Part 1 — Chapter 9: Other Testimonies of Antiquity

Thus having cleared the place of Ambrose, come we now to other testimonies of the Ancients. Tertullian in his Apologeticke against the nations, speaking of the Meetings and Assemblies of Christians, sheweth, that besides other things done therein, they had also corrections, censures, and excommunication, and that in the exercise of this discipline. Praesident probati quique Seniores, honorem [illegible]stum non pretio sed testimonio adepti: with us doe sit all the approved Seniors, as presidents or rulers, having obtained this honor not by price, but by a good testimony. Cyprian in his Epistles does often protest, that from the beginning of his Bishopricke he did all things by common consent and advice both of his Clergie & people. Will any man thinke, that in ordination, excommunication, reconciliation of penitents, and such like things whereof Cyprian speaketh in these places, he sought the counsell and advice of the whole Congregation, and of all and every one therein? Or rather that the people gave their counsell and consent by the Eldership representing them? Surely, this doing of all things with the advice and counsell of the whole, both Clergy and People — he otherwhere sheweth to have beene nothing else, but the doing of all things by the advice & counsell of the Presbytery; which had not been so, if there had not been in the Presbytery some of all sorts to represent the rest. Omni actu, says he, adme perlato placuit contrahi Presbyterium, &c. ut firmato consilio quid observari deberet consensu omnium statueretur.

Epiphanius writing to John, Bishop of Jerusalem, concerning the tearing of a vaile which hee had seene in the Church of a village called Anablatha, with the image of Christ, or some Saint, upon it, and concerning another vaile which he had sent for it, intreateth him to give order to the Elders of that place to receive the vaile from the bearer. It is not to bee thought there were many preaching Elders in a small village, hee speaketh in the plurall, Precor ut jubeas Presbyteros ejusdem loci &c.

Basilius M[illegible]gnus in his Commentary upon Isaiah 3:2, where the Lord threatens to take away from Israel the Ancient, or the Elder, sheweth from Numbers 11:16 how warily such Elders were to be chosen, and that their gifts, not their age, made them Elders, he proveth from Daniel 13:50 (which is the history of Susanna) where the Jewish Elders at Babylon say to young Daniel, Come sit downe among us, and shew it us, seeing God has given you the honor of an Elder. Then he addeth, Ad hunc, &c. After this m[illegible]nner sometimes it happeneth, that youths are found in honor to be preferred to these Elders who slothfully and negligently lead their life. These Elders then among the Jews were falsly so c[illegible]lled: for God tooke away as the man of warre and the Prophet, so the Elder from the people of the Jews. Therefore let the Church pray, that the Elder worthy to be so called, be not taken away from her self. The whole tenor of his discourse importeth, that the Christian Churches had such Elders as wee read to have been in the Jewish Church, whereof Daniel was one. And of them hee seemed to mean a little before, Habet &c. The Church also has Judges, who can agree brother and brother.

Chrysostome compareth the Church to a house, because as in a house there are wife, children and servants, and the care or government of all is incumbent to the master of the family: So is it in the Church, wherein, beside the ruler of the same, nothing is to bee seen, but as it were wife, children, and servants, [in non-Latin alphabet]. But if the Governour of the Church, says he, has fellows or consorts in the government thereof, so has the man also the wife to be his consort in the government of his house. If it be said, that by the Ruler of the Church, he meaneth the Bishop, and by his consorts preaching Presbyters, who are the Bishops helpers in the government of the Church; I answer, If wee understand by [in non-Latin alphabet] the Bishop, then wee make Chrysostome contradict himselfe: for in his next Homily hee sheweth plainly, that Presbyters have [in non-Latin alphabet], the ruling of the Church as well as Bishops, and that the whole purpose of his former Homily agreed to Presbyters no lesse then Bishops. Now then, who were the consorts which Pastors of Churches, or preaching Elders had in the government of the Church? Could they bee any other then Ruling Elders?

Hierome upon that place of Isaiah, says: Et nos habemus in Ecclesia Senatum nostrum, coetum Presbyterorum: cum ergo inter caetera etiam senes [illegible]udea perdiderit, quomodo poterit habere concilium quod proprie Seniorum est. And what sense shall we give to these words, unlesse we say it is imported that both the Jewish and the Christian Church had such an Eldership as we plead for. Else why did both hee, and Basil make such a parallell between the Jewish and the Christian Church in the point of Elders? Surely, if we understand by the Elders of the Christian Church whereof they speake, the Ministers of the Word alone, wee must also understand by the Elders of the Jewish Church, whereof they speake, the Priests, which no man will imagine.

Eusebius in his History citeth Dionysius Alexandrinus, relating his disputes with the Chiliasts after this manner: When I was at Arseino[illegible]a where you know this doctrine first sprung, &c. I called together the Elders and Teachers inhabiting those villages, there being present also as many of the brethren as were willing to come, and I ex[illegible]orted them publikely to the search of this doctrine, &c. By the Teachers here are meant the Pastors or Ministers of the Word, who are most frequently called by the Fathers Teachers, or Doctors: neither can it bee supposed that there were any Teachers besides the Pastors in these rurall villages, which notwithstanding we see had beside their Pastors or Teachers, Elders also.

Augustine writeth his 137th Epistle to those of his owne Church at Hippon, whom he designeth thus: Dilectissimis [illegible]ratribus, clero, senioribus & universae plebi Ecclesiae Hippon[illegible]is cui servio in dilectione Christs. To my welbeloved brethren the Clergy, the Elders, and the whole people of the Church at Hippon whom I serve in the love of Christ. Hee putteth Elders, or Seniors in the middle between the Clergy and the people as distinct from both, and yet somewhat participant of both.

Isidorus Hispalensis speaking of the prudence and discretion, which Pastors should observe in teaching of the Word, giveth them this advise among others: Prius doc[illegible]ndi sunt Seniores plebis ut per [illegible]os infra pos[illegible]tifacilius doceantur. The Elders of the people are to bee first taught, that by them such as are placed under them may be taught the more easily.

Origen speaking of the tryall of such as were to bee admitted members of the Church, says, Nonnulli praepositi sunt, &c. There are some rulers appointed who may enquire concerning the conversation and manners of these that are admitted, that they may debarre from the congregation such as commit filthinesse.

In the acts of the 5th Council of Toledo according to the late editions, we read that Cinthila (whom others call Chintillanus) came into that Council, cum optimatibus & Senioribus palatii sui. But Lorinus has found in some ancient copy, Cum optimatibus & Senioribus populi sui, with the nobles and the elders of his people. I would know who were these elders of the people distinguished from the nobles.

These things may suffice from antiquity to give some evidence that the office of ruling elders is not Calvin's new fangled devise at Geneva, as our adversaries are pleased to call it: but for further confirmation of this point, Voetius disp. 2. de Senio. and before him Iustellus in annot. & notis in cod. Can. Eccles. Afric. Can. 100. has observed sundry other pregnant testimonies from antiquity for ruling elders, especially out of these notable records Gesta purgationis Caeciliani & Faelicis, to be seen in the Annals of Baronius, An. 103. and in Albaspinaeus his edition of Optatus. These testimonies I have here set downe in the Margine.

From which passages it is apparant, that in the days of Ambrose these seniors were neither in all places, nor altogether growne out of use; but that both in the Eastern and Western Churches, manifest footsteps of the same remained. Neither is his testimony before alledged, repugnant hereunto: for we may understand his meaning to be either that in some places, or that in some sort, they were growne out of use, because peradventure the teachers beganne to doe somethings without their counsell and advice which in former times was not so. Bilson answereth two waies to the testimony from the 137th Epistle of August. and belike hee would have answered in the same manner to these other testimonies, he says we may understand by these seniors either the better part of the clergy, or the senators & rulers of the city. That they were neither bishops nor preaching presbyters, nor deacons, it is manifest, for they are distinguished from all these, In act. purgat. Cacil. & Fal. and they are called by Isidore and Purpurius, Seniores plebis. Besides, it were strange if August. Bishop of Hippo writing to his clergy, should distinguish either the deacons from the presbyters by the name of the clergy which was common to both, or some preaching presbyters from other preaching presbyters, by the name of seniors. On the other part, that they were not magistrates of cities, it is no lesse plaine: for they are called Seniores Ecclesiae and Ecclesiastici viri, they instructed the people, and had place in judging of causes ecclesiasticall.

But elsewhere Bilson taketh upon him to prove, that those of the clergy who were by their proper name called presbyters, were also called seniores, as those who came neerest to the bishop in degree, wisedome, and age. And this he proveth by a testimony of Ambrose. Viduarum ac virginum domos nisi visitandi gratia Iuniores ad re non est opus & hoc cum Senioribus hoc est cum Episcopo, vel si gravior est causa cum Presbyteris. Answ. 1. Here the seniors are the bishop, which is neither good sense, nor any thing to his purpose. 2. Hee has left out a word, without which the sentence cannot be understood, and that is vel: Ambrose says, Hoc est vel cum Episcopo, &c. and so the words may suffer a threefold sense: for either Seniores is here a name of age or of office. If it bee a name of age, as may bee presumed by the opposition thereof to Iuniores, then the meaning of Ambrose is, that young men should not goe into the houses of virgins or widowes, except it bee with some men of age, and these to bee the bishop or the presbyters. If it be a name of office then may wee either understand, that by the presbyters he meaneth ruling elders, and by the bishop the pastor of any particular Church, (for if Whitaker be not deceived, pastors have the name of bishops, not onely in Scripture, but in the ancient Church also:) or that hee comprehendeth under the order of elders, not onely the preaching presbyters, but the bishop also, who was chiefe among them. By the first sense Bilson does gaine nothing, by the other two hee has worse then nothing, for any of them destroyeth his chiefe grounds.