Selected quad for the lemma: act_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
act_n	king_n	law_n	prerogative_n	3,673	5	10.4433	5	false

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A36461	The triumph of Christianity, or, The life of Cl. Fl. Julian, the Apostate with remarks, contain'd in the resolution of several queries : to which is added, Reflections upon a pamphlet, call'd Seasonable remarks on the fall of the Emperor Julian, and on part of a late pernicious book, entituled, A short account of the life of Julian, &c.	Dowell, John, ca. 1627-1690.	1683 (1683)	Wing D2057; ESTC R8708	83,984	256

Invectives of Julian be embraced as sure Arguments to sully the Honour of the Church of God which is a clear refutation of that Tract and is the Glory of Christianity That the Testimony of Enemies are produced against it which Enemies themselves have given a real Commendation of it when that Julian himself in his Epistle to Orebasius proposes to the Arch Priest of Galatia the Examples and Carriage of Christians to be imitated by the Heathens by that means to render Paganism its self more amiable Reflections upon part of the Book called A Short Account of the Life of Julian IT seems indubitable that a Lawful Heir by a Lawful Authority upon a Lawful Reason may be secluded from his Inheritance The Lawful Authority in England is His Sacred Majesty and the Two Houses of Parliament To them the Lawful Reason must be referr'd But there is a vast difference 'twixt the Laws of England and the Imperial Laws the Succession to the Imperial Crown of England and the Eagles It is known in our Land that nothing has the force of a Law but what is ratified by the King and Two Houses of Parliament His Sacred Majesty to give ease to his People and to appease the angry humours of the Dissenters issued out a Declaration for an Indulgence The Parliament upon the next Convention questioned this Act His Majesty in his Speech to them averr'd that He would stand to his Action They addrest themselves to the King the King return'd that they invaded his Prerogative They reply'd That there was never put an Instance of the like Prerogative It 's otherwise in the Imperial Laws Quod Principi placui Legis habet vigorem What pleased the Emperor was a Law The Reason is thus given for by the Kingly Law which was Enacted concerning the Empire the people did grant unto the Emperor and transfer upon him all their Dominion and Power that whatsoever therefore the Emperor did by his Letters command or in his own Person Decree or by any Prescript enjoyn it was manifest was a Law and Just Titulo 2do Sect. sed quod the same is found C. lib. 1. Tit. 17. Sect. 7. Cum enim Lege antiqua que Regia nuncupabatur c. When by the Ancient Law which was called the Royal all the Right and all the Power with which the Roman people were invested was transfer'd upon the Emperor we will not therefore divide the Laws according to the names of those that Enacted them we will have the whole Code to be our own For how can Antiquity abrogate our Laws which fully evinceth that all right was seated in every Emperor And therefore Justinian intending to reform correct and reduce the former Laws into one Code he would have that call'd his own It was once in the power of the Roman people to chuse their Magistrates the created Consuls and Dictators but they transferring all their Power upon one single Person it was in the breast of that person to enact all Laws and to constitute what Officers he pleased and his Successors And therefore nothing more frequent in the Roman History than the Examples of Emperors by their own Decree making Laws creating Coesars and designing the successive Emperor which is otherwise in England The manner of Succession is determined by the Laws made by the Authority of the King and the Two Houses And 't is observable in the Roman Story that all the power being thus devolv'd upon the Emperor whosoever gain'd the Empire enjoy'd the same power And 't is observ'd the Emperors were created frequently by the Military suffrage It seems a great error therefore in the Author from the Example of Julian to meddle with the English Succession 't is to be acknowledged that Julian by reason of the Barrenness of Eusebia Constantius's Empress and that his two Brothers dyed leaving no Heir Gallus being likewise cut off was the next Heir to Constantius but that title had been invalid if Constantius had not created him Coesar Eusebius and Eumenius the Pagan Orator did say that Constantine came to the Empire by the Law of Nature and a Paternal right But that was Oratory and allusive to the general usage of Kingdoms where the Son succeeds the Father but 't is not so in the Roman Empire Constantius Chlorus was but a Coesar under Maximianus Herculeus the Emperor How could Constantine be by a Paternal right Augustus when his Father was but Coesar But his Father having influenc'd the Army they upon the Death of his Father unanimously saluted him Emperor And Julian being made Coesar by Constantius he gain'd the affection of his Army who after several Victories got over the Germans and Almans the Army saluted him Augustus to which he had no other title but what the Sword gave him and by his Rebellion against Constantius did by the Roman Laws forfeit all his right and title It appears an extravagancy to accommodate Julian's Succession to the Succession of the English Crown The actions and behaviour of the Christians towards Julian do not at all interfere with a passive obedience The Question is thus stated Whether a Prince invested with Dominion may in matters of Religion be resisted by Arms No Christian did during the Persecution ever take up Arms against the Emperor or make the least resistance their Passive Obedience was their glory and their Blood watered the Church of Christ But he rejoyns that the Christians professed a Doctrine contrary to the Laws of the Empire and thereupon a Passive Obedience was necessary But where Religion is the Law of the Country there it may be defended by the Sword Hence the Army under Julian would if they had power have resisted by Arms because they professed that Religion which became the Religion of the Empire and was ratified by the Laws for Fifty years But here certainly is a grand mistake Quod Regi placuit legis habet vigorem and tho' Constantine and Constantius by their Edicts favouring Christianity that Religion was the Religion of the Empire while their Authorities remain'd But Julian a Pagan succeeding he by his Edicts reviving Idolatry it was made the Religion of the Empire And therefore 't was as unlawful for the Christians under Julian to resist him by the Sword as it was for the Christians under the Heathen Emperors to resist them Thus it appears in our English Constitutions King Edward the Sixth in his Parliament established the Protestant Religion whereby that became the Religion of the Country Queen Mary a Papist succeeding gains a Parliament that rejects the Protestant and establishes the Popish Doctrine then Popery became the Religion of the Country and no Protestant during her Reign did oppose her Person or Authority The Protestants in Norfolk and Suffolk were great instruments to set the Crown upon her Head some of whom afterwards patiently endur'd the Flames and none drew a Sword nor after her Coronation was any violent means used against her by which the Authors 2d Ch.