Clergy as their Ancestors the Pharisees were with the question about John's Baptism for on the one side they feared the Court who desired and required them to be moderate and indeed they perceived that it was their Interest at this time to make some shew of Moderation But on the other hand it was against their Interest to condemn the Proceedings of the Presbyteries nor could they do it because they were agreeable to the Rules concerted and prescribed by the general Meeting so following the policy of the Pharisees they waved the difficulty by remitting all to the Commission and particular Synods By this means they secured what was already done from being renverst and also freed the Assembly from the blame of any Injury or Injustice done or to be done for then these things might be charged on particular Persons and not on the whole Party However they ventured upon three or four Processes and by them you may guess what they would have done with the rest The first was That of Mr. Lesk Minister of Turreff within the Diocess of Aberdeen whose Church was claimed by one Mr. Arthur Mitchell by vertue of that Act of Parliament which restored the old Presbyterians to their Churches whether they were vacant or possessed by others Mr. Lesk first made Application to the Council and thought to have suspended Mr. Mitchell as not being comprehended within the Act of Parliament which only was designed in favour of these who had left their Ministry for not complying with Episcopacy whereas Mr. Mitchell was deposed and deprived long before that time But that not taking effect the Matter was brought before the Assembly where Mr. Lesk instructed that Mr. Arthur Mitchell was never legally settled Minister of Turreff that about the Year 1655. he was actually deposed and that tho he continued to preach there by means of a prevailing Faction of Remonstrators under the Usurper he was never look'd upon as Minister of the place and that in the Year 60. the Synod of Aberdeen being freed of the force and restraint that was formerly upon them did ratifie the former Sentence of Deposition And as for himself he pleaded that he had been legally setled Minister according to the Laws of the Land that he had submitted to the present Civil Government which had promised protection to them who did so and that the Heritors and People of his Parish were for his continuance among them and altogether averse to Mr. Arthur Mitchell To prove this last he produced a Declaration and Petition subscribed by the Gentlemen and others of the Parish Mr. Mitchell alledged that one or two of the Subscriptions were not genuine and therefore that the whole ought to be neglected as a Forgery Mr. Lesk replyed That he laid not the stress of this Cause on that Paper that he only produc'd it as an Adminicle that he had not gone about seeking Subscriptions for he looked upon that as below the Character of a Minister but that it was given him by honest Men and therefore he had reason to believe the Subscriptions genuine And if they laid any stress on the Inclinations of the People if a competent time were allowed him he would easily prove that they were for him but at present it was to be considered whether he was legal and rightful Minister of that place After two days debate it came to a Vote and the Vote was not whether Mr. Lesk or Mr. Mitchell should be continued Minister at Turreff but whether Mr. Mitchell was not rightful Minister Anno 1661. and only turned out by the unjust courses of the Times and whether he was not now to be looked upon as rightful Minister there which Vote was carried in the affirmative and Mr. Lesk being called in was told that the Assembly had deprived him and ordained Mr. Arthur Mitchell to be Minister at Turreff He asked the reasons of their Sentence which were refused but what ever might have been pretended the true reason was That they were glad of any pretence for casting out Episcopal Ministers who were always in their Sermons and Discourses called the Priests of Baal By virtue of that Act of Parliament I just now mentioned all the Churches were taken from the Episcopal Ministers to which any Presbyterian had the least pretence tho the former had complyed with the Civil Government and the other were setled in other places which they were not resolved to leave So for instance Mr. James Kirkton who hath a Meeting-house in Edinburgh and is called to be one of the Ministers of that City went out to the Parish of Martine where he had been formerly Minister and forced away Mr. Andrew Meldrum present Minister without allowing him time to dispose of his Goods and after he had performed this noble and heroick Exploit and preached a Sunday or two to get a right to the Stipend he returned to his Charge at Edinburgh and turned his back upon that in the Country as if there had been no more to be feared seeing the Curate was driven away The next Appeal which I suppose was considered was that of Mr. Sleery from the Presbytery of Linlithgow he was a Minister of the West who had been rabbled out of his own Church and thereafter was desired by the Minister of Falkirk to serve his Cure during his Sickness which he did and when that Minister died the Heritors and People of the Parish upon the experience they had of him desired that he might continue to preach to them promising that when the Government was setled they would take care to get him a legal Title to the Parish but it being firmly resolved on by all possible means to put out and disable all Episcopal Ministers the Presbytery of Linlithgow caused the said Mr. Sleery to be cited before them who compeiring was interrogated by what Authority he preached at Falkirk and how he came to use the Doxology The last he said was the custom of the place and that he did the first at the desire of the People The Presbytery not being satisfied with his Answers to these and some other Questions discharged him from preaching there any longer and declared the Church vacant to which Sentence he refused to submit and appealed therefore it was necessary to interpose the Authority of the Assembly for dispossessing him of that Church which was the reason why he was called upon When he compeired the Moderator askt him if he acknowledged the Civil Government and if he would submit to that of the Church to both which he answered affirmatively but when it was askt him if he repented of his compliance with Episcopacy he said If it was a Sin he would repent of it His Answer did neither please nor satisfie them for the Moderator told him it seemed he yet doubted whether it was a Sin or not So finding by this and some other things that he was not yet a through Convert they deprived him of his Church and discharged him the Exercise of his
I must not omit Mr. Gabr. Cunninghame presiding one day in the absence of the ordinary Moderator he asked the Commissioner what should be the next time of their Meeting but whether it was out of Forgetfulness that he did so or not he corrected himself in his Prayer For he began with an acknowledgment of Christ Jesus being supreme Head and Governour of the Church and then said these Words Thou knowest O Lord that when we own any other it is only for Decency sake The next day they met and only heard the King's Letter read and appointed some Persons to draw up an Answer We expected to have seen both in Print as is usual but neither of them has been as yet published because as is supposed there was something in the King's Letter a little checking which they would not have every one to know viz. That he favoured their Government because he was made to understand it was most agreeable to the Inclinations of the People that he would have them very moderate in their Proceedings and do nothing which might displease their neighbour Church This last did not go down well with them for it troubled them to be made in any ways accountable to a Church which in all their Discourses they exclaimed against as superstitious and idolatrous and into which they are designing to introduce their glorious Reformation Neither was the first very acceptable for if the Inclinations of the People were the Motive of setting up Presbyterian Government when it should as it very easily might be represented that the Inclinations of the People were against Presbytery and the Spirit and ractice P of the present Presbyterians his Majesty might be moved to remove this and set up another Government Therefore in their Answer they asserted that their Government was not only suteable to the Inclinations of the People but also most agreeable to the Word of God and that this might not be looked upon merely as the Flourish of an Epistle they design'd to back it with the Authority of an Act which should declare their Government both of Divine Right and also the true Legal Government of this Church which they pretended had never suffered any Alteration except in time of Usurpation Tyranny and great Oppression But the Commissioner apprehending the Consequences of such an Act thought it not fit to let the same pass without Advice from Court and therefore desired a Copy of it to send to the King his Master who it seems did not approve of it For it never more appeared here at which the Brethren have not a little murmured And if it had passed as it would not have contributed much to the Establishment of their Government it being the Act of so inconsiderable an Assembly so it would only have discovered their Ignorance Falshood and Impudence For it is clear from our Histories as was declared in a late Discourse that Presbytery heretofore was never setled but in times of Rebellion and what Enemies our Scottish Presbyterians have been always to Kings and how much they were wont to encourage Rebellion King James VI. has from his Experience fully and plainly declared in his Basilicon Doron where he cautions his Son against them as the most barbarous treacherous and perfidious sort of People who are less to be trusted than the thieving Borderers or the wildest uncivilized Highlanders The Argument also which Sir James Montgomery of Skelmorly used for Presbytery in the Parliament shews how much it favours Monarchy and Kingly Power which was this That it was the Peoples only Security against the Encroachment of Kings and a proper Curb to restrain their Insolence and Extravagancy And indeed when they are encouraged they so restrain them as to make them signify nothing as appears by their Behaviour to King James VI. before he went to England and what they did to King Charles I. whom they persecuted and pursued to Death As to the Moderation which his Majesty required of them they promised with a solemn Attestation that they would shew all the Moderation that his Majesty could expect which when considered was not a very great Obligation on them for if the King understand them aright his Expectation will be very small Moderation being very rarely to be found among Presbyterians It being an old Custom of general Assemblies to ease the Ministers of the Place where they meet from preaching they ordered this day who should preach the following Sunday and when they were appointing Preachers for the rest of the Churches and Meeting-Houses in Edinburgh one stood up and said It was fit to send Ministers to the Conformists Kirks too But the Moderator perceiving the Commissioner displeased at the Proposal replyed That they sought none of their Help and they should get as little The first that preached in the High Church before the Commissioner was Mr. Geo. Meldrum whose Text was Philip. 4. Ver. 5. The Sermon was framed to please the various Humours of Men and to recommend himself to Persons of different Tempers for the general Drift of it seemed to be for Moderation which both the Court and all good discreet People called for yet he caution'd it with such Restrictions and Exceptions as that he might justifie himself with the more rigid and prevent their jealousies and suspicions of him He who preached the Sunday following if my Memory fail not was one Hamilton who was somewhat singular in his reckoning the Years during which we of this Nation have been deprived of the Gospel for whereas the rest of the Presbyterians reckon but 28. viz. from the Restauration of the Royal Family and Episcopacy he ran ten Years farther backward and made it 38. leaving People to guess his reason and when the Matter was enquired into it was found that he dated the want of the Gospel from the Year 1652. because since that time they never had a General Assembly and then too they were not suffered to sit for the English Governor here raised them because they had no Warrant from Cromwel and carried them out surrounded with Guards to Bruntsfield-Links where he dismissed them with a severe threatening if any three of them should be found together It would be tedious to give you a particular account of all the Sermons which were preached here in the time of the Assembly but in general I assure you they were very nauseating to all rational Persons for except one or two preached by Mr. Carstairs and Mr. Robert Wyllie they were either miserably flat and dull or else full of bitter Zeal against the Episcopal Party Instead of the Doctrins and Duties of Christianity the excellency and divine Institution of their Government was the subject of their Discourses and when they happened on any necessary or weighty Point of Religion they treated them in such a manner as if they had design'd to burlesque Religion and render it ridiculous which gave a great advantage to atheistical and profane Men So it is observed that Religion doth
whole Articles of the Libel complexlie than which there is nothing more false as will appear by the Libels and Depositions if they were produced And yet thereupon Mr. Heriott is first suspended by the Presbytery and referred by them to the General Assembly for further Censure as if great Immoralities in Life and Errors in Doctrine had been proved against him And the Synod to which the Assembly remitted him following the steps of the Presbytery deposed him Now when Presbytery and Synod have acted thus contrary to express Law and have done open and manifest Unjustice and whereof all that heard of it are convinced and sensible And having stated themselves Parties against him there can be no Remedy expected from the said Unjustice Injury and Oppression unless the Lords of Their Majesties Privy Council interpose their Authority If it be alleaged That the late Act of Parliament The Act of Supremacy in Church matters is Repealed It is answered That the Act of Parliament 1669 is Rescinded which extended the Supremacy to the Ordering and Disposal of the External Government and Policy of the Church and to the Enacting of Constitutions Acts and Orders in the Church But the foresaid Act of K. Ja. 6. his 8 Parliament is not Rescinded which is only as to the Judging of Ecclesiastick Persons in matters complained upon and which power is inherent in the Crown otherways there should be Regnum in Regno and Church Judicatories should have arbitrary Power without Redress or Control as said is In Regard whereof The Lords of Their MAJESTIES Privy Council are Judges Competent to this Injurie Vnjustice and Oppression And the Desire of the Petitions ought to be Granted ACT of the General Assembly anent a Solemn National Fast and Humiliation with the Causes thereof At Edinburgh November 12. 1690. Postmeridiem Sess 25. THE General Assembly Having taken into their most serious Consideration the late great and general Defection of this Church and Kingdom have thought fit to Appoint a Day of Solemn Humiliation and Fasting for Confession of Sins and making Supplication to our Gracious God to forgive and remove the guilt thereof In order whereunto they have Ordained the Confession of Sins and Causes of Fasting following to be duly Intimat and Published Recommending it most earnestly to all persons both Ministers and others That every one of us may not only search and try our own hearts and ways and stir up our selves to seek the Lord But also in our Stations and as we have access Deal with one another in all love and tenderness to prepare for so great and necessary a Duty that we may find mercy in God's sight and He may be graciously reconciled to our Land in our Lord Jesus and take delight to dwell among us Although our gracious God hath of late for his own Names sake wrought great and wonderful things for Britain and Ireland and for this Church and Nation in particular Yet the Inhabitants thereof have cause to remember their own evil ways and to loath themselves in their own sight for their Iniquities Alas We and our Fathers our Princes our Pastors and People of all Ranks have sinned and have been under great Transgression to this day For though our gracious God shewed early kindness to this Land in sending the Gospel amongst us and afterward in our Reformation from Popish Superstition and Idolatry and it had the Honour beyond many Nations of being after our first Reformation solemnly devoted unto God both Prince and People yet we have dealt treacherously with the Lord and been unstedfast in his Covenant and have not walked suitably to our Mercies received from him nor obligations to him Through the mercy of God this Church had attained to a great purity of Doctrine Worship and Government but this was not accompanied with suitable personal Reformation neither was our Fruit answerable to the pains taken on us by Word and Work We had much Gospel-preaching but too little Gospel-practice too many went on in open wickedness and some had but a form of Godliness denying the power thereof many also who had the Grace of God in truth fell from their first love and fell under sad languishings and decays and when for our sins the anger of the Lord had divided us and we were brought under the feet of strangers and many of our Brethren killed others taken Captive and sold as slaves yet we sinned still and after we were freed from the yoke of strangers instead of returning to the Lord and being led to Repentance by his goodness the Land made open Defection from the good ways of the Lord many behaved as if they had been delivered to work abomination the flood-gates of Impiety were opended and a deluge of wickedness did over-spread the Land Who can without grief and shame remember the shameful debauchery and drunkenness that then was And this accompanied with horrid and hellish cursing and swearing and followed with frequent Filthiness Adulteries and other Abominations and the Reprover was hated and he that departed from Iniquity made himself a reproach or prey And when by these and such like corrupt practices mens Consciences were debauched they proceeded to sacrifice the Interest of the Lord Jesus Christ and Priviledges of his Church to the lusts and will of men The Supremacy was advanced in such a way and to such an height as never any Christian Church acknowledged the Government of the Church was altered and Prelacy which hath been always grievous to this Nation introduced without the Churches consent and contrair to the standing Acts of our National Assemblies both which the present Parliament hath blessed be God lately found And yet nevertheless of the then standing Ministry of Scotland many did suddenly and readily comply with that alteration of the Government some out of Pride and Covetousness or Man-pleasing some through infirmity or weakness or fear of Man and want of Courage and Zeal for God many faithful Ministers were thereupon cast out and many Insufficient and Scandalous men thrust in on their Charges and many Families ruined because they would not own them as their Pastors And alas It is undenyable there hath been under the late Prelacie a great decay of Piety so that it was enough to make a man be nicknam'd a Phanatick if he did not run to the same excess of riot with others And should it not be lamented for it cannot be denyed there hath been in some a dreadful Atheistical Boldness against God some have disputed the Being of God and his Providence the Divine Authority of the Scriptures the Life to come and Immortality of the Soul yea and scoffed at these things There hath been also an horrid Prophanation of the Holy and Dreadful Name of God by Cursing and Swearing Ah! there hath been so much Swearing and Forswearing amongst us that no Nation under Heaven have been more guilty in this than we some by swearing rashly or ignorantly some falsly by breaking their Oaths and imposing