luke-warme temper which is so 〈◊〉 to the 〈◊〉 of God that he threateneth to spew such out of his mouth Of which beware Christian Reader as thou tendereâ—t the everlasting health of thy soule If the Lord be God follow him but if Baal be he goe after him For assure thy selfe whatsoever the Romish Baal may doe God will retaine no halting followers It is not 〈◊〉 to worship God in thy heart but thou must worship him also with thy body for he who hath created both and redeemed both will be worshipped in both and served by both Say thou never didst worship Baal in thy heart yet if thy knee bowed unto him or thy mouth kissed him God will account thee for none of his servants 1 King 19.18 It is not sufficient to beleeve in Christ thou must also confesse his Name for with the heart man beleeveth unto righteousnesse and with the mouth coâ—fâ—ssiâ—n is made unto salvation It is not sufficient that the Religion we professe be true if we be not true to it neither will our faith save us if we save not it and keepe it uncorrupt What the Oratour speaketh of piety towards our parents may be more truely affirmed of piety towards God religion is wounded with a gesture a nâ—d nay a looke It was said of old saith our Saviour Thou shalt not commit adulterie but I say unto you Matth. 5 27.28 That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adulterie with her in his heart If we goe with a friend to Masse out of a lust or meere curiositie to see the Whore of Babylon in her richest dresse upon a high Festival day we have alreadie committed spirituall adultery with her in our heart And therefore Constantius the Emperour as Ambrose testifieth thought himselfe polluted if he had but seene an Altar and the noble Martyrs in the first and best ages of the Church would rather suffer the last drop of bloud in their heart to be spilâ— then cast but one graine of Franckincense to the fire in honour of the Idols And when Iulian by a slight as Sozomen writeth had drawne some Christian souldiers to doe some kinde of reverence in this kinde to his heathenish Idols he cunningly sitting by the Altar where there was an Image of his Pagan Deitie and calling them to bestow some gold upon them as soone as ever they perceived how they were circumvented they run backe againe into the place where incense was burning to the Idol and cast downe all the gold they had received before the Emperours face And Valentinian carrying the Mace before Iulian the Apostata when the heathenish Sexton cast some holy water upon him he â—eld him downe at a blow wiped off the water saying 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Theod. hist. l. 3. c. 15. In like manner when Licinius bad Auxentius cut off a branch of a Vine laden with clusteâ—s of grapes and he suspecting nothing had â—one it Licinius bad him put that branch at the feete of the Image of Bacchus but Auxentius answered God forbid O Emperour that I should doe it for I am a Christian and the Emperour replying either doe it or get thee out of my presence he presently looseneth his belt and quits his service To whom I will adde one more mentioned by Theodoret who chose rather to be most cruelly tortured then he would be brought to contribute a halfe-penny towards the repairing of an Idol temple Let us warme our zeale at the embers of these holy Martyrs and Confessours and be ever mindfull of the holy Apostles exhortation Have no fellowship at all with the workes of darkenesse Ephes. 5.11 but reprove them rather be not unequally yoaked with unbeleevers 2 Cor. 6.14 For what fellowship hath righteousnesse with unrighteousnesse or what communion hath light with darkenesse and what concord hath Christ with Belial and what agreement hath the temple of God with Idols marke the Apostles gradation first What fellowship hath righteousnesse with unrighteousnesse next What communion hath light with darknesse and laâ— What concord hath Christ with Belial no more agreement may we have who are the temples of the living God with Idols Thâ—re is great opposition betweene righteousnesse and unrighteousnesse greater betweene light and darkness greatest of all between Christ and Belial righteousnesse and unrighteousnesse the one being a vertue and the other a vice are opposed contrarily but light and darkenesse privatively which is a greater opposition but Christ and Belial contradictorily which is the greatest of all Righteousnesse and unrighteousnesse are so opposite that they cannot subsist in the same soule and light and darknesse so opposite that they cannot subsist in the same roome but Christ and Belial so opposite that they cannot subsist together in the same heaven Righteousnesse fighteth with unrighteousnesse wheresoever it meeteth with it but light doth more it presently banisheth darknesse but Christ yet more he utterly confoundeth Belial so true religion not onely fighteth with all heresie and superstition wheresoever it meeteth with it but banisheth it and in the end confoundeth it Wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate saith the Lord and touch not the uncleane thing and I will receive you 2 Cor. 6.17 Finis Deo Laus Sine Fine Encarid ad Lauren miro ineffabili modo non fit praeter Dei vâ—luntatem quod etiam contra ejus voluntatem fit â—uia nec fierâ—t nisi sineret nec uâ—ique nolens sed voleâ—s nec â—inereâ— bonâ—â— fâ—â—râ— malè nisi omnipâ—tâ—ns etiam de malo fâ—câ—re posâ—â—t bâ—nâ— See page 64. Acts 25. â—5 Ierom. â— Epig. l. 1. â—cta gravi ferro â—â—nfossaque vulneâ—â— mater Sâ—â— pariter vitam perdidit 〈◊〉 dediâ— Pluriâ—us illa mor◠〈◊〉 saâ—cia telâ—â— Omnibus ut natis â—â—iste pateret iter Plautus in Pseud. Aug. de haerasib c. 70. habent Ebar verba juxta Poeta Imurâ— perjura secretum prâ—derâ— noli lib. 1. Retract cap. 60. Priscillianista â—aresin suam non sâ—lum negando aâ—que mentiendo verum ettam pejerando existimabant â—eculendam ibid. Visum est quibusâ—aÌ„ Cathâ—licâ—s Priscillianistas se debere simulare ut â—orum latebraâ— penetrarint Ovid fast lib. 3. Coede caput dixit cui rex parebimus inquit Cadenda est hâ—rtis â—ruta cepa meiâ— Addidit hiâ— hominis sumes ait â—lle cap. 〈◊〉 pestulat hic animam cui Numâ— â—iscâ—â— ait risit his inquit facitâ— meâ— tâ—la procures â— viâ— collâ—quiâ— non â—bigâ—ndâ— Deum â—ee pag. â—3 â—eog 1 〈◊〉 6. Vulpizaâ—â— cum vulpâ—bus a Nay rather a Babylonish Marchant putting away a good conscience concerning faith making shipwrackâ— 1 Tim. 1.19 For this book with the title thereof resembleth the Apothecaries boxes quorum tituli remediae habeâ—t pyxides 〈◊〉 Lactant. divin institut l. 3. c. 14. b According to that prudence which Saint Iames brandeth with those three marks Earthly sensuall and devillish Iam. 3.15 c By Catholike he meaneth a Papist begging
their originall Fountaine sith the most of them if not all might be gathered out of more ancient Liturgies For which See Biblioth Patru to 1. And if it be so then it may be said That the mud of Popery fell into them but they sprang not from Popery but from purer fountains * It hath been I confesse a long custome in the Latine Church ever since Pope Vitalian to celebrate the Church Service in the Latine tongue but it was never the custome of the Catholique or Vniversall so to doe The Greeke and Syrian and African and other Churches had from the beginning and have at this day their Service in their own languages Neither is the reason the Priest alleadgeth here of any force namely That w as the Catholike Religion is universall so it should be exercised in an universall language which he will have to be the Latine For first there is no necessitie that the Catholike Religion which is universall should be exercised in an universall language but rather in all languages Secondly since the division of tongues at the tower of Babell there was no language universall in all the world the Greeke was for a time the furthest spread and after the Romane but neither of them nor any other was spoken or understood by all Christians and at this day if we may beleeve travellers no language is so generally knowne and spoken as the Slavonian Thirdly the unity of language maketh nothing to the unitie of Religion or the Church neither doth the Apostle require that the Divine Service be performed in any one tongue but that it be done in a knowne tongue to the edification of the Church 1 Cor. 14.4.12.14.16 And to that end among others was the gift of tongues given x See page 28. Letterr. y See the lettero. pag. 17. z See the letter R pag. 28. a This definition of an heretique is both defective redundant defective for every obstinate deniall of an article of faith makes not an heretique unlesse his conscience be clearely convinced of his errour out of the word of God it is redundant also for a man may be an heretique by denying any article of faith though that article be not proposed to him by the Catholike Church to be beleeved though but his pastour or any other religious Christian out of Gods word clearely propound it to him and prove it or it be read by himselfe in the Scripture if he obstinately persist in the denyall thereof after his conscience is convinced he becomes an heretique b The Protestants of England know other Churches besides their own and some have learnedly discoursed of all the Churches in the Christian world as Purchas Brierwood Mocket Mr. Paget and others 〈◊〉 true it is they acknowledge no infallibilitie in the Roman or any particular Church nor receive any Church for true and Orthodoxe which consenteth not with them in all points of faith either expresly set downe or by cleare and necessarie consequence deduced from holy Scriptures c The Protestants hold nothing contrary to the Catholique Church though they hold many things contrary to the present Romane Church which is neither the Catholike Church nor a sound member thereof as is proved invincibly by Iohn Reynolds praefat thesium Sect. 12. Thes. ss 27. Apol. 5.23 And Bilsons answer to Cardinall Allen part 4. And Abbot against Bishop in a Treatise intituled The true ancient Romane Catholike to which none answer hath yet beene given nor sufficient can be d With what face can he say that the Protestants are incredulous and beleeve not the truth Who entirely beleeve the whole doctrine of the Scriptures together with the three Creeds that which beares the name of the Apostles the Nicene and that of Athanasius together with the foure first generall Councels in which time the Church most flourished as also the joynt Doctrine and unanimous consent of all the Fathers both of the Greeke and Latine Church for five hundred yeeres after Christ our Lord came into the flesh Let this traducer of the reformed Churches answer punctually whether he beleeveth that the learned Doctors Confessours and Martyrs who lived and died within the first 500. yeeres held the entire Catholique faith necessary to salvation or no If they held it not how were they saved upon what good ground or warrant are so many of them canonized for Saints even by the Roman Church but on the other side if they beleeved all things necessary to salvation how can we be esteemed incredulous or defective in our faith who beleeveth all that can be proved to have beene joyntly beleeved and unanimously professed by them e Is this the holy Romane Religion to make a May-game of Religion and to goe to Sermons as to a play to make themselves merry and dispell a Melancholly dumpe Besides their owne third commandement enjoynes them to keepe Holy-dayes and their owne Casuists allow the Lords day to be a day that is holy And is this a piece of holynesse to goe on such dayes to a play yet neither doe I beleeve that he can readily name the man much lesse many men that spake fustian with gravity in our Pulpits but I am sure he who patched up this Safeguard out of rags of Religion and falshood speaks Linsewoolsey through his whole Discourse and contrary to the law ploweth with an Oxe and an Asse The later of which here brayeth irrationally and unjustly against the generalitie of Protestant Preachers and Sermons Forsooth we are silly weake and ignorant men but they are all profound Gamaliels nay Angelicall and Seraphicall Doctors Whereunto I answer as Saint Paul did to the calumnies of the false Apostles 2 Cor. 10.12 We dare not make our selves of the number to compare our selves with them that commend themselves but they measuring themselves by themselves and comparing themselves amongst themselves understand not The Catholiques he saith are Hounds â—lood Hounds I grant and our Ministers timorous Hares they dare not encounter the weakest Romane Catholique they neither understand the controversies of Religion nor dare meddle with any in their Sermons If this were true which all our hearers know to be most false yet me thinks Iuvâ—nal speaks very good reason Loripedem rectus derideat Aethiopem albus And what great Clarks I pray were those of whom Boniface Bishop of 〈◊〉 â—pâ—ke in his time heretofore we had woodden Chalices and golden Priests â—ut now we have golden Chalices and woodden Priests what great Gamaliels were they of whom Bonaventure complaines Quidam sacerdotum â—lavem habent he speaketh of the Key of knowledge quidam claviculam quidam nullam what was he upon whom Sir Thomas Moore thus playes in his â—pigrâ—m tu bene cavisti ne te ulla occidere possit litera nam nulla est lâ—tera nota tibi Be not frighted at the words of the Apostle the letter killeth thou hast taken good order that it shall not kill thee for thou knowest not a lettâ—â— What was he
the common charges and charitie of the rich By which the charitie and unitie of all sorts were much preserved for which cause the said feasts were called Charities of the ancient Fathers and of Saint Paul vers 20. they were called Coenae dominicae our Lords Suppers because they were made in the Churches which then were called Dominicae that is our Lords houses in which feasts because there hapned some foule abuses which the Apostle rebuking vers 22. Why have ye not houses to eate and drinke in or contemne ye the house of our Lord c. they were taken away See Con. Gang. 11. Con. 3. Laod. can 27.28 Apollorum can 39. Clemens Alex. Sâ— Iust. Sâ— August contra Faustum lib. 20. cap. 20. St. Chrysost. hom 27. in 1 St. Ambrose upon this same place by which it appeares no new thing for Catholiques to take some thing with a good intention besides what was instituted by Christ. Here some may aske whether it belongs to me out of my authoritie to institute or renew this pious ceremony in taking bread and wine in remembrance of the death of Christ generally for the prudent Catholiques of England I answer no. God forbid that I should presume to institute or renew any ceremonie in the Catholique Church but I doe onely in compassion of their miseries present to their necessitie if any be in danger of death losse of fortunes or ruine of posteritie and cannot expect leave from the supreame Pastor of our soules the doctrine of Claudius Carinnus de vi pot leg human c. 10 that even in lawes every particular man hath power to interpret the same to his advantage and to dispense with himselfe therein if there occurre a sudden case of necessitie and there be no open way and recourse to the Superiour much more then said I in a pious ceremonie against which there is no law forbidding the same And if you reply that this is taken in a strange Church I answer That in case of necessitie the plâ—ce is impertinent to the thing For Saint Bonaventure that great and pious Doctor using much jaculatory prayers and being upon the place of naturall necessitie and there uttering some of the said prayers the Devill asked him Whether that were a place to pray in to whom he answered in opusc Hic et ubique meum licet orare Deum That it was lawfull to praise God in all places and to receive bread and wine in a Protestant Church from a Minister or to receive the same in a Taverne from a Vintners boy the godly onely know the difference If you reply againe that so we may offer Incense to an Idol in a temple because we may burne perfume and the Idol we know to be nothing I deny that and the disparity is in this that in offering Incense the act and shew there tends to the honour and worship of the Devill For the place being dedicated to him whatsoever is therein done as an usuall ceremonie is taken whatsoever the intention be as done to his honour Which act as it is unlawfull in it selfe to be done because pretended Idolatrie wherein Gods worship is given to the Devill at least in outward shew so it is unlawfull to faine in words the act to be done becauâ—e it is dissembling the object it selfe being likewise forbidden by the law of God both which are great sinnes and apt to cause great scandall which I shall make appeare not to be in our case where I coâ—tend there is no sinne in the act nor yet dissembling nor the object forbidden If you reply thirdly that there is dissembling in going to Church as going two waies in Religion contrary to the Scripture for thereby I seeme to be otherwise then I am the reply is false for I professe but one religion which is Catholique and at Church I doe but observe the picture of true religion ill formed which is but a humane act not hurtfull but by a pious intention may be made good by which all hypocrisie and dissimulation may be avoyded And if I seeme to Protestants to be a Protestant what am I the worse for that I never yet could finde any law to ground an action against the censures of men If they censure me to be a Protestant I am not under their scourge for religion unlesse they will on purpose make an Act of Parliament to cut off my head which shall be no president for any other Iudges or Iustices and then I must set up my rest with a Noble man saying Contra potentiam non est resistentia There is no resistance against power But continuing alwaies loyall both to my King and Countrey and obedient to God and his Church and in so doing giving both God and Caesar their due and that without either sinne or dissembling I had rather they censure mee unjustly yet according to the lawes established for I alwaies stand pro Rege Lege and so misse their aime by an Ignoramus then I loose my life by a pure might But hence it doth not follow for all their censure that I am a Protestant for to be so I must beleeve the 39. Articles of the Church of England which is the definition of a Protestant Which Articles or any other tenents of theirs I meddle not with for if I must doe all things contrary to Protestants lest I should be thought so when they eate I must fast and when they sleep I must wake which is ridiculous As for their thinking me a Protestant it proceeds from want of knowledge for they or most of them neither knowing what a Protestant or Catholique indeed is if Catholiques went to Church they would not know how to distinguish or persecute them it being lawfull among them for every one to beleeve what he pleaseth may easily thinke amisse of me And for me to take benefit of their ignorance and to hide my selfe in persecution untill either the glory of God or good of my neighbour shall urge me to discover my selfe I cannot yet finde my selfe by any law forbidden It may be objected secondly that there were divers Statutes made upon the alteration of Religion in the 2.5 and 6. yeers of Edward the sixth and 1. and 23. of Qâ—eene Elizabeth in hatred of God and his Church as that the Masse should be abrogated and all the Kings subjects should come to Church to heare such Service as was then oâ—dained to distinguish betweene Catholiques and Protestants and that whosoever should say or heare Masse afterwards should incurre certaine penalties as by the said Statutes appeares But no man could obey these commands without sinne Ergo. I answer that I know not much to what purpose this objection can serve R. P. that made it For all Divines as well Catholiques as Protestants know that all humane lawes binde in conscience no â—urther then they are consonant and conformable to the divine law And as farre as they command lawfull unitie and uniformitie to the good
of the common wealth which is the chiefe thing that States men aime at mens consciences being left to themselves they may be obeyed as I hâ—ve said out of Azorius tom 1o. lib. 8. instit moral cap. 27. puncto 5o. And for as much as concerned the abrogation of Masse which by the law of God was unlawfull they did consequenter to the State government then for having rejected the authoritie â—f the Pope they likewise rejected the Masse as knowing that there could be no Masse without Priests nor Priests without the Pope And therefore taking as much of the Masse as would serve for their Service and to be independent of the Pope they left the rest But that they did it in hatred of God and his Church or for any distinction sake it is altogether improbable For what would a man get by hating of God or the Church of which himselfe must be a member to be saved or how could they make a distinction of that they knew not for the Protestant Church was not then knowne or scarce established And therefore without wholly granting the Major or distinguishing the Minor I answer that every one ought under paine of damnation to obey his temporall Prince in matters lawfull Yet to suffer for his religion and abstracting from all obedience either to Statute or Rescâ—ipt not for Recusancie It may be objected thirdly that of S. Paul to the Romans 10.10 With the heart we beleeve unto justice but wâ—th the mouth confession is made to salvation Ergo No man can goe to Church I deny the sequele and to the Antecedent I answer that according to Divines a man is bound to confesse his religion Semper sed non ad semper alwaies but not at all waies that is not at all times and in all places but as I have said before out of Saint Thomas of Aquin in the said two cases viz. as often as the honour and glory of God requires the same or the spirituall profit of our neighbour shall exact it as likely to be impaired by silence which to be requisite I have before granted Yet hence it doth not follow that I am bound to goe into the Market place and cry out I am a Catholike who will punish me or before I am called to publish my religion to make my selfe be called or to live and converse to the same time as having a setled being and not going to Church I read that Saint Faelix going to martyrdome S. Adaucâ—us came to the Officers that led him thither and said to them that he lived in the same law with Saint Faelix and therefore that they should likewise put him to death Yet I conceive that he had a speciall revelation for the same and that it is no warrant for our indiscretion If it be replyed that so a man shall professe no religion I answer the inference to be naught for suppose a mans recusancie were never discovered this man professeth some religion for he doth not live a heathen Why then recusancie being rejected should he not professe the same If it be said that it is written that no man can serve two masters rightly Yet a man may serve one Master and have a servant to serve him or he may serve one master and keepe or use that Masters picture howsoever ill it be drawne It may be objected fourthly that the Rescript of Pope Paul the fifth in which he writes to the Catholiques of England declareth that they ought not to goe to the Churches of Heretiques or heare their Sermons without detriment of the divine worship and their owne salvation To which I answer that the said Pope wrote both piously fatherly and Apostolically according to the aforesaid suggestions by him received and if he had had the truth of the state of England I beleeve he would have written as piously the contrary For put the case that those zealous suggestors had presented to the consideration of the Councel of Trent or the Pope himselfe the truth and lawfulnesse of Catholiques going to Church with these seven reasons following supposing an absolute necessitie 1. First that there is no evill or harme done or said in the Protestant Churches to the prejudice of any Catholike soule that may not either be hindred or prevented very well by the instruction of Priests for they preach not against any notable point of doctrine held in the Catholique Church although some simple Minister for want of matter may glance at some of our tenets by halfes understood or in these daies to please his auditorie may raile against the Pope which he doth so irrationally that few Protestants of any judgement do beleeve him for if he should seriously preach controversies as insisting seriously upon the true doctrine of both sides his Auditors or at lest some of them would be apt to doubt and so to search and dive further into the truth for as Saint Augustine saith doubt begets science which might be an occasion of somes falling from him which fearing he is silent in doctrine and onely teacheth moralitie which why a man may not heare in urgent extremity from any man I cannot conceive 2. Secondly that their going to Church would be a conservation and a preservation of their lands and goods with a prevention of ruine to the family and posterity 3. That it would be a means to obtaine and purchase the love of their neighbours and a meanes of their conversion by an affable conversation by which likewise they might beare the greatest Offices in the common wealth and become Parliament men as well as others of whom and whose power and force in matters of Religion these dayes can somewhat declare 4. Fourthly that it would be a meanes that whereas Priests leave their Colledges and now live in private mens houses to the benefit of one or two and to the great danger of themselves and their Patrons they might by this meanes more freely converse with all sorts of people after an Apostolicall manner and convert many to the honour of God the increase of his Church and good of their owne soules Whereas now they doe little good out of that private house unlesse maintaine some decayed gentlewomen in good clothes to gossip up and downe and like bels to ring their praises that they may fish one in a yeere to the disparagement of their function and great prejudice of their Mission 5. Fifthly that divers Schismaticks that now goe to Church with an ill conscience and thinke themselves in state of damnation doe suffer spirituall detriment and oftentimes being prevented with sudden death everlastingly perish 6. Sixthly many thousands that are very morall and well affected Protestants were it not for the stop of Recusancie would become Catholiques Which rather then they will undoe themselves and Family now will not heare of it 7. Seventhly that no poore Catholique that is not able to give twenty pound per annum with their children to some Colledge beyond the Seas can bring
think truely to be blessed men and of great charitie For as our Saviour saith Ioh. 15. v. 13. Majorem charitatem nemo habet quam ut animam suam ponat quis pro amico suo No man hath greater love then who layeth downe his life for his friend Yet I hope likewise others some who yet live to be as blessed and their charitie or love as great although not so apparent for the present because as yet not exercised in fight but when God shall be pleased to call them to suffer for their Religion they may make it as manifest For although a man of a thinne skin and a veine transparent with lesse art strooke doth presently bleed in abundance yet no man may hence inferre that a man of a thicker skinne and a more obscure veine not lightly strook hath no blood in his body to shed so it is in the present betweene him that suffers for Religion being discovered by Recusancie and him that suffers not being undetected by rejecting the same And in this they differ that as the one suffers for a good conscience sake so the other suffers not with a good conscience As for the said exaggerating speeches they doe so much strengthen and confirme me knowing them to be false that I am morally certaine that the said twelve Fathers in the Councel of Trent selected by the said suggestors for recusancie were abused aswell as the aforesaid Popes And therefore as they are said to have granted to some limited faculties meerely upon the said false suggestions which how farre they did binde the suggestors at their pleasure to great persons according to their custome could very well tell they might as well have granted the same without any such limitation if it had pleased them and I am perswaded more to the gloâ—y of God and increase of his Church as daily experience teacheth For it is improbable with me and against the nature of an Apostolicall mission that men should be sent out of Colledges into Protestant countries to private mens houses to play bo-peepe as fearing to be seene conversing with Protestants and Protestants not caring to come to them for any matter of religion I wonder by this kinde of conversation what kinde of conversion could ensue whereas Saint Paul said to them that were about him Act. 20. vers 20. You know how I have withdrawne nothing that was profitable but that I preached it to you and taught you openly and from house to house Neither doe I beleeve that any man can prove any notable increase of Catholike religion in England either in great families or in small from the time of this recusancie brought in unto this present onely this I see a great impoverishment of the Catholiques here and halfe a dozen faire high Colledges built beyond the seas besides what common purse I know not and this I conceive to be all the effect of recusancie for persecution as I have said begets prayers to God and almesdeeds to his supposed servants which produce great Colledges for refuge to themselves But some may here againe reply that if recusancie had beene rejected and conformitie admitted yet Protestants would have had some other invention to punish Catholiques for their religion I answer it might be so if some evill spirits had told them the proceedings of Catholiques before hand as I never yet knew in my life Catholiques private to themselves otherwise why should they have invented more to punish Catholiques then they have hitherto done to punish Schismaticks or Separatists The said Suggestors had best invent for them some way more then they have already to continue a persecution which were but conformable as it seemes to the said Authour of the Answer c. cap. 9. pag. 216. as is before said who delighteth more to have a persecution although not to fall upon himselfe or his tribe then a toleration in religion Yet in the meane time we had done the uttermost of humane prudence and then wee might have left the rest more safely to God who ordinarily what second causes cannot doe in working to his will himselfe mercifully supplyeth and then at leastwise it would have beene more apparent to the whole world that we had suffered meerly for religion and not for a toy to wit Recusancie Adde that whatsoever had beene invented either by oath or abjuration or what else it must have been done in justice and I hope by a competent Judge or otherwise I should have taught out of the common opinion of Catholique Divines as well Schoolemen as Casuists that putting off their hats they might have passed by in Justice for as Titelman saith contra vulpem vulpizare licet It is lawfull for a man to play the fox against a fox It may be objected thirdly that it was Decreed in the 63 Canon of the Apostles That if any Clarke or Lay-man did enter into the Synagogue of Jews or Hereticks to pray he should be deposed and excommunicated I answer that it might be a necessary Decree because then there were but young Christians and they newly instructed in very high mysteries as the mystery of the Incarnation which was so hard to them as that God should be borne man poore live poorely and at last be put to so shamefull a death by the hands of men his own creatures that the forcible Arguments of the Jews might have easily perverted them Againe the Jews were formall blasphemers of God our Saviour telling them himself that he had done those signes among them that no other man could doe Whereby he gave them to know that he was God all which the Jews rejected as naught and said that he did them in Beelzebub Prince of the Devils And when he told them Ioh. 10. vers 36. that he was the Sonne of God they answered that he blasphemed to whom he replyed vers 37. If I doe not the works of my Father beleeve me not And therefore it was requisite that those Christians should abstaine from their synagogue least they should have fallen to have been as they were The company of hereticks the Apostles might likewise forbid because they were such as fell from and amongst themselves and very likely particularly denounced excommunicate so that danger of subversion was there imminent because their intention was formally to subvâ—rt and infected with one or two points of heresie were not so easily to be discerned as those that professe themselves so wholly different from the Catholique Church that if they did but know a Papist to be in their Churches they would goe neere to pull them downe to the ground and so borne and bred as they know no other religion but their own and there doe so rest teaching their own but to live morally which is both common to Catholique and Protestant Which motive or reason hath no place in our case where I contend there is no danger at all Hence it may be generally observed that what Scriptures Councels Fathers or
were to the injury of the Gospell retained and Christ himselfe blasphemed which no Christian eare ought to endure a See page 22. letter Q b If Papists trusted not in their owne merits it would goe better with them then I feare it will with many who the more they arrogate to themselves the more they derogate from our Saviour and the further they go from salvation I confesse many of them upon their death-beds have renounced their own merits and wholly stucke to our Saviours yet certaine it is that the generall doctrine of the Church of Rome is for trust in their own merits For they teach that faith alone doth not justifie us before God that good works are not only satisfactory for sin but also meritorious of eternall life and supererogatory also for others Consil. Trid. in sess 16. Bellar. l. 5. de iustif c. 16. and they who beleeve that they can so farre stead them do commonly confide in them Let them returne to the more ancient and true tenent with Bernard saying Meritum meum est miseratio Domini Gods mercy is my merit and if their be any worke of our own meritorious it is the renouncing our owne merits and flying meerely to Christ sufficit ad meritum scire quod non sufficiant merita Let them confesse with holy Iob Iob. 9.3 that they cannot answer one of a thousand and professe with Esay Esa. 64.6 All our righteousnesse is as filthy clowts and pray with David Psal. 143.2 Lord enter not into iudgement with thy servants for in thy sight shall no man living be iustified and close up their last Will and breath also as Bellar. is said to have done For Papists often dye in another faith then they lived with that holy ejaculation Lord vouchsafe to receive me into the number of thy Saints non meriti estimator sed veniae largitor not weighing my merits but pardoning my offences and we will not only cleare them of Pharisaicall pride and trusting in themselves but also conceive a better hope of their salvation c See a spunge to wipe out this false aspersioÌ„ upon that worthy servant of Christ and great Instrument of Gods glory pag. 59. letter H. d See the Advertisement to the Reader f The head of controversies betweene the Romish and Reformed Churches is the controversie about the Head of the Church which the Papists will have the Pope to be but reformed Churches Christ alone I say head of the Vniversall or Catholique Church but of particular Churches sovereigne Princes within their severall Realmes may be termed Heads that is chiefe Governours which this Priest here acknowledgeth For the acknowledgement of this supreame authoritie and power of the King in his dominions of England and Ireland the Oath of Supremacie was appointed by Act of Parliament in the 35. of Henry the eighth to be taken by all his Majesties subjects this Act was continued in the reigne of Edward the sixth but repealed in the first and second of Philip and Mary and revived the first of Queene Elizabeth now the question here is whether the Oath of Supremacie thus confirmed by divers Acts of Parliament exclude not that Spirituall jurisdiction which all Papists beleeve to be in the Pope Iure divino or which comes all to one whether a Papist ut siâ— that is remaining a Papist and holding his Popish religion may salvâ— conscientiâ take this Oath of Supremacie this Priest affirmeth he may but we shall demonstrate the contrary hereafter by impregnable arguments drawne from the intention of the Law-makers the letter of the Acts of Parliament and the Queenes Injunctions the judgement of the Church of Rome and the confession of the adversarie himselfe g Not the same authoritie which the Pope had in all things but so farre as it is expounded and limited in the Queenes Injunctions in the first yeere of her reigne the Queene as her brother and father before onely resumed that power which the Pope had unjusty taken from the Crowne and usurped it himselfe a power which is and was of ancient time due to the Imperiall Crowne of this Realme that is under God to have the Sovereigntie and rule over all manner of persons borne within these Realmes and Dominions and Countries of what estate either Ecclesiasticall or temporal soever they be See admonition to the Injunctions in the Appendix h Calvine conceived that King Henry the eighth by the Title of Head of the Church challenged a farre greater power then what the Act of Parliament acknowledged in him or he ever exercised but after the Title of Head of the Church was publikely declared and expounded by Q. Elizabeth boâ—h he and all the Reformed Churches rested satisfied in the lawfulnesse of that Title which imported not Supreame teacher or directer unto Trtuh but Supreame commander for the Truth in all causes and over all Persons i The intention of Henry the eighth and Queene Elizabeth was the selfe same as is expressed in the Act of Parliament 35. Henry the eighth and the Admonition annexed to the Injunctions of the 1 Elizabeth namely the extirpation and extinguishment of the usurped and pretended authoritie power and iurisdiction of the See and Bishop of Rome and the recovery of their owne right by adorning the Crowne with a flowre before wrongfully taken from it and here I cannot sufficiently admire the impudence of this Priest who so confidently affirmes that the intention of Queene Elizabeth was divers from her father in prescribing and requiring this Oath whereas she her selfe in the above named Admonition declareth to all her loving subjects That nothing was is or shall be meant or inâ—ended by the same Oath to have any other dutie allegiance or bond required by the same then was acknowledged to be due to the most noblâ— King of famous memory K. H. 8. her Maiesties father or K. Ed. 6. her Maiesties broâ—â—er k The liberty he speakes of was given by the approbation of the chief Vniversities beyond the Sea of the Romish Religion l Not to forme another Church but to reforme that Church which was before and restore Religion to her puritie by the example of Ezekiah Iosiah and other religious Kings m No power at all excepted but the former power explained onely how farre it extended viz Not to the authoritie and power of Ministrie of divine Office in the Church which none of the Kings or Queenes of this Realme possessours of the Crowne ever challenged Nor I in this place by what authoritie your Bishops anoynt your thumbes and ordaine your Priests to offer the unbloody sacrifice of the Masâ—e for the living the dead There is nec vola nec vestigium of any such calling in the Scripture or purer Antiquitie as for our Ministry it is â—o clearely justified together with the succession thereof out of your own best records and tenents by Francis Mason de succes Episc. Ministerio Angl. that ever since the printing therof all your Romish cavillers