An Explanation of the Roman Catholicks Belief, concerning Their Church, Worſhip, Iuſtification, civil Government, and their other Tenets: As it was preſented to ſome Perſons of Quality, for their particular ſatisfaction.
WE believe the holy Scriptures to be of Divine inſpiration and infallible Authority; and whatſoever is therein contained we firmly aſſent unto, as the Word of God, the Authour of all Truth.
But ſince in the holy Scriptures there are ſome things hard to be underſtood, which the ignorant and unſtable wreſt to their own deſtruction;2. Pet. 3.16. we therefore profeſſe (for the ending of controverſies in our Religion, and ſetling of peace in our Conſciences) to ſubmit our private judgments to the Judgement of the Church, repreſented in a free Generall Councell.
2. We humbly believe the ſacred Myſterie of the Bleſſed Trinity, one Eternall,2 Almighty, and incomprehenſible God whom onely we adore and worſhip, as a lone having Soveraigne Dominion over all things, to whom onely, we acknowledge as due from men and Angels, all glory,1. Tim. 1.17. ſervice, and obedience (abhorring from our hearts, as a moſt deteſtable Sacriledge, to give our Greatours honour to any Creature whatſoever.
And therefore we ſolemnly proteſt, that by the prayers we addreſſe to Angels and Saints, we intend no other than humbly to ſollicite their aſſiſtance before the Throne of God, as we deſire the prayers of one another here upon earth, not that we hope any thing from them, as original Authours thereof, but from God the Fountain of all Goodneſſe, through Ieſus Chriſt, our onely Mediatour and Redeemer.
Neither do we believe any divinity or virtue to be in Images, for which they ought to be worſhip't, as the Gentiles did their Idols, but we retain them with due and decent reſpect in our Churches, as inſtruments, which we finde by experience, do often aſſiſt our memories, and excite our affections.
3. We firmly believe, that no force of3 nature nor dignity of our beſt works can merit our Iuſtification, but we are juſtified freely by grace,Rom. 3.14. through the Redemption that is in Ieſus Christ.
And although we ſhould by the grace of God perſevere unto the end in a godly life and holy obedience to the Commandements; yet are our hopes of eternall glory ſtill built upon the mercy of God, and the merits of Chriſt Ieſus.
All other merits (according to our ſenſe of that word) ſignifie no more, than Actions done by the aſſiſtance, of Gods grace, to which it has pleaſed his goodneſſe to promiſe a reward; a Doctrine ſo farre from being unſuitable to the ſenſe of the holy Scriptures, that it is their principall) deſign to invite and provoke us to a diligent obſervance of the Commandements, by promiſing heaven as the reward of our obedience, 1 Tim. 4.8. Godlineſſe is profitable to all things, having the promiſe of this life, and of that which is to come, And Rom. 2.6. God will render to every man according to his deeds, to them, who by patient, confidence in well-doing, ſeek for glory, and honour, and immortality, eternall life. And again, Rom. 8.3. If you live after the fleſh you ſhall die, but is through4 the ſpirit you mortifie the deeds of the bodie; you shall live, And Heb. 6.10. God is not unjuſt to forget your work and labour of love, which you have ſhewed for his name, &c, Nothing being ſo frequently repeated in the Word of God, as his gracious promiſes to recompenſe with everlaſting glory the faith and obedience of his ſervants;Luke 6.38. Nor is the bounty of God barely according to our works, but high and plentifull, even beyond our capacities, giving full meaſure, heaped up, preſſed down, and running over into the boſomes of all that love him.
Thus we believe the merit or rewardableneſſe of holy living (both which ſignifie the ſame thing with us) ariſes not from the ſelf-value even of our beſt actions, as they are ours, but from the Grace and Bounty of God;Luke 17.10. and for our ſelves, we ſincerely profeſſe, when we have done all thoſe things, which are commanded us, we are unprofitable ſervants, having done nothing but that which was our duty, ſo that our boaſting is not in our ſelves, but all our glorying is in Chriſt.
4. In the holy Euchariſt, or moſt venerable Sacrament of the body and bloud of our Lord: We acknowledge that there5 are, as in all other Sacraments, two things. The viſible ſigne, which is the forms of bread and wine, to which noe Catholick may or doth direct his worſhip. There is alſo inviſible Grace ſignified, the body of our bleſſed Lord, whom being preſent we adore and worſhip with all poſſible reverence and thanksgiving from our hearts for ſo great a bleſſing, warranted herein by our bleſſed Lord himſelf in each of the Goſpels.
5. We humbly confeſſe that from the beginning of Chriſtianity, the holy Communion was adminiſtred frequently, in both, & ſometimes in each kind, according to ſeverall circumſtances: and hence the holy Church following the piety of Chriſtians, who inſenſibly became accuſtomed to receive it almoſt univerſally in one kinde, upon great motives did afterwards ordain to have it in one, as now it is commonly adminiſtred, though the receiving of it ſo is not matter of faith. Neither do we believe that religious and devout communicants, are hereby bereaved of any benefit or comfort in obeying the Churches orders, ſince our holy belief inſtructs us,Trid ſeſ. 21. a n. 3 that our bleſſed Lord the fountain of all grace is as equally6 preſent in one kinde as in both.
6. The holy Sacrifice indeed of the altar we clearly believe ought to be celebrated in both kinds, as now it is according to the divine inſtitution,Luk. 21.9. as being done in repreſentation and commemoration of our Lords bleſſed paſſion on the croſſe, wherein the body and bloud were ſeparated: Whatſoever therefore propitiatory power our holy Religion attributes to this commemorative Sacrifice, it is by virtue of the Sacrifice of the croſſe, as being by this applied to us. This is the ſubſtance of our faith expreſſed in the Councell of Trent,Seſ. 22. c. 1. ſo that ſtill we humbly acknowledge the ground of our ſalvatlon to be derived from our Lords bleſſed and bitter paſſion.
7. We freely acknowledge that is no way commanded by the Church, that the people ſhould pray in a language which they underſtand not, nay, there is given them all poſſible incouragement to encreaſe their devotions, and with the Apoſtle to allure all, if it may be, to continuall prayer, (which is the life of our ſouls) by ordaining and publiſhing moſt excellent prayers in vulgar languages for their uſe.
7As to the lyturgies they of the Church properly belong to Church-men, and therefore were anciently ſtyled the Prieſts books, leſt the people ſhould not receive full benefit by their publick uſe, there is an expreſſe command of our holy mother the Church in the Councell of Trent,Seſ. 5. c. 8. that the Paſtours and all who have charge of ſouls, in the very time of divine ſervice, ſhould expound and make them plain to the peoples capacity, as in the old times of the Church we find it was alſo ordained and practiſed.
Our faith teacheth us to exerciſe Chriſtian Charity by humbling our ſelves before the divine throne of Gods mercy, to begg forgiveneſſe (as we do for one another here upon earth) of the debts and treſpaſſes of thoſe middle ſort of Chriſtians, as S. Augustine and the Councel of Florence call them,In Enchyridie ad Laurentium & De Civ. l. 21. c. 24. who had not brought forth ſufficient fruits of repentance, dying in communion of the faithfull; which indigent condition of theirs, relievable by the Churches, or the prayers of the faithfull ſurviving, ſpeaks what the ancient call Purgatory: warranted herein by the practiſe under the law recorded and recommended in the Maccabees, which8 being in no•ort reprehended by our Lord or his Apoſtles amongſt the reſt of the Jews unlawfull practiſes, was and is juſtly preſumed to have been allowed by him, as many of the Fathers underſtood his ſermon in the Mount,Mat. 5.29. 1 Cor. 15.29. 2 Cor. 3. and by them, as is hinted by S. Paul: whereupon it hath continued ever ſince in generall practiſe throughout all ages, as even graveſtones and all other Chriſtian monuments do witneſſe eſpecially all ancient Lyturgies of the Saints, and books of common prayers uſed in all Churches: neither can we decern how poſſibly this may be conceived offenſive to God, whoſe juſtice herein we hope and do humbly endeavour to appeaſe by our exerciſe of brotherly compaſſion.
9. We firmly believe, and highly reverence the Moral Law,Exod. 20. Mat. 19. Eccleſ. 12.13. being ſo ſolemnly delivered to Moſes upon the Mount, ſo expreſly confirmed by our Saviour in the Goſpel, and containing in it ſelf ſo perfect an Abridgement of our whole duty both to God and man.
Which Morall Law we believe obliges all men to proceed with faithfulneſſe and ſincerity in their mutuall contracts one towards another; and therefore our conſtant9 Profeſſion is, that we are moſt ſtrictly and abſolutely bound to the exact and entire performance of our promiſes, made to any perſon of what Religion ſoever; much more to the Magiſtrates and Civil Powers, under whoſe protection we live, whom we are taught by the Word of God to obey, not onely for fear, but conſcience ſake; and to whom we will moſt faithfully obſerve our promiſes of duty and obedience, notwithſtanding any diſpenſation; abſolution, or other proceedings of any forraign Power or Authority whatſoever,
Wherefore we utterly deny and renounce that falſe and ſcandalous poſition, that Faith is not to be kept with Hereticks, as moſt uncharitably imputed to our practiſes, and moſt unjuſtly pinned upon our Religion.
Theſe we ſincerely and ſolemnly profeſſe, as in the ſight of God, the ſearcher of all hearts, taking the words plainly and ſimply, in their uſuall and familiar ſenſe, without any Equivocation or Mentall Reſervation whatſoever.