Page:Tracts for the Times Vol 3.djvu/39

 gate, suspend, or wholly take away the pains of any of them that are in hell, or to deliver men out of the supposed purgatory of Papists, hath no proof from either of these rules, as shall appear by that which followeth: and, therefore, this poor novice hath not yet learned his lesson aright, nor knoweth what it is he is to prove. But if he will be content to be informed by me, the thing he must prove (if he desire to gratify his new masters, and to maintain the Romish cause) is, that all the Fathers, or the most famous amongst them, from the beginning of Christianity, did in the several ages wherein they lived, teach men to pray for the deliverance of their friends and brethren, out of the pains of Purgatory; which, if he will undertake to do, he must bring some better proofs, than such as are taken from the mutual dependance and conjunction of Purgatory, and prayer for the dead, which yet principally he seemeth to urge. For many Catholic Christians (whom this gentleman must not condemn) made prayers for such, as they never deemed to be in Purgatory. Neither did the ancient Catholic Church (as he fondly imagineth) in her prayers and oblations for the dead, intend to relieve souls temporally afflicted in a penal estate; but in her general intention (whatsoever private conceits particular men had) desired only the resurrection, public acquittal, and perfect consummation and blessedness of the departed, and respectively to the passage hence, and entrance into the other world, the utter deletion, and full remission of their sins, the perfect purging out of sin, being in, or immediately upon the dissolution in the last instant of this life, and the first of the next, and not while the soul and body remain conjoined. This is strongly proved, because the most ancient amongst the Fathers make but two sorts of men dying, and departing out of this world, the one sinners, the other righteous; the one profane, the other holy: so Dionysius in his Hierarchy; so Epiphanius against Arius; so Ambrose in his Book de Bono Mortis; and Cyril of Jerusalem in his Catechism; and all of them teach, that the souls of the just are in a joyful, happy, and good estate, and present with God in an excellent sort, immediately upon their dissolution, and departure hence. 'The falling asleep of the holy ones,' saith Dionysius, 'is in joy and gladness, and immoveable hope, because they are come to the end of their combats; and again, they know they shall altogether be partakers of the rest of Christ, being come to the end and bound of this life: so that they are filled with holy joy and gladness, and with great delight and pleasure, enter the way of the most happy regeneration.

And now I would venture to ask any Clergyman, I would even appeal to yourself, if a Parochial Minister, whether, when you have heard of the death of one of your flock, of whom you hoped well, your first impulse has not been to pray to God to make up to the departed whatever had been deficient in your ministrations? whether (as Luther did) you have not prayed for the perfecting and increased blessedness of a departed