Dispute Against the English-Popish Ceremonies, Part 2 · Chapter 8
CHAP. VIII.
That the inexpediency of the Ceremonies, in respect of the Scandall of the weake, may be plainely perceived, 12 propositions touching Scandall are premitted.
THere remaineth yet another inconveniency found in the Ceremonies, which is Scandall; They hinder our spirituall Sect. I edification, and groweth in Faith and Plerophory, & make us stumble in stead of going forwarde. lMath. 5. 29. 30.The best members of the body should be cut off, when they offend, much more the superfluous humours, such as the Popish Ceremonies must be reckoned to bee. And what if some wide consciences thinke the Ceremonies no stumbling blockes? Nay, what if some pretend, that they edify? mPlin natur. Hist. lib. 24. cap. 1.Ferulae asinis gratissime sunt in pabulo, …teris vere jumentis praesentanto vtneno. It is enough to evince the inconveniency of the Ceremonies, that some are scandalized, yea many tender consciences are made to stumble by their meanes. We learne from our Master, nMath. 18. 6.that the Scandall of one is to be cared for, much more the Scandall of many, especially if those many, be of the number of the litle ones which believe in him. But for our clearer proceeding in this Argument, I will premit these propositions, of which we are to make use.
I. foreign; Scandall or offence is not the Sect. II grieving or displeasing of my brother; for peradventure when I grieve him or displease him, I doe edify him; now Edification and Scandall are not compatible. But Scandall, is a word or deed proceeding from me, which is or may be the occasion of another mans halting, or falling into, or swerving from the straight way of righteousnesse. Scandulum (saith ocom. in Math. lib. 2. c. 15.…) nos offendiculum, vel ruinam & impactionem pedis possumus dicere: quando ergo legimus, quicunque de minimis istis scandalizaverit quempiam: hoc intelligimus: quicunque dicto factove occasionem ruina cuiquam dederit. Scandalum saith psynt. Theol. lib 6. cap. 3. Col. 19.Almandus Polanus, est dictum vel factum, quo alius deterior redditur.
II. This occasion of halting, stumbling, or swerving, which we call Scandall, is sometimes onelyonly given on the part of the offender, sometimes onelyonly taken on the part of the offended, sometimes both given on the one part, and taken on the other. The first sort is, Scandall given, and not taken; The second is, Scandall taken, and not given; The third is, Scandall both taken and given.
III. All these three kindes of Scandall are sinfull. The first is the sinne of the offender; for it is a fault to give my brother occasion of stumbling, though he stumble not. The second is the sinne of the offended, who should not take offence where he hath no cause. The third is a sinne on both sides; for as it is a fault to lay an occasion of falling before another, so it is a fault in him to fall, though hee have occasion.
IV. A Scandall given or active, is not onelyonly such a word or deed, whereby we intend the fall of our Brother, but qAquin. 2. 2a. q. 43. art. 1. Marc. Ant. de dom. de Rep. Eccl. lib. 5. cap. 10. n. 44.also, such a word Sect. III or deed, quod de sui ration… habet, quod sit inductivum ad peccandum, puta cum aliquis publice facit peccatum, vel quod habet similitudinem peccati. Ioh. 16. 2. Put the case a man stay away from the Christian Assemblies, and publike worship of God, intending to employ his studies all this time, for the good of the Church by writing; such a man doth not onelyonly not intend the fall of others, but by the contrary he intendeth edification; yet doth he scandalize them, because ratio & conditio operis is scandalous and inductive to sinne.
V. An active Scandall is given (and so is faulty) many wayes. If it be in a thing lawfull, then it makes our brother condemne our lawfull deed, yea animates him by our example, to that which in his conscience he condemneth, both which are sinne. If it be in a thing unlawfull, then is the Scandall given and peccant, if either our brother be made to fall into the outward act of sinne; or 2. If he bee made to stumble in his conscience, and to call in question the way of trueth; or 3. If it doe so much as to make him halt, or weaken his plerephory or full assurance; or 4. If it hinder his growth and duplicate page duplicate page going forward, and make him, though neither to fall, nor to stumble, nor to halt, yet to have a smaler progresse. Or 5. If none of these evils be produced in our brother, yet when either through our intention, and the condition of the deed togither, or through the condition of the deed alone, occasion is given him of sinning any one of these wayes. Opu… nostrum (r) saith a great Proctor for Popish Ceremonies, quot…s sive natura sua, sive superaddito accidente alicujus circumstantiae, (…) Marc. Ant de dom. de rep. Eccl. lib. 1. cap. 11. n. 18.est inductivum proximi ad peccatum, sive causativum magni mali, sive turbativum boni spiritualis; sive impeditivum fidei &c. quamvis etiam effectus non s…queretur, malum est & peccatum.
VI. A passive Scandall, which is taken and not given, is not onelyonly faulty, when it proceedeth of malice, but also, when it proceedeth Sect. IV of ignorance and infirmity: and Scandalum pusillorum, may be Scandalum acceptum, on the part of the offended faulty, as well as Scandalum Pharis…orum. When weake ones are offended at me for the use of a lawfull thing, before I know of their weakenesse, and their taking of offence, the Scandall is onelyonly passive, and so we see, that weake ones may take offence where none is given, as well as the malitious. Now, their taking of offence, though it proceed of weaknesse, yet is sinfull, for their weaknesse and ignorance is a fault, and doth not excuse them.
VII. A Scandall may be at first onelyonly passive, & yet afterward become active. For example, Gedeons Ephod, and the brasen Serpent, were monuments of Gods mercies, and were neither evill, nor appearances of evill, so that when people were first scandalized by them, the Scandall was merely passive, but the keeping and retaining of them, after that Scandall rose out of them, made the Scandall to become active also, because the reserving of them after that time, was not without appearance of evill.
VIII. The occasion of an Scandall which is onelyonly passive should be removed, if it be not some necessary thing, & we are not onelyonly to Sect. V shunne that which giveth Scandall, but also that whereupon followeth a Scandall taken, whatsoever it be, if it be not necessary. This is so evident, that Papists themselves subscribe to it, for scom in 2m. 2a. q. 43. art. 7.both Cardinall Cajetan, and Dominicus Bannes say, that we should abstaine even … spiritualibus non necessariis when Scandall riseth out of them.
IX. Neither can the indifferency or lawfullnes of the thing done, nor the ordinance of Auctority commanding the use of it, make the Scandall following upon it, to bee onelyonly passive, which otherwise, i. e. in case the thing were neither lawfull, nor ordained by Auctority, should be active. Not the former; for tHēming. Enchir. Theol class. 3. cap. 17. Magde. burg. cent. 1. lib. 2. cap 4. Col 448. 449.our Divines teach, that Scandalum datum riseth sometimes, ex facto-in se adiaphoro when it is done intempessive, contra charitatis regulam. Not the latter; for no humane Auctority can take away the condition of Scandall, from that which otherwise should be Scandall, because uAmes. lib. 5. de consc c. 11. q. 6.nullu… homo potist vel charitati, vel conscientiis nostris imperare, vel periculum scandali d…ti prestar…, saith a learned Casuist.
X. A Scandall is passive and taken by the scandalized, without the fault of the doer, onelyonly in this case, xAmes. ibid q 3.cum factum unius est alteri occasio peccandi, prater intentionem facientis, & conditionem facti so that to the making of the doer blamelesse, is not onelyonly required, that he intend not his brothers fall, but also that the deed be neither evill in it selfe, nor yet done inordinately, and with apperance of evill.
XI. The Scandall not to be cared for, is onelyonly in necessary things, Sect. VI such as the hearing of the Word, Prayer, &c. from which we may not abstaine, though all the world should be offended at us: In these I say, and these onelyonly, Scandalum quod oritur ex rebus per s… bonis & necessariis, non licet evitare, &c. at rerum legittimarum sed non necessariarum disparest ratio, &c. yCam…ro praelect. in Mat. 18. 7. de scand.saith a great Formalist.
XII. We ought for the Scandall of the malitious, to abstaine from all things from which we ought to abstaine for the Scandall of the weake; for we ought not to abstaine from necessary things for the Scandall of the weake, no more then for the Scandall of the malitious, and from things that are not necessary, we ought to abstaine for the Scandall of the malitious, as well as for the Scandall of the weake. So that weaknesse and malice in the offended non variant speci…m scandali, but onelyonly gradum ejusdem speciei. Both his fault who is offended through malice is greater, then his fault who is offended through weaknesse, and likewise his fault who offends the weake in the Faith, is greater then his fault who offends those who are malitious against the Faith, because as we ought to doe good to all men, so chiefly to those of the houshold of Faith. Neverthelesse, the kind of Scandall remaines the same, whether we have to doe with the malitious or the weake.
They are therefore greatly mistaken, who conclude from Paul his not circumcising of Titus, Gal. 2. 4. 5. that he cared not for the Scandall of the malitious. The Argument were good if those false bretheren had been scandalized by his not circumcising of Titus; but they were onelyonly displeased hereby, not scandalized. The Apostle saw, that they were to be scandalized by his circumcising of Titus, therefore of very purpose he circumcised him not; Because he foresaw statim for… ut illi traherent in calumniam saith zcom. in illum locum.Calvine: Ne eo circumciso gloriarentur Evangelieam libertatem quam Paulus praedicabat sublatam saith acomment ibid.Bullinger. If they had compe…led him to circumcise Titus, falsis fratribus parata erat calumniandi ansa adversus Paulum, saith bcom. ib.Par…us, who also inferreth well from this place, that we are taught to beware of two extreames, to wit, the Scandall of the weake on the one part, and the pervicacie of false bretheren on the other part: si enim (saith he) us… rerum mediarum videmus, vel illos offendi, hoc est in fide labefactari, vel istos in fals… opinione obfirmari, omittende potius sunt, quia. …nc per accidens fiunt illicita. Whereupon I throw back the Argument, & proves from this place, that Paul cared to shunne the Scandall of the malitious, which should have followed upon his circumcising of Titus, as well as he cared to shunne the offence of the weake, which should have followed upon his not circumcising of Timothee. And that Paul cared for the Scandall of the malitious, is further confirmed by his not taking wages at Corinth; they who would have been offended at his taking wages there, were malitious, and did but seeke occasion against him, 2 Cor. 11. v. 12. yet his taking wages there, not being necessary (as appeareth from, 2 Cor. 11. 9.) he abstained.
Christ his not caring for the Scandall of the Pharisees, is also objected to prove, that if the thing bee lawfull or indifferent, wee are not to care for the offence of the malitious. But cof the crosse part. 2. p. 57.Parker answereth well. The Scandall there not cared for, is, when the Pharisees are offended at his abstaining from their washings, and his preaching of true Doctrine: both of which were necessary duties for him to doe. And dLuk. 13. 15.when he defendeth his healing on Sabbaths; and his Disciples plucking cares, upon this reason, they are duties of necessity, and charity, he plainely insinuateth, there (e) Math. 12. 7.is no defence for deeds unnecessary when the malitious are scandalized. When the thing was indifferent, doth he not forgoe his liberty for to please them, as fMath. 17. 27.when he payed Tribute lest he should offend them, although he know they were malitious.
Thus have I evinced a maine point, namely, that when Scandall is knowne to follow upon any thing, if it be not necessary, there is no respect whatsoever which can justify it.