WE believe the Holy Scriptures to be of Divine inspiration and in­fallible Authority; and what­soever is therein contained, we firmly assent unto, as the Word of God, the Author of all Truth.

But since in the Holy Scriptures there are some things hard to be understood,2 Pet. 3.16. which the ignorant and unstable wrest to their own destruction; we therefore profess (for the ending of Controversies in our Religi­on, and setling of peace in our Consciences) to submit our private Judgements to the Judgement of the Church, represented in a Free General Council.

WE humbly believe the sacred Myste­ry of the Blessed Trinity, one Eter­nal, Almighty, and incomprehensible God, [Page 2] whom onely we adore and worship, as alone having Soveraign Dominion over all things, to whom onely, we acknowledg as due from men and Angels,1 Tim. 1. [...]. all glory, service and obe­dience, abhorring from our hearts (as a most detestable Sacriledge,) to give our Creators honor to any Creature whatsoe­ver.

And therefore we solemnly profess, that by the Prayers we address to Angels and Saints, we intend no other than humbly to sollicite their assistance before the Throne of God, as we desire the Prayers of one an­other here upon earth; not that we hope any thing from them, as original Authors thereof, but from God the Fountain of all Goodness, through Jesus Christ, our onely Mediator and Redeemer.

Neither do we believe any divinity or vir­tue to be in Images, for which they ought to be worshipped, as the Gentiles did their I­dols, but we retain them with due and decent respect in our Churches, as instruments, which we find by experience, do often assist our memories, and excite our affections.

WE firmly believe, that no force of na­ture, nor dignity of our best works [Page 3] can merit our Justification, but we are justi­fied freely by grace, Rom. 3 [...].14. through the Redempti­on that is in Jesus Christ.

And although we should by the grace of God persevere unto the end in a godly life and holy obedience to the Commandments; yet are our hopes of eternal glory still built upon the mercy of God, and the merits of Jesus Christ.

All other merits (according to our sense of that word) signifie no more, than Acti­ons done by the assistance of Gods grace, to which it has pleased his goodness to pro­mise a reward; a Doctrine so far from be­ing unsuitable to the sense of the Holy Scri­ptures, that it is their principal design to invite and provoke us to a diligent obser­vance of the Commandments, by promising heaven as the Reward of our obedience, 1 Tim. 4.8. Godliness is profitable to all things▪ having the promise of this life, and of that which is to come, And Rom. 2.8. God will render to every man according to his deeds, to them, who by patient confidence in well-doing, seek for glory, and honor, and immortality, eternal life. And again, Rom. 8.3. If you live after the flesh you shall dy, but if through the spirit you mortifie the deeds of the body, you shall live. And Heb. 6.10. God is not unjust to forget your work [Page 4] and labour of love, which you have shewed for his name, &c. Nothing being so fre­quently repeated in the Word of God, as his gracious promises to recompense with everlasting glory the faith and obedience of his servants;Luke 6.38. Nor is the bounty of God barely according to our works, but high and plentiful, even beyond our capacities, giving full measure, heaped up, pressed down, and running over into the bosoms of all that love him.

Thus we believe the merit or reward­ableness of holy living (both which signifie the same thing with us) arises not from the self-value even of our best actions, as they are ours, but from the Grace and bounty of God;Luke 17.10. and for our selves, we sincerely pro­fess, when we have done all those things, which are commanded us, we are unprofi­table servants, having done nothing but that which was our duty, so that our boasting is not in our selves, but all our glorying is in Christ.

IN the holy Eucharist, or most venerable Sacrament of the body and bloud of our Lord: We acknowledge that there are, as in all other Sacraments, two things. The [Page 5] visible sign, which is the forms of bread and wine, to which no Catholick may or doth direct his worship. There is also invisible Grace signified, the body of our blessed Lord, whom being present we adore and worship with all possible reverence and thanksgiving from our hearts for so great a blessing, warranted herein by our blessed Lord himself in each of the Gospels.

VVE humbly confess that from the be­ginning of Christianity, the holy Communion was administred frequently in both, and sometimes in each kind, according to several circumstances: and hence the ho­ly Church following the piety of Christians, who insensibly became accustomed to re­ceive it almost universally in one kind, upon great motives did afterwards ordain to have it in one, as now it is commonly admini­stred, though the receiving of it so is not matter of faith. Neither do we believe that religious and devout communicants, are hereby bereaved of any benefit or comfort in obeying the Churches orders,Trid. ses. 21. Can. 3 [...] since our ho­ly belief instructs us, that our blessed Lord the fountain of all grace is as equally pre­sent in one kind as in both.

THe holy Sacrifice indeed of the altar, we clearly believe ought to be celebra­ted in both kinds, as now it is according to the divine institution,Luke 21.9. as being done in re­presentation and commemoration of our Lords blessed passion on the Cross, wherein the body and bloud were separated: What­soever therefore propitiatory power our holy Religion attributes to this commemo­rative Sacrifice, it is by virtue of the Sacri­fice of the Cross, as being by this applied to us. This is the substance of our faith expres­sed in the Council of Trent, so that still we humbly acknowledge the ground of our salva­tion to be derived from our Lords blessed and bitter passion.Ses. 22. c. 1.

VVE freely acknowledg that it is no way commanded by the Church, that the people should pray in a language which they understand not, nay, there is gi­ven them all possible encouragement to en­crease their devotions, and with the Apostle to allure all, if it may be, to continual pray­er, (which is the life of our souls) by ordain­ing [Page 7] and publishing most excellent Prayers in vulgar languages for their use.

As to the Liturgies of the Church which properly belong to Church-men, and there­fore were anciently stiled the Priests Books, lest the people should not receive full bene­fit by their publick use, there is an express command of our holy mother the Church in the Council of Trent, Ses. 5. c. 8. that the Pastors and all who have charge of souls, in the very time of divine service, should expound and make them plain to the peoples capacity, as in the old times of the Church we find it was also ordained and practised.

OUr faith teacheth us to exercise Chri­stian Charity by humbling our selves before the divine throne of Gods mercy, to beg forgiveness (as we do for one another here upon earth) of the debts and trespasses of those middle sort of Christians,In Enchiri­dio ad Lau­rentium & de Civ. l. 21. c. 24. as S. Au­gustine and the Council of Florence call them, who had not brought forth sufficient fruits of Repentance, dying in communion of the Faithful; which indigent condition of theirs, relievable by the Churches, or the Prayers of the Faithful surviving, speaks what the ancient call Purgatory: warranted [Page 8] herein by the practise under the Law recor­ded and recommended in the Maccabees, which being in no sort reprehended by our Lord or his Apostles amongst the rest of the Jews unlawful practises, was and is justly presumed to have been allowed by him, as many of the Fathers understood his sermon in the Mount, and by them, as is hinted by S. Paul: Mat. 5.29. 1 Cor. 15.29. 2 Cor. 3. whereupon it hath continued ever since in general practise throughout all ages, as even Gravestones and all other Christian Monuments do witness, especially all ancient Liturgies of the Saints, and Books of com­mon prayers used in all Churches: neither can we discern how possibly this may be con­ceived offensive to God, whose justice here­in we hope and do humbly endeavour to ap­pease by our exercise of brotherly compassi­on.

If you should ask how any mans acts can satisfie for anothers faults, since each mans burdens are much too heavy for him with­out Christs Passion: To this our Holy Re­ligion teacheth us, that there is no Law of God, which assures us in rigour of justice, of Gods acceptance of the acts of another man for my sins, (this was onely the privi­ledg of the actions of our blessed Lord) yet this hinders not, but that they may prevail by way of suffrage and impetration for our [Page 9] pardon; and therefore it is great piety for us to pray for each other, as Holy Scripture and constant practise of Holy Church war­rant us.

WE further do firmly believe, and high­ly reverence the Moral Law, Exod. 20. Mat. 19. Eccles. 12.13. being so solemnly delivered to Moses upon the Mount, so exprefly confirmed by our Saviour in the Gospel, and containing in it self so perfect an Abridgment of our whole duty both to God and man.

Which Moral Law we believe obliges all men to proceed with faithfulness and sinceri­ty in their mutual contracts one towards an­other; and therefore our constant Professi­on is, that we are most strictly and absolute­ly bound to the exact and entire perfor­mance of our promises, made to any person of what Religion soever; much more to the Magistrates and Civil Powers, under whose protection we live, whom we are taught by the Word of God (from whom their power is derived) to obey, not onely for fear, but conscience sake; and to whom we will most faithfully observe our promises of duty and obedience, notwithstanding any dispensati­on, [Page 10] absolution, or other proceedings of any forraign Power or Authority whatsoever.

Wherefore we utterly deny and renounce that false and scandalous position, that Faith is not to be kept with Hereticks, as most un­charitably imputed to our practises, and most unjustly pinned upon our Religion.

IN Order to our better instruction how to comport our selves in this, and all other occurrences relating to Gods service: We firmly believe, that according to Divine Or­dination in the Catholick Church, there is a Hierarchy consisting of Bishops, Priests and Ministers.

He gave some Apostles, and some Pro­phets, and other Evangelists, and other Pa­stors and Doctors, to the consummation of the Saints, unto the work of the Ministery, unto the edifying of the body of Christ: un­till we all meet in the unity of Faith, and the knowledg of the Son of God &c. That now we be not children, wavering and car­ried about with every wind of doctrine in the wickedness of men, incraftiness to the circumvention of error &c. Eph. 4.

These we sincerely and solemnly profess, as in the sight of God, the searcher of all hearts, taking the words plainly and simply, in their usual and famili­ar sense, without any Equivocation or Mental Reservation whatsoever.