The Novelty of Popery Discovered, Chapter 17
CHAPT. XVII.
The Noveltie of the Popish fiue Bastard Sacramentes.
FIrst, then, to cleare the Noveltie of this doctrine, set downe by the Councell of Trent, Sess. 7 can. 1. … 4.with such a dreadfull fulmination of a curse to the controllers thereof, if wee inquyre beside these two Sacramentes, to wit, Baptisme and the LORD'S Supper, whether they bee anie moe, which the Antiquitie of holie Scripture doeth countenance, and allow to bee true and proper Sacramentes of the Gospell, as having Christs institution, and beeing visible signes of invisible justifying grace, conferred on the receavers in the right vse thereof: then,Bessarion de sacram, Euchar. their owne Cardinall Bessarion, and Bishop of Tusculum, will tell vsus, saying, In the Gospell wee reade that …nelie these two Sacramentes, (sayeth hee) were delyvered to vsus plainlie.
Or if wee will aske at their Paschasius an Abbot,Paschasiꝰ de coena Domini. who lived about the 800 yeare of CHRIST, which are the Sacramentes of CHRIST, to bee found in His Church, hee will show vsus, That these are they onelie, to wit, Baptisme, and the Sacrament of the Bodie and Blood of CHRIST, without mentioning moe: which therefore Fulbertus, Fulbertus Epist. 1.Bishop of Chartres, calleth, duo vitae Sacramenta, or the two Sacramentes of lyfe and salvation.
Lyke-wyse, beside their owne Doctoures, if wee ascende higher to inquyre of the ancient Fathers, what are the proper Sacraments, which the Church then acknowledged,Aug▪ de symb. Augustine will tell vsus. That Baptisme,ad caetechim et de doct. Christ l. 3. c. 9. Cyprian l. 2. Epist. 1. ad Stephanum. and the LORD'S Supper, are these, saying, Haec sum Ecclesiae gemina sacramenta: or, these are the two Sacramentes of the Church, lyke two twinnes: In lyke-manner doeth Cyprian speake, saying, Then, at last, men may bee sanctified, and bee the children of God, si vtroque sacramento nascantur: that is, If they bee borne anew by both the Sacramentes, to wit, Baptisme, and the LORD'S Supper.
And if wee consult with Bellarmine himselfe, hee will showe vsus the reason, why both the auncient Fathers, and manie of their owne Doctoures, countenance no other Sacramentes, as properlie so called, saying,Bell. l. 1. de sacrā c. 9. The holie thing it selfe, which the Sacramentes of the new Law doeth signifie, is three-folde: 1. justifying grace, which is demonstrate as present, 2. the suffering of CHRIST, as the cause of that grace, and which is commemorate as bygone, and 3. eternall, lyfe the effect of that grace, and which is prefigured as to come: and concerning Baptisme, and the LORD'S Supper, the matter heerein is most evident, but concerning the other siue Sacraments, it is not so evident, (sayeth hee.)
Wherefore justlie did their owne Cassander say,Cassand. cōsult art. 13 as touching the seaven Sacramentes, It is certayne that the Schoole-men, and Romane doctoures, (sayeth hee) never thought that all of them, should bee called alyke properlie Sacramentes.
Therefore,Alexand…r Halen part. 4 q. 24. memb 1. as to confirmation, Alexander of Hales showeth, That it is no Sacrament of the Gospell properlie, because it wanteth CHRIST'S institution, and is of no greater Antiquitie, than the Councell of Milda,
Next,Cassander cōsult art. 13 concerning Marriage, as Cassander reporteth, Lombard denyeth that grace is thereby conferred: and Durand affirmeth, that it is nowayes properlie a Sacrament.Durand in l. 4. dist. 26. q. 3.
Thirdlie, as for pennance and confession, Hugo de sancto Victore, in expresse tearmes excludeth it from beeing a Sacrament, properlie of the new Law.Hugo de sac…m, Bell. de sacram. ordinis c. 5. §. acprimum.
Fourthlie, touching ORDOVRS, Bellarmine himselfe telleth vsus, That Episcopall Ordination, (which Durand showeth to bee all one with Presbyteriall) is denyed to bee a Sacrament, prop…r…e so called, not onelie by sundrie auncient Schoole-men, and Doctors of the Romane Church, but by these also who are more recent, as Dominieus à Soto, and others: whence hee conclude…h, saying, Wherefore, if Episcopall Ordination bee not a S…cram…nt, wee cannot p…oue out of Scripture, (sayeth hee) that Ordination is a Sacrament at all.
Last,Sua…. tom. 4 disp. 39. sect. 2 as for extreame vnction, the lesuit Suarez declareth, That Hugo, Peter Lombard, Bonaventure, Aleusis, and Altizidorus, fiue Famous and learned Doctors in the Romane Church, denye playnlie, that it was instituted by CHRIST, and consequentlie that it is no true Sacrament.
The peremptorie tyme, then, and author when this doctrine of seaven sacraments got foot in the Church, their owne Cassander specifieth, s…ying, Heerein surelie there is no contraversie, that there are two speciall Sacramentes of our salvation, wherein speciallie our salvation consisteth, and is apprehended by vsus: as speaketh Robertus Tuitiensis, and Hugo de Sancto Victore, to wit, Baptisme and the Sacrament of the Bodie and Blood of CHRIST: neyther shall yee finde anie who rashlie before Peter Lombards tyme, did set downe anie certayne, and definite number of Sacramentes: which tyme was about the 1140 yeare of GOD: and so the same i… but a verie late Noveltie.