In the act of iustification wee say that workes haue no roome because both they are imperfect and also are not done by our own strength but being once iustified we must needs repent and become new creatures walking not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit And this is the doctrine of our Church concerning Iustification 16. Now let vs heare what they say and then weigh both doctrines in the ballance of the sanctuary that wee may see which of them bringeth most glory to the merits of CHRIST and to the power of his satisfaction I will plainely and sincerely God willing set downe the summe of their doctrine First therefore they teach that there is a double iustification the first whereby a man ex iniusto fit iustus of an vniust and wicked man is made iust and good and of a sinner is made righteous the second wherby a man being iust is made more iust and doth encrease in iustice and sanctity according to that Reuel 22. 11. He that is iust let him be more iust Concerning the first iustification some of them affirme that it is the free gift of God and deserued by no precedent workes others that it is merited by congruity but not by condignity but of the second they say that it is gotten and merited by our workes But before both these they make certaine preparations and dispositions whereby a man by the power of his owne free-will stirred vp by grace doth make himselfe fit for iustification namely by the acts of faith feare hope loue repentance and the purpose of a new life all which a man must haue before hee receiue the first grace of iustification and for the obtaining whereof he needs not any grace internally infused but onely offered externally Whereupon they are bold to affirme that the act of Iustification doth emane and proceed Simul ab arbitrio à Deo Both from free-will and from God Now the causes of iustification the Councill of Trent maketh to be these the finall cause Gods glory and mans saluation the efficient Gods mercy the meritorious cause Christs merits the instrumentall the Sacrament of Baptisme but the formall cause which is the chiefest and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Dat esse rei giueth being to the thing as the Logicians speake they make to be an inherent righteousnes wrought in vs and inspired into vs by the Spirit of God And this in briefe is the doctrine of the Church of Rome touching the iustification of a sinner 17. Wherein let vs obserue three maine and fundamentall differences betwixt their doctrine and ours in all which they raze the foundation and dedignifie the merits of Christ and the mercy of God to extoll the dignitie of man The first in their preparations wee hold that a man cannot any wayes dispose himselfe vnto grace but is wholly fitted and prepared by God and that those acts of preparation as they call them are not fore-runners of iustification but rather fruites and effects thereof they teach the contrary as I haue shewed The second difference is that the workes of a man iustified do not merit increase of grace which they terme the second iustification but as the beginning of grace is from gods mercy alone so the increase and augmentation thereof and perseuerance therein is onely to be ascribed to the worke of Gods spirit according to that of Saint Paul Phil. 1. 6. He that hath begunne this good worke in you will performe it vntill the day of Iesus Christ this we hold they the contrary The third difference is in the formall cause of our iustification which they maintaine to be an inherent righteousnes within vs euen the righteousnes of Sanctification We on the other side affirme that the formall cause of our iustification is the righteousnes of Christ Iesus not dwelling in vs nor proceeding from vs but imputed vnto vs by the mercy of God 18. Hauing thus layd open both our doctrines let vs examine and trye which of them giueth most glory vnto God and most exalts the merites of Christ for that must needs be the truth and which lifteth vp highest the proud nature of man for that must needs be falshood and errour especially seeing that Gods dignity and the dignity of man Christs merits and mans are as it were two skales of a ballance whâ—reof the one rising the other falls the one lifted vp the other is pressed downe First therefore touching the workes of preparation whether doe they more magnifie Gods mercie that say a man cannot prepare and dispose himselfe at all to grace but is wholly disposed and prepared by God or they that affirme that a man can prepare himselfe by his owne endeuour assisted outwardly with the grace of God the one makes Gods mercy the sole cause of iustification the other but the adiâ—vant and helping cause And whether doe they aduance most the dignity of man that say that a man can do nothing of himselfe for his owne iustification or they that say that a man can doe something to the preparation of himselfe to that great worke the one attributeth some dignity to man the other none at all we affirme the one part the Romanists the contrary and therefore our doctrine tends more to the debasing of mans worth and consequently to the exalting of Gods glory then theirs doth 19. True it is like Ferrimen that looke East and go West they with their great Grand-father Pelagius talke of grace when they meane nothing but nature and so deny indeede that which they affirme in word if the matter bee examined according to truth For Pelagius confessed a necessity of grace in all spirituall actions and yet was condemned for an enemy to grace by the Church of God because hee vnderstood not by grace the sanctifying worke of Gods spirit but an outward moouing and perswading power assisting mans free-will to the effecting of his owne saluation The very same is the doctrine of the Romanists as hath beene declared and therefore wee may iustly condemne them as enemies to the grace of God whatsoeuer they bragge and vaunt to the contrary 20. Secondly touching the second iustification which standeth as they say in the augmentation and encrease of our iustice let the most partiall Reader iudge whether tends most to the magnifying of Gods glory their doctrine which teacheth that wee merite the encrease of our iustice by our owne workes or ours which teacheth that both the seed and the growth both the roote and the fruite both the beginning and encrease of all righteousnesse is the worke of Gods spirit alone preuenting assisting and vpholding vs to the end and that these seuerall workes of grace are bestowed vpon vs not for any merites of our owne but simply and entirely for the merits of Christ Iesus I but they will say works doe not merit iustification because they are ours but because they are works of grace which grace floweth from the fountaine of
dead and therefore lesse glory ascendeth vnto God by their doctrine then by ours But what doe I say lesse when indeed to giue any part of the Creators glory to the creature is vtterly to take all from the Creator for hee will haue all or none as Tertullian notably obserueth when he saith That true faith requireth this in defending the true God that whatsoeuer is his we make it onely his for so shall it bee accounted his if it bee accounted onely his by which rule the faith of the Romane Church cannot bee the true faith 12. And againe according to the second ground if to giue all the glory to God and none to our selues sauour of humility but to deuide stakes betwixt God and our selues hath a taste of pride then it must needs follow that God is more honoured by the one then by the other because by humility God is honoured and by pride dishonoured and therefore the Apostle saith that hee resisteth the proud and giueth grace to the humble for what cause but because the proud man seeketh his owne glory whereas the humble deuesteth himselfe of all and layeth it downe at the foote of God the proud man reioyceth in himselfe but the humble reioyceth in the Lord alone according as it is written Let him that reioyceth reioyce in the Lord. Now the Romanists that magnifie free-will haue iust cause their doctrine being presupposed to be true to reioyce in themselues which is an argument of pride for whereas our Sauiour saith Without me ye can doe nothing they may say Yes something for wee can either admit or reiect thy grace by our owne power and whereas the Apostle saith Who hath separated thee what hast thou which thou hast not receiued they may say I haue separated my selfe in doing that which I was able and so made my selfe fit for grace and this power I haue not receiued from Gods speciall fauour but from my owne free will All which kinde of speeches as they are full of pride and fleshly vanity so they are stuffed with impiety and blasphemie and manifestly tend to the dispoyling of the diuine Maiestie of that glory which is onely due vnto him And therefore I conclude with two notable sayings one of S. Augustines and another of Cassander a learned Reconciliater of late time Tutiores viuimus saith the Father si totum Deo damus c. that is We liue more safely if we attribute all wholy to God and not commit our selues partly to God and partly to our selues And this is the part of a godly minded man saith the Reconciliater to attribute nothing to themselues but all to Gods grace whence it followeth that how much so euer a man giueth to grace yet in so doing hee departeth not from pietie though hee detract something from nature and freewill but when any thing is taken from Gods grace and giuen to nature which belongeth to grace that cannot be without eminent danger So that by the confession both of this learned Romanist and also of that reuerend Father our doctrine in the poynt of free-will is both more agreeable to piety and respectiue to Gods glory then theirs is and therefore in reason to be preferred before it 13. The next doctrine whereby the glorie of God is darkened and the dignitie of Christs merites blemished is their doctrine of IustificatioÌ„ which I ioyne next vnto Free-wil because their sophistry cunning in this great maine pillar of Religion cannot well be discerned they so palliate the matter with faire glosses goodly words except their opinion touching the power of Free-will be first apprehended And here before I enter into the bowels of this poynt it is to be obserued that most of them vaunt and bragge that they doe much more magnifie Christs merites by their doctrine of Iustification then we doe which how true it is the discourse following I hope shall so manifest that euery indifferent man shall be able to say truely of them as Saint Augustine said of the Donatists These are the words of men extolling the glory of man vnder the name of Christ to the abasing of the glory of Christ himselfe 14. The doctrine therfore of our Church touching the iustification of a sinner is in effect thus much That a sinner is iustified that is accepted into the fauour and loue of God not by any thing in himselfe or from himselfe but by the perfect and vnspotted righteousnes of Christ Iesus imputed vnto him by the meere mercy of God through the couenant of grace and apprehended on his behalfe by the hand of faith The reason whereof is because that which must satisfie Gods iustice and reconcile a sinner vnto him must haue these two properties first it must be of infinite weight and value to counterpoyse with the rigour of Gods iustice and secondly it must be of sufficient ability to performefull and perfect obedience to the law of God so that a perfect satisfaction bee made both in respect of the obedience which the law requireth and also of the punishment that it inflicteth Now no righteousnesse of man is thus qualified but is both imperfect and vnsufficient no not the righteousnes of Angels themselues being though excellent yet â—â—finite Creatures sauing the righteousnes of Christ Iesus onely who is both God and Man and therefore his righteousnes onely and none other is that whereby a sinner must be iustified before God 15. From this it appeareth that when we say that a man is iustified by faith our meaning is not that faith is the cause of our iustification but onely the instrument and hand to apprehend that righteousnes of Christ whereby we are iustified when we say faith alone iust fieth we meane that it alone is the instrument of our iustification because it alone layeth hold vpon the righteousnes of Christ and applyeth it to our selues not that it is euer alone but alwaies accompanyed with charity and patience and zeale and temperance and other fruites of the spirit for we hold that the true iustifying faith is euer mâ—â—re grauida bonoruÌ„ operuÌ„ as one of their own fauourites affirmeth that is full of good workes and euer anon ready to bring them forth as occasion serueth Neither doe we deny as some of them falsly slander vs though many of their chiefest Writers gaine-say their fellowes and affoord vs that fauour to speake the truth of vs but that euery one that is iustified must also be truely sanctified and that saluation is not obtained by iustification alone but by sanctification also yet wee make sanctification and good workes not to be the causes but the effects nor the roote but the fruit nor the anticedents but the necessary consequents and attendants of our Iustification And as Bellarmine truely distinguisheth to be necessary Necessitate praesentiae non efficientiae by a necessity of presence not of efficacie as if they wrought our saluation In a word
A RETRACTIVE FROM THE ROMISH RELIGION Contayning THIRTEENE FORCIBLE MOTIVES disswading from communion with the CHVRCH of ROME Wherein is demonstratiuely proued that the now Romish Religion so farre forth as it is Romish is not the true CATHOLIKE Religion of CHRIST but the seduction of ANTICHRIST By THO. BEARD Doctor in Diuinity and Preacher of Gods holy Word in the Towne of HVNTINGTON 2. Thess 2. 10. Because they receiued not the loue of the truth that they might be saued therefore God shall send them strong delusion to beleeue lies LONDON Printed by WILLIAM STANSBY and are to be sold by Henrie Fetherstone 1616. TO THE TRVELY VERTVOVS AND WORTHY KNIGHT SIR OLIVER CROMWEL T. B. wisheth encrease of grace and all happinesse SIR THERE bee many particular respects that mooue me to be bold to set your name in the frontispice of this work As first your sincere loue to true Religion and the Professors thereof Secondly your true detestation of the Romish Synagogue and the malignant influences of those wandring Planets that infect the aire of our Church and seeke by mining poysoning and other deuillish practices to turne our Jerusalem into Babel Thirdly for that your selfe with your religious Lady worthy children and brethren and great family haue beene a long time the principall auditors of my vnworthy ministery wherein many of these points haue been deliuered vpon occasion that you may see them here more fully discoursed and so be the better confirmed in the truth And lastly the particular obligations of loue and duty wherwith I am bound vnto you for many extraordinary fauours and kindnesses receiued These be the motiues that haue moued mee to select your selfe principally aboue all others to dedicate these motiues vnto For the which I desire no more patronage and protection then the truth of the seuerall points contayned therein doe deserue Let them stand vpon their owne legs or fall and perish I know they shall encounter with many bitter oppositions and sharpe aduersaries who will be ready to sift euery sentence and to find a knot in a bull-rush but my shelter is the buckler of truth and the brazen wal of a good conscience with which being armed I hope through Gods aide that I shall be as willing and able to entertayne the re-encounter if any assault be made as I was willing to giue this on-set I confesse that these are not the tithe of the arguments that might be produced against the Romish religion yet I doubt not but that euen these few may serue both to discouer the falshood thereof and to confirme and strengthen those that stagger and are weake in the truth the Lord accompanying these endeuours of his seruant with his blessing as I hope and pray that he would be pleased to do These motiues such as they are I willingly desire may be graced by your name hoping that your name shal no way be disgraced by them accept them therefore as tokens of my sincere loue to your selfe and zeale to the truth for which I desire no other requitall but an augmentation of your zeale to the same truth and a greater detestation of that Religion which already you abhor The Lord of his mercy encrease in you more and more all spirituall graces for your soules health and multiply his blessings temporall vpon your head and crowne you with glory and immortality eternall in the life to come Your worships most affectionate and deuoted THO. BEARD REVERENDIS DILECTISQVE IN CHRISTO FRATRIBVS Pijs ET FIDELIBVS Euangelij Ministris per omnem Britanniam constitutis gratia pax à DEO PATRE DOMINO nostro IESV CHRISTO NOn estis nescij fratres 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in Christo quanta nos Euangelij Ministros tùm verborum maledicentia tùm animorum odio insectentur Cleri Pontificij cohors colluuies vniuersa Sua in nos omnis generâ—â— tela quidem venenata confertim conijciunt famam nostram canino dente studio allatrant atque admordent quin ipsas adeo gulas nostras quidem eas nobis incisuri appâ—tunt si illorum in nos maleuolentiae par ad facinus potest as responderet nomen ipsum ministri perinde atque veteribus Iudaeis Samaritae illis itae putet foetet vt sine nausea indignatione illud ne nominare quidem possunt Huiuscemodi conuitijs contumelijs libricorum passim plaerique omnes referti onustique sunt Cuius si intestini inexplebilis odij rationes libeat perquirere quinque istas quas ordine percensebo praecâ—teris insigniores ex ijs principem hanc reperietis Quod Clerus hic Pontificius Monachorum cum primis fraterculorum locustae illae sunt in Apocalypsi commemoratae quae caudis similiter vt scorpiâ— cuâ—pidatis de infernalis putei fumo prodeuntes terminitam quinque mensium spatio homines excruciandi potestatem accepere Quâ— ex re fit vt vbi possunt quidem valent ibi ferro flammaque in nos grassentur vbi autem hoc illis non licet linguas calamos exacuant atque distringant consimili planè atque ille â—ngenio praediti de quo est apud Poetam Et si non aliquà nocuisset mortuus esset Haereticorum enim vt est scriptum ab Hieronymo hoc semper cacoâ—thes fuit vt conuicti de perfidia ad maledicta se conferant Sequitur hanc causam isthaec altera Quod luci cum tenebris nulla societas nullum commercium intercedat Ac nos quidem lucis Ministri sumus qui adomnes quibus non sponte oculi caecutiunt Euangelij claritatem quaqua versum diffundimus Illi contratenebrarum satellites sunt qui dum scripturarum lectione plarosque arcent prohibent dum fidem quam vocant implicitam nos Carbonariam tanquam apprimè salutarem maximeque necessariam praedicant commendant densissimis sane crassissimisque tenebris hominum animâ—â— circumfundunt Istis porro causis annumeranda est haec tertia quod nullum tam capitale odium solet esse atque quod religionis causa suscipitur tum nos religionis illiâ—â— praecones sumâ—â— quae illorum superstitioni vsque adeo aduersa est nulla vt ratione conuenire nalla conciliari arte inter sepossunt Ex quo id existit quod nec Turcas quidem Iudâ—â—s nec ipsos adeo Ethnicos quamuis Christiani nominis hostes infestissimos pariter vt Protestantes Euangelij Ministros detestentur Cuires indicio est illa quam Hispanicam appellant inquisitio testis etiam locuples Româ— ipsa in qua sub ipsius sane ore Pontificis Turcis Iudaeis tuta consuetudo atque periculo omni libera immunis negotiatio est siquem autem nostrae religionis vel leuissimè suspectum esse contingat â—um vel aperta vi vel occultis insiaijs ad internecionem vsque persequuntur Quid autem causae est quaeso quod tanta in nos solos immanitate furoreque
to some puritie doth approoue and confirme all these grosse opinions of the Schoole Diuines for thus it decreeth that it is good and profitable humbly to inuocate the Saints and to fly to their prayers and succour for the obtayning of blessing from God in Christ And that wee may see the meaning of this Decree the Romane Catechisme which was made by the commaundement of the Bishop of Rome doth more expressely affirme that the Saints are therefore to be called vpon because they pray continually for the saluation of men and God bestoweth many benefits vpon vs for their merit and grace sake and that they obtaine pardon for our sinnes and reconcile vs into the fauour of God And for the refining Iesuites they haue not yet refined this errour for Coster writeth that the Saints are to be inuocated both that they may mediate our cause to God and also that themselues may helpe vs. Viega another Iesuite saith that they are as it were the dores by which an entrance is opened to vs vnto the most holy places in heauen Osorius another of the same stampe affirmeth that God giueth vs all good things by the intercession of the Saints And lastly to make vp the messe Bellarmine himselfe that is more wary then all the rest doth not blush to say that Gods predestination is helped supported by the prayers of the Saints because God hath determined to vse their prayers for the effecting of mans saluation Behold here a Map of the Romish doctrine Who can now choose but account them Idolaters when they thus teach the people That all blessings descend vpon them by the meanes of the Saints and so encourage them to repose their confidence in their merits 69. But from their doctrine let vs come to the practice of their Church and we shall see this more cleerely and heere some few examples shall serue for a taste for to propound all in this kinde would bee both tedious and needlesse Thus therefore in their publike Seruice Bookes Rosaries and Breuiaries they pray vnto the Saints To Saint Paul Vouchsafe to bring thy humble suppliants to heauen after the end of this life to whom thou hast reuealed the light of truth To Saint Iames the greater Haile ô singular safeguard of thy pilgrims bountifully heare the prayers of thy seruants helpe them that worship thee and bring them to heauen To Saint Thomas thus Vouchsafe to establish vs thy suppliants in his faith by handling of whoÌ„ thou deseruedst to acknowledge to be God To Saint Iohn Haile ô holy Apostle of our Lord Iesus Christ I intreat thee by his loue who chose thee out of the world that thou wouldest deliuer me thy vnworthy seruant from all aduersitie and from all impediments of body and soule and receiuing my soule at the houre of death wouldest bring me to life euerlasting To Saint George thus Hee saue vs from our sinnes that wee may rest with the blessed in heauen Here Saint George is made a Sauiour and that from sinne and so either Christ is cleere put out of his office or George ioyned with him in his office Againe to Saint Erasmus Graunt that by thy merits and prayers we may ouercome all the snares of our enemies and be freed from the pouerty of body and minde and from eternall death To Saint Christopher O glorious Martyr Christopher bee mindefull of vs to God and without delay defend our body sense and honor thou that deseruedst to carry in thine armes ouer the Sea the Flower of heauen cause vs to auoid all wickednesse and to loue God with all our hearts To Saint Cosmus and Damianus O most holy Physicians who shine in heauen most cleerely by your merits preserue vs both from bodily plague and disease and also from the death of the soule that we may liue in grace vntill we enter into heauen To Francis the Fryer thus O Francis sunnes light singular crucified Saint c. beâ— thou to vs the way of life make satisfaction for vs alway shew to Christ the marks of thy wounds This Frier Francis they make equall to Christ and therefore they say that Christ imprinted his fiue wounds vpon him as if he also were to suffer for the world and redeeme mankind and that they were alike in all things as those blasphemous Verses of two shamelesse Iesuites Turselline and Bencius doe declare 70. What should I trouble thee gentle Reader with any more of this trumpery their Bookes are full of such-like prayers if any please to read them and that we may plainely see that they put their trust and confidence in them not onely the words doe sufficiently signifie but also the liberall indulgences their Popes haue annexed to the deuout sayings of such Orisons As Pope Sixtus hath promised eleuen thousand yeeres pardon to them that shall say a certaine prayer before the Image of the Virgine Mary beginning thus Aue sancta Mater Dei c. But to leaue the rest of the Saints and to come to the blessed Virgine whom with Epiphanius we blesse and honour but in â—â— casâ— worship it is a wonder into what an abominable Idoll they haue translated not her for shee abhorres their impietie but the Idea and fancy of her which they haue deuised in their owne braynes for they call her the Queene of heauen the Mother of mercy the Gate of Paradise the Life and hope of a sinner the Light of the Church the Lady of the world the Aduocatresse and Mediatrix of mankinde yea they say that the death and passion of Christ and the holy Virgine was for the redemption of mankinde and that she also must come betwixt God and vs for the remission of sinne and that her Sonne and she redeemed the world with one heart as Adam and Eue sold the world for one apple And thus they ioyne the Virgine Mary with Christ in the office of our redemption and so make her equall with him which were somewhat tolerable if they could stay there but they climbe higher in impudency and not onely match her with Christ but set her aboue him For they tell vs of a vision How Christ preparing to iudge the world there were two Ladders set that reached to heauen the one red at the top whereof Christ sate the other white at the top whereof the Virgine Mary sate and when the Friers could not get vp by the red Ladder of Christ but euermore fell downe Saint Francis called them to the white Ladder of our Lady and there they were receiued And a late Iesuite hath set forth to the view of the world certaine Verses wherein he preferres the milke of our Lady in many respects before the bloud of Christ yea they subiect Christ now raigning in the heauens to his Mothers command as it is sung in some of their Churches O happy Virgine that our sinnes dost purge Eâ—treate thy Mother and thy Sonne doe