Selected quad for the lemma: tradition_n
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A39281
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S. Austin imitated, or, Retractions and repentings in reference unto the late civil and ecclesiastical changes in this nation by John Ellis.
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Ellis, John, 1606?-1681.
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1662
(1662)
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Wing E590; ESTC R24312
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304,032
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419
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of the Old and New Testament The Church of England receiveth the Canon of Scripture according to the antient Church exactly as the Church of England doth Secondly that he saith that is secundum majorum traditionem ex patrum monumentis That it is according to the tradition of the Church and out of the writings of the Fathers Whereby we see the Church of England follows antiquity in reception of the books of holy Scripture more truly than the Church of Rome doth But this obiter and the way Again Bullinger citeth the judgment of Bibliander Bibliander de opt genere interpretandi Hebraica whose words are Ecclesiasticos libros etiam Hagiographa nominant sancta scripta Quae etsi non habent idoneam authoritatem roborandi ea quae in contentionem veniunt ut Canonici Scriptores non tamen rejiciuntur ut Apocrypha qualis fuit prophetia Eldad Medad c. Ecclesiastici autem lâ—bri etiam in Scholam auditoria fidelis populi admâ—ssi sunt tam venerandi multis ut Judith etiam in ordinem canonicae Scripturae à quibusdam reponatur Which having the same sense I forbear to English Onely he saith that the Book of Judith was by some accounted Scripture I suppose he meaneth Origen which I think may as little claim that priviledge as any other Lastly Bullinger goes over every book of them and shews the benefit that the Church may reap by the reading of them And saith We may better learn the form of Houshold-government out of Tobit and Judith and the Ethicks or rules of good living out of Ecclesiasticus and the book of Wisdom than out of Plato Aristotle and Xenophon And the way of a religious Soldier out the Maccabees And of the first book of them he saith Ac tanti omnino hic liber est ut boni illo non possent citra jacturam carere That it is verily of such worth that a good man cannot without loss be without it Which is consonant unto that of King James speaking of the same book Conf. Hamp Court pag. 61. viz. Who shewed the use of the Maccabees to be very good to make up the story of the persecution of the Jews c. And of the History of Bel and the Dragon Bullinger saith Viderint autem qui eam historiam pro fabula damnant quibus nitantur Authoribus Ego video Historiam refertissimam esse multiplici fructu eruditione Let them look to it saith he what Authors they rest upon who condemn it for a fable I observe it to be a History full fraught with fruitful instructions And he names what In a word his whole discourse on these books is worth reading And it is to be noted that this was with the allowance of the rest of the Ministers of Tigur where this book was printed Necessit Reform pag. 20. Basilic Doron But the authority of King James is by some Brethren objected against the Apocrypha viz. As for the Apocrypha books I omit them because I am no Papist and indeed some of them are not like the ditement of the Spirit of God Answ Thus say they the King But it seems time and reading had further ripened the Kings judgment in that point For afterward when he upon great occasion solemnly delivered his judgment Confer Hamp Court second day confer p. 61. è Cathedrâ in reference to the satisfaction of his whole Kingdom this was the result His Majesty in the end said He would take an even order between both Affirming that he would not wish all Canonical books to be read in the Church unless there were one to interpret nor any Apocrypha at all wherein there was * He explains himself presently in allowing the book of Maccabees wherein he acknowledgeth some errors any error But for the other which were clear and correspondent to the Scripture he would have them read for else said he why were they printed and therein shewed the use of the book of Maccabees very good to make up the story of the Persecutions of the Jews but not to teach a man to sacrifice for the dead or to kill himself Thus far the King whâ—ch if the Brethren knew they did not well to cover and if they knew it not and were not vers'd in the most authentical books and writings of this nature as that Conference is a special one they were not fit to deal in such an Argument So also in the same place of the same Conference pag. 61 62. the King opened and defended a passage in Ecclesiasticus one of the Apocryphal books objected against as unsound and closes all with this salt quippe to the opposers What trow ye makes these men so angry with Ecclesiasticus by my saul I think he was a Bishop c. You see with what judgment the Brethren have quoted the King against the Apocrypha and yet as a crowing argument they insist upon it Again Object 2 Hierom. Ep. ad Laetam Tom. 1. St. Hieron is also produced as a witness against these books viz. That he should advise a Lady say they caveat omnia Apocrypha that she should take heed of all the Apocrypha Answ There are several causes of mistaking and mis-representing of an Author as 1 That men rest on Quotations Causes of misunderstanding and mis-representing of an Author and read them not themselves 2 That they understand not the language and Idiom of the writer 3 That they weigh not his scope and drift 4 That they ponder not the context 5 That they compare not one place with another 6 That they consider not the circumstances time place c. 7 That they consult not others that may illustrate him Then for misrepresenting him 1 That they make no bones of it 2 That they conceit they shall not be seen by every eye 3 And that when they be they have a brow to bear it so what they say may serve the turn at present It so fares here For if the Brethren read the place they quote in Jerom it is sure they understood not what he meant by Apocrypha Erasmus therefore on the place shall teach them Inscribuntur Petro Paulo nonnulla ipsi Christo Erasm in Hierom â—p ad Laetam num 79. veluti epistola Jesu ad Abygarum regem They are saith he ascribed to Peter to Paul and some to Christ himself as the Epistle of Jesus unto Agborus Where you see that Jerome did not mean by the Apocrypha onely the Books joyned with the Old Testament but those also yea those especially that were affixed to the New Again They did not weigh Jerom's scope for it was onely to instruct a young Girl in reading in that place not to shew what the Church might do or did Fourthly They did not compare this passage with others where he expresseth himself ex professo As where he speaks of the Books which bear Solomons name but are not his used to be read
intra quorum nos consortium non aestimatur meriti sed veniae quaesumus largitor admitte That is first O God which seest that we trust in no act or work of ours Again Where we have no help of merits do thou succour us with thy assistance Again Admit thou us into their the blessed Saints company who art not the esteemer of merit but the vouchsafer of mercy Thirdly It having been often evidenced by * Jewel in defence of the Apolog. and others ours that our Doctrine Worship Discipline and Government is much more antient than Popery properly so called although also usurped in some things by Papists what hindreth but as the vessels of the Temple defiled by Belshazzar both in drunkenness and idolatry Dan. 7. might return to their pristine use so those things that were Christs before De doctr Christ l. 2. c. 40. but usurped by them we may tanquam ab injustis possessoribus in nostrum usum vendicare take our own goods out of theevish hands as Austin Austin of the truths uttered by the Heathen But lastly because the victory over Goliah was the more remarkable the last blow being given by his own sword we shall retort the argument viz. 4. Because the Liturgy destroyeth Popery and Superstition That there ought to be no separation from the Worship and Liturgy because whilst the Common-prayer-book is of force and neither deserted nor transgressed Popery and that superstition on the one hand as a flood nor Anabaptism and Separation as a rotting distillation on the other can ever come in upon the Church And for this though I have neither strength nor armour so specious or so massy as they perhaps may have yet I shall not doubt to cast the Gantlet to any Champion of the Philistines Such was the judgment of that learned Prince King James related to by the Lord Arch-bishop of Canterbury Lord Abbot Arch-bishop of Cant. Letter with K. James instructions concerning Preachers Sept. 3. 1622. in these words His Majesty therefore calling to mind the saying of Tertullian Id verum quod primum That is true which is first And remembring with what doctrine the Church of England in her first and most happy Reformation did drive out the one and keep out the other c. He had nam'd before Popery Anabaptism and Separation I am not ignorant that Sancta Clara hath endeavoured to reconcile even our Articles of Religion with the doctrine of the Church of Rome But what communion hath light with darkness 2 Cor. 6. and what concord hath Christ with Belial and what agreement hath the Temple of God with Idols The new Jerusalem is four square the Harlot sits upon Circles * Apoc. 17.9 seven hills can they quadrare circulum But to return to the former For proof at present touching Anabaptism and Separation there is no doubt of that And for Popery the chief points thereof as opposite unto the Protestant Religion are countervened there as may appear by the Council of Trent by Bellarmine and our Rhemists the true Interpreters of that Council as our a] De S. Scripturâ in presatione Quia novus Papismus â vetere multum differt quod de omni causa Tridentinum concilium statuerit imprimâ—s quaeramus tum hujus concilii fideliss interpretes Jesuitas nostros etiam Rhemenses quia Bellarminus has causas accurate tractavit illum quasi scopum proponemus Whitaker hath it if compared with it To instance in a few particulars The first shall be that Traditiones ipsas pari pietatis affectu reverentiâ suscipit reveretur That the Traditions of the Church are to be received with the same affection and reverence b] Concil Trid. Sess 4. decret 1. as the holy Scriptures themselves And so the worship of God may be farced with them 1. Traditions as well as with the reading and preaching the holy Scripture Now the Liturgy assigneth nothing to be put into the worship but the Scriptures either those that are undoubtedly so or else such as have been of great veneration and antiquity in the Church though not received into the Canon R. Hook Eccles pol. l. 5. § 19. and which in regard of the divine excellency of some things in all and of all things in certain of them have been thought better to stand as a list or marginal border unto the Old Testament yet with this liberty that where the Minister shall perceive some one or other chapter of the Old Testament to fall in order to be read Admonition to all Ministers Ecclesiastical prefixed before the second Tome of Homilies 2. Intercession of Saints which were better to be changed with some other of the New Testament of more edification he may do it As was noted above The next may be the Medium or Mediator of our worship by whom it is to be commended unto God The Church of Rome joyn in commission with Christ the blessed Virgin the holy Apostles the Angels and the Saints departed Our Common-prayer as our Saviour in another place Luk. 1. Apoc. 5.8 Heb. 5. shuts out all this crowd and with the High-Priest when he was to offer Incense which represented the prayers of the Saints suffers no man to take this honor to himself but Christ alone in the close of the prayers adding this basis to the support of all and naming no where any other and sometime expresly excluding them by that bar only affixed unto Christ through our only Mediatour and Advocate Jesus Christ our Lord. Second Collect in the Letany and elsewhere 3. Merits A third the merit of our prayers and worship The Papists we know do attribute so much to that such a kind and number of them being said at such a place they shall merit the very merits of Christ and properly deserve a reward And that not ex congruo and of conveniency only but ex condigno and of strict justice Good works say the Rhemists On Heb. 6.10 and prayer and divine worship is a principal one even with them also be meritorious and the very cause of salvation so far that God should be unjust if he rendred not Heaven for the same But our Liturgy teacheth us that when we have offered our alms our prayers yea and have performed the very highest of divine worship the celebration of the holy Communion in the close of all to say Thanksgiving after the Communion And although we be unworthy through our manifold sins to offer unto thee any sacrifice yet we beseech thee to accept this our bounden duty and service NOT WEIGHING OUR MERITS BUT PARDONING OUR OFFENCES c. and many the like passages 4. The Sacrifice of the Mass Concil Trid. Sess 6. sub pio 4. c. 2. A fourth particular shall be the Mass wherein is pretended that the Bread after Consecration being transâ—ubstantiated into the very flesh of Christ and that elevated by the Priest with