XXII. ART. lawfulness of fuch images from the general practice of the Church. Others go further, and from the caution given in the decree of the Council of Trent, concerning the images of God, do infer, that they are allowed by that Council, provided they be decently made. Directions are alfo given concerning the ufe of the image of the Trinity in public offices among them. In a word, all their late doctors agree, that they are lawful, and reckon the calling that in queftion to be not only rafhness, but an error; and fuch as have held it unlawful to make fuch images, were especially condemned at Rome, December 17, 1690. The varieties of those images, and the boldnefs of them, are things apt to give horror to modest minds, not accustomed to fuch attempts. It must be acknowledged, that the old emblematical images of the Egyptians, and the groffer ones now ufed by the Chinefes, are much more inftructing, and much lefs fcandalous figures. Con. Nic. A&t. 6. A&. 5. As the Roman Church has gone beyond the Nicene 2. Act. 7. Council in the images that they allow of, fo they have alfo gone beyond them in the degrees of the worship that they offer to them. At Nice the worship of images was very pofitively decreed, with anathemas against thofe who did it not: a bare honour they reckoned was not enough. They thought it was a very valuable argument, that was Con. Nic. brought from those words of Chrift to the Devil, Thou fbalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only fbalt thou Jerve; that here fervice is only appropriated to God, but not worship. Among the acts of worship they reckon the oblation of incenfe and lights; and the reafon given by them for all this is, because the bonour of the Image, or Type, paffes to the Original, or Prototype: fo that plain and direct worship was to terminate on the image itself: and Durandus paffed for little less than a heretic, because he thought that images were worshipped only improperly and abufively, becaufe at their prefence we call to mind the object reprefented by them, which we worship before the image, as if the object itself were before us. Duran, in Senten. 1. 3. dift. 9. 9.2. n. 15. The Council of Nice did plainly affert the direct worship of images, but they did as pofitively declare, that they meant only that it fhould be an honorary adoration, and not the true Latria, which was only due to God. whatever fome modern reprefenters and expofitors of the Roman doctrine may fay, to foften the harshness of the And Ad quæft. 25. dif. 3. Vafquez in 3 Aquin. difp. 103. c. 3. Cajetan. in 3 Aquin. quæft. 25. A. 3. worship Act. 2. worship of images, it is very copiously proved, both from ART. the words of the Council of Nice, and from all the emi- XXII. nent writers in that communion, even from the time of Aquinas, and of the modern fchoolmen, and writers of Con. Nic. controverfy, that direct worthip ought to be offered to the image itfelf: this reserve of the Latria to God, being an evident proof, that all inferior acts of worship were allowed them. But this referve does no way please the later writers; for Aquinas, and many from him do teach, that the fame acts and degrees of worship which are due to the original, are alfo due to the image; they think an image has fuch a relation to the original, that both ought to be worshipped by the fame act, and that to worfhip the image with any other fort of acts, is to worfhip it on its own account, which they think is Idolatry. Whereas others, adhering to the Nicene doctrine, think that the image is to be worthipped with an inferior degree, that otherwife Idolatry muft follow. So here the danger of Idolatry is threatened of both fides; and fince one of them must be chofen, thus it will follow, that let a man do what he can, he must commit Idolatry, according to the opinion of fome very fubtile and learned men among them. Seff. 25. The Council of Trent did indeed decline to give a clear Con. Trid. decifion in this matter, and only decreed, that due worship fhould be given to images; but did not determine what that due worship was. And though it appears by the decree, that there were abuses committed among them in that matter, yet they only appoint fome regulations, concerning fuch images as were to be fuffered, and that others were to be removed; but they left the divines to fight out the matter concerning the due worship that ought to be given to images. They were then in hafte, See Bishop and intended to offend no party; and as they would not Stillingjuftify all that had been faid or done concerning the pra. worthip of images, fo they would condemn no part of it: yet they confirmed the Nicene Council, and in particular made ufe of that maxim of theirs, that the bonour of the Pont. Rom. feet, ut fu Ordo ad Re Type goes to the Prototype; and thus they left it as they cip. Imper. found it. So that the difpute goes on ftill as hot as ever. Rubri. The practice of the Roman Church is exprefs for the Latria to be given to images: and therefore all that write for it do frequently cite that hymn, Crux Ave fpes unica, ■ Aquin. 2. p. q. 25. Art. 3. See to the fame purpose, Alex. Hales, Bonaventure, Ricardus de Media villa palud. Almanf. Biel Summa Angelica, and many more cited by Bishop Stillingfleet's Defence of the Charge of Idolatry, Part II. Chap. 2. auge XXII. ART. auge puis juftitiam, reifque dona veniam. It is exprefsly faid in the Pontifical, Cruci debetur Latria, and the prayers used in the confecration of a crofs; it is prayed, that the bleffing of that cross, on which Chrift bung, may be in it, that it may be a bealthful remedy to mankind, a ftrengthener of faith, an increafer of good works, the redemption of fouls, and a comfort, protection, and defence against the cruelty of our enemies. Thefe, with all the other acts of adoration used among them, feem to favour those who are for a Latria to be given to all thofe images, to the originals of which it is due; and in the like proportion for Dulia and Hyperdulia to other images. It is needless to prosecute this matter further. 7. It feemed neceffary to fay fo much, to justify our Church, which has in her Homilies laid this charge of Idolatry very feverely on the Church of Rome; and this is fo high an imputation, that those who think it false, as they cannot, with a good confcience, fubfcribe, or require others to fubfcribe the Article concerning the Homilies, fo they ought to retract their own fubfcriptions, and to make folemn reparations in juftice and honour, for laying fo heavy an imputation unjustly upon that whole communion. There is nothing that can be brought from Scripture, that has a fhew of an argument for fupporting imageworship, unless it be that of the Cherubims that were in Heb. ix. 3, the bolieft of all; and they, as is fuppofed, were worshipped, at least by the High-Prieft when he went thither, once a year, if not by the whole people. But firft there is a great difference to be made between a form of worship immediately prefcribed by God, and another form that not only has no warrant for it, but feems to be very exprefsly forbidden. It is plain, the Cherubims were not Teen by the people, and fo they could be no vifible object of worship to them. They were scarce feen by the HighPrieft himself, for the holieft of all was quite dark; no light coming into it, but what came through the veil from the holy place; and even that had very little light. Nor is there a word concerning the High-Prieft's worship a In benedictione novæ Crucis. Rogamus te Domine, fanéte Pater, omnipotens fempiterne Deus, ut digneris benedicere hoc lignum Crucis tuæ, ut fit remedium falutare generi humano, fit foliditas fidei, profectus bonorum operum, redemptio animarum, fit folamen et protectio ac tutela contra fæva jacula Inimicorum. Per Dom. Sanétificetur lignum iftud in nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritûs San&ti, et benedictio illius ligni in quo membra fan&ta Salvatoris fufpenfa funt fit in ifto ligno, ut orantes inclinantefque fe propter Deum ante iftam crucem inveniant corporis et animæ fanitatem per eundem. XXII. Pfalm xcix. ping either the Ark, or the Cherubim. It is true, there ART. is a place in the Pfalms that seems to favour this; as it is rendered by the Vulgar, worship his footstool, for it is holy; but both the Hebrew and the Septuagint have it, as it is 8, 9. in our tranflation, worship at bis footstool, for he is holy; and all the Greek Fathers cite thefe words fo. Many of the Latin Fathers do alfo cite them according to the Greek; and the last words of the Pfalm, in which the fame words are repeated, make the fense of it evident: for there it is thus varied, Exalt ye the Lord our God, and worship at bis boly bill, for the Lord our God is boly. Thete words coming fo foon after the former, are a paraphrafe to them, and determine their fenfe. No doubt the High-Prieft worfhipped God, who dwelt between the Cherubims, in that cloud of glory in which he fhewed himfelf visibly prefent in his temple; but there is no fort of reafon to think, that in fo majestic a prefence, adoration could be offered to any thing else; or that after the High-Priest had adored the divine effence fo manifefted, he would have fallen to worship the Ark and the Cherubims. This agrees ill with the figure that is fo much ufed in this matter of a king and his chair of state; for in the prefence of the king, all refpects terminate in his perfon, whatsoever may be done in his abfence. And thus, this being not fo much as a precedent, much lefs an argument, for the use of images; and there being nothing else brought from Scripture, that with any fort of wrefting can be urged for it, and the fenfe and practice of the whole Church being fo exprefs against it, the progrefs of it having been fo long and fo much difputed, the tendency of it to fuperftition and abufe being by their own confeffion fo vifible; the fcandal that it gives to Jews and Mahometans being fo apparent, and it carrying in its outward appearances fuch a conformity (to fay at prefent no more) to Heathenish Idolatry, we think we have all poffible advantages in this argument. We adhere to that purity of worship which is in both Teftaments fo much infifted on; we avoid all fcandal, and make no approaches to heathenism, and follow the pattern fet us by the primitive Church. And as our fimplicity of worthip needs not be defended, fince it proves itfelf; fo no proofs are brought for the other fide, but only a pretended ufefulness in outward figures, to raise the mind by the fenfes to just apprehenfions of fpiritual objects; which, allowing it true, will only conclude for the hiftorical ufe of images, but not for the directing our worship towards them. But the effect is quite contrary to the pretence; for, inftead of raif ART. ing the mind by the fenfes, the mind is rather funk by them into grofs ideas. XXII. The bias of human nature lies to fenfe, and to form grofs imaginations of incorporeal objects; and therefore, inftead of gratifying thefe, we ought to wean our minds from. them, and to raise them above them all we can. Even men of fpeculation and abstraction feel nature in this grows too hard for them; but the vulgar is apt to fall fo headlong into thefe conceits, that it looks like the laying of fnares for them, to furnish them with fuch methods and helps for their having grofs thoughts of fpiritual objects. The fondnefs that the people have for images, their readinefs to believe the moft incredible ftories concerning them, the expence they are at to enrich and adorn them, their proftrations before them, their confidence in them, their humble and tender embracing and killing of them, their pompous and heathenish proceffions to do them honour, the fraternities erected for particular images, not to mention the more univerfal and established practices of directing their prayers to them, of fetting lights before them, and of incenfing them; thefe, I fay, are things too well known, to fuch as have feen the way of that religion, that they fhould need to be much enlarged on; and yet they are not only allowed of, but encouraged. Those among them who have too much good fenfe that they fhould fink into thofe foolish apprehenfions themselves, yet muft not only bear with them, but often comply with them to avoid the giving of fcandal, as they call it; not confidering the much greater fcandal that they give, when they encourage others by their practice to go on in thefe follies. The enlarging into all the corruptions occafioned by this way of worthip would carry me far; but it seems not neceffary, the thing is fo plain in it felf. The next head in this Article is a full inftance of it, which is, the Worfhip of Relics. It is no wonder that great care was taken in the beginnings of Chriftianity, to fhew all poffible refpect and tenderness even to the bodies of the martyrs. There is fomething of this planted fo deep in human nature, that though the philofophy of it cannot be fo well made out, yet it feems to be fomewhat more than an universal custom; humanity is of its fide, and is apt to carry men to the profufions of pomp and coft all religions do agree in this, fo that we need not wonder if Chriftians, in the firft fervour of their religion, believing the refurrection fo firmly as they did, and having a high fenfe of the honour done to Chrift and his religion |