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ID Title Author Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication) STC Words Pages
A59765 The irregularitie of a private prayer in a publick congregation in a letter to a friend. Sherlock, R. (Richard), 1612-1689. 1674 (1674) Wing S3241; ESTC R25624 14,535 24

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THE IRREGULARITIE OF A PRIVATE PRAYER IN A PUBLICK CONGREGATION In a Letter to a Friend ANNO DOMINI 1674. THE IRREGULARITIE of a Private Prayer in a Publick Congregation Sir I Have sent you herein my repeated and enlarged Thoughts upon what was once the subject of our serious discourse wherein I would not at all disparage or in the least undervalue the private prayers and devotions of any person whether of the Laity or Clergie whether those prayers be by himself composed or by others whether they be premeditated or sometimes ejaculatorie whether fixed or occasionall orall or mentall for thus and all these waies every truly religious Christian prays and undoubtedly findes the benefit and feels the comfort of such holy breathings-forth of his Soul unto Heaven in his private recesses But that any Person especially such who have entred into holy Orders in this Church of England should presume to use any Prayers in Publick of his own private conception whether premeditate or extemporary before or after his Sermon other than those Prayers which are by publick Authority allowed and published to that end I humbly conceive with submission to my Superiors to be unlawfull in several respects First T is a Disorder and Confusion in the service of God For thus the Publick and Private worship of God are confounded whilst those Private Prayers which our Lord hath consined to the private closet do yet contrary to his express command appear in Publick and usurp the place of his Publick Service in the Congregation The holy duties of Publick and Private Prayers as they are distinct in their own nature and constant use so they are distingushed by our Lord and distinct rules prescribed for the distinct and discreet performance of either Duty First For Private Prayer Matt. 6.6 When thou Prayest enter into thy closet speaking in the singular number to every particular person Secundly For Publick Prayer v. 7. but when yee Pray use not vain repetitions speaking in the plurall number to many assembled together where to avoid the Heathenish practise of much speaking or multitudinous words in Prayer v. 8. a short and most excellent Form is given us v. 9. Thus then publick Prayer being distinguished by our Lord from private we are thereby forbidden to confound them in their use and practise 1. Cor. 14.40 Let all things be done decently and in order not preposterously and disorderly one part of divine worship undermining another and the lesser and more particular Duty usurping upon the greater and more general religious Office Secondly 'T is not only a disorderly but also an unreasonable Service and so not likely to be acceptable to him who is both the God of order and of wisdom And the unreasonableness of this Private Prayer in Publick will appear by considering That all prayers offered up unto God in Publick must be publickly known consented unto and agreed upon which the Private prayer generally is not by all them that joyn therein upon which agreement and not otherwise Christ hath promised his presence viz to hear our Prayers and grant our requests Mat. 18.19 20. Again I say unto you If two of you shall agree upon Earth touching any thing they shall ask it shall be done unto them of my Father which is in Heaven for where two or three are gathered together there am I in the midst of them whereupon saith the Gloss out of Origen This is the cause we are not heard when we pray in that we agree not in all things For as in Musick there must be harmonie and agreement of voices or else it delights not the hearer so in the Church an assent and agreement is necessarie or else God is not pleased neither will he hear the voice of our prayers 'T is this agreement in prayer that denomitates our publick worship of God Common-Prayer because agreed upon by common consent which doth presuppose that 't is known to all that all may joyn therein So it was ever in the Church of Christ the faithful knew what they prayed for and this not at the second hand from the mouth of the Minister but before they joyned with him So Saint Chrysostome Chrys Hom 6. in Tim. You that are faithful know what things are to be desired in prayer because all prayer viz. that is in Publick ought to be common 'T is the Exhortation of Ignatius Ignnat Ep. ad Magn. who lived in the times of the Apostles and saw our Lord in the flesh That we assemble together in one place and use one prayer common to all For if the prayers of a Congregation be not known common and agreed Then First The People cannot joyn therein it being little less than the sacrifice of fools for men to ask of God they know not what but wholly depend upon the Ministers unknown expressions Secondly A Prayer that is unknown before it be offered up is to an English man though spoke in English as a Latine prayer to him who understands no Latine for they are both lame and maimed and cannot stand with common sense except they make use of that Crutch which we so much blame in the Papists viz. an implicite faith to support them and both the one and the other do equally transgress that rule of prayer prescribed by the Apostle 1 Cor. 14.15 I will pray with the spirit and will pray with understanding also Thirdly It is against both the judgment and practice of the Universal Church of Christ no footsteps thereof are to be found in Antiquitie but many Canons of the Church against it whereof some are noted in the Margin (a) Concil Leodic cel Anno. 320. Can. 15.17 nlt. Concil Milevit 2d An. 416. Can. 12. Concil Epaunens celeb An. 509. Concil Gerund celeb An. 516. c. 1. Cocil Tolet. quart Can. 2. Concil Venet. celeb An. 452. Can. 15. Concil Bracor 1. celeb An. Can. 562.19 20. 22. Concil Vasen celeb 442. Can. 5 6 7. Fourthly 'T is a transgression of the Laws and Orders of this particular Church of England and this occompanied with the breach of that solemn promise which every Minister lawfully Ordained hath made no man being admitted into holy Orders until he hath attested the lawfulness of the book of Common Prayer and promised that he himself will use the same and no other in publick subscribing with his own hand this attestation and promise so that the contrary practice in the use of any Private prayer by any Minister of this Church is a breach of Fidelitie to the Church and to the Reverend Bishop that Ordained him Fiftly 'T is also a Transgression of the Common Law of the Land which in the Acts of Parliament for Uniformitie in common-Common-prayer both old and new enjoyns peremptorily under severe penalties That no man shall use any prayer openly or in publick but such as are set forth in the said book so that both in this and in the former respects 't is an act of