THE FALSHOOD OF THE CHEIFE grounds of the Romish Religion Descried and convinced in a briefe Answere to certaine Motiues sent by a Priest to a Gentleman to induce him to turne Papist By W.S. Printed for the Author Anno Dom. 1635. TO THE WORSHIPFVLL his much honoured Vncle EDWARD SMYTH Esquire SIR THere are other reasons besides that common motiue and popular pretence of the importunity of friends which hath now put this little manuall into the world It was composed by the Author for I cannot say that it was written by him but rather dictated as hee spake it lying on his bed of sicknesse and therefore hee intended to haue kept it private iudging it vnworthy other mens approbation because vnworthy his own Neverthelesse it secretly crept into the presse and return'd from thence full of faults like the Printer of it who had as little authority to Print it at all as Print it false There was no other way to suppresse the old impression but by a new which I haue here done setting it out the second time but in a lesse volumne and with lesse faults There is one motiue more and that more important then the former The Author since his death for in his life time malice it selfe was never so audacious as to dare ecclipse the bightnesse of his integrity either in life or doctrine hath had his faith branded with the name of apostacy and his profession with heresy But whither he were a professed open enemy or an hypocriticall friend which hath done him this wrong I forbeare to name Whosoever he were this ensuing treatise will put him both to shame and silence and therefore I need not make any apology for him whose owne workes speake in his defence Sir it was formerly made solely yours by the Author and therefore in the dedication it now iustly claimes your patronage only If it satisfy not the more curious reader yet hee that made it thought his paines fully recompenced in that it gaue you satisfaction neither doth the reward of my labour spread it selfe vnto others but is wholy terminated in your acceptance If it chance to bee condemned as imperfect because he hath not spoken all that might haue beene said on this subiect I adde neither hath he spoken all that hee could It was intended for a letter only and therefore not to swell into a larger volumne yet I presume there is as much in the answere as the Priests motiues require more peradventure then he ever expected or at least thank't him for Such as it is it is once more made yours by him who desires to be esteemed Your dutifull Nephew and Servant WILLIAM SVTTON From Christ-Church in Oxon. Iun. 28. 1635. Motiues sent by a Priest to a Gentleman to Induce him to turne Papist The rejection of the Iewes and acceptation of the Gentiles I Haue no will in you How to knovv the holy Catholique Church which all Christians professe to beleeue saith the Lord of Hostes and guift I will not receiue of your hands for from the rising of the Sunne to the going downe great is my name among the Gentiles and in every place there is Sacrificing and there is offered to my name a cleane oblation because my name is great amongst the Gentiles saith the Lord of Hostes Mal. 1. vers 11. A Description of the true Christian Catholique Church Militant The holy Christian Catholique Church militant which wee professe in the Apostles Creed to beleeue is a visible Monarchy or Kingdome consisting of all the true beleeuers vpon the face of the earth confessing one God in Trinity and Trinity in Vnity vnder one lawfull visible head for the time being obseruing one Faith Religion and Sacraments instituted by Christ Which holy kingdome and Society is composed of a visible head Clergy and Laity the head to governe the Clergy to preach and administer Sacraments the Laity to learne and to obey in all things touching their faith and salvation For Christ saith of the Pastors of his Church Hee that heareth you heareth mee and he that despiseth you despiseth mee Luk. 10. vers 16. That our Saviour Christ being a Priest for ever secundum ordinem Melchisedec was the first visible head and founder of the said holy Christian Catholique Church militant composed of a head Clergy and Laity is apparant first in his sacred person being the visible head in his holy Apostles being the Clergy and in his Common disciples being the Laity which small beginning is compared to a Mustard-seed and the increasing to a great tree that birds may build in the Branches thereof our Saviour saying to the Clergy his Apostles and in thē to all their lawfull Successors To you it is giuen to know the misteries of the Kingdome of God but to the rest in Parables Luk. 8. vers 10. The increasing of the Church By the Preaching and Miracles of our Saviour Christ and his Apostles many were converted to be members of the Church At S. Peters first Sermon after he had receiued the Holy Ghost 3000. were added and afterwards 5000. Act. 2. vers 41. Act. 4. vers 4. And Saint Paul affirmeth that in his time the Romane faith was renowned in the whole world Rom. 1. vers 8. agreeing with the words of Christs But you shall receiue the vertue of the holy Ghost comming vpon you and you shall bee Witnesses to me in Ierusalem and in all Iurie and Samaria and even to the vtmost of the earth Act 1. v. 8. Of the Continuance of the holy Catholique Church in true Faith by the Holy Ghosts assistance This is my Covenant with thee saith our Lord speaking of his Church my spirit that is in thee and my words that I haue put in thy mouth shall not depart out of thy mouth and out of the mouth of thy seed and out of the mouth of thy seedes seed saith our Lord from this present and for ever Isay 59. vers 21. All power is giuen to mee in Heaven and in Earth going therefore teach ye all Nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Sonne and of the Holy Ghost teaching them to obserue all things whatsoever I haue commanded you and behold J am with you alwaies to the Consummation of the World Math. 28. vers 19.20 I will aske the Father and hee will giue you another Paraclet that he may abide with you for ever the spirit of truth Ioh. 14. vers 16.17 And if hee will not heare the Church let him be to thee as the Heathen and as the Publican Math. 18. v. 17. All which promises of Christ for sending the Holy Ghost to preserue his Church in truth for ever was visibly miraculously performed on Whitsunday Act. 2. vers 1. That our Saviour Christ did constitute Saint Peter to bee Ministeriall head of his Church militant And I say to thee thou art Peter and vpon this rocke will I build my Church and the gates of hell shall not prevaile against it
but will detest the impudency thereof at the first hearing Of necessity therefore some third party must be thought vpon who being no way intressed in either faction is of sufficient Iudgement to determine which of the pretenders make the best claime now though wee should search the whole world over with a candle there is none such possibly to be found vnder heaven but only the holy Scripture which being confessed by both sides to be the rule of faith cannot well be denied to be the most competent Iudge for deciding of all doubts in that kinde arising among the faithfull Scripture a competent judge of the true Church And for this question of the Church St Aug. is peremptory that there is no other way to determine it but by Scripture alone Jnter nos Donatistas quaestio est vbi sit Ecclesia iust as it is now inter nos Papistas quîd ergo facturi sumus in verbis nostris eam quaesituri an in verbis capitis sui Puto quòd in illius potius verbis cam quaerere debemus lib. de vnit Eccles c. 2. That whole chapter together with the 3. and 4. following is altogether to the same purpose nay Bellar. himselfe denies not but in some cases the Scripture is better knowne to vs then the Church and ex hac hypothesi when the Church is doubted of he is content to grant that wee must seeke for it in the Scripture de Eccles l. 4. c. 2. And yet notwithstanding all this faire weather that he makes with Scripture there is neither hee nor any of the rest that are willing to accept it for Iudge in this controversie the most they will yeeld is to accept it for a rule of faith and yet they stand not to that neither when they require tradition to be joyned vnto it as if without the helpe thereof it could not measure perfectly For Regula regulatum debent esse adaequata The autority of the scripture If Scripture alone bee not sufficient of it selfe to measure the length of à Christians faith vnlesse tradition bee added to helpe then it is no rule at all much lesse a perfect rule but only a peece of one But howsoever they are content sometime for fashion sake to acknowledge Scripture for the rule of faith in part yet by no meanes will they allow it for a Iudge though that be the very name whereby S. Augustine and the Fathers of those times did vsually call it Ista controversia Iudicem requirit saith he lib. 2. de nup. concup c. 33. Iudicet ergo Christus Iudicet cum illo Apostolus quia in Apostolo ipse loquîtur Christus and againe de gratiâ lib. arbit c. 18. Sedeat inter nos iudex Apostolus Iohannes and Optatus contra Parmen l. 5. Quaerendi sunt iudices saith he Jn terris de hâc re nullum poterit reperiri iudicium You see by this that the Pope was not acknowledged in those daies for the judge of controversies if Optatus had beene a Papist he durst not haue spoken such a word but marke how hee goes on De coelo quaerendus est judex sed quid pulsamus ad coelum cùm habemus hic in Evangelio Testamentum the place is too long to bee all set downe and that which followeth is all to that purpose Our adversaries speake in another language now adaies then Optatus or Augustine or any of those holy Fathers were wont to speake When they said so often Judicet Christus Iudicet Scriptura they would haue said once at the least Iudicet Papa if they had imagined that any such power had belonged vnto him Here was a fit opportunity for them to haue declared themselues true Catholiques But alas good men how could they speake of that which they knew not or how could they teach that doctrine to others that they were never taught themselues For this vpstart judge it is a meere novelty of a later edition vtterly vnknowne to the Christian world in those daies like that gibbrish tongue which some mungrell Iews spake Neh emias complaines of c. 13.24 In scripturis didicimus Christum in scripturis didicimus Ecclesiam Aug. ep 166. de vnitat Eccles c. 16. Now when we say that the Scripture is judge wee doe not refuse to heare the voice of the Church speaking in the ordinary Ministery of her lawfull Pastors interpreting the Scriptures vnto vs. Wee know that there are many texts full of difficulty and aboue the reach of common vnderstanding nay there are many which his Holinesse himselfe I am sure vnderstands not for all his infallible chaire But we know withall that there are other places of Scripture so facil and plaine as a man of ordinary capacity may safely be his owne interpreter and there is nothing necessary to salvation either concerning faith or life but that in some one place or other it is deliuered in such plaine manner as every man may vnderstand it if Saint Augustine deceiue vs not de Doctr. Christ l. 2 c. 9. And many other of the ancient Fathers as well as hee And therefore if blinde men see not the sunne it is not the fault of the sun but theirs whose eyes the God of this world hath blinded A lawfull Councell the Church representatiue Now for those places of scripture which are of greatest difficulty if we seeke for a vocall judge to interpret them vnto vs it is certaine that there is none sufficient to informe vpon earth the conscience of a Christian but only a lawfull Councell which is fitly therefore called the Church representatiue The declaratiō of several Pastors though never so learned godly cā induce no more thē a probability but the vniforme consent of thē all joyned together in a lawfull Councell doth conclude a certainty of truth in that that is declared What conditions belong to a lawfull Councell I will not now stand to inquire Some such there haue beene heretofore though not so many as would be thought so and some there may be againe In the meane time A councell the highest iudgement vpon earth I desire you to thinke that Protestants ascribe farre greater authority by many degrees to the voice of the Church speaking in such assemblies then Papists doe for all their great talking and yet you must know that there are divers learned Papists of the same opinion with Protestants in this point namely that the iudgement of a lawfull Councell is to bee reputed the highest iudgement vpon earth whether the Pope giue his consent therevnto or no. The Iesuites labour hard on the contrary side to draw all to the Papall chayre affirming the sentence of a Councell to be of no validity vnlesse the Pope doe approoue it which in effect is nothing else but to abuse the name of Councels and of the Church making them meere stales to serue the Popes turne Differēces amongst the Papists see the differences that are among themselues about
in generall Vos autem quem me esse dicitis v. 15. Vnto which question Peter making answere in the name of them all saith Tues ille filius Dei viuentis vers 16. Wherevpon hee receiued the promise of the keyes and those other comfortable words spoken by Christ vnto him vers 18.19 yet not so spoken to him alone but that it is apparent that the substance of the promise did equally belong vnto them all and there is nothing singularly belonging vnto Peter alone throughout the whole speech but only an allusion betweene his name and the nature of his confession betweene Petrus Petra for the rest it is all common for either wee must say that the disciples did make no answere at all to their Masters question which had beene a point of great incivility and so not likely or else the answer that Peter made must bee taken for their common answer and his confession the common confession of them all Now if it be granted that it was the common confession and only delivered by Peter as the fore-man of the Jury 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 lib. 2. Hist Eccl. cap. 14. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 for so Eusebius calls him our Saviours-reply therevnto cannot with any congruity be otherwise vnderstood then to belong vnto them all though spoken vnto Peter as judges vse to direct their speech to the foreman when they would haue the whole Iury take knowledge of it Petrus pro omnibus dixit cum omnibus accepit Orig. tract 1. in Mat. Aug. de verbis Dom. secund Mat. Ser. 13. Quia tu dixisti mihi Tu es filius Dei viui ego tibi tu es Petrus Vpon this rocke will I build my Church Whether by the rocke wee vnderstand Christ himselfe or whether wee vnderstand the confession of Saint Peter made of Christ all comes to one if there be any difference betweene them it is meerely verball and consisteth rather of a diverse manner of mens expressing their mindes then in any matter of substance But for the person of Peter the Church of Christ did never vnderstand her selfe to bee any otherwise built vpon it then vpon the rest of the Apostles Apoc. 21.14 or then Saint Paul when hee saith it is built vpon the foundation not only of the Apostles but also of the Prophets that is vpon their doctrine Eph. 2.20 Tu es Petrus super hanc Petram quam confessus es super hanc Petram quam cognovisti dicens tu es Christus filius Dei viui aedificabo Ecclesiam meam super me aedificabo te non me super te Aug. vbi supra I could cite twenty places out of August to the same purpose besides Ambr. Ser. 84. Hil. de Trin. l. 2. Hier. in Mat. l. 1. c. 7. Tert. adversus Marcion l. 4. c. 13 Theod. in Psal 47. But for August he is so plain for vs against the Popish interpretation that Bellarmine would faine quarrell with him vpon the point chargeth him with ignorance of the Hebrew tongue l. 1. de Rom. Pont. c. 10. and Stapleton calls it lapsum humanum in that holy Father because he could not thinke of the matter as they would haue him Princip doctrinal lib. 6. c. 3. And the gates of Hell shall not prevaile against it This makes it more plaine that the other part of the speech was not spoken to Peter alone because this cannot bee vnderstood of Peter alone and so Origen collecteth Tr. 1. in Mat. shall we dare to say saith he that the gates of Hell shall not overcome onely Peter and that the same gates shall prevaile against all the other Apostles And againe in the same Tract 1. in Mat. If you thinke that the whole Church was builded only vpon Peter what will you say of Iohn the sonne of thunder and of every of the Apostles And I will giue to thee the keyes c. Here is nothing promised in the Keyes to Peter nor in the power of binding loosing but what is likewise promised to all the Apostles Mat. 18.18 Quaecunque ligaveritis in terrâ erunt ligata in coelo and when this promise came to performance Ioh. 20.22.23 you shall finde that it was performed to all alike Accipite Spiritum Sanctum quorum remiseritis peccata remittentur iis -Now it is certaine that remitting and retaining of sins is a power of the same extent with the power of the keyes and that being giuen to them all Ioh. 20. as well as vnto Peter proues that there was nothing promised vnto Peter Mat. 16. but was intended to them all Cuncti Apostoli claves regni coelorum accipiunt Hier. adversus Iovinianum l. 1. Origen An vero soli Petro dantur claves regni coelorum nec alius beatorum quisquam eas accepturus est Quod si dictum hoc tibi dabo claves caeteris quoque commune est cur non simul omnia communia Tract 1. in Mat. Cypr. Christus Apostolis omnibus post resurrectionem suam parem potestatem tribuit l. 1. de vnitat Eccl. August in Ioh. tractat 124. quando Petro dictum est tibi dabo claves quodcunque ligaveris vniversam significabat ecclesiam vide eundem Tra. 50. Theoph vpon Math. 16. Nay Anselme that was a child in comparison of the Fathers yet hee vnderstood this truth Notandum est saith he quod haec potestas non solum Petro data est sed siout Petrus vnus pro omnibus respondit sic Christus in Petro omnibus hanc potestatem dedit And our Saviour said Simon Simon behold Satan hath required to haue thee for to sift as wheat but J haue prayed for thee that thy faith faile not and thou being converted confirme thy brethren Luk. 22. vers 31.32 The first part of this speech was spoken to all the Disciples Satanas expetivit vos vt cribraret as the vulgar likewise translateth and therefore it is no good dealing in your friend to render it in the singular number Satan hath required to haue thee for to sift as if these words had beene spoken to Peter alone which is a meere falsifying of the Text as if a man would pay his creditor with counterfeit coine but let that passe with his former citation of Malachy In the words themselues 1. Christ signifies to his Disciples the malice of Satan against them all and consequently the dāger wherein they stood vnlesse his grace did stand by them 2. Because he knew that Peters danger was greatest that he would proue the weakest in his performance who had made the greatest promises of loue to his Master Christ I say foreseeing that Peters fall would bee more dangerous in many respects then the fall of any of his other fellowes therefore hee turnes the latter part of his speech to him alone promising to assist him with his speciall prayer as the greatnes of his sinne had speeciall need of If Satan desire to sift them all saith Chrysostome why