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subtracta est, sed populus ab ea recessit, saith Erasmus*, the vulgar tongue was not taken away from the people; but the people departed from it.'

If this which I have said will not satisfy you; I would wish you call unto your remembrance the answer, which Arnobius sometimes gave, to a foolish question propounded by the enemies of the Christian faith: "Nec' si nequivero causas vobis exponere, cur aliquid fiat illo, vel hoc modo, continuo sequitur, ut infecta fiant quæ facta sunt." And consider whether I may not return the like answer unto you. If I be not able to declare unto you by what bishop of Rome, and in what pope's days, the simplicity of the ancient faith was first corrupted; it will not presently follow, that what was done must needs be undone. Or rather, if you please, call to mind the parable in the Gospel, where "them kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man, which sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way." These that slept took no notice, when or by whom the tares were scattered among the wheat; neither at the first rising did they dis-cern betwixt the one and the other, though they were awake. But "when" the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares:" and then they put the question unto their master; "Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares?" Their master indeed telleth them, it was the enemy's doing: but you could tell them otherwise, and come upon them thus. You yourselves grant, that the seed which was first sown in this field was good seed, and such as was put there by your master himself. If this which you call tares be no good grain, and hath sprung from some other seed than that which was sown here at first; I would fain know that man's name, who was the sower of it; and likewise the time in which it was

Erasm. in declarationib. ad censuras Parisiens. tit. 12. sec. 41.

1 Arnob. lib. 2. contra gentes.

Mat. chap. 13. ver. 26, 27.

m Mat. chap. 13. ver. 24, 25.

sown. Now you being not able to shew either the one or the other, it must needs be that your eyes here deceive you: or if these be tares, they are of no enemy's, but of your master's own sowing.

To let pass the slumberings of former times, we could tell you of an age, wherein men not only slept, but also snorted: it was, if you know it not, the tenth from Christ, the next neighbour to that wherein hell broke loose. That "unhappy age," as Genebrard, and other of your own writers term it, "exhausted both of men of account for wit and learning, and of worthy princes and bishops." In which there were "no famous writers, nor councils;" than which, if we will credit Bellarmine, there was never age "more" unlearned and unhappy." If I be not able to discover what feats the devil wrought in that time of darkness, wherein men were not so vigilant in marking his conveyances; and such as might see somewhat, were not so forward in writing books of their observations: must the infelicity of that age, wherein there was little learning, and less writing, yea, which "for want of writers," as cardinal Baronius acknowledgeth, "hath been usually named the obscure age;" must this, I say, enforce me to yield, that the devil brought in no tares all that while, but let slip the opportunity of so dark a night, and slept himself for company? There are other means left unto us, whereby we may discern the tares brought in by the instruments of Satan, from the good seed which was sown by the apostles of Christ; beside this observation of times and seasons, which will often fail us. "Ipsa doctrina eorum," saith Tertullian, "cum apostolica comparata, ex diversitate et contrarietate sua pronuntiabit, neque apostoli alicujus auctoris esse, neque apostolici: their very doctrine itself, being compared with the apostolic, by the

Apoc. chap. 20. ver. 7.

P Infelix dicitur hoc seculum, exhaustum hominibus ingenio et doctrina claris, sive etiam claris principibus et pontificibus. Genebr. chron. lib. 4.

P Bellarm. in chronol. ann. 970.

r Id. de Rom. pontif. lib. 4. cap. 12.

3 Baron. annal. tom. 10. ann. 900. sec. 1. Tertull. præscript. advers. hæret. cap. 32.

diversity and contrariety thereof, will pronounce that it had for author neither any apostle nor any man apostolical." For there cannot be a better prescription against heretical novelties, than that which our Saviour Christ useth against the Pharisees; " From" the beginning it was not so:" nor a better preservative against the infection of seducers, that are "crept in unawares," than that which is prescribed by the apostle Jude", "earnestly to contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints."

Now to the end we might know the certainty of those things, wherein the saints were at the first instructed, God hath provided, that the memorial thereof should be recorded in his own book, that it might remain "for the time to come, for ever and ever." He then who out of that book is able to demonstrate, that the doctrine and practice now prevailing swerveth from that, which was at first established in the Church by the apostles of Christ, doth as strongly prove, that a change hath been made in the middle times, as if he were able to nominate the place where, the time when, and the person by whom any such corruption was first brought in. In the apostles' days, when a man had examined himself, he was admitted unto the Lord's table, there to "eat of that bread, and drink of that cup :" as appeareth plainly from the first to the Corinthians. In the Church of Rome at this day, the people are indeed permitted to eat of the bread (if bread they may call it); but not allowed to drink of the cup. Must all of us now shut our eyes, and sing, "Sicut erat in principio, et nunc :" unless we be able to tell by whom, and when this first institution was altered? By St. Paul's order, who would have all things done to edification, Christians should pray with "understanding," and not in an unknown language: as may be seen in the fourteenth chapter of the same epistle to the Corinthians. The case is now so altered, that the bringing in of a tongue not understood, which hindered the

"Matt. chap. 19. ver. 8. w Luke, chap. 1. ver. 4. chap. 11. ver. 28.

Jude, ver. 3, 4.

Isa. chap. 30. ver. 8.

2 As it was in the beginning so now

edifying of Babel itself, and scattered the builders thereof, is accounted a good means to further the edifying of your Babel; and to hold her followers together. Is not this then a good ground to resolve a man's judgment, that things are not now kept in that order, wherein they were set at first by the apostles: although he be not able to point unto the first author of the disorder?

And as we may thus discover innovations, by having recourse unto the first and best times: so may we do the like by comparing the state of things present with the middle times of the Church. Thus I find, by the constant and approved practice of the ancient Church, that all sorts of people, men, women, and children, had free liberty to read the holy Scriptures. I find now the contrary among the papists: and shall I say for all this, that they have not removed the bounds which were set by the fathers, because perhaps I cannot name the pope, that ventured to make the first enclosure of these commons of God's people? I hear St. Hierome say, "Judith, et Tobiæ, et Macchabæorum libros legit quidem Ecclesia, sed eos inter canonicas scripturas non recipit: the Church doth read indeed the books of Judith, and Toby, and the Macchabees; but doth not receive them for canonical Scripture." I see that at this day the Church of Rome receiveth them for such. May not I then conclude, that betwixt St. Hierome's time and ours, there hath been a change; and that the Church of Rome now is not of the same judgment with the Church of God then: howsoever I cannot precisely lay down the time, wherein she first thought herself to be wiser herein than her forefathers.

But here our adversary closeth with us, and layeth down a number of points, held by them, and denied by us: which he undertaketh to make good, as well by the express testimonies of the fathers of the primitive Church of Rome, as also by good and certain grounds out of the sacred Scriptures, if the fathers' authority will not suffice.

a Ledesim. de scriptur. quavis lingua non legendis, cap. 17. Bellar. lib. 2. de verbo Dei cap. 15.

b Hieronym. prefat. in libros Salomon. epist. 115.

Where if he would change his order, and give the sacred Scriptures the precedency, he should therein do more right to God the author of them, who well deserveth to have audience in the first place; and withal ease both himself and us of a needless labour, in seeking any further authority to compose our differences. For if he can pro

duce, as he beareth us in hand he can, good and certain grounds out of the sacred Scriptures for the points in controversy, the matter is at an end: he, that will not rest satisfied with such evidences as these, may (if he please) travel further, and speed worse. Therefore, as St. Augustine heretofore provoked the Donatists, so provoke I him: "Auferantur chartæ humanæ : sonent voces Divinæ: ede mihi unam Scripturæ vocem pro parte Donati: let human writings be removed: let God's voice sound bring me one voice of the Scripture for the part of Donatus." Produce but one clear testimony of the sacred Scripture for the pope's part, and it shall suffice: allege what authority you list without Scripture, and it cannot suffice. We reverence indeed the ancient fathers, as it is fit we should, and hold it our duty to "rised up before the hoary head, and to honour the person of the aged:" but still with reservation of the respect we owe to their Father and ours, that "Ancient of days, the hair of whose head is like the pure wool." We may not forget the lesson, which our great Master hath taught us, "Call' no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven." Him therefore alone do we acknowledge for the father of our faith: no other father do we know, upon whose bare credit we may ground our consciences in things that are to be believed.

And this we say, not as if we feared that these men were able to produce better proofs out of the writings of the fathers for the part of the pope, than we can do for the catholic cause; when we come to join in the particu

e Aug. serm. 46. op. tom. 5. pag. 242. e Dan. chap. 7. ver. 6.

VOL. III.

d Levit. chap. 19. ver. 32.

Matt. chap. 23. ver. 9.

C

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