II. that both the sorts of them, as well canonists as Nerians, are BOOK more voluminous in their writings, than substantial: filling them principally with very idle and ridiculous canons and decrees of the pope's own making; and having no true feeling or sense of divinity, do handle the Scriptures, when they have leisure to come unto them, with so foul and unwashed hands, as that their master either is, or ought to be, ashamed of them, in that he permitteth their so absurd books to come abroad into the world. ; de Sum. Besides, it will not a little hinder their credit, if it make them not a scorn to all posterity, even amongst such men as have otherwise made themselves vassals to the see of Rome because the said Jesuits, and some others not to have been despised for their learning, whilst they have strived to advance the pope's supremacy in causes ecclesiastical, have themselves, in a manner, broken the neck of his fondly-conceited temporal 115 monarchy. Some of the chiefest amongst them affirming very peremptorily, that our Saviour Christ, as man, was never a temporal king upon earth; nor ever had any such temporal authority, or government, as doth appertain unto kings and sovereign princes. We will set down some words of one that Bellarm. is of especial authority amongst them; not because we in- Pontif. 1.5. tend to ground any thing upon them, but for that they are [See note I.] true, and may perhaps be of more force than ours are like to be with some kind of people, the rectifying of whose hearts in the truth we tender as much as we do our own. 6 Christ,' saith he, 'did not take kingdoms from them whose they were; for Christ came not to destroy those things which were well settled, but to make them better. Therefore when a king is become a Christian, he doth not lose his earthly kingdom, but procureth a new interest to a kingdom that is eternal. Otherwise the benefit of Christ should be hurtful to kings, and grace should destroy nature.' And again; 'Christ, as He was man, whilst He lived upon the earth, neither did nor would receive any temporal dominion.' And again; 'I say, that Christ was always, as the Son of God, a king and lord of all creatures, in such sort as His Father is; but this eternal and divine kingdom doth not abolish the dominions of men.' Again; 'I affirm',' saith he, 'that Christ, as He was man, could II. [Mat. 20. 28.] 47.] BOOK not, though He would, and had thought it expedient for Him, have received regal authority; but yet I say that He would not, and therefore that He did not, receive, nor had, not only the execution of any lordship and regality, but neither the authority or power of any temporal kingdom.' Again, 'Christ, as He was man, had no temporal kingdom, neither by inheritance, nor by election, nor by conquest, nor by any especial gift of God. And therefore he concludeth that Christ had no temporal kingdom at all, because every such kingdom is 116 gotten by one of the four said means.' Again, saith he, 'Christ never used, in this world, any regal power; He came to minister, and not to be ministered unto; to be judged, and not to judge.' And again; 'regal authority was neither necessary nor profitable to Christ, but plainly idle and unprofitable. For the end of His coming into the world was the redemption of mankind; but to this end temporal power was not necessary, but only spiritual. Lastly; all the places of Scripture almost,' saith he, 'where is any treaty of the kingdom of Christ, ought necessarily to be understood of His spiritual and eternal kingdom; and therefore it cannot be deduced out of the Scriptures that Christ had any temporal kingdom.' So as, in this man's judgment, neither St. Peter, for his time, nor since, any of his successors, did ever receive any temporal kingdoms from Christ, He Himself being never possessed of any, as He was man, either to retain in their own hands, or to commit the execution of them, as in their right, unto other kings and temporal monarchs. But to omit the further prosecution of this Loyolist his said positions, delivered truly in this point more at large, and proved by sundry arguments in his book quoted by us; because he is a man, though he be a cardinal, and of great estimation with his own society, whose credit seemeth to decay, especially with the said canonists and others of that like crew. For if the rest shall hereafter proceed with him, as one of them hath already done, by perverting the whole drift of his disputation in that behalf, very childishly and grossly, he will be driven, ere it be long, to range himself in the troops of some who are falsely supposed heretics; in that the The passage beginning' And there- the margin of A. fore,' and ending with 'means,' is in 'A treaty.' D, 16 II. said grave canonist is so courageous as he dareth to adventure BOOK the pronouncing of a curse of the greatest nature against 117 him, by name, even Anathema sit; and therefore we will clear our hands of him, and drawing to an end in this matter, leave the conclusion of it unto Christ Himself, Who knew His own estate, when He lived here in the world, as well as any canonists, either by birth of Padua, Naples, or Rome, or of any other city or country whatsoever. 36. It is true that our Saviour Christ, as soon as He was born, was a spiritual king, not only over the Jews, but also over all nations. And therefore, when at the time of His arraignment before Pilate, though in scorn the Jews termed Him king, and that He could not indeed truly have denied it; yet He did not equivocate therein, but confessed unto them, what manner of king He was. For Pilate saying unto Him, 'Art Thou the king of the Jews?' and telling Him that Joh. 18. 'the Jews and the High-Priests had delivered Him into his hands,' Jesus answered thus, 'My kingdom is not of this world: if My kingdom were of this world, My servants would surely fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews; but now is My kingdom not from hence.' As if He should have said, 'I am no temporal king, nor have any temporal kingdom in this world; for if I had, my subjects, no doubt, would never have suffered Me to come to this distress; or if it had been My hap so to have been dishonoured, as now I am, they would, out of all doubt, have fought on My behalf, as all dutiful subjects are bound to do when the persons of their sovereigns shall be in any danger. But My kingdom is of another nature; it is no temporal kingdom, either of this world, that is, such a kingdom as those who are temporal kings do possess; or from hence, that is, My kingdom requireth no worldly assistance, the world hath given Me no subjects, neither have I any worldly estate or possessions; so as it might be affirmed truly either of Me or of My kingdom, 118 that either for the dignity of My person, or the strengthening of My government, I have any thing hence, that is, from the world.' BOOK CANON II. And therefore if any man shall affirm, under colour of any thing that is in the Scriptures, either that the Jews did not err in conceiving that their Messiah, when He came into the world, should as a temporal monarch reign amongst them; or, that the Apostles themselves were not somewhat tainted with such like imaginations; or, that Christ's answers unto Wis said Apostles did not sufficiently shew unto them that He came not into the world to erect for Himself a temporal kingdom, and that therefore they were not to expect from Him such worldly preferments as they had dreamed of; or, that the Son of God, in that He was made man, did by His blessed nativity deprive all the civil magistrates in the world of that power and authority which He had formerly given unto them as He was God; or, that Christ, as He was man, was by His birth made a temporal king over all the world; or, that all temporal princes and sovereign kings were thenceforth bound 119 to hold their several countries and kingdoms no more under Christ, as He was God, but as being man, He was become a temporal monarch ober all nations; or, that the emperor Tiberius, who then reigned, did govern the empire for the space of above fifteen years without any lawful authority, until our Saviour Christ willed the Jews to give unto Cæsar those things that are Cæsar's; or, that Christ, having willingly undertaken for our sakes the fulfilling of all the law, and consequently of the fifth commandment, did not hold it to be a part of His office to obey the emperor, upon whom", as He was God, He had bestowed such lawful authority as did appertain unto His government; or, that either Christ His fact in paying of tribute, or His words in willing the Jews to give unto Cæsar those things that were Cæsar's, did then import that neither obedience, tribute, custom, nor any other duty of subjection, did, until that time, belong to the emperor, as being thitherto by Christ's birth deprived of all his regal authority; m 'He had, as He was God, bestowed.' D. II. 120 or, that it is not a great impiety in any political respect what- BOOK soeber, for any man to maintain, when Christ saith His kingdom is not of this world, that it was a worldly and tem= poral kingdom; or, when Christ saith His kingdom was not from hence, that it was notwithstanding, as a worldly kingdom, from hence, as having all other kings and princes here in the world, as bassals in that respect, and subject unto it, he doth greatly err. THE SUM OF THE CHAPTER FOLLOWING. That our Saviour Christ in working our salvation, whilst He lived upon the earth, conformed Himself wholly and His obedience unto the ecclesiastical government and laws of the Church then in force; inveighed not with any bitterness against the High-Priests, though they were His enemies and in many points faulty, but had ever a great respect of them, in regard of their authority; made no new laws when He expounded the old; erected no particular congregations or Churches apart from the congregations and particular Churches of the Jews; but did, together with His Apostles and disciples, join with the Church of the Jews in their public worship and service of God; omitting no one circumstance, ceremony, or duty, undertaken voluntarily by Him, which He did not very throughly perform, even with the loss of His life. As our Saviour Christ, whilst He lived in the world, did no way disturb the civil state, but upon every fit occasion did submit Himself unto it; so may it be truly said of Him concerning the state ecclesiastical, formerly by God Himself established, and remaining still amongst the Jews, though in a very corrupt manner, that He did in every thing thereunto by the law of God appertaining, conform Himself unto it, whilst it lasted; we say", whilst it lasted; because upon His "I say, while.' D. |