To the extent possible under law, the Text Creation Partnership has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this keyboarded and encoded edition of the work described above, according to the terms of the CC0 1.0 Public Domain Dedication (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). This waiver does not extend to any page images or other supplementary files associated with this work, which may be protected by copyright or other license restrictions. Please go to http://www.textcreationpartnership.org/ for more information.
WHen the question is about the sense of a writing, both the following practice, and the authority of wise men is wont to have much value. This is a good rule in the interpretation of ho∣ly Scripture. For it is not probable, that the Churches founded by the A∣postles,
did either suddainly, or all of them depart from those things, which the Apostles having briefly written, had explained more largely by word of mouth, or also introduced into the pra∣ctice and use of Christians. Now, our opponents that fight against Wars, u∣sually draw out unto their aid, some speeches of the antient Christians: to which I have three things to say. The first is this: No more can be collected out of those speeches, than the private opinion of the speakers, not the publick judgement of the Churches. It is more∣over to be noted, that the Authors of those sayings love to go single, for the most part, and to teach somewhat of a higher strain, than others; namely, Origen and Tertullian; who yet are not very constant to themselves. For the same Origen saith, God hath given us a lesson in the Bees, That just and orderly Wars may be waged amongst men, if necessity require. And the same Ter∣tullian saith, That it is good when Of∣fenders are punished no man denies † 1.1. And he is at a stand concerning Warfare; for in his De Idolatria, he proposech the question, Whether Christians may turn
Souldiers, and Souldiers Christians; Where he seems to incline to the opi∣nion against War. But in his De coro∣na militis, when he had disputed some things against warfare, presently he di∣stinguishes those that were Souldiers be∣fore their Baptism, from others that after Baptism enter into Arms. Plainly, saith he, their case is otherwise, whom Christian Religion found out after they were engag'd in the profession of Arms, as the Souldiers whom John admitted to his Baptism; as the most faithful Centurions, whom Christ commendeth, and whom Peter instructeth. Provided, that after their receiving of the faith * 1.2 and signing it, they forsake the War, as many have done; or else, by all means beware, they commit no offence against God. His opinion therefore was, that they continued Souldiers after Baptism: which certainly they would not have done, had they understood warfare to have been forbidden by Christ; no more than South-sayers, Magicians, and other professors of unlawfull † 1.3 Arts, were permitted after Baptism to remain in their Art formerly professed. In the same Book, praising a certain Souldier, and one that was a Christian, he spa∣reth not to exclame, and stile him, * 1.4 a Souldier glorious in God.
Idem Ter∣tul. de anima. Quis non prae∣serat saeculi •…•…u∣stitiam, quam & Apostolus non seustra gla∣dio accinctum accinctum, que pro homine saeviendo religiosa est? Et ad Procons. Scapula: Non te terremus, qui nec time•…•…us. Sed velim ut omnes salvos sacere pos∣simus, monendo 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. Potes & officio jurisdictionis tue fan∣gi, & humanitatis meminisse, vel quia & vos sub gladio estis.
Distinctio∣nem quam hic de militia af∣fert, alibi ad nuptias appli∣cat, tum lib. de Monoga∣mia, tum ex∣hortatione ca∣stitatis.
Tertul. de idolatria. Ad ecclesiam non admittun∣tur, qui artes exercent, quas Dei disciplina non recipit. Aug. de fid. & op. Meretrices & histriones & quilibet alii publica turpi∣tudinis professo∣res, nisi solutus aut diruptis ta∣tibus vinculis, ad Christi sacramenta non permittuntur accedere. De histrione exem∣plum vide apud Cyprianum Ep. 65.
O militem in Deo gloriosam!