A01980:57
A recovery from apostasy Set out in a sermon preached in Stepney Church near…A recovery from apostacy Set out in a sermon preached in Stepny Church neere…
A recovery from apostasy Set out in a sermon preached in Stepney Church near London at the receiving of a penitent renegado into the Church, Octob. 21. 1638. By William Gouge D.D. and min. in Black-Friars London Herein is the history of the surprisal and admirable escape of the said penitent.A recovery from apostacy Set out in a sermon preached in Stepny Church neere London at the receiving of a penitent renegado into the Church, Octob. 21. 1638. By William Gouge D.D. and min. in Black-Friers London Herein is the history of the surprizall and admirable escape of the said penitent.
London: printed by George Miller for Joshua Kirton, 1639London: printed by George Miller for Ioshua Kirton, 1639
Title page typeset from the transcription.
Modern spelling is a reading aid: the words are the author’s, only the spelling is modernized. Original shows the page as printed, with the transcription marks.
Now because Christians, on these and other weighty grounds, utterly reject Circumcision, Jews, Turks, and other adversaries of the Christian faith, are not only circumcised themselves, but do what lieth in them to draw such Christians as they can get into their clutches, to be circumcised.1 For any Christian to yield to them herein, whether it be by fair or foul means, is to deny the Christian faith, and to renounce Christ himself: which whosoever doth, is lost. It is all one,2 as of old it was to offer incense to the Heathenish Idols: which because Origen did, he was excommunicated by the Church. Not fear of torture and torments moved Origen to do what he did (for those he had oft endured in great measure ⟨p. 14⟩with much patience: so as his adversaries saw that there was no working on him that way) but it was pretence of avoiding another sin.3 For the Commissioner, when he discerned that by inflicting torments he nought prevailed, but was vanquished, he turned himself to a more devilish plot; for understanding how much Origen was addicted to preserve the chastity of his body, he brought him to the Idols altar where a filthy Black-more was placed, and threatened, that, if he would not offer incense on that altar the Black-more should defile his body, which filthiness to prevent, he offered the incense. This pretence did not excuse his fact, nor avert the Churches censure. What the Black-more had done per force to him, would have been accounted no sin of his. But his offering of the incense was accounted a denial of the Christian faith.
Now because Christians, on these and other weighty grounds, utterly reject Circumcision, Iewes, Turkes, and other adversaries of the Christian faith, are not onely circumcised themselves, but doe what lieth in them to draw such Christians as they can get into their clutches, to be circumcised.1 For any Christian to yeeld to them herein, whether it be by faire or foule meanes, is to denie the Christian faith, and to renounce Christ himselfe: which whosoever doth, is lost. It is all one,