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Aretius holds that God was the author of excommunication in the Old Testament, and Christ in the New. And now are these three Mr Coleman’s way? Or doth not his doctrine flatly contradict theirs? Peradventure he will say, Yet there is no excommunication in the church of Zurich, where those divines lived, nor any suspension of scandalous sinners from the sacrament.
Here we have Justin Martyr again, Tertullian again, Origen, Lactantius, several early Councils, Basil, Epiphanius, Ambrose, Jerome, Augustine again, the Laws of Theodosius and Valentinian, Leo, Wycliffe, Luther, Melanchthon, Erasmus, Bucer of course, Fagius of course, the Confession of the Church of Strasburg, Peter Martyr, Musculus, Gualter of Zurich, Hemingius, Hunnius, Bidenbachius, Harbardus, Wigandus, Beza again, Aretius of Berne, Alciat of Milan, Corasius, Wesembechius, and Grotius.
I had cited plain and full testimonies of the Zurich divines, showing that Gualther expounds 1 Cor. v. all along of excommunication; that Bullinger holds excommunication to be instituted by Christ, Matt. xviii.; that Aretius saith God was the author of excommunication in the Old Testament, and Christ in the New, all which see in Nihil Respondes, p. 32.
Shall the church’s liberties be diminished, or rather increased, where the state is Christian? In the third and fourth place, the brother tells us of the opinions of Gualther, Bulhager, Erastus, Aretius. The question is of the examples of churches, not of the opinions of men. But what of the men?
Neither were the wishes of the chief divines of Zurich and Berne wanting for the recalling and restoring of the discipline of excommunication. It is our part, O brethren, with greatest diligence, to take care of those things; for we see that Paul, in this place, doth stir up those that were negligent in this business.” Aretius agreeth hereunto. Problem.
As for the judgment of our own divines, Calviniani, saith Balduine, morem illum quo eucharastia ad aegrotos tanquam viaticum defertur improbant, eamque non nisi in coetibus publicis usurpendam censent. For this he allegeth Beza, Aretius, and Musculus. It was a better ordinance than that of Perth, which said, non oportet in domibus oblationes ab episcopis sive presbyteris fieri. But to return.
These five thousand are altogether diverse from the three thousand converted at the first sermon: so Lorinus, Aretius, and divers others. Besides a great number of testimonies, there are reasons to induce us to believe, that the three thousand are not included in the five thousand, viz: 1.
Next Aretius, who thought it hard, yea impossible, to bring in excommunication at that time, saith also, Dabit posterior aetas tractabiliores forte animas,—peradventure the following age shall bring forth more tractable souls; and thereupon he adviseth not to despair of the restitution of excommunication.
A testimony three ways falsified: 1. Aretius speaks not at all in that place of the power or duty of church officers, of which suspension is a part, but he speaks of private Christians, and what is incumbent to them. 2.
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