An antidote agaynst poperie: most necessarie for all in this back-slyding age. Wherein 1. The trueth is confirmed, by authoritie of scriptures, witnessing of antiquitie, and confession of the popish partie. 2. Popish scripturall arguments are answered, by the exposition both of father and of their own doctours / by William Guild.

SECT. II. Whether all doctrines of faith are contained in Scripture, without vnwritten Tradi∣tions? which the Romanists

denye, vsing these Argu∣mentes.

[ 1] JOHN 16.12. I haue yet manie things to say vnto you, (sayeth CHRIST) but now yee can not beare them. These (say they) were higher mysteries, which Hee would onelie entrust to them there-after, by verball tradition.

* 1.1Answere. S. Augustine sayeth, That it is presumption, to deter∣mine what those thinges were. And Cyrill telleth vs clearlie, That they were not mysteries, or do∣ctrines, of Fayth;* 1.2 but relations of thinges to come, such as S. Iohn got in Pathmos, and are written. Therefore, (sayeth hee) CHRIST seeing His Disciples desirous to knowe thinges to come, repro∣veth them not; but promiseth, That they should get knowledge thereof, in a fitter tyme.

Augustine also showeth, that this same Text was abused of olde

by those Heretickes,* 1.3 who for mayn∣tayning their Erroures, pretended vnwritten tradition, saying, Those seeke to colour their devyces, by the pretext of this GOSPELL, I haue yet manie thinges to saye vnto you, but yee can not beare them.

IOHN 21.25. If all were [ 2] written which IESUS did, the world could not contayne the Bookes there-of. Heere, (saye they) beside Scripture, wee see manie thinges that are knowne onelie by vnwritten tradition.

Answere.* 1.4 S. Cyrill (and with him Augustine) showeth, That the Evangelist speaketh onelie of CHRIST'S miraculous actions, and not of doctrines of Fayth, (whereof onelie is the question:) And heerein hee witnesseth clear∣lie, with vs, the perfection of Scripture, saying, All which our LORD did, are not written, in∣deede; but what the Wryters

thought sufficient (sayeth hee) both for Fayth and Manners.

[ 3] 1. COR. 2.6. Wee speake wisdome amongst those who are perfect, (sayeth S. PAVLL:) That is, Some mysteries of Fayth, (say they) which are meete onelie to bee taught the more learned, by verball tradition.

* 1.5Answere. S. Chrysostome sayth, (and with him Ambrose and Ie∣rome) that by the speaking of Wisdome, is meant generallie the preaching of the Gospell; and that by the perfect, not a fewe more learned, but all believers are vn∣derstoode, who ayme and tende to perfection. And if we will heare two famous late Romanistes,* 1.6 Estius (publicke Professor of Divinitie, and Chancellar of DOWAY) hee sayeth, and with him a Iesuit, Cor∣nelius à Lapide, That by Wisdome, is vnderstoode, the high mysteries of Religion, that are contayned

in PAVLL's Epistles; (and consequentlie, are written:) and that by Perfect, those are meant, who are able for stronger meate, opposed to others that are Babes in CHRIST, and haue yet neede of Milke, according to Hebr. 5.12.

Ireneus lykewyse testifieth,* 1.7 That this Text was wrested so of olde, by some Heretickes, who taught, (sayeth he) that the Trueth could not be found out of the Scripture, by those to whome Tradition was vnknowne; for as much as it was not delivered by wryting, but by word of mouth: for which cause S. PAVLL sayeth, Wee speake wisdome amongst them who are perfect.

1. TIM. 6.20. O Timo∣thie, [ 4] keepe that which is com∣mitted to thy trust. Which (saye they) were vnwritten traditions.

Answere.* 1.8 Vincentius Lyrinensis expoundeth this, to bee the whole

talent of the Orthodoxe Fayth, (or, as S. Ierome and Primasius call it, The preaching and revea∣ling of the whole counsell of God) Vnto the instruction whereof,* 1.9 hee affirmeth clearlie, That the Ca∣non of Scripture, is perfectlie suf∣ficient.

Lykewyse, (sayeth the Iesuit à Lapide) it is certayne, that by this Depositum,* 1.10 (generallie) sound doctrine is vnderstoode. There∣fore the Apostle inculcateth, (sayth hee) That he avoyde new and false [ 6] doctrines, and defende the ancient true Fayth: or, (as Estius sayeth) that hee admit no newe Articles of faith, but those which CHRIST delivered to His Apostles. Nowe, all such which were necessarie for all men,* 1.11 (sayeth Bellarmine) were written; and, consequentlie, by the former Text, vnwritten tradi∣tions are not vnderstood.

Tertullian also showeth, That this Text was wrested of olde,* 1.12 by Heretickes, for defence of vnwrit∣ten traditions, saying, The Here∣tickes

confesse, indeede, that the Apostles were ignorant of no∣thing, and differed not amongst themselues in preaching. But they say, (sayeth Tertullian) that they revealed not all thinges vnto all men: but some they delivered openlie, and to all; and some thinges secretlie, and to a fewe. For thus sayth S. PAVLL to TIMOTHIE, O Timothie, keepe that which is concredited to thy trust.

2. THESS. 2.15. Stand [ 5] fast, therefore, Brethren, and holde the traditions which yee haue beene taught, whether by word, or by our Epistle. Ergo, Beside Scripture, (say they) wee see vnwritten traditions.

Answere. Nicephorus and Theo∣doret, showe, That the Apostle speaketh not of diverse doctrines, some written, and some not at all: but of the same doctrines di∣verslie

delivered; to wit, by word, hee beeing present with them; and the same by Epistle, hee beeing absent from them: or first spoken, and then written: but not some written, and some to remayne onlie and ever, as vnwritten Tra∣ditions. Therefore, sayeth Nice∣phorus,* 1.13 Those thinges which being present, hee onlie taught by word; beeing absent, hee delivered vnto them by Epistle, eadem, the same thinges; recalling them so by an abridgement, to their me∣mories.

So lykewyse sayeth Theodoret, in the person of the Apostle,* 1.14 spea∣king thus, Yee haue for a rule of your fayth, (sayeth hee) our Ser∣mones, which both wee preached to you by word, and wrote the SAME to you in our Epistles.

In lyke manner, (sayeth Aqui∣nas,* 1.15 wryting on PAVLL's wordes to the PHILIPPIANS,) To wryte those same things vnto you in my absence, which before I spake vn∣to

you beeing present, is not grie∣vous vnto mee: For wordes soone passe away, but wryting doeth abyde.

Or suppose that some doctrines had beene taught to this people of Thessalonica, by word, which had not beene written vnto them by Epistle, it followeth not, that they were not written to others, or else-where in Scripture. Yea, in the contrarie,* 1.16 Bellarmine proo∣veth, that that which was prea∣ched by word to this people, was written else-where in Scripture: because hee sayeth playnlie, That all thinges were written by the Apostles, which they publicklie preached to anie people, or was necessarie to salvation.

1. COR. 11.34. The rest [ 6] I will dispose when I come, (say∣eth S. PAVLL.) Which hee was to doe by word onelie, or vn∣written tradition, (say they.)

Answere. Hee speaketh not of doctrines of Fayth, (whereof on∣lie

is the question) but as Chryso∣stome, Oecumenius, and Haymo, doe testifie, such thinges as belong on∣lie to externall order in the Sacra∣ment.

This also doeth Lombard, Caje∣tane, and Aquinas, witnesse.

* 1.17As also, (sayeth their late E∣stius, and with him à Lapide) by THE REST, hee vnderstandeth those thinges which belong to a worthie, honest, and orderlie ce∣lebration of those mysteries. And agayne else-where; Hee speaketh of those thinges, (sayeth hee) which belong to externall wor∣ship, and are ceremonies.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Aug. Tract. 96. in Iohan
• * 1.2

  Cyril. Alex. in Io∣han. l. 10. c. 41.
• * 1.3

  Aug. Tract. 97. in Iohan
• * 1.4

  Cyril in Io∣han. l. 12. c. 68. Aug. in Io∣han. Tract. 49.
• * 1.5

  Chry∣sost. in 1. Cor 2.6.
• * 1.6

  Estius in 1. Cor. 2.6.
• * 1.7

  Iren. contr. heres. lib. 3. cap. 2.
• * 1.8

  Vin••. Lyr. adv. heres. c. 27. & 35
• * 1.9

  Hier. & Prim. in 1. Tim. 6.
• * 1.10

  A La∣pide, in 1. Tim. 6.
• * 1.11

  Bell. l. 4. de Verbo c. 11.
• * 1.12

  Ter∣tull. de prae∣script. adv. heret. c. 25.
• * 1.13

  Ni∣ceph. lib. 2. hist. c. 34.
• * 1.14

  Theod in 2. Sess. 2 15
• * 1.15

  A∣quin. in Phi¦lip. 3.1,
• * 1.16

  Bell. lib. 44 de Verba c. 11.
• * 1.17

  Estius in 2. Thess. 2.15.