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ply in St. Hierom's words, (Adverf. Helvid.), "As for "Tertullian, I have nothing to fay of him, but that he " is not a man of the church." Whatever he was, these are his words, "If thou beeft but a Christian, believe "what is traditum, delivered.” And here's nothing again but the word delivered; which (as I have faid) is indifferent to written or oral tradition, if the circumstances do not determine it to one, as here they do (very unluckily for Mr. S.) to the fcripture. For he difputes here against Marcion, who denied the flesh of Christ; and who, to maintain that, denied his nativity, and expunged the whole hiftory of it out of the gofpel*: "But

(faith Tertullian) by what authority doeft thou this? "If thou be a Prophet, foretel fomething; if an Apo"ftle, preach publickly; if Apoftolical, be of the Apo"ftles mind; if no more but a Chriftian, believe what "is delivered." And where delivered, but in those inftruments or books of the gospel, out of which (as Tertullian immediately before tells us) Marcion had made bold to expunge this story?

As for his teftimonies out of Athanafius, the two first of them prove nothing, but that faith comes down from our ancestors, or was by them delivered to us; which no body denies nor is there a word in either of them concerning oral, in oppofition to written tradition. The third teftimony is out of an epiftle to Epictetus, to whom Athanafius, writing concerning those who held Chrift's body to be confubftantial with his divinity, tells him, this was fo grofs a conceit, that it needed no folicitous confutation; but that it would be a fufficient answer to fay in general, "The orthodox church was not of that "mind; our fathers did not think fo." From whence Mr. S. infers, that "tradition is held by him a fole fuf❝ficient rule of faith, and the only anfwer to be given "why we reject points from faith, &c." But if he had confulted the book, he would not have inferred, that this was the only answer to be given, &c." for it immediately follows, "But left from our being wholly filent, "the inventers of evil things fhould take occafion to

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*His opinor confiliis, tot originalia inftrumenta Chrifti delere Marcion aufus eft, ne caro ejus probaretur. Ex qua, oro te, autoritate, &c.

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"be more impudent, it will be good to recite a few paf"fages out of fcripture, &c." And from thence he confutes them at large. It was fo grofs an error, that he thought it might be fufficient, without bringing particular arguments out of fcripture againft it, to fay, that it was contrary to the ancient faith: but yet, left they fhould (if he had faid no more) have taken boldness from thence, and thought that nothing more could be said against it; therefore he confutes it from particular texts of fcripture. And what, in his opinion, was the fufficient rule of faith, Mr. S. might have seen at the beginning of this epiftle, from these words: "That faith

which was profeffed by the fathers in that council, "(viz. the Nicene), according to the fcripture, is to 46 me fufficient, &c." It feems that fcripture was to him the rule and standard whereby to judge even the creeds of general councils.

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Mr. S. fays he will be fhorter in the reft. And fo will I for what is to be faid to teftimonies brought at a venture; when he that brings them, had he read the books themselves, could not have had the face to have brought them? Such is this out of Clem. Alexand. (Stromat. 1.7.), "As if one of a man becomes a beast, "like thofe infected with Circe's poifon; fo he hath "forfeited his being a man of God, and faithful to our Lord, who fpurns against ecclefiaftical tradition, and leaps into opinions of human election." Mr. S. knows whofe way of quoting this is, to pick a bit out of the midst of a text that founds fomething towards his purpose, and leave out the reft, which would make it evident to be meant juft contrary. Yet I cannot charge this wholly upon Mr. S. whofe implicit faith, were it not for his culpable ignorance, might excufe him. But for his feducer, Mr. White, how he can acquit himself of fo foul an imputation, I leave it to any ingenuous Papift to judge, when I have nakedly fet the whole paffage before him. Clement, fpeaking of hereticks who relinquish the fcripture, or abufe it, by wrefting it to their lufts, fays, "Men who deal in matters of highest importance, must need commit great errors, if they do. 66 not take and hold the RULE OF FAITH from truth itself. For fuch men having once deviated from

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"the right way, do likewife err in most particulars; "probably because they have not the faculty of distinguishing truths and falfhoods perfectly exercised, to "chufe what ought to be chosen: for, if they had this, "they would be ruled by the divine SCRIPTURES. "[Therefore, as if any of mankind fhould become a "beaft, in fuch fort as those who were papua below, "bewitched by Circe; even fo he hath loft his being a "man of God, and abiding faithful to the Lord, who "hath fpurned against the tradition of the church, and

fkipped into the opinions of human fects, apisav,]; "(not of human election, as Mr.S. blindly following Mr. "White, does most abfurdly tranflate it): but he that "hath returned from his errors, and hearkened to the "SCRIPTURES, and conformed his life to the "truth, is as it were advanced from a man to a God." At the fame rate he goes on for feveral pages together, taking the fcriptures for an indemonftrable principle, from which all divine doctrines are to be demonftrated, and for the criterion whereby they are to be tried; and charges the hereticks in fuch words as we cannot find fitter for our adverfaries: "As (fays he) naughty boys fhut ❝out their schoolmafter, fo thefe drive the prophecies "out of the church, fufpecting that they will chide and "admonish them; and they patch together abundance of "falfhoods and fictions, that they may feem RATI"ONALLY not to admit the fcriptures." Again, fpeaking of thofe hereticks affronting the fcriptures, he tells us, “ they oppofe the θεία παραδόσει, di"vine tradition, with human doctrines, d'évéрav apey Xerpiσear, by other traditions, [delivered from hand 66 to hand], that they may establish a fect or herefy." Again, he fays, "they adulterate the truth, and steal the "rule of faith, &c.; but for ORAL frauds they fhall "have WRITTEN punishments." But enough of this. Whofoever defires to fee more of it, let him read on where thefe men, to their own fhame, have directed us, and fee whether any Proteftant can speak more fully and plainly in this controverfy. The whole truft of the Papifts is upon the equivocal fenfe of the word tradition. Which word is commonly used by the fathers to fignify to us the fcripture or divine tradition, as Cle

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ment here calls it, but the Papists understand it of their unwritten tradition; and to this they apply all those paffages in the fathers where tradition is honourably menoned. So Mr. S. deals with us in the testimonies I have already examined: and there is nothing of argument in those few which remain, but from the ambiguity of this word which I need not fhew of every one of them in particular; for whofoever fhall read them with this key, will find, that they are of no force to conclude what he drives at.

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§ 5. As for his citations out of the council of Trent, by which he would prove it to be the perfuafion of their prefent church, that tradition is the fole rule of faith, I have already fhewn, that that council hath declared otherwife, and is otherwise understood by the chief of their own writers. And therefore he did prudently to conceal, in an &c. thofe choaking words, in which the council declares itself to "receive and honour, with equal pious affection and reverence, the books of fcri66 pture and unwritten traditions.” And, after a deal of fhuffling, what a pitiful account is it that he at last gives of that council's putting fcripture conftantly before tradition; Because fcripture being interpreted by tradition, is of the fame authority, "as if an Apostle or an E"vangelist were prefent; and therefore no wonder they ho"nour fcripture-teftimony fo as to put it before tradition?" which is to fay, that because fcripture is fubordinate to tradition, and to be regulated by it, therefore it deferves to be put before it. Befides, if fcripture and tradition be but feveral ways of conveying the evangelical and apoftolical doctrine, why fhould he imagine an Evangelift or Apostle to be more prefent by the fcripture than by oral tradition; efpecially if it be confidered, that he fuppofes fcripture to be an uncertain, and tradition an infallible way of conveying this doctrine?

SECT. II. Teftimonies on the behalf of fcripture.

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•ALL LL that now remains, is, to confirm the prece dent difcourfe, by teftimonies of the most eminent perfons of the church in feveral ages. In which I fhall not need to be large, being fo happily prevented by VOL. III.

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that full account which is given of the sense of the ancients in this matter, in the answer to Labyrinthus Cantuarienfis; which Mr. S. may, if he please, confult for his farther conviction.

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§ 2. I begin with the historical account which Eufebius gives of committing the gospel to writing; which is to this purpose, (Hift. ecclef. 1. 2. c. 14.), viz. that "the Romans were not content with the doctrine "preached, unless it were alfo committed to writing; " and therefore did earnestly beg of Mark, Peter's com"panion, that he would leave them a monument in "writing of that doctrine which had been delivered to "them by word of mouth. And this was the occafi"on of the writing of St. Mark's gofpel. And when “Peter did understand, that this work was published, being fuggefted by the divine revelation of the Holy "Spirit, it is faid, he was very much pleased with the "ready and earnest defire of those perfons; and that, by his authority, he confirmed this writing, to the "end that it might be every where read in the church." As for St. Matthew and St. John, he tells us, (ibid. 1.3. c. 18.), that, "of all the difciples, they two only "have left monuments in writing; of whom it is al"fo reported, that they betook themselves to write, being "drawn thereto by neceffity. Matthew, after he had preached the word of God to the Jews, and was refolved to go to other nations, wrote his gofpel in the language of his country; and thus, by the diligence and pains of writing, did abundantly fupply "the want of his prefence to thofe whom he left. And, when Mark and Luke had publifhed their gofpel, it is reported, that John, (who had always ufed to preach the word without writing it), being at length wrought upon by the fame reafon, did be"take himfelf to write." ." From this account it is clear, that the Apoftles thought it neceffary, for the prefervation and fecure conveyance of the Chriftian doctrine, that it fhould be put into writing; and that they judged this a better way to fupply the want of their prefence than oral tradition. Therefore the fame author tells us, (ibid. c.31.), that "the difciples, who immediately fucceeded the Apostles, as they travelled to preach the

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