The Christian Iewes reprehend the foresaid fact of Peter in baptizing the Gentils. 4. But he
alleaging his foresaid warrants, and shewing plainly that it was of God, 18. they like good
Catholikes doe yeald. 19. By the foresaid persecution, the Church is yet further deilated not only
into al Iewrie, Galilee, and Samaria, but also into other Countries: specially in Antiocha Syria the
increase among the Greekes, is notable, first by the foresaid dispersed, 22. then by Barnabas, thirdly
by him and Saul together: so that there beginneth the name of Christians, 27. with perfite vnity
between them and the Church that was before them at Hierusalem.
1. AND the Apostles and Brethren that were in Iewrie, heard that the Gentils also
receiued the word of God.
2. And when Peter was come vp to Hierusalem, they that were of the Circumcision
reasoned against him, saying:
3. Why didst thou enter in to men
✟
præputium habentes.
vncircumcised, and didst eate with them?
4. But Peter began and declared to them the order, saying:
5.
*
Act. 10,9.
I was in the citie of Ioppe praying, & I saw in an excesse of mind a vision,
a certaine vessel descending as it were a great sheet with foure corners let downe from
heauen, & it came euen vnto me.
6. Into which I looking considered, & saw foure footed beastes of the earth, & catel,
& such as creep, & foules of the aire.
7. And I heard also a voice saying to me: Arise Peter, kil and eate.
8. And I said: Not so Lord; for common or vncleane thing neuer entred into my mouth.
9. And a voice answered the second time from heauen: That which God hath made cleane,
doe not thou cal common.
10. And this was done thrise: and al were taken vp againe into heauen.
11. And behold, three men immediatly were come to the house wherein I was, sent to me
from Cæsarea.
12. And the spirit said to me, that I should goe with them, doubting nothing. And
there came with me these six Brethren also: and we went into the mans house.
13. And he told vs, how he had seen an Angel in his house, standing and saying to him:
Send to Ioppe, and cal hither Simon, that is surnamed Peter,
14. who shal speake to thee wordes wherein thou shalt be saued and al thy house.
15. And when he had begun to speake, the Holy Ghost fel vpon them, as vpon vs also in
the beginning.
16. And I remembred the word of our Lord, according as he said:
*
Act. 1,5.
Iohn indeed baptized
with water, but you shal be baptized with the Holy Ghost.
17. If therfore God hath giuen them the same grace, as to vs also that beleeued in our
Lord Iᴇꜱᴠꜱ Cʜʀɪꜱᴛ: who was I that might prohibit God?
18. Hauing heard these things, they
✟
Good Christians heare & obey gladly such truths as be opened vnto them from
God by their cheefe Pastours, by vision, reuelation, or otherwise.
held their peace: & glorified God, saying: God
then to the Gentils also hath giuen repentance vnto life.
19.
*
Act. 8,1.
And they truly that had been dispersed by the tribulation that was made vnder
Steuen, walked throughout vnto Phœnice & Cypres & Antioche, speaking the word to none, but to
Iewes only.
20. But certaine of them were men of Cypres and Cyrene, who when they were entred into
Antioche, spake to the Greekes, preaching our Lord Iᴇꜱᴠꜱ.
21.
⋮
The Epistle vpon S. Barnasbees day. Iun. 11.
And the hand of our Lord was with them: and a great number of beleeuers was
conuerted to our Lord.
22. And the report came to the eares of the Church that was at Hierusalem, touching
these things: and they sent
*
Act. 9,30.
Barnabas as farre as Antioche.
23. Who when he was come, and saw the grace of God, reioyced: and he exhorted al
with purpose of hart to continue in our Lord:
24. because he was a good man, and ful of the Holy Ghost and faith. And a great
multitude was added to our Lord.
25. And he went forth to Tarsus, to seeke Saul:
26. whom when he had found, he brought him to Antioche. And they conuersed there in
the church a whole yeare: and they taught a great multitude, so that the Disciples were at Antioche
first named
✟
The name of CHRISTIANS.
Cʜʀɪꜱᴛɪᴀɴꜱ.
27. And in these daies there came Prophets from Hierusalem to Antioche,
28. and one of them rising, named Agabus, did by the Spirit siginifie a great famine
that should be in the whole world, which fel vnder Claudius.
29. And the Disciples according as each man had, purposed euery one to send, for to
serue the Brethren that dwelt in Iewrie:
30. which also they did, sending to the Ancients by the handes of Barnabas and Saul.
ANNOTATIONS.
Cʜᴀᴘ. XI.
24. Multitude added.)
The Church visible.
As before (c. 10.) a few, so now great numbers of Gentils are
adioyned also to the visible Church, consisting before only of the Iewes. Which Church hath been euer
since Christs Ascension, notoriously seen and knowen: their preaching open, their Sacraments visible,
their discipline visible, their Heades and Gouernours visible, the prouision for their maintenance visible,
the persecution visible, their dispersion visible: the Heretikes that went out from them visible: the
ioyning either of men or Nations vnto them, visible: their peace and rest after persecutions, visible: their
Gouernours in prison, visible, the Church praieth for them visibly, their Councels visible, their guiftes and
graces visible, their name (Christians) knowen to al the world. Of the Protestants inuisible Church we
heare not one word.
26. Christians.]
Names of Sectaries and Heretikes.
This name, Christian, ought to be common to al the Faithful, and other new
names of Schismatikes and Sectaries must be abhorred. *If thou heare (saith S. Hierome) any where, such as
be said to be of Christ, not to haue their names of our Lord IESVS CHRIST, but to be called after some
other certaine name, as Marcionites, Valentinians, (as now also the Lutherans, Caluinists, Protestants)
know thou that they belong not to the Church of Christ, but to the Synagogue of Antichrist. Lactantius
also (li. 7. Diuin. instit. c. 30.) saith thus, when Phrygians, or Nouatians, or Valentianians, or
Marcionites, or Anthropomorphites, or Arians, or any other be named, they cease to be Christians, who
hauing lost the name of Christ, haue done the names of men. Neither can our new Sectaries discharge
themselues, for that they take not to themselues these names, but are forced to beare them as giuen by
their Aduersaries.
Protestants.
For, so were the names of Arians & the rest of old, imposed by others, and not
chosen commonly of themselues: Which notwithstanding were callings that proued them to be Heretikes.
And as for the name of Protestants, our men hold them wel content therewith.
Diuers religious orders are not diuers Sectes.
But concerning the
Heretikes turning of the argument against the peculiar callings of our Religious, as Dominicans,
Franciscans, Iesuites, Thomists, or such like, it is nothing, except they could proue that the orders &
persons so named, were of diuerse faithes and Sectes, or differed in any necessarie point of religion, or
were not al of one Christian name & Communion: and it is as ridiculous as it were obiected, that
some be Ciceronians, some Plinians, some good Augustine men, some Hieronymians, some Oxford men,
some Cambridge men, & (which is most like) some **Rechabites, some ***Nazareites.
Papistes, Catholikes, and true Christians al one.
Neither doth their obiection, that we be called Papistes, helpe or excuse them in their new
names. For besides that it is by them scornfully inuented (as the name Homousians was of the Arians)
this name is not of any one man, Bishop of Rome or els where, knowen to be the authour of any Schisme or
Sect, as their callings be: but it is of a whole state and order of Gouernours, and that of the cheefe
Gouernours, to whom we are bound to cleaue in religion and to obey in al things. So to be a Papist, is to
be a Christian man, a child of the Church, and subiect to Christs Vicar.
Not to be with the Pope, is to be with Antichrist.
And therfore against such
impudent Sectaries as compare the faithful for following the Pope, to the diuersitie of Heretikes bearing
the names of new Maisters, let vs euer haue in readines this saying of S. Hierome to Pope Damasus:
aVitalis I know not, Meletius I refuse, I know not Paulinus; whosoeuer gathereth not with thee,
scattereth: that is to say, Whosoeuer is not Christs is Antichrists. And againe, If any man ioyne with
Peters Chaire, he is mine.
The name of CHRISTIANS.
We must here further obserue that this name, Christian, giuen to al beleeuers & to the whole
Church, was specially taken to distinguish them from the Iewes & Heathens which beleeued not at al
in Christ: and the same now seuereth and maketh knowen al Christian men from Turkes and others that
hold not of Christ at al. But when Heretikes began to rise from among the Christians, who professed
Christs name, and sundry Articles of faith, as true beleeuers doe, the name Christian was too common
to seuer the Heretikes from true faithful men: and therevpon the Apostles by the Holy Ghost imposed
this name, Catholike, vpon the Beleeuers which in al points were obedient to the Churches doctrine.
The name of Catholikes.
When heresies were risen (saith S. Pacianus ep. ad Symphorianum) & endeuoured by diuerse names
to teare the doue of God and Queene, and to rent her in peeces, the Apostolical people required their
surname, whereby the incorrupt people might be distinguished, &c. and so those that before were called
Christians, are now surnamed also Catholikes. Christian is my name, saith he, Catholike my surname.
CREDO ECCLESIAM CATHOLICAM.
And this word, Catholike, is the proper note whereby the holy Apostles in their Creed taught vs to
discerne the true Church from the false heretical congregation of what sort soeuer. And not only the
meaning of the word, which signifieth vniuersalitie of times, places, and persons, but the very name and
word it self, by Gods prouidence, alwaies and only appropriated to the true beleeuers, and (though
sometimes at the beginning of Sectes chalenged) yet neuer obtained by Heretikes, giueth so plaine a marke
and euidence, that S. Augustine said: In the lappe of the Church the very name of Catholike keepeth me.
cont. ep. fund. c. 4. And againe tract. 32. in Io. We receiue the Holy Ghost if we loue the Church, if we be
ioyned together by charitie, if we reioyce in the Catholike name and faith. And againe de ver. rel. c. 7. to. 1.
We must hold the communion of that Church which is named Catholike, not only of her owne, but also of
al her enemies. For, wil they the Heretikes also and Schismatikes themselues, when they speake not with
their owne fellowes but with strangers, cal the Catholike Church nothing els but the Catholike Church: for
they could not be vnderstood vnles they discerne it by this name, wherewith she is called of al the
world.
The Protestants deride the name CATHOLIKES.
The Heretikes when they see themselues preuented of this name Catholike, then they plainely reiect
it and deride the name, as the Donatistes did, calling it an humane forgerie or fiction: which S. Augustine
calleth wordes of blasphemie, li. 1. c. 33. cont. Gaudent. and some Heretikes of this time cal them
scornefully cartholikes and cacolikes. Another calleth it, the most vaine term Catholike. Beza in præf.
no. Test. an. 1565. Another calleth the Catholike religion, a Catholike Apostate or defection, Humfrey
in vit. Iuel pag. 213.
Yea & some haue taken the word out of the Creed, bputting Christian for it. But
against these good fellowes let vs follow that which S. Augustine (de vtil. cred. c. 8. to. 6.)
giueth as a rule to direct a man the right and sure way from the diuersitie & doubtfulnes of al errour
saying: If after these troubles of mind thou seeme to thy self sufficiently tossed and vexed, & wilt haue
an end of these molestations, follow the way of Catholike discipline, which from Christ himself by the
Apostles hath proceeded euen vnto vs, and shal proceed from hence to the posteritie. See the
Annotation 1. Tim. 3,15.
*Hierony. cont. Lucif. c. 7. in fine.
**Ierem. 35.
***Num. 6.
ato. 2. ep. 57. & ep. 58. ad Damas.
bIn the Catechismes of the Lutherans.