable ; and carry none of their state and grandeur along with them . when all titles and distinctions shall be forgotten ; and the greatest monarch stand with as little advantage before the judgment-seat of christ , as the meanest of his vassals . and what will it then avail any of us , that we have been , it may be , great or honourable on earth , if we must be from henceforth miserable to all eternity ? how shall we then begin to envy the blessed fortune of those men , whom we were wont to despise heretofore ? we thought their condition poor and miserable . we esteem'd them neglected of god , the scorn of men , and out-cast of the people . but alas ! now we see the difference ; and how much more fortunate a poor good man is in the meanest estate , than the sinner in all the heighth of his most flourishing condition . and may we then every one of us so effectually ponder all these things , that whatever temporal blessings we now enjoy , yet our portion may not be in them : nor that be ever objected to us , which abraham here called the rich man in our text to consider ; son , remember , that thou in thy life-time hast received thy good things , and likewise lazarus evil things ; but now he is comforted and thou art tormented . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e vers. . psal. lxxiii . , — , — . job xxi . . psal. lxxiii . , — . — . psal. xxxvii . , — . prov. xxiv . , — . psal. xxxvii . . — . jer xii . . eccles. xi . . mat. xix . . — . — . — . luke xii . . verse . tim. vi . . — . — . gen. iii. . jer. v. . job xxviii . . mat. xix . . cor. xv . . luke xiii . . mat. xix . . — . — . — . the genuine epistles of the apostolical fathers, s. barnabas, s. ignatius, s. clement, s. polycarp, the shepherd of hermas, and the matyrdoms of st. ignatius and st. polycarp, written by those who were present at their sufferings : being, together with the holy scriptures of the new testament, a compleat collection of the most primitive antiquity for about cl years after christ / translated and publish'd, with a large preliminary discourse relating to the several treaties here put together by w. wake ... apostolic fathers (early christian collection) english. approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing g a estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) the genuine epistles of the apostolical fathers, s. barnabas, s. ignatius, s. clement, s. polycarp, the shepherd of hermas, and the matyrdoms of st. ignatius and st. polycarp, written by those who were present at their sufferings : being, together with the holy scriptures of the new testament, a compleat collection of the most primitive antiquity for about cl years after christ / translated and publish'd, with a large preliminary discourse relating to the several treaties here put together by w. wake ... apostolic fathers (early christian collection) english. wake, william, - . [ ], , [ ], - , [ ] p. printed for ric. sare ..., london : . reproduction of original in huntington library. includes index. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng ignatius, -- saint, bishop of antioch, d. ca. . clement -- i, -- pope. polycarp, -- saint, bishop of smyrna. hermas, nd cent. barnabas, -- apostle, saint. christian literature, early. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - judith siefring sampled and proofread - judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion the genuine epistles of the apostolical fathers s. barnabas , s. ignatius , s. clement , s. polycarp . the shepherd of hermas , and the martyrdoms of st. ignatius and st. polycarp , written by those who were present at their sufferings . being , together with the holy scriptures of the new testament , a compleat collection of the most primitive antiquity for about ci years after christ. translated and publish'd , with a large preliminary discourse relating to the several treatises here put together , by w. wake ▪ d.d. chapl. in ordinary to their 〈◊〉 and preacher to the honorable society of grays-inn . london printed for ric. sare at grays-inn gate next holborn . . imprimatur , apr. . . carolus alston , r.p.d. hen. episc. lond. à sacris . a catalogue of the several pieces contain'd in this book , and the order of them . a discourse concerning the treatises here collected , and the authors of them . part i. the first epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . the epistle of st. polycarp to the philippians . the genuine epistles of st. ignatius . a relation of the martyrdom of st. ignatius , written by those who were present at his sufferings . the epistle of the church of smyrna , concerning the martyrdom of st. polycarp . part ii. the catholick epistle of st. barnabas . the shepherd of hermas , in three books . the remains of st. clement's second epistle to the corinthians . an index to both parts . a discourse concerning the several treatises contain'd in the following collection ; and the authors of them . the introduction . . had i designed the following collection either for the benefit or perusal of the learned world , i should have needed to say but very little by way of introduction to it : the editors of the several treatises here put together , having already observed so much upon each of them , that it would i believe be difficult to discover , i am sure be very needless to trouble the reader with any more . . but as it would be ridiculous for me to pretend to have design'd a translation for those who are able with much more profit and satisfaction to go to the originals ; so being now to address my self to those especially who want that ability , i suppose it may not be amiss before i lead them to the discourses themselves , to give them some account both of the authors of the several pieces i have here collected ; and of the tracts themselves ; and of that collection that is now the first time made of them in our own tongue . tho' as to the first of these , i shall say the less , by reason of that excellent account that has been already given of the most of them by our pious and learned dr. cave : whose lives of the apostles and primitive fathers , with his other admirable discourse of primitive christianity , i could heartily wish were in the hands of all the more judicious part of our english readers . . nor may such an account as i now propose to my self to give of the following pieces be altogether useless to some even of the learned themselves ; who wanting either the opportunity of collecting the several authors necessary for such a search , or leisure to examin them ; may not be unwilling to see that faithfully brought together under one short and general view ; which would have required some time and labour to have search'd out , as it lay diffus'd in a multitude of writers , out of which they must otherwise have gather'd it . chap. ii. of the first epistle of s. clement to the corinthians . of the value which the ancients put upon this epistle . of st. clement himself , who was the author of it : that it was the same clement of whom s. paul speaks , phil. iv . . of his conversion to christianity : when he became bishop of rome , as also whether he suffer'd martyrdom , uncertain . of the occasion of his writing this epistle , and the two main parts of it . of the time when it was written . that there is no reason to doubt but that the epistle we now have was truly written by s. clement : the objection of tentzelius against it of no force . how this epistle was first published by mr. patrick young ; and translated by mr. burton into english. of the present edition of it . . the first tract which begins this collection , and perhaps the most worthy too , is that admirable , or as some of the ancients have called it , that wonderful epistle of s. clement to the corinthians ; and which he wrote not in his own name , but in the name of the whole church of rome to them . an epistle so highly esteem'd by the primitive church , that we are told it was wont to be publickly read in the assemblies of it : and if we may credit one of the most ancient collections of the canon of scripture , was placed among the sacred and inspired writings . nor is it any small evidence of the value which in those days was put upon this epistle , that in the only copy , which for ought we know , at this day remains of it , we find it to have been written in the same volume with the books of the new testament : and which seems to confirm what was before observed concerning it ; that it was heretofore wont to be read in the congregations , together with the holy scriptures of the apostles and evangelists . . but of the epistle it self , i shall take occasion to speak more particularly by and by . it will now be more proper to enquire a little into the author of it ; and consider when , and upon what occasion it was written by him . . and first for what concerns the person who wrote this epistle ; it is no small commendation which the holy ghost by s. paul has left us of him ; phil. iv . . where the apostle mentions him not only as his fellow-labourer in the work of the gospel ; but as one whose name was written in the book of life . a character , which if we will allow our saviour to be the judg , far exceeds that of the highest power and dignity . and who therefore when his disciples began to rejoyce upon the account of that authority which he had bestow'd upon them , insomuch that even the devils were subject unto them ; luke x. . tho' he seem'd to allow that there was a just matter of joy in such an extraordinary power , yet bade them not to rejoyce so much in this , that those spirits were subject unto them ; but rather , says he , rejoyce that your names are written in the book of life . . it is indeed insinuated by a late very learned critick , as if this were not that clement of whom we are now discoursing , and whose epistle to the corinthians i have here subjoyn'd . but besides that , he himself confesses , that the person of whom s. paul there speaks was a roman ; both eusebius and epiphanius , and s. hierome expresly tell us that the clement there meant , was the same that was afterwards bishop of rome : nor do we read of any other to whom either the character there mentioned , of being the fellow-labourer of that apostle , or the elogy given of having his name written in the book of life , could so properly belong as to him ; and whom therefore the generality of learned men both of the ancient and present times , without scruple conclude to have been referr'd to in that passage . . i shall not say any thing of what is reported by some concerning his noble birth and family ; of his studies at athens ; and of the occasion and manner of his conversion to christianity ; which they tell us , was wrought by s. peter , whom he met with barnabas at caesarea ; and who there first declared to him the doctrine of christ , and inclined him to a good opinion of it . all which is very uncertain , and justly doubted of by many . i shall chuse rather to observe that whatever his condition was before he became a christian , he was held in no small reputation after : but merited such a character from the ancient fathers , as is hardly given to any , besides the apostles . nay some of them doubt not in plain terms to call him an apostle ; and tho s. hierome durst not go so far as that , yet he gives him another title but little short of it ; he tells us that he was an apostolical man , and as ruffinus adds almost an apostle . . to declare more particularly how he spent the first part of his life after his conversion is neither necessary to the design i have now in hand , nor can any certain account be given of it . only as we are told in the general , that he was s. peter's disciple , so it may not be improbable that for some time he attended his motions , and was subject to his direction . . but whatever he was , or where-ever he laboured before , in this i think antiquity is absolutely agreed , that he at last came to be bishop of rome ; and was placed in that see by the express direction of one , or both the apostles , s. peter and s. paul : tho' whom he succeeded , or at what time to fix his entrance on that great charge , is a point that i suppose will never be agreed upon among learned men. if any could have settled this matter beyond dispute , it had without question been done by those of our own nation , who as they have the latest searched with all possible diligence into it , so never were there any better qualified for the determination of it . but as their mutual disagreement , after all their endeavours to fix this point , shews that one of them must have been mistaken ; so i doubt not but it will sufficiently satisfie all such as shall consider the high character they have so justly obtain'd both by their learning and judgment in these kind of disquisitions , that they are points not to be determined ; and that he who shall do the best upon them , may only be said to have made a good guess , in a subject too hard for any at this distance to decide . . nor is there any less controversie among learned men concerning the death of s. clement , than there has been about the order and time of his succession to his bishoprick . that he lived in expectation of martyrdom , and was ready to have undergone it , should it have pleased god to have called him to it , the epistle we are now speaking of , sufficiently shews us . but that he did glorifie god by those particular sufferings which some have pretended , is i confess to me a matter of some doubt . for , first ; it must be acknowledged that ruffinus is one of the first authors we have that speaks of him as a martyr . neither eusebius , ( who is usually very exact in his observation of such things ; ) nor any of the fathers yet nearer his time , as irenaeus , clemens alexandrinus , tertullian , &c. take any notice of it . and for the account which some others have yet more lately given us of the manner of his death , besides that in some parts of it it is altogether fabulous ; it is not improbable , but that as our learned mr. dodwell has observed the first rise of it may have been owing to their confounding flavius clemens the roman consul , with clement bishop of rome : who did indeed suffer martyrdom for the faith about the time of which they speak ; and some other parts of whose character , such as his relation to the emperour , and banishment into pontus , they manifestly ascribe to him . . however seeing eusebius refers his death to the third year of trajan famous for the persecution of the church , and may thereby seem to insinuate that clement also then suffered among the rest ; and that simeon metaphrastes has given a long and particular account of his condemnation to the mines first , and then of his death following thereupon : as i shall not determine any thing against it , so they who are desirous to know what is usually said concerning the passion of this holy man , may abundantly satisfie their curiosity in this particular , from the accurate collection of dr. cave in the life of this saint ; and which is too long to be transcribed into the present discourse . . and this may suffice to have been observed in short concerning s. clement himself : as for the epistle we are now speaking of to the corinthians , i have already taken notice how great a value was put upon it in the most primitive ages of the church , and what a mighty commendation has been left us of it , by the writers of those times . nor indeed does it at all come short of the highest praises which they have given to it ; being a piece composed with such an admirable spirit of love and charity ; of zeal towards god , and of concern for the church of christ ; of the most excellent exhortations deliver'd with the greatest plainness and simplicity of speech , and yet pressed many times with such moving eloquence too ; that i cannot imagine what could have been desired in such an epistle more proper for the end for which it was composed ; what could have been written more becoming an apostolical age , and the pen of one of the most eminent bishops of it . . but that it may be the better understood by those who shall now think fit to peruse it ; there are a few things which it will be necessary for me in this place to observe concerning it . . and the first is , the occasion that was given for the writing of this epistle . for however we have no particular account what it was , yet may we from the subject of it , give a very probable guess at it . when st. paul wrote his first epistle to the corinthians , the two great things that seem'd to have especially called for it were the divisions of that church upon the account of their teachers , and of their vain conceit of their own spiritual gifts ; and the great mistake that was getting in among them concerning the nature of the future resurrection . but tho' the apostle therefore by his writing and authority did for the present put a stop to the one , and set them right as to the other ; yet it seems after his death , they began again to fall not only into the same contentions , but into the same errour too , that had given them so much trouble before . . now this gave occasion to st. clement to write the present epistle to them : in which having first taken notice of the rise of those new seditions that were broke out among them , and exhorted them to a christian composure of them ; he in the next place goes on by many arguments to establish the undoubted truth and certainty of the future resurrection ; which was the other thing in which st. paul had before observed them to have been greatly and dangerously mistaken . . this then was the occasion , and is the main subject and design of the following epistle . but now what time it was written , it is not so easie to determine . junius supposes it was written by st. clement in the name of the church of rome , about two years before his martyrdom ; and that from the place of his banishment : which also seems to have been the opinion of our learned mr. burton in his notes on this epistle . baronius places it some six or seven years sooner , about the twelfth year of domitian : and with him cotelerius agrees ; only he supposes the persecution was then drawing towards an end ; it being otherwise unlikely that such an embassy could have been sent from rome with the epistle , as by the close of it we find there was . but mr. dodwell with much greater probability , thinks it to have been written yet sooner ; viz. immediately after the end of nero's persecution : and to that refers those troubles complain'd of by st. clement in the very beginning of his epistle , and in which he elsewhere speaks of st. peter and st. paul , as some of the latest instances of any that had died for the sake of their religion . . now that which seems yet more to countenance this opinion is , that st. clement in another part of his epistle speaks of the temple service not only as still continuing , but as being in such a state as necessarily supposes all things to be yet in peace and quiet at jerusalem . and from whence that learned man with great reason concludes , that this epistle must have been written somewhat before the xii . year of nero , in which the jewish wars first brake out . let us add to this , that in the close of this epistle we find mention made of fortunatus as the person whom the church of corinth had probably sent to rome with an account of their disasters ; and by whom together with the four delegates of their own , the roman church returned this epistle to the corinthians . now fortunatus is expresly said by st. paul to have been an old disciple in his time ; insomuch that he tells us he was the first fruits of achaia , cor. xvi . . and therefore we must conclude that this epistle could not have been written so late as some would have it , seeing this man was not only still alive , but in a condition of undertaking so great a journey as from corinth to rome : for from thence it is most likely he was sent with the letter of that church to rome ; and so became the bearer of this epistle , which was written in the name of the church of rome in answer to it . . i conclude then that this epistle was written shortly after the end of the persecution under nero , about the lxiv . year of christ : and that , as the learned defender of this period supposes , in the vacancy of the see of rome ; before the promotion of st. clement to the government of it . . but this is not yet all : there is still a difficulty remaining , and that of much greater consequence than any i have hitherto mentioned ; namely , whether the epistle we now have be , after all , the genuine epistle of st. clement , so much applauded by the ancients ; so long look'd upon as lost to us ; and so lately discover'd in the present age ? and this i mention , not that i think there is any real occasion offer'd to incline us to doubt of it ; but because i find there are some who would seem still to make a question of it . . and here , i would in the first place ask these wary men , what marks they can propose whereby to distinguish the true work of any ancient writer , from a false and supposititious , that do's not occur in the present piece ? . that st. clement wrote an epistle to the corinthians ▪ that he wrote it on the same occasion that we find expressed in this we now have ; that this epistle was of great reputation , so as to be publickly read in the churches heretofore ; all this the authority of the ancient fathers will not suffer us to doubt . that the copy we now have of this epistle was taken from the end of a manuscript of the new testament , written as is supposed about the time of the first general council of nice , within little more than two hundred years after st. clement's death ; and at the very time that it was yet wont to be so read in the churches ; both the learned editor of it assures us , and the manuscript its self sufficiently declares . now how can it be supposed , that an epistle so famous in those days ; so well known to every christian at that time , when the very copy was written , which we at this day have of it ; should have been alone concealed from the transcriber of this manuscript bible , and a spurious piece started up to supply the place of it ? . nor is this yet all : for if we have not now the true copy of this epistle , it is manifest that then neither had the ancient fathers of those first ages , a true copy of it . for the passages which they have quoted are the same in our epistle ; and so they too were imposed upon , no less than we are , in this matter . and can this be rationally supposed ? can we think that those great men , and diligent searchers into antiquity , were ignorant of an epistle , not only in every bodies hand , but almost in every bodies memory through their constant reading and hearing of it ? . yet farther : let me ask those who call in question the credit of this excellent piece ; what do they find in it either unworthy of st. clement , or disagreeable to those times in which we pretend it to have been written ? certainly , if this be a counterfeit piece , it was not only exceedingly well done ; but without any design to serve any party or interest in it : there being nothing in the whole epistle that might not have become as excellent an age , and as holy a man , as that age , and that man were , in which we have all the reason in the world to believe it was composed . ▪ but what then is it that makes these learned men so unwilling to own this epistle to be the genuine work of that holy bishop to whom we ascribe it ? it is in short this ; that the author of this epistle , in proof of the possibility of a future resurrection , asserts the story of the phoenix's reviving out of its own ashes ; which is not only a thing false in its self , but unworthy of such a person as st. clement to mention . . now not to say any thing as to this matter , ( st . ) that photius a severe critick of the ancient fathers , who first started it as a fault in st. clement that he made use of this as a true observation , which it seems the other look'd upon as a meer fable , yet did not think it any objection against the authority of this epistle , which he nevertheless acknowledg'd to be st. clements : to pass by , ( dly ; ) that the generality of the ancient fathers have made use of the very same instance , in proof of the same point ; as the learned junius has particularly shewn in his notes upon this passage ; and the authority of whose works no one yet ever called in question upon that account : i would only ask , ( dly ; ) what if st. clement really believed the account which he here gives us of this matter ? that there was such a bird ; and that he did revive out of the cinders of the body before burnt ? where was the great harm either in giving credit to such a wonder ; or believing it , to make such a use , as he here do's , of it ? . the truth is , whosoever shall consider both the general credit which this story had in those days ; and the particular accident which fell out not long before the time that this epistle was written to confirm their belief of it , ( and of which one of the most judicious of all the roman historians has given us a large account ; ) i mean of the phoenix that was said to have come into egypt a little after the death of christ , and to have given occasion , of much discourse to the most learned men , both of the greeks and romans , concerning the very miracle of which st. clement here speaks ; will find it to have been no such strange thing in this holy man to have suffer'd himself to be led away with the common opinion ; and to have believed what so many learned men did among the jews and gentiles , no less than among the christians , viz. that god was pleased to give to the world this great earnest and type of a future resurrection ; and to silence thereby the cavils of such as should pretend , what we know the generality of the wise men of the world did , that it was impossible for god to effect such a restitution . . but i insist too long on so trifling an objection ▪ however magnified by some men ; and may , i think , from what i have already said conclude ; that if this be indeed , as they confess it is , the greatest ground they have to call in question the credit of this epistle ; there is then nothing that ought to move any considering man to entertain the least doubt or scruple concerning it . . there are indeed two other exceptions which photius has made against st. clement upon the account of the epistle before us , which yet he look'd upon as unquestionably his ; the one for that he speaks in it of the worlds beyond the ocean ; the other , in that he seems not to have written so honourably as was sitting , of the divinity of our blessed saviour . but as the latter of these is but a meer cavil against this holy man , who in his other epistle expresly asserts his divine nature , and even in this speaks in such a manner of him , as shews him to be much more than a meer creature : so in the former he said nothing but what was agreeable both to the notions and language of the times in which he lived ; when it was common to call our british isles another world ; or as st. clement here stiles them the worlds beyond the ocean . . and these i think are the chief exceptions that have been at any time raised against the following epistle ; and which however insisted upon in these latter days , yet did not hinder the first and best ages of the church , when men were less curious , but much more pious , from putting a very great value upon it . nor will they i suppose have any more weight with any serious and ingenuous mind now : or hinder him from esteeming it a very great blessing to our present times , that a work so highly esteemed among the ancient fathers , but so long , and as it was justly feared , irrecoverably lost to these latter ages , was at last so happily found out , for the encrease and confirmation both of our faith and piety . . now the manner of its discovery and publication was this . it happen'd about the beginning of the present age , that cyril patriarch of alexandria being removed from thence to constantinople , brought along with him a great treasure of books to that place . among the rest he had a very ancient manuscript copy both of the septuagint old , and of the new greek testament ; written but little more than three hundred years after christ. this he sent , as the most valuable present that he was master of , to our late royal sovereign king charles the first , by sir thomas roe , his majesty's ambassadour at that time at the port. being thus brought into england , and placed in the royal library at st. james's , mr. patrick young the learned keeper of the king's library at that time , discover'd this epistle , with part of another , at the end of the new testament ; and was thereupon commanded by his majesty to publish it for the benefit of the world. this he accordingly did , with a latin translation , and notes at oxford , anno : it was not long after that a very learned man , and a great master of the greek tongue , mr. william burton , translated it into english , and publish'd it very accurately , and with new annotations of his own upon it . this i had not seen till the first sheets of the present edition were sent to the press ; nor had i any other knowledge either of that or of the author , than what i found in the accounts given by our reverend dr. cave , and the late monsieur colomesius of the one , and by our laborious antiquary mr. a. wood of the other ; in his useful collection of the lives and writings of our modern authors . and though i believe whosoever shall take the pains to compare the two translations together , will find them generally agreeing as to the sense ; yet there will otherwise appear such manifest differences between them , as may abundantly satisfie any indifferent person , that i have tuly translated it from the original greek , and not revised only mr. burton's edition of it . chap. iii. of the epistle of st. polycarp to the philippians . of the time when st. polycarp wrote this epistle . the reason of its being placed before the epistles of ignatius . that st. polycarp wrote several other pieces : yet nothing of his now remaining but only this epistle . whether this epistle has been interpolated , as those of ignatius were ? the latter part of it vindicated against the exceptions of monsieur daillé , and some others . of the translation of it into our own language by dr. cave ; and of the present edition of it . . the next piece that follows in the present collection , is the epistle of st. polycarp to the philippians . in placing of which i have follow'd the example , not so much of our most reverend archbishop vsher , as of st. polycarp himself : though in the order of time the epistles of ignatius ought to have had the precedence ; st. polycarp not writing this letter to the philippians till about the time that that glorious martyr suffer'd for the faith of christ ; as from several passages in the epistle it self may plainly be made appear . . for first ; having in his ix th chapter exhorted the philippians to obey the word of righteousness , and to exercise all patience after the examples of those holy men whom they had seen among them ; he particularly instances in ignatius as one of them . now the acts of the martyrdom of that holy martyr tell us , that the time when they beheld his patience set forth before their eyes was , when he passed by them in chains to rome in order to his being cast to the wild beasts , according to the sentence pronounced upon him by the emperour trajan : by consequence that this epistle must have been written some time after his condemnation . . but st. polycarp goes yet farther ; and in the next words supposes , that ignatius might have been dead at the time that he wrote to them . for enforcing his exhortation to them to follow the examples of ignatius , and the rest of those excellent men whom he there names , he subjoyns ; being confident of this , that all these have not run in vain , but in faith and righteousness , and are gone to the place that was due to them from the lord , with whom also they suffered . for they loved not this present world , but him who died , and was raised again by god for us . in which words he evidently implies that ignatius too , as well as the rest of those whom he there mentions was by this time gone to the place that was due to him from the lord , upon the account of his sufferings ; and by consequence had finished his martyrdom . . it was then about the time of ignatius's death that s. polycarp wrote this epistle to the philippians . and yet that if this holy man had suffer'd , it was but a very little time that he had done so , is clear from another passage of the same epistle : where he desires the philippians to send him word what they had heard with any certainty concerning ignatius , and those that went to rome with him . and from whence it appears , that though he supposed that ignatius by that time might have suffer'd , yet he had not received any certain account of it , but was still to learn the manner and circumstances of his passion . . now this will lead us to a yet more exact conjecture of the time of st. polycarp's writing the following epistle ; viz. that it must have been just about the time of st. ignatius's death : it being no way probable that had ignatius been any long time dead , so great a bishop , and so dear a friend of his as st. polycarp was , should have been still to learn the certainty of it . . and this may serve , by the way , not only to fix the time when this epistle was written ; but also to shew how groundless the exception of those men is against the authority of it , who pretend to find out a contradiction between the two passages i have now mentioned : and would from thence infer either the utter falseness of this whole epistle ; or at least conclude that this latter part of it is none of polycarp's , but added by some latter hand to give the greater credit to the epistles of st. ignatius , which they are resolved by all means to reject as none of his . for indeed were not men willing to be contentious , where is the contradiction they so much boast of between the two places i have before alledged ? is it that in the former of them he sets before them the sufferings of st. ignatius , and exhorts them to follow the example of his patience ? but 't is evident the sufferings he there speaks of were those which the philippians had seen in him . the weight of his chains ; the hardships of his journey ; the rudeness of the souldiers that guarded him ; and of which the blessed martyr himself complains in one of his epistles ; and to add no more , the expectation of that cruel death he was suddainly to undergo . . but i suppose the contradiction lies in what follows ; that in one place he speaks of him as if he had already suffered ; and yet in the other desires the philippians to send him word what they heard of him . now what is there in all this that does not very well agree together ? st. polycarp , either by the computation of the arrival of ignatius at rome ; or by the consideration of the solemn festival that was wont at that time to be held there ; and at which it was usual to exhibit such kind of spectacles to the people ; or it may be , lastly , from the accounts which he had received of the holy martyr from some of those that were with him ; did suppose , nay if you will , did not doubt but that ignatius was dead when he wrote his epistle to the philippians . yet having not hitherto received any certain account of it , and being not sure whether he had suffered or no ; or if he had , how he had been treated by his enemies , and how he had behaved himself in his last encounter with the beasts ; desires the philippians , who were much nearer to rome than he was , and might therefore very probably have heard much later from thence than he had done , to send him a certain account of what they knew as to this matter . what is there in this , i do not say that looks like a contradiction , but that is not very natural : and particularly most becoming the love and friendship of the blessed polycarp towards him concerning whom he so diligently enquired ? i am sure photius who not only had read this epistle , but transcribed this last passage out of it , tho' as severe a critick as any that have ever perused it since , saw no contradiction in it to any thing that went before . since if he had , he was not of a humour to have let it pass , without making some reflection or other upon it . . let me add yet more , that neither could those see the contradiction here pretended , who in our present times would have been as forward as any to have made use of it to the disadvantage of this epistle , had they had but the least grounds so to do . i shall instance only in two ; the first , the late learned divine of leyden , monsieur le moyne : who tho' he judged the passage relating to st. ignatius's epistles , which was wanting in his manuscript , to be abrupt , and would from thence argue against the authority of it ; yet has made no reflection on the words immediately following , and in which those others will have the contradiction to lie . . the other that i shall mention in opposition to this pretence , is a yet later writer , ernestus tentzelius ; who tho' no great friend to this epistle , which he supposes to have been corrupted , no less than those of ignatius were in the antient editions of them ; yet utterly refuses to comply with this objection , as not apprehending that there was the least ground for it . . but to return from this digression , in answer to the exception of two of the most learned adversaries of this epistle , against the credit of it : tho' as i have now shewn , st. polycarp wrote not to the philippians till after the death of st. ignatius , and consequently this epistle in order of time ought to have been placed after those which the other wrote immediately before it : yet was it fit to give this the precedency in the following collection , both as containing a most proper introduction to the epistles of ignatius ; and as having in all probability been first sent in the same order , by st. polycarp to the philippians . . for thus we find that holy man speaking to them in the close of his letter : the epistles of ignatius which he wrote unto us , together with what others of his have come to our hands , we have sent unto you according to your order ; which are subjoyn'd to this epistle . so both eusebius transcribed it out of the original greek ; and so we find it in our antient latin version , which is all that remains of that part of this epistle . and from whence our learned arch-bishop usher with great reason concludes , that st. polycarp caused the copies of st. ignatius's epistles to be immediately added at the end of his own ; and sent them to the philippians together with it . . and this perhaps may have been one great means of preserving this epistle of st. polycarp from the fate that has attended all the rest of his writings . for being wont to be transcribed together with those of ignatius , and commonly placed at the front of them ; they mutually help'd to secure one another : whilst the rest of his epistles , for want of being thus collected together , have for a long time been so utterly lost to the world , that neither photius , nor st hierome , nor eusebius , nor even irenaeus himself , the disciple of st. polycarp , seems to have had any particular catalogue of them . . indeed for what concerns the last of these , i mean irenaeus ; he tells us that this great man did write several epistles , not only to the neighbouring churches , to confirm them in the faith ; but even to particular persons , for their instruction and admonition . but what they were , or to whom they were sent , neither does he say , nor does eusebius , where he speaks of the writings of st. polycarp , mention any more , than that epistle to the philippians , of which we are now discoursing . and tho' a few later authors pretend to give us the very titles of some other of his works ; yet have we reason to doubt from this silence of those who lived the nearest to his time , that their authority is but small ; nor can we say that even the pieces which they name , are any where to be found at this day . . nor shall i except here those fragments lately published by fevardentius out of victor capuanus ; and reprinted by bishop usher in his appendix to ignatius . in which as there are some things which neither father halloix , nor our learned vsher could approve of , as written by st. polycarp ; so the distance of him who was the first collector of them from the time of that blessed martyr ; and the manifest proofs he has on other occasions given of his little care and judgment in distinguishing the works of the antient fathers who lived any long time before him ; not to say any thing of the passages themselves ascribed to st. polycarp , but little agreeable to the apostolical age : all these considerations have justly restrained learned men from giving any great credit to these fragments , or from receiving them as belonging in any wise to so antient an author . . but whatever becomes of these fragments , certain it is that the epistle which i have here subjoyn'd is the genuine work of this holy man ; and worthy of that great character which antiquity has given of it . even monsieur daillé himself confesses that excepting only the close of it , against which it was necessary for him to declare himself ; there is nothing in it that either ought to offend any , or that may be thought unworthy of polycarp . but le moyne goes yet farther ; he declares that he does not see how any one can entertain the lest suspicion against it : that there is not perhaps any work extant , that has more certain evidences of its being genuine , than this : in short , that if it shall be lawful to doubt of this , there will be no monument of antiquity left which we may not as well call in question , and reject as spurious . . indeed so general is the reception which learned men on all sides have given to this epistle , that i might well omit any further discourse in confirmation of the credit and authority of it . but yet seing there have been two things started by some of late , if not utterly to destroy , yet at least to lessen the reputation of this piece ; i will consider in short what may fairly be replied to both their exceptions . . now the first is that of tentzelius , in his exercitation upon this epistle : who tho' he allows it to be undoubtedly genuine , yet supposes it to have been corrupted by the same hand that we confess did corrupt the epistles of ignatius , about dc years after christ. but to this i reply ; st . that it is allow'd that there is nothing in this epistle that may give any just grounds for the suspicion of any such fraud as this : it being acknowledged even by mons r daillé himself , one of the greatest adversaries of it , to be an epistle in all respects worthy of st. polycarp , excepting only in the close of it , which i shall more particularly consider by and by . so that either we have then this epistle pure and uncorrupted as it was first written ; or at least we have it so little prejudiced by any alterations that may have been made in it , that there is nothing in the epistle , as it now is , dangerous in point either of faith or manners ; or that might not have well enough been written by st. polycarp . but now this was not the case with the epistles of st. ignatius ; which not only laboured under many impertinencies unbecoming the character of that great man , but was fraught with many things that were altogether fabulous : nay if we may credit arch-bishop usher , had some passages in them that tended to corrupt the very faith of christ , in one of the most considerable points of it . . but secondly , that the epistles of st. ignatius had been corrupted , was evident from disagreement of the copies which we usually had of them , from the quotations of the ancient fathers of the first five centuries out of them . now this was a most unquestionable demonstration of their having been changed from what they were in those first ages in which those fathers lived : and accordingly proved to be so , when the old latin version of bishop vsher first , and then the florentine greek edition of the learned isaac vossius , came to be compared with those editions that had before been extant of them but neither does this exception appear against the present epistle , which agrees with what is quoted both by eusebius and others out of it ; and thereby clearly shews our present copy to be sincere and un-corrupted . . seeing then there is nothing but a mere conjecture for the depravation of this epistle , and such just reason to conclude that there is no good foundation for it ; to be sure none that may compare with the arguments we have against it : i think we may conclude , that for any thing yet appears to the contrary , we not only have the genuine epistle of st. polycarp , but that epistle free from any designed corruptions or depravations of it . . nor is there any more , that i do not say there is much less weight , in the other supposal of monsieur daillé , continued and abetted by his learned defender monsieur larroque , tho' without any more weight of reason than what had been before fully answer'd by our most learned and judicious bishop pearson : namely ; that this epistle originally ended at the doxology which we meet with chapter the xii th , and that what follows concerning the epistles of st. ignatius , has been added to it by some latter hand . but now , what proof do they offer of this ? what authority have they to support such a supposition ? this they pretend not to : all they have to say is , that the doxology which we find there seems to imply that the epistle originally went no farther ; and that in what follows there is a flat contradiction to what went before ; the close of the epistle speaking of ignatius as if he were still alive , whom the true popolycarp had before set forth to the philippians as having suffer'd , and been gone to the place that was prepared for him . . as for what concerns the latter of these suggestions , i have already fully shewn how vain and groundless it is . nor can we reasonably suppose that any one who designed to serve a turn by corrupting such an epistle as this , would have been either so negligent as not once to read over the piece he was about to make so considerable an addition to ; or having read it , would have been so foolish , as to have , without any need , subjoyn'd a request to the philippians , directly contrary to what the true polycarp had told them before ; and which by consequence would be sure to discover the fraud , and frustrate the design of it . . so little appearance of reason is there in this suggestion , which yet these learned men insist upon , as their main argument against the latter part of this epistle . as for the other objection which they bring against it , viz. that st. polycarp must have concluded at the xii th chapter , because of the vow which he there makes for these to whom he wrote ; i reply , first : that this is at the best but a very uncertain guess ; seeing it is notorious to all that have ever read the epistles either of the apostles , or those that followed after , that nothing is more common than to meet with such kind of conclusions , not only in the end , but in the beginning , and middle ; in short , in all the parts of their epistles . to look no farther than the epistle , with which we have begun this collection , of st. clement to the corinthians : how many of these sort of stops may we find in the progress of it ? i am sure there are not less than seven or eight of them . but i suppose he would be thought very ridiculous who should therefore reject all that follow'd the first of these , as none of st. clement's , but pieced on to the end of his epistle by some other hand , merely because the doxology seem'd to imply his having concluded there . . but to lay aside conjectures , and proceed to that , which will put a final end to this difficulty ; i observe , dly , that this passage which these men deny to be st. polycarps , and suppose to have been added to it by some latter hand , is expresly quoted by eusebius in his ecclesiastical history , as a part of this epistle . if therefore it be the addition of some other hand , 't is evident it was made to it before eusebius's time , that is to say , within two hundred years after the time of st. polycarp's writing of it ; and whether this be probable we will now more particulary enquire . . for the better clearing of which i must observe , that this epistle of st. polycarp , like that of st. clement foregoing , was for several hundreds of years wont to be publickly read in the churches of asia : so st. jerome expresly assures us ; or as his interpreter sophronius renders him , in the synod or convention of asia . by which a learned man supposes we are to understand some common meetings of the christians in those parts , answerable to the like assemblies of the gentiles there ; and that in these this epistle was wont to be read to them . . hence irenaeus speaks of it as an epistle that was in every bodies hand ; and obvious to be read by any , for the benefit of their faith and manners . which being so , it can hardly be supposed but that so inquisitive a searcher into antiquity as eusebius was , must needs have been very well acquainted with it ; and doubtless have had a true and genuine copy of it . seeing then he produces this passage as a part of that epistle which was generally received as authentick in his days ; and that the epistle its self being spread into all hands , and publickly read in the eastern churches immediately after the death of its great author , could not have been corrupted or alter'd , but the cheat must needs have been discover'd ; of which yet we have not the least intimation in all antiquity : i think it cannot be doubted but that this , as well as the rest of that epistle , was written by st. polycarp himself ; and not added to his epistle by some latter hand , as is suggested , not only without all ground , but against such plain and un-answerable evidence to the contrary . . having said thus much in vindication of this epistle , and to clear it from those prejudices that have of late been raised against it ; it remains only for me to observe , that though the following translation was truly made from the greek and latin copies of it , set out by bishop vsher first , and since reprinted by cotelerius in his collection of the apostolical fathers ; yet is not this the first time that this epistle has appear'd in our language . for our most diligent and learned country-man dr. cave , having a just respect to the worth of a piece so highly applauded among the ancients , and so well deserving the esteem of all good men ; thought it would be no unuseful digression to present to his reader so venerable a monument of the primitive church : and therefore subjoyn'd it intirely to his account of the life of st. polycarp , in a most accurate english translation of it . . it would no doubt have been more to the readers satisfaction , to have met with that translation of this epistle here , than to find another which he may have just reason to suppose can never equal that which was finish'd by so great a hand . and indeed i could have been glad to have render'd the following collection more considerable , by the reputation of a translation made by so eminent an author . but however , as it now is , i hope it may not be unacceptable to the pious peruser of it : who , whatever other defects he may find in it , may yet , i am pretty confident , depend upon the exactness of the translation ; seeing i perceive by an after collation of it , that it does not differ in any thing that is material , from that of the judicious and worthy dr. cave . chap. iv. of the epistles of st. ignatius . of the different editions of st. ignatius's epistles : which are here translated from that of isaac vossius , and according to the enumeration made by eusebius of them . the authority of these epistles vindicated , against the objections raised of late against them . the epistle to st. polycarp one of those mentioned by eusebius : the exception against it taken from the substance of the epistle its self answer'd . a short account of the following translation of all of them . . before i enter upon that account which it will be fitting for me to give of the epistles of st. ignatius , ( the next that follow in the present collection ; ) it will be necessary for me to observe , that there have been considerable differences in the editions of the epistles of this holy man , no less than in the judgment of our latter criticks concerning them . to pass by the first , and most imperfect of them ; the best that for a long time was extant , contained not only a great number of epistles falsly ascribed to this author , but even those that were genuine so alter'd and corrupted , that it was hard to find out the true ignatius in them . . the first that began to remedy this confusion , and to restore this great writer to his primitive simplicity , was our most reverend and learned arch-bishop usher , in his edition of them at oxford , anno . but still we wanted a correct copy of the original greek ; the epistles set out by him , though exceedingly more sincere than any we had seen before , yet consisting only of the old latin translations of them . now this was in great measure perform'd by the learned isaac vossius , in the edition published by him at amsterdam , anno : and presenting us from the florentine manuscript with six of the epistles of this holy martyr mentioned by eusebius , in their ancient and pure greek ; and the seventh so happily amended , that there is but little doubt to be made of the integrity of that too . and concerning these epistles of st. ignatius , enumerated by eusebius , and set out according to their primitive purity by these two great men , and from them translated into the following collection ; there are two things to be consider'd and proved by me in this place : first , that st. ignatius did write such epistles as those we have here translated : and secondly ; that those epistles we here have , are the very epistles that he wrote . . that ignatius did , in general , write some epistles to the churches about him , however it has been deny'd by some , is yet i think now universally allow'd even by those who are the greatest opposers of those epistles which we affirm to be his . that he wrote to those particular churches to which the epistles here subjoyn'd are addressed , we have both st. polycarp and eusebius to assure us . for , first ; st. polycarp , in the close of his epistle , ( which i am now to look upon as sufficiently proved to be his ) speaking to the philippians of this holy man , tells them ; that he had sent them all such epistles of his , as ignatius had either written to himself , or to his church at smyrna , or as had hitherto come to his hands . so that here then we have a plain account of two of those epistles which we affirm ignatius to have written ; one to st. polycarp himself , another to the church of smyrna . . but eusebius will enable us to carry this testimony yet farther : whilst assuring us , that he wrote four epistles from smyrna ; namely to the churches of ephesus , magnesia , tralles and rome ; he gives us just grounds to conclude that these also must have been part of st. polycarp's collection ; and have been some of those others , besides the two before mentioned , which he tells us he sent to the philippians . unless we should suppose that either he knew not of ignatius's writing , though every day , almost every hour , with him at the time that he wrote them : or else that knowing of it , he took no care to preserve the copies of his epistles ; which yet we see he put the highest value , that can well be imagined , upon . seeing therefore we cannot with any reason suppose , either that st. polycarp did not know of ignatius's writing to these churches ; nor is it probable , that being present with him at the writing of them , and acquainted with it , he should not have kept any copies of his letters to them : seeing lastly ; he himself tells us that he had copies of more of the epistles of this great saint , besides those that were sent to smyrna , and that what he had , he sent to the philippians ; neither can we reasonably doubt but that these also were in his hands , and sent by him to the church at phillipi . . and thus have we i think upon very good grounds concluded that six of the seven epistles , which we affirm to have been written by st. ignatius , were collected by st. polycarp ; and sent , together with his own epistle , to the philippians . let me add yet farther , that neither can we reasonably question but that the seventh too was at that time in the hands of st. polycarp ; and by consequence , that what we now have is no other collection , than what he made , and by that means help'd to preserve to after ages , of the epistles of this holy martyr . now this i conclude not only from the nearness of the church of philadelphia , to which it was written , to that of symrna in which st. polycarp presided ; and from the great respect which all the neighbouring churches payd to him , as a kind of universal bishop of the whole lesser asia ; but from the conclusion of the epistle its self : which tells us that it was sent by ignatius to the philadelphians , not only from the same place , and at the same time , that he wrote to st. polycarp himself , and to his church of smyrna ; but also by the same person that carried the other two ; and that person st. polycarps own deacon , whom he had sent with ignatius to troas , and by whom ignatius wrote back that epistle . . st. polycarp then certainly knew of ignatius's writing to the philadelphians ; and very probably sent on burrhus his deacon from smyrna to philadelphia , with his letter . and then i think we may very reasonably conclude , that he brought back with him the copy of it ; and so that st. polycarp had that epistle too in his hands , when he wrote to the philippians . . such good grounds have we to believe , that the collection we now have of st. ignatius's epistles , was no other than what st. polycarp himself made ; and refer'd to in that passage of his own epistle to the philippians , which i have before shewn to be truly his , and not the addition of any latter hand . and the same is the account which eusebius himself has given us of this matter . he tells us that as ignatius was on his way to rome , where he was to be cast to the wild beasts ; he not only confirm'd the churches that were in the places through which he passed , by his exhortations , but wrote to the chiefest of those others that were near , such epistles as these of which we are now speaking . and that , as he goes on , in this following order . first , from smyrna , where he tarried some time with his old acquaintance and fellow-disciple st. polycarp , he wrote to the ephesians , magnesians , trallians and romans : and being gone farther on his way to troas , he from thence wrote to the philadelphians , and smyrneans ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , and a particular letter to polycarp , the bishop of smyrna . . i say nothing to the testimony of st. hierome as to this matter , who as he exactly agrees with eusebius in all this , so i make no question but that he transcribed his account out of him . it is i think sufficiently evident from what has been already observed , not only that st. ignatius did in general write some epistles which even mounsieur daillé himself thinks ought not to be any question ; but that he wrote to those particular churches to which the epistles we now have , are directed ; and of which i am perswaded there ought to be as little doubt . . as for the other point proposed , and in which the foregoing also will be yet more fully confirmed ; namely , that those epistles we now have are the same that ignatius wrote : two things there are that seem to determine our belief of it . first ; that there is nothing in these epistles , as we now have them , either unworthy of the spirit of ignatius , or the character that antiquity has given us of them : nothing disagreeing to the time in which he wrote , or that should seem to speak them to have been the work of any latter author ; which hardly ever fails to appear in such pieces as are falsly imposed upon ancient authors ; and which not appearing in these epistles , inclines us the more readily to conclude that they were undoubtedly written by him whose they are said to be . . but this is only a presumptive argument in favour of these epistles ; and which though it may serve to dispose us the more readily to receive them as true and genuine , yet is not alone sufficient to prove them so to be . the other argument i have now to offer is positive and convincing ; namely , that we find these epistles , as they now are , exactly agreeing both with the descriptions which st. polycarp and eusebius have left us of those which they took to be the authentick epistles of this holy man ; and with the numerous quotations which the ancient fathers have taken out of them ; and which all occur in the same words , in our present copies of them , that they are cited in their writings . . this has been so fully shewn by our most learned bishop pearson , and indeed was so manifest of its self to any one that had ever made any comparisons of this kind ; that monsieur daillé himself could not deny but that we have the same epistles now , that eusebius , athanasius , st. jerome , theodoret and gelasius had heretofore . so that the only question then to be consider'd by us is ; whether those which eusebius , &c. had , were not counterfeit , but the true epistles of this great martyr . . and here , first , it is evident , that if those epistles which eusebius first , and then the rest of those great men i before mentioned , took for the genuine epistles of st. ignatius , were none of his ; the true epistles , which i have just now shewn , and which it is confes'd were written by him , must before that time have been utterly lost , or otherwise destroyed out of the world : it being very improbable that had the true epistles been still remaining , neither so inquisitive a searcher into antiquity as eusebius should have heard of them , nor such great and learned men as those that followed after , have had any suspition of such a deceit . but now whether this be probable ; whether it can be supposed that such epistles as these , directed to so many great and eminent churches , collected by so venerable a man as st. polycarp , and written by so glorious a martyr as st. ignatius , should within so little time be utterly lost out of the church ; i shall leave it to any one , who considers how great a reverence the primitive christians had for every thing that came from the hands of such holy and excellent men , and such glorious martyrs of christ , to determine . . we read in the acts of the martyrdom of this blessed saint , with what a mighty care those who went with him to rome , and were the eye-witnesses of his sufferings , gathered up the few hard bones of his body which the lions had left ; and how they brought them back in a kind of triumph to his church at antioch . and we are told with what pomp they were many ages after taken up from the place where they were first buried , and carried by the command of the younger theodosius within the city : insomuch that as our historians observe , there was a festival solemnity established upon that occasion ; and annually observed to the very time in which they wrote , in remembrance of it . but was the church then so careful of a few dead bones of such a saint as this , and did they esteem them as so great a treasure ; and yet had they so little regard to his writings , the last testimonies of his affection to the churches to which he wrote , as to suffer them within two hundred years to be so utterly lost , as not to be once known or heard of , by the greatest and most curious searchers into antiquity ? this is , i confess , to me so very improbable , that i could almost as easily believe the holy scriptures themselves to have been upon a suddain changed into some other epistles than what st. peter or st. paul wrote ; as that such epistles as these could be so totally defaced , as some pretend , and new ones set out in the room of them , and yet no body know any thing of the doing of it . but such impossibilties as these must learned men be content to please themselves , and impose upon others withall , who resolve to be wiser than any that went before them ; and to be able to know better at fiftteen hundred years distance what ignatius wrote , than those who lived within two generations of him . . for to press our argument yet more closely : since it is allow'd that ignatius did write some epistles , and i think sufficiently evident that st. polycarp did make a collection of them , and send them together with his own to the philippians ; i presume it will not be question'd but that he most certainly had the genuine writings of that holy martyr , his dear friend and fellow-disciple . now st. polycarp suffer'd not according to the earliest computation of our accurate bishop pearson till the year of our saviour . and others suppose it to have been yet later . hitherto therefore it is certain that the true epistles of ignatius continued in the church : it being by no means probable that they should have been changed whilst the men lived to whom ignatius wrote ; whilst polycarp was living who collected them together ; and whilst those of the church of philippi remained , to whom he sent them . . to st. polycarp let us add his scholar and admirer , irenaeus ; and as himself professes a most diligent collector of whatever fell from that holy man. that he had the epistles of st. ignatius , eusebius assures us ; who particularly takes notice of his quoting several passages out of them . and one of his quotations he mentions out of the works of irenaeus which still remain : and of which though the greek be lost , yet the old latine version , as well as the greek of eusebius , shews us , that it was taken out of the epistle of ignatius to the romans , where it still occurs in our present copy of it . and it must be allow'd that the other passages of which eusebius speaks , were also to have been found the epistles as he had them : because otherwise , the difference between what the one quoted , and the other read in his copy of those epistles , would presently have discovered the fraud ; and shewn that his epistles were not the same with those which irenaeus mentioned . . and this puts the matter yet more out of doubt : for if eusebius had the same epistles that irenaeus had , we must allow one of these two things ; either that he had a genuine copy of them , as we affirm ; or that irenaeus , the disciple and contemporary of st. polycarp had not ; which we think it very unreasonable to suppose . . for not to say any thing as to this matter , that irenaeus lived too near the time both in which ignatius wrote , and st. polycarp collected his epistles , to have been imposed upon in this particular : seeing he himself tells us how careful he was to gather up whatever came from the hand of the blessed polycarp , and that he not only had the epistles of ignatius , as appears by his citing of them ; but , as himself declares , had also the epistle of polycarp to the philippians ; at the end of which the epistles of ignatius were subjoyned : what can we conclude , but that the copy he had of both was taken from that of his master polycarp ; which being to be sure authentick , it must remain that irenaeus's was so too . . were it needful to add any thing yet farther to shew that eusebius , who is confessed to have had the same copy of st. ignatius that we have now , had no other than that of st. polycarp so often mentioned ; i might to the testimony of irenaeus , before alledged , add that of origen , who began to live some time before the other died . now this father has not only spoken of these epistles , but has left us two quotations to this day out of them ; and both to be found in our copies which we suppose to be true and authentick . and from him to eusebius was not above half a century ; too little a while for so great an alteration to have been made in writings spread up and down into so many hands ; read by all the learned and pious men of those days ; and upon all these accounts utterly uncapable of such a change , as is without the authority of one single writer , only upon i know not what conjectures , supposed to have been made in them . . but i enlarge my self too much in so plain a matter ; and which i should hardly have thought worth the examining thus distinctly , had it not engaged the pens of so many learned men of the reformed religion , that it might have seem'd too great an omission in such a discourse as this , not to have given some account of it . as for what we find a late learned man advancing in opposition to the authority of these epistles , that our copies , though exceedingly more perfect than any that were ever extant before that those great men bishop usher and isaac vossius set out the one , the old latin versions ; the other , the original greek , from the manuscript which he found in the florentine library of it ; yet there may be reason still to suspect that they are not so free from all corruptions as were to be wish'd : i reply ; that if he means that the same has happen'd to these epistles as has done to all other ancient writings , that letters , or words have been mistaken , and perhaps even the pieces of some sentences corrupted , either by the carelesness or ignorance of the transcribers ; i see no reason why we should deny that to have befallen these epistles , which has been the misfortune of all other pieces of the like antiquity . this therefore , it has been often declared , that neither do we contend about ; nor can any one , who reads the best copies we have of them with any care or judgment , make any doubt of it . but as for any larger interpolations , such as were those of the copies before extant ; for any changes or mistakes that may call in question either the credit or authority of these epistles as we now have them ; we utterly deny that there are any such in these last editions of them ; nor has that learned man offer'd any thing to induce us to believe that there are . . and here i should have concluded these reflections , but that there is yet one thing more to be taken notice of , and which must by no means be passed by ; namely , that our most learned archbishop usher himself , though he agrees with us as to the authority of the other six epistles here translated , yet doubts whether the seventh , written to st. polycarp , be genuine or no. nor do's isaac vossius himself deny but that there are some things in it that may seem to render it suspicious ; though more to prove it to be authentick . for st , st. polycarp expresly assures us that ignatius had written to him ; so both eusebius and s. hierome teach us to understand his expression ; they mention the epistle to polycarp , as distinct from that to the church of smyrna : and dly , the ancient fathers quote it as ignatius's no less than the rest : and from all which it seems to be very plain , that this also has the same evidence of being written by ignatius that any of the rest have ; and therefore that he who allows it as sufficient for them , ought not to refuse it for this . . as for that which seems to be the most difficult to account for in it , namely his writing after such a manner to so great a bishop , and so old a man , as he do's to polycarp ; chap. v , vi. it is rightly observed by vossius in his annotations on those chapters , that he speaks in them not to st. polycarp ; but by a usual change of person , shews what he would have polycarp say to his church : and whosoever shall consider in what manner he brings in what he there delivers ; say to my sisters , &c. and again , exhort my brethren , &c. will presently see , how those instructions are to be understood . . and now it remains only that i give some short account of the following translation of these epistles . the copies from which i did it were those of isaac vossius and bishop usher ; comparing both as i had occasion with the late edition of cotelerius . in the salutation of the epistle to the romans i have departed from all of them , and follow'd the correction of that judicious man , whose name i mention in the margent of it . i thought my self the more at liberty to do this , because that this epistle was not found in the florentine manuscript ; but made up in some measure from the latin versions , by the conjectures of learned men : among whom i think i shall offend none , if in judging of these kind of things , and especially of this author , i shall allow bishop pearson the first place . for the rest i have kept as strictly to the text of vossius , as the sense would permit me to do : only where a place was manifestly imperfect i have sometimes taken the liberty to express my own conjectures , though differing from those of others , with whom nevertheless i pretend not to compare my self . but then i seldome do this without taking notice of it , and telling my reader to whom he may recur for a somewhat different opinion . if after all there shall appear some faults in my translation ; though i may modestly say i have taken what care my little acquaintance in these matters would enable me to do , to avoid them ; i desire it may be consider'd that i had a difficult author , and an imperfect copy to deal with ; and i shall be very ready thankfully to amend any error , that any more discerning person shall think fit to advertise me of , if ever this collection should be thought worthy to come to a second edition . chap. v. of the martyrdom of st. ignatius ; and of the following relation of it , written by those who were present at his sufferings . of the life of st. ignatius ; whence he was called theophorus ? that he never saw christ ; but was converted to christianity by the apostles : and by them made bishop of antioch . how he behaved himself in that station ? of his death : why he was sent from antioch to rome , in order to his suffering there ? metaphrastes account of the effect which his death wrought upon the emperour trajan , rejected . how the persecution of the christians came to be mitigated about the time that he suffered ? an enquiry into the time of his martyrdom . . in the foregoing chapter i have given such an account of the epistles of st. ignatius as seem'd necessary to vindicate the authority of them , and to remove those prejudices which some had of late endeavour'd to raise against them . i am now to pass from the writings of this holy man , to his truly great and heroical sufferings : an account whereof is in the next place subjoyn'd , in the relation of those who accompanied him from antioch to rome ; and were there the eye-witnesses of his martyrdom . . but before i come to the consideration of this last and noblest part of his life , i cannot but think it will be expected from me to give some account of the foregoing passages of it : that so we may here have at once a full view of this great saint ; and perceive by what steps he prepared himself for so constant and glorious a death . . and here it will be necessary for me in the first place to consider the character which he gives of himself in the beginning of all his epistles , and which he constantly asserted before the emperour at his examination , namely , that of theophôrus . now this according to the different pronunciation of it , may be expounded after a very different manner ; and signifie either a person carried by god , or else a divine person ; one who carries god in his breast . and in both these significations we find this name to have been given to this holy man. . for st . as to the former signification , we are told by some of the writers of his life , that st. ignatius was the child whom our blessed saviour took in his arms , and set before his disciples as a pattern of humility , when he told them , that unless they should be converted , and become as little children , they should in no wise enter into the kingdom of god : and that from thence he took the name of theophorus ; one who was born , or carried by god. and thus not only metaphrastes and nicephorus among the greeks ; but as our learned bishop usher tells us , some syriac writers more ancient than they , both interpret this name , and give an account of its being attributed to this blessed martyr . . but as stories of this kind seldom lose in the relation , so we find the latines making a farther improvement of the present fable . for having confirm'd the truth of what these men had before observed , of st. ignatius's being taken up by our saviour into his arms ; they add , that for this reason the apostles , when they made him bishop of antioch , durst not lay their hands upon him ; he having been before both commended by our saviour christ , and sanctified by his touching of him . . there is so much of romance in all the latter part of this story , and so little grounds for the former , that i shall not need to spend any time in the confuting of either . it is enough that st. chrysostome has assured us , that this holy man never saw the lord ; and that all the other ancient writers are silent as to this particular . which makes me the rather wonder at the endeavour of a late learned writer of our own country , to give countenance to such a fable ; and which if not destitute of all probability , yet at least wants any good authority to support it : and as our learned bishop pearson very reasonably conjectures , was first started about the time of the viii th general council , by the party of that ignatius who was then set up in opposition to photius ; and from thence derived both to anastasius among the latines , and to metaphrastes among the greeks . . to pass then from this fabulous account of this title , let us come to the consideration of the true import of it . now for that as we cannot have any better , so neither need we desire any other account , than what this holy man himself gave the emperour of that name . when being asked by him , who was theophorus ? he replied , he who has christ in his breast . and in this sense was this name commonly used among the ancients ; as has been shewn in a multitude of examples by bishop pearson , in his elaborate vindication of ignatius's epistles . i shall offer only one of them , that of st. cyrill ; who anathematizes those who should call our saviour christ , theophorus ; lest , says he , he should thereby be understood to have been no other than one of the saints . . it remains then that ignatius was called theophorus upon no other account , than as any other divine or excellent person might have been so called ; namely , upon the account of his admirable piety : because his soul was full of the love of god , and sanctified with an extraordinary portion of the divine grace ; as both his life shewed , and the earnest desire he had to be dissolved and to be with christ ; and his joy when he saw himself approaching towards it ; and ( to mention no more , ) his constancy in his last , and most terrible conflict with the wild beasts , will not suffer us to doubt . . but tho' the story then of our saviour's taking st. ignatius into his arms be of no credit ; yet thus much st. chrysostome tells us , that he was intimately acquainted with the holy apostles , and instructed by them in the full knowledg of all the mysteries of the gospel . what was the country that gave birth to this blessed saint , or who his parents , we cannot tell . indeed as to the former of these , his country ; a late author has endeavoured from a passage in abulfaragius , set out by our incomparable dr. pocock , to fix it at nora in sardinia ; a place which still retains its anicent name with very little variation . this is certain , that growing eminent both in the knowledg of the doctrine of christ , and in a life exactly framed according to the strictest rules of it ; he was upon the death of evodius chosen , by the apostles that were still living , to be bishop of antioch , the metropolis of syria ; and whatever anastasius pretends , received imposition of hands from them . . how he behaved himself in this great station , tho' we have no particular account left to us , yet may we easily conclude from that short hint that is given us of it , in the relation of his martyrdom . where we are told that he was a man in all things like unto the apostles ; that as a good governour , by the helm of prayer and fasting , by the constancy of his doctrine and spiritual labour , he opposed himself to the floods of the adversary : that he was like a divine lamp illuminating the hearts of the faithful by his exposition of the holy scriptures ; and lastly , that to preserve his church , he doubted not freely and of his own accord , to expose himself to the most bitter death . this is in general the character of his behaviour in his church of antioch ; and a greater than which can hardly be given to any man. nor indeed can we doubt but that he who , as eusebius tells us , and as his epistles still remaining abundantly testifie , was so careful of all the other churches , to confirm them in a sound faith , and in a constant adherence to their holy religion ; was certainly much more vigilant to promote the interests of piety within his own diocese , which was bless'd with his government above forty years . . hence we may observe , what a tender concern he expresses in all his epistles for his church at antioch : with what affection he recommends it to the prayers of those to whom he wrote ? and especially to the care of his dear friend , and fellow-disciple st. polycarp . and when he heard at troas of the ceasing of the persecution there , how did he rejoyce at it ? and require all the neighbouring churches to rejoyce with him ; and to send their messengers and letters thither , to congratulate with them upon that account ? . such was his affection towards his own church , and his care of all the others round about him : and by which he became in such an extraordinary favour with them , that they thought nothing could be sufficient to express their respect towards him . and therefore we are told , that when he was carried from antioch to rome , in order to his suffering there ; all the churches every where sent messengers on the way to attend him , and to communicate to his wants . and what is yet more , they were generally their bishops themselves that came to meet him ; and thought it a singular happiness to receive some spiritual exhortations from him . and when he was dead , they paid such an honour to his memory , as to account the few bones that were left of him by the wild beasts , more precious than the richest jewels : insomuch that we are told they were several ages after taken up from the place where they were first deposited , as not honourable enough for them to lie in ; and that being brought within the city where he once was bishop , there was instituted a yearly festival in memory of him . . as for what concerns the circumstances of his death , they are so particularly recounted in the relation i have here subjoyn'd of it , that there need nothing further to be added , to what is there deliver'd of this matter . yet one remark i cannot but make on that particular of his story which has puzzled so many learned men to account for ; but may easily be resolved , and i believe most truly too , into the over-ruling hand of the divine providence . and that is ; of the sending of this holy man from antioch as far as rome to suffer . for whatever the design of the emperour may have been in it ; whether he intended to increase his sufferings by a journey so wearisom , and attended with so many bitter circumstances as that must needs have been to a person very probably at that time fourscore years of age : or whether he hoped by this means to have overcome his constancy , and have drawn him away from his faith : or lastly , whether , as metaphrastes tells us , upon his consulting with those of the senate who were with him , he was advised not to let him suffer at antioch , least thereby he should raise his esteem the more among the people there , and render him the more dear and desirable to them : we cannot but doubt , that god hereby designed to present to all the nations through which he was to pass , a glorious instance of the power of his religion , that could enable this blessed martyr with so much constancy to despise all the violence of his enemies ; and to be impatient after those tryals which they hoped should have affrighted him into a base and degenerous complyance with their desires . . this was indeed a triumph worthy of the christian religion : nor was it any small advantage to the churches at such a critical time , to have their zeal awaken'd , and their courage confirm'd , both by the example and exhortations of this great man , from antioch even to rome it self . and we are accordingly told with what mighty comfort and satisfaction they received his instructions ; and as the authors of his acts express it , rejoyced to partake in his spiritual gift . . nay but if we may believe metaphrastes as to the effect which the sufferings of this holy man had upon the mind of the emperour , the church received yet greater benefit by his death . for trajan , says he , hearing of what had been done to ignatius , and how undauntedly he had undergone the sentence that was pronounced against him ; and being inform'd that the christians were a sort of men that did nothing contrary to the laws , nor were guilty of any impieties ; but worshipped christ as the son of god , and exercised all temperance both in meat and drink , nor medled with any thing that was forbidden : he began to repent of what he had done , and commanded that the christians should indeed be searched out , but that being discover'd they should not be put to death ; only they should not be admitted into any offices , nor be suffer'd to meddle with any publick employs . thus was not only the life of ignatius of great use to the church ; but his very death the means of procuring much good to it . and what metaphrastes here tells us , we find in effect deliver'd by another author of his acts not yet set forth ; and from whom he seems to have taken his story , only with the addition of some farther circumstances of his own , to make it the more complete . . but tho' i should be far from envying any thing that might make for the honour of this blessed martyr ; yet are there many circumstances in the story which metaphrastes has here put together , that make me justly call in question the truth of it . for first , it is evident beyond all doubt , that the persecution was abated at antioch before ignatius suffer'd , nay before he was yet gone out of the lesser asia . insomuch that in his three last epistles which he wrote from troas , to the philadelphians , the smyrnaeans , and to polycarp himself ; he particularly takes notice of the peace of the church of antioch , and exhorts them to send congratulatory messages thither upon the account of it . . nor was this suspension of the persecution granted upon ignatius's account , but upon the remonstances which his own officers made to him both of the numbers of those that died for the christian faith , and of the innocency of their lives ; and lastly of the readiness with which they not only suffer'd when taken , but voluntarily came and presented themselves before them . two of these epistles relating to this very persecution we have still remaining ; the one written by tiberianus president of palaestina prima , the other of pliny the younger pro-praetor of bythinia . and the answer of trajan to the latter of which we find to have been in the same words that jo. malela tells us he replied to the other ; viz. that the christians should not be sought after ; but if they were brought before them and convicted , should be punish'd , unless they abjured . . and the same is the account which not only eusebius from tertullian gives us of the emperour's order , as to this matter ; but which suidas after both , has left us of it . which makes it the more strange to find such a different relation both in bishop ushers manuscript author , and in metaphrastes's acts of ignatius before mentioned . it is true that notwithstanding these rescripts of the emperour , the persecution still continued ; nor was it so soon over in other places as it was at antioch . this is plain not only from the history of this time left us by eusebius , but may in general be concluded from the prayer which this holy saint made at his martyrdom : where , say our acts , he intreated the son of god in behalf of the churches , that he would put a stop to the persecution ; and restore peace and quiet to them . but these were only local persecutions , as eusebius calls them , and proceeded rather from the fury of the people , and the perverseness of some particular governours , than from the design or command of the emperour . . as for the time of ignatius's suffering , we are only told in his acts that it was when syria and synecius were consuls ; nor are learned men yet agreed in what year to fix it . eusebius in his chronicle places it in the year of christ cx . marianus scotus cxii . bishop usher yet sooner in the year cvii . and lastly to name no more , our most exact bishop lloyd , follow'd therein by the late critick upon baronius antonius pagi , yet later than any ; to wit , in the year that the great earthquake fell out at antioch , and from which trajan himself hardly escaped : which as jo. malela accounts it , and is follow'd therein by bishop usher in his computation , was in the year cxvi . . and this may suffice to have been observed concerning the most eminent passages that occur in the acts of the martyrdom of st. ignatius . i shall need say nothing of the authority of the relation its self ; which as it is written with all sincerity , and void of those additions which latter writers have made to these kind of histories , so we are told in the close of it , that it was compiled by those who went with him from antioch , and were the eye-witnesses of his encounters . this account was first publish'd from two very ancient manuscripts by our most reverend arch-bishop usher , in the appendix to his edition of ignatius , ao . and is now i suppose the first time translated into our own language . i cannot tell whether it be worth the observing , that in the collection made by the late learned cotelerius of the writings of the apostolical fathers , there is instead of these genuine acts , inserted the account which metaphrastes put together of his sufferings , several ages after . it would perhaps have made a more agreeable history to the vulgar reader , had i translated that relation , rather than this , which is much shorter , and wants many notable passages that are to be found in that other . but as i should then have departed from my design of setting out nothing but what i thought to be of an apostolical antiquity ; so to those who love the naked truth , these plain acts will be much more satisfactory , than a relation filled up with the uncertain , and too often fabulous circumstances of latter ages . chap. vi. of the martyrdom of st. polycarp , and of the epistle written by the church of smyrna concerning it . that there were heretofore several called by the name of polycarp : both the country , and parentage of st. polycarp uncertain . what he was before his conversion ; and by whom converted ? he is made bishop of smyrna by the apostles . how he behaved himself in that office ? the great veneration which the christians had for him . of his journey to rome , and what he did there ? the testimony of st. john concerning him , rev. ii . . of the time of st. polycarp's martyrdom : what persecutions the church then labour'd under ? of the epistle of the church of smyrna concerning his sufferings ; and the value which the antients put upon it . of the miracles that hapned at his death . what his age was when he suffered ? what the day of his suffering ? in what place he was put to death ? of the authority of the present epistle ; and its translation into our own language . . the epistle of the church of smyrna , the next piece that follows in the present collection ; however it makes mention of some others that suffered , at the same time with st. polycarp , for the faith of christ ; yet insisting chiefly upon the particulars of his passion , and being design'd by that church to communicate to all the world the glorious end of their beloved bishop , and most worthy and constant martyr of christ : i shall observe the same method in treating of this , that i did in discoursing of the acts of st. ignatius before ; and speak somewhat of the life of st. polycarp first , before i come to consider the account that is here given us of his death . . that there were several of the name of polycarp heretofore , and who must therefore carefully be distinguish'd from him of whom we are now to discourse , has been evidently shewn , by the late learned editor of his epistle . as for our polycarp the disciple of st. john , and the great subject of the present martyrologie ; we have little account , either what was his country , or who his parents ? in general we are told that he was born somewhere in the east ; as le moyne thinks not far from antioch ; and perhaps in smyrna its self , says our learned dr. cave . being sold in his childhood , he was bought by a certain noble matron whose name was calisto ; and bred up by her , and at her death made heir to all her estate ; which tho' very considerable , he soon spent in works of charity and mercy . . his christianity he received in his younger years from bucolus bishop of smyrna ; by whom being made deacon and catechist of that church , and discharging those offices with great approbation ; he was upon the death of bucolus made bishop of smyrna by the apostles , and particularly by st. john , whose disciple , together with ignatius , he had before been . . how considerable a reputation he gain'd by his wise administration of this great office , we may in some measure conclude from that character which his very enemies gave of him at his death : when crying out that he should be thrown to the lyons , they laid this to him as his crime , but which was indeed his chiefest honour ; this , say they , is the doctor of asia , the father of the christians , and the over-turner of our gods ; and when he was burnt , they persuaded the governour not to suffer his friends to carry away any of his remains , least , say they , the christians forsaking him that was crucified , should begin to worship polycarp . . nor was it any small testimony of the respect that was paid to him , that ( as we are told in this epistle ) the christians would not suffer him to pull off his own cloaths , but strove who should be the most forward to do him service ; thinking themselves happy if they could but come to touch his flesh. for , says the epistle , even before he had grey hairs , he was adorn'd with such a good conversation , as made all men pay a more than ordinary respect to him . . hence st. hierome calls him the prince of all asia , sophronius the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 · or chief ruler ; perhaps , says a learned man in opposition to the asiarchae of the heathens spoken of in this epistle : signifying thereby , that as they were among the gentiles , the heads of their sacred rites , and presided in the common assemblies and spectacles of asia ; so was polycarp among the christians a kind of universal bishop ; the prince and head of the churches in those parts . . nor was his care of the church confined within the bounds of the lesser asia , but extended even unto rome its self : whither we are told he went upon the occasion of the quarto-deciman controversie then on foot between the eastern and western churches , and which he hoped to have put a stop to , by his timely interposition with those of rome . but tho' anicetus and he could not agree upon that point , each pretending apostolical tradition to warrant them in their practice : yet that did not hinder but that he was received with all possible respect there ; and officiated in their churches in presence of the bishop , and communicated with him in the most sacred mysteries of religion . . while he was at rome he remitted nothing of his concern for the interests of the church ; but employed his time partly in confirming those who were sound in the faith , but especially in drawing over those who were not , from their errours . in which work how successful he was , his own scholar irenaeus particularly recounts to us . . what he did after his return , and how he discharged his pastoral office to the time of his martyrdom we have little farther account : nor shall i trouble my self with the stories which pionius without any good grounds has recorded of the life of this holy man. but that he still continued with all diligence to watch over the flock of christ , we have all the reason in the world to believe : and that not only from what has been already observed , but from one particular more which ought not to be omitted ; namely , that when ignatius was hurried away from his church of antioch to his martyrdom , he knew none so proper to commend the care of it to , as to this excellent man ; or to supply by his own letters , what the other had not time to write , to all the other churches round about . . but i shall close up this part of the life of this holy saint , with the testimony which st. john has given to him , revel . ii . . and which as it affords us a sufficient evidence of the excellency of his life , so do's it open the way to what we are next to consider , viz. his death and passion ; unto the angel of the church in smyrna , write : these things saith the first and the last , which was dead and is alive . i know thy works , and tribulation , and poverty ( but thou art rich ; ) and i know the blasphemy of them that say they are jews , and are not , but are the synagogue of satan . fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer : behold the devil shall cast some of you into prison , that ye may be tried , and ye shall have tribulation ten days : be thou faithful unto death , and i will give thee a crown of life . . and this brings me to that which i am chiefly to insist upon , namely the death of this blessed martyr ; the subject of that epistle which is here subjoyn'd from the church of smyrna concerning it . and here i shall in the first place take for granted what our learned bishop pearson seems to have proved beyond contradiction ; that st. polycarp suffer'd , not as is commonly supposed , about the year of christ clxvii . or as bishop usher has stated it yet later clxix . much less as petit still later clxxv . but under the emperour antoninus pius , in the year of our lord cxlvii . now that the christians about that time , and especially those of asia , lay under some severe prosecutions is evident from the apology which justin martyr about this very time presented to the emperour in order to a mitigation of it . and which however baronius , and after him valesius places two or three years later ; yet is their opinion much more probable who put it about the beginning of that emperour's reign : as both eusebius among the ancients ; and his learned editor scaliger , not to mention any others , of latter times , have done . . what the effect of this apology was we cannot certainly tell ; but that the persecution was not presently put to an end , not only the second apology of the same father ; but that which eusebius tells us was afterwards presented to his successor marcus aurelius , by melito bishop of sardis , plainly makes appear . in which he complains , that the christians were still informed against by wicked men , greedy of what they had ; and prosecuted notwithstanding the several orders that his father had given , and the letters he had written to the contrary . it is true , eusebius tells us that the emperour antoninus pius had set out an effectual edict in favour of the christians ; and that particularly addressed to the common council of asia , not long before the time in which we affirm st. polycarp to have suffered . and this seems to leave it under some doubt how a persecution could have been again revived against the church , within so short a time , and after such a vigourous edict of an emperour still living to the contrary . but it is evident eusebius must have mistook the emperour , and have set down that for the rescript of antoninus pius , which was indeed set out by marcus aurelius immediately after his death ; as both the inscription shews , and valesius and others have evidently made it appear to be . . it was then in one of these topical persecutions , so frequent in the lesser asia ; that the storm happening to fall in a particular manner upon the church of smyrna , carried off this holy martyr among the rest . what the particular circumstances of his passion were it would be impertinent for me to relate in this place , seeing they are so fully and exactly described in the epistle of which we are now discoursing . a piece so excellently composed , that eusebius thought it worthy to be almost intirely transcribed into his ecclesiastical history . and of which a very great man of the present age profess'd , that he knew not any thing in all ecclesiastical antiquity , that was more wont to affect his mind ; insomuch that he seem'd to be no longer himself when he read it : and believed that no good christian could be satisfied with reading often enough this , and the like accounts , of the sufferings of those blessed martyrs , who in the primitive times laid down their lives for the faith. . nor did the ancients put any less value upon this piece , which as gregory of tours tells us was even to his time read publickly in the gallican churches ; and no doubt made a part of that annual remembrance , which the churches of asia kept of his martyrdome . . but tho' i think it needless to mention here any thing of what the following epistle relates concerning the passion of this holy man ; yet one circumstance there is which both eusebius and ruffinus having omitted , is also pass'd by in the following translation , tho' found in the acts as set out from the barrochian manuscript by arch-bishop usher . and that is this ; that the souldier or officer having struck his launce into the side of the saint , there came forth a pigeon , together with a great quantity of blood , as is express'd in the following epistle . now tho' there may seem to have been something of a foundation for such a miracle in the railery of lucian , upon the death of peregrinus the philosopher ; who burnt himself about the same time that st. polycarp suffered , and from whose funeral pile he makes a vulture to ascend , in opposition , it may be , to st. polycarp's pigeon ; if indeed he design'd ( as a learned man has conjectured ) under the story of that philosopher , to ridicule the life and sufferings of polycarp : yet i confess i am so little a friend to such kind of miracles , that i thought it better with eusebius to omit that circumstance , than to mention it from bishop usher's manuscript . and indeed besides the strangeness of such an adventure , i cannot think , had any such thing truly happen'd at his death ; that not only eusebius should have been ignorant of it , but that neither st. hierome , nor ruffinus , nor the menaea of the greek church , should have made the least mention of it . either therefore there must have been some interpolation in the manuscript set forth by that learned man ; or because that does not appear , perhaps it may be better accounted for by the mistake of a single letter in the original ; and which will bring it to no more than what eusebius has in effect said , that there came out of his left side a great quantity of blood. . as for what concerns the time of his martyrdome , i have before shewn the different computations which learned men have made of it . nor are they less at variance about the age of this holy martyr when he suffered , than about the year of his suffering . for tho' st. polycarp expresly told the pro-consul , as we read in the following epistle , that he had served christ eighty and six years ; yet some interpret this of the number of years since his conversion ; others of those of his whole life . but however thus much is evident , that which soever of the two be in the right , they will either of them make good what irenaeus has told us of him , that he was very old when he died ; and from which therefore nothing can be concluded either for the former of these opinions , or against the latter . . but the following acts of his martyrdome go yet farther : they tell us that he not only suffer'd at so great an age ; but upon the great sabbath , the second day of the month xanticus , before the seventh kalend of may , about viii . a clock . what is meant by this great sabbath is another point much debated , but never like to be agreed among learned men : whose opinions are examined at large by bishop usher , valesius , le moyne , bishop pearson , and others upon this occasion . but if we were right before in assigning the year of his suffering , as i think we were ; then we must conclude the great sabbath to have been the same here , that is usually called by that name among ecclesiastical writers , namely , the saturday in the holy week ; and to which all the other characters here assigned are exactly correspondent . and then according to this computation , st. polycarp will have suffer'd in the year of christ cxlvii . being march . the saturday before easter , about viii . a clock . . the place in which he suffer'd was a large amphitheatre in which the common assemblies of asia were wont to be kept : and as we are told by those who have travelled into those parts , is in some measure still remaining ; and shewn as the place of st. polycarp's martyrdom . i say nothing , to that which some have observed upon this occasion of the calamities which not long after fell upon the city of smyrna ; and which may seem to have been the effect of the divine vengeance , punishing them for their cruelty towards this excellent man , and the rest of his companions that suffered together with him . but this is without the bounds of my present design ; which leads me only to consider what concerns the epistle of the church of smyrna , and to which that which follow'd the death of polycarp has no relation . . and now having pass'd through the chief parts of the following relation , and which seem'd most to require our animadversion ; it is time for me to observe concerning the epistle it self , which is here subjoyn'd , that it is a piece of most unquestionable credit and antiquity . as for the main body of it , we find it preserved in the ecclesiastical history of eusebius ; who lived not above an age and a half after the writing of it . and even the manuscript it self , made use of by bishop vsher , is so well attested ; that we need not any farther assurance of the truth of it . the sum of the account which we have given us of it is this ; that gaius an acquaintance of st. irenaeus the disciple of polycarp , transcribed it from the copy of that father : and socrates , the corinthian from gaius ; and from socrates's copy was transcribed that manuscript which we still have of it . . twice has this epistle been been put into our own language , as far as the history of eusebius has given occasion for the translation of it . what those editions are i cannot tell , having never perused either of them . but i suppose it is now the first time joyn'd in an intire piece together , and so communicated to the english reader . in my translation of it i have strictly follow'd the edition of our most reverend primate , from which cotelerius's is but a copy : nor have i , that i know of , departed in the least circumstance from it , except in that one for which i have before accounted . so that i may venture to say , i have here truly set forth the epistle of the church of smyrna ; as near as our language would serve to express the sense , if not to come up to the beauty and vigour of the original . chap. vii . of the catholick epistle of st. barnabas . why the pieces that follow , are put in a second part , separate from the foregoing ? the history of st. barnabas , chiefly from the acts of the apostles . of his name , education , and travels ; especially with st. paul. how he came to be separated from that apostle . what he did afterwards ? of his death : and the invention of his relicks ; and of the cyprian priviledges establish'd on that account . of the present epistle ; and that it was truly written by st. barnabas . the principal objections against it answer'd . an apology for its allegorical interpretations of scripture . the latter part of it , originally belonging to this epistle . that it was written after the destruction of jerusalem . the design and usefulness of it . . when i first enter'd upon the design of publishing the following collection , i intended to have here put an end to it : the following pieces under the names of barnabas and hermas , together with the second epistle of st. clement ; however undoubtedly very ancient , and confess'd by all to come but little , if any thing , short of the apostolical times ; having yet been neither so highly esteem'd among the ancients , nor so generally receiv'd by many of the present times , as those i have already mention'd . but when i consider'd the deference which others among the primitive fathers have paid to them , and the value which is still put upon them by many , not inferior either in learning or piety to those who speak against them ; i thought i could not better satisfie all , than by adding them in a second part to the fore-going epistles : that so both they who have a just esteem for them , might not complain of being defrauded of any part of what remains of the apostolical writings ; and those who are otherwise minded might look upon them as standing in a second rank , and not taking place , ( which otherwise they must have done , ) of those undoubtedly genuine and admirable discourses , that make up the former part of this work. . and here the first piece that occurs , is the catholick eplistle of st. barnabas , the companion of st. paul , and disciple of our saviour christ : being generally esteem'd to have been one of the lxx . that were chose by him ; however our country-man bede , upon i know not what grounds , calls the verdict of antiquity in question as to this matter ; and of whom the holy spirit of god , has left us by st. luke this character , acts xi . . that he was a good man , full of faith , and of the holy ghost . . it is not my design to enter on any long account of the life of a person so largely spoken of in the holy scriptures ; and of whom little certain can be written , besides what is there recorded . his country was cyprus , a famous island in the mediterranean sea ; where there inhabited in those days so great a number of jews , that in the time of trajan they conspired against the gentiles there , and slew of them two hundred and forty thousand men. upon which being cast out of the isle , they were never suffer'd upon any account to set foot again in it , upon pain of death . . his name was at first joses , but by the apostles changed into barnabas ; which being interpreted , says st. luke , is the son of consolation : and as we may conjecture from the place where it is first mentioned , was given him by the apostles as an honourable acknowledgment of his charity , in selling his whole estate for the relief of the poor christians ; and upon the account of that consolation which they received thereby . . his first education , says metaphrastes , was at the feet of gamaliel ; by whom he was instructed , together with st. paul : which perhaps moved that great apostle upon his conversion to apply himself to him , as the properest person to introduce him into the acquaintance of the other apostles ; and afterwards to embrace him as his chief friend and fellow-labourer in the work of the gospel . . how they travell'd together , and what they did in the discharge of their ministry , is at large set down both by st. luke in the acts of the apostles , and by st. paul himself in his epistle to the galatians : and in which we have the history of men truly concerned for the propagation of the gospel ; and despising not only their own ease , but their very lives themselves in comparison of it . many a weary journey did they take , and danger did they run : they preach'd in the day , and when they had so done , with their own hands they wrought in the night for their subsistence ; that so they might not be burthensom to any , nor seem to seek their own advantage , but the profit of those to whom they tender'd the gospel . . among other countries to which they went , we are told that one of the first was cyprus , the native island of st. barnabas : and that not of their own motion , but by the express order and appointment of the holy ghost . how they prevail'd there , and by what miracles they made way for the conversion of it , first at salamis , and then at paphos , we are at large inform'd by st. luke , acts xiii . from thence they fetch'd a pretty large compass through the lesser asia : and having with various success preached to several cities of it , after about three years travel they again return'd to antioch in syria , the place from which they first set out . . here they tarried a considerable space , in a sedulous discharge of their ministry : till some controversies arising between the jewish and the gentile converts , they were obliged for the better composing of them , to go up to jerusalem ; where a final end was put to them by a synodical decree of the apostles and elders assembled together for that purpose . . with joy they return'd to their disciples at antioch , and brought the determination of that divine synod unto them . but it was not long ' ere st. peter coming down after them , a little abated their satisfaction : whilst to please the jewish converts he dissembled his christian liberty ; and as st. paul complains , led barnabas also into the same dissimulation with him . . and here st. paul had occasion first of all to reprove st. barnabas ; which he did with great freedom , for his unseasonable complyance . but it was not very long before he had another occasion offer'd for a yet worser contention with him . for the next year these two holy men having agreed to take a new progress together , and to visit the churches which they had planted in asia some years before ; barnabas was for taking his cousin mark again with them , but st. paul would not consent to it ; because that in their former travels he had consulted too much his own ease and safety , and left them at pamphilia in the midst of their journey . . being both resolute in their opinions , the one to take his kinsman with him , the other not to yield to it ; they not only came to some sharp words with one another about it , but went their several ways , barnabas with mark to cyprus ; and paul with silas , into syria and cilicia . thus after a joynt labour in their ministry for almost fourteen years , were these two excellent men , by a small punctilio , separated from one another : the holy spirit of god intending hereby to shew us , that the best christians are still subject to the same infirmities with other men ; and therefore ought not to be either too much exalted in their own piety , or to despise others whom they suppose to be less perfect than themselves , . nor was it a small benefit which from hence accrued not only to the church , which thereby enjoyed the benefit of these two great men much more in their separate labours , than if they had continued still together ; but particularly to st. mark : who being by the severity of st. paul brought to a deep sense of his former indifference in the work of the gospel , and yet not left by st. barnabas to give way to any desperate resolutions thereupon ; became afterwards a most useful minister of christ , and deserved not only to be made again the companion of st. paul , but to receive a very high testimony of his zeal from him . so well does the wisdom of god know how to turn the infirmities of men to his own glory , and to the good of those who serve him with an honest and upright heart . . what became of st. barnabas after this , and whither he went , is very uncertain . some tell us , that from cyprus he went on to rome , and preached the gospel there , even before st. peter came thither . but tho' baronius can by no means allow this , yet is he content that barnabas should be thought to have come thither after him . at least this he pretends to be without dispute , that st. barnabas came into italy , and preach'd the gospel in liguria ; where he founded the ancient church of milan , as from many ancient monuments and writers , says he , might be made appear ; tho' at the same time he produces not one testimony in proof of it . i shall therefore conclude , till i am better inform'd , that st. barnabas spent the remains of his life in converting his own country-men the jews ; of which as i have before observed , there were such vast numbers in that island , and for whom we cannot but think he must have had a very tender regard . or if we shall suppose him to have gone any farther , i presume it was only into the neighbouring parts of the lesser asia , and judaea , where he had before preach'd ; or at farthest into aegypt , where some tell us he went , and consecrated his nephew st. mark the first bishop of the christian church at alexandria . . and in this opinion i am the rather confirm'd from the consideration of his epistle which i have here subjoyn'd : which seems manifestly to have been design'd for the benefit of the jews ; and to shew how all the parts of it had a farther spiritual meaning than what at first sight appear'd , and were design'd to lead them to the faith and piety of the gospel . . in this exercise therefore he most likely spent his life ; and if we may credit the relation of the monk in surius , who writes the acts of this holy evangelist , at last suffer'd martyrdom in the prosecution of it : being at the instigation of certain jews that came from syria to salamis , shut up in a synagogue where he was disputing with them , and at night stoned by them . what truth there is in this story i cannot tell ; but this i must observe , which even baronius himself is forced to acknowledg , that there is nothing of this kind to be met with in any ancient author ; nor does either eusebius or st. jerome , where they treat expresly of this holy man , so much as once give the title of martyr to him . . but whatever were the manner of st. barnabas's death , yet famous is the story of the invention of his reliques , deliver'd by the same monk ; and who , as baronius tells us , lived at the same time under zeno the emperour ; and confirm'd by the concurrent testimonies of theodorus , nicephorus , cedrenus , sigebert , marianus scotus , and others . with what ceremony this was perform'd , and how this blessed saint appear'd twice to anthemius , then bishop of salamis , in order to the discovery of his own reliques ; and how the emperour commanded a stately church to be built over the place of his burial ; i shall leave it to those who are fond of such stories , to read at large in baronius , and the monk whom i before mentioned . it will be of more concern to take notice that nilus doxapater tells us , that this very thing was the ground of the cyprian privileges : where speaking of certain provinces that depended not upon any of the greater patriarchats , he instances first of all in cyprus ; which , says he , continues free , and is subject to none of the patriarchs , because of the apostle barnabas being found in it . and the same is the account which nicephorus also gives us of it ; and which was assign'd before both in the notitia ascrib'd to leo , as i find it quoted by monsieur le moyne , in his preface to his late collection of several ancient pieces relating to ecclesiastical antiquity . . together with his body , was found , says alexander , the gospel of st. matthew written in the hebrew tongue , lying upon his breast ; but nilus says , that of his kinsman s. mark. which of the two it was , or whether any thing of all this were more than a mere story , contriv'd by anthemius to get the better of peter patriarch of antioch , i shall not undertake to determine . it is enough that we are assured that by this means he not only preserved his priviledges against peter , but got his see confirm'd by the emperour , as an independent see ; which was also afterwards again done by justinian , at the instigation of the empress theodora , who was her self a cyprian . . but to return to that which is more properly the business of these reflections . it do's not appear that st. barnabas left any more in writing than the epistle i have here subjoyn'd . indeed there were some heretofore who thought that the epistle to the hebrews was written by him . tertullian confidently quotes it as his : nor do's st. hierome censure him for it , but leaves it as a doubt whether it should be ascribed to him , or to st. luke , st. clement , or st. paul ; tho' he seems rather to incline to st. paul. as for the present epistle , i do not know that it is deny'd by any of the ancients to have been written by st. barnabas . clemens alexandrinus both mentions and commends it as his . origen calls it , the catholick epistle of barnabas . eusebius , and st. jerome , tho' they place it among the apochryphal books , that is to say among such as were of doubtful authority , and not admitted into the canon of the church ; for so valesius shews we are there to understand them ; yet make no question but that barnabas was the author of it , any more than that the epistles of st. james , st. jude , the second epistle of st. peter , and the second and third of st. john , together with his revelations ; which eusebius places in the same rank ; were written by those whose names they bear . . which being so , i cannot but wonder at some in our own times , who upon such weak grounds peremptorily pronounce it to be none of st. barnabas's ; which , says our learned bishop pearson , none of all the ancients pretended to doubt of . and of this cotelerius seems to have been sensible ; who tho' he did not care to ascribe it to the blessed evangelist of whom we are now discoursing , yet was forced to suppose that some other barnabas wrote it , and without which he saw there could be no way of answering the concurrent verdict of all antiquity , which has universally agreed in barnabas as the author of it . but now who this other barnabas was , or that in those times there was any such person , he pretends not to tell us ; and they who ascribe it to barnabas , expresly speak of him as the same of whom i have hitherto been discoursing . . but of all others , most unaccountable is the fancy of monsieur le moyne concerning the author of this epistle . he had observed that in several manuscripts it was immediately continued on with that of st. polycarp : and from this ignorance or negligence of a few transcribers has this learned man concluded the two epistles to have been both written by st. polycarp ; in which as he had none to go before him , so i believe he will scarcely meet with any to follow him . . nor are the arguments which they bring against the authority of it , of such moment as to overthrow the constant testimonies of the ancients on its behalf . they tell us first ; that it is evident from the xvi th chapter of this epistle , that it was written after the destruction of jerusalem . but why may not barnabas have been then living , as well as we are sure st. john , and several others of the companions of the apostles were ? and if he may have been living after it ; why shall not we suppose that he was , as well as they , that he was not ? seeing it does not appear from the testimony of any antient writers when he died . . but dly , they argue yet farther against it : for if this , say they , be the genuine epistle of st. barnabas , how comes it to pass that it is not received as canonical ? certainly had the primitive christians believed it to have been written by such a man , they would without controversie have plac'd it among the sacred writings ; and not have censured it as of doubtful authority . this is indeed a very specious pretence , but which being a little examined will be found to have no strength in it : it being certain that the primitive fathers did own this for st. barnabas's epistle , and yet not receive it into their canon ; and therefore that it do's not follow , that had they believed it to have been his , they must have esteem'd it canonical . . what rules they had , or by what measure they proceeded in those first times in judging of the canonical scriptures of the new testament , it is not necessary for me here to enquire . it is enough that we know what books the church did at last agree in as coming under that character : and for the rest , as we cannot doubt but that there was a due care taken in examining into a matter of such importance , and that those primitive fathers did not without very good reason distinguish what were written by divine inspiration , from what were not ; so we are very sure that all was not admitted by them into the rank of canonical scripture that was written by any apostolical man ; and therefore that it can be no good argument , that barnabas was not the author of this epistle , because it is not placed among the sacred writings of the new testament . . but there is yet one objection more , and that much insisted upon by those who are enemies to this epistle . they tell us it is full of a strange sort of allegorical interpretations of holy scripture ; and therefore unworthy to be father'd upon so evangelical an author . and yet notwithstanding this , we find clemens alexandrinus and origen , eusebius and st. jerome , some of the greatest and most learned criticks of those ages that were the nearest to the time in which it was written , not doubting to ascribe it to st. barnabas , and to think it worthy too of such an author . . i need not say how general a way this was of interpreting scripture , in the time that st. barnabas lived . to omit origen , who has generally been noted as excessive in it ; and for whom yet a learned man has very lately made a reasonable apology : who has ever shewn a more diffusive knowledg , than clemens alexandrinus has done in all his composures ? and yet in his works we find the very same method taken of interpreting the holy scriptures , and that without any reproach either to his learning , or to his judgment . what author has there been more generally applauded for his admirable piety than the other clement , whose epistle to the corinthians i have here inserted ? and yet even in that plain piece , we meet with more than one instance of the same kind of interpretation ; which was never the less admired by the best and most primitive christians . . even st. paul himself in his epistles received by us as canonical , affords us not a few instances of this which is so much found fault with in st. barnabas : as i might easily make appear from a multitude of passages out of them , were it needful for me to enlarge my self on a point , which every one who has read the scriptures with any care , cannot chuse but have observed . . now that which makes it the less to be wonder'd at in st. barnabas is , that the jews , of which number he was himself originally one , and to whom he wrote , had of a long time been wholly addicted to this way of interpreting the law ; and taught men to search out a spiritual meaning for almost all the ritual commands and ceremonies of it . this is plain from the account which aristeas has left us of the rules which eleazar the high priest , to whom ptolomy sent for a copy of the mosaical law , gave him for the understanding of it . when it being objected to him , that their legislator seem'd to have been too curious in little matters ; such as the prohibitions of meats and drinks , and the like , for which there appeared no just reason : he shew'd him at large , that there was a farther , hidden design , in it than what at first sight appear'd ; and that these outward ordinances were but as so many cautions to them against such vices , as were principally meant to be forbidden by them . and then goes on to explain this part of the law , after the same manner that barnabas has done , in the following epistle . . but this is not all ; eusebius gives us yet another instance to confirm this to us ; viz. of aristobulus , who lived at the same time , and gave the same account of the spiritual meaning of the law , that eleazar had done before . and that this was still continued among the hellenistical jews , is evident from the account that is left us by one of them , who was con-temporary with st. barnabas , and than whom none has been more famous for this way of writing , i mean , philo in his description of the theraputae : whether the same whom in the beginning of his book he calls by the name of essenes , as scaliger supposes ; or a particular sect of jews , as valesius will have it ; or lastly , a kind of monkish converts from judaism to christianity , as eusebius heretofore described them , and as some other learned men , seem rather to conjecture . but whatever becomes of this , herein they all agree , that they were originally jews ; and therefore we may be sure they follow'd the same method of interpreting scripture , that the alexandrian jews were wont to do . . now the account which eusebius , from philo , gives us of them , is this . their leaders , says he , left them many ancient writings of their notions , clothed in allegories . and again ; they interpret the holy scriptures , viz. of the old testament , allegorically . for you must know , continues he , that they liken the law to an animal ; the words of which make up the body , but the hidden sense which lies under them , and is not seen , that they think to be the soul of it . and this was that which a late learned author supposes render'd their conversion to christianity the more easie . for being wont to seek out the spiritual meaning of the law , they more readily embraced the gospel , than those who looked no farther than the outward letter ; and were therefore the harder to be persuaded to come over to so spiritual an institution . . and , i suppose , it was from hence that the most early hereticks were so wedded to their mystical interpretations of scripture , and so much valued themselves upon the account of them . and against whose false and impure doctrines , our late great critick , dr. hammond , supposes st ▪ barnabas to have principally design'd his epistle : and therefore that being to deal with men who valu'd nothing but such kind of expositions , he was forced to confute them in their own way ; both as most suitable to their manners , and as most proper either to convince them of their errors , or at least to prevent others , especially the jewish converts , from falling into them . . but whether this were so or no , thus much is evident from what has been said ; that the hellenistical jews , to whom it is most probable st. barnabas address'd his epistle , were altogether used to this way of interpreting the holy scriptures : and therefore that howsoever it may appear to others , who are so utterly unaccustomed to it , yet we ought not to wonder that st. barnabas , who was himself a jew , should at such a time , and upon such an occasion as this , make use of it ; or suppose it at all unworthy of him so to do . . nor indeed were they the jews only that led the holy men in those days into these mystical expositions of the sacred scriptures . even the gentile philosophers too conduced towards it : whilst the better to cover over the fabulous stories of their gods , and which they saw were too ridiculous to be maintain'd ; they explain'd the whole system of their idolatry by allegorical analogies , and shew'd all the poetical accounts of them to be only the out-side shadows of a sort of natural theology included under those fictions . thus heraclides of pontus wrote a whole book of the allegories of homer : and metrodorus of lampsacus is fallen foul upon by tatian , in his oration against the greeks , for pretending that neither juno , nor minerva , nor jupiter were what those imagin'd who built temples and altars to them , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . nay so far went this last author in his allegories , as to turn all the trojan and graecian hero's into mere fictions : and to make hector , and achilles , and agamemnon , and even helena her self , nothing less than what one would think they were , and what the common people ignorantly imagin'd them to be . . and for the influence which this had upon the ancient fathers who from philosophers became christians ; the writings both of justin martyr and clemens alexandrinus sufficiently shew . and if we may believe porphery , an enemy , in the case of origen ; he tells us in the same place in which he complains of him , for turning those things that were clearly deliver'd by moses into mystical significations , not only that he did this in imitation of the graecians ; but that it was his frequent conversation with numenius and cronius , moderatus , nichomachus , and others among the pythagoreans ; and with chaeremon and cornutus among the stoics ; that he had learnt his allegorical way of expounding the holy scriptures , and applied that to his religion , which they were wont to do to their superstition . . from all which it appears , that this way of writing in matters of religion , was in those days generally used not only among the jews , but among the wiser and more philosophical of the gentiles too : and from both came to be almost universally practised among the primitive christians . which being so , we ought to be far from censuring of st. barnabas for his mystical application of what god prescribed to the jews in the old testament , to the spiritual accomplishment of it in the new. much less should we ever the more call in question either the truth , or credit , of his epistle upon this account . . having said thus much either in vindication of the allegorical expositions of this epistle , or at least by way of apology for them ; i shall add but little more concerning the epistle it self . i have before observed as to the time of its writing , that it was somewhat after the destruction of jerusalem ; and as we may conjecture from the subject of it , ( for title at present it has none , nor do's it appear that ever it had any ) was address'd to the jews , to draw them off from the letter of the law , to a spiritual understanding of it ; and by that means dispose them to embrace the gospel . whether he had besides this a farther design in it , as dr. hammond supposes , to confute the errours of the gnostick hereticks , and to prevent the jewish converts from falling into them , it is not certain ; but may from the chief points insisted upon by him be probably enough supposed . if any one shall think it strange , that disputing against the jews for the truth of the gospel , he should not have urged any of those passages relating to the messiah , which seem to us the most apposite to such a purpose ; such as the oracle of jacob concerning the time that shiloh was to come ; the lxx weeks of daniel ; the prophecies of haggai and malachi , of his coming while the second temple stood ; and which was now destroyed when he wrote this epistle , and the like : monsieur le moyne will give him a ready answer ; viz. that these passages relate chiefly to the time of christ's appearing , and that this was no controversie in those days ; the jews not only confessing it , but being ready at every turn through this persuasion to set up some or other for their messiah , to their shame and confusion . it was therefore then but little necessary to use those arguments against them , which now appear to be the most proper and convincing ; since the state of the question is alter'd , and the jews either deny that their messiah is come ; or that it was necessary for him to have come about that time , that our saviour christ appeared in the flesh. . but tho' the chief design of this epistle was to convince the jews of the truth of our religion , yet are there not wanting in the latter part of it , many excellent rules , to render it still very useful to the pious reader . indeed some have doubted whether this did originally belong to this epistle ; or whether it has not since been added to it . but seeing we find this part quoted by the fathers , as belonging to st. barnabas , no less than the other ; and that the measure assign'd to it in the ancient stichometries , can hardly be well accounted for without it : i do not see but that we ought to conclude , that our author did divide his epistle into the two parts , in which we now have it ; and that this latter , aswell as the former , was written by him . . as for the translation which i have here given of it ; i have made it up out of what remains of the original greek , and of the old latin version ; and of each of which , tho' a part be lost , yet it has so fallen out , that between them we not only have the whole epistle , but that too free of those interpolations which vossius tells us some had endeavour'd to make in this , as well as in ignatius's epistles . in both i have endeavour'd to attain to the sense of my author , and to make him as plain and easie as i was able . if in any thing i shall have chanced to mistake him , i have only this to say for my self ; that he must be better acquainted with the road , than i pretend to be , who will undertake to travel so long a journey in the dark , and never to miss his way . chap. viii . of the shepherd of st. hermas ; and of the second epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . that the hermas mention'd by st. paul , rom. xvi . . was the author of that book which is here subjoyn'd under his name . there is little remaining of his life , more than what is taken out of his own book . of his death ; uncertain whether he died a martyr . the ancient fathers divided in their opinions of this book : nor are our later criticks less . that there are many useful things in it . of the second epistle of st. clement : that it is not of equal reputation with the former . by some deny'd to be st. clements . it is most probable that it was written by st. clement ; and has many excellent things , and worthy of that holy man , in it . these two pieces now the first time translated into our own language . . there is not a greater difference between the learned men of the present times concerning the epistle of st. barnabas , than there was among the ancient fathers heretofore , concerning the authority of that book , which next follows , under the name of hermas . who this hermas was , what he did , and what he suffer'd for the faiths sake , is in great measure unknown to us . that there was one of that name at rome when st. paul wrote his epistle to the church there , his remembrance of him rom. xvi . . will not suffer us to doubt . nor is it improbable but that it was the same hermas who afterwards wrote this book : and who appears not only still to have continued his relation to the church of rome , but to have written at such a time as may well agree to one of st. paul's acquaintance . the former of these may be collected from his second vision , which he seems to have had at the same time that clement was bishop of rome , and to whom therefore he is commanded to carry a copy of it . and for the latter , if the conjectures of two of our greatest criticks may be allow'd , in applying the great affliction of which he speaks in another of his visions , to the destruction of jerusalem then at hand ; it is evident that this book must have been written within xl. years after the death of christ , and by consequence by some author who lived at the very time , that the hermas of whom st. paul speaks , most certainly did . . hence origen in his homily upon that place of st. paul before mentioned , delivers it as his opinion , that it was the hermas there spoken of who wrote this book . but eusebius do's more ; he tells us that it was the received opinion in those days , that it was composed by him . and that it continued to be so in the age after , st. hierome witnesses ; who speaks yet more positively than eusebius to that purpose . and from all which we may conclude what is to be judg'd of that mistake which our latter writers have fallen into , by their too credulous following the author of the poem against marcion under the name of tertullian , viz. that it was written by hermes brother to pope pius ; and in which not only the authors of the pontifical ascribed to pope damascus , and of the pretended decretal epistles of the ancient bishops of rome , but the martyrologists of the middle ages , bede , ado , &c. have generally been involved . . it is true , cardinal baronius has endeavour'd to make up this difference , by supposing that the hermes spoken of by st. paul , was brother to pope pius , and so all parties may be in the right . but besides , that this book was written by hermas , not the hermes of whom st. paul there speaks ; the difference of the time renders it altogether incredible , that a person of some considerable age at st. paul's writing his epistle , should have lived so long as that pope's brother is said to have done : whom the cardinal himself observes to have been living clxiv . years after christ ; that is to say , cvii . years after the writing of st. paul's epistle to the romans . and this his epitomator spondanus was aware of : and therefore tho' he seems to have allow'd of the conjecture , yet could not chuse but add this reflection of his own upon it ; that according to this reckoning , hermas must have been cxxx years old when he died , and in all probability a great deal more . . what the condition of this hermas was before his conversion , we cannot tell ; but that he was a man of some consideration , we may conclude from what we read of him in his third vision : where he is said to have been formerly unprofitable to the lord upon the account of those riches , which after he became a christian , he seems to have dispensed in works of charity and beneficence . . nor have we any more knowledg how he was converted , than what his condition was before : it is probable from several passages in his book , that he was brought over to christianity himself , before his family ; who continued yet in the practice of many and great impieties . during this while , hermas was not only very kind to them , but seems to have been so indulgent towards them , as to permit them rather to go on in their sins , than he would take any rough measures with them , to draw them off from them . . but this was not all ; he not only patiently bore with them , but was himself disturb'd with many anxious cares , to supply them in their extravagances , and often times did not behave himself so well as he ought upon that account . but however , being of an honest and upright disposition , and having a great sincerity in his religion ; it pleased god at last not only to convince him of his faults , in thus neglecting his family , but to give them grace to hearken to his admonitions , and to embrace at once both the christian faith , and a practice also suitable thereunto . . what he did after this we have no account ; but that he lived a very strict life , we may reasonably conjecture , in that it pleased god to vouchsafe such extraordinary revelations to him ; and to employ him in several messages to his church , both to correct their manners , and to warn them of the tryals that were about to come upon them . . this was so singular a grace , even in those times of miracles , that we find some other christians , not so humble as they ought to be , became enemies to him upon the account of them . however this did not hinder , but that god still continu'd to make use of his ministry in admonishing sinners ; and he as readily and faithfully went on , both in warning them of their danger , and in exhorting them to repent and save their souls . . this then was the business of this holy man , in which he spent his life ; and if we may believe the roman martyrologie , his death was not unsuitable to it : where we read , that being illustrious for his miracles , he at last offer'd himself a worthy sacrifice unto god. but upon what grounds this is establish'd baronius himself could not tell us : insomuch that in his annals he durst not once mention the manner of his death , but is content to say , that having undergone many labours and troubles in the time of the persecution under aurelius , ( and that too without any authority ) he at last rested in the lord , july xxvi . and which is therefore observed in commemoration of him . and here is indeed a pleasant mistake , and worthy the roman martyrologie . for this author , from the book of which we are now discoursing , being sometimes called by the title of pastor , or shepherd , the martyrologist has very gravely divided the good man into two saints : and they observe the memorial of hermas , may ix th , and of pastor , july xxvi th . unless we shall rather say that this was indeed the cardinal's blunder , and the martyrologie in the right , to make two distinct persons of st. hermas rembembred by st. paul , and the brother of pope pius , to whom the passages mention'd july xxvi . do manifestly belong : and erred only in applying the character of pastor to the latter , which , with the treatise of which we are now discoursing , ought , as the cardinal has truly observed , to have been ascribed to the former . . but not to insist any longer on the author of this book : as for the work it self , we find both the ancient fathers , and the learned men of our own times , not a little divided in their judgments concerning it . some there are , and those the nearest to the time when this book was written , that treat it almost with the same respect that they would do the canonical scriptures . irenaeus quotes it under the very name of the scripture . origen , tho' he sometimes moderates his opinion of it , upon the account of some who did not , it seems , pay the same respect with himself to it ; yet speaking of hermas being the author of this book in his comments on the epistle to the romans , gives us this character of it , that he thought it to be a most useful writing ; and was , as he believed , divinely inspired . eusebius tells us , that tho' being doubted of by some , it was not esteem'd canonical , yet was it by others judged a most necessary book , and as such read publickly in the churches . and st. hierom having in like manner observed that it was read in some churches , makes this remark upon it , that it was indeed a very profitable book ; and whose testimony was often quoted by the greek fathers . athanasius places it in the same rank with the books of scripture , and calls it a most useful treatise : and in another place tells us , that tho' it was not strictly canonical ; yet was it reckon'd among those books which the fathers appointed to be read to such as were to be instructed in the faith , and desired to be directed in the way of piety . . hence we may observe , as a farther evidence of that respect which was paid to this book heretofore , that it was not only openly read in the churches , but in some of the most ancient manuscripts of the new testament , is joyned together with the other books of the holy scriptures . an instance of this cotelerius offers us in that of the monastry of st. germans in france , in which it is continued on at the end of st. paul's epistles . and in several of the old stichometries , it is put in the same catalogue with the inspired writings . as may be seen in that which the same author has published out of a manuscript in the king's library , in his observations upon st. barnabas ; and in which st. barnabas's epistle is placed immediately before the revelations , as the acts of the apostles , and hermas's shepherd are immediately after it . . and yet after all this , we find this same book not only doubted of by others among the ancient fathers , but slighted even by some of those , who upon other occasions have spoken thus highly in its favour . thus st. jerome in his comments exposes the folly of that apochryphal book , as he calls it , which in his catalogue of writers he had so highly applauded . tertullian , who spake if not honourably yet calmly of it whilst a catholick , being become montanist , rejected it , even with scorn . and most of the other fathers who have spoken the highest of it themselves , yet plainly enough insinuate , that there were those who did not put the same value upon it . thus origen mentions some who not only deny'd , but despis'd its authority . and cassian having made use of it in the point of free-will , prosper without more ado rejected it as a testimony of no value . and what the judgment of the latter ages was as to this matter , especially after pope gelasius had ranked it among the apochryphal books , may be seen at large in the observations of antonius augustinus upon that decree . . how far this has influenced the learned men of our present times in their censures upon this work , is evident from what many on all sides have freely spoken concerning it : who not only deny it to have been written by hermas the companion of st. paul , but utterly cast it off , as a piece of no worth , but rather full of error and folly. thus baronius himself , tho' he delivers not his own judgment concerning it , yet plainly enough shews that he ran in with the severest censures of the ancients against it : and in effect charges it with favouring the arrians , tho' upon a mistaken authority of st. athanasius , and which by no means proves any such errour to be in it . but cardinal bellarmine is more free : he tells us that it has many hurtful things in it , and particularly that it favours the novatian heresie ; which yet i think a very little equity in interpreting of some passages that look that way , by others that are directly contrary thereunto , would serve to acquit it of . others are yet more severe : they censure it as full of heresies and fables : tho' this labbe would be thought to excuse , by telling us that they have been foisted into it by some later interpolations , and ought not to be imputed to hermas , the author of this book . . nor have many of those of the reform'd churches been any whit more favourable in their censures of the present treatise . but then as the chiefest of the most ancient fathers heretofore , tho' they admitted it not into the canon of holy scripture , yet otherwise paid a very great deference to it ; so the more moderate part of the learned men of our present times , esteem it as a piece worthy of all respect , and clear of those faults which are too lightly charged by some persons upon it . thus petavius , none of the most favourable critics upon the ancient fathers , yet acknowledges , as to the present book , that it was never censured by any of the ancients as guilty of any false doctrine or heresie ; and especially as to the point of the holy trinity . cotelerius , one of the latest editors of it , esteems it as an ecclesiastical work of good note , and a great defence of the catholick faith against the errors of montanism : whose judgment is not only follow'd by their late historian natalis alexander , but is made good too in the defence of it against those objections , which some have brought to lessen its reputation . and for those of our own communion , i shall mention only two , but they such as will serve instead of many to all judicious persons , who have at large justified it against the chief of those exceptions that have been taken at it ; the one , the most excellent bishop pearson in his vindication of st. ignatius ; the other the learned dr. bull , in his defence of the nicene faith , in the point of our blessed saviour's divinity ; and which he largely shews our present author to have been far from doing any prejudice unto . . such then have been the different judgments of learned men , both heretofore , and in our present times , concerning this book . it would be too great a presumption for me to pretend to determine any thing as to this matter ; and having subjoyn'd the work it self in our common language , every one may be able to satisfie himself what value he ought to put upon it . that there are many useful things to be found in it , but especially in the second , and i think , the best part of it , cannot be deny'd . and for the other two , it must be considered , that tho' such visions as we there read of , being no longer continu'd to these latter ages , may warrantably be despised in the pretenders of the present days ; yet we cannot doubt but that at the time when this book was written , the extraordinary gifts of the holy ghost were very frequent ; and we need not question but that such revelations too among the rest , were communicated to holy men for the benefit of the church . . but i shall not pursue this subject any farther : nor will i add very much to what i have before said with relation to st. clement and his first epistle , concerning that part which still remains of a second under his name , and which concludes the following collection . . that this second epistle was not of so great a reputation among the primitive fathers , as the foregoing , eusebius not only plainly tells us , but gives us this testimony of it , that he could not find it quoted , as the other was , by any of them . but st. jerome is more severe ; he represents it to us as rejected by them : and photius after him , calls it a spurious piece . and not to mention any more ; our most reverend bishop usher not only concurs in the same censure , but offers several arguments too in proof of it . . and yet , when all is done , it do's not appear but that st. clement was indeed the author of this , as well as of the other epistle , before spoken of ; tho' it was not so much esteem'd , nor by consequence so generally known to the ancients as that . in the manuscript of st. thecla we find this set forth under the same title with the other . and in all the other catalogues of the ancients , wherever one is spoken of , the other is for the most part set together with it : as may particularly be observed in the apostolical canons , one of the most early collections of this kind . . nor does eusebius deny this epistle to be st. clement's , but only says that it was not so celebrated as the other . and true it is , we do not find it either so often , or so expresly mention'd , as that . but yet if the conjecture of wendeline , approved by a very , learned man of our own country may be admitted ; eusebius himself will afford us an instance of one who not only spake of it , but spake of it as wont to be publickly read in the church of corinth . for discoursing of the epistles of dionysius , bishop of that see ; he tells us , that in one of them which he wrote to the romans , he took notice of st. clement's epistle in these words : today have we kept the lord 's day with all holiness ; in which we have read your epistle , as we shall always continue to read it for our instruction , together with the former written to us by clement . what that epistle was , that dionysius here speaks of , as written by the church of rome to that of corinth , and publickly read in the congregation there , it do's not appear ; nor can we give any account of it , unless it was that which st. clement wrote to them in the name of the church of rome , and which eusebius tells us was publickly read in that church in those days . but then if this be so , as i think it most likely that it is ; we must conclude that the epistle of which we are now speaking , was indeed the first written to them , however called his second epistle ; and wont to be read , together with that other which he sent in the name of the roman church to them , in their assemblies . . now that which yet more favours this opinion is , that it seems by many arguments to appear , that this letter which he wrote in his own name ( tho' as being sent from a particular person , and not in it self so considerable as the other , it was usually set after that which he wrote by the order of the church , and in their name , to the corinthians ) was yet indeed the first written . and for being read in the churches , epiphanius expresly tells us , that this epistle , no less than the foregoing , was in his time wont to be publickly read in the congregation . and tho' st. jerome and photius indeed speak but meanly of it in those places where they seem to deliver the judgment of eusebius rather than their own opinion ; yet upon other occasions , they make no exception against the authority of it , but equally ascribe it to st. clement with the other , of which there is no doubt . . it were an easie matter to shew that the same was the opinion of the other ecclesiastical writers of those times : but this having been done at large by wendeline first , and since by cotelerius , and his perpetual transcriber natalis alexander , i shall forbear ; and conclude with this , that it is an epistle , tho' not of equal value with the other , yet of good use , and which if it were not written by st. clement , as i make no doubt but it was , has yet nothing in it that is in the least unworthy of him . . and now having said thus much concerning these two last pieces , and with which the present collection is concluded ; i have but this to add , that they are both of them now first of all put into our own language ; and presented to the perusal of the english reader : the former from the old latin version , which is by some much complained of , tho' by others as stifly defended : the latter from the original greek , as it was publish'd by mr. patrick young from the alexandrian manuscript , the only copy that , for ought appears , do's at this day remain of it . . if any one shall ask how it came to pass that our learned country-man mr. burton , when he set out the former epistle of st. clement in english , did not subjoyn this to it ; the answer which himself warrants us to return is this : that taking what has been said by the antients before mentioned , in the strictest sense , he looked upon this epistle as a spurious piece : and which tho' it carried the name of st. clement , was yet truly no more his , than those constitutions and recognitions , which are also publish'd under the same name ; but are generally acknowledged to be none of his , as in the prosecution of this discourse i shall take occasion more particularly to shew . . as for the epistle it self , i have concluded it somewhat sooner , than the greek , which yet remains of it , do's . but that which i have omitted being only an imperfect piece of a sentence , and which would have made the conclusion much more abrupt than it is now ; i chose rather to add what follow'd here , than to continue it there . and to make the reader the better amends for this liberty , i have not only subjoyn'd what remains of st. clement , but have endeavour'd to make out the sense of what is wanting in our copy from the other clement , who seems to have follow'd this original . for the lord himself being asked by a certain person , when his kingdom should come ; answer'd , when two shall be one , and that which is without as that which is within ; and the male with the female , neither male nor female . now two are one , when we speak the truth to each other ; and there is , ( without hypocrisie , ) one soul in two bodies . and that which is without , as that which is within ; he means this ; he calls the soul that which is within , and the body that which is without . as therefore thy body appears , so let thy soul be seen by its good works . and the male with the female , neither male nor female ; — he means this ; he calls our anger the male , our concupiscence the female . when therefore a man is come to such a pass , that he is subject neither to the one or other of these ; both of which through the prevalence of custom , and an evil education , cloud and darken the reason ; but rather having dispell'd the mist arising from them , and being full of shame , shall by repentance have united both his soul and spirit in the obedience of reason ; then as paul , says , there is in us neither male nor female . chap. ix . that the pieces here put together are all that remain of the most primitive and apostolical antiquity . that there are several other treatises pretended to have been written within the compass of this period ; but none such as truly come up to it . of the epistle of our saviour christ to abgarus , and the occasion of it : that it is not probable that any such letter was written by him . the epistles ascribed to the virgin mary , spurious . so is the epistle pretended to have been written by st. paul to the laodiceans . of the acts , the gospel , the preaching and revelations of st. peter . of the liturgy attributed to st. matthew : and the discourse said to have been written by him concerning the nativity of the blessed virgin. of the liturgies ascribed to st. peter , st. mark , and st. james . of the gospels attributed to several of the apostles . of the apostles creed ; and the canons called apostolical . of the other pieces under the names of st. clement and st. ignatius : and particularly of the recognitions and epitome of clement . of the history of the life , miracles , and assumption of st. john , pretended to have been written by prochorus , one of the seven deacons . of the histories of st. peter and st. paul , ascribed to linus bishop of rome . of the lives of the apostles attributed to abdias bishop of babylon . of the epistles of st. martial . of the passion of st. andrew , written by the presbyters of achaja . of the works ascribed to dionysius the areopagite . that , upon the whole , the pieces here put together , are all that remain of the apostolical times , after the books of the holy scripture . . and now having said thus much concerning the several pieces here put together , and the authors of them ; it is time to go on to the other part of this discourse , and consider what may be fit to be observed concerning them all together , and as they are now first of all set forth , in our own language , in the following collection . . now the first thing that may be fit to be here taken notice of is , that the following collection is truly what the title pretends it to be , a full and perfect collection of all the genuine writings that remain to us of the apostolical fathers : and carries on the antiquity of the church from the time of the holy scriptures of the new testament , to about an hundred and fifty years after christ. . to make this the more evident , it will be necessary for me to consider , what those other writings are which some have endeavoured to raise up into the rank of apostolical antiquity ; and shew , that they are indeed writings either of no credit nor authority at all , or at least , not of such as they are falsly pretended to be . and to the end i may proceed the more clearly in this enquiry , i will divide the several pieces now to be examined into the three following ranks : the , first , of those which are antecedent to any i have here collected ; as being pretended to have been written either by our saviour christ himself , or by the virgin mary , or by the apostles . the , second , of such other tracts as are ascribed to some of those fathers , whose genuine remains i have here put together . and the , third , of such pieces as are said to have been written by some other authors who lived in the apostolical times ; and wrote , if we will believe some men , several books much more considerable than any i have here collected . . of the first of these kinds is that pretended letter of our blessed saviour to abgarus king of edessa , a little city of arabia , a part of which country was subject to him . now this may seem to be of so much the better credit , in that eusebius tells us he had himself faithfully translated it out of the syriac language , as he found it in the archives of edessa . nor was it very long after , that ephraem , a deacon of that church , made mention of this communication between our saviour and abgarus , as the occasion of the first conversion of that place ; and exhorted his people upon that account , the rather to hold fast to their holy profession , and to live worthy of it . evagrius who wrote about two hundred years after this , not only confirmed all that had been said by both these , but added , from procopius , several other circumstances , unknown , for ought appears , to either of them . and particularly , that of the impression which our saviour had made of his face upon a napkin , and sent to that prince ; and which , he tells us , was of no small advantage to them in the defence of their town against chosdroes king of persia , who by this means was hindred from taking of it . . and now , since the addition of this new story , to the old account of this matter ; it is not to be wondred if the patrons of images among the greeks , from henceforth contended with all earnestness for the truth of both . insomuch that we find they instituted a particular festival in memory of it , august the xvi th ; and transcribed at large the whole history of this adventure into their menaeon , and recited it upon it . . and upon the same account i suppose it is , that some of our late authors , tho' they do not care to assert the truth of this story , are yet unwilling to deny all credit to it . baronius reports both the relation and the epistle from eusebius , but will not answer for the truth of either . spondanus delivers the same from the cardinal , that he had done from eusebius ; and passes no censure either one way or other upon it : only in his margent he observes that gretser the jesuit in his discourse of images , &c. had vindicated the authority of our saviour's epistle to abgarus , from the exceptions of casaubon in his exercitations upon baronius against it . gerard vossius in his scholia upon the testament of st. ephraem , contents himself to refer us to the authority of the ancients for the truth of this relation ; who , he pretends , did without controversie look upon it to be authentick . and valesius himself , tho' he do's not go about to confute this story , but rather endeavours to rectifie those errors that seem'd the most considerable in it ; yet plainly enough shews that he was not out of all doubt concerning the truth of it . . but others , even of the church of rome , have not observed so much caution in this particular . they roundly stand by the censure of pope gelasius who pronounced this epistle of our saviours to be apochryphal : and not only shew by many probable arguments the falseness of it ; but what is yet more , pass the same censure upon the story of the image too that casaubon had done , notwithstanding all that gretser could say in favour of it . natalis alexander delivers this conclusion concerning it : the epistle of abgarus to our saviour , and his answer to it , are supposititious and apochryphal ; and at large answers all that is usually urged in favour of them . and du pin after him , yet more solidly convinces it of such manifest errors , as may serve to satisfie all considering persons , that eusebius and ephraem were too easie of belief in this particular : and did not sufficiently examin into it , when they deliver'd that as a certain truth , which in several circumstances shews it self to be evidently otherwise . . i shall not need to say any thing of the opinions of the learned men of the reformed religion as to this matter ; which generally agree in the same censure . but yet seeing both eusebius and st. ephraem have spoken with such confidence of this story , and whose authority ought not to be lightly esteemed ; i shall chuse rather with the middle sort , to leave it to every one to judg as he pleases , than determine any thing in this case . and that they may the better do it , i will subjoyn at length the two epistles , as they are rendered by eusebius from the original syriac into greek ; and from him translated into our own tongue . the epistle of abgarus to our blessed saviour . . abgarus prince of edessa , to jesus the good saviour , who has appeared in the country about jerusalem , health . i have received an account of thee , and thy cures ; how without any medicines or herbs they are done by thee . for report says , that thou makest the blind to see , the lame to walk ; that thou cleansest the lepers , and castest out unclean spirits and devils , and healest those who have laboured under long diseases , and raisest up the dead . and having heard all this concerning thee , i have concluded with my self one of these two things ; either that thou art god , and that being come down from heaven , thou doest all these mighty works ; or that thou art the son of god , seeing thou art able to perform such things . wherefore by this present letter i intreat thee to come unto me , and to cure me of the infirmity that lies upon me . for i have also heard that the jews murmure against thee , and seek to do thee mischief . but i have tho' but a small , yet a very pretty city which may be sufficient both for thee and me . the answer of our saviour to abgarus . . abgarus , thou art blessed , in that tho' thou hast not seen me , thou hast yet believed in me . for it is written concerning me , that those who have seen me should not believe in me ; that so they who have not seen me , might believe and live . as for what thou hast written unto me , that i should come to thee ; it is necessary that all those things for which i was sent , should be fulfilled by me in this place : and that having fulfilled them , i should be received up to him that sent me . when therefore i shall be received into heaven , i will send unto thee some one of my disciples , who shall both heal thy distemper , and give life to thee , and to those that are with thee . . having said thus much concerning this pretended entercourse between our saviour christ and this prince ; i should in the next place mention the letters ascribed to his mother , the blessed virgin mary , but that there is not the least shadow of truth to give credit to them ; nor any arguments brought in favour of them , that may deserve a refutation . i shall therefore say nothing to these , but pass on without any more ado , to those pieces which have been attributed either to some particular apostle or evangelist ; or else are pretended to have been composed by the whole colledge of the apostles together . . of the former kind is the epistle of st. paul to the laodiceans , set out by hutter in his polyglott new testament , and inserted by sixtus senensis into his bibliotheque , together with the other epistles that are in the like manner pretended , tho' without any just ground , to have pass'd between the same apostle , and seneca the philosopher . now that which gave occasion to the forging of such an epistle , was ; that st. paul himself seems to speak , coloss. iv . . as if he had written an epistle to that church . for having commanded the colossians when they should have read the epistle which he wrote to them , to cause it to be read in the church of the laodiceans ; he adds , that they likewise should read the epistle from laodicea . but whoever shall examin the true import of those words , will find that st. paul do's not there speak of an epistle sent to the laodiceans ; but either of some epistle that had been written from thence , ( as theophylact thinks his first epistle to timothy ; ) or of some epistle which the apostle had written to some other church , but order'd to be sent on to them : as the epistle to the corinthians was directed not only to that one place , but to all the churches of achaja , cor. i. . and as in the very passage under debate , the epistle to the colossians is order'd to be communicated to the church of the laodiceans , and to be read in it . and then taking this to have been the meaning of that expression , it will not be improbable but that by the epistle from laodicea he may have meant his epistle to the ephesians ; and which tertullian tells us was wont in those days to be sometimes called by that name . . now that which favours this conjecture is , that ephesus was in those days looked upon , even in the civil account of the empire , as the chief city and metropolis of the lesser asia . here it was that the emperours order'd their edicts relating to that province to be publish'd ; ( in like manner , as we find in several laws of the theodosian code , that they were wont to be proposed at rome for italy , and at carthage for africa . ) here the common-councils of asia assembled : and to name no more , here the publick sports and sacred rites , &c. that concerned the whole community of that province , were usually transacted . . and much greater was the respect which it had with relation to ecclesiastical matters ; both as it was a church founded by st. paul , and as it was the seat of the beloved disciple st. john , who continued there to the very time of trajan , above years after christ. hence tertullian directing those who were desirous to know what the true faith of christ was , to enquire among the chiefest churches in every part , what had been deliver'd to them , and was the faith received and taught amongst them ; bids them if they were in italy go to rome , if in achaja to corinth ; if in macedonia , to philippi ; if in asia , to ephesus : insomuch that , as evagrius tells us , the bishop of ephesus had a patriarchal power within the diocese of asia till the time of the fourth general council . and long after that , theodorus bishop of this see , subscribing to the acts of the sixth general council , calls himself bishop of ephesus , the metroplis of the province of asia . and even in the times of which we are now discoursing , st. john writing to the seven churches of asia , ( of which laodicea was one , ) places ephesus at the head of them , as that which had the precedence of all the rest in those parts . . seeing then such was the prerogative , which the church of ephesus had , from the beginning , over all the other churches of the asian diocese ; and that st. paul himself had first planted christianity there : and seeing it appears from the command which he gave to the colossians , chap. iv . . to cause the epistle which he had written to them , to be read in the church of the laodiceans , that he was wont to order the epistles which he wrote to one church to be sent to , and be read in the others that we renear unto it : seeing , lastly , we are told both by tertullian and epiphanius , that the epistle to the ephesians , was anciently called by some the epistle to the laodiceans ; i think it may not be improbable , but that by the epistle from laodicea , he may have meant the epistle which he wrote to the ephesians , at the same time , and by the same person , that he wrote to the colossians ; and which being from them communicated to the laodiceans , might be ordered by st. paul to be sent on to the colossians , who were a neighbour church to laodicea , and afterwards subject to it as their metropolitane . . but whatever becomes of this conjecture : whether by the epistle from laodicea we are to understand some epistle written from that place , and that either by st. paul to some other church or person , or by the laodiceans to him ; or whether we are to understand by it some epistle that was to be communicated from thence to the colossians , which seems to me the more probable , and particularly that which he wrote by tychicus to the ephesians , at the same time that he wrote by him to the colossians : certain it is that the epistle now extant under that title is none of st. paul's ; nor do's his expression in that place to the colossians , before mentioned , any more prove there was ever any such , than that other in cor. v. . proves a third epistle to the corinthians , which some also have pretended , as sixtus sinensis , and others observe . . it would be endless to insist upon all the other spurious pieces of the like kind that have been attributed to this great apostle . it is sufficient to observe , that neither eusebius , nor st. jerome , knew any thing more of his writing than what we have in those epistles that are still extant in our bibles under his name ; except it were the epistle to the hebrews , and which tho' doubted of by some in the primitive church , is yet ascribed to him by eusebius , who expresly accounts xiv . of his epistles , and speaks of that to the hebrews as his ; tho' he adds , that being not received by the church of rome , it was by some suspected whether it were indeed the true epistle of st. paul. . but much greater is the authority of those supposititious pieces which the same eusebius tells us were , even in those days , attributed to that other great apostle st. peter , viz. the acts , the gosple , the preaching , and the revelations of st. peter . nevertheless , seeing he at the same time declares that they were never look'd upon as catholick , but rather as set out by some hereticks of those times , ( as many other pieces of the like kind were , ) under the venerable name of that apostle , the better to gain thereby credit to their doctrine ; how ancient soever they may otherwise be , yet they will not fall within the compass of the present collection : nor indeed is there any thing of them remaining to us , except the names ; and perhaps a few fragments , scatter'd up and down in the quotations that have been made by ecclesiastical writers out of them . . to these let me add in the third place , the discourses attributed to st. matthew , the first writer of the new testament . two books there are still remaining under his name ; a liturgy pretended to have been composed be him , and a discourse concerning the nativity of the blessed virgin : but both rejected by learned men , as the works of some impostor , many ages after the death of that holy apostle . . and the same must be said of the liturgies ascribed in like manner to st. peter , st. mark , st. james , and others ; and of the falsity of which all the learned world seems now to be universally agreed . which makes it the more to be admir'd that such great men as cardinal bona and leo allatius were , should be so far prejudiced in their favour , as to think at least the liturgy of st. james to have been truly composed by that apostle ; and only corrupted and interpolated by some other hand in the following ages . . nor may we judg any otherwise of the gospels set out under the names of several of the apostles , and others who were contemporary with them : and of which however some were very ancient ; yet is it generally agreed among the most judicious of all sides , that they were not only not written by those whose names they carry , but were for the most part set out by suspected persons , and for ill ends , after their deaths . . as for the writings of the whole colledge of apostles ; two pieces there are , besides the synodical letter spoken of by st. luke , acts xv . . which not only go under their names , but have been by some ascribed to them , as the authors of them . and those are , first the creed , and secondly the canons of the apostles . . for the former of these , the apostles creed , it has been thought by many that it was so called , not only as being a summary of the apostles doctrine , but because it was really composed by them . and that either in their first assembly after our lord's resurrection , acts i. or else immediately before their dispersion , upon the breaking out of herod's persecution , acts xii . which baronius and others esteem the more probable . it is not my intention to enter on any particular examination of this matter , which has been so fully handled , not only by the late criticks of the church of rome , natalis alexander , du pin , &c. but yet more especially by arch-bishop usher , gerard vossius , suicer , spanhemius , tentzelius , and sam. basnage , among the protestants . it shall suffice to say , that as it is not likely , that had any such thing as this been done by the apostles , st. luke would have pass'd it by , without taking the least notice of it : so the diversity of creeds in the ancient church ; and that not only in expression , but in some whole articles too , sufficiently shew's ; that the creed which we call by that name , was not compos'd by the apostles ; nor probably reduced into that form in which it now is , for some hundreds of years after their deaths . . nor is it any more probable that the canons now extant under their name were truly compiled by them ; but rather as our pious and learned dr. beverege has shewn , were a collection of the canons made by the councils of the first ages , put together at several times ; and finished , as we now see them , within ccc years after christ , before the assembling of the first general council of nice . this is the earliest date that is now ascribed to them by the most judicious writers of the roman communion , as well as of the reformed religion ; and some there are who will by no means allow them to be so ancient , as even this opinion supposes them to be . . it is evident then , that except the holy scriptures , there is nothing remaining of the truly genuine christian antiquity , more early than what is here put together . nor have the authors , whose tracts i have now set forth , any other pieces yet remaining , besides those that appear in the following collection . indeed for what concerns two of the fathers here mentioned , st. clement , and st. ignatius ; several treatises there are , and some that may seem much more considerable than any i have subjoyn'd , that have been sent abroad under the authority of their names ; but which are at present universally exploded by all learned men. such are the constitutions , and recognitions of st. clement . the collection called from the same father , the clementines . the epitome of clement , and the epistles ascribed to ignatius , besides the vii . here set out ; and which alone were either mention'd by eusebius , or known to the church for some ages after . . i shall not here enter upon any particular enquiry when these several pieces were first sent abroad into the world ; or how it came to pass that some even among the ancients themselves receiv'd them for the genuine writings of these holy men ; only corrupted , as many others were , by the hereticks of those first times , the better to give some colour to their errours . i will only observe , that the recognitions of st. clement ; not only the most learned , but the most ancient too of any of these , as near as we can guess , were not set forth till about the middle of the second century ; and are rejected by eusebius as none of his , but as one of those many impostures which were even then publish'd under his name . and for the rest , tho' some of them have been ancient too , yet it is evident that none of them come up to the period of which i am now speaking ; nor even to the age of the recognitions before mentioned . . as for the epitomé of st. clement , cotelerius esteems it to have been yet later than any of the rest . perhaps it was collected by metaphrastes , whom i take to have been the author of the martyrdom of that holy man , set out by surius and allatius , and reprinted by cotelerius at the end of the works ascribed to st. clement . this is certain , that it was composed in some of the latter ages ; as was also the account of the miracle pretended to have been wrought at his martyrdom , which goe's under the name of ephraem , archbishop of cherson , and where ( as du pin well observes ) there never was any . and this cotelerius seems to have been aware of ; and therefore in his annotations upon this relation , calls him archbishop or bishop of cherson . now that there was such a bishop appears both from the ancient notitiae of the province of europe under the patriarch of constantinople ; and from the subscription which peter bishop of this place made to the council of chalcedon , for cyriacus archbishop of heraclea , in whose province that see lay . . there is then nothing in any of those pieces which make up the rest of cotelerius's collection , and are indeed all that still remain under the names of those fathers of which we are now speaking , that can with any good grounds be relied upon as the genuine products of those holy men. let us see , in the last place ; whether any of those discourses which have been sent abroad under the names of some others of the apostolical fathers , may deserve to be received by us , as coming truly from them . . and here i shall in the first place take it for granted , that what those who are usually the most fond of such spurious pieces ; i mean , the writers of the church of rome , have yet almost unanimously rejected as false and counterfeit , may securely be laid aside by us , without any further enquiry into the condition of them . such are , the history of the life , miracles , and assumption of st. john ; pretended to have been written by prochorus his disciple , and one of the seven deacons , chosen by the church of jerusalem , acts vi . the histories of st. peter and st. paul , said to have been written by linus one of the first bishops of rome . the lives of the apostles , ascribed to abdias bishop of babylon , and supposed to have been written by him in the hebrew tongue . the epistles of st. martial ; who is said to have been one of the lxx disciples appointed by our saviour , and one of the first preachers of the gospel in france . these are all so evidently spurious , that even natalis alexander himself was ashamed to undertake the defence of them : and not only he , but all the other writers of the same church , baronius , bellarmine , sixtus senensis , possevine , espencaeus , bisciola , labbe , &c. have freely acknowledged the little credit that is to be given to them . . but two pieces there are which alexander is still unwilling to part with ; tho' he cannot deny but that the most learned men , even of his own communion , have at last agreed in the rejecting of them . and those are , the passion of st. andrew , written , ( as is pretended , ) by the presbyters of achaja ; and the works set out under the name of dionysius the areopagite . . as for the former of these , i confess there have not been wanting many from the viii th century downwards , who have undertaken the defence of it . etherius mention'd it about the year dcc . lxxx.viii . remigius after : peter damian , lanfranc , and st. bernard , still later . and in this last age baronius , bellarmine , labbe , and a few others , have yet more endeavour'd to establish it's authority . but then as du pin well observes , it is certain that the ancients knew nothing of it ; nor are the acts we now have quoted by any before the time of etherius before-mentioned . and yet how they could have escaped the search of the primitive fathers , had they been extant in their days , it is hard to imagin . . but much less is the credit that ought to be given to the pretended works of dionysius the areopagite : which as alexander confesses , two very great criticks of his own communion , to have deny'd to have been written by that holy man ; so has a third very lately given such reasons to shew that the writings , now extant under his name , could not have been composed by him , as ought to satisfie every considering man of their imposture . for not to say any thing of what occurs every where in those discourses , utterly disagreeable to the state of the church in the time that that dionysius lived : can it be imagin'd , that had such considerable books as these been written by him , none of the ancients of the first iv centuries should have heard any thing of them . or shall we say that they did know of them ; as well as the fathers that lived after , and yet made no mention of them , tho' they had so often occasion to have done it , as eusebius , and st. jerome , not to name any others , had ? . in short , one of the first times that we hear of them , is in the dispute between the severians and catholicks about the year d. xxx.ii . when the former produced them in favour of their errours , and the latter rejected them as books utterly unknown to all antiquity , and therefore not worthy to be received by them . . it is therefore much to be wondered , that after so many arguments as have been brought to prove how little right these treatises have to such a primitive antiquity ; nevertheless , not only natalis alexander , but a man of much better judgment , i mean emanuel schelstrat , the late learned keeper of the vatican library , should still undertake the defence of them . when they were written , or by what author , is very uncertain : but as bishop pearson supposes them to have been first set forth about the latter end of eusebius's life ; so dr. cave conjectures , that the elder apollinarius may very probably have been the author of them . others there are who place them yet later , and suspect pope gregory the great to have had a hand in the forgery . and indeed the arguments which our very learned mr. dodwell brings to prove that they were originally written by one of the roman church , are not without their just weight . but whatever becomes of this , thus much is certain , that these books were not written before the middle of the iv th century , and therefore are without the compass of the present undertaking . . and now having taken such a view as was necessary for the present design , of all those other pieces which have been obtruded upon the world for apostolical writings , besides what is either here collected , or has been before publish'd in the sacred books of the new testament ; i suppose i may with good grounds conclude , that the little i have now put together is all that can with any certainty be depended upon , of the most primitive fathers : and therefore that from these , next to the holy scriptures , we must be content to draw the best account we can of the doctrine and discipline of the church , for the first hundred years after the death of christ. chap. x. of the authority of the following treatises , and the deference that ought to be paid to them upon the account of it . this is shewn from the following considerations : st , that the authors of them were contemporary with the apostles , and instructed by them . dly , they were men of an eminent character in the church ; and therefore to be sure such as could not be ignorant of what was taught in it . dly , they were very careful to preserve the doctrine of christ in its purity , and to oppose such as went about to corrupt it . thly , they were men not only of a perfect piety , but of great courage and constancy ; and therefore such as cannot be suspected to have had any design to prevaricate in this matter . thly , they were endued with a large portion of the holy spirit , and as such , could hardly err in what they deliver'd as the gospel of christ. and thly , their writings were approved by the church in those days , which could not be mistaken in its approbation of them . but , secondly , and to proceed yet farther : the following collection pretends to a just esteem , not only upon the account of its perfection , as it is an entire collection of what remains to us of the apostolical fathers ; but yet much more , from the respect that is due to the authors themselves , whose writings are here put together . . if , first , we consider them as the contemporaries of the holy apostles ; some of them bred up under our saviour christ himself , and the rest instructed by those great men whom he commissioned to go forth and preach to all the world , and endued with an extraordinary assistance of his blessed spirit for the doing of it : we cannot doubt but that what they deliver to us , must be , without controversie , the pure doctrine of the gospel ; what christ and his apostles taught , and what they had themselves received from their own mouths . this is the least deference we can pay to them , to look upon them as faithful deliverers of the doctrine and practice of the church in those most early times : when heresies were not as yet so openly broke out in it , nor the true faith so dangerously corrupted with the mixture of those erroneous opinions , which afterwards more fatally infected the minds of men , and divided the church into so many parties and factions . so that here then we may read with security , and , let me add , with respect too : and not doubt but what these holy men deliver to us , is as certainly the true doctrine of christ , as if we had received it , like them , from our saviour and his apostles . . but , secondly , the authors of the following pieces had not only the advantage of living in the apostolical times , and of hearing the holy apostles , and conversing with them , but they were of a very eminent character in the church too ; men raised up to the highest pitch of honour and authority in some of the most famous churches of the world ; chosen by the apostles to preside in their own proper sees ; at rome , at antioch , at smyrna ; one of them set apart , by the express command of the holy ghost , to be the companion of the great st. paul in his work of the ministry ; and the rest for the most part commended for their rare endowments , in the inspired writings of the holy scriptures delivered to us . and therefore we may be sure that such men as these must needs have been very carefully instructed in the mystery of the gospel , and have had a most perfect and comprehensive knowledg of the faith , as it is in jesus . . had they been some ordinary and obscure writers , even of the apostolical times , men of no note , no authority in the church ; tho' still whilst we had a good account of their integrity , the very advantage of the age wherein they lived would have rendered their discourses justly venerable to us ; yet should we not perhaps have been obliged to pay such a deference to their writings , as not to make allowance for some little defects or mistakes that might have happen'd to them . but now having to do with men , not only instructed in common by the apostles , with the other christians of those days , but particularly bred up , and instituted by them : having here the writings of men who had attained to such a perfect knowledg in the mystery of godliness , and were judg'd to have been so well grounded and setled in it , as to deserve to be raised up by the apostles themselves to the government of such eminent churches , as those over which these holy men were over-seers : it is plain that we cannot with any reason doubt of what they deliver to us , as the gospel of christ ; but ought to receive it , if not with equal veneration , yet but with a little less respect , than we do the sacred writings of those who were their masters and instructers . . yet farther , thirdly : the following authors , were not only such eminent men , and bred up under such mighty advantages , and so well instructed in the knowledg of the gospel , as i have now observed ; but they were moreover persons of a consummated piety , adorn'd with all those christian virtues they so affectionately recommend to us . but especially , they were zealous watchmen over their churches ; careful to instruct them in the true faith and doctrine of christ , and no less careful to preserve them against the contagion of those heresies , which even in their days began to corrupt the purity of it . hence we read with what earnestness that blessed martyr ignatius first , and then his fellow-disciple st. polycarp , set themselves against those who would insinuate some other doctrines into the minds of their people , than what the apostles had deliver'd unto them . what wise directions they gave them for the discovery of such false teachers ; and how earnestly they exhorted them by keeping firm to their respective bishops and presbyters , and to the apostolical doctrine delivered by them , to prevent their gaining any advantage against them . . with what assurance do they deliver the doctrine which they had received ? how confidently do they declare it to be the true doctrine of christ ? and exhort the churches to whom they write , not to give any heed to such as would insinuate any other doctrine into their minds ? and how did they themselves shew them by their own examples , how they should avoid such persons ? insomuch that irenaeus tells us , that if st. polycarp at any time chanced to hear any one deliver any other doctrine than what he had been taught , he did not only not give any countenance to such an one ; but was wont to stop his ears at him , and cry out with astonishment and grief , good god! to what times hast thou reserved me , that i should endure this ? nay he would not tarry in the same place with such a person , but would leave the house , if he knew that any hereticks were in it . . but of the care which these holy men had to keep close in every the least circumstance to the doctrine and practice of the apostles , we cannot , i think , desire a fairer instance to convince us , than what eusebius has recorded of the same blessed martyr . how that hearing of the difference between the eastern and western churches about the time of keeping easter , he thought it worthy his pains , at an extreme old age , to take a journey as far as rome for the composing of it . and notwithstanding all that anicetus , who was then bishop of that church , could say to move him from his practice ; yet having this ground for it , that st. john was wont to keep easter as he did ; the good man held close to it , and would not hear of changing a custom which that blessed apostle had deliver'd to him . . and when such was the care which these holy writers had of holding fast , even to the least particular , of what they received from the apostles , that they would not comply with the rest of the church in such an indifferent matter , only because by so doing they should depart from the practice of one of them ; surely we may with confidence depend upon the doctrine which they deliver , as most pure and genuine ; what our saviour taught his apostles , and his apostles them . and what irenaeus once said of his master polycarp , we may with equal truth and assurance apply to all the rest of those fathers , whose treatises i have here put together ; that they taught evermore what they had received from the apostles , which also they deliver'd to the church , and which only is the true doctrine of christ. . to this general piety of their lives , and care for the truth and purity of their religion ; let me add , fourthly , their courage and constancy in the maintaining of it . how great this was i have already shewn , in the particular accounts which i have given of the several fathers whose writings are here subjoyn'd . it shall suffice in this place to observe , that the most of them after having spent their lives in a careful administration of the great charges to which they were called , were at last made perfect by martyrdom ; and underwent the most exquisite cruelties with a courage and constancy , worthy both of the religion they profess'd , and of the eminent characters which they had obtained in the church . . now tho' this do's not immediately argue the purity of their doctrine , yet being added to what i have before observed , will give us a new ground to rely upon the truth of what they deliver . for since we cannot reasonably doubt but that such persons as these , must needs have known what the doctrine of the apostles was ; and have been perfectly instructed in that religion which they were esteem'd able and worthy to preach to others : we have in this a clear demonstration of their integrity both in their teaching and writing of it ; and must conclude , that they who liv'd such excellent lives , and took so much pains in the ministry of the gospel ; that stuck with such firmness to it , notwithstanding all the endeavours of their enemies to the contrary ; and chose rather to undergo the most bitter deaths , than they would in any wise depart from it ; have doubtless dealt most uprightly in this matter , and deliver'd nothing to us but what they took for the true doctrine of christ , and what therefore we may conclude , undoubtedly was so . . such good reason then have we upon all these accounts to look upon the writings of these holy men , as containing the pure and uncorrupted doctrine of our blessed saviour and his apostles . but now , fifthly , and to advance yet higher : these writers were not only thus qualified by these ordinary means to deliver the gospel of christ to us , but in all probability were endued with the extraordinary assistance of the holy spirit too . so that what they teach us , it not to be look'd upon as a mere traditionary relation of what had been deliver'd to them , but rather , as an authoritative declaration of the gospel of christ to us ; tho' indeed as much inferior to that of the apostles and evangelists , as their gifts and assistances were less than theirs . . for , ( st . ) that the extraordinary gifts of the holy spirit with which the apostles were endued , and which the holy scriptures themselves tell us were in those days distributed to other believers , as well as unto them , continu'd still in the church after their departure ; we have the express assurance of justin martyr , one of the most ancient writers , after those i have here subjoyn'd , to assure us . they were communicated not only to men but women : and that we may be sure he spake nothing in this matter but what he could undeniably have made out , we find him boasting of it against trypho the jew , and urging it as an unanswerable argument in the behalf of christianity , and against the jews , from whom these gifts had a long time been departed . and even in the fathers , whose writings are here put together , there appear sufficient indications of the continuance of these extraordinary powers . . this st. clement manifestly declares in his first epistle to the corinthians . he tells us that some in that church not only had such gifts , but were even proud and conceited upon the account of them . let a man , says he , have faith , i. e. such a faith by which he is able to work miracles ; let him be powerful to utter mystical knowledg ; ( for to that his expression manifestly refers ; ) let him be wise in discerning of speeches ; another gift common in those times : but still , says he , by how much the more he seems to excel others , viz. upon the account of these extraordinary endowments , by so much the more will it behove him to be humble-minded , and to seek what is profitable to all men , and not to his own advantage . and st. ignatius not only supposes that such gifts might be in others , but plainly intimates , that he himself was endued with a large portion of them . . which being so , we cannot doubt ( dly . ) but that , as it was most reasonable , both the apostles were careful to set those in the chiefest places of honour and authority in their several churches , who were the most eminent for their gifts ; and that god was also pleased to grant to such persons a more than ordinary portion of the holy spirit , for the better discharge of those eminent places to which they were called . . concerning the former of these , we are told by st. paul , acts vi . that when the apostles thought it necessary to establish a new order of ministers in the church , that might take care of those things , which they , who were of a higher rank , could not find leisure to attend to ; tho' their ministry were of the lowest nature , and which required much lesser capacities in those who were to discharge it , than theirs whose business it was to govern and instruct the church of christ ; yet they particularly laid it down to the brethren , as one of the qualifications that was to be required in those whom they chose for that purpose , that they should be men well approved of , full of the holy spirit and of wisdom , vers. . and of one of them , viz. st. stephen , it is particularly observed , vers. . that he was full of faith and power , and did signs and great wonders among the people . and when the jews disputed against him , we read vers. . that they were not able to stand against the wisdom and spirit by which he spake . . now if such were the care which they took in the choice of those who were to be admitted into the lowest ministry of the church ; we cannot doubt but that they were certainly much more careful not to admit any into the highest rank of honour and authority in it , but what were in a yet more eminent manner endued with the same gifts . hence st. clement tells us , that the apostles did prove by the spirit the first fruits of their conversions , and out of them set bishops and pastors over such as should believe . and by which we must understand one of these two things , and very probably they were both meant by it : either that the apostles made use of their own extraordinary gift of the spirit ( one use of which was to discern and try the spirits of others ) in chusing persons fitly qualified for the work of the ministry ; or else , that by the extraordinary gifts of those whom they pitch'd upon , they perceiv'd that they were worthy of such an employ , and therefore chose them out for it . and the other clement yet more plainly speaks the same thing : that st. john being returned from his banishment in patmos , went about the country near unto ephesus , both to form and settle churches , where he saw occasion ; and to admit into the order of the clergy , such as were mark'd out to him by the spirit . . and then for the other thing observed ; it is clear that the very imposition of hands , did in those days confer the holy spirit , in an extraordinary manner , upon those who were ordain'd to the ministry of the gospel . this st. paul intimates in his first epistle to timothy , ch. iv . . where he exhorts him to stir up , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the gift , i. e. the extraordinary power of the holy spirit , which , says he , is in thee by the imposition of my hands . tim. i. . and would you know how this ceremony of setting him apart for such a service came to endue him with such an extraordinary power ; the same apostle will tell you , tim. iv . . that it was given unto him by prophecy ; with , or through the imposition of hands upon him . that is to say ; god , who by his prophets had before design'd and mark'd him out for that great office , tim. i. . upon the actual admission of him into it by the outward rite of laying on of hands , and upon the solemn prayers that were then withal made for him , did bestow the gifts of his blessed spirit , in an extraordinary manner upon him . . now this as will it afford us just cause to conclude that those holy men , whose writings we have here collected , were doubtless endued with a very large portion of the extraordinary gifts of the holy ghost : whether we consider the frequency of those endowments in the age in which they lived ; or the extraordinary strictness and piety of their lives ; or the greatness of those stations to which they were called in the church ; or lastly , the judgment which the apostles , who called them to those high offices , were by the spirit enabled to make of them ; so , ( dly ) if we look to those accounts which still remain to us of them ; they will plainly shew us that they were endued , and that in a very singular manner , with this power and gift of the blessed spirit . . of barnabas , the holy scripture it self bears witness , that he was a good man , full of the holy ghost , and of faith , acts xi . . hermas is another of whom st. paul himself makes mention , rom. xvi . . as an early convert to christianity : and what extraordinary revelations he had , and how he foretold the troubles that were to come upon the church , his following visions sufficiently declare . clement is not only spoken of by the same apostle , but with this advantageous character too , that he was the fellow-labourer of that great man , and had his name written in the book of life , phil. iv . . and when we shall consider to how much lesser and worser men these gifts were usually communicated at that time ; we can hardly think that so excellent a man , and the companion of so great an apostle ; employed first in the planting of the gospel with him , and then set to govern one of the most considerable churches in the world , should have been destitute of it . . as for st. ignatius , i have before observed that he had this gift ; and by the help of it , warned the philadelphians against falling into those divisions , which he fore-saw were about to rise up amonst them . . polycarp not only prophecy'd of his own death , but spake often times of things that were to come : and has this witness from the whole church of smyrna , that nothing of all that he foretold ever failed of coming to pass according to his prediction . . it remains then that the holy men whose writings are here subjoyn'd , were not only instructed by such as were inspir'd , but were themselves inspir'd too . and therefore we must conclude , that they have not only not mistaken the mind of the apostles , in what they deliver to us as the gospel of christ , but were not capable of doing of it . by consequence , that we ought to look upon their writings , tho' not of equal authority with those which we call in a singular manner the holy scriptures ; ( because neither were the authors of them called in so extraordinary a way to the writing of them , nor endued with so eminent a portion of the gifts of the blessed spirit for the doing of it ; nor have their writings been judg'd by the common consent of the church in those inspir'd ages of it , when they were so much better qualified , than we are now , to judge of the divine authority of those kind of writings , to be of equal dignity with those of the apostles and evangelists ; ) yet worthy of a much greater respect than any composures that have been made since ; however men may seem to have afterwards written with more art , and to have shewn a much greater stock of humane learning , than what is to be found , not only in the following pieces , but even in the sacred books of the new testament it self . . i shall add but one consideration more , the better to shew the true deference that ought to be paid to the treatises here collected , and that is , sixthly : that they were not only written by such men as i have said , instructed by the apostles , and judg'd worthy by them both for their knowledg and their integrity , to govern some of the most eminent churches in the world ; and lastly , endued with the extraordinary gift of the holy ghost ; and upon all these accounts to be much respected by us : but were moreover received by the church in those first ages , as pieces of a very great value , which could not be mistaken in its judgment of them . . the epistle of st. clement was a long time read publickly with the other scriptures in the congregations of the faithful ; made a part of their bible , and was numbred among the sacred writings , however finally separated from them . and not only the apostolical canons , but our most ancient alexandrian manuscript , gives the same place to the second , that it do's to the first of them : and epiphanius after both , tells us , that they were both of them wont to be read in the church in his time . . the epistle of st. polycarp , with that of the church of smyrna , were not only very highly approved of by particular persons , but like those of st. clement , were read publickly too in the assemblies of the faithful . and for those of ignatius , besides that we find a mighty value put upon them by the christians of those times , they are sealed to us by this character of st. polycarp ; that they are such epistles , by which we may be greatly profited ; for , says he , they treat of faith and patience , and of all things that pertain to edification in the lord . . the epistle of barnabas is not only quoted with great honour by those of the next age to him , but as i have before shewn , is expresly called catholick and canonical . and in the ancient stichometry of cotelerius , we find it placed the very next to the epistle of st. jude , and no difference put between the authority of the one and of the other . . and for the book of hermas , both eusebius and st. jerome tell us , that it was also used to be read in the churches . in the same stichometry , i before mentioned , it is placed in the very next rank to the acts of the holy apostles : and in some of the most ancient manuscripts of the new testament , we find it written in the same volume with the books of the apostles and evangelists , as if it had been esteem'd of the same value and authority with them . . so that now then we must either say that the church in those days was so little careful of what was taught in it , as to allow such books to be publickly read in its congregations , the doctrine whereof it did not approve ; or we must confess , that the following pieces are deliver'd to us , not only by the learned men of the first ages of the church , but by the whole body of the faithful , as containing the pure doctrine of christ ; and must be look'd upon to have nothing in them , but what was then thought worthy of all acceptation . . now how much this adds to the authority of these discourses , may easily be concluded from what i have before observed . for since it is certain that in those times the extraordinary gifts of the holy ghost were bestowed , not only upon the bishops and pastors of the church , ( tho' upon them in a more eminent degree ) but also upon a great many of the common christians too : since one particular design of these gifts was for the discerning of prophecies , to judg of what was proposed by any to the church , or written for the use and benefit of it : we cannot doubt but what was universally approved of and allow'd , not by a few learned men , but by the whole church in those days ; what was permitted to be publickly read to the faithful for their comfort and instruction ; must by this means have received a more than humane approbation ; and ought to be look'd upon by us , tho' not of equal authority with those books which they have deliver'd to us as strictly canonical , yet as standing in the first rank of ecclesiastical writings , and as containing the true and pure faith of christ , without the least error intermix'd with it . chap. xi . of the subject of the following discourses ; and of the use that is to be made of them. that in the following treatises , there is deliver'd to us a good account , both of the doctrine and discipline of the church , in the apostolical times . this shewn in several particulars . what they taught concerning god the father , our saviour christ , and the holy ghost . of angels and spirits . of the rest of the articles of the apostles creed . concerning the two sacraments of baptism , and the lord's supper . of the holy scriptures , and the divine authority of them . what we meet with in these treatises concerning the government of the church . of the necessity of communicating with the bishops and pastors of it . of schismaticks , hereticks , and apostates . of their publick assembling for the service of god , and what was done by them in those meetings . of several other instances of their discipline ; particularly , of their fasting and confession of sins . of the care which their bishops had of the whole church . of the respect that was paid to them . of their martyrs ; and the veneration which they thought due to them . of their practical instructions , and how severe their morality was ; shewn in several particulars . that upon the whole , we may here see what the state of christianity then was , and still ought to be . . and now having shewn in the foregoing chapter , what deference we ought to pay to the authority of those holy men , whose writings i have here collected ; it may not be amiss , in the third place to enquire , what it is which they deliver to us ; what account we find in them , of the doctrine , and discipline of the church , in those times in which they lived . . it would be endless for me to go about to make a just catalogue of all the particulars of this kind that occur in the following pieces ; and i have already in a great measure perform'd it , in the index which i have for that purpose subjoyn'd to them . i shall therefore here consider only a few particulars , in such points as may seem most worthy to be remarked ; and by them ( as by a short specimen shew ) how the judicious reader may himself improve it , into a more particular history of the faith and practice of the church , in the best and most ancient state of it . . and ( st . ) for what concerns the doctrines of those times ; there is hardly any point that is necessary to be believed or known by us , that is not very plainly delivered in some or other of the following pieces . . here we may read what we are to believe concerning the first article of all of our creed , god the father . that he is one , almighty , invisible ; the creator and maker of all things . that he is omniscient , immense ; neither to be comprehended within any bounds , nor so much as to be perfectly conceived by us . that his providence is over all things : and that we can none of us flee from him , or escape his knowledg . that we are to believe in him , to fear him , to love him ; and fearing him , to abstain from all evil. . if from thence we go on to the next person of the blessed trinity , our saviour jesus christ ; here we shall find all that either our creed teaches us to profess concerning him , or that any christian need to believe . that he existed not only before he came into the world , but from all eternity . that he is not only the son of god , but is himself also god. that in the fulness of time he took upon him our nature , and became man : was born of the virgin mary , was crucified under pontius pilate ; that he suffer'd for our salvation , and was raised again from the dead , not only by the power of the father , but by his own also . that he is our high-priest and protectour now , and shall come again at the end of the world , to judge the whole race of mankind . that there is no coming unto god but by him : insomuch that even the ancient fathers , who died before his appearing , are yet saved by the same means that we are now . . as for what concerns the holy spirit , the third person in the glorious godhead ; he is here set out to us not only as a person , but as distinct from the father and the son. and to shew what kind of spirit he is ; we may here see him joyn'd together in the same worship with the father , and our saviour jesus christ. . and now i am mentioning the holy spirit ; let me add , that we may here see what is needful to be known , concerning all the other spirits of an inferiour nature . how the holy angels minister unto us ; but especially then , when we have most need of them , at the time of our death . and that tho' the devil may attacque us , and use all his arts to draw us away from our duty ; yet it must be our own faults if we are overcome by him , and therefore that we ought not to be afraid of him . . but to return to our creed , and the articles of it : here we may farther see , both what a great obligation there lies upon us to keep up a communion of saints in the unity of the church on earth , and what is that true fellowship that we ought to have with those , who are gone before us to heaven . that it consists not in the worship of any , tho' never so gloriously exalted by god ; but in love and remembrance ; in thanksgiving to god for their excellencies , and in our prayers to him , joyn'd with hearty endeavours of our own , to imitate their perfections . . and whilst we do this , we are here assured of the forgiveness of our sins too , through the merits and satisfaction of jesus christ. and that not only of those which we committed before our baptism ; but of all such as we shall chance to fall into after , if we truly repent of them . . as for the next point , the resurrection of the body ; it is not only asserted , but at large proved too , in the following discourses . there we may see , not only that there shall be a future resurrection ; but that we shall be raised in the very same bodies in which we go down into the grave . and that being raised , we shall be judged by christ according to our works ; and be either unspeakably rewarded , or exceedingly punished , and that to all eternity . . if from the articles of our creed , we go on to the sacraments of the church : here we have set out to us the great benefit of our baptism , and of what a mighty concern it is to us in the business of our salvation . and for the other sacrament ; here we are taught , that the elements of bread and wine are the same ( as to their substance ) after consecration , that they were before ; and are only in a spiritual sense , the flesh and blood of our saviour christ. . and , lastly ; for that great , comprehensive point of our religion , the foundation of our faith , the holy scriptures : here we may see what opinion these holy men had of the divine inspiration of them ; what deferences they paid to them , and how they looked upon them to contain the true words of the holy ghost . . such is the doctrine of faith , that is here delivered to us . if from thence we pass ; dly , to what concerns the publick order and government of the church , in the first establishment of it : here we may see by what persons it was directed ; and how exactly our own church do's in this particular resemble the primitive , perhaps beyond any other at this day in the world , in the apostolical orders , of bishops , priests , and deacons . . how necessarily they esteem'd it their duty , to keep up a strict communion with these governours , and how little they thought the very name of a church could belong to those who separated from them , we are here likewise taught . and how light soever some may make of the business of schism now , yet it is plain these holy men had a very different apprehension of it , and hardly thought that such could be saved as continued in it . . and the same , or rather much worse , was their opinion of hereticks and apostates . to the latter of which , as they seem even to have deny'd repentance ; so 't is manifest that without it , they thought the others must perish . and in the mean time , they declare , that we ought not to have any communication with them : only we must pray for them , that they may be converted , which yet they supposed would be very hard . . as for those who continued in the doctrine and communion of the church ; here we may see how zealous they were in attending all the publick offices of it . how constantly they assembled together for the worship of god , notwithstanding all the malice and fury of their enemies against them upon the account of it . here we may see , how from the beginning they had their set times and places of worship : and how they look'd upon such offertories , both as more acceptable unto god , and more prevalent with him , than any private addresses that they could make to him . . in these assemblies , they not only put up their prayers to god , but received also the holy sacrament of the lords supper . and in that part of their service , none officiated but either the bishop himself , or he who was appointed , or allow'd , by him . . for this purpose they had in every such place of their assembling , one table or altar , at which they perform'd this service . and they communicated after the same manner , that our saviour christ had set them the example ; of one common loaf , which was broken and distributed to them , not of little separate and unbroken wafers , as some now do . . nor was this yet all : in these assemblies , the holy scriptures were read to them ; and ( as i have before shewn ) some of the very treatises i have here subjoyn'd , together with them . and the bishop besides , himself instructed the people , and expounded the doctrine of christ to them . . by the bishop were the christians blessed , and joyn'd together in the holy state of matrimony . and indeed without him was nothing done of all that pertain'd unto religion . . in those times the clergy were marry'd , as well as laity ; nor do we find it esteem'd the least scandal for them so to be . . here we may see , what the ancient manner of fasting was ; and what was thought requisite to render such exercises acceptable to god , and profitable to our own souls . . in short , here we may perceive what their opinion was of repentance for sins ; and how hardly they thought of those who were still repenting , and yet still continuing to sin on , notwithstanding their frequent repentance . but especially , here we are told that we must finish our repentance before we die ; for that there is no place for repentance after . . and tho' they prescribe confession , as one act of repentance , and necessary to be perform'd in order to our forgiveness ; yet we find them advising it to be done to god only , and intimate to us that that alone was sufficient . . but the care of their bishops in those first times was not confin'd within the narrow bounds of their own churches , but extended to all the faithful , wheresoever they were . and they were still ready to look to those who were at the greatest distance from them , whenever they thought their advice or authority might be either useful to them , or for the honour and benefit of their religion . . from this , and from the general piety and excellence of their lives , joyn'd to the greatness of their character in the church , came that mighty respect , that was shewn to the bishops in those days : and which how great it was , the following treatises abundantly shew . . but much greater was their veneration for those , who not only govern'd well , and adorn'd their holy profession by an exemplary life , but confirm'd the truth of it with their blood. they were indeed of opinion that no man ought causelesly to expose himself unto suffering : but if god called a man to it , they doubted not but that our saviour christ would both support him in his conflicts , and most gloriously reward him for the enduring of them . hence was it their opinion , that martyrdom blotted out all sins : that they who suffer'd for the faith , should have a degree of glory peculiar to themselves , above all other saints in god's kingdom . and when god shew'd such regard for them , they concluded that they could never almost do enough , to testifie their respect to them . . to this we must ascribe the care they took to gather up their remains , the honour which they gave to them , and the solemnities with which they deposited them into the earth . hence came their custom , which we here find , of writing down the particulars of their conflicts ; and sending them abroad to the churches round about . hence their anniversary meetings at their tombs and monuments , where they recited the acts of their martyrdoms , and sometimes made express discourses in praise of their martyrs , and to exhort one another to the like constancy . . but not to insist any longer on these particulars : there is yet a ( d. ) sort of matters contain'd in these discourses , and those of no less use to us , than either of the foregoing ; and that is , the practical rules of life , that are here deliver'd to us . . here we may see what care we are to take , not only not to sin our selves , but , as far as in us lies , not to let any that belong to us continue in sin ; least we also become partakers of their evil doings . . here we are taught not only to have a care of our words and actions , but of our very thoughts and desires : which must not only not be indulged in any instances of sin , but not be suffer'd , if it be possible , to wander on any thing that is in the least measure wanton or irregular . . if we will hearken to these holy men ; we must learn not only to do the will of god , ( but if it be his pleasure ) to endure patiently whatever he shall send upon us . we must consider , that troubles and afflictions are not only sent upon us to punish us for our sins ; but as monitors too , to draw us off from them . . to convince us the more effectually of this ; we are here shewn the mighty danger of riches , especially where mens hearts are in any degree set upon them ; and how very hardly such persons shall be saved . we are taught what use we should make of our abundance , that so it may not prove a snare to us . but especially , we are shewn the great advantage of alms-giving to this end ; and what mighty engagements there lie upon us to the practice of it . . and then , as for our lives ; we are here told , that a christian must not only be good , but exemplary : he must shew the truth of his profession by a suitable conversation ; and be known by his actions , rather than by his words . . he must pray for all men , even for his very enemies ; nay , for the very enemies of the church ; for hereticks and schismaticks ; for those of whom there is but little hope that they will ever come to repentance , or that god will give them grace so to do . . he must be kind and charitable to all men ; free from envy and contention : he must neither raise any differences among his brethren , nor follow any in the doing of it . to this end , he must carefully observe those duties which relate to his neighbour , as well as those he is to pay to god. he must obey magistrates ; must respect the aged ; must have a due regard to all men. is he a husband , a parent , or a child ? he must then be sure to exercise himself in the several duties becoming those several relations . in short ; in the following writings we may see in all the parts of our duty towards god , our neighbour , and our selves , what we are to do , and what to avoid : and are assured , that god both sees all our actions now , and will reward or punish us for them hereafter to all eternity . . and thus have i given a short prospect , of what is more largely contain'd in the following collection . i need not say either how useful a variety of matter it is , or how worthy to be known by all of us . but sure i am , whosoever shall take the pains impartially to compare what is here found , with the sacred writings of the new testament ; may be able both with clearness and certainty to understand whatever is requisite to his eternal salvation : and that with much more satisfaction and security too , than from many volumes of our later writers ; who for the most part spend a great deal of time , and take much pains , to obscure rather than explain , the most easie and intelligible points of our religion . chap. xii . of the manner after which these discourses are written ; and the simplicity of stile used in them . that the writers of those times used no affectation of humane eloquence ; but deliver'd themselves with the greatest plainness that they were able . this manner of writing the best and most proper for instruction . a short account of the occasion of the present collection , and the translation that is here made of the following treatises . . there is yet one thing to be observed by me , with reference to the discourses here subjoyn'd ; and that is , fourthly , concerning the manner after which they are written , and that true primitive simplicity , which appears in all the parts of them . . it is one property of truth , that as it do's not need any disguises , so neither does it seek any vain ornaments of humane eloquence , to recommend it self to the approbation of those to whom it is tender'd . when the apostles preach'd the gospel to the world , they did it not with excellency of speech , nor with enticing words of mans wisdom ; but in the demonstration of spirit and of power . they gave such convincing proofs of their divine mission , as forced all indifferent persons to acknowledg their authority : and they thought it after that , too mean a thing to endeavour to catch mens ears , when without any such arts they had before captivated their reason , and forced them to confess the truth of what they deliver'd . . and the same was the method of those holy fathers who succeeded them . they knew the excellency of their doctrine , and the mighty influence which the revelations it made of the future state , would be sure to have upon the minds of all considering men : and therefore they contented themselves to lay these things before them in a plain and simple manner ; and with such an affected sincerity , as is beyond all the highest rhetorick in the world. . let not then the reader be surprised , if in the following discourses he meets with none of those ornaments , that are wont to recommend the writings of others to his perusal . but rather let him consider , that he has here to do with men who were above such a care. their business was to instruct not to please ; to speak to mens hearts and consciences , not to their fancies : and they knew that this is evermore best done by a plain and unaffected discourse ; by solid rules and substantial motives , not by vain words ; which if they satisfie a man at the present , yet seldom leave any lasting impression behind them . . but of the authors of the following treatises , and of the discourses themselves i have said enough , perhaps too much : tho' yet i think no more than what was necessary to prepare the english reader , for whom i am now chiefly concern'd , to a useful perusal of them . as for the present collection , i shall only say thus much ; that it is the first of this kind that was ever set forth in our own language ; nor were the greatest part of the following pieces , ever ( that i know of ) before translated into it . . i confess , when i consider the great usefulness of such a work , and the high esteem , which not only the ancient fathers , but the most learned of all ages have had of the treatises here collected together ; i have sometimes wondered , that among so many things as have of late been brought into the english tongue , none has yet hitherto undertaken such a task as this . but when i came to the tryal , i soon found out what may perhaps have been one reason of it : since , could i have foreseen the difficulty of the work , i much question whether i should ever have been persuaded to go about it . and this i say , not to magnifie any thing that i have done , which i have too much reason to fear will be far from deserving any great commendation ; but to suggest an apology for whatever defects those of greater leisure , more health , and better abilities , shall chance to find in it , notwithstanding all the care i have taken to guess aright at the intention of my authors , and to deliver what upon the best examination i could make , i then took to be their meaning . . i need not say any thing to convince those who are at all acquainted with these matters , and who are alone the competent judges of the present performance , how hard oftentimes it is , with the help of the best copies , to hit upon the true meaning of an author that lived so many ages since , as those i have here collected . and what great defects in many places there are , in the copies i have here been forced to make use of , is not unknown to them . had i whilst i was about this work , been in another place , where i could have had recourse to the assistance of a very learned friend ; than whom none could have afforded me a better help in this particular , or would more readily have done it ; i should have had much less reason to apprehend any defects in it . but however , as it is , i am not aware of any great errors that i have committed ; and am in some hope that i have no where very much , nor at all very dangerously , mistaken the meaning of those holy men , whose sense i have undertaken to represent . . this i am sure of , that my design in this whole undertaking , was to minister the best i could to the interests of truth and piety : and i thought my self at this time , the rather obliged to do it from the press , in that it has pleased god in some measure to take me off , from the ability of doing it , from the pulpit . . if it shall be ask'd how i came to chuse the drudgery of a translator , rather than the more ingenuous part of publishing somewhat of my own composing , it was in short this ; because i hop'd that such writings as these would find a more general and unprejudiced acceptance with all sorts of men , than any thing that could be written by any one now living : who , if esteem'd by some , is yet in danger of being despis'd by more ; whose prejudice to his person will not suffer them to reap any benefit , by any thing , tho' never so useful , that can come from him ; whilst such tracts as these may possibly receive a general respect from all sorts of persons ; and meet not only with an entertainment , but an esteem too from all. . these were the motives that first induced me to set about this work ; and in the reasonableness of which should i chance to be mistaken , yet i cannot but persuade my self that the honesty of my intentions , shall excuse me to all indifferent persons . let others then , to whom god has given better opportunities , and greater abilities , serve the church in better and higher performances . it shall suffice me in any way to minister to the souls of men. and if by this present undertaking i shall but in any measure have contributed to the reviving a true sense of piety and devotion among us ; but especially to the disposing of any number of men to consider more seriously the fatal consequences of our present divisions , and to labour what in them lies to the composing of them ; i shall heartily bless god , both that he first prompted me to undertake this troublesome task , and has since enabled me , tho' amidst many infirmities , to go through with it . the first epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . the contents . ch. i , ii. he commends them for their excellent order and piety in christ , before their schism brake out . iii. how their divisions began ? iv , v , vi. envy and emulation the original of all strife and disorder . examples of the mischiefs they have occasion'd . vii , viii . he exhorts them to look up to the rules of their religion , and repent of their divisions , and they shall be forgiven . ix , x. to encourage them whereunto , he sets before them the examples of holy men , whose piety is recorded in the scriptures . xi , xii . and particularly such as have been eminent for their kindness and charity to their neighbours . xiii . what rules our religion has le●t us to this purpose ? xiv , xv. which he applies to the case of the corinthians ; exhorting them to put an end to their contentions , so contrary to their duty . xvi , xvii , xviii . in order to this , he advises them to be humble ; and that from the examples of our saviour , and of holy men in all ages . xix , xx. he returns to the business of their divisions ; which he by more arguments persuades them to compose . xxi . he exhorts them to obedience , from the consideration of the goodness of god , and of his presence in every place . xxiii , xxiv . of faith : and particularly what we are to believe as to the future resurrection . xxiv , &c. to xxvii . this article at large proved . xxviii . he again exhorts them to obedience : that it is impossible to escape the vengeance of god , if we continue in sin. xxix . this farther enforced from the consideration of their relation to god , as his elect. xxx . how we must live that we may please god ? xxxii . we are justified by faith. xxxiii . ●et this must not lessen our care to live well ; nor our pleasure in it . xxxiv . this enforc'd from the examples of the holy angels , and from the exceeding greatness of that reward which god has prepared for us . xxxv , xxxvi . we must attain unto this reward by faith and obedience . xxxvii . which we must carry on in an orderly pursuing of the duties of our several stations , without envying or contention . xxxviii . the necessity of different orders among men. we have none of us any thing but what we received of god ; whom therefore we ought in every condition thankfully to obey . xxxix , &c. from whence he exhorts them to do every thing orderly in the church , as the only way to please god. xlii . the orders of ministers in christ's church establish'd by the apostles , according to christ's command . xliii . and after the example of moses . xliv . therefore they who have been duly placed in the ministry according to their order , cannot without great sin be put out of it . xlv , &c. he exhorts them to peace from examples out of the holy scriptures . xlvii . particularly from st. paul's exhortation to them . xlix . the value which god puts upon love and unity : the effects of a true charity . l. which is the gift of god , and must be obtain'd by prayer . li. he exhorts such as have been concern'd in these divisions to repent , and return to their unity , confessing their sin to god. liii . which he infers from the example of moses : lv. nay of many among the heathen ; and of judith , and esther among the jews . lvi . the benefit of mutual advice and correction . lvii . he entreats them to follow that which is here given to them . lviii . recommends them to god. lix . desires speedily to hear that this epistle had had a good effect upon them . lx. and so concludes . the epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . the church of god which is * at rome , to the church of god which * is at corinth , * elect , sanctified , † by the will of god , through jesus christ our lord : grace be to you ; and peace from the almighty god by jesus christ be multiplied . * the * suddain and unexpected dangers and calamities that have fallen upon us , beloved brethren , have , we fear , made us the more slow in our consideration of those things which you * proposed to us : † as also of that wicked and detestable sedition , so unbecoming the elect of god , which a few heady and self-will'd men have fomented to such a degree , that your venerable and renowned name , so worthy of all men to be beloved , is greatly blasphemed thereby . for who that has ever been among you , has not experimented † the firmness of your faith , and its fruitfulness in all good works ? and admired the temper and moderation of your religion in christ ? and publish'd abroad the magnificence of your hospitality ? and thought you happy in your perfect and certain knowledge of the gospel . for ye did all things without respect of persons ; and walked † according to the laws of god : being subject to those who had the rule over you ; and giving the honour that was fitting , to such as were the aged among you . the young men ye commanded to think those things that were modest and grave . the women ye exhorted , to do all things with an unblameable , and seemly and pure conscience : loving their own husbands , as was fitting : and that keeping themselves within the limits of a due obedience , they should * order their houses gravely with all discretion . ii. ye were all of you humble minded , not * boasting of any thing : desiring rather to be subject than to govern , to give than to receive , being content with the portion god had dispensed to you : and hearkning diligently to his word , ye * received it into your hearts , having his ‖ precepts always before your eyes . thus a firm , and blessed and profitable peace was given unto you ; and an unsatiable desire of doing good ; and a plentiful effusion of the holy ghost was upon all of you . and being full of * good desires , ye did with a great readiness , and with a religious confidence stretch forth your hands to god almighty ; beseeching him to be merciful unto you , if in any thing ye had unwillingly sinn'd against him. ye contended day and night for the whole brotherhood ; that through the mercy of god , and a good conscience , the number of his elect might be saved . ye were sincere , and without offence towards each other ; not mindful of injuries : all sedition and schism was an abomination unto you . ye bewailed every one his neighbours sins , esteeming their defects your own. ye were kind one to another without grudging ; being ready to every good work. and being thus adorn'd with a conversation altogether virtuous and religious , ye did all things in the fear of god ; whose commandments were written upon the tables of your hearts . iii. all honour and enlargement was given unto you ; and so was fulfill'd that which is written ; my beloved did eat and drink , he was enlarged and waxed fat , and he kicked . from hence came envy , and strife , and sedition ; persecution and disorder , war and captivity . so they who were of no renown , lifted up themselves against the honourable ; those of no reputation , against those that were in respect ; the foolish , against the wise ; the young men against the aged . therefore righteousness and peace are departed from you , because every one hath forsaken the fear of the lord ; and is grown blind in his faith ; nor walketh by the rule of gods commandments , nor liveth as is fitting in christ : but every one follows his own wicked lusts , having taken up an ungodly and unjust envy , by which death first entred into the world. iv. for so it is written ; and in process of time it came to pass , that cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the lord . and abel he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof : and the lord had respect unto abel and to his offering . but unto cain and unto his offering he had not respect . and cain was very wroth , and his countenance fell . and the lord said unto cain , why art thou wroth ? and why is thy countenance fallen ? * if thou shalt offer aright , but not divide aright , hast thou not sinned ? hold thy peace : vnto thee shall be his desire , and thou shalt rule over him. and cain said unto abel his brother , let us go down into the field . and it came to pass as they were in the field , that cain rose up against abel his brother , and slew him . ye see brethren , how envy and emulation wrought * the death of a brother . for this our father jacob fled from the face of his brother esau. it was this that caused joseph to be persecuted even unto death , and bondage . it was this that forced moses to flee from the face of pharaoh king of egypt , when he heard his own country-man ask him , who made thee a prince and a judge over us ? wilt thou kill me as thou didst the egyptian yesterday ? for this aaron and miriam were shut out of the camp , from the rest of the congregation seven days . emulation sent dathan and abiram quick into * the grave , because they raised up a sedition against moses the servant of god. for this david was not only hated of strangers , but was persecuted even by saul the king of israel . v. but not to insist upon antient examples , let us come to those worthies that have been nearest to us ; and take the brave examples of our own age. through zeal and envy , the most faithful , and righteous pillars of the church , have been persecuted even to the most bitter deaths . let us set before our eyes the holy apostles : peter by unjust envy underwent not one or two , but many sufferings ; till at last being martyr'd , he went to the place of glory that was due unto him. for the same cause , did paul in like manner receive the reward of his patience : seven times he was in bonds ; he was whipp'd , was stoned ; he preach'd both in the east and in the west ; leaving behind him the glorious report of his faith : and so having taught the whole world righteousness , and for that end travell'd even to the utmost bounds of the west ; he at last suffer'd martyrdom by the command of the governours , and departed out of the world , and went unto his holy place ; being become a most eminent pattern of patience unto all ages . vi. to these holy apostles we may add , a very great number of others , who having through envy undergone in like manner many pains and torments , have left a glorious example to us . for this not only men but even women have been persecuted : * and having suffer'd very grievous and cruel punishments , have finish'd the course of their faith with firmness ; and though weak in body , yet received a glorious reward . * this has alienated the minds even of women from their husbands ; and changed what was once said by our father adam ; this is now bone of my bone , and flesh of my flesh. in a word , envy and strife , have overturn'd whole cities , and rooted out great nations from off the earth . vii . these things , beloved , we write unto you not only * for your instruction , but also for our own remembrance . for we are all in the same ‖ field , and the same combat is prepared for us all . wherefore let us lay aside all vain and empty cares ; and let us come up to the glorious and venerable rule of our holy calling . let us consider what is good , and acceptable , and well-pleasing in the sight of him that made us. let us look stedfastly to the bloud of christ , and see how precious his bloud is in the sight of god : which being shed for our salvation , * has obtain'd the grace of repentance for all the world. let us search into the ages that have gone before us ; and let us learn that our lord has in every one of them still given place for repentance to all such as would * turn to him . noah preach'd repentance ; and as many as hearkened to him were saved . jonah denounced destruction against the ninivites : howbeit they repenting of their sins , appeased god by their prayers , and * were saved , tho' they were strangers to the covenant of god. viii . hence we find how all the ministers of the grace of god have spoken by the holy spirit of repentance . and even the lord of all has himself declared with an oath concerning it ; as i live , saith the lord , i desire not the death of a sinner , but that he should repent . adding this farther assurance ; turn from your iniquity o house of israel . say unto the children of my people , tho' your sins should reach from earth to heaven ; and tho' they should be redder than scarlet , and blacker than sackcloth : yet if ye shall turn to me with all your heart , and shall call me father , i will hearken to you , as to a holy people . and in another place he saith on this wise : wash ye , make you clean ; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes ; cease to do evil , learn to do well ; seek judgment ; relieve the oppressed , judge the fatherless , plead for the widow . come now and let us reason together , saith the lord : tho' your sins be as scarlet they shall be as white as snow ; tho' they be red as crimson , they shall be as wooll . if ye be willing and obedient ye shall eat the good of the land : but if ye refuse and rebell ye shall be devoured with the sword ; for the mouth of the lord hath spoken it . these things has god establish'd by his almighty will , desiring that all his beloved should come to repentance . ix . wherefore let us obey his excellent and glorious will ; and imploring his mercy and goodness , let us fall down upon our faces before him , and * cast our selves upon his mercy : laying aside all ‖ vanity , and contention , and envy which leads unto death . let us look up to those who have the most perfectly ministred to his excellent glory . let us take enoch for our example , who being found righteous in obedience , was translated , and his death was not known . noah being proved to be faithful , did by his ministry preach regeneration to the world , and the lord saved by him all the living creatures , that went with one accord together into the ark. x. so also abraham who was called gods friend , was in like manner found faithful ; in as much as he obeyed the commands of god. by obedience he went out of his own country , and from his own kindred , and from his fathers house ; that so forsaking a small country , and a weak affinity , and a little house , he might inherit the promises of god. for thus god said unto him : get thee out of thy country , and from thy kindred , and from thy fathers house , unto a land that i will shew thee . and i will make thee a great nation , and i will bless thee , and make thy name great , and thou shalt be blessed . and i will bless them that bless thee , and curse them that curse thee ; and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed . and again when he separated himself from lot , god said unto him : lift up now thine eyes , and look from the place where thou art , northward and southward , and eastward and * westward : for all the land which thou seest to thee will i give it , and to thy seed for ever . and i will make thy seed as the dust of the earth , so that if a man can number the dust of the earth , then shall thy seed also be numbred . and again he saith ; and god brought forth abraham and said unto him , look now towards heaven and tell the stars ; if thou be able to number them : so shall thy seed be . and abraham believed god , and it was counted to him for righteousness . through faith and hospitality , * he had a son given him in his old age ; and through obedience he offer'd him up in sacrifice to god , upon one of the mountains which god shew'd unto him. xi . by hospitality and godliness was lot saved out of sodom , when all the country round about was * destroy'd by fire and brimstone . the lord thereby making it manifest , that he will not forsake those that trust in him ; but will bring the disobedient to punishment and correction . for his wife who went out with him , being of a different mind , and * not continuing in the same obedience , was for that very reason set forth for an example , being turn'd into a pillar of salt unto this day . that so all men may know , that those who are double minded , and distrustful of the power of god , are prepared for condemnation , and to be a sign to all succeeding ages . xii . by faith and hospitality was rahab the harlot saved . for when the spies were sent by joshua the son of nun to search out jericho , and the king of jericho knew that they were come to spy out his country ; he order'd them to be taken , that so they might be put to death . rahab therefore , being hospitable , received them , and hid them under the stalks of flax , on the top of her house . and when the messengers that were sent by the king came unto her , and asked her saying , there came men unto thee to spy out the land , bring them forth , for so hath the king commanded : she answered , the two men whom ye seek came unto me but presently they departed , and are gone : shewing them withall a contrary way . then she said to the spies , i know that the lord your god has given this city into your hands ; for the fear of you is fallen upon all that dwell therein . when therefore ye shall have taken it , ye shall save me and my fathers house . and they answered her saying , it shall be as thou hast spoken unto vs. therefore when thou shalt know that we are near , thou shalt gather all thy family together upon the house top , and they shall be saved : but all that shall be found without thy house , shall be destroyed . and they gave her moreover a sign ; that she should hang out of her house a scarlet rope : shewing thereby , that by the blood of our lord , there should be redemption to all that believe and hope in god. ye see , beloved , how there was not only faith , but prophesie too in this woman . xiii . let us therefore humble our selves , brethren , laying aside all pride , and boasting , and foolishness , and anger : and let us do as it is written , for thus saith the holy spirit , let not the wise man glory in his wisdom , nor the strong man in his strength , nor the rich man in his riches ; but let him that glorieth , glory in the lord , to seek him , and to do judgment and justice . above all , remembring the words of the lord jesus , which he spake * concerning equity and long-suffering , ‖ saying , be ye merciful , and ye shall obtain mercy ; forgive and ye shall be forgiven ; as ye do so shall it be done unto you ; as ye give so shall it be given unto you ; as ye judge so shall ye be judged ; as ye are kind to others , so shall god be kind to you ; with what measure ye meet , with the same shall it be measured to you again . by this command , and by these rules , let us establish our selves , that so we may always walk obediently to his holy words ; being humble minded : for so says * the holy scripture ; vpon whom shall i look , even upon him that is poor and of a contrite spirit , and that trembles at my word . xiv . it is therefore just and * righteous , men and brethren , that we should become obedient unto god , rather than follow such as * through pride and disorder , have made themselves the ring-leaders of a detestable emulation . for it is not an ordinary harm that we shall do our selves , but rather a very great danger that we shall run , if we shall rashly give up our selves to the wills of men , who * promote strife and seditions , to turn us aside from what is fitting . but let us be kind to one another , according to the compassion , and sweetness of him that made us . for it is written , the merciful shall inherit the earth ; and they that are without evil shall be left upon it : but the transgressors shall perish from off the face of it . and again he saith , i have seen the wicked in great power , and spreading himself like the cedars of libanus . i passed by , and lo he was not ; i sought his place , but it could not be found . keep innocency , and do the thing that is right , for there shall be a remnant to the peaceable man. xv. let us therefore hold fast to those who * religiously follow peace ; and not to such as ‖ only pretend to desire it . for he saith in a certain place , this people honoureth me with their lips , but their heart is far from me . and again , they * bless with their mouth , but † curse in their heart . and again he saith , they loved him with their mouth , and with their tongue they lied to him. for their heart was not right with him , neither were they faithful in his covenant . the lord shall cut off all flattering lips , and the tongue that speaketh proud things . who have said , with our tongue will we prevail , our lips are our own , who is lord over us ? for the oppression of the poor , for the sighing of the needy , now will i arise saith the lord ; i will set him in safety , i will deal confidently with him . xvi . for christ is theirs who are humble , and not who exalt themselves over his flock . the scepter of the majesty of god our lord jesus christ , came not in the * shew of pride , and arrogance , tho' he could have done so ; but with humility , as the holy ghost had before spoken concerning him . for thus he saith , lord , who hath believed our report , and to whom is the arm of the lord revealed ? for he shall grow up before him as a tender plant , and as a root out of a dry ground . he hath no form nor comeliness , and when we shall see him , there is no beauty that we should desire him. he is despised and rejected of men ; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief . and we hid , as it were , our faces from him ; he was despised , and we esteemed him not . surely he hath borne our griefs , and carried our sorrows ; yet we did esteem him stricken , smitten of god and afflicted . but he was wounded for our transgressions , he was bruised for our iniquities ; the chastisement of our peace was upon him ; and with his stripes we are healed . all we like sheep have gone astray ; we have turned every one to his own way , and the lord hath laid on him the iniquity of vs all . he was oppressed and he was afflicted , yet he opened not his mouth : he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter ; and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb , so he openeth not his mouth . he was taken from prison and from judgment ; and who shall declare his generation ? for he was cut off out of the land of the living : for the transgression of my people was he stricken . and he made his grave with the wicked , and with the rich in his death , because he had done no violence , neither was any deceit in his mouth . yet it pleased the lord to bruise him , he hath put him to grief : when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin , he shall see his seed , he shall prolong his days ; and the pleasure of the lord shall prosper in his hand . he shall see of the travail of his soul and shall be satisfied ; by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justifie many : for he shall bear their iniquities . therefore will i divide him a portion with the great , and he shall divide the spoil with the strong ; because he hath poured out his soul unto death : and he was numbred with the transgressors , and he bare the sin of many , and made intercession for the transgressors . and again he himself saith , i am a worm and no man , a reproach of men , and despised of the people . all they that see me laugh me to scorn ; they shout out their lips , they shake their head saying ; he trusted in the lord that he would deliver him , let him deliver him seeing he delighted in him. ye see , beloved , what the pattern is that has been given to us. for if the lord thus humbled himself , what should we do who are come under the yoak of his grace ? xvii . let us be followers of those who went about in goat-skins and sheep-skins ; preaching the coming of christ. * such were elias , and elisaeus and ezekiel the prophets . † and let us add to these , such others as have received the like testimony . abraham has been greatly witnessed of ; having been called the friend of god. and yet he stedfastly beholding the glory of god says with all humility , i am dust and ashes . again , of job it is thus written , that he was just and without blame , true ; one that served god and abstained from all evil. yet he despising himself , says , no man is free from pollution , no not tho' he should live but one day . moses was called faithful in all gods house ; and by his * conduct god determined to deliver the israelites from their stripes and pains . and yet even this man , tho' thus greatly honoured , spake not greatly of himself ; but when the oracle of god was delivered to him out of the bush , he said , who am i , that thou dost send me ? i am of a slender voice , and a slow tongue . and again he saith , i am as the smoak of the pot. xviii . and what shall we say of david , so highly testified of in the holy scriptures ? to whom god said , i have found a man after my own heart , david the son of jesse , with my holy oil have i anointed him. but yet he himself saith unto god , have mercy upon me o god , according to thy loving kindness ; according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions . wash me throughly from mine iniquity , and cleanse me from my sin. for i acknowledge my transgressions , and my sin is ever before me. against thee only have i sinned , and done this evil in thy sight , that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest , and be clear when thou judgest . behold i was shapen in iniquity , and in sin did my mother conceive me . behold , thou desirest truth in the inward parts ; and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom . purge me with hysop and i shall be clean , wash me and i shall be whiter than snow . make me to hear joy and gladness , that the bones which thou hast broken may rejoyce . hide thy face from my sins , and blot out all mine iniquities . create in me a clean heart o god ; and renew a right spirit within me. cast me not away from thy presence , and take not thy holy spirit from me. restore unto me the joy of thy salvation , and uphold me with thy free spirit . then will i teach transgressors thy ways , and sinners shall be converted unto thee . deliver me from blood-guiltiness o god , thou god of my salvation , and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness . o lord open thou my lips , and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise . for thou desirest not sacrifice , else would i give it ; thou delightest not in burnt-offerings . the sacrifices of god are a broken spirit , a broken and a contrite heart o god thou wilt not despise . xix . thus has the humility and * godly fear of these ‖ great and excellent men , † recorded in the scriptures , through obedience made not only us but also the generations before us better ; even as many as have received his holy oracles * with fear and truth . having therefore so many , and such great and glorious examples , ‖ let us return to that peace , which was the mark that from the beginning was set before us : let us look up to the father and creator of the whole world ; and let us hold fast to his glorious and exceeding gifts and benefits which are of peace . let us † consider and behold with the eyes of our ‖ understandings his long-suffering will ; and think how gentle and patient he is towards his whole creation . xx. the heavens * holding fast to his appointment , are subject to him in peace . day and night accomplish the courses that he has allotted unto them , not disturbing one another . the sun and moon , and all the several † companies and constellations of the stars , run the * courses that he has appointed to them in concord , without departing in the least from them . the fruitful earth yields its food plentifully in due season both to man and beast , and to all that is upon it according to his will ; not * disputing , nor altering any thing of what was order'd by him. so also the untrodden and unsearchable floods of the deep are kept in by his command : ‖ and the * conflux of the vast sea being brought together at the creation into its several collections , passes not the bounds that he has set to it ; but as he then † appointed it , so it remains . for he said , hitherto shalt thou come , and thy flouds shall be broken within thee . the ocean , unpassable to mankind , and the worlds that are beyond it , are govern'd by the same commands of their great master . spring and summer , autumn and winter , give place peaceably to each other . the several * quarters of the winds , fulfil their ‖ work in their seasons , without offending one another . the ever-flowing fountains , made both for pleasure and health , never fail to reach out their breasts , to support the life of men. even the smallest creatures * live together in peace and concord with each other . all these has the great creator and lord of all , commanded to observe peace and concord ; being good to all : but especially to us who flee to his mercy through our lord jesus christ , to whom be glory and majesty for ever and ever , amen . xxi . take heed , beloved , that his many blessings be not to † us to condemnation ; except we shall walk worthy of him , doing with ‖ one consent what is good and pleasing in his sight . the spirit of the lord is a candle , searching all the inward parts of the belly . let us therefore consider how near he is to us ; and how that none of our thoughts are * hid from him ; nor any of our conversation which we have with one another . it is therefore just that we should not forsake our rank , by doing contrary to his will. let us chuse to offend a few foolish and inconsiderate men , lifted up and glorying ‖ in their own pride , rather than god. let us reverence our lord jesus christ whose bloud was given for us . let us honour those who are set over us ; let us respect the aged that are amongst us ; and let us instruct the younger men , in the discipline and fear of the lord . our wives let us * direct in doing that which is good. let them shew forth a lovely habit of purity in all their conversation ; with a sincere affection of meekness : let the government of their tongues † be made manifest by their silence : let their charity be without respect of persons , alike towards all such as truly fear god. let your children ‖ be bred up in the instruction of the lord : and especially let them learn how great a power humility has with god ; how much a pure and holy charity avails with him ; how excellent and great his fear is , and how it will † save all such as turn to him with holiness in a pure mind . for he is the searcher of the thoughts and desires of the heart ; whose breath is in us , and when he pleases he can take it from us. xxii . but all these things ‖ must be confirm'd by the faith which is in christ , for so he himself bespeaks us by the holy ghost . come ye children and harken unto me , and i will teach you the fear of the lord . what man is there that desireth life , and loveth to see good days ? keep thy tongue from evil , and thy lips that they speak no guile . depart from evil and do good ; seek peace and ensue it . the eyes of the lord are upon the righteous , and his ears are open unto their prayers . but the face of the lord is against them that do evil , to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth . the righteous cried , and the lord heard him , and deliver'd him out of all his troubles . many are the troubles of the wicked , but they that trust in the lord , mercy shall encompass them about . xxiii . our all-merciful and beneficent father hath bowels of compassion towards them that fear him ; and kindly and lovingly bestows his graces upon all such as come to him with a simple mind . wherefore let us not ‖ waver , neither let us have any doubt in our hearts , of his excellent and glorious gifts . † let that be far from us which is written , miserable are the double-minded , and those who are doubtful in their hearts . who say , these things have we heard , and our fathers have told us these things . but behold we are grown old , and none of them has happened unto vs. o ye fools ! * consider the trees ; take the vine for an example . first it sheds its leaves ; then it buds ; after that it spreads its leaves ; then it flowers ; then come the sower grapes ; and after them follows the ripe fruit. ye see how in a little time the fruit of the trees comes to maturity . of a truth , yet a little while and his will shall suddainly be accomplish'd . the holy scripture it self bearing witness , that the lord shall suddainly come to his temple , even the holy one whom ye look for . xxiv . let us consider , beloved , how the lord does continually shew us , that there shall be a future resurrection ; of which he has made our lord jesus christ the first-fruits , raising him from the dead . let us ‖ contemplate , beloved , the resurrection that is continually made before our eyes . day and night manifest a resurrection to us. the night lies down , and the day arises : again the day departs and the night comes on . let us behold the fruits of the earth . every one sees how the seed is sown . the sower * goes forth , and casts it upon the earth ; and the seed which when it was sown fell upon the earth dry and naked , in time dissolves : and from the dissolution , the great power of the providence of the lord raises it again ; and of one seed many arise , and bring forth fruit. xxv . let us consider that wonderful ‖ type of the resurrection , which is seen in the eastern countries ; that is to say in arabia . there is a certain bird called a phaenix : of this there is never but one at a time ; and that lives five hundred years . and when the time of its dissolution draws near that it must die ; it makes it self a nest of frankincense , and myrrhe , and other spices , into which when its time is fulfilled it enters and dies . but its flesh putrifying breeds a certain worm , which being nourished with the juice of the dead * bird brings ●orth feathers ; and when it is grown to † a perfect state , it takes up the nest in which the bones of its ‖ parent lie , and carries it from arabia into egypt , to a city called heliopolis : and flying in open day in the sight of all men , lays it upon the altar of the sun , and so returns from whence it came . the priests then search into the records of the time ; and find that it return'd precisely at the end of five hundred years . xxvi . and ‖ shall we then think it to be any very great and strange thing , for the lord of all to raise up those that religiously serve him in the assurance of a good faith , when even by a bird he shews us the greatness of his power to fulfil his promise ? for he says in a certain place , thou shalt raise me up and i shall confess unto thee . and again , i laid me down and slept , and awaked , because thou art with me . and again job says , thou shalt raise up this flesh of mine , that has suffered all these things . xxvii . having therefore this hope , let us * hold fast to him who is faithful in all his promises , and righteous in all his judgments . who has commanded us not to lye , how much more shall he not himself lye ? for nothing is impossible with god , but to lye. let his faith then be stirred up again in us ; and let us consider that all things are nigh unto him. by the word of his ‖ power he made all things ; and by the same word he is able , when ever he will , to destroy them . who shall say unto him , what dost thou ? or who shall resist the power of his strength ? when , and as he pleased he made all things ; and nothing shall pass away of all that has been appointed by him. all things are open before him ; nor can any thing be hid from his counsell . * the heavens declare the glory of god , and the firmament sheweth his handy work . day unto day uttereth speech , and night unto night sheweth knowledge . there is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard . xxviii . seeing then all things are seen and heard by god ; let us fear him , and let us lay aside our corrupt desires of wicked works ; that through his mercy we may be ‖ delivered from the † condemnation to come . for whither can any of us flee from his mighty hand ? or what world shall receive any of those who run away from him ? for thus saith the scripture in a certain place , whither shall i flee [ from thy spirit ] or whither shall i flee from thy presence ? if i ascend up into heaven , thou art there : if i shall go to the utmost parts of the earth , there is thy right hand : if i shall make my bed in the deep , thy spirit is there . whither then shall any one go ; or whither shall he run from him that comprehends all things ? xxix . let us therefore come to him with holiness of † heart , lifting up chast and undefiled hands unto him : loving our gracious and merciful father , who has made us † to partake of his election . for so it is written , when the most high divided the nations , when he separated the sons of adam , he set the bounds of the nations , according to the number of his angels : his people jacob became the portion of the lord , and israel the lot of his inheritance . and in another place he saith , behold the lord taketh unto himself a nation , out of the midst of the nations , as a man taketh the first-fruits of his flour ; and the most holy shall come out of that nation . xxx . wherefore we being a part of the holy one ; let us do all those things that pertain unto holyness : fleeing all evil-speaking against one another ; all filthy and impure embraces , together with all drunkenness , love of innovation , abominable concupiscences , detestable adultery , and execrable pride . for god resisteth the proud , but giveth grace to the humble . let us therefore hold fast to those to whom ‖ god has given his grace . and let us put on concord , being humble , temperate ; free from all whispering and detraction ; and justified by our † actions , not our words . for he saith , * doth he that speaketh and heareth many things , and that is of a ready tongue , suppose that he is righteous ? blessed is he that is born of a woman , that liveth but a few days : ‖ vse not therefore much speech . let our praise be of god , not of our selves ; for god hateth those that † commend themselves . let the witness of our good actions be given to us of others , as it was given to the holy men that went before us . rashness , and arrogance , and confidence , be to them who are accursed of god : but equity , and humility , and mildness , to such as are blessed by him . xxxi . let us then hold fast to his blessing , and let us † consider what are the ways by which we may attain unto it . let us ‖ look back upon those things that have happened from the beginning . for what was our father abraham blessed ? was it not because that through faith he wrought righteousness and truth ? isaac being * fully perswaded of what he knew was to come , chearfully yielded himself up for a sacrifice . jacob with humility departed out of his own country , fleeing from his brother , and went unto laban and served him : and so the scepter of the twelve tribes of israel , was given unto him . xxxii . now what the greatness of ‖ this gift was , will plainly appear , if we shall take the pains distinctly to consider all the parts of it . for from him came the priests and levites ; who all ministred at the altar of god. from him came our lord jesus christ , according to the flesh. from him came the kings and princes , and rulers in judah . nor were the rest of his † tribes in any small glory : god having promis'd that thy seed , [ says he , ] shall be as the stars of heaven . they were all therefore * greatly glorified , not for their own sake , or for their own works , or for the righteousness that they themselves wrought ; but through his will. and we also being called by the same will in christ jesus , are not justified by our selves , neither by our own wisdom , or knowledge , or piety , or the works which we have done ‖ in the holiness of our hearts : but by that faith by which god almighty has justified those also who were from the beginning ; to whom be glory for ever and ever , amen . xxxiii . what shall we do therefore , brethren ? shall we be sloathful in well-doing , and lay aside our charity ? god forbid that any such thing should be done by us . but rather let us hasten with all earnestness and readiness of mind , to perfect every good work. for even the creator and lord of all things , rejoyces in his own works . by his ‖ almighty power he fixed the heavens , and by his incomprehensible wisdom he adorned them . he also divided the earth from the water , with which it is encompassed ; and fixed it as a secure tower , upon the foundation of his own will. he also by his appointment , commanded all the beasts that are upon it , to exist . so likewise the sea , and all the creatures that are in it ; having first created them , he enclosed them therein by his power . and above all , he with his holy and pure hands , formed man , the most excellent , and as to his understanding , truly the greatest of all other creatures , the character of his own image . for so god says , let us make man in our image , after our owon likeness : so god created man , male and female created he them . and having thus finished all these things , he commended all that he had made , and blessed them , and said ; encrease and multiply : we see therefore , how all righteous men have been adorn'd with good works : and not only so , but even the lord himself , having adorn'd himself with his works , rejoyced . having therefore ‖ such an example , let us without delay , † fulfill his will , and with all our strength , work the work of righteousness . xxxiv . the good workman with confidence receives the bread of his * labour ; but the sluggish and lazy , cannot endure to behold him that set him on work . we must therefore be ready and forward in well-doing : for from him are all things . and thus he foretells us , behold the lord cometh , and his reward is with him , even before his face , to render to every one according to his works . he warns us therefore beforehand , with all his heart , to this end , that we should not be sloathful and negligent in † well-doing . let our boasting therefore , and our confidence be in * god : let us submit our selves to his will. let us consider the vast multitude of his angels , how ready they stand to minister unto * it ? as saith the scripture , thousands of thousands stood before him , and ten thousand times ten thousand ministred unto him . and they cry'd saying , holy , holy , holy , is the lord of hosts : the whole earth is full of his glory . wherefore let us also , being gathered together in love and concord with one another ; with † one mind as well as one mouth , cry earnestly unto him , that he would make us partakers of his great and glorious promises . for he saith eye hath not seen , nor ear heard , neither have entred into the heart of man , the things which god has prepared for them that wait for him . xxxv . how blessed and wonderful , beloved , are the gifts of god ? life in immortality ! brightness in righteousness ! truth in full assurance ! faith in conviction ! temperance in holiness ! and all this has ‖ god subjected to our understandings : what therefore shall those things be which he has prepared for them that wait for him ? the creator and father of * all things , the most holy ; he only knows both the ‖ greatness and beauty of them . let us therefore strive with all earnestness , that we may be found in the number of those that wait for him ; that so we may receive the † reward which he has promised . but how beloved , shall † we do this ? we must fix our minds by faith towards god , and seek those things that are pleasing and acceptable unto him. we must * act conformably to his holy will ; and follow the way of truth , casting off all unrighteousness and iniquity , together with all covetousness , strife , evil manners , deceit , whispering , detractions ; all hatred of god , pride and boasting ; vain-glory and ambition : for they that do these things , are odious to god ; and not only they that do them , but also all such as approve of those that do them . for thus saith the scripture , but unto the wicked god said , what hast thou to do to declare my statutes , or that thou shouldst take my covenant in thy mouth ? seeing thou hatest instruction , and castest my words behind thee . when thou samest a thief , then thou consentedst with him ; and hast been partaker with adulterers . thou givest thy mouth to evil , and thy tongue frameth deceit . thou sittest and speakest against thy brother ; thou slanderest thine own mothers son. these things hast thou done and i kept silence ; thou thoughtedst that i was altogether such a one as thy self : but i will reprove thee , and set them in order before thine eyes . now consider this ye that forget god , lest i tear you in pieces , and there be none to deliver . whoso offereth praise , glorifieth me : and to him that disposeth his way aright , will i shew the salvation of god. xxxvi . this is the way , beloved , in which we may find ‖ our saviour , even jesus christ , the high priest of all our offerings , the defender and helper of our weakness . by him we look up to the † highest heavens , and behold as in a glass , his spotless and most excellent visage . by him are the eyes of our hearts opened ; by him is our foolish and darkned understanding enabled to behold his wonderful light. by him would god have us to taste the knowledge of immortality , who being the brightness of his glory , is by so much greater than the angels , as he has by inheritance obtain'd a more excellent name than they . for so it is written , who maketh his angels spirits , and his ministers a flame of fire . but to the son , thus saith the lord , thou art my son , to day have i begotten thee . ask of me , and i will give thee the heathen for thine inheritance , and the utmost parts of the earth for thy possession . and again he saith unto him , sit thou on my right hand , untill i make thine enemies thy footstool . but who are his enemies ? even the wicked ? and such who oppose their own wills , to the will of god. xxxvii . let us therefore † go on , men and brethren , with all earnestness in his holy laws . let us consider those who fight under our earthly governours : how orderly how readily , and with what exact obedience they perform those things that are commanded them ? all are not * generals , nor ‖ colonels , nor † captains , nor * inferior officers : but every one in his respective rank does what is commanded him by the king , and those who have the authority over him. they who are great , cannot yet subsist without those that are little ; nor the little without the great . but there must be a mixture in all things , and then there will be use and profit too . let us , for example , take our body : the head without the feet is nothing , neither the feet without the head. and even the smallest members of our body , are yet both necessary and useful to the whole body . but all conspire together , and ‖ are subject to one common use , namely , the preservation of the whole . xxxviii . let therefore our whole body be saved in christ jesus : and let every one be subject to another , † according to the order in which he is placed by the * gift of god. let not the strong man neglect to take care of the weak ; and let the weak see that he reverence the strong . let the rich man distribute to the necessity of the poor : and let the poor bless god , that he has given one unto him , by whom his want may be supplied . let the wise man shew forth his wisdom , not in words , but in good works . let him that is humble , not bear witness to himself , but let him leave it to another to bear witness of him . let him that is pure in the flesh , not grow proud of it , knowing that it was † from another that he received the gift of continence . let us consider therefore , brethren , † whereof we are made ; who , and what kind of men we came into the world , as it were out of a sepulchre , and from outer darkness . he that made us and formed us , brought us into his own world ; having ‖ prevented us with his benefits , even before we were born. wherefore , having received all these things from him , we ought upon all occasions , to give thanks unto him : to whom be glory for ever and ever , amen . xxxix . foolish and unwise men , † who have neither prudence nor learning , may perhaps mock and deride us ; being willing to set up themselves in their own conceits : † but what can a mortal man do ? or what strength is there in him that is made out of the dust ? for it is written , there was no shape before mine eyes ; only i heard a ‖ sound and a voice . for what ? shall man be pure before the lord ? shall he be blameless in his works ? behold , he trusteth not in his servants ; and his angels he charged with folly. yea , the heaven is not clean in his sight , how much less they that dwell in houses of clay ; of which also we our selves were made ? he smote them as a moth ; and from morning even unto the evening they endure not . because they were not able to help themselves they perish'd : he breath'd upon them and they dy'd , because they had no wisdom call now if there be any that will answer thee ; and to which of the angels wilt thou look ? for wrath killeth the foolish man , and envy slayeth him that is in error . i have seen the foolish taking root , but lo their habitation was presently consumed . their children were far from safety , they † perished at the gates of those who were lesser than themselves ; and there was no man to ‖ help them . for what was prepared for them , the righteous * did eat : and they shall not be delivered from evil. xl. seeing then these things are manifest unto us , it will behove us , to take care that looking into the depths of the divine knowledge , we do all things in order , whatsoever our lord has commanded us to do . and particularly , that we perform our offerings and service to god , at their appointed seasons : for these he has commanded to be done , not † rashly and disorderly , but at certain determinate times and hours . and therefore he has ordained by his supreme will and authority , both where , and by what persons they are to be perform'd : that so all things being piously done unto all well-pleasing , they may be acceptable unto † him . they therefore who make their offerings at the appointed seasons , are happy , and accepted : because that obeying the commandments of the lord , they are free from sin. and the same care must be had of the persons that minister unto him . for the chief priest has his proper services ; and to the priests their proper place is appointed ; and to the levites appertain their proper ministries : and the lay-man is confined within the bounds of what is commanded to lay-men . xli . let every one of you therefore , brethren , bless god in his proper station with ‖ a good conscience , and with all gravity , not exceeding the rule of his service that is appointed to him . the daily sacrifices † were not offer'd every where , nor the peace-offerings , nor the sacrifices appointed for sins and transgressions , but only at jerusalem : nor might they be offer'd in any place there neither , but only at the altar before the temple ; being first diligently examin'd by the high-priest and the other ministers we before mentioned . they therefore who * did any thing besides what * was agreeable to his will , * were punished with death . † consider , brethren , by how much the better knowledge god has vouchsafed unto us , by so much the greater danger are we exposed to . xlii . the apostles have preached to us from our lord jesus christ : jesus christ from god. christ therefore was sent by god , the apostles by christ : so both their offices were orderly fulfill'd , according to the will of god. for having received their command , and being fully assured by the resurrection of our lord jesus christ ; and convinced by the word of god , and the ‖ evidence of the holy spirit , they went abroad , publishing , that the kingdom of god was at hand . and thus preaching through countries and cities , and proving by the spirit , the first fruits of their conversions , they appointed out of them bishops and ministers over such as should afterwards believe . nor was this any new thing : seeing that long before it was written concerning bishops and deacons . for thus saith the scripture , in a certain place ; i will appoint their * overseers in righteousness , and their * ministers in faith. xliii . and what wonder if they to whom such a work was committed by god in christ , establish'd such officers as we before mentioned ; when even that blessed and faithful servant in all his house , moses , ‖ set down in the holy scriptures all things that were commanded him. whom also all the rest of the prophets follow'd , bearing witness with one consent to those things that were appointed by him . for he , perceiving an * emulation to arise among the tribes concerning the priesthood , and that there was a strife about it , which of them should be adorned with that glorious title ; commanded their twelve captains to bring to him twelve rods ; every tribe being * noted upon its rod according to its name . and he took them and bound them together , and sealed them with the seals of the twelve princes of the tribes ; and laid them up in the tabernacle of witness , upon the table of god. and when he had shut the door of the tabernacle , he sealed up the keys of it , in like manner ‖ as he had done the rods ; and said unto them , men and brethren ; which soever tribe shall have its rod blossom , that tribe has god chosen to himself , * to minister unto him in holy things . and when morning was come , he called together all israel , six hundred thousand men ; and shew'd to their princes the seals ; and opened the tabernacle of witness ; and brought forth the rods. and the rod of aaron was found not only to have blossom'd , but also to have fruit upon it . what think you , beloved ? did not moses before know ‖ what should happen ? yes verily : but to the end there might be no division nor tumult in israel , he did in this manner , that the name of the true and only god might be glorified : to him be honour for ever and ever , amen . xliv . so likewise our apostles knew by our lord jesus christ , that there should contentions arise * upon the account of the ministry . and therefore having a perfect fore-knowledge of this , they appointed persons , as we have before said , and then gave direction , ‖ how when they should die , other chosen and approved men should succeed in their ministry . wherefore we cannot think that those may justly be thrown out of their ministry , who were either appointed by them , or afterwards chosen by eminent men with the consent of the whole church , and have with all lowliness and innocency ministred to the flock of christ , in peace , and without self-interest , and for a long time commended by all . for it would be no small sin in us , should we cast off those from their ‖ ministry , who holily and without blame * fulfil the duties of it . blessed are those priests , who having finish'd their course before these times , have obtain'd a fruitful and perfect dissolution : for they have no fear , lest any one should turn them out of the place in which they are now establish'd . but we see how you have put out some , who lived excellently among you , from the ministry , with which they were * rightly and innocently adorn'd . xlv . ye are contentious , brethren , and zealous for things that pertain not unto salvation . look into the holy scriptures , which are the true words of the holy ghost . ye know that there is nothing unjust or spurious ‖ in them . there you shall not find that just men were ever cast off by such as were good themselves . † they were persecuted 't is true , but it was by the wicked and ungodly . they were cast into prison , but they were cast in by those that were unholy . they were stoned , but it was by sinners and transgressors . they were killed , but by accursed men , and such as had taken up an unjust envy against them . * and all these things they underwent gloriously . for what shall we say , brethren ? was daniel cast into the ‖ den of lyons , by men fearing god ? ananias , azarias and misael , were they † cast into the * fiery furnace by men ‖ professing the excellent and glorious worship of the most high ? god forbid . what kind of persons then were they that did these things ? they were men abominable , full of all wickedness , who were incensed to so great a degree , as to bring those into sufferings , who with a holy and unblamable purpose of mind worshipped god : not knowing that the most high is the protector and defender of all such as in a pure conscience serve his * holy name : to whom be glory for ever and ever , amen . but they who with a full perswasion have endured to the end , ‖ are now made partakers of glory and honour : and * are exalted and lifted up by god in their memorial throughout all ages , amen . xlvi . wherefore it will behove us also , brethren , * to follow such examples as these ; for it is written , ‖ hold fast to such as are holy ; for they that do so shall be sanctified . and again in another place he saith , with the pure thou shalt be pure , but with the perverse man thou shalt be * perverse . let us therefore keep our selves firm to the innocent and righteous ; for such are * chosen of god. wherefore are there strifes and anger , and divisions and schisms and wars among us ? have we not all one god , and one christ ? is not one spirit of grace poured out upon us all ? have we not one calling in christ ? why then do we rent and tear in pieces the members of christ ; and raise seditions against our own body ? and are come to such a heighth of madness , as to forget that we were members one of another ? remember the words of the lord jesus , * how he said , wo to that man , [ by whom offences come ] it were better for him that he had never been born , than that he should have offended one of my elect. it were better for him , that a mill-stone should be tyed about his neck , and he should be cast into the sea , than that he should offend one of my little ones . your schism has perverted many , has discouraged many : it has raised doubts in many , and grief in us all. and yet your sedition continues still . xlvii . take the epistle of the blessed paul the apostle into your hands ; what was it that he wrote to you in the very beginning of his * instructions to you ? verily he did ‖ by the spirit admonish you concerning himself , and cephas , and apollos , forasmuch as even then ye had begun to fall into † parties and factions . nevertheless your inclinations then led you into a much less sin : forasmuch as ye * placed your affections on apostles , men of ‖ eminent reputation in the church , and on another who was greatly try'd and approved of among you . but consider we pray you , who are they that have now led you astray ▪ and lessen'd the * reputation of that brotherly love that was once * so eminent among you ? 't is a shame , my beloved , yea a very great shame , and unworthy of your christian ‖ profession , to hear , that the most firm and antient church of the corinthians should by one or two persons , be led into a sedition against its priests . and this report is come not only to us , but to those also that † are without . insomuch that the name of the lord is blasphemed through your folly ; and even ye your selves are brought into danger by it . xlviii . let us therefore with all hast * put an end to this sedition ; and let us fall down before the lord , and beseech him with tears that he would ‖ be favourably reconciled to us , and restore us again to a * seemly and holy course of brotherly love. for this is the gate of righteousness , opening unto life : as it is written , open unto me the gates of righteousness ; i will go in unto them and will praise the lord . this is the gate of the lord , the righteous shall enter into it . although therefore there are many gates that are opened , yet this gate of righteousness is that gate in christ , at which blessed are all they that enter in , and direct their way in holiness and righteousness , doing all things without disorder . let a man be faithful , let him be powerful in the utterance of knowledge ; let him be wise in making an exact judgment of words ; let him be pure in all his actions . but still by how much the more he seems to be ‖ above others , by reason of these things , by so much the more will it behove him to be humble-minded ; and to seek what is profitable to all men , and not his own advantage . xlix . he that has the love that is in christ , let him keep the commandments of christ. for who is able to express the * obligation of the love of god ? what man is sufficient to declare , as is fitting , the excellency of its beauty ? the heighth to which charity leads , is inexpressible . charity * unites us to god : * charity covers the multitude of sins : ‖ charity endures all things , is long-suffering in all things . there is nothing base and sordid in charity : charity lifts not it self up above others ; admits of no divisions ; is not seditious ; but does all things in peace and concord . by charity were all the elect of god made perfect : without it nothing is pleasing and acceptable in the sight of god. through charity did the lord * joyn us unto himself ; whilst for the love that he bore towards us , our lord jesus christ gave his own bloud for us by the will of god ; his flesh for our flesh ; his soul for our souls . l. ye see , beloved , how great and wonderful a thing love is ; and how that no expressions are sufficient to declare its perfection . but who is fit to be found in it ? even such only as god shall vouchsafe to make so . let us therefore pray to him , and beseech him , that we may be worthy of it ; that so we may live in charity ; being unblamable ▪ and without any humane affections to one more than another . all the ages of the world , from the beginning of it , even unto this time , are passed away : but they who have been made perfect in love , have by the grace of god obtain'd a place among the just , and shall be made manifest in the * judgment of the kingdom of christ. for it is written , enter into thy chambers for a little space , till my anger and indignation shall pass away : and i will remember the good day , and will raise you up out of your graves . happy * then shall we be , beloved , if we shall have fulfilled the commandments of god , in the unity of love ; that so , through love , our sins may be forgiven us . for so it is written , blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven , and whose sins are covered . blessed is the man to whom the lord imputeth no sin , and in whose mouth there is no guile . now this blessing is fulfilled in those who are chosen by god , through jesus christ our lord , to whom be glory for ever and ever , amen . li. let us therefore , as many as have transgressed by any of the * suggestions of the adversary , beg god's forgiveness . and as for those who have been the ‖ heads of the sedition and faction among you , † let them look to the common end of our hope . for as many as are * endued with fear and charity , would rather they themselves should fall into tryals than their neighbours : and chuse to be themselves condemn'd , rather than that the excellent and just charity delivered to us , should suffer . for it is good for a man to confess wherein he has transgressed ; * and not to harden his heart , as the hearts of those were hardened , who raised up sedition against moses the servant of god : whose punishment was manifest unto all men ; for they went down alive into the grave , death swallowed them up . pharaoh and his host , and all the rulers of egypt , their chariots also and their horse-men , were for no other cause drowned in the bottom of the red sea , and perish'd ; but because they hardened their foolish hearts , after so many signs done in the land of egypt by moses the servant of god. lii . beloved , god is not indigent of any thing ; nor does he demand any thing of us , but that we should confess our sins unto him. for so says the * holy david , i will confess unto the lord , and it shall please him better than a bullock that hath horns and hoofs . let the poor see it and be glad . and again he saith , offer unto god the sacrifice of praise , and pay thy vows unto the most highest . and call upon me in the day of trouble , and i will deliver thee , and thou shalt glorifie me . the sacrifice of god is a broken spirit . liii . ye know , beloved , ye know full-well the holy scriptures ; and have thoroughly search'd into the oracles of god : call them therefore to your remembrance . for when moses went up into the mount , and tarried there forty days and forty nights in fasting and humility ; god said unto him , get thee down quickly from hence ; for thy people whom thou broughtest out of the land of egypt : has committed wickedness . they have soon transgressed the way that i commanded them , and have made to themselves graven images . and the lord said unto him , i have spoken unto thee * several times , saying , i have seen this people , and behold it is a stiff-necked people : let me therefore destroy them , and put out their name from under heaven . and i will make unto thee a great and a wonderful nation , that shall be much * larger than this . but moses said , not so lord : forgive now this people their sin : or if thou wilt not , blot me also out of the book of the living . o admirable charity ! o insuperable perfection ! the servant speaks freely to his lord ; he beseeches him either to forgive the people , or to ‖ destroy him together with them . liv. who is there among you that is generous ? who that is compassionate ? who that has any charity ? let him say , if this sedition , this contention , these schisms are upon my account , i am ready to depart ; to go away whithersoever ye please ; and do whatsoever † ye shall desire of me ; only let the flock of christ be in peace , with the priests that are set over it . he that shall do this , shall get to himself a very great honour in the lord ; and ‖ there is no place but what will be ready to receive him : for the earth is the lord's , and the fullness thereof . these things they who have their conversation towards god not to be repented of , both have done , and will always be ready to do . lv. * nay and even the gentiles themselves have given us examples of this kind . for we read , how many kings and princes , in times of pestilence , being warned by their oracles , have given up themselves unto death , that by their own bloud , they might deliver their ‖ country-men from destruction . † others have forsaken their cities , that so they might put an end to the seditions of them . we know how many among our selves , have given up themselves unto bonds , that thereby they might free others from them . others have hired out themselves to the most servile employments , that with the wages of them they might feed † their brethen . and even women themselves , being strengthned by the grace of god , have done many glorious and manly things on such occasions . the blessed judith , when her city was besieged , desired the elders , that they would suffer her to go into the camp of * their enemies : and she went out exposing her self to danger , for the love she bare to her country and her people that were besieged ; and the lord delivered holofernes into the hands of a woman . nor did esther , being perfect in faith , expose her self to any less hazard , for the delivery of the twelve tribes of israel , in danger of being destroyed . for by fasting and humbling her self , she intreated the great maker of all things , the god of ages ; * so that beholding the humility of her soul , he delivered the people , for whose sake she was in peril . lvi . wherefore let us also pray for all such as fall into any trouble or distress ; that being endued with humility and moderaration , they may submit not unto us , but to the will of god. for by this means * they shall obtain a fruitful and perfect remembrance , with mercy , both at the hands of god , and of his saints . let us receive correction , at which no man ought to repine . beloved , the reproof and the correction which we exercise towards one another , is good , and exceeding profitable : for it unites us the more closely to the will of god. for so says the holy scripture , the lord corrected me , but he did not deliver me over unto death . for whom the lord loveth he chastneth , and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth . the righteous , saith he , shall instruct me in mercy and reprove me ; but the oyl of sinners shall not make fat my head. and again he saith , happy is the man whom god correcteth ; therefore despise not thou the chastning of the almighty . for he maketh sore and bindeth up ; he woundeth and his hands make whole . he shall deliver thee in six troubles ; yea in seven there shall no evil touch thee . in famine he shall redeem thee from death ; and in war from the power of the sword. thou shalt be hid from the scourge of the tongue ; neither shalt thou be afraid of destruction when it cometh . thou shalt laugh at the wicked and sinners ; neither shalt thou be afraid of the beasts of the earth . the wild beasts shall be at peace with thee . then shalt thou know that thy house shall be in peace ; and the habitation of thy tabernacle shall not err . thou shalt know also that thy seed shall be great , and thy off-spring as the grass of the earth . thou shalt come to thy grave as the ripe corn , that is taken in due time ; like as a shock of corn cometh in , in his season . ye see , beloved , how there shall be a defence to those that are corrected of the lord. for being a good instructor , he is willing to admonish us by his holy discipline . lvii . do ye therefore who laid the first foundation of this sedition , submit your selves to your priests ; and be instructed unto repentance , bending the knees of your hearts . learn to be subject , laying aside all proud and arrogant boasting of your tongues . for it is better for you to be found little and of good reputation in the sheepfold of christ , than to seem to your selves better than others , and be cast out of his fold . for thus speaks the excellent and all-vertuous wisdom , behold i will pour out the word of my spirit upon you , i will make known my speech unto you . because i called and ye would not hear , i stretched out my words and ye regarded not . but ye have set at nought all my counsel , and would none of my reproof . i will also laugh at your calamity , and mock when your fear cometh . when your fear cometh as desolation , and your destruction as a whirlwind , when distress and anguish cometh upon you . then shall ye call upon me , but i will not hear you : the wicked shall seek me , but they shall not find me . for that they hated knowledge , and did not seek the fear of the lord. they would not hearken unto my counsel : they despised all my reproof . therefore shall they eat of the fruit of their own ways ; and be filled with their own wickedness . lviii . now god , the inspector of all things , the * father of spirits , and the lord of all flesh , who hath chosen our lord jesus christ , and us by him , to be his peculiar people ; grant to every soul of man that calleth upon his glorious and holy name , faith , fear , peace , long-suffering , patience , temperance , holiness and wisdom , unto all well-pleasing * in his sight ; through our high priest and protector jesus christ , by whom be glory , and majesty , and honour unto him now and for ever more , amen . lix . the messengers whom we have sent unto you , claudius and ephebus , and valerius , and bito with fortunatus , send back to us again with all speed in peace and with joy , that they may the sooner acquaint us with your peace and concord , so much pray'd for and desired by us : and that we may rejoyce in your good order . lx. the grace of our lord jesus christ be with you , and with all others that are any where called by god and through him : to whom be honour and glory , and might , and majesty , and dominion , by * christ jesus , from everlasting to everlasting , amen . the epistle of st. polycarp to the philippians . the contents . after the salutation : . he commends the philippians for their respect to those who suffer'd for the gospel ; and for their own faith and piety . numb . i. . he exhorts them to continue in both : and that particularly from the consideration of the resurrection and judgment to come . n. ii. for their better accomplishing whereof , he , . advises them to call to mind the doctrine which st. paul had taught them whilst he was in person among them ; and after wrote to them in his epistle . n. iii. the summ of all which he now goes on particularly to set before them. i. as to practical duties . . faith , hope , charity . n. iii. . against covetousness . n. iv. . the duties of husbands , wives , widows . ib. . of deacons , young men , virgins . n. v. . of presbyters . n. vi. all which he again inforces with the consideration of that account we must one day give to god of all our actions . ii. as to matters of faith. . what we are to believe concerning our saviour christ : his nature and sufferings . n. vii . . of the future resurrection and judgment . ib. which being thus set forth , he finally exhorts them , . to prayer . n. vii . . to stedfastness in their faith. n. viii . inforced from the examples of the patience and constancy . — of our saviour christ. ib. — of his apostles and saints . n. ix . . to carefulness in all well-doing . n. x. and more particularly yet , from the miscarriage of valens , who had been a presbyter among them : he exhorts them , . to beware of covetousness . n. xi . . not to be too severe towards such persons , either in their censures of them , or behaviour towards them . n. xii . he prays for them ; and then exhorts them , . to pray for all others . ib. and having thus done with what was instructive of his epistle : he advises them of his sending ignatius's epistles to them . n. xiii . and desires an account of him from them. n. xiv . and lastly : he recommends crescens , by whom he wrote this epistle , together with his sister , to their favour and assistance . ib. the epistle of st. polycarp to the philippians . polycarp , and the presbyters that are with him , to the church of god which * is at philippi ; mercy unto you and peace from god almighty , and the lord jesus christ , our saviour , be multiplied . i. i rejoyced greatly with you in our lord jesus christ , that ye received the images of a true love , and accompanied , as it behoved you , those who were in bonds , becoming saints ; which are the crowns of such as are truly chosen by god and our lord : as also that the root of the faith which was preach'd from antient times , remains firm in you to this day ; and brings forth fruit to our lord jesus christ , who suffer'd himself to be brought even to the death for our sins . whom god hath raised up , having loosed the pains of death . whom having not seen , ye love ; in whom though now ye see him not , yet believing , ye rejoyce with joy unspeakable and full of glory : into which many desire to enter , knowing that by grace ye are saved ; not by works , but by the will of god through jesus christ. ii. wherefore girding up the loyns of your mind ; serve the lord with fear and in truth : laying aside all empty and vain speech , and the error of many ; believing in him that raised up our lord jesus christ from the dead , and hath given him glory and a throne at his right hand . to whom all things are made subject , both that are in heaven , and that are in earth ; whom every * creature shall worship ; who shall come to be the judge of the quick and dead : whose bloud god shall require of them that believe not in him , but are disobedient to him . but he that raised up ‖ christ from the dead , shall also raise up us in like manner , if we do his will , and walk * according to his commandments ; and love that which he hath loved : abstaining from all ‖ vnrighteousness ; * inordinate affection , and love of money ; from evil-speaking ; false witness ; not rendring evil for evil , or railing for railing , or striking for striking , or cursing for cursing : but remembring what the lord has * taught us saying , judge not and ye shall not be judged ; forgive and ye shall be forgiven ; be ye merciful , and ye shall obtain mercy ; for with the same measure that ye meet withall , it shall be measured to you again . and again that blessed are the poor , and they that are persecuted for righteousness sake , for theirs is the kingdom of god. iii. these things my brethren i took not the liberty of my self to write unto you concerning righteousness , but you your selves before encouraged me to it . for neither can i , nor any other such as i am , come up to the wisdom of the blessed and renowned paul ; who being himself in person with those who then lived , did with all exactness and soundness teach the word of truth ; and being gone from you wrote an * epistle to you : into which if you look , you will be able to edifie your selves in the faith that has been delivered unto you ; which is the mother of us all ; being followed with hope , and led on by a general love , both towards god and towards christ , and towards our neighbour . for if any man * has these things , he has fulfilled the law of righteousness : for he that has charity is fa● from all sin. iv. but the love of money is the ‖ root of all evil. knowing therefore that as we brought nothing into this world , so neither may we carry any thing out ; let us † arm our selves with the armour of righteousness : and teach our selves first to walk according to the commandments of the lord ; and then your wives to walk likewise ‖ according to the faith that is given to them ; in * charity and in purity ; loving their own husbands with all ‖ sincerity , and all others alike with all temperance ; and to bring up their children in the instruction † and fear of the lord. the widows likewise teach that they be sober and discreet as to what concerns the faith of the lord : praying always for all men ; being far from all detraction , evil speaking , false witness ; from covetousness and from all evil : knowing that they are the altars of god ‖ who sees all things , and from whom nothing is hid ; who searches out the very reasonings , and thoughts , and secrets of our hearts . v. knowing therefore that god is not mocked , we ought to walk worthy both of his command and of his glory . also the deacons must be blameless before ‖ him , as the ministers of god in christ , and not of men. not false accusers ; not double-tongued ; not lovers of money ; but † moderate in all things ; compassionate , careful ; walking according to the truth of the lord , who was the servant of all : whom if we please in this present world , we shall also be made partakers of that which is to come , according as he has promised to us , that he will raise us from the dead ; and that if we shall walk worthy of him , we shall also reign together with him , if we believe . in like manner the younger men must be unblamable in all things : above all , taking care of their purity , and to restrain themselves from all evil. for it is good to be cut off from the lusts that are in the world ; because every such lust warreth against the spirit : and neither fornicators , nor effeminate , nor abusers of themselves with mankind , shall inherit the kingdom of god ; nor they who do such things as are foolish and unreasonable . wherefore ye must abstain from all these things ; being subject to the priests and deacons , as unto god and christ. the virgins admonish to walk in a spotless and pure conscience . vi. and let the ‖ elders be compassionate and merciful towards all ; turning them from their errors ; seeking out those that are weak ; not forgetting the widows , the fatherless and the poor ; but always providing what is good both in the sight of god and man. abstaining from all wrath , respect of persons , and unrighteous judgment : and especially being free from all covetousness . not * easie to believe any thing against any ; not severe in judgment ; knowing that we are all debtors in point of sin. if therefore we pray to the lord that he would forgive us , we ought also to forgive others : for we are all in the sight of our lord and god ; and must all stand before the judgment seat of christ ; and every one give an account ‖ of himself . let us therefore serve him in fear , and with all reverence as both himself commanded ; and as the apostles and prophets have preach'd to us , who have foretold the coming of our lord : being zealous of what is good ; abstaining from all offence , and from all false brethren ; and from all that bear the name of christ in hypocrisie ; who deceive vain men. vii . for whosoever does not confess that jesus christ is come in the flesh , he is antichrist : and whoever does not confess ‖ his suffering upon the cross , is from the devil . and whosoever perverts the oracles of the lord to his own lusts ; and says that there shall neither be any resurrection nor judgment , he is the first born of satan . wherefore leaving the vanity of many , and their false doctrines ; let us ‖ hold fast to the word that was delivered to us from the beginning ; watching unto prayer ; and persevering in fasting : beseeching with all supplication the all-seeing god not to lead us into temptation ; as the lord hath said , the spirit truly is willing , but the flesh is weak . viii . let us therefore without ceasing keep stedfastly to him who is our hope , and the earnest of our righteousness , even jesus christ ; who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree : who did no sin , neither was guile found in his mouth . but suffered all for us that we might live † through him. let us therefore imitate his patience : and if we suffer for his name , let us glorifie him ; for this example he has given us by himself , and so have we believed . ix . wherefore i exhort all of you that ye obey the word of righteousness , and exercise all patience ; which ye have seen set forth before your eyes , not only in the blessed ignatius , and zozimus , and rufus , but in others that have been among you ; and in paul himself , and the rest of the apostles . being ‖ confident of this , that all these have not run in vain ; but in faith and righteousness , and are gone to the place that was due to them from the lord ; with whom also they suffered . for they loved not this present world ; but him who died , and was raised again by god for us . x. stand therefore in these things , and follow the example of the lord ; being firm and immutable in the faith , lovers of the brotherhood , lovers of one another : ‖ companions together in the truth , being kind and gentle towards each other , despising none . when it is in your power to do good defer it not , for charity delivereth from death . be all of you subject one to another , having your conversation honest among the gentiles ; that by your good works , both ye your selves may receive praise , and the lord may not be blasphemed through you . but woe be to him by whom the name of the lord is blasphemed . therefore teach all men sobriety ; in which do ye also exercise your selves . xi . i am greatly afflicted for valens , who was once a presbyter among you ; that he should so little understand the place that was given to him in the church . wherefore i admonish you that ye abstain from covetousness ; and that ye be chast , and true of speech . keep your selves from all evil. for he that in these things cannot govern himself , how shall he be able to prescribe them to another ? if a man does not keep himself from covetousness , he shall be polluted with idolatry , and be judged as if he were a gentile . but who of you are ignorant of the judgment of god ? do we not know that the saints shall judge the world ? as paul teaches . but i have neither perceived nor heard any thing of this kind in you , among whom the blessed paul laboured ; and whom he mentions with so much honour in the beginning of his epistle . for he glories of you in all the churches who then only knew god ; for we did not then know him. wherefore , my brethren , i am exceedingly sorry both for him and for his wife ; to whom god grant a true repentance . and be ye also moderate on this occasion ; and look not upon such as enemies , but call them back as suffering and erring members , that ye may save your whole body : for by so doing , ye shall edifie your own selves . xii . for i trust that ye are well exercised in the holy scriptures , and that nothing is hid from you ; but at present this is not granted unto me : as it is written , be angry and sin not ; and again , let not the sun go down upon your wrath. blessed is he that believeth and remembreth these things ; which also i trust you do . now the god and father of our lord jesus christ ; and he himself who is our everlasting high priest , the son of god , even jesus christ , build you up in faith and in truth , and in all meekness and lenity ; in patience and long-suffering , and chastity : and grant unto you that you may have your lot and portion among his saints ; and that we also may be together with you , and all that are under the heavens , who shall believe in our lord jesus christ , and in his father who raised him from the dead . pray for all the saints : pray also for kings , and ‖ all that are in authority ; and for those who persecute you , and hate you , and are the enemies of the cross : that your fruit may be manifest in all things ; and that ye may be perfect in ‖ christ. xiii . ye wrote to me , both ye and also ignatius , that if any one went from hence into syria , he should bring your letters with him ; which also i will take care of , as soon as i shall have a convenient opportunity ; either by my self , or him whom i shall send upon your account . the epistles of ignatius which he wrote unto us , together with what others of his have come to our hands , we have sent to you , according to your order ; which are subjoyned to this epistle : by which ye may be greatly profited ; for they treat of faith and patience , and of all things that pertain to edification in † the lord jesus . xiv . what you know certainly of ignatius , and those that are with him , signifie unto us . these things have i written unto you by crescens , whom by this present epistle i have recommended to you , and do now again commend . for he has had his conversation without blame among us ; and i suppose also with you . ye will also have regard unto his sister when she shall come unto you . be ye safe in the lord jesus christ ; and in ‖ favour with all yours . amen . the genuine epistles of st. ignativs . i. to the ephesians . the contents . after the salutation : chap. i. he thanks them for sending onesimus their bishop to him : whom he greatly commends ; and expresses his joy to receive from him so good a character of them . ii. he mentions the rest of their members who were sent with onesimus to him : and exhorts them to unity by a due subjection to their bishop and presbyters . iii. he excuses the liberty he takes of admonishing them , and so returns to his advice to them . iv. which is still the same ; namely , by a due subjection to their bishop , to preserve vnity among themselves . v. the benefit of which he particularly sets out to them . vi. that they ought not to respect their bishop the less ; because he is not forward in exacting it from them : but should rather honour him the more ; which he also commends them for doing . vii . he warns them against hereticks ; bidding them stick to their master jesus christ : whose divine and humane nature he declares to them. viii . ix . he commends them for their care to keep themselves from false teachers ; and shews them the way to god. x. he exhorts them to prayer ; and to behave themselves unblameably towards those that are without . xi.xii. to be careful of their salvation ; to pray for himself ; whose own worth he much lessens in comparison of theirs . especially , xiii . xiv . to be frequent in publick devotion : to live in unity , in faith , and in charity . and , xv. to shew forth the truth of their profession by their works . xvi . xvii . to have a care that the gospel of christ be not corrupted . xviii . vpon which occasion , he treats particularly of the three great mysteries of christianity , viz. the virginity of mary : and the incarnation and death of christ : which he says were hid from the devil . xix . how the birth of christ was in a most extraordinary manner reveal'd to the world. xx. xxi . of all which he promises to write more largely in a second epistle . and then finally undertakes for their salvation ; if they continued , as he had exhorted them , to pursue it , by unity among themselves , and piety towards god. the epistle of st. ignativs to the ephesians . ignatius , who is also called theophorus , to the church which is at ephesus in asia ; most deservedly happy ; being blessed ‖ through the greatness and fullness * of god the father , and predestinated before the world began , that it should be always unto an enduring and unchangeable glory ; being united and chosen ‖ through his true passion , ‖ according to the will of the father , and jesus christ our god ; all * happiness , by jesus christ , and ‖ his undefiled grace . i. i have ‖ heard of your name much beloved in god ; which ye have * very justly attain'd by a † habit of righteousness , according to the faith and love which is in jesus christ our saviour : how that being * followers of god , and stirring up your selves by the blood of christ , ye have perfectly accomplished the work that was natural to you . for hearing that i came bound from syria , for the common name and hope , trusting through your prayers to sight with beasts at rome ; that so by ‖ suffering i may become indeed the disciple of him who gave himself to god , an offering and sacrifice for us , [ ye hastned to see me . ] * i understood therefore how great a multitude there was among you in the name of god by onesimus , who * if we consider his charity is beyond all expression , but who is according to the flesh your bishop : whom i beseech you , by jesus christ , to love , and that you would all strive to be like unto him. and blessed be god , who has granted unto you , who are so worthy of him , to ‖ enjoy such an excellent bishop . ii. for what concerns my fellow-servant burrhus , and your ‖ most blessed deacon , in things pertaining to god ; i intreat you that he may tarry longer , both for yours and your bishops honour . and crocus also worthy both of god and you , whom i have received as the pattern of your love , has in all things refresh'd me , as the father of our lord jesus christ shall also refresh him ; together with onesimus , and burrhus , and euplus , and fronto , * in whom i have , as to your charity , seen all of you . and may i always ‖ have joy of you , if i shall be worthy of it . it is therefore fitting that * by all means ‖ you should glorifie jesus christ who hath glorified you : that by a † uniform obedience * ye may be perfectly joyned together in the same mind , and in the same judgment ; and may all speak the same things ‖ : and that being subject to † your bishop , and his presbytery , ye may be wholly and thoroughly sanctified . iii. these things i * prescribe to you , not as if i were some body extraordinary : for tho' i am bound ‖ for his name , i am not yet perfect in christ jesus . † but now i begin to learn , and i speak to you as fellow-disciples together with me. for i ought to have been stirred up by you in faith , in admonition , in patience , in long-suffering . but forasmuch as charity suffers me not to be silent * towards you , i have first taken upon me to exhort you , that ye would all run together according to the will of god. for jesus christ , our inseparable life , is the ‖ mind of the father ; as the bishops appointed even unto the utmost bounds of the earth , are the mind of jesus christ. iv. * wherefore it will become you to run together according to the will of your bishop , as also ye do . for your ‖ famous presbytery , worthy of god , is fitted as exactly to its bishop , as the strings are to their harp. therefore in your concord , and agreeing charity , jesus christ is sung ; and every single person among you makes up the chorus : that so being all consonant in * love , and taking up the song of god , ye may with one voice , and in a perfect unity sing to the father by jesus christ ; to the end that by this means he may both hear you , and perceive by your works , that ye are indeed the members of his son. wherefore it is profitable for you to live in an unblameable unity , that so ye may always ‖ have a fellowship with god. v. for if i in this little time have had such a familiarity with your bishop , i mean not a carnal , but spiritual acquaintance with him ; how much more must i think you happy who are so joyn'd to him , as the church is to jesus christ , and jesus christ to the father ; that so all things may agree in the same unity ? let no man deceive himself ; if a man be not within the altar , he is deprived of the bread of god. for if the prayer of one or two be of such force , as we are told ; how much more powerful shall that of the bishop and the whole church be ? he therefore that does not come together into the same place with it , is * proud , and has already ‖ condemned himself . for it is written , god resisteth the proud. let us take heed therefore , that we do not set our selves against the bishop , that we may be * the servants of god. vi. * the more any one sees his bishop silent , the more let him reverence him . for whomsoever the master of the house sends unto his own houshold , we ought in like manner to receive him , as we would do him that sent him. it is therefore evident that we ought to look upon the bishop , even as we would do upon the lord ‖ jesus . and indeed onesimus himself does greatly commend your good order in god : that you all live according to the truth , and that no heresie dwells among you . for neither do ye hearken to any one * so much , as to jesus christ speaking to you in truth . vii . for some there are who * carry about the name of christ ‖ in deceitfulness , but do many things unworthy of god ; whom ye must † flee , as ye would do so many wild beasts . for they are ravening wolves , who * devour secretly : against whom ye must guard your selves , as men hardly to be cured . there is one physician , both fleshly and spiritual ; made and not made ; god incarnate ; true life in death ; both of mary and of god : first passible , then impassible [ * even jesus christ our lord. ] viii . wherefore let no man deceive you ; as indeed neither are ye deceived , being wholly the servants of god. for inasmuch as there is no contention nor strife among you , * to trouble you , † ye must needs live according to gods will. ‖ my soul be for yours ; and i my self the expiatory offering for your church of ephesus , so famous † throughout the world. they that are of the flesh cannot do the works of the spirit ; neither they that are of the spirit the works of the flesh. ‖ as he that has faith , cannot be an infidel ; nor he that is an infidel have faith. but even those things which ye do according to the flesh are spiritual ; forasmuch as ye do all things in jesus christ. ix . nevertheless i have * heard of some who have ‖ gone to you , having perverse doctrine : whom ye did not suffer to sow † among you ; but stopp'd your ears , that ye might not receive those things that were sown by them. as * being the stones of the temple of the father , prepared for † his building ; and drawn up on high by the cross of christ , * as by an engine ; using the holy ghost as the rope by which to ascend : your faith being your support , and your charity the way that leads unto god. ye are therefore , with all your companions in the same journey , full of god , his spiritual temples , full of christ , full of holinss : adorn'd in all things with the commands of christ ; through whom also i triumph , in that i have been thought worthy by * this present epistle to converse , and rejoyce together with you , that having regard to the other life , ye love nothing but god only . x. ye do also pray without ceasing for all men : for there is hope of repentance in them , that they may attain unto god. let them therefore at least be instructed by your works , if they will be no other way . be ye mild at their anger ; humble at their boasting : to their blasphemies , return your payers ; to their error , your * firmness in the faith : when they are cruel , be ye gentle ; not endeavouring to imitate their ways . let us be their brethren in all kindness and moderation , but let us be followers of the lord : ‖ if any one be more than other either injured , or defrauded , or despised ; that so no herb of the devil may be found in you , but ye may remain in all holiness and sobriety † both of body and spirit , in christ jesus . xi . the last times * are come upon us : let us therefore be very reverent , and fear the long-suffering of god , that it be not to us unto condemnation . for let us either fear the wrath that is to come , or let us love the grace ‖ that we at present enjoy : that † by the one or other of these we may be found in christ jesus , unto true life . * besides him , let nothing † be worthy of you ; ‖ for whom also i bear about these bonds , those spiritual jewels , in which i would to god , that through your prayers , i might arise : of which i intreat you to make me always partaker , that i may be found in the lot of the christians of ephesus , who have always * agreed with the apostles , † through the power of jesus christ. xii . i know both who i am , and to whom i write : i , a person condemn'd ; ye , such as have obtain'd mercy : i , exposed to danger ; ye , confirm'd against danger . ye are the passage of those that are kill'd for god ; the companions of paul in the mysteries of the gospel ; the holy , the martyr , the deservedly most happy paul ; at whose feet may i be found , when i shall have attain'd unto god ; who * throughout all his epistle makes mention of you in christ jesus . xiii . let it be your care therefore to come oftner together , to the praise and glory of god. for when ye meet often together in the same place , the powers of the devil are destroy'd , and his * mischief is dissolved by the ‖ unity of your faith. and indeed , nothing is better than peace ; by which all war both † spiritual and earthly , is abolish'd . xiv . of all which nothing is hid from you , if ye have perfect faith and charity in christ jesus , which are the beginning and end of life . for the beginning is faith ; the end charity . and these two * joyned together , are of god : but all other things are the followers of piety . no man professing a true faith , sinneth ; neither does he who has charity , hate any . the tree is made manifest by its fruit ; so they who profess themselves to be christians , * are known by what they do . for christianity is not the work of an outward profession ; but shews it self in the power of faith , if a man be found faithful unto the end. xv. it is better for a man to hold his peace , and be ; than ‖ to say , he is a christian , and not to be . it is good to teach ; * if what he says , he does likewise . there is therefore one master who spake , and it was done ; and even those things which he did without speaking , are worthy of the father . he that possesses the word of jesus , is truly able to hear his very silence , that he may be perfect ; ‖ and both do according to what he speaks , and be known by those things of which he is silent . there is nothing hid from god , but even our secrets are nigh unto him. let us therefore do all things , as becomes those who have † god dwelling in them ; that we may be his temples and he may be our god : as also he is , and will manifest himself before our faces by those things † for which we justly love him. xvi . be not deceived , brethren : those that * corrupt and defile themselves with others , shall not inherit the kingdom of god. if therefore they who do this according to the flesh , ‖ have suffered death ; how much more shall he dye , who by his wicked doctrine corrupts the faith of god , for which christ was crucified ? * he that is thus defiled , shall depart into unquenchable fire , and so also shall he that ‖ hearkens to him . xvii . for this cause did the lord * suffer the oyntment to be poured on his head ; that he might breath the breath of immortality unto his church . be not ye therefore anointed with the evil savour of the doctrine of the prince of this world : let him not take you captive from the life that is set before you . and why are we not all wise ; seeing we have received the knowledge of god , which is jesus christ ? why ‖ do we suffer our selves foolishly to perish ; † not considering the gift which the lord has truly sent to us ? xviii . my soul be the surety of all such as trust in the cross ; which is indeed a scandal to the unbelievers , but to us is salvation and life eternal . where is the wise man ? where is the disputer ? where is the boasting of those who are called wise ? for our god jesus christ , was according to the dispensation of god , * conceived in the womb of mary , of the seed of david , by the holy ghost : ‖ was born , and baptized , that through his passion , he might purifie water , to the washing away of sin. xix . now the virginity of mary , and her delivery , was kept in secret from the prince of this world ; as was also the death of our lord : three of the * most notable mysteries of the gospel , yet done in ‖ secret by god. how then was our saviour manifested to the world ? a star shone in heaven beyond all the other stars , and its light was inexpressible , and its novelty struck terror into mens minds . all the rest of the stars , together with the sun and moon , were the chorus to this star : but that sent out its light exceedingly above them all. and men * began to be troubled to think whence this ‖ new star came so unlike to † all the others . hence all the power of magick became dissolved ; and every bond of wickedness was * destroy'd ; mens ignorance was taken away ; and the old kingdom abolished ; god himself ‖ appearing in the form of a man , for the renewal of eternal life . but the † authority which he received was what god had allotted to him. from thenceforth things were disturbed ; forasmuch as he design'd to abolish death . xx. but if jesus christ shall give me grace through your prayers , and it be his will , i purpose in a second epistle which i will suddenly write unto you to manifest to you more fully the dispensation of which i have now begun to speak , unto the new man , which is jesus christ ; both in his faith , and charity , in his suffering and in his resurrection : especially if the lord shall * make known unto me ; that ye all by name come together in common in one faith , and in one jesus christ , who was of the race of david according to the flesh ; the son of man , and son of god ; * obeying your bishop and the presbytery with an intire ‖ affection ; breaking one and the same bread , which is the medicine of immortality ; our antidote that we should not die , but live for ever in christ jesus . xxi . my soul be for yours , and theirs whom ye have sent , to the glory of god ; even unto smyrna , from whence also i write to you ; giving thanks unto the lord , and loving polycarp even as i do you . remember me , as jesus christ does remember you . pray for the church which is in syria , from whence i am carried bound to rome , being the least of all the faithful which are there , as i have been thought worthy to be found to the glory of god. fare ye well in god the father , and in jesus christ , our common hope ▪ amen . to the ephesians . the epistle of st. ignativs to the magnesians . the contents . after the salutation : he declares , chap. i. the occasion of his writing to them and to the other churches that were about them : and then mentions , ii. the arrival of damas their bishop , and of the rest whom they had sent unto him. iii. he exhorts them to all due reverence and subjection to their bishop ; notwithstanding * he was but a young man , and had not long been in that great office among them . iv. which also they must do , if they will be christians indeed . v. that we must all ' ere long die ; and then be for ever either happy or miserable . vi. he exhorts them therefore to live orderly ; and to maintain a unity among each other . vii . and that especially by a due subjection to their bishop and presbyters . viii . ix.x . he cautions them against false opinions : especially those of * ebion and the judaizing christians . xi . he apologizes for this advice ; which he gave not to reprove , but to fore-warn them. xii . whose faith and piety he here greatly commends : and xiii . exhorts them to go on , and increase in both. xiv . he desires their prayers both for himself and his church at antioch . xv. and then concludes all with the salutations of those who were present with him at the writing of this epistle . the epistle of st. ignativs to the magnesians . ignatius who is also called theophorus ; to the blessed [ * church ] ‖ by the grace of god the father in jesus christ our saviour : in whom i salute the church which is at magnesia near the maeander ; and wish it all joy , in god the father , and in jesus christ. i. when i heard of your well-order'd love and charity * in god , being full of joy , i determined forthwith to speak unto you in the faith of jesus christ. for having ‖ been thought worthy to obtain a most excellent name ; * in the bonds which i carry about , i † salute the churches ; wishing in them a union both of the body and spirit of jesus christ , our eternal life : as also of faith and charity , to which nothing is preferred ; but especially of jesus and the father , in whom * if we undergo and escape all the injuries of the prince of this present world , we shall enjoy god. ii. seeing then i have been judged worthy to see you , by damas your ‖ most excellent bishop ; and by your very worthy presbyters bassus and apollonius , and by my fellow servant sotio your deacon ; in whom * i rejoyce , forasmuch as he is subject unto his bishop as to the grace of god , and to the presbytery as to the law of jesus christ ; † i determined to write unto you . iii. wherefore it will become you also not * to take advantage of the youth of your bishop , but to yield all reverence to him according to the power of god the father : as also i perceive that your holy presbyters do ; not considering his ‖ age , which indeed to appearance is young ; but as becomes those who are prudent in god , submitting to him , or rather not to him , but to the father of our lord jesus christ the bishop of us all. it will therefore † behove you , * with all sincerity to obey your bishop , in honour of him , † whose pleasure it is that ye should do so . because he that does not do so , deceives not the bishop whom he sees , but * affronts him that is invisible . for whatsoever of this kind is done , it reflects not upon ‖ man , but upon god who knows the secrets of our hearts . iv. it is therefore fitting , that we should not only be called christians , but be so . as some call indeed their governour , bishop ; but yet do all things without him. but i can never think that such as these have a good conscience , seeing they are not gather'd together * thoroughly according to gods commandment . v. seeing then all things have an end , there are these two ‖ indifferently set before us , death and life : and every one shall dedepart unto his proper place . for as there are two sorts of coins , the one of god , the other of the world , and each of these has its proper † inscription engraven upon it ; so also is it here : the unbelievers are of this world , but the faithful through charity have the character of god the father by jesus christ : by whom if we are not readily disposed to die unto his passion , his life is not in us. vi. forasmuch therefore as i have in the persons before mentioned , seen * all of you in faith and charity ; i exhort you that ye study to do all things in a ‖ divine concord : your bishop presiding in the place of god ; your presbyters in the place of the council of the apostles ; and your deacons most * dear to me , being intrusted with the ministry of jesus christ , who was with the father before all ages , and appeared in the ‖ end to us . wherefore taking up the same † holy course , see that ye all reverence one another : and let no one look upon his neighbour after the flesh ; but do ye all mutually love each other in jesus christ. let there be nothing that may be able to make a division among you ; but be ye united to your bishop and those who preside over you , to be your pattern and direction in the way to immortality . vii . as therefore the lord did nothing without the father , being united to him , neither by himself nor yet by his apostles ; so neither do ye do any thing without your bishop and presbyters : neither endeavour to let any thing appear rational to your selves apart ; but being come together into the same place , have one common prayer ; one supplication ; one mind ; one hope ; in charity and in joy undefiled . there is one lord jesus christ , than whom nothing is better . wherefore * come ye all together as unto one temple of god ; as to one altar , as to one jesus christ , who proceeded from one father ; and exists in one , and is return'd to one. viii . be not deceived with * strange doctrines ; nor with old fables which are unprofitable . for if we still continue to live according to the jewish law , we do confess our selves not to have received grace . for even the most ‖ holy prophets lived according to christ jesus . and for this cause were they persecuted , being inspired by his grace , * to convince the unbelievers and disobedient that there is one god who has manifested himself by jesus christ his son ; who is his eternal word , not coming forth from silence , who in all things pleased him that sent him. ix . wherefore if they who were conversant in those antient things , are nevertheless come to the newness of hope ; no longer observing sabbaths , but living according to the * commands of the lord , in which also our life is sprung up by him , and through his death , whom yet some deny : by which mystery we have * been brought to believe , and therefore wait that we may be found the disciples of jesus christ , our only master : how shall we be able to live * different from him ; whose disciples the very prophets themselves being , did by the spirit expect him as their master . and therefore he whom they justly waited for , being come , raised them up from the dead . x. let us not then be insensible of his goodness ; for should he * have dealt with us according to our works , we had not now had a being . wherefore being become his disciples , let us learn to live according to the rules of christianity : for whosoever is called by any other name ‖ besides this , he is not of god. lay aside therefore the old , and sower , and evil leaven , and be ye changed into the new leaven , which is jesus christ. be ye salted in him , lest any one among you should be corrupted ; for by your smell ye shall be * judged . it is absurd to call your selves by the name of jesus christ , and to judaize . for the christian religion did not * embrace the jewish , but the jewish the christian ; that so every tongue that believed might be gathered together unto god. xi . these things , my beloved , i write unto you ; not that i know of any among you that * lye under this error : but as ‖ one of the least among you , i am desirous to forewarn you that ye fall not into the * snares of vain doctrine : but that ye be fully instructed in the birth , and suffering , and resurrection of jesus christ , our hope ; which was done in the time of the government of pontius pilate , and that most truly and † certainly ; and from which god forbid that any among you should be turn'd aside . xii . may i therefore have joy of you in all things , if i shall be worthy of it . for though i am bound , yet am i not worthy to be compared to one of you that are at liberty . i know that ye are not puffed up ; for ye have jesus christ * in your hearts . and especially when i commend you , i know that ye are ashamed , as it is written , the just man condemneth himself . xiii . study therefore to be confirm'd in the doctrine of our lord and of his apostles ; that so whatsoever ye do , ye may prosper both in body and spirit ; in faith and charity ; in the son , and in the father , and in the holy spirit ; in the beginning , and in the end : together with your most worthy bishop , and the * well-wrought spiritual crown of your presbytery ; and your deacons which are according to god. be subject to your bishop , and to one another , as jesus christ to the father according to the flesh ; and the apostles both to christ , and to the father , and to the holy ghost ; that so ye may * be united both in body and spirit . xiv . knowing you to be full of god , i have the more briefly exhorted you : be mindful of me in your prayers , that i may † attain unto god. and forget not the church that is in syria , from * which i am not worthy to be called . for i stand in need of your joynt-prayers in god , and of your charity , that the church which is in syria may be thought worthy to be * nourish'd by your church . xv. the ephesians from smyrna salute you , from which place i write unto you ; ( being present here to the glory of god , in like manner as you are , ) who have in all things refresh'd me ; together with polycarp the bishop of the smyrnaeans . the rest of the churches , in the honour of jesus christ , salute you . * farewel , and be ye strengthned in the concord of god ; † enjoying his inseparable spirit , which is jesus christ. to the magnesians . the epistle of st. ignativs to the trallians . the contents . the salutation . chap. i. he acknowledges the coming of their bishop , and his receit of their charity by him. ii. he commends them for their orderly subjection to their bishop , priests , and deacons ; and exhorts them to continue in it . iii. he inforces the same exhortation , commends their bishop , and excuses his not writing more fully to them of this matter . iv. which he does not , least he should seem to take too much upon him ; and be too much exalted in his own conceit , which would be very dangerous to him : who is afraid even of his over-great desire to suffer , least it should be prejudicial to him. v. another reason why he did not write more largely to them is , that at present they are not able to bear it . vi. he warns them against hereticks , who poison the sound word of christ : and vii . exhorts them by humility of mind , and unity with the church , to guard themselves against them. viii . and this he does , not that he knows of any present need they had of this advice ; but to prevent any mischief from falling upon them . ix . to which end , he briefly sets before them the true doctrine concerning christ. x. and particularly exposes the error of some , who taught that he seemed only to die , but did not really suffer . xi . from these he would have them flee . xii . he returns again to his exhortation of them to unity : and desires their prayers , of which he was much in need . xiii . which also he begs for his church at antioch : and having given them the salutations of those who were with him , and once more exhorted them to due submission to their bishop , &c. he concludes . the epistle of st. ignativs to the trallians . ignatius , who is also called theophorus , to the beloved ‖ of god the father of jesus christ , the holy church which is at tralles in asia ; elect , and worthy of god ; having peace * through the flesh , and bloud , and passion of jesus christ our hope ; in the resurrection which is ‖ by him : which also i salute in the fullness of the * apostolical character ; wishing all joy and happiness unto it . i. i have † heard of your blameless and * constant disposition through patience , which † not only appears in your outward conversation , but is habitually rooted and grounded in you : in like manner as polybius your bishop has declared unto me ; who came to me to smyrna , by the will of god and jesus christ , and so rejoyced together with me ‖ in my bonds for jesus christ , that in effect i saw your whole * church in him. having therefore received the † testimony of your good will towards me * for gods sake , by him ; ‖ i rejoyced to find you , as also i knew that ye were , the † followers of god. ii. for * whereas ye are subject to your bishop as to jesus christ , ye appear to me to live not after the manner of men , but according to jesus christ , who died for us , that so believing in his death , we might * escape death . it is therefore necessary , that as ye do , so without your bishop , you should do nothing : also be ye subject to your presbyters , as to the apostles of jesus christ our hope , in whom if we walk , we shall be found in him. the deacons also , being the ministers of the mysteries of jesus christ , must by all means study to please all . for they are not the * ministers of meat and drink , but of the church of god. wherefore they must avoid all offences , as they would do fire . iii. in like manner let all reverence the deacons as jesus christ ; and the bishop as the father ; and the presbyters as the sanhedrim of god , and colledge of the apostles . without these there is no * church . concerning all which i am perswaded that ye think after the very same manner : for i have received , and even now have with me the pattern of your love , in your bishop . whose very * look is instructive ; and whose mildness † powerful : whom i am perswaded , the very atheists themselves cannot but reverence . but because i have a love towards you , i will not write any more sharply unto you about this matter , though i very well might , and did once design to have done ; least being a condemn'd man , i should seem to prescribe to you as an apostle . iv. i have * great knowledge in god ; but i † refrain my self , least i should perish in my boasting . for now i ought the more to fear ; and not hearken to those that would puff me up . for they that speak to me , chasten me . for i indeed * desire to suffer , but i cannot tell whether i am worthy so to do . ‖ and this desire , though to others it does not appear , yet to my self it is for that very reason the more violent . i have therefore need of * moderation ; by which the prince of this world may ‖ be destroy'd . v. am i not able to write to you of heavenly things ? but i fear least i should harm you , who are yet but babes in christ : ( excuse me this care ; ) and least perchance being not able to receive them , ye should be choaked with them . for even i my self , although i am in bonds , yet am not therefore able to understand heavenly things : as the description of the places of the angels , and the several companies of them , under their respective princes ; things visible and invisible ; but in these i am yet a learner . for many things are wanting to us , that we come not short of god. vi. i exhort you therefore , or rather not i , but the love of jesus christ ; that ye use none but christian nourishment ; abstaining from pasture which is of another kind , i mean heresie . * for they that are hereticks , confound together the doctrine of jesus christ ; with their own poison ; whilst they seem worthy of belief : as men give a deadly potion mix'd with sweet wine ; which he who is ignorant of , does with the treacherous pleasure sweetly drink in his own death . vii . wherefore guard your selves against such persons . and that you will do if you are not puffed up ; but continue inseparable from jesus christ our god , and from your bishop ; and from the commands of the apostles . he that is within the altar is pure : but he that is without , that is , does any thing without the bishop , and presbyters , and deacons , is not pure in his conscience . viii . not that i know there is any thing of this nature among you ; but i fore-arm you , as being greatly beloved by me , fore-seeing the snares of the devil . wherefore putting on meekness , renew your selves in faith , which is the flesh of the lord ; and in charity , which is the blood of jesus christ. let no man have * any grudge against his neighbour . give no occasion to the gentiles ; least by means of a few foolish men , the whole company that is in god be evil spoken of . for woe to that man , through whose vanity my name is blasphemed by any . ix . stop your ears therefore , as often as any one shall speak * contrary to jesus christ ; of the race of david by the virgin mary . who was truly born , and did eat and drink ; was truly persecuted under pontius pilate ; was truly crucified and dead ; both the things in heaven , and the things on earth , and the things under the earth * being conscious of it . who was also truly raised from the dead ‖ by his father , after the same manner as * he will also raise up us who believe in him , by christ jesus ; without whom we have no true life . x. but if as some who are atheists , that is to say infidels , pretend , that he only seem'd to suffer : ( they themselves only seeming to exist ) why then am i bound ? why do i desire to fight with beasts ? therefore do i die in vain . nay , but i speak nothing that is false of the lord. xi . flee therefore these evil * branches which bring forth deadly fruit ; of which if any one taste , he shall presently dye . for these are not the plants of the father : seeing if they were , they would appear to be the branches of the cross , and their fruit would be incorruptible : by which he invites you through his passion , who are members of him . for the head cannot be without its members , god having promised a union , that is himself . xii . i salute you from smyrna , together with the churches of god that are present with me ; who have refresh'd me in all things , both in the flesh and in the spirit . my bonds , which i carry about me for the sake of christ , ( beseeching him that i may attain unto god ) exhort you , that you continue in * concord among your selves , and in prayer with one another . for it becomes every one of you , especially the presbyters , to refresh your bishop , to the honour of the father , of jesus christ , and of the apostles . i beseech you that you hearken to me in love ; that i may not * by those things which i write , rise up in witness against you . pray also for me ; who through the mercy of god stand in need of your prayers , that i may be worthy of the portion which i am about to obtain , that i be not found a reprobate . xiii . the love of those who are at smyrna and ephesus salute you . remember in your prayers the church of syria , from which i am not worthy to be called , being one of the least of * it . fare ye well in jesus christ ; being subject to your bishop as to the command of god ; and so likewise to the presbytery . love every one his brother with an * unfeigned heart . ‖ my soul be your expiation , not only now , but when i shall have attain'd unto god : for i am yet under danger . but the father is faithful in jesus christ , to fulfil both mine and your petition : in whom may ye be found unblameable . to the trallians . the epistle of st. ignativs to the romans . the contents . the salutation . chap. i. he testifies his desire to come unto them ; and his hopes of suffering for christ , unless they prevent it . ii. which he earnestly intreats them not to do : iii. but rather to pray for him , that god would strengthen him to the combat unto which he had called him. iv. he expresses the great desire he had to suffer martyrdom . v.vi. and the mighty advantage it would be to him so to do . vii . viii . and therefore again intreats them that they would not do any thing to prevent it . ix . he desires their prayers for his church at antioch ; and expresses the kindness of the christians to him on his way to them. x. and then concludes , with his recommendations of those who came from syria with him , and were gone before to rome , to their favourable acceptance . the epistle of st. ignativs to the romans . ignatius , who is also called theophorus ; to the church which has obtained mercy * from the majesty of the most high father , and his only begotten son jesus christ ; beloved , and illuminated * through the will of him who willeth all things which are according to the love of jesus christ our god ; which also presides in the * place of the region of the romans ; and which i salute in the name of jesus christ , as being united both in flesh and spirit to all his commands , and filled with the grace of god ; all joy in jesus christ our god. i. i have at last * obtained of god , through my earnest prayers , to see your ‖ faces , which i have much desired to do . for being bound in christ jesus , i hope e're long to salute you , if it shall be the pleasure of god to grant me to attain unto the end i hope for . for the beginning is well-disposed , if i shall but * be so happy , as without hindrance , to receive ‖ what is appointed for me . but i fear your love , least it do me an injury . for it is easie for you to do what you please ; but it * will be hard for me to attain unto god , unless you spare me . ii. but i would not that ye should please men , but god ; * whom also ye do please . for neither shall i ever hereafter have such an opportunity ‖ of going unto god ; nor will you , if ye shall now be silent , ever be intituled to a better work. for if you shall be silent † in my behalf , i shall become partaker of god. but if you shall love my * body , i shall have my course again to run . wherefore a greater kindness ye cannot do me , than to suffer me to be sacrificed unto god , now that the altar is already prepared : that ‖ when ye shall be gather'd together in love , ye may * give thanks to the father in christ jesus ; that he has vouchsafed † to bring a bishop of syria unto you , being sent from the east even unto the west . for it is good for me to set from the world , unto god ; that i may rise again unto him. iii. ye have never envied me in any thing ; ye have taught others . i would therefore that ye * should now do those things your selves , which in your instructions you have ‖ prescribed to others . only pray for me , that god would give me strength , that i may not only be called a christian , but may also be found one . for if i shall be found a christian , i may then deservedly be called one : and be thought faithful , when i shall no longer appear to the world. nothing is good , that is seen . for even our * lord jesus christ , now that he is in the father , does so much the more appear . to be a true christian is not a work of ‖ opinion ; but of greatness of mind ; especially when he is hated by the world. iv. i write to the churches , and † signifie to them all , that i am willing to die for god , unless you * hinder me . i beseech you that you ‖ shew not an unseasonable good will towards me . suffer me to be food to the wild beasts ; † by which means i shall go unto god. for i am the wheat of god ; and i shall be ground by the teeth of the wild beasts , that i may be found the pure bread * of christ. rather ‖ encourage the beasts , that they may become my sepulchre ; and may leave nothing of my body ; that being dead , i may not be troublesome to any . then shall i be the true disciple of jesus christ , when the world shall not see so much as my body . pray therefore unto christ for me , that by these instruments i may be made the sacrifice of god. i do not as peter and paul , command you . they were apostles , i a condemned man ; they were free , i am even to this day a servant : but if i shall suffer , i shall then become the freeman of jesus christ and shall rise free. and now , being in bonds , i learn , not to desire any thing . v. from syria even unto rome , i fight with beasts both by sea and land ; both night and day : being bound to ten leopards , that is to say , to such a band of souldiers ; who though treated with all manner of kindness , are but the worse for it . but i am the more instructed by their injuries ; yet am i not therefore justified . may i enjoy the wild beasts that are * prepared for me ; which also i wish may ‖ exercise all their fierceness upon me : and whom for that end i will † encourage , that they may be sure to devour me , and not serve me as they have done some , whom out of fear they have not touched . but and if they will not do it willingly , i will provoke them to it . pardon me in this matter ; i know what is profitable for me . now i begin to be a disciple : nor * shall any thing move me , whether visible or invisible , that i may attain to christ jesus . let fire , and the cross ; let the companies of wild beasts ; let breakin gs of bones , and tearing of members ; let the ‖ shattering in pieces of the whole body , and all † the torments of the devil come upon me ; only let * me enjoy jesus christ. vi. all the * compass of the world , and the kingdoms ‖ of it , will profit me nothing : it is better for me to die for jesus christ , than to rule to the utmost ends of the earth . him i seek who died for us : him i desire , that rose again from the dead for us . he is the gain that is laid up for me . pardon me , my brethren , ye shall not hinder me from living : † nor seeing i desire to go to god , may you separate me from him , for the sake of this world , nor seduce me by any of the * desires of it . suffer me to ‖ enter into pure light : where being come , i shall be indeed the servant of * god. permit me to imitate the passion of my god. if any one has him within himself , let him consider what i desire ; and let him have compassion on me , as knowing † how i am streightned . vii . the prince of this world would fain carry me away , and corrupt my * resolution towards my god. let none of you ‖ therefore help † him : rather do ye joyn with me , that is , with god. do not speak with jesus christ , and yet cover the world. let not any envy dwell with you : no not though even i my self when i shall be come unto you , should exhort you to it , yet do not ye hearken to me ; but rather believe what i now write to you . for though i am alive at the writing this , yet my desire is to die. my love is crucified ; and the * fire that is within me does not desire any water : but being alive and ‖ speaking within me , says , come to the father . i take no pleasure in the food of corruption , nor in the pleasures of this life . i desire the bread of god , which is the flesh of jesus christ , of the seed of david ; and the drink that i long for is his blood , which is uncorruptible love. viii . i have no desire to live any longer after the manner of men ; * neither shall i , if you consent . be ye therefore willing , that ye your selves also may be † pleasing to god. i ‖ exhort you † in a few words , i pray you believe me . jesus christ will shew you that i speak truly : my mouth is without deceit , and the father hath truly spoken * by it . pray therefore for me , that i may accomplish what i desire . i have not written to you after the flesh , but according to the will of god. if i shall suffer , ye have loved me : but if i shall be rejected , ye have hated me . ix . remember in your prayers the church of syria , which now enjoys god for its shepherd instead of me : ‖ let jesus christ only oversee it , and your charity . but i am even ashamed to be reckon'd as one of them : for neither am i worthy , being the least among them , and as one born out of due season . but through mercy i have obtain'd to be somebody , if i shall get unto god. my spirit salutes you ; and the charity of the churches that have received me in the name of jesus christ , not as a stranger . for even they that have not accompanied me in my journy * , have yet been ready in every city to receive me x. these things i write to you from smyrna , by the most worthy of the church of ephesus . there is now with me , together with many others , crocus , most beloved of me . as for those which * came with me from syria , and are gone before me to rome , to the glory of god , i suppose you are not ignorant of them . ye shall therefore signifie to them that i draw near , for they are all worthy both of god and of you : whom it is fit that you refresh in all things . this have i written to you , the day before the ninth of the calends of september . be strong unto the end , in the patience of jesus christ. to the romans . the epistle of st. ignativs to the philadelphians . the contents . the salutation . chap. i. he begins with a very great commendation of their bishop , whom they had sent unto him. ii. he warns them against divisions ; and to stick close to their bishop , as the best means to avoid falling into errors and false doctrines . iii.iv. which exhortation he again enforces ; and shews them the danger of following any persons , to the making of a schism in the church . v. he excuses the length of this advice ; which proceeded from his love towards them : desires their prayers ; and shews how the holy men under the law , as well as since under the gospel , were all united in christ. vi. yet this must not prompt them to receive their doctrine , who would tempt them to judaize . vii . he declares what his own conduct had been whilst he was amongst them. viii . ix . and exhorts them , after his example , to maintain a pure doctrine , in unity with one another . x. he accounts to them how he had heard that the persecution was stopp'd in his church at antioch : and directs them to send some messenger thither , to congratulate with them thereupon . xi . he tells them what persons were still with him ; and thanks them for the kind entertainment they gave to some of them : and so concludes with the common salutation of those who were present at his writing of this epistle to them. the epistle of st. ignativs to the philadelphians . ignatius , who is also called theophorus , to the church of god the father and our lord jesus christ which is at philadelphia in asia ; which has obtained mercy , being fix'd in the concord of god , and rejoycing ‖ evermore in the passion of our lord , and being fulfilled in all mercy through his resurrection : which also i salute in the bloud of jesus christ , * who is our eternal and undefiled joy ; especially if they are at unity with the bishop and presbyters who are with him , and the deacons appointed ‖ according to the mind of jesus christ ; whom he has setled according to his own will in all firmness by his holy spirit . i. which bishop i know obtain'd * that great ministry among you , not of himself , neither by men , nor out of vain glory ; but in the love of god the father and our lord jesus christ : whose mildness ‖ i admire , who by his silence is able to do more , than † others with all their vain talk. for he is fitted to the commands , as the harp to its strings . wherefore my soul esteems his mind towards god most happy , knowing it to be fruitful in all vertue , and perfect ; full of constancy ; free from passion , ‖ and according to all the moderation of the living god. ii. wherefore as becomes the children both of the light and of truth ; flee divisions and false doctrines : but where your shepherd is , there do ye , as sheep , follow after . for there are many wolves * who seem worthy of belief , that with a ‖ false pleasure lead captive those that run in the course of god : but in your concord , they shall find no place . iii. abstain therefore from those evil herbs which jesus christ does not dress ; because such are not the plantation of the father . not that i have found any division among you , but rather all manner of purity . for as many as are of jesus christ , are also with their bishop . and as many as shall with repentance return into the unity of the church , even these shall also be the servants of god , that they may live according to jesus christ. be not deceived , brethren : if any one follows him that makes a schism in the church , he shall not inherit the kingdom of god. if any one walks after any other's opinion , he agrees not with the passion of christ. iv. wherefore let it be your endeavour to partake all of the same holy eucharist . for there is but one flesh of our lord jesus christ ; and one cup , unto the unity of his bloud ; one altar ; as also there is one bishop , together with his presbytery , and the deacons my fellow-servants : that so whatsoever ye do , ye may do it according to the will of god. v. my brethren , the love i have towards you makes me the * more large ; and having a great joy in you , i endeavour to secure you against danger : or rather not i , but jesus christ , in whom being bound i the more fear , as being yet only ‖ on the way to suffering . but your prayer to god shall make me perfect , that i may attain to that portion , which by god's mercy is allotted to me : fleeing to the gospel as to the flesh of christ ; and to the apostles as to the great presbytery of the church . let us also love the prophets , for as much as they also have by their doctrine led us to the gospel , and to hope in * christ , and to expect him. in whom also believing they were saved ; in the unity of jesus christ , being holy men , worthy to be loved , and had in wonder ; who have received testimony from jesus christ , and are reckon'd in the gospel of our common hope . vi. but if any one shall preach the jewish law unto you , hearken not unto him : for it is better to receive the doctrine of christ from one that has been circumcised , than judaism from one that has not . but if either the one or other do not speak concerning christ jesus ; they seem to me to be but as monuments and sepulchres of the dead , upon which are written only the names of men. flee therefore the wicked arts and snares of the prince of this world ; lest at any time being oppressed by his * cunning , ye grow cold in your charity . but come all-together into the same place , with an undivided heart . and , i bless my god that i have a good conscience towards you , and that no one among you has whereof to boast either openly or privately , that i have been burthensome to him in much or little . and i beseech all among whom i have conversed , that they make not use of that for a testimony of it . vii . for although some would have deceived me according to the flesh ; yet the spirit , being from god , is not deceived : for it knows both whence it comes , and whither it goes , and reproves the secrets of the heart . i cried whilst i was among you ; i spake with a loud voice ; attend to the bishop , and to the presbytery , and to the deacons . now some supposed that i spake this as foreseeing the division * that should come among you . but he is my witness for whose sake i am in bonds that i knew nothing from any * man. but the spirit spake , saying on this wise ; do nothing without the bishop : keep your * bodies as the temples of god : love unity : flee divisions : be the followers of christ , as he was of his father . viii . i therefore did as became me , as a man composed to unity . for where there is division , and wrath , god dwelleth not . but the lord forgives all that repent , if they * return to the unity of god , and to the council of the bishop . for i trust in the grace of jesus christ ‖ that he will free you from every bond. nevertheless i exhort you that you do nothing out of strife , but according to the instruction of christ. because i have heard of some who say ; unless i find it written in some other † antient monuments , i will not believe the gospel . and when i answer'd them , it is written : they replied , that it does not appear . but to me jesus christ is instead of all the antient monuments in the world : together with those * undefiled monuments , his cross , and death , and resurrection , and the faith which is by him : by which i desire , through your prayers , to be justified . ix . the priests indeed are good : but much better is the high priest to whom the holy of holies has been committed ; and who alone has been intrusted with the secrets of god. he is the door of the father ; by which abraham , and isaac , and jacob , and all the prophets enter in ; as well as the apostles and the church . and all these things tend to the unity which is of god. howbeit the gospel has somewhat in it far above all other dispensations ; namely , the appearance of our saviour , the lord jesus christ , his passion and resurrection . for the beloved prophets refer'd to him : but the gospel is the perfection of incorruption . all therefore together are good , if ye believe with charity . x. now as concerning the church of antioch which is in syria , seeing i am told that through your prayers , and the bowels which ye have towards it in jesus christ , it is in peace ; it will become you , as the church of god , to ordain some ‖ deacon to go to them thither as the embassador of god ; that he may rejoyce with them when they meet together , and glorifie gods name . blessed be that man in jesus christ , who shall be found worthy of such a ministry ; and ye your selves also shall be glorified . now if ye be willing , it is not impossible for you to do this for the sake of god ; as also the other neighbouring churches have sent them some bishops , some priests and deacons . xi . as concerning philo the deacon of cilicia , a most worthy * man , he still ministers unto me in the word of god ; together with rheus ‖ of agathopolis a singular good person , who has follow'd me even from syria , not regarding his life : these also bear witness unto you . and i my self give thanks to god for you , that ye received them , as the lord shall receive you . but for those that dishonour'd them , may they be forgiven through the grace of jesus christ. the charity of the brethren that are at troas salutes you : from whence also i now write by burrhus who was sent together with me by those of ephesus and smyrna , for respect sake . may our lord jesus christ honour them ; in whom they hope , both in flesh , and soul , and spirit ; in faith , in love , in unity . farewel in christ jesus our common hope . the epistle of st. ignativs to the smyrneans . the contents . the salutation . chap. i. he declares the joy he had to hear of their firmness in the gospel : the substance of which , as to what concerns the person of christ , he briefly repeats to them. ii. and this against such as pretended , that christ suffer'd only in shew , and not really . against these , iii. he assures them , that he knew christ was a true man , even after his resurrection ; and did give manifest proofs to his disciples of his being such . iv. he exhorts them therefore , to have nothing to do with those hereticks whom he here opposes : nor believe that he would suffer so so much for the faith of christ , unless he were very sure of the truth of it . v. he shews them , farther , the danger of the doctrine before mentioned : and how they who held it did , in effect , deny christ. vi. how dangerous this is ? and how different those who maintain this doctrine are , in all other respects from the church of christ ? vii . that it will therefore become them , to guard themselves against such persons . viii . to this end ; he exhorts them to follow their bishop and pastors : but especially their bishop . ix . he thanks them for their kindness to himself : x. and to those that were with him ; which god will reward . xi . he acquaints them with the ceasing of the persecution at antioch : and exhorts them to send a messenger unto them , to congratulate with them on this occasion . xii . he concludes with his own salutation , and the remembrances of those that were with him , to them all in general , and to several in particular . the epistle of st. ignativs to the smyrneans . ignatius , who is also called theophorus , to the church of god the father , and of the beloved jesus christ ; which god hath * blessed with every good gift ; being filled with faith and charity , so that it is wanting in no gift : to the most worthy of god and fruitful in saints , the church which is at smyrna in asia ; all joy , through his immaculate spirit , and through the word of god. i. i glorifie god , even jesus christ , who has thus filled you with all wisdom . for i have understood how that you are settled in an immoveable faith , as if you were nailed to the cross of our lord jesus christ both in the flesh and in the spirit ; and are confirm'd in love through the bloud of christ ; being fully perswaded of those things which relate * unto our lord : who truly was of the race of david according to the flesh , but the son of god according to the will and power of god : truly born of the virgin , and baptized of john ; that so all righteousness might be fulfilled by him . he was also truly crucified by pontius pilate , and herod the tetrarch , for us in the flesh ; by the fruits of which we are saved , even by his most blessed passion , that he might set † up a sure token and earnest of hope , for all following ages through his resurrection , to all his holy and faithful servants , whether they be jews or gentiles , in one body of his church . ii. now all these things he suffer'd for us , that we might be saved . and he suffer'd truly , as he also truly raised up himself : and not as some unbelievers say , that he only seemed to suffer , they themselves only seeming to be . and as they believe so shall it happen unto them ; when they shall become * spiritual and incorporeal . iii. but i know that even after his resurrection he was in the flesh ; and i believe that he was so . and when he came to those who were with peter , he said unto them , take , handle me and see that i am not an incorporeal daemon . and straightway they felt him and believed ; being convinced both by his flesh and spirit . for this cause they despised death , and were found to be above * it . but after his resurrection he did eat and drink with them , as he was flesh ; although as to his spirit he was united to the father . iv. now these things , beloved , i ‖ put you in mind of , not questioning but that you your selves also † believe that they are so . but i arm you before-hand against certain beasts in the shape of men ; whom you must not only not receive , but if it be possible must not meet with . only you must pray for them , that if it be the will of god they may repent ; which yet will be very hard . but of this our lord jesus christ has the power , who is our true life . for if all these things were done only in shew by our lord , then do i also only seem to be bound : and why have i given up my self to death , to the fire , to the sword , to wild beasts ? but now the nearer i am to the sword , the nearer am i to god : what is between me and the beasts , is between me and god. only in the name of jesus christ , who was a perfect man , and by his assistance , am i ready to suffer all things together with him. v. whom some , not knowing , do deny ; or rather have been denied by him , being the advocates of death , rather than of the truth . whom neither the prophecies , nor the law of moses have perswaded ; nor the gospel it self even to this day , nor all our sufferings . for they think also the same things of us . for what does a man profit me , if he shall praise me , and blaspheme my lord ; not confessing that he * was truly made man ? now he that says this , does in effect deny him , and is in death . but for the names of such as do this , they being unbelievers , i thought it not fitting to write them unto you . nay , god forbid that i should make any mention of them , till they shall repent to a true belief of christ's passion , which is our resurrection . vi. let no man deceive himself ; both the things which are in heaven , and the glory of angels , and principalities , whether visible or invisible , if they believe not in the bloud of christ , † it shall be to them to condemnation . he that is able to receive this , let him receive it . let no man's * place or state in the world puff him up : that which is worth all is faith and charity , to which nothing is to be preferred . but then consider those who defend a different opinion from us , as to what concerns the grace of god which is come unto us , how contrary they are to the mind of god ? they have no regard to charity ; no care of the widow , the fatherless , and the oppressed ; of the bound or free , of the hungry or thirsty . vii . they abstain from * the publick offices and from the holy eucharist ; because they confess ‖ it not to be the flesh of our saviour jesus christ , which suffered for our sins , and which the father , of his goodness , raised again from the dead . and for this cause contradicting the gift of god , they die in their disputes : * but much better would it be for them to love it , that they might one day rise through it . it will therefore become you to abstain from such persons ; and not to speak with them neither in private , nor in publick . but to hearken to the prophets , and especially to the gospel , in which both christ's passion is manifested unto us , and his resurrection perfectly declared . but flee all divisions , as the beginning of evils . viii . follow your bishop , as jesus christ , the father : and the presbytery , as the apostles . as for the deacons , reverence them as the command of god. let no man do any thing of what belongs to the church without the bishop . let that eucharist be look'd upon as firm and just , which is either offer'd by the bishop , or by him to whom the bishop has given his consent . wheresoever the bishop shall appear , there let the * people also be : as where jesus christ is , there is the catholick church . it is not lawful without the bishop , neither to baptise , nor * to celebrate the holy communion : but whatsoever he shall approve of , that is also pleasing unto god ; that so whatever is done , may be secure and well done . ix . for what remains , it is very reasonable that we should ‖ repent , whilst there is yet time to return unto god. it is a good thing to have a due regard both to god and to the bishop : he that honours the bishop , shall be honoured of god. but he that does any thing without his knowledge , † ministers unto the devil . let all things therefore abound to you in charity ; seeing ye are worthy . ye have refresh'd me in all things ; so shall jesus christ you . ye have loved me both when i was present with you , and now being absent , ye cease not to do so . may god be your reward , for whom whilst ye undergo all things ye shall attain unto him. x. ye have done well in that ye have received philo , and rheus , and * agathopus , as the deacons of christ our lord : who also give thanks unto the lord for you , forasmuch as ye have refreshed them in all * things . ‖ nor shall any thing that you have done , be lost to you . my † soul be for yours , and my bonds which ye have not despised , nor been ashamed of . wherefore neither shall jesus christ , our perfect faith , be ashamed of you . xi . your prayer is come to the church of antioch which is in syria . from whence being sent bound with chains becoming god , i salute the churches ; being not worthy to be called from thence , as being the least among them . nevertheless by the will of god i have been thought worthy of this honour ; not for that i think i have deserved it , but by the grace of god : which i wish may be perfect to the end , that through your prayers i may attain unto god. and therefore that your work may be fully accomplish'd both upon earth and in heaven ; it will be fitting * that your church appoint some one to the honour of god , who being come as far as syria , may rejoyce together with them that they are in peace ; and that they are again restored to their former greatness , and have again received their proper body . wherefore i should think it a worthy action to send some one from you with an epistle , to congratulate with them their peace in god ; and that through your prayers , they have now gotten to their harbor . for in as much as ye are perfect your selves , you ought to think those things that are perfect . for when you are desirous to do well , god is ready to do well to you . xii . the love of the brethren that are at troas salutes you ; from whence i write to you by burrhus whom ye sent with me , together with the ephesians your brethren ; and who has in all things refresh'd me . and i would to god that all would imitate him , as being an exemplar of the ministry of god. may his grace fully reward him. i salute your very worthy bishop , and your venerable presbytery ; and your deacons , my fellow-servants ; and all of you in general , and every one in particular , in the name of jesus christ , and in his flesh and blood ; in his passion and resurrection both fleshly and spiritually ; and in * the unity of god with you . grace be with you , and mercy , and peace , and patience , for ever-more . xiii . i salute the families of my brethren , with their wives and children ; and the * virgins that are called widows . be strong in the power of the holy ghost . philo , who is present with me salutes you . i salute the house of tavias , and pray that it may be strengthned in faith and charity , both of flesh and spirit . i salute alcé my well-beloved , * together with the very excellent daphnus , and eutychus , and all by name . farewel in the grace of god. to the smyrnaeans from troas . the epistle of st. ignativs to st. polycarp . the contents . the salutation . chap. i. he blesses god for the firm establishment of polycarp in all piety : and gives him many particular directions for his improvement in it . ii. but especially with relation to the church , over which he was bishop . iii. iv. he continues his advice to him : and v. then teaches him , what advice he should give to others . vi. in which he continues ; and especially inforces unity among themselves , and subjection to their bishop . vii he accounts to polycarp the peace of his church in syria ; and directs him to appoint some messenger to go to antioch ; to rejoyce with them on that occasion . viii . he desires polycarp to write to the same effect to the neighbouring churches ; which he had not himself time to do . and then concludes all with his salutation both to polycarp , and to several of the church of smyrna , by name . the epistle of st. ignativs to st. polycarp , ignatius who is also called theophorus , to polycarp bishop of the church which is at smyrna ; their overseer , but rather himself overlook'd by god the father , and the lord jesus christ ; all happiness . i. having known that thy will towards god , is fix'd as it were upon an immoveable rock ; i exceedingly give thanks , that i have been thought worthy to behold thy * blessed face , in which may i always rejoyce in god. wherefore i beseech thee by the grace of god with which thou art cloathed , to press forward in thy course , and to exhort all others that they may be saved . maintain thy place , with all care ‖ both of flesh and spirit : make it thy endeavour to preserve unity in thy church , than which nothing is better . bear with all men , even as the lord with thee . support all in love , as also thou dost . † pray without ceasing : ask more understanding than what thou already hast . be watchful , having thy spirit always awake . speak to every one * according as god shall enable thee . bear the ‖ infirmities of all , as a perfect combatant ; where the labour is great , the gain is so too . ii. if thou shalt love the good disciples , what thank is it ? but rather do thou subject to thee those that are infected , in meekness . every wound is not healed with the same plaister : if the accessions of the disease be vehement , molifie them with * soft remedies ; be in all things , wise as a serpent , but harmless as a dove . for this cause thou art composed of flesh and spirit ; that thou mayst molifie those things that appear before thy face : but as for those that are not seen , pray to god that he would reveal them unto thee , that so thou mayst be wanting in nothing , but may'st abound in every gift . the times demand thee , as the mariner the winds , and he that is toss'd in a tempest , the haven where he would be ; that thou may'st attain unto god. be sober , as the combatant of god : the * crown proposed to thee is immortality , and life eternal ; concerning which thou art fully perswaded . i will be thy surety in all things , and my bonds , which thou hast loved . iii. let not those that appear to be faithful , but teach other doctrines , ‖ disturb thee . stand firm and immovable , as an anvil when it is beaten upon . it is the part of a brave combatant indeed , to be * wounded , and yet overcome . and especially we ought to endure all things for gods sake , that he may bear with us . be every day † better than other : consider the times ; and expect him , who is above all time , eternal , invisible , though for our sakes made visible : impalpible , and impassible , yet for us subjected to sufferings ; enduring all manner of ways for our salvation . iv. let not the widows be neglected : be thou after god , their guardian . let nothing be done but with thy knowledge and consent : neither do thou any thing but according to the will of god , as also thou dost , ‖ with all constancy . let your assemblies be more frequent : inquire into all by name . overlook not the men and maid servants ; neither let them be puffed up ; but rather let them be more subject , to the glory of god ; that they may obtain from him a better liberty . let them not desire to * be set free from their present service , that they be not slaves to their own lusts. v. flee evil * arts : or rather , make not any mention of them . say to my sisters , that they love the lord ; and be satisfied with their own husbands , both in the flesh and spirit . † in like manner , exhort my brethren in the name of jesus christ , that they love their wives , even as the lord the church . if any man can remain in a virgin state , ‖ to the honour of christ , let him remain without boasting : but if he boast , he is undone . and if he thinks that he knows more than the bishop ; he is ruined . but it becomes all such as are marryed , whether men or women , to come together with the consent of the bishop ; that so their marriage may be according to godliness , and not in lust. let all things be done to the honour of god. vi. hearken unto the bishop , that god also may hearken unto you . my soul be security for them that submit to their bishop , with their presbyters and deacons . and may my portion be together with theirs in god. labour with one another ; contend together , run together , suffer together ; sleep together , and rise together ; as the stewards , and assessors , and ministers of god. please him under whom ye war ; and from whom ye receive your wages . let none of you be found a deserter ; but let your baptism remain , as your arms ; your faith , as your helmet ; your charity , as your spear ; your patience , as your whole armour . let your works be your ‖ charge , that so you may receive a suitable reward . be long-suffering therefore towards each other in meekness ; as god is towards you . let me have joy of you in all things . vii . now forasmuch as the church of antioch in syria is , as i am told , in peace through your prayers ; i also have been the more comforted in † their security ; if so be that by suffering , i shall attain unto god ; that through your prayer i may be found a faithful disciple . it will be very fit , o most worthy polycarp , to call a * select council , and chuse some one whom ye particularly love , and who is patient of labour ; that he may be the messenger of god : and that going unto syria , he may glorifie your incessant love , to the praise of god. a christian has not the power of himself ; but must be always at leisure for god's service . now this work , is both gods and yours ; when ye shall have perfected it . for i trust in your favour , that ye are ready to do all the good work that is fitting for you in the lord . knowing therefore your earnest affection to the truth , i have exhorted you by this short epistle . viii . but forasmuch as i have not been able to write to all the churches , because i must suddainly sail from troas to neapolis ; for so is the command of those to whose pleasure i am subject ; do you write to the churches that are near you , as being instructed in the will of god , that they also may do in like manner . let those that are able send * messengers ; and let the rest send their letters by those who shall be sent by you : that you may be glorified † to all eternity , of which you are worthy . i salute all by name ; particularly the wife of epitropus , with all her house , and children . i salute attalus my well-beloved . i salute him , who shall be sent by you into syria . let my grace be ever with him , ‖ and with polycarp who sends him . i wish you all happiness in our god , jesus christ ; in whom continue in the unity , and protection of god. i salute alcé my well-beloved . farewell in the lord . to polycarp . the martyrdom's of st. ignatius & st. polycarp : written by those who were present at their suffering . a relation of the martyrdom of st. ignativs . i. it was but a little while after trajans advancement to the roman empire ; that ignatius , the disciple of st. john the apostle and evangelist , a man in all things * like unto the apostles , govern'd the church of antioch . who being scarcely able to mitigate the storms of many persecutions , before under domitian ; as a good governour , by the helm of prayer and fasting , by the constancy of his doctrine , and spiritual * labour , opposed himself to the flouds of the adversary ; fearing lest he should happen to overthrow any of those who either wanted courage , or † were not so strong in the faith , as was necessary at such a time . ii. wherefore the persecution being at present somewhat abated , he rejoiced greatly at the firmness of his church : yet doubted ‖ within himself , that he had not attain'd to a true love of christ , nor was come up to the * pitch of a perfect disciple . for he thought , that the confession which is made by martyrdom , would bring him † to a yet more close and intimate union with the lord . wherefore continuing a few years longer with the church , and after the manner of a divine * lamp , illuminating the † hearts of the faithful , by the exposition of the holy scriptures ; he attain'd to what he had so long and earnestly desired . iii. for trajan after the ‖ ninth year of his empire , being lifted up with his victory over the scythians and dacians , and many * other nations ; and thinking that the church of the christians worshipping the true god , were yet wanting in an entire obedience to him , unless he compelled them † after the manner of all other people , to embrace the service of devils : he obliged all such as were the ‖ servants of the true god , with the threats of persecution , either to sacrifice to the heathen deities , or to die. wherefore our * brave souldier of christ , being in fear for the church of antioch ; was voluntarily brought before trajan , who was at that time there , on his way to armenia , and the parthians , against whom he was hastning . iv. being come into the presence of the emperor trajan ; the emperor ask'd him , saying : what a ‖ wicked wretch art thou , thus to hasten to transgress our commands , and to perswade others also to do likewise , to their destruction ? ignatius answered ; no one ought to call theophorus * after such a manner : forasmuch as all wicked spirits are departed far from the servants of god. but if because i am a trouble to those evil-spirits , you call me wicked , with reference to them , i confess the charge : for having within me christ the heavenly king , i dissolve all the snares † of the devil . v. trajan reply'd : ] and who is theophorus ? ignat. ] he who has christ in his breast . trajan . ] and do not we then seem to thee to have the gods ‖ within us , who fight for us against our enemies ? ignat. ] you err , in that you call the evil-spirits of the heathens gods ; for there is but one god , who made heaven and earth , and the sea , and all that are in them : and one jesus christ his only begotten son ; whose favour may i enjoy . vi. trajan ] his favour you say who was crucified und●r pontius pilate . ignat. ] his who crucified sin , with the inventor of it ; and has put all the * power and malice of the devil under their feet , who from their hearts believe in him. trajan . ] dost thou then carry christ within thee ? ignat. ] i do : for it is written , * i will dwell in them , and walk in them . then trajan pronounced this sentence against him ; forasmuch as ignatius has confess'd , that he carries about within himself him that was crucified , we command that he be carried bound by souldiers to the great rome , there to be thrown to the beasts , for the ‖ entertainment of the people . vii . when the holy martyr heard this sentence , he cry'd out with joy , i thank thee o lord , that thou hast vouchsafed to honour me with a perfect love towards thee ; and hast made me to be put in iron bonds with thy apostle paul having said this , he with joy put his bonds about him : and having pray'd for the church , and commended it with tears unto the lord ; he was hurried away , like a stout ram , the leader of a good flock , by the bruitish soldiers , in order to his being carried to rome , there to be devoured by the * savage beasts . viii . wherefore with much readiness and joy , out of his desire to suffer , he left antioch , and came to seleucia ; from whence he was to sail towards rome . and after a great deal of toil , being come to smyrna , he hastned with all possible gladness to see the holy polycarp his fellow-scholar , who was bishop there ; for they had both of them been formerly the disciples of st. john. ix . being brought to him , and communicating with him in spiritual gifts , ‖ but especially rejoycing in his bonds : he intreated first of all the whole church ( for the churches and cities of asia honour'd this holy man by their bishops and priests , and deacons , all hastning to him , if by any means they might † receive some part of his spiritual gift : ) but more particularly polycarp , * to contend with god in his behalf ; that ‖ being the more suddainly taken by the beasts from the world , he might appear † before the face of christ. x. from smyrna , he came to troas : and being carried from thence to neapolis , he passed by philippi , through macedonia on foot , and came to epidamnus ; where having got a ship , he sail'd cross the adriatick sea , and from thence going higher into the tyrrhone , and passing by several islands and cities , at length he came to puteoli . which being shew'd to the holy man , he pressed by all means to land there , being desirous to walk from thence , after the example of the apostle paul. but a violent wind arising , and † driving on the ship , they would not suffer him so to do : wherefore wishing all happiness to the charity of the brethren in that place , he sail'd forward . xi . and the wind continuing favourable to us , in one day and a night , we indeed were unwillingly hurried on , as sorrowing to think of the separation from this holy martyr : but with reference to him it happened justly , according to his wish , that he might go the sooner out of the world , and attain unto the lord whom he loved . wherefore sailing into the roman port , that the vain glory of the world might have an end , the soldiers began to be offended at our slowness ; but the bishop with great joy complied with their hastiness . xii . being therefore soon forced away from the port , we forthwith met the brethren ; ( for the report of what concern'd the holy martyr was spread abroad ) who were full of fear and joy : for they rejoyced in that god had vouchsafed them the company of theophorus ; but were afraid , when they consider'd , that such an one was brought thither to die . now some of these he commanded to hold their peace , who were ‖ the most zealous for his safety , and said ; * that the people ought to be appeased , that they should not desire the destruction of the just. whom presently knowing by the spirit , and saluting all of them , he desired them that they would shew a true love to him ; disputing yet more with them than he had done in his epistle , and perswading them not to envy him who was hastning unto the lord . and so , all the brethren kneeling down , he pray'd to the son of god in behalf of the churches ; that he would put a stop to the persecution , and increase the love of the brethren towards each other : which being done , he was with all haste led into the amphi-theatre , and there according to the command of coesar before given , ‖ thrown to the wild beasts , that so their boastings might come to an end. for it was then a very solemn day , call'd in the roman tongue the xiii th of the calends of january upon which the people were more than ordinarily wont to be gather'd together . xiii . in this manner was he deliver'd to the beasts by wicked men : that so the desire of the holy martyr ignatius might be accomplish'd , which * he mention'd before-hand in his epistle ; as it is written , the desire of the righteous is acceptable ; namely , that he might not be burthensome to any of the brethren , for the gathering together of his remains ; but * might be wholly devoured by them . for only the greater and harder of his holy bones remain'd ; which were carried to antioch ; and there put up in a case , as an inestimable ‖ treasure . xiv . now these things were done the day before the xiii th of the calends of january ; syria and synecius being the second time consuls . of which we our selves were eye-witnessess with tears : and being the whole night following in watching , praying to god with our bended knees , that he would give us weak men some assurance of what had been before done ; it happened , that falling into a slumber , some of us on the suddain saw the blessed ignatius standing by us and embracing us ▪ others beheld him as it were sweating , as if he were just come from his great labour ; and standing by the lord with much assurance , and in unspeakable glory . xv. which when we saw , being filled with joy , and glorifying god , the giver of all good things ; and ‖ assured of the blessedness of the saint ; we * thought fit to manifest unto you both the day and the time : that being assembled together according to the time of his martyrdom , we may communicate with the combatant , and most valiant martyr of christ ; who trod under foot the devil , and bare down his snares even unto the end ; glorifying our lord jesus christ in his venerable and holy memory : to whom , and with whom , all glory and power be to the father , with the blessed spirit in the holy church for ever and ever , amen . the circular epistle of the church of smyrna concerning the martyrdom of st. polycarp . the church of god which is at smyrna , to the church of god which is at * philadelphia ; and to all the other ‖ assemblies of the holy catholick church , in every place ; peace , and love from god the father , and our lord jesus christ , be multiplied . i. we have written to you , brethren , both of what concerns the other martyrs , but especially the blessed polycarp , who by his † sufferings put an end to the persecution ; setting as it were , his seal to it . for almost all things that went before , were done , that the lord might shew us from above , a martyrdom truly such as became the gospel . for he expected to be deliver'd to the persecution ; even as the lord also do's , that we should become the followers of ‖ his example : considering not only what is profitable for our selves , but also for our neighbours advantage . for it is the part of a true and perfect charity , to desire , not only that a mans self should be saved , but also all the brethren , together with him . ii. the † sufferings then of all the other martyrs , were blessed and generous ; which they underwent according to the will of god. for so it * becomes us , who are more religious than others , to refer the power and ordering of all things unto him. and indeed who can chuse but admire the greatness of their mind , and that admirable patience , and love of their master ; which then appeared in them ? who when they were so flea'd with whipping , that the frame and structure of their bodies were laid open to their very inward veins and arteries ; nevertheless endured it . and when all that beheld them pitied and lamented them ; yet shew'd so great a generosity of mind , that not one of them let so much as a sigh or a groan escape them : † plainly shewing , that those holy martyrs of christ , at the very same time that they were thus tormented , were absent from the body ; or rather , that the lord stood by them , and conversed with them . wherefore being supported by the grace of christ , they despised all the torments of the world ; by the sufferings of an hour , redeeming themselves from everlasting punishment . for this cause , even the fire of their cruel and barbarous executioners seemed cold to them ; ‖ whilst they hoped hereby to escape that fire which is eternal , and shall never be extinguish'd ; and beheld with the eyes of faith , those good things which are reserved for them that endure to the end ; which neither ear has heard , nor eye seen , nor have they entred into the heart of man. but to them they were now * revealed by the lord ; as who were no longer men , but already become angels . in like manner , those who were condemned to the beasts , being kept a long time in prison , underwent many cruel torments : being forced to lie upon † sharp spikes laid under their bodies ; and tormented with divers other sorts of punishments ; that so if it were possible , the tyrant by the length of their sufferings , might have brought them to deny christ. iii. for indeed , the devil did invent many things against them : but thanks be to god , he was not able to prevail over all. for the brave germanicus strengthen'd * those that fear'd , by his patience ; and fought gloriously with the beasts . and when the proconsul would have perswaded him , telling him , that he should consider his age , and spare himself ; he pull'd the wild beast to him , and provoked him , being desirous the more quickly to be deliver'd from a wicked and unjust ‖ world. upon this , the whole multitude wondring at the courage of the holy and pious race of christians ; cryed out , take away those wicked wretches , let polycarp be look'd out . iv. then one named quintus a phrygian , being newly come from thence , seeing the beasts , was afraid . this was he who forced himself and some others , to present themselves of their own accord , to the trial. him therefore the proconsul perswaded with many promises , to swear and sacrifice . for which cause , brethren , we do not commend those who offer themselves to persecution ; and especially seeing the gospel teaches no such thing . v. but the most admirable polycarp , when he first heard that he was called for , was not at all concern'd at it ; but resolved to tarry in the city . nevertheless , he was at the last perswaded , at the desire of many , to go out of it . he departed therefore into a little village , not far distant from the city , and there ●arried with a few about him ; doing nothing night nor day , but praying for all men , and for the churches which were in all the world , according to his usual custom . and as he was praying , he saw a vision three days before he was taken ; and behold , the pillow under his head seem'd to him on fire . whereupon , turning to those that were with him , he said prophetically ; * that he should be burnt alive . vi. now when those who were to take him drew near , he departed into another village ; and immediately they who sought him , came thither . and when they found him not , they seized upon two young men that were there ; one of which , being tormented , confess'd . for it was impossible the holy man should be concealed ; forasmuch as they who betray'd him , were his own domestic's . so the officer , who is also called ‖ cleronomus , herod by name ; hastned to bring him into the lists : that so polycarp might receive his proper portion , being made partaker of christ ; and they that betray'd him , undergo the punishment of judas . vii . the serjeants therefore and horsemen taking the young lad along with them , departed about supper-time , being friday ; with their usual arms , as it were against a thief or a robber . and being come to the place where he was , about the close of the evening , they found him lying down , in a little upper room ; from whence he could easily have escaped into another place , but he would not , saying , the will of the lord be done . wherefore when he heard that they were come to the house , he went down , and † deliver'd himself unto them . and as they all wonder'd at his age and constancy ; some of them began to say ; * was there need of all this care to take such an old man ? then presently he order'd , that the same hour there should be somewhat got ready for them , that they might eat and drink their fill : desiring them withall , that they would give him one hours liberty the while , to pray ‖ without disturbance . and when they had permitted him , he stood praying , being full of the grace of god ; so that he ceased not for two whole hours , to the admiration of all that heard him : insomuch , that many of the souldiers began to repent , that they were come out against so holy an old man. viii . as soon as he had done his prayer , in which he remember'd all men , whether little or great , honourable or obscure , that had at any time * been acquainted with him ; and with them the whole catholick church , over all the world ; the time being come that he was to depart , the guards set him up upon an ass , and so brought him into the city , being the day of the great sabbath . but herod the chief officer , with his father nicetes , met him in a chariot . and having taken him up to them , and set him by them , they began to persuade him saying , what harm is there in it , to say , lord caesar and sacrifice ( with the rest that is usually said on such occasions ) and so be safe ? but polycarp , at first , answered them not : whereupon they continuing to urge him , he answered , i shall not do what you would perswade me to . so being out of all hope of prevailing with him ; they began first ‖ to rail at him ; and then with violence threw him out of the chariot ; insomuch that he hurt his thigh with † the fall . but he without being the least moved at it , went on readily with all diligence , as if he had received no harm at all ; and so was brought to the lists , where there was so great a tumult , that no body could be heard . ix . as he was going into the lists , there came a voice from heaven to him ; be strong , polycarp , and quit thy self like a man. now no man saw who it was that spake to him ; but for the voice , several of our brethren that were present , heard it . and as he was brought in , there was a great disturbance when they heard how that polycarp was taken . for the rest , being come near , the proconsul asked him , whether he was polycarp ? who confessing that he was ; he persuaded him to deny the faith , saying , reverence thy old age , with many other things of the like nature , as their custom is ; concluding thus , swear by caesar 's fortune . repent , and say ; take away the wicked . then polycarp , looking with a stern countenance upon the whole multitude , that was gathered together , of wicked gentiles ; and shaking his hand at them , looked up to heaven , and groaning , said , take away the wicked . but the proconsul , insisting and saying , swear , and i will set thee at liberty ; reproach christ. polycarp replied , eighty and six years have i now served christ , and he has never done me the least wrong : how then can i blaspheme my king and my saviour ? x. and when the proconsul nevertheless still insisted , saying , swear by the genius of caesar. he answered , seeing thou art so vainly urgent with me that i should swear , as thou call'st it , by the genius of caesar , seeming as if thou didst not know what i am ; hear me freely professing it to thee , that i am a christian. but if thou farther desirest an account what christianity is ; appoint a day , and thou shalt hear it . the proconsul replied , persuade the people . polycarp answered , to thee have i offered to give a reason of my faith : for so are we taught to pay all due honour , such only excepted as would be hurtful to our selves , to the powers and authorities which are ordained of god. but for the people , i esteem them not worthy , that i should give any account of my faith to them . xi . the proconsul continued , and said unto him , i have wild beasts ready , to those i will cast thee except thou repent . he answered , call for them , then : for i am not at all disposed to † repent from good to evil. but it is honourable to turn from those things that are dishonest , to what is just and good. the proconsul added ; seeing thou despisest the wild beasts , i will cause thee to be devoured by fire , unless thou shalt repent . polycarp answered , thou threatnest me with fire which burns for an hour , and so is extinguished ; but knowest not the fire of the future judgment ; and of that eternal punishment , which is reserved for the vngodly . but why tarriest thou ? bring forth what thou wilt . xii . having said this , and many other things of the like nature , he was filled with confidence and joy , insomuch that his very countenance † shone with grace : so that he did not only not let it fall ‖ with any confusion at what was spoken to him ; but on the contrary , the proconsul was struck with astonishment ; and sent his cryer into the middle of the lists , to proclaim three several times ; polycarp has confessed himself to be a christian . which being done by the cryer , the whole multitude both of the gentiles and of the jews which dwelt at smyrna , being full of fury , cry'd out with a loud voice ; this is the doctor of * asia ; the father of the christians , and the overthrower of our gods. he that has taught so many not to sacrifice , nor pay any worship to the gods. and saying this , they cryed out , and desired philip the † asiarch , that he would let loose a lion against polycarp . but philip replied , that it was not lawful for him to do so , because that kind of spectacles was already over . then it pleased them to cry out with one consent , that polycarp should be burnt alive . for so it was necessary that the vision should be fulfilled which was made manifest unto him by his pillow , when seeing it on fire as he was praying , he turned about and said prophetically to the faithful that were with him ; i must be burnt alive . xiii . this therefore was done with greater speed than it was spoke ; the whole multitude instantly gathering together wood and faggots out of the shops and baths : the jews especially , according to their custom , with all readiness assisting them in it . when the fewel was ready polycarp laying aside all his upper garments , and undoing his girdle , tryed also to pull off his shoes , which aforetime he was not wont to do ; forasmuch as still every one of the christians that was about him contended who should soonest touch his flesh. † for he was truly adorn'd by his good conversation with * all kind of pity , even before his martyrdom . this being done , they presently put about him such ‖ things as were necessary to prepare him for the † fire . but when they would have nailed him to the stake , he said ; let me alone as i am : for he who has given me strength to endure the fire , will also enable me without your securing me by nails to stand without moving in it . xiv . wherefore they did not nail him , but only tied him to it . but he having put his hands behind him , and being bound as a ram chosen out of a great flock , for an offering , and prepared to be a burnt sacrifice , acceptable unto god : look'd up to heaven and said ; o lord god almighty , the father of thy well-beloved , and blessed son jesus christ , by whom we have recived the knowledge of thee ; the god of angels and powers , and of every creature , and especially of the whole race of just men who live in thy presence ! i give thee hearty thanks that thou hast vouchafed to bring me to this day , and to this hour ; that i should have a part in the number of thy martyrs , and in the cup of thy son christ , to the resurrection of eternal life , both of soul and body , in the incorruption of the holy ghost . among which may i be accepted this day before thee , as a fat and acceptable sacrifice ; as thou the true god , with whom is no falshood , hast both before ordained , and manifested unto me , and also hast now fulfilled it . for this , and for all things else , i praise thee , i bless thee , i glorifie thee ‖ with the eternal , and heavenly jesus christ thy beloved son ; with whom to thee and the holy ghost , be glory both now , and to all succeeding ages , amen . xv. he had no sooner pronounced aloud , amen , and finish'd his prayer , but they who were appointed to be his executioners , lighted the fire . and when the flame began to blaze to a very great heighth , behold a wonderful miracle appear'd , to us who had the happiness to see it ; and who were reserved by heaven , to report to others what had happen'd . for the flame making a kind of arch , like the sail of a ship against a full wind , encompassed as in a circle the body of the holy martyr . who stood in the midst of it , not as if his flesh were burnt , but as bread that is baked , or as gold or silver ▪ glowing in the furnace . moreover , so sweet a smell came from it , as if frankinsense , or some rich spices had been smoaking there . xvi . at length when those wicked men saw that his body could not be consumed by the fire , they commanded the ‖ executioner to go near to him and stick his dagger in him : which being accordingly done there came forth † so great a quantity of blood , as even extinguish'd the fire ; and raised an admiration in all the people , to consider what a difference there was between the infidels and the elect. one of which this great martyr polycarp most certainly was ; being in our times a truly apostolical and prophetical teacher ; and bishop of the catholick church which is at smyrna . for every word that went out of his mouth either has been already fulfill'd , or in its due time will be accomplished . xvii . but when the emulous , and envious , and wicked adversary of the race of the just , saw the greatness of his martyrdom ; and consider'd how irreprehensible his conversation had been from the beginning ; and how he was now crown'd with the crown of immortality , having without all controversy received his reward : he took all possible care that not the least remainder of his body should be taken away by us ; although many desired to do it , and to be made partakers of his holy flesh. and to that end he suggested it to nicetas the father of herod and brother of alcé to go to the governour , and hinder him from giving us his body to be buried . least , says he , forsaking him that was crucified , they should begin to worship this polycarp . and this he said at the suggestion and instance of the jews ; who also watch'd us , that we should not take any part of him out of the fire : not ‖ considering , that neither is it possible for us ever to forsake christ , who suffer'd for the salvation of all such as shall be saved throughout the whole world , the righteous , for the vngodly ; nor worship any other besides him . for him indeed , as being the son of god , we do adore : but for the martyrs , we worthily love them , as the disciples and * followers of our lord , and upon the account of their exceeding great affection towards † their master , and their king. of whom may we also be made companions , and fellow-disciples . xviii . the centurion therefore seeing the contention of the jews , put his body into the midst of the fire , and so consum'd it . after which we taking up his bones more precious than the richest jewels , and try'd above gold , disposed of them where it was fitting . where being gather'd together as we have opportunity , with joy and gladness , the lord shall grant unto us to celebrate the anniversary of his martyrdom , both in memory of what he suffer'd , and for the exercise and preparation of those that may hereafter suffer . xix . such was the passion of the blessed polycarp ; who tho' he was the twelfth of those who together with those of philadelphia suffered martyrdom , is yet alone chiefly had in memory of all men : insomuch that he is spoken of , by the very gentiles themselves in every place ; as having been not only an eminent teacher , but also a glorious martyr . whose † death all desire to imitate , as having been every way conformable to the gospel of christ. for having by patience overcome the unjust governour , and so received the crown of immortality ; he now together with the apostles and all other righteous men , who have gone before , with great triumph , glorifies god even the father ; and blesses our lord the governor both of our ‖ souls and bodies ; and shepherd of the catholick church which is over all the earth . xx. whereas therefore ye desired that we would at large declare to you what was done ; we have by this present epistle given you a summary account of it by our brother marcus : having therefore your selves read this epistle , you may do well to send it forward to the brethren that are farther off ; that they also may glorifie god who makes such choice of his own servants : and is able to bring all of us by his grace and help to his eternal kingdom , through his only begotten son jesus christ ; to whom be glory , and honour , and power , and majesty , for ever and ever , amen . salute all the saints ; they that are with us salute you : with evaristus , who wrote this epistle , and his whole house . xxi . now the suffering of polycarp was the second day of the month xanthicus ; viz. before the vii th of the calends of † may ; being the great sabbath about viii a clock . he was taken by herod , philip the trallian , being * high-priest ; statius quadratus proconsul ; but our saviour christ reigning for evermore : to him be honour , glory , majesty , and an eternal throne , from generation to generation , amen . xxii . we wish you , brethren , all happiness ; by living according to the rule of the gospel of jesus christ : with whom , glory be to god the father , and the holy spirit , for the salvation of his chosen saints . ‖ after whose example the blessed polycarp suffer'd ; at whose feet may we be found in the kingdom of jesus christ. an advertisement relating to the foregoing epistle this epistle was transcribed by caius out of the copy of irenaeus the disciple of polycarp ; who also lived and conversed with ireneaeus . and i socrates transcrib'd it at corinth , out of the copy of the said caius . grace be with all. after which i pionius again wrote it from the copy before mentioned ; having search'd it out by the revelation of polycarp , who directed me to it ; as also i shall declare in what follows : having gather'd these things together , now almost corrupted through process of time ; that jesus christ our lord may also gather me togethe● with his elect : to whom with the father , and the holy ghost , be glory for ever and ever , amen . the genuine remains of the apostolical fathers . part ii. in which are comprised . the epistle of st. barnabas . . the shepherd of hermas . and , . the second epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . london , printed for r. sare at grays-inn gate in holborn , . the catholick epistle of st. barnabas . the contents . numb . i. the salutation , and preface to the following epistle . ii.iii. that god has abolish'd the legal sacrifices , to introduce the spiritual righteousness of the gospel . iv. the prophecies of daniel concerning the ten kings ; and the coming of christ. v , vi. that christ was to suffer ; proved from the prophecies concerning him . vii . the scape-goat , an evident type of this. viii . the red-heifer , another type of christ. ix . of the circumcision of the ears : and how in the first institution of that ceremony , abraham mystically foretold christ by name . x. that the commands of moses concerning clean and unclean beasts , &c. were all designed for a spiritual signification . xi , xii . baptism and the cross of christ , foretold in figures under the law. xiii . the promise of god not made to the jews only , but to the gentiles also . xiv . and fulfilled to us by jesus christ. xv. that the sabbath of the jews , was but a figure of a more glorious sabbath to come . xvi . their temple , of the spiritual temples of god. xvii . the conclusion of the former part of this epistle . xviii . he goes on to the other part , that which relates to practice : which he divides into two considerations ; the former , of the way of light ; the latter , of the way of darkness . xix . of the way of light ; being a summary of what a christian is to do , that he may be happy for ever . xx. of the way of darkness ; that is , what kind of persons shall be for ever cast out of the kingdom of god ? xxi . the close of all : being an earnest exhortation to them to live so that they may be blessed to all eternity . the catholick epistle of st. barnabas . all happiness to you my sons and daughters , in the name of our lord jesus christ , who loved us in peace . i. having perceived a large abundance of the great and ‖ excellent † righteousness of god to be in you , i exceedingly rejoyced in your blessed and admirable ‖ temper , that ye had so worthily received the grace that was * given to you . for which cause i am full of joy , hoping to be shortly set at liberty ; in as much as i truly see a spirit infused into you , from the ‖ blessed fountain of god. wherefore having this perswasion , and being fully convinced that since i have begun to speak unto you , i have had a more than ordinary good success in the way of † righteousness , which is in christ ; i also , * brethren , suppose my self to love you above my own ‖ soul : because the greatness of faith and charity dwelleth in him , as also the hope of that life which is to come . wherefore considering this , that if i shall take care to communicate to you a part of what i have received , it shall turn to my reward , that i have served such as you are in spiritual things : i gave diligence to write in a few words unto you ; that together with your faith , your knowledge also may be perfect . there are therefore three ‖ sorts of things to be considered in what relates to the lord ; the hope of life ; the beginning , and the completion of it . for the lord has both declared unto us , by the prophets , those things that have been done ; and † open'd to us the beginnings of those that were to come . wherefore , it will behove us , as he has spoken , to come * with all readiness , and as is fitting to his altar . i therefore not as a teacher , but as one of you , will endeavour to lay a few things before you , by which you may ‖ on many accounts become the more joyful . ii. seeing then the days are exceeding evil , and the adversary has got the power of this present † world ; we ought to give the more diligence to enquire into the * just ways of the lord . now the assistants of our faith are fear and patience ; our fellow-combatants , long-suffering and continence . whilst these remain pure in what relates unto the lord , wisdom , and knowledge , and prudence , and understanding , rejoyce together with them . for god has manifested to us by all the prophets , that he has no occasion for our sacrifices , or burnt-offerings or oblations ; saying : to what purpose is the multitude of your sacrifices unto me saith the lord . i am full of the burnt offerings of rams , and the fat of fed beasts ; and i delight not in the bloud of bullocks , or of lambs , or of he-goats . when ye come to appear before me ; who hath required this at your hand to tread my courts ? bring no more vain oblations , incense is an abomination unto me : your new moons and sabbaths , the calling of assemblies i cannot away with , it is iniquity , even the solemn meeting : your new moons and your appointed feasts , my soul hateth . these things therefore hath god abolished , that the new law of our lord jesus christ , which is without the yoak of any such necessity , might have an offering becoming men. for so the lord saith again to those heretofore ; did i at all command your fathers when they came out of the land of egypt concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices ? but this i commanded them , saying , let none of you imagine evil in your hearts against his neighbour , and love no false-oath , forasmuch then as we are not without understanding , we ought to apprehend the design ‖ of our merciful father . for he speaks to us , being willing to seek out us who are in error , and shew us how we may come to him . and therefore he thus bespeaks us , the sacrifice of god [ is a broken spirit , ] a broken and contrite heart god will not despise . wherefore , brethren , we ought the more diligently to enquire after those things that belong to our salvation , that the adversary may not have any entrance into us , and turn us aside from the way of life . iii. wherefore he again speaketh to them , concerning these things : ye shall not fast as ye do this day , to make your voice to be heard on high. is it such a fast that i have chosen ? a day for a man to afflict his soul ? is it to bow down his head like a bulrush , and to spread sackcloath and ashes under him ? wilt thou call this a fast and an acceptable day to the lord ? but to us he saith on this wise . is not this the fast that i have chosen , to loose the bands of wickedness , to undo the heavy burdens , and to let the oppressed go free ; and that ye break every yoke ? is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry , and that thou bring the poor that are cast out to thy house ? when thou seest the naked that thou cover him , and that thou hide not not thy self from thine own flesh ? then shall thy light break forth as the morning , and thy health shall spring forth speedily ; and thy righteousness shall go before thee , the glory of the lord shall be thy rere-ward . then shalt thou call and the lord shall answer ; thou shalt cry and he shall say , here i am : if thou put away from the midst of thee the yoke , the putting forth of the finger , and speaking vanity . and if thou draw out thy soul to the hungry ; and satisfie the afflicted soul. in this therefore , brethren , god has manifested his † fore-knowledge and mercy to us ; because the people which he has purchased to his beloved son were to believe in ‖ sincerity ; and therefore he has shewn these things to all of us , that we should not run as proselytes to * the jewish law. iv. wherefore it is necessary that searching diligently into these † matters we should write to you what may serve to keep you whole . to which end let us flee from every evil work , and hate the errors of the present time , that we may be ‖ happy in that which is to come . let us not give our selves the liberty of disputing with the wicked and sinners ; least we should chance in time to become like unto them . for the consummation of sin is come , as the prophet daniel says ; and for this end saith the lord , are the times and the days shortned ; and the lord will suddainly come to his temple . for so the prophet speaks ; there shall ten kings reign in the earth , and there shall rise last of all another , and he shall humble three kings . and again daniel speaks in like manner concerning the kingdoms ; and i saw the fourth beast dreadful and terrible , and strong exceedingly ; and it had ten horns . i considered the horns , and behold there came up among them another little horn , before which were three of the first horns pluckt up by the roots . we ought therefore to consider these things : and i beseech you , as one of your own brethren , loving you all beyond my own life , that you look well to your selves : and be not like to those who ‖ add sin to sin , and say ; that their covenant is ours also . nay , but it is ours only ; for they have for ever lost that which moses received . for thus saith the scripture ; and moses continued fasting forty days and forty nights in the mount ; and he received the covenant from the lord , even two tables of stone written by the hand of god. but having turn'd themselves to idols they lost it ; as the lord also said to moses ; moses , go down quickly , for thy people which thou hast brought forth out of egypt , have corrupted themselves , and turn'd aside from the way which i commanded them . and moses cast the two tables of stone out of his hands ; and their covenant was broken ; that the love of jesus might be sealed in your hearts , unto the hope of his faith. wherefore let us give heed unto the last times . for the time past of our life , and our faith will profit us nothing ; unless we continue also to hate what is evil , and to withstand the future temptations . so the son of god tells us ; let us resist all iniquity and hate it . wherefore consider the works of the evil way . do not deceive your selves ‖ with your own private thoughts , as if you were already justified ; but coming all together into one place , enquire what is agreeable to , and profitable for the beloved of god. for the scripture saith ; wo unto them that are wise in their own eyes , and prudent in their own sight . let us become spiritual , a perfect temple to god. as much as in us lies let us meditate upon the fear of the † lord ; and strive to the utmost of our power to keep his commandments ; that we may rejoyce in his righteous judgments . for god will judge the world without respect of persons ; and receive every one according to his works . if a man shall be good , his righteousness shall go before him : if wicked , the reward of his wickedness shall follow him . take heed therefore , least sitting still now that we are called , we fall asleep in our sins ; and the wicked one getting the dominion over us , raise us up , and shut us out of the kingdom of the lord . but especially consider the great signs and wonders which ye have seen among the people of the jews , and how thus the lord forsook them . beware therefore , least it happen to us ; as it is written , there be many called , but few chosen . v. for this cause did our lord vouchsafe to give to up his body to destruction , that through the forgiveness of our sins we might be sanctified ; that is , by the sprinkling of his bloud . now for what concerns the things that are written about him , some belong to the people of the jews , and some to us . for thus saith the scripture ; he was wounded for our transgressions , he was bruised for our iniquities , and by his bloud we are healed . he was led as a lamb to the slaughter , and as a sheep before his shearers is dumb , so he opened not his mouth . wherefore we ought the more to give thanks unto god , for that he hath both declared unto us what is passed , † and not suffer'd us to be without understanding even of those things that are to come . and therefore he saith ; the nets are not unjustly spread for the birds . this he spake , because a man will justly perish , if having the knowledge of the way of truth , he shall nevertheless not refrain himself from the way of darkness . and for this cause the lord was content to suffer for our souls , although he be the lord of the whole earth ; to whom god said before the beginning of the world ; let us make man after our own image and likeness . now how he suffered for us , seeing it was by men that he underwent it ; ‖ i will shew you . the prophets , having received from him the gift of prophecy , spake before concerning him : but he , that he might abolish death , and make known the resurrection from the dead , was content , as it was necessary , to appear in the flesh , that he might make good the promise before given to our fathers , and preparing himself a new people , might demonstrate to them whilst he was upon earth , that after the resurrection he would judge the world. and thus teaching the people of israel , and doing many wonders and signs among them , he preached to them , and shewed the exceeding great love which he bare towards them . and when he chose his apostles , which were afterwards to publish his gospel , he took men who had been very great sinners ; that thereby he might plainly shew , that he came not to call the righteous , but sinners to repentance . then he clearly manifested himself to be the son of god. for had he not come in the flesh , how could men have been able to look upon him , that they might be saved ? seeing if we behold only the sun , which was the work of his hands , and shall hereafter cease to be , we are not able to endure stedfastly to look against the rays of it . wherefore the son of god came in the flesh for this cause , that he might fill up the measure of their iniquity , who have persecuted his prophts unto death : and for the same reason also he suffered ; * for saith god , by the stripes of his flesh we are healed . and again , another prophet , when i shall smite the shepherd the sheep of the flock shall be scatter'd . nevertheless , he would suffer in this manner : because it behoved him to suffer upon the cross. for thus one saith , prophecying concerning him ; deliver my soul from the sword. and again , they pierced my hands and my feet . and again , the congregation of wicked doers rose up against me . and again , he saith , i gave my back to the smiters , and my cheeks to be buffeted , ‖ and my face i set as an hard rock . vi. and when he had fulfilled the commandment of god , what says he ? who will contend with me ? let him stand against me : or who is he that will implead me ? let him draw near to the servant of the lord . wo be to you ! because ye shall all wax old as a garment , the moth shall eat you up . and again the prophet adds : he is put for a stone of stumbling . behold i lay in zion for a foundation , a precious stone , a choice corner-stone ; an honourable stone . and what follows ? and he that hopeth in him shall live for ever . what then ? is our hope built upon a stone ? god forbid . but because the lord hath put his flesh in strength , he saith this of it . as it is written ; i have placed my self as a sure rock . and again the prophet adds ; the stone which the builders refused is become the head of the corner . and again he saith ; this is the great and wonderful day which the lord hath made . [ * i write these things the more plainly to you that ye may understand : ] † for indeed i could be content even to die for your sakes . but what saith the prophet : the counsel of the wicked encompassed me about . they came about me , as bees about the hive : and ; vpon my vesture they cast lots . forasmuch then as our saviour was to appear in the flesh , and suffer ; his passion was hereby foretold . for thus again saith the prophet against israel : wo be to their soul , because they have taken wicked counsel against themseves , saying ; let us lay snares for the righteous , because he is unprofitable to us . moses also in like manner speaketh to them : behold thus saith the lord god ; enter ye into the good land of which the lord hath sworn to abraham , and isaac , and jacob , that he would give it you , and possess it ; a land flowing with milk and hony now what the spiritual meaning of this is , learn ; † it is as if it had been said ; put your trust in jesus , who shall be manifested to you in the flesh. for man is the earth which suffers : forasmuch as out of the substance of the earth adam was formed . what therefore do's he mean when he says , into a good land flowing with milk and honey ? blessed be our lord , who has given us wisdom , and a heart to understand his secrets . for so says the prophet , who shall understand the hard sayings of the lord ? but he that is wise , and intelligent , and that loves his lord . seeing therefore he has renewed us by the remission of our sins , he has given us another form , that we should have our souls * like the soul of a child ; even as he himself has form'd us ‖ by the spirit . for thus the scripture saith concerning us , where it introduceth the father speaking to the son ; let us make man in our image , after our likeness : and let him have dominion over the beasts of the earth , and over the fowls of the air , and over the fish of the sea. and when the lord saw the man which he had form'd , that behold he was very good ; he said , encrease , and multiply , and replenish the earth . and this he spake to his son. i will now shew you , how he made us into a second form , in the latter days : as also he saith ; behold i will make the last as the first . wherefore the prophet thus foretold it ; ‖ enter into the land flowing with milk and hony , and rule in it . wherefore ye see how we are again formed anew ; as also he speaks by another prophet : behold , saith the lord , i will take from them , that is , from those whom the spirit of the lord foresaw , their hearts of stone , and i will put into them hearts of flesh. because he was about to be made manifest in the flesh , and to dwell in us . for , my brethren , the habitation of our heart is a † holy temple unto the lord . as he again saith ; wherewithal shall i appear before the lord my god , and be glorified ? he answers , i will confess unto thee in the congregation in the midst of my brethren ; and will sing unto thee in the church of the saints . wherefore we are they whom he has brought into that good land. † but what signifies the milk and hony ? because as the child is nourish'd first with milk , and then with hony ; so we being kept alive with the belief of his promises , and the word of his gospel , shall live and have dominion over the land. for so he foretold above , saying , encrease , and multiply , and have dominion over the fishes , &c. but who is there that is now able to have this dominion over the wild beasts , or fishes , or fowls of the air ? for you know that to rule is to have power , that a man should be lord over what he rules . but forasmuch as this we have not now , he tells us when we shall have it : namely ; when he shall become perfect , that so we may be made inheritors of the covenant of the lord . vii . understand then , my beloved children , that the good god hath before manifested all things unto us , that we might know to whom we ought always to give thanks . if therefore the son of god , who is the lord of all , and shall come to judge both the quick and dead , hath suffer'd ; that by his stripes we might live : let us believe that the son of god could not have suffer'd but for us but , being crucified , they gave him gall and vinegar to drink . hear therefore how the priests of the temple did foreshew this also : ‖ the lord by his command which was written , declar'd that whosoever did not fast the appointed fast † should die the death : because he also was one day to offer his body for our sins ; and so the type of what was done in * isaac be fulfill'd , who was offer'd upon the altar . what therefore is it that he says by the prophet ? ‖ and let them eat of the goat which is offer'd in the day of the fast for all their sins . harken diligently , my brethren , and all the priests , and they only shall eat the inwards , not washed , with vinegar . and why so ? because * i know that when i shall hereafter offer my flesh for the sins of a new people , ye will give me vinegar to drink mixed with gall ; therefore do ye only eat , the people fasting the while , and lamenting in sackcloath and ashes . that by this he might fore-shew , that he was to suffer by them . but , hear then , how he appointed it ? † take , says he , two goats , fair and alike , and offer them ; and let the high priest take one of them for a burnt offering . and what must be done with the other ? let it be accursed . consider how exactly this appears to have been a type of jesus . * and let all the congregation spit upon it , and prick it ; and put the scarlet wool about its head : and thus let it be carried forth into the wilderness . and this being done , he that was appointed to convey the goat , led it into the wilderness , ‖ and took away the scarlet wool , and put it upon a thorn-bush , whose † young sprouts when we find them in the field we are wont to eat : so the fruit of that thorn only is sweet . and to what end was this ceremony ? consider ; one was offered upon the altar , the other was accursed . and why was that which was accursed , crown'd ? because they shall see christ in that day having a scarlet garment about his body ; and shall say : is not this he whom heretofore we crucified ; having despised him , pierced him , mocked him ? certainly this is he , who then said , that he was the son of god. as therefore he shall be then like to what he was on earth , so were the jews heretotore commanded , to take two goats , fair and equal . that when they shall see our saviour hereafter coming in the clouds of heaven , they may be amazed at the likeness of the goats . wherefore ‖ ye here again see a type of jesus who was to suffer for us . but what then signifies this , that the wool was to be put into the midst of the thorns ? this also is a figure of jesus , set out to the church . for as he who would take away the scarlet wool must undergo many difficulties , because that thorn was very sharp , and with difficulty get it : so they , says christ , that will see me , and come to my kingdom , must through many afflictions and troubles attain unto me . viii . but what type do ye suppose it to have been , where it is commanded † in the law ; that certain men who had been guilty of many sins , should offer a heifer , and kill it and burn it . and the young men should take up the ashes and put them in vessels ; and tie a piece of scarlet wool and hyssop upon a stick , and so the young men should sprinkle every one of the people , and they should be clear from their sins ? consider how all these things are delivered in a ‖ figure to us . this heifer is jesus christ ; the wicked men that were to offer it , are those sinners who brought him to death : who now are no longer men ; there is no more any glory of those sinners remaining . the young men that sprinkled them , signifie to us those who preach the forgiveness of sins , and the purification of the heart , to whom our lord gave authority to preach his gospel : being at the beginning twelve , for a witness of the tribes , because there were twelve tribes of israel . but why were there three young men , that were appointed to sprinkle the sinners ? in testimony of abraham , and isaac , and jacob , that they were great before god. and why was the wool put upon a * stick ? because the kingdom of jesus was founded upon the * cross ; and therefore they that put their trust in him shall live for ever . but why was the wool and hyssop put together ? to signifie that in the kingdom of christ there shall be evil and base days , in which we shall be saved . and † because he that has any disease in the flesh is by hyssop purged from the pollution of it . wherefore these things being thus done , to us indeed are evident , but to the jews they are obscure ; because they hearkned not unto the voice of the lord . ix . and therefore the scripture again speaks concerning our ears , that god has circumcised them , together with our hearts . for thus saith the lord in the holy prophet : by the hearing of the ear they obeyed me . and again , they who are afar off , shall hear what things i have done , and shall understand . and again , circumcise your hearts , saith the lord . and again he saith , hear o israel ! thus saith the lord thy god. and again the spirit of god prophesieth , saying ; who is there that would live for ever , let him hear the voice of my son. and again , hear o heaven , and give ear o earth ! because the lord has spoken these things for a witness . and again he saith , hear the word of the lord , ye princes of the people . and again , hear o children ! the voice of one crying in the wilderness . wherefore he has circumcised our ears , that we should hear his word , and believe . but as for that circumcision , in which the jews trust , it is abolished . for the circumcision of which god spake , was not of the flesh : but they have transgressed his commands , because the evil † one hath deceived them . for thus god bespeaks them ; thus saith the lord your god , here you may find the new command ; sow not upon thorns ; be circumcised to the lord your god. and what do's he mean by this ? * hearken unto your lord , and circumcise the hardness of your heart , and harden not your neck . and again , behold , saith the lord , all the nations are uncircumcised , they have not lost their fore-skin ; but this people is not circumcised in heart . but you will say ; the jews were circumcised for a sign . * and so are all the syrians , and arabians , and all the priests of their idols : but are they therefore of the covenant of israel ? and even the egyptians themselves are circumcised . understand therefore , children , these things more fully , that abraham , who was the first that gave circumcision in the spirit , looking forward to jesus , circumcised , taking the mystery of three letters . for the scripture says that abraham circumcised three hundred and eighteen men of his house . † but what therefore was the mystery that was made known unto him ? i will tell you : it consists first in the eighteen , and next in the three hundred . for the numeral letters of ten and eight ; are i h. and these denote jesus . and because the cross was that by which we were to find grace ; therefore he adds , three hundred ; the note of which is t [ the figure of his cross. ] wherefore by two letters , he signified jesus , and by one his cross. he who has put the natural gift of his doctrin within in us , knows , that i never shew'd to any one a more genuine truth : but i trust that ye are worthy of it . x. but why did moses say ; ‖ ye shall not eat of the swine , neither the eagle , nor the hawk ; nor the crow ; nor any fish that has not a scale upon him ? i answer , that under this outside figure , he comprehended three spiritual doctrins , that were to be † gathered from thence . besides which he says to them in the book of deutronomy , and i will give my statutes unto this people . wherefore it is not the command of god that they should not eat ; but moses , in the spirit spake unto them . now the sow he forbad them to eat ; meaning thus much ; thou shalt not join thy self to such persons as are like unto swine who whilst they live in pleasure , forget their god ; but when any want pinches them , then they know the lord : as the sow , when she is full , knows not her master ; but when she is hungry , she makes a noise ; and being again fed , is silent . neither , says he , shalt thou eat the eagle , nor the hawk , nor the kite , nor the crow ; that is , thou shalt not keep company with such kind of men as know not how by their labour , and sweat to get themselves food : but injuriosly ravish away the things of others ; and watch how to lay snares for them ; when at the same time they appear to live in perfect innocence . [ * so these birds alone seek not food for themselves , but ] sitting idle seek how they may eat of the flesh which others have provided ; being destructive through their wickedness . neither , says he , shalt thou eat the lampry , nor the polypus , nor the cuttle-fish ; that is , thou shalt not be like such men , by using to converse with them : who are † altogether wicked and adjudged to death . for so those fishes are alone accursed , and wallow in the mire , nor swim as other fishes , but tumble in the dirt at the bottom of the deep . but he adds , * neither shalt thou eat of the hare . to what end ? to signifie this to us ; thou shalt not be an adulterer ; nor liken thy self to such persons . for the hare every year multiplies ‖ the places of its conception ; and as many years as it lives , so many † it has . neither shalt thou eat of the hyena . that is , again , be not an adulterer , nor a corrupter of others , neither be like to such . and wherefore so ? * because that creature every year changes its kind , and is sometimes male and sometimes female . for which cause also he justly hated the weesel ; to the end that they should not be like such persons who with their mouths commit wickedness , by reason of their uncleanness ; nor joyn themselves with those impure women , who with their mouths commit wickedness . † because that animal conceives with its mouth . moses therefore speaking as concerning meats , deliver'd indeed three great precepts to them in the spiritual signification of those commands . but they according to the desires of the flesh , understood him as if he had only meant it of meats . and therefore david took aright the knowledge of his threefold command , saying in like manner ; blessed is the man that hath not walked in the counsel of the vngodly ; as the fishes before mentioned in the bottom of the deep in darkness : nor stood in the way of sinners ; as they who seem to fear the lord , but yet sin , as the sow . and hath not sat in the seat of the scorners ; as those birds who sit and watch that they may devour . here ye have this matter perfectly set forth , and according to the true knowledge of it . but says moses , ‖ ye shall eat all that divideth the hoof , and cheweth the cud. signifying thereby such an one as having taken his food , knows him that nourisheth him ; and resting upon him , rejoyceth in him . and in this he spake well , having respect to the commandment . * what therefore is it that he says ? that we should hold fast to them that fear the lord ; with those who meditate on the portion of the word which they have received , in their heart ; with those that declare the righteousness of the lord ; and keep his commandments ; in short , with those who know that to meditate is a work of pleasure , and therefore † exercise themselves in the word of the lord . but why might they eat those that clave the hoof ? because the righteous liveth in this present world ; but his expectation is fixed upon the other . see , brethren , how admirably moses commanded these things . but how should we thus know all this , and understand it ? we therefore understanding aright the commandments , speak as the lord would have us . wherefore he has circumcised our ears and our hearts , that we might know these things . xi . let us now enquire whether the lord took care to manifest any thing beforehand concerning water and the cross . now for the former of these , it is written to the people of israel how they shall not receive that baptism which brings to forgiveness of sins ; but shall institute another to themselves , that cannot . for thus saith the prophet : be astonish'd o heaven ! and let the earth tremble at it , because this people have done two great and wicked things . they have left me , the fountain of living water , and have digged for themselves broken cisterns , that can hold no water . is my holy mountain * zion a desolate wilderness ? for ye shall be as a young bird when its nest is taken away . and again the prophet saith , i will go before thee , and will make plain the mountains , and will break the gates of brass , and will snap in sund●r the bars of iron : and will give thee dark and hidden , and invisible treasures , that they may know i am the lord god. and again ; he shall dwell in the high den of the strong rock . and then , what follows ‖ concerning the son ? his water is faithful : ye shall see the king with glory , and your soul shall learn the fear of the lord . and again he saith in another prophet ; he that do's these things ; shall be like a tree planted by the currents of water , which shall give its fruit in its season . it s leaf also shall not wither , and whatsoever he doth it shall prosper . as for the wicked it is not so with them ; but they are as the dust which the wind scattereth away from the face of the earth . therefore the vngodly shall not stand in the judgment , neither the sinners in the council of the righteous . for the lord knoweth the way of the righteous , and the way of the vngodly shall perish . consider how he has join'd both the cross and the water together . for this he saith ; blessed are they who putting their trust in the cross , descend into the water ; for they shall have their reward in due time : then , saith he , will i give it them . but as concerning the present time , he saith , their leaves shall not fall . meaning thereby , that every word that shall go out of your mouth , shall through faith and charity be to the conversion and hope of many . in like manner do's another prophet speak . and the land of jacob was the praise of all the earth ; that is , the vessel of his spirit , which he there magnifies . and what follows ? and there was a river running on the right hand , and beautiful trees grew up by it ; and he that shall eat of them shall live for ever . the signification of which is this : that we go down into the water full of sins and pollutions ; but come up again bringing forth fruit ; having in our hearts the fear and hope which is in jesus . and whosoever shall eat of them shall live for ever . that is , whosoever shall hearken to those who call them , and shall believe , shall live for ever . xii . in like manner he determins concerning the cross in ‖ another prophet , saying ; and when shall these things be fulfilled ? the lord answers ; when the tree that is fallen shall rise , and when bloud shall drop down from the tree . here you have again mention made , both of the cross and of him that was to be crucified upon it . ‖ and yet farther he saith in one of the books of moses ; where when israel was beaten by a strange people ; to the end that god might remember * them , how that for their sins they were deliver'd unto death ; the holy spirit put it into the heart of moses to represent both the sign of the cross , and of him that was to suffer . that so they might know that if they did not believe in him , they should be overcome for ever . moses therefore † piled up armour upon armour in the middle of a rising ground , and standing up high above all of them stretched forth his arms , and so israel again conquer'd . but no sooner did he let down his hands , but they were again slain . and why so ? to the end they might know , that except they trust in him they cannot be saved . and in another prophet he saith , i have stretched out my hands all the day long to a people disobedient , and speaking against my righteous way . and again moses makes a ‖ type of jesus , to shew that he was to die , and then that he , whom they thought to be dead , was to give life to others ; in the sign of † those that fell in israel . for god caused all sorts of serpents to bite them , and they died ; forasmuch as by a serpent transgression began in eve ; that so he might convince them that for their transgressions they shall be delivered into the pain of death . moses then himself , who had commanded them , saying , ye shall not make to your selves any graven or molten image to be your god ; yet now did so himself , that he might represent to them the figure of the lord jesus . for he made a brazen serpent , and set it up on high , and called the people together to an assembly : where being come , they intreated moses that he would make an attonement for them , and pray that they might be healed . then moses spake unto them , saying ; when any one among you shall be bitten , let him come unto the serpent that is set upon the pole ; and let him assuredly trust in him , that though he be dead , yet he is able to give life , and presently he shall be saved ; and so they did . see therefore how here also you have in this the glory of jesus ; and that in him and to him are all things . again ; what says moses to jesus the son of nun , when he gave that name unto him , as being a prophet , that all the people might understand that the father did manifest all things concerning his son jesus in ‖ jesus the son of nun ? moses therefore gave him that name when he sent him to spy out the land of canaan ; * and said ; take a book in thine hands , and write what the lord saith : forasmuch as jesus the son of god , shall in the last days cut off by the roots all the house of amaleck . see here again jesus , not the son of man , but the son of god , made manifest in a type and in the flesh. but because it might hereafter be said , that christ was the son of david ; * therefore david fearing and well-knowing the errors of the wicked , saith ; the lord said unto my lord , sit thou on my right hand until i make thine enemies thy footstool . and again isaiah speaketh on this wise , the lord said unto ‖ christ my lord , i have laid hold on his right hand , that the nations should obey before him , and i will break the strength of kings . behold , how both † david and isaiah call him lord , and the son of god. xiii . but let us go yet farther , and enquire whether this people be the heir or the former ; and whether the covenant be with us or with them . and first as concerning the people hear what the scripture saith . isaac prayed for his wife rebeckah , because she was barren ; and she conceived . afterwards rebeckah went forth to enquire of the lord . and the lord said unto her , there are two nations in thy womb , and two people shall come from thee ; and the one shall have power over the other , and the greater shall serve the lesser . understand here who was isaac ; who rebeckah , and of whom it was foretold , that this people should be greater than that . and in another prophecy jacob speaketh more clearly to his son joseph saying ; behold the lord hath not taken me from thy face , bring me thy sons that i may bless them . and he brought unto his father ‖ manasseh and ephraim , desiring that he should bless manasseh , because he was the elder . therefore joseph brought him to the right hand of his father jacob. but jacob by the spirit foresaw the figure of the people that was to come . and what saith the scripture ? and jacob crossed his hands , and put his right hand upon ephraim his second , and the younger son , and blessed him . and joseph said unto jacob : put thy right hand upon the head of manasseh , for he is my first-born son. and jacob said unto joseph ; i know it , my son , i know it ; but the greater shall serve the lesser ; though he also shall be blessed . ye see of whom he appointed it , that they should be the first people , and heirs of the covenant . if therefore god shall have yet farther taken notice of this by abraham too ; our understanding of it will then be perfectly established . what then saith the scripture to abraham , when he believed , and it was imputed unto him for righteousness ? behold i have made thee a father of the nations , which without circumcision believe in the lord . xiv . let us therefore now enquire , whether god has fulfilled the covenant , which he sware to our fathers , that he would give this people ? yes verily , he gave it : but they were not worthy to receive it by reason of their sins . for thus saith the prophet : and moses continued fasting in mount sinai , to receive the covenant of the lord with the people , forty days and forty nights . and he received of the lord two tables written with the finger of the lord's hand in the spirit : and moses when he had received them brought them down that he might deliver them to the people . and the lord said unto moses ; moses , moses , get thee down quickly , for the people which thou broughtest out of the land of egypt have done wickedly . and moses understeod that they had again set up a molten image ; and he cast the two tables out of his hands ; and the tables of the covenant of the lord were broken . moses therefore received them , but they were not worthy . now then learn how we have received them . moses , being a servant took them ; but the lord himself has given them unto us , that we might be the people of his inheritance , having suffered all things for us . and it was therefore made manifest ; that they should fill up the measure of their sins , and that we ‖ being made heirs by him , should receive the covenant of the lord jesus . and again the prophet saith , behold , i have set thee for a light unto the gentiles , to be † the saviour of all the ends of the earth , saith the lord the god who hath redeemed thee . who for that very end was prepared , that by his own appearing he might redeem our hearts , already devoured by death , and delivered over to the irregularity of error , from darkness ; and establish a covenant with us by his word . for so it is written , that the father commanded him , by delivering of us from darkness , to prepare unto himself a holy people . wherefore the prophet saith , i the lord thy god have called thee in righteousness , and i will take thee by the hand and will strenghthen thee . and give thee for a covenant of the people , for a light of the gentiles . to open the eyes of the blind , to bring out the prisoners from the prison , and them that sit in darkness out of the prison-house . consider therefore from whence we have been redeemed . and again the prophet saith ; the spirit of the lord is upon me , because he hath anointed me ; he hath sent me to preach glad tidings to the lowly ; to heal the broken in heart ; to preach remission to the captives , and sight unto the blind : to proclaim the acceptable year of the lord , and the day of restitution ; to comfort all that mourn . xv. furthermore it is written concerning the sabbath in the ten commandments , which god spake in the mount sinai to moses , face to face ; sanctifie the sabbath of the lord with pure hands , and with a clean heart . and elsewhere he saith , if thy children shall keep my sabbaths , then will i put my mercy upon them . and even in the beginning of the creation he makes mention of the sabbath . and god made in six days the works of his hands ; and he finished them on the ‖ seventh day , and he rested the seventh day and sanctified it . consider , my children , what that signifies , he finish'd them in six days . the meaning of it is this ; that in † six thousand years the lord god will bring all things to an end. for with him one day is a thousand years : as himself testifieth , saying , behold this day shall be as a thousand years . therefore , children , in six days , that is , in six thousand years shall ‖ all things be accomplished . and rested the seventh day : he meaneth this ; that when his son shall come , and abolish the season of the * wicked one , and jugde the ungodly ; and shall change the sun , and the moon and the stars ; then he shall gloriously rest in that seventh day . he adds lastly ; thou shalt sanctifie it with clean hands and a pure heart . wherefore we are greatly deceived if we imagin that any one can now sanctifie that day which god has made holy , without having a heart pure in all things . he will therefore then truly sanctifie it with blessed rest , when we ( having received the righteous promise , when iniquity shall be no more , all things being renewed by the lord ) shall be able to sanctifie it , being our selves first made holy. lastly , he saith unto them ; your new moons and your sabbaths i cannot bear them . consider what he means by it ; the sabbaths , says he , which ye now keep are not acceptable unto me , but those which i have made ; when resting from all things i shall begin ‖ the eighth day , that is the beginning of the other world. for which cause we observe the eighth day with gladness , in which jesus both rose from the dead ; and manifested himself to his disciples ; and so ascended into heaven . xvi . it remains yet that we speak to you concerning the temple : how those miserable men being deceived have put their trust in the † house , and not in god himself who made them ; as if it were the habitation of god. much after the same manner as the gentiles have consecrated him in * their temples . but learn therefore how the lord speaketh , rendring the temple vain : who has measured the heaven with a span , and the earth with his hand ? is it not i ? thus saith the lord ; heaven is my throne , and the earth is my footstool . what is the house that ye will build me ? or what is the place of my rest ? know therefore that all their hope is vain . and again he speaketh after this manner ; behold they that destroy this temple , even they shall build another . and so it came to pass ; for through their wars it is now destroy'd by their enemies ; and the servants of their enemies build it up . farthermore , it has been made manifest how both the city , and the temple , and the people of israel should be given up . for the scripture saith ; and it shall come to pass in the last days , that the lord will deliver up the sheep of his pasture ; and their fold , and their tower unto destruction . and it has come to pass , as the lord hath spoken . let us enquire therefore , whether there be any temple of god ? yes there is : and that there where himself declares that he would both make and establish it . for it is written ; and it shall be that as soon as the week shall be compleated the temple of the lord shall be gloriously built in the name of the lord . i find therefore that there is a temple . but how shall it be built in the name of the lord ? i will shew you . before that we belived in god , the habitation of our heart , was corruptible and feeble , as a temple truly built with hands . for it was a house full of idolatry , a house of devils ; inasmuch as there was done in it whatsoever was contrary unto god. but it shall be built in the name of the lord . consider , how that the temple of the lord shall be very gloriously built . and by what means that shall be , learn. having received remission of our sins , and trusting in the name of the lord , we are become renew'd , being again created from the beginning . wherefore god truly dwells in our house , that is , in us . but how do's he dwell in us ? the word of his faith , the calling of his promise , the wisdom of his righteous judgments , the commands of his doctrine ; he himself prophecies within us , he himself dwelleth in us , and openeth to us who were in bondage the gate of ‖ our temple , that is , ‖ the mouth of wisdom , having given repentance to us ; and by this means has brought us into his incorruptible temple . he therefore that desires to be saved looketh ‖ not unto the man , but unto him that dwelleth in him , and speaketh by him ; being struck with wonder , forasmuch as he never either heard him speaking such words out of his mouth , nor ever desired to hear them . this is that spiritual temple that is built unto the lord . xvii . and thus i trust , i have declared to you as much , and with as great simplicity as i could , those things which make for your salvation , so as not to have omitted any thing that might be requisite thereunto . for should i speak farther of the things that ‖ now are , and of those that are to come , you would not yet understand them , seeing they lie in parables . this therefore shall suffice as to these things . xviii . let us now go on to the other kind of knowledge and doctrine . there are two ways of doctrine and power ; the one of light , the other of darkness . but there is a great deal of difference between these two ways : for over one are appointed the † angels of god , the leaders of the way of light ; over the others the angels of satan . and the one is the lord from everlasting to everlasting ; the other is the prince of the time of unrighteousness . xix . now the way of light is this ; if any one desires to attain to the place that is appointed for him , and will hasten thither by his works . and the knowledge that has been given to us of walking in it ; to this effect . * thou shalt love him that made thee : * thou shalt glorifie him that hath redeemed thee from death . * thou shalt be simple in heart , and * rich in the spirit . * thou shalt not cleave to those that walk in the way of death . * thou shalt hate to do any thing that is not pleasing unto god. * thou shalt abhor all dissimulation . * thou shalt not neglect any of the commands of the lord . * thou shalt not exalt thy self , but shalt be humble . * thou shalt not take honour to thy self . * thou shalt not enter into any wicked counsel against thy neighbour . * thou shalt not be confident in thy heart . * thou shalt not commit * fornication ; nor * adultery . neither shalt thou * corrupt thy self with mankind . * thou shalt not make use of the speech which god has given thee , to any impurity . * thou shalt not accept any mans person , when thou reprovest any ones faults . * thou shalt be gentle. * thou shalt be quiet . * thou shalt tremble at the words which thou hast heard . * thou shalt not keep any hatred in thy heart against thy brother . * thou shalt not entertain any doubt whether it shall be , or not . * thou shalt not take the name of the lord in vain . * thou shalt love thy neighbour above thy own soul. * thou shalt not destroy thy conceptions before they are brought forth ; nor kill them after they are born . * thou shalt not take off thy hand from thy son , or from thy daughter ; but shalt teach them from their youth the fear of the lord . * thou shalt not covet thy neighbours goods ; neither shalt thou be an extortioner . * neither shall thy heart be joined to proud men ; but thou shalt be numbred among the righteous and the lowly . * whatever troubles shall happen unto thee , thou shalt receive them as good . * thou shalt not be double-minded , or double-tongu'd ; for a double tongue is the snare of death . * thou shalt be subject unto the lord and to inferior masters as to the images of god , in fear and reverence . * thou shalt not be bitter in thy commands towards any of thy servants that trust in god ; least thou chance not to fear him who is over both ; because he came not to call any with respect of persons , but whomsoever his spirit had prepared . * thou shalt communicate to thy neighbour of all thou hast ; thou shalt not call any thing thine own : for if ye partake in such things as are incorruptible , how much more should ye do it in those that are corruptible ? * thou shalt not be forward to speak ; for the mouth is the snare of death . * as far as thou art able , ‖ keep thy self pure . * reach not out thine hand to receive , and with-hold it not when thou shouldst give . * thou shalt love , as the apple of thine eye , every one that speaketh unto thee the word of the lord . * call to thy remembrance day and night , the future judgment . * thou shalt seek out every day the persons of the righteous . * and both seek by thy speech and go forth to exhort ; and meditate how thou maiest save thine own soul. * thou shalt also labour with thy hands that thy sins may be forgiven thee . * thou shalt not deliberate whether thou shouldst give ; * nor having given , murmur at it . * give to every one that asks ; so shalt thou know who is the good rewarder of thy gifts . * keep what thou hast received ; thou shalt neither add to it , or take from it . * let the wicked be always thy aversion . * thou shalt judge righteous judgment . * thou shalt never cause divisions ; but shalt make peace between those that are at variance , and bring them together . * thou shalt confess thy sins ; * and not come to thy prayer with an evil-conscience . this is the way of light. xx. but the way of darkness is crooked , and full of cursing . for it is the way of eternal death with punishment ; in which they that walk , meet those things that destroy their own souls . such are ; idolatry , confidence , pride of power , hypocrisie , double-mindedness , adultery , murder , rapine , pride , transgression , deceit , malice , arrogance , witchcraft , covetousness , and the want of the fear of god. in this walk those who are the persecutors of them that are good ; haters of truth ; lovers of lies ; who know not the reward of righteousness , nor cleave to any thing that is good . who administer not righteous judgment to the widdow and orphan ; who watch for wickedness , and not for the fear of the lord ; from whom gentleness , and patience are far off ; who love vanity , and follow after rewards ; having no compassion upon the poor ; nor take any pains for such as are heavy laden and opressed : ready to evil speaking , not knowing him that made them : murderers of children ; corrupters of the creature of god ; that turn away from the needy ; oppress the afflicted ; the adorers of the rich , but unjust judges of the poor ; being altogether sinners . xxi . it is therefore fitting that learning the just commands of the lord , which we have before mentioned , we should walk in them . for he that do's such things shall be glorified in the kingdom of god. but he that chuses the other part , shall be destroyed together with his works . for this cause there shall be both a resurrection and a retribution . i beseech those that are excellent among you , if so be you will take the counsel which with a good intention i offer to you ; you have those with you towards whom you may do good ; do not forsake them . for the day is at hand in which all things shall be destroyed , together with the wicked one. the lord is near , and his reward is with him . i beseech you therefore again and again ; be as good law-givers to one another ; continue faithful counsellors to each other ; remove from among you all hypocrisie . and may god , the lord of all the world , give you wisdom , knowledge , understanding ; and a true apprehension of his judgments in patience . be ye taught of god ; seeking what it is the lord requires of you , and doing it ; that ye may be saved in the day of judgment . and if there be among you any remembrance of what is good ; think of me , meditating upon these things , that both your desire and your watching may turn to some good account . i beseech you ; i ask it as a favour of you ; whilst you are in this beautiful † tabernacle of the body be wanting in none of these things ; but without ceasing seek them , and fulfill every command ; for these things are fitting and worthy to be done . wherefore i have given the more diligence to write unto you , according to my ability , that you might rejoice . farewel , children of love and peace . the lord of glory and of all grace , be with your spirit . amen . the end of the epistle of barnabas the apostle and companion of st. paul the apostle . the shepherd of st. hermas . the contents . the first book . vision i. against filthy and proud thoughts : also the correction of hermas for his neglect of his sons . ii. again of his neglect in correcting his talkative wife ; and of his lewd sons ; and of his own manners . iii of the building of the church-triumphant : and of the several orders of reprobates . iv. of the tryal and tribulation , that is about to come upon men. the second book . an introduction to the following commands . command i. of believing in one god. ii. that we must avoid detraction ; and do our alms-deeds with simplicity . iii. of avoiding lying : and the repentance of hermas for his dissimulation . iv. of putting away ones wife for adultery . v. of the sadness of the heart ; and of patience . vi. that every man has two angels ; and of the suggestions of both . vii . that we must fear god , but not the devil . viii . that we must flee from evil , and do good. ix . that we must ask of god daily , and without doubting . x. of the sadness of the heart ; and that we must take heed not to grieve the spirit of god that is in us . xi . that the spirits and prophets are to be tried by their works ; and of a two-fold spirit . xii . of a two-fold desire : that the commands of god are not impossible : and that the devil is not to be feared by them that believe . the third book . similitude i. that seeing we have no abiding city in this world ; we ought to look after that which is to come . ii. as the vine is supported by the elm , so is the rich-man help'd by the prayers of the poor . iii. as the green trees in the winter cannot be distinguish'd from the dry ; so neither can the righteous from the wicked in this present world. iv. as in summer the living trees are distinguish'd from the dry by their fruit and green leaves ; so in the world to come the righteous shall be distinguish'd from the unrighteous by their happiness . v. of a true fast , and the reward of it : also of the cleanness of the body . vi. of two sorts of voluptuous men ; and of their death , defection , and of the continuance of their pains . vii . that they who repent , must bring forth fruits worthy of repentance . viii . that there are many kinds of elect , and of repenting sinners : and how all of them shall receive a reward proportionable to the measure of their repentance and good works . ix . the greatest mysteries of the militant and triumphant church which is to be built . x. of repentance and alms-deeds . the first book of st. hermas , which is called his visions . the first vision . against filthy and proud thoughts : also the correction of hermas for his neglect of his sons . i. he who had bred me up sold a certain young maid at rome : whom when i saw many years after , i remembred her , and began to love her as a sister . it happen'd some time afterwards , that i saw her wash'd in the river tyber ; and i reach'd out my hand unto her , and help'd her out of the river . and when i saw her , i thought with my self , saying , that i should be happy had i fortun'd to have met with a wife like unto her both for her beauty and manners . this i thought with my self ; nor did i think any thing more . but not long after , as i was walking and musing on these thoughts , i began to honor the creature of god , thinking with my self how noble and beautiful it is . and when i had walk'd a little , i fell asleep . and the spirit caught me away , and carried me through a certain place towards the right-hand , through which no man could pass . it was a place among rocks , very steep , and unpassable for water . when i was past this place i came into a plain ; and there falling down upon my knees , i began to pray unto the lord , and to confess my sins . and as i was praying , the heaven was opened , and i saw the woman which i had coveted , saluting me from heaven , and saying , hermas , hail ! and i looking upon her , answered , lady , what dost thou do here ? she answered me , i am taken up hither to convince thee of sin unto the lord . lady , said i , wilt thou convince me ? no , said she : but hear the words which i am about to speak unto thee . god who dwelleth in heaven , and hath made all things out of nothing , and has multiplied them for his holy churches sake , is angry with thee , because thou hast sinned against me . and i answering said unto her , lady , if i have sinned against thee , tell me where , or in what place , or when did i ever speak an unseemly or dishonest word unto thee ? have i not always esteemed thee as a lady ? have i not always reverenced thee as a sister ? why then dost thou imagine these wicked things against me ? then she , smiling upon me , said , the desire of naughtiness has risen up in thy heart . does it not seem to thee * to be an ill thing for a righteous man to have an evil desire rise up in his heart ? it is indeed a sin , and that a very great one , to such a man : for a righteous man thinketh what is righteous . and whilst he does so , and walketh uprightly , he shall have the lord in heaven favourable unto him in all his works . but as for those who think wickedly in their hearts , they take to themselves death and captivity : and especially those who love this present world , and glory in their riches , and regard not the good things that are to come ; their souls wander up and down , and know not where to fix . now this is the case of such as are doubtful , who trust not in the lord , and despise and neglect their own life . but do thou pray unto the lord , and he will heal thy sins , and the sins of thy whole house , and of all his saints . ii. as soon as she had spoken these words the heavens were shut , and i remained utterly swallowed up in sadness and fear ; and said within my self , if this be laid against me for sin , how can i ever be saved ? or how shall i ever be able to intreat the lord for my many and great sins ? with what words shall i beseech him to be merciful unto me ? as i was thinking over these things , and meditating in my self upon them , behold a chair set over against me of the whitest wool , as bright as snow . and there came an old woman in a bright garment , having a book in her hand , and sate alone , and saluted me , saying , hermas , hail ! and i being full of sorrow , and weeping , answered , hail , lady ! and she said unto me , why art thou sad , hermas , who wert wont to be patient , and modest , and always cheerful ? i answered , and said to her , lady , a reproach has been objected to me by an excellent woman , who tells me that i have sinned against her . she replied , far be any such thing from the servant of god. but it may be the desire of her has risen up in thy heart ? for indeed there is such a thought even in the servants of god , leading unto sin. nor ought such a detestable thought to be in the servant of god ; nor should a spirit that is approved desire that which is evil ; nor especially hermas , who contains himself from all wicked appetites , and is full of all simplicity , and of great innocence . iii. nevertheless the lord is not angry with thee for thine own sake , but upon the account of thy house , which has committed wickedness against the lord , and against their parents . and that act of thy fondness towards thy sons ; in that thou hast not admonished them , but hast permitted them to live wickedly ; and for this cause the lord is angry with thee : but he will heal all the evils that are done before thee in thy house . for through their sins and iniquities , thou art wholly consumed in secular affairs . but now the mercy of god hath taken compassion upon thee , and upon thine house , and hath * greatly comforted thee ; only as for thee , do not wander , but be of an even mind , and comfort thy house . as the workman bringing forth his work , offers it to whomsoever he pleases ; so shalt thou by teaching every day what is just , cut off a great sin . wherefore cease not to admonish thy sons , for the lord knows that they will repent with all their heart , and he will write thee in the book of life . and when she had said this , she added unto me ; wilt thou hear me read ? i answer'd her , lady , i will. hear then , said she ; and opening the book she read , gloriously , greatly , and wonderfully , such things as i could not keep in my memory . for they were terrible words , such as no man could bear . howbeit i committed her last words to my remembrance ; for they were but few , and of great use . behold the mighty lord , who by his invincible power , and with his excellent wisdom made the world , and by his glorious counsel encompassed the beauty of his creature , and with the word of his strength fix'd the heaven , and founded the earth upon the waters ; and by his powerful vertue establish'd his holy church , which he hath blessed : behold , he will remove the heavens , and the mountains , the hills and the seas ; and all things shall be made plain for his elect ; that he may render unto them the promise which he has promised with much honor and joy ; if so be that they shall keep the commandments of god , which they have received with great faith. iv. and when she had made an end of reading , she rose out of the chair ; and behold four young-men came , and carried the chair to the east . and she called me unto her , and touch'd my breast , and said unto me , did my reading please thee ? i answered , lady , these last things please me ; but what went before was severe and hard . she said unto me , these last things are for † the righteous , but the foregoing for the revolters and heathen . and as she was talking with me , two more appeared , and took her up on their shoulders , and went to the east , where the chair was . and she went chearfully away ; and as she was going , said unto me , hermas , be of good chear . vision ii. again , of his neglect in correcting his talkative wife ; and of his lewd sons ; and of his own manners . i. as i was on the way to cumae , about the same time that i had been the last year , i began to call to mind the vision i formerly had . and again the spirit carried me away , and brought me into the same place , in which i had been the year before . and when i was come into the place , i fell down upon my knees , and began to pray unto the lord , and to honour his name , that he had esteemed me worthy , and had manifested unto me my former sins . and when i arose from prayer , behold i saw over against me the old woman whom i had seen the last year , walking and reading in a certain book . and she said unto me , can'st thou tell these things to the elect of god ? i answered and said unto her , lady , i cannot retain such great things in my memory , but give me the book , and i will write them down . take it , says she , and see that thou restore it again to me . as soon as i had receiv'd it , i went aside into a certain place of the field , and transcribed every letter , for i found no syllables . and as soon as i had finished what was written in the book , the book was suddenly caught out of my hands , but by whom i saw not . ii. after fifteen days , when i had fasted , and intreated the lord with all earnestness , the knowledge of the writing was revealed unto me . now the writing was this : thy seed , o hermas ! hath sinned against the lord , and have betrayed their parents , through their great wickedness . and they have been called the betrayers of their parents , and have gone on in their treachery . and now have they added lewdness to their other sins , and the pollutions of naughtiness ; thus have they fill'd up the measure of their iniquities . but do thou upbraid thy sons with all these words ; and thy wife , which shall be thy sister . and let her learn to refrain her tongue , with which she calumniates . for when she shall hear these things , she will refrain her self , and shall obtain mercy . and ‖ they shall be instructed , when thou shalt have reproach'd them with these words , which the lord has commanded to be revealed unto thee . then shall their sins be forgiven which they have heretofore committed , and the sins of all the saints , who have sinned even unto this day ; if they shall repent with all their hearts , and remove all doubts out of their hearts . for the lord hath sworn by his glory concerning his elect , having determined the certain day , that if any one shall even now sin , he shall not be saved . for the repentance of the righteous has its end. the days of repentance are fulfilled to all the saints ; but to the heathen , there is repentance even unto the last day . thou shalt therefore say to those who are over the church , that they order their ways in righteousness ; that they may fully receive the promise with much glory . stand fast therefore ye that work righteousness ; and continue to do it , that your departure may be with the holy angels . happy are ye , as many as shall endure the great tryal that is at hand , and whosoever shall not deny his life . for the lord hath sworn by his son , that who so denieth his son and him , being afraid of his life ; he will also deny him in the ‖ world that is to come . but those who shall never deny him , he will of his exceeding great mercy be favourable unto them . iii. but thou , o hermas ! remember not the evils which thy sons have done , neither neglect thy sister , but take care that they amend of their former sins . for they will be instructed by this doctrine , if thou shalt not be mindful of what they have done wickedly . for the remembrance of evils worketh death ; but the forgetting of them , life eternal . but thou , o hermas ! hast undergone a great many wordly troubles for the offences of thy house ; because thou hast neglected them , as things that did not belong unto thee ; and thou art wholly taken up with thy great business . nevertheless , for this cause shalt thou be saved , that thou hast not departed from the living god ; and thy simplicity , and singular continency shall preserve thee , if thou shalt continue in them . yea , they shall save all such as do such things ; and walk in innocence and simplicity . they who are of this kind , shall prevail against all impiety , and continue unto life eternal . happy are all they that do righteousness , they shall not be consumed for ever . but thou wilt say ; behold there is a great tryal coming . if it seems good to thee , deny him again . the lord is nigh to them that turn to him , as it is written in the books of heldam and modal , who prophecy'd to the israelites in the wilderness . iv. moreover , brethren , it was reavealed to me , as i was sleeping , by a very goodly young man , saying unto me ; what thinkest thou of that old woman from whom thou receivedst the book ; who is she ? i answered , a sybil. thou art mistaken , said he , she is not . i reply'd , who is she then , sir ? he answered me , it is the church of god. and i said unto him , why then do's she appear old ? she is therefore , said he , an old woman , because she was the first of all the creation , and the world was made for her . after this i saw a vision at home in my own house , and the old woman whom i had seen before , came to me and ask'd me , whether i had yet deliver'd the book which she had given me to the elders of the church ? and i answered , that i had not yet . she reply'd , thou hast well done , for i have certain words more to tell thee . but when i shall have finished all the words , they shall be clearly understood by the elect. and thou shalt write two books , and send one to clement , and one to grapté . for clement shall send it to the foreign cities , because it is permitted to him so to do . but grapté shall admonish the widows and orphans . but thou shalt read it to the elders that are over the church . vision iii. of the building of the church-triumphant ; and of the several orders of reprobates . i. the vision which i saw , brethren , was this . when i had often fasted and pray'd unto the lord , that he would manifest unto me the revelation which he had promised by the old woman to shew unto me : the same night she appear'd unto me , and said unto me ; because thou dost thus afflict thy self , and art so desirous to know all things , come into the field , where thou wilt , and about the sixth hour , i will appear unto thee , and shew thee what thou must see . i ask'd her , saying ; lady , into what part of the field ? she answered , wherever thou wilt , only chuse a good and a private place . and before i could begin to speak and tell her the place , she said unto me ; i will come where thou wilt . i was therefore , brethren , in the field , and i observed the hours , and came into the place where i had appointed to go . and i beheld a bench placed ; it was a linnen pillow , and over it spread a covering of fine linnen . when i saw these things order'd in this manner , and that there was no body in the place , i began to be astonish'd , and my hair stood on end , and a kind of horror seiz'd me , for i was alone . but being come to my self , and calling to mind the glory of god , and taking courage , i fell down upon my knees , and began again to confess my sins as before . and whilst i was doing this , the old woman came thither with the six young men whom i had seen before , and stood behind me as i was praying and confessing my sins unto the lord . and touching me , she said ; leave off now to pray only for thy sins ; pray also for righteousness , that thou maist receive a part from her in thy house . and she lifted me up from the place , and took me by the hand , and brought me to the seat ; and said to the young men , go , and build . as soon as they were departed , and we were alone , she said unto me ; sit here . i answered her ; lady , let those who are elder sit first . she reply'd , sit down as i bid you . and when i would have sate on the right side , she suffered me not , but made a sign to me with her hand , that i should sit on the left . as i was therefore musing , and full of sorrow , that she would not suffer me to sit on the right side , she said unto me , hermas , why art thou sad ? the place which is on the right hand is theirs who have already attain'd unto god , and have suffered for his name sake . but there is yet a great deal remaining unto thee , before thou canst sit with them . but continue , as thou dost in thy sincerity , and thou shalt sit with them ; as all others shall that do their works , and shall bear what they have born . ii. i said unto her ; lady , i would know what it is that they have suffered ? hear then , said she : wild beasts , scourgings , imprisonments , and crosses for his name sake . for this cause the right hand of holiness belongs to them , and to all others as many as shall suffer for the name of god ; but the left belongs to the rest . howbeit the gifts and the promises belong to both ; to them , and to those on the left hand ; only that sitting on the right hand they have some glory above the others . but thou art desirous to sit on the right hand with them ; and thy defects are many . but thou shalt be purg'd from thy defects : as also all who doubt not , shall be cleansed from all the sins which they have committed unto this day . and when she had said this she would have departed ; wherefore falling down before her feet , i began to intreat her , for the lord's sake , that she would shew me the vision which she had promised . then she again took me by the hand , and lifted me up , and made me sit upon the seat on the left side ; and holding up a certain bright wand , said unto me ; seest thou that great thing ? i reply'd ; lady , i see nothing . she answered ; dost thou not see over against thee a great tower , which is built upon the water with bright square stones ? for the tower was built upon a square by those six young men that came with her . and thousands of other men brought stones : some drew them out of the deep ; others carried them from the ground , and gave them to the six young men. and they took them , and built . as for those stones which were drawn out of the deep , they put them all into the building ; for they were polish'd , and their squares exactly answered one another , and so one was joyn'd in such wise to the other , that there was no space to be seen where they joyn'd . insomuch that the whole tower appear'd to be built as it were of one stone . but as for the other stones that were taken off from the ground , some of them they rejected , others they fitted into the building . others they cut out , and cast at a distance from the tower. moreover there were many other stones , which lay round about the tower , which they made no use of in the building . some of these were rough , others had clefts in them ; others were white and round , not proper for the building of the tower. besides these , i saw other stones cast afar off from the tower , and falling into the high-way , but not continuing in the way , but were rolled from the way into a desert place . others i saw falling into the fire and burning : others were glowing hot just by the water , yet could not roll themselves into it , though very desirous to fall into the water . iii. and when she had shew'd me these things she would have departed . but i said unto her , lady , what do's it profit me to see these things , and not understand what they mean ? she answer'd and said unto me , you are very cunning , in that you are desirous to know those things which ‖ relate to the tower. yea , said i , lady , that i may declare them unto the brethren ; and they may rejoyce , and hearing these things may glorifie god with great honour . then she said ; many indeed shall hear them , and when they shall have heard them , some shall rejoyce , and others weep . and yet even these , if they shall repent , shall rejoyce too . hear therefore what i shall say concerning the parable of the tower , and after this be no longer importunate with me about the revelation . for these revelations have an end , seeing they are fulfilled . but thou dost not leave off to desire revelations ; for thou art very † urgent . as for the tower which thou seest built , it is i my self , namely the church , which have appeared to thee both now , and heretofore . wherefore ask what thou wilt concerning the tower , and i will reveal it unto thee , that thou mayst rejoyce with the saints . i said unto her , lady , because thou hast thought me once worthy to receive from thee the revelation of all these things , declare them unto me . she answer'd me ; whatsoever is fit to be revealed unto thee , shall be revealed : * only let thy heart be with the lord , and doubt not , whatsoever thou shalt see . i ask'd her , lady , why is the tower built upon the water ? she replied ; i said before to thee that thou wert very wise to enquire diligently concerning the building ! therefore thou shalt find the truth . hear therefore why the tower is built upon the water : because your life is and shall be saved by water . for it is founded by the word of the almighty and honourable name ; and is supported by the invisible power and virtue of god. iv. and i answering said unto her ; these things are very admirable : but lady , who are those six young men that build ? they are , said she , the angels of god , which were first appointed , and to whom the lord has deliver'd all his creatures , to build them up , and to rule over . for by these the building of the tower shall be finish'd . and who are the rest who bring them stones ? they also are the holy angels of the lord ; but the other are more excellent than these . wherefore when the whole building of the tower shall be finished , they shall all feast together besides the tower , and shall glorifie god , because the structure of the tower is finish'd . i ask'd her , saying ; i would know the condition of the stones , and the meaning of them , what it is ? she answering said unto me ; art thou better than all others , that this should be revealed unto thee ? for others are both before thee , and better than thou art , to whom these visions should be made manifest : nevertheless that the name of god may be honour'd , it has been , and shall be reveal'd unto thee , for the sake of those who are doubtful , and think in their hearts whether these things are so or not ? tell them that all these things are true ; and that there is nothing in them that is not true ; but all are firm , and truly established . v. hear now then concerning the stones that are in the building . the square and white stones , which agree exactly in their joynts ; are the apostles , and bishops , and doctors , and ministers who through the mercy of god have come in , and govern'd , and taught , and ministred holily and modestly to the elect of god , both that are fallen asleep , and which yet remain ; and have always agreed with them , and have had peace within themselves and with each other . for which cause their joints exactly meet together in the building of the tower. they which are drawn out of the deep and put into the building , and whose joynts agree with the other stones which are already built , are those which are already fallen asleep , and have suffered for the sake of the lord's name . and what are the other stones , lady , that are brought from the earth ; i would know what they are ? she answer'd , they which lie upon the ground and are not polished , are those which god has approved because they have walked in the law of the lord , and directed their ways in his commandments . they which are put in the building of the tower , are the young in faith and the faithful . and these are admonish'd by the angels to do well , because that iniquity is not found in them . but who are those whom they rejected , and laid besides the tower ? they are such as have sinn'd , and are willing to repent ; for which cause they are not cast far from the tower , because they will be useful in the building if they shall repent . they therefore that are yet to repent , if they shall repent shall become strong in the faith ; that is , if they repent now , whilst the tower is building . for if the building shall be finish'd , there will then be no place for them to be put in , but they shall be rejected ; for he only has this priviledge , who shall now be put to the tower. vi. but would you know who they are that were cut out and cast afar off from the tower ? ‖ lady , said i , i desire it . they are the children of iniquity , who believed only in hypocrisie , and departed not from their evil ways : for this cause they are not saved , because they are not of any use in the building by reason of their sins . wherefore they are cut out , and cast afar off , because of the anger of the lord , and because they have provoked him to anger against them . as for the great number of other stones which thou hast seen placed about the tower , but not put into the building ; those which are rugged , are they who have known the truth , but have not continued in it , nor been joyn'd to the saints ; and therefore are unprofitable . those that have clefts in them , are they who keep up discord in their hearts against each other , and live not in peace ; that are friendly when present with their brethren , but as soon as they are departed from one another , their wickedness still continues in their hearts . these are the clefts which are seen in those stones . those that are maim'd and short are they who have believed indeed ; but still are in great measure full of wickedness ; for this cause are they maim'd and not whole . but what are the white and round stones , lady , and which are not proper for the building of the tower ? she answering said unto me ; how long wilt thou continue foolish and without understanding ; asking every thing and discerning nothing ? they are such as have faith indeed ; but have withal the riches of this present world. when therefore any troubles arise , for the sake of their riches they deny the lord . i answering said unto her ; when therefore will they be profitable to the lord ? when their riches shall be cut away , says she , in which they take delight , then they will be profitable unto the lord for his building . for as a round stone , unless he be cut away , and cast somewhat oft of its bulk cannot be made square ; so they who are rich in this world , unless their riches be pared off , cannot be made profitable unto the lord . learn this from thy own experience : when thou wert rich , thou wast unprofitable ; but now thou art profitable , and fit for the life which thou hast undertaken ; for thou also once wast one of those stones . vii . as for the rest of the stones which thou sawest cast afar off from the tower , and running in the way ; and tumbled out of the way into desert places ; they are such as have believed indeed , but through their doubting have forsaken their true way , thinking that they could find a better . but they wander and are miserable ; going into desolate ways . then for those stones which fell into the fire , and were burnt ; they are those who have for ever departed from the living god ; nor has it ever come into their hearts to repent , by reason of the affection which they bear to their lusts and wickednesses which they commit . and what are the rest which fell by the water , and could not roll into the water ? they are such as have heard the word ; and were willing to be baptized in the name of the lord ; but considering the great holiness which the truth requires , have withdrawn themselves , and walk'd again after their wicked lusts. thus she finish'd the explication of the tower. but i being still urgent , ask'd her : is there repentance allow'd to all those stones which are thus cast away and were not suitable to the building of the tower ; and shall they find place in this tower ? they may repent , said she , but they cannot come into this tower ; but they shall be placed in a much lower rank ; and this after that they shall have been afflicted , and fulfill'd the days of their sins . and for this cause they shall be removed , because they have received the word of righteousness . and then they shall be translated from their afflictions , if they shall have a true sense in their hearts of what they have done amiss . but if they shall not have this sense in their hearts , they shall not be saved , by reason of the hardness of their hearts . viii . when therefore i had done asking her concerning all these things , she said unto me ; wilt thou see somewhat else ? and i being desirous of seeing it , i became very chearful of countenance . she therefore looing back upon me , and smiling a little , said unto me : seest thou seven women about the tower ? lady , said i , i see them . this tower , replied she , is supported by them , according to the command of the lord : hear therefore the effects of them . the first of them which holds her hand fast , is called faith ; by her the elect shall be saved . the next which is girt up , and looks manly , is named abstinence : she is the daughter of faith. whosoever therefore shall follow her shall be happy in all his life ; because he shall abstain from all evil works , believing that if he shall contain himself from all concupiscence , he shall be the heir of eternal life . and what lady , said i , are the other five ? they are , reply'd she , the daughters of one another . one of them is called simplicity ; the next innocence ; the third modesty ; then discipline , and the last of all is charity . when therefore thou shalt have observed the works of their mother , thou shalt be able to observe all things . lady , said i , i would know what particular virtue every one of these has . hear then , replied she ; they have equal vertues ; and their vertues are knit together , and follow one another as they were born . from faith proceeds abstinence ; from abstinence , simplicity ; from simplicity , innocence ; from innocence , modesty ; from modesty , discipline and charity . therefore the works of these are holy and chast , and right . whosoever therefore shall serve these , and hold fast to their works , he shall have his dwelling in the tower with the saints of god. then i ask'd her concerning the times , whether the end were now at hand ? but she cry'd out with a loud voice , saying ; o foolish man ! dost thou not see the tower that it is always building ? when therefore the tower shall be finish'd , and built , it shall have an end ; and indeed it shall soon be accomplished . but do not ask me any more questions . what has been said may suffice for thee and for all the saints ; with the renewal of your spirits . for these things have not been revealed to thee only , but that thou mayst make them manifest unto all . for therefore , o hermas , after three days thou must understand these words which i begin to speak unto thee , that thou mayst speak them in the ears of the saints ; that when they shall have heard and done them , they may be cleansed from their iniquities , and thou together with them . ix . hear me therefore , o my sons ! i have bred you up in much simplicity , and modesty , and innocency ; for the mercy of god , which has dropp'd down upon you in righteousness ; that you should be sanctified , and justified from all sin and wickedness : but ye will not cease from your evil doings . now therefore hearken unto me , and have peace one with another , and visit one another , and receive one another , and do not enjoy the creatures of god alone . give freely to them that are in need . for some by too free feeding contract an infirmity in their flesh , and do injury to their bodies ; whilst the flesh of others , who have not food , withers away , because they want sufficient nourishment , and their bodies are consum'd . wherefore this intemperance is hurtful to you , who have , and do not communicate to them that want . prepare for the judgment that is about to come upon you . ye that are the more eminent search out them that are hungry , whilst the tower is yet unfinish'd . for when the tower shall be finish'd , ye shall be willing to do good , and shall not find any place for it . see therefore , ye that glory in your riches , least perhaps they groan who are in want ; and their sighing come up unto god , and ye be shut out with your goods without the gate of the tower. behold i now warn you who are set over the church , and love the highest seats ; be not ye like unto those that work mischief . and they indeed carry about their poison in boxes ; but ye contain your poison and medicines in your hearts ; and will not purge them , and mix your sense with a pure heart , that ye may find mercy with the great king. take heed , my children , that your dissentions deprive you not of your lives . how will ye instruct the elect of god , when ye your selves want correction ? wherefore admonish one another , and be at peace among your selves ; that i standing before your father , may give an account for you unto the lord . x. and when she had made an end of talking with me , the six young men that built came and carried her to the tower ; and four others took up the seat on which she sate , and went away again , they also , to the tower. i saw not the faces of these , for their backs were towards me . as she was going along i asked her , that she would reveal to me what concern'd the three forms in which she had appear'd unto me . but she answering said unto me ; concerning these things thou must ask some other , that they may be revealed unto thee . now , brethren , in the first vision the last year , she appeared unto me exceeding old , and sitting in a chair . in another vision , she had indeed a youthful face , but her flesh and hair were old ; and she talked with me standing , and was more chearful than the first time . in the third vision , she was in all respects much younger , and comely to the eye ; only she had the hair of an aged person : yet she looked chearful , and sate upon a seat. i was therefore very sad concerning these things , until i might understand the vision . wherefore i saw the same old woman in a vision of the night saying unto me ; all prayer needeth humility . fast therefore , and thou shalt learn from the lord that which thou dost ask . i fasted therefore one day . the same night a young man appear'd to me and said ; why dost thou thus often desire revelations in thy prayers ? take heed that by asking many things , thou hurt not thy body . let these revelations suffice thee ; canst thou see more notable revelations than those which thou hast already received ? i answered and said unto him ; sir , i only ask this one thing upon the account of the three figures of the old woman that appeared to me , that the revelation may be compleat . he answer'd me ; you are not without understanding , but your doubts make you so ; forasmuch as you have not your heart with the lord . i replyed and said ; but i shall learn these things more carefully from you . xi . hear then , says he , concerning the figures , about which you enquire . and first , in the first vision she appear'd to thee in the shape of an old woman ; because your ancient spirit was decay'd , and without strength , by reason of your infirmities , and the doubtfulness of your heart . for as they who are old have no hope of renewing themselves , nor expect any thing but their departure : so you being weakned through your worldly affairs gave your self up to sloath , and cast not away your sollicitude from your self upon the lord ; and your sense was confused , and you grew old in your sadness . but sir , i would know why she sate upon a chair ? he answered ; because every one that is weak sitteth upon a chair by reason of his infirmity ; that his weakness may be upheld : see therefore the figure of the first vision . xii . in the second vision you saw her standing , and having a youthful face , and more chearful than her former ; but her flesh and her hair were ancient . hear , said he , this parable also . when any one grows old , he despairs of himself by reason of his infirmity and poverty ; and expects nothing but the last day of his life . but on the suddain an inheritance is left to him ; and he hears of it , and rises ; and being become chearful , he puts on new strength ; and now he no longer lies along , but stands ; and is deliver'd from his former sorrow ; and sits not , but acts manfully . so you , having heard the revelation which god revealed unto you ; because god had compassion upon you , and renew'd your spirit ; both laid aside your infirmities , and strength came to you , and you grew strong in the faith ; and god seeing your strength rejoyced . for this cause he shewed you the building of the tower ; and will shew other things unto you , if you shall have peace with all your heart among each other . xiii . but in the third vision you saw her yet younger ; fair and chearful , and of a serene countenance . for as if some good news comes to one that is sad , he straightway forgets his sadness , and regards nothing else but the good news which he has heard ; and for the rest he is comforted , and his spirit is renew'd through the joy which he has received : even so you have been renew'd in your spirit , by seeing these good things . and for that you saw her sitting upon a bench , it denotes a strong position ; because a bench has four feet , and stands strongly . and even the world its self is kept up by the four elements . they therefore that repent perfectly , shall be young ; and they that turn from their sins with their whole heart , shall be establish'd . and now you have the revelation fully ; ask no more to have any thing farther revealed unto you . but if any thing be to be revealed , it shall be made manifest unto you . vision iv. of the tryal and tribulation that is about to come upon men. i. i saw a vision , brethren , twenty days after the former vision ; a figure of the tribulation that is at hand . i was walking in the field way : now from the publick way to the mannour whither i went is about ten furlongs . it is a way very little frequented : and as i was walking alone , i entreated the lord that he would confirm the revelations which he had shew'd unto me by his holy church : and would grant repentance to all his servants , who had been offended , that his great and honourable name might be glorified ; and because he thought me worthy to whom he might shew his wonders ; and that i might honour him , and give thanks unto him . and behold somewhat like a voice answer'd me ; doubt not , hermas . wherefore i began to think , and say within my self ; why should i doubt , seeing i am thus setled by the lord , and have seen such glorious things ? i had gone but a little farther , brethren , when behold i saw a dust rise up to heaven . i began to say within my self ; is there a drove of cattle coming , that raises such a dust ? it was about a furlong off from me . and behold i saw the dust rise more and more , insomuch that i began to suspect that there was somewhat extraordinary in it . and the sun shone a little ; and behold i saw a great beast , as it were a whale ; and fiery locusts came out of his mouth . the heigth of the beast was about a hundred feet ; and he had a head like a ‖ large earthen vessel . i began to weep , and to pray unto the lord , that he would deliver me from it . then i call'd to mind the word which i had heard ; doubt not , hermas . wherefore , brethren , putting on the faith of god , and remembring who it was that had taught me great things , i deliver'd my self boldly unto the beast . now the beast came on in such a manner , as if it could with one blast have devour'd a city . i came near unto it ; and the beast extended its whole bulk upon the ground ; and put forth nothing but its tongue , nor once moved its self , till i had quite pass'd by it . now the beast had upon its head four colours , first black , then a red , and bloudy colour , then a golden ; and then a white . ii. after that i had pass'd by it , and was gon forward about thirty foot ; behold there met me a certain virgin well-adorn'd , as if she had been just come out of her bride-chamber , all in white , having on white shoes , and a vail down her face ; and cover'd with shining hair. now i know by my former visions that it was the church ; and thereupon grew the more chearful . and she saluted me saying , hail o man ! i return'd the salutation , saying , lady , hail ! she answering said unto me , did nothing meet you , o man ! i replyed ; lady , there met me such a beast , as seem'd able to devour a whole people : but by the power of god , and through his singular mercy i escap'd it . thou didst escape it well , said she ; because thou didst cast thy whole care upon god ; and open'dst thy heart unto him ; believing that thou couldst be safe by no other , than by his great and honourable name . for this cause the lord sent his angel , who is over the beasts , whose name is hegrin , and stopp'd his mouth , that he should not devour thee . thou hast escap'd a great tryal by means of thy faith ; and because thou , didst not doubt for such a terrible beast . go therefore , and relate to the elect of god , the great things that he hath done for thee . and thou shalt say unto them , that this beast is the figure of the tryal that is about to come . if therefore ye shall have prepared your selves , ye may escape it , if your heart be pure and without spot ; and if ye shall serve god all the rest of your days without complaint . cast all your cares upon the lord , and he will direct them . believe in god , ye doubtful , because he can do all things ; he can both turn away his wrath from you , and send you help and security . wo to the double-minded , to those who shall hear these words , and shall despise them ; it had been better for them that they had not been born . iii. then i ask'd her concerning the four colours which the beast had upon its head. but she answer'd me , saying ; again art thou curious in that thou askest concerning these things . and i said unto her , lady ; shew me what they are ? hear , said she : the black which thou sawest , denotes the world in which you dwell . the fiery and bloudy colour , signifies , that this age must be destroyed by fire and bloud . the golden part are ye , who have escaped out of it . for as gold is try'd by the fire , and is made profitable ; so are ye also in like manner try'd who dwell among the men of this world. they therefore that shall endure to the end , and be proved by them , shall be purged . and as gold , by this tryal is cleansed and loses it dross ; so shall ye also cast away all sorrow , and trouble ; and be made pure for the building of the tower. but the white colour , denotes the time of the world which is to come , in which the elect of god shall inhabit : because the elect of god shall be pure and without spot unto life eternal . wherefore do not thou cease to speake these things in the ears of the saints . here ye have the figure of the great tribulation that is about to come ; which if you please , shall be nothing to you . keep therefore in mind the things which i have said unto you . when she had spoken thus much , she departed : but i saw not whither she went. but suddainly i heard a noise , and i turn'd back , being afraid ; for i thought that the beast was coming toward me . the second book of st. hermas which is called his commands . the introduction . when i had pray'd at home , and was sate down upon the bed ; a certain man came in to me with a reverend look , in the habit of a shepherd cloath'd with a white cloak , having his bag upon his back , and his staff in his hand , and saluted me . i return'd his salutation ; and immediately he sate down by me , and said unto me ; i am sent by that venerable messenger , that i should dwell with thee all the remaining days of thy life . but i thought that he was come to try me , and said unto him , who are you ? for i know to whom i am delivered . he said unto me , do you not know me ? i answer'd , no. i am , said he , that shepherd , to whose care you are delivered . whilst he was yet speaking his shape was changed ; and when i knew that it was he to whom i was committed , i was asham'd , and a suddain fear came upon me , and i was utterly overcome with sadness , because i had spoken so foolishly unto him . but he said unto me , be not asham'd , but stir up vertue in thy mind , through the commands which i am about to deliver unto thee . for , said he , i am sent to shew unto thee all those things again , which thou hast seen before ; and especially such of them as may be of most use unto you . and first of all write my commands and similitudes , that by often reading of them , you may the more easily ‖ keep them in memory . whereupon i wrote his commands and similitudes , as he bad me . which things if when you have heard , ye shall observe to do them ; and shall exercise your selves in them , and walk according to them with a pure mind ; ye shall receive from the lord those things which he has promised unto you . but if having heard them ye shall not repent , but shall still go on to add to your sins ; ye shall be punish'd by him . all these things that shepherd , the angel of repentance , commanded me to write . the first command . of believing in one god. first of all believe that there is one god who created and finished all things ; and made all things out of nothing . he comprehends all things , and is only immense , not to be comprehended by any . who can neither be defined by any words , nor conceived by the mind . therefore believe in him , and fear him ; and fearing him abstain from all evil. keep these things , and cast all iniquity far from thee ; and put on righteousness ; and thou shalt live to god , if thou shalt keep this commandment . the second command . that we must avoid detraction ; and do our alms-deeds with simplicity . i. he said unto me ; be innocent and ‖ without disguise ; so shalt thou be like an infant who knows no malice , which destroys the life of man. and especially see that thou speak evil of none ; nor willingly hear any one speak evil of any . for if thou shalt hear them , thou shalt be partaker of the sin of him that speaketh evil ; and by believing such a one thou also shalt have sin ; because thou believedst him that spake evil of thy brother . * detraction is a pernicious thing ; an inconstant † evil spirit ; that never continues in peace , but is always in discord . wherefore refrain thy self from it ; and keep peace evermore with thy brother . put on a holy constancy , in which there are no sins ; but all is full of joy : and do good of thy labours . ‖ give * without distinction to all that are in want ; not doubting to whom thou givest . but give to all ; for god will have us give to all of † the goods which he dispenses to us . they therefore that receive shall give an account to god , both wherefore they received , and for what end. and they that receive without a real need , shall give an account for it ; but he that gives shall be innocent : for he has fulfill'd his duty as he received it from god ; not making any choice to whom he should give , and to whom not . and this service he did with simplicity , and ‖ to the glory of god. keep therefore this command according as i have deliver'd it unto thee ; that thy repentance may be found to be sincere ; and that good may come to thy house ; and have a pure heart . the third command . of avoiding lying and the repentance of hermas for his dissimulation . ‖ moreover he said unto me ; love truth ; and let all the speech be true which proceeds out of thy mouth ; that the spirit which the lord hath appointed in thy flesh may be found true towards all men ; and the lord be magnified , who hath given such a spirit unto thee : because god is true in all his words , and there is no lie found in him . but they that lie , deny the lord ; * not rendring to god what they received from him . for they received the spirit without a lie : if therefore they make that a lyar , they defile the commandment of the lord , and become deceivers . and when i heard this , i wept bitterly . and when he saw me weeping he said unto me ; why weepest thou ? and i said ; because , sir , i doubt whether i can be saved ? he ask'd me , wherefore ? i reply'd ; because , sir , i never spake a true word in my life ; but always lived in dissimulation ; and affirm'd a lie for truth to all men ; and no man contradicted me , but all gave credit to my words . how then can i live , seeing i have done in this manner ? and he said unto me ; thou thinkest well , and truly . for thou oughtest , as the servant of god , to have walked in the truth , and not have joyn'd an evil conscience with the spirit of truth ; nor have grieved the holy and true spirit of god. and i reply'd unto him ; sir , i never before hearkned so diligently to these things . he answer'd ; now thou hearest them : take care from henceforth , that even those things which thou hast formerly spoken falsly for the sake of thy business , may by thy present truth , receive credit . for even those things may be credited , if for the time to come thou shalt speak the truth : and † by so doing thou mayst attain unto life . and whosoever shall hearken unto this command , and do it ; and shall depart from all lying , he shall live unto god. the fourth command . of putting away ones wife for adultery . i. furthermore , said he , i command thee , that thou keep ‖ thy self chast ; and that thou suffer not any thought † of any other marriage , or of fornification , to enter into thy heart ; for such a thought produces a great sin. but be thou at all times mindful of the lord , and thou shalt never sin . for if such an evil thought should arise in thy heart , thou wouldst be guilty of a great sin ; and they who do such things , follow the way of death . look therefore to thy self , and keep thy self from such a thought : for where chastity remains in the heart of a righteous man , there an evil thought ought never to arise . and i said unto him , sir , suffer me to speak a little with you . he bad me , say on . and i answer'd , sir , if a man shall have a wife that is faithful in the lord , and shall catch her in adultery ; shall a man sin that continues to live still with her ? and he said unto me ; as long as he is ignorant of her sin , he commits no fault in living with her : but if a man shall know his wife to have offended ; and she shall not repent of her sin , but go on still in her fornication , and a man shall continue nevertheless to live with her , he shall become guilty of her sin , and partake with her in her adultery . and i said unto him ; what therefore is to be done if the woman continues on in her sin ? he answered ; let her husband put her away , and let him continue by himself . but if he shall put away his wife , and marry another , he also shall commit adultery . and i said ; what if the woman that is so put away shall repent , and be willing to return to her husband , shall she not be received by him ? he said unto me , yes ; and if her husband shall not receive her , he will sin ; and commit a great offence against himself : but he ought to receive her though an offender , if she repents ; only not often . for to the servants of god there is but one repentance . and for this cause a man that putteth away his wife ought not to take another , because she may repent . this act is alike both in the man and in the woman . now they commit adultery , not only who pollute their flesh , but who also make an image . ‖ if therefore a woman perseveres in any thing of this kind , and repents not ; depart from her , and live not with her : otherwise thou also shalt be partaker of her sin. but it is therefore commanded that both the man and woman should remain unmarried , because such persons may repent . nor do i in this administer any occasion for the doing of these things so ; but rather that whoso has offended should not offend any more . but for their former sins , god who has the power of healing will give a remedy : for it is he who can do all things . ii. i asked him again , and said ; seeing my lord has thought me worthy with whom to dwell continually ; speak a few words unto me , because i understand nothing and my heart is hardned through my former conversation ; and open my † understanding because i am very dull , and apprehend nothing at all . and he answering said unto me ; i am the ‖ minister of repentance , and give † understanding to all that repent . do's it not seem to thee to be * a very wise thing to repent ? because he that do's so gets a great † feeling : for he † feels himself to have sinn'd and done wickedly in the sight of the lord ; and he remembers ‖ within himself that he has offended , and repents and do's no more wickedly ; but do's that which is good , and humbles his soul , and afflicts it , because he has offended . you see therefore that repentance is a deep sense . and i said unto him ; for this cause , sir , i enquire diligently into all things , because i am a sinner , that i may know what i must do that i may live ; and because my sins are many . and he said unto me ; thou shalt live if thou shalt keep these my commandments . and whosoever shall hear and do these commands , shall live unto god. iii. and i said unto him ; i have even now heard from certain teachers that there is no other repentance besides that of baptism ; when we go down into the water , and receive the forgiveness of our sins : and that after that , we must sin no more , but live in * purity . and he said unto me , thou hast † been rightly inform'd . nevertheless seeing now thou enquirest diligently into all things , i will manifest this also unto thee ; yet not so as to give any occasion of sinning either to those who shall hereafter believe , or who have already believ'd in the lord . for neither they who have already believed , or who shall hereafter believe have any repentance of sins , but forgiveness of them . but as to those who are already called , the lord before ‖ that time appointed repentance : because god knoweth the thoughts of all mens hearts , and their infirmities ; and the manifold wickedness of the devil , who is always contriving something against the servants of god ; and maliciously lays snares for them . therefore our merciful lord had compassion towards his creature , and appointed that repentance , and gave unto me the power of it . and therefore i say unto thee , if any one after that great and holy calling shall be tempted by the devil and sin , he has but one * repentance . but if he shall often sin and repent ; it shall not profit such a one ; for he shall hardly live unto god. and i said , sir , i am restored again to life since i have thus diligently hearken'd to these commands . for i perceive , that if i shall not hereafter add any more to my sins , i shall be saved . and he said , thou shalt be saved ; and so shall all others , as many as shall observe these commandments . iv. and again i said unto him ; sir , seeing thou hearest me patiently , shew me yet one thing more . tell me , saith he , what it is . and i said ; if a husband or wife die , and the party which survives marry again , do's he sin in so doing ? ‖ he that marries ( says he ) sins not : howbeit if he shall remain single , he shall thereby gain to himself great honour with the lord . keep therefore thy chastity , and modesty ; and thou shalt live unto god. observe from henceforth those things which i speak with thee , and command thee to observe ; from the time that i have been deliver'd unto thee , and dwell in thy house . so shall thy former sins be forgiven , if thou shalt keep these my commandments . and in like manner shall all others be forgiven , who shall observe these my commandments . the fifth command . of the sadness of the heart : and of patience . i. be patient , says he , and of an even-mind ; so shalt thou have dominion over all wicked works , and shalt fulfil all righteousness . for if thou shalt be patient , the holy spirit which dwelleth in thee shall be pure ; and not be darkned by any other evil spirit ; but being full of joy shall be enlarged , and feast in the † body in which it dwells , and shall appear before the lord with joy , and in great peace . but if any †† anger shall over-take thee , presently the holy spirit which is in thee will be straightned and seek to depart from thee . for he is choaked by the evil spirit ; and has not the ‖ liberty of appearing before the lord as he would . for he is grieved by †† anger . * when therefore both these spirits dwell together , it is destructive to a man. as if one should take a little wormwood , and put it into a vessel of honey , the whole honey would be spoiled ; and a great quantity of honey is corrupted by a very little wormwood , and loses the sweetness of honey , and has no longer any favour with its lord ; because the whole honey is made bitter , and loses its use. but if no wormwood be put into the honey it is sweet and profitable to its lord. thus is an equality of mind sweeter than honey , and profitable to the lord , who dwelleth in it . but †† anger is unprofitable . if therefore †† anger shall be mixed with equanimity , the soul is distress'd , and its prayer is not profitable ‖ with god. and i said unto him ; sir , i would know the sinfulness of †† anger , that i may keep my self from it . and he said unto me , thou shalt know it ; and if thou shalt not keep thy self from it , thou shalt lose thy hope with all thy house . wherefore depart from it . for i the * messenger of righteousness am with thee ; and all that depart from it , as many as shall repent with all their hearts , shall live unto god ; and i will be with them , and will keep them all . for all such as have repented , have been justified , by the * messenger which bringeth salvation . ii. and now , says he , hear the wickedness of †† anger ; how evil and hurtful it is , and how it overthrows the servants of god. for nothing can hurt those that are full of faith , because the ‖ power of god is with them . but he overthrows the doubtful , and those that are destitute of faith : but as often as he sees the other sort , he will cast himself into their hearts . let not therefore any man or woman be in bitterness for any thing ; whether for such things as they have occasion for here ; or for sustenance ; or for any vain word , if any should chance to fall in ; or by reason of any friend ; or for any debt ; or for any superfluous things of the like nature . for these things are foolish , and superfluous , and vain to the servants of god. but equanimity is strong , and forcible ; and of great power , and sitteth in great enlargement ; is chearful , rejocing in peace ; and glorifying god at all times with meekness . and this equality of mind dwells with those that are full of faith. but †† anger is foolish , and light , and empty . now bitterness is bred through folly ; by bitterness , †† anger ; by †† anger , fury . and this fury arising from many evil principles , worketh a great and uncurable sin. for when all these things are in the same * man in which the holy spirit dwells ; the vessel cannot contain them , but runs over : and because the tender spirit cannot tarry with the evil-one ; it departs and dwells with him that is mild . when therefore it is departed from the man in whom it dwelt ; that man becomes destitute of the holy spirit , and is afterwards filled with wicked spirits , and is blinded with evil thoughts . thus do's it happen to all angry men. wherefore depart thou from anger , and put on equanimity , and resist wrath ; and thou shalt be found with modesty and chastity by god. take good heed therefore that thou neglect not this commandment . for if thou shalt obey this command , then shalt thou also be able to observe the other commandments which i shall command thee . wherefore strengthen thy self now in these commands , that thou mayst live unto god. and whosoever shall observe these commandments shall live unto god. the sixth command . that every man has two * angels , and of the suggestions of both . i commanded thee , said he , in my first commandment , that thou shouldst keep faith , and fear , and repentance . yes , sir , said i. he continued ; but now i will shew thee the vertues of these commands , that thou mayst know their effects ; how they are † prescribed alike to the just and unjust . do thou therefore believe the righteous , but give no credit to the unrighteous . for righteousness keepeth the right way , but unrighteousness the wicked way . do thou therefore keep the right way , and leave that which is evil. for the evil way has not a good end , but hath many stumbling-blocks ; it is rugged and full of thorns , and leads to destruction , and is hurtful to all such as walk in it . but they who go in the right way , walk with evenness , and without offence ; because it is not rough , nor thorny . thou seest therefore , how it is best to walk in this way . thou shalt therefore go , says he , and all others as many as believe in god with all their heart shall go through it . and now , says he ; ‖ understand first of all what belongs to faith. there are two angels with man ; one of righteousness , the other of iniquity . and i said unto him ; sir , how shall i know that there are two such angels with man ? hear , says he , and understand . the angel of righteousness , is mild , and modest , and gentle , and quiet . when therefore he gets into thy heart , immediately he talks with thee of righteousness , of modesty , of chastity , of bountifulness , of forgiveness , of charity , and piety . when all these things come into thy heart , know then that the angel of righteousness is with thee . wherefore hearken to this angel and to his works . learn also the works of the angel of iniquity . he is first of all bitter , and angry , and foolish ; and his works are pernicious , and overthrow the servants of god. when therefore these things come into thy heart ; thou shalt know him by his works , that it is the angel of iniquity . and i said unto him ; sir , how shall i understand these things ? hear , says he , and understand . when anger overtakes thee , or bitterness , know that he is in thee : as also , when the desire of many * things , and of the best meats , and of drunkenness ; when the love of what belongs to others ; of pride , and of much speech , of ambition ; and of the like things , come upon thee . when therefore these things arise in thy heart , know that the angel of iniquity is with thee . seeing therefore thou knowest his works , depart from them all , and give no credit to him : because his works are evil , and agree not to the servants of god. here therefore thou hast the works of both these angels . know now and believe the angel of righteousness , because his instruction is good. for let a man be never so happy ; yet if the thoughts of the other angel arise in his heart , that man or woman must needs sin . but let a man or woman be never so wicked , and the works of the angel of righteousness come into his heart , that man or woman must needs do some good. thou seest therefore how it is good to follow the angel of righteousness . if therefore thou shalt follow him , and believe in his works , thou shalt live unto god. and as many as shall believe in his works , shall live also unto god. the seventh command . that we must fear god , but not the devil . ‖ fear god , says he , and keep his commandments . for if thou keepest his commandments thou shalt be powerful in every work , and all thy counsel shall be excellent . for by fearing god , thou shalt do every thing well . this is that fear with which thou must be affected , that thou mayst be saved . but fear not the devil : for if thou fearest the lord thou shalt have dominion over him ; because there is no power in him . now if there be no power in him , then neither is he to be feared . but he in whom power is excellent , he is also to be feared . for every one that has power is to be feared . but he that has no power is despised by every one . fear the works of the devil because they are evil. for by fearing the lord , thou wilt fear and not do the works of the devil , but keep thy self from them . for there is a twofold fear ; for if whilst thou fearest the lord thou wilt do that which is evil , thou shalt not do even that . but if thou wilt do good , the fear of the lord is strong , and great , and glorious . wherefore , fear god and thou shalt live . and whosoever shall fear him , and keep his commandments , their life is with the lord . but they who keep them not , neither is life in them . the eighth command . that we must flee from evil , and do good. i have told thee , said he , that there are two kinds of creatures of the lord , and that there is a two-fold * abstinence . from some therefore thou must abstain , and from others not . i answered , tell me , sir , from what i must abstain , and from what not . hearken , said he . keep thy self from evil , and do it not . but abstain not from good , but do it . for if thou shalt abstain from what is good , and not do it ; thou shalt sin . abstain therefore from all evil , and thou shalt know all righteousness . i said ; what evil things are they from which i must abstain ? hearken , said he ; from adultery ; from drunkenness ; from wicked riots ; from excess of eating ; from daintiness and dishonesty ; from pride ; from denials ; from lying ; from detraction ; from feigned wickedness ; from remembrance of injuries ; and from evil reports . for these are ‖ all the works of iniquity ; from which the servant of god must abstain . for he that cannot keep himself from these things , cannot live unto god. but hear , said he , what follows of these kind of things . and indeed many more there are from which the servant of god must abstain . from theft , and cheating ; from false-witness ; from covetousness ; from boasting ; and all other things of the like nature . do these things seem to thee to be evil or not ? indeed they are very evil to the servants of god. wherefore every such person must abstain from all these * works . keep thy self therefore from them , that thou mayst live unto god , and be written among those that abstain from them . and thus have i shewn thee what things thou must avoid : now learn from what thou must not abstain . abstain not from any good works , but do them . hear , said he , what the vertue of those good works is which thou must do , that thou mayst be saved . the first of all is faith ; the fear of the lord ; charity ; concord ; piety ; equity ; truth ; patience ; chastity . there is nothing better than these things in the life of man ; who shall keep and do these things in their life . hear next what follow these . to minister to the widows ; not to despise the fatherless and poor ; to redeem the servants of god from necessity ; to be hospitable ; for in hospitality there is sometimes great fruit. not to be contentious , but be quiet ; to be humble above all men ; to reverence the aged ; to labour to be righteous ; to keep up brotherhood ; to bear affronts ; to be equal minded ; not to cast away those that have fallen from the faith ; but to make them gentle ; to admonish sinners ; not to oppress those that are our debtors ; and all other things of alike kind . do these things seem to thee to be good , or not ? and i said , what can be better than these words ? live , then said he , in these commandments , and do not depart from them . for if thou shalt keep all these commandments , thou shalt live unto god. and all they that shall keep these commandments shall live unto god. the ninth command . that we must ask of god daily ; and without doubting . again he said unto me ; ‖ remove from thee all doubting ; and question nothing at all . when thou askest any thing of the lord , say not within thy self ; how shall i be able to ask any thing of the lord and receive it , seeing i am so great a sinner against him ? do not think thus , but turn unto the lord with all thy heart . ask without doubting , and thou shalt know the mercy of the lord ; how that he will not forsake thee , but will fulfil the request of thy soul. for god is not as men , mindful of the injuries he has received ; but he forgets injuries , and has compassion upon his creature . wherefore purifie thy heart from all the vices of this present world ; and observe the commands i have before deliver'd unto thee from god ; and thou shalt receive whatsoever good things thou shalt ask , and nothing shall be wanting unto thee of all thy petitions ; if thou shalt ask of the lord without doubting . but they that are not such , shall obtain none of those things which they ask . for they that are full of faith , ask with confidence , and receive from the lord , because they ask without doubting . but he that doubts ; shall hardly live unto god , except he repent . wherefore purifie thy heart from doubting , and put on faith ; and trust in god ; and thou shalt receive all that thou shalt ask . but and if thou shouldst chance to ask somewhat and not receive it , yet do not therefore doubt , because thou hast not presently received the petition of thy soul. for it may be thou shalt not yet receive it for thy tryal , or else for some sin which thou knowest not . but do not thou leave off to ask , † and then thou shalt receive . else if thou shalt cease to ask , thou must complain of thy self , and not of god , that he has not given unto thee what thou didst desire . consider therefore this doubting how cruel and pernicious it is ; and how it utterly roots out many from the faith , who were very faithful and firm . for this doubting is the daughter of the devil ; and deals very wickedly with its servants . despise it therefore , and thou shalt rule over it ‖ on every occasion . put on a firm and powerful faith. for faith promises all things , and perfects all things . but doubting will not believe , that it shall obtain any thing , by all that it can do . thou seest therefore , says he , how faith cometh from above , from god ; and has great power . but doubting is an earthly spirit , and proceedeth from the devil , and has no strēgth . do thou therefore keep the vertue of faith , and depart from doubting , in which is no vertue , and thou shalt live unto god. and all shall live unto god , as many as shall do these things . the tenth command . of the sadness of the heart ; and that we must take heed not to grieve the spirit of god that is in us . i. put all sadness far from thee ; for it is the sister of doubting and of anger . how , sir , said i , is it the sister of these ? for sadness , and anger , and doubting , seem to me to be very different from one another . and he answered ; ‖ art thou without sense that thou dost not understand it ? for sadness is the most mischievous of all spirits , and the worst to the servants of god : it destroys the spirits of all men , and torments the holy spirit ; and again it saves . sir , said i , i am very foolish , and understand not these † things . i cannot apprehend how it can torment , and yet save ? hear , said he , and understand . they who never sought out the truth , nor enquired concerning the majesty of god ; but only believed , are involved in the affairs of the heathen . and there is another * lying prophet , that destroys the senses of the servants of god ; that is , of those that are doubtful , not of those that fully trust in the lord . now those doubtful persons come to him , as to a divine spirit , and enquire of him , what shall befal them . and this lying prophet , having no power in him of the divine spirit , answers them according to their demands ; and fills their souls with promises according as they desire . howbeit that prophet is vain , and answers vain things to those who are themselves vain . and whatsoever is asked of him by vain men , he answers them vainly . nevertheless he speaketh some things truly . for the devil fills him with his spirit , that he may overthrow some of the righteous . ii. whosoever therefore are strong in the faith of the lord , and have put on the truth ; they are not joyned to such spirits , but depart from them . but those that are doubtful , and often repenting ; like the heathens , consult them , and heap up to themselves great sin , serving idols . as many therefore as are such , enquire of them upon every occasion ; worship idols , and are foolish , and void of the truth . for every spirit that is given from god is not asked ; but having the power of the divinity speaks all things of its self ; because it comes from above from the power of the holy spirit . but he that being ask'd speaks according to mens desires , and concerning many other affairs of this present world , understands not the things which relate unto god. for these spirits are darkned through such affairs , and corrupted , and broken . as good vines if they are neglected , are oppress'd with weeds and thorns , and at last kill'd by them ; so are the men who believe such spirits : they fall into many actions and businesses , and are void of sense , and when they think of things pertaining unto god , they understand nothing at all . but if at any time they chance to hear any thing concerning the lord , their † thoughts are upon their business : but they that have the fear of the lord , and search out the truth concerning god , have all their thoughts with the lord . they apprehend whatsoever is said to them , and forthwith they understand it , because they have the fear of the lord in them . for where the spirit of the lord dwells , there is also a great sense added . wherefore joyn thy self to the lord , and thou shalt understand and apprehend all things . iii. learn now , o unwise man ! how sadness grieves the holy spirit , and how it saves . when a man that is doubtful is engaged in any affair , and do's not accomplish it by reason of his doubting ; this sadness enters into him , and grieves the holy spirit , and makes him sad . again , anger when it overtakes any man for any business , he is greatly moved ; and anger possesses his heart ; and he is disturb'd in his work which he is about , and afterwards repents , because he did amiss . thus both doubting and sadness hurt the holy spirit . doubting , because his work did not succeed ; and sadness , because he angr'd the holy spirit . ‖ remove therefore sadness from thy self ; and offend not the holy spirit which dwelleth in thee ; least he ask the lord , and depart from thee . for the spirit of the lord which is given to us in the flesh , endures not sadness . wherefore cloath thy self with chearfulness , which has always favour with the lord , and thou shalt rejoyce in it . for every chearful man do's well , and relishes those things that are good , and despises unrighteousness . but the sad man do's wickedly , because he grieves the holy spirit , which is given to the chearful man. and again he do's ill , because he prays with sadness unto the lord , except he first makes a thankful acknowledgment unto him of former mercies ; and obtains not of god what he asks . for the prayer of a sad man has not always efficacy to come up to the altar of god. and i said unto him , sir , why has not the prayer of a sad man vertue to come up to the altar of god ? because , said he , that sadness remaineth in his heart . when therefore a man's prayer shall be accompanied with sadness , it will not suffer his requests to ascend pure to the altar of god. for as wine when it is mingled with vinegar , has not the sweetness it had before ; so sadness being mix'd with the holy spirit , suffers not a man's prayer to be pure , as it would be otherwise . wherefore purifie thy self from sadness , which is evil , and thou shalt live unto god. and all others shall live unto god , as many as shall lay aside sadness , and put on chearfulness . the eleventh command . that the spirits and prophets are to be tried by their works ; and of a two-fold spirit . he shew'd me certain men sitting upon benches , and one sitting in a chair : and he said unto me ; seest thou those who sit upon the benches ? sir , said i , i see them . he answer'd ; they are the faithful ; and he who sits in the chair , is an earthly spirit . for he cometh not into the church ‖ with the faithful , but avoids it . but he joyns himself to the doubtful and empty ; and prophecies to them in hidden places and corners ; and pleases them by speaking according to all the desires of their hearts . for that which is fitted to empty vessels is not broken , but the one agrees to the other . but when such a one comes into the company of just men , who have the spirit of god , and they pray unto the lord ; that man is emptied , because that earthly spirit flies from him , and he is dumb , and cannot speak any thing . as if in a store-house you shall stop up wine or oyl ; and among those vessels shall place an empty jar ; and shall afterwards come to open it , you shall find it empty as you stopp'd it up : so those empty prophets , when they come among the spirits of the just , are found to be such as they came . thus you see the life of each of these kind of prophets . wherefore prove that man by his life and works , who says that he hath the holy spirit . and believe the spirit which comes from god , and has power as such . but believe not the earthly spirit , in whom there is no trust nor vertue , but he is empty ; because he is from the devil . hear now the similitude which i am about to speak unto thee . take a stone , and throw it up towards heaven ; or take a spout of water , and mount it up thither-ward ; and see if thou canst reach unto heaven . sir , said i ; how can this be done ? for neither of those things , which you have mentioned , are possible to be done . and he answer'd ; therefore as these things cannot be done , so is the earthly spirit without vertue , and without effect . understand yet farther the power of the other , in this similitude . the grains of hail that drop down are exceeding small ; and yet when they fall upon the head of a man , how do they cause pain to it ? and again ; consider the droppings of a house ; how the little drops falling upon the earth , work a hollow in the stones . so in like manner the least things which come from above , and fall upon the earth , have great force . wherefore join thy self to this spirit , which has power ; and depart from the other which is empty . the twelfth command . of a two-fold desire : that the commands of god are not impossible : and that the devil is not to be feared by them that believe . i. again he said unto me ; * remove from thee all evil desires , and put on all good and holy desires . for having put on a good desire , thou shalt hate that which is evil , and bridle it as thou wilt . but an evil desire is dreadful , and hard to be appeas'd . it is very horrible and wild ; and by its wildness consumes men. and especially if the servant of god shall chance to fall into it , except he be very wise , he shall be ruined by it . for it destroys those who have not the garment of a good desire ; and engages them in the affairs of this present world , and delivers them unto death . sir , said i , what are the works of an evil desire , which shall bring men unto death ? shew them to me , that i may depart from them . hear , said he , in what works an evil desire shall bring the servants of god unto death . the spirit of all men is earthly , and light , and has no vertue , and speaks much . i said ; how then shall a man be able to discern them ? consider what i am going to say concerning both kinds of † men ; and as i speak unto thee so shalt thou prove the prophet of god , and the false prophet . and first , try the man who hath the spirit of god ; because the spirit , which is from above , is humble , and quiet , and departs from all wickedness , and from the vain desires of the present world ; and makes himself more humble than all men ; and answers to none when he is ask'd ; nor to every one singly ; neither do's the spirit of god speak to a man when he will ; but speaks when god pleases . when therefore a man who has the spirit of god shall come into the church of the righteous , who have the faith of god , and they pray unto the lord ; then the holy angel of god fills that man with the blessed spirit , and he speaks in the congregation as he is moved by god. thus therefore is the spirit of god known , because whosoever speaks by the spirit of god , speaketh as the lord will. ii. hear now concerning the earthly spirit which is empty and foolish , and without vertue . and first of all the man , who may be supposed to have this spirit exalteth himself , and desires to have the first seat , and is wicked and full of words ; and spends his time in pleasure , and in all manner of voluptuousness ; and receives the reward of his divination . which if he receives not , he do's not divine . although the spirit of god may receive reward , and divine : but it becomes not the prophet of god so to do . but it is an evil desire to covet another mans wife ; or for a woman to covet anothers husband ; as also to desire the dainties of riches ; and multitude of superfluous meats ; and drunkenness ; and many delights . for in much delicacy there is folly ; and many pleasures are needless to the servants of god. such lusting therefore is evil and pernicious , which brings to death the servants of god. for all such lusting is from the devil . whosoever therefore shall depart from all evil desires , shall live unto god : but they that are subject unto them shall die for ever . for this evil lusting is deadly . do thou therefore put on the desire of righteousness , and being armed with the fear of the lord resist all wicked lusting . for fear dwelleth in good desires ; and when evil coveting shall see thee arm'd with the fear of the lord , and resisting it ; it will flie far from thee , and not appear before thee , but be afraid of thy armour ; and thou shalt have the victory , and be crown'd for it ; and shalt attain unto that desire which is good ; and shalt give the victory which thou hast obtain'd unto god , and shalt serve him in doing what thou thy self wouldst do . for if thou shalt be subject to good desires , and follow them ; thou shalt be able to get the dominion over thy wicked lustings ; and they shall be subject to thee as thou wilt . iii. and i said ; sir , i would know how i ought to serve that desire which is good ? hearken , said he , fear god , and put thy trust in him ; and love truth , and righteousness ; and do that which is good . if thou shalt do these things , thou shalt be an approved servant of god ; and shalt serve him . and when he had fulfilled these twelve commands , he said unto me ; thou hast now these commands , walk in them ; and exhort those that hear them that they repent ; and that they keep their repentance pure all the remaining days of their life . and fulfil diligently this service which i commit to thee , and thou shalt receive great advantage by it , and shalt find favour with all such as shall repent , and shall believe thy words . for i am with thee , and will force them to believe . and i said unto him ; sir , these commands are great and excellent , and able to chear the heart of that man that shall be able to keep them . but sir , i cannot tell , whether they can be observed by any man ? he answer'd ; thou shalt easily keep these commands , and they shall not be hard : howbeit if thou shalt suffer it once to enter into thy heart that they cannot be kept by any one , thou shalt not fulfil them . but now i say unto thee ; if thou shalt not observe these commands , but shalt dissemble , thou shalt not be saved , nor thy children , nor thy house : because thou hast judged that these commands cannot be kept by man. iv. these things he spake very angrily unto me , insomuch that he greatly affrighted me . for he changed his countenance , so that a man could not bear his anger . and when he saw me altogether troubled and confounded , he began to speak more moderately and chearfully saying ; o foolish , and without understanding ! unconstant , not knowing the majesty of god , how great , but withal how merciful he is ; who created the world for man ; and hath made every creature subject unto him , and given him all power , that he should be able to overcome all these commands . he is able , said he , to overcome all these commands , who has the lord in his heart : but they who have the lord only in their mouths , and their heart is hardned , are far from the lord . to such persons these commands are hard and difficult . put therefore ye that are empty and light in the faith , the lord your god , and keep him in your hearts ; and ye shall understand how that nothing is more easie then these commands , nor more pleasant , nor more gentle and holy : and turn your selves to the lord your god , and forsake the devil and his pleasures , because they are evil , and bitter , and impure . and fear not the devil , because he has no power over you . for i am with you , the * messenger of repentance , who have the dominion over him . the devil do's indeed affright men ; but his terror is vain . wherefore fear him not , and he will flee from you . v. and i said unto him ; sir , hear me speak a few words unto you . he answer'd , say on : a man indeed desires to keep the commandments of god ; and there is no one but what prays unto god , that he may be able to keep his commandments . but the devil is hard , and by his power rules over the servants of god. and he said ; he cannot rule over the servants of god , who believe in him with all their hearts . the devil may strive , but he cannot overcome them . for if ye resist him , he will flee away with shame from you . but they that are not full in the faith , fear the devil , as if he had some great power . for the devil tries the servants of god , and if he finds them empty , he destroys them . for as a man , when he fills up vessels with good wine , † and among them puts a few vessels half full , and comes to try and tast of the vessels , do's not try those that are full , because he knows that they are good ; but tasts those that are half full , least they should grow sowre ; for vessels half full soon grow sowre , and lose the tast of wine : so the devil comes to the servants of god to try them . they that are full of faith resist him stoutly , and he departs from them , because he finds no place where to enter into them ; then he go's to those that are not full of faith , and because he has place of entrance he goes into them and do's what he will with them , and they become his servants . vi. but i , the ‖ messenger of repentance , say unto you , fear not the devil . for i am sent unto you , that i may be with you , as many as shall repent with your whole heart , and that i may confirm you in the faith. ‖ believe therefore ye who by reason of your transgressions have forgot god , and who company your salvation with your sins , lead your lives in trouble ; that if ye shall turn to the lord with your whole hearts , and shall serve him according to his will ; he will give a remedy to your souls , notwithstanding your former sins , and ye shall have dominion over all the works of the devil . be not then afraid in the least of his threatnings ; for they are without force ; as the sinews of a dead man. but hearken unto me , and fear the lord almighty who is able to save and to destroy you ; and keep his commands , that ye may live unto god. and i said unto him ; sir , i am now confirm'd in all the commands of the lord whilst that you are with me ; and i know that you will break all the power of the devil . and we also shall overcome him , if we shall be able , through the help of the lord , to keep these commands which you have delivered . thou shalt keep them , said he , if thou shalt purifie thy heart towards the lord . and all they also shall keep them who shall cleanse their hearts from the vain desires of the present world , and shall live unto god. the third book of st. hermas which is called his similitudes . the first similitude . that seeing we have no abiding city in this world ; we ought to look after that which is to come . and he said unto me ; ‖ ye know that ye who are the servants of the lord , live here as in a pilgrimage . for your city is far off from this city . if therefore ye know your city in which ye are to dwell , why do ye here buy estates , and provide your selves with delicacies , and stately buildings , and superfluous houses ? for he that provides himself these things in this city , do's not think of returning into his own city . o foolish , and doubtful , and wretched man ! who understandest not that all these things are other mens , and under the power of another ! for the lord of this city saith unto thee , either obey my laws , or depart out of my city . what therefore shalt thou do who art subject to a law in thine own city ? canst thou for thy estate , or for any of those things which thou hast provided , deny thy law ? but if thou shalt deny it , and wilt afterwards return into thy own city , thou shalt not be received , but shalt be excluded thence . see therefore that like a man in another country , thou procure no more to thy self than what is necessary , and sufficient for thee ; and be ready , that when the god or lord of this city shall drive thee out of it , thou mayst oppose his law , and go into thine own city ; where thou mayst with all chearfulness live according to thine own law without wrong . take heed then ye that serve god , and have him in your hearts ; work ye the works of god , being mindful both of his commands and of his promises , which he has promised ; and be assured that he will make them good unto you ; if ye shall keep his commandments . instead therefore of the possessions that ye would otherwise purchase , redeem ‖ those that are in want from their necessities , as every one is able ; justifie the widows ; judge the cause of the fatherless ; and spend your riches and your wealth in such works as these . for , for this end has god enriched you , that ye might fulfil these kind of services . it is much better to do this , than to buy lands or houses ; because all such things shall perish with this present time. but what ye shall do for the name of the lord , ye shall find in your city , and shall have joy without sadness or fear . wherefore covet not the riches of the heathen ; for they are destructive to the servants of god. but of your own abundance which you have , do those things by which ye may attain unto joy. and do not commit adultery , nor touch any other mans wife ; nor desire her : but covet that which is thy own business , and thou shalt be saved . the second similitude . as the vine is supported by the elm , so is the rich-man help'd by the prayers of the poor . as i was walking into the field , and consider'd the elm and the vine , and thought with my self of their fruits ; an angel appear'd unto me , and said unto me ; what is it that thou thinkest upon thus long within thy self ? and i said unto him ; sir , i think of this vine and this elm , because their fruits are fair . and he said unto me ; ‖ these two trees are set for a pattern to the servants of god. and i said unto him ; sir , i would know what the pattern is for which these trees are set . hearken , saith he ; seest thou this vine and this elm ? sir , said i , i see them . this vine , saith he , is fruitful , but the elm is a tree without fruit. nevertheless this vine unless it were set by this elm , and supported by it , would not bear much fruit ; but lying along upon the ground , would bear ill fruit , because it did not hang upon the elm : whereas now being supported upon the elm , it bears fruit both for its self and for that . see therefore how the elm gives no less , but rather more fruit than the vine . how , sir , said i , do's it bear more fruit than the vine ? because , said he , the vine being supported upon the elm gives both much and good fruit : whereas if it lay along upon the ground it would bear but little , and that very ill too . this similitude therefore is set forth to the servants of god ; and it represents the rich and poor man. i answer'd , sir , make this manifest unto me . hear , said he : the rich man has wealth ; howbeit towards the lord he is poor : for he is taken up about his riches , and prays but little to the lord ; and the prayers which he makes are lazy and without force . when therefore the rich man reaches out to the poor those things which he wants , the poor man prays unto the lord for the rich ; and god grants unto the rich man all good things ; because the poor man is rich in prayer ; and his requests have great power with the lord . then the rich man ministers all things to the poor , because he perceives that he is heard by the lord ; and he the more willingly , and without doubting affords him what he wants , and takes care that nothing be lacking to him . and the poor man gives thanks unto the lord for the rich ; because he do's this work to him from the lord . with men therefore the elm is not thought to give any fruit ; and they know not , neither understand that its company being added to the vine , the vine bears a double encrease , both for its self and for the elm. even so the poor praying unto the lord for the rich , are heard by him ; and their riches are encreased , because they minister to the poor of their wealth . they are therefore both made partakers of each others good works . whosoever therefore shall do these things , he shall not be forsaken by the lord , but shall be written in the book of life . happy are they who are rich , and perceive themselves to be encreased : for he that is sensible of this , will be able to minister somewhat to others . the third similitude . as the green trees in the winter cannot be distinguish'd from the dry ; so neither can the righteous from the wicked in this present world. again he shewed me many trees whose leaves were shed , and which seemed to me to be wither'd ; for they were all alike . and he said unto me , seest thou these trees ? i said , sir , i see that they look like dry trees . he answering said unto me ; these trees are like unto the men who live in this present world. i reply'd ; sir , why are they like unto dryed trees ? because , said he , neither the righteous nor unrighteous are known from one another ; but are all alike in this present world. for this world is as the winter to the righteous men , because they are not known , but dwell among sinners . as in the winter all the trees , having lost their leaves , are like dry trees ; nor can it be said which are dry and which are green : so in this present world neither the righteous nor wicked are discern'd from each other , but they are all alike . the fourth similitude . as in summer the living trees are distinguish'd from the dry by their fruit and green leaves ; so in the world to come the righteous shall be distinguish'd from the unrighteous by their happiness . again he shewed me many other trees , of which some had leaves , and others appear'd dry and wither'd . and he said unto me , seest thou these trees ? i answer'd , sir , i see them ; and some are dry , and others full of leaves . these trees , saith he , which are green are the righteous , who shall possess the world to come . for the world to come , is the summer to the righteous ; but to sinners it is the winter . when therefore the mercy of the lord shall shine forth , then they who serve god shall be made manifest , and plain unto all . for as in the summer the fruit of every tree is shewn and made manifest , so also the works of the righteous shall be declared and made manifest , and they shall all be restored in that world merry and joyful . for the other † kind of men , namely wicked , like the trees which thou sawest dry , shall as such be found dry and without fruit in that other world ; and like dry wood shall be burnt , and it shall be made manifest that they have done evil in the time of their life ; and they shall be burnt because they have sinned , and have not repented of their sins . and also all the other nations shall be burnt , because they have not acknowledged god their creator . do thou therefore bring forth good fruit , that in the summer thy fruit may be known ; and keep thy self from much business , and thou shalt not offend . for they that are involved in much business , sin much ; because they are taken up with their affairs , and neglect to serve god. and how can a man that do's not serve god , ask any thing of god , and receive it ? but they who serve him , ask and receive what they desire . but if a man has only one thing to follow , he may serve god , because his mind is not thereby taken off from god , but he serves him with a pure mind . if therefore thou shalt do thus , thou shalt have fruit in the world to come ; and all , as many as shall do in like manner , shall bring forth fruit. the fifth similitude . of a true fast , and the rewards of it : also of the cleanness of the body . i. as i was fasting , and sitting down in a certain mountain , and giving thanks unto god for all the things that he had done ‖ unto me ; behold i saw the shepherd , who was wont to converse with me , sitting by me , and saying unto me : what has brought thee hither thus early in the morning ? i answer'd , sir , to day i keep a * station . he answer'd , what is a station ? i reply'd ; it is a fast. he said ; what is that fast ? i answer'd , i fast , as i have been wont to do . ye know not , said he , what it is to fast unto god ; nor is this a fast which ye fast , profiting nothing with god. sir , said i , what makes you speak thus ? he reply'd ; i speak it , because this is not the true fast which you think that you fast ; but i will shew you what that is which is a † compleat fast , and acceptable unto god. hearken , said he , the lord do's not desire such a needless fast : for by fasting in this manner , thou advancest nothing in righteousness . but the true fast is this ; do nothing wickedly in thy life ; but serve god with a pure mind ; and keep his commandments , and walk according to his precepts , nor suffer any wicked desire to dwell in thy mind . and trust in the lord ; that if thou dost these things , and fearest him , and abstainest from every evil work , thou shalt live unto god. if thou shalt do this , thou shalt perfect a great fast , and an acceptable one unto the lord . ii. hearken unto the similitude which i am about to propose unto thee , as to this matter . a certain man having a farm , and many servants , planted a vineyard in a certain part of his estate for his posterity : and taking a journey into a far country chose one of his servants which he thought the most faithful and approved , and deliver'd the vineyard into his care ; commanding him that he should stake up his vines . which if he did , and fulfilled his command , he promised to give him his liberty . nor did he command him to do any thing more ; and so went into a far country . after then that that servant had taken that charge upon him ; he did whatsoever his lord commanded him . and when he had staked the vineyard , and found it to be full of weeds , he began to think with himself , saying ; i have done what my lord commanded me ; i will now dig this vineyard , and when it is digg'd it will be more beautiful ; and the weeds being pull'd up it will bring forth more fruit , and not be choak'd by the weeds . so setting about his work he digg'd it , and pluck'd up all the weeds that were in it : and by that means the vineyard became very beautiful and prosperous , and not over-run and choak'd with weeds . after some time the lord of the vineyard comes and goes into the vineyard , and when he saw that it was handsomely stak'd , and digg'd , and the weeds pluck'd up that were in it , and the vines flourishing , he rejoyced greatly at the care of his servant . and calling his son whom he loved , and who was to be his heir ; and his friends with whom he was wont to consult , he tells them what he had commanded his servant to do , and what his servant had done more : and they immediately congratulated that servant , that he had received so full a testimony from his lord. then he said unto them ; i indeed promised this servant his liberty , if he observed the command which i gave him ; and he observed it , and besides has done a good work to my vineyard , which has exceedingly pleased me . wherefore for this work which he hath done , i will make him my heir together with my son ; because that when he saw what was good , he dissembled it not , but did it . this design of the lord , both his son and his friends approved , namely , that this servant should be heir together with his son. not long after this , the master of the family calling together his friends , sent from his supper several kinds of food to that servant . which when he had received , he took so much of them as was sufficient for himself , and divided the rest among his fellow servants . which when they had received , they rejoyced ; and wish'd that he might find yet greater favour with his lord , for what he had done to them . when his lord heard all these things , he was again fill'd with great joy ; and calling again his friends and his son together , he related to them what his servant had done with the meats which he had sent unto him . they therefore so much the more assented to the master of the houshold ; that he ought to make that servant his heir together with his son. iii. i said unto him ; sir , i know not these similitudes , neither can i understand them , unless you expound them unto me . i will , says he , expound all things unto thee whatsoever i have talk'd with thee , or shewn unto thee . keep the commandments of the lord and thou shalt be approved , and shalt be written in the number of those that keep his commandments . but if besides those things which the lord hath commanded , thou shalt add some good thing ; thou shalt purchase to thy self a greater dignity , and be in more favour with the lord than thou shouldst otherwise have been . if therefore thou shalt keep the commandments of the lord , and shalt add to them these stations , thou shalt rejoyce ; but especially if thou shalt keep them according to my commands . i said unto him ; sir , whatsoever thou shalt command me , i will observe ; for i know that thou wilt be with me . i will , said he , be with thee , who hast taken up such a resolution ; and i will be with all those who purpose in like manner . this fast , saith he , whilst thou dost also observe the commandments of the lord , is exceeding good . thus therefore shalt thou keep it . first of all , take heed to thy self , and keep thy self from every wicked act , and from every filthy word , and from every hurtful desire ; and purifie thy sense from all the vanity of this present world. if thou shalt observe these things , this fast shall be such as it ought to be . thus therefore do . having perform'd what is before written , that day on which thou fastest thou shalt taste nothing at all but * bread and water † and computing the quantity of food which thou art wont to eat upon other days , thou shalt * lay aside the expence which thou shouldst have made that day , and give it unto the widow , the fatherless and the poor . * and thus thou shalt perfect the humility of thy soul ; that he who receives of it may satisfie his soul , and his prayer come up to the lord god for thee . if therefore thou shalt thus accomplish thy fast , as i command thee ; thy sacrifice shall be acceptable uto the lord , and thy fast shall be written in his book . this station thus perform'd is good , and pleasing , and acceptable unto the lord . these things if thou shalt observe with thy children , and with all thy house , thou shalt be happy . and whosoever , when they hear these things , shall do them ; they also shall be happy , and whatsoever they shall ask of the lord they shall receive it . iv. and i pray'd him that he would expound unto me the similitude of the farm , and the lord ; and of the vineyard and of the servant that had staked the vine-yard ; and of the weeds that were pluck'd out of the vineyard ; and of his son and his friends which he took into counsel with him . for i understood that that was the similitude . he said unto me ; thou art very ready in asking : howbeit thou oughst not to ask any thing , for if it be fitting to shew it unto thee , it shall be shewed . i answer'd him ; sir , whatsoever thou shalt shew , without explaining it unto me , i shall in vain see it : and what similitudes thou shalt propose , and not expound them , i shall in vain hear them . he answered me again , saying , whosoever is the servant of god , and has the lord in his heart , desires understanding of him , and receives it ; and he explains every similitude , and understands the words of the lord which need an enquiry . but they that are lazy , and slow to pray ; doubt to seek from the lord , although the lord be of such an extraordinary goodness , that without ceasing he giveth all things to them that ask of him . thou therefore who art strengthened by that venerable messenger , and hast received such a powerful gift of prayer ; seeing thou art not sloathful , why dost thou not now ask understanding of the lord and receive it ? i said unto him ; seeing i have thee present , it is necessary that i should seek it of thee , and ask thee ; for thou shewest all things unto me , and speakest to me when thou art present . but if i should see or hear these things when thou wert not present , i would then ask the lord that he would shew them unto me . v. and he reply'd ; i said a little before that thou wert subtle and bold , and that thou askest the meaning of these similitudes . but because thou still persistest ; i will unfold to thee the parable which thou desirest , that thou mayst make it known unto all men. hear therefore , said he , and understand . the farm before mention'd denotes the whole earth : the lord of the farm is he , who created and finished all things ; and gave vertue unto them . his son is the holy ‖ spirit ; the servant is the son of god. the vineyard is the people whom he saves . the stakes are the * messengers which are set over them by the lord , to support his people . the weeds that are pluckt up out of the vineyard , are the sins which the servants of god had committed . the food which he sent him from his supper , are the commands which he gave to his people by his son. the friends whom he call'd to counsel with him , are the holy angels whom he first created . the absence of the master of the houshold is the time that remains unto his coming . i said unto him ; sir , all these things are very excellent , and wonderful , and good . but , continued i , could i or any other man besides , though never so wise , have understood these things ? wherefore now sir , tell me what i ask . he replied , ask me what thou wilt . why , said i , is the son of god in this parable , put in the place of a servant ? vi. hearken , said he ; the son of god is not put in the condition of a servant , but in great power and authority . and i answer'd , how , sir ? i understood it not . because said he , the son set his * messengers over those whom the father deliver'd unto him , to keep every one of them ; but he himself labour'd very much , and suffer'd much , that he might blot out their offences . for no vineyard can be digg'd without much labour and pains . wherefore having blotted out the sins of his people , he shew'd to them the paths of life , giving them the law which he had received of the father . you see , said he , that he is the lord of his people , having received all power from his father . but why did the lord take into counsel his son , concerning dividing the inheritance , and the good angels ? hear : because that messenger hearkned to the holy ghost , which was first of all infused into the body in which god should dwell . for his understanding placed him in the body , as it seem'd good to him . this body therefore into which the holy spirit was brought , served that spirit , walking rightly and purely in modesty ; nor ever defiled that spirit . seeing therefore the body at all times obeyed the holy spirit , and labour'd rightly and chastly with him ; nor falter'd at any time ; that body being wearied conversed indeed servily , but being stoutly approved with the holy spirit , was accepted by god. for such a powerful course pleased god , because he was not defiled in the earth , keeping the holy spirit in council with him . he called therefore his son , and the good angels , that there might be some place of standing given to this body which had served the holy spirit without complaint ; least it should seem to have lost the reward of its service . for every pure body , shall receive its reward ; that is found without spot , in which the holy spirit has been appointed to dwell . and thus you have now the exposition of this parable also . vii . sir , said i , i now understand your meaning , since i have heard this exposition . hearken farther , said he : keep this thy body clean and pure ; that the spirit which shall dwell in it may bear witness unto it , and be judged to have been with thee . also take heed that it be not instill'd into thy mind that this body perishes , and thou abuse it to any lust. for if thou shalt defile thy body ; thou shalt also at the same time defile the holy spirit ; and if thou shalt defile the holy spirit , thou shalt not live . and i said ; what if through ignorance this should have been already committed , before a man heard these words ; how can he attain unto salvation , who has thus defiled his body ? he reply'd ; as for mens former actions , which through ignorance they have committed , god only can afford a remedy unto them ; for all power belongeth unto him . but now guard thy self ; and seeing god is almighty and merciful , he will grant a remedy to what thou hast formerly done amiss , if for the time to come thou shalt not defile thy body and spirit : for they are companions together , and the one cannot be defiled but the other will be so too . keep therefore both of them pure , and thou shalt live unto god. the sixth similitude . of two sorts of voluptuous men , and of their death , defection , and of the continuance of their pains . i. as i was sitting at home , and praising god for all the things which i had seen ; and was thinking concerning the commands , that they were exceeding good and great , and honest , and pleasant ; and such as would certainly bring a man to salvation ; i said thus within my self : i shall be happy if i shall walk according to these commands , and whosoever shall walk in them shall live unto god. whilst i was meditating on this wise , i saw him whom i had before been wont to see , sitting by me ; and he spake thus unto me . what doubtest thou concerning the commands which i have delivered unto thee ? doubt not whether they are good , but trust in the lord and thou shalt walk in them . for i will give thee strength ‖ to fulfil them . these commands are profitable to those who shall repent of those sins which they have formerly committed ; if for the time to come they shall not continue in them . whosoever therefore ye be that repent , cast away from you the naughtiness of the present world. and put on all vertue , and all righteousness , and so shall ye be able to keep these commands ; neither sin from henceforth any more . for if ye shall keep your selves from sin for the time to come , ye shall cut off a great deal of your former sins . walk in my commands , and ye shall live unto god : these things have i spoken unto you . and when he had said this , he added ; let us go into the field , and i will shew thee shepherds of sheep . i reply'd , sir , let us go . and we came into a certain field , and there he shew'd me a young shepherd , * finely array'd , with his garments of a purple colour . and he fed large flocks ; and his sheep were full of pleasure , and in much delight and chearfulness ; and they ran here and there , as it were rejoicing . and the shepherd took very great satisfaction in his flock ; and the countenance of that shepherd was chearful , running up and down among his flock . ii. then the angel said unto me ; see'st thou this shepherd ? i answer'd , sir , i see him . he said unto me ; this is the † messenger of delight and pleasure . he therefore corrupts the minds of the servants of god , and turns them from the truth , delighting them with many pleasures , and they perish . for they forget the commands of the living god , and live in luxury and in vain satisfactions ; and are corrupted by this evil-angel , some of them unto death ; and others even to a falling off from the truth . i replied ; i understand not what you mean , by being corrupted unto death , and so falling away . hear , says he : all those sheep which thou sawest exceeding fair and joyful , are such as have for ever departed from god , and given themselves up to the desires of this present time. to these therefore there is no return , by repentance , unto life ; because that to their other sins they have added this , that they have blasphemed the name of the lord . these kind of men are ordained unto death . but those sheep which thou sawest not leaping for joy , but feeding in one place ; are such as have indeed given themselves up to pleasures and delights ; but have not spoken any thing wickedly against the lord . these have not departed from the truth , and therefore have yet hope laid up for them in repentance . for such a defection has some hope still left of a renewal ; but they that are dead , are utterly gone for ever . again we went a little farther forward ; and he shew'd me a great shepherd , who had as it were a wild figure ; clad with a white goats skin , having his bag upon his shoulder , and in his hand a stick full of knots , and very hard , and a whip in his other hand ; and his countenance was stern and sour ; enough to affright a man ; such was his look . he took from that young shepherd such sheep as lived in pleasures , but did not skip up and down ; and drove them into a certain steep craggy place , full of thorns and briars , insomuch that they could not get themselves free from them ; but being entangled in them , fed upon thorns and briars , and were grievously tormented with his whipping . for he still drove them on , nor afforded them any place or time to stand still . iii. when therefore i saw them so cruelly whipp'd and afflicted , i was grieved for them , because they were greatly tormented , nor had they any rest afforded them . and i said unto the shepherd that was with me ; sir , who is this cruel and implacable shepherd , who is moved with no compassion towards these sheep ? he answer'd , * this shepherd is indeed the ‖ messenger of the righteous , but is set over them for their punishment . to him therefore are deliver'd those who have erred from god , and follow'd the desires and pleasures of this world , and served them . for this cause he punishes them every one according to their deserts with cruel and various kind of pains . sir , said i , i would know , what kind of pains they are which every one undergoes ? hearken , said he ; the several pains and torments are those which men every day undergo in their present lives . for some suffer losses ; others poverty ; others divers sicknesses . some are unconstant ; others suffer injuries from those that are unworthy ; others fall under many other tryals and inconveniences . many with an unsetled design aim at many things , and it profiteth them not , and they say that they have not success in their undertakings . these things call to their mind what they have done amiss , and they complain of the lord . when therefore they shall have undergon all kind of vexation and inconveniencie ; then they are deliver'd over to me for good instruction , and are confirm'd in the faith of the lord , and serve the lord all the rest of their life with a pure mind . and when they begin to repent of their sins , then they call to mind their works which they have done amiss , and give honour to god , saying , that he is a just judge , and that they have deservedly suffer'd all things according to their deeds . and for what remains of their lives they serve god with a pure mind , and have success in all their undertakings , and receive from the lord whatever they desire . and then they give thanks unto the lord that they were deliver'd unto me ; nor do they suffer any more cruelty . iv. i said unto him ; sir , i intreat you now to shew me one thing . what , said he , dost thou desire ? i said unto him ; are they who depart from the fear of god tormented for the same time that they enjoy'd their false delight and pleasures ? he answer'd me ; they are tormented for the same time. and i said unto him , they are then tormented but little ; whereas they who enjoy their pleasures so as to forget god , ought to endure seven times as much punishment . he answer'd me ; thou art foolish ; neither understandest thou the efficacy of this kind of punishment . i said unto him , sir , if i understood it , i would not desire you to tell me . hearken , said he , and learn what the force of both is , both of the pleasure and of the punishment . an hour of pleasure is terminated within its own space : but one hour of punishment has the efficacy of thirty days . * whosoever therefore enjoys his false pleasure for one day , and is one day tormented , that one day of punishment is equivalent to a whole years space . thus look how many days any one pursues his pleasures , so many years is he punish'd for it . you see therefore , how that the time of worldly enjoyments is but short , but that of pain and torments , a great deal more . v. i reply'd , sir ; forasmuch as i do not understand all these times of pleasure and pain ; i intreat you that you would explain your self more clearly concerning them . he answer'd me saying ; thy foolishness still sticks inseparably unto thee . shouldst thou not rather purifie thy mind , and serve god ? take heed , least when thy time is fulfill'd , thou shalt be found still unwise . hear then , as thou desirest , that thou mayst the more easily understand . he that gives himself up one day to his pleasures and delights ; and do's whatsoever his soul desires ; is full of great folly , nor understands what he do's , but the day following forgets what he did the day before . for sweetness and worldly pleasure have no memory by reason of the folly that is rooted in them . but when pain and torment befal a man a day , he is in effect troubled the whole year after ; because his punishment continues firm in his memory . wherefore he remembers it with sorrow the whole year ; and then calls to mind his vain pleasure and delight , and perceives that for the sake of that he was punished . whosoever therefore have deliver'd themselves over to such pleasures , are thus punished ; because that when they had life , they rendred themselves liable to death . i said unto him ; sir , and what pleasures are hurtful ? he answer'd , that is pleasure to every man which he do's willingly . for the angry man , gratifying his passion perceives pleasure in it ; and so the adulterer , and drunkard ; the detractor , and lyar , and covetous man , and the deceiver ; and whosoever commits any thing like unto these , because he gratifies his infirmities , he receives a satisfaction in the doing of it . all these pleasures and delights are hurtful to the servants of god. for these therefore they are tormented and suffer punishment . there are also pleasures that bring salvation unto men. for many , when they do what is good , find pleasure in it , and are attracted by the delights of it . now this pleasure is profitable to the servants of god , and brings life to such men : but those hurtful pleasures , which were before mention'd , bring torments and punishment . and whosoever shall continue in them , and shall not repent of what they have done , shall gain death unto themselves . the seventh similitude . that they who repent , must bring forth fruits worthy of repentance . after a few days i saw the same person that before talked with me , in the same field , in which i had before seen the shepherds . and he said unto me ; what seekest thou ? sir , said i , i came to intreat you , that you would command the shepherd who is the minister of punishment , to depart out of my house , because he greatly afflicts me . and he answer'd ; it is necessary for thee to endure inconveniencies and vexations ; for so that good angel hath commanded concerning thee , because he would try thee . sir , said i ; what so great offence have i committed , that i should be deliver'd to this ‖ messenger ? hearken , said he : thou art indeed guilty of many sins , yet not so many that thou shouldst be delivered to this ‖ messenger : but thy house hath committed many sins and offences , and therefore that good ‖ messenger being grieved at their doings commanded that for some time thou shouldst suffer affliction , that they may both repent of what they have done , and may wash themselves from all desires of this present world. when therefore they shall have repented , and be purified , then that messenger which is appointed over thy punishment , shall depart from thee . i said unto him ; sir , if they have behaved themselves so as to anger that good angel , yet what have i done ? he answer'd ; they cannot otherwise be afflicted , unless thou , who art the head of the family , suffer . for whatsoever thou shalt suffer , they must needs feel it : but as long as thou shalt stand well establish'd , they cannot experience any vexation . i replyed ; but , sir , behold they also now repent with all their hearts . i know , says he , that they repent with all their hearts ; but dost thou therefore think that their offences who repent are immediately blotted out ? no , they are not presently ; but he that repents must afflict his soul , and shew himself humble in all his affairs , and undergo many and divers vexations . and when he shall have suffer'd all things that were appointed for him ; then perhaps he that made him and all things besides will be moved with compassion towards him , and afford him some remedy ; and especially if he shall perceive his heart who repents , to be pure from every evil work. but at present it is expedient for thee and for thy house to be grieved ; and it is needful that thou shouldst endure much vexation ; as the angel of the lord who committed thee unto me , has commanded . rather give thanks unto the lord , that knowing what was to come , he thought thee worthy to whom he should foretel that trouble was coming upon those that were able to bear it . i said unto him ; sir , be but thou also with me , and i shall easily undergo any trouble . i will , said he , be with thee ; and i will ask the messenger who is set over thy punishment , that he would moderate his afflictions towards thee . and moreover thou shalt suffer adversity but for a little time ; and then thou shalt again be restored to thy former place ; only continue on in the humility of thy mind . obey the lord with a pure heart ; thou and thy house , and thy children ; and walk in the commands which i have delivered unto thee . and then thy repentance may be firm and pure . and if thou shalt keep these things with thy house , all inconveniencies shall depart from thee . and all vexation shall in like manner depart from all those , whosoever shall walk according to these commands . the eighth similitude . that there are many kinds of elect , and of repenting sinners : and how all of them shall receive a reward proportionable to the measure of their repentance and good works . i. again he shew'd me a willow which covered the fields and the mountains , under whose shadow came all such as were called by the name of the lord . and by that willow stood the angel of the lord very excellent and lofty ; and did cut down boughs from that willow with a great hook ; and reach'd out to the people that were under the shadow of that willow little rods , as it were about a foot long . and when all of them had taken them , he laid aside his hook , and the tree continued intire , as i had before seen it . at which i wondred , and mused within my self . then that shepherd said unto me ; forbear to wonder that that tree continues whole , notwithstanding so many boughs have been cut off from it : but attend ; for now it shall be shewn thee , what that angel means , who gave those rods to the people . so he again demanded the rods of them ; and in the same order that every one had received them , was he call'd to him , and restored his rod : which when he had received , he examin'd them . from some he received them dry and rotten , and as it were touch'd with the moth ; those he commanded to be separated from the rest , and placed by themselves . others gave him their rods dry indeed , but not touch'd with the moth ; these also he order'd to be set by themselves . others gave in their rods half dry ; these also were set apart . others gave in their rods half dry , and cleft ; these too were set by themselves . others brought in their rods , half dry and half green ; and were in like manner placed by themselves . others deliver'd up their rods two parts green , and the third dry ; and they too were set apart . others brought their rods two parts dry and the third green ; and were also placed by themselves . others deliver'd up their rods yet less dry , for there was but a very little , to wit , their tops dry ; but they had clefts , and these were set in like manner by themselves . in the rods of others there was but a little green , and the rest dry ; and these were set aside by themselves . others came , and brought their rods green as they had received them , and the greatest part brought their rods thus , and these also were put apart by themselves . others brought their rods not only green , but full of branches ; and these were set aside ; being received by the angel with great joy. others brought their rods green with branches , and those also full of fruit. they who had such rods were very chearful ; and the angel himself took great joy at them ; nor was the shepherd that stood with me less pleased with them . ii. then the angel of the lord commanded crowns to be brought : and the crowns were brought made of palms ; and the angel crown'd those men in whose rods he found the young branches with fruit ; and commanded them to go into the tower. he also sent those into the tower in whose rods he found branches without fruit , giving his seal unto them . for they had the same garment , that is , one white as snow , with which he had them go into the tower. and so he did to those who return'd their rods green as they received them , giving them a white garment ; and so sent them away to go into the tower. having done this , he said to the shepherd that was with me ; i go my way ; but do thou send these within the walls , every one into the place in which he has deserved to dwell , examining first their rods ; but examine them diligently that no one deceive thee . but and if any one shall escape thee , i will try them upon the altar . having said this to the shepherd he departed . after he was gone , the shepherd said unto me ; let us take the rods from them all , and plant them ; if perchance they may grow green again . i said unto him , sir , how can those dry rods ever grow green again ? he answer'd me ; that tree is a willow , and always loves to live . if therefore these rods shall be planted , and receive a little moisture , many of them will recover themselves . wherefore i will try , and will pour water upon them , and if any of them can live , i will rejoyce with him : but if not , at least by this means i shall be found not to have neglected my part . and they all came unto him , every one in the rank in which he stood , and gave him their rods ; which having received , he planted every one of them in their several orders . and after he had planted them all , he poured much water upon them , insomuch that they were covered with water , and did not appear above it . and when he had water'd them , he said unto me ; let us depart , and after a little time we will return and visit them . for he who created this tree , would have all those live that received rods from it . and i hope , now that these rods are thus watered , many of them , receiving in the moisture , will recover . iii. i said unto him , sir ; tell me what this tree denotes ? for i am greatly moved , that after so many branches have been cut off , it seems still to be whole ; nor do's there any thing the less of it appear to remain , which greatly amazes me . he answer'd , hearken . this great tree which covers the plains and the mountains , and all the earth , is the law of god , publish'd throughout the whole world. now by this law the son of god is preach'd to all the ends of the earth . the people that stand under its shadow , are those which have heard his preaching , and believed . the great and good angel which you saw , was michael , who has the power over this people , and governs them . for he has planted the law in the hearts of those who have believed . and therefore he visits them to whom he has given the law , to see if they have kept it . and he examines every ones rod ; and of those , many that are weakned . for those rods are the law of the lord . then he discerns all those who have not kept the law , knowing the place of every one of them . i said unto him ; sir , why did he send away some to the tower , and left others here to you ? he reply'd ; those who have transgress'd the law , which they receiv'd from him , are left in my power , that they may repent of their sins : but they who satisfied the law and kept it , are under his power . but who then , said i , are those , who went into the tower crowned ? he reply'd ; all such as having striven with the devil , have overcome him , are crown'd . and they are those , who have suffer'd injuries , that they might keep the law. but they who gave up their rods green , and with young branches , but without fruit , have indeed endured trouble for the same law , but have not suffer'd death ; but neither have they deny'd their holy law : they who deliver'd up their rods green as they received them ; are those who were modest and just , and have lived with a very pure mind , and kept the commandments of god. the rest thou shalt know , when i shall have consider'd those rods which i have planted and watered . iv. after a few days we return'd , and in the same place stood that great angel , and i stood by him . then he said unto me ; gird thy self with a ‖ napkin , and serve me . and i girded my self with a clean towel , which was made of coarse cloath . and when he saw me girded , and ready to minister unto him , he said ; call those men whose rods have been planted every one in his order as they gave them . and he brought me into the field , and i called them all , and they all stood ready in their several ranks . then he said unto them , let every one pluck up his rod and bring it unto me . and first they deliver'd theirs , whose rods were dry and rotten . and those whose rods still continued so , he commanded to stand apart . then they came whose rods were dry but not rotten . some of these deliver'd in their rods green ; others dry and rotten , as if they had been touch'd by the moth. those who gave them up green , he commanded to stand apart : but those whose rods were dry and rotten , he caused to stand with the first sort . then came they whose rods were half dry , and cleft : many of these gave up their rods green , but still cleft . others delivered them up green with branches , and fruit upon the branches , like unto theirs who went crown'd into the tower. others deliver'd them up dry and rotten : and some as they were before , half dry , and cleft . every one of these he order'd to stand apart , some by themselves , others in their respective ranks . v. then came they whose rods were for the most part green ; but cleft . these deliver'd their rods altogether green , and stood in their own order . and the shepherd rejoiced at these , because they were all even and free from their clefts . then they gave in their rods , who had half green and half dry. of these some were found wholly green , others half dry ; others green , with young shoots . and all these were sent away , every one to his proper rank . then they gave up their rods , who had two parts green , and the rest dry : many of these gave in their rods green ; many half dry ; the rest dry but not rotten . so these were sent away , each to his proper place . then came they who had their rods two parts dry and the third green ; many of these delivered up their rods half dry ; others dry and rotten ; others half dry and cleft ; but few green. and all these were set every one in his own rank . then they reach'd in their rods , who had them before a third part green , and the rest dry ; their rods were for the most part found green , having little boughs , with fruit upon them ; and the rest altogether green. and the shepherd upon sight of these rejoiced exceedingly , because he had sound them thus . and they also went to their proper orders . vi. now after he had examin'd all their rods , he said unto me ; i told thee that this tree loved life : thou seest how many have repented , and attain'd unto salvation . sir , said i , i see it . that thou mightest know , saith he , that the goodness and mercy of the lord is great and to be had in honour ; who gave his spirit to them that were worthy of repentance . i answer'd , sir , why then did not all of them repent ? he reply'd ; those whose minds the lord foresaw would be pure , and that they would serve him with all their hearts , to them he gave repentance . but for those whose deceit and wickedness he beheld , and perceived that they would not truly return unto him ; to them he deny'd any return unto repentance , least they should again blaspheme his law with wicked words . i said unto him ; now sir , make known unto me , what is the place of every one of those , who have given up their rods , and what their ‖ portion ; that when they who have not kept their seal entire , but have cast away the seal which they received , shall hear and believe these things , they may acknowledge their evil-deeds and repent ; and receiving again their seal from you , may give glory to god , that he was moved with compassion towards them , and sent you to renew their spirits . hearken , said he : they whose rods have been found dry and rotten , and as it were touch'd with the moth ; are the deserters , and the betrayers of the church . who with the rest of their crimes , have also blasphemed the lord , and deny'd his name which was called upon them . therefore all these are dead unto god ; and thou seest that none of them have repented , although they have heard my commands which thou hast delivered unto them . from these men therefore life is far distant . and they also who have deliver'd up their rods dry but not rotten , have not been far from them . for they have been counterfeits , and brought in evil-doctrines ; and have perverted the servants of god ; and especially those who had sinn'd , not suffering them to return unto repentance ; but keeping them back by their false doctrines . these therefore have hope ; and thou seest that many of them have repented , since the time that thou hast laid my commands before them ; and many more will yet repent . but they that shall not repent ; both they have lost patience , and shall lose their life . but they that have repented , their place is begun to be within the first walls , and some of them are even gone into the tower. thou seest therefore , said he , that in the repentance of sinners there is life ; but that for them who repent not , death is prepared . vii . hear now concerning those who gave in their rods half dry , and full of clefts . they whose rods were only half-dry , are the doubtful ; for they are neither living nor dead . but they who deliver'd in their rods not only half-dry , but also full of clefts , are both doubtful and evil-speakers ; who detract from those that are absent , and have never peace among themselves ; and that envy one another . howbeit to these there is yet lest space for repentance ; for thou seest that some of these also have repented . now all those of this kind who have quickly repented , shall have a place in the tower ; but they who have been more slow in their repentance , shall dwell within the walls : but they that shall not repent , but shall continue on in their wicked doings , shall die the death . as for those who had their rods green , but yet cleft ; they are such as were always faithful and good ; but who had some envy and strife among themselves concerning dignity and preheminence . now all such are vain and without understanding , as contend with one another about these things . nevertheless seeing they are otherwise good , if when they shall hear these commands they shall amend themselves , and shall at my perswasion suddainly repent ; they shall forthwith begin to dwell in the tower , as they who have truly and worthily repented . but if any one shall again return to his dissention , he shall be shut out from the tower , and shall lose his life . for the life of those who keep the commandments of the lord , consists in doing what they are commanded ; not in principality , or in any other dignity . for by patience and humility of mind men shall attain unto life ; but by seditions , and contempt of the law , they shall purchase death unto themselves . viii . they who in their rods had half green and half dry , are those who are engag'd in many affairs ; nor are wholly applied to holy things . for which cause half of them liveth , and half is dead . wherefore many of these since the time that they have heard my commands , have repented ; and begun to live in the tower. but some of them have wholly fallen away ; to these there is no more place for repentance . for by reason of their present interests , they have blasphemed and denied god : and for this wickedness have lost life . and of these many are still in doubt ; these may yet return ; and if they shall quickly repent , they shall have a place in the tower ; but if they shall be more slow , they shall dwell within the walls ; but if they shall not repent , they shall die . as for those who had two parts of their rods green , and the third dry ; they have deny'd the lord , by their manifold sins . of these many have repented , and found a place in the tower ; and many have altogether departed from god. these have utterly lost their lives . and some being in a doubtful state , have raised up dissentions : these may yet return , if they shall suddainly repent , and not be with-held by their pleasures ; but if they shall continue in their evil-doings they shall die. ix . they who gave in their rods two parts dry , and the other green ; are those who have indeed been faithful , but withall rich , and full of good things ; and thereupon have desired to be famous ‖ among those without , and have thereby fallen into great pride , and began to aim at high matters , and to forsake the truth : nor did they hold fast to the righteous , but lived ‖ with strangers ; and this life seem'd the more pleasant to them . howbeit they departed not from god , but continued in the faith ; only they did not exercise the works of faith. many therefore of these repented ; and began to dwell in the tower. yet others still living among strange people , and being lifted up with their vanities , have utterly fallen away from god ; and follow'd the works , and wickednesses of the heathen . these kind of men therefore are reckon'd among strangers to the gospel . others of these became doubtful minded ; despairing by reason of their wicked doings ever to attain unto salvation : others being dubious , stirr'd up dissentions . to these therefore , and to those who by reason of their doings are become doubtful , there is still hopes of return ; but they must repent quickly , that their place may be in the tower. but they that repent not , but continue still in their pleasures ; are nigh unto death . x. as for those who gave in their rods green , excepting their tops , which only were dry , and had clefts ; these were always good , and faithful , and approved towards ●od : nevertheless they sinn'd a little , by reason of their empty pleasures , and little disputes which they had among themselves . wherefore many of them when they heard my words , repented forthwith ; and began to dwell in the tower. nevertheless some grew doubtful , and others to their doubtful minds added dissentions . to these therefore there is still hope of return , because they were always good ; but they shall hardly be moved . as for those lastly , who gave in their rods dry , their tops only excepted , which alone were green ; they are such as have believed indeed in god , but have lived in wickedness ; yet without departing from god : having always willingly born the name of the lord ; and readily received into their houses the servants of god. wherefore hearing these things , they return'd , and without delay repented , and lived in all righteousness . and some of them suffered death ; others readily underwent many trials , being mindful of their evil-doings . xi . and when he had ended his explications of all the rods , he said unto me ; go , and say unto all men that they repent , and they shall live unto god : because the lord being moved with great clemency hath sent me to preach repentance unto all ; even to those who by reason of their evil-doings , deserve not to attain unto salvation . but the lord will be patient , and keep the invitation that was made by his son. i said unto him ; sir , i hope that all when they shall hear these things will repent . for i trust that every one acknowledging his crimes , and taking up the fear of the lord , will return unto repentance . he said unto me ; whosoever shall repent with all their hearts , and cleanse themselves from all the evils that i have before mentioned ; and not add any thing more to their sins , shall receive from the lord the cure of their former iniquities ; if they shall not make any doubt of my commands , and shall live unto god. but they that shall continue to add to their transgressions , and shall still converse with the lusts of this present world , shall condemn themselves unto death . but do thou walk in these commands , and thou shalt live unto god. and whosoever shall walk in these , and exercise them rightly , shall live unto god. and having shew'd me all these things , he said : i will shew thee the rest in a few days . the ninth similitude . the greatest mysteries of the militant and triumphant church which is to be built . i. after i had written the commands and similitudes of the shepherd , the angel of repentance ; he came unto me , and said to me ; i will shew thee all those things which the ‖ spirit spake with thee under the figure of the church . for that spirit is the son of god. and because thou wert weak in body , it was not declared unto thee by the angel , until thou wert strengthened by the spirit , and encreased in force , that thou mightest also see the angel. for then indeed the building of the tower was gloriously shewn unto thee by the church ; nevertheless thou sawest all things shewn unto thee as it were by a virgin. but now thou art enlightned by the angel , but indeed by the same spirit . but thou must consider all things diligently ; for therefore am i sent into thine house by that venerable * messenger , that when thou shalt have seen all things powerfully , thou mayst not be afraid as before . and he led me to the top of a mountain of arcadia , and we sate upon its top. and he shew'd me a great plain , and about it twelve mountains in different figures . the first was black as soot . the second was smooth , without grass . the third was full of thorns and thistles . the fourth had grass half dryed ; of which the upper part was green , but that next the root was dry ; and some of the herbs , when the sun grew hot , were dry . the fifth mountain was very rugged ; but yet had green grass . the sixth mountain was full of clefts , some lesser , and some greater ; and in those clefts grew grass , not flourishing , but which seem'd to be withering . the seventh mountain had delightful pasture ; and was wholly fruitful ; and all kinds of cattle , and of the birds of heaven , fed upon it ; and the more they fed of it , the more and better did the grass grow . the eighth mountain was full of fountains , and from those fountains were water'd all kinds of the creatures of god. the ninth mountain had no water at all , but was wholly destitute of it ; and nourish'd deadly serpents , and destructive to men. the tenth mountain was full of tall trees , and altogether shady ; and under the shade of them lay cattle resting and chewing the cud. the eleventh mountain was full of the thickest trees ; and those trees seem'd to be loaded with several sorts of fruits ; that whosoever saw them could not chuse but desire to eat of their fruit. the twelfth mountain was altogether white , and of a most pleasant aspect , and its self gave a most excellent beauty to its self . ii. in the middle of the ‖ plain he shew'd me a huge white rock , which rose out of the plain , and the rock was higher than those mountains , and was square ; so that it seem'd capable of supporting the whole world. it look'd to me to be old , yet had in it a new gate , which seem'd to have been newly hewn out in it . now that gate was bright beyond the sun its self ; insomuch that i greatly admired at its light. about that gate stood twelve virgins ; of which four that stood at the corners of the gate , seem'd to me to be the chiefest ; although the rest also were of worth , and they stood in the four parts of the gate . it added also to the grace of those virgins , that they stood in pairs , cloathed with linnen garments , and decently girded , their right arms being at liberty , as if they were about to lift up a hook , for so they were adorn'd ; and were exceeding chearful and ready . when i saw this , i wonder'd with my self to see such great and noble things . and again i admir'd upon the account of those virgins , that they were so handsom and delicate ; and stood with such firmness and constancy , as if they would carry the whole heaven . and as i was thinking thus within my self ; the shepherd said unto me ; what thinkest thou within thy self , and art disquieted , and fillest thy self with care ? do not seem to consider as if thou wert wise what thou dost not understand , but pray unto the lord , that thou mayst have ability to understand it : what is to come thou canst not understand , but s●●st that which is before thee . be not therefore disquieted at those things which thou canst not see ; but get the understanding of those which thou seest . forbear to be curious : and i will shew thee all things that i ought to declare unto thee ; but first consider what yet remains . iii. and when he had said this unto me , i looked up , and behold i saw six tall and venerable men coming ; their countenances were all alike ; and they call'd a certain multitude of men ; and they who came at their call were also tall and stout . and those six commanded them to build a certain tower over that gate . and immediately there began to be a great noise of those men running here and there about the gate , who were come together to build the tower. now those virgins which stood about the gate perceived that the building of the tower was to be hastned on by them . and they stretched out their hands , as if they were about to receive somewhat from them . then those six men commanded , that they should lift up stones out of a certain deep place , and prepare them for the building of the tower. and there were lifted up ten white stones , square , and † not cut round . then those six men called the virgins to them , and commanded them to carry all the stones that were to be put into the building ; and having carried them through the gate to deliver them to those that were about to build that tower. immediately the virgins began to lift up all of them together those stones , that were before taken out of the deep . iv. and they also who stood about the gate did carry stones in such a manner , that those stones which seem'd to be the strongest were laid at the corners , the rest were put into the sides ; and thus they carried all the stones , and bringing them through the gate , deliver'd them to the builders , as they had been commanded . now they receiving them at their hands built with them . the building was made upon that great rock , and over the gate ; and by these the whole tower was supported . but the building of the ten stones fill'd the whole gate , which began to be made at the foundation of that tower. after those ten stones were five and twenty others lifted up out of the deep ; and these were placed in the building of the same tower ; being lifted up by those virgins , as the others had been before . after these were five and thirty others lifted up ; and these were also in like manner fitted into the same work. then forty other stones were brought up , and all these were added unto the building of that tower. so there began to be four ranks in the foundation of that tower ; and the stones began to cease to be drawn out of the deep ; and they also which built rested a little . again , those six men commanded the multitude , that they should bring stones out of those twelve mountains to the building of the same tower. so they cut out of all the mountains stones of divers colours , and brought them , and gave them to the virgins ; which when they had received they reach'd them up , and carried them into the building of the tower. in which when they were built they became white , and different from what they were before ; for they were all alike , and did change their former colours . and some were reach'd up by the men themselves , which when they came into the building , continued such as they were put in . these neither became white , nor different from what they were before ; because they were not carried by the virgins through the gate . wherefore these stones were disagreeable in the building ; which when those six men perceived , they commanded them to be removed , and put again in the place from which they were brought . and they said to those who brought those stones : do not ye reach up to us any stones for this building ; but lay them down by the tower , that these virgins may take them up and reach them to us . for unless they shall be carried by these virgins through this gate , they cannot change their colours : therefore do not labour in vain . v. so the building that day was ended , howbeit the tower was not finish'd ; for it was afterwards to be built , therefore now also there was some delay made of it . and those six men commanded those that built to depart , and as it were to rest for some time ; but they order'd those virgins that they should not depart from the tower : now they seem'd to me to be left for the guarding of it . when all were departed , i said unto that shepherd ; sir , why is not the building of the tower finish'd ? because it cannot , said he , be finish'd until its lord comes , and approves of the building ; that if he shall find any stones in it that are not good they may be changed ; for this tower is built according to his will. sir , said i , i would know , what the building of this tower signifies ; as also i would be inform'd concerning this rock , and this gate , and concerning the mountains , and the virgins , and the stones that were drawn out of the deep , and not cut , but put into the building just as they came forth ; and why the ten stones were first laid in the foundation ; then the twenty five ; then thirty five ; then forty ? also concerning those stones that were put into the building , and again taken out , and carried back into their place ? fulfil , i pray , the desire of my soul as to all these things , and manifest all unto me . and he said unto me ; if thou shalt not be dull , thou shalt know all , and shalt see all the other things that are about to happen in this tower ; and shalt understand diligently all these similitudes . and after a few days we came into the same place where we had sate before ; and he said unto me , let us go unto the tower ; for the lord of it will come and examine it . so we came thither , and found none but those virgins there . and he asked them , whether the lord of that tower was come thither ? and they reply'd , that he would be there presently , to examine the building . vi. after a very little while i saw a great multitude of men coming , and in the middle of them a man so tall , that he surpassed the tower in bigness . and about him were those six , who before commanded in the building , and all the rest of those who had built that tower , and many others of great dignity : and the virgins that kept the tower ran to meet him , and kissed him , and began to walk near unto him . but he examined the building with so much care that he handled every stone ; and strook every one with a rod which he held in his hand ; of which some being so struck turn'd black as soot ; others were rough ; some looked as if they had cracks in them ; others seem'd maimed ; some neither black nor white ; some look'd sharp , and agreed not with the other stones , and others were full of spots . these were the several kinds of these stones which were not found proper in the building : all which the lord commanded to be taken out of the tower , and laid near it , and other stones to be brought , and put in their places . and they that built , ask'd him from which of the mountains he would have stones brought to put in the place of those that were laid aside : but he forbad them to bring any from the mountains , and commanded that they should take them out of a certain field that was near : so they digged in that field , and found many bright square stones , and some also that were round . howbeit all that were found in that field were taken away , and carried through the gate by those virgins ; and those of them that were square were fitted and put into the places of those that were pulled out . but the round ones were not put into the building , because they were hard , and it would have required too much time to ●ut them ; but they were placed about the tower , as if they should hereafter be cut square , and put into the building ; for they were very white . vii . when he who was chief in dignity , and lord of the whole tower saw this , he called to him the shepherd that was with me , and gave him the stones that were rejected and laid about the tower , and said unto him ; cleanse these stones with all care , and fit them into the building of the tower , that they may agree with the rest ; but those that will not suit with the rest , cast away afar from off from the tower. when he had thus commanded him , he departed , with all those that came with him to the tower : but those virgins still stood about the tower to keep it . and i said unto that shepherd ; how can these stones , seeing they have been rejected , return into the building of this tower ? he reply'd ; i will cut off the greatest part from these stones , and will add them to the building , and they will agree with the rest . and i said , sir , how will they be able to fill the same place , when they shall be so much cut away ? he answer'd ; they that shall be found too little shall be put into the middle of the building , and the greater shall be placed without , and keep them in . when he had said thus unto me , he added ; let us go , and after three days we will return , and i will put these stones , being cleansed , into the tower : for all these that are about the tower must be cleansed , least the master of the house chance to come upon the suddain , and find those which are about the tower , unclean , and so shall despise them ; and these stones shall not be put into this building , and i shall be look'd upon to have been negligent . when therefore we came after three days to the tower , he said unto me ; let us examin all these stones , and let us see which of them may go into the building . i answer'd , sir , let us see . viii . and first of all we began to consider those which had been black ; for they were found just such as they were when they were pull'd out of the tower : wherefore he commanded them to be removed from the tower , and put by themselves . then he examined those which had been rough ; and commanded many of those to be cut round , and to be fitted by the virgins into the building of the tower : so they took them , and fitted them into the middle of the building ; and he commanded the rest to be laid by with the black ones , for they also were become black. next he considered those which were full of cracks ; and many of those also he order'd to be pared away , and so to be added to the rest of the building , by the same virgins : these were placed without , because they were found entire ; but the residue through the multitude of their cracks could not be reform'd , and therefore were cast away from the building of the tower. then he consider'd those that were maimed ; many of these had cracks , and were become black : others had large clefts : these he commanded to be placed with those that were rejected ; but the rest being cleansed and reform'd , he commanded to be put into the building : these therefore those virgins took up , and fitted into the middle of the building ; because they were but weak . after these he examined those which were found half white and half black ; and many of those were now black ; these also he order'd to be laid among those that were cast away . the rest were found altogether white ; those were taken up by the virgins , and fitted into the same tower : ‖ and these were put in the outside , because they were found entire ; that so they might keep in those that were placed in the middle ; for nothing was cut off from them . next he look'd upon those which were hard and sharp ; but few of these were made use of , because they could not be cut : for they were found very hard ; but the rest were form'd , and fitted by the virgins into the middle of the building , because they were more weak . then he consider'd those which had spots ; of these a few were found black , and these were carried to their fellows . the rest were white and entire ; and they were fitted by the virgins into the building , and placed in the outside , by reason of their strength . ix . after this he came to consider those stones which were white and round ; and he said unto me , what shall we do with these stones ? i answer'd , sir , i cannot tell . he reply'd , canst thou think of nothing then for these ? i answer'd , sir , i understand not this art ; neither am i a stone-cutter , nor can i tell any thing . and he said , seest thou not that they are very round ? now to make them square , i must cut off a great deal from them ; howbeit it is necessary that some of these should go into the building of the tower : i answer'd ; if it be necessary , why do you perplex your self , and not rather chuse , if you have any choice among them , and fit them into the building ? upon this he chose out the largest and brightest , and squared them ; which when he had done the virgins took them up , and placed them in the outside of the building . and the rest that remained , were carried back into the same field from which they were taken : howbeit they were not cast away ; because , said he , there is yet a little wanting to this tower , which is to be built ; and perhaps the lord will have these stones fitted into this building , because they are exceeding white . then were there called twelve very stately women , cloath'd with a black garment , girded , and their shoulders free , and their hair loose . these seem'd to me to be country women . and the shepherd commanded them to take up those stones which were cast out of the building , and carry them back to the mountains out of which they were taken . and they took them up joyfully , and carried them back to their places from whence they had been taken . when not one stone remain'd about the tower , he said unto me ; let us go about this tower , and see that nothing be wanting to it . we began therefore to go round it ; and when he saw that it was handsomely built , he began to be very glad : for it was so beautifully framed , that any one that had seen it must have been in love with the building : for it seem'd to be all but one stone , nor did a joynt any where appear ; but it look'd as if it had all been cut out of one rock . x. and when i diligently consider'd what a tower it was , i was extremely pleased ; and he said unto me , bring hither some lime and little shells , that i may fill up the spaces of those stones that were taken out of the building , and put in again ; for all things about the tower , must be made even . and i did as he commanded me , and brought them unto him ; and he said unto me , be ready to help me , and this work will quickly be finish'd . he therefore filled up the spaces of those stones , and commanded the place about the tower to be cleansed . then those virgins took beasoms , and cleansed all the place around , and took away all the rubbish , and threw on water . which being done , the place became delightful , and the tower beauteous . then he said unto me ; all is now clean : if the lord should come to finish the tower , he will find nothing whereby to complain of us . when he had said this he would have departed . but i laid hold on his bag , and began to entreat him for the lord's sake , that he would explain to me all things that he had shewn me . he said unto me , i have at present a little business ; but i will suddainly explain all things unto thee . tarry here for me till i come . i said unto him ; sir , what shall i do here alone ? he answer'd , thou art not alone , seeing all these virgins are with thee . i said ; sir , deliver me then unto them . then he called them , and said unto them ; i commend this man unto you till i shall come . so i remain'd with those virgins ; now they were chearful and courteous unto me ; especially the four , which seem'd to be the chiefest among them . xi . then those virgins said unto me ; that shepherd will not return hither to day . i said unto them ; what then shall i do ? they answer'd , tarry for him till the evening , if perhaps he may come and speak with thee ; but if not , yet thou shalt continue with us till he do's come . i said unto them , i will tarry for him till evening ; but if he comes not by that time i will go home , and return hither again the next morning . they answered me ; thou art deliver'd unto us , thou mayst not depart from us . i said , where shall i tarry ? they replied ; thou shalt sleep with us as a brother , not as a husband : for thou art our brother , and we are ready from henceforth to dwell with thee ; for thou art very dear to us . howbeit i was ashamed to continue with them . but she that seem'd to be the chiefest amongst them , embraced me , and began to kiss me . and the rest when they saw that i was kissed by her , began also to kiss me as a brother ; and led me about the tower , and play'd with me . some of them also sung psalms , others made up the chorus with them . but i walked about the tower with them , rejoycing silently and seeming to my self to be grown young again . and when the evening came on , i would forthwith have gone home , but they with-held me , and suffer'd me not to depart . wherefore i continued with them that night near the same tower. so they spread their linnen garments upon the ground ; and placed me in the middle , nor did they any thing else but pray . i also pray'd with them without ceasing , no less than they . who when they saw me pray in that manner , rejoyced greatly ; and i continued there with them till the next day . and when we had worship'd god , then the shepherd came and said unto them ; you have done no injury to this man. they answer'd , ask him . i said unto him , sir , i have received a great deal of satisfaction in that i have remained with them . and he said unto me , how didst thou sup ? i answered , sir , i feasted the whole night upon the words of the lord . they received thee well then , said he ? i said , sir , very well . he answer'd , wilt thou now learn what thou didst desire ? i reply'd , sir , i will : and first i pray thee that thou shouldst shew me all things in the order that i asked them . he answer'd . i will do all as thou wouldst have me , nor will i hide any thing from thee . xii . first of all sir , said i , tell me , what this rock and this gate denote ? hearken said he ; this rock , and this gate are the son of god. i reply'd , sir , how can that be ; seeing the rock is old , but the gate new ? hear , said he , o foolish man ! and understand . the son of god is indeed more antient than any creature ; insomuch that he was in council with his father at the creation of all things . but the gate is therefore new , because he appear'd in the last days at the fulness of time ; that they who shall attain unto salvation , may by it enter into the kingdom of god. you have seen , said he , those stones which were carried through the gate , how they were placed in the building of the tower ; but that those which were not carried through the gate , were sent away into their own places ? i answer'd , sir , i saw it . thus , said he , no man shall enter into the kingdom of god , but he who shall take upon him the name of the son of god. for if you would enter into any city , and that city should be encompassed with a wall , and had only one gate , could you enter into that city except by the gate which it has ? i answer'd , sir , how could i do otherwise ? as therefore , said he , there would be no other way of entring into that city but by its gate , so neither can any one enter into the kingdom of god , but only by the name of the son of god , who is most dear unto him . and he said unto me , didst thou see the multitude that built that tower ? sir , said i , i saw it . he answer'd , all those are the angels , venerable in their dignity . with these is the lord encompassed as with a wall ; but the gate is the son of god ; who is the only way of coming unto god. for no man shall enter into the kingdom of god by any other way , but only by his son. thou sawest also , said he , the six men , and in the middle of them that tall , great man , who walk'd about the tower , and rejected the stones out of the tower ? sir , said i , i saw them . he answer'd , that man was the glorious son of god ; and those six were his angels of most eminent dignity , which stand about him on the right hand and on the left. of these excellent angels none comes in unto god without him . he added ; whosoever therefore shall not take upon him his name , he shall not enter into the kingdom of god. xiii . then he said , what is this tower ? this said he , is the church . and what , sir , are these virgins ? he said unto me , these are the holy spirits ; for no man can enter into the kingdom of god except these cloath him with their garment . for it will avail thee nothing to take up the name of the son of god , unless thou shalt also receive their garment from them . for these virgins are the powers of the son of god. so shall a man in vain carry his name , unless he shall also carry his powers . and he said unto me ; sawest thou those stones that were cast away ? they carried indeed the name , but put not on their garment . i said , sir , what is their garment ? ‖ their very names , said he , are their garment . therefore whosoever carries the name of the son of god , ought to carry their names also ; for the son of god also himself carrieth their names . as for those stones , continued he , which being deliver'd by their hands , thou sawest remain in the building , they were cloathed with their power ; for which cause thou seest the whole tower of the same † colour with the rock , and made as it were of one stone . so also those who have believed in god by his son , have put on this spirit . behold there shall be one spirit , and one body , and one colour of their garments : and all they shall attain this , who shall carry the names of these virgins . and i said , sir , why then were those stones cast away which were rejected ; seeing they also were carried through the gate ; and delivered by the hands of these virgins into the building of this tower ? seeing , said he , thou takest care to enquire diligently into all things ; hear also concerning those stones which were rejected . all these received the name of the son of god , and with that the power of these virgins . having therefore received these spirits they were perfected , and brought into the number of the servants of god ; and they began to be one body , and to have one garment ; for they were sensible of the same righteousness , which they alike exercised . but after that they beheld those women which thou sawest cloathed with a black garment , with their shoulders at liberty and their hair loose ; they fix'd their desires upon them , being tempted with their beauty ; and were cloathed with their power , and cast off the cloathing of the virgins . therefore were they cast off from the house of god , and delivered to those women . but they that were not corrupted with their beauty , remained in the house of god. this , said he , is the signification of those stones which were rejected . xiv . and i said : sir , what if any of these men shall repent , and cast away their desire of those women , and be converted , and return to these virgins , and put on again their vertue ; shall they not enter into the house of god ? they shall enter , said he , if they shall lay aside all the works of those women , and shall resume the power of these virgins , and shall walk in their works . and for this cause there is a stop in the building , that if they shall repent , they may be added to the building of this tower ; but if they shall not repent , that others may be built in their places , and they be utterly cast away . for all these things i gave thanks unto the lord , that being moved with mercy towards all those upon whom his name is called , he sent to us the angel of repentance to preside over us who have sinned against him ; and that he has renew'd our spirits which were almost gone , and who had no hope of salvation , but are now refreshed to the renewal of life . then i said ; shew me now sir , why this tower is not built upon the ground , but upon a rock , and upon the gate ? he replied ; thou art yet foolish and without understanding , seeing thou askest this . and i said ; sir , i must needs ask all things of you , because i understand nothing . for all your answers are great and excellent ; and which a man can hardly understand . hear , said he : the name of the son of god is great and without bounds , and the whole world is supported by it . if therefore , said i , every creature of god be sustain'd by his son ; why do's he not support those also who have been invited by him , and who carry his name , and walk in his commandments ? seest thou not , said he , that he do's support them , who with all their heart carry his name ? he therefore is their foundation , and gladly supports those who do not deny his name , but willingly bear it . xv. and i said : sir , tell me , the names of these virgins ; and of those women that were cloathed with the black garment . hear , said he , the names of those virgins which are the more powerful , and stand at the corners of the gate . these are their names : the first is called ‖ faith ; the second , abstinence ; the third , power ; the fourth , patience ; the rest which stand beneath these are , simplicity ; innocence ; chastity ; chearfulness ; truth ; understanding ; concord ; and charity . whosoever therefore carry these names , and the name of the son god , shall enter into the kingdom of god. hear now , said he , the names of those women , which were cloathed with the black garment . of these , four are the principal ; the first is perfidiousness ; the second , intemperance ; the third , infidelity ; the fourth , pleasure . and the rest which follow are called thus , sadness ; malice ; lust ; anger ; lying ; foolishness ; pride , and hatred . the servant of god which carries these spirits , shall see indeed the kingdom of god , but he shall not enter into it . but sir , what are those stones which were taken out of the deep and fitted into the building ? then ten , said he , which were placed at the foundation , are the first age ; the following five and twenty , the second , of righteous men. the next thirty five , are the prophets and ministers of the lord . and the forty , are the apostles and doctors of the preaching of the son of god. and i said , sir , why did the virgins carry even these stones also through the gate , and so put them into the building ? and he said , because these first spirits carried them ; and they departed not one from the other , neither the men from the spirits , nor the spirits from the men ; but the spirits were joyned to those men even to the day of their death ; who if they had not had these spirits with them they could not have been useful to the building of this tower. xvi . and i said ; sir , shew me this farther . he answer'd , what do'st thou demand ? why did these stones come out of the deep , and were placed into the building of this tower , seeing that they long ago carried their just spirits ? † it was necessary , said he , for them to ascend by water , and so to be at rest . for they could not otherwise enter into the kingdom of god , but by laying aside the mortality of their former life . they therefore being dead , were nevertheless sealed with the seal of the son of god , and so entred into the kingdom of god. for before a man receives the name of the son of god , he is ordained unto death ; but when he receives the seal he is freed from death , and delivered unto life . now that seal is water , into which men go down under the obligation unto death , but come up appointed unto life . wherefore to those also was this seal ‖ preached , and they made use of it , that they might enter into the kingdom of god. and i said ; why then , sir , did these forty stones also ascend with them out of the deep , having already received that seal ? he answered ; * because these apostles and teachers , who preached the name of the son of god , dying after they had received his faith and power , preached to them who were dead before ; and they gave this seal to them . they went down therefore into the water with them , and again came up . but these went down alive ; whereas those , who were before dead , went down dead , but came up alive . through these therefore they received life and knew the son of god : for which cause they came up with them , and agreed in the building of the tower ; and were not cut , but put in intire ; because they dyed in great purity being full of righteousness ; only this seal was wanting to them . thus you have the explication of these things . xvii . i answer'd : sir , tell me now what concerns those mountains , why they are so different ; some of one form , and some of another . hear , said he : these twelve mountains which thou seest , are twelve nations , which make up the whole world. wherefore the son of god is preached to them , by those whom he sent unto them . but why , said i , are they different , and every one of a several figure ? he replied ; hearken . those twelve nations which possess the whole world , are twelve peoples : and as thou hast beheld these mountains different , so are they . i will therefore open to thee the meaning , and actions of every mountain . but first , sir , said i , shew me this : seeing these mountains are so different , how have they agreed into the building of this tower ; and are no less bright than those which came out of the deep ? because , reply'd he , all the nations under heaven , that have heard and believed , have been called in the same one name of the son of god. wherefore having received his seal , they have all been made partakers of the same prudence and * knowledge ; and their faith and charity have been the same ; and they have carried the spirits of these virgins with his name . and therefore the building of this tower seemed of the same colour , and did shine like the brightness of the sun. howbeit after that they were thus perswaded , and that there began to be one body of them all , some among them polluted themselves , and were cast off from the generation of the righteous , and again return'd to their former state , and became even worse than they were before . xviii . how , said i , sir , were they worse who knew the lord ? he answer'd ; if he who knows not the lord liveth wickedly , the punishment of his wickedness attends him . but he who has known the lord , ought to abstain altogether from all wickedness , and more and more be the servant of righteousness . and do's not he then seem to thee to sin more who ought to follow goodness , if he shall prefer the part of sin ; than he who offends without knowing the vertue of god ? wherefore these are indeed ordain'd unto death ; but they who have known the lord , and have seen his wonderful works , if they shall live wickedly , they shall be doubly punish'd , and shall die for ever . as therefore thou hast seen that after the stones were cast out of the tower , which had been rejected ; they were deliver'd to wicked and cruel spirits ; and thou beheldst the tower so cleansed , as if it had all been made of one stone : ‖ so the church of god , when it shall be purified ; ( the wicked and counterfeits , the mischeivous and doubtful , and all that have behaved themselves wickedly in it , and committed divers kinds of sin , being cast out ; ) shall become one body , and there shall be one understanding , one opinion , one faith , and the same charity . then shall the son of god rejoice among them ; and shall receive his people with a pure will. and i said ; sir , all these things are great and honourable : but now shew unto me the effect and force of every mountain ; that every soul which trusteth in the lord , when it shall hear these things , many honour his great , and wonderful , and holy name . hear , said he , the variety of these mountains , that is , of the twelve nations . xix . they who have believed of the first mountain , which is black , are those who have revolted from the faith ; and spoken wicked things against the lord ; and betray'd the servants of god. to these death is proposed , but there is no repentance for them : and therefore they are black , because their kind is wicked . of the second mountain which was smooth , are the † hypocrites , who have believed , and the teachers of naughtiness : and these are next to the foregoing , which have not in them the fruit of righteousness . for as their mountain is barren , and without fruit ; so also such kind of men have indeed the name of christians , but are empty of faith ; nor is there any fruit of the truth in them . nevertheless there is room left to them for repentance , if they shall suddainly pursue it : but if they shall delay , they also shall be partakers of death with the foregoing kind . i said , sir , why is there room left to those for repentance , and not to the foregoing kind , seeing their sins are well nigh the same ? there is therefore , said he , to these a return unto life , because they have not blasphemed their lord , nor betray'd the servants of god : but by their desire of gain have deceived men , leading them according to the desires of sinners ; wherefore they shall suffer for this thing . howbeit there is still left them room for repentance , because they have not spoken any thing wickedly against their lord . xx. they who are of the third mountain which had thorns and brambles , are those who believed , but were some of them rich , others taken up with many affairs : the brambles are their riches ; the thorns , those affairs in which they were engaged . now they who are entangled in much business , and in diversity of affairs , joyn not themselves to the servants of god , but wander , being called away by those affairs with which they are choaked . and so they which are rich , with difficulty yield themselves to the * conversation of the servants of god ; fearing least any thing should be ask'd of them . these therefore shall hardly enter into the kingdom of god. for as men walk with difficulty bare-foot over thorns ; even so these kind of men , shall scarcely enter into the kingdom of god. nevertheless there is afforded to all these a return unto repentance ; if so be they shall quickly return to it ; that because in their former days they have neglected to work , in the time that is to come they may do some good. if therefore having repented they shall do the works of righteousness , they shall live : but if they shall continue in their evil courses , they shall be deliver'd to those women that will take away their life . xxi as for the fourth mountain , which had much grass , the upper part of which is green , but the rest dry , and some of which being touch'd with the heat of the sun , is wither'd ; it denotes the doubtful , who have believed , and some others who carry the lord in their tongues , but have him not in their heart : therefore their grass is dry , and without root ; because they live only in words , but their works are dead . these therefore are neither dead nor living , and withal are doubtful . for the doubtful are neither green nor dry , that is , neither dead nor alive . for as their grass dries away at the sight of the sun ; so the doubtful as soon as they hear of persecution , and fear inconveniences , return to their idols , and again serve them , and are ashamed to bear the name of their lord . this kind of men then is neither dead nor alive ; nevertheless these also may live , if they shall presently repent : but if not , they shall be delivered to those women , who shall take away their life . xxii . as concerning the fifth mountain that is craggy , and yet has green grass : they are of this kind who have believed , and are faithful indeed , but believe with difficulty ; and are bold , and self-conceited ; that would be thought to know all things , but really know nothing . wherefore by reason of this confidence knowledge is departed from them , and a rash presumption is entred into them . but they carry themselves high , and as prudent men ; and though they are fools , yet would seem to be teachers . now by reason of this folly many of them whilst they magnifie themselves , are become vain and empty . for boldness and vain confidence is a great seducer . wherefore many of these are cast away : but others acknowledging their error , have repented , and submitted themselves to those who are knowing : and to all the rest of this kind there is repentance allow'd ; forasmuch as they were not so much wicked as foolish , and void of understanding . if these therefore shall repent , they shall live unto god ; but if not , they shall dwell with those women , who shall exercise their wickedness upon them . xxiii . for what concerns the sixth mountain having greater and lesser clefts , they are such as have believed ; but those in which were the lesser clefts are they who have had controversies among themselves ; and by reason of their quarrels languish in the faith : nevertheless many of these have repented , and so will the rest when they shall hear my commands ; for their controversies are but small , and they will easily return unto repentance . but those who have the greater clefts , will be as stiff stones , mindful of grudges and offences , and practising anger among themselves . these therefore are cast from the tower , and rejected to be put into its building ; therefore this kind of men shall hardly live . our god and lord , who ruleth over all things , and has power over all his creatures , will not remember our offences , but is easily appeased by those who confess their sins : but man being languid , mortal , infirm , and full of sins , perseveres in his anger against man ; as if it were in his power to save or to destroy him . but i , as the angel who am set over your repentance , admonish you , that whosoever among you has any such purpose he would lay it aside , and return unto repentance ; and the lord will provide remedies for your former sins , if you shall purge your selves from this evil spirit ; but if you shall not do it , ye shall be delivered to him unto death . xxiv . as for the seventh mountain in which the grass was green and flourishing , and the whole mountain fruitful ; and all kind of cattel fed upon the grass of it ; and the more the grass was eaten , so much the more it flourished ; they are such as believed , and were always good and upright ; and without any differences among themselves , but still rejoyced in all the servants of god , having put on the spirit of these virgins ; and been always ready to shew mercy to all men , and easily giving to all men of their labours without upbraiding , and without deliberation . wherefore the lord seeing their simplicity and ‖ innocence , has encreased them in the works of their hands , and given them grace in all their works . but i , who am appointed over your repentance exhort you , that as many as are of this kind would continue in the same purpose , that your seed may not be rooted out for ever . for the lord hath try'd you , and written you into our number ; and all your seed shall dwell with the son of god ; for ye are all of his spirit . xxv . as concerning the eighth mountain in which were a great many springs , by which every kind of all the creatures of god was watered ; they are such as have believed the apostles which the lord sent into all the world to preach ; and some teachers who have preached and taught purely and sincerely , and have not in the least yielded to any evil desires , but have constantly walked in righteousness and truth . these therefore have their conversation among the angels . xxvi . again ; as for what concerns the ninth mountain which was desert , and full of serpents ; they are such as have believed , but had many stains : these are such ministers as discharge their ministry amiss ; ravishing away the goods of the widows and fatherless ; and serve themselves , not others , out of those things which they have received . these , if they continue in this covetousness , shall deliver themselves unto death , nor shall there be any hope of life for them . but if they shall be converted , and shall discharge their ministry sincerely , they may live . as for those which were found rough ; they are such as have deny'd the name of the lord , and not return'd again to the lord , but have become savage , and wild ; not applying themselves to the servants of god ; but being separated from them , have for the sake of a little anxiety lost their lives . for as a vine that is forsaken in a hedge , and never dress'd , perishes and is choaked by the weeds , and in time becomes wild ; and ceases to be useful to its lord . so this kind of men despairing of themselves , and being made sour , have begun to be unprofitable to their lord . howbeit to these there is at last repentance allow'd , if they shall not be found from their hearts to have denied christ : but if any of these shall be found to have denied him from his heart , i cannot tell whether such a one can attain unto life . and i say therefore , that if in these days any one has denied , he should return unto repentance ; for it cannot be that any one who now denies the lord , can afterwards attain unto salvation : nevertheless repentance is proposed unto them , who have formerly deny'd . but he who will repent must hasten on his repentance , before the building of this tower is finished : or if not , he shall be delivered by those women unto death . but they that are maimed , are the deceitful ; and those who mix one with another : these are the serpents that you saw in that mountain . for as the poyson of serpents is deadly unto men ; so the words of such persons infect and destroy men. they are therefore maimed in their faith , by reason of that kind of life in which they lead . howbeit some of them , having repented , have been saved ; and so shall others of the same kind be saved , if they shall repent ; but if not , they shall die by those women whose power and force they enjoy . xxvii . for what concerns the tenth mountain , in which were the trees covering the cattle , they are such as have believed ; and some of them been bishops , that is , governours of the churches . others , are such stones , as have not feignedly , but with a chearful mind entertain'd the servants of god. then such as have been set over inferior ministries ; and have protected the poor and the widows ; and have always kept a chast conversation ; therefore they also are protected by the lord . whosoever shall do on this wise , are honour'd with the lord ; and their place is among the angels , if they shall continue to obey the lord even unto the end. xxviii . as to the eleventh mountain in which were trees loaded with several sorts of fruits ; they are such as have believed , and suffered death for the name of the lord ; and have endured with a ready mind , and have given up their lives with all their hearts . and i said , why then sir , have all these fruit ; but some fairer than others ? hearken , said he : whosoever have suffered for the name of the lord are esteemed honourable by the lord ; and all their offences are blotted out , because they have suffered death for the name of the son of god. hear now , why their fruits are different , and some of them excel others . they who being brought before magistrates , and being ask'd , deny'd not the lord , but suffered with a ready mind ; these are more honourable with the lord . the fruits therefore that are the most fair are these . but they who were fearful and doubtful ; and have deliberated with themselves whether they should confess or deny christ ; and yet have suffered ; their fruits are smaller , because that this thought came into their hearts : for it is a wicked and evil thought for a servant to deliberate whether he should deny his master . take heed therefore ye who have such thoughts , that this mind continue not in you , and ye die unto god. but ye who suffer death for his name sake , ought to honour the lord , that he has esteem'd you worthy to bear his name ; and that you should be delivered from all your sins . and why therefore do you not rather esteem your selves happy ? why do you not think that if any one among you suffer , he performs a great work ? for the lord giveth you life , and ye understand it not . for your offences did oppress you ; and had you not suffer'd for his names sake ye had now been dead unto the lord . wherefore i speak this unto you who deliberate whether ye should confess or deny him : confess that ye have the lord for your god ; least at any time denying him , ye be delivered over into bonds . for if all nations punish their servants which deny their masters ; what think you that the lord will do unto you , who has the power of all things ? remove therefore out of your hearts these doubts ; that ye may live for ever unto god. xxix . as for the twelfth mountain , which was white , they are such as have believed like sincere children , into whose thoughts there never came any malice ; nor have they ever known what sin was , but have always continued in their integrity . wherefore this kind of men shall without all doubt inherit the kingdom of god ; because they have never in any thing defiled the commandments of god , but have continued with sincerity in the same condition all the days of their life . whosoever therefore , said he , shall continue as children without malice ; shall be more honourable than all those of whom i have yet spoken : for all such children are honour'd by the lord , and esteemed the first of all . happy therefore are ye who have removed all malice from you , and put on innocence ; because ye shall first see the lord . and after he had thus ended his explication of all the mountains , i said unto him ; sir , shew me now also what concerns the stones that were brought out of the plain , and put into the tower in the room of those that were rejected ; as also concerning those round stones which were added into the building of the tower ; and also of those who still continued round . xxx . hear now , says he , concerning those stones which were brought out of the plain into the building of the tower , and placed in the room of those that were rejected : they are the roots of that white mountain . wherefore because those who have believed of that mountain , were very innocent ; the lord of this tower commanded that they which were of the roots of this mountain should be placed into the building . for he knew that if they were put into this building they would continue bright ; nor would any of them any more be made black . but if he had added on this manner from the rest of the mountains , he would ‖ have needed again to visit this tower and to cleanse it . now all these white stones , are the young men who have , and shall believe ; for they are all of the same kind . happy is this kind , because it is innocent . hear now also concerning those round and bright stones . all these are of this white mountain . but they are therefore found round , because their riches have a little darkned them from the truth , and dazzled their eyes : howbeit they have never departed from the lord , nor has any wicked word proceeded out of their mouths ; but all righteousness , and vertue , and truth . when therefore the lord saw their mind , and that they might adorn the truth ; he commanded that they should continue good , and that their riches should be pared away : for he would not have them taken wholly away , to the end they might do some good with that which was left , and live unto god ; because they also are of a good kind : therefore they were a little cut away , and so put into the building of this tower. xxxi . as for the rest which continu'd still round , and were not found fit for the building , because they have not yet received the seal , they were carried back to their place ; because they were found very round . but this present world must be cut away from them , and the vanities of their riches ; and then they will be fit for the kingdom of god. for they must enter into the kingdom of god , because god has blessed this innocent kind . of this kind therefore none shall fall away ; for though any of them being tempted by the devil should offend , he shall soon return to his lord god. i the angel of repentance esteem you happy , whosoever are innocent as little children , because your part is good and honourable with the lord . and i say unto all you who have received this seal ; keep simplicity , and remember not affronts , nor continue in malice ; neither suffer bitterness to grow in your spirits through the memory of any offences that you have received ; but provide remedies for these evil rents , and remove them from you ; that the lord of the sheep may rejoyce in you ; ‖ for he will rejoyce , if he shall find all whole . but if any of these sheep shall be found scatter'd away , wo shall be to the shepherds : and if the shepherds themselves shall be scattered , how will they answer to god for the sheep ? will they say that they were troubled by the sheep ? but they shall not be believed . for it is not to be believed , that the shepherd should suffer by his flock ; and he shall be the more punished for his lie. now i am the shepherd ; and i especially must give an account of you . xxxii . wherefore provide for your selves whilst the tower is yet building . the lord dwells in those that love peace ; for true peace is dear ; but he is far off from the contentious , and those who are overtaken with malice . wherefore restore unto him the spirit intire , as ye received it . † for if thou shalt give unto a fuller a new garment whole , thou wilt expect to receive it whole again : if therefore the fuller shall restore it unto thee torn , wouldst thou receive it ? wouldst thou not presently be angry ; and reproach him , saying ; i gave my garment to thee whole , why hast thou rent it , and made it useless to me ? now it is of no use to me , by reason of the rent which thou hast made in it . wouldst thou not say all this to a fuller , for the rent which he made in thy garment ? if therefore thou wouldst be concern'd for thy garment , and complain that thou hadst not received it whole , what thinkest thou that the lord will do , who gave his spirit to thee intire , and thou hast render'd him altogether unprofitable ? so that he can be of no use unto his lord ? for being corrupted by thee , he is no longer profitable to him . will not therefore the lord do the same concerning his spirit , by reason of thy sin ? undoubtedly , said i , he will do the same to all those whom he shall find to continue in the remembrance of injuries . tread not then under foot , said he , his mercy ; but rather honour him , because he is so patient with respect to your offences , and not like one of you ; but repent , for that will be profitable for you . xxxiii . all these things which are above written , i the angel of repentance have shewn and spoken to the servants of god. if therefore ye shall believe and hearken to these words , and shall walk in them , and shall correct your ways , ye shall live . but if ye shall continue in your wickedness , and in the remembrance of injuries , no such sinners shall live unto god. all these things which were to be deliver'd by me , i have thus spoken unto thee . then the shepherd said unto me , hast thou ask'd all things of me ? i answered , sir , i have . why then , said he , hast thou not ask'd concerning the form of these stones that were put in the building , that i may explain that also unto thee ? i answer'd , sir , i forgot it . hear then , said he , concerning those also . they are those who have heard these commands , and have repented with all their hearts : and when the lord saw that their repentance was good and pure , and that they could continue in it , he commanded their former sins to be blotted out . for these forms were their sins , and they are therefore made even that their sins might not appear . the tenth similitude . of repentance and alms-deeds . i. after that i had written this book , the angel which had deliver'd me to that shepherd , came into the house where i was , and sate upon the bed , and that shepherd stood at his right hand . then he called me and said unto me ; i deliver'd thee and thy house to this shepherd , that thou mightest be protected by him . i said , yes lord . if therefore , said he , thou wilt be protected from all vexation , and from all cruelty , and have success in every good word and work ; and all vertue and righteousness ; walk in those commands which he has given thee ; and thou shalt have dominion over all sin. for if thou keepest those commands , all the desire and pleasure of this present world shall be subject to thee ; and success shall follow thee in every good undertaking . take therefore his gravity and modesty upon thee , and say unto all , that he is in great honour and renown with god , and is , a ‖ prince of great authority , and powerful in his office . to him only is the power of repentance committed throughout the whole world. do's he not seem to thee to be of great authority ? but ye despise his goodness , and the modesty which he shews towards you . ii. i said unto him ; sir , ask him since the time that he came into my house , whether i have done any thing disorderly , or have offended him in any thing ? i know , said he , that thou hast done nothing disorderly , neither wilt thou hereafter do any thing ; and therefore i speak these things with thee that thou mayst persevere ; for he has given me a good account concerning thee . but thou shalt speak these things to others , that they who either have repented , or shall repent , may be of the same opinion with thee ; and he may give me as good an account of them also , and i may do the same unto the lord . i answer'd , sir , i declare to all men the wonderful works of god : and i hope that all who love them and have before sinned , when they shall hear these things will willingly repent , and so recover life . continue therefore , said he , in this ministry , and perfect it . and whosoever shall fulfil the commands of this shepherd , shall live ; and shall have great honour both here , and with the lord . but they that shall not keep his commands , flee from their life , and are adversaries unto it . and they that follow not his commands , shall deliver themselves unto death ; and every one shall be guilty of his own bloud . but i say unto thee , keep these commandments , and thou shalt find a cure for all thy sins . iii. moreover i have sent these virgins to dwell with thee , for i have seen that they are very kind to thee . thou shalt therefore have them for thy helpers , that thou mayst the better keep the commands which have been given thee ; for these commands cannot be kept without these virgins . and thou seest how they are willing to be with thee ; and i will also command them that they shall not at all depart from thy house . only do thou purifie thy house ; for they will readily dwell in a clean house . for they are clean , and chast , and industrious ; and all of them have grace with the lord . if therefore thou shalt have thy house pure , they will abide with thee . but if it shall be never so little polluted , they will immediately depart from thy house ; for these virgins cannot endure any manner of pollution . i said unto him ; sir , i hope that i shall so please them , that they shall always delight to dwell in my house . and as he to whom you have committed me makes no complaint of me ; so neither shall they complain . then he said to that shepherd ; i see that the servant of god will live and keep these commandments ; and place these virgins in a pure habitation . when he had said this he delivered me again to that shepherd , and called the virgins , and said unto them ; forasmuch as i see that ye will readily dwell in this mans house , i commend him and his house to you ; that ye may not at all depart from his house . and they willingly heard these words . iv. then he said unto me , go on manfully in thy ministry ; declare to all men the great things of god , and thou shalt find grace in this ministry . and whosoever shall walk in these commands shall live , and be happy in his life . but he that shall neglect them , shall not live , and shall be unhappy in his life . say unto all , that whosoever can do what is right , cease not to exercise themselves in good works . for i would that all men should be delivered from the inconveniences they lie under . for he that wants and suffers inconveniences in his daily life , is in great torment and necessity . whosoever therefore delivers such a soul from necessity , gets great joy unto himself . for he that is grieved with such inconveniences , is equally tormented , as if he were in chains . and many upon the account of such calamities , being not able to bear them , have chosen even to destroy themselves . he therefore that knows the calamity of such a man , and do's not free him from it , commits a great sin , and is guilty of his bloud . wherefore exercise your selves in good works , as many as have received ability from the lord ; least whilst ye delay to do them the building of the tower be finish'd ; because for your sakes the building is stopp'd . except therefore ye shall make haste to do well , the tower shall be finish'd , and ye shall have no place in it . and after he had thus spoken with me , he rose up from the bed , and departed , taking the shepherd and virgins with him . howbeit he said unto me , that he would send back the shepherd and virgins unto my house , amen . the second epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . the contents . chap. i. that we ought to entertain a worthy opinion of our salvation : and to do the utmost of what in us lies to express the value we put upon it , by a sincere obedience to our saviour christ , and his gospel . ii. that god had before prophecy'd by isaiah , that the gentiles should be saved . iii , iv. that this ought to engage such especially to be very careful to live well ; without which they will still miscarry . v. that whilst we secure to our selves the favour of god , and the reward of the other world ; we need not fear what can befal us in this . vi. that we cannot serve god and mammon : nor if we follow the interests of this present world , is it possible for us to escape the punishment of the other . vii . the consideration of which ought to bring us to repentance and holiness . viii . and that presently ; knowing that now , whilst we are in this world , is the only time for repentance . ix . we shall rise , and be judged in those bodies in which we now are ; therefore we must live well in them . x. that we ought , as we value our own interests , to live well ; however few seem to mind what really is for their advantage . xi . and not deceive our selves with any vain imaginations , as if no punishment should remain for us if we do evil ; or good happen to us hereafter , if we behave our selves as we ought to do : seeing god will certainly judge us , and render to all of us according to our works , and how soon this may be we can none of us tell . the second epistle of st. clement to the corinthians . i. bretrhen , we ought so to think of jesus christ as of god ; as of the judge of the living and the dead . nor should we think * any less of our salvation . for if we think * meanly of it , we shall hope only to receive * some small benefit by it . and if we shall † do so ; we shall sin ; not ‖ considering from whence we have been called , and by whom , and to what place ; and how much jesus christ vouchsafed to suffer for our sakes . what recompense then shall we render unto him ? or what fruit that may be worthy of what he has given to us ? for indeed † how great are those advantages which we owe to him in relation to our holiness ? he has illuminated us ; as a father , he has called us his children ; he has saved us who were lost and undone . what praise shall we ascribe to him ? or what reward that may be answerable to those things which we have received ? we were defective in our understandings ; worshiping stones and wood ; gold , and silver , and brass , the works of mens hands , and our whole life was nothing else but death . wherefore being encompassed with darkness , and having such a mist before our eyes , we have look'd up ; and through his will have laid aside the cloud wherewith we were surrounded . for he had compassion upon us , and being moved in his bowels towards us , he saved us ; having beheld in us much deceit , and destruction ; and seen that we had no hope of salvation but only by him . therefore he called us , who were not ; and was pleased from nothing to give us a being . ii. rejoice thou barren that barest not , break forth and cry thou that travailest not ; for she that is desolate hath many more children , than she that hath an husband . in that he said , rejoice thou barren that bearest not , he spake of us : for our church was barren , before that children were given unto it . and again ; when he said , cry thou that travailest not ; he implied thus much : that after the manner of women in travail , we should not cease to put up our prayers unto god † only . and for what remains , because she that is desolate hath more children than she that hath an husband ; it was therefore added , because our people which seem'd to have been forsaken by god , now believing in him , are become more than they who seem'd to have god. and another scripture saith , i came not to call the righteous but sinners to repentance . the meaning of which is this ; that those who were lost , must be saved . for that is indeed truly great and wonderful , not to confirm those things that are yet standing , but those which are falling . even so did it seem good to christ to save what was lost ; and when he came into the world he saved many , and called us who were already perishing . iii. seeing then he has shew'd so great mercy towards us ; and chiefly for that we who are alive do now no longer sacrifice to dead gods , nor pay any worship to them , but have by him been brought to the knowledge of the father of truth ; ‖ whereby shall we shew that we do indeed know him , but by not denying him by whom we have come to the knowledge of him ? for even he himself saith , whosoever shall confess me before men , him will i confess before my father . this therefore is our reward , that if we confess him we shall be saved by him . but wherein must we confess him ? namely , in doing those things which he saith , and not disobeying his commandments : by worshiping him not with our lips only , but with all our heart , and with all our mind . for he saith in isaiah ; this people honoureth me with their lips , but their heart is far from me . iv. let us not then only call him lord ; for that will not save us . for he saith ; not every one that saith unto me lord , lord , shall be saved , but he that doth righteousness . wherefore , brethren , let us confess him by our works ; by loving one another , in not committing adultery , not speaking evil against each other , not envying one another ; but by being temperate , merciful , and good. let us also have a mutual sense of one anothers sufferings ; and not be covetous of mony : but let us by our good works confess god , and not by those that are otherwise . also let us not fear men ; but rather god. for this cause , * and to the end that we should do thus , hath the lord said ; though ye should be joyn'd unto me , even in my very bosom , and not keep my commandments , i would cast you off , and say unto you ; depart from me ; i know not whence you are , ye workers of iniquity . v. wherefore , brethren , laying aside our sojourning in this present world , let us do the will of him who has called us , and not fear to depart out of this world. for the lord saith , ye shall be as sheep in the midst of wolves . peter answered and said , what if the wolves shall tear in pieces the sheep ? jesus said unto peter ; let not the sheep fear the wolves after death : and ye also fear not those that kill you , and after that have no more that they can do unto you , but fear him who after you are dead , has power to cast both soul and body into hell fire . for consider , brethren , that the sojourning of this flesh , in the present world , is but little , and of a short continuance ; but the promise of christ is great and wonderful , even the rest of the kingdom that is to come , and of eternal life . but what then must we do that we attain unto it ? we must be converted to a divine and just course of life ; and look upon all the things of this world , as none of ours ; and not desire them . for if we shall desire to possess them , we are fallen from the way of righteousness . vi. for thus saith the lord , no servant can serve two masters . if therefore we shall desire to serve god and mammon , it will be without profit to us . for what will it profit us , if we shall gain the whole world , and lose our own souls ? now this world , and that to come , are two enemies . this calls us to adultery and corruption , to covetousness and to deceit ; but that commands us to renounce these things . we cannot therefore be the friends of both ; but we must resolve by forsaking one , to enjoy the other . and we think that it is better to hate the present things , as little , short-lived , and corruptible ; and to love those which are to come , which are truly good , and incorruptible . for if we do the will of christ , we shall find rest : but if not , nothing shall deliver us from eternal punishment , if we shall disobey his commands . for even thus saith the scripture , in the prophet ezekiel ; if noah , job and daniel should rise up , they shall not deliver their children in captivity . wherefore if such righteous men , are not able by their righteousness to deliver their children ; how can we hope to enter into the kingdom of god , except we keep our baptism holy and undefiled ? or who shall be our advocate , unless we shall be found to have done what is holy and just ? vii . let us therefore , my brethren , contend with all earnestness , knowing that ‖ we are now called to the combat ; and that many go long voyages to corruptible encounters , in which all are not concern'd , but they only that labour much , and strive gloriously . let us therefore so contend , that we may all of us be crown'd . let us run in the straight road , the race that is incorruptible : and let us in great numbers pass unto it , and strive , that we may receive the crown . but and if we cannot all be crown'd , let us come as near to it as we are able . moreover we must consider , that he who contends in a corruptible combat ; if he be found doing any thing that is not fair , is taken away and scourged , and cast out of the lists . what think ye then that he shall suffer , who do's any thing that is not fitting in the combat of immortality ? thus speaks the prophet concerning those who keep not their seal ; their worm shall not die , and their fire shall not be quenched ; and they shall be for a spectacle unto all flesh. viii . let us therefore repent whilst we are yet upon the earth : for we are as clay in the hand of the artificer . for as the potter if he make a vessel , and it be distorted in his hands , or broken , again forms it anew ; but if he have gone so far as to throw it into the furnace of fire , he can no more bring any remedy to it : so we , whilst we are in this world † should repent with our whole heart for whatsoever evil we have done in the flesh , while we have yet the time of repentance , that we may be saved by the lord . for after we shall have departed out of this world , we shall no longer be able either to confess our sins , or repent ‖ in the other . wherefore , brethren , let us doing the will of the father , and keeping our flesh pure , and observing the commandments of the lord , secure to our selves eternal life . for the lord saith in the gospel . if ye have not kept that which was little , who will give you that which is great ? for i say unto you , he that is faithful in that which is least , is faithful also in much . this therefore is what he saith ; keep your bodies pure , and your soul without spot , that ye may receive eternal life . ix . and let not any one among you say , that this very flesh is not judged , neither raised up . consider , in what were ye saved , in what did ye look up , if not whilst ye were in this flesh ? we must therefore keep our flesh as the temple of god. for in like manner as ye were called in the flesh , ye shall also come in the flesh. even our lord jesus christ , who has saved us , being first a spirit , was made flesh , and so called us . wherefore we also shall in this flesh receive the reward . let us therefore love one another , that we may all attain unto the kingdom of god. whilst we are in a condition of being healed , let us deliver up our selve● to god our physician , giving our reward unto him . and what reward shall we give ? repentance out of a pure heart . for he knows all things before-hand , and searches out our very hearts . let us therefore give praise unto him ; and that not only with our mouths , but with all our souls ; that he may receive us as the children of god. for so the lord hath said , they are my brethren , who do the will of my father . x. wherefore , my brethren , let us do the will of our father , who hath call'd us , that we may live . let us pursue vertue , and forsake wickedness , as the forerunner of our punishment ; and let us ●lee all ungodliness that evils overtake us not . for if we shall do our diligence to live well , peace shall follow us . ‖ and yet how hard is it to find a man that do's this ? for almost all are led by human fears , chusing rather the present enjoyments , than the future promise . for they know not how great a torment the present enjoyments bring with them ; nor what delights the promise of what is to come . and did they themselves only do this , it might the more easily be endured ; but now they go on to infect innocent souls with their evil doctrins ; not knowing that both themselves , and those that hear them , shall receive a double condemnation . xi . let us therefore serve god with a pure heart , and we shall be righteous : but if we shall not serve him , nor believe in the promise of god , we shall be miserable . for thus saith the prophet ; miserable are the double minded , who doubt in their heart , and say , these things have we heard , and our fathers have told them unto us , but we have seen none of them , though we have expected them from day to day . o ye fools ! consider the trees , take the vine for an example : first it sheds its leaves , then it buds , then come the sour grapes , then the ripe fruit. even so my people has born its disorders and afflictions , but shall hereafter receive good things . wherefore my brethren , let us not doubt in our minds , but let us expect with hope , that we may receive our reward : for he is faithful who has promised , that he will render to every one a reward according to his works . if therefore we shall do what is just in the sight of god , we shall enter into his kingdom , and shall receive the promises ; which neither eye has seen , nor ear hard , nor have entred into the heart of man. xii . wherefore let us every hour expect the kingdom of god in love and righteousness ; because we know not the day of god's appearing . finis . an index of the principal matters contain'd in the foregoing treatises . a. alms-giving . how we ought to give . pag. , . angels . attend the death of good men. . every man has two angels . . apostates . no repentance allow'd to them . , . they cannot be saved . , . b. baptism . forgives all sins . , . it s necessity . . bishops , in the primitive church the same , as now with us . , , , , , , , , , , , , . the reverence due to them . . that we ought to adhere to the bishops . . the holy sacrament of the lord's supper not to be given but by the bishop , or such as he appoints . , . marriage not to be made without his knowledg and consent . . a bishop ought to instruct as well as govern his church . . exhortations proper for a bishop . vid. unity . , &c. business . much business a hindrance to religion . , . c. calamities . god sends them upon us to bring us to repentance . , . charity . what true charity is ? . the praise of it . , . exhortations to it . , . christ. his divinity shewn . , , , . , , , , , , , his pre-existence . , , , . his eternity . , , . his two natures . , , , . of his birth , &c. , , . he is our high-priest and protectour . . no coming to god but by him . , , . the ancient fathers saved by him . , . so are we . . he suffer'd for our salvation . , , , &c. . he truly suffer'd . . he was raised from the dead by the father . , . by himself . . he shall judge the world. . christian. a christian is not to be judg'd by his outward profession , but by his true piety . . commands . god's commands possible to be observed . . confession , to be made to god. , . contentment , recommended . , . d. death . while we do well , we need not be afraid to die . vid. angels . . devil . we ought not to fear him . . he cannot overcome us if we strive against him . , . devotion . the benefit of frequent publick devotion . , . differ . how we ought to behave our selves towards those that differ from us ? . we must not give scandal to them . , . e. envy . the mischiefs of it . , &c. evil. we must abstain from evil , as well as do good . eucharist . vid. sacrament . . example . that we should imitate the examples of christ and his saints . , &c. f. fast. what a true fast is ? and how we may render our fasting acceptable unto god ? , . fear . we must fear god , and not be afraid of the devil . . future happiness . the greatness of it . , , , . future iudgment . there shall be a final judgment . , . christ shall be the judg. vid. christ. g. god. his attributes . . omniscient . , . almighty . . there is but one god. . there is no flying from him . , . the nature of god ; and our duty to him . . his praescience . . he searcheth the heart . ibid. good. what good we must do ? . h. happiness . vid. future . hereticks . heresie . we must avoid hereticks . , , , , , , . the danger of them . , . yet we must pray for them . . we must arm our selves against falling into heresie . , , , . i. image . wherein the image of god consists ? . iudge . iudgment . vid. future . christ the judge of the world. , . iustification . by faith. . we are justified by the same faith that holy men were from the beginning . . l. lying . against lying . . m. marriage , not to be made without the bishop's knowledg and consent . vid. bishop and priest. martyr . martyrdom . the anniversaries of the martyrs wont to be observed in the primitive church . , . the respect which the christians had for them . . martyrs shall have a more than ordinary degree of glory hereafter . , , . martyrdom blots out all sins . , , . it is therefore to be esteem'd a happiness to suffer . . mind . against trouble and anxiety of mind . . ministers , anciently chosen by the church . . o. obedience , recommended . . the necessity of it . . p. peace . exhortations to peace and unity . , , , , , , . prayer . we must pray with faith , not doubting . . publick prayer . vid. devotion and worship . priests . married in the primitive church . . promise . god is faithful in his promises , therefore we ought not to doubt of them . , . prophets . the ancient prophets inspir'd by christ. . providence . god's providence is over all things . . punishment . the punishment of sinners in the other world shall be eternal . . r. reliques . what respect the ancient christians paid to the remains of their martyrs ? , . repentance . god allows repentance to sinners . , , , , , . apostates only excepted . vid. apostates . no repentance after death . , , . the benefit of repentance purchas'd for us by christ. . men are not presently pardon'd , as soon as they begin to repent , till it appears that their repentance is sincere . . resurrection . that there shall be a future resurrection . , to , , . we shall rise in the same bodies . . riches . the danger of riches : what use we ought to make of them ? , . rule . particular rules of life . , , , , . s. sacrament . the holy sacrament of the lord's supper not to be administred but by the bishop , or by him whom the bishop appoints . . sadness . the mischief of it . . salvation . we are saved by the bloud of christ. . god desires that all christians should be saved . . no man can be saved without piety . , . exhortation to strive after our salvation . . scandal . we must take heed that we do not give scandal to the enemies of our religion . , . schism . the danger of it . , . scriptures . the holy scriptures written by divine inspiration . , . sin. we must answer to god for the sins of those who belong unto us . , . we must take care that we do not partake in other mens sins . , . speech . against evil-speaking . . suffer . christ supports all such as suffer for him . vid. christ. . t. transubstantiation . against it . , , . compare . . trinity . see for it . , . v. uirginity , recommended . . unity . vid. peace . unity with the bishop , the best means to secure our selves against falling into heresie . . w. world. we live in this world as in a pilgrimage . . we cannot serve this world and the next . . worship . appointed times of publick worship . . appointed persons for the performing of it . . setled by the apostles . , . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. cap. . idem , lib. iii. cap. . canon . apostol . can. ult . ms. alexan. grot. annot. in phil. iv . . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. cap. epiph. lib. i. adv. carpo●r . hieronim . de script . eccles. et comment . in loc . item lib. i. adv . jovin . photii cod. ●mem . , &c. vid. eucher . lugd. de contempt . mundi ▪ & chron. al●ert . stad . inter testimonia à ●unio citat● . clem. alex. strom. lib. iv. hieron . in isaiam , c. . de adulterat . lib. originis . pearson dissert . de success . prim . rr. pp . cum append. hen. dodwel●i . pearson . dissert . posthum . cap. v. num. . dodwelli dissert . singul . cap. xv. pag. . dodwell . dissert . singul . cap. xi . p. . clem. epistle to the corinth . num. vii . p. . de adulterat . lib. orig. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . dodwel addit . ad cap. vi. dissert . posthum . pearson . num. . pag. . vid. euseb. chron. an o . et in euseb. annot. scalig. p. . b. euseb. hist. eccles. lib iii. cap. . euseb. hist. eccles. lib iii. cap. . apud coteler . patr. apostol . tom. i. vid. in annot . in epist. clem. in princip . annot. . p. . baron . annal. ad ann. xcv . num. . coteler . no● . in clem. epist. pag. ● . dodwell . append. ad cap. vi. dissert . . pearson , pag . num. . epistle , c i. p. . ibid. c. v. p. . chap. xli . p. , . dodwel . loc . supr . cit . epist. chap. lix . pag . dodwel . loc . supr . cit . add. cave hist. literar . in clement . pag. . callovius bibl. illustr . n. t. to. . exam. prae● . grot. in cor. p. . voetius paralip . p. , &c. vid. tentzel . exercit . select . exerc. . de phoenice . vid. callov . oper. socin . to. pag. . vid. jun. praefat. in epist . clem. vid. baron . annal. anno· . num. iii. & ● . ten●zelius dissert . select . de phoeni●e . p. ● . et num. xvi pag . photii biblioth . tmem . cxxvi . p. . tertullian . origen . cyril . hierosolym . euseb. greg. naz. epiphanius , synesius , hieronym . lactantius , &c. jun. notae in clem pag. . tacitus annal . libr. vi . num . . vid. annot. edit . oxon. in loc . bochartus hierozöic . in phoenice , &c. apud tentzel ▪ p. , . vid. ed. oxon. loc . cit . adde annot. schotti in photium , tmem . cxxvi . pag. ●● . aliis argumentis , tum hoc impr●mis . t●nt●el . 〈◊〉 . cit . pag. . photii bibl. vid. praefat. jun. in edit . oxon. . anno . lond. to . edit . colomesii lectori , cave . hist. literar . in clem. edit . colomesii lectori , cave . hist. literar . in clem. athenae oxon. part ▪ pag. , ▪ edit . polycarp . & ignat. oxon. anno . epist. of polycarp , numb . ix . pag. . ma●● . of ig● . numb . x. pag. . epist of polycarp , numb . xiv . pag. . dallaeus in pseudepigr . cap. xxxii . pa. . larroque observat. in pearson , p. . ignat. epist. to the romans , cap. v. p. . vid. dallaeum & larroque loc . cit . photius bibl. tmem . cxxvi . pag. . proleg . ad var. sacr. in polycarp . exercit. select . exerc. iv. num . . pag. . polycarp . epist . num . xiii . p. . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. cap. . apud usser . p. . dissert . de ignat. epist. cap. ii . photii bibl tmem . cxxvi . p. ● . de scripr eccles. in polycarp . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv c. ● iren. epist. ad florin . apud euseb. hist. eccles . lib. v. c. . s. maximus prolog . in dionys areop . su●da● in polycarp . &c. vid. usserii dis●ert . de script . ign. p. . . ●e●●zel . exerc. select . de polyc. num . xxxvi , xxxvii . ad lib. iii. c. . irenaei . lond. . p. . u●serius annot . loc . cit . p. , . u●serius annot . loc . cit . p. ▪ . victor 〈…〉 he lived anno . cave hist. liter . in polyc. pag. . le moyné prol. ad var. sacr. tenzel . exercit. select . iv. de polyc. num . xlix . du pin. bibl. eccl. in polycarp . &c. de scriptis ignatian . cap , xxxii . prol. a● var. sacr. tom. i. in polycarp . vid. apud tentzel . de polycarp . dissert . iv. num . . pag. . exercit. select . exerc. iv. num . , &c. . usserius dissert . de epist. ignat. cap. vi. pag. . vid. dissert . usser . c. x , xi . p. , &c. ibid. c. xv. p. ● ▪ . 〈…〉 p. . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . photius bibl. tmem . cxxvi . p. . vid. larroque observ. in vind. pears . p. , . see tim. i. . ephes. iii. . rom. xv . . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . hieron . de script . in polycarp . le moyne prolegom . ad var. sacr. apud euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv . cap. . dr. cave 's lives of the apostolical fathers in st. polycarp . vid. vossii praefat. in ignat ad lectorem . vid. vindic. pearson in proëm . p. . polycarp . epist . numb . xiii . pag. . annot. cotel . in loc . polycarp . p. . b. hist. eccles. lib. iii. cap. . vid. chrys. orat. ad antiochen . libr. de script . illustr . cap. xvi . apud pearson , vindic. ignat. prolegom . pag. . pearson vind. ignat. par . i. cap. . pag. . ibid. cap. ii . pag. . pearson ibid. pag. ad . comp. testim . cotelerii de ignat. et usser . dissert . ignat. apud pearson vind. ignat . proaem . pag. . et vind. par . i. pag. . see below , p. . evagrius lib. i. cap. . nicephor . lib. xiv . cap. . pearson dissert . chron. ii . cap. xiv ad xx . usher . anno . euseb. & in eum vales . . petitus . &c. see below . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. v. cap. . ibid. lib. iii. cap. . irenaeus , lib. iii. cap. . apud euseb. epist. ad florin . hist. eccles . lib. v. cap. . orig. homil. vi . in luc. et in cantic . proleg . ernest tentzel . ex●●●● . select 〈◊〉 , pag ●● . vossi● annot. passim . pea●son vind . ignat. proleg . p . dissert . de ignat. cap. iii. annot. in ignat. epist. pag , . polycarp . epist . num . x●ii . pag. . hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . hieronym . de viris illustr . in ignat. vid. isaac . vess . annot. loc . supr . cit . pag. . see below , pag. . acts of ignatius , numb . iv , v. pag. , . mat. xviii . . metaphrast . apud coteler . p. . niceph. hist. eccl. lib. ii. cap. . usher . annot. in act. mart. ignat. num. iv . vid. annot. in concil . oeco● ▪ viii conc●● . 〈◊〉 tom. viii . p. . d. homil. in s. ignat. to. i. fevardent . p. , b. c. mountac . origin . eccles. to. ii. p. , . vind. ignat. part. ii. c. xii . p. . acts of ignat. num. v. p. . vind. ignat. part. ii. p. . homil. in ignat . pag. . to. i. fevardent . ernest. tentzel . exercit. select . iii num . ii . p. . vid. chrysost . orat. in laud ignat. theodoret. to. iv. p. . dial. i comp. usser . annot. in epist. ad antioch . pag. . pearson . vind. ignat. part . ii. p. . acts of ignat. num . i , ii , iii. p. , , . hist. eccles. lib. iii. cap. . euseb. chron. ab anno ad . alii ad . vid. infr . see his epistles to the philadelph . smyrn . and to st. polycarp . vid. ignat epist. & spe●●atim . ad rom. num . ix . p. . add. act. ignat. num . ix . p. . vid. act. ignat . num . xiii . . vid. usserii ann. in act. ignat. num . . vid. scalig. in euseb. ad ann. . vid. usser . not. in act ignat . num . ix . p. . . tentzel . exerc. iii. p. . mart. apud coteler . acts of ignat . num . ix . p. . mart. ignat. apud coteler . p. ● . vid. usser . annot. in act. ignat. p. . apud usser . annot. in epist . ad philadelph . not. . et in append. p. . plin. secand . epist. lib. x. epist. . ibid. epist. . hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . apologet. cap. ii. in voce 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . lib. iii. c. hist. eccles. acta mart. ignat. num . xii . p. . euseb. ibid. annot. in act. martyr . ignat. not . . vid. ant. pagi critic . in baron . ad ann. . apud usser . loc . supr . cit. le moyne prol. ad var. sac● . ibid. life of s. polycarp , p. . so the roman martyrologie . le moyne , cave , &c. ibid. irenaeus lib. iii. cap. . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv. cap. . vid. tentzel . exerc . select . de polyc. iii. §. . tertul. de praeser . haeret. c. . hieron . de script . in polycarp . vid. martyrol . rom. jan. xxvi . epistle of the church of smyrna , numb . xii . p. . ibid. numb . xvii . p. . see below , pag . de script . in polycarp . sophron . interp. graec. le moyne prol. ad var. sacr. euseb. hist. eccles ▪ lib. i● . cap. . vid. val●s annot. ad euseb . eccl. hist. lib iv . cap. . te●zel . exercit . de polycarp . §. ix . l● m●yne prolego● . ad var. sacr. apud 〈…〉 . apud tentzel . exercit. select . iv. p. , &c. dissert . chron. part . ii. à cap. . ad . euseb. chron. not. in epist. smyrn . , . comp. tentz. exercit . de polycarp . §. xxi . vid. cave hist. eccles. in polycarp . ad an. . comp. spond . epitom . ibid. annot. in euseb. lib. iv. c . euseb. chron. ann . . scalig. annot . in euseb. p. . petav. in epiphan haeres . xlvi . anton. pagi in baron . ad ann . . num . iii. herman . contract . marian. scot. &c. hist. eccles. lib. iv. c. . hist. eccles. lib. iv. c. . ib. lib. iv. c. . vales. in lib. iv. c. . euseb . & infr . in c. . p. . add. ant. pagi critic . in baron . ad ann . . num . iv . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv. c. . p. . scalig. an●●●adv . in euseb . pag. . num . ● . de glor. mart. cap. lxxxvi . vid. usser . annot. in act. polyc. num . . vid. usser . annot. in act. polyc. num . . num. xvi . p. . de morte peregrini , p. . le moyne var. sacr . prol. ad tom. i. so le moyne corrects it , prol. ad varia sacra : reading for 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . vid. tentzel . exercit. select . de polycarp . §. xxxiv . num. ix . p. . vid. praef. usser . ad act. ignat. & polycarp . pag. ult . comp. tentzel . disp . iv. de polyc. § iii , iv . pearson dissert . chron. part . ii. c. . iren. contr . haeres . lib. iii. c. . in act. polyc . num . , . annot. in euseb. p. . a proleg . ad var. sacr . dissert . chron. par . ii. c. . ant. pagi critic . in baron . ad ann. . tentzel . exerc. select . de polyc. § xxv . xxxi , &c. smith epist. de vii . asiae eccles. tavernier , wheeler , &c. vid. tentzel . exercit . select . iv. §. xxxii , xxxiii . lib. iv. c. . see below , p. . clem. alex. strom. lib. ii. p. . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. i. cap. . & lib. ii. cap. . in act. iv. euseb. chron. ad ann . cxvii . dion . lib. lxviii . xiphiline , &c. acts iv . , . apud baron . annal. ad ann . xxxiv num . . comp. dr. cave in his life , numb . . acts ix . . galat. ii . usher . chronol . ann . . . pearson . annal . paulin. ad ann . . acts xv . comp. galat. ii . galat. ii . , . acts xv . . ann. christi l. pearson . liii . usserius . acts xiii . . acts xv . , . colos. iv . . tim. iv . . recognit . clem. apud baron . annal. ad ann . li. num . , . et not . ad mar● . rom. jun. xi . ibid. annal. num . . vid. in vit. ejus edit . oxon . epist. p. . alexandr . monach. encom . barnabae . baron . annal. ann . li. num . . hieron . de script . in barnab . baron . annal . ann . . id. annot. ad martyrol . rom. jun. xi . annal. ann . . apud surium . jun. xi . to. iii. apud le moyne var. sacr. tom. l. p. . hist. eccles. lib. xvi c. . see le moyne prolegom . ad var. sacr. alex. monach . loc . citat . so theodorus lector collect. lib. ii. p. . nilus doxap . inter var. sacr. p. . baron annal. loc . supr . citar . tertull. de pudicit . c. . de script . eccles. in s. paulo . passim . vid. testim . coteleril . contra celsum lib. i. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . de scriptor . in barnab . annot. in euseb. lib. iii. c. . hist eccles. lib. iii c. . lection in act. ii . num . . p. . cotel . not. in barnab . p. . b. c. vid. clem. alex hieron . &c. inter testim . coteler . proleg . in var. sacr. in polycarpo ▪ vid. tentzel . exercit. select . de polyc. § , . praef. usser . in edit . oxon. s. barnab . p. v. coteler . not. in barnab . p. . c. natal . alex . hist. eccles . tom. i. §. i. p. . le moyne proleg . ad var. sacr. coteler . not. in barn. p. , . natal . alex. ibid. le moyne prolegom . ad var. sacr. vid. coteler . not. in barnab . p. . e. . a. cotel . not. ad barnab . p. . d. natal . alex . hist. eccles saec. i. to. i. p. . le moyne prol. ad var. sacr . huetius origen lib. ii . quaest. . p. , &c. vid. annot· vossii in barnab . p. . see cor. x. , . galat. iv . . ephes. v. . hebr. ix . , ▪ . x. , &c. see hist. crit. du v. t. liv. iii. chap. vi . apud euseb. praeparat . evan ● . lib. viii . cap . praepar . evang . lib. viii . c. . p. . apud euseb. hist. eccles. lib. ii. c. . de vit. contempl p. . 〈…〉 ●●mnor . lib. v. vales. annot. in euseb. lib. ii. c. . p. , . hist. eccles. lib. ii. c. . p. , a. b. & p. . a. b. bruno de therapeut . dissert . p. , &c. euseb. hist. eccles. loc . cit . p. . b. ibid. p. . b. c. bruno de therap . p. dissert . de antichristo , c. vii . tatian . contr . graec. p. . b. c. tatian . contr . graec. p. . b. c. 〈◊〉 hist. crit. du v. t. l●v. iii. chap. viii . apud euseb. hist. eccles. lib. vi. c. . p. . ibid. p. . vid. annot. vales. p. , . dissert . de antichristo , cap. vii . proleg . ad var. sacr . praefat. usser . ad edit . oxon. p. . &c. is. vossius annot. in barnab . p. . vid. baron . annot. ad martyrol . rom. maii ix . vis. second , num . iv . dr. hammond , & mr. dodwell . vid. cave hist. liter . in herm. vision iv §. . hom. in rom. lib. x. c. . hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . hieron . de script . in herm. lib. iii. in vit. pii papae . epist. i. attrib . pio pp . p. . edit . blondell . see bellarm. de script . §. i. p. . in herm. annal. eccl. in fine anni spondan . epitom . annal. baron . ad ann. . vision iii. num . vi. below , p. . vision i. num . . vis. ii. num . , . see below , p. . annot. ad ma●● . rom. ma●● ix . pa on . annal . e●cl●s . ad ann . ●●● vid. martyrol . rom. ad ma●i ix . & jul. xxvi . comp. martyrol . rom. jul. xxvi . with baron . annal. a o , , . martyol . rom. jul. xxvi . annot. b. ad martyrol . rom. maii ix . lib. iv. advers . haeres . & apud euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv. c. . origen enarrat . in epist . ad rom. p. . d. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . catalog . script . in herm. de incarnat . verb. tom. i. p. . d. epist. pasch. tom. ii. p. , . annot. ad herm. p. . annot. in barnab . p. , . comment . in habac. i. . ●ol . . d. de orat. cap. xii . de pudiciti● , cap. x. vid. testimon . in edit . coteler . p. , &c. philocal . c. i. cassian . collar . xiii . c. . contr. collator . c. xxx . decret . gratian. dist. xv. de emend . gratiani dial. vi. p. , . see postev . apparat. tom. ii. titul . pastor . baron annal. ann . clix. num . , . epist. ad afros apud theodoret . hist. eccles. lib. i. cap. . script . eccles . centur. i. in herm. jo. m. brasichellan . apud labbaeum de script . to. i. p. . de script . in herm. tom. i. p. . rivet . critic . sacr. lib. i. c. . hoernbeck . theol pp . to. i. miscellan . sacr. p. . scultel . medulla pp . pag daillé de script . ignat. larroque observ . in vind. ignat part. i. p. . add. c●ve hist. liter . p. , &c. praefat. in to. ii. dogm . theol. c. . §. . notae in herm. p. . c. alex. natal . §. i. tom. i. p. , . vind. ignat. part . i. c. . defens . fid. nicaen . §. i. c. ● . p. . hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . de script . in clemente . phot. cod. , . dissert . de script . ignat. cap. x. vid. catal. bevereg . codex canon . vindicat. . canon . lxxxv . hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. ●● divinat . de epist. clem. beverege cod. canon . vindic. lib. ii. c. . §. . p. . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv. c. . see divinat . wendelin . ad secund epist. clem. add. coteler . annot . ad pp . apostol . p. . haeres . xxvii . num . . see hieron . adv . jovin . tom. iii. fol. . photius cod. . in clem. wendel . dio. de clem. epist . notae ad clem. p. , . natal . alex. dissert . hist. §. i. tom. i. in clem. barthius apud coteler . not. in herm. p. . cotelerius ibid. burton notes on s. clement . p. . clem. rom. ex ms regio . ex clem. alexandrin . vid. annot. valesii in euseb . p. , . hist. eccles. lib. i. c. . testam . s. ephraem inter oper. p. . evagrii hist. eccles. lib. iv. cap. . annal. eccl. ann . xxxi . num . . epitom . annal . baron . ann. xxxi . num . . annot. ad oper . ephraem . ●yr . p. . annot. in euseb. hist. eccles. p. . a. apud gratian . dist. xv. c. . simon hist. crit. du n. t. ch . iii. p. . exercit. in baron . xiii . §. . p. . saecul . i. vol. i. p. . nouvelle bibl. vol. i. p. . vid. apud basnaginm exercit . hist. crit. in baron . ad ann . xliii . num . . pag. . casaubon . exerc. in baron . xiii . p. . montacutius orig. eccles . tom. i. part . . p. . cave hist. literaria , §. i. p. . in jesu christo. bibl. sanct. lib. ii. in paulo . add. frasseniun● disq. biblic . p. , &c. so chrysost. theodoret , &c. theophylact . in loc . tertull. adv . marcion . lib. v. cap. xi . p. . vid. euseb. eccles. hist. lib. iv. c. . vid. annot. vales. in euseb . p. . a. tertull. de prescript . cap xxxvi . pag. ▪ hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. vi . p. . rev. i . ii. . tertull. adv . marcion lib. v. c. xvi● . p. . epiphan . haeres . xlii . num . xii . vid. l'histoire critique de monsieur simon sur le n. t. c. xv . p. . frassenius disq. biblic . p. , . sixt. sinens . bibl. sanct . lib. ii. in st. paulo . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . hieron . de script . eccles. in st. paulo . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. xxx . comp. hieron . in catal . script . eccles . in s. petro. vid. cave hist. literar . p . natal . alex . §. i. vol. i. p. . du pin. bibl. vol. i. p. . cave . natal ▪ alex. du pin. ib. hoornb . theol. pp . p. . rivet . critic . sacr. lib. i. c. lii . bona de reb. liturgic . lib. i. c. . leo allatius dissert . de sym. part . i. p. . nat. alex. § i. vol. i. p. , &c. du pin , biblioth . eccles. vol. i. p. , &c. diatrib . de symb. voss. dissert . de tribus symbolis . suicer . thesaur . eccles. to. ii. voce 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , p. ● . &c. spanhem . introd ad hist eccles. § ●i . c. . ernest tentzel . exercit. select . exercit. i. sam. basnage exercit. hist. crit. a● ann. xliv . num . , . annot. in pandect . canon . oxon. to. ii. p. . id. codex can. vindicat . c. , &c. vid. albaspin . obs. lib. i. c. . p. . de marca apud bevereg . annot. in pandect . p. . num . xii . coteler . not. in patr. apostol . p. , . du pin bibl. eccles. tom. i. p. . natal . alex. §. i. vol. ii. p. . daillé de pseudep . apostol . lib. iii. larroque observat. in . bevereg . hoornbeck theolog. patr. p. , &c. see this discuss'd at large by bishop usher , dissert . ad ignat . cap. v , vi , xix . p. . epiphan . haeres . xxx . ruffinus de adulterat . libr. origen . tract . xxxv . in matthaeum . author oper. imperfect . in math. inter oper. chrysost . ad mat. x. & xxiv . vid. coteler . not. in script . pp . apost . p. . natal . alex. §. i. tom. i. p. du pin bibl. vol. i. p. , . coteler . annot . in script . pp . apost . p. . a. . d. . a. . c. d. sixt. senens . biblioth . lib. ii. in clement . pos●evin . apparat. p. . bellarm. de script . §. i. in clement . natal alex. §. i. tom. i. p. . id. ibid. cap. de st. ignat. p. . du pin. biblioth . p. , , , &c. notae in script . pp . apost . p. . c. d. surius ad nov. xxiii . allarius in diatrib . de symeonum scriptis . du pin ●iblioth . tom. i. p. . r. vid. geogr. sacr . à s. paulo , p. , . ibid. p. . in chersoneso . eccles. hist. §. i. to. i. p. , . vid. natal . alex. §. i. to. i. p. . labbe de script . eccles . to. i. p. , &c. nouvelle biblioth . to. i. p. , . natal . alex. §. i. vol. i. p. . labbe de script . tom. i. in dionysio . he might have added several others : see bellarm. de script . p. . du pin-nouvelle biblioth . to. i. p. . vid. cave hist. liter . §. iv. p. . vindic. ignat . part . i. c. . loc. supr . cit . daillé apud pearson . loc . supr . cit . dodwell de sacerdot . laicor . cap. viii . §. iii. p. . mat. xxviii . . mark xvi . . luke xxiv . . acts i. . acts ii . euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iii. c. . epist. ad flor. in num . apud euseb. hist. eccles. lib. v. c. . euseb. hist ▪ eccles. lib. v. c. ● iren. adv . haeres . lib. iii. c. . see cor. iv . . ephes. i. , &c. acts viii . , . xix. , &c. vid. euseb. hist. eccles. lib. iv. c. . just. mart. dial. cum tryph. p. . ibid. p. . s●e below , c ▪ xlviii . p . see his salutation to the smyrnaans , p. , . epist. to the philadelph § vii . p. . to the trallians . sect. v. p. . clem. epist. num . xlii . p. . num . xliv . p. . cor. xii . . heb. iv . . clem. alex. de divit . salv. num . xlii . euseb . hist. eccles . lib. iii. c. . epist. to the philadelphians , ch . vii . p. , . add the martyrdom of ignatius , num . xii . p. . vid. dodwell . dissert . in iren. praefat . & dissert . . epiphan . haeres . xxx . num . . annot. in epist. in barnab . p. , . see the index , god. see ibid. in christ. see ibid. trinity . see the index , angel , devil . see ib. peace , unity , martyrs , reliques , &c. see repentance . see ibid. resurrection . ibid. punishment . see ibid. sacrament , baptism , &c. see ib. transubstantiation . see ibid. see bishops , ibid. ibid. ibid. see schism . ibid. heretick , apostate . see index , worship , &c. see ibid. sacrament , bishop . see below , p. , , . see below , p. . see the index , marriage , bishop . ib. see priest. ibid. fast. ibid. repentance . ibid. confession . see ignatius 's epistles and martyrdom , &c. see the index , bishop . ibid. martyrs , and below , p. . see index , suffer . ibid. see reliques , martyrs . see ibid. sin. see below , p. , &c. see index , riches , alms-giving , &c. ibid. christian . notes for div a -e * sojourneth . * called . see dr. hammond on matt. . c. * called . see dr. hammond on matt. . c. † gr. in . * see bishop pearson's note on this place . ed. colomes●● , p. . * see bishop pearson 's note on this place . ed. colomes●● , p. . * gr. sought of vs. † and. gr. strange to . gr. lodg'd as a stranger . † your firm and fruitful faith in all good works , &c. † in . presbyters . canon , rule . * themselves do their own business . vid. not. junii in loc . temperance , sob●iety . pet. v. . * proud. acts xx . . tim. vi . . * embraced it in your very bowels ‖ see junii not. in loc . gr. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ▪ gr. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 ▪ * holy counsel , or purpose , or will. gr. good. with mercy and conscience . ye were without repentance in all well-doing titus iii. . prov. vii . . deut. xxxii . . confusion , tumults , &c. walketh after . gen. iv . . &c. * this is according to the lxx. * fra●ricide . envy . gen. . gen. . & . exod. ii . . envy . gen. . exod. ii . . envy . gen. . made to lodge out . numb . xii . , . brought . * ●ades . envy . gen. . had or underwent the hatred , not only , &c. to cease from . combatants , wrestlers . the faithful and most righteous . good. labours . and so . by envy . having born seven times bonds , &c. he received the &c. vid. pearson de success . c. viii . § . men who have lived godly , is gathered together . become an excellent example among u. envy . * the names of danae and dirce i omit . see junius annot . in loc . cursed afflictions or torments . * envy or emulation . gen. ii . . great . send . * instructing you but also remembring , &c. ‖ place of encounter . imposed upon us all . tim. v. . * afforded or given to . look diligently to . from age to age. * be turned . peter ii . . gen. vii . jon. lii . * received salvation . spoken . ezek. xxxiii . so much as his repentance . good sentence . repent from . ezek. xviii . , . jer. iii. . . isaiah . . becoming suppliants of , &c. * turn our selves to his mercy . ‖ vain labour . gen. v. . found . being found . gen. vi . vil.viii . in vnity . james ii . . isaiah xli . . words . this man. gen. xii . . gen. xiii . . * towards the sea. gen. xv . . * a son was given unto him. gen. xix . pet. ii . . jude . * see not. junii in loc . but those that turn another way , he puts , &c. * not in concord . put for a sign . become . jos. ii . , &c. he sent men that should take them , that being taken , &c. therefore hospitable rahab . men being sent by the king and saying . ver. . ver. , . men. ver. . given you this city . ver. . ver. , . ver. jer. ix . ● . * teaching us . ‖ for thus he saith . luke vi . . * holy word . isaiah lxvi . . * holy. * in . * prick on to . see junius ann. psal. xxxvii . . prov. ii . . psal. xxxvii . * with religion or godliness . ‖ with hypocrisie will it . isaiah xxix . . psal. lxii . . * blessed . † cursed . psal. lxxvili . — ● . psal. xxix . . psal. xii . . * boasting . isaiah liii . psal. xxii . ver. . * we say . † to these , those also that have been witnessed of . gen. xviii . . job i. . job xiv . . * ministry . exod. iii. . — iv . . psal. lxxxlx . psal. li. to ver. . * fearfulness . ‖ so great and such kind of men. † witnessed of , or celebrated . * in . ‖ let us return to the mark of peace given to us from the beginning . † see him with our vnderstanding . ‖ soul. * not starting from his administration . † chorus's . * bounds . * doubting . ‖ vid. edit . comes . p. . * hollow or depth . † commanded , so it does . job xxxviii . * stations . ‖ service . * mix together . † all of vs. ‖ with concord . prov. xx . . * that nothing is hid to him of our thoughts . ‖ in the pride of their own speech or reason . * correct or amend . † let them manifest . ‖ partake of . † saving . ‖ the faith confirms . psal. xxxiv . . psal. xxxii . . ‖ be double minded . † let the writing be far from us . james i. . pet. iii. . * compare your selves into a tree . malach. iii. . ‖ see. * went forth , and so in the rest . ‖ sign . * animal † st●ong . ‖ progenitor . ‖ do. psal. iii. . job xix . . * let our minds be fastned . ‖ majesty . * if the , &c. psal. xix . . ‖ cover'd . † judgments . psal. cxxx●x . . † mind . † a part . deut. xxxii . , . lxx . deut. iv . . num. xxvii . prov. iii. . ‖ the grace of god has been given . † works . * he that speaketh many things shall also hear , &c. job xi . , . lxx. ‖ be not much in words . † are praised of . † see what are the ways of his blessing . ‖ vnroll . * with full perswasion , foreknowing what was to be , pleasingly became a sacrifice . ‖ the gifts that were given by him , were , he shall know , whosoever will one by one , carefully and distinctly consider them . † scepters : see jun. annot. gen. xxvii . . * glorified and magnified . ‖ in holiness of heart . ‖ all-greatest . gen. i. , . gen. i. . ‖ this. † come to . * work. isaiah . xl. ● ▪ lxii. . † every good work. * him. * his will. dan. vii . . isa. vi . . † with conscience . isa. lxiv . . cor. ii . . ‖ he. * ages . ‖ quantity . † gifts . † if we shall . * perform those things that are agreeable . rom. i. . pal. l. . &c. ‖ that which has the power to save us . † heigths of heaven . heb. i. . heb. i. . psal. civ . . heb. . . heb. i. . comp. psal. ii . , . heb. i. . psal. cx . . † war. * prefects . ‖ commanders of a thousand . † centurions . * commanders of , and so on . cor. xii . . ‖ vse one common subjection . † as also he has been placed . * his gift . † another that gave him . † of what matter . ‖ prepared for us . † and imprudent and without instruction . † for. ‖ air. job iv . . &c. job iv . . &c. † were crushed upon . ‖ deliver . * eat . † by chance . † to his will. ‖ being in a good conscience . † are. * do : is : are : &c. * do : is : are : &c. * do : is : are : &c. † ye see . thess. ● . ● . ‖ with the full assurance . * bishops , deacons . isaiah lx . . * bishops , deacons . ‖ signified . * an emulation ●appening . numb . xvii . * written . ‖ and the rods. * to exercise the office of the priesthood , and to minister , &c. ‖ that this should be so . * about the name of the bishoprick . ‖ that . ‖ bishoprick . * offer the gifts . * without blame ‖ written . † just men. * suffering these things they underwent them gloriously . ‖ dan. vi . . † shut into . * dan. iii. . ‖ worshipping the worship . * full of vertue . ‖ have inherited . * have been exalted . * to be glue'd to . ‖ psal. xvii● . . psal. xvii . . * turn aside . * the elect. eph. iv . . cor. xii . rom. xii . . * for he said . luke xvii . * gospel . ‖ spiritually send to you . cor. i. . † inclinations [ for one above another . ] * inclined . ‖ witnessed of . * gravity . * so much spoken of . ‖ institution . † differ from us . * take away . ‖ becoming favourable . * grave : venerable . psalm cxviii . , . ‖ greater . * bond. * glues . * pet. iv . . ‖ cor. xiil. , &c. * take us up . * animadversion , or visitation . isa. xxvi . . * are we . psal. xxxii . * see junius in loc . ‖ chief leaders . † they ought . * walk according to : live in ▪ * rather tha● . * chosen . psal. lxix . . psal. l. . — li. . exod. xxxii . deutr. ix . * once and twice· * more , great● ▪ ‖ bl●t ou● ▪ † the multitude . ‖ every place . psalm xxiv . * but that we may bring the examples of heathens . ‖ citizens . † many . † others . judith viii , ix , x , xiii . * the strangers esther vii , vii ▪ * who ▪ * there shall be to them . psal. cxviii . . prov. iii. . psal. cxli. . job v. , &c. see junius in loc . prov. i. , &c. * master . * to his name . * him. notes for div a -e * sojourneth . acts ii . . pet. i. . eph. ii . . pet. i. . psal. ii . . pet. . . phil. ii . . * breath . ‖ him. * in. ‖ injustice . * eph. iv . . colos. iii. . pet. iii. . * said to us , teaching . luke vi . . matt. vii . . matt. v. . ▪ luke vi . . * epistles . vid. annot. cot●ler . in loc . * be within . ‖ beginning . tim. . . † be arm'd . ‖ in. * love. ‖ truth . † of the. ‖ and that he. ‖ his righteousness . † continent . pet. . . cor. vi . , . ‖ presbyters . rom. xii . . * swiftly believing . matt. xii . . rom. xiv . . cor. v. . ‖ for. john iv . . ‖ the martyrdom or witness of the cross. ‖ turn our selves pet. iv . . matt. vi . . matt. xxvi . . pet. ii . , . † in : pet. iii. , &c. ‖ perswaded . ‖ associated in truth . tobit xii . . pet. ii . . rom. ii . . titus ii . . thess. v. . eph. v. . coloss. iii. . cor. vi . . phil. i. psal. iv . . eph. iv . . gal. i. . tim. ii . , . ‖ powers and princes . ‖ him. † our lord. ‖ grace . notes for div a -e ‖ in. * see eph. iii. ‖ in. ‖ in. * health , joy. ‖ in. ‖ received . vid. epist. interp. * vid. coteler . in loc . comp. gal. iv . . † pearson . vind. ign. par . . cap. . * imitators . ‖ martyrdom . eph. v. . [ see the old lat. ed. of bishop vsher. ] * when * in. ‖ possess . ‖ blessed in all things . * by. ‖ see philem. . wis● . xxx . . * in all manner of ways . ‖ to glorifie . † in one . * cor. i. . ‖ concerning the same . † the. * command you . ‖ in. † for. * concerning . ‖ will , counsel , opinion , &c. * whence . ‖ worthy to be named . * concord . ‖ partake of . matt. xviii . . * is already proud and has , &c ‖ judged , or separated . james iv . . pet. v. . * subject to god. * and the. ‖ himself . * more than to . * accustom themselves to carry . ‖ in wicked deceit . † avoid . * bite . * see bishop usher . vossius in annot. in loc . p. . * which can . † without doubt ye li●e . ‖ vid. voss. annot. in loc . pearson . vind. ign. par . . p. , . † to ages . ‖ as neither is faith the things of infidelity , nor infidelity the things of faith. * known . ‖ passed thither . † vpon . * comp. eph. ii● ▪ , , . pet. ii . . † the building of god the father . * by the engine of the cross , &c. pearson . ib. part . cap. . * these things i write . * 〈◊〉 ye firm . ‖ why has been more , &c. † in jesus christ both bodily and spiritually . c●r . vii . . * remain : or , for ●●●●main● . ‖ i● present . † one of the two , only that we may be found , &c. * without him . † be●●me you . ‖ in. * assented to . † in. * vid. cotele● in loc . pears . vind. ign. par. cap. . * destruction . ‖ concord . † of things in heaven , and of things on earth . * being in vnity . matt xii . . * shall be seen , or made manifest . ‖ speaking , not to be . * if he who 〈◊〉 ▪ does . ‖ that he ma● . † him. † out of . * the corrupt●●s of 〈◊〉 . cor. vi , ● . ‖ cor x. * such a one being become defiled . ‖ hears him . * receive oyntment . psal. xliv . .cxxxii. . ‖ are we foolishly destroy'd ? † not knowing . cor. i. , , . cor. i. . * carrie● ‖ who was . * mysteri●● 〈◊〉 noise . ‖ silence , 〈◊〉 quietness . 〈◊〉 rom. xvi . ● ▪ * the●e wa●● disorder . ‖ . † * disappeared . ‖ being made manifest . † he received authority , that which was perfect from god. * reveal . * that ye may obey . ‖ mind . notes for div a -e * vid. annot. coteler . in loc . * pearson , vind. ign. par . . cap. * vid. interpr . lat. epist. interpol . ‖ in. * according to . ‖ been vouchsafed a name carrying a great deal of divinity in it . * see bishop pearson . vind. ign. par . . cap. . p. . † sing , commend . * vndergoing , and escaping . ‖ worthy of god. * whom may i enjoy . † apud vet. lat. interpr . glorificato deum pat●em d. nostri jesu christi . * vid. voss. annot. in loc . pearson praef. ad vind. ignat. ‖ seeming youthful state. † it is becoming . * without any hypocrisie . † who willeth it . * deludes . ‖ flesh. vid. epist. interp . ad loc . * firmly . ‖ together . † character set . * your whole multitude . ‖ the concord of god. * sweet . ‖ was made manifest . hebr. ix . . † habit of god. john x. .xiv. , . xvii. , . eph. iv . , , , . * run . john xvi . . * heterodox . ‖ most divine . * fully to satisfie john i. ▪ * life . * received . * without . * vid. annot. voss. in loc . ‖ more than . * convicted , overthrown . * believe . * have your selves so . ‖ lesser than you . * hooks . † firmly . * in your selves . prov. xviii . . sept. * worthily complicated . * there may be a vnion both fleshly and spiritual . eph. iii. . † find , enjoy . * whence . * bedew'd . vid. epist. interp . in loc . * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . † possessing . notes for div a -e ‖ to : in. * in. ‖ vnto . * vid. interpr . lat. epist. interpolat . † known . * inseparable mind . † which you have not according to use , but according to possession . ‖ who am bound . * multitude . † your benevolence . * according to god. ‖ vid. vossium in loc . seem'd . † imitators . * when. * flee from . vid. vossium in loc . * deacons . vossius in loc . vid. aliter cotelerium . * a church is not called . * habit of body is great instruction . † power . vid. vossium & usserium in loc . * i understand many things . † measure . * love. ‖ vid. annot. vossii in loc . * mildness . ‖ is. * vid. de hoc loco conjecturas vossii , cotelerii , & junil apud usserium . comp. epist. interpol in loc . et voss. annot. in epist. ad phil. p. . vid. usserii obs marg. comp. coteler . ib. * any thing . isaiah lii . . * without . * seeing , or looking on . ‖ his father raising him . * the father . * plants . * the concord of you . * be a testimony among you , writing . * them. * vndivided . ‖ vid. annot. vossii in loc . notes for div a -e vid. pearson . vind. ignat. par. . ch . . p. . * in. * in. * type of the 〈◊〉 , i. e. the ●hu●ch of the ●●mans . see 〈◊〉 . annot. in 〈◊〉 . * vid. voss. annot. in loc . ‖ worthy of god. * have grace . ‖ my lot. * is. * as. ‖ enjoying . † from me . * flesh. ‖ being become a chorus . * sing . † that a bishop of syria should be found . * that those things also should be firm . ‖ commanded . vid. annot. usserii in loc . n. , . * god. ‖ perswasion . † vid. usser . ann. n. . * forbid me . ‖ be not . † by whom i may . * vid. lat. vet. interpr . et annot. usser . n. . ‖ flatter . cor. iv . . * ready . ‖ vid. voss. in loc . usser . annot. n. . † usser . annot. n. . luke xlv . . * vid. coteler . in loc . rom. viii . , ‖ vid. usser . annot. n. . † ib. n. . * that i may enjoy . * ends. ‖ of this age. † vid. voss. correct p. . * by matter . ‖ take : lay hold on . * vid. annot. voss. in loc . † what things constrain me * mind : will. ‖ who are present . † vid. voss. annot ▪ in loc ▪ * cotelerius aliter explicat . annot. in loc . usser . n. . ‖ voss. in loc . contr. coteler . q. v. * and that shall be . † willed . ‖ vid. annot. voss. in loc . † by a short letter . * in. ‖ vid. vet. interpr . lat. cor. xv . . * according to the flesh * vid. vet. interpr . lat. notes for div a -e ‖ inseperably . * vid. vet. interp . lat. ‖ in. * ministry belonging to the publick . ‖ has struck me with wonder . † those that speak vain things . ‖ in. * vid. voss. annot . in loc . ‖ evil. * very much poured out . ‖ vid. voss. in loc . * vid. voss. in loc . * opinion : council . * of some . * flesh. * flesh. * repent . ‖ who will loose from you . † vid. voss. annot . in loc . * vntouch'd . ‖ messenger or minister . * vossius . a martyr , or confessor . vid. annot. in loe . ‖ vid. vossius annot. in ep. ad smyrn . p. . notes for div a -e * comp. cor. vii . . * vnto the lord. mat. iii. . † vid. voss. annot. in loc . * incorp●real and 〈◊〉 . luke xxiv . john xx . . * death . ‖ admonish . † have so . * had true flesh. † it is . matt. xix . . * vid. epist. interp. * vid. annot. coteler . in loc . ‖ the eucharist . * vid coteler . annot. * the multitude * make a love-feast . ‖ return to a sound mind . † does worship . * vid. voss. annot. in loc . * ways . ‖ vid. epist. interpol . † spirit . * * vid. voss. annot . in loc . * vid. voss. annot . in loc . * see for the reason of this name . voss. annot . in loc . add. coteler . ib. * see voss. annot . ex epist. interpol . notes for div a -e * innocent . ‖ vid. cor. vii . . † be at leisure to , &c. * vid. voss. in loc . aliter vet. lat. interpr . ‖ the diseases . * superfusions . mat. x. . * vid. voss. annot. in loc . collat. cum coteler . ib. ‖ amaze thee . * beaten † more studious , diligent . ‖ being well-setled . * vid. annot. coteler . in loc . * or , trades . † note , that in what follows , ignatius speaks not to polycarp , but as in his name to the people . ‖ vid. annot. vossii coteler . in loc . ‖ that which is committed to your custody , to keep secure . † the security of god. * most becoming god. * footmen . † vid. voss. in loc . in the eternal work. ‖ ex vet. interpr . vid. voss. in annot. notes for div a -e * apostolical . * compare the cotton ms. † magis simplices . in ms. cotton : infirmum . ‖ as to himself . * order . † more to a familiarity of the lord. * candle . † every mans heart . ‖ see the cotton ms. comp annot . usser . n. * many and diverse . † to enter into the worship of devils , with all nations . ‖ worshippers . * manly . ‖ devil : vid. pears . vind. ign. part . cap. . * devil . † of those . ‖ in our breast : so ms. cotton . to have an understanding of the gods : or , the gods according to vnderstanding . so the other of a. b. usher . metaphrastes joyns both together . vid. annot . usser n . * vid gra●● metaphr n. * cor. vi . ▪ ‖ spectacle . * beasts eating raw flesh . co. auditor . ‖ and. † partake of his spiritual blessing . ms. cotton . hear his discourses : metaphrast . * to contend to his purpose . ‖ that the more suddainly disappearing to the world. † to. acts xxviii . , . † the ship being repell'd from the forepart , would not permit . ‖ hot. * quietare plebem ad non expetere perdere justum . ‖ see another conjecture of bishop vsher : annot. n. . * comp. graec. metaphrast . apud coteler . prov. x. . * according to what , praeoccupying in his epistle , he desires to be made his proper fruition . ‖ and buried . vid. annot. usser . in act. ignat. n. . ‖ bratificantes sanctum , pronouncing him blessed . * having manifested or made known . * philom●iia . vid. annot. uss. n. . comp. vet. lat . interpr . & euseb. hist. eccles. l.iv. c. ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . † martyrdom . ‖ him. † martyrdoms . * vid. corre●● . coteler . & v●●lei . in anno● . euseb. l.iv. ● . . p. . † shewing to all of us . ‖ for they had before their eyes to escape . cor. ii . . * shewn . † see bishop vsher's annot. n. . euseb. l. ●v . c. . & ●n eum annot. valesii p. . d. * their fearfulness . ‖ life of them . * i must be . ‖ justice of the peace . vid. usser . in loc . num . , . vales. in euseb . p. . d ▪ † discoursed . * why was all this diligence . vid annot. usser . in loc . ‖ freely . * comp. euseb. l.iv. c. . p. . b. edit . vales. & annot. vales. p. . c. ‖ they spake bitter words . † getting out of the chariot . † change my mind . vid. vales . annot. in euseb. p. . c. d. † was filled . ‖ as troubled or disturbed . * so eusebius ruffin . vet. interpr . lat. &c. vid. usser . not. . † who was president of the spectacles ; the chief priest for that year . see usser . annot. num. . vales. in euseb. p. ▪ † vid. aliter apud euseb. l. iv . c. . et ●n eum vales. annot. p. . * with every thing that was good . ‖ instruments . † the pile that was to burn him , see vales. in euseb. p. ● . b. ‖ by euseb. & vet. lat. interpr . ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . vid. annot. usser . num . . vales. understands by it one of the launce-men that were set to kill the beasts , if they grew unruly , at these kind of spectacles , vid. in euseb. p. . c. † so eusebius . ‖ knowing . * imitators . † own proper . † martyrdom . ‖ vid. coteler . in marg. & vet. lat. interpr . † rather of april : see annot . usser . n. . & pears . on chron. diss. . c. . n. . — * asiarch . ‖ as the blessed , &c. ad finem exempl . usser . p. . notes for div a -e ‖ honestarum . † aequitatum . ‖ spiritibus . * natural . ‖ honest. † equity of the lord. * vid. annot. voss. in loc . ‖ life : see below : chap. iv . pag. . ‖ constitutions of the lord. † given us to know . * the more honestly and deeply . ‖ in many things . † age. * equities . comp. graec. clem. alex. isaiah i. . — . — . — . jer. vii . . — . zach. viii . . ‖ of the mercy of our fathe● . psal. l. . isaiah lviii . . — . — . — . — . — . — . † providence . ‖ simpli●ity . * their. † voss. in loc . p. . edit . oxon. p. . b. et annot. d. bernard p. . ‖ beloved . dan. ix . mat. xxiv . . mal. iii. . comp. ed. oxon. p. . dan. vii . — . — . ‖ heap up sins . exod. xxxi , xxxiv . exod. xxxii . . deutr. ix . . ‖ separately vid. gr. clem. alex. isa. v. . † god. mat. xii . . isaiah liii . , . † vid. edi● oxon. p. . prov. i. . gen. i. . ‖ learn ▪ mat. ix . . * vid. coteler . in loc . aliter vet. int. lat. comp. ed. oxon. isa. liii . . zach. xiii . . psal. xxi . . — . isa. l. , . ‖ lxx . septuag . inter. isa. v●ii . . — xxviii . . isa. l. . psal. . . — . clem. alex. strom. v. * this is not in the old lat. vers. † vid. edit . oxon. p. . a. psal. xxi . . — cxvii . . — xxi . . isa. iii. . exod xxxiii . . † vid. coteler . annot. marg. ex clem. alex. isaiah xl . . prov. i. . eccl. i. . * vid. edit . ● oxon p. ● . b. ‖ vid. vet. lat. interp. gen. i. . comp. coloss. iii. . — . ezek. xxxvi . mat. xx . . ‖ comp. hebr. iii. ezek. xi . . — xxxvi . . † so st. paul cor. i●i . , — vi . . psal. xli . . psal. xxi , . † comp. hier. in jer. xxxii . . et in jer. xi . . add. pet. ii . . ‖ see this applied after the same manner , hebr. ix . † levit. xxiii . . * gen. xxv . ‖ numb . xxix , &c. vid. coteler . in marg. et annot. in loc. comp. observ. edit . oxon. * vid. annot. cotel . in loc . † levit. xvi . vid. maimon . tract . de die exp. edit . du veil . pag. . add. annot. cotel . & ed. oxon. in loc * vid. edit . oxon. p. . a. . b. ‖ vid. maim . ibid. pag. . comp. annot. edit . oxon. in loc . † vid. annot. isaac voss. in loc . ‖ vid. lat. ver. see acts xiv . . numb . x●x . † israel . that this was also a type of christ , see hebr. ix . . ‖ vid. vet. lat. interpr . * wood. * wood. † vid. coteler . in annot. septuag . psal. xvii . . isa. xxxiii . . jer. iv . . jer. vii . . psal. xxxiii . isaiah i. . — . — xi . . † angel. jer. iv . , . * vid. lat. interp . vet. jer. vii . . jer. ix . , . * vid. coteler . in loc . confer . orig. ad rom. cap. ii . . † that many others of the antient fathers have concurred with him in this : see coteler . in loc . add. eund . pag. , . ibid. edit . oxon. in loc . an instance of the like kind , see rev. xiii . , . add. annot. d. bernard . edit . oxon. p . ‖ that in this he goes on the received opinions of the rr. vid. annot. coteler . & ed. oxon. in loc . levitic . xi . deutr. xiv . add. ainsworth . on lev. xi . . and again on deut. xiv . . † in the vnderstanding . deutr. iv . * vid. antiq. lat. vers. † wicked to the end . * see coteler . annot. in loc . ‖ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . * so several naturalists have affirmed , the others denyed : see annot . coteler . in loc . † vid. arist. apud euseb. praep. evang. l. viii . cap. . add. coteler . in loc . psal. i. . ‖ see edit . oxon. p. . a. so iren. adv . her. l.v. c. . * comp. clem. alex. l.iii. paedag. c. , et simil . orig. theod. &c. coteler . annot. in loc . † ruminate upon . jer. ii. . * vid. annot. cotel . & edit . oxon. in loc . isa. xvi . , . — xlv . . — xxxiii . , . ‖ in. vid. edit . coteler . p. . psal. i. zeph iii. . ‖ vid. conject . edit . oxon. comp. iv . esdr. v. . et obs. cotel . in loc . ‖ see st. hier. in like manner annot. d. bernard . p. . edit . oxon. exod. xvii . * that were so beaten . † again set them in array , being armed . lat. vers . isa. lxv . . ‖ so irenaeus , just mart. st. chrysost. &c. vid. edi● . oxon. p. . a. † israel falling . deutr. xxvii . ● rom. xi . . ‖ so the other fathers . just. mart. &c. vid. edit . oxon. pag. . * vid. interp. vet. lat. exod. xvli . . * comp. vet. lat. interp. psal. cix . . ‖ vid. annot. coteler . in loc . edit . oxon. p. . c. isa. xlv . . † comp. vet. lat. interp. gen. xxv . . compar . st. paul. rom. ix . just. mart. tert. &c. vid. ed. oxon. p. . a. gen. xlviii . ‖ vid. lat. interp. vet. gen. xv . . so st. paul himself applies this . rom. iv . . exod. xxiv . deutr. ix . . exod. xxxi . ● exod. xxxii . deutr. ix . . ‖ vid. lat. interp. vet. isa. xlix . . † for salvation unto . isa. xlii . . — isa. lxi. , . comp. luke iv . . exod. xx . . jer. xvii . . gen. ii. . exod. xx . . xxxi . . ‖ vid. cotel . annot. in loc . † how general this tradition then was , see coteler . annot. in loc . edit . oxon. p. . a. psal. lxxxix . . ‖ that is , to the time of the gospel , says , dr. bernard . q. v. annot. p. . ed. oxon. * so the lat. vers. isa. i. . ‖ so the other fathers , q. v. apud coteler . annot. in loc . pag. . † vid. edit . oxon. & vet. lat. interp. * the temple . isa. xl . . isa. lxvi . . isa. xlix . . jer xxv . isa. v. dan. . haggai ii . ‖ vid. lat. vet. interp. ‖ vid. lat. vet. interp. ‖ vid. lat. vet. interp. ‖ so the old lat. interp. † vid. coteler . in loc . et basil. in psal. i. ‖ vid. cotel . in loc . † vessel . notes for div a -e * edit . oxon. aliter 〈◊〉 . vid. hieron . in hosoam . vii . . * in glory . — edit . oxon. hath preserved thee in glory . † edit . oxon. clem. alex. strom. vi . ‖ so coteler . edit . oxon. and she , &c. ‖ days that are coming . numb . xi . , . origen . philocal . cap. . ‖ are abou● . † edit . oxon. * clem. alex. strom. xii . baptism . ‖ vid. edit . oxon. ‖ vas ur●ale . ‖ observe them . irenaeus lib. . c. . origen . de princ. l. . c. . euseb. hist. eccles. l. v. c. . athanas . de incarn . verb. &c. ‖ simple . * vid. antioch . hom. xxix . † daemon . ‖ vid. antioch . hom. xcviii . * simply . † his own . ‖ gloriously to god. ‖ antioch . hom. lxvi . * see below , book lii . si● . x chap. . † if thou shalt keep the truth ‖ chastity . † another mans. ‖ see cor. vii . ▪ † sense . ‖ praepositus : see below , chap. iii. † sense . * great wisdom . † sense . † sense . ‖ in his vnderstanding . * chastity . † rightly hear● ‖ those days . * vid. annot. coteler . in loc . pag. , . ‖ vid. not. coteler . in loc . p. . b. c. rom. vii . . comp. cor. vii . † the vessel . †† disposition to anger : and so in what follows . ‖ place . †† disposition to anger : and so in what follows . * vid. antioch . hom. ●x . †† disposition to anger : and so in what follows . †† disposition to anger : and so in what follows . ‖ to. †† disposition to anger : and so in what follows . * angel. * angel. †† angriness . ‖ vertue . †† angriness : disposition to anger . see above . †† angriness : disposition to anger . see above . †† angriness : disposition to anger . see above . * vessel . * vid coteler . annot. in loc . pag. . . comp. edit . oxon. p. . not. a. † placed . ‖ vid antioch hom. lxi . comp orig. l. lii . de princip . et in l●c. hom xxxv . * works . ‖ vid. antioch . hom. cxxvii . * antioch . hom. lxxix . ‖ of all iniquities . * vid. coteler . in loc . ‖ vid. antioch . hom. lxxxiii . † asking the petition of thy soul. ‖ in every thing . ‖ without sense thou dost not understand it . † questions . * vid. edit . oxon. p. . b. comp. cor. vii . . † senses . ‖ antioch . hom. xxv . ‖ of men. * vid. antioch . hom. lxxiv. † vessels . * angel. † origen . in matth. xxiv . . ‖ angel. ‖ vid. antioch . hom. lxxvii . ‖ antioch . hom. xv . ‖ soule . ‖ vid. origen . in jos. hom. x. † nations . ‖ with me . * vid. not. coteler . in loc . pag. , . † coteler . ibid. * vid. not. cotelerli . pag. . a. b. c. † vid. antioch . hom. vii . * vid. not. cotelerli . pag. . a. b. c. * vid. not. cotelerli . pag. . a. b. c. ‖ vid. edit . oxon. annot. a. p. . * angels . * angels . ‖ in them . * vid. annot. coteler . in loc . † angel. * vid. origen . in psal. xxxvii . hom. . ‖ angel. * origen . in num. hom. viii . ‖ angel. ‖ angel. ‖ angel. ‖ vid. edit . oxon. p. not . d. ‖ sea● . ‖ with foreign nations . ‖ with foreign nations . ‖ see above book i. * angel. ‖ origen . hom. iii. in ezech. † so cotelerius in loc . ‖ vid. ms. lamb. edit . oxon , p. ● . ‖ vid. annot. edit . oxon. p. . d. † vid. origen . philocal . c. viii . ‖ origen . hom. in ezek. † vid. edit . oxon. p. . b. ‖ vid. coteler . annot. in loc . pag. , . comp. pet. iii. . * vid. clem. alex. strom. ii . et vi . * sense . ‖ vid. orig. philocal . c. viii . † feigned . * vid. edit . oxon. p. . not. b. ‖ infancy . ‖ not. ‖ vid. antioch . hom. cxxii . † antioch . hom xciv . ‖ president . notes for div a -e * little things , or meanly . * little things , or meanly . * little things , or meanly . † hear as of little things . ‖ knowing . † how great holy things do we owe unto him . isai. liv . . † simply . mat. ix . . ‖ what is the knowledge which is towards him . mat. x. . isa. xxix . . mat. vii . . * wherefore we doing these things . mat. vii . . luke xiii . . mat. x. . luke xii . , . luke xvi . . mat. xvi . . ezek. xiv . , . ‖ the combat ●s before us . isa. lxvi . . † let us repen● ‖ there . luke xvi . ● , . mat. xii . . ‖ 〈◊〉 for this cause we cannot find a man aliter 〈…〉 q v. see above the st epistle , chap. xxiii . pag , . sure and honest means for the conversion of all hereticks and wholesome advice and expedients for the reformation of the church / writ by one of the communion of the church of rome and translated from the french, printed at colgn, ; with a preface by a divine of the church of england. vigne. approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing v ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books, - ; : . (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) sure and honest means for the conversion of all hereticks and wholesome advice and expedients for the reformation of the church / writ by one of the communion of the church of rome and translated from the french, printed at colgn, ; with a preface by a divine of the church of england. vigne. wake, william, - . viii, [ ], p. printed and to be sold by randal taylor, london : . translated from french by william wake. cf. british mus. gen. cat., v. , col. . reproduction of original in the cambridge university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng catholic church -- apologetic works. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - spi global keyed and coded from proquest page images - judith siefring sampled and proofread - judith siefring text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion sure and honest means for the conversion of all hereticks : and wholesome advice and expedients for the reformation of the church . writ by one of the communion of the church of rome , and translated from the french printed at cologn , . with a preface , by a divine of the church of england . licensed gvil . needham . novemb. . . london : printed ▪ and to be sold by randal taylor , near stationers-hall . m dc lxxx viii . the preface to the english reader . after so many excellent discourses as have of late been publish'd by the divines of the church of england upon almost all the points in controversy between us and our brethren of the church of rome ; it might well be thought a very needless thing to call in this foreign auxiliary , were it not hoped that those reasons which usually are not so well received when coming from such as they esteem their enemies , might possibly be allow'd the favour of an examination , being offer'd by one of their own communion . it may besides be perhaps no unseasonable design , especially at this time , to satisfy the world , that those things which we chiefly complain of in their church , are after all no other , than what divers of those who have lived and died in it , have both confessed to be amiss , and earnestly wish'd they might see reformed . it is not unknown to any at this day , what the complaints have been of many the most considerable persons of the church of rome in the very beginning of our reformation . how much they desired that something might be done to rectify what they could not deny to be amiss both in the head and in the members . let the frequent demands of the emperor and other catholick princes ; let the acknowledgment of the pope himself , and the proposals of the colledg of cardinals expresly set apart for this consultation ; let the remonstrances that were made , and the endeavours that were used , both by the french legats , and the spanish bishops , even in the council of trent it self , suffice to shew , both that something was amiss , and that the protestants tho they might perhaps be censured by them for not proceeding so regularly as they thought they should , yet could not be deny'd to have had just grounds in the bottom for their complaints . and what was then more generally own'd as to these things , whilst as yet it was hoped that some redress might be had of them ; many of the best men of that church , and who have made the most diligent and impartial enquiries into the differences between us , have not ceased , tho in a more private manner to confess since , and publish to the world their just resentments of it . it were infinite to insist upon all those that have done this : something of that kind has been already offer'd to the world , and more perhaps may hereafter be done more fully to confirm it . in the mean time the author here before us , and who lived and died in the roman communion , sufficiently declares , that he was so far from esteeming that church , which now pretends to so much authority over all others , to be absolutely exempt from all possibility of erring , that on the contrary , he judged it to be actually involved in very great errors . it cannot reasonably be doubted by those who know any thing at all of this book , but that he who wrote it was truly a member of the church of rome , however dissatisfied with it in many of its pretences . his preface will give a satisfactory account , how by the general decay of piety that he met with in a place , which he expected should above all others have deserved the name of the holy city , he came first to search more fully into his religion : and how the more he read the holy scriptures , and compared the pretences of his church with what he found in them ; the more he still perceived it to have deviated from the primitive rule , and to have usurped upon the consciences and credulity of its members . but tho by this means therefore he saw that in many of our disputes we had reason in our arguments against them ; yet in so many other points he still defends their errors , as plainly shew how far he was , at the time that he wrote this book , from being a deserter of his first faith. hence it is that we sometimes find him arguing thus against our religion . that there being no visible church of our perswasion at the beginning of the reformation , and yet it being confess'd by us , that there ought always to have been a visible church of christ in the world , we must confess that then ours is not the visible church of christ : and there being no other that can with so good reason pretend to it as the roman , we ought to acknowledg that to be it . concerning the holy sacrament of the eucharist , he seems to the last to have stuck to that interpretation of christ's words , upon which the church of rome so much insists against us . that this sacrament being the last will and testament of our blessed lord , we ought to interpret it as all other things of that kind , according to the letter : and cannot without impiety believe , that our lord jesus christ in the institution of it should have made use of words , either obscure or ambiguous . besides , that it was never his custom to establish articles of faith upon metaphorical expressions . in a word ; tho for peace sake indeed he seems to desire that no ones conscience should be tied up to any determinate manner of christ's presence in this blessed eucharist , yet he plainly enough declares that as for himself he thought him to be really , nay corporally present there : and that the calvinists were guilty of novelty and error in this matter , seeing ( as he adds ) all the christians of asia and africk believe the real presence , and there are none but themselves that do deny it . from this error , he elsewhere argues in behalf of the communion in one kind : in which tho he confesses his church to have departed from the primitive institution and therefore wishes is might be redressed ; yet upon this principle of the real presence he endeavours to shew that it is not so capital a matter as we pretend , nor ought we from hence to conclude , that their church which he calls the catholick church , is not the true church . i shall add but one point more , and wherein he plainly shews himself to have been far from our perswasion , and that is , the invocation of saints . which , says he , we call a religious worship , and little better than idolatry . but he denies it to be a religious worship , for any one to pray to a saint to pray to god for him , or any more than to intreat any good man living to do the same . all the difference he thinks is , that we are not so secure that the saint hears our prayers , as we are that our f●llow christian does . that for that passage which from st. paul we alledg against them in the matter , rom. x. . how shall they call on him in whom they have not believed ? it does them no more harm than it does the calvinists themselves , who pray to their ministers to pray to god for them , altho they do not believe in him , nor put their confidence in him as god. that besides all this , their church does not teach that 't is necessary to pray to them , and that 't is therefore a manifest injustice to accuse them as idolatrous on any such account . and that after all , we cannot deny but that the invocation of saints was very early in the church . i suppose this may be sufficient to satisfy any reasonable man , that t●is author was indeed what he declares himself to be , a true member of the church of rome . but if yet any further doubt should still remain , this i hope at least will fully cle●r it , that the archbishop of tholouse has lately thought fit to cause this very bo●k to be reprinted , with a publick permission so to do . and now after what has been said concerning this worthy author , and who has hitherto m●t with a general acceptance from all those that prefer the interest of truth and the peace of the church , before their own secular ends and advantages ; i hope it will not displease the church of england-reader , if he meet with some things in the following treatise that may seem to reflect a little hardly upon his country and communion . for besides that they are not many , he may please to remember that it was written by one , who , tho by god's mercy he saw enough to detest some of the extravagances of his church , yet in the rest continued still firm to the communion of it : and the translator thought that he ought not to give those of the other side cause to complain of him , by representing only what made against them , and omiting that wherein he sometimes reflects upon us too . as for the design it self , the conversion of all hereticks , and the reformation of what is truly amiss in the church : how practicable it is i shall not undertake to determine . this must be confess'd , that it is certainly most worthy of a christian's thoughts and endeavours . and tho 't is much to be fear'd , that through the prejudices and interests of men we never shall see such a perfect vnion among christians as were to be wish'd ; yet i cannot doubt but that our author has truly pointed out to us the chiefest obstacle of our common peace ; and which , were it once removed , we might by god's grace soon proceed on all hands to a better understanding than we are ever like to arrive at without it . whilst men not only continue insensible of their errors , but are carried away with an opinion , that they cannot possible fall into any : whilst instead of examining imparpartially where the truth lies , they magisterially assume to themselves an authority to denounce anathema's against their brethren who would convince them of their deviations ; it is in vain to hope that either truth should prevail , or peace and unity be established among us . but would they once be perswaded to remove this obstacle out of the way ; would they know themselves to be but men , and as such , exposed to the same frailties and infirmities that other christians are ; would they seriously implore the blessing of heaven upon their endeavours , and laying aside their vain traditions , joyn impartially with us in the search of truth , out of the alone certain and infallible rule of it , the word of god ; why should we dispair but that the light of the glorious gospel of christ might yet so shine upon us , as to guide our feet into the way of peace . now this is that which our author here endeavours to draw all men to . he proposes that we should first do justice to one another , as to all those points that we have falsly laid to each others charge . that then we should reform on both sides whatever we could discover to need a reformation . to this end he freely gives us up the council of trent ; and indeed in effect , all the other councils that have been held before it ; the infallibility of the church , but especially the authority of the pope , whom he proves , in what we here publish , to be an vsurper , and wishes all men to separate from him as such . he desires that the cardinals might be reduced to their first condition ; that the number of bishops might be encreased , and their diocesses no larger than what they could easily supervise . that the monasteries might be retrenched , and the almost infinite number of the clergy reduced to a juster proportion . that for all this , a free council might be assembled , in which the laity as well as clergy might be present , as being the more likely of the two to bring things to an accommodation . that for those points wherein we could not after all agree , some way should be found out to tollerate one another . as for instance , that in the matter of the eucharist , neither should those of the church of rome require us to receive their doctrine , or to joyn in their worship ; nor we them to renounce either : but that continuing on both sides as we are , we should nevertheless communicate together in the same posture of kneeling , as is now done in the church of england . finally , that for all this it were to be wish'd some great prince would begin to set this matter on foot , for that without such a concurrence , it will be impossible it should ever be throughly effected . this is , as far as i can gather , the design of this author ; and which i have the rather put together here , because it is not so fully expressed in what is now publish'd , being only the first part of his work , tho all that he lived to bring to perfection : for the rest , which we find in the french edition , it is rather a collection of materials for a second part , than any compleat copy of what he had finish'd of it . i shall not here enter into any debate , either to vindicate or to censure this project . it will be time enough for us to deliberate on these things , when those of the church of rome will be content in good earnest to quit their pretences to that infallibility and authority they have so long usurped to themselves , and over all others , and joyn in such a christian design as is here proposed with us . and however we have been told that the present pope was once inclined to submit the council of trent to a new revision , yet if we may be allow'd to judg by his other actions , he does not seem to be at all disposed to give up the least part of his own pretences to the churches peace . and therefore , instead of pursuing such vain , however pleasing , speculations ; let us make this present use of our author's arguments , to confirm our selves yet more in opposition to those pretences , which we see here even one of their own communion to have proved , not only false but insupportable . let us beseech god , if it be his will , to bring all others that are yet enslaved by them , to the like knowledg of the truth . and that in the mean time , he would vouchsafe unto us the grace of his blessed spirit , that we may faithfully persevere in our holy profession to our lives end : that no terrors , no interests , no craftiness of cunning men , who lie in wait to deceive , may be able to make us fall from our own stedfastness : but that contending earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints , we may grow in grace , and in the knowledg of our lord and saviour jesus christ : to him be glory both now and for ever . amen . the authors preface . the authority of the pope hath taken such root by the ignorance of the holy scripture , by the multitude of ecclesiasticks , and by all the temporal benefices , whereof the pope is looked upon as the source , that a kind of miracle seems necessary to destroy it , and to reestablish the church in that liberty which the son of god hath purchased for it by his blood. besides , impiety , irreligion , ambition and dissoluteness have so seized upon the minds of the greatest part of mankind , that a man cannot hope to be so much as heard when he speaks of reforming the church . a●tho i am very well satisfied of that , yet i think my self indispensibly obliged to represent the abuses of this power and authority which hath no just foundation ; at least in this respect i shall in some measure justifie my self towards god in doing my duty , i shall justifie my self to my own self , whom my conscience hath long accused of a large and criminal silence . i shall also justifie the catholicks against the hereticks , who will know by this , that we are not so blind as they imagin . and this will also serve to fortifie the catholicks against all the temptations they may have of abandoning the church , by freeing themselves from the papacy ; so that renouncing the latter , they may always stand firm to the former , and also prepare themselves to fight couragiously against antichrist , who in all appearance is near at hand . i have a great while hoped that there would have been found among the great and learned men that we have among us , some one or other that would have undertook to open mens eyes , and would have saved me a labour therein . i could consult no body without manifest danger both to themselves and me , since it is a work that may equally displease both weak catholicks and hereticks , being obliged in regard of the first to disentangle and separate truth from falshood , and a falshood more beloved by many catholicks than the most important truths . and in regard of the hereticks , i know it is the way to undermine the foundation of their false religions , tho without dispute , and indirectly , in abolishing the papacy . in respect both of the one and of the other , the effects of this mischievous authority are terrible ; since it fills the catholicks with ignorance , and gross and low ideas of the christian religion ; and mars the beauty of that as well as of the church . the hereticks are thereby scandalized , and harden themselves more and more in their obstinacy , perswading themselves that every thing in our religion is false , seeing clearly that some part of it is so . it is not to be doubted but that many catholicks of our time do see this evil , since in the preceding ages many have perceived it , and that the evil is come to so high a degree , that it is almost impossible not to take notice of it . and truly there have been some who could not forbear saying somewhat of it ; but this hath been but very slightly and superficially . it seems as tho they were ashamed of jesus christ and his gospel , as the scripture speaks . in truth , it is a deplorable thing that amongst the multitude of learned men professing the christian religion , and that employ themselves in writing , there cannot be found so much as one man of understanding touched with the miseries of the church , and of such courage as to represent it to those who may and ought to remedy it , the sacriledg daily committed in the church under the very name of the church , and under the pretence of religion . either the greatness of the evil must discourage them , and bereave them of all hopes , and not being able to cure the ulcer , they had rather let it wholly alone ; omittere potius praevalida & adulta vitia , quam hoc assequi ne palam fieret qualibus flagitiis impares simus , tac. annal. lib. . or else it must be , that their own interest is concerned in the continuance of this evil , or that they have no regard for the desolations of the church ; or lastly , they are afraid of shaking the catholick ▪ religion in respect of weak brethren , and for fear of giving occasion to the hereticks , thereby to insult over it . if they had these last thoughts , it was for want of examining the thing ; for it is certain that the papacy hath neither by nature nor divine institution any connexion with the christian religion , but on the contrary its principles are opposite , and tend to its destruction . it is also certain that those who have separated themselves from the church , see very clearly the inconsistency of the papacy with the gospel , since there was nothing else that heretofore obliged the greeks , and since the protestants , to forsake the church ; so that no man can believe but that they see the thing very well , since it is the only place wherein they daily attack us with a mighty advantage ; and tho it were not true that they knew it perfectly , we are however indispensibly obliged to oppose errors ( mendacia nec tegunt nec vulnerant ) and not to palliate them ; and certainly not sincerely to acknowledg palpable gross abuses , is to betray religion and the church ; for that makes men call in question the best establisht truths , according to that saying , he that denies all things , grants all things : qui en todo niga loda . and i have always observed , that a frank and generous acknowledgment when a man is in an error , produces a very good effect upon all judicious and reasonable persons , and disposeth the protestants with much more readiness to embrace the catholick verities . furthermore , i dare be bold to affirm , that one of the principal causes of the irreligion and impiety which reigns in the world , proceeds in great measure from the little reason and wisdom wherewith this primacy and papal almighty power is exercised , which converting all religion to its temporal profit , makes the very divinity of the christian religion to be called in question . for as the world goes , men will have all or nothing ; so that having at first received the article of the papacy , as an article of faith , whilst they see the popes , under colour of this article , robbing and plundering the church , they will perceive the imposture , and believe at length , that the other articles of religion are no more divine than that of the papacy . so that if it pleased god , that this tyranny were abolished in the church , this villainous mask taken off from religion , it would be incomparably more loved and respected , and the impiety , ambition , and dissoluteness , wherewith the papacy hath infected all things , would be banished from the church , and we should see all the schismaticks and hereticks range themselves under the standard of the church ; and even the pagans , and the other infidels , whose princes are afraid of the pride of rome , that would make them her subjects and tributaries , and dispose of them and their states at her pleasure . by this means all hopes would be taken away from the hereticks of ever seeing the catholick religion ruined by it : for i know their ministers have from hence all their hopes , and would be sorry to see the papacy abolished without the catholick religion . wherefore it is absolutely necessary to fortifie the catholicks against this danger , and to teach them how to distinguish between the wisdom of god , which they ought always to stand firm to , and the folly of men , which they ought always to abhor ; and that this last , whatever mixture it may seem to have with truth , by the art of men , may never make them contemn the other ; and that the truth may never make them receive the inventions of humane wisdom , sharpened by ambition and avarice , how specious soever they may appear . i shall not be at all surprised , if some men think i say too much , and that there be many who will call me extravagant ; for i know how gross and carnal ideas they who read not the scripture have of religion , having been one of that number , who , as well as others , believed that the church could not subsist without the pope , and that there ought to be a universal and visible head of the whole church : but i shall have reason to think it very strange , if people have not other sentiments , after the reading of this work . all those who will penetrate , and enter a little with me into the knowledg of the disorders which that authority causes among christians , will find , that i have too much reason , and that i speak with a great deal of moderation , if they have any zeal and love for the church . for my part , i have been in three different tempers , in regard of the papacy . when i first knew what it was , i did nothing but sigh , like another heraclitus , and afflict my self with grief for the disorders that shook my faith : after this , i fell into another frame , wherein , like democritus , i did nothing but laugh at the folly and vanity of men , who under pretence of religion , suffer'd themselves to be so imposed upon . since that , as my understanding encreased , i again fell into the condition of heraclitus , being more perswaded than i was of the truths of religion , and bearing a greater part in the calamities of the church , and in the salvation of my neighbour , than before i did ; and this it was that moved me to put these my thoughts in writing . so go the thoughts of men , succeeding one another , pro or con , according as they are more enlightned . here i think it proper to represent by what degrees i came to know the imposture . it is now more than . years since i was first at rome . there i began to perceive that there was nothing at all in what people had made me believe of the pope and cardinals . i did never believe that every thing that was told me of them was true ; for people would have perswaded me , that the pope received news every . hours from paradise , and that he sent whomsoever he pleased to heaven or hell. but what i believed of him , was his great sanctity , infallibility , and impeccability in every thing he said ( as indeed it seems necessary it should be so , if it be true , that christ hath given him the employ that he pretends to ) , a vast and almost infinite knowledge , a perfect abstraction from all frail and earthly things , with a continual application for the salvation of all mankind : and i believed as much in proportion of the cardinals . i found that to be very true which tacitus says , major e longinquo reverentia : you must not come near a thing to have a value for it . i had the leisure to consider the maxims and conduct of these people , which i soon found to be contrary to all the ideas i had formed to my self of them , and i wanted but very little of running stark mad . i was as full of indignation against those who gave me these impressions , as against those who scandalized me : i saw nothing throughout , but an horrible licentiousness both in the court and in the town , without any appearance of the true worship of god , as i had observed in many honest people of france . i heard of nothing any where , but horrors and abominations of all kinds ; comparing this with the sentiments that had been instilled into me in france , i often cried out , o quantum est in rebus inane ! o how the world is abused ! the mind of man is but vanity ; and i wished with all my heart , that our poor french-men had but seen it , that so they might be undeceived . the greatest part of the men here , pass half the day in the churches to hear the musick , and the other half among the curtesans ; and that was it which they at first commended to me , the fine churches , and the fine curtesans . this nation as well as the spaniards hath found the secret of associating their devotion with a habit of the most enormous vices . in one hand they shall hold a long bead-roll , and stick a dagger into a mans body with the other , or else commit the most horrible impurities ; nor is there any justice for this , nor for sodomy , which is more common there than simple fornication in our country ; nor for poysoning . and from all these things the cardinals , and court of rome , are no more free than others ; for the popes , their age ordinarily frees them from these things . i reasoned oftentimes thus with my self ; is it possible that this here should be the man whom they call his holiness , who gives pardons and indulgences to others , and who canonizes saints ? is it possible that these should be the men , and this the court that gives laws for religion to the whole earth ? i confess , that my respect for religion sensibly diminished every day ; that i was tempted to believe that the christian religion was made only for them , and that i doubted of its divinity , seeing and hearing nothing but inconceivable dissoluteness every where , even in the very cloisters ; an ambition , and an excessive vanity in all the prelates , who were promoted for no other merit than that of a machiavillian policy , wherein the disciples out-do their master . i knew not where i was : sometimes i cast my eye upon a person of reputation and of merit , as people told me , and i believed so , seeing his air and his behaviour : in a matter of days i should hear the secret history of him , which was a horrible one . the heros of this court are , as tacitus says of mucian , people compounded of great vertues , and great vices ; mucianus luxuria , arrogantia , comitate , industria , bonis malisque artibus mixtus . these are brave worldly men ; but for religion , most certainly they have none at all . i am of the opinion , that staying in this place is very dangerous for an honest man ; and people do complain , both in germany and in england , that their young people that travel , come back from thence lost in debauchery and impiety . that which preserved me from the contagion of this place , was , that i went with an honest and a simple mind , however , not very ignorant ; for i had finished my studies . this it was that disgusted me at all the disorders and licentiousness i saw there , and gave me a horror for all their pleasures . perhaps i should have done like other people , if i had not been so stiff and resolute . to free my self from the perplexity i was in about religion , through the disorder and irregularity of this court , that is esteemed the center of religion , from whence , according to this supposition , there ought to shine forth nothing but sanctity , purity , humility , charity , and zeal for the salvation of men , contempt of the grandeurs and riches of the world , with a continual application to the instruction of the people ; and where i saw nevertheless nothing in the stead of these vertues but licentiousness , ambition and superstition , with a horrible ignorance in the people . i then formed a design to instruct my self , and to know a little better the principles of the christian religion : and i desired for that end a french abbot , with whom i lodged , to lend me a latin new testament , which he had , and which he read but seldom . i read it with attention , twice over , from one end to the other , which set my mind in better condition than it was before . the more i read , the more i was inwardly comforted ; but i was the more enraged against what i saw , without being able to find the least solution to the impossibility that there appeared to me to be , in the popes being the universal vicar of jesus christ upon earth , and head of the church catholick . i there quickly found the principal articles of religion established in many places , and often in express terms one only head of the church , jesus christ , of whom the church is the body , and believers the members ; one only spouse of the church , one only bishop of bishops ; but not one word , neither far nor near , of the pope and cardinals , nor any thing that had any relation to them . besides , all places there were full of examples and exhortations to humility , to piety , to chastity , and to charity . the master and disciples there spoke continually of renouncing the world , its grandeurs , vanities , pleasures , riches , and above all , against the spirit of domination . but in the popes , and in their court , i found maxims that were quite contrary . i sometimes entertained the abbot , who was an honest man , and very sociable , with the trouble that this authority of the popes gave me . he laughed at it , and gave me pleasing answers , owning one part of what i objected , and for the rest , he gave me reasons , which to me were not very sufficient . one day when i pressed him a little more than ordinary , not knowing what to answer me , he told me , that if i would read bellarmin , i should there find many reasons that would resolve my doubts . so that i hired one , which i read over and over upon this subject , without finding any thing that gave me the least satisfaction . there were passages of scripture wrested with great violence , which touched not the question , or else were contrary to it ; and the forc'd sense that he gave them was always directly contrary to the genius of the gospel , and opposite to other passages of scripture , whereof i had made a great collection , and agreed not at all with the maxims , and with the example of jesus christ , and of his apostles . it is true , there were some humane reasons , which at first might seem plausible ; but besides that they had not that weight which those had which the scripture furnished with against him ; they tended to establish a worldly and temporal dominion in the church , and renewed the error of those jews who believed that the reign of the messias ought to be accompanied with worldly pomp and splendor , and to be exercised with great authority and with fleshly arms ; for this was the sum of what he endeavoured to prove , that monarchical government is the most advantagious in the world , and by consequence , that the church ought to be governed by the soveraign orders of only one man , who is the pope , who hath the power to exterminate kings , and all those who will not submit themselves to him . this confirmed me in the opinion i had before , seeing that so subtil a wit as bellarmin , a man so well versed in antiquity , and that had so much interest in the thing ▪ could find out nothing at all to maintain this opinion . at length , i went into germany , where , after eight or nine months travelling , i came to cologne , where i had a great desire to inform my self farther , and to know if the papacy had a great while ruled in the church , and how long since ? whether or no the ancient doctors of the church had heard it spoken of , and what they thought of it ? i applied my self then to examine some of the fathers upon this article ; and that i might the sooner have done , i consulted them upon those places of scripture which the popes make use of , to see if the fathers understood them as they do . i found in examining them , that they explained them in a manner quite contrary to the pope's pretensions . this made me certainly conclude , that the papacy must have been set up in the church by some violent stroke , or else by small beginnings , and by degrees , as it ordinarily falls out in usurpations , which are made either altogether by a greater force , or else by little and little ; and that this usurpation had been seconded and favoured by people , who saw there was not like to be any great resistance , and they made their advantage of it through mens ignorance . after that , another thing that gave me a great deal of trouble , was , how to separate the article of the papacy from the verities of the catholick faith , so that the infallibility of the church , as i understood it , might not be prejudiced . thinking on this then , often in my unquiet mind , i resolved farther to consult the scripture , and the fathers , upon the passages ordinarily alledged to prove the infallibility of the church ; and i found that they did not understand them as i did : but because i knew what made the cardinals , and other people , employ the utmost of their ingenuity in defence of the popes authority , and that i saw not well what advantage they could draw from the infallibility of the church , which they maintained with so much ardor , that doubled my attention , to sound the depth of the matter ; and i found , that by the help of this infallibility , they would conceal every thing , so as to save the popes authority , and all the temporal advantages which flow from it ; and i made no further doubt of it , when i saw they applied it particularly to the clergy , excluding all the people , and many men to the pope alone , excluding all other bishops . since these discoveries , i have always held it as a maxim , wherein i have never been deceived , which is , that when any practice or custom in the church brings profit or honour to the ecclesiasticks , i presently suspect and examine it . at length having a long time reflected upon all the abuses of this papal authority , and having observed the deplorable condition to which it hath reduced the christian religion as well without as within the church , and seeing it was that which having driven the greeks and protestants out of the church , is still the cause why they return not again unto its communion , and that it even draws strange persecutions upon the church from these scattered sheep , by reason of the attempts of the court of rome , and its favourers ; i at last resolved to publish this little treatise to disabuse mankind in respect of the unjust and criminal devotion which they have for the papacy , and also to purge the church of it as well as of all other vices and misfortunes it hath there caused ; being perswaded that an infallible fruit of this reformation would be the conversion of the greeks , protestants , pagans , jews and mahometans ; not to mention the honour it would do to all the catholick princes , whose majesty and greatness are vilified by this shameful subjection to , and dependance on the popes , which make them to be despised by other princes who have freed themselves from their tyranny . a senator of sweden told me one day a very good saying of tacitus to this purpose , viri muliebria patiuntur . men act the parts of women ; which is as much as to say , they are the catamites of the popes . however , since it is in their power to treat those as hereticks and enemies of the church who oppose their ambition and interest , i prepare my self against it , and that doth not at all discourage me . it is more honourable to be hated by such people than loved . illi maledicent , at tu domine benedices . i know the reader will in this work of mine presently look after the caracters of either jansenist , calvinist , or lutheran ; or lastly , of a man who could not be promoted to benefices , and many times he will think he hath found me . as for benefices i might perhaps have had one if i had had a mind to it ; but by the grace of god , i will have none , nor have i need of any , nor was i ever designed for it . the jansenists are as yet too much papists to speak ill of the papacy . as for the calvinists and lutherans , i wish they could be brought to own the opinions which i do , and which i have no mind to betray in this my book . it is true , they have both written often against this power , but not with design that the catholick religion should be the better for it , to which this work wholly tends . whatever men will judg , i think i ought not to renounce any truth because the hereticks know it ; nor to put my eyes out rather than see the injustice of the papacy , because the hereticks see it . if i had not here drawn the picture of the jesuits religion , it may be those they call the jansenists would have suspected them to have been the authors of it as the present times go ; and for the calvinists , i am sure , that in many places they will say that i do but gild over the pill , that they may the more easily swallow down the poyson , as some people have said of the book of mr. de condom ; they may judg of it what they please , i have followed the sentiments which the reading of the holy scripture hath inspired me with , and in which i am confirmed the more by reading the fathers , and the ecclesiastical history , and by making reflection upon all that i have seen in foreign countries , and upon what i see every day here . if the romanists hear this work spoken of , they will say , without doubt , as heretofore at the council of trent , when mr. de faber made remonstrances on the kings behalf concerning the disorders of the church , gallus cantat , they cried . i have no better answer than what he made them , vtinam ad galli cantum , petrus resipisceret ; let them come and renounce the dominion and tyranny they exercise over the church , and over the world , and let our bishops for time to come , behave themselves like worthy successors of this apostle . this work shall be divided into three parts , which will contain so many chapters . in the first i shall prove that the papacy hath no foundation in the word of god ; and shall shew the vanity & folly of those arguments which they pretend to draw from the gospel . in the second i shall make it appear that the primitive church never knew it , and that in the darkest ages there were ever some who opposed it , and i shall confute many human reasons , which for want of the scripture , and of the fathers , are made use of for its defence . and in the third and last , i shall examine all the pretended advantages which this authority procures to the church , or to states , and i shall shew that 't is so far from bringing any real good to the church , or to catholick states , that it is the cause of the desolations of the church , and of the greatest part of the disorders among all christians , of ignorance , heresies , schisms and irreligion that reign . no man ought to be surprised that i conceal who i am in so perverse an age as we live in , where truth and honesty as well as those who profess it , are exposed to cruel persecutions , and wherein i shall have as many mortal enemies as there are worldly catholicks and papists , and people in possession of benefices , without mentioning the monks . i have no reason to flatter my self with any great success this book may have by reason of the extream disorder and irreligion of the age ; and i do it more to discharge my self of the load lying upon me , and for the consolation of my own mind , than for any other thing , as heretofore petrarch said upon a like occasion , haec scribo , non tam ùt saeculo meo prosim , cujus tam desperata miseria est , quam ut me conceptis onerem & animum scriptis soler . i write these things not so much to profit the age i live in , whose misery is so desperate , as to unburthen my self of my own thoughts , and to refresh my spirit with writing i have written for my self . haec mihi cecini & musis , & si nemo alius audierit . i have sung these things to my self and the muses , tho no body else should hear them . sure and honest means to convert all hereticks . chap. i. that the papacy hath no divine title . the vanity and nullity of those which it draws from the gospel . whosoever shall read the new testament , will there find that jesus christ alone is established as head of the church , and that it is not said of any other , that she should be his body , or believers his members , that belonging to none but jesus christ , who is also the only spouse of the church , which would be adulterous should she submit to another ; and this other could not be but an evil person , and a reprobate , since that in taking the quality of spouse of the church , he must renounce that of son of the church , and so could not have god for his father , according to the maxim , that he who hath not the church for his mother , hath not god for his father . now no one person can be the head , the spouse and son of the church at the same time . nevertheless it is certain that the popes do assume these titles to themselves by a vanity which exceeds all folly , and without being able to produce any reason for it , divine or humane . but let us see what they say to maintain their pretensions . they say that among the jews one man only , viz. aaron , had the conduct of divine service , and was head of the levites , and that by consequence there ought to be in the christian church an authority like unto this , established over the whole church ; and that the bishops of rome perform the functions of this charge . whereupon there are many things to be said : first of all , it was not difficult for aaron to acquit himself of this in so little a state as judea , and in one only city of this state , which was jerusalem , and in one only t●mple of that city ; for it was not allowed to perform divine service , nor to sacrifice elsewhere ; whereas christianity is at this time spread over the whole world , and therefore one single person only cannot perform these functions every where . it is as if a man should say , that because france is well governed by one king , he might as well govern all the states of the habitable earth ; and yet it would be much more easie for him to do it , than for one bishop to govern the whole church , because ( as it is well known ) the ecclesiastical ministry cannot inflict corporal punishments upon delinquents as the civil government may and does . besides , aaron was no way the figure of the bishops of rome ; for then the type would have been more excellent than the original ; but he was the figure of our great and soveraign high priest jesus christ. furthermore , aaron was not the monarch of the levites , but as the doge is at venice ; for according to all the talmudists , he was subject to the jurisdiction of the great sanhedrim , and to their censure ; whereas the popes pretend to be not only the monarchs of the whole earth , but particularly of all the clergy . and besides all this , there was an express institution of god for this charge , and for the person of aaron , and of his successors . whereas there is nothing like it for the papacy , nor for the persons of those who exercise it . we see in the old testament the institution of aaron's charge with many ceremonies for his installment , and for his anointing ; many ordinances for the exercise of this charge , and for the succession ; many chapters which speak of the subordination of priests and levites . but on the contrary we find not one word in the gospel of this pretended charge of universal head of the church , of vicar-general of jesus christ , and successor of st. peter , nor any thing that hath any relation to it ; and yet it ought to have been there clear and evident , since that this ministry was to be of an extent a thousand times greater , and the thing in it self is prodigious , and appears quite contrary to the nature of the messias his kingdom , and to the gospel . we see several orders of ministers of the gospel , there often spoken of ; but not one word that can any ways relate to the pope ; when surely that was the place to have spoken of it , especially if it be necessary to salvation to be subject to him , as they would have it , and if he hath the power as they would perswade us , as well over the temporality as the spirituality of the whole world ; st. paul who without question was of as great ability as the pope , was not of these peoples humour , who pretend to govern the whole church ; since he who had not the thousandth part of christians to take care of , as the pope would have according to their supposition , declares that no mortal man was sufficient to perform every thing that was necessary to be done in it , and that he was himself overwhelmed with the care he took for all the churches . nor had st. peter the courage of our good popes , who believe themselves capable of governing the whole church , ( and they might do it without difficulty after the method they take ) since he agreed with st. paul , that st. paul should go toward the gentiles , and he towards the jews , and so they parted the ministry between them . at least the popes , after aarons example , ought to meddle only in ecclesiastical , and not in secular affairs , as they do , pretending to lord it over the whole world ; for we see that aaron applied himself only to the functions of his charge , and that in things temporal and civil he was subject to moses , and left the absolute direction of them to him . instead of imitating aaron , the head of the levites , in his modesty , the popes pretend to be lords not only of the temporality , but of the spirituality , of all the states of the world , and will in this be vicars of jesus christ , tho he declared that his kingdom was not of this world , tho he taught his disciples , that he among them who would be the first , should be the last , though he fled away when they would have made him a king , tho he payed tribute to the princes of the world , when he was himself lord both of heaven and earth ; tho he expresly forbad his disciples to bear rule over any one whatsoever . the popes notwithstanding this , will govern , and pretend that our saviour did amiss when he spoke thus , and that they know better than he how to improve the rights of his prerogative . for my part , i believe that such a king as jesus christ who holds the earth in his hand , according to the prophet's expression , who upholds all things by the power of his word , as st. paul says , who knows the hearts of all men , and governs the motions of all the creatures ; who is almighty , who knows and sees every thing , without whom no man can have neither life , motion , nor being ; such a king , i say , hath no need of a vicar-general for the spiritual . government of the church , because he is present in all places , no more than an husband needs a vicar for his wife , or a living father for his children ; and that he himself assureth us that where two or three are gathered together in his name , there will he be in the midst of them . if he hath a vicar-general , he can be no other than the holy ghost . we also see that when he was upon the point of leaving his poor disciples who were afflicted by reason of his approaching departure from them , he tells them not , i will leave you the pope to guide and govern you , which had been but a poor consolation : but , i will send you the comforter , who shall lead you in all truth . and if we consider in what the administration of this spiritual kingdom doth consist , we shall clearly see that no one mortal man can be the vicar-general of it : can one only man preach the gospel , and administer the sacraments all the world over ? they tell you , that he will make it be done by others , ( would to god the popes would do so ) but these delegated preachers would be thus the popes vicars , who pretends to be the vicar of jesus christ , and sometimes of st. peter ; which cannot be according to all the canonists , who maintain that one vicar cannot make another ; besides , that the ecclesiastical ministry , properly speaking , cannot be subdelegated to vicars ; for whosoever discharges it , ought always to perform it in preaching , or ex●rcising the other episcopal functions in the name of jesus christ , and not in the name of any creature ; and a man must be a fool or a seducer to do otherwise . a meer man , as the pope is , can he fill the souls of men with peace and joy in the holy ghost , which is the kingdom of jesus christ ? can he def●nd the church against all its enemies , visible and invisible ? can he give the crown of righteousness to those who shall be victorious and faithful to god to the death ? can he raise them up again ? these are acts of the kingdom of jesus christ over his church . what relation hath the dominion of the pope to that of jesus christ ? what resemblance between light and darkness ? between jesus christ and belial ? thus it is evident that it is without any foundation that the bishops of rome boast of being vicars of jesus christ ; th●y are no more so , then the meanest priest of the church ; and it was with reason that the council of basil * maintained to them , that they were not vicars of jesus christ , but of the church , as every curate is in his parish , pontifex vicarius ecclesiae , non christi . nevertheless they maintain that st. peter had this employ of universal vicar , that he was head of the apostles , and of the whole church , bishop of bishops , soveraign both of spirituality and temporality , monarch of the church , and of the world. in a word , that he had all the prerogatives that the popes at this present time enjoy , in quality of successors of st. peter . and that , as i have said , without being able to produce so much as one word , of the creation and institution of this charge so important to the church , if you will believe them , nor of the rights of this charge , nor of the succession , nor of the manner of the election , nor how so marvellous a charge ought to be exercised , nor of the respect and obedience due to this vicar , nor of the use of his office. they affirm boldly that st. peter was at rome , that he was bishop there , that he founded that church , that he died there , and left a successor , who was called clement or linus , or anacletus ; of which things , tho they make the salvation of all men to depend upon them , they are not able to prove one tittle . and they do affirm that this successor entered into the full possession of all the priviledges of st. peter , to which all the bishops of that city have ever since equally succeeded , both good and bad , unto the present pope innocent the eleventh . it must be readily acknowledged , that these gentlemen must have very penetrating understandings to make these discoveries from the gospel ; for it is certain that they are wholly imperceptible there ; i have sometimes read it without ever finding any thing that was at all like it , and i think i saw clearly that st. peter never knew he had this authority , but that on the contrary he believed that no christian whatever , much less a bishop , ought to have it in the church ; nor did the other a●ostles know it any more than he , for somewhat of it would then appear ; and they who protest they have made known to us the whole will of god , would have been extreamly to blame not only to have declared nothing of it to us , but also to have always spoken and acted with their soveraign head and master , as with an equal . and st. paul would have lost all manner of respect for him when he so warmly reproved him . it seems probable also that our saviour was obliged to have given them notice of it ; for naturally they could not know it ; and the modesty , charity , and humility of st. peter might have hindred him from declaring and exercising this empire over them ; yet it is certain that there is nothing like this to be found . nevertheless this doth not hinder but that the pope and cardinals whose eyes their own interest opens , as it blinds other peoples , have in their own opinions found very strong proofs of it in the new testament : they say for example , that our saviour changed only st. peter's name ; the reason as you see is without reply ; for it follows very necessarily from thence , that st. peter was the head and king of the church . but unluckily he also changed the names of the children of zebedee . they say also that he is sometimes named the first ; but if he be not so always , this will signifie nothing to them ; but tho he had been always so , this would not prove that he had authority over the others as the pope hath over the other bishops . amongst the presidents , the first hath no power over the others ; nor amongst the electors of the empire ; the elector of mentz , who hath the first place , hath no authority over the other electors ; and so in all societies the primacy carries no dominion along with it : but besides , if that reason should take place , the holy virgin , who is sometimes named the last in scripture , would be greatly degraded from the place that belongs to her . if st. peter were always named the first , that might have been given to his age , as the fathers say ; and in truth we ought to attribute it to this , that our saviour spoke so often to him , as well as to the fervency of his zeal , which as we ought to admire and commend , so also may we say that it was owing to the eagerness of his temper , which being not always well regulated , made him commit greater faults than any others of the apostl●s ( except the perfidious judas ) which made him be called satan by his good master , which none of the other were . we ought also to attribute to this temper the blow he gave malchus with the sword , as well as that warmth that made him promise wonders of fidelity to his master , and induced him to accompany him to the emperors court , where he denied his saviour . so that it is with very little reason that they make an argument of this to prove his royalty in the church . in spain , where the most honourable walk the last , they will not fail to alledg places where st. peter is named last , as in the passage where it is said , i am the disciples of paul , and i of apollos , and i of caephas , who is peter . for i remember that at paris , where they understand divinity a little better than in spain , a good bishop and an abbot did maintain to me , that the passage where it is said that james , peter and john are esteemed pillars of the church , i having alledged against them another where he is named the first , they maintained to me i say , that this passage confirmed that which they alledged and proved very well the primacy of st. peter . for said the bishop , when three persons of worth are walking together , they always put the most honourable in the middle . this is according to the common saying , that a lawyer well paid shall always find the cause of his client , good : his benefices made him see clear in this passage . there are three other passages which the greatest part of our doctors produce against our adversaries with a little more colour , which are , thou art peter , &c. i will give thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven , &c. feed my sheep . which passages we shall examine one after another , to see if st. peter had any priviledg above the other apostles ; they say , that in the first of these passages jesus christ doth establish the church , found it , and built it upon st. peter . i do not deny but that st. peter was one of the pillars of the church , because he is so called as well as james and john. nor can it be denied , but that he was and is one of the foundations of the church , since that he is not excepted out of the number of the twelve , who in scripture are called the foundations of the new jerusalem . but i maintain that the church is no more founded upon him , than upon st. paul , and the other apostles . i would fain have these gentlemen tell me , upon whom the church was founded before st. peter ? and why the church changed its foundation , and upon whom peter himself was founded ? it was without doubt upon jesus christ , upon the rock which is the christ. and it is without all question that st. peter and we ought to have no other foundation than that which st. paul had , who says , that no man can lay any other foundation than that which is laid , which is jesus christ. also we see in this passage , that it is upon the rock , upon the rock of ages , that our saviour builds his church , and not upon st. peter . the holy ghost would have changed neither name nor person , if he would have had us to have believed this of st. peter . he would not have said , super hanc petram , sed super te petrum . vpon this rock , but upon thee peter . to the end that no difficulty may remain , we must observe what goes before , and what follows after . jesus christ had demanded of all the apostles together , whom they thought he was ? peter either as the eldest or most zealous answers for all , and says to him , thou art the christ the son of the living god. whereupon jesus christ says to him , thou art peter , and upon this rock will i build my church , &c. it is evident that as our saviour's discourse was directed to all , and that peter answered for all ; the following part of our saviours discourse was directed also to them all , and related no more to peter than to any other particular apostle . and men must have lost their understandings to think , that jesus christ in this place founded his church upon peter , whom in the same chapter he calls satan . what foundation would the church have had , and what would have become of her when he deni'd his saviour ? it must then necessarily be acknowledged , that it is not the visible church that is here spoken of , which they pretend st. peter to be the head of : but the invisible , the society of the faithful , and the elect. for the gates of hell would have prevailed against the church , not only when st. peter denied his master , since that the foundation being run to decay , that which is built upon it falls to ruin : but since that time have they not very often prevailed against this church which they would have the bishops of rome the pretended successors of st. peter to be the heads of ? for example , when according to the fathers the whole world was arian * , the bishops of rome and all their flock ; and so many other times as the popes have been magicians , sodomites , atheists , hereticks , &c. and what would have become of the church in the time of that great schism that succeeded gregory the ninth , which lasted fifty years , when the french would not have an italian pope , nor the italians a french one ; and many princes would have neither one nor other ; to whom at length charles the sixth joined himself for three years , and the kingdom of france was very well contented without a pope ; and many other princes for a longer season . and what shall we say of that great schism which the popes made and caused with the greek church , by cutting them off , out of devilish pride , from the communion of the church , because they would not submit to their yoke , but demanded the observation of the canons ? what shall we say also of that great apostacy that happened about or years since , or thereabout , when so many states separated themselves from the church , by reason of the impiety and tyranny of the popes ? doth not all this prove that hell hath prevailed against this exterior and visible church , which the popes govern , and whereof st. peter according to them was the head ? it is then the invisible church which is here spoken of the society of the faithful , the heavenly jerusalem , whereof jesus christ is the principal corner-stone , upon which st. peter himself saith believers are built as living stones . he says not it is on himself that they are built , but on the contrary , he pretends himself as well as others , to be one of these living stones which are built upon the corner-stone , which is christ. it is then upon the rock confessed by simon peter , or upon his confession that the church is founded ; on that which he declared that jesus christ was the true messias , the son of the living god. and the fathers understood it no otherwise . i do not pretend here to relate all that they have said upon this subject , but only some clear passages : * origen upon st. matthew tells us , that if we say as peter did , thou art the christ , &c. we are also what st. peter was ; and that it shall be also said unto us what follows , thou art peter . for whosoever is the disciple of christ , the same is also peter . and ‡ st. cyprian shews very well , that he did not believe that st. peter was priviledged beyond the other apostles , when he says , that the other apostles were as considerable as saint peter , and that they were all equal in authority and power , but that our lord to shew the unity there ought to be in his church , speaks but to one , and that the first place was given to peter . and in another place , our lord , says he , gave to all his apostles the same power after his resurrection , and said to them , as the father hath sent me , so send i you . * and saint ambrose , our lord said to peter , vpon this rock , &c. that is to say , upon this confession of the catholick church , i ordain that believers shall have life . and in another place , † what was said to peter , was said to the other apostles . and st. hierom ‖ the church is the house built upon the firm rock which is christ. * and in another place , she was founded upon a rock , that is to say , christ ; for this is the only foundation which the apostle as a good architect hath laid , viz. our lord jesus christ. * st. augustine , our lord said , vpon this rock , &c. because that peter had said , thou art the christ , &c. vpon this rock then which thou hast confessed , will i build my church . the rock was christ , upon whose f●undation peter himself was builded ; for no man can lay any other foundation than that which hath been laid , viz. jesus christ. ideo ait dominus super hanc petram , &c. quia dixerat petrus tu es christus , &c. super hanc ergo petram quam confessus es aedificabo ecclesiam meam . petra erat christus super quod fundamentum ipse aedi●icatus est petrus ; nam nemo potest ponere aliud fundamentum quam id quod positum est , a christo. the same * author speaks in another place thus : quid est super hanc petram ? super id quod dictum est , tu es christus , super petram quam confessus es , super hanc petram quam agnovisti dicens , tu es christus , super me aedificabo te , non me super te . nam volentes homines , super homines aedificare dicebant ; ego quidem sum pauli , ego autem apollo , ego autem cephae , ipse est petrus ; sed alii qui nolebant aedificare super petrum , sed super petram , dicebant ; ego sum christi , &c. what is this saying , vpon this rock ? that is , upon this faith , upon what was said , that thou art the christ , upon this rock which thou hast acknowledged , saying , thou art the christ : vpon me will i build thee , and not thee upon me ; for they who would build upon men , said , i am of paul , and i of apollos , and i of cephas , who is peter ; but those who would not build upon peter , but upon the rock , said , i am the disciple of christ. this holy doctor hath a thousand such like sayings which i cannot relate to avoid being tedious . ‖ chrysostome says also , vpon this rock , &c. that is to say , upon this faith and confession . super hanc petram , hoc est super hanc fidem & confessionem . and * in another place , super hanc petram , non dixit super petrum , non enim super hominem , sed super fidem aedificavit ecclesiam suam : quae autem erat fides ? tu es christus filius dei viventis . vpon this rock , he did not say upon peter ; for he hath not built his church upon a man , but upon faith. what then was this faith ? thou art the christ the son of the living god. * gregory nyssen , non petrus & johannes , & jacobus tantum , sunt ecclesiae columnae , sed omnes qui ecclesiam sustentant . peter , james and john are not the only pillars of the church , but all they who support the church . methinks there needs no more to perswade every honest minded man , that the fathers did not believe that jesus christ founded his church upon st. peter in particular , much less upon the popes . i could easily produce a thousand other eviden●es from the ancient fathers , and even from many doctors that lived within the last four or five hundred years ; tho the truth hath been almost wholly stifled , and that by men perfectly sold to the court of rome , as well as to iniquity . but i must not tire out my reader . † the jesuit salermont alone , is worth a thousand of them , for he doth own that the popes authority hath no foundation in the scripture , and he placeth it among traditions not written . i demand only the liberty of confuting the abuse of two other places of scripture , whereof we have spoken : one would think they were already sufficiently confuted by the passages which i have alledged ; which prove that the fathers did not believe that st. peter had any prerogative above the other apostles ; and here a reflection may be made , which i think necessary to prevent the cheat which may be put upon us in this matter , by producing some passages of the fathers falsified or maimed , or else some testimonies of the doctors of the later times , who have been for the most part vile slaves to the popes and the court of rome . it must be considered that when upon such a subject as this , a man shall pretend to alledg any thing of antiquity , which seems to favour the opinion of st. peter's primacy , that cannot counter-ballance what i have produced in short against that primacy , not only because i can produce an hundred places against one which they shall alledg ; but principally for this reason , that it is never allowable for any man to oppose the institutions of god , nor to misunderstand , deny , change , or diminish them . so that if st. peter had had the authority over the apostles , and over the whole church , which they pretend , and which the popes at this time do exercise over bishops , kings , and the whole church , the fathers never could deny it without a crime ; nor could they ever equal him to the other apostles without being guilty of heresie , and heinous offence against god. whereas we may very lawfully speak advantageously of the ordinances and institutions of god , of holy things , and every thing that conduceth to the true worship of god , and consequently of the holy apostles also , who were the admirable organs of his grace for the conversion of the world. we may , i say , speak of them with praise and with wonder , with respect and veneration , and even attribute to them sometimes names and degrees of excellency , which do not belong to them without any prejudice to piety , provided they are not attributes nor honours which are appropriated only to the divine being , for then it would be idolatry , as it is to attribute that to the pope which belongs only to jesus christ. for example , in reference to the great men of this world , it is very allowable to speak to the advantage of a minister of state , to whom a great king shall communicate a part of his authority for his service : it is very fit to commend him , and to extoll him even above his merit , by reason of the good qualities which appear in him , or the favours which he receives from the king ; provided that the respect and obedience due to the king be inviolably kept ; but it would be a crime to lessen or contemn him , especially when the prosperity , tranquillity and safety of the state depends upon him . so i maintain , that tho the fathers had said a t●ousand times of st. peter , that the church was founded upon him , and that he was the head of it ; if they have said sometimes that he was not so , and that he had nothing more excellent than the other apostles , this last ought to prevail , because that the first was an expression of favour , and without danger , since they assert ev●ry where , that jesus christ is the only head of the church , and that it was hard to conceive that ever men should arrive to su●h excess of extravagancy as to think that one simple man could be the head of the universal church . whereas if st. peter had been instituted by god in that quality , to deny it , would look like resisting god , destroying the church , which would be established upon him , and dethroning j●sus christ , by dethroning his vicar . it must then be agreed to , whatever the doctors of the age say , that the church is built upon jesus christ , and not upon a man ; and we may say with david , that the stone which the builders refused , is in spight of them become the corner-stone of the church . but let us come to the second passage : tibi dabo claves , &c. i will give thee the keys , &c. first of all you must know the occasion whereon this was said to him : jesus christ had asked this question of his disciples , whom think you that i am , &c. peter with his wonted fervor spake and answered for all , thou art the christ , &c. and our lord upon this promiseth to all his apostles , and to the whole church under the name of peter , the power of the keys , which is indisputable , because in the chap. of st. matthew , he tells them all in general , and without distinction the same thing , verily i say unto you , that whatsoever you shall bind upon earth , shall be bound in heaven ; and whatsoever you loose on earth , shall be loosed in heaven . the other apostles then , have this power as well as st. peter ; and we see it also in st. john the . and the . where jesus christ says to all his apostles , receive ye the holy ghost ; whosesoever sins ye forgive , they are forgiven ; and whosesoever ye retain , they are retained . let us see whether the fathers be not against us . we have already heard st. cyprian , * who says , christus apostolis post resurrectionem parem potestatem tribuit . jesus christ after his resurrection gave an equal power to his apostles . † origen demands , an vero soli petro dantur a christo claves regni caelorum , nec alius beatorum quisquam eas accepturus est ? quod si dictum hoc , tibi dabo claves , &c. caeteris quoque commune est , cur non simul & omnia & quae prius dicta sunt , & quae sequuntur velut ad petrum dicta sunt omnium communia ? were the keys of the kingdom of heaven given only to peter , and shall no other blessed person have them ? certainly if what was said , i will give thee the keys , be common to all the apostles , why shall not all that goes before , and that follows after , tho said only to peter , be common to all ? st. hilary * vos o sancti & beati viri ob fidei vestri meritum , claves regni coelorum & ligandi & solvendi jus in terra adepti . he spoke to the apostles , o holy and blessed men , who by the merits of your faith have obtained the keys of the kingdom of heaven , and the power of binding and loosing upon earth . † st. hierom , at dicis super petrum fundatur ecclesia , licet id ipsum , in alio loco super omnes apostolos fiat , & cuncti claves regni caelorum accipiunt , & ex aequo super eos , ecclesiae fortitudo solidetur ; tamen propterea inter duodecim unus eligitur , ut capite constituto schismatis tollatur occasio . sed cur non johannes electus est virgo ? aetati delatum est . quia petrus senior erat , ne adhuc adolescens ac poene puer provectae aetatis hominibus anteferretur , & ne causam praebere videretur invidiae . but you say the church is founded upon peter , tho in other places the same thing is done upon all the apostles , and they all receive equally the keys of the kingdom of heaven ; and the strength of the church is equally founded upon one as well as another ; nevertheless he chose one out of the twelve , to the end that by establishing a head he might take away the occasion of schism . but why was not john chosen ? jesus christ had regard to the age of peter , who was the eldest , and would not prefer a young man , one that was almost a child , before those who were more advanced in years , that he might not seem to give an occasion for envy amongst them . * the same hierom tells us , that the ministers under the gospel have also the power of binding , and of loosing , of pardoning sins , or retaining them ; that is to say , of judging when god doth pardon us or not . id juris & officii habent sacerdotes evangelici quod olim sub lege habebent legales in curandis leprosis . hi ergo peccata dimittunt vel retinent , dum dimissa a deo , vel retenta judicant vel ostendunt . st. augustin ‡ , sicut in apostolis cum esset etiam numerus duodenarius , & omnes essent interrogati , solus petrus respondit , tu es christus , &c. et ei dicitur , tibi dabo claves , tanquam ligandi & solvendi solus acceperit potestatem , cum & illud unus pro omnibus dixerit , & hoc cum omnibus dixerit , & hoc cum omnibus tanquam personam gerens ipsius unitatis acceperit . ideo unus pro omnibus quia unitas est in omnibus . amongst the apostles who were twelve in number , tho they were all asked , peter only answered , thou art the christ : and jesus christ said to him , i will give thee the keys , as tho he alone had received the power of binding , and of loosing . tho the truth is , that he said that for all ; and that he received also this power for all ; because that he represented the person of them all , and the union that there ought to be amongst them . one spoke for all , because the unity was in all . the same father also says in another place , manifesta est sententia domini nostri apostolos mittentis , & ipsis solis potestatem a patre sibi datam promittentis , quibus nos successimus eadem potestate ecclesiam regentes : that is to say , we see clearly the intention of our lord when he sent out his apostles , and promised them the same power which his father had given him ; and we have succeeded them , governing the church with the same power . * and so in other places , quando petro dictum est , tibi dabo claves , &c. typum ecclesiae gerebat , unus pro omnibus respondit . when it was said to peter , i will give thee the keys , &c. he represented the church , one single person answered for all . and in another place , † ecclesiae dictum est : tibi dabo claves , &c. it was said to the church , i will give thee the keys , &c. theophylactalso , habent potestatem remittendi & ligandi quicunque sicut petrus episcopatus gratiam assecuti sunt , quamvis autem petro soli dictum sit , dabo tibi ; omnibus tamen apostolis concessae sunt . that is to say , all they have the power of remitting and unloosing , who as st. peter have obtained the honour of being bishops ; for tho it were said to peter alone , i will give , &c. yet the keys were given to all the apostles . and leo the first , † transivit etiam in alios apostolos vis potestatis istius , & ad omnes ecclesiae principes decreti hujus constitutio commeavit , sed non frustra uni commendavit , quod omnibus intimetur . petro idem ideo hoc singulariter creditur , quia cunctis ecclesiae rectoribus petri forma proponitur ; manet ergo petri privilegium , ubicunque fertur ex ipsius aequitate judicium . that is to say , that the power of the keys was given also to all the apostles ; and not only to them , but to all bishops ; and that it was not without design that our lord committed to one what he intimated to all : for thereby the example of peter is proposed to all them who have a share in the government of the church . where-ever then any one judges as peter did , there is the priviledg of peter also to be found . and it is to be observed that leo said this in a time when the bishop of constantinople would have had the primacy . i think these evidences are sufficient to shew the injustice of the popes , who attribute to st. peter alone those things which he had in common with all the other apostles , and all good pastors , and that to usurp an authority which neither st. peter nor any other creature ever could have ; and though it were possible that st. peter or any other might have had it , the popes have less right to pretend to it than any other priest , because that they are but temporal princes ; for under the gospel men derogate both from episcopacy and priesthood , when they become temporal princes ; and it is certain that according to the scripture and the holy canons , these two things are inconsistent . they ought to consider which they will stand to : i am perswaded they would not contradict themselves in the matter , but would always hold to the temporal , which they call the solid thing , as cardinal palavicini † very well observes , that they desire the popedom only for the vast quantities of money which they get by it , with the means of obliging and doing courtesies ; due beni per cui soli appar desiderable il pontificato , il principiato dell oro e del obligo . and in the age we live in , they would be in danger of not making so much of their episcopacy as boniface the third did by phocas ; and if they should let their beast but once get loose , they would find it a hard matter to get up again . but besides , i think i ought here to put you in mind of one thing , which is , that the power of binding and loosing is not what the popes and many evil minded priests would make us believe ; for i do maintain , not only that the pope cannot free a man from the guilt of his crimes , and from the punishment due to them , no more than the meanest priest , as * marsilius of padua heretofore said ; but also , that neither one nor other of them hath any power of pardoning sins , but as far as it doth appear to them that god doth pardon them , and that properly it belongs not to them but to god. i shall be asked how the priest or the pope knows when god pardons any mans sins : and i ask them , by what authority they can dispence with the punishments a man hath deserved for having offended god , without there be some appearance of contrition in this man ? i know very well there are many who affirm that the pope can do it , and others who pretend that attrition is sufficient ; but it will be no hard matter for me to prove that these opinions are both foolish and impious : it is god only that can truly pardon sins , and he never does it but to the contrite heart , that is to say , to those who have a real sorrow within themselves for having offended so good and so merciful a god ; and who make a firm resolution to forsake their sins , and to punish themselves by repentance , and by the mortification of their flesh , and of their passions , and who will as much as in them lies in reference to men , repair their crimes by making satisfaction to all those they have wronged : and lastly , who have made a vow to endeavour all their life-time to root up all their evil habits . when these dispositions do not appear in a penitent , the pastor cannot pardon his sins ; and when they do appear , he cannot refuse to give him absolution . the holy scripture mentions no other power of binding and loosing sinners , but doth detest the use which the popes make of it , who excommunicated whomsoever they please , even kings themselves , and whole nations for no other reason that their fantasy , ‡ st. hierom made light enough of these excommunications , when he said , apud deum non sententia sacerdotum , sed reorum vita quaeritur . * and in an other place , solvunt apostoli sermone dei , testimoniis scripturarum & exhortatione virtutum . that is to say , that god enquires not after the priests opinion , but what sort of life a sinner hath led . it is the word of god , the evidences of holy scripture , and exhortations to vertue , by which the apostles do absolve , * st. ambrose also , verbum dei , says he , dimittit peccata , sacerdos est judex , sacerdos officium suum exhibet , nullius autem potestatis jura exercet ; it is the word of god , says he , that pardons sins , the priest is the judge who doth his duty ( in judging according to this word ) but exerciseth no authority . and st. augustin . † claves sunt discernendi scientia & potentia qua dignos recipere & indignos excludere debet sacerdos a regno dei. the keys , saith he , signifie no other thing than the knowledge and skill of discerning those who are worthy , and those who are vnworthy , that the priest may exclude them from the kingdom of god. it is now time to examine the third passage which they alledge for the primacy of st. peter , which you find in the of st. john. peter , lovest thou me ? feed my sheep ? from whence they draw this consequence , that st. peter was the head of the universal church ; it is certain that he was one of the most excellent pastors of the church ; but notwithstanding that , he was not a pastor to any of the apostles , nor to any other christians , but as the other apostles were ; for our lord says to them all in common : as my father hath sent me , so send i you ; and in another place , go then and teach all nations , &c. which is the same thing as if he had said to them all , feed my sheep . what is to feed , but to teach , instruct , and edify as well by speaking as writing , by preaching , and explaining to men the word of god and its truth , accompanying that with a life conformable to that holiness the gospel requires ; which is called pascere exemplo & verbo ? but they ask why our lord repeated three times , peter lovest thou me , feed my sheep ? † st. augustin answers that redditur negationi trime trina confessio , &c. st. cyril understands it also in the same sense , jure nunc ab eo trina dilectionis confessio petitur , ut trina negatio aequali confessionis numero compensetur : ita quod verbis commissum fuit verbis curatur , &c. dixit autem pasce agnos meos apostolatus ipsi renovans dignitatem ne propter negationem quae humana infirmitate accidit , labefacta videretur , &c. that is to say , our saviour had reason to demand a three-fold confession of his love towards him , to recompence in some measure peters thrice denying him , &c. and he says unto him , feed my sheep , to renew unto him the dignity of his apostle-ship , from which he might seem to have fallen by denying his master . * st. cyprian , pastores sunt omnes , says he , sed grex unus ostenditur qui ab apostolis omnibus unanimi confessione pascatur . episcopatus unus est cujus a singulis in solidum pars tenetur . they were all pastors , but he shewed them but one flock , which all the apostles were to feed with an vnanimous consent . st. augustin , * in petro unitatem commendavit ; multi erant apostoli & uni dicitur pasce oves meas , &c. sed omnes boni pastores in uno sunt , unum sunt illi pascunt , christus pascit , &c. he recommended the unity in the person of peter ; there were many apostles ; he said nevertheless but to one of them , feed my sheep , &c. but all good pastors are in one , and are but one . they feed , christ feedeth , &c. the same father says in another place ; in uno petro figurabatur unitas omnium pastorum sed bonorum . in peter only was represented the unity of all pastors ; but that is to say , of all good pastors . chrysostom , * tum ostensu●us es eximiam tuam dilectionem in christum , cum paveris ejus gregem , cum scriptum sit si diligis me , pasce oves meas . then said he to st. basil , thou wilt shew thy love towards jesus christ , if thou feedest his flock as it is written , lovest thou me ? feed my sheep . st. peter himself explains to us these words , and shews that he was himself far from pretending to the quality of universal pastor , excluding the other apostles ; because he doth acknowledge that even the priests are pastors as well as himself , and that the flock of christ is committed to their charge as well as to his ; which they ought to feed not out of a ●hameful desire of gain ; but by a disinterested charity , not in lording it over the heritage , or over the cl●rgy of the lord ; but by giving themselves a good example to their flock : how many r●proofs are ●ere in a f●w words ag●inst the pope and evil priests ? these are the places of scripture which they cite with the greatest colour for the papacy of st. peter , which as they explain them , are i think sufficiently confuted . one may say of them , as heretofore the council of basil said to the creatures of pope eugenius , who also corrupted the sence of these passages . sunt interpretationes paparum fimbrias suas extendentium . * these are interpretations of popes , that stretch out the skirts of their garments . to these which i have already given , i shall yet add some reasons drawn from the gospel it self , against this pretended primacy and rule of st. peter . i shall not repeat that we see nothing in the gospel but precepts of humility , of charity , of renouncing the world , its grandures , pleasures and riches , but i shall say that we read in the acts of the apostles , † that st. peter was sent to samaria by the other apostles . a prince is not usually treated thus by his subjects : * we see also that in another place , having been accused by the others for misbehaving himself , he justifies himself ; this looks not like a soveraign . would the pope endure this from the bishops , or from any other ? we see not that he gave laws to others , that he established any thing by his own private authority , without the other bishops . * st. paul says expresly , that he was not inferior to the greatest of the apostles : in st. † matthew and st. john , it is manifest , that jesus christ gave to all his apostles the same power . * and in the epistle to the galatians , that peter , james and john gave their hands to each other , as a mark of the society that was between them . would the pope give his in this manner to the other bishops ? we see that at the council of jerusalem , it was not st. peter , but st. james , who presided and concluded . we read in the epistle to the galatians , ‖ that st. paul and he agreed together , that st. paul should go and preach to the gentiles , and st. peter to the jews . if st. peter had known that he had been the head of the church , he would not in all likelihood have suffered , that his ministry should have been thus limited , or that the ministry or power of st. paul should have been of an extent an hundred times greater than his , especially if he had been of the humour of our good popes . if any bishop should pretend to govern the church of france or spain without them , it is to be believed , that it would not be very pleasing to them ; and from hence by the way , one may judge that saint peter had nothing to do at rome , nor was he ever there , as they imagine . there is yet somewhat of greater weight then all this ; that is , that st. paul tells us he withstood st. peter to his face , because he deserved reproof . this looks as if st. paul had had some authority over st. peter : we hear not that he reproached him for his arrogance , nor that he excommunicated him . it must be acknowledged that here is a great difference between the proceedings of the pope , and those of st. peter : for it is certain that if a bishop should at this day dare to displease the majesty of the pope , he should be soon swallowed up and destroyed by his glory . i believe that origen might have an eye to st. paul's thus correcting st. peter , when he said that st. paul was the greatest of all the apostles ; * paulus apostolorum maximus ; or else he might also have regard to the great extent of st. pauls ministry , or to what he himself says , that he took more pains than all the other apostles . and all the fathe●s looked upon him , as he who among all the apostles wrote the most profoundly , and with the greatest light . this is what st. augustin says of him . st. chrysostom looks upon him as the first of all the saints ; and if there had been any preheminence among the apostles , he should have been preferred before any other . we may say then , that the popes in that authority which they usu●p , have nothing common with st. peter , nor can they be compared together , but in one thing , which is , that as st. peter being come into pilates-hall , denyed christ three times , the popes since they have taken upon themselves the authority of pilate , and of worldly princes , have denyed him not three times , but once for all . vna sol volta in corte di pilato entro est petro e tra rinego christo. thus we see that in the holy scripture there is not one word that can in the least authorize the popes supremacy . and we may compare those who establish it there , to poor heralds , who to get a little money , do very frequently make people meanly descended , to derive from the ancient greek and roman emperors , because the cullyes hav● gotten an estate , and are become rich , tho most usually 't is only by rogueries and robberies . and it is not difficult thus to deceive people , who always admire those that are rich and able to do them a kindness . they never enquire how they came by it as the spaniard says , alcansados los honores quedam borrados los passos , pordende se subio a ellos . since then that the new testament doth not acknowledg this authority of the popes , but absolutely condemn it ; it hath no lawful institution for a doctrine of that importance as the primacy of the pope is , whereon they make the whole government of the church , religion it self , and the salvation of all christians to depend , being not to be found in scripture , cannot be but false . for though it be true that there are some customs and ceremonies in the church which are not to be found in scripture , and which the protestants are greatly in the wrong , obstinately to reject , because that tradition , and the use or practise of the church , have so long since given them sufficient authority , as they themselves acknowledg ; yet that cannot be said of this article , which according to the popes , and the greatest part of the doctors , is capital ; and so capital they would willingly perswade us , that without it the rest signifies nothing . it was very impiously said of cardinal palavicim in his third book of his history of the council of trent , chap. the . that the christian religion hath no more sure and immediate certainty than the popes authority . quella religione , i cui articoli vnitamente considerati non hanno altera certezza prossima & immediata che l' autorita del pontifice . we see clearly , that if this authority were laid aside , they would renounce the profession of christianity , as piety hath been already renounced by them . chap. ii. that the primitive church knew not the papacy . the vanity of some humane reasons , by which for want of the scriptures and the fathers they would establish it . let us now see if the primitive church did acknowledg a power in the church like to that of the popes . altho that which hath been already alledged from the holy fathers proves sufficiently , that they knew not the papacy , let us however examine the thing a little more particularly . we are told then that st. peter was head of the church , that he was at rome , that he was a bishop there , that he died there , that he resigned that charge of head of the church , and of bishop , but not that of an apostle to a successor ; which successor he either chose , or the church of rome did it after his death , by the power which he had given her ; which things are all of them very difficult to prove , and certainly very false ; for a thing of this consequence ought not to be founded upon conjectures of meer probabilities , but we ought to have as certain and as exact a knowledg of it as of any other article of our religion . and yet we see that they who have spoken of st. peter's coming to rome , and of his death there , have said it upon such miserable grounds , and say so many contradictory things as well of it as of his pretended successor , that there is nothing more uncertain in all antiquity . but besides this , none of them ever believed , no nor so much as suspected that st. pet●r was head of the universal church . and the contradiction and little certainty that is in these authors , shews sufficiently that in the primitive times it was not believed that this was necessary to be known ; nor did they in the least suspect that ever any body would endeavour to lay upon it the foundation of that horrible autho●ity which the popes do exercise . to give you some instances of their contradictions , i need only to shew you that some say it was linus who succeeded peter ; others clement ; and lastly , others say it was anacletus ; some will have it that st. peter founded this church , and was the first that preached at rome . others maintain , namely dorotheus , that it was barnabas . * barnabas primus romae praedicavit . and st. paul shews us clearly that it was he himself who founded that church ; for he complains that coming to rome , he found that the jews there , who had embraced christianity , were but very little instructed in the doctrine of the christian religion . who can believe that if st. peter had been there , and had founded this church , he would not have instructed them better ? and what is yet more , st. paul says expresly in another pla●e , that he would not go and preach , wh●re others had preached before him ; because he would not build upon the foundation of others . as for the manner of his death , some say he was crucified with st. paul ; others , that he was beheaded , and linus the pretended successor of st. peter , who writes the history of st. pauls death , says not one word of st. peters . st. ‡ hierom though a roman , and nicolas de lyra assures us , that he was crucified at hierusalem : and st. hierom says in another place also , that his sepulcher is in hierusalem . thus we see what reason they have to build an article of faith so monstrous , as the popes supremacy is , upon an imaginary conjecture , that hath no foundation that st. peter was at rome . but how comes it then to pass , may some say , that many of the fathers both believed , and said , that st. peter was at rome ? it was , because they did not examine the thing , believing it useless ; and they did not forsee the dreadful consequences that the bishops of rome would draw from it : they grounded it upon that place of st. peters epistle , where it is said , the church which is at babylon , saluteth you ; interpreting rome by babylon , without any reason ; because there were two other babylons , the one in mesopotamia where bagdet is ; and the other in aegypt near memphis , where it is certain there were many jews who were under st. peter's ministry . as for the pretended combat between st. peter and simon magus , the learned acknowledg that it was but a fiction . but put the case st. peter had been at rome , what advantage can the bishops of rome make of it ? that he had left at rome his charge of universal vicar of jesus christ ? but on what do they found this pretence ? if he had done it , it would plainly have been united to his apostleship , rather than to the quality of a bishop ; and so by consequence could not have been communicated to any other than an apostle , and so st. james , or st. john , who continued alive long time after him , should have inherited it , and not linus nor any other ; and they would have transported it to jerusalem , or to ephesus , which were their churches , if the town of rome had not had some particular priviledges ( which no man knows ) that affixed this dignity to that city , in which case one of these two apostles ought to have come and resided there . however it is likely that st. james or st. john , who without all controversie lived a great while after him , should rather have succeeded him in this admirable charge than a simple priest or bishop , as linus . if the city of rome pretends to derive this prerogative from st. peter's having been there , and preached the gospel , ( which cannot be proved ) the church of antioch ought to be preferred before it , for it is certain both by the scriptures and by the fathers , that he was there , and preached there before it was possible for him to do it at rome . and upon this it was that they built that revelation of the see of peter's being removed from antioch to rome , which you find in the decrees of gratian , in the epistle of pope marcellus (a) ; which imposture they contrived , because they could find nothing in the scripture that could favour their pretences . besides , if st. peter had had a successor in this pretended charge , how comes it to pass that the primitive church that compiled the canon of books , which ought to regulate the faith of the church , hath not comprehended therein the works of linus , or of clement , who wrote enough , and yet hath inserted those of st. james , and of st. john , who ought to be much inferior in infallibility , and in sanctity to the vicar-general of jesus christ upon earth , and who ought to have been his subjects , and to have taken the oath of fidelity to him as they do at this day to his holiness ? but a man may well wonder that clement , who according to some writers was his successor , and who , be he what he will , must have lived very near that time , knew nothing of it . 't is seen by his first epistle to st. james (a) where he terms him bishop of bishops ; and in another place he brings in st. peter , saying , jacobus episcopus acc●rcitum me inde huc caesaream mittit . that is to say , that the bishop james sent him into caesarea . it is yet a little surprising that the fath●rs of the primitive church who composed the canon of our faith , that is the creed * ; should forget to place after the catholick church the bishop of rome , who is the head of it , and without whom as they say it is like a body without a soul , or a vessel exposed to the tempest without a pilot. that article doth it self sufficiently exclude all dependance upon any particular see. and the other , i believe the communion of saints , doth also establish jesus christ the only head of the church , and condemns its being subject to an humane head. and st. dionysius the areopagite , or some other of those times who in his name composed a treatise of the hierarchy , and says not one word of a bishop of bishops , and head of the church , shews that in those times people did not believe that the hierarchy could not subsist without him . saint gregory also bishop of rome was wholly ignorant of these pretended priviledges of his bishoprick ; for he acknowledges in his register to eulogius bishop of alexandria , that the bishops of alexandria and of antioch , are successors of st. peter , and that they sit in the chair of peter as well as the bishops of rome . nor was irenaeus any more perswaded that the bishops of rome alone had this advantage , when having reproved victor bishop of rome , who by a ridiculous rashness had excommunicated for a matter of small importance all the churches of asia , ( which was concerning the difference of the day whereon easter was to be kept ) he says to him (b) , presbyteri ecclesiae cui nunc praesides , anicetum dicimus , ejum , hyginum , telesphorum & christum ; neque ipsi sic observarunt , neque posteris suis sic praeceperunt . observe by the way the modesty of the bishops of those times , they affected no other quality than that of priest , as we also see in the gospel that bishops are there sometimes called priests : it was not in contempt that st. ireneus called them so , but because that in those blessed times the bishops were humble , and were ambitious of no other title . but now-a-days a priest is called , my lord abbot , an abbot takes the arms of a bishop , a bishop of a cardinal , a cardinal equals himself to princes , and will even take the place of them . and the bishops of rome ( who in those times were humble , and desired no other crown than that of martyrdom ) now raise themselves above soveraigns , kings and emperors , wear a triple crown which these villains called il regno , for a mark of their royalty , tread even emp●rors under their feet , make them kiss their slippers , and treat them like fools . cardinal cusan confirms to us what st. gregory said before (a) , in cathedra petri , says he , patriarchae leguntur sedisse , romanus , alexandrinus , & antiochenus , & cum illis omnes subjecti episcopi ; that is to say , we read that the three first patriarchs who sat in the chair of peter , were he of rome , he of alexandria , and he of antioch , and with them all the bishops who were under them . let a man read the writings of gregory , of gelasius , and of leo , who were all popes , and he shall see that they all acknowledg that all good bishops are successors of st. peter ; and altho they sometimes failed not to demonstrate suffiently their ambition , and the desire they had to make the other bishops their subjects , yet it was not in quality of heads of the church , much less by vertue of any text of scripture . and we find not that for the first six centuries any man dared to bring so much as one passage of scripture to establish the primacy of the bishoprick of rome , * st. ambrose is not at all favourable to them , when he says , primatus petri , confessionis erat , non honoris , fidei non ordinis : that the primacy of peter was a primacy of confession , and not of honour● ; of faith , and not of place . st. cyprian whom we have already mention'd , says farthermore , in another place , (b) neque enim quisquam nostrum se episcopum episcoporum constituit ut tyrannico t●rrore ad obsequendi necessitatem collegas suos adigat , cum habeat omnis episcopus pro licentia libertatis & potestatis suae arbitrium proprium , tanquam judicari ab alio non possit , cum nec ipse possit alterum judicare sed expectamus vniversi judicium d●mini nostri jesu christi qui unus & solus habet potestatem & praeponendi nos in ecclesiae suae gubernatione & de ac●u nostro judicandi . there is n●ne among us who pretendeth to be a bishop of bishops , that by a tyrannical power he may oblige any of his colleagues to the necessity of being subject to him ; since that every bishop being his own master , and independent on any other , cannot be judged by another , nor can he judg another , but we ought all to expect the judgment of our lord jesus christ , who only hath the power of establishing us over his church , and of judging of our behaviour in it . (b) the same st. cyprian calleth stephen bishop of rome his colleague : stephanum collegam nostrum , ut & cornelium nostrum co-episcopum . and cornelius our fellow-bishop . he speaks of two bishops of rome . and in another place he shews that he thought he had as great a share in the government of the whole church as the bishop of rome . (c) omnes enim , says he , de●et pro corpore totius ecclesiae , cujus per varias quasque provincias membra digesta sunt , excubare . and in another place , (d) divina & paterna pietas in nobis apostolatus ducatum contulit & vicariam domini sedem coelesti dignatione ornavit . that is to say , the goodness of god hath conferred upon us the conduct of the apostleship ; and hath adorned by his heavenly grace the deputed see of the lord which we hold . and furthermore , (e) christus dicit ad apostolos ac per hos ad omnes praepositos qui apostolis vicaria ordinatione succedunt ; qui vos audit me audit . jesus christ saith to all the apostles , and in the persons of them to all bishops who succeed the apostles , being their substitutes by ordination , whosoever heareth you , heareth me . he shews in these places , that he pretended that his church was an apostolick see , and that he was the vicar of jesus christ as well as the other bishops (f) . in his epistle he says that a man must be a fool or a mad man to believe that the authority of the bishops of africa was less than that of the bishop of rome , to whom abundance of profligate wretches did resort that so they might avoid the giving an account of their actions to the bishops of africa , and the being punisht for their crimes . after his death a council assembled at carthage , did ordain (g) , vt prima sedis episcopus non appelletur princeps sacerdotum aut primus sacerdos sed tantum primae sedis episcopus : that the bishop of the first see ought not to be called prince or chief of the priests , or any thing of this kind , but only the bishop of the first see. and the council of nice marking out the bounds of the extent of each patriarchal see , says thus (h) , there is an ancient custom whereby the bishop of alexandria doth govern all the diocesses of egypt , of lybia , and of pentapolis , as also it is a long time since that the bishop of rome hath presided over those which he now governeth , and so likewise the bishop of antioch . upon which cardinal cusan makes this reflexion : (i) we see , says he , h●w much the bishop ●f rome ha●h gotten against the holy constitutions by the long use of a submission , which hath been given him , and which was not due to him . (a) this decree of the council of nice was since confirmed by the councils of antioch , of calcedon , and of constantinople . theodoret produceth a letter of the council of constantinople , which sufficiently shews the place which the bishops of rome held at that time : it begins thus (b) , to our most reverend and dear brethren and colleagues , damasus , ambrose , brillo , valerian , and all the other holy bishops assembled together in the great city . (c) eusebius also relates to us another letter which the council of antioch assembled against the heresie of paulus of samosatenus writes to the bishop of rome , which begins thus : to dionysius , to maximus , and to all those who are ministers with us : com-ministris nostris , throughout the whole world , bishops , priests , deacons , and all the church under heaven . would a man now in good earnest in this corrupt age write thus to our holy father the pope ? (d) theodoret relates to us in his ecclesiastical history , that the emperour constantius was very urgent with the bishop of rome , liberius , to embrace the communion of the other churches , which shews that he also knew not that rome was the mother of the other churches . the emperors gratian , valentinian , (e) and theodosius , in the year , proposed rome and alexandria , for models of the orthodox faith. ordaining that all the world should follow the faith of damasus bishop of rome , and of peter bishop of alexandria . and after the first council of constantinople , as tho they would have the center of christian communion in the east only , they order without mentioning rome , that all churches should be conferred upon those who joyned in communion with nectarius bishop of laodicea , and diodorus bishop of tarsus , in the diocess of the east , with amphilochus bishop of iconium , &c. if the bishops of asia , of cilicia , and of mesopotamia , had believed that the communion of the bishop of rome had been necessary for their churches , they would never all have been excluded from its communion , during years , as they were , after that victor bishop of rome had excommunicated them for a trifle ; for if they had pleased they might have been reconciled to the church of rome by submitting to the laws of that bishop . (f) st. gregory of nazianzen writing to the clergy of the church of caesarea in cappadocia , speaks to them thus : it is just that care should be taken of the whole church , as of the body of jesus christ , chiefly of yours which hath been from the beginning the mother of almost all the churches , which is so at this time , and is so esteemed , and to which the whole body of the church relates as a circle does to the center , round which it is formed , &c. this holy man thought not the church of rome was the center of all the churches . (a) in the milevitan council where st. augustine was present , it was ordained , that those of africk who should appeal to rome should be excommunicated : these are the words : we have adjudged that all priests , deacons , and other inferior ecclesiasticks who shall complain of their bishops administration , shall apply themselves to the neighbouring bishops , who by the consent of their own bishops shall decide the controversie between them : and if they will appeal from their opinions , let them not do it , but to the councils of africa . and if any man makes his appeal to any place beyond the seas ( here rome must be understood ) let him be looked upon as an excommunicated person by all africa (b) . and since that time the same thing was ordained in the council of africa , and this they give for their reason : that no council hath taken away this authority from the african councils , and that the decrees of the council of nice have committed as well priests , as the bishops to the direction of their metropolitans : most prudently and justly providing , that affairs should be determined upon the place where they had their first beginnings ; and that no province would ever want the assistance of the holy ghost to discern equity ; that any injured person might procure a council of his own province , yea and appeal from that to a general one , and a man must be a fool to think that god would not rather inspire with the love and knowledg of justice , a great number of prelates assembled in council , than a single person be he who he will. what stupidity and dulness is it that hinders christians in these times from carrying it in the same manner towards rome ? (c) and the council of constantinople after having limited the bounds of each patriarchal see , says that the affairs of every diocess ought to be regulated by the synods of the diocess , and that in confirmation of the fourth canon of the council of nice . (d) and in the sixth canon it doth enact . that if any man hath been vexed by the bishop , let him complain of this bishop to all the other bishops of the province ; and if these bishops cannot determine the affair , he ought to apply himself to a greater synod of bishops of that diocess ; whereby we see that the bishop of rome had in those days no authority over other bishops , but that every thing was then regulated by councils and by synods . if an archbishop , or a metropolitan were accused , the affair was determined by an assembly of the synod of the diocess ; and if any man appealed from thence , it was not to the bishop of rome , but to a synod composed of many diocesses , which may be seen in the case of bagadius bishop of bostra metropolitan of arabia , who having been deposed by some bishops of his province , appealed from them , not to rome , but to constantinople , where quickly afterwards was assembled a synod of many of the eastern diocesses , at which nectarius of constantinople , flavian of antioch , and theophilus of alexandria , all three patriarches assisted ; and the case was determined in the year , and bagadius reestablished in his place . * it was the opinion of st. hierom , tho a roman , and very zealous for his own patriarch , that if there be any question concerning authority , that of the whole world is greater than that of one single city . for what end shall a man alledg the customs of one only town ? wheresoever there is a bishop there is always the same dignity . neither riches nor poverty making them superiors or inferiors . they are all successors of the apostles . (a) st. chrysostom was also of this opinion when he spoke thus : if any bishop affecteth supremacy on earth , he shall find confusion in heaven . and whosoever shall be ambitious of raising himself above others , shall not be reckoned among the servants of jesus christ. thus are all the popes inclusively excommunicated by st. chrysostome , since boniface the third ; and not only by him , but by the milevitan council , by the council of sardis , the third council of carthage , and another council held at carthage at the instance of gregory the first , under the emperor maurice ; all these councils do excommunicate and declare him a forerunner of antichrist , who shall call himself universal bishop . (b) st. gr●gory doth himself abominate the pride and impiety of our popes of these last ages , when he says , that whosoever shall make himself be called vniversal bishop , shall be the forerunner of antichrist , because he will by his insolence raise himself above others . (c) and in another place speaking to anastasius bishop of anti●ch , he says , that without m●ntioning the dishon●ur that the pride of such a man would do you , if a bishop should m●ke himself be called vniversal head of the chur●h , the whole church must run to ruin if this vniversal head sh●uld fall . for my p●rt i pr●y god keep me from hearkening to any such fol●ies , and from b●ing capable of so gre●t ●●anity , &c. i should never have done , if i should pretend here to relate all the evidences of antiquity , which are contrary to the pretences of the bishops of rome for some ages past . * st. austin tells us a story which i cannot l●t pass , which shews things pretty clearly : he says that don●●us had accused cecili●n , arch-bishop of carthage , of a great crime , and that the emperor constantine chose the bishop of rome , and several other bishops for judges of the affair . donatus was condemned by them , and made his appeal to the emperor , who referred the judgment of his appeal to arles . at this judgment the bishop of arles presided , and the affair was by him determined in favour of cecilian , and the judgment given at rome confirmed . it would be a fine thing now to see the emperor in an affair pur●ly ecclesiastical , as that was , establish the pope as his commissary , with other bishops , and an appeal made from their sentence before the emperor , and he should send the cause before another bishop , to judge definitively of it . i know not after this what eviden●es i further need to prove the usurpations which the popes have made since those times . christians ought to die in confusion , who want proofs for a thing as clear as the day , considering the enormity and exorbitance of the power which these people take upon them . ‡ in st. hilaries days they endeavoured to bring under the bishops of france , in such sort , that st. hilary opposed their ambition , which made leo have the impudence to write of it to the bishops of the province of vienne . however , that did not hinder him from continually attacking him , and his successors , who found opposition enough from time to time , they always gaining the victory : and we have a letter which the churches of france and germany wrote together in the time of king clouis , to anastasius the second bishop of rome , where we see that they were not satisfy'd with the ambition of that bishop . * it is not , say they , without reason , that the bishops , it being grounded upon many authorities , affirm that the authority of councils is above that of a pope . st. paul the apostle , who tells us , that we should be his followers , resisted peter , the first of the apostles , to his face , because he d●served reproof . for our parts , we understand not this new compassion which the italian physicians have for our m●ladies of france . they would cure our bishops , and are themselves sick of a continued fever : they are thems●lves blind , and yet th●y off●r us light : they forsake their own flock , suffering it to wander , and pretend to lead our pastors in the right way . th●y would make us believe , that the cure for spiritual diseases , that is to say , absolution , is to be found at rome , &c. but if the ark of the covenant should fall in france , it must be our bishops , and not theirs , that must take it up again . but if they be so rash , as to pretend to touch the ark of our church , they only draw evil upon themselves , as well as uzzah the levite . let th●m fairly unde●stand this syl●ogism ; if th●r● be but one ●nly power in all bishops , it is also in one person alone : now there is one and the same power in all bishops ; therefore it resides also in one single person . but let us here observe by the by , how much the germans and french are degenerated from that piety and love for the liberty which jesus christ hath acquired for his church . it is certain , that bishops were always equal in the first ages of the church : it was some time after the death of st. cyprian , before they thought of establishing in every province one bishop above the rest : they thought it would be advantagious for removing the disorder that sprung up sometimes among them for concurrence and presidency . he resided in the capital city , and was called the metropolitan . at first he had no authority over the others , but only the place ; but afterwards they conferred upon them the power of consecrating bishops of the province , because they dwelt in the capital ciiy , where every body came about their affairs . and it is from thence that bishops became subject to their metropolitans , and have been distinguished from them by the ordination which they receive from them . these metropolitans were called in the west arch-bishops ; after this there was given them the power of calling provincial synods , who for that reason were assembled always in the capital city . that was brought in at first only as a custom , and because it looked as though the state of the civil government did require it . but at length this custom was confirmed by the decrees of the council of nice , and became a law. after that , for the maintenance of unity among the churches of divers provinces , it was further thought requisite to establish exarchs , or primates over these arch-bishops , according to the idea of the civil government . these primates were the bishops of the chief city of some great province , or of a diocess that comprehended many provinces . at first they acknowledged no superior , but by little and little , they of constantinople , of antioch , of alexandria , and lastly , he of rome , did first attempt their rights ; and after came the council of calcedon , who established over these metropolitans four patriarchs , of rome , of alexandria , of antioch , and of constantinople , to whom afterwards he of jerusalem was also added , for the honour of that city ; but he lasted not long . the two principal were he of rome , and he of constantinople , because those were two seats of the empire , and at last they took upon them the quality of oecumenical bishops against all reason , divine , or humane , and against the decrees of many councils . since those times every thing hath gone worse and worse . it is no hard matter to prove , that the presidence of the bishop of rome was purely in consideration of the dignity of that city : † the second canon of the council of constantinople shews it sufficiently ; where it is said , that the bishops who are established over a diocess , shall not go beyond the bounds which have been set them ; but that the bishop of constantinople shall have the honour of the primacy , after the bishop of rome , and not before him , because that city is not so ancient as that of rome . after the same manner the th canon of the council of antioch ordains , that the bishops of great cities shall have the pre-eminence , because all men of business repair to the capital city . † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , &c. * and the council of calcedon , in its th act , gives no other reason for the city of rome's having the first place . the fathers , says this council , have also given these priviledges to the see of old rome , by reason of the empire of that city , &c. and for this very reason they have given the same priviledges to the most holy see of new rome , judging very rati●nally , that a city honoured by the sena●e and the empire , ought to enjoy the same priviledges as the ancient rome , and have the same pre-eminence in eccl●siastical affairs , and be the second after her . ‡ and the council of turin , in its first chapter , hath these words , that bishop who can prove that his city is the capital of the wh●le province , let him have the honour of the primacy , and the faculty of conferring orders upon others . and we must not judge of this matter by what we now see : for example , that paris and london , which are the capital cities of two great states , have not the primacy over the other bishops of these kingdoms : for besides that they here received the christian faith later than the others did ; the court of rome , and its favourers , have managed this very politickly , not suffering that any great city shoul● have this honour , lest the bishop of it should become their rival , and should cast off their yoke ; as we see , they had all the difficulty in the world , to subdue the great city of milan : ‖ for in the year . nicholas the second , having sent thither peter damien , bishop of ostia , to make them lay aside the ambr●sian service , and take up the roman ; both the clergy and people answered vigorously , that they had never been subject to the roman laws , and that the bishop of rome had nothing to do to meddle with what concerned them : that it would be a thing unworthy of their church , which had been always free , to become subject , by their own cowardize , to another church ; and that if they did it , it would bring an eternal shame upon them . it is true , the cardinal did corrupt the arch-bishop , who received the roman service ; but the clergy and the people soon shook off the yoke , till gregory the seventh's time , who by cunning practices , and by cruelty , oppressed them . * in the same manner , at toledo , the popes were forced to shed a great deal of blood , before they could compel that town to receive the roman service ; and at last , to appease the people , they were forced to allow , that they should retain the gallican service in six parishes of the city of toledo . ravenna also resisted for some time couragiously , because they had tasted somewhat of their spiritual , as well as of their temporal dominion . we see it by the th epistle of adrian , ad carolum magnum de leone episcopo ravennate qui non vult obedire adriano . his predecessor sergius had done the same thing , and so did john , his successor , and many others . see cardinal d' ailly , in his book of the reformation . guicciardin also confirms it : the church of ravenna , says he , disputed with rome for the primacy , because the seat of religion hath been accustomed to follow the power of the empire and its arms ; which , by the way , also proves the usurpations of the bishops of rome . durand also tells us , that charlemayne was intreated by the pope adrian , to abolish the ambrosian service throughout all germany and france , and that he found great resistance , as against an unheard of tyranny . the emperor , says he , did compel all the ecclesiasticks , both by threats and punishments , to burn the books of the ambrosian service . he could not force the men of milan to it , who yet kept it near . years . and we see in the th chapter of the capitularies of charlemayne , that this emperour made this ordinance in the year , that the service should be sung in churches , according to the use and custom of the roman church . these villains , who owe so much to this emperour , make but very little acknowledgment , and have shewed but small consideration to his descendants . i do not think it necessary to prove , that the bishops of rome presided in the councils , no more than other bishops ; that it was the emperours who called the councils , that were to approve , and make them to be observed . there is no man but knows that our kings have assembled many , and have presided in them , even when the bishop of rome hath had a deputy , or legate present . we have a remarkable example in the history of the gallican councils , which it were to be wished , that our great king would follow ; * that is , of the council of leptine , assembled in the name of carloman , duke and prince of the francks , under chilperie the third . first of all , you there see that it was carloman who presided , though the bishop of rome had his deputy there present . see how he there speaks : in the name of our lord jesus christ , i carloman , duke and prince of the francks , in the year from the incarnation , the second of the calends of may , have assembled a council , by the advice of the servants of god , and the lords of our court , that is to say , boniface , and burchard , bishops , with their clergy , to advise concerning means whereby the law of god , and the ecclesiastical religion , which is fallen to decay in these latter ages , may be re-established , and how christian people may attain to the salvation of their souls , and not be destroyed by the deceits of false teachers . this is a true idea of the present state of the church ; but with this difference , that the disorder is now much greater ; and would it would please god to touch the heart of some great prince in our days , to do as carloman did . under the same king chilperie , pepin , who was yet only duke of the francks , called also another council at soissons , where he also presided : the preface begins thus , i pepin : and at the end it is said , whosoever shall contradict these decrees , established by . bishops , and other servants of god , by and with the consent of prince pepin , and of the lords of france , shall be judged either by the prince , or by the bishops : and the council is signed , pepin . the bishop of rome is no more mentioned in all this , than the mufti , though they were already arrived to a great height , because it was near two hundred years since they had been declared heads of the church by the emperor phocas . the first who took upon him this quality , was one b●niface the third , who for having protected phocas , who had killed the emperor maurice , to settle himself in his place , was by him , in recompence , honoured with the title of universal bishop . many authors do relate the history of it , but one only shall suffice , who is beda , ‖ who reports , phocam imperatorem rogante bonifacio secundo , gregorii m●gni successore statuisse sedem romanae , & apostolicae ecclesiae caput esse omnium ecclesiarum , quia constantinopolitana primam se omnium eccl●si●rum scribebat . and since that time they are become the vicars general of jesus christ upon earth , because they are the worthy successors of simon magus , who as st. epiphanius reports , ‡ pretended to be the vicar of christ. and the divine power , for the government of the church . being thus far advanced , no man need wonder that they govern the church so well : for as tacitus observes ‖ ne●●●nquam imperium flagitio quaesitum bonis artibus exercuit . since this consecration of phocas , they have always had the wind in their stern , and fortune hath by little and little greatly advanced them : they were never at a loss to find people who would assist them to get a share in the plunder . prima principatus initia , ardua ubi sis ingressus , adesse studia & ministros . and i may say that which the same tacitus says in an other place , with respect to the ancient grandeur of rome , that fortune prepared them in many places of the world means and occasions of establishing their empire : ‖ struebat jam fortuna in diversa parte terrarum , initia caususque imperio , ( papatui . ) it is now not very long since that the emperors did elect and depose the popes : they made use of them in their affairs ; in embassies ; they punished them when they had committed any crime , and sometimes even with death . theodorie , king of italy , for example , sent john , bishop of rome , in an embassy to the emperor justinian ; and having afterwards re-called him , he put him to death in prison . * belisarius , lieutenant of the emperor justinian , in the year , drove away silverius , bishop of rome , and put vigil in his place , whom he afterwards drew through the town with a rope about his neck , as platina ‖ relates . in the year , the emperor constantine bound the pope martin in chains , and sent him away in exile to chersona , where he died . in the year , the emperor otbo deposed pope john the th . in the the year , henry the second deposed three popes , benet the ninth , sylvester the third , and gregory the sixth . we see by the authentick of justinian , that the popes paid to the emperors , as to their soveraigns , twenty pounds of gold for their investiture ‡ and pope adrian himself , and also leo the eighth , do confess , that the emperor charlemayne had the authority of electing popes ‖ . why is it not so now ? it is because the popes have by a thousand cheats ruined the roman emperors , and are become more mighty then they , as well by the desolation of the empire , which they have rent in pieces , as by the conquests which they have made in italy , and by the usurpations which they yet make upon what remains to the emperor , in debauching part of his subjects , who swear fidelity and obedience to them , even against the emperor himself , and by holding in captivity their consciences , by means of the monks , to make them do what they please in favour of the pope ; not to mention how they drain his country , as well as others , trafficking with princes and their subjects , in almost the same manner as is usual with some people of the ind●es , to whom they give pins , and pieces of glass for their pearls and gold. after this manner they draw to them all our substance ; and we are , at least , as simple as these poor people . some body in tacitus complains , that the money went out of rome for diamonds ; and that ●trangers and enemies made advantage by it : ‡ pecuniae nostrae lapidum causa ad exteras & hostiles gentes transeunt . we have now so much more reason to make this complaint , as diamonds are better worth than bulls and dispensations of our most holy father the pope . bonif●ce the third , as i have already said , having been made universal head of the church by phocas , this power increased prodigiously in a little time : † this good pope presently called together some ecclesiasticks of his faction , in a synod , who confirmed to him the title of head of the church . after him , his successors , taking advantage of the weakness of the greek emperors , and of the distractions of italy , they established and augmented their authority more and more ; and the exarchat of ravenna , having been ruined by the lombards , the spiritual power of that city fell as a prey into the hands of the bishops of rome , who , seeing none in italy but the lombards , who could disturb him , plaid a cunning trick to draw to them out of france , pepin , son of charles martel ; it was by sending him letters brought from heaven to the holy father , which promised pepin an assured victory over the lombards . pepin gave credit to this letter , came and defeated the lombards ; pursuant to which , his holiness , pope zachary , the worthy successor of boniface the third , very honestly dispenced with pepin's oath of allegiance , which he owed to king chilperic , and crowned him king of france ; and at the same time dispenced with all the french for their obedience due to their lawful prince . pepin then in acknowledgment of this , gave them the exarchat of ravenna , with many cities and priviledges , reserving to himself only the soveraignty , and the right of electing popes , which , as history testifieth , his successors enjoyed long after him . nor had any of their bishops any need of bulls , or to pay tribute to the popes , being elected by the clergy and the people , invested by the prince , who alone assembled * councils , and made regulations in ecclesiastical things . and when the popes encroached farther than they had to do , we see that the churches of germany , and of france , had yet courage enough to oppose their enterprises . and we find that in the year . the counc●● assembled at reimes under hugh capet , deposed one arnoulph , arch-bishop of rheimes , in spite of the pope ; and when he complained of it , they asked him for what ●eason they should prefer his apostleship before others ? ‖ vt sciamus & intelligamus cur inter caeteros apostolatum vestrum praeferre debeamus . and in the th chapter of the same council , what would laws signifie , if all were to be governed by one man's humour ? in the greatest prosperity of rome , when it was the seat of the empire , and bishops were men of merit , the gelasiuses , the gregories , and the leoes , the afr●cans would not give them the priviledge of appeals ; how much less ought we to do it now ? compare our times with theirs . it is true , that notwithstanding the protestations which were every where made against the ambition of the bishops of rome , yet they still gained ground ; and at length , having gotten , either by some trick , or by open violence , not only the exarchat of ravenna , but benevento , and ferrara , and what they call the patrimony of st. peter , having made themselves absolute masters of the town of rome , they were no longer afraid to declare open war against the emperours . and this it was which made guicciardin say in two places , jam ita se gerunt ut authoritatis ponti●iciae videatur leges dare potius quam accipere terrorem armo●um coelestium in res caducas vertunt . tandem non erga deum & homines charitas , sed exercitus , sed bella in christianos horum curae & ludicra ; jam per multos annos beliorum authores , incendiorum faces , &c. now they behave themselves as though it were a part of the popes authority to give laws , not to receive them . they turn the terror of heavenly weapons on worldly affairs ; now not love to god and man , but armies and wars against christians , are their care and sport . for many years they have been authors of wars , &c. ‖ aventin gives us an account of a letter which the emp●ror barberossa wrote in the year . to the princes of germany , which saith expresly , that the popes being increased in wealth and dignity , by means of him and his predecessors , apply themselves with all diligence to dethrone kings and princes , and cannot suffer an equal : that they were busied both night and day , not so much to destroy him , as the sacred empire . after they had oppressed the head of it , they affect not only domination , but divinity it self , and will not be feared and adored less than god : and that the christian religion hath no greater enemies than they . but he who of all the popes gave the most mortal blow to the church , and to the authority of christian princes , was gregory the seventh , and that by three devilish means : first of all by deposing the emperor henry the fourth , which caused the ruin of the western empire ; for since that time it hath been torn into many little states , and weak principalities , which the popes have played with at their pleasure , as well in germ●ny , as in italy . only our country of france hath maintained it self against all their endeavours , without being divided , and hath still kept some small remains of liberty , which they daily attempt to rob us of . the second device was to engage princes , and great men , and those who were very rich , in the croisadoes and expeditions of the holy land , and to make them take the cross ; which besides the vast treasures which the popes got by it , augmented greatly their authority ; for from hence they invented indulgences , from whence the court of rome hath drawn unspeakable advantages as well in riches , as in authority . the third was by introducing neatly under the pretence of ignorance , and the weakness of princes , the use of cardinals of divers nations , in the election of the pope ; for by this these nations are for the spiritual ●art become subject to the see of rome , the clergy and people of r●me , as well as the emperors , have lost the right of electing the bishop . all these states have thought that the bishop of rome was greater than another bishop , and that they had great interest in his election ; and the popes have gotten many creatures in all these states . it is true , that at this time they are almost all italians , because they have of late so well bridled all these countries by the infinite number of their monks , and by many other inventions that they now fear not their casting off the yoke . after that henry the fourth had been deposed , and the right of investing bishops taken from him , the successors of this gregory pretended that the ecclesiasticks were exempt from all jurisdiction and power of ●ecular princes , even in civil affairs . and besides that , that the bishop of rome could d●pose kings , if they did not submit to all his orders ; and to fortifie this , came forth the decretals of many popes , of which these people at last made so good use to compose their bull de caena domini , and the directory of the inquisitors . but , say they , all this does not hinder the bishop of rome from being head of the church , for we see that the laws and rules , and roman discipline , have been followed by the other churches . it is true , that in the west , as there was no other patriarchal see , and as in most places thee christian faith had been received by means of the roman chur●h , the wo●ld had a great respect for it ; and be●ides , it was by reason of the dignity of this city . as in france we always consult the sorbonne at paris concerning matters of religion ; not that for this reason the other universities or churches depend upon it . but it is false , that all christians , or the greatest part of them have received the rules and discipline of rome . the greek churches never owned them , nor any of those who are in asia , or in africa , as the armenian , the ethiopian and others . and what we have already alledged from many of the fathers and councils , from the gallican church ▪ from the churches of ravenna , milan and toledo , who with so much difficulty received the roman office , even in the eleventh century , shews sufficiently that they had no dependance on the bishop of rome . i could bring a thousand other proofs did i not fear being too tedious to the reader . * aventin relates that gregory the second sent one winefred towards the countries lying upon the rhine to reform the churches there , and to set them on the roman bottom ; but that they vigorously opposed him and many bishops , called him the author of lyes , and corrupter of the christian faith. † in the first tome of the councils we have a letter of damasus bishop of rome , to hierome a priest , where we find these words , which do sufficiently confute the pretences of our people : i intreat , brother , thy charity to send us the greek psalter , with the notes by which they sing them . these are the words , peto charitatem tuam ut graecorum psallentiam ad nos dirigere tua fraternitas delectetur . for , adds he , we are so simple that upon festival days we do nothing but read a chapter in the epistles , or in the gospel , and we have no custom of singing psalms , nor is the grace and glory of hymns to be found in our mouths . observe these words , charitas tua , and fraternitas tua , from a bishop of rome to a priest , and how far they were from endeavouring to make other churches subject to their laws , since that on the contrary they did correct their own faults by the good example of others . ‖ we find also at the end of st. gregory's works , that about the year , he sent a monk called austin into england , who passing through france , was surprized to see there another manner of divine service than he had seen in italy , with ceremonies quite different ; that when he wrote to gregory , he asked him how it came to pass that since there was but one faith , the customs of churches were so different , and that the custom and manner of masses was not the same at rome as in france ? to which st. gregory answered , you know , brother , what is the custom of the roman church , wherein you have been educated . but my opinion is , that if you find any thing , be it in the roman church , or the gallican , or in any other which may be more agreeable to god , you should pr●f●r it ; for we ought not to love the things for the places , but the places for the good things we find in them . * there are some people also who would make an advantage of this that the church of rome is by the fathers called the apostolick see. in truth as the pharisees sat in the seat of moses , as our saviour says , so do the bishops of rome also ●it upon the seat of the apostles . but it is certain , that the other bishops who teach the doctrine of the apostles , and imitate their example , are more apostolick than they . you must know that all the churches founded by the apostles were honoured with this title , and particularly famous and metropolitan cities , which were looked upon as the mothers of other churches , tho sometimes they had embraced christianity after others that were less considerable , because there resided the civil , which drew after it the eccl●siastical jurisdiction . and because there were many in the east where christians were far more numerous than on this side , none of those churches ever raised it self above the others ; but in the west there being but one , which was the roman , and no other having been since erected , tho the germans , spaniards , french , and oth●r nations have embraced the christian religion since those times , yet rome alone hath had this glorious title , and the others have had great respect for it , without any manner of d●pendance on it however at the beginning , as hath already been shewed . but that hindereth not but that other orthodox church●s may also have it ; consult tertullian , (a) he says that all churches that follow the faith of the apostles , are apostolick . and pope pelagius confirms the same thing , (b) whensoever , says he , there ariseth any question in peoples minds concerning an vniversal synod , let those who love their own salvation , consult the apostolick sees , that they may learn the reason of what they understand not . (c) and st. austin speaking of cecilian bishop of carthage , condemned by the donaetists , before whom he refused to answer , says that he might reserve the whole cognizance of the thing to the judgment of his other fellow bishops , chiefly those of apostolick sees . we have seen already that the council of rheimes assembled under hugh capet , says that the apostleship of the bishop of rome is not to be pr●ferred before that of other bishops , and so his see is no more apostolick . (d) apol●inaris gives this account of the apostleship to fontelus bishop of vaison ; and says also , that the bishop tricassin lived forty years in an apostolick see. (e) gr●gory of tours calleth the church of bourdeaux an apostolick see. the council of antioch assembled against paulus samosatensis calleth the church of antioch the church catholick . we have , say they , been obliged to give unto the catholick church another bishop in the room of this heretick . (f) nevertheless this catholick church was not subject to the bishop of rome no more than cecilian bishop of carthage , of whom the emperor constantine also said , that he presided over the church catholick (g) . (h) as for the quality of bishop of bishops , which the popes take upon themselves , and which the fathers have sometimes given to the bishops of rome , it is like that of king of kings , in regard of those who had kings under them . the metropolitans who were the first bishops were thus called . chrysostome is called father of the fathers , and teacher of the whole world by the emperors theodosius . (i) and sydonius calls lupus tricassin bishop of trequier , father of fathers , and bishop of bishops . he also calls one graecus massiliensis bishop of marseilles by the same name , and gives also the title of soveraign pontife , even to those sort of bishops , and to aegrotius bishop of sens , and to fontelus bishop of vaison . * he says in another place , that evatrix king of the goths having subdued all aquitain , killed all the soveraign pontifes that were there , and that there were no other bishops establi●hed in their stead . k the same author calls also mamereus bishop of vienne soveraign pontife . (l) and there also speaking of lupus bishop of trequier , he says , he is the fir●t bishop of the habitable earth . this same sydonius having been chosen by the clergy of bourges , to elect , and in the presence of the archbishop of sens to establish a bishop at bourges ; says , you have gi●en me this commission to elect a bishop in the presence of our most holy father the pope , a man m●st worthy of the soveraign priesthood . praesente sacro sancto papa pontificatu summo dignissimo . so he calls aegrotius bishop of sens , and not the pope of rome . (m) we see also that st. ignatius acknowledges no dignity above that of a bishop . honour the bishop as being the chief priest , wh● beareth the image of god. (n) and pope l●o acknowledgeth that above a bishop there is no other degree . the poet fortunatus gives st. germain bishop of paris , the title of high priest (o) . pontifici summo nos commendare precamur , regibus & dominis forte salutis opus . as for the word pope which these people have affected to distinguish themselves by from other bishops ; it is like the word legate or nuncio , which they give to their embassadors and envoys instead of using the ordinary terms ; these are singular marks of vanity and pride , which however have their effect on silly people , who imagin by these words that the pope is a man of a quite different kind from others . you must know that this word in its original signifies no other thing than a priest or bishop ; and that it was common heretofore to all people of this character , and even now at this day they are so called in greece , and also in germany , and the motto of the duke of brunswick , who stiled himself gottes , friend ; and paepsten fiend , signifies no less that he was an enemy to priests than to popes . we see in the life of st. cyprian , written by pontianus a deacon , that he is there called pope . (p) and in the epistle of the roman clergy to st. cyprian , there are these words , cypriano papae , to pope cyprian ; and at length , we desire thee most h●ly and most glorious pope . and in the epistle of calerin , which is the th . in cyprian , the most holy pope cyprian . and ischyras writing to athanasius , says thus , beato papae athanasios : to the blessed pope athanasius , greeting . i need not bring any more proofs , since baronius himself doth acknowledg and attest that this name (q) had been common to all bishops until the year , that gregory the seventh , that able pope whom we have already mentioned , forbad it to be given to any other bishop than he of rome . as for the cardinals who are in no other see than that of rome , they in my opinion give so little advantage to it above the sees of other bishops , speaking like a christian , that they do abase and make it infinitely less than others . for what are these people ? they are worldly men , epicures , people of pride , vanity and prodigious expence ; there are but few of them who devour less than three hundred thousand livres (r) a year after an infamous manner ; and it was not without reason that the emperor sigismond represented to the council of constance , that they were good for nothing in the church , and their dignity ought to be supprest . and of latter days even in the council of trent there were men bold enough to propose the abolishment of this dignity , or else to reduce them to their first functions of curates . as also the gallican church demanded in its remonstrances to the council of constance , domini cardinales : my lords , the cardinals , say they , are curates of the parish churches of rome , and in this respect are they called cardinals ; that is to say , th● chief of principals (s) . and according to this institution their chief duty is and ought to be to hear conf●ssions , preach and baptise . besides there were many other churches who as well as rome had such like priests as the cardinals . we see it by a brief of the gallican chur●h under charles the fifth (t) , it is not only rome , says this brief , which hath cardinals , but there are many other churches who have them , as that of ravenna , and who call them cardinals who have the chief employments in the church . and so it was in many other churches , kingdoms and provinces . and the cardinals were in those times under the bishops , as may be seen by the (u) chronicle of the abby of st. jean de vignes at soissons , where theobald bishop of soissons is brought in speaking of the curate of st. john de vignes , and says , presbiter vero cardinalis , ipsius ejusdem loci , mihi de more & archidiacono de cura parochianorum reddat rationem . that is to say , that the cardinal-priest of this parish ought according to the custom to give an account of his parishioners to me , and to the arch-deacon . the same author called le gris , a canon regular of st. augustin , says , that there were twelve curates at soissons , who time out of mind had been called cardinals ; and it was the same thing in many other places of france . and we read in pasquier that in a council held at metz under charlemagne , it was ordained , (x) vt titulos cardinales in vrbibus vel suburbiis constitutos honestissime & canonice retractatione ordinent & disponant * . that the bishops should ordain and dispose the title of cardinals honestly , and canonically , in cities and suburbs . if this name and dignity be to be esteemed so highly in the church , it would be very easie to make as many as one would in france without the bishop of rome his consent , since that ev●ry bishop hath the power of making them , and without being reordained there is no priest who doth now officiate , who may not be a cardinal when you please . thus this signifies nothing , no more than the other things which have been already confuted , to prove that the popes authority is divine , since the s●ripture and the whole primitive church are against it . but i must here also answer one humane reason which they make use of to throw dust in our eyes ; they take it from an author whom they esteem as much as st. paul , nay more , for they pretend that without him we should fail in many articles of our faith ; this is aristotle . i scarce believe so much can be said of st. paul , who wrote the clearest of all the apostles . senza aristotele noi mancarono di molti articoli di fide , * says cardinal palavicini . bellarmine also , another cardinal and a jesuit , doth object to us that aristotle demonstrated monarchy to be the most excellent of all governments , and by consequence god would have his church so governed , and that this monarchy belongs to the pope . it is certain that the spiritual government of the church is monarchical . it is jesus christ who governs it , a monarch all-wise , and almighty ; but the external government of the visible and universal church cannot be so ; and their principle it self is contested by the greatest part of politicians . aristotle himself , their apostle , says in some places , that a mixed or compounded government , be it aristocratical , or democratical , is better : ‡ quae ex pluribus constat respublica melior est . and tho a kingdom may be very well governed by one single person ; yet it doth not follow that this one person can as well govern all the states and kingdoms of the world. and he says in another place . ‖ huc enim sunt omnia reducenda ut ii ●ui in imperio sunt , non tyrannum sed patrem familias agere videantur , & rem non quasi dominus sed quasi procurator & praefectus administrare , nec quod nimium est sectari . do the popes govern after this manner ? reason and experience both convince us of the contrary . we see by history , that the empires of the world , when they were of too great an extent , could not subsist , and have been torn in pieces ; and we have the example of some wise emperors who made decrees to hinder the enlargement of their empire , as augustus made one , de coercendo intra limites imperio . it is a proverb , that he who takes too much into his arms , can't hug it close . and this is so much the truer in ecclesiastical government , which cannot inflict corporal punishments upon delinquents ; for st. paul says expresly , that the arms of the evangelick ministry are not according to the flesh. and the fathers as well as the councils do teach us , that the arms of a bishop ought to be prayers and tears . the example which they bring of one single bishop , who by divine institution governs a diocess , or of a curate who governs one church only , can signifie to them nothing at all ; b●cause first of all there is a divine institution for that , but none for this . besides , a man may easily manage a boat upon a little river , who knows not how alone to manage a great vessel upon the ocean , much less a fleet of ships . and the example of a bishop or curate makes against them , for they are not soveraigns , the one presides only among the other priests , and the other in a parish . i foresee that it will be said , that though this authority of the pope was not instituted by jesus christ , that the church for the first five centuries knew it not , that it hath been since opposed from time to time by many people , perhaps of a turbulent or discontented mind ; yet it must be believed that the church which did establish it since , did it for good reasons ; that jesus christ and his apostles have not so precisely regulated every thing that concerns the discipline of the church , but that she may according to her own prudence alter some things according to the times and places ; or as others say , that every time hath its customs ; or as cardinal palavicini , ‡ altri tempi , altri costumi : that the church was at that time in its infancy , and that the mature age to which it is now arrived , is not to be governed as its tender infancy . i acknowledg that the church may sometimes vary in its discipline , and in its policy without any great crime ; but this must be always by a principle of charity ; and according to the fathers , quod propter charitatem fit , non debet contra charitatem militare . that which is done by a principle of charity , ought not to militate against charity . it must tend to edification ; the church ought to do nothing against the commandments of god. now i have shewn that the papacy is against the maxims of the gospel , and is altogether contrary to the genius of christianity , and more contrary than light is to darkness . furthermore , it is not true that the church hath established the papacy , only some few councils held in italy about two or three hundred years since , or thereabouts ; as that at florence , lateran , bolonia and trent . but we speak not of these dark ages ; for those with whom i dispute , believe that the church hath established this power in the sixth or seventh century . ‡ in this respect the cardinal cusan mistakes himself , when he says , p●patus est de jure positivo ; the papacy is of positive right : for the church hath not established it in any council , unless you call that rabble of ecclesiasticks and seculars the church , who assembled themselves together at the desire of boniface the third , to confirm upon him the title of universal bishop , which he got by the parricide phocas , for the assistance he had given him . he himself acknowledgeth , that this authority came to them , * ex usu & consuetudine subjectionalis obedientiae . and he maintains with good reason in another place , si per possibile treverinus archiepiscopus per ecclesiam congregatam pro praeside & capite eligeretur , ille proprie plus successor esset beati petri in principatu quam romanus episcopus : that if it were possible that the arch bishop of treves could be chosen head of the church by a general council , he would be a more lawful successor of st. peter than the bishop of rome ; which shews , that in his time no council had declared the bishop of rome as such . besides , these words , if it were possible , shew , that he belioved not that the church could dispose of such a thing . † gerson was also of this opinion ; for he acknowledgeth very ingeniously , that the papal authority cannot be conferred by the church : papalis authoritas si non a deo esset immediate instituta , a tota ecclesia institui non poterat : if the papal authority were not from god immediately , it could not be instituted by the whole church . and though it were true , that the church had established it , as pope innocent the third pretends , when he says , ecclesia non nupsit vacua , sed dotem mihi tribuit absque pretio preti●sam , spiritualium plenitudinem & latitudinem temporalium ; illius me constituit vicarium qui habet in vestimento suo scriptum , rex regum & dominus dominantium : the church hath not married me without a fortune ; but hath given me the invaluable dowry of god , the fulness of spirituals , and the latitude of temporals ; hath made me the vicar of him who hath written on his garment , king of kings and lord of lords . although that , i say , were true , it would not be less necessary to abolish this power , which is the cause of so many disorders , because the church in those days might have created it for the good of the church , as she then thought : and having found out that it is to her ruine , she ought to destroy it ; for the chair of peter is for the church , and not the church for the chair of peter : petri cathedra propter ecclesiam , non ecclesia propter petri cathedram . quod propter charitatem fit , non debet contra charitatem militare . and since that our faith , according to thomas aquinas , ought to be founded upon the word of god only , and not upon the eshablishments of the church , as he says , * fides nostra innititur revelationibus prophetis & apostolis factis ; ecclesia non statuit nisi de non necessariis ad salutem ; according to this truth , we are not obliged to believe the extravagant of pope boniface , who says , that it is necessary to salvation to submit to the pope . and if the church , according to these people , dared to change the aristocratical government , instituted by jesus christ , under which the kingdom of god spread it self so far , piety flourished , idolatry was confounded ; shall it not be allowable for the church , and for princes , who are its natural protectors , to redeem it out of that slavery into which the enemy of mankind hath reduced it , to its first purity and simplicity ? methinks if men had any sense of religion , they ought to sigh continually , for the deplorable condition of the church , and of the greeks and protestants , whom we have cast headlong into the evil they now labour under . some people will have it , that because the greek patriarchs among themselves hold that place which the council of nice , and the emperor constantine gave to all patriarchs , he of rome , who had the first place , ought still to keep it ; and as in place he was the first bishop , and the only patriarch in the west , he ought still to enjoy these prerogatives . but first of all , none of the greek patriarchs , unless it were that john of constantinople against whom st. gregory wrote so vehemently , ever pretended to bear rule over the other bishops , nor over the church , much less over christian princes , as the popes do ; and the patriarch of rome for above three hundred years after his institution , never attempted it . secondly , the place which the bishop of rome held , was propter principalitatem vrbis , in regard of the dignity of the city , which now hath no weight at all , rome being no longer the seat of the empire , but the sink and common-shore of all filthy iniquity , a den of thieves , and a nest of satan , nido di satanazzo , and the very habitation of sloth , laziness and beggary . paris , or london , do at this time deserve this honour a thousand times better . besides , it was in a time when there were but very few christians in the west ; these great states were not yet converted to the faith : france , germany , poland , part of spain , and all the northern countries , knew not what christianity was ; so that one patriarch might more easily have the inspection of this small number of christians who resorted also to rome for their civil affairs , as to the capital city , where the emperor resided . how are they now able to govern all the churches , they who cannot govern that at rome , and , which is worse , that trouble not their heads about it ? add to this a fourth reason , which is , that in those days they were not temporal princes , as they are become since ; and had not innumerable legions of monks and beneficiaries at their command , as now they have , which renders this power the most formidable of any upon earth among the catholicks . if because rome had heretofore the first place for the spirituality before other cities , she should pretend still to have it , it will thence follow , that she hath it for the temporality over these same cities , since the spiritual authority of this city , as i have already proved , was founded upon the temporal and civil , which she enjoyed as the seat of the empire ; and so in pretending to the regency of religion in france , flanders , and other catholick countries , they pretend also to have a right of treating these states as they please ; and they have effectually made them their subjects and tributaries , even to the disposing 〈◊〉 the crowns of kings , as their fancy leads them . there are others who believe they have hit on the right , when they say , that the pope is primus inter pares , and that so he is the first of all bishops . but i ask by what authority ? it is true , he was so among the patriarchs , whilst that rome , as i have said already , was the seat of the empire ; but now i maintain , that he is vltimus inter pares , and unworthy of the name of either priest or bishop , being the tyrant of the church , and of christian princes , and a temporal prince himself . were he not a temporal prince , all he could lawfully pretend to , would be to be the first bishop of italy . i know it will be said , that i ask too much to obtain any thing ; and i know that it will be neither better nor worse ; but i will discharge my mind , and tell the truth . god almighty may raise up princes when he pleases , who may restore that happy equality among the bishops , under which the church was heretofore so flourishing , and christianity made so great progress ; which would also re-establish peace among all christians , much better than the equality of turkish politicks , of which they say , ittichat khoga kopatmas : equality produceth no wars : they mean , the equality of poverty ; that is to say , that great men are not to be suffered in a nation ; and that being all miserable , they would make no commotions : whereas the equality which i speak of , would produce not only a firm and lasting peace , but also the abundance of all spiritual and temporal goods . there are also some people who pretended , that if we acknowledg a necessity of having arch-bishops and primates , who take their places above bishops instituted by jesus christ , tho the dignity of arch-bishops or primates is not so ; in like manner , for orders sake we may have a pope . that might pass , if the popes did not pretend to be of another order ; if they exercised no authority over their fellow-brethren ; if they were not temporal and mighty princes ; if the clergy did not absolutely depend upon them ; if they had nothing but a pre-eminence of place over the other bishops in assemblies and in councils ; if there were one of them in every christian state , who should solicite the prince for the assembling of provincial synods every year , to whom he should be subject , as the other bishops , and should entertain communion with the other patriarchs , or catholick popes , and with whom he should keep correspondence , that they might altogether , by the consent of their respective princes , cause general councils to be assembled , when they should be necessary , which should be held sometimes in one state , and sometimes in another , and wherein should preside men of the greatest understanding , and the greatest merit , without exception of persons ; or else every patriarch in his turn . thus was the church anciently governed without tyranny ; by this means did religion spread it self abroad with great success in all countries , and not by a pretended bishop , who is a worldly prince , and hath ruined the church . we see , that heretofore , among the pagans , kings have been sacrificers and ministers of religion . amongst the jews also , at the beginning , we find , that the heads of families , who were soveraigns , did take upon them the offering of sacrifices , and performed divine service ; but before these latter times , which is the sink of all ages , it was never seen , that priests plaid the princes , and that people who ought to employ themselves only in prayers , and sacrifices , and whom jesus christ , and all the most pure canons of the church , do forbid to meddle in secular affairs , should compare themselves with , and raise themselves above kings . is it not a comely sight to behold a temporal prince wearing three crowns one above the other , sitting in a throne covered with gold and precious stones , having the arms both of sea and land , many attendants following him , who are equal to other princes : such a prince as this , i say , to be the vicar of jesus christ ! he is then a carnal messias , and such a one as the jews do at this day look for : he is then a king of concupiscence and of iniquity . if it be so , the jews had reason to accuse him for endeavouring to supplant caesar ; the romans would have been in the right to put him to death ; and so he would not have been the redeemer of mankind . this pretension of the popes , as we see , is a horrible blasphemy , and which yields the cause over to the jews against us , and tends to justifie every thing they did against our lord jesus , and utterly to overturn christianity . the pretence also which they have , that ecclesiasticks ought not to be subject to their natural prince , and are freed from obedience to him by jesus christ ; this is to renew against our great saviour the impious accusation which the jews brought against him , that he would have made himself a king , and perswaded others to rebellion . there are others who pretend that the evil is not so great that there is a pope , as that general councils are no more assembled ; and so they say , that we should rather speak of assembling a council , than talk of exterminating the papacy ; because they think that a council would limit the pope , and hold the reins shorter over him : but this papacy subsisting , how shall a general council be called , but that they 'le have a hand in 't ? and if they have , what will this council tend to ? the end of it will be like that of trent , sad and miserable . and put the case there might be found a prince zealous , strong , and prudent enough to cause a general council to be assembled by an agreement of other christian princes , in spight of the pope ; what would this council do against the pope , who would have all the bishops for him , both by the oath which they have taken to him , and by twenty millions of revenue which he hath , and which he would employ to corrupt all the world ? what would you do with the monks , who would be all for him , it being their interest to maintain the authority and infallibility of the pope , because the priviledges which he hath given to many of them , which are as ancient as their first institution , are not confirmed by any lawful council , and so are null ? and how long should the good condition of this prince's affairs last , or his good correspondence with other princes , to make the laws of this council be obeyed ; and that the pope , who will be all , or nothing , shall not hinder the execution of his decrees , and continue his tyranny ? and how will you in the mean time keep the papacy with its hands tied , and what will this signifie ? it is certainly better to cast off the yoke all at once , than to let it continue without being sure that it shall do no more mischief . tutius est perire non posse quam juxta periculum non periisse , says a certain author . we have the sad example of the councils of trent and constance ; from that of trent we could not hope for any great matters ; but even that of constance , which seemed well inclined to a reformation , as well as that of basil , found such horrible resistance in the court of rome , and among the ecclesiasticks , that it never could re-establish the ancient discipline . and that shews us , that we must wholly eradicate this papacy , and that it is not enough to assemble a free oecumenical council , but that it must be some powerful , zealous , and resolute prince , who fears nothing but god , and not the court of rome , who must begin , continue , and vigorously end the thing , without hearkening to pretended moderate councils , which tend only to the churches ruin . the proverb here signifies nothing , that it is better to preserve the commonwealth as it is , than to have none at all : for i maintain that here is no common-wealth , but a perfect anarchy ; and that the church , instead of being governed , is devoured by a faction of villains , who eat the people of god like bread . but say they , you speak of abolishing the primacy in the church ; and nevertheless there is no society , no families , no colledge but hath it : without it these societies cannot subsist . it is not so much the primacy which i condemn , as the tyranny which hath been joined to it . the primacy of place might yet be suffered , although jesus christ hath not instituted it in the church ; but that of pope , is a primacy of jurisdiction , to which the universal church , and the whole world is subject , as they pretend . i condemn the primacy of a bishop who is a worldly prince , who hath more than twenty millions of rev●nue ; this primacy , which is the cause of all the disorders of the church ; whereas the end and ordinary use of lawful primacies , is to maintain good order in all societies . and i wish nothing more , than to see re-established in the church that primacy which jesus christ hath there instituted ; ( viz. ) that of councils , and that they should be often assembled , as they were in the primitive church ; for it is the want of these councils which hath undone the church . we see in the preface of the eleventh council of toledo , that the fathers say , that having wanted the light of councils for the space of ten years , the whole world went astray , and the church fell into disorder and confusion . how much more reason have we now to complain of that , we who for above these hundred years have seen none , and which is more , can never hope to see a lawful one , whilst the papacy shall subsist ? substracta luce conciliorum integro decennie , matrem omnium errorum ignorantiam , otiosas mentes occupasse , adeo ut babylonicae confusionis olla succensa purpuratae meretricis incrementa sacerdotes sequerentur , quia ecclesiastici convenius non aderat disciplina , nec erat qui errantium corrigeret partes , cum sermo divinus haberetur extorris . is not this the cause of so many superstitions , of so many heresies , schisms , and licentiousness , which we see in the clergy ? is it not a ridiculous thing , that no more councils shall be called , whilst we see the monks , both capucins , carthusians and jesuits often assemble their congregations for the augmentation of their societies ? it is no wonder if the church daily runs to ruin , whilst these societies fortifie themselves . is it not clear as the day , that if provincial synods were called every year , national every three or four years , as heretofore they were under our great kings ; and oecumenical councils , at least , once in ten years , that remedies would be found out for the calamities of the church ? might not a patriarch in every state , aided by the secular power , excute the decrees of the church with more facility , less jealousie , and more security for religion and for the state , than a forreign ambitious , and potent prince , who resolves to take no care for religion , but to model every thing to his own interest ? if this patriarch should neglect his duty , or carry it like a master , should not the prince chastise him , nor depose him ? experience shews us , that the church never flourished but when she was aristocratically governed , and when there was no other primacy in the universal church than that of councils , and all primates and patriarchs were subject to them : but since the patriarch of rome hath had the sole disposing of religion in the west , we have seen nothing but confusion , anarchy , schism , heresies , impiety , atheism , cruelty and barbarity . ipsa ecclesia vnus est princeps , & vnitati fidelium , non singulis haec jurisdictio a domino conceditur , &c. quia vnitas ecclesiae multo major est atque perfectior , quam vnitas vnius regis aut imperatoris terreni . thus did the holy council of basil answer the false reasons of pope eugenius his orators , who pretended , that the unity of the church was preserved much better by a pope than by the council . there are others who would have the pope's authority confin'd within the bounds which the councils of constance and of basil had marked out for it ; but they never understood the moral impossibility that there is , not only of making the popes consent to it ; but suppose they were constrained to consent to these rules for a season , to make them observe them always , or for any long time . and experience confirms what i say , with reference even to these councils which have put no stop at all to their career ; for they live in contempt as well of these as of all other lawful councils . have not they called others in italy , who have destroyed whatever these had established , even to treat with the name of heresie this holy doctrine of the superiority of the council ? have not the popes been sufficiently sacrilegious to raze out of the roman edition of general councils , the council of basil from among the oecumenical councils ? it is then impossible , that with the impiety and ambition wherewith the court of rome is wholly made up , and with the enormous power which the popes at this time have , which equals that of the greatest kings , that they should be reduced to submit themselves to the council of constance . and even that would signifie nothing ; for this council gives them too much authority ; it gives them the power which belongs to the emperors , of assembling general councils , of presiding in them , and concluding , and of executing the canons of councils , in regard of particular churches , and even of making decrees , during the intervals of synods , and of being judged only by a general council . they ought then to be deprived of this temporal power , the cardinals to be abolished , and the monks to be enfranchised , and released from the rash vows they have made to the popes ; the disposing of the palls of archbishops ought to be taken from him , and the faculty of investing bishops , and of dispencing with them for holding so many benefices ; with all the other simonical traffick which will still renders him the tyrant of the church , the master of all states , and the devil the possessor of many souls . it is much more easie to restore all at once the ancient discipline . i promote a paradox , but my reason is , that there will never be a good change , but it must happen after some strangely surprizing , or if i may so say , some violent manner , such violence as forces its way into the kingdom of heaven . whilest we stand upon treating , the popes shall maintain themselves always with the times , either by intriegues , or by some devilish inventions , the most zealous shall grow cold upon the business , ministers shall be corrupted either by money , or by cardinals caps , the prince shall have other affairs found him to look after , or shall be killed by the hand of some monk or other : all the jesuits and the monks shall be everlastingly for the papacy , whatever shew they at this time make . gerson somewhere says that there will never be a reformation if some zealous and resolute pope doth not procure it by assembling a general council . for my part , i say , that if god doth not inspire some great prince to do it , i say that a reformation will come as soon by means of the devil as the pope . first of all , the court of rome professeth an abhorrence of calling general councils . concilio semper aborrito da pontefici , says palavicini : besides that , they have established this fundamental maxim , that the pope cannot divest himself of the least tittle of his authority , no not for the salvation of the whole world ; for the pope , say they , is not the master but only the guardian of this authority . nay , they go so far as to maintain that the church would commit simony should she desire to divest the pope of this authority , or of his profits , for the salvation of souls . primato apostolico , di cui non era signiore , ma custode , says cardinal palavicini , that he is not the lord or patron , but only the guardian of the apostolick primacy . and in another place he says these words : non essendo egli arbitro e padrone della sua maggoranza constituta da christo , e pero non potendo farle alcun prejudicio . * he can do no wrong to his authority constituted by jesus christ , because he is not the patron and disposer of it . and again , far una specie di simonia vendendo al papa la recuperatione dell ' anime a prezzo d' entrate e di giuridizzioni ritolte della chieza . it would be a kind of simony to sell the redemption of souls to the pope at the price either of estates , or jurisdictions taken from the church . if a pope would really reform the church , the court of rome would murther him . but as peter of blois says , this is the chair of pestilence , wherein people of the greatest merit are presently corrupted . they no sooner ascend this proud throne , but straightways they forget they are men , and are by a just judgment of god struck with stupidity . we have the example of one aeneas silvius , who in the council of basil was so zealous for the truth , and maintained so well the interest of the church against the popes tyranny ; and nevertheless so soon as he was elected pope , he maintained that the council was inferior to the pope , and excommunicated those who believed the contrary . this angel was no sooner raised to this mighty grandeur , but like lucifer he became a devil . aristotle says in one place , that it sometimes falls out that a man loseth the habit of vertue by one only act of enormous wickedness ; that there are men qui uno actu feritatis humanitatem exuunt , who lay aside all humanity all at once by one act of barbarousness and inhumanity . this befalls the popes so soon as they are elected ; they were sometime honest men before , but the miter being fixed upon their head , they make themselves he adored by this sirname of most holy , collo pronome di sanctissimo , says cardinal palavicini ; they are no more men , but the voice of god and not of men , as was said of herod . sixtus quintus , who had been a keeper of swine , when he became pope , excommunicated king henry the fourth ( of france . ) this it was that made marcellinus the second say , that he believed not that a pope could be saved ; and pius quintus , that when he was a monk he had pretty good hopes of his salvation ; that being a cardinal he began much to fear it ; but when he was pope he absolutely despaired of it . st. hierom speaks of a certain young consul at rome who said , facite me vrbis romanae episcopum & ero protinus christianus , make me bishop of rome , and i will be a christian presently . we may say the contrary of those who for this long time have been made bishops of rome , that as soon as they have been so , they have ceased being christians . the reason of that is not only this tyranny which they exercise in the church , and over the world in contempt of jesus christ , and of his gospel , but also this temporal greatness to which they are raised all at once , which turns their brain . we scarce see a man of a thousand livres a year , whose reason is not blinded by his estate , and he shall be puffed up with pride , even tho he were born to it ; and we see but few rich men who are not insupportable either for their vanity , or for their vices ; but few princes who have any religion , and in whom power hath not corrupted and defaced all the idea's of vertue and of vice. how then shall a poor fellow behave himself , who is raised all at a clap to so high a dignity that emperors kiss his slippers ; and who so soon as he is chosen , is adored like god , even upon the altars ? this it is that brings down the curse of god upon all the popes ; and to speak of a good pope , is like talking of a good devil . observe this present pope , who is a man the best inclined that we have had a long time ; to what excess of pride is he arrived against our [ french ] king , whom he hath threatned to excommunicate ; tho st. augustin , whose disciple they say he is , teacheth , that no prince nor his people are ever to be excommunicated . * multitudo non est excommunicanda , nec princeps populi , says he , vbi parabola zizaniorum evolvitur . but how , say they , will you be a catholick without a pope ? let there be one in gods name , but let him be of the order of simon p●ter , and not of simon magus , a pope who makes no traffick of the graces of the holy ghost , and of holy things , and who is not a prince of this world ; let him be a pope who raiseth not himself above other popes , that is to say , other bishops , to give them laws ; let him be subject to his prince ; let him be subject as well to national as general councils , and not turn all religion to his particular profit ; but to wish always to have such popes as for these seven or eight hundred years have wasted the church , a man must have no true idea of christianity ; nay , he must have even lost the idea of good and evil . i knew a prince in germany , who was one of the most catholick princes in the world , who had abjured heresie , and was really converted , having not done it for any carnal advantage , like many base people , who we see infect instead of edifying the church . this most catholick prince abhorred the papacy , and could not endure the books of our writers , when there was any thing in them favourable to the popes authority . those who were a little acquainted with the late duke of hanouer , know whether i speak truth or no. we know that charles the sixth , by the advice of the divines of the faculty at paris , made no difficulty of withdrawing himself and all his subjects from the communion of the pope , which lasted during the pontificat of john the d. of benedict the th . and gregory the th . and even to give encouragement to all other princes to do as he had done ; and he had much less cause to do it than we have at this time . you see his reasons in the letters of the university of paris in theodore a nyem , which were , that they would not consent that the disorders of the church should be regulated by a free council , and that they would not submit themselves to the decisions of the church . are not we now again just in the same condition since the councils of constance and of basil ? for those which have been assembled since , deserve not the name of councils , because there was no liberty in them , and every thing was there done by the inspiration , not of god , but the popes . france did but half free it self from this yoke , for quickly after we suffered our selves to be drawn in , and have been like to have been undone many a time since by it , nor do i make any great account of the conduct of the venetians , which is so highly commended , who after having known the nature of the papacy , and the genius of this power , have but half freed themselves from this slavery , nay less than half . they have behaved themselves in this according to their ordinary custom , following moderate councils , where excess was not to be feared , and where it could not be committed : consilia media & quod inter ancipitia deterrimum est , nec ausi sunt satis , nec providerunt . for they have still this viper in their bosom , which they stupifie as much as they can ; but he may some time or other revive and devour them . they have every day a thousand difficulties with these cunning romans , who will be always spying out occasions to destroy them , and to reduce them absolutely under their yoke . they should renounce perfectly and for ●ver all dependance upon this see , and thus shall they be better able to regulate their clergy , which is as licentious as that of rome , which they dare not reform , because it would be to be feared that to maintain themselves in this roman libertinism they should give assistance to the pope to oppress the republick , that they might always enjoy the full liberty of the children of the see of rome : vulgo dissoluta gratior est quam temperata vita & vivere ut quisque velit permisit , quoniam sic magna erit tali reipublicoe faventium magnitudo . * et hoc humanitas vocabatur ac ne pars servitutis esset , &c. will any man still say , ought we not to be of the roman church ? people are not contented with being in the catholick and apostolick church , if they are not in the roman ; they seem desirous of having a share in the abominations of this city , and of this court ; but the romans are not at all desirous to be of the gallican church . i would fain know for what reason we should be rather of the roman church than the romans of the gallican church . rome is not as heretofore , it was the seat of the empire , and tho it were , we hold no longer of the empire , and it is a contradiction for a man to be in the catholick church , in the gallican , and in the roman churches both together ; for the first is the general , and the other two are particulars . you may always have communion with all the romans who live in the fear of god , with the pope of rome himself if he be a christian ; but not to depend upon him , nor upon rome . you shall be as the christians of the primitive church were for more than six hundred years . you shall pay no more annates , you shall buy no more bulls , nor dispensations . you shall be much more catholick than before , for then you may hold communion with the greeks and protestants , by drawing them home to the faith of the church , whereas the see of rome is at this time a wall of separation between them and us . chap. iii. that the pretended authority of the papacy hath never done any good to the church . a confutation of whatever is said to the advantage of this power to prove it necessary to the world , by shewing at the same time that it hath been the cause of all the evils of the church . they maintain that the papacy hath heretofore done , and still doth a great deal of good to the church , and to the world ; this i can confute all at once , by a thing which the world knows , which is , that we have in no place so many true christians as in those catholick countries where this power is least known , as in france , flanders , and germany . but let us see particularly what good the papacy doth . it is a common saying that there is nothing so bad but that you may make some use of it , either in its nature , or in conjunction with other things . let us then examine the usefulness of the papacy , omitting nothing that can be said to its advantage : it is , says cardinal perron , the center and the root of chri●tian vnity . these are fine words , i confess , but we shall find but very little sense in them if we a little consider them ; for i ask him , in what this unity doth consist , and how the pope is the center and the root of it ? † if this unity be in the pure service of god , methinks that god should be the center of it , and not the pope , and that it is also god who is the root of it ; that is , the influencing principle over the will and strength of men to serve him and to do well . if this unity be for doing what is evil , it is then but a conspiracy ; and i do confess that in regard of wicked clergy-men , who are the members of the pope , he is the source of all their impiety , ambition , and dissoluteness , and he is the center of the unity of these people , who belong all to him ; and as for themselves , he is the center of their worship , and would be so to all other men . * palavicini says that the union and submission of all catholicks to the pope , makes a band , a life perfectly politick , vna , conjunctione di vita perf●tta mente politica . he says , not a christian , but a politick life , and according to him it is the same thing . ‡ and in another place he says , the church is the most happy body politick in the world : corpo politico il piu felice che sia in terra . this unity , as i said before , consists only in their obedience to the pope , ‖ whom they all honour for th●ir profit ; looking upon him as the source of riches , of honours , and of all the pleasures whi●h they have according to the flesh , secondo la carne . this unity is in the conformity of judgment , which they all make of the riches of the churches patrimony , which is , that they are good . it is certain , that it is not in their opinions ; for what clergy-man is there who cares for the popes judgment , when it is contrary to his own ? what unity is there between the jesuits and the pope now reigning ? what unity is there among many sects of the monks who make war upon one another , and mortally hate each other ? what unity is there of morals among one or other , the jesuits and the good catholicks whom they treat as hereticks , apostates , antichrists , and devils ? what unity was there between the jansenists and pope alexander the seventh ? we see that for twenty years last past the popes are between these two sects as between the anvil and the hammer , not knowing how to govern themselves , because on one side the jesuits dispose of all the powers of europe ; and on the other , their morals destroy christianity and humanity it self ; in this they are opposed by the jansenists , who are followed by all sorts of people that are not lost in ignorance or irreligion . how can they ever agree in their opinions ? because the decisions of one pope do often times overthrow those of another , and sometimes they are themselves hereticks , as some people do accuse the present pope of being a jansenist , which is according to them worse than heretick ? what unity of religion is there between the spanish , the italian , and french nations ? whereof the two first have scarce any knowl●dg of god , but are almost all idolaters ; and the last is very different from them . lastly , to judg of this unity , we need only to read the books of the several doctors , and we shall find them of very different opinions even in regard of the pope himself . the divines of italy make him a god on earth ; those of france and germany believe nothing on 't . the universities of rome and bolonia determine that he is above the councils ; those of france and of louvain prove very well the contrary . * the italian councils of florence , the lateran , and of trent , will have him above a general council ; those of constance and of basil maintain that it is a detestable heresie to believe so . if there be a unity , how comes it to pass that it is said , and that with reason too , that the pope hath a different soul in every state where he governs ? if there were a unity , there would be but one soul ; they must have greater abilities than either st. peter or st. paul , who could not unite mens minds in the churches of corinth , of philippi , and of galatia , where we learn by the gospel that many errors were taught in these apostles times . the cardinal palavicini says also , that il principiato apostolico maintienne in unita , in regola & in decoro tutta la chieza , the apostolick primacy maintains in unity , in order , and in beauty , the whole church . to know the truth of what this cardinal says , we need only to consider what edification the popes have given to the church since boniface the third , patriarch of the popes , and first head of the church . ‡ was not the action whereby he got to be universal bishop , a good example to the church ? and that of pope zachary in regard of chilperic ? is there any thing in the world that favours perfidiousness and injustice more than these examples ? see the histories of platina , of genebrard , of sigebert , and many others ; and you shall find that there are no crimes , excesses , nor abominations which the popes have not committed to bring about their affairs for many ages . is it not a matter of great consolation for honest men to see in this seat , children , magicians , atheists , adulterers , and sodomites , as history affirmeth , and not ten or twelve only in all , but fifty one after another ? baronius himself doth not deny it , if the church had had such heads as these , she would have been long since abolished upon earth . but to make short work on 't , was it not they who ruined the church and religion among the greeks , by giving them over as a prey to the turks , because they would not submit to the popish yoke , but demanded the observation of the holy canons ? were not they the cause of the loss of hungary by their perfidiousness , having advised the king of hungary to violate the treaty made with the turks ? for which the hungarians were by a just judgment of god cut all to pieces in the battel of varnes , as a poet of those times relates , who brings in the king of hungary speaking thus : me , nisi pontifices jussissent rumpere foedus , non ferret scythicum pannonis ora jugum . discite mortales non temerare fidem . can it be denied but that it was they who by their detestable simony , and by their pride , have destroyed religion in all those countries which are called protestants ? see but the complaints which all great men for many ages have made against this see , and those who have been in possession of it , and you may judg of the solidity of what cardinal palavicini saith , that they maintain the church in unity , in order , and in honour . i will relate some examples of it . john of salisbury bishop of chartres , speaks thus , ‡ the scribes and pharisees are sate in the church of rome , imposing weighty burthens upon the people . the soveraign pontife is an insupportable grievance to all honest men . his legates commit so many enormities , that it looks as tho the devil were let loose ; whosoever doth not acquiesce in their doctrine , is by them treated as a heretick . and the council of rheimes assembled under hugh capet , and robert his son , crys out thus , shall it be said that an infinite number of bishops and priests who are illustrious for their merit , and for their knowledg , shall submit themselves to such monsters ? what means this , most , reverend fathers , what think you that this man is , whom we see sitting upon a lofty throne , shining all with gold , and clothed with purple ? we have spoken of the letter of the emperor barbarossa to the princes of the empire , which aventine makes mention of ; the same author also produces the speech of an archbishop who presided in the states of the empire held at ratisbon ; there are these words : the pope teacheth us one thing , which is this , that there is this difference between christian princes and those who are not such , that the first bear rule over their subjects , and on the contrary the subjects ( viz. the popes ) ought to rule over their princes . our lord himself took upon him the form of a servant to serve his disciples , and to kiss their feet ; but these ministers of babylon will reign themselves alone , and cannot suffer an equal ; they will never be at r●st till they have laid all at their feet , till they sit in the temple of god , and even raise themselves above god. he despiseth the h●ly assemblies and c●uncils of his brethren , and of his masters . he is afraid of being compel●ed to give an account of what he hath committed against the laws . he speak● of great things as tho he were god. his mind runs upon new d●signs of establishing an empire for himself . he changeth the laws of god , and makes others of his own head . he defiles all things , he robb●th , he deceives and murthers . ‡ honorius bishop of autun speaks of him after the same manner : turn , says he , toward these citizens of babylon , and behold what th●y are , &c they contrive at all times to do evil , &c. and instruct others to do the same ; they sell holy things , and buy off crimes , that they may not go alone into hell ; they defile the priesthood by their impurity : they seduce the people by their hypocrisie ; they reject all the scriptures whereby we obtain salvation . consider also the monks ; they deceive men by their habits , despising god , and provoking his wrath by their hypocrisie . behold also the convents of nuns ; they learn immodesty from their childhood , &c. * and peter of blois , take away , lord , the idol from thine house , and bruise the h●rns of this man of sin ; they pervert every thing at rome , and give all sorts of liberty to the monks , who give themselves over to all the excesses of sensuality , for which they have absolution for a yearly pension which they pay . thus doth the prince of sodom gov●rn himself as well as his disciples , who are sate in the seat of pestilence , &c. * and st. bernard , who cries out , speaking of popish tyranny , o mis●rable spouse , says he , who art committed to such k●epers ! they are not thine husband's friends , but rivals : we see all h●nours heaped up upon them , and they are loaden with the riches of the lord , and yet they do him no h●nour . from hence come all these ornaments of the whore , these actors h●bits , this royal equipage , &c. the plague of the church is within its bowels , and incurable . ‖ a shameful traffick hath been also made of ecclesiastical offices and dignities ; nor doth any body value th●m but for their profit . it is not the salvation of souls that they look after , but how to enrich themselves : 't is for that they are shaved , frequent the churches , and say masses . and in another place ; it looks , lord jesus , as tho all the christians had conspired against thee ; and they themselves are the first to persecute thee , that seem to have the primacy in the church . and the like in many other places . * he observes in his st epistle , that the popes did already spoil every thing that was done in the councils , which made him say , that he passionately wished to see a council where traditions were not defended with so much obstinacy , nor obs●rved with superstition ; because the popes brought in great abuses under the pretext of tradition . ad illud concilium toto d●sid●rio feror , in quo traditiones non obstinatius defensentur aut superstiti●sius obs●rventur . recedant a m● cui dicunt , nolumus esse meliores quam patres nostri . these were not oecumenical councils , but such as leo the tenth assembled , from which the ‖ sorbon appealed , by reason of the abuses which were there established , and wrote to him , that his council was not assembled in the spirit of god , in the name of the lord. see what our probus says , who was bishop of toul , under honorius the fourth : he cries out , alas ! how long shall these vultures of romulus abuse our patience , or rather , dullness ? ‡ and the great petrarque , who , i pray , is there that ought not to detest this babylon , which is the miserable habitation of all sorts of vice and wickedness , & c ? i know it by experience , that in it there is no piety , nor charity , nor faith , nor fear of god ; nothing holy , nothing just , &c. ‡ it is now above a thousand years since , that isidore pelusiota commended a priest for having refused to be made a bishop , by reason of the great difference between the bishops of his own time , and those of former ages ; because , says he , the dignity of sweetness of humour , and of civility , was changed into tyranny ; for in former times they suffered death for the salvation of all ; now they cause the death of their flocks , not by cutting their throats ( which would be a less heinous crime ) , but by giving scandal to the destruction of souls ; they then gave their goods to the poor , but now they turn to their own profit the very portion of the poor : they then mortified their bodies by fasting , now they soften them by luxury ; then they honoured virtue , now they persecute the lovers of piety : they then spoke greatly in commendation of chastity , but now — i will not say any thing of the odious , &c. he here holds his peace , and gives you the liberty to think what he cannot with modesty express . * alvarez pelagius , a portugal bishop , after having made an honourable mention of the first bishops of rome , complains thus of their successors : it is now a long time since their successors have raised themselves in authority , but they are very different in h●liness , getting themselves in to be bishops of rome ( would to god that this intrusion were made without a devillish agreement before-hand ) , enriching and raising their neighbours , living themselves deliciously , conferring dignities upon their friends , building of towers and palaces in babylon ( that is to say , rome , according to st. hierom ) , kindling of wars , keeping up of parties in italy , tho there be but one church , embezelling the goods of the church , putting unworthy men into offices , vaunting themselves in their chariots , elephants , horses , costly apparel , and their great train of guards and worldly power ; invading many times the power of temporal princes , taking no care for the salvation of souls , and what not ? wholly minding the desires of the flesh. ‖ besides these subjects of complaint , which are of great importance , there is yet another , which cries more loud to god for vengeance , which is , that the papacy is an obstacle unto the piety of those christians who are subject to its yoke . we are not of our own nature virtuous ; but on the contrary , we are born in sin , and without the particular grace of god there is in us always a strong disposition to do evil . if then men are not furnished with means to resist these ill inclinations , it is evident , that they will let themselves be carried away by them : but if instead of furnishing them with these means , they have greater occasion given them to do evil , there is no doubt but we shall be so far from inspiring them with the love of virtue , that we shall engage them in sin . now the papacy , according to the state wherein it now is , and for many ages hath been , hath such ill qualities , that it takes away from christians the occasions of doing good , and offereth them others of doing evil . it is one of the properties of our mind to be led very much by example , especially by those who make a figure in the world , and have authority over others . thus the behaviour of the monks , and of the priests , savouring scarce of any thing but covetousness and ambition , the natural dispositions which we have to these vices are by this means strengthned . i acknowledg , that preachers do instruct the people , that to make themselves acceptable unto god , and to have a share in the kingdom of heaven , they must refrain from these evil passions ; and they build this obligation upon the precepts of the gospel : but men acting exceedingly more by the hope and fear of present good or evil , than of that which is future , the efficacy of all the loveliness of a god , who gave this precept , of the hope of paradice , and fear of hell , becomes extreamly weakened in them , by the ill example of those who by their habit and condition , seem , and ought to make profession of a life more pure and disengaged from the interests of this world. for altho they embrace not formally this opinion , that there is neither god , nor heaven , nor hell ; and that on the contrary , they hold these doctrines to be very true ; yet nevertheless this ill example makes them act as if they did wholly reject them ; this damnable example having so mortal a poison in it , that it makes them believe , that their teachers , being able men , would themselves live conformable to these instructions , if they thought them divine ; and they themselves leading not this life , 't is probable that they do not believe what they preach and teach . the scripture also in many places highly enveigheth against pastors of an ill life , the disorder of their manners being a stumbling-block to those whom they have the care of . but tho the irregularities of pastors did not make so ill an impression upon the minds of the people , whilst persons who desire to be saved , and are humbled when they perceive within themselves a repugnancy to follow those ways which the gospel hath marked out , hear speak of able men , and of almost whole orders , whom , for instance , the gospel enjoyns to be charitable , know that no more is employed that way than what remains to him who spares no cost to appear great , and to keep up his port , according to the custom of the world , and other such like interpretations of all the precepts of jesus christ , do not they find themselves inclined to embrace these explications , thereby satisfying their desires , and thinking to quiet their consciences ? those who favour the papacy shall tell you , that the pope is so far from ordering such pernicious maxims to be taught , that he doth abhor them , and wish with all his heart , that they would teach and promote contrary ones . besides , that many popes have themselves entertained ill opinions , i will grant it for the present ; but the pope , who pretendeth to be the only head of the church , and that it belongs to him alone to judge absolutely of e●clesiastical things and persons , not reproving them ; nay , oftentimes shutting the mouths of those who would oppose them , who sow , and spread abroad such dangerous maxims , doth uphold these pernicious opin●ons ; which we have the greater reason to believe , because he withdraws the monks , and many of the clergy , from the jurisdiction of the bishops . if it be said , that he cannot silence them , by reason of their too great authority ; it is then manifest , that the papacy , such as it is , doth suffer the ill example , and these pernicious opinions , and is not able to hinder them , unless it be in matters of very small importance . and thus far it is an obstacle unto piety , since no body can apply a remedy , whilst the pope shall be acknowledged the head and master of the church . the second argument , which sheweth , that the papacy is an obstacle unto true virtue , is , that it makes use of such practices as promote a false , and only seeming , instead of true piety . some catholicks do teach , that contrition is necessary to make confession valid . but this doctrine is not much followed ; that which hath the vogue , and reigns most in the world , is , that attrition is sufficient , which is only a simple sorrow for having sinned , and that too occasioned but by the fear of hell. the people who are instructed in this opinion , believe readily , that it is an easie matter to be justified before god ; and so think , that after having sinned a great while , they shall at their death receive absolution of their sins , by saying a peccavi : for what man is there who is not afraid of being damned ? the great multitude of plenary indulgences , and others , which are as common as water , doth also marvellously contribute to the casting men into impenitence , and to make them at the same time believe , that their consciences are in safety , under pretence of observing those exercises which pass for pious , tho they are not so . i could produce many other reasons , to demonstrate the truth of what i say ; but let these suffice . the pope , pretending to be the only soveraign judge of religion , not silencing these false and pernicious teachers ; nay , not being able to do it , if he would ; is not then the papacy an obstacle unto true piety , since it introduces a false one in its place ? there are good people among the catholicks , i confess ; but the papacy contributes nothing to that . on the contrary , those who believe , and live well , it is god , and not the pope , who is the author of their piety , as well as of their profession , which is rather destroyed than maintained by the usual pride and impiety of the popes ; from whence it comes , that no man now a days believes but what he will ; so that the whole world is full of deists , socinians , libertines , and impious persons . † but they say , that at least , the papacy doth maintain the external vnity , and that is a great advantage . yet i deny that ; for what does it contribute to this outward unity ? but besides that , it serves only to cheat the world , whilst there is no inward unity . if they mean the unity in ceremonies , first of all , this would be no great matter ; for ceremonies make not the essence of religion , but are only the out-side of it ; and besides , they are very different , according to the several countries ; and the popes are not the authors of them : if they were , it were enough to condemn them . besides all this , there are fewer sects and factions , less divisions , and by consequence , more unity among the greeks , who have many patriarchs , than among us . i acknowledge indeed , that it is rather ignorance that unites them , than reason or piety . ‡ b●t they tell us , that the popes spare nothing for the conversion of the greeks and protestants ; they bestow on them both money and benefices . to that may be added , that they have not spared even the blood of hereticks for their conversion , as history informs us . but if it be their conversion which they do heartily desire , why do not they renounce the authority which they have usurped in the church and in the world ? why do not they re-establish things in a christian manner , in the same state they were in , in the days of the apostles , and of the primitive church ? why do not they condemn the blasphemies which are spoken in favour of their government , and destroy the maxims by which they have managed themselves so long ? they answer , that then their lives would be in danger , and that the court of rome would destroy them , as they did adrian the sixth , who thought to have reformed the church ; of whom ‖ cardinal palavicini gives this account , that he was ottimo ecclesiastico , pontefice mediocre , a good priest , but an indifferent pope . but if the popes cannot find a remedy for the disorders which are so prevalent , because , as they say , their authority is not sufficient , what are they then good for , and why shall we any longer suffer this tyranny in the church ? if they can find a remedy , and will not , they are then not only unprofitable , but detestable creatures . it is certainly one or other , or both together ; for we see , that every thing is overturned in the church . and what ? if they are the vicars of jesus christ , and successors of st. peter , ought they not to think themselves happy , to die for the glory of god , and good of the church ? is it better to be the object of mens worship , to provoke the jealousie of god , and to do so much mischief in the church ? where is the zeal of moses , or of st. paul , who would have died for their brethren , and have been even accursed ; and of the first bishops of rome , who suffered martyrdom so couragiously ? they love rather to give them money , and benefices , because that thus they put out all to great usury ; they sow that they may reap ; they give what is none of their own , or else what signifies nothing to them . if it be true , that they are careful of the salvation of these people , why are they not so of their own ? why do they not labour for the salvation of catholicks ? that would cost them no money : there needs nothing but to allow the reading of the holy scripture every where , and recommend it , as god hath recommended it to us ; to suffer divine service to be read in a language which every body understands ; for it cannot be denied , but that the want of these things doth produce among us great ignorance , with which piety is never to be found : but to give money to convert people , it is the mark of a very prophane spirit , and a very dishonest method , and an example for mahometans and hereticks to make use of , even towards christians . and to give benefices , it is yet worse ; for by this the clergy is filled up more and more with hypocrites , and people of no religion , who spend the goods of the poor upon debauchery and luxury , and most commonly are of no use at all to the church . they say , that they make religion to be respected : but how ? is it by their own piety , or sanctity , or that of their court , or by their humility ? no truly , these vertues are wholly there † unknown , and the contrary vices have ruled the rost long since ; but their fine court , and the greatness and magnificence of the cardinals , are the things we hear of . but are these the things that ought to make men love religion ? is it gold and silver , costly furniture , riches , carnal pleasures , which the prelates glut themselves withal ? is it their cavalcades to montecavallo , their horse and foot-guards , their armies and their fleets , which make religion to be respected ? if it be so , both jesus christ , and his apostles , deserved to be despised , in comparison of their vicars ; and the christian religion also was very contemptible in their days . is it to excommunicate all the world when they please , without authority , without cause , and against the nature of the gospel , which is charity it self ? but wise men are so far from respecting them for this , that they look upon them as fools . is it to hold a chappel , or consistory , where they treat only of prophane things , and of promoting of cardinals ? what doth this signifie , or what relation hath it to the glory of god , or the salvation of men ? and what is there in all this , which the patriarch of venice , or the archbishop of lyons , might not do as well as the pope , if he had a mind to it ? we must not dissemble . all the respect which men have for the papacy , at least , they who hope for no advantage by it , comes only from the respect , or from the fear which they see princes have of it . and this respect of princes , if it be voluntary , proceedeth from great ignorance of religion , in which they have been brought up for that purpose , or from the ill council of some ambitious clergy-man , who compasses his designs at the prince's expence . if this respect be forced , as ordinarily it is , it is then out of the fear which men have of the popes power ; whereby he rules the vast numbers of the ecclesiasticks , and especially the monks , who govern the meaner people ; who , as palavicini says , are the disposers of the religion of countries . it is said , that they have the power of making the laws of god to be observed . if so , they ought themselves to give an example ; they ought to apply to themselves what our saviour said to st. peter , not to draw his sword. it is a thing both ridiculous and horrible , that these people should have armies , and make war. they do it in germany , after the bishop of rome his example ; but where is it that they make the laws of god to be observed ? is there any place where they are violated more than where they have most authority ? is rome at this day better than sodom ? do not they on the contrary , favour , as much as in them lies , the very crime , by the example of their court , by their expences , by their pretending to exempt all clergy-men from the jurisdiction of the civil magistrate ; that so they may commit all sorts of crimes , and go unpunished ? but they say furthermore , that they make kings stand in awe , and hinder them from professing , heresie . on the contrary , it is they who made them become hereticks , as in england , sweden , and denmark , and who by their tyranny , hinder them from returning into the bosom of the church . it is also pretended , that they are very useful for the composing of differences between princes , being looked upon as common fathers to them all . on the contrary , their artifices and ambition , are so well known , that th●re is no prince whom they are more distrustful of . they never carried on their own interest better , than during the wars of italy , germany , france and spain , which either they always began , or kept on foot . they are also constant enemies to great princes . what is alledged might take place , if the popes were not th●mselves become temporal princes , at the expence of the empero●● , and other princes , whom they have robbed . and it is k●own , that they have pretensions over all christian kingdoms ; that there is no court more refined in policy than theirs , or that makes less conscience of taking to themselves what belongs to another . in truth , they think it not taken wrongfully , because they pretend that it is their right ; that the pope is sennor del mondo ; and they call him , nostor sennor● , our lord , as well as jesus christ. there is no state in europe which they have not endeavoured many times to destroy , and which they have not greatly endamaged . ‡ matthew paris relates to us that king john of england , because he would not receive an archbishop of canterbury whom po●e inn●cent the third had elected against the canons , he was first excommucated by innocent , who accordingly gave away his kingdom to philip the august king of france ; and that poor king john was compelled to implore the popes mercy , who received him very bountifully , on condition that from thenceforth his kingdom should depend upon the holy see , should be tributary to it , and pay marks of gold every year . and that this king having recovered his courage , resolved to abjure christianity as an evil religion , thereby designing to cast off the popish yoke . because he made himself the popes vassal , he was called the apostolick king. i wonder why the kings of france and spain will not add to the titles of most christian and most catholick that of apostolick kings at the same price as this king john of england did . 't is not his holiness's fault , they may have it when they please . they answer , that it is true that they have heretofore caused disorders , but that it will never fall out so again , that it was some hot headed men ; that amongst the apostles themselves there was found a judas . but i maintain that all these disasters proceeded not only from the pettish humour of any one pope , but were the natural effects of the principles of the papacy . and tho we do not see it visibly break forth every day by some bloody example , yet we ought not to believe that the habit or the will is ever the less , but that there is some external extraordinary reason which suspends the action , and which does sometimes make them act directly contrary to their own inclination . do not we see that the inquisition it s●lf at rome , that impious tribunal which hath the power of authorising the greatest crimes , and of canonizing for the popes interest , even parricides , and the assassins of our kings ; as amongst others by a decree of the ninth of november , it did condemn the decree of the parliament of paris given out against john chatel , who had attempted to murther henry the fourth . this tribunal , i say , hath not long since condemned the jesuits morals , tho they were perfectly conformable to the principles of the inquisition ; and we see that the jesuits of france are at this time in the kings interest against the pope , which is absolutely contrary to their maxims , and to all their former conduct ; which shews , that it is not true , that because an ill person does a good action he is no more to be feared : tho a man be extreamly wicked , it does not follow from thence that every thing he does shall be so . we must not think that the habit is lost , because we do not always see its acts : philosophers tell us that it is often so . it is a sort of a truce and not a peace . † non pax sed induciae , bellum enim manet , pugna cessa● . a cobler , ‖ says horace , is still a cobler , tho his stall be shut . [ et alfenus vafer omni abjecto instrumento artis , clausaque taberna , sutor erat . thus the pope remains still pope , tho he sometimes do a good action . * valerius maximus says in a certain place that there are people , quorum animus peregrinatur in nequitia , non habitat , whose minds light upon iniquity , but like a traveller in an inn they fix not ; so may it be said of the popes , quorundam paparum animus peregrinatur in bonitate , non habitat ; that they sometimes touch upon a good action , but cannot hold to it . the viper is a very dangerous creature , tho she doth not always bite , when it lyes in her power . but it is never good to trust her . nemo juxtae viperam securos somnos capit , quae si non percutit certe sollicitat . ‡ says st. hierom somewhere . the papacy is just the same , it is the chair of pestilence , cathedra pestilentiae , where the best men are corrupted . it is what he very well understood , who said that the greatest harm he could wish a man was , that he were pope . ‖ and the holy carthusian father that praises god that none of his order had ever yet been pope . how can any man maintain that princes need not stand in fear of the pope , when three popes of this present age have condemned the opinion , that the pope cannot depose kings , as wicked and contrary to the faith ? accipe nunc danaum insidias & crimine ab uno disce omnes . * these were paul the fifth , innocent the tenth , and alexander the seventh , of whom it may be said , that they were ottimi pontefici , ecclesiastici mediocri , that they were true popes , but very indifferent clergymen , who will be both judg and party in their own cause , and pretend that their evidence must be taken , even when it tends to their own profit , and to the spoiling of those who believe them . i could yet produce a later example , which is that of the present pope , who with unsufferable rashness lately threatened to excommunicate the greatest king upon earth , because he would reign alone in his own state , and take away from some people who ought to employ themselves only in serving god , the disposal of some benefices which belong properly to the soveraign of a state , who we see makes a more judicious choice of men fit to serve in these employs , because he doth not sell them , nor give them to his relations , as they did , who had but very little regard to the merit of those upon whom they conferred these things . besides , of right , the popes have nothing to do in the dominions of other princes ; and there have been sufficient proofs given by this great prince of his zeal for justice , and for religion . but these men love to make people feel their yoke , and it may be well said of them , what mithridates said of the ancient romans , that it was not their love to justice that made them fight against princes , but the desire of their authority , and of their greatness , † non delicta regum illos , sed vires ac majestatem insequi . it is well known how ill they have treated spain not long since , upon the account of the president of castile , who had reason in what he did , and how at this time they handle the venetians . don't we know how alexander the seventh , and his nephews , behaved themselves at rome towards our king , in the person of his ambassador the duke of crequi ? we may remember how that under henry the fourth they wanted but very little to have utterly ruined france , and to have made the french all subject to the spaniards ; and if the parliament at paris had not been better christians than the pope , what would have become of the posterity of henry the fourth ? for sixtus quintus , whose first employ was to be a keeper of swine , having gotten to be pope , grew so insolent as to excommunicate king henry the fourth , and to declare him uncapable to succeed to the crown ; but the parliament nulled his holiness his bull , which broke the design for that time . † mezeray mentions the bull , which deserves reading . there are these words , that the authority given to saint peter , and to his suce●ssors , by the infinite power of the eternal god is greatly above all powers of earthly kings , that it belongs to them to make laws be observed , and to chastise those who oppose them , to overturn their seats , and to tumble them down to the ground as the ministers of satan . he adds afterwards , that by the indispenceable duty of his office , he is constrained to draw the sword of vengeance against henry the late king of navarre , and against henry prince of conde , the spurious and detestable off-spring of the illustrious house of bourbon . wherefore being in this l●fty see , and in the full power which the king of kings , and the lord of monarchs hath given him , he doth declare them hereticks , &c. thus also did pope julius the second out the grandfather of king henry the fourth of his kingdom of navarre , and made it fall to the spaniards . o miserable and detestable creatures , thus to abuse the simplicity and credulity of men , as to dare by a diabolical pride to attribute to themselves an authority which belongs only to god , and which jesus christ himself never exercised whilest he was upon earth . it is said in the gospel , that michael the archangel disputing with the devil , would not bring any railing accus●tion against him , but was content to say to him only , the lord rebuke thee ; because he looked upon god as him to whom judgment and vengeance belonged . and yet we see that the sons of adam are bold and desperate enough , not only to condemn , but to destroy dignities , which they ought to reverence , and to ruin them , together with whole states , as their fancy leads them ; and that men give themselves over to these impieties , which is unconceivable ; there must be in it an enchantment not to be comprehended . by this you may see what judgment we ought to make of the harangue which cardinal perron made in behalf of the french clergy , in the assembly of the states at paris , anno , he maintained that the pope could excommunicate and d●pose kings , and make them be assassinated , and that not to believe it , was as much as to say , that the popes who had long enjoyed these rights were antichrist . and that for his part , and for his brethren , they would voluntarily suffer martyrdom in defence of this holy doctrine . he desired to have his name inserted in the martyrology of garnet , and of ra●illiac , and to go to the same paradise . ite truces animae & letho tartara vestro pol●uite , & totas erel●i consumite poenas . this stroke of cardinal perron , confirms absolutely what sancy says of him , that he did not believe in god ; and that judgment ought we to make of him . it . by all these examples then we see that princes , especially kings of france , ought never to trust any pope whatsoever ; and that the popes can never be the mediators of those differences which are between them and other princes . * the advocates for the papacy do alledg also , that 't is a great advantage that the popes draw revenues out of catholick countries , because they make a good use of them , and with this mony they assist the catholick princes against the turk , and employ it to many other good uses . for example , they say , that the present pope hath this year given a great deal of corn to the poor people at rome , and portions to marry off several poor young maids . but what doth this signify , to prove that the popes are universal vicars of jesus christ upon earth , and heads of the catholick church ? i do not say , that to be pope , a man must lay aside all humanity , and become a devil ; that opinion suits only with those who believe the pope to be antichrist . † cicero tells us , that even those who live only by their crimes , cannot live without some exercise of justice . it is a wonderful thing that the greatest part of the world , with the great veneration which they have for the very name of popes , should be so ridiculously favourable to them , as to admire them for very common actions , when they ought always to surpass the most perfect christians in charity , in greatness of mind , and in contempt of the great things of this world , if it be true that they are the vicars of jesus christ , and successors of st. peter ; but to see how these people are extolled for the little good they sometimes do , you would think they had a dispensation from doing any good actions . it is like those who commend the great vertue of a woman that does not prostitute her self to all the world , you would say that she might be dishonest for all that , and that for this there is no such great commendation due to her : just so do people magnify the pope , because they say he will give five hundred thousand livers a year to defend poland against the turks . but first of all , there is his own interest in the case ; for the popes look upon themselves as chief kings of poland , as well as of other catholick kingdoms , and they think they lose so much land and so many subjects as the turks gain from the catholicks ; but what is such a sum as this to a priest whose revenue amounts to twenty millions ; how doth he employ the rest of the churches blood ? i dare be bold to say he doth every year plunder poland of more than this sum. but now in a time that people begin a little to know the papacy , we must not wonder they endeavour by some good aaions to keep it from contempt . as for the corn which they give at rome to the poor , what a great matter that is ? it is but just , that since the papacy hath made them idle and lazy , it should maintain them . was there ever yet a tyrant who did not do some good ? i do not inveigh against the person of the present pope , who , of all the popes that have been in possession of this see since boniface the third , is certainly one of the least wicked . it is the papacy only which i oppose , that extravagant authority which they make men to adore , that never yet did any thing but mischief ; and i make a distinction quite contrary to that which ignorant people make of it , who say , that the popes as men , may be wicked , but not as popes ; for i maintain that as popes , since boniface the third , they have never done any thing but ill ; but as men , they may sometimes do actions that are morally good . if the popes did their duty as true bishops , if they preached the word of god , if they instructed their diocess in the knowledg of god , if they applied themselves to their prayers , without being ambitious , without desiring command and authority , and playing the princes at rome , without abusing the world with their dispensations , induglences , false reliques ▪ agnus dei's , and other fooleries ; without drawing of annates , giving of bulls , and comparing themselves to kings and princes : if , i say , they behaved themselves like the first bishops of rome , i should honour and admire them , as a souldier said heretofore to nero , i loved thee * dum amari meruisti ; sed postquam parricida , histrio , incendiarius extitisti , &c. whilst thou didst deserve it , but since thou wert a parricide , a stage-player , and destroyer of thy country , i have abhorred thee . † they say furthermore , that were it not for the pope , there would be no missions to the indies , and that those people would never be converted . on the contrary , by the ambition , pride , and carnal pleasures which they keep up in the church , zeal and charity are almost wholly extinguished . but what do the popes do for these missions ? if they contribute any thing towards them , it must be , as in all other things , for their own interest . but there were missions to the indies before ever the bishops of rome undertook to govern the church : those who are now sent thither go only for gain and traffick ; and by the relations we have of them , they are the strangest conversions in the world ; they take no care at all to instruct these poor people , nor to teach them any thing , they baptize them only , without explaining to them the virtue of that sacrament , or what it signifies ; nay without turning them from their former idolatry . they are contented instead of instructing them , to tell them that in worshipping their idols , and doing all as they did before , it is sufficient if they direct the intention to jesus christ , or to the saints , and so they are no less idolaters than they were before . these now are their conversions . * but , say they , does not the pope create a great many bishops in partibus infidelium , in the countries of infidels . that may be done without the pope ; metropolitans and primates did heretofore create them , and bishops may do so still . this tends to nothing but to flatter the vanity of the popes , who , not being able to establish themselves effectually in those countries , will however satisfy their fancies , by this imaginary empire which they attribute to themselves in disposing of fantastick bishopricks in those countries . this is all but farce . my lord the new bishop makes wry faces , as if he were going to his pretended diocess , where the people shall be greeks , pagans , or mahometans , he prepares his equipage to be gone , and whilst he is just ready to depart , his holiness hath a tender affection for his dear son , commends his zeal and his piety , to go to hazard himself among the infidels , dispences with him as to his journey , and for a recompence of his devotion , he gives him good pensions and benefices , wherewith the good prelate lives jollily at rome in pleasures and in honours . they have by this principle of vanity created four patriarchs at rome to make themselves amends because they could not make the four greek patriarchs submit to them . † there are some people also who pretend , that the necessity of a visible head of the christian church is proved by this , that the mahometans have one , and the pagans also had one : and they say , that the mahometans , who have a musti , and had heretofore their caliphes , the pagans their pontifex maximus , as the ancient romans had , will have less aversion for christianity when they see in it a head of religion like their own . but there is a great deal of difference ; for these never did usurp the temporal power of princes like the popes ; they never exacted oathes of allegiance from their clergy , nor pretended to a share of the princes authority , as the popes do in catholick countries . the ambition of the popes will ever keep them back more than this conformity will induce them to embrace christianity . but men must not form to themselves such carnal ideas of the religion of jesus christ , who is all spirit , truth , and holiness ; it is a sort of idolatry to believe that jesus christ hath such vicars . it is to be wholly ignorant of god , and to make jesus christ the minister of sin. it may be yet said , that the popes keep princes and great men in the catholick religion by the conveniency of dispensations , which they many times gives them very opportunely , and such as they could not find in other religions ; * as cardinal palavicini maintains , that if the pope did not give these dispensations to those who possess and change many benefices , they who enjoyed them would offend god , and be uneasy in their consciences , and that it is because that god should not be offended that the popes have found out the secret of dispensations . but these dispensations are either against the law of god , or they are not : if they are , then princes are so much the more to be blamed to address themselves to the pope ; for this is manifestly to mock both god and men. i know very well , as i have already observed , that there are some good people who maintain , that the popes can make that a sin which is not a sin , and that not a sin which is a sin ; but i do not think that any prince was ever so simple as to believe so ; thus the action of a prince who hath recourse to the popes for dispensations authorizeth this abominable impiety , and by his example , makes it pass for an article of faith , making himself the shameful instrument to establish the most pernicious and the most infamous of all impostures . if the thing be not contrary to the law of god , there is no need of a dispensation for any whatsoever . and furthermore , be they necessary or unnecessary , the meanest bishop hath as much right to grant them as the pope , nay more , since that , as i have already said , the popes being temporal princes can not be in the christian religion either bishops or priests ; they have forfeited this character , and have no calling under god , since god hath not instituted this monstrous authority . besides , these dispensations are only for the popes advantage ; for by them he raiseth and maintains himself in credit , not only other above bishops his fellow brethren , but even above god himself , abrogating his laws , and fastning princes with his whole families indispensably more and more to their service , it being their interest to maintain this pretended authority of the pope , without which , their actions would appear shameful and scandalous ; and as many times it is for their marriages which they are dispensed with , their children would be illegimate , which would confound the order of the succession . thus does every thing turn to the popes advantage , who are always of his opinion , who said in epictetus † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , that where profit is there is piety . * omnia retinendae dominationis causâ honesta . they do not only give dispensations to princes which are many times very unjust , but they also give them to every body for mony , which makes hereticks abhor the catholick religion , who in this have much more respect for the law of god , never practising any thing like this , and if there be amongst them a licentious person , who hath some great affair to compass , he must become a catholick ; then making his addresses with a good grace to the pope , his business is done : this is not simony , because that which he obtains is in premio del denaro donato a dio , a reward for the money which he hath given to god , as † cardinal palavicini says , * he also makes them give mony as a punishment for their sins as the same jesuit says in another place . how could men arrive to such excesses of impiety , as to suffer such things as these ? a pagan heretofore said , that maxima † fortuna minima licentia est , that they ought to give themselves the least liberty who are masters of the greatest fortunes . our popes on the contrary , believe that they may do any thing , because that every thing is subject to them , which boldness the long continuance of their empire hath caused ‖ vetustate imperii coalita audacia , and as they found that the people easily swallowed down their impostures , they by degrees invented more enormous ones . when people have once passed some certain bounds , they have afterwards no shame left them , neque metus ultra , neque pudor est . but it is a strange thing that no body opposes such horrible things , that they are suffered to be done in the church , and in the name of god too , which the whole world ought to acknowledg to be holiness it self : every body hath seen it , doth yet see it , says nothing of it , but by silence approves , nay applaudes it . i believe for my part , that people please themselves with fancying that god is like the popes , and that they may come off easily with him in their affairs . that which is as bad too as all the rest is , that proportionably other ecclesiasticks , at least many of them , do attribute to themselves some part of this authority of the popes , of dispencing against the law of god , and that after the popes example , who have infected all the others . * sicut grex totus in agris , unius scabie cadit . this it is which hath produced those fine morals which reign so much in the world , and have done so much mischief . they will rather dispence with some great crime against the law of god and nature , than with an indifferent thing , against which either they or their predecessors have made some rash decree ; for by either of them , they raise their almighty power above heaven it self . in the first they raise themselves above god , by dispencing with the obedience to his law , and by the other , they make that a sin which is not so in its own nature , which belongs only to god ; and so they put themselves in his place . what reason is there ( for example ) in what pope innocent the third established , * that a priest may be dispenced with for keeping many concubines , but not for being twice married ? upon which the glossary makes this just observation , notandum mirabile quod plus valet hic luxuria quam castitas . what reason is there that at rome the best benefices are disposed of in favour of wicked wretches , atheists , poisoners , and sodomites , fellows that are known to be such , and not to one only , but a great number of them ; and that in france such benefices as those cannot be possessed by a prince and natural son of a great king ? i am not ignorant that there are some canons which are against it ; but why shall people observe so scrupulously a canon of a council upon a thing almost indifferent , whilst that the popes do every day violate many canons of the most sacred councils , in things that are essential , and even in this very point ; for there is no body who knows italy or spain , but must acknowledg that there are a great many , who , not only possess benefices , but priests and bishops who are bastards , born even of double adultery , begotten by priests upon married women . i do affirm , that i have my self known more than four of them ; and even in france , our own country , which is a very religious place , in comparison of italy or spain , who is there but knows that there are people of this sort in possession of benefices ? † the roman divines maintain , that a priest is not irregular for adultery and sodomy , yet it would be irregular to let a prince enjoy benefices , because his father did not beget him by his lawful wife . ‖ see in navarre the great canonist , he shall tell you that sodomy causeth no irregularity in a priest , but that marriage does , because pope innocent the third hath so established . after he hath spoken of those cases which causes irregularity , he asks the question , whether sodomy be one or no. dubitarûnt an voluerimus etiam nefandum sodomiae crimen comprehendere ; sequitur respondendum esse , non comprehendi , primo quia irregularitas nisi ob casus jure expressos non incurritur , secundo quia verba illa sunt innocentii . facit etiam quòd nos intelleximus quod in italiâ ubi , ut fertur , plus hoc malo laboratur , quam oporteret , nullae de eo dispensationes quaeruntur . he concludes that sodomy makes not a priest irregular . * and the cardinal tolet does maintain it to be the common doctrine of the divines at rome , that all orders , even priesthood it self , may be conferred upon children , and those who have not yet the use of reason . omnes ordines , says he , etiam & presbyteratum conferri posse infantibus , & nondum usum rationis habentibus , est communis doctrina theologorum . we see clearly by this , that when in france these people refuse to grant benefices without cure of souls , upon the account of pretended irregularities , that it is more out of pride than religion , and that they take pleasure , as i have already said , to make people feel their yoke , this they call super aspidem & basiliscum ambulare , to tread upon serpents and dragons . those who maintain the popes authority do moreover affirm , that we are obliged to the popes for the holy tribunal of the inquisition , without which the true religion would have supplanted by heresy , in italy , spain , and portugal , * cardinal palavicini does assure us so . il tribunal dell ' inquisitione , dal quale , l' italia riconosce la conservata integrita della sua fide . it is to the holy tribunal of the inquisition that italy owes the preservation of the integrity of the faith. wherein truly they do a great deal of honour to god and to the christian religion , to imagine that god hath no other means to preserve his church , and that he needs such cursed instruments as those to maintain it . † that you may make the better judgment of it , it will not be amiss for me to speak briefly a word or two concerning the manner how this tribunal proceeds against heriticks , upon what they call the directory of the inquisitors , made in the year . you must know that this directory was made for the execution of the bull de coenâ domini which is to be seen ‖ in summâ francisci tolet. de instructione sacerdotum , where there are eighteen sorts of excommunications ; the first against hereticks , favourers of hereticks , those who read or keep their books without the permission of the holy see. and under this pretence these fellows have caused two of our kings to be murthered . it was this rare excommunication that ruined religion in england , and it is a wonder that it does not destroy it every where else . * in his th book you find that all those are excommunicated , who say and confess that the council is above the pope , and who appeal from his decrees to the council , so that a man cannot be a true christian , without being excommunicated by the pope . we must no longer believe the gospel , but become the popes creatures to avoid these terrible excommunications . in the st chapter of cardinal tolet his collection , there is a bull which does excommunicate all princes who lay new taxes upon their people without the pope's permission . this was not much amiss indeed , for by it you see that all soveraign princes are made slaves to the holy see. a man must have lost his senses not to see that it is the spirit of the devil which possesseth this gene●ation of vipers . in his th , th , and th chapters , all chancellours , presidents , councellours , and soveraign courts of justice , are excommunicated if they hinder the clergy in any manner whatsoever to exercise their ecclesiastical jurisdiction against all persons , according to the decrees of the council of trent , whereby they will destroy all political authority , and make the clergy masters of it ; for you must know that the council of trent , whose decrees were all made at rome before ever matters were proposed at trent , established ecclesiastical immunities , according to the decretals of boniface the eight : this it was that made many worthy prelates in france formerly press so hard to have this council received there ; and that wicked wretch miron archbishop of angiers , write so insolently against the parliament , for which he very well deserved to be hanged . at length having thundred out a great many other excommunications , they declare , that whosoever shall remain a whole year in these sorts of excommunications , shall for their contumacy be declared hereticks . chap. cum contumacia de hereticis in . and it is a favour too that they do not turn them into hobgoblins . there is nothing in all this but what is sottish , horrible , and diabolical , yet there are people who at this day dare not publickly detest it . nay , there are several in france , who shall maintain it at their utmost peril , and even die for it , as almost all the monks and many others who for the sake of jesus christ himself would not lose this point . hitherto this tribunal of the inquisition hath been abhorred in france , but no thanks to the monks , but the parliaments ; they say , ecclesia mavult suffundere sanguinem quam effundere . and during the minority of lewis the thirteenth all the chairs of the doctors and preachers rung with this impious and abominable doctrine , that the pope was the monarch of the church could excommunicate , depose and put kings to death . and to the end that these holy laws should be put in execution , these infamous creatures have wrote a book , which they call the directory of the inquisitors in the the year . wherein they establish , that they are all impious persons , and enemies to the church , who do not allow of the extravagants of boniface , and all the decretals of the popes who declare , that the church hath the power of both swords to destroy all those who will not submit to it . in the third part of this directory , commentary the thirteenth ; there are three methods of proceeding against hereticks , viz. by accusation , by delation , and by inquisition . in matters of faith , accusation is not allowed of , because they say that it is very dangerous , and full of contention ; the crime of heresy must be proved judicially , and canonically , which cannot be done without some difficulty ; so that the treasurer of the inquisition becomes the accuser , for this reason , quia non est obnoxius poenae talionis , because he is not obnoxious to the punishment of retaliation , neque aliis poenis quas falsi accusatores pati solent , nor to any other punishments which false witnesses are wont to suffer . so that there is no other way but by delation and inquisition ; and let a man but apply himself to the syndic of the inquisition , or to the inquisitor to accuse any body and there 's an end of him . in this third part of the directory , commentary the th , towards the latter end there are these words ; in crimine haereseos propter ejus enormitatem omnia testimonia recipiuntur , omniumque voces & interpretationes audiuntur , etiam & inimicorum hominum , perjurorum , lenonum , meretricum , & infamium : in case of heresy , by reason of the enormity of the crime , all evidences are allowed of , and the word and accusation of all sorts of people are to be heard , even of enemies , those that are perjured , pimps , whores , and those of the worst reputation . and that which is as good as this , is , that two witnesses of this sort are sufficient , even against a king , and without being obliged to let him know who the witnesses are . see commentary the , , , . there are these words ; quod si reus instaret postularetque ut sibi concederetur defensio secundum juris ordinem , & per consequens ut testium nomina simul cum dictis eorundem sibi ederentur , audiendus non esset ; & si fortassis ob id gravari se diceret , & appellaret , talis appellatio non esset admittenda ; sed eâ non obstante imo vero eâ rejectâ tanquam frivolâ & injustâ ad ulteriora judicii acta est intrepidè procedendum ; that if any guilty person doth insist upon , and require liberty to make a defenee , according to the ordinary course of law , and by consequence , that the names of the witnesses , together with their depositions , should be delivered him , he is not to be heard ; and if , for th●s reason , he shall say that he is hardly dealt with , and shall appeal , such his appeal is in no wise to be allowed , but that notwithstanding , nay , it being wholly rejected as frivolous and unjust , he is vigorously to be proceeded against , even to the utmost acts of judgment . and the good natur'd inquisitors give this consolation to people that are condemned ; nec quisquam dicat se injustè hâc ratione condemnari , nec conqueratur do judicibus ecclesiasticis , vel de judicio ecclesiae ita statuentis : nor let any man say that he is condemned unjustly upon this account , nor complain of the ecclesiastical judges , or of the church so ordaining : ( these hangmen will make the church accessary to their barbarities . ) sed si injustè condemnatus sit , gaudeat potiùs quòd pro veritate mortem patiatur ; but if he be unjustly condemned , let him rejoyce rather that he suffers death for the truth . what could the devil do worse if he were incarnate ? yet this is the churches head , the vicar of jesus christ , the holy see , the apostolick see , it is his holiness who hath made and decreed these things . they do yet worse than this to kings and princes , for they make use of secret means , for fear they should get notice of them , and by their power prevent their wicked designs . they employ ignorant creatures that are loaden with iniquity , such as ravilliac , who was a murtherer by profession , and a sorcerer too , as was commonly said , they give these people absolution from all their crimes , and promise them paradise if they perish in the execution , or , if they are taken , after it . they have for such purposes as these in italy , those whom they call crocesegnati , and in spain los familiares . * see in the book of francis suarez the spaniard , called defensio fidei catholicae . by the way , we are very much obliged to this loyal loyolist , for calling these maxims the catholick faith. if what he said were true , it would be no great advantage to be a catholick . it would be perfect manicheisme , a man must believe two contrary principles , good and bad , god and the devil , at the same time . there is a certain author , called guliel . nubrigensis , who relates the story of a monk , who dethroned his natural prince and sat himself in his place , he had engraved upon his seal , ferus ut leo , mitis ut agnus . this monk was villain enough , thus to usurp the authority of his prince ; but he was a thousand times better than any of these thieves at rome . for my part , i will all my life-time hold communion with the catholick gallican church ; but for the bull de coenâ domini , the inquisition , the superiority of the pope above the council , and the morals now in fashion , i declare i do detest it as a thing dangerous to salvation , to hold communion with them who believe and maintain these things , and that i believe them as far from being saved as the mahometans . who can believe that jesus christ , who gave himself for the salvation of us all , and who is all charity it self , can approve of it , that people should be put to death for religion ; or , that he does not detest the barbarities which these monsters exercise under the name of vicars of jesus christ ? how contrary are these practices to those of jesus christ and of his apostles ? see after what manner our merciful saviour spoke to his apostles , who would have forsaken him , what , and will you also leave me ? upon which st. chrysostom makes this reflection , * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 · he asks them , saying , will ye also go away ? which was the voice of one taking away all force and compulsion . and in truth they did all abandon him ; yet after his resurrection he received them as kindly as tho they had followed him to the very cross ; and we see that when he gave his apostles the power of the keys , he ordered them only to teach men , and not to compel them by force ; and on that occasion , when the apostles were discontented with the samaritans , and would have called down fire from heaven upon them , he says to them , ye know not what spirit ye are of : the son of man is not come to destroy mens lives , but to save them . but the popes , who make a quite contrary use of this power , are come to destroy both souls and bodies too . we see that the apostle st. paul followed these holy rules of charity when he wrote to titus ; teaching him the duty of a bishop , he says to him only , a man that is an heretick , after the first and second admonition , reject . he says not , do him injustice , kill him , ruin him by violence , or by craft , break your word with him , according to the maxims and practices of the court of rome . * according to these principles , st. chrysostom says these words ; apud nos non cogendo sed suadendo id agendum est ut qui malus est melior evadat , neque enim ad coercendos peccatores potestatis jus nobis datum est ; & si datum maximè esset , locus non esset juris istius exercendi , cum deus coronet non eos qui necessitate , sed qui voluntate liberâ à malo abstinent : we must not endeavour to make a bad man better by force , but by perswasion : for we have no authority to compel sinners ; and if we had , we ought not to make use of it , seeing god crowns not those that abstain from evil out of meer necessity , but those that do it out of free choice . and hence it comes that st. hierom , comparing a king to a bishop , says , ille nolentibus praeest , hic volentibus . the one rules over those that are unwilling , the other over those that are willing . and gregory bishop of rome , writing to the bishop of constantinople , says to him , nova est & inaudita ista praedicatio quae verberibus exigit fidem : that is a new and unheard-of sort of preaching that requires faith with blows . the fathers abhorred not only that men should be put to death , but that any injustice should be done to them upon the account of religion ; for to make this use of religion is to betray it , and it is a sure means to make hereticks more obdurate : for it is certain , that they who do thus , have only the name of christians ; and people readily believe that a religion is nothing worth which they are forced to embrace by such ways as these . st athanasius speaking of the religion of the arrians , who persecuted the catholicks , driving them out of all employs , depriving them of the means of getting their living , prohibiting them the exercise of their religion , and doing them many other wrongs by violence and fraud , and by groundless accusations , even to the bringing some of them to death , says very well ; atque seipsum quàm non sit pia , nec dei cultrix manifestat : and shews it self how it is neither pious , nor worshipping god. the same thing may be said of the english at present . * st chrysostome also says , errantis poena est doceri ; the punishment of the erroneous is to be instructed . the emperour antoninus , tho a pagan , was much more a christian than the popes , and their inquisition , when in his th book he says ; si potes meliora doce , si non potes , memento in hoc tibi lenitatem datam . ipsi dii lenes sunt talibus : if thou canst , teach me better ; if not , remember gentleness ▪ was given thee for this very purpose . the gods themselves are gentle to such . if the christian religion did establish the inquisition , if she justified the perfidiousness and inhumanities which the court of rome and hereticks commit every day upon the account of religion , i should make no difficulty to declare it an abominable religion , and that we ought not to be of it one moment longer : and if people went to heaven by such ways as these , i should be soon of the americans mind , who said they would not go to the same paradise whither the spaniards went ; nor would i go to the paradise of the popes and the inquisitors . i do maintain that the popes have ruined the church in those countries where their inquisition hath been set up , more than all the heresies in the world together ever could have done . we need not but consider the good effects which it hath had in those countries , where in truth there is no religion , at least christianity scarce there to be found ; and how should it with that ignorance which the inquisition brings along with it , which hath produced nothing but superstition , impiety , hypocrisy , dissembling of opinions , a thousand cruelties and treacheries , and all sorts of abominable vices , which are scarce known but in countries of the inquisition ? and where we find them in other countries , they have been brought thither from rome by those that were devoted to the papacy , through the too great commerce which princes suffer with rome . the hereticks may well say that they are obliged to the inquisition that holland is no longer catholick . if the inquisi●ion be advantagious to christianity , why do the most christian nations of europe the best regulated both in their religion and their manners , detest it ? compare the french nation , germany , flanders and poland , with the other , slaves to the inquisition , and you will say that the latter are not worthy of the name of christians in comparison of the former . and for the hereticks , i esteem and heretick that is an honest man , and that fears god , a hundred times more than a catholick who lives disorderly , or that knows not what religion is . i know no worse heresy than to be without the knowledg of god ; and how can he be known where the holy scripture is not allowed to be read , where the clergy are wholly lost in most abominable vices , and know nothing at all ? where it is crime enough to be burnt , to discourse about religion ? where mens minds are filled with a thousand fooleries that have no relation at all to piety ? set a spaniard or an italian , who hath gotten a little sense , to discourse on jesus christ , and he shall not fail to tell you , that jesus christ was a great politician ; christo era grande politico , because he sees that his vicar under the pretence of religion hath made so great conquests , and subdued all catholick princes to himself . this is the idea which they have of jesus christ , and which they form to themselves upon what they see in the court of rome , and in the present state of the church ; for , as for the holy scripture they know less of it than of the alcoran . and their divines teach them , that the church is the most happy body politick upon earth , corpo . politico il piu felice che sia in terra , as cardinal palavicini says * . and the same cardinal says in another place , that jesus christ would have his church governed , as great polititians govern their states , and that he came down from heaven upon earth to make her happy as well in this world as in the other , by heaping upon her honours , riches , and pleasures , † secondo la carne , according to the flesh. and of the papacy in particular , he says , that it is the abundant source of temporal felicity . il principiato apostolico fonte d'utilita temporale secondo la carne in quel modo chi e piu conforme etiandio all humana felicita : ‖ the apostolick primacy is the fountain of temporal profit , and in such a manner as is most conducing to human felicity . nor do the portuguees understand things better ; they are more than half jews , and yet know not what either judaism or christianity is . there are a great many of them who look for a sort of a messias , who by his great conquests ought to make them masters of the world ; this is one of their kings named sebastian , whom they have made a saint , he was killed in the battel of alcazar going to assist one moorish king against another , and because his body was not found after the battel , they pretend that he is not dead , but that he roams up and down the world , and that he will return suddenly again to conquer all the habitable earth , and make it subject to the portugal nation . this is the faith of the christians in that country , and they learn it insensibly of the jews . it is not long since a man might have borrowed a considerable sum of mony in portugal payable at the return of st. sebastian . that which doth produce this horrible ignorance among these people is , not only that they read not the holy scriptures , but because the inquisition suffers there no religion but its own ; for by this means , there is no body who can accuse either the inhumanity of the inquisition , or the vices and incapacities of the clergy . if some other sect had liberty among them , the contradiction of this sect would oblige them to study , and to instruct themselves , which would make the study of divinity and other sciences flourish among them ; and seeing every man would have as many censurers of his religion and of his manners , as there were men of contrary opinions , this would make men take care of their behaviour ; that their lives might be more conformable to true christianity . wickedness would be greatly abated , men would be ashamed of those horrible crimes which the italians now make their diversion ; there would be much more knowledg of god , more industry and perfection in the world. i know that this is not at all agreeable to the humour of the popes and their clergy , who make their markets better by ignorance and the inquisition . i know by my own experience , and what i have heard say by many good people in england , that the expulsion of catholicks , would destroy amongst them all devotion and religion , because they would have no adversaries to awaken them , and to oblige them to take care of themselves ; their ministers would become ignorant and debauched , and so proportionably the people . but , say they , the inquisition doth prohibit all ill books ; you must know too that the word of god is of the number of these ill books that are prohibited ; and that there are many other books forbidden , which have not only no ill in them , but which are very excellent , only because they are contrary to the ambition of the court of rome ; and that there is an infinite number of abominable ones allowed of , which are fit for nothing but to be burnt as well as their authors . by this same principle they have razed out of the bookes of the fathers those passages which were not for their purpose . they yet insist for the justifying of the inquisition , that the diversity of religion is the cause of civil wars in a nation . but what mischief doth not the inquisition do ? all princes , in whose countries it is , are slaves to it . it is true , that among them there are no civil wars for religion ; but it is as true , that they must absolutely depend upon the court of rome ; otherwise if they pretend to examine their orders , the popes shall use them like dogs . how many times hath the republick of venice been like to be destroyed by these people , only because they had a mind to keep some liberty to themselves , and not to suffer certain excesses of their tyranny ? and yet do they every day insult and attempt against all the rights which god and nature have given them . it is furthermore said in favour of the papacy , that the world is greatly obliged to it for all the different orders of monks , and of nuns , which are a great ornament and advantage to the church . it is true , that the popes have instituted almost all of them , and that it is no fault of theirs that there are not twenty times as many , especially in the states of other princes ; for by this means they erect imperium in imperio , their own empire in the dominions of another , thereby gaining to themselves so many subjects in all catholick countries , who are at all times ready to do any thing for their service . now since there is nothing in it but this , all these institutions of so many sects of monks ought to be suspected by us . besides , it is not the popes who have inspired these people with the thoughts of retreating , and of severity to themselves , they knew only how to apply it to their own use and service . the inclination which these men have to this sort of humour and life is well enough known ; and that in all times , and in all countries , and in all religions , there have been great numbers of men who have embraced this sort of life , pretending to live more austerely , and to avoid the trouble of worldly business , affecting to be singular in their clothes , their diet , whipping themselves , and other outward mortifications of their flesh. there were a great many of them among the jews , especially towards the latter end , and when religion fell most into decay ; we see by their authors , that besides the pharisees there were the essenes , dositheens , and other sects of religious jews . there were many of them among the ancient romans ; there is in juvenal an admirable description of their manners and customs . it is of them that he says , fronti nulla fides , and qui curios simulant & bacchanalia vivunt ; he represents them with short hair , & supercilio brevior coma , and with all he says , that they lived after a very licentious manner . there are also many of them at this day among the pagans , there are great numbers of them to be found among the mahometans , greeks , nestorians , eutychians , maronites , abyssins , and cophties . the popes then have made cunning use of the humour of these people , whom they have supported as far forth as they could , and even canonized them to augment their own power , by the credit which they gave to these people , who became their creatures , and who for their parts served the pope with all the power and credit they had . people had them in great veneration at rome , this veneration spread it self every-where abroad , so that the world did almost adore them ; every thing that they either said or did , was as highly esteemed , as what ever the apostles themselves had said or done ; and as time served them when they had sufficiently tried the credulity and so●tishness of mankind , they came to that excess of impiety and impudence , as to compare their authors to our lord jesus ; nay , to give them the preheminence . read but the life of st. francis , and a book that was printed at brussels in the year , with this title , korte beschrijvinge van het aerd●s-broederschap van de koorde saint franciscus ; and so did other orders speak as great things of their respective founders . people thought they could not obtain salvation without the monks , they attribute particular graces to their very habits , which , the better to impose upon the world , were of an extraordinary fashion . nay , there was sometimes as much imputed to them as to the blood of christ it self ; whosoever took this habit they said it was as much worth to him as a second baptism ; when any body was sick they desired to die in this habit. these were people who did more good than god commanded ; and we see that all these impieties are yet vented by the monks of our own time , who pretend that they do more good than is necessary for their own salvation , and that they can impart a share of their merits , and works of supererogation to whomsoever they please ▪ provided that they contribute somewh●t towards the maintenance of the kitchin ; ●nd for that they have fo●nd out the invention of the●r fraternities . the heads of these sects , as i have already said , were very useful to the popes , and the popes for their parts made them be esteemed by the people , and at length , by the ignorance and sloth of princes , they exempted them from the obedience due to their soveraigns , to their bishops , and to the law of god it self , and so they acknowledg none but the pope . by little and little , making a great noise like the blind men at paris , many of these sects got great estates , others loved rather to beg , like those sturdy vagrants , who prefer a begging and a lazy life before any other . they who have any wit among them employ themselves in writing fabulous legends of the life of some or other of their order , and in composing a great many wicked books about religion . they are all listed to the pope , who pays them in pardons , and indulgences , and in reliques , of which they make a good market , in canonizing people of their own order , and in exempting them from the laws of their prince and of their bishops , so that there is impunity for them for all sorts of crimes , they are only forced to go out of the province where they committed the disorder into another . we may look upon every convent of monks , as so many garrisons which the pope hath in all catholick cities to keep them under the yoke of his obedience ; and every different order , so many different regiments clothed in different fashions , and wearing different liveries , who all live at the good mans expence , but cost the pope not a farthing , having found out many secrets to pull off the feathers without making the fowl cry . they are certainly of great use to the popes , but i demand what good they do us ? are there not clergy-men enough to perform the service without them ? are there not people enough to be maintained who are really poor , without the begging monks , who are the most ridiculous and the most vicious wretches upon earth ? if they are necessary to the church , as some say , how comes it to pass , that in the primitive church , where there was so much piety , there were none of them ? or at least very few , and they too quite of a contrary character to those now a days ; but that now in this languishing state of the church , every place swarms with them . how comes it to pass that their numbers are much less in france , flanders , germany and poland , where christianity flourishes a thousand times more than in italy , spain , and portugal , where it is almost extinguished ? for tho there be canonizations and beatifications oftentimes performed for people of these countries , it signifies nothing else , but that the pope hath finger'd their mony , or that these saints were in their life-time greatly devoted to the holy see. this is done upon false-accounts given of the lives of these persons by some monks of their order , and it is very easy to impose upon people in these countries , by reason of the extream ignorance among them , and of the inquisition which would burn those who should dare to contradict it . in france where people are much more understanding , and where there is greater liberty , it is not so easy to impose upon and delude the world. besides , the protestants would not fail to discover the cheat and to lay it open , from whence also it comes to pass that there are but very few miracles wrought in france , and fewer at paris than in any other city in the kingdom , because people are not there so easy to be deceived . i do maintain , and every man that hath observed it must agree with me that there is incomparably more vertue and solid piety in the honest people of the world than among the monks . converse with them , and you shall find nothing but grimace and false appearances of a devotion that signifies nothing , a base devotion that hath nothing of true piety , applying themselves to the outward parts of religion , neglecting , or else not knowing the true form of piety , and upon this they are puffed up with a value of themselves , they are presumptuous , full of contempt one of another , ambitious , worldly and voluptuous , which we see in them where they have a little liberty , as in spain , portugal and italy , there is nothing so unruly as their behaviour , their lives are most licentious , there is no villany nor abomination which they do not commit . in france , our own country , where they are saints in comparison , there is no roguish story of a debauchery and villany , but they are at one end of it . compare them with our fathers of the oratory who are seculars , and who yet trouble themselves with secular affairs less than they , and for knowledg , for humility , purity , and lofty sentiments of religion , there is as great a difference as can be between a worthy and a judicious person , and a superstitious soft-pated fellow , or rather between an honest woman and a whore. i acknowledg that here and there you may find a man of a great worth among the monks , but it is one among ten thousand , and he must have a great deal of strength and courage to keep himself innocent in these places where there is so much corruption . i believe that it is much more difficult to obtain salvation there , than in the world , tho to those , who have not narrowly enquired into their lives , it appears otherwise . they among them who are ingenious do own it , tho they are ordinarily hypocrites and would deceive and make us believe , that they all agree that men must have extraordinary measures of grace , and would perswade the world that they themselves have them . the most unsufferable of them , as i have already said , are the mendicants , those pharisees who act wholly contrary to what st. paul taught and practised , who would have all christians apply themselves to labour , yet they pretend to be of a better sort than the others . st. paul , whom st. augustin calls the first of all saints , says in the th chapter of the acts , ver . . that he had coveted no mans silver , gold , or apparel , and that his hands had ministred to his necessities , and to those who were with him , and makes his glory to consist in this , that he had been a charge to no man : he , i say , orders all people to labour , and repeats what our saviour had said , that it is better to give than to receive . yet our lazy monks have at this day maxims that are quite contrary : they had rather have nothing at all of their own , that they may eat the bread out of poor peoples mouths , upon whose sweat and blood they live and grow fat . of all the monks that ever i yet heard of , i have a value for no order of them but those of la trape , by the account the world gives of them . first , they are all kept to work , they trouble not themselves with confessions , no more than the first monks in the primitive times . they study , they haunt neither courts nor cities , they are not covetous of legacies , nor do they pry into peoples wills , they are not beggars , they sell not holy things , they live frugally , upon a wholsom diet to keep themselves in health , which makes their minds more fit for the service of god , they are not desirous of news , nor of the secrets of families to make advantage by it , they read the word of god carefully , making holy things their ordinary entertainment , and have no commerce at all with women . provided that this could continue without vanity , and without discontent , it is a school of holiness . for the others i find , that instead of being advantagious to the church , they dishonour it , and give the protestants just reason to despise us . with people that have any understanding these fellows habits make so strongly against them , that men are apt to believe that there is both extravagancy and weakness of mind in those that wear them ; these are marks of distinction , which shew them not to be french men , but that they belong to another prince ; what good do these ridiculous singularities do ? if this habit be necessary to make a man really better , we ought all to take it ; if not , they are to be laughed at thus that dress up themselves , and so much the more when they think they merit by it . these people ought all to be reduced to one and the same hab●t , and this ridiculous variety of diverse habits , and monstrous fashions ought to be taken away as well as the variety of institutions , that war●ant some to beg and allow others to be rich , and to be continually ●e●ping up o● wealth , and others to eat and drink till they bu●st . it is reasonable that they should be well clothed and fed , but it is 〈◊〉 that they should beg at least if it be voluntary ; and for that 〈◊〉 their number ought to be diminished , and they of them that a●e ●ich should keep them that are poor ; let them all apply themselves to work and to study as heretofore they did . it would be very well done ab●olutely to retrench some of these orders that are so chargeable to the people . pope alexander the seventh did very well in suppressing two orders that were as good as those that are now remaining , the one was called the order of the cross , and the other of ●he holy ghost . and in spain they have done very well never to endure among them the capucins . the council of toledo did heretofore ordain , that no new religious order should be suffered to be established in the church , ne nimia religionum diversitas gravem in ecclesia dei confusionem parturiat . there are no people that hate or destroy one another more than the different orders of the mendicants , because they hinder one anothers trade ; and there are no people in the world that debauch the women more than they ; the secular priests are angels in comparison ; they are in so good credit and esteem , that they are not endured in the court of our kings , and they have no access to it . their principle of blind obedience is both foolish and impious , which may cause , and many times hath been the occasion of horrible disorders in the estates and families of our kings . it is a principle which makes the pope , whom their superiors implicitly obey , master of our lives and of the state ; for these superiors are always as ready to inspire the monks with all sorts of opinions , how horrible soever they be , provided they serve the pope his designs ; for this reason i have often wondered that some law hath not been made in the state against the perfidiousness of the monks and jesuits , from the example of two of our [ french ] kings whom they have murthered ; and that it hath not been declared , that if any such thing shall happen for time to come , all these people should be driven out of the kingdom : there is no other means to hinder the court of rome from doing the same things hereafter . the parliament of england hath lately enacted somewhat like this to secure the life of their king against the monks . no clergy-man ought to be received without subscribing the condemnation of the impious bull de coenâ domini , which is a bottomless gulf of impieties , heresies , and inhumanities . and till the monks and jesuits shall solemnly renounce and condemn this accursed bull , it will be no great injustice done them , to accuse them of attempting against the lives of kings . if any man did suspect me to be an arrian , and i knew it , and could justify my self from such cursed opinions , and did it not , the world would have reason to impute to me all the consequences of th●s pernicious heresy . it is well known that all the monks , and particularly the jesuits have by their fourth vow obliged themselves to the execution of this infernal bull. it was the monks , who , living in idleness , corrupted and falsified many ecclesiastical books , they have counterfeited many other books full of lies , and set them out under the names of good authors . they are every where known for people who , by their artifices under pretext of religion , are the ruine of most families , whose substance they cunningly suck in themselves . it is they who have vilified and discredited the true orthodox priests , drawing the people after themselves by false appearances of mortifications . they are good for nothing but to move seditions , and to bring people to disobedienee , and when ever the interest of their monarch the p●pe , is concerned , they think the blood of their enemies as meritorious as that of the cross. the humility they boast of is a very pleasant thing , when at the same time they take place of their elders , and of people of quality . they pretend to have renounced vanity more strictly than the secular priests , and yet these asses are called father , father , as heretofore the pharisees , rabbi , rabbi , they cause themselves also to be stiled reverend fathers , and pretend to have merit enough besides to obtain their own salvation , and to impart the overplus to others . they call themselves father raphaels , father cherubims , and father seraphims , with such like names , which are marks of vanity and folly , with which there can be neither humility nor piety . their generals also manage the matter fairly , to have the same respect shewed them in the courts of princes as the ambassadours of the greatest kings . these gentlemen are all sworn enemies to the holy scripture as well as to the court , and they do all they can to render the reading of it suspicious , they heretofore did what they could to abolish it , because it made as much against them as the popes . in the year . they made a new gospel upon the dreams of a carmelite named cyrill , this was to suppress the gospel of jesus christ , and their own they called the eternal gospel , wherein they taught that god the father reigned under the law , god the son under grace , and that the holy ghost was now going to reign by the establishment of four orders of mendicants , and that for the future men could not be saved but by this gospel , that that of jesus christ was imperfect , and that the sacraments were of no great use . this gospel was preached almost all europe over by the jacobines and franciscans , and it was very near being received in the university of paris , but there remained yet some worthy men who opposed and made it be condemned , but seeing these new evangelists had the favour of the holy father , the doctors of the university were forced to go to rome , where at length they obtained that this book should be condemned and burned , but privately ▪ for fear of decrying the four orders of mendicants , and also that the book of the university of paris should be burned ; much after the same manner as heretofore at bezancon at the beginning of luther's revolt , which drew many towns after it , the magistra●e of bezancon fearing that this fire should reach thither , forbad all sorts of people to speak of god either good or evil. and there falling out lately a dispute between some divines of the sorbonne at paris , some of whom do hold with the jesuits , that we may be saved without loving god , and others on the contrary , that we ought to love god ; whereupon both the one and the other were forbidden to speak of it so that the matter yet remains undecided , whither we ought to love god or no , or whither the gospel of the monks , or of jesus christ be the true one . the author of the book against this new gospel is called william de st. amour , de periculis novissimorum temporum : see in matthew paris * . at length the monks had credit enough , having procured several bulls to be given out against the book , to obtain one by which the author was forbidden to set foot again in france , and the sorbonne to receive him . scilicet sic petrus sactitabat , sic paulus ludebat . the court of rome , as well as the monks , was mortally grieved that this new gospel could not pass , and had it not been for the university at paris , we should in all likelihood have never known what the gospel of jesus christ was , and the monks would have been our saviours . i have heard say that in all the rich convents there is a father that keeps the evidence-office , whose whole employ it is to find out good titles when they want them , to joyn their neighbours field to their own ▪ and there is no harm in that , because it is for the church . there are some of these orders , the benedictines for example , who have their pensioners in the parliament at paris , like the excise-men in the courts of aydes to help them gain their cause : from whence come all the enterprises which they daily make upon their neighbours goods , stripping them as often as they can of them . people of very good credit , and who know the thing very well , have assured me , that this one o●der gave more than two hundred thousand livers a year in pensions to divers officers of parliament ; judg then what disorders that makes . i know not why the monks have not been kept to read the holy scriptures , and to study divinity and morality , rather than so many ridiculous ways of mortifying themselves ; if they studied or worked hard , they would need no other mortification , but they have invented whipping since they have left off working , which is the most extravagant thing in the world. the reading of a chapter of scripture would be much better than that ; as an excellent man said , it is not the severities of the body , nor the agitations of the mind , but the good motions of the heart that are meritorious , which shall be excited much sooner by meditation of the word of god , than by all their follies . wherefore i have reason to ask what the monks are good for ? the poor orders as they are also lazy , are a burthen to the state , they of them that are rich take no care of the poor , and both the one and the other are unprofitable , nay , prejudicial both to church and state , they ought to do quite otherwise than to plunge themselves into idleness , so dangerous both for their souls and bodies , and to be so chargeable to the kingdom that keeps them and fats them up without receiving any service from them ; they are good for none but themselves and the popes , whose tyranny they support ; thus the popes in maintaining them do good only to themselves , when certainly the monks at present might easily spare the popes . wherefore i yet once more demand what service the popes do to the world ? as for the nuns , tho there be not by much so great disorders amongst them as amongst the monks , because generally they have no share at all in the affairs of a civil life , yet i think i may safely say it , that fathers and mothers who are desirous of their childrens salvation , ought not to send them to such houses , and that there is more real piety , chastity , and purity of heart among secular women than among the nuns , by reason of the little liberty that is given them : all the good they can do there is by force and by constraint , it is a place of slavery and of torment . people imagine that in these houses where they have so much time to employ in reading and instructing themselves , they ought to be very knowing , yet they are more ignorant and superstitious than women that live abroad in the world. their abbesses are ordinarily chosen for their quality , not for their merit , and are either covetous or extravagant , fantastical , without humanity for these poor young women , without conduct , and almost always without piety . i have known many of them in my time , but never saw any that was worthy of this employment but madam de fontevrault , daughter of king henry the fourth . in those houses where the superiours of the nuns are elective or triennial , there are continual factions and intrigues , that the election may fall on her that every particular woman likes . it would be very well that these elections were abolished , provided that persons of real worth were placed in their stead . the number of these nuns is also too great as well as of the monks , and they ought to be reduced , so that those who remain should have livers a year for their subsistance , and that the king should dispose of these places to whom he pleased , for the succour of many families , and the over-plus of so many rich convents revenue might be employed in the building of many hospitals . nor should any young woman be admitted to take the vail till years old , for the tyranny of fathers and mothers , and the want of consideration in young girls throws a great many of them into dispair . they ought also to be allowed sometimes to go home to their fathers and mothers when their health requires it , and to refresh their spirits which are sometimes over-born with grief and vexation either by the tyranny of their superiours , or by their too long confinement in this prison ; without this a convent is a perfect shambles both for the body and soul. it must be acknowledged that this sort of relig●ous life is unproportionable to the weakness both of our bodies and minds , and is much less proper to produce true piety than a secular life . thus the popes are so far from being serviceable to mankind , that they are matter of scandal to us , and stumbling blocks to turn us out of the true way of salvation . of what use then are they to the world ? an italian will tell me that they are serviceable to italy , by their inriching it . but it is at the expence of other countries which do this honour to italy ; which , having now lost its temporal empire , hath by the popes means raised a spiritual one to make amends for it ; but still this is at our expence . it is certain that all the italians in general look upon themselves as having a share in the glory of this empire , and pretend that they have more wit and merit than other nations ▪ which they have in this respect subdued , especially those of rome , who for this reason give themselves the liberty of speaking contemptibly of catholick princes , whom they look upon as their tributaries ; the very coblers come in for their share , and are mightily pleased that the pope rules in all places . and i have observed , that they have more respect and value for those princes that have shaken off the popish yoke , as if it had been the effect of their courage ; nay , for the very strangers of those countries , as english , swedes , and danes . this may seem strange ; for it is well known that otherwise they bitterly hate these nations that no longer yeild them any thing . you would say that they were of the humour of tiberius , who was even vexed at the abject patience of those who were most suhmissive to his tyranny . * illum qui libertatem publicam nollet , says tacitus , jam abjectae servientium patientiae taedebat . but to return to our modern romans ; when they hear the king of france called the eldest son of the church , whereof the pope is the spouse , who calls kings his sons , they esteem themselves so much the more by half , and shew an equal proportion of disrespect for those kings . for my part i was disgusted , i own it , when i heard them say , that all christian kings were the popes children , and that the king of france was his eldest son ; and my respect for royal majesty did as insensibly diminish , as theirs for the popes increased ; nor could i ever digest that abuse to hear that such a cardinal was protector of france , and such a one of spain , &c. what , thought i , must pitiful priests or bishops , who for the most part are good for nothing , by the humour of people of their own stamp become one day the monarchs of monarchs , and their servants protectors and guardian angels of the kings and kingdoms of the earth , and that too against all reason , both divine and human ! yet all the world submits to it , as to an eternal truth . i know not what protection they give , nor in what , nor against whom they do protect . never was there any such folly in the world , and yet they are payed for it too . † but let us examine a little whether the popes are good for italy , or no ; the mischiefs they heretofore did the●e are notorious . it is known that the republick of venice hath been like to be destroyed by them , that they have oppressed the liberty of the city of rome ; that they have usurped and gained , by craft and violence , the greatest part of those states which they possess in italy ; that which they call the patrimony of st. peter , vrbin ferrara , castro , and the kingdom of naples , which they have made tributary : it is known that they exact a tribute all over italy by the same contrivances as from all other catholick states , that by their inquisition they keep it in slavery , whereby these provinces are kept in monstrous ignorance of religion , and in so great corruption of manners , that the vices of other nations are vertues to them , and theirs not fit to be so much as mentioned in any other place . the italians may well say what tacitus said , speaking of another sort of inquisition which reigned in his time at rome ; * scilicet illo igne vocem pop. rom. & libertatem senatus & conscientiam generis humani aboleri arbitrabantur ; expulsis insuper sapientiae professoribus atque omni bonâ arte in exilium actâ , ne quid usquam honestum occurreret . dedimus profectò grande patientiae documentum , & sicut vetus aetas vidit quid ultimum in libertate esset , ita nos quid in servitute adempto per inquisitiones loquendi audiendique commercio . this is the true representation of the inquisition , and of the slavery which the italians now suffer . it is clear that this modern inquisition is taken from the example of the wicked roman emperours , from whom they have also borrowed many other things . 't was from the romans that they took this maxim of keeping the people in ignorance , for among them there were those who said , de actis deorum reverentius visum est credere , quàm scire . it seemed a greater piece of reverence to believe well concerning the actions of the gods , than to know them . the popes do no good even to the city of rome , but have ruined it , tho they pretend that the romans are obliged to them for many contrivances which they have found out , to make the water run to their mills , as amongst others , the jubilee , which is a general fair of pardons and indulgences ; but the popes did this to get by it themselves : for if the people make any profit at this fair by the innumerable multitude of poor christians that come there to obtain the popes indulgences , qui preconan vino y venden vinagro , that cry wine and sell vinegar , all that returns back into the popes purse and their nephews , who drain this city by an infinity of imposts , so that it is one of the poorest towns in all italy . the people at rome , as well as the popes , having been used to live by the folly of other nations , now know not how to apply themselves to work . there remains not in all this town one spark of their ancient generosity and nobleness of mind , that made them be heretofore respected more than all their power . all the greatness of those ancient heroes is now vanished , since the priests became governours . and all those vertues which made rome the admiration of the whole earth , have been succeeded , by sloth , effeminacy , sodomy , the art of poisoning , treason , and all sorts of artifices of monkish tricks , a base and knavish policy , and they now reign by nothing but vice and debauchery . voluptatibus , quibus illi plus adversus subjectos quam armis valent . hitherto we cannot find what the popes are good for . * there are some ignorant people who say , that the church is obliged to the popes for the holding of councils , because that without them there would be none assembled ; and they insist particularly upon that of trent , wherein the true catholicks were so well tryed and established , and heresy opposed , so that since that time it hath made no progress . all they who have read history a little , know that the popes hate councils more than the devil does the cross. we have already seen that cardinal julian complains of the popes that they would not call any councils , ne auferat , says he , temporalitatem nostram , lest they should take away our temporality . † cardinal palavicini says enough to confute these people in his history of the council of trent , that the popes ever abhorred national councils , concilio nationale sempre aborrito da pontefici ; and another jesuit says , that in the mystical firmament of the church , there cannot be a conjunction of a more dangerous influence than that of a general council . ‖ nel cielo mistico della chieza non si puo imaginar conjunzione di piu periculosa influenza che un synodo generale . * now for the council of trent in particular , all they who have read the history of those times , know that it was sorely against the popes will that it was called , and that they never consented to it till the very last extremity , having a great while eluded the instances and remonstrances made by the emperor , the king of france , and other princes for the assembling of a council . they demanded a free council for the reformation of the church , and principally of the court of rome , and to bring into the bosom of the church those who were gone astray from it . the court of rome who had more reason to fear than hope from the good intention that appeared in many prince● so desirous of a reformation , would not consent to the calling a council , till at length having without success employed their utmost skill to hinder it ; they at last managed the matter so that the pope was to convene it , charles the fifth having basely parted with the right he had to assemble it ; that it should be called in an italian town , and that the popes legats should have the management of the whole affair ; from that time there was no good to be expected from this assembly . in truth the popes legates did rule all a●cording to their own fancy , almost all the bishops who assisted at it were italians , and the only mark they all hit at was , more and more to establish the almighty power of the pope , wherein they easily succeeded : except in this one point , god did not suffer heresy to triumph there . but as for the popes who were the soul and only organ of it , sending every week the holy ghost in a cloak-bag , if the heresy of luther would have served their turn they would have chosen it . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . nay , without all doubt , if the mahometan religion would have conduced to the augmenting of their power and riches , both they and all their court would have embraced it presently . this council hath done the church a thousand times more harm than good , for it hath given the protestants plausible reasons of obduracy , and to us no greater assurance of the goodness of our religion ; for as they carried it , they made it a work perfectly humane , intrigue and policy did all . the pope was there a party , and became himself the judg. the protestants could not be there , seeing the pope was the manager both of the convocation and of the suffrages , which he got for mony distributed about in germany and italy , before the assembly began : and because he would be master , some good bishops who knew not how to manage it so well , inesperti del maneggio , as cardinal palavicini says of them , offering to speak against the popes interest , were treated many times unworthily by the legates , who gave no sort of liberty . christian princes , as the emperour ferdinand , charles the ninth , and albert duke of bavaria , to whom they granted not one of their just demands had no more reason to be satisfied . to convince the world that it was only the advantage of the popes which the court of rome sought after , and not the glory of god , nor the salvation of men : it is not necessary to relate at large all the base intrigues which were unworthy of the legates , but only to consider the decree which was there made against the reading of the holy scripture . by this decree all people were forbidden to read it without leave given them by their ordinary , who was to allow it to none but clergy-men ; that is to say , the people who were in possession of benefices , and whose interest it was to maintain things in the same condition they were in . thus did the legates forbid what god had commanded generally to the whole world. and as tyrants live in continual fear , they thought themselves not yet secure , but fearing that they had granted too much , they made another decree whereby they absolutely forbad all sorts of people to read it . all their fear was , that by the comparing the papacy with the kingdom of jesus christ , people should discover the imposture which they have put upon the church , whose face they have disfigured and changed its very nature , making the government of the church a piece of knavery , and a device to supplant all the kings and princes of the world , confounding heaven with earth , and destroying all order both divine and humane . the hereticks make a more christian use of it ; for tho they have been so inconsiderate as to reject many books of the old testament , which are canonical , as the apocrypha ; yet they do not only allow , but recommend the reading of them , and we find them bound up with their bibles to be there read as well as the rest . i make no doubt but that if the legates had dared to do it , they would have suppressed the holy books , or at least razed out , or changed all those places that were against them , as the inquisition hath done by many of the ancient authors . how are they who are gone away from us scandalized at such conduct as this ? what shame hath it not brought upon our holy religion ? they cannot look upon us without abhorrence , because we suffer such abominations . expediret ut suspenderentur molae asinariae in collis eorum ▪ ut non scandalizarent pusillos istos . it were expedient that mill stones were hanged about their necks , that they might not scandalize these little ones . this example alone proves sufficiently , that it was a profane and worldly spirit that reigned in this counc●l : it was the same spirit that made them give a ball at trent to philip the second , where it may be said , * that the pope also danced in the persons of his venerable legates . it was also the same spirit that made them give up religion wholly to the popes fancy which is evident by this , because that having made many decrees , they say that they shall be of force without prejudice to the authority of the apostolick see , that is to say , that they shall have place no farther than the pope himself pleaseth , whereby they make the council subject to the pope , which is a devilish heresy , condemned by the councils of constance and basil. the popes did in effect get by this council as well as by the others dispencing both with them , and themselves when they pleased ; as palavicini says , that if the pope should be bound to observe laws , the fountain of his beneficence would be half drawn dry . † se'l papo vuol osservare quelle leggi , il fonte della sua beneficenza asciugarsi per meta . he says in another place , that the council would not bind his hands , who was able to do all things . this worldly spirit is yet farther to be discerned by the ambiguity which they have affected in many places , which shews us that they had oftentimes no other design than to throw dust in our eyes ; they have also forbidden that any body should pretend to interpret , reserving the knowledg of them only to themselves . it is then clear by this account , that there is never any good to be expected from any council which the pope shall call together , or where he or his creatures shall preside , or which shall be assembled in italy ; not only because of the multitude of italian bishops , who would spoil all , but because a council of worthy men would not be there in safety ; for the italians would run to all sorts of excess and violence , rather than suffer that the spiritual empire , which they claim over all other nations , should be taken from them , because they come all in for a share of the plunder : just as we see the inhabitants of barbary are concerned for the preservation of the town and pirates of algier , because they taste of their riches , and have all a share in their robberies . the further insist for the popes advantage , that they have built a great many fine churches at rome , whose admirable structure doth greatly edify believers , and is of it self capable to convert the infidel princes , as palavicini says , * tali opere basterebbeno per render ammirabile la nostra religione alli sguardi di tutti i monarchi mahometani e gentili . such works as these are enough to make our religion be admired by all mahometan and gentile monarchs . he makes religion to consist in these buildings . it is the same thing that they say , who pretend that the fine musick of the churches , the fine ceremonies , and the costly ornaments are capable of converting people . i am bold to say , that if any man be converted by these , he is a fool ; and i know that upon people of understanding , who apply themselves to solid things , and grow in spirit and truth , this hath a contrary effect ; for these things do debauch the mind , and set it on wandering . the enquiry is about seeking god , and finding him in those places ; and it is not the sight of the fine gilding , or the excellent painting of an edifice , nor the hearing of a sweet harmony , but rather the lifting up of our minds above sensible objects , and separating them as much as possibly we can from sense and imagination ; it is the fixing the eyes of our understanding with a religious attention upon that invisible spirit , upon that sun of justice ; and when we do it with that love and reverence that is due to it , we shall never f●ll of seeing and hearing the most delightful things ; we there s●e lumen in lumine , we there also hear that sweet voice that says , my son , thy sins are forgiven thee . but for the fine churches of rome , the popes in building them have built their own house , and these material temples have ruined the spiritual temples of the church , * palavicini does acknowledg it . the fathers were of opinion , that antichrist should one day seize upon the most magnificent temples of the christians , this was the opinion of st. hilary , and of st. hierom , † this last mentions the very rock of tarpeius . therefore the popes ought not to glory overmuch in their buildings , since antichrist shall one day place himself in them . i know not whether other men are of the same mind as i am ; i like well enough to see such fine things as these ; but i confess that i have more devotion in a little church without magnificence or rich ornaments , then i have in such places . i find that my devotion does insensibly divide , and that sense does sometimes carry away a part of my mind , and transport it to sensible objects which do not deserve it , and that my affection is thereby weakened whatever care i take to g●ther it up and unite it . this hath a much more dangerous effect upon the common people , who have no knowledg , and whose religion lies only in their eyes and ears ; they do in horrible manner fasten on these things which are only obvious to their sense , and go no higher . there was much more piety heretofore when the churches were not so m●gni●icent , which in my opinion does more harm than good . dicite pontifices in sacris quid facit aurum ? there was infinitely more zeal in the time of pope zephirin , who ordained that the blood should be consecrated in a chalice of glass : and st. hierom does inform us , that in his time exuperus bishop of thoulouse did consecrate the holy sacrament in calice vitreo & vimineo canistro , in a chalice of glass and a wicker basket. then it was as gregory the great says , that the bishops were of gold , but now their chalices are of gold , they themselves are become wood , ( cum aurei ess●nt sacerdotes , calices habuerunt ligneos ; nunc cum lignei sint sacerdotes , calices volunt habere aureos . ) that is to say , within , for witho●t they want no gold , it is only the gold of the true faith which they som●time● w●nt , but they look upon that as a small matter . ‖ having then proved , as i h●ve done , that the popes are good for nothing , that they are the cause of the churches desolation , and of the damnation of so many millions of souls which daily perish , as well by heresy as by ignor●nce and vice , the●●●●main● nothing more for me to prove , but that it is the indispensible duty of christian princes , who are the protectors of the faith , and to whom god hath committed the defence of his church , to deliver this same church from the papacy that destroys it . this is what they owe to god , to the church , to their subjects , to themselves , and also to húman society . in regard of god , we know that princes were commanded under the law to take care that nothing should be received against the pure service of god , and we also see that good kings , as josias and jehosaphat were so careful in this point , as to depose the high-priests themselves , who were instituted by god , which the popes are not . and now under the gospel they are the guardians of the two tables of the law , as the * council of paris says , so that whether the discipline of the church be augmented or delayed , god will call kings to an account for it , to whose care he hath entrusted it ; and according to this the emperours did depose the b●shops of rome as well as others , when they neglected their duty . leo the first , bishop of rome , does not deny it , when he wrote to the emperour in those times . debes incunctanter advertere , regiam potestatem tibi non solum ad mundi regimen , sed maximè ad ecclesiae praesidium esse col●atam . you ought always to r●member , that the regal power is g●ven to you , not only for the government of the world , but chiefly for the safeguard of the church . as for the church , if they are the protectors of it , as they ought to be , and without doubt are ; if the church be trod under foot , if ambition , luxury , and ignorance seize upon the ecclesiastical ministry , if the bishops neglect their duty , are incapable of teaching , and look after nothing but spoiling and turning all to their own particular profit , if they will make the church a den of thieves , if they sell holy things , and keep the price to themselves , shall not princes punish such villanies ? shall they bear the sword without being able , even for the good of the church , to make use of it against the popes , who do all these things ? † it is in this , says st. austin , that princes are well pleasing to god , in doing those things which none but kings can do ; in hoc ergo serviunt domino reges , cum ea faciunt ad serviendum illi quae non possunt facere nisi reges . according to this they did heretofore depose the popes , they made them give an account of their faith , they did assemble councils , authorise their decrees , and made them be observed ; and the popes cannot alledg any treaty made with princes , nor any prescription ; for there is no prescription against the service which we owe to god , nor no agreement which can bind the hands of princes when it is against the good of the church ; for if at any time they have surprised princes , taking advantage of their ignorance or weakness , it is then a greater crime to observe these treaties which are against the glory of god and the good of the church , than it is to violate them . here the saying is true , that interdum scelus est fides . no man whatsoever ought to have his hands tied by any treaty from advancing the glory of god as much as he is able by lawful means . nor are princes less obliged for their subjects sake , to do their utmost endeavour to extirpate the papacy , for they are the preservers both of religious and civil society , being the heads both of the one and the other in their own dominions . it is on this account that they receive their tribute , and for this end were they by god ordained , that we might live in peace and quietness in all godliness and honesty . and there is no subject but may demand it of his prince , that he would enfranchise him from the tyranny of the pope , or else let him renounce the right which god hath given him over him ; for the prince hath no right to give his subjects over to another , and at the same time to reserve his own power over them upon any pretence whatsoever , this is against nature and the law of nations , but he ought to defend them against all oppression , of either foreign or domestick enemies . now the whole world knows that the popes for many ages past have dealt unworthily , as well by the subjects as the persons of princes they have smitten whole kingdoms together with their anathema's , they have drained them by their indulgences , they plunder them by their dispensations and by their annates , they make them stoop to them by their bulls , and oblige many of them to take oath● of obedience and of fidelity to them , and have in many places destroyed a world of people with the torments of their inquisition . they may well apply to themselves this saying of tacitus ; subje●tos nos habuit tanquam suos , viles ut alienos . princes are f●rthermore for their own ●akes obliged to abolish the papacy not only as they are members o● the church which is oppressed by it , but beca●●e that they are god's vi●egerents they ought to acknowledg none 〈◊〉 the great god above 〈◊〉 , who is the only king of kings and mon●●ch of monarchs . th● p●p●● have no more right to call themselves so , th●n those mad men ●h●t say they are som●times god , and sometimes kings of france 〈◊〉 he who und●r th●● p●●●●nce attempted ag●inst the life of h●n●y 〈◊〉 f●●●th . † s. op●●● ●ays very w●ll ; cum super imperatorem n●n 〈◊〉 nisi so●us 〈…〉 imperatorem , dum se donatus super imperatorem extollit , jam quasi hominum ●xcesserat metas , ut se ut deum , non ut hominem aestimaret . there being none above the emperor , but god who made the emperor , seeing donatus lifts himself up above the emperor , he hath passed beyond the bounds of men , that he might look on himself as god and not as man. at this day the bishops of rome have this right as they pretend , to fling down kings from their thrones , as a fowler shoots down a bird from the branch of a tree . they are masters of all the kingdoms of the world and can give them to whomsoever they please ; they not only say so , but do it ; they have done so by england , france , and navarre , they have done so by the east and west indies , which they have shared between the spaniards and the portugals , having outed the lawful princes . they have dealt thus with many other states , and are still ready to do the same thing again . it is then the interest of princes for many respects that this tyranny should be abolished ; since as the fathers say , they have none but god alone above them , they ought not to depend upon these scoundrils . it is a thing unworthy of their majesty , and contrary to their soveraignty to be under the yoke of any man living . it signifies nothing to say that they are so only for the spiritual part , for that is yet less to be allowed of . jesus christ hath reserved that to himself ; and they suffer the church to be undone by their sluggishness and hinder those who are gone astray from it from being converted , nay , they destroy the very popes who damn themselves in the foolish opinion which they have of their power ; they must be cured of their presumption , and have good done them whether they will or no , as we do to children , a communi ed a fanciulli convien fare il loro bene senza lor voglia . it is fit to do good to the common people and to children , tho it be against their will. pope marcellin did not believe it possible , that a pope could be saved , nor did pius the fifth think otherwise . people do not consider that it was for the sake of the temporality that the popes have invented the spirituality , and that without the one , they would not trouble themselves with the other , as is apparent to the world ; for what shall we call temporal if the annates are not ? and the mony for dispensations , the oath which the clergy take to the pope , the oath which kings take to the holy see , that is to say , to the papacy , and so many other acts of the basest submission of princes ( some of which do even border upon idolatry , as the kissing the slipper of these wretched creatures ) and so great a superiority of the popes , that princes are become wholly contemptible ? for my part , i wonder that those , who have heard of jesus christ and his gospel , do not condemn this pride to the severest punishments . no man that had the least fear of god would ever be pope to act so horrible a part , not to mention the disorders of the church , and the destruction of so many souls that shall be imputed to him . * princes then ought not to defer their endeavours of freeing the church from this monster , and at the same time to deliver themselves from tyranny , and not suffer these strangers to rob them of their subjects , and as they owe this to themselves , they owe it also to human society ; for they are also obliged not only to punish those who injure their own persons or their subjects , but likewise those crimes which do not touch themselves in particular , but yet notoriously violate the laws of god , of nature , and of nations , or of the church , or of the authority which god hath set over his people . i demand whether the popes are not guilty of these crimes , they , who , under the title of vicars of jesus christ , which they insolently assume , have cast the church into the most deplorable desolation , and have ravaged all christian kingdoms ; who authorise all sorts of vice and disorder both in the church and in the world , dethrone kings the anointed of god , tread upon the necks of emperours , dispence with the oaths of allegiance in their subjects , dispence with the laws of god and his gospel , hinder christians from reading the holy scripture without which we cannot be christians , and unmercifully murther men for their religion by their inquisition ; ought it to be questioned whether such people as these should be exterminated ? † pope innocent himself and many others are of opinion , that we may destroy those that sin against nature : ‖ and st. augustin says , opinantur scelera facienda decerni , qualia si quis terrena civitas decerneret , genere humano decernente fuerat evertenda . * seneca hath also a fine saying upon this ; si non patriam meam impugnat sed suae gravis est , & sepositus a meâ gente suam exagitat , abscidit nihilominus illum tanta pravitas animi . in fine , no man can doubt whether those who curse their father and mother and tread them under their feet , or those that live upon humane flesh , or pirates upon the sea without commission from any prince , ought to be extirpated , and whether all princes have not a right to destroy them if they can ; i maintain that the popes do all this and worse , i have already shewed it in what i have related . but besides all this , what can a man think of these men , who call themselves their holinesses , which is a title that belongs only to god , and is one of the most excellent of all his attributes ; who call themselves vicars of jesus christ , to dethrone jesus christ from his church and govern it at their own fantasy ; who say that they are infallible and above the councils , that they can open heaven and shut up hell , put out the fire of purgatory when they please , save and damn whom they please , who make themselves be called god and the divine majesty , and cause themselves to be worshipped . i demand whether there be any thing like this in the crimes of others the most vile and miserable creatures , and that which is the most terrible of all , is , that the popes do every day cast down many millions of souls headlong into hell. do not such things as these deserve the vengeance of princes here on earth ? the insensibility and stupidity of christians must be very great , this their lethargy to me appears monstrous , and certainly there must be in it somewhat supernatual ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as hippocrates says of some strange diseases , which are wholly unknown . if the interest of god and his church were here only concerned , it would not be so surprising ; for usually princes seldom trouble themselves with that ; they cry * deorum injuriae diis curae ; but here where they are robbed of their majesty to dress up a pack of rascals with it , where they are made tributary , where their authority is limited , where part of their subjects are withdrawn from them by exemptions and base laws , which make them contemptible as well to those who thus plunder them , as to others who secure themselves under the covert of this tyranny ; it is unconceiveable that princes should have so much patience ; for tho the primacy of st. peter could be proved that he was bishop of rome , and left there his succcessours either as he was an apostle , or a bishop , must , i say , such people as these be his successours , and make all these crimes their common practise , and go still unpunished ? they shall as soon make me worship the devil as believe it . and i really believe , that it would be no hard matter to make them who adhere to the papacy , both receive and serve him . they would soon relish the reasons of the manicheens , who said that there were two principles , the one good and the other bad ; or the argument of those indians , who believed they ought to worship the devil , because he could do them hurt , and that god , being all good of himself , could do them none , and so it is not necessary to adore him . this now looks very amazing , but they who are so much in love with the papacy would soon receive it , if any man of sense would give a little colour to it , and there were good benefices to be hoped for by it , which could not otherwise be obtained ; if they might have fine churches , and re-establish the fine ceremonies of numa pompilius , if their only care might be to divert the eyes and eares of the people with musick and rare shews , as heretofore they did to those miserable jews , who brought their children to moloch , and whilst they burned they played upon all sorts of instruments , and entertained them with the most delightful musick , that they might not hear the cries of their poor children . can we think it strange as things go , that the protestants are not converted ? there would be in my opinion greater reason to wonder if they should embrace the catholick religion whilst the pope should exercise this horrible tyranny ; for i do maintain that there is no man of honour , that hath any modesty or sense of christianity , that can digest this article of the almighty power of the pope , if at least it hath not been riveted in him from his childhood , and he been brought up in this opinion all his life-time without ever making any reflection upon it . but for the protestants , we must never pretend to make them believe that the popes are heads of the universal church established by jesus christ to govern it as it is governed , there is no man of sense will ever be perswaded to believe this . but it may be said that the great truths which the cathol●ck religion teaches , give us so great an advantage over the hereticks , that they ought to make no difficulty of passing over such an error as this to enter into the communion of the church . for my part , i am of opinion , that a man's conversion is a work supernatural , and from the hand of god , who , filling the heart of man with light and courage , makes him overcome darkness and his natural weakness ; and that a true conversion is always accompanied with zeal towards god , and charity towards our neighbour . this being supposed , i maintain that they who are converted by these principles do in effect embrace with their whole heart the catholick truths ; but that their charity and the zeal towards god , which animates them , shall always make them resist and oppose to the utmost of their power all impostures and falsities whatsoever , that they shall chearfully lose their estates and lives , to deliver the church from so miserable a slavery as the papacy is . it is a great unhappiness that the protestants have separated themselves not from the pope , but from the church , and that they have invented novelties to fortify their schism which at the beginning had no other original than the tyranny of the pope ; for without these novelties the church would in all likelihood have joyned with them , because that many people saw clearly the cheat of the papacy , and that it had no foundation , neither in the scripture nor in reason ; but the op●nions which they began then to spread abroad , to which from time to time they added somewhat or other new , ut nemo fit repente turpissimus ▪ put the catholicks out of all hope , and made them continue as they were ; and it were now foolish enough to think our selves in the wrong , to acknowledg that the protestants are right in this article , and that we have not courage enough to get off this abuse and to detest it as well as they , wherein we do great prejudice to our selves , to religion , and likewise to the protestants whom we destroy by it ; for they , seeing that they have reason on their side in this point , cannot believe that we have it in others , and so remain obstinante . for my part , as i am assured that their religion is contrary to the gospel , so i cannot but confess ( and i think my self indispencibly bound in conscience to do it ) that concerning the article of the papacy , they have more reason on their side than can be imagined . but if we find that we have too little courage or strength to undertake to abolish and utterly destroy this monster , we ought at least to endeavour to send him home to rome , and secure our selves from all the mischief he is able to do us , and not to endure any more his approaches . i say this only to prevent the objection which people make , that it is extream difficult to bring about such an enterprise ; that this great machine is so well joyned together , this babel hath so many props and arches , that they who should undertake to pull it down would be in danger of being swallowed up in its ruins . mille annorum fortunâ disciplinâque compages haec coaluit , quae convelli sine convellentium exitio non potest . it would ever be a glorious thing , both before god and men , to undertake so great a thing , tho it were without success . but i do not think the danger so great as people imagine ; for i am perswaded that this work doth not exceed the strength of any great , vigorous and zealous prince who would manage the thing with prudence . i own that no prince can undertake such a work , who is not assured that his neighbours shall not oppose him , and that his clergy and people shall not be against him : as for his neighbours , he may easily know their disposition both as to their will , and the means they have either to assist or hurt him . and for the clergy , the contrivance should be to let them peaceably enjoy their benefices , and to make them understand their rights ; that according to the gospel all bishops are equal , and that they owe to the pope no more than to any other of their fellow brethren , that the popes have usurped over them the authority which they assume to themselves of giving bulls , and the oath of fidelity which they exact from them , and that these things overturn the gospel ; and that for the oath , if they have taken it to the pope , it is null in it self , being against the law of god , as st. austin says , si ad peccatum admittendum fides adhibeatur , mirum est si fides appelletur . and for the people , they must be gently used and made to understand , if they are capable of reason , that all the popes of rome , as well as other bishops , have authority only in their diocess , according to the gospel and ancient canons ; that the authority which they exercise , serves for nothing else but to make them masters of the whole earth , and turns to nothing but their particular profit : they must also be shewed the disorders which this power hath caused both in the church and in the world , as i have represented it in some places of this work. if once the people were made to comprehend this , the monks could never do any mischief ; for they are dangerous only among the people whom they govern , provided they do not come nigh princes . this being done , a potent and prudent prince would easily perswade other princes all that i have said of the papacy , of its uselesness , of the mischiefs it hath caused in the church and in the world , of the shame which it draweth upon them by keeping them always under the yoak , of the damage which it causeth to their estates , of the danger they are continually in depending upon the popes humour , who can excommunicat● them when he pleaseth , of the account they will have to give to god for so many souls that perish , as well catholicks as hereticks , the one by ignorance , and the others by the obstinacy which the papacy causeth ; and that religion hath no connection with the papacy , that we should be more catholicks than we are if there were no pope , and that the church would be aristocratically governed , as in the first centuries by the way of councils . there is no prince who hath common sense , but would joyn with another truly catholik prince that would propose this ; and by this means we should soon see the prophecy of the revelation fulfilled , * which says , that the kingdoms of the world are become the kingdoms of our lord , and of his christ , and he shall reign for ever and ever . but , say they , the king and the bishops have ‖ sworn fidelity to the holy see. i answer with st. ambrose , † that it is ever unjust to observe an oath made against god or our neighbour : and st. augustin said above , that if an oath tends to a crime , it is contrary to faith to keep it . i have proved that the papacy is a mystery of iniquity ; and that so princes as well as others would make themselves the instruments of the popes crimes , of their sin against god , and of the ruine which they draw upon the church . seneca says very well , si in omnibus obediendum est patri , in eo non est obediendum , in quo efficitur ne pater sit ; tho we ought in all things to obey our father , yet he is not to be obeyed in those things wherein he ceaseth to be a father . the reason then is much stronger , that we ought not to obey a common high-way-man , who hath deceived and seduced us to make us complices of his crimes . when a vow or an oath is lawfully made , yet where the thing vowed , or the oath taken doth hinder a greater moral good , orthodox divines are of opinion that the oath is null , because that we owe to god a progr●● in well doing so that we cannot deprive our selves of the liberty of making this progress : besides , every oath of a christian hath this understood , provided that this be to the greater glory of god , edification of our neighbour , and our own salvation : so that quod propt●r charitatem fit , non debet contra charitatem militare . that which is made for charity 's sake , ought not to militate against charity . the lawyers say , that sacra alienari non possunt ; holy things cannot be alienated . and what is there more sacred than the zeal with we ought to have for the glory of god , for the propagation of the faith , and the spiritual good of the church ? so that there is no oath , treaty , nor agreement , but ought to give place to the good and safety of the church , and the salvation of our souls . this is l●ke the oath which pirates or robbers on the high-way force them to swear whom they take prisoners , who , to save their lives , promise to be faithful to them , and to t●em what service they can ; the lawyers do maintain that these oaths are not binding . * a piratis aut latronibus capti , liberi permanent . qui a latronibus captus est , servus latronum non est , nec postliminium illi necessarium est . it is an undisputable maxim non posse deum obligare creaturam ad non obediendum sibi . the lawyers also say , that a man cannot renounce the right he hath to defend himself which is natural , much less a prince . thus there is no reason divine nor humane , but doth indispencibly ingage princes to renounce the papacy , and to re-establish the church in that liberty which jesus christ hath left to it . but as for the papacy , it is like the ancient idols of paganism , which , when the christians did renounce , they kn●w well their vanity , when they examined into the thing , but they still reserved a certain tr●mor fatuus & lepori●us , fear and impli●i●e respect , as gers●● says , for them ; because that from their infancy they had their minds greatly a●●ected with the power of these idols . it is just the same thing with us and the pope ●er still idolum nihil ●st in m●●do . and i am perswaded that we should have a great deal of difficulty before we could turn him briskly away . it were to ●e wished that he would do himself justice , and give glory to god ; but what li●●lihood is there of that ? they will always ke●p the titles of h●ad and spouse of t●e church ; if they would be contented with the latter , there might be found out a way to be rid of them , which would be for the french church to give them once for all the same portion , as p●ilip the second gave to his eldest d●u●ht●r , wh●n he married h●r to the duke of 〈◊〉 he gave her a cru●i●●x an● an i●age of our la●y , but upon cond●tion , that he sh●uld never h●ar her speak ●f a●y t●ing ●ore , and that sh● sho●l● renounce for ever all other pret●nsi●ns , ●oth f●r her s●lf ●nd all ●●r 〈◊〉 as this princess did ; but if th●y will not ●e the spouse at thi● p●i●c● ; the sure●t way is absolutely to ●reak with th●m , and to ●●nd them to the who●e of babyl●n ▪ l●st a● length g●d c●nsume us als● in thi● 〈◊〉 . finis . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e the design of this undertaking . the necessity of a reformation acknowledged by many of the church of rome . testified in writing by some of their most eminent authors . see the preface to the discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and adoration of the host. the present ! treatise an instance of it . that the author of this book was indeed of the roman religion . the occasion of his first searching into the truth of his religion . that he continued in many things to the last in opposition to the protestants . instances of it . that the ch. of r. is the visible ch. of christ. moyons surs , &c. part . pag. , . edit . de cologne . . corporal presence . ibid. pag. . ibid. p. , . p. . . communion in one kind . ibid. p. , , , . . invocation of saints . ibid. p. . pag. . pag. . his book reprinted by the a. b. of tholouse . see , le jansonist convainca de vaine sophistiquerie , pag. . he is therefore to be excus'd if he sometimes speak against us . the design of his undertaking the conversion of all hereticks . the method he has taken the most likely to do this . cor. iv . · luke i. . the sum of his project . no likelihood that the papists will ever consent to it . what use we are to make of it . ephes. iv . . jude . pet. iii. . notes for div a -e * aeneas silv. in gest. conc. basil. * ●otus orbis se arianum esse miratus est . hieron . * origen in mar. chap. . tract . . ‡ cypri . de simplicitate praelat . * ambr. in epist. ad eph. cap. . † ambr. in psal. . ‖ hieron . in psal. . * idem in mat. . * august . in johan . tract . . * august . de verbo dom. serm. . ‖ chrysost. in matth. . * chrysost. in sermone de pentecost . * gregor . nyss. lib. de vita mosi● . † sal. . tom. . lib. com . in epist. pauli . * cypr. de unitate ecclesiae . † origen . in math. tract . . * st hilary lib. . de trinitate , in the council of ephesus — there is an epistle of the council of alexandria , where are these words , petrus & johannes & aequales sunt ad alterutrum dignitatis . † hieron contra jovian . lib. . cap. . * hieron . in mat. . ‡ august . in joh. trac . . id. in epist. joh. tract . . * august . in joan. tra. . † idem in joan. tract . the . theoph. in mat. chap. . † leo in anniver . die assumptionis suae ad pontif. sermone . † palavicini lib . c. . * marsilius patav. p. , c. . ‡ hierom in math. cap. . * idem in esaiam cap. . * st. amb. cap. . lib. . de cain & abel . † august . in johan . tract . . † aug. in johan . tract . . cap. . st. cyril . in joh. lib. . cap. . * cypr. de unitate ecclesiae . * st. aug. de pastor . idem in sermone de petro & paulo . * chysost . lib. . de sacerdote . st. peter the . c. . v. . . . * conc. basil apud aene. s● . in gestis concil . † acts cap. . v. . * acts . v. . * corin. chap. . v. . † math. . v. . * john . v. . . ‖ gal. . v. , gal. . v. . * origen in numeros , hom. . notes for div a -e * dorot. tyrensis in synopsi . ‡ hierom in matth. cap. . lib. . lyran in petri. (a) caus. . q. . can. rogamus . (a) clem epis. . fratri domini episcopo episcoporum , &c. * lib. . recognitionum ubi petrus . (b) iren. apud eusebium , lib. . cap. , & . (a) cusan lib. . cap. . * amb. de incarnatione c. . (b) cyprian in conc. carth. sive de sent. episcoporum . (b) cyprian lib. . epist. . (c) id. ep. . (d) idem de aleatoribus . (e) idem ad puppienum . ep. . (f) idem in epist. . (g) in conc. africano , art. . (h) concil . ●icen . can. . (i) cusan de co●cord . catho●icâ , lib. . c. . (a) concil . antioch . c. . concil . calcedon , act. . concil . constant . c. . (b) theodor. lib. . c. . (c) euseb. hist. eccles. lib. . cap . (d) theod l. . cap. . (e) cod. theod . l. . tit . . cap. . (f) greg nazianz ep. . (a) concil . milevitan , cap. . (b) concil . africanum . cap. . (c) concil . constant. c. . can. . (d) concil . nicen , can . . * hierom in epist. ad evagrius . (a) st. chrys. hom. . in matth. (b) greg lib. . ep. ad maurit . imperat. (c) idem lib. . ep. . ad anastasium antiochen . * st. aug. in li cont . donat. post collat. c. . ‡ leo in epist . . ad episc . viennensis provinciae● contra hilarium . * epistola episcoporum germaniae & galliae , contra anastas . secundum , sub clodoveo magno , apud aventinum in collectaneis . † concil constant . can. . † conc. antio . can. . * concil . calcedon , act . ‡ conc. turin , c. ● . ‖ sigon . lib. . de regno italiae . petrus damianus , in epist . ad hildebrandum . * vasaeus in chronico hisp anno christi , rodericus arch. tolet. lib. . cap. , & . * historia concil . gallic . concil . leptinense ad annum , in praefat. ‖ beda in tractatu de sex aetatibus mundi . ‡ epiphanius haeres . ‖ tacitus . ‖ tacitus . * platina , sigebert . ‖ platina . ‡ authent . justinian , . cap. . ‖ distinct. . can. in sinodo . ‡ tacitus . † sigebert in chronico . * capitula caroli magni ludovi . lotharii , &c. ‖ concil . rhem. anno . c. . & cap. . ‖ aventin . in boi . hist. * avent . anno . † tom. conciliorum . ‖ at the end of st. gregories works . * see apostolick . (a) tertul. de praescripti ; cap. . (b) pelag. ad valer. in collect . rom. part . p. . (c) st. aug. epist. . (d) apollin . lib. . epist. . sidon . apollin . lib. . (e) greg. hist. l . cap. . (f) euseb. hist. lib. . cap. . (g) euseb. hist. lib. . cap. . (h) bishop of bishops . (i) niceph. lib. . cap. . sydon . apollin . lib. . epist. . soveraign pontife . * sydon . apol. lib. . epist. , & . k idem lib. . epist. . (l) lib. . ep. . & lib. . epist. . (m) ignatius ad smirnens . (n) leo epist. . ad afric . (o) fortun. lib. . ep. . (p) epist. cler. rom. ad cypr. de lapsu . . (q) baron . martyr . januarii . (r) these are french livres that are worth english pence a pie●e , l. (s) cardinals in other places besides rome . (t) apostoli dati . cardinalibus per nationem gallicanam , sub carolo quinto . (u) the chro. of the abby of st. jean de vignes at soissons . (x) pasquiet , lib. . cap. . * art. . a humane reason for the papacy . * palavic . lib. . cap. . ‡ aristot. lib. . pol. cap. . ‖ idem lib. . pol. cap. ▪ tacitus . ‡ palav . lib. . cap. . the church hath not establisht the papacy . the papacy never did any good in the world . ‡ cusan de concor . cathol . lib. . cap. . * cusan lib. . c. . & . † gerson de potestate ecclesiastic . * tho. aquin. summa , part . . quaest . . art. , & . * palav . lib. . cap. . * aug. apud gloss. ordin . * arist. lib. . cap. . notes for div a -e † the popes make no unity , there is no unity among them . the popes are wicked men . * palavici . in his history of the council of trent . ‡ palav . lib. . cap. . ‖ ibidem . * gerson . lib. . c. . ‡ complaint● against the pope . ‡ joannes sarisbur ▪ in polycratico . aventinus in oratione archymistae ad proceres imperii . ‡ honor. augustodun . in dial●●o de p●aede●● & libero a●bi●●io . * petrus blesensis in epist. ad quendam officialem . * bernard de cons. ad eugen . l. . c. . ‖ bernard super psalm . v. . ser. , * b●rnard epist . . ‖ apellatio universitat . patisiens . contra leonem . ‡ petrarque in lib. epist. sine titulo . ‡ isid. pel. lib. . epist. . * alv. pelag. de planctu ecclesiae lib. . cap. . ‖ that the papacy is an obstacle unto piety . † of the popes maintaining the exterior vnity . ‡ expence for the conversion of the greeks . ‖ palav . l. . cap. . & . † of the popes making religion to be respected , and accommodating the differences of princes . ‡ m. paris in hist. angliae . the popes have on at this time a disguise , waiting for an advantage . we ought to be always 〈…〉 . † gellius . ‖ horace . * valeri ● max. ‡ st. hier. ‖ petreius chartr . * attempts of the popes of this present age upon kings . † tit. liv. † mezeray in the life of king henry the third , pag. . * the use th● popes make of their tributes . † cicero l. . de officiis . * tacitus . † missions . * bishops in partibus infidelium . † pagans and mahometans also have a head of religion . * palavicin ▪ lib. . c. . lib. ● . c. . † epictetus , cap. . * tacitus . † palavicini , lib. . cap. . * idem . † salust . ‖ tacitus . tacitus . * horace . * innocent extra . de bigamis tit . . c. quia circa . † horrible maxims of italian divines concerning ▪ sodomy in a priest. ‖ navar. quest . . de defensione proximi . * tolet. cap. . lib . de institutione presbyt . * palav . lib. . cap. . † the inquisition . ‖ lib. . * idem . idem . * suarez . in def . fid . cath. c. . l. . n. . * chrysost. l. . de sacerdote . * st. chrysost. to the ephesians , . . * pal. l. . c. . of his hist. of the council of trent . † lib. . cap. . ‖ lib. . c. . lib. . c. . * mat. par. in hist. angl. in hen. . & in lib. de antichrist . of the nuns . * tacitus . † that the popes are hurtful to italy . * tacit. in vità ag●ic . tacit. * of the popes calling of councils . † palav . lib. . cap. . ‖ p. diego laines , lib. . cap. . * council of trent . chrysost. gal. . * palav . lib. . cap. . † introduct . cap. . * palav . lib. . cap. . * malus vos pari●tum amor accepit , malè ec●lesias in t●ctis aedificiis● ; veneramini , &c. † hil. contra au●e●tium . hieron . ad m●rceilam viduam . ‖ 〈◊〉 a●t oblig●d for ma●● reas●●s , to abolish t●● pa●a●● , * concil . paris . † aug. contra crescon . gram. lib. . † o●●●t . lib. . * that the papacy is against humane society . † innocent . c. . quod s●per his devoto arch. flor. . part tit . . sect. . sylvanus in verbo papa sect. . ‖ aug. lib. . de civitate dei. * seneca . de benef . * tacitus , * rev. . . ‖ the oath taken to the pope . † amb. offic. . cap. ult . * paulus jurisiconsultus l. si quis ingenuam § . cod . tit. idem ulpian l. hostes. d. de captivis . a brief history of several plots contrived, and rebellions raised by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes, since the reformation. taken from faithfull historians. wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w a estc r this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a brief history of several plots contrived, and rebellions raised by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes, since the reformation. taken from faithfull historians. wake, william, - . [ ], p. printed for richard wilde at the map of the world in st. paul's church-yard, london : . by william wake. marginal notes. includes advertisement at foot of p. . reproduction of the original in the harvard university library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and 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proofread - andrew kuster text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion a brief history of the several plots contrived , and rebellions raised by the papists , against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes , since the reformation . taken from faithfull historians . london , printed for richard wilde at the map of the world in● st. paul's church-yard . . to the reader . it is strange , that of all men papists should calumniate protestants with treason and rebellions ; were modesty an essential in the complexion of a jesuite , surely they would forbear , or charity they so much talk of , and so little practise , to be found among them . are horrid massacres , villanous assassinations , or poisonings , the effect of charity ? or , is malice inveterate , traducing or lying the fruit thereof ? yet nothing is more obvious in the whole course of history than those diabolical machinations and hellish conspiracies of priests and jesuites , especially within this last hundred and fifty years ; and , generally speaking , princes , and crowned heads , have been most the objects of their fury , and lest the palliation of villany should pass on the weaker sort , and this objection any way obtain , that forsooth most of these contrivances were against heretical princes , excommunicated by the pope and church , and by consequence delivered over to satan , and that the killing of them really was no murther , no more than of wolves or bears . to this i answer , that princes of the same communion , as henry the third of france , could not escape their fatal stab , who never made profession of any other ; and though henry the fourth was first a protestant , and by them constrained to change , nay , and highly indulging them in his latter years , and as mathieus says in his life , to all appearance was devout , i mean in their way ; yet from ravilliac's hand all this could not defend him . we need not long here six , but look on former times , where for five or six hundred years nothing 〈◊〉 been more common , or more lamentable , than the story of several princes , struck with the lightening of the court of rome , and others wholly ruined by the vatican thunder , the consequences being either their own tragical ends , or , at the most favourable , strong and lasting rebellions , which all conversant in history may plainly see ; and so dextrous were they in translating to the other world , that in the very host it self was poison given to one of the german emperours , so that silence to none is a more necessary virtue , especially in this case , than to regular monks and friars , who for several ages have been the very pest and bane of secular princes , acting not only their villanies in the time of the holy war , but in the time of their antipopes also . but to return to our own nation : what barbarities have they not committed ? what impieties have they not been guilty of ? what cruelties have they left unattempted ? and yet with a brazen front daily bespatter protestants , accusing them of what themselves were authours of ; imitating herein the very skum of mankind ; for none shall sooner call another rogue than he that really is one ; in whose mouth is whore and bitch more frequent , than hers that is a common prostitute ? and to proceed : what disorder did they not cause , to plague and pester harry the eighth ? what commotions did they not raise all the reign of queen elizabeth , besides the attempts upon her person ? what divisions did they not nourish all the time of edward the sixth , and in his death had no small share ? how horridly desperate they were in king james's time , appears by their inhumane powder-treason ; how intriguing they were in his cabinet councils is but too sad a truth to relate ; fomenting his humour in the spanish match , a blemish inglorious to his memory , leaving the pallsgrave ( though his son in law ) a victim to the house of austria ; and after by the match with france , how did he embroil his son ! they managing underhand the queen , and she by her powerfull influence did the king ; so that all the mischievous evils of charles the first they , like a mole , wrought under ground , spotting his life with that business of rochell , and the attempt of the isle of rhee , from whence the protestants generally date the ruine of their church in france , and by the rising of the french monarchs since that time has endangered the ruine of the whole protestant interest all over europe , as of late years has been manifestly evident ; and lastly they drew a civil war upon him , though the effects proved fatal , as well to themselves as others , ( priests generally being no reaching politicians ; ) the consequence of which all men here do know : but that which most surprizes is their villany in conclusion ; for when his farther life could yield them no advantage , they then conspired his death ; and to that end was a correspondence kept with ireton and some others , not doubting , he being gone , to have the bringing up of the children , the queen being wholly theirs , and managed to their devotion ; and how fatal this has been i need not farther speak ; and if any are desirous of farther satisfaction , let them read dr. moulin's answer to philanax anglicus , written by an apostate protestant , who found not his account by turning papist , as indeed few of them have done ; a man i must needs say of very good natural parts , though in several things but ill applied them ; and his convers●tion spoke him a gentleman , but withall of a violent and impetuous temper to whatever he took , and unfortunate in most things he projected . i am the longer on this character , because most of our whiffling priests and noisie jesuites have raked for their clamours against protestants about the business of rebellion , for many years last past , out of the dunghill of that book , written not long after the king 's coming in ; so that 't is plain , that by their legerdemain tricks in the parliament army they made them mutinous against their lords and masters ; and in the time of the agitatour's being rampant , meeting , as they say , in putney church , they were very brisk in masquerade among them , several priests , some as troupers , others private soldiers then listed , and though these agitatours were first set up by ireton , yet in process of time they became so unruly , and so beyond measure insolent , that they were by force necessitated to suppress them , and they were the occasion of breaking up that separate party of cromwell and ireton in the name of the army which they had entred into with the king , and by reason of them the king was frighted from hampton-court , making his escape to the isle of wight , which did not long precede his death . now after a lapse of some years his son charles the second , with the rest of the royal family , were restored , and let us take a short view of their transactions under him , where no sooner he was settled , but there came in whole shoals of priests from several parts beyond seas , and ireland , who for several years before had scarce any , and those that were skulking and lying close , was in a little time almost over-stocked ; and father walsh , who was a kind of a trimmer among them , and , to speak truth , an honester sort of a man than most of them were , and willing to introduce the king's authority as well as that of the popes , to that end went over with the duke of ormond ; and being countenanced by him , summoned an assembly in dublin to be held , of the most principal of them , where what a stir he had , and how strangely bigotted those irish understandings were to the see of rome , is by himself at large set forth in his loyal formulary : but one thing which himself notes is not unworthy the recital , the general among them were so strongly possest with some strange catastrophe that was to arrive ( eminently no doubt ) to their advantage , in the year approaching of sixty six , that they generally expressed themselves so averse from complying with the king in those matters , a violent presumption that the firing of london had been for some years in contriving ; and the mention that is made of a plot in the april gazette , — . was put into the heads ( by some rascally priests ) of those poor little rogues that were hangued , one of the main things charged upon them being the firing of the city of london , and what influence their councils had in that prince's reign , is obnoxious to all considering men , by the breaking the triple league by that close alliance between france and england for the extirpation of protestancy out of heretical holland , and no doubt , had it succeeded , out of england also , and the reason why it was not effected , was the parliament's and people's aukwardness to the war ; but notwithstanding they were so not discouraged , but they resolved to go on with their designs still in england , keeping , by the means of coleman and father le chaise , a constant correspondence with the court of france , and so strong was their ascendent with charles the second , that he publishes a declaration for liberty of conscience , by which , as coleman in his letters says , he doubted not the bringing in of their religion ; but this so allarmed the parliament , that they were strangely uneasie and restless with him , resolving to give him no more money untill he had recalled it , which at last with regret he did . this strangely nettled our roguish catholicks , who by this thought their game cock sure ; but being frustrated , used him in their discourses as if he had been a cobler , as pitifull , irresolute , nothing of honour , his word no ways to be relied on , and not worthy of a crown ; and from that day forward plotted his removal , to make way , as they supposed , for a man of honour and resolution , and who would not be balked with any thing of a parliament ; which at the last , as a great many suppose , they effectually did . and now james the second ascended the throne , and how the sceptre by him was swayed , needs no long characterising ; for father petre , with his ghostly associates , managed most things under him , who with that priestly violence so hurried on things , that on him at last the tower of siloam fell , and so weak and ridiculous were their politicks , that they are not worth blurring paper . now to sum up all , it is plain by what precedes , that the several popes and court of rome , in places where they power had , have been most imperious and domineering , and nothing so bloudy , base , or cruel , but by their priests has acted been , not in other countries only but in this our nation too , for since the twelfth year , or thereabouts , queen elizabeth's reign , popery we may compare to an imposthume breeding in the very trunk of this political body , and broke in the year forty two into a civil war , discharging only part , not all the corrupt matter ; and since regathering head , and filling up , about four years ago broke the second time , casting forth filth and corruption in quantity abounding , the stench thereof offending almost all men in the nation , but i do not doubt but our state physicians will use such detersive or cleansing medicines , as well as sanative , as shall not effect a palliative but a real and thorough cure , and that the countrey may be restored to its sound habit of body . now therefore as to the ensuing treatise , it was occasioned by that hero of english jesuitism , mr. pulton , who being strangely nettled at those stinging truths contained in the missionaries arts , challenges the authour to make good his assertion in page . viz that the romanists treasons owned by their popes , and by their great men approved of since the reformation , do far outnumber all the plots and insurrections that the papists , or malice itself can lay to the charge of protestants ; all which notwithstanding have been wholly condemned by the body of our famous divines : to satisfie therefore this savoy champion , and vindicate the assertion aforesaid , the authour of this account with no little pains has endeavoured to give entire satisfaction : but such has the misfortune been of writers protestant , that in dealing in controversies they have to doe with a sort of men , that when they have , yet will seemingly take no answer ; and their last refuge is generally banter and whiffle , if downright railing will not doe the feat . the subject of this treatise is most matter of fact , and the citations , though from their own selves no way unfairly used ; for if otherwise they appear , let them openly be exposed , that all that are impartial may see and judge , whether any thing of passion , envy , or malice , has prepossed the authour , i know 't is natural for men , when they have a bad cause to manage , to be froward and testy , and where they are galled to kick and wince , and instead of arguing closely to the purpose , to seek evasions that may seem plausible , at least to the less refined understandings , which has been the great masterpiece of romish priests and jesuites for many years together ; for by their little witticisms and jokes upon names , they keep up among their party a kind of reputation , not unlike jack pudding's on a stage , they please ( though at the same time delude ) the foolish and gazing people ; and if it happens that one slip falls from a protestant pen , or a citation carelesly passed , that has not proved true , what a clutter have they not made about it , though the main of the subject still remains good . this , as a demonstration , plainly proves the weakness of their cause ; and had mr. pulton but candidly read the history of the last hundred years , he must have acknowledged that this his great challenge was a vain and frivolous motion , and never needed to have given the authour this trouble ; which being done , it 's hoped will be to his firm conviction , and not only his , but any other who have been imposed on by false notions . the truth is , this treatise has been written above this year , but such was the iniquity of the times , that they would not bear , much less permit its then publication ; however it s hoped 't is not too late the world in this point to satisfie , the only scope , design , and end of this discourse . a brief account of the several plots contriv'd , and rebellions rais'd by the papists against the lives and dignities of sovereign princes , since the reformation . in the year a . anno about three years after luther began to preach , was that almost universal rebellion in spain , against the emperour charles the fifth , which lasted four years . three years after , anno the earl of desmond entred into a b conspiracy against our king henry the eighth , and had procur'd a promise of assistance from king francis the first of france ; the articles of which agreement are yet extant ; whereby it appears that the design was , to make the duke of suffolk ( then in france ) king ; but king francis being taken prisoner at the battel of pavia the year following , anno and the duke of suffolk slain , the design fell . the next year the irish rebell'd , anno and murther'd many of the english inhabitants . but c ten years after , anno the pope drew up his bull against k. henry , though he did not publish it till . anno wherein he asserts his authority over kings , to plant and destroy as he sees good ; and then proceeds with the advice of his cardinals to summon the king and all his adherents , to appear before him at rome on a day appointed ; threatening them with the greater excommunication , in case of non-appearance ; and declaring him and his posterity incapable of any honours , possessions , or even of being witnesses ; absolves all his subjects from their oaths of fidelity , and commands them upon pain of excommunication , not to obey him or his officers ; enjoyning all christians to have no commerce with him , all ecclesiasticks to leave the land , and all dukes , marquesses , &c. under the same penalty , to drive him out of his kingdom ; declares all leagues made with him by any princes void , exhorting them to endeavour his ruine with their whole power ; bestowing all the goods of his adherents upon such as would seize them ; commanding all bishops to declare the king and his followers excommunicate , and denouncing the same censures against whosoever should hinder the publication of this bull. this piece of prodigious impudence and vanity would not satisfie the pope , but he immediately set his instruments to work to prosecute the design of his thundering bull ; so that the beginning of the next year this letter was written from paris to one fryar forrest . anno * brother , we behold how the king is changed from a christian to an heretick ; and how he hath robb'd christ's vicar of his rights and privileges , by placing himself in his holiness's seat there , as supreme over the catholick church within the realm . it was the late damn'd assembly of lords and commons furthered his pride , otherwise he could not nor durst not assume it to himself : we have thought of these passages , and do agree , that there is no way to break this tyrant's neck but one ; puff him up in his pride , and let our friends say unto him , that it is beneath so mighty a monarch as he , to advise with parliaments , but to act all in person ; and that it behooveth his majesty to be chief actor himself . if he assumes this , it will take off great blemishes from the nation , which the church holds them guilty of , and doe our business : for then the people ( it being contrary to their laws ) will fall from him ; also the catholick party of his council will be too strong for the hereticks , and then the common sort will be the abler to declare his tyranny . this is to be contriv'd with the church's members , and cautiously , because it is observed that the parliaments of england have hindred the church in most of the kings reigns , otherwise she had held her party better than she does now . you have our convent's hearty prayers for your guide . from st. francis at paris prim● . id. jan. . thomas powell . this letter was found two years after among father forrest's papers , together with an account of vast summes which he had expended for the church of rome and her designs . * but this design not being sufficient , the pope offered england to james the fifth , king of scots , and presented him with a cap and consecrated sword. when that offer of what was none of his succeeded not according to his desires , the same pope paul the d. by his bull of the † year following , absolv'd in general , anno all subjects from their oaths of allegiance , unto heretical kings , princes and states , as they be enemies unto the holy see of st. peter ; all men from the tye of their heretical wives ; wives from their heretical husbands , &c. which was accompanied with a ‖ rebellion in lincolnshire , under the conduct of one mackarel , a monk , to the number of twenty thousand ; against whom the king prepar'd to march in person : but their first fury being over , they embraced the king's pardon , and returned home . but this commotion was succeeded by * another more dangerous , led by the lord lumley , several knights and gentlemen , with most of the clergy : this army in the north consisted of men , well armed , who call'd themselves the holy pilgrimage , and the pilgrimage of grace ; they had the five wounds of our lord , the chalice , and the host , painted in their standard , and the name of jesus upon their sleeves ; their whole pretence was for religion : in their march they took pontefract castle , but were at length appeas'd . but † soon after the same persons raised another insurrection , in which several monks came armed into the field as souldiers , who were taken , and with the ring-leaders of the rebellion executed . ‖ two years after ( if not the next year to the last rebellion , anno for some place it in the year . ) the marquess of exceter , the lord montacute , and his brother , sir edward nevill , and others , enter'd into a conspiracy to depose the king , and advance reynold pool , then dean of exceter , and afterwards cardinal to the throne ; for which , the marquess , lord montacute , and sir edward nevill , were beheaded upon tower-hill . in the year . anno * pope paul the third , not content with his shewing his pretended authority over kings in the two bulls mention'd before , published another in favour of the jesuits , whereby he exempts them and their goods from the power of any but himself ; and commands all princes to swear not to molest the society , or invade their privileges ; and pronounces an anathema against all who will not obey the bull. * two years after this , anno king edward the sixth being settled in the throne , one body , a commissioner , pulling down images by the king's order , was stabbed by a priest , and a rebellion was rais'd in cornwall , humphrey arundell , governour of the mount , with other gentlemen , gathering together ten thousand men , besieged exceter , and reduc'd it to very great extremity ; declaring they would have popery and the six articles restor'd : they fought four several battels with the king's forces , but at last were entirely routed , and their leaders executed . anno yet the next year in † norfolk they rebell'd again , and when the king sent them his pardon they refus'd it 〈◊〉 after which , they took the city of norwich , and fir'd it , beat the marquess of northampton , and were very near defeating the earl of warwick , whose cannon they took , and refus'd the king's pardon a second time , but were at length defeated ; and so were a another party , who took arms upon the same account , that year in yorkshire . there were other insurrections in this king's time , which i will not at present mention , only observe what is confess'd by a late noted authour of the romish church , ‖ that these risings of the laity in such numbers , for their former way of religion , would not have been , had not their clergy justified it unto them . b after this , anno we find that pope paul the fourth , following the steps of his thundering name-sake , when the dyet of the germans at ausburgh made an edict for full liberty of conscience , whereby the protestants were maintain'd in the possession of their church revenues , fell into a furious rage , publickly threatening the emperour and king of the romans , that he would make them repent it ; protesting , that if he did not recall the edict , he would proceed against them with as severe censures as he intended to use against the protestants ; telling all the ambassadors in his court , that he was above all princes , that he expected not that they should treat with him as with their equal , that he could alter and take away kingdoms as he thought good : and one day at dinner , in the presence of many persons of the highest quality , he affirmed , that he would subject all princes under his foot. no wonder then that the same spirit of opposition to princes actuate the members of the church , which possess'd their head in such a degree , that upon the resignation of the emperour c charles the fifth , anno ferdinand his brother was rejected by the pope ; who affirmed , that none had power to resign but into his hands ; and so it belong'd to him to nominate a successor , not to the electors : but he kept the imperial crown , though the pope would never acknowledge him for emperour . with the same haughtiness did he demean himself towards d sir edward karn , the english agent at rome ; who acquainting him , by order from her majesty , of queen elizabeth's accession to the crown , the pope answer'd , that the kingdom of england was held in fee of the apostolick see , that she being illegitimate could not succeed , and therefore it was great boldness in her to assume the government without his leave ; yet if she would renounce her title , and refer all to him , he would act as became his honour . but the queen took no care to satisfie this blustering gentleman , who soon after dyed . * but the pope who succeeded him , anno pius the fourth , issued out a strict bull , commanding all the learned of that church to find out arguments to persuade subjects to break their oaths of allegiance , in favour of the apostolick see ; in order to which , he granted several dispensations to preach among the protestants of england , and to marry , if need were . and the same year his good sons in ireland , by their example , shewed their obedience to it ; * for shan o neale , earl of tyrone , rebelled , but finding himself too weak , submitted and had his pardon , though not till two years after . in the mean while , anno viz. † the next year , the pope's nuncio in ireland joyn'd himself to the rebels , publickly assisting them ; and by his authority pronounced the queen deprived of that kingdom . but the year following , anno though the irish submitted , yet ‖ arthur pool and others , contriv'd to joyn themselves with the duke of guise , land an army in wales , and proclaim the queen of scots : to which , the * following pope afterwards added his endeavours to get our queen murthered , as the writer of his life informs us . but in the mean time , anno that it might not be said of this , that he neglected any thing for the advantage of his supreme power , to keep his hand in ure , † he published a monitory against the queen of navarre , declaring , that if she did not turn romanist within six months , he would deprive her of her dominions , and give them to any that would conquer them ; but the king of france promising to stand by her , his terrible threat serv'd only to shew how ready he was to depose all princes that offended him , if his power had been equal to his will. ‖ and in this year it was that the council of trent made that excellent decree , whereby they confirmed all the canons of popes and councils ; which set the pope above princes , gave him power over them , and exempted the clergy from being subject to them ; thereby endeavouring to depose all princes , who knew themselves and their rights too well to truckle under the usurped power of their supreme head. * but though the pope could not send any sovereign prince of his errand to destroy the house of navarre , anno yet such obedient sons were the cardinal of lorrain , and the rest of the house of guise , that they resolv'd its ruine . to which end they sent captain dimanche into spain , to get assistance , there , designing to fall upon bearn , seize the queen of navarre , the young king , and his sister , and send them to the inquisition in spain , to be proceeded against as hereticks : but this design was discovered , and so came to nothing . but in the same year we are informed by one of the english spies at rome , that the pope granted indulgences and pardons to any person that should assault queen elizabeth , either in private or publick ; or to any cook , baker , vintner , physician , brewer , grocer , chirurgion , or any other calling , that should make her away ; together with an absolute remission of sins to such person 's heirs , and an annuity for ever , and to be one of the privy council , successively , whosoever reigned . † to the endeavours of the pope , o neale likewise added his , by rebelling again , and murthering the english ; committing the most barbarous cruelties imaginable ; anno but his power was broken in a pitcht battel the year following ; notwithstanding which , he continued his rebellion till two years after , when he was stabb'd by alexander oge , whose brother he had slain before . anno but though the rebels had such ill success , anno yet the pope will not be disheartened , but the next year sends one ‖ rodolpho , a rich florentine gentleman , into england , to stir up the people against the queen : to him the king of spain joins the marquess of cetona , who , under the pretence of an embassy , was sent over to countenance the rebellion , and command the forces which the duke of alva should send from the low countries ; in order to which la motte , governour of dunkirk , had come privately , in the habit of a sailer , to sound the ports . rodolpho was furnished with plenty of money from the pope , which he distributed to make a party ; into which they drew the earls of northumberland and westmorland , with others , who , perceiving their plot discovered , submitted , and begged pardon . this design the pope was so zealous for , that he assured the spaniards he would go along with them himself , if need were , and engage all his goods and treasure in the service . nor was this the only design of the pope * at this time ; for in pursuit of his predecessour's bull against her , he advised the queen-mother of france to seize on the dominions of the queen of navarre , because she was an heretick ; offering ( if she approved of it ) by his papal authority to appoint one of the house of valois to be king of those territories ; which if she did not like , he was resolved to give them to the king of spain ; but that prince , knowing they must be won by the sword , declined accepting the pope's bounty . † hitherto the members of the church of rome made no scruple to resort to the protestant churches , anno both for prayer and preaching ; but this year pope pius quintus published his bull against the queen , upon which they all withdrew from any such communion with us . ‖ in this bull the pope calls the queen the pretended queen of england , a servant of wickedness ; affirms that her council consisted of obscure , heretical fellows , declares her an heretick , and cut off from the unity of christ's body ; that she is deprived of her title to her kingdoms , and of all dominion , dignity , and privilege whatsoever , and her subjects absolved from all manner of duty and obedience to her ; and that by the authority of this bull he doth absolve them , and depose her ; and forbidding all her subjects , under pain of anathema , to obey her : with this bull he sends * morton , a priest , into england , to spread this censure , and persuade the people to back it with an insurrection ; upon which , as ‖ surius tells us out of sanders , many persons of quality resolved to execute it : accordingly the * earls of northumberland and westmorland , who were pardoned but the year before , took arms in the north , trampled under feet the english bible and service-book , bearing in their standard the cross and five wounds of our saviour , and being betwixt five and six thousand men , they grew so insolent , that they would give the queen no better title , than the pretended queen ; but the pope being too slow in sending the hundred thousand crowns he promised them , and they at length finding their numbers too small to cope with the queens . army , dispersed , and every one shifted for himself . † the earl of westmorland escaped into flanders , where he dyed miserably ; but northumberland being taken , was beheaded at york ; who was nevertheless looked upon by the romanists as a glorious martyr , and the drops of his bloud kept by them as holy relicks . that this rebellion had no better success , sanders , and from him ‖ surius , give this reason , because the catholicks had not timely notice of the pope's bull : and the same * person informs us , that those that were executed for this treason , refused to the very last to acknowledge the queens authority . among which sanders mentions plumtree , and others , as well as the two earls , who are termed glorious martyrs of the catholicks by bristow in his motives , and several others . to correspond with the pope's intentions in his bull , † ireland puts in for a share this year , where jame fitz-morice , of the house of desmond , and two of the botelers , raised a rebellion ; but the latter being drawn to a submission by the loyal earl of ormond , fitz-morice , after many shifts , followed their example , and was pardoned . but though the two earls and their accomplices had sped so ill , yet * leonard dacres renew'd the rebellion in the north , anno and fought a bloudy battel against the queens forces with great obstinacy , though in the end he was forced to fly into scotland . and now , that the catholicks might no longer remain in ignorance of the queens being deprived of the kingdoms by the pope , one felton this year had the hardiness to fix the bull at the bishop of london's gates ; for which being apprehended , he confessed the fact , and gloried in it , at his death affirming the queen had no right to the throne , being deposed by the sentence of the pope : yet doth † surius affirm , that he dyed a martyr for the catholick faith , justifying the action as done out of zeal for the church , and in obedience to the lawfull commands of the pope : the fame is affirmed by * parsons , † spondanus , and ‖ hilarion de coste , who styles him the valiant soldier of jesus christ , commends his invincible courage and zeal for the faith ; and affirms , that his martyrdom is one of england's most glorious trophies ; though the same person can afford the queen no better a title than the impious and wicked queen the true jezebel of our days : and that all the world may see what they thought of him at rome , no sooner could thuanus affirm that it was a very rash action , but the index expurgatorius commands that passage to be blotted out ; so jealous are they of the honour of this grand traitor . with as great encomiums do we find the memory of dr. story celebrated by the writers of that church : this man was one of the most violent persecutours in queen mary's days , anno for which cruelties being questioned in parliament in the beginning of queen elizabeth's reign , he answered , that he knew no fault he was guilty of , but only that he busied himself in cutting off the branches , while he neglected to pull up the root it self ; which if he had done , heresie had not got up again : for this being imprisoned , he found means to escape into flanders ; but being apprehended and brought into england this year , he rejoiced that he should suffer martyrdom : upon his tryall he declined the jurisdiction of the court , affirming that he was a subject to the king of spain , and acknowledged no lawfull judge in england ; for which he gave this reason , that seeing the pope had declared the queen deprived of her right , he durst not acknowledge her authority , left he should fall under the censures of that bull : and at the moment of his execution , being asked by an earl whether the queen was his sovereign , he replied , she was not ; yet is he reckoned among the martyrs for the romish faith. the next year was that bloudy massacre of paris , anno though contrived two years before , wherein ( it being carried over all france ) above protestants were butchered in cold bloud ; the duke of guise and his party did all they could to have the king of navarre , and prince of conde , slaughtered with the rest ; but they being preserved by the king , the chief design of the papalins in that bloudy action was prevented . but four years after was that desperate confederacy entred into by that duke and his adherents in france , anno which they and the pope afterwards termed the holy league , which had all the parts of a most desperate rebellion ; and continued for so many years , to the destruction of one prince , and infinite vexation of another : it was first begun at * peronne , and afterwards formed into a more † strict union , by which , under a shew of maintaining the king , they took from him all his authority , to confer it upon the head of their conspiracy : nay , the zeal for this rebellious association was so great , that they subscribed it with their bloud ; and in order to the prosecution of what they had there promised , they sent nicolas david , an advocate of the parliament of paris , to rome ; but he being slain by the way on his return , cardinal de pellive afterwards managed their business with the pope . but among the memoirs of that advocate there was found an account of the transaction between the pope and the duke of guise , wherein the design laid down is to pull down the house of valois , then reigning , from the throne , and set up the duke of guise : in this transaction the liberties of the gallican church are called a damnable errour , nothing else but the shift of the waldenses , lutheranes , and calvinists ; and it is affirmed that france shall never prosper as long as the crown continues in that line . the whole platform of the design is there laid down , and the pope is to advance that duke to the crown of france , as the successour of charlemagne ; in consideration whereof the duke is bound to cause the see of rome to be plainly acknowledge by the states of the kingdom , without restriction , or modification , abolishing the privileges and liberties of the gallican church . thus do we find the pope promoting the most rebellious designs , to advance his own usurped greatness . and his missionaries not desiring a better example than that of their holy father , anno in prosecution of his designs cuthbert mayne came into england , dispersing libells to maintain the pope's authority over the queen ; and he confessed under his own hand , that he brought with him several holy grains to distribute among the catholicks , which they should keep as so many preservatives , by the producing of which they should be safe , when the protestants were to be destroyed . in the same business several * others were employed , and one hemford sent over with a dispensation of the pope's bull , whereby the romanists had liberty to yield outward obedience till an opportunity offered itself for the execution of that deposing sentence . and one haydock was employed to prepare things against such a time , and to note the fittest places for landing an army , as himself wrote to allen the jesuite . besides these one paine , a priest , and fifty others , were furnished at the pope's charge , who undertook to kill the queen as she went to take the air. and yet these are the men whom † sanders , in his letter to the aforenamed jesuite , terms chosen vessels . but our countrey was not the onely nation afflicted with these plots and traiterous contrivances ; for about the same time was ‖ sebastian , king of portugal , betrayed by the jesuits to the loss both of his life and kingdom , which they had before engaged to transfer to the spanish king , in which they were as good as their word ; ( though near fifty years since it is returned to the obedience of its lawfull heir ; ) during which war , attempting to deliver one of the isles of the azores to the spaniards , they were discoved , and treated as their wickedness deserved ; but of this more hereafter . the pope's designs upon the queen's life being by the good providence of god frustrated , anno the holy father , anno gregory the th . carried on the projects of his predecessour , ( who had willingly lent an ear to the advice of thomas stukely , an english fugitive , ) and in hopes of getting the kingdom of ireland for his own son , the marquess of vineola , ( where we find , though popes do not marry , yet they can get children , ) created stukely marquess of leinster , adding several other titles , and assisting him with forces and a plenary indulgence , dispatcht him away for ireland ; but by the way being persuaded by the king of portugal to join with him against the moors , he was slain in the battel together with that king. but though ireland was delivered from this danger , yet soon after † james fitz-morice , who was pardoned in the year . went over into france , where he desired assistance to beat the english out of ireland , and reduce that nation to the french obedience , but king henry the third then reigning , having sufficient employment for his forces at home ; fitz-morice addressed himself to the pope and the king of spain ; the former embraced this opportunity , and sent sanders with him as his nuncio , with a consecrated banner ; and the latter assisted them with men and money ; the pope in the mean while raising souldiers in his countrey for their assistance and relief . fitz-morice and sanders , with the spaniards , landed in kerry in ireland , anno and committedall manner of outrages , in one of which fitz-morice was killed by the sons of william a burgh , soon after made baron of castleconnel ; in his place succeeded his brother john e. of desmond , to whom the pope sent an indulgence , dated may . . wherein he highly magnifies the piety of james , laments his death , and exhorts all the nobility , clergy , and people of the land , to follow this john , in fighting against the hereticks for the catholick cause ; and to encourage them in that good work , he grants a ‖ plenary indulgence and remission of all their sins , in the same extent as was granted to those who were engaged in the holy war. and when the spaniards were required by the lord gray , then deputy of ireland , to express their intention in thus invading her majesties dominions , they returned answer , that they were sent from the pope and king of spain , to whom his holiness had given ireland ; for that elizabeth had justly forfeited her title to the kingdom by heresie , that they would keep what they had got , and get more if they could : but in a small time after they were glad to surrender upon mercy , the earl of desmond having been routed before , and allen , the priest , who came with the legate sanders , slain . this ill success put a stop to the recruits the pope was preparing to send after them . sanders dyed of hunger in the woods , and the earl of desmond was slain two years after by a common soldier . and to encourage these rebels , and to excite to more such attempts , this pope gregory the thirteenth , the same year , renewed the bull of pius quintus against the queen : there were five hundred copies of it printed at rome , and the bull it self dispersed over all italy , spain , and part of germany , as is attested by one who was then in the english college at rome * who likewise assures us , that one of their readers in divinity , before above two hundred scholars , affirmed , that it was lawfull for any man of worship in england to give authority to the vilest wretch that is , to endeavour the queen's death ; but that this pope did excommunicate the queen we find in our excellent † annalist , and is acknowledged by the * romish priests in their ‖ important considerations , printed the last year of that queen's reign . but though he pronounced that terrible sentence against her , yet ( as is observed by * one who had been a great stickler for the romish church , ) he dealt a great deal more subtilly , and more dangerously than his predecessour ; for finding the danger the romanists were daily exposed to , by their endeavouring the destruction of the queen , whom they durst not obey , or cease to hurt , for fear of the curses denounced in the bull ; he qualified it in such a manner , that the jesuite hart ( as the lord burleigh tells us ) acknowledg'd , † the bull of pius quintus , for so much as it is against the queen , is holden by the english catholicks for a lawfull sentence , and a sufficient discharge of her subjects fidelity , and so remains in force ; but in some points touching the subject , it is altered by the present pope : for where in that bull all her subjects are commanded not to obey her , and she being excommunicated and deposed , all that do obey her are likewise accursed , which point is perilous to the catholicks ; for if they obey her , they are in the pope's curse , and if they disobey her , they are in the queen's danger : therefore the present pope , to relieve them , hath altered that part of the bull , and dispensed with them to obey and serve her , without peril of excommunication : which dispensation is to endure but till it please the pope otherwise to determine . here we have a plain confession of that learned gentleman , ( who is by them termed a * noble champion of christ , and holy priest , one that had taken deep root in the foundations of the faith , and of sound learning , ) that the loyalty of the romanists depends upon the will of man , ( except they will affirm their pope to be more than man ; ) which is a point they have been put in mind of from rome itself , since his majesties restauration , as we shall observe anon . this qualification of the bull was granted to parsons and campion , two jesuites , upon their coming into england , when among other things they desired of the pope , that the bull should always oblige elizabeth , and the hereticks , but by no means the romanists , as affairs now stand , but hereafter , when the publick execution of the bull may be had or made . furnished with this and other faculties , those two gentlemen ‖ repaired into england , setting themselves to contrive a way how to set her majesties crown upon another head : * at first they came in the habits of soldiers , afterward they went about in the garb of gentlemen , and in the north they altered their habits into the vestments of our ministers , preaching there , and being secretly entertained by the popish gentry and nobility , courageously executed their commission ; in discharge of which parsons exhorted the roman catholicks of those parts to deprive her majesty of the crown ; and the way being thus broken , many flocked after them for the same purpose . at this time † mr. sherwin being apprehended , and asked whether the queen were his lawfull sovereign , notwithstanding any sentence of the pope's , he desired no such questions might be demanded of him , and would give no other answer : but the pope well knowing that this generation of sturdy blades would in time be all gone , for the breeding up of more to succeed them , assisted allen in setting up the seminary at doway for english romanists , allowing an annual pension for their maintenance , purposely for to plot and contrive ways to expulse the queen , and demolish the church of england , in obedience to the pope's bulls , † for which end every scholar among them , at his education , took this oath : i a. b. do acknowledg the ecclesiastical and political power of his holiness , and the mother church of rome , as the chief head and matron , above all pretended churches throughout the whole earth ; and that my zeal shall be for saint peter and his successors , as the founder of the true and ancient catholick faith , against all heretical kings , princes , states , or powers , repugnant unto the same . and although i may pretend , in case of persecution or otherwise , to be heretically disposed , yet in soul and conscience i shall help aid , and succour the mother church of rome , as the true , ancient , apostolical church . i farther do declare not to act or contrive any manner of thing prejudicial unto her or her sacred orders , doctrines , tenents , or commands , without the leave of her supreme power , or the authority under her appointed , or to be appointed ; and when so permitted , then to act or further her interest more than my own earthly gain and pleasure , as she and her head , his holiness and his successours , have , or ought to have , the supremacy over all kings , princes , estates , or powers whatsoever , either to deprive them of their crowns , sceptres , powers , privileges , realms , countreys or governments , or to set up others in lieu thereof , they dissenting from the mother church , and her commands , &c. thus by all imaginable ways did this pope provide for the death or deposition of that virgin queen ; anno in order to which he had so possess'd the missionaries with his power to dethrone princes , that it was offer'd to be prov'd to the world , that the priests which were apprehended and executed for treason , * always restrained their confession of allegiance only to the permissive form of the pope's toleration ; as for example : if they were asked whether they did acknowledge themselves to be the queen's subjects , and would obey her , they would say yes , for so they had leave for a time to doe ; but being asked if they would so acknowledg and obey her any longer than the pope would so permit them , or notwithstanding such commandment as the pope would or might give to the contrary , then they either refused to obey , or denied to answer , or said they could not answer to those questions without danger : and at their very arraignment , when they laboured to leave in the minds of the people and standers by , an opinion that they were to dye , not for treason , but for matter of faith and doctrine , they cried out that they were true subjects , and did and would obey her majesty . immediately to prove whether that speech extended to a perpetuity of their obedience , or so long time as the pope so permitted , they were openly in the place of judgment asked by the q's learned counsel , whether they would so obey , and be true subjects , if the pope commanded the contrary ; they plainly disclosed themselves in answer , saying by the mouth of campion , this place ( meaning the court of her majesties bench ) hath no power to enquire or judge of the holy fathers authority ; and other answer they would not make . the very same account , with some other particulars , is given us by the † secular priests themselves , of the behaviour of mr. campion , and the rest ; some of whom being asked which part they would take , if the pope , or any other by his appointment , should invade the realm , or which part ought a good subject to take , answered , when that case happened , they would then consider what they had best doe ; others , that they were not yet resolved what to doe ; and others positively , that if such a deprivation , or invasion should be made for any matter of faith , they were then bound to take part with the pope . nay , so zealous was mr. campion in defence of that rebellious doctrine , that being visited in prison by some gentlemen of * oxford , one of them asked him whether he thought the queen lawfull heir or no ; to this he made no answer ; but when the question was put , whether if the pope invaded the land , he would take part with him or the queen , he openly replied , he would join with the pope , and very earnestly demanded pen , ink , and paper , with which he signed his resolution ; which principle he was so rooted in , that he affirmed in the tower to several * persons of quality , who demanded whether he did acknowledge the queen to be a lawfull queen , or did believe her deprived of her right , that this question depends much on the fact of pope pius the fifth , whereof he is no judge , and therefore refused to answer farther . the same loyal doctrines were vented by several other priests the ensuing year , anno who affirmed under their hands to the commissioners who examined them , that the pope had power to depose princes , and that her majesty was not be obeyed against his holiness's bull , who hath authority to discharge subjects of their allegiance ; which all of them , viz. kerby , cottom , richardson , ford , shert , johnson , hart , and filbee , agreed in , two of them only sheltring themselves with this general assertion , that they held as the catholick church held . johnson particulary affirming , that if the pope invaded her majesty upon a civil account , he would take part with her , but if upon a matter of faith , it was his duty to assist the pope . in which diligence to poison the members of their church , these zealous priests did but follow the example of their holy father , who this very year , ( as mr ▪ gage , agent for the spanish match at rome , informs us , out of the records of the dominican convent there , ) laid out one hundred fifty two thousand pounds , and some odd money , for maintaining his designs here ; of which sixty thousand was allotted to foment disturbances in scotland and ireland ; so very desirous was the pope to regain his usurped power over these nations . and it was not long before the end of all that labour and charge was found to be the murther of that excellent princess , which one † sommerville of elstow in warwickshire undertook to effect , at the instigation of hall , a priest , who finding this desperate young man to waver , and that his resolution was much shaken with the horridness and danger of the attempt , anno advised him to proceed , promising his prayers for good success ; but the design being discovered , sommerville strangled himself , after condemnation . but this was not the only plot which the enemies of england had laid for its destruction ; for throgmorton , * one of sommerville's accomplices , was the same year discovered , having been employed to sound the havens , and procure a list of such gentlemen in the several counties as were disposed to joyn the spanish forces , who were to land under the conduct of the duke of guise ; all which was confessed by throgmorton , before his death . thus we find how vast summs were expended by the pope ; which had the same influence in ireland , where desmond continued so desperately in rebellion , that he swore he would rather forsake god than forsake his men ; but neither the pope's blessing nor purse could protect him from that deserved death which after long wandring in a miserable condition he suffered the latter end of this year . but though the pope could not preserve his rebellious instruments from the just punishment of their treasons , yet he would ( for the encouragement of others ) doe honour to their memories : thus the rector of the english college of jesuits at rome , in presence of all the students , sung a collect of martyrs in honour of campion , of whose treasons we gave an account before ; and his relicks , with sherwin's and others executed for treason , were kept and worshipped by our english papists . and because those positions which were found so usefull for the propagating sedition , anno might ( if trusted only to the missionaries to instill them into the people by their sermons and discourses ▪ ) be in time forgotten , and neither believed nor obeyed ; the romish factors considering that litera scripta manet , to provide against the ill consequences which the fearfulness of the priests , or diligence of the state might produce , by hindring the preaching of the former , caused gregory martin's treatise of schism to be reprinted this year , in which he exhorted the ladies of the court to deal with the queen as judith did with holofernes ; for the printing of which , carter , the romish printer , was executed , and is reckoned among their martyrs . at the same time there was one harper in norwich , ( a great friend of throgmorton's who was executed the year before , ) who though pretending to be a zealous puritan , preaching with great diligence and fervour , kept a constant correspondence with that traitor , among whose papers was found a letter , in which he desired throgmorton to let him know how their friends in spain and london did correspond , * and whether that king continued in his purpose , that the engagers might be satisfied , and have notice ; upon this discovery a pursuvant was sent to apprehend him , but he escaped just as the officer arrived at norwich . and now was discovered a design , in which the pope was particularly engag'd , if we may believe parrie's own confession , who in his travels falling into acquaintance with palmio , a jesuite , told him that he had a great desire to doe something for the romish cause in england , by whom he was encouraged , his zeal commended , and the lawfulness of assassinating her majesty was maintained ; but being somewhat dissatisfied , the jesuite recommended him to campeggio , his holiness's nuncio at venice ; by this means he wrote to pope gregory , informing him of his design , and desiring a passport that he might confer of it with his holiness at rome ; in the mean while he went to paris , where he was animated by thomas morgan , who sollicited the queen of scots affairs , when receiving such a passport as he desired , he resolved to kill the queen , if it were warranted by some learned divines , and he could procure a full pardon for it from the pope . that the first might not be wanting , cedretto , a noted jesuit , and provincial of guyenne , approv'd his resolution , and ragazzani , the nuncio , recommended him to the pope , promising that his prayers should not be wanting for the success of the attempt : with which encouragement he came to london , where he received a letter from cardinal como , wherein the cardinal informs him , that his holiness did exhort him to persevere , and bring that to effect which he had promised ; and that he might be the better assisted by that good spirit which moved him thereto , his holiness granted him his blessing , a plenary indulgence and remission of all his sins , assuring him that he should merit highly by the action , which he terms holy and honourable ; to which the cardinal added his prayers and wishes for its success . this he confessed confirmed his resolution to kill his sovereign , and made it clear to his conscience , that it was lawfull and meritorious ; which redounding so highly to the dishonour of that bloudy church , the whole relation is by the index expurgatorius commanded to be left out of thuanus's history : and well they might ; for as it shewed the pope's inclination to bloud and treason , so it was one of the greatest instances of ingratitude imaginable , parry owing his life to the mercy of this princess , who had four years before , pardoned him , when he was tried and condemned for burglary . but though the divine goodness was so conspicuous in the many wonderfull preservations of that great queen , yet it pleased the all-wise providence to permit the devilish designs of the jesuites to be attended with success in holland , where the renowned prince , william of nassaw , was this year murthered by * balthasar gerard , a burgundian , who confessed that a jesuite , regent of the college of trers , told him , that he had conferred with three of his brethren , who took the design to be from god , assuring him , that if he dyed in that quarrel , he should be enrolled in the kalendar of martyrs . this method of satisfying their consciences with their confessour's authority , was so generally taken by the zealous assassins of those times , that the leaguers in france kept several priests in pay , who daily preached and asserted , that princes ought to be deposed who do not sufficiently perform their duty ; and a bachelour in divinity of the sorbonne maintained in a publick disputation , that it was lawfull for any private man to depose or kill any prince , who is a wicked man , or an heretick : which opinion had so entirely possest the * cardinal of bourbon , that because the king of navarre was an heretick , he had the confidence to tell king henry the third , that if his majesty should dye , the crown would belong to him , and he was resolved not to lose his right : but because these doctrines without force to practise them would prove but empty speculations , the duke of guise had the latter end of this year a conference with the king of spain's commissioners , whereby he associated himself with the spaniards against his sovereign , obliging his party to maintain war against the kings as long as the king of spain pleased . to promote which design cardinal pellevee sollicited the pope for his approbation of it ; anno and when the duke of nevers , declared his resolutions to have nothing to doe with them , unless he had the opinion both of eminent divines , and the pope too , in favour of the undertaking ; his confessour , and monsieur faber , told him , that he ought to take up arms with the leaguers , by which he would be so far from sinning , that he would merit highly , and perform an action very acceptable to god ; and the aforesaid cardinal , with other divines , assured him that the pope approved of it , declaring it lawfull to fight against hereticks , and such as favour or adhere to them , though it were the king himself ; he indeed advised them not to attempt his life , but to seize his person , and force him to promote their ends ; in obedience to which the cardinal of bourbon published a declaration , dated march . . justifying his arms , but professing great respect to the royal person . this pope dying , his successour , sixtus the fifth , was more open in avowing the leaguers cause , and therefore published his bull against the king of navarre , declaring him an heretick , depriving him and his posterity of all their rights , absolving his subjects from their allegiance , and excommunicating all such as should obey him . while this pope was making tryall of his thunderbolts in france , he had his agents privily endeavouring to execute the commands of his predecessour in this nation , for which henry piercy , earl of northumberland , being apprehended , shot himself through the heart during his imprisonment ; he had been pardoned for a former rebellion , and being found a prosecutour of throgmorton's design , became this year his own executioner . but a more formidable , anno because more threacherous and secret , design was managed by some english seminaries at rhemes , who thought it meritorious to destroy the queen ; where one savage was so wrought upon by the persuasions of dr. gifford , the rectour , and two other priests , that he vowed to murther her ; to whom ballard , another priest , joining , treated with mendoza , the spanish embassadour in france , about an invasion ; after which he drew in mr. babington , a rich and well accomplish'd gentleman , who desired that five more might be joined to savage , to make sure work ; * babington affirmed , that several counties in england were ready ; and being assured of assistance from spain , they resolved that the usurper ( so they termed the queen ) should be sent to the other world , assoon as the invaders landed ; * but ballard being taken , babington resolved to effect her death immediately , though divine providence prevented it by his apprehension , who , with the rest of his companions , freely confessed the fact , for which ‖ sixteen of them suffered death . yet did not this deter mr. william stafford , at the sollicitation of the french ambassadour , from engaging in an enterprise of the same horrid nature ; which though he refused to act himself , yet he directed them to one moody , who willingly embraced the motion upon promise of preferment from the duke of guise ; but while he was contriving a way to effect it , stafford discovered all , and justified it to the ambassadour's face , who at first denied any knowledge of it . with the same diligence were the romanists in france driving on their treasonable designs ; for at a council , held by the chief conspiratours at the jesuites college near st. pauls in paris , they resolved to surprise boloign , there to receive the spaniards who should land to their assistance : a plot was laid to secure the king , as he returned from hunting , and another to seize the bastile , assault the louvre , and put the king into a convent ; during which action their word was to be , let the mass flourish ; and the king of navarre was to be cut off by the spaniards ; but these designs being discovered , as also another plot to seize the king in the abby of st. germains , their hopes were disappointed ; in which conspiracies cardinal pellevee , a french man , then at rome , was so deeply concerned , that the king ordered his revenues to be seized and distributed to the poor . but his majesty going from paris , anno they proposed the seizing of the city in his absence , the duke of guise designing to secure the king in the countrey ; and for the exciting those rebellious spirits to some action , the preachers at paris generally vented nothing but sedition , affirming that the king was a tyrant , and an enemy to the church and people ; and when the king sent to apprehend one of these furious leaguers , he retired into the house of one hatte , a notary , where bussy , and his men , fought in his defence against the king's officers , headed by the lieutenant civil : and the sorbonne doctours made a decree , that princes might be deposed from their government , if they did not what became them , as the charge taken away from a negligent guardian . and that there might want no encouragement , the pope presented the duke of guise , the head of the rebels , with a rich sword , thereby declaring his approbation of his proceedings . the same year * sir. william stanley being made governour of deventer , anno and rowland york of zutphen , for the queen , they betrayed both these places to the spaniard , upon which the former beginning to sink in his reputation , lest the sense of his treasons should put him upon thoughts of returning to his loyalty , ‖ dr. allan , afterwards cardinal , wrote to him and his traiterous accomplices , telling them that the queen being deposed by the pope , could make no just war , and all her subjects were bound not to serve or obey her in any thing : and in another of his books he affirms , that god had not sufficiently provided for our salvation , or the preservation of his church , if there were no way to restrain or deprive apostate kings : therefore ( saith he ) let no man marvel , that in case of heresie the sovereign loseth his superiority and right over his people and kingdom . and now we are come to the year eighty eight , anno wherein as the conspirators acted more publickly , having prepared all things ready for their designed subversion of the government , and being aided by that armado of the spaniards , which they vainly thought invincible ; so the divine providence as openly declared against them , notwithstanding their navy was blessed by the famous nun of lisbon , ‖ and the assistance given by the fiery pope , who published his crusado as against the turks , and promised to contribute a million of gold ; to which he added the apostolical benediction , covenanting that the crown of england should be held as feudatary to the see of rome ; and for encouragement to those who should assist his cause , he ‖ gave plenary indulgences to them all ; neither did he stop here , but having provided for the invaders , by securing them of money and heaven , he thundred out his * bull against the queen , whereby he deprived her again of her dominions , confirming the censures of pope pius , and gregory , his predecessours ; commanding all , under penalty of god's wrath , to render her no obedience , or assistance , and enjoining them to aid the spaniards against her ; concluding all with declaring it both lawful and commendable to lay hands on her , and granting a full pardon to all undertakers . to second which bull cardinal allen ( advanced to that dignity the year before ) published a book at antwerp , wherein he enlarges upon the bull , and tells the world , that it was at the vehement desire of some english men , that the pope engaged the spaniard , and appeared in the cause himself . this book is said to be written by one parsons , though it was owned by the cardinal ; and therein it is affirmed , * that the roman catholicks in england were destitute of courage , and erroneous in conscience , or else they had never suffered her majesty to reign so long over them . the way thus prepared , the spanish armado put to sea , while the prince of parma was preparing a great army in flanders , where the ‖ earl of westmorland , and the lord pagit , and sir william stanley , lay with seven hundred english , ready to be transported ; and the hopes of the romanists came nothing short of what was to be expected in men elevated by such great preparations ; insomuch that the * jesuites at rome had appropriated several palaces in london to themselves , and were so sure of success , that they would have had te deum sung in the college church for joy , upon the news of the spaniards being arrived in the narrow seas ; and the secular priests acknowledge the like disposition in the party here † we had ( some of us greatly approved the said rebellion , many of our affections were knit to the spaniard . — in all these plots none were more forward than many of us that were priests . with the same zeal towards the action were the foreign clergy actuated , * among whom johannes osorius , the jesuite , preached two sermons in defence of the attempt , and in commendation of the spaniards for thus fighting against hereticks ; in one of which his confidence of the success transported him so far as to give thanks for the victory ; but he and his party trusted too much in the arme of flesh , they thought themselves so powerfull , that they forgot one that was above them , who made that terrible fleet the scorn of the world , and so protected the just cause of the queen , and assisted her navy , that most of that armado perished in the sea , or were taken , or burnt ; so vain a thing it is to forget and fight against the almighty , who blessed where the pope cursed , and turned the harangues of the thanksgiving-jesuite into three sermons of humil●ation , for so great a disappointment of the papal designs , and the entire destruction of its strongest forces . in the beginning of the year several missionaries were sent into scotland , to get the assistance of the papists there : the lord maxwell actually took the field with a small party , who were defeated : the lord bothwell secretly listed soldiers ; and collone sempill arriving at leith , in order to the design , was seized , but soon rescued by the earl of huntley . yet could not these wonderfull disappointments work any remorse in the papists , who still laboured , by means of the jesuite * holt , and others , to persuade the king of spain to another invasion ; which ‖ parma comforted the romanists in scotland with promises of effecting , and sent them ten thousand crowns to prepare matters against the next spring . as busie were the leaguers in france , prosecuting their intended rebellion with all diligence , * the duke of guise and his council resolved to put the king in a monastery ; in order to which , when he went his usual processions in the time of lent , they designed to seize him ; but being prevented by a discovery , another resolution was agreed on , to secure his person at his return from bois de vincennes , slenderly accompanied ; but failing in this also , the duke of guise came to paris , contrary to the king 's express order , where he was received with great joy , and soon after , his party being numbred , and found considerable , he openly rebelled , barricadoing the streets , and forcing the king to flie , who made his escape with very few attendants : soon after the king of spain sent six hundred thousand crowns to the rebels , and the pope by solemn letters applauded the duke's zeal , compared him to the maccabean heroes , and exhorted him to go on as he had begun ; but here the insignificancy of the pope's blessing again appeared , the duke of guise being soon after slain at blois , and so receiving the just reward of his continued rebellions . thus were the designs of wicked men , who prostituted the holy name of religion to serve their lusts , baffled and defeated , both in their attempts against the incomparable queen elizabeth , and the french king , as also in * a plot against the k. of navarre , which by the same divine providence , was this year discovered . but the scotch papists were so possessed with spanish promises , anno and influenced by their gold , and the persuasions of ‖ holt , creighton , and other jesuites , that several noblemen conspired to seize the king ( afterwards king james the first of england ) at his palace in edinburg , where huntley coming before the others , was upon suspicion apprehended , which terrified the rest ; but being set at liberty , joined himself to the earl of crawford , and others , in open rebellion , entred aberdeen , but were so terrified by the approach of the royal army , that they retreated , were taken , and after tryall imprisoned . and here i find such an account of the conversions made by the jesuites in scotland , as fully confirms the observation made before of their design , in their diligent endeavours to make proselytes ; for mr. bruce , the chief agent for the spaniards , in his ‖ letter to the d. of parma , commending the zeal of the missionaries in scotland , tells him that they had converted the earls of arroll and crawford who were very desirous to advance the catholick faith , and spanish interest in this island , and resolved to follow entirely the directions of the fathers jesuites ; whence it appears their main design is to enlarge their empire , for as the same gentleman affirms , † no sooner any person of quality is converted by them , but they forthwith encline and dispose their affections to the service of the king of spain , as a thing inseparably conjoined with the advancement of true religion in this countrey ; so that by the confession of this great man , popery and treason were inseparable at that time ; the romanists being so in love with it , that they made their address † to the broken fleet of the spaniards the last year , to land what forces they had , several great persons being ready to receive them . and the two new noble converts wrote to the duke of parma , testifying their entire devotednes to the spanish interest . nor was scotland alone thus infected ; for in england the † earl of arundell was this year tried , and dyed in the tower , who rejoiced at the spaniards coming , prayed for their success , and exceedingly grieved at their overthrow : and the jesuite parsons prevailed to have a seminary , wherein to instruct youth in such treasonable principles as his own , founded at valedolyd . but though this island was sufficiently pestered this year by the papal agents and factours for rebellion , yet were we favourably dealt with , in comparison of the treasons and insurrections in france against henry the third , a prince of their own communion , who , after the death of the duke of guise , was opposed by an almost universal rebellion , † the priests calling on their auditours to swear to revenge the duke's death , and railing with all manner of virulency against the king ; insomuch that father lincestre affirmed , that if he were at the altar , and the eucharist in his hand , he would not scruple in that very place to kill him . the rebels styl'd him tyrant , & heretick ; * and to have his picture , or to call him king , was crime enough to deserve death ; they threw down his arms and statues , and practised all sort of magick , incantations , and charms , to hasten his death . ‖ the parisians wrote to the pope , desiring to be absolved from their allegiance , with several other requests of the same nature ; and in their * letters to the cardinals styled their sovereign , the late king of france , and sent agents to rome , giving them , among other instructions , orders to desire the pope not to entertain or hear the king's ambassadours , and messages , and to excommunicate all that join with him , and having chosen the duke of mayenne for their general , would have had him take the title of king , but he refused it ; yet they broke the king 's great seal , and made a new one . to these the city of lyons joined , affirming that kings ought to be resisted , and they will resist the king in conjunction with the holy union , to whom the parisians sent a letter , exhorting them to defend their religion , &c. against that prodigal , perjured , cruel , and murthering prince ; the duke of mayenne refusing to have any peace , or admit so much as of a truce , and prosecuting the war with the utmost vigour . to these attempts and perseverance in them they were encouraged by the sorbon doctours , who in a decree made jan. . . * resolved , that the people were freed from their oaths of allegiance and fidelity , and that they may legally , and with a safe conscience , take arms for the defence of the roman religion , against the wicked counsels and practices of the king. which decree they ordered to be sent to the pope for his confirmation ; and this they affirm was concluded on and resolved by an entire consent of the whole faculty , not one dissenting . and with the same zeal , and no more loyalty , they licensed † a book , which asserted that the king ought to be assassined ; affirming , that there was nothing in it contrary to the roman church : to promote which they concluded that the king ought to be no longer prayed for , declaring all such of the body as should not agree to this , to be guilty of excommunication , and deprived of the prayers and privileges of the faculty . and that there might remain no badg of royalty to put them in mind of their duty , the cordeliers struck off the head of the king's picture which was in their church , and the jacobins defaced those in their cloisters : but this was done after the pope had once more publickly owned the rebels and their cause , who by his bull asserted his power of rule over all kingdoms and princes of the earth , proceeded to admonish the king , to release the cardinal of bourbon , and archbishop of lyons , in thirty days , and within sixty days to make his submission to his holiness for the death of the cardinal of guise , or he would proceed to absolve his subjects from their allegiance ; which so pleased the leaguers , that they reported stories of * god's immediate judgment against the opposers of this thundering bull. but the king's army pressing the parisians , and having reduced them to the last extremity , they found an instrument for their purpose ; who was so wrought upon by the fiery preachers , that he resolved to kill the king : he was a jacobin friar , and confessing it to father bourgoin , prior of the convent , he encouraged him in it , telling him he should be a saint in heaven , and accounted an holy martyr by the church ; which so emboldened him , that with a knife , given him by that father , he stabbed the king into the belly , and was himself slain upon the place . this jaques clement was accordingly honoured by the clergy of the league , as they had promised , his picture was made , and shewed publickly , and they were about setting up his statue in the churches instead of the king 's , and pared off the very ground where he was slain to preserve as relicks ; and several divines preached and wrote in his praise , compared him to ehud , and affirmed he had done a greater work than judith . the cardinal de montalto rejoiced at it , and the pope made a long oration in its praise , and decreed that no funerals should be celebrated for the king. immediately upon this murther the leaguers at paris would have made the duke of mayenne king , but he declining it , they proclaimed the cardinal of bourbon by the name of charles the tenth ; and the parliament of tholouse commanded all the bishops within their churches to give thanks to god for this deliverance ; and that the first day of august ( on which the king was slain ) should be kept for ever in remembrance of that action ; and that their rancour against the king of navarre might the better appear , they forbad any to accept him for their king. and not the leaguers only , who had been in open rebellion against henry the third , but the roman catholicks of his army , refused to obey him any longer , unless he would become a romanist ; nay , there were many of that party found , who absolutely renounced him , and joined with the rebels , some few only remaining loyal ; by which defection of the greatest part of his army , he was forced to raise the siege for his own security . things standing in this posture , the pope , fearfull lest any rebellion should be prosecuted without his assistance , sent a legate into france , with great summes of money for the leaguers , who was accompanied with bellarmine , afterwards cardinal , and a famous defender of the deposing power . to encourage them farther , anno the king of spain by his declaration exhorted all to join with him against the hereticks of france , protesting he designed nothing but the advancement of the catholick religion , and extirpation of heresie : and the parisians were so poisoned in their principles , that the city being straitened by the king's forces , and provisions failing , they threw several into the river , for murmuring at the hardships they endured . about this time the cardinal of bourbon , their pretended king , dyed ; upon which the states were summoned to meet for the election of another ; and for the encouragement of the people the legate ordered a procession of all the religious orders , who , to shew their zeal , marched in order , armed like soldiers , the bishop of senlis leading them , and their relicks carried before them ; at which the cardinal legate was present in his coach ; and the parliament forbad any , upon pain of death , to talk of any agreement with the king ; in which madness the parliament of roan had led the way , who decreed , that whoever joined with the king should be guilty of high treason , and put several prisoners to death , only because they were the king's servants . nor could all the prodigious straits to which paris was reduced , incline that headstrong people to obedience ; the famine was so great as no age can shew the like ; all eatable things were devoured , and but one little dog to be found in all the city , which the dutchess of montpensier kept for her self , and refused two thousand crowns only for its brains ; yet was the rebels obstinacy as great as ever , accounting those who dyed of famine martyrs , and continuing as intent upon the war as in their plenty ; but finding force not successfull , they again employed assassins , of whom two franciscan friars and a priest were seized by the king at st. denis in a secular habit , who confessed there were three and twenty more , besides themselves , who had sworn the king's death ; at length the city was relieved by the duke of parma's army , and the king raising the siege retired . but as we have not hitherto found a plot without a priest in it , so they contributed all they could to the vigorous resistance which the leagues made ; ‖ for the doctours of the sorbon finding some propositions spread about the city , importing , that henry of bourbon ought to be king , and that the pope hath no power of dominion over sovereign princes , presently condemned them ; which decree was confirmed by the legate , and sworn to by the bishops and curates . but not content with this , the same faculty , on may . this year , decreed by an unanimous vote , † that all catholicks by divine law are forbid to admit any prince that is an heretick , or a favourer of hereticks ; that if he should procure an absolution for his heresie , yet if there be evident danger of his hypocrisie , he is by divine law to be rejected : that whosoever endeavours that he should be king ought to be opposed : and then they apply all to henry of bourbon , affirming , that there is evident danger of hypocrisie , and therefore though he should obtain sentence of absolution , yet the french are obliged to keep him from the crown , and abhor the thoughts of making peace with him : that those who favour him are deserters of religion , and remain in continual mortal sin ; but such as oppose him every way they can invent , do merit very both of god and man ; and they who are slain in the cause , are to be reputed champions for the faith , and shall obtain an everlasting crown of martyrdom . and soon after they ‖ renewed this and their former decrees ; and when the city was so very much straitened , they wrote a letter to the pope , complaining that his legate had not proceeded with severity enough against the king , commending bourgogn , and other rebels , who were executed , calling them maintainers and defenders of the truth ; and earnestly supplicating for assistance from his holiness , who , besides what power he exerted by his legate , sent them * fifty thousand crowns for a supply . thus they went on with an excessive spleen against the king in france , but the jesuites attempting to doe the same things in † transilvania , were expelled the countrey ; yet in scotland their designs went on , from whence william creighton , the jesuite , went into spain , into whose king he so insinuated himself , that he resolved to be guided by his advice , both for the invading england , and the alteration of religion in scotland ; which was the account himself gave of his negotiation by a message to the earl of huntley , desiring as many blanks and procurations as could be had of the scottish noblemen , for the greater credit of his agitations . in the mean time the duke of mayenne solicited the pope and spaniard for aid , anno and entred into an obligation with the duke of lorrain , and others , not to admit any to the crown except he were of their family ; but if they failed in that , to exclude all , who were not of the roman catholick religion : but the leaguers drew up a letter , and sent it to the king of spain , affirming that it was the desire of all the catholicks to see his catholick majesty sway the sceptre of that kingdom , and reign over them ; or that he would appoint some of his posterity , offering the crown to the infanta isabella , that king's daughter , in particular : and to make all sure within themselves , they contrived a new oath , whereby not onely the king , but all the bloud royal were excluded from the crown ; and set up a court of justice to proceed against the royalists . in which rebellious actions they were encouraged by the pope , greg. . who sent a nuncio into france with two bulls , one interdicting the clergy , if within days they forsook not the obedience and part of the king ; and depriving them of all their benefices , if they left him not within thirty days ; the other threatening the nobility , and all others , with the papal curse , if they assisted that heretick , persecutour , excommunicated person , who was justly deprived of his dominions ; which were the mild expressions with which this meek servant of servants treated that great prince : and farther , to shew his fatherly care of the rebels , he sent an army to their relief , under the command of his nephew , and allowed them fifteen thousand crowns a month ; whose steps were followed by his successour , innocent the th , who remitted them fifteen thousand ducats every month of his popedom , which was but short ; for he sate not much above eight weeks in that chair . yet were not these designs of the leaguers , and mayenne , sufficient to content the pope , but the young cardinal of bourbon hoped for the crown , and so formed another party of seditious persons , called thirdlings , among whom was perron , afterwards cardinal ; and this faction also had the countenance of the last pope , who , to advance this cardinal , exhorted the states to chuse a roman catholick for their king. and his example was so far approved of by clement the eighth , anno who was chosen in his room , that he continued the same allowance to the leaguers , renewed the same exhortations , and declared any other but a romanist incapable of the crown . the parliament of roan published a severe edict against all who adhered to the king ; and discourses were spread abroad , maintaining , that it was unlawfull to desire his conversion , and that such as proposed or endeavoured it were excommunicated , and ought to be driven away , lest they should infect the rest ; and the parliament of paris enjoined obedience to the pope , and his legate , declaring that the convention of estates designed to chuse a popish king : and by this time those few romanists who had continued with the king , became rebellious too , requiring him to change his religion within a time which they prescribed , otherwise protesting they would elect another of their own persuasion . thus rebellion and the roman catholick cause went on prosperously in france ; but not having the same strength and opportunities in england , the more secret methods were made use of ; ‖ the spaniard was importuned to make another invasion , which he prepared for ; but the romanists , unwilling to trust to that alone , took a shorter course , and by * mr hesket's means attempted to persuade the lord strange , † afterwards earl of derby , to take upon him the crown , which they pretended he had a title to ; and soon after father holt , and others , employed patrick cullen , an irish fencer , to murther the queen , which he readily undertook , and for a very small reward ; but his barbarous intention was discovered , and he , upon apprehension confessing the design , and who set him on , was executed . two years before this the jesuite creighton , upon his going into spain , had desired blanks , to be filled up with credentials and procurations , from the noblemen of the popish party in scotland ; and this year he received them ; the persons who sent them farther engaging , that all the romanists in scotland should assist them , upon the arrival of the army , which the king of spain promised should be with them by the end of the spring , to the number of thirty thousand , whereof some were to remain in scotland , and the rest march directly into england : these blanks were sent by a servant of the king 's , with letters from several jesuites , but he was apprehended , and some of the conspiratours imprisoned and executed ; ‖ the jesuites complained in their letters , that the spaniards were too slow , and therefore desired the invasion with great earnestness . upon this discovery , the earls of angus , anno huntley , and arrol , rebell'd , but the king's army marching against them before they had formed any considerable body , they fled into the mountains , submitted , and were imprison'd in order to a tryall . at the same time , tir oen in ireland , after having persuaded , and underhand maintained several insurrections , openly declar'd himself for the rebells , taking on him the title of o neal ; which by an act of parliament was declared treason for any to assume . nor was england long free from open rebellion , yet clear'd of a treasonable generation , who were daily employ'd in new conspiracies against the queens life ; for * lopez , one of the queens physicians , undertook to poison her , for which he was to have fifty thousand crowns ; but being discovered , confessed all , and with two of his accomplices was executed . but being unwilling to depend wholly on this doctour , the jesuite , holt , dr. worthington , and others , employed edmond york , nephew to him who six years before had betrayed zutphen to the spaniards , and richard william , with others , to kill the queen ; who upon their apprehension confessed , that after several consultations among the priests and jesuites in flanders ; holt threatned , that if this plot failed , they would take this honourable work out of the hands of the english , and employ strangers for the future ; that they had vowed to murther the queen ; and that one young , tipping , garret , with two others , had undertaken the same design . while god was thus confounding the designs of these bloudy men in this nation , the leaguers in france seemed to have forgotten , that an all-seeing eye beheld their actions , where the duke of mayenne put forth a declaration , affirming , that henry of bourbon could not be lawfull king , because he was an heretick ; and therefore they cannot be blamed for opposing him in obedience to the pope's bulls , and admonitions : to which , his holiness's legate added another , assuring the romanists that the pope would never consent to the admission of an heretick , that such who assisted the king were in a desperate condition , and exhorting all to be obedient to the pope ; and when the estates were met , he proposed that all should take an oath , never to acknowledge the king , though he should be converted to their church ; nay , so great was his fury , that when the romanists with the king sent to the states some propositions for a treaty , he declared the very proposals to be heretical , and by his influence the doctours of sorbon asserted the same , as intimating a declared heretick might be king ; but the proposition was accepted , and a conference agreed on , but with this clause in the answer to the proposal , that to fight against an heretical king is not treason ; yet the legate entred his protestation against the meeting , and the parisians attempted to make the young duke of guise king : nor were things better in the royal army , where the romanists , whom the king most trusted , were falling from him ; upon which resolving to change his religion , his intensions were no sooner published , than the legate forbad all bishops to absolve him , pronouncing all that should be assisting to his reception into the roman church excommunicated , and deprived , and all their actions in that affair null and void . but hower the king was reconciled , and sent his ambassadours to rome ; but the pope , who had formerly refused to admit any message from him , prohibited their entrance , neither would he receive the prelates that absolved him . in the mean while the leaguers stormed at the king's reconciliation , and set themselves to destroy him by private treason , now force could doe no good ; for which purpose one barriere , or le barr , was employed , who confessed that the curate of st. andrews of arts in paris commended the design , ‖ telling him he would merit heaven and glory by the act , and recommended him to varade , rectour of the jesuites college , who affirmed that the enterprise was most holy , exhorting him with good constancy and courage to confess himself , and receive the b. sacrament , and then leading him to his chamber , gave him his blessing : he mentioned also another preacher of paris , who counted it meritorious . thus encouraged , he bought a knife seven inches long , and went to st. denis where the king then was , but being discovered was executed , affirming at his death , that there were two black friars that went from lyons upon the same account . it is probable the preacher at paris , mentioned in his confessions , was father † commolet , the jesuite , who two days before this barriere's execution at st. denis , in a sermon at paris ( which yet continued obstinate against the king ) exhorted his auditours to have patience , for they should see in a few days a wonderfull miracle of god. but the next year paris was reduced to its obedience , anno soon after which the university endeavoured the expulsion of the jesuites , accusing them of all manner of injustice , of the ruine of families , and many other crimes , but insisting particularly on their treasons , charging them with being abettors to the spaniard , fomenters of civil wars , and always ready to assassinate the french king , whom they omitted to pray for , while they extolled the spaniard ; that they taught and asserted the pope's deposing power ; that they refused to give absolution to several persons of quality , because they would not renounce the king ; that they had been the cause of the death of twenty-eight barons , fifty noble-men of france , and above five hundred monks and friars in the tercera islands , and had refused to renounce the league . which spirit of rebellion was so strong amongst the leaguers , that a little before the seduction of paris , the pope's legate published a declaration , exhorting all catholicks to oppose the king ; assuring them that the pope would never grant him absolution ; and upon the rendition of aix to his majesty , the famous genebrard was so vext at the loyalty of the place , that he left it , resolving not to live among the royalists ; nay , when the king entered paris the cardinal pellivee , lying upon his death-bed , very angrily told those about him , that he hoped the arms of the spaniards , and good catholicks would yet drive the huguonots out of paris : and hay , a scotch jesuite , affirmed , that if the king passed by their college , he would leap from the top of it upon him , and did not doubt to go directly to heaven . but to return to the jesuites , who finding their banishment out of the kingdom thus zealously endeavoured , and fearing lest the king , to whom they had been such bitter enemies , should consent to it , resolved to dispatch him ; † * francis jacob one of their scholars at bourges had boasted that he would doe it ; but john chastel who was bred under them at paris , went farther , and with a knife struck the king in the mouth , and beat out one of his teeth , he was immediately apprehended , and on examination , confessed , * that he esteemed it an act highly conducing to promote religion ; and that father gueret , his master in the jesuites school , had taught him those doctrines ; upon which sentence of death was pass'd upon him , by which also the * jesuites were banished as corrupters of youth , disturbers of the publick peace , enemies to the king and kingdom ; and enjoined to depart the realm within fifteen days ; and all their goods confiscated , to be disposed of as the court should see fit . this sentence was published after the search made in the jesuites college , wherein was found a book of t. guignard's , which he confessed to be his own writing , lamenting that the king was spared in the parisian massacre , applauding the murther of king henry the third , affirming , that if the king were shut up in a monastery , he would be treated more gently than he deserved ; and concluding , that if he could not be deposed without force of arms , they ought to be taken up against him ; for which , and his other treasons , he was executed ; but † gueret , chastell's master , of the same order , was only banished with the rest ; in memory of which fact , and to the perpetual ignominy of that order , chastell's house was demolished , and a pillar erected in the place ; on one side of which was engraven the decree of the court , † on another a copy of verses expressing the crime , and discovering to the world that it was attempted by the persuasions of the jesuites ; on the third another inscription to the same purpose ; and on the fourth a summary account of their banishment , and the reasons of it , * wherein the jesuites are termed , a mischievous and novell sort of superstitious men , and disturbers of the nation , by whom that young man was encouraged and persuaded to that horrid fact. this pillar , as appears by the date of the inscriptions , was not erected till the following year ; however , having such a relation to their banishment , which was decreed the th . of december , . i thought it most proper to give an account of it in this place . one would think that if any fact would render men ashamed , this murtherous attempt was so horrid as to make those concerned in it blush ; but so far were they from that , that francis veron , † a jesuite , wrote an apology for the murtherer , calling the enterprise ‖ a most holy , most humane , most laudable and worthy act ; that it is acceptable to god , and conformable to all laws and decrees of the church ; and in the same book he extolls clement , that stabbed the former king. thus fruitfull were the french romanists in their contrivances of rebellion and murther , and as willing were their brethren in these nations to promote enterprises of the same nature ; for † tir-oen in ireland , continued in the rebellion which he began the year before , but distrusting his own power , submitted himself to the lord deputy ; yet the very same month he rebelled again ; several provinces revolting to him ; by which accession of forces he grew very powerfull : and in scotland the noblemen who were imprisoned and condemned for their insurrection the last year , having been pardoned by the king , took arms again , being assisted with money from the spaniards , and defeated the king's forces under the earl of argyle , though much superiour in number to them , but were at length reduced so low , that they begged leave to depart the land , which was granted them ; so promising to enterprise no more against the king , they left the kingdom : bothwell , the chief of them went to naples , where he lived miserably ; the rest about three years after got their pardons , and returned home . yet were not these all the popish enterprises upon the estates and persons of princes which were discovered this year ; for i find that about this time they employed le four , and others , to murther prince maurice of nassaw , general of the forces of the united provinces . but the indefatigable romanists , anno though so often disappointed , would once more apply themselves to the spaniard , to favour their cause in england ; who to correspond with their desires and satisfie his own ambition , sent diego brocher , upon the english coast , who with four gallies put into mounts bay in cornwall , fired st. paul's church , and * three small fish towns ; and this was all the king of spain made of his vast expences and preparations against england . tyr-oen having the two last years strengthned himself , anno writes this year to the king of spain , desiring him not to give ear to those who affirmed , that he design'd any accommodation with the english ; assuring him , that he was resolved never to submit to , or have any treaty with them . about the same time the jesuites at london had laid a plot to seize the tower , and keep it till the spaniards arrived to their assistance ; in one of their letters from their correspondents in spain , dated june the th . . they are put in hopes that the spanish armada should be with them about the august following ; cautioning them to advise all the romanists of the design before-hand , and proclamations were ready printed in spain , to be dispersed at their arrival here ; and the better to secure the spaniards landing in scotland , the conspiratours fortified the isle of elsay in the western seas , for their reception ; but were surprized before they had proceeded far , so the enterprize miscarried . and now we are come to the last conspiracy that hath been discovered against the life of queen elizabeth , which was the attempt of edward squire , a servant in her stables , to whom walpoole , anno the jesuite , gave a very strong poison , which squire undertook to press out upon the pommel of her saddle ; but before he could bring himself to undertake so horrid an action , he had several conflicts in his own mind ; which the jesuite perceiving , told him , * that the sin of backsliding did seldom obtain pardon , and if he did but once doubt of the lawfulness , or merit , of the act , it was enough to cast him down to hell ; exhorting him to go through with it ; † for if he failed , he would commit an unpardonable sin before god ; and at parting , after having bless'd him , he used these words , my son , god bless thee , and make thee strong ; be of good courage ; i pawn my soul for thine ; and being either dead or alive , assure thy self thou shalt have part of my prayers . thus satisfied with the jesuites , he , upon the first opportunity , poisoned the pommel of the queens saddle , but it pleased god the poison had not the expected effect ; upon which the jesuites not hearing of her death in some time , suspected squire of unfaithfulness , and got him under-hand accused of some design against the queen ; upon which being apprehended he confessed all , and was executed . but tyrone created more trouble to the queen in ireland , where daily he encreased his strength , took fortified places from the english , and in several skirmishes got the better of the queens forces . and continuing his rebellion , anno slew sir henry bagnall , and routed the english under his command , took the fort of black-water , and in it great store of ammunition and arms , and created james fitz-thomas earl of desmond , and got several advantages over the forces of the kingdom . in england anthony rolston was employed by the jesuite creswell to prepare things for an invasion , which the spaniard intended to make very suddenly ; in order to which a fleet was prepared , and a proclamation drawn up by the admiral , justifying the action , and declaring his intention to be , to reduce these kingdoms to the obedience of the catholick roman church . this year also was apprehended in holland one peter pan , a cooper of ipres , who confess'd , that his design was to murther prince maurice of nassaw , * that the jesuites of daway , for his encouragement , promised to make his son a prebend , and the provincial gave him his blessing in these words , friend , go thy ways in peace , for thou goest as an angel under god's safeguard and protection . but almost innumerable were the conspiracies against king henry of france , against whom ( after mayenne and all others had submitted ) the dukes of aumale , and mercent continued obstinate , refusing to acknowledge him ; and the pope's agent at brussels , first employed ridicove , a dominican of ghent , to murther the king ; assuring him , that the pope and cardinals approved of the action ; but he , after two journeys into france about it , was apprehended , and executed ; confessing , that the daily sermons he had heard in praise of clement , who stabb'd the former king , and was esteemed a martyr among them , had so enflam'd him , that he resolv'd to follow his steps . besides this man , one arger , of the same order , undertook the same exploit ; to whom the pope's agent added clement odin , another son of st. dominick ; but god defeated all their designs , and preserv'd that great king's life some years longer . in the mean while tir oen continued his rebellion in ireland , anno having received assistance from the spaniard , and a plume of phoenix feathers from the pope ; and the new earl of desmond wrote two * letters to the king of spain , begging his assistance to drive the english out of ireland , and to advance the catholick cause , which he was resolved to maintain . what effect these and other addresses had , we shall see presently . but tir oen not resting wholly on the spaniard , anno wrote a very earnest letter to the pope , subscribed by himself , desmond , and others ; † desiring his holiness to issue out a bull against the queen , as pius the fifth , and gregory the thirteenth had done ; which they press him to doe , because the kingdom belonged to his holiness , and next under god depended solely on him . in the mean while , the rebellion went on , and daily conflicts happen'd ; but lest the tediousness , or danger of the war should discourage them , pope clement the eighth sent a letter , directed to all the prelates , noblemen , and people of ireland , wherein ‖ he owns , that they had taken up arms by his advice , for recovering their liberty , and opposing the hereticks , commends the fitz-geralds who headed former insurrections , highly extolls tyrone , and grants a full remission of all sins to him and his assistants . yet could not this concurrence , and benediction of the pope preserve their strength from being broken by the lord mountjoy , who this year arrived lord deputy in ireland ; insomuch that several of the chief rebels submitted , * but at the same time sent to rome to crave pardon for their outward compliance : but tyrone continued obstinate , which forced the lord-deputy to proclaim him traitor , setting a reward of two thousand marks upon his head ; however the spaniard sent a ship to his relief , laden with arms and monies , as an earnest of more supplies . it is certain from the confession of the traitors themselves , that the foundation of the gun-power treason was laid the following year ; but it is very probable that there was a rough draught of it made in this , as appears by the case resolv'd by delrio the jesuite ; whether if one discover in confession , that he hath laid gun-powder under an house , by which the house is to be blown up , and the prince destroyed , the priest ought to reveal it ? upon which he concludes , that he ought not ; it was a case that had never happened before and so not likely to have been thought of by a person not cautious of such a design ; and this resolution garnet after served himself of , alledging , that all the knowledge he had of the treason was communicated to him in confession , which he was bound not to disclose , upon any account whatsoever . soon after his last letter in tyrone's behalf , anno the same pope sent his breves into england , commanding all the roman catholicks not to admit , after the queen's death , any prince whatsoever , unless he would bind himself by oath to promote the roman catholick religion to his utmost power : in prosecution of which , knowing that king james , the next successour , was a firm protestant , several designs were formed against his life ; hay and hamilton , two papists , were sent into scotland , to stir up the jesuites there , who were received and cherished , notwithstanding the king had by his proclamation forbidden any to harbour them , affirming that if any did , he would look upon them as designers against his life . but while these jesuites , and others of the same stamp , were endeavouring to prepare matters for a rebellion , one ‖ mowbray , son to a scotch nobleman ; undertook to destroy the king , but was apprehended at london , and sent prisoner into scotland by the queen ; and about the same time the * duke of tuseany , by some letters he had intercepted , discovered another design against his life , which was to be effected by poison , an account of which he sent immediately to the king by sir henry wotton , then in his court , with several antidotes against the poison , if it should be given him , notwithstanding all his diligence to prevent it . during these designs in scotland the pope sent a letter to tyrone , calling his rebellion an † holy league , ‖ assuring him that he was exceedingly pleased at their courage and zeal , extolling his piety , exhorting him to go on as he had begun , and praying that god would fight for him ; promising to write to all catholick princes to assist him , and to send a nuncio to reside with him ; and giving his blessing to him and all his followers , who should hazard themselves for the catholick cause . besides which he sent a † breve to the whole body of the irish nation , requiring them to join with tyr-oen against the queen ; and if we may believe * don juan de aquila , general of the war in ireland for defence of the faith , he went farther than this , and excommunicated , and ( as far as in him lay ) deposed her majesty . this spanish commander arrived at kings all with a great fleet , and began to fortifie the town ; and published a declaration , affirming , that the war made against queen elizabeth by his master , in conjunction with tyr-oen , was just , she having been excommunicated , and her subjects absolved from their fidelity by several popes ; exhorting them , that now christ's vicar commanded them , they would in obedience to him take arms ; protesting , that if any continued in obedience to the english , they should be prosecuted as hereticks , and hatefull enemies of the church . soon after don alonso del campo landed with a supply of soldiers , but suddenly after his arrival was taken prisoner , the army of the spaniards and rebells in conjunction routed , and the former glad to be permitted to return home . yet were the english papists as diligent as ever to introduce the spaniards , and therefore dispatched away ‖ thomas winter , to trie what could be done for their assistance , who were ready to sacrifice their lives for the catholick cause ; and to assure the king of spain , that if he would send over an army , they would have in a readiness fifteen hundred or two thousand horses for the service ; being introduced by the means of the jesuite creswell , the duke of lerma assured him of assistance , and the count de miranda told him , that his master would bestow two hundred thousand crowns for that use , and would have an army in england by the next spring . with this gratefull account of the posture of affairs he returned , anno and great preparations were made , that they might be ready against the arrival of the forces ; but all their measures were broken by the queen's death , yet was mr. wright sent into spain , and guy faux after him ; but the king refused to meddle , having sent his ambassadour to conclude a peace with king james ; upon which disappointment the entertained new designs , which we shall have account of in a little time . while these matters were transacting in spain and england , tyr-oen and osulevan continued their insurrection in ireland , the latter keeping the castle of dunboy for the king of spain , to whom he sent to desire him to accept it , which he did , and sent osulevan twelve thousand pounds , with a supply of arms and ammunition ; and the rest of the rebells received encouragement from their correspondents in spain , who assured them , his catholick majesty would not omit the winning of ireland , if it cost him the most part of spain ; and that an army of fourteen thousand men , with a nuncio from the pope , were set sail for their relief , which news rendered them so obstinate , that they endured all extremities ; but the taking of dunboy by the lord deputy put a stop to those succours , there being no place for to receive them at their landing ; yet did mac eggan , the apostolical vicar , revive the fury of the rebells , but he was slain the latter end of this year , fighting at the head of his men , with a sword drawn in one hand , and his breviary and beads in the other . we have seen the pope approving this rebellion , so that the divines of his church could doe no less than follow the dictates of their supreme head , which the jesuites of salamanca did this year by a declaration of theirs ; in which they resolve , * that we must hold for certain that the pope hath power to bridle and suppress those who forsake the faith : and having farther stated the question , they proceed to affirm , that it is lawfull for any catholick to assist tyr-oen , and that with great merit , and good hope of eternal reward , because it is by the pope's authority , that all such romanists as take part with the english sin mortally , and cannot be saved , or receive absolution , till they forsake the english army ; and those are in the same condition who give the english any tribute , except such as the pope hath given them leave to pay , ( so that they are to be subjects no longer than the pope pleases . ) and then they proceed to shew , that the bull in favour of the rebells was not procured by surreption , but proceeded from the pope's own inclination to them , and that the permission given to the roman catholicks to obey her , extended only to such obedience as doth not oppugn the catholick religion , which the assisting her against tyrone doth . and this declaration is dated the seventh of march. . and it could be nothing less than such an extraordinary encouragement , that could render the irish so audacious as they were upon the queen's death ; in limrick they seized the churches , and set up mass in them ; the same they did at waterford , in the cathedral , and at the sessions house they pulled down the seats of justice ; in cork they refused to proclaim the king , and by force opposed the commissioners ; they went in a solemn procession , took the sacrament to spend their lives in defence of the roman catholick religion ; wrote to several cities to assist them , seized upon the king's stores , and assaulted his forces , alledging that he could not be lawfull king , because he was not appointed by the pope . and for their farther satisfaction the university of salamanca , anno subscribed the declaration which the jesuites made the year before ; and the divines of valedolid did the same . about this time the jesuites laboured to get the sentence of their banishment out of france reversed , the pope interposing his mediation in their favours , upon which the parliament of paris attempted to dissuade the king from consenting to it by a long * oration ; alledging , that it was their avowed doctrine , that the pope hath a power of excommunicating kings ; that a king so excommunicated by his holiness , is no other than a tyrant , whom the people may oppose ; that clergy-men are exempt from the prince's power , are none of his subjects , and cannot be punish'd by him for any crimes : and having enumerated several of their treasons , they affirm , † that it is absolutely necessary for them to renounce these doctrines , or else france cannot with safety admit them to return . but though they were very desirous of admission , they would not renounce those positions for it ; however by importunity , and the solicitation of the pope , and others , they were at length received , but upon conditions , ‖ two of which were , that they should build no colleges without express permission from the king ; and that one of their number should be always near the king , to be accountable for the actions of the society . thus were they admitted , but marks of distrust set upon them ; though they have , by their address , turn'd the latter of these conditions , which was at first design'd for their disgrace , into a mark of honour , the king's confessour being ever since a jesuite . though the gun-powder plot was not ripe for execution till two years after , yet they were consulting about it at this time ; when after a long complaint of their grievances , mr. percy told mr. catesby , that there was no way but to kill the king , and he was resolv'd to doe it : but that gentleman desired him not to be so rash , for he had laid a surer design , which would certainly effect it , without any danger to themselves ; and then imparted to him the contrivance of blowing up the king and parliament . which design in may , the following year , anno the conspiratours obliged themselves by oath upon the holy sacrament to keep secret ; † catesby justifying the action by the breves which the pope had sent to exclude king james ; it being as lawfull to cast him out as to oppose his entrance ; and bates , another of the conspiratours , was assured by the jesuite greenwell , that the cause and action were good , and therefore it was his duty to conceal it . upon the approaching of the parliament they began to work , endeavouring to make a mine under the parliament-house ; but soon after percy hired a cellar , in which they stowed the gun-powder , with billets heap'd upon it , to hide it in case of search . the may before the plot was to be executed there was an insurrection of the romanists in wales , but it was soon supprest ; anno yet all things went on in order to the fatal blow ; when about a week before the parliament was to sit , the design was discovered , and so prevented ; upon which the conspiratours flew into † rebellion , but were all either killed or taken by the sheriff of worcestershire the ‖ king in his speech to the parliament soon after , told them that faux confessed that they had no other cause moving them to the design , but merely and only religion ; which was acknowledged by sir everard digby at his tryall , to be the chief motive which enduced him to make one among them , and which he resolved to hazard his life , his estate , and all , to introduce ; protesting , that if he had thought there had been the least sin in the plot , he would not have been of it for all the world ; and the reason why he kept it secret , was because those who were best able to judge of the lawfulness of it , had been acquainted with it , and given way unto it ; and therefore afterwards he calls it the best cause . the persons , upon whose authority he so much relied , were the jesuites , who asserted the holiness of the action ; for garnet , their superiour , had affirmed that it was lawfull , and father hammond absolved them all after the discovery , when they were in open rebellion ; and greenwell , the jesuite , rode about the countrey to excite as many as he could to joyn with them ; nay , † garnet confessed that catesby in his name did satisfie the rest of the lawfulness of the fact. * parsons had kept a correspondency with that jesuite to promote it , and at the same time ( not willing to discover it to them , and yet desirous of their prayers , ) ‖ ordered the students of his college at rome to pray for the intention of their father rectour : and after the discovery , * father hall , encouraged some of the traitors , who began to doubt that the action was unlawfull , seeing god had defeated it in so providential a manner , telling them , that we must not judge of the cause by the event ; that this was no more than what happened to the eleven tribes when they went up at first to fight against benjamin , and that the christians were often defeated by the turks ; nay , so highly was it approv'd by that order , that , not to mention here the honours done to the conspiratours , since their deaths , several jesuites gloried in , and bragg'd of it ; for a little before the discovery , † father flood caused the jesuites at lisbon to spend a great deal of money in powder , on a festival day , to try the force of it , and persuaded one john how , a merchant , and other catholicks , to go over into england , and expect their redemption there : and father thompson was wont afterwards to boast to his scholars at rome , how oft his shirt was wetted with digging under the parliament house . and that the pope himself was concerned in the design is more than probable , for it is confessed by a jesuite that there were three bulls granted by him , which should have been published if the conspiracy had succeeded ; and sir everard digby hath left it under his hand , that it was not the pope's mind that any stirs should be hindered which were undertaken for the catholick cause . the pope's carriage after the discovery is another shrewd argument that he was privy to the plot , for he not only made no declaration either by word or writing in abhorrence of it , but when * greenway , one of the conspirators , escaped to rome , he advanced him to the dignity of penitentiary , and † gerard , * another , was a confessour at st. peters in the same city . this execrable conspiracy appeared so horrid and unworthy , not only of religious men , but contrary to humane nature , that † sixteen of the students under the jesuites at rome , forsook the college , and some of them renounced the roman church ; and * mr. copley , who had been a priest some years , ( as appears by his reasons , one of sound learning and judgment , ) assures us , that it was one of the causes of his conversion . yet were there many found among the romanists who justified the design , hardly any condemning it : thus the same gentleman professes , that though some termed it an inconsiderate act , yet he could never meet with any one jesuite who blamed it . the * conspiratours justified themselves , and even at their deaths would acknowledge no fault : and when † faux and winter were admitted to discourse together in the tower , they affirmed , they were sorry that no body set forth a defence or apology for the action ; but yet they would maintain the cause at their deaths ; nay there was one who had the hardiness to attempt * to justifie the design from the imputation of cruelty , because both seeds and root of an evil herb must be destroyed ; and when some of the plotters escaped to callis , the governour assured them of the king's favour , and that though they lost their country they should be received there ; they replyed , that the loss of their country was the least part of their grief ; but their sorrow was that they could not bring so brave a design to perfection . and notwithstanding garnet was so deep in the conspiracy , yet † mr. wilson placed him among the martyrs , in his english martyrology ; and it is affirmed by * one who liv'd among them , that he and campion are beatified by the pope , which is the next degree to canonization , and that every one of them is painted in the jesuites churches , with the title of blessed father ; † and we are assured that garnet's picture was set up in their church at rome , among their martyrs , several years after ; and * st. amour , a doctour of sorbon , found his pictures commonly sold at rome , in the year . with this inscription , father henry garnet , hang'd and quarter'd at london , for the catholick faith ; by which they shew themselves either approvers of the design , to that degree as to count it a point of their faith , or else they must appear deceivers of the people , and slanderers of the english nation , in affirming , that he dyed for his religion , when he justly suffered for the most hellish conspiracy that was ever laid ; yet delrio , and gordon , two jesuites , went farther ; the first in prosecution of his determination in the point which we mentioned before , compares him to dionysius , the areopagite ; the latter placing him in heaven , desires him to intercede there for the conversion of england , and it was once publickly prayed in louvain , o holy henry ! intercede for us . but they had designs elsewhere at the same time that this their holy martyr was promoting their cause in england ; king henry of france his life was so burthensome to the jesuites , that they were impatient , so that father coton , the king's confessour , or rather hostage for his society , to be satisfied in the point , wrote down several questions which he had propounded to a maid said to be possessed , one of which was how long the king should live ; which is a capital crime in itself ; * for ( as tertullian long since argued ) who hath any business to make such an enquiry , except he hath designs against his prince , or hath some hopes of advancement by his death . and as busie was the pope paul the fifth for the advancement of the roman cause , he fell out with the duke of * savoy this year , for presenting an abbey to cardinal pio ; and to shew his authority over princes and states , ( which is a kind of deposing them , and clear evidence of popish principles , ) when the commonwealth of luca made an edict against the protestants , though he liked the thing , yet he pretended they had no power in those matters , and therefore commanded them to raze the edict out of their records , and he would publish one for the same purpose by his own authority ; and when the state of genoa prohibited some seditious meetings of ecclesiasticks , he threatened them with excommunication , and forced them to recall their order . but the venetians would not be frighted by his thunders , though he threatened them with the same censure , if they did not speedily revoke their decrees concerning the building of churches , and giving lands to the church , ( which they had prohibited any to doe without the senate's order , ) and required them to deliver two clergymen , whom they had imprisoned for many horrid crimes ; concluding his breve with an assertion of his power to deprive kings , and that he had legions of angels for this assistance . but when the senate would not gratifie him in thus yielding their rights to an usurper , anno the pope told their ambassadour , that the exemption of clergy-men from the jurisdiction of the magistrate was jure divino , that his cause was the cause of god , and he would be obeyed ; and therefore in a consistory of one and forty cardinals he published a bull of excommunication against that state , wherein he declares , * that by the authority of almighty god , and the apostles peter and paul , the duke and senate of venice , if within four and twenty days after the publication of the bull they do not revoke their decrees , are excommunicated ; and if they continue obstinate three days more , he lays an interdict upon the whole state , forbidding the clergy to perform divine offices in any part of their dominions , and threatens farther punishments , according to the sacred canons . this bull he expected would gain his point , by causing the ecclesiasticks to withdraw themselves , and that the people , seeing themselves deprived of church-offices , would run into sedition ; but the event answered not his expectation , for the people joined unanimously with the senate ; but the jesuites , and others , refused to celebrate mass , upon which they were banished the dominions of venice ; after † which they did all they could to stir up the common people : but not succeeding in this , the pope published a jubilee , granting indulgence to all but those of interdicted places ; this he expected would make the people murmur , but he was deceived in that point too ; so that he declared in a full consistory that he would have war with the state of venice , and called the spaniards to his aid ; but finding the senate resolute in defence of their rights , he was glad to recall his bull , and make a peace with them , and though he earnestly pressed for the restauration of the jesuites , yet he could not obtain it . about this time the oath of allegiance being established by law , the romanists sent to rome to know what they should doe in this case , where it was consulted by seven or eight of their learnedest divines , who all agreed , that the pope's power of chastizing princes is a point of faith , and consequently cannot be denied without denying of the faith ; and the pope told father parsons , and fitzherbert , he could not hold those for catholicks who took the oath ; which he soon after declared by his breve , addressed to the romanists of england , septemb . . . wherein he affirms , † that they cannot , without most evident and grievous wronging of god's honour , bind themselves by the oath , seeing it contains many things contrary to faith and salvation . but when some romanists who had taken it began to question the breve , anno willing to think it was obtained from his holiness by surreption ; he sent † another to undeceive them , wherein he blames them for entertaining such thoughts , and assures them , that it was written upon mature deliberation , and therefore they are bound fully to observe it , rejecting all interpretation to the contrary ; upon which several who were willing before refused it , some of whom were imprisoned . it is an hard thing for men accustomed to doe evil to learn to doe well , which truth tyr-oen is a great example of , for notwithstanding after his frequent rebellions he was pardoned by king james , and received into favour , yet returning into ireland he began new contrivances , and fearing he was discovered , fled this year into flanders , which caused the king to publish a severe proclamation against him ; from thence he went to rome , where he was maintained at the pope's charge this his death . this same year parsons published his treatise tending to mitigation , wherein he labours to take off the imputation of rebellious principles from the romanists , and yet he tells us in the same book , that this is catholick doctrine , that in publick perils of the church , and common-wealth , christ our saviour hath not left us wholly remediless , but besides the natural right which each kingdom hath to defend themselves , in certain cases , he left also supreme power in his high priest , and immediate substitute , to direct and moderate that power , and to add also of his own when extraordinary need requireth , though with great deliberation . where we have a plain justification of the pope and people's power to depose and resist their princes , a most excellent argument to clear the papists of disloyalty . though we find no plots discovered this year in england , yet in transilvania the jesuites were employed in poisoning stephen potscay the prince : and in france father cotton recommended a spaniard to the king , who had not been in the court many hours , when the king had intelligence of his coming from barcellona purposely to poison him ; upon this he sent for father coton , who desired his majesty not to give any credit to the advice ; and when the king ordered him to produce the spaniard , he pretended to seek him , but at his return told his majesty that he was escaped , and he could not find him . this year the pope sent another breve into england , directed to the arch-priest , anno forbidding him to take the oath , and commanding him to deprive all priests of their faculties who took it , except they immediately renounc'd it ; prohibiting likewise the resort of any to the protestant churches . at the same time divines of italy , germany , and france , wrote against it , all grounding their exceptions upon this , that it takes away the pope's power of deposing kings . so rebellious had the writings and practices of the jesuites been , that the bohemians petition'd the emperour against them ; anno and the valesian magistrates refused to admit them , because wherever they came they disturbed the publick peace , and were under such a tie of blind obedience , that if their superiour enjoin'd them a treasonable attempt they must obey . they had made it their business , anno for some time , to endeavour to get footing in transilvania , but when all their importunity could not prevail , they engaged several of the nobility in a design against the prince's life , which proceeded so far that one of the conspiratours attempted to run him through , but was prevented , and several of his companions taken , the rest escaped . and now king henry the great of france having amassed a very considerable treasure , prepared for some great design , which the romanists grew so jealous of , that they secretly caused several to subscribe their obedience to the pope , in a book which was kept on purpose ; it was half written through , and some names subscribed in bloud ; several designs were formed against his life , four piedmontiers , a lorrainer , and three others , conspired his death ; advice was given of several other plots from many other places , and reports were spread in foreign parts that he was killed : father hardy , in his sermon at st. severius in paris , reflecting upon the king's treasure , said , that kings heaped up treasures to make themselves feared , but there needed but a blow to kill a king. all these were but fore-runners of that horrid murther which was committed in a few weeks after by ravilliac , once a monk , who stabbed him to the heart with a poisoned knife , as he was going to the arsenal in his coach , so that he expired in an instant ; upon his examination he confessed that he resolved to murther the king , who he supposed had a design to make war upon the pope , because making war against his holiness is the same as to make war against god , seeing the pope was god , and god was the pope ; and that he had revealed his design to the jesuite d' aubigny in confession , and shewed him the knife , and that he had heard several of that order maintain the lawfulness of it in their sermons . no sooner was the king dead , anno but the jesuites desired leave to teach schools in their colleges ; which acquest the parliament took into consideration , and required that they should first declare , that it is unlawfull for any person to conspire the death of the king ; that no ecclesiastick hath any power over the temporal rights of princes ; and that all are to render the same obedience to their governours , which christ gave to caesar. these positions were proposed to them to subscribe , but they refused to doe it without leave from their general ; upon which they were prohibited by a decree of parliament to teach , and threatened with a farther deprivation if they would not obey . the romanists had tried all manner of ways to deprive king james of his life or crown , anno but finding none successfull , they had the impudence to publish a book this year , affirming , that his majejesty was a counterfeit , and not the son of queen mary of scotland . the year following cardinal perron , anno who had been one of the young cardinal of bourbon's party against king henry the fourth , in the assembly of estates in france , asserted not only that subjects may be absolved from their allegiance , and princes deposed in case of heresie , but that they who hold the contrary are schismaticks and hereticks . this speech was made to divert the estates from imposing an oath like our oath of allegiance ; which design so disturbed the ‖ pope , that he affirmed the voters of it were enemies to the common good , and mortal adversaries to the chair of rome . and about the same time suarez printed his book at colen , wherein he teaches , that kings may be put to death by their own subjects ; which treatise came into the world with the approbation of the bishop of conimbria , of silvis , and lamego , and the university of alcalum , with several others . in scotland one father ogelby , a jesuite , was taken , who being asked whether the pope be judge in spirituals over his majesty , refused to answer , except the question were put to him by the pope's authority ; but affirmed that the pope might excommunicate the king ; at his trial he protested against the judges , that he could not own them , for the k. had no authority but what was derivative from his predecessours , who acknowledged the pope's jurisdiction ; adding , if the king will be to me as they were to mine , he shall be my king , otherwise i value him not : and as for that question , whether the k. deposed by the pope , may be lawfully killed , doctours of the church hold the affirmative not improbably , and i will not say it is unlawfull to save my life . in france several of the princes raised commotions , which were appeased with conferring places of trust and honour upon the chief among them , who were headed by the prince of conde ; fruits ( as the historian observes ) accustomed to be reaped in france , from that which in other places is punished by the executioner . not satisfied with their honours , anno they took arms again under the same leader , and passed the loire ; but the prince of conde falling sick , matters were composed by the endeavours of the english ambassadour , and some others . in savoy conspiracies were formed against that duke's life , anno and to deliver up the prince , his son , anno to the spaniards , but timely discovery prevented them , and preserved the duke from another design of some who undertook to poison him . the next year the jesuites were banished bohemia , anno and moravia , for coining money , and sowing dissentions between the magistrates and people , and a plot was discovered at * venice , against the senatours , whom the conspiratours designed to murther , by a sudden insurrection , ( assisted by the marquess of bedmar , ambassadour from spain , and the duke of ossuna , viceroy of naples , ) and make an utter subversion of the state ; * this was carried on , in conjunction with the spaniards , by those citizens , and others , who were the pope's partisans , and a number of factious persons , discontented with the actions of the senate , who longed for a change , and would stick at nothing to effect it . and in france the † queen mother being imprisoned , the duke d' espernon , with a strong party , rebelled in her defence ; but before the king's army was come up against him , he procured his pardon , and the liberty of the queen . soon after this the jesuites were driven out of ‖ hungary , anno and silesia , for their seditious practices ; and * another rebellion broke out in france , anno which the king marched in person to suppress : † in the valteline the revolt was universal , the governours of provinces , and the heads of families , were all murthered , and under pretence of defending the roman catholick religion , all manner of outrages were committed , and a new form of government erected ; these broils continued some time , and the bitterness of the papists was such , that they would make no accommodation , if the protestants were tolerated there ; * so that if a protestant bailiff be sent among them , he cannot publickly exercise his religion . at this time the match between prince charles and the infanta was prosecuted , anno at least with a seeming willingness on both sides , and being to have some romish priests of her houshold , the pope urged very earnestly that they might be exempt from his majesty's jurisdiction , so very diligent he was in catching at any shadow which might seem to favour the exemption of the clergy . three years after this sanctarellus his book was printed at rome , anno wherein the deposing power was asserted in its utmost latitude , and though father coto , and two other jesuites , were required to answer it , yet no reply appeared ; the former affirming before the parliament , that though he disapproved the doctrine in france , yet he would assent to it if he were at rome . the oath of allegiance being vigorously press'd in england , anno the pope sent a bull to the romanists , exhorting them to continue firm , * and let their tongue rather cleave to the roof of their mouth then permit the authority of st. peter , to be diminished by that oath ; and commanding them strictly to observe the breves of pope paul the fifth ; and † father fisher justified suarez , and the doctrine of his book , asking , what could be found prejudicial in it to princely authority ; and affirming that if it contained any such thing it would not be permitted in catholick kindoms . we have mention'd that the exemption of the clergy was desired by the pope in the treaty for anno the spanish match ; and now his emissaries in this nation affirmed that the king could have nothing to doe with her majesties chaplains , because he was an heretick ; and his holiness threatned to declare those to be apostates who should seek their establishment in the queens family from the king. but though these were plain indications of what they desired , anno yet they kept their designs so secret , that they were not discovered till some time after ; but there was a conspiracy detected at genoa , which , if it had not been prevented , would have ended in the murther of the nobility , and alteration of the government . and the next year a plot was detected in mantua against the life of the prince , anno and some officers apprehended , who would have betray'd viadana to the governour of millan . in ireland the papists assaulted the archbishop of dublin , wounded several of his followers , and forced him to fly for his life ; following him in a tumultuous manner along the streets ; and that they had several seditious designs in hand at the same time , anno is evident from the confession of † mac-enerry , a dominican , who for this very reason left the church of rome , because of her rebellious doctrines , and the many conspiracies he had taken an oath of secresie to conceal , which he observed inviolably ; and though he informed the bishop of limrick , that there were many plots then contriving against his majesty's government , yet for his oaths sake he would not name any persons who were concerned in them . the duke of orleance had retired in disgust from court some years since , and was received by the duke of lorrain ; anno but being forced this year to leave that retreat , he went to brussells , from whence , aided by the spaniards , he marched at the head of an army into france , but was defeated , and several of his adherents executed . while france was thus almost continually pestered with rebellions , anno the designs of the papists ripened apace in ireland , ; they had erected friaries , in the countrey instead of those which were dissolved in the dublin ; and even in that city they had a college of students , whereof father paul harris was dean , and at a synodical meeting of their clergy , they decreed , that it was not lawfull to take the oath of allegiance . if it were not that all the designs of that party from the year . to . anno were summed up , and perfected in the rebellion in ireland , and the execrable civil wars of england , i should wonder how they came to be so still , and that no more conspiracies were discovered , besides that great one which andreas ab habernsfield was informed of in holland , and of which he sent the king an account , under the hand of the discoverer , who affirms , that one maxfield was sent into scotland , to stir up a rebellion there , and that the king was to be poisoned ; for which end they kept a strong poison in an indian nut , which he had often seen : they had likewise another design , if they could prevail upon the scots , or discontented english , to rebell , that thereby the king should be straitened , and forced to depend on the papists for assistance , and then they would make their own terms , and secure to themselves a publick liberty , which if he refused to consent to , they would not only desert him , but dispatch him with the indian nut , which they reserved on purpose . he gives also an account of the persons concerned in the plot , among whom were several ladies of quality , for whose encouragement the pope sent a breve to sir toby mathews , one of the principal conspiratours , wherein he exhorts him , and the women engaged with him , to proceed with diligence in the design ; assuring them , that he did not despair to see the authority of the holy see ( which was subverted in england by a woman ) again restored in a very little time , by the endeavours of those heroick ladies . this breve is an unanswerable evidence that the succeeding troubles derived their original from the insatiate lust of rule which possessed the pope , anno who herein approves of those very methods which afterwards proved the ruine of that excellent prince , and so miserably distracted these poor nations . but he appeared more publickly an abbettor of the irish massacre and rebellion , wherein so many thousand protestants were murthered in cold bloud , sending his nuncio to assist , and affording them all the aid that he was able to give ; a design laid with so much secresie , and executed with so much cruelty , that nothing but the very spirit of popery could be barbarous enough to engage in it ; in prosecution of which they did all they could totally to beat the english out of the kingdom . the same year the marquess de villa real , the duke de camina , and the marquess d' armamar , who by the instigation of the archbishop of braga , had undertaken to kill the king of portugal , father to her majesty the queen dowager of england , and to fire the ships and the city in several places , that they might have the better opportunity to promote the interest of the spaniards , were put to death . nor did france yet enjoy any more quiet , where the count de soissons , and the duke of guise , and others , raised a rebellion , and routed the king's army , but the count being slain with his own pistol , the confederacy was soon broken . yet the very next year the duke of orleance combined with the spaniards , anno who were to assist him with forces for a new rebellion . the pope had involved ireland in bloud the former year , and in this the wars began in england , where several † priests were found among the dead at edghill battle ; but the endeavours of his holiness to encrease those miserable confusions , were managed with all imaginable secresie , while the irish were openly commended by him , and * assured of his prayers for their success in his breve to owen o neal , dated octob. . . and so willing was he to lay hold on all occasions for the exercising his deposing power , that because the † prince of parma offended him , he declared him to have incurred the greater excommunication , and deprived him of all his dominions and dignities . but not content with sending the forementioned breve to o neal , anno his holiness granted a bull of plenary indulgence , may . . to all the catholicks in ireland , anno who joined in the rebellion ; which was prosecuted as fiercely as the pope could desire , and a defence of it set forth by an † irish jesuite in portugal , anno ( though the title-page mentions franckfort , ) who asserts , that the english kings have no title or right to ireland ; that if they had , yet it is the duty of the irish to deprive them of their rights , seeing they are declared hereticks , anno and tyrants ; that this power of deposing such princes is inherent in every state ; but if the authority of the holy see be added to that power , none but a fool , or an heretick , will deny what the doctours of divinity , and of the civil and canon law , do generally teach , and which is confirmed by reasons and examples . and so far did the pope approve of the contents of this book , that when , soon after its publication , the irish had submitted to the king , and promised to assist him in his wars , his holiness by his nuncio took upon him to be their general , absolved them from their oaths , and imprisoned and threatened the lives of those who had promoted the peace , and desired to return to the king's subjection , which renewed the rebellion again , and brought infinite miseries on that bigotted nation . at the same time above * an hundred of the romish clergy were sent into england by order from rome , who the better to promote the divisions there , were instructed in several trades , both handicraft and others ; these , upon their arrival , were ordered to disperse themselves , and give intelligence every month to their superiours abroad ; accordingly they listed themselves in the parliament army , and kept a constant correspondence with their brethren , anno who for the same end served under the king. the next year many of these missioners were in consultation with those in the king's army , to whom they shewed their bulls , and licenses , for taking part with the parliament about the best methods to advance their cause ; anno and having concluded that there was no way so effectual as to dispatch the king , some were sent to paris , to consult the faculty of sorbonne about it , who return'd this answer , that it is lawfull for roman catholicks to work changes in governments for the mother church's advancement , and chiefly in an heretical kingdom , and so they might lawfully make away the king ; * which sentence was confirmed to the same persons by the pope , and his council , upon their going to rome to have his holiness's resolution in the point . and now those of them who had before followed the king after his flight from oxford , * agreed to desert the royal cause ; and , as one of them inform us , to ingratiate themselves with the enemy , by acting some notorious piece of treachery ; and father carr , who went by the name of quarter-master laurence , declared , that he could with a safer conscience join with and fight for the round-heads than the cavaliers ; in prosecution of which resolve they dispersed themselves into all the garisons of the king's party , to endeavour the revolt of the soldiers to the parliament ; in which they succeeded as they had projected , my authour being one of those who seduced the wallingford horse from their obedience ; and in scotland the lord sinclare , a pretended presbyterian , but a real papist , commanded a regiment of his own religion , and it being a maxim receiv'd among them , that the surest way to promote the catholick cause was to weaken the royal party , and advance the other , they bent all their endeavours to expedite and accelerate the king's death ; and his majesty having in the treaty of the isle of wight consented to pass five strict bills against popery , the jesuites in france , at a general meeting there , presently resolved to take off his head ; and this his majesty had notice of by an express from thence , but two days before his removal from the isle of wight . this year mr. cressey published the reasons of his leaving the church of england , and turning romanist , wherein obviating the objection so often made against the romanists about their rebellious principles and practices , he sets down a declaration , which he affirms that they were all ready to subscribe , and which differs but little from our oath of allegiance : but here we may see what credit can be given to the representations of their doctrines , which their writers study to make as favourable as possible : for though mr. cressy thought himself a good representer in this point , yet his superiours were of another mind ; and therefore that edition was soon bought up , and in the next the profession of obedience quite left out ; and that this was not an omission of the printer , but the action of his superiours , we are assured by an honourable person from mr. cressy's own mouth , and we shall find in a little time , that the same form hath been condembed by the pope himself . but the ensuing year , anno as it was dolefull to the english nation , so it brought great disturbances to the most potent princes of europe ; in france the parisians rose in arms , shot at the lord chancellour sequier , and wounded his daughter , barricadoed the streets , and forced the king to set the counsellour broussell , and other factious persons , at liberty . and at the treaty at osnebrugh , when by several articles of the peace the possession of church lands were assured to the protestant princes ; the pope displeased with it , took upon him to make void the peace by a * special bull , declaring all those articles unjust , and of no force , and commanding the princes concerned to observe his bull , in which he renews his claim to the superiority over princes , and particularly the emperour , not only by the bull in general , but by asserting , † that ‖ the electours of the empire were established by the authority of the bishop of rome . but to come to their contrivances in england ; where , when several papists had subscribed to some propositions , importing the unlawfulness of murthering princes , and breaking faith with hereticks ; and that the pope hath no power to absolve subjects from their allegiance ; the very same with the declaration published the year before by mr. cressy , this action was condemned at rome , where by a congregation it was decreed unlawfull . and now in prosecution of the pope and sorbon's sentence the last year , that excellent prince , king charles the martyr , was by their contrivances brought to the block ; which though they were willing to disown now , yet at that time they were very sollicitous to let the world know that they were the promoters of it ; * the friars of dunkirk expressed great resentment that the jesuites would engross to themselves the glory of that work , whereas they had laboured as diligently and succesfully as any , and in several other places the friars were very jealous , lest that order should rob them of their part of the honour : and the benedictines were not a little carefull to secure their land in england from the jesuites , for they thought their return sure upon the king's death ; so that the nuns contended vigorously among themselves who should be abbesses in their own countrey . at the time of his majesty's execution mr. henry spotswood , riding casually that way , saw a priest on horseback in the habit of a trouper , with whom he was well acquainted , flourishing his sword over his head in triumph as others did ; he told mr. spotswood , that there were at least forty priests and jesuites present in the same equipage , among whom was preston , who afterwards commanded a troup of horse under cromwell . father sibthorp , in a letter to father metcalfe , owns that the jesuites were contrivers of this murther , and that sarabras was present , rejoycing at it ; one of the priests flourishing his sword , cryed , now our greatest enemy is cut off . when the news of this tragedy came to roan , they affirmed , that they had often warned his majesty , that if he did not establish the romish religion in england , they should be forced to take such courses as would tend to his destruction ; and now they had kept their words with him : and in paris a lady having been perverted from the reformed church by a jesuite , upon hearing her ghostly father affirm , that now the catholicks were rid of their greatest enemy , by whose death their cause was much advanced , and therefore she had no reason to lament , left that bloudy and rebellious church , and continues a protestant ever since . but though , as secretary morris affirms , there are almost convincing evidences , that the papists irreligion was chiefly guilty of the murther of that excellent prince ; yet we are beholden to the guilty consciences of those gentlemen , that the world hath not been long since more fully satisfied , as to every particular ; for dr. du moulin in the first edition of his book ann. . had challenged them to call him to an account for affirming , that the rebellion was raised and promoted , and the king murthered by the arts of the court of rome ; the book came to a fourth edition , in all which he renewed the challenge , and in the last in these words : i have defied them now seventeen years to call me in question before our judges , and so i do still ; affirming that certain evidence of what he asserted should be produced whenever authority shall require it . i remember once a jesuite attempted to prove the truth of the nag's-head ordination , because that charge had been laid to our church some years before any offered to confute it , or to produce the lambeth record , which he affirmed was an evident sign that the thing was true , or else having such means to confute it they would not have been so long silent ; what then may we think of those gentlemen who had so heavy a crime charged on them , and yet for near twenty years together never called the accuser to account ? the doctour always refused to produce his evidences , till required by authority ; only he gives us this account , that the papers of resolution in favour of the murther , when it was found to be generally detested , were by the pope's order gathered up and burnt ; but a roman catholick in paris refused to deliver one in his possession , but shewed it to a protestant friend , and related to him the whole carriage of the negotiation . and i am sure if the protestants had been under such an imputation , the papists would make good use of their silence to prove their guilt . but farther to shew their aversion to the royal party , no sooner had the rebels of ireland , in consideration of the straits they were in , made a cessation for some time with the lord inchequin , but the nuncio excommunicated all who observed it ; and upon the conclusion of a second peace with the duke of ormond , his majesty's lieutenant , the assembly of the bishops and clergy at james-town renounced it , and as much as in them lay , restored the former confederacy anew ; but of this we shall have a farther account in its due place . in the mean while reilly , anno vicar general to the a. b. of dublin , betrayed the royal camp of rathmines to coll. jones , governour of dublin for the parliament , which service he afterwards pleaded for himself to the safety of his life , which was in danger for his cruel actions in the rebellion , and he well deserved more than bare safety from those men , that defeat being the total ruine of his majesty's affairs in ireland . at the same time the rebels in france encreased both in insolence and power daily , the coadjutour of paris going to st. germains , in obedience to the queens commands , was tumultuously stopt by the people , who hindered the nobility from following the king , and broke their coaches ; the parliament forbad all places to receive any garisons from the king , listed men , and resolved upon a war ; the duke d'elbease , duke of lonqueirlle , prince marsilliack , afterwards d. of rochfecault , the prince of conty , and many other persons of the greatest quality joining with them . soon after normandy and poictou declared for the parsians , who sent deputies to call in the spaniards to assist them ; but these troubles being in a little time appeased , new ones began in provence , and guienne , the parliaments of those provinces , prosecuting the war with great fury , declared they would have no pardon from the king ; and one gage , a priest , endeavoured to persuade them to take the sovereign power on themselves , which they declined ; but to maintain the war they treated with the spaniards for assistance , both of men and moneys . this year the prince of conde joined himself to the troudeurs , anno which was the usual nickname of the discontented party ; but finding that they intended the advancement of chasteau neuf , his mortal enemy , he left them in disgust ; however the parisians made several insurrections ; and upon the imprisonment of that prince an open rebellion broke out in berry , whose example was followed by normandy , and burgundy , to support which the spaniards agreed to contribute foot , and horse , besides great summes of money ; and soon after the parliament of bourdeaux declared for the rebells . during these transactions the popish bishops of ireland met at james-town , published a declaration against all that should adhere to the d. of ormond , his majesty's lord-lieutenant in that kingdom ; upon which my † authour makes this remark , that if the archbishops , &c. in ireland will take upon them to declare against the king's authority where his majesty hath placed it , they assume an authority to themselves that no other clergy ever pretended to , and declare sufficiently to the king , how far they are from being subjects , or intend to pay him any obedience longer than they are governed in such manner , and by such persons as they think fit to be pleased with . but not satisfied with refusing obedience to the king's commissioner , the confederates agreed , that if compounding with the parliament should be best for the people they should doe it : and presently after the marquess of clauricard had at their request taken the government upon him in his majesty's name , it was proposed in their assembly , that they might send to the enemy to treat with them upon surrendring all that was left into their hands . thus did they chuse rather to submit to the parliament , than obey the king , for they were not forced to that submission ; the army of the enemy having made no progress at that time , neither had it been flusht with any new success . as forward was father bret to persuade the gentlemen who had defended the castle of jersey for the king , anno to renounce the royal family , and kingly government , by taking the engagement ; affirming , that they were not to acknowledge any supreme but the prevailing power . all this while the rebellion in france increased , the parisians took arms , designing to seize the king ; and the prince of conde fortified several places , and confederated with the spaniards , whom , under the conduct of the duke of nemours , he called into france to his assistance , with which he maintained the war all this year , to whom the duke of orleance joined himself , and with all his interest increased the party . the next year mr. tho. anno white published his book of the grounds of obedience and government , wherein he asserts , that if a prince governs ill he becomes a robber , and the people may expell him , in which case they are not bound by any promise made to him ; and that they have no obligation to endeavour the restauration of a prince so dispossessed of his dominions , but rather to hinder it ; nay , though he were wrongfully driven out ; and such a prince is absolutely obliged to renounce all right and claim to the government ; and if he doth not , he is worse than an infidel . thus after their designs had effected the death of that good king , and expulsion of his late and present majesty , they contributed their endeavours to hinder their return , and debauch those who might attempt it ; yet had some the confidence to commend this gentleman to his late majesty , though the king knew him too well to take any notice of him . that they designed to hinder the restauration of the king , by an absolute compliance with the usurping power , is affirmed by one of their communion , who tells them that they were refractory to the queen's desires at rome for his majesty's assistance , and that collonel hutchinson could discover strange secrets about their treating with cromwell . and it is certain that in ireland there were several precepts granted by the archbishop of armagh , and others , to pray for the success of that usurper's forces ; while dominick decupsy , a dominican , esteemed a person of great holiness , and long , the jesuite , asserted , that the king being out of the roman church , it was not lawfull to pray for him particularly , or publickly on any other day except good fryday , as comprehended among the infidels and hereticks ; and then only for the spiritual welfare of his soul , not for his temporal prosperity . the civil wars continuing still in france , our present sovereign , then duke of york , went into the king's army ; and the princes being straitened , called in the duke of lorrain , who with his army marched to their succour , so that they kept the field all this and the ensuing year . anno . anno there was a discourse written by benoist de treglies , collateral of the council , or regent of the chancery of naples , in which this proposition was maintained , that when a pope intends to exercise any jurisdiction in a countrey , he ought to let his writs be examined by the temporal prince , that so it may be known whether the causes and persons contained therein be of his jurisdiction : which proposition having been examined by the inquisition at rome , at the express command of the pope , that congregation declared it to be heretical and schismatical , prohibiting the book , and threatening the severest censures against the authour . the following year affords us a farther evidence of the hopes the romanists had conceived of the restauration of their religion here ; anno for dr. baily , at the end of the life of fisher , bishop of rochester , speaking of the lord cromwell , and the great influence he had upon the proceedings in the beginning of the reformation , expresses their hopes of his party from the usurper , and his counsels , in these words : who knows but that the church may be healed of her wounds by the same name , sit hence the almighty hath communicated so great a secret unto mortals as that there should be such a salve made known to them , whereby the same weapon that made the wound should work the cure. oliva vera is not so hard to be construed oliverus , as that it may not be believed that a prophet , rather than a herald , gave the common father of christendom , the now pope of rome , ( innocent x. ) such ensigns of his nobility , ( viz. a dove holding an olive branch in her mouth , ) since it falls short in nothing of being a prophesie , and fulfilled , but only his highness running into her arms , whose embleme of innocence bears him already in her mouth . three years after this popish loyal flattery , anno father ferrall , a capuchin , presented a treatise to the cardinals of the congregation , de propaganda fide , proposing some methods to revive the rebellion in ireland , and drive out not only the english , but also all the irish who were descended from the old english conquerours , as not fit to be trusted in so holy a league ; and about the same time father * reiley , the popish primate , coming through brussels , refused to kiss the king's hand , though some offered to introduce him : and to obtain favour with richard cromwell , anno he alledged that the irish natives had no affection to the king , and his family ; and therefore were fit to be trusted by the protectour ; and upon his arrival in ireland , he made it his business to gain a party there to hinder the king's restauration , promising them great assistance ; upon which the king gave notice of those contrivances to don stephano de gamarro , the spanish ambassadour , in holland , so that he was recalled to rome , to avoid the danger of the law. and ( which is a farther evidence of the enmity of that party to the royal family ) when general monk was at london , in prosecution of that great and good design which he afterwards completed , and had by his prudent conduct gained the affections of the people monsieur de bourdeaux , the french ambassadour , told mr. clergis , † that cardinal mazarine would be glad to have the honour of his friendship , and would assist him faithfully in all his enterprises ; and that the general might be more confident of the cardinal , he assured him that oliver cromwell kept so strict a league with him , that he did not assume the government without his privity , and was directed step by step by him , in the progress of that action ; and therefore if he resolved on that course , he should not only have the cardinal's friendship and counsel in the attempt , but a safe retreat , and honourable support in france , if he failed in it . soon after his majesty's restauration , anno which all the contrivances of these men could not hinder , the jesuites presented a paper to several persons of honour , pleading to be included within a favourable vote which had been made with reference to all other romanists ; in which they acknowledge , that no party in their church think the deposing doctrine sinfull , but themselves , who are by order of their general forbidden to meddle with it : but , as their answerer observes , this makes them but the more guilty , seeing their loyalty depends upon the will of their general , which is all they pretend to be influenced by in this matter : but this is not all , for they impose upon the world in that assertion , there being no such decree which respects any other countrey but france ; and whereas ( if we should grant them that ) they pretend to be bound by it under pain of damnation , this likewise is false ; for none of their constitutions oblige them under so much as a venial sin. therefore the same person advised them to join in a subscription of abhorrence of those deposing doctrines , which had been too often maintained by them ; but this was a piece of loyalty to which they could never arrive . the former year some of the irish clergy and gentry , to make some amends for their rebellion , had subscribed that declaration which mr. cressy published in the year . which hath since been called the irish remonstrance , and made a great noise in the world for some years ; for no sooner was an account of this loyal action transmitted to rome , but the internuncio de vecchiis , then resident at brussels , by the pope's order declared , that his holiness had condemned it ; and cardinal barberini , in a letter to the noblemen of ireland , affirmed , that such as subscribe it do , to shew their fidelity to the king , destroy their faith ; and therefore exhorted all to beware of those seducers who promoted the subscriptions to it , ‖ and † father macedo , a portugueze , who had formerly made a latine panegyrick upon cromwell , was employed to write against it . the * dominicans refused absolution to some of their order , because they would not retract their approbations ; and the provincial box'd another for the same cause ; † the augustinians absolutely refused to sign it ; so did the ‖ franciscans , and * the jesuites . † anthony mac gheoghegan , popish bishop of meath , and several others , sent father john brady to rome , to get a direct censure published against it : and the theological faculty at ‖ lovain , declared that it contained many things contrary to the catholick faith , and ought not to be signed by any ; but father shelton , and several other priests , were more particular , who told father wash , the procurator for the irish clergy in this affair , ‖ that they would not subscribe that form , nor any other , denying a power in the pope to depose the king , or absolve subjects from their allegiance , because this is a matter of right , controverted between two great princes . two years after † de riddere , anno commissary general of the franciscans for the belgick provinces , in a national congregation of all the provincials of that order subject to him , declared the subscribers of the remonstrance to be schismaticks , reserving a power to their superiours to proceed against them when it should be convenient . and the nuncio de vecchiis , anno in a letter to father caron , ‖ calls the remonstrance a rock of offence ; but the bishop of * ferns he declared himself more positively for the deposing power in his letter to dr. james cusack , jun. . . and therefore in his letter to the ‖ d. of ormond , sep. . this year , he justifies all that was done at james-town by the romish bishops , who broke the peace of . and two years after they excommunicated the duke , then his majesty's lieutenant there , refusing to obey him any longer . and the same bp , in two † letters to father walsh the next year , seriously professed that he durst not renounce the pope's deposing power , which was maintained by saints , ( st. thomas one , ) cardinals , patriarch , a. bps. bps. and classical authors , with other eminent divines ; and chose rather to continue a banisht man , than declare against them . and when his majesty had granted liberty to the r. clergy of that nation to hold a national synod that year , to try if they would give any assurance of their loyalty , * card ▪ barberini wrote to them not to subscribe that protestation ; and the † internuncio rospigliosi affirmed , that to sign the remonstrance rendered the subscribers instruments of the damnation of others . * the cardinal minded them that the kingdom remained under excommunication , and therefore advised them to consider what they did . at length the assembly met , and the card ▪ sent letters dissuading them to give any such assurance of their loyalty , as being prejudicial to the cath. faith , which was seconded by another from the internuncio , and the bp. of ipres , directed to some of the synod , who were very obedient to these admonitions ; for when father walsh endeavoured to prove that several great divines had opposed the deposing doctrine , † father nettervile interrupted him , affirming that none had asserted the contrary , but a schismatical historian , and a poet , meaning sigibertus gemblacensis , and dante 's aligherius ; * soon after which they resolved not only not to sign the remonstrance , but not to suffer it to be read in the house : and when the procuratour desired them to beg his majesty's pardon for the late execrable rebellion , * they not only refused to ask pardon but so much as to acknowledge there was any need of it ; affirming publickly that they knew none at all guilty of any crime for any thing done in the war. and when the lord lieutenant desired them to give his majesty some assurance of their future obedience , in case of any deposition or excommunication from the pope , they refused even this without so much as putting it to the question . they offered indeed several forms instead of the remonstrance , but in none of them renounced the deposing power ; in that the assembly signed at their breaking up , they disowned the doctrine , but would not declare that doctrine which abetts it unsound and sinfull ; wherein they have been imitated by some late writers , who though called upon to affirm it such , never did it . once indeed they seemed to come something near what was expected , when their * chairman told father walsh , that it was not out of any prejudice against the remonstrance they would not sign it , but because they thought it more becoming their dignity and liberty to word their own sense ; for the rest , they were far from condemning that remonstrance or the subscribers thereof : yet would they not own this when desired under their hands , but refused ; so that no good being expected , they were dissolved , leaving an undeniable evidence of their aversion to loyalty , and approbation of the treasonable doctrine of the ch. of rome . soon after the dissolution of this synod the e. of sandwich , ambassadour in spain , informed his majesty that primate reilly was emplyed to stir up his countrey-men to rebell , upon which a gurd was set upon him , and in a little time was sent into france . the bp. anno of ferns still justified the rebellion , defending the actions of the clergy for laudable , vertuous , meritorious deeds , and becoming good men ; anno and therefore needing no repentance : and this is the last account i find of him , for he soon after dyed . and now the controversie about the regale growing hot between the king of france and the present pope , his holiness had so much of the spirit of his predecessours , who were for asserting their power over all the kingdoms of the world , as to threaten the king with excommunication , and that speedily , if he would not renounce his claim , anno and he was as good as his word ; for the king not being affraid of his thunders , and refusing to lose his right , and the assembly of the clergy joining with his majesty , the pope sent a bull of excommunication to his nuncio , requiring him to publish it in the assembly ; but by the diligence of the cardinal d'estree , the assembly was adjourned before the arrival of the bull. at the same time szlepeche , my primate of hungary , with his clergy , maintained the deposing power , by a censure of the contrary opinion ; and the next year the spanish inquisition at toledo did the same ; anno which was followed three years after by four theses , anno publickly maintained by the jesuites at their college of clermont in auvergne , wherein it was defended ; and even among our selves the authour of popery anatomised defends the decree of the council of laterane , in that the kings and princes of europe by their ambassadours consented to it , affirming that the christian world apprehended no injury , but rather security in that decree . finis . advertisement of two other books writ by the authour of this book . . the missionaries arts discovered : or , an account of their ways of insinuation , their artifices , and several methods of which they serve themselves in making converts to the church of rome . with a letter to a pulton . . a plain defence of the protestant religion , fitted to the meanest capacity , being a full answer to the popish net for the fishers of men , that was writ by two converts ; wherein is evidently made appear , that their departure from the protestant religion was without cause or reason . fit to be read by all protestants . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e a fowl. p. . b fowl. p. . . c fowl. p. . see the bull at the end of brutu●… fulmen . lond. . to . * hunting of the romish fox . p. , , . * fowlis hist. of romish treas . p. . † foxes & firebrands , part . . p. . dublin , . mr. mason minister of finglas , in the year . copied the substance of the bull out of the records at paris . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . surii commentar . p. . speed's chron. p. . * surii comment . brevis . p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chron. p. . † speed's chr. p. , . ‖ speed's chr. p. . * bulla quarta pauli tertii . jesuitis concessa apud hospin . histor. jesuit . p. , , . this bull is called by the jesuits , mare magnum . * speed's chronicle . p. , to . † speed's chronicle . p. , , . a speed's chron. p. , . fifth part of church government . p. . oxford . . b hist. of the council of trent . p. , . london . . vo . c fowl. hist. of romish treasons . p. . d idem . p. . * ●xes and firebrands . part . . p. . * fowlis's hist. p. . † idem . p. . ‖ idem . p. . * gabut . vit. pii quinti . l. . c. . apud . fowl. ubi supra & thuanus . lib. . ibid. † fowl. hist. p. . ‖ concil . trid. sess. . c. . decemb. . . * fowlis's hist. p. . edward dennum , see his letter to the lord cecil of april . . . in foxes and firebrands , p. , to . — out of the memorials of the lord cecil . † speed's chr. p. . fowlis hist. p. . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. , . import . c●●s●d p. . * id. p. . † sir ed. coke at the tryall of the gunp. trait . hist. of the gunp. tr. p. . ‖ see the bull in fowlis hist. p. . and speed's chron. p. . * surii comment . p. . ‖ il. * speed's chr. p. , . fowl. hist. p. . † execut. of justice for treason . pr. lond. . to . ‖ surii comment . p. . non illos habuere successus , conatus illorum nobilium , quos peraverant , ●●rtassis quod catholicis omnibus ea denuntiatio , necdum innotuisset . * idem . p. . noluerunt elizabetham legitimam reginam confiteri . † fowl. hist. p. , . * speed's chr. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chron. p. . † surii com. p. , , . * resp. ad edict . regin . angl. † ad an. ● . sect. . ‖ see f●wlis ubi supra . surii comment . p. , , . ●owlis's hist. p. . fowl. hist. p. . * see the instrument of that confederacy in maimbourg's hist ▪ of the league . p. . lond. . vo . † see the instrument in fowlis . p. , , . see the account of this transaction in the appendix to the vindication of the sincerity of the prot. relig. speed's chr. p. . * nelson , hance , lacies , briant , &c. † see his letter in speed , ib. ‖ hist. jesuit . p. , . anat of popish tyr. in the ep. dedic , lond. to . fowlis's hist. p. , . † fowlis ubi su●pra . fowl. p. . see the bull at large in fowlis , p. . ‖ eandem plenariam peccatorum vestrorum indulgentiam & remissionem , quam adversus turcas , pro recuperanda terra sancta bellantes consequuntur , tribuimus , &c. * john nichols in his declaration of his recantation , apud fowlis , p. . and reniger de pii quinti , and greg. . furoribus , c. . lon. . vo . † cambd. eliz. l. . ad an . . * important considerations , p. . ‖ see them reprinted in the collect. of trea. concerning the penal laws . lond. . this passage is p. . * auth. tyrrell in his recantation , p. . † they are his own words , see execution of justice , &c. p. ● . * see reynolds confer . with hart , pref. to the engl. seminaries , p. . lond . to . petatur à summo domino nostro , explicatio bullae quam catholici cupiunt intelligi hoc modo , us obliget semper illam & hereticos , catholicos verò nullo modo obliget , rebus sic stantibus , sed tum demum quando publica ejusdem bullae executio fieri poterit . execut. for trea. p. , . ‖ important considerations , p. , . * hunting of the romish fox , p. , . out of cecil's memoirs . † import . con. p. . & fowl. hist. p. . † hunting of the rom. fox , p. , , , . out of cecil's memoirs . * declaration of the favourable dealings of her majest . commissioners , p. . . to . † important consid. p. . * hunting of the romish fox . p. , . * fowlis , p. ▪ fowlis , p. , , , . hunting of the romish fox , p. . † speed's chr. p. . execut. for trea p. . anat. popish tyr. p. . speed's chron. p ▪ , . * fox●s & firebrands , part . . p. . fowlis's hist. p. . anat of popish tyranny , p. . fowlis hist. p. . * foxes and firebrands . part . . p. , . fowlis's hist. p. . idem . p. . see the letter in fowlis , p. , and speed , . idem . p. ● . idem . p. . * histor. jesuit . p. . sp●ed's chr. p. . jes. cat. p. , . fowl. hist. p. . * id. p. . id. p. . fowl. hist. p. . id. p. . id. p. . sep. . . speed's chron. p. . anat. of pop. tyr. epist. dedicat ▪ cambd. annal ad an . . fowlis's hist. p. , . * speed's chronicle . p. . anat. of pop. tyr. p. . * speed's chr. p. . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . fowl. hist. p. , . id. p. , . fowlis , p. . id. p. . * speed's chr. p. . anat. popish tyr. p. . ‖ fowl. p. . coll. of trea. conc. the penal laws , p. , . def. of eng , cath. p. , ▪ cited hy fowl. p. . ‖ fowl. p. . speed's chr. d. . ‖ fowl. p. . * speed's chr. p. . fowlis , p. , . id. p. . speed's chron. p. . import . consid. p. . * id. p. . ‖ fowlis , p. . speed , p. . * fowlis hist. p. . † important consid. p. . * fowl. p. fowlis's hist. p. , . * fowlis.'s hist. p. . ‖ id. p. . * fowl. p. . id. p. . id. p. , , . * id. p. . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . vide praef. ‖ id. p. . † ibid. † mr. bruce in the same letter . ibid. fowlis , p. , . † speed's chronicle . p. . fowlis hist. p. . import . consid . p. . † fowlis hist. p. . * id. p. . ‖ id. p. . . where see the letter . * id. p. , , . fowlis's hist. p. , . * conclusum est , nemine refragante , primùm , quod populus hujus regni solutus est & liberatus à sacramento fidelitatis & obedientiae , &c. deinde , quod idem populus licitè , tutâ conscientiâ , armari , uniri , & pecunias colligere & contribuere potest , ad defensionem & conservationem religionis apostolicae , catholicae , & romanae , adversus nefaria consilia & conatus praedicti regis , &c. see the whole decree in fowlis , p. , . † id. p. . fowlis , p. . see the bull at large in fowlis , p. . * ibid. p. . ib. p. , , . that he was set on by the jesuites , see hospin . histor. jesuit . p. , . fow. p. . hist. jesuit . p. , ▪ . see it at large in fowlis hist. p. . ib. p. , . ib. p. . ib. p. . ibid. fowl. p. . ibid. id. p. . idem . p. . ‖ fowl. p. , . † jure divino prohibentur catholici haereticum hominem , aut fautorem haerese●s , ad regnum admittere . quod si ejusmodi absolutionem à criminibus impetraverit , & tamen subsit manifestum simulationis , is nihilominus eodem jure excludi debet . quicunque autem satagat , ut is ad regnum perveniat , — est religioni atque ecclesiae perniciosus , contra quem eo nomine agi potest & debet , cujuscunque gradus & eminentiae sit . — cùm igitur henricus borbonius haereticus sit , & si fortè absolutionem in foro exteriore impetraret , manifestum appareat simulationis — eum christianissimi regni aditu , etiâm absolutione obtentâ , — franci prohibere , & à pace cum eo facienda abhorrere tenentur . — qui dicto henrico ad regnum aspiranti favere , suppetidsve , quovis modo ferunt , religionis desertores sunt , & in continuo peccato mortali manent ; , — qui se illi opponunt quocunque modo , zelo religionis , plurimum apud deum & homines merentur ; — si ad sanguinem usque resistant , eos aeternum in proemium , & ut fidei propugnatores martyrii palmam , consecuturos , judicare fas est . conclusum , nemine repugnante , in tertia congregatione generali , &c. septimo die maii , . fow. p. , &c. ‖ fowl. p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. * id. p. . † ob hanc causam etiam publico ordinam decreto extra provincia ejecti sunt , an . . sub mensis januarii initium . histor. jesuit . p. . fowlis , p . jesuites catec . p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. fow. p. . id. p. . id. p. , . fowlis's hist. p. , . ‖ important consid. p. . * ibid. anat. of popish tyranny . p. . † fowlis's hist. p. . important consid. and anat. of pop. tyr. p. . speed's chron. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . ‖ fowlis , p. , . idem . p. . idem . p. . * speed's chr. p. . anat. popish tyr. p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. import . consid. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chr. p. . fowl. p. . &c. fowl. p. , . id. p. . ‖ jes. catech. l. . c. . histor. jesuit . p. . † jes. cat. l. . c. . histor. jesuit . p. . sumptum est de barrierio supplicium , . aug. die verò . qui erat dominicus , pater commoletus , jesuita parisiensis , in epilogo concionis suae monuerat & adhortatus fuerat auditores , ne paululùm adhuc obdurarent , & quietis essent animis , siquidem brevi miraculum à deo magnum ipsos esse percepturos , atque oculis suis visuros . histor. jesuit . p. , &c. fowlis hist. p. , &c. hist. jes. p. . jes. cat. l. . c. . fowlis , p. . † fowlis hist. p. . hist. jesuit . p. . fowl. p. . jesu . cat. l. . c. . histor. jes. p. , , . * id. p. . ratus id religioni conducere . * constituit insuper ut omnes sacerdotes collegii clermontii , & omnes alii praedictae societati addicti , tanquam corruptores juventutis , perturbatores publicae tranquillitatis , — toto regno exeant . illorum autem mobilia & immobilia bona vertentur , &c. — secundùm arbitrium & decretum curiae . hist. jes. p. . histor. jesuit . p. , . where you may see the summe of his book , and the arrest of parliament against him . see also fowlis , p. . &c. † of him see hist. jesuit . ubi suprà . † speaking of chastell , there are these lines , malis magistris usus & schola impia , sotericum e●ete nomen usurpantibus . expressing by whose instigation he undertook the murther . * pulso tota gallia hominum genere novae & maleficae superstitionis qui rempublicam turbarunt , quorum instinctu particularis adolescens dirum facinus instituerat . hist. jes. p. . † sand. hist. of k. james , p. . ‖ c'st un acte tres sainct , tres humaine , tres digne , tres louable , & tres recommendable . — conformement à dieu , aux loix , au decrets , & à l'eglise . apolog. pour . j. chastel , p. . . see also hist. jes. p. . † fowl. p. . speed's chron. p. . fowlis's hist. p. , . hist. jesuit . p. . fowl. p. . * mousehole , meulin , and pensans . fowl. p. . a. p. reply to a notorious libell , p. , . cited by fowl. p. . fowl. p. . speed. p. . fowl. p . import . consid . p. . anat. of pop. tyran . p. . * speed , p. . jes. cat. l. . c. . speed , p. , . id. p. . cambd. annal. ad an . . * jes. catec . l. . c. . hist. jes. p. . fowl. p. , . fow. p . speed. p. . * see them at large in fowlis , p. . . † desideramus ut quemadmodum faelicis recordationis pius v. p. m. contra reginam angliae — bullam excommunicationis ediderat , necnon greg. . eandem continuaverat — similem quoque sententiam ad hoc bellum promovendum , & ad felicem exitum deducendum sanctitas vestra emittere dignetur . fowl. p. . ‖ cùm vos rom. pontificum praedecessorum nostrorum , & nostris & apostolicae sedis cohortationibus adductis — hugoni o neale — conjunctis animis & viribus praesto fueritis . see the letter at large in fowlis , p. , . speed , p. . . * fowlis p. . this year col. sempill betrayed lyer in flanders to the spaniards . wadsw . engl. span. pilgr . p. . lond. . — to . delr . disquis . magi. l. . c. . lov. . to . account of the proceedings against the gunp. trait . p. . lond. . to . foxes & firebrands , pt . . p. . fowl. p. . acct. of the proceedings against the gunpowder trait . p. . foxes & firebrands , ubi supra . ‖ fowlis's hist. p. . * walton's life of sir henry wotton , p. , &c. † sacrum foedus quod tu & principes , &c. ‖ magnam ex his voluptatem in domino cepimus — laudamus egregiam pietatem & fortitudinem tuam . — conservate filii hanc mentem , conservate vnionem , — & deus erit vobiscum , & pugnabit pro vobis . vbi opus perit , scribemus efficaciter ad roges & principes catholicos , — ut vobis & causae vestrae omni ope suffragentur . cogitamus etiam propediem mittere ad vos peculiarem nuncium nostrum . tibi & caeteris qui tibi unanimes pro fidei catholicae propugnatione adhaerent , nostram & apostolicam benedictionem benignè impertimur . fowl. p. . † walsh's hist. of the irish rem . pref. p. . * see his declaration in fowlis hist. p , &c. speed's chr. p. . fowlis's hist. p. . speed's chr. p. . ‖ hist of the gunpow . tr. p. , . hist. gunp. tr. p. . fowl. hist. p. , &c. * tanquam certum est accipiendum , posse rom. pontif. fidei desertores , armis compellere ac coercere ; — posse quoscunque catholicos hugoni o neal in praed . bello favere , idque magno cum merito , & spe maxima retributionis aeternae ; cùm enim bellum gerit authoritate summi pontificis . — eos omnes catholicos peccare ▪ mortaliter , qui anglorum castra — sequuntur ; nec posse illos aeternam salutem consequi , nec ullo sacerdote à suis peccatis absolvi , nisi prius resipiscant , ac castra anglorum deserant . idémque de illis censendum est qui illis tribuunt , praeterea tributa consueta quae ex summi pont. indulgentiae & permissione eis licet anglis regibus — solvere — surreptio intervenire non potest , nulla narratur petitio eorum in quorum favorem expeditur ; at summus pont. apertè in illis literis docet se & antecessores suos sponte exhortatos fuisse ad illud bellum gerendum hibernos . — permissum est etiam catholicis haereticae reginae id genus obsequii praestare quod catholicam religionem non oppugnet . — datum salamanticae , . martii . . fowl. p . fowl. p. . hist. of the irish remon . pref. p. . * see it at large in hist. jesuit . p. . pro regula indubitata habent quod ille excommunicandorum regum potestatem habeat , quod rex excommunicatus nihil sit aliud quam tyrannus , cui populus rebellare possit ; — quod omnes regnicolae qui minimum in ecclesia ordinem habeant , si quodcunque crimen committant , illud pro laesae majestatis crimine haberi non possit , propterea quod regum subditi non sint , nec ad eorum jurisdictionem pertineant . † oportet igitur ut illi qui tenent , & in regno vestro manere volunt , eas publicè in suis collegiis abjurent . ‖ hist. jes. p. . ne ulla collegiae — sine expressa regis permissione instituant . — vt semper aliquem habeant , natione gallum , qui regi à sacris concionibus esset , & de omnibus negotiis rationem totius societatis nomine ipsi reddere possit . account of the proceed . p. . hist. of the gun-powder plot. p. . † acct. of the proceedings , p. . ibid. fowl. hist. p. . an account of the proceed . p. . † ib. p. . . hist. of the gun-powder treason . p. . wilson's hist. of k. j. p. . ‖ account of the proceed . p. . see his papers at the end of the account , p. , &c. account of the proceedings , p. , . † causab . ep. ad front. ducaeum , p. . lond. . to . * account of the proceed . p. . ‖ fow. p. . * account of the proceed . p. . † robins . anat. of the english nunnery at lisbon , p. . lond. . to . fowl. p. . fowlis , p. . in his papers ubi supr . p. . * copley's reasons , p. . * vindication of the history of gunp. tr. p. . † fowl. p. . * copley's reas. p. . ib. p. . * k. james premon p . of his works . † account of proceedings , p. . * see key for cathol . p. . hist. of the gun-powder treas . p. . † copley's reasons , p. . * robins . anat. p. . † primarius quidem baro scotus , idemque spectatissimae in religione constantiae , cum romam venisset , in templo illio jesuitarum , inter alios sodalitatis illius martyres , henrici garnetti effigiem vidit . bernard . giral . patavi . pro repub. ven. apolog. p. . * st. amour's journal . p. . lond. . fol. — pater henricus garnettus anglus , londini pro fide catholica suspensus , & sectus . . maii. . fowl. p. . vindic. of the sincer. of the prot. relig. p. . out of thuanus ad an . . * tertul. apol. c. . cui autem opus est scrutari super caesaris salute , nisi à quo adversus illum aliquid cogitatur , aut post illam speratur & sustinetur . — * fowl. p. . idem . p. . fowl. hist. , &c. histor. jes. p. . fowl. p . * authoritate omnipotentis dei , ac b. petri & pauli apostolorum ejus , ac nostra , nisi dux & senatus intra viginti quatuor dies a die publicationis praesentium — computandos praedicta decreta omnia , &c. revocaverint &c — xcommunicamus , & excommunicatos nunciamus & declaramus . et si dicti dux & senatus per tres dies post lapsum dictorum viginti quatuor dierum , excommunicationis sententiam animo sustinuerint indurato , — universum temporale dominium dict . reip. ecclesiastico interdicto supponimus , — iliasque etiam poenos contra ispos — juxta sacrorum canonum dispositionem — leclarandi faecultatem reservamus , — dat. apr. . anno . † fowlis hist. p. , &c. ib p. , . † non potestis absque evidentissima gravissimáque divini honoris injuriâ obligare vos juramento , — cùm multa contineat quae fidei & saluti apertè aversantur . † aug. . . decrevimus vobis significare literas illas post longam & gravem de omnibus quae in illis continentur deliberationem ●dhibitam fuisse scriptas ; & ob id teneri-vos-illas omnino observare , omni-interpretatione secùs suadente rejectâ . fowlis's hist. p. . treatise of mitigation , p. . hist. jesuit . p. . hist. jes. p. . vindicat. of prot. relig. p. . fowl. p. ▪ , . si intra tempus hoc facere distulerint , eos facultitibus & privilegiis omnibus — prives . histor. jesuit . p. . idem , p. , , . anno hist. jesuit . p. , . vindic. of the sincer. of the plot. relig ▪ p. . fow. p ● . ib. p. , &c. hist. jesuit . p. . hic quidem mos est regum , ut ingentes thesauros ad sui amplitudinem & aliorum terrorem colligant , at rusticulum unum ad regem supprimendum sufficere . histor. jesuit . p. , . fowlis's hist. p. , . histor. jesuit . p. , &c. fowl. p. . see his speech at large in his diverses oeuvres , paris , . fol. ‖ fow. p. . his defens . fidei catholicae . — see brutum fulmen , p. , &c. frankl . annal. p. , . nani's history of venice , p. , . ib. p. , . nani's history of venice , p. , . hist. jesuit . p. , . * nani , p. , . * consp . of the span. agt. the state of venice , p. , . lon. . vo . † nani p. . ‖ hist. jesuit . p. , . * nani , p. . † id. p. . * burnet's trav. p. . wilson's hist. of great brit. p. . fowlis , p. . mister ▪ pre● ▪ , . sen. quid si essetis romae ? p. coto . mutaeretur nobiscum coelo animus , sentiremus ut romae . * see baiting of the pope's bull , in init . — ad haereat lingua vestrae faucibus vestris , priusquam authoritatem b. petri eâ jurisjurandi formulâ imminutam detis . † jesuits reasons unreasonable , p. . rushworth's collect. part . . p. . nani's history of venice ▪ p. . idem . p. ▪ . foxes & fire-brands , pt . . p. , . † hunting of the rom. fox , p. , . nani's history of venice , p. , &c. anno bp. bed●ll . long 's history of plots . p. . see whole account published under this title , the designs of the papists , lond. . to . see it in frankland's annals , p. , . non diffidimus , — quia sicut occasione unius foeminae authoritas sedis apostolicae in regno angliae suppressa fuit , sic nunc per tot heroicas foeminas , — brevi modò restituenda sit . — see the history of the irish rebellion , fol. nani's hist. p. . nani's hist. p. , &c. id. p. . † long 's hist. of plots , p. . * nos divinam clementiam indesinenter orantes , ut adversariorum conatus in nihilum redigat , &c. see it at large in the append . to the hist. of the irish rebel . p. . † nani's hist. p. . hist. of the irish remon . pres. p. † disputatio apolog. de jure reg. hibern . pro cath. hibern . advers . heret . anglos , p . cited by walsh in the history of the irish remonstrance , p. , . in these words : ordines regni optimo jure poterant ac debebant omni dominio hiberniae privare tales reges , postquam facti sunt haeretici atque tyranni — hoc enim jus & potestas in omni regno & republica est . — jam si consensui regni in hac re accederet authoritas apostolica , quis nisi haereticus , vel stultus audebit negare quod hîc affirmamus , & doctores theologi , & juris utriusque periti passim docent , rationes probant , exempla suadent . ld. clarendon against cressy , p. . * bp. bramhall's letters to a. p. vsher , ap . vsher's life & letters , p . id. p. . * vindic. of the sincerity of the prot. relig. p. . * mutatus polemo . p. , . id. p. . . . . vindic. of the sincer . of the prot. relig. p. . cressy 's exomolog . p. . paris , . vo . ld. clarendon against cressey . p. , . priorato's hist. of france , p. , &c. lond. . fol. * declaratio ss . dom. nostri innoc. divinâ providentiâ papae . nullitatis articulorum nuperae pacis germaniae , religioni catholicae , sedi apostolicae , & quomodo libet praejudicialium , — see it in hoornbeck disputat . ad bull. inn. . † numerus septem electorum imperii — apostolicâ authoritate praefinitus . — hist of the irish remon . p. , . * vindic. of the sincer. of the prot. relig. p. , . foxes & firebrands , part . p. . vindication of the prot. rel. p. . id. p. ▪ , . in his letter to dr. du moulin , aug. . . idem . p. . ib. p. , &c. id. p. . see the excommunication in the appendix to the hist. of the irish rem . p. . walsh's letters in the pref. hist of the irish remon . p. . priorate's hist. of france , p. , &c. id. p. , &c. see it at large , a●d the duke's answer to it , hist. of the irish remonst . ap. p. . † hist. of the irish rebell . p. . id. p. . vindic. of the prot. relig. p. . priorato's hist. of france , p. , , , . lone's hist. of plots , p. , . vindic. of the prot. relig. p. , &c. jesuites reasons unreasonable , p. , . hist. of irish rebellion , p. . priorato's hist. of france , p. , &c. st. amour's annals , p. . baily's life of fisher , p. , . london , . vo . hist. of the irish remonst . p. . * the same who had betrayed rathmines to jones . hist. of the irish remon . p. . long 's hist. of plots , p. , . jesuites reasons unreasonable , p. , &c , id. p. . hist of the irish remon . p. , , . where see the letters , and p. , . ‖ id. p. . * p. . † p. . ‖ p. . * p. . † p. . ‖ p. . ‖ p. . † p. . ‖ p. . * p. , &c. ‖ p. , . anno † p. , &c. * p. . † p. . * ld. clarend . against cr●ss●y , p. , . hist. of the irish remonst . p. , &c. † p. . * p. . * id. pref. p. , . idem . p. . * p. . p. . walsh's letters p. . anno news from france , p. . lond. . to . walsh's letters in the pref. popery anat. p. . lond. . to . a sermon preach'd before the lord-mayor and court of alderman at s. sepulchres-church on wednesday in easter-week, a.d. mdcxc by william wake ... wake, william, - . approx. kb of xml-encoded text transcribed from -bit group-iv tiff page images. text creation partnership, ann arbor, mi ; oxford (uk) : - (eebo-tcp phase ). a wing w estc r ocm this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above is co-owned by the institutions providing financial support to the early english books online text creation partnership. this phase i text is available for reuse, according to the terms of creative commons . universal . the text can be copied, modified, distributed and performed, even for commercial purposes, all without asking permission. early english books online. (eebo-tcp ; phase , no. a ) transcribed from: (early english books online ; image set ) images scanned from microfilm: (early english books, - ; : ) a sermon preach'd before the lord-mayor and court of alderman at s. sepulchres-church on wednesday in easter-week, a.d. mdcxc by william wake ... wake, william, - . [ ], p. printed for ric. chiswell ... and w. rogers ..., london : . reproduction of original in the huntington library. created by converting tcp files to tei p using tcp tei.xsl, tei @ oxford. re-processed by university of nebraska-lincoln and northwestern, with changes to facilitate morpho-syntactic tagging. gap elements of known extent have been transformed into placeholder characters or elements to simplify the filling in of gaps by user contributors. eebo-tcp is a partnership between the universities of michigan and oxford and the publisher proquest to create accurately transcribed and encoded texts based on the image sets published by proquest via their early english books online (eebo) database (http://eebo.chadwyck.com). the general aim of eebo-tcp is to encode one copy (usually the first edition) of every monographic english-language title published between and available in eebo. eebo-tcp aimed to produce large quantities of textual data within the usual project restraints of time and funding, and therefore chose to create diplomatic transcriptions (as opposed to critical editions) with light-touch, mainly structural encoding based on the text encoding initiative (http://www.tei-c.org). the eebo-tcp project was divided into two phases. the , texts created during phase of the project have been released into the public domain as of january . anyone can now take and use these texts for their own purposes, but we respectfully request that due credit and attribution is given to their original source. users should be aware of the process of creating the tcp texts, and therefore of any assumptions that can be made about the data. text selection was based on the new cambridge bibliography of english literature (ncbel). if an author (or for an anonymous work, the title) appears in ncbel, then their works are eligible for inclusion. selection was intended to range over a wide variety of subject areas, to reflect the true nature of the print record of the period. in general, first editions of a works in english were prioritized, although there are a number of works in other languages, notably latin and welsh, included and sometimes a second or later edition of a work was chosen if there was a compelling reason to do so. image sets were sent to external keying companies for transcription and basic encoding. quality assurance was then carried out by editorial teams in oxford and michigan. % (or pages, whichever is the greater) of each text was proofread for accuracy and those which did not meet qa standards were returned to the keyers to be redone. after proofreading, the encoding was enhanced and/or corrected and characters marked as illegible were corrected where possible up to a limit of instances per text. any remaining illegibles were encoded as <gap>s. understanding these processes should make clear that, while the overall quality of tcp data is very good, some errors will remain and some readable characters will be marked as illegible. users should bear in mind that in all likelihood such instances will never have been looked at by a tcp editor. the texts were encoded and linked to page images in accordance with level of the tei in libraries guidelines. copies of the texts have been issued variously as sgml (tcp schema; ascii text with mnemonic sdata character entities); displayable xml (tcp schema; characters represented either as utf- unicode or text strings within braces); or lossless xml (tei p , characters represented either as utf- unicode or tei g elements). keying and markup guidelines are available at the text creation partnership web site . eng bible. -- n.t. -- galatians vi, -- sermons. sermons, english -- th century. - tcp assigned for keying and markup - aptara keyed and coded from proquest page images - andrew kuster sampled and proofread - andrew kuster text and markup reviewed and edited - pfs batch review (qc) and xml conversion dr. wake 's sermon at s. sepulchres-church ; before the lord mayor , &c. on wednesday in easter-week , . pilkington mayor . martis xxix o aprilis . annoque regni regis & reginae wilhelmi & mariae angliae , &c. secundo . this court doth desire dr. wake to print his sermon preached on wednesday in easter week last , before the lord-mayor , aldermen , and citizens of london , at st. sepulchres . wagstaffe . a sermon preach'd before the lord-mayor , and court of aldermen , at s. sepvlchres-church , on wednesday in easter-week , a. d. m.dc.xc . by william wake , d. d. chaplain in ordinary to their majesties : and preacher to the honourable society of grays-inn . london : printed for ric. chiswell at the rose and crown in st. paul's church-yard : and w. rogers at the sun over-against st. dunstan's church in fleetstreet . . gal. vi. . as we have therefore opportunity , let us do good unto all men , especially unto them that are of the houshold of faith. saint paul having in the foregoing parts of this epistle dispatch'd that subject which was the great occasion of his writing of it ; and endeavour'd by many arguments to perswade the galatians not to suffer themselves to be mislead by those false-teachers who were crept in amongst them , into a needless , and even dangerous mixture , of the law of moses together with the gospel of christ : goes on in the close of all , to exhort them to such practical duties as he thought most necessary to recommend to them in those circumstances in which they then were . it was the unhappiness of that church , as it generally is of all others in the like cases , that their diversity of opinion , as to the point before-mention'd , had set up a diversity of parties and interests amongst them ; and made them much more zealous for their own particular tenents , in which they differ'd from one another , than for the common faith and doctrine of christ , in which they agreed together . instead of glorifying god by a holy life , their business was to tear and worry one another about the ceremonies of the law of moses . religion was turn'd into disputing ; and he was accounted the best man , not who was the most careful to live quietly , and to do his duty conscientiously , but who was the most violent to defend his point , and to run down all those that were of a different perswasion . in opposition to this furious and contentious spirit , saint paul having first determined the point which occasion'd all their difference , goes on finally to stir them up to such duties , as he supposed would be most likely to reduce them to a christian temper of love and charity to one another . and st , since the law was that they were so zealous for , he desires them to reflect a little , what it was that the law its self commanded them , ch. v. . for all the law is fufilled in one word , even in this , thou shalt love thy neighbour as thy self . dly , he represents to them , what the present consequence of such contentions would be likely to be : that while they thus quarrell'd with one another , they would give a fair opportunity to the common enemy to destroy them all , v. . but if ye bite and devour one another , take heed that ye be not consumed one of another . dly , he bids them consider , that hatred , variance , emulation , strife , seditions , heresies , envyings , and such like ; how fair soever the pretence may be of a concern for the honour of god , and the interests of religion , are yet as much the works of the flesh , and as destructive of salvation , as adultery or drunkenness , or any other the like immoralities . and that , if they would approve themselves truly zealous in his service , they must do it by a quite contrary practice : by their love , peace , long-suffering , gentleness , goodness , meekness , and the like fruits of that blessed spirit , which evermore leads men to be kind and charitable to one another . and having thus given them these general cautions , he finally adds two or three particular directions in such instances , wherein they seemed more especially to stand in need of his advice . as first , that they should not suffer their differences so far to transport them , as to make them be perpetually quarrelling and disputing with one another . for that this would be a means rather to keep up their differences , and embitter their spirits , and set them farther from agreement , than conduce to the composing of them , v. . let us not be desirous of vain-glory , provoking one another , envying one another . secondly , that much less should they indulge a peevish temper so far , as to be glad of any occasion to expose one anothers sins and infirmities ; but rather should mutually endeavour to help , and bear one anothers burdens : and consider , that the best man in the world may some time or other be tempted , and overtaken in a fault , and so need the same charity . to this end , thirdly , that they should learn to be humble : and instead of comparing themselves with other men , and valuing themselves upon their being better or more orthodox than their neighbours , should examine themselves by the rule of their duty , and see how they stood with relation to that : and remember , that when we come before god in judgment , the enquiry will not be , whether we have not exceeded some others in our piety , but whether we have liv'd so as we our selves might and ought to have done , v. . for every man shall bear his own burden . fourthly and lastly , that above all , they should not suffer their differences in other things , to abate their charity , or make them ever the less ready in all good offices , whether to their teachers , or to one another . but should consider , that the time is coming when god will call us to give an account of our stewardship ; how we have employed those talents he has committed to us . and then they who have been so wise as to manage them as they ought to do , shall receive a blessed reward : whilst those who have minded only their lusts or their interests ; who have either hoarded up their riches without doing and good at all with them , or have spent them only in sin and extravagance , shall be condemn'd to a miserable state of everlasting punishment : from whence he concludes in the words of the text ; as we have therefore opportunity , let us do good unto all men , especially unto them who are of the houshold of faith. from which words i shall take occasion to discourse on these four points : i st . of that general obligation which our christian profession lays upon us to do good : as we have therefore opportunity , let us do good. ii dly . of the time and measure , when and how far we ought so to do ; 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . as we have opportunity ; according to our ability ; for so also that phrase may well enough be understood . iii dly . of the persons to whom this good is to be done ; to all men , especially to them that are of the houshold of faith. iv thly . of the great engagement we have to do this , express'd in the verse before , from which our text is the inference : let us not be weary in well-doing , for in due season we shall reap , if we faint not ; as we have therefore opportunity , let us do good unto all men , especially unto them that are of the household of faith. i begin with the first of these ; i st . the general obligation which our religion lays upon us to do good. for the better clearing whereof , i must observe , that the word in the original is very emphatical ; it signifies not barely the doing good , but implies a care and choice in the doing of it ; that we should do , 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 , the good that particular good , whatsoever it be which another wants , and wherein we may be capable of lending our assistance to him . charity is a duty as comprehensive as it is excellent : it extends its self to all sorts of good offices whereby we may at any time be able to serve our neighbour , and do any real act of kindness to him . and indeed since god designed that to do good should be the indispensable duty of all christians , it was but necessary to give such a latitude to it , that no christian whatsoever might have just cause to complain that he was not in a capacity , in some way or other , of fulfilling it . to run through all the several parts of this duty , and shew in how many instances one man may be capable of doing good to another , were an undertaking as difficult and infinite , as it would be to draw a scheme of all the miseries and the calamities , of all the wants and the necessities , which any man ever did , or ever shall fall into in this world . suffice it in general to say , that by whatsoever act of ours we do in any wise promote either the present welfare , or the eternal happiness of our neighbour ; do in any sort contribute to make him more easie or comfortable in this life , or to further his everlasting felicity in the other ; in that we discharge this duty of doing good to him , and which there is no man so mean or low in the world , but he may find frequent opportunities of putting in practice . but tho this therefore be the general import of doing good , and the undoubted duty of every christian ; yet if we consider that expression according to the stile of the holy scriptures , we shall find it commonly used there in a more limited sense , to signifie that particular kind of * doing good , which consists in acts of mercy and benificence . and so i conceive it is that we are in a more especial manner at least , to understand it in this place : and then taking this for the meaning of our apostle in these words , i shall not need say much to shew what clear and forcible obligations our religion has laid upon us , in this sense more particularly , to do good. in short , * if to have given the plainest and most express commands for the exercise of such a charity , and to have repeated those commands more frequently , and to have enforced them more earnestly , than almost any other precepts in the gospel besides a : * b if to have set before us the practice of it , as that whereby above all things we may the most nearly imitate the perfection of god himself ; † and render him our debtor from whom we have received all , whatsoever we enjoy : * if to have made our kindness and charity to our neighbour , the very mark whereby to try our love and duty to god ; and to have declared that no service we can do the one , shall be accepted , whilst we continue to neglect the other . but above all , * if not only to have promised the blessings of this life to the practice of it , but to have set forth to us the great and final inquest of the day of judgment , as depending in a manner entirely on this one thing , and entailing either eternal happiness , or eternal misery upon us in the other world , according as we have been charitable or not , in this : if , i say , all this may be thought sufficient to lay an obligation upon us to be very diligent and forward in the discharge of any duty , there is then none to which our religion has been more careful to excite and oblige us than this one of charity , nor in which therefore a christian will be less able to excuse himself , if after all this he shall still continue to neglect the performance of it . but of the obligations which we lie under thus to do good , i shall have occasion to speak more fully in the close of this discourse : in the mean time having thus pointed out to you what that good is i am now more particularly to recommend to your practice , and given you a general prospect of our concern in it , i shall go on to the second thing which i proposed to consider , ii dly . of the time and measure , when and how far it is our duty to do this good ; as we have opportunity ; according to our ability . i have before said , that the phrase of st. paul would well enough bear each of these interpretations ; and i shall rather chuse both , than prefer either . they both agree very well with the design of the text , and will either of them afford some useful and seasonable reflections to us , to direct our practice in the duty of it . and st . of the time , the season of doing good. it has been the general sence of the most ancient interpreters of this passage , to refer the opportunity here spoken of to the time of our present life ; as being indeed the only space we have for the exercise of such a charity . and accordingly the * learned translations , departing a little from the strictness of the greek original , have most of them render'd it not as we have here done , as we have therefore opportunity : but as it still stands in our liturgy , now while we have time , let us do good unto all men . and thus it will agree very well with the rest of the context ; where the apostle speaks of two different seasons , the one of sowing , the other of harvest ; and exhorts the galatians not to neglect to sow now , and then they shall be sure to reap hereafter . and indeed this is a remark , than which none can be more proper for our serious consideration . it has pleased god to send us into this world , to exercise our selves , and to prepare our souls for the happiness of the other . here therefore is the time of labour ; the fatal season that must render us either happy or miserable to all eternity . and i am sure , i need not tell you either how short , or how uncertain at the best this time is . our years run on apace ; whilst we are discoursing of it we draw nigher to the grave . every minute cuts off some portion of our life ; and we cannot tell how soon death may overtake us , and deprive us of it all at once . and certainly then we ought to esteem it a very seasonable admonition , which the apostle here gives us , presently , whilst we have yet the opportunity , to do good , seeing we cannot tell how little a space we may have lest us for the doing of it . it is the folly of a great part of the world , that in this , as well as in too many other instances of their duty , they love still to procrastinate , and put off the doing of it as long as ever they can . they will repent when they are dying , and be charitable when they are dead : but will rather run the hazard of their souls to all eternity , than part either with their sins or their money before needs they must . and truly for those of the other communion , who believe that a little sorrow and confession at the last , is enough to discharge them of all the guilt of their sins ; and that by a good legacy left to the church , for prayers and masses to be said for them , they shall soon get quit of the punishment of them too ; what wonder if they reserve both their riches and their repentance , for so seasonable a time , and so good an occasion ? but for men who see through these delusions , and smile at such bargains , and wonder how any christians can suffer themselves to be so grosly cheated in a matter of so much concernment , as their money commonly is to most , and as our souls certainly ought to be to all of us ; nevertheless still to delay their doing good , and neglect the opportunity , and leave the issue of all to a death-bed repentance , and a death-bed charity : what can we conclude but that such persons as these , must have too great an affection both for their riches and for their lusts ; and that could these men have lived for ever , they would never have thought of being either charitable or religious ? indeed for those who have been liberal and bountiful before , to finish their race with glory ; and adorn their death , with the same charity that had given a luster and ornament to them whilst they lived ; this is so far from being worthy of any censure , that it ought rather to make their memory precious to all future generations . but otherwise to tarry to the last hour , and never think of doing good to others with the portion which god has given us , till we are no longer in a condition to enjoy it our selves ; this must certainly be very sinful and scandalous : and tho i will not say that such a legacy , rather than charity , at the last , shall utterly lose its reward ; yet as it wants much of that praise which the early giver meets with among men , so i think it may be justly doubted whether it shall find so favourable an acceptance in the sight of god. but ( dly . ) this phrase , as we have opportunity , will admit of yet another consideration , and that more agreeable to our litteral translation of it , viz. when ever a fitting occasion presents its self , and we are in a condition of doing of it . not that we should suppose it to be our duty , to give to every one indifferently that shall ask of us , and in the usual dialect of the streets , abuse the sacred name of christ , to cover over their own idleness and vndeserving . there is a prudence to be used in the distribution of our charity , as well as a liberality to be shown in the proportion of it . and st. * paul himself has told us there are some , who if they will not work , neither let them eat . but that whenever a true and worthy object of charity presents its self to us , we should then embrace the occasion ; and look upon it that this is the opportunity in which if we are able , we ought to do good. nay but yet farther , ( dly . ) tho it be most certain in the general , that whenever a titting object of charity calls upon us for our relief , we ought , if we are in a condition , to lay hold on the opportunity to do good : yet some special seasons and occasions there are , which will in a particular manner deserve to be look'd upon as the proper times for this duty . such are st . the times of want and scarceness : whether it happens by the hand of god , or through the sins and violence of men ; whether by some dearth or famine in the land , or by the miseries of war and tumults ; the obstruction of commerce abroad , and the natural consequence of that , the decay of trade at home . in these and the like cases , the more the necessities of the poor encrease , the greater should be our care and concern to relieve them : and we must not think , that an ordinary charity will excuse us , when such accidents and calamities as these , call for an extraordinary bounty from us . but especially , dly . such is the time of tryals and persecutions for righteousness sake : when it pleases god , whose judgments are unsearchable , to expose ( as many times he does ) his own church and servants , to suffer for their faith , and a good conscience ; being persecuted in one city or country , to fly into another : and thereby at the same time , that he does them the honour of making them confessors for their religion , offers us the benefit , of being in some measure partakers with them in their afflictions ; by our careful provision for , and our generous reception of them . it was this consideration especially , that open'd so far the hearts of the first converts to christianity towards one another , that they accounted nothing they had their own ; but were even glad of the opportunity to do somewhat extraordinary in testimony of their love to those , who shew'd so much love and constancy to their blessed master . and sure we ought in some measure to imitate the primitive charity of those men , at a time when so many of our brethren have follow'd their example , in a primitive zeal , and firmness to their religion . this is the least return we can make to god , for the peace and tranquility we hitherto enjoy , when so many thousands have been exposed to ruin for that faith , which we count it our glory and happiness to profess . and certainly we ought to consider , if the storm should have broken first upon us , what we should have in that case expected from them , and let that inform us what we ought to do for them . and these are such opportunities , as the necessities of others make for us : there are yet many special occasions for doing good which our own circumstances will offer to us . so , dly . in the times of our happiness and prosperity : when god does in any extraordinary manner give a blessing to us , whether in our persons or in our affairs ; whether in our own private concerns only , or in the more general and publick welfare of our friends or country . these are such times in which not only our own reason , and the common practice of mankind , but even god himself has directed us to make our charity to others , one way of expressing our grateful acknowledgments to him : that whilst we rejoyce in the effects of his mercy to us , our brethren may find cause to joyn thanks with us , for the liberal expressions of our love and kindness to them . and therefore when god commanded the israelites in three solemn feasts every year , to keep up the memory of the blessings he had done for them in bringing them up out of egypt , and planting them in that good land which they possessed ; he took particular care that the poor should not be forgot by them ; deut. xvi . , . thou shalt , says he , rejoyce before the lord : thou , and thy son , and thy daughter , and thy man-servant , and thy maid-servant , and the levite , and the stranger , and the fatherless , and the widow , that are within thy gates . for which end there was a publick collection always to be made at those feasts ; v. . . three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the lord , in the place which he shall chuse , in the feast of unleavened bread , and in the feast of weeks , and in the feast of tabernacles ; they shall not appear before the lord empty . every man shall give , according to the blessing of the lord thy god , which he hath given thee . and not only if we have already received any signal blessings and deliverances from god ; but thly , when we would implore his favour for future mercies ; whether to deliver us from any evils or calamities which either our sins have deserved , or we may otherwise have just cause to fear are ready to fall upon us ; or else to send down some new blessings upon us , or to continue , or to perfect those we have aleardy received : in all these , and the like cases , there is nothing can more effectually appease god's anger , and enliven our prayers , and make our piety and our repentance acceptable in his sight , and so obtain those mercies which we desire from him ; than to accompany all our other service , with some extraordinary acts of charity , and thereby give a new force , and vigour to it . when daniel had interpreted nebuchadnezzar's dream , and therein discover'd to him the strange judgment which god was about to bring upon him : how he should be driven from men , and have his dwelling with the beasts of the field , and be made to eat grass as the oxen , and be wet with the dew of heaven ; the best advice he could give him to stay the hand of god , and prevent the evil that was denounced against him , was to do some extraordinary act of mercy and charity to others , if perhaps he might thereby escape that great evil which was denounced against himself : ver . . wherefore , says he , o king , let my counsel be acceptable unto thee ; and break off thy sins by righteousness , and thine iniquities by shewing mercy to the poor ; if it may be a lengthning to thy tranquillity . and it was the opinion of st. jerome , that nebuchadnezzar did accordingly take the holy prophet's advice ; and that 't is to this we are to ascribe the delay which we read was made of this judgment , for * one whole year ; till forgetting his danger , and returning again to his former course , he forfeited the continuance of that tranquillity , which god had been pleased to lengthen to him upon the account of his repentance and charity . but , fifthly , and to conclude this point : we ought to esteem not only such extraordinary seasons as these to be in a more peculiar manner the proper times for this duty ; but in general , whenever either our own piety , or publick authority shall engage us to any especial , and singular exercises of religion ; in all these cases , and upon all such occasions , still our prayers , our thanksgivings , our repentance , whatever our devotion be , it must ever-more be accompanied withsome expressions of our bounty too ; and our charity to our neighbour , be the constant companion of our piety towards god. it was this that made the devout prayers of cornelius , though a gentile , so acceptable unto him , that he sent down an angel from heaven on purpose to assure him of it , and to direct him in the way for a better understanding of his duty : thy prayers , says he , and thine alms , are come up for a memorial before god. and 't is to the neglect of this , that we may , among other things , i fear , impute it ; that we now too often seem to lift up our hearts in vain thither . i am sure the wiseman has told us , that whoso stoppeth his ears at the cry of the poor , he also shall cry himself , and shall not be heard , and when the israelites heretofore complained , with some amazement , of the ineffectualness of all their fasting and prayers to implore god's favour ; and wonder'd what the meaning of it should be , that all their crys and their humiliations stood them in no stead , isaiah lviii : . wherefore have we fasted , and thou seest not ? wherefore have we afflicted our souls , and thou takest no knowledge ? nay , and this at the same time that god seems to bear witness to their piety in other respects , ver . . yet they seek me daily , and delight to know my ways , as a nation that did righteousness , and forsook not the ordinance of their god : they ask of me the ordinances of justice , they take delight in approaching to god : the prophet plainly tells them where the fault lay ; they were at variance among themselves , and uncharitable to the poor , and this spoiled all their other piety ; behold , says he , ye fast for strife and debate : is it such a fast that i have chosen ? a day for a man to afflict his soul ? wilt thou call this a fast , and an acceptable day to the lord ? is not this the fast that i have chosen , to loose the bands of wickedness , to undo the heavy burdens , and to let the oppressed go free , and that ye break every yoke ? is it not to deal thy bread to the hungry and that thou bring the poor that are cast out , to thy house ? when thou seest the naked that thou cover him , and that thou hide not thy self from thine own flesh ? then shalt thou call , and the lord shall answer ; thou shalt cry , and he shall say , here i am . &c. it were an easie matter to make a very particular application of every one of these circumstances to our selves at this time ; and shew that perhaps never any people lay under greater obligations to a liberal exercise of charity , than we of this country do at this day . but i have already enlarged my self too much upon these reflections ; and must not forget that there is yet another meaning which some have given to the phrase of my text which i have now been considering ; and which brings me to the other thing i proposed in this matter , dly , of the measure we are to observe in our doing good. now that in general is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as far as we are able , and our capacities will permit us to do it . for so we find the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 sometimes used , not only in the best greek authors , but even in these very epistles : and particularly phil. iv. . where st. paul excusing the philippians that did not sooner send their relief to him , tells them they wanted no good-will 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . but ye lacked ability : a so the syriac renders it ; and so * st. chrysostome , not to mention any others , expresly tells us we are there to understand it . but now what that proportion in particular is , which every one ought to distribute in works of mercy and charity , this is what i shall not undertake precisely to define . thus much our apostle tells us , that what a man sows , the same he shall also reap : and that we are to understand this not only with relation to the kind , but to the measure and the proportion too , himself shews us , cor. ix . . he which soweth sparingly shall reap sparingly , and he which soweth bountifully shall reap bountifully , every man according as he purposeth in his heart , so let him give , not grudgingly or of necessity ; for god loveth a chearful giver . and from both which it is obvious to conclude , that though s. paul would not prescribe any certain bounds to men's charity , which ought to be a free-will offering , large and voluntary , not narrow and constrained ; yet that in general he has plainly enough delivered his opinion , that the more we give , the better god will accept of it ; and the greater and more certain shall our returns from heaven be . and to a truly charitable mind , there will need no other direction than this . but because such is the narrowness of most men's souls , that they are apt to think every little pittance that they bestow on acts of mercy to the poor , to be abundantly sufficient to intitle them not only to an acceptance , but to a reward also : though i shall not presume to set any bounds where the gospel has not , by determining what men ought to lay aside for this duty ; yet thus far i will adventure to correct their mistakes , as to shew what that proportion is below which i suppose men ought not , without some extraordinary occasions , to fall ; or if they do , may have just cause to fear that they shall be look'd upon by god , as vnmerciful and vncharitable . now in order hereunto , i shall in the first place take it for granted , that every man ought to be the more liberal in his charity to others , the more free and bountiful the providence of god has been in its distributions to him . that is to say , that our charity must bear a proportion to our abilities , and that to whomsoever much is given , of him , in this sense also , much shall be required . this is what st. paul seems to have laid down as the standing rule for the corinthians to proceed by , epist. xvi . . that every one of them should lay aside according as god had prosper'd , or blessed him : which was the very measure that we before saw moses gave to the jews heretofore ; deut. xvi . . every man shall give according to the blessing of the lord thy god which he hath given thee . and the same apostle , in his st epist. to timothy , vi. . bids timothy charge them that were rich in this world , not only that they should be ready to give , and glad to distribute , but that they should be rich in good works ; i.e. should exceed others as much in their charity , as they did in their estates . and from all which it is very plain , that if those to whom god has given a larger ability than others ; whose riches are greater , or whose occasions less ; who have neither so many to maintain now , nor to provide for hereafter ; do not in some proportion go beyond them in works of mercy and beneficence : they may justly be looked upon to come short of that charity god expects from them , though otherwise they should chance to give in a lower and more scanty degree . but secondly , and to come more closely to the point proposed . it cannot reasonably be doubted , but that as our saviour himself tells us , that he came not to destroy the law , but to fulfil it : so except our righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and pharisees , . the strictest and most diligent observers of the law , we shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven . it remains therefore , that though the gospel of christ , has not particularly defined what proportion every man should give in works of charity , yet that no christians ought to give less now , than what the jews heretofore were ordinarily obliged to do . now the proportion of the law was this . a that every third year they should set aside the tenth part of their yearly income for the use of the poor : b that they should permit them every harvest to lease in their fields ; c that they should lend to them without vsury ; d that they should not go over their fields , their vineyards , or their olive-yards a second time to gather them clean ; or if they left any sheaf , or clusters , or bunches behind , that they should not go back to fetch them , but should leave all that escaped their first gathering , together with a certain e part of each field , which they called the corner of the field , untouch'd , for the stranger , for the fatherless , and for the widow ; besides some other instances of the like kind , prescribed to them f . this was the jew's righteousness , that is , his duty , his obligation : and if he transgress'd in any thing of all this , he broke the law , and sinned against god. but they had acts of charity yet beyond this , and which they properly called by the names of mercy and bounty . such were all their voluntary offerings at their feasts before mention'd : all their occasional works of pity , upon extraordinary emergencies : if for example god had given them a greater increase than ordinary in their fields or their vineyards ; or they had met with any unexpected good success in their affairs : if their children and their flocks were multiplied unto them ; or else on the other hand , some greater sin was to be expiated , or some calamity to be prevented , which seem'd ready to come upon them , unless they took care , by some extraordinary acts of charity and repentance , to prevent the evil , and reconcile themselves to god. such was the measure of the jews charity under the law , and certainly the christians ought not to be less . and therefore tho' i shall not pretend to determine what every man ought to do in this particular , and indeed amidst the great variety of fortunes and circumstances in the world , could not well give any certain rules for this matter ; yet thus much i am perswaded we may conclude . that no christian can ordinarily excuse himself , who does not lay aside somewhat more than the thirtieth part of his yearly income for the stranger , for the fatherless , and for the widow , besides all occasional a●●s of charity on extraordinary emergencies ; which was the least that god required of the jews heretofore , and is , i believe , the least that any christian can reasonably presume shall be expected of him now . and as we may justly suppose this to be the very lowest degree that is fit to be mention'd among christians for the ordinary discharge of this duty . so , thirdly , on extraordinary occasions , such as those we before laid down , 't is certain , that this will by no means suffice . here we must set no bounds to our doing good , but what our want of ability , or opportunity prescribes to us . charity indeed does not only allow , but oblige us first to provide for our own : and when that is prudently and moderately done , what further remains , tho' it be ours , yet it is ours only in trust for the supply of the wants and necessities of our neighbours . and if the exigences of the poor be great , and they cannot otherwise be supplied , we must resolve rather to part with all that we can spare , than to see them languish and perish for want of it . and woe be to that man who indulges either his covetousness or his vanity with that , for the lack of which his poor brother perishes ! what our saviour once pronounced against the rich man in st. luke , shall become his sentence ; son , remember that thou in thy life-time hast received thy good things , and likewise lazarus evil things , but now he is comforted and thou art tormented . and this may suffice for our second point , of the time and measure of our doing good. let us consider iiidly . to what persons we are to do this ; to all men , especially unto them that are of the houshold of faith. st . we must do good unto all men. it was the opinion of st. chrysostome , that st. paul design'd this part of my text to be a reproach to the narrow-spirited temper of the jews ; who confined the greatest part of their charity to such as were of the same country , or at least of the same religion with themselves , and to raise us up to a more generous and extensive practice of it . 't is true we find several passages in the law directing them to a concern not only for their own people , but also for the strangers that were amongst them . so levit. xxv . . if thy brother be waxen poor and fallen into decay with thee , then shalt thou relieve him , yea tho' he be a stranger or a sojourner , that he may live with thee . and in those particular precepts , deut. xxiv . there is an express provision made for them , at the th and following verses : when thou cuttest down thy harvest in thy field , & hast forgot a sheaf in thy field , thou shalt not go again to fetch it ; it shall be for the stranger , for the fatherless , and for the widow . when thou beatest thine olive-tree thou shalt not go over the boughs again , it shall be for the stranger , for the fatherless , and for the widow . when thou gatherest the grapes of thy vineyard , the shalt not glean it afterwards ; it shall be for the stranger , for the fatherless , and for the widow . but as in many other cases they were but ill interpreters of the law , so we find that in all these and the like places , they understood by the † stranger , a proselyte , one that worshipped the same god with them : or if they chanced to go farther , as in those instances of charity before mentioned , we are told in particular that they did , so as to allow the gentiles also a part in it ; yet alas ! it was but a very small one , viz. that they would not hinder them from taking what remained of their gleanings after all their own poor had gathered what they thought good ; but permit them to carry away that which must otherwise have been left for the beasts and birds . but the christian's charity must not be dispensed by any such scanty measures as these . he must love all men ; and for a proof that he does so , he must as he has opportunity do good unto all men . 't is not a country , much less a difference in religion that must set bounds to his beneficence . but as god dispenses his blessings to all the parts of the earth indifferently ; makes his sun to rise , and his rain to fall upon the just and unjust , upon those who profess his true religion , and upon those who persecute their brethren for professing of it : so must the christian follow his example , and be merciful as his father which is in heaven is merciful . such must in general the christians love and beneficence be : but then as god himself , though he is kind to the vnthankful and evil , has yet a particular regard to his own servants ; and even amongst them , does in a more especial manner promise to favour such as we are now speaking of , the liberal , and charitable christians above all others , so ought we also to do : we must , as we have opportunity , do good , unto all men ; but yet ly , especially to them who are of the houshold of faith. by those who are of the houshold of faith we may understand , either first , more largely , all christians in general , who in the scripture phrase are often called god's houshold , ephes. ii. . or secondly , more particularly , those of whom the apostle was speaking ver . . let him that is taught in the word , communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things . and in which soever of these two senses we take the expression , the rule of our text will hold good in both : that we ought in a more especial manner to be careful to do good to them , beyond such others as we are not so particularly engaged to . nay but , secondly , and to carry this reflection yet farther : we may in the exercise of our charity not only make a distinction betwixt christians and others , and among them prefer those chiefly who labour in the word among us ; but should even with respect to all others , take care as far as we can to give to those first who either the best deserve , or at least the most stand in need of our assistance . for since the largest fortune is not enough to enable a man to relieve all ; and 't is certain that not only the wants of some may be much more urgent than those of others , and so more fit to be consider'd by us ; but also that there are many , and those commonly the most clamorous and importunate , that are utterly unworthy to be regarded by us : he who will do good with that prudence and discretion he ought to do , must take all the care he can to distinguish between the one and the other of these , that since he cannot be a common benefactor to all , he may at least become so to them that the most deserve his pity . and , ( st . ) there are many who finding begging not only a more easie and agreeable , but sometimes a more profitable employment too , not only neglect to work themselves , but even train up their children to the same trade of idleness , and of living upon the charity of others . as soon as they are born , before they can yet speak for themselves , their looks and cries serve for a new topick to encrease the importunity of their parents : and no sooner are they able to use their limbs , and have attain'd so much of christianity as may suffice for their purpose , to engage the compassion of unwary and good-natur'd men , but from thenceforth they are set free to shift for themselves , and live as their friends have done before them . now , tho' i will not say a man commits a sin that relieves one of these , and do confess , that sometimes he who gives to all , may chance to light on a true object of charity among many that are much otherwise ; yet certainly it is for the most part a good deed misplac'd : and though i know st. chrysostome seems to exhort us to give to all , upon this consideration , that sometimes thereby we shall hit aright ; yet i can no more believe that the bare possibility of this should make a man charitable without distinction , than that the passage of st. paul , which he urges for it , should engage us to receive indifferently all that pass by , into our houses , because by so doing some have entertained angels unawares . but , ( dly , ) there is another sort of men , who by their own fault are reduced to poverty , and are now no longer in a condition to help themselves , tho' 't is in a great measure owing to their former sins and neglects that they are not . i do not think that such ought wholly to be passed by , especially if they are at last come to a due sense of their folly , and to a serious repentance for it . but yet if we have before us better men , and as necessitous as the other ; such as have wrought whilst they were able , and are now fallen into poverty , because either their employment fails them , or their strength is gone through former labours : if a decrepit age has overtaken them , or it may be a numerous family keeps them still under , notwithstanding all their pains and industry ; certainly such persons as these ought first to be consider'd , and take place of those , who have not so fair a pretence to our assistance . and this brings me to a ( d. ) reflection ; and which will yet more direct us in the wise discharge of this duty . there are many every where no less necessitous , but much more modest , than the rude and clamorous street-beggar ; who are fearful and scrupulous ; who mourn in secret , and complain to god in their extremities , but cannot tell how to make their wants known to their fellow-christians . they labour diligently ; they neglect no care to support themselves , and those for whom they are concerned to provide . but alas ! they labour in vain ; either a decay of trade , or it may be unavoidable losses in it ; want of business , fire , sickness , a thousand other misfortunes keep them low and miserable : they cannot tell how to ask our charity , and yet are ready to perish for want of it . such men as these ought , i do not say to be relieved with all chearfulness when known , but to be enquired after and found out , that they may be both assisted and encouraged by us . and our charity should descend like the dew of heaven upon them ; in the most soft and easie , the most courteous and obliging manner that is possible . we should take care to consult their modesty as well as their wants ; and if possible not let them know from what hand their help comes , or to whom it is , besides god , they are to return their thanks for it . the truth is , these are a sort of men , that do as much deserve our charity , as the common sort of beggars , for the most part , do our refusal . and if it be some kind of reproach to our country , that these latter are not more suppressed , and set on work ; it is certainly a great deal more both our sin and our scandal , that the others should not be more carefully provided for , and encouraged by us . i shall add yet one remark more , ( thly ) and which will bring me still nearer to the command of my text ; as we have opportunity let us do good unto all men ; especially unto them that are of the houshold of faith. i have before said , that by those of the houshold of faith we might understand , either all christians in general ; or else in particular , those who labour in the word among us : and i am sorry i should have any occasion to give you a third meaning of it , for such christians as are of the same particular faith and church with one another , or have any reflections to offer thereupon to you . but , alas ! both our divisions are too great to be dissembled at any time , and the consequences of them too deplorable , to be utterly passed by at such a time , and in such a discourse as this . we live in an age , wherein men's different opinions in points of christian doctrine , have so far transported them , as to make them almost utterly forget all the measures of christian love and charity towards one another . i need not tell you how sad the effects of a misguided zeal have been , both in our own and other countries ? what desolations it has wrought ? how many thousands it has ruined ? what wars and disturbances it has raised , almost in all the parts of the christian world ? we have seen with our eyes , and it has been told unto us , what calamities our brethren have undergone abroad : and to what extream miseries they are reduced in the midst of us , no man can be ignorant , though i fear but few of us lay it so effectually to heart as we ought to do . and all this for the sake of that religion which by the blessing of god we yet enjoy in peace and security . in such an unhappy state as this ; when the numbers of our distressed brethren are so great , their cause so good , and their wants so pressing , though i would not be so uncharitable as to say that we should withdraw either our affection or assistance from any other christians , no not from those who have been their persecutors ; yet certainly i may , without abusing the design of my text , say thus much ; that we ought , in the first place , to give to those who are of the same houshold of faith with our selves , before such as do not stand in so near a relation to us . and , blessed be god , who has not only hitherto continued his favours to us , it may be , for this very end that we might be able to minister to the necessities of these his saints , but has in some measure opened our hearts too , and made us willing to do it . only let us take the exhortation of our apostle in this place , as well as his direction ; and since their needs still continue , let us consider how we may still go on to provide for them ; and let us not be weary in well-doing , for in due season we shall reap , if we faint not . which brings me to the last thing proposed , vthly , to consider the great engagement we have to the fulfilling of this duty , in that glorious reward which god has promised to the performance of it . among all the arguments which either the authority of holy scripture , or the common principles of reason afford to us , to stir us up to the practice of this duty , there is none that strikes so forcibly upon the minds of all sorts of men , as the consideration of those great blessings which god has promised to the diligent performance of it ; and of those severe judgments which he will one day execute upon those that shall continue to neglect and disregard it . other reflections may serve to convince men of the justice and reasonableness of such a practice , and which indeed is so very clear that there are few so ill-natured and insensible as to deny it : but this shews the necessity of it . others may force us to confess it to be very titting that we should be thus kind and charitable to one another : but this speaks with authority , and makes us resolve in good earnest so to be . he that tells me how highly reasonable it is that i should do all the good i can with the portion which god has given me , * that for this end i have received it , and to this end ought especially to employ it : * that my riches are not my own , but committed to me in trust for the benefit of others , as well as for my own use ; and that i shall be false to that trust , if i do no good to others by them : * that i ought to express my gratitude to god for his extraordinary favours to me , by being bountiful to those who have not received so large a portion of him : * that this will , above any thing , render me most like unto god , and most beloved of men : * that the poorest person in the world is yet my brother , partaker of the same nature and constitution , it may be of the same promise of grace too with my self ; and therefore that it will be highly , not only un-christian , but even unnatural and inhumane , not to have some sense and feeling of his miseries : in a word , * that our riches are very uncertain , and we should consider , that what is the condition of many thousands now , but lately in as flourishing an estate as our selves , may , for ought we know , the next year be our own , if god , for our vncharitableness , shall think sit to let us also fall into the hands of the same cruel and merciless men ; and therefore that we ought to think what we should judge reasonable for others in such a case , to do to us ; and then remember the great rule both of nature and the gospel , and do even so unto them ; does certainly speak a great deal of sense , and may justly move my assent to his arguments . but 't is the man who can draw aside the vail , and set life and death , blessing and cursing before me ; and then make it appear upon such grounds as i cannot deny , or even doubt of , that my happiness or misery , both in this world and the other , depends upon my observance or neglect of this duty , that will awaken all the powers of my soul , and at the same time both convince and force to a compliance . and such is the argument we have here before us , and from which therefore the apostle concludes the necessity of our doing good , as a matter that would admit of no debate : be not , says he , deceived ; god is not mocked : for whatsoever a man soweth , that he shall also reap . he that soweth to his flesh , that is , that either spends what he has on the sensual enjoyments of the flesh , or else hoards it together to the covetous satisfying the desires of it , shall of the flesh reap corruption : but he that soweth to the spirit , i.e. as the next verses interpret it , does good , makes a wise , and pious , and charitable use of what he has , shall of the spirit reap life everlasting . wherefore , let us not be weary in well-doing ; for in due season we shall reap , if we faint not . many are the promises of the like kind which we meet with in other places of holy scripture : and from all which it is obvious to conclude , that if we have any regard either to our present happiness , or to our future glory , there is nothing wherein we ought to be more careful , than by our charity to establish our selves in both . for , st . as to this present life . what is it possible for any one to desire to make him a happy man in this world , that god has not freely promised to the merciful and liberal ? would he secure his riches ? would he confirm the enjoyment of them both to himself whilst he lives , and deliver them down in peace to his posterity when he comes to dye ? this charity has the promise of above any thing besides : he that giveth to the poor , says solomon , shall not lack . and in another place , he gives this as the very reason of it , prov. xxii . . he that hath a bountiful eye shall be blessed , for he giveth of his bread to the poor . and holy david confirms the truth of this remark not only from the promise of god , but also from his own experience , psal. xxxvii . . i have been young , and now am old , yet have i not seen the righteous forsaken , nor his seed begging their bread . he is ever merciful and lendeth , and his seed is blessed . for the lord loveth judgment , and forsaketh not his saints : they are preserved for ever . but the seed of the wicked shall be cut off : the righteous shall inherit the land , and shall dwell therein for ever . nay , but would he do yet more ? would he even encrease his wealth , and grow more prosperous in the enjoyment of it ? 't is a strange assertion , but yet by the blessing and promise of god , a very true one , that by giving it thus away , he shall encrease it . there is , says solomon , that scattereth , and yet encreaseth . and would you know who that is ? he will tell you in the next verse : the liberal soul shall be made fat , and he that watereth , shall be watered also himself . would he provide himself a security amidst all the uncertain , and many times miserable varieties of this world ? and be safe even in the midst of all its dangers ? charity is the best defence , the surest preservative against all calamities : blessed is the man , says david , that considereth the poor and needy , the lord will deliver him in the time of trouble . the lord will preserve him , and keep him alive , and he shall be blessed upon the earth , and not deliver him into the will of his enemies . in short , would he be blessed in all things that he putteth his hand unto , and have every thing prosper according to his hearts desire ? it was the promise of god to the jews heretofore , and i see no reason why we should not in proportion apply it to our selves now , that he would deal with them , according as they did with other men , deut. xv . . if there be among you a poor man of one of thy brethren within any of thy gates , in the land which the lord thy god giveth thee : thou shalt not harden thy heart , nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother — thou shalt surely give him ; because that for this thing the lord thy god shall bless thee in all that thou puttest thine hand unto . these are some of the present promises which god has made to the charitable man. i might to all this add the severe threatnings even of present evils to the covetous miser ; to him who has no bowels of mercy towards any others , and therefore deserves no compassion himself either from god or man. he hath swallow'd down riches , says job , and he shall vomit them up again ; god shall cast them out of his belly : and that for this very reason , ver . . because he hath oppressed and forsaken the poor . but this is yet the least part of this argument , and therefore i will not insist any longer upon it . and indeed the portion of the cross , which every good christian must expect more or less to meet with in this world , may often times make these present promises much less certain to us now , than they were to the jews heretofore . but the other part of the consideration is without exception , viz. dly , that if we be not weary in well doing , then in due season , when the great day of retribution comes , we shall infallibly reap , if we faint not . and here i shall presume , that no one will so far mistake the meaning of st. paul in these words , as to imagine , that this , or any other vertue alone , will be sufficient to our eternal salvation : so that if a man does but give liberally to the poor , 't is no great matter how he lives , or what he does with the rest of his estate . no , this is by no means the meaning of this promise . charity is indeed a most excellent vertue , and will go as far , it may be farther towards the securing our salvation , than any one thing besides in the world. st. peter has told us , that it shall cover the multitude of sins : that is , shall obtain the forgiveness of them . and st. john prescribes it as the best means to assure our hearts before god : that is , to enable us to appear with confidence before him in judgment . and a greater than both has told us , that if we give alms of such things as we have , all things shall be clean unto us . but yet when all is done , neither this , nor any other vertue alone can save us . there must be an vniversal holiness in all other respects too , and without which no man shall ever see the lord . and yet perhaps even in this case also , tho by our neglect in other matters we should be so unhappy as to come short of heaven , our charity nevertheless may not lose its reward ; but may serve to make us less miserable , if not more glorious ; to allay our damnation , if not to encrease our reward . but not to pursue these imaginations : that which the apostle here promises is plainly this ; that if we be not wanting to our selves , our charity shall be sure to meet with a proportionable recompence from god-almighty : and we shall reap among others , these three great advantages by it * ; first , that it shall prepare the way for the more certain and easie forgiveness of our sins : secondly , it shall procure us a more large and comfortable portion of gods grace , to enable us to discharge our duty the better now : and thirdly , * if we faint not , but persevere in this and all other parts of our duty , it shall crown us with a more exceeding weight of glory hereafter . whilst the sordid , covetous miser , were it possible for him otherwise to abound , in all the highest perfection of christian piety , yet for want of this one vertue , shall lose his reward , and be cast out , with the † unprofitable servant , who hid his talent , and made no use of it , did no good with it , into utter darkness , where is weeping , and wailing , and gnashing of teeth . and what then remains but that having all these encouragements to stir us up to a warm and vigorous discharge of this duty , we now suffer our selves to be perswaded , in the words of our saviour christ , to provide our selves bags which wax not old , a treasure in heaven that faileth not , where no thief approacheth , neither moth corrupteth . or as himself elsewhere expresses it , with more immediate reference to our last consideration ; to make to our selves friends of the mammon of vnrighteousness , that when we fail they may receive us into everlasting habitations . and yet i cannot conclude without adding one consideration more , and which i hope may , i am sure should be of very great weight with us . it has been one of the chiefest reproaches which those of the church of rome have endeavoured to fix upon our reformed religion , that it has not only put a stop to charity ; but has moreover cut off the very ground and foundation of it ; and all this only for rejecting those superstitions by which they principally have their gain . how false this imputation is as to the latter part of it , we have now pretty largely seen . god be thanked , christianity affords motives and engagements enough to charity , without running to any vain and superstitious pretences for the support of it . he who believes the singular efficacy of this practise both by the promise of god , and through the prayers of those whom he relieves to obtain the forgiveness of his sins , and to deliver his soul from eternal damnation , will need no vision of purgatory to open his heart to the poor . he may indeed turn his charity another way ; instead of bartering his money with the priests for masses and prayers ; for pardons and indulgences ; for holy trifles to prevent or expiate sins , he may bequeath it to the poor which is a great deal better . and if this be the charity which our religion has put an end to , we shall neither be afraid or ashamed to confess it . and for the former ; it might easily be made appear , that laying aside the superstitions we but now mention'd , there has much more been done since the reformation in works of wise and true charity , than ever was done in twice that time from the first rise of popery among us to its going off . and how much soever some of late have thought fit to magnifie the piety of rome and paris , yet upon these principles we may venture to say , that in this as well as all other advantages , our own city do's exceed them . to run through a particular comparison in this point , were both to abuse your patience , and the design of this discourse . let the account of what has been done in its publick hospitals only this last year serve as a short but sufficient evidence whereby to judge with how little reason we are tax'd with a decay of charity amongst us . a true report , &c. such was the effect of the last years piety : and how much of all this has been wholly established since the reformation ; what vast additions have been made to what was indeed begun before ; how faithfully these great trusts have been , and are still administred ; and kept up not withstanding the mighty losses they have sustain'd , and the other frequent misfortunes under which they have fallen , is well known to most of you in this assembly . could i to all this add the summ of what in such a doubtful , and discouraging year as this , according to common estimate has been , has nevertheless been expended within this one city in more private acts of mercy : what liberality has been shown in collections twice made for our exiled brethren , after two before gather'd for our neighbours of the french churches on the same occasion : not to mention all other occurrences , from which no day , scarce any hour is exempted ; we should then have enough not only to silence , but to shame the cavils of our enemies , and to engage us to bless god , who has in some measure opened our hearts to the cries of the poor , and not suffer'd them in vain to call upon us . but yet since this is the reproach they would now endeavour to tix upon us ; let us be as ready by our practice to confute this , as we have been , with good success , by our arguments , to answer all their other objections against us . let us shew them , that tho' our religion will neither allow us to boast of our good works to men , nor to pretend to merit by them of god ; yet it teaches us to he no less , nay in truth to be much more studious than themselves in the performance of them . and the more to engage us to this care , let us often represent to our selves the great motive which st. paul has here set before us , to stir us up to a free and ready discharge of this great duty . let us consider , that the time is coming , when we must give a strict account of our selves , and of all the abilities and opportunities that we have had of doing good , and what vse we have made of them . that the enquiry then will not so much be what our opinions or persuasions were in such or such controverted points of christianity ? to what church we have belong'd ? or , how well we have determined the many questions that so fatally distract and divide mens minds in matters of religion ? but rather , how well we have lived ? how charitable we have been to those who have differ'd from us ? and in particular , how kind and bountiful to the poor and needy ? this is what our saviour assures us , in the great account which he has left us of the day of judgment ; and with which , as being the noblest argument that ever was or could have been invented for the enforcing of this duty , and a short summary of all that i have here been laying before you to excite you to it , i shall conclude this whole discourse . when the son of man shall come in his glory , and all the holy angels with him , then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory . and before him shall be gathered all nations , and he shall separate them one from another , as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats . and he shall set the sheep on his right-hand , and the goats on his left . then shall be say unto them on his right-hand : come ye blessed of my father ; inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foudation of the world. for i was an hungred , and ye gave me meat ; i was thirsty , and ye gave me drink ; i was a stranger , and ye took me in ; naked , and ye cloathed me ; i was sick , and ye visited me ; i was in prison , and ye came unto me . then shall the righteous answer him , saying , lord , when saw we thee an hungred , and fed thee ? or thirsty , and gave thee drink ? when saw we thee a stranger , and took thee in ? or naked , and cloathed thee ? or when saw we thee sick or in prison , and came unto thee ? and the king shall answer and say unto them ; verily i say unto you , inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren , ye have done it unto me . then shall he also say unto them on the left-hand ; depart from me ye cursed , into everlasting fire , prepared for the devil and his angels . for i was an hungred , and ye gave me no meat ; i was thirsty , and ye gave me no drink ; i was a stranger , and ye took me not in ; naked , and ye cloathed me not ; sick , and in prison , and ye visited me not . then shall they also answer him , saying lord , when saw we thee an hungred , or a-thirst , or a stranger , or naked , or sick , or in prison , and did not minister unto thee ? then shall he answer them , saying ; verily i say unto you , inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of these , ye did it not to me . and these shall go away into everlasting punishment , but the righteous into life eternal . finis . books publish'd by the reverend dr. wake . and printed for ric. chiswell and will. rogers . an exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , in the several articles proposed by the late bishop of condom , [ in his exposition of the doctrine of the catholick church . ] quarto . a defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . a second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against the new exceptions of monsieur de meaux , late bishop of condom , and his vindicator . the first part . second defence of the exposition of the doctrine of the church of england , against monsieur de meaux and his vindicator . the second part . a discourse of the holy eucharist , in the two great points of the real presence , and the adoration of the host : in answer to the two discourses lately printed at oxford , on this subject . to which is prefixed a large historical preface , relating to the same argument . two discourses of purgatory and prayers for the dead . a continuation of the controversie between the church of england and the church of rome , being a full account of the books that have been of late written on both sides . preparation for death ; being a letter sent to a young gentlewoman in france , in a distemper of which she died . o. a discourse concerning the nature of idolatry ; in which a late author , viz. the bishop of oxford's true and only notion of idolatry is considered and confuted . the sum of a conference between dr. clagett and f. p. gooden , about transubstantiation . published by this author , with a preface . sermons and discourses on several occasions . o. a sermon preached before the queen at whitehall , april . . being the fifth wednesday in lent. a sermon preach'd before the lord mayor and court of aldermen , at s. sepulchres church , on wednesday in easter-week , . a sermon preach'd at paris , on the thirtieth of january , s. v. / . the present state of the controversie . now in the press , a sermon preach'd before the king and queen at whitehall , may . . published by their majesties special command . notes, typically marginal, from the original text notes for div a -e gal. v. . verse . ch. v. . v. , , , &c. ch. v. , , , . ch. v. . chap. vi . verse , . verse . vs. , , , . * act. x. . — ix . . cor. i● . . th●●s●l . iii 〈◊〉 . tim v. . 〈…〉 se● chrys. in hoc . a mat. vi . . — xix . . luk. vi . . — xi . . — xii . . rom. xii . . cor. viii . . colos. iii. , &c. b mat. v. . comp . with s. luk. vi . . † prov. xix . . jo. iii. . — iv . , , . see below , iv . point . see chrys. hieron , &c. in loc . * vulg. lat. syriac . arab. communion serv. vs s. , . — . * thes. iii. . 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 . in loc . p. . e. — . hieronym . i● dan. c. iv. l. h. edit . erasin . * dam. iv. . chrys. in act. hom. x. p. . a. act. x. . prov. xxi . isaiah lviii . . ibid. ver . . ver. . — . — . — . — . — , &c. a non ●●●tis tis compotes . * chrys in phil ▪ hom. xv. p. . e. cor. ix . . mat. v. . — . a ●eat . xiv . . xxvi . . b levit. xix . , . ib. xxiii . . c exod. xxii . . levitie . xxv . , . deut xxiii . d deut. xxiv . . e levit. xix . . deut. xxiv . . f see deut. xxiv . . &c. see dr. hammond's pract. cat. l. . sect. . chrys. de lazar . conc . . p. . c. d. edit . par. gr. lat. luke x. . chrys. in loc. deut. xxiv . — . — . — . † see ainsworth on lev. xix . . fagius , vatablus , on exod. xxii . . grotius on levit. xxv . . mat. . , . senec. de benef. l. . c. . luke vi . . — . chrys. in loc . p. . a. hieron . in loc . d. see ambros. de offic. l. . c. . 〈…〉 sit , &c. ambros. ibid. c. . chrys. hom. in laz. . p. . b. c. p. . d. heb. xiii . . videndus est ille qui te non videt : requirendus ille qui erubescit videri . ambros. de offic. l. . c. , . eccles. xi . , . mat. vii . . prov. xxiii . . prov. xxii . . psal. xxxvii . — . — . — . — . prov. xi . . — . psal. xli . i. — . deut. xv . . — . job xx . . — . peter iv . . john iii. . luke xi . . heb. xii . . * prov. x. . dan. iv . . pet. iv . . acts x. . cor. ix . . hebr. vi . . * mat. xix . . luke xvi . . cor. ix . , . tim. vi . , &c. † mat. xxv . , . luke xii . luke xvi . . cor. ix . . mat. xxv . ver. , &c. ver. , &c. ver. , &c. ver. , &c. ver. , &c. ver. .