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.

Your ignorant exposition of D. Potter. §. 3.

7. HAuing at last acknowledged D. Potters text, that he said of our errours, though in them∣selues they be not damnable, you (m) 1.1 tell vs; that we mi∣stake his meaning, by taking a supposition of a confession, for a confession, a Rhetoricall concession of the Doctours, for a positiue assertion. For to say, though your Errours be not damnable we may not professe them, is not to say, Your er∣rours are not damnable, but only through they be not: As if you should say; Though the Church erre in points not fun∣damental; yet you may not separate from it; or, Though we do erre in belieuing Christ really present, yet our errour frees vs from Idolatry.

I presume you would not thinke it fayrely done, if any man should interprete these your speaches, as confessions that you do erre in points not funda∣mentall; that you erre in belieuing the Real Presence. And therefore you ought not to haue mistaken D Pot∣ters wordes, as if he confessed the Errours of your Church not damnable; when he sayes no more, then this, though they be not damnable, or suppose, or put case they be not damnable.

Thus you. Wherein your falshood is notable,* 1.2 and your ignorance admirable. First, it is false, that D. Potter sayes no more but this, though they be not damnable. For besides this he sayth, that Protestants who belieue them to be errours, must not presume to

professe them because they are but littleons. He saith in the name of all Protestants: We belieue the Roman Religion to be safe, that is, not damnable to such as belieue as they pro∣fesse. We hope and thinke very well of all those holy and de∣uout soules which informer ages liued and died in the Church of Rome &c. We doubt not but they obtayned pardon of all their ignorances. Nay our Charity reaches further to All those at this day who in simplicity of heart belieue the Roman Reli∣gion, and professe it. Be these Rhetoricall Concessions, not Positiue Assertions, that the errours which Protestants impute to the Roman Church are not damnable of thē∣selues; but onely by accident, when they are hypocriti∣cally against conscience professed?

8. Secondly, I am amazed that you a Maister of Arts of Oxford, of so long standing are ignorant of the difference in speach, betwixt the Present Tense, and the Preter imperfect, which euery man and woman by com∣mon sense doth feele and perceaue. For the particle though, ioyned with a verbe of the Present Tense, doth suppose a thing present, and existing in reality & truth: so that, if you will suppose the existence of a thing by imagination, or in conceyt onely; you must vse the Preter imperfect. Wherfore neyther the Author of Cha∣rity maintayned, nor any Catholique that is intelligent, will say to you in the Present Tense, as you make him, Though the Church do erre in points not fundamentall, yet you must not separate from it; but in the Preter imperfect; Though the Church did erre in points fundamentall, yet you were not to separate from her. Nor will he, or any Catho∣lique that is wise, vse that eyther sottish or impious speach you haue penned for him, Though we erre in belie∣uing Christ really present, yet our errour frees vs from Ido∣latry. God forbid. This were not a Rhetoricall Conces∣sion,

but a Diabolical Profession, that our beliefe of the Reall presence is an errour. A true Catholique that can vt∣ter his mind in good English will say, Though we did erre in belieuing the Reall Presence of our Lords Body in the Eu∣charist; yet this errour would free vs from Idolatry. Thus the examples you bring of Rhetoricall Concessions make a∣gainst you, being in deed positiue Assertions, and shew your discourse to be neyther good Logick, nor Rheto∣ricke, nor Grammer.

9. And I pray you, the Proposition you haue forged for D. Potter, though the errours of the Roman Church be in themselues damnable, and full of great impiety, yet by acci∣dent they do not damne all that hold them; is it not a Positiue Assertion that our doctrines are damnable and full of great impiety in D. Potters opinion? Wherfore this pro∣position which is truly D. Potters: though the errours of the Roman Church be not in themselues damnable, yet Prote∣stants who know them to be Errours, may not professe them, is a positiue Assertion, that our supposed errours be not damnable in his iudgement. Should one say to you, though in your iudgement you belieue Christ our Saui∣our not to be true God, yet you dare not professe it out∣wardly for feare of the fagot; would you take this as a Rhetoricall supposition, not as a Reall accusation, that you are an Infidell in your heart? Is it possible you should be guilty of so grosse ignorance and non-sense as this? No verily. But perchance the matter is this: you say (n) 1.3 that Protestants, to whome the Roman Reli∣gion appeareth, though but probably, the safer, cannot continue Protestants, except they continue fooles. Now Pro∣testants by this confession of D. Potter, cannot but see apparently, the Roman Religion to be the safer. Wher∣fore, that, this notwithstanding, they may continue

still Protestants; you would make them such fooles, as to belieue, that, though, ioyned with a verbe in the Present Tense, doth import onely an imaginary, not a reall sup∣position. Wherefore if you should say (as in effect you do say) though the Religion of Protestants be false and damnable, yet I will do my best to defend it; Protestāts must be such fooles as to take this, not as a positiue asserti∣on, that their Religion is false & damnable in your iudg∣ment; but as a Rhetoricall Concession, as if you had said; Imagine, or put case, the Religion of Protestants be false and damnable. I hope Protestants will be wiser then to be made such fooles by you as to continue in a Religion which cannot be maintayned, but by such fopperies as these.

Notes

• (m) 1.1

  Cap. 7. n. 29. initio.
• * 1.2

  Pag. 77.
• (n) 1.3

  Pag. 395. l. 3. If this did ap∣peare, to per∣suade any man to con∣tinue a Prote∣stant, were to persuade him to conti∣nue a Foole.