Selected quad for the lemma: church_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
church_n	ancient_a	father_n	primitive_a	3,741	5	8.1245	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A69765	Some reflections on that part of a book called Amyntor, or, The defence of Milton's life, which relates to the writings of the primitive fathers and the canon of the New Testament in a letter to a friend.	Clarke, Samuel, 1675-1729.	1699 (1699)	Wing C4560A; ESTC R15286	14,145	50

SOME REFLECTIONS On that part of a Book called AMYNTOR OR THE Defence of Milton 's Life Which relates to the WRITINGS of the Primitive Fathers And the CANON of the New Testament In a Letter to a Friend LONDON Printed for James Knapton at the Crown in St. Paul's Church-yard 1699. SIR THE Design which the Author of the defence of Milton's Life professes that he had in writing that part of his Book which relates to the Writings of the Primitive Fathers and the Canon of the New Testament was only to vindicate himself from the Charge of denying the Scripture and declaring his doubt that several pieces under the name of Christ and his Apostles recieved now by the whole Christian Church are supposititious by shewing that what he had said in the Life of Milton concerning the spuriousness of several pieces under the name of Christ and his Apostles was meant not of those Writings which are now received by the whole Christian Church but of those Apocryphal Pieces which were in many places received and approved in the Primitive Times This is what the Author professes to be the only design of this part of his Book And though for his own sake I cannot but heartily wish it were really no other yet because there are several Passages wherein he either so expresses the very slight esteem that he has for the Primitive Fathers as seems to reflect upon our Religion it self or raises such doubts about the authority of the Canon of the New Testament as Hereticks to use his own words may draw mischievous inferences from and by which Scruples may be put into the minds of Sincere Christians I have therefore sent you such short remarks as upon reading the Book have occurred to me and as I hope may be of some use to others on this Occasion The Principal Propositions which our Author maintains and which I thought most to deserve consideration are these three First Pag. 38 39. That the Books ascribed to the Disciples and Companions of the Apostles which are still extant and at this time thought genuine and of great Authority such as the Epistle of Clemens to the Corinthians the Epistles of Ignatius the Epistle of Polycarp to the Philippians the Pastor of Hermas and the Epistle of Barnabas for about the rest which he mentions there is no great Controversie are all very easily proved to be spurious and fraudulently imposed upon the credulous Secondly pag. 38. That 't is the easiest task in the world to shew the ignorance and superstition of the Writers of these Books pag. 45. That Barnabas has many ridioulous passages and by saying that the Apostles before their Conversion were the greatest sinners in nature robs us of an argument we draw from their integrity and simplicity against Infidels That the Pastor of Hermas is the silliest Book in the World And that Ignatius says pag. 46. the Virginity of Mary was a secret to the Devil which I suppose he cites as a ridiculous saying Thirdly That they who think these Books genuine ought to receive them into the Canon of Scripture since the reputed Authors of them were the Companions and fellow-labourers of the Apostles as well as St. Mark or St. Luke which is the only reason he ever heard of why these two Evangelists are thought Inspired pag. 48. For to say that these Books ought not to be received now into the Canon because the Ancients did not think fit to approve them is but a mere evasion since many Books now received as Canonical were not approved by the Ancients pag. 57. and some received by the Ancients are now rejected b● the Moderns and Mr. Dodael owns pag. 73. that anciently no difference was put by the Church between the Apocryphal and Canonical Books of the New Testament and besides no stress can be laid on the Testimony of the Fathers pag. 80. since they not only contradict one another but are often inconsistent with themselves in their relations of the very same facts were divided into various Sects pag. 56. who in those early days did like us condemn one another for damnable Hereticks used to reason precariously p. 50 51. as Irenaeus the famous Successor of the Apostles argues from the four Regions of the World and the four Winds that there cannot be more nor fewer than four Gospels and give hard names to those who contemn such precarious reasoning These are the principal Assertions of our Author which because they seem to me not only to be salse but also to be proposed with too bold a liberty of passing censures upon the judgment both of the ancient and modern Church I shall therefore in answer to them and for a Vindication of the Primitive Fathers and Modern Doctors of the Christian Church with submission advance these three Propositions First that though we are not infallibly certain that the Epistles of Clemens Ignatius Polyearp and Barnabas with the Pastor of Hermas are Genuine yet that they are generally believed to be so upon very great Authority and with very good Reason Secondly That therefore though they are not received as of the same Anthority with the Canonical Books of the New Testament yet they ought to have a proportionable Veneration paid to them both with respect to the Authors and to the Writings themselves Thirdly That neither the Belief of the Genuiness of these Books nor the Respect paid to them as such does in the least diminish from the Authority of the New Testament or tend to make the number of the Canonical Books Vncertain or Precarious I. First That though we are not infallibly certain that the Epistles of Clemens Ignatius Polycarp and Barnabas with the Pastor of Hermas are Genuine yet that they are generally believed to be so upon very great Authority and with very good Reason 1. The Epistle of Clemens to the Corinthians a * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Euseb Hist l. 3. c. 16. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Id. l. 3. c. 38. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Id. l. 5. c. 6. ex Irenaeo l. 3.3 c. 3. great and wonderful Epistle saith Eusebius was unanimously and without any controversie received by the antient Church and † 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Id. l. 3. l. 16. read publickly in most Churches both antiently and in his time And that the Epistle now extant is the same with that which was so commended by the Antients has not been questioned by any Learned Man these many years and has been lately proved at large by the Learned Doctor Wake in his Genuine Epistles of the Apostolical Fathers and by Grabius in his Spicilegium p. 261. whom I shall not now transcribe 2. That Ignatius wrote several Epistles * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Euseb Hist l. 3. c. 36. one to the Ephesians one to the Magnesians one to the Trallians one to the Romans one to the Philadelphians one to the Smyrnaeans and one to Polycarp Eusebius expresly testifies quoting