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heaven_n	church_n	key_n	peter_n	5,807	5	7.9067	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A70471	A treatise of the episcopacy, liturgies, and ecclesiastical ceremonies of the primitive times and of the mutations which happened to them in the succeeding ages gathered out of the works of the ancient fathers and doctors of the church / by John Lloyd, B.D., presbyter of the church of North-Mimmes in Hertfordshire.	Lloyd, John, Presbyter of the Church of North-Mimmes.	1660 (1660)	Wing L2655A; ESTC R21763	79,334	101

Whosoevers sins ye remit they shall be remitted Thus far Hierome The powers promised unto St. Peter in Matth. ch 16. and the powers given unto the Apostles when our Saviour breathed upon them and said Receive the Holy Ghost c. and the powers mentioned in the 18 chap. of St. Matthew supposed before given or to be in a special manner given in time to come are one and the same powers Chrysost de sacerdotio l. 3. Ambros l. 1. de●●aenit c. 1. 6. Hier. ad Heliod de vita solit Athanas serm in illud p●●ofecti in pagum c. Cypr. de simplicit Praelat and so taken to be by the Doctors of the Primitive Church which they do unanimously acknowledge to be given unto the Apostles both in right and possession as to the essential parts of the powers before Christs death although there is some seeming variety among them concerning the punct of time before his death wherein Christ gave them declaratively unto them and the immediate subject to whom they were given Considering their sayings concerning this matter and comparing them together and so expounding them that they may agree with the Scriptures and among themselves these following assertions may be gathered from them First They do not deny the said powers to have been given as to their essentials unto the Apostles when he called them to the Apostleship and gave them the name of Apostles For they could not think that Christ gave them the name of the office without the office it self And it appears that the Apostles preached and baptised before the promise of them was made unto Peter They received with the name of Apostles the powers to minister all the doctrine and means of salvation which Christ intended in due time to deliver unto them Act. 1.24 25. Act. 26.16 And therefore when the Sacrament of the Eucharist was instituted they needed not a new ordination but onely a signification of Christs pleasure that they should use the power before given them in the administration of this ordinance which is but an extention of the power to a new object Secondly they agree Chrysost in Joh. hom 85. Cyprian de simplicit Praelatoruus Aug. de Trinitate civitate Dei c. 4. quaest ex vet Novi Testam c. 93. that all the Apostles received those powers when our Saviour breathed upon them c. and that this was a solemn ordination of them giving them more grace to accompany their ministery then they had in their first call and less solemn ordination or in the subsequent manifestation thereof before his death This is the more proper ordination of the ministers of the new testament the full original and seminal tradition of the ministerial powers whereby all future ordinations of the like kind are sanctified and for these causes our Saviour iterated their ordination to the pastoral extraordinary and ordinary offices and the rather least his death might be thought to have made void their first more secret and covert ordination Some late writers think that Christ lest his ascension into heaven might seem to have nullified the second ordination did ordain the Apostles the third time in the day of Pentecost Hier. epist ad Hedib q. 9. but it s more likely that he did then onely complete their ordination in the measure of extraordinary and ordinary gifts of the spirit enabling them and in them the succeeding Pastors for the better execution of their pastoral functions Thirdly the fathers agree also in this that Christ gave equal power and authority unto all the Apostles and made them all ministerial rocks and fundations Cyprian de simplicit Praelat gave unto them the Keyes of the heavenly Kingdome and gave them with the Keyes in their hands unto the Church Aug. de verbis Domini serm 11. de doct Christ l. 1. c. 18. for whose aedification onely they and their successors were to use them The eyes are not more the bodies then Pastors and their Keyes are the Churches and as the body cannot see but by the eyes so the Church cannot enter into heaven by any other member under Christ of the mystical body without the service of the Pastors opening with their Keyes the gates of heaven for her As the Apostles were ministerial rocks so was Peters confession an instrumental rock and in a second place the confession and preaching of the rest of the Apostles were so too by the means of which rocks the Church is built upon the foundation of foundations the principal rock our Lord Jesus Christ Hilar. in Math. Can. 11. Matth. 16. Yet Peters confession was not without a great reward He had the first promise of the Keyes to be given unto him after Christ's resurrection with the more abundant measure of the grace of the Holy Ghost which he then received with the rest of the Apostles yet so that he was the first in order which received them before the rest He had a name given him by our Saviour from the principal rock Ambros serm 89. Cyprian de habiiu virgin He was made the first in order and head of the Apostles the first ministerial rock and his preaching was made the first instrumental rock He was made the first preacher to and convertor of the Jews and Gentiles Joh. 10. Ambros ser 47. De Petro vide Aug. retract l. 1. c. 21. Ambros de incarn Dom. sacramento Cypr. nbi sup ad Antonianum the Apostle and Pastor of the first Christian Church after Christs ascension which was the mother of all other Churches And because it was believed that he had his choycest and longest residence in Rome wherein by his ministery the Gospel was first planted that Church was counted the Princess of Churches the mother of Churches as he was accounted and called the Prince of the Apostles All these priviledges did serve to shew the unity of the Church and the unity of the holy ministery and ministers thereof and to commend unto all the sons of the Church the preservation of unity in doctrine worship Discipline and charity There be many particular Churches of Christ yet all but one Church as Peters Church was one there be many Bishops and Presbyters yet as Peter was alone the Apostle of the first Church which represented all the succeeding Churches Basil constitut Monast c. 22. so the many ministers of the Gospel are one in Peter and the ministery one in him And as the Churches and ministers were one in their fountains and roots so they ought to preserve the like unity among themselves the ministers imitating the faithfulness of Peter and the flock imitating the obedience and holiness of the Church of Peter If Rome had persisted in and contented her self with the doctrine of St. Peter and not added thereto Idolatry superstitions and haeresies we would gladly have owned and honoured her Bishops as the prime successors of Peter and the Church of Rome as the

like successor of Peter's Church but to our hearts unspeakable grief we speak it the gold is become dimme the most fine gold is changed the holy City is become an harlot O that she would return to her first husband that we might return to her Ther 's Peter's chair where Peter's preaching is sincerely imitated that 's Peters Church which imitates her faith and holiness which when Rome shall do she shall recover her precedency of succession Thus Peter had a primacy among the Apostles but no superiority of command over them All pastors were in him first and secondarily in the rest of the Apostles De dignitate Sacerd. c. 2. Jo. 21. Peter saith Ambrose did not alone receive the sheep but received them with us and we received them with him Christ in the Apostles gave unto all Pastors the power of ordaining Pastors because he gave them the Keyes to be conveyed to successors But the power of appointing who among the Presbyters should exercise them and how and who among them should be governours of the use of the Keyes was not conveyed with the Keyes to all Pastors in the Apostolical ordination because it was peculiar to the extraordinary office of the Apostles either to leave that to the wisdome of the Church and ordinary Pastors to order or to settle it in one Presbyter assisted with the Colledge of Presbyters or otherwise as the Holy Ghost should guide them We may not think that our Saviour did give unto every Presbyter power to ordain preach administer the Sacraments excommunicate or absolve at his own will and pleasure without any appointment of a flock or calling him to account of his Stewardship c. for this is against the light of nature unless God had given unto every Presbyter wisdome and a will which could not erre in the orderly use of the Keyes as he gave unto the Apostles without which extraordinary grace the house of God in that case had been full of disorder and confusion which Christ would not permit If the power of disposing and governing the act of ordination and the exercise of the acts of binding and loosing had been given to the body of the Presbyters by our Saviour the Apostles and universal Church had never deprived the Colledge of that authority Wherefore as the first planting of the Christian Churches was proper to the Apostles so the constituting of the form of government and the governors of the exercise of the acts of ordination and the Keyes was committed onely to their trust And it was very congruous that Christ would not determine the form of the government of his Church and Pastors thereof before his ascention into heaven and the taking full possession of his government and Kingdome at the right hand of his Father The Apostles planted the Churches after this manner When God had blessed their ministery in Cities and considerable Towns and in the Country adjacent in the conversion of many to God they constituted one congregation or Church of all the converts in that City or good Town and the Country about it So ordering Ecclesiastical Corporations as might as much as could be best agree with the civil corporations and their division For the feeding of which Church they ordained Pastors and those many in every City-Church Ubi est Ecclesia nisi ubi virga gratia floret sacerdotalis Ambros de Isaac anima c. 7. Es Hier. contra Lucifer Ecclesia non est quoenon habet Sacerdotem in which they left the Colledge of Presbyters governors both of the Pastors individually considered and the whole flock yet with and under themselves or their vicegerents as presidents when either of them were present But within a short time when Christianity was much spread in several Nations and many City-Churches were grown populous so that they had many lesser Churches under them and the Apostles and their Vicegerents could be present but in very few in comparison of the far greater number which wanted their society the Colledges in these began to be divided among themselves and to divide the Churches which caused the Apostles guided thereto by the Spirit of Christ to consent to a change of the government which was by the Colledges bodies without a head and so apt to swerve in ruling populous Churches into a president in every Church chosen out of the Pastors together with the Colledge of the City and best Presbyters as his Senate and Counsellors And then both the Apostles and Evangelists or Apostolical helpers which were extraordinary Bishops become ordinary Bishops to be succeded by others And these last were like our Arch-bishops having many Bishops under them as Titus in Creet c. and the Apostles were like our Primates but of higher authority and having more Arch-bishops under them Here we may observe that the original occasion of Episcopacy doth very much commend it it being introduced to heal the evil of Schisme and by preventing it for time to come to secure the peace of the Church And it hath and will be the more acceptable to the Churches because it was instituted or confirmed by the Apostles at their desire Unto the imposition of hands benediction and prayers which were of the essence of the ordinations of Bishops and Presbyters many Ceremonies were in time added some sooner some later which served to make a clearer manifestation of the Ecclesiastical powers received in and by them which additional Ceremonies in time became occasions of foul mistakes Some making the additions to be the essence of the ordinations or part thereof other multiplying the ordination of the Apostles according to the diversity of kinds of the powers which they in very deed received but in one ordination although iterated for some special reasons When the Schoolmen began to write they found the Roman Court full of corrupt doctrine which they thought themselves bound to maintain mistaking miscalling the evil good and the good evil They found in the ordination of a Presbyter the Patene with Bread and the Cup with the Wine both unconsecrated to be delivered unto the party to be ordained with these words spoken by the Bishop Cont. Florent Sotus in 4. d. 24. Major Tho. in 4. d. 24. viz. Take power to offer c. which Ceremony added to that ordination about the year 700 as is probable some Schoolmen and also Pope Eugenius the fourth affirm to be the matter and forme of the consecration of a Presbyter making the imposition of hands with the words Receive the Holy Ghost c. to belong onely to the solemnity thereof and not to be essential to it against the judgment of all antiquity Other maintain the delivery of the Patene with Bread Scotus in 4. d. 24. Vasq in 3. disp 239. Bellar. de sacramento ord i. 1. c. 9. and the Cup with wine in it together with the said words spoken by the Bishop to be one part of the ordination and the imposition of

to suspend their reception of the ancient Episcopacy but in very deed receiving in some hidden sort the substance of it secretly giving that Authority to the moderator of the Colledge of Presbyters which tantamounts the Authority of the ancient Bishops This was done by them in their Emergency out of the Gulfe of the Babylonish Idolatry and Haeresies when the state of persons and Circumstances would not permit them directly and manifestly to set up the ancient Episcopacy but covertly and cloathed with the apparel of Presbytery Because the appearing of it in its native cloathing seemed to threaten an extreme danger of returning again to Idolatrous Babylon Thus when two duties became inconsistent the keeping out of Idolatry and the open and manifest use of an Ordinance inferior to the maintenance of the purity of Gods worship they did as it was their duty so far forbear the open use of Episcopacy as seemed needfull that they might preserve the truth and sincerity of the worship of God I know many writers are of another mind but the intentions of Churches are better seen in the causes of their actions and the managing of them then in the letter of a Law or in the speculative opinions of private persons Some think the present condition of our Church to be almost the same with the state of those Churches when they first began their Reformation and therefore that we stand in need of the same cure under the habit of the Presbyterian Government Surely these are much deceived first in their opinion of our present state secondly in the sequele if our case were like theirs for when we were like them in departing from Babylon we were unlike them in many other respects and needed not the habit of Presbyters but fall to purge the ancient Episcopacy from as many of the foul excrescencies which the sins of men made to grow to it as the condition of that time would permit whereby our Church kept more uniformity with the primitive Churches and by the blessing of God upon our endevour obtained more measure of the Heavenly light and of the power of Godliness in peace and that for a longer time then any part of those Churches attained unto which were necessitated to shrowd themselves under another habit of Government This I say not any way to disparage any other Church of Christ whom I honour and pray for from my heart or to ascribe any thing to our own wisdome and providence but to honour and glorifie the grace of God for his great mercies to our Church and to defend her honour against the mistakes of some But now our condition is changed our sins have brought us to misery the light and glory of our Church is turned to darkness confusion and contempt from which notwithstanding our unworthiness Gods infinite mercy which hath most gratiously restored our Soveraign Lord the King unto his Kingdomes and Subjects will be pleased I trust to deliver us and to beautifie our Church with the primitive Apostolicall Episcopacy attended by his assessors and Senate the reverend grave wise learned and pious Colledg of Presbyters to govern the house of God after the best pattern of the primitive holy orders and discipline for the obtaining whereof God would have us assisted by His grace to contribute our endevours improved to the uttermost of Christian Wisdom and moderation to be crowned with his rich blessing And because this business is about things for the most part spirituall tending to the edification of Gods house it will no doubt please our gracious King and his great Councell not to proceed in this work without the advise and counsell of them whom Christ hath ordained under Himself Minister all builders of His House least the neglect of His Ordinance and Ministers cause the Lord to blast all other Counsells and endeavours how probable soever they may seem to be in the eye of the world Give unto Casar the things which are Caesars and let the Vicegerents of Christ enjoy the things belonging to them let all interests have their due part in this weighty work and then whatsoever Government be settled what form soever of Divine service what Rites soever and Ceremonies shall be established they will with all readiness and due submission be received and embraced by all the people and all the obedient Sons and Daughters of our dearest Mother the Church of England among whom if there shall be some whose judgments cannot acquiesce in some determinations of the higher powers they will wisely consider first that in the remote conclusions of Divine maximes all good men in this our infirmity will never agree and that nature teacheth us that in controversies the resolution of the major part must be obeyed without which debates would never be ended and St. Paul saith let the spirits of the Prophets be subject to the Prophets Secondly That God hath appointed the powers civil and Ecclesiasticall in his stead to determine Ecclesiasticall controversies and to make Ecclesiasticall Ordinances from whose judgment there is no appeal but only to God by prayer Thirdly That to preserve the peace of the Church and Charity the bond of perfectness is a duty to be preferred before the duty of publick teaching divulging or preaching many of those Divine Truths whose ignorance if not voluntary doth not exclude from Heaven when that teaching or publishing doth disturb the publick peace and consequently the keeping of the peace requireth abstinence in that case from such divulging or preaching And from these considerations good men will infer that it is good for them and that it is their duty both for the sake of Gods Authority for good order sake and for Charity and peace sake out of a Conscientious regard to the higher powers to acquiesce in their determinations and to desist from opposing their private opinion to the publick judgment and pursuing their private interest to the prejudice of publick peace and Charity For which Wisedome and moderation that they may be in all let all good men pray to the onely wise and most mercifull God the Author of Truth and peace An APENDIX THe manner of the Ordination of Bishops forgotten to be shewed by me in due place is declared by the fourth Councill of Carthage in these words Can. 2. When a Bishop is ordained lay and hold the book of the Evangelists upon his head and neck and one Bishop pronouncing the Benediction over him let the rest of the Bishops present touch his head with their hands The Church never accounted any to be capable of this Episcopall Ordination that was not first ordained a Presbyter the manner of whose Ordination was that the Bishop blessing him saying receive the Holy Ghost whosoever sins you shall remitt Concil earth Can 3. c. and laying his hand upon his head the Presbyters present lay their hands upon his head by the hand of the Bishop There was a (a) Tert. de praescript c. 41. Cyprian Epist ad