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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A30891	A description of the Roman Catholick Church wherein the pretentions of it's [sic] head, the manners of his court, and principles, and doctrines, the worship and service, the religious orders and houses, the designs and practises of that Church, are represented in a vision / by Iohn Barclay, minister at Cruden ; written in the year 1679.	Barclay, John, d. 1691.	1689 (1689)	Wing B717; ESTC R15131	31,117	64

with blood of thousands by him slain To the SALONIAN Gardens did retreat Leaving his palace and imperiall State And sought for ease into that lonely seat Ease which he could not in his triumphs find Unto his frighted discontented mind Others were not so bad but wearied were Betwixt the various turnes of Hope and Fear Afrai'd to stand on tops of humane State Upon the slipperie pinacles of Fate They rather choos'd to come down to the dust Of free accord then be by others thrust Others unto these lowly CELLS did flee Not for RELIGION but for LIBERTIE Finding that they could breath in free'r air Under an humble rooff with homely fare Then those can doe whose choise it is to wait Upon a life of Business and State They by this postern did escape and shroud Themselves from Warr and from all noise and croud And all these inconveniencies that doe Attend on Great Ones and confine them too Unto the meaner sort I looked then Of those RELIGIOUS celebrated men Some of them still did hatch mischievous things To imbroyle Kingdoms and to murther Kings And for these ends did with instructions load The most Pragmatick and sent them abroad Some were for learning and choos'd that retreat As most convenient for the muses seat Some were Ambitious and here courted Fame Fled from the world to obtain a name Some Criminalls fled hither from the judge Fear of the Gibbet made them take refuge Into the CLOYSTER Some their Discontent Rather then their Religion hither sent And some their were who did indeed bewray That in their minds DEVOTION carried sway And yet when for it 's genuine Sp'rit I sought Even among them I missed it I thought Each of them did their ORDER magnifie And were too fond of their Austeritie They wanted not their factions and much heat Their talking of their MERITS was too great The lives of others they too much disgrac'd Too much in FASTS too much in HABITES plac'd Externall works did for great matters pass And what was Sp'rituall to much foundred was Except with very few so that although Their mealls were sparing and their Garments rough And pleasures they unto themselves deny'd Yet here I found much of the life of Pride MY GUIDE said next that now she would me call To see the most alluring sight of all The HOLY LADIES who no pleasures know But such as Contemplation doth bestow All unstain'd VIRGINS who go not abroad But wholly are devoted unto God And their whole time doe in Devotions pass Disdaining to be trick't with combe and glass I who still entertain'd sincere respects For vertuous persons of that lovely sex Made haste and to the MONASTRIES did hy And in their fashions curiously did pry Some did I see into that homely place Whose sweet behaviour did it's meanness grace Their gestures and discourse I found to be All coyn'd and stamp't with comely Modestie Beautie they had whereby love might be warm'd But 'gainst it's darts invincibly were arm'd Whenever any softer pleasures knock't Loud at the door they keep 't it fast and lock't I thought them wondrous good and wondrous fair Their habite homely and their dyet spare I judg'd they were so pious and so grave They well deserved all the praise She gave Amongst them an Old Governess I see Commanding with imperious tyrranie And they obey'd whatever She requir'd And they did yeeld in all that She desir'd Only poor Souls I found they were oppress 't Urg'd to Devotions formall at the best And taught from true Humility to slide Taught in their merits too much to confide Such things I found did somewhat me displease But yet I HONOUR'D These Others I found of melancholly looks Were often musing often reading books Their Words and Gestures well assured me That they had strech't their Brains a pin too high With HARPIUS works some entertain'd their sight Some SU●O some RUSBROCHIUS did delight Some MOTHER JULIANA'S works did read Odd Notions and wilde fancies fill'd their head Some MYSTICK words I found they learned thence Words strange to Scripture and as strange to sense They talked of their Wondrous INSPIRATIONS Of PASSIVE UNIONS and ANNIHILATIONS Of INTROVERSIONS and IRRADIATIONS Of CONTEMPLATIONS Acted by the Will The Understanding mean while lying still They in GODS MID HEAD were beclos'd they said And in his BUXOMNES and MEEK-HEID laid And that their Souls did deeply in him Ground And knew him in the SPIRITS PUREST FUND In many words they talked at this rate Words which I cannot in this place relate Such stubborn words as frowardly decline With neighbour-words in verses to combine So that it to a Poet were a crime Once to attempt to fetch them into Rhyme I Grew impatient and began to huff To hear them rattling such non sensick stuff Yet when I did into their temper pry Observing that their minds they did apply Unto Religious thoughts and were no Cheats But too much warm'd with Entbusiastick heats And that their heads were weak their musings long The Wine was for the Bottle much too strong I blam'd their Leaders who did them abuse And suffered them to be too much Recluse And in their hands such Canting books did put Mean-while the Bible keeping from them shut 'Gainst these impostors was my Choler mov'd But yet the harmless maids LOV'D Others were like poor Birds shut in a cage Still flightering and still were in a rage Some at their cruell Parents who to save Their Portions had sent them to that Grave Some at themselves who had not been more shy To take these VOWES which they could not unty For their Novitious fervour now was gone They found they were not fit to live alone And yet their OATHS had all their hopes defeat Of ever living in a married state This did their minds continually racke If they shall keep what they have vow'd or break The thoughts of either did them quite confound Both HORNES of this DILEMMA did them wound Their very frozen CELLS did nurse their fires Restraints were fewell to their warm desires Yet Conscience did put them still in fear Should they but once attempt these chains to tear Thus were they burthen'd yet once being fast I found they were resolved to be chaste Their Lot was cast They choosed to endure Their angrie thoughts and not to seek a cure They judg'd it was a more Religious life To be a vexed maid then perjur'd wife Their case I thought did much compassion claim And I did PITTIE them Others I could not judge what they did see So very pleasing in a MONAST'RIE To draw them thither but their pranks did shew They had no purpose to observe their Vow Or to die maids it was their choise or chance To be more vers'd in Love then by Romance They did not on Religious scruples stand What they desir'd they mean't to have in hand But I 'le forbear and will not imitate The Satyrists who whilst they smartly rate Actions not to be nam'd do never stay Untill

hath in part rewarded your integrity and constancy and I hope will doe it yet more Your saith is strengthned by these winds of temptation you have the joyes of a good Conscience you are hereby endeared to all serious and Godly persons and providence hath of late interposed to bring some secular affairs of great concernment to your Noble Familie to a confortable and desired period and that at a nick of time when it could searce have been expected and a few days longer delay might have quite ruined them I hope you will in all this observe the loving kindness of the Lord and ever remember your engagements to Iesus Christ who hath interceeded for you that your saith might not fail I have little to say concerning this Poem which I offer unto you I confess it is a mean present yet you know it s offered from an affectionat mind After I had write the first copie of it I put it immediatly in your hands and you were pleas'd to commend it severall copies of it are since spread of which some are very incorrect to doe my self justice I have at length resolved to publish it It cannot much serve the ends of my reputation and so I may hope that it cannot be imputed to vanitie My publishing it under your shaddow can only signifie that which I am well enough pleased the World should know namely that you have a great goodness for me when I can presume that you will favourably accept of such a trifile Gratitude obligeth me to make you richer offerings but I have them not to make my Prayers to God for you are the best compensations I can give for your favours to me and these are and daily shall be offered up unto Heaven for the prosperitie of your Souls the increass of your grace and the florishing of your Noble Family by RIGHT HONORABLE YOUR HONOURS Most Affectionat Most Oblidged and Humble Servant IOHN BARCLAY To the Reader I Can not perswade my self that any have just reason to be offended with me or to clamour that it is a thing unsuitable to a man of my Profession to expose a Religion so Zealously mantained and propagated by so many great and learned men in such a dress as this All that I shall say for my own vindication is that I am none of those that sport my self with the sins and miseries of Mankind and I ever abborred these jests which idle and profane wits doe break upon serious matters that are not to be jested with Nevertheless when a Partie of men have under the venerable name of the Holy Catholick Church so grossly abused the World imposing on the belief of their credulous Disciples so many Reverend Absurdities and perspicuous falshoods and recommending to their practise such superstitious trifles and ridiculous fopperies unbeseeming the gravity of the Christian Religion to give a just representation of them in this manner is a thing that may have it 's own usefulness especially since it may be presumed that many will read a Poem who will not set their eyes on a more serious Book I have only therefore a few things whereof to advertise thee concerning it Namely That I have in a few passages of it taken a libertie to my self in a Poeticall manner to intermix some of my own fancies yet not without designe As when I produce an argument for the Caelibate of the Clergie which I know they never made use of but let it be remembred that this is a Dream and the it were not yet since they make such other inferences from that Text as I have there mentioned I suppose they might draw this Conclusion from it as well as the rest and for any thing I know it is an Argument against the marriage of Church men of as great force as any that they have heretofore hit upon But in truth my aim is to show what ridiculous interpretations of Scripture these pretended infallible expounders of it doe often make He who will prove the Popes supremacie from Genes 1. 1. Because it is there said In principio and not in Principiis as Pope Boniface doth or his Precedencie to the Emperour from Genes 1. 16 Where it is said that GOD made two great lights as Pope Innocent 3 or his Civill and Ecclesiastick power from Ecce duo gladii or the necessity of the Celibate of the Clergie From Rom. 8. 8. as Pope Siricius I think may prove Quidlibet ex Quolibet I have mentioned a Relique which they pretend not to have but in that I mean only to show in whole manner these litle wondrous things are usually alledged to be found All the Sirs which I say they call Veniall are by their Casuists put in that rank and that they account it much more Criminall to neglect the observation of the Traditions of the Church then to break the Commandements of GOD is so well known that it needs no prooff I have spoken at length of their Religious Houses and Orders they being the only things they boast of that have any shew of Sanctitie and to evidence that I meant nothing but fair dealing I have not equally inveighed against all persons among them The words of their Mystick Divinitie that I have mentioned are to be found every one of them in their own books with a great many more which I could not get brought into verse Thebodde talkings which they have of the Superessentiall Life The State of Totalitie The Union of Nothing with Nothing The Dei-forme Fund of the Soul c. I could no more make Rhyme then they can make Reason of them When I reflect on the rude disorders of some who betake themselves to the Religious Houses I doe not slander them the Epistle of Huldericus Bishop of Augusta to Pope Nicolas wherein he tells of six thousand heads of Infants found in one Mote gives sufficient ground for the reproach I wrote this Poem in the Year 1679. When these Nations were allarmed with the noyse of the Popish plot And I thought to have enlarged more on that Subject but ere I finished it that began to be a suspect business and it was come to that which on ingeniously expresseth thus That Shams with Shams and Plots with Plots were cross't And the true Plot among the false was lost If any expect that I should make an Apologie for publishing it the Common-Heads of excuse in these cases are well enough known and I may pretend to have an equall right to them with other Men. If their be any thing in it that may be offensive to the severest modestie I shall be readie upon conviction to acknowledge my faultiness therein but for my litle extravagancies that may be found here I hope thy censure will be gentle for it any sort of men have reason to expect some charitable allowance for escapes it can hardly be denyed to A Dreaming Poet. Farewell THE ROMAN CATHOLICK CHURCH Described in a VISION I Find I 'm haunted with a busie mind Swift as