The Badges of Christianity, Book 1 · Chapter 20
Chap. 20. That orders are no Sccrament.
BY orders we must vnderstand the offices and ministry of the church, aLumb. sent. lib. 4, dist. 24 cap. 3as also Peter Lumbard doth. We confesse, when Christ led captiuity captiue, he gaue giftes vntounto men, bEph. 4, 11and ordained Some to be Apostles, some prophets, & some Euangelists, and some pastors and teachers for the repairing of the saint, for the worke of the ministry and for the edification of the bodie Ier. 7. 25.of Christ. By these he declareth his will vntounto vsus, he gathereth Luc. 10 16.togither his scattered sheep, and publisheth the glad tydings 2 cor. 5. 19. 10of saluation, as Ier. 7. I hauehave sent vntounto you all my seruants the Prophets, rising up earlie euerie date. And christ our sauiour saith, Luc, 10. He that heareth you, heareth me: and he that despiseth you, aespiseth me and he that despiseth me, despiseth him that sent me. And the Apostle Paule, 2. Cor, 5, teacheth, God was in Christ and reconciled the world to himselfe, not imputing their sins vntounto them, and hath committed to vsus the word of reconciliation: Now then are we Ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you through vsus we pray you in Christs stead to be reconciled to God. This we hold, this we beleeue, this we teach touching the degrees, orders, and offices of the ministry of the gospell.
But the popish orders of the Popish churches, bsentent. lib. dict. 24. cap. 1.they say are seuen, whereof some are greater and higher offices, some are lower, lesser, and inferiour. The greater are three, the office of Priest-hood to offer vp the sacrifice of the bodye and blood of Christ vponupon the Altar: of Deaconship, to assist the priests in all things which are done in the Sacramentes, to bring in the oblations, to set them vponupon the Altar, to couer it with cloathes, to beare the crosse, and to read the Gospell and Epistle to the people: of the subdeacons, to bringe the chalice and patten, to bring the cruet with water and the towell to the Altar, and to pour out water to wash their hands. These are their higher Offices aboue the rest, as the higher trees among the lower shrubs. The lesser orders are foure in number. First of dore-keepers, these receiue the keyes of the church doore to open the same. Secondly of readers, to reade the Bible to the people.
Thirdly of Exorcistes, to call vppon the name of the Lorde, ouer such as hauehave vncleane spirites, adiuring and coniuring them to come out in the name of god: which power of commaunding euill spirites is ceased in the Church. Lastly, A Colythes, to prepare and carry torches and tapers when the Gospell is read to the people, or the sacrifice is to be offered.
These seuen popish orders, or rather plaine disorders and consusions, we cannot receiue dReasons ren dred why orders are no Sacraments.into the number of Sacraments of the Church. For …, orders are so fruitefull, that this bird hath hatched seauen young ones. This Sacrament is so rich, so rank, so riotous, that it hath ingendered and brought forth seauen petty and pretty sacraments, and therefore these being numbred and patched vp to the sormer, we should hauehave 13. Sacraments. A goodly brood of a gallant egge. For if eueryevery one of these orders of doorekeepers, readers, exorsistes, Acolithes, subdeacons, deacons, and priests be Sacraments: we should multiply the number of Sacramentes according to the number of these orders, and so indeede of seauen, we should hauehave 13. Sacraments, which were a very disorderly order, or if you list to cal it, an orderly disorder.
And so Peter Lumbard maister of the Sentences, esent. lib. 4 …. 24. cap. 1calleth not orders a Sacrament as speaking of one, but Sacraments as speaking of many, saying, Orders are called Sacraments, because in receiuing of them grace is conferred, which is represented by those things that are there performed. Neither can they say they al make but one sacrament, sceing they are distinct offices one from another, diuerse in offices, in institution, in calling, in ordinatiō, in ceremonies, and in forme of consecration: so that they may by as good right and as great reason make baptisme and the Lords supper one sacrament, as all these orders so diuerse and distinct the one from the other.
Secondly, sacraments hauehave their institution from christ: orders hauehave not their institution from Christ to be Sacraments of the church: therefore orders are no sacraments. Nay as they are retained & vsed in the church of Rome, they are no ordinances or institutions of christ at all. For touching the osfices of priest-hood to offer vp the body of Christ for the quick and dead: of deacons to serue these Baals priests at their Idolatrous alters: of subdeacōs, of readers, and of the rest, they are not found in scripture, neither were ordained by the apostles, neither were they receiued into the church for many yeares after Christ and his Apostles. The new Testament as it doth acknowledge no other sacrificer and sacrifice but Christ, so it admitteth no priests, no priest-hood, but spitituall priests and a spirituall priest-hood to offer vp spirituall sacrifices of praise and thanksgiuing vntounto God, fReuel. 1. 6 1. Pet. 2. 5. 9as appeareth Reuel. 1. 6. Christ hath washed vsus from our sinnes in his blood, and made vsus kinges and priests vntounto God euen his father. And the Apostle Peter in his first epiftle chap. 2. saith, Ye also as liuely stones be made a spirituall house, an holy priest-hood, to offer vp spiritual sacrisices acceptable to God by Iesus Christ. And again afterward, Ye are a chosen generation, a royal priest-hood, an holy nation, a people set at liberty, that ye should shew forth the vertues of him that hath called you out of darkenesse into his marueilous light. Whosoeuer bringeth in another priest-hood then this, & maketh new priests, abolisheth as much as in him lyeth the priest-hood of Christ. Againe, what will they say, of offices and dignities in the Church greater then these, the office of pope, of cardinall, of patryarch, and the rest of that vnholy hierarchy? Will they discharge and cut off these from being sacraments, & aduance the baser orders of hedge priests and dombe deacons to so high a dignity? What? Do they abase and disgrace those greater places, and thinke their popes and cardinals not worthy of that honor and authority? or do they thinke this Sacrament to vile and base to agree to those princelike dignities of the church? Or dare they preferre their priest-hood, their readers, their decons, there doorekeepers, their dog-keepers, and the rest of that rabble before the pope dome, the cardinalship, the Patryarchship? Is not this high treson against their holy father, & petty treason against the cardinals and other of that generation? Lastly, Sacraments must hauehave an outward element and word of institutiō, as hath been often declared & proued: but their orders hauehave neither outward element, nor word of institution: therfore orders are no sacra. Seeing therfore they can shew no materiall signe added to the promise, nor gratious promise added to the signe: there can be no sacrament of orders to seale vp and assure any mercy of God granted vntounto vsus. To omit that reason, which we might … vponupon them, namely, that orders are peculiar & proper to the ministry, and are no sanctified instrument aply any general and common grace of the Church. Wherefore, asmuch as orders hauehave neither outward signe, nor promise of grace, nor institution from Christ, but disgrace the higher dignities of their Church, and ouerthrow their owne chosen number of seauen Sacramentes: we conclude necessarily from these premises that orders are no Sacrament.