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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
A16247	Boanerges. Or the humble supplication of the ministers of Scotland, to the High Court of Pariament [sic] in England	Scott, Thomas, 1580?-1626.	1624 (1624)	STC 3171; ESTC S102729	18,586	38

for telling him his dutie and chid all the rest for being flatterers and parasites Thus doe we say to you seeing our great and considerate Prince hath now condescended to call this high Court of Parliament to heare his subiects grieuances and redresse the enormities of the Commonwealth either cease to sit and come not there at all or entertaine our petitions and relieue our discontents But because we will not affright Israel as the ten explorators of the land of Canaan did with talking of Enachims and giants of iron walls and high towers that is with medling with the Church and gouernment of the Clergie either by finding fault with the setled state or proposing vnto you our maner of discipline according to other reformed Churches of Europe the Confession of Auspurgh the Harmonie of Confession or other fearfull petitions which in the dayes of Queen Elizabeth were presented to the Councell we will at this present contract ourselues and insist onely vpon three things 1. First concerning Non-residents and the ill example which the Clergie giue by their ill liues to weake and ignorant soules 2. Concerning the mixtures of Papistrie in your kingdome or conniuing at the impudencie of such men that with Bels priests eate vp the Kings prouision and make him beleeue the Dragon did it 3. Last of all not to giue eare to the Syrens incantations but tie yourselues close to the mast of true Religion and Christian policie that you be not seduced and brought within the Panthers reach whose sweet sauours and persumes intoxicateth many innocents and ignorants First concerning Non-residents Formalists and other abuses of the Clergie if it please you to remember in the Law of Moses the malefactor or delinquent in any kind saued his life if he could once take hold of the hornes of the Altar yet when the case was against King Salomon it could not serue Ioabs turne but hee perisht immediatly so is it amongst you if you can but name the orders of gouernment and constitutions of the Church you are able to stop any disputants mouth to silence any Preacher but this shall not serue your turne in any cause against the maiestie of heauen but the sentence of our Sauiour shall be denounced against any hypocriticall Formalist vnder the Sunne He that knowes his masters will and doth it not shall be beaten with many stripes If againe he be an ignorant oh reade the prophesie the flying booke came to one and he could not open it it was too fast sealed it came to another opened and hee could not reade it and it came to a third and hee could not vnderstand it Thus out of ignorance or wilfulnesse you haue silenced many worthy spirituall stones of Gods building and traduced those that could not endure the prophane mixtures in religion with the termes of heretiks schismatiks and sectaries termes more affrighting then Iewes Turks and Infidels for their misunderstanding themselues may be excused ex magno inscitia bello yet Corasim and Bethsaida shall answer the matter more fearfully But most gracious Lords notwithstanding these calumniations or the brand of malice by intemperate humours the crime of heresie is not to be imputed to any whose faith doth wholy rely vpon the sure rocke of Gods word they are no Schismatiks who runne for shelter vnder the comfortable shade of the tree of the Church of God such as the Prophets Apostles and primitiue Church describe or such as all the Reformed Churches of Europe take vpon them to defend nor are they to be reputed Sectaries which embrace the truth alwayes one and itselfe and so impregnable that all the assaults of Satan shall not preuaile against it and therefore Right honorable Lords we do here exhibite a petition vnto you so to order the matter that neither we be thus scandalized nor any seruant of God put from his estate maintenance for making a conscience against some friuolous ceremonies which are not things indifferent as now is the phrase if you compell men to the obseruation and therefore to affright them with losse of liuing maintenance or imprisonment is no brotherly punishment nor charitable discipline doe rather as Augustus did by his Senator we beseech you There was a Romane dwelling in the great city named Ouidius Pollio who determining to invite the Emperour to supper made a great preparation but in the washing of his christall glasses the slaue broke one of them for which he was condemned the next day to be cut in peeces and throwne into his fish-ponds The Emperour comming to supper and hearing of this most cruell doome for so triuial an offence cōmanded all the glasses to be brought into his presence and so brake them to peeces This I doe quoth Augustus to preuent further mischiefe which may happen vpon so slight occasions Wee will not apply but leaue all to be throughly searched and discussed and that for two causes 1. The one for that wee are confident you are able in respect of your singular knowledge in the Scriptures and hope you are willing in respect of your honours and sincere pietie toward Religion to convince our errors by Gods word and discouer our wandrings if in any thing we be out of the way 2. Secondly that if you find the testimony confession of faith of honest religious men agreeable with the word of truth you will also agree either to convince vs by writing or giue vs leaue to liue without obloquy or infamous characters in our poore and despised estates or not to clog our consciences as we said with ceremonies and devices of men For what said Stephen King of Poland Princes might command the bodies and liues of their subiects but not their soules and consciences And who I pray you are our greatest enemies but such as liue in pomp state glory feasting with much aboundance and affluencie such as haue pluralitie of Benefices are resident at none of them and scarce preach once in a yeare such as are Prebends in Cathedrall Churches whose liuings are inordinatly spent vpon a number of Drones and deuouring panches Singing-men Organists Queristers and diuers superfluous officers which otherwise might be extended toward the reliefe of poore schollers and the true seruants of God and all this is the more lamentable because many times the place of preaching is vnsupplied and when it is supplied you shall finde at least a dozen Ministers walking in your most frequented Churches without hearing the word of God at all to be briefe such are our enemies as neither know what true zeale or deuotion meanes nor once thinke vpon the propagation of religiō or purity of a sincere life Iudge most gracious Lords whether our soules are truly vexed or no at the enormities and grosse wickednesse of Clergie men when amongst you there are such couetous and ambitious Preachers that retaine divers Benefices offices and Church-liuings in their hands and growing rich are able to purchase Lordships and Mannors when yet you reade the

watching without or their negligence within and politikly enter and then who knowes not what a subtil Serpent raging Lion and watching Dragon hee is And abroad iniurious reports that hee was afraid of the Popes and Spaines mightinesse or durst not trust his owne greatnesse against the factious Papists of England if they should vnite themselues to any forrein Prince when yet he hath had experience of his owne preseruation and the many deliuerances of his predecessor that famous Queene of euerlasting memory for the hand of God is not shortned and he hath still a cloudy pillar by day and a fiery pillar by night to conduct his Israel through the wildernesse If there were no more to make you abhorre Papistrie then the martyrdome of the Saints in Queene Maries dayes it were sufficient Oh horrible crueltie to haue men and women burnt for saying the Lords prayer in the vulgar tongue and instructing their families in the word of God The bloody Bishop Bonner in his owne person burnt a poore seruants hand with a flaming linke for saying a part of a Catechisme and to make the spectacle the more vgly he whipped a man with rods in his garden till his fury made his owne blood spurt out of his paunch The rest were not inferiour vnto him for by a Bishops commandement a woman with childe was put to death and when the infant burst out of her womb one of the guard pitcht him backe againe into the fire vpon the point of a halbert To name the rest were to write out the whole booke but for this and the rest wee end with the Poet Horresco referente Shall we step into France and remember those fearfull times of Guisean massacres especially Henry of Bourbons mariage when the Admirall was slaine of which one writes that there was more blood spilt then wine drank Shall we name the Leagures Oligarchy and holy conuention of Catholiks when they had like to haue expeld their Prince out of the kingdome and draue him to a nooke of Normandie the towne of Deep and onely because he was or seemed a Protestant In these warres and times of wickednes so many outrages cruell blood sheddings were committed that Nero's opening his mothers wombe was not comparable You reade of a battell in heauen betweene Michael and his Angels and the Dragō wherein at last the Diuell and all his complices were discomfited if euer this might be rightly applied it was to Queen Elizabeth of whō it may well be said with the Poet Namque haud tibi vultus Mortalis nec vox hominem sonat ô dea certe For if euer the Cherubins spread their wings ouer the Arke the God of heauen tooke a charge of her person else could she not haue escaped so many attempts so many enemies so many mischiefes pistols poniards poisons threatnings insurrections invasions curses excommunications hate deadly malice all which arose from the poisoned spring of the Papists inventions and flowed into streames of monstrous impietie and Popish absolutions for murder If there were nothing in the world to be a motiue to the abhorrencie of their religion and actions the Catastrophe of Henry the 4. of France surnamed the Great would dissolue an heart of adamant and make men wonder that some exorbitant vengeance did not fall vpon the contriuers for when was this done when he had condescended to their owne conditions the Popes Legat and the Papists intercession but Satan hath his instruments and when the Lord giues vs ouer or we giue ouer the Lord we must endure a strange alteration Who can forget or who can euer be reconciled to any adherents of Popery when the Gun-powder plot shall be questioned and the memory of that Satanicall machination be renewed of which I wil say no more but answer with Solon when there was a motion made for a law against parricides You see saith he how murder is to be punished but no man can beleeue that any dare attempt to kill his father so treasons massacres slaughters and villanous attempts may be proiected but it is impossible that there should be such a forge in hell it self to hammer out so vile a work as the destruction of a whole kingdome at once and the blowing into the aire the Nobilitie and principall wise men of a Cōmonwealth Why Neros wish was not comparable to this to haue all the Senators heads set on one necke that he might diuide it asunder at a stroke If it be thus most gracious Lords be iudges your selues of our poore supplication whether it is not high time to roote out Papistrie and crie with Sara that the sonne of the bondwoman should not dwell with Isaac and so neuer left till Hagar and Ismael were thrust out of doores or to take that order that Popery haue not any further footing in in the Land nor that Man of sin that Antichrist of Rome that sonne of perdition that scarlet Strumpet that painted Iesabel and that doctrine of diuels be neuer admitted againe or taught in England to imposture ignorant soules and seduce innocent people Thirdly concerning Spanish practises and the hate that all the nations of the world beare vnto them for the generall most gracious Lords wee refer you to the seuerall tractates of many Historiographers and the great experience of iudicious trauellers but especially to Paragone and Nouita Pernasso written in Italian to a letter to the Duke of Sauoy and a treatise of Figuira a Portingal Gentleman concerning the conquest of Portingall written in Spanish to the Figre of France the Cheualier of France the Leaguers Oligarchy and the Spanish Monarchy compiled in French and for our owne language to Sir Francis Hastings works and a well composed treatise concerning English fugitiues with diuers of this sort wherein you shall see quasi digito demonstrata as in a table well deliniated the 1. pride 2. irreligion 3. tyrannie 4. treasons 5. ingratitude and 6. inhumanitie of the Spanish nation wherein we hope one day to satisfie vnderstanding men and according to the prouerb of Dies dabit quod dies negat make you partakers of such truths that the best friends which Spaine hath shal confesse the Castilian comes of goatish barbarous blood and all the rest are polluted with Mahumetan mixture and Moorish affinitie And although it may be obiected against such an attempter Non tu plus cercis sed plus temerarius aeudes yet iuuante Deo it may be performed and we will rely on Mordechais answer to Hester that if she will not go in to the King to saue her people God will raise them vp meanes of preseruation from some other part of the earth But to come nearer home and to your selues as the present stands Who knowes not since the treaty with Spaine with what insolency the Papists haue proceeded both at home and abroad at home they haue dared to publish and copy deuised pardons scorned the lawes of the Land concerning Recusancie boasted of publicke assemblies set