The Ancient Faith of the Romans and the Romish Religion, Chapter 16
CHAP. XVI.
THE Apoſtle hauing exhorted vntounto ſuch Chriſtian dueties as we may not omit: commeth in his xiiii. Chapter to take order for ſuch things as of themſelues being indifferent, are according to the circumſtances to be vſed or not.What are the things indifferent. Wherein we may alſo marke, (and it is worth not…ing,) how farre they wander from S. Paules rules. And firſt all external or worldly things, are of themſelues, & in their owne nature indifferent, meats, and drinkes,Rom. 14. 14. apparrell, daies and times and ſuch like, I know and am perſuaded by the Lord Ieſus, that nothing is common of it ſelfe (that is vncleane) ſaith S. Paul. And againe the kingdome of God is not meate and drinke, but righteouſneſſe and peace, and ioy in the holy Ghoſt, as if he had ſaid, true holines, religion, or the acceptable ſeruice to God, conſiſteth not in eating or not eating, drinking or not drinking, but in this rather, that thy minde beeing rauiſhed with true ſpirituall ioy, thou ſhouldeſt ſéeke to ſerue God (not in ſuch toyes) but in ſincere righteouſnes, and to cheriſh thy brother in perfect peace. And therefore for the vſe of ſuch thinges he giueth theſe rules, Let not him that eateth, deſpiſe him that eateth not, Exod. 3.and let not him that eateth not, iudge him that eateth. So that he will not for ſuch thinges hauehave one man to iudge another. Secondly it is neceſſary that EueryEvery man be perſwaded fully in his owne minde, whether he may with a good conſcience grounded vponupon the warrant of the worde,5. doe that which he doth.22. For Happie is hee which condemneth not himſelfe, in that which hee alloweth. For hee that maketh conſcience is damned if he eate, becauſe hee eateth not of fayth. For whatſoeuer is not of faith is ſinne. Thirdly, we muſt not put a ſtumbling blocke, or an occaſion to fall in our brothers waie, 13.or doe any thing that may greeue or offende him,15. for whome Chriſt hath died. But yet we muſt take heede, that we hauehave not ſo much regarde vntounto man, to pleaſe and beare with him in his weakneſſe, that we cheriſh him in his ignorance or infirmitie;19. but withall we muſt Do thoſe things, wherby one may edifie another. For euen Saint Paul, 1. Cor. 9. 20. 22.who made himſelfe a Iew for the Iewes, and was made all things to all men, that he might by all meanes ſaue ſome: Yet reſiſted Peter to the face, that is plainly and openly, when he had not ſo due regard to edifying of others, as he ſhould hauehave had,Gala. 2. 11. as may appeare in that ſecond Chapter to the Galathians. And this is the ſumme of that, which thapoſtle teacheth the Romans of theſe things. For that which he addeth in the beginning of the xv. Chapter, belongeth to ſuch points as I hauehave alreadie touched. And in ſuch things muſt thoſe exhortations be regarded,1. Pet. 4. 8. which Saint Peter hath. But aboue all things hauehave feruent louelove among your ſelues, for louelove couereth the multitude of ſinnes. 1. Pet. 3. 8.And that we ſhould all be of one mind. 1. Pet. 5. 5.And that we ſhould Submit our ſelues eueryevery man one to another. Thus then we ſée, that theſe indifferent and externall things, hauehave not in themſelues any holyneſſe, or vnholyneſſe, but may be vſed, or not vſed, if we be rightly perſuaded of our libertie therein, ſo that we offend not our weak brethren, but ſéek their edifying. Therfore in ſuch things we muſt neither condemne, or commend others. And this is the auncient and Catholike faith of Rome. Which although it were by ſome men (otherwiſe not euill) dangerouſly aſſaulted, and that not long after the dayes of thapoſtles: yet the godly of thoſe times, did hold faſt the libertie which they had by Chriſt, and would not ſuffer the Church to be ſubiected to ſuch obſeruations.Ignatius. It may be gathered by Ignatius his Epiſtles to the Philadelphians, and to Heron, that ſome there were then, that put ſome holyneſſe in eating, or not eating, againſt whom he gyueth this charge in both thoſe Epiſtles, that they eſtéeme not ſuch as kéepe not faſt the preſcript rules, to belong to Chriſt, but to be wolues in ſhéepes clothing, that ſéeke to deuour. And yet not long after, one Alcibiades a good man,Euſeb. Hist. eccleſ. li. 5. ca. 3. and one that alſo ſuffered Martyrdome, did by too auſter diet, (no doubt thinking therein to conſiſt ſome ſeruice of God) refuſe to vſe Gods creatures, and gaue to other example of offence, and therof being reprooued by one Attalus, he afterwards reformed that his error. Yea in the Church of Rome, Victor being Biſhop there, began ſome impechment of this libertie, whileſt he ſought too earneſtly to tye other churches to obſerue in ſuch things the cuſtomes of the Church of Rome. Euſeb. Hist. eccleſ. li. 5. ca. 25.But Ireny worte vntounto him in the name of the reſt of his brethren in Fraunce, letting him vnderſtand, that neither his predeceſſors did, nor he ought for ſuch things to diſſolue the bond of vnitie that was among the Churches.cap. 26. And thus we ſée, how that a good while after the Apoſtles daies, this doctrine commended héer to the Church of Rome was continued both there and elſe where throughout the Church, & that they would not ſuffer any neceſſitie to be decréed in ſuch obſeruances.
But now the new Romiſh Faith, doth beare another ſtamp, and is of another making.Mark. 7. 18. For where Saint Mark out of Chriſtes mouth ſaith, that meats defyle not the man, and alſo the Apoſtle, that the kingdom of God is not in ſuch things, which elſwhere he more plainly vttereth in theſe words:1. Cor. 8. 8. Meat doth not commend vsus to God, that is, to eat, or not to eat it maketh vsus no better, no holyer, no more acceptable to God. The Church of Rome on the contrarie, hath almoſt all her Religion conſiſting in ſuch outward obſeruances, all her holyneſſe in a maner is contayned within theſe few precepts,Coloſſ. 2. 21. Touch not, taſt not, handle not, and ſome other toyes like to theſe. What is more commonly taught among them, then that to eat fleſh, egges, or whitmeat at certaine times, is a grieuous ſinne, for any man of lawfull yeares and in health? Or for ſome at any time to vſe them? I know they wil aunſwer the Church hath otherwiſe commaunded, and therefore to take libertie to vſe theſe things, is a ſinne, becauſe the Church hath commaunded they ſhall not vſe them. But heer I might examin who gaue aucthoritie to the Church to ſay that is vnlawfull, that God ſaith is lawfull. Again I might ſhew, that not onelyonly in reſpect of the commaundement of the Church, theſe things are obſerued, but euen in reſpect of ſome other opinion in the meat it ſelfe, then ſhould be had, becauſe that more ſuperſtitiouſly they obſerue it then Gods precepts. But if they had regard onelyonly to the commaundement, doubtleſſe there is no man ſo ſottiſh, but would rather obey Gods expreſſe commaundement, then any decree of the Church. But theſe and ſuch other poynts I omit: onelyonly purpoſing in this place to ſhew, how great a piece of popiſh holines conſiſteth in theſe externall ſeruices, wherin the Apoſtle telleth vsus there is no ſuch thing. Holines in abſtaining from certaine meats, in keeping of certaine daies, in gadding to Rome, Ieruſalem or Compoſtell in pilgrimage, in holy bread, holy water, palme croſſes, aſhes, in hairecloth, in going barefoote, in not touching mony, in not ſpeaking, in bearing in thy boſome a piece of Saint Iohns goſpell, in Agnus deis or bleſſed grains hanging about thy neck, in a Monks cowle, in his bootes, and great holines in S. Francis breeches, in dead mens ſkuls, and bones, in the bloud of hayles, & many other ſuch like thinges. Whereby the true holines, whichis the obedience to Gods holy lawes, is almoſt forgotten, while men content themſelues, with this vnholy and trifling traſh, which for want of better ſtuffe, the Romiſh Church that now is, giueth her fooles in ſteed of bables to play withall, or make them paſtime. For why may I not accompt and proclaime them for fooles, who wil not ſo much as heare the wiſedome of God, and will ſo readely, nay ſo greedely follow ſuch follies of men? Or that wil imagine that God who is a ſpirit, and will be worſhipped in ſpirite and trueth,Iohn. 4. 24. can be any thing delighted in ſuch apiſh toyes? well to this ende hauehave I ſaide thus much, that we may ſee, that wheras the olde faith of the Romans, retayned a Chriſtian liberty, in the vſe of all theſe thinges, to be vſed according to the rule of charitie: the new Romiſh religion, bringeth them that beleeue and followe it, into a great bondage and ſubiection, to almoſt all the creatures, and make them to eſteeme themſelues vnholy, if moderately, without breach of any Lawe of God or offence of brethren, with thankeſgiuing as God appointeth, they vſe the ſame.