IMPRIMATUR, Geo. Thorp. R more. in C. P. & D. D no. Gulielmo Archiep. Cant. a Sacris Domesticis. Nou. 4th. 1678. THE FOUNDATION OF Popery Shaken: OR, THE Bishop of ROME'S Supremacy Opposed. IN A SERMON, UPON MATTH. XVI. 18, 19 By William Cade, M. A. and Priest of the Church of ENGLAND. LONDON, Printed by T.M. for Robert Clavel, at the Sign of the Peacock, in St. Paul's-Church-yard, 1678. ERRORS of the PRESS. PAge 5. line 11. for for, read of. p. 8. l. 7. f. or, r. and p. 10. l. 9 r. Apostle. ibid. l. 12. r. Labours. p. 21. l. 24. r. Aethiopia. TO Mr. Edward Muns OF CLAPHAM, IN THE County of SURREY, Gent. Honoured Sir, A Reverend Clergyman of the Church of England affirms, That when the Public Maintenance of any Tenet will bring the utmost Hazard upon a Man 's Life or Fortune, and there be a necessity, that that Doctrine should be propagated; Then to be silent upon any Worldly Conceits of Honour, Profit, or present Safety, is a Breach of Christian Duty; or at least, it argues a Cowardice, unbecoming One that hath not only Listed himself under Christ's Banners, but hath undertaken the Charge of his Flock; which he must not Desert, when the Wolf approaches. I do not hence urge a Necessity of Printing this Sermon, or that every Churchman is obliged to declare his Judgement concerning the Subject treated of in it: But I would have it rather Received as an Excuse for the Publishing this Discourse; to which I was not only Invited, but Commanded, by some that heard it Preached; who were likewise instant in the foregoing Argument. I cannot presume, it will do that Service, which those Friends in Kindness seemed to imagine: Whatever their Motive was to the Publication, Obedience to their Commands, and Compliance with their Desires, were mine. It was not designed, neither can a Sermon be thought, to be a full Treatise, and a sufficient Confutation to the Church of Rome, in that particular Matter: I am satisfied, if it give but Hints to those that have time to look more into the Subject, and supply the Wants of those that have not Leisure and Opportunity to do so. When the Church is set on Fire, and like to be consumed in the Flames, 'tis enough for me, if I can bring but one Drop of Water towards the quenching it. When the Fence is broken down, and the Vine, that God's own Right Hand hath Planted amongst us, is like to be Trodden down by the Wild Boar of the Forest; I am not so vain, as to think I am able to Repair it: I only discover my Willingness, by putting to my Helping Hand. Tho all Divisions are Destructive to the Church of England; yet the Popish Faction seems to tend directly to its Ruin; as being form under one Head, and having a more United Interest than any other: Would the other Parties consider how much they assist the Papists, in Rending and Dividing our Church; would they be sensible, how much our own Divisions Encourage the Foe, they would no longer, for a few slight Circumstances, stand at Variance with their Mother Church; but would Unite against the Common Enemy. It is a Maxim in their Politics, Divide & Impera, which all our Separations help them to put into Practice: And 'tis to be feared, that we have more Cause to Fear, than the Jews had; That the Romans will come, and take away our Place and Nation. For, as that Party is Inconsiderable to us, were we United; so 'tis very Dangerous by our Divisions. It is Courage not to Fear, and Prudence not to 'Slight, an Enemy. 'Tis to be feared, That if we thus go on, Tacitus' Observation of the Britain's, will be very Applicable to us at this juncture; That their Differences at Home not suffering them to Unite, they were all Overcome by the Romans; Dum Singuli pugnabant Omnes vincebantur. And we know who said; A Kingdom or House divided against itself cannot stand. When the Enemy is before the Gates, and sets up His Batteries against our Walls; Whoever opens a Postern, or pulls down our Inward Fortifications, does more Mischief to us, than we can apprehend from the Foe Without: Were our Jerusalem a City at Unity within itself, we need not fear the Armies of the Baylonians. Sir, While an Honest Zeal to the Church was thus prevailing with me, to publish this Sermon; I more willingly complied therewith, as laying hold of it, as a Means of owning to the World, what high Obligations have been laid on me, by your Generous and Bountiful Hand; A Private Gratitude would no longer content me, when I had an Opportunity of making it Public. If You accept of these my first Endeavours, I shall not much value the Opinion of Others, nor fear the Censures of an Envious World: The Present is indeed Mean, like all the Returns of the Poor to their Benefactors; But I hope, it will be accepted, as coming from an Humble and Thankful Heart. You have a just Right and Title not only to the Author, but to whatever shall be produced by him; as being the only Person, to whom he owes all the Advantages of his Education. There are other Reasons, that render this Your Due, who are so constant to your Profession; and even in Clapham, are so Zealous for the Church of England. May You Live long, to see Her Flourish, and Tread down all her Enemies: You saw Her once under a Cloud; and even then, she Gloried in the Cross, and by Her Patience in Sufferings, triumphed over her Persecutors; May She now Exalt Herself in the midst of her Adversaries round about Her; and become (as She is the Glory of the Protestant Religion, so) a Terror to the Church of Rome. And may You long continue a Faithful Member of Her here, while She is Militant, that You may be a part of Her, when She shall be Triumphant: This is the Prayer of, Honoured Sir, Your most Obedient Kinsman, and Humble Servant, William Cade. THE Foundation Shaken: OR, The Pope's Supremacy Opposed. Mat. xuj. 18, 19 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. And I say unto thee, thou art Peter, and upon this Rock will I Build my Church; and the Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven: And whatsoever thou shalt Bind on Earth, shall be Bound in Heaven; And whatsoever thou shalt Lose on Earth, shall be Loosed in Heaven. THat this Text is perverted, for the Maintenance of the Pope's Supremacy over the whole Christian Church, as being grounded on two weak Foundations: The One, That St. Peter is hereby constituted Ecumenical Pastor; The Other, That the Bishop of Rome is herein St. Peter's Successor, and enjoys all his supposed Privileges, is so Notoriously Known, that having but read the Words, I am concerned to vindicate them from that perverted sense, and to discover the full meaning and design of the place; whereby I shall wrest this Scripture out of their Hands, and render it Unserviceable to their Cause. And this I shall endeavour to do by this following Method. I. I shall propose the Interpretation, which the Advocates for the Pope's Supremacy put on these Words. II. I shall give the True Sense of the Words, and explain the meaning of every particular Phrase in the Text, and thereby Answer all that is material in their Interpretation. III. I shall consider the Power, Authority, and Privileges hereby conferred on St. Peter, which are either 1. Extraordinary, or Personal. 2. Ordinary, or to be derived down to his Successors; in which latter Branch, I shall endeavour to Refute the Supremacy of the Pope, as it is pretendedly Supported thereby. I. I begin with the Romish Gloss and Interpretation. Cajetan in locum. The first I meet with, is Cardinal Cajetan's literal Exposition: In which we need not doubt to find the Doctrine of the Roman Church: since he professes in his Epistle to Pope Clement the 7th, that he submits it to the Apostolical Seat; and that he accounts it not safe to Write any thing but what agrees thereto. Thou Art, (says he) and not only art Called, a Rock; and to this purpose thou art such, that thou mayst be the Foundation of the Church. And the Pronoun This, shows the Rock of which it is spoken; for of no other is it said, either Before or After, that it is a Rock, but of Peter: As if Christ had plainly said, Thou art a Rock; and upon this Rock, I will lay the Foundation of my Church: Whereby he promises the Government of his Church to Peter; since he was to be the same in the Church, as the Foundation is in the Building. So that Christ appointed his Church to be Supported and Sustained upon the Strength of St. Peter's Seat; Against which, the Gates of Hell should not prevail. But he proceeds; I will give thee: Now he promises, after his Resurrection he gave; as Joh. 21.15, etc. Feed my Sheep: Which Text, whether it prove what it is produced for, it is not my Business at present to inquire. Upon the Word Keys, he tells us; That Christ by many Metaphors describes and explains the Supremacy of Peter: As before, by the Foundation in a Building; so now, by the Resemblances of Keys. For it is observable, That when Princes come first to their Crowns, or by Conquest gain new Towns; the Keys are presented to them, in Acknowledgement of their Supreme Authority: In Conformity to which Custom, Christ promises, That he will give Peter the Keys; and thereby, the Primacy in his Church. And he adds, That it is said Keys, in the Plural Number; because the Supreme Power consists of two things: One is the Power of Discerning, Judging, and Defining those Things that belong to the Kingdom of Heaven; and this is called, The Key of Knowledge: The Other, is the Power of Doing and Executing what is so Defined; and this is called, The Key of Power. What follows concerning the Kingdom of Heaven, limits St. Peter's Power to Spirituals; not admitting it in Temporals, unless in Ordine ad Spiritualia; As his Note afterwards, upon Super Terram, denies St. Peter to have any Authority in Purgatory: But these things concern not us; let them Dispute them amongst themselves. The next Assertor of St. Peter's Supremacy, and consequently a Corrupter of this Text, Bell. de Pont. Rom. cap. x. etc. is Bellarmine; who, when he had concluded, that Monarchy is the best sort of Government in the Church, (as indeed it is, if all things be subjected to the Sceptre of Christ) proceeds to prove, That St. Peter had this Power committed to him by this Place: For (says he) this Power is delivered to him by this Double Metaphor: The First is of a Foundation; because the same as a Foundation is to the Edifice, that the Head is to the Body, a Governor to his City, a King to his Subjects, and a Father of a Family to his House. The other Metaphor of Keys signifies thus much: That to whomsoever the Keys are delivered, the same is appointed King or Governor of the City; who may Admit, or Exclude, whom he pleases. And he very peremptorily calls them Heretics, who will not grant Peter to be the Rock; nor by the Metaphors of the Foundation, and of the Keys, will allow Chief and Sovereign Ecclesiastical Authority to be given. Concerning the Rock, he says, There are Four Opinions: The First, that of the Catholics, as they call themselves, excluding us; That it is Peter; not as a Particular Person, but as Pastor, and Head of the Church. The Second is, Erasmus his; That the Rock is every Faithful Christian. The Third is Calvin's; That the Rock is Christ. The Fourth is Luther's; That the Rock is the Faith of Peter, and the Confession that he but now made. As a Proof for the First of these, he tells us, That Cephas in the Syriack, is Peter, and a Rock too: In Greek, 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 signify the same thing. In Confirmation of it also, he brings the Testimony of many Fathers, whose Sense is so agreeable to the Protestant Doctrine; That the Romish Cause is quite destroyed, if they may be Judges; as in due Place shall be seen. I am not so much concerned for Erasmus' Opinion, as to enter the Lists for it: But let it pass with the same Remark that Bellarmine doth; That if every Christian were the Foundation, where were the Building? When I come to give the true Meaning of my Text, I shall show, that both Calvin's and Luther's Sense may be admitted: And that either of Them is a safer and truer Exposition of this Text, than what they produce; and doth stand Confirmed by the Authority of Ancient Doctors. The Cardinal understands by the Power of the Keys, Supreme Power over all the Church; which he endeavours to prove out of Isaiah 22.22. The Key of the House of David will I lay upon his Shoulder: So he shall Open, and none shall Shut; and he shall Shut, and none shall Open. This Power (he says) is so given to St. Peter, as not to be kept by him alone; but to be transferred to other Pastors, by his Authority. But as to the Extent of the Power of the Keys, it is not agreed upon betwixt Cajetan & Bellarmine; The latter of which, quarrels with the Other for saying, That the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, are not the same thing with the Power of Binding and Losing; But that the Keys contain something beside Order and Jurisdiction: Which Distinction (as Bellarmine observes) is more Subtle than True. What is wanting in these two Cardinals for the support of St. Peter's Primacy, is supplied by Stapleton and the Rhemish Interpreters; to consider whose Glosses I now proceed: In these words, says Stapleton, Upon this Rock will I build my Church; Christ declares the Reason why he gave Simon the Name of Peter, because he was to be the Rock on which the whole Church was to be Built. The building of the Church is not given, but promised; The Church is said to be built, when it is Gathered, Fed, Taught, and Ruled; and when any Member is anew added to it, or reconciled. But in all this manner of building or gathering the Faithful into one Sheepfold; The other Pastors are Workmen, and wise Architects, but Peter the Master of the Family; the rest are Pillars, Peter the Foundation on which they rely: He allows Christ to be called in Scripture a Rock; and therefore when he went away, he left St. Peter his Successor, and gave him the same Name, because he was to be the Father and Prince of the Church; even such a Foundation of it, against which the Gates of Hell should not prevail. Then he adds, that by the Keys, Christ gave the fullness of all Ecclesiastical Power only to St. Peter: Which Power, is to open and shut the Kingdom of Heaven, whether by it is meant Life Eternal, or the Communion of the Militant Church. Which power of the Keys is greater, as given to St. Peter, than to the rest of the Apostles: The power of binding and losing is a partial and inferior Power which they have; but his is to Govern, to Teach, to Dispose, and Exercise all things which belong to the Office of General Pastor. For, as a King in his Kingdom hath the Sword given to him alone, but he commits the use of it to Inferior Magistrates: so St. Peter hath the Power of the Keys committed to him properly and principally, but transfers the use of them in some inferior manner, to Pastors of a lower Rank, that are substituted by him. In the Remish Translation, that we may observe how great stress they put upon these words, they are deciphered in a distinct Character; and are rendered remarkable by being appointed the Gospel for so many Festivals, as for St. Peter's day, for the Cathedra Petri Romae, Jan. 18. & Antiochiae. Feb. 22. for the Feast of Petri ad Vincula. Aug. 1. and on the day of the Creation and Coronation of the Pope, and on the Anniversary thereof. What is to be found in their Annotations, more than what the Gentlemen already named have hinted, is not much: Only they are angry with the English Translators for not rendering the words thus. Thou art a Rock, and upon this Rock; or, Thou art Peter; or, Upon this Peter I will build my Church. Which if it be a fault, is likewise to be found in their so much adored vulgar Translation. In the Exposition of the Keys, they enlarge St. Peter's Power, by ascribing to him the Authority and Chair of Doctrine, Knowledge, Judgement, and Discretion between true and false Doctrine: The height of Government, the power of making Laws, of calling Councils, of the principal Voice in them, of Confirming them, of making Canons and wholesome Decrees, of Abrogating the contrary, of Ordaining Bishops and Pastors, or deposing or suspending them; finally, the Power to dispense the Goods of the Church, both Spiritual and Temporal: and therefore by the Name of Keys, is given that Supereminent Power, which is called in respect of the Power granted to other Apostles, Bishops, and Pastors, plenitudo Potestatis, fullness of Power. This is that Exposition on which the Advocates for the Pope's Supremacy lay so great stress, that they can by no means afford us any other; it is the grand support of the Holy Chair, the very bottom of all Papal Authority; for, on whatever Rock other parts of the Christian Church are founded, yet this we are assured of, that the Roman is built upon this, and the greatness of its Bishop must sink, if we take away this only Prop of it. By such means are the Waters of Life troubled, but not by good Angels; not to heal the Wounds, and make up the breaches of the Church, but to vex and widen them; and when the Fountain is rendered so muddy, we must expect nothing but putrid streams. It is a great Argument of a sinking Cause, when men catch at Straws for their support. And we may conclude, that the Scriptures are altogether silent in their Cause, when upon this one Foundation, they raise so many Structures, as the Supremacy of the Pope, the Infallibility and Visibility of their Church, and the Power of Indulgences; All which must of necessity fall to the Ground, if the Rock on which they be Built, be removed. II. As it is certainly in our following Exposition (the second thing proposed) whereby the Scriptures shall be so far vindicated from the sense already put on them, to which they are racked, that they shall speak in their own proper Language, and in it deliver Truth openly and clearly. There are (as you remember) several Opinions concerning the Rock in the Text. The first whereof is, that Peter is the Rock, which because Bellarmine proves by the Authority of some Fathers, I shall take off their Testimony: The Authorities are, St. Cyril. lib. 2. cap. 12. come. in Jo. That upon Peter, as on a firm Rock, his Church should be built. The Next is St. Hilary, (In hunc Locum). Oh happy Foundation of the Church, in imposing thy new Name, etc. The last is St. Basil, (lib. de poenit.) Tho Peter be a Rock, yet he is not a Rock as Christ is: For, Christ is the true and unmoveable Rock of himself: Peter is unmovable by Christ the Rock. Now we confess with Cyril, Hilary, and Basil, that Peter was a Stone, designed for the Foundation of the Church, but so as all the Apostles are Stones, upon which the Church is builded, (Rev. 21.14.) And though we are taught by the Apostles (1 Cor. 3.11.) That other Foundation can no man lay, than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ: Yet we do not exclude the Ministry and Laborers of his Apostles, whom also we acknowledge to be Stones and Foundations of his Church; not in respect of their Persons, but of their Heavenly Doctrine, whereby they became, with the Prophets, the Foundation, Jesus Christ being the Corner Stone, Ephes. 2.20. So that we can safely allow, that Peter may be styled, the Rock on which the Church is built, if we take it in a qualified and Secundary sense: He is that Apostle on whom (in the Planting of the Church, as on a chief stone in the Building) there is great stress and weight laid: He was already one of the most considerable Disciples of Christ, sharing with James and John in many signal Favours which others enjoyed not: He twice made Confession with greatest Alacrity and firmest boldness, of Christ's being the Messiah, and the Son of God: He first made known both to Jews and Gentiles the Truth of that which he here professes, that Jesus is the Christ. And as amongst the Hebrews all the Levites were in a common Notion of this Phrase, called Stones of the Temple: so he is called by way of Excellence, such a Stone, as relying on the Corner Stone, was with the Rest of the Apostles a principal Stone in the Building of Christ; yet not so, as excluding the rest of the Apostles from that Privilege; as is already said, and shall be in its place proved. Now should we grant (as in this sense we may, without any prejudice to our own Cause) That St. Peter is the Rock, on which the Church is built; yet it avails the Gentlemen of Rome but little, towards the Maintenance of their pretended Supremacy. But there are other Opinions concerning this Rock, Videses St. Ignat. Ep. ad Philadelph. St. Greg. Nyss. de Trin. adversus Judaeos. St. Isid. Pelus. Epist. lib. i. ep. 235. B. Theodoret. in Can. St. Greg. Epist. lib. 3. ep. 33. Theoph. in Mat. 16. St. Aug. in Ep. St. Joh. Tract. 10. St. Bas. Seleuc. Orat. 25. St. Jacob. Liturg. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉. p. 26, etc. And some which join the Person of St. Peter, profess it is Propter Robur Confessionis. Justin Martyr Dial. cum Tryph. St. Chrysost. Hom. 2. in Psal. 50. St. Ambros. Lib. 10. in St. Luc. c. 24. And St. Gregory gives it for a Rule, When Petra is read in the Singular Number (and so it is here) Christus est, Christ is signified. which will give us a more clear and perspicuous Sense of the Place: One of them is Calvin's, (Instit. Lib.) That the Rock is Christ: As if Christ had said; Upon this Rock, that is, myself; pointing out, as it were, himself unto them; as when he said, Destroy this Temple, Joh. 2.19. So that, the Mistake of the Romanists in one Case, seems not to be less Partial or Wilful, than that of the Jews in the other. That this Rock is Christ, is manifest (says Chemnitius) from divers places in Scripture, in which the Name of a Rock is ascribed to Christ, or to the Lord: As Deut. 32.18. Psal. 18.3. & 31.3. And Christ is called, The only Foundation, 1 Cor. 3.11. & 1 Pet. 2.6. That our Saviour seems to refer to these Words in Isaiah 28.16. Behold! I lay in Zion for a Foundation, a Stone, a Tried Stone, a precious Corner Stone, a Sure Foundation; is the Judgement of Dr. Lightfoot, (Her. Heb. in Locum.) So that, when St. Peter first of all declared the Mystery of the Incarnation, and Deity of Christ; the Disciples were taught out of the Prophet, who was that Stone that was laid in Zion for a Foundation, never to be thrown down; which was therefore so Firm, because he was not a Creature, but the Son of God: Which Surname Peter obtained; not that he was that Stone, but that he should have great Concern in building the Church upon it. The other Sense of the Rock, is, That the Church is built on the Faith of Peter, and the Confession thereof then made: Which Opinion is by Bellarmine ascribed to Luther; and by his Confession, stands Established by the AUthority of many Fathers. Hil. lib. 6. De Trin. says; Upon the Rock of this Confession, the Church is built: This Faith is the Foundation of the Church: By this Faith, are the Gates of Hell weakened: This Faith hath the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven. Ambr. lib. 6. cap. 9 in Luc. Fundamentum Ecclesiae Fides est. Chrysost. Hom. 55. in Mat. Upon this Rock will I build my Church; That is, Upon this Faith and Confession. Cyril Alex. lib. 4. De Trin. The Rock (as I take it) is nothing else, but the firm and unshaken Faith of the Disciple: In quâ Ecolesia Christi ita fundata & firmata esset, ut non laberetur, etc. For, were the Church founded upon St. Peter, and not rather upon the Confession he had made, it had presently Fallen: For, Peter stumbled at the Article of our Saviour's Passion immediately after the Text, and was Rebuked by the Name of Satan: And Matth. 26. he thrice denied Christ. But to proceed, Because the Church is usually in Scripture called the Temple and House of God (Ephes. 2.20. etc. 2 Cor. 6.16.) which rests upon one unmovable Foundation, and is raised by the joining together of Living Stones, Christ therefore uses the Metaphorical Word, I will Build. As he is said to destroy, who alienates men's Minds from the Truth to believe a Lie, and separates them from the Church; so he is said to Build, who reconciles men to it, and gains Members thereto by Preaching the Word. Were there so much Mystery in the Promise, as they of Rome pretend; that because Christ (who always was, and ever will be the Foundation and Head of the Church) says in the future, I will Build; therefore, St. Peter must needs be the Rock, on which it will be Built: It should have been added upon the same Reason; Not my, but thy Church; Because Christ had a Church, before this Promise should be accomplished. But there are better Reasons to be given, why Christ says, I will Build my Church. I. Comparing it to the Church he had before; because after Christ's Ascension, the Light of the Gospel shone clearer; & those things were Revealed and brought to open view, which before had been wrapped up in Darkness. II. Because of the Gentiles, who were to be called to the Knowledge of the Gospel of Christ, and to be made one Sheepfold under the great Shepherd, and Bishop of their Souls. The next Phrase is, And the Gates of Hell shall not prevail against it. The Christian Church shall be so founded, and so Built, that the Power of Hell, Death, and the Grave, shall not get the Victory over it: It shall be so Planted and Watered by Peter and the rest of the Apostles, that God shall give it an eternal Increase; it shall never be destroyed. The Church thus Established, may be understood either as it signifies Particular Persons, Believers, true faithful Christians, of which the Church consists: and though these shall die, yet Death shall have no Dominion over them; Christ shall break open the Bars, and cast those Cords from them, and shall rescue them by his Resurrection from the power of the Grave. Or, Secondly, The Church may be taken for the whole Congregation of Christian Professors, and then this promise secures it from the Gates of Hell, so as it shall never perish totally, or irrecoverably; It is inexpugnable, and shall remain for ever; and whatever Change it suffers in the World, it shall again lift up its Head, which is truly and effectually performed, if, as it decays or perishes in one Branch or Part, it revives or flourish in another. Nay, should it at some one time (as Mr. Chillingworth observes; though neither he nor we lay any great stress upon it,) be quite extinct, yet the Gates of Hell have not prevailed against it, if it rises again Victorious: As the Enemy is not said to have prevailed against a Town, if it be ever recovered out of his Hands. The 19 v. And I will give unto thee the Keys etc. is capable of this Interpretation: That the Keys are the Word of God, whereby the Kingdom of Heaven is opened, i. e. Remission of sins and Eternal Life is promised, to those that Believe and Repent; or shut, when Pardon and Life are denied to the Impenitent and Unbelievers. Peter binds when he inflicts punishment, as Excommunication, Penance, etc. or refers to the dreadful Judgement of God; he loses, when he remits those Penalties, and declares the sinner Absolved: And this judgement passed on Earth, if according to the Rule proposed, the Word of God, is ratified, and confirmed in Heaven; To explain this Power here conferred, Dr. Lightfoot gives us the Form of Ordination amongst the Jews, which was in these or the like words; Receive thou Power to Bind, or to Lose: So Christ, when he confers on the Apostles the Ministerial Function, Commands them to bind and to lose, i. e. to Teach what is to be done, or not to be done; as will appear, if you will observe with the same Author, that this Power extends only to Things, not to Persons: So that according to him, this is the sense of the Place. The time is coming (says Christ) when the Law of Moses shall be in part abrogated, and in part continued: so that to Peter and the other Apostles Power is granted to confirm or abolish, what seems good unto the Holy Ghost, and unto them: As they forbade Circumcision and other Rites (Acts 15.28, 29.) and permitted Paul to purify himself, (Acts 21.24.) and the same Author will not allow this power of Binding and Losing, to import as much as that given, Joh. 20.23. of Remitting and Retaining sins. For there (says he) it is treated of the Persons to be, or not to be, Punished; Here of Doctrines and things Lawful or Prohibited, that are subject to the determination of the Apostles. But we must crave leave to differ from the judgement of this Learned and Reverend Author; and declare with Calvin, lib. Inst. lib. 4. cap. 6. §. 3. cap. 11. §. 1. That Christ explained what He meant by binding and losing, when He gave the Apostles Authority to to remit or retain Sins. He is said to remit sins, who, by Preaching the Gospel, converts men to God; he is said to Retain, who declares, that the obstinate sinner is reserved for everlasting Punishments: From whence it follows, To receive the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, is not to be promoted to any Principality or Power over others, but the Ministry of the Word: Which is approved by St. Hierom, when he says, That the Apostles do Lose men by the Word of God, by the Testimony of Scriptures, and by the Word of Exhortation. Which Sense is safe and plain; and with the Jurisdiction here employed, and by Calvin not excluded, is the entire meaning of the Place. For the Power of Administering and Ruling the Church of God, the Family of Christ, is hereby conferred on the Apostles. This primarily and independently belongs to Christ, the Holy and True, who hath the Key of David, Rev. 3.7. Keys are confessedly an Ensign of Power; But that Power is not all of one kind; it is Greater or Less; Principal and Independent; or Inferior and Derivative: And several Keys are Emblems of these several Powers. David was a King, and independent from any on Earth; and consequently, the Key of David notes an Independent Supreme Power; and that applied to the Church, belongs only to Christ. But the Keys of the House of David, mentioned (Isa. 22.22.) to which the Text seems to refer, notes an Inferior Power; that of a Steward in David's Family, who being perfectly subordinate to him, hath yet the Administration of the Affairs of his Family entrusted to him. Now, Christ is the Original, and Prime Fountain of all Power over the whole Church, that Spiritual Kingdom of David; as to whom was given, by the Father, all Power in Heaven and Earth; particularly, that of Losing or Remitting Sin on Earth, Mat. 9.6. And this is by Christ communicated to his Apostles, and their Successors, the Bishops in the Church, as so many several Stewards: As St. chrysostom observes; That the Bishops are those Faithful Servants in the Parable, whom the Lord sets over his House. The Sense of the Words on both Sides thus given, our Passage is clear to the Third and Last Thing proposed: which was to consider, The Power, Honour, and Privileges hereby conferred on St. Peter; which are, 1. Extraordinary, or Personal. 2. Ordinary, or to be derived down to his Successors. I. I begin with the Extraordinary Power, Honour, and Privileges of St. Peter: Which I also call Personal; not as Excluding the rest of the Apostles, but their Successors. In Discoursing of which, I shall lay down these Two Things: 1. What the Extraordinary Power, Honour, and Privileges of an Apostle are; of which the succeeding Church did not partake. 2. That in these Things, St. Peter hath no Superiority over the other Apostles; But that they were all Equal. First, I am to show, what the Extraordinary and Personal Power, Honour, and Privilege of an Apostle is. Christ, while he had his Residence on Earth, did not commit the Government of his Church into the Hands of others; but Exercised the Office of Apostle and Bishop, in his own Person: Which Style is given him, Heb. 3.1. 1 Pet. 2.25. But that he might show himself Faithful in the House of God; before he was to leave the World, and return back to Heaven, he did Ordain and Constitute several Officers, who might in his Absence, Conduct and Oversee the Affairs of the Church; accordingly therefore, He gave some Apostles, some Prophets, some Evangelists, and some Pastors and Teachers; For the the gathering together of the Saints, the Work of the Ministry, and the Edifying of the Body of Christ; Until we all meet in the Unity of the Faith, and Knowledge of the Son of God into a Perfect Man, even into the Measure of the Age of the Fullness of Christ, Eph. 2.11, etc. Amongst these, the Apostles were Chief and Principal; and as far in Office as Honour, before all other Orders of the Church: Having these Badges of their Power and Privileges, not communicable to any other Ministers of Christ: Immediate Vocation, and Election; Infallibility of Judgement, in delivering the Doctrines of the Kingdom of Heaven; Generality of Commission, comprehending all Places and Persons; The Gift of Tongues, enabling them to speak in all the Languages of the World, and the Knowledge of all Secrets, and Power to confirm their Doctrines by Signs and Miracles,; and by the Imposition of their Hands, the Power of Bestowing the Miraculous Gifts of the Spirit to Others. These Powers and Privileges, even in the Times of the Apostles, were not conferred on Any but Themselves: The Evangelists and Prophets were not called Immediately by Christ, but appointed by the Apostles; neither were they led Infallibly, into all Truth: General Commission they had not; but were taken into the Fellowship of the Apostles Labours, to Assist their Presence, and Supply their Absence; to Build upon their Foundation, and to Perfect what they Began. And though the Miraculous Gifts of Tongues, and Working Miracles, were not proper to the Apostles; yet having them in such sort, as by the Imposition of their Hands to Give the Spirit, Enabling others to Work Miracles, was Peculiar and Proper to them. Hence it is, that St. chrysostom concludes; That, though Prophecy, the Gift of Miracles, and Expelling Devils, the Orders of Pastors and Teachers, were all Spiritual Powers, and Ensigns of great Authority; yet the Apostolical Eminency is far above all these: Which therefore he calls, a Spiritual Consulship: An Apostle having as great Pre-eminence, above all other Officers in the Church; as the Consul had, above all other Magistrates in Rome. These were a few Select Men, whom our Lord chose out of the rest of his Disciples; to devolve Part of the Government on their Shoulders, and to Depute them for the first Planting and Settling Christianity in the World: He chose Twelve, whom he named Apostles, (Luk. 6.13.) whom he Endowed with Extraordinary Gifts, that they might more prevalently contend against the strong Prejudices of Pleasure and Interest. The Power of Tongues, and other Miraculous Effusions of the Holy Ghost, being like Watering to a Plant; which, when it hath taken Root, and filled the Land, could Subsist without those Extraordinary Helps. When Israel was brought into Canaan, and Jacob into a Strange Land, God in a most signal manner Fought against the Nations; and Dispossessed them: But when his People were settled there, God sends them not, even in their greatest Distress, such Remarkable Deliverances, as he did before. So Christ, in the Establishment of his Church, observes the same Methods of Providence: The Powers of the Devil, when free and instigating all Mankind against the Doctrine of Christ, must be Resisted and Opposed by a Power superior to his own: But when he was once Subdued by Christ, and then by his Church, there needs not the same Power to keep him in Bonds, as at first to Conquer and Fetter him. He may still rage's, and shake his Chain; but he cannot break it. He looks Terribly, like the Soldiers of Tarentum to the Romans, when they lay Dead with their Swords in their Hands: He may affright, but he cannot Hurt. So that, in this case, the Holy Ghost acts not so Extraordinarily to Preserve, as at first to Plant it; because he that Opposes it, is not now so Strong as he then was: For, a less Force can keep the Garrison, than take the City. St. Augustine gives a good Reason (De Util. Credendi, cap. 16.) why it was not fit, that these Miraculous Courses should still have continued; Because the Liveliness of the Spring, after a Dead Winter, is no Wonder, since acted every Year: So the Strangeness of Miracles, which moved at first, would not now be regarded, if continued, etc. This Power and Honour of the Apostle-ship, conveyed by the Commission to the Apostles, was equally conferred on all; (which is my Second Consideration). They were all Chosen in the same Manner, and at the same Time: All equally Infallible in their Judgements, and Determinations; All sent to Preach, and Baptise all Nations, and entrusted with the Power of Binding and Losing; and All furnished with the necessary Gifts and Powers of the Holy Ghost. Indeed, the Fortunes of the Church of Rome depend upon a different Doctrine; and the Tide of its Interest runs another way: and it behoves the Patrons of the Pope's Supremacy, to contend with mighty Zeal and Fierceness for St. Peter's: For, if the Original Right be questioned, that which is derived from it must fall, when it loses its Foundation. There is nothing so certain, as that Men want Good Arguments, when they urge Weak Ones: and none but a Fool will Build his House upon the Sands, that hath a Rock at hand for a Foundation: So that, when we hear Bellarmine reckoning up such Prerogatives of St. Peter, as these are; The Change of his Name, The Fishing in his Ship, Paying Tribute for Christ and Himself; and such like: We may conclude; That he hath proved nothing but the Weakness of the Cause he maintains. Indeed, there is one Argument, which is as Uncharitable as it is Weak: When St. Peter hath this Promise, That the Gates of Hell shall not prevail against him; By it the Cardinal understands, not only the Perpetual Stability of the Universal Church; but of the Rock on which it is Founded: So that, by a Special Privilege, it is promised to Peter, That his Sea shall never fail: Which Promise, had it been made to the rest of the Apostles; St. James' Seat had been still at Jerusalem; St. John's at Ephesus; St. Mathews in Aethopia; and St. Andrews in Scythia: But all these have yielded to the Gates of Hell. Were this a safe and honest way of Defending a Cause, the Prosperous Villain is ever secure from the Imputation of Gild: and Success is as good an Argument for the great Turk of Constantinople, as for the Pope of Rome. If we consult the Fathers, they tell us, That all the Apostles were Equal, as having equal Power committed to them in the Keys: Tho it be said to St. Peter only in this Place; That upon this Rock &c. and, To thee I give etc. Yet in another Place, the same Charge is committed to all the Apostles, (as Joh. 20.) And all of them Receive the Keys of the Kingdom of Heaven; and the Stability of the Church is fixed upon them All; (Hieronym.) Christ after his Resurrection gave Equal Power and Authority to all his Apostles; and said to them all, Whose Sins ye Remit, etc. Cyprian: And in another Place; What Peter was, that were the rest of the Apostles; having a Fellowship of the same Honour and Power. Theophylact also intimates; That the Church may be said to be Built upon Peter, but no otherwise than upon the rest of the Apostles: And he adds; They who have obtained the Grace to be Bishops, have Power to Remit and Bind, as well as Peter: For, although it were said to Peter alone, I will give to thee &c. yet the Keys were granted to all the Apostles. This was the Doctrine of the Primitive Church; To which agrees the Judgement of a Pope in those Times, (Gregory Epist. lib. 4. Ep. 34, 38.) who was very severe upon the Patriarch of Constantinople, for affecting a Supremacy over the whole Church: And so little did he think of putting in his own Plea, that he Condemns it, as Entrenching upon the Prerogative of Christ. To these Authorities, which plainly destroy the Roman Cause, there must be some Answers given by Bellarmine and Stapleton; which are very indifferent, though the best they could afford: Stapleton tells us, That the same Power is not conferred by Mat. 18. & Joh. 20. as in my Text: Which St. Jerome affirms, and we have already proved. To the other Part of St. Jerem's Testimony, Bellarmine grants, That all the Apostles are equally the Foundation of the Church; but they as Messengers and Ambassadors, Peter as Ordinary Pastor: What he means, shall be presently considered. Thus he also endeavours to silence St. Cyprian's Testimony, by telling us; That the Apostles were all Equal in respect of the Christian People, having all the same Authority over them; but were not Equal amongst themselves, St. Peter being Superior to the rest. Out of these Answers, and other their Writings concerning this Matter, we may gather these three Differences betwixt St. Peter, and the rest of the Apostles: 1. In the Apostleship, all the Apostles were Equal: But Peter received this Plenary Power, not as Apostle, but as Ordinary Pastor, and Bishop of the Church; which was to continue to his Successors. 2. The Apostles were Equal in respect of the Nations to be Converted by them; but not in respect of Themselves. All the Apostles had Supreme Authority over the Christian World: But Peter was so Supreme Head of all Christians, that he was also Superior to the Apostles. 3. All the Apostles had Equal Power of Executing what Christ commanded them: But St. Peter only had Power of making New Orders; and prescribing, by his Successors, what is always to be done in the Church. Which Pretences we shall now Examine, and Confute. First, It is pretended, that the Amplitude of Power, which all the Apostles had in common, the rest had only for themselves; and as a Privilege merely Personal, was to end with them. But Peter had the same in such sort, that he might leave it to his Successors: So that, that Power which in the rest was Apostolical and Temporary, was Ordinary, Pastoral, and Perpetual in Peter: Which, were it True, than every Pope is immediately Chosen by God, not by the Cardinals. Then they are all Consecrated, and Ordained Immediately by Christ, not by Bishops: Then have they all Power to write Books of Canonical Scripture; and are free from Danger of Erring, whensoever they either Preach or Write: Then can they confirm their Doctrine by Miracles, and give the Holy Ghost by the Imposition of their Hands. But since no Pope can pretend, without great Impiety to any of these Preeminencies; it is vain for them to urge, That some part of that Dignity and Power that was in Peter, is in Peter's Successors; for so there is in the meanest Priest in the World. Secondly, As for that other Shift; That the Apostles were Equal towards the People, but not amongst themselves; inasmuch, as they had no Superior, in respect of their Office of Teaching and Governing the World; but were subject to one Head, in respect of their Personal Actions: It is one of the strongest Paradoxes, the World ever heard of. For, who can imagine, that God would trust the Apostles with the managing the weightyest Affairs of his Church, and the Government of the whole World, without being any way accountant in respect thereof, unto any one amongst them as Superior; and that he would appoint an Head and Chief, and subject them to his Censure in their Personal Actions? But this is not the only Absurdity, this Doctrine runs them into: For, Thirdly, They tell us; That all the Apostles had Equal Power of Executing what Christ commanded them: But St. Peter only had Authority to make New Constitutions, and to prescribe by his Successors, what is always to be done in the Church. But this is said, without any Proof at all; and indeed, is a Matter of another Debate; Of which, I have now thus much to say; That it doth not appear, That Peter had Power of himself, to Determine any Matter of Moment: Else, when he was questioned for going unto the Gentiles, he needed not to have made his Defence before the Apostles, and Brethren; but would have strengthened his Practice by his own Authority. And at the Great Council at Jerusalem, he neither presided as Chief; nor was his Vote more Requisite, than any other Apostles, for the Confirmation of what they then Determined. The Apostles were all Stars of the greatest Magnitude, and had each of them a Light to guide men to Christ in the ordinary concerns of Christianity: But when any momentous matter arises in debate, They then are gathered together, and make up a glorious Constellation, which by its illustrious emanations of Light, leads the Church in its darkest emergencies. By whose Acts and Writings, the Church is so secured from Error, and directed into all Truth, that it no longer needs the extraordinary ways of Guidance: If men would submit to the Truths, they find, there is no want of any power of defining new Articles of Faith. The Church cannot, by her Approbation, make those Assertions and Propositions to be Catholic Verities, that were not so before: She may indeed propose what was before not so throughly thought on. But it is not the Authority of the Church, but the clear deduction from the things which we are bound expressly to believe, that maketh things of that Sort, that they must be particularly and distinctly Known and Believed, that were not necessarily so to be Believed before. I conclude this part, with the judgement of the magdeburgenses, (Cen. 2. lib. 2. cap. 7.) who prove, That there is no Supremacy given to St. Peter by this place, because the Apostles (Mat. 18.) afterwards doubted who was the greatest among them. And it is Reasonable to suppose, that Christ would have commanded them to strive no more about it, had he appointed St. Peter to be their Chief; His silence herein is Argument enough. II. I come now to the Ordinary Power, Honour, and Privileges of St. Peter, and the Apostles; which were to be derived down to their Successors. That it is Essential to the being and constitution of a Church, not only that there should be a distinction of Clergy and Laity; but that in the Clergy also there should be different Orders, is demonstrable from Scripture, Antiquity, and the general Concurrence of the Church in all Ages: Tho indeed for the Reason's before-given, it is not necessary that the Ministers of the Gospel should in every Age have the same qualifications the Apostles had: For as those were reserved as peculiar and proper unto the Apostles, and not Communicated to any other in their time; so are they not passed over to their After-comers by Succession: But in place of Immediate Calling, we have now Succession: Instead of Infallibility of Judgement, the direction of their Writings, guiding us in the search of Truth. There is now no general Commission, but a particular Assignation to Bishops and Pastors, of several Churches to rule, and parts of Christ's Flock to Feed: Instead of Miraculous Gifts, and the Apostles Power to confer them, there are planted and settled amongst us, Schools and Universities, fitting men for the Work of the Ministry. In place of their Miracles, wherewith they Appealed to the Senses of men, in establishing the Christian Doctrine; we are Educated and brought up in the Faith, and have it by so many Generations recommended to us, as confirmed at first by the Apostles Miracles. So that we see, how the Apostles extraordinary Gifts, which were most necessary for the planting of the Church, are changed in respect of their Successors: But the standing, and perpetual part of their Office, was to Teach and Instruct the People in the Principles and Duties of Religion, to Administer the Sacraments, to confer Orders by the Imposition of Hands, to constitute and appoint Guides and Officers, who should Bind and Lose Sinners by Ecclesiastical Censures; and finally to exercise the Discipline and Government of the Church. And in these they are Succeeded by the ordinary Rulers, and Ecclesiastic Guides, who are to super-intend and discharge the Affairs and Offices of the Church to the end of the World. It is not my Business at present, to defend the different Orders of the Church, from the Cavils of those, whose Interest, or Malice, would bury it in Confusion: Neither am I concerned to prove the Succession of Pastors against them, who (by pretence of an immediate and extraordinary Call) leap into, and invade the Offices of the Church; These are not the men with whom I now intent. I shall prove, That the Pope (as St. Peter's Successor) hath none of those Extraordinary Gifts, which will qualify him for the Ecumenical Pastorship: For granting not only that St. Peter was at Rome, but that he was Bishop there, & that for Five & Twenty years together, (though the Ancients attribute the founding, the Episcopacy and Government of that Church equally to Peter and Paul, making the one as much concerned in it as the other); yet what would this make for the unlimited sovereignty and universality of that Church, unless a better Evidence could be produced, than this Succession to St. Peter, for its Supremacy and Dominion over the whole Christian World? For had not the same Peter a Successor at Antioch, and the other Apostles in their several Sees; and yet none of these pretended, though they seem to have equal Right, to this Power. But here we are told, That immediate Vocation, the seeing Christ in the Flesh, power to write Canonical Books of Scripture, and other privileges, extraordinarily conferred on the Apostles, were fitting to the first beginnings of Christianity, and so not of Perpetual use and Necessity: But that Universality of Jurisdiction, and a kind of Infallibility of Judgement are perpetually necessary; and therefore these were to pass from Peter to Others, though the rest of the Apostolic Pre-eminencies were not: Which I shall examine, and then conclude. That the Roman is a Patriarchal Church, and the Bishop of it hath Prime Place amongst other Bishops of the World, would never be denied him, would he rest contented with that: But it must by no means be granted, that he is an Universal Bishop, having Jurisdiction over the whole Church; that is, such a Bishop, in whom all Episcopal Jurisdiction, Power, and Authority is Originally Invested, from whom it is derived to Others, and who may Limit and Restrain the Use of it in Others, as seemeth good unto Himself: For every Bishop hath, in his place and keeping in his proper Station, the Episcopal Power and Authority immediately from Christ; which is not to be Limited and Restrained by any, but by the Company and Suffrages of Bishops: Wherein, though one be Chief for Order sake, and to preserve Unity in the Church; yet he can do nothing without the Concurrence of the Rest. When the Constantinopolitan Patriarch affected this Title, as I before hinted; Gregory, than Pope, compares him to Lucifer, who despising the Angels, his Companions, sought to climb up to that Height, that he neither might seem to be Under any, nor any be found, Over whom he was not. As for Infallibility of Judgement, pretended to, as perpetual and necessary in the Church; and as they would have it derived down from St. Peter to his Successors at Rome: If it be granted to them, that there is a kind of Infallibility, or Non-deficiency rather, in the Universal Church; they presently confound the Notion, and apply it to whom they please. Accordingly there is this Distinction of a Church: 1. A Church Essential, which is the whole Multitude of Believers. 2. The Representative; The Assembly of Bishops in a General Council, representing the whole Body of the Church from the several Parts whence they come. 3. The Virtual Church, by which they understand the Bishop of Rome; who being by Christ's Appointment, as they suppose, Chief Pastor of the whole Church, hath in himself Eminently and Virtually as great Certainty of Truth, and infallibility of Judgement, as is in the whole Church; upon whom dependeth all that Certainty of Truth that is found in it. Of these we affirm, That the Church in the first Notion, cannot err or fall away; In the Second, That it may Err; In the Third, (though we also deny the Notion) That it doth Err: And against Matter of Fact, as I take it, there can be no Proof: Of which, I could give many Instances, were it not Loss of Time to do so. The Supremacy of the Pope, so much contended for, and so meanly supported, is the greatest Entrenchment in the Exercise of it, that was ever made upon the Prerogative of Princes, and the Authority of Bishops; The Crown and Mitre being swallowed up in this Plenitude of Power. So that, it is the Interest as well as Duty of Church and State, of Prince and People, of Pastors and their Flocks, to oppose what is so much against the Welfare of all Civil and Christian Societies. I shall not urge the Inconveniencies only, but the Injustice of such a Subjection; whereby all Bonds Natural, Civil, and Christian are broken, if it please him who usurps such a Supreme Power over men's Consciences: It is the Prerogative of God alone, to set up his Throne in the Conscience of Man; and by the Laws of right Reason, to lay such a Restraint upon it, as all Humane Powers cannot be able to gain say or resist, to cancel or disannul. Nothing but an express Dispensation from God himself, can acquit the Subject or Child from the Obedience, he owes his Prince or Parent. Nature, which is God's Law, being herein so plain and positive, must never upon the Interposition of any Humane Power be transgressed. So that, we must be very earnest to assert our own Liberty, and our Superiors Authority, against that Foreign Prelate, who by his Emissaries doth daily disturb the Peace of this our Zion, and draw off many from their Duty and Obedience to God, the Church, their Country, and their Prince. Our own Nation is at present the Theatre, wherein most Hideous Villainies are Plotted and Designed; and it is much to be feared, that the Actors are not yet gone off the Stage: And all this, not without a manifest Respect to, and in direct Pursuance of, this most Pernicious Doctrine: Which is a strong Argument to us, how far blind Zeal can transport; and what a wicked Principle can inspire into their Breasts, who thus obstinately adhere to it. For if by such a pretended Power, a King be declared an Heretic, upon that Declaration be Excommunicated, upon that Excommunication be deprived of his Dominions, and Condemned to Death; And if his Subjects at the same time be not only absolved from all Allegiance to him, but bound in Conscience to Depose and Destroy him, and Execute that direful Sentence against his Life; What Security can any Prince or People expect from those that maintain such Principles, as tend in so direct a Consequence to the Confusion and Subversion of Church and State, it shall please this Supreme Power to pronounce such a Sentence? But some have gone farther, and absolved all Subjects from their Allegiance, if they are resolved in Conscience, that their Prince is Heretical. The other is bad enough, I need not trace this any farther. This Doctrine (which by them that maintain it, hath been sometimes accounted Scandalous) is not confined to Theory, but hath been often reduced to Practice: It hath not only been Disputed of in Schools, but Preached in Pulpits, maintained in Press, and confirmed by Actions. From hence is apprehended all our Danger, and from hence springs all our Mischief; That the Subjects of any Prince, or whoever else shall come under the Protection of his Laws and Government (who for the time are to be reckoned Subjects) shall presume to own any Power under Heaven Superior to him; and by virtue of Commission from that Foreign Power, shall endeavour to disturb and subvert the Laws and Government Established. This is the First Mover in the Roman Sphere, that hurries all Inferior Orbs; The Spring that gives Motion to the Papal Machine; When this is swallowed down, there is nothing can oppose or hinder any of the Designs of Rome. Wherefore, though other Doctrines are pitched upon, as more Absurd; yet in my Judgement, (and I think, I have the Experience of this Nation to confirm the Truth of it) this is of most fatal and pernicious Consequence; And with its Infallibility annexed, throws down all that can oppose itself against the Holy Chair: The latter makes Men stick at no Absurdities; The former encourages and commands them to commit all Villainies. Let us therefore fortify our Reason against the One, and strengthen our Arms against the Other: Let us put on the whole Armour of God, and with them join our Prince's too, that we may be able to stand against these Adversaries of both; And then we shall not only fight with Honour and Praise, but come off with Success and Glory. FINIS.