Mr. Blount's oracles of reason examined and answered in nine sections in which his many heterodox opinions are refuted, the Holy Scriptures and revealed religion are asserted against deism & atheism / by Josiah King ...

Page 100.

As for the Trinitarians of those times, I must confess that I cannot but esteem them as enemies to all Humane Learning; for they had Canons forbidding them to read any Ethnick Books.

ANSWER.

I have seldom found such Confidence any where, as these Oracles do in all places afford us. How ridiculous this insulting of Mr. Blount's is, will fully appear in handling this Point. In prosecution of which, I shall

First, Lay down the Discourse of Father Paul relating hereunto.

Secondly, I shall show what Reasons I have to dissent from that learned and worthy Per∣son.

Thirdly, I shall consult the Opinions of some of the most Learned of the Eastern Church, with my Reason for so doing.

Lastly, I shall make plain Inferences, which will be sufficient to cramp the Presumption of our Deist, and to defend the Trinitarians (as he calls them) against the Imputation of Igno∣rance.

Of what Candor and Learning Father Paul was, every Man knows that hath read his Histo∣ry of the Council of Trent; where p. 472. he hath this Discourse,

In the Church of Martyrs there was no Ecclesi∣astical Prohibition, though some godly Men made

Conscience of reading bad Books, for fear of offen∣ding against one of the three Points of the Law of God; to avoid the Contagion of Evil, not to ex∣pose ones self to Temptations without Necessity or Profit; and not to spend time vainly. These Laws being Natural, do remain always, and should oblige us to beware of reading bad Books, though there were no Ecclesiastical Law for it. But these Re∣spects ceasing, the Example of Dionysius Bishop of Alexandria, a famous Doctor did happen, who a∣bout the Year of our Lord, 240. being reprehend∣ed by some of his Priests for these Causes, and trou∣bled with these Respects, had a Vision that he should read all Books, because he was able to judge of them; yet they thought that there was greater Danger in the Books of the Gentiles, than of the Hereticks; the reading whereof was more ab∣horred and reprehended, because it was more used by Christian Doctors for a vanity of Human Eloquence. For this cause St. Jerom either in a Version, or in a Sleep, was beaten by the Devil: So that about the Year 400, a Council in Carthage did forbid to read the Books of the Gentiles, but allowed them to read the Books of Hereticks, the Decrees whereof is a∣mong the Canons, collected by Gratian, and this was the first Ecclesiastical Prohibition by way of Canon. Thus far Paul. And now I come to the second thing.

The Council of Carthage which Father Paul re∣lates to, is that which is commonly called the 4th Carthaginian Council, whose 16th Canon is, — ut Episcopus Gentilium lib••os non legat, Haere∣ticorum

autem pro necessitate & tempore:

That a Bishop do not read the Books of the Gen∣tiles; but in reading the Books of Hereticks, He is to have regard to Necessity and Oppor∣tunity.

Now in this particular, I dissent from Paul, and joyn with that great Antiquary Justellus, who in his Preface to the Code of the African Church, says, —Concilium quod vocant quar∣tum Carthaginense, plane repudiandum est, nec fi∣des adhibenda Canonibus 104 quos sine auctoritate huic Concilio adscribunt:

The Council, which is commonly called the fourth Carthaginian, is to be wholly rejected, neither is there any Faith to be given to the 104 Canons, which without any good Authority they ascribe to it.

There is no mention of these Canons in the Collection of Ferrandus; nor in that of Dio∣nysius Exiguus; nor in the Code of the African Church; nor in the Collection commonly called the Afr. Council. In a Manuscript that belonged to Cardinal Barberini, they are entituled Ancient Statutes of the Eastern Church. But these Canons themselves prove the contrary. The Ceremo∣nies of the Ordination of the lesser Orders, as they are sate forth in this Council, are a∣greeable enough to the Practice of the Western Church, where these Orders were conferred by delivering holy Vessels; but not to the Eastern Church, where these Orders were always con∣ferred by Imposition of Hands. In other Manu∣scripts

they are entituled, The ancient Statutes of the Church. In a word, there can be no suffi∣cient reason given, why they should not be found in the ancient Collections, if they were genuine. The ancientest Author Father Paul cites is Gratian, whose testimony is of no weight, if not strengthen'd by some collateral Evidence: For all know He is a perfect Rhapso∣dist, and this is so fully made out by August. Tar∣raconensis, in his Book de Emendat. Gratiani, that there is not any place left for the least doubt. Which prejudice, together with that of Mo∣derness, may be objected against Isidore, Bur∣chardus, Hincmare, Ivo Carnotensis, &c. and the defence which Schelstrate makes is so weak and dull, as that it savours little of a Vaticane Library keeper: whereas otherwise in his Ec∣clesia Africana, He discovers much Learning and Reading.

I am now to consult the Opinions of some in the Eastern Church, and to bring my reason for doing so.

Saint Basil in the first Tome of his Works, hath a Homily, whose Title is, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉. This Ho∣mily was compos'd for young Men, not to pro∣hibite them to read the Books of the Gentiles, but to direct them, and to shew what benefit they might reap thereby. Amongst other things He takes notice that Moses was educated in the Learning of the Egyptians; and so proceeded to the knowledge of the true God. In like man∣ner

in following ages, Dauiel at Babylon learned the Learning of the Chaldeans, and from thence proceeded to Divine Doctrines.

Gregory Nazianzen, ad Seleucum Iambie. 3. treats of this matter, where he prohibits nothing as touching reading the Books of the Gentiles, but only lays down this Rule,

That from the same Plant Roses may be gathered and Thorns, and that we ought to take one, and leave the other.

The reason of these two citations is, to stop the mouths of those, who pretend that the A∣postles prohibited the reading the Books of the Gentiles: and for that purpose quote chap. 5. of the Apostolical Constitutions; whose Title is, 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; concerning reading the Books of such as are not within the pale of the Church.

To which there needs no other Reply, than the Testimonies of these two learned and pious Bishops:

If there had been such Constitu∣tions in their times, they could never have written as they did.

Besides the Authority of these pretended Constitutions, as to this point, is so fully refuted by Mr. Dalle in his Book de Pseudopigr. Apostolicis, pag. 326. that there is no place left for a Reply.

I may add hereunto the Law of the Empe∣rour Julian the Apostate, from Theodoret Eccles. Hist. lib. 4. c. 8. He first of all prohibited the use of Rhetoric, Poetry, and Philosophick Arts to the children of the Galileans (so he called the

Christians) and the reason of the Law is in these words: They wound us with our arrows, as it is in the Proverb; for out of our own Books they borrow arguments, which they make use of to our confusion: And all know this to be true, who have read Tertullian, Arnobius, Lactantius and others, in their Controversies with the Gen∣tiles.

The Corollaries and Inferences I shall make are very plain: First, I affirm that there is no good Evidence for such a Canon anno 400. much less Canons, as Mr. Blount says.

The Second is, That this pretended Canon was made 75 years after the holding of the Ni∣cene Council; and therefore our Deist could not gather from this Canon the Ignorance of the Trinitarians of those times.

The Third is, That it cannot be presumed that the Canons of the Church should be con∣form to the Decree of the Emperour Julian, which was made on purpose to eradicate the Christian Religion; no more can it can be pre∣sumed, that Basil and N zianzen would impugn an Apostolical Constitution.

Lastly, The Learning of the Gentiles was so am∣ply treated of by the Fathers of the 4 first Cen∣turies; their Philosophy and Theology was so fully examined and refuted by them; that unless these Books had been prohibited, it was impossible for the Trinitarians of those times to have been ignorant of all the solid Learning contained in the Books of the Gentiles.