A Quench-Coal, Inquiry 2 · Part 2 – Part 3
The 2 Reason.
The second reason for this Ceremonie is; Because the Altar and Table are Christs mercy-seate, and the memory of the everlasting Sacrifice, there made and presented to th… Trintry. So Mr. oSermon of Gods …, p. 2 4 19.Shelford Preist, here turned Masse-Preist to present the memory of the everlasting Sacrifice to the holy Trinity (opened so to Christ himselfe that made it, as if he himselfe had forgotten it, or were not able of himselfe to present its memory to his Father, without a Masse-Preists helpe) which Lawe Giles Widdowes thus seconds.pThe La… lesse kneelesse Schismaticall Puritan. p. 34. 89. The Church is the place of Gods presence; The Communion-Table the Chaire of State of the Lord Iesus, and his theifest place of presence in our Church: Where his PREISTS SACRIFICE THE LORDS SUPPER to reconcile us to God, offended with our dayly sinnes.
Where we sind a resolution of my first Question; What is the end of our Novellers writing, preaching and contesting for altars and Preists, to wit, that we may have a Sacrifice againe. And what Sacrifice is that?
The Sacrifice of the Lords Supper faith, qPage 34.Widdowes; The Sacrament or Sacrifice of the Altar, sayth She ford, page 2. 19. And what kind of Sacrifice is this? A commemorative w…e Sh…ford and the Colier. And no other but so? Yea quoth Widdowes a propitiatorie sacrifice likewise, to reconcile us to God, offended with our dayly sinnes.
And so we have now not only Altars and Preists, but the Sacrifice of the Masse it selfe in its ful latitude, both as Commemorative and Propitiatory in point of doctrine, in Bookes la…ely printed by Authority, and not yet called in; How soone we may have all of them (as wee have Altars Preists and a commemorative Sacrifice too in many places) in point of practise, I leave to others to determine; This being made the reason why wee bow to Tables and Altars, because they are Christs mercy seat, and the memory of the everlasting sacrifice, &c. is there made and presented to the Trinity.
This reason I have sufficiently disproved already in proving the Table and Altar, to be no mercy Seate, and the Lords Supper no Sacrifice Commemorative or Propitiatory.
I shall therefore first of all desire them to prove what they thus affir…e, both by Scripture and reason.
Secondly, when they have done this, then to make this appeare in like maner by Scripture or solid arguments drawne from it, or at least by Fathers and Councels, that Christians are bound to bow to Christs mercy seate, or to the place where the memory of his Sacrifice is offered; The Iewes never doing it to the one, nor the Primitive Churches to the other. Till this be done I shall demurre upon this Reason.
The third Reason.
The 3. Reasō is this;rThe lawlesse knee lesse Puritan, p. 89. The Tible & Altar are a signe of the place whe…e our Saviour was most dishonoured and c…ucified; Therefore wee must bow unto them. So Giles Widdowes reasons in a Booke licensed at Oxford by some learned D…ctours.
I answer:
First, that this is a plaine untruth, for they are neither a signe of Ierusalem, Golgatha, the High-Preist hall or the Crosse.
Secondly, if a truth, yet unable to VVarrant this Ce…monie; For what Scripture, reason or Authour is there to just fie, that men ought to bow at the signe of the place where our Saviour was dispised dishonoured and crucified.
Thirdly, if this reason be good, then these Novellers must bow at and to the signes of Ierusalem which hang up in every Citie, or to, or towards these Tauerne Posts (which these bowers haunt much night and day, to make them nod, bow and reele the better to their Altars) where the signe of Ierusalem hangs; For they are properly the signe of the place where our Saviour was most dispised and crucified then the Table or Altar: Then likewise they must bow to every Mappe of Ierusalem, of the holy Land, for they are signes of that place too; Much more to Jerusalem and Golgatha themselves, to which I wish these Cringers would all travell in pilgrimage, that so they might have the sight of the place it selfe to encourage them in this their bowing, which is better and more moving then the bare signe of it.
Fourthly, this perchance may make something for the adoring of Crucifixes and the Crosse, because though they are no signes of the place where Christ was dispised and crucified, yet they are signes of that on which he was dispised and crucified, whereas the Table or Altar is a signe of neither. So that the Papists, if any, shall give him thankes for this reason.