cient to answer: that the proteftant doctrine is the very doctrine of the new teftament; and confequently did not come into the world fince 1500, but is as old as the books of the new teftament: that the corrupt doctrines of the church of Rome are innovations crept in by degrees: that what the proteftants did fince 1500 was the declaring and protesting against thofe innovations, and laying hold on the opportunity, which the good providence of God prefented, for rescuing themfelves from the tyranny of a church, which had held them and their fathers in bondage: and that whereas many good chriftians had for a long time before complain'd of the corruptions of the Romish church, and fome had fuffered martyrdom for oppofing them; the not being in a condition to protect themselves in the poffeffion of a pure doctrine 'till about the year 1500, proves no more, than that God, in the wifdom of his providence, fuffered a corrupt church to oppress them till that time. But the proof of what is really the religion or church of Chrift must be taken from those holy fcriptures, which contain that religion, and defcribe that church. And proteftants chearfully fubmit the whole cause to that decifion. My only reafon for this introduction to pope Pius's articles is, as I before obferved, their connexion with that article of the Nicene Creed, which might make an unwary reader reverence them as articles of the one, holy, catholic, and apoftolic church, to which they have really no relation. I now come to the articles themselves. The first of them is expreffed in the following words. I. I da I. I do moft firmly admit and embrace apoftolical and ecclefiaftical traditions, and the rest of the obfervances and conftitutions of the fame church. By [the fame church] is meant the one, holy, catholic, and apoftolic church, mentioned juft before, in the Nicene creed: which characters, as we have seen, the church of Rome falfely afcribes and confines to herself. Ecclefiaftical traditions, and the rest of the obfervances and conftitutions of this church, are here put upon the fame foot with apoftolical traditions; and, according to the tenor of this article, are to be received and entertained with the fame firmness. And indeed the church of Rome might as well have called all her own traditions and conftitutions apoftolical, as fome of those which she does call fo. Now the embracing of all thefe, without exception, is, according to the conclufion of this creed, made neceffary to the falvation of every private chriftian: for it is there declared concerning the whole creed, that without this faith no man can be faved. But how monftrous is the abfurdity, as well as the wickednefs, of fuch an impofition! How is it poffible, that every individual of the common people fhould most firmly admit and embrace all thofe things, which this creed calls apoftolical and ecclefiaftical traditions, and the rest of the objervances and confti tutions tutions of the church: when, in order to do this, they must every one of them be acquainted with all ecclefiaftical hiftory, and with all the oral as well as written traditions; and muft, in order to the firm admiffion of them, have examin'd and approv'd them? And even in cafe every private christian had the opportunity of being acquainted with all the traditions and obfervances and conftitutions of the church: yet how can he with a good confcience firmly admit and embrace them, without a full fatisfaction, that all of them are the very mind of God? And how shall their being delivered and decreed by a number of fallible men be able to fatisfy any man's confcience, that all these things are really the mind of God, and that the embracing them is neceffary to falvation? A terrible ftumbling-block this, at the very entrance! But over it you must get: otherwife the whole creed fignifies nothing. Implicit faith is the first diftinguishing character of a true Romanist. If you offer to examine, even into thofe conftitutions which are of the most shocking nature, of which there is plenty in the church of Rome; you are by that very means brought into the dangerous fufpicion of herefy. The traditions of the church must be received with the fame reverence · and pious affection, as the holy fcriptures themfelves. So the council of Trent expressly declares they receive them: * Seff. IV. decr. de can. Scr. And fo muft the people too: or else they are by the fame council, and almost in the fame breath, declared accurfed. Pari pietatis affectu ac reverentia. But But Chrift has taught us quite another doctrine. He taught his difciples not to depend upon the tradition of the elders; but to follow the command of God in oppofition to it. He charged the Scribes and Pharifees with making the commandment of God of no effect by their tradition: and fignified, that in vain they worshiped God, while they taught for doctrines the commandments of men: Matt. XV. 6, 9. By their traditions, pretended to be delivered by Mofes, but not committed to writing, they eluded, and even oppofed, the plain written commands of God. And in like manner does the church of Rome, by its pretended apoftolical traditions, of which the apostles themselves knew nothing at all, and by their own authoritative new conflitutions, make void the plain doctrines of Chrift in the new teftament. They pretend, that fome confiderable and important parts of the mind of Chrift, with regard to our faith and practice, were left out of all the writings of the new teftament, to be conveyed by tradition; and that their church is in poffeffion of all thofe traditions: and accordingly they produce what traditions they please, juft as the exigences of their church require; and infift upon our receiving and complying with them. But this we cannot do, without cafting contempt upon that written word, which is in itself a perfect rule, and fufficient for our guidance; and throwing ourselves into the utmost danger of lofing and acting contrary to that perfect rule which we have already, under the pretence of fupplying its defects. The scheme of the gofpel, as it stands in the new teftament, fo fully anfwers all the ends that can be defired, for reftoring lapsed mankind; proposes measures for that purpose fo perfectly fuited to their neceffities and to the divine perfections; contains fo copious an account of what is required of a chriftian; and is attended with fuch well-grounded affurances of happiness to those who duly regard it, as well as clear proofs of its coming from God: that we have abundant reason to believe, that the whole of the faith once delivered to the faints is contained in the books of the new teftament; and that no one thing effential to a chriftian's character, or neceffary to his happiness, is wanting therein. On the fame accounts therefore we have reafon to believe, that Christ chofe in this manner to convey to fucceeding generations the certain kuowledge of that doctrine of his, which he would have to be the rule of their faith and practice. Nor indeed is it confiftent with that tender concern, which the books of the new teftament fhew Chrift had for our welfare, or with the wifdom which fhines thro' the whole fcheme of doctrine those books contain; that he should choose to leave any thing of moment to be conveyed by fuch an uncertain precarious way as oral tradition. It is evident, from the books of the new teftament, that the gofpel of Chrift was calculated for all fucceeding generations, as well as for that one in which he himself lived; and that it was his mind it should be conveyed to future ages. We have reason therefore to believe, he Would |