Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	new_a	old_a	testament_n	3,965	5	8.0680	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A65093	The works of the famous antiquary, Polidore Virgil containing the original of all arts, sciences, mysteries, orders, rites, and ceremonies, both ecclesiastical and civil : a work useful for all divines, historians, lawyers, and all artificers / compendiously English't by John [i.e. Thomas] Langley.; De rerum inventoribus. English	Vergil, Polydore, 1470?-1555.; Langley, Thomas, d. 1581.	1663 (1663)	Wing V596; ESTC R28374	121,672	340

and Eudoxas were condemned because they did deny the Holy Ghost to be God The third was at Ephesus Celestine the First then occupying the See of Rome There was Nestor's heresie abolished that said Mary the Virgin was Mother of Christ a man but not as he was of God and that the Person of the Godhead and his Manhood were two sundry Persons The fourth was at Chalcedonie under Leo the First where Eutyches an heretick was condemned These four Saint Gregory thought worthy to be admitted and allowed to the establishing of our Religion The fifth was solemnly kept at Bizance at the Commandment of Vigilius Bishop of Rome and in this was Theodorus reasoned with which affirmed that Mary did bear onely a man and not God and man for that cause the Council there then decreed That Christ's Mother should be called Theotocos or Deipara that is Bearer of God and the Acts of this Council were received by Gregory The sixth Council Constantine the fourth at the request and suit of Agathon called also at Bizance where 200 Bishops condemned Macarius of Antioch This Council was accepted by Hadrian the First That no Council might be legitimate or lawfully assembled without the Bishop of Rome's consent and assenr was the constitution and decree of Marcellus the First and afterward Julius Damasus and Gregory ratified the same Martin the Fifth made a Law That every tenth year the Bishop of Rome and all Christian Princes should meet together to consult of matters concerning our Religion and Christian Faith It was decreed at the Council of Nicene That every Bishop should twice yearly have a Synod or Senes general within his Diocess to correct and reform such things as were out of order But now the matter is so handled that Senes be onely Courts to gather their Senage and Proxy with a Procession and a Sermon that the half understand not other correction I hear of none CHAP. V. Of the first persecutors of Christians and first Martyrs CHRIST which came into this World and was Incarnate to bear witnesse unto the truth had for his true testimony great envy of the Jews insomuch that they persecuted him to the vile death of the Cross for his earnest record and report of the truth and they did no lesse pursue the Apostles and Messengers of the truth For when they following the example of their Master did openly declare the Word of truth and namely Peter did sorely rebuke the wickednesse of the Jewes in putting to death Christ the author of life advertising them to repent and amend the Jewes were so furious that first they murthered Stephen as the Acts of the Apostles testifie because he was a vehement witnesse of the truth This Stephen did two years continually after Christ's death dispute with all the Learned men of Alexandria Cyrene Cilicia and Asia and by heavenly wisdome confounded their worldly reasons and humane learning Wherefore they were so sore vexed with hate and malice against him that they violently thrust him out of the City and then cruelly stoned him to death Thus Stephen was the first open maintainer and defender of our Christian Religion Afterward as Luke telleth so bitter and sharp persecurion did burst out against the Christians that were in Jerusalem that they were enforced to stray abroad and were scattered throughout all Jewry and Samariae saving that the Apostles remained and so journed still at Jerusalem Notwithstanding this persecution was the occasion of great furtherance of the Gospel by reason they ceased not but preached still the word every where with great increase and augmenting of the faithfull number Among the Heathen Nations Nero was the first Prince that persecuted our Religion universally and put Peter and Paul to death and consequently many other innocents were slain cruelly For when of a devillish mind that he had he could not spare even his Country but either for displeasure of the ruinous houses which grieved him to behold or else desirous to see a resemblance of the burning of Troy he set on fire the most part of the City of Rome with so huge a flame that it burned six dayes and six nights continually to the impoverishing of many thousands of rich Citizens Then to mitigate the shamefull and abominable deed and to stint the bruit and slanderous report that went on him for that flagitious fact there were forged false witnesses to say the Christian men did this act and so many simple innocents smarted for that Tyrant's pleasure and to obdurate himself in mischief he proclaimed an open Persecution against all that professed the Name of Christ Not long after Domitian renewed another affliction of the Christians and Trajanus raised the fourth Marcus Antonius and Lucius Aurelius Commodus stirred up the fifth Persecution Aelius Pertinax moved the sixth Maximinus procured the seventh Decius the eighth Valerianus the ninth Aurelianus caused the tenth And Dioclesianus began the eleventh which was sorest sharpest and of longer continuance then any of all the rest in such sort that Scripture-books were burned and Churches plucked down Christian Magistrates that did bear any office were deposed Souldiers were enforced to deny their faith or else forego their goods and forbear their lifes by a general Proclamation Neither were the three cruel Tyrants Maxentius Licinius and Maximianus behind with their parts but were as busie as the best to procure trouble to the Christian people Constantinus born in England then called Britain was the first Christian Emperour that advanced and defended the causes of our Religion and preserved Christian men in peace and quietnesse In all these Persecutions many did suffer Martyrdome as divers Histories record but Stephen was the first Martyr of the New Testament For John Baptist died before the consummation of the old Law After this example many other ensued and sustained like crosses for the truth sake which all now reign with God To whom alone be all glory honour and praise world without end So be it The End of the Eighth Book Polidore Virgil. The Ninth BOOK CHAP. I. Of Buttons and other Garments of the Ancients THe Invention of a Button is a thing worthy of consideration wherewith the Antients did fasten their Coats together or sometimes their Girdles In its lowest part it had the biggest circumference and so went smaller towards the top like a Pyramide it was made and joyned to the rayment with a Golden or Brazen thred that it might without out difficulty be moved backwards and foreward The most noble and rich men had their Buttons made of Gold The men sort of people used Silver The poorest Brasse or Iron Souldiers did wear Silver Buttons But Aurolianus at first allowed them to be made of Gold for this Souldiers as Vopiscus testifies Emperours had the summity or top of their Buttons made of Jewels and sometimes the whole Button it self The Emperour Leo commanded that souldiers should use such Buttons

and vertue or to flatter the condition of their dignity or for some special benefit that they received by them magnified them as gods Whereby it came to passe that Kings being well-beloved of their people le●t a fervent memorial of themselves among their subjects and posterity by reason whereof men made Images of them to take a comfortable pleasure of the beholding of them Afterward because to encourage men to vertue and chevalry they reverenced them as gods for every valiant courage would with more alacrity enterprise dangerous adventures for the common-weal when they perceived the noble acts of worthy and puissant men to be recompensed with honour and laud of the immortal Gods Thus Temples began first to be builded and service of the gods to be performed by the ordinance of Melissus in the time of Jupiter or not long before Yet that the true and certain original may be absolutely known let us appoint the custome of idolatry to have begun in the time of Belus King of the Assyrians which reigned in the 3180 year of the world whom the Babylonians first worshipped for a God and set up an Image of him and therefore they that think Idolatry hath endured from the begiuning of the World are deceived H●rodotus saith that the Egyptians first builded Altars Temples Images and offered sacrifice to the gods and after taught them to strangers Some suppose that Mercury shewed with what ceremonies gods should be honoured Some say it was devised by King Numa Pompilius Diodorus thinketh that the Aethiopians did institute the Rites of sacrificing to the gods which thing Homer in his Ilias witnesseth where he telleth how Jupiter and the other gods went into Aethiopia to the oblations that were customably made there and also repaired thither to be cherished with the fragrant odours that perfumed the sacrifices And the Aethiopians received this reward of their holinesse that they should never be conquered but ever live in liberty without any bondage Lactantius affirmeth that Melissus King of Creet did first sacrifice and ordeined other solemn rites in the ceremonies of their gods In Italy Janus and his son Faunus appointed sacrifices to Saturn and after them King Numa set up a new Religion Cadmus out of Venice and Orpheus out of Thrace brought first into Greece the mysteries solemnities dedicating of Images and Hymns of their gods Albeit Herodotus saith that Cecrops King of Athens transported all such constitutions and ordinances out of Egypt into Greece and first invocated Jupiter founded Images set up Altars and offered sacrifices that were never seen before in Greece But to God Almighty whom we Christians honour and serve Cain and Abel first offered and Enos first called upon the name of the Lord. CHAP VI. Who found the Letters aud the number of them LEtters wherein is conteined the treasure of knowledg and by whom things notable be preserved in fresh remembrance after the opinion of Diodorus were found by Mercury in Egypt yet some say one Menon an Egyptian devised them but instead of the letters they of Egypt used to signify and declare the intents and conceits of their minds by the figures of beasts Fishes Fowls and Trees Pliny saith he thought that the Assyrians excogitated the letters which Cadmus brought out of Phoenice into Greece which were but 16 in number A b c d e g i l m n o p r s t v. to these Palamedes added in the battel of Troy other four viz. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Simonides found as many viz. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Whose power is contained in our letters Aristotle saith there were 18 of the old viz. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and that Epicarmus put to the other two 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 and 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 S. Hermolaus is supposed to have added sy Herodotus writeth how that the Phenicians that came with Cadmus to inhabite Thebes brought letters into Greece which were never seen in use there before-time Some think the Aethiopians invented them and then taught them to the Egyptians that were one of their Provinces But Eumolphus telleth unfainedly that the beginning of letters did proceed of Moses which reigning long before Cadmus dayes taught the Jews the letters and thence the Phoenicians received them and the Greeks learned of them Which thing is conformable to the saying of Pliny before rehearsed for Jury is a part of Syria and the Jews be Syrians Neverthelesse I find by Josephus that writing was before Noe's floud for the sons of Seth wrote in two Pillars one of brick and another of stone the Science of Astronomy whereof that of stone in the time of Josephus remained in Siria Philo ascribeth the invention of them to Abraham which was elder then Moses albeit I had rather assign to Seths children the beginning of writing As for the Hebrew letters which be now according to Saint Jeromes opinion were but newly invented and devised by Esdras for before that time the Hebrews and Samarites used all one Characters The old greek letters were the same that the Romans use now as Pliny conjectureth by a certain brasse Table that came from Delphos which was dedicated and hanged up in a Library in the Temple of Minerva at Rome in his time They were brought into Italy by Evander and the Arcadians which came into Italy to inhabit there as Ovid telleth in his book Defastis The Hetrurians had also a form of letters by themselves wherein the youth of Rome was instructed as well as in the Greek letters which one Demeratus a Corinthian taught the Hetrurians And like as the Grecians had enlarged the number of their lette●s so the Italians following their example put to theirs f k q x y z h. which h is no letter but a sign of aspiration f they received of the Aeolians which both among the old Romanes and Aeolians had the same sound and pronuntiation that p. with an aspiration hath which we use in writing Greek words And afterward Claudius Casar as Quintilian writeth appointed that it should be taken in the place of v. consonant as fulgus for vulgus fixit for vixit And even so our English men use to speak in Essex for they say Fineger for Vineger Feal for Veal and contrariwise a Vox for a Fox vour for four And in processe of time it was used for ph in Latine words k. was borrowed of the Greeks but no good Authour useth it in writing Latine q. was added because it hath a grosser sound then c. The letter x. we had also out of Greece although as Quintilian judgeth we might well forbear it forasmuch that they used for it either c s or g s. Likewise y and z were sent from the Grecians and be used of us onely to write Greek words CHAP. VII The Invention of Grammar NExt the Letters the invention of grammer ordinarily

man might not marry that Maid to whom his father was a God-father It was confirmed first by Gregory and after by Alexander the third That no man should marry his brother's wife lest it should be thought to be a counterfeit of the Hebrews Lanuch was the first that ever had two wives whose example many others ensued afterwards The custome of purifying of women was taken of the Hebrews but there is no day or time appointed for it Nevertheless for an honest order they use commonly not to be purified before the moneth day and then with a few honest Matrons she cometh accompanied to the Church and offereth a wax Taper and the Chrisome CHAP. V. Of the Temples Church-yards when the Crosse was first had in reverence IN the Old Testament Moses set up a Tabernacle curiously edified to God wherein Supplication and Intercession was made to him for the 〈◊〉 of the people And in that he made the Ark of Covenant in the which he put the two Tables of stone containing the Law of the Ten Commandements Aaron's rod and the pot of Manna After him Solomon King of the Hebrews made at Hierusalem ● Temple of costly array and sumptuously wrought I cannot to say truth perfectly tell where the first Church of Christians was builded but by all conjecture it seemeth that it was made of the Apostles either in Ethiopia where Matthew preached or in Lower India where Bartholomew taught or in Scythia where Andrew shewed the Word of God Where they doubtlesse either cause new Churches to be edified or else transposed the Idol's Temples to serve the Christians use abolishing Superstition and planting the true Religion of Christ Albeit it were not against reason to suppose there was a Temple or house of prayer appointed by James at Jerusalem In Rome the first that I read of was consecrated by Pius Bishop of Rome in the street called Patricius at Novatus Baths in honour of the Virgin Prudentia at the request and suit of Praredis her sister And after Calistus made a Temple to the Virgin Mary in a place beyond Tiberis and instituted a Church-yard in Apius's street and called it after his own name But Abraham was the first that made any place of burial in Hebron where he bought of Ephron an Hittite the double Cave for 300 shekels of silver with the the ground about it and there was Sarah his wife and he himself buried Noah builded the first Altar and offered upon it a burned Sacrifice to the Lord. And Bonifacius the third caused that they were covered with linnen cloaths Constantinus when he had won the battail against Maxentius by reason of a vision that he saw of the crosse the day of the battle ordained that from thenceforth no man should suffer death on the crosse And so in processe of time it was had in much reverence and worship And Theodosius made a law That there should no Image of the crosse be graven in stone marble or in earth lest men should tread on it Hellen Constantine's Mother a very vertuous woman repaired to Jerusalem to seek the Crosse of our Lord where with great labour and diligence she fouud it and with it the other two whereon the Theeves were hanged but it was ease to perceive Christ's Crosse by the Title which then did remain albeit sore wasted and corrupted with Antiquity CHAP. VI. Of the ancient rite or sacrificing Feast-dayes dedicating Temples the mystery of Fire Holy Water CAin and Abel the two sons of our first Father Adam offered in sacrifice to God the first fruits of their goods Abel his oblation was a Lamb Cain his gift was Corn. Afterward when the Priesthood was ordained Aaron and his sons offered divers things with sundry Ceremonies which he shewed at large in the book of Leviticus The Gentiles almost all sacrificed to the Idols men or women after sundry rites as appeareth in the Histories of Gentile-Authors And if it fortuned that they omitted any such abominable idolatry they had great punishment destruction of their fruit corruption of their water infection of the Ayr death of Cattel great droughts women had evil deliverance with many such plagues as Dionysius Halicarnasseus witnesseth which the spirits of the ayr procured to delude and seduce men and confirm them in their errour The holy-dayes among the Jews were divers as the Sabbath-day the Feast of the new Moon the Passeover the Feast of unleavened bread Pentecost the Feast of Tabernacles the Dedication day which be all shewed largely in the Old Testament The use of dedicating Churches is of great antiquity for Moses did sanctifie the Tabernacle and Solomon consecrated the Temple that he builded at Jerusalem And Esdras after when they returned from the Captivity of Babylon hallowed the Temple new again Of them we receive our Rite of hallowing of Churches albeit we have more ceremonies then they had Fire was kept continually on the Altar by the Priests for without it and salt could no sacrifice be duly made or ordinarily offered and we in our Masses have ever a Taper of Wax burning And the Emperours of Rome had Fire born before them and the Vestals had ever perpetual Fire in the Temple where they served Vesta The spirits of the ayr that gave doubtfull answers to them that enquired any question of them were at the coming of Christ all destroyed For when he was carried into Egypt which is a Country full of superstition and Idolatry all the Idols of that Region were overthrown and fell to the ground at his coming thither And in the time of Adrian the Emperour both the wicked sacrifices were abolished and also the Oracles of Apollo at Delphos Jupiter-Hammon in Egypt with like vanities were subverted by the power of God through his Son Jesus Christ Holy Water was ordained by Alexander the first to be consecrated to drive away Spirits and was commanded that it should be kept as well in Churches as in private houses for the same use whereof are grown among the common people many superstitious errours contrary to the Word of God CHAP. VII Who ordayned Praying Why we look Eastward Ministring the Sacrament of the Altar FOrasmuch as we are created of God after his own Image for the intent to honour and serve him and so finally to enjoy the eternal inheritance of Heaven which we must attain to by Prayer acknowledging our own infirmities and referring us to the mercy of our most loving Father It shall therefore be convenient to declare the institution of Prayer Prayer therefore was from the beginning as Abel prayed Noah Abraham Isaac Jacob with other Patriarks prayed to God in all their doubtfull affairs and gave thanks for the good atchieving of them Moses and Aaron with other as Anna the wife of Helcanah shewed us an example of Prayer But Christ is the first that did shew us any special form of Prayer as appeareth in the Gospell of Matthew

and such Feasts were called by the name of Vigills and observed with no lesse reverence then the Fast of Lent This remedy was provided after St. Hieromes time which dyed the year of our Lord 422 when Bonifacius the second was Bishop of the See of Rome The like custome was also observed among the Aegyptians which on the Evens of their high feasts fasted and after they had slept they offered a Cow all such night Sacrifices and observances for like causes were by a perpetuall Law in Greece abrogated by Diagundas a Thebane The Fast of Wednesday and Friday was commanded by the Fathers because on the one day Christ was Crucified and on the Wednesday Judas purposed in his mind to bewray him as Apollonius the Eloquent Oratour supposed Silvester the first Bishop of Rome abhorring the memorial of the vain Gentile gods decreed that the dayes of the Week which had before the names and Titles of the Sun Moon Mars Mercury Jupiter Venus and Saturn should be called the first second third fourth fifth sixth and Seventh Ferie as the Jews counted their dayes from the Sabbath day He did also call the first Ferie Dominicus Dies that we name Sunday and called Saturday Sabbatum of the old holy day and rest of the Hebrews all these things were done at the Suit of Constantine then Emperour Albeit the Apostles before that time had consecrated the Sunday to the Lord because that day he rose from death and the Jews Sabbath was turned into it as may appear by the decree of Pius that ordained the Easter to be kept on the Sunday and therefore I think Silvester did but onely renew the same Act of the Sunday It was the invention of the Egyptians that the dayes were first named after the 7 Planets as Diodorus recordeth Saint Gregory was the Author that neither flesh nor any thing that hath affinity with it as Cheese Milk Butter Eggs should be eaten on such dayes as were fasted We have also a manner and usage of hallowing the Table and meat before we be set that began of the imitation of Christ which used the same fashion over the five loaves in the Wildernesse and at Emaus also he did likewise consecrate the Table in the presence of his Disciples so was the form of saying Grace after Supper taken likewise of the custome that Christ commonly kept at his Suppers The manner to read a part of the Bible at dinner time hath been of long continuance and did proceed of the Godly doctrine that Christ instructed his Disciples in at all times but namely at his last Supper wherein he treated of the perfection of all the Mysteries of our Religion And thus our fathers to keep in memory such an wholesome institution did bring in this manner of reading the Scripture at meat or meal-time CHAP. V. The original of holy-dayes Paschal Candles Birth-dayes LIke as the Jews had in their Law which was but onely a shadow of things to come holy-dayes appointed for the execution of the mysteries of their Religion whom they in one general term named Sabbath-dayes of the rest and vacation that they had from bodily labours semblably our fathers have ordained Feastival dayes in the N●w Testament wherein Christian men all prophane businesses and evil matters laid apart might whol'y apply themselves to godly and spiritual meditations As the perusing and reading of Scriptures hearing of devout Sermons rendring honour to God by sacrificing praying and well doing be works fit and convenient for the holy-day and also reverencing the memorial of Saints on such dayes as be assigned to that purpose is on the holy day laudable For Oblation is onely due to God as Paul and Barnabas did openly testifie at Listra For when he had commanded by the power of the Word of God that the man which was lame from his Mothers womb should arise and walk the people for wonder and marvail of the Miracle would have done sacrifice to them but they renting their cloathes departed out of the press and with sharp words rebuked their enterprise as a thing unmeet to be done to any mortal man or worldly creature First of all the Feast of Easter was instituted by the Apostles and prescribed by Pius the First to be solemnized on the Sunday Afterward Victor that was Bishop of Rome about the 196th year of our Lord decreed That it should be kept and celebrated on the Sunday from the fourteenth day of the first moneth that was March untill the 22 of the same lest our order and account should agree with the Jews which kept it somewhat sooner then that appointment speaketh of albeit many forraign Bishops at the first refused that Constitution because they thought it not amiss to keep that Feast after the president of Saint John the Apostle who renewed the Rite of the Jews in the Feast of Easter The custome of hallowing Paschall Candles on Easter Eve was commanded by Zozinus to be frequented in every Church The manner of keeping holy the birth-day of every man was much used in Rome albeit the Persians had that usage before them For there it is the fashion that every man after his ability should with observance of dainty feasts worship the day of their birth and of them the Romans received that superstition CHAP. VI. Of the Institution of Holy-dayes and Canonizing AS you have heard that Saint John the Apostle did celebrate the Feast of Easter even so the other Apostles as it is said were authours not onely of the same Easter-Feast but also ordained That those dayes wherein our Saviour had done any mystery concerning our salvation or information should be kept holy and to the intent they might be more reverenced of their posterity they themselves kept them during their lives very devoutly as the Sundayes Advent the Nativity Circumcision and Epiphany of our Lord the Purification of our Lady called Candlemas Lent Palm-Sunday Maunday-Thursday when Christ after Supper washed his Disciples Feet Good-Friday Easter the Ascension and Whitsunday the Feast of Pentecost was before used of the Hebrews For fifty dayes after that the Lamb was sacrificed in Egypt the Law written by the hands of God was given by Moses in the Mount Oreb in the wilderness of Sinai And 50 dayes after the death of Christ who like a Lamb was offered of the Jews for our Paschal the Apostles received the law of the Spirit The Feast of transfiguration came also of the Jews for like as Moses his face was transposed into a perfect brightness after he had communed with God in the Mount so now after the shadow and vail were taken away by Christ his coming it pleased God to shew to his disciples his transfiguration as a declaration of the shadow past and a figure or signification of the Immortality to come In consideration whereof the holy fathers perceiving the use of such holy-dayes confirmed and ratified them by a