Selected quad for the lemma: authority_n

Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
authority_n	church_n	power_n	scripture_n	7,777	5	6.2723	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A97005	Certaine affirmations in defence of the pulling down of communion rails, by divers rash and misguided people, judiciously and religiously answered, / by a Gentleman of worth.	I. W., Gentleman of worth.	1641 (1641)	Wing W39; Thomason E171_1; ESTC R9386	13,019	36

slanderer Secondly wounds the reputation of him that is slandered Thirdly poysons the heart of him who receives the report with an uncharitable conceit Defence also of bad and ill causes not excluded Prov. 17.15 Hee that justifies the wicked and he that condemnes the just they both are an abomination to the Lord. Prov. 14.24 He that pray seth the wicked the people shall curse him The Law of the Land grounded on the Law of God provides to prevent all appearances and occasions of shedding of bloud of disobeying authority and of prejudice to others And because the enormities of unlawfull Assemblies Riots Routs and the like have beene such that they have endangered the Kingdome and peace thereof and put in hazard the very forme of government care hath been taken to prevent even words menaces or any other appearances of discontent the Kingdome having formerly beene sensible that from small sparks great fires have been kindled As namely that Riot at Dartmouth in Kent in Richard the Second his Reigne began first but between a Tyler and his Wife and a Collector of a Subsidie for one groat demanded It put in hazard the Kings life the burning of the Citie of London the ruine of the Nobility Gentry and Kingdome also So likewise in Henry the Sixth his time a small occasion a falling out between one of the Yeomen of the Kings Guard and one of the then Earle of Warwick his men came to a Riot of such a high nature that it was the root of many wofull and fatall Tragedies even the losse of Richard Plantaginet Duke of Yorke and after him King Henry the Sixth and Prince Edward his sonne with many of the Peers Nobilitie and Gentrie and many thousands of the Kingdome likewise Therefore Menacers shall be imprisoned St. 2. Ed. 3. Neither shall there be any Barrettors or Maintayners of Quarrels West 1.3 Ed. 1.32 There are also provisions made and punishments ordained against the enormitie of privie defaming and libelling invented to defame and tread the honour and estimation of a man in the dust to make him derided and despised amongst his Neigbours Scandala Magnatum Scandals of Peeres or Governours provided against in St. 3. Ed. 1.34 2. R. 2.12 R 2.41 There shall be no disturbance of a Preacher in his Sermon 1. M. 3. There shall bee no chiding or smiting in a Church or Church-yard St. 5. 6. Ed. 6. There shall be no assaulting of a Judge or Juror 22. Ed. 3.13 There shall be no Riots c. therefore for the punishment of them the Court of Star-chamber was ordained St. 3. H. 7.1 St. 21. H. 8.22 Not disclosing a Commotion or unlawfull assembly when one is moved thereunto within 24 houres to a Justice of Peace a Sheriffe Bailiffe c. is imprisonment for three moneths 1. M. 12. Procuring others to offend 1. M. 12. are to suffer imprisonment for three moneths also Juries ordained to enquire of Riots St. 13. H. 4. There shall be no Maintenance by Combination or Conspiracie St. 33. E. 1. 1. R. 2.7 There shall be no Maintenance by Embracery that is by comming to the Barre with the offendour and speaking in the matter or threatning or procuring of a Jury St. 33. E. 1. There shall be no Maintenance by Jurors that is when they corruptly take any reward directly or indirectly of the offendor Plantiffe or Defendant to give his verdict St. 34. Ed. 3. Ed. 3.38 Therefore a Riot not found by the Jury by reason of Maintenance or Embracery is to be punished St. 19. H. 7.13 There shall not be any Maintenance by great men in authoritie by speaking of words whereby to frighten the Jurie or to make them to encline to his desire and therefore also none but such as are in the Commission shall sit with the Justices of Assize 20. R. 2. 22. H. 6.5 13. H. 4.19 A Riot is when three persons or above assemble themselves to the intent to beat or maym a man to pull down a house fence or the like or to do any unlawfull act with force and violence against the peace St. 5. R. 2.7 Three or foure entring into Lands with force upon the possession of another though the entry be lawfull yet it is accounted a Riot And an assembly lawfully begun doth many times end riotously An unlawfull Assembly is when above three do assemble themselves with intent to beat or do as aforesaid though nothing be acted by them yet it is an unlawfull assembly A Rout is when above three doe assemble to revenge themselves to pull down c. or to beat a man that hath done some offence to them all or shew by gesture or speech that they mean to do any violence or doe feare any of the Kings people It is accounted in the Law a Rout though nothing be done 17. Ed. 4.4 The Doctrine of the Church of England confirmed by the Law in the twentieth Article concerning the authoritie of the Church saith that the Church hath power to decree Rites and Ceremonies and authoritie in controversie of faith being not contrarie to the written Word of God Article 37. conterning the Civill Magistrates saith that they are to have that Prerogative which was given to all godly Princes in holy Scripture by God himselfe that is that they should rule all estates and degrees committed to their charge by God whether Ecclesiasticall or Temporall and restrain with the Civill Sword the stubborn and evill doers c. These and the like may be collected from the Law of God and Man for our dutie to our Governours and the preservation of the peace they may be applyable and may serve to convince the offences that have been done contrary to them and may be a preservative or remedie to prevent the doing of the like again To conclude It is manifest that the Laws of the Land concerning the dutie to the Civill Magistrate and our Governours the Maintenance of the Peace cannot be broken but with great violence and opposition to the Law of God Those then that labour against conformitie to them do little lesse then endevour to dissolve the bonds of Government and Unitie established by God and Man and so consequently all would fall to confusion Such are dangerous and pernitious to the tranquillity and prosperitie of a Kingdome The Law of the Land hath made provisions and ordained severe punishments for the offence done to the Majestie of Government and the peace of the Land calling it Treason or Crimen Laesae Majestatis for the preservation of the Supremacie thereof there is an Oath enjoyned St. 1. El. 1.5 El. 1. those that refuse it the second time are thereby made guiltie of high Treason And me thinks there is great reason that authoritie and government should be carefully preserved For it is as the Head Eye or Soule is to the body Take away the life and the senses and what remayns but a uselesse and sencelesse carcasse or as the Sun is to all things under it We know that by the benefit of the Sun and the properties belonging thereunto all subsolarie bodies and creatures are enlivened and bettered but when it is ecclipsed though never so little they are much the worse so while the bright and radiant beams of Sovereigne authoritie and lawfull Government have there due and proper influence upon the inferiour subjects they grow flourish in peace plenty but when it is ecclipsed by the interposition of the inferior Orbes What malignant calamities and pestiferous effects are always produced The bodie politick suffers no lesse then the naturall bodie by the obstruction of the animall and vitall spirits These I have thought fit as a private Christian called thereunto to commit to paper for the information of those who are ignorant My particular calling will not permit me otherwise or farther to express or enlarge my self I seriously protest I have no sinister end herein nor is it done out of any malice hatred or evill affection to any but in discharge of the late Protestation and as I verily believe I am bound in conscience and dutie to God and Man to maintain the truth peace and due government of the Church and Common-weale Peruse it therefore the more charitably and labour to be informed of the truth how mean clothed so ever you finde it and take heed how you persist in a known errour And as you have been an example of evill unto others who are too readie to take patterne of disobedience thereby so you ought to be an example of good to them in your obedience in your acknowledging and amending your errours Thus Paul exhorts Titus to preach Titus 3.3 For wee our selves also were sometimes foolish disobedient deceived serving divers lusts and pleasures living in malice and envie hatefull and hating one another In the 1 Tim. 6.11 His dehortation is But thou ô man of God flie these things with his exhortation and follow after righteousnesse godlinesse faith love patience and meeknesse To this ye were exhorted by the same text at the visitation Sermon the very houre before your disorder You may see what it is to take Gods name into your mouthes and eares and to scorne to be reformed What inconveniences you might have prevented by observing it and other advertisements given you at that time What dangers you have run your selves into by contemning them Therefore sin no more lest a worse thing happen and according to Salomons advice Prov. 21. Feare the Lord and the King and meddle not with them that are given to Sedition Love the Truth and Peace is the Prophet Zachary his counsell Zach. 8.19 Seek them follow them and contend for them as far as lawfully thou mayst for thou wilt finde the contraries of them full of miseries and calamities and so the God of Truth and Peace guide you and blesse you with what I heartily wish you externall internall and eternall peace I. W. FINIS

of conscience Moreoever the Nation it selfe wherein wee live was not inhabited at first with Protestants yet God forbid that any should be so simple therefore to forsake the Land or pull down the Churches For the abuse ought not to take away the right use of any thing 2 The Rails were not lawfully set up Ans The authority of subordinate Governours of the Church for the necessary repaire ornament and uniformitie of reverent and decent behaviours will hereafter more manifestly appeare For as there is but one God and one Truth so there ought to be amongst us but one way one cōmon union But suppose they were set up without that authority which you call l●wfull They ought therefore to be taken down by a more lawfull authority For as a lawfull thing may be done unlawfully so what is unlawfully done may likewise be undone far more unlawfully 3 London and all other places have pulled them downe in the like manner Ans It is a question whether they have done the like or not The whole is not to be blamed for part unlesse all were actors or consenters Yet if it were so the actions of others will not justifie ours before God or Man wee must not follow a multitude to doe evill nor doe evill that good may come thereon 4 It is just with God they should be so pulled down Ans That which is just with God and according to his secret Will may be unjust in Man being done contrary to his revealed Will. As in the Death of Traytors and the like Offenders against the Common-wealth It is just with God and Man they should be cut off by them Yet it is unjust and unanswerable to God and Man for any to take away their lives before justice hath ordained the Execution and the Executioner also 5 There are none that truly feare God that oppose the pulling of them down or are offended with them who pulled them down Ans This is a rash and self-conceited censure too common amongst Christians wedded to their owne opinions Hee that serves God truly ought to serve him rightly according to his Word But Gods Word doth not allow or countenance Mutinies unlawfull Assemblies or Rebellions against Government pulling the Sword of Justice out of the Magistrates hand and using or rather abusing it as we please according to our perverse wils and affections Therefore consequently those that doe so doe not fear God truly Nor are offended c. It is not the Matter so much as the Manner that gives the occasion of the offence and not the persons so much as their offences And as there were probably severall sorts of people that were at the pulling of them downe for severall ends and intents most of them for sinister ends and by respects Yet some who were simple honest and well meaning people only mis-informed and mis-led So likewise all that are offended thereat have not the like affections yet most I believe are justly offended to see the Protestant Religion and Covenant so much dishonoured and abused Authority and Government contemned the bonds of Duty and Unity broken the Governours Officers and Town like to be prejudiced and the actors themselves like to be mischieved 6 Wee are bound by the last Protestation against Innovations This being an Innovation we ought to pull it down Ans This manifests simplicitie ignorance or worse It is true that wee are bound to maintain and defend the Protestant Religion contained in the Doctrine of the Church of England against all poperie and popish innovations contrary to the said Doctrine But what is that to any necessary or decent ornament of the Church besides wee are bound to maintain the protestant Religion no further then wee may lawfully do it that is by petition solicitation information affirmation to those who have authority to reforme Not by unlawfull assemblies and tumultuous riots especially in times of reformaon to be our owne Judges Juries and Executioners Moreover wee must remember that by the said Protestation we are bound according to the duty of our allegiance to maintaine the Kings royall person honour and estate Now all Royall and lawfull authoritie and honour is derived and given even from GOD Almighty to the King and from him to all his subordinate Ministers Hee then that offends this lawfull authority though in the meanest Minister offends and dishonoureth the highest authoritie from whence it came Againe we are bound by the said Protestation to maintaine and defend the power and privileges of Parlaments In both which certainly are included the Laws and Acts of Parlaments which concernes either of them Furthermore wee are bound in all just and honourable wayes to endevour to preserve the Union betweene the Kings three Dominions undoubtedly then wee are not to neglect our own For Unity as well as Charitie is to begin at home 7 We ought to maintain the cause of Religion and not to discover the faylings of the Professors thereof Ans Wee are to maintain the cause of Religion Religiouslie and lawfully and not otherwise True Religion needes not errors to maintain it it is able by sound truths and sollid reasons to maintain it selfe That which is contrary to it is not from God but rather from the delusions of the Devill who is the authour of all Rebellions Seditions and discords And certainly such courses are dishonourable and offensive to God and our governours and can wee suppose lesse then that we prejudice our cause and dishonour them also when we unlawfully and furiously anticipate their intentions when wee endevour to do that by our wils and perverse affections which they intend by lawfull authority and sound reason to grant us And not to discover the faylings c. It were to be wished that those that make so much profession of Religion would make conscience also of the discoverie of the faylings imperfections and infirmities of others but much more how they doe backbite slander and beare false witnesse as they too often use to do But such acts in Professors or others that are openly committed offensive scandalous concernes our late Protestation and are of dangerous consequence tending to the subversion of the fundamentall Maximes both of God and Man for Government ought to be discovered and disclosed by those who make conscience to feare God honour and obey the King 8 Many meddle and talke more in these matters then they need Ans It is true indeed there are too many vain idle and unjustifiable speeches which have no warrant or lawfull Calling thereunto so likewise there are more then ought to be that meddle too little For the truth is at all times to be mayntained the ways and end being good and lawfull the time and place seasonable and the persons considerable But if we were not Protestants yet as we are Christians wee are to mayntaine unitie prevent imminent dangers which we see counsell and informe the ignorant and blinde and other works of Mercie belonging both to soule and bodie And