their doctrines were equally analogous or rather were remarkably identical with those of the apostolic times, and of the earliest fathers of the church. they may be briefly summed up in these few words:
THE ABSOLUTE AUTHORITY AND INSPIRATION OF THE BIBLE
'we believe that all which is contained in the old and new testaments is sealed and authenticated by the seal of the Holy Spirit, ...and that the whole law of Christ is so firmly established in truth, that not one letter nor one point of it can be lacking or fail'.
THE TRINITY OF THE GODHEAD
'the first article of our faith is, that we believe in one God, the Almighty Father...which God is one in Trinity'.
THE SINFUL STATE OF MAN
'we are conceived in sin and in misery. the soul carries along with it a defilement of sin. sin, defilement and iniquity attend us; WE THINK, SPEAK AND ACT WICKEDLY'. (note: AMEN)
FREE SALVATION BY JESUS CHRIST
'Jesus Christ, himself the Son of God, promises to give the heavenly inheritance to those who TRULY CONTINUE IN FAITH'...
'our salvation is primarily in the election and free gift of His grace, MAKING US AGREEABLE TO HIM. secondly, in the participation of the merits of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ'.
but above all, FAITH W-O-R-K-I-N-G BY LOVE
'it is impossible for any in this life to fulfil the commandments of God if they have not faith; and they cannot love Him perfectly, nor with a proper love, if they keep not His commandments'.
it may, perhaps, surprise many to be told that, before the reformation, the vau never disputed with the romish church the number of the sacraments it received. they, in fact, contented themselves with remarking that Jesus Christ instituted only 2 of them; and as the gospel, upon which they always founded, had not formally indicated that number, nor even made use of the word 'sacrament', it was very natural for them to acquiesce concerning this point in the decision of the church, as they afterwards did in that of the reformers.
they admitted CONFESSION; but let us observe in what circumstances. confession, say they, is of 2 kinds; the first must be made to God from the inmost heart; without which, no one can be saved. the second kind is that which is made with audible voice to the priest, in order to receive counsel from him; and this confession is good, when the heart has preceded it. but, alas! many confide only in the latter, and fall into perdition.
they admitted the sacrament of REPENTANCE, but again let us note how. (note: anything in quotes below is taken directly from vau writings.) 'acts of repentance are excellent, and becoming on the part of every sinner; but they MUST PROCEED FROM ABHORRENCE OF SIN, AND SORROW FOR HAVING COMMITTED IT. otherwise it is a false repentance, and a false repentance alienates a man from God as much as a true repentance brings him near to Him.'
... 'true repentance is to forsake sins which we have committed, and to mourn over them, and to avoid all occasions of sin, lamenting (the commission of sin) without ceasing and going to God with the whole heart....he who repents must therefore hate sin...and he who does not abhor it even in others, turning them from it to the utmost of his power...such a man knows nothing of true repentance'.
such a false repentance is that which reposes upon vain satisfactions; for what good thing can you do that you were not bound in duty to have done? and if you do not those things which you ought, what shall you substitute for them? the whole world could not deliver us from our sins; by He alone has made satisfaction for them, who is both Creator and creature at once, namely Christ.
... 'there is still one thing of great importance pertaining to him who truly repents, to wit, satisfaction...by which there are some who punish the unreasonable thing which they have done: and this satisfaction consists in 3 things, namely, prayer, fasting and alms'. (note: is this a reference to I corinthians 9.26, 27? if not...i don't understand...)
...'the pardon or punishment ought in reason to be according to the greatness of him against whom we have sinned. wherefore there is no more proportion betwixt the punishment and the offence, than there is betwixt God and the sinner.(the offence is infinite against an infinite God.) wherefore, alas! a man ought not to commit sin for the sake of anything, not even of the whole world, for the whole world could not deliver us from sin. it is therefore, manifest that no one, of himself, could offer satisfaction for sin; but that he alone could satisfy who is both creator and creature at once, to wit, Christ, who has satisfied for our sins'.
therefore, with good reason, they add that idolatry has no other cause than these false opinions by which antichrist takes away grace, truth, authority, invocation and intercession from God, in order to ascribe them to the ministry and to the works of his own hands, namely, the saints and purgatory.
the vau, however, do not cease to recommend ALMSGIVING, as a means of fighting against sin, by the giving up of those riches which might have served as its instrument, and by the help of the prayers of the poor thus solicited.
it is with the same object that they recommend FASTING, by which a man is humbled; but fasting without charity (..'which consists of pardoning our enemies and praying for them') is like a lamp without oil, it smokes and does not give light'.)
PRAYER is, according to them, essentially implied in love; and they add that patience, and constancy and gentleness, and resignation and charity, are the seal of the christian. (..'it is not enough for a man to fast, to pray and to do other (such like) things; for these things are small. but to suffer patiently what God permits, pleases Him more than these things which are of the choice of man himself; however these things contribute to it.')
...as for those who would devolve upon others the care of their salvation, seeking the prayers of priests and of monks, masses, indulgences..they forget the word of God, which declares that every one shall bear his own burden. (the repentance is vain, which (admitting of relapse) is again more seriously broken and defiled; for lamentations are good for nothing, if the man falls back into sin. many cease not to shed tears and cease not to sin. when a man falls again into sin, thee reason is that he has not been limited to the purchase of ..masses..communions, and the decoration of chapels.)
they recommend, indeed, that men should go to the priests,
(footnote: it is not to be taken for granted that this word priest was exclusively applied to the catholic priests; it was probably also a general designation which the vau gave to their pastors; for in respect to the consecration of these pastors, it is said that they were received into the office of the priesthood.."
.. who have THE POWER OF BINDING AND OF LOOSING; but let us take notice how they understand this, 'that is to say, who know how to give good advice for a man's deliverance from the bondage of sin'...(to bind and to loose, signifies, to discern sins well and to give good counsel to the sinner) not that they expect any absolution from them, for this they designate a delusive thing; (...he supposes he has made satisfaction for (the guilt of) his sins, because he has intrusted the priest with them...such is the delusive repentance which priestly absolution engenders.) but because, they say, as a sick man seeks the best physician who can assist nature in him, and free him from his malady, even so the sinner ought to seek the best counsellor in order to get quit of sin; and that feeling of guiltiness, the strength of which attests the sensibility of the soul in which it is experienced, presses so sore amongst these rustic and ancient vau, that they never cease to bring forward the expression of it again and again in their different works.
'we have turned aside from the path of truth. the light of righteousness shines not in us'.
'the sun of understanding is covered with clouds; iniquity holds us fast in its trammels'. ('i am timorous and very slow to do good; but courageous and very forward to do evil'....'i pray you affectionately, by the love of the Lord, to abandon the world, and to serve God without fear'.)
'the works of man are of little avail for salvation'. ('when a man has understanding and has not power, God accounts him perfect if so be that his will is right; but when a man has (mere) power and (barren) knowledge, this avails him very little for his salvation'.)
such is their mode of speaking. they likewise add that it is impossible for man to perform his duties without faith. 'yes, i know that thou canst o nothing by thyself; but call upon the Lord for help and He will hear thee'.
finally, let us take notice that the vau acknowledged, like the catholics, the distinction reflected by protestants, betwixt MORTAL SINS AND VENIAL SINS; but that they were very far from meaning by these terms to extenuate the heinousness of any sin, because they said of sin in general,
'sin annihilates man, and brings him down from the position which he ought to occupy'. ('sin is not anything natural (having its existence in the proper nature of things), but is the corruption of good, and want of grace; for sin annihilates man and deprives him of all good existence (well being)'.) these terms, moreover, which may be traced to a very high antiquity in the annals of the church, might be thought to derive countenance from that passage of st. john, 'all unrighteousness is sin; and there is a sin not unto death'.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment