charged with the odious consequences of his opinion Indeed his doctrine is but the person is not if he understands not such things to be consequent to his Doctrine for if he did and then avows them they are his direct opinions he stands as chargeable with them as with his first propositions but if he dis-avowes them he would certainly rather quit his opinion then avow such errours or impieties which are pretended to be consequent to it because every man knows that can be no truth from whence falshood naturally and immediately does derive and he therefore beleeves his first proposition because he beleeves it innocent of such errors as are charg'd upon it directly or consequently So that now since no error neither for its selfe nor its consequents Numb 7. is to be charg'd as criminall upon a pious person since no simple errour is a sin nor does condemne us before the throne of God since he is so pittifull to our crimes that he pardons many de toto integro in all makes abatement for the violence of temptation and the surprizall and invasion of our faculties and therefore much lesse will demand of us an account for our weaknesses and since the strongest understanding cannot pretend to such an immunity and exemption from the condition of men as not to be deceived and confesse its weaknesse it remaines we inquire what deportment is to be used towards persons of a differing perswasion when we are I doe not say doubtfull of a proposition but convinc'd that he that differs from us is in Errour for this was the first intention and the last end of this discourse SECT XIII Of the deportment to be used towards persons disagreeing and the reasons why they are not to be punished with death c. FOr although every man may be deceived yet some are right and may know it too for every man that may erre does Numb 1. not therefore certainly erre and if he erres because he recedes from his rule then if he followes it he may doe right and if ever any man upon just grounds did change his opinion then he was in the right and was sure of it too and although confidence is mistaken for a just perswasion many times yet some men are confident and have reason so to be Now when this happens the question is what deportment they are to use towards persons that disagree from them and by consequence are in error 1. Then no Christian is to be put to death dismembred or otherwise directly persecuted for his opinion which does not Numb 2. teach impiety or blasphemy If it plainly and apparently brings in a crime and himselfe does act it or incourage it then the matter of fact is punishable according to its proportion or malignity as if he preaches treason or sedition his opinion is not his excuse because it brings in a crime and a man is never the lesse traitor because he beleeves it lawful to commit treason a man is a murtherer if he kills his brother unjustly although he thinks he does God good service in it Matters of fact are equally judicable whether the principle of them be from within or from without And if a man could pretend to innocence in being seditious blasphemous or perjur'd by perswading himself it is lawfull there were as great a gate opened to all iniquity as will entertaine all the pretences the designes the impostures and disguises of the world And therefore God hath taken order that all rules concerning matters of fact and good life shall be so cleerely explicated that without the crime of the man he cannot be ignorant of all his practicall duty And therefore the Apostles and primitive Doctors made no scruple of condemning such persons for hereticks that did dogmatize a sinne He that teaches others to sinne is worse then he that commits the crime whether he be tempted by his owne interest or incouraged by the others doctrine It was as bad in Basilides to teach it to be lawfull to renounce Faith and Religion and take all manner of Oathes and Covenants in time of persecution as if himselfe had done so nay it is as much worse as the mischeife is more universall or as a fountaine is greater then a drop of water taken from it He that writes Treason in a booke or preaches Sedition in a Pulpit and perswades it to the people is the greatest Traitor and incendiary and his opinion there is the fountaine of a sinne and therefore could not be entertain'd in his understanding upon weaknesse or inculpable or innocent prejudice he cannot from Scripture or divine revelation have any pretence to colour that so fairely as to seduce either a wise or an honest man If it rest there and goes no further it is not cognoscible and so scapes that way but if it be published and comes à stylo ad Machaeram as Tertullians phrase is then it becomes matter of fact in principle and in perswasion and is just so punishable as is the crime that it perswades such were they of whom S. Paul complaines who brought in damnable doctrines and lusts S. Pauls Gal. 5. Utinam abscindantur is just of them take it in any sense of rigour and severity so it be proportionable to the crime or criminall doctrine Such were those of whom God spake in Deut. 13. If any Prophet tempts to idolatry saying let us goe after other Gods he shall be slaine But these doe not come into this question But the proposition is to be understood concerning questions disputable in materiâ intellectuali which also for all that law of killing such false Prophets were permitted with impunity in the Synagogue as appeares beyond exception in the great divisions and disputes betweene the Pharisees and the Sadduces I deny not but certaine and knowne idolatry or any other sort of practicall impiety with its principiant doctrine may be punished corporally because it is no other but matter of fact but no matter of meere opinion no errors that of themselves are not sins are to be persecuted or punished by death or corporall inflictions This is now to be proved 2. All the former discourse is sufficient argument how easie it is for us in such matters to be deceived So long as Christian Religion Numb 3. was a simple profession of the articles of beliefe and a hearty prosecution of the rules of good life the fewnesse of the articles and the clearnesse of the rule was cause of the seldome prevarication But when divinity is swell'd up to so great a body when the severall questions which the peevishnesse and wantonnesse of sixteene ages have commenc'd are concentred into one and from all these questions something is drawne into the body of Theologie till it hath ascended up to the greatnesse of a mountaine and the summe of Divinity collected by Aquinas makes a volume as great as was that of Livy mock'd at in the Epigramme Quem mea vix totum
Polamo Alexandrinus sic primus philosophatus est ut ait Laërtius in Proëmio unde cognominatus est 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 what truths we can and a charitable and mutuall permission to others that disagree from us and our opinions I am sure this may satisfie us for it will secure us but I know not any thing else that will and no man can be reasonably perswaded or satisfied in any thing else unlesse he throwes himselfe upon chance or absolute predestination or his own confidence in every one of which it is two to one at least but he may miscarry Thus farre I thought I had reason on my side and I suppose I have made it good upon its proper grounds in the pages following But then if the result be that men must be permitted in their opinions and that Christians must not Persecute Christians I have also as much reason to reprove all those oblique Arts which are not direct Persecutions of mens persons but they are indirect proceedings ungentle and unchristian servants of faction and interest provocations to zeal and animosities and destructive of learning and ingenuity And these are suppressing all the monuments of their Adversaries forcing them to recant and burning their Books For it is a strange industry and an importune diligence that was used by our fore-fathers of all those Heresies which gave them battle and imployment we have absolutely no Record or Monument but what themselves who were Adversaries have transmitted to us and we know that Adversaries especially such who observ'd all opportunities to discredit both the persons and doctrines of the Enemy are not alwayes the best records or witnesses of such transactions We see it now in this very Age in the present distemperatures that parties are no good Registers of the actions of the adverse side And if we cannot be confident of the truth of a story now now I say that it is possible for any man and likely that the interessed adversary will discover the imposture it is farre more unlikely that after Ages should know any other truth but such as serves the ends of the representers I am sure such things were never taught us by Christ and his Apostles and if we were sure that our selves spoke truth or that truth were able to justifie her selfe it were better if to preserve a Doctrine wee did not destroy a Commandement and out of zeale pretending to Christian Religion loose the glories and rewards of ingenuity and Christian simplicity Of the same consideration is mending of Authors not to their own mind but to ours that is to mend them so as to spoile them forbidding the publication of Books in which there is nothing impious or against the publick interest leaving out clauses in Translations disgracing mens persons charging disavowed Doctrins upon men and the persons of the men with the consequents of their Doctrine which they deny either to be true or to be consequent false reporting of Disputations and Conferences burning Books by the hand of the hang-man and all such Arts which shew that we either distrust God for the maintenance of his truth or that we distrust the cause or distrust our selves and our abilities I will say no more of these but only concerning the last I shall transcribe a passage out of Tacitus in the life of Iulius Agricola who gives this account of it Veniam non petissem nisi incursaturus tam saeva infesta virtutibus tempora Legimus cum Aruleno Ruslico Paetus Thrasea Herennio Senecioni Priscus Helvidius laudatt essent capitale fuisse neque in ipsos modo authores sed in libros quoque eorum saevitum delegato Triumviris ministerio ut monumenta clarissimorum ingeniorum in comitio ac foro urerentur scil illo igne vocem populi Rom. libertatem Senatus conscientiam generis humani aboleri arbitrabantur expulsis insuper sapientiae professoribus at que omni bonâ arte in exilium actâ ne quid usquam honestum occurreret It is but an illiterate Policy to think that such indirect and uningenuous proceedings can amongst wise and free-men disgrace the Authors and disrepute their Discourses And I have seen that the price hath been trebled upon a forbidden or a condemn'd Book and some men in policy have got a prohibition that their impression might be the more certainly vendible and the Author himselfe thought considerable The best way is to leave tricks and devices and to fall upon that way which the best Ages of the Church did use With the strength of Argument and Allegations of Scripture and modesty of deportment and meeknesse and charity to the persons of men they converted misbelievers stopped the mouthes of Adversaries asserted truth and discountenanced errour and those other stratagems and Arts of support and maintenance to Doctrines were the issues of hereticall braines the old Catholicks had nothing to secure themselves but the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of truth and plaine dealing Eidem minutis dissecant ambagibus Ut quisque linguâ est ne quior Solvunt ligantque quaestionum vincula Per syllogismos plectiles Prudent apotheos hym in infidel Vae captiosis Sycophantarum strophis Vae versipelli astutiae Nodos tenaces recta rumpit regula Infesta discertantibus Idcirco mundi slulta deligit Deus Ut concidant Sophistica And to my understanding it is a plain Art and design of the Devill to make us so in love with our own opinions as to call them Faith and Religion that we may be proud in our understanding and besides that by our zeale in our opinions we grow coole in our piety and practicall duties he also by this earnest contention does directly destroy good life by engagement of Zealots to do any thing rather then be overcome and loose their beloved propositions But I would faine know why is not any vitious habit as bad or worse then a false opinion Why are we so zealous against those we call Hereticks and yet great friends with drunkards and fornicators swearers and intemperate and idle persons Is it because we are commanded by the Apostle to reject a Heretick after two admonitions and not to bid such a one God speed It is a good reason why we should be zealous against such persons provided we mistake them not For those of whom these Apostles speak are such as deny Christ to be come in the flesh such as deny an Article of Creed and in such odious things it is not safe nor charitable to extend the gravamen and punishment beyond the instances the Apostles make or their exact parallels But then also it would be remembred that the Apostles speak as fiercely against communion with fornicators and all disorders practicall as against communion with Hereticks If any man that is called a brother be a Fornicator or Covetous or an Idolater or a Railer or a Drunkard or an Extortioner with such a one no not to eat I am certain that a Drunkard is as contrary to
to impose it upon others but with confidence to declare his own beliefe and that it was prescrib'd to others as a Creed was the act of the Bishops of Rome so he said nay possibly it was none of his So said the Patriarch of C. P. Meletius about one hundred and thirty years since in his Epistle to John Douza Athanasio falsò adscriptum Symbolum cum Pontificum Rom. appendice illâ adulteratum luce lucidiùs contestamur And it is more then probable that he said true because this Creed was written originally in Latine which in all reason Athanasius did not and it was translated into Greek it being apparent that the Latine Copy is but one but the Greek is various there being three Editions or Translations rather expressed by Genebrard lib. 3. de Trinit But in this particular who list may better satisfie himselfe in a disputation de Symbolo Athanasii printed at Wertzburg 1590 supposed to be written by Serrarius or Cleneherus And yet I must observe that this Symbol of Athanasius and Numb 37. that other of Nice offer not at any new Articles they only pretend to a further Explication of the Articles Apostolicall which is a certain confirmation that they did not believe more Articles to be of belief necessary to salvation if they intended these further Explications to be as necessary as the dogmaticall Articles of the Apostles Creed I know not how to answer all that may be objected against that but the advantage that I shall gather from their not proceeding to new matters is laid out ready for me in the words of Athanasius saying of this Creed this is the Catholike Faith and if his authority bee good or his saying true or he the Authour then no man can say of any other Article that it is a part of the Catholike Faith or that the Catholike Faith can be enlarged beyond the contents of that Symbol and therefore it is a strange boldnesse in the Church of Rome first to adde twelve new Articles Bulla Pii quarti supra forma juramenti professionis fidei in fin Conc. Trident. and then to adde the Appendix of Athanasius to the end of them This is the Catholike Faith without which no man can be saved But so great an example of so excellent a man hath been either mistaken or followed with too much greedinesse all Numb 38. the world in factions all damning one another each party damnd by all the rest and there is no disagreeing in opinion from any man that is in love with his own opinion but damnation presently to all that disagree A Ceremony and a Rite hath caused severall Churches to Excommunicate each other as in the matter of the Saturday Fast and keeping Easter But what the spirits of men are when they are exasperated in a Question and difference of Religion as they call it though the thing it selfe may be most inconsiderable is very evident in that request of Pope Innocent the Third desiring of the Greeks but reasonably a man would think that they would not so much hate the Roman manner of consecrating in unleavened bread as to wash and scrape and pare the Altars after a Roman Priest had consecrated Nothing more furious than a mistaken zeal and the actions of a scrupulous and abused conscience When men think every thing to be their Faith and their Religion commonly they are so busie in trifles and such impertinencies in which the scene of their mistake lies that they neglect the greater things of the Law charity and compliances and the gentlenesse of Christian Communion for this is the great principle of mischiefe and yet is not more pernicious then unreasonable For I demand Can any man say and justifie that the Apostles did deny Communion to any man that believed the Apostles Numb 39. Creed and liv'd a good life And dare any man taxe that proceeding of remissenesse and indifferency in Religion And since our blessed Saviour promised salvation to him that believeth and the Apostles when they gave this word the greatest extent enlarged it not beyond the borders of the Creed how can any man warrant the condemning of any man to the flames of Hell that is ready to die in attestation of this Faith so expounded and made explicite by the Apostles and lives accordingly And to this purpose it was excellently said by a wise and a pious Prelate S. Hilary Non per difficiles nos L. 10. de Trin. ad finem Deus ad bâ—atam vitam quaestiones vocat c. In absoluto nobis facili est aeternitas Jesum suscitatum à mortuis per Deum credere ipsum esse Dominum confiteri c. These are the Articles which we must believe which are the sufficient and adequate object of that Faith which is required of us in order to Salvation And therefore it was that when the Bishops of Istria Concil tom 4. Edit Paris p. 473. deserted the Communion of Pope Pelagius in causâ trium Capitulorum he gives them an account of his Faith by recitation of the Creed and by attesting the four Generall Councels and is confident upon this that de fidei firmitate nulla poterit esse quaestio vel suspicio generari let the Apostles Creed especially so explicated be but secured and all Faith is secured and yet that explication too was lesse necessary then the Articles themselves for the explication was but accidentall but the Articles even before the Explication were accounted a sufficient inlet to the Kingdome of heaven And that there was security enough in the simple believing Numb 40. the first Articles is very certain amongst them and by their Principles who allow of an implicite faith to serve most persons to the greatest purposes for if the Creed did contain in it the whole Faith and that other Articles were in it implicitely for such is the doctrine of the Schoole and particularly of Aquinas then he that explicirely believes all the Creed does implicitely believe all the Articles contain'd in it and then it 22 ae q. 1. a. 10. cap. is better the implication should still continue then that by any explication which is simply unnecessary the Church should be troubled with questions and uncertain determinations and factions enkindled and animosities set on foot and mens soules endanger'd who before were secur'd by the explicite beliefe of all that the Apostles requir'd as necessary which beliefe also did secure them for all the rest because it implied the belief of whatsoever was virtually in the first Articles if such beliefe should by chance be necessary The summe of this discourse is this if we take an estimate of the nature of Faith from the dictates and promises Evangelicall Numb 41. and from the practice Apostolicall the nature of Faith and its integrity consists in such propositions which make the foundation of hope and charity that which is sufficient to make us to doe honour to Christ
life for in matters speculative as all determinations are fallible so scarce any of them are to purpose nor ever able to make compensation of either side either for the publike fraction or the particular injustice if it should so happen in the censure But then as the Church may proceed thus far yet no Christian man or Community of men may proceed farther For if they Numb 2. be deceived in their judgement and censure and yet have passed onely spirituall censures they are totally ineffectuall and come to nothing there is no effect remaining upon the soule and such censures are not to meddle with the body so much as indirectly But if any other judgement passe upon persons erring such judgements whose effects remaine if the person be unjustly censured nothing will answer and make compensation for such injuries If a person be excommunicate unjustly it will doe him no hurt but if he be killed or dismembred unjustly that censure and infliction is not made ineffectuall by his innocence he is certainly kill'd and dismembred So that as the Churches authority in such cases so restrained and made prudent cautelous and orderly is just and competent so the proceeding is reasonable it is provident for the publike and the inconveniences that may fall upon particulars so little as that the publique benefit makes ample compensation so long as the proceeding is but spirituall This discourse is in the case of such opinions which by the former rules are formall heresies and upon practicall inconveniences Numb 3. But for matters of question which have not in them an enmity to the publique tranquillity as the Republique hath nothing to doe upon the ground of all the former discourses so if the Church meddles with them where they doe not derive into ill life either in the person or in the consequent or else are destructions of the foundation of Religion which is all one for that those fundamentall articles are of greatest necessity in order to a vertuous and godly life which is wholly built upon them and therefore are principally necessary If she meddles further otherwise then by preaching and conferring and exhortation she becomes tyrannicall in her government makes her selfe an immediate judge of consciences and perswasions lords it over their faith destroyes unity and charity and as if he that dogmatizes the opinion becomes criminall if he troubles the Church with an immodest peevish and pertinacious proposall of his article not simply necessary so the Church does not doe her duty if she so condemnes it pro tribunali as to enjoyne him and all her subjects to beleeve the contrary And as there may be pertinacy in doctrine so there may be pertinacy in judging and both are faults The peace of the Church and the unity of her doctrine is best conserved when it is judged by the proportion it hath to that rule of unity which the Apostles gave that is the Creed for Articles of meer beliefe and the precepts of Jesus Christ and the practicall rules of piety which are most plaine and easie and without controversie set downe in the Gospels and Writings of the Apostles But to multiply articles and adopt them into the family of the faith and to require assent to such articles which as S. Pauls phrase is are of doubtfull disputation equall to that assent wee give to matters of faith is to build a Tower upon the top of a Bulrush and the further the effect of such proceedings does extend the worse they are the very making such a Law is unreasonable the inflicting spirituall censures upon them that cannot doe so much violence to their understanding as to obey it is unjust and ineffectuall but to punish the person with death or with corporall infliction indeed it is effectuall but it is therefore tyrannicall We have seen what the Church may doe towards restraining false or differing opinions next I shall consider by way of Corollarie what the Prince may doe as for his interest and onely in securing his people and serving the ends of true Religion SECT XVI Whether it be lawfull for a Prince to give toleration to severall Religions FOr upon these very grounds we may easily give account of Numb 1. that great question Whether it be lawfull for a Prince to give toleration to severall Religions For first it is a great fault that men will call the severall sects of Christians by the names of severall Religions The Religion of JESUS CHRIST is the forme of sound doctrine and wholsome words which is set downe in Scripture indefinitely actually conveyed to us by plaine places and separated as for the question of necessary or not necessary by the Symbol of the Apostles Those impertinencies which the wantonness and vanity of men hath commenced which their interests have promoted which serve not truth so much as their own ends are farre from being distinct Religions for matters of opinion are no parts of the worship of God nor in order to it but as they promote obedience to his Commandments and when they contribute towards it are in that proportion as they contribute parts and actions and minute particulars of that Religion to whose end they doe or pretend to serve And such are all the sects and all the pretences of Christians but pieces and minutes of Christianity if they doe serve the great end as every man for his owne sect and interest beleeves for his share it does 2. Tolleration hath a double sense or purpose for sometimes by it men understand a publick licence and exercise of a sect Sometimes it is onely an indemnity of the persons privately to convene and to opine as they see cause and as they meane to answer to God Both these are very much to the same purpose unlesse some persons whom we are bound to satisfie be scandaliz'd and then the Prince is bound to doe as he is bound to satisfie To God it is all one For abstracting from the offence of persons which is to be considered just as our obligation is to content the persons it is all one whether we indulge to them to meet publikely or privately to do actions of Religion concerning which we are not perswaded that they are truely holy To God it is just one to be in the dark and in the light the thing is the same onely the Circumstance of publick and private is different which cannot be concerned in any thing nor can it concerne any thing but the matter of Scandall and relation to the minds and fantasies of certaine persons 3. So that to tolerate is not to persecute And the question Numb 3. whether the Prince may tollerate divers perswasions is no more then whether he may lawfully persecute any man for not being of his opinion Now in this case he is just so to tollerate diversity of perswasions as he is to tolerate publike actions for no opinion is judicable nor no person punishable but for a sin and if his opinion by reason
TREATISES OF 1. The Liberty of Prophesying 2. Prayer Ex Tempore 3. Episcopacie TOGETHER WITH A Sermon preached at Oxon. on the Anniversary of the 5. of November By IER TAYLOR D. D. Chaplaine in Ordinary to His MAJESTY LONDON Printed for R. ROYSTON at the Angel in Ivie-lane 1648. ΘΕΟΛΟΓΙΑ ΕΚΛΕΚΤΙΚΗ THE Liberty of Prophesying With it's just limits and temper W. Marshall sculpsit ΘΕΟΛΟΓΙΑ ΕΚΛΕΚΤΙΚΗ A DISCOURSE OF The Liberty of Prophesying SHEWING THE UNREASONABLENES of prescribing to other mens Faith and the Iniquity of persecuting differing opinions By IER TAYLOR D. D. Chaplaine in Ordinarie to His MAJESTIE LONDON Printed for R. ROYSTON at the Angel in Ivie-lane 1647. To the Right Honourable CHRISTOPHER Lord HATTON Baron HATTON of Kirby Comptroler of His Majesties Houshold and one of His Majesties most Honourable Priyie Councell My Lord IN this great Storm which hath dasht the Vessell of the Church all in pieces I have been cast upon the Coast of Wales and in a little Boat thought to have enjoyed that rest and quietnesse which in England in a greater I could not hope for Here I cast Anchor and thinking to ride safely the Storm followed me with so impetuous violence that it broke a Cable and I lost my Anchor And here again I was exposed to the mercy of the Sea and the gentlenesse of an Element that could neither distinguish things nor persons And but that he who stilleth the raging of the Sea and the noise of his Waves and the madnesse of his people had provided a Plank for me I had been lost to all the opportunities of content or study But I know not whether I have been more preserved by the courtesies of my friends or the gentlenesse and mercies of a noble Enemy 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 And now since I have come ashoar I have been gathering a few sticks to warm me a few books to entertain my thoughts and divert them from the perpetuall Meditation of my private Troubles and the publike Dyscrasy but those which I could obtain were so few and so impertinent and unusefull to any great purposes that I began to be sad upon a new stock and full of apprehension that I should live unprofitably and die obscurely and be forgotten and my bones thrown into some common charnell house without any name or note to distinguish me from those who only served their Generation by filling the number of Citizens and who could pretend to no thanks or reward from the Publike beyond a jus trium liberorum While I was troubled with these thoughts and busie to find out an opportunity of doing some good in my small proportion still the cares of the publike did so intervene that it was as impossible to separate my design from relating to the present as to exempt my selfe from the participation of the common calamity still halfe my thoughts was in despite of all my diversions and arts of avocation fixt upon and mingled with the present concernments so that besides them I could not goe Now because the great Question is concerning Religion and in that also my Scene lies I resolved here to fix my considerations especially when I observed the wayes of promoting the severall opinions which now are busie to be such as besides that they were most troublesome to me and such as I could by no meanes be friends withall they were also such as to my understanding did the most apparently disserve their ends whose design in advancing their own opinions was pretended for Religion For as contrary as cruelty is to mercy as tyranny to charity so is warre and bloodshed to the meeknesse and gentlenesse of Christian Religion And however that there are some exterminating spirits who think God to delight in humane sacrifices as if that Oracle 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 had come from the Father of Spirits yet if they were capable of coole and tame Homilies or would hear men of other opinions give a quiet account without invincible resolutions never to alter their perswasions I am very much perswaded it would not be very hard to dispute such men into mercies and compliances and Tolerations mutuall such I say who are zealous for Jesus Christ then whose Doctrine never was any thing more mercifull and humane whose lessons were softer then Nard or the juice of the Candian Olive Upon the first apprehension I design'd a Discourse to this purpose with as much greedinesse as if I had thought it possible with my Arguments to have perswaded the rough and hard handed Souldiers to have disbanded presently For I had often thought of the Prophecy that in the Gospel our swords should be turned into plowshares and our Speares into pruning hooks I knew that no tittle spoken by Gods Spirit could return unperform'd and ineffectuall and I was certain that such was the excellency of Christ's Doctrine that if men would obey it Christians should never warre one against another in the mean time I considered not that it was praedictio consilii non eventus till I saw what men were now doing and ever had done since the heats and primitive fervours did coole and the love of interests sweld higher then the love of Christianity but then on the other side I began to fear that whatever I could say would be as ineffectuall as it could be reasonable For if those excellent words which our blessed Master spake could not charm the tumult of our spirits I had little reason to hope that one of the meanest and most ignorant of his servants could advance the end of that which he cals his great and his old and his new Commandement so well as the excellency of his own Spirit and discourses could And yet since he who knew every event of things and the successe and efficacy of every Doctrine and that very much of it to most men and all of it to some men would be ineffectuall yet was pleased to consign our duty that it might bee a direction to them that would and a conviction and a Testimony against them that would not obey I thought it might not misbecome my duty and endevours to plead for peace and charity and forgivenesse and permissions mutuall although I had reason to believe that such is the iniquity of men and they so indisposed to receive such impresses that I had as good plow the Sands or till the Aire as perswade such Doctrines which destroy mens interests and serve no end but the great end of a happy eternity and what is in order to it But because the events of things are in Gods disposition and I knew them not and because if I had known my good purposes would be totally ineffectuall as to others yet my own designation and purposes would be of advantage to my selfe who might from Gods mercy expect the retribution which he is pleased to promise to all pious intendments I resolved to encounter with all Objections and to doe something to which I should be determined by the consideration
were by the Scripture indeterminately And it were well if men would as much consider themselves as the Doctrines and think that they may as well be deceiv'd by their own weaknesse as perswaded by the Arguments of a Doctrine which other men as wise call inevident For it is a hard case that we shall think all Papists and Anabaptists and Sacramentaries to be fooles and wicked persons certainly among all these Sects there are very many wise men and good men as well as erring and although some zeales are so hot and their eyes so inflamed with their ardors that they doe not think their Adversaries look like other men yet certainly we find by the results of their discourses and the transactions of their affaires of civill society that they are men that speak and make syllogismes and use reason and read Scripture and although they do no more understand all of it then we doe yet they endeavour to understand as much as concerns them even all that they can even all that concerns repentance from dead works and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ And therefore me thinks this also should be another consideration distinguishing the persons for if the persons be Christians in their lives and Christians in their profession if they acknowledge the Eternall Sonne of God for their Master and their Lord and live in all relations as becomes persons making such professions why then should I hate such persons whom God loves and who love God who are partakers of Christ and Christ hath a title to them who dwell in Christ and Christ in them because their understandings have not been brought up like mine have not had the same Masters they have not met with the same books nor the same company or have not the same interest or are not so wise or else are wiser that is for some reason or other which I neither doe understand nor ought to blame have not the same opinions that I have and do not determine their Schoole Questions to the sense of my Sect or interest But now I know before hand that those men who will endure none but their own Sect will make all manner of attemps against these purposes of charity and compliance and say I or doe I what I can will tell all their Proselytes that I preach indifferency of Religion that I say it is no matter how we believe nor what they professe But that they may comply with all Sects and doe violence to their own consciences that they may be sav'd in all Religions and so make way for a colluvies of Heresies and by consequence destroy all Religion Nay they will say worse then all this and but that I am not used to their phrases and formes of declamation I am perswaded I might represent fine Tragedies before hand And this will be such an objection that although I am most confident I shall make apparent to be as false and scandalous as the Objectors themselves are zealous and impatient yet besides that I believe the Objection will come where my answers will not come or not be understood I am also confident that in defiance and incuriousnesse of all that I shall say some men will persist pertinaciously in the accusation and deny my conclusion in despite of mee well but however I will try And first I answer that whatsoever is against the foundation of Faith or contrary to good life and the lawes of obedience or destructive to humane society and the publick and just interests of bodies politick is out of the limits of my Question and does not pretend to complyance or toleration So that I allow no indifferency nor any countenance to those Religions whose principles destroy Government nor to those Religions if there be any such that teach ill life nor doe I think that any thing will now excuse from beliefe of a fundamentall Article except stupidity or sottishnesse and naturall inhability This alone is sufficient answer to this vanity but I have much more to say Secondly The intendment of my Discourse is that permissions should be in Questions speculative indeterminable curious and unnecessary and that men would not make more necessities then God made which indeed are not many The fault I find and seek to remedy is that men are so dogmaticall and resolute in their opinions and impatient of others disagreeings in those things wherein is no sufficient meanes of union and determination but that men should let opinions and problemes keep their own forms and not be obtruded as axiomes nor questions in the vast collection of the systeme of Divinity be adopted into the family of Faith And I think I have reason to desire this Thirdly It is hard to say that he who would not have men put to death or punished corporally for such things for which no humane Authority is sufficient either for cognisance or determination or competent for infliction that he perswades to an indifferency when he referres to another Judicatory which is competent sufficient infallible just and highly severe No man or company of men can judge or punish our thoughts or secret purposes whilest they so remaine and yet it will be unequall to say that he who owns this Doctrine preaches it lawfull for men to think or purpose what they will And so it is in matters of doubtfull disputation such as are the distinguishing Articles of most of the Sects of Christendome So it is in matters intellectuall which are not cognoscible by a secular power in matters spirituall which are to be discerned by spirituall Authority which cannot make corporall inflictions and in Questions indeterminate which are doubtfully propounded or obscurely and therefore may be in utramque partem disputed or believed for God alone must be Judge of these matters who alone is Master of our souls and hath a dominion over humane understanding and he that sayes this does not say that indifferency is perswaded because God alone is Judge of erring persons Fourthly No part of this Discourse teaches or encourages variety of Sects and contradiction in opinions but supposes them already in being and therefore since there are and ever were and ever will be variety of opinions because there is variety of humane understandings and uncertainty in things no man should be too forward in determining all Questions nor so forward in prescribing to others nor invade that liberty which God hath left to us intire by propounding many things obscurely and by exempting our souls and understandings from all power externally compulsory So that the restraint is laid upon mens tyranny but no license given to mens opinions they are not considered in any of the Conclusions but in the premises only as an Argument to exhort to charity So that if I perswade a license of discrediting any thing which God hath commanded us to believe and allow a liberty where God hath not allowed it let it be shewn and let the Objection presse as hard as it can but to say that men are
God and lives as contrary to the Lawes of Christianity as a Heretick and I am also sure that I know what drunkennesse is but I am not sure that such an opinion is Heresy neither would other men be so sure as they think for if they did consider it aright and observe the infinite deceptions and causes of deceptions in wise men and in most things and in all doubtfull Questions and that they did not mistake confidence for certainty But indeed I could not but smile at those jolly Fryers two Franciscans offered themselves to the fire to prove Savonarola to be a Heretick but a certaine Iacobine offered himselfe to Commin l. 8. c. 19. the fire to prove that Savonarola had true Revelations and was no Heretick in the meane time Savonarola preacht but made no such confident offer not durst he venture at that new kind of fire Ordeal and put case all four had past through the fire and dyed in the flames what would that have proved Had he been a Heretick or no Heretick the more or the lesse for the confidence of these Zealous Ideots If we mark it a great many Arguments whereon many Sects rely are no better probation then this comes to Confidence is the first and the second and the third part of a very great many of their propositions But now if men would a little turn the Tables and be as zealous for a good life and all the strictest precepts of Christianity which is a Religion the most holy the most reasonable and the most consummate that ever was taught to man as they are for such propositions in which neither the life nor the ornament of Christianity is concerned we should find that as a consequent of this piety men would be as carefull as they could to find out all truths and the sense of all revelations which may concern their duty and where men were miserable and could not yet others that liv'd good lives too would also be so charitable as not to adde affliction to this misery and both of them are parts of good life to be compassionate and to help to beare one anothers burdens not to destroy the weak but to entertain him meekly that 's a precept of charity and to endeavour to find out the whole will of God that also is a part of the obedience the choyce and the excellency of Faith and hee lives not a good life that does not doe both these But men think they have more reason to bee zealous against Heresy then against a vice in manners because Heresy is infectious and dangerous and the principle of much evill Indeed if by a Heresy we mean that which is against an Article of Creed and breaks part of the Covenant made between God and man by the mediation of Jesus Christ I grant it to be a very grievous crime a calling Gods veracity into question and a destruction also of good life because upon the Articles of Creed obedience is built and it lives or dies as the effect does by its proper cause for Faith is the morall cause of obedience But then Heresy that is such as this is also a vice and the person criminall and so the sin is to be esteem'd in its degrees of malignity and let men be as zealous against it as they can and imploy the whole arsenall of the spirituall armour against it such as this is worse then adultery or murther in as much as the soule is more noble then the body and a false doctrine is of greater dissemination and extent then a single act of violence or impurity Adultery or murder is a duell but Heresy truly and indeed such is an unlawfull warre it slayes thousands The loosing of Faith is like digging down a foundation all the superstructures of hope and patience and charity fall with it And besides this Heresy of all crimes is the most inexcusable and of least temptation for true faith is most commonly kept with the least trouble of any grace in the world and Heresy of it selfe hath not only no pleasure in it but is a very punishment because faith as it opposes hereticall or false opinions and distinguishes from charity consists in meare acts of believing which because they are of true propositions are naturall and proportionable to the understanding and more honourable then false But then concerning those things which men now adayes call Heresy they cannot be so formidable as they are represented and if we consider that drunkennesse is certainly a damnable sin and that there are more Drunkards then Hereticks and that drunkennesse is parent of a thousand vices it may better bee said of this vice then of most of those opinions which we call Heresies it is infectious and dangerous and the principle of much evill and therefore as fit an object for a pious zeale to contest against as is any of those opinions which trouble mens ease or reputation for that is the greatest of their malignity But if we consider that Sects are made and opinions are called Heresies upon interest and the grounds of emolument we shall see that a good life would cure much of this mischiefe For first the Church of Rome which is the great dictatrix of dogmaticall resolutions and the declarer of Heresy and calls Heretick more then all the world besides hath made that the rule of Heresy which is the conservatory of interest and the ends of men For to recede from the Doctrine of the Church with them makes Heresy that is to disrepute their Authority and not to obey them not to be their subjects not to give them the Empire of our conscience is the great 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of Heresy So that with them Heresy is to be esteemed clearely by humane ends not by Divine Rules that is formall Heresy which does materially disserve them and it would make a suspicious man a little inquisitive into their particular Doctrins and when hee finds that Indulgences and Jubilies and Purgatories and Masses and Offices for the dead are very profitable that the Doctrine of primacy of infallibility of superiority over Councels of indirect power in temporals are great instruments of secular honour would be apt enough to think that if the Church of Rome would learn to lay her honour at the feet of the Crucifix and despise the world and preferre Ierusalem before Rome and Heaven above the Lateran that these opinions would not have in them any native strength to support them against the perpetuall assaults of their Adversaries that speak so much reason and Scripture against them I have instanced in the Roman Religion but I wish it may be considered also how farre mens Doctrines in other Sects serve mens temporall ends so farre that it would not bee unreasonable or unnecessary to attempt to cure some of their distemperatures or misperswasions by the salutary precepts of sanctity and holy life Sure enough if it did not more concern their reputation and their lasting interest
For others I shall be incurious because the number of them that honour you is the same with them that honour Learning and Piety and they are the best Theatre and the best judges amongst which the world must needs take notice of my ambition to be ascribed by my publike pretence to be what I am in all heartinesse of Devotion and for all the reason of the world My Honour'd Lord Your Lordships most faithfull and most affectionate servant J. TAYLOR The Contents of the Sections SECTION I. OF the Nature of Faith and that its duty is compleated in believing the Articles of the Apostles Creed Pag. 5. SECT II. Of Heresy and the nature of it and that it is to be accounted according to the strict capacity of Christian Faith and not in Opinions speculative nor ever to pious persons pag. 18. SECT III. Of the difficulty and uncertainty of Arguments from Scripture in Questions not simply necessary not literally determined pag. 59. SECT IV. Of the difficulty of Expounding Scripture pag. 73. SECT V. Of the insufficiency and uncertainty of Tradition to expound Scripture or determine Questions pag. 83. SECT VI. Of the uncertainty and insufficiency of Councels Ecclesiasticall to the same purpose pag. 101. SECT VII Of the fallibility of the Pope and the uncertainty of his Expounding Scripture and resolving Questions pag. 125. SECT VIII Of the disability of Fathers or Writers Ecclesiasticall to determine our Questions with certainty and Truth pag. 151. SECT IX Of the incompetency of the Church in its diffusive capacity to be Iudge of Controversies and the impertinency of that pretence of the Spirit pag. 161. SECT X. Of the authority of Reason and that it proceeding upon the best grounds is the best judge pag. 165. SECT XI Of some causes of Errour in the exercise of Reason which are inculpate in themselves pag. 171. SECT XII Of the innocency of Errour in opinion in a pious person pag. 184. SECT XIII Of the deportment to be used towards persons disagreeing and the reasons why they are not to be punished with death c. pag. 189. SECT XIIII Of the practice of Christian Churches towards persons disagreeing and when Persecution first came in pag. 203. SECT XV. How farre the Church or Governours may act to the restraining false or differing opinions pag. 210. SECT XVI Whether it be lawfull for a Prince to give toleration to severall Religions pag. 213. SECT XVII Of compliance with disagreeing persons or weak Consciences in generall pag. 217. SECT XVIII A particular consideration of the Opinions of the Anabaptists pag. 223 SECT XIX That there may be no Toleration of Doctrines inconsistent with piety or the publique good pag. 246. SECT XX. How farre the Religion of the Church of Rome is Tolerable pag. 249. SECT XXI Of the duty of particular Churches in allowing Communion pag. 262. SECT XXII That particular men may communicate with Churches of different perswasions and how farre they may doe it pag. 264. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 OF THE LIBERTY OF PROPHESYING THe infinite variety of Opinions in matters of Religion as they have troubled Christendome with interests factions and partialities so have they caused great divisions of the heart and variety of thoughts and designes amongst pious and prudent men For they all seeing the inconveniences which the dis-union of perswasions and Opinions have produced directly or accidentally have thought themselves obliged to stop this inundation of mischiefes and have made attempts accordingly But it hath hapned to most of them as to a mistaken Physitian who gives excellent physick but mis-applies it and so misses of his cure so have these men their attempts have therefore been ineffectuall for they put their help to a wrong part or they have endeavoured to cure the symptomes and have let the disease alone till it seem'd incurable Some have endeavoured to re-unite these fractions by propounding such a Guide which they were all bound to follow hoping that the Unity of a Guide would have perswaded unity of mindes but who this Guide should be at last became such a Question that it was made part of the fire that was to be quenched so farre was it from extinguishing any part of the flame Others thought of a Rule and this must be the meanes of Union or nothing could doe it But supposing all the World had been agreed of this Rule yet the interpretation of it was so full of variety that this also became part of the disease for which the cure was pretended All men resolv'd upon this that though they yet had not hit upon the right yet some way must be thought upon to reconcile differences in Opinion thinking so long as this variety should last Christ's Kingdome was not advanced and the work of the Gospel went on but slowly Few men in the mean time considered that so long as men had such variety of principles such severall constitutions educations tempers and distempers hopes interests and weaknesses degrees of light and degrees of understanding it was impossible all should be of one minde And what is impossible to be done is not necessary it should be done And therefore although variety of Opinions was impossible to be cured and they who attempted it did like him who claps his shoulder to the ground to stop an earth-quake yet the inconveniences arising from it might possibly be cured not by uniting their beliefes that was to be dispaird of but by curing that which caus'd these mischiefes and accidentall inconveniences of their disagreeings For although these inconveniences which every man sees and feeles were consequent to this diversity of perswasions yet it was but accidentally and by chance in as much as wee see that in many things and they of great concernment men alow to themselves and to each other a liberty of disagreeing and no hurt neither And certainely if diversity of Opinions were of it selfe the cause of mischiefes it would be so ever that is regularly and universally but that we see it is not For there are disputes in Christendome concerning matters of greater concernment then most of those Opinions that distinguish Sects and make factions and yet because men are permitted to differ in those great matters such evills are not consequent to such differences as are to the uncharitable managing of smaller and more inconsiderable Questions It is of greater consequence to believe right in the Question of the validity or invalidity of a death-bed repentance then to believe aright in the Question of Purgatory and the consequences of the Doctrine of Predetermination are of deeper and more materiall consideration then the products of the beliefe of the lawfulnesse or unlawfulnesse of private Masses and yet these great concernments where a liberty of Prophecying in these Questions hath been permitted hath made no distinct Communion no sects of Christians and the others have and so have these too in those places where they have peremptorily been determind on either side Since then if men are
this often hapned I think S. Austin is the chiefe Argument and Authority we have for the Assumption of the Virgin Mary the Baptism of Infants is called a Tradition by Origen alone at first and from Salmeron disput 51. in Rom. him by others The procession of the holy Ghost from the Sonne which is an Article the Greek Church disavowes derives from the Tradition Apostolicall as it is pretended and yet before S. Austin we heare nothing of it very cleerly or certainly for as much as that whole mystery concerning the blessed Spirit was so little explicated in Scripture and so little derived to them by Tradition that till the Councell of Nice you shall hardly find any form of worship or personall addresse of devotion to the holy Spirit as Erasmus observes and I think the contrary will very hardly be verified And for this particular in which I instance whatsoever is in Scripture concerning it is against that which the Church of Rome calls Tradition which makes the Greeks so confident as they are of the point and is an Argument of the vanity of some things which for no greater reason are called Traditions but because one man hath said so and that they can be proved by no better Argument to be true Now in this case wherein Tradition descends upon us with unequall certainty it would be very unequall to require of us an absolute beliefe of every thing not written for feare we be accounted to slight Tradition Apostolicall And since no thing can require our supreme assent but that which is truly Catholike and Apostolike and to such a Tradition is requir'd as Irenaeus sayes the consent of all those Churches which the Apostles planted and where they did preside this topick will be of so little use in judging heresies that besides what is deposited in Scripture it cannot be proved in any thing but in the Canon of Scripture it selfe and as it is now received even in that there is some variety And therefore there is wholy a mistake in this businesse for when the Fathers appeal to Tradition and with much earnestnesse Numb 8. and some clamour they call upon Hereticks to conform to or to be tryed by Tradition it is such a Tradition as delivers the fundamentall points of Christianity which were also recorded in Scripture But because the Canon was not yet perfectly consign'd they call'd to that testimony they had which was the testimony of the Churches Apostolicall whose Bishops and Priests being the Antistites religionis did believe and preach Christian Religion and conserve all its great mysteries according as they had been taught Irenaeus calls this a Tradition Apostolicall Christum accepisse calicem dixisse sanguinem suum esse docuisse novam oblationem novi Testamenti quam Ecclesia per Apostolos accipiens offert per totum mundum And the Fathers in these Ages confute Hereticks by Ecclesiasticall Tradition that is they confront against their impious and blaspemous doctrines that Religion which the Apostles having taught to the Churches where they did preside their Successors did still preach and for a long while together suffered not the enemy to sow tares amongst their wheat And yet these doctrines which they called Traditions were nothing but such fundamentall truths which were in Scripture 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 is Irenaeus in Eusebius observes in the instance of Polycarpus and it is manifest by considering Lib. 5. cap. 20. what heresies they fought against the heresies of Ebion Cerinthus Nicolaitans Valentinians Carpocratians persons that Vid. Irenae l. 3 4. cont haeres denyed the Sonne of God the Unity of the God-head that preached impurity that practised Sorcery and Witch-craft And now that they did rather urge Tradition against them then Scripture was because the publike Doctrine of all the Apostolicall Churches was at first more known and famous then many parts of the Scripture and because some Hereticks denyed S. Lukes Gospel some received none but S. Matthews some rejected all S. Pauls Epistles and it was a long time before the whole Canon was consign'd by universall Testimony some Churches having one part some another Rome her selfe had not all so that in this case the Argument from Tradition was the most famous the most certain and the most prudent And now according to this rule they had more Traditions then we have and Traditions did by degrees lessen as they came to be written and their necessity was lesse as the knowledge of them was ascetained to us by a better Keeper of Divine Truths All that great mysteriousnesse of Christs Priest-hood the unity of his Sacrifice Christs Advocation and Intercession for us in Heaven and many other excellent Doctrines might very well be accounted Traditions before S. Pauls Epistle to the Hebrews was publish'd to all the World but now they are written truths and if they had not possibly we might either have lost them quite or doubted of them as we doe of many other Traditions by reason of the insufficiency of the propounder And therefore it was that S. Peter took order that the Gospel 2 Pet. 1. 13. should be Writ for he had promised that he would doe something which after his decease should have these things in remembrance He knew it was not safe trusting the report of men where the fountain might quickly run dry or be corrupted so insensibly that no cure could be found for it nor any just notice taken of it till it were incurable And indeed there is scarce any thing but what is written in Scripture that can with any confidence of Argument pretend to derive from the Apostles except ritualls and manners of ministration but no doctrines or speculative mysteries are so transmitted to us by so cleer a current that we may see a visible channell and trace it to the Primitive fountaines It is said to be a Tradition Apostolicall that no Priest should baptize without chrism and the command of the Bishop Suppose it were yet we cannot be oblig'd to believe it with much confidence because we have but little proofe for it scarce any thing but the single testimony of S. Hierom. And yet if it were this is but a rituall of which in passing by I shall give that account That Dialog adv Lucifer suppose this and many more ritualls did derive clearly from Tradition Apostolicall which yet but very few doe yet it is hard that any Church should be charged with crime for not observing such ritualls because we see some of them which certainly did derive from the Apostles are expir'd and gone out in a desuetude such as are abstinence from blood and from things strangled the coenobitick life of secular persons the colledge of widowes to worship standing upon the Lords day to give milk and honey to the newly baptized and many more of the like nature now there having been no mark to distinguish the necessity of one from the indifferency of the other they are all
have suspended or cassated the Decree in case the Pope had then disavowed it For besides the condemnation of Pope Honorius for heresy the 13 th and 55 th Canons of that Councell are expressely against the custome of the Church of Rome But this particular is involved in that new Question whether the Pope be above a Councell Now since the Contestation of this Question there was never any free or lawfull Councell * Vid. postea de Concil Sinvessane §. 6. N. 9. that determined for the Pope it is not likely any should and is it likely that any Pope will confirm a Councell that does not For the Councell of Basil is therefore condemn'd by the last Lateran which was an Assembly in the Popes own Palace and the Councell of Constance is of no value in this Question and slighted in a just proportion as that Article is disbelieved But I will not much trouble the Question with a long consideration of this particular the pretence is senselesse and illiterate against reason and experience and already determin'd by S. Austin sufficiently as to this particular Epist. 162. ad Glorium Ecce putemus illos Episcopos qui Romae judicaverunt non bonos judices fuisse Restabat adhuc plenarium Ecclesiae universae Concilium ubi etiam cum ipsis judicibus causa possit agitari ut si male judicasse convicti essent eorum sententiae solverentur For since Popes may be parties may be Simoniacks Schismaticks Hereticks it is against reason that in their own causes they should be judges or that in any causes they should be superior to their judges And as it is against reason so is it against all experience too for the Councell Sinvessanum as it said was conven'd to take Cognisance of Pope Marcellinus and divers Councels were held at Rome to give judgement in the causes of Damasus Sixtus the III Symmachus and Leo III and IV as is to be seen in Platina and the Tomes of the Councels And it is no answer to this and the like allegations to say in matters of fact and humane constitution the Pope may be judg'd by a Councell but in matters of Faith all the world must stand to the Popes determination and authoritative decision For if the Pope can by any colour pretend to any thing it is to a suprem Judicature in matters Ecclesiasticall positive and of fact and if he failes in this pretence he will hardly hold up his head for any thing else for the ancient Bishops deriv'd their Faith from the fountaine and held that in the highest tenure even from Christ their Head but by reason of the Imperiall * Vide Concil Chalced act 15. City it became the principall Seat and he surpriz'd the highest Judicature partly by the concession of others partly by his own accidentall advantages and yet even in these things although he was major singulis yet he was minor universis And this is no more then what was decreed of the eighth Generall Act. ult can 21. Synod which if it be sense is pertinent to this Question for Generall Councels are appointed to take Cognizance of Questions and differences about the Bishop of Rome non tamen audacter in eum ferre sententiam By audactèr as is supposed is meant praecipitanter hastily and unreasonably but if to give sentence against him bee wholy forbidden it is non-sense for to what purpose is an Authority of taking Cognizance if they have no power of giving sentence unlesse it were to deserre it to a superiour Judge which in this case cannot be supposed for either the Pope himselfe is to judge his own cause after their examination of him or the Generall Councell is to judge him So that although the Councell is by that Decree enjoyn'd to proceed modestly and warily yet they may proceed to sentence or else the Decree is ridiculous and impertinent But to cleare all I will instance in matters of Question and opinion For not only some Councels have made their Decrees Numb 5. without or against the Pope but some Councels have had the Popes confirmation and yet have not been the more legitimate or obligatory but are known to be hereticall For the Canons of the sixth Synod although some of them were made against the Popes and the custome of the Church of Rome a Pope a while after did confirm the Councell and yet the Canons are impious and hereticall and so esteem'd by the Church of Rome her selfe I instance in the second Canon which approves of that Synod of Carthage under Cyprian for rebaptization of Hereticks and the 72 Canon that dissolves marriage between persons of differing perswasion in matters of Christian Religion and yet these Canons were approved by Pope Adrian I. who in his Epistle to Tharasius which is in the second action of the seventh Synod calls them Canones divinè legalitèr praedicatos And these Canons were used by Pope Nicholas I. in his Epistle ad Michaclem and by Innocent III. c. à multis extra de aetat ordinandorum So that now that wee may apply this there are seven Generall Councels which by the Church of Rome are condemn'd of errour The * Vid. Socra l. z. c. 5. Sozom. l. 3. c. 5. Councell of Antioch A. D. 345. in which S. Athanasius was condemn'd The Councell of Millaine A. D. 354. of above 300 Bishops The Councell of Ariminum consisting of 600 Bishops The second Councell of Ephesus A. D. 449. in which the Eutychian heresy was confirmed Gregor in Regist li. 3. caus 7. ait Concilium Numidiae errasse Concilium Aquisgrani erravit De ra ptore raptâdist 20. can de libellis in glossâ and the Patriarch Flavianus kild by the faction of Dioscorus The Councell of Constantinople under Leo Isaurus A. D. 730 And another at Constantinople 35 years after And lastly the Councel at Pisa 134 years since Now that these Generall Councels are condemn'd is a sufficient Argument that Councels may erre and it is no answer to say they were not confirm'd by the Pope for the Popes confirmation I have shewn not to be necessary or if it were yet even that also is an Argument that Generall Councels may become invalid either by their own fault or by some extrinsecall supervening accident either of which evacuates their Authority and whether all that is required to the legitimation of a Councell was actually observ'd in any Councell is so hard to determine that no man can be infallibly sure that such a Councell is authentick and sufficient probation 2. And that is the second thing I shall observe There are so many Questions concerning the efficient the forme the Numb 6. matter of Generall Councells and their manner of proceeding and their finall sanction that after a Question is determin'd by a Conciliary Assembly there are perhaps twenty more Questions to be disputed before we can with confidence either believe the Councell upon its meere Authority or obtrude
But the observation and experience of all wise men can justifie this truth All that I shall say to the present purpose is this that consideration is to be had to the weakness of persons when they are prevail'd upon by so innocent a prejudice and when there cannot be arguments strong enough to over-master an habituall perswasion bred with a man nourish'd up with him that alwayes eat at his table and lay in his bosome he is not easily to be called Heretique for if he keeps the foundation of faith other articles are not so cleerly demonstrated on either side but that a man may innocently be abused to the contrary And therefore in this case to handle him charitably is but to doe him justice And when an opinion in minoribus articulis is entertain'd upon the title and stock of education it may be the better permitted to him since upon no better stock nor stronger arguments most men entertain their whole Religion even Christianity it selfe 5. There are some persons of a differing perswasion who therefore Numb 5. are the rather to be tolerated because the indirect practices and impostures of their adversaries have confirmed them that those opinions which they disavow are not from God as being upheld by means not of Gods appointment For it is no unreasonable discourse to say that God will not be served with a lye for he does not need one and he hath means enough to support all those truths which he hath commanded and hath supplyed every honest cause with enough for its maintenance and to contest against its adversaries And but that they which use indirect arts will not be willing to lose any of their unjust advantages nor yet be charitable to those persons whom either to gain or to undoe they leave nothing unattempted the Church of Rome hath much reason not to be so decretory in her sentences against persons of a differing perswasion for if their cause were entirely the cause of God they have given wise people reason to suspect it because some of them have gone to the Devill to defend it And if it be remembred what tragedies were stirred up against Luther for saying the Devill had taught him an argument against the Mass it will be of as great advantage against them that they goe to the Devill for many arguments to support not onely the Mass but the other distinguishing Articles of their Church I instance in the notorious forging of Miracles and framing of false and ridiculous Legends For the former I need no other instances then what hapned in the great contestation about the immaculate conception when there were Miracles brought on both sides to prove the contradictory parts and though it be more then probable that both sides play'd the jugglers yet the Dominicans had the ill luck to be discovered and the actors burn'd at Berne But this discovery hapned by providence for the Dominican opinion hath more degrees of probability then the Franciscan is cleerly more consonant both to Scripture and all antiquity and this part of it is acknowledged by the greatest Patrons themselves as Salmeron Posa and Wadding yet because they played the knaves in a just question and used false arts to maintain a true proposition God Almighty to shew that he will not be served by a lye was pleased rather to discover the imposture in the right opinion then in the false since nothing is more dishonourable to God then to offer a sin in sacrifice to him and nothing more incongruous in the nature of the thing then that truth and falshood should support each other or that true doctrine should live at the charges of a lye And he that considers the arguments for each opinion will easily conclude that if God would not have truth confirmed by a lye much lesse would he himself attest a lye with a true miracle And by this ground it will easily follow that the Franciscan party although they had better luck then the Dominicans yet had not more honesty because their cause was worse and therefore their arguments no whit the better And although the argument drawn from miracles is good to attest a holy doctrine which by its own worth will support it selfe after way is a little made by miracles yet of it selfe and by its owne reputation it will not support any fabrick for instead of proving a doctrine to be true it makes that the miracles themselves are suspected to be illusions if they be pretended in behalfe of a doctrine which we think we have reason to account false And therefore the Jews did not beleeve Christs doctrine for his Miracles but dis-beleeved the truth of his Miracles because they did not like his doctrine And if the holinesse of his doctrine and the Spirit of God by inspirations and infusions and by that which Saint Peter calls a surer word of prophecy had not attested the Divinity both of his Person and his Office we should have wanted many degrees of confidence which now we have upon the truth of Christian Religion But now since we are fore-told by this surer word of prophecy that is the prediction of Jesus Christ Vid. Baron AE D. 68. n. 22. Philostrat l. 4. T. 485. compend Cedren p. 202. that Antichrist should come in all wonders and signs and lying miracles and that the Church saw much of that already verified in Simon Magus Apollonius Tyaneus and Manetho and divers * Stapleton prompt Moral pars aestiva p. 627. Heretiques it is now come to that passe that the argument in its best advantage proves nothing so much as that the doctrine which it pretends to prove is to be suspected because it was foretold that false doctrine should be obtruded under such pretences But then when not onely true miracles are an insufficient argument to prove a truth since the establishment of Christianity but that the miracles themselves are false and spurious it makes that doctrine in whose defence they come justly to be suspected because they are a demonstration that the interested persons use all means leave nothing unattempted to prove their propositions but since they so faile as to bring nothing from God but something from the Devill for its justification it 's a great signe that the doctrine is false because we know the Devill unlesse it be against his will does nothing to prove a true proposition that makes against him And now then those persons who will endure no man of another opinion might doe well to remember how by their exorcismes their Devils tricks at Lowdon and the other side pretending to cure mad folkes and persons bewitched and the many discoveries of their jugling they have given so much reason to their adversaries to suspect their doctrine that either they must not be ready to condemne their persons who are made suspicious by their indirect proceeding in attestation of that which they value so high as to call their Religion or else they must condemne themselves for making
now against the instance and precedent of those ages who were confessedly wise pious and whose practice are often made to us arguments to follow If yea and that they had been persecuted it is the thing which this argument condemnes and the losse of the Church had been invaluable in the losing or the provocation and temptation of such rare personages and the example and the rule of so ill consequence that all persons might upon the same ground have suffered and though some had escaped yet no man could have any more security from punishment then from error 5. Either the disagreeing person is in error or not but a true believer in either of the cases to persecute him is extremely imprudent Numb 9 For if he be a true beleever then it is a cleere case that we doe open violence to God and his servants and his truth If he be in error what greater folly and stupidity then to give to error the glory of Martyrdome and the advantages which are accidentally consequent to a persecution For as it was true of the Martyrs Quoties morimur toties nascimur and the increase of their trouble was the increase of their confidence and the establishment of their perswasions so it is in all false opinions for that an opinion is true or false is extrinsecall or accidentall to the consequents and advantages it gets by being afflicted And there is a popular pity that followes all persons in misery and that compassion breeds likenesse of affections and that very often produces likenesse of perswasion and so much the rather because there arises a jealousie and pregnant suspicion that they who persecute an opinion are destitute of sufficient arguments to confute it and that the hangman is the best disputant For if those arguments which they have for their owne doctrine were a sufficient ground of confidence perswasion men would be more willing to use those means arguments which are better complyances with humane understanding which more naturally doe satisfie it which are more humane and Christian then that way which satisfies none which destroyes many which provokes more which makes all men jealous To which adde that those who dye for their opinion leave in all men great arguments of the heartinesse of their beliefe of the confidence of their perswasion of the piety and innocencie of their persons of the purity of their intention and simplicity of purposes that they are persons totally disinterest and separate from designe For no interest can be so great as to be put in balance against a mans life and his soul he does very imprudently serve his ends who seeingly fore-knowingly loses his life in the prosecution of them Just as if Titius should offer to dye for Sempronius upon condition he might receive twenty talents when he had done his work It is certainly an argument of a great love and a great confidence and a great sincerity and a great hope when a man layes downe his life in attestation of a proposition Greater love then this hath no man then to lay downe his life saith our Blessed Saviour And although laying of a wager is an argument of confidence more then truth yet laying such a wager staking of a mans Soule and pawning his life gives a hearty testimony that the person is honest confident resigned Charitable and Noble And I know not whether truth can doe a person or a cause more advantages then these can doe to an error And therefore besides the impiety there is great imprudence in Canonizing a hereticke and consecrating an errour by such meanes which were better preserv'd as incouragements of truth and comforts to reall and true Martyrs And it is not amisse to observe that this very advantage was taken by hereticks who were ready to shew and boast their Catalogues of Martyrs in particular the Circumcellians did so and the Donatists and yet the first were heretickes the second Schismaticks And it was remarkeable in the Schollers of Priscillian who as they had their Master in the reputation of a Saint while he was living so when he was dead they had him in veneration as a Martyr they with reverence and devotion carryed his and the bodies of his slaine companions to an honourable sepulture and counted it Religion to sweare by the name of Priscillian So that the extinguishing of the person gives life and credit to his doctrine and when he is dead he yet speaks more effectually 6. It is unnaturall and unreasonable to persecute disagreeing opinions Unnaturall for Understanding being a thing wholly Numb 10. spirituall cannot be restrained and therefore neither punished by corporall afflictions It is in alienâ republicâ a matter of another world you may as well cure the colick by brushing a mans clothes or fill a mans belly with a syllogisme these things doe not communicate in matter and therefore neither in action nor passion and since all punishments in a prudent government punish the offender to prevent a future crime and so it proves more medicinall then vindictive the punitive act being in order to the cure and prevention and since no punishment of the body can cure a disease in the soule it is disproportionable in nature and in all civill government to punish where the punishment can doe no good It may be an act of tyrannie but never of justice For is an opinion ever the more true or false for being persecuted Some men have beleeved it the more as being provoked into a confidence and vexed into a resolution but the thing it selfe is not the truer and though the hangman may confute a man with an inexplicable dilemma yet not convince his understanding for such premises can inferre no conclusion but that of a mans life and a Wolfe may as well give lawes to the understanding as he whose dictates are onely propounded in violence and writ in bloud And a dog is as capable of a law as a man if there be no choice in his obedience nor discourse in his choice nor reason to satisfie his discourse And as it is unnaturall so it is unreasonable that Sempronius should force Caius to be of his opinion because Sempronius is Consul this yeare and commands the Lictors As if he that can kill a man cannot but be infallible and if he be not why should I doe violence to my conscience because he can doe violence to my person 7. Force in matters of opinion can doe no good but is very Numb 11. apt to doe hurt for no man can change his opinion when he will or be satisfied in his reason that his opinion is false because discountenanced If a man could change his opinion when he lists he might cure many inconveniences of his life all his feares and his sorrowes would soone disband if he would but alter his opinion whereby he is perswaded that such an accident that afflicts him is an evill and such an object formidable let him but beleeve himselfe
impregnable or that he receives a benefit when he is plundered disgraced imprisoned condemned and afflicted neither his sleeps need to be disturbed nor his quietnesse discomposed But if a man cannot change his opinion when helists nor ever does heartily or resolutely but when he cannot do otherwise then to use force may make him an hypocrite but never to be a right beleever and so instead of erecting a trophee to God and true Religion we build a Monument for the Devill Infinite examples are recorded in Church story to this very purpose But Socrates instances in one for all for when Eleusius Bishop of Cyzicum was threatned by the Emperour Ualens with banishment and confiscation if he did not subscribe to the decree of Ariminum at last he yeilded to the Arrian opinion and presently fell into great torment of Conscience openly at Cyzicum recanted the errour asked God and the Church forgivenesse and complain'd of the Emperours injustice and that was all the good the Arrian party got by offering violence to his Conscience And so many families in Spain which are as they call them new Christians and of a suspected faith into which they were forc'd by the tyrannie of the Inquisition and yet are secret Moores is evidence enough of the * Ejusmodi fuit Hipponensium conversio cujus quidem species decepit August ita ut opinaretur haereticos licet non morte trucidandos vi tamen coercendos Experientiaenim demonstravit eos tam facile ad Arianismum transiisse atque ad Cathelicismum cum Arriani Principes rerum in ed civitate petirentur inconvenience of preaching a doctrine in ore gladii cruentandi For it either punishes a man for keeping a good conscience or forces him into a bad it either punishes sincerity or perswades hypocrisie it persecutes a truth or drives into error and it teaches a man to dissemble and to be safe but never to be honest 8. It is one of the glories of Christian Religion that it was so pious excellent miraculous and petswasive that it came in upon its owne piety and wisdome with no other force but a torrent Numb 12. of arguments and demonstration of the Spirit a mighty rushing wind to beat downe all strong holds and every high thought and imagination but towards the persons of men it was alwayes full of meeknesse and charity complyance and toleration condescension and bearing with one another restoring persons overtaken with an error in the spirit of meeknesse considering lest we also be tempted The consideration is as prudent and the proposition as just as the precept is charitable and the precedent was pious and holy Now things are best conserved with that which gives it the first being and which is agreeable to its temper and constitution That precept which it chiefly preaches in order to all the blessednesse in the world that is of meekness mercy and charity should also preserve it selfe and promote its owne interest For indeed nothing will doe it so well nothing doth so excellently insinuate it selfe into the understandings and affections of men as when the actions and perswasions of a sect and every part and principle and promotion are univocall And it would be a mighty disparagement to so glorious an institution that in its principle it should be mercifull and humane and in the promotion and propagation of it so inhumane And it would be improbable and unreasonable that the sword should be used in the perswasion of one proposition and yet in the perswasion of the whole Religion nothing like it To doe so may serve the end of a temporall Prince but never promote the honour of Christs Kingdome it may secure a designe of Spaine but will very much disserve Christendome to offer to support it by that which good men believe to be a distinctive cognisance of the Mahumetan Religion from the excellencie and piety of Christianity whose sense and spirit is described in those excellent words of S. Paul 2 Tim. 2. 24. The servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto all men in meeknesse instructing those that oppose themselves if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging the truth They that oppose themselves must not be strucken by any of Gods servants and if yet any man will smite these who are his opposites in opinion he will get nothing by that he must quit the title of being a servant of God for his paines And I think a distinction of persons Secular and Ecclesiasticall will doe no advantage for an escape because even the Secular power if it be Christian and a servant of God must not be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 I meane in those cases where meeknesse of instruction is the remedy or if the case be irremediable abscission by Censures is the penalty 9. And if yet in the nature of the thing it were neither unjust Numb 13. nor unreasonable yet there is nothing under God Almighty that hath power over the soule of man so as to command a perswasion or to judge a disagreeing Humane positive Lawes direct all externall acts in order to severall ends and the Judges take cognisance accordingly but no man can command the will or punish him that obeys the Law against his will for because its end is served in externall obedience it neither looks after more neither can it be served by more nor take notice of any more And yet possibly the understanding is lesse subject to humane power then the will for that humane power hath a command over externall acts which naturally and regularly flow from the will ut plurimùm suppose a direct act of will but alwayes either a direct or indirect volition primary or accidentall but the understanding is a naturall faculty subject to no command but where the command is it selfe a reason fit to satisfie and perswade it And therefore God commanding us to beleeve such revelations perswades and satisfies the understanding by his commanding and revealing for there is no greater probation in the world that a proposition is true then because God hath commanded us to believe it But because no mans command is a satisfaction to the understanding or a verification of the proposition therefore the understanding is not subject to humane authority They may perswade but not enjoyne where God hath not and where God hath if it appeares so to him he is an Infidell if he does not beleeve it And if all men have no other efficacie or authority on the understanding but by perswasion proposall and intreaty then a man is bound to assent but according to the operation of the argument and the energie of perswasion neither indeed can he though he would never so faine and he that out of feare and too much complyance and desire to be safe shall desire to bring his understanding with some luxation to the beliefe of humane dictates and authorities may as often misse of the truth as hit it but is sure alwaies to
lose the comfort of truth because he beleeves it upon indirect insufficient and incompetent arguments and as his desire it should be so is his best argument that it is so so the pleasing of men is his best reward and his not being condemned and contradicted all the possession of a truth SECT XIIII Of the practice of Christian Churches towards persons disagreeing and when persecution first came in ANd thus this truth hath been practiced in all times of Christian Religion when there were no collaterall designes on foot nor interests to be served nor passions to be satisfied In S. Pauls time though the censure of heresie were not so loose and forward as afterwards and all that were called Heretiques were cleerly such and highly criminall yet as their crime was so was their censure that is spirituall They were first admonished once at least for so a l. 3. cap. 3. Irenaeus b de prescript Tertullian c lib. ad Quirinum Cyprian d in hunc locum Ambrose and e ibidem Hierome read that place of Titus 3. But since that time all men and at that time some read it Post unam alteram admonitionem reject a Heretique Rejection from the communion of Saints after two warnings that 's the penalty Saint John expresses it by not eating with them not bidding them God speed but the persons against whom he decrees so severely are such as denyed Christ to become in the flesh direct Antichrists and let the sentence be as high as it lists in this case all that I observe is that since in so damnable doctrines nothing but spirituall censure separation from the communion of the faithfull was enjoyned and prescribed we cannot pretend to an Apostolicall precedent if in matters of dispute and innocent question and of great uncertainty and no malignity we should proceed to sentence of death For it is but an absurd and illiterate arguing to say that excommunication is a greater punishment and killing a lesse and therefore Numb 2. whoever may be excommunicated may also be put to death which indeed is the reasoning that Bellarmine uses for first excommunication is not directly and of it self a greater punishment then corporall death Because it is indefinite and incompleat and in order to a further punishment which if it happens then the excommunication was the inlet to it if it does not the excommunication did not signifie halfe so much as the losse of a member much lesse death For it may be totally ineffectuall either by the iniquity of the proceeding or repentance of the person and in all times and cases it is a medicine if the man please if he will not but perseveres in his impiety then it is himselfe that brings the Censure to effect that actuates the judgement and gives a sting and an energy upon that which otherwise would be 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Secondly but when it is at worst it does not kill the Soule it onely consignes it to that death which it had deserved and should have received independently from that sentence of the Church Thirdly and yet excommunication is to admirable purpose for whether it referres to the person censured or to others it is prudentiall in it selfe it is exemplary to others it is medicinall to all For the person censured is by this meanes threatned into piety and the threatning made the more energeticall upon him because by fiction of Law or as it were by a Sacramentall representment the paines of hell are made presentiall to him and so becomes an act of prudent judicature and excellent discipline and the best instrument of spirituall Government Because the neerer the threatning is reduced to matter the more present and circumstantionable it is made the more operative it is upon our spirits while they are immerged in matter And this is the full sense and power of excommunication in its direct intention consequently and accidentally other evills might follow it as in the times of the Apostles the censured persons were buffeted by Satan and even at this day there is lesse security even to the temporall condition of such a person whom his spirituall parents have Anathematiz'd But besides this I know no warrant to affirme any thing of excommunication for the sentence of the Church does but declare not effect the finall sentence of damnation Whoever deserves excommunication deserves damnation and he that repents shall be saved though he dye out of the Churches externall Communion and if he does not repent he shall be damn'd though he was not excommunicate But suppose it greater then the sentence of corporall death yet Numb 3. it followes not because hereticks may be excommunicate therefore kill'd for from a greater to a lesse in a severall kind of things the argument concludes not It is a greater thing to make an excellent discourse then to make a shooe yet he that can doe the greater cannot doe this lesse An Angell cannot beget a man yet he can doe a greater matter in that kind of operations which we terme spirituall and Angelicall And if this were concluding that whoever may be excommunicate may be kill'd then because of excommunications the Church is confessed the sole and intire Judge she is also an absolute disposer of the lives of persons I beleeve this will be but ill doctrine in Spaine for in Bullâ Coenae Domini the King of Spaine is every year excommunicated on Maunday Thursday but if by the same power he might also be put to death as upon this ground he may the Pope might with more ease be invested in that part of S. Peters patrimony which that King hath invaded and surpriz'd But besides this it were extreme harsh Doctrine in a Roman Consistory from whence excommunications issue for trifles for fees for not suffering themselves infinitely to be oppressed for any thing if this be greater then death how great a tyrannie is that which does more then kill men for less then trifles or else how inconsequent is that argument which concludes its purpose upon so false pretence supposition Well however zealous the Apostles were against hereticks yet none were by them or their dictates put to death The death of Numb 4. Ananias and Saphira and the blindnesse of Elymas the Sorcerer amount not to this for they were miraculous inflictions and the first was a punishment to Vow-breach and Sacriledge the second of Sorcery and open contestation against the Religion of Jesus Christ neither of them concerned the case of this present question or if the case were the same yet the authority is not the same For he that inflicted these punishments was infallible and of a power competent But no man at this day is so But as yet people were converted by Miracles Preaching and Disputing and Hereticks by the same meanes were redargued and all men instructed none tortured for their opinion And this continued till Christian people were vexed by disagreeing
of its managing or its effect be a sinne in it selfe or becomes a sinne to the person then as he is to doe towards other sinnes so to that opinion or man so opining But to beleeve so or not so when there is no more but meere beleeving is not in his power to enjoyne therefore not to punish And it is not onely lawfull to tollerate disagreeing perswasions but the authority of God onely is competent to take notice of it and infallible to determine it and fit to judge and therefore no humane authority is sufficient to doe all those things which can justifie the inflicting temporall punishments upon such as doe not conforme in their perswasions to a rule or authority which is not only fallible but supposed by the disagreeing person to be actually deceived But I consider that in the toleration of a different opinion Numb 4. Religion is not properly and immediately concerned so as in any degree to be endangered For it may be safe in diversity of perswasions and it also a part of Christian * Humani iuris naturalis peteslatis unicuique quod putaverit colere Sed nec religionis est cogere religionem quae suscipi sponte debet non vi Tertul. ad Scapulam Religion that the liberty of mens Consciences should be preserved in all things where God hath not set a limit and made a restraint that the soule of man should be free and acknowledge no master but Jesus Christ that matters spirituall should not be restrain'd by purishments corporall that the same meekenesse and charity should be preserved in the promotion of Christianity that gave it foundation and increment firmness in its first publication that conclusions should not be more dogmaticall then the vertuall resolution and efficacy of the premises And that the persons should not more certainly be condemned then their opinions confuted and lastly that the infirmities of men and difficulties of things should be both put in ballance to make abatement in the definitive sentence against mens persons But then because tolleration of opinions is not properly a question of Religion it may be a question of policy And although a man may be a good Christian though he beleeve an errour not fundamentall and not directly or evidently impious yet his opinion may accidentally disturbe the publick peace through the over-activenesse of the person and the confidence of their beliefe and the opinion of its appendant necessity and therefore tolleration of differing perswasions in these cases is to be considered upon politicall grounds and is just so to be admitted or denyed as the opinions or tolleration of them may consist with the publicke and necessary ends of Government Onely this As Christian Princes must looke to the interest of their Government so especially must they consider the interests of Christianity not call every redargution or modest discovery of an established errour by the name of disturbance of the peace For it is very likely that the peevishness and impatience of contradiction in the Governours may break the peace Let them remem-but the gentlenesse of Christianity the Liberty of Consciences which ought to be preserved and let them doe justice to the persons whoever they are that are peevish provided no mans person be over-born with prejudice For if it be necessary for all men to subscribe to the present established Religion by the same reason at another time a man may be bound to subscribe to the contradictory and so to all Religions in the world And they only who by their too much confidence intitle God to all their fancies and make them to be questions of Religion and evidences for Heaven or consignations to Hell they onely think this doctrine unreasonable and they are the men that first disturb the Churches peace and then thinke there is no appeasing the tumult but by getting the victory But they that consider things wisely understand that since salvation and damnation depend not upon impertinencies and yet that publick peace and tranquillity may the Prince is in this case to seeke how to secure Government and the issues and intentions of that while there is in these cases directly no insecurity to Religion unlesse by the accidentall uncharitablenesse of them that dispute Which uncharitablenesse is also much prevented when the publike peace is secured and no person is on either side ingaged upon * Dextera praecipuè capit indulgentia mentes Aâ—peritas oditi saevaque bella parit revenge or troubled with disgrace or vexed with punishments by any decretory sentence against him It was the saying of a wise states-man I meane Thuanus Haeretici qui pace data factionibus scinduntur persecutione uniuntur contra Remp. If you persecute heretickes or discrepants they unite themselves as to a common defence If you permit them they divide themselves upon private interest and the rather if this interest was an ingredient of the opinion The Summe is this it concernes the duty of a Prince because it concernes the Honour of God that all vices and every part of Numb 5. ill life be discountenanced and restrain'd And therefore in relation to that opinions are to be dealt with For the understanding being to direct the will and opinions to guide our practices they are considerable onely as they teach impiety and vice as they either dishonour God or disobey him Now all such doctrines are to be condemned but for the persons preaching such Doctrines if they neither justifie nor approve the pretended Consequences which are certainly impious they are to be separated from that consideration But if they know such consequences and allow them or if they doe not stay till the doctrines produce impiety but take sinne before hand and mannage them impiously in any sense or if either themselves or their doctrine doe really and without colour or fained pretext disturb the publique peace * Extat prudens monitum Mecaenatis apud Dionem Cassium ad Augustum in haec verba Eos vero qui in Divinis aliquid innovant adio habe coerce non Deorum solùm causâ sed quia nova numina hi tales introducentes mulios impellunt ad mutationem rerum Unde conjurationes seditiones Conciliabula existunt res profectò minime conducibiles principatui Et legib us quoque expressum est quod in religionem committitur in omnium fertur injuriam and just interests they are not to be suffered In all other cases it is not onely lawfull to permit them but it is also necessary that Princes and all in authority should not persecute discrepant opinions And in such cases wherein persons not otherwise incompetent are bound to reprove an error as they are in many in all these if the Prince makes restraint he hinders men from doing their duty and from obeying the Lawes of JESUS CHRIST SECT XVII Of complyance with disagreeing persons or weake constiences in generall VPon these grounds it remaines that we reduce this doctrine
the name of their Pupils is an absolute vanity For what if by positive Constitution of the Romans such solennities of Law are required in all stipulations and by indulgence are permitted in the case of a notable benefit accruing to Minors must God be tyed and Christian Religion transact her mysteries by proportion and complyance with the Law of the Romans I know God might if he would have appointed Godfathers to give Answer in behalfe of the Children and to be fidejussors for them but we cannot find any Authority or ground that he hath and if he had then it is to be supposed he would have given them Commission to have transacted the solennity with better circumstances and given Answers with more truth For the Question is asked of believing in the present And if the Godfathers answer in the name of the child I doe believe it is Lib. de baptis prope finem cap. 18. itaque pro personae cujusque conditione ac dispositione etiam aetate cunctatio baptismi utilior est praecipuè tamen circa parvulos .... Fiant Christiani cum Christum nosse potuerint notorious they speak false and ridiculously for the Infant is not capable of believing and if he were he were also capable of dissenting and how then doe they know his mind And therefore Tertullian gives advice that the Baptism of Infants should bee deferred till they could give an account of their Faith and the same also is the Councell of * Orat. 40 quaest in S. Baptisma Gregory Bishop of Nazianzum although he allowes them to hasten it in case of necessity for though his reason taught him what was fit yet he was overborn with the practise and opinion of his Age which began to beare too violently upon him and yet in another place he makes mention of some to whom Baptism was not adminstred 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 by reason of Infancy To which if we adde that the Parents of S. Austin S. Hierom and S. Ambrose although they were Christian yet did not baptise their children before they were o years of age it will be very considerable in the example and of great efficacy for destroying the supposed necessity or derivation from the Apostles But however it is against the perpetuall analogy of Christs Numb 28. Doctrine to baptize Infants For besides that Christ never gave any precept to baptize them nor ever himselfe nor his Apostles that appears did baptize any of them All that either he or his Apostles said concerning it requires such previous dispositions to Baptism of which Infants are not capable and these are Faith and Repentance And not to instance in those innumerable places that require Faith before this Sacrament there needs no more but this one saying of our blessed Saviour He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved but he that believeth not Mar. 16. shall be damned plainly thus Faith and Baptism in conjunction will bring a man to heaven but if he have not Faith Baptism shall doe him no good So that if Baptism be necessary then so is Faith and much more for want of Faith damnes absolutely it is not said so of the want of Baptism Now if this decretory sentence be to be understood of persons of age and if Children by such an Answer which indeed is reasonable enough be excused from the necessity of Faith the want of which regularly does damne then it is sottish to say the same incapacity of reason and Faith shall not excuse from the actuall susception of Baptism which is lesse necessary and to which Faith and many other acts are necessary predisposions when it is reasonably and humanely received The Conclusion is that Baptism is also to be deferr'd till the time of Faith And whether Infants have Faith or no is a Question to be disputed by persons that care not how much they say nor how little they prove 1. Personall and actuall Faith they have none for they have Numb 29. no acts of understanding and besides how can any man know that they have since he never saw any sign of it neither was he told so by any one that could tell 2. Some say they have imputative Faith but then so let the Sacrament be too that is if they have the Parents Faith or the Churches then so let Baptism be imputed also by derivation from them that as in their Mothers womb and while they hang on their breasts they live upon their Mothers nourishment so they may upon the Baptism of their Parents or their Mother the Church For since Faith is necessary to the susception of Baptism and they themselves confesse it by striving to finde out new kinds of Faith to dawb the matter up such as the Faith is such must be the Sacrament for there is no proportion between an actuall Sacrament and an imputative Faith this being in immediate and necessary order to that And whatsoever can be said to take off from the necessity of actuall Faith all that and much more may be said to excuse from the actuall susception of Baptism 3. The first of these devices was that of Luther and his Scholars the second of Calvin and his and yet there is a third device which the Church of Rome teaches and that is that Infants have habituall Faith But who told them so how can they prove it what Revelation or reason teaches any such thing Are they by this habite so much as disposed to an actuall beliefe without a new master Can an Infant sent into a Mahumetan Province be more confident for Christianity when he comes to be a man then if he had not been baptized Are there any acts precedent concomitant or consequent to this pretended habit This strange invention is absolutely without art without Scripture Reason or Authority But the men are to be excused unlesse there were a better But for all these stratagemes the Argument now alledged against the Baptism of Infants is demonstrative and unanswerable To which also this consideration may be added that if Baptism Numb 30. be necessary to the salvation of Infants upon whom is the imposition laid To whom is the command given to the Parents or to the Children not to the Children for they are not capable of a Law not to the Parents for then God hath put the salvation of innocent Babes into the power of others and Infants may be damn'd for their Fathers carelessnesse or malice It followes that it is not necessary at all to be done to them to whom it cannot be prescrib'd as a Law and in whose behalfe it cannot be reasonably intrusted to others with the appendant necessity and if it be not necessary it is certain it is not reasonable and most certain it is nowhere in termes prescribed and therefore it is to be presumed that it ought to be understood and administred according as other precepts are with reference to the capacity of the subject and the reasonablenesse of the thing
doe make it it is to no purpose This would bee considered And in Conclusion Our way is the the surer way for not to baptize Children till they can give an account of their Faith is Numb 32. the most proportionable to an act of reason and humanity and it can have no danger in it For to say that Infants may be damn'd for want of Baptism a thing which is not in their power to acquire they being persons not yet capable of a Law is to affirm that of God which we dare not say of any wise and good man Certainly it is much derogatory to Gods Justice and a plaine defiance to the infinite reputation of his goodnesse And therefore who ever will pertinaciously persist in this opinion Numb 33. of the Paedo-baptists and practise it accordingly they pollute the blood of the everlasting Testament they dishonour and make a pageantry of the Sacrament they ineffectually represent a sepulture into the death of Christ and please themselves in a sign without effect making Baptism like the fig-tree in the Gospel full of leaves but no fruit And they invocate the holy Ghost in vaine doing as if one should call upon him to illuminate a stone or a tree Thus farre the Anabaptists may argue and men have Disputed Numb 34. against them with so much weaknesse and confidence that they have been encouraged in their errour * 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 as Nazianzen observes of the case of the Church in his time more by the accidentall advantages we have given them by our weak arguings then by any truth of their cause or excellency of their wit But the use I make of it as to our present Question is this That since there is no direct impiety in the opinion nor any that is apparently consequent to it and they with so much probability doe or may pretend to true perswasion they are with all meanes Christian faire and humane to be redargued or instructed but if they cannot be perswaded they must be left to God who knowes every degree of every mans understanding all his weaknesses and strengths what impresse each Argument makes upon his Spirit and how unresistible every reason is and he alone judges his innocency and sincerity and for the Question I think there is so much to be pretended against that which I believe to be the truth that there is much more truth then evidence on our side and therefore we may be confident as for our own particulars but not too forward peremptorily to prescribe to others much lesse damne or to kill or to persecute them that only in this particular disagree SECT XIX That there may be no Toleration of Doctrines inconsistent with piety or the pulique good BUt then for their other capitall Opinion with all its branches Numb 1. that it is not lawfull for Princes to put Malefactors to death nor to take up desensive Armes nor to minister an Oath nor to contend in judgement it is not to be disputed with such liberty as the former For although it bee part of that Doctrine which Clemens Alexandrinus sayes was delivered per secretam traditionem Apostolorum Non licere Christianis contendere L. 7. Stromat in Iudicio nec corà m gentibus nec corà m sanctis perfectum non debere Iurare and the other part seemes to be warranted by the eleventh Canon of the Nicene Councell which enjoynes penance to them that take Armes after their conversion to Christianity yet either these Authorities are to be slighted or be made receptive of any interpretation rather then the Common-wealth be disarmed of its necessary supports and all Lawes made ineffectuall and impertinent For the interest of the republique and the well being of bodies politick is not to depend upon the nicety of our imaginations or the fancies of any peevish or mistaken Priests and there is no reason a Prince should ask John-a-Brunck whether his understanding will give him leave to raign and be a King Nay suppose there were divers places of Scripture which did seemingly restraine the Politicall use of the Sword yet since the avoyding a personall inconvenience hath by all men been accounted sufficient reason to expound Scripture to any sense rather then the literall which inferres an unreasonable inconvenience and therefore the pulling out an eye and the cutting off a hand is expounded by mortifying a vice and killing a criminall habit much rather must the Allegations against the power of the Sword endure any sence rather then it should be thought that Christianity should destroy that which is the only instrument of Justice the restraint of vice and support of bodies politick It is certain that Christ and his Apostles and Christian Religion did comply with the most absolute Government and the most imperiall that was then in the world and it could not have been at all indured in the world if it had not for indeed the world it selfe could not last in regular and orderly communities of men but be a perpetuall confusion if Princes and the Supreme Power in Bodies Politick were not armed with a coercive power to punish Malefactors The publike necessity and universall experience of all the world convinces those men of being most unreasonable that make such pretences which destroy all Lawes and all Communities and the bands of civill Societies and leave it arbitrary to every vaine or vitious person whether men shall be safe or Lawes be established or a Murderer hang'd or Princes Rule So that in this case men are not so much to Dispute with particular Arguments as to consider the Interest and concernment of Kingdomes and Publick Societies For the Religion of Jesus Christ is the best establisher of the felicity of private persons and of publick Communities it is a Religion that is prudent and innocent humane and reasonable and brought infinite advantages to mankind but no inconvenience nothing that is unnaturall or unsociable or unjust And if it be certain that this world cannot be governed without Lawes and Lawes without a compulsory signifie nothing then it is certain that it is no good Religion that teaches Doctrine whose consequents will destroy all Government and therefore it is as much to be rooted out as any thing that is the greatest pest and nuisance to the publick interest And that we may guesse at the purposes of the men and the inconvenience of such Doctrine these men that did first intend by their Doctrine to disarme all Princes and bodies Politick did themselves take up armes to establish their wild and impious fancie and indeed that Prince or Common-wealth that should be perswaded by them would be exposed to all the insolencies of forraingners and all mutinies of the teachers themselves and the Governours of the people could not doe that duty they owe to their people of protecting them from the rapine and malice which will be in the world as long as the world is And therefore here they are to be
persons of much reason and more piety to retain that which they know to have been the Religion of their fore-Fathers which had actuall possession and seizure of mens understandings before the opposite professions had a name And so much the rather because Religion hath more advantages upon the fancy and affections then it hath upon Philosophy and severe discourses and therefore is the more easily perswaded upon such grounds as these which are more apt to amuse then to satisfie the understanding Secondly If we consider the Doctrines themselves we shall Numb 3. finde them to be superstructures ill built and worse manag'd but yet they keep the foundation they build upon God in Jesus Christ they professe the Apostles Creed they retain Faith and Repentance as the supporters of all our hopes of Heaven and believe many more truths then can be proved to be of simple and originall necessity to salvation And therefore all the wisest Personages of the adverse party allowed to them possibility of salvation whilst their errours are not faults of their will but weaknesses and deceptions of the understanding So that there is nothing in the foundation of Faith that can reasonably hinder them to be permitted The foundation of Faith stands secure enough for all their vaine and unhandsome superstructures But then on the other side if we take account of their Doctrines as they relate to good life or are consistent or inconsistent with civill Government we shall have other considerations Thirdly For I consider that many of their Doctrines doe Numb 4. accidentally teach or lead to ill life and it will appeare to any man that considers the result of these propositions Attrition which is a low and imperfect degree of sorrow for sin or as others say a sorrow for sinne commenc'd upon any reason of temporall hope or feare or desire or any thing else is a sufficient disposition for a man in the Sacrament of penance to receive absolution and be justified before God by taking away the guilt of all his sinnes and the obligation to eternall paines So that already the feare of Hell is quite removed upon conditions so easie that many men take more paines to get a groat then by this Doctrine we are oblig'd to for the curing and acquitting all the greatest sinnes of a whole life of the most vitious person in the world And but that they affright their people with a feare of Purgatory or with the severity of Penances in case they will not venter for Purgatory for by their Doctrine they may chuse or refuse either there would be nothing in their Doctrine or Discipline to impede and slacken their proclivity to sinne but then they have as easy a cure for that too with a little more charge sometimes but most commonly with lesse trouble For there are so many confraternities so many priviledged Churches Altars Monasteries Coemeteries Offices Festivals and so free a concession of Indulgences appendant to all these and a thousand fine devices to take away the feare of Purgatory to commute or expiate Penances that in no sect of men doe they with more ease and cheapnesse reconcile a wicked life with the hopes of heaven then in the Roman Communion And indeed if men would consider things upon their true Numb 5. grounds the Church of Rome should be more reproved upon Doctrines that inferre ill life then upon such as are contrariant to Faith For false superstructures doe not alwayes destroy Faith but many of the Doctrines they teach if they were prosecuted to the utmost issue would destroy good life And therefore my quarrell with the Church of Rome is greater and stronger upon such points which are not usually considerd then it is upon the ordinary disputes which have to no very great purpose so much disturb'd Christendome And I am more scandaliz'd at her for teaching the sufficiency of Attrition in the Sacrament for indulging Penances so frequently for remitting all Discipline for making so great a part of Religon to consist in externalls and Ceremonialls for putting more force and Energy and exacting with more severity the commandments of men then the precepts of Justice and internall Religion Lastly besides many other things for promising heaven to persons after a wicked life upon their impertinent cryes and Ceremon all 's transacted by the Priest and the dying Person I confesse I wish the zeale of Christendome were a little more active against these and the like Doctrines and that men would write and live more earnestly against them then as yet they have done But then what influence this just zeale is to have upon the Numb 6. persons of the Professors is another consideration For as the Pharisees did preach well and lived ill and therefore were to be heard not imitated So if these men live well though they teach ill they are to be imitated not heard their Doctrines by all meanes Christian and humane are to be discountenanc'd but their persons tolerated eatenùs their Profession and Decrees to be rejected and condemn'd but the persons to be permitted because by their good lives they confute their Doctrines that is they give evidence that they think no evill to be consequent to such opinions and if they did that they live good lives is argument sufficient that they would themselves cast the first stone against their own opinions if they thought them guilty of such misdemeanours Fourthly But if we consider their Doctrines in relation to Numb 7. Government and Publick societies of men then if they prove faulty they are so much the more intolerable by how much the consequents are of greater danger and malice Such Doctrines as these The Pope may dispence with all oathes taken to God or man He may absolve Subjects from their Allegiance to their naturall Prince Faith is not to be kept with Hereticks Hereticall Princes may be slaine by their Subjects These Propositions are so deprest and doe so immediately communicate with matter and the interests of men that they are of the same consideration with matters of fact and are to be handled accordingly To other Doctrines ill life may be consequent but the connexion of the antecedent and the consequent is not peradventure perceiv'd or acknowledged by him that believes the opinion with no greater confidence then he disavowes the effect and issue of it But in these the ill effect is the direct profession and purpose of the opinion and therefore the man and the mans opinion is to be dealt withall just as the matter of fact is to be judg'd for it is an immediate a perceiv'd a direct event and the very purpose of the opinion Now these opinions are a direct overthrow to all humane society and mutuall commerce a destruction of Government and of the lawes and duty and subordination which we owe to Princes and therefore those men of the Church of Rome that doe hold them and preach them cannot pretend to the excuses of innocent opinions and
us then the Mosaicall precepts of putting Adulterers to death and trying the accused persons by the waters of jealousie And thus in these two Instances I have given account what Numb 20. is to be done in Toleration of diversity of opinions The result of which is principally this Let the Prince and the Secular Power have a care the Common-wealth be safe For whether such or such a Sect of Christians be to be permitted is a question rather Politicall then Religious for as for the concernments of Religion these instances have furnished us with sufficient to determine us in our duties as to that particular and by one of these all particulars may be judged And now it were a strange inhumanity to permit Jewes in Numb 21. a Common-wealth whose interest is served by their inhabitation and yet upon equall grounds of State and Policy not to permit differing Sects of Christians For although possibly there is more danger mens perswasions should be altered in a commixture of divers Sects of Christians yet there is not so much danger when they are changed from Christian to Christian as if they be turn'd from Christian to Iew as many are daily in Spaine and Portugall And this is not to be excused by saying the Church hath no Numb 22. power over them qui foris sunt as Iewes are For it is true the Church in the capacity of Spirituall regiments hath nothing to doe with them because they are not her Diocesse Yet the Prince hath to doe with them when they are subjects of his regiment They may not be Excommunicate any more then a stone may be kild because they are not of the Christian Communion but they are living persons parts of the Common-Wealth infinitely deceived in their Religion and very dangerous if they offer to perswade men to their opinions and are the greatest enemies of Christ whose honour and the interest of whose Service a Christian Prince is bound with all his power to maintaine And when the Question is of punishing disagreeing persons with death the Church hath equally nothing to doe with them both for she hath nothing to doe with the temporall sword but the Prince whose Subjects equally Christians and Iewes are hath equall power over their persons for a Christian is no more a subject then a Iew is The Prince hath upon them both the same power of life and death so that the Iew by being no Christian is not foris or any more an exempt person for his body or his life then the Christian is And yet in all Churches where the secular power hath temporall reason to tolerate the Iewes they are tolerated without any scruple in Religion which thing is of more consideration because the Iewes are direct Blasphemers of the Sonne of God and Blasphemy by their own Law the Law of Moses is made capitall And might with greater reason be inflicted upon them who acknowledge its obligation then urg'd upon Christians as an Authority enabling Princes to put them to death who are accused of accidentall and consequutive Blasphemy and Idolatry respectively which yet they hate and disavow with much zeale and heartinesse of perswasion And I cannot yet learn a reason why we shall not be more complying with them who are of the houshold of Faith for at least they are children though they be but rebellious children and if they were not what hath the Mother to doe with them any more then with the Iewes they are in some relation or habitude of the Family for they are consigned with the same Baptism professe the same Faith delivered by the Apostles are erected in the same hope and look for the same glory to be reaveled to them at the comming of their Common Lord and Saviour to whose Service according to their understanding they have vowed themselves And if the disagreeing persons be to be esteemed as Heathens and Publicans yet not worse Have no company with them that 's the worst that is to be done to such a man in S. Pauls judgement Yet count him not as an enemy but admonish him as a brother SECT XXI Of the duty of particular Churches in allowing Communion FRom these premises we are easily instructed concerning the lawfulnesse or duty respectively of Christian Communion Numb 1. which is differently to bee considered in respect of particular Churches to each other and of particular men to particular Churches For as for particular Churches they are bound to allow Communion to all those that professe the same Faith upon which the Apostles did give Communion For whatsoever preserves us as Members of the Church gives us title to the Communion of Saints and whatsoever Faith or beliefe that is to which God hath promised Heaven that Faith makes us Members of the Catholick Church Since therefore the Iudiciall Acts of the Church are then most prudent and religious when they nearest imitate the example and piety of God To make the way to Heaven straighter then God made it or to deny to communicate with those whom God will vouchsase to be united and to refuse our charity to those who have the same Faith because they have not all our opinions and believe not every thing necessary which we over-value is impious and Schismaticall it inferres Tyranny on one part and perswades and tempts to uncharitablenesse and animosities on both It dissolves Societies and is an enemy to peace it busies men in impertinent wranglings and by names of men and titles of factions it consignes the interessed parties to act their differences to the height and makes them neglect those advantages which piety and a goodlife bring to the reputation of Christian Religion and Societies And therefore Vincentius Lirinensis and indeed the whole Numb 2. Church accounted the Donatists Hereticks upon this very ground Cap. 11. Vid. Pacian Epist. ad Sempron 2. because they did imperiously deny their Communion to all that were not of their perswasion whereas the Authors of that opinion for which they first did separate and make a Sect because they did not break the Churches peace nor magisterially prescib d to others were in that disagrecing and errour accounted Catholicks Divisio enim disunio facit vos haereticos pax unit as L. 2. c. 95. contra liter Petilian faciunt Catholicos said S. Austin and to this sense is that of S. Paul If I had all faith and had not charity I am nothing He who upon confidence of his true beliefe denies a charitable Communion to his brother loses the reward of both And if Pope Victor had been as charitable to the Asiaticks as Pope Anicetus and S. Polycarp were to each other in the same disagreeing concerning Easter Victor had not been 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 so bitterly reprov'd and condemn'd as he was for the uncharitable managing of his disagreeing by Polycrates and Euseb. l. 5. c. 25 26. Irenaeus Concordia enim quae est charitat is effectus est unio