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and died for our Sins, and rose again for our Juftification: And to the Holy Ghost, as the Infpirer of all revealed Truth, and the Sanctifier of all Hearts, according to the Will of the Father, by and through the Dispensation of the Son.

The more antient and ufual Forms of Doxology in the Primitive Church, and in the Words of Scripture, [fee Part I, Ch. I, Sect. IV,] (by which All later Forms must always be explained,) were, Glory be to God, [or, to the Father; with, or by through the Mediation of his Son Fefus Chrift our Lord, in [under the Guidance, and by the Affiftance of the Holy Ghoft.

And indeed it is moft agreeable to the natural Order of things, that in the fame Forms, wherein the generality of our moft folemn Prayers are put up, in the fame also should our Praifes or Doxologies be exprefs'd.

~

* Αινον και δόξαν την παλε

öxwv, dià rỡ ivóμat☺ τὸ ὑς καὶ τὸ πνέυματΘ το ȧyís, dvaæéμze. Apol.

2.

Juftin Martyr, defcribing the Practice of the Primitive Church, thus expreffes himself: The Prieft (fays he) sends up Praife and Glory to the Father of the Univerfe, through the Name of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Again And in all our Offerings, we bless the Maker of all things, through his Son Jesus Chrift, and through his Holy Spirit.

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the Trinity

Trinity.

Again: Next after God who is Before All, we yield Honour in the fecond place to the Word which came forth from God, and in the third place to the Spirit.

And again: We worfhip and adore God himSelf, and his Son which came forth from him, and the Prophetick Spirit; honouring [each of Them] according to Reafon and Truth: Worshipping the Maker of the Universe, and honouring his Son in the fecond place, and the Spirit of Prophecy in the third place, according to Reafon.

And the learned Bp Bull: What need I add (faith he) that This Preeminence of the Father, [viz. his being God felf-exiftent, and the Original of all things,] is acknowledged in all the Liturgies of the Catholick Church even to this day? For both in our Doxolo gies we glorify God the Father in the first place, as Juftin fpeaks; and alfo we direct most of our Pray ers to him.

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Quid, quòd hæc Pa tris on in omnibus Catholicæ Ecclefiæ Liturgiis hodièque agnofcitur? Nam & in dow oxoyiaus Deum Patrem ξολογίας Ten Tage (ut Juftinus loquitur) glorificamus; & preces plerafque ad ipfùm dirigimus. Defenf. Sect. 2, cap. 9, $ 15.

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Athanaf.

Creed.

2.

Whofoever will be faved; before all things it is neceffary that he hold the Catholick Faith.

Which Faith except every one do keep whole and undefiled: without doubt he fhall perish everlastingly.

And the Catholick Faith is This; &c. He therefore that will be faved, must thus think &c.

Furthermore, it is neceffary to everlafting Salvation, &c.

This is the Catholick Faith; which except a man believe faithfully, he cannot be faved.

'Tis very manifeft, that these damnatory Claufes can with Truth and Charity be applyed only with regard to That general Catholick Doctrine, whereof the Author of this Creed (who is not certainly known) here annexes his own Explication; and not with regard to the particulars of the Explication itself.

Whofoever will be faved, must so believe One God in Trinity, as to give to Each of the Three Perfons that Honour, which the Scripture directly or by plain and indisputable confequence commandeth to be given refpectively to Each of them; and fo believe a Trinity in Unity, as to

take

take care that the Honour given to Each Perfon, may always terminate ultimately in One, viz. in Him who is the original Author of all Bleffings derived and conveyed down to us by his Son our Redeemer and by his Spirit our Sanctifier. This is Fundamental in Chriftianity; and of neceffity to be believed by every person, who is baptized in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghoft; in the Name of the Father who is Above All, in the Name of the Son of the Father, and in the Name of the Holy Spirit of the Father. But the particular Explications of all or any part of this doctrine, given by the Learnedest and Acutest of Men, cannot be in like manner necessary to Salvation.

For fince our Saviour himself expressly commands us, to call no man Mafter upon Earth, and St Paul directs us to reject whofoever teaches, (not, any Other Gospel, as we render the Words, but, παρ ̓ ὅ παρελάβετε, ) any thing Befides of More than what the Apostles taught; namely whofoever teaches any fuch thing, as of abfolute Neceffity to Salvation: From hence 'tis evident that no Other form of doctrine, how true or accurate foever it may poffibly be in itself, can ever be abfolutely NecefJary to Salvation, but only the Doctrine of Chrift and his Apoftles, declared neceffary in their own exprefs words; or by immediate, obvious, indisputable, and (to every fincere Reader of Holy Scripture) evident Confequence therefrom.

The whole Church, in the zoth Article, pub. lickly declares herself to be only a Witness and a Keeper of Holy Writ; and profeffeth that, not only not AGAINST the fame, but even noi BESIDES the fame, ought she to enforce any thing to be believed for Neceffuy of Salvation. Much les Ee z

therefore

therefore can any Private Author, fuch as was the perfon who compofed this Creed fome Ages before it was received publickly in the Church; (which, as the Learned Dr Cave affures us, Hift. Lit. p. 146, was not till above a Thousand years after Chrift; ) affirm his own Explication of any Doctrine, how wife and acute foever, to be of Neceffity to eternal Salvation.

Whatever was not Always, from the Apostles times, explicitly neceffary to Salvation; (as the Learned Mr Thorndike obferves, Epilog. Book II, pag. 155;) can Never become fo. And therefore the moft antient Writers, (as * Irenans, B. 1, ch. 3,) after reciting the Apoftolical Creed, generally declare, that from This Faith no man can diminish any thing, nor add any thing to it; namely, any thing as of Neceffity to Salvation: And the general Council of Ephefus decreed,

that no more Creeds fhould be made or recieved after that of Nice: And the Church of England, neither of Infants nor Adult perfons to be baptized, nor of Sick perfons to be folemnly abfolved, requires any other profef fion of Faith,than in the

* Ουτε ὁ πάνυ δυνατὸς ἐν λόγῳ ἥ ἐν ταῖς ἐκκλησίαις προεςώτων, ἕτερα τέτων ἐρεῖ deis 28 op Tiv diddoxaλον ἔτε ὁ ἀπενὴς ἐν τῷ λύ yo ination The Degidoἐλατζώσει σιν· μιᾶς γδ καὶ τῆς αὐτῆς πίσ σεως ἔσης, ἔτε ὁ πολύ πε αὐτῆς δυνάμωθ είπεν έ πλεόνασεν, ἔτε ὁ τὸ ὁλίγον

alonos. That is: Neither can the most Able man in the Church ever

fay more than This; For

no one is above his Ma fter: Nor can the Meaneft perfon say less than This, which was once delivered to us. For, our

Faith being always one and the fame; neither can be that fays Moft, add any thing to it; nor he that says leaft, diminish from it.

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