Selected quad for the lemma: tradition_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
tradition_n	church_n	find_v	scripture_n	3,607	5	6.0436	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A36827	A new voyage to the Levant containing an account of the most remarkable curiosities in Germany, France, Italy, Malta, and Turkey : with historical observations relating to the present and ancient state of those countries / by the Sieur du Mont ; done into English, and adorn'd with figures.; Nouveau voyage du Levant. English	Dumont, Jean, baron de Carlscroon, 1667-1727.	1696 (1696)	Wing D2526; ESTC R9818	264,606	436

the Apostles Among the rest the Family of S. Lazarus was involv'd in the common Calamity but the Jews unwilling to make Persons of Quality suffer the utmost Severities that were usually inflicted on others instead of putting 'em to Death plac'd Lazarus and his Sister S. Maximin and some others whose Names I do not remember in a Bark without Oars Rudder or Sails abandoning 'em to the Mercy of the Winds which by the Providence of God brought 'em into the Port of Marseilles where they spent several Years in Preaching the Gospel Their Memory is preserv'd to this Day by a great number of Chapels erected in the places where 't is pretended the He and She Saints usually pronounc'd their Sermons which had such a prevailing Influence on their Hearers that the whole City was converted After such happy Success S. Lazarus was made Bishop and Mary Magdalen went to do Penance in the horrid Cave of S. Baume Her Head and one of her Arms are kept at S. Maximin amongst a great number of fine Relicks Her Head is enchas'd in a kind of Bust of Gold ending a little below her Shoulders and enrich'd with a great number of very fine Jewels among which there is an admirable Ruby equalling a Man's Thumb both in Length and Breadth This Bust was presented by Charles II. King of Switzerland Count of Provence The whole Face of this Head is expos'd to view contrary to the Custom of other Places where the Shrine is only show'd and the Spectator must imploy his Faith if it be strong enough to discover the Relicks But here one may distinctly perceive a Death's-Head of so vast a size that if it be Mary Magdalen's we cannot justly refuse our Assent to the Tradition that assures us of the unusual Bulkiness of the rest of her Body Our Guide made us observe a little dry Scurf about the middle of her Forehead somewhat towards her Left Eye and told us that this was the place where our Saviour put his Finger when after his Resurrection he said to her Touch me not c. But since I had never observ'd in the Scripture that Christ put his Finger on her Forehead when he spake these Words I ask'd a Father where I might find that Passage He told me that it was a Holy Tradition of the Church which I was oblig'd to believe under pain of Heresie adding upon the Authority of the same Tradition That during the Forty Days which Christ spent with his Disciples after his Resurrection he never touch'd any thing but this part of Mary Magdalen's Forehead and S. Thomas's Hand both which remain entire to this Day This Head is preserv'd in a Subterraneous Cave clos'd with four Iron Doors and we were told that the Bodies of S. Magdalen S. Maximin S. Marcellus and S. Sidonius were put into four Marble Sepulchres that are still to be seen in this Cave which was contriv'd on purpose for their Burying-place but that these Holy Bodies were afterwards more honourably lodg'd In the same Cave or Subterraneous Chapel they shew also a little Glass Vial containing certain small Flints that were moistened with the Blood that our Saviour shed upon the Cross endeavouring to make the Spectatours believe that the Blood is still visible but whatever care I took to consider these Flints with all imaginable Attention I cou'd not perceive the least Tincture of Blood Coming up from hence we were desir'd to take Notice of a Shrine of Porphyrie which contains the rest of that Saint's Bones except one of her Arms which is enchas'd in Silver and suitable in bigness to the Head Her Flaxen Hair is in another Reliquary And there are in the same place many other Rarities of this Nature which 't wou'd be too tedious to enumerate The Church that belongs to this Convent is large well lighted and very much esteem'd for its Architecture The Inside is adorn'd with several fine Marble Columns especially the great Altar which was built by Lewis XIII in performance of a Vow and is reckon'd one of the largest and most magnificent Altars in France All the rest of the Church is cover'd with Paintings by the most celebrated Hands which are also the Effects of Vows And every Altar is enrich'd with all sorts of Vessels Candlesticks Lamps and other Ornaments of Gold and Silver in great abundance This Church was built by Charles Duke of Anjou King of Sicily who endow'd it with a very plentiful Revenue and the Foundation being since encreas'd by the Piety of our Kings there is a very honourable Maintenance for Fifty Monks who live here I 'm afraid the Holiness of the Place will scarce make amends for my detaining you so long at S. Baume and therefore since a change of Entertainment is always very acceptable to a cloy'd Appetite I hope you will have the less Reluctancy to accompany me in a little Journey to Arles and Nismes where you might divert your self with a View of those Admirable Antiquities and Illustrious Monuments of the Roman Grandeur that are to be seen in those places Arles is a City of Provence and was formerly the Metropolis of a Kingdom of the same Name 'T was adorn'd by its old Masters the Romans with Temples Palaces Amphitheatres and other magnificent Works most of which were ruin'd in the succeeding Revolutions The Amphitheatre commonly call'd les Arrenes has escap'd the Fate of the rest tho' not so well as that of Nîmes for 't is impossible to walk on the Top from one end to the other so that I cou'd not measure its Length and Breadth The Town-House is very remarkable both for its Structure and Antiquities Among the rest there is a Marble Statue of Diana which formerly pronounc'd Oracles to those who came to consult her in her Temple which was seated in the same place where the Town-House stands at present as appears by the Foundations that are under the Clock-Tower All the Walls of the City are full of pieces of Statues Cornices and Columns which give the Spectatour a great Idea of the Number and Beauty of its Ancient Ornaments Among its finest Antiquities I may justly reckon that admirable Obelisk which some Years ago was found entire in the Ground and was since erected to the Glory of Lewis the Great by the Care and Contrivance of the Gentlemen of the Royal Academy with very beautiful Inscriptions on the Pedestal both in Latine and French and a Golden Sun on the Top which you know is the King's Emblem and the Soul of his Device This Obelisk wants the usual Ornament of Monuments of that Nature and at least in this respect may be justly esteem'd a Rarity But tho' there are no Hieroglyphical Figures upon it to determine its Age and discover its first Contrivers 't is generally reputed a Work of the Egyptians I know not whether the same Opinion will prevail in After-Ages for perhaps Posterity viewing the Inscriptions that have been lately added to it will do our

In pursuance of that Design which I confess seems in a manner impracticable I 'm resolv'd at all Adventures to go to Grenoble that I may at least draw nearer the Confines of the Kingdom in expectation of a more favourable Opportunity to get beyond ' em I am SIR Your c. Lions Nov. 1689. LETTER V. SIR I Acquainted you in my last with my Resolutition to continue my Journey to Grenoble At my departure from Lions I hir'd a Post-Ass at S. Siforins out of pure Curiosity to try so rare an Experiment Tho' I must confess this way of Travelling is not altogether without its Advantages for the Rider may boldly venture a Fall without running the hazard of breaking his Neck I pass'd thro' Vienne a very Ancient City and of Old much esteem'd by the Romans notwithstanding its disadvantageous Situation at the bottom of two great Mountains which darken the Place extremely Pilate the Governour of Jerusalem and our Saviour's Judge was afterwards sent hither and they still show the Praetorium or Hall of Justice where he was wont to pronounce Judgment There is a round Stone in the Wall with this Inscription This is the Globe of Pilate's Scepter tho' its unfitness for such an Use makes me rather inclinable to believe that the Inscription speaks of the House which might be call'd The Globe of a Sceptre by way of Figure or Allusion They also make Strangers take notice of a square Tower where they pretend he ended his Days after an Imprisonment of Seven Years The City is full of such-like Antiquities which are the only things in it that deserve a Traveller's Observation for the Buildings are very inconsiderable S. Severus's Church stands in a Place where formerly the Heathens ador'd a Hundred Gods under a great Tree that was afterwards cut down and rooted up by that Saint's Order as appears by this Inscription on a Column Arborem Deos Severus evertit Centum Deorum There goes a Story that under that Tree there was found a Death's-Head full of Gold and Silver with which the Church was built I will not pretend to demonstrate the falseness of this Tradition but I think I may venture to conclude that either the Head was very big or the Wages of Workmen in those Days very low for such a Structure cou'd not now be erected for sixty thousand Crowns Without the City in a place call'd The Field de l' Aguillé there is an high Pyramid consisting of several Stones join'd together without Mortar or Cement and supported by an Ancient Vault of the same kind of Architecture resembling a little Chapel The Inhabitants of Vienne pretend that this Pyramid was erected by an Emperour with a Design that his Ashes shou'd be plac'd in an Urn on the top of it that his Tomb might be nearer Heaven The Archiepiscopal Church is consecrated to S. Maurice whose Head is preserv'd in it The Archbishop assumes the Quality of Primate of the Primates of the Gauls pretending a right to that Title in opposition to the Archbishop of Lions against whom he has a Suit on this Occasion that if we we may judge by Appearances will not be soon decided Vienne was the Capital City of Dauphiné before the erection of a Parliament at Grenoble and therefore the Kings of France among the rest of their Titles style themselves Dauphins of Viennois From thence continuing my Journey mounted as before at the rate of five Sous by the Stage which is the ordinary Price I and my Ass had the Fortune to meet with a Couple of Fellow-Travellers Immediately I accosted my Companion and finding nothing either in his Mien or Discourse that deserv'd Contempt I concluded that he was a Merchant of Lions or Grenoble About two Hours after our Meeting perceiving at a considerable distance a Coach drawn by Six Horses and attended with some Horsemen coming towards us he presently alighted and turn'd his Ass loose Then shrinking up one of his Arms and turning it awry as if he had been Lame he walk'd bare-headed to the Boot of the Coach and begg'd Charity of the Passengers I was extremely surpriz'd at so odd and unexpected an Action nor cou'd I divine the Meaning of it for I thought it almost impossible that a Man who I imagin'd was neither Poor nor Sick cou'd be guilty of so much Baseness However since my Beast had already carry'd me so far that I cou'd not observe distinctly what he said or did I resolv'd to suspend my Judgment till I shou'd learn the reason of it from his own Mouth Assoon as he came up I ask'd what he went to do at the Coach Somewhat reply'd he that will doubtless surprize you Perhaps you did not believe me to be a profess'd Beggar yet I assure you I have no other Trade and if you stay at Grenoble you may be a Witness of my Diligence in that Vocation I 'm going to the Hospital in that City where I 'm sure of a Lodging for three Days during which I hope to get three Pistoles I was no less astonish'd at what I heard him say than at what I had already seen him do But he went on with the same Frankness and told me the whole History of his Life He said he was born at Avignon of a considerable Family in that City and that he had actually a Revenue of above 200 Livres that during his Infancy he had so strong an Inclination to Begging that he usually stole away from his Father and Mother to ask Alms on the High-ways where he sometimes pick'd up twenty or thirty Sous a Day which made him so fond of that Course of Life that he cou'd never afterwards leave it He assur'd me that the Trade of Begging was attended at least with as much Pleasure as Pain and that he was so accustom'd to it that he was resolv'd to make it the only Business of his Life In the mean time I hearken'd to him with an Admiration that wou'd not suffer me to interrupt him and he scrupl'd not to acquaint me with most of the usual Tricks of his Fellow-Vagabonds They spend their whole Lives in wandring from one Hospital to another and know exactly all the Customs of those Places and the various Offices of Charity that were appointed by the Founders to be perform'd in ' em Some of 'em cover themselves with Rags and putting their Arms or Legs out of Joint take up their Post at a Church Door from Morning to Night while others go about in a pretty decent Garb and pretending to be poor Officers who have been robb'd of their Money and are at a great distance from their Friends and Relations beg the Charitable Assistance of those whom they meet with a certain Bashfulness and mournful Tone that deceives many well-dispos'd Persons He that instructed me in all these Mysteries was of the Second Order and contemn'd the others as a sort of Puny Mumpers who had neither Courage nor Ambition Adding that he got more in

as a Fugitive The Galley-Slaves are the most miserable Wretches in the World yet there are some Persons here who have so little regard to their own Happiness as to sell themselves for a hundred Crowns to the Order they continue Slaves during their whole Life without any Pay rowing naked and chain'd as the rest without any other Mark of Distinction than the Title of Bonne Vogue whereas the Turks are call'd Slaves I know there are also some of these voluntary Slaves at Venice where they are call'd Gallioti and even the Republick finds less Difficulty in levying 'em than in raising Soldiers but they are only engag'd to serve three Years on the Galleys whereas the Bonne Vogue at Malta are perpetual Slaves without the least hope of recovering their Liberty There are only seven Galleys belonging to the Order which are sent every Year under the Command of a General to assist the Venetians The Government is constantly employ'd about raising new Funds without which they cannot encrease the Number of their Galleys There are Three Languages spoken in the City the French Spanish and Italian The last of these is authoriz'd by the Government and us'd in publick Writings The Peasants in the Country speak a corrupt Dialect of the Arabic and 't wou'd not be an easie Task to make 'em leave it The Holy Office of the Inquisition that dreadful Tribunal famous for its Injustice and Cruelty reigns more Tyrannically here than at Rome it self I have heard a hundred remarkable Stories of its Barbarity but I 'm too much your Friend to disturb the Tranquillity of your Mind with such dismal Relations And therefore instead of entring on so Melancholic a Subject I shall only observe that Confessors who in any other Country would be burnt if they should divulge the Secrets with which they are intrusted are oblig'd here to reveal 'em as often as the Inquisition is concern'd in the Discovery 'T is true they do not own this Maxim for fear of spoiling their Trade but the Truth of it is too well known to be call'd in question In the mean time to prevent Suspicion they are sometimes silent for a Year or two after which the Inquisitor sends for the Party accus'd and asks him whether he knows the reason why he is brought before him Then must the poor Wretch call to mind all that ever he said and if he has either forgot his Fault or refuses to own it confiding in the Secrecy and Fidelity of his Confessour whom he knows to be his only Confident he 's a dead Man and must not entertain the least hope of Mercy For they strangle him in Prison and some time after tell his Relations that they may forbear sending him Provisions Happy are they who are not subject to this Yoke I saw a Church t'other day in which there is a little Grotto where 't is said S. Paul liv'd three Months But 't is so small and contriv'd in such a manner that I 'm much enclin'd to suspect the Truth of this Tradition However every one that comes carries away a piece of it as a Preservative against the biting of Serpents And they pretend that by a perpetual Miracle the Rock is never diminish'd I will not dispute the Truth of the Matter of Fact tho' I can assure you that there are visible Gaps or Notches in the Rock and that they still continue to break off Pieces of it But supposing it to be as big as ever I see no reason why we shou'd have recourse to a Miracle on this Occasion since 't is generally acknowledg'd that there are some Rocks which grow naturally till they be separated from their Roots And our Mariners who are no very able Philosophers show'd me one in our Voyage hither which is commonly call'd the Brothers and why may not S. Paul●s Grotto be of the same Nature But this is not the only Miracle in Malta They tell us that there are no Serpents in the Island and wou'd have us believe that this Privilege was the Effect of a Viper's biting the same Apostle as you may read in the Acts of the Apostles For my part I must confess I 'm as little satisfy'd with this Sotry as with the other for some Persons assure me that there are Serpents in Malta But supposing there were none I had occasion to mention another Island in my last which may boast of the same Advantage and why shou'd the Miracle be greater here than at Guernsey where t is certain there is neither Toad Scorpion nor any other Venomous Creature And which adds to the Wonder I know that the Governour who is a Curious Person having order'd some of those Animals to be brought to the Island they dy●d immediately I 'm confident if the Roman-Catholicks were Masters of that Island they wou●d make some Saint the Author of this Privilege which might perhaps be pretended with less improbability to be the effect of a supernatural Cause than at Malta since the Island of Jersey which is but seven Leagues distant from Guernsey is so extremely pester'd with Serpents and Toads that the Houses are full of 'em and none of the Peasants dare lie upon the Ground This I doubt not will seem strange to you but you will be stil● more surpriz'd when I have told you that it rains Toads in this Island If you suspect the Truth of this odd Phaenomenon you may receive a Confirmation of it from any Man that has been upon the Place Nature is so Mysterious and Unsearchable in her Operations and Men are generally so apt to admire what they cannot comprehend that their Inclination to ascribe surprizing Events to supernatural Causes may be justly reckon'd an effect of their Ignorance I 'm so fully persuaded of this Truth that I seldom or never take Notice of those Miracles that make so great a Noise in the Countreys thro' which I have occasion to pass And besides since I have reason to believe that such Stories wou'd not contribute much to your Diversion I 'm resolv'd to trouble you with none of 'em unless they be either very extraordinary or extremely ridiculous I hope my next Letter shall be dated from Constantinople for we intend to set sail to Morrow I am SIR Your c. Malta June 1690. LETTER XII SIR WE sail'd from Malta June ... and leaving Sicily on our Left-hand enter'd the Archipelago After a Voyage of fifteen Days without any remarkable Disturbance we arriv'd at the Height of Troy and our Vessel standing in to Tenedos both by reason of the contrary Wind and to take in some fresh Provisions I took this Occasion to visit the Ruines of that famous City which are at present so obscure and inconsiderable that unless a Man's Mind were full of the Idea of it he might view it all over without perceiving the least reason to conclude that ever any Town stood in that place Yet by a Curious Search an inquisitive Traveller may find enough to convince him