The defense of the aunsvvere to the Admonition against the replie of T.C. By Iohn VVhitgift Doctor of Diuinitie. In the beginning are added these. 4. tables. 1 Of dangerous doctrines in the replie. 2 Of falsifications and vntruthes. 3 Of matters handled at large. 4 A table generall.

Chap. 1. the. 15. Diuision.

Admonition.* 1.1

The sixtenth. In that the Lord Bishops, their Suffraganes, Archdeacons, Chauncelors,* 1.2 Officials, Proctors, Doctors, Sumners, and such rauening rablers, take vppon them, whiche is most horrible, the rule of Gods Churche, spoyling the Pastor (t) 1.3 of his lawfull iurisdiction, ouer* 1.4 his owne flocke, giuen by the worde, thrusting away most sacrilegiously that order whiche Christ hath left to his Church, and which the primitiue Church hath vsed.* 1.5

Ansvvere to the Admonition. Pag. 220. Sect. 1.

And first you shewe yourselfe greatly offended, that the Pastor is spoy∣led of his lawfull iurisdiction ouer his flocke: & therfore you brust out into these wordes of heat, rauening rablers, horrible, sacrllegiously, and such like. It had bene well if you had tolde vs, what that lawfull iurisdiction of the Pastor ouer his flocke giuen by the worde had beene: For the places of Scripture which you quote for that purpose, do not plainly enough set out that matter. In the. 18. of Mathew vers. 17. after certaine admonitions in priuate offences, Christ sayth: Dir Ecclesiae: tell the Church. In whiche place (as I tolde you before) the Church doth signifie such as haue authority in the Church, or else publike reprehension in the open con∣gregation by such as be called thereunto. It giueth not any peculiar iurisdiction to the Pastor, for any thing that I can learne. And in the same Chapter. 18. verse, where Christ sayth: vvhat soeuer ye binde on earth, shall be bounde in heauen, &c. according to your iudgement vttered before, it is ment of the whole Church, and not of the Pastor onely. You haue before denied that one man can excommunicate, and therefore this place maketh nothing for your assertion.

T. C. Pag. 149. Lin. 21.

In the. 220. and. 221. pages, he speaketh of this thing afresh, but hath no newe matter, but maketh a bare rehearsall of the places of the Admonition, asking after his accustomed maner of confuting, what maketh this, or what proueth that? onely whereas he sayde before, and proued (as he thought) that the Minister had onely to doe with excommunication, beeing pressed there by the Admonition eyther to defende or renounce his Chauncelors, &c. He had rather denie both the truth and himselfe, than he woulde haue any of that horrible confusion and prophanation of the holy discipline of God brought in by Poperie, threatning the ouerthrowe of the whole Churche, and seruing for nothing but for the nourishing of the ambition and ydlenesse of a fewe, to be driuen out of the Church. Of the which I will vpon occasion speake a worde, if first I shewe that the vse of the auncient Church hath beene not to permit the excommunication to one, but that the sen∣tence thereof shoulde come from the gouernours and elders of the Church, vnto whome that did especially apperteyne. Although I cannot posse by that which maister Doctor sayeth, that for so much as the Authours of the Admonition had alledged the wordes (tell the Churche) to proue the interest of the Churche in excommunication, that therefore they coulde not vse the same to proue the interest of the Pastor, as who shoulde say that the Pastor is not one of the Churche. But of the absurditie of this, I haue spoken sufficiently before, and howe all men doe see the vanitie of this reason, that bycause the people haue an interest by this place, therefore the Pastor hath none.

Io. Whitgifte.

I do indéed speake of this matter there againe after a sort: for I am driuen vnto it by the order of the Admonition. But in all those words there by me vttered, touching excōmunicatiō, I do not once aske, what maketh this, or what maketh that (as you charge me) although I might iustly vse these kinde of questions, as sufficient answeres, to such vnskilfull quotations, as they paint theyr margent with: and somtimes indéed I make such demaundes, but it is to shewe the fondnesse of their allegations.

I defende no Chauncelors. &c. that vsurpe any office, wherevnto they be not lawfully called, but I woulde not haue the Scriptures abused to confute them, least thereby (séeing the weaknesse of our reasons) they be animated rather to procéede, than perswaded to leaue of. I doe not thinke that Chauncellours ought to excom∣municate (with this kinde of excommunication, that wée talke of) except they bée Ministers, and so muche haue I vttered in my Answere: but I will not disquiet the Church for it, by séeking reformation extraordinarily, neyther will I bée wil∣full, if I can heare any sounde reasons to remoue me from this perswasion:

wherfore you doe in this cause, and in this place vniustly charge me.

The place in the eightéenth of Sainct Mathew, is vnderstāded of those, to whom the discipline of the Churche, is by the authoritie of the Churche committed, that is in this churche of Englande, the Bishop. And therfore that place can not proue that there is any iniurie done to the Pastor, or that hée is spoyled of his lawful: iurisdiction: and this is the effect of my answere, whereat you only cauill as your nature is.

I saye in déede that this place was before alleaged in the Admonition to proue that the whole Churche shoulde excommunicate, and not one man onely, and therefore I sée not, howe the same place maye aptly bée alleadged, to proue anye iurisdiction of the Pastor ouer his flocke, séeyng it gyueth to the flocke equall iuris∣diction with the Pastor, and not to the Pastor any superioritie ouer them, if the interpretation vsed in the Admonition be true.

Let the Reader consider the wordes of my Answere to the Admonition: and trie whether there be any suche absurdities in them or no. Surely it is a fault both in you and the Admonitors, to make the Scripture so pliable to your fansies, and the same place to serue as many turnes as you lyst.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Act. 11. 30. Act. 15. 2. 4▪ 6. &c.
• * 1.2

  Ro. 12. 7. 8 Phil. 1. 1.
• (t) 1.3

  Mat. 18. 17. 18.
• * 1.4

  1. Co. 12. 28 1. Thes. 5. 12 13.
• * 1.5

  1. Tim. 4. 14▪ 1. Tim. 5. 17