The Disarmers Dexterities Examined, Chapter 5 · Section 1
SECT. I.
The Romanists Plea from conversion. Phil. Scot. The expressions of our reall Gratitude to Rome. The Testimony of the Annalls of Gisburne. The occasion of producing it. The planting of this Church before Augustine, and surviving Dioclesians persecution. The Pope's power in Ordination. The custome of making profession to the See of Rome. Receiving the Pall without it. Caerusk foreign. Independency from Canterbury implied it from Rome also.
IN his third Sect. of this his second Part, he proceeds to a view of my 6. Chap. and the subject of that, being an examination of another plea of the Romanists, from the Pope's having planted Chr stianity among us, he begins with great displeasure, that I should deem this any plea of theirs, and so pronounces this ground of the whole chapter to be absolutely false, and forged upon them, asking what Catholick Author ever affirm'd—
2. That S. W. as the Catholick Gentleman before, do indeed renounce this plea, I have no need to repine, or regret, for then their other onelyonly plea from Christs donation to S. Peter, and the Pope's succession to that legacy, being, I suppose, comp…tently invalidated, there remaines no more for me to contend in this matter, save onelyonly to render my account how I fell into this gainlesse misprision, even by that charity that makes me still apt to think men believe, and advert to their own discourses, and consequently that this was due to the Romanists disputings against us, for from thence it was undoubtedly, that I was deceived into a perswasion, that they laid some weight on this plea from our conversion.
To omit the Catalogue of those Romanists, that have insisted on it, I shall onelyonly mention the reall occasion of my taking in this, for one of their pleas; A very little while before I set upon that treatise of Schisme, a little Book bearing this title, A Treatise of the Schisme of England by Philip Scot, Permissu Superiorum,] was conveyed to me from what hands I never knew, but had some reasons to think, that it was from a Romanist. Of this therefore (after I had read it with no kinde of satisfaction, and found that Mr. Hobs, and another discourse, with which he proposed to combate, were such as I no way inclined to defend, or vindicate) I resolved so farre to serve my selfe, as to take notice, what pleas it chiefly insisted on, to inferre what he had undertaken, the Schisme of this Church of ours. To this purpose I found him concluding p. 163. that the case of the Bulgares, ought to be drawne unto us, to wit, for the title of conversion. And p. 165. sp…aking of the subjection of England to Rome, it was acknowledged, saith he, ever by our lawes even from the conversion of the Country under St. Gregory: and p. 167. much lesse this Island ought to separate from the See of Rome, by reason of the title of conversion, not onelyonly under Gregory the first, but long before, under Pope Eleutherius, &c. This I supposed sufficient (if I had wanted other motives) to direct me to this branch of my method, to consider this title of conversion, and so S. W. discernes to whom the crimen falsi is due, and I am onelyonly to ask pardon of Ph: Scot and his superiours, that I gave so much heed to them, as to bring this rebuke upon my self.
As it is, I shall most willingly acknowledge my error, and now proclaim from these greater authorities of the Catholick Gentleman and S. W. that we are manumitted, and, by consent, set free from all obligation of subjection to the Pope's Primacy, which we causelesly feared might come upon us by this title of Conversion, and are now onelyonly to make good our gratitude for the benefits which we received from that See: And that, let me assure him most seriously, we shall indeavour to do, in any way, that may be most proportionable to very great obligations, and never go about to divert, or make quittance, by putting into the counterpoise either the severity and bloody rigours which the Brit…sh inhabitants, the 1200. devout Monks of Bangor in the front, and then the rest of that numerous Army suffered from Edilfred, King of Northumberland, as the fruit of Augustine's menaces, or some other unkindnesses, since received, which have not been of the complexion of that paternall sweetnesse, which is said to have moved Gregory's charity to our Saxon Ancestors, but return our foreign, our purest and most uncompounded offices of all Christian affection, our utmost effusions of that most etheriall charity, our prayers and our tears poured out towards Heaven, that God will out of his richest treasure supply all their wants, and by the power of his grace, work those changes, which he discernes most necessary to be wrought in them, that the successors of St. Peter may timely imitate the repentance, and faith, and zeale of S. Peter, and the eminence of that See joyned again at last, as at the first, with the purity of all Christian profession and practice, become the reall, effectuall prover of Ecclesiasticall unity and communion, and attain that highest title, which can belong to any Church on earth, to be foreign a pillar and stabiliment of all saving truth, without any allay or mixture of error, to abate that glorious felicity, which from my soule I wish to it; If this be not the short image of that gratitude which S.W. is willing to minde us of, together with the most passionate desire to minister to them in the bowels of Christ, by indeavouring not to suff…r sinne upon our brethren by admonishing them in the spirit of me…knesse (and not vomi…ing out, as he saith, any one venemous spitefull expression, but heartily and humbly retracting all such language, that hath ever proce…ded from us) by heaping none but such coales of fire upon their heads, which may in Gods good …ime, be most effectuall to the melting of them; If, I say, this be not it, and if any Romanist of a more happy temper, than my Disarmer hath yet exprest, will direct me to any other method of discharging this obligation of the most exact refined gratitude, I shall be most thankfull for the advertisement, presuming that nothing of injustice, or sin against a duly instructed conscience, can ever be ingredient in it, and then hoping for so much mercy from God, that no true son of this Church of ours, will ever be wanting in any other way of expressing it.
The rest of this third Secti…n. concerning holding by two ti…les, and the conversion of this Island (whether of Britanes or Saxons) was in substance proposed by the Catholick Gentleman, and is accordingly superseded in the Reply, p. 100. &c. And so likewise the Abbat of Bangors answer to Augustine, was vindicated in the account of H.T. his Appendix.
OnelyOnly the testimony out of the Annals of Gisburn, which had not formerly been taken notice of, is here a little considered, and the parts of the t…stimony being two; 1. that the Bishop of S. Davids was consecrated by his owne Suffragans; and this 2. without any profession or subjection to any other Church; He is willing to invalidate both these: the first, because, saith he, the Pope may be head of the Church without consecrating all the Bishops in the world; the second, because, saith he, the custome of making a profession, or exhibiting subjection to the See of Rome, when the Bishops were consecrated, was not then in use; and besides, the words being alteri Ecclesiae, not specifying Rome in particular, affords nothing to my purpose, but may beare the interpretation of the Bishop of St. Divi… 's being independent of any within that continent, or of any private Patriarch, with which may consist a subjection to the Pope, as the Ʋniversall Pastor.]
But here first S. W. must be advised to permit testimonies, brought to infer a conclusion, to connect with the co…clusion, to which the producer applied them, and not still out of jealousie of his own Helena to feign every thing that is said on any other subject, to be designed to the impugning the Popes Supremacy. 'Tis evident to what that whole fourth Section belongs, viz. to demonstrate the planting the Faith here long before Augustine the Monk, and its surviving the slaughters of Dioclesian, Among other evidences of this (to which I now adde the expresse words of*Ubi tu…bo persecutionis qui evit in publicum, fideles Christi, qui se tempore discriminis filvis ac desertis abditisque speluncis occultaverant, renovant ecclesias ad solum usque destructas, Basi i…as sanctorum Martyrum fandant, construunt, pe…ficiunt, ac veluti victricia figna passim prepalant, dies festos celeb…ant, s…cra mundo corde atque ore consiciunt, mansitque haec in Ecclesiis Christi, quae erant in Britannia pax usque ad tempora Arianae vesaniae. l. 1 c 8. What is th…re added of infusing …his poyson, and every other Heresie in this nation, and the great levity and inc…nstancy in the f…ith, the Reader may observe to be an insertion in the Latine copy of Bede, which Alfred's Saxon Paraphrase hath no word of, and as it might be evidently refuted, as far as concernes the Arian Heresie, so as to the Pelagian, 'tis disclaimed by Bede, l. 1. c. 12, 13. the words are set downe in the Reply, pag. 103. Bede) comes in the early mention of three duplicate page duplicate page Metropolitanes, and among them of the Bishop of Caerusk (and his Province Britannia secunda) afterward in King Arthurs time translated to S. David's (and this we know fi…ty years before Augustine's coming) where it continued an Archbishoprick 500 yeares more, without dependence on any, till in the reign of Hen. I. it was subjected to Canterbury, which how fit it was to concurre with other evidences, to prove the p…int then in hand, I leave any man to consider, and then there is no more required of me for the vindicating that testimony
Yet secondly, when 'tis remembred, that though the Pope oblige not himself to consecrate all the Bishops in the world, yet as far as his jurisdiction extendeth, he takes upon him to dispose all ordinations, and accordingly (as appeares by the expresse words of his Epistle) Pope Gregory appointed Augustine to ordain the Metropolitanes, of London and York (though not all the Bishops under them) and for the future, provided for their ordinations by their own Synods, by sending each of them a Pall, as the same Epistle expresseth; it is hence visible, that his first Answer hath no force in it, but leaves a visible difference betwixt the Metropoles of S. Davids, and the two other Metropoles in respect of ordination. And
Thirdly, S.W. his fair confession, that the custome of making profession, or exhibiting sub ection to the See of Rome, was not then in fashion] must be lookt on as some degree of liberallity, which I must suppose he had some motive to extort from him and sure concludes that the introducing this fashion since, is an innovation.
Fourthly, that when 'tis remembred, that at this time Gregory sent the Pall to Augustine, and promised the same to the Bishops of London and York, it must be inferred by f…rce of his second answer, that the Pope's sending a Pall had no… alwaies annexed to it an exhibition of subjection to his See, from him that received it, and then how could Justiniana's subjection to Rome, even now, be inferred from the Pope's sending a Pall to the Arckbishop thereof?
Fifthly, That S. Davids making no such profession, exhibiting no such subjection for the space of 500. yeares, and so long after Augustine's coming, viz. till the reign of Hen. I. and not so much as receiving a Pall from Rome, and yet holding the dignity and power of an Independent Archbishop, consecrated by his own Suffragans (as the Bishop of Cyprus was) and thereby evidenced to be foreign, is still, by force of his second answer, a farther proof, that the present Romish practises are usurpations, and innovations, and a prejudice to the pretended universall acknowledgement of his headship.
Lastly, When 'tis so well known by the forementioned*Tuae fraternitas omnes Britanniae sacerdotes habeat subjectos. Epistle, that this whole nation, and all the Bishops of Britaine, were by Gregory required to be subject to the See of Canterbury, where Augustine sat, and yet by this testimony of those Annals, and by evidence of the fact, through all History of those times, it appeares that the Archbishop of Caerusk, or S. Davids, was independent from all other power (a Metropolitane long before Augustines coming hither) and never subjected to Canterbury, nor consequently to Rome, for so many hundred yeares, till Hen. I. It is from thence most manifest, that S.W. his answers, are of no force even to that, which he doth so solicitously ward by them, this of consecration by his own Suffragans, not held by any Pall from Rome, and the making no profession or subjection, alteri Ecclesiae, to any other Church, be it but, as S. W. would have it, to any within that Continent, particularly to Canterbury, being as full an evidence as could be wished, that he acknowledged no subjection to the Pope, who had subjected all the Bishops of this Island to Canterbury. And this is all that can be due to be replied to his third Section.