Mystical bedlam, or the world of mad-men. By ThoMystical bedlam, or the vvorld of mad-men. By Tho

Tut, they can satisfy their consciences by distinguishing of Treasons. Indeed, all their Religion is a religion of distinctions: such as that is, that an excommunicate Prince may be dethroned; and being once uncrowned, may on his penitent submission be restored to the Church: Quoad animam, non quoad regnum. Thus they leave positive, textual, school-divinity, and fall to Crown-divinity. Antichrist pleads, their Religion is maintained by the Fathers. Did ever any Father allow of Treason? Shame they not to aver it? If any abused, wrested, falsified writing of the Fathers did seem to consent to their errors: yet we know, that Audiendi Patres, non ut Indices, sed ut testes: The Fathers are to ⟨p. 72⟩be heard as witnesses, not as Judges. It is Gods scriptum est, not their traditum est, that must give decision of all doubts.

Tut, they can satisfie their consciences by distinguishing of Treasons. Indeed, all their Religion is a religion of distinctions: such as that is, that an excommunicate Prince may bee dethroned; and being once vncrowned, may on his penitent submission be restored to the Church: Quoad animam, non quoad regnum. Thus they leaue positiue, textuall, schoole-duinity, and fall to Crowne-diuinity. Antichrist pleades, their Religion is maintain'd by the Fathers. Did euer any Father allow of Treason? Shame they not to auerre it? If any abused, wrested, falsified writing of the Fathers did seem to consent to their errors: yet wee know, that Audiendi Patres, non vt Indices, sed vt testes: The Fathers are to ⟨p. 72⟩be heard as witnesses, not as Iudges. It is Gods scriptum est, not their traditum est, that must giue decision of all doubts.

They object, that those are birds of our own hatching, that thus pollute their nest. Perhaps, our country gave them breath and birth, but they drunk this poison from the enchanting Cup of Rome. They are ever extravagant persons, that like rotten arms or legs have dropped from the body. Men sine sede, sine fide, sinere, sine spe. They are desperate men, and destitute of fidelity, that seek Rome, where their former learning, and the better learning of their conscience, is perverted, perjured. That (forgetting to speak the language of Canaan) enigmatical, epicene, spurious, and abortive equivocation, is the main accent of their speeches: an ambiguous, ambagious, cozening voice, which Cranmer, Latimer, Ridley, never knew, never practised to save their bloods. A strange, stigmatic, misshapen, half-borne, half-unborn child; I know not where bred, nor by what Pope, Cardinal, or Jesuit gotten: but this I am sure, whosoever was the father, Rome keeps the bastard, and nurseth it with her best indulgence. So that now, Jurat? crede minus: non jurat? credere noli: Jurat, non jurat? hostis ab hoste cave. Their words are false; their oaths worse: neither just: Swear they, or swear they not, give them no trust. How else could it be; but to the sophisticating of true substances, must be an access of false qualities?