day of Pentecost where he moved to me first this Question Where God had his being before the Heavens and Earth and therein all things else were created Which Question though it seemed to me not much pertinent to our purpose yet lest he should imagine us ignorant of our great God's universal presence I said He then was in his own being But when that seemed to him somewhat obscure and that he did not sufficiently understand it I then told him He was where he now is Which he understanding denied in the general and said Not so but that he then was in a bright cloud Which when he earnestly affirmed I quoted Genesis for they also read the books of Moses and the Prophets and said If God were in a Cloud before the Foundation of Heaven and Earth then that Cloud must be created before them both and upon further argument on this point being at last convicted he would dispute no further in it but gave me leave to propound some Question to him and for solemnity of that dayes sake I thought fit to say something thereof and finding these words In the name of God his mercies and the Spirit of them in their Alcoran in the Arabian Tongue and Character I desired him to read them The mystery of the holy Trinity Which when he had considered and wondred at he said Christian from whence had you this for in the beginning of all our actions we Musselmen use these three words and prefix them to every Chapter of our Alcoran when we sit down to eat when we go to prayers when we wash our hands or other parts of our bodies these words we first pronounce and these actions finished we sprinkle our heads with water and repeat these words In the Name of God his Mercies and the Spirit of them When thus he had confessed the Truth I desired to understand from him what he meant by the word Mercies who replied He understood it literally without other signification Then I applied my self to the mystical Interpretation and divided it according to Truth into three Persons the Father the Son and the Holy Ghost and shewed them written in the Arabick tongue And when he saw I had mentioned the Son of God he question'd How God could have a Son since according to their Law and Doctrine of Mahomet God had neither Wife nor Childe To whom I answered according to my weak understanding and capacity We Christians call God the Father for his Creatures sake being the first creating Cause and sole Preserver of all created who was for ever in the same Essence he now is in and will be for Eternity and is the first Person in the Trinity We believe the Son who by Mahemet in the Arabick phrase is called Rahman and signifieth Mercies so changed by him to be likewise God not according to flesh for God is a Spirit born of a Woman but of the Essence and substance of God Omnipotent begotten by God the Father to put away the sins of the World and so took humane flesh by the Holy Virgin Mary suffered for us died and was buried and according to the sayings of the Prophets arose again the third day and ascended into Heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father there to judge the quick and the dead to render immortal happiness to those that have faith in him and to the unfaithful everlasting punishment I then presented him a Crucifix and said Behold this now and see if Mahomet did unworthily call the Son of the eternal God by Name of Mercies when with Arms thus stretched forth he calls poor sinners to his embraces saying Come unto me all ye that labour and art burthened with sins and I will refresh you And to render him more capable of the Trinity I pointed to the Sun saying You have a fair similitude here as there is but one Sun that hath form heat and light so there is but one God the Father who hath Son and the Holy Spirit which you call Ruâ—ahim consisting of three Persons equally of one substance and from Eternity coexisting This comparison wrought in him a belief in God the Father his onely begotten Son and the Holy Ghost a Trinity in Unity And when he had heard my weak discourses of God the Father God the Son and God the holy Ghost he much admired with saying O God O God I nor any of our Sect could ever imagine you had such good thoughts of God for we conceive you live in darkness of understanding but by your relation it seems you have great apprehensions of him and believe well if you did not neglect our great Prophet of God Mahomet I said What shall we do with the toyes and dreams of Mahomet for besides Baptism and the mystery of the Trinity which were had from Christians we know the Alcoran contains nought that tends to Truth Then I alledged to him the fancies and silly trifles of Mahomet's two Angels called Arot and Marot whom Mahomet sayes That God did send from Heaven to minister justice unto mortal men commanding them to forbid drinking of wine and unlawful mixtures with women to shew the ways to heaven to no man These Angels transgressing Divine Commandment were defiled deceived and made drunk by a Woman and shewed to Mahomet the way to heaven whom when God saw there he asked the Angels standing by who it was that came in that shape thither And the Angels telling him it was by the error of Arot Marot he turn'd the Woman into a Star and sent those Angels chained into a well to be punished everlastingly Divers like ridiculous stories I related as that of the Beast Baraile who could speak as man who carryed Mahomet to heaven where himself confesseth to have seen great Angels with many heads and those speaking many Languages in divers Tongues which is sufficiently foolish unworthy the name of a Prophet but said I knew not whether oppressed with Wine in sleep he dreamed to have seen such miracles or monstrosities in his imaginations And therefore when he inserts such follies in his Alcoran he deserves nor the Title of a Prophet from any reasonable man Having heard this somewhat abashed he arose and would argue no further but led me into the Temple and shewed me certain Images carved in wood and asked me If we did worship those silmilitudes of men or adore them I answered No think not we worship the stones or timber wherein these figures are engraved they are used and respected onely as records and remembrances to mens mindes of the passions and sufferings of our Saviour Jesus Christ for the redemption of our transgressions and we worship our true God in minde and Spirit remembred by that Crucifix neither are you denied the like remembrances of your great Princes and famous men nor we of holy Saints but 't is to give God thanks for their examples of holiness and our prayers to imitate their charity and pieties In these
Spanish Souldiery the warlike fierceness of the Belgicke Provinces the quick prudence of the Italian wits the robustiousness and stoutness of the Germans will be easily perswaded by the King of Romans against this universal Enemy remembring you withal No Crown sits so gloriously on an Emperour or Princes head as that which beareth a true Title of the Peoples safety and lawful Liberties Imploring and beseeching the most Christian King of France to employ his helping and heroick Arms in safeguard according to his Title of his Christian Brethrens liberties and his own from Turkish Tyranny Imploring and beseeching the most mighty and potent Kings of England Poland Denmark Swedeland with all Republicks Cities and Corporations Christian to unite and joyne in one their strengths and powers in war against this cankered common Enemy of their Religion Crowns and Dignities Imploring and beseeching all sorts of Powers and Authorities spiritual and temporal to imploy their diligence and shew the worthiness of their callings by correction and amendment of wicked and dissolute loose livers by whom God's wrath is kindled against us and to reduce them to holy Rules of Christian Exercises in living justly soberly and religiously and so render God a true account of Stewardship and prevent the miseries have befallen others drowsie and sleeping inadvertencies Imploring and beseeching both young and old of all sects and conditions godly Christians religious and secular beloved Fathers dear Brethren respected Friends Neighbours and Companions That you all with humble face and countenance pure and sincere hearts and hands devout mindes mournfull voyces and weeping eyes condole grieve and lament the miseries the calamities of Turkish captives and call unto the Lord of Hosts with violence in pity to his people to avert his anger and not to give them up to the perpetual rebuke of this wicked Infidel most cruel Enemy of Christian Religion and Liberty but to inspire the mindes of Christian Kings and Governours with light of his holy Spirit to reduce them all to unity and concord against this ravenous and insatiable Dragon and grant others such success that these wretched captives their Christian Brethren may be restored to liberty in the worship and adoration of their God our Christ and onely serve him who is for ever blessed that at length the Christian World may be refreshed and eas'd from such perpetual slavery CHAP. V. An Exhortation against the TURK I Have often marvelled with my self most mighty Monarchs when I considered the advaÌ„tages which promise Christians victories against the Turk and yet inso many yeers they attempted none or failed We have Jesus Christ our God who in one onely night destroyed the host of Sennacherib who drowned Pharaoh who with a maiden hand of Judith struck off thâ— head of Hâ—lâ—phernes and to be 〈…〉 a God whose will is victory Conâ—â—ary to which they have a Mahomet a wicked man of life conversation in death yet hanging in his Sepulchre without Resurrection so as there is as much difference between them as is between an ever living Son of an ever living God and a putrid carkass of a son of a mortal man that if we diligently examine the nature of each Power and Authority it would apear like dead men superiors in strength to living Now in abilities of bodies capacities and gifts of understanding we exceed them which are good strengths and fortifications against an enemy and yet we are still defeated Who is more hardy then the Hungarian more stout and robustious then the German more quick and nimble then the Frenchmen more grave and solid then the Spaniard more cautelous and prudent then the Italian more valiant and daring then the English forbearing other Nations the endowments of whose mindes are better or at least equal All these abilities seem able singly to get a victory or at least well to forward it Courage often without much force generosity of minde wisdom forecast ambition of honour and policy oft subdues an Enemy yet notwithstanding wretches as we are amongst so many victorious attributes we get no victories Then if we consider the easie preparation great furnitures of all sorts of arms we shall appear far to exceed the Turk Guns of all sorts have bin our own inventions and the divers kindes of compleat harnesses for horse and foot The Turks Persians Subjects naked or half so march forth to war they have bows we guns that is fire and thunder they have arrows which hardly pierce an Armour we Cannons which Rocks cannot withstand and yet now some Mussel-men have Guns and Gunners but few and unskilful Now I pray what other kinde of people use they most in Expeditions Scythians and Thracians who have no Italian or Spanish Spirits onely a kinde of inhumane fierceness ignorance and stolidity to these are added Grecians lost men with ease and laziness Asians corrupt with luxury Aegyptians no less in minde then bodies feebled Arabians bloodless thin and parboyl'd with the Sun Who could imagine such-kinde of Souldiery should subdue the great advantages and abilities of those fore named Nations yet be it spoken with grief our Christians by these are overcome and mastered into servitude and our great Captains are forced to bear arms against us who were born and bred by Ancestors to liberty and in the mean season the Turk laughs at us and the Jew rejoyceth Now if I shall consider the Laws and Institutions of Nations we shall be found abundantly superiour in that respect for what is more righteous and divine then the Decalogue and holy Gospel written by God's own Finger and his Spirit what more regular then the Canon-Law more just and equal then the civil Law Whereas the Turks live by Direction Dictates of the Alcoran a book of stuff as foolish as full of vanity a book of sport and mirth if pity for the seduced did not allay it though now spread abroad too much and handled amongst Christians so as it may be truely feared we shall learn other Laws or shortly lose our own and turn Turks in our mindes and approbations sooner then in our bodies to their Dominion What is then the cause having so many prerogatives of hopeful war we are alwayes beaten why are our Ensigns adorn'd with Crucifixes fearful formerly to infidels and devils now trampled on frighted I shall tell you in few words and truth We have a God most great most good but alienated from us so far that according to the Prophets saying We scarce are to be named his people for why should Christ remain with us whom we have rent and torn in far more pieces then the Souldiers did his Garment by our hideous Sects Schismes and Heresies Besides his Name what of him is dear unto us The very Plow man these times is impudent and factious the Citizen fraudulent and avaritious the Magistrate seeks retributions and rewards the Nobility is riotous and lazy the Gentry contentious and proud the Souldier beyond his pay and spoil craves nothing from
the war let Scepters fall as they will he is no less grievous to friends and companions then Enemies Church-men besides pomp ecclesiastical have little of the Church not sanctity not piety some not fitting erudition seeking their own not Christ's advancement that we may say with the Prophet All have declin'd the ways of God and are unprofitable there 's none that doth good not even one Why should we marvel then that Christ is not our Friend We therefore go to war without a God and what is more calamitous with God our adversary We carry Bibles Crucifixes with us but the crucified by his favour converseth with our enemies our actions therefore perish are involv'd in losses And when one Nation fights against the Turk another is imploy'd in civil wars calling to his aid Pagans Schismaticks or Hereticks more eagerly to oppose Christ others tend their home-affairs to indulge themselvs in ease voluptuousness The souldier sets not forth for Christ but money which failing soon deserts the field turns home back again What have we then from those rich Attributes Eulogies of Germany France England Spain Italy when the Souldier neglects both God and Honour and goes to war as to market a brothel-house or stews to exercise all rapine spoil and lewdness We have good laws but evil manners good furniture of arms but wicked dispositions it is our glory to fight among our selves and if we prove coward to enemies there follows little shame or punishment When do we see a Souldier quitting Colours or disbanding severely handled which crimes were anciently capital and whole Legions have been decimated and tyth'd for less offences We therefore march with men few in numbers and those corrupt in manners against millions of men well disciplin'd for Tuâ—ks leave their vices in their houses from whence we carry ours In their Pavilions and Tents no deliciousness arms onely and necessary provisions in Christians all sorts of Table-delicates luxury and riotousness and commonly as many light lascivious Women as Men. What wonder then if they conquer who are preserved by sobriety parsimony diligence fidelity and obedience Let them perish then who lose a field to get a prey who are oftner found amongst whores and drunk then in good actions but 't is the fault and error of Supeâ—iors when Subjects are not kept in due observance which if Christians were we could not be inferiour to Turks And yet a greater fault behold Princes themselves while they contend in mutual quarrels are causes why they cannot muster equal forces against the Turk for whilst they fight and combate for some little Town or other after grievous strife conflictation and exhaustion of men and treasure they grow weak impoverished and heartless What brave actions might those streams of Christian blood have done which civil wars most impiously have drawn out emptied and dried up But 't is too late to mourn in complaints Asia and Affrica are lost Greece extinguished Hungary desperately sick Illyria and Sclavonia joyned to the Turk Austria much enfeebled and this plague much threatens Germany and Christianity universal and that so far that no great Prince or Monarch ought to be secure or think himself so free but that he may be forced to defend his own without invasion of his neighbours Territories whether it please or not unless they will become of Princes Servants of Free-men Slaves detained in perpetual chains or slain and murthered that their Subjects may want Captains and good Leaders Now most mighty Monarchs and high Governours for God's cause banish from amongst you all discord ambitious tyrannies which are the Devils instruments to maintain oppressions impieties thereby to prolong Gods wrath upon you and restore to each proprietor his due rights and priviledges and then as Rivers having free course haste all smoothly to the sea make one mighty body so your strengths united in the bond of peace would startle astonish and drown this great Tyrant Turk which blessing on bended knees I humbly pray for and recommend unto the God of Peace And being reconcil'd among your selves if you would say as Moses said to Joshua Chuse you a man and go and fight with Amalek If you would reduce your selves to this peace and concord which is onely hopeful and put your helping hands and powers toward so greatly honourable so blessed so necessary and profitable a war against the Turk who can imagine but that ye should at least equal the number of his Souldiery if not far exceed them He is now swell'd up to the very height of Tyranny and hath there remained so for divers yeers as if expecting as if waiting an attempt All full Seas have their ebbings all ripe fruits are quickly shaken down there wants nothing to this general and glorious work of Christian Princes but God's blessing unanimity and an Heroick courage brave and masculine For the Emperour can with easiness raise arm and muster 50000 horse 100000 foot the like may hopefully be expected from France from Spain and Italy the yet remaining parts of Hungary and Illyria with the Provinces under the King of Romans will raise and maintain 60000. These Christian Forces may make 400000 horse and foot besides the Maritime great assistances of England Denmark united Provinces Venetians Portugals and Swedes and all other Christian Commonwealths who if once unanimous and freed from jealousies and petty wretched wilful home-contentions the Turkish power could no more resist ye then Darius Alexander Xerxes Themistocles or Antiochus Judas Macchabeus and having gotten but one victory and once passed the Danube towards Constantinople God being pleased and our lives amended these enemies of our faith would easily be trodden down All Greece and Thrace where yet great part retain the law of Christ expect with greediness the Christian Sword and readily would revolt upon such occasion and manfully assault and fight against those Lords and Masters that have so cruelly afflicted them which circumstance alone would much hasten if not perfect a speedy victory I would to God and wish heartily most Christian Monarchs That your civil fruitless home-contentions would permit and suffer you seriously to consider and calmly to examine these offered motions you then would finde all mens wills and arms concur with yours no age no sex no conditions of men would leave your Ensigns Each Turk would have his Executioner at home his Traytor in his Tent and fugitive in the field All Christians amongst them have contemptuous opinions of their arms and know them onely fitted for light Skirmishes and Pickerings who if their noise like shoals of clamouring Rocks affright you not they fly And whensoever it shall please God to root out from amongst us these perpetual Enemies of his faith and send them to their old lurking holes and caves and corners in Bythinia by the Christian Sword according to some of their own Prophecies or else to reduce them to the bosome of our Catholick Church no man can doubt but in short time the Emperor will be seated in his chair at Constantinople and invested in his Imperial Roman Territories The King of Romans re-established and recover Hungary and Thrace France lesser Asia England part of Aegypt Spain part of Africa Italy all Shores and Banks of the Mediterranean Seas and last the Pope as a great Pastor of the Christian Church will be extol'd magnifi'd for such an union These are the apprehensions of all Christian captives under the Turkish Tribute and even Turks themselves who have knowledge and long acquaintance in military affairs And this my self have learned by thirteen yeers experience The Turk is valiant against a flying and flying against a valiant Enemy when therefore he by nature is fugitive impiety flyes without pursuit Let God arise and scatter all his Enemies let those that hate his Doctrine avoid his presence let them like smoak vanish and melt like wax against the fire so may all Infidels perish before the face of God and his holy Church that there may be but one Flock and one Pastor Jesus Christ the righteous Which grant Oh ever blessed Trinity and Unity God the Father God the Son and God the Holy Ghost Amen Contents OF Oratories pag. 1. Lent pag. 6. Circumcision pag. 8. Priests pag. 11. Monks pag. 13. Reverence to Mahomet's Traditions pag. 15. Schools pag. 16. Contracts of Marriage pag. 17. Of Strangers pag. 19. Miracles at Mecha pag. 20. Of Alms. pag. 23. Sacrifices pag. 24. Wills and Legacies pag. 25. Ceremonies of the dead pag. 26. Of a Sepulchre called Tulbe pag. 27. Concerning War pag. 29. Condition of Noble-men pag. 31. Bassa's and Councellors pag. 33. The obedience of Turks to their King pag. 34. How strength diminished pag. 36. Of Chazalars pag. 37. Order of foot pag. 38. Pavilions of Turks pag. 40. Carriage of Beasts pag. 42. Justice in war pag. 44. Celebration of Turkish Victories pag. 45. Of hunting pag. 46. Artificers and Husbandmen pag. 48. Justice amongst Citizens pag. 49. Husbandry pag. 51. Diversitie of Cattle pag. 53. Of Houses pag. 54. Garments Ibid. Of Viands pag. 56. Drinks pag. 57. Manner of eating pag. 58. CHAP. II. Afflictions of Captives pag. 60. Imployment of slaves pag. 61. Women and Virgins pag. 64. Private Prisoners pag. 65. Artless Prisoners pag. 66. Prisoners newly taken pag. 68. Exposed to sale pag. 69. Shepherds pag. 71. Fugitives out of Europe pag. 73. From Asia Ibid. Their punishment pag. 75. Armenians charity Ibid. Incantations of Turks pag 76. Memory of Christ lost pag. 77. Condition of the conquered pag. 78. Priest and Friers pag. 81. Tribute pag. 82. CHAP. III. Narration of a dispute pag. 85. CHAP. IV. Lamentation pag. 97. CHAP. V. An Exhortation pag. 109. FINIS