Selected quad for the lemma: scripture_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
scripture_n	apostle_n	day_n	lord_n	3,447	5	4.2271	3	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A17586	The re-examination of two of the articles abridged: to wit, of the communicants gesture in the act of receaving, eating, and drinking: and The observation of festivall dayes	Calderwood, David, 1575-1650.; Cowper, William, 1568-1619. Passage of Master William Cowper pretended bishop of Gallway, his sermon delivered before the estates, anno 1606. at which time hee was minister at Perth.	1636 (1636)	STC 4363.5; ESTC S118315	29,491	64

time and place where wee crave or receive the benefite more then the diversitie of the benefite it selfe that is the ground of adoration but Gods excellencie as wee said before They consider not that these three things ought to bee distinguished blessing or sanctifying the creature or meane GOD hath appointed either for our temporall or spirituall life before the use of it the use it selfe and thanksgiving after the use the blessing before meat the use of meat in receaving eating drinking and thanksgiving after blessing before the reading preaching or hearing of the word the act it selfe reading hearing preaching and thanksgiving to GOD after blessing before the receaving the sacramentall elements the receiving and participation it selfe and thanksgiving after They ask if humilitie and reverence bee not requisite in the act of receiving the sacramentall elements I answere Yes in all religious exercises hearing of the word reading of the word c. But it followeth not that there should bee humiliation upon our knees because humilitie of minde is required nor adoration because reverence is required Is there no reverence nor humilitie but in kneeling before dead and senslesse elements Humilitie is an habit adoration is an act The act of humilitie is immanent whereby any one resteth content with his owne ranke and doeth not conceat greater worth in himselfe then there is specially in comparison with GOD. Adoration is a transient act whereby a man goeth out of himselfe as it were to direct some homage and worship to GOD. Reverence is commoun to all the parts of GODS worship and is not a distinct kinde of worship as is adoration The pretence of reverence can not bee a sufficient reason for the altering the ordinance of Christ and the opinion of reverence hath often beene the dame and nource of manifold superstitions sayeth Bishop Mortoun upon the Lords supper pag. 63. Seeing kneeling in the act of receiving the Sacramentall elements eating and drinking is idolatrie and can not bee used but idolatrously it followeth that kneeling in the act of receaving brought not in artolatrie or bread-worship as some mistaking counterfoot works of old writers for genuin● have imagined The corrupting of the doctrine with the opinion of the reall presence the receiving in at the mouth from the hands of the priest and many other superstitious conceats together with the worshipping of images brought in kneeling But it was ever idolatrous from the first beginning and birth of it and can not possibly be purged of idolatrie FINIS OF FESTIVAL DAYES THE observation of festivall dayes hath been rejected by our kirk from the beginning of the●● reformation in the explication of the first head of the first book of discipline in the assemblie holden anno 1566. where the latter confession of Helvetia was approved but with speciall exception against these same dayes which are now urged In the assembly holden anno 1575. the assembling of the people to preaching and prayers upon festivall dayes w●● censured An article was likewise formed to bee presented to the Regent craving that all dayes heretofore keeped holy in time of papistrie besides the Lords day be abolished and that a civill penaltie bee inflicted upon the observers By ordinance of the assembly in Aprile 1577. Ministers were to bee admonished not to preach or minister the communion at Easter or Christmas or other like superstitious times or readers to read under the pain of deprivation The pulpits have founded from time to time against all shew of observing these dayes But at the pretended and null assembly holden at Perth a number not having power to vote presumed to bring in a contrare practise Our first reason against these holy festivities God hath only power to sanctifie a day and make it holy that is to separate it from commoun use to holy exercises yearly God hath given libertie to man to work sex dayes No man ought to bee compelled to keepe them holy but when GOD himself maketh exception as he did by the yoke of some anniversarie dayes by the law The second reason None appointed holy festivities under the law when the times were more ceremonious but God himself The dayes of Purim were called simply the dayes of Purim not the holy dayes of Purim or feast of Purim No peculiar sacrifice was appointed nor any holy convocation of the people injoined The ordinance required but fasting joy and sending of portions to other The memoriall dayes of the dedication were called the dayes of dedication not the feast of dedication They were not holy dayes or festivall solemnities consisting of Hookers three elements praises set foorth with chearfull alacritie of minde delite expressed by charitable largenesse more then commoun bountie and sequestration from ordinarie works The times were corrupt when these dayes were appointed As for Christs conference in the porch of the temple in the dayes of dedication it proveth not that hee honoured that feast as they call it with his presence only the circumstance of time is pointed at when Christ had this conference Christ come up to the feast of the tabernacles before and stayed in Ierusalem In the mean time the dayes of dedication fell foorth and hee went away immediatly after his conference The third reason Neither Christ nor his apostles appointed festivall dayes to bee observed by Christians but rather inhibited the observation of them and changed only the old sabbath into the first day of the week The anniversarie solemnities were not changed but altogether abrogated The apostle having occasion to teach upon this subject condemneth observation of dayes ceremoniall or of ceremoniall nature They were a rudimentarie instruction of old which beseemeth not the state of a Christian kirk and cleare light of the Gospel Yea the very dayes of Purim and the dayes of dedication were of a ceremoniall nature saith Doctour Mortoun in his defence pag. 64. To celebrate the memorie of a particular act of Christ at a set time in the year with cessation from work sermons gospels epistles collects and hymnes belonging therto with joy and gladnesse without admitting a fast at any time is not to observe a day morallie but ceremoniallie If there had beene other festivall dayes which might have beene observed by Christians the Apostle having so fair occasion when he was treating of the observation of dayes hee would not have spoken so generally but directed Christians to the observing of these If other dayes had bene dedicat to Christ then the Lords day they should all have beene called the Lords dayes but the scripture maketh mention of one day called the Lords day Socrates in his historie sayeth Hee is of the opinion that as many other things crept in of custome in sundrie places so did the feast of Easter prevaile among all people of a certain privat custome and observation If the Apostles had appointed it they had agreed upon the day seing they were directed infalliblie by the Spirit Our fourth reason If it had beene the will of

The first reason shall bee this The communicant is tied whether by direction of others or his own resolution all is one to kneel with reverence before dead and senselesse elements when they are presented to him by the hand of the Minister Wee can not kneel to God in prayer but there are many things before us by casuall position neither can wee choose to do otherwise But if wee bee tied to kneel with reverence when wee are to doe any religious exercise suppone prayer before such a creature suppone but a tree and is not likewise tyed when wee pray before any other creature our gesture of adoration can not bee without respect to the tree God himselfe never appointed any creature to bee an object to the eyes of man when hee was to adore him upon his knees but only directed his people to kneel toward a certaine place where hee was present himselfe in an extraordinarie manner or bound himselfe by promise to heare from thence as was the Arke and Temple where the Arke was The Sacramentall bread is not a place of Gods extraordinare presence or of the existing of Christs manhood substantiallie or of promise to heare us from thence It is idolatrie sayeth Perkinse to turne dispose or direct the worship of God or any other part thereof to any particular place or creature wi●hout the appointment of God and more specially to direct our adoration to the bread or the place where the bread is The uncovering of our heads is a gesture of reverence onely and that only amongst some nations but not of adoration Kneeling is a gesture of adoration either civill or religious amongst all nations I will not kneele civilly to everie one to whom I uncover my head civilly Every one that standeth with his head uncovered in presence of the king is not adoring as he is who is presenting his petition to the king upon his knee in their sight Further our heads are no otherwise uncovered in the act of receaving then in the rest of the time of the celebration when wee are not neare the elements The Scripture is read the words of Christ which he outered at the institution are still and often repeated his actions which are divine and holy are reiterated and sometimes we are singing psalmes But adoration upon our knees can not consist with such varietie of actions The people 1 King 18. fell on their faces after the fite had consumed the burnt sacrifices and the wood and licked up the water and not in the mean time for it is not likely that they fell down till they had seene what the fire had wrought What suppose they had fallen down in the meantime that they saw the fire fall down upon the sacrifice Is it any wonder that men amazed with Gods majestie in a miracle fell down as astonished to worship God Charles the fift after his farewell to the wars saluted the Spanish shore in such an affectionat and prostrat manner as his meanest vassall could not ordinarly have saluted either him or it without just imputation of grosse idolatrie Doctour Iackson 〈◊〉 If there come into the kirk one that believeth not and one that is unlearned and hear one after another prophesie and finding himself convinced and the secrets of his heart made manifest were it any wonder if he fell down on his knees c. 1 Cor. 14. yet if he fell down before them ordinarly were it not idolatrous When it is said 1 King 8.54 that Salomon kneeled before the altar of the Lord when hee prayed at the dedication of the temple The altar is not set down there as the object toward which hee directed his countenance when he was kneeling but only as a circumstance of the place where hee was when he prayed at that time Hee kneeled upon the brazen scaffold which was over against the altar and spread his hands towards the heavens not towards the altar And suchlike 2 Chron. 6.13 it is said That he fell down upon his knees before all the congregation of Israel that is in their sight and presence and spread foorth his hands towards heaven It is not said that hee turned his face towards the altar They turned their face ordinarly to that part where the Ark was the place of Gods extraordinarie presence which therefore in Scripture is called sometime God sometime the Lord of hostes the king of glory the face of the Lord. Doctour Burges pag. 7. sayeth that the altar was not alreadie dedicated but was in the doing Likewise Micha 6.6 when it is said Wherewith shall I come before the Lord and how my self before the high God meaneth that they bowed themselves before the high God sitting between the Cherubins not towards the Altar When they had offered their oblations what if they had bowed towards the place where the Ark was when they were offering to God when wee are in the act of receiving eating and drinking wee are receiving and not offering They pretend the sacramentall elements are only as objectum à quo significative that is an active object moving them to worship the thing signified or God Put case that were true it will not helpe them Durandus Holcot and Picus Mirandula and other papists professe that they adored the prototype or samplar before the image which put them in minde of the samplar and spake in as abstract a manner of their worship as the formalist doeth when hee pretendeth the purest intent hee can in the manner of his adoration And yet were accounted by other papists good catholicks Vasquez proveth that these Doctours made the image obiectum quod the verie object passive of adoration and that both the samplar and the image were adored together For they used the same respect to the images that other catholicks used they uncovered their head to them they bowed towards them kneeled before them and kissed them And this hee defendeth to bee the right manner when the image and samplar are adored with one adoration the inward motion and submission of minde being carried to the samplar and outward signe of submission to the image being transmitted by the spirit or in thought and desire to the samplar This Iesuit reporteth that in the time of the seventh synod their were some enemies to images who were content that images were brought into the kirk not only for decorement but also to stirre up the remembrance of the samplar that before them they might reverence only the samplar but exhibite no signe of honour or submission before the image for that they said was idolatrie and therefore they would neither kisse them nor bow before them but standing upright before them being stirred up to the rememberance of the samplar they were carried only in their minde to it These were called semiprobi as wee would say mangrels Yee see then that taking the image only as objectum à quo significative as instruments and meanes to stir up their remembrance these mangrals would not kneel before