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A58090
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Religio laici, or, A lay-mans faith touching the supream head and infallible guide of the church : in two letters to a friend in the country / by J. R. a convert of Mr. Bays's.
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J. R., Convert of Mr. Bays's.
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1688
(1688)
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Wing R30; ESTC R16164
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20,013
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32
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but Asses would venture so much as to chaw them by reason of their pricking and choaking quality But to give the Devil his due I must needs own Mr. Bays has a most powerful and luxurious hand at Satyr and may challenge all Christendom to match him for indeed I never in my slender Province met with any that was to compare with him unless that unknown but supposed worthy Author that writ to him upon his at last turning Roman Catholiâ—k for Bays like the Vicar of Bray in Henry the 8th Edward the 6th Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth's days was resolved to keep his Place and the quoting an Author to the purpose is the same thing the Learned say as if it was his own and that will I hope excuse my putting them down here Thou Mercenary Runnegade thou Slave Thou ever Changing still to be a Knave What Sect what Error wilt thou next disgrace Thou art so lude so scandilâ—â—sly Base That Antichristian Popery may be Asham'd of such a Proselite as thee Not all thy Rancor or Felonious spite Which animates thy lumpish Soul to write Could ha' contriv'd a Satyr more severe Or more disgrace the Cause thou wouldst prefer Yet in thy favour this must be confest It suits with thy Poetick Genius best There thou To Truths disus'd mayst entertain Thy self with Stories more fanciful and vain Then e're thy Poetry could ever fain Or sing the Lives of thy own fellow Saints 'T is a large Field and thy assistance wants Thence Copy out new Opera's for the Stage And with their Miracles direct the Age. Such is thy Faith if Faith thou hast indeed For well we may suspect the Poets Creed Rebel to God Blasphemer o' thy King Ah tell whence cou'd this strange Complyance spring So mayst thou prove to thy new Gods as true As thy old Friend the Devil has been to you Yet Conscience and Religion 's your pretence But Food and Drink the Methologick Sence Ah how perswasive is the want of Bread Not Reasons from strong Box more strongly plead A Convert thou 't is past all believing 'T is a damn'd scandal of thy Foes contriving A Jest of that malicious monstrous Fame The Honest Lay-man's Faith is still the same And so much for Mr. Bays for he has already detain'd me a little too long from what I chiefly intended but since his Arguments were so strong and pertinent to my purpose I judg'd it not amiss to have my Opinion favour'd by so Eminent an Author of their own which I made use of only as an Introduction to the more serious and useful part namely what I promis'd in the beginning of the Letter viz. the Examining those Places of Scripture which the Papists do most insist on for proving their Church or the Pope no matter which Infallible But I fear I have already transgress'd the Bounds of a Letter and therefore I shall reserve the rest till another opportunity in the mean time I shall Subscribe my self Sir Yours to Command so far As in the power lyes of your oblig'd J. R. THE SECOND LETTER SIR I Have Receiv'd yours and am not a little proud at your gracious Acceptance of my last which gives me no small Encouragement of giving you the trouble of a second which I hope will give you a full satisfaction of what my poor Sentiments are touching the Doctrine of Infallibility which indeed is the second Part to the same Tune only with this difference Neither Mr. Bays nor his Banter Of his Milk white Hind and Panther is at all concern'd in this for though Bays's Reasons and Arguments are strong and to the purpose yet with those of our Saviours and the Apostles I did not judg it necessary they should be Transcrib'd in one Letter no more than I thought them fit to be nam'd in the same day and that was the Reason Sir of my giving you a double trouble but without any more Preamble I will endeavour to make good my Promise in my last viz. the examining those Places of Scripture which are made use of for the proving the Doctrine of Infallibility and likewise those Places which all Honest and sincere Protestants ought to consider that plainly prove the contrary I will begin first with those Places or rather that Place for I can find but one that seems so much as to favour the Point in Hand which is Matthew the 16. and the 17 18 and 19. Verses Then Jesus answer'd and said unto Peter blessed art thou Simon Bar-jona for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee but my Father which is in Heaven And I say unto thee thou art Peter and upon this Rock I will 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 loose on earth shall be loosed in Heaven In which words the Romanist do believe St. Peter to be made the Infallible Head of the Church c. as sure as the Wafer after Consecration is transubstantiated into the Corporeal substance of our Blessed Lords Body and upon that account it is the pretended Successors of St. Peter has Lorded it over not only their Fellow Bishops but all Christian Princes and Crown'd Heads but upon what Grounds this more than Sovereign Authority has been set up and practised I shall now inquire and I do not question but to make it appear from our Saviours own words that he neither meant or intended any such Power and Authority to be set up by his Disciples and Followers as is at this day exercised by some body in the World c. and that will plainly appear if we consider the occasion of those words of our Saviour to St. Peter which was the Question our Saviour ask'd not St. Peter but all the Disciples Matt. the 16. and 13. ver When Jesus came into the Coasts of Cesarea Philippi he asked his Disciples saying Whom do men say that I the Son of Man am Now it is not to be supposed that our Saviour asked them because he did not know as well as they what the Peoples thoughts were concerning him but in all probability it was to draw a Confession of their own Opinion of him for in the 15. ver He saith unto Them but whom say Ye that I am then we find ver the 16th And Simon Peter answer'd and said thou art Christ the Son of the living God upon which account it was that our Saviour in the next verse said Thou art Peter and upon this Rock I will build my Church c. so that it is plain our Saviours words had Relation to all the rest of the Disciples whose Answer it was though St. Peter like a Foreman of a Jury deliver'd it as the Belief and Sentiments of them all for we find as I before observ'd the question was put to them all but it would be
my Kingdom were of this world then would my Servants fight that I should not be deliver'd to the Jews but now is my Kingdom not from hence which I think is a very powerful Argument against him who calls himself Christ's Vicar and Lords it over all the Kingdoms of the World contrary to Christs Command and the Practice of the Apostles and Primitive Christians for almost a Thousand years after Christ But to proceed since we cannot find in all the time of our Saviours being with his Disciples in the Flesh any thing to warrant our belief of St. Peters being the Head c. We will go one step further and inquire if after his Resurrection which was the accomplishment and Confirmation of all he had deliver'd to them whether he did deliver to St. Peter any Power or Commission more than he did to any of the rest of his Disciples In the three last verses of the 28th of St. Matthew we thus read All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth go Ye therefore and teach all Nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I command you and loe I am with you even to the end of the world Now 't is granted that here is a Commission given but to whom was it deliver'd to Peter James or John c. No but to them all in those words Go Ye c. Neither do we find any distinction though St. Peter and all the rest was there at the same time as you may read verses the 16th and 17th of that Chapter Then the Eleven Disciples went away to Galilee into a mountain where Jesus had appointed them and when they saw him they worshipped him but some doubted And in St. Mark the 16th and the 14th and 15. verses And afterward he appeared unto the Eleven as they sat at meat and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen And he said unto THEM go YE into all the world and preach the Gospel to every Creature So that here is again the same Commission but without any Preheminence given to either of them St. Luke makes no mention of this Matter And for that Place of St. John which the Romanists brag so much of from our Saviour biding St. Peter three times feed his Sheep it is I think impossible to be understood as if from thence our Saviour intended Him to be the Head and Chief of the Apostles but rather as it is most probable to strengthen his Faith that he might be the better enabled to go through with a difficult Work for we find our Saviour telling him in the two following verses being the 18th and 19th of the last of St. John What he was to suffer for his sake c. So that it is very reasonable to suppose that our Saviour's knowing his weakness from his former denying him might upon that account lay a more strict Command upon him than any of the rest Besides it is not unreasonable to suppose from those words of our Saviour viz. Simon Son of Jonas lovest thou me which was as oft repeated as his biding him Feed his Sheep might be to upbraid him for his former denying him whereby he might take notice he had given our Blessed Lord sufficient reason to doubt and as he had notwithstanding his Resolution to the contrary deny'd him with Oaths and Imprecations three several times So possible that might be one great Reason why our Saviour did likewise trible his Commands c. And to me it appears plain that our Saviours trible Command of biding St. Peter Feed his Sheep can have no Relation to his being made Head of the Church notwithstanding that Papistical objection viz. to whom did our Saviour so oft bid Feed his Sheep c which objection I must needs say is a very strong sheepish one though at the same time I know it is urg'd as a strong Argument to confirm as they say the Commission which our Saviour gave to St. Peter in those words viz. Thou art Peter and upon this Rock c. And they tell us our Saviour's giving such a particular charge to St. Peter must import something more than ordinary which indeed is very true and I think the reason as plain for as I before observ'd our Saviour well knowing his Faith wanted his special assistance took more than ordinary care that his Faith might be agreeable to his Confession which indeed was the Rock our Saviour meant and to that purpose we read in the 22. of St. Luke the 31. and 32. verses And the Lord said Simon Simon behold Satan hath desired to have you that he may sift you as wheat but I have prayed for thee that thy Faith fail not and when thou art converted strengthen thy brethren By which words we find he was not as yet converted nor indeed any of them until after the Resurrection for as our Saviour had foretold Matthew the 26. verse the 31. I will smite the Shepherd and the Sheep of the flock shall be scatter'd abroad So after the Jews had put our Saviour to death we find them disperc'd and scatter'd up and down for indeed they could not tell well what to make of the matter as appears by the discourse our Saviour had with some of them as they were going to Emmaus which was distant from Jerusalem some three-score Furlongs Luke the 24. from the 13. to the 25. verse and at the 21. verse But we trusted that it had been He which should have Redeemed Israel c. By which it appear'd they was still in doubt but after Christs Ascension and sending the Holy Ghost the promised Comforter amongst them we find they were very bold and couragious and some thousands was converted Acts the 2. and the 41. at St. Peter's first Sermon from which some Learned Men have understood those words Vpon this Rock I will build my Church c. as a particular favour of our Saviours to St. Peter in making him the first Instrument of laying the Foundation of his Church not at Rome but Jerusalem which indeed was the Mother Church and as our Saviour was to the Jews so may the misunderstanding that Place of Scripture viz. Vpon this Rock c. be a stumbling Block possibly to the Papist And for those words of our Saviours bidding St. Peter feed his Sheep it cannot possible without taking leave of our Understandings be understood as our Roman Friends would perswade us but much rather from their being so oft repeated we may reasonable gather our Saviours purpose was they should make the greater and deeper impression in his Heart that so he might not forget this his last Command as he forgot him Matthew the 26.72 ver And again he deny'd him with an oath I do not know the Man. And so much shall suffice for our inquiry how or in