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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A19392	An ansvver to the two fyrst and principall treatises of a certaine factious libell, put foorth latelie, without name of author or printer, and without approbation by authoritie, vnder the title of An abstract of certeine acts of Parlement: of certaine hir Maiesties iniuctions: of certaine canons, &c. Published by authoritie.	Cosin, Richard, 1549?-1597.; Stoughton, William, fl. 1584. Abstract, of certain acts of parliament.	1584 (1584)	STC 5819.7; ESTC S121272	391,855	496

AN ABSTRACT OF CERTAINE ACTS OF PARLEment of certaine her Maiesties Iniunctions of certaine Canons Constitutions and Synodals prouinciall established in force for the peaceable gouernment of the Church within her Maiesties Dominions and Countries for the most part heretofore vnknowen and vnpractized Cod. de Epis Cler. 1. Nulli licere ❧ Neither let them feare to be called and suspected picke-thanks seeing their faithfulnesse and diligent trauell carrieth with it as well praise as honestie and godly Zeale hauing published the truth to the eares of all men and brought it to the open light PROVERB 31. 8. Open thy mouth for the dumbe in the cause of all the children of destruction To the Christian Reader Thou hast seene beloued by long experience a lamentable contention to haue growen and continued in our English Church about reformation of Ecclesiasticall discipline and popish ceremonies whereby the quiet and peaceable estate both of the Church common wealth haue bene shrewdly troubled and brought in hazard The causes of which war and dissention I leaue to the good consideration of thy godly wisedome onely I am to intreat thee to accept this my labour bestowed vpon the study of the lawes appointed for the gouernance of the same Church hoping that by the authoritie of hir excellent maiestie and the counsaile of the honorable fathers and gouernours of hir highnes empire they may hereafter not onely be better executed but also if the case so require be reuisited For were the same lawes either better knowne vnto the whole Church either better executed by those vnto whome our gracious Soueraigne hath committed their Execution no doubt but very many and notable points of such controuersies as haue bene a long time amongst vs would be easily and speedily by the same lawes decyded I am not beloued in this so waighty a cause absolutely to rest my selfe vpon the skill of mine owne simple iudgement onely according to the knowledge giuen vnto me I haue for my part faithfully laboured to cite the lawe for that ende and purpose wherevnto I take the same to haue bene first ordeined And therefore I am hartely to desire thee to accept of this my labour and trauaile vndertaken not onely for the defence of her highnesse Lawes but also for my brethren and neighbours sakes and that peace and prosperitie might be within the wals and pallaces of Ierusalem Farewel and pray in thy spirit for the preferuation of the life of our gracious Queene ELIZABETH Pag. 1 AN ABSTRACT OF CERTAINE ACTES OF Parlement of her Maiesties Iniunctions Canons and Synodals Prouincial esta blished and in force for the peaceable gouernment of the Church within her Maiesties Domini ons heretofore for the most part vnknowne and vnpractised BY an act of Parliament made the 25. H. 8. C. 19. intituled An act concerning the submission of the Cleargie c. It was enacted as followeth Pag. 2 Prouided also that such Canons constitutions ordinances and Synodals prouinciall being alreadye made which be not contrariant nor repugnant to the lawes statutes and customs of this Realme nor to the domage or hurt of the Kings prerogatiue royall shal now still be vsed and executed as they were before the making of this act c. This act is reuiued 1. Eliza. ca. 1. Out of this act I conclude that all Canons constitutions ordinances synodals prouincial made before this act requiring and commanding a learned Ministerie prohibiting many benefices to be giuen to one man prohibiting ciuil iurisdiction to be in Ecclesiastical men and prohibiting one man to excommunicate for that such Canons c. cannot be contrary or repugnant to the lawes of this Realme nor hurtful to the Kings prerogatiue are in force ought to be executed therfore by this act all the Canons specified in any part of my treatise are in force so by vertue of this act a learned ministerie commanded Pluralities forbidden c. Pag. 3 A LEARNED MINISTERIE A learned Ministerie commanded by the Lawe NIHIL EST. c. There is nothing that may Ex De elect Cap. Nihil est hurt more the Church of God then that men vnworthy are taken to the gouernment of soules VVe therefore willing to apply a medicine to this disease decree by an inuiolable constitution that when any shall be chosen to the gouernment of soules he to whome the confirmation of his election appertaineth diligently examine both the processe of the election and the person elected to the ende that if all things concurre aright he may confirme him in his function For otherwise if any thing shall be vnaduisedly attempted not onely he that is vnworthily promoted but also the vnworthy promoter himselfe shall be punished and if any man shall approoue any of insufficient learning of an vnchast life or not of lawfull age when his negligence herein shall appeare we decree him to be punished thus not onely that he be quite depriued of power to confirme the next successor but least by any meanes he might scape vnpunished that he be also suspended from the commoditie of his owne benefice Out of which constitution these conclusions may briefly thus be gathered 1 Whatsoeuer is hurtfull to the Church of God the same is to be forbidden 2 But it is hurtfull to the Church of God to haue vnworthy men taken to the gouernment of soules 3 Therefore the same is to be forbidden 1 He that cannot worthily execute his office is not to be admitmitted to holy orders and Ecclefiasticall dignities 2 But a man of insufficient learning and of vnhonest conuersation cannot worthily execute his office 3 Therefore such a one is not to be admitted to Ecclesiasticall dignities Pag. 4 IF any iudge the meaning of this Chapter to be onely of superiour Prelats as Archbishops Bishops Abbots or such like elected by some common societie of Canons Monkes Friers or collegiat Priests because of these words Election and Confirmation properly applied to such and not to inferior ministers which are properly sayd to be presented and instituted then is such both diligently to marke the reason of the decree prouiding a remedie against the detriment that might redound to the Church in both cases if for both remedies were not before hand prouided And also to vnderstand that the name of Prelate is by law attributed likewise to euery Parson and Uicar hauing cure of soules Quia quilibet qui praeest ●●ae animarum dicitur esse Praelatus Euery one that is preferred to the cure D. ex de eleric ●grotant ●●sud gi●s lynd Consti de s●cra iter●nd c. ignorantia vers praelat● of soules is named by this name Prelate And also that election and confirmation in and to the superiour functions haue but the very same effect to the obtaining of their promotions that presentation and institution haue to the inferiour Ministers for enioying of their benefices then is such I say to consider all these things together with the ende of the Chapiter where

de aetate ibidem quoted ff de minoribus is by him wholie altered from that which the law it selfe setteth downe Proofe must be made saith the law of the age of him which alledgeth he is aboue xxv yeares old by examination of the cause bicause such proofe will preiudice and worke against the reuersall of acts of the said yoong man as executed in his nonage Which being wholie otherwise alledged by our author it maketh me ioining his like practises in other places of this booke togither to déeme that he hath not collected his allegations or examined them himselfe according to the law but hath taken the collections and rapsodies of some other man by retaile which maketh him bewraie so often his long eares out of the lions skin whereof he giueth euen in this section a larger taste where he alledgeth ff si à non competenti there being no such title in the Digests but in the Code and L. maritus ff de procuratoribus where no such law is to be found But although no man will denie but qualities requisite must then be found to be in a person when he is to be emploied yet this hindereth not but that in an office which is not tied to one circumstance of time but hath a continuance all honest meanes for the better and better furnishing of him with such qualities in that charge are and may be from time to time vsed without any impeachment to his credit as though he had béene at his first entrance into it not a sufficient man for that function But that which is here said concerning the nullitie of that which is done beyond the bounds of a compromisse or commission is no waie appliable to a trust committed for adiudgeing the qualities of the mind considerable onelie by his discretion and therefore cannot prooue if one be made minister by a Bishop not so fullie qualified as the law in all points requireth that thereby the whole actions are void and frustrate Shall we saie that an Ambassador hauing instruction to imploie a discréet faithfull and secret man about some seruice shall be guiltie 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 if the partie imploied séeming to him thus qualified shall be after found to faile in all or some of these and be insufficient And a Sheriffe being to returne by his writ a iurie De probis legalibus hominibus if after the verdict giuen vp it shall be prooued that they or some of them were not such at the time of the returne shall we therefore quash and reuerse Vide respons sect 39. all and saie there was no returne no impanell no triall no verdict nor iudgement And yet the Bishop hath no authoritie to ordeine ministers by commission but by operation of law And if this which he saith be true Where by disposition of law a certeine forme and prescript order is limitted that there if anie inuersion or preposteration be vsed all is cleane marred and therefore the whole actions are void and frustrate What are we then to iudge of those who are here in England baptized without the signe of the crosse those which are married without the ring and those who are punished for not comming to diuine seruice there where the forme of our Liturgie by law established is not exactlie obserued Which I set downe neither to impeach that baptisme or marriage howsoeuer to the intent of inheriting by the common law a doubt of such mariages hath béene made nor yet to excuse any wilfull recusants whome it is well knowne in any such regard not to absent themselues from praiers but to set downe the rash generalities and paradoxes which the Abstractor so confidentlie rusheth into euen with the ouerthrowe of those in whose fauour this treatise is made Notwithstanding manie of his clients though they aduenture to preach are as void of good learning as I could in particularitie shew as the most of these Dumbe silent and idoll ministers which he so déeplie lanceth Yet neuertheles that is not generallie true which he here auoucheth that an inuersion or preposteration vsed dooth make alwaies the act void For to this effect it is required that it be committed in some * Bald. in L. ambiguitates C. de testamentis Castr consil 39. alias 43. visis Actis matter of substance also that it be the inuersion of some substantiall order set downe by man For if it be the preposteration of an order set downe by * Bald. in L. 1. C. de appellat 3. nota law it is to be appealed from and therefore produceth not a direct nullitie Ipsoiure 9. Section Pag. 15 16. THis which the Abstractor here bringeth out of the Code that merit not monie in making of a minister is to be regarded as it is too generall to prooue by the word of merit such a worthinesse as he inforceth so being as appeareth by the whole constitution spoken of a Bishop onelie and not of euerie minister as he indefinitelie dooth translate it though otherwise it may be as trulie said of the one as of the other it is not so direct for the purpose which it is brought for The first member of that which he alledgeth out of the Authentikes but not the second doo I find either in Haloander his edition or in the Greeke or Latine edition of Contius And whereas the constitution is 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 vnlesse Constit 133. they know letters that is can read he hath helped the matter a little by interpreting it Aliquanto pinguiùs vnlesse they be learned which neuerthelesse might be granted vnto him and yet no such learning necessarilie imploied as he séeketh to establish hereby But the word Clerici clerkes Wresting of law and not Presbyteri priests here vsed whereby not onelie in this constitution but in all other the nouell constitutions any whether he be Ostiarius Lector Cantor Subdiaconus Diaconus or Diaconissa is signified dooth put the matter wholie out of doubt that neither ministers are here especiallie prouided for nor such exquisitnes of learning as he would gather can be any waie intended in them to be hereby exacted Vnlesse he will also saie that the 100. deacons Constitutio 3. §. sane the 40. deaconesses women the 90. subdeacons the 110. readers the 25. singers and the 100. doorekéepers or sextens being the limited number of clerkes and so called by Iustinian for the great church in Constantinople to haue all béene of that learning which he maketh to be the onelie touch of his minister And if I were persuaded as in this place he is that by the word Constitutions mentioned in the Act 25. H. 8. Cap. 29. the constitutions imperiall were ment I could bring manie such neither repugnant to our lawes nor to the hurt of the prerogatiue royall which I beléeue he himselfe will not saie to haue the force of law amongest vs and therefore must hereby be driuen to yéeld that he made a defectiue Minor in his

ministrare quos curare deberet ne diuer simode inficeret eosdom moribus exemplo It is perillous for the people vnder him to whome hee ought to minister the Sacraments and whome hee ought to heale that he diuersly infect them not with his manners and examples for that Diluere aliena peccata non valet is quem propria deuastant He cannot put away other mennes sinnes whome his owne sinnes deuoure And againe Periculosum est decentiae ecclesiae in scandalo populari It is daungerous for the Decencie of the church to be in anie publike slaunder or offence Againe Malus praelatus dicitur lupus rapiens praedam An euil prelate is saide to be a wolfe 83. distine nihil 2. q. 7. Quinec rauening his praie He is said to be Canis impudicus propter defectum regiminis A shamelesse dogge for want of gouernement Hee is saide to be Coruus propter peccatorum nigredinem As blacke as a Rauen for the foulenesse of his sinnes Hee is saide to be Sal 2. q. 7. Non omnis infatnatus ad nihilum proficiens Unsauorie salt profitable for nothing Hee is saide to be Porcus A Swine Hee is saide to be 4 c. Dist in mandaris Glos lind de offic Archis pres c. fin v. canss Capo A Capon because as a Capon can not crowe no more can a dumbe Prelate preach And to conclude Praelatus qui in doctrina mutus est non est verè Praelatus cum officium praelati non exerceat c. A Prelate which is mute in teaching is not in trueth a Prelate in so much as hee exerciseth not the office of a Prelate Pag. 29 These Canons and Constitutions not contrariant or repugnant to the Lawes Statutes or Customes of this realme neither derogatorie to her Highnesse Crowne and dignitie and therefore authorized by Act of Palament ought to haue beene better knowen and better executed by our chiefe Prelates then by the space of these 25. yeares they seeme generally to haue bene But yet besides these former decrees lawes and ordinances and the seuerall reasons principles and maximes wherevpon they were first grounded there remaineth somewhat more behind diligently to be considered the which thing the more earnestly euery man shall rightly weigh the more may he be astonished A thing done in Israell at the doing whereof it is a wonder that the eares of the hearers tingle not and the very haire of the heads of the standers by stare not for feare least the Lord in his righteous iudgement should execute his terrible vēgeance vpon them Thus standeth the case some pastoral church or churches being destitute of a Pastor or Pastors to feede the people a solemne assembly and conuocation of the chiefest of the gouernours of the Church must be gathered together and that not in an angle of a poore country village but in the chiefest citie of the Diocesse and that not on a workeday but either on the Lords day or on some other of their owne festiuall dayes and that for no small matters or to no small purpose but euen to present and offer vnto the Lord an holy sacrifice and to call vpon his most holy name To present I say vnto the Lord a present meete and acceptable for his maiestie euen men meete to serue him in his spirituall warres and to be Pastors to feede his people with spiritual foode of his holy word men meete to take vpon them the most highest and most noblest callings that he hath appointed to the sonnes of men the office and dignitie of the preaching of his holy Gospell Pag. 30 This I say is the actien wherof deliberate consideration is to be had and whereof followeth a discourse and wherein when all is done as it is imagined that can be done yet in truth there is nothing so nor so done they doe but flatter themselues bleare the eyes of others and which is most execrable as it were mocke and delude the Lord to his face Well then let vs consider what is done herein In the time of that vertuous King Coward the firt an order and forme was appointed by act of Parliament for consecrating Archbishops and Bishops and for the making of Priestes Deacons and ministers Which statute is reuiued and the same order and forme approued in the right yeare of his most excellent raigne The words of the statute are these And that such order and forme for the consecrating of Archbishops and Bishops and for the making of Priestes Deacons Ministers as was set forth in the time of the sayd late King and authorized by Parliament in the fifth and fifth yeare of the sayd late King shall stande and be in full force and effect and shall from henceforth be vsed and obserued in all places within this Realme and other the Dutines maiesties dominions and countries The title of the booke is this Pag. 31 The forme and manner of making and consecrating Bishops Priests and Deacons And first to intreat of Deacons according to Ordering of Deacons the forme of the booke you shall vnderstande that in the order and forme of making Deacons three things principally are to be obserued First the qualities requisite to be in him that is to be made a Deacon Secondly the circumstances in making him a Deacon And thirdly the proper duetie and office belonging to him that is made a Deacon Touching his qualities they must be such as were requisite for the same First he must be a man of vertuous conuersation and without crime Secondly he must be learned in the Latine tongue Thirdly he must be sufficiently instructed in the holy Scriptures Fourthly he must be a man meete to exercise his ministerie duely Fiftly he must beleeue all the Canonicall Scriptures Sixtly he must be diligent in his calling Seuenthly he must be inwardly moued to that office by the holy Ghost And as touching the circumstances First he must be called Secondly tried Thirdly examined Fourthly he must be twentie one yeares of age at the least he must be presented by the Archdeacon or his Deputie Fiftly he must be made on a Sunday or holy day Sixtly he must be made openly in the face of the Church where must be an exhortation made declaring the duetie and office as well of the Deacons towards the people as of the people towards the Deacons Lastly touching the office committed vnto him it is First to assist the minister in diuine seruice Secondly to reade holy Scriptures and Homelies in the congregation Thirdly to instruct the youth in the Catechisme Fourthly to search for the sicke poore and impotent of the parrish and to intimate their estates names and places to the Curate that they may be relieued by conuenient aimes Pag. 32 The forme of ordering Priestes COncerning the making of Ministers not onely all those thinges before mentioned in the making of Deacons but other circumstances and solemnities are required also these demaunds and answers following must be made and giuen Bishop Doe

hir Highnes as to grant hir this libertie it may please him besides the fourth iniunction before alledged to peruse the 27. and 53. iniunctions where expresselie all parsons vicars and curats are inioined to read some homilie when there is no sermon whom I trust he will not therfore conclude either to be all deacons or to transpose without authoritie the office of their fellow-seruant vnto themselues But to tie the reading of homilies vnto deacons is so farre from all apparance or colour of truth that in the selfe-same place where he curtailed rather than abridged the office of the deacon the booke setteth downe that it is a part of the deacons office to read holie scriptures and homilies in the church Where he shall be appointed to assist the priest not thereby that the priest is excluded from reading scriptures and homilies if he so thinke good or be commanded and therefore much lesse where no such deacon is appointed to assist the priest And if this new topike place were allowable then hereof we might reason thus Bishops as this man hath confessed afore by the ordinance of the realme are to execute discipline Ergo the inferiour His argument recorted against himselfe minister being another distinct officer may not transpose it to himselfe as in the other section he auouched Also ministers are to preach Ergo Bishops being of a distinct office may not preach contrarie to all that which afore he hath spoken against dumbe prelats Againe Deacons are by their office by law set downe to instruct the youth in the catechisme to baptise and to preach if they be admitted thereto by the Bishop Ergo ministers being a distinct office from deacons and statutes being strictlie to be interpreted are neither to catechise baptise nor preach by his owne doctrine and where is then his learned ministerie And therefore I take it that I may safelie conclude without offense to his wisedome that either héere he doated or else he hoped his readers would be such affectionate dotards as that he might with anie shew or vizard of likelihod as héere or by racking wringing wresting and curtailing as in diuerse places else-where without their further looking vnto him how plainelie he dolte easilie abuse them 20. Section Pag. 40 41 42 43. NOw in this section to make the matter in his behalfe séeme more probable against the Bishop he frameth a silie answer God wot in his name that Seeing by statute he onelie hath authoritie to make deacons and ministers and to gouerne them that therefore it beseemeth a minister no otherwise to preach than as he shall be licenced therevnto by him the Bishop But yet bicause this fiction was so apparentlie vnprobable he was content also to temper it thus Otherwise than according to the forme of the booke And indéed I cannot sée but that this may and ought to staie any from enterprising to preach in a setled church as this is sauing such fanaticall spirits as will shooue them-selues into the office of preaching without any externall and lawfull calling seeing that in this church of England this booke is the onelie externall forme we haue of calling men into any function in Gods church Now touching the former matter Whether the Bishop might commit the reading of homilies to the minister bicause our author warilie foresaw that both the iniunctions and aduertisements published by sufficient authoritie would to this purpose be alledged he séeketh to vntie that knot thus Bicause That he saith which was confusedlie and indistinctlie appointed in them to be done by parsons vicars and curats whereof as it fell out some were deacons and some ministers is now by this statute made 8. Elizabeth after both the other bounded and limited so that euerie proper office should be allotted to his proper officer But by the way he scattereth a riddle as he runneth when he saith The iniunctions aduertisements articles and this statute dooth bound and limit the meaning of the iniunctions and aduertisements yet I thinke he meant onelie that the statute bounded the meaning of the other two and therefore she was to blame that taught him so long to go before he had learned to speake well For the vntruth of this allotment of euerie peculiar function to his proper officer although some are peculiarlie tied vnto one and not attributed to any other I referre the reader to the booke it selfe and to that which was said in the last section And so I doo this which a little after he gathereth Ex vno absurdo quasi concesso That the office 〈◊〉 of the deacon is onelie to read the scriptures and homilies by that statute Now to open more fullie the vanitie of this surmise as though the statute 8. Elizabeth ment to redresse reading of homilies by ministers thorough making a more orderlie distinction of offices than afore you shall perceiue by perusall of the bodie of that statute and preamble that the forme and maner of making and consecrating Bishops priests and deacons was not deuised then anew but was put in vre and established in the daies of king Edward And though Ad maiorem cautelam for the auoiding of cauils of traitorous and slanderous papists the same booke was then established by that act of parlement yet dooth it in the preamble thereof by manie reasons prooue that the said booke had the force of law before And therefore it is verie propheticall for that booke which was penned in king Edwards daies to bound limit Articles of religion art 36. applie and distinguish offices confusedlie deliuered by hir Maiesties iniunctions and aduertisements which were long after framed And where our author had said that A minister must minister the doctrine and sacraments and discipline of Christ what néeded he to haue added And preach onelie if as afore he would haue inforced vnder Doctrine or teaching preaching be necessarilie alwaies emploied But afterward vpon better rubbing of his memorie he telleth vs his meaning is not to Exclude the minister from reading the scriptures and praieng with the people duties without which preaching cannot be done If by reading the scriptures he meane the ministers priuate studie then he reasoneth not Ad idem which is ignorance of the Elench But if he vnderstand the reading of scriptures in the church then I sée no cause whie by his owne platforme the minister should read any scriptures there besides his theame for his sermon naie how can he read any scriptures when the deacon hath read them all Contrarietie of the author vnto himselfe afore And if he will needs read the scriptures publikelie whie should he be suffered by this mans construction to inuade The deacons proper office and to transpose it to himselfe And therefore the copie of the supplication and submission of the Bishops which he hath here drawne in their behalfe as though through their Abusing of hir Highnesse lawes no meanes according to law could be found for reading of homilies where the minister is