Six Discourses on the Miracles of Our Saviour, and Defences of His Discourses. Thomas Woolston

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СКАЧАТЬ and whoever carelesly and imprudently (meaning literally) interprets it, will advance erroneous and pernicious Doctrine; which, if modern Commentators had any Regard for the Authority of St. Augustin, is enough to deter them from their literal Expositions. The most literal Interpreter among the Fathers, whom I know of, is St. Cyril, and he says[133] there is a Type and Parable in this Story. But to descend to Particulars.

      By the Woman of Samaria is to be understood an[134] Heretical and Adulterous Church, which Jesus, being wearied with her[135] corrupt State, will meet with in the sixth Hour, that is in[136] the sixth grand Age of the World. So, by the By, according to the Fathers, Jesus will come to, and meet with the Samaritan Church to her Edification, at the same time, that he cures the Church of her Issue of Blood and Spirit of Infirmity.

      And where did Jesus meet with the Woman of Samaria? At Jacob's Well, where she was for Water to quench Thirst: So at the[137] Well of the Holy Scriptures, whose Sense lies deep as in a Well, and flows with Knowledge as with Water, will Christ then find his Church, drawing and drinking of the[138] Waters of the Letter, which could not quench the Thirst of the Soul hitherto: But in the Perfection of Time, signified by the sixth Hour, will Christ, according to the Fathers, enable her to draw out of this Well of the Profundity of the Scriptures, spiritual Waters of Divine Knowledge, which will daily more and more, like the Fountains of the Waters of Life, arise and flow in upon the Soul, and constantly recreate and refresh her with Wisdom, to her Delight and Satisfaction; so as she may be said never to thirst more, after the Manner she does now.

      And Jesus then told the Woman of Samaria, all that she had done: So will Christ in the sixth Hour, that is, towards the latter End of the sixth Age of the World, give the Woman of the Church to understand all that she has done, according to the Writings of Moses and the Prophets, who, upon the Testimony of the Fathers, have written a prophetical History of her, in Types, Symbols and Parables; which Understanding of the Things that have been prophecy'd of her, will enable her, of Consequence, to prove and declare to the World, with Joy and Pleasure, that Jesus is the true Messiah, the Christ, and Fulfiller of the Law and the Prophets.

      But particularly, as Jesus then told the Woman that she had had five Husbands, and was then an Adulteress with one who was not her true Husband: So the Church will be made to apprehend, according to[139] Origen and[140] St. Augustin, and others, how she has had five Husbands of the five bodily Senses, that is, metaphorically speaking, has been wedded not only to sensual Pleasures, but to the sensible Things of the Letter of the five Books of Moses; and that at present, consequently, she lives in Adultery[141] with Anti-Christ, whom the Fathers call the Devil, instead of the Spirit of Christ, the Spirit of the Law, who should be her true Spouse, whom she should call for, and believe in.

      And not only the Woman of Samaria, but the Men of the City, Sychar, believ'd Jesus to be the Messiah, v. 42, upon what he said to themselves as well as to her: So the Ministers of the Letter, who are Sycharites, according to Origen and Theophanes Cerameus, will be clearly convinced, and be able to convince others, that Jesus is the Christ or Messiah, when they shall hear, learn and apprehend from the Spirit of the Law and the Prophets, that the Church and all she has been doing, was foretold and prophecy'd of.

      Lastly, Jesus's Disciples, v. 27. are said to Marvel that he talk'd with the Woman. What in the Name of Wonder, literally, could be the Meaning of this? Did they Marvel at Jesus's Condescention to speak to a Woman, as if the Sex was beneath his Care? Or did they Marvel that he who was very bashful, had Courage to speak to one? Or did they Marvel at his Conversation with a Whore, for fear of his being tempted by her? Some one or other of these must be the Marvel of the Disciples; but how absurd and ridiculous they all are, according to the Letter, let a reasonable Man judge. But mystically, the true Disciples of our Lord, who understand the Mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven, will, when they are apprized of Jesus's spiritual Conversation with his Church, and of all the Things that she has done according to Prophecy, Marvel with rapturous Astonishment at the Wisdom and Power of God in the Accomplishment of the Scriptures.

      After such a Mystical and Allegorical Manner, is every minute Circumstance of this Story of the Samaritan Woman to be apply'd. St. Augustin[142] says there are so many great Mysteries contain'd in it, that they require much Time to go through them all. I find it so, and that no less than a Volume might be written of them, out of the Fathers. But what I have briefly here touch'd on, is enough to convince any one of the Absurdities of the Letter of this Miracle, which consisted in the telling a Woman her Fortune, and such a Fortune, as Jesus by Craft might come to the Knowledge of. Therefore, for the Honour of Jesus, let us look upon the whole Story as a typical and parabolical Representation of what would be mysteriously and more wonderfully done by him.

      And thus I have spoken to the three Miracles, proposed to be treated on in this Discourse. Before I enter upon my third general Head, which is, to consider what Jesus means when he appeals to his Miracles as to a Witness of his Divine Authority; I must take to Task some more of his pretended Miracles even till I have not left him a good, credible and substantial Miracle, according to the Letter, to appeal to. The Consequence of which will be, that his mysterious Operations are to prove his Authority and Messiahship, or we must give up him and his Religion for a Piece of Fraud and Imposture.

      What Miracles will be the Subject of my next Discourse, I can't certainly foretell, but there are many Historical as well as miraculous Parts of Jesus's Life, that according to the Letter, are to be call'd into Question; such as

      The History of his riding on an Ass to Jerusalem. I have given some Offence on this Point already in my Moderator, and ought to excuse or justify my self, by calling the Fathers to Account for laughing at the Letter of that Story. It was an untoward saying of St. Jerome, that I there cited, and suffered a Prosecution for: But it is a worse Intimation of St. John of Jerusalem, who, if there was any literal Truth in the Peoples pulling off their Garments, and Branches of Trees, and strewing them in the Way of Jesus, will needs have it not respectfully but mischievously done, to make the Colt stumble, and so dismount his Rider. And according to him it may be questioned, whether the Hosannahs of the People were of any more Respect to Jesus, than the Huzzahs of a Mob would be to the Bishop of L——n, if to shew his Meekness and Lowlyness, he should ride upon an Ass, in his Pontificalibus through this City. But I have here a momentous Controversy to decide about the Beast Jesus rode on. St. Matthew seems to say, he rode upon both Ass and Colt together. St. Mark and St. Luke say, he rode upon the Colt, on which Man never before sat. The Bishop of Lichfield says, he rode upon the Ass (on which Man had before sat) and the Colt ambled after. St. Cyril and St. Chrysostom say, he rode upon the Colt, and the She-Ass trotted after. St. John the Evangelist says he rode upon a Mule, or an οναριον Ass-like Creature of the neuter Gender. The Jewish Cabalists say, their Messiah was to ride on a great huge Ass, big enough to carry him and all true Israelites, and that the Ministers of Antichrist would then hang an A-ss. So do the great Doctors of the World differ! To whom I shall decree the Prize of Orthodoxy, I shan't foretell; but am inclined to favour the Opinion of the Cabalists. However, I shall be very grave as well as learned on this Head: And if I can, I will, to oblige Dr. Sherlock, hook in a Digression about Shilo's binding his Fole to the Vine, and his Asses Colt to the choice Vine: The Accomplishment of which literal Prophecy seems to have been drop'd in the Providence of God, or the Dean of Chichester[143] had never stopt at it. I will endeavour to look it up, in some Corner of History, if it be but to merit the Praises of the Master of the Temple.

      I must also sometime take into Consideration the Story of Jesus's Abode in the СКАЧАТЬ