II. They affirm that this Scripture evidenceth itself by many in- fallible nxiMripia to be SO given by i7ispiration from God; and, be- sides, is witnessed so to be by the testimony of the church of God from the days of Moses, wherein it began to be written, to the days wherein we live, — our Lord Christ and his apostles asserting and con-
PROTESTANT DOCTllINE ON UNITY OF FAITH. 265
firmiug the same testimony ; which testimony is conveyed unto us by uninterrupted cathohc tradition. The first part of this position, I confess, some of you deny; and the latter part of it you generally all of you pervert, confining the testimony mentioned unto that of your present church ; which is a very inconsiderable part of it, if any part at all. But how groundlessly, how prejudicially to the verity and honour of Christian religion in general, you do these things, I shall briefly show you.
Some of you, I say, deny the first part of this assertion ; so doth Andradius, Defens. Concil. Trident, lib. iii. " Neque enim," saith he, " in ipsis libris quibus sacra mysteria conscripta sunt, c^uicquam inest divinitatis, quod nos ad credendum quae illis continentur, religione aliqua constringat ;" — "Neither is there in the books themselves, wherein the holy mysteries are written, any thing of divinity that should constrain us, by virtue of any religious respect thereunto, to believe the things that are contained in them." Hence Cochlseuig, lib. ii. De Authoritate Eccles. et Script., gathers up a \c)reat\ many in- stances out of the book of the Scripture, which he declares to be alto- gether incredible, were it not for the authority of the church. I need not mention any more of your leaders concurring with them; you know who is of the same mind with them, if the author of " Fiat Lux" be not unknown to you. Your resolving universal tradition into the authority of your present church, to which end there is a book written not long since by a Jesuit, under the name of Vincen- tius Severinus, is no less notorious. Some of you, I confess, are more modest, and otherwise minded, as to both parts of our assertion. See Malderus, Episcop. Antwerp. De Object. Fidei, qu. 1; Vaselius Groningen. De Potestat. Eccles. et Epist. ad Jacob. Hock. Alliacens. in lib. i. Sentent. Artie. 3; Gerson Exam. Doc. part. 2, consid. i. tom. i. fol. 105 ; and in twenty other places. But when you come to deal with Protestants, and consider well the tendency of this asser- tion, you use, I confess, a hundred tergiversations, and are most un- willing to come to the acknowledgment of it ; and, rather than suffer from it, deny it downright, and that with scurrilous reflections and comparisons, likening it, as to any characters of God's truth and holiness upon it, imto Livy's story, yea, ^Esop's Fables, or a j^iece of poetry. And when you have done so, you apply yourselves to the canvassing of stories in the Old Testament, and to find out appear- ing contradictions; and tell us of the uncertainty of the authors of some particular books, — that the whole is of itself a dead letter, which can prove nothing at all; inquiring. Who told us that the penmen of it were divinely inspired, seeing they testify no such thing of themselves? and if they should, yet others may do, and have done so, who, notwithstanding, were not so inspired ; and ask us, Why we
266 A VINDICATION OF THE ANIMADVERSIONS ON FIAT LUX.
receive tlie Gospel of Luke, who was not an apostle, and reject that of Thomas, who was one? with many the like cavilling exceptions.
But, — 1. That must needs be a had cause which stands in need of such a defence. Is this the voice of Jacob, or Esau? Are these the expressions of Christians, or Pagans? From whose quiver are these arrows taken? Is this fair, sober, candid. Christian dealing? Have you no way to defend the authority of your church but by question- ing the authority of the Scripture? Did ever any of the fathers of old, or any in the world before yourselves, take this course to plead their interests in any thing they professed? Is this practice Catholic, or, like many of your principles, singular, your own, Donatistical? Is it any great sign that you have an interest in tliat living child, when you are so ready he should be destroyed, rather than you would be cast in your contest with Protestants? 2. Do you think that this course, of proclaiming to Atheists, Turks, and Pagans, that the Scrip- ture,- which all Christians maintain against them to be the word of the living God, given by inspiration from him, — and on which the faith of all the martyrs who have suffered from their opposition, rage, and cruelty, and of all others that truly believe in Jesus Christ, was and is founded, and whereinto it is resolved, — hath no arguments of its divine original implanted on it, no lines of the excellencies and per- fections of its author drawn on it, no power or efficacy towards the consciences of men, evidencing its authority over them, no ability of itself to comfort and support them in their trials and sufferings with the hope of things that are not seen; — is this, think you, an accept- able service imto the Lord Christ, who will one day judge the secrets of all hearts according unto that word? or is it not really to expose Christian religion to scorn and contempt? And do you find so much sweetness in "dolus, an virtus, quis in hoste requirat?" Virg. Mn.ii.odO, as to cast off all reverence of God and his word, in the pursuit of the supposed adversaries of your earthly interests? 8. If your arguments and objections are effectual and 'prevalent unto the end for which you intend them, will not your direct issue be the utter overthrow of the very foundation of the whole profession of Christians in the world? And are you, like Samson, content to pull down the house that must fall upon yourselves also, so that you may stifle Protestants with its fall? It may be it were well you should do so, were it a house of Dagon, a temple dedicated unto idols; but to deal so with that ivherein dwells the majesty of the living God is not so justifiable. It is true, evert this principle and you overthrow the foundation on which the faith of Protestants is built ; but it is no less true that you do the same to the foundation of the Christian faith in general, wherein we hope your own concernment also lies. And this is the thing that I am declaring unto you, — namely, that either you ac-