A93091:363
A treatise of liturgies, power of the keys, and of matter of the visible…A treatise of liturgies, power of the keyes, and of matter of the visible…
A treatise of liturgies, power of the keys, and of matter of the visible church. In answer to the reverend servant of Christ, Mr. John Ball. By Thomas Shepherd, sometimes fellow of Emanuel-College in Cambridge, and late pastor of Cambridge in New-England.A treatise of liturgies, power of the keyes, and of matter of the visible church. In answer to the reverend servant of Christ, Mr. John Ball. By Thomas Shephard, sometimes fellow of Emanuel-Colledge in Cambridge, and late pastour of Cambridge in New-England.
London: printed by E. Cotes for Andrew Crooke, 1652
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.
First, if this be so, then every particular Congregation receives its power of the Keys immediately from Christ, not by derivation from any Presbytery, or the Catholic Church, and is in that respect Independent. Neither also can Congregations derive the power seated in them to Presbyteries, nor any greater bodies take it from them.
First, if this be so, then every particular Congregation receives its power of the Keys immediately from Christ, not by derivation from any Presbytery, or the Catholick Church, and is in that respect Independent. Neither also can Congregations derive the power seated in them to Presbyteries, nor any greater bodies take it from them.
Secondly, though we acknowledge this intrinsical power of excommunication in particular Congregations, as being there properly seated by Christ; yet that there are any such political Churches, Classical, Provincial, National, or Catholic, that have any such intrinsical power as is in the Sun, this is not yet ⟨p. 102⟩proved to our understanding. We deny not the use of lesser and greater Synods, nor of such Doctrinal power as the pattern Acts 15. holdeth forth, and which is all that Learned *Mr. Rutherford conceives to belong to a general Council; for thus he saith, Verily, I profess I cannot see what power of jurisdiction to censure scandals can be in a general Council, there may be some me•• Doctrinal power in such a Council, if such could be had, and that is all. And how a National, Provincial, or Classical Synod being lesser parts of the whole, can put forth such acts as the whole cannot do, ipsi viderint. 'Tis true, a particular Church may formally cast out a scandalous member according to the rule, Matth. 18. yet the argument from proportion will not hold in respect of the power of excommunication in greater assemblies against any particular Church offending, (though other means appointed by Christ we deny not) for if excommunication casteth out an offender out of all Churches, then such a particular Church cannot be excommunicated, except it could be cast out of it self, though it may be deprived of the communion of other Churches.