Synopsis papismi, that is, A generall viewe of papistry wherein the whole mysterie of iniquitie, and summe of antichristian doctrine is set downe, which is maintained this day by the Synagogue of Rome, against the Church of Christ, together with an antithesis of the true Christian faith, and an antidotum or counterpoyson out of the Scriptures, against the whore of Babylons filthy cuppe of abominations: deuided into three bookes or centuries, that is, so many hundreds of popish heresies and errors. Collected by Andrew Willet Bachelor of Diuinity.

The Papistes.

THe Iesuite laboureth to proue, that the Scriptures are not simply necessa∣rie: [error 11] which we denie not, for meate is not simply necessarie, for God may preserue man without: so in respect of God nothing is simply necessarie: God is not necessarily tyed to vse this or that meanes: but his argumentes do tend to this end, to shew that the scriptures are not necessarie at all, and may be spa∣red in the Church (so saith Petrus a Soto) the Scripture was not alway extant, and it is not necessarie vnto faith: And the Scripture it not now so necessarie since Christ, as it was afore. Tilman. de verbo Dei error. 17.

1 There was no Scripture from Adam to Moses, for the space of two thou∣sand yeares, and yet true Religion was kept and continued, and why might not true Religiō be as well preserued a 1500. yeare after Christ without scrip∣ture, as afore.

We answere: It foloweth not, because in times past God taught his church by a liuelie voyce, that the written word is not necessarie now: for the Lord saw it good, that his word should be left in writing, that we might haue a cer∣taine rule of our faith in this corrupt and sinfull age. And what els is this, but to cōtroll the wisedome of God, saying it is not necessarie or needfull for the Church, which the Lord saw to be needfull: for if the Lord had thought it as good for vs to be taught without Scripture, as in that simple and innocēt age of the world (I meane innocent in respect of vs) he would not haue moued and stirred vp his Apostles to write.

2 After the time of Moses, when the law was written, yet there were ma∣ny that feared God amongest the Gentiles, which had not the Scriptures, as Iob, and the other his friends, Ergo the scripture not necessarie. The Iewes also

them selues vsed traditions more then Scriptures, as Psal. 44. v. 1.2. the fathers did report the workes of God to their children: by the negligence also of the Priests the law was lost, as 2. King. 22. we read that the volume of the law was found, which had bene missing a long time.

We answere. First, euē the faithfull amōgest the Gētiles did read the scrip∣ture, as the Eunuke Act. 8. had the booke of the Prophet Isay. Secondly, the Iewes declared the workes of God vnto their children, but the same were also written, as how the heathen were cast out before them, and of their deliue∣rāce out of Egypt: those were the things they heard of their fathers, as we read Psal. 44. & 78. yet all these things are recorded in the bookes of Moses. Third∣ly, what though the Priests were negligent in preseruing the scriptures, it is no good argument to proue that therefore they are not necessarie, neither was the whole booke of the law lost, but either Moses owne manuscript, or the booke of Deuteronomie. Yet he hath proued nothing.

3 The Church after Christ wanted the Scriptures many yeares, Ergo they are not necessarie.

We aunswere, it is a great vntruth: for the old Testamēt the Church could not be without, and the new Testament was written not long after in the age of the Apostles: whose liuely voyce and preachings were vnto them, as their writings are now to vs. See now, what strong arguments they bring: the scrip∣tures were not necessary in the time of the Patriarkes, when God taught them by his owne voyce, they were not necessarie in the time of the Prophetes and Apostles, when they had mē inspired of God to teach them, Ergo they are not now necessarie, when neither God teacheth from heauen, neither haue we any Prophetes or Apostles to instruct vs by heauenly reuelations: nay rather be∣cause they were not necessarie then, when they had other effectuall meanes, notwithstanding they are necessarie now, seeing there is no other way of in∣struction left vnto vs.