8. To apostasy and heresy she hath also added the guilt of schism in a high degree. For schisms within herself, and her great schism from all the Christian world besides herself, are things well known to all that know her. Her intestine schisms were the .shame of Christendom, her schisms in respect of others the ruin of it. And briefly to answer the triple query we are so earnestly invited to the consideration of, I shall need to instance only in that one particular of making subjection to the pope in all things the " tessera " and rule of all church communion, whereby she hath left the company of
30 ANIMADVERSIONS ON A TREATISE
all the churches of Christ in the world l^esides herself, is gone forth and departed from all apostolical churches, even that of old Rome itself; and the true church, which she hath forsaken, abides and is preserved in all the societies of Christians throughout the earth, who, attending to the Scripture for then only rule and guide, do believe what is^therein revealed, and worship God accordingly. So that, notwithstanding any thing here offered to the contrary, it is very possible that the present church of Rome may be fallen from her primitive condition by apostasy, heresy, and schism, — which indeed she is; and worst of all, by idolatry, which our author thought meet to pass over in silence.
IV. It is frequently pleaded by our author (nor is there any thing Avliich he more triumphs in), " That all things, as to religion, were quiet and in peace, all men in union and agreement amongst them- selves in the worship of God, before the departure made by our forefathers from the Roman see." No man that hath once cast an eye upon the defensatives written by the ancient Christians, but knows how this very consideration was managed and improved against them by their Pagan impugners. That Christians, by their intro- duction of a new way of worshipping God, which their forefathers knew not, had disturbed the peace of human society, divided the world into seditious factions, broken all the ancient bonds of j^eace and amity, dissolved the whole harmony of mankind's agreement amongst themselves, was the subject of the declamations of their adversaries. This complaint, their books, their schools, the courts and judicatories were filled with; against all which clamours and violences that were stirred up against them by their means, those blessed souls armed themselves with patience, and the testimony of their consciences that they neither did nor practised any thing that in its own nature had a tendency to the least of those evils which they and their way of worshipping God were reproached with. As they had the opportunity, indeed, they let their adversaries know that that peace and union they boasted of in their religion, before the entrance of Christianity, was but a conspnacy against God, a consent in error and falsehood, and brought upon the world by the craft of Satan, maintained through the effectual influence of innu- merable prejudices upon the innate blindness and darkness of their hearts. That upon the appearance of light, and publishing of the truth, divisions, animosities, troubles, and distractions did arise, they declared to have been no proper or necessary effect of the work, but a consequent, occasional and accidental, arising from the lusts of men, " who loved darkness more than light, because their works were evil;" which, that it would ensue, their blessed Master had long before foretold them, and forewarned them.
ENTITLED FIAT LUX. 31
Though this be enough, yet it is not all that may be replied unto this old pretence and plea, as managed to the purpose of our adver- saries. It is part of the motive which the great historian makes Galgacus, the valiant Briton, use to his countrymen to cast off the Roman yoke: "Ubi solitudinem faciunt, pacem adpellant." It was their way, when they had by force and cruelty laid all waste before them, to call the remaining solitude and desolation by the goodly name of peace; neither considered they whether the residue of men had either satisfaction in their minds or advantage by their rule. Nor was the peace of the Roman church any other before the Refor- mation. What waste they had, by sword and burnings, made in several parts of Europe, in almost all the chiefest nations of it, of mankind ; what desolation they had brought by violence upon those who opposed their rule or questioned their doctrine, the blood of in- numerable poor men, many of them learned, all pious and zealous, — whom they called Waldenses, Albigenses, Lollards, Wickliffites, Hus- sites, Calixtines, Subutraquians, Picards, or what else they pleased (being indeed the faithful witnesses of the Lord Christ and his truths), — will at the last day reveal. Besides, the event declared how remote the minds of millions were from an acquiescency in that conspiracy in the papal sovereignty, which was grown to be the bond of communion amongst those who called themselves the church, or an approbation of that doctrine and worship which they made profession of: for no sooner was a door of liberty and light opened unto them, but whole na- tions were at strife who should first enter in at it ; which, undoubtedly, all the nations of Europe had long since done, had not the holy, wise God, in his good providence, suffered in some of them a sword of power and violence to interpose itself against their entrance. For, whatever may be pretended of peace and agreement to this day, take away force and violence, prisons and fagots, and in one day the whole compages of that stupendous fabric of the Paj^acy will be dissolved; and the life which will be maintained in it, springing only from secu- lar advantages and inveterate prejudices, would, together with them, decay and disappear. Neither can any thing but a confidence of the ignorance of men in all things that are past, yea, in what was done almost by their own grandsires, give countenance to a man, in his o^vn silent thoughts, for such insinuations of quietness in the world before the Reformation. The wars, seditions, rebellions, and tumults (to omit private practices), that were either raised, occasioned, or counte- nanced by the pope's absolving subjects from their allegiance, kings and states from their oaths, given mutually for the securing of peace between them, all in the pursuit of their own worldly interests, do fill up a good part of the stories of some ages before the Reformation. Whatever, then, is pretended, things were not so peaceable and quiet