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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	common_a	lord_n	prayer_n	2,904	5	6.1819	4	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A05347	A treatise of the authority of the church The summe wherof was delivered in a sermon preached at Belfast, at the visitation of the diocese of Downe and Conner the tenth day of August 1636. By Henrie Leslie bishop of the diocese. Intended for the satisfaction of them who in those places oppose the orders of our church, and since published upon occasion of a libell sent abroad in writing, wherin this sermon, and all his proceedings are most falsely traduced. Together with an answer to certaine objections made against the orders of our church, especially kneeling at the communion.	Leslie, Henry, 1580-1661.	1637 (1637)	STC 15499; ESTC S114016	124,588	210

word our dull affections are not stirred up to worship God but either by the contemplation of his workes or meditation in his word or consideration of his holy Sacraments So that if we take away all occasionall worship before a creature we must needs destroy all Religion VI. I desire the Disputer and his fellowes to remember that many of their owne faction in England though they kneele not in the act of receiving yet they doe kneele in blessing of the Elements and giving thankes And they themselves use to stand exhort the people to humble themselves and to pray unto God for a blessing here is worship before the Elements with a religious respect unto them for which they have no more warrant either by commandement or by the example of Christs Institution then we have for kneeling in the act of receiving And of the twaine it seemeth rather to be Idolatry to worship in beholding the Elements then in receiving of them for no man can be so mad as to worship that which he is tearing with his teeth VII They sit uncovered before the Elements with a religious respect unto them which they use not to doe in hearing of the word Now uncovering the head is a gesture of worship as well as kneeling If the one be Idolatrous so is the other neither have they any more warrant either by commandement or by the example of Christs Institution for the one then we have for the other Besides they use diverse other expressions of worship as lifting up of the eyes and hands unto Heaven which is daylie used by the Priest in the Masse And sometimes weeping which hath been abused to Idolatry as by the women whom the Prophet saw mourning for Tammuz Ezek. 8.14 a Prophet of an Idol for whom there was a solemne mourning once a yeare in the night yet have I seene many of their disciples not only lift up their eyes and hands unto Heaven but also weepe when they received the Sacrament and that as I charitably beleeve out of a godly sense of their owne misery and of Gods mercy Now were it not strange if our kneeling onely should be Idolatrous and not also those other gestures which are expressions of worship and have been abused to Idolatry as much as kneeling Finally I desire him to remember what I have often said that all gestures being common to true worshippers and false it is onely the publicke doctrine and received opinion that determines the use and end of all gestures and puts a difference between the servants of God worshippers of Idols Insomuch that as I told him in the Court If the first Reformers of our Religion had onely changed the gesture from kneeling to sitting not the doctrine touching the Sacrament it selfe Idolatry would have remayned But the doctrine of our Church sufficiently cleeres us that we worship not the bread either directly or indirectly Mediately or immediately permanently or transiently relatively or absolutely To which purpose I will here set downe that Declaration published in the first Booke of Common Prayer Anno 1552 which was approved by all the Divines of the Reformed Churches which was publickly read at my visitation to have given satisfaction to these men And whereof I shall desire the Reader to take speciall notice because some of that faction have slandered our Church with an Idolatrous intent saying This gesture seemes to be injoyned even with a superstitious intent ●●ridg pag. 6● and meaning to adore the Sacrament it selfe What the intent was shall appeare by this Declaration following Out of the Booke of Common Prayer Imprinted by Edward Whitchurch MDLII Cum privilegie Although no order can be so perfectly devised but it may be of some either for their ignorance infirmity or else of malice and obstinacy misconstrued depraved and interpreted in a wrong part And yet because brotherly charity willeth that so much as conveniently may be offences should be taken away Therfor we willing to doe the same Wher as it is ordayned in the Booke of Common Prayer in the Administration of the Lords Supper that the Communicants kneeling should receive the holy Communion which thing being well meant for a signification of the humble and gratefull asknowledging of the benefites of Christ given unto the worthy receiver and to avoyd the prophanation and disorder which about the h●ly Communion might else ensue Lest yet the same kneeling might be thought or taken otherwise wee doe declare that it is not meant thereby that any adoration is done or ought to be done either to the Sacramentall bread or wine there bodily received or unto any reall and essentiall presence there being of Christs naturall flesh and blood For as concerning the Sa●ramentall bread and wine they remaine still in their very naturall substances and therfor may not he adored for that were Idolatry to be abhorred of all faithfull Christians And as concerning the naturall body and blood of our Saviour Christ they are in Heaven and not here For it is against the truth of Christs true naturall body to bee in moe places then in one at one time This is the Doctrine of our Church against which no man in his right wits can except And that the Reader may see the opposition between light and darknes I will give him a tast of their doctrine as I have gathered it out of their unworthy authors which is such as I hope all Christian eares will abhorre Repli part to B Morton pag. 36. Sitting at the Table of the Lord is a part of the Sacramentall signe whereby they condemne all Churches which either kneele or stand of the breach of Christs Institution are guilty of will-worship as I have proved The principall worke namely of a Receiver is meditation upon the Analogie between the signes and the things signified Perth Assem pag. ●02 which a very reprobate may doe Survay pag. 75. It seemes not warrantable by the Word that in the action of ministring the Elements the Minister should minister to Christ and the Church both When it is his Office to stand between God the people and minister unto both Disput pag. 27. Whatsoever libertie or praerogative a table of repast hath for those that partake therof the same have Communicants at the Lords Table Whereupon it would follow that they may cover their heads eate liberally drinke oftner then once and discourse one with another Disput pag. 14. and 20. Worship to God and receiving of Christ preached to us in the elements are two such opposite imployments that the one cannot but frustrate the other Wee cannot banquet with the second person and yet intertayne holy important negotiation with the first Where besides that he makes it unlawfull to pray to God so much as mentally in the act of receiving no haeretick could have said more to divide the Persons of the Trinity Disput pag. 6. c. Kneeling imports inferiority therfor it

our disobedience Finally amongst the Romanes some were offended at the eating of those meates but I doe not reade that any was offended at the not eating of them It is otherwayes with us where one is offended at our Ceremonies ten wiser then they would be offended if we did not use them And farre more if we did follow their fashion in the manner of Gods worship The case being cleere that the Orders which our Church injoynes are neyther contrary to Christian libertie nor to that care wee should have for to avoyd offence In the next place I will labour to finde out the cause of this grosse mistake in the brethren which certainely is this that they doe not rightly consider the nature of Christian liberty whilst they set it upon tenter-hookes and stretch it further then the nature thereof will beare seeking not only a liberty of minde and conscience in things indifferent but a freedome also in their outward actions which is not Christian libertie Calv. Inst lib. III. cap. 19. Sect. 10. but licentious immunity contrary to the doctrine of the Gospell for S. Peter exhorting all men to be obedient unto Magistrates I. Pet. II. 16. he warnes them not to use their libertie as a cloake of maliciousnesse Namely In casting off the bridle of governement It is proper to the libertie of the Creator alone to be unlimited but all lawfull libertie of the creature is and must be bounded not onely by the Law of charitie which these men will acknowledge but also by the law of loyaltie for if all restraint of the outward man were contrary to Christian liberty then were it not lawfull to obey the Magistrate in any thing Then if the King should be pleased to confirme the Orders or as they terme them the circumstances of worship which have beene used in their congregations They were bound to forsake them for the zeale of their Christian libertie And what is this else but to bring flat Anabaptisme and Anarchie into the Church to overthrow all Governement and dissolve the bonds of subjection and obedience to lawfull authority You shall therefore understand that the Magistrate by his Lawes may moderate or restraine the outward actions wherein the externall use of our liberty consisteth The inward liberty of conscience before God notwithstanding remayning intyre He may injoyne any action which in Gods worship may be used lawfully So that no opinion be put upon the conscience which taketh away the full respect of its indifferency And this is that which St Peter sayes We must obey the Magistrates as free that is as being perswaded that the thing commanded in it selfe and to God-ward as Calvin speakes is indifferent and whether we doe it or not doe it in it selfe it commends us not unto God otherwise then that by obeying of the Magistrate we doe also obey God who hath commanded us to be subject unto him Which will better appeare if we consider that Christian liberty is inward and spirituall which may stand with the outward servitude of slaves as the Apostle shewes I. Cor. VII 22. much more with the obedience of free subjects It is seated in the minde and conscience and respecteth nothing but what is betweene God and us It contenteth it selfe if there be no opinion put upon the conscience of the necessity of these things which God hath left indifferent if they be not obtruded as divine Lawes if no Religion be plac't in them nor they pressed as immediate parts of Gods worship It is only the subjecting of the conscience unto a thing indifferent I. Cor. VI. 12. which the Apostle calls The bringing us under the power of a thing which overthrowes our Christian liberty not the necessity of obedience unto lawfull authority but the doctrine or opinion of the absolute necessity of the thing it selfe In a word Christian libertie is not taken away by the necessity of doing a thing indifferent or not doing but only by that necessity which taketh away the opinion or perswasion of the indifferency of it As may appeare by this whensoever the Apostle condemnes the practise of Iewish Geremonies at that time when there was some dispensation and indulgence granted unto Christians till the Synagogue should be buried with honour It is manifest that he condemnes not so much the use as the doctrine and opinion which they had of them because they were urged and used not as things indifferent but as necessary unto salvation For we know that he himselfe many times did use them which he would not have done if they had beene then simplie evill he circumcised Timothie and many Christians who gave their lives for the Testimony of Iesus Christ were circumcised at that time even after their conversion unto the faith And yet when the false Apostles did urge the necessity of Circumcision he said If ye be circumcised Christ shall profit you nothing Gal. V. 2 That is If you bee circumcised with an opinion of the necessity of that Ceremony as if it did avayle unto justification so he expounds himselfe ver 4. Whosoever are justified by the Law that is seeke for Iustification by the Law are fallen from Grace That it was only the doctrine opinion they had of Circumcision at that time which he condemnes may appeare further by this that those Ceremonies were not praescribed by a Civill Magistrate who hath power to commaund the outward man in the use of a thing indifferent but only by seducing teachers who had no power of bringing a necessity in the outward practise but by perswading and possessing mens mindes with an opinion of the necessity of these things After the like manner doth the Church of Rome at this day tyrannize over the consciences of men equalling her constitutions unto the Word of God Concil Trid. fess IV. placing Religion in them and ascribing unto them a divine necessity effectuall holynesse But our Church is farre from such an usurpation she doth place no Religion in them ascribe no holynesse unto them nor obtrude them upon the conscience as things necessary in themselves like Gods Commaundements but only requires obedience unto her constitutions thereby to reduce all her Children to an orderly Uniformity in the outward worship of God And to this purpose she hath sufficiently declared the innocencie of her meaning in the Articles of Religion Artic. XX. The Church ought not to enforce any thing besides the holy Writ to be beleeved of necessity for salvation And in the Pre face before the Booke of Common Prayer The Ceremonies that remaine are retayned for a discipline and order which upon just causes may bee altered and changed and therefore are not to bee esteemed equall with Gods Law So that I can not but wonder at the impudencie of the Libeller who changes our Church as Christ doth the Pharisees that she makes the commandements of God of none effect by her traditions Whereas the Pharisees did equall and preferre their owne traditions