and so little of her in the divine writings, we cannot but reflect upon what is said by Epiphanius, of a certain sect of women that in his time, offered cakes to the Virgin Mary, which he calls an impious thing, and altogether "contrary to the doctrine of the Holy Ghost."* And he further adds; "This the Holy Ghost doth warn us of, in that Christ saith, Woman, what have I to do with thee? Where he calls her woman, and as it were prophesying, to refute those schisms and heresies which he knew would arise in the world; and that no one, being moved by a certain admiration of the blessed Virgin, might turn. himself to those dotages of heresies." And he adds, Let the Virgin Mary be honoured, but the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, be adored." Much more hath that Father there to this purpose.

* Hæres. 78. p. 1054. Par. 1622.

66

† Hæres. 79. N. 4. 7, &c.

But what would this Father have said, if, instead of a chair adorned and set forth in honour of the Virgin Mary, (as those women did,) he had found her advanced to a throne of a mediatrix in heaven? What if instead of cakes, there had been litanies and prayers offered to her, and that in more abundance than to Christ himself? What if he had found them praying, O holy mother, succour the miserable, help the weak, comfort those that mourn? (Breviar. Rom. Estiv. Suffragia.) I doubt not but he would have said of this, what he doth of the other, that they would obtrude her upon us for God, and have called it heresy and idolatry.

R. 41, 42. Deut. xxxiv. 6. He [God by Michael] buried Moses, but no man knoweth of his sepulchre unto this day?' S. Barradas the Jesuit upon the place saith, "It is the common opinion of Lyra, Abulensis, Cajetan, and others, that the sepulchre was hid, lest the Israelites, who were inclined to the worship of idols, should worship Moses as God. For they say that when the Devil would for that reason have showed the grave and the body of Moses to the Israelites, St. Michael hindered; and this was the contention spoken of, Jude 9." Seb. Barrad. Itinerar. Fil. Israel.

They could give no greater honour to the body of Moses, than is given to relics in the church of Rome;. and if that was idolatry, and Moses's body was concealed to prevent it, then there is as much reason to think it unlawful now in this case, as it was then in that.

R. 43. We read of Hezekiah, 2 Kings xviii. 4, that he brake in pieces the brazen serpent that Moses had made: and the reason was, because the children of Israel did burn incense to it. The brazen serpent was of God's own institution, Numb. xxi. 8. By looking up to which, the people were formerly cured. And though it was preserved as a memorial of that divine operation; yet when abused to idolatry, he cut it in pieces. And were these truly relics of saints, and did work those miracles they pretend, it would be no reason for that reverence and worship they give to them; but the reverence and worship given to them should, according to good king Hezekiah's practice, be a reason to give them a decent interment.

Q. 44. What kind of reverence or worship is required to be given to images and pictures in the church of Rome?

A. They kiss them, uncover the head, and fall down before them; offer incense, and pray to them, and use all such postures of worship as they would do to the person or persons thereby represented, (whether Christ, the Virgin Mary, or other saints,) if they were present: and whosoever doth think otherwise is accursed.* And accordingly the priest is to direct the people to them, that they may be worship. ped.†

* Concil. Trid. Sess. 25. de invocat. Catech. Rom. Par. 4. c. 6. n. 4. ↑ Colantur Catech. Rom. Par. 3. c. 2. n. 31.

Q. 45. What do they profess, is their intention in the reverence they give to images and pictures?

A. They declare that the honour given to images and pictures, is referred to the prototypes,* or the persons represented by them, whether God the Father, Christ, angels, or saints: and when they fall down before the image or picture, they worship God, or Christ, the angel, or saint.

*Concil. Trid. Ibid.

Q. 46. What regard have they to the material cross or crucifix? A. 1. They ascribe peculiar virtue to it, and pray that God would make the wood of the cross to "be the stability of faith, an increase of good works, the redemption of souls." Pontificale in bened. nova Crucis.

2. They use all expressions of outward adorations, by kissings, and prostrations, &c *

3. They pray directly to it, to "increase grace in the godly, and blot out the sins of the guilty."t

4. They give latria to it, which is the sovereign worship that is peculiar to God.‡

Missale Fer 6. in Parasc.

Ibid. sub ante Domin. pass. & Fest. invent. crucis.

Pontif. Bom ordo ad recep. Imper. Rubr. 1. Gretser de cruse, 1. 1. c. 49.

R. 44. On the contrary, the second commandment teaches us, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, &c. Thou shalt not bow down to them, nor serve them.' In which there are two words to be considered, the one, pesel, which we rightly translate graven image; for it properly signifies any thing carved and cut out of wood or stone; and so it is about forty times rendered in the Greek translation (yulov) a graven thing. So that an idol and an image are there forbidden. The next word is themunah, which doth properly signify a similitude or likeness, (as is confessed,) and is always so translated, And thus it was understood by the fathers. So Justin Martyr when he recites this law, saith, God forbad every image and similitude. [εixova xxi opesiaμex.] And therefore Cassander grants that the ancient Christians abhorred all veneration of images. Consult. Art. 21. de Imagin. Indeed the command is so express against this practice, that there has been a kind of self-condemnation in the church of Rome; whilst they commonly either altogether leave out this commandment,* or render it imperfectly, and by halves, Thou shalt not make to thee an idol.

*The Children's Catechism, printed 1678.

R. 45. If an image be a representation of a divine person, and worship be due to the image for the sake of the person represented in it; then such as the person is, such must the worship be that is due to his image; and what is due to the person if present, is due to the image in his absence. For to give one honour to the person, and another to the image, a superior to the person, and an inferior to the image, is to terminate the worship in the image, and not pass it from thence to the person, as Grester the Jesuit argues:* but if it be to pass from the image unto the person, then we know what they do when they kiss, and uncover their heads, and bow down to, and worship an image: and have reason to remember the apostle's advice, 1 John v. 21, "Keep yourselves from idols." * De cruce, l. 1. c. 49. § Secundo itaque.

R. 46. The church of Rome, though without any authority from Scripture, (which uses the words promiscuously,)* makes a distinction between latria and doulia; the former is the worship they give to God, the latter the worship they give to saints. Now they grant, that to give latria, or sovereign worship to any besides God, is idolatry; and that were not the host the very body and blood of Christ, it would be no less than idolatry to give that honour to the host, which they give to Christ: we understand then how to call that worship they give to the cross; they themselves call it latria; so we may by their leave call it idolatry. For whatever the host is, the cross is but a representation, and not the person worshipped.

*Gal. iv. 8. isoare, Ye did service to them that were no gods. Rom. i. 25. khargevoar, They served the creature.

Q. 47. Do they think it lawful to represent God and the blessed Trinity by pictures and images, and to worship them?

A. Such pictures are not only almost every where received in the church of Rome, but universally tolerated,* and are both recommended as expedient for the people,† and proposed to them to be worshipped. ‡

* Bellarm. de Imag. 1. 2. c. 8. § ultimo probatur.

+ Concil. Trid. Sess. 25. de sacr. Imag. Catech. Rom. par, 3. c. 2. n. 20. Cajetan. in Aquin. q. 25, art. 3.

Q. 48. Upon what pretence do they make such representations of God?

A. They say, they hereby represent not God, but some of his properties and actions, after the manner they are described in Scripture as when Dan. vii. 9. 10, The Ancient of days' is said 'to sit on a throne, having the books opened before him:' thereby signifying his eternity and infinite wisdom.

Catech. Rom. Ibid.

*

Q. 49. But are not such descriptions of God, the way to represent him, as if he was like unto one of us ?

A. Such pictures are not without danger to be exposed to such as cannot read the Scriptures, if they are not taught that they are to be taken metaphorically.*

* Bellarm. de Imag. I. 2. c. 8. SS. Respondent.

SECTION IV. Of the Sacraments.

Q. 50. What is a Sacrament?

A. A Sacrament is a sensible thing which, by the institution of God, hath a power, as well of causing as of signifying holiness and righteousness.*

Q. 51. How many sacraments are there in the church of Rome? A. There are seven, viz. Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, Penance, Extreme Unction, Orders, and Matrimony.†

Q. 52. Is this number determined to be a matter of faith?

A. Whosoever saith, that there are more or fewer than seven instituted by Christ; or that any of the seven are not truly and properly sacraments, is accursed.‡

R. 47. There is nothing more expressly forbidden in Scripture, than the making any image or representation of God, Deut. iv. 15, 16, Take ye good heed unto yourselves, (for ye saw no manner of similitude,) lest ye corrupt yourselves; and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure.' If it had been acceptable to God, he would have chosen a similitude to appear in; but seeing he did not, they were not to presume to make one for him. This is to change his glory, Rom. i. 21, &c. And "to place such an image in a Christian temple is abominable," saith St. Austin.* to describe the Trinity, is a deformation of it," saith Cassander.f *De Fide & Symb. c. 7. † Art. 21. § de Imag.

And "thus

R. 48. But what is this to those images and pictures used by them, which have no resemblance in Scripture; such are their descriptions of the Trinity in Unity, as of God the Father like an old Man, having the Son lying in his bosom, the Holy Ghost over his head like a dove?

2. God himself never appeared in any form, and so the resemblance in Daniel was only a prophetical scheme, and did no more belong to God, than the eyes and ears that are ascribed to him in Scripture.

3. God cannot be represented at all, but by such properties and effects: but if an image of God be forbidden to be worshipped, then the image, even by such properties and effects, is forbidden to be worshipped.

R. 49. Cassander saith, "I wish those from whom this information is to be received, were not the authors of these superstitions;" and he adds, "That the teaching is not enough, without the occasions be removed." This he saith of all images, but more especially of such as are made to represent God. Art. 21 de Imag.

SECTION IV. Of the Sacraments.

R. 50, 51, 52. CASSANDER saith, that we shall not easily find any before Peter Lombard, who lived about 1139, that did define the number of the sacraments.* And St. Austin is very positive that there are but two of divine institution.† Now that there should be sacraments of divine institution, that are neither instituted in the gospel, nor known to be so, till 1100 years after our Saviour, nor be made a matter of faith till 1500, may be a doctrine received in the church of Rome, but will not easily be believed by any out of it.

* Art. 13. § de num. Sacrum.

+ Epist. ad Januar. 118. Our Lord Jesus Christ, saith he, hath knit Christians together, with sacraments most few in number, most easy to be kept, most excellent in signification, as are Baptism and the Lord's Supper.

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