Defense of the Protestant Christian Religion, Chapter 2
CHAP. II. Of the Nature and Kinds of Apoſtaſie, and of the Apoſtaſies of the Church of Rome.
DISCOURSE.
This Church could not ceaſe to be ſo, but She muſt fall either by Apoſtaſie, Hereſie, or Schiſm.
ANSWER.
THis Enumeration is very defective and confuſed, in that it makes Apoſtaſie one particular ſpecies, or kind of falling away, whereas Apoſtaſie, and falling away, is the ſame thing; the one being a Greek word, and the other Engliſh: for Apoſtaſie is contrary to the True Chriſtian Religion, which is the tying of man to God again (from re, and ligo) after his fall in the bonds of Faith and Love, or obedience of Love. The Scripture everywhere makes theſe the two parts of True Religion: 2 Tim. 1.13. Hold faſt the form of ſound words which thou haſt heard of me, in faith and love, which is in Chriſt Jeſus. 1 Tim. 3.9. Holding the myſtery of the faith in a pure conſcience.
Hence therefore there be two wayes of Apoſtaſie, viz. either from the Faith of the Goſpel by fundamental ignorance, and hereſie, and unbelief, or from Goſpel-obedience, which is as large as the rule thereof; of which David ſaith, Thy Commandments are exceeding broad, Pſal. 119.96. Therefore under this head comes Idolatry, Superſtition, Schiſm, Witchcraft, Perjury, Perſecution, Sedition, Murther, Whoredom, Theft, Equivocation, &c. Men may Apoſtatize, and fa'l away from God, by making ſhipwrack of the faith, and by putting away a good conſcience, 1 Tim. 1.19. The Apoſtle ſpeaks of ſome, who profeſs they know God; but in werks they deny him, being abominable, and diſobedient, and unto every good work reprobate, Titus. 1.16.
But this kind of Apoſtaſie by evil works, and ſcandalous ſins, is omitted and forgotten, which is another Error in your diſtribution; though it is that which your Church, and Popes, are deeply guilty of, notwithſtanding all your boaſtings of your good works, and merits, and ſupererogations with God. The ſixth Trumpet inſtanceth in Idolatries, Murthers, Sorceries, Fornications, Thefts, as Sins that do abound among you, Revel. 9. ult. And all Hiſtories bear witneſs to it. The corruption of Life, as well as Doctrine, was ſo great, before the Proteſtant Reformation; ſo many the offences, abuſes, and ſcandals; and ſuch the degenerated notoriety of them, that as it was the common deſire of Sober men in Luthers time, that there might be a free and general Council, in order to a general Reformation of the Church, which all men obſerved to be wofully degenerated: So there were Nine Select Cardinals and Prelates of your own Church, C…ſil. Delect. Card. & Praed. De Emendanda Eccleſia. Ann. 1538. See the Appendix, cap. 8.who did privately adviſe the Pope to Reform things amiſs, in a Paper they preſented to him, he having asked their Advice; wherein they do attaque the very Popes themſelves, as the Heads of the Apoſtaſie, and Fountains of Corruption to the whole Church. Principium horum malorum vide fuiſſe, quod nonnulli Pontifices tui Praedeceſſores prurientes auribus, &c. Wherein they do their Popes no wrong, for they ſpeak no worſe of them, then your own Hiſtorians repreſent them, nor then Pope Adrian the Sixth did acknowledge them to be. In his Inſtructions to his Legate Cheregatus, and in his Letter to the Princes of Germany, Aſſembled in the Imperial Dyet at Norimberge, 1523. He ſaith, S…imus in hac ſede aliquot jam annis multa abominanda fuiſſe, Fox's Acts and Mon. Vol. 2. pag. 78. Lampad. Mellif. Hiſtor. Part. 3. pag. 425.abuſus in ſpiritualibus exceſſus in mandatis, & omnia denique in perverſum mutata—Se quidem non ignorare quid Scriptura docet, nempe à Sacerdotibus populi iniquitatis originem ſcaturire,—& ab ipſocapite Pontificio malum diffiuere in membra inferiora. There have been, ſaith he, many years, many Abominations in this See, Abuſes in Spirituals, Exceſſes in Commands, and all things perverſly ordered.—The Fountain of Iniquity hath flowed from the Prieſts to the people, as the Scripture ſaith; and from the Pontificial Head, the evil hath flowed into the inferiour members. Thus he, who, as you ſay, could not erre in judgment. If a man would chooſe a Religion on purpoſe for the gratifying of his luſts, Sir Walter Raleigh ſaith, He knows none like Popery. You have ſo many wayes to diſpenſe with your Conſciences, and to indulge Sinners a licentious liberty to take their ſwinge in their luſts. Your laſt ſwarm of Locuſts, the Jeſuites, have made it their buſineſs to corrupt all Morality, as is to be ſeen at large, in the Book called, The Myſtery of Jeſuitiſm.
Moreover, there is yet a third overſight in your Enumeration over and above both the former; for as a Church which was once true and pure, may ceaſe to be ſo, by ſuch backſlidings as have been inſtanced on her part, ſo ſhe may ceaſe to be at all by righteous and deſtroying Judgments on Gods part; which is alſo the caſe of the Old Church of Rome, Providence having cut them off by the Sword of the Goths and Vandals, and other Northern Nations, about 400 years after Chriſt, as he did the ten Tribes by the Aſſyrians of old; and he hath ſubſtituted another people and language in their Land and place, viz. thoſe we call Italians, as he did the Samaritans in the Land of Iſrael: And as then, ſo now, the Succeſſors are worſe, and further off from God, than their degenerate Predeceſſors, whom they ſaw the Lord deſtroy and cut off before their eyes. Now ſuppoſe the Samaritans of old had pleaded a Plea not unlike yours, viz. thus: The Iſraelites were a true, famous, flouriſhing Church in the dayes of Moſes, and Joſhuah; and in the dayes of David, and Solomon, therefore we Samaritans are ſo now. The Anſwer is eaſie, You are neither of the ſame Religion, no, nor yet ſo much as the ſame people; for they were Iſraelites, but ye Samaritans. So here, What though there was in the dayes of Paul a Goſpel Church of Romans at Rome, though ſo far as appears not very great or numerous in thoſe dayes; but that ever there was ſuch a Church of Samaritans or Italians there, a pure Church there ſince the Roman people were cut off, and their Language ceaſed, to be a Mother-tongue, and the Italian came in place, Hoe tibi incumbit demonſtrandum, prove this if you can. Alas, the True Church is dead, and gone from thence above 1000 years ago, and a monſtrons Beaſt with Ten crowned Horns is riſen up inſtead thereof: But you proceed to the firſt Head of your Diſtribution, thus.
DISCOURSE.
Apoſtaſie is not only a Renouncing of the Faith of Chriſt, but of the very Name and Title of Chriſtianity. No man will ſay, That the Church of Rome bad ever ſuch a fall, or fell thus.
ANSWER.
You thus reſtrain the word Apoſtaſie to the groſſeſt, and deepeſt degree thereof, that ſo you may the better defend your Church from the guilt of this ſin: But there is no neceſſity ſo to reſtrain it; for there may be deep Apoſtaſie from God, under a name and outſide profeſſion of Religion. It is written of the Church of Sardis, Revel. 3.1. Thou haſt a name that thou liveſt, but art dead. Neither the Scripture, nor the original ſignification of the Greek word, foreign, which ſignifies a falling away; nor the common and ordinary uſe of it, requires that there be in it, a Renouncing of the very Name and Title of Chriſtianity. It is uſed in ſundry places of Scripture, where no ſuch Reſtraint is intimated, as Acts. 21.21. foreign, Thou teacheſt the Jews to forſake Moſes. And concerning Antichriſt, 1 Tim. 4.1. foreign, Some ſhall apoſtatize, or depart from the faith. And again, 2 Theſſ. 2.3. foreign, except there come a falling away firſt. And, ver. 7. This Apoſtaſie is called, A Myſtery of Iniquity. Therefore it ſhall not be an open, total, profeſſed Apoſtaſie, but partial, and palliated over with fair umbrages, and plauſible pretenſions, elſe why is it called, A Myſtery of Iniquity, and Myſtical Babylon? Nor do you indeed your own ſelves, alwayes uſe the word Apoſtaſie onelyonly in that groſs ſenſe; for you ſcruple not to beſtow the title of Apoſtate, as well as Heretick, upon Luther, and the Proteſtant Churches; though neither he, nor we, ever did, nor through grace, ever will Renounce the Name and Title of Chriſtianity.
Cyprian, warning the Saints, and people of God, in his time, to take heed of ſpiritual and ſitbtile Deluſions, Cypr. De Ʋ nitate Ecclefia.open and profeſſed perſecution being not their only danger: He ſheweth, how Sathan perceiving, that by the large diffuſion, and ſpreading of Goſpel-light, Pagan Idolatry, and their Temples were much forſaken: Excogitavit novam fraudem, ut ſub ipſo Chriſtiani nominis titulo fallat Incautos: He hath bethought himſelf of a new deceit, whereby to miſlead unwary Souls; under the very Name, and Title of Chriſtianity. Sathan (ſaith he) transforming himſelf into an Angel of light, and ſuborning his Miniſters, as Miniſters of righteouſneſs, bringing night for day, Antichriſtum, ſub vocabulo Chriſti. Antichriſt, under the name of Chriſt. The Church of Iſrael, in the time of her Apoſtaſie, did not Renounce the very Name and Title of Jehovah; but they did worſhip, and ſwear by the Lord, and by Malcham too, Zephan. 1.5. So thoſe mungrel Samaritans, 2 Kings 17.33, 41. They profeſſed, Ezra. 4.2. We ſeek your God, as you do; as fair a pretenſion as any your Church can make: And in Chriſts time, they had ſome confuſed notions and expectations of the Meſſiah, John 4.29. They had learned to ſay, our father Jacob, as well as you can ſay Saint Peter, John. 4.12.
So in like manner the Church of Rome, though She hath not Renounced the very Name and Title of Chriſtianity, yet She is deeply guilty of Apoſtaſie from God, divers other wayes, both in her Head and Members; She is, and may be called an Apoſtate Church, as having fallen away from the Faith and Doctrine of the Goſpel, by fundamental Unbelief, Ignorance and Herefie, and from Goſpel obedience, by the moſt abominable profaneneſs of life, by the groſſeſt kind of ſins, and ſcandals againſt all the Ten Commandments; concerning which, you prudently forbear to ſay any thing, but concerning the former head, viz. Apoſtaſie from the Faith: Your Defence is this.