A Second Parallel, Part 1 · Comparison 1
Of absolute Predestination.
ARMINIANS.
ARMINIVS in his a Declarat. to the States of Holland & West-Frisland, from pag. 22. to pag. 42. endeauoureth to proue by twenty arguments, that God hath not decreed absolutely and precisely to saue certain singular men by his grace or mercy.
Bertius of the Apostasie of Saints, Edit. Lugduni, Anno 1615. pag. 12. Demand the first. There is no absolute Election, and b pag. 25. Absolute Predestination granted, it was necessary to remoue the whole Scripture, to settle that head or doctrine.
Arminius in the forecited Declaration, pag. 33. Out of this doctrine (to wit, of absolute solute Predestination) it c followeth, that God is the Author of sinne. And this may bee proued by a foure-fold Argument.
1. Because this Doctrine layeth it downe, that God precisely hath decr…ed to demonstrate his glory by punishing or punitiue iustice, and mercy, sauing some men, and damning others; which but by d Sinne entring into the world neither was, nor could be done, &c.
Arminius respons ad Artic. 10. It would be easie for mee to conuince the opinion of some of the brethren of Manich…isme and Stoicisme.
We protest to the whole world, that by our aduersaries e Manicheisme, and f Stoicisme, or fatall necessitie is …rought into the Church. The Embleme of their booke of the Acts of the Synod of Dort hath this triumphant title [Destructo fato] or the … of Fate▪ Ex Act. Syn. Dordrac. in Peror.
Bert. epist. Dedic. before his booke of the Apostasie of the Saints: There are who flie Pelagianisme, not seeing that they plainly side with the Manichees. [Hee citeth these words as out of an Epistle of Cas…ubon, but forged by himselfe.]
Hag Conference set out by Bert. pag. 90. This absolute Decree openeth a gate on this side to a g dissolute life, on that side to h desperation.
APPEALER.
APPEALE to Caesar, pag. 58. In all which passage (to wit, of the seuenteenth Article there rehearsed) both concerning Gods decree and execution of that decree, is not one word, syllable, or apex touching your absolute, necessary, determined, irresistible, irrespectiue decree of God to call, saue, and glorifie, Saint Peter, for instance, infallibly without any consideration had of, or regard to his faith, obedience, and repentance.
Appeale to Caesar, pa. 54. Nothing is by mee ascribed to your side, and to your Doctors, but an absolute and irrespectiue decree concerning man, in vtramque partem. I brought no inferences to presse you withall, such as are commonly, and odiously made against you by opposites, whose virulent inuectiues, though too true imputations, I vsed not. I did not charge you with making God the Author of sinne; That the reprobate are i…cited on, and prouoked to sinne by God; That God was the Author of Iudas treason, and the like.
Appeale, pag. 68. I neuer yet read of any prime, preuious determining decree, by which men were irrespectiuely denied grace, and excluded from glory: vnlesse from damned e Heretiques, or f Sto…call Philosophers.
Appeale, pag. 30. Against that absolute, irrespectiue, necessitating, and fatall decree of your new Predestination.
Appeale, pag. 60. I must confesse my dissent through and sincere from the faction of No…lising Puritans, &c. but in no one point more, than in this their h desperate doctrine of Predestination, in which as they delight to trouble themselues and others in nothing more, so, I professe, I doe louelove to meddle nothing lesse. I hauehave not, I did not desire, nor intend to declare my opinion in that point.
a Edit. Lugduni Batau. ex officina Tho. Basson, 1512.
b Positâ Praedestinatione illâ absolutâ, necessarium fuit totam scripturam loco mouere vt illud caput adsereretur.
c It no way followeth: See Caluines Preface of his booke of Diuine Predestin. and first booke of Institut. 17. Chap. Beza against Castellio Peter Martyr in his Comment. on the 1. Chap. of the Epistle to the Romans. Zuinglius in his Sermon of Prouidence. Abbot Prelect. of the Author of sinne. Paraeus Answer to Bella…mine second booke of the state of sinne, and losse of grace, chap. 4. and diuers others.
d God decreed the permission and disposing of sinne, which he fore-saw vponupon his permission would be, hee did not decree the effecting, or existence of it, that it should be. Saint Augustine fully answereth these and the like Arguments in his booke de Corrept. & Grat. cap. 10. We freely confesse that, which we most rightly beleeue, that the God and Lord of all things, who made all things exceeding good, and fore-saw, that euill things would arise out of good, and knew, that it more appertained to his most omnipotent goodnesse, to draw good out of euil, than not to suffer euils to be, hath so ordred the life of men and Angels, that in it first he might shew the power of their owne free-will, and then the benefit of his grace, and iudgement of his iustice. And in his Enchiridion ad Laurentium, cap. 11. God, being most exceeding good, would not by any meanes suffer any euill to be in his workes, but that he is also so omnipotent and good, that he can and doth worke good euen out of euill.
e As Iulian the Pelagian often in his bookes vpbraided Saint Augustine with Manicheisme; so doth Arminius and the Appealer (following the Pelagians step by step) lay the same imputation vponupon the orthodox defenders of Predestination. But the imputation is most false; for the Manichees held two soules in a man, one good, another bad, and ascribed good and euill not to the free-will of man, but to those two soules: We, with the holy Fathers, teach but one soule in man, and referre good and euill to Free-will, but so that the will of it selfe is free to euill, but is not, neither can, sithence the fall of Adam, be free vntounto good, till God hath freed it by his grace, according to the words of our Sauiour in Saint Iohns Gospell, Chap. 8. 36. But if the Sonne make you free, you shall be free indeed. And of Saint Paul, Rom. 6. 18. Made free from sinne, &c.
f A stale obiection long sithence answered by Saint Augustine, in his second booke, cap. 5. ad Bonifac. Wee maintaine not Fate, or fatall necessity vnderunder the name of grace; but if it please some men to call the omnipotent will of God vnderunder the name of Fate, we seeke indeed to auoid prophane nouelty of word, but wee will not contend about words. To which answer of Saint Augustine we may further adde, that the beleefe of Christians, touching the falling out of all things according to the determinate counsell of God, Act. 2. differeth from the Stoicke Fate, or Fatality, in foure things.
1. The Stoicks subiected God himselfe to Fate: Iupiter, though he most desired, could not free Sarpedon; we subiect Fate, that is, the necessitie of things, to Gods most free-will.
2. They vnderunder the name of (Fate) vnderstood an eternall fluxe and necessary connexion of naturall causes, and effects: we teach that all natural and second causes had their beginning in the Creation; neither is there such a necessary and absolute depēdance of effects from their naturall causes, but that God can, and often doth suspend those effects, and miraculously worke beside, aboue, nay against nature.
3. The Stoicks by their Fatality took away all contingencie, wee admit contingencie in future euents, in respect of their second causes which worke contingently, though whatsoeuer commeth to passe falleth within the certaine presience of God, and is ordered by his prouidence.
4. The Stoicks taught, that men were impelled to sin by a fatall motion, and that mans will was forced by Destiny. We detest and abhorre any such assertion. See more hereof in Melancthon his Common places. Gratianus Ciuilis in Semipelagianismo. Lipsius lib. 1. de Constantia cap. 18. & sequent.
g Tis true, as we reade in the seuenteenth Article, that for curious and carnall persons lacking the Spirit of Christ, to hauehave continually before their eyes the sentence of Gods Predestination, is a most dangerous downefall, whereby the Deuill doth thrust them either into desperation, or into retchlesnesse of most vncleane liuing, no lesse perillous than desperation. The sweetest meat in a corrupt stomacke turnes to choller, but the fault is in the stomacke, not in the meat; in like manner the word of God, and in particular this doctrine of the Word is in it selfe a sauour of life vntounto life, but to some proues no better than a sauour of death vntounto death, because as Saint Peter 2. 3. 16. telleth vsus, They peruert the doctrine of holy Scriptures to their destruction. For the doctrine it selfe of Predestination, it openeth no gate to a dissolute life, but shutteth and barreth all such vnlawfull posternes; Shall we continue in sinne because grace aboundeth? God forbid, Rom. 6. 1. On the contrary, it openeth a faire gate, and directeth a certaine readie way to holinesse of life; For God hath predestinated vsus, that we might be conformable to the Image of his Sonne, Rom 8. 29. And God hath chosen vsus before the foundation of the world, that we might be holy and blamelesse before him in louelove, Ephes. 1. 4.
h In this obiection from Desperation, the Arminians and Appealer, as likewise in the former, furbush vp the old Pelagians harnesse, which Saint Augustine hath beat in peeces in his booke of the gift of Perseuerance, chap. 17. I will not amplifie with mine owne words, but I leaue it rather to them seriously to consider, what a strange thing it is, that they should perswade themselves the doctrine of Predestination doth bring to the hearers, rather matter of desperation, than exhortation, (or consolation:) for this is in effect to say, that then a man is to despaire of his saluation, when he is taught to repose his hope and confidence not in himselfe, but in God; whereas the Prophet crieth out, Cursed is he that putteth his trust in man. Some indeed make a desperate vse of this doctrine, but the doctrine it selfe is no desperate doctrine, or doctrine of desperation, but of heauenly consolation, as we reade in the seuenteenth Article, [which ought for euer to stop the mouth of the Appealer, from slandering as he doth, the truth of God.] The godly consideration of Predestination and our Election in Christ, is full of sweet, pleasant, and vnspeakable comfort to godly persons, and such as feele in themselues the working of the Spirit of Christ, mortifying the works of the flesh and their earthly members, and drawing vp their minde to high and heauenly things, as well because it doth greatly establish and confirme their faith of eternall saluation to be enioyed through Christ, as because it doth feruently kindle their louelove towards God.] On the contrary, the doctrine of the Arminians and the Appealer, which maketh Gods Election to depend vponupon the will of man, which, as they say, may totally and finally fall away from grace, is in truth a most desperate doctrine, taking away all solid and firme ground of comfort both in life and death, as shall appeare hereafter.