The Unreasonableness of Separation, Part 2 · Section 23
Sect. 23. Among their later Writers, no Man hath Vindicated the Cause of the Reformation with greater success and reputation then Mr. Daille in his Apology. And the Grounds he goes upon are these.
(1.) That we are bound to avoid the Communion of those,Apology, c. 3. who go about to destroy and ruin Christianity.
(2.) If the Church of Rome hath not required any thing from us which destroys our Faith, offends our Consciences, and overthrows the service which we believe due to God; if the differences have been small, and such as we might safely have yielded unto;Cap. 4. then he will grant, that their Separation was rash and unjust, and they guilty of the Schism.
(3.) He proves, that they had weighty reasons for their Separation;Cap. 5. which are these, (1.) Imposing new Doctrines as necessary Articles of Faith: and yet, not all errros in Doctrine do afford sufficient ground for Separation;Cap. 7. but such as are pernicious and destructive to Salvation: for which he instanceth in the Lutherans opinion of Christ's Bodily Presence in the Sacrament, which overthrows not the use of the Sacraments, nor requires the adoring it, it neither divides nor mutilates it, nor makes it an Expitiatory Sacrifice for Sin; all which follows from the Popish Doctrine. From whence he concludes, That to separate from a Church for tolerable Errors, is an unjust Separation.Cap. 8. (2.) Requiring such Worship, as overthrows the Foundations of Christianity; which, saith he, proves the necessity of our Separation; and for this he instances in Adoration of the Host; which the Church of Rome strictly requiring, and the Protestants believing it to be a meer Creature, they cannot give it without Idolatry: from whence he concludes our Separation to be …ust, because it was necessary. Besides this he gives instances in the Worship of Images,Cap. 18. Invocation of Saints, &c. By which we see the Iustice of the Cause of Reformation doth not depend on any such Ceremonies, as ours are, nor on the want of Discipline, nor on the bare Dissatisfaction of Conscience, but on such great and important Reasons, as obtruding new Articles of Faith, and Idolatrous Worship on the partakers of the Communion of the Roman Church.
Amyraldus goes so far, De secess. ab Eccles. Rom. &c, p. 233.as to say, That if there had been no other faults in the Roman Church besides their unprofitable Ceremonies in Baptism, and other things, beyond the measure and genius of Christian Religion, they had still continued in its communion; For, saith he, a Physician is to be born with that loads his Patient with some unuseful Prescriptions, if he be otherwise faithful and skilful. But if he mixes Poison with his Medicines, and besides adds abundance of Prescriptions, both needless and chargeable, then the Patient hath great reason to look out for better help, and to take care of his own safety and freedom. By which he plainly declares, that bare Ceremonies, although many more than ours, are no sufficient Ground for Separation.
Of late years, a Person of Reputation in France set forth a Book against the Reformation, charging it with Schism, Prejuges legitimes contre les Calvinistes.because of the Separation from the Roman Church; which hath been Answered three several ways by three learned Divines, M. Claude, M. Pajon, and M. Turretin. But, Do any of these insist upon matters of meer Ceremony where the Doctrine is sound, the constant use of Liturgy, bare neglect of Discipline, &c. No, they were Men of better understanding than to insist on such things as these, which they knew, could never bear that weight as to justifie Separation from a Church; and that they should have exposed themselves and their Cause to the contempt of all considering Men, if they could have alledged no more Substantial Reasons than these.
But they all agree in such common reasons, Claude sa Defence de la Reformation. 8. part. Pajon Examen du livre, &c. 3. partie. Turretini disput. 1. de necessariâ secessione ab Ecclesiâ. Rom. Sect. 11.which they thought sufficient to make a Separation Justifiable, viz. Great corruption in Doctrine, Idolatrous Worship, and insupportable Tyranny over the Consciences of Men. Turretin expresly saith, No slight errors, no tolerable Superstitious Rites that do not infect the Conscience (as they cannot where they are not forced upon it by unsound Doctrine) not any corruption of Manners, nor defect in Government, or Discipline, are sufficient grounds for Separation. In one word, saith he, the Patient is not to be forsaken, unless his Disease be deadly and infectious, nor then neither but with great difficulty.
Le Blanc shewing the impossibility of Reunion with the Papists, Le Blanc. Theses de Reunione.goes upon these 3 grounds.
1. That it cannot be obtained without subscribing to the Decrees and Canons of the Council of Trent, and without Anathematizing all those who have opposed them. For the condition of Communion with that Church is no less, than receiving all its Errors for necessary Articles of Faith.
2. That the Publick Worship practised, and allowed in that Church is Idolatrous, he instanceth in Adoration of the Host, the Worship of Saints and Images.
3. That they cannot return to that Church without subjecting their Consciences to the Tyrannical Vsurpations of the Pope.
Let our Brethren now consider, what Triumphs the Church of Rome would make over us, if we had nothing to justifie our Separation from them, but only that we could not have our Children Baptized without an Aerial Sign of the Cross, nor receive the Communion without kneeling; that we must observe Holy-days, and use a Liturgy; and that Men are not so good as they should be, nor Discipline so exact as were to be wished; How should we be hissed and laughed at all over the Christian World; if we had nothing to alledge for our Separation from the Roman Church, but such things as these? And when the Papists see the weakness of these Allegations, they are harden'd in their own ways; and cry out presently there is no end of Schism's and Separations on such pretences as these, by which, unspeakable mischief hath been done to the Cause of the Reformation.