Concerning the Right Use of the Fathers in Controversies, Book 2 · Chapter 2

Concerning the Right Use of the Fathers in Controversies · Book 2 · Chapter 2

p. 11CHAP. II.

Reaſon 2. That the Fathers themſelves teſtifie againſt themſelves, that they are not to be believed Abſolutely, and upon their Own bare Word, in what they deliver in matters of Religion.

THere is none ſo fit to inform us, what the Authority of the Writings of the Ancients is, as the Ancients themſelves, who in all Reaſon muſt needs know this better than we: Let us therefore now hear, what they teſtifie in this Particular; and if we do indeed hold them in ſo high Eſteem, as we make profeſſion of, let us allow of their Judgment in this particular, attributing neither more nor leſs unto the Ancients, than they Themſelves require at our hands. St. Auguſtine, who was the Principal Light of the Latine Church, being entred into a Conteſtation with St. Hierome, touching the Interpretation before-mentioned, of the ſecond Chapter of the Epiſtle of Saint Paul to the Galatians; and finding himſelf hardly preſſed, by the Authority of ſix, or ſeven Greek Writers, which were urged againſt him by the other; to rid his hands of them, he was fain to make open profeſſion, in what account he held that ſort of Writers: p. 12**Auguſt. Ep. ad Hier quae eſt 19. T. 2. fol▪ 14. Ed. Pariſ. 1579. & inter Op. Hier. 97. T. 2. p. 551. Ego enim fateor Caritati tuae, ſolis eis Scripturarum libris, qui jam Canonici appellantur, didici hunc timorem, honorem que deferre, ut nullum eorum auctorem ſcribendo aliquid erraſſe firmiſſimè credam. Ac ſi aliquid in eis offendero litteris, quod videatur Contrarium Veritati, nihil aliud quam mendoſum eſſe codicem, vel interpretem non aſſequutum eſſe quod dictum eſt, vel me minime intellexiſſe, non ambigam. Alios autem ita lego, ut quantalibet ſanctitate, doctrina que praepolleant, non ideo verum putem, quia ipſi ita ſenſerunt, ſed quia mihi, vel per illos Authores Canonicos, vel probabili ratione, quod à vero non abhorreat, perſuadere potuerunt. Nec te, mi frater, ſentire aliquid aliter exiſtimo: prorſùs inquam, non te arbitror ſic legi libros tuos velle, tanquam Prophetarum vel Apoſtolorum, de quorum ſcriptis, quod omni errore careant, dubitare nefarium eſt.I confeſs (ſaith he) to thy Charity, that I only owe to thoſe Books of Scripture, which are now called Canonical, that Reverence and Honour, as to believe ſtedfaſtly, that none of their Authors ever committed any Error in writing the ſame. And if by chance. I there meet with any thing, which ſeemeth to contradict the Truth, I preſently think that certainly either my Copy is Imperfect, and not ſo Correct as it ſhould be; or elſe, that the Interpreter did not ſo well underſtand the Words of the Original: or laſtly, that I my ſelf have not ſo rightly underſtood Him. But as for all other Writers, how Eminent ſoever they are, either for Sanctity, or Learning, I read them ſo as not preſently to conclude, whatſoever I there find, to be True, becauſe They have ſaid it; but rather, becauſe they convince me, either out of the ſaid Canonical Books of Scripture, or elſe by ſome Probable Reaſon, that what they ſay is True. Neither do I think, Brother, that thou thy ſelf art of any other Opinion: that is to ſay, I do not believe that thou expecteſt that we ſhould read thy Books, as we do thoſe of the Prophets, or Apoſtles; of the Truth of whoſe Writings, as being exempt from all Errour, we may not in any wiſe doubt. And having afterwards oppoſed ſome other the like Authorities, againſt thoſe alledged by St. Hierome, he addeth, That he had done ſo, **Id. ibid. Quanquam, ſicut paulò antè dixi, tantummodo Scripturis Canonicis hanc ingenuam debeam ſervitutem, qua eas ſolas ita ſequat, ut conſcriptores earum nihil in eis om…nò erraſſe, nihil fallaciter poſuiſſe …on dubitem.notwithſtanding, that to ſay the truth, he accounted the Canonical Scriptures only to be the Books, to which (as he ſaid before) he owed that ingenuous p. 13Duty, as to be fully perſwaded, that the Authors of them never erred, or deceived the Reader in any thing. This Holy man accounted this Advice to be of ſo great Importance, as that he thought fit to repeat it again, in another place; and I muſt intreat my Reader, to give me leave to ſet down here the whole Paſſage at length.**Id. l. 11. contr. Fauſt c. 5. Quod genus litterarum, non cum credendi neceſſitate, ſed cum judicandi libertate legendum eſt. Cui tamen ne intercluderetur locus, & adimeretur poſteris ad difficileis quaeſtiones tractandas at que verſandas, linguae, ac ſtyli ſaluberrimus labor, diſtincta eſt à poſtreiorum libris excellentia Canonicae Auctoritatis Veteris & Novi Teſtamenti; quae Apoſtolorum confirmata temporibus, per ſucceſſiones Epiſcoporum, & propagationes Eccleſiarum, tanquam in ſede quadam ſublimiter conſtituta eſt, cui ſerviat omnis fidelis, & pius intellectus. Ibi ſi quid velut abſurdum moverit, non licet dicere, Auctor hujus libri non tenuit veritatem: ſed, aut Codex mendoſus eſt, aut Interpres erravit, aut tu non intelligis. In Opuſculis autem poſteriorum, quae libris innumerabilibus continentur, ſed nullo modo illi ſacratiſſimae Canonicarum ſcripturarum excellentiae coaequantur, etiam in quibuſcun que eorum invenitur eadem veritas, longè tamen eſt impar auctoritas. Ita que in eis, ſi qua forte propterea diſſonare putantur à vero, quia non, ut dicta ſunt, intelliguntur, tamen liberum ibi habet lector, auditorve judicium, quo vel approbet quod placuerit, vel improbet quod offenderit: & ideo cuncta ejuſmodi, niſi vel certa ratione, vel ex illa Canonica auctoritate defendantur, ut demonſ…retur ſive omnino ita eſſe, ſive fieri potuiſſe, quod v…l diſputatur ibi, vel narratum eſt, ſi cui diſplicuerit, aut credere voluerit, non reprehenditur. As for theſe kind of Books (ſaith he, ſpeaking of thoſe Books which we Write, not with Authority of Commanding, but only out of a Deſign of exerciſing our ſelves, to benefit others;) we are ſo to read them, as not being bound neceſſarily to believe them, but as having a liberty left us, of judging of what we read. Yet notwithſtanding, that we may not quite ſhut out theſe Books, and deprive poſterity of the moſt profitable labour of exerciſing their Language, and Stile, in the handling and treating of hard Queſtions; we make a Diſtinction betwixt theſe Books of Later Writers, and the Excellency of the Canonical Authority of the Old and New Teſtament; which having been confirmed in the Apoſtles time, hath ſince by the Biſhops, who ſucceeded them, and the Churches, which have been propagated throughout the World, been placed as it were upon a high Throne, there to be reverenced and adored, by every Faithful and Godly Ʋnderſtanding. And if we p. 14chance here to meet with any thing that troubleth us, and ſeemeth Abſurd, we muſt not ſay, that the Author of the Book was ignorant of the truth; but rather, that either our Copy is falſe, or the Interpreter is miſtaken in the ſenſe of the place; or elſe, that we underſtand not him aright. And as for the Writings of thoſe other Authors, who have come after Them, the number whereof is almoſt infinite, though coming very far ſhort of this moſt ſacred Excellency of the Canonical Scriptures; a man may ſometimes find in them the very ſame truth, though it ſhall not be of equal Authority. And therefore if by chance we here meet with ſuch things as ſeem contrary to the Truth, by reaſon perhaps of our not underſtanding them only; we have our Liberty, either in reading, or hearing the ſame, to approve of what we like, and to reject that which we conceive not to be ſo right. So that except all ſuch paſſages be made good, either by ſome certain reaſon, or elſe by the Canonical Authority of the Scriptures; and that it be made appear, that the thing aſſerted either really it, or elſe at leaſt, that it might have been; he that ſhall reject, or not aſſent to the ſame, ought not in any wiſe to be reprehended. Id. T. 2. Epiſt. 48 ep. 111. T. 3. l. 1. 3 de Trinit. c. 2. l. 3. praefat. l. 5 c 1. T 7. l. 2 contr. Creſcon. Gram. c. 31. &c. 32. l. 2. de Bapt. contr. Don. c. 3. l. 3. de Peccat. mer. & rem. c. n. c. 1. de Nat. & grat. c. 61. l. 4. contr. de ep. Pelag. c. 8. l. 1. contr. Julian. c. 2. l. de bon. perſever. c. 21.And thus far have we S. Auguſtine teſtifying on our ſide, (as well here, as in many other places, which would be too long to be inſerted here;) that thoſe opinions which we find delivered by the Fathers in their Writings, are grounded, not upon their bare Authority, but upon their Reaſons; and, that they bind not our belief otherwiſe, than ſo far forth as they are conſonant either to the Scripture, or to Reaſon; and that they ought to be examined by the one, and the other, as proceeding from perſons that are not infallible, but poſſibly may have erred.

So that it appears from hence, that the courſe which is at this day obſerved in the World, is not of ſufficiency enough for the diſcovery, and demonſtration of the truth. For, we are now in doubt, ſuppoſe, what the ſenſe and meaning is of ſuch a piece of Scripture. Here ſhall you preſently have the judgment of a Father brought, upon the p. 15ſaid place; quite contrary to the Rule S. Auguſtine giveth us, who would have us examine the Fathers by the Scriptures, and not the Scriptures by the Fathers. Certainly, according to the judgment of this Father, the Proteſtant, though a Paſſage as clear and expreſs, as any of the Canons of the Council of Trent, ſhould be brought againſt him, out of any of the Fathers, ought not to be blamed, if he ſhould anſwer, that he cannot by any means aſſent unto it, unleſs the truth of it be firſt proved unto him, either by ſome certain Reaſon, or elſe by the Authority of the Canonical Scriptures; and that then, and not till then, he ſhall be ready to aſſent unto it. So that according to this Account, we are to alledge, not the Names, but the Reaſons of Books; to take notice, not of the Quality of their Authors, but of the Solidity of their Proofs; to conſider what it is they give us; and not the face, or hand of him that gives it us; and, in a word, to reduce the diſpute, from Perſons, to Things. And S. Jerome alſo ſeemeth to commend unto us this manner of Proceeding, where in the Preface to his ſecond Commentary upon Hoſea, he hath theſe words: Then (ſaith he, that is, after the Authors of Books are once departed this life) we judge of their worth, Hier. Com. 2. in Oſeam, Praefat. Tunc ſine nominum dignitate, ſola judicantur ingenia; nec conſiderat, qui lecturus eſt, cujus, ſed quale ſit quod lecturus eſt, ſive ſit Epiſcopus, ſive ſit laicus, Imperator & Dominus, miles & ſervus, aut in purpura, & ſerico, aut viliſſimo panno jaceat, non honorum diverſitate, ſed operum merito judicabitur.and parts only; not conſidering at all the Dignity of their Name: and the Reader hath regard only to what he reads, and not to the Author whoſe it is. So that whether he were a Biſhop, or a Lay-man; a General and a Lord, or a common Souldier, and a Servant; whether he lie in Purple and in Silk; or in the vileſt, and courſeſt rags; he ſhall be judged, not according to his degree of honour, but according to the merit and worth of his Works. Now he here ſpeaks either of matter of Right, or of Fact: and his meaning is, that either we ought to take this courſe in our Judgments; or elſe it is a plain Affirmation, that it is the practice of the World ſo to do. If his words are to be taken in p. 16the firſt ſenſe, he then clearly takes away all Authority from the bare Names of Writers, and ſo would have us to conſider the Quality only, and weight of their Writings, that is to ſay, their Reaſons, and the force of the Arguments they uſe. If he be to be underſtood in the ſecond ſenſe, he ſeemeth not to ſpeak truth, it being evident, that the ordinary courſe of the world is, to be more taken with the titles and names of Books, than with the things therein contained. But ſuppoſing however, that this was S. Hieroms meaning; we may notwithſtanding very ſafely believe, that he approveth of the ſaid courſe; for as much as having this occaſion of ſpeaking of it, he doth not at all reprehend it. If therefore thou haſt any mind to ſtand to his judgment, lay me aſide the Names of Auguſtine, and of Hierome, of Chryſoſtome, and of Cyril; and forget for this once the Rochet of the firſt, and the Chair of the ſecond, together with the Patriarchal Robe of the two laſt: and obſerve what they ſay, and not what they were: the ground and reaſon of their opinions; and not the dignity of their perſons. But that which makes me very much wonder, is, that ſome of thoſe who have been the moſt converſant in Antiquity, ſhould trouble themſelves in ſtuffing up their Books with declamatory expreſſions,Card. Perron, of the Euchariſt. Aut. 20. in praiſe of the Authors they produce; not forbearing to recount to you ſo much as the Nobleneſs of their Extraction, the choiceneſs of their Education, the gallantry of their Parts, the eminency of their See, and the greatneſs of their State. This manner of writing may perhaps ſuit well enough with the precepts of Rhetorick: but ſure I am, that it agreeth ill enough with S. Hierom's rule, which we gave you a little before. But let us now obſerve, out of ſome other more clear, and expreſs paſſages of his, what the judgment of this great Ariſtarchus, and Cenſor of Antiquity hath been, touching this Point.**Hier. ep 62. ad Theoph. Alex. Scio me aliter habere Apoſtolos; aliter reliquos tractatores: illos ſemper vera dicere; iſtos in quibuſdam, ut homines, errare. I know (ſaith he, writing to Theophilus, Patriarch of Alexandria) that I place the Apoſtles in a diſtinct rank from all other Writers: for as p. 17for them, they always ſpeak truth: but as for thoſe other, they erre ſometimes, like Men as they were. What could he have ſaid more expreſly, in confirmation of our Aſſertion before laid down?**Id. ep. 65. ad Pamm. & Oceanum. Erraverunt in ſide alii, tam Graeci, quàm Latini, quorum non neceſſe eſt proferre nomina, ne videamur eum, non ſui merito, ſed aliorum errore defendere. There are others (ſaith he) both Greeks, and Latins, who have erred alſo in Points of Faith; whoſe Names I need not here ſet down leſt I might ſeem to defend Origen by the Errors of others, rather than by his own Worth. How then can we confide in them, unleſs we examine their Opinions by their Reaſons?aaId. ibid. Sic eum legam, ut caeteros; quia ſic erravit, ut caeteri. I ſhall (faith the ſame Author) read Origen, as I read others, becauſe I find he hath erred, in like manner as they have done. And in another place, ſpeaking in general of Eccleſiaſtical Writers, that is, of thoſe which We now call Fathers, and of the Faults and Errors that are found in their Books;bbHier. l. 2. Apol, contr. Ruff. Fieri enim poteſt, ut vel ſimpliciter erraverint, vel alio ſenſu ſcripſerint, vel à Librariis imperitis eorum paulatim ſcripta corrupta ſint; vel certè antequàm in Alexandria quaſi daemonium meridianum Arius naſceretur, innocenter quaedam, & minùs cautè loquuti ſunt, & quae non poſſint perverſorum hominum calumniam declinare. It may be (ſaith he) that either they have erred out of meer ignorance, or elſe, that they wrote in ſome other Senſe than we underſtand them; or, that their Writings have by degrees been corrupted, through the ignorance of the Tranſcribers; or elſe, before the appearing of that impudent Devil Arius in the World, they let ſome things fall from them innocently, and not ſo warily as they might have done, and ſuch as can hardly eſcape the Cavils of wrangling Spirits. Which Paſſage of his is a very excellent and remarkable one, and containeth in it a brief, yet a clear and full Juſtification of the greateſt part of what we have hitherto delivered in this our Diſcourſe. Do but think therefore with how much circumſpection we are to read and to weigh theſe Authors, and how careful we ought to be in examining, in their Books, whether there be not either ſome fault committed by the Tranſcriber, or ſome obſcurity in the Expreſſion, or ſome negligence in the Conception, or laſtly, ſome error in the Propoſition. In another place, having ſet down the Opinions page missing p. 20As for their Expoſitions, he reſuſeth them openly, whenſoever they do not pleaſe him. Thus doth he find fault with the Expoſition which is given by the greateſt part of the Fathers, of the Word Iſrael; which they will have to ſignifie, A Man ſeeing God: mmHier. Tradit. Hebr. Quamvis igitur grandis Auctoritatis ſint, & eloquentiae, & ipſorum umbra nos opprimat, qui, Iſrael, virum, ſive mentem videntem Deum, tranſ…lerunt; nos magis Scripturae, & Angeli, & Dei, qui ipſum Iſrael vocavit, auctoritate ducimur, quàm …ujuſlibet eloquentiae ſaecularis.Notwithſtanding that thoſe who interpret it thus, are Perſons of very great both Authority and Eloquence, and whoſe very ſhadow (ſaith he) in ſufficient to bear us down; yet cannot we chuſe but follow the Authority of the Scriptures, and of the Angel, and of God, who gave this Name of Iſrael, rather than the Power of any Secular Eloquence, how great ſoever it be. And in his CXLVI Epiſtle, written to Pope Damaſus, he ſaith,nnId. ep. 146. ad Damaſ. Licet quidam ſuperſtitio…è magis, quàm verè, non conſiderantes textum Pſalmi, ex Patris perſona arbitrentur haec intelligi. That there are ſome, who not conſidering the Text, conceive Superſtitiouſly, rather than Truly, that theſe words, in the beginning of the XLIV Pſalm, E…ctavit cor meum verbum bonum, My heart is inditing a good matter, are ſpoken in the Perſon of the Father. And yet the greateſt part of thoſe who lived in the time of Arius, and a little after him, underſtood theſe words in the ſame ſenſe.

It was likewiſe the General Opinion, in a manner, of all Men, That Adam was buried upon Mount Calvary, and in the very ſame place where our Saviour Chriſt was crucified: And yet S. Hierome ooHier. in loc. Hebr. Euſeb. & Com 4. in Mat.rejecteth this Opinion, and which is more, he makes himſelf merry with it, without any ſcruple at all. So likewiſe, there were ſome among the afore-named Ancient Fathers, who out of a Pious Affection which they bare to S. Peter, maintained, ppHilar. in Mat. Can. 31.That he denied not God, but Man; and that the ſenſe of the Words of his Denial is, I know not him to be a Man ▪ for I know that he is God. qqHier. Com 4. in Mat. in c. 26. Hoc quam frivolum ſit, pruden… Lector intelligit, fi de…endunt Apoſtolum, ut Deum mendacii reum faciant, &c.The Intelligent Reader (ſaith the ſame S. Hierome) will eaſily perceive, how idle and frivolous a thing this is, to accuſe our Saviour as guilty p. 21of a Lie, by excuſing his Apoſtle. For, if S. Peter did not deny him, our Saviour muſt neceſſarily then have lied, when he ſaid unto him, Verily I ſay unto thee, &c. rrId. Com. XI. in Ezech. in Praefat. Ambroſ. l. 2. de fid. ad Grat.He takes the ſame liberty alſo in reprehending S. Ambroſe, who underſtands by Gog, ſpoken of in the Prophet Ezechiel, the Nation of the Gothes: neither do thoſe other Fathers ſcape his Laſh; who pleaſing themſelves too much with their Allegories,Hier. in Eſai. Comm. X. take Boſra in Iſaiah, for the Fleſh, whereas it ſignifies a Fortreſs. I might here produce very many the like Paſſages, but theſe few ſhall now ſerve as a Taſte onelyonly: For who ſeeth not by this time, that theſe Holy Men took not the Fathers who went before them, for the Judges, or Arbitrators, touching the Opinions of the Church? and that they did not receive their Teſtimonies and Depoſitions, as Oracles, but reſerved the Right, which S. Auguſtine alloweth to every Man, of examining them by the Rule of Reaſon, and of the Scripture. Neither are we to take any notice at all of S. Hierome, when he ſeems to except out of this number, the Writings of Athanaſius, and of S. Hilary; writing to Laeta, and telling her, That her Daughter Paula might walk ſecurely, and with firm footing, by the Epiſtles of the one, and the Books of the other; and therefore he counſelleth herſſHier. ep. 7. ad Laet. Illorum tractatibus, illorum delectetur ingeniis, in quorum libris pietas fidei non vacillat Caeteros ſic legat, ut magis judicet, quàm ſequatur. to take delight in theſe Mens Writings; foraſmuch as in their Books the Piety of Faith wavereth not: And as for all other Authors, ſhe may read them; but rather to paſs her judgment upon them, than to follow them. For, firſt of all, although perhaps there ſhould be ſome Piece of a Father, that ſhould have no Error at all in it, (as queſtionleſs there are many ſuch) yet would not this render the Authority of the ſame Infallible. How many ſuch Books are there, even of the Moderns, wherein neither the one Party, nor the other, hath been able to diſcover any the leaſt Error in matter of Faith? And yet, I ſuppoſe, no Man will preſently conclude from hence, that we ought to admit of theſe Authors as Judges of our Faith. A Man may there find p. 14duplicate page p. 15duplicate page p. 16duplicate page p. 17duplicate page p. 18of ſeveral Authors, touching a certain Queſtion that had been propoſed unto him, that ſo the Reader might make choice of the beſt; he gives this Reaſon of his ſo doing:ccId. ep. 15. 2. Nec. juxta Pythagorae diſcipulos, praejudicata doctoris opinio, ſed doctrinae ratio ponderanda eſt. Becauſe (ſaith he) we ought not, according to the Example of Pythagoras his Scholars, to have an eye to the Prejudicated Opinion of the Propoſer, but rather the Reaſon of the Thing Propoſed: Which words of his do ſufficiently confirm the Senſe which we have formerly given of that Paſſage of his, in the Preface to his ſecond Commentary upon Hoſea. He preſently afterwards adds; ddId. ibid. Meum propoſitum eſt, antiquos legere, probare ſingula, retinere quae bona ſunt, & à ſide Eccleſiae Catholicae non recedere.My purpoſe is to read the Ancients, to prove all things, and to hold faſt that which is good, and not to depart from the Faith of the Catholick Church; according to the Rule which he hath commended unto us, in his LXXVI Epiſtle, where he adviſeth useeId. ep. 76. ad Tranquil. Ego Origenem propter Eruditionem ſic interdum legendum arbitror, quomodo Tertullianum, Novatum, Arnobium, Apollinarium, & nonnullos Eccleſiaſticos ſcriptores, Graecos pariter, & Latinos, ut bona …orum eligamus, vitemú que contraria; juxta Apoſtolum dicentem, Omnia probate; quod bonum est tenete. to read Origen, Tertullian, Novatus, Arnobius, Apollinaris, and ſome other of the Eccleſiaſtical Writers; but with this caution, that we ſhould make choice of that which is good, but take heed of embracing that which is not ſo; according to the Apoſtle, who bids us prove all things, but hold faſt onelyonly that which is good. And this is the courſe he conſtantly takes, cenſuring, with the greateſt Liberty that may be, the Opinions and Expoſitions of all thoſe who went before him. He gives you freely his Judgment of every one of them; affirming,eeHier. ep. 13. ad Paulin. B. Cyprianus de ſcripturis divinis nequaquam diſſeruit. Inclyto Victorinus martyrio coronatus, quod intelligit, eloqui non poteſt. Lactantius utinam tam noſtra confirmare potuiſſet, quàm facile aliena deſtruxit. Arnobius inaequalis, & nimius eſt, & abſque operis ſui partitione conſuſus. S. Hil…rius Gallicano cothurno attollitur, & longis interdum periodis involvitur, & à lectione ſimpliciorum fratrum procul eſt. That Cyprian ſcarcely touched the Scriptures at all; that Victorinus was not able to expreſs his own Conceptions; that Lactantius is not ſo happy in his Endeavours of proving our Religion, as he is in overthrowing that of others; that Arnobius is very uneven and confuſed, and too luxuriant; that S. Hilary is too ſwelling, p. 19and incumbred with too long Periods. I ſhall not here ſet before you what he ſaith of Origen, Theodorus, Apollinaris, and of the Chiliaſts; whoſe profeſſed Enemy he hath declared himſelf, and whom he reproveth very ſharply upon all Occaſions, whenſoever they come in his way; and yet himſelf confeſſeth them all to have been Men of very great Parts; giving even Origen himſelf, who is the moſt dangerous Writer of them all, this Teſtimony,ffHier. Praefat. in lib. de Nom. Hebr. Quem (Origenem) poſt Apoſtolos Eccleſiarum Magiſtrum nemo niſi imperitus negat. That none but the ignorant can deny, but that, next to the Apoſtles, he was one of the greateſt Maſters of the Church. But that I may not meddle with any, but ſuch whoſe Names have never been cried down in the Church; do but mark how he deals with Rhetitius Auguſtudunenſis, an Eccleſiaſtical Author:ggId ep. 133. ad Marcel. Innumerabilia ſunt, quae in illius mihi Commentariis for dere viſa ſunt. There are (ſaith he) an infinite number of things in his Commentaries, which in my judgment, ſhew very mean and poor: and a little after,hhId. ibid. Sed tam male videtur exiſtimaſſe de caeteris ut nemo poſſit de ejus erroribus judicare. He ſeemeth to have had ſo ill an Opinion of others, as to have a conceit, that no Man was able to judge of his Faults. He taketh the ſame liberty alſo, in rejecting their Opinions and Expoſitions; and ſometimes not without paſſing upon them very tart Girds too. He juſtifies the Truth of the Hebrew Text of the Old Teſtament, and findeth an infinite number of Faults in the Tranſlation of the LXX, againſt almoſt the general conſent not onelyonly of the more Ancient Writers, but alſo of thoſe too who lived in his own time, who all eſteemed it as a Divine Piece.iiHier. Praefat. in Pentateuch ad Deſid. Neſcio quis primus Auctor Septuaginta Cellulas Alexandriae mendacio ſuo exſtruxerit. He ſcoffs at the conceit of thoſe Men who believed, that the LXX Interpreters, being put ſeverally into Seventy diſtinct Cells, were inſpired from above, in the Tranſlation of the Bible.kkId. Comm. 10. in Ezech. Habitent que in Septuaginta Cellulis Alexandrini Phari, ne vela perdant de navibus, & funium detrimenta ſuſpirent. Let them keep, (ſaith he, ſpeaking of his own Backbiters, by way of ſcorn) with all my heart, in the Seventy Cells of the Alexandrian Pharos, for fear they ſhould loſe their Sails of their Ships, and be forced to bewail the loſs of their Cordage. p. 20duplicate page p. 21duplicate page p. 22perhaps the ſame Truth, (as S. Auguſtine ſaith a little before;) but it will not be of equal Authority with that of the Canonical Books.Baron. Annal. an. 369. Sect. 24. Beſides, as Cardinal Baronius hath obſerved, this laſt Paſſage of S. Hierome ought to be underſtood onelyonly in the Point touching the Holy Trinity, concerning which, there were at that time great Diſputes betwixt the Catholicks and the Arians: for otherwiſe, if his words be taken in a General ſenſe, they will be found to be falſe, as to S. Hilaries particular, who hath had his failings in ſome certain things, as we ſhall ſee hereafter. In a word, although S. Hierome were to be underſtood as ſpeaking in a General ſenſe (as his words indeed ſeem to bear) yet might the ſame thing poſſibly happen to him here, which he hath obſerved hath oftentimes befallen to others; namely, to be miſtaken in his Judgment. For we are not to imagine, that he would have us have a greater Opinion of him, than he himſelf hath of other Men. And S. Auguſtine told him, as we have before ſhewed, that he did not believe that he expected Men ſhould judge any otherwiſe of him. And I ſuppoſe, we may very ſafely keep to S. Auguſtine's Judgment, and believe with him, that S. Hierome had never any intention that we ſhould receive all his Poſitions as Infallible Truths; but rather, that he would have us to read and examine his Writings with the ſame freedom that we do thoſe of other Men. And if we have no mind to take S. Auguſtine's word in this Particular, let us yet take S. Hierome's own, who in his ſecond Commentary upon the Prophet Habakkuk, ſaith, ttHier. Com. 2. in Abac. Si quis autem his ſagaciora, & veriora repererit, illi magis explanationi praebete conſenſum.And thus have I delivered unto you my ſenſe in brief: but if any one produce that which is more exact and true, take his Expoſition rather than mine. And ſo likewiſe upon the Prophet Zephaniah, he ſaith,uuId. in Sophon. Si quis autem magis veriſimilia, & habentia rationem, quam à nobis ſunt diſſerta, repererit, illius magis Lector auctoritate ducatur. We have now done our utmoſt endeavour, in giving an Allegorical Expoſition of the Text; but if any other can p. 23bring that which is more Probable, and agreeable to Reaſon, than that which we have delivered, let the Reader be ſwaied by his Authority, rather than by ours. And in another place he ſpeaketh to the ſame purpoſe, in theſe words:xxHier. Com. in Zach. Haec ut quivimus, ut vires ingenioli noſtri ferre potuerunt, loquuti ſumus, & Hebraeorum, & noſtrorum varias opiniones breviter perſtringentes. Si quis melius, imo verius dixerit; & nos libenter melioribus acquieſcimus. This we have delivered according to the utmoſt of our poor Ability, and have given you a ſhort touch of the divers Opinions, both of our own Men, and of the Jews; yet if any Man can give me a better and truer Account of theſe Things, I ſhall be very ready to embrace the ſame. Is this now, I would fain ask, to bind up our Tongues, and our Belief, ſo, as that we have no further liberty of refuſing what he hath once laid down before us, or of ſearching into the Reaſons and Grounds of his Opinions? No, let us rather make uſe of that Liberty which they all allow us: let us hearken to them, but (as they themſelves adviſe us) when what they deliver is grounded upon Reaſon, and upon the Scriptures. If they had not made uſe of this Caution, in the reading of thoſe Authors who went before them, the Chriſtian Faith had now been wholly ſtuffed up with the Dreams of an Origen, or an Apollinaris, or ſome other the like Authors: But neither the Excellency of the Doctrine, nor yet the Reſplendency of their Holy Life, which no Man can deny to have ſhone forth very eminently in the Primitive Fathers, were able ſo to dazle the eyes of thoſe that came after them, as that they could not diſtinguiſh betwixt that which was Sound and True in their Writings, and that which was Trivial and Falſe. Let not therefore the Excellency of thoſe who came after them, hinder us either from paſſing by, or even rejecting their Opinions, when we find them built upon weak Foundations. You ſee they confeſs themſelves, that this may very poſſibly be: we ſhould therefore be left utterly inexcuſable, if after this their ſo charitable Admonition, we ſhould ſtill believe all they p. 24ſay, without examining any thing.yyAmbroſ. l. 7. ep 47. Ego enim beneficio annumero, ſiquis mea legent ſcripta dicat mihi, quo videatur moveri. Primùm, quia & in iis quae ſcio, falli poſſum. Multa autem praetereunt, mul ta quibuſdam aliter ſonant. I take it for a Favour (ſaith S. Ambroſe) when any one that readeth my Writings, giveth me an account of what Doubts he there meeteth withal: Firſt of all, becauſe I may be deceived in thoſe very things which I know. And beſides, many things eſcape us; and ſome things ſound otherwiſe to ſome, than perhaps they do to me. I ſhall further here deſire the Reader to take notice, how careful the Ancients were, in adviſing thoſe who lived in their own time, to take a ſtrict Examination of their Words: As for example, where Origen adviſeth, zzOrig. Hom. 2. in Ezech. Quaeſo audientes, ut diligenter attendant, & accipiant gratiam Spiritus, de qua dictum eſt, diſcretio Spirituum; ut probati Trapezitae facti, diligenter obſervent, quandò falſus ſim magiſter, quando vero praedicem, quae ſunt pietatis, ac veritatis.That his Auditors ſhould prove whatſoever he delivered, and that they ſhould be attentive, and receive the Grace of the Spirit, from whom proceedeth the diſcerning of Spirits; that ſo, as good Bankers, they might diligently obſerve, when their Paſtor deceiveth them, and when he preacheth unto them that which is Pious and True. Cyrill likewiſe, in his Fourth Catecheſis, hath theſe Words: aaCyrill. Hieroſ. Catecheſ. 4. foreign.Believe me not (ſaith he) in whatſoever I ſhall ſimply deliver, unleſs thou find the things which I ſhall ſpeak, demonſtrated out of the Holy Scriptures: For the Conſervation and Eſtabliſhment of our Faith is not grounded upon the Eloquence of Language, but rather upon the Proofs that are brought out of the Divine Scriptures. If therefore they would not have thoſe who heard them ſpeak vivâ voce, to believe them in any thing, unleſs they had demonſtrated the Truth of it out of the Scriptures, how much leſs would they have us now receive, without this Demonſtration, thoſe Opinions which we meet with in their Books, which are not onelyonly mute, but corrupted alſo, and altered ſo much, and ſo many ſeveral ways, as we have formerly ſhewed?

p. 25Certainly when I ſee theſe Holy men on one ſide, crying out unto us, that they are Men ſubject to Errours; and that therefore we ought to conſider, and examine what they deliver, and not take it all for Oracle: and then, on the other ſide, ſet before my eyes theſe Worthy Maxims of the Ages following: to wit,**Serg. Patr. C. N. Mon. in ep. ad Cyr. Concil. VI. foreign; Tum: foreign. That their Doctrine is the Law of the Church Ʋniverſal: and, That we are bound to follow it, not only according to the ſenſe, but according to the Bare Words alſo: and that we are bound to hold all, that they have written, even to the leſt tittle: This repreſentation, I ſay, makes me call to mind the Hiſtory of Paul and Barnabas, to whom the Lycaonians would needs render Divine Honour, notwithſtanding all the reſiſtance theſe Holy men were able to make; who could not forbear to rend their garments, through the Indignation they were filled with, to ſee that ſervice paid to themſelves, which was due to the Divine Majeſty alone, running in amongſt them, and crying out aloud; Sirs, why do ye theſe things? We alſo are Men of like paſſions with you. For, ſeeing that there is none but God, whoſe word is certainly and neceſſarily True: and, ſeeing that, on the other ſide, the Word, whereon we ground and build our Faith, ought to be ſuch: who ſeeth not, that it is all one, as to inveſt Man with the Glory, which is due to God alone, and to place him in a manner in his Seat, if we make His Word the Rule and Foundation of our Faith, and the Judge of our Differences concerning It? I am therefore ſtedfaſtly of this Opinion, that if theſe Holy men could now behold from their bleſſed Manſions, where they now live in bliſs on high with their Lord and Saviour, what things are acted here below, they would be very much offended with this Falſe Honour, which men confer upon them, much againſt their Wills, and would take it, as a very great injury offer'd them; ſeeing that they cannot receive this Honour, but to the Prejudice and Diminution of the Glory of their Redeemer; whom they love a thouſand times more, than Themſelves. Or if, from out their Sepulchres, where the Reliques p. 26of their Mortality are now laid up, they could but make us hear their ſacred voice; they would (I am very confident) moſt ſharply reprove us for this Abuſe, and would cry out in the words of S. Paul; Sirs, why do ye theſe things? We alſo were Men, of like Paſſions with you. But yet what need is there, either of ranſacking their Sepulchers, and diſturbing their Sacred Aſhes; or, of calling down their Spirits from Heaven; ſeeing that their voice reſoundeth loud enough, and is heard ſo plainly, in theſe very Books of theirs, which we ſo imprudently place in that ſeat, which is only due to the Word of God? We have heard, what the Judgment was of S. Auguſtine, and of S. Hierome, (the two moſt eminent Perſons in the Weſtern Church,) touching this Particular: let us not then be all afraid, having ſuch examples to follow, to ſpeak freely our Opinions. But now, before we go any further, I conceive it will be neceſſary, that we anſwer an Objection, that may be brought againſt us; which is, that Athanaſius, S. Cyrill, and S. Auguſtine himſelf alſo, often times cite the Fathers. Beſides, what ſome have obſerved, that the Fathers ſeldom entered into theſe Liſts but when they were provoked by their Adverſaries; I add further, that when we maintain, that the Authority of the Fathers is not a ſufficient Medium, to prove an Article of Faith by; we do not thereby preſently forbid either the reading, or the citing of them. The Fathers often quote the Writings of the Learned Heathens, the Oracles of the Sibylls, and Paſſages out of the Apocryphal Books. Did they therefore think, that the…e Books were of ſufficient Authority to ground an Article of Faith upon? God forbid, we ſhould entertain ſo ill an Opinion of them: Their Faith was grounded upon the Word of God: But yet to evidence the Truth more fully, they ſearched into Humane Records; and by this Inquiry, made it appear, that the Light of the Truth, revealed unto Them, had in ſome degree ſhot its beams alſo even into the Schools of Men, how Cloſe, and Shady ſoever they p. 27had been. But, if they ſhould have produced no other, but Humane Authority, they would never have been able to have brought over any one perſon to the Faith. But after they had received, by Divine Revelation, the Matter of our Faith; it was very wiſely done of them, in the next place to prove, not the Truth, but the Clearneſs of It, by theſe little Sparks, which ſhot forth their light in the Spirits of Men. And for ſome the like Reaſon did S. Auguſtine, Athanaſius, Cyrill, and many other of them, make uſe of Allegations out of the Fathers. For, after that each of theſe had grounded upon the Authority of Divine Revelation, the Neceſſity, and Efficacy of Grace, the Conſubſtantiality of the Son with the Father, and the Union of the Two Natures in Chriſt; they then fell to producing of ſeveral Paſſages out of thoſe Learned Men, who had lived before Them; to let men ſee, that this Truth was ſo clear in the Word of God, as that all that went before them had both ſeen and acknowledged the ſame: The Conſideration whereof was both Pleaſing, and Uſeful unto them. For what can more delight a Faithful Heart, than to find, that the chiefeſt and moſt Eminent Perſons in the Church, had long ſince held the ſame Opinions, touching our Saviour Jeſus Chriſt, and His Grace, that We now hold at this day? But yet it does not hence preſently follow, that though theſe Holy men ſhould have met with theſe Articles of our Faith, in the Writings of their Predeceſſours only, without finding any Foundation of them in the Canonical Scriptures, they would notwithſtanding firmly have believed, and embraced the ſame, contenting themſelves with the Bare Authority of their Predeceſſours. S. Auguſtine profeſſeth plainly, that in ſuch a Caſe they might better have rejected them, and not be blamed for ſo doing neither; than have received them, unleſs they would incur the imputation of being over Credulous. For, it is a point of too much Credulity, to believe any thing without Reaſon: and He further affirmeth, that where men ſpeak without either Scripture, or Reaſon; their bare Authority is not p. 28ſufficient to oblige us to believe what they propoſe unto us. So that it hence appeareth, that Humane Teſtimonies are alledged, not to prove the Truth of the Faith, but only to ſhew the Clearneſs of it, after it is once well grounded. Now the Queſtion at this day betwixt us, and the Church of Rome, is not concerning the Clearneſs of the Truth of the Articles they believe, and preſs upon the World: but it yet lies upon them to prove, even the very Ground, and Foundation of them. Shew me therefore (will a Proteſtant here ſay,) either out of ſome Text of Scripture, or elſe by ſome Evident Reaſon, that there is any ſuch place as Purgatory; and that the Euchariſt is not Bread; and, that the Pope is the Monarch, and Head of the Church Univerſal: and then, I ſhall be very glad to try, if for our greater comfort we may be able to find, in the Authors of the Third, or Fourth Century, theſe Truths embraced by the Fathers of thoſe times. But, to begin with theſe, is to invert the Natural Order of things. We ought firſt to be aſſured, that the Thing is; before we make inquiry, whether it hath been believed or not. For, to what purpoſe is it to find, that the Ancients believed it, unleſs we find withal in their Writings, ſome Reaſon of this their Belief? And again on the other ſide, what harm is it to us, to be ignorant, whether Antiquity believed it or not; ſo long as we know, that the Thing is? And whereas there are ſome, who to eſtabliſh the Supream Authority of the Fathers, alledge the Counſel which Siſinnius, a Novatian, and Agellius, his Biſhop, gave of old to Nectarius, Archbiſhop of Conſtantinople, and by him to Theodoſius the Emperour;Sozomen. l. 7. c. 12. Hiſt. Eccleſ. which was, that they ſhould demand of the Arrians, whether, or not, they would ſtand to what the Fathers, who died before the breaking forth of their Hereſie, had delivered, touching the Point debated betwixt them: this is hardly worth our conſideration. For, this was a Trick only, deviſed by a ſubtil head, and which is worſe by a Schiſmatick; and conſequently to be ſuſpected, as a p. 29Captious Propoſal, purpoſely made to entrap the Adverſe party; rather than any free, and ingenuous way of Proceeding.

For, if this manner of Proceeding had been right, and good; how came it to paſs, that among ſo many Catholick Biſhops as there were, none of them all adviſed it? How came it to paſs, that they were ſo ignorant of the Weapons, wherewith the Enemies of the Church were to be encountred? How came it about, that it ſhould be propoſed only by a young fellow, who was a Schiſmatick too? And, if it were approved of, as right, and good Counſel; why did Gregory Nazianzene, S. Baſil, and ſo many other of the Fathers, who wrote in that Age againſt the Arrians, deal with them wholly, in a manner, out of the Scriptures? And certainly thoſe Holy men, beſides their Chriſtian Candor, which obliged them to this way of Proceeding, took a very wiſe courſe in ſo doing. For, if this Controverſie had been to be decided by the Authority of Humane Writers, I know not how any man ſhould have been able to make good that, which this Gallant ſo confidently affirmeth, in the place aforecited; namely, That none of the Ancients ever ſaid, that the Son of God had any beginning of his Generation; conſidering thoſe many ſtrange Paſſages that we yet at this day meet with, touching this Particular, in the Books of the Firſt Fathers: which is the reaſon alſo why the Arrians al…ledged their Teſtimonies; as we ſee they do, in the Books of Athanaſius, Hilary, and others of the Ancients, who wrote againſt them. But what need we inſiſt ſo long upon a Story, which is rejected by Cardinal**Sozomen. loc. citat. foreign. Baronius, as being an idle Tale deviſed by Zozomene, who was a Novatian, * Baron. Annal. Ann. 383.in favour of thoſe of his own Sect. The Counſel of Vincentius Lirinenſis, which he gives us in a certain little Diſcourſe of his, which is very highly priſed by††Gennad. in Catal inter Op. Hieron. Gennadius, is accounted by many men much more worthy of our Conſideration. For, having firſt told us, that he p. 30ſpeaks not of any Authors,**Vincent. Lirin. Common. cap. 39. Sed …orum duntaxat Patrum ſententiae conferendae ſunt, qui in fide & Communione Catholica Sanctè, Sapientèr, Conſtantèr viventes, docentes, & permanentes, vel mori in Chriſto fideliter, vel occidi pro Chriſto foeliciter meruerunt. Quibus tamen hac lege credendum eſt, ut quicquid vel omnes, vel plures, uno eodem que ſenſu manifeſtè, frequentèr, perſeveranter, velut quodam conſentiente ſibi magiſtrorum concilio, accipiendo, tenendo, tradendo, firmaverint, id pro indubitato, certo, rato que habeatur: quicquid verò, quamvis ille Sanctus & doctus, quamvis Epiſcopus, quamvis Confeſſor, & Martyr, praeter omneis, aut etiam contra omneis ſenſerit, id inter proprias, & occultas, & privatas opiniunculas à communis, publicae, & generalis Sententiae authoritate ſecretum ſit. T…m. 4. Bibl. PP. Save only of ſuch, who, having holily, wiſely, and conſtantly lived, preached, and perſevered in the Catholick Faith, and Communion, obtained the favour at length, either to dye faithfully in Chriſt, or elſe had the happineſs of being crowned with Martyrdom, for Chriſts ſake: he further addeth; That we are to receive, as undoubtedly true, certain, and definitive, whatſoever all the aforeſaid Authors, or at leaſt the greateſt part of them, have clearly, frequently, and conſtantly affirmed, with an Ʋnanimous Conſent receiving, retaining, and delivering it over to others, as it were joyntly, and making up all of them but one Common and Ʋnanimous Council of Doctors. But this Paſſage of his is ſo far from advancing the Supreme Authority, which ſome would attribute to the Fathers, in Matters of Faith; that on the contrary I meet with ſomething in it, that makes me more doubt of their Authority, than I did before. For, I find by this mans diſcourſe, that whatſoever his reaſon was, whether good or bad, he clearly appears to have had a very great deſire of bringing all Differences in Religion, before the Judgment ſeat of the Fathers; and to the ſame end, he labours to prove, with the ſame eagerneſs and paſſion, that their Judgment is in…allible in theſe Caſes. But in the mean time I find him ſo perplexed and troubled in bringing out that which he would have, as that it appears ſufficiently, that he ſaw well enough, that what he deſired, was not ſo agreeable to Truth. For he hath ſo qualified his Propoſition, and bound it in with ſo many Limitations, as that it is very probable, that if all theſe Conditions, which he here requires, were any where to be found, p. 31we might then ſafely, perhaps, rely upon the Writings of the Fathers. But then on the other ſide, it is ſo very difficult a matter, to meet with ſuch a Conjunction of ſo many ſeveral Qu…lifications, as that I very much doubt, whether we ſhall be ever able to enjoy this happineſs, or not.

For firſt of all, for the perſons of thoſe men, whoſe Teſtimonies we alledge, he requireth that they ſhould be ſuch, as not only Lived, but alſo Taught: and which is more, perſevered too, not only in the Faith, but in the Communion alſo of the Catholick Church. And then, for fear of being ſurpriſed, and taken at this Word, he comes over us with a new ſupply, and qualifies his words with a Reſtriction of Three Adverbs; and tells Us, that they muſt have lived, and taught Holily, Wiſely, and Conſtantly. But yet this is not all: for beſides all this, they muſt have either died in Chriſt, or for Chriſt. So that if they Lived, but did not Teach; or if they both Lived, and Taught, but did not Perſevere; or if they both Lived, Taught, and alſo Perſevered in the Faith, but not in the Communion; or elſe in the Communion, but not in the Faith of the Catholick Church; or if they yet Lived, and Taught Holily, but not Wiſely; or on the contrary, Wiſely, but not Holily; and if, in the laſt place after all this, having performed all the Particulars before ſet down, they did not at laſt die either in Chriſt, or for Chriſt; they ought not according to this mans Rule, be admitted as Witneſſes in this Caſe. Certainly he might have ſtopped here, and not have gone on ſtill with his Modifications, as he doth, limiting the number and the words of theſe witneſſes. For what Chriſtian ever made ſcruple of receiving the Opinion of ſuch a one, as had both Holily, Wiſely, and Conſtantly lived, and taught in the Faith, and Communion of the Catholick Church? For you might hence very well reſt aſſured, that whatſoever he had delivered, was True; and conſequently, Fit to be believed: for how could he have taught Wiſely, and Conſtantly, p. 32if he had taught any Falſe Doctrine? All tha he here therefore promiſeth us, is no more but this; That we ſhould be ſure not to be deceived, provided, that we believed no other Doctrines, ſave what were Holy, and True. This Promiſe of his is like that, which little Children are wont to make, when they tell you, that you ſhall never die, if you but eat always. Neither do I believe, that there is any man in the World ſo perverſe, and wilful, as not readily to aſſent to ſuch a man, as he aſſuredly knew to be ſo qualified, as Vincentius Lirinenſis would here have him to be. But ſeeing that it is neceſſary, that we ſhould firſt know the Quality of the Witneſs, before we hear him; it remaineth, in my judgment, that before we do ſo much as hear any of the Fathers, we ought to be firſt aſſured, that he was ſo qualified in every particular, according to Vincentius his Rule before layed down. Now I would very fain have any one inform me, how it is poſſible for us to know this? Who will aſſure us, that Athanaſius, St. Cyrill, or what other Father you pleaſe, both Lived, Taught, Perſevered, and Died Holily, Wiſely, and Conſtantly in the Faith, and Communion of the Catholick Church? This can never be done, without a moſt Exact Inquiry made, both into their Life, and their Doctrines, which is an Impoſſible thing, conſidering the many Ages that have paſſed, from Their times, down to Ours. But yet ſuppoſing, that this were a Poſſible thing, it would nevertheleſs be of no uſe at all, as to this Authors purpoſe. For, He will have us hear the Fathers, to the end, that we may be by Them inſtructed in the Truth. Now, that we may be rightly informed, whether or no, they were ſo Qualified, as is before required; we ought neceſſarily to know firſt of all, what the Truth is. For how is it otherwiſe poſſible, that we ſhould be able to judg, whether they have taught Holily, and Wiſely? And if you were before-hand inſtructed in the Truth, what need have you then to hear Them, and to deſire to be inſtructed in it, by Them? You may p. 33indeed make uſe of them, for the Illuſtration and Confirmation of that which you knew before; but you cannot learn any Truth from them, which you knew not before. And if you underſtand the Maxime before alledged in another ſenſe, and take this Wiſdom, and Holineſs, this Faith, and Communion of the Catholick Church, therein mentioned, for a ſhadow onelyonly, and the Superficies and Outward Appearance of theſe things, and for a Common and Empty Opinion, grounded meerly upon the Publick Voice of the People, and not upon an Exact Knowledge of the thing it ſelf, it will then prove to be manifeſtly Falſe; thoſe Perſons who have but the Outward Appearance only, and not the Reality of theſe Qualities, being no way fit to be admitted as Witneſſes, much leſs to be receiv'd as the Supreme Judges, in the Point of the Chriſtian Faith. So that this Propoſition is either Impoſſible, if you underſtand it as the words ſeem to ſound; or elſe it is Falſe, if you take it in any larger ſenſe. The like Exceptions may be made againſt thoſe other Conditions, which he there further requires, touching the Number and the Words of theſe Witneſſes: For he alloweth not the force of a Law to any thing, but what hath been delivered either by All, or elſe by the Greateſt part of them. If he here, by All, mean All the Fathers that ever have been, or but the Greateſt Part of them onelyonly, he then puts us upon an Impoſſibility. For, taking the whole Number of Fathers that ever have been, the Greateſt, and perhaps too, the Beſt Part of them have not written any thing at all: and among thoſe that have written, how many hath Time devoured? and how many hath the Falſe Dealings of Men either wholly ſuppreſſed, or elſe corrupted, and altered? It is therefore evidently Impoſſible to know, what the Opinions have been, either of All, or of the Greateſt Part of the Fathers, in this ſenſe. And if he reſtrains this All, and this Greateſt Part, to thoſe who appear at this day, either in their own Books, or in Hiſtorians, and the Writings of other p. 34men; it will concern us then to inquire, Whether or no, by All, he means All promiſcuouſly, without diſtinguiſhing them by their ſeveral Ages wherein they lived; or elſe, Whether he would have us diſtinguiſh them into ſeveral Claſſes, putting together in the ſame Rank all thoſe that lived in one and the ſame Age; and receiving for Truth whatſoever we find to have been held and confirmed by the greateſt part of them. Now both theſe ways agree in this one thing; namely, that they render the Judgment of the Chriſtian Faith wholly Caſual, and make it depend upon divers and ſundry Accidents, which have been the Cauſe of the Writings of the Fathers being either preſerved, or loſt. For, put the caſe that Vincentius ſhould have cleared, by this excellent courſe of his, ſome Point or other, which had been controverted; he muſt have thanked the Fire, the Water, the Moths, or the Worms, for having ſpared thoſe Authors which he made uſe of, and for having conſumed all thoſe other that wrote in favour of the Adverſe Party: for otherwiſe he ſhould have been an Heretick. And if we ſhould decide our Differences in Matters of Faith after this manner, we ſhould do in a manner as he did, who gave Judgment upon the Suits of Law that came before him, by the Chances he threw with Three Dice. Do but imagine now, what an endleſs labour it would be, for a Man either to go and heap up together, and run over all the Authors that ever have written, one with another; or elſe to diſtinguiſh them into their ſeveral Ages they wrote in, and to examine them by Companies. And do but imagine again, what ſatisfaction a Man ſhould be able to get from hence; and where we ſhould be, in caſe we ſhould find (as it is poſſible it may ſometimes ſo fall out, as we ſhall ſhew hereafter) that the Senſe and Judgment of this Greateſt Part ſhould prove to be either contrary to, or perhaps beſides the Senſe and Meaning either of the Scriptures, or of the Church. And again, how ſenſeleſs a thing were it to make the Suffrages of Equal Authority, p. 35of Perſons that are ſo Unequal themſelves, either in reſpect of their Merit, Learning, Holy Life, and Soundneſs of Faith: and that a Rheticius, whom S. Hierome cenſured ſo hardly a little before, ſhould be reckoned Equal with S. Auguſtine; or a Philaſtrius be as good a Man as S. Hierome? There is perhaps among the Fathers ſuch a One, whoſe Judgment is of more weight than a Hundred others; and yet forſooth will this Man have us to make our Doubles, and our Sons, to go for as much as our Crowns and Piſtols. And laſtly, What reaſon in the World is there, that although perhaps the Perſons themſelves were equal in all things, we ſhould yet make their Words alſo of equal force, which are oftentimes of very different and unequal Authority; ſome of them having been uttered, as it were, before the Bar, the Books having been produced, both Parties heard, and the whole Cauſe througly examined: and the other perhaps having been caſt forth by their Authors at all adventure, as it were, either in their Chamber, or elſe in Diſcourſe walking abroad, or elſe perhaps by the By, while they were treating of ſome other Matter? But our Friend here, to prevent in ſome ſort this later Inconvenience, requires, that the Word of this Greateſt Part, which he will allow to be fit to be Authoriſed, muſt have been uttered by them Clearly, Often, and Conſtantly; and then, and not till then, doth he allow them for Certain and Undoubted Truth. And now you ſee he is got into another Hold. For I would very fain be informed, how it is poſſible for us to know whether theſe Fathers, which we thus have called out of their Graves, to give us their Judgment touching the Controverſies in Religion, affirmed thoſe things which we find in their Writings, Clearly, Often, and Conſtantly, or not? If in this his pretended Council of Doctors, you will not allow the Right of giving their Suffrage to thoſe of whom it may be doubted, that they either expreſſed themſelves obſcurely, or gave in their Teſtimonies but p. 36ſeldom, or have but weakly maintained their own Opinion; I pray you tell me, whom ſhall we have left at laſt, to be the Judges in the Deciſion of our preſent Controverſies? As for the Apoſtles Creed, and the Determinations of the Four Firſt General Councils, (which are aſſented unto, and approved of by all the Proteſtant Party,) I confeſs we may, by this way of Trial, allow them as Competent Judges in theſe Matters. But as for all the reſt, it is evident, by what hath been delivered in the Firſt Part of this Treatiſe, that we can never admit of them, if they are thus to be Qualified, and to have all the afore-mentioned Conditions. We may therefore very well conclude, That the Expedient here propoſed by this Author, is either Impoſſible, or elſe not ſo ſafe to be put in practice; ſo that I ſhall rather approve of S. Auguſtine's Judgment, touching the Authority of the Fathers. I ſhould not have inſiſted ſo long upon the Examination of this Propoſal of his, had I not ſeen it to have been in ſo high Eſteem with many Men, and indeed with ſome of the Learned too.Perron, Caſſander, &c. For in earneſt, after S. Auguſtine and S. Hierome have delivered their Judgments, it matters not much what this Man ſhall have believed to the contrary. But yet, before we finiſh this Point, let us a little examine this Author, both by S. Auguſtine's, and by his own Rule before laid down. S. Auguſtine thinks us not bound to believe the Saying of any Author, except he can prove the Truth of it unto us, either by the Canonical Scriptures, or elſe by ſome Probable Reaſon. What Text of Scripture, or what Reaſon hath this Man alledged, to prove the Truth of what he hath propoſed? So that, whatſoever his Opinion be, he muſt not take it amiſs, if, according to the Advice and Practice of S. Auguſtine, we take leave to diſſent from him: eſpecially, conſidering we have ſo many Reaſons to reject That, which he without any Reaſon given, would have us to receive. And thus you ſee, that according to the Judgment of S. Auguſtine, p. 37the Saying of this Vincentius Lirinenſis, although you ſhould reckon him among the moſt Eminent of the Fathers, doth not at all oblige us to give our Aſſent unto it. And yet you will find, that his Teſtimony would be yet of much leſs force and weight, if you but examine the Man by his own Rule. For, according to him, we are not to hearken to the Fathers, except they both Lived and Taught Holily and Wiſely, even unto the hour of their Death. Who is there now that will paſs his word for him, that he himſelf was one of this number? Who ſhall aſſure us, that he was not either an Heretick himſelf, or at leaſt a Favourer of Hereticks? For, is it not evident enough, that he favoured the Semipelagians, who at that time ſwarmed in France, railing againſt the very Name and Memory of S. Auguſtine; and who were condemned by the whole Church? Who may not eaſily ſee this, by his manner of Diſcourſe in his aaVinc. Lirin. in Comm 2. c. 43.Commonitorium, tending this way; where he ſeems to intimate unto us under hand, That Proſper and Hilary had unjuſtly ſlandered them; and that Pope bbCeleſtin. apud Aug. l. 2. contr. Pelag. & Celeſt. c. 3.Celeſtine, who alſo wrote againſt them, had been miſinformed? And may not he alſo be ſtrongly ſuſpected to have been the Author of thoſe Objections made againſt Proſper, which are called,ccProſper. Reſp. ad Object. Vincent. Objectiones Vincentianae, Vincent's Objections? The great Commendations alſo which are given him byddGennad. in Catal. in Ruff. inter Op. Hier. Gennadius, very much confirm this ſuſpicion; it being clear, that this Author was of the ſame Sect, as appears plainly by the great account he makes of Ruffinus, a Prieſt of Aquileia, who was the Grand Patriarch of the Pelagians; ſaying of him, That he was not the leaſt part of the Doctors of the Church: Tacitely alſo taxing S. Hierome, his Adverſary, and calling him, A Malicious Slanderer; as alſo by the Judgment which he gives of S. Auguſtine, who was Flagellum Pelagianorum, The Scourge of the Pelagians, paſſing this inſolent Cenſure upon him, and ſaying, eeGennad. ubi ſupra.That in ſpeaking ſo much, it had hapned to him, what p. 38the Holy Ghoſt hath ſaid by Solomon, to wit, ffProv. 10. 19.Prov 10:19That in the multitude of words there wanteth not ſin. So that I cannot ſufficiently wonder at the Boldneſs of Cardinal Perron, who when he hath any occaſion of alledging this Author, ordinarily calleth him Saint Vincent de Lerins, Saint Vincent of Lerius; thus, by a very ill example, ggDu Perron, en la Repliq. au Roy de la Grand Brit. paſſim.Canonizing a Perſon who was ſtrongly ſuſpected to have been an Heretick. Since therefore he was ſuch a one, why ſhould any one think it ſtrange, that he ſhould ſo much cry up the Judgment and Opinions of the Fathers; ſeeing that there is no Man but knows, that the Pelagians and Semipelagians had the better of it, by the citing Their Authorities, and laboured by this means to bear down S. Auguſtine's Name; and all this forſooth, only by reaſon that the Greateſt Part of the Fathers, who lived before Pelagius his time, had delivered themſelves with leſs caution than they might have done, touching thoſe Points which were by him afterwards brought into Queſtion; and many times too in ſuch ſtrange Expreſſions, as will very hardly be reconciled to any Orthodox Senſe? Yet notwithſtanding, ſhould we allow this Vincentius to have been a Perſon who was thus Qualified, and to have had all thoſe Conditions which he requireth in a Man, to render him capable of being hearkned to in this Particular; what weight, I would fain know, ought this Propoſal of his to carry with it, which yet is not found any where, in the mouth of any of all thoſe Fathers who went before him; who is alſo ſo ſtrongly contradicted, both by S. Auguſtine, and S. Hierome, as we have ſeen in thoſe Paſſages before alledged out of them; and who, beſides, is full of Obſcllre Paſſages, and Inexplicable Ambiguities?Vincent. Lirin. Common. 1. c. 39. ubi ſupra. So that, Ho… Le…ned and Holy a Man ſoever, he might be, whe…he… he were a Biſhop, Confeſſor, or Martyr, (which yet he was not) this Propoſal of his (according to his own Maxims) ought to be excluded from the Authority of Publick Determinations, and to be accounted of only as his own Particular Private p. 39Opinion. Let us therefore in this Buſineſs rather follow the Judgment of S. Auguſtine, which is grounded upon evident Reaſon; a Perſon whoſe Authority (whenever it ſhall be queſtioned) will be found to be Incomparably Greater than Vincentius Lirinenſis his: and let us not henceforth give any Credit to any Sayings or Opinions of the Fathers, ſave onelyonly ſuch, the Truth whereof they ſhall have made appear Evidently unto us, either by the Canonical Books of Scripture, or elſe by ſome Probable Reaſon.