PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Works of John Owen — Volume 14
John Owen · 294,695 words · 278 reading sections
Section 181
358 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. are made unto you by some rule or other; and whether, with that judgment, your mind do not assent unto them or dissent from them. Yea, is not your judgment, which you so make, the assent or dissent of your mind? or what course do you take? I wish you would in- form …
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360 A. VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX, course in telling the Jews of the authority of your church, and your " credo " thereupon ; which cannot be supposed to have any existence " in rerum natura/' unless it be first supposed that their church was failed, wliich supposal that it was not is the sole found…
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S62 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. vented by yourselves, Avithout any foundation in the Scripture or constant suffrage of the ancient churches, and you prove them to be popish, to be your own. If you cannot do so, though Papists profess them, yet they may be Christian. This is spoken as to the princi…
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' Catasceuastical and anasceuastical are old logical terms, equivalent to constructive and destructive; and the clavise means, " arguments in support of the one, and in refuta- tion of the other." — En. SG4 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. sidered how little advantage unto your end you were like to ob…
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SGG A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX, delegated unto the same office. Now, this is not a head under Christ, but in distinction from him, in the same place wherein he was, and so exclusive of him; which must needs be Antichrist, one pretending to be in his room and place, to his exclusion, — that is, one…
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368 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. unto you the proper genius and design of your discourse, I shall briefly mind you of the principles which you oppose in it and seek to evert by it; as also of those which you intend to compass your purpose by. Of the first sort are these: — 1. " That the Lord Christ…
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870 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVEESIONS ON FIAT LUX. of necessity lie it must be. But, sir, if the Lord Jesus Christ had had no other nature than that wherein he was visible to the eyes of men, he could never have been a meet head for a church dispersed throughout the whole world, nor have been able to discharge the d…
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872 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. But you proceed: " Christ, in tlieir way, is immediate head not only of subministration and influence, but of exterior derivation also and government, to his church." Ans. He is so, — the supreme and only head of the church catholic, in the one way and other, though…
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374 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. by the laiu of the land, the superiority of bishojjs over ministers, as though these things were the same, or had any relation one to an- other; whereas we have showed the former, in your sense, to be de- structive to the latter. Truth never put any man upon such su…
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376 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. church as that which they contended about, being Hke to the sove- reignty exercised by and in the nations of the earth : from which he that can show a difference in your papal rule, " erit mihi magnus Apollo." (2.) He tells them that his Father had equally provided …
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378 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX CHAPTER XVI. The power assigned by Papists and Protestants unto kings in matters ecclesiastical — Their several principles discussed and compared. Your discourse on this head is not reducible by logic itself unto any method or rules of argument. For it is in genera…
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.380 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. To make onr way the more clear, some of the ambiguous expres- sions which you make use of to cloud and hide your intention in your inquiry after the head of the church, must be explained : — 1. By the church you understand not this or that particular church, not t…
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1. They say that the king is the supt'eme governor over all i^er- sons whatever within his realms and dominions, none being exempted on any account from subjection unto his regal authority. How well you approve of this proposition in the great assignations you pretend unto kingly power, we shall afterward inc[uire. Pro…
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884 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. a very special manner concern the peace and welfare of their subjects, and the distribution of rewards and punishments among them. Of this sort are all things that concern the authoritative public conven- tions of church officers, and differences amongst them about …
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VOL. XIV. 25 886 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. testants; which is all you prove, and so do, " rnagno conatu nugas agere." Who knows it not? I wish there were any need to prove it. But, sir, this difference about the superiority of bishops to presbyters, or their equahty or identity, was agitated in…
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388 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. themselves in your general assertion, p. 55, "That they who after papal decisions remain contumacious forfeit their Christianity?" and if so, whether you do not at once overthrow all your other splendid concessions, and make kings absolute dependants on the pope for…
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390 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX. hath " power to take away empires, kingdoms, and principalities, or whatever a mortal man may have ; " as Platina records it in his life. As also, Pope Nicholas II., in his Epistle ad Mediolanens., asserts that the rights both of the heavenly and earthly empires are…
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6. You exempt all the clergy from under their ride and power. See your Bellarmine sweating to prove that they are not bound to their laws, so as to be judged by them without their leave, if they transgress, or to pay any tribute, De Cleric, lib. i. cap. 28. They 892 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX, ar…
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39 -t A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVEESIONS ON FIAT LUX. tiousness of life, violence, and oppression, whereby they provoked God against them to their ruin? If my story be not true, why do you not disprove it? if it be, why do you exclaim against it? Do I not direct you unto authors of unquestionable credit, complaining …
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First, then, I suppose the whole story is built on the authority of the epistle of Eleutherius unto Lucius, which is yet extant: other foundation of it, that I know of, is neither pleaded or pretended. Now, there want not reasons to prove that epistle, as the most of those fathered on the old bishops of Rome, to be sup…
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1 On page 98 of this volume the reader will find a note, in which the leading facts in regard to Lncius are mentioned. Our author, of course, had a peifect right to de- volve the burden of proof upon his opponent, and to insist upon histoiical evidence of the correspondence between the British prince and Eleutherius. H…
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PROGRESS AND DECLENSION OF RELIGION. 399 historians, which give sufficient testimony unto my observation, you will please to consult Chrysostom, Horn. iii. De Incomprehens. Dei Natur., Horn. xix. in Ac. 9, Horn. xv. in Heb. 8, and Augustin. Lil). de Fid. et Bon. Op. cap. xix., you will find that I had good gi-ound for…
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But you lay more weight on what you cull out in the next place, which as you have laid it down is, " That these now christened Pagans advanced the pope's authority, when Christian religion was now grown degenerate;" and say, " Now we come to know how the Roman bishop became a patriarch above the rest, — by means, namel…
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About the year 608, presently after the Saxons had received Chris- tianity, and therewithal contributed their power, some of them at least, to the furtherance of your papal claim, — : which was then set on PROGRESS AND DECLENSION OF RELIGION. 403 foot, though in a much inferior degree unto what you have since pro- mo…
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mOGRESS AND DECLENSION OF RELIGION. 405 imagine that the feigned jorofessions of subjection, which poverty and hopes of supphes from the court of Rome hath extorted of kxte from some few mean persons, whose titles only were of any consideration in the world, will deserve any place in this disquisition. Until you are p…
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PROGRESS AND DECLENSION OF RELIGION. 407 considering the work he had in hand, discover somewhat besides learning and wisdom in him. So also did his driving of ten thousand men, besides an innumerable company of women and children, all to- gether, into the river Swale in Yorkshire, and there causing them to baptize one…
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And tliat you may be able to say somewhat to the discourse before 3"0U, or to make a pretence of doing so, you wholly pass by every thing that is contained in it, and impose upon me that which is not in it at all, which you strenuously exagitate. For whereas, a little to take off your edge in reflecting on the persons …
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Your next attempt is to vindicate yourself from any such inten- tion in your application of " Ejice ancillam cum puero suo," as I ap- prehended. Whether what you say to this purpose will satisfy yoiu* reader or no I greatly question. For my part, as I shall speak no- i^IASS AND TRANSUBSTANTIATION. 41 1 thing but what…
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MASS AND TllANSUBSTANTIATION. 413 ever sermon made to formal Christians, either by St Peter or Paul, or any other, as the work of their religion that they came together for; nor did the Christians ever dream of serving God after their conversion by any such means, but only by the eucharist or liturgy/' Here is somewha…
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MASS AND TRANSUBSTANTIATION. 415 you are pleased to acquaint us with about this " great business of our rehgion." But because you shall perceive that it was not without good grounds and reasons that I affirmed the Scripture to be utterly silent of this that you make the great work of Christianity, I shall a little far…
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MASS AND TRANS UBSTANTIATION. 41 7 tione et oblation e. Alii constituunt totam rationem sacrificii in una actione, viz., consecratione ;" — " There are who think the nature of the sacrifice to consist in the words, prayers, ceremonies, and rites which are used in the consecration, because, they say, the nature of the …
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MASS AND TRANSUBSTANTIATION. 419 to be repeated, not only as theirs was, year by year, from Avhence he ai-gues the imperfection of the greatest solemn sacrifice of expiation, but day by day, with a farther and greater weakness (repetition, in the judgment of the apostle, being an evidence thereof), — there will be no …
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MASS AND TRANSUBSTANTIATION, 421 to God, and the high priest looking on? Do you not see the fond- ness of your pretension? (3.) I told you before, but now begin to fear that you are too old to learn what you do not like, that the LXX. never translated ^^l, " sacrifice," or to sacrifice, by Xnrovpyia, or XeiTovpyu, nor…
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4. And whereas the apostle expressly affirms that "he offered him- self but once," if he offered himself a sacrifice in his last supper, you must maintain that he offered himself twice, unless you will deny his sacrifice on the cross. 5. Moreover, it is greatly opposite to your countrymen's faith about the priesthood …
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1. Accidents subsisting without a subject follows hence necessarily, in the first place: so that there should be whiteness, and nothing white; length, and nothing long; breadth, and nothing broad; weight, and nothing heavy, — for all these accidents of bread remain, when you would have them say that the bread is gone, …
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CHAPTER XXI. Images — Doctrine of the council of Trent — Of the second Nicene — The argu- ments for the adoration of images — Doctrine of the ancient church — Of the chief doctrine of the Roman church — Practice of the whole — Vain founda- tions of the pretences for image-worship examined and disproved. Your next pro…
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' The words aic extracted trom Can. et Dec. Cone. Trid. sess. 25. The sentence is obscure, as it stands above, from the omission of the following words after "credatm-:" • — ^" inesse aliqua in iis divinitas vel vii-tus, propter quam sint colcndie, vel quod ab eis sit aliquid pctenduni, vel quod tiducia in imaginibus s…
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First, They make the having and use of images in the worship of God of indispensable necessity ; so that they anathematize and cast out of the communion of the church all tliat refuse to receive and use them according to their prescript. Yea, they proceed so far in their approbation of the confession of Theodosius, the…
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 433 Avliich the Tridentine decree approves of, and sends us to learn of tlie second synod of Nice. And this they express, in most places, in those very terms that were used by the Pagans in the worship of their idols ; making, indeed, no distinction, but that whereas the Pagans wor- shipped the …
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THE WORSHir OF IMAGES, 435 and superstition. You tell us somewhere in your " Fiat," that the primitive Christians had the picture or half-portraiture of Christ upon their altars. I suppose you did not invent it yourself I wish you had told us of the legend that suggested it unto you; for you seem, in point of story, t…
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 437 cLarged the Christians that they made use of no images in the wor- ship of God, telhng them that therein they were hke tlie Persians, Scythians, Numidians, and Seres ; all which impious nations hated all images, as the Turks do at this day. To which discourse of his, Ori- gen, returning answ…
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 439 that only of Durand and some others, affirming that images are not worshipped properly but only improperly and abusively, as rash and savouring of heresy. The same doth Bellarmine also; and the truth is, that that opinion of Durand, Gerson, and some others, is plainly condemned l^y the Tride…
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The first thing you reflect upon is my censure of that passage in your " Fiat," that " the sight of images in the church is apt to cast the minds of men on that meditation of the apostle, Heb. xii., ' You are come to mount Sion, to the city of the living God, to the heavenly Jerusalem, the society of angels, and cluu-c…
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You proceed, and add as my words, " Where the psalmist com- plains of God's enemies breaking down his sculptures, he means not thereby any images or figures, but only wainscot or carved ceilings." Would you could find in your heart rightly to report my words ! The reason is evident why you do not, — namely, because the…
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THE WORSHir OF IMAGES. 445 Your next progTess is to some words of mine about the end of 'preaching, which you set down : " Nor is the sole end of preaching, as ' Fiat Lux' wouki have it, only to move the mind of hearers unto cor- responding affections;" whereas, indeed, they are, " He is mistaken if he think the sole …
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 447 wrote these things ? Did you never read your Tridentiae decrees, or the Nicene canons commended by them? is not the adoration of images asserted a hundred times expressly in it? Hath no man ahve such thoughts? Are not only Thomas and Bonaventure, but Bellar- mine, Gregory de Valentia, Baroni…
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 449 by puttii]g his hand to his master's goods, though his case of wrong be never so clear, therefore did the command of God intervene to justify tlieir action." But why do you call this " a thing of danger" only? is it not of more than danger, even expressly sinful? Then is a thing morally dang…
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 451 unto his institution, miglit set up any other images for the same end and purpose, no more than they might set up otlier altars for sacri- fice besides that appointed by him, when he had commanded that they sliould not do so. Supposing, then, that wliich is not true, and which you can give n…
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4. And is it not a fine business, to talk of seeing the " face of God," which shone forth in Christ, in a carved image, or a painted figure ? Is not this to confess plainly that your images are teachers of lies ? 5. Your logic is like your divinity. Inartificial argument or testimony you use none in this place, and I …
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THE WORSHIP OF IMAGES. 455 for there is, by the institution of God himself, a sacramental rela- tion between the water in baptism and the blood of Christ; and yet I do not know that you plead that the water is to be worshipped. And thus is it as to your wooden cross: you put two sticks across, and worship them; you ta…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 457 now, sir, I hope I shall obtain your excuse for having drawn forth this discourse unto a length beyond my intention, yourself having given me the occasion so to do, by pretending that you would, upon this head of images, come up close unto me; which caused me to give you a little taste of what e…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 459 of inveterate prejudices and carnal interests against the liglit of tlie truth as I think was ever given in the workl. These are my apprehensions concerning tlie customs of yoiu" church in this matter, with their nature and tendency. I shall now try whether you, who blame my misunderstanding of…
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In your following discourse you make a flourish with what your church hath in gospels, epistles, good books, anniversary observations, and I know not what besides. But, sir, we discourse not about what you have, but what you have not, nor will have, though God com- mand you to have it, and threaten you for not having i…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 463 ccpted from his dispensations of light and grace. S. To wliom, and for whose instruction, were those epistles of Paul written? Were they not to the churches of those days : " to all that were at Rome, called to be saints," Rom. i. 7; and " to the church of God that was at Corinth, sanctified in …
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 465 efficacy, which believers have experience of, and which I should be sorry to conclude you to be unacquainted withal. " It is the power of God unto salvation," the immortal seed whereby we are begotten unto God, and the food whereby our souls are nourished. And all this is so not only as to the t…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 467 jjublic synagogue worship, made nse of a translation of the Scrip- ture into Greek, which was now become their vulgar tongue, and that made either by the Seventy-two elders sent from Jerusalem to Ptolemy Philadelphus, or, which is more probable, by the Jews of Alexandria, unto which city multitu…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 469 themselves. All your plea ariseth from the practice of some who, through ignorance or negligence, provided not for the good and ne- cessity of the churches of Christ, when, through the changes and confusions that happened in the world, the Greek and Latin tongues ceased to be vulgar; which how m…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 471 daice," tliat is, " In Hebrew/' 5. Some difference you suppose there was between the Assyrian and Syrian in " sound and name, though translators have not heeded to deliver it," when there was no agree- ment at all between them; but you say there was "more m nature," when there was none at all. '…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 473 tlie Latin is from our Exigiish and the languages of divers other na- tions whom you compel to your church-service in that tongue; and, besides, they have the Scripture translated into their present vulgar tongue for the use of private persons : yet we approve not their prac- tice, but look upon…
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THE LATIN SERVICE. 475 the Pentateuch, which was read in their synagogues on the Sabbath- days, jx yiviZiv ap-x^aiMv, as James tells us, Acts xv. 21 ; only, whereas their law was particularly sought after to be destroyed by Antiochus Epiphanes, they supplied the room of it with the other parts of the Scripture divided…
887 wordsSource & rights
Public-domain historical edition (1850–1870); OCR text from Internet Archive. OCR may contain scanning/transcription errors. Verify quotations against page images when precision matters.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.