The True History of Councils, Part 3 · Chapter 6 – Chapter 8
CHAP. VI. Of his Accuſations of my own Miſtranſlations and Miſtakes.
§ 1. OF theſe are two real Overſights which he nameth, committed by too much haſt and heedleſneſs: The one is, that I miſplaced [Vere] in the Tranſlation of a Speech of Theodorets; a groſs overſight I confeſs: The other, that I put [Epiſcopi] as if it had been the …tive caſe, when it was the Nominative plural; which alſo was a heedleſs overſight. And about the death of Stephanus, he noteth my miſtranſlating Calami; and I imagine yet he is ſcarce certain what it ſignified himſelf. As for his note of my uſe of [Scripture] about the Epheſine Council, I purpoſely kept to the literal Tranſlation, that none might ſay I did miſtranſlate it; but I never ſaid that by the Scriptures was meant the Bible.
§ 2. This Accuſer puts too great an honour on ſuch a Hiſtory as mine, which goeth through ſo many Ages and Acts, in noting ſo few, and ſuch little things. I never pretended to be as good an Hiſtorian as he is; yet I do not think that it was any thing but a ſlip of memory that made him put Euſtathius inſtead of Flavian, as kickt to death at Epheſus. And me thinks he that thus begins his Errata of his own Book [The faults that have eſcaped are almoſt infinite:] ſhould not for one falſe Comma of the Printers, have paſſed the foreſaid cenſure of me.
But doth not this Learned Hiſtorian know, how ordinarily the greateſt of them do charge one another with manifold Errours, and of far greater moment than theſe forementioned. How few Hiſtorians do not this? Yea what bitter cenſures doth he paſs himſelf on no lower Hiſtorians than Socrates and Sozomen? It would be tedious to give you the Inſtances that every ſuch Book affordeth. I ſee he valueth Labbe the Jeſuite. How oft doth he accuſe Hiſtorians of Errour, Ignorance, Malice, &c. e. g. de Anaſtaſio Biblioth. ſo eminent a Writer of the Popes Lives, yet [Errat Voſſius & ſiqui alii cum Anaſtaſio Presbytero, &c.] And even of that famous Hiſtory of the Popes, [Onuphria… Panuinius, Gerb. Voſſius, & plerique alii … conſent eſſe ab Anaſtaſio ſcriptam, Nicolai 1. Papae Vitam, & a Gulielm… S. R. E. Bibliothecario additas fuiſſe Ha…r. 2. & Steph. 6. P. Vitas: Verum Cardinalis Baronius iis refragatur eidemque auctori omnes illas aſcribit; ſunt quoque qui a Damaſo Papa, &c.] Here the greateſt Hiſtorians differ about one of the moſt noted Hiſtories.
Of Auguſtin's Works (To. 1. p. 129.) he tells you that Bellarmine tells us not what Edition he uſed: But it's certain he uſed not the Antwerp, or Plantinian Edition, which was the beſt, and the Original of all the reſt.]
P. 132. Rivet and Perkins are derided for diſowning ſome Epiſtles.
P. 135. Eraſmi, Riveti ſimiliumque ridetur a doctis cenſura (viz. de lib. Continent.) And I profeſs my ſelf leſs skilful in ſuch matters than Eraſmus.
Et ibid. Eraſmus & H…ſius Juliano opus illud tribuere videntur, Pamelius tanquam incerti Authoris allegat: Nos cum Lovanienſibus Bellarmino, aliiſque Catholicis Auguſtini eſſe cenſemus, nec tricae Riveti deterrent.
P. 136. Quaest. Vet. & Novi Teſt. non ſunt Auguſtini ut facile omnes conſentiunt: Quamvis ſub ejus nomine citatae reperiantur ab Epiſcopis Lutetiae Pariſ. An. 824. Congregatis & quibuſdam aliis.
Of Auſonius the Poet, p. 171. he ſaith, [Quam falſa ſint quae de eo ſcripſit Jo. Trithemius quivis vel ex ipſa lectione intelliget.
Of Mantuan, p. 173. [Ex Trithemii encomio haec dubio pro…ul omni obliteranda: [Q… metro Virgilium, Ciceronem proſa aequat, ne dicam ſuperat:] Sunt enim falſiſſima iis qui guſtum aliquem latinitatis habent.
Of Beda, p. 184. See what he ſaith of Will. Malmsbury, Mat. Weſtminſt. Veſſius and Baronius.
Of B…ethius, p. 204. Henorius Auguſtod.—ubi falſo narrat Mediolani interfectum fuiſſe—
P. 217. Plura adverſus Leunclavium, primum eorum editorem declamavit Jac. Billius (de Caeſario.)
De Claudio Scoto, p. 228. Tho. Dempſterus multa pro more ſuo indigeſta effudit—
De Gerſone, p. 565. Errat poſt Poſſevinum Maraccius qui Joan. hunc Monachum ordinis coeleſti—aſſerit—Idem quoque ex Patrologo eradendum.
See what he ſaith de Julio Aſricano, that the Annotationes eruditiſſ. in Euſeb. Eccleſ. Hiſt.—Opinioni noſtrae in pleriſque adverſantur.] I ſuppoſe he means that Valeſius which I wanted.
And de Juſtino Mart. Scaligerum erraſſe, &c.] Et p. 833. (inſigne mendum ex Trithemio, Geſnero, Simlero, Sexto, Poſſevino, Bellarmino, Miraeo, aliiſque propagatum—)
To. 2. p. 361. Smaragdos duos in unum confuderunt, Trithemius, Sixtus Senenſis, Poſſevinus, Bellarminus, Miraeus aliique paſſim—] Abundance ſuch charges tell us how much greater Errours are charged on the greateſt Hiſtorians, than Mr. Morrice chargeth on me, with the leaſt ſhew of probability.
How many ſcore of Hiſtorians doth Blondell cite, who he thinks have falſly told us of a Pope Joan?
What abundance of faults would Cauſabon have found in Baronius, if he had lived to go through him as he began? And I profeſs my ſelf much more ignorant in Hiſtory than Baronius.
It would be tedious to number all the groſs Errours that Voſſius citeth de ſcriptor. Graecis & Latinis; e. g. in the Later. p. 230. Hos duos confudit Trithemius—vid. quae habet de Fla…. Alcuino, p. 290, 291, 292. De Uſuardo, p. 295. cont. Gualterium & Baronium, Wicelium, p. 296. & cap. 32. de Turpino contra Trithemium & alios. Et cap. 33. de Walafr. Strab. Tritthenius vehementer errat—Et Laur. Surium Bellarmin. in Catal. & alios nonnullos in errorem induxit.
Vid. & quae de Aimoino, p. 308, 309. habet, & contra Poſſevinum, p. 310. & contra alios, 311. Et contra Baronium, Breulium, &c. 312. Et de Haimone cap. 35. contra Tritthenium, & de Rabano Mauro, p. 315. Et de Landulph. Sagace contra Caeſ. Orlandium. De Anaſtaſ. c. 35. p. 319. De Hin…maro contra Tritthenium, c. 36. p. 320. But I muſt not tire the Reader: Multitudes of ſuch Inſtances this one Author gives us: And how few Hiſtorians charge not others with Errours ſo much greater, and more than Mr. M. with any Truth accuſeth me of.
§ 3. As to his notes on my Titles of ſome Councils, it's paſt my memory, whether it was my careleſneſs, or (as I think) the Printer's Errour, to put [a Council at Aranſican, Toletan, Regienſe, for Concilium Aranſicanum, Toletanum, Rhegienſe.] If it was my act, I forgot that I had firſt put the Subſtantive in Engliſh. But he may oft find the ſame names uſed to his mind: And ſure it is no falſification of the Hiſtory.
§ 4. But he hath a far greater charge againſt me, that I did not apprehend the mind of the Council at Tours; why ſo? The words are [Nos vero ſiquos Lex perimi jubet, ſi cupiunt audire praeconem, volumus ut convertantur ad vitam: Nam perimendi ſunt oris gladio & communione privandi ſi relicta ſibi ſeniorum decreta obſervare noluerint, &c. Here he ſaith the meaning is, [The Eccleſiaſtical Laws do puniſh ſuch with perpetual Excommunications, yet this Council thought fit to mitigate it, &c.] The Queſtion is, Whether [Quos Lex perimi jubet, ſignifie Death, or Excommunication?] I take it to be Death, and that the Council ſaith [Though by the Law ſuch are to Die, if they will hear the Preacher, we will have them converted to Life: But ſo that if they will not be ſeparated, the Church Sword of Excommunication ſhall cut them off inſtead of Death.] My Reaſons why [Lex perimi jubet] ſignifieth Death, are from the expreſs foregoing words, [Quia etiam Lex Romana conſtituit, ut quicunque ſacratam Deo Virginem vel Viduam fortaſſe rapuerit, ſi poſtea eis de conjunctione convenerit, capitis ſententia feriantur. Item ſiquis, non dicam rapere, ſed attent are matrimonii conjungendi cauſa, ſacram Virginem auſus fuerit, capitis ſententia feriatur. Cum etiam in Chronicis habeatur de Virginibus Gentilium tempore, quae ſe deae Veſtae ſacraverant, poſtmiſſo propoſito & corrupta virginali gratia, Legali ſententia vivas in terra fuiſſe deſoſſas. If none of this ſignifie Death, I confeſs I underſtand not Latine. I thought the Council meant Death by [Lex perimi jubet,] but they would be more merciful; which I blamed them not for, but noted here what many other Canons inſtance, where they alſo puniſh murder but with keeping men from Communion, that this agreeth with ſome Sectaries Opinion. I leave Mr. M's. great skill in expounding Councils here to any equal Judge. But if I ignorantly miſtake in all this, and neither [Capitis ſententia feriantur] nor [Vivas in terra deſoſſas] ſignifie Death, but Excommunication, yet many other Canons after cited fully tell us of the Biſhops Clemency.
CHAP. VII. Mr M's. Expoſition of Church Hiſtory tryed by his Expoſition of my own words: And 1. Of his falſe ſuppoſition that I am only for a Church of one Congregation meeting in one place.
§ 1. IF ſo many repetitions of my Opinion cannot ſave Mr M. from ſo untrue a ſuppoſition of my ſelf, I muſt not too far truſt him, of the ſence of thoſe that he is as diſtant from as I. Yet this ſuppoſition running through all his book, ſhews that he wrote it againſt he knew not whom nor what. His foundation is becauſe I define a ſingle Church by Perſonal preſent Communion.
§ 2. I do ſo: And 1. Doth he think there is no ſuch thing as Chriſtians conjoyned for aſſembling in Gods ordinary worſhip, under the Conduct of their Proper Paſtors. I will not cenſure him ſo hardly as to think he will deny it. 2. Are theſe Churches or not. I ſuppoſe he will ſay, Yea. 3. But is there no Perſonal Preſ…nt Communion but in publick worſhip. Yes ſure Neighbours who worſhip God in divers places, may yet live in the Knowledge and converſation of each other; and may meet for Election of Officers, and other Church buſineſſes, and may frequently exhort, reprove and admoniſh each other, and relieve each other in daily wants; and many meet ſometimes by turns in the ſame place, where they all cannot meet at once: We have great Towns, (like Ipſwich, Plymouth Shrewſbury, &c.) which have many Pariſhes, and yet Neighbourhood maketh them capable of [Perſonal Communion in Preſence] as diſtinct from [Communion by Letters or Delegats with thoſe that we neither ſee nor know.] And we have many great Pariſhes which have ſeveral Chappels, where the People ordinarily meet yet per vices ſome one time and ſome another come to the Pariſh Churches. Have theſe no Parochial Perſonal Communion?
To the well-being of a Church, I confeſs I would not have a ſingle Church of the loweſt ſpecies have too many, nor too few: No more than whoſe Perſonal Communion ſhould be frequent in Gods publick worſhip. Nor ſo few as ſhould not fully employ more Miniſters of Chriſt than one. But to the Being of a Church, I only require that the End of their Aſſociation be Perſonal Communion as diſtinct from diſtant Communion by Letters and delegates. And by [Communion] I mean not only the Sacrament.
§ 2. It is in vain therefore to anſwer a book that goeth on ſuch falſe ſuppoſitions, and a man that will face down the world that I plead for that which I never owned, and ſo frequently diſclaim.
CHAP. VIII. Of his falſe ſuppoſition that I am againſt Dioceſan Biſhops, becauſe I am againſt that ſpecies of them which puts down all the Biſhops of ſingle Churches, and thoſe Churches themſelves.
§ 1. THis ſuppoſition goeth through almoſt all the book: In his preface he ſaith [The ſuperiority of Biſhops over Preſbyters is acknowledged by Catholicks, and Schiſmaticks & Hereticks, &c. and yet this Church hiſtory would have us believe the Contrary.] And ſo throughout.
§ 2. And yet to ſhew that he knew the Contrary in one place he confeſſeth it, and deſcribed part of my judgment, and ſaith that none will be of my mind in it, but it is ſingular to my ſelf: Yea I had in my Diſput. of Church Government, which he taketh on him in part to anſwer, and in my Treat. of Epiſcopacy which he alſo pretends to anſwer in part, told them of more ſorts of Biſhops than one that I oppoſe not, no not A. Biſhops themſelves: And one of them hereupon notes it as if I differed but about the name, ſubmitting to Dioceſans ſo they may but be called A. Biſhops. To whom▪ I anſwered that A. Biſhops have Biſhops under them, ſo that though I over and over even to tediouſneſs tell them it is the d…poſing of all the firſt or loweſt Species of Biſhops and Churches, and Conſequently all Poſſibility of true Diſ…ipline that I oppoſ…, and ſubmit to any that overſee many ſuch Churches without deſtroying them and their priviledges inſtituted by Chriſt] I ſpeak …ill in vain to them: Theſe true Hiſtorians face down the world that I write whole books to the clean contrary.