A Brief Confutation of a Popish Discourse, Part 1
The first parte.
THat the Queenes most excellent maiestye, the honourable Lordes of her pryuy Counsell, and other the learned and wise of England, may see that the refusall of going to the Church of so many thousande Catholykes at this day in that Realme, is not vppon disloyaltie or stubberne obstinacy, as their aduersaryes giuegive it out, but vppon conscience and great reason, and for the auoyding of manyfest perryll of eternall damnation, which they shoulde incurre in yeeldyng to that, which is demaunded at theyr handes: I hauehave put downe some causes and reasons heere followyng, referring the Reader to more larger dyscourses, made by dyuerse learned men of our tyme, in sundry partes of theyr works (this beyng shuffled vp in haste) and namely to apeculyar Treatyse not longe agone publyshed touchyng this matter.
But first of all it is to bee noted, that my reasons (to thend they mayA necessary Supposition. conuynce) are to bee supposed to proceede, from a catholyke mynde, (that is) from a man, which in his conscience is throughlye perswaded, that onelye the Catholyke Romayne Relygyon is trueth, and that all other newe doctrynes and relygions, are false relygions, as all newe Gods are false Gods. Nowe, of these Catholykes there are twoTvvo Sortes of C…bolikes. sortes, in Englande, thone which in theyr consciences doe iudge, that as all other relygions besides theyr owne are false, so all partycipation with them eyther in deede, or in shewe, by oath, by Sacramentes, by goyng vntounto theyr prayers and seruice, or otherwyse, is naught, forbydden and vnlawefull, and yet eyther for feare, or fauour or some other worldly cause, they are content to communicate wich them in allVVhat a Si…e it is to doe agaynst a mans ovvn conscience. or some of the foresayde thinges: and of those men (albeit they bee very many in England) I meane not to entreate, theyr case beyng apparauntly both to themselues and to all other men, wicked, and out of all doubte damnable. For as S. Austine sayth: Hee that knoweth the things August. in Psal. 54.to bee ill that he doth, and yet doth thē, he goeth downe quick vntounto hell. As though he would say: Albeit he be yet quicke vponupon the earth, yet is he, in the prouidēce of God, dead & damned in hel. And S. Paul talking of this sin, neuer laieth lesse punishment vponupon it, then iudgement & dānation, although it be committed in thinges of themselues indifferent or lawfull: for albeit (as he saith) meates offred to idoles be of themselues lawfull toRom. 14. 1. Cor. 8. vide expo. D. Tho. 1. 2. Q. 19. & a…. D D. ibi. Rom. 14. Cap. 4. Rom. 14. be eaten, to him that knoweth an Idole to be nothing: Yet, If a man shoulde discerne or iudge it to be vnlawfull and yet eate of it, he is damned for it, because hee doeth not according to his conscience or knowledge. And the reason is that which S. Paule hath immediatly following, saying. All that which is done by vsus not according to our knowledge or conscience, is sinne. And S. Iames confirmeth the same, saying. He that knoweth good, and doth it not, sinneth. Wherefore S. Paule crieth out a a little before, thus. Blessed is hee that iudgeth not, or condemneth not himselfe, in doing contrary to that he best allowetb. And the cause whyMarke this reason. … Three kindes of Sinne. this sinne against a mans owne conscience is so damnable, is this. Some doe sinne of humane frailtie, as did Peter, and this is called a sinne against the father, who is called Power. Some doe sinne of ignorance, as did Paule,Math. 26. 1. Tim. 1. Vide D. Tho. in 2. 2. Q. 14. and Creg. lib. 25. Mor. ca. 1…. and this is called a sinne against the sonne, who is called Wisedome. Some doe sinne of meere will and malice, choosing to sinne although they know it to be sinne, and this is the sinne against the holy Ghost to whom is appropriated particularly grace and goodnesse, the which a man most wickedly contemneth and reiecteth when he sinneth wilfully against his own conscience: and therefore Christ saith, that a man shalbe forgeuen a sinne agaynst the father and against the sonne, as we doe see it was in Peter andSinne agai…st it… holy Ghost. Paule. But he that sinneth agaynst the holy Ghost shall neuer be forgeuen neither in this world, neyther in the worlde to come. As for exampleMat. 12. Mar. 3. Luke. 12. Iohn. 15. Act. 9. the Pharisies were not: which did many thinges against Christ, malitiously, and contray to their owne knowledge & consciences. If this be true (as it is, if God be not vntrue) thē in what a miserable case standeth many a man in England, at this day which take othes, receiue sacramentes, goe to Church, and commit many a like acte directly against theyr owne consciences,The pitifull … of dissen…bling …, and against their owne knowledge: nay, what a case doe they stand in, which know such thinges to be directly agaynst other mens consciences, and yet doe compell them to doe it: As to receiue against their will, to sweare against their will, and the like: Surely, as I am nowe minded, I would not for ten thousand worldes, compel a Iewe, to sweare that there were a blessed Trinitie. For albeit the thing be neuer so true, yet should… …e be damned for swearing against his conscience, and I, for compelling him to commit so heynous and greeuous a sinue. But of this sorte of Catholikes, this is ynough, and too much excepte they were better. For they are to be accounted (according to Saint Paule) damned me… in this lyfe, and therefore no christians, and much lesse, Catholikes.
There are another sort of Catholikes, that albeit they doe iudge all other religions besides their owne, false and erroneous, and damnable: yet doe they not thinke, but that for some worldly respecte, as for sauing their offices, dignities, liberties, credytes, or the like, they may in some of the former thinges, at the leastwise in going to church (for as for swearing, and receiuing, I thinke no Catholike this day in Europe thinketh it lesse then damnable) shewe them selues conformable men to the proceedinges of them of the contrarye religion: and doe also thinke others too scrupulous whiche doe stande in the refusall of the same. But to shewe that these men are in a wrong and perillous perswasion, builded onelyonly on their owne fantasie, and therefore to be reformed: and that the other men are the onelyonly true Catholickes, and bounde to doe so much as they doe, vppon payne of the high displeasure of God, and eternall damage of their owne soules: I hauehave put downe here these reasons, that followe, which may serue for the iustifying of the one parties conscience, and for the due reforming of the other