6o Of Conflancy in the Profit/ion ofthe True Religion. Vol. 1. that in the firft Council of the Chriftian Church at Jerufalem, St. lames, the Bithop of yerufalem, was, if not fuperior, at leaft equal to him ? Does St. Paul acknowledge any Superiority ofSt. Peter over him ? Nay, does he not upon feve- ral occafions declare himfelf equal to the chiefeft Apoftles, even to St. Peter him- felf? And is this confiftent with a plain Conftitution of our Lord's making St. Peter Supream Head and Paftor of the Chriftian Church ? But fuppofe this to have been fo ; where doth it appear, by any Conftitution of our Saviour, that this Authority was derived to his Succeffors ? And if it were, why to his Succefforsat Rome, rather than at Antioch, where he was firft, and unqueftionably Bithop ? They muff acknowledge, that when he was Bithop of Antioch, he was the Supream Head and Paftor of the whole Chriftian Church ; and then the Style muff have been, the Antiochian Catholick Church, as it is now the Roman Catholick. But do they find any Footfteps of fuch a Style in Eccleftaftical Hiftory ? 2. To make good this Propofition, That the Roman Church is the Catholick Church, they are in confequence obliged to affirm and believe, That the Churches of Afta, which were Excommunicated by the Bithops of Rome, for not keeping Eafter as they did ; and the Churches ofyAfia and Africa, which were Excom- municated by the fame Bithop, upon the Point of Rebaptizing Hereticks ; that all thefe, by being turn'd out of the Communion of the Roman Church, were alfo cut off from the Catholick Church, and from a poffiblity of Salvation. This the Church of Rome themfelves will not affirm ; and yet, if to be cat out of the Com- munionof the Roman, and the Catholick Church, be all one, they mutt affirm it. 3. In confequence of this Propofition, That the Church of Rome is the Catho- lick Church, they ought to hold, that all Baptifm out of the Communion of Their Church is void and of none effe&. For if it be good ; then it makes the Perfons baptized, Members of the Catholick Church ; and then thofe that are out of the Communion of the Roman Church, may be true Members of the Ca- tholick Church ; and then the Roman, and the Catholick Church are not all one. But the Church of Rome holds the Baptifm of Hereticks, and of thofe that are out of the Communion of Their Church, to be good ; which is a De- monftration, that the Roman Church neither is the Catholick Church ; nor if the believe confiftently, can the think her felf to be fo. 4. In confequence of this Propofition, all the Chriftians in the World, which do not yield Subje&ion to the Bithop of Rome, and acknowledge his Supremacy, are no true Parts of the Catholick Church, nor in a poffìbility of Salvation. And this does not only exclude thofe of the Reform'd Religion from being Members of the Catholick Church ; but the Greeks, and the EafternChurches; (i. e.) Four of the Five Patriarchal Churches of the Chriftian World; which taken together, are really greater than thofe in Communion with the Church of Rome. And this the Church of Rome does affirm, concerning all thofe Churches and Chriftians, which refufe Subje&ion to the Bithop of Rome, that they are out of the Communion of the Catholick Church, and a capacity of Salvation. But furely it is not poffibile, that the True Catholick Church of Chrìft can have fo little Charity as this comes to ; and to a wife Man there needs no other Demonftra- tion than this, That the Church of Rome is fo far from being the whole Chriftian Church, that it is a very Arrogant and Uncharitable Part ofit. 5. and Laftly; In confequence of theTruth of this Propofition, and of the Im- portance ofit to the Salvation of Sauls, and to the Peace and Unity ofthe Chriftian Church, they ought to produce exprefs Mention of the Roman Catholick Church, in the Ancient Creeds of the Chriftian Church. For if this Propofition, That the Roman Church is the Catholick, be true ; it was always fo, and always of the greateft Importance to the Salvationof Men, and the Peace and Unityof the Chri- ftian Church : and if it were fo, and always believed to be fo, by the Chriftian Church, as they pretend ; What reafon can be imagined, why the Ancient Chri- ftian Church fhould never fay fo, nor put an Article of fuch Confequence and Im- portance in exprefs Words in their Creeds ; nor why they fhould not have ufed' the Stile ofRoman Catholick as familiarly then, as they do now in the Roman Church
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