Purgatory, and that the Souls there detained are relieved by the Suffrages of the Faithful. But the Souls which the ancient Chriftians prayed for were not Souls in Purgatory, but Souls in Blifs; not Souls in Pain and Torment, but happy Souls: Nor did they pray for their delivery out of that imaginary Place of Mifery; but that God would give them the promised Reward of Eafe, Reft, and Refreshment after all their Labours, Troubles, and Agonies; to perfect their Happiness, and grant them a bleffed Resurrection. And thus they pray'd for the Faithful to honour their Memory, and exercife their own Faith, Hope, and Charity As St. Ambrofe did for the Emperor Theodofius, whom he believed to enjoy perpetual Light and Tranquillity, and to have obtain'd the Reward of the Things he did in the Body; yet he prayed for him, that God would give him that perfect Reft, which he had prepared for his Saints. So he also prayed for the Emperor Valentinian and his Brother Gratian, whom he believ'd to be in a happy State; that God would vouchfafe to give them a fpeedy Refurrection, and thereby compenfate their too fhort ftay in this Life.

Asked the Prayers of glorified Saints, just as they did at the Council of Trent, if you will believe the ancient Fathers, whofe Writings are exprefs and many. Sir, I cannot but obferve how you mince the Matter here, on purpose to deceive the Lady, as if your Church taught us to practice no more, than to ask the Saints to pray for us juft as we do one another; but this is a great Deceit: For fhe requires us to believe it, and to a believe it as an Article Faith, that the Saints reigning together with Chrift, are to be worshipped and prayed unto, and that it is good and profitable to invoke them; and to invoke them for the Mercies that are to be ob

b

tained of God through Jefus Chrift, to fly to their Prayers; and that it is impious to fay or think, that the Invocation of them is Idolatry, or contrary to the Word of God. For all this is contained in asking the Prayers of Saints, as you call the Invocation of them, and for this you say the Writings of the Fathers are express and many but you do not produce one; and fo the Fathers of Trent most infolently affert contrary to all Truth, in these words: The Holy Synod commands all Bishops, and others whofe Office it is to teach, that according to the Ufe of the Catholick and Apoftolick Church, received from the firft Times of the Chriftian Religion, and the Confent of the Holy Fathers, and the Decrees of the Holy Councils, they diligently instruct the Faithful in the Interceffion and Invocation of the Saints; the honouring of their Relicks, and the lawful Ufe of Images. Had you dealt fairly with the Lady, to the Invocation of Saints you fhould have added, as the Council doth, the bonouring their Relicks, and the lawful Use of Images that is, of kiffing them, putting off the Hat to them, and falling down before them. And accordingly your Catechifm, ad Parochos, teaches that they are fet up among other purposes, ut Colantur, that they may be worshipped; as the excellent Anfwer to the Effay hath already obferv'd. But not to infift on thefe, I Challenge you, and all the Roman Clergy to prove, that asking the Prayers of the Saints was the Practice of the Church from the Times of Primitive Christianity. I Challenge you to prove it from the confentient Testimony of the Fathers of any of the Four firft Centuries, or to fhew me that any one Council decreed it before the eleventh Council of Nice. But, Sir, your Church doth not only teach it to be lawful to ask the Prayers of Saints in her Decrees; but in her Offices the directly asks Benefits Temporal and Spiritual of them, which it is not lawful to ask of

any

any but God. This I fhew'd at large twenty twoYears ago, in a Book, intituled, Speculum Beata Virginis, or a Difcourfe of the due Praise and Honour of the Virgin Mary, to which I refer you and the Lady, from p. 11 to p. 21. of the Book. I alfo refer you and her Ladyship to the 79th page of the forecited Answer to the Effay for Catholick Communion. But as light as you make of the Invocation of Saints, 'tis this, and Image-worship with their appendents, too long here to be defcribed, by which you have depraved the Temple and pure Worship of God, and altered the Face of the Church, as by other Doctrines you have alter'd her Faith; made Rome Chriftian look like Rome Pagan; hinder'd the Conversion of Jews and Mahometans; caufed the Name of Chrift to be blafphemed among them; and made them look upon Chriftians as Idolaters, and fpeak of Chriftianity with the utmost Scorn and Reproach.

But let us go on. An Author, p. 190. must appear rafh to his own Party, who calls God and his Angels to witness, that the Trent-Faith and DoEtrine was far from the Knowledge of Jefus Chrift and bis Apoftles. Sir, by the Knowledge of Jefus Christ and his Apoftles, Sir Humphrey Lynde did not mean the Fore-knowledge of Jefus Chrift, as God, nor the Prophetical Knowledge of the Apostles, which they received from Chrift, of Things to come; but the Knowledge which they had as Doctors and Teachers, or Preachers of the Gofpel; the Knowledge which they had of Evangelical Do&trines, especially of the Doctrines of Faith which they were to deliver, and accordingly delivered to the Saints. Your Trent-Doctrines were very remote from their Knowledge in this Senfe, and in this Sense it was not at all rafh in him to atteft God and his Angels, that they were far from the Knowledge of Chrift and his Apostles. Upon confideration, I, who cited him, fay the fame;

and

and that on the contrary, it is not only rafh, but falfe and impudent in you and your Trent-Fathers, to affirm they were Doctrines delivered to the Saints.

He had need to have been an Eye-witness of all that Jefus Chrift and his Apoftles did, and himself to have heard all that they taught, to make bold with God and his Angels; as to call them to witness what he affirms, without being able to offer the least pofitive proof. Nay, one would think him frantick against himself, when he wishes all the Anathema's of the Council of Trent to fall on his Head, if the Roman Faith bath Antiquity, Univerfality, and Succeffion in all Ages: Whereas Roman Catholicks manifeftly prove their Antiquity from Primitive Fathers, their Univerfality from the Agreement of General Councils, and Succeffion from an uninterrupted Practice.

Sir, it was this Paffage of Sir H. Lynde's Book, cited by me, which the Lady freely told me ftuck with her above all others; and that if it were certainly true, that the Roman Faith wanted Antiquity, Univerfality, and Succeffion, fhe could never turn Roman Catholick. But then fhe offered me your Paper as an Answer to Sir H. Lynde, and pray'd me to fend her my Thoughts upon it. Now, Sir, in Answer to his Atteftation of God and his Holy Angels to the Truth of what he affirms; I anfwer, It is lawful to atteft them to the Truth of any serious Matter, especially of Matters relating. to the Faith, which we certainly know to be true. For inftance, it is lawful for a Man, who hath read over all the Histories and Law Books relating to the Conftitution of the English Monarchy, to call God and his heavenly Angels to witness, that there is no Law which excludes Females from fucceeding to the Crown. And fo it was lawful for that learned Gentleman, who had read over the Scriptures of the New Testament, and the Writers next in Authority to them, to atteft God and the Holy Angels,

Angels, that Christ and his Apostles had no knowledge of the Trent-Doctrines, as Doctrines of Faith, nor delivered any of them to the Saints. And fo far was he from being frantick in his Wish, that the words of it are the words of Truth and Sobernefs, and fo fure am I of the Novelty of the TrentDourines, that I am not afraid to wish the fame Imprecation upon my felf, if you can prove that your Roman Faith had Antiquity, Univerfality, and Succeffion; and that the Articles of it which we call New, were commonly and continually taught, and receiv'd de Fide, as Articles of Faith before Luther. Nay, fo certain I am that they were not fo taught and received, that I dare wish the Anathema Maranatha of the Apostle, to fall upon me, if they were. And, Sir, let me know by fetting your Name to your wifh, as I do to mine, that you dare wish the fame if they were not. But you fay he had need to have been an Eyewitness, &c. to call them to witness what he affirms. But, Sir, this is a very weak as well as an abfurd Answer, for how can we know what Chrift and the Apoftles did, and taught, but by the Scriptures; thofe very Scriptures, which tell us that they did, and faid many things which are not written; but it is to the things that are written, and the Scriptures in which they are written, that he appeals against the Trent-Dotrines, and calls God and the heavenly Angels to witness that they were not known to them. Had they been known to them, they had certainly been as plainly delivered in them as the other Do&trines of Faith, that have Antiquity, Univerfality, and Succeffion; which he affirms the TrentDoctrines have not. But you fay he affirms it without being able to offer the leaft pofitive Proof, which is another great Abfurdity; because the positive proof of those Doctrines, which we deny, lieth upon you. We fay they are not in the Scrip

tures,