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primitive Fathers: and it is a confirmation of this opinion, that Dr. Lardner has traced through the writings of the Fathers that canon of the books of Scripture, the truth of which the Church of Rome establishes on tradition.

The tranfcendent veneration which the Fathers paid to Scripture, beyond all other fources of doctrine, is evident from this circumftance; that the writings of Irenæus, of Tertullian, and in particular of Cyprian, contain quotations from almost all the books in the Bible which are now of canonical authority. This laft Father, who, it should be remembered, is a most strenuous defender of ecclefiaftical jurifdiction, uses these words, with a reference to the customs of particular Churches: "Proinde fruftra qui ratione vincuntur, confuetudinem "nobis opponunt; quafi confuetudo major fit "veritate, aut non id fit in spiritalibus fequen"dum, quod in melius fuerit a fancto Spiritu "revelatum "."

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m Poft infpirationem et revelationem factam, qui in eo quod erraverat, perfeverat prudens et fciens fine venia ignorantiæ peccat: præfumptione enim atque obftinatione quadam nititur, cum ratione fuperetur.

Nec quifquam dicat, Quod accepimus ab Apoftolis, hoc fequimur; quando Apoftoli non nifi unam Ecclefiam tradiderunt. Quare rejectis humanæ contentionis erroribus ad Evangelicam auctoritatem atque ad Apoftolicam traditionem fincerâ et religiofâ fide revertamur. Ep. lxxiii. p. 203.

A still more decifive teftimony to the fame point occurs in a letter written by this Father, upon the following occafion: Cyprian, together with a numerous Council of affembled Bishops, had decreed heretical baptism to be void; and this their fentence Stephen Bishop of Rome condemned, and wrote to Carthage upon the subject. Cyprian fends to one of his brother Bishops in Africa Stephen's letter, that he might more fully perceive, as he fays, the errors which it contains. "Nam inter "cætera vel fuperba, vel ad rem non pertinentia, vel fibi ipfi contraria, quæ imperite atque improvide fcripfit, etiam illud ad'junxit, ut diceret: Si quis ergo a quacunque "hærefi venerit ad nos, nihil innovetur nifi

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quod traditum eft, ut manus illi imponatur "in pœnitentiam"." The Bishop of Rome's opinion is, that the baptifm of all heretics is valid, and he would have no innovations upon tradition. No innovations upon tradition! Cyprian repeats the words to his friend Pompeius: Whence is this tradition? Is it in the Gofpel, or in the Apoftolical writings? "Unde "eft ifta traditio? utrumne de Dominica et Evangelica auctoritate defcendens, an de

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Apoftolorum mandatis atque Epiftolis ve"niens? Ea enim facienda effe quæ fcripta

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funt, Deus ipfe teftatur. Josh. i. 8. Item Dominus Apoftolos fuos mittens, mandat baptizari gentes, et doceri, ut obfervent om"nia quæcunque ille præcepit. Si ergo aut " in Evangelio præcipitur, aut in Apoftolorum epiftolis aut actibus continetur; obfervetur "divina hæc et fancta traditio." He maintains, that, by leaving the letter of Scripture, there is danger of falling into an observance of bad and heretical traditions. Quæ ifta

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obftinatio, quæve præfumptio humanam tra"ditionem divinæ difpofitioni anteponere, nec "animadvertere, indignari et irafci Deum, quo"tiens divina præcepta folvit et præterit hu"mana traditio." He quotes the words of Ifaiah", and of our Saviour, In vain ye ferve me, teaching the commandments and doctrines of men ye forfake the commandment of God, that ye may establish your own traditions.

Such is the connection that has always fubfifted between the obligation of traditions and the ufurpations of the fee of Rome: and an uniform resistance was exerted against both in the early Church.

It is manifeft that the refcript of Stephen was confidered by foreign Churches an act of unlawful aggreffion; and that the great stand

n Ifa. xxix. 13.

• Mark vii. 13.

ard of orthodoxy acknowledged by Cyprian was holy Scripture".

My deliberate opinion is, that the primitive Christian writings afford a conclufive confutation of the peculiar doctrines of the Church of Rome. She teaches that there are certain divine revelations, in addition to Scripture, without a belief in which there is no falvation: the early Fathers are filent on the subject of these revelations. She teaches that they have been depofited in the Church by regular fucceffion of oral tradition: we find not that the Fathers acknowledge fuch authority of oral tradition. These revelations and

P Again he says:

Nec confuetudo quæ apud quofdam obrepferat, impedire debet quo minus veritas prævaleat et vincat. Nam confuetudo fine veritate vetuftas erroris eft. Propter quod relicto errore fequamur veritatem; quam veritatem nobis Chriftus oftendens, in Evangelio fuo dicit: Ego fum veritas.

Si ad divinæ traditionis caput et originem revertamur, ceffat error humanus. Si canalis aquam ducens fubito deficiat; nonne ad fontem pergitur? ut ratio defectionis nofcatur &c.? Quod et nunc facere oportet Dei facerdotes præcepta divina fervantes; ut fi in aliquo nutaverit et vacillaverit veritas; ad originem Dominicam et evangelicam, et Apoftolicam * traditionem revertamur: et inde furgat actus noftri ratio, unde et ordo et origo furrexit.

It is certain that Cyprian meant fomething else than the tradition proposed by the Church of Rome: neither did he comply with Stephen's refcript.

this authority therefore cannot poffefs the effential importance, and the primitive antiquity, which the Romanifts afcribe to them: they do not belong to the Church of Chrift, but are a vifionary unfubftantial fabric of human contrivance.

The peculiar doctrines of the Church of Rome are not in the writings of the Chriftian Fathers and we earnestly invite the members of that communion, Clergy and Laity, to examine these primitive documents with care and impartiality. We doubt not that the result of fuch an investigation will be, a conviction, that the Church of England has the best claim to consistency, in teaching "what Chrif

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tians, in all ages and countries, have uniformly believed."

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Still the Church of Rome will affert, that our Lord founded, and promised to perpetuate to the end of time, a vifible, infallible, indefectible authority; from whofe decifions, in matters of doctrine, it is herefy to differ. A better opportunity will occur for stating a more found and true definition of Chrift's Church: at prefent it is fufficient to remark, that this tenet of the Romanifts is contradicted and annulled by facts and by their own practice. Anicetus and Stephen, Bishops of Rome, differed from Polycarp, an Apoftolic man, and from Cyprian, in a matter of faith. The

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