A10322:156
A defence of the judgment of the Reformed churches. That a man may lawfully…A defence of the iudgment of the Reformed churches. That a man may lawfullie…
A defence of the judgment of the Reformed churches. That a man may lawfully not only put away his wife for her adultery, but also marry another. / Wherein both Robert Bellarmin the Jesuits Latin treatise, and an English pamphlet of a nameless author maintaining the contrary are co[n]futed by John Raynolds. A taste of Bellarmins dealing in controversies of religion: how he depraveth Scriptures, misalleagthe [sic] fathers, and abuseth reasons to the perverting of the truth of God, and poisoning of his Church with error..A defence of the iudgment of the Reformed churches. That a man may lawfullie not onelie put awaie his wife for her adulterie, but also marrie another. / Wherin both Robert Bellarmin the Iesuites Latin treatise, and an English pamphlet of a namelesse author mainteyning the contrarie are co[n]futed by Iohn Raynolds. A taste of Bellarmins dealing in controversies of religion: how he depraveth Scriptures, misalleagthe [sic] fathers, and abuseth reasons to the perverting of the truth of God, and poisoning of his Churche with errour..
Dordrecht: printed by George Walters, 1609
Chapter 4: THE FOURTH CHAPTER.Chapter 4: THE FOVRTH CHAPTER.
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.
And thus by the way, of weakness of Bell. third & fourth reasons is descried & daunted. The third that if the marriage we treat of were lawful, a gap would be opened to infinite divorcements, yea urongful & unjust. The fourth, that if the innocent party may marry, the nocent also may, who then should gain by his sin, & many would sin of purpose that thy might marry others. For as one of the wisest, & best learned Popesi Pius the 2 said, that marriage was taken away from Priests for great cause, but ought to be restored to them for greater: so may a judicious & discrete Papist supposing these reasons of Bell. to be sound, say that marriage after divorcement for adultery was taken away from men upon many & good considerations: but ought to be restored unto them again upon more & better. Howbeit I must add thereunto that although his reasons be confuted sufficiently with this supposal, let them be tried also by the rules of reason, & it will appear they are a great deal sounder in show then in deed. Fork the divorcement of an adulteress from her husband is punishment of her sin: as hanging with us is a punishment of thieves, of cutpurses, & burning through the ear of rogues. So that Bell. reason concluding the marriage in question to be unlawful, because a gap would be opened to infinite divorcements, is like as if a libertine or vagabond should say, that it is unlawful for Judges to do justice on rogues, thieves, & cutpurses, because there would be opened a gap to infinite hangings, & burnings through the ears. But some men (saith Bell.) would sow debates, pick quarrels, devise false accusations against their wives being innocent: & so a gap would be opened to wrongful divorcements, not to divorcements only. What? must no often ⟨p. 91⟩no traitor, no blasphemer then be put to death because many thousands ofl innocent persons, yeam innocency it self, have been accused falsely, & putt to death wrongfully? Or if Bell. grant, that although somen sitting to judge according to the law, do manifest wrong to guiltless men against law, yet must wicked miscreants be executed by the Magistrate