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tain marks of distinction used in war, by which the soldiers of one side are distinguished from those of the other; so by these Creeds the orthodox are distinguished from infidels and heretics.

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The Nicene Creed is so called, because the greater part of it, namely, as far as the words Holy Ghost," was drawn up at the Council of Nice, or Nicæa, in Bithynia, A. D. 325. The rest of this Creed was added at the Council of Constantinople, A. D. 381, except the words" and the Son," which follow the words "who proceedeth from the Father," and they were inserted A. D. 447. The addition made at Constantinople was caused by the denial of the divinity of the Holy Ghost by Macedonius and his followers.

That which is called Athanasius's Creed was certainly not written by that Father. It is not found in his works, nor indeed was it ever heard of till the sixth century, above a hundred years after his death, which was A. D. 373: it was then published under his name, probably for the purpose of giving weight to it, or as containing the doctrines which he so ably defended, namely, the doctrine of the ever-blessed Trinity, and the Incarnation of Christ.

The Apostles' Creed was not written by the Apostles in person. The opinion, however, which ascribes the framing of it to them is as ancient as the first account we have of the

Creed itself from Ruffinus, in the year 390: but that opinion is rendered highly improbable by its not being appealed to in elder times as the sacred and unalterable standard. And therefore our Church in this Article, with due caution, styles it, "that which is commonly called the Apostles' Creed." But this Creed may be truly styled Apostolical, not only as it contains the sum of the Apostles' doctrine, but because it is very old; and a form not much unlike this was in use in the days of Irenæus, who was a scholar of Polycarp, the disciple of St. John.

ARTICLE IX.

Of Original, or Birth Sin.

a ORIGINAL sin standeth not in the following of Adam, (as the Pelagians do vainly talk,)' but it is the fault and corruption of

a Rom. v. 14. Death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of Adam's transgression.

Job xxv. 4. How can he be clean that is born of a woman?-Job xiv. 4. Who can bring a clean thing out of an unclean? Not one.-Ps. li. 5. Behold, I was shapen in wickedness, and in sin did my mother conceive me.-Rom. v. 12, 15, 17, 18, 19. 1 Cor. xv. 22. John iii. 6. That which is born of the flesh is flesh.Rom. vii. 18. I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing.

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the nature of every man that naturally is engendered of the offspring of Adam, whereby man is very far gone from original righteousness, and is of his own nature inclined to evil, so that the flesh lusteth always contrary to the Spirit, and therefore in every person born into this world, it deserveth God's wrath and damnation. And this infection of nature doth

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remain, yea, in them that are regenerated,

c Gen. v. 3. Gen. vi. 5. God saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only EVIL CON tinually.-Gen. viii. 21. The imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth.-Jer. xvii. 9. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?-Matt. xv. 18, 19. Ps. xiv. 2, 3. Rom. iii. 10. There is none righteous, no not one.

d The Latin is quam longissime, as far as possible.

e Gal. v. 17. The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh, and these are contrary one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

f Rom. vi. 23. The wages of sin is death.-Eph. ii. 3. We were by nature the children of wrath. Rom. iii. 19.

g Rom. vii. 18, 22, 23. For I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good, I find not. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man. But I see another law in my members warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin, which is in my members.

whereby the lust of the flesh, called in Greek, phronema sarkos, which some do expound the wisdom, some sensuality, some the affection, some the desire of the flesh, is not subject to the law of God. And although there is no condemnation for them that believe and are baptized, 'yet the Apostle doth confess, that concupiscence and lust hath of itself the nature of sin.

h Mark xvi. 16. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved.-Rom. viii. 1. There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus.John v. 24.

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Rom. vii. 7. I had not known sin but by the law: for I had not known lust except the law had said, Thou shalt not covet.

By original sin is meant the corruption or depravation of human nature, derived from the lapse of our first parents. St. Austin is esteemed first to have called it by this name; but the doctrine is as early as Christianity itself; and the writers of the first centuries express it under different names, such as the "old guilt," the "ancient wound," the " mon curse," the "old sin," and the like.

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Amongst many other proofs of it, we have this convincing one-that since infants, as

well as adult persons, have need of a Mediator, it follows that there is something in them that stands in need of being remitted: and what can that be but sin? And since they are not capable of following or imitating any one, it is evident that the sin is the fault or corruption of nature. See texts, ref. a, b, c.

Pelagius, the founder of the Pelagian heresy, denied original sin and the necessity of grace and asserted that men might arrive at a state of impeccability in this life. He lived in the former part of the fifth century; he was a native of Wales, and his real name was Morgan, which in the Welsh language signifies the same as Пdytos in Greek, namely, By the sea.

By the following of Adam is meant the imitation of Adam; and

By original righteousness is meant that rectitude of nature in which our first parents were created, and which, if they had not sinned, would have been transmitted to all their descendants. The latter part of this Article, "And this infection, &c." is likewise against the Pelagians, who raised a calumny against the orthodox, that they invalidated the efficacy of Baptism, by asserting that any sin or stain remained in the soul after it. The orthodox maintain, on the other hand, that this infection does remain, and is left for an exercise of our faith, and to excite our vigilance and constancy in guarding against it: and this

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