The Due Right of Presbyteries, Chapter 10 · Section 1 · Objection 1 – Objection 2
Ob. 1. The power of the Keys cannot be given to the catholick representative Church, or catholick Presbytery, as to the first subject to be an ordinary and constant meane of edification; The exercise whereof, in an ordinary and constant way, is unpossible; But the exercise of this Ministeriall power given to the catholick visible Presbytery, as to the first subject, in an ordinary and constant way, is unpossible; Ergo, such a power is not given to the Catholick representative Church, as to the first subject, to be an ordinary and constant meane of edification. The proposition is cleare, it is uncongruous to the Wisdome of Jesus Christ that hee should give that to bee a meane, which possibly cannot attaine the end. The Assumption is as evident; for the Catholick visible Presbytery cannot meete in an ordinary and constant way.
Answ. 1. By distinguishing the Major proposition; That power of the Keyes remote cannot be given to the catholick presbytery as to the first subject, the exercise whereof in an ordinary and constant way is impossile physically and ex natura rei. True, but now the Assumption is false; That neerer power cannot be given as a meane of edification, the exercise whereof is morally and through the corruption of mens nature physically impossible. That is false, and denyed, and in either sense the conclusion cannot be true. 2. I grant the whole, and yet nothing is concluded against us. For the power of the Keyes is not given to the catholick Presbytery as to the first subject, to be a meane of edification in an ordinary and constant way; but onelyonly in an extraordinay and occasionall way, in those things which concerne the power of jurisdiction belonging to the whole Catholick Church. By (extraordinary) here I meane not that which is against a particular Law of God, and cannot bee done without a Divine dispensation of providence, but by (extraordinary) I meane that which is rarò contingens, and doth not oft fall out; as almost it never falleth out that the universall Church hath neede to excommunicate a nationall Church, for all and every one of a nationall Church doe never fall away from the Faith. Yet a remote power for Excommunication, is in the Catholique visible Church.
2. It is objected, if the visible catholick Church be the first and principall subject of all Church-power, then a Presbyteriall Church cannot Excommunicate, but by a power derived from the catholick visible presbytery, and so the presbytery should … excommunicate, but by consulting with the Catholique visible Church, but this latter were impossible and absurd; Ergo, so must the antecedent be. The counexion is proved thus; for as … things have beate in so farre as they partake of the Fire; because heate is originally in the Fire, as in the first subject, so all Churches exercising Excommunication must partake of the power of censures, that is, first and principally in the originall subject, to wit, in the catholick visible Church. And it would seeme that none can use or put forthin acts, the power of the catholique Church visible, without the conscience of the catholique Church visible.
Answ. This occasioneth me to speake somwhat of the power of the presbyteriall and catholick Church. Hence I say. 1. With submission to the learned.
First, It is an hard way of arguing, to reason from the power to the severall exercises and diverse acts of the power. Our Brethren hold that all power of the Keys, and all power Ministeriall of preaching, administrating the Seales, is originally in caetu sidelium, in a Church of Believers: but they cannot say that therefore the acts of Preaching, administrating of the Sacraments and all acts of jurisdiction can be exercised by the Believers, because they are the first subject.
Secondly, the farther that the members, or Churches either Congregationall, Presbyteriall, or Nationall are removed in locall distance, one from another; the lesse is the visible and externall communion of rebuking, comforting, and admonishing one another; yet the power and obligation of these duties are not removed. So though the Nationall Churches be locally distant one from another, yet their power of exercising duties, and so their power of Jurisdiction, in an O…cumenicke Councell, is not from thence concluded to be null. Yea, Nationall duties upon occasion are still obligatory… and communion of men of sundry Nations is cleare to mee, Esai. 2. 3. many Nations shall flow unto the Mountaine of the Lords House, Zach. 8. 23. Ten men shall take hold out of all Languages of the Nations, they even shall take hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew, saying, we will goe with you, for wee have heard that God is with you. I do not say, these Nations doe meete all in one Synod, but the places doe well prove the power lawfull of performing duties, whereas the exercise of them in one place is not hic & nunc, in ordinary providence, possible. And so this consequence must be weake; the whole catholick visible Churches in their principall guides cannot ordinarily, and constantly meet, hic & nunc, for the exercise of their power; Ergo, they have no such power. For if the power be exercised in parts, which through occurrences of Providence, and the corruption of mens nature cannot be exercised in whole, at once; yet its not hence evinced to be a power not given of Christ for e…ification; for by our Brethrens grant three thousand are added to the Congregationall Church of Jerusalem, Acts 2. and to this Church of three thousand, and a hundred and twenty, Christ hath given the ordinary power of the Keyes as to the first subject, though through occurences of providence, and the corruption of mans nature, some of these, suppose a thousand, through sicknesse, pest, danger of persecution, and sinfull separating from the assembly of Saints, could not hic & nunc meet in one house, to exercise joyntly all the acts of that power which our Brethren say is given to them by Christ; they cannot say therefore Christ never gave to this whole Church consisting of three thousand and a hundred and twenty, any such power.
Thirdly, there is a great difference betwixt the power given ad esse simplictèr, to the being of a Church, and the power given ad benè esse tantùm, onelyonly to the well-being. 2. Great difference also there is betwixt ordinary power to be exercised constantly, and ordinarily, because of neerer consociation of the Churches, in those things that concerne that Church in particular: suppose a presbyteriall or Congregationall Church, and a power to be exercised, but more rarely, not ordinarily, because of the lesse communion visible, and great locall distance of Churches, as it falleth out in the whole visible Church. Now from this.
First, The ordinary power of Jurisdiction because of neerest vicinity, and contiguity of members is given by Jesus Christ to one Congregation in an Isle. 1. Because that Church is a Church properly so called, though it be not a perfit and complete Church. I say it is a Church properly so called, Because. 1. It is a little City, and a little Kingdome of Jesus Christ having within it selfe power of the Word and Sacraments: and that is a Church and hath the essence of a Church to which agree the essentiall notes of a visible Church. Now preaching of the Word and Administration of the Sacraments are essentiall notes of a visible Church. But I say it is not a compleate and perfit Church in the latitude of visibility, (for Churches, are lesse or more visible, according as they have lesse or more visible communion) for visible communion constituteth a visible Church. Now a Congregation in a remote Island hath a lesse communion visible with other visible Churches, then conscciated visible Churches have. 2. It is not compleate and perfit in its operations, because in case of doubts of conscience touching government and practice, and dogmaticall poynts, it wants the joynt authority, and power of Jurisdiction needfull for the well-being of a Church, which it should have, if it were consociated with many other Congregations: so as wee say an hand with five fingers is a compleate hand, but it is not a compleat organicall body, but a part of the organicall body of a man; so is a Congregation a Church wanting nothing of the being and essence of a Church; yet is it incompleate, because it is a part or member of a Presbyteriall Church, and not being consociated wanteth that which belongeth to the well being of a compleat visible Church. For visibility of a Church must have a latitude, because it is an accident or adjunct of an organicall politick body, which is totum integrale.
Secondly, the ordinary power of ordinary Jurisdiction in a more perfit way, because of ordinary and perfiter consociation, is given to the Presbyteriall Church, as to the proper subject in the constant and ordinary exercise of Discipline, because contignity being the foundation of visible externall government, the Presbyteriell Church of Ierusalem, Ephesus Corinth, Antioch, and Rome, is a perfit compleat consocia…d body. To which the power of ordination, exauthoration, or deprivation of Pastors, of excommunication in a constant and ordinary way doth belong. For this is a principle of Church-policy. Every politick body of Christ hath power of Church government within it selfe. But a Presbyteriall church is such. 2. This is a received maxime also. Quod tangit omnes. ab omnibus, suo more, tractari debet. VVhat concerneth all, should be agitated by all, according to their degrees of concernment, but excom nunication of a person, in a consociated Church, concerneth all the consociated Churches in a Presbytery; all are scandalized, all may be, and are in danger to be leavened with the infectious lumpe. And here it is to be observed, that as preaching of the Word is an essentiall note of the visible Church, and agreeing to the visible Church, as necessary ad esse simpliciter, to the very being of a visible Church. For if the word as Preached and some way promulgated be not in such a society, we cannot call it a visible Church; so Discipline is a note of the visible Church, and necessary ad bene esse, and it cannot be a Ministeriall Church in a good condition exercising acts of edification, if the wall of Discipline be broken downe: and meeting in one place for Word and Sacraments is but accidentall for a Ministeriall Church. If the Word be preached, and the Sacraments administrated in sundry Congregations, though not in a Presbyteriall Church all convened in all its members in one place, yet hath the Presbyteriall Church the essentiall note of a visible Church. Because there is a difference betwixt carrying the colours in an Army tali modo, as all the Army at once may see the colours, and the carrying of the colours. Yet the colours are a note visible of such an Army: so there is a difference betwixt preaching the Word, simpliciter, and preaching the Word, tali modo; in such a way in one materiall house onelyonly. And therefore it is necessary that government which concerneth many Churches consociated, be in its exercise hic & nunc, larger then preaching of the Word in its exercise, hic & nunc: which cannot be done, but to a multitude which conveneth foreign, to the same materiall place. And we see an act of government, Acts 15. by confession of our Brethren, belonging to divers consociated Churches and performed by them, and yet these cannot ordinarily meete to one and the same place in all their members for hearing of the Word.
Thirdly, an extraordinary, and remote power of Jurisdiction which is but rarely and in extraordinary cases to be put forth in acts, is given to the Catholick visible Presbytery of the whole Catholick visible Church. Because the Oommunion externall and visible is lesse, where the locall distance of visible Churches is more: and therefore because oecumenicall councells, being necessary for the Catholick visible Church, neque ad esse simpliciter, neque ad b…è esse, sed ad melius seu optimum esse, neither in respect of the Churches being, nor in respect of the Churches well-being, …u… onelyonly in respect of her best and most spirituall well-being, these councells are seldome to be had in an ordinary providence. For the Cresse of Iesus Christ is rather a marke of the catholick visible Church, then Bellarmine his prospe…ous condition, that he will have to be one of his fifteene notes of the Church: and since the Church cannot have her wishes, the want of generall councells is the Catholick Churches Crosse, not her sin; we doe not say that God is deficient in meanes necessary to his Church, or to some of his owne Children; because the Woman hath wings given her of God to stie to the Wildernesse to hide her selfe from the Dragon, Rev. 12. 14. and so cannot enjoy Gods ordinary presence, in his Sanctuary. Nor doe wee say that God hath denied a power to his Church in the Wildernesse, to enjoy them in a visible Sanctuary, I meane a morall power, and jus, a right and interest in that presence, because he interrupteth the Churches physicall power, for a while, in the injoying of these comforts of a visible Church-Communion, in the Sanctuary.
Fourthly, hence it doth not follow, that because the catholick representative visible Church is the first subject of the power of the Keys, that the power of Excommunication is derived from the visible Church to a Presbyteriall Church, or that a Presbyteriall Church cannot excommunicate without consulting with, or fetching authority from the Catholick visible Church: Because the Catholick visible Church is a great integrall body of Iesus Christ, and he is the head of this body; because though the power of seeing by order of nature be first in the whole man, and then in the Eye, yet the power of seeing in the Eye is not derived from the rest of the body, from Hands, Leggs, Shoulders, Armes, to the Eye. The light is first in the whole Body of the Sun, as the first and prime subject of light; yet supposing now the received opinion of Astronomers, that the body of the Sun doth exceede the quantity of the Earth an hundred sixty and seven times, it doth not follow that this or that part of the Sun hath no light intrinsecall in it; but that which is derived from the whole body of the Sun; for then this or this part of the Sun should have borrowed light derived to it from another: so the Soule doth at one and the same instant, animate, and quicken the whole organized Body as its first matter and subject, but it doth not follow that the Hand hath life derived to it from the whole body: so because the power of the Keyes is also intrinsecall in the Presbytery, as in an O…cumenicall councell: it doth not follow, that the power that is intrinsecall in the presbytery is by derivation, or borrowed and at the second hand, from the Catholick presbytery of the whole World; farre lesse that the Presbytery cannot Excommunicate, except it consult with the catholick visible Church. The power of the Keys, by order of nature, is onelyonly in the catholick representative Church as in the first subject, but in order of time this power is communicated from the head Christ to all the integrall parts of this great Body according to the capacity of every part, so as it is intrinsecall in the particular Eldership of a single Congregation in these poynts of Discipline, that concerne a Congregation as a Congregation, and it is intrinsecall in the classicall Presbytery as it is such, and it is intrinsecall in the provinciall, and Nationall Synod, in poynts belonging to them as such.