THE CATHOLIKE SCRIPTVRIST OR THE PLEA OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIKES SHEWING The Scriptures to hold forth the Roman Faith in above forty of the cheife Controversies now under debate Now I beseech you Bretheren marke them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned and avoid them Rom. 16.17 By I. M. Printed in Gant by Maximilian Graet M.DC.LXII THE PREFACE 1. NOw I beseech you Bretheren mark those which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the Doctrine which ye have learned and avoid them Rom. 16.17 These words were the words of God and of truth as well in the yeare 1517. as at this present yeare Had any good Christian spoaken these words in that foresaid yeare 1517. all who had heard thē could have made no other sense of thē but that they were forewarned by them both to marke and to avoid all Authors of divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which they had learned yet as then there was not any good Christian unles you will account them for such whome you yourselves acknowledg to have maintained grosse Heresies who did not beleeve and professe the Roman Faith This was the Faith and Doctrine which they had learned Wherefore when in that yeare Luther first appeared causing divisions and offenses contrary to the Doctrine which they had learned all were bound by the advise of the Apostle to mark and avoid the sayd Luther and all his adherents and followers 2. But the world then no lesse addicted to old vices then to new doctrines did shutt they reares to this advise of the Apostle and did opē theyr armes to imbrace that which was in so very many Points contrary to the Doctrine which they had learned And the misery is that all those new Teachers which ensued in whole swarmes though they all taught contrary to what they had learned yea and the one contrary to the other yet all pretended to teach nothing but Scripture rightly understood which they all affirmed not to have been rightly understood for the foregoeing thousand yeares in such points as then they began to question yet with the same breath they sayd that in all those severall Points in which they contradicted the former doctrine and by doing so caused so great divisions and offenses they did affirme only that to which they were enforced by evident manifest and most cleer Texts of Scripture Which was to say that for the precedent thousand yeares no body had rightly understood or at least every body had by word and practise contradicted evident manifest and most cleere Texts of Scripture 3. The good Christians of those ages and we who adhere unto thē being in the quiet and peaceable possession of what we had learned were bound according to the advice of the Apostle to avoid those new teachers and it was sufficient for us to shew they taught contrary to what we had learned which they themselves confessed to be true and was too evident to require proofe But because we stood constantly to maintain what we had learned upon this ground as the Apostle did bid us our Adversaries desirous to bring us from beleeving to disputing would be still importunely pressing us to prove Point by Point every Point which we held by evidēt manifest and most cleere Scripture We vvell understood that it was theyr parts who affirmed all former ages for some thousand yeares at least to have thus grosly erred against cleere Scripture to make good so great and so scandalous an accusation by producing Texts in the Points under question of so manifest undeniable evidence against us that theyr Texts compared to ours alleadged in defence of the same Points should make the Truth so cleer on theyr side that all might be forced to confesse they had reason to revolt as they did from all theyr Ecclesiasticall and Civill Magistrates and to frame allso a new body by themselves wholy and entirely both in doctrine and discipline quite different yea and contrary to all Congregatiōs as then upō the face of the earth 4. The exorbitancy of this theyr proceeding will be unjustifyable when I shall here produce so many and so loud-speaking texts for above forty of those Points which they most misliked in our Religion yea it was our holding those Points for which they sayd they were enforced to this so unfortunate a Division But how weakly they were enforced upon this account to cause such divisions and offenses will easily be seen by any impartiall eye which shall attentively peruse on the one side al the texts which I shall here alleadg for forty five of those Points for which chiefly they have caused this division and on the other the few and inconsiderable and a thousand-times-answered Texts which they bring to the contrary 5. This then is the Plea of us Roman Catholicks that we ever since our Ancestors in England were Christians have held the doctrine which we have learned still avoiding those who taught the contrary For that we have done this in no fewer then fifty Points in which we are most accused of Novelty hath been demonstrated in a late booke entitled Englands old Religion out of Bedes owne words And though Bede had not been as he was the most grave and famed Authour which ever England had but had been only a lack straw living and writing before the yeare 731. that is above 900. yeares agoe yet to see in his words then writtē those fifty Points all held and all practised in our England when Englands Religion was at the purest cannot but abundantly convince that we Roman Catholiks did thē hold and practice what we hold and practise now What is this but to hold the doctrine we have learned avoiding those who teach the contrary 6. Yet this is not our whole Plea for wee know it will be objected that what we then learnt was contrary to Scripture and they must meane cleer and manifest Scripture or else why did they go against the doctrine and practise which they found agreeing so exactly with the doctrine and practice of old England as is unanswerably demonstrated in that book But we further more plead that in those very Points in which contradiction yea and manifest contradiction to Scripture is objected against us we have Scripture speaking so fully for us that no one of those many Religions now tolerated in England can with any colour of probability challenge greater evidence of Scripture for theyr opposit Tenets then we here produce for our undoubtedly ancient doctrine and therefore this our doctrine evē in this respect ought in all reason to be at least as much tolerated as any of those Religions lately sprōg up in England The proof of what I say must rely upon what shall appeare to be made good by me in each point of those forty five here ensuing 7. It only remaines that I advertise the reader how impossible it is that I or any one else should cite all Texts just in those very words in
or give us at least some one single cleare text which tells us that wee are to end all necessary Controversies by such books alone as be now extant in the true Cannon of Scripture or else be ashamed to speak with out a text in this very question in which you affirme that all our necessary Controversies must be ended by only cleere Scripture The Controversie about this very question is one of the greatest of all Controversies and yet you would have us credit you without beeing able to bring cleer Scripture for what you say especially Scripture conferred with these now cited texts of which I dare say you never thought And though you should bring me a cleer text to prove what is desired yet where would you find a cleer text to shew me that all those twelve books yea or any one of them which you have rejected amongst the Apocrypha do not belong to the true Canon of the whole Scripture Remember I call for a text as you bid me and not for a reason against which wee have our reasons the Text say you must end all necessary Controversies Let then some Text be brought able to end this even in your own Iudgement 6. Secondly if Scripture only be the Rule to end all necessary controversies then some Ages had no such Rule at all but were destitute of all assured Rule to end theyr necessary controversies and that for two thousand and four hundred yeares together For Moses who was the first Scripture writer was not borne but after the world had stood two thousand and four hundred yeares as may be made aparent by Scripture in calculating the Ages of such as successively lived one after the other according to his own History of Genesis soo long therefore the world was with out any Scripture Scripture then is not the only Rule of true Faith seeing that Sara Rebecca and others of those times had true faith though theyr faith was only squared by the Rule of the Tradition of theyr Church as wee will see in the next Point n. 2. 7. Thirdly the Rule by which all men should be ruled in all necessary points should be in a language understood by all But it is cleere that most of the Iews in the Captivity of Babilon had lost the knowledge of the Hebrew tongue wherein the old Scripture was written Neither was the Bible translated into the Syriak language till some yeares after our Saviours death Syriak differs as much from Hebrew as Italian from Latin And the very letters differ as much as Greeke and Latin The Iews then for above fourteene Generations understood the Hebrew no more then your people now understand the Bible in Latin But of all this I shall speak more fully Point the 15. n. 1. 8. Fourthly That can not be a sufficient Rule to decide all necessary controversies which speaks not one word of many necessary controversies But the Scripture speakes not a word of many necessary Controversies Ergo first it is necessary to know which bookes of Scripture be Canonicall and which not Also whether the Canonicall bookes wee now have be alone sufficient to guide us in all necessary controversies Then whether they can do this if they be not incorrupt And how wee shall assuredly know whether they be incorrupted or not Or which is the Copie that is uncorrupt Again which is the true Translation of this Copie Again which is the true sense of this Translation and that assuredly with a cleere Text for this assurance Of these and many more particular controversies not a word in Scripture Again standing to Scripture alone the Heresy of Helvidius denying our Blessed Lady ever to have remained a Virgin seemeth rather to have had some colourable defence then any cleere jugdment givē against it by Scripture only For Matth. 1.25 He knew her not till the brought forth her first borne Sonne In which Text these words till she brought forth and those others her first borne Sonne give some colour to say she had other Sonnes afterwardes For which doctrine Helvidius was held an Heretik by S. Augustin Her 84. and by S. Hierome contra Helvidium You may see fower and twenty necessary Pointes sett downe all at large by Optatus Ductor in his Question of Questions no one of which are cleerly decided in Scripture 8. Fiftly that can not he a sufficient Rule to decide all necessary Controversies which in such controversies speakes not cleerly but is very hard to be understood as the Scripture is Whence we see all Controversies arise about the true meaning of such and such Texts So 2. Pet. 3.16 In the which Epistles of S. Paul are certeine thinges hard to be understood which the unlearned and unstable wrest as they do the other Scriptures unto theyr owne damnation Whence it is evident that damnable errors may be incurred by misinterpteting places hard to be understood And so this hardnes is found in pointes necessary to saluation For in such only damnable errors can be incurred 10. Sixtly Christ did not command any one of the Evangelistes to write his Ghospell They all did write of themselves upon particular ocasions expressed by Eusebius S. Luke tells you in his Preface why he did write uncommanded Christ then intended to leave us some other Rule then this which he never commanded to be written at all much lesse to be written so as to be to us the only Rule of Faith 11. Seaventhly by reading the Ceremoniall law given by God to Moyses soo cleerely so distinctly and so closse together in the compasse of no great book I evidently inferre that if the selfe same most prudent Lawmaker had intended in the bookes of Canonicall Scripture to deliverd unto us the sole Rule of Faith and which alone we were to follow he would not only have cleerly told us so but he would with no lesse but rather with more clarity and distinction and in a farr lesse compasse have sett downe unto us this Rule intierly and compleatly together in some one part of the Canonicall Scripture distinctly expressing all those pointes the beliefe of which he exacteth of us under paine of damnatiun For this did much more import to be done thus plainly and distinctly then the setting downe of the Iewish Ceremoneyes For is it likely that the same God who prescribed unnecessary Ceremonies to be so cleerly and distinctly set down in a few leafes to direct the Iewish Church which is but the Hand Mayd would not for the Church of Christ which is the Mistris give as clear a direction in Pointes wholy necessary to saluation But would send every one of her Children to read over the whole Bible and to pick out here one place and there an other as Protestantes say God sends us to seeke even the most necessary Pointes of our beliefe which he requires of us under paine of damnation now in this place of so vast a Vollume as the Bible is now in an other place hard by now
in another a greate way of And so to goe seeking from the beginning of Genesis to the end of the Apocalipse And this though the number of Pointes necessary to saluation be but smale as Protestants all agree I can not therefore thinke is was Gods intention te leave us to the Bible only as to the sole Rule of Faith THE SECOND POINT Tradition besides Scripture must direct us in many necessary Controversies 1. FIrst the word of God may be notified either by Tradition with out writing or by Scripture or writing It is undoubted that the word of God written or unwritten is the Rule of Faith wherefore seeing it hath been proved in the former Point that the writteÌ„ word of God is not our only Rule of Faith it evidently followeth that Gods unwritten word notified by Tradition must be taken as part of this Rule 2. Secondly Moyses was the first Scripture writer and he according to his own story did not write till the world had continued above two thousand and four hundred yeares so long then all the faithfull in the world were truly faithfull without any Scripture All this long time then the unwritten word of God that is Tradition was the only Rule of Faith For even then many had that faith which is defined by S. Paul 11. Hebr. 1. which I prove because in that very place he numbers Abel Enoch Noë Abraham and Sara all having the faith he there described and yet Sara cannot be shewed to have had her faith grounded on any other word of God but that which was delivered by the Tradition of the Church in her times And generally then the faith of all true beleivers was grounded upon Tradition only By this Tradition they knew that God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it Gen. 2.3 And so all held themselves obliged to keep the Saboth By this Tradition they knew the distinction of Beastes cleane and uncleane Gen. 7.2 By this Tradition they knew themselves obliged not to eate the flesh with the blood Gen. 9.4 so likewise that the Tithes were to be pâ—yd to the Priest Gen. 14.20 By only Tradition they knew the fall of Adam theyr future saluation by the Messias to come theyr remedy from sinne by Pennance and repentance theyr reward of Good punishment of evell Againe from Abraham untill the written law that is for some foure hundred yeares they knew by Tradition only that this is the Covenant which ye shall keep between me and you All man kind shall be circumcised an infant of eight dayes Gen. 17.10 Now give me one Text if you can which bide us not to take Tradition for a Rule of Faith after the writing of Scripture 3. Thirdly even after the writing of Scripture the Gentils had not the Scripture yet by Tradition only many of them as apeares by the booke of Iob retained true faith And even among the Iews after they had the Scripture several necessary Pointes where left to be knowne by Tradition only as the remedy for Original sinne before the eight day and for woemen children both before and after As also by only Tradition they knew that all the vertue there sacrifices had to take away sinne was from the blood of theyr Redeemer to come The observing of al these traditions was not any unlawfull Addition to the written word of God whence you may understand the clere meaning of those words so often objected against us Deut. 4.2 You shall not adde to the word I command you neither shall you diminish ought from it For here is only forbidden to add contrary to the law So that other place Ch 12.32 Whatsoever I command you observe thou shall not adde thereunto nor diminish from it For this place is meant only of offerings not any other sacrifices besides those which were in the law prescribed But it was ever lawfull for lawfull Superiors to add more preceps agreable to the law So 2. Ch. 30.21 after the Children of Israël according to the law had kept the solemnity of Azymes seven dayes v. 23. The whole assembly took good counsel to keep other seven dayes And v. 27. Theyr prayer came to the Holy habitation of heaven This addition then did not displease God Again Esther 9.27 The Iews ordained and tooke upon them and theyr seede and upon all that would be ioyned with them so as it should not faile that they keep these two dayes and that these dayes should be kept through out every Generation every family Behold here an other addition and behold also an other again of the Dedication of the Altar made for eight dayes from yeare to yeare 1. Mach. 4.56.59 And that you may know that this booke is Scripture or at least that a feast is to be kept not appointed in Scripture our Saviour himselfe did keep this Feast Iohn 10.22 as I shall shew Point 38. Again the change of the Sabboth into the Sunday is only clearly known by Tradition Yea the manner of keeping it is contrary to all Scripture we have for Scripture sayth Levit. 23.32 From Even unto Even shall ye celebrate Your Sabboth Yet we do not begin the Sunday the even before neither dare wee worke after the even upon Sunday Who taught us this Tradition only 4. Fourthly Tradition is and therfore is truly to be held the word of God making us fully assured of what is not written For example for some yeares after the Death of our Saviour his glorification after death was not written so as to expresse that Iesus was that Christ whom God had glotified and yet before this was written S. Peter sayd truly Acts 2.36 Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly marke the word assuredly that God hath made the same Iesus whome you have crucified both Lord and Christ We may then have an infallible faith of what is not written yea we are forbidden to believe otherwise then was delivered by Tradition 2. Thess 2.14 Therefore Bretheren stand and hold the Traditions you have bin taught whether by word or by our Epistle For what he taught by his tongue only was as truly the word of God as what he did also write with his penne Yea this which I call Tradition is the Epistle of Christ 2. Cor. 33. you are the Epistle of Christ not written with inke but with the spiritt of the living God This Epistle written with the spiritt of the living God is no lesse true nor of lesse credit then what is writteÌ„ with inke in papers Whereforemost of the Apostles did give their Convertites no other forme of beliefe but what by their preaching they had written in theyr heartes not with inke but with the spiritt of the living God For the proper subject to receive and râ—â—ayne the word of God is not paper but the heartes of the faythfull Whence S. Irenaeus lib. 3. cap. 4. What if the Apostles had also left no Scripture Ought not we to follow the order of Tradition which they delivered to them to
more outwardly when wee worship Saints or adore God Wherfore to prove what I have undertaken you see I need go no further then Genesis but I thought fitt to adde one very fitt passage of 1. Chron. 29. v. 20. All the assemble bowed themselves downe and worshiped the Lord and the King Exteriously the bowing was both alike to thc ground but the inward act made this bowing as done to the King to be civil honour only and the like bowing as done to God to be devine honour or worship and true adoratiō in the most rigorous sēse It is very strāge to observe how cunningly your Bibles still avoid the word Adore evē when it is applyed to God which seemes so often omitted by them because the same word signifying to adore is so often applyed to creatures you cannot then blame us if when wee reverence Saints or pray to them wee bow kneel or prostrate our selves to the ground even seaven times For if civil worship for this word the last Text hath may passe so farre without robbing God of his honour why may not an inferiour Religious worship do the like 5. But of this adoring for Religious worship wee have cleer Scripture Iosue c. 5. being told by an Angel that this Angel was but a Captain of the Hosts of our Lord Ioshua fell on his face to the earth and did worship v. 14. Behold before wee had worship given by the people to the King here wee have worship done to an Angel known to be an Angel By and by in the Apocalips wee shall see this very word of worship to signify the Reverence which is to be given to God Now I go on and I observe that the Angel was not only willing to admitt of this honour but commanded him allso to shew reverence to the very place made Holy by his presence Loose sayth he thy shoes from thy feet for the place wherin thou doest stand is Holy If any reply that wee may with Religious worship adore Angels as Iosue did but not Saints behold the Scripture sheweth this Religious worship or adoration due to spirituall excellency to be laudably given even to those who excell in sanctity even in this world So 1. Kings 18.7 Abdias governour of the house of Achab King of Israël meeting with poore Elias the Prophet when he knew him fell on his facë and sayd My Lord art not thou Elias And 2. Kings 2. v. 15. The Children of Prophets seing Elizeus sayd the spirit of Elias hath rested upon him and coming to meet him adored him flat to the ground or as you read They bowed themselves to the ground before him See you not here that it was not for any worldly excellency but meerly in regard of his spirituall excellency that they thus bowed thēselves to the groūd before him This spirituall excellency is incomparably more eminent in those who are now made Coheires to Christ himselfe in the partciipation of all heavenly gifts and glory To them therfore Religious bowing or worship is farre more due and wee are commāded by S. Paul Rom. 13.6.7 To render to all theyr due to whom honour honour Owe to no man any thing which you do not pay him This I staid upō because our Adversaries often aske for a precept commanding us to honour Saints Behold I have given you one which is a precept grounded in the very Law of nature and equity cammaunding us to render to teach one what is due to him 6. Again Apoc. 3.9 Behold I will make them come and worship hefore thy feet words spoaken to the Angel of Philadelphia If by this Angel you say the Bishop of Philadelphia is understood then we prove first that a fortiore wee may worship before the feet of the chiefe Bishop of the Church Secondly wee much more a fortiore inferre that wee may worship before the feet of those who have a farre greater excellency in vertue grace glory as Saints have above all men on earth For Matth. 11.11 Hee that is the least in the Kingdome of heaven is greater then he that is is greater then the great S. Iohn Baptist was upon earth though of him Christ himselfe sayd There had not risen a greater among the sons of weomen S. Iohn the Evangelist then knowing it to be true which he himselfe had written that Christ would make men come and worship before the feet of the Angel of Philadelphia thought it is duty to adore before the feet of any Angel and hence he sayth of himselfe Apoc. 19. v. 10. And I fell at this feet to worship him the Angel and again c. 22. v. 8. I fell down to worship before the feet of the Angel which shewed me those things 7. Our adversaries object that at each of these adorations the Angel checked S. Iohn for them saying at each time See thou do not I am thy fellow servant worship God Our answer is that if the first adoration used by S. Iohn had been of its own nature Idolatrous and sinfull which is incredible it proceeding from so great a Prophet and so sublime a Scripture writer yet at lest being told so and instructed by the Angel to the contrary as you say he was he would never the second time have done that Idolatrous and damnable sinfull act both wittingly and willingly and this so very soō after he had beē warned not to do it It was not thē by reason of any unlawfulnes in this action that the Angel willed him not to adore or worship But the Angel refused at both times this honour upon some other consideration to witt out of singular respect unto him whom he knew to have been at the last supper admitted to ly on Christs breast and so he would not permitt him to ly now prostrate at his feete whom he allso knew to be so highly favored by God with so many admirable heavenly visions Moreover to be a Virgin to be a Priest an Apostle and to be that very Disciple whom Iesus so singularly loved to be allso a Prophet and an Evangelist Therefore he would not admitt of such profound respect at his hands but humbly saying unto him I pray do it not for I am thy fellow servant and thou either now art greater in Gods sight then I am or soon mayest come to be farre greater Worship and adore God who hath so magnifyed thee Yet S. Iohns humility working still upon him more by seeing an Angel so humble and producing in him a mean conceipt of himselfe by still reflecting on what he was as of himselfe and knowing what his maister sayd that even the lesser in the Kingdome of heaven was greater then the great S. Iohn Baptist to witt according to the present state he therefore did the second time shew the Angel the honour he knew due to him See above how Iosue worshiped an Angel which honour notwithstanding was allso refused by the Angel in this place both for the former reasons and for that he knew full
one place with an other For I aske and ask them again and again by whom Scripture ought to be interpreted They will say by Scripture conferred with Scripture Here I must yet ask them again by whom the conference of one Scripture with another can be made so exactly that from hence wee may come vndoubtedly to know the true interpretation This question I will be still asking them untill they can answer it For I am sure that If I presse this question home they must be at last enforced to say that the ground of their whole Religion is the Scripture interpreted by them selves when it hath bin carefully conferred by them selves so that the very ground of their whole fayth is deceiptfull and fallible if they them selves be fallible either in interpteting or in conferring Scripture carefully or skillfully If they say their Interpretation thus made is undoubted and infallible then they can not blame us for saying that the interpretation of the Church made with as great care and skill used by her in the exact conference of one Scripture with an other is infallible 3. Stay here Deare Reader and as thou lovest thy saluation before thou goest any further ponder attentively how fallible and subject to a world of errors the ground of all such Religions must needs be which wholy and entirely are found at last to rely upon a meer human interpretation after that a meer human and most fallible diligence and skill hath bin employed in conferring one Text with an other Then ponder on the other side how incomparably surer and more justifiable in the sight of God and man the ground of that faith is which relyeth indeed on the Scripture but not on the Scripture as interpreted by private and fallible interpreters after theyr most fallible exactnesse of conferring Scripture with Scripture but which relyeth upon Scripture as interpreted by the Church after that shee with no lesse exactnes hath conferred one Scripture with an other in a generall Council having incomparable greater human abilities then those of any private mans be and having the speciall assistance of the Holy Host leading his Church into all truth Of this infallibility wee shall speak fully Point 5. 4. Now the Scripture as rightly interpreted by the Church will send us for the clearing of many doubtes unto the Church authorized by Christ to instruct and teach us as in that fift Point shall be evidenced out of Scripture The difference then between our adversaries and us is that wee affirme the Scripture as it is rightly interpreted by the Church after she hath exactly conferred in a general Councel Scripture with Scripture to be the Rule of Faith by which she decideth all necessary Controversies But our adversaries misliking the dependence on the Church will have the Scripture by it selfe alone to be a Rule sufficient to direct each one who shall carefully conferre it to judge all necessary Controversies This wee deny and though they say it in wordes yet in very deed they also come to deny what they say for let a man mark it well and he shall see that all these sectaries when they come to the maine Controversie do not take Scripture alone as conferred with Scripture only but they all take Scripture with theyr own interpretation made upon theyr own conference And if you tell them they have fayled by not taking due notice of severall other Texts in Scripture which should have been pondered in their Conference and would have produced a different interpretation they will say their own spirit tels them the contrary so that finally they who laugh at the Church for trusting to be securely guided by the Holy Ghost come to ground theyr whole fayth upon the assurance of being truly guided by theyr own spirit or judgement but let us come to what we propound and let us prove by Scripture that Scripture taken as they take it can not be a sufficient Rule to direct us in all necessary Controversies This I prove 5. First because to end all Controversies wee must at least rule our selves by al the bookes of Scripture and we must be assured wee doe so This is cleere because by no text of Scripture it can be prouved that any determed booke or number of bookes is sufficient to end all Controversies But to do this the whole number of books written by any Scripture writer is wholy requisite seeing that no Text speaks of any one or any determinate number but all speake of all Now marke to what passe this opinion brings you For if wee be to judge all necessary Controversies by all the bookes which ever were written by any Scripture writer we must necessarily have these books amongst us But wee have not in the whole world extant amongst us diverse books of Sacred Propheticall Scriptures For no fewer then twenty books of the Propheticall Pennemen of the Holy Ghost have quite perished as the learned Contzen proveth in his Preface upon the fower Ghospels and I will prove this as far as is sufficient by these following texts Iosue 10.13 Is not this written in the book of Iascker Again 1. Kinges 4.32 Salomon spoke three thousand Proverbs and his songes were one thousand and five Again 1. Chron. 29.29 The actes of David first and last are written in the book of Samuel the Seer and the book of Nathan the Prophet and the book of Gad the Seer Where be these two Prophets books Again 2. Chron. 9.29 mention is made of the books of Nathan the Prophet and the Prophesie of Ahyah and the visions Iddo the Seer And Chap 12.15 and the book Schemaiah the Prophet and of Iddo the Seer concerning Genealogies which seemes to be a different book from his book of visions before specifyed And Chap. 13.22 mention is made of the story of the Prophet Iddo And Ch. 20.34 mention is made of the book of Iehu sonne of Hanani and Ch 33.19 wee find mention of the works of the sayings of the Seers Wee know then by Scripture that what is sayd by those books is sayd by Prophets And wee also know by Scripture that God spoke in time past unto the Fathers by the Prophets 2. Pet. 1.21 Moreover we know by Scripture that Prophesie came not in old time by the will of man But the Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost 2. Pet. 1.21 Standing therefore to what is known by Scripture these bookes which have perished did deliver what was spoken by the Holy Ghost and contained the true word of God Whēce is proved that we have not now entierly the whole word of God written and this is further proved by the ensuing textes of S. Paul 1. Cor. 5.9 I wrote to you in one Epistle Note that he sayth this in his first Epistle to them Where is the Epistle which S. Paul wrote to them before he wrote the first to them I wrote to you Wee then say Give us all sacred Propheticall writings which ever were written
whom they committed the Churches To which ordinance many Nations of those barbarous people who have believed in Christ do consent with out letter or inke having salvation that is soul-saving doctrine written in their heartes For a world of the first believers did never so much as see all scripture It was the yeare 99. before S. Iohn writt his Gospell And when the Canon of Scripture was fully ended there is no meÌ„tion made euen of the lâ—â—st care taken by the Apostles to divulge the Scripture in barbarous languages no nor to divulge it in latin it selfe as you must needes say who deny primitive Antiquity to all Latine Editions All this cleerly proves that Tradition was relyed upon as upon the word of God it selfe Whence S. Paul did not only counsel but also commaÌ„ded the Thessalonians to with draw them selves from all who walked not after the Tradition they had received of their Pâ—stors 2. Thâ—s 3.6 Now sayd heâ— wee comaund you Bretheren in the name of our Lord that ye with draw your selves from every brother that walketh discorderly and not after the Tradition which he receaved of us 5. It was for the keeping this Tradition and forme of Faith why he praysed the Romans Ch. 6.17 You have obeyed from your heart the forme of doctrine what was delivered you This forme could not be a forme conteyned in the whole Canon of Scripture for the whole Canon was not finished when S. Paul did write this It was therefore the forme of uniforme TraditioÌ„ delivered in each church which taught by word of mouth all th nges necessary For this he praysed the Corinthians 1 Cor. 11.2 Now I prayse to Bretheren that you keepe the Traditions so you put in the margenâ— but in the Text you read Ordinances as I eliverded them to you This Forme these Traditions these Ordounances are inculcated again and again 1. Tim. 6.20 O Thimothie keep that which is committed to thy trust And v. 3. If any one teached otherwise he is proud knowing nothing Again 2. Tim. 1.13 Hold fast the good forme of good words which thou hast heard of me That good thing which was committed to thee keep by the H. Ghost Again Ch. 3.14 But thou continue in those things which thou hast learned and been assured of knowing of whom thou hast learned them learned I say by word of mouth for by writing he had received but title So also when as yet by writing he had taught the Romans nothing he in his first and only Epistle to them wrote thus Rom. 16.17 Now I beseeeh you Bretheren mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned Likwise when as yet he had written nothing to the Galatians for where is any such writing he begines thus Gal. 1.6 I maruel that so soon you are removed from him who called you into the grace of Christ unto an other Ghospell I say removed that is changed from the forme of Faith which I delivered which was a true though not a written Ghospel into an other Ghospel taught by these new otherwise teathers yet sayth he with all earnestness Although wee or an Angel from heaven preach any other Ghospel unto you then that ye have receaved let them be accursed v. 8. S. Paul as yet had preached nothing to them in writing but they had received all by Orall Tradition and yet not with standing once again more vehemently v. 9. As wee have sayd before so I say now again if any man preach any other Ghospel unto you theÌ„ that you have received be he accursed Note the word Received intimating that they had all by Tradition For what as then had they received from him in writing And he sayth no more then other Apostles Who did write nothing but delivered all by Orall Tradition might truly have sayed of the Ghospel so delivered by them Neither did S. Paul speake of what they should receive many yeares after but of what they had as theÌ„ received For that was as true as any thing they should receive by writing And therefore for theyr forsaking of what they had received thus he most deservedly sayth unto them O Foolish Galatians who hath bewitched you c. 3. v. 1. For indeed they seeme bewitched out of theyr senses who to follow the private judgment of some otherwise teachers reject what they had received by the full and still-continued report of all Christianity from the first teachers of the faith 6. They object Tradition to be the word of men but all these arguments shew this Apostolicall Tradition for which only wee now contend to be the word of God A forme of sound words And 1. Thes 2.13 Ye received the word of God which ye heard of us ye received it not as the word of men but as it is in truth the word of God Behold what was heard by them by only word of mouth was in truth the word of God Therefore a fitt Rule of Faith even before it was written 7. They aske how wee know a true Apostolicall Tradition from a false one which is the tradition of men I answer that a true Apostolicall Tradition cometh downe handed by a full unanimous report of all Catholike Nations in all ages attested by thyr universall practise and uniforme doctrine what is thus delivered is the Doctrine of the Church diffused and therefore infallible upoÌ„ this ground for other infallible groundes you have none you receive only such and such Scripture for Canonicall and such and such copies of the Scripture for Authenticall We can therefore to the full as well distinguish true Traditions from false ones or Apostolicall Traditions from Traditions of Ordinary men as you can distinguish the Authenticall copie of theyr writings from such as are forged or corrupted for you must first distinguish the truth of the Tradition which recommend such bookes unto you from all false Traditions THE THIRD POINT Of the never fayling of the Church which beeing perpetuall can preserve perpetuall Traditions Also of succession of true Pastors and Professors 1. IF the Church of Christ could fayle or cease to be it is evident Tradition might fayle and not be preserved in its purity The true Church is both infallible as long as she lasts of which see Point 5 and is allso sure to last to the end of the world Yea she is assured all this time to have a lawful succession of true Pastors and under them true Professors of the faith in a vast number find any such Church besides the Roman if you can and I give you leave to call that the true Church And lest perhaps the great number of powerfull Texts which we are to cite should worke smale effect with minds prepossest with one or two objections to the contrary we will first cleare them and then passe to the manifold cleere Texts which demonstrate the true Church at no time to be in a lurking Invisibility 2. The prime objection is from the wordes of Elias
1. Kinges 18.22 I even I only remaine a Prophet of our Lord. And in the next Chap. v. 10. I even I only am left which again he repeates v. 14. I answer that at lest he is told presently by God v. 18. That there were left in Israël seven thousand men whose knees had not bin bowed before Baal And in the former Chapter it is manifest he knew of an hundred Prophets For v. 13. Abdias told him I hidd of the Prophets of our Lord an hundred men by fifty and fifâ—y in caves Wherefore he knew well that there were many faithfull amongst whom so many Prophets were known to him yea hence it is cleare that he was not the only Prophet left Wherefore those words I only I remaine a Prophet of our Lord are to be understood thus I only I remaine a Prophet standing openly to oppose theyr fury amongst the Apostated Tribes of Israël For Elias knew full well that not all the Children of Israël but only tenne Tribes were faln from God 1. Kinges 12. He knew allso that the still faithfull Tribe of Iuda including Benjamin afforded Roboam an hundred and four seore thousand chosen men to fight against the other revolted tenne Tribes v. 21. which is again repeated 2. Chron. 11. with a notable declaration how much the true Church even then florished in Iuda and Benjamin Roboam himselfe building fifteene cities inclosed with walls And v. 13. the Preestes and Levits that were in all Israël resorted to him out of all theyr coasts And v. 16. Of all the Tribes of Israël whosoever had given theyr heartes to seeke theyr Lord God of Israêl came into Ierusalem to sacrifice and they strengthned the Kingdome of Iuda All this Elias knew very well and also that which follows to witt that Asa reigned over all Iuda in all pietie and peace 2. Chron. 14. And he built other fenced cities in Iuda And v. 8. Asa had of Iuda an army of three hundred thousand and of Benjamin two hundred eighty thousand And he defeated tenn hundred thousand Ethiopians And 2. Chr. 17. Iosaphat who lived in the day 's of Elias was yet greater then Asa his Father both in piety and power For v. 10. The Dread of our Lord came about all the Kingdomes of the Lands that were about Iuda Neither durst they make battell against Iosaphat And he built many strong cities and stupendious was the number of his forces v. 14. of Iudath under Abnath Three hundred thousand and two hundred eighty thousand under Iohanan And two hundred thousand under Amasias And two hundred thousand under Ehada And two hundred eighty thousand under Iosobad All these make Eleven hundred thousand and sixty thousand soldiers And yet the Scripture sayth All these were at the hand of the King besides others whome he had putt in Walled cities in Iuda Behold the Iewish Church even at her lowest ebbe Christ's Church is the Mistris and of higher dignity Wherefore at all times after her beginning you must find me at lest as many visible Professors of her doctrine as the Iewish Church had in her meanest coÌ„ditioÌ„ For the new testameÌ„t is established in far better promisses Heb. 8.6 As also appeares by the texts which here shall be cited All which texts coÌ„vince such a perpetuall coÌ„spicuous and visibly florishing state at all times that no church differing from the RomaÌ„ caÌ„ be shewed to have had any thing like it 3. The other only considerable objection is that perhapes these promises made by God to his Church concerning his allwaise protecting her were made upon this condition that he would do this if she should persever to keep his commandments for so all his promises to David and Salomon are made I answer that it is evideÌ„t that some promises which feeme made to them and their posterity are not to be litterally understood of their posterity according to flesh but as they by grace be sonnes of Christ who was the sonne of David And diverse of these promises are made so absolutly that absolutely they admit of no such condition Take for proof hereof that convincing Text Ps 89.4 I have made a covenant with my chosen I have sworne to David my servant thy seed will I establish for ever and I will build up thy throne to all generations All which is only verified in Christ Who in his Church hath giveÌ„ hâ—m the seate of David his father and he shall reigne in the house of Iacob for ever and of his Kingdome there shall be no end As the Angel sayd Luke 1.32 After this promise of everlasting perpetuity to his Church lest any ony should thinke his promises might be made void by any sins of hers or to be made only upon condition of theyr walking in his commandments he addeth in the same Ps v. 29. And I will putt him the first begotteÌ„ high aboue the kings of the earth I will keepe my mercy unto him for ever and my Testament faithfull unto him I will putt his seede for ever and ever and his throne as the days of heaven But if his Children shall forsake my law this can not be possibly in your doctrine spoken of the Elect and will not walke in my Iudgments If they will prophane my Iustices and not keep my commandments I wil visit theyr iniquities with a Rod and theyr sinnes with stripes But my loving kindness I will not take a way from him nor suffer my faithfulness to fail My covenant will I not break nor the thing which is gone out of my Lips Once I have sworn in my holy if I ly to David his seed shall continue for ever And his throne as the Sun in my sight and as the Moon perfect for ever This Text speakes home to prove what I inteÌ„d to witt that these promises be made upon Christ The son of David the son of Abraham Matth 1.1 and as S. Paul teacheth that only those who believe in Christ be the rue children of Israël and Abraham so they only be the true children of David and concerning them is verified the promise which as is here sayed for no fins of theirs shall ever be frustrated Not as though the word of God had takeÌ„ no effect but they that are the Children of the Promisse are counted for the seed Rom. 9.6 4. And in this sense the Sacred Text speakes 2. Sam. 7.16 And thine house and thy Kingdome shall be established for ever before thee thy throne shall be established for ever According to all these wordes did Nathan speake to David So Psalm 72.5 They shall feare thee as long as the Sun and Moone endure through out all generations He shall have dominion allso from sea to sea and from the River to the ends of the Earth In whom can these Texts of Scripture be verified but in Christ ever raigning in his Church diffufed even in a florishing condition over the face of the earth According to what is sayd Luke 1.32 The Lord God shall give
publick practice and also upon all occasions taught by word of mouth and expressed in written bookes Thus our common law in England though never written by any lawmaker is notwithstanding by dayly practice most faithfully kept and hath been so for so many hundred yeares by the whole Nation diffused And in this manner the Church diffused keepeth in perpetuall practice and delivereth to her children as infallible truth what was first delivered unto her by commission from God either in writing or by word of mouth The other way of making and delivering Laws is to call togeather the represētative body of the Community So here in England our statute laws are made not onely by the King nor onely by the Parlament but by the order both of King and Parlament And what is thus enacted is the decree of the Natiō representative Now as the represētative of our nation is the King and Parlament so the Church Representative is the chiefe Pastour thereof togeather with a Lawfull generall Councill And the definitions and decrees set forth by their authority be called the definitions and the decrees of the Church Representative All such definitions we Romā Catholicks hold infallible Whither the definition of a Councill alone defining without their chiefe Pastour or the definitions of the chiefe Pastour alone defining without a Councill be infallible or no there be severall opinions amongst us in which we do and may varie without any prejudice to our Faith which is not built upon what is yet under opinion but upon that which is delivered as infallible and we all unanimously hold that to be so which the universall Church Representatiue consisting joyntly of the chiefe Pastour of the sayd Church voting in and with a Generall Councell not that this Representatiue made wholy of men is not of its owne nature subject to errour For this we never affirme And so our adversaries say nothing at all to the purpose whilst they labour to proue this Let thē disproue if they can and that out of Scripture alone that which we say to witt that this Church Representatiue is infallible meerly and purely by the speciall assistance of the Divine Provedence always affording to his Church a sufficient measure of the spirit of truth to lead her into all truth And that he is evcr so surely resolved to do this that no sinns of his Church shall ever hinder him from doeing of it as is most expressly delivered by God himselfe Psalm 89. in the words cited by me at large Point 3. n. 3. Which place the Reader shall find most convincing to prove that notwithstanding all the sinns that shall euer happen in his Church the sunne and moone shall sooner faile then God will faile to provide a successour in Christs throne to governe his Church in the profession of truth so as his faithfulnes shall not faile nor none of his words be frustrated which you shall see delivered again and again in the ensueing places of Scripture All which to the number of thirty I gather to fully because the Protestants exclaime againest nothing more then the Churches claime to infallibility which D. Ferne calls The very bane of Christendome though it be the very ground worke of Christianity For all interpretation of Seripture is fallible if the interpretation of the Church be fallible euen then when she hath carefully conferred Scripture with Scripture 2. And to avoide confusion I will divide these thirty Texts into these three severall sorts The first sort shall containe eyther such as command vs absolutly to follow and obey the Church in such a māner as would wholy misbeseeme God to commaund vs if she could thrust errours vpon vs for Divine verities or such Texts as theach vs to relie more vpon the Church then could prudently be done if she could teach errour The second sort shall containe a multitude of such glorious expressions made every where of the Church as would be most emptie and truthlesse if the Church should ever prove a Mistris of errours and presse them on her children for Divine verities The third and last sort shall be such Texts as plainly affirme Truth to be still taught in the Church and to be intailed vpon her promising she shall not revolt from it but stand still a true piller and ground of Truth 3. Of the first sort of Texts we haue these by which eyther God commaundes vs vniversally to follow his Church or speakes that of his Church which could not be delivered as it is if this Church could erre For example how could God glorie in the multitude of such as follow his Church if by so doeing they should be led into errour And yet Isaias 2. God seemes to glorie in the multitude of those who confidently resort to the Church as to a Mistris of assured Truth to be instructed by her saying v. 3. Let us goe vp to the mountaine of our Lord and he wil teach us his wayes and we shall walke in his pathes and he shall judge among the natiōs Behold Christ erecting a Court or tribunal in his Church to judge amōg natiōs ād decide all their cōtroversies which must needs suppose obediēce to be yeilded to this judgmēt Yea the same Prophet adds c. 54. v. 17. that No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper and every tongue resisting thee in judgment thou shalt condemne And the Prophet there from the beginning manifestly speakes of Christs Church Thirdly Isaias Ch. 60.12 The Nation and Kingdome that will not serve thee shall perish Vnder paine of perishing the Church must be obeyed Whence Fourthly Ezech c 44. v. 23. They that is the Priests shall teach the people what is between a holy thing and a thing polluted and the difference between clēane and vncleane They shall shew them and when there shall be controversie they shall stand in judgment and shall judge according to my judgments This being their office the peoples office must needs be not to judge them but obey them 4. Whence Fiftly Christ Matt. 18.17 commands all to obey the Church vnder paine of being held here on earth as Publicās and Heathens and of haveing this sentence ratifyed in heauen Tell the Church sayth he and if he will not heare the Church let him be vnto thee as a Heathen and a Publican Amē I say vnto you whatsoever you shall bind on Earth shall be bound in heaven and whatsoever you shall loose vpon earth shall be loosed also in heaven Here you see obedience to be yeilded vnder paine of being held as a Publican or an Heathen and this sentence to be ratified in heaven Now if the Church could erre in theaching for example that Christ is truly present in the Sacrament and hence oblige all to adore him there in as much as they adore him in heauē and could oblige them to this vnder paine of being held as Publicans and Heathens ād held so as well in heaven as vpon earth surely this cānot be an errour
For then in heaven this sentence would never be ratified And tell me not that this texts speakes of private differēces betweene brother ād brother though I denie not but this is also true in such differences as belong to the Court or Tribunall of the Church yet hence evidently follows that this Text doth much more concerne those differences in point of Religion between brother and brother Both because these doe more properly belong to the Court of the Church and to her Tribunall as also because when scandal and offence is giuen to our brother in point of heresie tending to the seduction of his soule our brother seeing this soule-murthering sinne broached to his owne ruine ād to the eternall ruine of his brother hath farre greater reasō in this case thē in any other to tell the Church his mother to whome in this difference aboue all other differences it properly belongeth to looke to the safety of her childred For this is an offēce ād scandal to the whole brotherhood of all Christianity Therefore in these points of highest concernement we are most bound to heare the Church vnder paine of being accounted Publicans and Heathens and of haueing this heauie sentence ratified in heauen 5. Sixtly Matt. 23.1 Then Iesus spake to the multitudes and to his Disciples saying Vpon the chaire of Moyses haue sitten the Scribes and Pharises by which sitting with lawfull succession they as wicked as they were are knowne to be lawfully authorized Prelats all therefore whatsoever they shall say unto you observe and do Behold here a precept of obeying in all whatsoever And therefore behold a precept which could not be givē if that which is delivered by publicke authority of the Church were not secured from error in all whatsoever 6. Sevently The first and best Christians did practically acknowledge theyr beleefe of the infallibility of the Church For to have a decision of the most important Controversies Act. 15.2 they appointed Paul and Barnabas to go up and certaine others of the rest to the Apostles and Priests unto Hierusalem upon this question And the Church assembled the first Councill in which though this Councill were assisted with the Holy Ghost yet there was made a great disputation v. 7. And then the definition of the Church came forth in these words It seemeth good to the Holy Ghost and us v. 28. Other lawfull Councills knowing the Holy Ghost allso promised to them do vse to set forth theyr definitions with the same words and this most agreable to Scripture For Iohn 15. v. 26. When the Paraclete cometh whom I shall send from my father the spirit of truth he shall give testimonie of me and you shall give testimonie Marke this conjunction of he and you He the the spirit of truth and you Governers of my Church so that you in giveing testimony may freely say It seemeth good to the Holy Ghost and us 7. Eightly It is cleere out of Scripture that the first Christians were so fully possessed with the beleefe of the infallibility of the Church that they would beleeve nothing but what thy knew conformable to her doctrine S. Paul was a Scripture-writer and so great an Apostle and yet he sayeth of himselfe Gal. 2.1 Then after fourteene yeares I went to Hierusalem again not meerly to satisfie a vaine fancie of some particular men but I went up according to revelation and conferred with them the Ghospel which I preach among the Gentills But I conferred severally or a part with them that seemed to be something least perhaps I should runn or had runn in vain So that he thought all his fourteen yeares preaching and allso his future preaching might come to be in vaine vnlesse even his doctrine were made known to be approved by the Church as wholy conformable to the Church So much in these goulden dayes were the first Christians taught to relye vpon the Church which had been imprudence if she had been fallible Yet we must not thinke that then they did apprehend that the approbation of the Church did adde any degree of truth to his doctrine as it doth not add any degree of truth to the Scripture or pretend to have power to change or correct true Scripture And so S. Paul sayth v. 6. For to me they that seemed to be some thing added nothing For as the toutchstone adds no value to the gold but onely evidently manifesteth which is true gold which not so the Church as then did only manifest infallibly the truth of what he had preached So allso the Church as now doth only manifest to vs that such and such Bookes be the true word of God such and such be not such be true copies such not c. But the word of God hath its true worth from it selfe and not frō the Church as the gold hath its being true gold from it selfe and not from the toutchstone So when Catholiques say with S. Aug. Cont. Epist fundam c. 5. I would not beleeve the Ghospell unlesse the authoritie of the Church moved me they doe not meane that the Church can adde or take away from the truth of any true Scripture but they meane that by her definition as by a Sure touchstone it is now manifestly assured vnto them that such a booke is true Scripture and such not And as the orall preaching even of such an Apostle as had been a Scripture writer might have been in vain without this approbation so allso might his writings have been in vaine Whence we see that his Epistle vnto the Hebrews was not known or acknowledged as Gods word vntill the Church approved it If the Scripture writer himselfe teacheth in vaine without this approbation much more will his writings teach in vaine 8 Ninthly The Church is to be followed by vs as an assured approver or reprover of spirits and consequently as infallible Iohn 1.4 My dearest beleeve not every spirit but prove the spirits if they be of God then v. 6. We are of God he that knows God heares us Pastours of Church he that is not of God heares us not In this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of errour Here S. Iohn expresly meanes to give to posterity a standing Rule to know a true spirit from a false one To witt By the hearing of us or not hearing of us This could not be a Rule to vs who live after the Apostles if by hearing us he onely meant the Apostles and not theyr successours Yea he could not meane onely the Apostles For the other Apostles were all dead when he wrote this Wherefore the true sence of S. Iohn is In this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of errour if they heare us Pastours and Governours of the Church Not that each one of these Pastours and Governours a part can say to any one heare me vnlesse he teach that which all the rest are sufficiently knowne to teach but they in a Generall Councill may most truely say Heare us He
many nor halfe so cōvincing Texts cā be alleaged against it And yet grāt this and you must grāt all Note that besides these 30. Texts here alledged I have allso all those numerous and most full Texts related at large Point 3. For whatsoever proves that the true Church cannot faile to be a true church proves allso her infallibility For truth of doctrine is essentiall to a true Church If therefore by being fallible and erring the whole Church could recede from the true doctrine of Christ it manifestly follows that the whole Church could faile to be a true Church contrary to these most expresse Scriptures there plentifully alledged 23. Most impertinent is the distinction which our adversaries use to avoide the force of these Texts They say that the Church may be taken in two wayes first for the visible Church containing all beleevers as well reprobate as elect and this Church they say may erre Secondly for the invisible Church which only containes the elect and this they say cannot erre But this is a palpable contradiction if well noted For this invisible Church of the elect which as you say cannot erre is contained in the visible Church in which as you say both reprobate and elect are contained which visible Church you allso say may wholy erre But if the whole visible Church wholy erre then allso the elect contained in it may erre or if they cannot erre thē many in the visible Church cannot erre And yet you cannot find many in any Church visible vpon earth whome you can shew on the one side to have differed from the beleefe of the Roman Church and on the other to have been guarded from errour as those who make the true Church must be Again I have shewed that many Texts here by me cited speake clearly of the visible Church THE SIXT POINT That the Roman Church is this infallible Church and our judge in all points of Controversie 1. THough this Question seemes to import as much as the certaine decision of all our Controversies yet haveing been so long in the former Point we are able to give in a word full satisfaction in this For no man will denye the Church which is proved to be infallible to be the most commodious decider of all Controversies For what can a man wish more to the right decision of his Controversie then a cleare sentence delivered there in by an infallible authority 2. All that can be imagined against what hath been sayd is this That we have not as yet proved the Roman Church to be infallible We have indeed proved the true Church to be so but there seemes a vast labour to remaine to prove the Roman Church to be this true infallible Church and consequently the decider of all Controversies I most earnestly therefore begg of my Reader to note well this one short demonstration and he will see how evidently convincing it is to prove home our full intent even in a word 3. My demonstration is this No Church can be the true infallible Church and decider of all Controversies which teacheth herselfe to be fallible For if any such Church be infallible in all that she teacheth she is infallible allso in teaching herselfe to be fallible And hence it followeth that infallibly such a Church is fallible but every Church in the world but the Romā teacheth herselfe to be fallible wherefore by evident demonstration no other Church upon earth can be infallible But the true Church is infallible as hath been proved by no fewer then thirty Texts therefore by evident consequence the Roman Church by all those Texts is proved the only true Church and our Iudge in all our Controversies THE SEAVENTH POINT That the Chiefe Pastour of this Church is the successor of S. Peter 1. THe old Testament helps vs thus farr in this Point that it teacheth first that amongst the Priests of the old law one was chosen successively to be the highest and chiefe Priest Num. 3.32 The Prince of Princes of the Levitts Eliazar the sonne of Aaron the Priest And Num. 27.21 If any thing be to be done for Iosue theyr Governour Eliazar the Priest shall consult our Lord. At his word shall he Iosue go out and go in and all the rest of the Children of Israël with him By going in and going out all the principall actions are vsually vnderstood in Scripture In those actions therefore God would have Iosue and all the people to depend on the high Priest When then we read Iosue 3.8 that Iosue did commaund the Priests and that Ch. 5. he appointed Circumcision to be ministred and that Ch. 24. he renewed God's Covenāt c. he is to be supposed therin as in all his principall actions to have proceeded according to the above cited Text only executing that which God by Eleazar the Priest had ordeined him to do For example to command the Priests to go with the Arke into Iourdan to administer Circumcision to renew the Covenant with God c. Again when Princes are allso Prophets as Iosue David Salomon and some others were they might have some extraordinary commission to do and order severall things which belong not to the ordinary Iurisdiction of temporall Princes So Kings 2.27 Salomon cast out Abiather that he should not be the Priest of our Lord yet this was done that the word of our Lord might be fullfilled which he spake concerning the house of Helle. Salomon allso as a Prophet by extrordinary commission v. 35. Placed sadoe the Priest for Abiathar 2. Secondly wee have cleerly in the old Testament the distinction of the chiefe Ecclesiasticall and chiefe secular Power 2. Chr. 19.11 And behold Amariath the chiefe Priest is over you in all matters of the Lord that is Ecclesiasticall affaires Then for temporall or secular affayres Zebediath the Ruler of the house of Iudah for all the Kings matters whence it is cleare that the former causes are not matters which aperteine to the Kings 3. Thirdly we have the old law Deut. 17. v. 8. commanding all such causes as are Ecclesiasticall causes to be brought to the Tribunall of the High Priest and his sentence to be obeyed even vnder paine of death I call them Ecclesiasticall causes because the former Text sayth they be matters of the Lord and distinct from matters of the King 4. Fourthly we have out of the new Testament this vnanswerable Text concerning the high Priests even of the old law Matth. 23.2 Vpon the chaire of Moyses have sitten the Scribes and Pharisees all therefore whatsoever they shall say unto you observe and doe it No wikedness of the high Priests his person shall excuse your obedience if he sitt vpon the chaire of Moyses Moyses was not only a secular Prince but allso the first high Priest amongst the Iewes Moyses and Aaron amongst his Priests Psal 99.6 Now those who succeed Moyses as he was high Priest are sayd to sitt upon the chaire of Moyses for as he was the secular Prince of the
can not be sayd of our so well known set forme of prayer and service which we all knowing to be approved by the Church and to be understood and so highly esteemed by our learnedst men feare not to say Amen or to joyn our intention with any part of it neither doth its approbation depend on our Amen I answer therefore that S. Paul spoak of those extēporal blessings Canticles and Lauds or such lyke inspired prayers of private persons which he recommends to be sayd in the vulgar language yet the contrary is not ill though it be lesse perfect For even to him who doth the contrary it is sayd v. 17. Thou verily givest thanks well and not foolishly or superstitiously But the other is not edified which fruict and end thou shouldest chiefly have intended God having to this end given thee this guift And therefore in such exercises of devotion I will speake five words with my understanding rather then tenne thousand words in a tongue that is a barbarous tongue straunge to the Heares because the chief end of these exercises is to edify and excite the people to prayse God whereas the chief end of the Liturgie is to pray to God for the people 5. I allso note that S. Paul doth not so much as meane here to exclude the use of such well known tongues as the Greek and Latin were that is such as were the languages well known to all the better bred sort of most nations so that here is nothing against the Masse sayd in Latin through the Latin Churches or in all those westerne parts where all knowing and understanding men very commonly know this language I prove this manifestly For if S. Paul should call this praying in a tongue your Bible puts in a different letter the word unknown so as to make such a tongue as this unfit for publike service in these Countries he himself had notably transgressed in this matter who beeing to write to the Romās writes to them in Greek knowing well that they spoak Latin only and that the vulgar knew no other language Yet he did thus write to them a very large Epistle in Greek now divided into sixteen Chapthers And this though he did write this chieffly for theyr instruction and edification Behold this was done even by him who sayd before I had rather speak five words with my understanding that my voyce might teach others then tenne thousand words in an unknown tongue You must not then call speaking in an unknown tongue the speaking in such languages as are well known to the learneder sort of those people to whom you speak Wherefore you must not say he did speak in a tongue or an unknown tongue to the Romans when he did write in the Greek tongue to them though he was not understood by the vulgar of them but only by the learneder sort Now then as he can not be sayd to have spoaken in an unknow tongue to the Romans when he did write this Epistle to them in Greek because Greek is not a Barbarous tongue wholy unknown to the better sort so a Roman Priest saying Masse in Latin in the westerne parts doth not say Masse or speak in a tongue that is a tongue wholy unknown to the better sort Wherefore as the Greek tongue was not judged a tongue unfit for S. Paul writing to the Romans even when theyr instruction was chiefly to be regarded so it is not unfitt when not instruction but making prayer for the people to God is chiefly intended as in the Masse Read the Remish Testament handling this Chapter very well 6. And observe allso that the service of the Catholik or universall Church is best celebrated by a Catholik or universal tongue such as Greek is in the East Latin in the West tongues not subject to such alterations and peril of changes in substantiall words as vulgar languages are and therefore lesse fitt for the everlasting perpetuity and universality of the Church If at our conversion we had had our Masse in the old Brittish or old English language who would now have understood it Yea who doth not laugh at all English he reads which is much above a hundred yeares standing It was most unfitt the Liturgie should be so often chopped and changed as vulgar languages alter Or that it should usualy be so often turned into severall tongues not understood by the Church Representative So that she could not passe her Iudgement whether there were any grosse corruptions creapt into this most divine service Therefore in respect of universality both of all ages for which the Church was to last and of universality of all nations through which shee was to be spread no language more fitt for her publik constant service then Hebrew Greek and Latin God regarded unity in worship so much that he would have the whole nation of the Iewes for a thousand and six hundred yeares only to Sacrifice in one place though it might be objected that this much hindred the many and frequent Sacrifices which would otherwise have been offered if in any place they might Sacrifice To keepe unity in Religion it is most rationally ordered that Sacrifice should be celebrated with prayers in one and the same language over one and the same Church Moreover it is well known that a distance from what is ordinary and vulgar breeds respect and reverence And contrarywise you your selves found that publike service in English was soone vilifyed and contemned by the vulgar English and at last with all expressions of contempt and dirision quite exploded and abolished Cast pearls before swyne and the Scripture tells you how they will behave themselves towards them 7. Lastly shew me but one service book in all the fiveteene hundred yeares before Luther in any one vulgar tongue which agreeth with your service-book and for that one books sake we will all come to your service THE XVI POINT Of the Sacrament of Pennance or Confession 1. EVen in the old Law some particular Confession of particular sins was under precept appointed to the Iewes Numb 5.6 Speak to the Children of Israel man or woeman when they shall doe any of all the sins that are wont to chance to men and by negligence have transgressed the Commandment of theyr Lord and have offended they shall confesse theyr sin And if theyr sin were in point of wrōging theyr neighbour they shall restore the principall it self and the fift part over to him against whom they sinned Behold Confession behold Restitution and for satisfaction the fift part over and above to be givē And besides that sacrifice to be offered to God so to repaire the dishonor done him 2. The new Law perfecting the old confession was elevated by Christ to a Sacrament giving grace Io. 20. v. 23. He sayd to them receave the Holy Ghost whose sins you forgive they are forgiven and whose sins you retaine they are retained But Thomas was not with them when Iesus came yet no man can deny that
this power was allso givē to Thomas Whence appeares that it was not givē only to those who then were present as a grant givē meerly for theyr sakes and to encrease theyr authority but this grace was givē for the sake of all belonging to Christs flock of which flock the farre greater number lived after the times of the Apostles 3. That this text is litterally to be understood as I have interpreted it may be demonstratively prooved by the same argumēt by which we prooved that Text This is my body to be litterally understood P. 12. n. 2. For if the Apostles with the first faith did not deliver this litterall sense but only taughr this power to end with them and that no man after theyr dayes either had power to forgive sins or stood obliged to confesse them then you must say that in some after age some one man began first for allwaies one begins at first to vent a broad these two straunge things first that all Priests had power to forgive sins Secondly that all Christians guilty of sin were bound under paine of damnation to confesse theyr sins to the Priests though they were never so foul or never so secret But shall any one man make me believe that this single mans doctrine so new and so hard could presently without contradiction grow to be so generally received and practized not in one but in all parts of Catholike Christianity And that no history should tell us who this man was where or when he broached this doctrine Or how he could so bewitch all that no man should contradict him or that no one should have grace or witt to say If Priests had this power or if all Christians had this strict obligation surely the Apostles and theyr successours would have made this known and they would have made both Priests and Christians do theyr duty in this kind For they only saying this would have then been enough to have stopped this mans mouth Neither is the Doctrine of Confession or the practise of it so easy to be brought in that it could possibly be thus silently and speedily entertained yea and entertained all the Christian world over without contradiction or opposition even so much as in any one single place for we no where heare of any such contradiction 4. I know after Confession was every where practized that the Novatian Heretiks did oppose it saying that it was a dishonour to God that man should forgive sins But all Catholicks hould this to be an Heresie in them And S. Ambrose sayth to them Luk 1. c. 7. Why should it be more a dishonour to God or be more inconvenient that man should forgive sins by Pennance then by Baptisme seeing it is the Holy Ghost who in both cases doth it by the ministery of the Priests So he In Baptisme the Priest says I Baptise thee that is I wash thee I aske from what surely from sin according to that Act. 22.16 Rise up and be baptized and wash away thy sins I aske again can your Priests or Ministers wash sin away You will answer that they can administer the Sacrament which washeth sin away and so they wash away sin not by theyr own power but as Ministers of Christs Sacraments Iust so each Priest sayeth I absolve thee yet our Priests absolve not by theyr owne power but as Ministers of Christ they administer the Sacramēt of absolution which cancels all sinns Lastly I observe that when Christ did forgive the Paralitick his sins Matth. 9. the multitude was so farr from saying this was a dishonour to God that the multitude glorified God who gave such power unto men v. 8. THE XVII POINT Of the Sacrament of Extreme vnction 1. THe very name of this Sacrament is grown even vnheard of to us here in England who boast so much of the word of God And yet according to the word of God there is not any Sacrament at all which can be more manifestly proved a true Sacrament thē this both in regard of the outwatd or visible signe or in regard of the invisible grace This visible signe is proved evidently to have been instituted by our Saviour because no body but he could annex the guift of of invisible grace to this visible signe to which signe most cleare Scripture doth testifie this grace to be annexed For so we read Iam. 5.14 Is any man sick among you Lett him bring in the Priests of the Church and lett them pray over him annoynting him with oyle in the name of our Lord. Behold the visible outward signe of this Sacrament And in the next words behold the invisible grace annexed there unto And if he be in sins they shall be remitted him Now good Protestant give me leave to aske thee this one question is there any time in which it more imports a man to have so good a warrant as Gods word is for the remission of his sins then in the time of his departure out of this world Behold then here a meanes to obteyne this remission even at this very time and this meanes warranted by the very word of God And yet without any ground at all in Gods word you have rejected a thing so importing all Christians though you found the practice of all Christianity to be cōformable to the words as they sound how doth this stand with your pretence of reforming our errours by the Rule of Scripture you go so flatly contrary to cleare Scripture even in a point of abolishing a Sacrament which was used by all the Catholick Church before your Reformation and having so clear a Text for it and no one single Text against it 2. To take away the force of this Text first in place of Priests you are pleased against all antiquity to read Elders because the Greek word that signifieth Priests in vulgar use signifieth Elders Now this is as ridiculous as if one would say The Bigger of the Cittie in place of saying the Major of the Citty because the word Major signifyeth the Bigger or as if for the like cause you would call a Doctor of Physick a teacher of Phisick wheras a Doctor is well known to signifie such a degree as allso a Major is notoriously known to signify a secular office or dignity in a citty so the name put in Greek for a priest Presbyteros is as notoriously known to signifie a Priest endued with a Priestly order office and function in the Church of God Whence this name is improperly trāslated Elder whē speach is manifestly of Church affaires as here speach is of some Ministery or other at which sins are forgiven 3. I know that those who graunt that here is a command for Counsels you will have none to use annoynting of the sick with true oyle pretend that this was commanded to be done only for obteyning a miraculous Cure A doctrine full of absurdities The first of which is novelty The second is flatt contradiction to the Text expressing the chief effect to be
sought for not to be the health of the body but of the soul and if he be in sins they shall be forgiven him The third absurdity is to say there was in the Church for a time a commaund to any one sick among us to seek for a miraculous cure The fourth is to say that any Priest or Elder whatsoever might be called in to work this miraculous cure Vpon what authority of Scripture or History is this sayd Give me leave in the last place to aske if ever you did either read or heare that at the use of any element which was not Sacramentall sins were promissed to be forgiven by any one even of Christs Apostles 4. Other of your Doctors will have this annoynting with oyle to be only the oyle of devout prayers or Charity But first where have you that at your Elders or Priests prayer it will follow that if the sick man be in sins they shall be forgiven him Do not you scoff at Priests forgiving sins and will you now allow a sure warrant attested by Gods own word that at the Priests prayers yea at the Elders the sick mans sinns shall be forgiven Again this free licence of interpreting Oyle to be Prayer or Charity opens a gappe to interprete all that is sayd of applying water in Baptisme to be understood only of applying the cleare and cleansing streames of heavenly doctrine teaching them to believe in the name of the Father Sonne and Holy Ghost without ever casting water on them Again did ever any Holy Father thus interprete this place of S. Ieames Shall I upon your never heard of Interpretation go and forsake a remedy taught me by the practice of all the Church and by so cleare a Text upon which remedy the forgivenes of my sins at the houre of my death and consequently my eternall saluation may depend God give me my witts and I will never do it THE XVIII POINT Of the Sacrament of Holy Order 1. HEre allso Scripture teacheth an outword visible signe to which the giving of inward grace is annexed 1. Tim. 4. v. 14. Neglect not the gift which is in thee Here you have the inward grace given with the laying on of the hands of the Presbiters Here you have the outward signe by which it is given Again 2. Tim. 1.6 I putt thee in remembrance that thou stirre up the gift of God which is in thee Behold the inward grace by the putting on of my hands Behold the outward signe at putting of which that inward grace was conferred Note that though S. Paul were called from heaven and had received the true spirit of God yet he was ordeyned by Imposition of hands Acts. 13 3. 2. Now I pray where have you one text in Scripture to prove Holy Order not to be a Sacrament And so I say of Matrimony Confirmation Pennance Extreme Vnction THE XIX POINT Of the Sacrament of Matrimony 1. WHen Gen. 2. v. 22. our Lord had built the ribbe which he tooke of Adam into a Woman and brought her to Adam Adam sayd this now is the flesh of my flesh wherefore man shall leave his father and mother and shall cleave to his wyfe and they shall be one flesh In the new Testament Matth. 19. v. 5. Mar. 10. v. 7. our Saviour repeats those words and hence inferreth Therefore they are not two but one flesh Then of himselfe he adds That therefore which God hath joyned together lett not man separate Now S. Paul repeating part of our Saviours words here cyted sayth This is a great mystery wee read Sacrament but I speake in Christ and in the Church Eph. 5.31 Although S. Paul applyeth here the very name of Sacrament to Matrimony which name is not once in all Scripture applyd to any of the other Sacraments yet it is not from hence we inferre Matrimony to be a Sacrament for by that word in this place we know he only meanes a mystery yet a Sacramentall Mystery But we inferre out of his discourse that this mystery is now elevated by Christ to be a Sacrament because S. Paul citeth the words of Christ spoaken as wee have seene out of S. Matthew when he did abrogate the law of Moyses which Law permitted in severall cases husband and wyfe to be separated and spoaken allso when he declared expresly that he would have this contract made hereafter inseparable saying That which God hath joyned together lett no man separate Christ then marrying to his Church for ever would elevate this chiefe contract that is in mankinde which he made from that time to be an inseparable contract to signify this most sacred Mystery and therefore he sayth This is a great Sacrament or Mystery so much and so neerly concerning Christ and the Church as S. Paul tels us 2. We may here note the impiety of them who knowing by S. Paul that Christ thus inseparably had wedded his Church do notwithstanding presume to call this his beloved spouse a whore and a harlot for her superstition and Idolatry But to proceed marriage being elevated by Christ to be a great Sacrament or sacred Mystery and to signify the inseparable conjunction betweene him ad his Church a signification so farre beyond its owne nature which was only to be a civill contract he made it a fitt Ceremonie to which now he might annexe his grace given to the parties joyned by this Sacrament to observe Matrimoniall Continency That euery one may know to possesse his vessel in sanctification and honour and not in passion of lust as Gentills 1. Thess 4.4 They therefore having this grace given to this end are thereby enabled more fittly to expresse in theyr mutuall fidelity and affection the mutuall fidelity and affection which should be for ever betweene Christ and his Church This is the proper effect of the grace given in Matrimony 3. By this our doctrine of Matrimony lett any impartiall man judge whether wee or our adversaries honour it more they having taken this chiefe honour of being a Sacrament from it which wee allow to it are now come to celebrate it in prophane houses before Iustices and this only for civill ends intended by the common wealth Neither have they one Text of Scripture to prove that theyr Ministers ought allwayes to joyne others in Matrimony THE XX. POINT Of the single life of Priests 1. MAtrimony being a Sacrament and giving grace it may seeme to some that all should do better to make themselves partaker of this grace I answer that the want of this one grace is more then abundantly recompensed by those many great and often received graces of which a single life makes us farre more capable as of receiving more frequently and worthily the Sacrament of Sacraments the Body and blood of our Lord which Priests dayly do with great encrease of greater graces very singular graces allso are obteyned by prayer to which Chastity doth exceedingly conduce as Scriptures teach 2. Lett us heare the Scripture 1. Luke 23. And it
and Cephas Here in place of a woman your Bibles reade a wyfe making the H. Ghost restreyn the word gynaika to a wyfe though it is knowne that this word is vsually put for a woman whether wyfe or not wyfe Here the Rhemish Testament shewes how Antiquity ever expounded this place of leading about such devout woemen as followed Christ to minister to him Matth. 27.55 I could thus have maintayned my selfe sayth S. Paul or by partaking of your temporall goods to whome I give spirituall goods But to burthen no body I being a tradsman have made it my glory to maintaine my selfe by the labour of my owne hands Yea your owne Bible but two chapters before translated the selfesame Greeke word for such a woeman as could not be a vvyfe 1. Cor. 7.1 It is good for a man not to touch a woeman Translate if you dare It is good for a man not to touch a wife gynaika 10. The second corrupt Text you object is Heb. 13. v. 4. For where we reade word for word out of the Greek Marriage honorable in all you reade Marriage is honorable in all men adding the verbe is and the nowne men yet your best Bibles have not this nowne Men and they print this verbe is in a different letter As allso in the former text they did print the word woeman in the margent This jugling the vulgar perceives not And the Bibles used it to make them take for the true Text that which is but theyr interpretation of it But if a man would presume to add a Verbe which should come as neere as may be to the minde of the Apostle then he should put the verbe in the Imparative moode thus Lett marriage be honorable in all For S. Paul useth this moode in the first verse Lett Brotherly love continue and in the second Be not unmindfull c. And in the third verse Remember them in bonds The fourth verse being that we speake of should be likewise expressed by a Verbe in that moode especially seeing he still goeth on in that moode in the fift verse let your conversation be without Covetousnes The Apostles sence then seems clearly to be Lett Marriage be honorable in all That is lett no man dishonour his marriage bed with either unfaithfullnes to his spouse or with vnnatural or brutish lust and so his next words very fitly are For God will judge fornicatours ad adulterers But your Bible by a double imposture maks a quyte different sence The first is to put the Verbe in the Indicative Moode Marriage is honorable and because this alone helped not much you used a second imposture in the words following which in Greeke are en pasi in Latin In omnibus And in both languages all Schollers see that there is doubt whether this should signify in all men taking the Adjective in the masculine gender or in all things taking it in the neuter gender Our Bibles leave it as they find it in all But your Bible undertaks absolutely to determine the sence of the Holy Ghost and make him say roundly Marriage is honorable among all men Thus your Bible Anno 1577. Yea Inter quosvis sayth Beza 1565. that is Marriage is honorable among any kinde of persons Out of which new Scripture the people easily inferre Marriage is honorable among those who have receaved Holy Orders or have made Vows of Virginity and the text being thus stretcht they might adde Among Brothers and Sisters Father and Daughter But wee shall in the next point n. 5. shew how flatly this Consequence is contrary to S. Paul who plainly denounceth damnation to such as have marryed after they vowed Chastity Your objection is sufficiently answered by having shewed a double corruption in the text alledged as many of you doe alledge it THE XXI POINT Of the single life of such as have vowed perpetuall Chastity 1. HOw commendable works of supererogation are by which we voluntarily do what we are not commanded and observe that which is of Counsel and not of precept we shall see in the next point Yet here we cannot but speake some thing to shew how much the vowing of Chastity is counseled and recommended and shew allso how strictly those who vow Chastity are obliged to keepe theyr vowes which voluntarily they made Numbers 30.3 If any man make a vow to our Lord to bind himselfe by an oath he shall not make his word frustrate but all that he promised he shall fulfill Whence S. Aug. q. 56. in Num. He that voweth abstinence from a thing lawfull maketh it unlawfull to himselfe by his vow Now that you may evidently see that the Scripture speaketh here of vowes made in matters not commanded it followeth If a woeman vow any thing and binde herself with an oath she that is in her fathers house and as yet in Maidens age if her father know the vow she promised and the oath wherewith she bound her soule and held his peace she shall be bound to the vow whatsoever she promised and sware she shall fulfull indeede But if immediately as he heares it her father doth gainsay it both her vows and her oath shall be frustrate neither shall she be bound to the promise The same he sayth of the vows of a wyfe that they shall hold if her husband hold his peace but if he gainesay it he shall make her vow frustrate Who sees not that it could not be either in the power of the father to make his daughters vows voyde or of the husband to frustrate and annul the vows of his wyfe if they had vowed things which they stood obliged to performe by commandments from God For example if shee should vow to fast in the feast of expiation her husband could not have made her vow voyd by gainesaying it For the Law obligeth her saying Levit. 23. v. 29. Every soule that is not afflicted that is which fasteth not this day shall perish out of his people By this you see that the Scripture here speaketh of vows made to do that to which they were not otherwise obliged But after the vow they stand now obliged to fulfill indeede what they promised by word 2. Take a further evident proof of this Deut. 23. v. 21. When thou hast vowed a vow to our Lord thy God thou shalt not slack to pay it because our Lord thy God will require it and if thou delay it shall be deputed unto the for sin If thou wilt not promise thou shalt be without sinne But that which is once gone out of thy lipps thou shalt observe and shalt doe as thou hast promised to our Lord thy God and hast spoaken with thy proper will and thy owne mouth What could be said more manifest to prove that where there was no kind of Sin or breach of obligation before now there is a sin by the breach of a most strait obligation arrising from this vow Againe Eccl. c. 5. 4. Whatsoever thou hast vowed pay it And it is much
again And hence these sins are called veniall such as easily have pardon 13. Whence our Saviour himself doth distinguish severall sins and affirms some of them to deserve punishment but not hell fire Matth. 5. v. 22. Whosoever is angry for so the Protestant Bibles read it with his Brother shall be in danger of Iudgment And whosoever shall say to his Brother Raca shall be in danger of Councill And whosoever shall say thou fool shall be in danger of hell fire Of which only eternall punishment the two former sins did not endanger us they being but veniall Hence it is evident that there be some sins which God judgeth worthy of punishment and yet not to deserve hell fire and he speaks of the punishment of the next life as of hell c. Again Matth. 12.36 I say unto you that every idle word that man shall speak he shall render an account therof in the day of Iudgment The words of lesser anger deserved not hell fire as the former Text taught us yet they being worse then meer idle words some punishment is due to them For here this Text sayth some account must be rendred even for every idle word But a lesser account then for angry words and therefore they will not alone make us liable to hell fire Again Matth. 7.3 some sins be called Beams some only Mothes which name Christ hating deadly sin to death would never give to any sin that were damnable Neither would he if these lesser sins were damnable speak of them as he doth Matth. 23. v. 24. You tithe Mint and Anise c blinde guides that strain a gnat and swallow a Camel Behold some sins only like gnats and the doing of them compared to the fault that would be in omitting te pay Tythe for Mint and Anise Yet because all veniall sins do something pollute the soule this stain must be purged or cleansed Often this is not done in this world for we see dayly men continew in doing these sins to the last loosing all sense and life allso before they repent them some account then in Iudgment following after death immediately will be given of them Not in Hell for they deserve it not therefore in Purgatory 14. Agreable to this is that which our Saviour sayth Luke 12.47 That servant who knoweth the will of his Lord and doth not according to his will shall be beaten with many stripes but he that knoweth it not and doth things worthy of stripes shall be beaten with few stripes Hence it is evident that there be some men who do things worthy of stripes which they shall not escape but yet they shall be beaten with few stripes But if these stripes be to be laid on for all eternity as all stripes be which are paid in Hell they will not be few because being everlasting the number of them will be without number will then any one call these stripes few Or can any man perswade himself that a God who is all mercy will in this unmercifull manner punish the speaking of one idle word Yet Christ himself sayth that we shall be accountable for every idle word we speak Matth. 12. Wherefore we must be lyable to some punishment for every idle word so that if a man of full age converted from Idolatry be baptized and by and by after killed before he commit any other sin then the speaking of one idle word only shall this man be tormented for ever and ever so long as God shall be God And shall the Father of mercies give this unmercifull sentence Doubtlesse if any man can do a thing worthy of stripes and for doing it deserve only to be beaten with few stripes this man may hope for this mercy But for greater then this he cannot hope seeing that Christ sayth that some account is to be given for that idle word Some punishment therefore he must suffer but not eternall and consequently not in Hell but in Purgatory For he must be beaten with few stripes not with masny or everlasting stripes If this principle so well grounded in Scripture be true then it cannot but be true that there is a Purgatory 15. The third principle clearly allso contained in Scripture is that prayer may profitably be made for the dead This is proved as well out of the old as new Testament In the old Testament 2. Mach. 12. where after diverse of the souldiers of Iudas Machabeus had been slain in the Battle v. 43. He making a gathering sent twelve thousand drachmes of silver to Hierusalem to have Sacrifice offered for the sins of the dead well and religiously thinking of the resurrection For unlesse he hoped that they who were slain should rise again it should seem superfluous and vain to pray for the dead It is therefore a holy and healthfull cogitation to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from theyr sins Your English Bibles so mangle the sense here that I would not follow them I know Protestants will say these Books be not Canonicall though in the third Councel of Carthage Can. 47. They be registred in the Canon Yet not to dispute this matter I take that which is granted without all dispute that is that these Books be writen by a true and faithfull writer of the ancient Church History or else why do you place them in the Bible And without dispute allso they were written before our Saviours time So that by the most grave testimony of so antient a writer of Ecclesiasticall History we have first that Iudas Machabeus who then was High Priest and allso chief commander of the Iewes Gods only true people did hold prayer for the dead to be laudable Secondly that this was not his private opinion but a thing done confirmably to the custome of the Iewish Church which to this very day uses prayer for the dead Thirdly all the souldiers being men who had devoted theyr lives for the defence of the true belief concurred by contributing to this act of Piety That Sacrifice might be offered for the dead Fourthly the Priests of Hierusalem who best knew theyr Churches custome in Sacrifices for the dead which were the same that for sin are never sayd to have scrupulized at the matter Fifthly this most ancient Historian recommends this custome as holy All these things not being singular in those men alone and happening not full two hundred yeares before Christ and still lasting to this day among the Iewes there could not but be many who practised this so commō a thing in his and his Apostles times And yet you never read the least reprehension given them for it 16. Out of the new Testament we have two places First S. Paul 1. Cor. 15.29 What shall they do who are baptized for the dead if the dead do not rise att all to what end are they baptized for them As if he would say to what end do men do pennance for the dead To what end is this done if there be no resurrection and
as farre from us as that which is not now is distant from that which is now which is a greater distance then East from West though that be farre enough to declare a true perfect remission by quite abolishing the sin forgiven by infused grace according to Ezech. 36.25 I will sprincle clean water upon you and ye shall be clean from all your filthines And 1. Io 1.7 And the blood of Christ clenseth us from all sin So that by this his blood the body of sin is destroyed Rom. 6.6 And thus he will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea Mich. 7.19 THE XXIX POINT Whether our justification may not be lost 1. THe hart is deceitfull above all things who can know it Ier. 17.9 Yet Protestants placing justification in such a speciall faith as assures each man of his saluation by the merits of Christ are hence enforced to teach two strange Paradoxes The first is that this speciall faith breeds a full assurance grounded in a reall truth wherefore wee need not feare our salution The second which is contained in the former or thence clearly deduced is that this justification of ours cannot be lost for else that assurance might have had a lye for its ground and sole fundation 2. Wee teach first that no man without a speciall Revelation is assured to be saved and so all ought to worke theyr saluation with feare and trembling S. Paul every where proveth our doctrine Thou by faith doest stand be not high minded but feare Rom. 11.20 Again 1. Cor. 4.4 he sayth he knew nothing by himselfe concerning any guilt but I am not justified herein But he that judgeth me is our Lord. I dare not judge my selfe though I know nothing by my selfe how then darest thou Again 1 Cor. 9.27 But I keep under my body and bring it into subjection lest that by any meanes whilst I preach to others I my selfe may become a cast away or reprobate Again c. 10. v. 12. Therefore he wh◠thinketh himselfe to stand as Protestants do lett him take heed left he fall Again Phil. 3.11 If by any meanes I might attain to the resurrection of the dead He found no security in that speciall Faith you speak of Therefore he sayd Phil. 2.12 Work your own saluation with feare and trembling Apoc. 3.11 Hold that fast which thou hast that no man take thy crowne For Luke 8.13 There be those who for a time believe and in time of temptation fall away 3. Secondly conformably to all the Texts wee say that those who were just may come finally to be damned For exod 32.33 Whosoever hath sinned against mee him will I blot out of my Book Those who are baptized are born again of water and the Holy Ghost Io. 3.5 Yet how many thousands of these once regenerated men sin afterwards and never rise again and truth sayth of him who riseth not again whosoever hath sinned against mee him will I blot out of my Book out of which he could not be dashed unles his name had once been enroled in it Salomon his saluation is much doubted of by Holy Fathers yet there could be no doubt thereof if your opinion were true for God himself sayth he once was just 1. Chron. 28 7. I will establish his Kingdome for ever if he be constant to my Commandement and Iudgements as at this day At that day then he was in a state pleasing to God and yet you see doubt of his perseverance is even here intimated Yea by and by David his Father tells him but if you forsake him he will cast the of for ever v. 9. David did not judge Salomon to be at this time out of Gods favour yet his words shew he feared that he might hereafter come to loose Gods favour What Salomon after did the Scripture tels us 1. Kings 11. v. 3. Weomen turned away his hart And when he was now old his wives turned away his hart to other Gods He worshiped Astarthee the Goddesse of the Sidonians and Moloch the Idol of the Ammonites he built a Temple to Camos the Idol of Moab and in this manner he did to all his wives who where strangers Therefore our Lord was angry with Salomon because his heart was turned from the Lord. v. 9. Did he not cease to be just when his heart was turned away from our Lord David sayth Psal 5.7 Thou hatest all workers of iniquity God then did hate Salomon I dispute not whether he repented or no whether he were saved or no but without all dispute he once lost his former Iustice his hart and minde being turned away from God and our Lord therefore bearing wrath against him and hating him Let us proceed 4. The Apostles Act. 6.3 Commanded seaven men full of the Holy Ghost to be made Deacons One of them was Nicolas a stranger of Antioch These they sett in the presence of the Apostles and praying they imposed hands upon them Yet this Nicolas did fall finally into Heresy and began the Heresy of those who from his name are called Nicolaites Apoc. 2.6 S. Paul allso Hebr. 6. v. 4.6 tels us the sad condition of those who were made partakers of the Holy Ghost if they shall fall away which is manifestly to suppose that even such men may fall away So the foolish Galatians having begun with the spirit ended with the flesh Gal. 3.3 It is therefore sayd to them You did run well who hindred you not to obey the truth Gal. 5.7 Behold they came not to obey the truth who before did not only walk well but allso run well Hence allso it is that the Scripture useth to speak thus fearfully and conditionally concerning our perseverance in Iustice Io. 15.6 If a man abide not in me he is cast forth And Rom. 11.22 If thou continue in his goodnes otherwise thou allso shall be cutt of And 2. Io 8. Look to your selves that wee loose not those things which wee have wrought Evident therefore is our Doctrine thus delivered by Ezechiel c. 33. v. 12. The righteousnes of the righteous shall not deliver him in the day of his transgression Neither shall the righteous be able to live for his righteousnes in the day that he sinneth All his righteousnes shall not be remembred But for his iniquity which he hath committed he shall dy for it He then may die for iniquity who once was just Hence he taught his just Apostles to pray Lead us not into temptation for feare of falling into it Let us therefore when wee have faith Hold faith and a good conscience which some having put away concerning faith have made shipwrack 1. Tim. 1.19 THE XXX POINT To Iustification it is necessary to keep the Commandements This is possible 1. I Say first that it is possible to keep the Commandements by the helpe and assistance of Gods grace sufficiently afforded us to that end Deut. 5. v. 1. Moyses called all Israël and sayd to them heare Israël the statutes which I speake
death belonged not to us 5. Wee fast the Eves of severall great feasts so to be the better disposed to prayer the next day By fasting allso we imitate and excite those Saints to help us whose feast wee solemnize thus more honoring them and more powerfully imploring theyr intercession by fasting ioyned with our prayers Wee fast for 40. dayes in Lent for even the most ancient Fathers called this fast an Apostolicall Tradition And surely if the Apostles had not together with the other practises of our Religion delivered allso this practise of fasting for 40. dayes the like may be sayd of fasting weekely no man afterward could have had sufficient authority and this through the whole multitude of Christians to make them all believe themselves to be obliged to fast so often Men love theyr belley to well to be brought so easily to such an insufferable burthen as this seems to many Nothing but a strict command of an undoubted authority could have made all Christianity accept of this great fast with that rigour which Luther found in the whole Church at his time Some Protestants venture to say that Pope Telesphorus who lived Anno Domini 141. was the first that commāded this fast They should have sayed he was the first that by written Law commanded the more exact observance of this Apostolicall Tradition which by some mens neglect was grown to be lesse observed if they make him the first Introducer of Lent then they must be enforced to confesse that in that primitive age the Popes authority was known for undoubted and reverently obeyed even over all Christendome at that time and this in a matter which pincheth many so hardly that we see here in England neither the known Laws of the land made by those of theyr own Religion nor the Kings Proclamations pressing those Lawes nor the Penalties enjoyned by them can prevail half so much in this one nation as the Authority commanding Lent did in those pure and primitive ages prevail through all Christian nations I must not end this point without observing that the whole Church may stand obliged to observe such and such fasts notifyed to her without any Scripture by the sole attestation of Church Tradition delivering this obligation as imposed first by the Apostles or such like lawfull authority For from the dayes of Noë untill Moyses that is above a thousand yeares all were obliged thus not to eat the flesh with the bloud Gen. 9.4 see Point 2. n. 2. A Command made known to them only by Tradition THE XLV AND LAST POINT That wee laudably in our fasts abstayne from certaine meates 1. OVr adversaries finding fasting so often and so highly commended in Scripture and not knowing well how to find fault with it they turne to pick a quarell against our manner of fasting For upon fasting dayes wee abstaine from flesh and in Lent from eggs yea from whitemeates also in some places for wee hold that the more afflictive or laborious the fast is so that it be discreet the more perfect it is of its own nature as beeing more satisfactory for our sins past and by more taming of our flesh more preventive of new sins and conteyning a greater exercise of vertue to the greater encrease of merit Not that God delights in our sufferings as they are afflictive of us but because he highly delights in them as they are so many wayes beneficiall unto us hence Ioel 2.12 Turne ye unto me with all your heart and with fasting Now to fast all day with out eating any thing is a thing over hard to be prescribed by preccpt to such a vast eommunity as the Church is The Church therefore according to her prudent Charity hath thus moderated the Matter First that we should fast till noon or there about with out eating any thing that may break out fast Secondly that the meat wee then eat be not of flesh which beeing more nourishing doth allso nourish temptations Thirdly that at night wee eat no supper but a slight collation is permitted for fear our nights rest should otherwise be lost with prejudice of health Other fasts be lesse strict and be rather to be called dayes of abstinence as Saturdayes are on which we only abstaine from flesh But other fasts we have yet more rigorous as from egges and all that is made of egges from whitemeat which no one who hath the sense of feeling can deny to be a very considerable addition to the austerity of fasting 2. This abstaining from certaine nourishing and delightfull meates is peculiarly recommended by Scripture as especially pleasing to God First the Nazarites Num. 6. were obliged to abstaine from wine though wine were the usuall drink of theyr Country there beeing no beer Secondly Ieremy 35. The Rechabites in like manner abstaining upon command from wine are highly commended by God and rewarded for it v. 18. Thirdly S. Luke c. 1.15 He shall be great before our Lord wine and strong drink he shall not drink Fourthly the same great Iohn Baptists ordinary food was Locusts and wild hony Matth. 3.4 And even of this course food he did feed so sparingly that Christ himself sayd he came neither eating nor drinking Matth. 11.18 Fiftly S. Timothey could not be induced to drink a litle wine in the weaknes of his stomake and his often infirmities untill S. Paul for this reason advised him not still to drink water 1. Tim. 5.22 Sixtly I might adde that this kind of fast is the most effectuall to keep under our bodyes and bring them into subjection least we become reprobate as S. Paul sayd of himself 1. Cor. 9.27 Daniel sayth allso of himself Flesh and wine entred not into my mouth for three weekes Dan. 10.3 3. Hence we may easily answer our Adversaries objections First then they object Mark 7.15 Nothing that is with out a man entring into a man can defile him For the sense is this no meat of its own nature is polluting or defiling though to eat meats that are forbidden doth pollute and defile the soul as the Apple defiled Adams soul as allso the taking of drink in excesse pollutes the Drunkard And even after our Saviour spoak these words eating of Hoggs flesh would have defiled the soules of the Apostles Yea and the first primitive Christians should have been defiled by eating bloud or meates strangled Not because those meates were still uncleane but because the Church thought fitt yea and necessary to forbidd at that time the eating of those meates Acts 15.28 It hath seemed good to the Holy Ghost and us to lay no further burden upon you then these necessary things that you abstain from meat offered to Idols and bloud and that which is strangled So Gen. 9.4 For above a thousand years before Scripture all were obliged not to eath the flesh with the bloud And this no Scripture then either commanded or testifyed yet even then not the meat but the breach of the Churches commandment would have defiled them and
his flesh to be eaten in a meere signe or figure of it had S. Peter thought this I dare say he would have pulled the other disciples backsaying our master only speaks of giving a signe of his body Had this been so then allso vndoubtedly the other Evangelists when they had come to write of this mystery which had scandalized so many before theyr writing would not have encreased the scandal by writing so vnanimously of this Sacrament in words sounding so loud a litterall sense as these do This is my body this is my blood But they would rather have lessned the difficulty by declaring it only to be a figure which they might have done in a word S. Paul was so farre from declaring it to be so that 1. Cor. 11. v. 27. he flatly saith Therefore whosoever shall eate this bread and drink the Chalice of our Lord unworthily he shall be guilty of the Body and Blood of our Lord. Which could not be vnlesse he received the Body and Blood truly and not in a figure only To eate a Paper picture of Christ makes no such heinous guilt though it be done by a sinner and it be allso a figure of his body 4. S. Luke allso had been particularly to blame in encreasing the scandal by expressing so clearly a litterall sense Chap. 22. v. 19. This is my body which is givē for you This cup is the new Testamēt in my Blood which Chalice shall be shedd for you I say which Chalice that is that which is cōteyned in the Chalice shall be shed for you Now wine was not shed for vs but his true blood His true blood therefore was the thing cōteined in the Chalice For though by the Latine or English words we can not tell whether Christ sayd his blood should be shed for thē or the Chalice or Cup yet S. Luke writing in Greek makes it evidēt to all who know that language that he sayd the Chalice should be shed for us for he speakes in the nominative case by a word which can not agree with the blood which in Greek is the dative Now thus having proved that Christ literally sayd This is my body I have proved allso that this is not bread For it is his body which is as good a consequence as this this is a stone therefore it is not bread Or this is not bread for it is a stoone 5. Coming now out of Scripture to answer the chiefe okjections I begin with one which doth afford me a new strong argument They object then Idolatry to vs for adoring that which is bread I answer that according to Scripture Idolatrie can not be found in the only visible Church of Christ for Scripture sayth clearly of this Church Ifa 2.18 And Idolls shall be utterly abolisht Again Ezech. 36.25 And I will power upon you cleane water c and from all your Idols will I cleanse you And in the next Chapter v. 23. Neither shall they defile themselves any more in theyr Idols Again Micheas Chap. 5.12 Thou shalt no more adore the works of thy hands Again Zachar. 13. v. 1. In that day shall be a fountaine lying open to the house of David And it shall be in that day sayth the Lord of Hosts I will cast of the names of Idols out of the Land and they shall be remembred no more Hence I argue thus In the whole visible Church there continued and doth still continue adoration of the Sacrament but Idolatry did not continue in the whole Church visible therefore adoratiō of the H. Sacramēt is not Idolatry Moreover if worshipping this H. Sacrament were Idolatry all Christianity for many ages practizing this adoration had committed Idolatry and Christs Church for so many ages had quite failed as is cleare out of the third and fourth point For Christ had no other Church for many ages but that which every where practized this Idolatry as you miscall it Or tel mee if you can what other visible Church Christ had vpon earth different from the Roman in faith and worshipe for the thousand yeares before Luther If this be the only visible Church Christ had vpon earth then I have proved it could not be guilty of Idolatry 6. Against such a torrent of Scripture as we have for vs you ground yourselues not in Scripture but in Philosophy which tried by Scripture will be found to faile you in all your objections First then you object that an accident can not be without a substance Wee answere out of Gen. 1.3 God sayd be light made and light was made Light is a quality or accident Yet hence S. Basil S. Greg. Naz. and Theodoret are of opinion that light was without any subject at all for the Scripture specifyes no subject in which it was put Whence followes that at lest they must needs think it possible that light should be without a subject Secondly you object that the same body of Christ can not be multiplied so often over We answere again out of Gen 2.21 Our Lord God cast a dead sleepe upon Adam and whē he was fast a sleepe he tooke one of his ribbs and filled up flesh for it And our Lord God built the ribbe which he tooke of Adam into a woeman I aske how many times over must this one ribbe be multiplyed before a whole woeman of a comely proper stature could be made up of it After the same manner God can of one ordinary brick make a pillar of many foote high by multiplying that one brick In the like manner our Saviour multiplyed those five Barley loaves with which he fed above five thousand men Io. 6. For if he made new loaves he did not feede them with those five but with those many hundred new loaves which he made and yet the Scripture sayth v. 12.13 After they were filled they gathered the remnants and filled twelve baskets with the fragments of the five barley loaves and not of any new loaves created by Christ so that the bread which was eaten remained still to be eaten And it is worth our noting that our Saviour did this miracle immediatly before he did first declare this strange doctrine of giving his flesh to be eaten like bread by every one that so when he should presently declare this strange doctrine they should have no reason to disbelieve the possibility thereof For his disciples seeing that he had done that most prodigious miracle so very lately ought not presently to have sayd This is hard and who can heare it Neither ought they so soone to have walked a part from him as there S. Iohn sayth they did but rather they ought to have sayd with S. Peter We believe and know thou art the Sonne of God able to make they words good as thou wart able so to multiply so few loaves 7. Hence appeares a solution of that which allso they still object one body can not be in two places at once For if whole Eve were made of one ribbe of Adam as the
Scripture testifieth surely the whole substance of that one ribbe must have been in many places or else Eve would have been a very litle woeman or Adam must have had very great ribbs Again our Protestants commonly read thus Act. 3.21 Whom the heavens truly must conteyne we read Receive untill the time of Restitution of all things HeÌ„ce they inferr that after Christs Ascension the heavens at all times must conteyne his body Therefore say they after his Ascension his body can not be on earth This theyr owne Text shall refute them thus The heavens must at all times after his Ascension conteyne his body But after his Ascension the earth allso did conteyne his body Therefore his body can be conteyned in two distant places And if in two why not in three and more Make the Scripture judge of this point and it will clearly cast you for did not Christ after his Ascension appear in his true body to S. Paul Act. 9. Who sayd who art thou Lord and he I am Iesus v. 5. And v. 17. Ananias sayth to him The Lord even Iesus that appeared unto thee in the way that thou camst That he appeared in his owne true body I prove by evident Scripture For by reason of this his apparition S. Paul numbers himself amongst those who with theyr owne eyes had seen Christ risen again in his true body For labouring to prove Christs Resurrection in a true and not in a phantasticall body as some Heretiks will have it he proves it by eye witnesses who all must have seen Christ now risen in his true body or else theyr testimony is vainly brought to prove a true Resurrection of the flesh he then bringing eye wittnesses who had seen Christ now risen in his true body makes himself as true an eye wittnesse of this as any other For thus he speakes 1. Cor. 15. v. 4 c. He rose again and was seen of Cephas after that of the eleven Then he was seen of more then five hundred Bretheren together moreover he was seen of Iames then of all the Apostles And lastly of all he was seen allso of me To witt in his true body or else all others may be sayd to have seen him in a phantasticall body and allso because any other manner of seeing him had been to no purpose to prove the true Resurrection of dead bodyes which is here his drift Where supposing himself by these eye wittnesses to have proved this he presently sayth v. 12. How do certaine amongst you say that there is no resurrection of the dead Yet againe Act. 22. v. 14. But he Ananias sayd to S. Paul the God of our fathers had preordeyned thee that thou shouldest know his will and see that Iust one and heare the voyce of his mouth Therefore he appeared in a true body which had a voyce and a mouth of flesh Buth as Christ sayth Luke 24.39 A spirit hath no flesh and bones as you see me have Yet again Act. 23. v. 10. S. Paul seeth Christ on earth for when there was made a great dissention the Tribune fearing lest Paul should be torne in peeces by them commanded the souldiers to go downe and take him out of the middest of them and to bring him into the Castle And the night following the Lord stood by him and sayd Be constant for as thou hast testifyed of me in Ierusalem so must thou testifie of me at Rome allso Here we have that very Lord of whom S. Paul did testify standing by him in the Castle farr distant from heaven by which is evident in how distant places Christs body may be To disprove so many cleare Texts give me but on if you can that S. Paul did not see Christ after his Ascension in his true body vpon our earth if you can not do this you are cast by Scripture in this point which proveth that one body can be at the same time in two distant places 8. Lastly they object that so great a body as Christs Body is can not be in so smale a compasse as a litle bitt of bread We still answere out of Scripture First Matthew 19 v. 26. where speach is of making the great body of a Camel passe through a needles eye Christ sayth with men this is impossible Where note that Christ here according to three Evangelistes speaks of such a passage through a needles eye as is in possible with men so that though with men there is no such thing possible as penetration of severall parts of the same great Camels body brought into so smale a compasse as is a needles eye yet not so with God With God all things are possible Secondly God can put two different bodyes so as to take vp only the place of one body therefore he can put al the parts of one body so as to take up only the rome of the lest part with which he can penetrate al the rest Thus Iohn 20. v. 19. When the doores were shutt where the disciples were gathâ—red together for feare of the Iewes Iesus came and stood in the midle So that as at his birth his body penetrated through his Mothers wombe at his Resurrection through the great stone of his monument and as at his Ascension he did not make a hole through the body of the heavens but his body was penetrated with those heavenly bodyes so here it penetrated through the shutt doore or wall and so two bodyes were in one place at once by which allso we prove that one body may as easily by his power be in two places at once Wherefore it is to you who against Scripture thus stand still alleadging Philosophy that we must say with S. Paul Col. 2.8 Beware least any man deceive you by Philosophy and vaine fallacie according to the Tradition of men and the elements of the world and not according to Christ against whom you cite Aristotle THE XIII POINT Of Communion under one kind PRotestants complaine we take half of the Sacrament from them We complaine they have taken five Sacraments from us and grace from all seven And as for this Sacrament they have taken both the body and blood of our Saviour from it and left only bread and wyne If we had taken wyne away no great hurt wyne beeing nothing but wyne To the purpose we have a full compleate and perfect Sacrament when we have such an outward signe as signifyeth and conteyneth invisible grace The consecrated bread alone doth this in this therefore we have a full compleate and perfect Sacrament Christ speaks this clearely Io. 6. v. 48. I am the bread of lyfe your fathers did eate manna in the desert and they dyed This is the bread that descendeth from heaven that if any man eate of it he dye not I am the lyving bread that came downe from heaven If any man eate of this bread he shall live for ever Behold as full an effect of the Sacrament as is any where promised to both kinds And he beeing