Doctrine, they tell you that it is the very poison of the Pe lagian Herefy, yea, it is worfe then Pelagianifme, that they are contemners of Grace, fuch as rob God of his honour, taking halfe of it to themselves, that it is here difputed, Whether God alone be God, or whether the will of man be a kind of inferiour, yet (in part) (in part) an Independent Deity. These are Mr Whites words in his Sonus Buccina. quaft. Theolog. in Epif.& in parag.7.

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And for the Jefuites, they are not one jot behind hand with them in their cenfure of the Dominican Doctrine which (fay the Jefuites) brings back the ftoicall paradox, robs God of the Glory of his goodneffe, makes God a lyar and the Author of finne; and yet when we tell them of these divifions, the breach is presently healed thele favages are grown tame, their differences triviall and onely fome School-niceties, wherein Faith is not concerned: And now both Stoicks and Pelagians are grown Orthodox, and the grace,glory, foveraignty and holiness of God, are matters but of fmall concernment: and fa it feems they are to them, elfe they durft not fo fhameJefly dally with them: But it is ufuall with them to make the greatest points of Faith like Counters, which in computation fometimes ftand for pounds, fometimes for pence, as intereft and occafion require. And it is worth Obfervation, Thefe very points of difference when they fall out among Proteftants, between Calvin and Arminius, they are reprefented by our Adverfaries as very materiall and weighty differences, but when they come to their fhare they are of no moment.

2. It may be faid, Tradition may deceive fome of the Romanifts but not all: Now it is the Church which is faid to be Infallible, not particular Doctors: For Anfwer, let it be remembred that I am not now speaking of the deception of fome few private Doctors, but the points alledged are controverted amongst as learned and

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devout

devout men (as they call Devotion) as ever the Churcht of Rome had, here is Order against Order, University against University,Nation again!t Nation, all of them pretending Tradition for their contrary opinions with greatelt confidence and eagerneffe. Premifing this, I Anfwer, That Tradition which hath deceived thousands of the best and Learnedft Romanilts may deceive ten thoufand: That which deceives the Jefuites in. fome points may deceive the Domin cans in others, the Francifcans in others; If it deceive the French Papifts in fome points, it may deceive the Italians in others, and fo is not Infallible in any: Or elfe, what bounds will thefe men let to the Infallibility of Tradition? Will they fay Tradition is onely infallible in France, and. thofe of the fame perfwafion, who plead Tradition for the Supremacy of the Councell above the Pope? Or will they fay the Infallibility of Tradition is kept beyond the Alpes among the Italian Doctors, who urge Tradition for the Popes Supremacy above Councels? But what fecurity will they give us, That the Fallibility of Tradition cannot paffe over the Alpes and get from one fide to the other? Indeed Infallibility may happily be a tender piece not able to get over thofe fnowy Mountains: But Fallibility can travell to all parts and at all times: In fhort, it being certain that Tradition doth deceive thousands of them it may deceive the reft: Nor can this be any way prevented, but by pretending the promife of Infalli bility, but this is Heterogeneous to the prefent enquiry, and they are now pleading for another Infallibility from. the nature of Tradition, and that is hereby difproved; and for the fiction of a promise, I have discovered that before.

But the third and laft pretence is moft frequent; That however in leffer points they may be mistaken and divided, yet they are agreed in all that is de fide, in all points

of

of Faith, that is, in fuch things as have been decided by Pope or Councell: I anfwer in few words, and thus I reinforce my Difcourfe. If Tradition might deceive them before fuch a Decifion,it might deceive them afterwards; becaufe the Decifion of a Councell doth not alter the nature and property of Tradition: It is true (ace cording to the opinion of fome Papifts) fuch a decifion of a point may caufe him to believe a Doctrine which before he doubted of or denied, because he may judge the Churches Authority fo infallible and obliging to him, that Tradition with Scripture and all other things muft ftrike faile to it: But the decifion of a Councell cannot make that a Tradition, which was no Tradition, nor can it hinder, but that Tradition did deceive me before, and confequently might deceive me afterwards. For inftance: If the Pope determine the controverfie between the Janfenifts and Jefuites about Predeftination, Grace, Freewill: c. his determination in favour of the Jefuites poffibly may change fome of the Janfenifts judgments, becaufe peradventure it is their principle that the Pope is the Infallible Judge of Controverfies, to whom they must all fubmit: But (fuppofing that the Pope decides accor ding to the verity of Tradition, and that must allwaies be fuppofed) a thousand of his decifions cannot hinder, bur that all the Janfenifts and Dominicans had untill that time been deceived by Tradition: So it feems Tradi tion in that point was Fallible for above 1600 years together after Chrift, and now upon the Popes determination An. 1653. it is momento turbinis grown Infallible; but neither will this do their work; for the nature of Tradition being the fame, either it must be infallible in the foregoing ages, or else it must now be acknowledged Fallible.

$11. Anf.7. Although this one Anfwer might fuffice to all their perplexing arguments tending to fhew the im poffibility

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poflibility of any mutation or corruption where Tradi tion is pretended, viz. that it is apparent, there have been severall mutations and corruptions where Tradition is owned. As it was a fufficient confutation of that Philofophers knotty Arguments alledged to prove that there was no motion, when his Adverfary walked be fore him; though happily the other brought fome Arguments, that might puzzle an able difputant to Answer. (which in that point is not hard to doc:) Or if any man fhould urge a fubtile Argument to prove the impoffibi. lity of Sins comming into the World, becaufe neither could the understanding be firft deceived, nor the will corrupted without the deception of the understanding, it were fufficient to alledge the univerfall experience of mankind to the contrary: So the undoubted experience of manifeft corruptions in the Church so called,which no man that hath the use of his Eyes, and exercise of his reafon or confcience can be ignorant of, might juftly Elence all the cavils of wanton wits pretending to prove the impoffibility of it: yet because I will ufe all poffible means to convince them, if God peradventure may give fome of them repentance that they may recover themfelves from the fnare of the Divell, 1 fhall proceed farther and eafily evince the poffibility of corruption in that cafe, and point at fonie of thofe many fountaines of cor ruption, from whence the ftreams of errour might flow into the Church,notwithstanding the pretence of,and adherence to the Doctrine of Tradition: Ad because the anfwerer of the L. Falkland reduceth all to two branches: If (iaith he) a company of Christians pretending Tradition for all they teach could teach falfhoods, then fome age must either have erred in understanding their Ancestors, or have joyned to deceive their pofterity; but neither of these are credible. fhall apply my Anfwer to him, first in generall, and then to the severall branches of his Argument.

§. 12.

12. In generall, the whole Argument is built upon a falfe fuppofition, as if the misunderstanding or deceit must needs come in as it were in one fpring tide, as if it were impoffible that the Tares of Errour fhould be fowne in the Church while men flept and never dreamed of it: The bafis of this Argument lies in an affertion of the impoffibility of that, which the nature of it fhewes to be most rationall and probable, and the expe. rience of all ages fhewes to be moft ufuall, i. e. that corruption of Doctrines and manners (for in this both are alike) fhould creep in by degrees: As fafon's fhip was wafted (fo Truth was loft) one piece after another: Nemo repente fit turpiffimus: Who knowes not that errours crept into the Jewish Church gradually, and why might it not be fo in the Chriftian Church? We know very well, Pofito uno abfurdo fequuntur multa: One error will breed an hundred, yet all its Children are not borne in one day. St Paul tels us the mistery of iniquity began to work in his daies, but was not brought to perfection till many ages after. The Apoftle bath fufficiently confuted this fencele fle fancy, whileft he tels us that Herely eats like a canker or a gangreen,i. e. by degrees, and is not worst at first, but encreaseth to more ungodlinefs, 2 Tim 2. 16,17. As that cloud, which at first appearance was nobigger then a mans hand, did gradually outfpread the whole face of the Heavens, fo thofe opinions which at first were onely the fentiments of the leffer part, might by degrees improve and become the greater, or at leaft by the favour ofPrinces, or power & learning of their advocates,become the stronger,until at laft,like Mofes's Rod they devoured the other Rods, & monopolizing to themfelves the liberty of writing & profeffing their Doctrines, and fupprefling all contrary Difcourfes & Treatifes, their Doctrines being propofed by them as Catholick Doctrines and the Doctrines of their own and former ages (which

was