DireEtiom /JOIV to know the Truth wbm Contro)Jerted. 9· 31· D!rca. 20· In Controverfies ~hich depend on tbt Experience of particul;r Chrifti:JH.IOT rf the Di.reQ. ao. Ch:trcb, regard m!ljl the judgement of tlu moft experienced, and prefer tbe judgement of the later ages of the Cbrmh before tbt judgtmtnt of lcf experienced agu: (except the Apoltolical age that had the grcar<.r hdp of rh~ fpirir J: An .s~cicnt experiwced Chrifti:m or Divine is more to be reguded in many points, whtch requt.ti experunce, than many of the younger fort, that are yet more Zt:.i.luus and of quickcrunderflanding and expreffion than the elder. So thofe that we call the Fathers or Andcnrs were indeed in the younger ages of rhe Church, and we that are faln into the later and more exprienceJ. age, have all the helps of the wifdQm an~ experience of the Age!o that were before us: And therefore God will require at our hands an account of thefc greater t=-lcnrs which we have received l As it were unexcufable now · in a Phyficion, that .hath the help of fuch Voluminous infiitutions obfcrvations and experiments of formtr ages, to know no more than thofe fOrmer times chat had no fuch h, lps; fo would it be as unexmf:~ble for this pnf"Cnt age of the Church to be no wifcr than thOfc former ages. .\Vht~n Aquin.K, Sconu, Ariminenfis and o~her Schoolmen, de· 1ivercd the Doctrine of Ch.dfiianity to the Church in a drefs .ro far d1H~rent from IgnatiJH, IrenttM, 'l'trtuliian Cyprian, or any of thofe former ages, they certamly thought that they had aaaincd w a far greaf;r excellency and accuratenc:fs.in the Knowledge of Divinity tha~ thofe thei.r Ancdtors had attained: And whatever they fwear m the Trent O.!th, of not expoundmg any Scnpture otherwife than the Farhers do, I doubt not but Suarcz, and Vllfqucz and others of .,heir modern Schoolmen thought fo too, and would havt: been loth eo be accounted wife in the meafure only of thofc: an~ dents. The later and elder ages of the Church have had abundant experience, C'. g. of rbt tendency of AmhitiiJn and Papal afpirings an~ u{urpatiljns; nf the mifchi(fJ of compofi#!. and impnfing the Popijh Mi§.t!J and numerom ccrtmonia, an~ of their imfli{ite faith, and tbtir c~nct.'l!ment of t~e Script"rtl from tlu Vulgar, and many fuch pomts ; .And If we are n~ver lhe w1fcr for all tlus experience, we are the more unexcufable ; and may be Judged as the negkders of our gn:atcr htlps. . ~· 3 2 • Di"ct. 2 r. In Controvtrjies which depend m"ft upon skJ.U in tbt Languages Philofophy or otbtr Dire{/. 2 r. J>ilrtJ of cnmrN:on learning, prc[tr IIJ~ judg~ment of a [tw tha~ are the maft Learned in th4t matter I, brfore t1Jt jttdgement of the moft alt~zent, or ~he moll Godly, or uf tb~ ~reatrji numbe_rr, eve~ wbol~ Churchu, that are unltarned: In th1s cafe netr~er Number1, nor A~mquuy, nor Godlmefi will ferve turn : but as one dear eye will fee further ·then ten thoufand that are purblind, fo one Hiefome or Origcn may judge better of a tranflarion, or the Grammatical fenfe .of _a Text t!lan a hundre~ of the other f «thcrs could. One m1n that undcrChndcth a ~tnguage ts hctcr ro Judgt> of it, than a whole N.uion that undcrfiand it not. One Philofopher is titter to judge of a philof ,phicalqueflion, than a thoufand illi(crate perfons. Every man is moll: to be regarded in the matters which he is b... ft acquainted with. . ~· 33· Dir((.~·. 22. In Controvcrfirs of great difficulty JPhert Divinu tbtm{clvtJ art di(agrttd and a Virc{J. ::u. clrar and pitrcing wit H ncceffary, regard more the judgement of a fow acmr, judicioJH, w.li·Jiudied Divines that are wcU verfl in thofe ContrQVtrfiu, than of a,multitHde of d~tUaHd commo¥ nitJ tb~Jt thi11k to carry it by tbt reputation of their numbtr. It is too certainly atreHed by experience; rhat Jt~dici· S::.ris trium.; ous men are very few, and that the multitude of the injudicious that have not wit enough rounder· ph tt V rius derfland them, nor hum~lity enough to confefs it~ and to learn ?~.them, have yer pr~de and arro~ ~~!~i t~~:os goncy enough to contradu~l: them, and often mahce enough to Y1l1he them. In fuch JJtfntnces it is cepu; nee not only a fign of a wife man to be content with the approbation of a few, but alfo to bve but jrr:P indoles ejus approvtrJ: ( except where the injudicious do implicitly belu.:vc thafe few that are judicious.) Corn. ell pl.ace~e manly a very few that are wifcr than the multitude, are fain to fiand by, and comp.ilfiunate not only mulu~.Lip/ius. •the World but the Church) and fee the difcafc, and lhe eafie remedy, and .all in vain ; while they arc bur neglected or ddpifcd by the rcl\, that will not be made wifcr by them. ~· 34· Direct. 23. In aU contentionr _IJold clofi to that which aU fidts are. agrr_cd in: There is fo Direa. 23 • much agreed on, evt:n between the P.!fifts and the Prntejla1111, as would certamly b.ve them all, if all of them did fincerely believe, Lnve and Pramfe it. For they all confefs that the wf1ole Canonical Scripture is true. Therefore be more fi~dious fin.c~.:.rely to /Jold and improve thofe C(in«mM truth/ which they all profefs, than to oppofc the part1cular opmwns of ;my, further than that commrm truth rcquircth it. See that the Articles of t~e common Creed which aU prof.'fi, be :mftigutdly believtd by J Olt ; and that the PetitionJ in the Lord1 Prttyer be fincercly and e.2rmjlly put up to G...d; and that the ten Com· maildmottJ be h(artily and tntirely obtyed ; and then no errour or diffc:rcncc will be damning to you. ~· 35· DireCt. 24. 1a~t nothing M neceffJr) to [alvatio~t in p;int of faitb, nor aJ tmivtr:{aUy nt· DirtO. 24• ccffary.in p?int of' prallict, wb~ch t/Je u_niver{..tl Church in t~ery .age fi~ct Chrijf did not receive: For if any rhmg be nccdfuy to falvaoon whtch the Church rcce1vc:d not m every age, then the Church it felf of th:Jt 2ge could not be Caved ; and then the Church was indeed no Church : for Chrifl ic; the Swiour of his body. But certainly Cluifi had in every age a Church of faved· ones, who ?pcnly profdfcd all that. wa~ of common necrffity to falvation. An opinion may be true wh1ch accufcth the generality m the Church of {ome crro~tr or imptrfellioit : For it is moll: cert..in thu the Church on Earth is compoic:d , of none (that have the ufe of rea~ {on) but rrri,,g and impl·rftll memlurJ : But no opinion can be true that condemneth all the Church to HeU, in any one •!;< : t"or the Head and Husband of the Church mull be het Judgr. A.a.aaa 2 .·
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