Now beside the Apostles, Prophets, and Evangelists, which were not ordained to be ordinary and perpetual offices in the Church, tthere are but two Ecclesiastical orders or degrees instituted by Christ in the new Testament, vix. Elders and Deacons. Excellenter Canons d•os tantum sacros ordines appellari censent, Diaconatus scilicet & Presbyterat•, quia hos solos primitiva Ecclesia legitur habuisse, & de hi• sol• praeceptum ⟨image 140⟩Apostli habe•, saith wthe Master of Sentences. As for the order and degree of Bishops, superior to that of Elders, that there is no divine Ordinance nor institution for it, it is not only holden by Calvin, Beza, Bucer, Martyr, Sadeel, Luther, Chemnitius, Gerard Balduine, the Magdeburgians, Musculus, Piscator, Hemmingius, Zanchius, Polanus, Junius, Pareus, Fennerus, Danaeus, Morney, Whittakers, Willets, Perkins, Cartwright, the Professors of Leiden, and the far greatest part of Writers in reformed Churches, but also by Hierome, who upon Tit. 1. and in his Epistle to Fvagrius speaketh so plainly, that xthe Archbishop of Spalato is driven to say, Deserimus in hac parte Hieronymum, neque ei in his dictis assentimur: also by Ambrose on 1. Tim. 3. Augustine in his book of questions out of both Testaments quest. 101. Chrysostom on 1. Tim. 3. Isidore dist. 21. cap. 1. The Canon Law dist. 93. c. 24. & dist. 95. c. 5. Lombard. lib. 4 dist. 24. And after him by many Schoolmen, such as Aquinas, Alensis, Albertus, Bonaventura, Richardus, and Dominicus Soto, all mentioned by the Archbishop of Spalato lib. 2. cap. 4. n. 25. yGerard citeth for the same judgement Anshelmus, Sedulius, Primasius, Theophylactus, Oecumenius, the Council of Basil, Ardatensis, Joh. Parisiensis, Erasmus, Medina, and Cassander. All which Authors have grounded that which they say upon Scripture: for beside that Scripture maketh no difference of order and degree betwixt Bishops and Elders, it showeth also that they are one and the same order. For in Ephesus and Crete, they who were made Elders were likewise made Bishops, Act. 20. 17. with 28. Tit. 1. 5. with 7. And the Apostle Phil. 1. 1. divideth the whole ministry in the Church of Philippi into two orders, Bishops and Deacons. Moreover, 1. Tim. 3. he giveth order only for Bishops and Deacons, but saith nothing of a third order.
Now beside the Apostles, Prophets, and Evangelists, which were not ordained to be ordinary and perpetuall offices in the Church, tthere are but two Ecclesiasticall orders or degrees instituted by Christ in the new Testament, vix. Elders and Deacons. Excellenter Canones d•os tantum sacros ordines appellari censent, Diaconatus scilicet & Presbyterat•, quia hos solos primitiva Ecclesia legitur habuisse, & de hi• sol• praeceptum ⟨image 140⟩Apostli habe•, saith wthe Master of Sentences. As for the order and degree of Bishops, superior to that of Elders, that there is no divine Ordinance nor institution for it, it is not only holden by Calvine, Beza, Bucer, Martyr, Sadeel, Luther, Chemnitius, Gerard Balduine, the Magdeburgians, Musculus, Piscator, Hemmingius, Zanchius, Polanus, Iunius, Pareus, Fennerus, Danaeus, Morney, Whittakers, Willets, Perkins, Cartwright, the Pròfessours of Leiden, and the farre greatest part of Writters in reformed Churches, but also by Hierome, who upon Tit. 1. and in his Epistle to Fvagrius speaketh so plainly, that xthe Archbishop of Spalato is driven to say, Deserimus in hac parte Hieronymum, neque ei in his dictis assentimur: also by Ambrose on 1. Tim. 3. Augustine in his booke of questions out of both Testaments quest. 101. Chrysostome on 1. Tim. 3. Isidore dist. 21. cap. 1. The Canon Law dist. 93. c. 24. & dist. 95. c. 5. Lombard. lib. 4 dist. 24. And after him by many Schoolemen, such as Aquinas, Alensis, Albertus, Bonaventura, Richardus, and Dominicus Soto, all mentioned by the Archbishop of Spalato lib. 2. cap. 4. n. 25. yGerard citeth for the same judgement Anshelmus, Sedulius, Primasius, Theophylactus, Oecumenius, the Councell of Basil, Ardatensis, Ioh. Parisiensis, Erasmus, Medina, and Cassander. All which Authors have grounded that which they say upon Scripture: for beside that Scripture maketh no difference of order and degree betwixt Bishops and Elders, it sheweth also that they are one and the same order. For in Ephesus and Crete, they who were made Elders were likewise made Bishops,
- tFr. I•. animad. in Bell. cont. 5. l. 1. c. 11.
- wlib. 4. dist. […].lib. 4. dist. 〈…〉.
- xde rep. Eccl. lib. 2. c. 3. n. 47.
- yloc. th•l. tom. 6. pag. 374. 375. 376.
