The totall summe. Or No danger of damnation vnto Roman Catholiques for any errour in faith nor any hope of saluation for any sectary vvhatsoeuer that doth knovvingly oppose the doctrine of the Roman Church. This is proued by the confessions, and sayings of M. William Chillingvvorth his booke.

The eight Conuiction. (Book 8)

1. YOu inscribe the pages of your last Chapter with this title: The Religion of Protestants a safer Way to Saluation then the Religion of Papists. For which assertion (besides bare and bold affirmations, & earnest verball expressions, manifest tokens (as you say) of a weake cause) you haue one Argument which is this, pag. 393. n. (y) 1.1 9.

If the safer way for auoyding sinne, be also the safer way for auoyding damnation, then certainly the way of Protestants must be more secure, and the Roman way more dangerous. Take into your consideration these ensuing controuersies. Whether it be lawfull to worship Pictures? To picture the Trinity? To inuo∣cate Saints and Angels? To deny laymen the Cup in the Sa∣crament? To prohibite certayne Orders of men and women to mary. To celebrate the publique seruice of God in a language the assistants generally vnderstand not? and you will not choose but confesse, that in all these you are on the more dangerous side for the committing of sinne; and we on that which is more secure. For in all these things (if we say true) you do that which is impious. On the other side, if you were in the right, yet we might be secure inough; for we should onely not do something, which you confesse not necessary to be done. We pre∣tend, and are ready to iustify out of Principles agreed vpon betweene vs; that in all these things you violate the manifest Commandements of God; and alleage

such texts of Scripture against you, as (if you would weigh them with any indifferēcy) would put the mat∣ter out of question: but certainely you cannot with any modesty deny, but that at least they make it questionable.

This argument I haue set downe at large, because it is the best in your booke, and yet vaine and weake, as I now demonstrate.

The ground of your Safety, onely false suppositions, and foolish braggs. §. 1.

2. FIrst it is false, that if Protestants say true, we do that which is impious. For Protestants against Zelots maintayne, that our practises though erroneous in their iudgement, yet are not impious, and in themselues damnable; and that they who in sincerity of heart professe them, shall this notwithstanding (y) 1.2 with∣out doubt be saued.

3. Secondly, it is false, that if we be in the right, yet you may be secure inough in your refusing to vse these our practises, because they be not necessary. For though it be no sinne of it selfe purely to omit pious practises, and profi∣table deuotions: yet to omit them out of proud cōtempt, and much more out of an Hereticall persuasion, that they be impious, is vndoubtedly an heynous and damna∣ble crime. It is not necessary that you marry a wife, you may be saued if you lead a chast single life: but if you omit mariage out of an opinion, that it is a thing impure, or out of contempt of that doctrine, that (z) 1.3 Mariage is a great Sacrament in Christ and his Church; you will (except you repent) certainly be damned. In like manner, if we be in the right, and that these be pious

Christian practises of voluntary deuotion, you who relinquish them out of contempt, and Hereticall per∣suasion that they are impious, cannot escape damnation without a dereliction of your errour.

4. Thirdly, it is false, that if we be in the right, yet you only do not something which we confesse not ne∣cessary to be done. For we do not say of all these pra∣ctises, that they be not necessary to be done; yea we say, it is necessary to Saluation to receaue the B. Sacrament, and in receauing to adore it. Besides we say, that you not only omit to do what is not necessary to be done, but also condemne the vniuersall practises of Gods Church, and definitions of her Generall Councells; which is not only not necessary to be done, but also exe∣crable, impious, hereticall to be done.

5. Fourthly, it is a foolish bragge that you can al∣leadge such cleere texts of Scripture against these our practises. For if you can alleade them, why do you con∣ceale them? Why are you ashamed to bring them to light? Why haue you not stored your booke with such allegations as are able to put the matter out of question? Some very few you haue produced,* 1.4 and those which you tearme the playnest that possibly may be, I haue shewed to be darke, obscure, yea by you falsifyed in the text?

6. Fiftly, it is also a foolish bragge, that your texts of Scripture be certainly such as make the matter que∣stionable: which you proue very grauely, because we cannot with any modesty deny it. Verily had you any modesty or shame, you would blush to dispute so poo∣rely, miserably, seelily in a Controuersy of such mo∣ment which concernes the eternal damnation of your Country. I adde, though it were true (as it is most false)

that your texts make the matter questionable; yet your abandoning the Roman Church is damnable. For, Ar∣guments which make the matter questionable, be not ne∣cessary nor euident: But it is damnable to forsake the Church of Rome, and the definition of General Coun∣cels without reasons necessary and euident, as both you and D. Potter affirme, as hath beene often noted.

These doctrines and practises are proued by manifest and plaine Scripture. §. 2.

ON the other side, Roman Catholiques do not boast ridiculously, as you do, of their texts of Scri∣pture; but by manifest euiction shew euen these, of the impiety of which you seeme most cōfident, to be Chri∣stian and pious, and consequently, that your damning of them is damnable and impious.

7. For images of Christ crucifyed vsed in the Church with Apostolicall allowance we haue the plaine words of S. Paul Gal. 3.1. O senselesse Galathians, who hath be wit∣ched you not to obey the Gospel, before whose eyes Christ Iesus, is painted Crucifyed among you. The Greeke word is 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 liuely set forth in the picture of his Crucifixion; so that S. Paul proueth the Galatians were senselesse people, that honoring Christ Iesus pictured before their eyes as crucify∣ed; yet did not hope for Saluation by his Crosse and Crucifixion; but by Circumcision, and the obseruan∣ces of the Law. This sense being according to the plaine proper, and literall sense of the wordes, Protestants are bound by the rule of their Religion to admit thereof, and cannot without impiety refuse it, and expound the place of metaphoricall Painting; except they can eui∣dently

demonstrate this sense to be false or incon∣gruous against the Apostles intent, which they will ne∣uer be able to do.

8. If you say, that this text at the most proueth the vsing of Images for the representation,* 1.5 not honoring of them: I answere with the learned M. Montague your Bishop of Chichester, that in the vsing of Images for me∣mory sake, the honouring of them is necessarily in∣cluded, which he proueth euidently, and together af∣firmes, that it is strange, that any Christian should be displea∣sed with the Doctrine, That respect and honour is to be giuen to Images.

9. The Persons of the Trinity we picture not, but only the person of Goa the Sonne in the forme and shape of man, as personally he was. Onely we represent the type wherein God the Father appeared, to wit, the forme of the Ancient of dayes, described Dan. 7. and the type, wherein the Holy Ghost appeared the forme of a Doue, re∣corded Math. 3.

10. For Inuocation of Angels, we haue the practise and example of holy Iacob Gen. 84.15. The Angell which deliuered me from all euill, blesse these Children: which text, you cannot answere without iugling and changing the Angell into the figure of another substance.

11. For the sufficiency of the Sacrament vnder the forme of bread, we haue the expresse warrant of our Lord, Ioan. 6.59. He that eateth this bread shall liue for euer. And for the practise of Communion in one kind for lay men we haue his example Luc. 24.30.31.

12. For the adoration of the Sacrament, we haue the Scripture in the plaine and proper sense. For (sayth D. Morton (z) 1.6 your B. of Durham) If the words of Christ be true in a proper and literall sense, we must yield vnto Papists the

whole cause of Transubstantiation &c. the proper adoration of the Sacrament.

13. That we prohibite certaine orders of men & women to mary is a slander. They freely without constraint pro∣hibite themselues, whiles by vow they bind their fayth, and fidelity vnto Christ, to liue single and chast, & pe∣culiarly consecrated to his seruice. Which fayth and fi∣delity, if they violate and make voyd by consequent Mari∣age (as your first reformer the Frier did, who married a Nunne), we hold their state sacrilegious and dam∣nable, which is the expresse doctrine of S. Paul, 1. Tim. 5.12.

14. The Controuersy, which language is fittest, and of most edification in Church seruice: whether the vul∣gar, which is best knowne in this or that particular country; or some learned language, Greeke or Latin, which be best knowne in the whole Christian Church; cannot be determined by Scripture, as hath beene al∣ready proued. So that measuring the way of Saluation euen by the rule of the Bible only, the Roman Religion is the plainer, and safer Way, better warranted, euen by expresse texts of Scripture.

Notes

• (y) 1.1

  Cap. 5. n. 9.
• (y) 1.2

  D. Potter pag. 78.
• (z) 1.3

  Ep∣hes. 5.32.
• * 1.4

  Church Conque∣rant cap. 6. con∣uict. 8.
• * 1.5

  Appeale to Caesar pag. 254.255.
• (z) 1.6

  Lib. 2. initio.