Selected quad for the lemma: religion_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
religion_n	scripture_n	sense_n	true_a	4,624	5	5.7921	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A00307	An Epistle, or apologie of a true, and charitable brother of the Reformed Church in fauoure of Protestantes, papistes, & those of the Reformatio[n] for a more moderat course of proceeding in matters of religion by searchinge the Scriptures, & examining theire spirits for the sense, and true meaninge of them by a peaceable conference, & such easy meanes as weare practised in the apostolicall, and primitiue church for plantinge the faith, and rooting out of errour tending to vnitie of religion, loyaltie to the Kings Maiestie, increase of honoure to him & his posteritie, & good of the Commonwealth.		1605 (1605)	STC 10431.5; ESTC S2111	18,209	49

AN EPISTLE OR APOLOGIE OF A TRVE AND CHARITABLE brother of the Reformed Church in fauours of Protestantes Papistes those of the Reformatiō for a more moderat course of proceeding in matters of Religion by searchinge the scriptures examining theire Spirits for the sense and true meaninge of them by a peaceable conference such easy meanes as weare practised in the Apostolicall and Primitiue Church for plantinge the faith and rooting out of errour tending to vnitie of Religion loyaltie to the kings Maiestie increase of honoure to him his posteritie good of the Commonwealth VVOrshipfull and my louing brother in the lord I haue receiued your louing aduertisements by writinge and I honoure you the more as well for that I see theareby your sinceare affection continued towards me 〈◊〉 also for your singular zeale euer to maintaine the gospell In which respects 〈◊〉 take in good parte your seuere reprehension and distast of the aduise I lately 〈◊〉 for a milder course in matters of Religion then hath bene for many yeares in this Realme folowed Wheareas you protest to remaine still my frend notwithstanding our difference in opinion touching this pointe therein appeareth your well grounded affection loue towards me and I could wish that all our brethren would keepe the same course of charitie towards all men howsoeuer they differ from vs in sense or opinion So should we beare the marke of true Religion and by this badge be knowen to be Christs disciples if we loue our Enimies Christ commaunded vs to loue our neighboure and declared as you knowe that the Samaritan was neighboure to the Iewe and thearefore not to be excluded from his loue howebeit otherwise he could not communicat with him in diuine affaires Your zeale is commendable in that you say with Paule Vtinam abscindantur qui v●● conturbant for with him you may so pray that they which withstand hinder the course of the gospell weare cutt of and rooted out But in that you wish them to be cutt of by the sword and I contrary wise by the force of gods word in this our opinions are different Wherefore my drift is in this Apoligie and defence first to set doune plainely my opinion and then to lay open the reasons that moued me theareto And so to come to the matter I wish with you and pray as Christe himself did that all the Kings Maiesties subiects may be made one in Christe to acknowledge all one god to embrace all one faith to liue vnder the rules of one lawe and so to agree if it may be in will and affection that we may be all Cor vnum anima vna One hart and one soule and this we both agree to be best not only in reguard of the soules health and eternal saluation but also for the ciuill policie and temporall gouernement of his Maiesties Dominions For whosoeuer would wish or seeke to nourish diuision in any sorte as he cannot be of god so is he not to be accompted a good gouernour or right politician In our last assembly at London it was our praier as you may well remember that the Kings Maiestie exalted to so greate a Monarchie and gouernment of so many kingdomes diversly sorted and affected in religion might haue that gracious vertue of the Adamant stone to drawe vnto him and winne to vnity in faith the people of diuers nations so committed to his charge For who of vs al doth not desire from his hart that the Protestants and Papists of England which are many in number the Papistes of Ireland where there are fewe or none other and the Nobility of Scotland of the which no small number inclyne that way would come with vs to the pure light of the gospell to our reformed Churches You remember the Profession of faith which to this intent and purpose we procured to be set foorth in print at his Maiesties first ingresse into this Realme but it preuailed not and had it not bene the respect was borne his Maiestie it had bene controuled as it was misliked both by the protestant papist And since that to further aduance our cause and to proceede in the same purpose we haue in peaceable manner donne what in vs lieth Let vs holde on the same moderat course and striue to preuaile not by the temporall sword of his Maiesties power but endeuoure to ouercome by the eternall sword of gods holly word Which though it be sweete and not violent yet is it a two edged svvord that cutteth on euery side and pierceth more dieply to winne the hart of man and alter his vnderstanding for planting the gospell then any humane force whatsoeuer I agree further with you that as it is a pointe of good husbandrie to weede the Corne-fielde before the weedes haue ouergrowen the corne so likewise may his Maiestie emploie his temporal sword that no Cockle be sowen or rise in the field of the lords Church vnder his protection and that such as begin to spring vp may be times be cutt of In matutino interficiebam omnes peccatores terrae So did that holly king Dauid pleased god highly theare with Thus much your arguments doe proue sufficiently For in this sense the kinge beareth the sworde to destroy all sinne sinners in matutino that is to say betimes while sinne sinfull erroures are newly budding may be cutt of without hurte and damage to the state of the good and faithfull And it is our part to be watchfull to discouer them betimes least if we sleepe too long they spring soe high and spreade so far that whosoeuer shoulde then attempt to pull them vp should destroy much corne withall doe more harme then good This then is the pointe whearein we iarre You thinke it needefull that the k. Maiestie proceede to authorize and establish our religion by the sworde to represse all other sects by seueritie of lawes such as weare practized in the daies of the late Queene against vs and against the Papists And I contrariwise am of opinion that such lawes and seueritie are in our case vnprofitable and will hurt rather then helpe the aduancement of our cause and I take this my aduise to be better grounded then yours in the written worde to approach neerer to the wisedome and course of gods diuine prouidence to be more conformable to Christian humanitie to beseeme better our prince for the assurance of his estate and the aduancement of his noble yssue and finally to agree best with true ciuill policie for the sweete peace rest and repose of this our Republique and increase thereof as shall appeare by the experience we haue seene with our owne eyes in these our daies as well in his Maiesties Dominions as in all Nations round about vs. That we haue slept too long all writers agree that for many hundred yeares for who of vs doth not see that the weedes haue ouergrowen the good corne taken so deepe roote

in his Maiesties Dominions most dangerous I aunsvveare that all vveedes are hurtfull in the corne yet not in all cases to be rooted out VVere not the Iebusites hurtfull vvhen they annoyed the people of the lord vvith theire continuall vvarres and scandalous idolatrie yet for other respects the lord vvoulde haue them remaine in the land of promise vvith the Ievves Yea the Ievves although they crucified the sonne of God are suffered to liue in Christian contreies according to theire lavve VVe reade that the Samaritans vvere so vnkinde to our Sauiour that they vvould nether receaue him in theire tovvnes nor yet giue him bread for his money Whereat Iames Iohn as they thought of a good zeale could haue found in theire harts to haue seene them consumed vvth fire from heauen But the lord rebuked them saying You know not of what manner spirit you are The sonne of man came not to destroy mens liues but to saue them Luc. 9. This meeke spirit of the lord I vvish vvere follovved of all in hart vvorde deede and not the ouerthrovve of our aduersaries in faith sought by the arme of flesh For they being vvith vs al members of one body subiects to one soueraigne vve must accompt them as brethren and loue them as our frends but much more because we are all children of one heauenly father who indifferently letteth fall vppon vs from day to day the fruitefull showres of his blessing and suffereth his sonne to shine vpon them also whilest they liue in this worlde and may be this his fauoure in time be wonne and conuerted God permitteth the Diuell to dravve from thence some good therein shineth more his wisedome goodnes then if he suffered no bad at all in the worlde The spouse of god is Lilium inter spinas the lily is most gratefull amoung the brambles who woulde cutt of the pricking thorne to destroy and loose the pleasant and sweete-smelling Rose Sith then there must be haeresies erroures in the vvorlde as Paul foretelleth vs that God is glorified by dravving much good from them for the purifying of his elect though it vvere to be vvished that no erroures vvere at all let vs in destroying them vse such svvette meanes as approach neerest to his diuine vvisedome and prouidence Faith is the guift of god alone and is not to be beaten vvith hammers into the head or hart of man It dependeth not of man but of the election free praedestination None comes to me sayeth Christe but vvhom my father dravveth vvho thearefore neuer vsed violence but by his vvorde and meekenes drevve at length all the vvorlde to him and his faith Vpon these groundes of scripture and Christes example the first and most learned of our profession haue taught that none may be compelled to the faith and therefore haue vvitten bitterly against those vvho at our first appearing sought by svvorde and fire to roote vs out And can vve for shame put in execution our selues vvhat vve condemne in others or is Doctrine to be altered vvith the exchainge of our state and condicion vvhat may his Maiesty thinke of vs if novve vve recall that doctrine vvhich vve haue heeretofore taught to be vvel vvatranted by gods vvorde Christ his vvordes are infallible it is the heauenly father alone that can dravve soules to Christianitie it is the internal vnction of his spirit that teacheth it and planteth it in mans hart And thearefore in this case let vs lay force aside leaue it to gods goodnes to dravve those vvhom he hath elected in the meane tyme not to repine at the prudence of our Prince if he vse employ all his subiects hovvesoeuer affected in Religion to the strengthning of his state and benefitt of the common-vvealth I deny not but that he must laboure to dravve all his subiects to the truth but vve differ in the meanes vvhich I hould to be gods holly vvorde We haue taught to this effect that euery man may reade the scriptures and search the truth of himself as god shall inspire him and we hoped that by this meanes all might finde the truth and come to the vnitie of the same faith But we see it hath not succeded so wel as we exspected I feare the cause hath bene for that in times past the rigoure of statute lawes hath as it were fettered the gospel the booke of Articles set doune by a fewe heades without cōference with theire brethren hath hindered our Christian liberty in the interpretation thereof with lesse showe of truth then did before the decrees of Generall Councells and the vniforme consent of auncient fathers For in vayne doth a man reade search the truth if he may not as freely interpreate scripture as reade it And why should we forbid any to be heard in his interpretation whereas in this tyme of so many sects Religions both within the Realme abroade we may as Paul saith better iudge of the truth when we haue heard with patience what euery man can say alledge in his cause He that commaundeth vs to try and examine the spirites whether they be of god or no woulde neuer giue aduise to extinguish them or forbid vs to knowe them vpon what ground they relye Some lawes forbidding men to expound the word otherwise then it seemed good to the Church established by the late Queene were once in force which lawes howsoeuer they might seeme tolerable in respect of her whom th'Apostle would not permit to speake in the congregation for that she was a woman not fitt to iudge in such matters if a conference had bene graunted she being lesse grounded in the knowledge of Gods lawe then our selues yet now in the raigne of his Maiestie who is profound in learning mature in iudgement free conference may be permitted for the libertie of the gospell as well in the free interpretation as in free reading of it the contrarie lawes repealed as ouer violent in such a cause and preiudiciall to the bolting out of the truth or at the least suspended vntill a Just triall be made by a learned amiable conference through all the pointes of our controuersies This weare a sweete way to come to vnity or if any force at all were to be vsed in matters of faith it should be rather to compell such as seeme to be in errour to be present at such conference then to force them without triall to showe outwardly to be of an other profession then in hart they are Which howe fruteles a thing it is might be preiudiciall to the king state the wise Gouernoure Constantius father to our Constantine the greate may teach vs. Who desirous to knowe what sorte of Christianes he might best trust set foorth an edict that whosoeuer should refuse to doe sacrifice to the Idolls should be disarmed dishonered displaced suffer further punishment at the Emperours pleasure Whereupon some of his Christian Captaines