Popish Frauds Exemplified by Doctor Wiseman's Lectures. 1. Purgatory (Paperback)

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1853. Excerpt: ... Liturgies; all were classed under one form of prayer. The distinction here pointed out is of the more modern date of the days of Augustine, to which, again, modern Romanism has superadded her innovations. The very first author in the fourth century quoted is Basil The Great, whom Dr. Wiseman represents as giving a somewhat Romish interpretation to the contested text of 1 Cor. iii. 15, in his commentary on Isaiah, ix. He quotes from the Benedictine edition. In the Preface of this very edition these commentaries attributed to Basil are unequivocally and unreservedly condemned as spurious; and this Dr. Wiseman must have well known when he quoted as from Basil's works, for he says, " St. Basil or a contemporary author." Dr. Wiseman is the first who has ever asserted that the writer of those commentaries on Isaiah was a contemporary of Basil; it is a pure invention of his own. Ambrose, who was Bishop of Milan about A.d. 370, is also quoted as giving a seemingly Popish interpretation to the same text; but Bellarmine is constrained to admit, under the "third difficulty" arising on the interpretation of this text, that Ambrose held heretical opinions on this subject. "It remains, therefore," he says, " that we should say that the Apostle here speaks of the fire of the severe and just judgment of God, which is not a purging or punishing fire, but one that probes and examines. Thus Ambrose explains it in Psalm 118."1 1 "Supersit igitur, ut dicamus hie apostolum loqui de igne severi et justi jndicii Dei, qui non est ignis purgans vel affligens, sed probans et examinans. Ita exponit Ambros. in Psalmo 118." De Purg. p. 332, edit. Prag. 1721. The other passage from Ambrose has reference to the custom of "praying for the dead," and is a fair sample of the passages that ...