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 Protestants.

WE will shewe by Gods grace, that these sixe seuerall titles and names a∣foresayd, are either such, as ought not in their sense to be attributed to any Bishop, nor any mortall man▪ or els were common in ancient times as well to o∣ther Bishops, as to him of Rome.

1 For the first name of Pope, it is deriued from the Greeke word 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, which in the Syracusane language, is as much as, Father: which name was indif∣ferently giuen to other Bishops, which were famous in the Church for their ver∣tue and learning: As Cypriane, Epiphanius, Athanasius, were called Papae, Popes:* 1.1 Augustine saluteth Aurelius President of the 6. Councel of Carthage, by the name of Pope, Epistol. 77.

Likewise, those two epithetes of the Pope, as to bee called, Beatissim. & san∣ctissim. pater: most holy and blessed father, were vsed in the stile of other Bis∣shops: Prosper, in his Epistle to Augustine, twise calleth him Dominum beatissi∣mum papam, Lord, most blessed Pope, Tom. 7. Hierome calleth Epiphanius, Bea∣tum papam, blessed Pope, Ad Eustach. Fabiol.

Augustine writing to Petrus the Presbyter, or Priest, being no Bishop, yet thus saluteth him: Ad sanctitatem tuam scripsit, he hath written to your holines.* 1.2 Nay, in his booke dedicated to Renatus a lay man, neither Priest nor Bishop, thus he writeth, Hinc angor, quòd sanctitati tuae▪ minus quàm vellem cognitus sum: This grieueth me, that I am not so well knowne to your holines as I desire. If

then these titles of holinesse and blessednesse were not onely giuen to Bishops, but Priests also, yea vnto lay men of vertuous and holy life; what colour or shewe of reason can our aduersaries haue, to make them proper to the Bishop of Rome?

2 The second name is prince of Priests, or high and chiefe Bishop: which title, if it be taken for a chiefe power, dominion, and soueraigntie, is proper only to Christ the chiefe shepheard, 1. Pet. 5.4. and cannot in that sense agree to any man. If it bee vsed onely as a title of excellencie and commendation, so was it in times past ascribed to other excellent and famous Bishops, as Ruffinus lib. 2. cap. 26. calleth Athanasius, Pontificem maximum, chiefe Bishop: yea it was in common giuen to all Bishops: as Anacletus Bishop of Rome in his second Epistle writeth thus: Summi sacerdotes, id est, Episcopi, a deo iudicandi sunt: The high Priests, that is, Bishops (saith he) are to bee iudged of God. If it be taken further for the excellencie of the ministerie of the Gospell, and the worthie cal∣ling of Christians, in this sense the title of summum sacerdotium, of the high Priesthood, is attributed to all ministers Ecclesiasticall, both Bishops and o∣thers:* 1.3 so Fabianus Bishop of Rome vseth this name. Yea, the holy Apostle cal∣leth all the people of God 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, a princely, royall, or chiefe priest∣hood: Ergo, the Bishop of Rome hath no especiall or proper interest in this name.

3 The third name is, to bee called the Vicar of Christ vpon earth. Where we are to vnderstand, that in respect of the spirituall regiment and kingdome of Christ, he needeth no Vicegerent vpon earth: for, I am with you (saith he) to the end of the world: he himselfe is alway present in power, and needeth not in that respect, that any man should supplie his roume. Petrus scriba martyr. Fox. pag. 906. If we doe take it for a word of office and publike administration, so the Magistrate may bee called the Vicar of Christ, in gouerning the people accor∣ding to the word of God: In which sense Eleutherius Bishop of Rome, writing to Lucius King of the Britaines, calleth him the Vicar of Christ, and therfore in his owne kingdome had power out of the word of God to establish lawes,* 1.4 for the gouernment of the people. So all Bishops, Pastors and Ministers in ancient time were called the Vicars of Christ, in preaching, praying, binding and loosing in the name and power of Christ.* 1.5 So Augustine saith, or whose worke els it is, that, Omnis antistes est Christi vicarius: Euery pastor and prelate (and not the Pope onely) is the Vicar of Christ. And this is confessed by our Rhemists, annot. in 2. Cor. 5.18. that the Bishops and priests of the Church are for Christ, and as his ministers,* 1.6 that is, his Vicars. Nay, Augustine maketh yet a more generall vse of this word: he saith, that, Homo imperium Dei habens, quasi vicarius eius est: That man by creation being made Lord of the creatures, doth therein represent God, and is as his Vicar vpon earth. So then, all ministers are the Vicars of Christ; the ciuill Magistrate likewise, in some good sense, may bee so called: yea in respect of the creatures, man generallie is vpon earth in Gods steade: Ergo, this name cannot be appropriate to the Pope of Rome.

4 It is also too huge a name for the Pope or any mortall man to beare, to be called the head of the vniuersall Church: this is a name only due vnto Christ, neither doe the scriptures acknowledge any other head, but him, Ephes. 1.22.4.15. But (say they) wee doe not make the Pope such an head, as Christ is, but on∣ly a ministeriall head ouer the militant Church vpon earth.

We answere: First, Ergo, the Pope by your owne confession is not head of the vniuersall Church, whereof the triumphant Church in heauen is a part. Se∣condly, the Rhemists confesse that the Church in no sense can bee called the bo∣die of the Pope: Ergo, the Pope cannot be any wayes the head of the vniuersall Church, Annot. in 1. Ephes. 22. Thirdly, the Fathers of Basile vsed this argument: The head of the bodie being dead, the whole bodie also dyeth; but the whole Church doth not perish with the Pope: Ergo, he is not properly the head of the Church, Fox pag. 675.

If it shall bee further obiected, that the Bishop of Rome hath been called in times past, caput Episcoporum, the head of all other Bishops: we answere, that it was but a title of excellencie and commendation, not of dominion and power: as London is called the head or chiefe citie of England, yet are not other cities of the land subiect vnto it, or vnder the iurisdiction thereof. But we shall haue oc∣casion more fully to discusse this matter afterward.

5 They would haue the Pope called the Prelate of the Apostolike See: the Rhemists say further, that the Papall dignitie is a continuall Apostleship, Annot. 4. Ephes. sect. 4.

We answere: First, if they call those Churches Apostolicall, whose first foun∣ders were the Apostles, then the See of Antioch, Alexandria, Constantinople, are as well Apostolicall as Rome: and this the Iesuite denyeth not, Lib. 2. de pontific. cap. 31. Secondly, those Churches are Apostolicall, which hold the Apostolike faith: so is not the See of Rome Apostolicall, being departed and gone backe from the ancient Catholike faith: but those Churches where the Gospell of Ie∣sus Christ is truely preached, are indeede Apostolike. Thirdly, how can the Pope be an Apostle, or haue Apostolike authoritie, seeing hee preacheth not at all, much lesse to the whole world, wherein consisted the office of an Apostle? Nei∣ther can he shewe his immediate calling from Christ, as all the Apostles could: for seeing he challengeth the Apostolike office by tradition from S. Peter, and not by commandement from Christ; he can in no wise be counted an Apostle, or his office an Apostleship: for the Apostles ordayned onely Euangelists and Pastors, they had not authoritie to consecrate and constitute new A∣postles. Our aduersaries for this their Apostleship, can finde nothing in scrip∣ture, nor for a thousand yeeres after Christ in the ancient writers, Fulk. annot. in Ephes. 4. sect. 4.

6 Concerning the title of vniuersall Bishop, it was thus decreed in the sixt Councel of Carthage, as it is alleadged by Gratian:* 1.7 Vniuersalis autem nec Ro∣manus pontifex appelletur: No not the Bishop of Rome is to be called vniuersall.

In Gregorie the first his time, Iohn Patriarke of Constantinople, obtayned of the Emperour Mauritius to be called vniuersall Patriarke: but Gregorie would not agree thereunto, calling him the forerunner of Antichrist, that would challenge so proude a name.

Bellarmine and other of that sect doe answere, that Gregorie found fault with this title,* 1.8 because Iohn of Constantinople would haue been Bishop alone, and none other to bee beside him, but all other onely to bee his deputies and vicars.

To this wee replie: First, Iohn did onely challenge a superioritie ouer other Bishops, not to be Bishop alone, for this had been a thing impossible. Second∣ly, if Iohn had sought any such thing, it is not like that the Chalcedone Councel and the Emperour would haue yeelded to so vnreasonable a matter as they did. Thirdly, Eulogius Patriarke of Alexandria doth call the sayd Gregorie vniuer∣sall Pope, which name he vtterly refuseth: and yet Eulogius had no such mea∣ning to make him Bishop or Patriarke alone, but onely to giue him a preemi∣nence aboue the rest.* 1.9 This modest and humble Bishop of Rome Gregorie, in stead of the title, Vniuersall, brought it into the Popes stile to be called Seruus seruorum dei, seruant to Gods seruants: Ergo, wee conclude with Gregorie, that this title. Vniuersall, is an Antichristian name, and that it hath misliked the ancient Bishops of Rome themselues, and how other Patriarkes and Bis∣shops haue challenged that ambitious name and title, as well as the Popes of Rome.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Fox. pag. 8.
• * 1.2

  De origine anim. 2.1. De origine anim. lib. 1. cap. 2.
• * 1.3

  Fox pag. 12 Col. 1.
• * 1.4

  Fox. p. 107.
• * 1.5

  Quaest. ex ••uo{que} 127.
• * 1.6

  Quaes••. 106
• * 1.7

  Distinct. 99
• * 1.8

  Lib. 2 de pont. ca. 31.
• * 1.9

  Fox. pag. 13