Sainct Austines religion collected from his owne writinges & from the confessio[n]s of the learned Protestants, whereby is sufficiently proued and made knowen the like answearable doctrine of the other more auncient fathers of the primitiue church / written by Iohn Brereley.

S. Austin teacheth that besides the sacred Scriptures, the Traditiōs of the Church are to be recei∣ued and beleeued: as also that al hereticks do insist on¦ly vpon the Scriptures. SECTION. 4.

COncerning the question, whe∣ther the Scriptures do con∣taine al needful pointes of faith and saluation, not onely by general di∣rection to(e) 1.1 Obey our Prelates;(f) 1.2 Heare the Church; hould(g) 1.3 the Traditions &c. which we graunt, and in which sense the Fathers do often commend the Scriptures per∣fection; but also so particularly, as that there should be no neede of any vnwritten Traditions, which we de∣ny, & Protestants affirme: S. Austin disputing against Ciprians error of rebaptizing,(h) 1.4 saith, The Apostles commaunded nothing herein, but the custome which was opposed against Ci∣prian is to be beleeued to haue proceeded

from their tradition as many thinges be, which the vniuersal Church houldeth, and are therfore wel beleeued to haue beene commaunded by the Apostles, al∣though they be not found writen. And speaking of the Baptisme of Infants he(i) 1.5 auoucheth that it were Not at al to be beleeued, if it were not an Apo∣stolical Tradition. Againe(k) 1.6 Those thinges which we obserue not written but deliuered which are kept al ouer the world ar to be vnderstod to be obserued as decreed either by the Apostles the selues, or gene∣ral Councels. And so likewise(l) 1.7 The mixture of water with wine in the Chalice, he confirmeth from Tradi∣tion▪ which his sayinges are so eui∣dent for Apostolicke Traditions, that M.(m) 1.8 Carthwright answea∣ring thereto saith, To allow S. Au∣stines saying is to bring in Popery againe. Adding(n) 1.9 further that If S. Au∣stines iudgement be a good iudgement, then there be some thinges commaunded of God which are not in the Scriptures, and thereupon no sufficient doctrine con∣tained in the Scriptures.

Lastly whereas M. Carthwright, and others, do vsually(o) 1.10 obiect against vnwritten Traditions cer∣taine obscure, and by vs often an∣sweared sayinges of S. Austin, and other Fathers, our learned aduersa∣rie M.(p) 1.11 Hooker forbeareth not (in our so cleare a cause) by his special explication and answeare, to explaine and cleare them to our han∣des, so that al further answeare I deeme ouer tedious and vnworthy. I wil now conclude this point with but remembring how peculiar S. Au∣stin maketh it vnto heretickes to in∣sist vpon onely Scripture: To which end he induceth the Arian hereticke saying then to Catholickes, as Pro∣testants, Puritans, Brounistes, Ana∣baptiistes &c. do now say to vs, If(q) 1.12 you bring any thing from the Scrip∣tures &c. it is necessary that we heare it, but these words which be besides Scrip¦ture are in no case receiued of vs, seeing our Lord doth admonish vs saying; In vaine they worship me teaching the com∣maundements of men. And elswhere

he affirmeth as common vnto al(r) 1.13 Hereticks, to endeuor to defēd their false & deceiptufl opiniōs out of the Script. (As it is in part confessed and ob∣serued of him and others by the Protestant(s) 1.14 Polanus.) Yea he fur∣ther auoucheth that,(t) 1.15 Not for any other cause they become heretickes, but for not vnderstanding the Scriptures a∣right, they obstinatly defend their false opinions against the truth of the Scrip∣tures. And that(u) 1.16 Heresies do not rise &c. but when good Scriptures are not wel vnderstood. In which re∣spect he saith truly of heretickes,(w) 1.17 Scripturas tenent ad speciem, non ad salutem, they haue the Scriptures for a shew, but not to their saluation. And agreeably with S. Austin, saith S.(x) 1.18 Hillary, remember that there is no hereticke which doth not faigne the blasphemies which he teacheth to be ac∣cording to Scriptures. Yea saith S.(y) 1.19 Athanasius, (cyted by(z) 1.20 Polanus) euery heresy is masked with the doc∣trines of Scriptures: whereupon(a) 1.21 Tertulian premonisheth against

the vncertaine encounter with the heretickes by Scripture.

Notes

• (e) 1.1

  Hebrewes. 13.17.
• (f) 1.2

  Math. 18.17.
• (g) 1.3

  2. Thes. 2.15.
• (h) 1.4

  Tom. 7. de Baptismo, con∣tra Don. l. 5. c. 23. ante med.
• (i) 1.5

  Tom. 3. de Gen. & lit. l. 10. c. 23. pro∣pe finem.
• (k) 1.6

  Tom. 2. ep. 118. ad Ianuar. c. 1.
• (l) 1.7

  Tom. 3. de doctrina Cristi∣ana. l. 4. c. 21. prope initium. And in concil. Carthag. 3. can. 24.
• (m) 1.8

  In Whirguiftes defence. p. 103.
• (n) 1.9

  Ibidem, & in Carthwrightes his 2. ••eply. part. 1. p, 84. 85. 86.
• (o) 1.10

  In Hookers Eccles. pol. l. 3. sec. 7. p. 118.
• (p) 1.11

  Ibipem. p. 119.
• (q) 1.12

  Tom. 6. con∣tra Maximi∣num. l. 1. prope init. & prope finem.
• (r) 1.13

  Tom. 3. de Trinitate. l. 1. c. 3. prope n.
• (s) 1.14

  Symphonia. c. 1. p. 96.
• (t) 1.15

  Tom. 3. de Gen. ad lit. l. 7. c. 9. propc fin.
• (u) 1.16

  Tom. 9. in Ioan. tract. 18. prope init.
• (w) 1.17

  Tom. 7. de Bap. con∣tra Don. l. 3. c. 19. post med.
• (x) 1.18

  O∣rat. 2. contra Constantium. & l. ad Con∣stantium. cy∣ted by Polanus in Symphonia. p. 95.
• (y) 1.19

  Di∣sput. contra A∣rianos.
• (z) 1.20

  In Symphonia. p. 95.
• (a) 1.21

  Lib. de praescript. & see S. Hie∣rome ep. ad Paulinum.