A26883:336
Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who,…Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who,…
Richard Baxter's Catholic theology plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriors who, 1. by contending about things unrevealed or not understood, 2. and by taking verbal differences for real,Richard Baxter's Catholick theologie plain, pure, peaceable, for pacification of the dogmatical word-warriours who, 1. by contending about things unrevealed or not understood, 2. and by taking verbal differences for real,
London: printed by Robert White for Nevill Simmons, 1675
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.
97. As Time is no Real being, but the Duration of Beings, which is nothing but their Existence not ceasing; so Eternity is nothing really distinct from God himself; but it is Gods existence considered as having no measure of duration, no beginning, no middle, no parts of duration and no End.
98. Eternity therefore is a Notion which may be called Indivisible and Divisible in several respects. It is Indivisible properly and in it self considered; for it is nothing but God himself as existing sine mensura tempor is perfectly and indivisibly: But it may be called Divisible Intellectually (by humane, partial or inadequate conception; not by partition), as it is compared to transitory time; and because as mans narrow head must know one God suo modo by many inadequate conceptions, or not at all, so must he know Eternity suo modo, by conceptions drawn from partible Time.
99. By this much the great Objections of the Scotists may be satisfied by a Conciliation: They say, 1. That which existeth not, doth not co-exist; nor God with it. 2. That Eternity indeed includeth all Time successively as present in it; but not future Time. To the first I answer, 1. That it is granted that Time hath successions, and only the present Instant is: And that which Is not, co-existeth not with Eternity: But yet seeing Eternity is Indivisible, it is not part of it that co-existeth with one of our Instants and part with another; but All indivisibly with each instant. 2. And when it is said, That the Creature existed not ab aeterno, if you intellectually divide Eternity into past and present and future, like Time, it's true: But speaking properly, it is fallacious: For [Ab] aeterno implyeth a division of Eternity, and a preterition of one part, which is commonly supposed false. But if the denomination be sercht from Eternity, seeing it is Indivisible, you cannot say that to day it co-existeth with this day, and not with to morrow, for if ever it co-existeth, it always co-existeth: For, ab & ad, & ante & post, & fuit & erit, are words of falsehood spoken properly of Eternity (according to the commonest doctrine.)