Appendix I
Referred to in Page 188
SOME ACCOUNT OF THE FORMULARIES, CONFESSIONS OF FAITH, OR SYMBOLIC BOOKS, OF THE ROMAN CATHOLIC, GREEK, AND PRINCIPAL PROTESTANT CHURCHES.
The constitutions of the Roman Catholic, and Protestant Churches, differ in nothing more, than in the following important points: The Catholic Church, acknowledges the authority of the Scriptures, and, in addition to them, a body of traditionary law. She receives both under the authority, and with the interpretation of the Church, and believes that the authority of the Church in receiving and interpreting them is infallible. The Protestant Churches generally profess to acknowledge no law but the Scriptures, no interpreter of the Scriptures, but the understanding and conscience of the individual who peruses them.
That the Roman Catholic Church should propound a formulary of her faith, enlarge this formulary from time to time, as further interpretation is wanted, and enforce acquiscence in it by spiritual censures, is consistent with her principles. Whether such a pretension can be avowed, without inconsistency, by any Protestant Church, has been a subject of much discussion. In point of fact, however, no Protestant Church is without her formulary, or abstains from enforcing it by temporal provisions and spiritual censures. To enforce their formularies by civil penalties, is inconsistent with the principles, of every christian church. All churches howsoever have so enforced, and have blamed the others, for so enforcing them.
Such formularies, from the circumstance of their collecting into one instrument, several articles, of religious belief, are generally known on the Continent, by the appellation of SYMBOLIC BOOKS.
I. The symbolic books, received by ALL TRINITARIAN CHRISTIAN CHURCHES,-are,
1. The Symbol of the Apostles; and
2. The Nicene Symbol.
II. The symbolic books, received by the ROMAN CATHOLIC Church,-are,
1. The General Councils;
2. Among these,-the Council of Trent,-as immediately applying to the controversies between the Catholic and Protestant Churches, is particularly regarded;
3. The Symbol of Pope Pius IV.;
4. The Catechism of the Council of Trent.
III. The symbolic books of the GREEK CHURCH,-are,
1. The Confession, of her true and sincere faith, which, on the taking of Constantinople, by Mahomet II, in 1453, Gennadius, its patriarch, presented to the conqueror;
2. The Orthodox Confession, of the Catholic and Apostolic Greek Church, published in 1642, by Mogilow, the Metropolitan of Kiow.
IV. The symbolic books of the LUTHERAN CHURCHES, are
1. The Confession of Augsburgh;
2. The Apology of the Confession of Augsburgh;
3. The Articles of Smalcald;
4. And, (in the opinion of some Lutheran Churches),-The Form of Concord;
5. The Saxon, Wirtenburgian, Suabian, Pomeranian, Mansfeldian, Antwerpensian, and Copenhagen Confessions, possess, in particular places, the authority of Symbolic books:-the two first are particularly respected.
V. The symbolic books of the REFORMED CHURCHES. The reformed Church, in the largest extent of that expression, comprises all the religious communities, which have separated from the Church of Rome. In this sense, it is often used by English writers: but, having, soon after the Reformation, been used by the French Protestants to describe their church, which was Calvinistic, it became, insensibly, the appellation of all Calvinistic churches on the Continent. The principal symbolic books of these churches,-are,
1. The Confession of the Helvetian Churches;
2. The Tetrapolitan Confession,-signed by the four cities of Strasburgh, Constance, Memmingen, and Lindau;
3. The Catechism of Heidelbergh;
4. The Gallic Confession of Faith;
5. The Belgic Confession of Faith;
6. The Canons of the Council of Dort.
VI. The symbolic books of the WALDENSES,-are,
Their original and reformed Creeds.
VII. The symbolic books of the Bohemians,-are,
1. The Confession of faith of the Calixtines and Taborites, signed at the Synod of Cuttenburgh in 1541;
2. The Confession of the faith of the Bohemians,-inserted in the “Harmony of Confessions,” published at Cambridge in 1680.
3. The Consent of faith at Sendomer.
VIII. The symbolic book of the ARMINIANS,-is
The Declaration of the Remonstrants, drawn up by Episcopius, and signed in 1622.
IX. The symbolic book of the SOCINIANS is The Catechism of Racow;-the best edition of it was published in 1609, reprinted at Frankfort, in 1739. An English translation of it has been published by Mr. Rees.
X. The UNITARIANS have no symbolic book. To Doctor Lardner’s Letter on the Logos they shew universal respect.
XI. The symbolic books of THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND,-are,
1. The Theological Oaths,-containing a Declaration of the belief of the Monarch’s spiritual supremacy;-and Declarations against Transubstantiation,-the invocation of Saints,-and the sacrifice of the Mass;
2. The Thirty-nine Articles.
XII. The symbolic book of the ENGLISH AND SCOTTISH PRESBYTERIANS,-is
“The Articles of Religion approved and passed by both Houses of Parliament after advice had with an assembly of divines, called together for that purpose.” These were sent into Scotland, and immediately sanctioned by the General Assembly, and Parliament of that kingdom; and thus became a law of the Church and State.
XIII. The symbolic books of the Anabaptists may be said to be,-
THEIR SEVERAL CONFESSIONS OF FAITH:-Five were published at Amsterdam, in 1675, in one volume 8vo.
XIV. The symbolic books of the Quakers,-are,
1. Barclay’s Catechism and Confession of Faith, published in 1675;
2. His Theses Theologicæ;
3. His Apology,-a logical demonstration of the propositions in the Theses. It was translated into almost every language and presented to all the ministers assembled at Nimeguen;
4. But some persons assert that the real doctrines of the Quakers are more easily discoverable from The Christian Quaker and his divine testimony, vindicated by Scripture reason and authorities against the injurious attempts that have been lately made by several adversaries.-This work appeared in 1674; the first part of it was written by Penn, the second by Whithead, one of his most distinguished disciples.
XV. It may be added, that the symbolic book of the Jews,-is The Schelosch aikara ikkarim,-the Thirteen Articles of Faith framed by Rabbi Moses Ben Maimon in the 12th century: it is frequently inserted in the Jewish prayer books. Sebastian Munster published it with a Latin translation and an abridgment of the History of Josephus, in one vol. 8vo. at Worms in 1529.
Many Christian Catechisms have been translated into Hebrew for the benefit of the Jews.
An historical and literary account of all these Confessions of Faith, and of several works and circumstances connected with them, is attempted to be given, by the Author of these pages, in his “Historical and Literary Account of the Formularies, Confessions of Faith, and Symbolic Books, of the Roman Catholic, Greek, and principal Protestant Churches.”
THE SYLLOGE CONFESSIONUM printed at the Clarendon Press in 1804, contains the Professio Fidei Tridentinæ, Confessio Helvetica, Augustana, Saxonica, Belgica.”
“The Harmony of the Confessions of the Faith of the Christian and Reformed Churches” published at Cambridge in 1586, 8vo. attempts to reconcile the Confession of Augsburgh, the Confession of the Four Cities, the Confession of Bâsle, the first Confession of Helvetia; the Confession of Saxony, the Confession of Wirtemburgh, the French Confession, the English Confession, the latter Confession of Helvetia, the Belgic Confession, and that of Bohemia.
On the general subject, Walchius’s Bibliotheca Theologica Selecta, may be usefully consulted.