let us hear him telling us what the Priests demand from God for the person departed Eccles Hist c. 7. a pardon of all fins committed by him through humane frailty and that he may be conducted into Abrahams bosome into a place from which grief sadness and mourning was banished But that this place of Dionysius makes nothing for Purgatory appears first in that the party is described by him to have departed out of this life replenished with Divine joy as now not fearing any change to worse being come to the end of all his labour and to have been both privately acknowledged by his friends and publickly pronounced by the Ministers of the Church to be a happy man See Dr. Fern against Spencer C. de Purgatorio and to be verily admitted into the society of the Saints that have been from the beginning of the world Secondly in that the Bishop or Priest so praying is said by him to be the Interpreter or publisher of the Divine Judgements viz. in giving rewards according as men deserve And how that the Divine loving kindness in great goodness over-looks their infirmities or spots and stains of sin contracted by humane weakness Thus that prayer which begs the full forgiveness of his sins is doctrine to the living shewing and assuring them of Gods mercy to them that strive to live well notwithstanding through humane weakness they offend often and cannot be free from all spots and stains of sin Then in relation as it seems to the other part of the prayer which begg'd that he might be placed in light c. This Author adds The Bishop or Priest knows such good things are promised and therefore prayes that they may come to pass and be given to them that have lived well Also he knows that the good things promised will come to pass and therefore as the Interpreter of Gods Will he shews that they will surely be made good to them that so live and die and if these be the intents of this prayer surely they will not conclude a Purgatory Well then when he prayes for the pardon of his fin he refers to that second sentence of the day of Judgement that God would then proclaim him pardoned and then would receive him into heaven Ibid. c. 7. both as to body and soul And hence our Dionysius tels us that in these Solemnities the Church was wont to read the undoubted promises which were recorded touching the resurrection and then devoutly sang Psalms of the same Argument As you may see in Bishop Vsher page 205. Secondly as for that of Tertullian Sect. 7 where he bids the faithful wife pray for the soul of her husband begging for him refreshment and a part in the first resurrection Ter. de Mon c. 19. Dally will tell you First that he was infected with the errour of the Millenaries and thence it was that he required her to pray for a part in the first resurrection supposing some to be raised sooner and some later within that 1000. years Or secondly that this refreshment is begg'd at the day of Judgement or the Resurrection See Dall p. 513. 517. Digna co loco solatia refrigeria and that the Antients supposing those that were departed to be touch'd with a longing desire of being in Heaven they begg'd a refrigerium to them that is the enjoyment of such comforts as they were thought to have had while they lay in the bosome of Abraham expecting the Resurrection As touching the place of Saint Cyprian Sect. 8 Epist 66. the Answer lies hid in a word which he hath cheatingly conceal'd in his Translation for whereas * Ib. p. 116. p. 516. he hath Translated it that no Oblation shall be made for him viz. That names in his Will for an Executor an Ecclesiastical person The Latine hath it pre Dormitione ejus and as Dally answers his Bellarm. refers to the Eucharistical thanksgivings which they offered ob Dormitionem ejus that the faithful soul was delivered from the evils of the world which he confirms from the testimony of the Author of the Commentary on Job commonly ascribed to Origen And from Saint Ambrose who tells us Diem quo obierint sancti sc De Cor. Mil. c. 3. See Dally p. 516. colebri solennitate renovamus which is as far from Purgatory as Earth from Heaven And this is that which Tertullian saith Tradition was the Author and Custome the confirmer of The first Testimony which he borrows from Chrysostome tell us only this That according to the Apostles Institution Sect. 9 during the celebration of the Mysteries In Ep. ad Philip c. 1. Hom. 3. Commemoration was made of the dead Secondly That this was done that some comfort and refreshment might accrue to them thereby Now that the first comes not up to a shew of any proof for Purgatory is evident to any eye but blur'd with prejudice as appears from those many other ends for which the Fathers esteemed it useful as to bring and keep their souls in Abrahams bosome See Dally de Satisfac l 5. c. 12. to procure them a portion in the millenary reignhere on earth an augmentation of their Glory to procure the Resurrection of their bodles an abatement or exemption from the flames of the last day and the rigour of the last judgment And as for the second Hom. Cor. in c. 15. v. 46. S. Chrysost might well say that 't was not in vain to pray for sinners when he held that thereby the torments of the greatest sinners were or might be alleviated as appeares from his 21. Hom. on the Acts of the Apostles where speaking of a man who had not lived one day to himself but to Voluptuousness Intemperance Covetousness to sin and the Devil if he chance to die saith he shall we not mourn for him shall we not endeavour to pull him out of these dangers For there be waies if we will whereby his punishment may be made light for him If then we do continually make prayers for him if we bestow Almes though he be unworthy God will respect us And whereas he adds that it was the practice of the Church we grant it but the Church then practised it for the ends now specified not because she believed the Roman Purgatory For that Saint Chrysostome thought that the parties deceast if they had lived well were in a state of Joy and not of Grief appears by the funeral Ordinances of the Church related by him which were appointed to admonish the living of it Hom. 4. in Ep. ad Hebr. For tell me saith he What do the bright Lamps mean Do we not accompany them therewith as Champions what mean the Hymns Consider what thou dost sing at that time Return my Soul unto thy rest for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee And again I will fear no evil because thou art with me And again Thou art my refuge from the affliction that compasseth me
and justice here from his Domestick Servants 'T is pitie that this Argument was not framed before the Church of Israel madeher complaint that Abraham was ignorant of her It would have taught her better divinity 2. 'T is no Demonstration sure God would not hide from Abraham the thing he was to do which concern'd so much his Brother Lot albeit he never revealed afterwards to any of his dearest servants that we read of unless his Prophets any such thing therefore he will reveal to any Saint in Heaven the praiers that are made to them by any person whatsoever By what hath been said I may be bold to infer that the invocation of Saints is very foolish and if so that the Church of Rome is not infallible But our Authour claps in two places of Scripture without any coherence at all Sect. 10 to prove I know not what and albeit they have been answered an 150. times he shall not bate me a single unite Yet doth he bolt them forth without any notice of the answers given We read saith he not only an Angel but every one of the four and twentie Elders to have in their hands golden Censers and Vials full of Odours Rev. 8.3.5.8 which are the prayers of the Saints that is of their Brethren upon Earth Now to take these two places in their Order 1. Revel 8.3 We read another Angel came and stood before the Altar having a golden Censer and many Odours were given to him that he should offer them with the prayers of all Saints upon the Golden Altar which was before the Throne and verse 4. The smoke of the Odours which came of the prayers of the Saints ascended up before God out of the Angels hand Now 1. Let it be granted that to one Angel was this given to offer Odours to come up with the praiers of all Saints How doth it follow that they are to be invocated or that he knows when any particular person praies to him or any other Saint May not he offer up his incense continually as knowing onely this that praiers are made continually 2. If one Angel do this How will it follow that all do it or that all Saints 3. If this be a created Angel is there not a fine round of Praiers 1. They are carried by an Angel or revealed by God to the Saints then he pteseuts them to the Angel the Angel to Christ and Christ to the Father 2. This Angel is said to offer Odours to come up with the praiers of all Saints which surely is to do somwhat which may make them more acceptable to God and will they say that the Virgin Mary is no Saint or that any Created Angel offers somwhat to God which makes her praier more acceptable Well but we denie it to have been a created Angel but say it was the Angel of the Covenant who by the incense of his merits and intercessions offers the praiers of all Saints to God and makes them more acceptable unto him For 't is manifest that here is reference to that which was used to be done in the Levitical administration where the Priest entering the Temple offered Incense on the Golden Altar whilest the people in the Court put up their praiers to God Luk. 1.10 Whence we may understand that phrase that the Angel offered his Odours with the prayers of the Saints Now the Levitical Priest who offered incense was a type of Christ not of the Angels and this is that which the Apostle intimates that Christ the Angel of the Covenant Typified by the Levitical Priest offers up the praiers and sighes of his members groaning under the Tyrannie of wicked men and by the incense of his merits makes them acceptable unto God The second Scripture is Apocal. 5.8 where we are told That twenty foure Elders fell down before the Lamb having every one of them Harps and Golden Vials full of Odours in their hands which are the prayers of the Saints Answ 1. Many interpret these of the Elders of the Church as Beda in verse 10. Here it is more plainly declared that the Beasts and the Elders are the Church redeemed by the blood of Christ and gathered from the Nations also he sheweth in what Heaven they are saying they shall reign upon the Earth And so Irenaeus lib. 4. cap. 33. Ambrose on the Apccalyps and Haimo 2. Vossius will tell you that here is nothing intended but Eucharistical praiers not petitory and the four and twenty Elders onely intimate that the whole Family of Christians in Earth and Heaven did render continuall Doxologies to God for the redemption of the World by his Son There is one Argument of greater moment insisted on and that is taken from the miraculous effects not onely of prayers directed to God at the monuments of the Saints but also directed to the Saints themselves Now to this I answer First By denyal that any approved testimonies can be produced of such miraculous effects wrought by any prayers immediately directed unto Saints the Instances which Mr. C. refers us to shall be answered anon Secondly I say that these pretended miracles may justly be suspected for Satanical delusions and that upon several accounts First From the silence of all undoubted Antiquity of any such Sepulchre wonders in the three first ages albeit the Christians long before had used to keep their assemblies at the Coemiteries and Monuments of their Martyrs When God had ceased to exert his power as in former times that he should thus freshly exert it upon these occasions seems incredible and that which cannot easily be admitted by considering men who are acquainted with the Artifices of the Devil Secondly from the nature of them which rendreth them very ridiculous Basilius Selutensis l. 2. c. 10. Thus of Saint Thecla we are told that they who watch the night before her festivity do at at that time yearly see her driving a fiery Chariot in the aire and removing from Seleucia unto Dalisandus a place which she did principally affect in regard of the commodity and pleasantness of the scituation that when she had demanded of Alypius the Grammarian C. 24. forsaken by the Physitians what he ailed and he had replied upon her in that of Homer 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 thou knowest why should I tell it thee that knowest all things the Martyr being delighted partly with the man and partly with the verse for you must know that after her death she was much affected with Poetry and Oratory C. 21. 24. and continually delighted with such as would be accurate in her praises conveyed a certain round stone into his mouth with the touch whereof he was presently healed Yea the same Basil tells us how having prepared an Oration for her anniversary festivity the day before it should be pronounced he was taken with such an extream pain in his ear C. 27. that the Auditory was like to be quite disappointed But that the Martyr the same night
to be done you must not be angry with Tertullian for saying you are superstitious Apolog. c. 30. Again when he had told us that Christians pray for the safety of the Emperour entreating for him quaecumque hominis Caesaris vota sunt he adds these things I may not ask from any other then from him from whom I know I shall obtain them because he it is who alone vouchsafeth them and I am his Servant unto whom it appertaineth to obtain what is requested Et ego sum famulus ejus qui eum solum observo Lib. de orat Dom. who observe or worship him alone viz. in my prayers and therefore he gave no heed to Saints and Angels in them Thirdly S. Cyprian informs us that to pray otherwise then Christ hath taught us is not only our ignorance but fault he having said you reject the command of God that you may stablish your own tradition Wherefore unless the Papists can shew us this doctrine taught by Christ we must esteem them ignorant and blame-worthy in the exercise thereof Fourthly When Celsus had said that Angels belong to God and in that respect we should pray unto them to be favourable to us 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 l. 8. Orig. Cont. Cels 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Origen answereth him away with Celsus his counsel saying that we must pray to Angels and let us not so much as afford any little audience unto it for we must pray to him alone who is God over all and we must pray to the word of God his only begotten and the first-born of all Creatures and whereas Celsus had further said that we must offer first-fruits unto Angels and prayers as long as we live that we may find them propitious unto us Answer is returned by Origen in the name of the Christians that they held it rather fit to offer first fruits unto him who said let the earth bring forth grass Gen. 1. the herb yielding seed that is to the Creator of the world and to whom we give the first fruits saith he to him also do we send our prayers having a great high Priest that is entered into the heavens Jesus the Son of God pag. 239. Again in his fifth book he lays down this conclusion All prayers and supplications and intercessions and thanksgivings are to be sent up unto God the Lord of all by the high Priest who is above all Angels being the Living word and God for to call upon Angels the like may be said of Saints departed we not comprehending the knowledge of them which is above the reach of man is not aggreeable to reason and if by supposition it were granted that the knowledge of them might be comprehended their very knowledge declaring their nature to us and the charge over which every one of them is set would not permit us to presume to pray unto any other but unto God the Lord over all who is abundantly sufficient for all by our Saviour the Son of God 5. Athanasius saith never any man prayed to receive any thing from God and the Angels or any created being l. 4. Cont. Arian the Papists say frequently Deus custodiat te Virgo Maria. neither did ever any body conceive such a form of prayer God and the Angel give thee such a thing but on the contrary he begs it from the Father and the Son by reason of their unity and uniform reason of giving 6. That of Saint Austins is very worthy to be pondered whom should I find that might reconcile me unto thee should I have gone unto the Angels he might as well have added Saints with what prayer with what Sacraments many endevouring to return unto thee and not being able to do it by themselves as I hear he then had no experience of it from the Churches practice have tryed these things and have fallen into the desire of curious visions and were accounted worthy of illusions 7. In Cap. 1. ad Rom. See an excellent place parallel to this in Arnob. adv Gentes l. 3. p. 101 102. Saint Ambrose or whoever was the Author of the commentaries upon Saint Pauls Epistles extant among his works saith those that are ashamed of their neglecting God are wont to use this miserable excuse that by those Saints or Angels we may go to God as to a King by his Officers go too saith he is there any man so mad or so unmindful of his safety as to give the kings honour to an Officer whereas if any shall be found but to treat of sucha matter they are justly condemned as guilty of high Treason and yet those men think themselves not guilty who give the honour of Gods name to a creature and leaving the Lord adore their fellow servants as though there were any thing more that could be reserved to God for therefore do men go to the King by tribunes or Officers because the King is but a man and knoweth not to whom he may commit the State of the Common wealth but to procure the favour of God from whom nothing is hid we need no spokesman but a devout mind for wheresoever such a one shall speak unto him he will Answer him So then to go to God by others is to neglect God and to adore our fellow creature it is a miserable excuse yea 't is to give the honour of God to a creature and so Idolatry a superfluous thing and consequently superstitious in those who esteem it necessary Farther Sect. 21 the Antients put God into the very definition or description of prayer and therefore cannot be thought to have esteemed it lawfull to pray to any other or to Saints whom they esteemed not to be Gods Orat. in Julit Mart. Orat. 1. de Or. thus Basil prayer is a request of some good thing which is made by pious men to God Greg. Nysen prayer is a conference with God and again it is a request of good things which is offered with supplication unto God Chrysost 2. de Orat. dom In Gen. Hom. 30 de Orat. l. 2. Prayer is a colloquy or discourse with God and again every one that prays discourseth with God and Damascene Prayer is an ascension of the mind to God as a request of things that are fit from God Again Sect. 22 they tell us that prayer is to be made to God alone and therefore not to Saints or Angels In Ps 5. ad Deum solum dirigitur Tom. 10. vide Forb confid mod p. 295. In 1 Cor. Hom. 1. thus to omit Saint Ambrose above cited Saint Basil saith Prayer is not directed to man but to God alone Saint Ephraim to the O Lord and to none besides thee do I make my prayer and further Chrysost on those words with all that call upon the name of the Lord giveth this Exposition not of this or that Creature but of the Name of the Lord. Again on these words do all in the name of the Lord
in vain that the Arrians pretend Synods for their faith when they have the divine Scripture more powerful then them all from whence the Argument is apparent that which is more powerful then all Synods for the stablishing of faith is a sufficient means of unity because the power of General Synods is supposed to be so but such is the holy Scripture according to Athanasius Ergo. Nor is there any contradiction to this in what is cited from Athanasius by Mr. C. viz. that he wonders how any one dares move a question touching matters defined by the Nicene Council since the decrees of such Councils cannot be changed without errour For what consequence is this the decrees of such Councils as the Nicene whose decrees were Orthodox and regulated by the Scripture cannot be changed without errour Ergo general Councils are infallible especially when Athanasius immediately gives this reason viz. because the faith there delivered according to the Scriptures seemed sufficient to him to overturn all impiety so then this is the reason of their immutability because their decrees were delivered according to the Scriptures 2. Sect. 13 Optatus Milev speaks thus we must seek Judges viz. in the controversies betwixt you Donatists Cont. Parmen l. 5. and us Catholicks on earth there can no judgement of this matter bee found viz. none which is infallible as appears from the words precedent no body may beleive you nor any body us for we are all contentious men and again by fiding the truth is hindred we must seek a Judge from heaven but wherefore should we knock at Heaven when we have it here in the Gospel in which place he evidently concludes that no convention of men are to bee beleived for their own Authority nemo vobis Donatistis nemo nobis Catholicis credat 2. That there could be no infallible Judge of that controversie upon earth both which are sufficiently repugnant to this pretended infallibility 3. Sect. 14 Vincentius Lirinensis in his discourse upon this Question Adv. Her c. 1. how a Christian may bee able surely to discern the Catholick truth from Heretical falsity adviseth us to this end to fortifie our Faith 1. By the authority of Gods Law 2. By the Tradition of the Catholick Church Hujusmodi semper responsum ab omnibus fere retuli this way saith he I was directed to by almost all the Learned men I enquired of So that this opinion here delivered was not his private one but it was the common way by which the Fathers of his age discerned truth from errour and here let it be considered 1. That by the Tradition of the Catholick Church hee doth not understand the definition of any General Council but partly the universal consent of the members of the then present Church partly the constant and perpetual profession and doctrine of the Antient Church Cap. 3. as his own words do evince unto us for he tells us that is properly Catholick Quod ubique quod semper quod ab omnibus creditum est which is believed every where at all times and by all men this saith he we must be careful to hold as we shall he if we follow universality antiquity and consent What ever exceptions are made by the Papists to this evidence De formali objecto fidei p. 210 c. are taken off by the Learned Baron 2. Let it here bee noted that Vincentius doth not so much as once in all his Book direct us to the determinations much less to the infallible determination of the Pope Roman Church or a General Council as the way to discern truth from Heresie and yet his silence in these particulars could not easily be imagined in a treatise written purposely on that subject and wherein he undertaketh to give us full and certain directions to avoid Heresie if the Church had then been of the Romanists opinion St. Austin's testimony is as clear for thus he speaks Ep. 19. ad Hieron I have learned to give only to those writings which are now called Canonical this reverence and honour as that I dare say that none of them erred in writing but others I so read that how holy and learned so ever they be I do not therefore think it true because they so judge it but because they perswade me either by those Canonical books or by probable reason that they say true If therefore this honour of being free from errour in their writing is only to bee ascribed to the Canonical Books of Scripture then must the decretal Epistles of Popes the decrees of General Councils be excluded from it according to St. Austin as being writers which are not Canonical For the particle solas excepts all that are not so yea hee doth not only compare all other writers with Scripture in this contest but their writings also as in this same Epistle Only to the holy Scriptures Ep. 112. do I owe this ingenuous servitude so to follow them alone as not to doubt that the writers of them erred in any thing And again If any thing be affirmed by the clear Authority of the holy Scriptures it is undoubtedly to bee beleived but as for other witnesses or testimonies whereby we are perswaded to beleive any thing Tibi credere vel non credere liceat wee are free to beleive them or not But undeniable is that of his third Book against Maximinus neither ought I as fore-judging to bring forth the Nicene Council nor thou the Council of Ariminum I am not bound by the Authority of this nor thou of that let matter contend with matter cause with cause reason with reason by the authorities of the Scriptures which are witnesses not proper to either of us but common to both Here wee are told that St. Austin speaks not his own minde but the minde of the Hereticks he hath to deal with an answer haply borrowed from Zabarel or some other Commentator upon Aristotle who when they are not able to avoid his sentences any other way tell us that he speaks ex mente aliorum Philosophorum but the truth is otherwise as appeareth from the 18. and 19. chap. of his Book de unitate Ecclesiae where the like passage may be found and the Question being there stated which is the true Church hee desires the Donatists to demonstrate their Church not in the speeches and rumours of the Africans not in the Councils of their Bishops c. but in the Canonical-Authorities of the sacred Books and c. 19. gives this reason of his demand because saith he neither do we say that they ought to beleive us to bee in the Church of Christ because that Church which we hold is commended by Optatus Ambrose or innumerable other Bishops of our Communion or because it is predicated by the Councils of our Colledges c. and then speaking of the holy Scriptures he saith These are the documents of our cause these are it's foundations these are it's upholders as
an Argument from the Anathemaes annexed to the decrees of Councils which have been sufficiently refuted already and therefore I pass to the second part of my Proposition to shew that these Doctrines c. were not received by us in the time of Pope Gregory or esteemed matters of Faith For 1. Sect. 11 Wee have already evinced the contrary of the Popes supremacy and proved that in two Brittish Councils it was Synodically rejected and it is confirmed by Bishop Bramhal in his tract of Schism and his Reply to the Bishop of Calcedon and by Ephraim Pagit in his Christianography beyond all possibility of contradiction 2. The denial of the infallibility of the Church of Rome appears sufficiently from that stiff opposition which was made by the Brittish Picts and Irish against the Church of Rome touching the Celibration of Easter of which the Reverend Primate enlargeth in his religion of the ancient Irish Bishop Usher from p. 92. to p. 116. and their aversness from communion with those of the Roman party which he relateth p. 108 109 110. where among other things you have these verses made by one of the chief of their wise men Woe bee to him that doth not keep From Romish Wolves his sheep with staff and weapon strong 3. As for Purgatory and Prayers for the Dead let it bee observed that the Prayers and oblations mentioned are expresly noted to have been made for such whose souls were supposed at the same instant to rest in bliss See Bishop Usher p. 27 28. And again in his answer to the Jesuit p. 189. Bed l. 3. Hist Eccl. c. 2. hee gives these instances The Brothren of the Church of Hexham in the anniversary commemoration of the Oâ—its of Oswald King of Northumberland used to keep their vigils for the health of his soul and having spent the night in praising God with Psalms to offer for him in the morning Id. l. 4. cap. 23. the sacrifice of the sacred oblation as Beda writeth who tells us yet withall that he râ—igned with God in Heaven and by his prayers hee procured many miracles to bee wrought on Earth So likewise doth the same Bede report Bed l. 4. Hist cap. 23. that when it was discovered by two several visions that Hilda the Abbess of Streansheal or Whitby in York-shire was carried up by the Angels into Heaven they which heard thereof presently caused prayers to be said for her soul And Osbenn relateth the like of Dunstan that being at Bath and beholding in such another vision the soul of one that had been his Scholler at Glassenbury to be carried up into the Palace of Heaven hee straightway commended the same into the hands of the Divine piety Divinae pietatis and intreated the Lords of the place where he was to do so likewise 4. As touching the Sacrament of the Lords Supper the same was taught then which we teach now as you may see in the Homily of Elfrick approved by divers Bishops in their Synods and appointed to be read in the Church upon Easter-day before the receiving of the Communion This Book is subscribed by the two Arch-Bishops of Canterbury and York Hom. in Dâ—e Sancti paschat p. 17. and thirteen other Bishops and the words of it are There is great difference betwixt the body wherein Christ suffered and the body which is hallowed Howsel The body truely that Christ suffered in was born of the fleâ—sh of Mary with blood with bones with skin and with sinews in humane limbs with a reasonable soul-living And his Ghostly body which we call the Howsel is gathered of many corns without blood and bone without limb without soul And therefore there is nothing to be understood bodily but all is Ghostly to bee understood 5. From hence it follows undeniably that they rejected your proper sacrifice of the Mass 6. And for communion in one kinde it was decreed in a Synod under Cuthbert in the year 747. Can. 23. That Layicks should be admonished to communicate more often lest they should want the food and drink of salvation Pagit Christianography part 3. Our Lord saying except you eat the flesh and drink the blood of the son of Man you shall have no life in you From whence it is evident that they thought it necessary for Layicks to participate of both the Elements 7. That the Layicks were permitted yea commanded to read the Scriptures appears from what Bede reports of Bishop Aidan That all such as went in his company Lib. 3. c. 5. whither Clerks or Layicks were tyed to exercise themselves either in reading of the Scriptures or learning of Psalms That they had their service in their own tongue I have but little evidence neither have you more to the contrary Bishop Jewels reply pag. 190. But the best I yet find given of it is this that Theodore the seventh Arch-Bishop after Austin brought the Latin service into England That they rejected Image Worship is evident from this that our learned men opposed the second Nicene Council's determination concerning Images and when the acts of that Council were sent into Brittain by Charls King of France Alcuine wrote an Epistle against it substantially grounded upon the authority of the holy Scripture which Epistle with the said Book with our Kings and Princes hands was brought to the King of France See Pagit part 3. p. 41. ex Hoveden aliis That they rejected invocation of Saints Holinshed's Hist ad An. 1100. p. 27. is proved from the History of King William the second who protested openly that he believed that no Saint could profit any man in the Lords sight and therefore neither would hee nor any man See other evidences in Pagit pt 3. p. 83. that was wise as he affirmeth make intercession either to Peter or any other Saint for help Till the year 1100. it was not prohibited to the Clergy to marry saith Henry of Huntington At which time Anselm endeavoured to put the Popes Letters in execution but at last after the pressures tyranny and arts of an hundred and thirty years continuance for it began in 970 and was not finished till 1100. as Polydore Virgil computes it the Clergy were driven from their chast Wives and betook themselves to Concubines whom they changed or multiplyed without disturbance And this tyranny was exercised by Pope Calixtus the second Whereupon our Simon of Durham made these Verses not very good though very true O bone Calixte nuno omnis Clerus odit te Nam olim presbyteri solent Uxoribus uti Id praevertisti quondam cum papafuisti Which Prideaux in his History hath bettered by his translation The Clergy now the good Calixtus hate For heretofore each one might have his mate But since thou gotten hast the papal Throne They must keep Punks or learn to lig alone By which you may see that it was not Calixtus the First who lived Anno Dom. 221 that enjoyned Celibacy as our Authour
convince their private reasons the use of which we allow them but the Churches infallible Authority is none of them Now is it all one to say you must believe this because the Church which is infallible asserts it as you to us and you must do this because the Church hath enjoyned it and therefore not being unlawful ought for peace sake to be submitted to as we to them keep your weapons to your selves we can fight and conquer without them In the next place Sect. 8 when he declares that the Papists are ruled and guided by Scripture and Reason Mr. C. s 6. and the primitive Church this is but a specious pretence to varnish over their Churches usurpations when they have placed all these with their own Church upon the bench they signifie no more there then do the Russian Emperours poor Senators at the solemn audience of forreign Ambassadours that sit only to make a shew The same mockery do the Pontificians put upon Scripture and Reason c. when they give them the name and title of judges and yet deny them the office of judges and this they do when they make their own Decrees our ultimate and supream rule and guide for if Scripturr must bend to their Decrees and not their decrees to Scripture and if we must have no sense of Scripture but what they think fit then their Decrees and not Scripture must be our last rule for that is the rule to which other things are reduced if therefore from their Decrees we must receive the sense of Scripture which is Scripture it self then are they the supream standard and rule of faith and the sole judges of it As a judge if he have an unlimited power of interpreting the laws would be both judge and law too Thus when the Norman Conquerour promised the English that he would govern them by their own Laws yet if he did as some say he did take an absolute power of interpreting them and allow them to say only what he pleased could he be thought to satisfie his promise might not all exclaim that his own will and tyranny and not the laws ruled them because he ruled them after the same manner as he would if there had been no such laws and so the laws were made useless as if they had never been laws Thus the Romanists may tell us that they acknowledge Scripture to be in part our rule yet if their Church must have an unlimited power to interpret it and put what sense upon it they please and that we must upon peril of Damnation receive their sense howsoever it seem to us absurd and contradictory to the Scripture it self they need no more to shut out Scripture and to make themselves both sole Lords and rules of our faith it s nothing for them to comply with Scripture when they have forced that to comply with them After the same manner Councils and Fathers and all their venerable Antiquity which they pretend so much to reverence must truckle to their present Church for they will allow us to receive them no further then they agree with their own Decrees seeing we must fetch the sense of their writings from their Decrees so that Scriptures Fathers Councils and all must bend to their wills and can give no other judgement then the Church of Rome will permit if we must as they contend that we ought receive their judgement from the judgement of the Church of Rome T is a pretty device first to rule the rule and then to be ruled by it When therefore they talke of other guides and rules beside their own pride and tyranny their hypocrisie is so transparent through all its disguises that we cannot but discern it unless we were as blind as they would have us and lastly as for our private reasons Mr. C. will call them guides too strange he dare trust himself with a guide so fallacious but to avoid the danger of that it must with humility follow the Church a strange guide that must be tamely guided and led in a string by another if the Church can command our reasons then must they necessarily cease to be guides and blindly follow her whithersoever she leads I wish they would make their Church but such a guide and then we should soon agree in this point If then to exclude reason from guiding us be to become beasts as Mr. C. teacheth us in the fifth Paragraph of this Chapter then what must all Romanists be for nothing is more plain then that what is wholly guided by another is not it self a guide otherwise every thing that is guided might be called a guide therefore if your reasons must follow the guidance of your Church they cannot be your guides and then in your own opinions what difference between a Catholik and his Asse Now at length having made my way through this black Regiment of falsehoods Sect. 9 I may combate his great arguments so carefully guarded with so long a train of fictions for his Churches infallibility and our meek submission to it but before I cope with them singly it s not impertinent to undermine an Hypothesis on which they seem partly to stand which stratagem might do me some service did I want it that is if his arguments were as strong as they are weak and that is this He through the whole Chapter slily supposes and sometimes asserts a necessity of an infallible judge as if without such a one the way to salvation were uncertain and controversies endless 1. But he should first prove that God hath appointed an infallible judge and therefore its necessary there should be one and not conclude that he hath appointed one because he conceives a necessity of it I could name an hundred priviledges that Mr. C. could conceive to be highly beneficial to the Church which yet God never granted to it and if we may deduce infallibility from the necessity or conveniency of it to secure us in our way to Heaven and decide our controversies then why may we not conclude that some body else beside your Pope and Council is infallible Is it not more conducive to these ends that every Bishop should be infallible more still that every Preacher and more yet that every individual Christian would not these infallibly secure them from all danger of erring Might not God send some infallible interpreter from heaven to expound all obscure and doubtful places of Scripture might not the Apostles have left us such a Commentary might not God if he had pleased have spoken so perspicuously in Scripture that there should be no need of an infallible interpreter to make it plainer but if from the advantage and use of these dispensations we should infer their actual existence the conclusion would confute the Premises 2. The plea for an infallible guide to secure us from wandring out of the way to heaven is invalidated by the plainness and easiness of the way which we cannot miss unless we will so that he
into Hell with the damned but receive them into glory which prayers the Church of Rome at this day makes for all the faithfull Now after these testimonies produced Sect. 15 our * Pag. 120. Authour returns to his Dilemma before sufficiently confuted If these Souls were believ'd to be in Heaven would it not be ridiculous and must then Liturgies and Fathers cited by us be ridiculous which pray for pardon of sins refreshment light and peace and a place in the bosome of Abraham for those whom you acknowledge to have been already at rest in the enjoyment of God in Abrahams bosome If in Hell would it not be impious Oh impious St. Chrysostome St. Augustine * Origen Greg. Nyssen Jerome and perhaps Epiphanius to offer the dreadful sacrifice to make supplications to be at charge in alms for the obtaining them repose c. but if they be neither in Heaven nor Hell where are they then Answ In sinu Abrahae or at rest in some state of pleasure and free from all punishment as you are told by Irenaeus Tertullian Origen Pseudo-Justin Lactantius Victor Dilly de Satisfact l. 5. c. 3 4 5 6. Hilary Ambrose Prudentius Chrysostome Jerome Augustine expecting the enjoyment of the Kingdom of Heaven at the Resurrection And thus having gone over our Adversaries testimonies in Defence of Pugatory we shall now add ex abundanti a few Arguments against it And first if there be no such punishments as the Papists do imagine suffer'd by the faithfull after this Life then are not their Souls in Purgatory but there is no such punishment of the faithful after this Life And first were there any such punishments of the faithful after this Life how wonderful is it that no Consolations should be given in against them There is not any evil that can befall us here but the Scripture hath afforded us some Consolation against it But though the punishments in Purgatory be more grievous by their own confession then any we can suffer here yet have we not one word of Consolation against them Secondly Abraham tells Dives that he had receiv'd his good things in this Life and Lazarus his evil and now he is comforted and thou tormented what is this comfort but his being carried into Abrahams bosome When was he carried thither when he dyed verse 22. The beggar died and was carried not into Purgatory but into Abrahams bosome The rich man dyed also and was buried I suppose none will deny that the rich man was buried presently after his death and then why should they deny that Lazarus was carried into Abrahams bosome soon after his death And if Abrahams bosome were Purgatory I cannot say he had cold but I 'me sure he had but small comfort of being there But be it so that he was not in Abrahams bosome yet he had receiv'd his evil things in this Life saith Father Abraham which with what truth could he have so said had he been to receive so great and so long punishments when his life was ended Now seeing this beggar had no prae-eminence over other beggars that are supposed to live piously as this Lazarus did or above other of the Saints of God if he escaped Purgatory and was immediately receiv'd into Abrahams bosome why may not they Thirdly The evils which the faithful suffer they suffer in the time of their peregrination and absence from their Fathers house but that is terminated and defined by our being in the body thus Peter Ep. 1. c. 1. vers 17. calls it the time of our sojourning 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the time of our being from home the time of our being in this world saith Estius And again 2 Cor. 5.6 Dum sumus in corpore peregrinamur à Deo And when we are absent from the body we are present with the Lord therefore we are not absent from the Lord when we are in Purgatory we are absent from the Lord Ergo when we are absent from the body we are not in Purgatory A second Argument shall be this They that go to Abrahams bosome Paradise or an house not made with hands eternal in the Heavens do not go to Purgatory at the same time but the faithful presently after death go to the fore-mentioned places or some of them Because they go to them when their earthly Tabernacle is dissolved 2 Cor. 5.1 We know that if our earthly tabernacle were dissolved we have a building not made with hands eternal in the Heavens Now this implies that as soon as we are dispossess'd of one of these houses we go to the other or else the comfort would be but cold and the oration not worthy of God but delusory For put the Case I should tell my friend I see thy house is going to ruine But care not for it I have a better for you to betake your self to when that fails If he should come to me a while after for this house and I tell him true I have an house for him but he must be content to lie first ten or twenty years in the street and after that he shall go into it would not my friend think I had dealt very deceitfully with him having given him ground to hope that presently after the fall of his house he should have another So God here tells us well Christians if your house once fall your body be dissolved be not troubled you shall have an house in heaven when their body is dissolv'd they come expecting an house in heaven pleading his promise should God say true you shall have an house in Heaven but you must burn In purgatory first for a 100. yeers or two would he not seem to mock us 2. The house is said to be had when our earthly body is dissolved now this is either because we are then presently to enjoy it then down falls purgatory or else because after a hundred years in purgatory we shall enjoy it If so why may we not be said to have it before this house is dissolv'd seeing by our good works Martyrdom indulgence procured we may make our purgatory the shorter while we live here Bellarmine Answers true we shall go to heaven presently but only we that are cloathed that is endued with excellent vertues and merits and have perfected our repentance But the rest that are naked shall be saved so as by fire But 1. The Apostle saith they alone shall have the heavenly house who are cloath'd that being the condition yea this is the condition of their groaning to be dissolved which saith he we would not do were we to be found naked and yet they that were in this tabernacle did groan therefore none of them would be found naked 2. Those that go to Heaven are cloathed upon But those that go naked to purgatory cannot be so For seeing to be cloathed is to be adorn'd with more eminent degrees of virtue and they themselves acknowledge that in purgatory there is no place for the encrease of virtue
infer'd that after the solemnity ended He drank no more of the fruit of the Vine which advantageth him nothing And yet 3. If neither of these two answers could stand yet seeing we have made it probable if not necessary that these words should be understood of the Eucharisticall Cup His argument falls to the ground irrevocably Sect. 17 For a close I will mind him of what Jansenius has long ago told him that this Argument is frivolous and unconcluding Hence it appears In locum saith he How infirm that Argument is which some of our men suppose efficacious to prove Transubstantiation from this that Christ said non bibam de genimine vitis inferring that what he drank of was not so c. For saith he should we grant which yet is less probable that this was said by S. Luke before the Consecration yet by Saint Matth. and Mark it seems clearly to be spoken after so that our arguing from uncertainties which with greater probabilities may be rejected then alledged will never be sufficient to establish any Dogma or opinion but rather give occasion to Heretick's to be more pertinacious in their Errours when they see such weak arguments brought against them Thus I have vindicated the Doctours Arguments Sect. 18 I will but adde one more Mich. le Faucheur de la eene de Signeur though I can tell him where to meet with an hundred and that is this That which the Apostle six or seven times in one or two Chapters calls Bread is bread but the Eucharist after consecration is so call'd by the Apostle 2 Cor. 10.16 17. chap. 11. vers 26.27 28. The minor is evident to any that hath eyes and will believe them The major I prove thus 1 If that which is once call'd the body of Christ be sufficiently argued to be so albeit it hath all the accidents of another thing and seems to all our senses to be so then that which is called Bread seven times and seems to all our senses so to be is sufficiently proved to be so but the first is true For the Council of Trent thence proves the Body of Christ to be Corporally in the Sacrament If it doth it efficaciously then it must be so If not then 't is not an infallible interpreter of Scripture nor is their argument thence concluding Now that this was said but once by Christ albeit repeated by three Evangelists and one apostle is clear This sequel is also evident For there is greater reason for the one then the other viz. That what is seven times called bread by the Spirit of God should be so when all our senses testifie it then that which was but once call'd the body of Christ should be so in Contradiction to all the senses of the Universe To cite all the Fathers that here speak for us would be an endless work Sect. 19 he that would see some hundreds of evident citations to this purpose let him consult Bishop Vshers Answer to the Jesuits challenge Bishop Morton Bishop Taylor and Doctor Featly on this very Subject Books very obvious but especially the two voluminous confuters of Cardinal Perron Mich. Le Faueheur and Bernardus Albertinus to whom I refer the Reader for abundant satisfaction and shall content my self with one only passage of Theodoret who in his second Dial. brings in a man contending that Christs humane nature was swallowed up of the Divine which he illustrates thus As the Elements or Symbols of the Lords body before the invocation of the Priest are one thing but after Invocation are changed and made another so the Lords body after his Ascension is changed into a Divine substance to which he answereth You are caught in your own net for the Symbols do not go out of their proper nature but remain 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the former substance wherein they were And thus I have finish'd the first part of the Chapter concerning Transubstantiation Sect. 20 I come now to return an answer to what he hath pleaded for the Adoration of the Sacrament And first the place which he cites out of St. Chrysostome will not conclude his purpose For albeit he saith 1 Cor. 10. Ho. 24. let us imitate the barbarous Magi yet does he not say as our Authors parenthesis would have him that we should imitate them in worshipping our Lord but onely tells us that they address'd themselves unto him 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 with a great deal of fear or horrour Let us therefore stir up our selves saith he 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and shew 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 far greater fear then they For this Exposition of the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 the comparison requires And that this word ordinarily bears the sence if any would farther be inform'd let him have recourse to Beza or any other Commentator upon the 5. Heb. 7 and he may receive satisfaction from them Secondly Did Chrysostome indeed speak of Adoration yet might he bid us imitate these Magi not by adoring the Elements but him that is represented by them Hom. 8 q. in Matth. Thus when elsewhere he sayes that it is Christ who begs and receives in the poor mans sheaf and bids us reverence him I suppose he would not have the reverence done to the poor man but directed to our Lord and Saviour The other three Citations tell us onely this Sect. 21 that they did adore Christs flesh in the Sacrament Mr. Cr. p. 131. and what is that to the purpose for it is very well known that the Greek 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and the Latine Adoro are used by the Fathers for any kind of reverence as when it is said by Tertullian Adoro Scripturae plenitudinem and by the Council of Carthage apud Cyprianum Adorabilia Scripturae verba 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Isid Pelusiot Lib. 1. Ep. 136. But to come to particulars Sect. 22 that place of Saint Ambrose doth not necessarily refer to the Sacrament De Sp. l. 3. c. 1. Answ But were it to be understood of the Eucharist he saith no more then this That in these mysteries we worship Christ and consequently the flesh of Christ as being not divided from him but he doth not say that in adoring the mysteries we adore Christ And as for Saint Augustine Sect. 23 he propounds the very same Objection I fear saith he to worship the Earth lest he that made Heaven and Earth should damn me for it thus fluctuating I turn to Christ and here I find how the Earth may be worshipped because flesh is of the Earth now he took flesh upon him and gave us his flesh to eat which no man eats nisi prius adoraverit but he that hath first adored viz. Christ As it follows cum adoras illum that is when you worship him to wit Christ Let not the thoughts be of the flesh No you must not worship that alone but as conjoyned with the Deity Do we eat that flesh that
pontifical which tells us Cap 2. de bened Sanct. Crucis that the Pontifex in which name other Bishops are included ante imaginem crucis genua flectit eamque devotè adorat osculatur Magist Ceremon lib. 2. de feria 6. Majoris Heb. And feriâ sextâ or on good Friday when the Pope or Priest uncovereth Gently the Cross and crys ccce signum crucis and the singers answer venite adoremus that the Pope puts off his shoes or makes as if he did so genu ter flexo adorat osculatur and then all the rabble ad infimum caudatarium omnes crucem adorant osculantur So then you have no cause I hope to quarrel with us for saying you worship images when so many of your great Doctors that knew this practice of the Church as well as your self acknowledge that as a doctrine of faith which you so warily disclaim when General Councils yea and common practice can assure us of the truth thereof You ask us further Sect. 10. p. 158. whether indeed we think that you worship false gods and true devils Ans You may be idolatrous in worshipping the true God in an image as well as the Israelites in their worshipping God in a Calf 2. That you worship false Saints and Elilim De cultu Sanct. Ibid. see abundantly evidenced in the Sedan Divines 3. You ask whether we consider our Images as they did their Idols to which by magicall conjurations they annexed an evill Spirit to do wonders and extort Divine Worship from the seduced Ans What if some of the learned among the Heathens as Athenaeus confesseth Legat. pro Christ thought that the deity or some divine vitrue accompanyed the statute after consecration would it cease to be Idolatry if the Image of Jupiter were worshipped or any other Deity without these magical Inchantments 2. What shall we think of these images which you call miraculous which you say sometimes sweat blood sometimes nod their heads or stretch forth a wooden or stony arm unto their suppliants Vid. miss Rom. sub tit de ritu Serm. where you have as bad or worse in the Dedication of the Cross the Image of Saint John and the Agnus Dei. or of the form of Consecration Viz. Sanctifie O God this form of the blessed Virgin that it may bring saving health to thy faithful people that thundrings and lightnings may be driven away the sooner that immoderate rains or floods and civil wars may at the presence of this be suppressed Pont. Rom. 3. Might not the Jews have put the same question to those that accused them of idolatry in worshipping the brazen image 4. What matter is it whether the Heathens esteemed their Deity present or absent Quis nisi totus fatuus haec Deos esse credit seeing they acknowledge most evidently that they did not worship their images but their Gods by these images as you may see in Origen Contr. Cels l. 7. p. 384. Arnob. l. 6. advers Gentes Lact. l. 2. de divin Deos per simulachra veneramur Institut c. 2. we fear not the works of mens hands viz. these Images but those we fear to whom these are consecrated August in ps 96. I do not worship that stone or that image which is without sense but I adore what I see and serve him whom I do not see 5. 'T is evident that many of the Heathens thought their Gods to dwell in heaven Act. 14. and to be absent from their Statutes Hence the Lycaonians cry out upon the miracles wrought by Paul and Barnabas the Gods are come down amongst us See Price upon the place making out this by Heathen Authours and what said the Chaldeans to Nebuchadnezzar even that their Gods dwelt not with flesh Dan. 2. vers 11. what need I cite Max. Tyr. Plut. de Isid Osyr Cicero c. for a thing so clear Lastly you tell that us sect 11 there is not in Catholick countrys a Groom or Kitchin-maid so ignorant but had rather burn an image then afford it any honour due to God only Ans True But neither would these Heathens who thought them arrant fools who esteemed images to be God 2. Nor can we reasonably think that the Israelites intended any such thing in worshipping the Calf But 3. Tom. 1. de prob sp Num. 17. Gerson will tell you that people were so infected with Superstition as to yield divine honour to Images And Cornelius Agrippa that it is not to be spoken De vanit scient de Imag. fol. 73. how great Idolatry is foster'd among rude people by Image-worship while the Priests connive at these things and make no small gain thereby Cassander Consul de Imag. it is more manifest then that it can be denyed that the worship of Images and Idols hath too much prevailed and the Superstitious humour of people hath been so cherished that nothing hath been omitted among you either of the highest adoration or vanity of Panims in worshipping and adoring Images De invent l. 6. c. 13. And Polydor Virgil that there are many rude and stupid persons that repose more trust in Images then in Christ or the Saints to whom they were dedicated Lastly Simon Majolus a great stickler for Imagery Defens Imag. Con. 9. c. 19. confesseth that some rural persons esteem Images as if they were God You tell us Sect. Sect. 12 that it would be ridiculous to pray to an Image Ans To let pass your O crux Ave what can you say to Salve Sancta facies Nostri Redemptoris In quâ nitet species divini splendoris Impressa panniculo nivei candoris Salve vultus Domini Imago beata Nos deduc ad propria O felix figura Ad videndum faciem Christi quae est pura And again Brevar Rom. Reformatum in par Hyemali ad 3. Martii in festo inventionis Sanctae crucis O crux c. quae sola fuisti digna portare mundi talentum dulce lignum dulces claves dulcia ferens pondera salva proesentem catervam in tuis hodiè laudibus congregatam Lastly all your distinctions are used with you as miracles and the gift of tongues were not for them that believe but them that believe not For strangers and them that make objections not for the obedient that worship Images and break the Commandment Well Sect. 13 but you have Arguments as well as Pretences which must not be over-look'd Mr. C. p. 156. And First You tell us that in Scripture we find Kings adored and a prostration of body paid to them yet for all this no man will suspect that any dishonour was intended to God thereby Answer True and yet you may dishonour him by giving this worship unto Images seeing he hath commanded saying Thou shalt not bow down to them nor worship them which your Gerson paraphraseth thus In comp Theol. explic praecepti primi Thou shalt not bow down to
to your precept And in the Feast of Saint Peter and Paul to Saint Peter they pray much after the same manner and yet the Scripture puts the question Who can forgive sins but God Mar. 2.7 Secondly They pray to them for Grace and Glory * Ps 56. Lady in thy name let me be safe and free me from my unrighteousness have mercy upon me and cleanse me from all mine iniquities and again * Ps 27. 50. Dissolve the Bonds of mine iniquities Take away the bundles of our sins purge my soul from its filth * Ps 3. 87. By thy Holiness are my sins purged * Ps 44. Thou art the beginning and end of my whole salvation totius salutis meae c. * Ps 41. * Ps 136. By her are sins purged by her is made true satisfaction for sins c. whereas 't is Gods propriety to be the God of all Grace Thirdly they pray for these things upon the account of the merits of the Saints Thus the Roman Breviary By the merits of Saint Franciscus April 2. Let us enjoy our promised rewards and grant that by the merits of Saint Peter and Saint Paul we may attain to eternal Glory July 6. That by the merits of Saint Nicholaus the Church may enjoy perpetual peace by the intercession of the merits of Saint Basil Sept. 10. Let us be absolved from allour sins and to the blessed Virgin Mary Jan. 14. By thee let the wrath of God be averted from me appease him by thy merits and again By the blood which Saint Thomas shed for thee Ps 72. make us to ascend that Heaven whither Thomas is ascended and this is consonant to that of Bellarmine Prec ad usum Sacrum in fest Th. Becket who tells us that it is lawful to pray unto the Saints even for salvatian and other spiritual blessings if so be we understand it thus that they should impetrate them by their merits Now if this be not derogatory to the Merits of Christ to have veram satisfactionem de'peccatis to have Grace and Glory purchased by the blood and merits of others let any unreasonable Man judge Section 4th and 5th Sect. 3 Our Authour affords us some considerations from which I suppose he would infer the lawfulness of this practise and first saith he we may beg prayers from one another as Saint Paul himself did from the Ephesians and others c. 6.19 c. 2. Thes 3.1.4 Col. 3. where he bids the Brethren pray for him Answer Very good but yet we dare not beg from these our Brethren Grace Glory pardon of sins nor say with the Roman Breviary to the Virgin Mary We flye unto thee O Virgin Mary for thy defence and for as much as being conscious of our great offences we fear the wrath of a severe Judge whom we dare not see We flye unto thee his Mother that thou wouldst intercede for us unto God excuse our sins and obtaining for its the Grace of thy Omnipotent Son procure us the pardon of what ever we have committed Secondly He tells us such begging of prayers is far from Idolatry or diminution to Christ since holy persons living or dead are not invocated as donors but fellow beggars with God for us Answer Why then doth your Breviary talk so often of procuring Grace and Glory and the pardon of sins by the merits of the Saints Why do you tell us that by the Holiness of the Virgin Mary are your sins purged That she is the beginning and end of your salvation that she hath made true satisfaction for us are these things no diminution to Christs merits and satisfaction to procure mercy for us upon these scores is this to procure it as fellow bâ—eggars Thirdly say you the refusing of the assistance of those whose prayers God more willingly hears is a neglect of using all means helpful to us Answer True but if the neglect of this Invocation of Saints be the neglect of any means thus helpful then were the Apostles negligent in giving us no intimation of our duty in this particular Yea the Saints of God for some thousand of yeares under the Old Testament and the Primitive Church for 300 years must be accused of this negligence for of their practise in this case nullibi vola nec vestigium Scripture and Histories afford us no one Tittle but pregnant Evidence to the contrary But you proceed Mr. C. S. 5. If the praiers to Sts. departed be prejudicial to the merits intercessions of our Lord Sect. 4 so is the beging of the prayers of those alive if one be unlawful so is the other and if both be lawful the prayers of Saints departed will be incomparably more effectual and therefore will better deserve to be made use of then the other Answer Is it not then a wonder that Saint Paul if he may be permitted to have known as much as Mr. C. should thrice call upon his Brethren alive for their supplications and yet not put up one Petition to a Saint or Angel Secondly We know it is the duty of living Saints to pray for one another but whether the Saints departed pray at all whether for any in particular and how far we know not We know a certain way to excite the Saints on earth to the performance of that Duty in reference to us but we are ignorant of any way of conveighing our desires to the Saints in Heaven We have Rule President and Command in Scripture for the first not one jot of all these in reference to the second the Requests we make to the living are no elicite Acts of Religion the requests made by the Romanist to the Saints departed are We pray to the living neither directly nor indirectly but desire them only by vertue of our Communion with them to assist us in their prayers as we might ask an Alms or any other good turn at their hands the Saints departed are by you directly invocated and in your devotions you immediately step from God and Christ unto a Saint We do not plead the merits of our Brethren nor bid them do so in our behalf you do both in reference to the Saints departed we do not kneel to our Brethren or ly prostrate before them on these accounts we do not invoke them in our Churches insert them into our Liturgies believe them to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 any way or that we are committed to their care or custody all this you do believe in inreference to the Saints departed Is not this therefore a very good Argument if the prayers made to Saints departed by the Romanists wherein they beg of them Grace and Glory and all spiritual good things trust in their Patronage plead for audience on the account of their merits be prejudicial to the merits of satisfaction and intercession of our Saviour or otherwise unlawful then must the asking of my brothers prayers in spight of all these differences be
so Again Mr. C. informs us Sect. 5 that the most learned and sober of our party question not whether the Saints pray for us in general Answer But let me tell him that it is generally questioned by our French Divines Chamier solves all their Arguments with the greatest perspicuity except that single one which is taken from the advancement of their Charity whence you infer that they should be more respectful of our welfare then they were on Earth where they did afford us the benefit of their Prayers but this Argument albeit the most plausible is yet unconsequent for whilest they were here on Earth they haply procured good men to exhort their Relations unto Piety if Ministers spent themselves in preaching and the like but in Heaven they send no Angels that I ever heard of on such errands nor have we any Preachers from the dead Whilest they were here they were sollicitous touching the welfare of their absent friends but do they now think you ask their Guardian Angel how 't is with them Secondly Notwithstanding they have their Charity augmented yet will it not follow that they must pray for their friends below much less for others seeing haply the very knowledge of their friends may be hid from them and were it otherwise it may seem to be grievous to them to consider in what state many of their Relations have been left add to this that they have no certainty that they do not dy the next moment after them Yea lastly how can any man assure me that the Saints in Heaven pray at all Secondly P. 182. S. 6. You tell us these Learned sober men will not deny that they may and do pray personally for their former known acquaintance as Saint Austin believed his Mother did for him Answer This I have already obviated and albeit some who are not willing to think contrary to what some Fathers do allow of may grant it to you yet seeing you can produce neither Scripture for it nor the universal consent of Fathers To. 2. S. 8. And seeing your Arguments are so clearly answered by Chamier we take the liberty to deny or at least to question it Once more Ibid. Yov tell us they will grant that albeit they be in Heaven they may either by Gods Relation or the Revelation of Angels be informed of the Prayers made to them by any others on Earth Answer That this is not impossible at least for God to do we willingly acknowledge but I very much doubt whether any Protestants allow that they actually do so or that it is probable they should be thus acquainted with our desires or if any doe they are never the more Learned for it Secondly 'T is not perhaps impossible there may be men in the Moon and they good Christians and that if a Papist should pray unto them God or his Angels might reveal it And yet I suppose should they upon this account become Petitioners unto them they would be thought little better then Lunaticks yea the same may be said of the Saints in Purgatory which you affirm of the Saints in Heaven and why then do you not pray unto them Will you refuse the assistance of those who are perfected in Charity and other Graces and consequently whose Prayers God hears more willingly then your own will not their prayers be more effectual for sure in Purgatory they will be servent or will they refuse to do us the kindness who do the like for them sure one good turn deserves another and if they will be so surly to us we with the leave of his Holiness will be so to them But to proceed Mr. C. P. 183. will tell us that albeit this rests upon so many uncertainties yet is not that sufficient to hinder them from acknowledging that the practice of invocating Saints by name is very beneficial to them and that on these accounts 1. P. Id. ibid. Because the Angels are continually present with us on the Earth and that it is by them we are defended from the Devils malice who having such a wonderful strength exceeding ours would otherwise destroy us all in our sins nor can it be said that God hinders him seeing he doth not ordinarily interpose his power immediately in Natural Actions Answer This then is the best figment they can Imagine and yet it is most strangely ridiculous to any considering man for was it not the protection of God which kept Satan from Job so that he could do nothing without his Commission and when he had given him Commission could not go beyond it and may he not as easily do the same to others Again secondly the Scripture tells us the Angels are Mistring spirits sent forth for the good of those onely that believe and why doth not the Devil post the wicked down into Hell presently seeing they have no such good Angel to relieve them 3. Will Mr. Crossie say that all the Cattle the sheep and Camels and Oxen yea the Asses of Job had their Guardian Angels if so we will allow our Authour one if not then let him tell us why Satan complain'd he could not come at them Again Have the Tombes of the Martyrs the holy reliques and Images of their Saints every one an Angel to keep them if not why doth not Satan break them or conveigh them away Unless perhaps he approves of your Idolatry and how are ye sure that your Reliques are not changed by him Once more and I have done Have all the Houses in London all the Papists Houses in Rome as many Angels as will guard them keep the Devil from setting fire on them If so the blessed Angels are well employed if not why doth not that Gand Enemy of Mankinde set fire on them every Night Again when on the Lords Day all the Angels of so many Millions of souls come to Saint Peter to tell him such a one in treats his Prayers for such a thing who guards the persons committed to their charge the while or if these Angels be bound to stay here who carries up the prayers to Saint Peter Again seeing so many prayers are put up to the Virgin Mary Surely she must do nothing else but pray there being not one moment when some or other do not pray to her and then what time will she have to hear these nimble TÃ bellarii telling her of New suitors must they interrupt her in her Prayers Again These Saints must not only be told when such a one prayes but whether Hypocritically or no and so I suppose that question must be asked of the Nuncio's Now here is work enough for Saint Mary to receive so many Messengers every day and to enquire whether her suppliants pray in sincerity or not But haply it may be said if any one pray Hypocritically the Guardian Angel will not present that Prayer Answer Very good but seeing the Angel Guardian knows not the heart How will he be able to judge of this Once more when all
the Saints in Heaven are prayed to at once as it is in many Collects and peculiarly on all Saints Dayes surely that day is not an holy day to the Guardian Angel who must be fain to trot to all the Saints in Heaven and acquaint them that Serenus Cressie being very sick and weak desires their prayers But when they pray to all Angels then the poor Angel must not travel over all the Heavens onely but the Earth to boot But we will not deal too severely with him let him proceed and thus he doth it History tells us that Magiclans have alwaies the Devil ready to come at their call why then should not Angels be witnesses of our Actions P. 184. and especially our prayers which as the Scrripture saith they offer as Incense to God Now to I eave the Scripture till anon Here we have more work for the Angel for seeing 't is an Angel Apoc. 8.3 that offers up the prayers and incense of all Saints the Guardian Angel must make a journey to him to unless you will have him to be Christ which will do our Author but little service 2. History likewise will tell us that Magicians and Witches can swim over the Sea in a shell can creep through a key-hole Can dip their finger in a little juice and flie away out of the Chimnie he may believe one as soonas the other Lastly the number of Magitians I hope is few in comparison of other men and so there is some difference as to that for one Devil may better afford to be nigh them especially seeing his service is so much promoted thereby As to that dispute of Saint Austine which concludes the Section I say 1. That he was very uncertain in it and one while denies and again suspects that such a thing might be 2. He saith only possit fieri it may be done this way And again 3. Vt quaedam cognoscant that they may know something and how little service this will do him every one may see P. 184. S. 8. 2. He further tells us We are ignorant how great the sphere of Activitie of the glorified Saints may be in respect of this whole visible world perhaps saith he in the words of Spalatensis the whole sensible world may be no more to one of them then its proper body to an humane soul informing it Answ And are not these men think you put to their shifts who are fain to coin such inventions to salve their Hypothesis But tell me is it probable they inform the whole world so as to be present each of them in every part of the world Or Secondly to operate in each part of the world albeit not present there If the first then will they be little short of omnipresent nor will it be proper to God to fill Heaven and Earth and they being in Hell as well as Heaven and also in Purgatorie How do they escape the fire How â—re the Angels said to ascend to Heaven and descend from it Is it 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 only How are the souls of the Fathers delivered from their limbus said to depart thence and to be with Christ to be absent from the body and present with the Lord was Lazarus's soul carried to Heaven and afterwards extended Again to what end is this extension seeing they may be happie without it and why should we imagine it seeing here 't is certain they are not extended beyond their bodies If the second let them tell me how or by what Operation a soul that is in Heaven can tell that such a one who praies in his mind only is praying to him And suppose two were praying together and the one prayed to Peter and the other to Paul by what operation can these spirits discern that the one prayed to him and not the other I suppose a Praier to Saint Paul makes a different motion in their Orb of Aether but then how doth St Paul know who it is that praies to him Perhaps different men make different motions but Saint Paul never knew them and how shall he be informed Why the Guardian Angel must go up and tell him 't is S. C. that makes such a motion and haply he will remember it But how will he know when he prayes Hypocritically why truly when an Hypocrite praies it makes a different motion from a sincere one in the spirits Orb of Air. This Platonical stuff is all that I can imgine to salve the Hypotheses Si quid novisti rectius istis candidus imperti Lastly be it that their presence or operations were so vast yet could they not judge of the heart seeing to be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is proper to God and consequently must be as zealous for an Hypocrite as a devout Christian Thirdly Sect. 9 we cannot tell saies he what things God may reveal to them Answ Nor he whether he reveals any thing to them at all and therefore in these things he doth most evidently 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 2. What a ridiculous thing is this to suppose such a Circle that when a man hath made a praier that praier should come to God and be revealed by him to a Saint and that Saint bring it to God again 3. Why must he be thought to reveal this to the Spirits in Heaven and not to the Souls in Purgatorie or if equally why are not they also praied to 4. But it is evident from Scripture that God doth not make any revelations of this kind for 't is said Eccles 9.5 The Dead know nothing that is done in this world neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the Sun And again Abraham is ignorant of us Esay 93.16 5. Bellar. himself confutes this Evasion by 2 Arguments 1. If it were so the Church would not say so boldly to all Saints Orate pro nobis but sometimes would prayto God to reveal our desires to them 2. No good reason can be given why Saints under the Old Testament should not be invoked for God might have revealed their Petitions to them though in Limbo Patrum and sure their praiers might have been as beneficial as the praiers of such as were alive 6. Why upon the same presumption should we not pray to the Saints living for albeit their praiers be not quite so effectual as the praiers of Saints departed yet they are effectual and consequently to neglect this will be to neglect one means conducing to our welfare I say upon the same presumption for this reason why God must be supposed to reveal our Praiers can be no other then our good and would not the reason move him to reveal them to Saints on Earth as well as those in Heaven Mr. Cr. p. 185. Oh but saith our adversarie If God said to Abraham a Pilgrim on Earth shall I hide from Abraham the thing that I do how much more may we imagine tha he hideth not the mightie works of his mercie
appeared to him and shaking him by the ear took all the pain away He addeth further C. 16. that when he begun to be weary of writing this same Book she sits her down close by him smiles whilest she reads it shews her self wonderfully pleased with it and that it behoved him to finish it The like miracles we have related by Severus of one Martinus a Monk De vita B. Mart. S. 24. Ibid. S. 17. who could see the Devil though he remained in his own substance fright him with the sign of the Cross continually who putting his hand into the mouth of a Demoniack forced the Devil out at his posteriors Yea which is most wonderful of all that could by the smell of the body Hieron in Hilarione or the clothes know what Daemon tyrannized in such a body These were the miracles that helped forward the worshipping of Saints and the monkish superstitions Thirdly Because the old Daemons worship prevailed upon the world by the same means Thus Tertullian Apol. c. 51. Search therefore the Deity of Christ whether it be true or not if it be that by the knowledge whereof a man shall be reformed to good it follows then that the false be renounced especially that whole mysterie of Daemon-worship being discovered which under the names and images of the dead through Signes Miracles and Oracles obtaineth a Divinity And Chrysostome they the Gentile Daemons oftentimes by their skill cured diseases Orat. in Judaizantes and restored to health those that were sick what should we partake therefore with them in their iniquity God forbid De Praep. Evan. l. 5. c. 2. And the like we have from Eusebius who informes us that the wicked Daemons counterfeited by working many miracles the Souls of them that were deceased and thence they were thought worthy to be celebrated with greater service But Thirdly we Answer Mr. Stillingfleet p. 351. That after the true Doctrine is confirmed by divine miracles God may give the Devil power to work if not real miracles yet such as men cannot judge by the things themselves whether they be so or no and this for tryal whether we will forsake the true doctrine confirmed by greater miracles for the sake of such doctrines as are contrary there to and are confirmed by false Prophets by signes and wonders Now in this case our rule of tryal must not so much be the miracles considered in themselves whether real or no as the comparing them with the miracles wrought in confirmation of that doctrine which is contrary to this which these words tend to the proving of Therefore Gods people under the Law were to examine the drift and scope of the miracles and if they were intended to bring them to Idolatry what ever they were they are forbid to hearken to them as you may see most evidently Deut. 13.1 2 3. So now under the Gospel the worship of the true God through Jesus Christ and by the doctrine revealed by him is the standard whereby we ought to judge of all pretenders unto miracles so that let the miracles be what they will if they contradict that doctrine which Christ revealed to the world we are to look upon them as onely tryals of our faith in Christ to see whether we love him with our whole hearts or no and accordingly we look upon these miracles as tryals whether we will forsake the Head Christ Jesus give this worship of the Creator to the creature and the like and are sufficiently warded against the force of this assault 2 Thes 2.9 by being told that Antichrist must be ushered in with signes and lying wonders Fourthly We add that these miracles might have been done by God himself and that at these Martyrs Tombs but onely to confirm the faith they suffer'd for Now as for the testimony of Antiquity in this point Sect. 12 First Many of the places produced by him speak nothing of the Invocation of the Saints departed nor do they infer any thing but what we generally confess thus that of Saint Hillary tells us Ps 129. That our infirmity needs the intercession of Angels Answer Be it so we add that our infirmity needs the intercession of good men on earth yet we are not able to see this consequence that they must or may be invocated or prayed unto Again doth the Council of Chalcedon say let Flavian pray for us Act. 11. we say so too let all the Saints and Angels in Heaven all the men on earth pray for us we are willing to have the benefit of their intercessions or prayers for us Albeit to speak the truth this sentence looks quite anothery way the business was this there was a long contention betwixt Bassianuus and Stephanus for the Bishopprick of Ephesus Bassianus albeit not rightly ordained kept it for the space of four years and with him communicated Flavianus this was urged in the Synod by the favourers of Bassianus as an acknowledgment made by Flavian that Bassianus was lawful Bishop This Argument they thus enforce if you will not hearken to our reasons let Flavianus the Martyr entreat this of you he though dead judgeth the cause to Bassianus then after Cecropius had spoken in his behalf the Bishops and Clergy of Constantinople stand up and cry this is the truth viz. Flavianus was a favourer of Bassianus c. Flavian lives after death that is his judgement and his memory as afterward Flavian is here that is we have here his judgement for Bassianus let the Martyr entreat for us that is in this cause of Bassianus let him entreat the Council for us Haec vera genuina verborum mens est cui nisi pertinax aut imperitus refragari nemo potest saith our Crackanthorp Nor do we scruple to say with Austine Def. Eec Ang. c. 59. let Cyprian yea let Mr. C. help us as with his prayers onely let him remember that this is not vox invocantis sed optantis an indication of our willingnesse Sect. 13 not our petitions that it should be so Orat. in 40. Mart. Mr. C. p. 190. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 let it here be noted that Mr. C. could scarce be ignorant of his forgery it being charged upon them by the Bishop of Ely and Forbs in those very Books which are cited by him in this Chapter Saint Basil is suborned to say whosoever is in any pressure let him fly to the assistance of these Martyrs and again whosoever is in a state of joy let him pray to them the former that he may be delivered from misery the later that he may be preserved in prosperity Answer Here we have a double corrupting of the Text an Artifice which our Author notwithstanding his solemn protestation to the contrary doth every where use Saint Basil saith 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 he doth fly to them Mr. C. let him fly Saint Basil he doth run to them that is to their monuments Mr. C. let him pray
the Priest as by the people as well at Mass as at Mattins as well at the Altar as in the body of the Church Indeed you tell us it might have been lawful if the Church had so ordered it But do you think S. Austin would have said so too is it not his business to distinguish betwixt the honour which was given to the Martyrs by the Christians and by the Gentiles to the Daemons and having said that they erect no Altars to them as the heathens did for sacrifice but sacrificed to God alone he adds that at this sacrifice the Martyrs were not invocated as the Gentile Daemons were but only nominated now what is it to his purpose to tell us they are not invocated at the Altar if they were invocated elsewhere well then your last refuge is the invocation of Latria which Saint Austin must be thought to speak of C. 21. because he tells us in his twentieth Book against Faustus Manichaeus that they do not worship the Saints with Latria Ans But who told you that invocation of them was not esteemed Latria by him why else doth he say that the Saints were not worshipped sicut dii as the Heathen Gods and then after this non invocantur Secondly Doth he not say non invocantur sed nominantur now I hope your invocation is not nomination and therefore 't is somewhat above it and consequently somewhat comprehended in that which he opposeth to it so likewise in the place you cite he tells us they afforded that cultum dilectionis and such as was given to holy men that were now alive yea saith he we sound forth their praises but we do not worship them with Latria where albeit Faustus there objected that they worshipped them votis similibus with such prayers or vows as the heathens worshipped their Idols with yet could he not get Saint Austin to acknowledge they prayed unto them at all but having told us that they praised them there he stops and riseth no higher albeit the objection and the business in hand which was to shew what honour the Saints did receive from them and what they thought not fit to yield unto them did require it Thus have we returned an Answer to our Authours pleas from Scripture and Antiquity our next work should be to confront to them those many arguments by which our Champions do confute this superstition and plead the cause of Christ against them but I shall wave it at present and content my self with evidencing the judgement and practice of Antiquity to run contrary to them And 1. Sect. 19 It is a strong presumption that this Invocation of Saints is not so pious so profitable as the Trent Council doth imagine in that we find neither precept nor example of all the Fathers of the Old Testament whereby this kind of service to them may be warranted To this the usual Answer of the Papist is Vid. Bellar. praefat in controvers de Eccles triumph ante that the spirits of the Patriarchs and Prophets and other Worthies who flourished under the Old Testament were kept in limbus patrum a place nigh to hell appointed for these Fathers to be retained in till the descent of our Blessed Saviour thither But this Answer is evidently grounded upon a false foundation it being clear from Scripture that they were not included in such a place but did enjoy the Kingdome of Heaven Luk. 13 28. For Abrahams bosom is clearly propounded as the place into which the Blessed Angels before the death of Christ convey'd the souls of those which departed in the favour of God Luke 16. and that this bosome is virtually and in terms equivalent Cap. 8. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Shall ly down promised to those which afterwards should believe is sufficiently evinced from that place of Saint Matthew many shall come from the East and West and shall sit down with Abraham Isaac and Jacob in the Kingdom of heaven for the joys of heaven are likened to a feast in which according to the custom then in use they lay down with the head of one towards the breast of another who is therefore said to lie in his bosom and therefore when 't is said of the faithful that believed after Christs death 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 they shall lie down at this feast with Abraham 't is as much as if he had said 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Euthymius paraphraseth it that is they shall lie down in the bosom of Abraham adde to this that when God translated Enoch and Elias was carried up in a Chariot to heaven they could not be conveyed to this limbus patrum a place so nigh to the receptacle of the damned spirits yea 't is not likely they were conveyed to a place where they had no vision of God and yet there is no reason to think Abraham David Daniel and other of the Prophets should be in a worse place or condition then Enoch or Elias seeing they had as large a testimony of their pleasing God as they We go farther yet and urge against them Sect. 20 that in the New Testament it self we can descry no footsteps of this Invocation more then we did in the Scriptures of the Old Saint Paul doth frequently sollicite his brethren to pray for him and for the furtherance of the Gospel P. 1. but not one petition can we find directed to an Angel or Saint departed here presently they flie to their traditions but in vain for if any such tradition as this were at first delivered we demand how it should come pass that for the space of 360 years together after the birth of our Saviour we can find no mention in the Fathers of any such thing but on the contrary when urged by heathens that it was their duty to pray to Saints and Angels they stoutly denied it and cried away with such evil counsel Irenaeus in his first book speaks of Hereticks that had strange phansies concerning Angels attributing much unto them in relation to which he denies that the Church did any thing l. 2. c. 57. viz. in reference to miraculous cures by invocation of Angels or by incantations but purely and manifestly directing prayers to the Lord which made all and invocating the name of our Lord Jesus Christ now whereas Fevardentius tells us that he speaks of the invocation of evil spirits we ask him why then is it that no limitation is given but all Angellical invocation absolutely denied why is it that he binds up the prayers of the Church to God the Father through the name of his Son Lib. de Orat. cap. 12. Tertullian saith we deservedly upbraid those prayers with vanity which are made without the Authority of any precept of our Lord or his Apostles for such are rather to be esteemed superstitious then Religious shew us then a precept of our Lord or his Apostles and we will cease to impeach your practice as superstitious vanity but seeing that is impossible
him that not the asserting of these opinions but the imposing of them on us as conditions of our communion with them the obtruding them into their Liturgies and publick offices are the causes of our refusing Communion with them and therefore that Mr. C. would he draw the Parallel must evidence that this was done by the universal Church in the daies of St. Gregory Nor 4. That it is not evident that there was such an Harmony betwixt the Eastern and Western Churches but rather the contrary as touching the Celibacy of Priests the power of the Pope c. I say to omit all these and many other things my last Proposition shall be this That neither St. Sect. 10 Gregory taught all these Doctrines nor yet were they embraced by our Church at that time 9 Proposition For to begin with St. Gregory 1. I have sufficiently evinced already that hee denied the Popes Supremacy 2. As for the infallibility of the Roman Church had hee known this to have been the opinion of those daies is it not a wonder that he should never plead it against his opponents and Adversaries 3. Touching transubstantiation Communion in one kinde the Sacrifice of the Mass what can you produce out of Gregory for them And 1. Mr. C. p. 137. As for Communion in one kinde you acknowledge that it was not practised for a thousand years and upward and where doth St. Gregory tell us that it may bee practised otherwise we have shewed you above that Pope Leo and Gelasius thought it no better then Sacriledge to Rob the People of the Cup and therefore if you affirm Gregory to have held the contrary as it is gratis dictum so will it be but an evidence of his departing from what was formerly maintained by his own Church 2. Where doth he say that Christ is corporeally in the Sacrament and that the substance of bread and wine remains not Nay Sacrificium quod passionem filii semper imitatur Dial. l. 4. c. 58. Non inordinate agimus si ex libris licet non Canonicis sed tamen ad edificationem Ecclesiae editis testimonia proferamus Moral l. 19. c. 16. Graeg in Ezek. l. 1. Hom. 9. that it then obtained not in the Church of God nor was esteemed as an Article of their faith is fully evidenc'd by Bishop Usher in his book de Christ Eccles success l. 1. c. 2. And for the sacrifice of the Mass he tells us that Christ is Mystically there offered and that this is such a sacrifice which is an imitation of Christs passion Against your new Canon of Scripture which the Dr. quarreld with he is most evident in his Morals where hee saith citing the 6 of Maccabees that it was not Canonical Against your Traditions necessary to supply the defect of Scripture hee tells us whatsoever serveth for edification and instruction is contained in the Volume of the Scripture And again Hereticks do usually for the confirmation of their perverse opinions suggest such proofs which are not found in Scripture and what I pray you are your Traditions yea all the doctrines you contend for in this Book And whereas you Sacrilegiously Rob the People of the use of Scripture he on the contrary assures us Graeg l. Epist 40. ad Theod. Med. that it is an Epistle sent from God to his Creature that is to Priest and People And if thou receive a Letter saith hee from an Earthly King thou wilt never sleep nor rest till thou understandest it The King of Heaven and God of men and Angels hath sent his Letters to thee for the good of thy soul and yet thou neglectest the reading of them Therefore I pray thee study them and dayly meditate on the Word of thy Creatour and learn the minde of God in the words of God You tell us that the worship of images must be observed Graeg l. 9. Ep 9. Adorare imagines omnibus modis devita and acknowledged by all means he contrariwise that by all means it must be avoided And again in the same place 't is unlawful to worship any thing that is made with hands because it is written thou shalt worship the Lord thy God and him only shalt thou serve and again in his Epistle to Serenus Bishop of Massilia I commend you that you had that Zeal that nothing made with hands should be worshiped but yet you should not have broken them c. but let them bee proserved and forbid the people the worshiping of them that the ignorant may have whence to gather the knowledge of the history and yet not sin in worshiping the Picture You assert a Purgatory after this life he is thought to contradict it by John Pank who p. 20. proves the contrary 1. Moral l. 8. c. 8. From his Morals where he saith whom mercy now delivereth not him justice after the world alone imprisoneth To which purpose is that of Salomon That in whatsoever place the tree falleth whether toward the South or towards the North there it shall be because at the time of a mans death either the good spirit or the evil spirit shall receive the soul going from the body he shall hold it with him for ever without any charge that neither being exalted it can come down to punishment nor being drowned in eternal punishments can thenceforth rise to any remedy of Salvation If then after death there bee no deliverance there be no change but as the Angel either good or bad receiveth the soul out of the body so it continueth for ever either exalted in joy or drowned in punishment then there can be no Purgatory then there can be nothing but Heaven or Hell where they that come shall abide for ever And in another place It is undecent to give our selves to long affliction for them whom wee are to beleive have come by death to true life This therefore seeing wee know we are to have a care not to be afflicted for the dead but to bestow our affliction on the living to whom our piety or devotion may bee profitable and our love yeild fruit Here is no place for Purgatory seeing he teacheth us to beleive that the faithful in death do attain to true life and that their passage from this world is to a better Neither doth hee acknowledge any use of Prayers Masses Trentals or any other offices or obsequies for the Dead who saith that our devotion and love yeildeth no fruit or profit to them Lastly as for Marriage of Priests I do not deny but that at first Pope Gregory did command them to live single but when hee understood that they were given secretly to fleshly pleasure and that hereupon many Children were Murthered many infants heads found in a Fish-pond hee disanulled that commandment p. 288. Vid. Sup. chap. 17 sect ult Now against this evidence we have nothing but the confession of an Osiander an Hâ—mphry and a Carrion whose citation by the way is altogether impertinent with