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Word A	Word B	Word C	Word D	Occurrence	Frequency Band	MI	MI Band	Prominent
book_n	king_n	law_n	parliament_n	3,046	5	6.8040	4	true

Text snippets containing the quad

ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A36460	The Leviathan heretical, or, The charge exhibited in Parliament against M. Hobbs justified by the refutation of a book of his entituled The historical narration of heresie and the punishments thereof by John Dowel.	Dowell, John, ca. 1627-1690.	1683 (1683)	Wing D2056; ESTC R27156	30,110	170

makeing it distant from the temporal The scriptures were wrested and false Glosses put upon them Arrius did not deny the praeexistence of the Son of God who was Incarnate the difference was not concerning the Eternal Generation but the Consubstantiality Having thus proved that his Leviathan contains certain Haeretical propositions It remains that I prove these Heresies Criminal and thus I state the Question and pursue it 'T is one of Mr. Hob's great Artifices to avoid those absurdities into which his own sentiments casts him Mr. Hobs percieving that he is justly charg'd with this imputation writes the book call'd The Historical Narrative of Heresie The Parliament complain'd That in it were contain'd several Heretical Opinions i. e. Opinions declared Heresie by the Church and Laws of England he being a Subject to the King is obliged to obedience to the Laws of his Soveraign By this therefore he doth manifestly contradict himself and opposeth these his great Moral and Political Postulata's ' Nothing is Just or Unjust but what is made so by Law and that nothing is Criminal but what a Penal Law prohibits ' From this his most just charge he would free his Leviathan to shew that his attemts are frivolous it must be prov'd that his Leviathan doth contain Heretical Opinions To which he returns That there is no opinion that opposeth a Penal Statute or that no Person can be justly by the Civil Magistrate punish'd for any Opinion contain'd in the Leviathan For saith he ' All the Penal Laws against Hereticks were repeal'd in the Reign of Q. Elizabeth To remedy the Inconvenience which might arise by Novel Dogma's She apointed a Court called the High Commission to declare what was Heresie But that High Commission never declared what was Heresie or if they did it was to no purpose for they were not impower'd to inflict any punishment upon an Heretick Withal the Parliament abolishing that Court nothing could be accounted Heresie Besides the Leviathan was Printed in 1651. when it was lawful to Write or Preach any thing in matters of Religion ' To which I suppose that some nay many things contained in the Leviathan are Heretical and so judged by the Church and punishable by the Civil Majestrate Not to mention many I will assign these Two The Nature of God and the Mystery of the Individual Trinity are by him Heretically and Impiously explicated He Blasphemously avers God hath parts and makes the Persons of the Holy Trinity to be Temporal not Eternal both which are declared Heretical by the first Article and by the three Creeds The Athanasian Creed is imbodyed into the Common Law and that his opinion concerning the Trinity is Heretical is indubitable waveing the Contests he strives violently to maintain that Nothing in matters of Faith is declared Criminal by the Law or punishable by the Civil Magestrate For faith he ' the Lady Elizabeth in her first year repealed all the Laws Ecclesiastical of Queen Mary and all other Laws concerning the punishing of Hereticks nor did She enact any other punishment in their place ' These lines he could not deliver without that same arrogance by which he explodes the Universityes and accounts most of the Learned men in the World Fools For the Writs de Heretico Comburendo and de excommunicato capiendo were in force he adds in the 2 place it was enacted ' That the Queen by her Letters Patents should give a Commission to the Bishops with several other Persons in her Majesties name to execute his Power ecclesiastical this is granted he proceeds In which Commission the Commissioners were forbidden to adjudge any thing to be Heresy which was not declared to be Heresy by some of the four first General Concils nor was there any thing in that Commission concerning how Hereticks ought to be punished But it was granted to them to declare or not declare to be Heresy or not Heresy as they pleased any of those Doctrines which had been condemned in the four first general Councils for Heresie ' To refute this and what he subjoyns t is requisite that I give the words of the Statute ' They shall not meaning the High Commissioners have Authority or Power to order determine or adjudge any matter or cause to be Heresy but only such as heretofore have been determined ordered or adjudged to be Heresy by the Authority of the Canonical Scriptures or by the first four general Councils or any of them or by any other General Council wherein the same was declared Heresy by the express and plain words of the said Canonical Scriptures or such as hereafter shall be ordered determined or adjudged to be Heresy by the High Court of Parliament of this Realme with the assent of the Clergy in their Convocation ' By this it appears what a lame and false account he gives of the Statute for the Queen and her Parliament did not leave it indifferent to the High Commission to determine what was or what was not Heresy but limits them to declare what was Heresy or not Heresy not only to the four first general Councils as he seems falsely to insinuate but likewise to the express words of Scripture and to the Parliament which he seems to exclude for he omits the mentioning of them ' Nor was there he adds in that Commission any thing concerning how Hereticks ought to be punished ' The High Commission could not inflict capital punishment I hope Mr Hobs will not say there is no crime but t was capitall That the High Commission had power to punish persons in case of Heresy is evident both by the Law of England and practice of that Court. By the Law of England expressly by the Act Elizab that Court was Invested w th all Ecclesiastical power before the Cancelling of the High-Commission the Bishops had a Power to Imprison persons and the Writ de excommunicato capiendo still continues The words of the Act are that ' the Queen or any of her Successors should nominate one or more persons to use exercise and occupy all manner of jurisdictions priviledges or preeminences in any wise touching or concerning any spiritual or Ecclesiastical jurisdiction and to visi● reforme redress order correct and amend all such Errors Heresies Schismes c. ' It was perfect nonsence for a Parliament to enable the English Soveraign to erect a Court to punish and amend Errors and Heresies if the Law of England had not declared what was an Heresy and likewise not to Invest them with power to accomplish such ends which they had not if they could not inflict punishments he returned ' The jurisdiction was onely spiritual ' but to that was annexed a civil punishment Upon excommunication there lay a Writ de excommunicato capiendo that a Person excommunicated for Heresy or Errors in Doctrine by that Writ might be Imprisoned is clear as the day Certainly imprisonment is a civil Punishment This Writ lay against those who were obstinate Offenders in Causes Ecclesiastical is

in Latine upon his Majesties returne In 48 England was totally subdued to the Power of the Rump Ireland in 49. Scotland in 51. was almost reduct by the Rump and his Majesties Army totally routed at Worcester in this year the Leviathan was published was this Book in defence of the Kings Power Spiritual and Temporal when his Majestie was in Banishment ' His Majestie was then devested of all his lawfull Power and Authority and forc't into Exile This Leviathan if the Principles were admited justfied the Actions of his Enemies he casts this Imputation on the Rump that they were obeyed onely for fear in the same book he endeavours to prove that man is not by Nature a lover of Society but at his original is in a state of War The dread of the Evils which are incident to that condition makes him to enter into a Society with others and let it be considered whether if Fear be the great inducement to Government they according to his Principles are to be condemned who out of the same fear obeyed the Rump and that the fundamental law of Nature is self Preservation and for fear that end should not be attained pacts are entred into but if after those pacts that design cannot beaccomplished then pacts are void and therefore if people have a suspicion that the Prince will destroy them they may take up Arms. And if the Prince be devested of his Government the People are no longer obliged to obey him and upon this account of Self-Preservation they are to submit to those who can protect them Upon this reason the taking the Engagement was lawful and it was his honour to present to the English Nation those Principles w ch induced many to take the Engagement Oliver gaining the Protectorship was so pleased with him on those accounts that the great place of being Secretary was profered him If these things be true as unquestionably they are let it then be considered whether any Sober man can believe that the Book called the Leviathan was writ in defence of the Kings Power Temporal and Ecclesiastical since it manifestly asserts the cause of Usurpers It must be granted that Mr. Hobs doth give to the Soveraign all illimited power in things just and sacred But this he gives to all sorts of Government to Aristocracy and Democracy as well as Monarchy A Book to be penned and published by him when all the Kings Dominions were in the Power of those who took up Arms against him which containes these Docttines Pag. 112. ' But in case a great many men have already resisted the Soveraign Power unjustly or committed some Capital Crime for which every one of them expects Death whether have they not the Libertie then to joyn together and assist and defend one another certainly they have for they but defend their lives which the Guilty man may as well do as the Innocent There was indeed Injustice in the first breach of their Duty Their bearing of Arms subsequent to it tho it be to maintain what they have done is no new unjust Act and if it be only to defend their persons it is not unjust at all Pag. 114. The Obligation of Subjects to the Soveraign is understood to last as long and no longer than the power lasteth by which he is able to protect them For the Right men have by nature to protect themselves when none else can protect them can by no covenant be relinquished The Soveraignty is he Soul of the Common-wealth which once departed from the body the members do no more receive their motion from it Pag. 174. When in a War forraine or intestine the Enemies get a final Victory so as the forces of the Common Wealth keeping the Field no longer there is no ther protection of Subjects in their Loyalty then is the Common-wealth dissolved and every man at liberty to protect himself by such causes as his own discretion shall suggest unto him For the Soveraign is the publick Soul giveing Life and motion to the Common-wealth which expiring the Members are governed by it no more than the Carcass of a man by his departed tho immortal Soul For tho the Right of a Soveraign Monarch cannot be extinguished by the Act of another yet the Obligation of the members may For he that wants protection may seek it any where and when he hath it is obliged without fraudulous pretence of having submitted himself out of fear to protect his Protector as long as he is able ' It was so far from defending His Majesties Authority that without Command they plainly justifie the actions of his usurping Enemies No person that hath suckt in Hobs his Principles can be a loyal Subject and hence likewise it appears that he did not ingeniously with his Majesty when he averts in his Apology for his Leviathan in an Epistle dedicated to the King before Problemata Phisica nec vitio vertant quod contra Hostes pugnans c. Let none account me a Criminal that fighting against your Enemies I took what Arms I could and Brandished a two Edged Sword certainly those Propositions Fought against his Majesty and defended the Cause of of his Enemies That in the same book he did write against Bishops and the Doctrine of the Church of England is manifestly proved before In the Common-Prayer book are contained several Doctrines of the Church of England to oppose or deny which as Mr. Hobs doth in the aforesaid book is made Criminal that is to be punished by the Civil magistrate by the first of Queen Eliza. Cap. 2. The Title of which is That there be Uniformity of Prayer and Administration of the Sacraments in which there are these words ' Be it enacted that every Per son or Persons whatsoeverthat shall in any Interludes Plays Songs Rhymes or by any other open words declare or speak any thing depraving or despiseing the same Book or any part thereof or any thing therein contained then the party convicted shall forfeit to the Queen for the first Offence an Hundred Marks ' He concludes this Tract with casting an odious and false Scandal upon the whole Christian Clergy Down from the whole Council of Nice to this present time in these words ' So fierce are men for the most part in dispute where either their Learning or Power is debated that they never think of the Laws but as soon as they are offended they cry out Crucify forgetting what Paul saith even in case of obstinate holding of an Error 2. Tim. 24. 25. The Servant of the Lord must not strive but be gentle unto all men apt to Teach Patient in Meekness Instructing those that oppose if God peradventure may give them Repentance to the acknowledging of the Truth ' T is true both the Bishops and the Presbyterians did accuse that Book in the Parliament of Heresy why could they be fierce their learning and their power being not disputed when he professes in that book he medled not with them their power or learning Those things make not the Clergy fierce t is the Person the Religion the Faith of the Holy Jesus for which the Clergy have been and are still so Zealously contending they are and were piously fierce in opposing prophane Heresies and Blasphemous Impieties the Zeal of the Lord of Hosts hath eaten up those holy Divines their zelous defence of the Doctrine of their master hath not violated the Apostles direction given to the Pastors of the Church 2. Tim. that reaches only those who erred through infirmity not obstinacy Contumacious Hereticks they are bound to oppose withall Holy Zeal and Indignation Did not he blush to averr that they cryed Crucifie when they knew not the Law Could they be ignorant of that Law which they themselves put in execution Their ignorance of the Law did not make them cry Crufie but knowing the Law and Gospel became profest Enemies to those who by their Antichristian opinions Crucifie again the Lord of Glory What Reproach casts he upon Religion when he loads the Christian Divines with such imputations Those that are verst in Ecclesiastical History and have read the Fathers cannot but conclude that the Basil's the Gregory's c. were men as great for Learning and Goodness as the World ever produced their fervent opposition of Hereticks was not contrariant to that Apostoliocal Precept The Holy Christian Divines obeying the Apostolical Commands Titus 3. 10. An Heretick after the first and second Admonition reject 2 Pet. 2. 1. If any one bring another Doctrine receive him not into your house nor bid him good speed down from the Apostles time to this day have and will be till Christ come to Judgement Zealous and Pious opposers of those who privately bring in damnable Heresies denying the Lord that bought them FINIS