A92138:1766
The divine right of church-government and excommunication
The divine right of church-government and excommunication: or a peaceable dispute for the perfection of the holy scripture in point of ceremonies and church government; in which the removal of the Service-book is justified, the six books of Tho: Erastus against excommunication are briefly examined; with a vindication of that eminent divine Theod: Beza against the aspersions of Erastus, the arguments of Mr. William Pryn, Rich: Hooker, Dr. Morton, Dr. Jackson, Dr. John Forbes, and the doctors of Aberdeen; touching will-worship, ceremonies, imagery, idolatry, things indifferent, an ambulatory government; the due and just powers of the magistrate in matters of religion, and the arguments of Mr. Pryn, in so far as they side with Erastus, are modestly discussed. To which is added, a brief tractate of scandal ... / By Samuel Rutherfurd, Professor of Divinity in the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Published by authority.The divine right of church-government and excommunication: or a peacable dispute for the perfection of the holy scripture in point of ceremonies and church government; in which the removal of the Service-book is justifi'd, the six books of Tho: Erastus against excommunication are briefly examin'd; with a vindication of that eminent divine Theod: Beza against the aspersions of Erastus, the arguments of Mr. William Pryn, Rich: Hooker, Dr. Morton, Dr. Jackson, Dr. John Forbes, and the doctors of Aberdeen; touching will-worship, ceremonies, imagery, idolatry, things indifferent, an ambulatory government; the due and just powers of the magistrate in matters of religion, and the arguments of Mr. Pryn, in so far as they side with Erastus, are modestly discussed. To which is added, a brief tractate of scandal ... / By Samuel Rutherfurd, Professor of Divinity in the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Published by authority.
London: printed by John Field for Christopher Meredith, 1646
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.
Duplyers.1
- 1Doctors of Aberdeen. If the scandal arising from Pearth Articles come, ex conditione operis, from the irregularity of the fact, you say, we should forbear them forever, yet this you gainsay in the next Chap. nu. 44. pag 67. We say that the lawful command of our Superiors may make that scandal of our weak brethren, not to beimputed to us, as a matter of our guiltiness, which otherwayes would be imputed to us as a matter of our guiltiness. Now (I say) no scandal but that which is scandall ex conditione operis, from the enormity o• the practice can be imputed to us as guiltiness or sin, for passive scandal is unjustly imputed to us as sin.Doctors of Aberdeen. If the scandall arising from Pearth Articles come, ex conditione operis, from the irregularitie of the fact, you say, we should forbeare them forever, yet this you gainsay in the next Chap. nu. 44. pag 67. We say that the lawfull command of our Superiours may make that scandall of our weak brethren, not to beimputed to us, as a matter of our guiltinesse, which otherwayes would be imputed to us as a matter of our guiltinesse. Now (I say) no scandall but that which is scandall ex conditione operis, from the enormitie o• the p•actice can be imputed to us as guiltiness or sin, for passive scandall is unjustly impu•ed to us as sin.
IF the Scandal arising from the Articles of Pearth come, ex conditione operis, from the very enormity in these Articles, then are we to forbear these articles ever, and not only while they be tried in a lawful Assembly for such are either sin, or have a manifest show of sin. But if the scandal arise not from the Articles themselves, but from malice or weakness, we deny that we are totally to abstain from obedience to lawful Superiors, for eschewing Scandal causelessly taken, and we marvel from whence ye have learned this strange and harsh doctrine.