Post by Admin on Oct 9, 2016 11:15:05 GMT
CHAP. LIX.
Of Holy-days.
HOly-days, both among the Gentiles, as among the Jews, were always in great estimation; who did all at certain times of the year, and upon certain days, set apart several Holy-days for Divine worship upon several occasions; as if it were lawful to be more religious or more ungodly at one time than another; or that it were the pleasure of God to be worshipped
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more at one time than another: which St. Paul ob∣jects to the Galatians as a shame, writing to them af∣this manner: Ye observe days and months, and times and years: I fear I have labour'd for you in vain, and without a cause. Concerning which when he admo∣nishes the Colossians, he commands them in these words: Let no man judge you for meat or drink upon a Holy∣day, or of the New-moon, or of the Sabbath, which are members of future things. For to true and perfect Christians there is no difference of days, who are al∣ways feasling and pleasing themselves in God, always keeping a perpetual Sabbath; as Isaiah prophesi'd to the Fathers of the Jews: The time shall come that their Sabbath shall be taken away; and when the Savi∣our comes, there shall be a perpetual Sabbath, and per∣petual New-moons. However, for the sake of the common people, and the more illiterate part of the Church, the Holy Fathers did institute Holy-days, that they might have liberty and vacancie to come and hear the Word, and to celebrate Divine Worship, and for receiving the Sacraments; yet so that the Church should not be subservient to the days, but that the days should be subservient to the Church. Therefore did the Fathers ordain certain Holy-days wherein the com∣mon people were exhorted to abstain from worldly business and bodily labour, whereby they might be the more free to serve God, the more at leisure to pray and think upon Divine matters, to be present at Ser∣vice and Sermons, and to tend such other Duties as might most directly tend to their Salvation. But that same perverter of Equity, that destroyer of all Order and Decencie, that author of all Evil, the Devil, en∣deavouring to pull down whatever the Holy Ghost sets up, hath neer demolish'd this Tower of Beauty also. While we behold the greatest part of Chri∣stians not converting this Holy leisure of Holy-days to
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the exercises of Prayer, or hearing the Word of God, but spending their pretious time in the corruption of all good Manners, Dancing, Stage-playes, lewd Songs, idle Sports and Games, Drinking, Feasting, Visiting, and in all worldly and Carnal works quite opposite to Spiritual. As Tertullian speaks of the so∣lemn Feasts of the Caesars: They were wont, saith he, to make a great stir, to bring forth into the publick street their Fires and their Chorus's, to junket in the High-way, to make a Tavern of the whole City, to pour Wine down one anothers throats by violence, then to run headlong to do all manner of mischief, and to please themselves in all manner of filthy Lust. Are we not therefore deser∣vedly to be condemn'd, who celebrate the Festivals of Christ and his Saints after such a lewd fashion? I confess we do not finde many Heretical Disputes concerning Holy-days, omitting the madness and Blasphemy of the Manichaeans, and the pestiferous opinions of the Cata∣phrygians; yet had they like to have occasion'd a great breach in the Church, when Victor the Pope excommu∣nicated all the Eastern and Southern Churches for not keeping Easter-day according to the direction of the Western Decrees; who notwithstanding was notably resisted, among others, by Polycrates Bishop of Asia. Ireneus also Bishop of Lions, though he observ'd Easter-day as was commanded by Victor, yet with great free∣dom undertook to chide the Pope, for that he had, contrary to the Example of his Predecessors, as a di∣sturber of the Peace, lopp'd off so many Limbs of the Church, not for any Errour in point of Faith, but onely for disagreeing in point of Ceremony from the Church of Rome. 'Tis true, there have been many decrees of Popes and Councils to confirm and settle the observation of Easter-day, and many Ecclesiastick Computations have been made, for the better finding out of the true day: And yet to this very hour they
Page 173
could never find out a certain day, or that was Uni∣versally observ'd through the whole World at one and the same time. A very worthy business indeed, that for the humour of one obstinate Pope, the whole Church should suffer Shipwrack.
Of Holy-days.
HOly-days, both among the Gentiles, as among the Jews, were always in great estimation; who did all at certain times of the year, and upon certain days, set apart several Holy-days for Divine worship upon several occasions; as if it were lawful to be more religious or more ungodly at one time than another; or that it were the pleasure of God to be worshipped
Page 171
more at one time than another: which St. Paul ob∣jects to the Galatians as a shame, writing to them af∣this manner: Ye observe days and months, and times and years: I fear I have labour'd for you in vain, and without a cause. Concerning which when he admo∣nishes the Colossians, he commands them in these words: Let no man judge you for meat or drink upon a Holy∣day, or of the New-moon, or of the Sabbath, which are members of future things. For to true and perfect Christians there is no difference of days, who are al∣ways feasling and pleasing themselves in God, always keeping a perpetual Sabbath; as Isaiah prophesi'd to the Fathers of the Jews: The time shall come that their Sabbath shall be taken away; and when the Savi∣our comes, there shall be a perpetual Sabbath, and per∣petual New-moons. However, for the sake of the common people, and the more illiterate part of the Church, the Holy Fathers did institute Holy-days, that they might have liberty and vacancie to come and hear the Word, and to celebrate Divine Worship, and for receiving the Sacraments; yet so that the Church should not be subservient to the days, but that the days should be subservient to the Church. Therefore did the Fathers ordain certain Holy-days wherein the com∣mon people were exhorted to abstain from worldly business and bodily labour, whereby they might be the more free to serve God, the more at leisure to pray and think upon Divine matters, to be present at Ser∣vice and Sermons, and to tend such other Duties as might most directly tend to their Salvation. But that same perverter of Equity, that destroyer of all Order and Decencie, that author of all Evil, the Devil, en∣deavouring to pull down whatever the Holy Ghost sets up, hath neer demolish'd this Tower of Beauty also. While we behold the greatest part of Chri∣stians not converting this Holy leisure of Holy-days to
Page 172
the exercises of Prayer, or hearing the Word of God, but spending their pretious time in the corruption of all good Manners, Dancing, Stage-playes, lewd Songs, idle Sports and Games, Drinking, Feasting, Visiting, and in all worldly and Carnal works quite opposite to Spiritual. As Tertullian speaks of the so∣lemn Feasts of the Caesars: They were wont, saith he, to make a great stir, to bring forth into the publick street their Fires and their Chorus's, to junket in the High-way, to make a Tavern of the whole City, to pour Wine down one anothers throats by violence, then to run headlong to do all manner of mischief, and to please themselves in all manner of filthy Lust. Are we not therefore deser∣vedly to be condemn'd, who celebrate the Festivals of Christ and his Saints after such a lewd fashion? I confess we do not finde many Heretical Disputes concerning Holy-days, omitting the madness and Blasphemy of the Manichaeans, and the pestiferous opinions of the Cata∣phrygians; yet had they like to have occasion'd a great breach in the Church, when Victor the Pope excommu∣nicated all the Eastern and Southern Churches for not keeping Easter-day according to the direction of the Western Decrees; who notwithstanding was notably resisted, among others, by Polycrates Bishop of Asia. Ireneus also Bishop of Lions, though he observ'd Easter-day as was commanded by Victor, yet with great free∣dom undertook to chide the Pope, for that he had, contrary to the Example of his Predecessors, as a di∣sturber of the Peace, lopp'd off so many Limbs of the Church, not for any Errour in point of Faith, but onely for disagreeing in point of Ceremony from the Church of Rome. 'Tis true, there have been many decrees of Popes and Councils to confirm and settle the observation of Easter-day, and many Ecclesiastick Computations have been made, for the better finding out of the true day: And yet to this very hour they
Page 173
could never find out a certain day, or that was Uni∣versally observ'd through the whole World at one and the same time. A very worthy business indeed, that for the humour of one obstinate Pope, the whole Church should suffer Shipwrack.