The Growth of Error, Chapter 4 · Section 4
SECT. IV.
The Difference there is between the Engliſh and Foreign Socinians. The Foreign Socinians Repreſent the Principles Embraced by the Generality of the Engliſh, to be Heretical, tending to Mahometaniſm, and Judaiſm.
THE Engliſh Socinians do not make us ſo bad, but Socinus, and his Partizans abroad, are even with them, making their Caſe the ſame with the worſt of Hereticks, Mahometans, and Jews.
To clear thus much, I muſt ſhow what the Foreign Socinians hold, touching Chriſt's Divinity, and the Worſhip due unto him; together with the Repreſentation given of ſuch as do herein differ from them.
When Vujekus charged the Socinians with Mahometaniſm, Socinus in his Anſwer declares,Reſp. ad Praef. Vujek. p. 8. Ed. A. D. 1624. That they held Jeſus Chriſt to be that Man, who was by the Holy Ghoſt Conceived in the Womb of the Virgin Mary, and Born of her, that this Man is the only begotten Son of God, whom the Holy Scriptures Recommend unto us, nor is there any other beſides, or before him. To this Man is given, by God the Father, ſuch a Divine Power and Authority, that the Name of God and Divine Worſhip is Deſervedly and Neceſſarily, perſe, given unto him.
This is their Doctrine, the Foundation of their Religion, the Great and Glorious Myſtery of their Goſpel, without the Belief of which no Salvation can be had Although, (ſay they) Chriſt never Expreſly ſaid He was the true God, S…in. ubi ſ…p. p. 19.yet from what he has oft declared, it may Eaſily, yea Neceſſarily be inferred that He is; that is to ſay, as he is really and truly Inveſted with Divine Power and Authority— And there are ſeveral Texts in the Holy Scriptures which make it moſt clear, that not only the One God, p. 26.but that Jeſus Chriſt alſo, as he is diſtinguiſhed from that One God, is to be Adored with Divine Worſhip. Time would fail me to enumerate the many Texts, that are not only in the New Teſtament, but alſo in the Old, for the Worſhipping Jeſus Chriſt, as diſtinguiſhed from that One God, with Divine Adoration They then,ubi ſup. p. 27. who deny it to be Lawful to give Divine Worſhip to Two Gods, whereof One is Subordinate unto the Other, and wholly depends on him, may as well deny the Sun ſhines in the cleareſt Day, and do moreover diſcover their Ignorance of the Greateſt Myſtery of Chriſtian Religion, and if Treated with Rigor, muſt be Deprived of the very Name of Chriſtians—That they who are againſt rendring unto Chriſt Divine Worſhip or oppoſe the Invocating him, are to be Condemned for Hereticks, yea for worſe than Hereticks, in that truly they deny unto him the Care of the Church, which is the ſame, with their Denying him to be Chriſt.
This is the Notion they have Eſpouſed of Jeſus Chriſt, They Affirm him to be a True God, a True Subordinate God, entirely depending on that One, Moſt High God. A True God, becauſe this One God hath given to him Divine Power and Authority; or as they ſometimes Expreſs it, becauſe God hath by his Inhabiting Word, or Power, given to the Lord Chriſt a Faculty of Knowing all things, and an Ability to Relieve all Wants. This Divinity in Chriſt they make to be the Ground and Reaſon of their Adoration, and Invocation. They do alſo make God's dwelling in Chriſt by his Spirit, a Ground of Worſhip. Socinus, in the Defence of his Animadverſions, on the Theological Aſſertions of the Poſnan College, Cap. 8. p. 250, 251. Ed. A. D. 1618.againſt Gabriel Eutropius, tells us, To juſtify our Adoring Chriſt, it's ſufficient, that God doth in an Eminent manner, by his Spirit, dwell in him, ſpeak in him, give Anſwers, whence he is called the Image of the Inviſible God, and they who have ſeen Chriſt are ſaid to have ſeen the Father, and they who Adore him, do in him Adore the Father: If then the Iſraelites, who Worſhiped before the Ark of the Covenant, becauſe God ſhewed himſelf in it preſent to them, and as from his proper and peculiar Place, There gave Anſwers, and after a ſort There dwelt, were free from the Guilt of Idolatry, much more may we be ſo, tho' we Worſhip Chriſt, of whom the Ark was but a Type, or Shadow, and infinitly below him.
This way of Arguing, tho' uſed by a Man of Note amongſt our ſelves, was ſo turn'd by Vujekus, and Bellarmine, two Jeſuits, againſt Socinus, as to Confound him— That Chriſt is worthy of Divine Worſhip (ſay they) becauſe God dwells in him,Reſ. ad Vujek. p. 418. is by no means to be Allowed; For then 'twould follow, that the whole World may be Worſhiped, eſpecially the Angels, and …oly Men, in whom God doth in a more peculiar manner dwell.
And as the Socinians do make this ſort of Divinity, the Reaſon of their giving Divine Worſhip unto Chriſt, even ſo, their Aſcribing this Divinity, and giving Divine Worſhip unto him, makes the Diſcriminating Character,Animadv. in Aſſert. p. 49. by which alone they hope to clear themſelves, from being of the Religion Invented by Mahomet, which doth not Invocate, nor Worſhip him No One ſaith Socinus) who is in his Wits will affirm that Falſe Notion Mahomet had of Jeſus of Nazareth, Vid. Defenſ. Animadv. p. 373.is what Paulus Samoſatenus held: For Samoſatenus acknowledged Jeſus Chriſt to be the True, and only Begotten Son of God and our Lord; affirming, that he ought to be Worſhiped, &c. which things Mahomet denyed
They inſiſt ſo very much on the Adoration of Chriſt, that they eſteem thoſe, who are againſt it, to be ſuch Hereticks, as ſubvert the very Foundations of Chriſtianity, and deſerve not the Name of Chriſtians. I do not (ſaith Socinus) ſee any thing throughout the whole Chriſtian Religion of more Importance to be Publiſhed,De Invocat. Chriſt. ex Epiſt. ad Quend. Tom. I. p. 353. than a Demonſtration, that Invocation, Adoration or Divine Worſhip belongs to Chriſt, altho' he is a Creature— If this be but once fully proved, all the ſtrong holds of the Trinitarians will fail them. For, they lean on this one Foundation, viz. That that Adoration, and Invocation, which is due only to the Moſt High God, muſt be given unto Chriſt. And on the other hand, the True Power, and Majeſty of Chriſt, will hereby be cleared and firmly fixt in the minds of all; whereas without the Knowledge of it, neither God himſelf, nor any thing Divine can be Rightly Underſtood, nor the way of our Salvation clearly Known; but what is ſaid in the Holy Scriptures of the Expiation of our Sins by Chriſt, will be ſtrangely miſtaken; the whole of Chriſtian Religion brought into Doubt, or at leaſt be expos'd to a ſudden Change, if not to utter Ruin: and the Chiefeſt, and moſt Principal Foundations of our Hope, and Truſt in God deſtroyed. And elſewhere he ſaith,Socin. Chriſt. Rel. Inſtit. Tom. I. p. 656. That they, who are againſt the Worſhip of Chriſt, cannot be Chriſtians, becauſe in good earneſt they own not Chriſt, though they dare not Openly, yet Really do they deny Jeſus to be the Chriſt.
Beſides Vujekus, upbraiding the Socinians, with the Opinion and fatal end of Jacobus Palaeologus, who with Johannes Sommerus, Matthias Glirius, and many others, oppoſed the Adoration of Chriſt, and was at laſt Burnt for his Hereſies at Rome; Socinus in his Reply tells them his Senſe thus: But as to Palaeologus, Reſp. ad Vujek p. 42.whom they take for granted to be One of Us, I anſwer, that his being Reconciled to the Church of Rome, was ſo far from being a Token of God's Favour unto him, that it was a due Reward of his Impiety. For, beſides his not ſticking to Traduce our Party, how Innocent ſoever, as the moſt Arrant Knaves, whom in the mean time he Bluſhes not to call Brethren: He alſo was one, and if I miſtake not, a leading Man among them, who now a days affirm, that Chriſt is neither to be Adored, nor Invocated. And yet they Impudently Profeſs themſelves Chriſtians, a Device, to deprave our Religion, in my Opinion, ſo Wicked, that there could hardly be a Worſer invented.
And as they could not Oppoſe the Adoration of Chriſt and Remain Chriſtians, ſo this their Principle, leads 'em to Judaiſm; For (ſaith Socinus) ever ſince I ſaw what Franciſcus Davidis had Written againſt the Invocation of Chriſt, I openly declared my Sentiments, touching the Tendency of his Notion to Judaiſm; and how it exalted Moſes above Chriſt: For this Reaſon more eſpecially; becauſe if they hold, that Chriſt may not be of Right Invocated, he is not Really, but only in Name, Chriſt. Socin. Praef. ad Reſp. F. David.And I Remember very well, that in the Preſence of Franciſcus Davidis, I preſſed Glirius freely to tell me whether he believed Jeſus of Nazareth to be the Chriſt. But he would give me no Anſwer, &c.
What Socinus hath on this occaſion delivered, doth ſufficiently evince, that he Condemns not only Franciſcus Davidis, but all whoſoever they be, that are againſt the Rendring Divine Worſhip unto Chriſt, even our Engliſh Socinians themſelves, if they do ſo, for being far worſe than Hereticks, who in Reality deny Jeſus to be the Chriſt, and therefore can't be Chriſtians, nor clear themſelves from the Charge of Mahometaniſm, nor their Principles from a Tendency to Judaiſm.
Now that the Generality of the Engliſh Socinians do Reject the Adoration of Chriſt, and are for giving him no other ſort of Honour, than they do to Men in Civil Power, to Prophets or Saints in Glory, is manifeſt from what they avouch.
There are,Anſw. to Milbern, p. 50. ſay they, no Acts of Worſhip ever required to be paid to the Lord Jeſus Chriſt, but ſuch as may be paid to a Civil Power, to a Perſon in High Dignity and Office; to Prophets and Holy Men, or to ſuch as are actually poſſeſt of the Heavenly Beatitudes.
Though ſome may be otherwiſe minded, yet the Generality of them fall in with Palaeologus, Sommerus, Glirius, Davidis, and Others, in their Rejecting the Adoration of our Bleſſed Redeemer as appears further from what is Reported of them, by their own Hiſtorians, who Repreſents their Opinion to the utmoſt Advantage he could;page 33. intimating, that the moſt Learned of the Ancients Reject this Invocation; that Chriſt Himſelf, when conſulted about the Object, and matter of Praver, directed his Diſciples to God; that he forbad them to pray to Himſelf; and that to make Chriſt himſelf the Object of Prayer, is to deſtroy his Mediatory Office. Thus much, and abundantly more, is urged by the Engliſh Socinians, againſt our Adoring and Invocating the Lord Jeſus Chriſt; whereby they make themſelves in the Eſteem of the Foreign, who are the more learned Socinians, to be worſe than Hereticks, even Deſtroyers of the Chiefeſt, and moſt Principal Foundations of the Chriſtians Hope and Faith in God; who in Reality deny Jeſus of Nazareth to be the Chriſt, and cannot clear themſelves from Mahometaniſm, nor their Principles from Judaiſm.
Thus we ſee what manner of Men our Socinians are, what Enemies to Chriſtian Religion, and whither their Principles do lead, the Chief among themſelves being Judges.
And when I conſider what manner of Notions the moſt Ingenious, of their way, are Advancing, I cannot but think on what Merſennus did intimate to Ruarus, Epiſt. Ruar. 50. page 239.about the Attempts of ſome, to bring all that part of Religion, which is neceſſary to Salvation, unto one Article. There are (ſaith he) ſome Men, and I doubt not but there are ſuch amongſt you, who contend, that this one Article of Faith only, namely, That Jeſus is the Meſſiah, is neceſſary unto Salvation; that they who believe it, may be called the Children of God; that this is the One Article the Apoſtles urged. To which others add, that a Believing this Article with the Heart, is not required as neceſſary, a Confeſſion of it with the Mouth being Sufficient. That is to ſay, if there be a rendring Obedience to the Magiſtrates Commands. Thus we ſee whither Men, when left to themſelves, will run. They'll ſuſpect all Religion to be falſe, and a Politick Contrivance; then turn Atheiſts, not only denying a Providence, but the very Being of God Himſelf.
Merſennus writing thus much to a Grave and Learned Socinian, who in his Anſwer taking no notice of it, though very careful to rectifie the moſt inconſiderable Miſtakes in other Inſtances, moves me to conclude, the Charge was true, and the Atheiſtical Conſequences too manifeſt to admit of a Penial, which I the rather ſuggeſt, to the end I may ſtir up the more ſincere amongſt our Engliſh Scocinians, to conſider the Tendency of their Notions.