desolate lest with the foolish Virgins by our slothfull delay Mat. 25.11 the dore of mercy be shut vp against vs. It is good counsell of St. Augustines Aug de verb. Apost ho. 42. Emamus occasionem let vs purchase opportunity of doing good but especially when it is offered let vs not neglect it When we see the wounded man lying in distresse Luk. 10.33 then is there opportunity offered with the good Samaritan to open the bowels of compassion Luk. 16.20 When Lazarus lyes at our dores hungry full of sores then is there a time to shew mercy When the Spirit of God knockes at the dores of our hearts Reu. 3.20 by the hammer of the Word or the sound of any good motion 2. Cor. 6.3 then is it our part to take the accepted time and to lay hold on the day of saluation Thus doing we shall be like the tree planted by the riuers of waters that brings forth her fruits in due season Psal 1.3 so shall we be blessed Gal. 6.9 and shall reape in due season if we faint not The Efficient cause or Author of the Sacrament That question of the Prophet Isaiah is very materiall in all the parts of Gods worship Esay 1.12 Who required this at your hands And if in all the parts of Gods worship then more especially in the blessed Sacraments which haue their eminency aboue other of Gods ordinances Therefore the Apostle both for the better reformation of the Corinthians information of the Church of God for future times shewes here that the Lord Iesus is the Author of this Sacrament that so all posterity might esteem reuerently of it and be afraid to profane it as being a diuine ordinance When almighty God retained the gouernment of his Church immediatly in his own hands himselfe was the immediate Author of the legall Sacraments He prescribed to Abraham the Sacrament of Circumcision described the same in respect of the matter the manner the time the sex the persons as we read in the seuenteenth of Genesis He likewise gaue direction to Moses Aaron Gen. 17.10 14. concerning the Passeouer with all the Ceremonies and circumstances as they are largely descrbed in the 12. of Exodus Exo. 12.50 Though the Lord honored Moses in making him his Ambassadour yet he retained to himselfe the absolute authority of instituting the Sactament Moses was faithfull as a seruant in the Lords house yet neither inacted he any Law or instituted any Sacrament but onely published the one Exo. 25.9 and gaue direction for the other and in all he did still he had his patterne and warrant from GOD. When the Sonne of God was incarnate swayed the scepter in the time of grace he likewise did ordain and institute two Euangelicall Sacraments to seale vp thereby the ancient Couenant of Grace As there is a pregnant testimony of the institution of Baptisme in the eighty and twentieth of Mathew Mat. 28.18 19. Mat. 26.26 Mar. 14.22 Luk. 22.19 so doe three of the Euangelists make very plaine mention of Christs institution of the Eucharist and the Apostle heere reuiues the memory thereof Neither did Christ ordaine the Sacraments onely as he was man Greg. Valen Tom. 4 disp 3 quaest 5. p. 1. Bell. de sacra in Gen. lib. 1. cap. 23. as Gregory of Valentia would haue it but as hee was God man as diuers Schoolemen doe confesse Yea Bellarmine doth seeme some-what to qualifie that opinion of his fellow Iesuite saying that the humanity of Christ is the instrument as it was hypostatically vnited to the diuinity And surely to affirme that Christ onely as man though by Commission from God did institute the Sacraments were some derogation to the dignity thereof Ambr. de Sacra 〈◊〉 4. c. 4. St. Ambrose saith well The Sacraments came from heaue◠That is they had a diuine institution Now there are diuers reasons why it should be so First the Sacraments are an especiall part of Gods worship they are military badges whereby we publiquely professe our selues to be the souldiers seruants of Iesus Christ whilst we serue in his Campe and vnder his colours Acknowledging that no other shall prescribe to vs any Sacraments but onely Christ by whom alone we looke for eternall saluation Therefore St. Paul disclaimes that honour which some of the Corinthians forth of their factious affections were wont to cast vpon their sequestred Teachers saying 1. Cor. 1.13 Were you baptized into the name of Paul And surely it were odious ambition and presumptuous arrogancy if any man should assume vnto himselfe this dignity which is peculiar to the Sonne of God 2. To him it belongs to institute the Sacramēts who is the author of Grace and can thereby make them effectuall to the receiuer And that is onely Christ GOD and man and not any other who is meerely man The Sacraments indeed are like to a seale as a seale giues force to the writing so the Sacraments doe confirme to vs the Couenant of grace but yet they doe this onely as they are ingrauen with the death and printed with the hand of Christ Num 21. If Moses or any other Israelite had of his owne head without diuine warrāt set vp a brazen serpent it had neuer beene effectuall to cure the stinging of the fiery Serpents And had any mortall man beene the author of the Sacraments they had neuer bin powerfull to cure comfort the distressed soule If the woman with the bloudy issue Mat. 9.20 had touched the hemmes of ten thousand others garmēts besides our Sauiors she had not bin healed and if tenne thousand Sacraments were ordained by any other but by Christ they haue small power to heale the maladies of our soules Luke 8.46 The woman touched the hemme of Christs garment but the vertue came from Christ that cured her disease so we doe receiue the outward elements at the hand of the Minister but the vertue power therof proceeds from Christ to cure the bloudy issue of our sinnes The Sacraments are as conduit pipes to conuey grace into the Cesterns of our hearts but Christ himselfe is the fountaine Ioh. 1.16 Of whose fulnesse wee receiue grace for grace Had the anoynting of the blind mans eyes with clay and spittle Ioh. 9.6 beene the prescription of any other it had beene alikely meanes to depriue a man of his sight but being Christs direction it was effectuall to giue sight to him that was borne blind As in humane actions the instrument hath his vertue actiuity from the principall agent so haue these sacred ordinances their vertue and efficacy from Christ the author of the Sacraments From him proceeds the influence of Grace We powre on water in Baptisme but he baptized with the holy Ghost Mat. 3.11 and with fire In the Lords Supper we deliuer the elements but he it is that giues vertue to the Sacrament As
baptized with water Mat. 3.11 Christ Iesus baptized with the holy Ghost Hieron ad Hedib quae 2 and with fire So that Christ is in the Sacrament both Conuiua and conuiuium by him we are inuited and by him we are nourished This is plaine from the sacramentall relation betweene the signes and the thing signified For Christ Iesus is not like Zeuxes who fed the birds with painted berries To offer bare signes without the substance were a greater delusion then can agree with him who is the God of truth Therfore are the Bread and Wine in llible pledges of the presence of Christ in the Sacrament It is said of the children of Israel that they did eate of the same spirituall meat 1. Cor. 10.3 4. and drinke of the same spirituall rocke and the rocke was Christ It cannot be said that they did eate drinke of the same in respect of the signes therefore it must needes be vnderstood of the thing signified which is Christ And so St. Augustine saith Those Sacraments were different from ours in the signes but equall in the matter signified Now if the Israâ—litâ—s did by vertue of their Sacâ—â—ments eate and drinke Christ spirituaâ—ly in the time of the Lawe who will doubt but the Church and children of God doe so in the time of the Gospâ—ll And St. Pauls drâ—ft in that place is by shewing the equality of the Sacraments to wrâ—st a vaine buckler of defence out of the hands of the Corinthians For they were râ—ady to obiect their priuiledgâ—s as a Supâ—â—sedeas to Gods iudgements esteeming their case to be better then the Israelites in respect of those diuine priuiledges but the Apostle shewes them their error layes upon the vanity of thâ—ir concâ—it of safety by manifesting that the Israelites were insconsed with as strong bulwarkes and inuested with aâ— great priuiledges as themselues in regâ—rd of the suâ—â—tance of the Sacraments notwithstanding which the wrath of God did breake forth vpon thâ—m And what else could the Corinthians expect if they were culpable in the same kind Againe the Sacraments are not onely signes to demonstrate but scales also to ratifie the word of promise And indeed there cannot be a more liuely comparison to set forth the nature difference of the Word and Sacraments For the Gospell may fitly be compared to a Charter or to a Will and Testament and the Sacraments to the seales whereby the lâ—gacy of eternall life bequeathed in the Gospell to all the faithfull is ratified Bellar. Praef. ad controuer de Sacramentis But this comparison Bellarmine quarrels calls a foolish comparison His reason is Because a seale should of it selfe be better knowne giue power and honour and adde authority to the writing Obsignari preâ—â— siones nusq am legimus nisi forte in Euangelio secundum Lutherum Bellar. vbi supra wheras the Word of God is by it selfe of absolute authority the Sacraments of none at all without the testimony of the Word Yea saith he VVe doe not read in any Apostle or Euangelist that the promises of God are sealed vp vnto vs except peraduenture in the Gospell according to Luther In which scornefull speech t is hard to say whether the Iesuit shew himselfe more ignorant or impudent For the comparison is diuine St. Paul shewes in the fourth to the Romans Rom. 4.11 that Abraham receiued the signe of Circumcision as the scale of the righteousnesse of faith Aug. de vera Relig. c. 17. Lt Angaepist 203 al Maximinum And to Clemens Alex. calls the Sacrament Strom li. 2. Tertul. calls Baptisme siâ—naculum fidei 〈◊〉 de specâ—ae 24. And as the legall Sacraments were seales of the Couenant so are the Euangelicall which succeede them in that kind as Saint Augustine saith so diuers otheâ— ancient Fathers call them But I would know of Bellarmine how a seale is a thing better known then the Charter or what power it hath without some writing If the Iesuit should haue had the Popes scale or bull to a blanke he would haue found small power or vertue in it to him for a Cardinalshippe whereas a writing without a seale may be knowne to be a mans deed expresse his mind and carry with it in some cases power to conuey a gift or legacy Who doubts but that the bare Word of God is of sufficient authority and yeelds great assurance Yet as the Apostle saith God being willing more abundantly to shew vnto the heires of promise Heb. 6.17 the stablenes of his Counsell bound himselfe by an oath So I may say that the Word of God written is the Word of Truth 1. Tim. 2.15 like the writing of a faithfull man his promises are Yea and Amen 2. Cor. 1.20 shall surele be accomplished Yet as the Rainbow was giuen for a full assurance of the worlds preseruation from a generall Deluge which should haue been ratified if there had neuer been Rainebow So the Sacraments are giuen as seales of the Couenant of Grace and saluation which God hath made to his seruants that hauing both his hand and seale their faith might more fully be strengthned Therefore for Bellarmlne to scoffe at the title of a seale and applyed to the Sacrament is great impiety and to quarell the Comparison is grosse impudency The truth of the presence of Christ in the Sacrament will more fully appeare if we consider the liuely analogy betweene the soulâ— the body For as the body hath through the soule a naturall life so hath the soule through grace a spirituall As the body is subiect to hunger Mat. 5.6 so is the soule As the body doth languish and pine away without corporall food so doth the soule without spirituall nourishment therfore the one as well as the other must be preserued by meanes Now the same that corporall food is to the body Christ Iesus is to the soule of the beleeuers according to that in the sixt of Iohn Ioh. 6.51 I am the liuing bread which came downe from heauen if any man eate of this bread he shall liue for euer Verse 53. And on the contrary Except we eate the flesh of Christ and drinke his bloud we can haue no life in vs. As certainely therfore as our bodies are made partakers of the outward elements so certainely are we assured that being duly prepared our soules doe feede vpon Iesus Christ For the cup of blessing which we blesse 1. Cor. 10.16 is it not the Communion of the bloud of Christ and the bread which we breake is it not the Communion of the Body of Christ Now albeit Christ is truly in the Sacrament yet is hee not locally there according to the conceit either of Consubstantiation or Transubstantiation For the body and bloud of Christ are not present to the elements but to the Communicants There is onely a symbolicall rationall vnion betwixt Christ and the Elements but the spirituall and reall vnion
Durand Ratio li. 4. ca. 4. Maldonat in Mat. 26. who affirme that Iudas was absent So that Maldonat was too nice in saying hee could willingly be of that opinion but that the contrary hath many fauourers Wee may be confident especially when the Euangelist himselfe saith plainely Ioh. 13.30 For that this sop was no part of Supper that so soone as Iudas had receiued the sop hee went immediatly out So that from this our Sauiours practice in not admitting Iudas I may say with Chrysostome Nullus assistat Iudas Chrys ad op Ant. hom 60 Psa 50.16 Let no Iudas bee present or approach this holy Table If the Lord expostulate thus with a wicked man for medling with his Word VVhy dost thou take my Couenant into thy mouth whereas thou hatest to be reformed Will he not be prouoked to anger with him who takes this Sacrament into a prophane mouth If he who did eat the Peace-offering Leuit. â— 20 hauing his vncleannesse vpon him was cut off from his people as we read in the seuenth of Leuiticus What shall become of him who comes vnworthily to take this holy Sacrament the memoriall of that wonderfull Peace-offering which Christ tendered to his Father vpon the Altar of the Crosse whereby he reconciled all things to God both in heauen and earth Col. 1.20 There are two especiall reasons of this doctrine First in regard of the difference betweene the Sacrament and the Communicant For what fellowship hath light with darknes what agreement betweene the holy Sacrament and a profane heart who will put precious waters into filthy vessels or wholesome wine into soule caskes This is the ground of Ioshuaes speech to the children of Israel Ios 24.19 You cannot serue the Lord for he is a holy God that is whilest they were wicked the righteous Lord who loueth righteousnesse Psa 11.7 would not accept of their seruice Almighty God hath euer carefully required a correspondence betweene his holy ordinances those who were to bee partakers of the same Thus the Shew-bread was appointed onely for Aaron and his sonnes because they were holy Exo. 29.33 Thus the Trespasse-offring must bee eaten in the holy place Leuit. 7.6 because it is most holy Therfore as the Lord saith 1. Pet. 1.16 Be you holy because I am holy so may it be said to the Communicant Be you holy because the Sacrament is holy This was the caueat giuen to the Communicants in the Primitiue Church when one of the Deacons holding vp the Sacrament in the view of the people Chrys ad pop Ant. hom 61. cryed with a lowd voyce Sancta sanctis Holy things belong to the holy And where there is no holinesse to entertaine these holy things there in stead of comfort the heart is more more corrupted For as the Spider gets strength of poyson from the sweetest hearbes and flowres so the profane and impenitent heart is strengthened in wickednesse by receiuing this holy and heauenly food The Word of God hath many excellent Encomiums in sundry places of Scripture It is the sincere milke of the VVord 1. Pet. 2.2 Psal 12.6 Psal 19.10 It is more purer then gold seuen times refined It is sweeter then the hony and the hony-combe Yet we often finde by lamentable experience that it becomes to some the sauor of death vnto death 2. Cor. 2.16 and so to the Sacraments which were ordained to be the seales of our saluation the comfort of our hearts the strength of our soules being vnworthily receiued becomes the seale of condemnation the bane and poyson both of soule and body for euer A second reason why the wicked and vnworthy must not meddle with the Sacrament is the danger that thereby is incurred When Almighty God deliuered the Law vpon Mount Sinai Exo. 19.12 as he did fence the mountaine with markes and bounds so did he the Commandements with comminations and threatnings Aboue other the third Commandement hath a dreadfull threatning The Lord will not hold him guiltlesse that taketh his name in vaine Exod. 26.7 Now when the Sacrament is profaned the name of God is taken in vaine in a high degree Let him therefore take heed to himselfe who by vnworthy receiuing doth profane this holy Sacrament The temporall iudgements that haue seazed vpon men for laying profane hands vpon holy things are left to vs as a warning to auoyd the like dangers 1. Sam. 5.6 The hand of God was heauy vpon them of Ashdod for meddling with the Arke Baltazar was â—roâ—ght into a maruelous trembling and astonishment receiued a dolefull doome by the handwriting on the wall Dan. 5 3-6 for quailing and carowsing in the holy vessels And the Apostle here would haue the Corinthians take notice of the wrath of God vpon diuers of them for receiuing the Sacrament vnworthily For many were sicke and weake amongst them Verse 30. and many slept Seeing then that weakenesse sicknesse and death also did befall those profaners the same should make euery profane and irreligious receiuer of the Sacrament to tremble as being lyable to the like iudgements The Iraelites had quails at their desire but when the meate was yet in their mouthes the wrath of God fell vpon them Psal 78.30 And this surely was a great iudgement He that is an vnworthy receiuer may iustly feare lâ—st the wrath of God in some such fearefull manner fall vpon him whilest the cup is in his hand and the bread in his mouth It is true that as fathers chastise their children that are come to ripe yeeres in another fashion then they did when they were little So God hath another kinde of discipline vnder the Gospel then hee had vnder the Pedagogie of the Law as St. Chrysostome saith Hee doth not so often scourge offenders with the rods of temporall chastisements but rather reserues for them eternall torments Magnum ac quirit tormeÌ„tum Aug. in Ioh. tract 62. so that Whosoeuer receiueth the Sacrament vnworthily procures to himselfe a great torment Yet who doubts but that the hand of God is vpon many vnworthy Communicants euen by sorrow sicknesse death and sundry other temporall chastisements But let vs obserue the dangers of vnworthy receiuing as they are laid downe by the blessed Apostle The first is Hee becomes guilty of the body and bloud of Christ That is hee is guilty of offering contumely iniury and indignity to him Saint Paul when he disswades husbands from offering violence to their wiues Ephe. 5.29 giues this for a reason No man euer yet hated his owne flesh And may not I reason thus Lâ—t no man offer iniury to Christ because he is flesh of our flesh Yea hee is our head and a wound or maine giuen to the head is more odious and dangerous then to another part To offer violence to an ordinary person it is a fault to strike a Magistrate a greater but to wound a King who
is the Lords anointed is a sinne in the highest degree O what a heynous sin it is then to offer violence and as much as in vs lyes to strike and wound the Son of God Reu. 19.16 1 Cor. 2.8 the King of kings and the Lord of glory To be guilty of the death and sheading of the bloud of any innocent man is a fearefull sinne and this made Dauid cry out in the bitternes of his soule Psa 51.14 Deliuer mee from bloud-guiltinesse O God Oh how fearefull is it then to be guilty of the body bloud of Christ Yea the iniury and indignity is greater then is obuious to euery eye if wee consider the double vnion in Christ not onely the two substances the body the soule but the two natures the diuine and humane Whose heart is not moued with indignation against the Iewes when he heares or reades their villanies and violence done to our blessed Sauiour But take heed saith Chrysostome Chrys ad pop Ant. hom 60 lest thou be guiltie in the like kind by vnworthy receiuing of the blessed Sacrament Hee that defiles the Kings garment and he that teares it offend both alike the Iewes did teare it thou defilest it here indeed are diuersa peccata Chry. hom 41 in Joh. but par contumelia some difference in the sinne no difference in the disgrace Ioseph and Nicodemus their pious deuotion in begging and embalming the body of Christ is worthily recorded and commended to all generations Mary Magdalen Iohn 19.38.40 by bestowing that boxe of precious oyntment vpon his holy head hath gained to her selfe endlesse honour in stead of her former infamy in somuch that Wheresoeuer the Gospell shall bee preached in the whole world Mat. 26.7 that her reuerend and religious act shall bee spoken of for a memoriall of her Beloued if we receiue the Sacrament vnworthily oh wretched men that we are For we ioyne with Judas and the Iewes being guilty of the body and bloud of Christ but if we receiue it worthily how happy are wee For we communicate with honorable Ioseph and penitent Mary Magdalen our memories shall be blessed and our soules receiue vnspeakeable comfort The next danger which is also a consequence vpon the former is this Hee that eateth and drinketh vnworthily eateth and drinketh his owne damnation It is indeed an ineuitable consequence For he that is guilty of the body and bloud of Christ how can hee but incurre the danger of condemnation The word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 some would qualifie as though it did import onely some temporall punishment but that acception is too short For as the word is more large in signification so the dependance it hath vpon a heynous sinne must needs imply a correspondent iudgement And so indeed it doth import not onely a temporall punishment but also eternall condemnation both of soule and body And reason Heb. 20-28 29. for if he that despised Moses Law dyed without mercie vnder two or three witnesses of how much sorer punishment shall hee be worthy which treadeth vnder foote the Sonne of God counteth the bloud of the new Testament as an vnholy thing and so despites the Spirit of grace This is a fearefull thing to be in the state of the damned and is not therefore to be passed ouer slightly Our blessed Sauiour comparâ—s a damned soule to an offender bound hand and foot and cast into some wofull prison where there is nothing but wayling weeping Mat. 22.13 and gnashing of teeth And surely the comparison is good if we consider the nature and adiuncts of the place For the place is a place of maruailous horror being as it were a dungeon of compacted darknesse Iude v. 13. Reu. 21.8 and a Lake that burnes with fire and brimstone The company there are wofull soules and wretched hellish spirits powring forth nothing but woes execrations vpon themselues There is the worme of conscience gnawing the soule there is the mercilesse fire tormenting the body Will you haue a resemblance of the darknesse of Hell Thinke vpon the palpable darkenesse of Egypt Exo. 10.22 Will you behold an Idea of that vlolent fire Meditate vpon the hote Fornace prepared by Nabuchadnezer for Shadrach Dan. 3.19 Mishach and Abednego Will you view the dolefull state of the Damned Looke vpon Diues tormented in those cruell flames of fire Luk. 16.24 and not afforded one droppe of water to coole his tongue Yea suppose you saw one vpon some tortouring rack with a greedy Vultur euer gryping at his heart and yet consider that all these come too short to set forth the dolefull condition of the damned No tongue is able to expresse no heart is able to conceiue the woe and miseries the tormented soule is subiect to in hell which are as endlesse as easelesse But these things I doe onely touch in briefe In my threefold Resolution hauing else-where handled them more largely And here by the way I obserue the forme of the Apostles phrase He that eateth and drinketh vnworthily eateth and drinketh his owne damnation 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 or as the new translation hath it both more literally and more significantly eateth and drinketh damnation to himselfe In wich St. Paul doth so appropriate the danger to the particular Communicant that hee seemes to exclude any other And indeed to hold that the Sacraments are polluted or profaned to the worthy Communicant by the vnworthy receiuer is an absurd conceit Gala. 6.5 Ezech. 28. For euery man must beare his owne burthen and the soule that sinneth must dye the death Yea it is a very vncharitable error For what comfort could any man haue in receiuing the Sacrament if this conceit were currant Were a man neuer so well prepared himselfe yet not knowing how the case stands with others it must needes make him come with more doubting concerning others then hee could haue comfort in himselfe But leauing this erronious opinion which hath come in the way like the body of Amasa â— Sam. 20.12 I come to the reasons why the vnworthy receiuing of the Sacrament becomes so dangerous The Rhemists do giue this for a reason Rhem. Anno. in hunc locuÌ„ namely because Christ is locally present receiued by the wicked For say they They could not bee guilty of that which they receiue not And it cannot be so heynous an offence to receiue a piece of bread or a cup of wine c. And this they call an inuincible proofe of the reall presence 1. Reg. â—0 11 But let not him that puts on his Armor boast like him that puts it off This Romish Argument is like the Spanish Armado 1588. which they called the Inuincible Nauy Thus mens conceits make those things seeme which are not So the Philistims thought their Champion Goliah an inuincible Combatant which caused them to insult but as Goliah brought with him a sword to strike off his owne
shall kneele in prayer Or rather thus the Papists and Pagans doe kneele to their Idols therefore Professors of the Gospell may not kneele to God For so indeed it is inferred because the Papists in the act of receiuing doe kneele to the bread therefore we in the same act may not kneele to God The other places require the defacing of Images Idols Deut. 12.2 4. Esa 27.9 30 22. but what is that to kneeling For there is great difference betweene that which in it selfe is lawfull and that which is vnlawfull as their Idols were which represented false gods betweene a permanent substance a transient action betweene that which may haue good vse and that which cannot If Antichrist haue stained this gesture by his Idolatry shall ChristiaÌ„s therefore hauing purged it bee debarred of their lawfull interest therein Or rather as the Israelite hauing taken in warre a woman amongst the enemies when he had shaued her head paired her nailes might take her home as his owne may not the Church of God take this gesture being pared and purged from Romish corruption and apply it to the seruice of God Master Cartwright tels vs that Epistle to the Church of England If amongst the Romish filth wee finde any good thing that wee willingly receiue not as theirs but as the Iewes did the holy Arke from the Philistims For saith he herein it is true that is said The sheepe must not lay downe her fell because shee sees the wolfe sometimes clothed with it St. Austin shewes that wee may lawfully vse the water of fountaines and woods of the forrests which by Pagans haue beene dedicated to their Idols Epist 154. S. Paul hath taught vs 1. Cor. 10.25 27. that it is lawfull to eat that meat which hath bin sacrificed to Idols and may we not vse that gesture that hath been abused to Idolatry But it is obiected that this gesture can neuer be purged And to this purpose are vrged the positions of sundry learned men As Caluin Bucer Petrr Martyr Beza Bâ—sh Iewel c. who would that all things which haue appearaÌ„ce of Popery bee banished and the same is confirmed by the practice of diuers godly men in the like case To which I answere first that this position is absurd and goes a note aboue Ela which will admit no possibility of purging any ceremonies corrupted in the Church of a For corruption abuse being onely accidental may be remoued salua substantia Rome Fare fall Master Robinson yet a resolute separatist who saith Wee doe acknowledge in it meaning in the Church of England many excellent truths of Doctrine which we also teach and many Christian ordinances which wee also practise b In his book against Master Bernard p. 16. being purged from the pollution of Antichrist Againe I say that if the authority positions practice of men excellent for learning venerable for antiquity admirable for sanctity being vrged for some of our Ceremonies be reiected by you what reason haue you to presse vs with the opinions of a few particular men of later times and inferiour quality 3. I might oppose to these few you mention many euen of late times nothing inferiour to them who dissent from them in these opinions Diuèrsa est temporum ratio saith Beza confes ca. 5. sect 16. 4. Though the present times wherein those men wrote Popery being as yet newly banished the Gospell planted might giue occasion of vehement opposition yâ—t is there not the like cause now The Chirurgion deales otherwise with a foule sore and a wound that is come to agglutination 5. I may say truely of these good men as Basil speakes of Gregory Neocaesariensis Non dogmaticè sed contentiosâ— Bafil epist 64. that they wrote some times 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 their zeale against Popery carrying them further then in strictnesse their iudgements went And that they did so in the reiecting of this and some other ceremonies Caluin hath many things to this purpose Instit l. 4. c. 10. in diuers of his Epistles Bucer epist ad Hooper Et fimilia habet in alijs epistolis may appeare by their other writings when they wrote calmely and purposely concerning the same I will onely giue a taste Bucer saith that to make a Rite Antichristian it is not in any of Gods creatures in any garment in any figure or colour but in the minde and profession of those which abuse them Beza epi. 12. Beza saith of this very gesture Geniculatio speciem habet piae venerationis c. This bowing of the Knee hath a kinde of godly reuerence and therefore it might heretofore bee vsed to good purpose Bishop Iewell saith Against Hard. Artic. 1. disp 8. I grant that sitting standing and other like ceremonies in the holy ministration are left to the discretion of the Church Yea Master Cartwright acknowledgeth againe and againe In his first reply page 131. 132. That sitting is not necessary and though he say that kneeling is dangerous yet he saith not that it is vnlawfull P. Martyr saith in generall P. Mart. epi. ad ep Hooper I cannot be perswaded the wickednesse of the Pope to be such that whatsoeuer hee toucheth must thereupon bee polluted that afterwards it may not be of vse to the godly And concerning this matter in particular he saith elsewhere P. Mart. Loc. Com. Claâ— 2. It is no matter of difference whether we receiue the Sacrament sitting standing or kneeling so that Christs institution be preferred occasion of superstition remooued And surely those are bad Chirurgions that haue no other meanes of cure but onely by the saw and the cautery Againe to the positions of these men they add the fact of Hezekiah who did not seeke to purge but brake in pieces the brazen Serpent and the practice of our Sauiour Christ who held it not sufficient by doctrine to speake against the Iewish washings and so to vse them to another end but refused that custome wholly Hereunto I answer first Particular facts euen of worthy men doe not tye vs necessarily to imitation Moses proceeded farre against the Israelites Idolatry Exo. 32.20 when he tooke the golden calfe burnt it in the fire and ground it to powder strew it vpon the waters and made them to drinke of it What haue others sinned that haue not done the like Againe there is great difference betweene the brazen serpent and kneeling at the Communion both in their nature and vse In their nature the one being a transient action the other a permanent substance and consequently more apt to be abused to Idolatry In their vse for the vertue of cure being vanished the brazen serpent ceased to be of vse But the act of kneeling will euer remaine necessary to manifest our humble thankefulnesse for so great benefits as we receiue by the blessed Sacrament 3. There was great cause why Hezekiah should thus proceede against the brazen serpent in regard that To those dayes the children of Israel burnt incense to it 2. Reg. 18.4 But so is not the gesture of kneeling abused by vs and therefore needs not such an absolute abolishing And for our Sauiours practice it is rather with vs then against vs for though he did shunne the superstitious washings of the Pharises yet who can thinke that he did vtterly forbeare all ciuill and wholesome washing before meat So wee doe shun and detest the Idolatrous kneeling of the Papists at the Sacrament but to abandon kneeling totally wee haue no cause no warrant FINIS