force his Body to observe all the motions of Respect commanded in the Rubrick Let him stand up when we give glory to God and sing forth his praises Let him kneel in Prayer and outwardly observe a due reverence and he shall find that his former aversion will insensibly wear away and by degrees he will bring his Soul to a hearty and religious compliance with those godly Forms of Prayer which before he could never use with any satisfaction to his mind he shall find his unhappy humour of discontent evaporate it self and his Body draw after the Soul and its faculties to a sincere worshipping of our good God in the manner that is practised amongst us Fifthly To use the Prayers of the Church with that devotion that is needful a frequent meditation upon them is very requisite A Meditation I mean upon the necessity of those things that are there desired upon the advantage of Uniformity and Unity in God's divine Worship upon their agreeableness with holy Scripture its Doctrines and Expressions upon the express Commands of the King and the wise Councils of our Nation under four or five Kings successively who unanimously enjoin the use of these Prayers in the publick Worship of God upon the decency and reasonableness of the Ceremonies Order and manner of our Service upon the frivolousness and Folly of all Objections against it upon the obstinacy and invincible hatred of all Objections A meditation also is requisite to this purpose upon several matters suitable to these godly Forms of Prayer Such Meditations I mean as may elevate the Soul to prepare and dispose it for a Holy Communion with God and inflame our affections in order to a more zealous offering up of the publick Prayers of the Church to the Divine Majesty Besides to perswade the judgment and remove all mistakes I recommend to thee the perusal of a Rationale upon the Common-Prayer that if by any means thou mayest be perswaded to a religious and devout conformity in publick to the Order of our Church But all this while methinks I hear a sort of Zealots amongst us Extol and Cry up the Praying by the Spirit 4. Particular and that in opposition to the reading of the Forms prescribed by the Church I must speak a word to rectifie their mistakes and to prevent the mischiefs which are thereby intended For this good purpose I shall First examine what Praying by the Spirit is in the sense of St. Paul Secondly I shall prove that for the most part in all Extemporary fluencies of Prayer though they be the gifts of the Spirit such persons as use them at that very instant can scarce be said to pray in the Spirit Thirdly I shall plainly demonstrate that the easiest and surest way to Pray in the Spirit is to take the assistance of well composed Forms of Prayer and to have them either in a Book before our Eyes or well imprinted in our Memories They are in a grievous Error that imagine that St. Paul's praying in or by the Spirit opposeth the Practice of our Church of England and strengthens the irregular Devotions of the gifted Brethren For if you please to Examine the meaning of St. Paul you shall find that he never intended any such matter In the 6th Chap. to the Ephesians and 18 ver he exhorts them to pray with all Prayer and Supplication in every Season 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Spirit which he cannot understand of the Prayers proceeding from the extraordinary inspirations or abilities bestowed upon us by God the giver of every good gift because such inspirations are not common to all and every one hath not such a quick Fancy or voluble Tongue to be able to pray in this manner so that every Person is not in a capacity to fulfil this Command which as all other Commands of God is proportioned and hath a special regard to Mens faculties and abilities Therefore seeing these words are directed to every Christian they relate not to the gift but to that which is commonly styled the Spirit or rather to the Duty of Prayer which every Christian may peform by using endeavours St Paul's meaning therefore is that we should in our Prayers to God not be content with the Lip Service but inwardly heartily and affectionately to pray to him and employ all the abilities of the Soul in offering them up to God for in this part of our Devotions we must observe the same method as in the others and act with the same abilities Now St. Paul in the 5th Chap. to the Ephesiens and the 19th ver adviseth them to make Melody in their Hearts to the Lord. Here is that spiritual Service required from us a serious real and hearty Worship wherein the Soul is concerned as well as the Body Likewise our Saviour Christ in answer to the Woman of Samaria tells her that God is a Spirit and that they that will worship him must worship him in Spirit and in Truth That is in opposition to the Corporal appearances of the Jews at Jerusalem an inward and soul Worship without which all our most assidual attendances upon holy Duties are frivolous and vain In the same sense we are to understand St. Paul's praying and singing with the Spirit in 1 Cor. 14.14 for he expresly saith if I pray in an unknown Tongue my Spirit prayeth He caleth it his Spirit that is his Soul which must be concerned in all our Prayers to God either by composing them and offering them or else by presenting the Prayers already composed in such a manner with the understanding and affections that they may proceed from us as our own I confess St. Jude's words ver 20. seems to favour the contrary interpretation when he adviseth to pray 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 in the Holy Ghost Which words the admirers of new Modes and extemporary Prayers understand of the gift of Prayer that we should depend upon the Spirit of God and expect from his secret inspirations the matter and manner of our Prayers without limitting our selves and this unlimited Being to any certain Form That we should make use of those expressions as proceed immediately from his divine suggestions But this can never be the meaning of this wise Apostle for though it were true what this interpretation supposeth that all the faithful have the gift of Prayer and are inspired with the Holy Ghost That in that Duty he governs their Tongues and Fancy and furnishes them with proper expressions words and matter which I confess may happen in extraordinary occasions yet in our ordinary Devotions to expect such extraordinary movings of God's Holy Spirit in our Souls not to contribute any thing of our selves but our weaknesses and unpreparedness and wholly to depend upon the Holy Ghost is a presumption and indiscretion which agrees not with God's usual methods of acting with his Creatures neither in Nature nor in Grace for his Blessings and Power appear commonly in our Religious endeavours and if he gives
God's Holy Spirit And in the 30 verse it is said that Hezekiah the King and the Princes commanded the Levites to sing Praises unto the Lord with the words of David and of Asaph the Seer It was for that good purpose that David compos'd all his Divine Psalms that they might be of a constant use in the praising of and the praying unto our great God And after the Jews return from Babylon Nehemiah commands the same use to be observed Nehem. 2.45.46 And as it was not lawful to change these Forms so likewise it may not be lawful for any but such only as were inspired of God or were to take care of Religion Man de Missa Lib. 1. cap. 5. to introduce in God's Divine Service any new Forms as may be easily proved But this use of Set Forms of Prayers and praising of God is not Jewish it is grounded upon such solid and moral Reasons that have recommended it to the Christian Church St. John the Baptist in imitation of the Pharisees gives a Set Form of Prayer to his Disciples And Christ our Saviour to comply with the desires of his Followers teaches them a Set Form opposite to the long and tedious Forms used by the Scribes and Pharisees Luke 11.1 2. And not only in this particular but also in the receiving of the Paschal Lamb Christ shews himself to be no Enemy of Forms and Humane Institutions when they tend to a Godly purpose as may appear by the singing of the Hymn after the Celebration and by the posture of leaning And St. Paul likewise in imitation of his great Master commands Timothy 1 Tim. 2.1 2 3. That Supplications Prayers Intercessions and giving of thanks be made for all men That is that he should appoint in the Churches of his Diocess such Set Forms of Prayer as might be offered up to God For Kings and for all that are in authority that we may lead a quiet and a peaceable Life in all Godliness and Honesty for this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour That this was the intent of St. Paul may appear by the practice of the Christian Churches in the next Age to the Apostles for in the Ancientest Fathers we read of the Set Forms of Prayer See Conc. Laodicea can 19.8 Miletan Con. can 2. commonly used in God's Publick Worship And we have yet extant some of those Primitive Liturgies of the People of God differing in many things for the Wisdom of God's Holy Spirit hath left the Composure of these Prayers to the Rulers of the distinct Churches that they should appoint such Forms as were most agreeable with the Tempers and Manners of their People such as will encourage Devotion and Piety and serve best for the Promotion of God's Glory Likewise in these later Days since the beginning of the Reformation all the Churches of our Brethren beyond the Seas have their Set Forms of Prayer from which it is not lawful to vary and which are appointed by the authority of their Rulers Never any attempted the changing of them their People never mutined against them or against Forms in general Never any person was allowed in publick to prefer his own Fancies to these Prayers commanded to be used in the Church But in the Churches of every Nation there is a constant and an universal Uniformity in the Publick Worship of our God And this good Order is Religiously kept without any fear of Superstition This Universal Practice of all Ages Churches and Nations that have instituted and constantly used Set Forms of Prayer in God's Publick Worship is sufficient to justifie the Religious Orders of our Church from all scandalous aspersions of our mistaken Brethren But Reason and Religion and the general good of Christian Societies recommended this Practice and Use to us as well as to them I suppose no person can deny but set Forms are absolutely necessary for the information instruction and benefit of the more ignorant and younger sort who must be taught how to ask their Conveniencies from God's Bounty and in what Name to make their Addresses to his Divine Majesty for without this information from Men we find them not in a Capacity to pray and speak to God as they should unless they be inspired from above which is not usual To remedy their ignorance and weakness the Church of England commands constantly the use of Set Forms of Prayer in publick that by a frequent repetition we might imprint them in the memories of Persons not able to read and that otherwise have no means to learn them Therefore generally to discourage or condemn the use of Set Forms of Prayer is to deprive a great part of Christianity from the comfort and advantage of praying to God and it is to discover an Enmity against Religion which no good Disciple of Christ can possibly harbour I could here shew many horrid inconveniencies that would happen amongst us had we no Set Forms of Prayer but for brevity sake I omit the mention of them for I conceive it is not so much at Set Forms of Prayer that our Zealots quarrel as it is at their publick use in God's Divine Worship and the exclusion of all others of their own or other Mens Fabrick at such solemn times and occasions But let Mens abilities and gifts of Prayer be never so signal and extrordinary I dare affirm and can easily prove by Scripture and Reason that they are not to be allowed to cause their own Inventions to justle out the usual Service of the Church That Forms of Prayer are to be preferred whether they be declared memoriter or read in a Book to all the most excellent extemporary speeches or Prayers and that constant and setled Forms in a well governed Church are agreeable with the Word of God and the common good Were there no other reason to recommend them but that decency which St. Paul desires to be observed in Christ's Church in all its publick Practices and Divine Worship it would be sufficient to make us embrace an Uniformity both in manner as well as matter for how ridiculous would a Nation appear to all unbyassed Souls if there were no order if every Congregation should be differing in their actions if one Minister should read when the other sings if one should spend the Sabbath in speaking and another in praying or if one should pray for one thing another for the contrary or if the prayers were discrepant if one Minister should pray in one manner others follow the dictates of a Rubrick of another make what a wide Gate would this deformity open to all kind of Errors Heresies and Blasphemies And how ridiculous should we appear to all Foreign Churches We have already experienced sufficiently the danger of this general liberty allowed to all Men to pray what they list in the Ears of the People For not to mention the Extravagancies that some have been guilty of the Whimsies and Blasphemies that they have bolted forth
holy Spirit of God it is not to be imagined that he will act in us without our assistance and cooperation and if he did the Devotion is his and none of ours For these and other Reasons it is a matter of great difficulty to keep the unruly and wandring thoughts of the mind and the several affections of the Heart with the other parts of the Soul in a praying temper in all extemporary and long Prayers Thirdly Therefore the easiest and surest way to pray in the Spirit is to take the assistance of well composed Forms and to have them either in a Book before us or well imprinted in our Memories This is a Consequence deducible from what we have already said concerning that praying in or by the Spirit intended by St. Paul and St. Jude But if there be any so strongly prejudiced against Set Forms and so much bewitched with the pretended praying in or by the Spirit as to refuse to acquiesce to what we have already alledged let him seriously consider That there can be no praying in the Spirit whatever interpretation we give to the passages of Holy Scripture concerning that purpose whether we understand them concerning the Gift or in relation to the Duty and Spirit of Prayer without a real and hearty compliance of the Soul with every expression without an inward sense of the things petitioned for and without a devout composure of all the parts of the Soul Now if you enquire how this is produced in us I must tell you that it is not without our assidual endeavours for the mind ought to have a continual eye upon the Soul and disposition it ought to recollect and call back our wandring thoughts and labour to express both a feeling of its wants and a dutiful reverence for the Majesty of God This being of an absolute necessity in order to a zealous offering up of our Prayers in the Spirit it is needful that the mind should be at liberty for that purpose Now let any Man of Reason seriously sider whether it hath not more freedom in the use of Set Forms imprinted either in our memories or our Books than in extemporary praying whether it is not easier for the Soul in such a case to act its part and contribute to the Devotions than in such Prayers where it hath so many Offices to perform Grant it possible that some of an extraordinary ability learning and natural parts which I cannot imagine to be should be able to discharge the inward Duty of the Soul in Prayer as well as the outward in extemporary Prayers Consider whether they cannot with more ease pray with the assistance of Set Forms And why shall they be denyed of those helps in a business of so much weight and difficulty wherein the holiest and most devout Soul comes far short of that perfection and exactness which God's greatness requites at our hands Secondly That must needs be the easiest and surest way of praying by the Spirit which is offered to the weaker sort of Christians as the readiest help to their Devotions for the duties of Religion are always proportioned to the slender abilities of such persons both God and the Church are wont to condescend to their mean gifts and furnish them with such assistances as they want for the discharge of the Offices required from them Now from the beginning Set Forms of Prayer have been allowed in the Churches of God to these persons because it is well known that they are not able to express themselves and their several wants to God as they should and in that manner as becomes us mortal Men. If therefore this manner of praying is as it is generally confessed an help to the weaker kind of Christians why may it not be also to the stronger No doubt but such a one may use these helps with more advantage A staff is good in the hand of a feeble body to make it walk with more assurance and is likewise as beneficial to a strong person that undertakes a long journey The difference is that the one cannot possibly walk without it and the other may march a few steps and it may be proceed on in his way without it but for more ease and better conveniency it is sit in a tedious march that he should have the assistance of a Staff which may succour his infirmities and may comfort his wearied Limbs Therefore it is not a sufficient cause to oblige us to reject useful things to say Men may be without them I think it wisdom not to cast away such beneficial helps to our Devotions as are Set Forms because we may be so fond of our abilities as to think our selves able to compose some of an higher strain and more passionate some that may gratifie our own and the Peoples corrupt humour which usually despiseth things that are common when they have not well considered their worth Thirdly Consider how apt our thoughts are to be wandring and our minds to be drawn aside from our Devotions Therefore that is the easiest and surest way of praying well which sixeth our minds and settles our thoughts upon the weighty business in hand Now I dare affirm That there is nothing so well able to do this good office to us as Forms of Prayers judiciously composed either imprinted in our memories or before us in a Book for in the former method of praying the Soul is kept from wandring to and fro and in the latter it is tyed and limited by the sense of seeing and though in such cases it may take the liberty to step aside and escape out of the other senses yet we must all acknowledge that a Judicious Christian can by the assistance of his Senses be better able to limit and stop the wanderings of his mind and the unruliness of his thoughts than when he hath little or no use of them To conclude Nothing but the pride and self-conceitedness of some the prejudices and foolish humours of others have taught men to reject and contemn our set Forms of Prayer established in our Church of England which both for matter and manner are the best Liturgy that ever was used either in the Primitive or Modern Churches of Christ And there is nothing that hinders Men from using them with comfort and advantage to their Souls but their strong displeasures their frowad tempers and their itching Ears a Disease which hath infected the heart and fountain as well as the Sense and Organ of hearing Let me therefore intreat thee my Christian Reader seriously to peruse these Reasons that I have mentioned and let not any popular Mistake nor the pretended Inspirations of the Spirit discourage thee in the devour use of the Prayers of our Church chiefly in the publick Worship of thy God where Reason and Religion require from thee Uniformity and Unity with the rest of thy Brethren And in thy private Family I would have thee to use the same Prayers such I mean as are proper for that place and
the Devil hath made use of this Engine to overthrow the Faith of many silly Souls by insinuating the most dangerous and damnable Errors with the gift of praying extempore In the late unnatural Rebellion Men took occasion in their extemporary Prayers to vent not only the most pernicious mistakes but also disobedience to the Civil Magistrate and from the Pulpit have poisoned many to our sorrow with most horrid and Anti-Christian Principles which to this day no Reason nor Remedy can cure But if no such danger were to be feared from extemporary praying if all Men so employed had the Integrity to intend it only to God's Glory and the publick quiet yet such Prayers cannot have that mature consideration nor those judicious expressions as a well Meditated Prayer judiciously composed and Examined And doth it become the respect we owe to so wise a God to be so bold as to present unto him any thing that comes first upon the Lips the hasty productions of our unadvised Fancies or the irregular expressions of our minds without considering before whether the things we petition for and the manner of asking be acceptable to him and agreeable with his revealed Will and Word And in regard we are so apt to mistake and are so full of infirmities does it not become our Christian discretion to weigh and seriously to examine what we are to say to so Wise and Divine a Majesty that our weaknesses might not hinder the effects of our Prayers especially in a publick Congregation where our mistakes may have many ill consequences where not only God and our selves are concerned but also many of divers tempers Capacities and Estates whose Indigencies we represent to a merciful God Now if Forms of Prayer are to be therefore used let any Man of Reason judge impartially which are the most proper our own or the Churches the fond productions of our private Imaginations or the judicious Prayers composed by the grave Rulers of our Christian Congregations I doubt not but several have had and yet have an extraordinary Gift in Praying to move and stir up the Affections of their Hearers This Gift therefore which proceeds from the Holy Ghost for the benefit of the Church requires that we should suffer it to perform that good which is thereby intended This may be done on certain occasions and times and immediately before the Sermon And I suppose that no moderate Christian will then prohibit such gifted persons to employ that ability which they have received from God for the advantage of the publick if they make use of it discreetly judiciously and soberly without affectation or vain glory or ostentation But there is no allowance therefore to be given to the pride and vanity of others to prefer the fond composures of their indiscreet Fancies to the pious and regular Prayers of the Church And it may be justly feared in such Cases that voluntary and new Prayers expressed with vehemency may cause ignorant and foolish Men who are quickly weary with the ordinary Devotions to disesteem slight and neglect them and to be continually craving those extemporary Ejaculations of gifted Men and that from persons insufficient who may be thereby tempted to gratifie the others humour to their own and the publick hurt However the gift of praying is not hindred by our publick Forms from performing the benefit which is thereby intended but foolish Men are thereby restrained from those mischiefs which they might bring upon themselves and others by so great a Liberty as they have had during our Anarchy Moreover as it should be the intent of all Humane Constitutions in every Society to aim directly at the general good of all and specially in the Church to aim at the Benefit and Comfort of the weakest and dullest capacities as well as of the quickest apprehensions such publick Prayers ought to be received which sute with the meanest abilities Now I dare affirm that these extemporary Prayers are not of that nature They may be so happy to please the Corrupt Humour of the Hearer with the novelty of the invention with the vehemency of the expression with the pleasantness of the affected Tone but they are not so fit to be publickly offered up to God as the known approved and ordinary Prayers of the Church and are not able to prevail so much upon our affections were we but inwardly moved with a right zeal for God's Glory Neither can we so readily say Amen to such sudden Prayers proceeding from these gifted Men as to those with which we are perfectly well acquainted and which we know to be agreeable with God's will for in such cases we have need at every expression to make a judicious reflection whether what is said is true or false right or wrong before we can heartily subscribe to such Prayers whereas there is no such need in the Publick Prayers of the Church which we understand before There we have nothing else to do but to stir up the affections of our Souls that we may join unanimously together and offer them up to God Therefore the gift of extemporary praying is not of such use and carries not with it that real Benefit which some lightly imagine I am certain that persons of a weak and slow apprehension are not so able and apt to receive benefit from them as from the known Prayers of the Church The unusual expressions of other new Prayers may be better able to move their Fancy but they are not so able to stir up the affections of such as bring an unprejudiced mind and that look more upon the things than the manner of expressing for other dainty Ears and of a quicker apprehension it may be that a new and eloquent Prayer may be more acceptable and more beneficial than to the duller sort but it requires from them a greater Labour and an extraordinary Motion and Activity of the Soul as well as an extraordinary ability to joyn in such Prayers And for the persons that utter them if they be extempore without any premeditation and of a long continuance I dare affirm that they are full of imperfections and confusion in the composure and that the persons that speak them are far from the disposition needful in Prayer Whilst their Hands and their Eyes are lifted up their Souls and its Faculties are employed in seeking for fit words to declare the conceptions of the mind and in the mean time it thinks not of and is not able as it should to call upon God and concern its inclinations in the Requests that are presented to him For sudden Ejaculations and Emissions of the Soul and Mind to God the same reason holds not because there is not the same order contrivance and agility of the Soul required For these and other causes Set Forms either before us in a Book or recorded in our Memories which may as suddenly supply us with the Words and matter are the best methods of praying to God chiefly in his Publick Worship But if we