The Character of the Beast, Debate 2 · John Smith 9
Iohn Smyth.
And heer for a concluſion you produce the Fathers: I ſay that the producing of Fathers who al of them held plenty of Antichriſtian hereſies, shal avayle you nothing in your cauſe: & you that deny the teſtimony of Fathers contrary to the ſcriptures, how can you with any color of equity produce Fathers againſt vsus in a caſe cō trary to the Scripture, is it not to ſet darknes againſt light? doe not you know that al the Fathers even every one of them brought his ſtone to the building of the Temple of Antichriſt: but I know your drift in the producing of Fathers, viz: Firſt to ſet a gloze vppon your Antichriſtian hereſy of baptiſing infants. Secondly to draw the world into diſlike of the L. truth: but if a mā should produce teſtimonyes of Fathers againſt your Seperation, againſt you in the caſe of Preſacy, Preiſthood, & Deaconry, …ead prayer, & other parts of your cauſe, what would you anſwer? would not you ſay, that they were teſtimonyes of men living in corupt tymes, contrary to the Scriptures, &c. Even ſo ſay I to you: but you ſay that you do not bring teſtimony of the Fathers, to prove any thing: wel then: you confeſſe they prove nothing: remember that, & let al men take notice that you produce teſtimonyes that you ſay prove nothing: but why do you produce teſtimonyes of the Fathers: Forſooth, to shew the practiſe of auncient Churches: but al thoſe Churches were Antichriſtian by your owne confeſſion: & what doth antiquity Antichriſtian, or vniverſality antichriſtian help you againſt the truth? Therfor I ſay: The truth needeth not the teſtimony of Antichriſt: & old vniverſal antichriſtian errors shal not prevayle againſt the truth: I have shewed you that from the beginning it was not thus: go; baptiſme of infants is a Novelty: but let vsus shew you ſome footſteps of the bringing in of baptiſing infants, & that out of the Fathers.
Henricus Pantaleon: Chronolog. fol. 16. ſaith: Victor Apher in the yeer 193. ordeyned: that at Eaſter baptiſme should be indifferently adminiſtred to al hence then it followeth that before his tyme only ſuch as were Catechiſed in the Faith were baptized: For he would not decree that heathen should be baptized.
Euſebius. Eccleſ. Hiſtor. Lib. 7, Chap. 8. ſaith that Novatus rejected the Holy baptiſme, & overthrew the Fayth & confeſſion which was accuſtomed before baptiſme: whereby it appeareth that Fayth & confeſſion were required before baptiſme, and therefore the rudiments thereof ſtill remayne, that in baptiſing of infants, a confeſſion of ſinne, and Fayth is required of the ſuretyes or parents.
The ſame Euſeb. Lib. 10. Chap. 15. reporteth the ſtory of Athanaſius baptiſing children in ſport: which baptiſme was approved (though done in ſport) by Alexander Bb, of Alexandria, after that he by examination had found that the children had queſtioned & anſwered according to the manner of the Catechumeni in baptiſme: wherby it appeareth that then only perſons by confeſſion of their Faith & ſins were admitted to baptiſme in Alexandria.
Hoſius: Petricovienſi confeſſ. de fide. chap. 27. ſaith that theſe two are Apoſticall traditiōs, which the Scripture teacheth not: viz: that ther are; perſons & one God: & that Dioniſius & Origen doe teſtifie baptiſme of infants to be an Apoſtical tradition: Now you know that their Apoſticall traditions were antichriſtian inventions.
Polydor. Virg. Lib. 4. Chap. 4 de inventoribus rerū. ſaith thus: It was in vſe with the auncients, that perſons of yeeres (ſere) in a manner should be baptized clad with whyte garments: Lactantius.
Candidus egredit… nitidis exercitus vndis:
Atque vetus vitium purgat in amne novo.
And this was performed at Eaſter & whitſontide except in neceſſity: in the meane tyme til the Feaſts of Eaſter & whitſontyde came they were catechiſed: this teſtimony is of good inſtruction.
Ludovicus Vives, writing vppon the firſt book of Auguſt: de Civitate dei. chap. 27. ſaith: that in auncient tymes no man was baptized but perſons of yeeres, who could vnderſtand what the myſtical water ſignified, & required baptiſme ofter then once: & therfor now the infant to be baptized is demaunded three tymes, if hee wil be baptized, for whome the ſuertyes anſwer, yea.
Eraſmus Rotrodamus in his annotations vppon the fifth of the Roman. ſaith, that in Paulls tyme it was not receaved, that infants should bee Baptized.
Thus have I thought good to shew you teſtimonyes of men & ſo by ſetting mā againſt man, to lead you & vsus al from m…n to the holy Scriptures, which is the rock wherevppon we may ſafely build: which as you have heard flatly forbiddeth the baptiſing of infants, who cannot bee made Diſciples by teaching. Mat, 28.19. Iohn. 4.1.