The arraignment of pride, or, Pride set forth, with the causes, kinds, and several branches of it: the odiousness and greatness of the sin of pride: the prognosticks of it, together with the cure of it: as also a large description of the excellency and usefulness of the grace of humility: divided into chapters and sections. / By W. Gearing minister of the word at Lymington in Hantshire.

SECT. 3. Of pride of men in High Places.

IT is commonly seen, that high Places are apt to puff men up with pride. Hamans pre∣ferments made him so proud, as he thought none good enough to be his Peer. Intolera∣ble hath been the pride of many Popes in this kinde: What pride did Pope Gre∣gory the seventh shew, to make the Emperour Henry the fourth, stand three days and three nights at his gate, bare-footed, and bare-legged, with his wife and children, in the deep of winter, in frost and snow, to intreat for absolution? The like pride appeared in Pope Alexander the third, that made Frederick the Emperour at Venice, fall down be∣fore him to the ground, and ask him forgiveness, while he trod upon his neck, and gave him a push or two: And to shew the more arrogancy, he used these words of Scripture for a pretence, saying, Super aspidem & Basilicum ambulabis. The like pride was in Pope Celestinus, that put the Crown upon the head of the Emperour Henry the sixth, not with his hand, but with his foot, and threw it down again from his head with his foot; affirming, that he had power to make Emperours, and to depose them. What great

pride was in that Pope that cast Francis Dan∣dalus Duke of Venice under his table to gnaw bones among the Dogs? It is written also con∣cerning Pope Boniface the eighth, thus, That Albertus Duke of Austria, being by the Electours chosen King of the Romans, desired of Boniface the blessing and confirmation: To whom this proud Pope answered, That he was unworthy of the Empire; and having the Crown on his own head, and a Sword girt about his loyns, he said, I am Caesar. Julius the second, the Predecessour of Leo (a better Souldier then a Priest) goeth with an Army (as Wicelius witnesseth) in the year, 1513. against the King of Navarre, and threw Pe∣ters Keys into the River Tiber, saying, If the Key of Peter cannot, let the Sword of Paul prevail. Of which Mantuan saith thus:

Ense potens gemino, cujus vestigia adorant Caesar & aurato vestiti murice reges.

Great Caesar with victorious Kings Who golden Crowns do wear, They do adore his foot steps who The double sword doth bear.

Now here we may observe the steps or lad∣ders, or gradations to the pride of the Pa∣pacy.

1. The first was the departing of Constan∣tine from Rome to Constantinople: So saith

Gratian; but Vella, and other Popish Writers, tell us otherwise.

2. The second, was the fall of the Empire in the West, Anno 471. in the time of Au∣gustulus: Of whom this Epigram was made,

Augustus Romanum imperium condidit, Augustulus labefactavit.

Augustus founded the Roman Empire, Augustulus destroyed it.

3. The third was a Charter made by Con∣stantine, Emperour of the East, to Benedict the second; viz. That they might chuse a Pope without the Emperour, which before they could not.

4. The fourth was the Amity between Za∣chary Bishop of Rome, and Pipin Governour of France, who ruled for Childerick, and sent to Pope Zachary to be resolved in this doubt, Whether it were fit for him to be King, that had the Name and Dignity, or he that bare the burthen. He presently picked out the meaning, and said, He that bare the burthen; then Pipin laboureth to depose his Master, and doth so. The occasion was this, the Pope finding the Lombards grievously disturbing Italy, sent for Pipin with an Army out of France, by whose help he suppressed the Lom∣bards, and thrust the Greek Magistrates out of Ravenna, and all Italy, usurping the Prin∣cipality of Ravenna, by the gift of Pipin the Conquerour; unto whom in recompence there∣of

(a thing not heard of before) he gave the Kingdom of France, thrusting Childerick the lawful King, into a Monastery or Covent. Here is not Scala Jacobi, or Coeli, but Inferni; for one must gratifie the other again.

5. The fifth step was, the decay of the Ea∣stern Empire, Anno, 756.

6. The sixth step was, the Translation of the Roman Empire from the Greeks to the French or Germans, in the person of Magni∣fical Charls (as Bellarmine calleth him:) for the Romans making insurrection against Pope Leo the third, because of his detestable pride, the said Charls, the Son and Heir of Pepin, coming with his Army into Italy again, freed the Pope: Hereupon the Pope not to be ungrate∣ful (out of the fulness of his power) gave un∣to Charls the Title of the Roman Empire (the which belonged to the Greeks, and therefore was not his to dispose of) crowning him Em∣perour of the West. On the other hand, Charls the new Emperour to gratifie the Pope, forced the Citizens of Rome to swear fidelity to Leo, and appointed him Lord of Rome; the which Donation, Lodowick Son of Charls, af∣terwards confirmed and encreased.

7. The seventh step, was the Constitution of Electors of the future Emperours, enacted by Pope Gregory, and Otho the Emperour, both Germans and Kinsmen.

8. The eighth step reacheth to Heaven: for thus they teach, Christus be ato Petro aeternae vitae clavigero, terreni simul & coelestis imperii

jura commisit, Christ hath committed to bles∣sed Peter, the Keykeeper of Eternal Life, the power both of earthly and heaven∣ly Jurisdiction and Government. These be the words of Gratian con∣cerning Pope Nicholas, and the Gloss upon them saith, Argumentum quod Papa habet utrumque gladium, & spiritualem & temporalem: An argument that the Pope hath both Swords, both the Spiritual and Tem∣poral; and in the marginal notes, Papa habens utrumque gladium, imperium transtulit: The Pope having both Swords, translated the Em∣pire.

That the properties of God are attributed to the Pope, you may see by their writings. Papa dicitur habere coeleste arbitrium, & ideo etiam naturam rerum immutat, substantiam unius rei applicando alii, & de nihilo potest ali∣quid facere.

Thus the Popes Parasites flatter him; Sicut non est Potestas nisi a Deo, sic nec aliqua tem∣poralis vel Ecclesiastica, imperialis vel regalis nisi a Papa. As there is no power but of God; so (say they) there is not any Temporal or Ecclesiastical, Imperial or Regal power, but of the Pope; In cujus femine scripsit Christus, Rex Regum, Dominus Dominantium, on whose

thigh Christ hath written, King of Kings, and Lord of Lords. Gregory the ninth letteth this Doctrine fall from his own pen, Ad firmamen∣tum coeli, hoc est, universalis Ecclesiae, fecit Deus duo magna luminaria, i.e. duas instituit digni∣tates, quae sunt Pontificalis authoritas, & re∣galis potestas; & ut quanta est inter solem & lunam, tanta inter Pontifices & Reges differen∣tia cognoscatur. For the firmament of Heaven, that is (saith he) of the Universal Church, God made two great lights; that is, appointed two Dignities, which are the Pontifical Autho∣rity, and the Regal Power; and as a great difference may be seen between the Sun and Moon; so as great a difference may be known between Popes and Kings. See what pride is in the Man of Sin, who op∣poseth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or worship∣ped. That high places are apt to puff men up with pride, Decius the Emperour evidently saw, who when his Father would have invested him in the Empire, as David did Solomon in his Kingdom, in his life time, re∣fused the honour with this modest excuse, I fear if I am made Emperour, lest I forget that I am a Son; and I had rather not be an Em∣perour, and be an humble Son, then an Em∣perour, and an undutiful Son.

He knew it seemed, that Honores did or∣dinarily mutare mores, that honour did change

mens mannes; and so surely theydo in nature corrupted, and not by grace corrected, or where grace prevails not, or is not predomi∣nant above nature; for where it is, goodness will so oversway greatness, as no Dignity shall cause men to neglect or forget their duty. Now this is a great vanity, for men to be proud of honours, or high places, especially if we consider the instability of honours, great preferments, and great mens favours; as appears in Parmenio and Clitus, in high favour with Alexander the great, and Seneca with Nero, and Bellisarius with Justinian the Emperour; yea, even in Dionysius himself, Bajazet, and many other great Princes: And even in holy Writ, we see Joab a great favourite with Da∣vid at the first, is at last distasted by himself, and quite cashiered by Solomon his Son, and that by his approbation and appointment; so likewise Haman rose not so fast, but he sell faster. They that be in the hight of honour to day, may be in the lowest degree of disgrace by to morrow; for we know not what a day may bring forth, Prov. 27.1. And we have seen many notable instances of the transitoriness of worldly honour in these our days: Man being in honour abideth not, he is like the beasts that perish, Psal. 49.12. The old Translation reads it thus, Man shall not continue in honour, he shall be like the beasts that dye; or as Tremel∣lius, he shall be like the beasts that dye of the

Morrain, and so become useless and fit for nothing: And many times men are lifted up on high, that their fall may be the greater. Some in these days boast of the honour that they have got∣ten by the disgrace of others, of their rising by others falling; but this is a great vanity, to grow proud that we rise by others ruines. Thus did the common souldiers in Tacitus repress the pride of Pompey: Thou art great by our misery, therefore swell not against us. He that (like Matthias) cometh in the place of another, must rather lament the others loss, then grow proud of his own gain. If the Gen∣tile be advanced by the fall of the Jew, he should not boast against the Jew, but rather lament the Jews falling, then be proud of his own rising. Many in these our days, have erected to themselves stately Pallaces, by the fall of other mens houses; and such as these, are ready to swell with pride against their de∣cayed brethren: It is a sign of a vain mind, to think the worse of any man because he is fallen; or to think the better of our selves, be∣cause we are risen. What though Job be on the dunghil, yet he shall be restored; and though Joseph be in prison, yet he shall be ad∣vanced.

If therefore men are ambitious of honour, let them honour God: Them that hononr me, saith he, I will honour. Let David carry

himself valiantly in the wars of Israel, though Saul himself labour to keep him down, and to ecclipse his glory, yet the very women in their songs shall prefer him before their King, saying, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands: If Mordecai the Jew be faithful to King Ahashuerus, and dis∣cover the Treason of Bigtanah and Teresh, there will come a time, that the King will be at leisure to read the Chronicles, and reward his good service, Est. 6. If Daniel continue con∣stant in Gods service, it shall at last appear, that the truth was at his side, and he shall pre∣vail, and be preferred according to his desert, Dan. 6. If Paul and Si∣las be painful in their places, and seek their Masters glory, and the en∣largement of his Kingdom, by the propagation of the Gospel, if men be dumb and silent, the very Devils shall confess them to be the servants of the most high God, and to shew unto men the way of Salvation, Acts 16.17. In a word, if our Saviour Christ go about preaching in the Synagogues, and curing diseases, and doing all sorts of good deeds, howsoever the Rulers of the Jews accuse him, and persecute him, and seek to execute him, yet many of the common people admire him, yea, seek to advance him, and thought to make him their King, howbeit he will accept of no such honour; yea, Pilat himself cannot but confess to his eternal Glory, and his own per∣petual

shame, that though he condemned him to please the people, and not displease the Emperour, yet he found no cause of death, nay no fault in him, Joh. 19. The way to be truly honoured, is first to be vertuous; and this the wise ancient Romans knew right well, by building the Temple of Honour within the Gate of Vertue; to teach all their people, that who∣soever would come to the one, must pass through the other; and doubtless, whereso∣ever Honour is placed in the Crest, and hath not vertue for a Supporter, all true Heraulds know to be but false Arms; and wheresoever it is conferred without vertue, it will not con∣tinue, it being out of its element and proper place: But on the other side, wheresoever is vertue, there honour and estimation shall be first or last; for it follows true vertue, as the shadow accompanieth the body when the Sun shineth; and when it doth not, it is but the over-casting of a cloud, and the Sun will one day shine again.

Notes

• Regni e falsi honori, le gemme, et l'oro, cui solo it mondo vagillan∣do crede l'alta fatiche, il nostro hyman lavoro, Che sia del tempo dolo∣rose prede, Nascon d'affannai, et fuggonsi poche hore, Solo il ben nostro oprar gia mati non muore. Benevent. de Rambai∣dis.
• Mantuan.
• Aistulphus, or as some, Aristulphus King of the Lombards besieged Rome three moneths.
• Boniface the eighth made a Decree, That ēvery humane Crea∣ture must submit him∣self to the Bishop of Rome, under pain of eternal damnation. Platina de vitis Ponti∣fic.
• Greg. 7. sirnamed Hildebrand said, That he had power to give and take away Kingdoms at his pleasure; and it is more to make and marre Kings, then to be a King: as R. Nevill Earl of Warwick sometime said in the Civil War between Henry the sixth, and Edward the fourth of England.
• Some Popes in pride have caused them∣selves to be worship∣ped.
• Vereor, nc, si fiam im∣perator, dediscam esse filius; & malo non esse imperator & humilis filius, quam imperator & filius indevo∣tus. Valer. Maxim. lib. 4.
• Craesus King of Lydia, spoiled by Cyrus King of Persia, and bereft both of his Kingdom and life: Cyrus him∣self afterwards served so by Thomyris.
• 1 King. 2.5, 6.
• Hest. 7.
• Tolluntur in altum, ut lapsu graviore cadant.
• Similis est pecoribus morticinis.
• Tremell.
• Dionysius of Syracuse, glad to teach a School at Corinth, to get a poor living.
• Nostrâ miseria mag∣nus es. Tacitus. Honour is the greatest outward glory, saith the Philosopher. Arist. Ethic. 4.
• Ʋbi honor non est, ibi contemptus. Hier. Epist.
• 1 Sam. 2.30.
• Non facit nobilem atri∣um plenum sumosis ima∣ginibus; animus facit nobilem. Sen. Epist. 44.
• Men mistake the way to be great, while they neglect the way to be good. Adams.
• Joh. 6.15.
• Nobilitas sola est at∣que unica virtus. Juvenal. Sat. 8.
• There be two things make holi∣ness above greatness; 1. The work of Holiness. 2. The re∣ward of Holiness; Blessing shall cover the head of the righteous, Prov. 10.6. Dr. Sutton.