In managing the old catholic writers when in disputation opposed to us by our adversaries, say they, we endure very many errors. Sometimes, we extenuate them: sometimes, we excuse them: very frequently, having devised some plausible comment, we even roundly deny them altogether, affixing to them some convenient sense. [63a]
II. Such is the avowed PRINCIPLE of these ingenious divines, through the medium of which when reduced to practice, a troublesome old author, whose claim to catholicity cannot be quite decently denied, by dint of judicious explaining and managing and correcting and garbling and interpolating, may be compelled, either apparently to uphold, or at least not to contradict, the peculiarities advocated by the Romish Clergy.
Let us now, descending to particulars, mark how the PRINCIPLE is reduced to PRACTICE.
1. The first specimen, which I shall give, is that, afforded by the Douay Doctors themselves, and afterward very greatly improved upon by the dexterous Bossuet Bishop of Meaux.
Bertram of Corby, always admitted to be an orthodox catholic divine, had written, in the ninth century, a book on the Eucharist; which, in its natural construction, is plainly fatal to the doctrine of Transubstantiation. [63b]
Whereupon, the Professors of Douay state; that Bertram’s book, when emendated, may be tolerated: observing with perfect truth, that, since they had kindly done the good office of emendation for sundry other ancient catholic writers, no imaginable reason could be assigned, why Bertram, in all equity, should not deserve and receive the same diligent recognition. [64a]
Numerous copies of the Work, however, escaped the ambiguous benefit of the Douay emendation. Bossuet, therefore, as in such cases the Professors wisely direct, finally judged it best to affix to Bertram’s undeniable phraseology some convenient sense. Hence, in settling the merits of the eucharistic controversy between Paschase and Bertram, the Bishop of Meaux compendiously assures us: that these two champions, with their respective followers, were all alike staunch Transubstantialists, though they unluckily differed as to the best mode of expressing and propounding their common favourite doctrine. [64b]
2. Another specimen occurs in the remarkable case of Elfric’s Epistle to Wulfstane, written about the close of the tenth century.
The original Saxon, luckily preserved in the library of Exeter Cathedral, contains a passage flat against Transubstantiation.
Nevertheless, this sacrifice is, NOT the same body of his wherein he suffered for us, NOR the same blood which he shed for us: but, SPIRITUALLY, it is made his body and blood; AS was that manna which rained from heaven, and AS was that water which did flow out of the rock. [64c]