for the Roman doctrine of purgatory, but is forced to bring in that crude allegation of their words, "for their dead," which is to no purpose, as all wise men know; indeed he quotes the Alcoran for purgatory, an authentic author, it seems, to serve such an end. But besides this, two memorable persons of the Greek church, Nilus archbishop of Thessalonica, and Mark archbishop of Ephesus, have, in behalf of the Greek church, written against the Roman doctrine in this particular. And it is remarkable, that the Latins were and are so put to it to prove purgatory-fire from the Greek fathers, that they have forged a citation from Theodoret, which is not in him at all, but was first cited in Latin by Thomas Aquinas, either out of his own head or cozened by somebody else; and quoted so by Bellarmine", which to wise men cannot but be a very great argument of the weakness of the Roman cause in this question from the Greek fathers; and that Bellarmine saw it, but yet was resolved to run through it and outface it; but Nilus taking notice of it, says, that there are no such words in Theodoret in the many copies of his works, which they had. In Greek, it is certain they are not; and Gagneius first translated them into Greek to make the cheat more prevalent, but, in that translation, makes use of those words of the Wisdom of Solomon, c Xovocíov ev xwvEVTnpiw, " as gold in the furnace" (meaning it of the affliction of the righteous in this world); but unluckily he made use of that chapter, in the first verse of which, it is said, "The souls of the righteous are in the hands of God, and no torment shall touch them," which is a testimony more pregnant against the Roman purgatory, than all they can bring from the Greek fathers for it. And this gentleman confutes The Dissuasive, as he thinks, by telling the story according as his own church hath set it down, who as with subtle and potent arts they forced the Greeks to a seeming union, so they would be sure not to tell the world, in their own records, how unhandsomely they carried themselves. But besides this, the very answer which the Archbishop of Ephesus gave to the Latins in that council (and which words the objector here sets down and confesses), are a plain confutation of himself; for the Latins standing for a Bellar. lib. 1. c. 11. sect. de Mahumetanis. * Lib. 1. de Purgat, c. 5. sect. ex Græcis. a In 1 Cor. iii. Sap. iii. 6. purgatory-fire temporary; as the Archbishop of Ephesus denies it, saying," that the Italians confess a fire, both in the present world and purgatory by it (that is, before the day of judgment), and in the world to come; but not purgatory but eternal: but the Greeks hold a fire in the world to come only (meaning eternal), and a temporary punishment of souls; that is, that they go into a dark place, and of grief,—but that they are purged, that is, delivered from the dark place, by priests, prayers, and sacrifices, and by alms,-but not by fire." Then they fell on disputing about purgatory-fire, to which the Greeks delayed to answer; and afterward being pressed to answer, they refused to say any thing about purgatory, and when they, at the upshot of all, were' utcunque' united, Joseph, the patriarch of Constantinople, made a most pitiful confession of purgatory in such general and crafty terms, as sufficiently shewed, that as the Greeks were forced to do something, so the Latins were content with any thing, for by those terms, the question between them was no way determined," Romæ veteris Papam Domini nostri Jesu Christi vicarium esse concedere, atque animarum purgationem esse non inficior." He denied not that there is a purgatory. No, for the Greeks confessed it, in this world before death, and some of them acknowledged a dark place of sorrow after this life, but neither fire nor purgatory; for the purgation was made in this world,-and after this world by the prayers of the priests and the alms of the friends, the purgation was made; 'not by fire,' as I cited the words before. The Latins told them there should be no union without it; the Greek emperor refused, and all this the objector is pleased to acknowledge; but after a very great bustle made, they were forced to patch up a union, in hope to get assistance of the Latins: but in this also they were cozened; and having lost Constantinople, many of the Greeks attributed that fatal loss to their dissembling union made at Florence; and, on the other side, the Latins imputed it to their opinion of the procession of the Holy Ghost: however, the Greek churches never admitted that union, as is averred by Laonicus Chalcondylas, ' de Rebus Turcicis.' And it is a strange thing that this affair, of which all Europe was witness, should, with so little modesty, be shuffled up, and The Dissuasive accused for saying that Lib. 1. non longè ab initio. which themselves acknowledge. But see what some of themselves say: "Unus est ex notissimis Græcorum et Armenorum erroribus quo docent nullum esse purgatorium quo, animæ ex hac luce migrantes purgentur sordibus quas in hoc corpore contraxerunt," saith Alphonsus à Castro:" "It is one of the most known errors of the Greeks and Armenians, that they teach there is no purgatory:" and Aquinas, writing contra Græcorum errores,' labours to prove purgatory and Archbishop Antoninus, who was present at the council of Florence, after he had rejected the epistle of Eugenius, adds, " Errabant Græci purgatorium negantes, quod est hæreticum." Add to these the testimony of Roffensis & and Polydore Virgil before quoted: "Usque ad hunc diem, Græcis non est creditum purgatorium:" and Gregory de Valentia saith "," Expresse autem purgatorium negarunt Waldenses hæretici, ut refert Guido Carmelita in summa de hæresi: item scismatici Græci recentiores, ut ex concilio Florentino apparet." And Alphonsus à Castro saith, “Unto this very day, purgatory is not believed by the Greeks." And no less can be imagined, since their prime and most learned prelate, besides what he did in the council, did also, after the council, publish an encyclical epistle against the definition of the council, as may be seen in Binius's Narrative of the council of Florence: by all which appears how notoriously. scandalous is the imputation of falsehood laid upon The Dissuasive by this objector; who, by this time, is warm with. writing, and grows uncivil, being like a baited bull, beaten into choler with his own tail, and angered by his own objections. But the next charge is higher; it was not only doubted of in St. Austin's time, and since; but the Roman doctrine of purgatory, without any hesitation or doubting, is against the express doctrines delivered by divers of the ancient fathers; and to this purpose some were remarked in The Dissuasive, which I shall now verify, and add others very plain and very considerable. St. Cyprian exhorts Demetrianus to turn to Christ while this world lasts, saying "that after we are dead, there is no e Lib. 12. tit. Purgatorium. Art. 18. contr. Luther. f See Binius, tom. 4. Concil. Disp. 11. qu. 1. punctum 1. sect. 5. De Locis Animarum post Mortem. * Ad Demetrian. sect. 16. 22. place of repentance, no place of satisfaction." To this the Letter answers'; It is not said when we are dead,' but when you' are dead,' meaning that this is spoken to heathens, not to Christians. As if' quando istinc excessum fuerit,' being spoken impersonally, does not mean indefinitely all the world, and certainly it may as well one as the other, Christians as well as heathens, for Christians may be in the state of deadly sin, and aversion from God as well as heathens, and then this admonition and reason fit them as well as the other. E. W. answers", that St. Cyprian means that' after death there is no meritorious satisfaction;' he says true indeed, there is none that is meritorious, neither before nor after death, but this will not serve his turn, for St. Cyprian says, that after death there is none at all; no place of satisfaction,' of any kind whatsoever, no place of wholesome repentance. And therefore it is vain to say, that this council was only given to Demetrianus, who was a heathen; for if he had been a Christian, he would, or at least might, have used the same argument, not to put any part of his duty off upon confidence of any thing to be done or suffered after this life, For his argument is this, "This is the time of repentance", after death it is not; now you may satisfy (that is appease) the divine anger, after this life is ended, nothing of this can be done," For St. Cyprian does not speak this dispensativè," or by relation to this particular case, but assertivè ;' he affirms expressly, speaking to the same Demetrian, "that when this life is finished we are divided, either to the dwellings of death or of immortality. And that we may see this is not spoken of impenitent pagans only, as the Letter to a Friend' dreams, St. Cyprian renews the same caution and advice to the lapsed Christains: "O ye, my brethren, let every one confess his sin, while he that hath sinned, is yet in this world, while his confession can be admitted, while satisfaction and pardon made by the priest are grateful with God." If there had been any thought of the Roman purgatory in St. Cyprian's time, he could not in better words have impugned it, than here he does. All that have sinned must here look Donec ævi temporalis fine completo ad æternæ vel mortis vel immortalitatis hospitia dividamur. Ibid. sect. 16. Serm. de Lapsis. Confiteantur singulis vos fratres delictum suum, dum adhuc qui deliquit in sæculo est, dum admitti confessio ejus potest, dum satisfactio, et remissio facta per sacerdotes apud Dominum grata est. to it, here they must confess, here beg pardon, here make amends and satisfy; afterward neither one nor the other shall be admitted. Now if to Christians also there is granted no leave to repent, no means to satisfy, no means of pardon after this life, these words are so various and comprehensive that they include all cases; and it is plain St. Cyprian speaks it indefinitely, there is no place of repentance, no place of satisfaction; none at all, neither to heathens nor to Christians. But now let these words be set against the Roman doctrine, viz. that there is a place called purgatory, in which the souls tormented do satisfy, and come not out thence till they have paid (viz. by sufferings, or by suffrages) the utmost farthing,' and then see which we will follow: for they differ in all the points of the compass. And these men do nothing but betray the weakness of their cause by expounding St. Cyprian to the sense of new distinctions, made but yesterday in the forges of the schools. And indeed the whole affair upon which the answer of Bellarmine relies, which these men have translated to their own use, is unreasonable. For is it a likely business, that when men have committed great crimes, they shall be pardoned here by confession, and the ministries of the church, &c. and yet that the venial sins, though confessed in the general, and as well as they can be, and the party absolved, yet there should be prepared for their expiation the intolerable torments of hell-fire, for a very long time; and that for the greater sins, for which men have agreed with their adversary in the way,' and the adversary hath forgiven them, yet that for these also they should be cast into prison, from whence they shall not come, till the utmost farthing be paid? that is against the design of our blessed Saviour's counsel; for if that be the case, then, though we and our adversaries are agreed upon the main, and the debt forgiven, yet nevertheless we may be delivered to the tormentBut then, concerning the sense of St. Cyprian in this particular, no man can doubt that shall have but read his excellent treatise of mortality that he could not, did not, admit of purgatory after death before the day of judgment, for he often said it in that excellent treatise, which he made to comfort and strengthen Christians against the fear of death, that immediately after death we go to God or the devil: "and therefore it is for him only to fear to die, who is not willing ors. |