up his countenance upon thee and give thee peace And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel and I will blesse them All which is still done by the Ministers of the Gospell they blesse they teach they instruct they rebuke they reprove they exhort they consecrate the Bread and Wine to holy uses they offer up the Prayers of the people nay more they do as it were offer Christ in a Mystery and sacrifice him objectively by way of commemoration In which we differ farre from the Church of Rome for the Romish Church professeth the Body and Blood of Christ to be the proper subject we nay but the proper object of our Celebration We take then a Priest and Presbiter now to be all one and list not to quarrell any longer about the word For should we descend to Grammer we are told as much as comes fully home namely that the word Priest hath his right place in him whose meer function and charge is the service of God Whereunto let me only adde that which I find in Bishop Jewell We know saith he that the Priest or Minister of the Church of God is divided from the rest of his brethren as was the tribe of Levi from the children of Israel and hath a speciall office over the people Neither may any man force himself into that office without lawfull calling But as touching the inward Priest-hood and the exercise of the soule we say even as Saint Peter and Saint John and Tertullian have said in this sence every faithfull Christian man is a Priest and offereth to God Spirituall Sacrifices In this only sence I say and none otherwise Thus he granting that there is a Priest-hood internall and a Priest-hood externall For saith he there is not one of us that ever taught otherwise See this in his Defence of the Apology for the Church of England Part 2. pag. 130. DIALOGUE Gent. What do you think of the Priest and Clark when they do Church a woman Min. I will not tell you what I think but I will tell you what some doe say Gent. What do they say Min. They say that the Priest is like a witch Gent. Why doe they say that the Priest is like to a witch Min. Because he doth as a witch doth when she saith the Lords Prayer Gent. What doth a witch when she saith the Lords Prayer Min. She leaves out these words but deliver us from evill and so doth the Priest when he doth Church a woman Gent. Why will not a witch say these words Min. Because the Devill will not let her till she hath bewitched so many as he would have her For by the evill that is prayed against in that petition is meant the Devill and the sinne whereunto he tempteth therefore the Devill will not have her to say these words because when she saith them she prayeth that God will deliver her from him and the witchery whereunto he tempteth her ANSWER This is a cavill scarce worth the answering for it is most certain that the evill which you speak of is prayed against The most therefore which you could urge fairely is no more but this viz. That the order in saying that Prayer had been better without an answer interposed then by the interposing of one in which I think you should have met with few or none to quarrell you But to speak so basely and in such unbeseeming manner as you have done serves as a figne to shew with what a malignant spirit you wrote these things who do rather play the witch your selfe by speaking perverse words to draw away disciples after you then justly accuse the Priest in these your vain janglings But it is as Saint Paul gave notice a great while since when he called the Elders of Ephesus together as we read in the twentieth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles at the 30 verse DIALOGUE Min. The Priest doth also skip over the conclusion of the Lords Prayer for thine is the kingdome power and glory and therein also they say that he is like to a witch when she doth say the Creed for when she saith the second Article And in Jesus Christ his onely sonne she skips over these words Our Lord and so doth the Priest slip over the conclusion of the Lords Prayer Gent. Saint Luke leaves it out and therefore the Priest may leave them out Luk. 11.4 Min. It followeth not that therefore the Minister may leave them out for Saint Luke did not write any thing of himselfe but what the holy Ghost would have him to write Gent. Why would not the holy Ghost have him to write them Min. Because it was sufficient that Saint Mathew had writ them Math. 6.13 ANSWER Here you shew us still more of your skill in witchery and tell us of the Priests skipping over the conclusion of the Lords Prayer And indeed if there were not some President for it in Scripture it might not be But there is president for it in Luke 11.4 although you be pleased to passe it over with a non sequitur And yet for all that it may follow well enough For whereas it seemed good to the holy Ghost in one Evangelist to adde the Doxologie and in another to omit it the Church is blamelesse and may indifferently follow either the one or the other seeing both of them wrote by inspiration For who knows except you who know any thing whether it were the purpose of the holy Ghost to have Saint Luke omit it because Saint Matthew had recorded it and not rather to shew that it was a compleat Prayer at the end of the petitions although the reason of the petitions be not mentioned where the Doxology is omitted It is well then to repeat those words of the conclusion and not ill although they be not alwaies mentioned for our Church in so doing hath the pattern not only of all the Latine and some of the Greek Fathers but even of Saint Luke himself Quando dicimus libera nos à malo nihil remanet quod ultra adhuc debeat postulari as saith Saint Cyprian Cypr. de Orat. Dominic that is When we say Deliver from evill there remains nothing more to be prayed for DIALOGUE Gent. Some doe think because Saint Mark and Saint John doe make no mention of the Lords Prayer that therefore the Minister may omit the reading of it and that because the Evangelists and the Apostles did not use to say it as a Prayer therefore none neither Minister nor people ought to use it as a Prayer Min. The truth is that our Saviour Christ did make it for all Christians to use as a prayer and also for a pattern to pray by Gent. Where doe you finde that our Saviour Christ would have it used as a Prayer Min. In the 11 chapter of the Gospell written by Saint Luke and the second verse where it is written that our Saviour said When you pray say Our Father which c. Gent. Where doe
not sufficiently into himselfe but by the striking of him with the terrours of the Law is brought to the full sight of his wretchednesse and by the glad tidings of the Gospell is raised up againe and kept from desperation namely That then God doth fully speake peace unto his soule when by the like Deputy he shall heare the like sentence of absolution Protestants saith Bishop * Protest Appeal p. 254. Morton doe greatly approve the use of private and voluntary confession when a man either suspecteth the unlawfulnesse of any action or else when he groaneth under the sensible guilt of a troubled soule and shall desire the way of curing his disease by the comfortable pronunciation of Gods pardon from the mouth of him who hath the commission thereof from God And in another place Idem in his Appeale p. 270. The power of Absolution saith he whether it he generall or particular whether in publike or in private it is professed in our Church where both in henpublike Service is proclaimed Pardon and Absolution upon all Penitents and a private applying of Absolution unto particular Penitents by the office of the Minister and greater power then this no man hath received from God thus he Bishop Vsher likewise against a Jesuites Challenge at the 109 page saith He hath done us open wrong in charging us to deny that Priests have power to forgive sinnes And he gives a reason irrefragable as another great Scholar termes it because he mentions hereupon that The formall words which our Church requireth to eused in the Ordination of a Miuister are these Whose sinnes thou dost forgive they are forgiven and whose sinnes thou distretaine they are retained The execution of which authority accordingly is put in practise in the Visitation of the Sicke And shall I further tell you you shall finde it noted in the Practise of Piety that Doctor Holland absolved Doctor Rainolds at his death who not being able to speake kissed the hand wherewith he was absolved And in the Conference at Hampton Court the said particular Absolution in the Common-Prayer-booke being read His * King James of blessed memory Majesty who was indeed a second Salomon exceedingly well approved it adding that it was Apostolicall and a very good ordinance in that it was given in the name of Christ to one that desired it and upon the clearing of his conscience Hath then Almighty God given such power unto Men as not only to publish the conditions of Peace and Reconciliation to the sonnes of Men viz. Credenti remittentur peccata if they beleeve they shall receive Remiffion but also to apply the comfortable assurance of Remission to this and that man in particular and upon the sight and approbation of Penitency to say I absolve thee Or is this doctrine of Confession and Absolution agreeable to the Scriptures and practise of the Church as well present as primitive Then that I may speake it in the words of our * â—… Boyse pag. 523. impres 1629. English Postiller albeit some scribling Scribe pen an invective pamphlet against a discreet Pastor executing this office or some selfe-conceited Pharisee tell the people this man blasphemeth he may notwithstanding upon good information of faith and repentance say to the fick sinner in his bed Thy sinnes are forgiven thee and by Christs authority committed unto him I absolve thee greater power then which no man ever received Thus tâ—en clave non errante if the Minister faile not in the key of knowledge that is in discerning and rightly judging of the penitentiall sorrow and contrition of the peccant his key of Power and Authority delegate is found effectually operative and hath in it as one truly speaketh M Bedford Treat os the Sacr. p. 60. the stampe of God for the quiet and content of the troubled conscience Qui vos audit 〈◊〉 audit he that heareth you heareth me Try this saith another See the Pract. of Pitty and tell me whether thou shalt not finde more ease in thy conscience then can be expressed Adding moreover that did prophane men consider the dignity of this Divine Calling they would the more honour the Calling and reverence the Persons For as God hath reconciled the world to himselfe by Jesus Christ so hath he given unto us the Ministry of this reconciliation as saith the Apostle in 2 Cor. 5.18 Verily the difference between the Papists and us in this point is very great They tie the keyes to the Popes girdle so as whoso hath them hath them not but from him He grants Absolutions sealed with Lead in forme of a Judiciall sentence of a Court although he know not how the party that he meanes to absolve stands affected or desires an Absolution Some have had Absolutions sent them from Rome for their monies others have caused them to come by Bills of Exchange The Pope under pretence of this power takes upon him to untie the knot of fidelity which Subjects owe to their naturall Prince he dischargeth men of their lawfull oathes and children of the obedience which they owe to their Parents A man they say may be absolved against his will no matter therefore for conditions requisite or qualifications of Faith and Repentance in the penitent Their Bishops and Priests they say forgive sinnes by the very word of Absolution or by the bare pronouncing of the words and syllables by a true and physicall efficiency reaching to the very production of grace as Suarez speaketh or to the dissolution and destruction or extinguishing of Sinne as Bellarmine affirmeth They faile also whilst they hold that at the will and pleasure of every Priest exercising the Keyes on earth men are bound and loosed in heaven without any proviso at all of Clave non errante And Bellarmine would faine make the world beleeve that the Keyes remaine in our Saviour Christs hand only at the vacancy of the Popedome Absolution is among them made a true and a right Sacrament They tie all upon paine of damnation to come to shrift thrusting this their auricular confession upon the soules of Christians as an expiatory Sacrifice and a meritorious satisfaction for sinne They leave none to liberty either to come or not to come to confesse or not to confesse but cry out that all who will be saved must necessarily goe on in this way though he feeles no distresse but having throughly fearched himself hath been truly sorrowfull already and received secret comfort from above Nor are they but tied to enumerate all their sinnes which is impossible Hugo in his booke of the Churches power to binde and loose speakesfully thus I dare boldly say quoth he if before the Priests absolution any man doe come to the Communion of the Body and Blood of the Lord that he doth assuredly eat and drinke his own damnation although be repent him never so much and doth never so greatly lament his offences But yet though Hugo were thus bold Saint Paul hath said Let a
man examine himselfe and so let him eat of this Bread and drinke of this Cup. Hugo might have seen it and not have made all eases alike notwithstanding which peremptory assertion of his the Church of Rome left the matter still at liberty yea though Peter Lombard were mightily for it For Gratian who lived and flourished at the same time with Lombard determineth nothing definitively but shewing sentences for either side both that we must confesse our sins to the Priest and not confesse them doth leave it indifferently unto the Readers judgement After whom followed Lotharius Levita a Doctor of Paris the scholler and earnest follower of Peter Lombard who being once made Bishop of Rome and named Innocent the third made a law for it in the Councell of Literan which Gregory the ninth reciteth in his Decretall of Penance and Remission the fift booke and twelfth Chapter to this effect Let every person of either sexe after they are come to the yeares of discretion faithfully confesse alone at least * Semel in animo in the Latine for semel in anno once in a yeare their sinnes unto their owne proper Priest and doe their indeavour with their owne strength to doe the penance that is injoyned them receiving reverently at Easter at the least the Sacrament of the Eucharist unlesse peradventure by the councell of their owne Priest for some reasonable cause they thinke it good for a time to absteine from receiving it Otherwise in this life let them be prohibited to enter into the Church and when they are dead to be buried in Christian buriall This is that new Law which in their little pretty Councell of Trent was further enlarged and more errours added to their abused practice of Absolution But let not the Antichristian abuse of this divine Ordinance abolish the lawfull use thereof betwixt good Christians and their Pastours when need and occasion is to have it used And so I leave this point and come next to give answer unto something else DIALOGUE Gent. Why will they not suffer the Genealogy of Christ to be read to the people Min. They have no warrant for it from God but from the Pope who saith that ignorance is the Mother of devotion therefore the Genealogy of Christ is forbidden to be read of purpose to keepe the people in blindnesse not able to see the truth of God in fulfilling his promise to Abraham and to David that Christ should come of them and of their seed nor to see that Christ came not only of Abraham and of David who were Jewes but also of Rahab and of Ruth who were Gentiles and that therefore Christ is not a Saviour of the Jewes only but also of us Gentiles ANSWER Your judgement is too rash to be credited too rash good man I dare assure you If you had said that the Genealogies were lesse edifying then other scripture and therefore omitted your reason had been of more authority and better agreeing to what is mentioned in the order before the Kalender For tell me I beseech you whether those Instructions and Lessons which you gather from hence are manifest upon the bare reading and if not as for certaine they be not then why should you dare to accuse the Church of such a wicked purpose as to intend the keeping of the people in blindnesse DIALOGUE Gent. Why is the Booke of Canticles forbid to be read Min. It is also forbid of purpose to keep the people in blindenesse not able to see the ardent love and affection of Christ towards them least thereby they should be stirred up to love Christ and to be zealous of his glory and to abhorre the Pope and his Antichristian Religion ANSWER An heape of slanders still Here you take the like liberty to judge that you did before a thing nothing strange to men of your Sect I should else have wondred that you could not have thought the reading of this book to be omited for some other reason which if need were t is like enough I could lay before you But I passe it over and shall only tell you that Preaching may explaine what reading cannot And therefore till you hear Ministers forbidden to open in their Sermons either this book or the other Scriptures that you mention you may right worthy Sir sit worshipfully down and hold your peace DIALOGUE Gent. Why are the bookes of Kings and of Chronicles forbid Min. Because they doe shew that godly Kings did ever love Gods true Prophets and did hearken unto them and were zealous in maintaing the true Religion and in suppressing Idolatry ANSWER You should speak the truth and shame the Devill At the entrance of these accusations although I passed it by because I might here declare it you said that both the Bookes of the Kings except the eight first Chapters of the first Book were forbidden but look again and you will finde it otherwise If your eyes be dim you may use your Spectacles for the truth is that both the books are appointed to be read throughout excepting those eight Chapters which you mention and not vice versa for that 's false And because the Books of the Chronicles do relate the same stories which are written in the Books of the Kings it is sufficient to appoint the reading of the one although the other be omitted DIALOGUE Gent. Why is the Book of the Revelation forbid ANSWER You grant this booke also to be forbidden and yet you know that we have Lessons taken out of the Revelations and read upon Saint Johns day as also upon the day of All-Saints besides Epistles taken from thence and appointed to be read on Trinity Sunday Michaelmasse day and Innocents day Know all men therefore by these presents that you plainly shew your selfe no better then a false accuser In the next place you fall foule upon Bishops and besprinkle them with the durt which your Spleen hath raised only you doe a little qualifie your distast towards them that suffered Martyrdome in the dayes of Queen Mary but like not their love to the Book of Common Prayer thinking your selfe to be more illuminated then were they notwithstanding they laid down their lives in defence of the truth in denying the Popes usurped supremacy and for not granting the Bread and Wine in the Lord Supper to be the Body and Blood of Christ All the rest since have been odious unto you their remembrance loathsome and judged to be men destitute of the true feare of God Their Prelacy dislikes you and your language against them is just as was the language of Corath Dathan and Abiram in the dayes of old against Moses and Aaron Num. 16.3 Diotrephes was one also who would not receive the Apostles but prated against them with malicious words as Saint John hath told us Epist 3. v. 9 10. and because this pert man that thus prated against them could not be above them he slights them and labours for preeminence But what say the