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Show A Treal:ifelbf Oath . VoL. i. ' 1z0. For if it be llot l:lwfu1' ro ~ fwear, -~~ to the G,ofPet. ·ccmm_and _of ~ ' Chrift, it is aljo true, r!Jat it i1 natltlwfalto .Adjulc.·nn~~bt'r, (/} comrcl ~~1:.ar~!;~: ' hj; to. Sn·car. h' 3ddeth that .Athannjitls, Cbr;frjlom! Efiplltlllius, 1/il~ll'), vith us i an<.\ ltC/11/J u~o~ ~;:e of the farne Mind with Jlim: and If fo, }VC '(Tf.ry""1vtt~· CollfptBiwg. and Qffi~c~ ;dd upon that Refpeft our Superiors fee111 r9qrry to the~r our e . ' ft needs be very remor~ lrqt,n the Dbar\n~u{ the anC'lNa(;~ s, t~a\ lfi ~u i~llprifon and bitterly rrelJI tbofe that ;}or CMjcitlltll enc urc l, ~n' d doJ.c;·uple an Oatb in rMs .Age. 4 iF~~~;l!;f[t ,:;~';:, o ijr.,cl, faith 1he Lord, a~d tf. away ~h,i A~opt· ~t ~~1tr. nari?n~, then (halt thou nor rernoR{ h~~~~~ef~. ilia t w~ar t e or lV .. ~elTotry, rr~th, ;:uw. Jt.'~~nT~~~ :h~ is ~Reproof (lf them that did not Sweat , . r!f..~~ 1~r~/e bsq~s,without Judgment .: How.Peit, we ·inow (faith he) , ~b~u ,rct~,d faid m1to his- DiiCiples_, .Qur JJaj 11nf' _lfu, :wJcqd 'l~f tzr ' aU P.erha s formerly it beho)'ed them to Swear m ~ut , ll_!~:mcflt • an~ 'Righr~oufiJeli; rhat aft~~~ny hadb &ivep/fvf 0~ ,h~•}O:,~b"!,• !i ' lghr he thought wonhv of bemg ~lieve ~~ 'J~II .. ~~..~ , • . ( ~ t once having YE-A, he rt:;eds no Witn~fs1hat_1t_1s ~r~'A~ and havutg 'f/~y he needs noothcrEvidencetoprOll~thatl~ts NAY •. Tnu; doth Dr(g,(l prefer ani\. exrql Evangelical, Ven)ty, wrapt up ,j"[ol~mn Tea orNt1y above the Swearing tlpt was in Truth, udgment an tg te· '\ oufndS under the DiCpenfJtion of tl:el.aw. . . . . Socr11ru SiAolajl .. lib. 4· cap. :22. of his Ecclefialhcal. H1!l:ory.-_ XXXV!Il. GrttoryThau"""'rgllt, fo called tt'om ~is w7W~J of:;;~;~t',i• n J!Cckf.lib 46 clip 8 fhith, It is mttt'to gfve d1.1gen .. It 1~ e or, 1 · ~f ·,be King,. n,.,j 19 jl~e ·,,11 0,1rh bj oil ~leans,, 6-jprtiJ!IjrTJyr _tvb1~h is rali.cn hJ the Name of God. See his grea-t Pratfe, lnk W:o~ltS"'at1d Muac es. Cyprit~n Lib.;. teltim. ad ' /4.unn. . XXXIX. C.yprian, 3 famous Father, and failhful ~Jttyr, .CwhR hv~~ ~)· bout the middle of the Age, in the Be~J~tilng_ ?f w.h1ch _o~,gen ouu c in Jtis third Book of Teft,imonies to ~mnus :anh, \~ho_ hath defir_;Jtl~ ' to draw Oil/ of rbe Holy Scripture.; certain ~leads, hdong_m4,,t.o ru ]'e.'~') ' 0111 Difcipline of ·our Scfl (for fo he called htS own, the CbnJ•l411 e IgtQn His t1:th Head amonRft them is, ]\/or to SwetJr. , b E 'ft A -1in \Vridng of Pafiors and :reachers, he biddeth them_ Remem er ~f'~~rtn:s. ' 1v~;t ~he Lord c:wght, and faid, Let yo11r foyi"g he Yea, Yea, n~d Nay, ' Nl1a1 CJpr:.utde ya.nother Place he faith,- -It i.r un!aro/nl Jot any .il1an to C01"ftl MotbcP Mortal. to lttll.t' an Otrt1J. ' ft l 5 ffi: · ener:tily .f.. .. I.! Hitherto the -cp,iflums, heinff under. mo ~rup . u ngg~, ~find ve-k. ent faithfully to the Command of Chnft m thts omt; an I w f ry 11ittl.e in their \Vtinngs ahout it, befides a fimple a1n1cl ~re affertf"~?or;~: asrheDoClnneofChrilt, nor roJwe11tar a'!l, as we asH ~aso 'J' nor tofwcar JalPy or vtunly 1 for more was no Way needful, 1n ,that H w~~ not comcfied, bUr uni.verfJ\ly fo rec~l\•ed. B~t after that Cbtifl"'£F1:£rc-rcrs h:~d engaged rhemfelves ln P:trttes, then 1t ft!emS'tff{my out 0 b 1 ry and to eng:~ge them to their Sea~ took Liberty to wear, even./b' H;a!tb of the Empe1o1, as is objected againit us, by fome out of Ellflf<'r:; but fuch he did not account l~cltt,IOTI.t; neither thatL a Rchgrjlous.APJr~tDt-do much lefs an ilugujl AB; and lea!! of all, a molt Aug_u h vi~e \Vorfhip as fomC would hl ve it:; feemg SM6a:m obfdves. from 0 1 ~· Th:tt wherea; many exhorted that they be hoheft and falrhful m :m ~t,' -ifuf4b. apu(\ z.e J01 b;s p11rt, eflcemed 11 nor rl!e Pt~~l of. 11 R,dtf,IOJif .Man, not to fi~d an; s1o/l. de jure- VCit S-:rc.trtng 1r }elf. And we bel1eve H wtll be Jn hard ~ner, t~ wo'uld }Ur. r. 27. in the Greek Chu~eb, efpectally forthe firft three hu~drecl c:us, \ at A e~ ~now Swe:uing fo large a Pbc:c in Sacred Thi-ngs, yea, or m11 aterd if1 ~ ~1ther even in the Laun 0Jtllch; n:lV, of thofe who have a owe the tome Cafes, many or moll of them, h:~ve dcnit-d lt any Place i.lt a.~V~~1fhtp VoL. I. A Treatife of Oath;. l>j 1 Wor01ip of God, _as _o~ ir. felf, a~counring .h :m .Ah11t;;enr, rather than an · 167;. .J1dvanc1d!enr to Chriflrr.mty, wh1ch no Part of the true WorlliiP ofG~d CaD- ~ he. But fomeperhaps tJking TertuOian'.r Word Augujlior, or more A11gufl (which he fars. the Safety of the Emperor ir, in Comparifon <>fall t)l,; Grnitn's) to be the highe!t AEl of God's Worfhip, they would have u7 fwear by that, after the Example of thofe mentioned in fome Cbriftian &JI:.l, perors Times. TerrulJian'.t Senfe we fhall eafily grant; for it is fo and we do fo, in tbar we commend our Prince and Govemours to Ood, to1 God on.J ) -. Jy, with earneR and fincere Defires for his and their Safery, above aJl fucb. .t Genius's-, as TcrruUian calls Drrmonia. But we juftly deny upon the Score o'f what we .hJve m:tde appear to the contrary, even from TerruUian himfelf .and others, that he, or the Chriftians in his Time, or for two hundred 1... Years before, or an hundred Years afrer. did fwear, :15i fome would have it~ /eafl•f all, IU a mojl Augujl Jl{/ of tbt Worjh;p of G,d, wit bout whicb aU o• rbers are una,cceprable; or that thofc who did fwcar :1ftetwards, \'ere the :molt Religious; feeing E11jchim efieerns other wife, and not he only, but al"" 1 fo tbofe very devout Men that we have already produced, befides tnany • ~ ' which might and may be mentioned : For, all that we have yet met with in_ thofe Times, that fpeak of it, fpeak againft. it; and of t~e following Ttmcs, Men of greate1t Renown and Authonry laboured Wnh all Eat'" nefinefs, to expel Oaths the Society of Chriftians, and cure them of that Diftemper, by inculcating the Dotl:rine of Integrity, that needs no Oath proving by holy Scripture, that it was the plain and abfolute Law of Chrift, that Cbrifiians oNgbt nat to Jwear at aU, and by other ArgumentS{ that the original of Oarhs was neirher from God, Aor good Men: But they crept into Ufe rl,rough the Corruption of Times, and meer Carelefnefs· of Governments ; for, when they could not truft one anOther, they ca:lJed· their Gods to witnefs; but God feparating .Abraham and his Pofterit}r from among them, to himfelf, the better to draw them from Idolsj command~ r cd rhem to fwear by him only: as much as if he would have faid \ If you t · ~., will fwear, let it be by my Name, rather than the Idols, that fo you may_ though it be after a mean Manner, acknowledge a real Deity, the onlj1 Lord of a)): But how long was this Condefcenfion to Jafi? But till rhet .. Fulnefs of Time came; That, with other Permillions, remo\•ed all Swear~_ it ing, Chrift bringing Men to the Truth in the inward Pans, as in the Be4. ginning, before Swearing was in Being:; For from-the Beginning it wtu not fo: But to fhew what other Fptber.r Reafons and Teltimonies, againft thTs. Hearhtni_fh and Jewijh · T..7.f11ge, indeed Bondage, were at the Coming ih of the Apoilacy, we {hall begin with .Atbana./im, a Man that was in great Re- . nown in the Days of Conjlantine the Grear, and whofe Creed is the Faith and Tell of Cbrij/tndom at this Day. •. Ath3nafius on the PaOionofChtitl. . XL. The Evnngelicn/Senunce of the Lord is, Let Your Yea be Yea, anl your Nay, Nay: Tbui fur we, fiJbo are in Cbrift, may confirm our Wordr with ilffcverntions, and with no farther Progrefs, let tis flee to or apprOich Oaths, that we aOedgt not God for Witnef.r, for corruptible Money's Sake., ejpecially fincc Mofes fets dow'! the Law, Th.ou fhalt not take the Name o£ ~he Lord thy God in a vain Thing. For if any ii pltrhrly worth'y 10 name God IJe_ H a!Jo roorthy if Belie{; F~r, Whifoever is hltet for grenter Thinjs, b4. aJI! be much mori fit for /e)'s: On tbe conrrar,Y, if he he ttor VJDI-tby;Belfif, that he m'lly be cr~direJ witl;out an 011tb, fur'ely h.e is not one that is worthy' to name God. Jfbe ~'c nor [airbful in IVord, how will God by a'!) vl1eans hi ihe Witnefr of an O:ub for him, wh~ i.r dtflitutl of ~'Faitb, t() rDbicb God hai!J Re{peft? .Again~ th'e :Lord is nigh ro all, that call upon him in Truth, in wb;'cb n!Mr the' L?rd (ttn he CaOtd ttpon. Tttberefore, why do rf?ty fwcar by God, l'h.P are Q~ t"l;rUfted even in fmall Mttter;;r ·o.tberwife an 011th i.r d .Arlw4f, his T(jl~or:JofTrJJtb 111fdnot a Judge of Bll]inlffes f~tc!J.. Alendofwear,llot Abhorr~ncc that rbty ,nuyjign;fo, Bu[rne[Je.r, b~t that. rlJe_v 111aj. c011jirm rbr. Truth, ~nd ~n.~b:~~fian Tflnl theft lflltJ fhrw1 ~hltt t}/f)fc Thrngr r.ob1Cb M?lroJuu, ai'C "'thaut Lynz'}i |
