Selected quad for the lemma: tradition_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
tradition_n	father_n	rule_n	scripture_n	1,783	5	6.0386	4	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A63995	Twenty-one conclusions further demonstrating the schism of the Church of England formerly offer'd in confutation of Dr. Hammond and Bishop Bramhall : to which are added some reasons tender'd to impartial people why Dr. H. Maurice, Chaplain to His Grace of Canterbury, ought not to be traduc'd as the licenser of the pamphlet entituled A plain answer to a popish priest, questioning the orders of the Church of England.		1688 (1688)	Wing T3413; ESTC R26339	8,446	16

of renouncing all Faith and Government For whoever renounces any Rule may nay ought if he act consequently renounce all he holds upon that Rule whether points of Faith or of Government nay even the Letter of God's Written Word it self that is all that Christ left us or that can concern a Church XIII The renouncing those two Principles of the former Church-Unity as it evidently disunited men's minds in order to Faith and Government so if reduced into practice it must necessarily dis-unite or divide them likewise in External Church-carriage This is clear since our Tenets are the Principles of our Actions and so contrary Tenets of contrary carriage XIV Those tenets contrary to the two Principles of Church-Unity were de facto put in practice by the Reforming Party and consequently they divided the Church both internally and externally This is most undeniably evident since they wrote preach'd and acted against the Tradition or Delivery of the immediately foregoing Church as erroneous in many points which she deliver'd to them as from immediate Fathers and so upwards as from Christ and proceeded now to interpret Scripture by another Rule than by the Tenets and Practice of that immediately foregoing Church And as for the former Government they absolutely renounc'd its influence in England preach'd and wrote against it Na●●kept Congregations apart before they had got the power in their hands and after they had the power in their hands punisht and put to Death and that upon account of Religion many of the maintainers of those two Principles of Church-Unity XV. Hence follows That the Protestant Breach was a perfect and compleat Fact of Schism For it divided the former Ecclesiastical Body both internally and externally and that as it was an Ecclesiastical Body since it violated those two Principles which concern'd Ecclesiastical Unity XVI The subsequent Excommunication of our Church was therefore due fitting and necessary Due for it is as due a carriage towards those who have actually renounc'd the Principles of Unity both in Faith and Government and so broken Church-Unity to be Excommunicated by that Body from which those Renouncer's thus broke as it is toward Rebels who have renounc'd both Supreme Government and Fundamental Laws of a Commonwealth and so divided the Temporal Body to be denounced and proclaimed Rebels by the same Commonwealth Fitting since the effect of it they most resent which was to keep the true Faithful apart in Ecclesiastical actions from them signified no more than this that they who had broken both internally and externally from the former Body should not be treated with in Ecclesiastical matters as still of it nor be own'd for parts of that Commonwealth of which already they had made themselves no parts Lastly Necessary All Government and good order going to wrack if opposite parties be allow'd to treat together commonly in such actions in which their opposition must necessarily and frequently discover it self which will inevitably disgust the more prudent sort hazard to pervert the weaker and breed disquiet on both sides Thus far to evidence demonstrably that the external fact of Schism was truly theirs which done tho it be needless to add any more to prove them formal Schismaticks themselves confessing that such a fact cannot be justifiable by any reasons or motives whatsoever Sch. c. 1. Yet I shall not depend upon their standing to their own words knowing how easie a thing it is for men who talk loosely and not with strict rigor of Discourse to shuffle off their own sayings I shall therefore prosecute my own method and alledg That XVII The very doing an external fact of so hainous a nature as is breaking Church-Unity concludes a Guilt in the Actors unless they render reasons truly sufficient to excuse their fact This is evident a fortiori by paralleling this to facts of inferior malice For whosoever rises against a long setled and acknowledg'd Temporal Power is concluded by that very fact of rising to be a Rebel unless he render sufficient reasons for it Otherwise till those reasons appear the Good of Peace Order and Unity which he evidently violates by his rising concludes him most irrational and sinful XVIII No reasons can be sufficient to excuse such a fact but such as are able to convince that 't was better to do that fact than not to do it This is most evident XIX In this case where the point is demonstrable and of highest concern no reason meerly probable can convince the Understanding that the contrary was better to be done but only a manifest and rigorous demonstration For tho in the common sort of human actions an high Probability that the thing is in it self better be sufficient for action yet there are some things of a nature so manifest to all Mankind to be universally good that nothing but rigorous Evidence can be pretended a ground sufficient to oppose them For example that Parents are to be honour'd that Government is to be in the World that Unity of Government is to be kept up in God's Church that there ought to be certain Grounds for Faith c. Which since on the one side they are such as are in their own nature demonstrable and indeed self-evident and on the other so universally beneficial and consequently an universal harm or rather a deluge of inconveniences mischief would break in if the Actor against these should happen to be in the wrong He is therefore bound in these cases not to act till he sees the utmost that is to be seen concerning such affairs But affairs of this nature are demonstrable or rather self-evident as is said on the one side therefore he ought not to act unless he could see perfect demonstration that 't is better for him to act otherwise Wherefore it having been manifestly prov'd that this Fact of theirs left neither Certain Ground of Faith nor Unity of Government in God's Church nothing but a perfect and rigorous demonstration could be able to convince the Understanding that 't was better to act XX. The Protestants produce no such demonstration that 't was better to act in this case For they never clos'd with severe demonstration in any of their Writings I have yet seen to evidence rigorously either That the Rule of immediate Delivery was not certain or that the Pope had no Supreme Authority in Ecclesiastical affairs or lastly that the Pope's Authority was to be abolisht for the Abuses sake Which were necessary to be done ere they could demonstrate it better to break Church-Unity Nor does their manner of writing bear the slenderest resemblance of rigorous demonstration Since demonstration is not a connecting of Air and Words but of Notions and Sense and this from self-evident Principles even to the very intended Conclusion Whereas their way of Writing is only to find out the Sence of Words by a kind of Dictionary-manner which sort of Discourse is the most fallible sleight and subject to Equivocation that can be imagin'd To omit that